Bad Neuenahr Round Five

Spanton (1911) - Harald Hiby (1857)

French Alekhine-Chatard

1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bg5 Be7 5.e5 Nfd7 6.h4!?

How should Black meet this gambit?

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6...c5

Most popular in ChessBase's 2026 Mega database is 6...a6, the main idea of which is to prepare ...c5 without allowing the reply Nb5. Stockfish18 and Dragon1 recommend accepting the gambit, their main line running 6...Bxg5 7.hxg5 Qxg5 8.Nh3 (Albin, in the stem game, played 8.Nf3) Qh4!? (a rare continuation) 9.Nb5!? (9.g3 is more common)  Kd8 10.Qd2 a6 11.Nc3 c5 12.dxc5!? Nc6 13.0-0-0, and now they suggest an apparent novelty in 13...Kc7!? (the known move is 13...h6), albeit awarding White a slight edge.

7.Bxe7

The immediate 7.Nb5?!. although quite popular (300 examples of the move in Mega26), can be met by 7...f6!, eg 8.exf6 Nxf6, when the knight on b5 looks somewhat foolish. Alternatively, Dragon1's apparent-novelty, 8.Qh5+!?, continuing 8...g6 9.Qg7 fxg5 10.h5!?, can be met by 10...Bf8!? 11.Nd6+ Bxd6 12.exd6 Rg8!?, after which the engines agree White does not have enough for a piece.

7...Kxe7!?

Korchnoi and Short are among many who have played the obvious 7...Qxe7, but 8.Nb5 leaves Black with a difficult and unpleasant choice.

How should White proceed?

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8.Qg4

The main line in Mega26 runs 8.f4 cxd4 9.Qxd4 Nc6 10.Qd2, with the upper hand for White, according to the engines. However, even in this short variation, there are major alternatives, with the engines agreeing one improvement for Black is 9...Qb6!? Stockfish18 likes 8.Qd2 or 8.dxc5, while Dragon1 prefers the popular 8.f4 or 8.Bb5 - testament to just how unclear these lines are.

8...Kf8

This is the main move, but the engines also suggest 8...Nc6, when they reckon White's best reply is 9.dxc5!?

9.Nf3 Nc6

Also interesting is 9...cxd4 10.Nb5!? Qa5+!? (another apparent-novelty) 11.Kd1!?

10.0-0-0!?

Possibly better is 10.Qf4 or 10.dxc5!?

10...cxd4 11.Nxd4!?

This is the only move in Mega26, but the engines suggest 11.Nb5 or 11.Rxd4!?, eg 11.Nb5 Ndxe5 12.Nxe5 Nxe5 13.Qxd4 a6!? 14.Qxe5 axb5 15.Kb1, when White may have enough for a pawn, or 11.Rxd4!? Ndxe5!? (11...Nxd4 12.Qxd4 gives White decent compensation for the exchange, according to the engines) 12.Nxe5 Nxe5 13.Qg3 Nc6 14.Rd2, when the engines reckon Black has the upper hand, but the position is far from easy for Black to play, one example of this being that after 14.Rd2 the engines agree Black has to find 14...h5!? to keep an advantage.

11...Ndxe5 12.Qg3 a6

This and 12...Qf6?! are known moves, but the engines do not like either, claiming Black has the upper hand after both 12...h5!? and 12...Nxd4.

13.h5!?

Seemingly a novelty, and perhaps a slight improvement on the known 13.f4.

13...h6 14.f4 Nxd4

Which knight should White capture?

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15.fxe5?

The engines reckon White has at least full compensation for a pawn after 15.Rxd4, eg 15...Nc6 16.Rd1 Qc7 17.Bd3 Nb4 18.Be2 Bd7 19.a3!? Nc6 20.Qf2, when Black remains a pawn up, but the king's rook is out of play.

15...Nf5 16.Qf2 Qg5+ 17.Kb1 Qe3

Not 17...Ng3? 18.Rh3, but 17...Ne3!? may be playable.

18.Qxe3 Nxe3 19.Rd3?

Necessary is 19.Re1, although the engines agree 19...Nxf1 20.Rhxf1 leaves White without enough for a pawn.

19...Nc4

What is White's best try?

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20.Nxd5!

Otherwise e5 drops, after which, with queens off the board, White is simply two pawns down.

How should Black respond?

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20...exd5

Almost certainly even stronger is 20...Nxe5 21.Nc7 Nxd3 22.Nxa8, when Black is a pawn up, and should soon get his rook into play.

