Chess Tip of The Day 431

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One of the great virtues of the two bishops is their ability to control the opponent's rooks, both from a defensive (control of invasion squares, effective defence of vulnerable points ...) and an attacking point of view.

Lluís Comas Fabregó, True Lies In Chess

Bishop's Green

AM flying to Nuremberg today, before traveling on to the Bavarian mountain resort of Bischofsgrün for the 43rd seniors' championship of Upper Franconia.

The tournament, run by ChessOrg.de, is for players born before 1972, and has 50 entries, including two Fide masters, and a German who, despite having a national rating of 2013, does not have a Fide rating.

There are nine mostly-morning rounds over nine days, with a time control of 40 moves in 100 minutes, a further 30 minutes to finish, and a 30-second increment throughout.

There is excellent walking in the Fichtel mountains - here I am last year at the source of the Main river

League Chess

PLAYED on board six (of eight) for Battersea against Hammersmith 2 in London League Division Two last night.

Sergiy Teslya (2059) - Spanton (1954)

Sicilian Grand Prix Attack

1.e4 c5 2.Nc3 g6 3.f4 Bg7 4.Nf3 Nc6 5.a3!?

There are 404 examples of this move in ChessBase's 2026 Mega database, including being played by Magnus Carlsen. The move is Dragon1's second choice, at least for a while; Stockfish18 prefers 5.a4!?

5...d6 6.Bc4 e6 7.d3

This has been tried by David Howell and Alexander Morozevich, but Carlsen both times preferred castling.

7...Nge7 8.Ba2!? 0-0

This is the commonest continuation in Mega26, but Stockfish18 suggests 8...b6, 8...d5 or 8...Rb8. Dragon1 at first quite likes castling, but comes to prefer 8...b6 or 8...Rb8.

How should White proceed?

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9.h4!?

This is the engines' top choice.

9...d5 10.h5 Nd4 11.hxg6

This has been played by a 2623, and comes to be Dragon1's top choice, at least for a while, but Stockfish18 suggests apparent-novelties in 11.Qd2!?, 11.Bd2 and 11.Ne2!?

11...fxg6 12.Ng5!? h6 13.Nf3

The engines reckon this apparent-novelty is a slight improvement on Anton Demchenko (2623) - Eduardo Jesús Méndez Fortes (2250), Chess.com Blitz 2023, which featured 13.Nh3, after which 13...b5 14.Ne2 dxe4 was at least equal for Black, according to the engines (0-1, 53 moves).

13...Kh7

Strengthening h6, but weakening g5.

14.Qd2!? dxe4?!

The engines strongly dislike this. Stockfish18 gives 14...Qc7 15.Nxd4 cxd4 16.Ne2 Bd7, claiming a slight edge for Black, although Dragon1 reckons it is White who has at least a slight edge.

15.dxe4 Nxf3+ 16.gxf3 Qxd2+ 17.Bxd2 e5?!

This is Dragon1's top choice, for a short while, but the engines come to agree 17...b6 is best, albeit awarding White the upper hand.

What should White play?

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18.Ne2?!

The engines reckon White has a positionally won game after 18.fxe5!? Rxf3 19.e6!?, eg 19...Rf6? loses to 20.Bg5. Stockfish18 gives as best 19...b5!? 20.Bg5 c4!?, but 21.Bxe7 Bxe6 22.0-0-0 is clearly winning. Dragon1 suggests 19...a5, but 20.Bc4 (Stockfish18 reckons 20.Bg5 is even stronger) Nc6 21.Nb5 Nd4 22.Nxd4 cxd4 23.0-0-0 is very strong.

18...Bd7?!

Probably better are 18...exf4 and 18...Nc6.

19.0-0-0 Rad8?

Possibly best is 19...Nc6, although the engines prefer White after both 20.c3 and 20.f5!?, eg 20.f5!? gxf5 21.c3!? f4!? (this is best, according to the engines) 22.Bxf4! Bc8 23.Bd2 Rxf3, when they agree White has more than enough for a pawn, but they disagree on how to proceed.

20.Be3

How should Black continue?

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20...b6

The best the engines can come up with is 20...Bb5!?, when 21.c4 Rxd1+ 22.Rxd1 Bc6 23.Bxc5 Re8 24.Bxa7 wins two pawns.

