[Event "Triberg (03)"]
[Site "Triberg (03)"]
[Date "1921.07.09"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Alexey Sergeevich Selezniev"]
[Black "Alexander Alekhine"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A47"]
[Annotator "Kosinski, George"]
[PlyCount "148"]
[EventDate "1921.??.??"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 b6 3. g3 Bb7 4. Bg2 d6 5. O-O Nbd7 6. Bf4 h6 7. Nc3 c5 8. d5
b5 9. Ne1 a6 10. a4 b4 11. Ne4 Nxe4 12. Bxe4 g6 13. c4 bxc3 14. bxc3 Bg7 15.
Rb1 Rb8 16. c4 O-O 17. Qc2 a5 18. Nf3 Qc7 19. Bd2 Ba6 20. Bd3 Rb4 {Diagram [#]}
21. Bxb4 cxb4 22. Nd2 Nc5 23. Nb3 Nd7 24. c5 Bxd3 25. exd3 dxc5 26. Rfe1 Ne5
27. Re3 Rc8 28. Rc1 Qd7 29. d4 Ng4 30. Re4 c4 31. Nc5 Qf5 32. Qe2 b3 33. Rxg4
b2 34. Qxb2 Qxg4 35. Rxc4 h5 36. Qc2 h4 37. Qd3 Rd8 38. f3 Qh5 39. Qe4 hxg3 40.
hxg3 Qg5 41. Kg2 Qd2+ 42. Kh3 Bf6 43. Rc2 Qh6+ 44. Kg2 Kg7 45. g4 Rh8 46. Kf2
Rb8 47. Ke2 Rb4 48. Rd2 Qh2+ 49. Ke3 Qg1+ 50. Ke2 Bxd4 51. Nd3 Rb1 52. Nc1 Bc3
53. Qxb1 Qg2+ 54. Kd3 Qxd2+ 55. Kc4 Qd4+ 56. Kb3 Ba1 57. Ka3 Qc5+ 58. Ka2 Bf6
59. g5 Qxd5+ 60. Nb3 Qxg5 61. Qe1 Qg2+ 62. Qd2 Qxf3 63. Qxa5 g5 64. Qe1 Qc3 65.
Qxc3 Bxc3 66. a5 Bxa5 67. Nxa5 g4 68. Nc4 g3 69. Nd2 Kg6 70. Kb2 Kf5 71. Nf3
Kf4 72. Ng1 Ke3 73. Kc2 Kf2 74. Nh3+ Kf1 0-1

[Event "?"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "????.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "#2"]
[Black "Skewer"]
[Result "0-1"]
[Annotator "Bass, Chuck"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "6k1/2q3p1/p3b3/1p2n3/3P4/8/1P2Q1P1/1K1R4 b - - 0 1"]
[PlyCount "1"]

{Diagram [#]} 1... Bg4 (1... Bf5+ 2. Ka2 Qa5+ 3. Kb3 Bg4 4. Qxe5 (4. Qc2 Bxd1
5. Qxd1 Qa4+ 6. Kc3 Qxd1) (4. dxe5 Bxe2) (4. Qxg4 Nxg4) (4. Qf1) 4... Bxd1#)
0-1

[Event "Spassky - Hort Candidates Quarterfinal"]
[Site "Reykjavik ISL"]
[Date "1977.03.27"]
[Round "12"]
[White "Vlastimil Hort"]
[Black "Boris Spassky"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "C85"]
[Annotator "Soltis, Andy"]
[PlyCount "79"]
[EventDate "1977.02.27"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. d3 Nd7 8.
Nbd2 O-O 9. Nc4 f6 10. Nh4 Nc5 11. Qf3 Ne6 12. Nf5 Nd4 13. Nxd4 Qxd4 14. Be3
Qd8 15. Na5 Bb4 16. Nb3 Bd6 17. Qe2 Qe7 18. f3 a5 19. a4 Be6 20. Nd2 Bc5 21.
Qf2 Bxe3 22. Qxe3 Qb4 23. b3 Rfd8 24. Rfc1 Rd7 25. Nf1 b6 26. Ng3 Qd4 27. Qxd4
Rxd4 28. Ne2 Rd7 29. Kf2 c5 30. Nc3 Rf8 31. Re1 g5 32. g3 Rg7 33. Re3 Kf7 34.
Rh1 Rfg8 35. Ree1 h5 36. Nd1 h4 37. Ne3 Rh7 38. Ng2 Bh3 39. Ne3 Be6 40. Ng2 {
Diagram [#]} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Spassky - Hort Candidates Quarterfinal"]
[Site "Reykjavik ISL"]
[Date "1977.04.17"]
[Round "15"]
[White "Boris Spassky"]
[Black "Vlastimil Hort"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E14"]
[Annotator "Soltis, Andy"]
[PlyCount "76"]
[EventDate "1977.02.27"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. e3 Bb7 5. Bd3 d5 6. O-O Nbd7 7. b3 Be7 8. Bb2
O-O 9. Nc3 c5 10. Qe2 Rc8 11. Rfd1 Qc7 12. Rac1 Rfe8 13. cxd5 exd5 14. Bf5 g6
15. Bh3 Rcd8 16. Na4 Ne4 17. dxc5 bxc5 18. Bxd7 Qxd7 19. Ne5 Qc7 20. f3 Nf6 21.
Nd3 c4 22. Ndc5 {Diagram [#]} Bc6 23. Bd4 Bb5 24. Qf2 (24. Nc3) 24... Nd7 25.
Nxd7 Bxd7 26. Nc3 Bf5 27. e4 dxe4 28. Nxe4 Bxe4 29. fxe4 c3 30. Rf1 (30. Bxc3
Bc5) (30. Rxc3 Qxc3 31. Bxc3 Rxd1+ 32. Be1 Bb4) (30. Rd3) 30... Bb4 31. Bxa7
Rd2 32. Qe3 Ra8 33. Bb6 Qd7 34. a4 c2 35. Bc5 {Diagram [#]} Bxc5 (35... Qg4)
36. Qxc5 Qg4 37. g3 (37. Rf2 Rd1+ 38. Rf1 Rxc1 39. Rxc1 Qd1+) 37... Qh3 38. Rf2
Rd1+ 1-0

[Event "corr"]
[Site "corr"]
[Date "1933.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Paul Keres"]
[Black "Verbac"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "C01"]
[Annotator "Soltis, Andy"]
[PlyCount "31"]
[EventDate "1933.??.??"]

1. d4 d5 2. e4 e6 3. Be3 dxe4 4. Nd2 f5 5. f3 exf3 6. Ngxf3 Nf6 7. Bd3 c5 8.
O-O cxd4 9. Nxd4 f4 10. Rxf4 e5 11. Bb5+ Kf7 12. Qh5+ g6 13. Bc4+ Kg7 {Diagram
[#]} 14. Qh6+ Kxh6 15. Rh4+ Kg7 16. Bh6# 1-0

[Event "Tartu TT"]
[Site "Tartu"]
[Date "1935.04.30"]
[Round "23"]
[White "A Karu"]
[Black "Paul Keres"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E51"]
[Annotator "Soltis, Andy"]
[PlyCount "40"]
[EventDate "1935.??.??"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 e6 3. c4 d5 4. Nc3 Bb4 5. Bd2 O-O 6. e3 Nbd7 7. Bd3 Re8 8. a3
Bd6 9. c5 Bf8 10. O-O e5 11. dxe5 Nxe5 12. Bb5 Nfd7 13. Bxd7 Bxd7 14. b4 Nd3
15. Qe2 Ne5 16. Nxd5 {Diagram [#]} Bg4 17. e4 c6 18. Ne3 Bxf3 19. gxf3 Qxd2 20.
Qxd2 Nxf3+ 0-1

[Event "Munchen ol"]
[Site "Munchen"]
[Date "1936.08.22"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Paul Keres"]
[Black "Eggert Gilfer"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E32"]
[Annotator "Soltis, Andy"]
[PlyCount "39"]
[EventDate "1936.??.??"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. e4 d5 6. e5 Nfd7 7. a3 Bxc3+ 8.
bxc3 c5 9. Nf3 cxd4 10. cxd4 dxc4 11. Bxc4 h6 12. h4 Re8 13. Rh3 Nf8 14. Rg3
Kh8 {Diagram [#]} 15. Bxh6 Qa5+ (15... gxh6 16. Qd2 Kh7 17. Bd3+ Ng6 18. h5 Rg8
19. hxg6+ fxg6 20. Ke2 (20. R[Event "?"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2016.02.24"]
[Round "?"]
[White "#2"]
[Black "Fork/Pin"]
[Result "0-1"]
[Annotator "Pandolfini, Bruce"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "2b2rk1/1p1q2pp/2p2n2/3p4/3P4/2N1B3/1PP2QPP/4K2R b K - 0 1"]
[PlyCount "5"]
[EventDate "2016.??.??"]

