No holds barred

We now come onto my last game at the Kingston Invitational, with the black pieces in the ninth and final round against Xavier Cowan, a 1914-rated student. Like most of us seeded near the bottom of the pack, his event had been up and down, though from what I'd seen the clock had had a lot to do with that. The final round of a long tournament can be a bit of a graveyard shift when you're not playing for anything, but equally it can have an outsized influence on how you look back at the whole week. This was, therefore, by no means a dead rubber to me.

Despite the result (my only draw in nine rounds!) this was probably the most fiercely contested game I played in Kingston. I selected a line of the King's Indian that has been almost forgotten, and probably for good reason, but its obscurity had the desired effect and Cowan got into quite a tangle. As in so many other games I then spoiled things by getting too carried away, but he grabbed a hot pawn and set off a dazzling array of tactics, after which the fight had to be resolved in the endgame...

[Event "Kingston Invitational Swiss"] [Site "?"] [Date "2025.08.16"] [Round "9.22"] [White "Cowan, Xavier"] [Black "Young, Daniel J"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "E84"] [WhiteElo "1914"] [BlackElo "2045"] [Annotator "Young,Daniel J"] [PlyCount "147"] [EventDate "2025.??.??"] [SourceVersionDate "2025.08.17"] {The final round, and one I really wanted to win to at least end on a high note. From earlier games I'd seen that Cowan has a serious time trouble problem, but otherwise I had very little to prepare from.} 1. d4 {(1:30)} Nf6 {(1:30)} 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. f3 O-O 6. Be3 {I knew the Saemisch was coming, but no more - and this was the source of a crisis of preparation overnight. In the olden days I used to play the Panno Variation (6... Nc6) with acceptable results, and I intended to keep it in my repertoire - all modern sources recommend 6... c5, but that line can become extremely concrete and I don't like following opening books wholesale since it makes you too predictable. However, when checking my old analysis I realised that much of it does not hold up to scrutiny from modern engines. What to do?} Nc6 {When I got on the bus to Kingston I was planning to play 6... c5 after all, but whilst revising the theory I got the feeling that cramming such a critical line hours before the game was not a good idea. I resolved to follow my instinct at the board, and went with my old favourite - but with some reservation, for time has been unkind to this storied variation. In the end I decided that my experience with an unfashionable and rather esoteric line made this the lesser risk.} (6... c5 {seems to be the only respectable move nowadays - everything else has been discarded in the name of progress. The Benoni approach is admittedly logical: the drawback to f2-f3 is that it weakens White's dark squares, so Black immediately contests them, even at the price of a pawn. The theory of this variation can fill a book on its own, so I will just touch on a couple of the highlights. The main move from here is} 7. Nge2 (7. dxc5 {Black's last move was a gambit, and accepting it was what drove me to the Panno way back when, but it is no longer so feared.} dxc5 8. Qxd8 Rxd8 9. Bxc5 Nc6 {White's dark-squared bishop is misplaced, his light-squared bishop is bad, and most of his other pieces are on their starting squares, so Black has ample compensation.} 10. Nge2 (10. Nd5 {is an older try, but the weakness of b2 gives Black adequate counterplay. The solution is to let the e-pawn go with} Nd7 11. Bxe7 (11. Nxe7+ Nxe7 12. Bxe7 Bxb2 {(a key resource)} 13. Rb1 Bc3+ 14. Kd1 Re8 $44 {is also fine; White keeps his dark-squared bishop, but now his king will have to slum it in the middle of the board}) 11... Nxe7 12. Nxe7+ Kf8 13. Nd5 Bxb2 14. Rb1 Bg7 {, after which Black can regroup and target the weak c-pawn, for example} 15. Nh3 Nc5 16. Nf2 Be6 17. Be2 Rac8 18. O-O b6 $44 {(Jones) Black's uncontested dark-squared bishop offers automatic compensation.