Strong Point Leading to Effective Exchange Sacrifice

Offering your Rook for a Bishop or Knight is referred to as an exchange sacrifice in the game of chess. A Rooks is usually worth more than either minor piece in a wide open position whereas Knights can be stronger in closed positions where there are few open files.

In the following game played at the Internet Chess Club, Black played Qh4 threatening Qg3 check. Now should White accept the exchange sacrifice offered by Black at d3? If he does, Black will get an extra pawn plus a passed pawn at d3 AND chances against the vulnerable White King.



The possibility of the exchange sacrifice is partially due to the strong point/square at d3 supported by the c4 pawn. Jeremy Silman does an excellent job of sizing up the notion of material and when to give it up in his classic How to Reassess your Chess. If the reader is not absolutely convinced of the effectiveness of exchange sacrifices, given the necessary preconditions, after reading this great chess author's book, then he did not spend enough time with this magnificent, chess axiom spewing tome. Ask IM John Donaldson if you do not believe this dim light!


 

Distant Past Pawns Beat Protected Passed Pawn

jmderbes of Argentina must of thought there was no way he was going to lose the following chess position played at the Internet Chess Club as he went into the ending with a protected passed pawn at d4.

Black has a 4-3 king side majority but no protected passed pawn. White has 4-3 queen side pawn majority.




However, White blundered by playing a move which allows Black  to create isolated passed e and a pawns which will overwork the White King as they advance to their Queening squares at e1 and a1 respectively.

In the diagrammed postion, White just played b3 which allows the aforementioned winning idea. See if you can find the pawn move which leads to victory in all variations, Clarence Yeung, for the second player despite White's protected passed d pawn!

Many THANKS to Clarence Yeung and his Honor Roll school who taught my son much more than chess! Mike learned critical thinking, time management, and other important life skills. He now has a beautiful wife, an excellent job, and a bright future due in large part to his world class teacher. Also a big thanks to Jim Liptrap for all his encouragement and making us aware of the chess community and the positive, life changing impact it can have on our youth.

Pawn Queening Deflection

The following 3 minute blitz game played at the internet chess club is an excellent example of a deflection sacrifice leading to the promotion of a pawn to a Queen. The opening was a Benko where White managed to create a passed d pawn due to a Benoni-like e5 thrust before Black's queenside play manifested.



chichi1950 from Spain, playing with the Black pieces, must have been feeling quite comfortable with  his Rooks doubled at b2 and d2 with the threat of Rook captures pawn at f2 either drawing easily or perhaps winning.

White's trump is his passed d7 pawn which is a single square from Queening. With White to move, see if you can find a deflection move which either leads to the pawn promoting to a Queen or  the loss of a Rook.

Muarading King with all the Heavy Pieces on the Chess Board

It is a relatively rare circumstance that an aggressive and effective threatening King move is present in a chess game where all the Rooks and Queens are still on the board(all the heavy pieces are alive and well).




PolarPatriot of the Internet chess club found himself in deep doo doo in this three minute blitz game one lazy Sunday afternoon. He had just moved his King from g2 to h2 following a check by the Black Queen at f3.

Black's Queen and two Rooks could not be more effectively placed and owing to the ruthless logic of chess, that only leaves the Black Monarch available for action. The notion of the King as a muarading attacking piece is well known in chess endings, but with the Rooks and Queens on the board a chess player has to have a damn good reason to move his King.

Nigel Short noticed it was possible to move his King in these type of positions as long as the enemy forces were sufficiently paralyzed. With all these hints I am sure the half alert reader will find the winning move with Black to play!!

Devastatingly Savage attack by 12 year old

The following diagram shows chess position reached by 12 year old Magnus Carlsen who is now the most dominant chess player on the planet.



I don't want to tell you too much about this position other than a stunning move exists that forces checkmate. Notice how most of Black's pieces are away from the action(not placed well defensively) which makes a sacrifice even more imminent.

Remember that many sacrifices are irreversible and require exact calculation. One error can allow the enemy King to slip out and the attacker will usually lose since he is minus the material required to continue to fight.

So with White to move, see if you can discover what went through the mind of the current world champion over a decade ago? When you see the move, you will certainly be able to share what  must of been a mind rush  for the exceptionally talented pre-teen chess player!!

Side with the Safer King Wins in this Sharp Position

Vulnerability is definitely an element of the game of chess. Vulnerable pieces, squares, and Kings frequently guide a player when attempting to formulate a plan or tactical sequence.




In the following game played at the ICC, Samdog(not sure if he is trying to make an association with infamous NYC serial killer back in the mid 70s) playing with the White pieces finds himself in a world of hurt. Despite the fact that the material is balanced, his Kingside has weak squares and his a1 Rook is inactive and out of play.