21.Rxd5 Bxe6

White threatened 22.Rd8+ and 23.Rxh8.

22.Bxc4 Bxe6

This is obvious, at first glance, but the engines point out the superiority of 22...b5! 23.Bb3 Bxd5 24.Bxd5, and either 24...Rd8 or 24...Re8.

23.Bxd5

How would you assess this ending?

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White has a pawn for the exchange, the ability to stabilise the bishop in the centre with c4, and pressure against b7 and f7. Nevertheless, rooks are endgame pieces per excellence, and the engines reckon chances are equal.

23...Re8

Best, according to the engines, is 23...Ra7!?, intending a quick ...b5.

24.Bxb7 a5

The engines agree this is better than allowing White three connected passers with 24...Rxe5 25.Bxa6, but Dragon1, especially, fluctuates between the text and 24...Re6.

25.Re1 f6?

This is a serious mistake, according to the engines, as it allows White a passed pawn that can be easily protected by the bishop.

26.e6 Ke7 27.Bd5 Rhg8 28.Re3!? g5

White to play and win

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29.hxg6!

The only winning move, according to the engines, although they agree White is also better after 29.Ra3. However, they reckon 29.g4? f5! gives Black what is almost certainly a winning position, eg 30.gxf5 g4 31,Rg3 Rg5 32.Be4 Rd8 33.c3 Rd2 34.Kc1 Rf2 35.Bc2 Rxh5 36.Rxg4 Rh1+ 37.Bd1 Rxd5, when they reckon Black's advantage is roughly worth a minor piece.

29...Rxg6 30.Ra3 Rg5 31.c4

Also good is 31.Rxa5.

31...Rc8!?

Setting a 'trap'

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32.Rxa5!?

Except that the trap does not work. However, there was no way to save the a5 pawn.

32...Rxc4 33.Ra7+ 1-0

Chess Tip of The Day 420

A permanent concentration and an eagle-like scan of the board are the hallmarks of great players.
Mihai Şubă, Dynamic Chess Strategy

Another Walk In The Ahr Valley

THE longest walk promoted by the local tourist board is 11.6 kilometres (7.2 miles), and is labelled MK II.

Cormorant drying its wings on a rock in the Ahr, the walk beginning by following the river from Bad Neuenahr to Ahrweiler

A station of the cross - "Jesus is condemned to death" - passed shortly before leaving Ahrweiler

Even the man-made scenery is picturesque

A reminder that the area is famous for its wines

The walking is easy underfoot

But shade was welcome on another hot day

The sheep knew where to find the darkest shade

Bad Neuenahr Round Four

Christoph Schneider (2056) - Spanton (1911)

King's Indian Attack

1.Nf3 c5 2.g3 Nc6 3.Bg2 g6 4.0-0 Bg7 5.d3 d5 6.Nbd2 Nf6 7.e4 0-0

With both sides castling early, how would you assess the position?

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This position, typical of one from the KIA, occurs 3.941 times in ChessBase's 2026 Mega database. The game is equal, according to Stockfish18 and Dragon1, although the former is not far off giving Black a slight edge.

8.Re1 e6!?

The engines suggest 8...dxe4, 8...e5 or 8...Qc7.

9.c3 Qc7 10.Qe2 b6 11.Nf1 Ba6!?

The engines suggest 8...e5 or 8...dxe4.

12.e5 Nd7 13.Bf4 Rac8 14.h4 b5 15.N1h2 b4!?

The engines prefer this apparent-novelty over the known 15...Qb6, but even so give White at least the upper hand.

16.Ng4

The engines prefer keeping lines relatively closed on the queenside with 16.c4!?

16...bxc3 17.bxc3 Qa5

17...h5!? equalises (Dragon1) or leaves White with only a slight edge (Stockfish18).

How should White proceed?

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18.Qd2
The engines reckon White can give up the c pawn with 18.Bh6!? Qxc3 19.Bxg7 Kxg7 20.Qe3, claiming White has much more than enough compensation.

18...d4?!

Probably better is 18...h5, meeting 19.Nh6+ with 19...Kh8 (not 19...Kh7? 20.Ng5+!), when the knight on h6 seems to hinder more than help White's attack, and if White instead retreats the knight to h2 (or, even worse, e3) then the engines reckon 19...d4 is strong.

19.Rac1

The engines still like Bh6.

19...dxc3 20.Rxc3 Qa4?!

Again the engines much prefer ...h5.

21.Bh3?!

The engines' 21.Re4 lets White follow up with 22.Bh6, with what the engines reckon is a large advantage.

