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[Event "New York State Championship"]
[Site "Albany"]
[Date "2019.08.31"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Bonin, IM Jay"]
[Black "Wilson, Matthew"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A61"]
[WhiteElo "2408"]
[BlackElo "2120"]
[Annotator "Wilson,Matthew"]
[PlyCount "117"]
1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 e6 3. c4 c5 4. d5 exd5 5. cxd5 d6 6. Nc3
g6 7. Bg5 {I knew about this move, but I did not consider it to be dangerous.
Wrong assessment - the pin turns out to be quite annoying. I didn't have any
prep for this line, so I just played natural moves. That didn't go very well.}
Bg7 8. Nd2 O-O 9. e4 Re8 10. Be2 (10. f3 $4 Nxe4 $1 {
But of course you don't catch IMs with a simple trap like this}) 10... Na6 11.
O-O Nc7 12. a4 Rb8 13. f4 a6 14. e5 $6 ({I was anticipating} 14. a5 Bd7 {
. The engine loves White's position, but I felt that I still had chances. Nc4
can be met by ...Bb5}) 14... dxe5 15. Nde4 h6 $2 (15... exf4 $1 {It's counterin
tuitive to open the f-file, but this is best. In variations with Rxf4 and
d5-d6, Black can pick up a tempo on the rook with ...Ne6 or ...Ncd5. And in
sharp positions, every tempo matters a lot.} 16. Rxf4 $2 (16. Bc4 {is the engin
e's choice, but clearly this wasn't what White had in mind when he played 14.
e5. It leads to complications that eventually fizzle out:} Bf5 (16... b5 17. d6
Ne6 18. axb5 axb5 19. Bxe6 (19. Nxb5 Nxg5 20. Nxg5 Rf8 21. Rxf4 Bh6 22. h4 Bf5
23. Nxf7 Rxf7 24. Rxf5 gxf5 25. Ra7 Kh8 26. Rxf7 Be3+ 27. Kf1 {
(27.Kh1 or 27.Kh2 would walk into a mating net)} Ne4 28. Qd5 Ng3+ 29. Ke1 Qa5+
30. Nc3 Qa1+ 31. Nd1 (31. Qd1 $2 Qxb2 {and Black wins}) 31... Qa5+ 32. Nc3 {
with a repetition}) 19... Rxe6 20. Rxf4 Bb7 21. Qf1 (21. d7 Bxe4 22. Nxe4 Qb6 {
and Black's defenses hold together}) 21... Bxe4 22. Nxe4 Rxe4 23. Rxe4 Qxd6 24.
Rf4 Nh5 25. Rxf7 Qd5 26. Re7 Rf8 27. Qc1 {
and Black has enough compensation for the Exchange}) 17. d6 Ne6 18. d7 Rf8 19.
Bxe6 fxe6 20. Qd6 h6 21. Nxf6+ Bxf6 22. Bxf6 Qxf6 {is equal according to the
engine. Black is 2 pawns up, but his position is loose and the passer on d7 is
very strong. One sample variation is} 23. Rxf4 e5 24. Qd5+ Rf7 25. Ne4 Bxe4 26.
Rxf6 Bxd5 27. Rxg6+ Kh7 28. Rd6 Rd8 29. Rxd5 Rdxd7 30. Rxe5 {
with a drawn rook ending}) 16... Bf5 17. g4 {During the game, this move
deterred me from playing 15...exf4. However, Black has a defensive resource
that is hard to see from afar. Unbelievably, White's e2-bishop is undefended
in some variations, and that changes everything!} (17. Nxc5 Qd6 $1 {
Black breaks the pin with tempo and the d5-pawn will fall}) (17. d6 Ne6 18. d7
Nxg5 $1 {Stockfish's move. My notes suggested 18...Rf8 and White's attack runs
out of gas, but this is stronger} 19. dxe8=Q+ Qxe8 20. Nxg5 Qe3+ $1 {
and White loses material}) (17. Nxf6+ Bxf6 18. Bxf6 Qxf6 19. g4 Qg5 $1 {
I think I saw this during the game. White can try to seize the f-file as
compensation, but it doesn't work:} 20. Qf1 Rxe2 $1 21. Nxe2 {
and now Stockfish likes} Bd3 $1 {This is much better than my suggested 21...
