Ponzing About (part five)

Max Euwe - Abraham Speijer
Netherlands Team Championship 1923-4
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.c3 Nf6
Black's most popular reply to the Ponziani, but it scores much less well than the sharper 3...d5. However Speijer had played the latter against Euwe in their match two years earlier, losing a tactical battle that included opposite-side castling.
4.d4 d6!?
Not a particularly common choice, but it has been played by Smyslov and Tal.
5.d5!?
White does not get much from 5.dxe5 dxe5 6.Qxd8+ Nxd8 7.Nxe5 Nxe4, although White went on to win in Saveilly Tartakower - Lajos Steiner, Schlechter Memorial 1923. The main alternative to Euwe's move is 5.Bb5 Bd7 6.0-0, with what looks like a good Spanish.
5...Nb8
More popular is 5...Ne7, when Black can choose a King's Indian set-up with ...g6 and ...Bg7, or continue with …Ng6. However the text was Tigran Petrosian's choice in a win over Alexander Tolush at the 1957 Soviet Championship.
6.Bd3 Nbd7
Petrosian preferred 6...g6, while the main move has come to be 6...Be7.
7.h3!?
I presume this is prophylaxis against a pin by ...Bg4 after ...Nc5.
7...Nc5 8.Bc2 a5
Not 8...Ncxe4?? 9.Bxe4 Nxe4 10.Qa4+.
9.b4 Ncd7
9...Ncxe4!? is very sharp. One line given by Stockfish10 and Komodo10 runs 10.Qe2 Bf5 11.g4 Bg6 12.g5 Be7 13.gxf6 Nxf6, when the engines reckon Black has reasonable compensation for the piece.
10.0-0 g6 11.Be3 Bg7 12.Nbd2 0-0 13.Qc1 b6 14.Re1 Nh5 15.Nf1 Nf4 16.a3 Ba6 17.Qd2 Qe7 18.g3 Nh5 19.Bh6!?
This can be a controversial decision in this type of position. Black's king is weakened by losing its fianchettoed bishop, but White is giving up his better bishop.
19...Bxh6!?
Another controversial decision. There was a lot to be said for leaving White to make the exchange.
20.Qxh6 Qf6 21.Kg2 Qg7 22.Qd2 Bxf1+!?
Black's queenside light squares are weakened by this exchange, but the large number of pawns on the board favours knights, and Speijer may have had hopes of engineering a good-knight-v-bad-bishop ending.
23.Rxf1 f6 24.Qe2 Ra7 25.Qc4 Rc8 26.Rfb1 Nf8 27.Nd2 Rca8 28.Ba4 axb4 29.Bc6 bxc3 30.Bxa8 cxd2 31.Bc6

A tricky imbalance has arisen in which Black has a pair of knights and two pawns for rook and bishop. The engines reckon White is slightly better. Certainly the d2 pawn is unlikely to last long.

31...Qh6 32.Rd1 g5?!
A strange-looking move whose main purpose seems to be to give the f8 knight a square to go to. The engines suggest 32...Qg5 33.a4 f5 with what they reckon is a slight edge for White.
33.Qe2
There is no rush to take the d2 pawn - it cannot be saved.
33...Ng6 34.Qg4 Ng7
Stockfish10 gives 34...Ne7 35.Qe6+  Kf8 36.Bb5 Ng7 37.Qd7 f5 38.exf5 Ngxf5 39.a4 with a large advantage for White. Komodo10 suggests 34...f5!? 35.Qxf5 Nhf4+ 36.Kh2 (36.gxf4?? Nh4+) Ne7 37.Qg4 Nd3 38.Rxd2, when Black is a clear exchange down.
35.Rxd2 Ne7 36.Re2 f5 37.exf5 Qf6 38.a4 h5 39.Qc4 Ngxf5 40.a5?
The engines give 40.Rd1 Nxc6 41.Qxc6, when Black does not have enough for the exchange.
40...Nd4 41.Rb2 Qf3+ 42.Kg1 Qe4 43.Qc1 Nf3+ 44.Kf1 Nf5?
Black had a forced draw with 44...Nxc6 45.Qxc6 (or 45.dxc6) Nh2+ 46.Kg1 Nf3+ etc.
45.Qb1! Qc4+
The sequence 45...Nh2+ 46.Kf1 Nf3+ is no longer a draw because White has 47.Kh1, after which queens are coming off. If 45...Qxb1+, White has 46.Rbxb1! as 46...Nd2+ 47.Kg2 Nxb1 fails to 48.axb6! Rxa1 49.b7.
46.Kg2 N3d4 47.axb6?
The right idea, but the wrong execution. Correct is 47.Ra4 Qc3 and now 48.axb6, eg 48...Rxa4 49.bxc7 Ne7 50.c8=Q+ Nxc8 51.Qg6+ Kh8 52.Qe8+ Kg7 53.Rb7+ and mates.
47...Rxa1 48.Qxa1 Nxc6?
Black has drawing chances after 48...Qd3 and after 48...cxb6.
49.Qa8+ Kh7 50.Qxc6 Qe4+
Or 50...Qxc6 51.dxc6 cxb6 52.c7 Ne7 53.Rxb6 etc.
51.Kh2 Nd4
51...cxb6 52.Qd7+ Kg6 53.Rxb6 Qxd5 54.g4 etc.
52.Qxc7+ Kg8 53.Qc3 Nf3+ 54.Qxf3 Qxf3 55.b7 1-0
The Ponziani seems a good choice for tactical players. Euwe was far more than just a tactician, but he certainly out-calculated Speijer in this encounter.

Ponzing About (part four)

José Capablanca - MPs
London 1919
The future world champion played against future prime minister Andrew Bonar Law, who was consulting with two other MPs (I have not been able to discover their names).
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.c3 d5
Bonar Law is said to have been a strong amateur (Edward Winter has a fair bit of chess information about him: http://www.chesshistory.com/winter/extra/bonarlaw.html), so it is not surprising the MPs should play what is probably Black's sharpest line.
4.Qa4 dxe4!?
Black has a lot of choice here, eg 4...f6, 4...Bd7, 4...Nf6, but the text is the one move against which White scores a high percentage. Stockfish10 and Komodo10 reckon ...dxe4 is a mistake (they flash red), but engines' early-opening assessments are much less reliable than their middlegame judgments.
5.Nxe5 Qd5 6.Nxc6 bxc6 7.Bc4 Qd7 8.d3!?
Chigorin played 8.0-0 in wins against Steinitz and Bird at London 1899.
8...exd3 9.0-0
9.Bxd3 is also possible as 9...Qxd3? loses the exchange to 10.Qxc6+ etc.
9...Bd6 10.Bg5
The engines much prefer 10.Nd2, which was Ljubojevic's choice in a draw against Karpov at the 1975 Vidmar Memorial.
10...Ne7 11.Nd2 0-0 12.Bd3 f6
Not 12...Bxh2+? 13.Kxh2 Qxd3 14.Bxe7 Re8 15.Nf3 Rxe7? 16.Rad1 (threatening a back-rank mate) Qe2 17.Rfe1.
13.Qc4+ Kh8 14.Be3 a5 15.Bc2 Nf5
If 15...Ba6, then 16.Qh4.
16.Bxf5 Qxf5 17.Qxc6
White has won a pawn but Black has active play.
17...Ba6 18.Rfe1 Rfb8 19.Ne4 Be5 20.Nc5 Bb5
White found a way to defend the b pawn without a) weakening the c pawn by playing b3, or b) playing the passive Rab1.
21.Qf3 Qxf3 22.gxf3 Bc6 23.f4 Bd6 24.b3
White's c pawn cannot easily be attacked in this position, and so is not weak.
24...Rb5 25.Ne6 Rh5
Vigorous play by the MPs. White is still a pawn up, but the bishops are powerful and White has kingside weaknesses.
26.c4 Rh4 27.c5 Rg4+ 28.Kf1

Can you find a good move for Black?

