Daniel Schulz-Vernholz (1845) - Spanton (1941)
QGD Exchange
1.c4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.cxd5!?
This is often frowned upon as, after ...
3...exd5 4.d4 c6
... it is generally believed Black has an easier-than-usual version of the Exchange Variation of the Queen's Gambit Declined.
5.Nf3
This is the main move in ChessBase's 2025 Mega database. White can stop Black's next move, 5...Bf5, by playing 5.Qc2, but Black can play ...Bf5 anyway after preparing it with 5 ...g6.
5...Bf5 6.Bf4 Bd6 7.Bxd6 Qxd6 8.e3 Nf6 9.Bd3 Bg6!?
The chief idea of an early ...Bf5 is to swop light-square bishops, or oblige White to accept a more-passive placing of the white king's bishop at e2. However Stockfish17 and Dragon1 are OK with the text.
10.0-0 Nbd7 11.a3 a5 12.Rc1!?
12.Qc2 has been played, but then Black can swop light-square bishops without having lost a tempo.
12...Bxd3 13.Qxd3 0-0
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| Now both sides have castled, how would you assess the position? |
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The position occurs three times in Mega25, but with Black to move. In that case the engines reckon the game is equal - but they also reckon the position with White to move is equal. Essentially the engines are saying it is a position in which a tempo here or there is irrelevant!
14.Na4!? Ne4 15.Nd2 f5 16.f4?!
The position after 15...f5 arose by transposition in Alexey Molchanov (2334) - Andrew Tang (2461), Chess.com Blitz 2017. That continued 16.f3 Nxd2 17.Qxd2 f4!? 18.Rfe1 fxe3 19.Qxe3!? Rf6!? 20.Qe7 Raf8 21.Qxd6 Rxd6 22.Nc5 Nxc5 23.Rxc5, with a completely equal rook-and-pawn ending, according to the engines (but 0-1, 49 moves).
16...b5 17.Nc3!?
The engines slightly prefer 17.Nc5.
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| How should Black proceed? |
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17...Nxd2!
Swopping a well-placed knight for a passive white knight, but otherwise the latter hops into e5 via f3, equalising the game, according to the engines.
18.Qxd2 Nb6 19.Nd1!?
The engines prefer R(either)e1, or Rc2!?
19...Nc4 20.Qc2 Rae8!?
Possibly better is 20...a4, fixing the a2 weakness and cementing the black knight's outpost. However, Dragon1 comes to prefer the text, at least for a while, and Stockfish17 reckons there is little between the two moves.
21.b3 Nxe3
Stockfish17 prefers 21...Na3!?; Dragon1 rates the two moves almost equally strong.
22.Nxe3 Rxe3 23.Qxc6 Qxc6 24.Rxc6
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| How would you assess this double rook-and-pawn ending? |
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The position has a great deal of symmetry, but this it is one where a tempo probably is important. With White to move, the game is equal, according to the engines, but it is Black to move, and Dragon1 reckons that is enough to give Black the upper hand, although Stockfish17 reckons Black only has the better part of equality.
24...Rxb3 25.Re1?!
Almost certainly better is 25.Rc5.
25...Rxa3 26.Re7
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| Black to play and win |
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26...Ra1+
Even stronger is 26...Kh8!, so 27.Rcc7 can be met by 27...Rg8.
27.Kf2 Ra2+ 28.Kf1 Ra1+
It was still not too late for ...Kh8, but instead I offered a draw, which was accepted after a seven-minute thought.
½–½
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