Losing Objectivity

GRANDMASTER David Bronstein warned that "losing your objectivity almost always means losing the game."
I was reminded of his words during my round-three game from the 50+ seniors at the British Chess Championships.

White to make his 22nd move in Stephen Dilleigh (2000/182) - Spanton (1900/168)

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I felt my bishop-pair gave serious winning chances. But White's space advantage and Black's weak queenside pawns outweigh the bishops - so much so that the analysis engine Stockfish10 reckons White has the upper hand. Komodo9 also favours White, but only by about a half-pawn.
22.Ke2 Bc7 23.Kd3 Ke7 24.h3 Kd6 25.b4 g6?!
If I had assessed the position correctly, I would have grabbed my fair share of space in the centre with 25...e5.
26.e5+!?
This looks like White's best chance for an advantage. I had considered it, but did not realise what a precarious state it left me in.
26...Ke7
Black is close to losing after 26...fxe5?!, when both 27.Ke4 and 27.Ng5 seem promising.
27.Ke4
SD explained in the postmortem that he played this to provoke my reply.
27...f5+!?
Once this has been played on the board, Komodo9 comes to like it, but Stockfish10 prefers 27...h6 or 27...Bb8.
28.Kd4 h6 29.Nd2 g5 30.g4 Bd7
Giving up the bishop-pair, but by now even I realised the bishops give Black no advantage as they are so restricted.
31.Bxd7 Kxd7 32.b5 Ke7?
It looks like this should lose. Better was 32...fxg4 33.hxg4 Ke7, when it is not clear that White can make progress.
33.Nc4?
Missing his chance. White is almost certainly winning after 33.gxf5 exf5 34.Kd5. I believe SD was worried about 34...h5, but the engines give 35.Nf1!, eg 35...g4 36.hxg4 fxg4 37.Ng3 h4 38.Nf5+ etc.
33...f4 34.a4 Kd7 35.f3 Ke7 36.Nd2
SD spent quite some time looking at 36.a5? bxa5 37.b6? (37.Kc5 may hold) Bd8 38.Kc5, but 38...a4 wins for Black, eg 39.Kb4 Kd7 40.Kxa4 Kc6 etc, or 39.Kb5 Kd7 40.Na3 Be7.
36...Kd7
The engines reckon White is still much better, but the position is drawn.
The remaining moves were:
37.Ne4 Ke7 38.Nf6 Ke7 39.Ke4 Bd8 40.Nh5 Be7 41.Kd3 Bd8 42. Ke4 ½–½

Mate!

I ACHIEVED something quite rare, at least in tournament chess, in round two of the British Chess Championships 50+ seniors: I got mated.

Black to play and win in Spanton (1900/168) - Stephen Homer (2017/186)

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31...Nxa3
The most efficient way to convert Black's large advantage.
32.bxa3 Qb3#

"Over 15"

MY opponent this afternoon, in the first round of the 50+ seniors at the British Chess Championships, wrote "Over 15" on his scoresheet.
When I pointed out that everyone in the tournament was abundantly qualified for an over-15 event, he countered by saying that 15 sounded like 50, and there was no arguing with that.
Paul A O'Neill (2086/201) - Spanton (1900/168)
New London
1.d4 d5 2.Bf4
As I explained in a recent post about a trap in the London System (https://beauchess.blogspot.com/2019/07/london-system-trap.html), one of the points of the New London move-order, ie 2.Bf4 with Nf3 to come rather than 2.Nf3 followed by Bf4, is that it inconveniences Chigorin fanatics who might want to counter 1.d4 d5 2.Nf3 with 2...Nc6, intending to meet 3.Bf4 with 3...Bg4.
2...e6 3.e3 Bd6 4.Bg3 Nf6 5.Nbd2 0-0 6.Bd3 Nc6!?
Komodo9's second-choice, marginally behind 6...b6.
7.Ngf3 Re8?!
The most popular move in ChessBase's 2019 Mega database. It is also Komodo9's second choice (microscopically behind 7...Qe7). The idea is to force a quick ...e5, but White easily prevents that, after which the rook looks misplaced.
8.Ne5 Ne7
I thought 8...Bxe5?! 9.dxe5 Nfd7 was dangerous for Black after 10.f4 or 10.Nf3.
9.c3 Nf5
A normal move would be 9...c5, when White is for choice.
10.Bf4 Nh4?!
Very doubtful. Again ...c5 was normal, but Black always has to reckon with the thrust g4.
11.g3?
The natural 11.Bg5 leaves White strongly placed, as the reply 11...Nxg2? loses a piece to 12.Kf1.
11...Ng2+ 12.Kf1 Nxf4 13.gxf4
White's position with the half-open g file and a knight entrenched on e5 may look strong, but his awkwardly placed king and inability to pose problems on the dark squares mean Black is more-or-less secure from direct attack.
13...c5 14.Rg1 cxd4 15.cxd4 Bd7 16.Ndf3 Ne4
The engines Komodo9 and Stockfish10 do not like this, suggesting instead 16...Re7!?, which may be fine but certainly looks strange.

Black has just played 16...Ne4. Can you find a strong combination for White?

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No.
The try 17.Nxf7? Kxf7 18.Bxe4 dxe4 19.Ng5+ is well-answered by the engines' 19...Ke7. I would like to think I would have found ...Ke7 at the board, but I was intending the inferior 19...Kg8? 20.Qh5 Bb5+ 21.Kg2 (not 21.Ke1? Qa5+ 22.Kd1 Ba4+ 23.b3 Bxb3+! etc) h6, when the engines show White has a draw by repetition after 22.Nf7 Be2 23.Nxh6+ Kh7 24.Ng4+ Kg8 25.Nh6+ etc. In the postmortem we looked at 22.Qf7+ (instead of 22.Nf7) Kh8 23.Nxe6 Rxe6? 24.Qxe6 Qe7, with approximate equality, missing that Black does not have to surrender the exchange, eg 23...Qf6 gives Black a substantial advantage.
17.Nxd7!?
This surprised me, but it is Komodo9's top pick for quite a while, until it eventually prefers Stockfish10's 17.a4.
17...Qxd7 18.Ne5 Qe7 19.f3 Nf6 20.Kg2 Nh5 21.Od2
PO's other main thought was 21.Qc2, when my suggestion of 21...Rec8! 22.Bxh7+? Kh8 23.Qb1 g6?? fails to 24.Bxg6. But Black wins in this line with 23...Bxe5, when the follow-up ...g6 does indeed trap the white bishop.
21...f5 22.Rac1 Rec8 23.Rc2 Bxe5?!
Solid and good was 23...Rxc2 24.Qxc2 g6, as the white queen has no entry squares into Black's position on the c file.
24.dxe5?!
White is probably slightly better after 24.fxe5 Rxc2 25.Qxc2 Qg5+ 26. Kf2 (I had somehow missed this move) Qh4+ 27.Kf1.
24...Rxc2 25.Qxc2?
White is OK after 25.Bxc2.
25...d4! 26.exd4 Nxf4+ 27.Kh1 Qd7 28.Rc1?
Slightly better is the engines' 28.Qb3, but Black wins a pawn anyway after sidestepping with 28...Kh8.
28...Qxd4 0-1

Junior Wrinklies

THE official list of entrants in the British Chess Championships 50+ seniors, with updated Fide ratings, has been published at chess-results.com.
I am seeded 32nd of 43 entrants, with my rating of 1900 putting me some way below the tournament's average of 1982.
There is a spread of 900 points from top-seed Terry Chapman (2246) to bottom-seed Peter Ferrie (1346). The tournament starts tomorrow at 14.30.

