Bloomington Normal Chess Club

2022.06

2022.06 Uploads:

2022.06.03
2022.06.04
2022 Championship
2022.06.23.ARC
2022.06.30

[Event ""] [Site "ARC"] [Date "2022.06.30"] [Round "5"] [White "Alford, Joseph"] [Black "Newman, Steven"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C68"] [PlyCount "125"] [EventDate "2022.06.05"] [SourceDate "2022.06.30"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Bxc6 dxc6 5. O-O Bd6 6. d4 Bg4 7. dxe5 Bxf3 8. Qxf3 Bxe5 9. Qb3 b5 10. Be3 Nf6 11. Nc3 O-O 12. Rad1 Qe7 13. Bg5 {f3 is correct. Here both players miss Bh2+; Kh2 Ng4+ and Qg5} h6 14. Bxf6 Qxf6 15. Rd3 Rfe8 16. Ne2 {A trap. If Bb2; Rf3 and Black has trouble defending b2 and f7 } Rad8 17. f4 Rxd3 18. cxd3 Bd4+ 19. Kh1 Bb6 20. e5 {Qc2 and Ng3 both favor Black, but here both players miss Re5 when the f-pawn is pinned.} Qd8 21. Qc3 Qd5 22. a3 Rd8 {f6 is better} 23. Rf3 c5 24. Rg3 Qe6 25. h3 c6 26. Rf3 a5 27. f5 Qe8 28. Nf4 b4 29. Qc4 {Qe1 Now pawns begin to fall} Qxe5 30. Qa6 Rb8 31. Qc4 Qxf5 {opening lines for White. Qb2 is much better. Play on the side where you have the advantage.} 32. axb4 axb4 33. Ne2 Qd5 34. Qf4 {I considered b3 Qc4; dc but two pawns seemed too much.} Rb7 35. Ng3 Bc7 36. Qg4 Bxg3 {I remember thinking I can take the rook or I can take the bishop and since he has to stop the mate then I can take the rook. Black should have played Ra7 or Kh7} 37. Rxg3 f5 38. Qg6 Qe5 39. Rf3 Rf7 {Ra7 Attack is better than defense.} 40. Qxc6 Rf6 41. Qc8+ Kh7 42. b3 g5 43. Qd7+ Kg6 44. Qd8 f4 45. Qg8+ Kh5 {Kf5; g4 is mate!} 46. Qc4 Re6 47. Kh2 Kg6 48. Qc2 Qd4 49. Qc4 {I thought I could probably hold the draw one pawn down after Qc4 dc. Fritz is not impressed. Re1 would force White to trade and White’s queen-side pawns would die.} Re3 50. Qg8+ Qg7 {For a couple of hours trades would have won for Black. Now they do not. Kh5 was better} 51. Qxg7+ Kxg7 52. Rxe3 fxe3 53. Kg3 e2 54. Kf2 e1=Q+ 55. Kxe1 Kf6 56. Ke2 Ke5 57. Ke3 h5 58. g3 Kd5 59. h4 {But this loses. gh; gh Ke5 and White’s king-side falls apart. Correct was Ke2} g4 60. Ke2 Kd4 61. Kd2 Kd5 62. Ke3 Ke5 63. Ke2 1/2-1/2 {A four hour game!} You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

[Event "Offhand Game"] [Site "ARC"] [Date "2022.06.23"] [Round "4"] [White "Alford, Joseph"] [Black "Newman, Steven"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "D60"] [PlyCount "65"] [EventDate "2022.06.02"] [SourceDate "2022.06.23"] 1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. Bg5 Be7 5. e3 O-O 6. Nf3 Nbd7 7. Bd3 {Black’s problem in the QGD is that he must work to develop his queen-side pieces, usually with a6, dxc4, b5 and Bb7. There is no time for side jaunts.} Bb4 8. O-O c5 {losing a pawn because of the pin on f6. Fritz suggests dxc4 followed by a6 and b5} 9. cxd5 Bxc3 10. dxe6 fxe6 11. bxc3 Qc7 {Breaking the pin, but putting the queen on a file that will eventually be opened. Fritz likes Qe8 or cxd4} 12. Qb3 Nb6 13. Bf4 Qe7 14. Ne5 Nbd5 15. Bg3 cxd4 16. cxd4 Nh5 17. Qc2 g5 {Well-played! White was looking for Bh7+ with Ng6+ to follow} 18. Nc4 {Black is going to remove the bishop before it can get to d6, but White is a pawn up and Black still has two pieces undeveloped.} Nxg3 19. fxg3 Bd7 20. Qe2 Nf6 21. Ne5 Bc6 {This creates a queen-side weakness that cannot be protected.} 22. Nxc6 bxc6 23. Rac1 Qd6 24. Rc2 Kg7 25. Rfc1 Rfc8 26. Bb5 cxb5 27. Rxc8 Rxc8 28. Rxc8 a6 29. Qc2 Nd5 30. e4 Nb4 31. Qc7+ Qxc7 32. Rxc7+ Kg6 33. a3 {after Nd3 comes Rc6} 1-0 You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

