In this final-round tournament game, after a series of draws, I was looking for a win. The Classical Caro-Kann has been a good opening in terms of scoring wins for me, so I was happy to see my opponent choose it as White. She varies from book with 12. c4, which allows Black to equalize easily. I saw an opportunity to grab White's advanced h-pawn and took it on move 14, which defined the resulting strategic struggle. White could have played more actively, with sufficient compensation for the pawn.
Over time, I am able to consolidate the pawn advantage and make sure that subsequent material exchanges were to my benefit, ending up with a winning double rook endgame. As is common these days, my opponent (a junior) played on until mate. I used to find this practice both annoying and disrespectful, but it seems to be the way competitive chess is now almost universally taught at the scholastic level. Now I just enjoy playing out a winning position (being grateful that I have one) and don't worry about trying to find the absolute quickest path to victory. An easy and safe win is just as good, and it considerably reduces the stress and annoyance factor.
Although I don't quite overdo the pawn-hunting in the opening, it's still enough of a distraction (and detraction) from my game. Seeing in the analysis how White could have taken better advantage of it is instructive. In the future, in a similar situation I would likely play more conventionally rather than chasing the pawn, also bearing in mind the lessons of "Don't Be Greedy in Chess".
Over time, I am able to consolidate the pawn advantage and make sure that subsequent material exchanges were to my benefit, ending up with a winning double rook endgame. As is common these days, my opponent (a junior) played on until mate. I used to find this practice both annoying and disrespectful, but it seems to be the way competitive chess is now almost universally taught at the scholastic level. Now I just enjoy playing out a winning position (being grateful that I have one) and don't worry about trying to find the absolute quickest path to victory. An easy and safe win is just as good, and it considerably reduces the stress and annoyance factor.
Although I don't quite overdo the pawn-hunting in the opening, it's still enough of a distraction (and detraction) from my game. Seeing in the analysis how White could have taken better advantage of it is instructive. In the future, in a similar situation I would likely play more conventionally rather than chasing the pawn, also bearing in mind the lessons of "Don't Be Greedy in Chess".
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