[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.16"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Janowski, Dawid"]
[Black "Capablanca, Jose Raul"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[PlyCount "39"]
[ECO "D67"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 { Janowski (White) starts by staking out
central space. The pawn on d4 controls c5 and e5. White also has opened up a
path for his dark-square Bishop and Queen to develop off of the first rank. } { [%cal Gd4e5,Gd4c5,Yc1h6,Yd1d3] } 1... d5 { Capablanca (Black) follows suit. He now
controls c4 and e4. His light-square Bishop is now free to develop. Also, the
d5-pawn prevents White's d-pawn from advancing into Black's territory. } { [%cal Yc8h3,Yd8d6,Gd5c4,Gd5e4] } 2. Nf3 { A good developing move. The Knight moves toward the center,
protects the d4- pawn, and strengthens White's hold on e5 (a square the Knight
may want to move to at an opportune time later on). } { [%cal Gf3d4,Gf3e5] } 2... Nf6 { Capablanca plays a "mirror-image" of Janowski's last move, with the same ideas
in mind (center control and possible later advancement to e4). } { [%cal Gf6d5,Gf6e4] } 3. c4 { Janowski offers to gambit a pawn. He hopes to make Capa
waste a tempo by capturing with the d-pawn. Then, after White advances the e2
pawn to e3, Black will have a hard time protecting the c4 pawn from the
f1-Bishop's attack. } { [%cal Rd5c4,Ye2e3,Yf1c4] } 3... e6 { Capablanca declines the
gambit. The d5-pawn is now protected and the dark- square Bishop can get off
of the first rank, but at a price! The light-square Bishop is now blocked in! } { [%cal Ge6d5,Yf8a3,Yc8d7] } 4. Nc3 { The other White Knight gets off the back rank and
increases White's center control. Notice how playing the pawn to c4 before the
Knight's move kept the c-pawn from being blocked in by the Knight. } { [%cal Gc3d5,Gc3e4] } 4... Be7 { Capa develops his Bishop, clears the deck for castling, and
prevents White from pinning the Knight with Bg5. But see how Black's position
is starting to look a little cramped. He doesn't have much play for his pieces. } { [%cal Ye8g8,Yh8f8] } 5. Bg5 { Janowski wants to push his pawn to e3 to
release the light-square Bishop, but doesn't want to block the dark-square
Bishop in the process. With this move, the Bishop develops usefully and
doesn't get blocked after e2-e3. } { [%csl Ye3][%cal Ye2e3] } 5... O-O { Capa gets his King out of the center
and develops the Rook toward the center at the same time. The Rook may get
some play there if the center opens up later. } 6. e3 { The
light-square Bishop is free at last! The pawn also helps prop up the d4- pawn.
White's Queen controls two diagonals now, too (a4-d1 and d1-h5). } { [%cal Yf1d3] } 6... Nbd7 { The Knight develops and guards e5, keeping White's
Knight from moving there. Unfortunately, it also completely blocks the
light-square Bishop. Now Black's pieces are really cramped! } { [%csl Ye5][%cal Gd7e5] } 7. Rc1 { Janowski is thinking ahead: he plans to trade off pawns with cxd5,
which will half-open the c-file. Open and half-open files are where rooks
belong! Now the Rook is in position to control the file as soon as the pawn
swap is complete. } { [%cal Rc4d5] } 7... c6 { A second benefit of White's planned pawn trade is that
he would then enjoy a 2-1 pawn superiority on the center files. Capablanca's
move (c7-c6) ensures that he'll keep two pawns in the center too, and helps
keep the game balanced. } 8. Bd3 { Janowski finally develops his light-square
Bishop. But Capablanca sees a way to make his opponent waste a tempo. } 8... dxc4 { The White Bishop is attacked and now Janowski must move it a
second time (thereby wasting a move and falling behind by a tempo). Making a
move like this is like getting a free move to carry out your own plans. } { [%cal Rc4d3] } 9. Bxc4 { Janowski had to recapture or else stay behind by a pawn. Either way, the
Bishop was forced to move. Capablanca now has the initiative and can start to
work on uncramping (or "freeing") his game. } 9... Nd5 { Capa
centralizes the Knight and uncovers an attack on the g5-Bishop from his own
Bishop on e7. Try to look for moves like this one in your own games, moves
that serve more than one purpose. } { [%cal Re7g5] } 10. h4 { Since the Bishop was attacked twice
(by Queen and Bishop) and defended only once (by the Knight), White must
retreat, exchange, or protect the piece. Unfortunately, Janowski's pawn push
weakens his Kingside pawn structure. } 10... f6 { Looking ahead,
Capablanca sees a way to open up the game and free his pieces. He starts by
attacking the Bishop a third time. The unfortunate side effect of this move is
that it blocks the Bishop along the d8-h4 diagonal. } { [%cal Rf6g5] } 11. Bf4 { Janowski
retreats his Bishop. Now Capablanca's eyes narrow as he continues his plan to
free his game while hanging on to the initiative. He needs a move that forces
a reply from White... } 11... Nxf4 { ...and finds it! When the center opens up,
Bishops will be more powerful than Knights (due to the Bishops' increased
mobility). Anticipating this, Capa trades his Knight for a Bishop and leaves
White with a weakness as well... } 12. exf4 { ...the weakness of
doubled f-pawns. Doubled pawns are weak because they can't protect each other,
and the rear pawn has trouble advancing because of the pawn in front of it.
Janowski's King is also more exposed now. } { [%csl Gf2,Gf4] } 12... Nb6 { Capablanca
hangs on to the initiative by making another threat (...Nb6xc4). He's also
trying to maneuver the Knight to d5, right in the center, where it will
control lots of space. } { [%cal Rb6c4,Gb6d5] } 13. Bb3 { Another forced reply. The Bishop
moves out of danger and still manages to keep the e6-pawn pinned. (Did you
notice that the pawn can't advance because of the White Bishop's potential
check on the King?) } { [%cal Rb3g8] } 13... Nd5 { Another multi-purpose move! The
Knight breaks the pin, controls lots of space, and attacks both the c3-Knight
and the g4-pawn. Notice, too, how much more scope Black has for his pieces,
compared to a few moves ago. } { [%cal Rd5c3,Rd5f4] } 14. g3 { If White
plays Nc3xd5, he frees Black's pieces still further (check out the variation
to move 14). Instead, he protects the threatened pawn. But look at all of the
weak light-colored squares on Janowski's Kingside! } { [%csl Re4,Rf3,Rg2,Rg4,Rh3] } (14. Nxd5 { Let's see what
might have happened if Janowski had decided to trade Knights on move 14... } 14... exd5 { Obviously Capablanca must recapture. 14...cxd5 would be bad because it
would open up the c-file for White's Rook. } 15. O-O { Janowski has several
possible moves here, but getting his King out of the middle is probably his
best bet (otherwise Capa would play ...Re8 and ...Bb4, DOUBLE CHECK! Very ugly
for Janowski!) } 15... Bg4 { But now Janowski's Knight is pinned to his
Queen, and Black's pieces aren't so cramped anymore. Very troublesome for
White. Now you see why Janowski didn't want to trade Knights back on move 14. } { [%cal Rg4d1] }) 14... Qe8 { Capa shifts his Queen to the Kingside, planning
to invade Janowski's position via those weak light squares (Qe8-g6-g4). } { [%cal Ye8g6,Yg6g4] } 15. Qd3 { Janowski's King is still in the middle! He hasn't had time to
castle because he's done nothing but react to Black's threats since move 9! He
tries to nip the latest one in the bud by Qd3, preventing Black from playing ..
.Qg6. But... } { [%csl Ge1] } 15... Qh5 { ...Capa's Queen slides down to h5, where it
can still get to the hole on g4! However, since the move doesn't threaten
anything directly, the pressure on Janowski eases slightly. Maybe Janowski can
grab back the initiative. } { [%cal Yh5g4] } 16. Bd1 { With the Bishop move,
Janowski sets up a future threat. If the Black Queen stays on the d1-h5
diagonal, White can (at a suitable moment) move his f3-Knight and uncover an
attack by the Bishop against the Black Queen. } { [%cal Rd1h5] } 16... Bb4 { Capablanca
strikes back on the other wing! He sets up a pin on the c3-Knight, making sure
that it can't capture Black's important centrally-placed Knight on d5. } { [%cal Rb4e1] } 17. O-O { Janowski finally castles and removes the pin on
his c3-Knight. But the area around his King is full of holes. If Capablanca
can manage to get his light- square Bishop into play, things will get ugly for
White in a hurry! } { [%csl Re4,Rf3,Rg2,Rg4,Rh3] } 17... Bxc3 { Surprise! Capa preserves his d5-Knight and grabs the
initiative again by forcing White's reply (Janowski must take the Bishop or
remain down a piece). } 18. bxc3 { The only one of the three possible captures
that doesn't lose material for White. Janowski's pawn structure is horrible.
We see fine beads of sweat begin to form on his forehead. Capa appears lost in
thought... } 18... Nxf4 { WHAM! The crowd appears stunned. Doesn't this lose a Knight?
Capablanca has deliberately sacrificed it in order to open up more holes in
White's position. He also sees that this sacrifice almost assures a drawn game. } 19. gxf4 { Janowski must recapture or remain behind by a pawn. Also, if he
doesn't take the Knight, then he must move his Queen out of danger (from 19...
Nf4xd3) which costs him another tempo. } 19... Qg4+ { Capa continues to
direct the flow of play by checking White's King. Notice how White had a
potential attack on Black's Queen for several moves (from the d1- Bishop) but
Black gave him no time to move the f3-Knight. } { [%cal Rg4g1] } 20. Kh1 { The
only way to stop check is by moving the King (see the variation also). Now the
Queen can just keep moving back and forth between g4 and h3, creating a draw
by perpetual check. The players agree to a draw here. } { [%cal Yg4h3,Yh1g1] } (20. Kh2 { This is the
only move that Janowski had, other than the one actually played. } 20... Qxf4+ { Notice the double attack--the Queen checks the King and
attacks the Rook at the same time. After the White King moves, the c1-Rook is
history (assuming, of course, that Black doesn't check again and get a draw by
perpetual check). } { [%cal Rf4h2,Rf4c1] } 21. Kg1 { Janowski would keep the King on a
dark square, in order to avoid Black's light-square Bishop. The King also
protects the f1-Rook (you'll see why in a moment). } { [%cal Yg1f1] } 21... Qxc1 { Black snags the Rook.
Although White's position looks like swiss cheese, his pieces have more
maneuvering room than do Black's. } 22. Bc2 { White uncorks a
double threat. His Rook attacks the Queen, while he also threatens Qxh7+,
grabbing a free pawn. } { [%cal Rf1c1,Rd3h7] } 22... Qh6 { Black saves the Queen and stops the threat. The
position is static, as Black's pieces have less play than White's, but White
has no obvious targets to attack. (Variation by Alekhine). }) 1/2-1/2

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.16"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Yates, Frederick"]
[Black "Alekhine, Alexander"]
[Result "0-1"]
[PlyCount "70"]
[ECO "C72"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 { Control of the center is
an important chess principle. Yates (White) carves out a healthy chunk of the
center and allows his Queen and light-square Bishop to get into the fight. } { [%csl Gd5,Gf5][%cal Yd1h5,Yf1a6,Ge4d5,Ge4f5] } 1... e5 { Alekhine (Black) follows suit.
You should always strive to make useful developing moves (like these, for
example) in the opening. } { [%csl Gd4,Gf4][%cal Yd8h4,Yf8a3,Ge5f4,Ge5d4] } 2. Nf3 { The Knight is developed to a
good center-controlling post. It also attacks Black's e5-pawn. How will
Alekhine choose to defend it? } { [%cal Rf3e5] } 2... Nc6 { Black develops his Knight and
protects the pawn at the same time. } { [%cal Gc6e5] } 3. Bb5 { Yates responds by
attacking the pawn's defender. Now, if the Bishop captures the c6-Knight,
Black must capture the Bishop just to stay even. After that, the e5-pawn could
fall to the f3-Knight. } { [%cal Rb5c6] } 3... a6 { The pawn advances to attack the
Bishop and kick it out. But doesn't this move waste time?... } { [%cal Ra6b5] } 4. Ba4 { ...No,
because Yates must use a tempo to move the Bishop a second time! (Yates could
also have captured the Knight, but he prefers to hang on to the Bishop, hoping
to use it later on). } 4... d6 { Alekhine defends the e-pawn a second time and allows
his light-square Bishop to develop. But now the dark-square Bishop is blocked
in and the c6-Knight is pinned! Alekhine reasons that protecting the pawn is
more important. } 5. O-O { Aware of his opponent's reputation as an attacker,
Yates castles early. This gets the King out of the middle and toward the flank
where it will be easier to defend. The Rook is developed toward the important
center files as well. } 5... g6 { Since the pawn on d6 blocks Alekhine's
dark-square Bishop, he prepares to develop it toward the side of the board.
The term for this is "fianchettoing the Bishop". } { [%cal Yf8g7] } 6. c3 { Yates
wants to push his d-pawn to d4. The pawn on c3 will provide protection for it.