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28...Bb5+?!
Tempting, but wrong. Black wins the exchange, but at too high a cost. It was better to retreat the dark-square bishop.
29.Re2 Bxe2+ 30.Kxe2 Be7 31.Nxc7
White's passed c pawn is very powerful, not least because the black rook at g4 cannot easily get to the queenside to help combat the passer.
31...Rc8 32.Nd5 Bd8
Not 32...Bxc5? 33.Rc1, but the engines much prefer 32...Bf8.
33.Rc1 Rh4 34.c6 Rh5
34...Rxh2 loses a piece to 35.c7.
35.Rc5 Bc7 36.a4 Rxh2?
This loses quickly, but the engines' 36...h6, removing a possible later back-ranker, is met by 37.Rb5, eg 37...Rxh2 38.Nxc7 Rxc7 39.Rc5, followed by Kd3-c4-b5 etc, when White's queenside play is quicker than Black's kingside counterplay, although it is still  a game.
37.Nxc7 Rxc7 38.Rxa5
Possible as 38...Rxc6?? loses to 39.Ra8+.
38...h5 39.Rc5 g6?!
This is slow, but 39...h4 would make no difference to the outcome, eg 40.b4 Rh1 41.b5 Rb1 42.Kf3, when the h pawn is stopped and White wins easily on the queenside.
40.b4 Rh1 41.b5 Rb1 42.a5 h4 43.b6 Rxc6 44.Rxc6 h3 45.a6 h2 46.a7 1-0
Black can queen first, but White is mating, so the MPs resigned.

Ponzing About (part three)

Alexander Alekhine - Konstantin Ivakov
Moscow spring championship 1907
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.c3 d5
Black's sharpest reply and also, I suspect, the move most Whites hope for as it requires the greatest book knowledge.
4.Qa4
White's most popular response.. Black answers with a set-up favoured by Steinitz.
4...f6 5.Bb5 Ne7 6.exd5 Qxd5 7.0-0 Bd7 8.d4 e4
8...exd4!? 9.cxd4 Ne5! 10.Nc3 Nxf3+ 11.gxf3 Qf5 looks fine for Black, but the position is unclear and the line is not forced, eg White could try 9.Rd1. The text seems to have been first played by Steinitz.
9.Nfd2 f5 10.Nb3 Ne5 11.Nc5 c6 12.Be2 Bc8 13.Be3 b5 14.Qa5?!
Even better may be14.Qc2. The text lets Black win the bishop-pair.
14...Nc4 15.Bxc4 Qxc4
After the counter-intuitive 15...bxc4!, White is only slightly better, according to Stockfish10 and Komodo10. The text allows White an initiative.
16.Nd2 Qd5 17.a4 Ng6 18.f3 Bxc5 19.dxc5 Qd3 20.Bg5?
White is better after 20.Rfe1, eg 20...0-0 21.Rad1 with a continuing initiative.
20...h6?
Natural and best was 20...0-0. The text loses by force.

White to play and win

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21.Nxe4! hxg5?
21...fxe4 is met by 22.Rfd1, so Black should have castled, when the engines' mainline runs 22.Nf2 Qe2 23.Rfe1 Qxb2 24.Be3, with what they reckon is a large, but not yet winning, advantage for White.
22.Nd6+ Kd7 23.Rad1 Qe3+ 24.Kh1 Qf4 25.g3 Qxa4 26.Nxb5+ 1-0

Ponzing About (part two)

Adolf Anderssen - Berthold Suhle
Breslau (now Wroclaw) 1859
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.c3 Nf6
When Anderssen had the black pieces against the Ponziani he usually played 3...d5 (including a loss in 1848 to Daniel Harrwitz, who featured in the first part of this series playing against Howard Staunton's Ponziani). Suhle's ...Nf6 is overwhelmingly Black's most popular third move today.
4.d4 Nxe4 5.dxe5?!
Normal is 5.d5.
5...d5?!
White faces more problems after 5...Bc5.
6.Be3 Be7 7.Bb5 0-0 8.Bxc6 bxc6 9.Nbd2 f5 10.Nd4 Qe8 11.f4 Qg6 12.0-0 c5 13.N4f3 h5 14.Re1 h4 15.h3 Rd8 16.Qc2 c4!? 17.Rad1 Bb7 18.b3??
A blunder caused by Anderssen uncharacteristically underestimating tactical threats to his king.

Black to play and win

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18...c5??
Black's idea in playing 16...c4 was to cover the hole at d4 with ...c5, but Suhle misses the win of a piece by 18...d4 19.cxd4 Nxd2 20.Rxd2 Bxf3.
19.Nxe4 fxe4?
White gets the upper hand after this, so Black should have played 29...dxe4.
20.bxc4 Qg3?
Better, although unappetising, was 20...dxc4.
21.Nh2 d4 22.Nf1 Qg6 23.cxd4 cxd4 24.Rxd4 Rxd4 25.Bxd4 (1-0, 35 moves)
Not exactly a well-played game, but indicative of how tactical the Ponziani can be even in the 'quiet' 3...Nf6 lines.

Ponzing About

WHAT do the following titans of chess have in common: Howard Staunton, Adolf Anderssen, Alexander Alekhine, José Capablanca, Max Euwe and Magnus Carlsen?
The easy answer is that all were world champions or, in the case of the first two, were widely regarded as best in the world, in their heyday, before the title came into general acceptance.
The rather more difficult answer is that all played the Ponziani.
Wikipedia says of the Ponziani: "The opening is now considered inferior to 3.Bb5, the Ruy Lopez, and 3.Bc4, the Italian Game, and is accordingly rarely seen today at any level of play."
This entry could, perhaps, do with updating, not least becasue there are more than 8,000 examples of the Ponziani in ChessBase's 2019 Mega database.
Staunton - Daniel Harrwitz
Match 1846, game 7
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc3 3.c3 f5!?
Harrwitz, like Staunton, was an enthusiastic proponent of the Ponziani, so it is interesting he should choose this countergambit, which is credited to the 18th century Italian law professor Domenico Ponziani, after whom the whole opening is named. Much more common are 3...Nf6, 3...d5 and 3...d6?!, the last of which is popular with club players who are caught by surprise, and was even played by a world champion, Vassily Smyslov, but is somewhat passive.
4.d4
It is interesting to compare this position with a line of the Schliemann Counterattack in the Spanish, viz 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 f5 4.d4!? (4.Nc3 and 4.d3 are more popular, but 4.d4!? has been played by strong GMs, including Nigel Short).