[Event "2022 TCCC Championship" ] [Site "The Proving Ground"] [Date "2022.06.04"] [Round "1"] [White "Smith, Jeffrey"] [Black "Alford, Joseph"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C50"] [WhiteElo "1435"] [BlackElo "1920"] [PlyCount "56"] [EventDate "2022.06.04"] [SourceDate "2022.06.04"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nc3 {No King’s Gambit? Maybe a Vienna with f4 next?} Nc6 3. Nf3 {Nope, no Vienna either.} Nf6 4. Bc4 Bc5 5. O-O d6 {I like this line. I was not aware that Fritz already shows a Black advantage.} 6. d3 Bg4 7. Be3 Nd4 8. Bxd4 Bxd4 9. h3 Bh5 10. Rb1 {He wants to move the knight, but this is a serious loss of time. Fritz shows only Rb1 and a4 with Black advantage in both lines.} c6 {Fritz says this throws away most of the Black advantage. He suggests either Rb8 or Bc3. I don’t care for either move.} 11. a3 Qd7 12. Na2 Bb6 {I want that bishop for my attack.} 13. Re1 g5 {White has made too many non-essential moves. Time for punishment.} 14. Qd2 Bxf3 15. Qxg5 Rg8 16. Qxf6 {For just a second White is a pawn up, but his game is totally lost.} Bxg2 {I forgot about the second bishop! Fritz shows Rg2+; Kf1 Rf2+; Kg1 Rg2+; Kf1 Rg1 mate!} 17. Bxf7+ {At the cost of a piece, White breaks up the mating attack. White threatened Bf3 with mate in a few moves.} Qxf7 18. Qxf7+ Kxf7 19. Kh2 Bf3 20. Rg1 Bxf2 21. Rxg8 Rxg8 22. h4 Rg2+ {Again, Fritz is more efficient. Rg4 and Rh4 mate} 23. Kh3 Kg6 {Black has his entire army surrounding the enemy king, but his pieces are all tied up. He still totally misses the mate in the previous 2 notes. But he does have an idea} 24. Rf1 Kh5 25. Nb4 {White can recover his piece with Rf2 Rf2; Kg3 but he loses his entire queen-side. The knight can be activated through c1, but not in time to save the game.} a5 26. Na2 Rg3+ 27. Kh2 Kg4 28. Rxf2 Rh3+ {and mates next} 0-1 You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

[Event "2022 TCCC Championship" ] [Site "The Proving Ground"] [Date "2022.06.04"] [Round "1"] [White "Frank, Cole"] [Black "Clodfelter, Brian"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C87"] [WhiteElo "1512"] [BlackElo "816"] [PlyCount "63"] [EventDate "2022.06.04"] [SourceDate "2022.06.04"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 d6 4. O-O Bg4 5. h3 Bh5 6. Re1 Nf6 7. d3 Be7 8. c3 a6 9. Ba4 O-O 10. Nbd2 Re8 11. Nf1 d5 12. Ng3 Bxf3 13. Qxf3 b5 14. Bb3 dxe4 15. Nxe4 {White should capture with the pawn. Now d3 is a target. But White is already looking at c6} h6 {This drops a piece.} 16. Nxf6+ Bxf6 17. Qxc6 Qd6 {Qd3 looks more logical. You don’t trade when you are behind.} 18. Qxd6 cxd6 19. Bd5 Ra7 20. Be3 Rae7 21. a4 Bg5 22. axb5 Bxe3 23. fxe3 axb5 24. Ra5 b4 {Hoping to make some weaknesses on the b-file} 25. c4 Kf8 26. Ra6 Rb8 27. Rea1 f6 28. Ra8 Ree8 29. Rxb8 Rxb8 30. Ra7 g6 31. Rf7+ Ke8 32. Rxf6 1-0 You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

