I don’t know if it was the removal of a round or just something in the water, but the Action Championship exploded this year to a total of 58 players. This year, the tournament was reduced to five rounds with the expectation of about 40 players. That is the balance that has to be taken into account when designing these events. Because of the number of players, there were several instances where the class prizes had to be split between multiple players. Another round could have allowed the cream of each class to rise above.

Ben Finegold took on the role of player, director, and Champion. A-player, Joseph Gadson, and expert, Faris Gabbara split second place with a score of four and a half.

Action Games

An example of the poisoned pawn:

Robert Hayley (1424)
Bradley Rogers (2075)
Round 1 French: Exchange, C01

Notes by Tim McGrew

1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.exd5

Chess is a funny game. If White were the higher rated player, this might be criticized as being too drawish. But since White is outrated by 600 points, it probably isn't active enough to be a plausible way to play for a draw! Food for thought here...

3...exd5 4.Nf3

I recall having seen a game many years ago in Chess Life where a young master, annotating one of his own games, suggested 4.Bd3 Nc6 5.c3 Bd6 6.Qc2 to avoid a ...Bg4 pin. I don't know exactly what I think of this, but it's something to break the monotony.

4...Bd6 5.Be2

This is too passive. White's bishops belong, ideally, on d3 and f4 in this sort of position. The latter square is no longer available, but White could still play 5.Bd3.

5...Ne7 6.0–0 c6 7.c4 Bf5 8.Nc3 Nd7 9.Qb3

Apart from the placement of his bishop on e2, White has handled the opening reasonably.

9...dxc4 10.Bxc4 0–0 11.Qxb7??

Inexperience tells. It is very hard to resist a poisoned b-pawn, but one must always analyze particularly carefully before grabbing it. The right way to generate play here is to refocus the knights with 11.Ng5 Qe8 12.Nce4 Bxe4 13.Nxe4 and White's position is playable notwithstanding the isolani.

11...Nb6!

The trap snaps shut! Black gains a tempo on the bishop at c4 and prepares ...Bc8 snagging the wayward queen.

12.Bg5

Relatively best was 12.Qa6 Bc8 13.Bxf7+ getting a few pawns for the piece. It is not nearly enough, but if you want to play on in bad positions you have to take what you can get.

12...Nxc4 13.Rfe1 f6

Just a tiny bit inaccurate. 13...Re8! holds everything without dropping the knight on c4.

14.Qb3

This is more like it. White is still lost, but at least he is mixing it up a bit.

14...fxg5 15.Qxc4+ Kh8 16.Nxg5 Nd5!

Black finds the right way to plug the diagonal leading to f7, thereby shutting off all tactics.

17.Ne6

17.Nxd5 cxd5 18.Qxd5 fails to 18...Bxh2+ when the queen comes off.

17...Bxe6 18.Rxe6 Nf4

Here Black misses a chance to end the game at once. 18...Bxh2+! is a stock sacrifice in such positions. The point is that after the nearly forced sequence 19.Kxh2 Qh4+ 20.Kg1 Qxf2+ 21.Kh1 the White king is “edge trapped” and Black can finish things off with 21...Rf4! 22.Re4 Rf6! and there is no way to prevent 23...Rh6+ and mate without ruinous material loss.

19.Re4

19.Re3 is a little more tenacious as the rook can help with the defense along the third rank.

19...Qg5 20.Qf1 Nh3+ 0–1

Black gives White a battle:

Greg Bailey (1900)
Michael Montalvo (1215)
Round 1 Bird, A02

Notes by Bill Calton

1.f4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d3 Nc6 4.g3 Nf6 5.Bg2 e6 6.e4 Be7 7.0–0 Bd7 8.c3 b5

Interesting. Black grabs space without fearing the opening of the long diagonal.

9.e5 dxe5 10.Nxe5

10.fxe5 Nd5 11.c4 bxc4 12.dxc4 Nb6 13.Qe2. I think this the way to an edge for White.

10...Rc8 11.Qf3 0–0 12.Be3 Nxe5 13.fxe5 Bc6 14.Qe2

Alternatively, White could take three pieces for the queen. 14.Qxc6 Rxc6 15.exf6 Qxd3 16.Re1 Rcc8 17.fxe7 Rfe8.

14...Bxg2

Now Black picks up a button.