Also, the a4-Bishop now has two squares to retreat to, in case Black plays
b7-b5. } { [%cal Yd2d4] } 6... Bg7 { Black fianchettos his Bishop. Notice how the Bishop
helps to defend the pawn on e5. The Bishop is also sitting on the long a1-h8
diagonal, giving it a lot of scope should the e5-pawn move or be traded off. } { [%cal Gg7e5] } 7. d4 { Yates pushes the d-pawn, hoping to increase his center control. Black
attacks the d4-square three times (with e-pawn, Bishop, and Knight) while
White defends three times (with c-pawn, Knight, and Queen)... } 7... Bd7 { ...so
seeing that he can't exchange pieces and win material, Alekhine develops his
Bishop and blocks White's threat of Qxd8 (after the exchange of pawns on e5). } 8. Bg5 { The Bishop attacks the Queen. Yates hopes that Alekhine
will further cramp his position by playing ...Ng8-e7. Yates is also making
moves that force a response from Alekhine, thereby holding on to the
initiative. } { [%cal Rg5d8] } 8... Nge7 { Alekhine plays the expected move. But
now he's free to castle on the Kingside, and he's already planning ways to
free up his game. } { [%cal Ye8g8,Yh8f8] } 9. dxe5 { Yates is trying to open up the d-file and seal in
Black's g7-Bishop (after Alekhine plays ...dxe5). This will tend to cramp
Black's pieces even more and further increase White's advantage in space. } 9... dxe5 { Alekhine has to recapture or remain a pawn behind. But now his position is
definitely inferior to White's, as he has almost no good squares to move his
pieces to. } 10. Qd3 { The Queen advances, protecting the e4-pawn and creating a
hidden threat. If Black castles, White plays Rd1, attacking the d7-Bishop a
second time. Only the Black Queen defends it, and White wins a piece! See the
next variation... } 10... h6 { Alekhine doesn't fall for the trap, instead opting to
drive away Yates' g5-Bishop, breaking the annoying pin on his e7-Knight. Since
White is forced to respond to the threat, the initiative has swung over to
Black. } (10... O-O { Here's what happens if Black castles here... } 11. Rd1 { ...White shifts the Rook and attacks the d7-Bishop a second time.
Alekhine has no way to defend the Bishop again and must lose it after 12.Qxd7
Qxd7 13.Rxd7. } { [%csl Rd7] }) 11. Be3 { Move it or lose
it! Yates retreats the Bishop to a square where it influences two diagonals
(a7-g1 and c1-h6). } { [%csl Ya7,Yb6,Yc5,Yd4,Yf4,Yg5,Yh6] } 11... Bg4 { Alekhine gets his Bishop out of the
hotseat (see the notes to White's 10th move) and uncovers an attack on White's
undefended Queen. Will the White Queen retreat or capture Black's Queen? } { [%cal Rd8d3] } 12. Qe2 { Instead of exchanging, the White Queen retreats. Though the f3-Knight is
now pinned, Yates can now play Rf1-d1 to attack the Black Queen and grab the
initiative back. } (12. Qxd8+ { Let's look at what happens if White decides to
swap Queens... } 12... Rxd8 { Now
Black's position is much better than White's. All of Black's pieces are
developed, while White still has a Knight on b1. Black's g4-Bishop still
threatens White's f3-Knight. Also, his d8-Rook controls the open d-file. } { [%csl Yd1,Yd2,Yd3,Yd4,Yd5,Yd6,Yd7][%cal Rg4f3] }) 12... O-O { Since he has no moves that immediately threaten White, Alekhine
decides to improve his position by castling. The King is now out of the center
and the Rook is ready to shift to one of the center files. } 13. Nbd2 { Yates
develops his last minor piece and frees his a1-Rook. But Yates had a better
move (see variation) and Alekhine may be able to exploit this oversight. } (13. Bc5 { This move (later suggested by Alekhine)
threatens and pins the e7-Knight. Should the f8-Rook move to e8, it just moves
from one pin to another (the a4-Bishop pins the other Knight on c6). } { [%csl Re8,Rf8][%cal Ra4e8,Rc5f8] }) 13... f5 { Gutsy chess! Alekhine weakens his own Kingside pawn structure and exposes his
own King in order to launch an attack on White's castled Kingside position.
The crowd loves it! } 14. h3 { Yates is visibly disturbed (or is he baffled?) by
this turn of events. He ponders the position for several minutes, then decides
on a plan designed to break up Black's attack. He begins by hitting at Black's
g4-Bishop. } 14... Bh5 { Obviously, the Bishop retreats to the only square available. } 15. Bb3+ { Yates continues to control the initiative and force the action by
checking the Black King. } 15... Kh8 { The Black King is forced to move, as Alekhine
has no way to block the check without losing material. } 16. exf5 { White continues to lash out. Black can't recapture with the Knight or
Rook because of White's reply g2-g4, forking the pieces on f5 and h5 and
winning a piece, so... } { [%cal Ye7f5] } 16... gxf5 { Black recaptures with the pawn. Alekhine's
Kingside may look weak at first glance, but notice how every square around the
Black King is guarded by a piece or pawn. } 17. g4 { Yates finds a way to break
the pin on his f3-Knight. He begins by advancing the g-pawn, attacking Black's
Bishop and f-pawn. } 17... fxg4 { Black captures the pawn and menaces the Knight... } 18. Ne1 { ...which obviously must retreat. It backs off to one of just two
squares available. Now Yates is behind by a pawn, but he's suceeded in
dissolving the annoying pin. } 18... Nd5 { The Knight leaps to
the center to attack the e3-Bishop. This move blocks the Black Queen's control
of the open d-file, but opens a route for her along the d8-h4 diagonal
(heading straight for the area of White's King!). } { [%csl Ye7,Yf6,Yg5,Yh4] } 19. hxg4 { Yates evens the
material by grabbing Black's g-pawn and threatening the Bishop on h5. But it's
not much of a threat... } 19... Nxe3 { ...as Alekhine grabs the Bishop
and attacks White's f1-Rook (which is trapped by its own pieces!) White is
forced to take time to deal with this new threat. } { [%cal Re3f1] } 20. fxe3 { Yates has to
recapture or lose the Rook. Now Black has bought himself time to retreat the
h5-Bishop... } 20... Qg5 { ...but he doesn't! Alekhine keeps
the pressure high by bringing his Queen into the fight and pinning the g4-pawn
to the King (keeping it from capturing the Bishop). Now Black threatens to win
a pawn with 21...Qxg4+ 22.Qxg4 Bxg4. } { [%csl Yg1,Yg2,Yg3,Yg4] } 21. Be6 { Yates finds the
only move that defends the g4-pawn. } { [%cal Ge6g4] } 21... Bxg4 { Alekhine takes the pawn, attacks
the Queen, and sets up a possible discovered check on the White King (after
Black moves the Bishop off of g4). Things are really starting to heat up now! } 22. Qxg4 { Yates, now another pawn behind, decides to sacrifice it in order to
exchange pieces and ease some of the pressure against his exposed King. } 22... Qxe3+ { Another surprise from Alekhine! Instead of exchanging
pieces (which would break up his attack), he launches a double attack which
checks the White King and attacks the White Knight. 23.Rf2 doesn't help (see
the next variation). } { [%cal Re3d2,Re3g1] } 23. Kh1 { Yates obviously must stop check. As we've seen,
blocking with the Rook on f2 does no good. If the King moves to g2 or h2, 23...
Rf2 just checks again, so  the King goes to h1. } (23. Rf2 { In this variation,
White tries to block the check with his Rook. } 23... Qxf2+ { Black just
captures the Rook with check. White's King can't capture the Queen because the
Queen is protected by the f8-Rook. } { [%cal Gf8f2] } 24. Kh1 { The King retreats to h1 (the only
possible move) } 24... Qxd2 { The Black Queen takes the Knight. Now White has lost a
Rook and a Knight, instead of just a Knight (as happens in the game). Now
Black is ahead by two  pawns and a Rook, a winning advantage. }) 23... Qxd2 { Alekhine could have tried ...Rxf1, but that just drives the King out of the
corner. Black grabs the loose Knight. Now Yates is two pawns down and his
exposed King is under attack. What to do? } 24. Rg1 { Counterattack! Yates is
hoping that Alekhine will miss the threatened mate: 25.Qxg7!#. Will Alekhine
fall for the cheap shot? } 24... Qg5 { Alekhine blocks the threatened mate and offers
a Queen trade (which would be to Black's advantage, as he is two pawns ahead).
Also possible was 24...Bf6, with the disadvantage of blocking the open f-file
for the Rook on f8. } 25. Qh3 { A good rule to remember is "Don't trade pieces
when you're behind in material (unless you can gain an obvious advantage)".
Yates, behind by two pawns, rejects the idea of a trade, moving the Queen
instead. } 25... Qf6 { Alekhine
attacks the e6-Bishop and strengthens his hold on the open f-file. } { [%csl Yf1,Yf2,Yf3,Yf4,Yf5,Yf6,Yf7,Yf8][%cal Rf6e6] } 26. Bd5 { Yates retreats the threatened Bishop and maneuvers the
Bishop to a useful square. If the c6-Knight moves, then the Bishop could
capture the b7-pawn. Also, the Bishop could move to e4 and blockade (see
Glossary) the e5-pawn. } { [%csl Ye4][%cal Yd5e4] } 26... Ne7 { At first glance, this appears to lose a pawn to
27.Bxb7; even so, Black would still be ahead by a pawn. Alekhine threatens the
d5-Bishop and begins the process of maneuvering the Knight to the Kingside to
aid the attack. } 27. Be4 { The true reason for 26.Bd5 is
revealed: Yates intended to blockade Black's passed pawn on e5. The Bishop
also pressures a square (h7) near the Black King. } { [%csl Yh7][%cal Ye4h7] } 27... Nf5 { The Knight continues
to advance into the fray. Notice that all of Black's Kingside pieces and pawns
are defended at least once, and some are protected two or even three times! } 28. Nf3 { Yates tries to get his Knight into the game. He hopes to
move it to d2 in  order to protect the e4-Bishop. } { [%cal Yf3d2] } 28... Nd6 { The Knight drops back
and menaces the blockading Bishop. This forces White's reply... } 29. Bd5 { The Bishop has to defend the Knight (to prevent 29...Qxf3 30.Qxf3 Rxf3, which
wins a piece for Black). Check out the variation to see why 29.Nd2 doesn't
work. } (29. Nd2 { On the surface, this looks like a reasonable move. The Knight
drops back to protect the Bishop. If 29...Nxe4, then 30.Nxe4 recaptures and
maintains the blockade of the passed pawn. But Black has something better... } 29... Qf4 { ...a double attack on White's Bishop and Knight! True,
White could protect the Knight... } { [%cal Rf4e4,Rf4d2] } 30. Rad1 { ...by moving the a1-Rook over.
But notice how the e4-Bishop is attacked twice (by Queen and Knight) and
defended just once (by the Knight). So you should know what that means... } 30... Nxe4 { ...Black just takes the Knight. } 31. Nxe4 { White recaptures. } 31... Qxe4+ { Now
Black has won a piece (giving up a Knight for a Knight and a Bishop),  lifted
the blockade of his passed pawn, and checked White's King to boot! For all
practical purposes, White is dead in the water. He's lost! }) 29... c6 { Sadly
for Yates, the d5-Bishop is now forced to abandon the a8-h1 diagonal.  The
Knight on f3 is history, as the Bishop can no longer defend it. } 30. Rxg7 { Yates desperately tries to baffle Alekhine. Here, he gives up a Rook for a
minor piece. The term for this is "losing the Exchange". } 30... Kxg7 { Of course,
Black must recapture or else be behind by a minor piece for two pawns. } 31. Rg1+ { The Queenside Rook finally gets into play, checking Black's King. This
check was the point behind Yates' sacrifice of the Exchange. However, it
doesn't seem to help White's game very much. } 31... Kh8 { The King simply moves back.
The only move, as the only other way to escape  check was to block with the
Queen, losing material after the White Rook captures the Queen. } 32. Nxe5 { Yates decides that since the Knight is lost anyway, it might as well drag
Black's e5-pawn along with it. } 32... cxd5 { Bishops are more valuable than Knights
on an open board. Given a choice between capturing a Bishop and Knight,
Alekhine takes the more valuable piece. } 33. Qh5 { Despite the
desperate (some would say "hopeless") nature of his position,  Yates plays on.
The Queen advances in order to control g6, paving the way for the Knight to
occupy the square. } { [%csl Yg6] } 33... Ne4 { Alekhine, who is ahead by a Rook and pawn, is
unconcerned about White's threat to fork the f8-Rook and King by Ne5-g6. He
proceeds with his own plans. The Knight establishes an outpost on e4. } 34. Ng6+ { As expected, White forks the King and Rook. However, after 35.Nxf8 Rxf8 White
is still behind by a Knight and pawn. That's still better than being behind by
a Rook and pawn, so Yates goes for it. } 34... Kh7 { Since he can't take the Knight
without losing his Queen, Alekhine moves his King. } 35. Qxd5 { Since his Knight
is guarded by the g1-Rook, Yates takes this opportunity to snatch the pawn. } 35... Ng3+ { Now Alekhine launches a brilliant combination. Yates sees where it leads,
and gives up. (Check out the variation line to see what Alekhine and Yates
foresaw). } (35... Ng3+ 36. Rxg3 { White accepts
the sacrificed Knight. But the Knight was a Trojan Horse, as we'll soon see. } 36... Qf1+ { Black keeps up the pressure by checking again. } 37. Kh2 { The King has to
move. If White tries to block check with 37.Rg1, then Black replies 37...Qh3
mate! } 37... Rf2+ { Black's Rook comes crashing in, giving check. } 38. Rg2 { The block
with the Rook is the only way to stop check. } 38... Qxg2+ { The Queen checks, forcing
White's next move... } 39. Qxg2 { The trade of Queens is the only way to avoid
mate. } 39... Rxg2+ { For Black, it's either recapture or be behind in material.
