Correspondence Chess / 2009 Electronic Knights / 2011 Absolute
appears to give Black about the same chance for equality despite the ragged pawn structure. Black seeks compen- sation in active piece play for the pawn minus. Menke neatly negates this.
16. Rxa4 Rd4 The alternative 16. ... 0-0 is also
playable as in Ottesen-Stieger, ICCF 2012 after 17. Qe3 the game was drawn at move 26.
17. Bxa6 Rxa4 This is new territory but not good
territory. White stands a little better. Previously 17. ... Bxa6 was played in Kraft-Fass, ICCF 2009.
18. Bb5+ Bc6 19. Bxa4 Bxa4 20.
Nxa4 0-0 White is a clear pawn ahead but
there are technical problems. Menke’s solution is instructive.
21. Qf3 Rb8 22. Re4!
The c-pawn is the target to force the exchange of rooks. 22. ... Qc6 23. Rc4 Rb4 White gets two passed pawns after
23. ... Qxf3 24. gxf3 Rb4 25. Re4! Rxe4 26. fxe4 Nc6 27. Nxc5 Nxe5 28. Bxe5.
24. Rxb4 cxb4 25. Qxc6 Nxc6 26. Kf1 Nd4
Black plays for activity as the white king centralizes after an exchange of
Black’s kingside is put into a deep
minor pieces on e5 and would soon focus on the weak b-pawn.
27. Nc5 Nxc2 28. Nd7!
freeze while the black knight cannot fight off White’s king by itself.
28. ... Nd4 29. Ke1 h6 30. h4 Nf5 31. g3 Nd4 32. Kd2 g5 33. Kd3 Nf3 34. Ke4 gxf4 35. Kxf3 fxg3 36. Kxg3 h5
The king and pawn endgame is
clearly lost after 36. ... Bf8 37. Nxf8 Kxf8 38. Kf4 Ke7 39. Ke4 f6 (39. ... Kd7 40. Kd4 Kc6 41. Kc4 b3 [41. ... h5 42. f3] 42. h5) 40. Kd3.
37. Nf6+ Kf8 38. f4 Bxf6 39. exf6 Ke8 40. f5 Kd7 41. Kf4 b3 42. fxe6+ Kxe6 43. Kg5 Ke5 44. Kxh5 Kxf6 45. Kh6 Ke7 46. h5 Kf8 47. Kg5 Kg8 48. Kf6, Black resigned.
Second place in the 2011 event was held by Steven van Enk. Steven was born in Veenendaal, Netherlands, on April 7, 1965. He learned the moves at age 10 and started playing the game at 14. Steven notes that “that is a bit late to become really good, but who cares? Chess is fun at any level.” After he moved to the United States, Steven played OTB chess. When ever he went to the Westfield Chess Club in New Jersey, the organizer always announced him as “Vanattack,” an accurate assessment of his attacking skills. After leaving New Jersey for Eugene, Oregon, he decided to play correspondence chess as he hadn’t found a good chess club. Correspondence chess certainly agreed with Vanattack. As of the December 2012 correspondence rating list, Steven was ranked number two—just a bit behind, you guessed it, John Menke. Steven pointedly admits that in international correspondence play he doesn’t do that well. He states that it is not just his lack of skill and patience, but also the fact that help from chess com puters is allowed according to international rules, adding, “Isn’t that silly?” Van Enk also has had success on the OTB level. He became a FIDE master (FM), but it doesn’t go to his head. He notes that that international FM chess title indicates that you’re too much of a patzer to become a grand master.
Queen’s Gambit Declined, Ragozin Defense (D38) Dana Daves (2366) Steven van Enk (2436) 2011 Absolute
In days gone by an attacker conjured
up mating attacks almost out of no - where. van Enk demonstrates those days still exist.
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 d5 5. Bg5
This line, which dates back to the
days of Harry Nelson Pillsbury and Emanuel Lasker, still finds favor in the games of GM Levon Aronian and GM Vladimir Kramnik.
5. ... Nbd7 6. cxd5 exd5 7. Qc2 The players have left the realm of
the Nimzo Indian and entered into the Ragozin Variation of the Queen’s Gambit Declined.
7. ... h6 8. Bh4 0-0 9. e3 c5 10. Be2 As Black intends to play ... c5-c4 in
this variation, White’s bishop does better on e2 than d3.
10. ... Re8 11. 0-0 Bxc3 12. bxc3 c4 13. Nd2 Nf8
Now 14. e4 looks appetizing, but
Black is OK after 14. ... Ng6 15. Bg3 h5 16. h3 h4 17. Bh2 Nxe4 18. Nxe4 Bf5 19. f3 Rc8!
This is Vanattack in action! Five of Black’s six pieces take aim at White’s
14. Bf3 g5 15. Bg3 g4 16. Be2 Ng6 So far van Enk has been following
Ballow-van Enk, 2009 Absolute. Ballow now played 17. Rae1 h5 18. f3 h4 19. Bf2 h3 which was eventually drawn. Daves unleashes the storm imme - diately.
17. e4 The players are now on original
territory. 17. ... h5 18. f3 h4 19. Bf2 g3! This pawn sacrifice strikes to the
core of the position. Black banks on the coming increased activity of his pieces.
20. hxg3 hxg3 21. Bxg3 Nh5 22. Bh2 Qg5
king’s fortress. 23. Rfe1 To bring the bishop back to defend
g2. 23. ... Bh3 24. g4 This further weakening play will
have to be played anyway after 24. Bf1 Ngf4.
24. ... f5! Awesome! Black rips further into
White’s position as 25. exf5 Qe3+ 26. Kh1 Qf2 27. Bf1 Rxe1 28. Rxe1 Qxe1 29. fxg6 Bxf1 is hopeless.
25. Kh1 Nhf4 26. Bf1 After this, White is lost. Defense is
the hardest part of the game. Some survival chances are offered by 26. Rg1 but Black maintains a strong attack.
26. ... fxg4 27. Bxh3 Nxh3 28. Rg1 Nf2+
There is no room for thoughtless
greed by 28. ... Nxg1? 29. Rxg1 Qh5 30. Rxg4 when Black’s attack has vanished. The king is the thing.
29. Kg2 Qh4 30. e5 Also failing is 30. Kxf2 Qxh2+ 31.
Ke3 g3 and the black pawn is a crusher. The conclusion could be 32. Raf1 dxe4 33. fxe4 g2 34. Re1 Qg3+ 35. Ke2 Nf4+ 36. Kd1 Qg4+ 37. Kc1 Nd3+ 38. Kb1
Nxe1 39. Rxe1 g1=Q. 30. ... Nd3
Black threatens mate in two.
31. Kh1 Re7, White resigned. There is no real defense to ... Rh7.
After 32. fxg4 Black cashes in by 32. ... Nf2+ 33. Kg2 Nxg4 34. Nf3 Ne3+.
Third place was held by the 2010 champion, Harry Ingersol. Besides his victory in the 2010 event, Harry has won the APCT King Championship and finished second in the 2007 Electronic Knights.
Open Catalan (E04) Harry Ingersol (2356) Steven van Enk (2436) 2011 Absolute
Ingersol ranks this as his favorite
game from the 2011 Absolute. He notes that he always enjoys it when he has a valuable reference book that his opponent isn’t using. In this game with Van Enk one of those situations occurred. With 13. ... Qb4 van Enk ran into a variation that Boris Avrukh had described as having Black face an unpleasant attack. Ingersol thinks that Avrukh understated White’s advantage.
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 dxc4 5. Bg2
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