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Trapped!
A beginner who sets traps is no longer a beginner. By GM LEV ALBURT
IT IS POSSIBLE TO TRAP A STRONG opponent. In the game below I was fortu- nate to accomplish this against a former world champion. (Lev’s further comments appear in italics.)
Veresov Opening (D01) GM Lev Alburt (2617) GM Alexandra Kosteniuk (2543) Razuvaev Memorial (6), 2013
1. d4 Nf6 2. Nc3 d5 3. Bg5 Nbd7
style (Tal once joked about becoming the ex-world champion at 23).
7. Bg3 Nh5 8. Be5 Nxe5 9. Nxe5 Nf6 10. h4 Rg8
while White is ahead in material (a bit!), he is quite far from winning. In the game, White’s advantage grows quickly after 16. g4 Kb8 17. Qg3 Qd6 18. f4.
Did I earlier say, “solid”? 11. hxg5 Rxg5
Initiative above all. 12. Qf3 Be6 13. Bd3 Qd6
Black’s best response in this opening— or at least the most solid.
4. Nf3 h6
More common is 4. ... g6. 5. Bf4 c6 6. e3 g5
22. Nxd6 Now let’s take a look at the reader’s
14. Rh4 When I first saw this move, I quickly
saw a refutation: 14. ... Qb4 15. 0-0-0 Rxe5 and now 16. dxe5 will expose my undefended rook. Fortunately I remembered to look further: after all, for a bait to be attractive to my opponent it should appear to be bad, or at least risky, for me!
GM Kosteniuk, despite her young age at
the time of this game (29), was already an ex-women’s world champion (2008-2010) and is known for her direct, aggressive
22 October 2014 | Chess Life
14. ... Qb4? 15. 0-0-0 0-0-0 Drinking the bitter cup to the end was a
better choice: 15. ... Rxe5 16. a3 Qd6, and trap.
Caro-Kann Defense (B10) Mike Da Cruz (1965) R. Jackson (1682)
1. e4 c6 2. c4 d5 3. exd5 cxd5 4. cxd5 Nf6 5. Bb5+
(see diagram top of next column) 5. ... Bd7
18. ... Rg8 19. Qf3 Ne4 20. Bxe4 dxe4 21. Nxe4 Bd5
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