The Fabulous 00s: The National Open 2001

Playin’ At The Riviera

The Las Vegas National Open is always a good time. The Riviera hotel is so close to the Peppermill coffee shop! This Peppermill is related to, but much smaller than, the behemoth Peppermill Casino in Reno.

Let’s look at six interesting games I played from the 2001 installment.

Round 1.

M. Ginsburg – J. Riddell (2075) Stonewall Dutch

1. c4 f5 2. d4 Nf6 3. g3 e6 4. Bg2 d5 5. Nf3 c6 6. Nbd2 Bd6 7. b3 Nbd7 8. Bb2 Ne4 9. O-O Qf6!? It might look strange to move out the queen so soon, but this move has a certain logic (queen to h6, other knight to f6, look for chances).

Position after 9…Qf6!? – the Queen sortie makes sense.

10. e3 This is somewhat unusual.

White can try 10. Ne1!? O-O 11. Nd3 Qh6 12. Nf3 a5 and it’s murky. Also interesting is 12… f4!? 13. gxf4 Bxf4 14. Nxf4 Qxf4 15. e3 Qf5 and only with great care can white get anywhere: 16. Qc2 Qh5 17. Ne5 Nxe5 18. dxe5 Qg5 19. Rae1 Rf3 20. Qe2! Rh3 21. f3 Nc5 22. cxd5 exd5 23. Qc2! Ne6 24. f4 Qg4 25. Qe2! Rh4 26. Qxg4 Rxg4 and white is better after 27. h3.

More usual than my move is 10. Qc2!? but black has had good results in the database after 10 Qc2 g5!? – more tests are needed!

10… O-O

A chaotic example from around the same time as this game: 10… h5 11. h4 Nxg3? Hopelessly unsound. 11…O-O is correct. 12. fxg3 Bxg3 13. cxd5 exd5 14. Qc2 Qe6 15. e4 Nf6 16. e5 Ng4 17. Ba3 b6 18. Ng5 Qg6 19. e6 Bb7 20. Qxf5 Qxf5 21. Rxf5 Ne3 22. Rf3 Bxh4 23. Nf7 Nc2 24. Nxh8 Bf6 25. Rxf6 gxf6 26. Rf1 Nxa3 27. Bh3 Kf8 28. Rxf6+ Kg7 29. Rf7+ Kxh8 30. Rxb7 Nb5 31. Nf3 c5 32. a4 Nxd4 33. Nxd4 cxd4 34. Rd7 Kg8 35. Rxd5 Rc8 36. Rxd4 Rc3 37. Re4 1-0 Koch,J-Zuriel,A (2182)/Buenos Aires 2001.

11. a4 Bc7 I like 11…b6 here better.

12. Ne1 Qh6 13. Nd3 Ndf6 14. Qe2 Bd7 Black can consider 14…Ng4!? 15. h3 Nxe3!? 16. fxe3 Nxg3 with counterchances.

15. Nf3 Ng4 16. Nde5 Bxe5 17. dxe5 Qh5 18. h3 Nh6 19. Ba3 Rfc8 20. Qc2 Nf7 21. Bb2 Neg5 22. Nh4 Nh6 23. f4 Ne4 24. Bf3 Qf7 25. g4 g5? This just doesn’t work at all. Black had to play 25…Qe7 26. g5 Nf7 with some disadvantage.

26. Bxe4 gxh4 27. Bf3 fxg4 28. hxg4 Qg6 29. Rf2?! White will win quickly after the obvious 29. Qxg6+ hxg6 30. Kg2! Nf7 31. Kh3! g5 32. Bg2.

29…Nf5 30. Re1?! And here, 30. Kh2! Ng3 31. Qxg6+ hxg6 32. Kh3 g5 33. Ba3! finishes it soon.

30…Ne7 31. e4 Rf8 32. Bc1 Kh8 33. cxd5 cxd5 34. Qc7 The simplest win is 34. exd5 Qxc2 35. Rxc2 Nxd5 36. Bxd5 exd5 37. e6 Bc6 38. Bb2+ Kg8 39. f5 h5 40. Rh2.

34… Rfd8 35. f5 exf5 36. e6 Qxe6 37. Bb2+ Getting the queen IN FRONT of the bishop on the a1-h8 diagonal wins. 37. Qc3+! d4 38. Qxd4+ Kg8 39. Bb2 Kf8 40. Qg7+ Ke8 41. gxf5 Qf7 42. Qh6. The text is OK too.

37… d4 38. Bxd4+ Kg8 39. Rg2? Those with tactical insight will quickly spot 39. gxf5! Nxf5 40. exf5! Qxe1+ 42. Kh2 and wins.

39…f4! 40. Qxf4 Ng6? The comedy of errors continues. 40…Rf8! is correct.

41. Qh6 Qf7 42. Be2 Be6 43. Rf2 Qd7 44. Bf6 Rf8 45. g5 Qf7 46. b4 Rad8 46… Rae8 is met by the same move as in the game, 47. Ref1.

47. Ref1 Rd7? 47….Qc7 was the last chance to resist.
48. Bc3 Qe7 49. Rxf8+ Nxf8 50. Rxf8+ Qxf8 51. Qxe6+ Black could have resigned here.

51…Qf7 52. Qe5 Qg6 53. Bc4+ Kf8 54. Qh8+ Ke7 55. Bf6+ Kd6 56. Qf8+ Kc7 57. Qc5+ Kb8 58. Be5+ 1-0

Round 2.

