Blackpool 2020 Intermediate - My Games w/ Analysis

[Event "Blackpool Intermediate"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2020.03.13"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Webster, Vivien"]
[Black "Tomlinson, Zak"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "C27"]
[PlyCount "146"]

1. e4 e5 2. Bc4 Nf6 3. Nc3 Bc5 {Begins life as a Vienna, fairly similar to the Giuoco Piano} 4. Nf3 d6 5.O-O O-O 6. a3 a5 7. h3 Nc6 8. d3 {With White's pawn on d3 this now has a pianissimo structure} 8... Ne7 {? A slight error as White can now play Bg5 followed by Nd5 (after Ng6) to break Black's pawn structure} 9. Be3 {? White instead allows doubled pawns of their own in the centre, with the aim to open a Rook file} 9... Bxe3 10. fxe3 Ng6 11. Nd5 Nd7 {I didn't want to trade and help White advance their pawn centre but also didn't want to allow Nxf6 and potentially put my Queen in harms way on the f-file} 12. Qe1 c6 13. Nc3 Nb6 {? I ought to have pushed b5 first before playing Nb3} 14. Ba2 Qe7 15. Qg3 Be6 16. b3 {? This looks odd} 16... a4 {and this response was not necessary, instead the Knight on b6 should be moved to allow a pawn expansion} 17. b4 Bxa2 18. Rxa2 d5 19. exd5 {Not best, Stockfish suggests pushing h4 instead to start adding pressure on the King-side} 19... cxd5 20. e4 {? Black can take here and gain momentum with either Rc8 or f4, depending on how White recaptures on e4} 20... d4 {? However Black decided to advance and keep the centre closed, and the Knight on b6 still looks bad} 21. Ne2 Rac8 22. h4 Qe6 23. Rb2 f6 24. h5 {Black has been trying to weaken White's Knights but is not helping their own, White shrugs and advances} 24... Ne7 25. Nh4 Rc6 26. h6 g6 27. Nf5 {This helps Black a little} 27... Nxf5 28. exf5 {as Black now has the d5 square for the bad Knight} 28... Qf7 29. Qf3 gxf5 30. Qxf5 Qg6 {Nd5 immediately was probably better} 31. Qh3 f5 32. Ng3 f4 {? I wanted to push the Knight with tempo then take the h6 pawn, but a better way to do this would have been Qg5 threatening Rxh6} 33. Ne4 Qxh6 34. Qf3 {Black is two moves away from having a strong Knight on e3 and can also quickly pile on the g-file} 34... Nd7 {? Instead Black plays passively and allows White back in the game} 35. Nc5 Nxc5 {? RIP a very mistreated Knight} 36. bxc5 Qg7 37. Rb6 Rxb6 38. cxb6 {I remember spending a while on this move, beginning to realise I had messed up and was no longer winning. Viv likely had double the time I had} 38... Qd7 39. Qe4 Qe7 40. Re1 Re8 41. Qd5+ Kg7 42. Qb5 {? Without any other ideas, I sacced a pawn to try open files against the White King, but it is too slow} 42... f3 43. gxf3 Kf6 44. f4 Kf7 45. Rxe5 {Black has gone from being a pawn up to a pawn down in no time} 45... Rg8+ 46. Kf1 Qd6 47. Qd5+ Qxd5 48. Rxd5 {I remember feeling really annoyed and flustered, staring angrily at the board wondering how this happened. Now this is a Rook endgame where White is clearly better} 48... Ke6 49. Rxd4 h5 {This pawn is my only hope, however stockfish is confident enough to play Rxa4 here and say "I'm three pawns up"} 50. c4 {? Wasn't needed yet} Rc8 51. Re4+ Kf6 52. d4 {?? A completely unforced error, possibly because Viv was still moving very fast. I actually remember hearing her saying "Oh s***" at the board, I was probably just shaking my head in disbelief} 52... Rxc4 53. Kf2 Rc2+ 54. Kf3 