[Event "2022 TCCC Championship" ] [Site "The Proving Ground"] [Date "2022.06.04"] [Round "1"] [White "Newman, Steven"] [Black "Johnson, Jeremy Scott"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C42"] [BlackElo "1512"] [PlyCount "88"] [EventDate "2022.06.04"] [SourceDate "2022.06.04"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. Bc4 {This cedes the advantage to Black. Ne5 is most common. I generally play Nc3 to get to an opening I know.} Nxe4 4. Nxe5 d6 {d5 to protect f7} 5. Nxf7 Qh4 6. Qf3 Ng5 7. Qe3+ {Qe2+ to protect c4} Be7 8. Nxh8 Qxc4 9. d3 Qg4 10. O-O Nc6 11. c3 Be6 12. f4 Nf7 13. Nxf7 Bxf7 14. Nd2 O-O-O 15. Ne4 Kb8 16. Bd2 h6 17. Rf3 Bh4 18. Be1 Re8 19. Qd2 d5 20. Nf2 Qf5 21. g3 Bf6 22. g4 Qd7 23. Re3 Rxe3 24. Qxe3 d4 25. Qg3 a6 26. Ne4 dxc3 27. bxc3 Bd5 28. Nxf6 gxf6 29. d4 Qe7 30. Qf2 Nd8 {Fritz suggests Qe4} 31. Rb1 Qa3 {Now Qe4 is even more effective} 32. Rb4 Nc6 33. Qb2 {When ahead, trade.} Qxb2 34. Rxb2 Ne7 35. c4 Bf3 {Black could just take the c-pawn} 36. h3 Ng6 37. f5 Nf4 38. Kf2 {Kh2} Nd3+ 39. Kxf3 Nxb2 40. Bc3 {c5} Nxc4 41. d5 a5 {Black is in serious trouble. Nd6 and the knight can get to f7 to protect the h-pawn, but there are just too many White pawns.} 42. Bxf6 Kc8 43. Bg7 Kd7 44. Bxh6 Nb6 1-0 You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

[Event "2022 TCCC Championship" ] [Site "The Proving Ground"] [Date "2022.06.04"] [Round "2"] [White "Alford, Joseph"] [Black "Newman, Steven"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "B01"] [WhiteElo "1920"] [PlyCount "59"] [EventDate "2022.06.04"] [SourceDate "2022.06.04"] 1. e4 d5 2. exd5 Nf6 3. Bb5+ Nbd7 4. Nc3 a6 5. Ba4 b5 6. Bb3 Bb7 7. Nf3 Nc5 8. O-O Nxb3 9. axb3 Nxd5 10. d4 Nf6 11. Bg5 h6 12. Bh4 g5 {Where is Black going to castle? Fritz prefers e6} 13. Bg3 Bg7 14. Qe2 O-O 15. Rfe1 Re8 16. Rad1 Nd5 17. Nxd5 Bxd5 18. c4 bxc4 19. bxc4 Bxf3 20. Qxf3 Bxd4 {Fritz prefers a5 or Rb8} 21. Be5 {Preventing e5 is good enough, but Fritz shows Qh5 or c5 (preventing Black’s c5)} c5 22. Qe4 Qb6 23. Bxd4 cxd4 24. Qxd4 Qg6 {Fritz much prefers a queen trade or Rab Fritz much prefers a queen trade or Rab} 25. b4 Rad8 26. Qc3 {Fritz likes the Queen for two rooks trade.} Rxd1 27. Rxd1 e5 28. c5 e4 {I couldn’t play Rd6 because of Qb1 mate! Now, I can.} 29. Rd6 Re6 {Played a bit too fast. Qh5 and another mate protects a6} 30. Rd8+ 1-0 You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

