Black To Play And Win

From yesterday's ninth and final round of the 'Paignton' premier.

White has just played 19.f3? in Angus French (1984/173) - Spanton (1881/168)

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19...Qe5!
I give this move an exclamation mark because it took me some time to find it, and, judging by his body language, my opponent did not see it until I played the move. However, I suspect in a post headlined Black To Play And Win, it is somewhat easier to spot.
20.Re1 Qxh2+
Also good is 20...Qd4+, provided that after 21.Kh1 Nf2+ 22.Kg1 Nxd3+ 23.Kf1, you find the move 23...Bf5.
21.Kf1 Qh1+ 22.Ke2 Qxg2+ 23.Kd1 Qxf3+ 24.Kc1 Qf6 25.Kb1 Re8 (0-1, 49 moves)
My final score of +3=4-2 saw me gain 27.4 Fide elo and win a rating-performance prize of £100. It was an ECF grading performance of 178.8.

Morphing The French

BACK on July 17 I began a seven-part series (https://beauchess.blogspot.com/2019/07/morphy-v-french.html) on how Paul Morphy took on the French Defence.
Since then I have played in a 4NCL congress in Telford, the British, a CzechTour festival in Olomouc, Tim Wall's Northumbria congress and two games in London's Summer League.
Only today, in round eight of the 'Paignton' premier, did I get a chance to put what I learnt into practice.
Spanton (1881/168) - Alan M Brown (1991/186)
French Exchange
1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.exd5 exd5 4.Nf3 Bd6 5.Bd3 Nf6 6.0-0 0-0 7.Nc3 c6 8.Bg5!?
This move is not liked by the analysis engines Stockfish10 and Komodo10, but it was played by Morphy in wins against Johann Löwenthal and the Cuban slave José María Sicre. The engines like 8.h3 or 8.Ne2.
8...Bg4
The engines' choice. Löwenthal preferred 8...h6 9.Bh4 Bg4 in game 10 of their match.
9.h3 Be6
Morphy - Sicre, Havana 1862, saw 9...Bxf3 10.Qxf3 Nbd7 with a slight edge to White thanks to having the bishop-pair (1-0, 27 moves). The main move is 9...Bh5, when the double-edged 10.g4!? is interesting.
10.Ne5 Nbd7 11.Nxd7
11.f4 looked dangerous in the postmortem, but we did not consider the engines' suggestion of 11...Qb6!? 12.Kh1 Qxb2, although White has lots of compensation for the pawn.
11...Bxd7 12.Qf3 Be7 13.Rfe1 Be6?!
More natural is 13...Re8.
14.Ne2 h6 15.Bh4 Nh7 16.Bxe7 Qxe7 17.Bxh7+?!
Keeping more material on the board with 17.Nf4 looks a better try, but the text is enough for an edge, but one that turns out to be largely meaningless.
17...Kxh7 18.Nf4 Qf6 19.Nxe6 fxe6 20.Qxf6 Rxf6 21.Re5 Raf8 22.f3 Kg8 23.Rae1
White is slightly better because Black has a backward e pawn, but the reduced material means the weakness is easily defended without having to make concessions elsewhere (½–½, 30 moves).

Draw Meister

PRIOR to this round-seven game in the 'Paignton' premier, my opponent had drawn five games and taken a half-point bye in his remaining one.
The finish of this game may help explain why he is such a 'solid' player.

