Now we all know that New York is a dangerous city filled with villains of all sorts… and if your not careful, you can wander into the wrong neighborhood and get fleeced… robbed… or otherwise hoodwinked…  You need to keep your eyes open and your wits about you at all times… it’s just not safe out there… now is it?   Who knew that New York chess players had been taking lessons in skulduggery?  First Larry gets mugged on move 39 and robbed of a well deserved win… and then Eugene gets his pocket picked and bamboozled into a draw in 137 moves.

Where is the justice?… the police… the defenders of the innocent… the Gotham superheroes… Can no one stop these… these… chess criminals.

The first to go down was Ilya… I suspect an ambush here… and one prepared with malice and forethought.

NM Matt Herman  vs.  NM Ilya Krasik  –  Board 4

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 a6 5. Nc3 Qc7 6. g3 Bb4 7. Bd2 Nc6 8. a3 Be7
9. Be3 Nf6

The same two players had reached this position before in the 2006 USCL match.  White continued 10.f4 d6 11.Bg2…  and went on to win a thriller.  The difference here is that the following Knight move is prevented.  Ilya must have suspected some preparation.

10. Bg2 Ne5

This was the first real decision of the game for Black.  I didn’t like this Knight maneuver at the time.   I thought that 10… d6 was a little more flexible.  But, honestly, I can’t say that it doesn’t just transpose.  Black’s problem is how to develop the white squared Bishop and Rooks and the Knight journey just doesn’t solve this issue.

11. O-O Nc4 12. Bc1 O-O 13. b3 Na5 14. Bb2 Nc6

White has completed his development and will begin an attack. Black’s Knight has gone from c6 to e5 to c4 to a5 and back to c6… and I don’t know what was accomplished other than getting White to place his dark squared bishop on b2 pointing at Black’s King.

15.Kh1 d6

Black could have played this on move 10 with the difference being that White would be uncastled and White’s bishop on e3 instead of b2… better or worse?  I really don’t understand the subtleties here… Fritz calls the game equal.

16. f4 Bd7 17. g4 Nxd4 18. g5!…

This move gives White a nice attack.  But, with proper play Black can still keep an edge.  Fritz gives as best…  18… Nxe4! Wow… only a computer would think of this.  Now, 19.Nxe4… is not the best since Black gets the nice blockading square f5 for the Knight.  And 19.Bxe4 Nf5 20.Bxf5 (else ..Bc6 trades Bishops) 20… exf  21.Nd5 Bc6 22.c4 Rfe8 23.Qd3 Bxd5 24.cxd Qd7 and Black is holding with his extra pawn… although it’s still unclear how long he can hold it.

So, that leaves 19.Qxd4 Nxc3 20.Bxc3 f6 21.f5 e5 22.Qd5+ Kh8 23.Qxb7 Ra7 24.Qxc7 Rxc7 when Black is better.

However, the game continuation 18… Nc6  is good enough for a slight edge.  The game continued…

19. gxf6 Bxf6

Fritz gives this move as best.  But, after the game, we looked at gxf6 and this seems to slow White’s attack a bit.  But… 19…gxf6 20.Qh5 Kh8 21.Nd1 Rg8 Black does not have time to save the f7 pawn as the Knight will go to e3..g4.. and even h6 to make life miserable for Black.  Now, after 22.Qxf7 Raf8 Black has equality.  However, White is still attacking.  My opinion is that this line is easier to play for Black than 19… Bxf6.

20. e5 dxe5 21. Ne4 Be7?

This is the move that makes things very difficult for Black.  Fritz gives either 21… Kh8 or 21… Bd8  with the idea of bringing the Knight to e7 and g6 as best giving Black a very slight edge.  After the game move, we see the point of White’s play…

22. fxe5 Kh8 23. Qh5 g6 24. Qh6…

Black cannot defend.  Fritz gives a cute answer to the only plausible move…

24…Nxe5 25.Rf6!…  Now if the Knight moves,  26.Rxg6+… is mate.  And if 25… Bc6 26.Ng5… and mate cannot be avoided.