[Event "2022 TCCC Championship" ] [Site "The Proving Ground"] [Date "2022.06.04"] [Round "2"] [White "Johnson, Jeremy Scott"] [Black "Frank, Cole"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "D26"] [WhiteElo "1512"] [BlackElo "1557"] [PlyCount "62"] [EventDate "2022.06.04"] [SourceDate "2022.06.04"] 1. e4 c5 2. d4 cxd4 3. c3 {White gambits a pawn for rapid development.} d5 {Fritz likes Black after dc; Nc3 Nc6} 4. exd5 Qxd5 5. cxd4 Nc6 6. Nc3 {Nf3 Now Black can play Qd4 with pawn and development.} Qd8 7. Nf3 e6 8. Bc4 Nf6 9. O-O Bb4 10. Qa4 Bxc3 11. bxc3 O-O 12. Be3 Bd7 13. Qc2 Rc8 14. Rad1 {Rb1 or Be2} Ne7 15. Bb3 Ng6 16. Ne5 Nd5 17. c4 Nxe5 18. dxe5 Nxe3 19. fxe3 Qc7 20. Rf3 Bc6 21. Rh3 h6 22. Qe2 {The pawn that now falls is less important than the fact that White’s game is riddled with weaknesses. Note the difference in effectiveness of the two bishops.} Qxe5 23. Rd4 Rfd8 24. Rg4 Qa1+ 25. Kf2 Qf6+ 26. Rf4 Qc3 27. Qg4 Rd2+ 28. Kg3 Rxg2+ 29. Kh4 Rxg4+ 30. Kxg4 Qe5 31. c5 Qg5# 0-1 You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

[Event "2022 TCCC Championship"] [Site "The Proving Ground" ] [Date "2022.06.04"] [Round "2"] [White "Clodfelter, Brian"] [Black "Smith, Jeff"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C66"] [WhiteElo "816"] [PlyCount "94"] [EventDate "2022.06.04"] [SourceDate "2022.06.04"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. Nc3 Nc6 4. Bb5 d6 5. O-O Bd7 6. d3 Be7 7. Bg5 h6 8. Bxf6 Bxf6 9. Nd5 a6 10. Nxf6+ {This trade and the next do not improve White’s position. Ba4 should be played here.} Qxf6 11. Bxc6 Bxc6 12. Re1 g5 13. d4 O-O-O 14. dxe5 {d5, but White cannot be faulted for wanting to open lines for more trades} dxe5 15. Qe2 g4 16. Nd2 Qg5 17. Nb3 {Rad Develop the last piece} Rd6 18. Rad1 Rhd8 19. Rxd6 Rxd6 20. Nc5 Rd2 21. Qc4 Qf6 22. Nd3 Qg5 23. Qxf7 Rxc2 24. Qf5+ {A pawn up, White decides to trade. Fritz prefers Qb3 Rd2; Qc3} Qxf5 25. exf5 e4 26. Nb4 Rxb2 27. Nxc6 bxc6 28. g3 Rb5 29. f6 {A wasted movesince the rook still stops the pawn.} Rf5 30. Rxe4 Rxf6 31. Rxg4 c5 32. Rc4 Rc6 33. a4 {Now White wastes a move. f4 is correct.} Kd7 34. f4 Kd6 35. Kf2 Kd5 36. Rc1 Rb6 37. Rd1+ {Each check brings the Black king closer to queening the c-pawn.} Ke4 38. Re1+ Kd3 39. Re5 {Fritz is still showing White advantage after Re3+, but the longer it thinks the less that advantage gets. Now it shows a Black advantage.} c4 40. Rc5 {f5 with Re6 to follow, but it is already too late.} c3 41. Rxc7 c2 42. f5 Rb2 43. Kf3 Kd2 44. Rd7+ Kc1 45. f6 Rb6 46. Kg4 {f7} Rxf6 47. h4 Rc6 0-1 You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

