From the Camden County Chess Club, welcome to another post!
Recently, a member of the club, Paul Selling, decided to enter his first-ever USCF-rated tournament. Not only did he succeed in participating, but he also placed 1st in his section!! For today's post, we're showcasing one of Paul's games from his tournament. Let's dive in! 1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. e5 c5 4. c3 Nc6: We see the French Defense, with both sides aiming for control of the center. 5. Nf3 Bd7 6. Bf4 Qb6 7. Qd2 cxd4 8. cxd4: The game transitions into the middle game, with both sides developing their pieces and setting up their strategies to pay attention to the d5 square, as well as the C-File. 8. ... Bb4 9. Nc3 Rc8 10. Be2 Nge7 11. O-O Nf5 12. a3 Be7: Knights are maneuvering for better positions, while bishops are being developed before the push for control. We notice that that Black would prefer not to trade their good Black-Square Bishop, fizzling his attacking chances down the road. 13. Be3 Na5 14. Rab1 Nb3 15. Qd1 O-O 16. Bd3 Nxe3 17. fxe3 a6: The game sees a complex interplay of pieces, with both sides trying to exploit the other’s weaknesses, such as the difficult decision for Black's 16. ... Nxe3, where allowing 17. Bxf5 would make an easy target for White with the doubled pawn. 18. Ne2 f5 19. Bc2 Na5 20. Nd2 Bb5 21. Rf2 Bg5 22. Nf4 Nc4 23. Nxc4 Rxc4: After this exchange, the game is still close to equal, though White needs be careful of the discovered attack along the a6-f diagonal (Where a move like 24. Qf1?? loses to Rx+c2!). 24. Bd3 Bxf4 25. Rxf4 Rc7 26. Qb3 Qa5 27. Bxf5?! Re7?? 28. Bxh7+! Kxh7 29. Rxf8 Qd2: 27. Bxf5 is extremely difficult to counter; It looks that after an apparent 27. ... Rxf5 28. Rxf5 exf5, that there is a forced mate. However, the only move (that's extremely difficult to see!) is the intermezzo 28. ... Ba4! , leaving the tasty d5 pawn to become defended by the Queen on a5, while simultaneously gaining the tempo by threatening the Queen to allow exf5. An extremely difficult move to find given the conditions. From here, the endgame begins, with a series of tactical blows leading to a checkmate in 1, in which Paul's opponent resigns. 30. Rf2 Qa5 31. Qc2+ Kh6 32. Rf3 Rc7 33. Rh3+ Kg5 34. Rg3+ 1-0: The rook lift to the third rank proves to be a masterstroke, setting up a deadly attack on the exposed king. Congrats on your stellar performance, Paul!
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