Cheeseboard

Stockfish – Cheese

Top Chess Engine Championship Season 21 — FRC4 Testing; tcec-chess.com, December 15, 2021

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Position #681

1. e4 e5 2. b4 Bf6 3. Ne3

3. ... 0-0-0? It is only three moves and two moves, and Cheese already commits a grave strategic misplay which leaves White with a free hand all over the board. Any sound developing move was better, including perhaps the symmetrical 3. ... b5!? which after, say, 4. a4! Qxe4 (⌓ 4. ... a6) 5. Bf3 can give rise to complicated and interesting play – with the initiative in White’s hands. 4. d3 d6 5. a4 Ne6 6. Nf3 Bd7 7. b5 Kb8 8. a5 Ne7 9. Bd2 Rhg8 10. h4

10. ... a6? It’s very clear that this means absolute surrender. ⌓ 10. ... b6 was a much lesser evil. 11. b6+− c5 12. g4 g6 13. Nd5 Nxd5 14. exd5 Nd4 15. Nxd4 exd4 (15. ... cxd4 16. Qa3+−) 16. Bf4 Be5 (16. ... Be7 17. Rhe1 Bf8 18. c3+−) 17. Bxe5 dxe5 18. Qa3 Rc8 19. g5 h6 20. Re1 hxg5 21. hxg5 Rgd8. A useless Pawn sacrifice, but no better is 21. ... Rge8 because of 22. f4!+− putting Black into a zugzwang. 22. Rxe5 Bb5 23. Bg4 Bd7 24. Bxd7 Rxd7 25. Qa4

25. ... Rdd8. Not 25. ... Rcd8?? on account of 26. Qxd7! forcing mate in two moves. 26. d6! Rxd6 (26. ... Rc6 27. d7!+−) 27. Qe8 f6 28. Qe7 Rdc6 29. Rd5 R6c7 30. Rd7 c4 31. bxc7+ Rxc7 32. Rxc7 fxg5 33. Rcxb7+ Kc8 34. Qc7# 1 : 0.