[Event "Chess Club"]
[Site "St. Christopher's School"]
[Date "1500.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Asim"]
[Black "Mr. Leap"]
[Annotator "parityX, msh"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D01"]

{ My name is Asim, this is my first game in my chess club against my
  Maths teacher. Rumour had it he was a former Master (false) and had
  an encyclopaedic knowledge of openings (false, but true at some point)
  so I was intimidated coming into the game. It was OTB, 15 minutes each
  clock. I'm White. I'd appreciate help with planning and strategic
  elements of the game, and ways in which the game could develop at key
  points. TIA.

  MH: My name is Mark Hathaway. I live in the United States and have,
  in fact, been a master. I am currently rated as a U.S. Expert. I've
  preceded your comments with "A:" and mine with "MH:". }

1. d4

{ A: I prefer open, tactical games, to closed, positional ones, but I
  still play 1. d4 to try and get the opening away from lines that my
  opponent will have more knowledge in. 

  MH: So long as you know what you're playing then there shouldn't be
  any problem with that. It's only when you get so far from known
  territory that you might get into trouble. }

1...Nf6 2. Nc3

{ MH: This is a pretty good choice to get more tactical play. Recently
  GM Ildar Ibragimov played the same against me. Another interesting
  choice is 2. Bg5 (Trompovsky). }

2...d5 3. Bg5

{ A: Trying to weaken Black's hold on d5. I think my timing was off,
  maybe I should have concentrated on developing my king side pieces to
  castle early.

  MH: No, this is normal and good. It's called Veresov's Opening. The
  fight is over square e4 as much as d5. To not make that fight now would
  give Black time to develop further and secure his hold on e4. }

3...h6

{ MH: This isn't as horrible as some might suggest, but it weakens the
  king-side (in a very small way) and lets White win the fight for e4. }

( { MH: } 3...e6 { is what I played against Ibragimov and after
  4. e4 dxe4 it transposed to a French Defense. } )

( { MH: } 3...Nbd7 { is the move which probably causes the opening to
  develop into something unique to the Veresov Opening. } 4. f3 )

4. Bxf6 exf6 5. Nf3 $6

{ A: Again, I think my timing was off. The only useful thing this does
  is to reinforce d4, but I could have equally done 5. e3, and put the
  bishop on e2, _then_ develop the king knight. What do you think? }

( { MH: } 5. e4 { utilizes the square you fought for! After the pawns
  exchange White would have a four-to-three queen-side majority (which
  is one small positional advantage) and Black has doubled f-file pawns.
  That you gave a bishop for knight means Black has some compensation
  and it's still very close to equal. To not play e2-e4 means your e-file
  pawn would remain backward and of little use for the long run. } )

5...Bg4

{ MH: This is a greedy move. He might want to advance ...f6-f5-f4, but he
  didn't want to leave the light square bishop behind, so he plays it to
  g4 first. It does have the benefit of hindering e2-e4 (since that would
  leave Nf3 pinned to Qd1), but there's currently no pin on Nf3, so Bg4
  doesn't really do much. What are White's possibilities generally: White
  might consider moving Nf3-d2 and then using f2-f3, e2-e4 to retake the
  light squares. Or, you could consider challenging his bishop just to
  see if he'd trade it for Nf3. That might help you regain equality in
  terms of number of bishops. Maybe it's too late to really fight for
  e2-e4, so that what you need to do is try to encourage a minor piece
  exchange, to lessen your cramp, and then develop soundly while
  patiently expecting the real crisis (fight) to occur a bit later. Yes,
  that's it. }

6. e3 $1 Nd7 $4

{ A: I don't see why he developed the knight here, considering it has
  nowhere else to go afterwards. After the game he claimed it was a blind
  development move - could there be a deeper meaning, or are there other
  better moves, like 6. ...Nc6 or 6. ...Bb4?

  MH: I think he really hoped for ...f6-f5, ...Nd7-f6-e4 (or something
  like that). And, it's not such a horrible mistake to aim for that;
  though he'd be safer to begin with ...c7-c6, ...Bf8-d6 to enable ...O-O.
  Keeping the king safe is always of major importance. You must consider
  that the set of squares to which pieces can move isn't just the ones
  which are currently unoccupied, it also includes ones which will become
  open later. For example, should Black just castle to keep his king safe?
  Or, should he move ...Bf8-d6 to enable ...O-O to enable ...Rf8-e8,
  bringing more force to the light squares? Imagining how things might be
  rearranged has to include such things. Here's a wild imaginative idea:
  ...Nb8-g5 to apply pressure to the pin on Nf3; how does one get
  there(?), ...Nb8-d7, ...f6-f5, ...Nd7-f6-h7-g5 or ...Bf8-d6,
  ...Nd7-f8-h7-g5. Whether such maneuvers are timely has to be decided,
  but to see their possibility can be very important. This is where
  creativity and imagination become a fun and challenging part of the
  game. }