White has just played 23.Ra1-d1 and offered a draw in Adrian Pickersgill (1948/170) - Spanton (1881/168)

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AP explained in the postmortem that he offered a draw because he thought the position was equal, which is confirmed by the analysis engines Stockfish10 and Komodo10.
23...Qd6?
Playing on in this type of position helps explain, on the other hand, why so few of my games end in draws. Sometimes it seems I will play any move, just to keep the game going.
Here it would have made sense to play 23...h6 or 23...g6, to avoid back-rank mate problems, or 23...a6 to give the b5 pawn more protection. The problem with the text is that it unblockades the white isolani, and that is a problem because, as a general rule, isolated pawns become stronger the further they advance (provided they do not just become easily capturable).
24.a3?!
White is better after 24.d5, which takes the pressure off his isolani and drives Black's knight to an unfavourable square, eg 24...Na5 25.b3.
24...Rd7 25.Qh4
Pushing the d pawn is not so clear-cut now as Black replies 25...Ne7.
25...f6?!
This solves Black's potential back-rank mate problem, and restricts White's knight. But, to a certain extent, the knight is restricted anyway by being tied to the d pawn, and the text creates a new problem by weakening the e6 square.
26.Qh5 g6??
The best moves, it is said, contain more than one threat. Well, I saw that 26.Qh5 threatened to invade with a rook at e8, but I completely missed the other point of the move.
27.Qxb5
In one move the game has gone from equal material, but with White having the only isolani, to White being a pawn up, and Black having two isolanis against White's one.
27...Kf7?
I wanted to give extra protection to the e6 square to stop a white rook landing there, but there were more pressing problems. I rejected 27...Rb8 because after 28.Qc4+ Qd5 29.Qxd5+ Rxd5, White has 30.Re6, which is indeed good for White, although the engines reckon 30.Rc1 is even stronger.
28.b4?
White wins a second pawn after 28.Qc4+ Qd5 29.Qxd5 Rxd5 30.Rc1, eg 30...Rd6 31.d5 etc.
28...Rfd8 29.h3
29.d5 may be even stronger, but Black has no meaningful counterplay, so guarding against a back-rank mate (and doing so in a sensible manner) cannot be bad.
29...Kg7?
Setting up a white knight-fork at e6 does not help, but Black was in a bad way in any event.
30.Re3?
This time d5 was definitely stronger, and if 30...Ne5, then 31.Nd4 (with Ne6 to come), as 31...Qxd5?? loses to 32.Qxd5 (best) Rxd5 33.Rxd5 Ne6+.
30...Ne7 31.Rde1 Nf5 32.Re6?!
AP pointed out that better was 32.Re4, but the text should also win.
32...Nxd4 33.Nxd4 Qxd4 34.Re7+ Kh6 35.R7e4
White is better after the text, thanks to Black's weak queenside pawns and exposed king. But even stronger is 35.Qc6, when best, according to the engines, is 35...Rxe7 36.Rxe7 Qd1+ 37.Kh2 Qd6+ 38.Qxd6 Rxd6 39.Rxc7 Ra6 40.Rc3, with what I am sure is a technically winning rook-and-pawn ending.
White accompanied his last move with his second draw offer of the game, and this time even I could not find a (spurious) reason to play on.

Six Of The Worst?

