Lessons From Liverpool: When Precision Is Key

MY round-seven game reached the following sharp middlegame position.

White has just captured a pawn on c6 in Simon Johnson (1911 ECF/no Fide) - Spanton (1947 ECF/1982 Fide)

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Both kings look vulnerable, although Black has to be careful not to fall for 35...Qd5?? 36.Rg6+ etc.

However, after 35...Rb8 36.Rc8+ Rxc8 37.Qxc8+ Kg7 38.Qxf5 Qa6 the game should probably end in perpetual by 39.Qd7 Kf7 40.Qf5+ Kg7 41.Qd7 etc.

There are other lines, eg 36.Rxd6 Rxb7 37.Rg6+ Kf7 38.Ra6 Rc7 39.Ra3, but they all end in complete equality, according to Stockfish17 and Dragon1.

Instead I played 35...Qb8??, and could have resigned after 36.Qd7, rather than struggling on, only to be mated four moves later.

LESSON: general considerations go out the window when kings are endangered - only accurate calculation will suffice.

Lessons From Liverpool: Unwelcome Visitor

MY round-six game reached the following middlegame position, which is completely equal, according to Stockfish17 and Dragon1.

White has just played 25.Qd3-e3 in Spanton (1947 ECF/1982 Fide) - Ed Goodwin (1804 ECF/1827 Fide)

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Visually the position might seem promising for White as White occupies the open file and has more space.

But it is easy to see there are no entry squares for the queen on the e file, so there is no danger there for Black.

The matter of space is not so obvious.
True, there is nothing achievable on the queenside, but is not 26.h6 a threat?

Actually, even if it were White to move in the diagram, 26.h6 can be satisfactorily met by 26...g6, and if 27.Qf4 Black has 27...Ne8, after which 28.Qb8 a6 slightly favours Black, according to Stockfish17 (Dragon1 disagrees), presumably because the white queen is decentralised.

Nevertheless Black has to be careful as pressing too eagerly for exchanges is problematic, eg 25...Qe6?! can be sidestepped by 26.Qf4!, taking advantage of Black also having no entry squares on the e file.

The game saw the catastrophic 25...Nf5??, after which the white queen entered Black's position via 26.Nxf5 Qxf5 27.Qe7.

Black's only hope then was perpetual check, but the white knight was well-placed to prevent that.

LESSON: an enemy queen deep in your position usually spells DOOM.

Lessons From Liverpool: Exceptions That Test The Rules

MY round-five game reached the following position after 17 moves.

Black has just played 17...Rfd8?! (17...Nd5 is better) in Alan Prince (1831 ECF/1791 Fide) - Spanton (1947 ECF/1982 Fide)

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White is at least slightly better after almost any reasonable move, but the game's 18.Bxc6! is best.

It flies in the face of the oft-repeated advice not to give up a bishop that has been fianchettoed in front of the king.

The point of White's play is that after 18...bxc6 19.Nxa5 the white kingside is full of holes, and the white knight is stuck out on a limb, BUT Black has no way of exploiting these factors.

Indeed, Black's queenside weaknesses are probably more significant than White's on the kingside.

At any event Stockfish17 and Dragon1 reckon White's advantage is worth about 2.5 pawns.

LESSON: chess 'rules' such as not exchanging a fianchettoed bishop are useful starting points for picking a move, but they should be treated as aids, not commands.

Lessons From Liverpool: Keep Sharp

I WAS in trouble at an early stage of my round-four game.

Black has just captured on d3 in Spanton (1947 ECF/1982 Fide) - Brian Hewson (2097 ECF/2062 Fide)

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White is knight and pawn down, but the knight will fall, and Black's extra pawn is doubled and part of a majority that cannot create a passer with normal play.

The ideal for White would be to capture the knight without suffering a damaged pawn-structure; the worst outcome would be to lose further material.

Actually, I managed to come up with a move that was even worse - losing further material AND suffering a damaged pawn-structure.

The first thing to note is that 15.Qxd3?! Qxd3 16.Bxc4?? is hit by 16...Bc4.

Clearly 16.cxd3 is an improvement, although the white rook on d1 is passive.

A better version of this can be had via 15.Rfe1 Rd8, and now 16.Qxd3 Qxd3 17.Rxd3 Rxd3 18.cxd3, when White no longer has a passive rook.

Ture, Black has the upper hand, according to Stockfish17 and Dragon1, but White has drawing chances.

Instead I thought I could get the 'ideal' income of capturing the knight and not allowing my pawn-structure to be damaged, by playing 15.Qc3?

This would indeed be the best move if Black did not have 15...Nf4!

After the forced sequence 16.Rxd6 Ne2+ 17.Kh1 Nxc3 18.bxc3 Black continued 18...Bxa2, when White is two pawns down and has doubled and isolated c pawns.

LESSON: there is no substitute for accurate calculation in tactically sharp positions.

Lessons From Liverpool: Objecting To Objectivity

MY round-three game, in which I was Black against Stephen Pickles (1931 ECF/2280 Fide), began 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 exd4 4.c3.

I was surprised after the game to find this position 'only' occurs 6,921 times in ChessBase's 2025 Mega database, despite games going back to 1843

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The four commonest continuations, in ascending order of popularity are 4...Nf6, 4...d3, 4...d5 and 4...dxc3, but titled players have also tried 4...Qe7 and even 4...Nge7.

For what it is worth, Stockfish17 and Dragon1 reckon taking on c3 is best, and I suspect that is what my opponent wanted, as in the postmortem he said he had hoped I would play something more interesting than my choice of 4...d5.