Bxg4. White is tied up and d5 is going to drop off.}) 17... Bxe4 18. Nxe4 Ncxd5
19. Bxf6 (19. Rxf6 Rxe4 $1 {and White doesn't have any good discoveries.} 20.
Rxg6 (20. Re6 Rd4) (20. Rf5 Bd4+ $1 {shields my knight with tempo}) 20... Qd7
$1 {and the rook is stranded}) (19. Nxf6+ Bxf6 20. Rxf6 Nxf6 21. Qxd8 Rbxd8 22.
Bxf6 {The e2-bishop is hanging, but White replies with a counterattack against
my rook. However, after} Rd6 $1 {one of the bishops will fall.}) 19... Nxf6 20.
Qxd8 Rbxd8 21. Nxf6+ Bxf6 22. Rxf6 {
and now the undefended bishop on e2 drops off:} Rxe2 {and Black wins}) ({
During the game, I had been counting on} 15... Bf5 {, but then I noticed 16.d6.
I didn't like what I saw. After rejecting 15...exf4 and 15...Bf5, I played 15..
.h6? without much further thought and missed a simple tactic.} 16. d6 ({
During the game, I saw that} 16. fxe5 {isn't dangerous.} Rxe5 17. Nxf6+ Bxf6
18. Bxf6 Qxf6 19. g4 Qg5 20. h4 Qe3+) 16... Ne6 (16... Ncd5 17. Nxd5 Bxe4 18.
d7 $1 {Stockfish's move} (18. fxe5 $2 Bxd5 19. exf6 {is in my notes. Due to
tactics, neither one of Black's bishops is hanging. However, I couldn't find a
satisfactory move for Black.} Bc6 (19... Be6 20. d7 $1 Bxd7 {
(both 20...Qxd7 and 20...Rf8 run into 21.fxg7)} 21. fxg7 Qxg5 22. Qxd7 {
Again, the e2-bishop is hanging, but here that doesn't save Black. The
clergyman is immune because of 23.Qxf7#}) (19... Re5 {
I thought that this just lost to} 20. Bf4 {, but Stockfish sees further:} Qxf6
21. Bxe5 Qxe5 {and actually Black is fine}) 20. Bc4 {
and inexplicably I missed the obvious} Bf8) 18... Re6 19. fxe5 Bxd5 20. exf6
Bf8 (20... Rd6 21. Bg4 $1 (21. Bf4 {lets Black off the hook.} Qxf6 {
Black can afford to give back the Exchange since he will round up the d7-pawn.}
) 21... Bf8 22. Bf4 Qxf6 23. Bxd6 Qxd6 24. Rf2 $1 {followed by Rd2 ensures the
survival of the d7-pawn. Black is down material and busted.}) 21. Qxd5 Rxe2 22.
Rae1 $1 {Black loses control of the e-file. White will follow up with Re8 and
there isn't much that I can do about it.}) 17. Bxf6 (17. fxe5 Nxg5 18. Nxf6+
Bxf6 19. exf6 {spooked me during the game because it looks like} Qxf6 20. g4 {
wins a piece. However,} Qd4+ $1 {saves the day}) 17... Bxf6 18. d7 Rf8 19.
Nxf6+ Qxf6 20. g4 {
Stockfish's choice. I gave this move a question mark in my notes.} (20. Nd5 Qg7
21. g4 Be4 22. fxe5 Qxe5 23. Nf6+ {In my notes, I thought White was doing very
well here. Knight on f6, pawn on d7, control of the f-file, etc. But Stockfish
is unimpressed. Black also has his trumps. White's king is exposed and the
e6-knight is itching to go to d4. And the e4-bishop is a strong piece}) 20...
