Notes by Donlan

[Event "USCF 95rt23"] [Site "?"] [Date "????.??.??"] [Round "?"] [White "Mark Donlan"]
[Black "Chuck Robbins"] [Result "1-0"]

1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 Bb4 {This move denotes the Winawer variation, named for the Polish player Simon Winawer, who popularized it in the late 1800's. Black threatens to win a pawn so White usually advances it and sets up a cramping pawn chain.} 4. e5 c5 5. a3 {Fine says this is more enterprising than 5.Bd2. Then after the exchange White should play for f4-g4-f5. Yet, no-where in ECO do I find White playing f4-g4-f5. After 5.Bd2, he gives 5...Nc6 6.Nb5 Bxd2+ 7.Qxd2 Nxd4! cxd4 9.Qxd4 Ne7 = . However; ECO deviates with 9.f4 Ne7 10.Nf3 Nc6 11.Nd4 Qb6 12.O-O-O Bd7 13.Kb1 +/=.} 5...Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 Ne7 7. Qg4 {The positional continuation 7.Nf3 was favored by World Champion's Fischer and Smyslov. A skpeculative choice is 7.h4, whereas the text move is considered the sharpest.} 7...cxd4 8. Qxg7 {Aside from this, ECO gives 8.cxd4 Qc7 9.Kd1 O-O 10. Nf3 f6 11.Bd3 Nf5 12.Qh3 Nc6 13. g4 fxe5 14.dxe5 Nxe5 as equal. Had Black 7....Qc7, white could have played 8.Bd3.} 8...Rg8 9. Qxh7 Qc7 {The game Kortchnoi-Timman, 1976 saw 9....Qa5 10.Ne2 dxc3 11. Ng3 Nd7 12.Nh5 d4 13.f4 +=.} 10. Ne2 Nbc6 11. f4 dxc3 12. Qd3 Nf5 13. Qxc3 {I was disinclined to play this, as after ...d4 White must move his Queen a sixth time! With only one other piece developed and his King in the center.. Black's last move was slightly "off book". I was expecting 12....Bd7 first. Yet, I was couldn't find a way to exploit this. Had I been in possession of NIC YB#10 I likkely would have played 13.g4 Rxg4 14.Bh3 Rg6 15.Bxf5 exf5 16.Nxc3 as given by Psakhis, from Psakhis-Hertneck, Berlin 1988. Psakhis played 13.Rg1? and after 13...Qe7!, faced a kingside attack.} 13...Bd7 14. Rb1 d4 15. Qd3 O-O-O 16. Rg1 Qa5+ {The main line in BCO is 16....f6 17.g4 Nh6 18.exf6 Rxg4 19. Rxg4 Nxg4 20.f7 +/-, Balashov-Kosten, Minisk 1986. Black takes play along a footnotes given Balashov.} 17. Bd2 Qd5 18. g4 Nh4 19. Rg3 a6 20. Kd1!? {My first original move of the game. I wrote in my journal that was either suicidal or brilliant. How often does one see a King in the center of the board, moving onto a file in which his opponent has a Rook and Queen battery? The point is to remove the King from checks. If Black plays 20.... Be8, then 21.Qh7 attacks both 'Rook and Knight. It also sets a modest trap.}

20...Qh1!? 21. Ng1 Qxh2? 22. Rxb7!! {I entered into a satisfying four page analysis session, working out the intricacies of acceptance and non-acceptance of this move. According to a 1993 piece of fiction by Tim "The Cane Man" Taylor this is the sort of combination that I, being a non-master, "could only dream of - never create." So much for that myth.} 22...Nb8! {Best. 22....Kxb7 loses to Qxa6+ Kc7 24.Ba5+! {Note that 24.Rb3 does note mate due to 24....Bc8! (not 24.....Rb8 25. Ba5+ Nxa5 26.Qd6+! Kc8 27.Rxb8 Mate) 25.Ba5+ Kd7 (not 25...Nxa5 26.Qb6+ Kd7 27. Bb5+ Nc6 28.Qxc6+ Ke7 29.Qc5+ Rd6 30.Qxd6 mate) 26.Rb7+ Bxb7 27.Qxb7+ Ke8 28.Qxc6+ Kf8 (not 28...Rd7 29.Qc8+ Ke7 30.Bb4+ Rd6 31.Bxd6 mate) Bxd8 Qxg1} 24...Nxa5 25.Qxa5+ Kc6 26.Bb5+ and now there are a myriad of wins. A sampling are: A: 26...Kb7 27.Ba6+ Ka7 28.Bc4+ Kb8 29.Rb3+ Bb5 30.Qxb5+ Ka8 31.Qb7Mate. A1:26...Kb7 27.Qa6+ Kb8 28.Bc6 Qxg1+ (28....Bxc6 29.Rb3+ Kc7 30.Qa7+ Kc8 31.Rb8mate) 29.Rxg1 Bxc6 30.Qxc6 +/- B:26...Kc5 27.Bxd7+ Kc4 28.Qb5mate. c:26...Kd5 27.Bd3+! Kc6 28.Be4mate.} 23. Qb3 {Had White been able to play the spectacular 23.Qxa6 Nxa6 24.Bxa6 Qxg3 25.Rb3+ Kc7 26.Ba5+ Kc6 27.Bb7+ Kc5 28.Bb6+ Kc4 29.Rb4+ Kc3 30.Ne2mate, Then he would truly have claim to a brilliancy. However; Black can simply play 24...Bc6!, to foil White attack.} 23...Bb5 24. Bxb5 Kxb7 25. Bxa6+ Kxa6 26. Qa4+ Kb7 27. Rb3+ Kc8 28. Qa7 {Black Resigns The final finesse. I initially didn't think 25.Bxa6 would win due to 25...Kxa6 26.Qa4+ Kb7 27.Rb3+ Kc8 28.Qc4+? kd7 and the King escapes. with 28.Qa7, an apt finish is 28...Qxg1+ 29.Be1 Qxg4+ 30.Kc1 Qxf4 31.Kb2 Qxe5 32.Qb7mate.} *