The purpose of chess is to play a game involving the minds of two opponents and determine a winner using pieces and rules. However, the purpose of this blog is to provide enrichment materials and analysis on chess that is taking place for Hoosiers. Chess from outside the state is good and most the content will revolve around events and players in/from Indiana.
In order to keep this site going, I need material, so please send some in. I can use my games all the time, but that would tend to make things dull and biased. Since the target audience for this blog is Hoosiers, your games are of the highest priority. However, if you happen to have a game that you think will engage in the learning experience of others, please submit it to me.
I encourage everyone to examine games posted on here and comment on them. This is meant to be a learning opportunity for Hoosiers that play chess and feedback is part of the learning process. You may of course just plug games or positions into your computer and have a program pick it apart. However, the hope is that you will play through these examples on your own first and then compare with a computer or others and their comments.
As this is a work in progress, items are going to change and move around. Currently, this site is also being used an assignment for my English W315 Writing for the web course. Some of the posts on here will not directly relate to chess, but once the requirements for the classroom assignments are completed, they will be removed to allow for a better focus on chess.
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Thursday Game of the Week 10/07
Sorry that this one came late, Blogger was having technical difficulties with me. Today's game is a botched English in G/5 Time Control. I was black against a fellow 1700, but please keep in mind that online ratings are not always.
1. c4 Nf6 2. Nc3 e6 3. g3 d5 4. Bg2 dxc4 5. Qa4+ Bd7 6. Qxc4 Bc6 7. Nf3 So far, nothing out of the ordinary. Not being to clear on theory at this point, I decide that I'm going to pursue development with the idea of aggravating the White Queen.
7. ...Nbd7 8. O-O Nb6 9. Qb3 Qd7?? What could have been a costly mouse-slip. I intended the Queen to be on e7 and chase the White Queen again or exchange for development of my Bishop on the recapture. Of course, 9. ...Be7 or Bd6 is better than my plan.
10. d3?? as Ne5! would have forked my Queen and Bishop leading to unpleasant doubled c-pawns
10. ...Bd6 11. Bg5 Nfd5 12. e4 Nxc3 13. bxc3 f6 14. Be3 Now I want to castle, but I have put the White Queen in a pinning position of my e6 pawn, so I decide to chas again.
14. ...Ba4 15. Qb2 O-O 16. d4 This give my Knight a great square on c4, but I can't give up my b7 pawn. So...
16. ...Rab8 17. e5 I should have taken a little more time to consider Be7 at this point, but decided to pursue Nc4.
17. ...fxe5 18. dxe5 Nc4 19. Qe2 Nxe3 20. Qxe3 Be7 21. Qxa7? b6 Greed has consumed White and I've trap the Queen in the corner. While I can't get at her yet due the Bishop on g2 covering the a8-square, White must shift gears to defense and attempt to keep the Queen on the board. White 1:33 & Black 3:02 left to play.
22. Nd4 Bc5 23. Rad1? Bxd1 24. Rxd1 Giving up the exchange, but White wants a Rook on the d-file to pressure my Queen and can entertain ideas of getting his Queen out of the corner.
24. ...Bxd4 25. Rxd4 Qe7 26. Qa6 Qc5 27. Qc4 :23 to 2:21 left and White is looking to simplify, but I take back my lost pawn. 27. Qxe5 28. Bh3? I thought White would play 28. Re4 Qd5 29. Qe2 Rbe8. White is still losing, but I'm not mating him or gaining immediate material.
28. ...Qe1+ 29. Kg2?? Rxf2# 0-1 White should have played 29. Qf1 and struggle on being down the exchange, but time pressure makes us all do crazy things.
1. c4 Nf6 2. Nc3 e6 3. g3 d5 4. Bg2 dxc4 5. Qa4+ Bd7 6. Qxc4 Bc6 7. Nf3 So far, nothing out of the ordinary. Not being to clear on theory at this point, I decide that I'm going to pursue development with the idea of aggravating the White Queen.
7. ...Nbd7 8. O-O Nb6 9. Qb3 Qd7?? What could have been a costly mouse-slip. I intended the Queen to be on e7 and chase the White Queen again or exchange for development of my Bishop on the recapture. Of course, 9. ...Be7 or Bd6 is better than my plan.
10. d3?? as Ne5! would have forked my Queen and Bishop leading to unpleasant doubled c-pawns
10. ...Bd6 11. Bg5 Nfd5 12. e4 Nxc3 13. bxc3 f6 14. Be3 Now I want to castle, but I have put the White Queen in a pinning position of my e6 pawn, so I decide to chas again.
14. ...Ba4 15. Qb2 O-O 16. d4 This give my Knight a great square on c4, but I can't give up my b7 pawn. So...
16. ...Rab8 17. e5 I should have taken a little more time to consider Be7 at this point, but decided to pursue Nc4.
17. ...fxe5 18. dxe5 Nc4 19. Qe2 Nxe3 20. Qxe3 Be7 21. Qxa7? b6 Greed has consumed White and I've trap the Queen in the corner. While I can't get at her yet due the Bishop on g2 covering the a8-square, White must shift gears to defense and attempt to keep the Queen on the board. White 1:33 & Black 3:02 left to play.
22. Nd4 Bc5 23. Rad1? Bxd1 24. Rxd1 Giving up the exchange, but White wants a Rook on the d-file to pressure my Queen and can entertain ideas of getting his Queen out of the corner.
