Annotated Game #307: The Colle that wasn't (quite)

After an early opening blunder led to a rapid loss in the penultimate round of the tournament, the following final-round game was a welcome point of stability. Both sides dance around entering the Colle System, with Black never committing to playing ...d5, while as White I pass up some more interesting alternatives on moves 12-13 that would have led either to a small positional plus, or a more imbalanced structure with attacking chances on the kingside. I correctly avoid a tempting-looking tactic later, but in a passive and slightly cramped way. Not my best game, but the careful road to a draw was still a positive outcome after the poor showing in the previous round, guaranteeing me a plus score for the tournament.

[Event "?"] [Site "?"] [Date "????.??.??"] [Round "?"] [White "ChessAdmin"] [Black "?"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [Annotator "ChessAdmin/Dragon 3.2"] [ECO "A47"] [PlyCount "61"] [GameId "2153654822236272"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. e3 e6 3. Bd3 c5 4. c3 (4. Nf3 {would preserve some flexibility, probably leading to a Colle System after ...d5. However White retains the option of playing b3 rather than c3.}) 4... Be7 5. Nf3 {now the typical approach would be to occupy the center with ...d5, after which we have a Colle System.} (5. f4 $5 {would put the game into Stonewall Attack territory.}) 5... O-O 6. O-O (6. e4 {the thematic Colle advance is preferred already by the engine.}) 6... cxd4 7. exd4 {This exchange clears the diagonal for the Bc1, so is preferable for White.} b6 8. Qe2 {centralizes the queen and also sets up a battery to prevent ...Ba6, exchanging the Bd3.} Bb7 9. Nbd2 d6 {as I expected, my opponent preferred to refrain from occupying the center, having deferred ...d5 for so long. This Hedgehog-like structure is a little passive, but very solid.} 10. Re1 {not yet committing myself to a specific plan, but getting the rook into play on its best file.} h6 11. Ne4 {this invites exchanges on e4, which would lead to a more sterile equality.} (11. Nc4 {preserves some tension and a slight space advantage.}) 11... Nbd7 12. Bf4 (12. Nxf6+ Nxf6 13. Bf4 {again with a bit more space and pressure in the center.}) 12... Qc7 13. Nfd2 {the engine's second choice. I spent some time here thinking about the permutations, but this was made easier by the fact the Nf3 has no good other squares.} (13. Nxf6+ Nxf6 14. Qd2 $14 {now White even has a slight plus due to the imbalanced queen placements, but this leads to an unconventional position after} Bxf3 15. gxf3 Qc6 16. Kg2 {which contains some attacking chances.}) 13... e5 14. Nxf6+ Bxf6 15. dxe5 dxe5 16. Be3 Be7 {the retreat looks a little funny, but the bishop is doing more on the f8-a3 diagonal and the e-pawn does not need its support.} 17. Qg4 {with the obvious threat of Bxh6, now that the g-pawn is pinned.} Nf6 {defense by counterattack, with tempo.} 18. Qg3 {maintaining the pin on the g-file and also temporarily pinning the e-pawn.} Qc6 {more defense by counterattack, although is is a little less solid. The point being that Bxh6 does not work due to the riposte ...Qxg2+, forcing the queen trade.} 19. f3 $6 {Playing it safe, after a long think, although f2-f3 is rarely the best move on principle. Blocking the diagonal with} (19. Nf3 {is better and this occurred to me as a possibility. However, I did not like the tactical complications after} e4 20. Nd4 $14 {and was a little too lazy to follow up with real calculations.}) (19. Bf1 $5 {my opponent suggested as another improvement. I did not even see this possibility, although I was looking for a way to break away the queen from having to protect g2; I was only considering forward bishop moves, not backwards.}) 19... Bc5 20. Qf2 {this is OK but a passive placement of the queen.} (20. Nb3 Nh5 21. Qg4 Nf6 22. Qg3 $11) 20... Bxe3 21. Rxe3 Rad8 22. Bc2 {from this point I was just looking to maintain equality, which I succeed at.} (22. Rae1 {is more active.}) 22... Rfe8 23. Rae1 Qc5 24. Ne4 {I decided it was easiest to go for th exchanges on e4.} (24. Nb3 $5 Qc7 25. Qe2 Rd5 26. f4 e4 27. Bxe4 Rxe4 28. Rxe4 Nxe4 29. Qxe4 Rd8 30. Qe3 Qc4 $11 {Black's active pieces compensatie for the pawn.}) 24... Nxe4 25. Bxe4 Bxe4 26. Rxe4 $11 {now a draw is assured.} Qxf2+ 27. Kxf2 Rd2+ 28. R1e2 Rxe2+ 29. Rxe2 f6 30. Rd2 Re7 31. Ke3 1/2-1/2