Blunders and brilliancies 9780080371368, 0080371361, 9781857445688, 1857445686

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BLUNDERS � Brilliancies

Dedicated to VANJA a veritable daughter of Caissa We

extend sincere thanks to

G T Chandler, D. N. L Levy,

A. Denker,

E. S. Campbell,

R. J.P. Kynoch,

A. Omholt-Jensen,

B. Plato,

K Richter, W. G. Sutherland, A. F. White and the members of Edinburgh Chess Club.

Our fond regards go to the family and friends of Vaun S1goum, "who roved the 64 squares of the board like a true Nimrod", and who is sorely missed by all who knew him.

Ian D. Mullen

In grateful appreciation for the forbearance of my wife, Florence, who withstood the continual pounding of the typewriter for months on end. If not for her indulgence, this book would have taken a year or two longer to complete.

Moe Moss

Blunders and Brilliancies by

IAN MULLEN and MOE MOSS

PERGAMON CHESS Member of Maxwell Macmillan Pergamon Publishing Corporation

OXFO R D NEW YO R K B EIJ I N G F R A N K F U RT S A O PAULO SYD N EY TO KYO TO R O NTO

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(

1990 I Mullen

& M Moss

Rights Reserved No part of this publication may be

reproduced. stored m a retneval system or transmitted m any form or by any means electromc. electrostatic. magnetic tape, mechamcal. photocopymg, recordmg or otherwise, without perm1ss1on m wntmg from the publisher

First ed1t1on 1990

Li brary of Cong ress Cata l o g i n g - i n - Publicat ion Data Mullen. Ian Blunders and brilhanc1es/by Ian Mullen and Moe Moss.-1st ed p. cm Includes mdex 1 Chess I Moss. Moe. II Tnle GV1449 5 M85 1988

794 1 '2-dc 19

88-39335

Bri t i s h Library Cata l o g u i n g in Publ i cation Data Mullen, Ian Blunders and br1ll1anc1es 1 Chess I Title II Moss, Moe 794 1 ISBN 0-08-037136-1

Pnnted in Great Bntam by BPCC Wheatons ltd , Exeter

Conte nts Foreword

vii

Symbols

viii

Introduction

ix

1.

Combinations

2.

Missed Opportunities

3.

Never Say Die!

74

4.

Coincidence in Chess

92

5.

Opportunities Seized

94

6

Solutions

107

Index of Players

125

Pergamo n Chess B o oks

129

v

"There must have been a time when men were demi-gods-or they could not have mvented chess ,. -Gustav Schenk.

White to Play ( S e e d i agram 1 07 )

Foreword It g ives me g reat pleasure to write a few words of mtrod uct1on for a book written by my good friend, M o e M oss, m c o l l a borat1on with I a n M u l l en of Scotl a n d . B o t h of t h e a u t h ors h a v e l o n g been k n o w n a s su ccessfu l a n d entert a 1 n 1 n g chess c o l u m n ists as w e l l as very stro ng p l ayers, and they have c o m b i ned t h e i r talents with great success in this work. The book deals with a variety of common themes which occur i n the game of c h ess, with ample a n d well e x p l a i ned i l l u strations Some of the topics s u c h as B l u nders a n d B r i ll1 a n c 1 es, C o m b 1 n at1ons and D u p l ications, M issed Opport u n 1tres, N ever Say D ie, a n d Opport u n 1 t1es Seized are occur­ rences that every c hess pl ayer encou nters i n the course of playing, whether 1t be m compet1t1on or m a friendly game. The 1 l l u stra t 1 o n s are taken from p u blrshed games a n d cle arly 1 ndrcate the themes w h i c h preva i l i n the c h a pters This 1 s a book w h i c h not only w i l l be helpful to the beg i n ner and average player, b u t a l so to the above- average player, and I am very pleased to have the o p portu nity to h elp introduce 1t to the chess p l a y i n g p u blic. D . A. Yan ofsky, G M.

S ymbol s a ca pt u re c heck c h eckmate a very good move a br1 l l 1 a nt move a n error " a b l u nder a move deserving attention !? ?I a d u bi o u s or risky move ( c a n d ) Candid ates tournament/match (ol) Olympiad Champ1onsh1p (ch) ( 1 zt) l nterz o n a l t o u r n a m e n t (corr) Correspondence g a m e (s1 m u l ) S i m u ltaneous game x

+ ++

The f o l l owmg relate to the d 1ffrc u lty of solutions: * ** *** **** *****

easy, one or t w o moves deep stra i g h tforward difficult very d i f f i c u l t you have b e e n w a r n e d !

Introduction "Without error there can be no brilliancy " -Emanuel Lasker T h i s work takes a novel l o o k at the ever - po p u l a r su bject of combinat1ons i n c hess. I ts 1 nsp1rat1on derives from a rtrcles written i ndependently by the authors on the general theme of combinations w h i c h , co1nc1dentally, pl aced spec i a l emphasis o n the "grey areas" of oversig hts. These were p u b l ished in the magazi nes Chess, Chess L ife, a n d elsewhere; they received a pos1t1ve response w h i c h encouraged colla bora t i o n on t h e present book. We wrote 1t with t h e club p l a yer 1 n m i n d although, h o pefu l l y, 11 w i l l a ppeal to p l ayers over a broad r a n g e of strengths l n m a n y ways, t h e a pproach 1s d i a metrica l l y opposed to the convent i o n a l t e x t o n t h e sub1ect. In general, the sta ndard work on c o m b 1 n a t 1 o n s consists of themat i c a l l y a rranged bnl l l a nc1es f r o m master p l a y Often, t h e s t u d e n t 1s i nvited to g a i n a grou ndrng r n the basics by studyrng materi a l grou ped u n der such headings as 'The P r n', 'The Fork', etc. T h i s 1 s a well-tried method which a l l ows the material to be presented 1n a systematic m a n ner The u nderly i n g assumpt i o n - that combi nations may be split into eleme nts a n d a k n o w ­ l e d g e of t hese c a n be u s e d to a i d u n d ersta n d r n g - rs qu ite reasonable. However. the a u t h ors' experiences r n ch ess teac h i n g have convrnced them that m a n y students w o u l d welcome a n ong r n a l a n d less academ ic approach to the s u bject. C o u ntl ess read ers m u st have despai red over t h e fact that chess is never quite as easy a game as It can be made to a p pear rn the books. W h i l e the g a p between t h eory a n d practice is one that c a n never be bridged tota l l y, t h i s gap 1s far wider for the c l u b p l a yer t h a n 1t 1 s for the master. H ow often 1t 1s that the combrnat1on goes a wry! What a mess we make of o u r g ames m trme tro u b l el An approach w h i c h treats chess solely as a science - a nd c o m b i n a t i o n s as mere molecular reacti o n s - completely i g n o res the human element a nd all the 1m perfect1ons w h ich 1t i m p h es. The auth ors h ave reacted to this by prod u c r n g the present text. one w h i c h starts at the d a rkest end of the c o m b i n a t i o n a l spectr u m . O u r objecti ves were t h reefo l d ( a ) To supply t e s t pos1t1 o n s of great h u m a n i nterest a n d t h u s provide the reader with mot1vat1on which otherwise might be l a c k i n g . O f c ourse, experience 1 s the best teacher. H owever, vicarious experience (as may be g a i ned by studying the d i a g rams i n t h i s book ) , can act as a usef u l suppl ement to o r , su bstitute f o r , the r e a l t h i n g ( b ) To e m p h as i ze the i mportance of learning f r o m one's m i stakes. I t has often been said that a p l a yer can learn more from h i s l osses t h a n from his wins. I t does not necessa rily f o l l ow that o n e can learn more from the defeats, or m i stakes, of the masters t h a n one can from their tri u m p h s - yet such pos1t1ons are often of exceptional i nterest The l i n e of reaso n i n g w h i c h sug gests that t h e y may be of spec i a l benefit 1 n tea c h i n g 1 s not hard to follow. ( c ) To enterta i n Chess, despite r u m o u rs to the contrary, 1s fi rst a n d foremost a game! W h i lst every p l ayer n a t u r a l l y sees w i n n i ng as one ob1ect1ve there are other a i m s w h i c h , though subordi nate to the f i n a l goal, IX

Introduction

are n onetheless i m portant. There are two extremes of emot i o n a l stress w h i c h the c hess pl ayer repeated ly experiences: the h i g h pomt 1s the JOY of sacrifi ce, or of m a k i ng a pretty or u n ex pected m ove, the l ow point 1s the s m k mg fee l i ng which goes m h a n d with the blu nder. When a pl ayer sacr1f1 ces his Queen, his heart beats faster! When he blu nders, his pu lse races! Of cou rse, time trou b l e - o r any n u m ber of exter n a l factors - ca n a d d to, or art1f1c 1 a l l y sti m u l ate, s 1 m 1 l a r exh1 larat 1 o n or d i smay O u r a i m was to concentrate on this human facet of the game The exam ples m Cha pter Two are " m i ssed opport u n i t i es", 1 l l ustrat1ng the k i n d of oversig hts with which everyone 1s painfully f a m 1 l 1 a r . M a n y of these are combmat10ns which were overlooked, or v1ctor1es which were snatched from the Jaws of defeat. S u ch i n cidents a re often very i nstructive a n d fa l l w i t h i n t h e range of every p l ayer's experience. C h a pter Three focu ses on case studies of prema t u re or u n j u st1f1ed res1gnat 1 o n - a morbid topic, true, yet o n e with a fatal fasc i n a t i o n . I t 1 s surprising how often very strong p l ayers have u nwitting ly resig ned pos1t1ons w h i c h were o bjectively w o n ! After a brief i nter l u d e we ret u r n i n C h a pter F i ve to more familiar ground with selections of some of t h e most attractive a n d su ccessfu l comb1 nat1ons of recent years. These are presented in the form of t h ree short tests which w i l l e n a b l e the reader to g a i n a rough estimate of his or her tact i c a l a b 1 hty. While o perat i ng u nder the premise that there 1s much to be learned from the m istakes of t h e masters, it 1s not o u r intention to overw h e l m t h e reader with a dismal cata l o g u e of catastrop h es - a n d the c h o i ce of pos1t 1ons has been restricted to t h ose of i ntrin sic chess merit. or th ose of h i storical or psyc h o l ogical i n terest M ost of these are presented as problems for the reader to solve, thus e n a b l i n g him to test a n d sharpen h i s ski l l s. They range from the trivial to the c o m p l i cated a n d run the g a m u t of combi native themes I t 1s h oped that the reader w i l l be a b l e t o associate on an emot i o n a l l e v e l with the thoug hts a n d fee l i n g s of t h e p l ayers a n d also w i l l be tolerant of their m i stakes In the main, the facts are presented a n d the reader 1 s l eft to draw the c o n c l u sions. Those who wish to dig deeply for the root c a u ses of b l u nders - a n d l 1 kew1se of b n l l i a nc1es - w 1 l l f i n d m u c h food for t h o u g ht. The rat i o n a l e of t h i s work hes 1 n a paradox: 'the ulti mate a i m of the chess p l ayer 1s to a c h i eve perfect i o n . H owever, s h o u l d he ever reac h that e l u sive goal, chess as a co ntest w i l l cease to exist. Without b l u nders there w o u l d be f e w bri l l iancies - an d w i t h o u t e i t h e r of th ese, c h ess w o u l d be devoid of 1 nterest. The bri l l i a ncy 1 s a topic w h i c h has been wel l covered i n c h ess l iterature; its cou nterpart. the b l u nder, has been i g n o red all too often H ere, we a i m to red ress t h e balance a n d , i n d o i n g s o , to s u p p l y t h e reader w i t h a wealth of new ideas.

1

Combin ations

"The game gives us a satisfaction that Life denies us. A n d for the Chess player, the success which crowns his work, the great dispel/er of sorrows. is named 'combination· . . -Emanuel L asker

What is a Combination?

The question 1s a d1ff1cult one to answer It has often been said that a combination 1s far easier to play than 1t 1s to define a n d , as yet, a prec i se a n d u n iversa l l y ag reed det1nit1on of the term has eluded the a u t h orities B otvm n 1 k , m a short essay on t h i s topic, came to the c o n c l u s i o n th at " a c o m b i n a t i o n 1s a forc i n g sequence of m oves i n v o l v i n g a sacrifice", a def m 1 t 1 o n w h i c h is suff1c1ent for most practical p u r poses. The follow u p - ''but does a combmat1on necessa r i l y i nvolve a sacrifi ce?" - ca n be a n swered w i t h a q u a l ified aff1 rmat 1 ve. A forc i n g sequence of moves w h i c h does not i nvolve a sacnf1ce 1 s genera l l y termed "a manoeuvre", although the border l i n e between the t w o m a y occasi o n a l l y be confused.

B r i l l i a ncy - o r B l u nder'? R o ussea u - Sa i nt Amand J r.. M ontreal 1 983 White to play Ofte n , th ese a re opposite srdes of the same coin i n that 1 t 1 s common to see a n error exposed as such by a tactical retort B l a c k's l ast move in the d i a gram, i g4f3, was a m b 1 t 1 o u s a n d u ndersta ndable, as 1t th reatened 1 'Ill g2 + + H owever, 1t was a mistake In reply, White took the offensive with 1 lile7 + � hB 2 .l'i.xg7+ '.txg7 3 'lll g 5+ l!

1 6 In H ot P u rs u i t A l o n i - M atanovic, N etanya 1 96 5 * White t o play Sometimes we do not see the forest for the trees, for q u ite often t h e most obvious moves are overlooked A l o n 1 c o n t r n ued 1 .'.-Jxf7 + , b u t l ost after a f e w m o r e moves How c o u l d he have forced his g r a n d m aster opponent t o resign'

9

Blunders and Brilliancies 1 7 A Pin-up An d e rssen - Pa u l sen. L o n d o n 186 2 *** White t o play A stud y m p 1 nsl An derssen, w h o w a s blessed with a s u b l i m e g e n i u s for c o m b 1 n a t 1 o n . chose the fau lty 1 1i'e2 P a u lsen rep l i ed with the odd 1 1!Vh8 a n d l ost soon afterwards H a d h e continued 1 1i'g6 3 .i x e 5 f 6 . h e w o u l d have had a good game Although Anderssen won after 1 1!V e2, he h a d a m u c h better h n e of play w h i c h w o u l d have rendered h i s adversary hel pless What w a s 1t>

1 8 Larse n - y A n d e rsso n - B rowne, A rg ent i n a 1 981 *** White to play And ersson c h ose the method i c a l 1 J_f3 a n d h i s pos1t 1 o n a l pressure s o o n res u l ted 1 n a w i n . Bent Larsen, w h o was w a t c h mg the game, later po inted out that a rather neat tactic a l trick had been overlooked. What h a d the D a n ish g r a n d master seen?

1 9 O n e - move Wonder A n d ersso n - M estel. L o n d o n 1 982 * Black to play The str a ngest overs i g h t of this very i m porta nt tournament! W h i te's last move had been l:d 1 a n d , 1n reply, B l ack went 1 . l! d5, after w h i c h Wh rte's materia l advantage event u a l l y told B l ack, however, could have forced his opponent's res1g n a t 1 o n after m a k i n g o n l y one move1 What should he h a ve p l ayed>

10

Missed Opportunities

20 The Tomb A r o n so n - M ed n is , U . S . A . 1 953 ** White to play After 1 h4 h5, White's postt 1 o n w a s clearly l ost By a stra n g e cor nc1dence, a n 1dent1cal pos1t1on to thrs but one rank f u rther up, 1 e , with Wh ite's K r n g on f4, etc , had occu rred over h a lf a century before rn the game Tc h 1 g o n n - Tarrasc h . I n b o t h rnstances, the pl ayer of the White preces mrssed the drawing method What 1 s rt?

21 Tremblrng on the Brrnk Aszta l os - A l e k h i ne, B l ed 1931 *** White to play A l e k h r n e w a s at t h e very peak o f h i s powers d u r i n g the Bled Tournament of 1931, yet f o u n d h i mself o n the b r i n k of d efeat agai nst o n e of the tai l - enders. W h i te c h ose safety - f i rst with 1 axb3 H e m u st have consrdered, a n d re1ected, 1 'i!t'x h 8 + on � e7 2 'iil'x b B '!Wxc2 + account o f 1 Was he right to have d o n e so7

22 Cash i n g In B a k u l i n - S h a m kovich, M oscow 1 96 4 *** White to pla y Thrs 1s the sort of frustra t i n g positi o n where t h e p l ayer may feel the g a m e 1 s won, yet c a n n ot q u ite see how to f m r s h 1t off - bu t there was a way t W h ite p l ayed 1 f4 What s h o u l d he have d o n e>

11

Blunders a n d Brilliancies

2 3 Sealed and D e l i vered B a l i nas- M a h m u d , H o n g Kong 1 982 * White to play Fred Reinfeld rem i n d s us that "the pm is m i ghtier t h a n t h e sword" - but somet i m es a pin c a n be broken Wh ite sea led 1 l:tef1 a n d l ost - yet he c o u l d have w o n e a s i l y How7

24 S u i - M ate Batuyev- S i m a g i n , R i g a 1 954 * nctm•v W h i l e 1t 1s no easy matter to h a n d l e correctly t h e e n d i n g of Queen plus pawn versus Queen, 1t 1s very rare to see the side with the mate r i a l advantage m any danger of losing S1magin, m h i s eagerness to promote the pawn, pl ayed 1 e2 We c a n well imagine h i s frustrati o n when t h i s resu lted 1 n h i m being mated What h a ppened after 1 e27

25 P l a y i n g to the G a l l ery B i rd- G u nsbe rg, L o n d o n 1887 * White to play " 1t ts Blfd we Jove His victoT1es glitter, his errors are magmflcent " - H G Wells B i rd had ant 1 c 1 pated G u nsberg 's (l ( f 7 ) d 6 lead i n g to t h e d i a g ram a n d rep l i e d 1 m med1ately with 1 �•.xf4, wh ereupon t h e spectators l et out an a u d i b l e groan a n d B i rd resig ned after o n l y four m oves H ow c o u l d B i rd have sent t h e a u d ience racing for t h e i r gold co i n s] 12

Missed Opportunities

26 A P01nt of Order B l ac k b u r ne-SLichti ng ( s i te and d ate unkno w n ) ** Black to play As a result of h i s phenomenal su ccess 1 n tou rnament p l a y , B l ackburne h a d gamed t h e u n enviable n i c k name, ' t h e Black Death' H i s oppone nt, S u c h tmg now g a v e t w o f u t i l e checks 1 "i!l'a1 + 2 lt>d2 l:lad 8 + 3 � d3 a n d t h e game was event u a l l y drawn How c o u l d S u c h t u n g , to play. have w o n 7

27 Part i n g Shot B l o c k - Fe lderh of. Amste r d a m 1 91 2 ** White to play J ust after t h e t u r n of the cent u ry, B l ock was reputed to be "the k i n g of t h e coffee house players" Accor d i n g to legend, h e once played over 1 ,000 games u ndefeated m this bra n d of street - f i g h t i n g chess Here we see him fa l l i n g f o r a coffee h o u s e trick a t i t s best H e saw t h at 1 f h e p l a yed 1 'illxe4 + . then 1 '1< h 6 2 i!l'xd 3 ( g 5 + 1s better) g5 + +I He therefore avo ided this p i tfa l l a n d p l ayed 1 d B � >II i nstead How did B l ack cope w i t h t h i s - a nd w1n7

28 O p t 1 m 1 s m B o g o l j u bow - S u l ta n - K ha n . P r a g ue ( o l ) 1 93 1 *** White to play A c l a s s i c of sorts T h e g a m e w a s adjourned at t h i s point and that great o p t i m i st, Bogolju bow ­ "When I am Wh ite, I w i n beca use I am White, w h e n I am B lack, I win because I a m B o g o li u ­ bow'" - - ag reed to a d raw He m u st have been rather pess1m1st1c about his c h ances, for h e h a d overlooked a w m n 1 n g proce d u re W h i c h was 13

Blunders a n d Brillian cies

29 Short S h rift B o h m - Korch n o i , M oscow 1 975 *** White to play I t 1 s n o t ofte n t h a t one gets t h e opport u n ity to win a p i ece off Korchno i - and after a mere 1 1 movesl The young Dutc h m a n , Bohm, u n fortunately played 1 'l!l' b3 and event u a l l y lost A m u c h better move would have been

30 The Fini s h i n g Touch B o ri s e n k o - M e k henyev, M oscow 1 950 ** Black to play In chess, sometimes 59 good moves are not e n o u g h , for everyt h i n g can be r u i n e d by the 60th. O n h i s 60th move, B l ack p l ayed . . �e4 a n d the game was s o o n a g reed drawn H o w could he have assu red h i mself of the full po1 nt7

31 Trea d i n g t h e Same Path Botvi n ni k - La rsen, Palma de M a l l o rca 1 96 7 ***** White t o play Botv m n i k w e n t 1 .ll d 7 and eventu a l l y ground out a w i n 111 t h e e n d i n g B y one of t h ose c u rious c o i n c i den ces w h i c h a bo u nd in c h ess, Szabo, five years later, m an a l most 1 d ent1cal pos i t i o n , got t h e opport u n ity to play the comb1nat 1 o n which a ppeared only as a footnote to this game What better m ove c o u l d B otvm n1k h a v e made7

