Exchange Sacs in The Sicilian + The Ascent of Mount Evans
by greenpawn34 on Aug 02 2011 17:17 | 14884 views | 3 edits | Last edit on Aug 05 2011 00:12
And then I saw the title of this thread...
"Playing chess on top of Mt. Evans CO yesterday, 14,265 ft elevation"
....posted on the Chess Forum posted by TimmyBx User 351818 with a link to the tale of his conquest.
At last a real man who plays Chess.
No more having to deal with bedroom boffins who get a nose bleed walking
across a thick carpet. I have found a Chess playing adventurer, a seeker of thrills
and excitement. A man's man.
Shunning injury and laughing in the face of death Timmy and his mates roped
themselves together and climbed one of the highest peaks in America just
because it was there.
With blistered and torn hands they pulled themselves up the craggy cliff
fighting off hunger and exhaustion carrying with them nothing but a bottle of
water, a camera and a chess set.
I thought of them shivering at nights in their thin tent waiting for each cold dawn
so they could they pursue their lifetime goal.
Play a game of Chess on the top of Mount Evans and get the picture posted
on Red Hot Pawn….and here it is.
Wait a minute…..
Where are their rucksacks, where are the tell tale signs of frostbite?
I read on,
“Mt. Evans has an elevation of 14,265 ft, and has the highest paved road in North America..”
They drove in a car all the way to the top!
What a bunch of wimps. And look, they even wore climbing boots in the car.
(I bet they tied themselves together in the car and sang happy climbing songs.).
What a swizzle.
Oh and there is worse to come. They are playing Chess alright.
Look at the position.
The b-pawn is still on b2.
They did not even play an Evans Gambit on the top of Mount Evans.
I even had a competition all ready to celebrate their achievement.
RHP Competition No.118
Colour in the diagram on your screen, it’s an Evans Gambit.
Send me your monitors and the winner will get a two week holiday in
Lake Wookypooky where you can drink all the water you want..
On the chess forum players were discussing how certain tactical themes seem
to occur more often in particular openings.
I'll use this as a theme with examples as always from games played on here.
Everytime a Rook attacks a Bishop or Knight you should always look at
what happens if you should sacrifice the exchange.
(A Rook in most circumstances is better than a Bishop or Knight and
exchanging a Rook for a Bishop or Knight is called losing the exchange.)
The exchange sacrifice in the Sicilian RxNc3 usually followed by Nxe4
is a common tactical feature in that opening so we will look at that.
The bones.
In the Open Sicilian Black gets a ½ open c-file and a Rook on c8 usually
eyes a Knight on c3.
The c3 Knight holds the e-pawn, Black chops it with the Rook and grabs
the e-pawn with a Knight.
Going solely on material White gets a Rook for a Knight and pawn but the
Knight when it lands on e4 is very strong and with the c3 Knight gone the
the Knight can be sunk onto e4 with pawn going to d5.
1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 g6 6. Be2 Bg7 7. Be3 O-O 8. f3 {A key move in the White set up. It holds the e-pawn taking the sting out of future exchange sacs on c3, prevents Ng4 and prepares g4. } 8... Nc6 9. Qd2 Bd7 10. O-O-O Rc8 11. h4 h5 12. Rdg1 Ne5 13. f4 {No need for this wasted move, the Knight was going to c4 anyway. The e-pawn is now a target.} 13... Nc4 14. Bxc4 Rxc4 15. Qe2 {A standard setting for the Rook x c3 sac. Watch how quickly White's position caves in.} 15... Rxc3 16. bxc3 Nxe4 17. Qe1 Qa5 {Black now piles on the pressure against c3.} 18. Kb2 Rc8 19. Bd2 Bxd4 20. Qxe4 Bxc3+ 21. Bxc3 Qxc3+ 22. Kc1 Bf5 {Every Black piece joins in on the fun.} 23. Qe2 Bxc2 24.Qd2 {This allows a quick end but there was no defence.} 24... Qa1 {Checkmate.}
bdh191 - ludde RHP 2007
FEN
5rk1/2qbppbp/p2p2p1/1p3PP1/2rNP3/P1N1B1nP/1PPQ4/2KR2R1 b - - 0 1
[FEN "5rk1/2qbppbp/p2p2p1/1p3PP1/2rNP3/P1N1B1nP/1PPQ4/2KR2R1 b - - 0 1"] {Another typical Rxc3 set-up. } 1... Rxc3 2. bxc3 Nxe4 3. Qe2 Qxc3 {Suddenly Black threatens mate in one with Qa1, White spots and stops that one but...} 4. Nb3 Qb2 {....misses that one. }
aho74 - Martin65 RHP 2009
Look how many times Black refuses to win back the exchange
by giving up a Knight for a Rook.
FEN
2rq1rk1/3nbppp/p2p1n2/1p2pP2/4P1P1/1NN1B3/PPP1Q2P/1K1R3R b - - 0 1
[FEN "2rq1rk1/3nbppp/p2p1n2/1p2pP2/4P1P1/1NN1B3/PPP1Q2P/1K1R3R b - - 0 1"] {By now you should be spotting the shot before reading this....}1... Rxc3 2. bxc3 Nxe4 {No hesitation going for this one, Black threatens a Family Fork on c3.} 3. Qd3 d5 {Remember what I was saying about sinking the Knight on e4 with d5. Such a Knight is better than a Rook.} 4. Bc1 Qc7 5. Bb2 {Black now has a Queen and two Rooks fork on f2. The ‘Distant Cousins Fork.’ I repeat such a Knight is worth more than a Rook and here comes another one.} 5... Nb6 6. h4 Rc8 7. g5 Na4 {Again we see the pressure a double pawn feels when on an open file. White has done his best to distract Black with a demonstration on the Kingside. Futile.} 8. g6 Nexc3+ {The best way, it clears e4 for the pawn to advance opening the diagonal for the e7 Bishop. Teamwork.} 9. Bxc3 Nxc3+ 10. Kb2 e4 11. gxf7+ Kxf7 12. Qd4 {Nxd1+ is good. Look for better....} 12... Na4+ {White resigned. The King is forced onto a1 when Bf6 wins the Queen.}
lastpawnstanding - stephenwale RHP 2004
Where we see a Rxc3 and Nxe4 turning a loss into a win.