15.Kxg2 Qd5+ 16.Kg1 Qxe5 17.d4 cxd4 18.cxd4 Qe4 19.Nc3 Rxc3

A spirited move. Black does not fear his higher rated opponent. Rather than give the pawn back, Black gives an exchange, gaining all the key squares in return.

20.bxc3 Nd5 21.Rae1 Nxc3 22.Qg2 Qxg2+

Again, I like that Black is not afraid to trade.

23.Kxg2 Nd5 24.Kf3 b4 25.Rc1? Nc3?

25...Nxe3! 26.Kxe3 Bg5+ 27.Ke4 Bxc1 28.Rxc1 a5. Mike could have transformed his advantage into a favorable rook endgame.

26.Rc2 Bf6 27.Rfc1 Rc8 28.h4 g6 29.Bf2 Rc4 30.d5 exd5 31.Bxa7 d4

I assume the players are low on time by now. ...d4 advances too quickly. The pawn will be vulnerable here. Activating the king is a higher priority.

32.Bb8 Rc8 33.Bf4 Ra8 34.Bh6 Re8 35.Rb2 d3?

This pawn gets stopped before the goal line. 35...Bg7.

36.Rd2 Rd8 37.Ke3 Bd4+ 38.Kf3 Bb6 39.Be3 Bxe3 40.Kxe3 Nxa2 1–0

Oops. There goes a piece. Bailey had to sweat this one though.

An old opening that makes for a wild game:

Jennifer Skidmore (1882)
Mike Carrel (1068)
Round 1
King's Gambit Accepted: Bishop's Gambit, C33

Notes by Tim McGrew

1.e4 e5 2.f4 exf4 3.Bc4

The Bishop's Gambit is Jennifer's patent. One might think that having a predictable opening repertoire would make a player easier to prepare for. But when the line is sharp it is, to be honest, daunting to think of trying to learn it better than someone who has been playing it successfully for a decade.

3...g5

White's third move has already confused Black. This pawn thrust makes more sense when there is a knight on f3 to hit with ...g4 later.

4.d4 Nf6 5.Nc3 Bb4 6.e5 Qe7 7.Nge2

Believe it or not, 7.Kf2! picks up a piece for a net of a couple of pawns. Black has no time for 7...Bxc3 8.exf6! Qxf6 9.bxc3 and if 7...Ng8 then 8.Nd5!+- is a terrific fork that hits e7, c7, and b4.

7...Ne4 8.0–0 Bxc3 9.Nxc3 Nxc3 10.bxc3

Black has succeeded in swapping off White's knights, but the cost in time is ruinous.

10...Nc6 11.a4

The trick in a position like this is to find the right sets of open lines for the remaining pieces. Jennifer realizes that a3 is the natural square for the dark-square bishop, and a4 defends it.

11...b6

Black does not understand what is happening or else badly underestimates the danger. 11...f6 is more or less forced, when Black's queen has some options.

12.Ba3

Oh no! 12...d6 allows White to open the e-file (that bit about finding lines for the pieces again), but it's actually better than what happens next.

12...Qd8 13.Qh5

Now things fall apart since Black cannot defend f7 without losing material.

13...Nxe5 14.dxe5 d5 15.exd6 Qf6 16.Rfe1+ Kd8 17.dxc7+ Kxc7 18.Re7+ Bd7 19.Rd1 Rad8 20.Bd6+ Kb7 21.Qf3+ Kc8 22.Ba6# 1–0

As long as Jennifer keeps winning games like that, her opening repertoire doesn't need any changing. Hmm...maybe the rest of us should take it up too...!?

Proof the you can play just about anything in the opening, if you know what you're doing:

Les LeRoy Smith (1800)
Ben Finegold (2622)
Round 2
Queen's Pawn, D00

Notes by Tim McGrew

1.d4 d5 2.f4 Bg4!?

In more than a quarter of a century of playing and writing about chess, I have never seen this move. The immediate comparison is to the Anti-Dutch line 1.d4 f5 2.Bg5!? Ben's willingness to play it here indicates that he has no fear of unexplored territory.

3.Nf3

I have to wonder what would have happened after 3.h3 One insane line runs 3...Bh5 (3...Bf5 keeps the bishop from being trapped.) 4.g4 e5!? 5.gxh5 (5.Bg2 may be better.) 5...Qh4+ 6.Kd2 Nf6 and White, despite his extra piece, needs to exercise some caution in order not to lose his shirt.

3...Bxf3 4.exf3 e6 5.Bd3 Bd6 6.0–0?