Ponziani

Schliemann Spanish

At first glance it might be thought more useful for White to have played Bb5 than c3, but theory regards the Ponziani line as better for White than the Schliemann one. It should be noted that the two moves are not trying to achieve the same thing; Bb5 is a developing move that indirectly attacks the black centre, while c3 is primarily aimed at building a white centre, although the natural follow-up d4 also attacks the black centre. As GM Mihail Marin says of 3.c3 in ChessBase: "Maybe not such a bad move after all. White threatens to occupy the centre with d2-d4, just 'a bit' earlier than this happens in the Ruy Lopez (if Black does not interfere with this sweet plan by choosing the Open variation or the Marshall Attack, of course)."
4...fxe4 5.Nxe5 Nf6
5...Qf6!? has been played by Spassky and Pachman.
6.Bb5
More popular is 6.Bg5, but Stockfish10 and Komodo10 prefer the text.
6...a6 7.Bxc6 bxc6 8.Bg5 Rb8 9.b4!?
An unusual but seemingly effective response to Black's pressure down the b file.
9...Bb7?!
This may have been played with the idea of following up with ...d6 to evict the e5 knight, or of allowing ...d5 to protect the e pawn in the event of 10.Nd2. But better seems to be the engines' 9...Be7, when 10.Nd2 can be met by 10...0-0, as 11.Bxf6 gxf6! gives Black a nice game thanks to his bishops and strong centre.
10.Qa4?!
Keeping pressure on c6, but 10.Nd2 either wins the e pawn or, in the event of 10...d5, allows 11.Nb3, when the engines reckon White already has a winning advantage.
10...d5 11.0-0
Not 11.Nxc6? Qd7 12.b5 Bxc6 13.bxc6 Qg4, eg 14.Bxf6 Qxg2 15.Rf1 gxf6, when White's pieces are difficult to coordinate.
11...h6 12.Bh4 Qd6?
The queen is misplaced here. Better was 12...Bd6 (the c6 pawn is still taboo) or first 12...g5 and then ...Bd6.
13.Bg3 Rg8?
Avoiding losing the rook to a discovery (Ng6), but a better way of doing this was 13...Qe6.
14.Nd2 Rc8 15.Nb3 Nd7 16.Na5 Nb6 17.Qc2 Ba8
Black has avoided material loss, but now his king comes under attack.
18.f3 exf3 19.Rxf3 Qe6
Putting the queen on the same open file as the king hardly helps, but Black's game was already beyond saving.
20.Re1 Be7 21.Nexc6 Qxe1+ 22.Bxe1 Bxc6 23.Qg6+ Kd8 24.Nxc6+ 1-0
A massacre for the Ponziani, but early on the play was much more even-handed, and certainly 3...f5!? was not refuted by Staunton. I have a friend who plays the Ponziani every chance he gets, and it is precisely 3...f5!? that  worries him most (although he very rarely has to face it).

Guernsey Round Seven

Kees de Kruif (1985) - Spanton (1927)
Botvinnik English
1.c4 e5 2.g3 Nc6 3.Bg2 g6 4.Nc3 Bg7 5.d3 Nge7 6.e4
The most popular move in ChessBase's 2019 Mega database, setting up a Botvinnik formation, assuming the king's knight goes to e2 (if it goes to f3 we have an earlier, similar formation pioneered by Nimzowitsch). An excellent source for understanding the Botvinnik set-up is Tony Kosten's The Dynamic English.
6...0-0 7.Nge2 d6 8.0-0 f5 9.Rb1 Be6 10.b3?
A novelty, and not a good one. This move is bad positionally and tactically (I only managed to spot the former drawback).

Black to make his 10th move

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10...Qd7
The positional problem with White's move is that Rb1 and b3 do not go well together. The former, in this type of position, is normally a prelude to queenside expansion with b4.
The second problem is that Black can reply with the positionally desirable 10...f4! thanks to the tactical point 11.gxf4 exf4 12.Nxf4?! Rxf4 13.Bxf4, dropping the queen's knight to 13...Bxc3. Black ends up with two knights and the less-exposed king for rook and pawn.
Note that 10.b4? can be met in a similar way, although it was not the three times 10.b4? appears in Mega19. Most strong players who have reached this position as White have preferred 10.Nd5.
11.Nd5 Rf7 12.f4 Raf8 13.Be3 a6 14.Qd2 Kh8 15.Kh1
KdK offered a draw.
15...Ng8 16.Rbd1 fxe4 17.Bxe4?!
Stockfish10 and Komodo10 prefer 17.dxe4.
17...exf4?!
I somehow missed White's reply. Stockfish10 reckons Black has the upper hand after 17...Nd4!? Komodo10 also likes the move, but is not so enthusiastic about it.
18.Rxf4 Rxf4 19.Ndxf4 Bf5 20.Bg2 Nf6 21.Nd4 Nxd4 22.Bxd4 c6 23.Re1 Re8 24.Rxe8+ Qxe8 25.Kg1 Ng4!
At first glance it might seem strange to allow an exchange of bishops with check, but White has to find a fairly precise defence.
26.Bxg7+ Kxg7 27.Bf3!
Best, according to the engines, as the 'obvious' 27.Qc3+ can be simply sidestepped with, for example 27...Kf7, when Black gets a bit of an initiative.
27...Qe5 28.h3?!
Almost certainly better was 28.Bxg4, hoping to take advantage of the fact that a knight and queen often work well together, although here the knight does not have an unchallengeable outpost (=, according to the engines), or 28.d4, when I planned 28...Qe3+ 29.Qxe3 Nxe3, but the engines give 30.Kf2 as also =.
28...Qd4+ 29.Kg2??
Correct was 29.Kf1, when 29...Ne5 30.Be4 Qa1+ is a little better for Black as White will get an isolated e pawn.
29...Ne3+ 30.Kg1
Forced as 30.Kh1?? loses a piece to 30...Qa1+. Note that the white king cannot go to h2, either immediately or on move 31, because of the fork ...Nf1+.
30...Nxc4+ 31.Qf2 Qxf2+ 32.Kxf2 Ne5 33.d4 Nxf3 34.Kxf3 a5 35.a3 Kf6 36.b4 axb4 37.axb4 g5 38.Nh5+ Ke7 39.h4
The only realistic way to keep the game going was 39.g4 Bg6 40.Ng3, but the position is hopeless for White.
39...Bg6 40.Ng7 Kf7 41.h5 Kxg7 42.hxg6 Kxg6 0-1
My final score of +1=4-2 saw me gain 1.6 Fide elo.

Guernsey Round Six

Fred Hamperl (1995) - Spanton (1927)
Grand Prix Attack
1.e4 c5 2.Nc3 g6 3.f4 Bg7 4.Nf3 Nc6 5.Be2!?
Not a popular continuation, especially when compared with 5.Bb5 and 5.Bc4, but it has been played by Oleg Romanishin and Michael Basman. I guess the idea is to avoid a sharp theoretical duel.
5...d6 6.0-0 Bg4!?
Aiming for simplifications. The main move is 6...e6, although Vishy Anand chose 6...Nf6 in a win against Nigel Short at the 2010 London Classic.
7.Qe1 Nd4 8.Nxd4 Bxd4+ 9.Kh1 Bxe2 10.Nxe2 Bg7 11.d3 e6 12.Bd2 Ne7 13.Bc3 Bxc3 14.Qxc3 0-0 15.Rf2 Rc8 16.Qb3 Qb6 17.g4 c4 18.Qxb6 axb6 19.d4
19.dxc4 Rxc4 20.Nc3 is fine for Black after 20...Rac8 or 20...f5, according to Stockfish10 and Komodo10.
19...d5 20.e5 Ra8 21.a3 Ra5 22.Rg1?
It was better to solidify the queenside with 22.c3 before continuing kingside operations.
22...Kh8?
22...Rb5 forces 23.Rb1, giving Black time to comfortably organise kingside defences.
23.Ng3?
Again c3 was correct. After the text, Black takes over the initiative.