I was reminded of an incident in my first 'overseas' tournament, Guernsey 1989, when my round-five game, where I was White, began 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 NF6 3.Nxe5 d6 4.Nf3 Nxe4 5.Qe2.

I won, but afterwards my opponent complained bitterly that it was ridiculous to "come all this way" and play such boring chess.

Anyway, getting back to Liverpool, my choice may have been 'uninteresting', but it was practical for a human, as White's scores against Black's fourth-move options suggest.

Move      White's % in Mega25

4...dxc3                62

4...d5                    52

4...d3                    56

4...Nf6                  59

4...Qe7                 63

4...Nge7               42(!)

It would seem 4...Nge7 deserves further investigation (among those who have won with it are Victor Ciocâltea, Alexander V Tolush and Jonny Hector), but of the main moves the practical choice, especially if caught unprepared, is surely 4...d5.

LESSON: the objectively best move may not produce the best results.

Lessons From Liverpool: Ambition

MY round-two game against a Welsh Fide master followed mainline theory in the Classical Variation of the Caro-Kann, but by move 24 both players were on their own.

Black has just played 23...Ra8-c8 in Spanton (1947 ECF/1982 Fide) - Peter Varley (no ECF/2117 Fide)

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White's pawn-structure is inflexible, but the e3-c5 chain does a good job restricting the bishop, which otherwise would combine well with the black rooks.

White has two targets - the backward c pawn and the f pawn on a half-open file.

I chose to concentrate on the latter, starting with 24.Rhf1, which is a solid approach in that Black is obliged to take precautions for the f pawn's safety.

But Stockfish17 and Dragon1 much prefer queenside play with 24.a4!?, which starts to try to get at c6 from the flank.

Indeed, given long enough to consider the position, the engines at times come to view the game as positionally won for White, although they fluctuate between that evaluation and awarding White 'only' the upper hand.

My move led to a draw just 11 moves later, which is a good result for a 1982 against a 2117, particularly as Varley went on to claim outright third in the tournament, gaining 20.6 elo and finishing eight places above his seeding.

And it could be argued that while 24.a4!? may be the better move, it does not restrict Black as much as my choice does, and so was, in a practical sense, the riskier play when outrated by 135 elo.

But knowing what I know now, I would play 24.a4!? if the position ever arose in one of my games again.

LESSON: good results are nice, but excellent results require ambitious play.

Lessons From Liverpool: Time Waits For No Man

MY round-one game reached the following position after 15 moves.

Black has just played 15...Be8-g6 in Mike O'Mahony (1726 ECF/1780 Fide) - Spanton (1947 ECF/1982 Fide)  

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There followed 16.Bd2 a6 17.a4 Rc8, when Black has at least a slight edge, according to Stockfish17 and Dragon1, but the position is not clearcut and there are lots of possible paths to explore.

The engines suggest continuing with 18.Nf2 or 18.b4, but instead came the inexplicable (we did not have a postmortem) 18.Bc1.

This undevelops the bishop and disconnects White's rooks. Not only that, but the bishop is bad, so it is not as if Black is ever likely to want to play ...Nxd2.

As I wrote in my notes to the game: "If this were White's best move, White would be in a bad way indeed, but the chances of it being best are negligible."

LESSON: time in chess is a valuable commodity, especially in a position which, while currently semi-closed, could very quickly see line-opening pawn advances and/or exchanges.

Summing Up Liverpool

MY score in the British 65+ Championship of +2=2-3 lost 1.6 Fide elo and about 15.6 ECF elo (one opponent did not have an ECF rating, so I used his Fide for calculation purposes).

British 65+ Championship Round Seven

Simon Johnson (1911 ECF/no Fide) - Spanton (1947 ECF/1982 Fide)

QGD Exchange

1.d4 d5 2.Nf3 e6 3.c4 Nf6 4.cxd5!?

This method of entering the Exchange Variation of the Queen's Gambit Declined is often criticised for reducing White's options, and for making it relatively easily for Black to exchange light-square bishops, which is generally regarded as a good for thing for Black to achieve in these lines. However, among those who apparently disagree, or at least do not regard such considerations as overly weighty, are Carlsen, Caruana and Ding, as well as strong players of the past.

4...exd5 5.Nc3 c6

The immediate 5...Bf5!? is suggested by Dragon1, although after the reply 6.Qb3 it reckons White is slightly better. Strangely, however, Stockfish17, which does not recommend 5...Bf5!?, nevertheless reckons the position after 6.Qb3 is equal.

6.Qc2 g6!? 7.Bg5

How should Black proceed?

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7...Bg7

Most popular is 7...Be7, after which the round-two game Johnson - Stephen Dilleigh (2067 ECF/2048 Fide) continued 8.e3 Bf5 9.Bd3 Bxd3 10.Qxd3 Nbd7 11.h3!? 0-0 12.0-0 Re8, with an equal game, according to the engines (but 1-0, 55 moves).

Grandmasters have also played 7...Bf5!?, although the engines reckon 8.Qb3 gives White at least a slight edge.

8.e3 Bf5 9.Bd3 Bxd3 10.Qxd3 Nbd7 11.0-0 0-0

Now both sides have castled, how would you assess the position?

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White has a slight lead in development, and has an obvious plan to follow in the Minority Attack. But Black has no weaknesses and has swopped off the light-square bishops, which, as I mentioned earlier, is generally believed to ease Black's defence. The engines reckon the game is equal.

