This was the official place mat at the 2024 Senior Team even in Krakow.
In this game Black played what was judged the worst OTB blunder of 1990.
R. A. Gomez - J. A. Gutierrez, Zaragoza 1990. (Black to play)
1...Nc5 Apparently relying on the fact that the d-pawn is pinned. There are three major things wrong with this move. Your job is to find all three winning replies.
2. Bxd6 which was played. 2...Qxd6 3.dxc5 wins a piece.1-0
2. Qxc5 Bxc5 3. Bxc7 wins a piece.
2. dxc5 Rxc4 3.Rxe8+ and 4. cxd6 is an easy White win,
White to play and win. (solution below)
An instructive position containing a practical and easily missed idea.
This next one is a toughie from Troitsky composed in 1895.
White to play and draw. Give it a go I ll give you a very helpful clue.
The clue. Brano Breznicky - Homer1Simpson RHP 2017
Black played the hasty 42...Kxd6 stalemate. The Queen covering most of flight squares and the Bishop preventing Kh4 is the clue
I was having a minor clear out. This where I do not actually throw anything out but move the stuff around. I came across this copy of an August 1993 copy of CHESS
I had written on the cover Adams note page 4. OOPS! So I looked inside, here I admit I was looking for any excuse to stop moving chess stuff about.
M. Adams - A. Yusupov, Munich 1993 and in this position
Mickey played 25.g4 and added a note right after this move.
OOPS!
After 25.Rd1 Black has mate in three.
I was going to make this part of this weeks quiz but deemed it was too easy. Thanks to computers these wee mistakes are quite rare these days but even so they sometimes sneak in (and I am certainly not going to cast the first stone.)
Currently everyone is having a chuckle at an internet game where Firouzja resigned after 9 moves The idea was first mentioned by Carl Schlecter in 1911.
Caruana - Firouzja, chess.com 2024.
Header
PGN
1. c4 c6 2. Nf3 d5 3. g3 Bg4 4. Ne5 Bf5 5. Qb3 Qb6 6. cxd5 Qxb3 7. axb3 Be4 8. dxc6 {I'll show a video link to this game. Firouzja thinks he is getting a Rook for nothing.} 8... Bxh1 9. Rxa7 {Firouzja resigned. It goes...} 9... Rxa7 10. c7 Nc6 11. c8=Q+ Nd8 12. Qd7
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 d5 {The Elephant Gambit,} 3. Nc3 {More testing is 3.exd5 or 3.Nxe5} 3... d4 4. Ne2 Nc6 5. d3 Bg4 6. Ng3 h5 7. Be2 h4 8. Ng1 {Now I saw the coming idea which I no doubt saw in other games I've played over.} 8... hxg3 9. Bxg4 Rxh2 10. Rxh2 gxh2 {The glorious point of it all.} 11. Nf3 h1=Q+ {With an extra Queen Black went onto win.}
A video of the Caruana - Firouzja game and the commentators reaction.
[youtube]sMBCK9sy9Rs/[/youtube]
Header
FEN
8/6pp/8/1K5k/8/8/P1P5/8 w - - 0 1
PGN
[FEN "8/6pp/8/1K5k/8/8/P1P5/8 w - - 0 1"] 1. c4 {1.a4 draws. This is the only move that wins.} 1... g5 2. c5 g4 3. c6 g3 {Both pawns will promote at the same time but there is a trick in there.} 4. c7 g2 5. c8=Q g1=Q {Now what?} 6. Qc5+ {Forces the Queens off.} 6... Qxc5+ 7. Kxc5 {And because the Black King has to waste a tempo getting off the h-file they lose.} 7... Kg4 8. a4 h5 9. a5 h4 10. a6 h3 11. a7 h2 12. a8=Q {The Queen covers h1. White will play 13.Qh1 resulting in a simple win.}
The Troitsky Study (variation one)
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FEN
5k2/8/8/3R4/6K1/8/3b2pP/8 w - - 0 1
PGN
[FEN "5k2/8/8/3R4/6K1/8/3b2pP/8 w - - 0 1"] 1. Rf5+ Kg7 {We look at 1...Ke7 or 1...Ke8 next.} 2. Kh3 g1=Q 3. Rg5+ {Black has to take the Rook. 3...Qxg5 or 3...Bxg5 is stalemate. But what if the Black King does not go to g8 or g7.}
The Troitsky Study (variation two)
Header
FEN
5k2/8/8/3R4/6K1/8/3b2pP/8 w - - 0 1
PGN
[FEN "5k2/8/8/3R4/6K1/8/3b2pP/8 w - - 0 1"] 1. Rf5+ Ke7 2. Re5+ Kd6 {Now what?} 3. Re1 Bxe1 4. Kh3 {And if 4....g1= Q or R then stalemate. 4....g1=B is a draw so how about....} 4... g1=N+ {Now we see the elegant idea behind the study.} 5. Kg2 Ne2 {Only safe square for the Knight.} 6. Kf1 {And either the Knight or Bishop is lost. A draw. A wonderful piece of work.}
