Week 5 saw the Scorpions return to good form with a 3.5 to 0.5 decisive victory over the SF Mechanics.
It could have been 4-0 clean sweep as GM Jesse Kraai allowed Mac Molner a cute win just before the end.
Let’s see the games.
Arizona vs San Francisco
- IM Mackenzie Molner (ARZ) vs GM Jesse Kraai (SF) 1/2-1/2
- IM Dmitry Zilberstein (SF) vs IM Levon Altounian (ARZ) 0-1
- IM Mark Ginsburg (ARZ) vs FM Yian Liou (SF) 1-0
- NM Kesav Viswanadha (SF) vs WFM Amanda Mateer (ARZ) 0-1
Board 1 Molner – Kraai.
I have a weird typing (or brain?) problem – I always type Kraii and then have to correct it.
1.Nf3
Molner did not feel like facing a French today.
Nf6 2.g3 d5 3.Bg2 c6 4.0-0 Bg4 5.d3 Nbd7 6.h3 Bxf3 7.Bxf3 e6 8.Nc3 Be7 9.Bg2 b5 10.e4 b4 11.Ne2 0-0 12.g4
Moves like this in the opening are usually not a good sign.
dxe4 13.dxe4 Nc5 14.e5 Nd5 15.Nd4 Qb6 16.Qe2 Rfd8 17.a3
Altounian liked black at this stage. I thought white might have some counter-chances but objectively Levon is right.
Nd7 18.Rd1 bxa3 19.c4 axb2 20.Qxb2 Nb4 21.Bd2 Nxe5 22.Nxe6 fxe6 23.Qxe5 Qxf2+!
24.Kxf2 Nd3+ 25.Ke2 Nxe5 26.Bc3 Rxd1 27.Rxd1 Nxc4 28.Bxc6 Rd8 29.Bd7 Kf7 30.Rf1+ Bf6 31.Ba4 Kg6 32.Bc2+ Kg5 33.Be1 Rb8 34.Kf3 Bb2 35.h4+ Kh6 36.Kg3 Be5+ 37.Kh3 Rb2 38.g5+ Kh5 39.Rf2 Ne3 40.Bxh7 Rxf2 41.Bxf2 Bd4 42.Bg8 Kg6
Rather humorously, 43. Bxe3 Bxe3 44. Kg4! wins here for white – a very geometric king trap. When the match is going so well, psychologically white is not so focused on finding some miracle win. Instead, the game took a more peaceful direction.
Board 2 Zilberstein – Altounian
Levon commented that his opponent’s style makes him look like Tal. Whoah!
1.d4 e6 2.c4 Bb4+ 3.Bd2 Bxd2+ 4.Qxd2 f5 5
Very strange Dutch / Queen’s Indian hybrid. Playable, I guess.
Nc3 Nf6 6.g3 0-0 7.Bg2 d6 8.Nf3 Qe7 9.0-0 c6 10.Rfe1 d5 11.Qd3 Ne4 12.Ne5 Nd7 13.Nxd7 Bxd7 14.f3 Nxc3 15.Qxc3 f4 16.e3 fxg3 17.hxg3 Be8 18.e4 dxc4 19.Qxc4 Rd8 20.Rad1 Bh5 21.Rd3 c5
Around here, it is clear black is comfortable.
22.f4 g5 23.fxg5 cxd4 24.Rxd4 Rxd4 25.Qxd4 Qxg5 26.Qd6 e5 27.Qd3 Rd8 28.Qc3 Qd2 29.Rc1 Qxc3 30.Rxc3 Rd1+ 31.Kh2 Rd2 32.Rb3 Bd1!