}) 10... b6 11. Ba3 {(not 11. Be3? Nb4)} Ba6 {White usually defends the c-pawn with} 12. Nb5 {, when} Rd7 13. Nec3 Bb7 $44 {threatens to trap the knight with 14... a6 and forces White to spend yet more time to unwind. Meanwhile Black will double rooks on the d-file with good play for the pawn.}) 7... Nc6 8. d5 Ne5 9. Ng3 {This defends the c-pawn, but exposes the knight to attack - developing this piece is often White's big problem in the Saemisch. That said, if White can consolidate and kick the e5 knight when it has to retreat then Black will be overrun, so the second player has to act vigorously.} h5 10. Be2 h4 11. Nf1 e6 12. f4 {This is critical, although 12. Bg5 and 12. Nd2 also need to be studied. At first sight Black seems to be busted becuase the only safe square for the knight is the limp retreat to d7, but his position miraculously holds together because of Grischuk's incredible move} Nxc4 $3 {, sacrificing a whole piece to break up White's centre.} 13. Bxc4 b5 $1 14. Bxb5 exd5 15. exd5 (15. e5 {is a combative try, fighting for the initiative in the centre.} dxe5 16. fxe5 Bg4 17. Be2 (17. exf6 $5 {White can also give up his queen for several pieces - this led to a draw in the stem game Svidler-Grischuk, Candidates 2013}) 17... Bxe2 18. Qxe2 Nd7 {Black is fine thanks to his strong pawn centre and the threat of ...d4 - if White tries to evacuate his king by} 19. Nxd5 Nxe5 20. O-O-O $2 {then Jones gives} c4 $15 {, intending to win back an exchange with ...Nd3+ and emerge with a rook for two knights in a position where White's king is still open to the elements}) 15... Rb8 $44 {"If you're unconvinced about our compensation, then have a look at the board from White's perspective and try to find a playable plan. White has tried a wide range of moves in practice, but none of them have worked well." - Jones. And indeed, this sacrifice is fully endorsed by the engine. It's not surprising that White's loose pieces and lack of development should offer Black enough for the sacrificed knight, but it is offered on general positional grounds rather than with a particular forcing variation in mind, and I felt there wasn't enough time to truly acquaint myself with the analysis before the game.}) 7. Qd2 a6 8. Nge2 Rb8 {This is all normal: in this variation Black tries to arrange counterplay with ...b5, whilst White can pursue a kingside attack. The main line here is the prophylactic 9. Nc1, but I now think the simplistic 9. h4 could be even stronger - White's kingside attack seems to be too strong. In my first King's Indian spell I generated a lot of analysis of 9... b5 followed by ...Na5, trying to force White to open the queenside, but Stockfish just laughs at it nowadays... I wasn't quite sure what I would do if Cowan had played that way, but luckily for me my guess that he was unfamiliar with this forgotten opening proved correct.} 9. d5 $6 {A lot of people seem to be tempted by gaining time on the knight when caught unawares, but opening the long diagonal when the dark squares have already been weakened is rather risky. White has to be careful not to get a worse version of the Benoni lines looked at above in which Black has economised on ...c5.} Ne5 10. b3 {(1:12) Further weakening the long diagonal, but probably the best try.} (10. Ng3 {If White tries to play by analogy with the lines given above, he will shortly discover that the plan is now too slow. The value of ...a6 and ...Rb8 can be seen after} h5 11. Be2 $2 {(11. f4 is playable, but Black has no problems since his knight can jump into g4)} h4 12. Nf1 b5 $17 {and White's centre is under assault from the other flank. His queen doesn't control g4 from d2, so this line of play is a dead end for him.