No.			Name	FideID	FED	Rtg	Club/City
1		FM	Chapman Terry Pd	413399	ENG	2246	Barbican 4ncl
2			Townsend M Paul	402320	ENG	2233	York
3			Granat Russell G	401714	ENG	2219	Wimbledon
4			Josse Mark	414476	ENG	2209	Surbiton
5			Brooks Phil J	405540	ENG	2193	Ashtead
6			Hansen Hans-Peter	1503502	GER	2170	None
7		FM	Jackson Oliver A	403156	ENG	2151	None
8		CM	Willmoth Robert F	402540	ENG	2138	Barnet Knights
9		CM	Headlong Timothy	404098	ENG	2109	Check Inn Mates
10		CM	Goater Kevin P	411167	ENG	2089	None
11			O'neill Paul A	1309765	WLS	2086	Exeter
12			Mason Donald J	405116	ENG	2079	Shirley
13		WGM	Jackson Sheila	402508	ENG	2063	4ncl Spirit Of Atticus
14			Brusey Alan W	406880	ENG	2054	Newton Abbot
15			Orgler Philipp	1604236	AUT	2035	Hendon
16			Lowe Chris		ENG	2027	Exeter
17			Homer Stephen J	410322	ENG	2017	Newton Abbot
18			Smith Graham	410985	ENG	2010	Milton Keynes
19			Freeman Richard Cp	410349	ENG	2005	Milton Keynes
20			Wells Jonathan C	420549	ENG	2004	Norwich Dons
21			Dilleigh Stephen P	408379	ENG	2000	Horfield
22		WFM	Nunn Petra	405809	ENG	1998	Guildford
23		WFM	Norinkeviciute Rasa	12801925	LTU	1996	Eastbourne
24		CM	Kirby Peter J	409014	GCI	1988	Horfield & Redland
25			Webster Richard J	409162	ENG	1967	None
26			Clark Ian C	407682	ENG	1965	Wimborne
27			Simons Martin J	407577	ENG	1950	Southbourne
28			Mcmahon Paul	408212	ENG	1931	Linton
29			Gibbs Dominic V	412090	ENG	1918	4ncl Iceni
30			Mashayekh Majid	406015	ENG	1909	Maidenhead
31			Gostelow David W	413151	ENG	1906	Maddocks
32			Spanton Tim R	404802	ENG	1900	Battersea
33			Kennedy Craig	408905	SCO	1883	Mushrooms
34			Rowan Paul	437727	ENG	1873	Banbury
35			Fallowfield Nicholas	408328	ENG	1872	Stourbridge
36			Wheeler James M		ENG	1870	Hastings
37			Shaw Meyrick	430803	ENG	1869	Exmouth
38			Kenning Paul H	441538	ENG	1867	Braintree
39			Gibbs Daniel C	414689	ENG	1812	None
40			Clancy Martin J	2403404	ENG	1802	Ringwood
41			Wilson Edgar	484296	ENG	1755	Chelmsford
42			Mccarron Peter Dj	445347	ENG	1720	Wanstead & Woodford
43			Ferrie Peter L	466522	ENG	1346	None

British Chess Championships

THE 2019 British Chess Championships began yesterday morning at Torquay's Riviera Centre with the first rounds of the under-11 and under-nine events.
There were 1,098 entries, including people who have entered more than one event - hardly the statistic of a sport in crisis.
The official website is unfortunately showing out-of-date ratings, but presumably these will be updated for the actual events.
I have entered the 50+ seniors, which runs from Monday through Sunday and currently has 54 entries, including two FMs (Terry Chapman and Oliver Jackson) and one WGM (Sheila Jackson).
The time limit, as with the 65+ seniors, the main championship and the major open, is 40 moves in 90 minutes, followed by 30 minutes to finish, with a 30-second increment throughout (I think all moves in two hours with a 30-second increment would be better - there is no need for a "windback" when increments are used).
There are ten GMs and 15 IMs in the main championship.

New York Giants

CONTINUING to go through Tartakower and du Mont's 500 Master Games Of Chess, I have reached a game played in the final of the first American Chess Congress, held in New York in 1857.
This event was organised as a series of knockout matches that happily ended with a final between the two strongest players, Paul Morphy and Louis Paulsen.
Both had been unbeaten in reaching the final, with each conceding just a single draw against their semi-final opponents.
According to Bill Wall's chess trivia, it cost $10 to play in the tournament, with an admission fee for spectators of $5.
These are much larger sums than they may seem at first sight. According to the Measuring Worth website, $10 in 1857 is worth almost $300 today if comparing consumer prices, and an eye-watering $4,000+ if comparing average incomes.
Notes in italics are algebraicised from 500 Master Games Of Chess.
Paulsen - Morphy
Spanish Four Knights
Although this game is adorned by one of the most famous queen sacrifices in the literature of the game, it also illustrates quite a number of additional tactical and strategic points; a temporary sacrifice, operations on open files, exploitation of a hole (d3), breaking up of the king's defences, irruption on the seventh rank, etc. Historically, this game spread Morphy's fame to Europe and presaged his coming triumphs in the old world.
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Nc3
A forerunner of the modern style, Louis Paulsen prefers a quiet and solid opening, whereas the general tendency of his time was to play the gambits - King's, Scotch, Evans, etc.
3...Nf6 4.Bb5
The Spanish Four Knights, the most scientific of all. Playable also is 4.Bc4, the Italian, and 4.d4, the Scotch Four Knights. Less pugnacious is the restricted development 4.Be2, and Gunsberg's 4.a3, which is best answered by 4...Bc5, claiming the initiative.
4...Bc5
A more stimulating reply than the symmetrical 4...Bb4.
"Rubinstein's" 4...Nd4!? was apparently first played by Emil Schallopp in 1881 in a loss to … Paulsen.
5.0-0
This continuation, storing up energy, is better than hitting out at once with 5.Nxe5 (5...Nxe5 6.d4) or than 5.d3, renouncing any offensive in the centre.
5...0-0
After the more timid 5...d6, the initiative for a long time to come remains with White after 6.d4 exd4 7.Nxd4 Bd7 8.Nf5 0-0 9.Bg5 etc.
Paulsen beat Zukertort with this line in 1877.
6.Nxe5
This temporary sacrifice (6...Nxe5 7.d4) is not without risks for White, as his great adversary immediately tries to demonstrate. After 6.Bxc6 dxc6 7.Nxe5 Re8 8.Nd3 Bd4 etc, the game has lost some of its plasticity, and after 6.d3 d6 7.Bg5 Ne7 etc, leads to a slowing down of operations.
6...Re8
Aiming at the full development of his forces. After 6...Bd4 7.Nf3 Bxc3 8.dxc3 Nxe4 9.Re1 d5 10.c4 Nf6 11.Bg5, White has command of the central files. If 6...Nd4, 7.Bc4.
7.Nxc6
A careful defence is 7.Nf3 Nxe4 8.d4 Nxc3 9.bxc3 Bf8, and the position tends to equality.
7...dxc6 8.Bc4
An immediate and full retreat shows more prudence by 8.Be2 Nxe4 9.Nxe4 Rxe4 10.d3 Re8 11.c3 with 12.d4 to follow.
8.Be2 is not in ChessBase's 2019 Mega database, but is the choice of both Stockfish10 and Komodo9.
8...b5
Not yet 8...Nxe4 on account of 9.Nxe4 Rxe4 10.Bxf7+, for if 10...Kxf7, 11.Qf3+ followed by queen takes rook.
An interesting idea here is 8...Ng4 with 9.h3 Nxf2 10.Bxf7+ Kh8, and Black has the last word.
9.Be2 Nxe4 10.Nxe4 Rxe4 11.Bf3
He is hypnotised by Black's weakness at c6. More self-control is shown by 11.d3 Re6 12.c3, to be followed by 13.d4.
11...Re6 12.c3
An error of judgment. He underrates the dangers of the hole at d3. After 12.d3, White's game could be defended.
12...Qd3 13.b4?!
The engines reckon White is fine if he takes immediate steps to evict Black's queen, eg 13. Re1 Rxe1+ 13.Qxe1 Bd7 14.Qf1.
13...Bb6 14.a4?!
A clever plan. Beaten in the first skirmish, White wants to make up leeway in the second, and to release, by turning manoeuvres, the pressure established by Black's queen.
Despite Tartakower's words, Re1 again seems to be better.
14...bax4
Necessary because of the threat 15.a5. If 14...a6, 15.axb5 Qxb5 (evidently not 15...axb5, nor 15...cxb5), 16.d4, breaking the charm.
15.Qxa4 Bd7?
A mistake that allows White a chance, which he misses, to break the bind. Correct was 15...Bb7, covering both c6 and a6.
16.Ra2?
Intending 16.Qc2, but the immediate opposition of the queen by Qa6 is essential.
16...Rae8
A crushing concentration (threat: 17...Qxf1+).
17.Qa6
Too late.