[Event "2022 TCCC Championship" ] [Site "The Proving Ground"] [Date "2022.06.04"] [Round "3"] [White "Frank, Cole"] [Black "Alford, Joseph"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C78"] [WhiteElo "1557"] [BlackElo "1920"] [PlyCount "107"] [EventDate "2022.06.04"] [SourceDate "2022.06.04"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. d3 {Preventing Alford’s favorite 0-0 Nxe4} Bc5 {The e-pawn is safe. Bc6 dc; Ne4 Bf2+; Kf2 Qd4+} 6. O-O d6 7. c3 Bg4 8. Re1 b5 9. Bb3 h6 10. Nbd2 O-O 11. Nf1 Qd7 12. Be3 Nh5 13. Bxc5 dxc5 14. Ne3 Nf4 15. Nd5 Rad8 16. Nxf4 {Fritz says this cedes the advantage to Black. He prefers a4 or h3} exf4 17. Bd5 Ne5 {Adding to the pin and Black is winning. Except that he isn’t. Fritz suggests massive trades Bf3; Bc6 Bd1; Bd7 Rd7; Rad when White still has a weakness on d3.} 18. Nxe5 Qxd5 {Black has dropped a piece without compensation and the only way to avoid dropping a second piece is to trade queens. Why not resign? Well, there is one slim chance left. If I can tire him out enough, then Smith might beat him in the last round making a 3-way tie for first. Also, my back only stops hurting when I’m playing.} 19. Nxg4 Qg5 20. f3 Rd6 21. Qe2 h5 22. Nf2 Rg6 23. Nh3 Qh4 24. Kh1 Rd8 25. Qf2 Qf6 26. Rad1 Qe5 27. d4 cxd4 28. cxd4 Qf6 29. Qd2 c5 30. Qxf4 cxd4 31. Qxf6 Rxf6 32. Rd2 Rc6 33. Nf4 g6 34. Nd5 Rc4 35. h3 Kg7 36. Red1 f5 37. Rxd4 Rxd4 38. Rxd4 fxe4 39. fxe4 Rc8 40. Rd2 Rc6 41. Kg1 Kf7 42. Kf2 Ke6 43. Ke3 g5 44. Rf2 Rc1 45. Rf6+ Kd7 46. Rxa6 Rc2 47. Nf6+ Ke7 48. Nxh5 Rxg2 49. Kf3 Rh2 50. Kg4 Rxb2 51. Kxg5 Rg2+ 52. Kf5 b4 53. Nf4 Rf2 54. h4 1-0 You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

[Event "2022 TCCC Championship"] [Site "The Proving Ground"] [Date "2022.06.04"] [Round "3"] [White "Smith, Jeffrey"] [Black "Newman, Steven"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C32"] [WhiteElo "1435"] [PlyCount "87"] [EventDate "2022.06.04"] [SourceDate "2022.06.04"] 1. e4 e5 2. f4 d5 3. exd5 e4 {For his pawn, Black restrains White’s king-side development. Fritz prefers ef, but this line has been approved for centuries.} 4. d3 Nf6 5. dxe4 Bg4 {Now White has the entire center for nothing. Ne4 was correct.} 6. Be2 h5 7. h3 Bxe2 8. Qxe2 Nbd7 9. Nc3 Qe7 10. Nf3 O-O-O 11. Bd2 Nc5 12. Ng5 g6 13. O-O-O Bh6 14. Rde1 Nfd7 15. d6 {To activate his knight and bishop. Fritz says Rhf or h4} cxd6 16. Nd5 Qf8 17. Bc3 Rg8 18. Qc4 Nb6 {Losing a piece. White trades away Black’s attack without losing his own attack. Kb8 was correct.} 19. Nxb6+ axb6 20. b4 Bxg5 21. fxg5 Rd7 {Fritz says Black can limit his loss with b5; Qb5 Na6} 22. bxc5 bxc5 23. Bf6 Kc7 24. Qd5 Qa8 25. e5 Qa3+ 26. Kb1 Qb4+ 27. Qb3 Kc6 28. Qxb4 cxb4 29. exd6 Rxd6 30. Re7 Rd2 31. Rxf7 Rxg2 32. Rg7 {This loses the g-pawn. White needs the second rook.} Rxg7 33. Bxg7 Rxg5 34. Bh6 Rg2 35. h4 Kc5 36. Rf1 Kc4 37. Kb2 Rg4 38. Bg5 Rg3 39. Rf6 Rxg5 40. hxg5 h4 41. Rxg6 h3 42. Rh6 h2 43. Rxh2 b5 44. g6 1-0 You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