12.b4

Mikhail Botvinnik - Max Euwe, World Chess Championship Tournament 1948, went 12.Ne5 Qe8 13.Nxd7 Qxd7 14.b4 Rfe8, when a draw was agreed (the game was played in round 22 of the 25-round tournament at a stage when Botvinnik was cruising to victory).

12...b5!?

More common is 12...a6 or 12...Rfe8!?

The idea of the text is Black wants to drop a knight on c4, masking the backward c pawn, and meanwhile hoping White's b pawn will prove weak.

13.Ne5 Qb6

The engines prefer 13.Qc7, which leaves the b6 square for the black queen's knight to use on its way to c4.

14.Bxf6!?

This paradoxical-looking swop is quite often played in the Exchange Variation. The idea, I believe, is that the bishop, being on dark squares, cannot directly attack Black's queenside pawns, so swopping it for a knight that can help defend the queenside pawns may help the attack.

14...Nxf6 15.Rfc1

Probably best is 15.a4, when Black seems to have nothing better than 15...a6 (15...bxa4?! horribly weakens Black's queenside, a factor almost certainly more significant than the weakening of b4).

15...a5 16.a3 axb4 17.axb4 Rxa1 18.Rxa1 Rd8 19.Qb1!? Bf8 20.Ra5 Nd7 21.Nf3!?

The engines suggest 21.Nd3.

21...f5?!

The engines strongly dislike 21...f5?!, presumably because it weakens the e6 and e5 squares (a white knight on e5 can no longer be expelled by playing ...f6), and also weakens Black along the second rank

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22.g3 Qc7 23.Qb3?!

Probably better is 23.Ne2, with possibly Nf4 to come, according to the engines.

23...Qd6 24.Na2 Nb6 25.Ne5 Nc4 26.Nxc4 dxc4!

Black also gets a protected passed pawn after capturing towards the centre with  26...bxc4, but then c6 is vulnerable, while after the text c6 has more protection, and Black gets the useful d5 square for the queen.

27.Qa3 Qd5 28.Nc3 Qd6 29.Na2 g5!? 30.Ra8

The engines reckon this is best.

30...Be7 31.Ra7

What should Black play?

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31...h5

31...f4! is a good pawn sacrifice. After 32.gxf4?! gxf4 White's king looks very vulnerable, with White's main strength bunched on the queenside. Instead the engines suggest 32.exf4!?, but 32...Bf6!? is strong.

32.Qa6 h4

...f4 still seems best.

33.Qb7 Re8

Black may have a slight edge after this, but the engines suggest 33...Kf8 or 33...h3!? The point about the latter is 34.Qxe7? runs into 34...Qxe7 35.Rxe7 Ra8 etc.

34.Ra6 h3

Stronger is 34...Rb8! 35.Qxc6 Qxc6 36.Rxc6 Ra8 37.Nc3, and either ...Bxb4 immediately, or 37...h3 38.Kf1 Bxb4.

35.Rxc6

Black to play and draw

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35...Qb8??

The right square, but the wrong piece. After 35...Rb8 the game is completely equal, according to the engines, eg 36.Rc8+ Rxc8 37.Qxc8 Kg7 38.Qxa5 Qa6 39.Qd7 Kf7, when White should take the perpetual.

36.Qd7

Black is busted.

The game finished:

36...Qd8 37.Rg6+ Kh8 38.Qxf5 Qc8 39.Qf7 Bf8 40.Rg8#

British 65+ Championship Round Six

I WAS upfloated.

Spanton (1947 ECF/1982 Fide) - Ed Goodwin (1804 ECF/1827 Fide)

French Exchange

1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.exd5 exd5 4.Nf3 Bd6 5.c4 c6 6.Nc3 Ne7!?

The idea of 6...Ne7!? is to prepare a swop of Black's 'bad' bishop for White's 'good' bishop, the terms 'bad' and 'good' being related to the squares the d pawns occupy

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7.c5!?

As usual, pushing on like this is controversial. It seems that whenever I do it, analysis engines are not impressed, and when I fail to do it, they reckon pushing on is the best option.

7... Bc7 8.Bd3

Bearing in mind Black intends playing a quick ...Bf5 to exchange light-square bishops, there is something to be said for 8.Be2!?, but that is somewhat passive, and the text has been the choice of grandmasters.

8...Bf5 9.0-0 0-0

Now both sides have castled, how would you assess the position?

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Both sides have developed three minor pieces. Light-square bishops are likely to be exchanged, but White has no light-square weaknesses, and any ending, when White's 'bad' dark-square bishop might be a liability, is a long way off. Meanwhile the main difference in the position is surely that White has more space on the queenside, and that may be a large part of the reason Stockfish17 and Dragon1 give White a slight edge.

10.Bg5 f6!? 11.Bh4 Qd7!? 12.Re1 Bxd3 13.Qxd3 Ng6

This may be a novelty. The known move is 13...Na6!?

14.Re3

The engines prefer queenside play with 14.b4.

14...Na6 15.a3 Rae8 16.Rae1 Bf4 17.R3e2 Kf7!? 18.b4 Rxe2 19.Rxe2 Re8 20.Bg3 Rxe2 21.Nxe2!? Bxg3 22.Nxg3 Nc7

Material is identical, and White's queenside space advantage seems no longer relevant as White can hardly push pawns there, so the position is completely equal, according to the engines 

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23.h4 Kg8!? 24.h5 Ne7

The engines reckon 24...Nf4 is also completely equal.

