Saturday 12 October 2019

Blitzed!

MY top-board opponent in round three of the Dorset open this afternoon was an ungraded junior who is the Dorset blitz champion, having won the title last month with a score of 10/11.
Declan Lovelock - Spanton (168)
Open Spanish
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 Nf6 4.0-0 Nxe4 5.d4 a6!? 6.Ba4 b5 7.Bb3 d5 8.dxe5 Be6
The same move-order as in a Central London League game of mine last month: https://beauchess.blogspot.com/2019/09/civil-war.html
9.Nbd2 Nc5 10.c3 Be7 11.Bc2 d4 12.Nb3 dxc3!?
The mainline runs 12...d3 13.Bb1 Nxb3 14.axb3 Bf5 15.Be3 0-0 16.Bd4 Qd5 17.Re1 d2 18.Re2 Bxb1 19.Rxb1 Nxd4 20.Nxd4 Bg5, when Stockfish10 and Komodo10 reckon White is slightly better.
13.Nbd4!?
An interesting novelty, or at least a move that is not in ChessBase's 2019 Mega database. Naturally a blitz champion, and a junior at that, is not interested in lines where queens might come off.
13...Nxd4 14.Nxd4 cxb2!?
Grabbing a pawn against such an opponent may be objectively fine, but was hardly my brightest moment.
15.Bxb2 Qd7 16.Qf3 0-0?!
With hindsight I should have gone for 16...Bd5, although after 17.Qg3 Black is more-or-less committed to castling long, when there is no doubt who has the safer king.
Can you see the problem with Black's 16th move?
*****
*****
*****
*****
*****
17.Rfd1!!
A strong move that I suspect most club players would quickly reject - assuming they saw my reply.
17...Bg4?
White is better, but not yet winning, after the engines' 17...Qe8.
18.Qg3 Bxd1 19.Nf5 g6?
Better was 19...Qxf5 20.Bxf5 Na4 21.Rxd1 Nxb2, but White is winning after the engines' 22.Rd7.
20.e6 h5
Yes, stronger was Resigns.
21.exd7 Bxc2 22.Qc3 Ne6 23.Qh8#
I will be interested to see what grade DL has when the January list comes out.

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