V. Nembu (2175) – M. Ginsburg. Reti

I like this game because it shows the advantages of patience – taking one’s opportunities when they arise, no matter how small. The game was drawish for a long time but I found some resources to keep things going. In the end, I scored the full point.

1. c4 Nf6 2. g3 c6 3. Nf3 d5 4. b3 Bg4 5. Bg2 Nbd7 6. Bb2 e6 Some players like to do …e7-e5 gaining the center. See, for example, Naroditsky-Friedel, Tulsa Qualifier US Ch 08.

7. d3 Be7 8. Nbd2 O-O 9. O-O a5 10. a3 Qb6 11. Bc3 h6 12. h3 Bh5 13. Qc2 Rfd8 14. Qb2 Nc5 15. Bd4 Apparently threatening b3-b4.

15…dxc4! Good tactical vision.

Position after 15…dxc4!

16. dxc4 White doesn’t gain much from the optically impressive 16. b4!? axb4 17. axb4 cxd3 18. e4 Rxa1 19. Rxa1 Rxd4 20. Qxd4 Ncd7 21. Qxd3 Bg6 22. Ra8+ Kh7 23. Nh4 Qxb4 equal — less good is 23… Bxb4? 24. Nxg6 fxg6 25. Nc4! with an edge. After, e.g., 24. Nxg6 fxg6 chances are balanced in the ending. (25. Qc2 Bc5 26. Ra4 Qb6 with play on the dark squares).

16… Bxf3 17. Bxf3 Rd7 18. Be3 Qd8 19. Qc2 e5 20. Bg2 Ne6 21. Nf3 Bd6 It’s still balanced.

22. Rfd1 Qf8 23. b4 axb4 24. axb4 Bxb4 25. Nxe5 Rxd1+ 26. Qxd1 Bc5 27. Rxa8 White offered a draw.

27…Qxa8 Clearly there is no risk so I play on.

28. Bxc5 Nxc5 29. Qd4 Ne6 30. Qb2 Qa5 31. Nd3 Qc7 Here white makes a psychological mistake. Ike should mark time.

Position after 31…Qc7. Not the right time for white to get all Nembu.

32. Qe5? An instructive error. This gives Black an easy plan. Simply *not* doing this would have been much better – i.e. leave the queens on.

32…Qxe5 33. Nxe5 Kf8 34. Nd3 Nd7 35. f4 Nb6 36. Nb2 Ke7 37. Kf2 Kd6 38. e3? A blunder. Superior was 38. Ke3 but even so, 38… Kc5 39. Nd3+ Kxc4 40. Ne5+ Kc3 41. Nxf7 Nc4+ 42. Kf2 Nc5 43. Nd8 b5 44. Nxc6 b4 45. Nxb4 Kxb4 46. e4 Kc3 47. e5 Kd4 and black keeps excellent chances to win.

38… Nc5! 39. Ke2 Nca4 40. Nxa4 Nxa4 41. Kd2 Kc5 White’s position is collapsing.

42. Bf1 Kb4 43. Kd3 Nb2+ 44. Kd4 c5+ 45. Kd5 Nd1 46. Ke4 f5+! Some nifty tactics spell the end.

47. Kf3 Nb2! 48. g4 fxg4+ 48…Nxc4! is the cleanest.

49. hxg4 Nxc4 50. Bd3 Nd2+ 51. Ke2 Kc3 52. Bg6 Nc4 53. e4 Kd4 54. e5 Ne3 55. Kf3 Nd5 56. Be4 b5 57. e6 Ne7 58. f5 b4 0-1

Round 3.

IM M. Ginsburg – GM Alex Chernin Catalan

In which I find myself in an unusual Catalan but adapt well.

1. c4 e6 2. Nf3 d5 3. g3 dxc4 4. Qa4+ Nd7 5. Bg2 c5 I was already pretty much on my own after this move. Sometimes, knowing less is better as that leads to finding more natural moves.

6. O-O Ngf6 7. Qxc4 b6 8. d4 Previously seen was 8. Qc2 Bb7 9. b3 Be7 10. Bb2 O-O 11. d3 Rc8 12. Nbd2 Nb8 13. Rfc1 Nc6 14. a3 Qd7 15. Qd1 Rfd8 16. Rab1 Nd5 17. Ba1 Nc7 18. Ne5 Qe8 19. b4 Nd5 20. b5 Nxe5 21. Bxe5 Qd7 22. Nc4 Nf6 23. Bxb7 Qxb7 24. Bxf6 Bxf6 25. Qf1 Rd5 26. Qg2 Qc7 27. a4 Rcd8 28. Rb3 h5 29. a5 bxa5 30. Ra3 Rb8 31. Rxa5 Qd7 32. Rb1 Bc3 33. Ra6 Rxb5 34. Rxb5 Qxb5 35. Rxa7 Qb8 36. Ra3 Bd4 37. Qe4 g6 38. Kg2 Kg7 39. e3 Bf6 40. h4 Be7 41. Qf3 Bf6 1/2-1/2 Andersson,U (2585)-Tal,M (2615)/Stockholm 1976. My move seems more active and to the point.

8… Bb7 9. Nc3 Rc8

Position after 9…Rc8

Eventually a peaceful result occurred in 9… a6 10. dxc5 Bxc5 11. Bg5 h6 12. Bxf6 Qxf6 13. Rad1 Rc8 14. Qd3 Nb8 15. Nd2 (typical Ulf simplifications) 15…Bxg2 16. Kxg2 O-O 17. Na4 Qd4 18. Qxd4 Bxd4 19. Nb3 Bf6 20. Nxb6 Rc2 21. Rd2 Rxb2 22. Rxb2 Bxb2 23. Rd1 Bf6, 1/2-1/2 Andersson,U (2605)-Sokolov,A (2595)/Belfort 1988.