} 13. b3 bxc4 14. bxc4 c6 {White is too badly developed to cope with the game opening, and c4 is a static weakness which Black can pressure further with ...Rb4.}) 10... c5 {(1:24) Now that c4 is securely defended, Black does best to accept a Benoni structure after all, securing his share of the centre. This also meshes well with ...a6 and ...Rb8 since playing for ...b5 is still Black's main active plan on the queenside.} 11. dxc6 {And in turn, White is right to modestly give up his central pawn wedge, as otherwise Black's queenside play is too dangerous.} (11. h3 $143 $2 {Similarly to 10. Ng3 above, the weakness of c4 gives White headaches after slow moves:} b5 12. Ng3 (12. f4 Ned7 13. Ng3 {fails tactically to} b4 14. Na4 Nxe4 $19) 12... h5 13. h4 {At least stopping ...h4, but now White can never play f3-f4 whilst keeping control of g4, and the further loss of time leads to} bxc4 14. Bxc4 Nxc4 15. bxc4 Kh7 $17 {, when Bh6 is ruled out and Black will turn his attention to the weak pawn on c4.}) 11... bxc6 {11... Nxc6?! 12. Rc1 would give White a good Maroczy Bind, since ...b5 doesn't work thanks to the tactical weakness of the knight on c6. So this is the right way to recapture, controlling the d5 square, but Black can no longer break with ...b5. So White is at least able to hold the balance.} 12. Rd1 $146 {A clear improvement on 12. c5? in the only previous game to reach this position (Pibernik-Lauer, Corr. 2012), after which Black simply takes the pawn since recapturing it loses a piece to ...Nd3+. Black now does have to respect this undermining break though, which explains my next move.} Qa5 13. Nf4 $6 {White still has a comfortable space advantage, but equally he is still far behind in development. Therefore it's perfectly natural to move this knight and free the bishop on f1, but it gives Black a target for counterplay and could have led to a difficult game. More sophisticated methods were called for.} (13. Ng3 {Just like in some of the lines considered earlier, this invites} h5 {, after which} 14. h4 Nfd7 15. Rc1 {(15... Nxc4! was threatened)} Nc5 16. Be2 Bf6 $15 {prevents White castling because of the unprotected pawn on h4.}) (13. h3 $142 {is Stockfish's favourite. This contradicts everything I just wrote about needing to get the pieces out! Apparently the idea is that after Kf2, White will be able to follow up with g2-g4 (depriving the f6 knight of its best route into play via h5) without fearing ...Bxg4 sacrifices. This is all a bit academic though because Black can and should react immediately in the centre with} d5 $1 {, after which the game becomes very sharp.} 14. cxd5 cxd5 15. exd5 {(15. Nxd5?? Nd3# is an unusual flavour of smothered mate, since the white queen is pinned!)} Rd8 16. Kf2 Bb7 17. Nf4 {If Black can calmly regather his pawn on d5 then he will clearly stand well now that the game has opened. But now we get an odd material balance following} g5 18. Nd3 Bxd5 $1 {(there is an alternative in 18... Nh5 19. Nc5 Nxf3, which the computer analyses out to a perpetual)} 19. Nxe5 Bxf3 $1 20. Qxd8+ Rxd8 21. Nc4 Ne4+ 22. Nxe4 Qxa2+ 23. Rd2 Rxd2+ 24. Nexd2 Bd5 $13 {, after which White has two knights and a rook in return for a queen and two pawns. In a vacuum this would be pleasant for him, although the rook on h1 is still not playing so it's all to play for here.}) 13... Ne8 $6 {I played this move to prepare ...f5, trying to open lines whilst White's king is caught in the centre. That's the right idea, but I only realised after Cowan's reply that I'm also threatening to win his queen with 14... Nxf3+! 15. gxf3 Bxc3. Had I seen that earlier, I might have realised that it's possible to use this knight more actively.} (13... Nfg4 $144 $6 {Later in the day, I spent some time analysing the game with Graeme Buckley, Susan and Peter Lalic. This move was quickly suggested as an alternative, but amusingly the combined power of two IMs, a CM and one of the players failed to spot that White can save his precious dark-squared bishop from exchange by playing exactly as in the game:} 14. Na4 (14. Bd4 $143 $2 c5 15. Ncd5 Qxd2+ 16. Rxd2 cxd4 17. Nxe7+ Kh8 18. fxg4 Bxg4 $17 {is horrible for White despite material equality: he is now terribly weak on the dark squares, the d4 pawn is immune because of ...Nf3+, and Black can soften up the queenside with ...a5-a4.