Combine that with the exceptional piece activity and King safety of the Black pieces and you get a W for Black. Note that with Black to move, his Knight at d3 is hanging(undefended). See if you can find a tactical continuation that finishes White. Hint: visualize mating patterns that allow Black to leave his Knight unprotected.

The late NM Jim Gallagher would most certainly berate this writer for profoundly declaring that the side with the safer King wins in sharp positions. He would label it a superfluous tautology and not not worth mentioning. I miss Gallagher and think about him when I have lost a game that I should have won. It was a treat to watch him analyze with Sid Pickard who won the Texas State Championship long ago.

He pissed off a lot of people, but was a principled man who was a truth seeker in chess and life.

The Greek Gift

Kire ,playing out of Norway at the Internet Chess Club with the Black pieces, has played rather passively in this opening.  He has just retreated his f6 Knight back to the e8 square after being attacked by e5 pawn.




This loss of a precious King side defender is an invitation to one of the most well known sacrifices in tactical chess literature. All the pre-conditions exist for the Greek Gift. Black's h7 square is only defended by the King at g8. So after Bxh7 check, King captures Bishop and Ng5 check, it is curtains for Black as there is no way for his King to escape checkmate or  grievous loss of material.

Note that the c8 Black Bishop is in no position to defend the fatally wounded Black Monarch as the Bishop has no chance of getting to the b1-h7 diagonal.

Also I could not find anything related as to why this particular sacrifice is called the Greek Gift. Perhaps something to do with Greek Mythology? Not sure. Would love readers to leave comments on any knowledge they may have regarding the origin of the phrase.

Exchange Sac: Vulnerable King

The purpose of a relatively common exchange sacrifice is to strip the enemy king side of defenders and make that sector of the chess board more vulnerable. An exchange sacrifice is where one gives up a Rook for either a Knight or Bishop.

In the following 3 minute game played at internet chess club, Svinotigr of Russia has an extra two pawns and will win all endings if he can trade down and consolidate his position. Observe that his g3 pawn is weak defended only by the f2 Bishop.

Many chess masters, including the late FM Jim Gallagher of San Antonio,TX, believed that a "true sacrifice" was one that was incalculable to the end by humans. Jim was an excellent positional player, but was not afraid to mix it up with an aggressive sacrifice recognizing the psychological advantage of putting his opponent on the defensive knowing the chance for error when defending was quite high.




The rotund Andy Smith also loved to mix it up in tactical skirmishes rather than play a long technical ending. Other bright lights from that region of America like Peter Kappler and Drew Sarkisian preferred the the slow positional build ups that might culminate in explosive tactics when the position reached critical mass.

With Black to move in the following position look for a  move that offers to "mix it up" as the Golden Glove boxers are so fond of.

Punishing Underdevelopment and Greed

One of the most remarkable insights into the game of chess is the well known comparison between it and the game of life. Just as countless television programs, articles, and social commentary speak to the extent that greed can ruin one's life, greed can also cost you the game in chess.



I have a copy of a book once owned by Anthony F. Kaye titled Common Sense in Chess by Emanuel Lasker. The great long time world champion spends some time showing the reader how excessive greed can turn a winning position into a losing position.

In the following 3 minute blitz game played at the internet chess club, Ewanyengi of the United Kingdom sees a way to win the exchange before he has castled or fully developed his pieces. His Queen at b3 and Knight at g5 can combine to win the Black Rook at f8.

White can not prevent this or he will lose to the sadistic and much dreaded smothered mate. With White to move, can you see why he will lose the game if he tries to win the Rook for his Knight? Chess also has a principle of Justice which is manifest here also. Bill Wall the prolific chess writer from Colorado who knew Bobby Fischer on a first name basis has, I believe, written beautifully on the manner in which chess and living a decent life go hand in hand.

Finally it is a widely promulgated rule of thumb in chess that a Rook is worth 5 points and minor pieces 3 points. Relying too much on rules of thumb do not lead to chess mastery!

A nameless excrescence upon Life

The title of this post is how H.G. Wells characterized the Royal Game of Chess. One might easily surmise that Mr. Wells was a weak chess player who lost to one too many paupers and needed to come up with an excuse. Wells also claimed that "chess annihilates a man and hardens the soul".