I HAD a lost position in each of my first five games in the 'Paignton' premier, so I entered today's sixth round determined to avoid a repeat performance.
Spanton (1881/168) - Eddie Hurst (1917/162)
Caro-Kann Modern Variation
1.e4 d6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 dxe4 4.Nxe4 Nd7 5.Nf3
The most popular move in ChessBase's 2019 Mega database, but White's main alternatives, 5.Bc4, 5.Ng5, 5.Bd3 and even 5.Qe2, score much better percentage-wise.
5...Ngf6 6.Ng3 e6 7.Bd3 Bd6!?
This aggressive deployment of the dark-square bishop, which was a favourite of Harry Golombek and has been played more recently by Julian Hodgson, is not liked by the analysis engines Stockfish10 and Komodo10.
8.0-0 0-0 9.c4!?
Another move not liked by the engines. My idea was to take d5 away from a black knight as from there it would threaten ...Nb4 and …Nf4. The main move is 9.Re1, and if 9...Nd5, then 10.c3, planning to meet 10...Nf4 by 11.Bc2 or 11.Bb1.
9...b6 10.Re1 Qc7 11.Bd2
The bishop is headed for c3.
11...c5 12.Bc3 Bb7 13.Qe2 a6!?
Possibly a new move. The idea is to cover the b5 square in the event of ...cxd4 being met by Nxd4. In the stem game, Alexander Chistiakov - Vladimir Makogonov, 13th USSR Championship semi-final 1941, play went 13...cxd4 14.Bxd4 Rfd8, with a roughly equal position (but 0-1, 30 moves).
14.Rad1 cxd4 15.Nxd4 Nc5 16.Bc2 Bxg3!
Giving up the bishop-pair looks strange, but Black gets a monster knight on e4, and it is the first choice of both engines. Stockfish10 also likes 16...Rac8, and if 17.b4, hoping for 17...Ncd7? 18.Nxe6, then 17...Bxg3.
17.hxg3 Nce4 18.Bb4 Rfd8 19.Nf3!?
The e4 knight is very hard to dislodge, so I decided to retreat my knight to facilitate exchanges that I hoped would help me exploit my bishops. I rejected 19.g4!? h6 20.f3 as too weakening.
19...b5?!
The engines prefer a quiet move such as 19...h6.
20.cxb5 Qb6?
I completely failed to spot the point of this move, but it should not work. The engines suggest 20...axb5 or 20...Rxd1 21.Rxd1 axb5, in each case with an edge for White.

White to make his 21st move

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21.Be7?
White is substantially better after 21.Rxd8+ Rxd8 22.Bxe4 Nxe4 23.bxa6 as 23...Nxg3? fails to 24.Qe5.
21...Nxg3?
This came as a shock but, as EH said in the postmortem, it was better to preface this capture with an exchange of rooks.
22.Qe3
The best move in a tricky position. There now follows a forced sequence that leads to White gaining the upper hand.
22...Qxe3 23.Rxd8+ Rxd8 24.Rxe3 Rc8 25.Bxf6
Even better seems to be 25.Bd3! which I believe I rejected because of 25...Nd5, but then comes 26.bxa6 Ba8 27.Re1 Nxe7 28.fxg3, when White's queenside pawns are very dangerous. Black could instead play 25...Nf5, but then 26.Bxf5 exf5 27.bxa6 Bxa6 28.Bxf6 gxf6 is again substantially better for White.
25...Rxc2 26.fxg3?
Throwing away White's advantage. Better was 26.Ne1 Ne2+ 27.Kf1, when the engines give best play as 27...Rc8 28.Kxe2 gxf6 29.bxa6 Bxa6+ 30.Kd2. Compared with the game, White's kingside pawn-structure is much better and his king is more central.
26...gxf6 27.bxa6 Bxa6
This ending offers equal chances, according to the engines. White's queenside pawns look threatening, but they are a long way from queening, and Black has the better minor piece for dealing with rival pawn-majorities and for cooperating with a rook.
28.Ra3?!
Almost certainly better was 28.Rb3 as the text wastes a tempo improving the position of the black bishop.
28...Bb7 29.Rb3 Bd5 30.Rb8+ Kg7 31.a4 e5
The engines prefer 31...Rc1+ followed by ...Ra1, or 31...f5 followed by ...Kf6.
32.Ne1?
I should have got on with pushing my queenside pawns, ie 32.a5 or 32.b4, as in each case 32...e4? is a mistake because of 33.Nd4.
32...Re2?
Black is better after 32...Rc1+ 33.Kf2 Ra1.
33.Nf3 f5?
33...Rc2 would have returned to what the engines reckon is a dead-equal position.
34.a5 Kf6
The engines alternate between the text and 34...Rc2, in each case preferring White.
35.a6 e4??
Best, according to the engines, was 35...Rc2 36.Rb6+ Ke7 37.Nxe5!? Rxg2+ 38.Kf1, with a slight edge for White in what remains a sharp ending.
36.Rb6+ Ke7 37.Nd4 Be6??
The final blunder, but after the engines' mainline of 37...Re1+ 38.Kf2 Ra1 39.Nxf5+, White has a winning advantage.
38.Nxe2 1-0