21.fxe5 Rxf3?

The engines give 21...h5, but White has several strong continuations, including 22.Nf4 Bh6 23.Nd5 Bxe3+ 24.Nxe3 Rxf3 25.Ng4!?, when Black has no good answer to Nf6(+).

22.Bg5 Bf8

There is no satisfactory move..

The game finished:

23.e6 Kg7 24.Bxh6+ Kf6 25.Bxf8 1-0

Hammersmith 2 won the match 4.5-3.5.

My Battersea Season 2025-6

Date       Event  Colour  Rating  Opp's Rating  Score  Season's Perf

16/9/25   CLL       W       1936         1952             0           1552

18/9/25   CLL       W       1936         1797             =           1675

16/10/25 CLL       W       1889         2047             0           1665

23/10/25 CLL       B        1889         1823             1           1805

18/11/25  LL         W       1891         1980             =           1840

20/11/25  CLL      W       1891         1866             1            1911

25/11/25  BCC     B        1891         1817             1            1955

9/12/25    LL         W       1904         1982             1            2008

16/12/25  LL         B        1904         2046             0            1968

18/12/25  CLL      B        1904         2066             1            2018

6/1/26      CLL      W       1929         2150             =            2066

7/1/26      LL         W       1929         1971             =            2058

8/1/26      CLL      B        1929         1800?           =            2038

13/1/26    LL         B        1929         2035             1            2067

27/1/26    LL         B        1929         2089             0            2041

29/1/26    CLL      B        1929         1882             =            2031

3/2/26      BCC     W       1928         1836             1            2043     

12/2/26    CDL      B        1928        1890              1            2057

25/2/26    LL         B        1928        1863              =            2047

26/2/26    CLL      B         1928        2015             0            2025

3/3/26      CDL      B        1914        1976              1            2043

24/3/26    BCC     W        1921        1780             1            2049

26/3/26    CLL      B         1921        1942             =            2045

31/3/26    CDL      B        1921         2091             0            2030

7/4/26      BCC     B         1938        1505*            1            2030

9/4/26      CLL      W        1938        2012              =           2029

30/4/26    CLL      W        1938        2285              0           2023

7/5/26      CLL      W        1939        2007              1           2037

9/6/26      LL         B         1954        2059              0           2024

CLL: Central London League

LL: London League

BCC: Battersea club championship

CDL: Croydon & District League

I also have a win-by-default in the Central London League

*A win against a 1505 counts as a 1905 performance, so I have excluded this game from calculating my season's performance as it would lower my average despite me winning.

Miniatures 38

IN this occasional series I am going through my decisive games of 20 moves or fewer.

M Wadud (136 BCF) - Spanton (147 BCF)

Upminster Major 1991

Bishop's Opening/King's Gambit

1.e4 e5 2.Bc4 Bc5 3.f4!?

This move goes back at least to a game of Frank Marshall's in 1925. The position can also arise from a King's Gambit via the move-order 1.e4 e5 2.f4 Bc5 3.Bc4!?

How should Black respond?

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3...Bxg1

Marshall's opponent played 3...d6, but Stockfish17 and Dragon1 suggest a novelty in 3...d5!?

4.Rxg1

The zwischenzug 4.Qh5! is preferable.

4...Qh4+ 5.g3?

Better is 5.Kf1, when 5...Qxh2?! 6.Nc3 leaves Black dangerously behind in development. However, Black can instead get on with development, eg 5...Nf6, with what the engines reckon is the upper hand.

5...Qxh2 6.Kf1?!

The unpalatable 6.Rf1!? is probably better.

6...d5! 7.f5!?

The threat of 7...Bh3+ with a quick mate means White does not seem to have anything better, but White is losing a piece, to go with an already lost pawn.

7...dxc4 8.d4 cxd3 9.Qxd3 Bd7 10.Na3 Nf6 11.Bg5 Ng4 12.Qf3?! Qh5 13.Ke2!?

The second bishop cannot be saved, emphasising the desperateness of White's position.

13...Qxg5 14.Nb5? 0-1

LESSON: White in the King's Gambit needs to constantly be aware of the danger of allowing ...Qh4+.