White's next move is obvious... } 40. Kxg2 { Of course. But now the Black King
can grab the White Knight! } 40... Kxg6 { Look closely at the board. Black is a whole
Rook ahead and has an outside passed pawn. From here, it's a routine win for
Black. White has absolutely no way to salvage the game. (Variation by Alekhine)
. }) 0-1

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.16"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Marshall, Frank James"]
[Black "Reti, Richard"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[PlyCount "100"]
[ECO "E90"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 { Marshall (White) starts with a good opening pawn
move. He now controls both c5 and e5 and he releases the dark-square Bishop. } { [%cal Gd4c5,Gd4e5] } 1... Nf6 { Reti (Black) counters by developing the Knight to its best opening square.
By doing so, he also keeps his choice of opening a secret to White, who
doesn't know if Black will develop his Bishops through the center or the
flanks. } 2. Nf3 { White develops the Knight toward the
center, controls d4, and strengthens his grip on e5. } { [%cal Gf3d4,Gf3e5] } 2... g6 { Now
Marshall knows that Reti intends to develop the f8-Bishop by fianchettoing it
to g7. } { [%cal Yf8g7] } 3. c4 { This pawn advance carves out some more of the
center for White. Also, the b1- Knight can develop to c3 without blocking the
c-pawn, and the Queen has the option to develop along the a4-d1 diagonal. } { [%cal Yf8g7] } 3... Bg7 { In the Hypermodern style, Reti chooses to attack White's center from the
flank rather than fight it out in the center with his d- and e-pawns. Once the
f6- Knight moves, the Bishop will attack White's d4-pawn. } 4. Nc3 { Marshall gets the other Knight off
of the back rank and into the game. Notice how his pieces and pawns exercise
control over all four center squares (d4,e4, d5,e5). } { [%csl Yd4,Yd5,Ye4,Ye5][%cal Gc4d5,Gd4e5,Gf3d4,Gc3e4] } 4... O-O { Reti completes his
Kingside development. Now his King is safely tucked away and his Rook is
developed toward the important center files. } 5. e4 { Since Reti is allowing
him to develop in the center, Marshall builds up an imposing pawn phalanx by
advancing the e-pawn. } 5... d6 { This pawn advance prevents White from advancing either his Knight or pawn to
e5, prepares for a possible later e7-e5 pawn push for Black, and releases the
c8-Bishop from captivity. } { [%csl Yc8,Yd7,Ye6,Yf5,Yg4,Yh3][%cal Gd6e5,Ye7e5] } 6. Bd3 { Marshall develops his light-square Bishop
and gets ready to castle. But the Bishop blocks the Queen's protection of the
d4-pawn, which weakens the pawn slightly. Perhaps 6.Be2 might have been better. } (6. Be2 { This looks a little better than what was actually played by
Marshall. It's heartening to know that even the greats slip up once in a
while! Maybe now we won't be so hard on ourselves when we make mistakes in our
own games! }) 6... Bg4 { Reti's keen eye spots the
d4-pawn's weakness and siezes the moment to exploit it by pinning the
f3-Knight. Now the poor pawn is totally unprotected! White is forced to expend
a tempo to protect it, or else... } { [%csl Yd1,Ye2,Yf3,Yg4] } 7. h3 { ...drive the Bishop away. Now the
Bishop is forced to either withdraw or capture the Knight. This pawn attack is
called "putting the question to the Bishop". } 7... Bxf3 { Reti decides to trade his
Bishop for the Knight, insuring that the d4-pawn will remain weak and
unprotected, at least for a while. } 8. Qxf3 { Marshall recaptures with the
Queen, developing it in the process. This is much better than doubling up
pawns on the f-file with 8.gxf3. But now the d-pawn stands alone... } (8. gxf3 { The f-pawns and h3-pawn are weak because they can't be
defended by other pawns. Black should now shift his attack to the Kingside to
exploit the half- open g-file and the weak pawns. } { [%csl Yf2,Yf3,Yh3] }) 8... Nfd7 { ...
so Reti unleashes a discovered attack against it (from the g7-Bishop). Despite
the fact that he lags behind in development, Black still controls the game by
continuing to make threats which must be answered by White. } { [%cal Rg7d4] } 9. Be3 { Marshall
protects the weak pawn and usefully develops his last minor piece at the same
time. } 9... c5 { Reti hits the weak pawn a second time. How in the world will
Marshall defend it now? } 10. d5 { He defends
the pawn by advancing it! Now it's amply protected by two fellow pawns and a
Knight. At the same time he grabs more space on Black's side of the board. Now
c6 and e6 are unusable by Black. } { [%csl Yc6,Ye6][%cal Gd5c6,Gd5e6] } 10... Ne5 { The Knight leaps
ahead and forks the Queen and light-square Bishop. See how Reti continues to
make threats and keep the initiative. } { [%cal Re5f3,Re5d3] } 11. Qe2 { The White Queen
retreats and simultaneously protects the menaced d3-Bishop. } { [%cal Ge2d3] } 11... Nxd3+ { Reti hates
to trade his well-posted Knight for Marshall's bad Bishop. But if he doesn't,
Marshall will play f2-f4 and drive the Knight back to d7, where it becomes
ineffective. } 12. Qxd3 { The
Queen recaptures, but now it's not well-placed. See how the c4 and e4 pawns
block the Queen. Meanwhile, look at how much scope Reti's g7-Bishop is getting
along the a1-h8 diagonal! Even though White's Queen and Black's Bishop control
the same number of spaces, the Bishop controls squares that are much more
important. } { [%csl Gd4,Ge5,Gf6,Gg7,Gh8,Yb1,Yc2,Yd3,Ye2,Yf1] } 12... Nd7 { Reti develops his remaining Knight.
Obviously, he's thinking about advancing it to e5. } { [%csl Ye5][%cal Yd7e5] } 13. O-O { Now that Reti has eased up the pressure, Marshall decides that
this is a good time to get his King out of the center. White's King is
protected and his Rooks are connected on the first rank (and can support each
other). } { [%csl Ya1,Yb1,Yc1,Yd1,Ye1,Yf1] } 13... Qa5 { Reti's idea is to try to win a pawn:
after ...Ne5, White's Queen must move and can't protect both c3 and c4.
Depending on which square White leaves unguarded Black will either play ...
Nxc4 or exchange his Bishop for a Knight and pawn. } { [%cal Yd7e5,Re5d3,Re5c4] } 14. Bd2 { Now
c3 is defended by the Bishop. If Black plays ...Ne5, the White Queen can
retreat to e2 and White's position holds. Also, if the White Knight moves, it
uncovers an attack by the d2-Bishop against the Black Queen. } { [%cal Gd2c3] } 14... a6 { Black can't prevent the discovered attack, but he can keep the White Knight
out of his territory. The a-pawn advances, denying the square b5 to the White
Knight. } { [%csl Yb5] } 15. Nd1 { Predictably, Marshall uncorks the discovered
attack against the Black Queen. He also sets up a threat against Black's
powerful Bishop. We'll see that threat next move. } { [%cal Rd2a5] } 15... Qc7 { Reti
has to retreat the Queen. None of the available retreat squares are very good,
but c7 is the least of the evils. On b6 the Queen takes a square away from the
d7-Knight, and on d8 it blocks communication between the Rooks. } { [%csl Yb6,Yd8] } 16. Bc3 { White challenges Black's domination of the a1-h8 diagonal. Marshall hopes that
Reti will decide to exchange the Bishops, thereby easing the pressure on
White's Queenside. } 16... Ne5 { Reti pulls a rabbit out of his hat. The
Knight blocks the exchange of Bishops and menaces the White Queen as well. } { [%cal Re5d3] } 17. Qe2 { Marshall's Queen drops back to the only square where it
still protects the weak pawn on c4. } { [%cal Ge2c4] } 17... b5 { Reti offers to sacrifice a pawn in an
effort to open up the a and b-files for his Rooks. Black's Bishop already
pressures White's Queenside, and the Rooks on a8 and b8 will increase the
pressure. } 18. cxb5 { Marshall accepts the sacrifice. Now the White Queen is no
longer chained to the defense of c4. Marshall feels that the Queen's increased
freedom will offset Black's Queenside pressure. } 18... axb5 { Black recaptures, expecting White to reply 19.Qxb5. Then Black will move a
Rook to b8, drive away the White Queen, and grab the initiative. } { [%cal Ye2b5,Yf8b8] } 19. f4 { Marshall surprises Reti by attacking the strong, centrally-placed Knight
instead of capturing the b5-pawn. } 19... Nc4 { Reti springs a surprise of his own.
The Knight is still well-placed on c4, and it blocks the capture of the Black
b5-pawn. But the exchange of Bishops can't be prevented now. } 20. Bxg7 { Marshall finally has his way concerning the powerful Black Bishop. Now Reti is
forced to recapture to keep the material even. This hands the initiative to
Marshall. } 20... Kxg7 { Reti makes the neccessary recapture. Black's King is now
slightly exposed and White has the initiative. What will Marshall decide to do? } 21. Nc3 { Marshall gets his Knight
back into the game and re-connects his Rooks. The Knight has gone from a poor
position on d1 to a better post on c3 where it attacks Black's b5-pawn. } { [%csl Ya1,Yb1,Yc1,Yd1,Ye1,Yf1][%cal Rc3b5] } 21... Qa5 { Reti makes sure that his Knight will stay posted on b4, by making the pawn
push b2-b3 extremely unattractive to White (22.b3 Qxc3 23.bxc4 bxc4 and Black
is a pawn ahead or else 23...b4, where Black gets a cramping pawn chain). } 22. a4 { Marshall prepares a future a4xb5, which removes the
c4-Knight's immediate protection, and discovers an attack by the a1-Rook
against the Black Queen. } { [%cal Ra4b5] } (22. b3 { Here's what happens in the variation given
in the text to Black's 21st move. White begins by attacking the Black Knight. } 22... Qxc3 { Black, rather than retreat his Knight, snatches White's unprotected
Knight instead. } 23. bxc4 { White makes the material even by grabbing Black's
Knight. } 23... bxc4 { In this sub-variation, Black takes the White
c4-pawn. Although Black is now a pawn ahead, he'll be hard-pressed to maintain
his advantage. The doubled pawns are weak, and the Black c4-pawn could easily
become a target. } { [%csl Rc4,Rc5] } (23... b4 { This sub-variation is
probably better than 23...bxc4. Here Black obtains a pawn chain from b4 to d6
that controls a lot of space and inhibits the movement of White's heavy pieces. } { [%csl Yb4,Yc5,Yd6,Ye7] })) 22... Qb4 { Rather than retreat, the Black Queen stays
in the thick of the fight. Now the White b2-pawn is attacked twice (by Black's
Queen and Knight) and defended only once. } { [%cal Rb4b2,Rc4b2] } 23. Nxb5 { Instead of
defending the b2-pawn, Marshall decides that now is a good time to snatch one
of Black's pawns. What will Reti do now? Maybe grab a pawn for himself with 23.
..Nxb2? } { [%cal Rc4b2] } 23... Rxa4 { Surprise! Black's Rook comes crashing into the fight! Reti
feels that White's passed a-pawn could be dangerous later, so he keeps up the
attack by killing the pawn and getting the Rook into the game. } 24. Rxa4 { Swapping off the Rooks eases the pressure on White's threatened b2-pawn. } 24... Qxa4 { Black could have taken the Knight, but then he would have been behind by the
Exchange (down a Rook for a Knight). By capturing the Rook, Black keeps the
material even. } 25. Rc1 { Rather than retreat his Knight, Marshall opts to
trade it for Black's Knight. Now, if Reti plays 25...Qxb5, Marshall can reply
26.Rxc4, as his Rook will be protected by his Queen. } 25... Qxb5 { Reti captures the
Knight as expected. He could also have retreated his own Knight, but he
prefers the exchange of pieces. } 26. Rxc4 { Marshall completes the piece swap.
Now the ball is in Reti's court. What will he do? } 26... Rb8 { Reti
makes another threat. This time he threatens to win a pawn and invade White's
position with 27...Qxb2 28.Qxb2 Rxb2. } { [%cal Rb5b2] } 27. Rc2 { Obviously. This was Marshall's
only way to save the pawn. Now Reti can force the exchange of Queens... } 27... Qxe2 { ...which he does. Now Marshall must take with the Rook or be a whole Queen
behind (an overwhelming material disadvantage). See how Reti controls the
initiative by making moves that force a reply from White. } 28. Rxe2 { The material is even, but Marshall is now stuck with an isolated pawn on b2.