10. Bg5 Not very impressive. Trickier is 10. Bf4 Be7 11. Rfd1 O-O 12. Qa4.

10…a6!? 11. dxc5 If 11. Rfd1 b5! 12. Qb3 c4! 13. Qc2 b4!, a very nice series of pawn moves. Then, 14. Na4 Be7 15. Ne5 Bxg2 16. Kxg2 Qa5 17. h3 Nxe5 18. dxe5 Qxe5 19. Nb6 Rc6 20. Bxf6 Bxf6 21. Nxc4 O-O 22. Rac1 Qc7 23. b3 and it’s balanced. Or, 11. a4 h6 12. Bxf6 Nxf6 13. Rfd1 cxd4 14. Qxd4 Qxd4 15. Nxd4 Bxg2 16. Kxg2 Bc5 17. Nb3 Ke7 18. Nxc5 Rxc5 19. Rd4 Rhc8 20. Rad1 Rc4 21. h3 g5 22. f4 gxf4 23. gxf4 Rxd4 24. Rxd4 Nd7 25. Kf3 f5 26. e4 fxe4+ 27. Rxe4 This is equal. Nevertheless, Yusupov playing black manages to ‘make something out of nothing’. 27…Rc5 28. Rd4 a5 29. Nb5 Rc2 30. b4 axb4 31. Rxb4 Nf6 32. Rd4 Rc1 33. Kg3 Rg1+ 34. Kf2 Rb1 35. Kg2 Rb3 36. Kh2? (36. Nd6! =) Nh5! 37. Nd6 Rb2+ 38. Kg1 Ng3! 39. Nc8+ Kf6 40. Rd6 Ne2+ 41. Kf1 Nxf4 42. Rxb6 Ra2 43. Rb3? (White can only toddle on with 43. Ra6 Nxh3 44. a5.) 43…Rxa4 Now black is completely winning. 44. Kf2 Ra2+ 45. Kg3 Ne2+ 46. Kg4 Ra4+ 47. Kh5 Nd4 48. Rg3 Ra5+ 0-1 Michelakis,G (2405)-Yusupov,A (2583)/Copenhagen 2003.

11…Rxc5?! Looks and is artificial.

11… Bxc5! 12. Qd3 (12. Qh4 O-O 13. Rfd1 Qe7 14. Rac1 h6 15. Bxf6 Nxf6 16. Na4 Rfd8 17. Rxd8+ Qxd8 18. Nxc5 Rxc5 19. Rxc5 bxc5 20. Qf4 Be4 21. Qd2 Qc7 22. Qc3 Qd6 23. Qd2 Bd5 24. a3 Qb8 {equal.}) 12… O-O 13. Rad1 Qe7 14. Rd2 h6 15. Be3 b5 16. Rfd1 Bxe3 17. Qxe3 b4 18. Na4 Rc7 19. Nb6 Nxb6 20. Qxb6 Rfc8 21. Ne5 Nd5 22. Qd4 f6 23. Ng6 Qf7 24. Bxd5 Bxd5 25. Nf4 Rc4 26. Qd3 Be4 27. Qd6 e5 28. Nd5 Bxd5 29. Rxd5 Rc1 equal.

12. Qb3

I think less good is 12. Qd3?! Be7 13. Be3 Rc8 14. Rfd1 O-O 15. Rac1 b5 and black is fine.

12… Be7 13. Be3 Rc8 14. Rfd1 Agreed drawn here. This is a case of giving the GM respect; after a continuation such as 14…O-O 15. Rac1 (15. Ne5 accomplishes nothing due to 15…Bxg2 16. Kxg2 Qc7 17. Nxd7 Nxd7 18. Ne4 Rfd8 19. Rac1 Nc5 20. Bxc5 bxc5 21. Qc4 Qc6 22. f3 Rd5 23. Nc3 Bg5 24. Rb1 Rdd8 25. Ne4 Be7 and this is dead equal) 15… Nd5 16. Bd4 Nxc3?! (16…Bc5! appears stronger) 17. Bxc3 Bd5 18. Qa4 Nc5 19. Qg4 Bf6 20. Nd4 g6 21. e4 Bxa2 22. Nc6 Rxc6 23. Rxd8 Bxd8 24. Bd4 Rd6 25. Bxc5 bxc5 26. Qf3! and white is better. At any rate, white was not risking anything and should not have curtailed the game after 14 moves.

1/2-1/2

Round 4.

In which mighty Irish GM Baburin unaccountably hangs a rook at the end of a virtuoso technical performance, drawing. He was so angry that in print later on he referred to this as a draw versus a random guy. I know how he feels. I have drawn “random” guys too (games I tried to put out of my memory).

GM Alex Baburin – IM M. Ginsburg King’s Indian Round 4

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 d6 3. Nf3 c6 4. g3 g6 5. Bg2 Bg7 6. O-O O-O 7. Nc3 Bf5!? An under-rated line.

Position after 7…Bf5!?

8. Ne1 If this retreating move is the best white has, I am surprised we don’t see this line more often.

8…e5 9. d5 cxd5 10. cxd5 Na6 11. e4 Bd7 12. Nd3 Qa5 White has a perfect score (2 and 0) when I checked the database with this, but it’s actually about equal. That’s why it’s under-rated and deserves more tryouts!