14

Missed Opportunities

32 H i s Sternest Critic Botvi n n i k - S myslov. M oscow 1 958 *** White to play B otv m nik, o n e of t h e g reatest p l ayers o f a l l t i m e , w a s always very critical of h i s o w n tactical a b i l ity I t 1s more t h a n l i k e l y that because of this game, pos1t1ons like t h i s have lodged themselves painfu l l y in his m i n d . The game continued 1 "1 h3 a n d ended as a draw H o w could B otvm ntk have won7

33 The G reat Escape B o u az i z - M i les. R i ga 1 979 *** White to play B o u aziz played 1 c7 (1 J:d8, p i nning t h e B i s h op. 1 s c l e a rer - a nd wins') a n d m u st have been startled by M i les' 1 ::!xh3 White cont i n ued 2 >txh3 ( 2 lll'f l w o u l d st i l l have won), after which Black's recovery was c o m ­ p l ete After 1 c7 J:xh3 2 �xh3, how d i d B l ack c o n c l u d e his attack in true 1 9th century sty le7

34 Roll of D r u m s B o u w m eeste r - B ot v i n ni k , Wagen i n g e n 1 958 *** Black to pla y Botv i n n i k, i n t 1 1 11e t r o u b l e . conti n u e d 1 d4 a n d t h e g a m e was s o o n ag reed drawn The comb i n at i o n was o n e which the world cham­ p i o n , even 1 n time trou ble m u st h ave regretted m 1 s s 1 ng Can you do better, know i n g the combinatio n 1s there]

15

Blunders a n d Brtl!iancies

35 The F i n e L i n e B ra d f o r d - Byr n e , U . S .A. 1 980 ** * * * Black to play Qu ite often. one f a l se step m a y u n do a l l the good work that h a s g o n e i nto attain i n g a won pos1t1on B y r n e ch ose 1 1'1d4, a cl ever a n d a pparently w i n n i ng m ove H owever, there was a flaw 1 n his calcu lations ( a ) What was the f l aw' (b) What, instead of t h i s move, sho u l d Byrne have pl ayed to w i n 7

36 H i g h Drama B reusdedt - B ra meyer, B utzow 1 96 9 ** Whrte t o play T h e g a m e cont i n u e d 1 !! f7 h4 2 !! xf6, at which point o n e o n l ooker was moved to comment "Oh Lord, they have eyes, and yet they d o not seet" What was 1t they had n't seen 7

37 Tw ist In The Plot B u c h e r - M u e l l er, ( s i m u l ) Basie 1 95 9 ** Black to pla y T h i s pos1t1on has a p peared i n a n u m ber o f W text - books W i t h the c a l m 1 d 6 , B l ack c o u l d have res i g ned himself to a draw by per­ petual check H owever, he t r i e d for more with 1 -&b5 + , thus a l l o w i n g a d e l i ghtfu l twist. What h a ppened after 1 'illb5 +'

16

Missed Opportunities 38 F i rst Come, First Served Burkett-Fritzinger, California 1969 White to play

** **

"Ah me, we might escape how many a pain

Could we recall bad moves

and play again ' - Goethe (freely adapted}

B u rkett played 1 tt f a 1 a n d must have con­ g r a t u lated h i mself for amassi n g such an attack­ ing force a g a i nst the a dverse K i n g H owever, 1f h e was pla n n i n g a n y victory celebra t i o n , 1t w a s d i st i n ct l y prematu re, for h i s o p p o n e nt proved that t h e loss of this tempo meant the loss of t h e g a me! ( a ) H ow did B l ack reply to 1 !! f a 1 ' ( b ) W h a t s h o uld W h i t e have played t o w i n '

39 B rute Force Burn-Janowski, Vienna 1898

**

Whrte to play "To

find

nearly

the

all of

combinatwns

combination chess

1s

- we

must

-

and

analysis

of

examme

every possible check and capture " - Chernev and Remfeld

The above 1s k n o w n 1n computer p a rlance a s t h e "brute fo rce" apµroach a n d 1 s a tec h n i q u e w h i c h 1s a p plied b y m a n y strong players a s a matter of course H ere, Burn played 1 l2Jd6 a n d t h e g a me ended as a draw. It 1s s u r p r i s i n g t h a t an expert of his stature h a d missed a very s i mple comb 1 nat1on W h a t was ' h e p retty f 1 n 1 s h h e overlooked)

40 S peedy Develo pm e n t Burn-Tarrasch, Breslau 1889 White to play

***

� c 5, B u r n played t h e over-ela borate w h e r e u p o n Ta rrasch was a ble to wriggle o u t of h i s d1ff1cu l t 1 es. r e a c h t h e m i d d le-g ame a n d eventu ally split t h e p o i n t B u r n h a d h a d a notice­ able lead i n development a n d this could h.::i v e been used t o better effect How could he hnve e n d ed th e sHuggle before 1t had really be�1u n 7

Blunders a n d Brilliancies

41 The Spider's Web B u r n -Tc h i g o r i n. Ostend 1 905 ** Black to play A deceptive position Tch1gonn chose the obvious 1 !:.xb4 and eventually lost. yet he could have won with a surprise stroke. Do you see what he should have played?

42 Early Bath C a r l s - H e i n r i ch. Aachen 1934 * Black to play Hemnch, being obsessed with developing his pieces and seeing only what he considered a normal pos1t1on, played 1 . . . 0-0. Eventually, he lost the game It isn't often that castling 1s a bad move, but here White Was very fortunate Why do we say he was lucky?

43 The Capablanca Club C a r r a n z a - C a p a b l a n c a , B u enos Ai res 1 911 ** White to play Carranza retreated 1 'lWb 2 and soon lost With one simple blow, he probably would have added his name to the elite band of only 28 in the world who managed to defeat Capablanca during his tournament career How]

18

Missed Opportunities

44 D1vers1onary Tactics C h a i kovskaya-O m i t r i eva. V i l ni u s 1 972 ** Black to play After the soponf1c 1 II xd1 + 2 1hd1 l:t d8, the game headed inevitably towards a draw Instead, Black could have given a textbook illustrat1on of a basic comb1nat1ve theme and, in so doing, would have compelled 1mmed1ate res1g nation What should Black have done>

45 Poker Play M. C h a n d l e r - Pyte l , J u rm a l a 1 983 White to play White, a piece down and with mate staring him 1n the face, was on the verge of resigning. In view of Black's time trouble, he tried to confuse the issue with the f1end1sh 1 Wxg7 + With 1 lt>xg7, Black could have called his bluff but, unbelievably, replied 1 1/i'xg7 and was promptly mated alter 2 lhe8 + 1/i'g8 3 l:txh7++

46 On the Wing C h a n n o n - St a n l ey. E n g l a n d 1 887 *** Black to play There 1 s often more to pawn endings than h6 and meets the eye Stanley chose 1 eventually had to split the point. The win could have been achieved by making use of a standard pos1t1onal theme Do you know this theme?

19

Blunders a n d Brilliancies

47 The Gift Horse C h r istoffel - Euwe. H astings 1 946 /47 * White to play "To free your game, take off some of your adversary's men - 1! possible. for no thing. " - Capt Bertin. 'The Noble Game of Chess' White continued 1 I:.ab1 , thus passing up a golden opportunity. How mrght•he have won a piece m elementary fashion against the former world champion?

48 The Mighty Are Fallen W. C o h n - Stein itz, C o l o g n e 1 898 * White to play "Place the contents of the chess box in a hat. shake them up vigorously, pour them on the board from a height of two feet - and you get the style of Steinitz " - Attr1buted to H E. Bird Stemitz often liked to lead with his chin but here he was skating on very thin ice. Cohn decided on 1 .te6, an understandable move but one which enabled his renowned opponent to draw the game. How could he have sealed the latter's fate?

49 Out of Control Cojoc a r u - C h i ricuta. R o m a n i a 1 982 *** White to play A t times, there 1 s only a very fine line between w1nn1ng and losing! The game continued 1 h4 + g4 2 1!i'c8+ l!f5, at which point both sides appeared to be on the verge of losing! How. from the diagrammed pos1t1on, could White have swept a�1de all res1stance7

20

Missed Opportunities

50 Detective Work C o m mo n s - G l i g o ric, Lo ne P i n e 1 972 *** Black to play "Amberley excelled at chess - a mark, Watson, of a schemmg mmd " - Slf A rthur Conan Do yle, 'The Casebook of Sherlock Holmes' f a Holmes, undoubtedly, this pos1t1on would have been elementary, as 1t should have been to Gl1gor1c, but the latter played 1 ll b8 and the game petered out to a draw How do you rate as a super-sleuth7 There was a rather ongmal and witty winning combmat1on at Gl1gonc's disposal- what was 1t>

51 A King's Ransom C o rt l ever-D o n n e r , Beverwijk 1 950 **** White to pla y Here, White missed the chance o f a once-m­ a-l1fet1me comb1nat1on. Such opportunities must be grasped with both hands. Can you find the knock-out blow which would have led to mate7

52 Catching a Tartar C r o es - M ed n is, New Jersey 1 959 ** * * Black to play Mednrs, 1 n time trouble, did what many others would have done m this position - he pushed the passed pawn There are two questions to be answered (a) What was the cruel fate which befell him after 1 . . d2' (b) How, instead of this, could he have won 1n fme style?

21

Blunders and Brilliancies 53 Ungentlemanly Conduct D a h l i n - R ic h a rdso n , Stu dents' O lym piad 1 964 White to play Whrte sealed hrs move and suggested to Black that they analyze the posrtron together. After studying many possib1htres, Dahlrn, despite berng two pawns up, was unable to frnd a winning lrne He therefore offered a draw, which Richardson, of course, accepted. In the envelope lay Dahlin's guilty secret he had sealed 1 >ll 23

Blunders a n d Brilliancies

59 Squeeze Play E n g l i sch-G u nsberg, H a m b u rg 1 885 ** White to play Occasionally t h e s i m pl est o f e n d i n g s w r l l e l u d e the best o f masters B l ack had J U St moved � ( g 8 ) h 8 a nd now White c o n t i n u ed 1 J:l axa6, after w h i c h B l ack was able to h o l d out for the draw. By 1 .n axa6, White mrssed a comparatively easy wrn, whrch was . . . ?

60 M a jority Verdict Epe n - R o i s l a g , Amesfort 1946 ** Black to play Adjud icati o n , sti l l common r n i nter - c l u b ga mes, is seen b y some as a necessary e v i l . For many, to have the outcome of a game deci ded by a t h i rd party goes a g a r nst the g r a r n , espec i a l ly as even t h e best q u a lified of such persons may be emotio n a l l y disi nterested a n d capable of making m i stakes Here, D r E u we was the a d j u d icator and h e cal led the game a draw. D o you ag ree wrth the ex-World C h a m p 1 a n 's assessment of the posrt1on?

6 1 E m barras d e R 1 c hesse Ernst-Trager. Stuttgart 1946 *** White to play White, r n great trme trouble, s a w that 1 !!.a 3 + w o u l d h ave been met by 1 'illx a 3 . H e therefore panrcked a n d offered a d r a w . Black accepted rea d i l y - and well he mig ht, for he had seen that actu a l l y Wh ite had more than o n e way of w 1 n n r n g ! I n th rs case, m a n y roads l e a d to R o m e . Of the poss1b1ht1es ava i l a ble to Wh ite, which was the clea rest'? 24

Missed Opportunities

62 S r lent K n r g h t E u we - A le k h i ne. Wo r l d C h a m p i o n s h i p M atch 1 937 *** White to play "The unpred1ctab1/ity of the Knight is so great that, in time, one learns almost to fear the mere threat of its move - Sesom The dragram rs a we l l - known pos r t 1 o n from thrs memorable event, which ended r n A l e k h r n e regatn r n g the world title. The game conti n u e d 1 il.b2 il.c6 2 a3 What was overlooked by both p l ayers d u rrng thrs a pparently natura l sequence of moves?

63 D o u b l e B l i n d n ess F a i r h u rst- Reshevsky, H as t i n g s 1 938/39 ** Black to play Reshevsky, a past - m a ster of trme trouble, created a bo l t - h o l e for hrs Krng wrth 1 . . h 6 This, r n the a bsence of somet h i n g better, w o u l d a ppear to h a v e b e e n a sensible precaution The game contrnued 2 'ili'xa5 %U8, apparently neither player havrng been aware of the possr­ b 1 l ities i n the positi o n . From the dragram. what s h o u l d Reshevsky have played to assure h i mself of the i mmediate wrn'7

64 B olt From The B l u e F a ra g o - H az a i , B u d a pest 1 976 ** Black to play Perhaps t h e sky w a s n o t entirely cloudless from W h rte's point of view as, desptte the weakn ess of the pawn on d6, the B lack p ieces exerted a notice a b l e degree of central control B lack emphasi zed this by frghtmg for control of the e-frle wrth 1 lkeB. Ca n you see the 1 m medr ate a n d c o m pe l l i n g f r n i s h he had over looked;>

25

Blunders and Brillian cies

65 Catastrophe Strikes Fazekas- S p ie l m a n n . 1 938 ** * * Black to play "The true sweetness of chess, t i 1 t can ever be called sweet. is to see a victory snatched, by some happy 1mpertm· ence, out of the shadows of apparent· /y !frevocable disaster " - H G Wells S p i e l m a n n , two pawns up a n d w1th a clearly w r n nrng pos1t 1 o n , pl ayed 1 . . .U.e2, whrch brings to m r n d two q uestions: ( a ) How d i d Wh ite turn the tables after 1 l:l e2 ? ( b ) W h a t would h a v e b e e n the sim plest way for B l a c k to force hrs opponent's resrgnatron7

66 C h i ld's Play Fenton-Potter. England 1 875 ** Whtie to play Thrs posrt1on, w h i c h was t h e r n r t i a l insp1rat1on for the celebrated Saavedra Study, g ives a good r l l ustra t r o n of how far end·game tec h n i q u e has advanced over the past 1 00 years. The game was agreed, drawn o n e move prior to the diagram. with B lack's Rook on a 5 . B l ack's . l%a6 + , leading to the posrt 1 o n shown, is forced a n d l eaves the reader w1th a simple problem - which Fenton was u n a ble to solve. How could Wh ite, to play, have won?

67 The O l d est Trick F i c htl - Blatny, B ratislava 1 956 ** Whtie to play It w o u l d b e poss i b l e t o f i l l a w h o l e volume with examples s r m r l a r to t h i s one Wh ite, who felt he c o u l d w i n 1 n any way h e ch ose, played 1 d 6 - but there was no longer a wrn after t h rs move! How drd B l ack demo nstrate this?

26

Missed Opportunities

68 D r scovery F o ri ntos - M a rovic, S k o pje 1 970 ** White to play With 1 til c4. Fon ntos probably felt he had the game sewn u p , but the reply 1 . 'Df3 soon dispelled h i s 1 l l u s 1 o n . A n d yet, with a move other than 1 t!l c4, he could have forced M a rov1c's res1gnat1on How?

69 B l i n d Faith F u r m a n - K hol mov, U . S . S . R . 1 96 3 *** White t o play I n reply t o B lack's last move, . . . � d 5 attack­ i n g h i s Queen, Furman assumed that Kholmov w o u l d never have a l lowed the poss 1 b 1 hty of 1 .U. x h 6 + . had 1t been s o u n d He th erefore reiected this and p l ayed 1 11fg4. Was he right to have placed so m u c h co n f i d ­ ence 1 n h i s o p p o n ent 's a n a l ysis'7

7 0 Asleep At The Wheel G a p r i ndash v i l i -Veroc i . B e l g r a d e 1 974 ** White to play I n f a i r ness t o G a prmdashvrll1, t h i s is t h e sort of positi o n r n w h i c h the sequence is fairly easy to see when p resented as a problem ending, yet 1s often m i ssed in over - t h e - board play. S h e re peated the pos1 1 1 o n with 1 11Vg4 + � h 6 2 'ill' g 7 +. but what sho uld she have done'7

27

Blunders a nd Brilliancies

71 l vkov's Tragedy G a rc i a-lvkov, H avana 1 96 5 Black t o play lvkov was l e a d i n g 1n the penu ltrmate round of the eve nt which c o u l d easr l y have resu lted in the greatest trrumph of his career. He was well set to take fi rst prrze, berng one po r nt a head of G e l l e r a n d Smyslov, and two por nts ahead of Fischer and K h o l mov. Three pawns a nd the exchange u p, he needed only to reach the time control, when G a rcra w o u l d surely res i g n . Sadly, he played the one losing move, 1 . d3, whrch was met by 2 i. c3, when h e had to resig n. Disheartened, he a g a r n lost 1 n the last r o u n d and had to share s e c o n d place wrth G e l l e r a n d F i scher, a h a l f - p o i nt b e h r nd Smyslov. Yes, chess c a n be cruel

7 2 Pen ny Prnc h r n g G h eorg h i u - L i u -Wenze, Lucerne ( a l ) 1 982 ** White to pla y G heorg h r u s h o u l d h ave played t h e consolrdat­ r n g 1 .i d2 wrth a clear advantage, for the two B ishops were far stronger than a R ook, espec i a l l y r n view of the open nature of B l ack's K i n g · srde I nstead, he fell to temptation wrth 1 'lll' xf5, � xf2 2 'illg 5 + ( n ot 2 � xf2 counting on 1 'jt' g 3 + a n d mates) to m a i n t a i n the advantage 1 'illx f5, though, was a bad b l u nder. Why?

7 3 Porn! Of N o Return G h eorg h i u - Po l u g ayevsky, Petropolis ( izt ) 1973 *** White to play Black's l ast move h a d been 'illc 6 . Whrte now p l ayed 1 111 h5, w h r c h lost not o n l y the r n 1t1 at1ve but a lso the opport u n ity of 1mmed1ate victory. With the advantage of h r n d s 1 g ht. we can say Wh ite had no need for defensive measu res. What s h o u l d he have pl a yed>

28

Missed Opportunities

74 High a n d D ry G h eorg h i u -W i rthenso h n . B i e l 1 982 *** White to play Wh ite c o n t i n ued with t h e l o g i c a l 1 1Zl a 4 a n d eventu a l l y won, t h o u g h o n l y after a prolonged strugg l e John Nunn l ater po i n ted out a neat a n d surprrsrng way of taking advantage of the s l i g h t lack of harmony i n B l ack's camp What had he noticed]

75 Variation O n A Theme G l ass-R usse l l . Be lfast 1 9 56 ** Black to play R u ss e l l c h ose 1 . ti)f4, w h r c h was a w i n n i n g m o v e beca u se 1f 2 'ilt xe4 tt:l xe2 + . b u t there certa i n ly rs no a rg uing with a mate m th ree ! How c o u l d B lack have a c h i eved th is;>

76 Pa use For Thought G i l g o r i c - G u d m u ndsso n . Amsterdam 1 951 *** White to play Place yourself m G l 1gor1c's shoes Although you a re a pawn u p, B lack 1s th reate n i n g the Queen, h e has t h ree preces on the pawn at f2 a n d you are rapidly approa c h i n g the time c o ntrol H o w best to thwart the th reats?

29

Blunders a n d Brillian cies

77 S u d d e n Death G r i g o rov-Spassov, B u l g a r i a ( c h ) 1 975 ** White to play Wh ite c h ose 1 g x h 7 a n d w o n without g reat d1fflcu lty, bu t 1t rs a l ways a pity to have mrssed a better f i n ish How c o u l d h e have ended the game on a more efficient note'1

78 The Tiger S leeps G u rg e n i dze-Spassky, U . S . S . R . 1 959 ** White to play G u rge n z 1 d e was noted for h is agg ressive style of play. This bro u g h t 1 n c o ns1stent tournament res u l ts, yet netted many a major sca l p . Here he p l ayed 1 fxg7 a n d the game ended as a draw. He co u l d have used h i s f - pawn to better effect a n d . in so doing, w o u l d have defeated the r i s i n g sta r of S o v i e t c h ess How'7

7 9 A G o lden Ha ndshake H a rtsto n - Pen rose, London 1 96 5 *** White to play Hartston w a s o n l y 1 6 years o l d at t h e t i m e of t h i s game a n d , 1n time trouble, respectf u l l y offered h 1 s far m o r e experienced o p p o n e n t a draw, w h i c h the latter accepted with alacrity Why was Pe n rose so re l i eved to accept?

30

Missed Opportunities

80 M omentum Hecht-G eruse l , H oogovens 1 972 *** White to play Here. Wh ite moved 1 'ill' h4 a n d , with this, much of his r n it1at1ve was d1ss1 pated - a n d h e e v e n w e n t on to l ose t h e g a m e . W i t h one accu rate move, the f i n a l p i ece of the J igsaw would have fallen rnto place How c o u l d he have pressed on with the attack?