This pawn is very weak. Its weakness stems from the fact that there are no
pawns on adjacent files to help defend it. } { [%csl Rb2] } 28... Rb4 { The Black Rook
advances to an outpost where it's protected by the c-pawn and menaces two
White pawns (b2 and e4). This ties up Marshall and restricts his freedom of
action, for if the e2-Rook moves, one of the pawns must fall. } { [%csl Rb2,Re4] } 29. Kf2 { The White King begins its march to reach a square where it can protect one of
the threatened pawns. } 29... Kf8 { Reti begins to swing his King around to the
Queenside. From there, it can either maneuver to attack White's pawns or
support the advance of Black's. } 30. Kf3 { The White King reaches a square
where it defends the e4-pawn. } 30... Rd4 { The Rook shifts
position to another square where the c5-pawn still defends it. It also sets up
an "invisible barrier" on the d-file which White's King cannot enter or cross. } { [%csl Yd1,Yd2,Yd3] } 31. g4 { Since his activity is now limited on the Queenside, Marshall advances
his g-pawn to grab more space on the Kingside. } 31... Ke8 { Reti has a choice of two
plans: to counterattack with his Kingside pawns or continue to maneuver his
King toward the Queenside. He chooses the latter. } 32. Re3 { Since the b2-pawn
is no longer threatened, Marshall is free to prepare a counterattack by moving
his Rook. } 32... Rb4 { Reti's Rook returns to b4 and attacks the pawn
again. } { [%csl Rb2] } 33. Ra3 { Marshall, tired of being tied to defense, decides to abandon
the pawn and set up an annoying series of checks against the Black King. } 33... Rxb2 { Reti wins a pawn, but allows Marshall to counterattack with the Rook. } 34. Ra8+ { Marshall checks Black's King and drives it off of the back rank. } 34... Kd7 { The Black King flees to the only possible square. Will Marshall decide to
check again, or will he attack the Black Kingside pawns with his Rook? } 35. Ra7+ { Marshall maintains the pressure by checking again. } 35... Kd8 { The King
escapes check and continues to protect the e7-pawn. } 36. e5 { The White e-pawn advances, forcing Black to capture it (if Black
doesn't, then White plays 37.exd6 exd6 38.Rxf7 and wins a pawn). } { [%cal Re5d6,Ye7d6] } 36... dxe5 { Now Black is stuck with a weak, isolated pawn on c5. } { [%csl Rc5] } 37. fxe5 { White recaptures to
complete the pawn swap. Now, if the White Rook moves, the squares c6,d6,e6,
and f6 are covered by White's pawns and are denied to Black's King. } { [%csl Yc6,Yd6,Ye6,Yf6][%cal Gd5c6,Gd5e6,Ge5d6,Ge5f6] } 37... c4 { Reti hopes to strengthen the pawn by advancing it to a square where it is
easily defended by the Rook. Also, remember that a passed pawn becomes more
dangerous the closer it gets to the promotion square. } 38. Ke3 { A
centrally-posted King is a distinct advantage in the endgame. Marshall moves
his King toward the center, where it can move to the Quenside to help attack
Black's pawn, or to the Kingside to help prevent a Black pawn breakthrough. } 38... c3 { The Black pawn continues its march toward either coronation or death. } 39. Ra8+ { The passed c-pawn is a dangerous threat; if it manages to promote to a
Queen, White's a dead duck. Marshall is trying for a draw by perpetual check. } 39... Kc7 { The Black King obviously must move to escape check. } 40. Ra7+ { Another
check... } 40... Kd8 { ...and another evasion. The Black King must come
back to d8 or else the e7-pawn is lost. } { [%cal Ra7e7] } 41. Ra8+ { Again, Marshall hopes to
draw by either threefold repetition of position or by perpetual check. } 41... Kc7 { The King must move again. } 42. Ra7+ { Marshall again hopes to repeat the
position... } 42... Rb7 { But Reti will not draw quietly! He offers to exchange Rooks,
forcing Marshall to work for the draw. } 43. Ra3 { Marshall surprises Reti with
this move. The Rook attacks Black's passed pawn (which cannot now be defended!)
. } 43... c2 { Reti pushes the pawn, but to no avail. The pawn is marked for death. } 44. Rc3+ { Marshall springs a double attack (checking the King and
attacking the pawn). This assures the pawn's sad demise. } { [%cal Rc3c2] } 44... Kd7 { The Black King
shuttles sideways toward its own pawns, in order to help protect them or aid
in their later advance. } 45. Rxc2 { Black's passed pawn finally gives up the
ghost. } 45... Rb3+ { Reti wins a pawn
using a basic tactic: the skewer, or x-ray attack. The White King must move
out of check, after which the Black Rook pockets the h3-pawn. } { [%csl Rc3,Rd3,Re3,Rf3,Rg3,Rh3][%cal Rb3h3] } 46. Kd4 { The best place for White's King to move to. Now the King supports both of
White's center pawns. } 46... Rxh3 { Reti snatches the h-pawn. Now Black is a pawn
ahead, and may have chances of creating another passed pawn. } 47. Ra2 { Since
he's a pawn behind, Marshall sees slight chance of winning the game. He again
maneuvers for a draw by repetition or perpetual check. } 47... Rg3 { Reti could have played 47...Rb3 instead (trying to get into position to
offer a Rook exchange like on move 42), but he decides to capture White's
g-pawn. } { [%csl Rg4][%cal Rg3g4] } 48. Ra7+ { As expected, Marshall plays for a draw. } 48... Kd8 { The King goes to the only square that still allows it to defend the e7-pawn. } { [%cal Gd8e7] } 49. Ra8+ { To draw, all Marshall needs to do now is keep checking the Black
King. } 49... Kc7 { Despite his material advantage and threat on the White g-pawn, all
Reti can obtain now is a draw. } 50. Ra7+ { Marshall checks again... } 50... Kd8 { ...and Reti retreats. Rather than play out the moves for a threefold-
repetition, Marshall and Reti agree to a draw. } 1/2-1/2

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.16"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Lasker, Edward"]
[Black "Maroczy, Geza"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[PlyCount "81"]
[ECO "B08"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 { Lasker (White) opens with a pawn push that takes
control of c5 and e5, as well as opens a path for the dark-squared Bishop's
development. } { [%cal Gd4e5,Gd4c5] } 1... Nf6 { Maroczy (Black) plays his cards close to his chest. He
develops the Knight to a good post and diguises his intentions toward the
center. Will he push a pawn to occupy the center, or attack the center from
the flanks by fianchettoing? } 2. Nf3 { Another good
developing move for White. The Knight controls d4 and e5, and is ready to
spring into action in the center. } { [%cal Gf3d4,Gf3e5] } 2... g6 { Maroczy makes his intentions toward the
center known. He's going to allow White to build up a pawn center, and then
he'll attack that center from the flanks by using his Knights and fianchettoed
Bishops. } 3. Nc3 { Lasker develops his
other Knight and now controls all four center squares (although Black's
f6-Knight contests d5 and e4). Unfortunately, the White c-pawn is now blocked
in. Maybe Lasker should have pushed the pawn first. } { [%csl Yc2][%cal Gf3d4,Gf3e5,Gc3e4,Gc3d5] } 3... Bg7 { As expected, Maroczy fianchettos the Bishop. Now, after
the f6-Knight moves, the Bishop becomes very strong along the a1-h8 diagonal. } { [%csl Ya1,Yb2,Yc3,Yd4,Ye5,Yf6,Yg7,Yh8] } 4. e4 { Look at White's position! He controls a
line of squares on Black's half of the board stretching from b5 to g5! Also,
both of White's Bishops are now free to develop. } { [%csl Yb5,Yc5,Yd5,Ye5,Yf5,Yg5] } 4... d6 { Maroczy
takes the e5 square away from the White f3-Knight. White will also find it
hard to advance his e-pawn without risking the exchange of Queens (see the
variation to White's next move). } { [%cal Rc8g4] } 5. h3 { Lasker advances
this pawn to prevent Black from pinning the f3-Knight with Bc8-g4. This pawn
move is questionable, since (after Bc8-g4) White could have broken the pin
anyway with Bf1-e2. } { [%cal Rc8g4,Rf1e2] } (5. e5 { In this variation, we examine the reasons why 5.
e5 is not so good for White. } 5... dxe5 { Black makes the obvious recapture. } 6. dxe5 { The pawn captures to even up the material, and threatens the f6-Knight. But
Black has his own threat... } 6... Qxd1+ { The Black Queen captures the White Queen
with check. } 7. Nxd1 { White is forced to recapture (which
he could also have done by Kxd1, but then he'd forfeit the right to castle).
Now, Black will move his Knight (probably to d7) and begin to pile up attacks
on White's weak, advanced e-pawn. } { [%cal Rb8d7,Yd7e5] }) 5... O-O { Maroczy gets his King off of the
central e-file and develops his Rook at the same time. } 6. Bf4 { Lasker brings out another piece and strengthens his hold on e5, possibly
preparing the pawn push e4-e5. } { [%cal Yf4e5] } 6... Nbd7 { This move
develops the other Knight and reinforces e5. However, a big drawback is that
Black's light-square Bishop is now blocked in. } { [%csl Yc8][%cal Yd7e5] } 7. Qd2 { Lasker
has his eye on two possibilities: Queenside castling, and an exchange of
Bishops on h6 (8.Bh6 Bxh6 9.Qxh6 or 8.Bh6 8...any move 9.Bxg7 Kxg7). } { [%cal Yf4h6] } 7... c5 { Maroczy hopes to clear the White pawn off of d5 (either
by exchanging it or forcing it to advance). This will give his g7-Bishop even
more scope along the a1-h8 diagonal. } { [%csl Yd4,Ye5,Yf6,Yg7] } 8. d5 { Rather
than trade the valuable center pawn for a less-valuable flank pawn, Lasker
advances it. But Black's goal of increased control along the long diagonal has
been achieved (once the f6-Knight moves, of course). } { [%csl Yc3,Yd4,Ye5,Yf6,Yg7] } 8... a6 { This
pawn move prepares a general advance of Black's Queenside pawns. Now Maroczy
can safely push the b-pawn to b5. } { [%cal Yb7b5] } 9. Bh6 { Noticing how powerful Black's
g7-Bishop is becoming, Lasker decides to trade it off. Now Maroczy wishes he'd
played 8...Re8, so that he could have safely retreated the Bishop to h8 and
kept it on the board. } 9... b5 { Maroczy continues with his plan of advance on the
Queenside. He reasons that the Bishops will be traded no matter what, so he
forces White to make the trade and thus keeps the White Queen away from his
King. } 10. Bxg7 { Lasker kills the dangerous fianchettoed Black Bishop. } 10... Kxg7 { Maroczy is forced to recapture or stay behind by a minor piece. } 11. Qe3 { Lasker anticipates the Black Queen moving to a5, pinning
the c3-Knight and leaving the e4-pawn unprotected. The White Queen move to e3
to protect the pawn in advance. } { [%cal Rd8a5,Ya5e1] } 11... Qa5 { As Lasker
anticipated, the Black Queen comes to a5 and pins the c3-Knight to the White
King. } { [%csl Ya5,Yb4,Yc3,Yd2,Ye1] } 12. Nd2 { White's move releases the pressure on
the c3-Knight, allowing it to move freely. } { [%csl Ya5,Yb4,Yc3,Yd2] } 12... e5 { Maroczy slips up! The pawn
move e7-e6 is better, looking to exchange center pawns and free his cramped
position. Now his position is even more blocked, as the e5-square is now
unavailable to his d7-Knight. } 13. Be2 { The last White minor piece is
developed and White is now ready to castle. } 13... h6 { Maroczy, unsure how to
proceed, marks time by grabbing a little more space on the Kingside, and waits
to see what White is up to. } 14. O-O { By
getting his King off of e1, Lasker frees up both of his Knights (as there is
now no chance of a pin on the White King by the Black Queen on e5). He's also
the first to connect his Rooks and thus complete his development. } { [%csl Ya1,Yb1,Yc1,Yd1,Ye1,Yf1] } 14... Qd8 { Consequently, Maroczy moves his Queen back to where it can get at
the Kingside after the f6-Knight moves. } { [%cal Yd8h4] } 15. a4 { Lasker launches a Queenside
offensive by striking out at Black's b5-pawn. } 15... b4 { Maroczy
protects the pawn by advancing it. The pawn now threatens White's c3-Knight. } { [%cal Rb4c3] } 16. Ncb1 { The Knight retreats. b1 is a better spot for the
Knight than a2, because now the b1-Knight can advance to d2 after its fellow
Knight leaps to c4. } { [%cal Yd2c4,Yb1d2] } 16... a5 { The Black Queenside pawns continue to advance. This
simple move accomplishes a lot: it helps support the b-pawn, gives the
c8-Bishop a little more room, and prevents White from advancing his a-pawn,
further cramping Black's game. } 17. Nc4 { As we expected, White's
Knight dives in and attacks the Black d6-pawn. Now, too, the b1-Knight can
develop to d2. } { [%cal Yb1d2] } 17... Nb6 { By moving his Knight out
of the way, Maroczy allows his Queen to defend his d6-pawn. The Black Knight
on b6 now menaces White's c4-Knight as well. Furthermore, Black can now
develop his c8-Bishop usefully to a6 where it will attack White's c4-Knight a
second time. } { [%cal Gd8d6,Rb6c4,Yc8a6,Ra6c4] } 18. Nxb6 { Rather than try to overprotect the Knight with 18.Nbd2
(an idea that gets defeated by 18...Ba6 anyway), Lasker opts to trade off the
Knights to minimize the chance of any future surprise threats by Black on the
Queenside. } 18... Qxb6 { Of course, Maroczy's Queen must recapture to keep the
material even. } 19. f4 { Lasker shifts the battle to the
Kingside. Notice that the f1-Rook has more space to maneuver since the f-pawn
has advanced. The more this pawn advances, the more space the Rook gets. } { [%csl Yf1,Yf2,Yf3] } 19... exf4 { Maroczy trades pawns. Now White has a backward e-pawn, which must
be guarded by a piece as it can no longer be defended by another pawn. The
e-pawn could become a target later. } { [%csl Re4] } 20. Rxf4 { Lasker recaptures with the Rook.