}) 14... Qxd2+ 15. Bxd2 {In this version Black has to lose a tempo with} Nh6 {, allowing} 16. c5 $14 {to land with good effect. Black will be left with a weak pawn either on c6 or d6.}) (13... Nh5 $142 {is the way to go. Now Black can solve the problem of this redundant piece by exchanging it off.} 14. Rc1 (14. Na4 $6 Qxd2+ 15. Bxd2 {is even better than it would be in the game owing to} Nxf4 16. Bxf4 c5 $17 {, as now there is no knight on f4 to occupy the outpost on d5. White's light-squared bishop will remain bad for the foreseeable future, and his knight on a4 struggles to get back into the game (17. Nc3? Nxf3+).}) 14... Nxf4 15. Bxf4 f5 {Naturally, the removal of the active knight on f4 and the passive one on e8 make this a better version of the next note for Black.} 16. Be2 fxe4 17. Nxe4 {(17. fxe4 is playable, but the isolated e-pawn is a weakness in the long run)} Qxd2+ 18. Bxd2 $15 {Now Black has the pleasant choice between stabilising the centre with 18... c5, or probing the queenside with the more ambitious 18... a5!?. In either case he retains a slight edge thanks to his better light-squared bishop.}) 14. Na4 $6 {This is an extreme way of avoiding the tactics on the long diagonal - it works, but I'd already had experience of a misplaced knight on a4 against Han in this tournament! Having said that, with White still angling for c4-c5 the knight does have some use on this square, and it confronted me with a difficult choice.} (14. Rc1 $142 {is more harmonious defence, pity though it may be to move the rook to an even less active spot. I would have continued as planned with} f5 {, when} 15. exf5 Bxf5 16. Be2 $11 {gives White time to finally complete his development. Black is a bit cramped, but his strong bishops should guard against any serious danger.}) 14... Qc7 $2 {Perhaps more than any other, this move is emblematic of how I was playing at this time: a bit too willing to stir up complications. I hesitated over whether or not to exchange queens: the trade is often a necessary precursor to the ...f5 break in this structure (see Burton-Young, Major Open 2023, for a painful reminder, as well as various lines of the Benko Gambit) and it would solve any problem of congestion. But I was entranced by the sight of White's king still sat on e1, and the course of the opening made me even more hungry to win this game, so I decided to take a chance. Looking back now, it feels obvious that I was following my emotions rather than my dispassionate understanding of the position.} (14... Qxd2+ $142 {It might not be easy to trade queens when you want to win, but this is the right treatment - arguably my decision to avoid it also bespeaks a lack of confidence. Black will follow up with the ...f5 break as advertised.} 15. Bxd2 f5 16. exf5 Bxf5 $15 {Compared with the 14. Rc1 variation above, the disappearance of the queens negates White's space advantage, as well as lessening any fears on the a2-g8 diagonal. White's only chance of active play is} 17. c5 {, but Black can respond by improving his sleeping knight on e8:} Nc7 18. Be2 {(inserting the exchange of pawns on d6 would merely open the e-file for Black's rooks)} Nb5 19. O-O d5 {Black is taking over in the centre, and whilst White can reach the b6 square with a knight, it has nothing to do once it gets there.}) 15. c5 $1 {(50) Quite right. White's light-squared bishop finally gets some air, and since he will be in time to play cxd6 before I can push past with ...d5, he also gains use of the c5 square. After this the defence of the shaky queenside pawns becomes something of a problem for Black.} f5 {(52) Black now needs to unsettle the e-pawn more urgently than ever.