25.Qe3 Nf5??

This lets White's queen into Black's position, which is decisive as Black does not have a perpetual. The engines reckon several moves maintain equality, including 25...a6, 25...Ne6 and 25...Kf7!?

Even if it were White to move after 25.Qe3, the engines agree there would be no need to fear 26.h6 as it could be safely met by 26...g6 or 26...g5!?

26.Nxf5 Qxf5 27.Qe7 Qf4

Possibly better is 27...Qc8!?, but then 28.h6 is a problem, with 28...gxh6 29.Qf6 clearly very good for White.

28.Qd8+ Kf7 29.Qd7+ Kg8 30.Qc8+ Kf7 31.Qxb7 Qc1+ 32.Kh2 Qf4+ 33.Kh1 g5!?

This may be Black's best try, but it is easily met.

34.Qxc6 g4 35.Ne5+!?

Not the only winning move.

35...fxe5?!

Objectively there may be little between 35...fxe5?! and 35...Kg8!?, but the latter is the better practical try as after it White seems to have only one winning move

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After 35...Kg8!? White should play 36.Nd3!

Back to the game:

36.Qxc7+ Kf8 37.Qxe5 Qxf2 38.Qd6+ Kg7 39.Qd7+ 1-0

British 65+ Championship Round Five

Alan Prince (1831 ECF/1791 Fide) - Spanton (1947 ECF/1982 Fide)

King's Indian Attack

1.Nf3 d5 2.g3 Nc6!? 3.Bg2

The commonest continuation in ChessBase's 2025 Mega database is 3.d4, preventing 3...e5, but then the opening is neither a King's Indian Attack nor a Réti.

3...e5 4.d3 Nf6 5.Nbd2?!

This may be an inaccurate move-order, although it has been played by grandmasters, and it scores three percentage points better in Mega25 than the usual 5.0-0.

5...Be7

Transposing to normal lines, and so missing the chance to play 5...e4!? (5...Bc5!?, with ...e4 to come, is also liked by Stockfish17 and Dragon1) 6.dxe4 dxe4 7.Ng5 e3!? with good play for Black, eg Aron Nimzowitsch - Frank Marshall, Karlsbad 1907, continued 8.fxe3 h6!? 9.Nge4 Ng4 10.Nb3 Qxd1+ 11.Kxd1 Bf5 12.Ke1 Nb4 13.Nd4 0-0-0!?, when Black had full compensation for a pawn, according to the engines, and Marshall went on to win in 28 moves. There are several possible improvements for both sides in that sequence, but the key point is 5...e4!? gives Black a promising game.

6.e4 dxe4 7.dxe4 0-0 8.0-0

With both sides castling early, how would you assess the position?

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The pawn-structure is almost symmetrical, but White will be able to easily prevent Black pieces using the d4 square, while Black will find it more difficult controlling d5. However, Black has a slight lead in development, and the black king's bishop should find a more active roll than is available to the white king's bishop, whose action on the long light diagonal is obstructed by a white pawn on e4. The game is equal (Stockfish17) or maybe slightly better for Black (Dragon1).

8...Bc5 9,c3 a5 10.Qe2

The engines prefer 10.Qc2 or 10.Qa4!?

10...Qe7

The main continuation, and the top choice of the engines, is 10...b6!?

11.a4

Here the engines like 11.Nb3, scuppering the idea of ...b6, which they reckon Black should now play.

11...Bg4 12.Nc4 Rad8 13.h3!?

This seems to be a novelty, and is preferred by the engines over the known 13.Bg5.

13...Bh5 14.g4!?

The engines like this too - there is no possibility of Black soundly sacrificing on g4.

14...Bg6 15.Nh4 Rd7 16.Nf5

How should Black react to this advanced knight?

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16...Bxf5?!

The engines prefer 16...Qe6.

17.exf5 Rfd8?!

Almost certainly better is 17...Nd5, meeting 18.Rd1 with 18...Rfd8. However the engines reckon 18.g5 gives White the upper hand.

18.Bxc6!

Black, not having a light-square bishop, will have difficulty exploiting White's light-square weaknesses on the kingside.

18...bxc6 19.Nxa5

This seems stronger than 19.Qxe5.

19...Qd6?

Better is 19...Re8, although 19...b4! 20.Bb6 Nxc6 21.Qd6 b5 leaves White two pawns up.

20.Nb7 Qd5 21.Nxd8 Rxd8 22.Bg5 Ne4!? 23.Be3

Not 23.Bxd8?? as 23...Ng3 threatens both the white queen and 24...Qh1#.

23...Bd6 24.Rfd1 Qb3

White is up the exchange and a pawn, but White's advantage is worth more than a rook, according to the engines

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25.f3 Nf6 26.Bg5?!

This loses the passed pawn, which could have been saved with 26.a5.

26...Ra8 27.a5

The engines fluctuate between the text and 27.Bxf6 gxf6 28.a5.

27...Rxa5! 28.Be3 Ra2 29.Rxa2 Qxa2

White is now 'only' up rook for knight, but swopping a pair of rooks when the exchange up is nearly always advantageous

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30.c4 Qa6 31.Qd3 c5 32.Bd2!? h6 33.Bc3 Qb7 34.Re1 Nd7 35.f4!? exf4 36.Re8+ Kh7?

Better is 36...Nf8, but White is well on top.

