Book completed: The Long Goodbye

From Chapter 2 of Raymond Chandler's The Long Goodbye:

It was a quiet night and the house seemed emptier than usual. I set out the chessmen and played a French defense against Steinitz. He beat me in forty-four moves, but I had him sweating a couple of times.
The phone rang at nine-thirty and the voice that spoke was one I had heard before.
"Is this Mr. Philip Marlowe?"
"Yeah. I'm Marlowe."
"This is Sylvia Lennox, Mr. Marlowe. We met very briefly in front of The Dancers one night last month. I heard afterwards that you had been kind enough to see that Terry got home."
"I did that."
"I suppose you know that we are not married any more, but I've been a little worried about him. He gave up the apartment he had in Westwood and nobody seems to know where he is."
"I noticed how worried you were the night we met."
"Look, Mr. Marlowe, I've been married to the man. I'm not very sympathetic to drunks. Perhaps I was a little unfeeling and perhaps I had something rather important to do. You're a private detective and this can be put on a professional basis, if you prefer it."
"It doesn't have to be put on any basis at all, Mrs. Lennox. He's on a bus going to Las Vegas. He has a friend there who will give him a job."
She brightened up very suddenly. "Oh-to Las Vegas? How sentimental of him. That's where we were married."
"I guess he forgot," I said, "or he would have gone somewhere else."
Instead of hanging up on me she laughed. It was a cute little laugh. "Are you always as rude as this to your clients?"
"You're not a client, Mrs. Lennox."
"I might be someday. Who knows? Let's say to your lady friends, then."
"Same answer. The guy was down and out, starving, dirty, without a bean. You could have found him if it had been worth your time. He didn't want anything from you then and he probably doesn't want anything from you now."
"That," she said coolly, "is something you couldn't possibly know anything about. Good night." And she hung up.
She was dead right, of course, and I was dead wrong. But I didn't feel wrong. I just felt sore. If she had called up half an hour earlier I might have been sore enough to beat the hell out of Steinitz-except that he had been dead for fifty years and the chess game was out of a book.

From Chapter 3:

I liked him better drunk, down and out, hungry and beaten and proud. Or did I? Maybe I just liked being top man. His reasons for things were hard to figure. In my business there's a time to ask questions and a time to let your man simmer until he boils over. Every good cop knows that. It's a good deal like chess or boxing: Some people you have to crowd and keep off balance. Some you just box and they will end up beating themselves.

From Chapter 13:

He nodded. He was giving me a careful once over. "Tell me a little about yourself, Mr. Marlowe. That is, if you don't find the request objectionable."
"What sort of thing? I'm a licensed private investigator and have been for quite a while. I'm a lone wolf, unmarried, getting middle-aged, and not rich. I've been in jail more than once and I don't do divorce business. I like liquor and women and chess and a few other things. The cops don't like me too well, but I know a couple I get along with. I'm a native son, born in Santa Rosa, both parents dead, no brothers or sisters, and when I get knocked off in a dark alley sometime, if it happens, as it could to anyone in my business, and to plenty of people in any business or no business at all these days, nobody will feel that the bottom has dropped out of his or her life."

From Chapter 24:

She hung up and I set out the chess board. I filled a pipe, paraded the chessmen and inspected them for French shaves and loose buttons, and played a championship tournament game between Gortchakoff and Meninkin, seventy-two moves to a draw, a prize specimen of the irresistible force meeting the immovable object, a battle without armor, a war without blood, and as elaborate a waste of human intelligence as you could find anywhere outside an advertising agency. 

From Chapter 40:

I put the chessboard on the coffee table and set out a problem called The Sphynx. It is printed on the end papers of a book on chess by Blackburn, the English chess wizard, probably the most dynamic chess player who ever lived, although he wouldn't get to first base in the cold war type of chess they play nowadays. The Sphynx is an eleven-mover and it justifies its name. Chess problems seldom run to more than four or five moves. Beyond that the difficulty of solving them rises in almost geometrical progression. An eleven-mover is sheer unadulterated torture.
Once in a long while when I feel mean enough I set it out and look for a new way to solve it. It's a nice quiet way to go crazy. You don't even scream, but you come awfully close. 

