Chess Tip Of The Day 450

Anyone who is not a full-time chess player will have great difficulty in mastering the Open Sicilian.

Joe Gallagher, Beating The Anti-Sicilians

Lessons From Bischofsgrün VIII

I HAVE been asked why, if I dislike draws so much, did I acquiesce to an exchange of queens in the following position in round eight, where I was White against Udo Waltenberger (2033).

Black has just played 21...e7-e5!, and, after 22.Qxd8 Rbxd8, offered a draw, which I accepted

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The main, purely chess arguments, for White playing on are that White has the bishop-pair and more space in the centre.

But, apart from the fact that Black's knight has a strong outpost, and the bishops do not have great diagonals to work on, there is another major consideration.

This is that to avoid a draw by by keeping queens on would mean play remains very much in the middlegame, and in the middlegame a kingside majority (assuming both sides have castled short) is a potent force.

So. in the diagram, 22.Qf2, for example, could be answered by 22...f5, when Black is already better, both in engine terms and in practical human play.

LESSON: to paraphrase Cecil Purdy, taking risks to avoid a sterile draw against a higher-rated opponent is not a paying proposition.

Chess Tip Of The Day 449

4.Bd2 (in the Nimzo-Indian) has been heavily slagged off in the popular press. The criticism runs along the  lines of "this move is just too passive." My opinion is that any move which serves a useful purpose (in this case unpinning) must be treated with some respect.
John Emms, Easy Guide To The Nimzo-Indian

Lessons From Bischofsgrün VI & VII

IN round six I was White against Dieter Bauer (1787), and in round seven I was Black against Manfred Herbold (2075).

The openings were very different - an English and a Sicilian Grand Prix Attack - but there was something similar about Black's position in both games after 10 moves.

Black has just captured on c4 in the English game

Black has just pushed the e pawn in the Sicilian game

In the English game, Black has one developed piece, a knight, against White's three - a bishop and two knights.

In the Sicilian game, Black has one developed piece, a bishop, against White's, arguably, four - both rooks and both knights, and White has castled.

In both games it is White to move, so Black's lack of development is even starker.

But there is a huge difference in how Stockfish18 and Dragon1 evaluate the positions.

In the first diagram, White is winning, according to the engines, after the game's 11.0-0, and after 11.Nxc6!

In the second diagram, again according to the engines, White has the normal slight edge one associates with moving first.

Why the difference, especially in view of the discrepancy in development being greater in the second diagram, and White having a doubled and vulnerable pawn in the first diagram?

The answer is that in the first diagram, lines have been opened in the centre, which makes it easier for pieces to attack the opponent's position in general, and the opponent's king in particular.

In the second diagram, while the centre is not closed, it is definitely not open either, with both sides having eight connected pawns, and none in contact with enemy pawns.

LESSON: the importance of development increases dramatically as lines are opened.

Lessons From Bischofsgrün V

MY round-five game, in which I was Black against Rolf Zens (1884), featured an instructive moment as the pressure built on my opponent's position.

I have just played 20...h7-h6

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The move stops Ng5, and makes ...e4 a major threat.

Indeed, if it were Black to move in the diagram, Stockfish18 and Dragon1 reckon 21...e4 would give Black an advantage worth almost a minor piece, one of the points being that not only does the move attack the white knight, it threatens ...exd3 with ...Bxc4 to come.

Probably best is 21.Rac1, reinforcing c4, although the 3ngines agree Black is positionally winning.

The game saw 21.Ng1, which is not the most ridiculous move on the board as, although the knight is out of play on the back rank, White now has a pawn and three pieces covering the e4 square.

But the move did not achieve what was presumably its primary purpose (we did not have a postmortem), as I played 21...e4! anyway.

LESSON: when making a retrograde move that you feel is the only way to stop an opponent's dangerous continuation, you must be certain the move actually achieves its purpose.

Lessons From Bischofsgrün IV

IN round four, where I was White against Stef van Kesteren (1861), I reached the following lost rook-and-minor-piece ending.

I have just played 26.Rc7-c6

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Black is a pawn up, and has the better minor piece for play on an open board with pawns on both wings, especially when rooks are present.

Stockfish18 and Dragon1 reckon a reasonable consolidating move, such as 26...f6 or 26...Rfd8, leaves Black with a winning advantage worth about two pawns.

Naturally, there would still be a long way to go before the advantage could be turned into victory, but one way to virtually rule out winning chances was to play the game's 26...Bxd6?

After 27.Rxd6, the activity of the rook on the sixth rank means Black has at best a slight edge (Dragon1), or effectively no edge at all (Stockfish18 fluctuates, but eventually more-or-less settles on Black's advantage being worth a tenth of a pawn).

I was able to draw the game without any trouble.

LESSON: almost the last thing you want to do when playing for a win in an endgame is to swop off into a rook-and-pawn ending.

Lessons From Bischofsgrün III

IN my round-three game, where I was Black against Fide master Jochen Bruch (2115), my opponent offered a draw in the following position.

White has just captured on f7

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I am a pawn up and have two passed pawns, so it did not take me long to play 33...Kxf7, confident that, barring a catastrophic mistake, I would either win or have to settle for a draw.

I should have remembered that in rook-and-bishop endings with opposite-colour bishops, what counts more than the odd pawn is the activity of the bishops.

In the diagram, White has a dark-square bishop, anchored on d4 and bearing down on g7, while the black light-square bishop is 'loose', albeit not immediately endangered, and impeded by the black pawn on e4.