Black to play and distract White from the kingside

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23...c3 24.Rb1 cxb2 25.Rxb2 b5?
Defending a weak pawn like this is inferior to attacking with 25...Nc6, or immediately capturing with 25...Rxa3. A good rule-of-thumb, especially with rooks, is to actively capture rather than passively defend.
26.f5 gxf5 27.gxf5 Nxf5
Arguably better was 27...Kg8 as the text leaves Black with a weak f pawn, and leaves White with a potentially protected passed pawn.
28.Nxf5 exf5 29.Rxf5 Rxa3 30.Rxb5 Ra1+?
I rejected the engines' 30...Rg8, threatening mate, because of 31.Rf1, missing the strength of 31...Rc3, eg 32.Rc1 Rg4 33.Rxd5 b5 34.Rd7 b4 35.Rxf7 b3 36.Rf2 Rxc2 37.Rcxc2 bxc2 38.Rxc2 Rxd4, when Black is a pawn down but should draw with little trouble.
31.Kg2 Rg8+ 32.Kh3
The engines prefer 32.Kf2, but in either case like White.
32...Ra6 33.Kh4 Rh6+ 34.Rh5 Rc6 35.Rg5 Rxc2 36.h3 Rb8?
A good move if White allows 37.Rxd5? b5, but why would he? Black seems to have good drawing chances after 36...Rf2, 36...Rc6 and 36...Rxg5.
37.Rg4?
Better was 37.Rf5. If 37...Kg7?!, White has 38.Rxd5 Rc7 (38...b5? 39.Rd7 Rf8 40.e6) 39.Rb5 with a large advantage despite the material balance. So Black has to try 37...Rc7, but then 38.Rf6 leaves White with all the active play.
37...Rc3?
Black draws with 37...f6 (37...Rf2 is also good), eg 38.exf6 Rf2 39.Rb6 Rf8.
38.Rb6?
Better is 38.Rf4 with play similar to the note at White's move 37.
38...Rc6 39.Rb5 Rh6+
Simple and good is 39...f6.
40.Kg3 Rg6
Not 40...f6? 41.Rb6.
41.Kf4
The engines give White a slight edge after 41.h4.
41...Kg7 42.Kf5 b6 43.Rg5 Rb7 44.h4 Rb8?
The last sure-fire draw was 44...Kf8, eg 45.Rxg6 hxg6+ 46.Kf6 Rb8 47.e6 fxe6 48.Kxe6 Kg7 49.Kd5 Rd8+ 50.Kc4 Rc8+ 51.Kb4 Rd8 etc, or 45.h5 Rxg5+ 46.Kxg5 Ke7 47.Kh6 f6 48.Kxh7 fxe5 49.dxe5 Ke6+.
45.h5 Rxg5+ 46.Kxg5 h6+ 47.Kf5 Kf8?
Much more resistance is put up by 47...Rb7 48.e6 Rb8 49.Ke5 fxe6 50.Kxe6 Re8+ 51.Kxd5 Kf6 52.Kc6 Rd8 53.Rd5 Rc8+ 54.Kxb6 Ke6, when Black seems to have very good drawing chances despite being a pawn down.
48.Kf6 Rb7?
Feeble, although 48...Ke8 49.Kg7 looks pretty hopeless.
49.Rxd5
Black only has stalemate tricks left.
The game finished:
49...Rb8 50.Rb5 Rb7 51.d5 Rb8 52.d6 Rb7 53.d7 Rxd7 54.Rxb6 Kg8 55.Rb8+ Kh7 56.Rf8 Rd6+ 57.Kxf7 Rd8 58.e6 Rd1 59.e7 Rf1+ 60.Ke8 Re1 61.Rf6 Kg7 62.Rg6+ Kh7 63.Kf7 Re2 64.Rf6 Ra2 65.e8=Q Ra8 66.Qe4+ 1-0

Guernsey Round Five

Spanton (1927) - Antoine Canonne (1908)
Spanish Exchange
1.Nf3 Nc6 2.e4 e5 3.Bb5 a6 4.Bxc6 dxc6 5.d4 exd4 6.Qxd4 Qxd4 7.Nxd4 

The starting tabiya of the old main line of the Spanish Exchange

7...c5 8.Ne2 Nf6 9.Nbc3 Bd7 10.f3 0-0-0 11.Be3 Bd6 12.0-0-0 Rhe8 13.h3 Bc6 14.Bg5 Be7 15.Rxd8+ Bxd8
AC offered a draw.
16.Rd1 h6 17.Bxf6 Bxf6 18.g3 g6 19.Nd5 Bxd5!?
Black usually keeps the bishop-pair, which is his compensation for an inferior pawn-structure. On the other hand, after the exchange on d5, Black has rook and bishop versus rook and knight, another example of an advantage even though material is supposedly equal (at least by a point-count).
20.Rxd5 b6 21.c3 Bg7
This bishop retreat was what I had expected on move 19.
22.Kd2 c6 23.Rd3 Kc7 24.b3 b5 25.c4 b4 26.Re3 Bd4 27.Rd3 Bg7 28.Kd1 a5 29.g4 a4 30.bxa4!?
I did not want to risk Black's rook invading my position after ...Ra8 and ...axb3.
30...Ra8 31.Kc2 Rxa4 32.Kb1 Ra8 33.h4?!
Almost certainly overextending on the kingside. Stockfish10 and Komodo10 give 33.f4 Re8 34.Ng3 Bd4 with a slight edge for Black.
33...Re8 34.Rd2 Bf6 35.h5 gxh5 36.gxh5 Re5 37.Ng3?
I missed that 37.Nf4 saves the h5 pawn as 37...Bg5 is met by 38.Nd3.
37...Rg5 38.Nf5 Rxh5 39.Nd6 Bc3 40.Ne8+ Kb6 41.Re2?
I rejected 41.Rd7 because of 41...Rh1+ 42.Kc2 Rh2+ 43.Kb1 (43.Kd3?? Rd2+ etc) Rb2+ 44.Kc1 Rxa2, but that is better than what should happen after the text.
41...f6?!
This may be good enough, but much stronger is 41...Rh1+ 42.Kc2 Ra1, when 43.Kd3 loses the knight to 43...Rd1+ and 44...Rd8. That leaves 43.Kb3, but then 43...Rc1 followed by …Bd4 is deadly.
42.f4 Ka5?!
Again this may be good enough, but 42...Rh1+ 43.Kc2 Ra1 44.Kd3 Rd1+ leaves Black a pawn up and with the better minor piece.
43.Ng7 Rh4 44.e5!?
This has a tricky point, but it seems better was 44.Ne6, eg 44...Kb6 45.e5 fxe5 46.fxe5 Rh5 47.Nf8 Kc7 (not 47...Rxe5?? 48.Nd7+) 48.Ne6+ Kc8 49.Nxc5 Rxe5 50.Rxe5 Bxe5 51.Nd3, when White is getting his pawn back. However, the engines reckon Black is close to winning as the bishop is much better at supporting a passed h pawn, and blocking an enemy passed a pawn, than the knight is at supporting a passed a pawn and blocking an enemy passed h pawn.
44...fxe5
Not 44...Rxf4?? 45.e6.
45.fxe5 Rxc4?
This only draws, but the engines point out 45...Ka4, when 46.e6? loses to 46...b3 47.axb3+ Kxb3  and ...Bxg7. So White has to try something such as 46.Kc2 or 46.Ne6, but in each case Black replies 46...Rxc4 and is two pawns up.
46.e6 Bf6 47.e7 Bxe7 48.Rxe7 Rh4 49.Re5 Rh1+ ½–½

Guernsey Round Four

Pal Magnussen (1983) - Spanton (1927)
Accelerated Dragon
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 g6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nc6 5.Nxc6!?
Other moves - 5.Nc3, 5.c4, 5.Be3 - are more popular, but there are almost 2,100 examples of the text in ChessBase's 2019 Mega database.
5...bxc6 6.Qd4 Nf6 7.e5 Nd5 8.e6 f6 9.c4 Nb4 10.Qc3 Na6
10...a5 was played in James Hart - Jeremy Silman, Flagstaff (Arizona), 1991, and is Stockfish10's choice. 10...c5 is at first preferred by Komodo10, but it later switches to 10...a5.
11.exd7+ Qxd7 12.Be3 e5 13.a3 Bc5 14.Be2 Bd4 15.Qc2 Rb8 16.Nc3 Bxe3?
The wrong idea. Yes, White gets an isolated e pawn, but it is not worth giving up such a strong bishop, especially as the isolani is not easy to get at and White might be able to use the half-open f file. The engines give 16...Nc5 17.0-0 Kf7!? with a slight edge for Black.
17.fxe3 Nc5?!
White now gets a strong initiative and ends up taking over the d6 square. Better is 17...Nc7, and if, as in the game, 18.b4, Black can counterattack on the queenside with 18...a5!?, or simply castle and be ready to meet any White attempt to take over d6. However, White would still be better.
18.b4 Ne6 19.Rd1 Qe7 20.Bf3 Bd7 21.Ne4?!
Going after the d6 square, but even stronger seems to be 21.Qa4, hitting both black isolated pawns.
21...0-0 22.c5 a5 23.Qd2