Long Struggle

HERE is my round-five game today from the 'Paignton' premier.
Peter Kirby (1988/177) - Spanton (1881/168)
Queen's Gambit Declined Exchange Variation
1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.cxd5 exd5 5.Bg5 Be7 6.e3 0-0 7.Bd3 Nbd7 8.Nf3 Re8 9.0-0 c6 10.Qc2 Nf8

The main tabiya of the traditional QGD Exchange with Nf3

11.h3
This move occurs more than 2,200 times in ChessBase's 2019 Mega database, with White scoring a very creditable 62%. But the most common move, with more than 3,000 examples, is 11.Rab1, which scores 59%.
11...Ne4 12.Bxe7 Qxe7 13.Rab1 Bf5 14.Rfe1!?
This appears to be new. Normal is for White to get on with his Minority Attack by 14.b4.
14...Qf6 15.Ne5 Nd6 16.b4 a6 17.a4 Bxd3 18.Qxd3 Ng6 19.Nxg6 hxg6 20.Rb3 Nf5
With the not-so-subtle threat of ...Nxd4!
21.Reb1 Qg5 22.Qd1 Re6 23.Qg4 Qxg4 24.hxg4 Nd6 25.b5 axb5 26.axb5 Nc4 27.Rd1 Ra3?
I thought getting a pair of rooks off would help my defence, but instead I hand White the initiative. My main analysis engines, Stockfish10 and Komodo10, suggest connecting rooks with 27...Ree8, or fixing White's g4 pawn with 27...g5.
28.Rxa3 Nxa3 29.bxc6 bxc6 30.Ra1 Nc4 31.Ra8+ Kh7 32.Rf8
Also good was 32.g5.
32...f6 33.Rc8 Kh6 34.Rc7 f5 35.gxf5 gxf5 36.g3?!
Played to prevent ...f4, but it seems White could have done without it. The engines give 36.Na4, and if 36...f4, then 37.exf4, when Black has not gained anything.
36...Kg6?
I should have stuck with my first thought of 36...g5, when White is only a little better.
37.Ne2 Kh6
Black loses the g7 pawn after 37...Kf6? 38.Nf4 Rd6 39.Nh5.
38.Nf4 Rf6 39.Nd3 g5 40.Kf1 Kg6?
Better was 40...g4 as the text allows White to force a protected passed pawn.
41.Ke2?
White still has the upper hand after this, but winning is 41.Ne5+ Nxe5 42.dxe5 Re6 43.f4, eg 43...Kh5 (43...g4? is hopeless as the Black king cannot get across to defend c6, while if Black tries to counterattack with 43...gxf4 44.gxf4 Kh5 45.Ke2 Kg4, White has 46.Rd7 Re8 47.Rg7+ Kh4 48.Rc7 Re6 49.Rf7 Kg4 50.Rf6, winning the c pawn) 44.Ke2 Rg6 (44...Kg4? 45.Rg7 Kxg3 46.Rxg5+ and 46.Rxf5) 45.Kf3 Re6 46.Rd7, with lines similar to those after 43...gxf4.
41...Re6 42.Nb4 Na5 43.Nd3
White gains a pawn after 43.Ra7 Nc4 44.Ra6 Kf6 45.Rxc6 Rxc6 46.Nxc6, but the engines reckon White's winning chances are diminished, presumably because of the difficulties White will have in creating a passed pawn.
43...Nc4 44.Ra7 Kf6 45.Ra6 Ke7 46.Nc5 Rd6 47.Ra7+ Kf6 48.Rh7 Kg6 49.Rd7?
Tantamount to offering a draw. The engines give 49.Rc7, and if 49...Kf6, then 50.Nb7 Re6 51.Nd8, when White wins the c pawn with his knight. This is better than allowing an exchange of rooks, I guess, because with the extra material Black will have problems defending his newly isolated d pawn.
Instead of 49...Kf6, the engines suggest 49...Kh5!? 50.Nd3 g4 (ensuring that if an exchange leads to the d4 pawn becoming a passer on e5, it cannot be protected by White playing f4), and now 51.Nb4 Na5 52.Ra7 Nc4 53.Ra6 sees White win a pawn in a similar way to the line given at move 43. Black may have decent drawing chances, but White certainly has more winning chances than after the text.
49...Rxd7 50.Nxd7 Kf7 51.Nb8 Na5 52.Kd3 Ke6 53.f4?!
White can get away with this, it seems, but giving himself a weak g pawn like this is not advisable.
53...g4 54.Na6 Nc4 55.Nb4 Nd6! 56.Na6!
White has problems after 56.Nxc6 Ne4 etc.
56...Nc4
Or 56...Ne4 57.Nc5+ Nxc5+ 58.dxc5 Ke7! (only move), and neither side can make progress.
57.Nc5+ ½–½