24. ...Bxd4 25. Rxd4 Qe7 26. Qa6 Qc5 27. Qc4 :23 to 2:21 left and White is looking to simplify, but I take back my lost pawn. 27. Qxe5 28. Bh3? I thought White would play 28. Re4 Qd5 29. Qe2 Rbe8. White is still losing, but I'm not mating him or gaining immediate material.
28. ...Qe1+ 29. Kg2?? Rxf2# 0-1 White should have played 29. Qf1 and struggle on being down the exchange, but time pressure makes us all do crazy things.
Thursday, October 7, 2010
A True Balancing Act
The game of chess is a constant balancing act between the players. A single pawn move can look good at first, creating a good defense or help bolster an attack. However, this happening on the second move may have dire consequence on the twentieth move when it has become the linchpin for the King’s safety.
Obviously, the chess player should be looking into the future and developing a strategy around their moves, structure, and placement of pieces. Both players are working with their own goals, but also have the need to adjust to what the other is doing.
The same can be true for the teeter totter. Each person is supposed to take a turn up in the air and then down on the ground, but mischief can always ensue. One person might decide that they want to hold the other person up in the air for a prolonged period of time. A person might just want to try and balance the other person at the other end. Of course, these behaviors depend solely on the state of one individual, the other person has to compensate and adjust for such things. This balancing act is physical, but chess is primarily mental.
A person needs to balance their plans with the other and wait for the moment to strike. The state of mind is what determines a person’s approach in chess. However, the ability to be fluid in actions allows for one person to eventually hold the other up in the air on the mental teeter totter when checkmate looms.
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Thursday Game of the Week 09/30
Today's game comes from Dasher, an Internet Chess Club program. This is G/5 game of me as white against a WIM with the handle of "laburi."
The game is a Sicilian: c3 line.
1. e4 c5 2. c3 d5 3. exd5 Qxd5 4. d4 Nf6 5. Nf3 Bg4 6. Be2 Nc6 7. Be3 cxd4 8. Bxd4 Nxd4 9. Qxd4 Qxd4 10. Nxd4 Bxe2 11. Kxe2 I've decided against castling, for better or worse, but I feel good about my position.
11. ...e5 12. Nb5 O-O-O? An IM dropping a pawn seemed like a trap, but I decided to bite.
13. Nxa7+ Kb8 14. Nb5 Bc5 15. b4 Bb6 16. a4 Ng4? This seems like a wasted move, but I do have to compromise my pawn structure.
17. f3 Nf6 18. a5 Bc7 19. Nd2 Rd5 20. Nxc7 Kxc7 21. Rhd1 Rhd8 22. Ne4 Kc6 23. Rxd5 Nxd5 Now we have moved to an endgame, but I'm currently up a pawn with about a 25 second time lead.
24. a6 bxa6 25. Rxa6+ Kb5 26. Ra7 f5 27. Ra5+ Kc4 28. Rc5+ Kb3 29. Nd2+ Kc2 30. Nf1 Nxc3+ 31. Kf2 e4 32. Rxf5 Nd1+ 33. Ke2 Nc3+ 34. Ke3 Rd3+ 35. Kf4 e3 36. Nxe3+ Kd2 37. Nc4+ Ke2 38. Re5+ Kf2 39. Nb2 Rd4+ 40. Kf5 Rd8 41. b5 Kxg2 as the flag falls on her.
Obviously, this was not a great endgame on my part, I started to rely the clock pressure to win, but I shouldn't have. Hopefully, upon further review, I'll get some great endgame study out of this, and you will too.
The game is a Sicilian: c3 line.
1. e4 c5 2. c3 d5 3. exd5 Qxd5 4. d4 Nf6 5. Nf3 Bg4 6. Be2 Nc6 7. Be3 cxd4 8. Bxd4 Nxd4 9. Qxd4 Qxd4 10. Nxd4 Bxe2 11. Kxe2 I've decided against castling, for better or worse, but I feel good about my position.
11. ...e5 12. Nb5 O-O-O? An IM dropping a pawn seemed like a trap, but I decided to bite.
13. Nxa7+ Kb8 14. Nb5 Bc5 15. b4 Bb6 16. a4 Ng4? This seems like a wasted move, but I do have to compromise my pawn structure.
17. f3 Nf6 18. a5 Bc7 19. Nd2 Rd5 20. Nxc7 Kxc7 21. Rhd1 Rhd8 22. Ne4 Kc6 23. Rxd5 Nxd5 Now we have moved to an endgame, but I'm currently up a pawn with about a 25 second time lead.
24. a6 bxa6 25. Rxa6+ Kb5 26. Ra7 f5 27. Ra5+ Kc4 28. Rc5+ Kb3 29. Nd2+ Kc2 30. Nf1 Nxc3+ 31. Kf2 e4 32. Rxf5 Nd1+ 33. Ke2 Nc3+ 34. Ke3 Rd3+ 35. Kf4 e3 36. Nxe3+ Kd2 37. Nc4+ Ke2 38. Re5+ Kf2 39. Nb2 Rd4+ 40. Kf5 Rd8 41. b5 Kxg2 as the flag falls on her.
Obviously, this was not a great endgame on my part, I started to rely the clock pressure to win, but I shouldn't have. Hopefully, upon further review, I'll get some great endgame study out of this, and you will too.
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