Rc3+ 55. Re3 Rc4 {With correct play this game is now likely a draw} 56. d5 Rd4 57. Re6+ Kf7 58. Re5 h4 59. Kg4 h3 {? Anticipating Kxh3 then Rxf4 but instead Rd3 was better to create a passed a-pawn} 60. Rh5 h2 {?? I was going to take the d-pawn after Rxh2 but then realised White had Rh7+ winning the b-pawn, White is now winning again} 61. Rxh2 Kg7 62. Rc2 Rxd5 63. Rc7+ Kf6 64. Rxb7 Rd3 {Now White should play Rb8 with the strong threat of b7 followed by a check and promotes. Black can stop the b-pawn, however not the f-pawn simultaneously} 65. Ra7 {?? This is the wrong technique, as it allows Black enough time to get a passed pawn of their own and stop the b-pawn} 65... Rxa3 66. b7 Rb3 67. Ra6+ Kf7 68. Kg5 Rxb7 69. Rxa4 Rb5+ {Black's King is already in place to hold for a draw} 70. f5 Rb6 71. Ra7+ Kg8 72. f6 Rb1 73. Rg7+ Kf8 {Draw agreed, with my apologies!} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Blackpool Intermediate"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2020.03.14"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Tomlinson, Zak"]
[Black "McKay, Mark"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "C78"]
[PlyCount "35"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O {I still don't fancy the delayed exchange GP} 5... Bc5 6. d3 O-O {? Bad time to castle, b5 was needed first. Now The super-delayed exchange on c6 wins a pawn} 7. Bxc6 bxc6 8.Nxe5 Bb7 9. Bg5 h6 10. Be3 {? Stockfish goes as far as calling this a blunder, arguing that Bxf6 is best as if Qxf6 White has Nxd7, so Black will have to play gxf6 and double pawns} 10... Bb6 11. Nc4 Bxe3 12. Nxe3 d6 13. Nd2 Qd7 14. f4 Qe6 15. Nf3 Ng4 {? Nd5 was a better choice} 16. Qe2 {? Not the best response, as now after Knight trades on e3 Black has f5 taking advantage of the unprotected Queen} 16... f5 {?? However playing f5 immediately is not good timing, as I now gain some tempo} 17. Nd4 Qg6 {? Qf7 would have been better as...} 18. Ndxf5 {... this move now comes with a Royal fork threat. Black nods and resigns} 1-0

[Event "Blackpool Intermediate"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2020.03.14"]
[Round "3"]
[White "O'Gorman, Brendan"]
[Black "Tomlinson, Zak"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D77"]
[PlyCount "49"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 g6 3. g3 Bg7 4. Bg2 O-O 5. O-O d5 6. c4 e6 {It's a Reti or a Queen's Gambit Declined, maybe both?} 7. b3 c5 8. Bb2 dxc4 9. dxc5 Qxd1 10. Rxd1 Na6 11. c6 Nb4 {Threatens Nc2 or simply take the pawn on c3} 12. Na3 {Stops the threat, although Nf3-d2 was an option, allowing Nc2 but there's cxb7 forking Rook and Bishop} 12... cxb3 13. cxb7 Bxb7 14. axb3 {A fairly simplified, balanced position} 14... Rfc8 15. Rac1 Rxc1 16. Rxc1 Bd5 17. Nd2 Rd8 {Threatens Bxg2} 18. Bxd5 Nfxd5 19. Bxg7 Kxg7 20.Nf3 Na2 21. Rc2 Ndc3 {I thought this would cramp White's Rook mobility, but perhaps keeping the Knight's centralised was better} 22. Nb5 {Stockfish prefers Kg2 to stop Rd1 coming with tempo} 22... Rd1+ 23. Kg2 Nxb5 24. Rxa2 Rb1 25. Nd2 {Came with an early draw offer, which I accepted gladly before returning to the bar} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Blackpool Intermediate"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2020.03.15"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Tomlinson, Zak"]