( { MH: } 6...c6 { protects Pd5 to prepare ...Nb8-d7 or ...Bf8-d6 } )

7. Be2

{ MH: If not Nxd5 then this is the best alternative. Allocating Qd1-d2 to
  defend Nc3 and Bf1-e2 to defend Nf3 is probably best. }

( { MH: } 7. Nxd5 $16 { You've been fighting, since move two, for d5 & e4
  and now Black allows you to capture Pd5; so, you win the battle.
  White's position isn't especially weak, so grabbing this pawn should
  be safe. The knight might return to c3, but there's some possibility
  it could maneuver through f4 and in that case c2-c3 (if needed) would
  secure White's central pawns terrifically (as in a Colle Opening).
  Removing Pd5 makes it possible for White, after completing his
  development, to utilize both the Pc2 and/or Pe3 pawns. But, let's
  not get ahead of ourselves. Back to the game. } )

7...c6

{ MH: He's corrected his mistake. }

8. O-O

{ A: I frequently reach this stage in most my games, the beginning of the
  middle game. I just develop blindly, and hope for a mistake from my
  opponent, and use it against him. My main weakness would be planning,
  my entire lack of it. What should I be thinking of at this point?
  Control of the centre, what? I find it difficult to see any
  opportunities now.

  MH: First, I'm not certain whether you're referring to the position
  before you've castled or after. But, your complaints are apparently
  significant and go beyond this game, so I'll try to respond. To
  "just develop blindly" is a relatively easier thing to do than to fight
  the opponent tooth and nail. Chess is an odd thing. It's not like
  walking down the street on a sunny day. No, your opponent is out there
  trying to knock your head off and you've got to defend and get him
  before he gets you. So, don't do anything blindly and do begin fighting
  the opponent's pieces. Hopefully that sentiment will be reflected in
  the notes I provide for this game. As to the specifics of this game:
  White's position is slightly cramped, but not especially weakened yet.
  There are no doubled or isolated pawns, the king isn't exposed and you
  haven't lost material. Black's advantages are positional: he could have
  solid control of e4 and use a Bd6 to take aim at Ph2. I've seen far
  worse positions (such as yours) which have drawn or won, so let's not
  lose hope just yet. }

( { MH: } 8. h3 { I suggest this challenge to Bg4 before castling because
  you might want to consider O-O-O for your king, depending upon how
  Black responds. If he just trades ...Bg4xf3 then your king-side would
  still be safe for your king, but if he retreats ...Bg4-h5 then you might
  have to chase further with g2-g4 (essentially fighting on light squares
  in place of the e2-e4 you intended earlier) and in that case O-O-O
  would certainly be safer for your king. If g2-g4 isn't your cup of tea
  then Nf3-d2 or Nf3-h4 to encourage a bishop trade would be good, to
  ease the slight cramp you face. } 8...Bh5 9. Nh4 $5
  ( 9. g4 Bg6 10. Bd3 { hinders Black's plan of ...f6-f5, ...Nd7-f6-e4 } )
  9...Bxe2 10. Qxe2 )

8...Bd6 $2

( { MH: } 8...f5 { Now that your king is out of the center he should
  secure square e4 to hold you in place before piling up attackers on the
  king-side. You'd have quite a difficult time getting out from under
  that pressure. } )

9. e4 $1

{ A: Fully developed, I seek to open up the centre. Probably not the
  soundest rule of thumb I've picked up.

  MH: As a rule of thumb I don't think much of it, but as a good move to
  improve your position and to fight your opponent it makes good sense to
  me. By doing this it's impossible for him to use his pawns to hold your
  pieces back, while using his pieces to attack Kg1. Also, opening the
  center is a good thing because Ke8 is still there. It's unlikely you'll
  get a clean shot at him, but there's no reason to not try. }

9...dxe4 10. Nxe4 Qc7 $2

( { MH: } 10...Bc7 { I see no reason he should give up a bishop for the
  knight. The two bishops are his compensation for the doubled f-file
  pawns. } )

11. Nxd6+

{ A: I couldn't see any other way of deflecting the increasing pressure
  on my king side. This is another common feature of my games - a rapid
  exchange of pieces for neither side's advantage. Again, what should the
  plan here be?

