Interesting game for me. I started out with a semi-clear idea which I managed to muddy during the opening, and then I allowed my opponent to gain space on the queenside forcing me to sacrifice the exchange for some elbow room. Towards the end, I threw strategy out the window in a desperate bid for a draw (or win) by tactical tricks, which paid off this time. I wanted to post this here to get your feedback on the strategical errors I made so I don't have to resort to this kind of gambling in the future. I would also like to say that my opponent did a fine job of making me sweat for most of the game.
Don't bother asking why you got into a dodgy position.
You have the nounce to play out of it. Let it happen again.
Sometime I think the art of chess is to first give yourself a lost
postion (not too lost) because suddenly your game becomes a lot
easier to play.
It's hard to win a won game, very easy to lose a won game.
Don't get me wrong, I'm happy that I was able to wriggle my way out of this one, but I hate the feeling of being lost strategically. I've read two of Silman's books and they helped immensely with identifying basic imbalances, but I still feel oblivious to the actual workings on the board (hence my muddled opening and dodgy middlegame).
Having said that, there is a definite benefit to working uphill to force the quality of tactical play to improve - I just wish I had a choice!
Which was my biggest goof? I think it was actually 3.b3?, as I was trying to control d5 with my first two moves. Better would have been 3.g3, allowing my light-squared bishop to help out on d5 while clearing the way for kingside castling.
Desperation ending
15 Sep '09 15:07
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