37.Qe4

White is still winning after this, but better is 37.f6+ g6 38.Re7! Bxe7 39.Qxd7, when there is no perpetual after 39...Qf3, so White wins.

37...Qb3?!

Exchanging queens is objectively much better, according to the engines, but Black's practical chances of saving the game would be low.

38.Qe2?

White mates after 38.f6+ g6 39.Qd5.

38...f3?!

Probably better is 38...Nf6!?, when White's only winning move, according to the engines, is 39.Rd8!, while other continuations, eg 39.Bxf6 gxf6, leave White fighting for a draw.

39.Qxf3 Qxc4?

...Nf6 is probably still Black's best chance.

40.Kg2?

White has several winning continuations, including 40.g5, 40.f6 and 40.Qa8.

40...f6?

Best is 40...Ng6!?, one point being 41.Bxf6?! gxf6 is completely equal, according to the engines.

41.Qe4 Qb3 42.Qe6 Qc2+ 43.Kf1?!

43.Qe2 allows a reset, and the engines reckon it maintains the win.

43...Qd3+ 44.Qe2?!

There seems to be no perpetual after 44.Kf2, but White is probably not winning.

44...Qxh3+ 45.Ke1 Qh1+ 46.Kd2 Bf4+ 47.Kc2

Black to play - should the result be a draw or a win, and if the later, a win for whom?

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47...Qc1+

The engines show 47...Ne5! draws, eg 48.Bxe5 Bxe5 49.Qc4 Qh2+ 50.Kd3 Qh3+ etc.

48.Kb3 Be5?

Black had to play 48...Bd6 49.Qc4 Nf8, when the engines reckon White is better, but not winning.

49.Qc4

This forces mate.

49...Qd1+ 50.Ka2 h5 51.g5! 1-0

British 65+ Championship Round Four

Spanton (1947 ECF/1982 Fide) - Brian Hewson (2097 ECF/2062 Fide)

Caro-Kann Tartakower

1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 dxe4 4.Nxe4 Nf6 5.Nxf6+ exf6 6.Be3!?

There are 821 examples of this move in ChessBase's 2025 Mega database. One of the ideas is to possibly dispense with the move c3.

How should Black respond?

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6...Be6

The main continuation in Mega25 is 6...Bd6, which is also liked by Stockfish17 and Dragon1. They also like 6...Na6!?

7.Bd3 Bd6 8.Ne2!? Nd7 9.Nf4!?

This involves a positional pawn sacrifice. The engines prefer 9.0-0 or 9.c4.

9...Bxf4 10.Bxf4 Qb6

How should White proceed?

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11.0-0!?

Effectively making it a double-pawn sacrifice. This is a slight improvement, according to the engines, on Alejandro Pablo Marin (2455) - Salvador Armengol Navrro (2260), Catalonia Team Championship 1999, which went 11.c3!? Qxb2 12.Bd2 Nb6 13.0-0 0-0, when White did not seem to have enough for a pawn, although the game was drawn in 61 moves.

However, best, according to the engines, is 11.Be3!?, eg 11...Qxb2 12.0-0 Qa3!?, with an unclear position but one in which they reckon White has decent compensation for a pawn.

11...Qxd4 12.Qd2

The engines suggest 12.Qc1!?, and if, as in the game, 12...Ne5, then 13.Rd1 0-0-0!?, when Stockfish17 reckons White has enough for a pawn, but Dragon1 disagrees.

12...Ne5!

Grabbing the b pawn is possible, but the engines agree the text is best.

13.Be3 Qd6

The engines prefer either taking on b2, or 13...Qh4!?

14.Rad1?!

The wrong rook, according to the engines, whereas after 14.Rfd1 Nxd3 15.Qxd3 Qxd3 16.Rxd3 White has enough for a pawn (Stockfish17) or is only slightly worse (Dragon1).

14...Nxd3 15.Qc3?

Not 15.Qxd3?! Qxd3 16.Rxd3? as, in contrast to the previous note, Black has the skewer 16...Bc4. However the engines' 15.Rfe1 is an improvement.

After 15...Qc3? it is Black to play and gain a winning advantage

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15...Nf4!

Black also has at least a slight edge after 15...Bf5, but the text is much stronger.

16.Rxd6

Forced.

16...Ne2+ 17.Kh1 Nxc3 18.bxc3 Bxa2 19.Bc5!?

The engines fluctuate between the text and 19.Ra1 Bd5 20.Bc5 a5!? 21.Re1+ Be6 22.Rb1 0-0 23.Rxb7 a4 24.Ba3 Rfe8, which they also assess as winning for Black.

19...Be6 20.Ra1 0-0

20...a5 21.Rb1 is a transposition to the previous note.

21.Rxa7!? Rxa7 22.Bxa7 Ra8 23.h3 h6

Not 23...Rxa7?? 24.Rd8#.

How would you assess this rook-and-bishop ending?

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Black is a pawn up, but the extra pawn is doubled and part of a majority that cannot create a passer by normal means. There are also opposite-coloured bishops, which means Black must be careful to only allow an exchange of rooks if the resulting bishop ending is clearly winning. However, White's c2 pawn is chronically weak and cannot be defended in the long run. The engines agree Black is winning, but reckon Black's advantage is worth less than a minor piece.

24.Bb6 Ra6 25.Rd8+ Kh7 26.Bd4 Ra4 27.Bb6 Rc4 28.Ba5 Bd5 29.Rd7 b6!? 30.Bb4

Or 30.Bxb6 Rxc3 and 31...Rxc2.