If I had seriously considered such matters, I would not have been so surprised after my defeat to discover the position in the diagram is completely equal, according to Stockfish18 and Dragon1.

LESSON: Cecil Purdy put it rather more succinctly, if with a dash of hyperbole: "In endings with bishops of opposite colour, material means NOTHING, position EVERYTHING."

Lessons From Bischofsgrün II

THE following position was reached after six moves of my round-two game, in which I was White against Peter Babrikowski (2155).

Black has just played 6...d6!?

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The position is reached 1,429 times in ChessBase's 2026 Mega database, with most games (1,240) continuing with 7.Be2 or 7.Be3, both of which score an excellent 65%

I preferred 7.Bg5, which occurs just 40 times, and scores a miserable 35%.

One of the problems with my move in such positions is that after the reply 7...Be7, White has to be constantly on the alert for tricks based on the move ...Nxe4.

Indeed, if White were to meet 7...Be7 with 8.b3, Black can already play 8...Nxe4!?, eg 9.Nxe4 Bxg5 10.Nxc6! (an only-move, according to the engines) bxc6 11.Nxg5 Qa5+! 12.b4! (12.Qd2? Qe5+) Qxg5 13.Qxd6 Bb7, with what the engines reckon is an equal position.

I was aware of the danger, and I am sure my opponent was too, but that did not stop me reaching the following position, having just played 13.f3?!

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This is a case where ...Nxe4 does not just equalise, but gives Black at least a slight edge, eg 13...Nxe4! 14.Bxe7 Nxc3!? 15.bxc3 Qxe7 16.Qxd6 Qg5 leaves Black with much the better pawn-structure, as well as the better bishop, and Black has the upper hand (Stockfish18) or is even winning (Dragon1).

White can improve with 14.Nxe4 Bxg5 15.Nxg5 Qxg5 16.Qxd6, but 16...Rfd8 leaves Black with the better bishop, and what the engines reckon is a slight plus.

LESSON: when White has a pawn on e4, and Black has a knight on f6, the move Bg5 can open White to surprise tactical shots if Black has a bishop-queen battery on e7 and d8.

League Chess

GOT home yesterday afternoon in time to play last night on board five (of eight) for Battersea against Kings Head in London League Division Two.

Spanton (1954) - Andrew Gilfillan (2080)

Sicilian Bb5(+)

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 Nf6 4.Qe2!?

The commonest moves in ChessBase's 2026 Mega database are 4.e5, 4.Bxc6 and especially 4.Nc3.

4...g6 5.c3 Bg7 6.d4 cxd4 7.cxd4 0-0 8.Nc3 d6 9.0-0

Now both sides have castled, how would you assess the position?

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White has more space in the centre, and that is enough for a slight edge, according to Dragon1, although Stockfish18 is less sure.

9...Bg4 10.Be3 Nd7!?

The engines like this.

11.Rfd1

11.Rad1!? is marginally preferred by the engines.

11...e5!?

Grandmasters have played 11...a6 or 11...Rc8, but the text is the engines' choice.

12.Bxc6!? bxc6 13.h3 Bxf3 14.Qxf3 f5!

This looks bad at first glance, but after ...

15.exf5

... Black has a zwischenzug that grabs space in the centre.

15...d5 16.dxe5 Rxf5 17.Qe2 Nxe5

How should White proceed?

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18.f4?

The position is equal after 18.Qa6!? or 18.Rac1, according to the engines.

18...Nc4 19.Bd4

Perhaps the engines' 19.Bc5!? is best, but 19...Qe8!? seems a strong reply, eg 20.Qf2 can be met by 20...g5 or 20...Qb8.

19...Bxd4+ 20.Rxd4 Qb6 21.Qf2 Qxb2 22.Qxb2 Nxb2

How would you assess this queenless late-middlegame?

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Black has more pawn islands, but Black's extra pawn and connected passers add up to a winning advantage, according to the engines.

23.Re1 Nc4 24.Re6 Rc8 25.g4!? Rf7

The engines reckon 25...Rff8 is better.

26.Kg2 Rb7?!

The engines like 26...Kf8, intending ...Re7.

27.f5 Rb2+ 28.Kg3 Rc2 29.Ne2!?

Perhaps 29.Rd3 is better.

29...Kf7?!

The engines reckon Black has at least a slight edge after 29...Nd2!?

30.Rf4?

30.Rd3!? equalises, according to the engines, eg 30...Rxa2 31.Nd4 gxf5 32.gxf5 Re8!? 39.Rxe8 Kxe8 40.Nxc6 Ra6 41.Nb4 Ra3 42.Rxa3 Nxa3 43.Nxd5.

30...g5!? 31.Rf3 Nd2

Even stronger may be 31...c5!?

32.Ra3 Ne4+ 33.Kf3 Rc7 34.Ra6??

Black is only slightly better after 34.Nd4 or 34.Ke3, according to the engines.

34...Nc5

White is lost. The game finished:

35.Raxc6 Nxe6 36.fxe6+ Ke7 0-1

Kings Head won the match 6.5-1.5.

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

23/6/26    LL         W        1954        2080              0           2012  

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 443

If I repeat an opening variation that my opponent has lost badly against, I'll gain an immediate psychological advantage. He will have to confront not only my moves, but also his painful memories.

Ján Markoš, The Secret Ingredient To Winning Chess