Black to make his 23rd move

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23...Rfd8
I strongly considered 23...axb4!?, which does eventually become the engines' top choice. The idea is to meet 24.Qxd7 with 24...Qxd7 25.Rxd7 bxa3. The engines reckon White is better, but the position is not clear-cut. I just was not sure, and there was also the practical point that White would have the choice of taking the bishop, if he thought the sac did not work, or of declining it with 24.axb4, although then the position is equal, according to the engines.
24.0-0 f5 25.Nd6 axb4 26.axb4 Ng5 27.Be2
27.Qc3!? Nxf3+ 28.gxf3 leaves White with an unchallengeable knight, but it is not clear if White can effectively support it.
27...Be6 28.Qc3 Bd5?!
The engines prefer 28...Nf7 29.Nxf7 Bxf7 30.Rxd8+ Rxd8 31.b5 cxb5 32.Bxb5, when the white passed pawn is dangerous but probably manageable.
29.Bc4?!
Now the pawn push b5 is even more dangerous as Black cannot capture because the d5 bishop would hang.
29...Bxc4 30.Qxc4+ Qe6

White has a very strong continuation

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31.Qc3
Stronger is the engines' 31.Qa6!! The main point is that 31...Rxb4 runs into 32.h4! (the immediate 32.Nxf5 is also good) Rxh4 33.Nxf5!, when Black is losing material, or even getting mated, eg 33...Rxd1 34.Qa8+ Kf7 35.Nd6+ Kg7 36.Qf8#. Black can go for counterplay with 31...Qb3, when one line runs 32.Rb1!? Qxe3+ 33.Kh1 Nf7 34.Nxf7 Kxf7 35.Qxc6, but White's connected passed pawns are clearly more threatening than Black's 4-2 kingside majority. Stockfish10 eventually gives 31...Nf7!? 32.Qxc6 Nxd6 33.Rxd6 Rxd6 34.cxd6, but White is a pawn up and has two dangerous passed pawns, so it is hard to see the game continuing much longer.
31...Nf7 32.Nc4 e4 33.h3 Rxd1?!
Almost certainly better was 33...h5 as the text gives White an initiative.
34.Rxd1 Rd8 35.Rxd8+ Nxd8 36.Qd4
Stockfish10's 36.Nd6! looks strong, eg 36...Nf7 37.b5! cxb5 (37...Nxd6 38.cxd6 Qxd6 39.b6! wins for White - in queen-and-pawn endings a far advanced passed pawn is often more important than an extra pawn) 38.Nxb5, with a difficult defence ahead for Black.
36...Nf7 37.Nd6
Too late - the extra tempi Qd4 and …Nf7 favour Black.
37...Ne5 38.b5 cxb5 39.Nxb5 Nc6 40.Qa4 Kg7 41.Kf1 Qd5 42.Nd4 Nxd4 43.Qxd4+
Or 43.exd4 e3 44.c6 Qe4 45.Qb4 Qf4+ when eventually one player or the other has to take a draw by perpetual check.
43...Qxd4 44.exd4
PM had thought his pair of passed pawns would win, but he forgot Black too has a protected passed pawn.
44...Kf6 45.c6 ½–½

Guernsey Round Three

HAVING gone out of my way yesterday to win the bishop-pair, today I made a beeline for giving up the two bishops.
Spanton (1927) - Jan Maarten van den Boogaart (2039)
Bb5(+) Sicilian
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 d6 4.d4!?
More popular are 4.0-0 and 4.Bxc6+, but the text is also frequently seen.
4...cxd4 5.Qxd4 Bd7 6.Bxc6 Bxc6 7.Nc3
Black has the bishops but White has speedy development - similar to what happened in yesterday's game, albeit in a totally different position.
7...Nf6 8.Bg5 e6 9.0-0-0 Be7 10.Rhe1 Qc7!?
Normal is 10...0-0, but JB goes for a line in which Black saves a tempo for queenside play by leaving his king in the centre.
11.Kb1
A known line goes 11.Bxf6 Bxf6!? 12.Qxd6 Qxd6 13.Rxd6 Bxc3 14.bxc3 Ke7, when Stockfish10 much prefers White, but Komodo10 reckons Black has decent compensation for the pawn. I was more concerned about 12...Qa5, which is not in ChessBase's 2019 Mega database, and there is also 12...Qb6 to consider. In practice Black usually plays 11...gxf6, although then the engines give White the upper hand.
11...a6 12.Qd3
Again Bxf6 was possible. Generally in these lines the engines prefer White but recognise that Black has quite a bit of compensation. More popular than 12.Bxf6 is 12.Qd2, which, as with the text, is generally a prelude to bringing the king's knight to d4.
12...b5 13.Bxf6
At last I felt the time was right.
13...gxf6
13...Bxf6 14.Qxd6 Qxd6 15.Rxd6 looked strong for White to me; Stockfish10 agrees but Komodo10 reckons White only has a small edge.
14.Nd4
The engines prefer 14.a3!?, which I did not seriously consider.
14...Bb7 15.f3?!
Again the engines reckon a3!? is the way to go. I guess their point is that an exchange of pawns on the b4 square will not massively weaken the white king's position, but would more or less rule out queenside castling for Black. The black king would therefore have to go to the kingside, which does not look safe, or stay in the centre, where it would also be at risk and might get in the way of Black's manoeuvring.
The specific problem with the text is it reduces White's ability to get pieces quickly to the kingside.
15...Rc8
15...b4 16.Nce2 is roughly equal after 16...0-0 (Komodo10) or 16...d5 17.exd5 Bxd5 (Stockfish10).
16.Rd2
Again the engines like a3!?
16....b4
Komodo10's choice for quite some time, but eventually both engines see a problem with the text and so prefer a move such as 16...Rd8 or 16...Qc4.

White to make his 17th move

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17.Nce2
I looked at 17.Nd5! exd5 18.exd5, but did not think it worked. However, 18...0-0? loses to 19.Nf5, eg 19...Bd8 (19...Rfe8 20.Rde2) 20.f4 mating; 18...Bxd5 19.Rde2 0-0 20.Rxe7 is clearly good for White; 18...Kd8 (the engines' choice) 19.Rde2 Re8 20.Nf5 is also clearly good for White. So the knight on d5 cannot be taken; instead the engines give 17...Qc4 18.Qxc4 Rxc4 19.b3 Rc8 20.Nxb4, when White is a pawn up, although the game is opening up for Black's bishops.
17...Rg8
Hitting g2 and possibly threatening to swing across to the queenside.
18.e5??
Overambitious and badly calculated.
The engines give 18.g4, and if 18...Rg5, then 19.Ng3 or 19.h4 as neither 19...Ra5 nor 19...Rc5 seems dangerous.
18...fxe5 19.Qxh7 Rg6 20.Nb3
White has not lost material - at least not immediately - but White's king is more in danger than Black's, which is the complete opposite of the intent behind my combination.
20...Bf8
This is not in Stockfish10's top-three choices but is nevertheless considered by the engines as winning for Black - a sign of just how bad the white position is.
21.f4
This is best, according to the engines - the idea is to block, at least temporarily, the h6-c1 diagonal.
21...Be4 22.Ka1 d5 23.Qh8 exf4 24.g3 fxg3 25.Nxg3 Qb6
The engines prefer 25...a5 or 25...Rh6, one point being that White cannot double-capture on e4 after 25...a5 as Black has a back-rank mate starting with ...Rg1+. However the text is also good.
26.Nxe4 dxe4 27.Qe5 e3 28.Rde2 Bg7 29.Qe4 a5 30.Kb1
Possible is 30.Rxe3, but after 30...a4 31.Nc1 a3 32.Kb1 (32.Nd3 Rxc2) Qc7, Black is well on top.
30...a4 31.Nc1 Qd4
This forces queens off, after which the win is easy.The remaining moves were:
32.Qxd4 Bxd4 33.Nd3 Rb8 34.Nf4 Rh6 35.Nd3 f5 36.Rg1 Kf7 37.Reg2 Rh7 38.Nf4 e5 39.Ne2 Bc5 40.Rg5 Kf6 41.Rg6+ Kf7 42.Rc6 Rxh2 43.Rxc5 Rxe2 44.Rxe5 Kf6 45.Rd5 Rf2 46.Rdd1 f6 47.Rgf1 Rxf1 48.Rxf1 e2 0-1