Taking the pawn with the Queen may have been better, since that would have put
pressure on Black's weak, backward d6-pawn. } (20. Qxf4 { This is
another alternative for White. The Queen puts presure on the d6-pawn,
requiring Black to keep it covered by a piece. } { [%cal Rf4d6] }) 20... Qd8 { Since the
Queenside is closed to him, Maroczy begins to maneuver his Queen to a better
post... } 21. Nd2 { ...and Lasker begins his own
repositioning maneuver. The Knight is going to c4, where it will attack
Black's weak d6-pawn. } { [%cal Yd2c4,Rc4d6] } 21... Qe7 { Ouch! Now Black threatens
22...Nxd5, forking White's Rook and Queen. If White would reply 23.exd5, then
Black plays 23...Qxe3!, winning a Queen and pawn for the cost of a Knight! } { [%cal Rf6d5,Yd5f4,Yd5e3] } 22. Nc4 { The Knight move has the dual purpose of attacking the
Black pawn on d6 and defending White's Queen in case of ...Nxd5 (see the
variation to Black's next move). } { [%cal Rc4d6,Gc4e3] } 22... Ba6 { Maroczy threatens to
capture the Knight and play ...Nxd5 anyway! (Remember, you can attack pieces
indirectly by attacking or driving away their defenders. In this case, Black's
Bishop indirectly attacks White's Queen by assaulting its defender.). } { [%cal Ra6c4] } (22... Nxd5 { Here's why the Knight capture on d5 doesn't
work now, with White's Knight on c4. Black would begin by taking the pawn... } { [%cal Rd5f4,Rd5e3,Re7e4] } 23. exd5 { Of course, White recaptures. } 23... Qxe3+ { Black grabs White's Queen... } 24. Nxe3 { ...and White replies by taking the Black Queen. Now Black is behind
in material, a minor piece for a pawn. Black has attacking chances on the open
e-file, but it's really not enough compensation for the sacrificed Knight. }) 23. Nb6 { Now Lasker's Knight threatens the a8-Rook and
prevents Black from playing Nf6xd5. } { [%cal Rb6a8,Gb6d5] } 23... Rab8 { Maroczy gets his Rook out of danger
and threatens White's Knight. } 24. Raf1 { Lasker piles up on Black's f6-Knight
and threatens to swap off the Knights (i.e. 24...Rxb6 25.Rxf6). } 24... Nh5 { Sometimes the best defense is a good offense. Maroczy gets his Knight
off of the attacked square f6, and attacks White's f4-Rook at the same time. } { [%cal Rh5f4] } 25. R4f3 { Lasker is forced to reposition the Rook or lose material by giving
up a Rook for a Knight. Since he wants to keep the Rooks doubled on the f-file,
he drops back to f3. } 25... Bxe2 { Maroczy grabs White's
light-squared Bishop and forks both of White's Rooks. } { [%cal Re2f3,Re2f1] } 26. Qxe2 { White is
forced to recapture or lose his Bishop and one of his Rooks as well. } 26... Rxb6 { Maroczy snags the unprotected White Knight. Black is now ahead by a piece!
Lasker appears unperturbed. What's going on? } 27. g4 { Lasker advances the
g-pawn and hits at the Knight. } 27... Rbb8 { Since he really has nowhere to go with
his Knight (see variation), Maroczy concentrates on repositioning his Rook. He
anticipates the opening of a file on the Kingside, and wants this Rook to be
able to get there quickly. } (27... Nf6 { Here's why Lasker was not flustered by
the loss of his Knight on b6. The only other squares the Knight can move to
are f4 and g3, which are held by the f3-Rook. So the Knight must come here. } 28. Rxf6 { The Rook can capture with impunity. The King can't recapture
(because of check from the f1-Rook), and if the Queen dares to take the Rook,
the f1-Rook will capture the Queen, and White wins a Queen and Knight for two
Rooks! }) 28. Qf2 { White has constructed an
awesome battery on the f-file, aimed straight at the heart of Black's position.
Why didn't Lasker play gxh5 immediately? See the variation. } { [%csl Yf1,Yf2,Yf3,Yf4,Yf5,Yf6,Yf7] } (28. gxh5 { Here's what happens if White would take the Knight right away... } 28... Qg5+ { Black checks with the Queen. } 29. Qg2 { Here White could also have moved his
King. Now Black can force the exchange of Queens. } (29. Kh2 { White could move
his King out of check... } 29... Qe5+ { ...but the Black Queen just checks again. } 30. Rg3 { And if White's Rook blocks check... } 30... Qxb2 { ...the Black Queen still grabs
a pawn! })) 28... f5 { The Black f-pawn advances to pry open the f-file. } 29. gxh5 { White grabs the loose Knight. Now 29...Qg5+ gets
Black nowhere after 30.Rg3. } { [%cal Ye7g5,Yf3g3] } 29... fxe4 { The f-file is opened and
White's f3-Rook is attacked (twice!). } { [%cal Re4f3,Rf8f3] } 30. Rxf8 { Lasker begins the wholesale
destruction of both sides' heavy pieces. } 30... Rxf8 { Maroczy recaptures and
threatens White's Queen. } 31. Qxf8+ { White continues the
slaughter, taking the Rook and checking the Black King. } { [%cal Rf8g7] } 31... Qxf8 { Forced, as
Black would lose his Queen (32.Qxe7) if the King moved away. } 32. Rxf8 { The wood continues to fly off of the board! } 32... Kxf8 { The King takes the Rook to
end the carnage. After waiting a moment for the smoke to clear, we count the
pawns; Black has emerged a pawn ahead! } 33. Kf2 { Now that the pieces are off
the board, the Kings become powerful. The White King heads toward the center.
Lasker will win back his pawn by capturing the Black e-pawn. } 33... Kg7 { Maroczy's
King supports the g-pawn, keeping White from winning a pawn by hxg6. } 34. Ke3 { Lasker closes in on the Black e-pawn. } 34... g5 { Black's g-pawn pushes past the
White h-pawn. Now, after White's King captures on e4, the Black King can move
to f6 and prevent the White King from invading Black's position. } 35. Kxe4 { Lasker finally realizes his goal of making the material even once again. } 35... Kf6 { As expected, the "force field" around
Black's King keeps the White King from invading the Black position via f5 and
e6. } { [%csl Ye5,Ye6,Ye7,Yf5,Yf7,Yg5,Yg6,Yg7] } 36. b3 { Lasker makes the only move that doesn't lose a pawn and doesn't
give up the opposition (see the Glossary) to Black's King. } 36... Ke7 { Maroczy really hates to have to make this
move, but any Black pawn move loses a pawn. Now Maroczy gives up f5 to the
White King. } { [%csl Yd6,Yd7,Yd8,Ye6,Ye8,Yf6,Yf7,Yf8][%cal Ye4f5] } 37. Kd3 { Surprise! Lasker keeps Maroczy
off-balance by threatening to play Kd3-c4-b5 to grab the a5-pawn. } { [%cal Yd3c4,Yc4b5,Rb5a5] } 37... Kf6 { Maroczy comes up with a threat of his own. He plans to advance his King on the
Kingside, grab White's h3- or d5-pawn, and promote his passed g- or d-pawn. } 38. Ke4 { Lasker has to bring his King back to e4. Play over the variation to
White's 38th move to see why. } (38. Kc4 { Here's what would have happened if
White had proceeded with his original plan of attacking the Queenside: first,
the White King continues to invade on the light-colored squares. (Variation by
Alekhine). } 38... Ke5 { The Black King comes
in and seals off the e- and f-files to White's King. } { [%csl Yd4,Yd5,Yd6,Ye4,Ye6,Yf4,Yf5,Yf6] } 39. Kb5 { The White King
invades the Black Queenside. Now the a5-pawn is in danger! } 39... Kxd5 { But White
has to give up his own d-pawn to get at the Black a-pawn. } 40. Kxa5 { The Black
a-pawn falls. Now how will Black respond? Perhaps he'll advance the King and
attack White's Queenside pawns. } 40... Kc6! { WOW!! The Black King has trapped the White King on the a-file! Now there's no
escape for the White monarch! What can White do?? } { [%csl Yb5,Yb6,Yb7,Yc5,Yc7,Yd5,Yd6,Yd7] } 41. Ka6 { The White King tries to run
around the Black King's flank but this plan will take forever. } { [%csl Yb5,Yb6,Yb7,Yc5,Yc7,Yd5,Yd6,Yd7][%cal Ya6a8,Ya8e8,Ye8e2] } 41... d5 { Why does
Black advance this pawn? You'll see why in a minute... } 42. Ka5 { White could
have tried 42.Ka7 instead, but that wouldn't have helped either. } 42... d4 { Black
keeps advancing the d-pawn. He has a plan in mind for forcing this pawn's
promotion. } 43. Ka6 { Another pointless move, but White really has nothing else.
Any pawn moves lose material and help Black. } 43... c4! { Now Black's plan is
apparent. It's impossible for White to stop all three of these pawns. What
follows is the most obvious continuation. There are others, but they all lead
to the same idea -- the promotion of a Black pawn! } 44. bxc4 { White tries to
thwart Black by capturing one of his pawns. } 44... b3 { Black is unconcerned. He
advances his b-pawn now. } 45. cxb3 { White is forced to capture the b-pawn;
otherwise Black just advances it to b2, where it can't be stopped. } 45... d3 { Now Black has an unstoppable passed d-pawn, guaranteed to promote
to a Queen. Now you see why Lasker was forced to abandon his plan to invade
Black's Queenside position! } { [%cal Yd3d1] }) 38... Ke7 { Black's King obviously can't advance
(due to the laws of opposition), so it backs up a square. } 39. Kd3 { White
again pursues his threat of Queenside invasion via the light-colored squares. } 39... Kf6 { The Black King comes back, again threatening to win a pawn as before. } 40. Ke4 { Lasker is forced to come back to avoid the ugly mess that results from
the variation to White's 38th move. } 40... Ke7 { Again, it's retreat for the Black
King, as any pawn move loses material. } 41. Kd3 { Lasker moves his King back,
which results in the position being repeated for the third time -- an
automatic draw. } 1/2-1/2

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.16"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Tartakower, Ksawery"]
[Black "Bogoljubow, Efim"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "115"]
[ECO "C33"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 { At this time (1924), the
most popular opening move for White. It grabs space in the center and gives
the Queen and light-square Bishop an outlet for development. } { [%csl Gd5,Gf5][%cal Ge4d5,Ge4f5,Yd1h5,Yf1a6] } 1... e5 { If the King's pawn push is a good opening
move for White, it's equally good for Black, and for the same reasons. } { [%csl Gd4,Gf4][%cal Ge5d4,Ge5f4,Yd8h4,Yf8a3] } 2. f4 { This is the King's Gambit, an opening that was extremely popular in the 19th
Century. In this opening, White offers to gambit a pawn to lure Black's e-pawn
onto a flank file (the f-file), thus weakening Black's center. } 2... exf4 { Bogo
accepts the gambit pawn. Now he's a pawn ahead, but his center is weak, and
the advanced f4-pawn may become hard to defend. } 3. Be2 { Tartakower plays an unusual move here. 3.Bc4 is normal, but White doesn't like
the looks of 3...d5. 3.Bd3 is bad because it blocks White's d-pawn. So White
prefers to develop the Bishop here. } { [%csl Yc4,Yd3] } 3... d5 { Bogo offers to return the gambit pawn.
If White plays 4.exd5, Black can play ...Nf6 without having to worry about the
possible reply e4-e5. } 4. exd5 { Tartakower
accepts the pawn offer. Now Bogo can play 4...Qxd5 and stay a pawn ahead, but
White's reply 5.Nc3 (threatening the Queen) would make Black waste a tempo
retreating the Queen. So... } { [%csl Rd5][%cal Rd8d5,Yb1c3] } 4... Nf6 { ...Bogo develops his
Knight (now that it's safe to do so, since White no longer has a pawn on the
e-file) and attacks the d5-pawn as well. } { [%csl Rd5][%cal Rf6d5] } 5. c4 { Tartakower props up his pawn. This has the added benefit of giving his Queen
some scope along the a4-d1 diagonal. } { [%csl Ya4,Yb3,Yc2,Yd1] } 5... c6 { Black
hits the pawn a second time, threatening to grab the c4-pawn as well (6...cxd5
7.cxd5 Nxd5). } { [%csl Rd5][%cal Rf6d5,Rc6d5] } 6. d4 { Tartakower anticipates an exchange of pawns in the
center. By advancing his d-pawn, he insures that he'll have at least one pawn
in the center, controlling space on Black's half of the board. } 6... cxd5 { Bogo
begins an exchange in which he expects to post his Knight on the important
center square d5, after 7.cxd5 (i.e. 7.cxd5 Nxd5). } 7. Bxf4 { Tartakower takes
the other pawn instead. This makes the material even and gives White an edge
in development (White has more pieces and pawns off of their starting squares
than Black does). } 7... dxc4 { Bogo forges ahead and grabs White's c-pawn before
White has a chance to play c4-c5. If Black had allowed the White c-pawn to
advance, it would have given White a 3-2 pawn majority on the Queenside. } 8. Bxc4 { The White Bishop recaptures and makes the material even. White has a big
lead in development, but the downside is that his King is awfully exposed. The
King's Gambit often leads to double-edged positions like this. } 8... Bb4+ { Black has to develop this Bishop sooner or later, so why not
develop it with a check? } { [%csl Yb4,Yc3,Yd2,Ye1] } 9. Nc3 { The White Knight develops off of the back
rank and blocks the check. } 9... O-O { Bogo gets his exposed King out of the drafty
center. Now his Rook can take over the open e-file. } 10. Ne2 { Tartakower gets
his other Knight out with three purposes: to block the threatened Rook check
at e8, to protect the c3-Knight (in the event of ...Bxc3+), and to clear the
way for castling. } 10... Bg4 { Bogo ties Tartakower up in
knots. This developing Bishop move pins the e2-Knight to the White Queen. } { [%csl Yd1,Ye2,Yf3,Yg4] } 11. O-O { The King gets out of the center, which
ends the pin by the b4-Bishop. Notice how White's Rook on f1 commands the
half-open f-file. } { [%csl Yf1,Yf2,Yf3,Yf4,Yf5,Yf6] } 11... Nbd7 { Bogo develops his last minor piece.