13. a3 Rfc8 The clever 13… Qc7 14. Bd2 Qc4! is a nice, active regrouping. After the plausible 15. Qe2 Rfc8 16. b4 Rc7 17. Rfc1 black has enough activity.

14. h3 Of course, this position has been seen many times in practice. White also has 14. Bd2 and now black can choose between the normal 14…Qd8 and the surprising 14…Nc5!?

Let’s first see 14…Nc5!? 15. b4 (15. Nxc5 Qxc5 16. Be3 Qa5 17. f3 Rc7 (17… h5 18. Qd2 Qd8 19. Rfc1 a6 20. Rc2 b5 21. Rac1 Rab8 22. b4) 18. Qb3 Rac8 19. Rfe1 Nh5 20. a4 Rc4 21. Qxb7 R4c7 22. Qb3 Rc4 23. Qa3 Rb4 24. Rec1) 15… Qa6! 16. Nxc5 (16. Nxe5 dxe5 17. bxc5 Rxc5 18. Qb1 Rac8 19. Rc1 Ng4 20. f3 (20. h3 Bh6 21. f4 Qc4 22. Nb5 Qe2 23. Rxc5 Rxc5 24. Qe1 Qxe1+ 25. Rxe1 Rxb5 26. hxg4 Bxg4 27. Bc1 Rb1 28. d6 Bg7 29. Bd2 Rb6 30. Bb4 a5 31. Bxa5 Rxd6 32. Rb1 Rd7 33. Bc3 Rd3 34. Be1 Bc8 35. Rc1 Be6 36. Rb1 Bb3 37. Rc1 h5 38. Rc8+ Kh7 39. f5 Ba4 40. Rc7 Rd7 41. Rc4 Bb5 42. Rc5 Bc6) 20… Rb5 21. Nxb5 Qb6+ 22. Kh1 Nf2+ 23. Kg1 Nh3+ 24. Kh1 Qg1+ 25. Rxg1 Nf2#) 16… dxc5 17. b5 Bxb5 18. Nxb5 Qxb5 19. Rb1 Qa6 20. Qb3 Rc7)

Now let’s try the more solid move. 14. Bd2 Qd8, 15. b4 Nc7 (15… Rc4 16. Rc1 Rac8 17. Qe2 Bg4 18. f3 Bd7 19. Nb2 R4c7 20. Rc2 h5 21. h4 Bh6 22. Bxh6 Rxc3 23. Rxc3 Rxc3 24. Qf2 Rxa3 25. Qxa7 Rb3 26. Nc4 Nxb4 27. Nxd6) 16. a4 Nce8 17. b5 Nh5 18. Nb4 Qb6 19. a5 Qd4 20. a6 bxa6 21. Nc6 Bxc6 22. bxc6 Nc7 23. Ra4 Qb6 24. Qa1 Ne8 25. Rxa6 Qd8 26. Rb1 f5 27. Rxa7 Nhf6 28. Be3 Rxa7 29. Qxa7 Ra8 30. Qb7 Nc7 31. Bb6 Nfe8 32. Nb5 Rb8 33. Bxc7 Nxc7 34. Nxc7 and black resigned. Polgar,Z (2510)-Paunovic,D (2455)/San Sebastian 1991. It’s too soon to draw conclusions, but 14…Nc5 needs more checking.

14… Nc7 15. a4 b5? Correct was the psychologically difficult return with 15… Na6! 16. Bd2 Qc7 17. Rc1 Qc4 18. Qe2 Nb4 19. Nxb4 Qxb4 20. Qe3 Bxa4 21. Nxa4 Qxa4 22. b4 Qa2 23. Ra1 Qb2 24. Rfc1 a6 25. Bc3 Qb3 26. Bd2 Qxe3 27. Bxe3 Kf8 28. g4 Ke7 and black is OK. The hackneyed text gets black into a risky situation.

16. Bd2 bxa4 17. Nxa4 Qb5 18. Bb4 Nxe4? Very frisky but not good by the immutable laws of chess. 18… Nce8! is the sensible choice: 19. Nc3 Qb7 20. b3 Bh6 (for example) and the game continues.

19. Bxe4 f5 The craven capture 19… Bxh3 20. Nc3 Qb7 21. Bg2 Bxg2 22. Kxg2 Nb5 23. Ra5! looks really bad for black.

20. Nc3! Black has totally lost the opening discussion.

20…Qc4 20… Qb7 21. Bg2 is also very nasty.

21. Bxd6 fxe4 22. Nxe5 Bxe5 23. Bxe5 Nb5 24. Re1 Nxc3 25. Bxc3 Rf8 26. Qd4 Qxd4 27. Bxd4
Bxh3 28. Rxe4 Needless to say, this is horrific for Black.

28…Bf5 29. Re7 Rf7 30. d6 a6 31. Rae1 Raf8 32. R1e3 Bd7 33. Rc3 Re8 34. Rce3? 34. Rxe8+! is the easiest win. Then, 34…Bxe8 35. Rc8 Kf8 36. Bc5 Rd7 37. Ra8 and finito.

34… Ref8 35. R3e5 35. f4 wins easily too. 35…Rxe7 36. Rxe7 Rf7 37. Re1 Rf5 38. Be5 Kf7 39. g4 is a humorous rook trap.