Black played 24… Nd8 (as good as any) 25.Nf6… Black resigns.  Very nice attacking game by White.  Boston (0-1)

This loss put Boston down but not out as all other boards seemed to be doing well… especially first board, where Larry had an overwhelming position with two pawns and a Knight for a Rook.  Yeah, things looked good, but then the chess Gods stepped in…

GM Larry Christiansen  vs.  GM Pascal Charbonneau  –  Board 1

1. c4 g6 2. e4 Bg7 3. d4 d6 4. Nc3 Nf6 5. f3 O-O 6. Be3 c5 7. dxc5 dxc5 8. Qxd8 Rxd8 9. Bxc5 Nc6 10. Nge2 Nd7 11. Be3 Nde5 12. Nf4 Nb4 13. Rc1 Be6

All of this has been played before in, surprisingly, Bezviner – Bonin, 1992.  Could it be that Jay had suggested this line?

I remember that during the game I was doing what I do best… panicking.  How does White get out of the check?… the c-pawn will fall… Oh my God!… and just before I collapsed from anxiety, Larry calmly played… 14.b6!…  and all is well.  Yes, White will lose the exchange, but, Black must give up two pawns and he will also have horrible pawn structure after…

14. b3 g5 15. Nxe6 Ned3+ 16. Bxd3 Nxd3+ 17. Ke2 Nxc1+ 18. Rxc1 fxe6 19. Bxg5 Kf7 20.Be3…

Now there is work to be done.  White is much better, but not quite winning.  He must keep the position closed to the Rooks and slowly advance his pawns.  Fritz likes 20…Bd4 trying to trade White’s active Bishop.  The reason becomes obvious after Black’s next move…  20… a6?!  This weakens the Queenside… exactly the chance White was waiting for…

21. Bb6 Rd7 22. Na4 Rg8 23. g3 Bh6 24. Rc2 e5 25. Nb2 Rg6 26. c5 Bg7 27. Nd3 h5 28. Ba5 Re6 29. a4 Bf6?

As a result of Black’s 20th move, Black’s position has worsened and he is now lost.  I give this move a “?” only because it blocks Black’s Rook and makes things worse… But, in reality, there are no saving moves.  White need only take care and he can nurse his pawns home.  But, overconfidence can be a burden…

30. b4 Rd4 31. Bb6 Rc6 32. Ke3 e6??!

This should lead directly to a loss.  But, hey, Black takes a shot.  The exclamation mark is for the underhanded, unethical, devious trap that was in GM Charbonneau’s sick mind…

Now, White should play …

33.b5 axb5 34.axb5 Rc8 (of course, Black may sack the exchange on either of White’s minor pieces, but the ending is lost) 35.c6 Rd6  (35… bxc 36.Bxd4 exd4 37.Ke2 e5 38.Rxc6… is a lost ending.) 36.cxb7… wins.  Since White’s 32.Ke3… took away the possibility here that the Rook could take with check.

33. f4 exf4+ 34. gxf4 Rd7 35. Rc4 Rc8 36. b5 axb5 37. axb5 Ke8 38. e5 Bd8!

This is the nefarious, unconscionable, dastardly move that could only be cultured and hatched in the depravity that is known to exist  at the highest levels of GM chess… or, in New York.  Of course, Larry must exchange the Bishops and the win becomes difficult again.  However, the stars aligned and GM Charbonneau’s misguided mores allowed him to be the hero of  the day…

39.Ba7 b6!

Unbelievably, White is losing a piece.

Turns out that White’s position was previously so good, that, according to Mr. Fritz, he is only down –1.00  and has some drawing chances.   But, White’s play must be perfect and GM Charbonneau  was able to take the point by move 51.  These are the kinds of games that give you nightmares…  I’m sure Larry will recover… but, I might not.  Boston (0-2).

Alright, congrats to GM Charbonneau… no hard feelings…  well maybe a little.

I’ve always had a soft spot in my heart for guys named Marc… not only are they good chess players… but, they are very intelligent and super nice guys.  Thank God for this Marc, as he gave us our only real chance to pull this match out of the hat and possibly salvage a draw…

FM Marc Esserman  vs.  IM Jay Bonin  –  Board 3

1. e4 Nc6?