30...Re4 31.Rd6

Black also wins after 31.Re7 c5!? 32.Rxe4 Bxe4 33.Ba3 Kg6, with ...Bxc2 to come, according to the engines.

31...Re2?

Better first is 31...b5.

32.c4 Bxc4 33.Rxc6 b5 34.Bxc5 Rxc2

Despite the slip at move 31, the engines reckon Black is still winning

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35.Rb6 Kg6 36.Bf8??

This 'only' loses a pawn, but the loss of f2 turns the assessment from a little over +2.00 in Black's favour to more than +4.50.

36...Rxf2 37.Kg1 Rb2 38.g3 h5 39.h4 Bd5 40.Kf1 Rb3 41.Kf2!? Rf3+ 42.Ke1 Rxg3 43.Rxb5 Bc4 44.Rb2 Rh3?!

Black is winning comfortably after this, according to the engines, but the text makes the ending less straightforward than it should be.

45.Rg2+ Kf5 46.Bxg7 Rh1+!? 47.Kd2 Rxh4 48.Ke3?

Better is 48.Rf2+ as 48...Rf4? 49.Rxf4+ Kxf4 50.Bxf6 is drawn, eg 50...Kg3 51.Be5+ Kg2 Bf6 etc. However the engines reckon 48...Kg4 49.Bxf6 Rh3! wins.

48...Re4+ 49.Kd2 h4 50.Rf2+ Rf4 51.Ke3 Rxf2 52.Kxf2 Kg5

This is the only winning move, according to the Syzygy endgame tablebase, but it is obvious enough.

53.Kg2 Bd5+ 54.Kh3 Be6+ 55.Kg2 f5 56.Be5 f4 57.Bc7 Kg4 58.Bb6 Bd5+ 59.Kh2 h3 60.Bc5 Bg2 61.Kg1 Kf3 62.Bf2!? Ke2

Not 62...h2+?? 63.Kxh2 Kxf2 stalemate.

63.Bg3!? Kf3 64.Bf2 Kg4 65.Kh2 Bd5 66.Bg1 Be6 67.Bc5 Kf3 68.Kg1 Ke2 69.Bd6 f3 70.Bg3 f2+ 71.Bxf2 h2+ 0-1

British 65+ Championship Round Three

FACED the top seed, an Australian.

Stephen Pickles (1931 ECF/2280 Fide) - Spanton (1947 ECF/1982 Fide)

Göring Gambit

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 exd4 4.c3!?

This is the third-most popular continuation, but well-behind 4.Bc4 and especially 4.Nxd4. However it is still sometimes played by grandmasters, who are perhaps partly attracted by the fact it scores 58% in ChessBase's 2025 Mega database, a percentage point better than 4.Bc4 and three percentage points better than 4.Nxd4.

How should Black respond?

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4...d5

In the postmortem SP said he had hoped I would play something more interesting.

Stockfish17 and Dragon1 marginally prefer the 'more interesting' 4...dxc3, but Black's score of 38% in Mega25 compares unfavourably with the second player's total of 48% after the text.

5.cxd5 Qxd5 6.cxd4 Bg4 7.Be2 Bb4+

Not 7...Bxf3 8.Bxf3 Qxd4?? 9.Bxc6+ etc, although there are three examples of this sequence in Mega25, including three years ago in a world championship tournament (for girls under 10).

8.Nc3 Bxf3!?

This was first played in Frank Marshall - José Capablanca, Lake Hopatcong (New Jersey) 1926.

9.Bxf3 Qc4!?

This was the point behind Capablanca giving up the bishop-pair.

How should White proceed?

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10.Qb3!?

Marshall - Capablanca went 10.Be3!? Bxc3+ 11.bxc3 Qxc3+ 12.Kf1!? Qc4+ 13.Kg1!? Nge7 14.Rc1!? Qxa2 15.Ra1 Qc4 16.Rc1 ½–½.

The main line in Mega25 runs 10.Bxc6+ bxc6!? 11.Qe2+ Qxe2+ 12.Kxe2 0-0-0 13.Be3 Ne7, with an equal position, according to the engines.

10...Qxb3

10...Qxd4?! has been played by a 2430, but White almost certainly has more than enough for a pawn, eg 11.0-0 Nge7 12.Bxc6+ Nxc6 (12...bxc6? 13.Be3 Qh4 14.g3 Qg4 15.h3!?) 13.Re1+ with a strong attack.

11.axb3 Nxd4!?

The main continuation runs 11...Nge7 12.0-0 a6 13.Ra4!? Bd6, when Dragon1 gives White a slight edge, but Stockfish17 calls the position equal.

12.Bxb7 Nc2+ 13.Ke2!?

The engines agree this is best, even though it leaves the c2 square undefended. After 13.Kd1 Nxa1 14.Bxa8 (14.Bc6+!?) Ne7 they reckon Black is at least equal, and if, as in the game, 15.Nd5?!, then 15...Kd7 is good.

13...Nxa1 14.Bxa8
Dragoljub Velimirović played 14.Bc6+!? Kf8 15.Bxa8 in the 1970s against Vassily Smyslov, Béla Tóth and Mikhail Tal, beating Tóth and drawing with the other two.

14...Ne7 15.Nd5

SP said he was out of book after this move.

What should Black play?

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15...0-0?

The engines suggest 15...Bd6, eg 16.Nxe7 Kxe7 17.Bd5 Rb8!? 18.Bg5+ f6 19.Bxf6+ Kxf6 20.Rxa1 Rb5, with what they reckon is sufficient play for a pawn (White's extra pawn being anyway doubled and isolated).