White's queen prevents Black sacing on f1, but ...

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17...Qxf3!!
A splendid sacrifice of the queen, which breaks the hostile king's defence.
18.gxf3 Rg6+ 19.Kh1 Bh3 20.Rd1?
Clearly neither 20.d4 Bg2+ 21.Kg1 Bxf3# [this should read 21...Bxf3+ 22.Bg5 Rxg5#], nor 20.Rg1 Bg7+ 21.Rxg2 Re1+, followed by mate in two. Relatively better would have been 20.Qd3.
Morphy apparently spent 30 minutes over his 17th move, and it may well be a large portion of that time was spent on how to meet 20.Qd3.

Black to play and win after the variation 20.Qd3

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If 20.Qd3, the engines give 20...f5!, the idea being to stop the queen from sacrificing itself for the rook on g6, as 20...Bg2+? 21.Kg1 Bxf3+ fails to 22.Qxg6. After 22...hxg6, Black would have the bishop-pair and a pawn for the exchange, but 23.d3 would prevent Black's rook transferring to the g file, and White's superior pawn-structure would give him the advantage.
After 20.Rd1?, the game continued:
20...Bg2+ 21.Kg1 Bxf3+ 22.Kf1 Bg2+
Morphy has his whole plan cut and dried in his mind. Another method is 22...Rg2, with a view to ...Rxh2 and ...Rh1#.
23.Kg1 Bh3+
This wins very easily, but the engines point out a quicker finish, ie 23...Be4+ 24.Kf1 Bf5 etc.
24.Kh1 Bxf2 25.Qf1
The only chance of prolonging the game for a little while.
25...Bxf1 26.Rxf1 Re2 27.Ra1 Rh6 28.d4 Be3+ 0-1

How The Openings Got Their Names - Mar Del Plata

FELLOW Battersea Chess Club member Joe Skielnik returned earlier this month from a tournament in Spain where a mutual friend "had a couple of games on the white side of the King's Indian, Mar del Plata Variation."
Joe asks: "It appears it was first played in Najdorf v Gligoric, 1953, in Mar del Plata. However, I thought it might have had something to do with the carnage arising from the Battle of the River Plate in 1939, which sometimes appears similar to what happens on the chessboard in this line.
"Unfortunately I can find no connection, so only a mysterious coincidence?"
The Mar del Plata Variation is an important line of the King's Indian that arises after the moves 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.Nf3 0-0 6.Be2 e5 7.0-0 Nc6 8. d5 Ne7.

Starting tabiya of the Mar del Plata

There are more than 3,000 games with this position in ChessBase's 2019 Mega database, and the Mar del Plata is important enough to get its own chapter - the first - in Robert Bellin & Pietro Ponzetto's classic Mastering The King's Indian With The Read And Play Method (Batsford, 1990).
The variation is named after a tournament held in 1953 in the Argentine coastal resort of  Mar del Plata, where Gligoric used the black side of the variation to beat Najdorf and Eliskases, and Najdorf was later held to a draw in the same variation by Trifunovic.
But the moves had been known since the 1920s at least, becoming suddenly fashionable in 1952 when it was played at the olympiad in Helsinki and in the Soviet and Hungarian championships.
At first the variation did not do well for Black - Taimanov with the white pieces beat both Aronin and Bronstein in the 1952 Soviet championship.
It was Black's success with the variation in Argentina that gained it the name Mar del Plata (the name of the city literally translates from Spanish as Sea of Silver, but in this case Plata refers to the country's Plata region rather than directly to silver or the River Plate - Rio de la Plata in Spanish).
Here is one of the variation's less-successful outings.
Ivan Nemet (GM2412) - Spanton (2250*)
Simul, Villars-sur-Ollon, 2001
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.Nf3 0-0 6.Be2 e5 7.0-0 Nc6 8.d5 Ne7 9.Ne1
This was White's response from the earliest days of the variation, although its popularity has been challenged by 9.b4. The idea of both moves is to press on with c5 (after Nd3 or Be3 in the case of 9.Ne1) and to attack on the queenside before Black can organise a mating attack on the kingside.
9...Nd7 10.Be3
This has become more popular than the immediate Nd3.
10...f5 11.f3 f4 12.Bf2 g5 13.Rc1 h5 14.c5 Nf6?
Correct was 14...Nxc5, and if 15.b4, the move I was worried about, then 15...Na6. Black need not fear 16.Bxa6?! bxa6 as Black's kingside attack is enhanced by the absence of White's light-square bishop.
15.cxd6 cxd6 16.Nb5 Ne8 17.Nxa7 Kh8
17...Bd7 was played in Stefan Docx (2384) - Slavisa Brenjo (2495), European Championship 2009, but 18.Qb3 Ng6 19.Qxb7 Rb8 20.Nc6 stopped Black getting a strong-enough attack to compensate for his disappeared queenside (1-0, 37 moves).
18.Nxc8 Rxc8 19.Rxc8 Qxc8 20.Nd3 Rg8 21.Kh1 Bf8 22.Qc1 Qd7 23.Qc3 g4??
A blunder, but Black's kingside attack is getting nowhere anyway.
The remaining moves were:
24.Nxf4 Nf6 25.Ne6 gxf3? 26.Qxf3 Ng4? 27.Nxf8 1-0
*My Swiss rating at the time.

Shazam!

TURNED out on top board last night for The Dogs Of Battersea against Shazam Druids in the 150-average division of London's Summer League.

Black has just played 36...Ke8-e7 and offered a draw in Spanton (168) - David Rowson (183)

