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Albert Anderson

Early Days

“The only impossible journey is the one you never begin.” – Tony Robbins

Only a little over a month ago I had no USCF membership and had never played in a rated chess tournament. What’s funny is that one of the reasons I avoided this for so long is I did not want to make mistakes yet I find myself making plenty. In my first action tournament, I accidentally touched my queen from this position and so moved it even though there is no good queen move. Re5 is a move I had considered for some time and wanted to play before blundering the position. Re5 puts white in a position to either force a draw with Nh6+ or play out a very dangerous game in time trouble!

Even though I did not finish well in the tournament which included the above game (2.5/6) I received a second-place finish (4/5) in my latest one. Here are a few of my favorite positions I found from those games.

In this first game my opponent and I both got caught up in the moment and quickly played 17…Rxg3?? 18 fxg3 Qxg3+ and my opponent resigned. A very strange ending!

In this game I was permitted to achieve a very satisfying mate after pinning the black pawns to their king. The position arose after my opponent played two knight moves …Nb4 attacking my queen that had been on c2 and then retreating back …Nc6, letting me move my bishop in from c1 for the ensuing checkmate.

In this position my opponent blundered in an attempt to protect their pawn structure with …Rac8 ignoring the powerful mating threat of Bd3. Realizing their oversight, my opponent attempted to block mate with …g6 but I simply strengthened the threat with Rg1. At this point, my opponent wished to trade queens on …Qf5 but it’s too late because Rxg6 is crushing and my opponent is soon to blunder their way into my checkmate after …Qxf6+

Here I have just played Bd2+ and my opponent will play Kf3 because they do not want to lose their rook. Would you have played differently with the black pieces? My bishop had been under threat on b4 and I had ideas like Bc4+ or f5 as well.  

This was the final position I recorded from the last game of my night in the open action portion of the tournament. It was just before midnight, but there is no excuse for what I allowed! With both of us in time trouble, my opponent played Kxc3 and lifted my c-pawn off the board. Eager to trounce my opponent with Ne4 I flinched forward, causing my opponent to lift their finger and replace the pieces on the board before changing their move and hitting the clock. Of course, this was only allowed because I did not stop the clock and call an arbiter over – as I was caught up in the moment. Despite the loss I suffered, this game served as a valuable lesson for me.

It was great to see some of our students at the tournament as well! You all get to make your mistakes much earlier than me, and will become much stronger chess players if you want to!

Never Give Up

“Never Regret. If it’s good, it’s wonderful… If it’s bad, it’s experience.” – Victoria Holt

This sentiment resonates well with my recent tournament experience. I finished with 2/5 points. Here is one of the wins I managed to take in the tournament with the black pieces from a losing position. No one ever won a game by resigning, said Saviely Tartakower.

In the 2nd round of my first-ever USCF rated tournament, I faced a tough position. Having already lost the first game, I could have been disheartened by my situation. However, I chose to adopt a fighter’s spirit instead. My opponent held two passed pawns and a material advantage, making my position dire. If White managed to simplify, the game would be over for me. Despite my earlier miscalculations and my opponent’s superior play, I decided to play on.

29. g3 may seem OK. However, my opponent seemed reluctant to remove their rook from the a-file. 29… Qb2 and my opponent missed trying to force their win condition with 30. a5, I followed with 30… Nd2 and the position quickly changed in my favor from here.

 

31. Qc1 is a blunder. The only non-losing move for white is Qa6, which with accurate play, white can force a draw.
31… Ne2+
32. Kg2
32… NxC1 and white resigned.

We all make mistakes. Even if I should have lost this game against a more accurate player – I made my opponent have to earn their win from me. It was a satisfying victory and one I fought hard for.