16.Nxe7?
Joost Hoogendoorn (2391) - Maarten Solleveld (2414), Netherlands Team Championship 2000, went 16.Nxb4 Rxa8 17.Bg5 (1-0, 54 moves).

16...Bxe7 17.Bd5 Nc2 18.Rd1 Bd6 19.Kd3!?

Giving up the bishop-pair to activate the king. Possibly better is 19.Bd2 Re8+ 20.Kf1 Nb4 21.Bc4, with a slight edge for White, according to the engines.

19...Nb4+ 20.Kc4 Nxd5 21.Rxd5

21.Kxd5?! allows 21...Bxh2 as 22.g3?? loses to 22...Rd8+ etc.

21...Rb8!?

SP said he was surprised at this, having expected 21...Re8, which may be slightly better.

22.Be3 Rb4+ 23.Kc3 Rb7

How should White continue?

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24.Bc5

Dragon1 reckons 24.Kc2 gives the upper hand, but Stockfish17 calls the position equal.

If 24.Bf4!?, then 24...Rb6 (24...Bxf4?? 25.Rd8#) 25.Bxd6 cxd6 holds.

24...Bxc5 25.Rxc5  ½–½

Not 25.Rd8+?? Bf8.

British 65+ Championship Round Two

FACED a Welsh Fide master.

Spanton (1982) - Peter Varley (2117)

Caro-Kann Classical

1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 dxe4 4.Nxe4 Bf5

This has almost become a sideline since the rise of 4...Nf6 5.Nxf6+ exf6.

5.Ng3 Bg6 6.Nf3 Bg6 7.h4 h6 8.h5 Bh7 9.Bd3 Bxd3 10.Qxd3 e6

This tabiya occurs 15,337 times in ChessBase's 2025 Mega database

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11.Bd2

11.Bf4 has been touted as more accurate, although I have never understood why.

11...Ngf6 12.0-0-0 Be7 13.Ne4!?

Slightly more popular in Mega25 is 13.Kb1.

13...Nxe4 14.Qxe4 Nf6 15.Qe2 Qd5 16.c4 Qe4 17.Qxe4 Nxe4 18.Be3 Nd6!?

The main line in Mega25 runs 18...0-0 19.Ne5 Rfd8 20.g4, when Stockfish17 and Dragon1 reckon White has at least a slight edge.

The engines suggest 18...f5!?, when the main line runs 19.Nd2 Nxd2 20.Rxd2, the engines claiming Black is equal.

19.b3 b5!? 20.c5 Nf5 21.g4!? Nxe3 22.fxe3 0-0

Now both sides have castled, how would you assess the position?

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Black has the minor piece that usually cooperates better with rooks, but there is a lot of pawns on the board, restricting the action of long-range pieces. In particular the white pawn-chain e3-c5, although a target for the bishop, for the moment at least blocks the bishop's freedom of play, and c6 is weaker than e3. The engines give White the upper hand.

23.Ne5 Rac8

The engines suggest 23...Rfc8!?, and if 24.Rhf1 then 24...Bf6!?, the point being 25.Nd7?! runs into 25...Bg5, when Black is at least equal, not least because 26.Rde1?? loses to 26...f6, trapping the knight.

24.Rhf1

Possibly stronger is 24.a4!? with queenside play.

24...Bg5 25.Rde1 Rc7 26.Kc2 Bf6 27.Nd3

The engines suggest 27.Nf3 or 27.Rd1.

27...Rd8 28.Rf3 a5 29.a3 Rcd7 30.Ref1 e5!?

How should White respond?

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31.Nxe5

On 31.dxe5 there seem to be several equalising lines, eg 31...Bg5 32.Rd1 Rd5 33.b4 axb4 34.axb4 Ra8 35.Kb3, when the engines reckon Black has full compensation for a pawn.

31...Bxe5 32.dxe5 Rd2+ 33.Kc1 Ra2 34.Rxf7 Rdd2 35.e6 Rac2+ ½–½

British 65+ Championship Round One

Mike O'Mahony (1726 ECF/1780 Fide) - Spanton (1947 ECF/1982 Fide)

Stonewall Attack

1.d4 d5 2.e3 e6 3.Bd3 c5 4.c3 Nc6 5.f4!?

Emanuel Lasker in an 1892 game played 5.Nf3, switching into a Colle, not that he would have realised it at the time - Edgard Colle was born five years later.

This position occurs 227 times in ChessBase's 2025 Mega database

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5...Bd6!?

More popular are 5...f5!? and 5...Nf6, but the text has been played by Wilhelm Steinitz,
Fedor Duz-Khotimirsky and Daniel King.

6.Nf3 Bd7

Stockfish17 and Dragon1 like Steinitz's 6...Nh6!?

7.Qe2

Frank Marshall preferred 7.Nbd2 in a 1908 game against Duz-Khotimirsky.

7...Nf6 8.g3!?

This has been played by a 2221, but is not liked by the engines, which suggest 8.Ne5 or 8.0-0.

8...Ne4!?

The engines agree this is an improvement over the known 8...Qe7.

9.Nbd2

The engines suggest giving up White's better bishop with 9.Bxe4 dxe4 10.Nfd2, but agree 10...f5 gives Black a slight edge.

9...f5 10.Ne5 Nxe5

The engines like this, but reckon giving up Black's better bishop with 10...Bxe5!? may be slightly better, whichever way White recaptures.