Annotated Game #85: Why the Caro-Kann Classical is good vs. lower-rated players

This second-round tournament game helped me bounce back well from the previous defeat (Annotated Game #84) and shows some of the strengths of using the Caro-Kann Classical as an opening weapon.  Despite its well-deserved reputation for solidity, its ideas are complex enough that it offers Black a chance to create imbalances and even get a strong attack going against inaccurate play from White.

When the defense is used against lower-rated opponents, it often occurs that White possesses little knowledge or has few concrete ideas about how to play against it.  Black is unlikely to gain an advantage out of the opening, but if White simply drifts along without a clear plan, Black's counterplay can develop quickly.  This game is an excellent illustration of this, as White allows Black to equalize early on, then never really seems to develop a plan of his own.  The one concrete idea he plays on moves 23-24 simply leads to better play for Black.  By move 31 Black is ready to attack and seven moves later White is mated.

While there were a number of instructive improvements for both sides along the way, the overall development of the game shows how Black can effectively neutralize White's opening play, improve his position, then quickly go over to the attack when an opportunity is given.  This is especially dangerous against lower-rated players who lack the experience or understanding of White's more complex ideas.  Black's position is both simpler to play and has latent attacking resources that the patient player can reveal later in the middlegame.

[Event "?"] [Site "?"] [Date "????.??.??"] [Round "?"] [White "Class D"] [Black "ChessAdmin"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "B18"] [Annotator "ChessAdmin/Fritz/Houdini"] [PlyCount "76"] {B18: Classical Caro-Kann: 4...Bf5 sidelines} 1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 dxe4 4. Nxe4 Bf5 5. Ng3 Bg6 6. Nf3 Nf6 {a move-order trick that has been shown before. Now 7. h4 can be met by ...Nh5!?} 7. Ne5 {this seems premature and only scores 46 percent for White in the database.} Nbd7 {the obvious developing move, also challenging the Ne5.} 8. Nxg6 hxg6 {by this point Black has already achieved comfortable equality.} 9. Bc4 {the main alternative would be Bd3. Here's a nice game between GMs Maurice Ashley and Viktor Kortchnoi, showing how to handle this as Black.} (9. Bd3 Qc7 10. Qf3 e6 11. Be3 c5 12. dxc5 Bxc5 13. Bxc5 Nxc5 14. Bb5+ Ke7 15. O-O-O Rh4 16. Be2 Rc8 17. Kb1 b5 18. Qe3 b4 19. Rd2 Nce4 20. Nxe4 Nxe4 21. Rd4 Qxc2+ 22. Ka1 Nd2 23. b3 Nxb3+ 24. axb3 Rc5 {0-1 (24) Ashley,M (2460)-Kortschnoj,V (2635) San Francisco 1995 CBM 046 [Blatny,P]}) 9... Nb6 {this is an obvious amateur-type move. It's not likely that b6 is the best place for the knight, however. In this type of Caro-Kann structure, the Nd7 often has a role in supporting the ...c5 or ...e5 pawn breaks, for example. The White bishop would also be no worse off if it retreated to b3.} (9... e6 { is more consistent with the needs of the position. Here's an instructive game.} 10. c3 Bd6 11. Qf3 Qc7 12. Bd2 c5 13. dxc5 Qxc5 14. Bb3 Bxg3 15. Qxg3 Ne4 16. Qe3 Nxd2 17. Qxc5 Nf3+ 18. Ke2 Nxc5 19. Kxf3 O-O-O 20. Ke2 Nd3 21. Rab1 Rh5 22. Rhd1 Nc5 23. Rxd8+ Kxd8 24. Rd1+ Kc7 25. h3 Nxb3 26. axb3 Rb5 27. b4 a5 28. Rd4 axb4 29. cxb4 e5 30. Rc4+ Kd6 31. Ke3 f5 32. g3 Rb6 33. h4 Rc6 34. Rxc6+ Kxc6 35. Kd3 b5 36. b3 Kd5 37. Ke3 Ke6 38. Kf3 Kf6 39. Ke3 g5 40. hxg5+ Kxg5 41. f3 Kf6 42. Kd3 Ke6 43. Ke3 Kd5 44. Kd3 e4+ 45. Ke3 exf3 46. Kxf3 g5 47. Ke3 Ke5 48. Kf3 Kd4 49. Ke2 Kc3 50. Ke3 Kxb4 51. Kd4 Kxb3 52. Ke5 f4 53. gxf4 gxf4 54. Kxf4 Kc3 {0-1 (54) Kozera,A-Rudolf,M (2419) Warsaw 2007}) 10. Be2 e6 11. c3 { the d-pawn lacks protection and this addresses the issue immediately, also allowing Qb3. It's a rather slow approach to development, however.} Bd6 12. Qd3 {it's not clear what the queen is doing here, so this seems just to further slow White's piece development.} Qc7 {in addition to building up the B+Q battery, this now allows for Black to castle queenside.