How can this natural developing move be a blunder? Yet it is. 6.c3.

6...Qf6!

Very alert. Since the d-pawn is hanging with check, White must lose a pawn.

7.c3 Bxf4 8.Qa4+ c6 9.b4 Ne7 10.Nd2 Qh6 0–1

Ben doesn't miss a trick. White must allow his castle wall to be breached since the knight doesn't have either f3 or f1 available. Not one of Les's better games, but from Black's side a demonstration of the value and power of treating every opening position in a tactically concrete way.

White pries opening the kingside:

Reynaldo Santiago (2000)
Kent Hershberger (1714)
Round 2
Scandinavian: Modern (Bronstein), B01

Notes by Tony Palmer

1.e4 d5

The Scandinavian = Center Counter is a popular choice these days, even though it breaks the time-honored rule against early queen development when Black plays 2...Qxd5. Instead 2...Nf6 is common, planning to recapture on d5 with the knight.

2.exd5 Nf6 3.Bb5+

3.c4 c6 4.Nc3 cxd5 5.d4 transposes to the Caro-Kann, Panov-Botvinnik Attack. 3.c4 e6!? is the Scandinavian Gambit, leading to a very tricky game for both sides.

3...Bd7 4.Be2

White's maneuver served to develop the king bishop at e2 while Black's queen bishop at d7 disrupts communication for now. So Black regains the pawn.

4...Nxd5 5.d4 e6 6.Nf3 Be7

6...Bd6 7.c4 Nf4 8.Bf1!? Ng6 9.h4 h5 10.Nc3 Nc6 11.Be3 (Ivanov-Bryan, Philadelphia 2000) and White had a slight plus.

7.0–0 0–0 8.c4 Nf6 9.Nc3 Bc6 10.Ne5 h6

Consider 10...Be8 preserving the queen bishop for now.

11.Nxc6 Nxc6 12.Be3 Bd6 13.f4 Re8 14.Qd2 Bb4 15.a3 Ne4!

A nice Zwischenzug = In-Between Move forcing the queen to relocate.

16.Qd3 Nxc3 17.bxc3 Bf8

The present position is analogous to a Nimzo-Indian middlegame, except Black still has the king bishop but not the queen bishop, which is usually the other way around. White's doubled c-pawns will be a weakness for the endgame, however the half open b-file gives compensation. Both sides have chances, yet White has an advantage in space plus the two bishops.

18.Bd1 Ne7 19.Bf2 Nf5 20.g4 Nh4!?

The knight is offsides here and requires two pieces (bishop and queen) for defense. 20...Ne7 would be more prudent.

21.Bc2 g6 22.Qh3

Good move order by White, forcing ...g6 first before playing Qh3, which takes away g6 as an escape square and forces Black's next. See how these subtle details prove crucial for improving White's position.

22...Be7 23.Rae1 Bf6 24.Re4 b6 25.Rfe1 Rc8 26.f5!

Fine pawn sacrifice to pry open kingside lines. Black cannot recapture 26...exf5?? since that loses the queen to 27.Rxe8+.

26...gxf5 27.gxf5 Nxf5 28.Rg4+ Kh7

28...Kh8? 29.Bxf5 exf5 30.Qxh6#

29.Be3

See how White's pieces are pointed right at Black's king, plus the Nf5 is now pinned and cannot help defend. This sets the stage for a sparkling finish.

29...Bg7 30.Bxf5+ exf5

White to Move

31.Rxg7+!

Excellent! The kingside dark squares are now fatally weak.

31...Kxg7 32.Bxh6+ Kg8

32...Kh7 33.Bg5+ wins the queen. Instead White mates.

33.Qg3+ Kh7 34.Qg7# 1–0

Outstanding game by Santiago.

Anthony Holden (1526)
Anthony Bee (1863)
Round 2
Irregular Queen's Pawn: Franco-Indian, A40

Notes by Tim McGrew

I'm always curious to see what Anthony Holden will come up with next. His openings are the strangest things this side of Clyde Nakamura, but even when they are dodgy Holden often wins by creating sheer tactical chaos. Like here, for instance...

1.d4 e6 2.d5

If there is a name for this, it's unknown to me.

2...exd5

The most natural move, luring White's queen into the center. If Black wants to get into the spirit of weird chess, 2...Bc5!? is an enterprising try.

3.Qxd5 c6

3...Nf6 gives the game the flavor of a Scandinavian (Center Counter) with colors reversed.