11.fxe5 Be7 12.Nf3

The engines dislike this, preferring 12.0-0 or 12.a4.

12...g5!?

Gaining space, albeit in a way that leaves the black king looking less safe.

13.Ng1!? 0-0

13...g4!? prevents White's next move, but leaves an outpost square at f4.

14.Nh3 Be8 15.0-0

Now both sides have castled, how would you assess the position?

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Black has more space on the kingside, and has the only piece in the opponent's half, and Black's bad bishop (e8) is better than White's bad bishop (c1). White's only plus of any significance is the spearhead pawn on e5. The engines give Black the upper hand.

15...Bg6 16.Bd2 a6 17.a4 Rc8 18.Bc1?

If this were White's best move, White would be in a bad way indeed, but the chances of it being best are negligible. The engines suggest 18.Nf2 or 18.b4!?

18...Qe8 19.Qg2 Bh5 20.Be2!? Bxe2 21.Qxe2 g4!?

Giving up the f4 square, but gaining more space and highlighting the weakness of Black's kingside light squares.

22.Nf4 Ng5

The engines much prefer 22...Bg5.

23.Kg2 Qf7 24.Bd2

The bishop has spent three tempi getting here from its starting square.

24...Qg7 25.Rh1 Rc6!?

A multi-purpose move - defending e6, allowing quick doubling on the c file, and possibly preparing pressure down the b file.

How should White respond?

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26.h3

The engines fluctuate between several moves, including 26.Rac1, 26.Rad1 and 26.c4!?, the idea after 26.c4!? dxc4 being to continue 27.Bc3!?, but Black remains better.

26...gxh3+ 27.Nxh3?!

Probably better is the engines' 27.Kf1!?, leaving capture of the h3 pawn to later.

27...Ne4 28.Be1?!

Another probable improvement is 28.Rag1!?, when the g3 pawn is poisoned, eg 28...Nxg3? 29.Qf3 Ne4+ 30.Kh2! Ng5 31.Nxg5 Bxg5 32.Rxg5! Qxg5 33.Rg1.

After the text, how should Black proceed?

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28...cxd4!

Other moves also keep an advantage, but this is strongest.

29.cxd4

If 29.exd4, then 29...f4!

29...Bh4

Going after the g pawn, but the engines reckon 29...Rfc8 is much stronger.

30.Nf4

Even so there seems to be no defence.

30...Nxg3

The engines point out 30...Bxg3! is possible, meeting 31.Nh5 with 31...Qg6, when 32.Bxg3 (32.Nxg3 is even worse) runs into 32...f4! 33.exf4 Nxg3 34.Nxg3 Rc2 etc.

31.Bxg3 Qxg3+ 32.Kf1

How should Black continue?

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32...Rfc8

Not 32...Rc2?, which wins after 33.Qxc2? Qf3+ 34.Kg1 Qxe3+, eg 35.Kg2 Qg3+ 36.Kf1 Qxf4+ 37.Kg2 Qg4+ 38.Kf1 Kh8 etc. But White has 33.Rh3!, which the engines reckon gives complete equality, eg 33...Rxe2 34.Rxg3+ Bxg3 35.Nxe2 Bh4 36.Nf4 Kf7 37.Rc1 with good play for a pawn.

33.Rd1

Possibly slightly better is 33.Rg1!? Rc1+ 34.Qd1! Rxd1+ 35.Rxd1 Qxg1+ 36.Kxg1, but after 36...Bg5!? Black has at least the upper hand, according to the engines, thanks to being a pawn up and, in contrast to the last note, having the more-active rook.

33...Rc2 34.Qxc2??

This allows Black a quick mate, but after 34.Rh3! Qg5! 35.Nxe6 Qg6 36.Nf4 Rxe2 37.Nxg6 Rf2+ 38.Kg1 hxg6 39.Rxh4 Rxb2 Black has a good double-rook-and-pawn ending. Alternatively 34.Rg1 Qxg1+ 35.Kxg1 Rxe2 36.Nxe2 Rc2 is very good for Black.

34...Qf3+ 0-1

The British - The Venue

St George's Hall, opposite Liverpool Lime Street station, looks impressive from outside

Unfortunately I cannot report on the playing conditions as I was not allowed inside the tournament room.

Addendum: I returned later, armed with an IM (Chris Baker), and snuck in

Mersey Bound

AM making final preparations for traveling to Liverpool tomorrow for the British chess championships, where I have entered the 65+, which has 80 entries.

The tournament is being held over seven days, starting on Monday, with six rounds at 14:30 and the last round at 10:00.

The time limit is 40 moves in 90 minutes, with 30 minutes to finish, and a 30-second increment throughout.

Early Doors

THE ECF has published its first list of entrants for the British championships in Liverpool in August.

2025 Championships

AT last year's British chess championships in Hull there was a strong rumour that the 2025 edition would be held in Liverpool.

That was confirmed today by a report in the Liverpool Echo, and later on the English Chess Federation website.

The main championship and the major open will be over nine rounds, starting on Saturday August 2, but the senior championships (65+ and 50+) will be over seven rounds from Monday August 4.

All four tournaments are one round a day, finishing on Sunday August 10, with a time control of 40 moves in 90 minutes, followed by 30 minutes to finish, and a 30-second increment throughout.

Further details, and information on supporting events, can be found here.

Liverpool It Is

LIVERPOOL has been confirmed as the site of this year's British chess championships - details expected later today.