35… Bb5 36. Re1 Bd7 37. b3 Bb5 38. Rc1 Rxe7 39. dxe7 Re8 40. Bc5 Kf7 41. b4 Rc8 42. Rd1 Be8 43. Rd8 Rc6 44. Ra8 Re6 45. f4 h5 46. Kh2 Re2+ 47. Kh3 Re6 48. Kh4 Rc6 49. Kg5 Re6 50. Rd8 Rc6 51. Ra8 Re6 52. Kh4 Rc6 53. f5 Rf6 54. fxg6+ Rxg6 55. Kxh5 Rxg3 56. Rxa6 With some nice maneuvering, white picked up another pawn. The end shouldn’t be too far off now.

56…Rg2 57. Kh4 Bd7 58. Ra8 Be8 59. Ra1 Ke6 60. Rd1 Kf7 61. Rd3 Ke6 62. Rg3 Rd2 63. Kg5 Rd1 64. Re3+ Kd7 65. Kf6 Rf1+ 66. Ke5 Kc6 67. Rd3 Re1+ 68. Kf6 Kc7 69. Re3 Rh1 70. Kg7 Rf1 71. Rd3 Bc6 72. Rd2 Bb5 73. Re2 Be8 74. Rf2 Re1 75. Kf8 Bb5 76. Rf5 Bc6 77. Bd4 Kb7 78. b5 Bd7 79. b6? Tired from the long game, white hangs his rook. 79. Rd5 Kc8 80.b6 Ba4 81. Ra5 Rf1+ 82. Kg8 Be8 83. Ra8+ Kd7 84. Bc5! is a nice maneuver that would have ended Black’s resistance. The game would conclude, 84…Bh5 85. b7 Rb1 86. b8=Q Rxb8+ 87. Rxb8.

79… Bxf5 It’s a testament to the strength of white’s game that he can withstand the loss of a rook without losing.

80. e8=Q {Agreed drawn.} 1/2-1/2

Round 5

An effortless win in an Eingorn King’s Indian as white.

M. Ginsburg – FM T. Brownescombe King’s Indian, Eingorn Variation

1. Nf3 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. d4 O-O 6. Be2 e5 7. O-O Nc6 8. d5
Ne7 9. Bg5 GM Viacheslav Eingorn’s Line – I really enjoy it – it accelerates white’s queenside play. The cool thing about Eingorn is that it means “one horn” (Unicorn). A spelling variant is Einhorn.

See the Appendix at the bottom of this post for a related idea in the Bayonet KID, where white also gives up the queen bishop early for accelerated queenside play.

Position after Eingorn’s 9. Bg5.

9…h6 Of course, 9…Nh5 is a major alternative. I like to respond with 10. Ne1 Nf4 11. Nd3! giving black a choice between Nxe2 and Nxd3. White usually has f2-f4, counterpunching, in these lines. I have mostly good results with that treatment.

10. Bxf6 Not very thematic is the historical game I found 10. Bd2?! Nd7 11. Qc1 Kh7 12. Ne1 f5
13. g3 fxe4 14. Nxe4 Nf5 15. Nc2 c6 16. dxc6 bxc6 17. Bb4 Nf6 18. Bf3 a5 19. Ba3 Qc7 20. Qd2 Rd8 21. Rac1 Be6 22. Qe2 Qf7 23. b3 Nxe4 24. Bxe4 d5 25. cxd5 cxd5 26. Bg2 Rac8 27. Qa6 e4 28. Ne3 Nd4 29. Rxc8 Rxc8 30. Qxa5 Ne2+ 31. Kh1 d4 32. Nd1 Bg4 33. h3 Bf3 34. Qe1 Rc2 35. Kh2 Bxg2 36. Kxg2 Qf3+ 37. Kh2 Be5 38. Rg1 Nxg3 0-1 Golombek,H-Bronstein,D/London 1954.

10… Bxf6 11. b4 Bg7 12. c5 f5 13. Nd2 fxe4 14. Ndxe4 Nf5 15. Bg4! White enjoys an edge after this move. Possible is 15. Rc1 h5 16. cxd6 cxd6 17. Nb5 Bh6 18. Rc3 Rf7 19. Bxh5 gxh5 20. Qxh5 a6 21. Nbxd6 Nxd6 22. Qxh6 Nxe4 with craziness, Grivas,E (2485)-Arduman,C (2390)/Zouberi 1993. Black eventually won that game.

15…Nd4 16. Bxc8 Rxc8 17. Qd3 Qd7 18. f3 Rf4? Black needed to play 18… h5! 19. a4
h4 with activity.

19. a4 Rcf8 What are the rooks doing?
20. cxd6 cxd6 21. Rac1?! Tempting and strong was 21. Nb5! Nxb5 22. axb5 Qc7 23. Qe3 Qc4 24. Qxa7 Qxd5 25. Rfd1 Qxb5 26. Nxd6 Qxb4 27. Ne4 Qe7 28. Qb6 Kh7 29. Rd6 Qf7 30. Qb5 Qc7 31. Rd7 Qc6 32. Qxc6 bxc6 33. Raa7 Rg8 34. h4 Kh8 35. Rdc7 and white wins.

21… R8f7 22. Nb5! Returning to the correct idea.

22…Nxb5 23. Qxb5 Qxb5 24. axb5 Bf8?! Black needed 24…Rd7! 25. Ra1 b6 26. Rfc1 g5 27. Rc8+ Rf8 28. Rc6 Rfd8 and he retains defensive chances.

25. Rc8 Rd7 26. Kf2 Kg7 27. R fc1 b6 28. Ke2 Be7? A blunder ending the game. He needed 28… Rff7 ! 29. R1c6 Be7 30. Kd3 g5 31. Kc4 Kg6 32. Rg8+ Rg7 33. Rh8 Rh7 34. Re8 Kf7 35. Rec8 Kg6 to continue.