[Event "2022 TCCC Championship" ] [Site "The Proving Ground"] [Date "2022.06.04"] [Round "3"] [White "Clodfelter, Brian"] [Black "Johnson, Jeremy Scott"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C47"] [WhiteElo "816"] [BlackElo "1512"] [PlyCount "102"] [EventDate "2022.06.04"] [SourceDate "2022.06.04"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. Nc3 d6 {Nc6} 4. d4 Nc6 {Good last move, but not so good this move. Better here is ed; Nd4 Bd7 and … Nc6} 5. dxe5 dxe5 6. Qxd8+ {Black must now choose between forfeiting castling or losing the e-pawn.} Nxd8 7. Nxe5 Bb4 8. Bd3 O-O 9. Bd2 Ne6 10. a3 Bd6 11. Nf3 Bc5 12. Be3 {0-0 Why accept doubled isolated pawns?} Bxe3 13. fxe3 Nc5 14. O-O-O Ng4 15. Rd2 {Rhe avoids the fork and also protects e3} Nxe3 16. Re1 {After h3 Black rescues his knight with f5; Rhe f4} Ng4 17. h3 Nf6 18. e5 Nxd3+ 19. Rxd3 Nd7 20. Rd2 c6 21. e6 fxe6 22. Rxe6 Nc5 23. Re7 b5 {Seriously weakening the queen-side. Bh3 now would be good.} 24. Rc7 Bxh3 25. gxh3 Rxf3 26. Rxc6 Rf1+ 27. Rd1 Rxd1+ 28. Nxd1 Na4 29. Rc7 a5 30. Nc3 Nxc3 31. bxc3 {Rc3 retains the pawn structure. Doubled isolated pawns are hard to protect.} Rb8 32. Kb2 h5 33. Kb3 h4 34. Ra7 a4+ 35. Kb4 Rc8 36. Kxb5 Rxc3 37. Rxa4 g5 38. Ra6 Kf7 39. a4 Rxh3 40. c4 Rb3+ 41. Kc5 h3 42. Rh6 g4 43. a5 g3 {Black’s queening strategy is excellent.} 44. Rxh3 g2 45. Rxb3 g1=Q+ 46. Kb4 Qa7 47. c5 Qb7+ 48. Ka4 Qd7+ 49. Kb4 Qd4+ 50. Kb5 Ke6 51. Rb4 Qd7+ {The only drawn game of the tournament. We analyzed for a bit, but were unable to make progress for either side. Fritz says Black is a piece ahead, but also could not find a win. I tried Crafty. It quickly won a pawn, but could not force a win.} 1/2-1/2 You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

[Event "2022 TCCC Championship" ] [Site "The Proving Ground"] [Date "2022.06.04"] [Round "4"] [White "Smith, Jeffrey"] [Black "Frank, Cole"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "B30"] [WhiteElo "1435"] [BlackElo "1557"] [PlyCount "126"] [EventDate "2022.06.04"] [SourceDate "2022.06.04"] 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 g6 3. Bc4 Nc6 4. Nc3 Bg7 5. d3 d6 6. Bd2 Nf6 7. O-O O-O 8. Qc1 {Fritz is not impressed by this idea of removing Black’s defending bishop. He prefers a4 or a3 to preserve the white squared bishop.} Bg4 9. Ng5 Ne5 {And here Fritz woould remove that bishop with Na5} 10. Bb3 Rc8 11. f4 Nc6 12. h3 Bd7 13. g4 {Fritz allows that might be a bit much. He likes Qe1 or Be3} Nd4 14. f5 Nxb3 15. axb3 a6 16. Nf3 Qc7 17. Bh6 e6 18. Bxg7 Kxg7 19. g5 Nh5 20. f6+ Kg8 21. Qe1 {Black’s king has both a black and a white suit of armor. White wants his queen at h6 and his knight at f4 or g3.} Bc6 22. Qh4 d5 23. e5 d4 24. Ne4 Bxe4 25. Qxe4 Qc6 26. Qh4 b5 27. Ne1 Qd5 28. Nf3 Qc6 29. Rae1 Rfd8 30. Re4 Rd5 31. Rfe1 Kf8 {Black’s castle doesn’t look so safe anymore} 32. Nd2 Ke8 33. Nf1 Kd7 34. Ng3 Nxg3 35. Qxg3 Rh8 36. Qh4 Kc7 37. Qh6 Qe8 38. Rh4 Rd8 39. Qg7 Qg8 40. Rh6 Kc6 41. Re4 Kd5 42. Reh4 Qxg7 43. fxg7 Rhg8 44. Rxh7 Kxe5 45. Rh8 {And there goes the advantage. Fritz says Re4+ Kf5; h4 favors White.} Kf5 46. Rxg8 Rxg8 47. Rh8 Rxg7 48. Ra8 Kxg5 49. Rxa6 Rg8 50. Rc6 Ra8 51. Rxc5+ Kh4 52. Kg2 Ra2 53. Rxb5 Rxb2 54. Rc5 f5 55. Rc4 e5 56. b4 e4 57. dxe4 d3 58. e5+ Kg5 59. Kf3 dxc2 60. h4+ Kh6 61. e6 Kg7 62. b5 Kf6 63. Kf4 Rb4 {And the pawn queens. We thought at the time that the game should protably be drawn if White advances his b-pawn, but Fritz says the game is Black’s to lose. Anyway, a draw would still make Cole Frank the 2022 Twin City Chess Club champion. Congratulations, Cole!} 0-1 You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