Nxf4 {Here my notes correctly observe that Black gets too much compensation
after 21.gxf5 Qg5+. However, I overlooked} 21. Rxf4 $1 exf4 22. gxf5 {
White's monster on d7 outweighs Black's material advantage.}) 16. Bxf6 Bxf6 17.
d6 Ne6 18. d7 $1 Bxd7 19. Qxd7 Bg7 20. Nd5 $2 {
Stockfish frowns on this move. Apparently Black is still alive after 20...Kh8!}
Qxd7 $2 {Now it's over.} (20... Kh8 21. Qxd8 Rexd8 {and Black picks up a third
pawn for his piece. However, White remains in control with a big advantage.})
21. Ndf6+ Bxf6 22. Nxf6+ Kg7 23. Nxd7 Rbd8 24. Nxe5 Nxf4 {A little trick that
recovers some of the material, but White's bishop outweighs the pawns.} 25.
Rxf4 Rxe5 26. Rd1 Rxd1+ 27. Bxd1 b6 {
Or else 28.a5 fixes the pawn on a light square} 28. Bb3 f5 29. Bc4 {
Well played. Now my queenside majority loses its mobility.} a5 30. Kf2 Kf6 31.
Rf3 Re4 32. b3 Ke5 33. Re3 g5 34. g3 f4 35. gxf4+ Kxf4 36. Rh3 {
Winning a pawn. But I found some counterplay to keep the game going.} Rd4 37.
Rxh6 Rd2+ 38. Ke1 ({I was hoping for} 38. Be2 Rb2 39. Rxb6 c4 $1 {The engine
says that White is still winning, but this would give me real counterplay.})
38... Rb2 39. Kd1 g4 40. Kc1 Rg2 41. Bd5 Re2 42. h3 {
It looks like a mistake at first glance, but the IM has worked everything out.}
g3 43. Rg6 Rh2 44. Rg4+ Ke5 45. Bb7 Rxh3 46. Bg2 {Black can't keep his passer.
So 42.h3 was not a blunder - it just liquidated the kingside pawns.} Rh6 47.
Rxg3 Rh4 48. Bf1 {Stopping ...c4} Rh1 49. Rf3 Ke4 50. Rf7 Kd4 51. Kd2 Rh2+ 52.
Be2 Rh3 53. Rd7+ Ke5 54. Bd3 Rh2+ 55. Kc3 Rh4 56. Rb7 Rh6 57. Rg7 {
Threatening to force a trade on g6. I stop it} Kf6 58. Rh7 {
But now I'm forced to trade on h7 instead.} Rxh7 59. Bxh7 {I resigned.} 1-0
After taking a half point bye, I scored a nice win over a master.
[Event "New York State Championship"]
[Site "Albany"]
[Date "2019.09.01"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Wilson, Matthew"]
[Black "Howard, NM Dean"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "B19"]
[WhiteElo "2120"]
[BlackElo "2005"]
[Annotator "Wilson,Matthew"]
[PlyCount "81"]
1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 dxe4 4. Nxe4 Bf5 5. Ng3 Bg6 6.
Nf3 Nd7 7. h4 h6 8. h5 Bh7 9. Bd3 Bxd3 10. Qxd3 e6 11. Bf4 Qa5+ 12. Bd2 Bb4 13.
c3 Be7 14. c4 Qc7 15. O-O-O Ngf6 16. Kb1 O-O 17. Ne2 e5 $6 {At first I thought
, did Black just equalize? But then my knights begged me to occupy f5.} 18. Ng3
$6 {Right idea, wrong execution} (18. dxe5 Nxe5 19. Nxe5 Qxe5 20. Bc3 {
is more accurate, since Black doesn't have the ...Qf4 defense that we will see
later. True, Black can force a queen trade with} Qe4 {, which greatly reduces
White's attacking prospects. But Stockfish points out that White retains a big
advantage after} 21. Ng3 {. The f5-square remains weak.}) 18... Rfe8 (18...