Guernsey Round Two

Jan Prins (1987) - Spanton (1927)
New London
1.d4 d5 2.Bf4 e6 3.e3 Bd6 4.Bg3!?
Easily the most popular move in ChessBase's 2019 Mega database. It has been played by many strong grandmasters, including Kramnik, Grischuk and Kamsky, but in a way White is relinquishing the advantage of the first move, ie the pawn-structure is symmetrical, and both players have developed a piece, but it is Black rather than White to move. I guess White's counter-argument to this is that the white queen's bishop has been developed outside the pawn-chain, while Black's is shut in. A sharp alternative is 4.Qg4!?
4...Nf6 5.Bd3 Nc6!?
Threatening the central pawn break ...e5, while trying to get White to spend a tempo protecting the light-square bishop with c3 or a3.
6.f4!?
Normal is 6.Nf3, stopping 6...e5, and if 6...Nb4, then White can play 7.Be2 followed by evicting the b4 knight, probably with a3. The text also stops ...e5, but makes White's dark-square bishop bad.
6...Nb4 7.Be2 Ne4 8.c3 Nc6 9.Nd2 Nxg3?!
I sometimes play as if winning the bishop-pair is an end in itself, rather than the means to an end. The problem with the text is that the knight has spent three moves in order to be exchanged for White's bad bishop while at the same time half-opening the h file for White.
Stockfish10 and Komodo10 like 9...0-0 or 9...Ne7!? They reckon a White capture on e4 is nothing for Black to worry about.
However, Stockfish10 in particular does not like 9...f5!?, when first shown it, although after the engines' main continuation, viz 10.Ngf3 0-0 11.Bh4 Ne7 12.0-0, they reckon the position is equal.
10.hxg3 Bd7 11.Qc2 h6
11...f5?! can be met by 12.Bh5+, when 12...g6?? 13.Bxg6+ is a catastrophe for Black.
12.g4 Qe7 13.b4 a6 14.Nb3 b6 15.Nf3 a5 16.a3
Also interesting is 16.b5 Na7 17.a4 c6 18.bxc6, when the engines prefer White.
16...axb4 17.axb4
Not 17.cxb4? Rxa3 18.Rxa3 Bxb4+ 19.Kf2 Bxa3.
17...Rxa1+ 18.Nxa1 Na7 19.g5 Bb5 20.gxh6 gxh6
White gets a second queen after 20...Bxe2?? 21.hxg7 Rxh1+ 22.Kxe2. However, the engines prefer 20...Rxh6 21.Rxh6 gxh6, as an invasion with 22.Qh7 does not seem to lead to anything.
21.Kf2 Bxe2 22.Qxe2 c6
The engines prefer 22...Qd7, one point being 23.Qa6 can be met by 23...Nb5.
23.Qd3
I intended meeting 23.Qa6 with 23...Qc7, when the engines give 24.c4!, the idea being that 24...Bxb4 25.Rb1 c5 26.dxc5 Bxc5 27.Nb3 leaves Black's position under a lot of pressure. A better reply seems to be 24...dxc4, although the engines still much prefer White after 25.Qxc4.
23...Nb5 24.Nc2
I was more worried about 24.c4 dxc4 25.Qxc4, again with pressure.
24...Bc7 25.Ne5
The engines at first much prefer 25.c4, but my idea was 25...Nd6, when Black has serious counterplay thanks to the threat of ...Ne4+.
25...Bxe5?!
I considered giving up a pawn by 25...Nd6! 26.Nxc6 Qf6, but did not trust it. However, the engines reckon Black has good compensation, although they slightly prefer White.
26.dxe5
White's king is too exposed after 26.fxe5?
26...f5
Stockfish10 suggests 26...Kf8, but much prefers White after 27.g4. Komodo10 gives 26...h5, but again 27.g4 seems a strong reply. I did seriously consider the latter line, but thought Black's h pawn would not last long.
27.exf6
Even stronger, according to the engines, is giving up a pawn by 27.Nd4 Nxd4 28.cxd4!? Qxb4, when White invades with 29.Qa6.
27...Qxf6 28.Nd4 Nxd4 29.cxd4 b5
The engines give 29...Kf7 30.g4 (30.Qa6? allows serious counterplay with 30...Qg6, taking advantage of the fact that Black's king is not the only vulnerable one) Qg6 31.Qxg6+ Kxg6 32.Rc1 Rc8 33.e4 dxe4 34.Ke3 Kf6 35.Kxe4 b5 36.Rh1 Kg7, when Black is passive but it is not clear White is winning.
30.Qc2 Kd7 31.Rc1 Rc8 32.Qh7+ Kd6 33.g3?!
Safety-first, but probably unnecessary. The engines give 33.Rh1, when 33...Rh8 34.Qb7 Qg6 35.Rc1 Qe8 36.Qg7 is their main line. One possible continuation is 36...Qa8 37.e4! dxe4 38.d5! exd5 39.Ra1 Qb8 40.Ra7 with a winning attack - not a line many humans would find over the board.
33...Rc7?
Better was 33...Qf5!, when 34.Qxh6 gives Black a respite from checks, and so he can draw with, for example, 34...Ra8. Also no good for White is 34.Qxf5 exf5 as this is a much better rook-and-pawn ending, from Black's viewpoint, than the note at move 29. White should therefore perhaps try 34.Qb7, although the simple 34...Rc7 seems good enough for Black.
34.Qc2?
34.Qg8 looks strong in all lines, eg 34...Qf7 35.Qxf7 Rxf7 36.Rh1, when the h pawn cannot be defended in the long run, eg 36...Rf6 37.g4 Ke7 38.Kg3 Rg6 (38...Kf7 39.Rc1) 39.Rc1 Kd6 40.Ra1 Rg7 41.Ra8 Rg6 42.Ra7 Rf6 43.Rh7 Rg6 44.Kg3 with Kh4, Kh5 and Rxh6 to follow. This is another long engine line, but Black at no point has any counterplay and must eventually succumb.
34...Kd7?
A mistake, not least because White can transpose to the previous note with 35.Qh7+. Correct was 34...Qf5, which seems to draw.
35.Ra1
This may not be as strong as 35.Qh7+, but is probably good enough.
35...Qg7
Black loses the h pawn after 35...Qf5? 36.Qxf5 exf5 37.Rh1.
36.Ra8
The engines want to take the white king off the second rank with 36.Kf3!?
36...Rb7
36...h5 is suggested by the engines, but they much prefer White.
37.Qc5
The engines' second choice, but 37.g4 is apparently stronger.
37...Rc7 38.Qb6?
Again g4!? is the engines' main line. They continue 38...Qf6 (the checks run out after 38...Qxg4 39.Qf8 Qh4+ 40.Ke2 Qg4+ 41.Kd2 Qg2+ 42.Kc3) 39.Qf8 Qxf8 40.Rxf8 and the h pawn falls.
The text threatens Qxc7+, as well as doubling on the eighth rank, but there is a flaw.

