Chess Tip Of The Day 399

A desire to create complications at an early stage in the game sometimes urges a player into unwarranted experiments.

Alexey Sokolsky, The Modern Openings In Theory And Practice

Impressions

ALTHOUGH I caught two trains to cover the 20 miles from Bregenz to Friedrichshafen, on the way back I used only one train, walking the remaining six or so miles.

It was hot in the sun, but there were a few moments worth stopping for to take photos, including one of a 16th-century church.

Better Late Than Never

I DISCOVERED today, more than three months after the event, there is a new version of the free engine Stockfish.

The creators reckon Stockfish18 is 46 elo better than Stockfish17, although, as far as I can see, they do not claim how much stronger it is than the improved Stockfish17.1.

Nevertheless, it would be churlish to look this gift horse in the mouth, and it can be downloaded free here.

However, be warned, I found I could only get it to work in ChessBase by deleting all previous versions of Stockfish from my computer. Until I had done that, no versions of the engine would work!

Stockfish icon - designed by web developer Klein Maetschke

Hard To Believe ...

... but I may have solved the problem with Blogger's faulty feeder gadget, and without having to be spoonfed the solution by geeks (in a nice way) who are so much more knowledgeable about computer software than I can ever hope to be.

At the moment Chess Tip Of The Day seems to be automatically updating in the top-right corner of the web version of Beau Chess.

The test will be whether it continues working tomorrow.

The High Life

CAUGHT a train from Bregenz, crossing the Austro-German border to Lindau, and from there took another train to Friedrichshafen, home of the Zeppelin.

Monument to Ferdinand von Zeppelin

Zeppelin coming in to land

Touchdown

Taking off

Co-pilot addresses the passengers

Farmland

The cockpit

Lindau Island

Marina

Lake Constance

Insight into how a river delta is formed

The airship's shadow stands out starkly

We were apparently traveling at 35 knots (about 40mph or 65kph) at a height of 1,000ft (305 metres).

Chess Tip Of The Day 398

When you have a dangerous initiative, it is important not to cash it in for material too soon.

John Nunn, Grandmaster Chess Move By Move

Getting There (Bregenz)

CAUGHT British Airways' 11:45 from London City to Zurich, transferring to a train direct to Bregenz, arriving at my hotel at about 17:15 central European time.

Floating opera stage under construction for this year's production of Verdi's La Traviata

Finished stages of past years

Chess Tip Of The Day 397

The fewer pieces there are on the board, the more squares will become available for the heavy pieces, and consequently their strength increases for every exchange.

Jacob Aagaard, Excelling At Positional Chess

League Chess

FACED a junior (born 2012) on board one (of five) for Battersea 3 against Streatham 2 in Central London League Division Three last night.

Spanton (1939) - Charlie Pearson (2007)

Maróczy Bind

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 3.c4 Nc6 4.d4 cxd4 5.Nxd4 Nf6 6.Nc3 Bb4 7.Nxc6 bxc6 8.Bd3 d5!?

This is quite a popular alternative to the mainline 8...e5.

How should White respond?

*****

*****

*****

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9.cxd5

Stockfish17.1 and Dragon1 marginally prefer 9.exd5 exd5 9.0-0, but the text has a point that is perhaps not immediately obvious.

9...cxd5??

There are 28 examples of this blunder in ChessBase's 2026 Mega database, including by a 2405 and a 2384 (the latter went on to win, albeit both games were at blitz). Black should play 9...exd5 or 9...Bxc3+.

10.Qa4+ Bd7 11.Qxb4 Rb8 12.Qa3 Bc6!? 13.e5!? Ng4 14.Bf4 Qb6 15.0-0 Rb7!?

15...Qxb2 can be answered by 16.Qd6!? and 16.Qxa7, as well as 16.Qxb2.

16.h3 Nh6 17.Rfd1 Qd8!? 18.Qd6!? Qxd6 19.exd6 Rxb2

Black has won a pawn, and has hopes of winning a second, but the engines reckon White's advantage is worth more than a rook

*****

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20.Rab1 Rxb1 21.Rxb1 Kd7 22.Bb5 f6 23.Bxc6+ Kxc6 24.Nb5 e5

Not 24...Rb8? as White has 25.Nd4+ (and 25.Nxa7+).

25.Bxh6 gxh6 26.Nxa7 Kxd6 27.Rb6+ Ke7 28.Kf1 Ra8 29.Rb7+ Kd6 30.Rxh7 Kc5 31.Rb7 d4 32.Ke2 e4 33.Kd2 h5 34.h4 f5 35.g3 Rf8 36.Rb5+ Kc4 37.Ke2 Rf7

The engines give 37...f4 38.gxf4 Rxf4 39.Rxh5 d3+ 40.Ke1, when 40...d2+!? 41.Kxd2 Rxf2+ 42.Ke3 Rxa2 leaves White a pleasant choice between saving the knight, and letting it go to get a winning rook-and-pawn ending (it is winning, despite White having a rook's pawn, because Black's king is cut off from interfering with the pawn's progress to h8).

White to play and win

*****

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38.Nc8!

38.Ra5 may also win, but is far less convincing.

38...Rf6

This is best, according to the engines.

39.Rb6 Rf8 40.Rc6+ Kd5?!

Allowing a speedy finish.

41.Ne7+ Ke5 42.Ng6+ Kd5 43.Nxf8 Kxc6 44.Ne6 Kd5 45.Nf4 Kc4 46.Kd2 1-0

Streatham 2 won the match 3-2.

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

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.

Chess Tip Of The Day 396

You should not eat a heavy meal during the hour before you play. Digestion will influence the amount of blood going to your head.
Jacob Aagaard, Excelling At Chess