21...Nd4 22.Ngh2!? Bb7 23.Bg2 Bd5 24.Qc1?!

Probably better is 24.Nxd4 Qxd4 25.Bxd5 Qxd5 26.Ng4, with what the engines claim is at least the better part of equality.

How should Black proceed?

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24...Nb5!

This is best, according to the engines, although they also still like ...h5.

25.Rc2 c4 26.dxc4 Rxc4 27.Rxc4 Qxc4 28.Bf1!? Qxc1

Keeping queens on with 28...Qa4 or 28...Qb4 may be a tad better, now Black's king is no longer menaced.

29.Rxc1 Rb8 30.a4 Na3 31.Rc7 Nb6?

I do not know how I missed the simple 31...Rb7, and if 32.Rc8+ Bf8 33.Bh6, then 33...Rb8, with equality.

32.Rxa7 Rb7?!

A move late, and now it seems to only make matters worse. Perhaps best is 32...Bb7!?, when the sharp line 33.Nd2 h5!? (that move again) 34.Bg2 Nd5 35.Be3 Nxe3 36.Rxb7 Rxb7 37.Bxb7 Nec4 38.Nxc4 Nxc4 divides the engines, although Dragon1 is much keener than Stockfish18 on White's chances.

33.Rxb7 Bxb7 34.a5 Nbc4 35.Bc1 Bf8 36.Bxa3!?

White has to give up the bishop-pair, but is winning, according to the engines.

36...Nxa3 37.a6 Bd5 38.Nd2 Bc5 39.Ng4 Kf8!? 40.Nf6 Ke7!? 41.Nxd5+!?

Other moves also win, according to the engines, including 41.Nxh7 and 41.Nde4.

41...exd5 42.Nb3 Bb6 43.Kg2

Even stronger is the move I feared, 43.Na5!

43...Kd7 44.f4 h5?!

Ironically, considering the number of times ...h5 was seemingly the way to play, it now probably makes matters worse, although Black is losing anyway.

45.Kf3 Kc6 46.g4 d4?

This definitely makes matters worse. After 46...hxg4+ 47.Kxg4 White's advantage is worth roughly a piece, according to the engines, but it is not simple to make progress.

47.gxh5 gxh5 48.Ke4 Nb5 49.Bc4 Nc3+ 50.Kd3 Nd5 51.Nxd4+ Bxd4 52.Kxd4 Nxf4 53.Bxf7 1-0

Ahr Walking

BAD Neuenahr-Ahrweiler is in the Ahr Valley, which is promoted by the local tourist board as a red-wine region with extensive hiking and cycling trails.

Five walking routes start from beside the Steigenberger Hotel, which is the venue for the chess,

I chose to follow MK I, but I was glad I also had a tourist map as the route is not well-waymarked early on

However, once out of town and into the forest, where logging is going on, waymarking improves greatly

Much of MK I is in shade or dappled sunlight, which was a relief in the current heatwave

The 6.9-kilometre (4.3-mile) route peaks on top of Neuenahrer Berg, whose natural height of 324 metres (1,063 feet) is topped by a 16-metre (52-foot) watchtower

View of Bad Neuenahr through a lookout hole

Looking in the opposite direction from the top of the tower

Carving at the top of the mountain

Another carving on the way down

Guardian of the forest?

There were a couple of tricky bits while descending, but most of the route was a gentle slope

Bad Neuenahr Round Three

Spanton (1911) - Andreas Kuhn (1827)

Maróczy Bind

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 3.c4 Nc6 4.d4 cxd4 5.Nxd4 Bc5!?

More popular are 5...a6 and especially 5...Nf6, but the text has been tried by Caruana, and appears to be a favourite of Epishin's.

6.Nb3

This is Dragon1's top choice; Stockfish18 marginally prefers 6.Nc2!?

What should Black do about the attacked bishop?

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6...Be7

Dragon1 suggests 6..Bb6!?, and if 7.c5, then 7...Bc7, followed by a quick ...b6. Stockfish18 likes 6...Bb4+, when the engines are unsure whether White should intervene with the queen's knight or the queen's bishop.

7.Nc3 Nf6 8.Be3 0-0

The engines suggest 8...Bb4!?

9.Be2 b6

Again the engines suggest ...Bb4, which, like the text, has been played before, but they also suggest an apparent-novelty in 9...d5!?, the idea being to meet 10.cxd5 exd5 11.exd5 with 11...Nb4, when they reckon chances are equal.