Black to play and draw

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38...Qg6
Threatens perpetual check starting with 39...Qc2+.
39.Qc5 Qh5
Perpetual check still cannot be stopped. The game finished:
40.Qf8 Qh2+ 41.Kf1 Qh1+ 42.Ke2 Qg2+ 43.Kd3 Qf1+
But not 43...Qe4+?? 44.Kd2 Qg2+ 45.Kc3.
44.Kd2 ½–½ 

Guernsey Round One

Spanton (1927/168) - Kevin Thurlow (2021/172)
Barry Attack
1.Nc3 d5 2.d4 Nf6 3.Bf4
The Veresov-London hybrid that I call the Barry Attack, although it has other names.
3...e6 4.Nb5!? Na6
The main move. For 4...Bb4+!? see https://beauchess.blogspot.com/2019/10/veresov-london-hybrid.html
5.e3 c6 6.Nc3 Bd6!?
Not a popular choice.

How should White react?

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Black's offer to exchange his good bishop is slightly strange, but I rejected 7.Bxd6, which would have been a novelty, or at least is not in ChessBase's 2019 Mega database, because 7...Qxd6 leaves Black with a handy lead in development. One continuation is 8.Bxa6!? bxa6 9.Na4, but I thought Black would be fine after 9...Nd7. However, Stockfish10 and Komodo10 reckon White is slightly better.
A 2445 three years ago played 7.Bxa6!? bxa6 8.Nge2, beating a 2110, but the engines are unimpressed.
Kirill Alekseenko (2575) - Normunds Miezis (2430), Riga 2017, went 7.Nf3!? Bxf4 8.exf4 9.Bd3 c5 10.0-0 with what the engines reckon is a slight edge for White.
7.Bg5?!
Black has a simple but good reply that I missed.
7...e5 8.dxe5 Bxe5 9.Nf3 Bxc3+ 10.bxc3 Nc5 11.Bxf6!?
The engines' choice. The idea will soon become clear.
11...Qxf6 12.Qd4 Ne4 13.Qxf6 Nxf6 14.c4
Dissolving White's doubled pawns  - the point behind 11.Bxf6!?
14...0-0 15.cxd5 Nxd5 16.Bc4 Nb4?!
I was more concerned about 16...Nb6 and 16...Nc3!?, although White seems to be OK. The text causes Black unnecessary difficulties.
17.0-0-0 c5?!
This leads directly to later problems. The engines suggest 17...a5 18.a3 Na6 19.Bxa6 Rxa6, but give White a slight edge after 20.Ne5.
18.a3 Nc6 19.Rdx5 b6 20.Rd6 Na5 21.Bd5

How should Black meet the threat to his queen's rook?

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21...Nb7?!
The worst of three choices, it seems
Best, according to the engines, is 21...Bb7 22.Bxb7 Nxb7 23.Rd7, when Komodo10 gives 23...Na5 24.Rhd1 Nc4 25.a4 with a slight edge for White thanks to having more-active rooks, while Stockfish10 gives 23...Nd8!? 24.Rhd1 Re8 25.Ne5!? Kf8 26.R1d5 f6 27.Nc4, when it reckons White has the upper hand, but there is no immediate win of material.
After the third choice, 21...Rb8, the engines give 22.Rd1 Bb7 23.Rd7 Bxd5 24.R1xd5 Ra8 with White being much better, but again not immediately winning material.
22.Bxb7?!
KT's postmortem suggestion of 23.Rc6! is strong. White seems to win a pawn whatever Black plays, eg 23...Rb8 24.Rc7 Nd6 25.Ne5 Bb7 26.Rd1 Bxd5 27.Nxd5 f6 28.Rxd6 fxe5 29.Rdd7 Rxf2 30.Rxg7+ Kf8 31.Rxh7 Rxg2 32.Rxa7, although whether this is winning for White (Stockfish10) or merely much better (Komodo10) is hard to judge.
22...Bxb7 23.Rd7?!
Almost certainly another inaccuracy. White seems to be fine after 23.Rhd1 as it is very difficult for Black to dispute White's control of the only open file. The text, however, allows exactly such a challenge.
23...Bc6 24.Rd6 Rac8 25.Rhd1 f6 26.Ne1 Kf7 27.Kb2 Ke7 28.Kc3 Rfd8 29.Rxd8 Rxd8 30.Rxd8 Kxd8

The start of a classic bishop-v-knight battle

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Black is better because a bishop outperforms a knight in endings where there are rival mobile pawn-majorities. The engines reckon Black's advantage is worth just under half a pawn.
31.f3!?
Putting pawns on the same-coloured squares as the bishop might seen strange in an ending where they will be targets, but I thought it was best to restrict the bishop's freedom of movement where possible while using the knight and/or king to prevent Black's king penetrating on dark squares.
31...Ke7 32.Nd3 g5 33.Nf2 h5 34.h3?!
This may have been taking the light-square policy too far, although the engines' suggestion of 34.e4 is similarly motivated.
34...Ke6 35.Kd2 b5 36.c3 a5 37.e4 Kd6
This comes to be Komodo10's choice, at least for a while, but Stockfish10 much prefers to fix the kingside with 37...h4.
38.Nd3?!
It seems I should have taken the chance to play 38.g3.
38...c4?!
Fixing a pawn on the same-coloured square as the bishop is unlikely to be the way to proceed unless, perhaps, there is an immediate tactical point to the move. The engines again suggest ...h4, and reckon White is winning (Stockfish10) or at least much better (Komodo10). However, get them to play on in the position and their evaluations hardly ever change, and nothing much happens as they make aimless moves with the bishop.
39.Ne1 h4 40.Nc2 Bd7 41.Ke3 Ke5 42.Nd4 Be8 43.Ne2 Bc6 44.Nd4 Bd7 45.Ne2 f5 46.exf5 Bxf5 47.Nd4
White is in zugzwang after 47.f4+?! gxf4 48.Nxf4 Be4. Even so, White still seems to be drawing, eg 49.Ne2 Bxg2 50.Nd4 Bxh3 51.Nf3+ Kd5 52.Nxh4, when Black is a pawn up, but all the pawns are on one side of the board and the bishop is the wrong colour for promoting a pawn on the a file.
47...Bd7 48.Ne2 Bc6 49.Nd4 Bd7 50.Ne2 Bc6 ½–½

Six Surprising Chess Facts About Bobby Fischer (part six)

1. He had a 50% score against Damiano's Defence
2. He played the Morra Gambit
3. Opponents were more likely to meet Fischer's 1.e4 with 1...e5 than with 1...c5
4. He had a better record as White in double e-pawn openings with the King's Gambit than with 2.Nf3
5. The Exchange Variation of the Spanish was a sideline for Fischer compared with his use of 4.Ba4
6. He had a better score against the Sicilian with Nc3 than with Nf3
Fischer faced 1...c5 in 179 games, playing 2.Nf3 170 times, scoring 73%, and 2.Nc3 nine times, scoring 89%, according to ChessBase's 2019 Mega database.
He is perhaps best-known in the Sicilian for popularising the move Bc4 in Open Sicilians.
In the Closed he championed a system later dubbed the Chameleon Sicilian by GM Andrew Soltis.
Fischer - Boris Spassky
Match 1992, game 17
1.e4 c5 2.Nc3 Nc6
The choice of seven of Fischer's nine Nc3 opponents. The two exceptions played 2...e6. In all nine games, Fischer played the same third move.
3.Nge2!?
This fits with the normal Closed Sicilian plan of fianchettoing White's kingside bishop. But at the same time White keeps on the agenda the possibility of switching to an Open Sicilian by playing d4. This chameleon-like flexibility is what Soltis drew attention to in a 1982 booklet for Chess Digest.
3...e6 4.g3
This and 4.d4 are almost equally popular in Mega19. Fischer tried both moves.
4...d5 5.exd5 exd5 6.Bg2!?
6.d4!?, although little played, looks a critical alternative. In game 23 of the same match, Fischer tried a Soltis favourite, 6.d3, drawing in 80 moves.
6...d4 7.Nd5
The knight might look precarious here, but it can be supported and, in case of need, can fall back to f4.
7...Nf6 8.Nef4 Nxd5 9.Nxf5 Bd6
9...Be6 is met by 10.Nf4.
10.0-0 0-0 11.d3 Be6
Black has more space, and now sets about evicting White's only trump, the knight.
12.Nf4
Given as a novelty by GM Ľubomír Ftáčnik in Mega19 but, hardly surprisingly, it is not.
12...Bf5 13.h3 Rb8!?
GM Vladimir Epishin preferred 13...Re8 in a win over a 2290 at the 1991 New York open.
14.Bd2 Re8 15.Re1 Rxe1+ 16.Qxe1 Qd7