} 16. exf5 (16. cxd6 $143 $2 {The next variation begs the question of whether White can improve his move order by capturing on d6 whilst his e-pawn is still at its post. But he can't, since Black can instead answer} Nxd6 $1 {when the added pressure on e4 gives White serious problems, and not even the hole on e6 will stop Black -} 17. Nc5 (17. exf5 $2 {gives Black too many open lines, and White will not be in time to flee with his king, since} Nxf5 18. Be2 $2 Nxe3 19. Qxe3 {fails to} Rxf4 $1) 17... fxe4 $1 18. Nce6 Bxe6 19. Nxe6 Qc8 20. Nxf8 {Black has the nasty intermezzo} exf3 21. Bd3 Nxd3+ 22. Qxd3 fxg2 23. Rg1 Qxf8 24. Rxg2 Rb5 $15 {The rook enters play on f5 or d5, whilst Black has two pawns for the exchange and White's king is in obvious danger.}) 16... Rxf5 $6 {I underestimated the danger of the coming central transformation, otherwise I might have paid more attention to the chance of avoiding it.} (16... d5 $142 $1 {I did consider this move, and grasped the tactics on the f-file which underpin it, but I didn't realise that I can recover the sacrificed pawn and didn't feel that such radical measures were necessary. So, what's going on? The point is that Black really wants White to be left with his own pawn on c5, since his pieces are therefore cut off from that square and the a4 knight will have to lose time redeploying. Achieving this is worth ignoring the recapture, since White's sleeping pieces prevent him opening the game any further.} 17. fxg6 hxg6 18. Nb2 {White immediately finds new work for the wandering horse, specifically defending the d3 square. However, Black can regain his pawn with} (18. Be2 $2 {runs into} d4 $1 {and if} 19. Bxd4 Rxf4 $17 20. Qxf4 Nd3+ {- that's why the a4 knight needs to protect this square.}) 18... g5 19. Nh5 Rxf3 {(this possibility was what first drew me to the idea of ...f5 to open the f-file)} 20. Be2 Rf7 21. Nxg7 Nxg7 22. Bd4 $11 {This would have led to an imbalanced game. Black has staked out the centre, and kept White's king in the centre for a little longer at least, however White has managed to remove Black's dark squared bishop and is catching up in development. The engine considers the position to be roughly level, and I think any result would be possible.}) 17. cxd6 exd6 {(without a target on e4, capturing with the knight no longer makes sense)} 18. Be2 d5 {Black will need to make this move sooner or later, otherwise his queen and the knight on e8 will be stuck defending a weak pawn forever. The aforementioned knight now also gets a route back into play through d6. However, the disappearance of the c5 pawn means that the weakening of the central dark squares is much more serious than in the variations we saw earlier. On top of that, the fact that White is finally able to play} 19. O-O $14 {shows clearly that Black's gamble on move 14 has failed.} Nd6 $2 {My kind of move to a fault - still impatiently forcing events. I realised that this move was bad news for my a-pawn, but I reasoned that I can't hope to play with a knight out of the game on the back rank and may as well abandon the pawn to get active. As the game goes this idea works out fairly well, but only because White is similarly impatient. Calm defence of the dark squares was sounder.} (19... Bf8 $142 {This at least forces White to exchange off dark-squared bishops to make headway.} 20. Bc5 (20. Nc5 $143 $2 {The direct way of attacking a6 doesn't work yet because of} Rxf4 21. Nxa6 Bxa6 22. Bxf4 Bxe2 23. Qxe2 Bd6 $17 {, and Black stabilises with two knights for rook and pawn.}) 20... Bxc5+ 21. Nxc5 {Black can exchange some more pieces with} Nd7 22. Nfe6 Qb6 23. Qc3 Nxc5 24. Nxc5 $14 {. This eases the defence, and ...Nd6-b7 is a future idea for Black, although the twin weaknesses on a6 and c6 promise an unenjoyable task. Funnily enough, he is now the one burdened with a bad light-squared bishop.