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1. Nf3
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As the second round of the Space City Open begins, I find myself looking at the wall chart and being traumatized when I see the last name of my next opponent. I am feeling fat and bloated from my pig out experience at Cracker Barrel, and the last thing in the world I want is to play this kid. He is 10, and definitely on his way up the ratings chart. Then I look a little closer, and realize that it's not the wunderkind, but his father that I am playing. Matt is the VP of the Alabama Chess Federation and a very cool guy, but he is a beginner who only really got into competetive play because of his kid. As is typical in a Swiss tourney, I go from playing the highest rated player in round one to the lowest rated player in round two. I open with 1. Nf3. |
 
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1... Nf6
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An interesting choice for a beginner. Let's see if he can handle a transposition. |
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2. d4
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I see an opportunity to get into my pet QG lines (which constitute 80 % of my rated games with the white pieces). |
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2... d5 3. c4
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I put my mind into full Queens gambit mode. I feel secure whether he takes or not. |
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3... e6
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! I'm gonna give Matt full credit here for not being enticed by the apparent low hanging fruit. Most beginners snap off the c pawn quick. Black opts for a traditional QGD line. |
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4. cxd5
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I feel confident in saying that I play this move 100% of the time. The exchange variation of the QGD is my all time favorite. At this point, I intend to play Rc1 as soon as possible and start raising Cain on the c file. |
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4... exd5
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Regaining equality. |
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5. Nc3 Bb4
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Black develops nicely, and prepares to castle. Honestly, I expected Nc6...... |
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6. Bg5
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I seriously considered Qa4 , which I normally play against weaker players. But I realized that black has not been intimidated by me at all so far, and God forbid, may actually have some game. I reigned in my ego and played a logical developing move which established a nice pin. |
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6... Nc6
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Not bad, but not great IMHO. Bf5 seems to hold more promise. |
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7. e3 Bg4
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Black keeps chugging right along, and makes another good move. I remind myself that over-confidence has taken down players far better than I, and that I should now double my efforts and start playing chess. No one is gonna just give me a point. |
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8. h3
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!? I set the first trap. If he takes, I'll retake with my queen and have possibilities on f6. I know that developing my LSB is more logical, but I just had the feeling that my opponent was having problems keeping up with the consequences of the three pins on the board. His eyes and body language told me that he wanted to keep things as simple as possible, so I put him to the test. |
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8... Bxf3
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?! My gut feeling turned out to be right. Black tries to maintain some degree of tempo, but in the process allows me my wish. |
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9. Qxf3 Qd7
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? Obviously annoyed by the pin against his queen, black blunders a pawn - and in the process wrecks his kingside pawns. |
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10. Bxf6 gxf6 11. Qxf6
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I breathe a little easier now, and realize that I'm a pawn up with superior pawn structure. I now intend to trade off everything in sight and get into a won endgame. |
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11... Rg8
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Protecting his hanging rook and getting it to an open file. |
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12. Bd3
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Daring black to play Rxg2, as I'll respond Qh8 winning a rook. |
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12... Qe7
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? Black assists me in my liquidation plans. Why trade queens here? The ladies promptly come off the board. |
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13. Qxe7+ Nxe7 14. O-O
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Getting to safety and protecting my g pawn. |
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14... h5
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This little fella was hanging anyway, so black pushes him into action. |
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(1700)