White needs a plan

*****
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17.g4!?
Arguably White's only active plan, and without it the situation in the centre surely makes him slightly worse.
17...Re8 18.Qd1 Bxf4
Giving up the bishop-pair is also the choice of Stockfish10 and Komodo10. The obvious alternative, 18...Bg6, also loses the bishop-pair (as does 18...Be6) after 19.Nxg6, and then Black is weak on the central light squares.
19.Bxf4 Be6 20.Qf3 Nb4 21.Qxb7 Qxb7 22.Bxb7 Nxc2 23.Rc1 Nb4 24.Be4 Bxa2
Ftáčnik gives 24...c4! 25.dxc4 Bxg4, when Black is close to equal.
25.Bd2
If 25.Rxc4, then 25...Bb1, which is equal according to Ftáčnik.
25...Bd5 26.Bxd5 Nxd5 27.Rxc5 Nb6
Material is level but here, as is often the case, a rook works better with a bishop than with a knight.
28.Kf1 f6 29.Ra5 Re7 30.Bb4 Rd7 31.Bc5 Kf7 32.Ke2 g5?!
This weakens f5 and e4, which is presumably why the engines prefer 32...g6.
33.Kf3
If Black had played 32...g6, then 33.Kf3 could be met by 33...Ke6, and if 34.Ke4, then 34...f5+ 35.gxf5+ gxf5+, evicting the white king from e4.
 Kg6 34.Ke4 h5 35.Bxd4 Re7+ 36.Kf3 h4 37.Bc5 Re1?!
Jettisoning a second pawn for activity, but it was probably better to sit tight.
38.Rxa7 Nd5 39.Bf8 Re8
Spassky may have originally intended ...Rh1, but his king is too weak.
40.Bd6 Re6 41.Rd7 (1-0, 58 moves)

45th Guernsey

ARRIVED in Guernsey this afternoon for the 45th Guernsey international chess festival, being held at the Peninsula hotel.
The hotel has a new and much-improved bar, and the restaurant has been completely refurbished.
Rooms are as they were, which is meant as a compliment, not a complaint - I am back in my favourite room, which has a huge double-bed and, by all accounts, better wifi than most (but you need to be in the reception/bar area to get a good signal).

New bar at the Peninsula

The open has 43 entrants, including GM Mark Hebden and two IMs.

No.		Name	FideID	FED	Rtg
1	GM	Hebden Mark L	400084	ENG	2427
2	IM	Povah Nigel E	400467	ENG	2301
3	IM	Baker Chris W	401676	ENG	2245
4	FM	Giulian Philip M	2400197	SCO	2131
5		Havenaar Jan	1005081	NED	2091
6		Bianco Valerio	800600	ITA	2088
7		Curtis John E	411892	ENG	2059
8		Reijneveld Ad	1010654	NED	2056
9		Van Den Boogaart Jan Maarten	1044559	NED	2039
10		Dilleigh Stephen P	408379	ENG	2037
11	CM	Thurlow Kevin J	406104	ENG	2021
12		Pleasants Allan J	411337	WLS	2019
13		Wager John D	420204	ENG	2013
14		Collier David O	406422	ENG	2009
15	CM	Kirby Peter J.	409014	GCI	2004
16		Sedgwick David	404020	ENG	1999
17	FM	Hamperl Fred	10700110	GCI	1995
18		Heppell Ian N	412058	ENG	1995
19		Purdon Colin	408581	ENG	1993
20	CM	Rosen Daniel B	405418	ENG	1990
21		Prins Jan	1017179	NED	1987
22		Kraft Karl-Heinz Prof. Dr.	12924121	GER	1986
23		De Kruif Kees	1006479	NED	1985
24		Kwossek Georg	4670531	GER	1984
25		Magnussen Pal	1711814	SWE	1983
26		Van Dijk Bram	1001116	NED	1982
27		Korte Markus	4615620	GER	1975
28		White Nigel	455830	ENG	1975
29	CM	Rowe Peter	10700099	GCI	1957
30		Fassaert Desire	1008331	NED	1952
31		Dijksterhuis Rolf	1006452	NED	1937
32		Spanton Tim R	404802	ENG	1927
33		Taylor Mark V	409243	ENG	1921
34		Sikkel Dirk	1050079	NED	1918
35		Goris Ton	1003526	NED	1913
36		Canonne Antoine	619388	FRA	1908
37		Morcom Huw	1800469	WLS	1906
38		Jones Tibor	2405288	SCO	1872
39		Burton Ronnie	408441	ENG	1862
40		Gravett Alan D	406171	ENG	1831
41	CM	Brookfield Toby	10700234	GCI	1804
42		Agustsson Hafsteinn	2302047	ISL	1804
43		Murray J Stephen	2401495	SCO	1736

There are 45 entrants - almost a perfect split - in the Holiday, which is for players rated under 1900.

No.		Name	FideID	FED	Rtg
1		Coenen Albert	1028960	NED	1899
2		Strade Arita	11603437	GCI	1882
3		Van Hoek Wim	10700293	NED	1863
4		Nevska Gerda	10700366	GCI	1858
5		Hermes Geoff R	423254	ENG	1833
6		Ingham H William	451096	ENG	1807
7		Hamann Marcus	24668060	GER	1802
8		Hoogakker Peter	1053922	NED	1788
9		O`connell Denis	2505860	IRL	1787
10		Dennis Nigel W	408913	ENG	1768
11	WCM	Smith Lynda	1800191	WLS	1765
12		Stanners Michael J	437212	ENG	1752
13		Baart Edwin	1055429	NED	1746
14		Turner David J	419737	ENG	1746
15		Haisma Henk	1038486	NED	1725
16		Kirk Matthew	10700145	GCI	1722
17		Nielsen Jorgen Holmstrom	1434373	DEN	1715
18		Remie Peter	1060368	NED	1688
19		Hall Alan	449652	ENG	1684
20		Goman Colin	10700170	GCI	1671
21		Goris-Schouwstra Adry	1012746	NED	1662
22		Vonhoff Joerg	24693669	GER	1654
23		Finch Russell	10700277	GCI	1638
24		Parfett Gerald F	414794	ENG	1633
25		Kershaw Graham	448826	ENG	1631
26		Kirkwood Robin	1800990	WLS	1628
27		Foran Barry	2508230	IRL	1627
28		Denning Julie L	10700129	ENG	1625
29		Collins Alan	470120	ENG	1615
30		Gunn Michael J	409030	ENG	1608
31		Bakkes Frits	1044079	NED	1605
32		Knudsen Jan	1460803	DEN	1603
33		Kearsley Raymond J	470562	ENG	1597
34		Henry Eric	694681	FRA	1591
35		Colsen Manuel	1024779	NED	1583
36		Beadle John R	402818	ENG	1571
37		Rowe Oliver	10700226	GCI	1545
38		Foster Paul	447706	ENG	1533
39		Jones Sidney A	448818	ENG	1524
40		Harnden Terry	10700340	GCI	1499
41		Bennett David	448460	ENG	1401
42		Nalichowski Bogdan	1184873	POL	1375
43		Le Maitre Richard		GCI	1351
44		Bennett Delroy	460320	ENG	1326
45		McGill Brendan	479284	ENG	1195