He looks ahead to a future Nd7-b6, attacking White's Bishop on c4. } { [%cal Yd7b6,Yb6c4] } 12. Qb3 { Tartakower gets his Queen out of the danger zone (away
from the threatening g4-Bishop) and attacks the other Black Bishop on b4. } { [%csl Rb4][%cal Rb3b4] } 12... Bxc3 { Black takes the Knight and leaves White an interesting problem: recapture
with the Queen or Knight (which leaves the d-pawn isolated) or recapture with
the b-pawn (isolating the a-pawn and giving White three pawn islands)? } 13. bxc3 { Tartakower recaptures with
the b-pawn. Now his d-pawn is supported by another pawn, and his Queen attacks
the Black pawn on b7. But White now has three pawn islands and his a-pawn is
isolated and may become a target later. } { [%csl Ga2,Gc3,Gd4,Gg2,Gh2,Rb7][%cal Rb3b7] } 13... Nb6 { The Knight blocks the White
Queen's attack and menaces the White Bishop on c4. } 14. Bd3 { White has the advantage of having both of his Bishops, an advantage that he
wants to keep. So the light-squared Bishop backs off. } { [%csl Gd3,Gf4] } 14... Nfd5 { Black's aggressive Knights continue to threaten White's
Bishops! Also, see what a good center square the Knight occupies. From d5, it
influences eight squares (the best a Knight can do!). } { [%csl Yb4,Yb6,Yc3,Yc7,Ye3,Ye7,Yf4,Yf6] } 15. Bd2 { Again,
Tartakower wants to hold on to the advantage of having both of his Bishops (to
see why, refer to the Glossary entry entitled "Two Bishops/Two Knights"). So
White retreats the dark-squared Bishop. } 15... Bxe2 { Bogo gives up his
other Bishop to kill off White's only Knight. What Black has achieved is the
weakening of White's c3-pawn (since White's Knight was defending it). Now that
the Knight is gone, the c3-pawn will become a target. } { [%csl Rc3] } 16. Bxe2 { The Black
Bishop comes off the board and goes back into the box. Now White has two
Bishops against two Knights, a big advantage on an open board. How should
Black proceed? } 16... Rc8 { Bogo attempts to
tie up White's Queenside forces by attacking the weakened c3-pawn. Since the
pawn is now attacked twice (by Black's d5-Knight and Rook), White's Queen and
d2-Bishop are tied to its defense. } { [%csl Rc3][%cal Rc8c3,Rd5c3,Gb3c3,Gd2c3] } 17. Rf3 { The Rook advances
and defends the pawn. White could also have defended the pawn by advancing it
to c4, but this move carries a whole new set of problems with it (see the
variation). } { [%cal Gf3c3] } (17. c4 { Let's examine the idea of defending the c-pawn by
advancing it. (Variation by Alekhine) } 17... Nf6 { Of course,
Black must retreat the threatened Knight. This uncovers an attack by the Black
Queen against the White d4-pawn. } { [%csl Rd4][%cal Rd8d4] } 18. d5 { White defends this pawn by advancing
it also. } 18... Ne4 { The Black Knight dives in and attacks
the d2-Bishop. } { [%csl Rd2][%cal Re4d2] } 19. Bb4 { The threatened Bishop has to
move, so it goes to a square where it attacks Black's f8-Rook. } { [%csl Rf8][%cal Rb4f8] } 19... Re8 { The Rook goes to an open file where it will
attack the e2-Bishop (after the e4-Knight moves). White is back in the same
boat as before, with the c4-pawn attacked twice and defended twice, and now
Black has other threats as well! } { [%csl Rc4][%cal Rb6c4,Rc8c4,Gb3c4,Ge2c4] }) 17... Qc7 { The
Black pieces continue to pile up on White's c-pawn. Now the Black Queen gets
into the act. } { [%csl Rc3][%cal Rc8c3,Rb6c3] } 18. Raf1 { Tartakower comes up with his
own threat. He doubles his Rooks on the f-file, creating a battery that puts
pressure on Black's f7-pawn. } { [%csl Rf7][%cal Rf1f7] } 18... f6 { Why does Bogo
advance the pawn and create a pin on his own d5-Knight (from the White Queen)?
He plans to move his own Queen and doesn't think too much of White's Queen and
both Rooks bearing down on f7. } { [%csl Yb3,Yc4,Yd5,Ye6,Yf7,Yg8] } 19. Bd3 { How can the Bishop move here and block the f3-Rook's defense
of the c3-pawn? Because the d5-Knight is pinned and can't attack the pawn! The
well-placed Bishop on d3 controls two diagonals (a6-f1 and b1-h7) as well. } { [%csl Ya6,Yb1,Yb5,Yc2,Yc4,Yd3,Ye2,Ye4,Yf1,Yf5,Yg6,Yh7] } 19... Nc4 { In spite of the fact that Knights are usually inferior
to Bishops on an open board, Bogo is making the most of what he has. If the
Knight is allowed to capture the e2-Bishop, it will then fork White's Queen
and both Rooks! } { [%csl Rd2][%cal Rc4d2] } 20. Rh3 { Surprise! Tartakower
hits Black with an ugly threat that must be immediately dealt with, giving
Black no time to capture the e2-Bishop and fork all three of White's heavy
pieces! (See the variation to Black's next move). } { [%csl Rh7][%cal Rd3h7,Rh3h7] } 20... g6 { Bogo advances this pawn
to block the White d3-Bishop's attack on the h7-pawn. But now Black's Kingside
pawns are very weak (especially the one on f6). } (20... Nxd2 { Here's why Bogo can't take the d2-Bishop...it leads to a
forced mate! } { [%csl Rb3,Rf1][%cal Rd2b3,Rd2f1] } 21. Bxh7+ { The White Bishop grabs the pawn
with impunity (the King can't capture the Bishop, which is protected by the
h3-Rook!) } { [%cal Gh3h7,Rh7g8] } 21... Kf7 { Obviously the King must flee, and f7 is the only square. } 22. Qxd5+ { The Queen grabs the Knight and checks again! } { [%cal Rd5f7] } 22... Ke8 { Moving
the King is again the only escape (and it doesn't matter if the King goes to
e7 or e8, as we'll soon see). } 23. Re1+ { White checks yet again! } { [%cal Re2e8] } 23... Qe5 { Black is forced to block check with the Queen, because the King can't
move and blocking with the Knight just loses both the Knight and Queen. } 24. Rxe5+ { Even if this variation wasn't a forced mate, White's
material advantage is now so overwhelming that he should win anyway. } { [%cal Re5e8] } 24... fxe5 { Absolutely the only move for Black. } 25. Qe6+ { Another check! The
walls are closing in on the Black King! } { [%cal Re6e8] } 25... Kd8 { Again, Black has just a single
move to get out of check. } 26. Qd6+ { The Queen checks again,
driving Black's King to the fatal square. } { [%cal Rd6d8] } 26... Ke8 { I guarantee you that the King
won't move again! } 27. Bg6+ { Another check! Black has only a
single move to block check! } { [%cal Rg6e8] } 27... Rf7 { The only move Black has. But now it's
curtains for him. Do you see the winning move? } 28. Rh8# { And that's all she
wrote for Black! }) 21. Re1 { Rooks
belong on open (or half-open) files. Tartakower siezes control of the e-file. } { [%csl Ye1,Ye2,Ye3,Ye4,Ye5,Ye6,Ye7,Ye8] } 21... Nxd2 { Bogo takes away some of White's advantage by capturing one of White's
strong Bishops. Now that White's dark-square Bishop is gone, this makes White
slightly weaker on the dark squares. } 22. Qxd5+ { Tartakower keeps
the material even by capturing the Black Knight with check. } { [%cal Rd5g8] } 22... Qf7 { Bogo blocks
the check and offers to exchange Queens... } 23. Qxf7+ { ...an offer which
Tartakower accepts. } 23... Rxf7 { Bogo completes the exchange of Queens. But now his
Knight is alone, undefended deep inside enemy territory! } 24. Re2 { Of course, Tartakower attacks Black's main weakness (his Knight),
driving it back. } { [%csl Rd2][%cal Re2d2] } 24... Nc4 { The Knight retreats to the safe haven of
the c4-square, where it's protected by the Rook on c8. } { [%cal Gc8c4] } 25. Re8+ { The crowd is
stunned! Many spectators gasp audibly, and many more exchange silent surprised
glances, as if to say "Doesn't this lose the White Rook?!". } 25... Rxe8 { Bogo,
seeing more than we do, heaves a great sorrowful sigh and captures the Rook. } 26. Bxc4 { Tartakower grabs the Knight and pins the
f7-Rook! He used a tactic called "deflection" to lure the Rook off of the
c-file, so that he could take the Knight and pin (and win!) the f7-Rook. He
deflected the Black Rook away from the protection of the c4-Knight, allowing
the Bishop to capture it and pin the f7-Rook. } { [%csl Yc4,Yd5,Ye6,Yf7,Yg8] } 26... h5 { Bogo is in no hurry to move
his King (since the f7-Rook is lost whether the Black King moves now or later).
Instead, he advances his h-pawn, to take space away from White's h3-Rook. } 27. Kf2 { The White King advances to prevent the e8-Rook
from invading the White position by moving to e2. In your games, look for
moves like this that take squares away from your opponent. } { [%csl Ye2][%cal Gf2e2] } 27... Rc8 { The Rook
attacks White's Bishop. Bogo is trying to prod Tartakower into resolving the
pinned-Rook situation. } 28. Bxf7+ { Tartakower obliges by removing the Rook
from the board. } 28... Kxf7 { Of course, Bogo had to
recapture or be behind by a piece. Look at the board. The material is dead
even. Black has a 3-2 Kingside pawn majority while White enjoys a 3-2
advantage on the Queenside. } { [%csl Ga2,Gc3,Gd4,Gf6,Gg6,Gh5] } 29. Re3 { The Rook siezes the open e-file, cuts down the Black King's mobility, and
continues to defend the threatened c3-pawn. } { [%csl Ye1,Ye2,Ye3,Ye4,Ye5,Ye6,Ye7,Ye8] } 29... b5 { The Black b-pawn grabs space
and prevents White's a-pawn from advancing to a4. } 30. Ke2 { From looking at
where each side's pawn majority is, we know that White should attack on the
Queenside. The White King heads for the Queenside, to help support the attack. } 30... Rc6 { Bogo would seem to be contemplating his chances of getting a draw after
exchanging Rooks (31...Re6 32.Rxe6 Kxe6). } 31. Kd3 { The White
King comes to d3 to protect the c3-pawn. This frees up White's Rook, letting
it perform other useful tasks. } { [%cal Gd3c3] } 31... h4 { Black's pawns continue to
storm the Kingside. Bogo intends to play ...g6-g5, forming a pawn chain and
allowing his King to penetrate White's Kingside via the light squares (if
neccessary). } { [%cal Yg6g5] } 32. Re2 { Tartakower's Rook, now free to maneuver, pulls back to
the second rank, where it can move quickly to either the Kingside or Queenside
as needed. } 32... g5 { Bogo completes the pawn-chain. Now, if he
advances the King to g6 (protecting f5), he could push the f-pawn to f5 and
continue the pawn assault. } { [%cal Yf7g6,Yf6f5] } 33. Rb2 { Since there's no immediate threat from
Black on the Kingside, Tartakower makes his own threatening move, menacing the
b5-pawn. } 33... Rb6 { Protecting the pawn by a7-a6 cuts the Black Rook off from the
a-file. Bogo prefers to keep lines open for his Rook, so he defends the b-pawn
with his Rook. } 34. d5 { Tartakower advances his passed-pawn, intending to
support it by advancing his King. } 34... Ke7 { The Black King shifts toward the
d-file, intending to head off and blockade the White d-pawn. } 35. Kd4 { The
White King moves ahead to support the advanced passed d-pawn. } 35... g4 { Now that he
seems to have neutralized White's passed-pawn advance, Black continues his
Kingside pawnstorm. } 36. Kc5 { White has a three-part plan in mind: 1) to win
the Black b-pawn by exchanging Rooks on b5; 2) to advance his own c-pawn to c4
to protect the d-pawn; 3) to capture the Black a-pawn with his King. } 36... Rb8 { Black has his own threat in mind: to move his Rook to c8 where it
will check the White King. After the White King moves away, the Rook will
capture the White pawn on c3. } { [%cal Yb8c8] } 37. Kd4 { White has to abandon his original plan
and come up with a new one: advance the c-pawn to c4, as the Black b-pawn
can't recapture due to Rxb8. Then White will push the pawn to c5, and have two
dangerous connected passed pawns. } 37... Rb6 { Bogo pushes the Rook back, nipping
Tartakower's plan in the bud. Now if White pushes with 38.c3-c4, Black's
b-pawn can capture, as the Black Rook is now protected by the a7-pawn. } 38. h3 { Tartakower has to come up with his third plan in three moves! Now he plans to
trade off a pair of pawns to defuse the potentially dangerous Kingside
pawnstorm. } 38... g3 { Now both sides' g- and h-pawns are locked, but Black has an
ace in the hole: his f-pawn! It can still advance and break the blockage,
which will give Black a passed pawn on either the f- or g-files. } 39. a3 { Tartakower prepares to play Rb2-b4. After the White King moves,
the Rook on b4 will menace the Black h-pawn. } { [%cal Yb2b4] } 39... Kd7 { Bogo gets his King in front
of White's passed pawn. } 40. Kc5 { Tartakower is considering
advancing the d-pawn to d6 to cut down the Black Rook's mobility. Also, with
the King off of the 4th rank, White can play Rb2-b4 and threaten the Black
h-pawn. } { [%cal Yb2b4,Rb4h4] } 40... Rb8 { The Black Rook backs off to a square from which it can easily
shift to the Kingside, if necessary. } 41. Rb4 { Trading Rooks (starting with 41.