Not only do you have to be alert to play this trick, you must be alert
to make sure it is not played against you.
FEN
2rr2k1/pb3ppp/1p1p1n2/4p3/1P2P2q/P1NR2NP/5QP1/4KB1R w K - 0 1
[FEN "2rr2k1/pb3ppp/1p1p1n2/4p3/1P2P2q/P1NR2NP/5QP1/4KB1R w K - 0 1"] {White is a piece up here so White gets clever and threatens a Knight fork on e7 winning the exchange. This idea cost him a Rook. Beware of the good idea, sometimes your opponent gets a better one.} 1. Nf5 Qxf2+ 2. Kxf2 Rxc3 3. Rxc3 Nxe4+ {A disgusted White resigned, Black has won back his piece and is three pawns up.}
We end with an example by one of the sites top OTB players. David Tebb.
(It’s not often that we meet in this Blog a lad who has beaten v Kasparov on his CV.)
Thread 3438
1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 6. Be2 e5 7. Nf3 h6 8.O-O Be6 9. h3 Be7 10. Be3 Nbd7 11. a3 O-O 12. Rc1 Rc8 13. Re1 {White has been developing in, As IM Andrew Martin says, 'in Apple Pie Order.' Developing just for the sake of it. Suddenly David Tebb takes a bite out of the pie and White crumbles.} 13... Rxc3 14. bxc3 Nxe4 15. Qd3 d5 {There is that d5 again. White tries to undermine the Knight but misses a tactical pattern. The Queen and f3 Knight are pawn-forkable.}16. c4 Ndc5 17. Bxc5 Bxc5 18. Rf1 Nxf2 {And that was that, White resigned. He saw....} 19. Rxf2 e4 {The afore mentioned pawn-fork} 20. Qc3 Bxf2+ 21. Kxf2 exf3 22. Bxf3 dxc4 {...two pawns downs, exposed King, no counterplay. A very dismal future. 0-1}
And here is David's win Kasparov with his own notes..
Gary Kasparov - David Tebb User 21234 simultaneous display May 1989
1. c4 {I was going to try the Marshall Attack against e4, and the Benko Gambit against d4. No way was I going to defend! I forgot about the English} 1... Nf6 {I still hoped he'd change his mind and play d4} 2. Nc3 g6 {I realised I wasn't going to get a Benko} 3. e4 {And that rules out the Gruenfeld} 3... d6 4. d4 Bg7 {So we now have a King's Indian Defence, in which Kasparov is recognised as the World's leading expert. Great!} 5. Be2 O-O 6. Nf3 Nbd7 {I decided to avoid the fiendishly complicated main line which starts with ..Nc6. Maybe next time, Gary!} 7. O-O e5 8. Qc2 c6 9. Rd1 exd4 10. Nxd4 Re8 {I'm playing all the moves black uses to combat the fianchetto system. What do you mean, white hasn't fianchettoed? He might do later! Haven't you heard of prophylactics?} 11. Bf4 Qe7 12. Nf5 {Aagghh... Where did that come from?} 12... gxf5 13. Bxd6 Qd8 14. exf5 {Ok the dust has settled. Let's evaluate the position. White has 2 pawns for the piece, an initiative, the possibility of a kingside attack. Black is cramped and underdeveloped. Not enough my friend!} 14... Qb6 {I had to get out of that pin} 15. b4 {He doesn't want to let me breathe} 15... a5 {Otherwise black will suffocate} 16. Rab1 Qa7 {Ok, it may look like black is grovelling...} 17. b5 a4 {but at least white's attacking on the queenside and not trying for mate} 18. Bf3 {Why didn't he try g4 at some point?} 18... Ne5 {Kasparov looked shocked by this strong move. I'm allowing him to get a rook to the back rank with check, but I'd seen it wasn't dangerous!} 19. Bxe5 Rxe5 20. Rd8+ {He probably thought he was winning} 20... Ne8 {Much better than the alternatives} 21. bxc6 bxc6 22. Bxc6 Bxf5 {This was the move I'd pinned my hope on. It wins.} 23. Rxa8 Qxa8 {My only slip. I had an easier win with ..Bxc2} 24. Qxf5 Qxc6 25. Qd3 Qe6 {A grandmaster criticised me for not trying to swap the queens off with ...Qg6. But I was having too much fun to do anything like that } 26. Kf1 a3 27. Nd5 Re4 {Now I'm ready to cut his rook off with ..Bb2} 28. Qxa3 {So he thought he'd better take the pawn} 28... Rxc4 29. Ne7+ Kh8 30. Rb8 {You can never relax against this guy} 30... Qd7 31. g3 Re4 {With a double threat of winning another piece and mate! He stared at the position, pulled a few faces, grunted, and held out his hand in resignation}
I had no one to play chess with when I drove up there aout this time of year in '73, so I resorted to the next best solution: I swear I hit some golf balls well over a mile from up there!
I'm well up for this Extreme chess malarky. I'm going to climb Eyjafjallajokull this weekend with a chess board and play the Scandinavian (does an "Icelandic" opening exist?). I may even have to invent one just so people have to continue to use the name that noone outside Iceland can pronounce 😉
Cheers.
mountain, play the The French and take pictures for the RHP Blog.