[Black "Drummond, Jade"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "C01"]
[PlyCount "115"]

1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. exd5 exd5 4. Bd3 {Not the monte carlo! (c4) which is what I had been playing previously. I'm unsure if my opponent had prepared for the monte carlo and this was a surprise, but I remember Jade spent some time on this move} 4... Nf6 5. Nf3 Bd6 6. Bg5 {h6 immediately is likely best here} 6... Bg4 {? however if Black continues to play symmetrically like this} 7. Qe2+ {White can get the first check on the King, with no ideal responses. Be6 may be best to avoid doubling pawns} 7... Qe7 {This allows doubled pawns, but is also Stockfish's top move} 8.Bxf6 Qxe2+ 9. Bxe2 gxf6 10. Nbd2 Nd7 11. O-O Rg8 12. Rfe1 O-O-O {Both sides complete development, material is even, however Black's broken pawn structure is a long-term weakness} 13. Nh4 {With the idea that if Bxe2, White gets to double rooks and have e-file control} 13... Be6 14.Bd3 Bf4 15. Ndf3 Rg7 16. g3 Rdg8 17. Nf5 {Captures is forced, as a Rook is hit and a fork is threatened} 17... Bxf5 18. Bxf5 {This also gets my Bishop on a good diagonal} 18... Bd6 {Prevents Re7} 19. Re2 Kd8 20. Bxd7 {? There's an argument for keeping this good Bishop, as the light-squares were completely dominated and the Knight was passive, however I wanted to avoid the possibility of an opposite Bishop endgame and I like the Knight vs Bishop} 20... Kxd7 21. Nh4 {Heading for f5} 21... Rg4 22. Nf5 {Now lands with a fork threat. Rf4 is a good option here, taking advantage of the pinned g-pawn and potentially misplacing the Knight} 22... Re4 {? This instead is a positional mistake, Black's pawns will become further broken} 23. Rxe4 dxe4 24. Re1 Re8 25. f3 exf3 {c5 may have been a better try} 26. Rxe8 Kxe8 27. Nxd6+ cxd6 28. Kf2 Ke7 29. Kxf3 {Although material is still even, this is two pawn islands vs four, so White has a clear advantage} 29... Ke6 30. c3 h5 31. Kf4 a6 32. b3 b6 33.h4 {Black will eventually have no good moves and face zugzwang} 33... f5 34. c4 a5 35. d5+ Kf6 36. a3 {For instance, there are no pawn moves here} 36... Kg6 37. b4 a4 38. c5 {With the idea that after dxc5 White recaptures and will be the first to promote} 38... bxc5 {?? But this move allows an even faster promotion with the b-pawn, as the Black King is too far away} 39. b5 c4 40. b6 c3 41. Ke3 {This game goes on for a while before resigns} 41... c2 42. Kd2 f4 43. gxf4 Kf5 44. b7 Kxf4 45. b8=Q Ke5 46. Kxc2 Kxd5 47. Qb5+ Ke6 48. Qxh5 f5 49. Kd3 Ke5 50. Ke3 d5 51. Qh8+ Ke6 52. Kd4 f4 53. Qe5+ Kf7 54. Qxf4+ Ke6 55. h5 Kd7 56. Kxd5 Ke7 57. h6 Kd8 58. Qf7 {1-0} 1-0

[Event "Blackpool Intermediate"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2020.03.15"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Winter, Kevin"]
[Black "Tomlinson, Zak"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "C54"]