Rxb5) is bad for White (see variation), so Tartakower decides to threaten the
Black h-pawn. } (41. Rxb5 { Here's why White's game collapses if he trades Rooks.
White begins by taking the Black b-pawn. (Variation by Alekhine). } 41... Rxb5+ { Black, of course, responds by capturing the Rook. } 42. Kxb5 { The White King
must recapture, or White will be behind by a Rook. } 42... f5 { The Black f-pawn
advances, trying to promote to a Queen. } 43. Kc4 { The chase is on! The White
King tries to catch Black's f-pawn. } 43... f4 { The pawn keeps pushing for the finish
line. } 44. Kd3 { The King tries to head off the pawn. Who will win the race?!? } 44... f3 { Black wins! If the g2-pawn takes the Black
f3-pawn, then the g3-pawn will advance and promote. If, instead, the White
King moves to e3, then the Black f3-pawn captures the g2-pawn and still can't
be stopped by the King! } { [%csl Rg2][%cal Yd3e3,Rf3g2] }) 41... f5 { Black is not afraid of losing his h-pawn,
because he can still keep the material even (see the variation to White's next
move). } 42. a4 { Now White plans to win Black's b-pawn. White will capture it
with the a-pawn, then advance his c-pawn to defend both the b5 and d5-pawns. } (42. Rxh4 { In this variation, we'll see what happens if White captures Black's
h-pawn. } 42... Rc8+ { Black checks, with a skewer (or
x-ray attack) on the White c3-pawn. } { [%csl Rc3,Rc5][%cal Rc8c3] } 43. Kxb5 { The White King gobbles up the
Black pawn. Now White is two pawns ahead (but this is only temporary, as we'll
see). } 43... Rxc3 { Black's Rook grabs a pawn.
Black is still down a pawn, but the Black Rook's control of the c-file keeps
the White King from coming to the rescue of the d5-pawn. Black will soon win
it (or the g2-pawn) and even up the material. } { [%csl Yc1,Yc2,Yc3,Yc4,Yc5,Yc6,Yc7,Yc8] }) 42... a6 { Bogo defends the
b-pawn with the a-pawn. } 43. Kd4 { The White King gets out of the way of the
c-pawn, so that it can advance and hit the b-pawn again. } 43... Re8 { Believe it or
not, this move actually prevents White from capturing the b-pawn! To see why,
check out the variation to White's next move. } 44. Kd3 { The King
backs up to allow the White Rook access to the Kingside. } { [%cal Yb4g4] } (44. axb5 { Here
we'll look at what happens if White immediately captures the b-pawn. This
variation was worked out by Alekhine after the round ended. } 44... Re4+ { Instead of
recapturing immediately (which leads to the loss of a pawn), Black checks the
White King. } 45. Kd3 { The King moves out of check. } 45... Rxb4 { Black decides to
swap off the Rooks. } 46. cxb4 { Of course, White must recapture, or be behind
by a Rook! } 46... axb5 { After this recapture, Black should be able to win the d-pawn
(due to the laws of opposition) and then go on to win with his extra pawn. }) 44... bxa4 { Bogo swaps off a pawn! This sacrifice will allow his Rook to
invade White's position (as we'll soon see). } 45. Rxa4 { Of course, White takes
the pawn! } 45... Re1 { Bogo charges in with his Rook. He hopes that White will take
the a-pawn, displacing the White Rook and allowing the Black Rook to grab the
White Kingside pawns. } 46. Rxa6 { White accepts the sacrificed pawn. } 46... Rg1 { The Black Rook threatens the White g2-pawn. But it seems that Bogo has
miscalculated... } 47. Ra2 { ...because the defense of the pawn is simple for
White to acheive! Now White has two connected passed pawns (on the c & d files)
! } 47... Kd6 { Bogo makes the only really constructive move: the Black King threatens
the White d-pawn. } 48. c4 { The c4-pawn protects its brother on the d-file. Now
the White position has no real weaknesses for Black to exploit. } 48... Ke5 { If the
King advances to f4, the d-pawn advances unstoppably to promote to a Queen. So
what is Bogo doing? He's marking time, awaiting further developments and
praying for a draw by threefold repetition of position. } 49. Re2+ { White
checks with his Rook and drives the Black King back. } 49... Kd6 { The only move Black
has that doesn't immediately lose the game. } 50. Rc2 { Now the
Rook slips back to the Queenside to support the advance of the White c-pawn.
As a general rule, support the advance of your passed pawns by putting your
Rooks behind them on the same file. } { [%cal Gc2c4] } 50... Kc5 { The Black King stops the c-pawn's
advance and still denies the d6-square to White's d-pawn. } 51. Rd2 { As the
White King can't move ahead and support the d-pawn's advance (since Black
controls both d4 and e4), the White Rook shifts over to guard the d-pawn (once
the White King goes to c3 to guard the c-pawn). } 51... Rf1 { The Black Rook guards
the advance of the f-pawn. Bogo hopes to create a passed pawn on the f- or
g-file. But notice how Black's Rook blocks the advance of the f-pawn. That's
why Rooks belong behind passed pawns, not in front of them. } 52. Ke2 { A move with a dual purpose: the King attacks Black's Rook while
the White Rook now supports the d5-pawn's advance. } { [%cal Gd2d5,Re2f1] } 52... Rg1 { The Rook comes back
to g1 to threaten the g2-pawn again, forcing White's King to move (so that the
White Rook can defend the g2-pawn). } 53. Ke3 { The White King doesn't have to
protect the c4-pawn, because if the Black King captures the pawn, the d-pawn
heads for d8 and promotion, outrunning the Black King. } 53... Kd6 { Due to the lack
of any really constructive moves in this position, Bogo marks time by shifting
his King. } 54. c5+ { The pawn checks with impunity! If the Black King captures
it, the d-pawn will advance to become a new Queen, protected by the White Rook. } 54... Kxc5 { Bogo takes the pawn anyway! He counts on being able to get his Rook to
his first rank (White's eighth rank) in time to stop the d-pawn. } 55. d6 { Predictably, the pawn advances toward the promotion square. } 55... Re1+ { Rather than
trying to get his Rook back by ...Ra1 (which cuts things pretty close), Bogo
checks instead. This makes White waste a tempo getting his King out of check,
and will give the Black Rook access to e8. } 56. Kf4 { The White King is forced
to the f-file. If it had moved to the d-file, it would have blocked the
d6-pawn's protection from the White Rook, allowing the Black King to take the
pawn. } 56... Re8 { The Black Rook gets back in plenty of time to block the d-pawn's
promotion. } 57. d7 { The pawn steps ahead again, attacking the Rook and
threatening promotion by d7xe8 as well. } 57... Rd8 { Of course, the Rook blockades
White's dangerous passed pawn. But now look at the position of the White King.
It sits among the Black pawns like a wolf among a flock of sheep! } 58. Kxf5 { Black is finished. The
White King will gobble up the immobile Black Pawns, giving White two connected
passed pawns. The Black Rook can't move and the Black King can't cross the
d-file! The pawns can't be defended! Bogo resigns. } { [%csl Yd2,Yd3,Yd4,Yd5,Yd6,Yd7][%cal Yf5g4,Yg4h4,Yh4g3] } 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.17"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Lasker, Emanuel"]
[Black "Capablanca, Jose Raul"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[PlyCount "60"]
[ECO "C66"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 { Lasker (White) grabs space
in the center with this move, which also allows future development of his
light-square Bishop and Queen. } { [%csl Gd5,Gf5][%cal Ge4f5,Ge4d5,Yf1a6,Yd1h5] } 1... e5 { Capablanca (Black) reciprocates. He, too, controls space in the center
(the d4 and f4 squares) and allows for the future development of his Queen and
dark-squared Bishop. } { [%csl Gd4,Gf4][%cal Ge5f4,Ge5d4,Yd8h4] } 2. Nf3 { Another good
developing move. The Knight on f3 attacks the Black e5-pawn and disputes its
control of d4. } { [%csl Gd4][%cal Rf3e5,Gf3d4] } 2... Nc6 { Forced to protect the e5-pawn, Capa
develops another piece. The Knight now defends the e5-pawn and adds its
influence to the square d4. } { [%cal Gc6e5,Gc6d4] } 3. Bb5 { This opening is called the Ruy Lopez.
It's named after a medieval Spanish clergyman who first wrote about it over
five hundred years ago. Today, it's generally considered to be the best e-pawn
opening for White. } 3... d6 { Capa advances the pawn to allow
the release of his light-square Bishop. But his dark-square Bishop is now
blocked in and his c6-Knight is pinned! This looks bad on the surface, but
later we'll see that this move isn't bad at all. } { [%csl Yb5,Yc6,Yd7,Ye8] } 4. d4 { Lasker attacks the e5-pawn a second time. Capa is in immediate danger of
losing this pawn, since it's only defended once! (Remember, the c6-Knight is
pinned and can't defend the pawn!). } { [%cal Rd4e5,Rf3e5] } 4... Bd7 { Now we see the point of Black's
third move (3.d6). Since the Bishop breaks the pin on the c6-Knight, the
Knight is now free to move, allowing it to defend the menaced e5-pawn. } 5. Nc3 { Lasker develops another piece. The idea of this move is to
defend the Bishop on b5 from an attack by the Black d7-Bishop, once the
c6-Knight moves. } { [%cal Gc3b5] } 5... Nf6 { Capa continues to develop his pieces. The
f6-Knight now puts pressure on the White e4-pawn. } { [%cal Rf6e4] } 6. O-O { Now that the pieces
are cleared from White's Kingside, Lasker takes the opportunity to castle. His
Rook is now developed toward the center and his King is safer near the side of
the board. } 6... exd4 { Capa grabs the chance to open up the game by swapping off a
couple of the center pawns. } 7. Nxd4 { Of course, Lasker must recapture or
remain behind by a pawn. } 7... Be7 { Capa clears the Kingside for castling and
avoids any surprises that may come up after White plays Re1. (If White plays
Re1, and Black keeps his King on the same file on e8, White may have
opportunities for a discovered check later). } 8. b3 { Lasker
advances this pawn in order to fianchetto his dark-square Bishop later (moving
it to b2). } { [%cal Yc1b2] } 8... Nxd4 { Capablanca, knowing that Lasker is a dangerous opponent,
decides to play it safe and simplify the position by exchanging pieces. Both
sides will have less chances for attack with fewer pieces on the board. } 9. Qxd4 { Lasker recaptures the Knight in the only way possible. The material is
still even. } 9... Bxb5 { Capa snaps off the White b5-Bishop and
threatens Lasker's f1-Rook. } { [%cal Rb5f1] } 10. Nxb5 { Lasker recaptures, keeping the material
even. Notice that if Black castles and White plays Bb2, White gets a possible
mating threat. (See the variation to Black's next move). } 10... Nd7 { Capa's
repositioning of the Knight prevents the White c1-Bishop from moving to b2. To
see why, check out the variation to White's next move. } (10... O-O { Here we'll
look at White's possible mating threat. First, Black must castle. } 11. Bb2 { White responds by fianchettoing his Bishop.
This sets up a Queen and Bishop battery on the long a1-h8 diagonal. (For more
on batteries, refer to the Glossary.). } { [%csl Yb2,Yc3,Yd4,Ye5,Yf6,Yg7] } 11... Nd7 { Capa wouldn't play this move, but
if he was careless enough to do so... } 12. Qxg7# { White drops the axe and
beheads the King! In your own games, try to look ahead and be aware of
possibilities like this. They don't come along too often, but when they do,
they're most satisfying! }) 11. Ba3 { The Bishop
can't move to b2 (see the variation). Instead, Lasker moves the Bishop to a
square where it still puts pressure on Black's Kingside along the a3-f8
diagonal. } { [%csl Ya3,Yb4,Yc5,Yd6,Ye7,Yf8] } (11. Bb2?? { Let's see what happens if White fianchettos his Bishop. } 11... Bf6 { Black attacks White's Queen and sets up a
deadly skewer (or x-ray attack) on the b2-Bishop. } { [%csl Yb2,Yc3,Yd4,Ye5,Yf6] } 12. Qe3 { Obviously, the
White Queen must move! } 12... Bxb2 { Black's Bishop captures its White counterpart. } 13. c3 { A-HA! White traps the Bishop! } 13... Bxc3 { Black, unperturbed, takes the
pawn. } 14. Qxc3 { The White Queen grabs the Bishop. But now White is a pawn
behind! } 14... Qf6 { When you're ahead by a pawn, it's a good idea to trade off
pieces. Then you can expect to win in a pawns-only ending by exploiting your
one-pawn advantage. Here Black pursues this policy. } 15. Qxf6 { White opts to
exchange pieces (probably not a good idea here). } 15... Nxf6 { Black
recaptures with the Knight (to avoid doubling his pawns) and threatens White's
e-pawn. } { [%cal Rf6e4] } 16. Nc3 { White defends with his Knight. The game is far from over,
but Black is a pawn ahead and should win with proper play. }) 11... a6 { Capa feels that this Knight is just too close for comfort, so he nudges
it away with the a-pawn. } { [%cal Ra6b5] } 12. Nc3 { It's retreat or die for the Knight, so
Lasker backs it off to the only possible square. } 12... Bf6 { Wow! Capablanca attacks three pieces at one shot! Once
the Queen moves, the Knight will be pinned to the a1-Rook! } { [%csl Ya1,Yb2,Yc3,Ye5,Yf6,Rd4][%cal Rf6d4] } 13. Qe3 { The White
Queen backs off to a square where it still protects the c3-Knight. } 13... O-O { Capa finally has a chance to castle. Now his f8-Rook will be able to slide
over and control the half-open e-file. } 14. Rad1 { Speaking of controlling half-open files, Lasker's a1-Rook comes over to sieze
the half-open d-file. Now his Knight will be able to set up an outpost on d5.