} 13. Bg5 {a standard-looking developing move, but without much punch to it.} Nbd5 {all of Black's minor pieces are now well placed.} 14. Nf1 {White meanwhile is backing up his own pieces. This was unnecessary.} (14. c4 $6 {kicking the knight would simply help Black.} Nf4 {forking g2 and d3} 15. Bxf4 Bxf4 {and Black is going to be able to castle queenside, while White's king has no safe zone.}) (14. Ne4 $5 {would work, as Black cannot take the h2 pawn due to the follow-up g3 push, trapping the bishop.}) 14... Nf4 (14... Bxh2 $2 {would be great except for} 15. g3) 15. Bxf4 Bxf4 {Black inhibits 0-0-0} 16. g3 Bh6 17. Ne3 O-O-O {this works out well in the game, although which side to castle on for Black is something of a toss-up.} 18. Nc4 Nd7 {immediately developing the h8 rook would be more accurate.} 19. Qe4 {White continues to pass up the opportunity to castle, which will cause him problems.} Rhe8 20. f4 {this permanently weakens the kingside and banishes any thought of O-O.} g5 {immediately disrupting White's pawn structure.} 21. Rf1 (21. fxg5 Bxg5 {is objectively best, but would have again complicated queenside castling, which my opponent apparently has as an eventual goal.}) 21... gxf4 22. gxf4 f6 $6 $11 {here I focused on the plan of ripping open the e-file with the ...e5 pawn advance, but this is far too slow. White in response should simply castle immediately, which takes the sting out of Black's idea.} (22... Nf6 {instead eventually wins the f4 pawn, as pointed out by both Fritz and Houdini.} 23. Qe5 Nd5 24. Qxc7+ Kxc7 $17 {and the f4 pawn cannot be protected further.}) 23. Qg2 $2 (23. O-O-O $11) 23... Bxf4 $17 24. Qxg7 {while material is still even, simply taking a look at the difference in king safety is enough to show Black's advantage. White's queen has also put itself in a precarious position.} Bxh2 $6 {like White, I'm thinking too materialistically. Preventing castling was much more valuable than the stray pawn.} (24... Bg5 $5 {is Fritz's suggestion, protecting f6 again and starting to box in the Qg7.}) (24... Kb8 {is Houdini's preference. This is one of those quiet moves which facilitates a future attack. In this case it removes the king from the h3-c8 diagonal, avoids future worries about protecting d6 from a knight invasion, and allows a rook to go to c8.}) 25. O-O-O $15 Bf4+ 26. Kb1 Rg8 {a premature threat.} 27. Qe7 (27. Qf7 $11 {is more flexible.}) 27... b5 { while this may not be objectively best, I like the fact that I was playing actively and looking to make threats, rather than play obvious moves.} 28. Nd2 Rde8 29. Qa3 {this places the queen away from the action and limits her movement.} Rg2 {Black finds the way to immediately take advantage of White's vulnerability on the 2nd rank.} 30. Rfe1 Kb8 $11 (30... Bd6 $5 31. Qa6+ Kd8 $15 {is what the engines prefer, but appears more dangerous to human eyes.}) (30... Bxd2 31. Rxd2 Nb6 $15 {is an improved version of the idea from the game, as the White knight is no longer available to go to b3 and then threaten to penetrate Black's king position.}) 31. Nf1 $2 {this simply moves a key piece away from the action.} (31. Nb3) 31... Nb6 {Black readies to go on the attack.} 32. Bd3 (32. Qb3 e5 $17) 32... e5 {this was my primary attacking idea in all variations.} (32... a5 {is spotted by the engines. The pawn move was not obvious to me, although the deflection theme (removing the b2 defender) should be a good place from which to start thinking about tactics.} 33. Qxa5 Rxb2+ { and now} 34. Kxb2 (34. Ka1 Na4 35. Qxc7+ Kxc7) 34... Nc4+ 35. Bxc4 Qxa5 { ; this was a useful exercise in looking for hidden tactical patterns and themes.}) 33. Be4 $2 {gives up the c4 square to the knight without a fight.} ( 33. Ne3 {is the best defense.} Bxe3 34. Rxe3 Rh8 35. dxe5 fxe5 $15) 33... Nc4 $19 34. Qc5 $4 {the final mistake, not that it matters anymore, says Fritz. The White queen had a defensive role and abandoning this allows Black's queen to penetrate and deal the final blow.} (34. Qa6 Rxb2+ $19) 34... Rxb2+ 35. Ka1 Qa5 36. a3 Qxc3 37. Rd2 Rxd2+ 38. Kb1 Qb2# 0-1