{Diagram [#]} 1... Ng4 2. Qg3 Nxe3 3. Qxe3 Re8 0-1

[Event "?"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2016.02.24"]
[Round "?"]
[White "#3"]
[Black "Driving Off"]
[Result "0-1"]
[Annotator "Pandolfini, Bruce"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "3q1rk1/5ppp/4pn2/3p4/3P1P1N/4P2P/5QP1/4R1K1 b - - 0 1"]
[PlyCount "1"]
[EventDate "2016.??.??"]

{Diagram [#]} 1... Ne4 0-1

[Event "?"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2016.02.24"]
[Round "?"]
[White "#4"]
[Black "Mating net"]
[Result "0-1"]
[Annotator "Pandolfini, Bruce"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "1b3rk1/2q2ppp/4p3/8/8/6P1/3PP2P/3QKB1R b K - 0 1"]
[PlyCount "3"]
[EventDate "2016.??.??"]

{Diagram [#]} 1... Qxg3+ 2. hxg3 Bxg3# 0-1

[Event "?"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2016.02.24"]
[Round "?"]
[White "#5"]
[Black "Removing the guard"]
[Result "0-1"]
[Annotator "Pandolfini, Bruce"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "5rk1/5qp1/3b3p/3p4/3Pp3/4P2P/4Q1PN/5RK1 b - - 0 1"]
[PlyCount "1"]
[EventDate "2016.??.??"]

{Diagram [#]} 1... Bxh2+ 0-1

[Event "?"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2016.02.24"]
[Round "?"]
[White "#6"]
[Black "Mating net"]
[Result "0-1"]
[Annotator "Pandolfini, Bruce"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "4r1k1/pp4pq/2pb4/3p4/3P4/3Q1P1P/PPP2B2/3R1K2 b - - 0 1"]
[PlyCount "9"]
[EventDate "2016.??.??"]

{Diagram [#]} 1... Qxh3+ 2. Kg1 Bh2+ 3. Kh1 Bg3+ 4. Kg1 Qh2+ 5. Kf1 Qxf2# 0-1

 9. Qe2 Qc7 10. Nbxd4 Ngxe5 11. Nb5 Nxf3+ 12. Qxf3 Qd7 13. Bf4 e5 14.
Rfe1 f6 15. Rad1 Be7 16. Bc4 d4 17. Be6 Qd8 18. Bxe5 Bxe6 19. Nc7+ Kf7 20. Nxe6
Qa5 21. Bxd4 Qxa2 22. Bxf6 Bxf6 {Diagram [#]} 23. Rd7+ Ne7 24. Rxe7+ Kxe7 25.
Qxb7+ Kd6 26. Qc7+ Kd5 27. Qc5# 1-0

[Event "BCC September TNS"]
[Site "Boston, MA, USA"]
[Date "2015.09.17"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Birzu, G."]
[Black "Feld, U."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A13"]
[Annotator "Alburt, Lev"]
[PlyCount "52"]
[EventDate "2015.09.17"]

1. c4 e6 (1... e5) 2. g3 d5 3. Bg2 d4 {Diagram [#]} 4. e3 (4. Nf3 c5 5. O-O Nc6
6. e3 Nf6 7. exd4 cxd4 8. d3) 4... c5 (4... Nc6) (4... e5) 5. exd4 cxd4 6. d3 (
6. Nf3) 6... Bb4+ 7. Nd2 {Diagram [#]} Ne7 (7... Nf6 8. Qa4+) 8. a3 Bxd2+ (8...
Bd6) 9. Bxd2 a5 {Diagram [#]} 10. Nf3 Nbc6 (10... a4) 11. O-O (11. b4 axb4 12.
axb4 Rxa1 13. Qxa1) 11... a4 12. b4 (12. Ng5) (12. Re1) 12... axb3 13. Qxb3 O-O
14. Rfe1 Ng6 15. h4 {Diagram [#]} Re8 (15... e5 16. h5) (15... h5 16. Qb5) (
15... f6 16. h5 Nge7 17. h6 g6) 16. h5 Nf8 17. Ne5 {Diagram [#]} Nxe5 18. Rxe5
Nd7 19. Rb5 Rb8 20. h6 (20. Bxb7 Rxb7 21. Rxb7 Nc5 22. Qb5 Nxb7) 20... Qc7 21.
Qd1 g6 (21... b6) 22. Qf3 {Diagram [#]} f5 (22... e5 23. Rd5 Nc5 (23... Re6 24.
Bh3 f5 25. g4) 24. Qf6) (22... b6 23. Qc6 Qd8 (23... Qxc6 24. Bxc6 Rd8 25. Rab1
)) 23. Bf4 e5 24. Qd5+ {Diagram [#]} Kf8 (24... Kh8 25. Qf7) 25. Bd2 Re7 (25...
Ke7 26. Bb4+ Kf6 27. f4 (27. Bd6)) 26. Bb4 Ke8 1-0

[Event "Fischer Simul Tour"]
[Site "Fitchburg, MA USA"]
[Date "1964.03.02"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Robert James Fischer"]
[Black "Harold Dondis"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "C27"]
[Annotator "Lawrence, Al"]
[PlyCount "38"]
[EventDate "1964.??.??"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nc3 Nf6 3. Bc4 Nxe4 4. Qh5 Nd6 5. Bb3 Nc6 6. d4 Nxd4 7. Nd5 Ne6 8.
Qxe5 c6 9. Nc3 Qf6 10. Qxf6 gxf6 11. Nge2 Nf5 {Diagram [#]} 12. g4 Nfd4 13.
Nxd4 Nxd4 14. Be3 Nxb3 15. axb3 d5 16. Rxa7 Rxa7 17. Bxa7 Bxg4 18. Bd4 Be7 19.
Kd2 c5 0-1