4.Qe5+ Qe7 5.Qg3

Holden isn't interested in exchanging queens. That is not the route to maximum chaos!

5...d5 6.Bf4 Na6 7.Nf3 Nf6 8.Bg5?

White overlooks something important here. 8.Nc3 is a better idea, though Black can still cause White some trouble with 8...Nc5 heading for e4.

8...Bf5?

But so does Black. The best and most punishing move is to take advantage of the bishop's absence from the queenside with 8...Qb4+ 9.Nbd2 (9.Bd2 Qxb2 10.Bc3?? Qc1#) 9...Qxb2 10.Rb1 Qxc2-+ and it is very doubtful that White can recover.

9.e3 Bxc2

9...Nb4 looks more dangerous.

10.Bxa6 Bxb1?

Hereabouts the game begins to turn in White's favor. Exchanging the active bishop for White's unmoved knight does not do much for the Black position.

11.Rxb1 bxa6 12.0–0

Somehow Black has wound up with bad pawns and a woeful deficit in development.

12...h6 13.Bxf6 Qxf6 14.Qc7! Bd6??

Probably this can be chalked up to time pressure, but possibly it is just the general weirdness of the opening taking its toll. 14...Qd6 would keep Black in the game, though White regains his pawn: 15.Qb7 Rb8 16.Qxa6 Qc7 17.Rfc1².

15.Qxc6+ Kf8??

15...Ke7 16.Qb7+ Ke6 17.Nd4+ Ke5 18.f4+ Ke4 19.Qb3 would be a comical finish, with White threatening 20.Qc2+ and a quick mate.

16.Qxa8+ 1–0

White turns the tables Black tricky opening:

Joseph Gadson (1970)
Anthony Holden (1526)
Round 3
Sicilian, B27

Notes by Tim McGrew

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e5?!

I'm very tolerant of obscure gambit ideas, but this one doesn't strike me as very promising. There are a few tricks, however.

3.Nxe5 Qe7 4.Nf3 d5

This is the point: Black does not intend to expose his queen, but instead wants to recapture on e4 with a pawn.

5.Bb5+!?

White concentrates on getting castled as rapidly as possible. 5.e5 Bg4 6.Nc3 Bxf3 7.Qxf3! Qxe5+ 8.Kd1! is practically winning since the threat of 9.Bb5 (or 9.Bc4) followed by occupation of the e-file is very serious.

5...Nc6?!

Falling in with White's plans. 5...Bd7 may be a little better, but after 6.Bxd7+ Nxd7 7.0–0 dxe4 8.Re1 0–0–0 9.d3 f5 10.dxe4 fxe4 11.Nc3 Black is losing control of the game.

6.0–0! dxe4 7.Re1

White's response has been classic: give back the pawn but gain a lead in development.

7...Bg4

This attack on the knight would be more impressive if the e-pawn weren't doubly pinned.

8.Bxc6+ bxc6 9.Nc3 Bxf3 10.gxf3

White reasons that Black cannot deliver checkmate with his queen alone.

10...Qg5+ 11.Kh1 f5 12.d3

I sometimes think this is the nastiest sort of move that White can make. The piece that actually moves is doing something obvious -- increasing the pressure against e4. But that isn't the real threat...

12...Bd6 13.Bxg5

Oops. We can draw the curtain now.

13...Ne7 14.Bxe7 Bxe7 15.Nxe4 fxe4 16.Rxe4 Kd7 17.d4 Rad8 18.dxc5+ Kc8 19.Rxe7 1–0

White wins a little material, but was it worth the price?:

Randy Ho (2007)
Ben Finegold (2622)
Round 4
Pirc: Austrian (Kurajica), B09

Notes by Randy Ho

1.e4 d6 2.d4 Nf6 3.Nc3 g6 4.f4 Bg7 5.Nf3 0–0 6.Be3 c6

The other book moves are 6...c5, 6...Nc6, and 6...b6.

7.Qd2

I thought about playing a4, to prevent Black from playing b5, but I had planned on castling queenside and did not want to disturb my queenside pawns. My opening book gives 7. Bd3.

7...b5 8.e5

8.Bd3 was better.

8...Ng4 9.Bg1 f6 10.h3 Nh6 11.0–0–0 a5 12.exf6 exf6 13.d5 b4

I had originally planned to play 14.Na4, but here I saw 14...c5, which kills my position. After looking at the position some more, I saw a way to win the exchange and went for it.