Training quote of the day #1: Yoda

No!  Try not.  Do, or do not.  There is no try.

Yoda, Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back

Annotated Game #84: Piece exchanges and draw offers will lose you the game

This was from the first round of the next tournament following Annotated Game #79.  While the previous tournament had a bad vibe to it from the beginning, this one was considerably better overall.  The fact that I was paired in the first round against a strong Expert player was a big benefit for me, as I didn't feel any pressure to win due to the 500-point ratings gap between us.  My opponent on the other hand did not appear to be as happy and looked even less happy after I had built up a fine-looking position out of the opening, an English - Grunfeld defense setup.

Black makes the first significant error on move 12, unnecessarily moving his rook away from the defense of the f7 square.  I was able to take advantage of this and by playing obvious moves had obtained a clearly superior position as of move 15.  At this point my lack of positional judgment starts to show, however, as I choose the wrong square for the retreat of my knight.  This is followed by allowing Black to exchange his so-so knight for my excellent light-square bishop on move 18, which marks the real strategic turning point of the game.  One of the things Class players often lack is a sense of the importance of piece exchanges and this game is an excellent illustration of the consequences.  Black immediately obtains the initiative and the bishop-pair, allowing his pieces to spring to life and target what are now some obvious White weaknesses.

Despite White's forced retreat, Black misses some chances to leverage his positional advantage for tactical gains (including 23...Bb5!) and White re-achieves equality, making a draw offer that is rejected.  Nowadays I've given up the practice of early draw offers in favor of emphasizing mental toughness, but even then I have to admit it was rather rude, given the ratings gap, not to mention being overly optimistic.  Indeed, a few moves later White plays the complacent 27. Nd3? and this time Black does not miss his chance to inflict material losses on White, who eventually loses after trading down into a bishop (for Black) endgame.

Although this was a loss, the game in fact left me in a relatively positive mood for the rest of the tournament.  I had made a 2100+ player sweat through the early middlegame and did not simply collapse after his first counterblow.  This positive frame of mind helped in my later games.  This was also the first tournament I played in after beginning to train with Qigong breathing exercises (part of my Taijiquan martial arts practice), which also appeared to have a positive effect on my mental outlook.  More on that later.