Miniatures 37

IN this occasional series I am going through my decisive games of 20 moves or fewer.

Spanton (147 BCF) - A Darrington (?)

Highbury (London) Rapid 1991

Pirc

1.e4 d6 2.d4 Nf6 3.Nc3 g6 4.Be2!?

A modest continuation, but it develops a piece, and has been played by many grandmasters, including Garry Kasparov. One idea is to play a quick Be3, without fearing ...Ng4.

How should Black respond?

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4...e6!?

The main move is 4...Bg7. Stockfish17 and Dragon1 do not like the text, which is not in ChessBase's 2025 Mega database.

5.Nf3 Bg7 6.Bg5 0-0!? 7.Qd2 Nc6 8.0-0-0

White's large lead in development and greater space give a positionally won game, according to the engines

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8....Bd7?

The engines suggest 8...a6 or 8...d7.

9.h4

Even stronger is 9.e5.

9...Qb8 10.h5 Ng4 11.hxg6!? Nxf2?

This forks White's rooks, but Black has to play 11...fxg6 to have any sort of chance of escaping defeat.

12.Rxh7 f6?!

Again ...fxg6 is better, but still losing.

13.Bh6 1-0

LESSON: there are many mainstream defences in which Black falls well-behind in development or space, but none, as far as I know, in which Black falls behind in both.

Chess Tip Of The Day 427

In your study of chess, use a tournament-size board and tournament-size chessmen as much as possible.

Cecil Purdy, Road To 2000 - How To Become An Expert

Miniatures 36

IN this occasional series I am going through my decisive games of 20 moves or fewer.

D Jerome (101 BCF) - Spanton (147 BCF)

Highbury (London) Rapid 1991

King's Gambit

1.e4 e5 2.f4 Bc5 3.Nf3 d5!? 4.fxe5? dxe4

How can White keep damage to a minimum?

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5.d4?

The engines give 5.Ng5!, when, after 5...Qxg5 6.d4 Qh4+!? 7.g3 Qe7 8.dxc5 Qxe5, White is a pawn down, but at least has the bishop-pair.

5...exf3 6.dxc5

At first glance White might seem OK, but the white queen cannot be saved

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6...f2+ 7.Ke2 Bg4+ 0-1

LESSON: in the King's Gambit, White is particularly sensitive on the h4-e1 diagonal.

Chess Tip of The Day 426

The ideal division of a player's thinking time is to study general considerations when his opponent's clock is going, and to study concrete problems when his own clock is going.
Alexander Kotov, Think Like A Grandmaster

Summer Time

MY tournament plans for the summer are more-or-less decided.

Jun 12-20 Bischofsgrün, Bavaria (55+). Nine rounds (mostly at 09:00) over nine days. 40 moves in 100 minutes, with 30 minutes to finish, and a 30-second increment throughout.

Last year's playing conditions

Jul 6-12 Magdeburg, Saxony-Anhalt (65+). Seven rounds (mostly at 10:00) over seven days. 40 moves in 90 minutes, with 30 minutes to finish, and a 30-second increment throughout.

A new event for me, but the city has a lot of history (image: Schwenke/andreaslander.de)

Aug 3-9 British Championships, Warwick University (65+). Seven rounds (mostly at 14:30) over seven days. 40 moves in 90 minutes, with 30 minutes to finish, and a 30-second increment throughout.

Despite its name, the university is on the outskirts of Coventry, which used to have one of my favourite Costa Coffees, although it had closed when I played at a 4NCL event last month

Aug 16-23 Olomouc, Czechia (65+). Nine rounds (mostly at 16:00) over eight days. 40 moves in 90 minutes, with 30 minutes to finish, and a 30-second increment throughout.

Large sections of Olomouc's city walls are still standing after 800 years

Aug 27-Sep 4 European Senior Teams, Crete (65+). Nine rounds (all at 15:00) over nine days. 40 moves in 90 minutes, with 30 minutes to finish, and a 30-second increment throughout.

I have played in Crete before, but at Amateur Chess Organization events

Chess Tip Of The Day 425

Do not spend time in the opening expanding on the queenside unless you can contain your opponent's central advances.

Sunil Weeramantry & Ed Eusebi, Best Lessons Of A Chess Coach