8 1 A C h a nce to Draw H e l m ertz-We r n b ro, Lund 1 973 ** White to play Wh ite contin ued with t h e defeat i st 1 d7 a n d , after the r eply 1 . . l hd7, res ig ned At fi rst sig ht, Wh ite's pos1t1on may appear to have been untenable, yet a cl oser i nspection convi nces us that, with correct pl ay, he c o u l d h a v e drawn Do you agree?

82 F a l lacy Of V1s1o n H e n n eberg er-Bernstei n , Z u r i c h 1 934 *** Whtie to play White continued with the teasing 1 'ill' g4. Of c o u rse, Black d1d not take the tempti ng morsel a n d the game eventu a l l y was drawn I t 1s more t h a n l i kely that White h a d f a i l e d to see that after 1 � xf5, 2 'l!l' xg8 + w o u l d not work because B lack's bishop would be contro l h n g c8 Yet Wh rte could have won m brutal and brr l l 1 ant fash r o n How? 31

Blunders and Brilliancies

83 The K 1 b1tzer H e p n e r - G oode. Lo n d o n 196 4 ** White t o play I n t h i s ga me, from a London league match, .a after 1 liJe5 (threate n i n g 2 e4 + ) 1!V d 4, the res u lt was a draw Later, one of Hepner's team mates p o i nted out that a n attract ive w i n n i n g poss1 b d 1ty had been overlooked What had the k1 b1tzer noticed?

84 H o ok, Line a n d S i nker H o rwitz - B l ed ow. H a m b u rg 1 844 **** ** Black to play A classical pos1t1on. White's game a ppeared to hang by a thread, yet B l ack's f i rst move here (1 c6) gave him the cha nce for which h e had b e e n prayi n g . ( a ) H ow d i d H orwitz demonstrate g reat 1mag mat1on after the faulty 1 . . . c6? (b) What, i n stead of th is, could B l ack have played to wm?

85 Fort1ss 1 m o ! H o rowitz-Kevitz. N e w York 1 931 **** Black to play It 1 s surprising h o w , w i t h a l l t h e options ava i lable, a p l ayer makes the o n l y move which loses outright. B l ack now p layed 1 ll eB. a natural e n o u g h move, but o n e w h i c h e n a b l ed Wh ite to a n n o u nce mate m seven Knowing this m advance, can you work out the correct sequence of moves?

32

Missed Opportunities

86 An Overs 1 m p l if1cat1on H o rowitz- Pavey. U . S . A . (ch) 1 951 ** Black to play In h i s des i re to f i n i s h off the game a n d to take advantage of his u nstoppa b l e b - pawn, Pavey saw a s i m p l e two - m ove combinat1on w h i c h he was certa i n would a s s u r e h i m vi ctory. H e therefore' continued w i t h 1 . . . 'ill' xf3 + 2 'ill' xf3 C: a 3. How did Horowitz throw cold water on Pavey's idea?

87 F i ngerslip H o rt - G l i g o r i c . Hast i n g s 1 971 /72 ** White to play "The {adoube rule was mtended to show to kings the consequence of actJOn - a salutary lesson. " - Gusta v Schenk "The Passionate Game " After t h e g a m e w a s over, H ort explained that as he went to play the w i n n i n g move, he i n advertently touched the Queen. H av i n g t o u c h e d t h i s piece, he was o b l iged to m o v e it, hence the mea n i ngless 1 'i!t'c8. This u n fortunate i n c ident may be of i nterest to the student of Fre u d i a n psyc h o logy, beca use . . What was the w i n n i n g move he had had m mmd?

88 L 1 g h t n 1 n g Strokes H o rt - Portisch, M a d r i d 1973 *** White to play H o rt continued 1 C: lb l - a n d 1t w a s o n l y �. b 5 t h a t he noticed h e had after the reply 1 overlooked a much stro nger move Fortu nately, the combination was sti l l 'on' a n d he pl ayed 1t the seco nd time around The pos1t1on 1 s thus an except i o n to the proverbial rule that. "in chess, as m life. opportumty stTJkes but once .. Bronstem From the position shown. how c o u l d White have won? 33

Blunders and Brilliancies

89 Wis h f u l T h i n k i n g H O bner-Adorj a n . ( ca n d ) m a t c h 1 980 * � � W p� Ador1an. with the obvi o u s 1 l:l x h 3 , w o u l d have had good cha nces to w m . H owever, he saw a n opport u n ity to exch ange Rooks a n d this, he felt, w o u l d convince h i s opponent to res i g n w ith ou t f u rther ado. H e therefore p layed 1 :l c5 S h o u l d W h i te have resigned after t h i s move?

90 B l ood, Sweat a n d Tears H u bn e r - Petrosy a n . Biel ( izt) 1 976 White to play Hubner's progress through world title e l l m i n ­ a t 1 o n events has been ha lted o n more t h a n o n e occa s i o n b y s a d oversig hts i n c ru c i a l encou nters. Here, he could have won with the s i m p l e 1 'IWeB + '3< g 7 2 i:t e7 + '3< h 6 3 'il'IB + '3< h 5 4 .:::. xh7 + + I nstead, m time trou b le, he w e n t 1 g 3 lll xf4 2 'IWeB + ( 2 g xf4 '1W xl4 + 3 lll g 3 w o u l d sti l l h a v e wo n ) . . . @ g7 3 Il e7 + @ h 6 4 lilf2 .11. xf2 5 I! x h7 + @ g 5 - a n d p o o r H u b n e r resigned. As a result of t h i s cruel reversa l of fortu ne, 1t was Petrosya n a n d not Hubner who q u a l lf1ed for the C a n d i d ates matches

9 1 Losing Play H u l ak - H ort. W i j k - a a n -Zee 1 983 ** * * White to play T h i s pos1t1 on h a s appea red i n t h e p o p u l a r ·w inn ing play· a r ti c l e s of a n u m ber of magazi nes under the heading "White to play and w i n " . W h i t e continued w i t h 1 !:t x e 5 , res u l t i n g i n two q u esti o n s t o b e posed t o t h e reader: (a) B l ack rep l i ed o b l i g i n g ly with 1 . . . fxe5. Do you see the textbook finish which this a l l owed> (b) Hort, when an nota t i n g the game, p o i n ted out that he, B lack, had had a far better reply ava i l a b l e What was it? 34

Missed Opportunities

92 The Amazons lva n k a - Lazarevic, E u ropean Lad i es' C h a m p i o n s h i p 1 972 *** Black to play As can be seen, l v a n k a w a s a p i ece u p. even 1f only temporarily Lazarev1c got cold feet a n d d e c i d e d to re- esta b l i s h mate r i a l equal ity with 1 � xf1 T h i s was a p i ty, as there was the poss i b i l ity of forc i n g a final pos1t1on which many a male grandmaster w o u l d have been happy to have p h otogra phed. framed and h u n g on the wall H o w c o u l d Lazarevic h a v e d riven h o m e her attack?

93 S k i n - Deep Ivanov- D i m itrov, Sofia 1 957 * White to pla y Wh ite, down two pawns a n d i n time trouble, was happy to be able to force a draw by repet1t1on with 1 I! d 6 Il 16 2 l!d 8 + . etc. T h i s appeared to be a satisfy i n g c o n c l u s 1 o n to a hard­ fought encou nter, but . . What. m h i s haste to draw, had h e over­ lo oked]

94 Play 1t Aga i n J a n o ws k i - C h ajes, N e w Y o r k 1 91 6 a n d M i kenas- K a s h d a n , P r a g u e ( o l ) 1 931 *** White to play B l ack's k i n g h a d b e e n on g 8 a n d when White @ h7, h a d moved 'i!l xl7 + , B lack had rep l i e d w h i c h tu rned out to be a bad reply H a d he @ h8. W h ite w o u l d not have been p layed a b l e to w i n . Fifteen years later, M 1 kenas settled for t h e perpetu a l check but 1 n the earlier g a m e , J a n o w ­ ski d i d f i n d t h e w i n C a n you d o a s w e l l , with the advantage o f k n o w i n g before h a n d , that t h e w m i s there? 35

Blunders and Brilliancies

95 Too M a n y Cooks J op p e n - Wade, Amster d a m ( o l ) 1 954 ** Black to play T h i s pos1t1on 1 s a n 1 l l u strat1 o n of t o o many 'cooks' spo1 l l n g the brot h . T h e game w a s adjourned a n d , as one col u m n ­ i st wrote: " T h e w h o l e B ritish team a n a l yzed for a l m ost two h o u rs without f i n d i n g the w m n m g l m e . w h i c h the G e r m a n s had s e e n immediately! After t h i s chaste n i n g experience, the British team reso lved never again to a n a lyze m too large a group." Wade played 1 . c4 but c o u l d o n l y d raw due to the presence of oppos1te - c o l o u red B i shops. H o w could h e have i n d uced J oppen's res 1 g ­ nat1on?

96 Battle Royal K a n - S i ma g i n , M oscow 1 952 ** White to play After 1 IP12, th reate n i n g 2 .l h 3 + , there ensued a tita n i c stru g g l e which revolved a r o u n d the q u e s t i o n of h o w well Wh ite's b i s h o p c o u l d c o p e a g a i n st B l ack's t h r e e extra p a w n s . The wel l - known writer, Abrahams, described this as "one of the most exciting games ever" In a n y event, after many v1c1ss1tudes, the g a m e event u a l l y was d rawn We d raw the rea der's attention to the fact that had Wh ite found the best move, h i s opponent would probably have t i p ped h i s K i ng 1 m m ed 1 ately H o w could Kan have cut the game short?

97 C l ockwork Karpov-Kavalek, T u r i n 1 982 ** White to play E v e n a world c h a m p i o n m a y be excused for making the occas i o n a l b l u nder, 1f only to show that c h a m p i o n s are also h u m a n Karpov played 1 Wxd5 and, after a few more moves, a draw was agreed u p o n ; the c l ock, of course, was press mg C a n you see the textbook combmat1on which the world champion overlooked?

36

Missed Opp ortunities

98 M a n vs M a c hines K a rpov - M eph i sto Ill (si m u l ) West G er m a n y 1 983 *** White to play T h i s pos1t1on arose 1 n a g a m e d u r i n g a s i m u l ­ taneous e x h 1 b 1 t 1 o n by the w o r l d c h a m p i o n a g a i n st a battery of c hess computers Play c o n ­ t i n u e d 1 i d4 .i.16 2 g 4 1!V g 5 3 'il'e4 + lt> f7 4 'il'e6 + lt> g6 5 1!Ve4 + with a draw by perpetu a l check. This was t h e sole half point scored by the computers' side. Had Karpov been less rushed, d o u btless h e w o u l d h a v e struck a n other blow f o r m a n k i n d w i t h a n e l e g a n t w i n n i ng combination. What s h o u l d he have done?

9 9 Opport u n ity K n ocks Karpov- Pritchett, N ice ( o l ) 1 974 *** Black to play The g a m e conti n u ed 1 exf4, after w h i c h Wh ite reg a i ned l o s t g r o u n d a n d w e n t on to w m . Accord i n g to o n e r e l i a b l e report. Fischer later telephoned from New York to explain to Pritc h ­ ett h o w h e c o u l d have won from t h e d i a g rammed pos1t1on T h i s, to h i s c h a g r i n , Pritchett had a l ready d i scovered h i mself! What was the w m n 1 n g lme which prom pted Fischer to make the l o ng - d ista nce ca l l ?

1 00 R a n k a n d F i l e Kar pov-R a s h kovsky, U . S . S . R . ( c h ) 1 973 *** White to play "When chess masters err. ordinary wood pushers tend to derive a measure of satisfactwn, if not actual glee. " - I. Horowitz T h i s 1 s espec i a l l y true, we may add, when the m a ster ha ppens to be the world c h a m p i o n . Of cou rse, e v e n H o m e r n o d s , a n d when t h i s h a p p e n s , the m i stakes of m e r e morta l s s o m e h o w s e e m more acceptable Karpov chose 1 .t b 1 a n d won 1 n d u e course; but by making this move, he had overlooked a rema rka b l e c o u p What s h o u l d he h a v e d o n e ? 37

Blunders and Brilliancies

1 01 W i t h Bated Breath K a s h d a n-Tartakower, L o n d o n 1 932 *** White to play The l ate I saac Kashdan w h o . 1 n the 1 9 20s a n d 30s, w a s A l e k h 1 ne's h e i r a pparent, played 1 1il'xf6, after w h i c h Tartakower had no cause for complaint at the outcome of the ope n i ng; but what was overlooked here 1 s now a fairly wel l ­ known opening trap How could Kashdan have brought off a m a g ­ n i f i cent su rprise?

1 02 The Prodigy Kasparov-Vu rtsev, V i l n i us 1 975 * �d W p� Kaspa rov, who ten years later was to be the � world c h a m p i o n , had iust moved 1 d 7 His idea was that 11 1 'ill x d 7 , then 2 'ill' xf4 + , followed by 3 \P xg2. How d i d Yu rtsev show young Kasparov that h i s p l a n was fau lty?

1 03 U nseemly E p isode Ke res- B e n k o , C u racao (cand) 1 962/63 *** White to play i. xg3 a n d Benko had i u st p l ayed the a l ert b o t h players adm itted l a t e r they had reckoned the continuation 1 'ill xg3 'i!ld5 would be good for Black With this i n m i nd. Keres moved 1 'it'f3, yet both of them had overlooked a surprise move w h i c h would have a ltered completely the assessment of the above vanat1on After 1 111' xg3 lil'd5, what move wo uld have tipped the balance in W h i te's favour:> 38

Missed Opportunities

1 04 C h a m Reacti o n Koga n - G h i n d i n , K h a r k o v 1 974 ** Black to play G h i nd 1 n conti n u ed w i t h 1 VJJi e7 It 1s surprising that he m i ssed the win because, once started, the rema i n i n g moves would have proceded a lmost of their own v o l 1t1on H o w c o u l d B l ack have won 1 n convmc 1 n g fash i o n ?

1 05 P i n s a n d N eedles K h o l m o v - Le i n , U . S . S . R . (ch) 1 961 * White to play "To the very thin man who had been boffng him, Douglas Jerrold said, 'Slf, you are lfke a pm, but without either its head or its pomt' " - E Partridge, 'You Have a Pomt There ' The game cont i n ued 1 'l!V g 5 '/W d 7 a n d Wh ite went on to w i n . W h a t c r u s h i n g b l o w w a s m issed?

1 06 C u l - de - sac K l i esc h - La ng er, Potsd a m 1 972 *** Black to play La nger s e t the w h e e l s g o i n g w i t h 1 . f3 + , yet 1 nexpl1cably failed t o f i n i s h the comb1nat1on h e had started Can you do better - a nd unearth a f i n e w i n n i n g proced u re?

39

Blunders and Brilliancies

1 07 D ei a - v u Kopec - C o n d i e , T r o o n 1 980 **** Whtie to play A c u r i o u s c a s e D a n ny Kopec, the 1 980 Scott­ i s h C h a m p i o n , chose 1 'ii' b3 and won a strong game 1 n his best pos1t1 o n a l styl e Later m the ana lysis room, Roddy M c Kay mentioned that the game u p to this point had d u p l rcated one p l ayed many years previously by two Po l i s h masters H e then proceeded to demonstrate t h e bri l l ia n t f 1 r n s h w h i c h h a d occu rred i n the earlier game. What d i d McKay p o i n t out?

1 08 Sporting Cha nce Korch n o i - G heorg h i u , London 1 980 ** White to play the games that you remember are those with the most sporting s1gmfic­ ance. As a rule, the more mistakes there are in a game, the more memorable it remains, because you have suffered and worried o ver each mistake at the board " - Korchnoi This 1s a pos1t1on w h i c h probably sti l l rankles with Korc h n o 1 , for here he p layed 1 ll c6 a n d the game w a s soon d r a w n . H o w c o u l d h e h a v e won?

1 09 D i lemma Ko rc h n o i - G i ps l i s , Ta l l i n n 1 967 ** Whtie to play To put 1t m i l d ly, t h i s position 1 s from one of the games of w h i c h Korc h n o 1 rs not proud. I n fact. b y not w i n n i n g t h i s cruc i a l game, he fa i led to q u a l rfy for the 1 968 l nterzo n a l Tournament. When h e conti n u ed 1 li:l d4, G 1 ps l i s p i n ned the Knight w i t h 1 ll dB a n d so escaped all h i s d 1 fficu lt1es. Why d i d Korc h n o 1 feel l i k e kicking h i mself?

40

Missed Opportunities 1 1 0 Sic Transit G loria M u n d 1 K o rc h n o i - Kar pov. World C h a m p i o n s h i p M atch 1 978 ** White to play B l a c k had J U St moved 54 . . . @ e 6 - d 5 (forced, after White's 54 'if h 3 + ) . Play conti n u ed 5 5 .i e4 + � xe4 a n d e n d e d m sta lemate after 1 24 moves, 1 2� hoursl Had Wh ite played a better 55th move, h e c o u l d h a v e won a piece, drawi n g fi rst blood m this encou nter a n d perhaps have gone on to w i n the w o r l d c h a m p i o n s h i p . What w o u l d you h a v e pl ayed m Korc h n o 1 's p l ace?

1 1 1 The Labyrinth Ko rc h n o i-Matanovic, B e l g ra d e 1 956 **** Black to play Matanovrc c hose 1 'jl' g 4 a n d the game eventu a l l y ended as a draw. To i m prove o n th is, you will have to thread your way through a ta n g led maze of variations. Knowing t h i s befo reha nd - a n d even though the solution 1 s somewhat invo lved - c a n you see what the grandmaster m issed?

1 1 2 H e a rty A p petite K u n n e r m a n - A n o n . . B e r l i n 1 924 **** Black to play By g rabbing the ·poisoned p a w n ' at b2, B l ack had ventu red on thin ice a n d W h ite rep l ied with the ominous l!Vf6, lead i n g to the d i a g ram U n d a u nted, B l ack now h e l ped h i mself to the c­ pawn a n d was mated m textbook style 1 'i!l xc3? 2 'i!l g 7 + Jl xg7 3 l:l e8 + Ji.IS 4 l! xl8 + + I n view of the a bove, 1t a ppears that B l ack's pos1t 1 o n m the d i agram was none too env1a b l e ­ a n d yet there w a s a stu n n i n g defensive resource at h i s d i s posa l . W h a t w a s it? 41

Blunders and Brilliancies

1 1 3 I c i n g on the Cake Langeweg - Casa, Luga no ( ol) 1 968 ** Black to play Casa, who up to t his poi nt had c o n d u cted the game i n truly inspired fas h i o n , now contin ued � .d4 + T h i s move was the only with 1 blemish on what was oth erwise one of the finest games of the 1 968 O lympiad and may well have been the reason for him not g etting the b r 1 l h a ncy prize How c o u l d he have ended the game swiftly and r u t h l essly>

1 1 4 O n Thin Ice Lapiken - R eshevsky, Long Beach 1 955 *** White to plav Reshevsky, before recaptu ring on g 7 as h e i ntended, h a d pl ayed t h e zw1schenzug 'ilt' e6 + , lead i n g to the d iagram Lap1ken saw nothing a m i ss, made the automatic retreat 1 .t b1 a n d eventually lost. H owever, while waiting for La p1ken to reply, Reshevsky's b l ood ran c o l d . Why>

1 1 5 D e n o uement Larse n - S passky, L i n a res 1 981 ** White to play Larsen, the a m i a b l e D a n i s h g r a n d master, 1 s a born opt1m1st H i s indomitable fighting spirit 1 s to be admired a n d 1t has b o u g ht h i m a great n u mber of major tournament successes H o w ­ ever, excessive opti mism c a n , on occasi o n , d e a d e n the chess p l a y e r ' s necessary s e n s e o f danger. The p o s 1 t 1 o n shown 1 s made a l l the m o r e s u r p r i s i n g by virtue of the f a c t t h a t 1t arose only two mo ves after the ad1ournment and t h u s o n e w o u l d expect the players to h a v e b e e n steeled by a n alysis a g a i nst any early u psets H e re, how· ever, m reply to S passky's . 'ii' e3 + , Larsen went 1 'ill f3 D o you see the weakness in this move7 42

Missed Opportunities

1 1 6 F i rst I m press i o n s E d . Laske r - M ol l . B e r l i n 1 91 1 *** White to plav I t 1 s s u rp n s 1 n g t h a t someone w h o h a d w o n t h e c h a m p 1 o n s h 1 p o f five great c 1 t1es - B e r l i n , Paris, L o n d o n . C h icago a n d N e w York - went astray 1 n his a n a lysis of a pos1t1on i n v o l v i n g o n l y p a w n s Y e t t h i s 1s exactly what h a p pened w hen Edward Lasker, o n the m ove, p l ayed 1 f4 M o l l replied 1 f6 - a n d 1t w a s a l l over Lasker a d m itted later he had c o n s i d ered h i m ­ self l ost i n t h i s position - a n d s u c h t h o u g h ts can be self-fu lfi l l i n g At fi rst sight, 1t does look l i k e a c l ear w i n for Moll a n d yet, on c l oser sc ruti ny, a win for Lasker a p pears! H ow could the latter have confounded his own j u dgement a n d have won the game?