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37.Kd2
Yes, it is a rook-and-pawn ending, and, yes, material is equal, but on putting the game into ChessBase I was surprised that my main analysis engines, Komodo9 and Stockfish10, at first rate the position as about equal. The latter soon changes to giving White a slight edge, but Komodo9 sticks with an equals sign (albeit reckoning White is almost a fifth of a pawn ahead).
37...Ke8
Interesting but double-edged is 37...Rd6!? In order to play it, Black has to be confident the pawn-ending after 38.Rxd6 cxd6 is drawn. It may be, but White is certainly a little better. And anyway White is not forced to exchange rooks; he could play 38.Rd3 instead, and prepare to activate his kingside majority with similar play to the game.
38.g4 h6 39.h4 c6 40.Rd3 Ke7 41.a4 a5 42.Re3?
This gives drawing chances. Correct was 42.Ke3, as we shall see later in the game.
42...Rd6+ 43.Rd3 Re6?
The engines give 43...g5 as drawing, the point being that 44.Rxd6 Kxd6 45.Ke3 Ke5 46.h5 is met by 46...Kd6! (46...Ke6 may also draw, but is a lot more complicated) 47.f4 gxf4+ 48.Kxf4 Ke6, when there is no way for White to make progress.
In the above line, White can try 46.f4+!? gxf4+ 47.Kf3, but it seems Black holds with 47...b5! 48.axb5 cxb5 49.cxb5 c4 (49...Kd6 50.Kxf4 c4 transposes) 50.bxc4 Kd6 51.Kxf4 a4 52.g5 fxg5+ 53.hxg5 hxg5+ 54.Kf5! a3 55.e5+ Kc7 56.e6 a2 57.b6+! Kxb6 58.e7 a1=Q 59.e8=Q Qf1+. This would have been extremely difficult, for both sides, to work out over the board, but the engines are in complete agreement on their analysis.
44.Ke3 f5!
This is the engines' choice. Black cannot try to stay pat, eg 44...Ke8? 45.Kf4 Ke7, when 46.g5 gives White a protected passed pawn.
45.gxf5?!
It seems 45.Rd2!? was better, eg 45...fxg4 46.fxg4 g5 (best, according to the engines) 47.hxg5 hxg5 48.Rh2 Kd6 (Black cannot afford a pawn-ending) 49.Rh8 Rg6, when Black is very passive, but not necessarily lost.
45...gxf5 46.Kf4 fxe4 47.fxe4 Rf6+ 48.Kg4 Re6 49.Re3 Kf6?
Black almost certainly draws with 49...Re5, eg 50.Kf4 Rh5 51.Rh3 Ke6.
50.e5!
Also probably winning, but not so quickly, is 50.Kf4, as now 50...Re5 is met by 51.Rd3 Rh5 52.Kg4 Re5 53.Kf3 Rh5 54.Kg3 Re5 (White's dancing with the king is so Black's rook will capture on e5 without giving check) 55.Rxc6 Rxe4 56.Rxb6.
50...Ke7
Or 50...Rxe5 51.Rxe5 Kxe5 52.Kh5 etc.
51.Kf5 b5 52.Rg3 1-0
If 52...Kf7, then 53.Rg7+! wins.
The Dogs Of Battersea won the match 2.5-1.5.
My updated Battersea statistics for 2018-19
Event...Colour...Grade...Opponent's Grade...Result
CLL........B..........167...….........196...............…D
LL...…….B...…...167...………..159...………….D
CLL...…..B...…...167...………..161...………….W
CLL...…..B...…...167...………..190...………….D
LL...…….W...…..167...………..161...….………W
CLL...…..W...…..167...………..148...………….D
CLL...…..W...…..167...………..165...………….W
CLL...…..W...…..167...………..160...………….D
CLL...…..W...…..167...………..159...………….D
LL...…….B...…...167...………..168...………….D
LL...…….W...…..171...………..159...………….W
CLL...…..B...…...171...………..198...……….….L
CLL...…..B...…...171...………..169...…………..L
CLL...…..B...…...171...………..196...…………..L
LL...…….B...…...171...………..182...…………..D
CLL...…..W...…..171...………..189...…………..L
LL...…….B...…...171...………..178...…………..L
CLL...…..B...…...171...………..164...…………..D
LL...…….B...…...171...………..188...………….W
CLL...…..B...…...171...………..200...…………..L
LL...…….B...…...171...………..169...…………..L
CLL...…..W...…..171...………..186...…………..D
CLL...…..B...…...171...………..153...…………..D
LL...……W...…...171...………..188...…………..L
LL...……W...…...171...………..159...…………..L
LL...……W...…...171...………..153...…………..L
CLL...…..B...…...171...…….….172...……….....D
LL............B.........171................139..................W
LL...….….B...…..171...…….….214...……....….L
LL...……..B...…..171...………..173...……….….L
LL...…….W...…..171...………..166...…………..L
SL...……..B...…..171...………..167...………….W
LL...…….W...…..171...………..122...………….W
SL...……..B...…..171...………..159...………….W
SL...…….W...…..168...………..140(est)………W
SL...…….W...…..168...………..183...………….W
Overall this season for Battersea I have scored +11=12-13 for a grading performance of 168.
In season 2017-18 I scored +10=8-9 for a grading performance of 175.
CLL - Central London League; LL - London League; SL - Summer League

New Grades

NEW ECF grades, effective for the period July 1 to December 31 (for some reason, the ECF site says December 30, but I suspect someone has numeracy problems), have been published at http://www.ecfgrading.org.uk/new/menu.php I have slipped from 171 to 168.
The new grades mean my weekend performance in the 4NCL U2000 at Telford has improved from 173.8 to 181.8, which makes me feel less guilty about having won £190 for what appeared to be a more-or-less par performance.

Morphy v The French (conclusions)

BASED on his limited, but highly successful, record on the White side of 1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5, here is how to play against the French a la Paul Morphy.
1. Exchange pawns on d5.
2. Follow up with 4.Nf3, 5.Bd3, 6.0-0 and 7.Nc3, unless Black does something unusual that can be immediately exploited.
3. If Black castles short, manoeuvre on the kingside to try to create weaknesses. Consider whether a direct kingside attack can be launched with g4 (assuming h3 has already been played).
4. If Black prepares to castle long, pre-empt his plan by gaining space on the queenside. Consider how best to transfer White's pieces to the queenside. This may involve a temporary retreat to free a key square, as with 17.Be2!? in game 12 of Morphy's match against Löwenthal (see part three of the series).
5. Keep pawn moves to a minimum in the opening and early middlegame, unless a pawn can be moved without loss of tempo.
6. Be alert for tactical opportunities based on a lead in development. In the French Exchange, White has the advantage of the move in a symmetrical position, and it only takes one non-developing move by Black to give White a lead, at least temporarily, of two development tempi.

Morphy v The French (part six)

ALTHOUGH it is not described as such in ChessBase's 2019 Mega database, Paul Morphy seems to have played this game blindfold.
His opponent is José María Sicre, a Cuban slave, and the game took place in Havana in 1862 (while the American Civil War was raging further north).
Morphy - Sicre
1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.exd5 exd5 4.Nf3 Bd6 5.Bd3 Nf6 6.0-0 0-0 7.Nc3 c6
The same move as played by Löwenthal when he first tried the French against Morphy (see part two of this series).
8.Bg5 Bg4
Löwenthal played 8...h6. Sicre's choice is the main move today.
9.h3 Bxf3?!
But this casual surrender of the bishop-pair finds few followers in modern chess, although other famous names to have played it include Mason and Maróczy.
10.Qxf3 Nbd7 11.Rfe1 Qc7

Morphy to play, starting an interesting attack

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12.g4!?
Given enough time, this comes to be Stockfish10's choice, although Komodo9 remains unimpressed. I guess Morphy is arguing that Black, who is slightly behind in development (White has five pieces developed to Black's four, and it is White's move), is not well-placed to take advantage of the holes that will appear in White's kingside.
12...Rfe8 13.Be3
Avoiding exchanges and preparing to evict the black knight at f6.
13...Kh8?!
This loses a pawn ... or sets a cunning trap that Black fails to follow up properly. The engines suggest 13...g6, which at least protects the light squares, which could become vulnerable since White has the only light-square bishop.
14.g5 Ng8 15.Qxf7?!
Rushing the pawn-grab. It was probably better to continue building the attack with 15.Ne2 or 15.h4.
15...Re7?
But this is definitely a mistake. The engines point out 15...Ne5! 16.Qxc7 Nf3+ 17.Kh1 Bxc7 18.Rf1, when White is a pawn up and has the bishop-pair, but White's kingside weaknesses and problems coordinating his pieces mean Black has decent compensation.
16.Qh5
Withdrawing, but with a threat to mate.
16...Nf8 17.Qg4 Ne6 18.Bxh7!?
18.Ne2 was more prudent.
18...Nf6??
This loses in short order. Black had to try 18...Kxh7, when 19.Qh5+ Kh6 20.gxh6 g6 leaves Black's king relatively safe. Although White is two pawns up, the engines reckon he only has a slight edge, not least because it is now White, rather than Black, who is vulnerable on the light squares.
19.gxf6 gxf6 20.Bg6 (1-0, 27 moves)
To be concluded

Short Crush

WENT into the fifth and final round of the 4NCL U2000 at Telford on 3pts, knowing a win would give me at least a share of second place.
That soon became a potential share of first as the two leaders on 3.5pts agreed a quick draw on top board.