[Event "?"] [Site "?"] [Date "????.??.??"] [Round "?"] [White "ChessAdmin"] [Black "Expert"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "A16"] [Annotator "ChessAdmin/Fritz/Houdini"] [PlyCount "128"] {A16: English Opening: 1...Nf6 with ...d5} 1. c4 Nf6 2. Nc3 d5 3. cxd5 Nxd5 4. Nf3 g6 {entering a Grunfeld-type structure.} 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. Ba3 O-O 8. Bc4 Nd7 9. d4 {White is more or less obliged to play d4 either now or shortly afterwards, as the pawn does little for him on d2 and the d3 advance would leave the c3 pawn undefended.} c5 10. O-O cxd4 (10... Qa5 {used to be the favored move. Here's an example of a White win in the line, in a game between two high-level American GMs.} 11. Qb3 a6 12. Ng5 e6 13. Nxf7 Rxf7 14. Bxe6 Ne5 15. Bxf7+ Nxf7 16. Bxc5 Qb5 17. f4 Qc6 18. f5 gxf5 19. exf5 Bd7 20. Rae1 Qb5 21. Rf3 Re8 22. Rxe8+ Bxe8 23. Qe6 h5 24. h4 Bd7 25. Qe7 Qb1+ 26. Rf1 Qb5 27. f6 Bh6 28. Qe4 Kh8 29. Re1 Qb2 30. Qf3 Qd2 31. Re2 Qc1+ 32. Kh2 Bf4+ 33. g3 Bh6 34. d5 Bb5 35. Re7 Qd2+ 36. Kh3 Kg8 37. c4 Ba4 {1-0 (37) Gurevich,D (2490)-Fedorowicz,J (2560) Durango 1992}) (10... Qc7 {has scored much better for Black and is the recent favorite.}) 11. cxd4 Nb6 12. Bb3 (12. Be2 {is an alternative which would leave the b3 square open for the queen.}) 12... Re8 $14 {this is an error, as it weakens f7 unnecessarily.} (12... Bg4 $11 {is logical, developing with the pin on the Nf3 and is Houdini's first choice.}) (12... a5 $5 {was Fritz's preference, with the idea of pushing ...a4 and dislodging the bishop.}) 13. Rc1 {White moves his rook off of the long diagonal (where it was subject to threat by the Bg7) and onto a valuable open file.} a5 14. Ne5 e6 ( 14... Bxe5 {is Houdini's recommendation, bailing out into a slightly inferior endgame.} 15. dxe5 Qxd1 16. Rfxd1 a4 17. Bd5 e6 18. Bc4 Nxc4 19. Rxc4 $14) 15. Qf3 {any time White can get in this move in a queen pawn opening, usually he's doing well. Here White's pieces are all well-placed, in contrast with Black's uncoordinated forces.} f6 16. Ng4 {White starts going wrong with this retreat to the wrong square.} (16. Nc4 {would exchange off Black's useful knight and leave him backwards in development.} Nxc4 (16... a4 {would offer White the chance to sacrifice a pawn for some strong pressure.} 17. Nxb6 Qxb6 18. Bc4 Qxd4 19. Rfd1 Qb6 20. h4) 17. Bxc4 Bd7 $14) 16... a4 $11 17. Bc4 Bd7 (17... Nxc4 {Black should take the chance now to eliminate White's excellent bishop and obtain the bishop-pair for himself.} 18. Rxc4) 18. Qd3 (18. Bd3 $14 { was a missed opportunity. The bishop is well-placed on d3 and the subsequent minor piece exchange after the text move favors Black.}) 18... Nxc4 $15 { suddenly Black is able to take over the initiative, activating his pieces and targeting White's weaknesses.} 19. Qxc4 Bc6 20. f3 Rc8 21. Rfd1 h5 22. Nf2 Bh6 23. Rc2 $2 {this is one of those cases where the decision on which square to move a piece is very important, without obviously appearing to be.} (23. Rc3) 23... Qd7 $6 (23... Bb5 $1 {would win the exchange now. If the rook were on c3 and Black attempted this, the queen would simply move to b4.} 24. Qxb5 Rxc2 25. Qxa4 Rxa2 $17) 24. Qb4 {I recall offering a draw around here, or perhaps a little earlier, which was naturally rejected by my higher-rated opponent. The focus on achieving a draw was no doubt detrimental to my play.} Bb5 25. Qb2 { overly passive.} (25. Rxc8 {would be the active choice.} Rxc8 26. d5) 25... Bc4 {this seems unnecessarily complicated. I believe he may not have considered my next move.} (25... Rxc2 26. Qxc2 Rc8 27. Qb2 Be3 28. Kh1 Ba6 {and Black has all the chances.}) 26. Bc5 b5 27. Nd3 $2 {this completely ignores my opponent's coming tactical threats.} (27. Qa3 $5 $11) 27... e5 {the Bc5 is now undermined and White will have to lose the d4 pawn.} (27... Be3+ {is a superior way of executing the threat.} 28. Kh1 e5 $17 {and as a result Black can win the d4 pawn with his e-pawn, establishing a dominating position.}) 28. d5 $2 {Not the best move objectively, but it at least requires Black to find the following tactic.} (28. Nf2 $15 {is the best defense here, but White will have a miserable time for the rest of the game anyway.}) 28... Rxc5 $1 $19 29. Nxc5 Be3+ {Theme: Double Attack} 30. Kh1 Bxc5 {Black has two bishops for the rook, giving him a material and in this case positional plus.} 31. Qc1 Kg7 32. h4 f5 33. Rxc4 {I make a desperate attempt to hold the position. It should have been played on the previous move, before the weakening h4.} bxc4 34. Qxc4 Bd6 {at this point the win for Black becomes, as the saying goes, a matter of technique. Black opts for safety first with the blockade of the d-pawn.} 35. Rc1 fxe4 36. Qxe4 Qf5 $6 {this unncessarily lets White have some activity, by leaving the a-pawn and the Bd6 hanging.} (36... Rf8 $5) (36... Rb8) 37. Qxa4 ( 37. Rc6 Qxe4 38. fxe4 Be7 $19) 37... Qf4 38. Qxf4 exf4 39. Kg1 {although the material difference here is slight, White's two disconnected pawns have no hope of survival.} Re5 40. Rd1 Kf7 41. Kf1 Ke7 42. Re1 $2 {I prefer to try my chances in a bishop ending, although this is objectively worse.} (42. Rd4 Rf5 $19) 42... Kf6 (42... Rxe1+ {seems even better} 43. Kxe1 Bb4+ 44. Kd1 Kd6) 43. a4 Rxe1+ {now Black goes for it, entering the final decisive phase of the endgame.} 44. Kxe1 Ke5 45. Kd2 Bb4+ 46. Ke2 Kxd5 47. Kd3 Be1 48. a5 Bxa5 49. Ke2 Bd8 {an example of why it's better to be a piece up in the endgame.} 50. Kd3 Bxh4 {the position is completely resignable now.} 51. Kc3 Be7 52. Kd2 Kd4 53. Ke2 g5 54. Kd2 Bb4+ 55. Ke2 Bc3 56. Kf2 Kd3 57. g3 Be5 58. gxf4 Bxf4 59. Kf1 Ke3 60. Kg2 g4 61. fxg4 hxg4 62. Kg1 Kf3 63. Kf1 g3 64. Kg1 Be3+ (64... Be3+ 65. Kh1 g2+ 66. Kh2 g1=Q+ 67. Kh3 Qg3#) 0-1