[Event "?"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2015.10.07"]
[Round "?"]
[White "15. Qd3!? Variation"]
[Black "?"]
[Result "*"]
[ECO "C92"]
[Annotator "Kislik, Erik"]
[PlyCount "80"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3
O-O 9. h3 Bb7 10. d4 Re8 11. Nbd2 {Diagram [#]} exd4 (11... Bf8) 12. cxd4 Nd7
$1 13. Nf1 $1 Na5 $1 14. Bc2 Bf6 $1 {Diagram [#]} 15. Qd3 $5 {is a fresh try
that improves White's queen position and tries to restrict the a5 knight. This
move threatens h7 and forces Black to react immediately.} (15. Bf4 Nf8 16. Ng3
Ne6) (15. N1h2 c5) (15. Ng3 g6 16. Bh6 Rc8) (15. Ne3 Bxe4) (15. Rb1) 15... Nf8
$1 (15... g6 $6 16. N1h2 c5 17. Ng4 {is too dangerous because White is able to
play Nh6+ followed by Bg5 with impunity, simply weakening Black's king
position and giving him no counterplay:} Bg7 18. Nh6+ Kf8 19. Bg5 Qc7 (19... f6
20. Bf4 $16) 20. Qd2 $14) 16. b4 $1 {This was suggested by IM Sammalvuo.} (16.
Rb1 c5 17. d5 Nc4 18. N1h2 {is another try, when Black can choose between
numerous equalizing moves, including 18. ...Bc8 and 18. ...h5!?} Bc8 (18... h5)
) 16... Nc4 17. Rb1 {Diagram [#] White would like to play a4 and add pressure
to Black's queenside.} c5 $1 {This is the only serious attempt for counterplay
and it must be played immediately to fight for the e5 square.} (17... g6 $6 {
is unpleasant due to the simple} 18. Bh6 $1) (17... Qd7 {is also no fun after}
18. a4 $1) 18. bxc5 dxc5 19. d5 Ne5 (19... Ng6 {was proposed by a young Indian
International Master.} 20. a4 $1 (20. N1d2 Nce5 $11) 20... Nge5 21. Nxe5 Nxe5
22. Qd1 $1 {is suggested by GM Kaufman.} (22. Qe2 Nc4 $1 23. axb5 axb5 24. Rxb5
Nd6 25. Rxc5 Bd4 {is a lovely rook trap, when Black is at least fully equal.})
22... b4 23. f4 {Here engines get extremely worried about Black's position,
although I honestly think that the forced continuation that follows offers
White almost no winning chances due to the fact that he will only be left with
one or two pawns at most:} Ng6 $1 24. e5 Nxe5 $1 25. fxe5 Bxe5 26. Bxh7+ Kxh7
27. Qh5+ Kg8 28. Rxe5 Rxe5 29. Qxe5 Qxd5 30. Qg3 Re8 31. Bb2 f6 32. Bxf6 Qxg2+
33. Qxg2 Bxg2 34. Kxg2 gxf6 {Black has to suffer a little bit in this ending,
but it appears to be a draw nonetheless due to the small number of pawns.} 35.
Kf2 Kf7 $1 36. Nd2 Rh8 37. Ne4 Rh5 $1 {and I think a draw is the correct
result here.}) 20. Nxe5 Bxe5 21. Be3 {Diagram [#]} Qc7 {is a solid and
sensible move, defending the c5 pawn.} (21... c4 $5 22. Qd2 f5 {is a really
fresh and exciting idea. I did not manage to refute this fancy way of
challenging White's center and protected passer.} 23. a4 Qd7 {Black intends ...
fxe4 Bxe4 Bh2+.} 24. Red1 c3 $1 (24... fxe4 25. Qb4 $14) 25. Qe2 fxe4 {Black
would like to bring his last piece into the game by ...Rac8.} 26. Ng3 Bxg3 27.
fxg3 Qd6 28. axb5 axb5 29. Qxb5 Ba6 30. Qc5 Qxc5 31. Bxc5 Rec8 32. Be3 Nd7 {
White has no good way to stop ...Bd3!} 33. Rbc1 Bd3 $1 34. Bxd3 exd3 35. Rxd3
c2 {This is another case where disregarding the engine's half pawn edge
advantage for White in favor of simple human evaluation is useful.} 36. g4 Kf7
37. d6 Rc4 38. Kf1 Rac8 {is almost certainly drawn, as the c-pawn will most
likely be traded off for the d-pawn.}) 22. a4 $1 {White's idea is fascinating:
despite Black's connected passed pawns on the queenside, White has them
blockaded and hopes to exploit his central superiority.} b4 23. Bb3 a5 (23...
Nd7 24. Rbc1 a5 25. Bc4 {transposes.}) 24. Bc4 Nd7 25. Rbc1 Qd6 26. Nd2 Qf6 $1
{This restrains f4!} (26... Ba6 27. f4 $1 Bc3 28. Rxc3 bxc3 29. Qxc3 {is a
powerful exchange sacrifice for White.}) 27. Bb5 {White targets d7, frees c4
for the knight and forces Black to react quickly.} Ba6 28. Bxa6 Qxa6 29. Nc4
Bc3 $1 30. Red1 h6 {Diagram [#] Black intends ...Nb6 Nxb6 Qxb6.} 31. Kh1 (31.
f4 f6 32. Rb1 Kh8 33. Kh2 Rac8 (33... Re7 $6 34. d6 Ree8 35. Qd5 Rab8 36. Kg3
$14) 34. Bg1 (34. d6 $2 Qc6 $17) 34... g5 $1 {shows Black can also flex his
muscles.}) 31... Nb6 $1 (31... f6 32. f3 Red8 $1 {Black intends ...Nb6.} 33.
Rxc3 bxc3 34. Qxc3 Rdb8 35. Rc1 Nb6 36. Nxb6 Qxb6 37. Bxc5 Qb3 {also has no
apparent refutation: the rooks are quite strong in the ending!} 38. Qd4 Qb2 39.
Qc4 Qb3 $11) 32. Nxb6 Qxb6 33. Qc4 Bd4 $1 {This is an important and typical
idea for Black: he is able to use the strength of the b-pawn to distract White
and get oodles of activity.} 34. Bxd4 cxd4 35. Rxd4 (35. f3 Rab8 36. Rxd4 b3
37. Rd2 Qd6 {gives Black excellent counterplay.}) 35... b3 36. Rd2 b2 37. Rb1
Rac8 38. Qf1 Rxe4 39. Rdxb2 Qd6 40. Qd1 Rcc4 $11 *