  MH: In most situations the bishops are thought to be slightly better
  than knights, so the capture is good, a gain. Steinitz would be happy!
  I'll discuss your planning needs after move 12. }

11...Qxd6 12. h3 Bh5

{ MH: Let's evaluate: Black's king is still in the center, so a check on
  the e-file might cause him problems. Black has doubled f-file pawns, so
  most trades aiming for a pawn ending should be good for White. Pb7 and
  Pg7 are the pawn chain bases, but neither is terribly weak. With the
  more open position Pd4 is probably the focus of things. Neither side's
  knight or bishop is very good, but there is room for the knights to
  maneuver. Overall, White's advantage is small. Let's consider several
  maneuvers before settling on a plan. Nf3-d2-e4 or Nf3-h4-f5 put the
  knight as close to the enemy as possible, but neither is totally
  secured (supported by some other piece). ...Qd6-b4 threatens both
  Pb2 & Pd4 and could make White's queen-side a little awkward, so Qd1-d2
  or c2-c3 could be useful. Rf1-e1 is certainly an obvious place for the
  rook, but Black can castle and oppose (on the e-file) with his own
  rook. Of these I'd like Nf3-d2 (if it's tactically safe), to get a
  bishop trade and open the e-file to harass Ke8. }

13. c4

{ A: Not sure, in hindsight, what the objective of this was. I thought
  opening the a4-d1 diagonal would give me options, but none of them are
  remotely useful. I'm blundering around.

  MH: c2-c4 weakens Pd4 because there's no longer a c2-c3 to protect it.
  One should look at the pieces first. I haven't seen nearly as many
  checkmates because of pawn moves. }

( { MH: Here's a sample of what I have in mind: } 13. Nd2 Bg6
  ( 13...Bxe2 14. Qxe2+ Qe6 15. Qh5 { trading straightens out Black's
    pawns, so just open the e-file and threaten Rf1-e1 } 15...O-O
    16. Rfe1 { and White has a nice advantage with easy development and
    maneuvering for the pieces -- though there's no win in sight } )
  14. Nc4 Qc7 15. Bd3 O-O 16. Bxg6 fxg6 17. Qd3 )

( { MH: Or the more aggressive } 13. Nh4 Bxe2 14. Qxe2+ Qe6 15. Qd3 O-O
  16. Rfe1 Qd5 17. c4 { and White is chasing Black off the e-file (not
  Qd6 to prevent Re1-e7) and an invasion with Nh4-f5 with Qd3-g3xg7# is
  something Black has to be aware of. } )

13...O-O

{ MH: Black is very close to equality. He needs to be able to move Nd7
  so he can play Rd8 to pressure Pd4. But, there is no good square for
  it at the moment. Perhaps ...Rf8-d8, ...Nd7-f8-e6 would do the job.
  White, on the other hand, should plan on putting a Rd1 to oppose Qd6.
  White has to play a few defensive moves, but could regain all the
  advantages as the game proceeds. }

14. Re1

{ A: Make the rook useful.

  MH: Defending Be2 is useful, but Qd1-d2, Ra1-d1 does both. This is,
  again, a situation where you have to use more imagination to see how
  the pieces could be rearranged to your benefit. }

14...Rfe8 15. Nh4

{ A: Attack the bishop, somehow get at the queen on d6.

  MH: It appears you've realized the benefit of relieving the pressure
  on Nf3, but a little late. Now Pd4 is likely to fall. }

15...Bxe2 16. Rxe2 Nc5 $4

{ A: A blunder on black's part, probably his worst and only one. I failed
  miserably to use it...

  MH: It appears he's latched onto the idea of getting Ne6 to hit Pd4,
  but didn't choose the safe route (...Nd7-f8-e6). }

( { MH: He missed an opportunity. } 16...Rxe2 17. Qxe2 Qxd4 )

17. Nf5

{ A: A counter-blunder on my part. I thought of dislodging his Queen,
  since I thought his hung knight was mine, but ended up hanging my own
  knight.

  MH: Were you defending Pd4, so ...Re8xe2 wouldn't deflect your queen
  away from it? It seems you're seeing the possibilities too late, so that
  your reactions don't fully suffice. }

( { MH: You could get rid of your weaknesses all at once, and win Nc5 to
  boot. His weak Nc5 should've rung a bell and got your attention. This
  was a critical position to get right. } 17. Rxe8+ Rxe8 18. dxc5 Qxc5
  19. Qd3 $18 )

17...Qf4

{ A: Hung, drawn and quartered... }

18. Nxh6+

{ A: Another peculiar feature of my games. I still don't see why I didn't
  return the knight to g3, salvaging a poor move. I do benign things to
  my pieces in a remote attempt to shock my opponent. I've learned, with
  time, that this isn't the wisest approach.

