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1. d4
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In this tournament game, I'm paired up against jstevens, a well-known and popular annotator/player here on Gameknot. I had no doubt if Nosferatu choked this opening round the evidence would be immortalized in writing. |
 
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1... d5 2. Bf4
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This is a theme tournament, using this as the starting position. This is the "Mason Opening," named after Irish chessmaster James Mason who often employed 2. Bf4 in symmetrical queen-pawn games. It usually transposes into what became known later as the London System, but there are a few independent curiosities. |
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2... c5 3. e4
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!? Such as this one, which is an invitation for black to enter into an Albin Counter-Gambit...reversed! After 3. ...de 4. d5, white is a tempo up compared to an analogous black position in this opening. Black often plays his bishop either to ...f5 or ...g4 in the Albin proper, so Bf4 is thematically in-character for such an opening. I play the Albin myself, so I was looking forward to the enterprising play that would arise in a reversed approach, especially since the staid positions in the London System are usually not to my taste. |
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3... Nc6
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To my disappointment, jstevens decides to decline the gambit, which is a sound course of action when facing a sharp invitation into something one doesn't quite trust (I've declined or counter-gambited many lines myself in my playing career). 3. ...de 4. d5 Qb6 must be critical, and will have to wait for another day. |
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4. Nc3
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Having gotten his e4 advance in "for free" white must now play actively. I chose aggressive development, but the alternative 4. dc!? is worth considering. Now 4. dc Nf6 5. e5 Ne4 6. Nf3 and 4. dc e5 5. ed exf4 6. Qe2ch!? are interesting lines (particularly the later) to try if I reach this position again. |
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4... cxd4
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4. ...de 5. dc Qa5 is also playable. When the game is sharpened with tension this early in the opening there are many different possible branches. The text immediately puts the question to my knight, since after my fourth move my d4 point was attacked twice and protected but once. |
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5. exd5
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After 5. Nxd5?! e5, black takes a generous helping of the center with tempo, and with freer lines for development, a very comfortable game ahead. |
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5... dxc3 6. dxc6
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As our pawns mow lines in parallel paths, who will blink first? |
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6... Qxd1+
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Best. Trying to keep queens on the board and get tactically cute with 6. ...Qa5 doesn't work: 7. b4! Qxb4 (Qf5 8. Qf3) 8. c7 Bd7 9. Ne2, followed by Rb1, and white is ahead of development in a messy position that should favor him, with the lingering tenant on c7. |
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7. Rxd1 bxc6
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Or 7. ...cb 8. cb Bxb7 9. Bb5 mate, if jstevens wanted to wrap things up early, though I had an inkling she was in for the long haul. |
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8. Bc7
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Threatening Rd8 mate, though the real goal of this move is to maneuver my DSB back via c7-a5-c3 and try to bait black into developing her LSB on the inferior b7 post, where its activity would be predictable to monitor on my part. |
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8... Bb7
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Black obliges. 8. ...Bg4 is actually better, because after 9. Nf3 black can splatter my king-side pawns, and after 9. f3 I deny my knight its most active square and black can retreat to the comfortable d7 square. |
1 comment
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9. b3
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I wanted to win the weak doubled c-pawn, but not at the expense of my *own* pawns. I figured I could swipe it up later when the time presented itself. |
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9... Nf6 10. Nf3
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There are many potential white moves here, like 10. Ne2, 10. Ba4, 10. Bc4. I chose the text because I was going to set a little trap. The solid thing to do would be to play 10. Ne2 Nd5 11. Ba5 and round up the marooned c3 pawn. |
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10... Nd5
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? Black falls into it. Sometimes the slightly inaccurate gamble pays off! |
1 comment
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11. Rxd5
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! 11. ...cxd5 12. Bb5 is mate, which is a threat I tend to have niggled joanne quite a bit during this game. I cannot suppress the worse angels of my nature. After 11. ...e6 12. Ba5 Nd5 (now this maneuver is safe) white will have to work a bit more to win the pawn (13. Nf3-g5-e4 comes to mind), and in the meanwhile black can finish developing her kingside. |
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11... Rc8
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Now both my rook and bishop are hanging, so this tactic is actually a roundabout exchange of minor pieces, but I can take a tempo to win a crucial wing pawn. |
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12. Ra5 Rxc7 13. Rxa7
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And here we are. Now if I can pick off the c6 pawn, I have excellent chances to create two connected queenside passers in the endgame, basically a winning advantage all other things being equal. |
2 comments
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13... Kd8
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Forced, because of the threat of 14. Ba6 on my part. |
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14. Ne5
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Continuing to pressure the cramped black position. |
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