}) 20. Nc5 {(16)} Qe7 {(36) The best try - Black's a-pawn is junk, and whilst White's pieces are still floating a little he has no qualms about getting rid of it.} 21. Bxa6 $2 {This was a big relief: White has underestimated the tactical dangers on the e-file. The only flaw with my scheme was that I couldn't force him to take this pawn - White should have just improved his position with Rfe1 and Kh1; then there would have been no tricks left and I would have had to face up to losing this pawn for nothing.} Bxa6 22. Nxa6 {Now the game devolves into pure calculation for the next seven moves. With an exposed bishop on e3 and looming forks on c4 I thought that the complications had to be on my side, not to mention the fact that Cowan was playing, as they used to say, with his flag hanging. And indeed the complications do favour me, but only to the extent that I get sufficient compensation for the lost pawn - he has an irritating attack on my b8 rook and there are also Nxd5 forks to watch out for, and these factors are enough for White to get away with his carelessness.} Ra8 {I spent a long time analysing the immediate 22... Nec4, only to conclude (correctly) that it doesn't quite work. But when I played this I was sure I had him - surely he would retreat to c5, when 23... Nec4 would cleanly win material.} (22... Nec4 23. bxc4 Nxc4 24. Qe1 {Even though} Nxe3 $6 {captures one piece, attacks another and forks both of White's rooks, Black is thwarted by his hanging rook combined with the self-pin on the e-file.} (24... Ra8 $142 {is the strongest move, which I don't remember considering. White is in time to unravel with} 25. Bc5 Qxe1 26. Rfxe1 Rxf4 27. Nc7 Rc8 (27... Rxa2 $2 {comes with a serious health warning in view of} 28. Re8+ {and Black must play ...Rf8 and give up the exchange, since} Kf7 $4 29. Re7+ Kg8 30. Rxg7+ $1 Kxg7 31. Ne6+ {nets a whole piece}) 28. Ne6 Rf7 29. Nxg7 Rxg7 $11 {when the ending is balanced. The a-pawn is not as strong as it would be with the rooks off the board, and Black's entrenched knight is no worse than White's bishop, which has no targets with all of Black's pawns on light squares.}) 25. Nxb8 Rxf4 26. Rd3 Bd4 27. Kh1 {If I remember correctly, I saw this far and stopped. Black can get the exchange back with} Qd6 28. Rxe3 Bxe3 29. Qxe3 Qxb8 {, but} 30. Qe6+ Kg7 31. Qxc6 $14 {forces Black to defend the ending a pawn down with a more vulnerable king.}) 23. Nb4 $1 {I didn't see it! The weakness of Black's central pawns gives White sufficient counterplay - but not in the way either of us thought.} (23. Nc5 $143 $2 {The move I was hoping for would indeed have lost to} Nec4 24. bxc4 Nxc4 25. Qe1 {, and now that my rook on the back rank isn't attacked,} Qxe3+ 26. Qxe3 Nxe3 $19 {pockets an exchange.}) (23. Qe2 $2 {This avoids the fork on c4 and defends the knight, but fares no better after} Bh6 (23... Nec4 $2 24. Bc5 $15 {is less clear}) 24. g3 Nb5 {, interrupting the queen's defence of a6 and threatening ...Nc3.} 25. Bc5 Qb7 26. Nb4 Nc3 $19) 23... Nec4 $1 {After long thought, as I'd seen what was coming, but this is still working.} 24. bxc4 Nxc4 25. Nbxd5 $6 {(2) This no longer came as a surprise - Black can't take twice to remove the defender of e3 because White would play Qxd5 with check and pick up the (apparently cursed) rook in the corner. I thought it was best, but in fact it doesn't work! White needs to take the other pawn.} (25. Nxc6 $142 $1 {Leaving the bishop to be taken with check isn't the easiest move to spot, but knights are tricky pieces.} Qe8 (25... Qxe3+ $144 26. Qxe3 Nxe3 27. Ne7+ {is the point, which will come down to a minor piece ending with an extra pawn after the forced line} Kf7 28. Nxf5 gxf5 29. Rb1 Nxf1 30. Rb7+ Kg8 31. Kxf1 Rxa2 32. Nxd5 $11 {As in the game, Black should be able to defend with play localised to the kingside, but his split pawns and inferior minor piece give White hope of realising the extra pawn.}) 26. Qc1 Qxc6 (26... Nxe3 {doesn't quite suffice for an advantage because of} 27. Rfe1 Rf6 28. Ne7+ $3 {Inspired defence.