[Event "Baku World Cup"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2015.10.06"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Giri, Anish"]
[Black "Svidler, Peter"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "C92"]
[Annotator "Kislik, Erik"]
[PlyCount "82"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 (6. d3 {is one of
White's few serious alternatives to the main lines of the Ruy Lopez, as played
by strong GMs like Csaba Balogh exclusively.}) 6... b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. c3 d6 9.
h3 Bb7 10. d4 Re8 (10... Nd7 {is also an acceptable move order for Black.
White can try to deviate from the main line by} 11. Bc2 (11. Nbd2 Bf6 12. Nf1
Na5 13. Bc2 exd4 14. cxd4 Re8 {leads us right back to the main line!}) 11...
exd4 12. cxd4 Nb4 13. Bb3 c5 14. a3 Nc6 15. Nc3 Re8 16. Nd5 Bf6 $1 17. Nxf6+
Qxf6 18. Be3 {but Black equalizes with the double attack on e4 and the b3
bishop, not allowing White to retain the bishop pair:} cxd4 19. Nxd4 Na5 $1 {
with equality.}) 11. Nbd2 exd4 12. cxd4 Nd7 $1 {Diagram [#] Black intends ...
Bf6 followed by ...Na5 and ...c5. ...Nb6 can also be an idea in some
variations.} 13. Nf1 $1 {White threatens Ne3-g4 and sometimes even the simple
Qd2.} Na5 14. Bc2 Bf6 15. Rb1 $5 {White ideally would like to play b3 followed
by d5 (after Black goes ...c5), and play against the a5 knight after making it
awkward.} c5 {Black intends ...Nc6 or ...cxd4, so White really must push.} 16.
d5 Nc4 $1 {This move is necessary to bring the knight into play. Black's
intention is to play ...Nce5.} 17. b3 Nce5 {Black is even threatening to win a
pawn by ...Nxf3+ Qxf3 Bxd5, so White retreats and tries to play against
Black's seemingly redundant knights.} 18. N3h2 $1 {Diagram [#] White intends
Ne3 or Ng3 and toys with ideas of playing f4.} Ng6 (18... c4 $6 {was an
amusing idea proposed by one international master observing the game on ICC,
with the intention of sacrificing a pawn on d3 for the bishop pair. Amusingly,
White is able to refute the idea with extreme precision:} 19. Ne3 Nd3 20. Bxd3
cxd3 21. f3 $1 (21. Qxd3 $2 Nc5 {is Black's idea.}) 21... Ne5 22. Nhg4 Nxg4 23.
hxg4 Bh4 24. Rf1 Bc8 {prevents Nf5 and threatens ...Bg3, but White is just in
time:} 25. Kh2 h5 26. g3 $1 {and Black is forced to sacrifice a piece for
insufficient compensation, obtaining a worse position.}) ({The move I liked
the best is} 18... Nb6 {Black intends to advance his queenside majority by ...
a5-a4 (or ...b4 before ...a4), getting active play for the currently dormant
a8 rook and swinging the pawns in motion.} 19. f4 {is immediately provoked and
seems sensible, but may also provide weaknesses for White and loosen his king
position.} (19. Ne3 {This is one of the most serious tries due to the
intention of putting a knight on g4, but Black is able to ignore it by simply
using his bishop's mobility to slide to d4:} a5 $1 20. Nhg4 Nxg4 21. Nxg4 Bd4
$11) 19... Ng6 20. Nf3 b4 21. g3 a5 22. h4 a4 23. Ne3 axb3 24. axb3 Ra2 {Black
is really active here and even has ideas like ...Qc8 followed by ...Qh3.} 25.
Re2 Ne7 26. Bd3 Qa8 27. Rxa2 Qxa2 {gives Black excellent counterplay.}) 19. Ng3
{Now the White knights are eyeing f5 (h5 too) and g4, so Black needs to choose
an appropriate plan that deals with the impending threats.} Bc8 $1 {Black's
position is not without play of his own. He intends ...a5 or even ...Bg5.} (
19... Bg5 {is a natural try to simplify and keep f4 restricted for a long time.
} 20. Bxg5 Qxg5 21. Qg4 $1 Qxg4 22. hxg4 {threatens Nf5.} Ne7 23. g5 f6 24. Nf3
{White intends a4 and has a small edge because Black's pieces are all somewhat
passive and he has no obvious pawn breaks.}) 20. Rf1 {Diagram [#] White moves
his rook out of the way of the eventual ...Bc3 and prepares to play Ng4,
grabbing the bishop pair or chasing the bishop around the board. This was all
played instantly by Giri, indicating that he either prepared all of this, or
had been intending to play this way schematically on principle in any case for
building his attack.} (20. Ng4 Bg5 $1 $11) (20. Nf5 Nb6 21. Ng4 Bc3 22. Bd2
Bxd2 23. Qxd2 b4 {intends ...a5 with equality.}) 20... Nb6 $6 {This is
ultimately just a little bit too passive here, and was Svidler's only
apparently inaccuracy in the game. Better was 20. ...Bc3!, intending to meet
21. Ng4 by ...Nf6! with equality. Meeting Ng4 is a central strategic feature
of the evaluation of this position.} (20... Bc3 $1 {was definitely best, even
though it looks strange:} 21. Ne2 (21. Ng4 Nf6) 21... Bf6 22. Ng4 Bh4 23. g3
Bf6 24. f4 (24. Nxf6+ $2 Nxf6 {is an important line that wins a pawn for Black.
}) 24... b4 {Black intends ...a5 followed by ...Ba6 with no problems. It is
easy to understand that moving the dark-squared bishop around so many times in
such a small window of time looks very suspicious without preparation.}) 21.
Ng4 $1 Bxg4 (21... Bd4 22. Ne2 {still gives White the bishop pair and an edge.}
) 22. hxg4 h6 $1 {Black intends ...Be5 and it turns out that Bg5 is quite an
annoyance in certain possible variations. h6 is also generally useful because
White always has ideas of playing g5.} (22... Be5 23. Nf5 Ne7 24. Bg5 $1 f6 25.
Bd2 Nxf5 26. gxf5 {would have been a lot less comfortable for Black.}) 23. Nf5
(23. Be3 $1 b4 24. f4 {would have definitely given White an advantage. The
plan of Rf3 followed by Nh5 and Rh3 is very hard to stop and gives White a
strong attack.}) 23... Ne7 $1 {Svidler was proud of this solid move, which
does appear to hold down the fort.} 24. Ne3 $1 {This is the only reasonable
attempt to play against Black's somewhat awkward pieces.} b4 25. g3 $1 (25. Bd3
Ng6 26. g3 a5 27. Kg2 a4 $11) 25... a5 26. Kg2 a4 $1 27. bxa4 Qd7 {Diagram [#]}
28. Qd3 {White threatens e5, but Black is just in time to defend everything
comfortably.} (28. a3 $1 {was the move that troubled Svidler in the post-game
commentary.} Nxa4 29. Rb3 $1 {initially looks scary with a +.45 score on both
Komodo and Stockfish at a reasonable depth around 30. Nevertheless, with such
limited material and the possibility to simplify directly, it is not a huge
surprise that Black is able to neutralize White's play:} (29. Qd3 Ng6 30. g5 $1
Bxg5 31. f4 Nc3 $1 (31... Bf6 32. axb4 $14) 32. axb4 (32. fxg5 Ne5 $1 33. Qd2
Nxb1 34. Bxb1 bxa3 35. gxh6 g6 {threatens ...Reb8 and even gives Black a
strong initiative.}) 32... Nxb1 33. Bxb1 Bxf4 34. gxf4 Ra4 35. bxc5 dxc5 {
intends to take on e4 and is definitely not worse for Black.}) 29... Reb8 30.
f4 Nc3 31. Qd3 Bd4 $1 32. axb4 Bxe3 33. Bxe3 cxb4 34. f5 Ra2 {threatens ....
Qb5.} 35. Rf2 Qc7 36. Bd4 Na4 37. Bd1 (37. f6 Ng6 38. fxg7 Nc5 {would give
Black fantastic counterplay.}) 37... Rxf2+ 38. Bxf2 Qc1 39. Be3 Qc8 {intends ..
.Nc5 with good counterplay.} 40. Qd4 Qc5 41. Kf3 f6 {leaves Black with a rock
solid position and no problems, demonstrating that even Svidler's fear of 28.
a3! was nothing much to worry about. His position was just too solid and sound.
}) 28... Ng6 29. Nf5 Nxa4 {Diagram [#]} 30. Bxa4 $2 {After this position, the
position is essentially lost for White.} (30. Qf3 $1 {would have threatened g5
and forced Black onto the defensive. It looks like White is able to actually
draw after the surprising:} Qd8 31. g5 $1 Bxg5 (31... hxg5 $2 32. Rh1 {is too
strong.}) 32. Bxa4 Rxa4 33. Bb2 Bf6 34. Nxh6+ Kf8 35. Rh1 Rxa2 36. Bxf6 Qxf6
37. Nf5 {when after Rh7 and Rbh1, White will always have at least a perpetual.}
) 30... Rxa4 31. Rh1 Ne7 32. g5 $2 {White lost a full pawn with this and was
not able to justify the sacrifice in any meaningful way.} (32. Bb2 $1 Bxb2 33.
Rxb2 Rea8 34. Qe2 Nxf5 35. gxf5 f6 $17) 32... hxg5 33. Ne3 (33. Nxe7+ Qxe7 $19)
33... Rxa2 34. Bd2 Ng6 35. Nf5 (35. Rhd1 Ne5 36. Qb3 Rea8 37. Bc1 Qb5 $19)
35... Ne5 36. Qe2 g6 {White could have resigned here, but I am sure he did not
want to yet in such a critical game.} 37. Nh6+ Kg7 38. Nf5+ (38. Qd1 Rh8 $19)
38... Kg8 (38... gxf5 $1 {is played later, after Svidler repeats one time to
gain time on the clock.}) 39. Nh6+ Kg7 (39... Kf8 40. Rbc1 c4 $19 {also wins.})
40. Nf5+ gxf5 41. Qh5 Ng6 {and White finally resigned, down a piece and two
pawns with no threats to the Black king.} (41... Ng4 {was also really strong.})
0-1

[Event "handicap match"]
[Site "Chess.com"]
[Date "2016.01.06"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Black "Komodo"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[WhiteElo "2787"]
[BlackElo "3200"]
[Annotator "Kaufman, Larry"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "rnbqkbnr/ppppp1pp/8/8/8/8/PPPPPPPP/RNBQKBNR w KQkq - 0 1"]
[PlyCount "108"]
[EventDate "2016.??.??"]
[TimeControl "45"]

1. e4 {Diagram [#]} e6 {Perhaps the best choice at f7 handicap.} 2. d4 d5 3.
exd5 {This option gets the queens off but forfeits any initiative or attack.
If White hopes to win I think this is a poor choice. Both 3Nc3 and 3Nd2 are
objectively better here.} (3. Nc3) (3. Nd2) 3... exd5 4. Qh5+ g6 5. Qe5+ Qe7 6.
Qxe7+ Nxe7 7. Bf4 Bg7 8. c3 c5 $1 {I think this surprised Nakamura. It led to
a very exciting game despite the early queen trade.} 9. dxc5 Nd7 10. Bd6 (10.
Nd2 Nxc5 11. Ngf3 {was safer, returning the second pawn to keep pace in
development.}) 10... Nf5 {Diagram [#]} 11. Bb5 $2 (11. Na3 a6 12. Nc2 {keeps a
safe advantage.}) 11... Nxd6 12. cxd6 a6 13. Ba4 O-O 14. Bb3 Nc5 $1 15. Bxd5+
Kh8 {So Black has given up two more pawns (besides the handicap) for a big
initiative/attack. So much for computers being materialistic!} 16. Nf3 Nd3+ 17.
Kf1 Bf5 18. Nbd2 Rad8 19. Bxb7 Nxb2 20. Be4 Be6 21. h4 Bxc3 22. Rc1 Na4 23. h5
g5 {Diagram [#]} 24. Nxg5 $5 (24. Nb3 g4 25. Ng5 Rxd6 26. Nxe6 Rxe6 27. Bd3 g3
28. f3 Rd8 29. Be4 Bb2 30. Re1 Bc3 31. Rc1 {This draw by repetition was likely
the best line, but Nakamura's decision to sacrifice a piece for some pawns was
practical; he probably had confidence that he could hold the draw.}) 24... Bxd2
25. Nxe6 Bxc1 26. Nxf8 Rxf8 27. Bc6 Nc5 28. Rh3 Bd2 29. d7 Ba5 30. Re3 Rf6 31.
Re8+ Kg7 32. Bf3 Nxd7 33. Re7+ Rf7 34. h6+ Kf8 35. Rxf7+ Kxf7 36. Be4 Bd2 37.
Bxh7 Bxh6 38. g3 a5 39. f4 Nc5 40. Ke2 Bg7 41. Bd3 Nxd3 $6 {This was rightly
criticized as making the draw too easy, but probably White would hold anyway.
Computers assume the opponent will see what they see, a poor assumption for a
handicap game.} 42. Kxd3 Bb2 43. Kc4 Bf6 44. Kb5 Bc3 45. a4 Kf6 46. Ka6 Kf5 47.
Kb5 Bb4 48. Ka6 Ke4 49. Kb5 Be1 50. Ka6 Kf5 51. Kb5 Bc3 52. Kc4 Bb4 53. Kb5 Ke4
54. Ka6 Kf5 {Although Komodo claims a 3/4 pawn plus based on being up bishop
for two pawns, it can do nothing without giving up its last pawn, Engines are
still not good at recognizing "fortress" draws like this one., although this
game motivated us to work on this problem. Nakamura made only one clear
mistake this game, and yet had to play well to draw.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Handicap match"]
[Site "Chess.com"]
[Date "2016.01.07"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Komodo"]
[Black "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[WhiteElo "3368"]
[BlackElo "2787"]
[Annotator "Kaufman, Larry"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "1rbqkbnr/pppppppp/8/8/8/8/PPPPPPPP/1NBQKBNR w Kk - 0 1"]
[PlyCount "97"]
[EventDate "2016.??.??"]
[TimeControl "45"]