White to make his 12th move in Ravi Wariyar (1799/162) - Spanton (1900/171)

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12.dxe4??
White is fine after 12.Nxe4, but the text loses a piece.
12...Bg4 13.Bxd4 exd4 14.Na2 Nc6 15.h3 Bxf3 16.Bxf3 Qf6 0-1
My final score of +3=2-0 was enough for a Fide rating gain of 0.6 elo and an ECF grading performance of 173.8. I finished equal first with four other players, and we should each get £190.

Long Grind

HAD to grind out a 52-move ending this morning in round four of the 22nd 4NCL U2000 at Telford.

Black to make his 51st move in Spanton (1900/171) - Kyle Pelling (1463/127)

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White is obviously better thanks to his vastly superior pawn-structure, but my main analysis engines Komodo9 and Stockfish10 reckon White's advantage is worth less than two-fifths of a pawn.
50...Kd5?
But now Black is lost. The engines reckon Black should play 50...a5 or 50...f5, when White continues to grind.
51.Rd4+
This wins the d file and forces the black king to give up protecting the c pawn.
51...Ke6 52.Kc4 f5 53.Kc5 Rg8 54.Rd3 Rb8 55.Rd6+ Ke7 56.Rxc6 Rg8 57.Rxa6 Rxg3 58.Rh6 (1-0, 77 moves)

Morphy v The French (part five)

THE following game, part of a blindfold simul in Philadelphia in 1859, is not in Johann Löwenthal's Morphy's Games Of Chess.
Morphy - Samuel Smyth*
1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.exd5 exd5 4.Nf3 Be6 5.Bd3 Nf6 6.0-0 h6!? 7.Ne5!?
The only occasion in the six games under consideration in which Morphy did not play 7.Nc3. Ironically, 7.Nc3 is one of the choices in this position, along with 7.Re1, of Stockfish10 and Komodo9.
7...Bd6 8.f4
So this is Morphy's idea - White has a fine outpost for his king's knight at e5, and if the knight is captured, White gets a pawn-wedge into Black's position.
8...Nc6 9.c3
Exchanging on c6 was the main alternative, but Black should be able to dissolve his doubled pawns by engineering ...c5 without too much trouble.

Black to play and make an instructive mistake

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9...Qe7?
It is not so much the fact that the black queen is on the same file as the black king, but that it has a bishop in front of it that is menaced by the possible thrust f5.
Safe was 9...0-0, but Black may have had aggressive queenside-castling in mind.
10.Rel Bxe5
Not 10...0-0-0?? (or 10...0-0??) 11.Nxc6 bxc6 12.f5 etc.
11.fxe5 Nd7 12.b4!
Partly in anticipation of Black castling long, but there is more to this move, as we shall soon see.
12...0-0?!
This loses material, but Black was in a bad way in any case.
13.b5 Na5 14.Ba3 Qg5 15.Bxf8 (1-0, 33 moves)
*Morphy's opponent was not the pushover this game makes him seem. He was probably the same Samuel Smyth who found local fame when, as a "handsome youth" of 18, he defeated the automaton The Turk when it visited Philadelphia in 1834.

London System Trap

Tony Preece (1645/144) - Spanton (1900/171)
22nd 4NCL Telford U2000 Round 3
New London
1.d4 d5 2.Bf4
One of the points of the New London (1.d4 and 2.Bf4) as opposed to the old London System (1.d4, 2.Nf3 and 3.Bf4) is that it discourages Chigorin fanatics from playing 2...Nc6. In the traditional London System, Black can play a Pseudo-Chigorin, ie 1.d4 d5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bf4 Bg4. However, in the New London White can meet 1.d4 d5 2.Bf4 Nc6 with 3.e3, when 3...Bg4 is not possible. Some strong players, for example Morozevich and Sokolov, have insisted on playing against the New London in a sort of Chigroin-style with 2...Bg4!?
2...e6 3.Nf3 Bd6 4.Bg3 Nf6 5.e3
The most-popular move in ChessBase's 2019 Mega database.
5...Ne4!?
Attempting to show that White's move-order is incorrect.
6.Bh4
Preserving the bishop-pair, at least for the moment. The analysis engines Stockfish10 and Komodo9 reckon White should get on with normal development, the point being that Black's gain of the bishop-pair will cost time and will half-open the h file.
6...Be7
6...g5!?
7.Bxe7 Qxe7
The result of these manoeuvres is that White, rather than Black, is behind in development, but Black has not gained the bishop-pair, and White has the better remaining bishop.
The engines reckon White is slightly better. I am not sure about that, but it proved a moot point as my opponent missed a key feature of the position.
8.Ne5? Qb4+ 9.Nd2
The only move.
9...Nxd2 10.Qxd2 Qxb2 (0-1, 61 moves)

Gifted A Draw

AS I was thinking, somewhat gloomily, about my position in round two of the Telford 4NCL U2000, my opponent, a junior, offered a draw.

White to make his 38th move in Spanton (1900) - Samuel Parry (1607)

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Normally such behaviour would irritate me, but on this occasion I was prepared to make an exception!
I took the draw as White is completely lost - the black king penetrates via c4 whatever White plays.

Pinched A Draw

AM playing in the U2000 section of the 22nd 4NCL congress, being held in a Ramada in Telford, Shropshire.
Last night I managed to steal a half-point after a middlegame attack went wrong and I was left with a lost ending.

Black to make his 47th move in David Pinch (1703/144) - Spanton (1900/171)

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47...a3
Black is lost, but at least this enables me to get rid of White's dangerous e pawn, and maybe I will get a chance to test my opponent's ability to mate with knight and bishop.
48.Nxa3 Kd6 49.Bh3 Kxe7 50.Kg5?
Best seems to be 50.c5!, which looks like it puts the pawn on a vulnerable square, but the black king has a hard time getting at it. Other moves, eg 50.Ke4, probably also win but, as DP admitted afterwards, he did not think he would be able to claim the full point anyway if I gave up my bishop for his last pawn.
50...Kd6 51.Kxh4 Kc5 52.Be6 Bg6 53.Nb5 ½–½

Morphy v The French (part four)

ACCORDING to Johann Löwenthal in Morphy's Games Of Chess, the following was part of a blindfold simul given in London in 1859 against eight opponents, "including, as is well known, the most-talented players of the old London Chess Club."
Morphy - George Walker*
1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.exd5 exd5 4.Nf3 Bd6 5.Bd3 Nf6 6.0-0 0-0 7.Nc3 Bg4
Morphy has played his normal first seven moves. Walker's 7...Bg4 was already well-known in 1859, and remains the most-popular reply today along with 7...c6 (see parts two and six of this series for examples of the latter move).
8.h3
8.Nb5!? can be parried by 8...Be7 9.Bf4 Na6, although Komodo9 and Stockfish10 are happy with 8...Nc6!? 9.Nxd6 Qxd6, presumably because Black's lead in development is deemed sufficient compensation for the bishop-pair.
8...Be6?!
Maintaining the pin with 8...Bh5 is overwhelmingly more popular, although in practice White has scored very well with Steinitz's 9.g4!?
9.Be3 Nc6 10.Qd2 Qd7 11.Bf4
Löwenthal: "The best move. An examination of the position will prove that Black meditated the capture of h3 with the sacrifice of the bishop, which might have caused White some trouble. This step, however, on Mr Morphy's part, at once frustrates any such design."
11...Rfe8 12.Rae1 Rad8 13.Ne5
Löwenthal: "A fine move, acquiring a good attacking position."
13...Qc8?!
Löwenthal: "Taking the knight with either bishop or knight would have been exactly what his adversary desired."
But considering that Black feels obliged to take the knight next move anyway, it would probably have been a lesser evil to capture now.
14.Bb5
Löwenthal: "All this is admirably played, and considering that White is playing blindfold against such an able opponent, is quite marvellous."
14...Bxe5

How would you recapture?