[Event "2022 TCCC Championship" ] [Site "The Proving Ground"] [Date "2022.06.04"] [Round "4"] [White "Alford, Joseph"] [Black "Johnson, Jeremy Scott"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C65"] [WhiteElo "1920"] [BlackElo "1512"] [PlyCount "69"] [EventDate "2022.06.04"] [SourceDate "2022.06.04"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O a6 5. Bxc6 bxc6 {Capture with the d-pawn to free bishop and queen.} 6. Nxe5 Bb7 {To allow d6. Here Ne4 is trouble after Re1.} 7. d4 {d3 and White is a clear pawn up.} d6 8. Nc4 {Poorly played. After Nd3 Black cannot capture on e4 because of Re1 d5; f3. Fritz prefers Nc4 to Nd3. } Nxe4 9. Re1 d5 10. Ncd2 {Fritz prefers Na5 when Black has 2 pieces in trouble.} c5 {Be7 now the pinned knight dies.} 11. f3 f5 12. fxe4 fxe4 {de; when Qh5+ can be met with g6} 13. Qh5+ g6 {Black is clearly in shock.} 14. Qe5+ Qe7 15. Qxh8 O-O-O 16. Qe5 cxd4 17. Qxe7 Bxe7 18. Nb3 Bf6 19. Nc5 {When ahead, trade} Bc6 20. Nxa6 Bb5 21. Nb4 Rf8 22. Nxd5 Be5 23. a4 Bc4 24. Nb4 c5 25. Nc6 Bd6 26. Nd2 Bd5 27. Nxe4 Bxc6 28. Nxd6+ Kd7 29. Nc4 Bb7 30. Bg5 Rf5 31. Re7+ Kc6 32. Na5+ Kd5 33. Rae1 {Looking for Rd7 mate which Black blocks. Fritz prefers c4+ Kd6; Nb7+} Bc8 34. c4+ dxc3 35. Rd1# 1-0 You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

[Event "2022 TCCC Championship" ] [Site "The Proving Ground"] [Date "2022.06.04"] [Round "4"] [White "Newman, Steven"] [Black "Clodfelter, Brian"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C57"] [BlackElo "816"] [PlyCount "90"] [EventDate "2022.06.04"] [SourceDate "2022.06.04"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Nf6 4. Ng5 Nxe4 ({Black survives} 4... d5 5. exd5 Nxd5 6. Nxf7 Kxf7 7. Qf3+ Ke6 8. Nc3 Ncb4 9. Qe4 c6 10. a3 Na6 11. d4) 5. Nxe4 {Nf7} d5 6. Bb5 dxe4 7. Bxc6+ bxc6 8. O-O Bc5 9. Nc3 Bf5 10. Ne2 Qg5 11. d3 Qg6 12. Be3 Bb6 13. Ng3 exd3 14. Nxf5 Qxf5 15. Qxd3 Qxd3 16. cxd3 Rd8 17. Rfd1 Rd7 18. Kf1 Ke7 19. Ke2 Ke6 20. b4 f5 21. g3 Rf8 22. f4 Bxe3 23. Kxe3 exf4+ 24. gxf4 Re8 25. Kf3 Rd4 26. Rac1 Kd7 27. a3 g6 28. Rc4 Rd5 29. h4 Kd6 30. a4 a6 31. Rc2 Rd4 32. Rc4 Rd5 33. d4 a5 34. Rdc1 Rc8 35. Rxc6+ Kd7 36. R1c4 axb4 37. R6c5 Rxc5 38. Rxc5 Rb8 39. Rb5 {Losing. The b-pawn will queen. White still had chances with Rc2 b3; Rb3} Rxb5 40. axb5 Kd6 {The fastest win is b3} 41. Ke3 Kd542. Kd3 h5 43. b6 cxb6 44. Kc2 Kxd4 45. Kb3 Ke4 0-1 You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

