This crushing win put us over 50% in game points for the season, although our match record is a quite under-performing 3.5 – 4.5.

We had the Manhattan match sewn up as detailed in the prior post only to lose in surreal fashion, and the Dallas match last week we all thought was a victory for us until the unpleasantness broke out and we forfeited the first board, losing that match.  Double Ouch!

Nevertheless, we have crushed SF by the same margin this season and if only our match record reflected our game record!

Arizona vs Miami

  1. IM Mackenzie Molner (ARZ) vs GM Julio Becerra (MIA) 1-0
  2. SM Robert Perez (MIA) vs IM Mark Ginsburg (ARZ) 1/2-1/2
  3. FM Robby Adamson (ARZ) vs FM Eric Rodriguez (MIA) 1-0
  4. Nicholas Rosenthal (MIA) vs FM Pedram Atoufi (ARZ) 0-1

Board 1 Molner-ARZ – Becerra-MIA [C58]
24.10.2012

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Ng5 d5 5.exd5 Na5 6.Bb5+ c6 7.dxc6 bxc6 8.Bd3 Nd5

Computers scream for Nf6-g4 with insane complications.

9.Nf3 Bd6 10.0-0 Nf4 11.Nc3 0-0 12.Re1 Nxd3 13.cxd3

This is all “oude kuch” (stale cake) for veteran Max Lange players, but to me the ruined structure is just too much to bear.

Re8 14.b3 c5 15.Ne4 Nc6 16.Bb2 Bg4 17.h3 Bh5 18.Rc1 Nb4 19.g4 Bg6 20.Nxd6 Qxd6 21.Nxe5 f6 22.a3 fxe5 23.axb4 cxb4 24.Qf3 Rad8 25.Rc6 Qxd3 26.Qxd3 Rxd3 27.Re3 e4 28.Rc7 Bf7 29.Rxd3 exd3 30.Rxa7 g5 31.Rd7 Bg6 32.Bd4 Re1+ 33.Kg2 Rb1 34.f3 Rxb3 35.Rg7+ Kf8 36.Rb7 Ke8 37.Bc5 Kd8 38.Bxb4 Kc8 39.Rb5 Kd7 40.Rd5+ 1-0   Apparently Becerra forgot about his flag, that is the best guess for why this game ended at this point.

Board 2 Perez-MIA – Ginsburg-ARZ [A41]
25.10.2012

1. Nf3 g6 2.d4 Bg7 3.c4 d6 4.Nc3 Bg4 5.g3 Bxf3 6.exf3 Nc6 7.d5 Nd4 8.Be3 c5 9.dxc6! Nxc6 10.Qd2 Nf6 11.Be2 0-0 12.0-0 Qa5 13.Kg2 Rac8 14.Rac1 Rfd8 15.Rfd1 a6?

Black should not hand over the b6 square so easily.  Now he has permanent Nc3-a4 worries.

16.b3 h5?! 17.h3 e6? 18.Bg5!

My play makes very little sense and white is much better.  I am never going to get in d5, so I should not have played for that.

Re8 19.Bxf6 Bxf6 20.Ne4 Qe5 21.Qxd6

White got into time pressure and also spent a lot of time on this move, but while he was thinking I noticed 21. c5! and white just wins.  Lucky escape number 1.

Red8 22.Qxe5 Bxe5 23.f4 Bb2 24.Rb1 Ba3 25.Bf3 Kg7 26.Nc3 Bb4 27.Na4 Rb8 28.Bxc6 bxc6

This, of course, is winning but in time pressure as Korchnoi once said, “there are no heroes.”