[PlyCount "120"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Nf6 {If now Ng5 I'm fully prepared to play Bc5 and have a Traxler gambit, a favourite surprise weapon of mine} 4. d3 {Instead we have a whatever-this-is... two Knights defence I guess} 4... Bc5 5. c3 d6 6. Nbd2 a5 {I like moves like this, little space gainers} 7. a4 {Apparently Kevin likes them also} 7... Qe7 8. h3 O-O 9. Nf1 {No castles for White yet, looking to one day plant a Knight on f5} 9... Be6 10. Ng3 {Allowing doubled pawns with Bxc4, which stockfish prefers, however I asked myself was this really beneficial on this occasion?} 10... d5 {I preferred this, rejoining the Queen and dark-squared Bishop whilst looking to open central files} 11. Bb5 dxe4 {Asking White if they want to give up their Bishop pair and open files for my Rooks} 12. dxe4 {White declines} 12... Bd7 {? Slightly passive, how about a Rook on d8 instead?} 13. O-O Rad8 14. Qe2 Na7 {Oddly places the Knight but it should only be temporary} 15. Bxd7 Rxd7 16. Nf5 Qe6 {White's Knights are looking good} 17. Bg5 Rfd8 18. Rfe1 Nc6 19. Ng3 {I'm unsure about this withdrawal} 19... h6 20. Bc1 {? I'm even more unsure about this one! Stockfish preferred Bxf6 then contest the d-file} 20... Rd3 {I believe my idea behind this was to prevent Nh4 as then Rxg3 would be playable} 21.Nf5 {But after this move I became worried about Nd4 ideas and potentially losing the exchange} 21... R3d7 {So I pulled back} 22. g4 {Then White throws in g4, an aggressive and commital move} 22... Ne7 23. N3h4 Ng6 {Once again asking White to open a file for me} 24. Nxg6 {This time White obliges, although it was probably best not to as it provides Black some options} 24... fxg6 25. Ng3 {? h4 was likely a better square in this position} 25... g5 {? Stockfish doesn't like this move at all. It looks like I'm giving up the light-squares, but it's not true as I have another g-pawn!} 26. Kg2 g6 {Although stockfish also doesn't like this move, preferring Rd3, cramping White's Queen} 27. Nf1 Qb6 28. Ng3 {? Returning the Knight back here alone deserves a question mark, how about Ne3 instead?} 28... Ne8 {? This looks odd, I do recall wanting to route this Knight to f4 but it's rather slow} 29. Be3 {? The fish says this is another inaccuracy, I'd guess it's because this gives up dark-square defence allowing Rd2} 29... Bxe3 30. Qxe3 Qxe3 31. Rxe3 Rd2 {Which now happens. White should simply defend the b-pawn} 32. Re2 {? This is the wrong way though, due to the following} 32... Rxe2 33. Nxe2 Rd2 34. Kf3 Rxb2 35. Rd1 {Black has won a pawn, but at the expense of giving up the d-file} 35... Rb6 {? This is too passive, instead why not Ra2 and create a passed pawn?} 36. Rd5 Re6 {In choosing which pawn to keep, this was probably the wrong choice. Rf6+ followed by b6 was recommended} 37. Rxa5 Nd6 {Now if White is not careful there may be Rf6+ Ke3 and Nc4+ fork ideas} 38. Rc5 {? The rook's mobility has been limited, Ra7 was an option} 38... c6 39. Nc1 {?? And here's the blunder, Black is now winning either two pawns or an exchange, depending how White goes. Ng3 instead guarded the e4 pawn} 39... Rf6+ {If Kg2 or Ke2, White has Rxf2+ followed by Nxe4+ if taken. If Kg3 then simply Nxe4+ so instead we have...} 40. Ke3 b6 41. Rxc6 {Forced} 41... Nf5+ {And Black picks up the exchange, leading to a winning endgame} 42. exf5 Rxc6 {White currently has more pawns but they can easily be gobbled up. Stockfish evaluates this position at -5.5} 43. Ne2 gxf5 44. gxf5 Rc4 45. Kd3 Rxa4 46. Ng3 Rh4 47. Ne4 Rxh3+ 48. Kc4 Rh4 49. Kd5 Rxe4 {I'm an exchange up, therefore I MUST give it back!} 50. Kxe4 Kf7 {For the reason that Black's h-pawn cannot be stopped} 51. Kxe5 h5 52. Ke4 Kf6 53. f4 g4 54. c4 h4 55. Ke3 Kxf5 56. Kf2 Kxf4 57. Kg2 g3 58. Kg1 Kf3 59. Kh1 Kf2 60. c5 {Don't take the pawn!} 60... g2+ {White resigns, it's mate in two} 0-1