1 1 7 I n d i a n S u m mer Lask e r - Euwe, N ott i n g h a m 1 936 ** Black to play ' N o wadays, c hess ts seen more and more as a y o u n g m a n ' s g a me, yet E m a n u e l Lasker was compet i n g i n t o p - f l i g h t events at the age of 68 a n d even ma naged to d efeat the world c h a m p i o n of the d a y B l ack, i n stead of moving h i s attacked K n i g ht. p layed the zw1schenzug 1 ii. a5 This c ost h i m dearly, for the ever - a l ert Lasker replied with a n i n - betwee n - move h i mself - a n d won a piece I JJ a5> H o w d i d he do 1t, after 1

1 1 8 Qu icksa n d s Le h m a n n - Cordov i l , M a l a g a 1 970 ** *** White to play A c r u c i a l pos1t 1 o n , where f 1 n d 1 n g the best conti n u at i o n meant the d i fference between a w i n a n d a loss White c h ose t h e retrogressive 1 l: a6 - a n d lost (a) H ow did B lack grasp his opport u n ity after this move7 (b) Wh at. i n stead of 1 l: a6, c o u l d White h ave pl ayed to win?

43

Blunders and Brilliancies

1 1 9 Heavy Weather Le h m a n n - Pomar . Palma de M a l l o rca 1 966 ** White to play Wh ite went 1 it' e 4 a n d , a l most 50 moves later, managed to make the extra pawn count 1 n t h e e n d i n g . H e c o u l d have saved h i mself a lot of tro u b l e a n d time w i t h a s i m ple, yet very elega nt, c o m b 1 n a t 1 o n What s h o u l d he have played to w i n 1 mmed 1 ately?

1 20 D o m 1 nat1on Letou rnea u - G ersho. Quebec 1 970 * White to play J u d g i n g from the move actually made in t h i s pos111 o n ( 1 J. b 7 ) . White had a c h i eved a won game t h r o u g h accident rather t h a n desi g n . N evert h e l ess. t here w a s a s i m p l e opportun ity to demo nstrate the B i shop's powers How, i n stead of losing. c o u l d White have won7

1 2 1 With One Stone Leve nf is h - R i u m i n , U . S . S . R . ( c h ) 1 936 *** White to plav Perhaps the o n l y sure way to avoid m a k i n g m i stakes i n chess 1 s to follow Tarrasch ' s advice, to "sit on your h a n d s l " Here, White had retreated 1 (\ g 3 There 1s l ittle d o u bt that 11 he had t h o u g h t a l i ttle l o nger, he w o u l d have f o u n d an attract ive and o r 1 9 1 n a l w i n n i n g l i n e D o y o u see u ?

44

Missed Opportunities

1 22 The M 1ss1ng L i n k Levi t i n a - G a p r i ndashv i l i , U . S . S . R . Women's C h a m p i ons h i p 1 979 *** Black to play G p pr 1 n d a s hv 1 1 t h a d l ooked deeply i nto t h i s p o s i t i o n , h o p i n g to make t h e f o l l o w i n g v a r i a t i o n work 1 e 4 2 'lll xe4 .!! ce8 3 li:l xe8 + .t xe8 H owever, she feared the c o n t 1 n u a t 1 o n 4 lt.J d4 -- the s o r t of m o v e w h i c h often c a n w r e c k a c o m b i n a t i o n I n view of t h i s, she went 1 "

1 32 Arithmetical Problem M a rs h a l l - S c h l echter. S a n Sebast i a n 1 91 1 ** Black to plav I t is a wonder that someone of S c h l ec hter's strength, w h o came w1t h 1 n a h a l f - p o i n t of w i n ­ n i n g the world c h a m p 1 o n s h 1 p f r o m E m a n u e l Lasker, d i d not find the w i n 1 n a n e n d i n g 1 nv o l v 1 n g o n l y t w o p a w n s a g a r nst o n e . H e lil e4 a n d o n l y d rew. pl ayed 1 Can you h a n d l e this e n d i n g better]

1 33 T h e Old R o u t i n e M i tchel l - S i lver, London 1 962 ** White to play M itchell moved 1 1!1' h4 T h e combination h e overl ooked m i g h t b e c l assed as ' b r i l l i a nt', yet 1 t fo l l ows s u c h a thematic c o u rse that many p layers would have 'see n ' 1t a l most without t h i n k i n g I n c h ess, b r i l l i a nce 1s relative After read i n g the preced i n g comme nts, you should be a b l e to g l a nce at the d iagram and, without a moment's hesitation, go o n to w i n . Can you '? 48

Missed Opportunities 1 34 A L o n g S h ot Montice l l i - H orowitz. Syracuse 1934

*

� cl � � v

H o rowitz had b e e n a n g l i n g for t h e c h a nc e w h i c h presented itself here yet 1 n ex p l 1 c a b l y , w h e n t h e o p p o rt u n ity d i d a r i s e , h e n e g l ected t o p l a y t h e w i n n i n g move After h i s !l:. f4, M o n t 1 c e l h had r e p l i ed '.a a 1 , a grievous error o n h i s part H owever, t h i s w e n t u n p u n i s h ed , for p l a y c o n ­ tin ued w i t h 1 � x e 4 2 H x f 1 . W e h a v e here a n ot h er i n s t a n c e of d o u b l e b l i n d ness, for White s h o u l d have retreated his Queen when 1 t was attacked and B l ac k s h o u l d have p l a y e d w h a t ? - 1 nstead of 1 .tl xe47

1 35 Open Sesame' M ori n - F raser. Quebec 1983

**

Black to pla y "To depend on chance 1s fooltshness, to make use of chance is wisdom ' - Richter

At t h i s p o i n t , B la c k ' s 1 . . f 2 was rea l l y n o t the best move a v a l ! a b l e to h i m . L u c k i l y, he d i d wm t h e game but o n l y b ec a u s e o f a n i na c c u ra c y on the part of his opponent. H o w c o u l d he h a v e f 1 n 1 s h ed t h e game 1mmed 1 ateJy7

1 36 C h o i c e of Captures M ullen- Reid, St . A n drews, 1979 Black to play

***

W h i l e M u l le n nervo u s l y paced t h e f l o o r , R e i d p o n d e red h a r d a n d l o n g over a c h o i c e o f c a p ­ tures M u llen had seen that 1 f Reid found the n g h t move, t h e g a m e w a s a s g o o d as over. What was 1 t that h e feared?

49

Blunders a n d Brilliancies

1 3 7 Armc h a i r Theatre M u s o l i n o - Siveri, Cata n a g g i a r o 1 970 ** White to pla y White p l ayed 1 f5 a n d w e n t o n to l ose T h e reader, o n exami n i n g the posit i o n , w i l l probably be su rprised that White m i ssed a w 1 n n 1 n g cornb 1 n a t 1 o n , for 1t rea l l y wasn't h a rd t o see B u t t h e n , 1t has b e e n said often that t h e spectator a l ways f i n ds t h e best moves! What s h o u l d Wh ite have done?

1 38 A M atter of Tec h n i que N a kagawa - D ay, B u e n os Ai res (ol) 1 978 ** White to pla v I t 1 s surprising how often pos1t1 o n s hke t h i s arise a n d , even m ore s o , how often they are m i s ­ pl ayed The res u l t of the g a m e h i nged on t h e relative val ues of B l ack's passed p a w n a n d White's k 1 n g - s1de maionty After 1 g5 fxg5 2 fxg5 h5. the march of the pawns had been h a lted a n d B l ack won. H ere, a g a i n , o n e may talk about luck - for one exact move would have assu red v ictory for White. What s h o u l d he have pl ayed?

1 39 Throu g h a Look i n g G lass Nedeljkov i c - U d ovcic, Y u g o s l a v i a ( c h ) 1 958 ** *** White to play W h e n t h i s position w a s shown f o r t h e fi rst t i m e to ten p layers, n i n e of them c h ose t h e natural 1 ll g8 - as d i d N e d e l 1 k o v 1 c . H owever. a nasty surprise a wa rted h i m ( a ) W h a t happened after 1 J:l g8? (b) There 1s a n u n c a n ny s 1 m 1 l a r 1ty between t h e comb 1 n at 1 o n w h i c h w o n a n d the combination w h i c h m i g h t have won the game H ow, i n stead of 1 J:l g 8, could White have w o n ? 50

Missed Opportunities

1 40 B a c k - seat D rivers N o r r is - B ryso n , Troon 1 982 Black to play W h t i e 1t is true that spectators at a master game are u n l i kely to fat h o m a tenth of the poss1 b 1 l 1t1es consi dered by the p layers, occas 1 o n a l l y 1t h a p pens that they do see at a g l a nce what the experts had overlooked c o m p l e ­ tely Brys o n , two pawns down a n d 1 n time trouble, avoided the exchange of Queens by playing 1 'C!Y c 1 a n d a m u r m u r went round t h e t o u r n a m e n t h a l l What w a s the w 1 n n 1 n g move he didn't make/

1 4 1 Aesthetics O ' B r i e n - P ri estley, Southend 1 958 *** Black to play I n t h e words of S h a kespeare's Caesar· " Let us be sacnf1 cers, not butch ers, C a i u s ! " B lack c h ose 1 !?J x g 1 + . w h i c h certa i n ly was c o n v i n c i n g a n d yet, by d o i n g so, he had passed u p a f i n ish of w h i c h h e would have been very proud D o you see how he c o u l d h ave concluded the g a me with a n 1 m p ress1ve f i n a l f l o u r i s h ?

1 42 D raw> O l a fsson - Pa n n o , Los A n g eles 1 963 ** Black to play B lack moved 1 � x b 4 a n d said " D raw?" Wh ite, h a v i n g lost what he had hoped would be h i s queen i n g pawn, agreed. H owever, a n add 1 t 1 o n a l moment's t ho u g ht w o u l d h a v e g i ven him the full point How?

51

Blunders a n d Brilliancies

1 43 A Cold S h ower O l a fsso n - Ta l , M oscow 1 971 * Black to play " Beward the bac k - r a n k matel" 1s the advice we g ive to beg i n ners, yet even world c h a m p i o n s h a v e b e e n known to forget t h i s elementary dictum Tai must have been harbouring v1s1ons of a n attack a g a i nst Wh ite's K i n g w h e n he played 1 l:t c8. H o w d i d O l a fsson d 1 s 1 l l u s 1 o n h i m?

1 44 H o ist By H i s Own Petard Ott- Bozdog h i n a . U . S . S . R . 1 962 ** Black to play White's K i n g w a s caug ht 1 n a mating n e t a n d B l ack felt h i s j o y w o u l d b e complete 11 o n l y h e could p l a c e a Rook on the h - f i l e . With t h i s 1 n m i nd, he moved 1 . l:t xc5. Was t h i s a good move or a bad one?

1 45 Where Does The Time G o ? Padews k i -J an s a. Kapfe n berg 1 970 ** *** Black to play For s o m e players, t i m e t r o u b l e 1s as m u c h a p a rt of the game as the h a ndshake preced i n g the first move. H owever, to u s e t i m e trouble as a psycholog1cal weapon 1s to c hoose a d o u b l e ­ e d g e d sword The flag on J a nsa's c l ock was trem b l i n g on the horizontal as he reached out to play 1 t;'.) c5, a move w h i c h a l lowed Wh ite to stage a m i r a c u l o u s recovery (a) How did Padewsk1 reply? (b) What c o u l d J ansa h ave done to put the issue beyond d o u bt;> 52

Missed Opp ortunities

1 46 They S h a l l N ot Pass i Petrosya n - H a z a i . U . S . S . R . 1 970 Black to play H a z a i pl ayed the re markable 1 1!l' b6 a n d . after 2 ll:J xb6, c x b 6 , the p o s 1 t 1 o n was so b l ocked u p that a draw was the 1nev1table outcome Atte m pts to prise open the position with h 4 c o u l d b e m e t by gxh4 h 3 a n d . h4 Later a n a lysis confi rmed that Wh ite should have answered 1 'ill b6 with 2 "i!f d 2 , follow­ i n g u p w i t h the idea of moving t h e K m g to a4, when Wh ite would have won a pawn a n d the g a m e l H a za 1 ' s 1 'i!t' b 6 was not a n overs i g ht t h e n , but a d e l i berate p l a n to block the pos1t1 o n !

1 47 S t r i k i n g the I r o n P i h l aj a m a k i - M o n g e a u , Lucerne ( o l ) 1 982 *** Black to pla y "Strategy reqwres thought; tactics reqwre observation .. - Euwe M ongeau won t h i s game, t h o u g h 1t took h i m 90 moves to do so. Do you see how he could have come u p with a n mc1s1ve combmat1on at this pomt a n d have ended his opponent's resistance 1 mmed1ately?

1 48 The M a t i n g Net P o l ya k - K h o l mov. R i g a 1 954 ** White to pla y " I mamtam that m e very position that aY1ses, we should deliberately search. among other thmgs. for pieces which have no retreat If we see one. we automatically look to see 11 1t can be netted .. - Purdy The game ended as a draw after Polyak had m i ssed a golden opport u n ity. The fact that K h olmov's K i n g had no flight s q u a res s h o u l d h a v e b e e n e n o u g h to s e t P o l y a k ' s adre n a l i n r u n n i n g W h a t s h o u l d he h a v e done? 53

Blunders and Brilliancies

1 49 D o n n e r und B l 1tzen Porat h - D o n n er. H e l s i n k i ( o l ) 1 952 * Black to pla y The master, 1f he has a n y worries, m u st leave them tucked away safely outside of the t o u r n a ­ m e n t h a l l T o o m u c h tension and too m u c h concentration may ofte n lead to the sort o f brea kdown w h i c h causes b l u nders For nearly 1 5 m i n utes, D o n ner consi dered the l!l d 7 . pos1t1on and f i n a l l y decided on 1 S u re l y he had somet h i n g m u c h better a va i l ­ able!

1 50 M o d u s Opera n d i P otter-Z u kertort, E n g l a n d 1 875 *** White to play Potter saw no way to make prog ress a n d so ag reed to a draw - but there was a w i n n i ng proced ure, first poi nted out by Ste 1 n itz m a n y y e a r s before This, to modern eyes. invo lves a we l l - known tec h n i q u e w h i c h s h o u l d not have been d1ff1cult for a pl ayer of Potter's c a l i bre to have reasoned o u t . H o w c o u l d Wh ite, to p l ay, h ave t r i e d for a w i n without risking defeaf;>

1 5 1 M e p h 1sto phelean M a n oeuvre Pouti a i n e n - Karner, Tal l i n n 1 977 **** White to pla y "Disco vered check 1s the d1vebomber - Fme of the chessboard " P o u t 1 a 1 n e n pl ayed 1 t;:) g 5 with the obvi ous intention of conti n u i n g w i t h 2 li.Je6 B l ack re p l i ed 1 'lll b7, w h i c h posed the threat of d i scovered check P o u t 1 a 1 n e n , before meeting t h i s t h reat. decided to g i ve a n i nterpolated check h i mself a n d moved 2 �d4 + Karner, h owever, ended the game with 2 lUf6 +, w i n n i n g the Queen Wh ite's 1 'il g 5 , though wel l - 1 ntent1oned, was not the best move ava i l a b l e to him. What should he have played? 54

Missed Opp ortunities

1 52 On a Clear Day R a b i n o v i c h - F l a m b e r g . T r i b e rg 1 91 5 ***** White to play T h i s g a m e w a s pl ayed at a n i nternment c a m p for R us s i a n prisoners d u r i n g the Fi rst W o r l d War P l ay conti n u ed 1 l!fcB + � h 7 2 l!f t 5 + g6 a n d Wh ite resig ned D u ri n g the post - m ortem, Wh ite c l a i med he could h ave g iven perpet u a l check with 1 Il lB + W h 7 2 1'f g 8 + � g 6 3 'jjf e6 + , etc An 1 n s p 1 red piece of a n a l ysis by Amos B u rn 1n The L ondon Illustrated News proved that White could have forced mate 1 n 1 5 moves! G r a n d masters may have f u n solving t h i s from the d i a g ra m , l ess sto u t · hearted readers may prefer to set the pos1t1on u p on a board a n d w o r k t h e i r way t h r o u g h to the m a t e - w h i c h 1s extraord i n a r i l y bea u t i f u l m its exec u t i o n

1 53 Desperado R a d u l o v - S m ej k a l . Len i n g rad 1 961 ** Black to pla y Wh ite h a d J USt played t h e c l ever !l_)c4xd6. B l ack rep l i ed 1 :t xc2 a n d won 3 1 moves later We c a n h i nt to the reader that the c a l c u l a t i o n s of b o t h players w e r e flawed What s h o u l d Black h ave done?

1 54 On the R e b o u n d Redel i - B a r a t i . B u d a pest 1 961 ***** White to play " W h y does n ' t Ba rat1 resi g n ] " R e d e l 1 m u st have t h o u g h t to h i mself as he pushed onward w i t h 1 f6 T h e n . c o n s i d e r i n g the new pos 1 t 1 o n , " S u rely he must resi g n n o w l " H owever, not o n l y d i d B a r a t 1 not res i g n . he act u a l l y went o n to force checkmate! H o w d i d B a rat1 seize his opport u n ity to pro� duce a magn 1f1cent f i n i sh after the fa u l ty 1 f67

55

Blunders a n d Brilliancies

1 5 5 Are You P l a y i n g for a W i n > Reshevsky - M ast i c h i d ias, D u brovn i k ( a l ) 1 950 * Black to pla y Accord i n g to the reports, Res hevsky h a d made h i s last move. 12lf3-d2, hast i l y J u st as he released the piece, he rea l i zed he had b l u ndered, but m a n aged to keep his prese nce of mmd a n d offered a draw. The i nexperienced M ast1 c h 1 d 1 a s was st i l l 1n the act of wntmg down the last move and, without looking at the board, accepted . Was t h i s a wise dec1s1on on h i s pa rt?

1 56 Thud and B l u nder R eshevsky -Savon. Petro p o l i s ( izt) 1 973 ** White to play Reshevsky's tragic la pse m t h i s pos 1 t 1 o n h a s b e e n referred to as " t h e b l u nder of the century". He moved 1 W x g 6 a n d said, " M at e ! " , over­ looking the fact that g6 was protected by B l ack's B i shop. Saven, of c o u rse, took the Queen, esca p i n g the 'mate', a n d poor R eshevsky resigned Ta make matters worse, 1t was poi nted out to him afterwards that he could h a ve won q u ite s i m p l y at this p o i n t ! H ow?

1 57 B etween the Devil R o go ff - B a rczay, P o l a n ica Zd roj 1 974 ** * * White to play ll. e8-b8, B l ack's last move h a d been . arriving at the d i a grammed pos1t1 o n He suggested a draw a n d Wh ite, m time tro u b le, a g reed (a) I m a g i n e you rself i n R ogoff's shoes would you have acce pted the preferred d raw? ( b ) Later. W h i te a d m itted he had considered 1 ll. cd 1 H ow m i g h t Black h a ve replied to this?

56

Missed Opportunities 1 58 a n d t h e D e e p B l u e Sea Roh acek-May, Bad S l i ac 1932 Black to play

***

R e a d ers m a y b e fam 1 l 1 a r w i t h a q u ote from S p i e l m a n n , that h e c o u l d p l a y any of A l e k h i n e ' s c o m b 1 n a t 1 o n s b u t h i s p r o b l e m was o n l y to g e t t h o s e p o s 1 t 1 o ns. T h i s , howeve r , a lso w o r k s 1 n reverse for m a n y of u s, a g reater pr o b l e m 1 s h o w to f i n i s h o f f a g a m e w h e n w e have est a b l i shed a w 1 n n 1 n g pos1t1 o n ! M ay c h ose 1 'Vi xe1 + , after w h i c h R o h a c e k went o n to w i n . W h a t s h o u l d M a y h a v e p l ayed i nstead of 1 � x e 1 1- ?

1 59

D a m s e l i n D i stress

Roth - D urao, The H ague 1966 White to p la y

**

R o t h p l ayed 1 a 3 , w h e re u p o n D u r a o beat a h asty retreat w i t h 1 Viii b6. How c o u l d Roth have left his o p p o n e n t deva ­ stated?