  MH: It's like a mental implosion caused by overload. Too much
  difficulty leading to random violence. Still, in this case, Nc5 is
  still en prise (available for capture), so you aren't just giving away
  a full piece. Sometimes a desperado (a piece which can't be saved) can
  do some damage in the little time it has left. In this case you
  definately gain Ph6. But, in capturing Nc5 you'll have doubled pawns,
  so the overall balance doesn't shift much. }

( { MH: First, let's look at the simple alternative: } 18. dxc5 Qxf5
  19. Rxe8+ Rxe8 { certainly favors Black. His Re8 is better than Ra1
  and Qf5 is better than Qd1. } )

( { MH: You also didn't choose this way: } 18. Ne7+ Kf8 19. dxc5 Rxe7
  20. Rxe7 Kxe7 21. Qe2+ Kf8 22. Re1 { where the material is even, but
  White's pieces are a tiny bit better -- a draw likely } )

( { MH: So, let's look (briefly) at this other option: } 18. Ng3 $1
  18...Ne4
  ( 18...Ne6 { refocusing onto Pd4 is still possible! } )
  19. Rxe4 Rxe4 20. Nxe4 Qxe4 21. Qd2 { and White retains his small
  advantage } )

18...Qxh6 19. dxc5 Red8 $5

{ He could probably offer a draw, but Qh6 is out of play and White has a
  rook which can get to e7, so White still has a slight advantage.
  Instead of having the four-to-three pawn advantage for a pawn ending
  it's now about even and pure piece activity should rule the day. So,
  getting Re2-e7 to hit Pb7 and Pf7 is important. To that end Qd1-e1
  might be best. It prevents Black from opposing rooks on the e-file or
  from playing ...Rd8-d7. }

20. Qc2

( { MH: } 20. Qb3 Rd7 )

( { MH: } 20. Qe1 $5 { This is an odd-looking move, but it backs up Re2
  and tries to invade where Qh6 can't defend. It also enables Ra1-d1, if
  that should be needed. } 20...Qh5
  ( 20...Rd7 $4 21. Re8+ Rxe8 22. Qxe8+ Kh7 23. Qxd7 $18 )
  21. b4 $14 )

20...Rd7 $6

( { MH: } 20...Qh5 21. Re7 Rab8 )

21. Rd1 Rxd1+ 22. Qxd1 g6 $2

( { MH: For the moment Kg8 is safe enough. By moving ...g7-g6 he just
  weakens Pf6, so it's better to re-activate the queen. } 22...Qg5 )

23. Re1

{ A: I wanted to put my Queen on Black's back ranks to wreak havoc, but
  I saw trouble might arise without first guarding my back rank. }

( { MH: Strike while the iron is hot. Qh6 and Ra8 aren't active and your
  pieces are. These are small positional advantages which could dissipate
  very quickly, if not used. } 23. Re7 )

23...Qf8 $6 24. Qd6

{ A: With view of exchanging Queens...and doing...something? I probably
  should have sent the Queen straight to the 7 rank.

  MH: I like this move. Pc5 needed defense and this helps. Even if
  there's a queen trade (Qd6xf8+) you'll have kept Pc5 safe and possibly
  get Re1-e7. The threat to Pf6 could become significant too. Trading
  Pc5 for Pf6 would be good because Pc5 is doubled and not a very good
  offensive weapon, whereas Pf6 defends Kg8. Without Pf6 on the board the
  possibilities of Re1-e4-h4-h8# cause Black added difficulty. }

( { MH: } 24. Qd4 { If you don't want to trade queens then this is the
  next best alternative. } )

( { MH: } 24. Qd7 Qxc5 { gives Black a little more maneuvering room at
  the cost of trading a good Pb7 for the doubled Pc5 }
  ( 24...Rb8 25. Re7
    ( 25. b4 Qd8 26. Re7 Qxd7 27. Rxd7 Kf8 28. h4 { aiming for g2-g4,
      h4-h5... } 28...f5 29. g3 b6
      ( 29...Ke8 30. Rc7 )
     30. Rxa7 bxc5 31. bxc5 Rb4 32. Ra6 Rxc4 33. Rxc6 Ra4 34. Rd6 Rxa2
     35. c6 Rc2 { and it seems reasonable to believe Black might hold a
     draw } )
   25...Kg7 26. h4 Kg8 { and though White has a terrific bind it's not
   certain how he can break through to win } )
  25. Qxb7 Rd8 { Qb7 proves to be a little misplaced and Qc5 is
  excellent } 26. b3 Rd2 27. Qb8+ Kg7 28. Qf4 Rxa2 $11 )

24...Kg7 25. b4

{ A: I should have stuck with some kind of coherent plan. The pawn push
  accomplishes nothing, I should have just exchanged queens, like I
  "planned".