33.Ra3 Rxb2 34.Kg1 a6 35.Ra5 Kf7 36.Rxe5 Rxa2 37.Bh3 Bb3 38.Rc5 Rc2 39.Rf5+ Kg7 40.Rg5+ Kh6 41.Rf5 Rc6 42.Kf2 Kg6 43.Re5 b5 44.Ke3 Kf6 45.Rh5 Kg6 46.Re5 Bf7 47.Kf4 b4 48.Re7 Rb6 49.e5 Bg8 50.Bf5+ Kh6 51.e6 b3 52.Re8 Kg7 53.e7 Bf7 54.Rd8 Rb4+ 55.Ke3 Kf6 56.Bxh7 Kxe7 57.Ra8 Rb6 58.Kd2 b2 59.Bb1 Kf6 60.Kc3 Kg7 61.Rd8 a5 62.Rd2 Rb3+ 63.Kc2 a4
Like little beetles the pawns inch forward.
64.Rd7 Kf6 65.Rd6+ Kg5 66.Kd2 a3 67.Ra6 Rxg3 68.Ra5+ Kf6 69.Rf5+ Ke7 70.Rb5 Rg1 71.Rb7+ Kf6 72.Bc2 a2 0-1
As Levon said, “The Dutch Lives.”
Board 3. Ginsburg – Liou
Black obviously had prepared this. So I just avoid most of the main things.
4.g3 Nf6 5.Bg2 c6 6.Nf3 Bg4 7.0-0 e6 8.d3 Be7 9.Qe1 0-0 10.Ne5 Bh5 11.a4 Na6 12.Nc4 Qd8 13.Bd2 Nb4 14.Qb1
This move actually works out very well, the idea is to get on the b1 to h7 diagonal after clearing the N on b4.
14… a5! is called for with a solid game. The text is superficial.
Now black is starting to get into trouble.
GM Ilya Gurevich, curiously enough in San Francisco in the year 2000, told me about this maneuver in a similar position – the transformation of pawn structure if the d3 pawn becomes an e4 pawn is very strong here.
Bent Larsen was famous for using a- and h-pawns like this. Get them advanced, then good things will happen. In the USA, Eugene Meyer played in a very similar way in many games. In this game, it only takes 6 more moves to show how strong this pawn is.
b6 19.Ne5 Bh5 20.Re1 Qc7 21.d4 c5? 22.c4
Now black is in big trouble.
22… cxd4 23. cxd5 Qxe5 24. Bf4 works out very badly for black since d5-d6 is coming up.
Now black is in a total bind and white should easily win. But look how I mess it up!
Bd6 25.Nc6 Ra8 26.dxc5 bxc5 27.Qxc7??
Any good player knows not to release zugzwang. Black cannot move anything. First of all, 27. Ba5 wins easily. If 27. Ba5 Qd7 28. Qxd7 Nxd7 29. Red1! Bxd1 30. Rxd1 and wins. I saw this, but was “concerned” about 27. Ba5 Qc8. In that position, black still cannot move anything!
A little bit more thought reveals the immediate win 27. Ba5 Qc8 28. Red1!! Bxd1 29. Rxd1 and wins. Maybe this would put the game into the “good” category.
Another very, very easy win was the simple 27. b4!. If 27… cxb4 28. c5! wins. So black needs to play 27. b4 Rfc8 but after the sadistic 28. b5! and Ba5 coming, black is totally paralyzed and white concludes immediately. A sick computer line is 27. b4 Nd7 28. Ra5! and black collapses.
The text is a terrible, terrible move. I win the exchange but black “wins” the ability to move his remaining pieces. And this can cost dearly in a fast USCL time control! OK white is technically winning but this move is a travesty!
Bxc7 28.Ne7+ Kh7 29.Bxa8 Rxa8 30.Nc6 Nd7 31.Kg2
Moving the king to the a8-g2 diagonal is kind of ridiculous. The computer notices Re3 with a lift to the b-file as an easy win.
I saw 32. Bf4! easily winning but was “concerned” about 32… Bxf4 33. gxf4 Nb6. Why? 34. b3 wins easily. Very bad play by white.
If I am really interested in winning easily, I should now take that knight. 33. Bxb6 Bxb6 34. Ne5 and wins easily.
Why the heck am I moving the rook off the a-file? I am getting rattled.
