00037.5.22 Analyzed by Candidate Master Daniel Waite

1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 d5 3.e3 e6 4.Bd3 c5 5.c3 Nc6

[As a coach of children, I teach them insanely

aggressive openings up until they are over the 1500

mark. From 1500 – 1800 they learn the Colle – K.

It’s good for handling better opponents with explosive

possibilities. After 1800 I require them to play the

Torre and introduce them to the Queen’s Gambit. The

Colle introduces the player to games that are “close”

(less given to the luck that the opponent will miss

something). In other words, creating advantages from

equal positions. Also it stretches them to understand

the position and play accordingly.]

6.0-0

[6. Nbd2 to prevent 6…Ne4, 7…f5.]

6…Bd6 7.Nbd2 0-0 8.Re1

[Better is the move 8. e4, because you do not need Re1

to accomplish your goal.]

8…Qc7

[Black has an ideal set up against the Colle – K. He

should have a very comfortable game.]

9.dxc Bxc5 10.e4 Qb6

[Black also has …Bd6 (better than the text, the attack

on f2 is less effective than on h2) and my favorite

…Nce5 (which should unravel the White attack). White

should get nowhere after either of those moves.]

11.Qe2 Ng4

[Again 11…Nce5 immediately and permanently ends all

hope for White to achieve an advantage by liquidating

the center pawns, liquidating a set of minor pieces

(giving Black the “magical” Bishop pair), and

neutralize the White space advantage in the center and

King side.]

12.Ref1 f5 13.e5 Qc7

[Even here Black should have a slight advantage but

plays it badly.]

14.Nb3 Bb6

[Best is 14…Nce5 (can you tell I like this move?) 15.

Nxe5 Nxe5 16. Nxc5 Ng4 (threatening checkmate) 17. g3

Qxc5 or 17. f4 Qxc5+]

15.Bf4 Bd7 16.Rae1 17.Qd2

[Strange looking move that sets up 18. h3 forcing

…Nxf2. You do a good job of proving that Black’s

attack on f2 is mythological.]

17…Re7 18.h3 Nxf2 19.Rxf2 Bxf2+ 20.Qxf2 h6

[White at this point has control of the game and has

all the possibilities. It is more or less a matter of

time. These are excellent training positions. Now

how will White cash in on his dominance?]

21.Nbd4

[Ouch. Between the next four moves you demonstrate

that you do not understand the position. Consider Be3

with the idea of Bc5. Also consider Qg3 with the idea

of Bxh6. When you are up positionally, look for ways

to tie the opponent’s position down more. Look for

the most forcing moves. The two redeeming factors are

that Black is uncoordinated and White has both Bishops

controlling the Kingside.]

21…a6 22.Nxc6 Bxc6 23.Be3 Rc8 24.Qh4

[You completely miss the point of the position. You

must learn to read the position! You have complete

dominance on the Kingside thanks to your Bishops. You

have complete control of the dark squares thanks to

Black’s lack of dark square Bishop. You are playing a

virtual piece up thanks to the bad Black Bishop. You

have a fine out post for the Knight on d4. How can

you take advantage of these ideas? First you can try

24. Bb6 Qc7 25. Nd5. Now you can consider Nxe6 prying

open the middle and giving you a passed pawn. With

the two active Bishops White should finish Black off

quickly.]

24…Be8

[This is one of those double-edged moves. I like it

because it sets up an interesting defense but Black

mishandles it and never uses the idea.]

25.g4 f4

[Black’s losing move. The idea of …Be8 was to play

…Bg6, which looks like it stabilizes the position –

for now.]

26.Bd4

[When in control, keep it patient and simple. When

behind the defense must be patient but also active.

Many times, the defense wants to complicate a position

in hopes that he opponent will lose the way. An idea

that would be very difficult to risk in OTB play would

be 26. Bxf4. In postal, I would have given it a try.

The trade is to give Black the White Queenside in

exchange for an attack on the Black Kingside. This

will work if you get the King (which might prove

difficult). However if you don’t get the King, you

have given Black a huge end game advantage. Always

play with an eye on the endgame. At this point, I

like your choice.]

26…Qd8 27.g5 Rf7

[Black makes his second losing move. The Bishop at

e8 is badly placed now. It keeps the Queen and Rook

from aiding the defense. You are now playing

everything on one (the Rook at f7).]

28.Qg4 Kh8 29.Kh1

[One of my third grade students asked, “Why didn’t he

take the pawn?” White misses the “crush” 29.Qxe6.

Through out this game you have made life interesting

for Black then let him off the hook due to not

understanding the position. It is true that at this

point anything short of divine intervention will

probably not help Black. However, you must catch

these opportunities if you want to move to a higher

level. Against a seasoned opponent the outcome of

this game would have been different.]

29…Qe7 30.Rg1 Rf8 31.b4 Rg8

[Interesting. 31… h4 prolongs the agony.]

32.gxh6 gxh6 33.Qxg8++

[Suggestions #1: Work on your positional

understanding. A big area to focus on would be

superior minor pieces. In this game you never made

use of your Bishops – they tended to be glorified

pawns. They are key in the Colle – K. If you don’t

use them, you need another opening! Suggestion #2:

Consider a more flexible opening such as the Torre or

Colle – Zukertort. “Forcing” openings tend to be “one

idea” openings. One of the dangers of “forcing”

openings is the guys that write the books make us

think that all we have to do is understand the ideas

behind the openings. Unfortunately the idea may be

completely misguided in a given concrete situation.

Where ideas come to force is in flexible openings

where you can often put two or more ideas together to

create complicated patterns of pressure. In this game

you were patient which should serve you well if this

is your general tendency. Suggestion #3: Lost games

are more valuable than won games for learning

(analyzing a won game is not as useful). Compile a

file of lost games (50 or more) and examine them for

common errors. This will include where the error was

made (keep a close look out for transitions). When

you see a “losing” move try to figure out the

circumstances that brought you to this place. Some

losing moves are a result of a series of bad ideas or

a lack of understanding the position. You can frame

your wins. Suggestion #4: Force yourself to calculate

one more move. Play based on concrete positions, not

general ideas (use them only to get ideas, after that,

calculate, calculate, calculate). When it seemed that

you started to do this you played much better. It

will also help you to take bigger risks.]