29. R8c7 Rxc7 30. Rxc7 Rf7 31. Rxa7 Bf8 32. Rxf7+ Kxf7 33. Nd2 Sadistic.

33…Be7 34. Nc4 Bd8 35. Nxd6+ Ke7 36. Nc4 1-0

Round 6

The dream felll to earth when I played an opening my opponent knew far better than I! I found out later he had suffered (for example vs Kasparov) in this system. No preparation = bad preparation!

GM A. Yermolinsky – IM M. Ginsburg Bogo-Indian, 4. Nbd2.

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Bb4+ 4. Nbd2 I had introduced played 4. Bd2 c5!?? versus Seirawan, World Open 1984, and a hard-fought draw resulted. Some Russian sources mention Vitolinsh started it, but I’m not sure; we have to check the chronology. No such luck here, Alex goes for the same line. I was fundamentally not ready.

4…d5 I trust this more than 4…b6. However, I must know theory to play this (see note to black move 7) so as not to fall into a passive game with the opponent holding the bishop pair “for free”.

5. Qa4+ Nc6 A tradeoff: the knight blocks the c-pawn, but also the WQ isn’t so wonderful out on a4.

6. a3 Grossly premature is 6. Ne5? Bd7 (I played the hideous lemon 6…Bd6? a long time ago vs. Peter Biyiasis! — 7. c5, oops!) 7. Nxc6 (7. Nxd7 Qxd7 8. e3 e5 9. dxe5 Ne4 10. Qc2 Nxe5 11. Be2 Qc6 12. f3 Nxd2 13. Bxd2 Bxd2+ 14. Qxd2 Nxc4 is OK) 7… Bxd2+ 8. Bxd2 Bxc6 and black is doing great.

6…Bxd2+! Retreating the bishop yields quite a poor and passive game.

7. Bxd2

Position after 7. Bxd2. An important theoretical moment in the Bogo-Indian.

7…O-O? A theoretical lemon!

If black knew theory, he would select the freeing 7… Ne4! and now white has two main tries. A. 8. e3, and B. 8. Rd1. The practical examples are of great interest.

Try A.

8. e3 O-O 9. Qc2 and here the roads diverge.

A1. 9…e5!? 10. cxd5 Nxd2 11. dxc6 Nxf3+ 12. gxf3 exd4 (A very sharp treatment!) 13. O-O-O Qf6 14. Rxd4 Qxf3 15. Rg1 Bf5 16. Qc3 Bg6 17. cxb7 Rab8 18. Ba6 Qf6 19. Ra4 Qxf2 20. Rf1 Qxh2 21. Rc4 Qd6 22. Rc6 Qd5 23. Rxc7 Qa2 24. Rc8 Qb1+ 25. Kd2 Rd8+ 26. Qd4 Qxb2+ and drawn eventually in a fascinating tactical duel, 1/2-1/2 Ftacnik,L (2585)-Hracek,Z (2605)/Prievidza 1997.

A2. Quite playable here is 9… Nxd2!? 10. Qxd2 b6 11. b4 dxc4 12. Bxc4 Bb7 13. Qc2 a5 14. b5 Ne7 15. Bd3 Bxf3 16. gxf3 g6 17. Be4 Rc8 18. Rc1 Qd6 19. Bb7 Rb8 20. Qxc7 Qxa3 21. O-O Rfd8 22. Qxb6 Nd5 23. Qa6 Qe7 24. Bxd5 Qg5+ 25. Kh1 Qxd5 26. Qc6 Rxb5 27. Qxd5 Rdxd5 28. Rc8+ Kg7 and drawn eventually, Chabanon,J (2504)-Miralles,G (2451)/France 2003)

There is also

B. 8. Rd1!? and here B2 seems to be better than B1.

B1. 8… O-O 9. e3 Ne7?! 10. Qc2 b6 11. Bd3 Bb7 12. O-O Ng6 13. b4 (13. Ne5! right away!) 13…f5 14. Ne5 dxc4 15. Bxc4 Qd6 and draw, Petrosian,A (2495)-Spassky,B (2610)/Sarajevo 1986 but white has a small edge in the final position.

B2. Probably stronger is 9… Bd7! The computer approves of this move and says equality. 10. Qc2 Be8 11. b4 (11. Bd3 f5 12. cxd5 exd5 13. Ne5 Bh5 14. Rc1 Nxe5 15. dxe5 Qg5 16. O-O Bf3 17. g3 Qg4 18. Rfe1 c5 19. b3 Ng5 20. Bc3 Be4 21. Bxe4 fxe4 22. Re2 Qh3) 11… a6 12. Bc1 f5 13. Be2 Bh5 14. O-O Rf6 15. g3 Bg4 16. Kg2 and draw, Lputian,S (2555)-Rohde,M (2555)/Saint John 1988.

Not knowing any of this, I get in a difficult situation. Boo!

8. Bg5! This is the problem! The annoying pin gives white an obvious edge! 9… h6
9. Bh4! “Soft” in Stohl’s parlance is the compliant capture 9. Bxf6? Qxf6 10. e3 Rd8 11. Rc1 Qe7 12. cxd5 exd5 13. Bb5 Nb8 14. Bd3 c6 15. O-O Nd7 16. Bb1 Nf6 17. Ne5 Ng4 18. Qc2 g6 19. Qc3 Qh4 20. h3 Nxe5 21. dxe5 d4 22. exd4 Qxd4 23. Qxd4 Rxd4 24. Rfd1 Rxd1+ 25. Rxd1 Be6 26. Rd6 g5 27. Kh2 a5 {1/2-1/2 Kozul,Z (2600)-Galego,L [2538]/Kusadasi 2006.