} Qxe7 29. Nxd5 Nxd5 30. Rxe7 Nxe7 $13 {, and for the second time in these notes we reach a position with queen and two pawns against a rook and two minor pieces.}) 27. Kh1 Qa6 28. Rfe1 Qxa2 29. Bd4 $11 {Black recovers his pawn and is active enough to live with his isolated d-pawn.}) 25... cxd5 {(19)} 26. Nxd5 Qf7 $6 {After the game I couldn't quite believe that White had managed to escape the encirclement, and felt I must have had something. There was no blockbuster, and this was as close as I came. I've always said that calculation is the weakest part of my game, but up to this point I've coped well in a position where everything is hanging - just what I hate. Here, unfortunately, I finally lost my bearings.} (26... Qe6 $142 {keeps up the heat on the e-file. I can't remember if I didn't look past the fork on c7 or missed something later on.} 27. Nc7 {(The best try; 27. Qe2 Rc8 wins at once)} Nxd2 {It's easy to be disoriented by the many possible captures, but nothing quite works for White.} (27... Qxe3+ $143 $2 {gets Black's queen out of danger in the most forcing way possible, but} 28. Qxe3 Nxe3 29. Nxa8 Nxf1 30. Kxf1 {keeps White's two extra pawns - although} Ra5 31. Rd8+ Kf7 32. Rd7+ Kg8 $11 {gets the important one back and is still within the drawing margin}) 28. Nxe6 Nxf1 29. Kxf1 (29. Nxg7 $4 Nxe3 30. Rd3 Kxg7 31. Rxe3 $19 {leaves Black a rook up}) 29... Re5 $1 {The most precise, forcing White to sideline his knight.} (29... Rxa2 $143 $6 30. Rd8+ Kf7 31. Nxg7 Kxg7 $11 {should be tenable for White with material so reduced}) 30. Nc7 {(the knight is trapped after 30. Nxg7? Rxe3)} Rxa2 31. Rd8+ Kf7 32. Rd7+ Re7 33. Rxe7+ Kxe7 $17 {This still looks like a difficult ending to me, but Black has retained his bishop and White is stuck with his unhappy knight, so there are more winning chances than in the 29... Rxa2 line above. In short, a difficult line to calculate accurately in time trouble, and with a questionable reward at the end of it!}) 27. Qc2 {The saving clause (27. Qb4 is also good enough). Black is unable to pick up the knight because of his own hanging piece. The fireworks are dying down and so far I've only managed to lose a second pawn in the melee, however I was able to readjust in time and accept that I'm playing for a draw. I am active enough that this can be achieved without too much difficulty.} Nxe3 (27... Rxd5 $144 28. Qxc4 Rxd1 29. Qxf7+ Kxf7 30. Rxd1 Rxa2 $11 {is a more direct way to a drawn ending, but the text is good enough - and leaves the ball in White's court.}) 28. Nxe3 Rfa5 {Once the outside passed pawn is eliminated, Black can draw most endgames a pawn down. White, for his part, is more than happy to get the queens off after so many adventures.} 29. Qb3 Rxa2 30. Qxf7+ {(1)} Kxf7 $11 {(7)} 31. Rd7+ Kf8 32. Rfd1 Ra1 33. Rxa1 Rxa1+ 34. Kf2 Ra2+ {(Black draw offer) Even as the higher-rated player, this was probably poor etiquette, but I wasn't sure if he wanted to play for a win. Afterwards he apologised for playing another 40 moves, but said he doesn't know much about endgames and thought he could try. Really there was no need to apologise - it is a draw, but that doesn't mean he can't try!} 35. Kg3 {(0)} Ra3 {(5)} 36. Nc4 Ra2 37. f4 Ra6 38. Rd3 Ra2 39. Kf3 Ke7 40. h3 {(0)} h5 {(5)} 41. g4 {Exchanging pawns almost always makes the defender's task easier. Otherwise, Black just continues to wait.} hxg4+ 42. hxg4 Rc2 43. Ne3 Ra2 44. Rb3 Bd4 45. Nc4 {(0)} Ke6 {(2)} 46. Ke4 Bf2 $6 47. Ne3 $6 {White's only hope of winning was the better minor piece, and once it is gone the pure rook ending is a simple theoretical draw.} (47. Ne5 $142 {would have forced me to find the less than obvious} g5 $8 {to reach the drawing haven:} (47... Kf6 $4 48. g5+ Kg7 49. Rb7+ $18 {wins the g-pawn and the game}) 48. f5+ Kf6 {Crucially, my bishop defends the entry square on b6.