{Diagram [#]} 1. c4 {The game suggests that this was already a poor choice.
Probably 1. e4 was better. White's problem is that he has to make concessions
to avoid exchanges, since most endgames down the Exchange are lost. Hikaru
felt that this handicap was his best chance to win, and indeed he obtained a
huge advantage. But no GM has beaten Komodo with an Exchange handicap yet with
either color in 11 tries!} (1. e4) 1... Nf6 2. Nc3 e5 3. Nf3 (3. e3 {seems
better.}) 3... e4 4. Nd4 Bc5 5. Nb3 Bb4 6. Qc2 Qe7 7. e3 O-O 8. Nd4 $6 (8. d4 {
was relatively better though still quite bad for White.}) 8... d6 9. Nde2 c6
10. a3 Ba5 11. b4 Bc7 12. Bb2 d5 13. cxd5 cxd5 14. f4 {Diagram [#] Up to this
point Nakamura has outplayed Komodo and I was expecting a loss.} a5 $2 {
Nakamura probably overlooked that White now regains the Exchange, although
Black retains a large advantage due to development, king safety, and the
bishop pair. Capturing en passant would leave Black with a winning material
and positional advantage.} 15. Nb5 Bb6 16. Be5 Bd7 17. Bd6 Qd8 18. bxa5 Bxa5
19. Bxb8 Qxb8 20. Ned4 Rc8 $2 (20... Ng4 21. Ke2 g5 22. g3 Qd8 {leaves Black
with a huge positional advantage. The obvious move played blocks the queen's
access to the kingside.}) 21. Qb2 Ng4 22. Ke2 h5 23. h3 Nh6 24. Rg1 Bb6 25. Ke1
Bxb5 26. Bxb5 Qd6 27. Ne2 d4 $5 (27... Qd8 {kept a safe, solid plus for Black.}
) 28. Nxd4 Qf6 29. Qb4 Rc1+ 30. Kf2 Ng4+ 31. hxg4 Qh4+ 32. g3 Qh2+ 33. Rg2 Qh1
{Probably Black would win from here against any human opponent.} 34. Nc2 Rxc2 {
This appears to lead to a forced draw.} (34... Bxe3+ 35. Kxe3 Qxg2 36. Qb2 Rd1
37. Qb4 hxg4 38. Be2 Qxg3+ 39. Kxe4 Qg2+ 40. Kd3 Qd5+ 41. Qd4 Qb3+ 42. Qc3
Qxc3+ 43. Kxc3 g3 44. Ne3 Ra1 45. Kb2 Re1 46. Bf3 b6 {Black has the better
side of a probable draw.}) 35. Qxe4 Rxd2+ 36. Be2 hxg4 37. Qe8+ Kh7 38. Qb5 g6
39. Qxb6 Rxe2+ 40. Kxe2 Qxg2+ 41. Kd3 Qxg3 42. Qxb7 Kg7 43. Qb2+ Kg8 44. Qb8+
Kg7 45. Qe5+ Kg8 46. Qe8+ Kg7 47. Qe5+ Kg8 48. Qe8+ Kg7 49. Qe5+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "Handicap Match"]
[Site "Chess.com"]
[Date "2016.01.07"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Black "Komodo"]
[Result "0-1"]
[WhiteElo "2787"]
[BlackElo "3368"]
[Annotator "Kaufman, Larry"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "rnbqkbnr/pppppppp/8/8/3PP3/5N2/PPP2PPP/RNBQKB1R w KQkq - 0 1"]
[PlyCount "116"]
[EventDate "2016.??.??"]
[TimeControl "45"]

{Four move handicap was novel. Some thought it would be easier for Hikaru than
the material handicaps, but others felt it would be the hardest for him. I
rated it as more than f2 but less than f7 or the Exchange handicaps.} 1. c4 {
Diagram [#] I think that playing for development, for example Bd3, was more
appropriate than playing for space, but perhaps Hikaru knows best.} d6 2. Nc3
g6 3. Qb3 {This looks strange, but it's not clearly bad.} c6 4. Be2 Qb6 5. Qc2
Bg7 6. O-O Nf6 7. h3 O-O 8. Be3 Qc7 9. Rac1 $6 (9. b4 b6 10. a4 {would keep a
large space advantage and initiative. The move played was a bit slow.}) 9...
Nbd7 10. Rfd1 b6 11. Qd2 {Again, b4 seems better.} Bb7 12. b3 Rad8 13. Bh6 {
Komodo thinks this bishop exchange helps him.} (13. d5 {was probably better.})
13... e5 14. Bxg7 Kxg7 15. d5 a5 {White now has the "wrong" color bishop for
the pawn structure, and little remains of his four move handicap.} 16. Qe3 Ra8
17. Ne1 Nc5 18. Nd3 Qe7 19. Nb2 Nfd7 {Diagram [#]} 20. Nca4 $6 (20. Qd2 Rac8
21. dxc6 Rxc6 22. Nba4 {kept a small advantage due to the backward d6 pawn.})
20... f5 {Now the game looks like a fairly normal King's Indian with no hint
of the handicap.} 21. Nxc5 bxc5 22. f3 $6 (22. dxc6 Bxc6 23. Bf3 {kept
equality.}) 22... Nf6 23. g4 Rf7 24. Rf1 Raf8 25. Kh2 fxg4 26. fxg4 h5 27. gxh5
Nxh5 28. Rxf7+ Qxf7 29. Rf1 Nf4 {Black has an obvious advantage now due to the
knight outpost.} 30. Bg4 cxd5 31. exd5 Qc7 32. Qg3 Rf6 33. Rf2 Bc8 34. Nd1 Bxg4
35. Qxg4 Qf7 36. Qh4 Rf5 37. Ne3 $6 (37. Qg4 {was necessary with a poor but
defensible game.}) 37... Rh5 38. Qg4 Qe7 39. Rf3 Rg5 40. Qc8 Ne2 41. Qe6 Qxe6
42. dxe6 Nf4 43. Rg3 $2 (43. Nd5 Nxe6 44. Nf6 Rf5 45. Ne8+ Kh6 46. Kg2 Nf4+ 47.
Kg1 d5 48. cxd5 Nxd5 {White has just a little compensation for the pawn, but
he's not clearly lost.}) 43... Rh5 44. Nd5 Nxe6 45. Nc3 Nd4 46. Ne4 Nf5 47. Rd3
$6 (47. Rg4 {was necessary to stop ...Rh4. Perhaps Black would win anyway.})
47... Rh4 48. Nxd6 Rf4 49. Nxf5+ $6 gxf5 {Why did White allow Black two
connnected passed pawns? Perhaps there was no defense anyway. Black is now
winning.} 50. Rd5 $6 (50. Rd7+ Kf6 51. Kg3 Re4) 50... e4 51. Rxc5 Kf6 52. Rc8
Rf2+ 53. Kg3 Rf3+ 54. Kg2 Ke5 55. h4 Kf4 56. h5 e3 57. h6 Rg3+ 58. Kh2 Rg6 0-1

[Event "?"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2016.02.18"]
[Round "?"]
[White "1.Apr"]
[Black "?"]
[Result "*"]
[Annotator "Benko, Pal"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "8/3p4/8/8/4k3/8/PPPPPPPP/RNBQKBNR w KQ - 0 1"]
[PlyCount "0"]
[EventDate "2016.??.??"]