 He did list a number of players who went crazy over indulging the game: 1. Gustav Neumann 2. Johannes Minckwitz who committed suicide via train 3. George Rotlewi stricken by "nervous illness" 4. Akiba Rubinstein 5. Mexican first time GM Carlos Torre 6. Aron Nimzowitsch 7. Raymond Weinstein insitutionalized on Ward's Island in NYC 8. Everybody's favorite, the Jew hating Bobby Fischer



 Back to Wells' usage of the word excrescence which is defined as a distinct outgrowth on a human or animal body or on a plant, especially one that is the result of disease or abnormality. I know that chess has kept kids out of jail in the United States city of Detroit, Michigan(Pete Nixon has the data on this claim) . Wells should stick to Science Fiction where he made his mark. Listing a few crazies among the chess population is a little like being overly concerned about the postal profession because a few postal workers flew the coup.

Devastating Attractions Sacrifice

What is meant by an attraction sacrifice in chess? An attraction sacrifice is a tactical motif where an enemy piece is lured/attracted to a particular square. The attraction idea frequently pulls a chess piece to a square where it is no longer defended.

In the following ultra dangerous position played at ICC, MurderofCrow from the United Sates has just bravely connected his rooks by playing King to d2.  Black reacted with Rook to e5 intending to support the nasty Black Knight at the e3 square.

Observe that the Black Queen at d4 is the only piece protecting the Rook which is being attacked by the White g3 Queen. So it appears that if the First Player nudges the Queen away with c3 that the e5 Rook will be captured and Black will lose miserably.




See if you can visualize the stunning tactical resource that Black has based on the attraction sacrifice theme! Backing off in ultra sharp positions usually forfeits the initiative and sometimes the game.

Incidentally, ICC chess player MurderofCrow just let his time expire rather than resign in a hopeless position later on in the game which quite common at the Internet Chess Club.
 

Bad Bishop and Weak Pawns Equals a Loss in this Chess Ending

Playing 3 minute blitz chess at ICC is not as bad for one's chess game as is widely promulgated. In the following ending that arose from a Catalan Opening structure, kenmiller457 finds himself with a difficult to defend position due to two considerations: 1. A bad Bishop  2. A weakened, shattered pawn structure namely doubled pawns at f7, f6, and h7.

Amazingly, Black's Bishop is bad because of one pawn! Yes the d5 pawn obstructs two long diagonals limiting the the mobility of the dismayed Prelate.  White's light squared bishop is NOT blocked by the d4 pawn giving it superior range and mobility.



White's winning plan is quite straightforward. Occupy the weak square f4 with impunity owing to the the doubled Black f pawns. After bringing his Bishop to f5, White will create a Zugzwang  position which will eventually yield a passed a pawn and a won game.

Black's weakened Kingside pawn structure occurred due to a pin on the f6 Knight by White's g5 Bishop. As the Queen's and rooks were exchanged these weaknesses became more of a concern. Remember tattered pawns are invariably a liability in an ending. Allow them at your own risk!

Two Distant Passed Pawns Easily Worth Piece in this Ending

The following ending arose from a Dutch Defense played at the Internet Chess Club or ICC. Matakay, who did not want anybody to know what country he is from since his flag is missing, just played Kc6 attacking the Black Bishop at c7.

Black could play Kd8 protecting the feeble looking Prelate, but then White would just push his pawn to h4 with Queening threats of his own.

Note that Black has a protected passed pawn at f4 which is currently mechanically blockaded by White Knight at f3. Try to find a dramatic win for Black! Remember that two distant passed pawns are difficult to stop with a single minor piece especially when the defending King is Offside. 

Benko Gambit Accepted: Re2

The following chess position is from the Benko Gambit accepted or the Volga Gambit. Victor Korchnoi used to play the White side of this opening with extraordinary results. The White rook at e2 supports the e5 thrust and guards the sensitive b2 square.

This is one of the castle by hand variations where White has to be careful about his King residing on the h1-a8 diagonal in the lines where Black plays e6. GM DeFirmian recommends that White play this like a regular Benoni "forgetting" he has an extra pawn.

I like this accept the gambit pawn variation in an opening where there are so many decline the gambit pawn lines.

Jacob Aagaard from Denmark, in his excellent magnum opus titled Excelling at Positional Chess uses this tabiya to show that Black need not prove that there is compensation for the pawn he "sacrificed as the positional trumps are self-evident with the the rooks occupying the half-open a and b files, exceptionally, active pieces, and a compact pawn structure as chef John Fedorowicz describes it.

Aagaard does a remarkable job of proving that  the nebulous notion of material is just another aspect of any chess position and that one should be prepared to part with it if the position demands it!

Also Jacob, like many chess players, has a sensitive and restless mind as characterized by a John Shaw article at Quality Chess Blog. Chess was that outlet that allowed him to channel that unchecked energy into becoming a world class chess author.