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15.Bxe5?!
The engines much prefer White after 15.dxe5 Ne4 16.Nxe4 dxe4 17.Qc3.
15...Nxe5
Löwenthal: "Selecting the proper course of play, for 15...Bd7 would have cramped the game still further; and if 15...Rd6, then 16.f4 would have given White an excellent game."
Actually, 15...Bd7?? loses instantly to 16.Bxf6 gxf6 17.Nxd5. And if 15...Rd6?, then the simple 16.Bxd6 is strong (but so is 16.f4).
It may well be Löwenthal meant 15...Nd7 rather than 15...Bd7. The move is described in his book as "B. to Q's 2nd," and could be a printing error.
16.dxe5 Ne4 17.Nxe4 dxe4 18.Qf4 c6
Finally taking his king's rook off prise, as grandmaster Nigel Davies is fond of saying. The game was drawn eight moves later.
*Walker was a prolific, for his time, chess author, and an organiser of the first international tournament, London 1851.

Morphy v The French (part three)

AFTER his decent opening (spoiled by a late-game blunder) against Paul Morphy in game 10 of their 1858 match, Johann Löwenthal returned to the French in game 12.
Morphy - Löwenthal
1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.exd5 exd5 4.Nf3 Nf6 5.Bd3 Be6?!
Löwenthal is the first to vary, but in Morphy's Games of Chess he comments: "Comparatively weak; bringing out the king's bishop is much better."
By no means does 5...Be6?! lose by force, but the point is that it is not clear at this early stage that Black's light-square bishop belongs on e6. Most popular today is maintaining symmetry with 5...Bd6.
6.0-0 Bd6 7.Nc3
Morphy has played the first seven moves that he always played against the French (with one exception, which we will come to later).
7...c6 8.Ne5
Löwenthal: "Gaining a good position."
8...Qb6
8...Bxe5?! was subsequently played in two other quite-high-profile 19th century games, but it is very doubtful if Black should give up his good bishop like this. However, Black will come to play ...Bxe5 in this game anyway.
9.Be3!? Nbd7
Grabbing a pawn with 9...Qxb2!? looks risky, especially against an attacking player such as Morphy.
10.f4!?
Löwenthal: "In Mr Morphy's hands, this move always seems productive of immediate advantage."
Morphy continues to offer his b pawn, confident he will get plenty of compensation.
10...Bxe5!?
This comes to be Komodo9's top choice, at least for some time, but Stockfish10 is not a fan. White is now clearly better.
11.fxe5 Ng4
As Löwenthal points out, 11...Nxe5?? loses to 12.Na4.
12.Qd2 Nxe3 13.Qxe3 Qxb2!?
The engines prefer White whether Black plays the text or 13...0-0.
14.Ne2 Qa3 15.Nf4 Qe7
Castling long is suggested by the engines, but White's king certainly looks safer.
16.Rab1 0-0-0
16...0-0?! 17.Rxb7 was hardly an option, but Black's king's position on the queenside looks draughty.
17.Be2!?
Giving the queen and knight quick access to the queenside.
17...Nb6 18.Qb3 Rd7
Moving the king into the line-of-fire by 18...Kb8!? was apparently better, although the engines reckon White has full compensation for his pawn-minus.
19.Nd3!?
The engines at first call this a mistake, because of Löwenthal's reply, but Morphy has a surprise in store.
19...Nc4

How can White successfully meet Black's threat to fork at d2?

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20.Nc5!
Löwenthal: "Exceedingly well-played."
20...Rc7?
Löwenthal: "Had Black played 20...Nd2, White's answer would have been 21.Qa4 with a menaced checkmate."
But the engines reckon 21...Kb8 is a complete answer. Instead they give 21.Qg3 Nxf1 (21...Rg8? 22.Nxb7 Nxb1 23.Rxb1, with a very strong attack for White) 22.Bxf1 b6 23.Nxd7 Kxd7 24.Qxg7, when White has got his material back and has the better pieces.
21.Qa4
Löwenthal: "Mr Morphy subsequently observed that taking the knight with the bishop, before playing this move, would have been much stronger as then Black could not have advanced ...b6."
21...b6
The engines want Black to give up the exchange with 21...Kb8!?, but after 22.Bxc4 dxc4 23.Na6+ Ka8 24.Nxc7+ Qxc7 25.Qb4, White is much better.
22.Bxc4 bxc5
Löwenthal: "If the bishop had been captured, White might have replied with 23.Rxb6!, a winning move."
23.Ba6+ Kd7 24.Bb7 Rd8?
Löwenthal: "A blunder, of which Mr Morphy at once takes full advantage."
The engines give best play as 24...Qh4 25.c3 Rd8 26.Qa5 cxd4 27.Qc5 Ke8 28.Bxc6+, with Black losing too much material to have any real chance.
25.Bxc6+! 1-0

Morphy v The French (part two)

THE second time Paul Morphy faced the French was in his 1858 match against Johann Löwenthal.
Morphy - Johann Löwenthal
Game 10
1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.exd5 exd5 4.Nf3 Nf6 5.Bd3 Bd6 6.0-0 0-0 7.Nc3
So far exactly as in Morphy's Paris game against Chamouillet & Allies, who played the aggressive 7...c5?!, which soon led to Black falling well behind in development.
7...c6
Much calmer, and it has been one of the choices of strong modern players. Löwenthal commented in Morphy's Games Of Chess: "Most authorities recommend ...h6 here, but no disadvantage seems attendant on the move adopted in the text." 7...h6 was played by Judit Polgar in a short draw against her sister Sofia in 1989.
8.Bg5 h6 9.Bh4 Bg4 10.h3 Bxf3!?
Giving up the bishop-pair is a very committal decision, but note that Black keeps his better bishop.
11.Qxf3 Nbd7 12.Bf5 Qc7 13.Rae1 Rae8 14.Re3 Bf4 15.Re2 Rxe2 16.Nxe2 Bd6 17.Bxd7!?
Giving back the bishop-pair in order to try to gain an initiative against Black's king.
17...Nxd7 18.Ng3!?
Löwenthal: "A very good conception. The object of this move was to plant the knight at f5, where its action, combined with that of the queen, becomes most threatening and formidable."

How should Black meet White's threat?