Bc2 34.Rd2 Ba4 35.Ne5 f6 36.Bxb6 axb6 37.Ra1
Now I have to resort to tactics to keep a small edge. Boo!
38… Bb5 39. Rxa6 Bxa6 is a losing ending for black.
Now white plays on the trapped bishop on c7. Isn’t it ridiculous that I am playing on these small niceties rather than have black in full board zugzwang such as the game after 26 moves?
40… Rb1! 41. Rd7 Rb2+! 42. Kf3 Rxb3+ 43. Ke4 f5 checkmate (!) would be a “logical” end to my chaos. If I go 42. Kf1, then 42… Bxf4 and my winning chances are small. What a debacle!
41.Rd7 Bxf4 42.gxf4 Rxb3 43.Nd8! Now black’s king is threatened and he should get it out of the box.
43… Kg6! 44. Nxe6 Kf5! 45. Nxg7+ Kg4 and black retains chances to hold.
Leaving the king in the box is suicide.
45.f5! Rxh2 46.Ne6 h5 47.Rxg7+ Kh8 48.Rg6 Rh4 49.Rxf6 Rxc4 50.Kg3 b5 51.Rg6 Rc1 52.Kh4 b4 53.f6
The mating net takes shape.
Rf1 54.Ng5 Rh1+ 55.Kg3 h4+ 56.Kg2 Ra1 57.Nf7+ And mate next move.
1-0
Board 4.
Viswanadha-SF – Mateer-ARZ
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 3.c3 Nf6 4.e5 Nd5 5.d4 cxd4 6.cxd4 Nc6 7.Nc3
As white, I wouldn’t want to commit to this so soon.
Nxc3 8.bxc3 d6 9.exd6 Bxd6 10.Bd3 Bd7 11.0-0 Qc7 12.Be3 Na5 13.Qe2 Bc6 14.h3 Bd5 15.Rac1 Nc4
Without doing anything special, black has a good game.
16.Nd2 Rc8 17.Ne4 Ba3 18.Rc2 Qc6 19.Qg4 Bf8 20.Nd2 h5 21.Qg3 b5 22.Bxc4 Bxc4 23.Nxc4 Qxc4 24.Bd2 h4 25.Qe3 Be7 26.f4 g6 27.Rf3 Rh5 28.Qf2 Rd5 29.Rb2 a5 30.Kh2 a4 31.Be1 Qc7 32.Kh1 Qc4 33.Qe3 Ba3 34.Re2 Be7 35.Qe4 b4 36.cxb4 Rxd4 37.Qe3 Rd1 38.Kh2 Bxb4 39.Bxh4 Bc5 40.Qe4 Bg1+ 41.Kg3 Rd4 42.Qe5 Kd7 43.Qf6 Qxe2 44.Qxf7+ Kc6 45.Bf6 Rd3 46.Rxd3 Qxd3+ 47.Kg4 Qe2+ 48.Kg3 Qd3+ 49.Kg4 Qf5+ 50.Kg3 Be3 51.Kh2 Qxf4+ 52.Kh1 Qf1+ 53.Kh2 Bf4+ 54.g3 Qf2+ 55.Kh1 Qf3+ 56.Kg1 Qxg3+ 57.Kf1 Qxh3+ 58.Ke1 Qe3+ 59.Kf1 Rb8 60.Qxg6 Qf3+ 61.Ke1 Qg3+
The queens finally come off.
0-1
That was a satisfying match, although I nearly blew my game. Wow. The missed mate by Molner was a humorous footnote in USCL annals. I think we came a long way (but not all the way) towards erasing the ludicrous match loss last week to the Mott Applesauce.
Good commentary Mark. I was wondering if you spotted the Ba5 move during the game. Looked good to me, but I didn’t have the pressure of being the person at the board. It’s good to be a kibitzer sometimes.
No I didn’t, I was wasting time and finally went for the bad win of the exchange. I should have focused on just keeping him in zugzwang.