Possibly the losing move… I had expected 1… c5 from IM Bonin since he was sure to face the Morra Gambit… and with some special preparation,  it could get tough for White.  But, I guess c5 is not Jay’s thing.

2. Nc3 Nf6 3. d4 d5 4. e5 Ng8 5. f4 h5 6. Be3…

This is the first move I can’t find in any other games.  As far as I can tell, Marc’s idea is original.  He will fianchetto the King’s Bishop.

6… Bf5 7. g3 e6 8. Bg2 Bb4

8… Be7 and …Nh6 seem better to me.  I don’t know if giving the Bishop for the Knight makes sense… but, the game looks equal after…

9. Qd2 Nge7 10. a3 Bxc3 11. Qxc3 Be4 12. Nf3 Nf5 13. Bf2 g5

Fritz give White the edge after this move +.80.

14. fxg5 Bxf3 15. Bxf3 Qxg5

Black has traded both Bishops and dares White to castle.

Now, Fritz considers as best… 16.b4 O-O-O 17.b5 Nce7 18.a4 Kb8 and gives White the edge.  I guess the idea is that White need not castle into Black’s attack.  But, is White’s attack really faster.  19.a5 h4? 20.g4… gives White a winning advantage (according to Fritz).  It certainly looks tough to play Black’s side here.

16.O-O?!…

White gives in to standard thinking here… giving an equal but tough to play game for both sides.

16… O-O-O 17. Rad1 Rdg8 18. Qd2 Qh4 19. b3 Nce7 20. c4…

Black is almost out of ideas here and it is White’s turn to start to make progress…maybe with 21.Rc1… to threaten 22.cxd5 Nxd5 23.Bxd5 exd5 24.Qc2… threatening mate and the Knight on f5.   Still, Black should calmly play 20…f6 and see what happens.  Instead, he decides to sacrifice…

20… Nxg3 21. hxg3 Nf5 22. Bg2 Nxg3 23. Bxg3 Rxg3 24. Rf3 Rxf3 25. Bxf3 Rg8+ 26. Kf1 Qh3+ 27. Bg2?…

I don’t know if this was time pressure or not… White is winning fairly easily with 27.Ke2…  for example,  27… Qg3 28.Rh1 h4 29.cxd5 exd5 30.Qh6 c6 31.Qxh4 Qg7 32.Qh6 Qg3 33.Qh3+… trading Queens to a simple piece up endgame.

Now, Black has good drawing chances after…

27… Qxb3 28. cxd5 exd5 29. Qd3 Qb2? (29…Qa2 to protect d5) 30. Bxd5 Qh2 31. Qf5+ Kb8 32. Qf2 Qh3+ 33. Bg2 Qxa3 34. Qf3 Qb4 35. Qd3 Qb2?

Fritz very quickly spots the nail in the coffin move… 36.Bxb7…  Of course, Black cannot take immediately because of the pin on b1.  And after the scary… 36… Qh2 37.Qe3!… The mate is guarded and the Bishop is still immune… 37… Kxb7 38.Qf3+… and the Black Rook will be lost to a check… or, it is mate if the King moves up.

However, people are not computers and after a long series of checks we come down to this equal Rook endgame where Black is the one with the extra pawn.

36. Rd2 Qb4 37. Rf2 a5 38. Rxf7 a4 39. Rf3 Qb2 40. Rf2 Qc1+ 41. Ke2 a3 42. Bd5 Qb2+ 43. Ke3 Rg3+ 44. Bf3 Qc1+ 45. Qd2 Qb1 46. Qc2 Qe1+ 47. Kf4 h4 48. Qb3 Qc1+ 49. Qe3 Qc4 50. Qe4 Qf7+ 51. Ke3 Qb3+ 52. Kf4 Qf7+ 53. Ke3 Qb3+ 54. Qd3 Qxd3+ 55. Kxd3 a2 56. Rxa2 Rxf3+ 57. Ke4…

Black has worked hard and deserves an easy draw after… 57… Rf7 58.e6 Rh7 59.Kf5 h6 60.Rh2 Kc8 61.Kg6 Rh4 62.Kf7 b5 63.e7 Rf4+ =