A robust and deep insight on playing style

I finally tracked down the original reference from Playing Styles Deconstructed that underpinned what I termed the impracticality of pursuing a chess "style" for improving players.  The following is from GM Alex Yermolinsky's The Road To Chess Improvement (Gambit 1999).

...One strong GM once told me that during the game we (he meant World Top 100 or so) may happen to know, able to calculate, or in any other way find the best move in approximately 90 percent of positions.  This means that, if an average game lasts 50 moves, there will be 5 times during the game when we won't know what to do!  There comes the most interesting, yet difficult part.  He also said that these moments are very characteristic for a chess-player's style and personality.

I find this to be a robust and deep insight.  In the linked post, the primary lesson I took away was that attempting to conform to some idealized type of playing style ("tactical" or "positional" or whatever), especially at the Class level, would be an impediment to the improving player. What we really need to do instead, along the lines of the above quote, is focus on reducing the number of positions where we don't know what to do!

Another important aspect to the above-quoted idea is the concept that it is normal to have differing opinions over positions, even at the top level and to the point where you do not in fact understand all aspects of the position.  It's been remarkable to me how often the very top-rated players will candidly express this during interviews or in post-game analysis, for example in How Kramnik makes us feel better about chess.  I have seen Carlsen and Anand be similarly self-effacing and the lack of ego in the top ranks these days is very refreshing, as well as motivational for me to see.

A final comment on style: assuming the idea above is broadly true, our personal style will naturally shine through as part of a game's development, giving scope for creativity and individuality.  But  that does not excuse us from increasing our efforts at objective investigation and understanding of truth on the chessboard.