10.0-0

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

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White's Maróczy Bind has not, so far, been challenged by a pawn break, ie ...b5, ...d5 or ...f5, but the knight at b3 looks a little awkward. The engines give White the better part of equality.

10...Bb7 11.f4 d6 12.Bf3 Nb8??

We did not have a proper postmortem, but AK explained afterwards that he intended rerouting the knight via d7 to protect e6, but failed to take into account that the text interferes with the queen's support of the a8 rook.

White to play and win

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13.e5 1-0

Chess Tip Of The Day 418

After several days of working, Blogger's feeder widget is again failing to update.

The real purpose behind "knights before bishops" is "keep the widest choice" or, as it is generally expressed, "reserve the greater option."

Cecil Purdy, Action Chess: Purdy's 24 Hours Opening Repertoire

Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler

THE mouthful that is Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler is explained by the merging of the previously separate towns of Ahrweiler and Bad Neuenahr in 1969.

The two towns, now officially districts of a single town, lie mainly on the left bank of the Ahr, a benign-looking river that nevertheless flash-flooded in July 2021, killing more than 130 people in the immediate area  

Stone bridges were swept away, and not all have been replaced

Bad Neuenahr is the more populous of the two districts, perhaps thanks to its status as a spa, but Ahrweiler has much more of interest to history-lovers, starting with the main gateway to the old town

The entrance is guarded by a statue of a militiaman displaying Ahrweiler's 1365 coat of arms

View of the town's medieval wall, much of which still stands

The same section of wall, but seen from inside Ahrweiler

Looking back to the gateway 

The 13th-century church of Saint Laurentius (Lawrence) is said to be the Rhineland's oldest 'hall church', ie a church with nave and aisles of roughly equal height

A type of mural known as lüftlmalerei, in this case dated 1403 and invoking Saint Sebastian as protector of the town's crossbowmen

Flood damage is still being repaired

But the main square looks good

As do most homes and businesses

Bad Neuenahr Round Two

FACED a Fide master.

Kuno Thiel (2095) - Spanton (1911)

QGD Semi-Tarrasch

1.Nf3 d5 2.d4 e6 3.c4 Nf6 4.Nc3 c5 5.cxd5 cxd4!? 6.Nxd4!?

More popular are 6.Qa4+ and especially 6.Qxd4.

6...exd5!?

After this the game soon transposes into a main tabiya of the pure Tarrasch, whereas Stockfish18 and Dragon1 prefer keeping the game in independent Semi-Tarrasch lines with 6...Nxd5.

7.g3 Nc6 8.Bg2

This position, which occurs 1,817 times in ChessBase's 2026 Maga database, more normally arises from the move-order 1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 c5 4.cxd5 exd5 5.Nf3 Nc6 6.g3 Nf6 7.Bg2 cxd4 8.Nxd4

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8...Bc5 9.Nxc6!?

More popular is 9.Nb3, when Black can hold on to the d pawn with 9...Bb4, albeit probably having to give up the bishop-pair, or can offer the d pawn with 9...Bb6!?, eg 10.Nxd5 Be6 11.e4 Bg4 12.f3 Be6 13.Nxb6 Qxb6, with an unclear game.

9...bxc6 10.0-0 0-0

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

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Black has more space in the centre, but Black's extra pawn island, and the vulnerability of the c and d pawns on half-open files, are probably more significant, which is presumably why the engines give White at least the better part of equality.

11.Na4 Bd6

Stockfish18 marginally prefers 11...Bb6!?, which Keres used to draw with Smyslov at the 1956 Candidates; Dragon1 disagrees.

12.Be3 Qe7 13.Qc2!? Bd7 14.Nc5 Rfe8 15.Rfe1

The engines like grabbing the bishop-pair with 15.Nxd7!?

15...Rab8 16.Rac1 Rec8!?

The engines suggest 16...Bg4!?

17.b3 Rb5!? 18.Bd4 Bg4!?

Here the engines prefer 18...Bxc5!? or 18...Be6.

19.e4 dxe4?

Possibly best is 19...Bxc5 20.Bxc5 Qd8, albeit White is on top.

20.Nxe4 Nd5?

Better, but still very good for White, is 20...Nxe4.

21.Nf6+!? 1-0

Premature resignation? Possibly, although after 21...Nxf6 22.Rxe7 Bxe7 the engines assess White's advantage as worth more than a piece.

Latest Chess Pen

The inscription shows the pen is from a seniors' chess organisation that is supporting the Bad Neuenahr congress