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18...Re8
Löwenthal: "Black dare not attempt to gain the bishop by 18...g5, on account of White's playing 19.Nf5, menacing mate in two moves if the pawn captures the bishop. The move actually made was a good one as it secured a free range for the rook."
Stockfish10 and Komodo9 agree with Löwenthal's assessment, but they also reckon 18...g6 is good.
19.Nf5 Nf8 20.Bg3
Löwenthal: "The best possible play."
20...Bxg3 21.fxg3!? Re4 22.c3 Nh7 23.h4 h5
Löwenthal: "A weak move. It was not likely that Mr Morphy would take the pawn with queen, seeing that such capture would cost him the knight." Nevertheless, the engines reckon the position after 23...h5 is dead equal.
24.c4
Löwenthal: "This is a very strong move, and gives White the advantage."
24...Nf6?
The engines reckon Black is fine after a simple queen move such as 24...Qd7 or 24...Qd8.
25.Nxg7! (1-0, 34 moves)

Morphy v The French

PAUL Morphy was hailed in his lifetime as being clearly the best player in the world, and is often listed as an unofficial world champion before the generally-recognised first titleholder, Wilhelm Steinitz.
ChessBase's 2019 Mega database lists 408 games by Morphy (along with a handful of games in which he played consulting with a partner).
Just 59 of the 408, according to Wikipedia, were "serious," ie played in tournaments or matches.
But it should be remembered that in Morphy's heyday, the late 1850s, so-called serious chess was very rare - the first international tournament had only been held in London in 1851.
Morphy's many "casual" games were anything but. However, it is striking that of the 408 games, Morphy had the white pieces, or at least moved first (the rule that White always moves first came after his time), in 284.
In other words he had white 69.6% of the time, which presumably reflects that in a lot of the games he was giving odds or giving a simultaneous display. In both cases the master often moves first.
In any event, Morphy's record in games when he had the white pieces was +221=24-39, which is an 80% score.
Just six of the games began 1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5, with Morphy scoring +5=1-0. That is 91.7%, and the only draw he conceded was in a blindfold simul in which he had what may have been a disappointing score, for him, of +2=6-0 (62.5%).
His experience against the French constitutes a small sample size, but his record is impressive enough to suggest that a modern 1.e4 player could do a lot worse than adopt Morphy's anti-French repertoire.
As is commonly known, Morphy played the Exchange Variation (3.exd5) against the French, which is often, quite reasonably, put down to being due to his fondness for open positions in which piece-play dominates.
All six games featured Morphy following up 3.exd5 with 4.Nf3, 5.Bd3 and 6.0-0, with 7.Nc3 coming in all but one game.
These moves can be taken as something of a Morphy mantra as he played them even though his opponents varied their moves, at least in a small way.
The first of the six was played in Paris in 1858 against a consulting team, according to Johann Löwenthal in his famous 1860 work Morphy's Games Of Chess (I have the 1985 Batsford facsimile reprint).
Morphy - Jacques Chamouillet* & Allies
1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.exd5 exd5 4.Nf3 Nf6 5.Bd3 Bd6 6.0-0 0-0 7.Nc3 c5?!
Black could not keep the symmetry for ever, but this is a radical way of breaking it, and is not liked by Stockfish10 or Komodo9.
8.dxc5
Komodo9's choice, although Stockfish10 prefers 8.Bg5. The position after Black's seventh move features in four modern games, none featuring strong players, in Mega19 - no one played Morphy's move. Presumably Morphy's idea was to give Black a weakness (an isolated queen's pawn) without it costing a tempo as Black has to recapture with a piece that has already moved.
8...Bxc5 9.Bg5
We have transposed to a position that occurs 23 times in Mega19, with the Swedish grandmaster Stahlberg among those to have played the same Black reply as in this game, although his game quickly varied.
9...Be6 10.Qd2 Nc6 11.Rad1 Be7 12.Rfe1

Barely 12 moves into the game, and White has seven pieces developed to Black's four

White's numerical advantage in development is striking, and the quality of his development is better in that both white bishops are more active than their black counterparts. How did Morphy achieve this?
One of White's three extra development tempi is a natural consequence of having first move.
Another is down to Black playing the non-developing 7...c5?! Morphy met this with a non-developing move of his own, 8.dxc5, but he did not lose developing time as Black was obliged to reply 8...Bxc5.
The capture 8.dxc5 isolated Black's d pawn, which left Black feeling obliged to play the somewhat passive 9...Be6 and to later lose a third developing tempo with the retreat 11...Be7.
12...a6!?
Having written the above, you may not be surprised to find I prefer getting on with development with, say, 12...Re8. However, the text wavers between being Komodo9's first and second choice (behind ...Re8).
13.Qf4 Nh5?
Black cracks under the pressure. Best still seems to be ...Re8.
14.Qh4 g6 15.g4?
A rare tactical error by the great American. Simple and good is 15.Bxe7 Qxe7 16.Qxe7 Nxe7, when any hopes Black had of attacking with the help of the IQP are gone, and he is left with the pawn's weakness, a bad bishop and a continuing lag in development.
15...Nf6?
Löwenthal's suggested 15...Ng7? is, if anything, even worse, eg 16.Bxe7 Qxe7 17.Ng5 h5 18.gxh5 Nxh5 19.Bxg6! etc,
However, the engines point out 15...Nd4! 16.Nxd4 Bxg5 17.Qh3 Nf4, when White's king looks the shakier.
16.h3 Rc8
The engines suggest 16...Re8, but with a large advantage to White after 17.Bc4 (Stockfish10) or 17.Bf5!? (Komodo9).
17.a3?!
This seems rather slow. The engines like 17.Bf5!? or 17.Ne2, the point of the former being that 17...gxf5 18.gxf5 Bxf5 loses to 19.Rxe7! Nxe7 20.Bxf6, when White gets a huge attack for the exchange.
17...Re8 18.Ne2 h5?
Black is still in the game after 18...Nd7 19.Bxe7 Qxe7, although Morphy, as in the note to White's move 15, would have had a pleasant positional edge.
19.Nf4 Nh7
Black now collapses, but 19...Bd7 also lost material, eg 20.Rxe7.
20.Nxe6 fxe6 21.Rxe6 Bxg5 22.Rxg6+ Kf8 23.Qxh5 Rc7 (1-0, 26 moves)
*His first name is rather improbably spelt as Jackcues in ChessBase, and there is no mention of it being a consultation game. Chamouillet is given an estimated best-rating of 2405 by Chess-DB.com.
To be continued

Beats Me

RICHARD Fries of Pimlico chess club sent in this brainteaser to get the grey matter flowing.
What comes next in the sequence: 0 - 2 - 8 - 26 - 80?
This was apparently a question in a test set by University College London (and, no, I did not get the answer).
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242 (each number is the previous number multiplied by 3 and then 2 added)

Marvellous Meran

THIS is the second in an occasional series on How The Openings Got Their Names.
The Meran System, aka the Meran Variation, is a series of lines, many of them very sharp, in the Semi-Slav arising after the moves 1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 e6 4.Nc3 Nf6 5.e3 Nbd7 6.Bd3 dxc4 7.Bxc4 b5.