  MH: Your plan (after he spent the time defending Pf6 to keep his king
  safe) had to be the invasion at e7 and clobbering Black's queen-side,
  but without allowing counter-play. In the bunch of variations below I
  just explore various possibilities. I didn't figure these out in my
  head and then write the moves. I was just moving pieces around on the
  board as one might during a correspondence chess game or analyzing at
  your club. During a game you have to decide on a plan and move and
  trust it will be alright. I think what you've done here is fine and I
  have no complaints. The variations below tend to confirm your move was
  good. It ensured Qf8 would stay quiet. }

( { MH: } 25. Qxf8+ Kxf8 { and White can't get Re1-e7, so it's very close
  to equal. White has a slight chance of creating a passed h-file
  pawn. } )

( { MH: } 25. Re7 Rd8 26. Qc7 { perhaps threatening Re7xf7+ to force a
  trade of rooks }
  ( 26. Rd7 { the massive trade-off scenario } 26...Rxd7 27. Qxd7 Qxc5
    28. Qxb7 Qxc4
    ( 28...a5 $2 { leaves White ahead a pawn on the queen-side } )
    29. Qxa7 Qc1+ 30. Kh2 Qxb2 31. a4 $14 )
  26...Rd4 27. Qxb7 Rxc4 28. g3 Rxc5 29. Qxa7 Rc2
  ( 29...Re5 30. Rc7 { keeps the pressure on Pf7 } ) )

25...Rd8 26. Qc7 $16 b6 27. Qxc6 bxc5 28. Qxc5

( { MH: } 28. b5 { leaves Pc5 to block Qf8. White's Pa2 & Pb5 can beat
  Pa7, with a little support. Black's whole position is just a great big
  target. Oh and incidentally, Black doesn't dare move his rook off the
  back rank because of Re1-e8, winning Qf8! } )

28...Qxc5

{ MH: Black's only chance is to ruin White's pawns, so he can make them
  weak and try to get rid of them. }

29. bxc5 Rc8 30. Re7 a5

{ A: This move surprised me, my c5 pawn is basically gone.

  MH: The general rule is when you're behind don't trade pieces. Keep
  them to stir up offensive trouble and to defend your many weak spots.
  But, trade pawns to get rid of the opponent's potential new queens. In
  this case Black is just avoiding the trade because he can get Pc5 for
  free. Why trade? }

31. a4 Rxc5 32. Ra7

{ A: The Queen side has reached an impasse, and I visualised a king side
  pawn struggle.

  MH: White's king should head for d4 to support Pc4. If he ever captures
  Pc4 you get Pa5. The key, as you saw earlier while queens were still
  on the board, is to continue your offensive plan while trying to limit
  counter-play. In this case when White's king goes toward the queen-side
  Black should take Pc4 and then attack White's king-side pawns, long
  before Pa4 can advance. }

32...f5 33. f4 $4

{ A: At this point Black resigned, and I don't think that was wise. He
  claimed I could leverage the pawn advantage and win the game, but I
  fail to see the logic, considering how messed up the Queen side is.
  What do you think of the game at this point?

  MH: White's only up a pawn. Ra7 is not behind a passed pawn (yet). I
  think there's every reason to continue the fight with 33. Kf1. But,
  after 33. f4?? Rxc4 34. Rxa5 Rxf4 It's easy to say Black is equal.
  That makes 33...resigns a huge blunder!

  MH: Summing up: I agree you are a little weak in planning, but you
  still play good moves. Several places in these notes I described at
  some length how to go about analyzing the position for the purpose of
  creating a plan. In that process one must have some imagination, both
  in how pieces can be rearranged over a period of time and of what your
  opponent's intentions might be. These seem to be interrelated and at
  the source of your difficulties. Consider this idea (for practice) --
  given some position when it's your move, what sequence of moves would
  your play and where would you like to plop down a piece, if your
  opponent sat on his hands and let you do as you pleased; and the only
  limitation on this is that if you check or capture he responds. This
  makes it easier to plan events without the confusion which can often
  occur when one thinks about a variation with both players' moves. Apply
  this to imagining what your opponent might try to do and then you'll
  have a basis for developing your own plan. At some point you'll have to
  do the nitty gritty detailed work of looking at variations, but
  hopefully they will be much more on target, to the point and not quite
  so many. }

( 33. Kf1 f4 34. Ke2 { only one move from supporting Pc4 } 34...Rxc4
  35. Rxa5 Rc3 { and it's still a struggle } )

1-0