1 60 ld8e F 1 x e Rubinstein-N imzowitch. S a n Sebastian

1912 Black to play

*

O n e of t h e mos t n o t o r i o u s cases of c hess b l i n d n ess a t the t o p l e ve l ! Black t h reatened w i t h mate, p i n ned W h i t e ' s R o o k with 1 !< dB 2 l!VIB + He won eventu a l ly, but only after s u r m o u n t i n g a stu bborn resista nce from his opponent Later, he m u st h a ve felt l i ke k 1 c k 1 n g h i mself for h a v i n g missed a simple a n d q u ite pretty f i n a l e here What h a d he not seen d u r i n g the game7

1 6 5 M i nd Over M atter S c h i ffers-Tc h i g o r i n , Ber l i n 1 897 **** Black to play An u n u s u a l pos 1 t 1 o n l H a v i n g l ost h i s Queen early m the game, Tc h 1 g o n n had f o u g ht back manfu l l y to g a i n t h e winning pos1t1on shown here I nstead of cont i n u i ng 1 n t h i s vei n, he pl ayed the defensive 1 b6 and f i n a l l y eked out a draw. In stnct mater i a l terms, he had h o pelessly 1 nsuff1 cient compensat i o n for his Queen, yet the fire - power of h i s p i eces was so great that he could have a n n o u nced a forced mate! ? M ate m

1 66 Last R esort S c h l ec hter-Wolf, N u remberg 1 906 * Black to play Wolf, 1n desperate stra its, made a last-ditch attempt to save the game with 1 l:t e3 At grandmaster level, such a move w o u l d norma l l y be looked u p o n as n o more t h a n a J o k e . H o w ­ ever, the Joke was on S c h l ec hter a f t e r h i s t h o u ghtl ess r e p l y 2 b6 After 1 l! e3 2 b6, what next>

59

Blunders and Brilliancies

1 6 7 The Writing on the Wall Schneider-Tai. Lucer n e ( o l ) 1 982 *** White to play Schneider had t h e opportu n i ty to f i n ish off here 1n a m a n n e r u s u a l l y assoc i ated with Tai, a former world c h a m p i o n . The latter, having made his l ast move, suddenly saw the catastrophe awa1t1ng him a n d must have breathed a s i g h of relief when t h e move he d readed failed to material ize What was 1t he had feared, but Schneider had not see n :>

1 68 The C h ecker C h ecked ! Sered e n k o - B e l o usov, M a i kop 1 972 *** Black to play P layers w h o c a n t h i n k of noth i n g better t o d o w i l l often g ive 1 n to the fi rst i nst i nct to say· ' ' C h eck" - yet how often has a pointless check r u i ned a good pos1t 1 o n ! E m a n u e l Lasker once related a n a m u s i n g story on this poi nt· he was playing s i m u ltaneously a g a i nst a group of m i ners, when a bu rst of c h eering caused the spectators to crowd arou nd one of the boards. "As 'e beat ' i m?'' asked someone, excitedly. " N aw. but ·e chuck '1m," cried one of the player's friends. whereupon the hero s h o u ted: "Aye, lad, I chuck '1m, I chuck ' 1 m l " ll.e3 + a n d even t u a l l y B l a c k played 1 l o s t . H e c o u l d h ave won i n pretty a n d i nstructive style H ow?

1 69 Sting m the Tail Sherbakov-A r l a zarov, U . S . S . R . 1 972 * * * * ** White to play With so few p i eces left o n the board, S h e r ­ b a k o v certa i n l y m ust h a v e considered 1 f7, b u t f i n a l l y d e c i d e d o n 1 fxg7 T w o q u estions c o m e to m i n d ( a ) Was he r i g h t to h a v e reiected 1 171 (b) What was the best reply to 1 fxg7'

60

Missed Opportunities

1 70 S h a red H o n o u rs S h e rm a n - E l ey, E n g l a n d 1 972 * ft� W p� Soon a fter 1 h 5 , the game was drawn With the l oss of this h a l f - po i nt, Eley had robbed h i mself of the honour of sole first - place 1 n the t o u r n a ment, for he a n d a n other contest a nt tied for fi rst prize How could he have won the game - a nd t h e top spot?

1 7 1 There's Many a S h p S h owalter- P i l l s b u ry. C a m b r i d g e S p r i n g s 1 904 ** ** Black to play '11¥ xf2 s o t h a t 1 1 Wh ite B l ack moved 1 exchan ged Queen's, B l ack's pawn majority w o u l d w i n Ag a i n , there are two q uest i o n s to be a nswered. ( a ) What was wrong with 1 1i' xf2? (b) What should Black have done i n stead of 'i!l xf2?

1 7 2 Metamorphosis S i m i c - B i l ek, U l ma 1 976 ** Black to play B l a c k conti n u ed w i t h 1 . . f 6 , i n t e n d i n g t o centra l ise h i s k i n g a n d w a g e a war of attr i t i o n 1 n o r d e r to make t h e e x t r a pawn count The reader may fmd 1t h a rd to bel ieve that a grand­ master c o u l d h ave overlooked s u c h a n elemen ­ tary w i n n i n g c o m b 1 n a t 1 o n , yet stra nger t h i n g s h a v e c o m e a bout 1 n c h ess How c o u l d he h ave won?

61

Blun ders and Brillianc1es 1 73

Not With a Bang

S l i w a - D o d a , L o d z 1 967

White to play B l ack had J u st moved . g2 a n d the game now screeched to a n u n t i d y h a l t w i t h 1 !: 1 f2 ·�a1 -1- , w h e r e u p o n W h ite resigned Poor, d i - fated S l 1 w a 1 W h a t w a s t h e e a s y w i n h e h a d t h r o w n away/

1 74

T h e V e l vet G i ove

S n y d e r � B ro w n e , S a nta M o n i c a 1 974

** Black to play White's pos1t1on was tota l l y l o st a n d Browne probably gave l i ttle, 1 ! a n y , thought t o 1 ,;; xe7 before playmg 1t. I n so d o i n g , he had e l i m i nated h i s o pp o n e n t ' s o n e rema i n i n g hope and had l i tt l e d1fhculty convert i n g h i s advantage t o a w i n A l l t h e same, 1t w o u l d s u r e l y have g i v e n him far greater p l easure to weave a pretty m a t i n g net D o yo u see h o w B ro w n e c o u l d have forced mate, despite the t h reate n i n g pawn at e7?

1 75

The M a i l e d F i st

Spassky - S h e rbakov, U . S . S . R . 1 961 *

White to play T h e g a m e e n d e d 1 l he B + l! xe 8 2 'l!Y x g4 � c 5 3 d d 1 resigns I t may seem c h u r l i s h to p o i n t o u t that the f u t u r e w o r l d c h a m p i o n c o u l d h a ve ended t h e g a m e o n e m ove s o o n e r . b u t w e ' r e sure t h i s 1s a f i n is h h e w o u l d h a v e enioyed playing How c o u l d S p a ssky h a v e forced mare?

62

Missed Opportunities

1 7 6 In the B a l ance S p i e l ma n n - R u b i nste i n . Berl i n 1 91 8 *** Black t o play R u b 1 nste 1 n played the o b v i o u s 1 l'.! IB a n d , alter 2 'lll' h5, threate n i n g 3 'lll' xh7 + . S p 1 e l m a n n ' s attack had developed menacing proportions H a d R u b i n stein found the best move - w h i c h was overlooked n o t o n l y by b o t h players b u t a l s o by the a n n otators at the time - he w o u l d h a v e n i pped S p 1 e l m a n n ' s d r e a m s 1 n the bud a n d h a v e assu red h i mself a n e v e n g a m e . W h a t was h i s b e s t move'

1 7 7 An Eye for a n Eye Stei n e r - A l e k h i n e . So uthsea 1 923 **** White to play White cont i n u ed m combative fash i o n with 1 f5 Ji. xf5 2 lD xf7, but l ater l ost a piece m the comphcat1ons There was a more i n g e n i o u s a lternative at h i s d i sposa l, o n e w h i c h w o u l d h a v e b e e n d e c 1 s 1 v e to the p o i nt of w i n n i n g f r o m h i s red o u bt a b l e opponent H o w could he have downed the m i g ht A l e k h ­ me?

1 78 H i g h N o o n Stei n itz-And ersse n , Berl i n 1 862 *** White to play H ere 1s a d r a m a t i c i nter l u d e f r o m a heavy­ weight encou nter between two giants of 1 9th century c hess. Ste 1 n itz, who despite bemg a piece down h a d a pos1t1on w h i c h looked f u l l of prom rse, retreated 1 ilf a 5 Eventu a l l y he lost the g a m e What s h o u l d he have p l ayed to w i n >

63

Blunders and Bfllliancies

1 7 9 A C l ose S h ave Stephe nson-Pen rose, B ristol 1 968 ** White to play Pen rose won the 1 968 B n t 1sh C h a m p 1 o n s h 1 p at t h i s e v e n t but he rea l l y was 1 n v e r y hot water at one stage here Step henson c h ose 1 1.1. xc8 + but event u a l l y he was g r o u n d d o w n by Penro­ se's su perior tec h n iq u e . C a n you s e e how h e m i g h t h a v e seized h i s opportu n ity a g a i nst the c h a m p 1 o n 7

1 80 T r u m pets of J e r i c h o Sueti n - O ' K e l ly, H avana 1 969 **** White to play I t was a pity that Suetin m i ssed his way here. for there was a n opport u n ity to pull off a 'clockwork' c o m b 1 n a t 1 o n w h i c h would h ave ranked very h i g h i ndeed H o w could he have set about the task with guns a - b l a z i n g ?

1 8 1 Fly 1 n t h e O i ntment Sza b o - R eshevsky. Z u rich (cand) 1 95 3 ** White to pla y P l a y c o n t i n u ed with t h e apparently natural seq uence 1 «its + _j_ xf6 2 .t xf6 T h e next day, on being shown the opportu nity h e had m i ssed, Szabo was v1s1bly u pset a n d a d m itted he had had a very tro u bled sleep, due to thoug hts of the game g o i n g through h i s m m d . What had b e e n overlooked by b o t h g r a n d ­ masters d u n n g the a bove m e n t i o n e d moves?

64

Missed Opportunities

1 8 2 Second B ite Szabo - R eshevsky, Z u r i c h 1 953 ** White to play T h i s is a c o n t 1 n uat1on of the game m the preced i n g d i agram At t h i s poi nt, Szabo pl ayed 1 .i xfB and eve ntually the game was agreed drawn. D o you see how he could have c a p i ta l i zed o n t h i s second opport u n ity to w i n the game?

1 8 3 F i n est of Means Szalay- M a r i l lay. H u ng a ry 1 971 ** Black to pla y With very few moves ava r l a b l e t o h i m , B l ack fi rst considered 1 . . g3 with a double attack on Wh ite's rema m m g pawn H owever, he rejected 1t 1 m m e d 1 ately bec a u se he saw he w o u l d l ose h is B i s h o p after 2 «l f3 + . H e therefore retreated .t c5. W h ite replied 2 1t to safety with 1 li) xg4, after t h i s, the result was no longer m d o u bt because the B i s h o p was of the 'wrong c o l o u r' Was B lack correct to have rej ected the pawn advance?

1 84 Desperate Measures T a i m a n o v - G e l l e r . U . S . S . R . 1 968 **** White to play W h i t e n o w p l a yed 1 'llf e3, o n l y to rea lise after see i n g the reply 1 :t aB. that his pos1t1on was beyond hope There had been a rather surprisi n g a n d much better h n e of play at his d i sposal What was 1t?

65

Blunders and Brilliancies

1 85 W a l k i n g the P l a n k Ta l - Antosh i n , U . S . S . R . 1 957 ** * * White to play H ere, Tai m issed the opport u n ity of l a u n c h m g o n e of h i s typ i c a l combmatlons. D o you know e n o u g h about h i s sty le to see the rmpress1ve l i n e w h i c h w o u l d have resu lted 1 n a v1ctory7

1 86 M atter of O p i n i o n Ta i - La rsen. m a t c h 1 965 ** White to play H e re we s e e a r a t h e r u n c h a ractenst1c tactical oversight by the master of atta c k ! H e c h ose 1 i. e4, soon after w h i c h the game was d r a w n . Later, when a s k e d w h y he hadn't pl ayed Jl. xa6, he rep l i e d that Black would have p i n ned the B ishop with h i s R ook. Was this o n e of the rare i nstances when the super- i m a g i n ative Tai failed to l ive u p to h i s reputat i o n "?

1 87 Sagacity Tarta kower-Aszt a l os, Bad B a rtfe ld 1 926 *** Black to play Tartakower, t h e w1tt1est of chess writers, div­ ided p l a yers i nto fou r categories· ( 1 ) Weak p l ayers w h o don't k n ow t h ey are weak; they are i g noramuses - avoid them, (2) Weak p layers w h o know they are weak; they a re 1 ntel l 1 gent - help them , ( 3 ) Strong p l ayers w h o d o n ' t know they a re strong; they a re modest - respect them; a n d ( 4) Stron g p layers who know they a re strong; they are sages - f o l l ow them Asztalos p l a yed 1 . J:I c3 but o n l y drew. H o w c o u l d h e have outwitted the sage? 66

Missed Opportunitres 1 88 B la c k M a g i c Tesc h n e r - P o rt i s c h , M o n a c o 1 969 *** Black to play A c l a s s i c e x a m p l e o n t h e theme o f missed o p p o rt u n 1 t1es! White had JUSt devoure d the

tempti n g morsel of B la c k ' s pawn w h i c h had been o n d 5 , u n p rotected; i n c a l c u l atmg this move, h e had 1·el 1 ed on the b a c k - r a n k t h reats to keep Black b u sy. He was l u c k y because B l ack. s u r p r i s i n g l y , fell m with these ideas repl y i n g 1 'jf a 6 and event u a l l y the game ended a s a draw. H o w c o u l d B l a c k h a v e s h o w n h i m t h e error of h is ways?

1 89

B la n k Check

To m o v i c - S o k o l ov, B e l g r a d e 1 961 White t o play

**

"Never miss a check, ; 1 might be mate!" 1 s a beg i n ner's favourite qu ote � to w h i c h Larsen

adds the proviso· "A t least not in analysis !" Wh ite, w i t h a potent i a l l y w i n n i n g pos1t1on, gave t h e useless check 1 � e5 + S u d d e n l y to h i s horror, he saw that he was l ostl D o you sec w h y?

1 90

Mesmensm

Torre - E d . Lasker. Ch i c a g o 1 926 Black to play "In chess, there rs only one mistake:

**

over-est1mat1on of your opponent All else is either bad luck or weakness ,. - Tartakower

Lasker h a d seen t h e w i n n i n g move here, yet rejected 1t after m isj u d g i n g its c o n sequences H e e x p l a i ned t hat he thought it too s i m p l e and, out of 1·espect for h i s opponent's reputati o n , felt t h e latter wou l d never have a l l owed s u c h a poss 1 b 1 l 1ty to occur. H e p layed 1 f 6 What should h e h ave done'

67

Blunders and Brilliancies

1 9 1 Femme Fatale Tra p l - F o ri ntos. O b e r h a usen 1 961 ** Black to play Fori ntos decided on 1 'iif d 5 + I t was h i s mrsfortu n e that a l t h o u g h h i s Q u e e n , K n i g h t a n d pawn w e r e 1 n d a n g e r o u s prox 1 m 1ty to Wh ite's K i n g , the latter m a n aged to extricate 1t safely a n d forced Black to res i g n shortly after, his pawn o n a 7 pos r n g a deadly th reat. O n such frne poi nts are games won and l ost! Do you see the correct way to take advantage of the pred icament of Wh ite's monarch?

1 9 2 S peck o n t h e H orizon U h l m a n n - H e n n i ngs. W i e m a r 1 968 **** White to play White consi dered a n d then rejected 1 l! xc5 bec a u se h e fea red B lack w o u l d g a i n too m u c h compe nsati o n for the Q u e e n after 1 . . 1W x c 5 2 .bt7 + . M a rco has put 1t: "An eye for the microscope betokens the master. " You w i l l have to p l u m b t h e depths of t h i s pos1t1on to frnd the correct reply but - did U h l m a n n make the r i g h t decision?

1 93 S l i ppery S l ope Weg e m u n d - S c h l ag e. Oyn h a usen 1 922 ** White to play W hite c h ose 1 'iif l4. alter w h i c h his g a m e drifted s l o w l y . t h o u g h i rrevocably, d o w n h i l l . We c a n isolate t h r s pos1t 1 o n as the t u r n m g pomt 1 n the game H o w could White h ave capital ized o n his previ ous good play and have won?

68

Missed Opportunities

1 94 H o use of Cards Weste r i n e n - J a nsso n . U ppsa l a 1 969 *** Black to play "If the student forces himself to examme all the m o ves that smite, ho we ver absurd they look at f1rst glance, he is on the way to becommg - Purdy a master of tactics " B l ack continued r n thematic style w i t h 1 e6, but eventu a l l y lost. It w o u l d appear that W h ite had a firm g n p o n the ce ntre, yet B l ack c o u l d have destroyed t h i s 1 l l us 1 o n . How?

1 9 5 Tip of the I ceberg W i l l i ams- H a rrwitz. match 1 852 *** ***** White to play W h i te c l osed 1 n f o r the k i l l w i t h 1 'll' a 7 but was rocked back on h i s heels by B lack's c a l m response (a) H ow did B lack reply to 1 'll' a 7 7 ( b ) Wh ite, with a m a n oeuvre of M a c h i a v e l l i a n d e p t h , c o u l d h a v e b r o u g h t h i s attack to a s u c ­ cessf u l c o n c l u s i o n . How?

1 96 Last Round Draw Wol f - R u b i nstei n , Carls b ad 1 907 *** Black to play T h i s was t h e l ast r o u n d of the tournament a n d R u b r n st e r n needed only a h a l f - pornt to c l i nc h fi rst p l a c e Play continued 1 . . . .i a 6 a n d was soon a greed drawn. a res u l t which proba bly sat1sf1ed both pl ayers. In less pressing c i rc u mstances, R u b i nstei n probably w o u l d have d i scovered t h e splendid winning poss1b1 hty ava i la b l e to him at this point. What was if? 69

Blunders and Brilliancies

1 9 7 The H a n g i n g Piece Woo l l a rd -W a h l t u c h . B l ackpool 1 908 *** White to play After 1 ll e 1 , t h e advantage c h a nged h a n d s a n d B l a c k made steady progress to w i n eve n t u ­ a l l y R e a d e r s of a keen tact i c a l e y e may f i n d rt surprising th at White m i ssed the c o m b 1 n at 1 o n , for when Queens are on the same h n e of a c t r o n a n d one 1s u n p rotected . . H o w c o u l d Wh ite, to play, have exploited the tactica l weakness m B l ack's pos1t 1 o n ?

1 9 8 O ve r - confidence Yates- M a rs h a l l . Ca rlsbad 1 926 White to play Accord i n g to Chernev, "the sign of a great master is his ability to win a won game quickly and painlessly . . The h a l l mark of a f i g hter - a n d M arsh a l l w a s o n e of th ese - 1s often s e e n i n h i s re l u ctance to g ive u p a n a pparently l ost c a u se Stubborn a n d conti n u ed res ista nce often c a n render t h e w i n n i n g of a 'won· game prob­ lematic, even for the greatest of masters. W h ite, u nd ersta n d a b l y p i q u ed at his opponent's refusal to res i g n , proceeded 1 � c4 b 1 = 'if 2 'llf xb1 + � xb1 3 � b4. whereupon h i s dreams were shattered by the s ubtle reply 3 @ b2 - a n d a draw was ag reed u p o n . With 1 'llf c2 a 3 2 @ c3 @ a 1 3 @ b3 b 1 = 'Ill' + 4 'if x b 1 + @ xb1 5 @ xa3 @ c2 6 f4, Wh ite would h ave won easily

1 99 Key M ove Yates-Ta rrasc h . L o n d o n 1 922 ** Black to play Alekhme had clear views on time tro u b l e · "The fact that a player 1s very short of time is, to my mmd. as little to be considered as an excuse as, for mstance, the statement of the la w - breaker that he was drunk at the time he committed the cf/me " Tarrasc h , h a rried by the c l ock, repeated the position with 1 ll h 1 + 2 @ g2 ll g 1 + , etc. The reader, w i t h time for c a l m a n d sober ref lect i o n , s h o u l d not find 1t d i fficult to d iscover the wm he m i ssed How with a probl e m - l i ke move, c o u l d B l ack have crushed all resistance7 70

Missed Opportunities

200 A B i rd in the H a nd Za itsev - S u et i n , U . S . S . R . ( c h ) 1 952 ** White to play W h ite, 1 n h i s eagerness to w m a pawn, d i d so with the f o l l o w i n g c o n t m u a t 1 o n · 1 .U. x h 7 + 'il' x h 7 2 'il'l3 + lf< h 6 3 'llf xd5. H owever. try as he m i g ht, he c o u l d make no further headway m t h e ending a n d f i n a l l y agreed to a draw. Ounng the post mortem, Za 1tsev suddenly c l asped h i s h a n d s to h i s head m a n g u i s h , because . What had dawned on h i m d u r i n g the a n a l ysis?

201 Margin of Victory Z h u ravlyev - G utm an. Riga 1 974 ** White to play T h i s position 1s rem i n iscent of a composed study in the economy of means by which White c o u l d have a c h i eved v i ctory W i t h so few pieces rem a i n i n g on t h e board, 1t 1s surprisi n g that Zh u rav lyev lost h i s way What was t h e correct road he should h ave taken?