Instead, he gives away the h-pawn with …

57. Ke4 Rf1 58. Rh2…

He can still hold the h-pawn with 58…Re1+ 59.Kf5 Rf1+ 60.Ke6 Rf4

58… c6 59. Rxh4 Kc7 60. Rh7+ Kb6 61. e6 Re1+ 62. Kf5 Ka6  63. Kf6 b5 64. Rh5 Ka5 65.e7… {Black resigns} Boston (1-2)

I guess the chess Gods felt guilty… Maybe this game makes up a little for Board 1… Naahhh!

There was a bit of hope floating around the room as Eugene had a pawn and then gave it back for tripled major pieces… could we tie this match?

GM John Fedorowitz  vs.  GM Eugene Perelshteyn  –  Board 2

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 Bb4+ 5. Bd2 Be7 6. Qc2 c6 7. Bg2 b6 8. O-O Ba6 9. b3 Nbd7 10. a4 O-O 11. a5 Ne4

I found a few games with this position…  Gurieli – Sokolov ( ½ – ½ )  2001 continued 12.axb…  The move in the game seems to be a playable pawn sac… although it takes White quite a while to get it back.

12. Bf4 bxa5 13. Nfd2 Nef6 14. e4 Rc8 15. Nc3 Bb4 16. Rfd1 Re8 17. e5 Nh5 18. Be3 g6 19. c5 f6 20. f4 Qc7 21. Na2 Bb5 22. Nf3 f5 23. Bd2 Bxd2 24. Qxd2 Rb8 25. Nc1 a4

Fritz likes this move… although he still rates White with an (+/- .89) advantage.  White has regained the pawn with more space.

26. bxa4 Bc4 27. Ne1 Rb7 28. Nc2 Reb8 29. Ne3 Ba6 30. Ra2 Rb4 31. Bf3 Ng7 32. Be2 Bxe2 33. Nxe2 Qb7

Wow… Nimzowitsch would be proud.  Still, White’s space advantage is permanent and Black’s control is temporary… what to do with it?

34. Nc3 Rb3 35. Rc1 Qb4 36. Ned1 a5 37. Rcc2 Nxc5!

A very nice combination.  I don’t think any of us in the audience saw this one coming. However, it may not win a pawn if White plays Kf2 or Kg2… but, there is a lot of pressure and Black need not take back the piece immediately.

38. dxc5 d4 39. Rab2?!…

White allows the win of a pawn to reach an endgame in which he may have drawing chances…  At least it relieves the pressure.

39… dxc3 40. Rxb3 Qxc5+ 41. Qf2 Qxf2+ 42. Kxf2 Rxb3 43. Nxc3…

This looks like it should be a technical win for a GM… yet, Black’s pawns are quite weak and he needs to get his own Knight into the game.  Fritz rates Black with about a half pawn advantage… not yet enough to win.

43. Nxc3 Rb4 44. Ne2 Rxa4 45. Rxc6 Ra2 46. Rc8+ Kf7 47. Rc7+ Kf8 48. Ra7 h6 49. Ra8+ Kf7 50. Ra7+ Kg8 51. Ra8+ Kh7 52. Ra7 g5 53. Ke3 Kg6 54. Ra6 Kf7 55. Ra7+ Kg6 56. Ra6 g4 57. Kf2 Kf7 58. Ra7+…

A very tough game to win.  The best chances lay in Black not advancing the a-pawn.  Rather, he should push his h-pawn to either weaken White’s structure or advance to h3. If Black can keep the a-pawn and play as in the game, he may have chances to win.

In any case, White has many options and they all depend on exact timing.  Eugene chose to advance the a-pawn first and it led to its exchange.

After the a-pawn falls there is no win… draw on move 137…

Boston (1.5 – 2.5)

Just when you think there is some justice in the world… you play New York.  We walked into town with our hands extended in friendship and left without our wallets.  And the thing that gets me is that it was broad daylight (when we started) and there were plenty of witnesses… and no one will talk… there out to be a law…  you saw it didn’t you?… maybe you know… Who was that masked man?