{Diagram [#]}  *

[Event "?"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2016.02.18"]
[Round "?"]
[White "2.Apr"]
[Black "?"]
[Result "*"]
[Annotator "Benko, Pal"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "1k6/3p4/8/8/8/8/PPPPPPPP/RNBQKBNR w KQ - 0 1"]
[PlyCount "0"]
[EventDate "2016.??.??"]

{Diagram [#]}  *

[Event "?"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2016.02.18"]
[Round "?"]
[White "3.Apr"]
[Black "?"]
[Result "*"]
[Annotator "Benko, Pal"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "8/3p4/8/8/7k/8/PPPPPPPP/RNBQKBNR w KQ - 0 1"]
[PlyCount "0"]
[EventDate "2016.??.??"]

{Diagram [#]}  *

[Event "Wijk aan Zee Tata A"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2016.01.22"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Tomashevsky, Evgeny"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D02"]
[WhiteElo "2844"]
[BlackElo "2728"]
[Annotator "Rogers, Ian"]
[PlyCount "59"]
[EventDate "2016.01.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 e6 3. Bf4 {"The London System is a little better after Black
has committed to ...e6," said Carlsen.} b6 4. e3 Bb7 5. h3 Be7 6. Bd3 O-O 7.
O-O c5 8. c3 {[#]} Nc6 {"He has many decent ways to play," said Carlsen,
hinting at} (8... cxd4 9. exd4 d6 {followed by 10...Nbd7.}) 9. Nbd2 d5 10. Qe2
Bd6 {"He spent a lot of time here," said Carlsen - half an hour on his
previous three moves.} 11. Rfe1 {"I had many options here:} (11. Bg5 {or}) (11.
Ne5 {, though then he plays} Qc7 {and I didn't see anything," said Carlsen.})
11... Ne7 $5 {[#]  Played after another 20 minutes thought. "He can try} (11...
Bxf4 12. exf4 cxd4 13. Nxd4 Nxd4 14. cxd4 Qd6 {but he is passive and will be
suffering," explained Carlsen.}) 12. Rad1 Ng6 {"A little bit dubious," said
Carlsen. "12...Ng6 is a normal plan but after he [acquires the doubled pawns]
it becomes that much harder to dislodge the knight  from e5."} 13. Bxg6 $1 hxg6
14. Bxd6 Qxd6 15. Ne5 {[#]} g5 {"Black's problem is that I just want to play
f4, then put a queen on h4 and a knight on g5 and mate him," said Carlsen. "If}
(15... Ne4 {I simply reply} 16. f4 {when it is still very hard to dislodge my
e5 knight."}) 16. f4 $5 {"Here I became very excited about the possibility of
starting an attack and I just went for it," said Carlsen.} gxf4 17. Rf1 $1 {[#]
} Nd7 $2 {"In lines such as} (17... fxe3 $1 18. Rxf6 $1 {there isn't reallly
that much to calculate," admitted Carlsen," since White will always have a
draw and it feels like there should be more. Maybe he has a way to save
himself, but I wasn't so sure."  It took only seven minutes before Tomashevsky
decided to decline the offer and trust Carlsen, although} exd2 $1 19. Qh5 gxf6
{is critical and White's rook seems just too slow to enter the attck with
decisive effect, meaning that White will sooner or later have to take the
perpetual check.}) 18. Qh5 Nf6 {"After} (18... g6 19. Qh6 $1 (19. Nxg6 fxg6 20.
Qxg6+ {is not enough because of my stupid pawn on h3.}) 19... Nxe5 20. Rxf4 $1
{and I can't see what he can do," said Carlsen.  During the post-mortem,
Carlsen realised that he had overlooked the defence} g5 $5 {but soon realised
that} 21. dxe5 Qxe5 22. Rg4 {would be good for White, e.g.} f6 23. Nf3 Qxe3+
24. Kh1 Rf7 25. Re1 Qf2 26. Rxe6 {and White crashes through.}) 19. Qh4 {[#]}
Qd8 {"Now I believe that the position is just lost," suggested Carlsen.} (19...
fxe3 20. Rxf6 exd2 21. Rxd2 {now leads to a winning attack for White but "I
thought he should play}) (19... Nh7 {when after} 20. Rxf4 (20. exf4) 20... g5
21. Qg3 f6 {I don't see anything for White," explained Carlsen. "So I would
play 20.exf4 when White is clearly better. At some point he will need to play .
..f6 when my knight comes to g6, but it is still a game."}) 20. Rxf4 Ne4 $2 {
A move passed over without comment by Carlsen, but he may have underestimated}
(20... cxd4 $1 21. exd4 {and only now} Ne4 $1 {. Since the exchanges in the
game would now lead to nothing for White, Carlsen would be forced to keep
queens on the board and keep playing for an attack, which in Tomashevsky's
time trouble would have been hard to handle even if objectively Black should
survive.}) 21. Nxe4 Qxh4 22. Rxh4 dxe4 23. dxc5 bxc5 {[#]} 24. Rd7 {"Now White
has complete domination," said Carlsen.} Rab8 25. b3 a5 {Most of Tomashevsky's
time disappeared with this move as he realised that his queenside pawns cannot
be held.} 26. Rc7 a4 27. bxa4 Ba8 28. a5 Rb7 29. Rxc5 Ra7 30. Nc4 {A
surprising moment to resign, but with 10 moves to go before the time control
and White soon to redeploy his h4 rook, Tomashevsky did not see why he should
prolong his suffering.} 1-0

[Event "Tata Steel"]
[Site "0:37:33-0:08:33"]
[Date "2016.01.29"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Magnus Carlsen"]
[Black "Yifan Hou"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "C42"]
[Annotator "Rogers, Ian"]
[PlyCount "107"]
[EventDate "2016.01.15"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. Nxe5 d6 4. Nf3 Nxe4 5. Nc3 Nxc3 6. dxc3 Be7 7. Be3 Nc6
8. Qd2 Be6 9. O-O-O Qd7 10. b3 Bf6 11. h3 O-O-O 12. g4 h6 13. Bg2 Kb8 14. Rhe1
Rhe8 15. Kb2 a6 16. Re2 Qe7 17. Rde1 Qf8 18. Nd4 Nxd4 19. Bxd4 Bxd4 20. Qxd4
Bd7 21. f4 Rxe2 22. Rxe2 Re8 23. Rxe8+ Bxe8 24. Qb4 c6 25. Bf1 Kc8 26. g5 Qe7
27. gxh6 gxh6 28. Qd4 f6 29. Qa7 Bd7 30. a4 Qd8 31. Qg1 Qe7 32. Qg6 Qe1 33. Bd3
Qh4 34. Bf5 Bxf5 35. Qxf5+ Kb8 36. c4 Kc7 37. Qa5+ Kc8 38. Qd2 Kd7 39. c5 d5
40. Qe3 Qh5 41. Qg3 Qf7 42. Qg4+ f5 43. Qg3 Qf6+ 44. Qc3 {Diagram [#]} Qxc3+ (
44... d4) 45. Kxc3 h5 (45... a5 46. b4 h5 47. bxa5 h4 48. Kd4 Ke6 49. c4 dxc4
50. Kxc4 Kd7 51. a6 bxa6 52. Kb4 Kc7 53. Ka5 Kb7) 46. Kb4 Kc8 47. Ka5 Kc7 48.
h4 Kb8 49. Kb6 Kc8 50. b4 Kb8 51. b5 cxb5 52. axb5 axb5 53. Kxb5 Kc7 54. c3 1-0

