Chess

INSPIRED "COFFEE-HOUSE" CHESS

Once in a while, even a "coffee-house" game can yield a pleasing blend of attacking abandon and purposeful play. Chabot College chess student Manuel Galindez was privileged to consummate just such a victory recently at Hayward's local chess haven, the Cherryland Café.

Gambiting first one pawn, then another, Galindez further sacrificed a bishop to drive the enemy king into the open. He then boldly captured the hostile queen, in the full knowledge that it would cost him an additional rook, as his opponent expended his counterplay with a seemingly deadly discovered check followed by the queening of a pawn. All the king's riches, however, failed to save him from the debacle of checkmate.

The gamelet is recorded in USCF approved coordinate chess notation (files lettered "a" to "h", ranks numbered "1" to "8", always counting from White's lower left corner regardless of whose turn to move; pawn captures designated by file letters only) with notes by the winner.

White: Manuel Galindez (1789) - Black: Steve Joplin (1772) Cherryland Café, Hayward, March 20, 1974. Blackmar-Diemer Gambit 1 d4 d5 2 e4 de 3 Nc3 e5 (Better was 3...Nf6, which gives the main line of the Blackmar-Diemer after 4 f3) 4 Ne4 ed (Sounder would have been 4...Qd4.) 5 Nf3 Bg4 6 Bc4 Bb4+ 7 c3 dc 8 Bxf7+ Kf7 9 Qd8 cb2+ (This move and the next are forced.) 10 Ke2 baQ 11 Neg5+ Kg6 12 Qe8+ Kf6 (If 12...Kf5, then 13 Qe6mate.) 13 Qf7mate.

COMBINATIVE CONCLUSION

Soviet grandmaster Mark Taimanov stood on the sidelines during this year's Leningrad championship, preferring to watch his 20-year-old protégé, Vladimir Kozlov, confirm his blossoming talent by fulfilling a master norm in combinative style.

White: Vladimir Kozlov. Black: Ivan Ivanov. Leningrad 1974. English Opening 1 c4 Nf6 2 Nc3 d5 3 cd Nd5 4 g3 c5 5 Bg2 Nc7 6 d3 e5 7 f4 ef 8 Bf4 Ne6 (After 8...Be7 Black would not like 9 Qa4.) 9 Nh3 (On 9 b8 Rb8 10 Qa4 Bd7 11 Qa7 Nd4 Black has the initiative to compensate for his lost pawn.) 9...Be7 (An interesting plan is 9...Nf4 10 Nf4 Bd6.) 10 0-0 0-0 11 Nd5 Nc6 12 Bd2 Bd7 13 e3 Rc8 (Stronger would have been 13...Bd6 in order to answer 14 Bc3 with 14...Ne5 and 14 Qh5 with 14...Be5!) 14 Bc3 Nb4 15 Qh5 Bc6 (Leads to a forced win for White. More resistant was 15...Nd5 16 Bd5 b6, and if 17 Be4, then 17...h6 18 Qf5 g6 19 Qe5 f6.) 16 Be4 h6 17 Qf5 g6 18 Qe5 Kh7 19 Rf7! Rf7 20 Qe6 Qg8 21 Nhf4! Rf4 (Nor does 21...Rg7 save Black, on account of 22 Bg6 Rg6 23 Qe7.) 22 Qe7 Qf7 23 Bg6! Resigns (Notes translated from "64", No. 10, Mar. 8-14, 1974, pg. 7).

International master Nezhmetdinov fervently propagandizes open game play, and wholeheartedly practices what he preaches.

White: L. A. Belov. Black: R. G. Nezhmetdinov.
XXI RSFSR Championship, 1961.

Two Knights' Defense

1 P-K4
2 N-KB3
3 B-B4
4 N-N5 (a)
5 PxP
6 B-N5ch (b)
7 PxP
8 B-K2
9 N-KB3
10 N-K5
11 P-Q4 (c)
12 NxQP
13 N-Q2 (d)
14 N-B3
15 0-0
16 P-QN3 (e)
17 R-K1 (f)
18 P-KR3 (g)
19 KxN (h)
20 K-B1
21 Q-Q2 (i)
22 P-B4 (k)
23 KxB (l)
24 PxN
25 K-B2 (m)
26 BxB
27 K-N3
28 Q-N2 (n)
29 K-B2
30 B-Q2
31 PxR
32 Resigns (p)

P-K4
N-QB3
N-B3
P-Q4
N-QR4
P-B3
PxP
P-KR3
P-K5
Q-B2
PxP e.p.
B-R3
B-Q3
0-0
QR-Q1
KR-K1
N-N5
NxBP!
Q-N3ch
B-N6
P-QB4!! (j)
BxR
NxBP!
BxP
BxN
P-B5ch
RxB
Q-N3ch
Q-K5 (o)
RxNch!
Q-R5ch!