} 49. Nc4 $14 {There's no way to break in, but White can probe for as long as it pleases him (or at least until move 98).}) 47... Bxe3 48. Kxe3 Ra6 {Covering the third rank from checks. Eventually White tries to find his way in with the king, but there is nothing to be done.} 49. Rb4 Rc6 50. Ke4 {(0)} Ra6 {(3)} 51. Rb3 Ra4+ 52. Kf3 Ra6 53. Kg3 Kf6 54. Rb5 Ra3+ 55. Kh4 {(1)} Ra6 {(1)} 56. g5+ {The only move offering the illusion of progress, but now that his king can't get onto the fifth rank this is as good as offering a draw.} Kg7 57. Rb7+ Kg8 58. Rb5 Kg7 59. Kg4 Ra1 60. Rb7+ {(0)} Kg8 {(1)} 61. Rb6 Kg7 62. Rf6 Ra4 63. Kf3 Rb4 64. Ke3 Ra4 65. Rd6 {(1)} Ra1 {(2)} 66. Ke4 Re1+ 67. Kd5 Rf1 68. Rf6 Rd1+ 69. Ke6 Re1+ 70. Kd7 {(1)} Rd1+ {(2)} 71. Ke7 Re1+ 72. Re6 Ra1 73. Rd6 Ra4 74. Rf6 {(White draw offer) An exciting game, but not the result I wanted - a fitting summary of the tournament as a whole. However, Cowan deserves credit for an excellent defence.} 1/2-1/2

There are many in today's chess community who like quicker and quicker time controls, which add jeopardy and increase the likelihood of errors, thereby reducing the number of draws. Though it's true such formats are more accessible, and I find it much easier to invest a day in a rapid or blitz tournament on a whim than I would a classical event, chess is at least as much a science or an art as it is a sport. A well played drawn game can be just as exciting and memorable as any decisive result, so I had no hesitation in deciding to blog this one.

That's not to say it was a result I was happy with. After my objectively bad opening choice proved to be practically good, I didn't make the most of it because I missed my own threat of 14... Nxf3+ - a bad oversight, since tactics on the long diagonal are bread and butter in the King's Indian. Later, 26... Qe6 would have given me some winning chances had I only calculated it out. It's true there are lots of hanging pieces in that line, and you have to push through the knight fork it allows right away, but the analysis boils down to taking the most valuable piece available every move so was not impossible to work out. For me the most insightful moment was earlier on, when I rejected the exchange of queens with 14... Qc7?. This was a strange positional decision since the trade would have allowed me to attack White's centre more safely and without loss of time, and the shaky position of his king isn't so important because Black has no way to get at it in the near future. I was too bloodthirsty in the heat of the moment, but if simplification is the right thing to do we shouldn't be afraid of it - as in this game, for example.

What to learn then from my troubled play in this tournament? The attentive reader may have noticed that I blogged all of the morning rounds, and none of the afternoon ones - i.e. only the games I had enough notice of the pairings to prepare for. I don't wish to get too polemical so will just say that going in blind against stronger players was even harder for me than for most, and in any case the morning rounds were more complete and interesting contests. The main takeaway for me was that I was playing the kind of chess I wish I could play, rather than the kind I actually can, and I suffered accordingly. Improving my calculating ability is still my goal, but the fact is that my successes came in simple positions and I need to accept reality, like it or not. I've said before that I have a theory my playing style is influenced by the last games collection I read, and these games show plainly that I cannot play like Alekhine. At the moment I'm playing a tournament in Coventry, and I read Golombek's book on Capablanca as preparation - just wait until you see the difference...

This post concludes not only the Kingston Invitational, but also the 2024-25 season. For the new campaign I've started playing weeknight league chess again, but before getting onto that it is time for my customary review of the year.