[Event "Wijk aan Zee Tata A"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2016.01.27"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Black "Wei Yi"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "C83"]
[WhiteElo "2787"]
[BlackElo "2706"]
[Annotator "Rogers, Ian"]
[PlyCount "63"]
[EventDate "2016.01.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Nxe4 6. d4 b5 7. Bb3 d5 8. dxe5
Be6 9. c3 Be7 {[#]} 10. Bc2 $5 (10. Nbd2 Nc5 11. Bc2 d4) 10... Bg4 {"The point
of 10.Bc2 was that after} (10... O-O 11. Nbd2 {I get a line that he doesn't
want, avoiding the 10.Nbd2 Nc5 11.Bc2 d4 lines, which I assumed that he wanted
to play" explained Caruana.} Nc5) 11. h3 Bh5 {"A good move. On} (11... Bxf3 {
I would take back with the g pawn," said Caruana, "and after} 12. gxf3 Nc5 13.
f4 Qd7 14. Qf3 {I will follow with 15.Rd1 and then at some point b4 to begin
attacking the d pawn [via Bb3].".}) 12. g4 $5 {Wei spent 42 minutes on his
previous move and Caruana explained, "He was probably calculating} (12. Bb3
Nxe5 {which is critical. I can try} 13. Qxd5 ({If} 13. Bxd5 Nxf3+ 14. gxf3 Nf6
{and he will have good compensation for the exchange.}) {but after} 13... Nxf3+
14. gxf3 Nf6 15. Qc6+ Kf8 16. Rd1 Bd6 17. Bf4 {I felt that he could probably
simplify to a decent ending."}) 12... Bg6 {[#]} 13. Nd4 $1 {"This is a new
position and 13.Nd4 is completely new," explained Caruana. "} (13. Bb3 {[which
had previously been played with success by Fischer IR] runs into} Nc5 $1 14.
Bxd5 Qd7 {."}) 13... Qd7 {"Very logical. He can also try} (13... Nxd4 14. cxd4
{when he has a lot of options -} h5 {,} (14... c5 {or}) (14... O-O {, said
Carauana. "I looked at this position a couple of weeks ago."})) 14. f4 Nxd4 15.
cxd4 f5 16. Be3 {"I also considered} (16. exf6 Bxf6 17. f5 Bf7 {but after he
castles the knight on e4 is very hard to get rid of," explained Caruana.})
16... O-O {By now Wei was an hour behind on the clock and it was clear that
Caruana was still in his preparation, having played almost instantly until 16.
Be3.} 17. Nc3 c6 $2 {[#]  "On} (17... Nxc3 18. bxc3 Rac8 {I was intending} (
18... c6) 19. a4 c5 20. axb5 axb5 21. Ra6 {when I don't think that Black has
fully equalised," said Caruana. "However after 18...c6 in this line, Black
would be very solid."}) 18. Bxe4 $1 dxe4 19. d5 $1 {"I am not sure what he
missed," admitted Caruana. "Perhaps he wanted to avoid being slightly worse in
the previous variation but now Black is close to lost."} b4 {"} (19... cxd5 20.
Qxd5+ Qxd5 21. Nxd5 Bd8 22. Rfd1 {is a disaster for Black," said Caruana.
"White has domination and I don't think it would give him many chances to
survive."}) 20. dxc6 Qxd1 21. Nxd1 Rfd8 {"Black's problem is that he just
can't get rid of the c pawn, e.g.} (21... Rac8 22. Rc1 Be8 23. c7 {, later
supported by Bb6," explained Caruana.}) ({"I was expecting} 21... h5 {but then}
22. Rc1 $5 hxg4 23. hxg4 fxg4 24. Bc5 $1 {followed by 25.Ne3 looks very bad
for Black."}) 22. Rc1 Rd3 23. Bc5 $5 {"My goal is to trade bishops, put a rook
on e1 and a knight on e3, which should be winning," indicated Carauna.} Bd8 {
"After} (23... Bxc5+ 24. Rxc5 Rxh3 {I have} 25. Nf2 Rg3+ 26. Kh2 Rf3 27. c7 Rc8
28. Rd1 $1 Rxf2+ 29. Kg1 {and the d pawn decides," said Caruana.}) 24. e6 Rc8 {
"If} (24... fxg4 25. hxg4 Rg3+ 26. Kh2 Rxg4 27. Ne3 Rh4+ 28. Kg3 {and his rook
is very bad," said Caruana. "In general he should keep his rook where it is
well placed.  "Perhaps}) (24... Be8 25. e7 Bc7 26. Ne3 Bxc6 27. Bxb4 Be8 $1 {
was possible when he could try to hang on; at least it was better than the
game."}) 25. e7 Ba5 {"After 24...Rc8,} (25... Bc7 {doesn't make much sense,"
said Caruana.}) 26. gxf5 {[#]} Be8 {"He had to try} (26... Bxf5 {," Caruana,
who was originally intending} 27. Ne3 Bxh3 28. Rfe1 $2 {having overlooked 28...
b3! However Caruana soon realised that} (28. Rf2 Be6 29. f5 Bf7 30. f6 $1 Rxc6
31. fxg7 {was the way to play, wth the idea} Kxg7 32. Rxf7+ $1 Kxf7 33. Rf1+ {
and White wins.}) 28... b3) 27. Nf2 Rd5 {"} (27... Rg3+ 28. Kh2 Rf3 29. Nxe4
Rxf1 30. Rxf1 Rxc6 31. Rd1 {is the same story," said Caruana.}) 28. Nxe4 Bxc6 {
[#]} 29. Bxb4 $1 {"The cleanest," said Caruana.} Bxb4 30. Rxc6 Re8 31. f6 Rd4
32. Re6 {"The final [trick] is} (32. Re6 gxf6 33. Nxf6+ Kf7 34. Nxe8 Kxe6 35.
Ng7+ $1 Kxe7 36. Nf5+ {and I pick up his rook," explained Caruana.}) 1-0

[Event "Wijk aan Zee Tata A"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2016.01.22"]
[Round "6"]
[White "So, Wesley"]
[Black "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "C50"]
[WhiteElo "2773"]
[BlackElo "2787"]
[Annotator "Rogers, Ian"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "r1q2rk1/1p4pp/p2ppn2/4p3/P1nPP3/1NP2N2/Q4PPP/R3R1K1 b - - 0 18"]
[PlyCount "14"]
[EventDate "2016.01.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]

{[#]  The position is roughly equal and after 21...Nh5, Caruana would have few
worries.  However the older American thought for 20 minutes and became
optimistic about his chances in a long tricky line he had calculated...} 18...
Qc6 $2 (18... Nh5) 19. Nc5 $1 {"The main move I had been considering," said
Caruana.} dxc5 20. Qxc4 exd4 21. cxd4 {Caruana had calculated this far and had
expected to be able to capture the pawn on e4. At the last moment he realised
his error....} Nd7 $1 {Diagram [#] Sad but necessary. After} (21... Nxe4 22.
Ne5 $1 ({Not} 22. dxc5 Nxc5 {when Black has the extra pawn Caruana had wanted.}
) 22... Qd5 23. Rxe4 $1 {was the trick that So had missed, after which Black
would be forced to resign. "It's good I had a way to hold on," admitted
Caruana, "but it was very unpleasant, possibly lost at some point."  The game
continued}) 22. a5 $1 Rac8 23. d5 exd5 24. exd5 Qd6 25. Re6 {when White had
all the chances.  However Caruana hung tough and eventually drew a pawn down
endgame on move 80.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "YUG-ch 6th"]
[Site "Ljubljana"]
[Date "1951.??.??"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Svetozar Gligoric"]
[Black "Borislav Kostic"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A04"]
[Annotator "Pandolfini, Bruce"]
[PlyCount "41"]
[EventDate "1951.??.??"]

1. Nf3 f5 2. e4 fxe4 {Diagram [#]} 3. Ng5 Nf6 4. d3 e3 (4... exd3 5. Bxd3 Nc6
6. Nxh7) 5. Bxe3 (5. fxe3) 5... e5 6. d4 e4 7. f3 (7. Nxe4 Nxe4 8. Qh5+) 7...
exf3 8. Qxf3 d5 9. Bd3 Bg4 (9... Bd6 10. Nxh7 Nxh7 11. Qh5+) 10. Qf2 Bd6 11. h3
Bh5 12. O-O Qe7 (12... Nc6 13. Ne6) 13. Nc3 c6 14. Rae1 O-O 15. Bf4 Qd7 16.
Bxd6 Qxd6 17. Nxh7 Rf7 (17... Nxh7 18. Bxh7+ Kxh7 19. Qxf8) 18. Nxf6+ Rxf6 (
18... Qxf6 19. Re8+) (18... gxf6 19. Qh4) 19. Qh4 Rh6 (19... Bg6 20. Rxf6) (
19... Rxf1+ 20. Rxf1 Bg6 21. Bxg6 Qxg6 22. Qd8+ Kh7 23. Rf8) 20. Qxh5 {Diagram
[#]} Rxh5 21. Re8+ 1-0

[Event "?"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2016.02.24"]
[Round "?"]
[White "#1"]
[Black "Mating Net"]
[Result "0-1"]
[Annotator "Pandolfini, Bruce"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "3q1rk1/5ppp/3b4/8/8/8/3PP1PP/3QKB1R b K - 0 1"]
[PlyCount "3"]
[EventDate "2016.??.??"]