14.dxc6

I think that I got too excited about winning an exchange against my high-rated opponent International Master Ben Finegold, that I failed to realize that Black gets way too much compensation.

14...bxc3

Played instantly. Ben was not convinced that winning the exchange was good for White.

15.Qd5+ Kh8 16.c7 Qxc7 17.Qxa8 Nc6

Now I realized that my queen was in danger of being trapped (Bb7).

18.Ba6

I looked at 18.Nd4 Bb7 19.Ne6. But after say, 19...Qf7, White has two pieces hanging.

18...cxb2+ 19.Kb1 Nb4! 20.Bd3 Be6

Things don't look so good for me...

21.Qa7 Qc3! 22.Qxa5

The only way to stop ...Bxa2 mate

22...Bxa2+ 23.Qxa2 Nxa2 24.Bd4 Rb8!

Ignoring the threat on the queen.

25.Rhe1

“Threatening” Re8+ Rxe8 Bxc3, even though White is still totally lost after that.

25...Qxd4 26.Nxd4

I could have prolonged the game a bit with 26.Re8+ Rxe8 27.Nxd4 but after 27...Nc3+ 28.Kxb2 Nxd1+, it's hopeless for White.

26...Nc3# 0–1

White converts a positional advantage into a pawn:

Bradley Rogers (2075)
Dan Haidukewych (1652)
Round 4
Grünfeld: Kemeri (Bogolubov), D78

Notes by Tony Palmer

1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 c6 3.g3 g6

More common is 3...d5 but there is substantial transposition here. The point behind Black's set-up is control of the central light squares, and potentially capturing ...dxc4 plus protecting that pawn with ...b5. In this system sometimes Black tries an early ...h5 gaining kingside space.

4.Bg2 Bg7 5.0–0 0–0 6.c4 e6

I could not find examples of ...e6 preceding ...d5 in my reference database. One advantage of a Slav formation for Black (...c6 & ...d5) would be developing the queen bishop before playing ...e6, thus 6...d5 would be more flexible.

7.Nc3 d5 8.Bg5 Qc7 9.cxd5 exd5 10.Rc1 Be6

White was threatening 11.Bxf6 Bxf6 12.Nxd5 winning a pawn.

11.Bf4 Qd8 12.Ng5 Bd7 13.Qb3 Qb6 14.Qxb6

An interesting decision. White's queen might prove more useful than Black's, also the trade opens the a-file for Black's queen rook. White's plan is to systematically attack the queenside pawns.

14...axb6 15.a3 Re8 16.e3 h6 17.Nf3 Bc8?!

Black clears the d7-square for the queen knight, but you never want to make such undeveloping moves after the opening. Consider 17...Bf5 or 17...Bg4 giving Black more space.

18.Bc7 Nbd7 19.Rfd1 Bf8 20.h3 b5

The pawns control the queenside light squares while the Bf8 and Nd7 cover the dark squares. Chances are even, except White is developed better. Watch how Rogers utilizes this positional plus masterfully.

21.g4 Re6 22.g5 hxg5 23.Nxg5 Re8 24.Rc2 Kg7 25.e4!

Thematic and strong. White opens lines to exploit his advantages in development and space.

25...dxe4 26.Ngxe4 Nxe4 27.Nxe4 f6 28.d5!

It is instructive how White is attacking Black's pawn formation. The goal is to isolate and win a pawn.

28...c5

28...f5 29.Nc3 Ra6 might have held better. Now White breaks down the defense.

29.Bd6 Bxd6 30.Nxd6 Re5 31.Nxb5

Mission accomplished; however a pawn plus is not a guaranteed win.

31...b6 32.Nc7 Ra7 33.Ne6+ Kh7 34.Nd8 Ra4 35.Nf7 Re7 36.Nd8 Ba6 37.d6

The passed pawn rules the board.

37...Re2 38.Rxe2 Bxe2 39.Re1 Bb5 1–0

And the rest was unreadable.

This game was for the Action Championship:

Ben Finegold (2622)
Bradley Rogers (2075)
Round 5
Benko Gambit, A57

Notes by Tony Palmer

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 b5

The Benko Gambit is certainly an enterprising choice by Black. White selects a very solid system, delaying the pawn grab for a few moves.