Rfd8 $6 19. Qe2 $1 (19. Nf5 e4 $2 (19... Bf8 {
keeps White's advantage to a minimum}) 20. Nxe7+ Kf8 21. Qa3 $1 c5 {and White h
as lots of ways to win. My notes suggest 22.dxc5, which should do the job, but
Stockfish prefers the simple} 22. Nf5 exf3 23. Qxf3 {
White is up a pawn and his attack is just getting started}) 19... Bd6 20. Nf5 {
In my notes, I thought that Black was okay after} exd4 (20... e4 21. N3h4 {
is very good for White}) {But I missed} 21. Bxh6 $1 gxh6 (21... Re8 22. Qc2
gxh6 23. Nxh6+ Kf8 24. Nxf7 {transposes}) 22. Nxh6+ Kf8 23. Nxf7 Re8 24. Qc2
Kxf7 25. Ng5+ Ke7 (25... Kf8 26. Qg6 Re7 27. h6 $1) 26. Rhe1+ Kd8 27. Rxe8+
Kxe8 28. Qg6+ Ke7 29. Qf7+ Kd8 30. Ne6+ {and White wins}) (18... exd4 {
is suggested by the engine} 19. Nxd4 Rfe8 20. Ngf5 Bf8 {
and now the prophylactic} 21. Qc2 {preserves an edge for White}) 19. dxe5 Nxe5
20. Nxe5 Qxe5 21. Bc3 (21. Rhe1 {was my original intention, but I feared that
Black could swap off all the rooks in some lines. It's not hard to imagine ...
Rad8 and ...Bf8 in the near future.} Qc7 (21... Rad8 $2 22. Qxd8 Bxd8 23. Rxe5
Rxe5 {and I missed that I can just grab a pawn with} 24. Bxh6 {(thanks, Stocky)
}) (21... Qc5 {is Stockfish's suggested defense.} 22. Bc3 {
pursues the same plan as in the game, but it's not effective here:} Rad8 (22...
Nxh5 $4 23. Re5) (22... Qxf2 $2 23. Rf1 {
followed by Nf5 with overwhelming compensation for the pawn}) 23. Qf3 Rxd1+ 24.
Rxd1 {and now Black can clip an important pawn with} Qxc4 {
, which also takes control of d5}) 22. Bc3 (22. Nf5 {and Black has time to play
} Bf8 {without fearing Bxf6}) 22... Red8 {(clearing e8 for the knight)} 23. Qe2
{My notes recommended 23.Qf3, but Stockfish prefers this move} Rxd1+ 24. Rxd1
Ne8 {Hoping to contest the f5-square with ...Nd6} 25. Be5 $1 {
And now we see why it was important to play 23.Qe2.} Qb6 (25... Bd6 26. Rxd6)
26. Bxg7 $1) (21. Qf3 {
is the best chance to preserve an edge, according to Stockfish. But after} Qe6
22. b3 Bc5 23. Rde1 Qg4 {, Black is only slightly worse}) 21... Qc7 $2 (21...
Qg5 22. Nf5 {and the g2-pawn is obviously taboo}) (21... Qf4 {was the only move
} 22. Nf5 Qxf2 {I spent a bunch of time trying to refute this} ({I overlooked}
22... Qe4 {during the game. In my notes, I thought that it solved most of
Black's problems, but Stockfish thinks that White still has a clear advantage})
(22... Ne4 $1 {
is Stockfish's solution and it refutes 22.Nf5. The tactical justification is}
23. Nxg7 $4 Nxc3+ 24. Qxc3 Bf6 {
But if 22.Nf5 is unplayable, then White has nothing}) 23. Rdf1 Qc5 {
The g2-pawn is still immune} (23... Rad8 24. Nxe7+ $1) 24. Qg3 $1 {
and Black is defenseless}) 22. Nf5 Rad8 23. Qf3 {
Setting up tactics against the f6-knight} Kh7 {
It's hard to find a decent move for Black} (23... Bf8 24. Nxh6+ $1) (23...
Rxd1+ 24. Rxd1 Rd8 25. Re1 $1 Rd7 26. Nxh6+) 24. g4 Rxd1+ {Relatively best} (
24... Bf8 25. Rxd8 {Stockfish's move} (25. Nxg7 {is similar to the game}) 25...
Qxd8 (25... Rxd8 {meets a similar fate}) 26. g5 $1 {This idea is more powerful
with the White rook on h1. That's why it's best for Black to swap rooks.}) 25.