[Site "https://lichess.org/X2eteLIi"] [Date "2022.06.03"] [Round "1"] [White "JosephOAlford"] [Black "bitterroot88"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "B01"] [WhiteElo "1500"] [BlackElo "1125"] [PlyCount "125"] [EventDate "2022.06.03"] 1. e4 d5 2. exd5 Nf6 {Avoiding getting the queen chased after Qd5; Nc3 Qa5 (or Qd8)} 3. Bb5+ {The goal is to block the d-file to protect d5. After c4 c6; dc Nc6 White has a pawn, but Black has compensating pressure along the d-file.} Bd7 {Nbd7, chase the bishop, and Nb6 hitting d5 again.} 4. Bc4 c6 5. Nc3 cxd5 6. Nxd5 Bc6 7. Nxf6+ exf6 8. Nf3 Be7 {Black could cause some consternation with Qe7+; Qe2 Bf3} 9. O-O O-O 10. d3 {Not d4 Bf3 though Fritz says d4 is as good as d3.} (10. d4 Bxf3 11. Qxf3 Qxd4 12. Qxb7 Nd7 13. Bb5 Rfd8 14. Be3 Qg4 15. Bxa7) 10... Nd7 11. Nd4 Ne5 12. Nxc6 Nxc6 13. a4 {Retaining the advantage of two bishops by providing a retreating square. Fritz decries this waste of time, suggesting Qf3 or Re1} Ne5 14. Ba2 Qd7 15. d4 Ng6 16. c3 Rfe8 17. Be3 b6 18. Qh5 Bf8 {Qa4; Bf7+} 19. Bc4 a6 20. Qe2 Qb7 {I expected Nf4; Qf3. Fritz likes f5 or Qc8} 21. Qc2 Nh4 {oops! Totally missed that idea!} 22. d5 Rac8 23. Qd3 Bd6 {Not enough. Black probably has to return to a8} 24. Bxa6 Qc7 25. Bxc8 Bxh2+ 26. Kh1 Rxc8 27. Bd4 {Good, but Fritz suggests the much stronger moves Qe4 or f4.} Be5 28. Bxe5 Qxe5 29. Qh3 Nf5 30. Rfe1 {Sacrificing a few pawns to remove the queen’s defense of the knight.} Qxd5 31. Rad1 Qc5 32. b4 Qxf2 {Suddenly instead of up an exchange and a pawn, I’m up an exchange and down a pawn. Even more importantly, my king is in trouble. But Fritz likes this plan! In fact, now he suggests Rf1 Ng3+; Kh2 Nf1+; Rf1 when White threatens both queen and rook (and mate).} 33. Qd3 g6 34. a5 {attempting to distract the attack on my king, but this should actually lose because it allows his rook to join that attack.} Ng3+ {correct is ba; ba Rc5 with the rook heading for the h-file} 35. Kh2 Nh5 36. a6 Nf4 37. Qg3 {The danger is over. Now it’s just mopping up.} Qxg3+ 38. Kxg3 Nh5+ 39. Kf2 Rxc3 40. a7 Rc8 41. Re7 Ra8 42. Rb7 Kg7 43. Rdd7 Kh6 44. Rb8 Rxa7 45. Rxa7 f5 46. Rxf7 f4 47. Rxb6 Kg5 48. Rxh7 Ng3 49. Rg7 Ne4+ 50. Kf3 Nd2+ 51. Ke2 Nc4 52. Rgxg6+ Kh5 53. Rh6+ Kg5 54. Rbg6+ Kf5 55. b5 Na5 56. b6 Nb7 57. Kf3 Ke5 58. Rg7 Nc5 59. Rg5+ Kd4 60. Rd6+ Kc4 61. Rc6 Kd4 62. Rgxc5 Kd3 63. Rd6# 1-0 You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.