9… Re8 9… Bd7 10. Qc2 (10. e3) 10… Rc8 11. Ne5) If 9… dxc4 10. e3 Ne7 11. Bxf6 gxf6 12. Qxc4 {Obviously good for white.} 12…Bd7 13. Be2?! (more active is 13. Bd3! Bc6 14. O-O-O Qd6 15. Kb1 b5 16. Qc5 Qxc5 17. dxc5 e5 18. e4 Ng6 19. g3 Rfd8 20. Bc2 Kg7 21. Rhe1 Bd7 22. Rd3 Bg4 23. Red1) (13. Rc1 Bc6 14. Qc5 Kg7 15. Bd3 Nd5 16. h4 Rg8 17. Rh3 Kh8 18. Kf1 Qd6 19. b4 a6 {About even.}) 13… Bc6 14. O-O Qd5 15. Qc2 Qe4 16. Qc5 Ng6 17. Ne1 Qd5 18. Qc3 Nh4 19. f3 Rad8 20. Rf2 e5 and drawn eventually, Giffard,N (2324)-Villeneuve,A (2247)/Le Touquet 2005/EXT 2006})

10. e3 a6 At this stage it’s hard to offer advice. 10… Bd7 11. Qc2 Qe7 12. O-O-O a5 13. Ne5 g5 14. Bg3 Ne4 15. Bd3 Nxe5 16. Bxe5 Bc6 17. f3 f6 18. fxe4 fxe5 19. dxe5 dxc4 20. Qxc4 a4 21. Qc3 Rf8 22. Rhf1 Kg7 23. Kb1)

11. Rd1 Bd7 12. Qc2 Rc8? This is the last chance for a decent game with 12… b5! 13. cxb5 axb5 14. Bxb5 Nb4!? or 14. Bd3 e5!? in both cases with a defensible position and only a slight white advantage.

13. Ne5 g5 Dreadful. The alternatives were also unappealing. 13… Ne7 14. Bd3 dxc4 15. Bxc4 Nfd5 16. O-O f6 17. Nxd7 Qxd7 18. e4 b5 19. Ba2 Nf4 20. Bg3 Nh5 21. Qb3 Ng6 22. f4 Kh7 23. e5 Rcd8 24. Qc2 Nxg3 25. hxg3 c6 26. g4 and white is way on top.

14. Bg3 Ne7

Black suffers after 14… Qe7 15. cxd5 Nxd5 16. h4 Nxe5 17. dxe5 Bb5 18. Bxb5 axb5 19. hxg5 Qxg5 20. Qe4 Rf8 21. Rh4 Kh8 22. Ke2 Qg6 23. Qf3.

15. h4

Now it’s just horrible for black. The irritating thing is that I posed no obstacles and white found simple moves to get a big edge.

15…Kg7 16. Bd3 Rh8 Black also has a very bad game after 16… Nf5 17. hxg5 hxg5 18. cxd5 Nxg3 19. fxg3 exd5 20. Bf5 Be6 21. Bxe6 Rxe6 22. Qf5.

17. Qe2 Ba4 Black can try 17… Bc6 18. c5 Nf5 19. Nxc6 bxc6 20. Be5 but again white has a solid edge.

18. Rd2 Ne4? Really a bad day. Necessary was 18… dxc4! to make some room and then 19. Bxc4 (19. Nxc4 Bc6) 19…Bc6 and black can play on. Even in bad positions there are ways to offer resistance.

19. Bxe4 dxe4 20. Qh5 Qg8 21. hxg5 21. Ng4! at first was crushing.

21…hxg5 22. Qxg5+ Kf8 23. Rxh8 Qxh8 24. Qh4 Qxh4 25. Bxh4 Ng6 26. Bf6 Nxe5 27. dxe5 c5 28. f4 b5? Another blunder, but after 28…exf3 white should win eventually anyway.

29. Rd6 Bb3 30. cxb5 axb5 31. Rb6 Bc4 32. g4 Kg8 33. Rb7 Bd3 34. f5 b4 35. fxe6 fxe6 36. g5 1-0

Uck! Very poor. This seems to happen at least once per tournament!

Appendix:  Related Bayonet KID Material

Readers will find the following interesting as an additional material to the Eingorn KID above.  In the following case, too, the white queen bishop is given up and the g7-a1 diagonal “points at nothing” to justify white’s play.

King’s Indian Defense, 9. b4!? Bayonet Attack

NM Mark Ginsburg vs NM Glenn Lambert
Lloyds Bank Open, London 1978

This game was really wild and featured (at the time) very topical Bayonet Attack King’s Indian Defense theory. GM-to-be Ron Henley was another practitioner of the white side.

1.c4 Nf6 2. Nc3 g6 3. e4 d6 4. d4 Bg7 5. Be2 O-O 6. Nf3 e5 7. O-O Nc6 8. d5 Ne7 9. b4!?

The Bayonet Attack, 9. b4!?, was popularized much later by GM Kramnik. In the 70’s, we played it differently. The differences will become clear. At any rate, the white king is not in danger of being mated so that is a distinct plus of the variation.

9…Nh5!? The most testing reply. 9…Nd7? runs into the strong gambit 10. c5! as IM Eugene Meyer proved at least a few times. It’s no fun in that line to face 10…dxc5 11. bxc5 Nxc5 12. Ba3.