Rxd1 Bf8 {Falling into a tactic, but Black was already busted. All he can do
is decide which tactic he wants to walk into.} (25... Rd8 26. Re1 Rd7 {
Dreaming of playing ...Ne8 to hold his position together} 27. Nxg7 $1 {
(Stockfish)} ({My notes suggest} 27. g5 $1 hxg5 28. h6 $1 {
, which also does the job}) 27... Kxg7 28. Rxe7 $1 Rd1+ 29. Qxd1 Qxe7 30. Qd4
c5 31. Qf4 $1 {and Black is paralyzed}) (25... Bd8 {and now Stockfish loves}
26. Qd3 $1 ({My notes suggest} 26. Nxh6 {
, which is also strong. The tactical justification is} Kxh6 27. g5+ $1 Kxg5 28.
Bd2+) 26... Kg8 27. g5 $1 hxg5 28. h6 $1 g6 29. Ng7 Rf8 30. Ne6 $1 fxe6 31.
Qxg6+ Kh8 32. Rxd8 $1 {Very impressive, but that's a lot to calculate}) 26.
Nxg7 $1 (26. Nxh6 {seemed to be harder to calculate; Black has options like 26.
..Ne4. But the engine assures me that it was also good. Bizarrely, neither one
of these moves is Stockfish's top choice. It likes 26.Kc2. Apparently Black
can't improve his position, so White can take a few tempi to strengthen his
hand before capturing on g7 or h6.}) 26... Bxg7 27. Qf5+ $6 {
Objectively not a bad move, but it makes White's task far more complicated.} (
27. Bxf6 Bxf6 28. Qxf6 Qe7 (28... Re6 {and now we see the idea behind the
"precise" 27.Qf5+. In the Qf5+ variation, the Black king is on g8, so ...Re6??
loses immediately to Rd8+. But in the 27.Bxf6 line, ...Re6 is a viable option
since Rd8 does not come with check.}) 29. Qf5+ Kg8 30. f3 Qe2 31. Qd3 {
is much simpler than what happened in the game. White is up a pawn for nothing.
}) 27... Kg8 28. Bxf6 Bxf6 29. Qxf6 Qe7 30. Qxh6 {I spent a long time on this
move. If only the Black king were still on h7! Then I would have time to
consolidate with 31.Qf5+ followed by 32.f3. I regretted playing 27.Qf5+ Kg8.} (
{The main alternative was} 30. Qxe7 Rxe7 {, leading a complex rook ending.
White has an extra pawn, but will it be enough to convert?} 31. f3 Re3 32. Rd7
Rxf3 33. Rxb7 Rf4 (33... a5 {is Stockfish's move} 34. Rb6 f5 (34... Rf6 35. Ra6
{rounds up the a-pawn}) 35. Rxc6 fxg4 36. Rg6+ Kf7 37. Rxg4 Rh3 38. Kc2 Rxh5 {
and Stockfish keeps wanting to play the anti-positional} 39. a3 {, which allows
...a4. But the engine has calculated that everything works out in the end:}
Rh2+ 40. Kb3 a4+ 41. Kxa4 Rxb2 42. Re4 {cutting off Black's king} h5 43. c5 {
and White wins}) 34. b3 ({My notes dismiss} 34. Rxa7 {because of} Rxc4 {
; the g-pawn isn't running away. But Stockfish prefers this over 34.b3, since
it gives White a head start in the pawn race. Its main line continues} 35. a4
Rxg4 36. a5 f5 37. Kc2 f4 $2 (37... Rg1 {is a slower way to die}) 38. a6 f3 39.
Kd2 Re4 40. Ra8+ Kg7 41. a7 f2 42. Rg8+ $1) 34... Rxg4 (34... a5 35. Rc7 Rxg4 (
35... Rf6 36. Ra7 {- one of Black's queenside pawns drops off anyways, and he
doesn't get the g4-pawn in return}) (35... f5 {is Stocky's choice, which
initially makes no sense. The f-pawn is destined to be a mighty passer; why
exchange it off for a g-pawn that was doomed to die for nothing?} 36. gxf5 Rxf5
37. Rxc6 Rxh5 {And now we see that there was a method to Black's madness. His
goal was to create an outside passer on the h-file rather than the f-file.} 38.
