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

East Realm

AM making final preparations for traveling to Bregenz, an Austrian town on Lake Constance (Bodensee in German), where I will be playing in the seniors.

It is for men born before 1967 and women before 1972, with seven rounds over seven days, all starting at 09:30.

There are 100 entries, with four international masters, including Josef Přibyl, of Přibyl Defence fame (1.e4 d6 2.d4 Nf6 3.Nc3 c6). There is also an open, of nine mainly afternoon rounds, with 120 entries.

The seniors starts on Sunday with a time control of 40 moves in 90 minutes, a further 30 minutes to finish, and a 30-second increment throughout, but I am going tomorrow as I have a special treat in store on Saturday.

Photo Christiane Setz for Bregenz Tourism

Chess Tip Of The Day 395

CONTRARY to my post yesterday it seems Blogger still have not sorted the problem with their feeder widget that is stopping my Chess Tip Of The Day section on the web version of Beau Chess from updating properly.

Among the positions that form exceptions to Tartakower's famous aphorism, "all rook endings are drawn," those where the stronger side has an outside passed pawn supported from behind are especially unpleasant for the defender.

Mihail Marin, Secrets Of Chess Defence

Miniatures 35

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

William Watson (239 BCF) - Spanton (147 BCF)

Highbury (London) Rapid 1991

Spanish Berlin

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 Nf6 4.0-0 Nxe4 5.d4 Be7!?

This has been largely superseded by 5...Nd6, heading for a Berlin Wall.

6.dxe5

Most popular is 6.Qe2.

6...0-0 7.Qe2 d5 8.Rd1 Re8?

Probably a novelty, and not in ChessBase's 2026 Mega database. Known moves are 8...a6 and 8...Bg4.

How should White proceed?

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9.c4

The logical follow-up to 8.Rd1.

9...Be6 10.cxd5

Even stronger. according to Stockfish17.1 and Dragon1, is 10.Be3.

10...Bxd5 11.Bd3?!

This seems to throw away White's advantage, whereas 11.Bf4 gives the upper hand, according to the engines.

What should Black play?

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11...Nc5!

An only-move (11...f5? 12.Bc4), but it gives complete equality, according to the engines.

How should White continue?

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12.Bc2??

Even grandmasters can blunder (Watson was awarded the title in 1990). The bishop could have been safely preserved by 12.Bb5 or 12.Bf5, but not the text.

12...Bxf3! 13.Qxf3 Nxe5??

Turning a win into a loss, whereas 13...Nd4 (13...Qc8!? is good enough for equality, according to the engines) leaves White without a good answer, eg 14.Qg4 Nxc2! 15.Rxd8 Raxd8, when Black gets more than enough for a queen. Another line given by the engines runs 14.Bxh7+!? Kxh7 15.Qh3+ Kg8 16.Nc3 Nce6, when White has nowhere near enough for a knight.

14.Qh3 Bd6?!

Other moves are a little better, but still losing.

15.Qxh7+ Kf8 16.Qh8+ Ke7 17.Qxg7 Kd7 18.Bg5 Qc8 19.Bf5+ Ne6 20.Qxe5 1-0

LESSON: a GM rarely gives a club player the chance to claim his scalp, but if the chance is not immediately taken, it is unlikely to be repeated.

Good News

LOOKS like Blogger have sorted the problem with their feeder widget, as my Chess Tip Of The Day on the website version of Beau Chess seems to be daily updating again.

The Tip still does not appear on the mobile version of my blog, but that is a different story ...

Summing Up Coventry

MY score for Wessex B of +2=0-1 at the final weekend of the Four Nations Chess League gained 3.6 ECF and 6.0 Fide elo.

Chess Tip Of The Day 394

I have developed a rough method for a preliminary evaluation of rook endings. For each favourable element, such as an extra pawn, spatial advantage, the more-active rook, or an important weakness in the enemy's camp, one point is awarded. If the difference between the two sides is one point the position is clearly better but not necessarily winning. With the exception of some extreme cases a score of 2-0 or 3-1 should guarantee a win.

Mihail Marin, Learn From The Legends