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1. e4
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As round three of the Space City Open begins, I find myself with 1 point out of 2, and in the middle of the early pack. My opponent this round is a 12 year old kid who I am totally unfamiliar with. He is rated 1237, but has already taken down the #3 guy in the section (a 1512) so I can't take him for granted like I almost did with my last opponent. I vow not to lose this game. I want to end this first day of the tourney with at least an even score. He opens with the popular 1. e4. |
 
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1... d5
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After several tournaments of experimenting with the Caro Kann, I decide to return to my old favorite the Scandanavian. |
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2. e5
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The advance variation, which I feel is the most aggressive way to deal with the Scandi. |
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2... c5 3. Nf3 Nc6
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Also playable is 3...Bg4, but I feel that this way better deals with the threat of white playing Bb5. |
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4. Bb5
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Which he does. |
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4... Bd7
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There are several ways to deal with this pin, including a6 and Qc7, but I like this one best as it may yield my LSB play on the long diagonal. |
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5. Bxc6
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?! White starts swinging first, and trades bishop for knight. I was expecting something a little more developmental, such as d4. |
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5... Bxc6 6. O-O
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White castles to safety immediately. |
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6... d4
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As I have the bishop pair, I want to open up as many lines as I can to accentuate it. This move also prevents Nc3. |
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7. d3 e6 8. Nbd2
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White develops nicely, and answers the question of where this knight will be most effective. I see him going to b3 or even e4 once Re1 is played. |
1 comment
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8... Ne7
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I have similar ideas for my knight as well. |
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9. b3
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?! I didn't like this move for white, and went into a deep think. I was trying to figure out a way to punish what I considered to be a slow move. |
1 comment
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9... b5
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I opt to shut down c4 for his knight while claiming some nice space on the queenside. |
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10. Ba3
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!? This is a sneaky move. White tempts me to play b4, thereby reopening c4 for his knight. |
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10... Nd5
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This is just a natural square for this knight. c5 is now protected, and c3 is looking juicy. |
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11. Re1
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White now secures e4 for his knight once I vacate d5. |
1 comment
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11... Nc3 12. Qc1 Bxf3
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?! I have no idea what prompted me to do this. I trade bishop for knight and allow him to reposition his knight in such a way that opens up more scope for his DSB. Bad play..... |
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13. Nxf3 b4 14. Bb2 Nd5
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Trying to regroup a llittle after my mental slip, I reposition to the center to avoid being forced to double my pawns on the c file. |
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15. Nd2
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! Good move kid....white now has two tasty outposts to consider. |
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15... Qg5
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?! I walked outside to smoke while I considered this move. I'm considering ways to assault his king immediately as most of his pieces are over on the queenside. The problem is, I just don't have enough ammo. I'm thinking Nf4 with possibly some help from h5. However, I didn't correctly analyze my position after he played...... |
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(1734)