Friday, December 15, 2006

Missing Loss

This was a loss I forgot to include in a previous post. White tries an unusual second move. Instead of playing 2...d6 or 2...d5 I tried 2...Qa5. That was not that bad, but after I played 7...c5 I was in a bad way. I had to play 7...d6

Russ Montey (1842) vs Me Loss

Click here to replay the game.

6 comments:

  1. Ouch. Well, you get credit for being brave enough to share this painful loss with us.

    In many of your blog comments I notice a focus on opening theory and specific variations. Yet in this game, when your opponent played a single non-standard move (which should have transposed to a standard line), you-self destructed. I wonder whether you should modify your approach to opening preparation away from pure memorization to studying the ideas behind the moves.

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  2. 8 ... Ng4, hitting the P on e5, looks quite playable, and preferable to the game continuation.

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  3. ...Ng4 would be a wasted move after h3...

    Black should pay his dues and try 8...Nf5

    Black could have saved another tempo with 9...Qb6

    10 Be4 was better for white. White actually missed a lot of better moves in the game. He nearly squandered away the half point.

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  4. (correction above)
    15 Be4, (not move 10)

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  5. 8 ... Ng4 doesn't work because of Nb5, not because of h3 (Black can reply cd).

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  6. (to anonymous) at this point, maybe nothing is able to hold, but at least you now see that Ng4 does not work. I would have played h3 then, and I still believe it would be the best response. After 9...cxd, (not the best response to h3) white simply plays 10. Nb5 and blacks destruction is swift!

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