Start of the Meran … the early moves, especially Black's second, third and fourth, can be played in various orders

The Meran is named after a town-sized city in the South Tyrol that was part of Austria but was given to Italy, and renamed Merano, after World War One.
The city hosted a tournament in 1924 in which Rubinstein used the "Meran System" as Black to beat Grünfeld, who later in the same tournament switched to the black side of the system to beat Spielmann.
It probably will not surprise anyone to learn that the Meran had been played long before it got its name, including by Bernstein to draw with Capablanca in 1914.
When I discovered that an international tournament, the Gold Cup, is still played for in the city, I could not resist going. That was in 2013, and I have been back twice since.
Meran(o) - the linguistic split in the wider commune is apparently almost exactly 50% German, 50% Italian, but with the latter dominating in the city itself - has a beautiful setting amid snow-capped mountains whose lower slopes are covered in vineyards and apple orchards.
The modern Gold Cup is organised as part of the German-based ChessOrg.de series of tournaments, which includes Bad Wörishofen and Malta.
The Gold Cup is that rarity of modern tournaments of being a nine-rounder that is not Fide-rated.
I never managed to play the Meran in Meran(o), not least because 2.c4 is a rare follow-up to 1.d4 d5 at club level.
But here is a double-d pawn opening from round two of the 2014 Gold Cup.
Franz-Josef Schleime (1749) - Spanton (1949)
London System
1.d4 d5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bf4 Bg4 4.e3 e6 5.Nbd2 Bd6 6.Bg3 e5!?
As is usual in the London System, White has two pawn breaks - e4 and c4. Black is using a pseudo-Chigorin set-up in which he has only one pawn break, ...e5, but White's move-order has allowed Black to get in his pawn break first, albeit at the cost of moving a man for the second time in the opening.
7.dxe5 Nxe5 8.Be2 Ng6?!
White was threatening to win a piece, but probably a better way of meeting that was to exchange on f3.
9.Bxd6 Qxd6 10.Nd4
Stockfish10 and Komodo9 want to dissolve Black's little centre with 10.c4, as grandmaster Nigel Davies played against me in a similar position in this month's South Wales International (https://beauchess.blogspot.com/2019/07/grandmaster-crush.html).
10...Bd7 11.Nb5 Qb6
I cannot recall why I did not play the simple 11...Bxb5 12.Bxb5+ c6.
12.Nc3 Nf6 13.Rb1 0-0 14.Nf3 Rad8 15.0-0
Not 15.Nxd5? Qa5+ 16.Nc3 Bh3.
15...Be6 16.Nd4?!
White's kingside proves surprisingly vulnerable after this. The engines suggest 16.b4!?
16...c5 17.Nxe6
Best, according to the engines, as 17.Nf3?, for example, runs into 17...d4.
fxe6 18.Bf3?
White is in big trouble after this, which is why the engines give 18.Bd3, albeit with a slight edge to Black.
18...Nh4 19.Bg4??
19.Be2 would have been met with the same move as in the game, so it seems best was 19.g3, but Black has the initiative after 19...Nxf3+.
19...d4
White loses a piece. The game finished:
20.exd4 Rxd4 21.Bxe6+ Qxe6 22.Qc1 Nxg2 0-1

How To Tell If Opponents Are Tactical Or Positional - Without Accessing Games

OK, that is a big claim, but I believe how players arrange their knights is a good clue as to their chess style.
If the knights are pointed face on at you, the opponent is mainly tactical; if they are placed side-on, positional play will dominate.
The very occasional opponent who places knights at a 45-degree angle is among that rare breed -  a balanced chess player (balanced chess-wise, that is; I make no claims as to anything else).
Similarly, an opponent who minutely adjusts each piece before the start of a game could well be a perfectionist who will end up in time trouble.
Naturally, I accept that these hypotheses need further testing …

Pimlico Summery

THE fifth and final rounds of the Pimlico Summer tournaments - open, U150 and U120 - were held on Thursday.
I knew I would be away (at the South Wales International in Bridgend), so I took a half-point bye - permissible if asked for at the start.
This gave me a final score of 4/5, but where this would leave me in the standings was anyone's guess.
Top-board with the white pieces on Thursday was Dominic Gibbs (177), who was on 3.5/4 and was the only player who could overtake me.
But he lost  to Michael St J Brown (166), who was on 3pts and thus finished level with me on 4pts.
Richard Black (188) and Nick Faulks (172), who was the main organiser, could also have caught me as they were both on 3pts, but their game was drawn.
The result is that my score of +3=1-0 (plus a 0.5pt bye) saw me come equal-first with just one other player, and I should be getting £90 in prize money.

Unpleasant Finish

Allan Pleasants (2049) - Spanton (1900)
South Wales International Round 9
English Opening
1.c4 e5 2.Nc3 Nc6 3.g3 g6 4.Bg2 Bg7 5.d3 d6 6.Rb1 Nge7!?
Preventing b4 with 6...a5 is by far the most-popular move, but it is not compulsory. Having said that, my choice scores particularly poorly percentage-wise in ChessBase's 2019 Mega database.
7.e3!?
You might think White would play 7.b4 to punish Black for not preventing it. That is indeed the commonest choice, and it scores very well. But failing to play b4 does not make 6.Rb1 a waste of time - at least not in this game, as the b pawn later goes to b3, at which point White wants his queen's rook to be off the diagonal of Black's dark-square bishop.
7...0-0 8.Nge2 Be6 9.Nd5
The standard move, once it is no longer possible for Black to capture on d5 with a knight.
9...Qd7 10.0-0 Nd8
AP was critical of this in the postmortem, and I had my doubts later in the game, even though I knew it was a standard manoeuvre. AP suggested 10...f5.
11.b3 c6
Stockfish10 and Komodo9 suggest 11...Nxd5!? 12.cxd5 Bh3.
12.Nxe7+ Qxe7 13.d4

Black faces a critical decision

*****
*****
*****
*****
*****
13...exd4?
Black's d pawn becomes a weakness after this.
The engines suggest 13...e4!?, the point being that 14.Bxe4 is met by 14...Bh3, when 15.Bg2?? loses to 15...Bxg2 16.Kxg2 Qe4+ etc. Instead of 15.Bg2??, the engines give 15.Bh1, reckoning White will have full compensation for the exchange.
14.Nxd4 Qd7
Black has a difficult IQP position after 14...d5?! 15.cxd5 Bxd5 16.Bxd5 cxd5.
15.Ba3 Re8 16.Nxe6 Rxe6 17.e4 Qc7 18.Qd3
This allows a surprise near-equaliser. The engines reckon best is 18.Bh3! Rxe4 19.Bxd6 Qa5 20.Re1 Qxe1+ 21.Qxe1 Rxe1+ 22.Rxe1, when White's bishop-pair and lead in development give a large advantage.
18...c5!
Any other move leaves White considerably better. The point of the text is that Black will establish a minor piece at d4, masking the weakness at d6.
19.f4 Bd4+ 20.Kh1 Nc6

How can White attack Black's set-up?

*****
*****
*****
*****
*****
21.b4!
Komodo9's choice, although Stockfish10 prefers 21.Bc1, until shown 21.b4! on the board, after which its preference flips back and forth.
21...cxb4 22.Bxb4 Nxb4 23.Rxb4?!
I expected 23.Qxb4, which is also the engines' choice, giving White a slight edge.
23...Bc5 24.Rbb1 Rc8??
A gross blunder, caused by playing much too quickly. AP thought Black had to play 24...Rb8, although he admitted this was passive. My suggestion of 24...Bb6 may be better. We looked at 25.e5 dxe5 26.Bd5, when AP's 26...e4 seems to equalise, eg 27.Bxe4 Rae8 28.Bd5 Re2. There are other choices for both sides, but the position does appear to give equal chances.
The game finished:
25.Bh3 f5?? (this makes matters worse - Black had to give up the exchange) 26.Qd5 Qf7 27.Rxb7 1-0
My final score of +3=2-4 was enough to lose 19.2 elo.

Mystery Solved

DREW with a 1937 this afternoon in round eight of the South Wales International after futilely trying for almost 60 moves to win a knight-v-bishop ending.
Perhaps more interesting was that after the game, grandmaster Nigel Davies cleared up something that had been puzzling me from the postmortem of our round-one game (https://beauchess.blogspot.com/2019/07/grandmaster-crush.html).

White to make his 13th move in Davies (GM2484) - Spanton (1900)

ND played 13.c4!?, commenting in the postmortem that after 13...dxc4 White was left with a little centre.
I tried to rationalise this in my blog by speculating that what he meant was White ends up with the only central pawn.
However, as he explained this evening, what he had intended to say was that his move dissolved my little centre (pawn on d5 versus pawn on e3), which makes much more sense.
It only goes to show that if you are not sure what a (much) stronger player is trying to say, ask!