Crazy Finish

I HAD been two pawns up and winning for much of the game when the following position was reached in round four of the 'Paignton' premier.

White to make his 43rd move in Spanton (1881/168) - Daniel Rosen (2012/171)

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43.b3?
White is much better after 43.Bd5!? or 43.Bb3, in each case preventing Black's rook from occupying the back rank. The latter was probably the most practical move, but Bd5 is also good, according to analysis by the engines Stockfish10 and Komodo 10, who give 43...c6 44.b4 Qb5 45.c4 Qxb4 46.Be6 Re7 (invading with 46...Rd1? is now ineffective) 47.Bxg4 hxg4 48.Rf2! (48.Qxg4 allows serious counterplay with 48...Rf7) Qxc4 49.Qxg4.
43...Rd1 44.Re1
Also equal, according to the engines, is 44.Qf3!? Rg1+ 45.Kh3 Qe7 (only move), eg 46.Rd2 c6! (another only move) 47.Qd3 Rd1! (yet another only move) 48.Rxd1 Nf2+ 49.Kg2 Nxd3 50.Rxd3, and the position is apparently dead-equal. However, this was worth a try as it is easier for Black to go wrong.
44...Rd2+ 45.Re2?
This loses. White had to play 45.Be2, when 45...Rxa2 is another dead-equal position, according to the engines.
45...Rd1?
Black wins with 45...Ne3+ as White is losing a piece to ...Nxc4.
46.Re1 ½–½

Speculative Gambit

Timothy Seymour (2100/199) - Spanton (1881/168)
'Paignton' Round 3
Chigorin Defence
1.Nf3 Nc6 2.d4 d5 3.c4 e5?!
The main move is very much 3...Bg4, but the text has been played by Keres, Tartakower and several modern GMs.
4.Nxe5!?
The more popular 4.dxe5 d4 transposes to a main line of the Albin, but the text may be slightly better.
4...Nxe5 5.dxe5 d4 6.e3 Bb4+ 7.Bd2 dxe3 8.Qa4+
Not 8.Bxb4?? exf2+ 9.Ke2 Bg4+.
8...Bd7 9.Qxb4 exd2+ 10.Nxd2 Ne7 11.0-0-0!?
This may be new. 11.Be2 was played in the three games to reach this position in ChessBase's 2019 Mega database.
11...Nc6 12.Qa3 Qg5 13.g3!?
White threatens to hang on to the e pawn, and at the same time opens the long light-square diagonal for his bishop.

Can Black safely take the e pawn?