(Condensed notes by the winner, translated from "Selected Grandmaster and Master Games from the RSFSR", Vasily Smyslov, editor, Moscow, 1962, pp. 29-31)

(a) Not a very popular continuation in this modern age, but one that produces fascinating and lively positions. Young players, especially, are advised to employ these older lines more often, both as White and as Black, in order to perfect their attacking and defensive technique in open game situations.

(b) Occasionally, White will try 6 P-Q3 P-KR3 7 N-KB3 P-K5 8 Q-K2 NxB 9 PxN B-QB4 10 P-KR3 0-0 11 N-R2, in which case combination players will enjoy such attractive variations as 11...P-QN4?! 12 PxP 0-0 13 0-0 P-K6 14 P-KB4 (14 PxP R-K1 15 R-B3 Q-K2 16 K-B2 P-B4 or 15 R-Q1 Q-N4 16 P-KR4 Q-B4 17 Q-B3 NxP!!) NxP! 15 RxN Q-Q8ch! 16 QxQ P-K7ch, and Black wins.

(c) Also possible is 11 P-KB4. But White falls under attack after 11 N-N4 BxN! 12 BxB B-B4 13 B-K2 R-Q1 14 P-QB3 N-N2 15 0-0 P-KR4 16 P-Q4 PxPe.p. 17 BxP N-N5 18 Q-K2ch K-B1! (Chiocoltea-Nezhmetdinov, Bucharest, 1954).

(d) Starkov-Nezhmetdinov (Semi-finals, RSFSR Championship, 1960) preceded 13 P-QN4 N-B5 14 N-Q2 B-R3, and White subsequently lost.

(e) Black threatened P-B4-B5.

(f) White receives just punishment for this pointless move. Essential was 17 B-N2 N-K5, with chances for both sides. Now, however, White is overwhelmed in a wave of combinations.

(g) Neither does 18 P-N3 B-B4 19 R-B1 Q-N3 20 Q-K1 RxN! 21 PxR BxQP offer any relief.

(h) Black wins decisive material after 19 NxN B-R7ch 20 NxB RxQ.

(i) Black seems to have miscalculated, as 21...RxN 22 BxR saves White from the mating attack, but the idea behind Black's combination was not aimed at exploiting the "weak" black squares...

(j) The most difficult move of the combination. Black deliberately intercepts the diagonal of his queen in order to create new threats against the "strong" white squares and the undefended enemy QR.

(k) An interesting variation here is 22 R-N1 P-B5! 23 PxP QxR 24 QxN QxBP! 25 N-N4 QxBch!

(l) The King must persist in his dangerous journey, since 23 QxB would lose to 23...RxN.

(m) If 25 K-B1, then Black finishes with a flourish by 25...RxB! 26 KxR RxN! 27 QxR BxQch 28 KxB Q-KB3!, winning White's QR (29 R-N1 Q-B4ch).

(n) Other retreats also lose by force: I. 28 Q-B4 R-K7 29 K-R2 Q-B7; II. 28 Q-KB2 Q-KB3 29 R-N1 Q-N3ch, followed by RxN and QxR; III. 28 Q-QB2 Q-N3ch 29 K-R2 Q-Q3ch 30 K-N1 RxN 31 PxR Q-N6ch and 32...R-K8mate.

(o) Threatening RxNch, Q-K8ch and R-K7ch.

(p) White must give up his queen to escape mate, i.e., 32 K-B1 QxPch 33 K-B2 Q-R7ch 34 K-B1 R-K7.

UNION CITY CHESS COURSE

The Union City Leisure Services Division will be starting the 1974 Spring Program the week of Apr. 1. One of the new adult community offerings will be a ten-week program of chess instruction. Mail registration takes place Mar. 18-31. and late signups beginning Apr. 1 at the Kennedy Community Center, 1333 Decoto Rd., Union City. Please call 489-0360 for further details.

WHERE TO PLAY CHESS

The Hayward Chess Club, Palma Ceia Park, Monday and Friday, 8-12p.m.

Cherryland Café, 22472 Meekland Ave., Hayward, evenings, 11p.m. to 6a.m.

The San Leandro Chess Club, 205 Dutton Ave., Monday, 7-11p.m.

The Fremont Chess Club, 40204 Paseo Padre Parkway, Monday, 7-11p.m.

The Livermore Chess Club, Fourth and J Streets, Friday, 8-12p.m.

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