202 S pan n e r i n the Works Z h u ravlyev - Semenyuk. N ovosi b i rsk 1 976 ** White to play A m idst t h e f l u rry o f act1v1ty w h i c h often a rises when a p l ayer has l eft h i mself sh ort of time, h i g h e r objecti ves - such as m a k i n g a consc1e n ­ t 1 o u s search f o r t h e best m ove -- m a y go b y the board, t h e contesta nt must rely on 1 nstmct P l a y somet i mes deteriorates to a farc i c a l leve l , often bo1 l 1 n g down to a case of "any move w i l l d o , as l o n g as 1t 1s p l ayed q u 1 c k l y l " Z h u ravlyev's i nsti ncts told h i m to e x c h a n g e Q u e e n s , w h i c h he d i d , a n d the game e n d e d m a draw W h ;s t c 1 u s h 1 n g alternatrve bad he overl ooked 7 71

Blunders and Brilliancies

203 Sword of D amocles Zukertort- Lee. London 1 887 *** Black to play I n ch ess, th ere 1s s u c h a n i n g redient as ' l uck', though strong pl ayers a lways seem to h o l d the patent on this p rec i o u s commod ity Of c o u rse, It often takes more than a 'won' game to beat a good p l ayer! Lee chose 1 . . A d 7 and only d rew. w h i l e Zu kertort si lently t h a n ked his l u cky stars. H o w c o u l d Lee have won m p retty, a n d mc 1s1ve style?

204 Stay of Execution Zukertort-Li psch iitz, London 1 887 * Black to play Zukertort, 1n a l ost pos1t1on, h a d h i s ho pes crue lly raised when h e saw his opponent's 1 . . . l::t g8 T h i s t u rned out to be merely a temporary reprieve, however. as B lack went on to w i n . H ow c o u l d Li psc h u tz have won i m m e d i ­ a t e l y - a n d i n very easy fash i o n at that?

205 At the Cafe i n Pans Ano n . - A n o n . , P a ris, ci rca 1 930 **** White to play T h i s position 1s s a i d to h a v e occu rred at t h e Cate de l a R egence, a favourite h a u n t of Parisian ch ess pl ayers of the late 1 9th a n d early 20th c e n t u r i es. The game conti n u ed 1 n true coffee ­ house fash i o n with 1 'iti f2 a n d event u a l l y was drawn Later, the resident chess i n structor there demonstrated a w i n for White i n study · l l ke fash i o n W h a t 1 m press 1ve l m e of p l a y d i d he p o i n t out to h i s pupJlsi' 72

Missed Opportunities

206 The B i s h o p S o l o A no n . - P i l ls b u ry ( si m u l ) U . S . A . 1 902 ** White to play P i l lsbury was said to have been very proud of t h i s e n d i n g - and 1 ust1f1ably so, It 1s a lm ost u n i q u e m chess h i story Wh ite, a piece up, appeared to be coast i n g to a w i n a g a i nst one of the chess i m m orta ls The game cont i n u ed 1 'Iii' h4 '111' 17 2 A xe4. What ha ppened next>

207 Wnh a B u m p ! A no n . - R e l lstab. B e r l i n 1 936 ** White to play The following va l u a b l e q u ote from Znosko­ B orovsky 1s of relevance both to this pos1t1on and to the theme of this whole c h a pter: "A void­ ance of mistakes is the begmning. as 1t 1s the end, of mastery in chess. " Whne moved 1 i:t e 7. He was so sure there was no way for B lack to stop 2 'lll' xg7 + + that he had a l ready written 1 - 0 on h i s score sh eet and barely restra i ned h i mself from g 1 v 1 n g it to the ex pert to s i g n . H owever, h i s celebrations w e r e short - l i ved, for there was a major flaw i n h i s plan I C a n you f i n d it]

3

N ever S a y Die ! Unwarran ted Resignations

"He said check to my Queen and so, of course, I had ta resign " - Anonymous amateur explaming a defeat

The mock t 1 p p 1 n g over of the K i n g , f o l l owed by the sto p p i n g of the clock a n d a handshake wnh the opponent - this, no d o u bt. is the least favourite r i t u a l of the c h ess player. Res1gnat1on 1 s often a p a i n f u l experience, so m u c h so that m a n y p l a yers g o to extreme lengths m o r d e r to a v o i d 1t B u t who, m h i s right m m d w o u l d res i g n a won or drawn pos1t1on:> I n m ost of the pos1t1ons w h i c h fol low, t h e p l ayer to move d i d not do so - h e o r s h e resigned T h i s w o u l d hardly be o f i nterest were 1t n o t f o r the fact that 1 n each case the res i g n mg co ntesta nt had overlooked a resou rce which, at the very m m 1 m u m , w o u l d h a v e assu red a playable g a m e ; as a m atter of fact. i n the majority of pos1t1ons, 1t w o u l d have g iven a n outright win! This p resents us with a n 1 nterest 1 n g psyc h o l o g i c a l study a s , u n l i ke m a n y previ ous examples, time tro u b l e h a r d l y enters the picture at a l l G iven the choice between res i g n i n g a n d l o s i n g on time, m ost p l ayers t h i n k l o n g e n o u g h a b o u t the former to f a l l prey to the l atter. If we d i scou nt exte r n a l factors, such as a press i n g engagement w h i c h d i stracted a player from taking the game to its logical c o n c l u s i o n , we may isol ate these positions as examples par excellence of the aff 1 1 c t 1 o n w h i c h Tarrasch termed ' a m a u ros1s schacch1st1c a ' . In the main, these a re examples of chess b l i n d ness i n its starkest form There a re two noticea ble th emes which a p p l y to the positions i n this c h a pter. In m a n y cases, the player w h o gave u p h a d l o n g been sta r i n g defeat i n the face - h e had ex pected, or e v e n felt t h a t he deserved to lose I n o t h e r examples, the s h o c k of being confro nted with a surprise m o v e was e n o u g h to n u m b the senses and ca use a suspension of any objective outlook The positions exempl ify a wide range of c o m b i n a t i o n a l themes, ranging from the simple defensive move to the heroic counterattac k As a n u mber of solutions a re fairly d1ff1cu lt, It 1s q u ite u ndersta n d a b l e that 1 n t h e s e c a s e s the p l ayer l ost h i s w a y I f t h e r e 1s a l e s s o n to be drawn f r o m s u c h debacles, 1t must be that each pos 1 t 1 o n s h o u l d be j udged on i t s own merits, n o matter the c o u rse of play preced i n g 1 t . H o wever, s u c h a n attitude req u i res nerves of steel a n d g r e a t self-control Of cou rse, the best advice 1s often the h a rdest to follo w . The reader 1s a bout to enter the graveyard of l ost s o u l s who faded to take heed of such wisdom they resig ned 1 n haste a n d repented a t t h e i r l e i s u re

74

Never Say Die l The Immortal Resigns Game

"Short of actual blunders, tack of faith m one 's pos1t1on 1s the chief cause of defeat To be sure, 1t 1s easy to recommend faith and not so easy to pracflse 1t " - Reinfeld J u st as a c h i evement earns a place in history so, provided 1t 1s b i g e n o u g h , does fa i l u re We hope the reader w i l l forgive us for prefac i n g this c h a pter with a look at two of the most cel ebrated examples of u nwarra nted resi g n a t i o n , both of w h i c h have entered the a n n a l s of c hess legend. T h e fi rst comes from M a rco, w h o w a s o n e of the f i n est a n a l ysts of h i s day, yet h i s g reatest c l a i m to f a m e - to 1 nfamy7 - came to rest u p o n h i s res1g n 1 n g t h i s won pos1 t 1 o n . The d r a m a of the s i t u a t i o n , coupled wuh the p i q u a ncy of the s o l ut i o n , makes 1t easy to u n de rsta nd why this pos1t1on has been repeated 1n cou ntl ess texts, and also w h y 1t deserves the u nenviable accord of being d u bbed the ' i m m ortal res i g n s game· As the reader c a n see, with White's l ast move there were t h ree p ieces attack i ng the p i n ned B i s h o p o n d4 M a rco, seei ng n o way to save 1t - and l oath to cont i n u e playing a piece down, 208 Von Popiel - M arco res i g n ed M o nte Carlo 1 902 It was poi nted out l ater that had he found the Black to play bri l l i a nt 1 . it g 1 , h i s opponent w o u l d h ave been forced to resi g n ! The latter w o u l d have had to take the B ishop - e l se he w o u l d h ave been mated by . 'ii' x h 2 - and so w o u l d h ave l ost his Queen We can o n l y g u ess at M a rco's react i o n concern i n g t h i s l a pse While 1t 1s a major catastrophe for a profess i o n a l pl ayer to throw away a full pomt i n a tourna ment. one suspects that - after overc o m i n g the 1 n 1t1al d i sappoi ntment - h e m a n aged to d1sm1ss th e episode with a rueful grin S u ccess has been defined by some as the capacity to cope with fa i l u re What h u m o u r there 1s 1 n chess is often of the black vari ety a n d , as such, genera l l y arises u nwitti ngly

Blunders and Brilliancies Darga ·s Disaster

"A man surprised 1s half- beaten " - - Proverb A n other celebrated and more recent example of unwarra nted res1g n at 1 o n - this t i m e i nvolving a n u n us u a l i nstance of d o u b l e b l i nd ness - occu rred m the 1 1 th r o u n d of the 1 964 l nterzo n a l at Amsterd a m . W h i te had i ust m oved 40 � f2 a n d a n obv i o u s reply w o u l d have been 4 0 . . .i. x h 4 + B l ack w o u l d then have had t h e advantage of a passed pawn vs d o u bled pawns, p l u s B 1 s h o p v s p i n ned K n i g h t N o t satisfied with t h i s. L e n g y e l pl ayed t h e su rprisi ng 4 0 . l:t 6xe2 + , where u p o n Darga to gasps of disbelief - resigned! H e e x p l a i ned later that he was u nder the 1 l l us 1 o n that after 41 l:t xe2 A x h 4 + . h i s only move w o u l d have had to be 42 @ g2, a l l o w i n g l:t xe2 + . B e c a u s e he had b e e n u n a ble to 42 . move 'iti e3 before. he forgot he would have been a b l e to do so after 41 l:t xe2 i xh4 + a n d this w o u l d have l eft h i m with two R ooks a g a i nst Rook a n d B ishop, a l most a s u re w i n ! 209 Darga-Lengyel When Lengyel was asked why he hadn't A msterd a m 1 964 p l ayed the m u c h better 40 � xh4 +, he Black to play rep l i ed that he h a d n ' t seen the advantage of d o i n g so! B ro nste i n com mented that 1f Darga had o n l y recaptured with the R ook, he w o u l d h a v e s e e n the escape square for h i s K m g . " F u rthermore, a pl ayer of h i s experience must have known that he had passed the t i m e control a n d so he c o u l d have consid ered the pos1t1on at h i s l e i s u re - yet he resigned I" D 1 v i n sky reported . " R eshevsky a n d I were there w h e n he res i g ned Reshevsky sh outed, "What are you d o i n g ?" Darga flushed red, grabbed his head and e x c l a i med, "lch gew1nn, Mem Gott ! ' but 1t was too l ate, for he had a l ready res i g ned " N ow 1t 1s the reader's turn to take the defensive role. The task m the f o l l o w i n g pos1t1ons 1s to fmd a more p a l a t a b l e a lternative to t h e course of action taken by t h e p l ayer 1 n the game, 1 e., that of res i g n i n g

Never Say Die !

21 0 A S o p to Cereberus A h u es- M u l l e r . B e r l i n 1 920 ** Black to play As 1t a p peared t h a t B l a c k had been l u red into a c l assical Rook- a n d - B ishop mate (1 gxf6 2 : g 3 + a n d mates ) . he resigned. T h i s was a n u nsat i sfactory c o n c l u s i o n to the game for, i nstead of res 1 g n 1 ng, he could have w o n r H ow]

2 1 1 Beyond the Veil B a rt o l i t c h - A b k i n , S t . Petersburg 1 902 ** White to play I t may be a r g u ed that B a rtohtch resig ned t h i s pos1t1on far t o o l ate, as t h e r e a r e few p l ayers who are prepared to face the h u m 1 hat1on of soldiering on w h i l e down a Rook an exchange a n d a pawn. Now, faced with i m pend i n g mate, he f i n a l l y adm itted defeat - b u t 1t was prec isely at this point that he could have drawn! H o w could he have salvaged a l ucky h a l f ­ pomt7

2 1 2 G h ost 1 n the M a c h i n e C a p a b l a nca-Thomas, H ast i n g s 1 91 9/20 *** *** White to play T h e pos1t1on 1s a w e l l - known one Capa ­ b l a n c a , w h o often was referred to as "the chess m a c h i n e " bec a u se of the relentless accuracy of h i s p l ay, moved 1 11V a 8 a n d Thomas d u l y resig ned T h i s presents u s w i t h a rare example o f a tactical oversight o n the Cuban genius' pa rt, for the a p parently dec1s1ve 1 'W'a8 s h o u l d rea l l y h a v e let h i s o p p o n e n t b a c k m t o the g a m e ( a ) H ow c o u l d T h o m a s h a v e f o u g h t o n after 1 tl e 8 > f b ) W h a t . 1 n stead o f t h i s . s h o u l d Capabla nca !l a v e p l a y e d t o w 1 n i'

77

Blunders and Brillian cies

2 1 3 Stemm i ng the Tide G . C h a n d l e r-Austin, E d i n b u r g h 1 981 ** Black to play W h ite, i nstead of m o v i n g his threatened Queen, had i u st pl ayed the i n g e n i o u s til b5 whereupon B l ack, a fter due reflect i o n , resig ned H a d Aust i n found the one defence to the bew i l d e r i n g mating th reats, there is n o assurance that he w o u l d have m a n a ged to avoid eve n t u a l defeat f r o m t h i s pos1t1on, y e t p l a y i n g that move would surely have afforded him a g reat dea l of pleasure H ow c o u l d he have staved off 1mmed 1ate d i saster:>

2 1 4 Ant1 - c l 1 m a x D e k h a n ov - Y usupov. U . S . S . R . 1 981 *** Black to play W h i te had obta i ned g o o d compensati on f o r h i s exchange deficit m the form of a strong ou tpost o n e5 a n d the somewhat awkward pred icament of B l ack's K m g . H o wever, w h e n the l atter p l ayed 1 . 'ilf a 6, Wh ite considered the new position for a m i n ute or two a n d res igned, f o r he s a w n o way t o a v r n d t h e threatened e x c h a n g e of Queens. H a d he t h o u g h t for a few m o m e n t s l o n ger, t h o u g h . H o w s h o u l d he have dealt with 1 . . 'lii' a 6 >

2 1 5 E m g m a Variations D i a z - M e n d ez, Lourenc;o M a rq ues 1 972 ** White to play W h i t e moved 1 .� .xd5, w h i c h m e t w i t h 1mmed1 ate success, for B l ack res i g n e d ! O n fi rst v1ew1ng, t h i s may appear to have been a n e n 1 g ma t 1 c dec1s1 o n . b u t B l ack had 'seen' what W h i te had 1 n m i nd, 1 e . t h a t after 1 'ilf x d 5 2 'i!t' f4 w o u l d attack two p i eces, a n d as he w o u l d be u n a b l e to defend b o t h , he s a w n o p o i n t 1 n c o nt 1 n u m g H i s d e c 1 s 1 o n wa� certa i n l y n o t J Ust1f1ed because, 1 n fact. he had a very good response ava i l a b l e W h a t was 1tt 78

Never Say Die !

2 1 6 S h e l l S h ock E n g e l b e rt - H ofma n n , S c h l e u s i n g en 1 961 *** Black to play The story l i n e 1s s 1 m 1 l a r t o many other exam p l es i n this c h a pter Wh ite had J U St moved 1 'ill e 2-g4, threate n i n g 'ill xg7 i i As B l a c k c o u l d n ' t t a k e the u n protected Queen - fo r A a 8 w o u l d have led to mate - he resigned How c o u l d he have saved t he game?

2 1 7 Rearg u a rd Act i o n F l o h r - G rob , m a t c h 1 932 ** White to play B l a c k had J U St moved 'i!V b5, t h reaten i n g 1 � f1 + + , w h i l e s i m u ltaneously atta c k i n g the pawn o n b2 a n d t y i n g White's Queen down to the defence of the B ishop on d5. F l o h r, who at that time was o n e of the st rongest players 1 n the world, saw n o defence to the th reat w h i c h d i d not i nvolve the l oss of a p i e c e H e th erefore res i g ned. Wou l d you have resigned t h i s pos1t1 o n :>

2 1 8 A M oot P o i n t G o l o m b e k - Keres. M a rgate 1 939 ***** White to play G o l o mbek resig ned this. t h e f i n a l pos1t 1 o n o f a c l a ssic e n d i n g Later, F i n e a n n otated t h e game l.i e5· ·-- b 2 ) a n d awarded Keres' last m ove ( a n e x c l a m a t i o n mark E u we, h owever, g a v e t h e same m ove a q u esti o n mark We ask the reade1 whether G o l o m bek was i u st 1 f 1 ed 1 n res 1 g n 1 n g a n d , by the �ame token, w h o was right. Fine or E u w P

79

B lunders and Brilliancies

21 9 Touchdown H avasi - R eko, B u d a pest 1 976 **** Black to play " genera/lsat1ons are like spec­ tacles for the short- sighted They help, but they are no subslltute for excellent eyesight, or pos1t1onal - B Cafferty 1udgement. " In most cases, the advantage of a pawn w i l l be dec1s1ve i n a p u r e Ki ng a n d p a w n ending Reko saw that a n y ' n o r m a l ' c o n t i n u a t i o n w o u l d res ult i n h i s m e v n a b l e defeat a n d so he resig ned. However, had he taken a less co nservative outlook. he would have been delig hted by the poss 1 b 1 ht1es h i s pos 1 t 1 o n had to offer' How c o u l d he have broken t h ro u g h in devas­ tating style?

220 Tou rney Win ner's Luck H o rsema n - G a rd n er, B i rm i n g h a m 1 955 * Black to play Tartakower once made t h e tong u e - i n - cheek observat i o n that a to urnament 1s a lways won by the l u c k i est player - w h i l e the best one fi n i s h es seco nd H ere, G a rd n e r saw no defence to the m a t i n g t h reats, l:r. xh6 or 'ilf g 7 , a n d so res i g n ed H o rseman, aided by this p i ece of good fortu ne, went on to take fi rst place i n the event. What had both players overlooked?

221 C a p i t u l a t i o n H u g u et - S i m o n ovic, P a r i s 1 963 * Black to play B l ack, up to t h i s poi nt, h a d defended w e l l agai nst Wh ite's bri l l i a n t atta c k i n g play Now faced with the d o u b l e threat of ill xf8 + t or 1:. x h6 +, he res i g ned H ow. q u ite s i m ply, c o u l d he have held on]

80

Ne ver Say Die !

222 Land of the B h nd J o n asson - A n g a ntysson, I c e l a n d 1 984 ** White to play I n the l a n d of the b l i n d, a o n e - eyed m a n 1 s k i n g The d i a g ra m provides us wnh an odd example of a triple oversight Play cont i n u ed 1 f6 e2 2 fxe 7 .i.d4 + 3 Resigns - as reported by M ic h a e l Stean in 'The O bserver' The f i n i s h 1s q u ite str i k i n g , yet a few readers f o u n d this i ncred ible, for as it turns out, White s h o u l d NOT have resigned D o you see what they had noticed, yet the pl ayers and the a n notator had m i ssed?

223 D ramatic I nter l u de K e l l e r - Sc h l emmer, V i e n n a 1 943 White to play The d i a g r a m f a l l s i nto the category of u nsolved mysteries as, accord i ng to the reports, there was a n a m u s i n g d i a l og u e between the players at t h i s p o i nt " I t's over," said K e l l e r " I prefer to play on a l i ttle," replied Schlemmer. " N o, I mean I ' m res1 g n m g l " Keller's dec1s1on leaves us myst 1 f 1 ed , espec i a l ly when we c o n s i d e r that a w i n wo u l d h a v e e n a b l ed h i m to tie f o r fi rst p l a c e i n t h e t o u r n a ment. I t 1s poss i b l e t h a t h e s i m p l y m 1 s 1 u dged the pos1t1on - but clearly he w a s w i n ­ n i n g , e g . , 1 c6 R d5 2 'i!i> b6 'i!i> d8 3 � xb5 'i!i> c7 4 'i!i> c5 .i xc6 5 g6!

224 A Problem 1st's Downfa l l Kofma n - S acchetti. B u d a pest 1 947 ** * * White to play Kofm a n , w h o later became w e l l known o n the west coast of U S . A as a pro b l e m composer, saw no rea l istic defence to the mate th reat We test the reader's p r o b l e m - s o l v i n g a b 1 l lty by asking how White c o u l d not o n l y have fen ded off the 1 m m ed 1 ate t h reats but a l so have tu rned the position to h i s advantage D o you see the pretty l i n e of play w h i c h w o u l d h a v e so lved Kotma n ' s d 1 ff 1 c u lt1es7 81

Blunders a n d Brilliancies

225 Between the Li nes Kotov- Lambert, London 1 978 *** White to pla y P l a y w a s adj o u rned i n t h i s finely b a l a n ced pos 1 t 1 o n and Lam bert offered a draw H owever, wh e n Kotov demonstrated the apparently forced w i n n i n g c o n t 1 n u a t 1 o n 1 l: e 6 + � f7 2 l:t xe8 '.P xe8 3 l! e6 + @ 17 4 l! xe4, he became convinced of t h e h o pelessn ess of his s1tuatton and so res i g n ed That eve n i n g - but too late! - he d i scovered a c r u c i a l loop - h o l e in Kotov's a n a lysis What was 1t?