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13...0-0-0?!
Clearly Black cannot capture with the knight, and I rejected 13...Qxe5 because of 14.Nf3 followed by 15.Re1. But this is not to be feared, as Black can play, among other moves, 14...Qe7, meeting 15.Re1 with 15...Be6. After 16.Qxe7+ Kxe7 17.Ng5, White is slightly better, but the game is still well within the drawing margin.
14.f4 Qh5?
Better was 14...Qg6, which gives Black more of a chance of taking advantage of White's somewhat exposed king, eg Komodo10 gives the sharp line 15.Bd3 Bf5 16.Bxf5+ Qxf5 17.Nf3 g5!? 18.Nxg5 Nxe5 19.Qxa7 Nd3+ 20.Rxd3 Qxd3 21.Qa8+ Kd7 22.Qxb7 Qxc4+ 23.Kb1 Rb8 24.Qg2, with an unclear but roughly equal position.
15.Bg2 Kb8
White has caught up in development and remains a pawn to the good (1-0, 35 moves)

Resigning In A Won Position

TODAY is the double-round day in the nine-round 'Paignton' premier.

White to make his 30th move in Spanton (1881/168) - Jim Robertson (1576/133)

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White is a pawn up but Black's active pieces give full equality. I decided to try a trap.
30.Ke3??
This loses in several ways even if, as in the game, Black falls hook, line and sinker for the trap I think I have set.
30...Re8+ 31.Kf2 Rxe2+ 32.Kxe2 Kc4 33.g3 hxg3
In playing my 30th move, I had failed to consider 33...h3. But the text also wins.
34.h4
Black resigned instantly.
I had expected 34...Kd5? 35.f4, when the g pawn falls. But even this is only a draw.
Winning is 34...Kxc3 35.h5 b4! 36.h6 (36.axb4 a4! is even worse, according to Komodo10 and Stockfish10) bxa3 37.h7 a2 38.h8=Q a1=Q 39.Qxf6 Qa2. Black wins thanks to his passed pawns, eg 40.Qxf5? (White has better than this, but this line graphically illustrates the problem with White's set-up) Qxc2+ 41.Qxc2 Kxc2 42.f4 a4 43.f5 a3 44.f6 a2 45.f7 a1=Q 46.f8=Q Qd1+ 47.Ke3 Qe1+ etc.
There is a lot to be said for the adage that it is better to be lucky than good.

'Paignton' Underway

THE 69th annual Devon congress began this afternoon at Torquay's Livermead House Hotel with the first round of the new nine-round premier.

Black to make his 26th move in Mike Waddington (FM2023/188) - Spanton (1881/168)

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26...Ne4?!
Better was 26...Qf7. After 27.Qe2 (27.Qxf7+ Kxf7 is equal), Black has time to cover d5 with, for example, 27...Rd8.
27.c4 dxc4
Forced, but now Black's queenside is weak.
28.bxc4 g6?!
Weakening the long dark diagonal. My main analysis engines Stockfish10 and Komodo10 prefer 28...b6 or 28...Ree8!?, in each case with a slight edge for White.
29.Qh6 Rf8
Also problematic is 29...Rae8 30.Rd8, eg 30...b6 31.Bb2.
30.Bb2
Now the bishop also has the a3-f8 diagonal to work on.
30...Qf5?!
Stockfish10 gives 30...Rfe8, when 31.Rd8 transposes to the note to Black's 29th move, but also good is 31.Qf4.
Komodo10 gives 30...Qf7 31.Qf4 Nc5 31.Rd6, with a large advantage for White.
31.f3 Nc5 32.e4 Qg5
Keeping queens on is even worse, eg 32...Qe6 33.Ba3 b6 34.Rd6 Qxc4 35.Rxf6!
33.Qxg5 fxg5 34.Ba3 Re5 35.Rb1 Rf7?
I have played some doubtful moves since the diagram position, but this is an out-and-out mistake. Better was the passive 35...Rb8, when White can choose between several pleasant lines including 36.Kf2 b6 37.Kg3 Kf7 38.Rd6 (Stockfish10) and 36.Rd6 Nxa4 37.Rd7 Nc5 38.Rc7 (Komodo10).
36.Rd8+ Rf8 37.Rxf8+ Kxf8 38.Rxb7 (1-0, 47 moves)