Rb6 Kf7 39. Rb5 Rh1+ 40. Kb2 h5 41. Rxa5 h4 42. a4 Kg6 43. Ra8 h3 44. Rh8 h2
45. a5 {and White prevails}) 36. Rxc6 Kg7 37. Rc5 {
and if Black continues with 37...Rg5, then he loses the pawn ending}) 35. Rxa7
{White's a-pawn is very dangerous, but so is Black's f-pawn. During the game,
this was unclear to me.} Rg2 {
The best practical chance. Black tries to keep my king at bay.} (35... f5 36.
Kc2 {and White wins since his king can stop Black's passer, while the Black
potentate is powerless to do the same.}) 36. Kc1 (36. a4 f5 37. a5 $2 {
So natural, but this throws away the win!} f4 38. a6 f3 39. Ra8+ Kg7 40. a7 f2
41. Rf8 Kxf8 42. a8=Q+ Kg7 {Amazingly, there is no way for White to win!})
36... f5 37. a4 f4 38. Kd1 (38. a5 $4 f3 39. Kd1 Rg1+ $1 {
My notes give 39...Re2, but this move from Stockfish wins on the spot}) 38...
f3 39. Ke1 Rb2 40. Rb7 c5 41. a5 Ra2 42. Rb5 Rb2 43. a6 Ra2 44. Rxc5 Rxa6 45.
Kf2 {and White will win}) (30. Qd4 Qe4+ 31. Kc1 c5 32. Qxc5 Qxg4 {is inferior
to the game, and Stockfish points out that 31...Qe2 may be even better}) 30...
Qe4+ 31. Ka1 Qd4 $2 ({I thought he was going to take on g4, but he said that
he was afraid of opening up the g-file.} 31... Qxg4 32. f3 (32. Qc1 {was my int
ention back when I played 31.Ka1, but then I noticed that this move is
stronger}) 32... Qg3 {(the move he missed. Black keeps my rook off the g-file.)
} 33. Qd2 $1 (33. Qc1 Re2 {and now I got bogged down trying to calculate} 34.
Rd8+ (34. a3 {and now my notes like} Kh7 {- even awarding it an exclamation
point - since it takes the sting out of Rd8. But Stockfish replies with} 35.
Qc3 $1 {There is no ...Re1 or ...Qxf3 and Black has to find a way to deal with
Rd7. Because 35.Qc3! is so strong, Stockfish recommends that Black play 34...
Qe5 instead.}) 34... Kh7 35. Qb1+ Kh6 36. Rh8+ Kg7 37. Qh7+ Kf6 38. Qh6+ Kf5 {
and White doesn't have a knockout}) (33. a3 Re1 {
Without the rooks, White's attack runs out of gas}) {Since White can't
convincingly punish 33.Qc1 Re2, it's best to play 33.Qd2. The tactical
justification is} 33... Qxf3 $2 34. Rg1+ Kf8 (34... Kh7 35. Qg5 $1) 35. Qd6+
Re7 36. Re1 Qf6 37. Qd8+ {. If Black avoids this trap, the evaluation for 31...
Qd4 is only a little bit worse than for 31...Qxg4. But White's job is
significantly more difficult if the g-pawn falls. Miscalculate something and
then the h-pawn may drop off and then White has nothing.}) 32. Qg5+ Kh8 33.
Qh6+ {Repeating the position in order to get closer to the time control. I had
about 20 minutes at this point.} Kg8 34. Qc1 {
He resigned here - a pleasant surprise. The game might have concluded with}
Qxf2 35. Qg5+ (35. h6 {
was my intention during the game. Here Stockfish suggests} Qe3 {and White shoul
d win, though rook endings are notoriously drawish. I thought he would play 35.
..Qf6, when White still has a lot of work to do}) 35... Kf8 36. h6 Re1 $2 37.
Qd8+ Re8 38. h7 $1 Qh2 39. Qd6+ $3 Qxd6 40. h8=Q+ Ke7 41. Qxe8+ $1 1-0