9…a5?! also isn’t great; Black is playing on the side of the board where White is faster. After 10. bxa5 Rxa5 11. a4 white established a big initiative and went on to win, IM Ginsburg-GM Biyiasis, Philadelphia 1982. We will cover that game in an installment of The Fabulous 80s. White also has 10. Ba3!? there, avoiding 10. bxa5 c5!? which GM Nunn said was good for black. That conclusion is not altogether clear to me – refer to a more recent installment to see more.

10. c5 Logical. White is preparing to give up the unmoved bishop on c1 to accelerate his queenside play. In later years, 10. Re1 Nf4 11. Bf1 came into fashion to ignore the N on f4, arguing it simply impedes the attack. The text is more to the point in terms of queenside activity and leads to positions that are worth a re-visit even in today’s theory landscape.

The former tabiya of this variation until 10. Re1 replaced 10 c5. Maybe the current game will trigger a re-investigation of certain key positions after 10. c5.

10…Nf4 One of the main moves. I have faced 10…a5!? in a tournament game, but playing all the board looks a little haphazard for black. Black also has 10…f5!? here which I was always curious about but never had to face. Black seems OK after 11. Ng5!? Nf4! as I learned in a blitz game with IM David Goodman so maybe white is better off with 10…f5!? 11. Bc4!? – the entire system needs more exploration. After the text, the next moves for both sides are clear for a while.

11. Bxf4 exf4 12. Rc1 h6 13. h3 g5 14. a4 (14. Re1!?)

14…Ng6? 14…f5 is superior here. Play might proceed 15. cxd6 cxd6 16. Nd2 Bd7 with a small edge for white.

15. cxd6 cxd6 16. Nb5! Now white is on top.

16…a6 17. Nc7 This piece is really powerful with influence all over the board.

17…Rb8 18. b5 Strangely, the hard to spot 18. a5! is strong here too. For example, 18. a5 Bd7 19. b5 axb5 20. Qb3 f5 21. exf5 Bxf5 22. Bd3 with a white plus.

18… axb5 19. axb5 Qe7 20. Re1! b6 20…Qxe4?! leads to big trouble after 21. Bc4 Qf5 22. Bc4 Qf6 (22…Qd7? 23. Bxg6 fxg6 24. Ne6! Rf7 (24…Rf6? 25. Rc7!) 25. Qd3! Kh7 26. b6! with total paralysis, an unusually nice winning line.) 23. Ne8! Qd8 24. Nxg7 Kxg7 with massive compensation after, e.g., 25. Qd2.

21. Na6 Rb7

Both sides are playing consistent moves yet white’s chances have to be rated higher, since he is faster in his plans.

22. Nd4? A blunder. 22. Bc4! or 22. Qb3! or even 22. Bf1 were all fine and black has a very bad position. White thought the e-pawn is immune, but it is not. After 22. Qb3!, the e-pawn really is immune due to 22…Qxe4? 23. Bd3 trapping the queen. 22. Qb3 Bd7 23. Nb4 and white has a big edge.

22…Bxd4? As so often happens, the opponent trusts an erroneous calculation and makes a blunder in reply. 22…Qxe4! 23. Nc6 Ne5 and black is back in the game although white has some compensation.

23. Qxd4 Ne5 24. Nb4 Qf6 25. Nc6 An amusing dance of the knights. White protects the queen on d4 and wards off tactics.

25…f3 Black might as well sharpen the game to the utmost because he is positionally behind.

26. Bxf3 Nxf3+ 27. gxf3 Qxf3 28. Rc3 Qf4 29. Kg2 f6 30. Rf3 Qh4 31. Ree3 g4 32. hxg4 Bxg4 33. Rg3 Kh7

The game is getting very exciting, and both players are getting short of time to the time control on move 40!

34. e5! Objectively white is winning now but it will be a nervous affair with both kings exposed.

34…Rg7 35. exd6 Qh5 36. Qe4+ 36. Kg1 is winning with less tricks. 36…Kh8 37. Ne7 f5

Black does his best to find tactical counter-chances. One slip up from White and the tables might turn completely!

38. Qf4 Ra8 Trying his last chance. Black activates his rook and tries to keep an attack alive.

39. Re1?! 39. d7 wins cleanly.

39…Ra4! Grasping at every possible chance and forcing a crisis.

Quick, you have no time, what do you play??

40. Rh1!!

Right! Deduct points if you played 40. Qxa4?? Bf3+ 41. Kf1 Qh1 and mate next move. In addition, the flashy 40. Ng6+? Rxg6 41. Re8+ Kh7 42. Re7+ is simply a draw. The text, temporarily sacrificing a rook, is the only way to win.

40…Qxh1+ 41. Kxh1 Rxf4 42. d7 Bf3+ 43. Kg1!

No points for 43. Kh2?? Rh4+ 44. Rh3 Rg2+ and black mates.

43…Rh4 44. d8=Q+ Kh7 45. Rxg7+ Kxg7 46. Nxf5+ 1-0

A tremendous fight! It takes two players to create such an exciting battle of chess ideas.

Tags: Alex Chernin, Andrey Sokolov, Artur Yusupov, Baburin, Bayonet KID, Bogo-Indian, Chabanon, Ftacnik, Hracek, Miralles, National Open, Nembu, Peppermill, Reti, Riddell, Riviera, Stonewall Dutch, Ulf Andersson, Vitolinsh, Yermolinksy, Z. Polgar