4.Nf3 g6 5.Qc2 d6 6.e4 Bg7 7.cxb5 0–0 8.Nc3 a6 9.a4 axb5 10.Bxb5

This specific nuance of recapturing on b5 with the bishop scores well and allows White to castle safely. Many of Black's successes in the Benko Gambit involve wide-open queenside counterplay with White's king stuck in the center.

10...Na6 11.0–0 Nb4 12.Qe2 Bd7

12...Ne8 13.h3 Nc7 14.Bg5 h6 15.Bd2 Nc2 16.Rac1 Nd4 17.Nxd4 cxd4 18.Nb1 (Korchnoi-Felgaer, Buenos Aires 2001) and White won. 12...Ne8 13.Bg5 Nc7 14.Bc4 Ba6 15.Rac1 (Hoffman-Giardelli, Pinamar 2001) and White won.

13.Ra3

Unconventional rook development but very effective.

13...Bxb5 14.axb5 Qc7 15.Bg5 Ng4 16.Rfa1

White has a clear advantage.

16...Rab8 17.Bf4 c4?!

Missing White's next. The advanced c-pawn is unsupportable and soon lost. Perhaps 17...Rb7 holding the second rank and preparing to double would improve.

18.Ra7 Rb7

18...Qc5 19.Rxe7

19.Rxb7 Qxb7 20.Qxc4 Qb6 21.Bg3 Nc2?

White was winning but this loses to a Discovery tactic.

22.Na4! Qa5 23.Qxc2

White is up a clear piece and consolidates the win.

23...Qxb5 24.h3 Nf6 25.Nd4 Qa6 26.Nc6 Re8 27.Rd1 Nh5 28.Bh4 Bf6 29.Bxf6 exf6 30.Nc3 Nf4 31.Qd2 g5 32.Kh2 Qc8 33.Nd4 Re5 34.Nf5 Rxf5!? 35.exf5 Qxf5 36.Qe3 Kg7 37.Qe4 Qd7 38.Ne2 Ng6 39.Ng3 Nh4 40.Nh5+ 1–0

If 40...Kf8 41.Nxf6 and 41.Nxh7+ win quickly. On other king moves, 41.Qxh7+ Kxh7 42.Nxf6+ gets queens off. Smooth performance by White.

Black gambits, then sacs a piece to try the attack, but runs out of steam:

Greg Bailey (1900)
William Rhee (1928)
Round 5
Bird: From (Lasker), A02

Notes by Tim McGrew

1.f4

Bird's opening seems to be all the rage in Michigan nowadays. Perhaps Les Smith's return to active tournament play has something to do with it?

1...e5 2.fxe5 d6 3.exd6 Bxd6

Severin From's Gambit is one of theory's thorny children. I'm all in favor of the spirit of the sacrifice -- for one measly pawn Black gets to make a good developing move that threatens a forced mate by move three, which you don't see in most openings -- but White seems to have sufficient resources in the main lines.

4.Nf3 g5

This is by far the wildest line of the From. 4...Nf6 and 4...Nh6 are tamer alternatives.

5.c3!?

Something of a sideline. Usually one sees 5.d4 here. But Bailey's move was played by Bird himself in the 1890's.

5...g4 6.Qa4+ Nc6 7.Qe4+ Be6 8.Nd4

We're on the leading edge of theory here. The only game I can find that matches this one so far is a high-level Internet encounter.

8...Qh4+?

When the pawn moves up to block at g3, the rook on h1 will be defended by the queen on e4. Black may have missed this detail, since it leaves him with a bad game now.

9.g3 Bxg3+

There is little choice: White has threats at c6 and e6, so whatever Black does he must do with check.

10.hxg3 Qxg3+ 11.Kd1 Nf6 12.Qg2 Qd6 13.Nxe6 Qxe6

White is up in material but needs to untangle a bit.

14.Rh6 Qf5 15.d3 0–0–0 16.Be3

16.Kc2 looks very reasonable as well.

16...Nd5 17.Bg1 Qg5 18.Qh2 Nf4

18...g3 is worth a punt.

19.Be3 g3 20.Bxf4 Qxf4 21.Qh3+ Kb8 22.Nd2 Ne7

Black is struggling to find active ways to break through the solid White center.

23.Rh4 Qe3 24.Re4! Qg5 25.Nf3 Qf6 26.Qxg3

With the fall of this pawn, Black's last hopes for counterplay are dashed.

26...Rhg8 27.Qf4 Nf5 28.Re5 Rg1 29.Kd2 1–0

29.Nxg1 looks really effective too. In either case Black has nothing left to play for.