226 Post M o rtem Krass i l n i kov- Beckma n n , ( c o r r ) 1 974/5 *** Black to pla y The shock o f receiving Wh ite's bri l l i a nt last move through t h e mail, .t%. d6, was more t h a n B lack c o u l d b e a r H e q u i ckly esta b l i s hed t h a t h i s Q u e e n had no f l i g h t s q u a res a n d , as 1 exd6 wo u l d h ave been met by 2 ..-. c 6 + a n d 3 'b!fe8 + + , he saw no a lternative but to res i g n Everyt h i n g seemed i n order, but h e s h o u l d h a v e searched f o r t h e l i g h t at t h e end of t h e t u n n e l Do you s e e the bri l l i a n t rej o i nder w h i c h w o u l d h a v e e n a b l ed h i m to k e e p t h e upper hand7

227 G l i ttering Prizes Krej c i k -Schwarz. V i e n n a 1 906 * ** White to play The following c u r i o u s 1nc1dent was d oc u ­ me nted b y c hess J o u r n a l ist Ass i a c P l ay c o n ­ t i n ued 1 li\xc6 + @ c7 2 li' e7 + ¢1 b6 3 c5 + lli a 6 4 ,�,c8 11V x c 8 5 'lll a 7 + '.P b5 6 li' b6 + lll c4 7 'lll b4 + lli d5 8 li'J e 7 + Resigns For t h i s pretty combination, W h i te was awarded the bri l l iancy prize H owever, we must be critical of t h i s award on at least two counts. The fi rst object i o n 1 s that Wh ite's pos1t1on m the d i agram was so strong that he c o u l d have won more q u i c k l y w i t h a prosa i c conti n u at i o n . What l i n e of play did he m1ss7 82

Never Say Die l

228 C h a pter Two Krej c i k - Schwarz. V i e n n a 1 906 ( c o nt i n u e d ) ** Black to pla y B l ack 1s i n check - see prev i o u s diagram a n d moves - and f a c e d with the loss of h i s Q u e e n , he resig ned A s e c o n d ob1ect 1 o n to the bri l l i a ncy prize award 1s a stronger o n e for, as was poi nted o u t l ater by Kre1 c 1 k h i mself, S c h warz s h o u l d not have res i g ned a n d , i n fact. h e could have w o n ! W h a t , at t h i s moment, h a d b o t h pl ayers m i s ­ sed'

229 R o u g h D i a m o n d M a l i n i n - Sc h n e i der. M oscow 1 976 ** Black to pla y Sh ock 1s a powerf u l weapo n l It 1s hardly surpris i n g that the 1 nt 1 m 1datmg presence of W h i ­ t e ' s Rook o n e7 l eft B l ack a l itt le s h a k e n H e rea l ised t h a t 1 J:t xe7 could b e met b y 2 'ili xe7 a l l owed 2 lil x g 6 + 11V xt8 + + . and 1 Not see i n g how to cope with t h e t h reate ned lil'xh7 + + or 1Wg7 + +. he resigned. T h i s decision was made 1 n the heat of t h e m o m e n t . but 1t cert a i l y wasn't the b e s t o n e ! W h a t s h o u l d h e h a v e done?

230 The F i n 1 s h 1 n g Post M a t h ot - B a u m g a rtner. ( c o r r ) France 1 958 *** White to play A t fi rst gla nce, Wh ite's dec1s1on to res i g n a p pears to h a v e b e e n J U St1f1ed After a l l , B l ack was a l ready a head the exchange a n d the com b i ­ n e d press u re of h i s Rooks on the seve nth rank looked dec1s1ve I t 1s likely that M a t h ot reasoned 1n t h i s man ner, yet he was wrong - for there was one a l l 1 m p o rtant factor he h a d f a i l ed to take into cons1d erat 1 o n What combi nat1ve s o l u t i o n d i d he fa i l to see;> 83

Blunders a n d Brilliancies

231 M other of I nvention McAuley-Kerr. (corr) E i re 1 948 ***** White to play I t 1s su rpnsmg t h a t W h i te h a d overlooked B l ack's l ast move, . e5, 1 n a co rrespo ndence game H e saw no way to avoid the loss of a piece a n d so res i g n ed Here he h a d t h e opport u n ity to start t h e sort of tactica l melee 1 n w h i c h the correspo ndence p l ayer, with t i m e for deep and precise a n a lysis. revels. Do you see t h e a m a z i n g seq uence of moves by w h i c h Wh ite could have saved the game?

232 W a l k i n g a Tig htrope M i le i k a - R ozenfel d , ( c o r r ) Latv i a - Est o n i a 1 966 *** White to play White saw n o a nt i d ote t o t h e mating t h reats and so resigned. Th is. yet a g a i n , was a puzz l i n g d e c 1 s 1 o n , especi a l l y f o r a correspondence player, for a n a lysis later proved that h e could have trodden a fine path to victory H o w co u l d he have weathered the storm?

233 P h a ntasmagoria Negyess i - H o nf i , B u d a pest 1 955 * Black to pla y H o nf1 moved 1 ._, x a 2 + and N egyess 1 resig ned As the players were s h a k i n g h a nds, a spectator e n q u i red shyly as to why White h a d n ' t simply taken the Queen w i t h h i s K n i g h t . The p l ayers were d u mbfounded, for both suddenly saw What had they rea l 1sed7

84

Never Say D ie ! 2 3 4 Fata M o r g a n a R o m i - Sta lda. Trieste 1 954 Black to pla v

T h i s e x a m p l e 1s very s i m i l a r to th!o> h 4 1 , for 3 . . W xf4 resu lts i n sta lemate

3. 1 .\1!. c 3 ! a n d Wh ite resigned. H 1s move, 1 d5, was a n u n b e l ievable overs i g h t Chapter 2

ll h 4 ! 8 1 fB 2 ll gB + 1 ll xg7 + 9 � x g B 3 ll g 1 + W f8 4 Jt g 7 + W g 8 5 .tf6 + fB 6 ll g 8 + W xg8 7 'lil' g 2 + 'lil' g 5 8 1il' x g 5 + ? was met by the eleme nta l 1 . . g 5 + 2 @ h 5 lilf4 + 3 exf4 .l x h3 + + . 28 H e could have w o n with 1 @ a6 2 .ll. c8 + ) l! d5 + 1 • lil x d 5 ( 1 2 .i. e2 + @ a 5 3 l! a 7 + a n d mates a text book 1 l l ustrat1on of the R o o k ­ a n d - B 1shop c h eckmate 2 9 1 .i. xb6 axb6 ( o r cxb6) 2 14 would h ave left B lack's K n i g h t stra nded i n the m i d d l e of the board 30 H e could have won with 60 f2 6 1 l! g 8 .i. b1 1 , because 62 W xbt w o u l d h ave enabled h i m to queen w i t h c h eck, g a m i n g the f u l l point. 3 1 . B otv1 n n i k should have played 1 t/1f6 +, a move which 1s not hard to see, but the f o l low u p 1s rather c o m p l 1 cated 1 gxf6 2 1!!' g4 + li< h 7 3 .i. e4 + f5 4 !! d 7 ! ( better t h a n 4 .i. xf5 + exf5 5 'ill' xt5 + •J.i g8 6 i!lt6 'i.l e 5 ) 4 l/ ld8 5 l:!xf7 + 1 1 0lxf7 6 .i. xf5 + exf5 7 \:l xf5 f a n d mates

310

Szabo - Padewski Amsterdam. 1 972

Wh ite d u l y found 1 lilf6 + gxf6 2 'ill' g4 + @ h7 3 .ll. e4 + f5 4 .ll. x f5 + exf5 5 '1W xf5 + g 8 6 l! d7 'ill xd7 7 '1W xd 7 l! b8 8 'i!l g 4 + @ h7 9 'llf f5 + a n d B lack resig ned 32. H e could have had a n easy w i n with 1 lil d 4 ! lil xd4 ( 1 cxd4 2 .i. d 5 + 1 l:t x d 5 3 l! e8 ! ) 2 .i. d 5 + ! l! xd 5 3 l! e7 1 3 3 . P l a y ended with a n mstruct1ve K i n g - h u nt: 2 . 'ill' h 1 + 3 'ill' h 2 'ill' xf3 + 4 xh4 .i. e7 + 5 g5 .i. xg5 + ! 6 x g 5 1 6 + a n d Wh ite resigned. A rather lucky point for M 1 lesl 34 B otvi n n 1 k missed the excellent l! b 1 1 ! 2 'llf x b 1 lil xe3 + 3 g t 'ii' xf3 a n d mates. 35. (a) B l ack's 1 'ill' d4 was refuted by 2 'ill' x h 7 + I , because after 2 @ x h 7 , Wh ite throws in 3 lil xf8 + a n d then takes B l ack's Queen. ( b ) B l ack c o u l d have executed the same idea, but successfu l ly, with 1 '!!V d6 1 , tra p p i n g Wh ite's K n i g ht, for the R ook at f8 would h ave been protected 36 Both pl ayers h a d overl ooked the s i m p l e 1 'ill' x h 5 + x h 5 2 J: h 7 + ' 'ill' b5 + with 37 Wh ite met the sc1nt1 l l at m g c o u nter - c heck 2 1 08

Solutions

l:l c4 + I I . after w h i c h B l a c k was mated 38 (a) By playing 1 J:l fa 1 . White ha nded the game over to B lack on a pl atter, for the latter contmued 1 'ill xe4 + 2 f3 'ill e1 + I , leading to mate. (b) White c o u l d have won easily with 1 l:l a8 + '1< b7 2 '1W b3 + ( o r 2 l:l a7 + ), w h i c h would h ave led to mate. 3 9 . I t borders on the i nexplicable that B u rn didn't see the very s i m ple 1 lil h 6 + g x h 6 2 l:l g4 + @ h8 3 l:l xf8 + + . 40 Wh ite c o u l d have explo ited the ' back rank weakness with 1 l:!:fd1 'lll' e6 2 .t x c 6 lilxc6 3 'ill xc6 ! , after w h i c h B l a c k must resig n 41 T h e f a r from obvious retreat 1 .-t a 6 1 w o u l d have posed an u navo­ idable t h reat of c h eckmate. 42. White was l ucky, for he w o u l d have l o s t a p i e c e if B lack had p layed 1 f4! 43. The Cuban genius would have been left g n a s h i n g his teeth had W h ite fou n d 1 lil xf6 + ! gxf6 2 l:I he1 + @ f8 .t e7 3 'ill' xf6 a n d 4 .t g 5 ) 3 (1f 2 'ill xf6. 'ill' b5! with a stra i g h t 44. forward defl ect i o n of W h i t e ' s over­ worked Queen If 2 'ill' xb5 l:I xd 1 + a n d mates 46 B l a c k could have c reated a ' d i s t a n t { remote) passed pawn' with 1 fxg4 2 hxg4 >l< d 5 3 >l< e3 h 6 1 ( b u t not 3 . g 6 ? 4 g 5 1 ) , fol lowed by 4 . . g 6 h5 and 5 Wh ite w o u l d h a v e been q u ite h e l p ­ l e s s a g a i nst t h i s p l a n . as h i s K i n g w o u l d h ave been deflected from the centre o f the b o a r d . w h i l e B l a c k gobbled u p h i s pawns .t xe4 .t xe4 2 1!1 c4 + 47 w o u l d h ave won a piece Overl o o k i n g a simple Queen check has c a u sed many debacles The f o l l o w 1 n g l e s s t h a n e p i c encou nter ranks as o n e of t h e s h o rtest t o u r n a m e n t games of all time Z . D o r d e v i c - M . K ovacevic, Y u g o -

s l a v i a 1 984: 1 d4 lilf6 2 .t g 5 c6 3 e31'? 'tlt a 5 + a n d poor Whtte resigned i n disa rray. More often, 1t 1 s the K n i g h t w h i c h g o e s astray, e g . , C . M o rriso n - N e i l , E d i n b u r g h , 1 984 ( A l l e g r o ) 1 e 4 lilc6 2 lilf3 d 6 3 d 4 lil f 6 4 c3 lil xe4?? 5 d 5 ! a n d w i n s ( 1 1 5 . 11le5 6 'ill' a4 + ) . And occasionally, a Rook 1s lost· S h i razi- Peters, USA ( c h ) 1 984: 1 e4 c5 2 b4 c x b4 3 a3 d5 4 exd5 'iW x d 5 5 a x b 4 ? > '1W e 5 + ! a n d Wh ite resigned. 48 1 l:l e 2 ! , Resig ns. I f 1 . . .t xe2 2 i xe2 + +; a n d a n y other B i s h o p m o v e a l l ows 2 l:I e 5 + @x h 5 49. 1 l:t h 5 + 1 g x h 5 ( 1 2 'ill' h 7 + >l< g 5 3 'ill' h4 + + ) 2 'ill' g7 + l:l g6 3 h4 + >l< g4 4 '1W x g 6 + + . lil e5 + ! 2 .t xe5 l:l xd 1 1 50. 1 3 .t xc7 e 5 1 leaves W h ite pec u l iarly h e l pless a g a i nst the threatened 4 l:l d4 + + 51 . A tragedy for Cortlever. who d i d n ' t see the splendid 1 .t xh6 + ! l:l x h6 2 'ill' f6 + I ! lil xf6 3 exf6 + >l< h7 4 lil g 5 + @ g 8 5 l:I d 8 + a n d mates 52. (a) 1 d2?? 2 'ill h6 + I g x h 6 3 g7 + + I ( b ) B l a c k co u l d h ave won with 1 'ill xg2 + ! 2 'ill x g 2 .t d 5 ! 54. 1 '1W g 3 + '1< h 8 2 'ill' e5 + @ g8 3 '1W g 5 + @ h8 4 l hf7 '1W xf7 5 'ill' dB + 'ill' g 8 6 '111' 16 + and the pawn o n h6 proves to be the thorn i n B l ack's flesh. 55 l:I g8? After 2 l:I xg8 h2. White c o u l d have l i fted the stalemate with the s i m p l e 3 lil g 3 1 , w i n n i n g (1f 3 lt g 1 4 W h 3 + ) . 56. 1 .t is + .t h 5 2 'ill' x h 5 + 1 g x h 5 3 l:!: h 6 + + 57 Neither player h a d noticed that the Queen on c 2 was en pflse fl

In the 1 956 C a n d i d ates' Tou rnament. Petrosya n was not so l u c ky m h i s game w i t h B r o n ste i n when, m the d i a g ­ rammed p o s i t i o n , he pl ayed the cava l i er 1 t 1 9 5 , w h i c h was c o n v i n c i n g l y t efuted by 1 l" ) x d 6 1 1 09

Blunders and Brilliancies e l e m e ntary 1 l! c l + I 2 .ll. xcl \;!' a 7 + 3 @hl 'ilf2 + 4 lt>gl 11l h 3 o 5 \t' h 1 '/W g 1 + + . It is worth n o t r n g that 1 . • a 7 ? , threaten r n g 2 Ji.xa7 l! c 1 + + , w o u l d have failed to 2 l! dB + ! hd 8 3 .i. x a 7 ! 64. 1 '/W x t2 + 1 2 @ x f 2 .• d4 + 3 l! e3 l! x e3 w o u l d have left White with n o resource a g a i nst the th reatened d i scovered check 65. ( a ) After 1 . . . l! e 2, B l a c k was

31 1

b r o u g h t to h i s k nees by 2 l! c 8 + W h 7 3 l! h 8 + ! @ x h 8 4 'll' h 6 + and mates. ( b ) B l ack cou l d have won with 1 . 111' xf2 + 2 'l!f xf2 i. xf2 + 3 @xf2 l! e 2 +. f o l l o wed by 4 l! xb2 i n o rder t o s i m p l ify t h e p os i t i o n , but t h e most poi nted method is 1 'i!t'g4 + ( c o v e r i ng c 8 ) , foll owed by 2 . . . l! e2 . 6 6 . 1 @ c 5 l:t a 5 + 2 Wc4 l:t a4 + 3 Wc3 l! a 3 + 4 Wb2 wins. T h e 'Saavedra Study· is based o n the s a m e idea of the Rook - a n d - K i n g frog marc h , but with a c o u p l e of refi ned twists. The so l ut i o n is qu i te e x q u 1s1te:

Petrosya n - B ronste i n

White to play Later, when quened about this l a pse, Petrosyan could give n o rat i o n a l e x p l a ­ n a t i o n - a n d p e r h a p s t h ere i s n ' t one. We all know t h e fee l i n g ! 58. 1 'lf x h 2 + I ! w o u l d have opened t h e path for B lack's K n i g hts to perform a m e rry dance e n d i n g 1n c h e c k m a t e ' 2 @ x h 2 11lg4 + 3 @gl 11l h 3 + 4 @fl 11lh2 + + 59. 1 l! a8 + l! g8 2 @f7 , w i th mate to fo l l ow 60. Euwe was wrong, for 1 'YVl h 5 ! ! c o m b i n es an attack on Wh ite's B i s h o p w i t h t h e t h reat of . .t h 3 + . followed b y . . 'll' d 1 -c Whereas White c a n g r n n two pawns for t h e piece w i t h 2 .t x f7 + @xf7 3 l! x c 2 . after 3 . Ji. c6 + 4 \!l< xf7 2 -� c4 + @ fB 3 11 11 + -� f6 4 ll xf6 + • gxf6 5 'ill g 8 + @ e7 6 'ill e6 + W f 8 7 'if xf6 + a n d m ates 80 1 11 1 e6 1 1 wou l d have posed the u n a nswerable threat of 2 .J:. xg6 + (1 . . a xe6 2 l:!: xf7) White c o u l d have drawn w i t h 81 1 b41 l:!: x b4 2 d 7 ll d4 3 b41 ll xd 7 4 b x c 5 draw, bec a u se B l ack's Kmg 1 s t o o f a r from t h e remai n i ng p a w n a n d t h e R o o k m ust b e sacrificed to stop i t 8 2 . 1 .!lg7 + 1 ll xg7 2 ll cB + ll g8 3 'ill' g4! with u n av o i d a b l e mate. 83. 1 lil xg 5 + ! hxg5 (1f 1 . . . @ g6, then s i m p ly 2 .lle4 + ) 2 i.e4 + '1< h6 3 ll h8 + I i. x h 8 4 ll h7 + + 84 ( a ) 1 . . c6? was met by 2 I! h 5 1 1 'ill x h 5 3 111' xc6 + I bxc6 4 i" a 6 + + , the fi rst known example of the two B i shops - " B aden's . . - mate (b) B l a c k could have demo nstrated the weakness of White's pos1t1on with 1 . 'l!l x h 2 + ! 2 'ill x h 2 ll x h 2 + 3 @ x h 2 c6 + , for after 4 l:!: e5 11l xe5, Wh ite's d - pawn 1s p i n ned. ll eB> a l lowed the w i n 85 1 n i ng c o n t i n u a t i o n of 2 'l!l g 5 g6 3 'ill h 6 1 gxf5 4 ll g4 + ! ! fxg4 5 .i. x h 7 + >l< hB 6 i. g 6 + @ gB 7 'ill' h 7 + >l< fB 8 111' xf7 + + 86 B l a c k th rew away an a l m ost sure w m by contm u m g 1 . W xf3 + . a s 2 'lll xf3 ll a 3 led o n l y to sta lemate after White's u n expected rej o i n d e r 3 @ h4! 87 The pos1t1on c a n be l o oked upon as an example of a Freu d i a n s l i p , m t h a t H ort had i n tended to trap G l 1 goric's Queen w i t h 1 .�. g 5 'ill' h 5 2 g41 88 1 l! g4 t • f x g 4 2 'i!!' g 5 + W h8 3 l!!' h6, w i t h the double threat of 4 "!'! xf8 -t + or 4 'i!!' x h7 + + 89 N o • ::! c 5 a l lowed 2 •.t x h 4 w i th a n 1mmed 1 ate draw. a s 2 n xg5 1s stalemate 91 (a) 1 :! xe5 fxe5> was met b y .!. d 7 t h e fa m i l i a r 2 '!!l a6 + ·J. b8 (2 3 ill e6 1 1 ) 3 b a7 1 foll owed by 4

associated with beg i n ners' g a mes, yet 1t occ u rs surpnsmgly often even at the h i g hest level 68. 1 11l e4 (or 11ld5) 'ill xd2 2 lil xf6 + @ hB 3 11l g 6 ( o r 11lf7 ) + + l:X h6 + I 69. 1 was perfectly @gB 2 so u nd . 1 gxh6 (1 l:!: h8 + 1 >l< xh8 3 'ill h6 + a n d mates) >l< 2 'ill f5 + g B 3 'ill g4 + @ fB 4 'ill g 7 + @ e7 5 111' e5 + @ fB ( 5 >!< d B 6 'ill bB + @ e7 7 �. c 5 + w i n s 11l e7 7 t h e Queen) 6 i. c 5 + 111' h8 + + 70. 1 l:l xe5 + ! fxe5 2 g4+ @ h 4 3 'ill e7 + 'l!l g 5 4 g 3 + + 7 2 . 1 'l!l xf5? was j u stly p u n ished by 1 111' g 1 + ! ( 2 >l< x g 1 l:te 1 + + ) . 7 3 . White s h o u l d have played 1 'l!l xg 7 + I >l< xg7 2 g x h 7 + @ f7 a n d now White c o u l d c o n t i n u e 3 ll g 7 + , w h i c h either a l l ows the pawn t o q u een with check, or forces the win of B l ack's '1< 16 4 ll h6 + ) Queen ( 3 74. The su btle m a n oeuvre 1 i. x d 5 i. xd5 2 e 3 1 11l e6 3 e4 w o u l d have left B l ack's B i shop trapped i n m 1 d ­ board Although B l ack could avoid the l oss 11l f3 + 3 11l xf3 of a piece with 2 . i. xf3 4 'l!l xf3 e4, after 5 11l xe4 or dxe4, h e w o u l d have remai ned two pawns down. >l< xg2 75. 1 'ill g 2 + 1 2 11l f4 + + 3 >l< g 1 11l h3 + +. Such the­ matic mates should be fam i l i a r to every p l ayer. 76 G hgor1c could have forced the win with 1 'ill eB + l:t 18 2 l:!: xg 7 + 1 @gB 4 @ xg7 3 'ill e7 + ll f7 ( 3 �18 5 ·'il e6) 4 'ill g 5 + � h8 (4 11le6 + @ eB 6 'i!!' dB + + ) 5 'i!!' dB + g 7 6 lile6 + 'it g 6 7 'ill g 5 + t 77 1 111' xg7 -t ! l:!: xg7 2 l:!: 18 1 \l.•xg7 2 ll.1 7 1 l:t g 8 3 g 7 + + . or 1 >t h6 3 ll x h 7 + + 78 1 17 t II axf7 2 l:! x f 7 i: xf7 3 'i!!' d8 + :! fB 4 i!l xfB + t N ote that .!. h B 2 'l!!' d8 1 1f 1 79 W h i t e had overlooked but B l ack had seen l - the forced win 1 1 1