29.Kf3 Kf6 30.Nb2 Bc3 31.Rxd8 Rxd8 32.Rd1 Bd4 33.Na4 Ke7 34.Rd3 c5 35.Ke2 f5 36.h4 Rd6 37.Nc3 Rb6 38.Na4 Rd6 39.Rd2 a5 40.Rd3 Rd8 41.Nc3 Bxc3 42.Rxc3 Rb8 43.Kd2 Rb7 44.Kc2 Rb8 45.Re3 Kd6 46.Rd3+ Ke7 47.Kc3 Rb7 48.Rd2 Rb8 49.a3

I was quite afraid of a king maneuver to a3 threatening to go to a4. If I stop that with Rb4, I may get into zugzwang with the white rook forcing the black king to give it entry points.

Ra8 50.Rb2 Kd6 51.Rd2+ Kc6 52.Re2 Kd6 53.Rb2 Kc6 54.b4 axb4+ 55.axb4 Ra3+ 56.Kd2 cxb4 57.Rxb4 Kc5 58.Rb8 Kxc4 59.Rg8 Kd4 60.Rxg6 Ke4! 61.Rxe6+ Kf3!

Now black is so active he is assured of a draw.  Once the f2 pawn goes the others go like dominoes. A very lucky escape.

62.Re5 Kxf2 63.Rxf5 Kxg3 64.Rxh5 Kxf4 65.Rh8 Kg4 66.h5 1/2-1/2

Board 3 Adamson-ARZ – Rodriguez-MIA [A13]
24.10.2012

1.Nf3 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.b3 d5 4.Bb2 Be7 5.g3 0-0 6.Bg2 a5 7.Nc3 c6 8.0-0 Bd7 9.Qc2 b5 10.d4 a4 11.Ne5 Be8 12.Rad1 Ra6 13.e4 a3 14.Bc1 b4 15.Na4 Rxa4 16.bxa4 Nxe4 17.Bxe4 dxe4 18.Qxe4 Qa5 19.Rfe1 c5 20.Qb7 Bd6 21.d5 Bxa4 22.Rd2 b3 23.axb3 a2 24.b4 a1Q 25.bxa5 Bxe5 26.Rde2 Bc3 27.Bb2 Qxe1+ 28.Rxe1 Bxe1 29.a6 Nxa6 30.Qxa6 exd5 31.Qxa4 d4 32.Ba3 1-0

Both sides were in time pressure in this wild game, and black missed a win via a timely Bxe5 followed by Nd7 and Rb8 trapping the WQ that is marooned on b7.  I will leave it to the readers to spot the move number.   After black missed this win, white hit hard with 24. b4! and this wins in all variations.

Board 4 Rosenthal-MIA – Atoufi-ARZ [B07]
24.10.2012

1.e4 d6 2.d4 Nf6 3.Nc3 c6 4.Nf3 Bg4 5.Bc4 e6 6.0-0 Be7 7.Re1 0-0 8.Bg5 d5 9.exd5 cxd5 10.Be2 Bxf3 11.Bxf3 Nc6 12.Ne2 Ne8 13.Bxe7 Nxe7 14.c3 Nd6 15.Nf4 a5 16.Bg4 Ng6 17.Nxg6 hxg6 18.Rb1 a4 19.Qf3 f5 20.Rxe6 Ne4 21.Rxg6 fxg4 22.Qxg4 Rf7 23.f3 Nf6 24.Qg3 Qc7 25.Qg5 a3 26.h4 axb2 27.Rxb2 Qxc3 28.Rd2 Nh7 29.Qh6 Kh8 30.Qh5 Qxd2 31.Qxd5 Qe1+ 32.Kh2 Qxh4+ 33.Kg1 Qe1+ 34.Kh2 Re7 35.Rg3 Ra5 36.Qd8+ Re8 37.Qh4 Ra6 38.Qg4 Rh6+ 39.Rh3 Rxh3+ 40.Kxh3 Re6 41.g3 Qh1# 0-1

Our fourth board was quite tired of losing in the USCL and played smoothly capitalizing on white’s wildly overambitious play.  Well done.

So, Arizona is still in the playoff race despite all the egregious match losses we have suffered this year.  Stay tuned.

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