{Diagram [#]} 1... Qh4+ 2. g3 Bxg3+ (2... Qxg3+) 0-1

[Event "Tata Steel"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2016.01.16"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Hou, Yifan"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "C42"]
[WhiteElo "2844"]
[BlackElo "2673"]
[Annotator "Naroditsky, Daniel"]
[PlyCount "107"]
[EventDate "2015.12.20"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[SourceDate "2016.02.10"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. Nxe5 d6 4. Nf3 Nxe4 5. Nc3 Nxc3 6. dxc3 Be7 7. Be3 Nc6
8. Qd2 Be6 9. O-O-O Qd7 10. b3 Bf6 11. h3 O-O-O 12. g4 h6 13. Bg2 Kb8 14. Rhe1
Rhe8 15. Kb2 a6 16. Re2 Qe7 17. Rde1 Qf8 18. Nd4 Nxd4 19. Bxd4 Bxd4 20. Qxd4
Bd7 21. f4 Rxe2 22. Rxe2 Re8 23. Rxe8+ Bxe8 24. Qb4 c6 25. Bf1 Kc8 26. g5 Qe7
27. gxh6 gxh6 28. Qd4 f6 29. Qa7 Bd7 30. a4 Qd8 31. Qg1 Qe7 32. Qg6 Qe1 33. Bd3
Qh4 34. Bf5 Bxf5 35. Qxf5+ Kb8 36. c4 Kc7 37. Qa5+ Kc8 38. Qd2 Kd7 39. c5 d5
40. Qe3 Qh5 41. Qg3 Qf7 42. Qg4+ f5 43. Qg3 Qf6+ 44. Qc3 {Diagram [#]} Qxc3+ (
44... d4 45. Qd3 Kc7 46. b4 Kb8 47. Kb1 (47. Kb3 Qe6+ 48. Qc4 Qe3+ 49. Kb2 Qxf4
) 47... Kc7 48. b5 axb5 49. axb5 cxb5 50. Qxb5 Qa6) (44... Qg6 45. Qe5) 45.
Kxc3 h5 {Diagram [#]} (45... a5 46. Kd4 Ke6 47. c3 Kf6 48. b4 Ke6 {Diagram [#]}
(48... axb4 49. cxb4) 49. bxa5 (49. b5 Kf6) 49... Kf6 50. c4 dxc4 51. Kxc4 Ke6
52. Kb4 Kd5 53. a6 bxa6 54. Ka5 Kxc5 55. Kxa6 Kd4 (55... Kb4 56. a5 c5 57. Kb6
c4 58. a6 c3 59. a7 c2 60. a8=Q c1=Q 61. Qa5+) 56. Kb6 c5 57. a5 c4 58. a6 c3
59. a7 c2 60. a8=Q c1=Q) (45... Ke6 46. Kb4 Kd7 47. Ka5 Kc7 48. b4) (45... Kc7
46. Kd4) 46. Kb4 Kc8 47. Ka5 Kc7 48. h4 Kb8 49. Kb6 Kc8 (49... d4 50. b4 Kc8
51. b5 axb5 52. axb5 cxb5 53. Kxb5 Kc7 54. Kc4) 50. b4 Kb8 51. b5 cxb5 52. axb5
axb5 53. Kxb5 Kc7 54. c3 1-0

[Event "Qatar Masters Open 2015"]
[Site "Doha QAT"]
[Date "2015.12.24"]
[Round "5.31"]
[White "Naroditsky, D."]
[Black "Puranik, A."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D70"]
[WhiteElo "2628"]
[BlackElo "2442"]
[Annotator "Naroditsky, Daniel"]
[PlyCount "81"]
[EventDate "2015.12.20"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "QAT"]
[Source "Mark Crowther"]
[SourceDate "2015.12.28"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. f3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nb6 6. Nc3 Bg7 7. Be3 O-O 8. Qd2
Nc6 9. O-O-O Qd6 10. Kb1 Rd8 11. Nb5 Qd7 12. d5 a6 13. Nc3 Qe8 14. Qc1 Na5 15.
Bf4 e5 16. Be3 Qf8 17. b3 Bd7 18. Qb2 Rac8 19. Bd3 Bb5 20. Nxb5 axb5 21. Bxb5
Ra8 22. Rc1 Nxd5 23. Bc5 Ne7 24. b4 Nac6 25. Bxc6 bxc6 26. Ne2 Qe8 27. Rhd1
Rdb8 28. Qd2 Rd8 29. Qg5 f6 30. Qe3 Qf7 31. Rxd8+ Rxd8 32. Kb2 Nc8 {Diagram [#]
} 33. Qb3 (33. a4) 33... Bh6 34. Rc2 Qxb3+ 35. Kxb3 Rd3+ 36. Nc3 Nd6 37. a4 f5
38. a5 fxe4 39. a6 Nf5 40. fxe4 Nh4 41. Be7 1-0

[Event "Philadelphia op 7th"]
[Site "Philadelphia"]
[Date "2013.03.29"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Naroditsky, Daniel"]
[Black "Van Kampen, Robin"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "B90"]
[WhiteElo "2472"]
[BlackElo "2592"]
[Annotator "Naroditsky, Daniel"]
[PlyCount "71"]
[EventDate "2013.03.27"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "USA"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2013.04.22"]

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 6. h3 e5 7. Nde2 h5 8. Bg5
Be6 9. f4 Nbd7 10. f5 Bc4 11. Ng3 Rc8 12. Bxc4 Rxc4 13. Qd3 Qc7 14. O-O-O Be7
15. h4 b5 16. Kb1 Nc5 17. Qf3 Na4 18. Nxa4 bxa4 19. Bxf6 Bxf6 20. Nxh5 Rxh5 21.
Qxh5 Rxe4 22. Qf3 Rb4 23. c3 Rc4 24. Qa8+ Ke7 25. Qxa6 Rg4 26. Rd2 Qd7 27. Rhd1
Kf8 28. Qa8+ Qe8 29. Qb7 e4 30. Rxd6 e3 31. Qf3 Re4 {Diagram [#]} 32. Re6 fxe6
(32... Rxe6 33. fxe6 Qxe6 34. Qa8+ Qe8 35. Qxe8+ Kxe8 36. Re1) 33. Qxe4 exf5
34. Qxe8+ Kxe8 35. Re1 f4 36. g3 1-0

[Event "Portoroz Interzonal"]
[Site "Portoroz SVN"]
[Date "1958.08.10"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Pal Benko"]
[Black "Robert James Fischer"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E81"]
[Annotator "Benko, Pal"]
[PlyCount "81"]
[EventDate "1958.08.05"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. f3 e5 6. Nge2 O-O 7. Bg5 exd4 8. Nxd4
Nc6 9. Nc2 Be6 10. Be2 h6 11. Bh4 g5 12. Bf2 Ne5 13. Ne3 c6 14. O-O Qa5 15. Qd2
(15. Qxd6 Rfd8 16. Qa3 Qxa3 17. bxa3) 15... Rfd8 16. Rfd1 a6 17. a4 Qc7 18. a5
c5 {Diagram [#]} (18... Qe7) 19. h4 (19. Ncd5 Nxd5 20. cxd5 Bd7 21. b4) 19...
Qe7 (19... Nc6 20. Ra3 Nd4 (20... Nxa5 21. Ncd5 Bxd5 22. cxd5 b6 23. Nf5) 21.
Bd3) 20. hxg5 hxg5 21. Nf5 Bxf5 22. exf5 g4 (22... Nc6 23. Qxg5 Nd5 24. Qxe7
Ndxe7 25. Bd3 Rab8) 23. Bh4 Qf8 24. fxg4 Nexg4 25. Bxg4 Nxg4 26. Qg5 Nf6 27.
Rd3 Nh7 28. Qg4 f6 29. Nd5 Qf7 30. Re1 Re8 31. Rde3 (31. Re6 Kh8 (31... Kf8 32.
Bg3) 32. Bxf6 (32. Nxf6) (32. Rxf6) 32... Bxf6 (32... Rg8 33. Re7 Bxf6 34. Rxf7
Rxg4 35. Rxh7+) 33. Rxf6 Nxf6 34. Nxf6) 31... Re5 32. Bg3 Rxe3 33. Rxe3 Re8 34.
Re6 Ng5 35. Rxd6 Re4 36. Rd8+ Kh7 37. Bf4 Bh6 38. Rd7 Re1+ 39. Kf2 Ne4+ 40.
Kxe1 Qxd7 41. Qg6+ 1-0