Blunders a n d Brilliancies

. � . b6 + , 5 1l; a7 + and 6 1l; xc7 + + ( b ) To 1 l he5, B lack s h o u l d have replied 1 l! d 1 ' , for 11 2 l! e 1 !I x e 1 + 3 i x e 1 11; x e 1 + 4 I!. h 2 dS 5 'i!l d6 + mates 1 02 Kasparov h a d overlo oked the elementary 1 l! x h 2 1 2 . h h 2 'l!' h 5 + I f 3 o h 3 11V x h 3 l mates, o r 1f 3 cJ. g 1 i.> f2 @ h3 3 @ g 1 g5 4 @ h 1 g4 5 W g 1 h4 6 >i.> h 1 g3 7 h x g 3 h x g 3 8 W g 1 g 2 a n d w i n s 1 33 . W h i t e h a d overlooked t h e elementary K m g - h u n t 1 'flf x h 7 + ! >i.> x h 7 2 !l h 3 + l!l g 6 3 l! h 6 + 'ili g 5 W g4 5 13 + I 4 h4 + 1 34 B lack. w i t h 1 11; x a 1 2 'i!l' xf4 '1W a 8 1- would h ave had the pleasure of playing one of the longest c h ecks poss i b l e on the board - and with mate to fo l l ow o n the next move 114

Solutions

have forced White to res i g n 1 1 1 47 1 .:l g 1 I 2 t:'l x g 1 • . d4 3 ;!;> e2 l:t e8 - 4 lt d3 .:l e 3 + 5 i!t' xe3 i!t' c3 + , w i n n i n g 1 48 1 i'l" d 2 1 'ill' d6 2 j!/ x d 5 +1 49 D o n n er. u n bel ievably, had overlooked the elementary skewer. 1 . . l: xe4 + 2 Wxe4 .� t 5 + 1 50 1 b5 ill b7 2 b6 + ;l.. a 6 3 '.t b4 l!< b 7 4 lil b5 d3 5 a6 + l:l e 1 + , with sta l e m ate 1 6 7 . White should have played 1 'i' x h 6 ( t h reate n i n g 2 '!!l' h 8 + .t x h 8 g5 2 '!!l' xg5 3 8 h 6 + + ) After 1 'iil x b 2 3 li:l h 6 + l!< h 8 4 J:;; xf8 + � xf8 5 ._, g 8 -t- � . . .i c 1 I i n te n d i n g 2 ::t x c 1 1 68 . 1

316

Mackenzie-Sergeant E d i n b u rg h

1 920

1 70 Eley c o u l d have w o n t h e g a m e - a n d t h e tournament - w i t h a s i m p l e , two - m ove c o m b i n a t i o n 1 !! a 3 + 2 l! was met by 1 _ '/!lf7 + 2 iV x f7 sta lemate By a very curious c o i nc1dence, the pos1t1on o n e move previous to d i a gram 1 6 9 had occu rred 5 2 years before. ( 3 1 6 ) White c o n t i n u e d 1 w g 6 ( f 6 1 , f o l ­ l o w m g Sherbakov-Arla.rn rov 1 s correct and w i n s ) 'l!l' x g4 + 2 .tf7 1!l' h 5 + ( o n e c h e c k too many. 2 'iti h 7 draws) 3 ·;±, t 8 , R e s i g n s A m o s t pec u l i a r e x a m pl e of d u p l i ­ c a t i o n . t h o u g h t h i s is n o t t h e fi rst t i m e t h a t a n a p p a r e n t l y i nferior m o ve h a d led to a better res u l t t h a n what m a y seem to have b e e n t h e correct contt n u ­ at1on.

116

Solutions

1 80 1 8 16 + 1 gxf6 ( o t h e rwise Black s i m p l y l oses the exc h a n g e ) 2 11 12 l:l xf7, Wh ite has the very su rprising 5 'i!t h 5 1 1 at his d isposal O n ll d 2 + 6 lil e1 , White emerges 5 . with Queen a g a i n st Rook a n d K n i g h t a n d w i n s easily. I n view of the above, 1t a p pears that B lack w o u l d d o best to meet 1 l:l xc 5 ! with 1 11V b6 ! . reta i n i ng some c o m ­ pensation for the p a w n 1 93 . B lack's Q u e e n m u st d efe nd the Rook on e8, so· 1 'if xc7 1 1 would have won 1 mme d 1 ately. I f 1 lDxb3 2 11V x b 7 ! 1 94. B l ack c o u l d have s h attered '2J xe4! 2 Wh tte"s pos1t1on with 1 .!i) xe4 lLixd5, reg a i n i n g h i s piece a n d having netted t w o pawns on t h e w a y 1 95 ( a ) B l a c k met 1 ';li' a7? w i t h the c a l m 1 'lll x d 6 ! , w h e r e u p o n Wh i ­ te's pos1t 1 o n w a s left " h a n g i n g " a n d h e soon lost. (b) Wh ite s h o u l d have preceded t h i s i d e a with the fantastic 1 : h 8 ! ! Sl. x h 8 or l:l x h8, 2 because, o n 1 Wl a 7 w o u l d have g iven h i m a w i n n i n g attack 1 96 . I t 1 s surpr i s i n g how q u ickly B l ack c o u l d have overrun Wh ite's K 1 n g ­ s 1 d e with 1 l:l h 5 1 2 h3 12l g 4 ! 3 fxg4 II x h 3 + I 4 >il g l '!!l' h 2 + a n d s o o n mates 1 97 B lack's Queen on c7 was u n protected, therefore 1 'Ll x g 7 ! I f 1 f7 h 5 a n d w i n s 202 1 l:t d8 ;- I w o u l d h a v e forced _t xd8, 2 Black's res 1 g n a t 1 o n If 1 11Ve8 + + , o r 11 1 l:t x d 8 2 'ill' xb7 203 1 l:l d3 1 , a n d 11 2 11Vc2 ( 2 .ll xd3 '1!1 13 + ) 2 'i!l' x h 2 + 1 3 lil x h 2 .l:t h3 + + . 204 The easy w i n was 1 11V h 1 + 2 lil x h 1 l:t 11 + + 205 1 lt/12> merely a wasted tempo, w h i l e there was a n exceed i n g ly fine w i n to be had with 1 l:t g 1 I ( " R ooks belong be h i n d passed pawns") 1 l:l a B 2 lt/ 13 lil h 5 3 lil xf4 J:t g8 4 g7 lil h6 5 lil f5 l:l xg 7 6 l:t h 1 + + ' I t seems a p ity to spoil the story ( w h i c h was g iven m The British C hess M agazi n e ) . but t h i s posit i o n had been p u b l ished as a study l o n g befo re the game at t h e Cale de la R egence, although such a c o i n c i dence t s not 1 m poss 1 b l e 206. After 1 'Iii h4 '111 17 2 � xe4, P i l l s b u ry came up with the s u r p r i s i n g 2 'lil'f1 + 3 � g 1 'ii1' 13 + ! ! 4 .ll xl3 J. xf3 + + , one of the most bea utiful f i n i s hes 1 n the h istory of c hess 207. The flaw 1s not hard to see, yet It provided White with a lesson we are sure he never target! 1 .J:r. e7 ? 'lil' h 1 + ! 2 lil x h 1 � 13 + 3 lil g 1 .:t d 1 + 4 l:l e1 l:l xe 1 + + .

( b ) Capablanca s h o u l d have pre­ ferred 1 .U. xe8 'i!t xe8 2 'Mf a4, w i n n i n g a Rook 21 3 . . 'ill' xg2 + would have postponed the evil day, though 1t m u st be a d m itted that B l ack's pos1t1on 1 s n o n e t o o e n v i a b l e after 2 @ xg2 J1.xc6 + 3 'lil'f3 .II xf3 + 4 li>xf3 a 6 . 2 1 4 D e k h a n ov m u st have k icked h i mself for m 1 ss 1 n g the splendid 2 g4 + fxg4 + 3 lil xg4 + 'lil' x b 5 ( 1 1 3 . g5 4 * eB + ) 4 lil l6 + + 2 1 5 . Black c o u l d have a nswered 1 .li.xd5 'ill' xd5 2 '1!1' 14 with 2 l:l e7 ! , rema i n i n g a p a w n u p w i t h the superior position ( 3 'ill' xf57 J:t xe2 + 4 l:l f 2 'ill' xf5, or 4 li> g 1 'ill' g 2 + + ) D i d a n y readers consider that t h i s may not have b e e n W h i t e ' s i ntent i o n at a l l > I t 1s poss i b l e t h a t D i a z had hoped to win a piece by a n a lternative method, 1 . e 1 .t xd5 'ill' xd5 2 e4 dxe3 3 lil xe3 yet t h i s fails a g a i n st 3 'ill' x d 3 4 lil x15 ( o r l:l xl5) 'lil' e 2 + fol lowed by 5 . . l:l d 2 1 The c o n c l u s i o n I S that Wh ite's position was too fra g i l e for any tactical escapades, a n d Mendez s h o u l d h a v e had m o r e f a i t h i n a game b u i l t on s o u n d pos1 t 1 o n a l Imes. 21 6 . H a d B lack consi dered the poss i b l e c h ecks a n d captu res i n the position, It 1s u n likely he would have m i ssed 1 .l:t b1 + 2 >l< g 2 lil l4 + 1 2 1 7 . F l o h r had overlooked the S i m ple sid estep 1 lil h 1 ( 1 . 'ill' f1 + 2 il g 1 ) 21 8 F i n e - a n d the players - had assumed that after 1 >l< d 2 c1 ( � 'iii ) + lil 2 xc1 .t xc1 + 3 >l< xc1 , White's King m ust g o after t h e a - pawn, w h ich resu lts i n : 3 li>e5 4 lil b2 lil xe4 5 lil b3 1!113 6 lila4 lil g4 7 lil xa5 � xh4, whereupon B lack q u ee n s f i rst a n d w i n s . H owever, as Euwe correctly poi nted out, W h i te can i m prove on t h i s b y g o i n g after B l ack's g - pawn, i e . . 5 lil c3 '1< 13 6 >l< d4 >l< g4 7 >l< e5 li> xh4 8 li>f6 lil g 3 9 lil xg6 h4 1 0 1!116 h 3 1 1 g6, when White q u eens with check a nd draws!

ChaptBr 3

21 0 B l ack c o u l d have broken the p i n with 1 . . 'lil' g 4 ! I f 2 hxg4 gxf6 or 11 2 J:t g3 'ill' x g 3 ! 21 1 Wh ite c o u l d have come u p with a n o n g 1 n a l , self- i n f l i cted sta lemate with 1 '111 16 + lil g B 2 'lil' g7 + li>xg7 3 h6 + 21 2 ( a ) Thomas c o u l d have c o n tin ued 1 l:t xa2 ( t h o u g h not 1 :. c 1 + , w h i c h c o u l d h a ve been met li> by 2 f2 J:tc2 + 3 lil e3, etc ), after w h i c h a draw would have been the l i k e l i est outcome 118

Solutio ns In view of this, Keres' i, e5b2, a l t h o u g h 1 t prom pted G o l o m bek's res 1 g n a t 1 o n , should

was a

h ave

b l u nder a n d

he

Sl. e5-g 3 .

preferred

w i t h a w i n n i n g pos1t1 o n 219. B lack h a d overlooked

the

textbook p a w n breakth r o u g h c o m b 1 n a t 1 o n begi n n i n g 1 . . . c 4 l 2 bxc4 ( 2 d x c 4 a4 3 b x a 4 b 3 1 or 3 c 5 a x b 3 ! - 1 1 2 l!l g 3 a 4 1 3 bxa4 b3 1 ) 2 . . a 4 3 c 5 a 3 4 bxa3 bxa3 5 c6 a 2 6 c7 a 1 = 'i!I' 7 c8 = 'ill' 'i!l' f 1 + 8 l!l g 3 '1!1'14 + 9 \i;· h 3 '1!1' 1 3 + 1 0 lll h 2 'i!l' f 2 + 1 1 '1.' h 3 12

'i!l' h4 +

a l l ow s 2 ::t xf 7 1 . w h i l e '!!l' a 4> loses t o 1 l! d 8 1 I n the game. he d i d f m d the best move 1 �e1 + I ! and, after 2 � xe 1 'lll' b4 3 l! xa 7 '!!l' xe1 + 4 Wg2 11i' x e5 5 'l!!i b 7 '!!l' bB, B lack was out of his d1ff1cu lt1es and eventu · a l l y won 2 7 7 E n g e l s - M a roczy. D r e s d e n 1 936

1

l! x b2

11i' xb2

2

111 xc8 + 1

Blunders and Brillia ncies

!i.:i xc8 3 d 7 ! - a classic example of t h e K n i g ht's c l u msi ness 1 n dea l ­ i n g w i t h a passed pawn 278 G e l l e r - N otaros. N ovi S ad 1 978 White was a Rook down, there­ fore 1 •l!i"x h 5 + I I W x h 5 2 g4 + I @ xg4 (else 3 g 5 + with adva n ­ t a g e ) 3 ile2 + . f o l l owed by a pretty perpet u a l on the squa res f1 , e2 a n d d3. 2 7 9 . H o l e n - H ovde, G a u s d a l 1 983 xl7 2 1 ii xf7 + (1 l:t x d 7 + a n d 3 'll' xb6, or 1 l! x f7 2 i!l x b 6 li:lxb6 3 ll< h 7 2 'l!l' x b 6 l! xd8 + , or 1 lil x b 6 3 l! xd 8 J:!. xd8 4 h 5 1 ) 280. lvanovic- Popovic, Y u g o s l a v i a 1 973 1 .i. e 6 1 - any move of B l ack's B ishop 1s met by 2 'i!l d 4 + and mates, while 1 d 5 a l lows 2 'l!l' e5 + . 281 lvasy u k - R y k l is, U . S . S . R . 1 982 J:l. e2! (2 J:l. xe2 J:l. g 1 + ) 1 282 Lerner - S i d eif-Zade. U . S . S . R . 1 979 1 i b 2 1 'l!l' x b 2 2 l! d 8 + I 283. M i l e i ka-Vo itkevitch, R i g a 1 963 Wh ite e x p l mts the back - ra n k weak ness with 1 l! a7 ! llli' b6 2 l! b 7 1 284 M i l e s - S c h n e i d e r , P h i l a d e l p h i a 1 980 1 'll' xf8 + 'll' xf8 2 li:le7 + � h 7 3 l! xl8 b2 4 lil g 6 1 285 N ajdorf- K u rt i c . M a r del P l ata 1 984 1 'l!l xl2 + 2 ll< g5 ( 1 1 2 'll' g3? g5 + ) 16 + 3 llll' xf6 llll' h4 + 1 4 l!< x h 4 g5 + a n d sta lemate fol­ lows 286 Oberg - U na nder. F i n l a n d 1 983 � d41 2 l! e1 l! c 1 1 1 - a 1 f i n i s h of rare beauty. of t h e sort w h i c h 1s seen i n freq uently outs1de the problem world 287 P a n c h i k - S h u rade. Zakopane 1 978

W i t h a 'qu iet' move, Wh ite ushers m K n i g h t fork poss 1 b 1 l 1t1es. 1 'Oii a81 1 288 Wel ler- H a l l . G l asgow 1 964 1 l! c 1 + 2 'i!l xc 1 l!. xa 3 + 3 ¢ b1 l! a 1 + 4 >t'xa1 iii' a8 + 5 ll< b 1 11i'a2 + + 289 Z h u ravlyev - R o m a nov, K a l i n i n 1 952 1 'll' g5 d 5 2 'ill' g 7 + .!l. x g 7 3 Jl xg7 + lt g 8 4 � 16 + + Your Score: 1 7 / 1 8 - Approa c h i ng I nternati o n a l M aster strength ( 2 300 + 1 5 / 1 6 - M a ster ( 2 2 0 0 - 2 3 0 0 ) 1 3 / 1 4 - Ex pert ( 2 1 2 0 - 2 2 0 0 ) 1 1 / 1 2 - C a n d i date Expert (2040 - 2 1 2 0 ) 9/ 1 0 - U pper Board C l u b P l ayer

6/8 3/5

)

- M id d l e B oard Club Player - Lower Board C l u b Player 'Tough Nuts '

290 E n g e l s - A l l i es, Brazi l 1 949

Wh rte mates 1n f1ve moves 1 'i!l h 7 + 1 � x h 7 2 li:l f6 + 'if< h8 W x h 6 3 l! h 3 + � g 5 4 (2 J:l. g 3 + ) 3 Jl xg7 + W x g 7 4 l! g 3 + @ xf6 5 l! g 6 + + . It 1s sug gested to the reader to work out all the variations - Black has a c h oice of four final positrons. but each of them 1s mate! 2 9 1 Fernandez - Lommer. Venice 1 967 A Venet i a n waltz. 1 1111' 16 + 2 @ b 1 l! c1 + 3 l! xc 1 'il' a 1 + 1 4 @ xa1 d x c 1 � 1111' + 5 il. b 1 llll' c 3 + + 2 9 2 . G r o m kowsk i - Stefa n owitz, (corr), Poland 1 8c41 2 h b8 'll' g 5 + 3 H4 l! b 1 + 4 ll< x b 1 'i!l b 5 + ll< 5 c 1 'ill' b2 + + I t 1 s i m portant to note that 2 l! d 8 + fails to 2 l! xd 8 3 llll' xg4 lil a 3 ! 293 G rynspan - R a m i n s k i , P o z n a n 1 961 In turn, W h ite opens a f i l e , a ra nk, a n d then a d i a g o n a l ! 1 lil g 5 h x g 5 1 22

Solut10ns 2 ._�>1 96' fxg6 3 .: xg7 14 e6 -1- and mates

J. xg7

302 R i chter ( s t u d y ) 1 ..t-b7 + .i h7 2 ,,; h 2 + J:gs 3 i!f a 2 + .C h 7 4 l!i f7 1 1 \ '1!¥ 98 5 'i!!' h 5 7 - ) 303 Taimanov-Anon., (simu l ) ,

294 H o r v a t h - Esperj e s i , H u n g a r y 1 97 1

A latter - d a y i m m ortal 1 .:. d7 c xd7 2 '1!¥ xg 7 + !: xg7 3 l! xg7 + '1 x g 7 4 ;>J f 6 + It h 8 5 (J xf 7 + -t'

R i g a 1 964

1 t c4t 'l!!' xc4 2 :! xg 7 + Jo h8 (2 ±• x g 7 3 ;);· xe5 + ) 3 ..t· x e 5 1'1 xc2 4 11 18 + :l. xf8 5 :l. xg6 + a n d mL1tes

2 9 5 K i t a n o v - B a u m , Eter l i t a m a k 1 948

304. T a i m a n o v - K u z m i n i k h ,

; h3 2 !!1 a 3 ( 2 1!¥ x a8 1 'l!l' e4 and mates) !i. c 8 1 1 3 :! e 1 l! c3 4 bxc3 111 e4 5 1 3 'i!! e3 + 6 l!l h 1 l'if2 7 .::l. g 1 'll' xe2 8 cxd4 e4! 9 14 e3 ( o r 9