(Black couldn't attack it by ...c7-c6 because of White's reply Bxd6.). } { [%csl Yd1,Yd2,Yd3,Yd4,Yd5] } 14... Bxc3 { Capa sees the possibilities that Nc3-d5 would give White, so he decides to
simplify further by killing White's Knight. } 15. Qxc3 { For Lasker, it's
recapture or remain a piece behind. } 15... Re8 { As expected, Capablanca takes control of the half-open e-file with his
Rook. He also menaces the White e4-pawn. } { [%csl Ye5,Ye6,Ye7,Ye8,Re4][%cal Re8e4] } 16. Rfe1 { Rather than Rd1-e1 (which
buries the Rook on f1), Lasker protects the pawn with his other Rook. Notice
how well-placed both of White's Rooks are (on the two center files). } 16... Rc8 { Capa, seeing that the a8-Rook is poorly placed, moves it toward a better, more
centralized file. } 17. Qh3 { Lasker plays cautiously. He prepares for Kingside
action by repositioning his Queen. But secretly he's just making a waiting
move, hoping that Capablanca will soon reveal his intentions. } 17... Ne5 { Capa
establishes a Knight outpost on e5. True, the Knight can be dislodged by f2-f4,
but such a move would weaken White's Kingside pawn structure. } 18. Bb2 { Lasker directly attacks and threatens to win Black's Knight with this move. If,
on White's next move, Bb2xe5, the Black d6-pawn can't recapture because of
Rd1xd8, and Black loses his Queen! } 18... Qg5 { Capa removes
the danger by moving his Queen. Now the Black Knight is solidly defended by a
pawn and two pieces. } { [%cal Gd6e5,Ge8e5,Gg5e5] } 19. Qg3 { Lasker offers to trade Queens.
Note that Capa can't defend his Queen by, say, ...h7-h6, because of White's
reply f2-f4 (a double attack on both the Knight and Queen, winning a piece)!
It's either trade or move for the Black Queen. } { [%cal Rf2f4] } 19... Qxg3 { Capa trades. After
Lasker recaptures with a pawn, his doubled pawns on the Kingside will offset
his numerical pawn advantage (4-3) on that side of the board. } 20. hxg3 { Lasker decides to recapture with the h-pawn. Now it will be very difficult for
him to realize any advantage from his Kingside pawn majority in the endgame.
It's very hard to use a pawn majority to create a passed pawn when two of the
pawns are doubled. } 20... f6 { Since the players are headed for
the endgame at a rapid clip, Capablanca gives his King quicker access to the
board's center. Now it will take only two moves (Kg8-f7-e6) to reach e6,
instead of three (Kg8-f8-e7-e6). } { [%cal Yg8f7,Yf7e6] } 21. f3 { Lasker thinks "Good idea!" and
follows suit. Now his King can get to e3 in just two moves instead of three. } 21... Kf7 { Capablanca begins the process of centralizing his King.
The center is where the King belongs in the endgame, so that it can move
quickly to either side of the board as needed. } { [%cal Yg1f2,Yf2e3] } 22. g4 { The undefended pawn on
g3 was terribly weak. Lasker strengthens it by pushing it to a square where
the f3 pawn defends it. The g4-pawn also keeps Black from trying to grab space
by playing ...h7-h5. } 22... h6 { Capa pushes the pawn one square instead.
Now he is the undisputed owner of g5. Now, after a future ...g7-g5, Black will
control most of the dark squares on the Kingside. } { [%csl Gg5] } 23. Re2 { Lasker increases
the flexibility of his Rooks. He'll now be able to set up a battery on either
the d- or e-file as the situation warrants. } 23... Nc6 { Capa
backs off his Knight. Now he can move the Knight to b4 to attack two of
White's pawns or else advance the e8-Rook to e5, allowing it to get into the
game along the fifth rank. } { [%cal Yc6b4,Ye8e5] } 24. Kf2 { Lasker starts to maneuver his King toward
the center in preparation for the endgame. } 24... Re7 { Capablanca advances the Rook,
possibly planning to double his Rooks on the e-file, creating a battery. } 25. Bc3 { This Bishop move keeps the Black Knight off of b4. This also prepares a
possible Queenside pawn advance (b3-b4, followed by the a-pawn's advance). } 25... a5 { Capablanca neutralizes any chance of a b3-b4 pawn advance by Lasker. } 26. Rd5 { Lasker threatens the Black a5-pawn. The pawn is
attacked twice (by Bishop and Rook) but only defended once (by the Black
Knight). How should Capa defend? } { [%cal Rc3a5,Rd5a5,Gc6a5] } 26... b6 { He makes the obvious move to defend the
pawn. Moving the c8-Rook to a8 was also possible. Notice that the c6-Knight is
now undefended, but this isn't critical, as White has no Queen or light-square
Bishop with which to attack it. } 27. a4 { Lasker advances the a-pawn to prevent
Black from playing ...a5-a4 (which would lead to either doubled a-pawns for
White, a backward and hard-to-defend a-pawn for White, or an open a-file for
Black's Rooks -- all bad for White). } 27... Re6 { In chess, we call this a quiescent
(meaning "quiet") position, where both sides' positions are about equal and
there's not much going on. Capa makes another "waiting" move, just to see how
Lasker will respond. } 28. Rd1 { Lasker's d5-Rook
just scoots back along the d-file. It still controls the half-open file, and
White still has the possibility of creating a battery on either of the two
center files. } { [%csl Yd1,Yd2,Yd3,Yd4,Yd5] } 28... Rce8 { Capa creates a battery on the
e-file. However, this battery "bites on granite", meaning that the Rooks
aren't really threatening the White e4-pawn. Its brother on f3 protects it.
The Rooks really have nowhere to go. } { [%csl Ye5,Ye6,Ye7,Ye8] } 29. Red2 { Lasker sets up a battery on the d-file. However, this battery is as
ineffective as Black's is. } { [%csl Yd1,Yd2,Yd3,Yd4,Yd5] } 29... Ke7 { Capa actually breaks up his own battery. The
King is heading over to the Queenside to support a general pawn advance on
that wing. } 30. Ke3 { Lasker figures that he'd better centralize his King. Here
it has the chance to either invade Black's Kingside position or help out on
the Queenside if needed. From the center it can move to either side quickly. } 30... Kd7 { Capa continues to move his King. Since there's really not much happening
here, and neither player appears to be in a fighting mood, the players agree
to a draw. } 1/2-1/2

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.17"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Maroczy, Geza"]
[Black "Alekhine, Alexander"]
[Result "0-1"]
[PlyCount "48"]
[ECO "B02"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 { Maroczy (White) is known to prefer 1.
e4 when he has the White pieces. He knows that the e-pawn exercises great
center control, and pushing it forward allows the free development of his
Queen and light-square Bishop. } { [%csl Gd5,Gf5][%cal Ge4f5,Ge4d5] } 1... Nf6 { This is the first move of
the defense that has come to be named after Alekhine himself. The Knight is
developed toward the center and immediately attacks the e4-pawn. } { [%cal Rf6e4] } 2. d3 { Maroczy is already thinking defensively here. 2.Nc3 is
another possible defensive move, while 2.e5 is the more aggressive alternative.
2.d3 defends the pawn, but also blocks in the light-square Bishop. } { [%cal Yf1e2,Gd3e4] } 2... e5 { Alekhine (Black) grabs a chunk of the center with this move, releases his
dark-square Bishop, and prevents Maroczy from playing the annoying pawn push
e4-e5. } 3. f4 { Interesting! Maroczy sets up a position similar to
the King's Gambit (see Game 5, Tartakower vs. Bogoljubow), advancing his
f-pawn to attack Black's e5-pawn. } { [%cal Rf4e5] } 3... Nc6 { Alekhine is unafraid. He simply
develops another piece and guards the menaced e-pawn at the same time. The
c6-Knight may also jump to d4 later. Notice that all of White's pieces are
still on their starting squares! } 4. Nf3 { The f3-Knight
hits at the Black e5-pawn a second time. Notice that had Maroczy played this
on move 3, he would only have been able to attack the Black pawn once, since
his Knight would have blocked the f-pawn's advance. } { [%cal Rf4e5,Rf3e5] } 4... d5 { Alekhine makes a
threat. He threatens to play 5...dxe4 6.dxe4 Qxd1 7.Kxd1 Nxe4 which exchanges
Queens, prevents White from castling (since White's King must recapture the
checking Queen) and wins a pawn as well! } 5. exd5 { Maroczy captures the
offending pawn. He could also have tried the more aggresive 5.fxe5 (see the
variation), but this line would tend to be in Black's favor. } (5. fxe5 { Alternately, White could have played this move. Let's see where it leads... } 5... dxe4 { An eye for an eye! Now both players' f-Knights are threatened. } 6. exf6 { White grabs Black's Knight... } 6... exf3 { ...so Black returns the favor. } 7. Qxf3 { Thw White Queen snatches the pawn. } 7... Nd4 { Surprise! The Black Knight moves in
and attacks White's Queen. (7...Qxf6 is bad for Black. Once White plays 8.Qxf6,
Black is forced to double his pawns on the f-file with 8...gxf6). } 8. Qe4+ { The White Queen is forced to move, so it moves to the e-file where it can
check Black's King. } 8... Be6 { The Black Bishop blocks the check and gets off the
back rank. Black has a lead in development and is just one move away from
castling on either the Kingside or Queenside. (Variation by Alekhine). }) 5... Nxd5 { Alekhine recaptures to avoid being a pawn behind. See how his Knights dominate
the board's center! Alekhine also now has a 2-1 lead in piece development. If
he can continue to develop and make threats, he can get a good attack going! } { [%csl Gb4,Gc3,Gd4,Ge3,Ge5,Gf4][%cal Gd5c3,Gd5e3,Gc6b4,Gc6d4,Gd5f4,Gc6e5] } 6. fxe5 { Maroczy captures the e-pawn and puts himself ahead by a pawn. But
he's still a piece behind in development. In effect, Alekhine has gambited a
pawn to get ahead in developing his pieces. } 6... Bg4 { Alekhine neutralizes Maroczy's only active piece, by pinning the White Knight
to the Queen! At the same time, he's developed another one of his pieces! } { [%csl Yd1,Ye2,Yf3,Yg4] } 7. Be2 { Maroczy breaks the pin by developing his light-square Bishop. Now the way
is cleared for Kingside castling as well. } 7... Bxf3 { Alekhine maintains the
initiative by capturing the f3-Knight. This forces White's reply... } 8. Bxf3 { Of course, White must recapture or lose a piece. Recapturing by gxf3 would be
a terrible move! (See the variation to find out why). } (8. gxf3 { Ugly! White
has blocked his light-square Bishop and has an isolated pawn on h2. This pawn
(isolated because there is no longer any g-pawn to protect it) will require
constant protection by a White piece, to prevent its capture. } 8... Qh4+ { Black's
Queen sweeps into the fray, checking White's King. } 9. Kf1 { Now White has some
big problems. He can't castle anymore and his King is dangerously exposed! }) 8... Qh4+ { The Black Queen gets into the act, checking the White King. How
will Maroczy respond? } 9. Kf1 { People in the crowd begin to exchange puzzled
looks. Wouldn't 9.g3 have been better than moving the King? See the variation
to White's 9th move to find out. } (9. g3 { Let's see what would have happened
had White blocked check with the pawn... (Variation by Alekhine) } 9... Qd4 { Obviously the Queen must move or be captured. On d4 the Black Queen
prevents White from castling or moving his dark-square Bishop (because of ...
Qxb2). Here the Queen also attacks the White e5-pawn. } { [%cal Rd4e5] } 10. Qe2 { The White
Queen comes to the defense of the e-pawn. } 10... O-O-O { Black castles Queenside,
developing his Rook and getting the King out of the line of fire. } 11. c3 { The c-pawn advances to kick the Black Queen out of its post on d4. } 11... Qxe5 { Surprise! Black offers to exchange Queens (and why not? After all, Black has
better development and his pieces control much of the board!). } 12. O-O { Rather than play 12.Qxe5 Nxe5 (allowing Black's Knights to dominate the board)
White castles and gets his King out of the danger zone. } 12... Qxe2 { Black trades
off the Queens. } 13. Bxe2 { Of course, White has no choice but to recapture. } 13... Be7 { Black develops his remaining Bishop and connects his Rooks. While it's
true that the Black pieces are better developed and control much of the board,
White has no glaring weaknesses. Their positions are about even. }) 9... O-O-O { Alekhine refuses to make the same mistake that Maroczy did (failing to castle).
He castles to get his King off of the dangerous e-file. This also develops his
Rook to the half-open d-file. } 10. Nc3 { Maroczy finally begins to develop his
Queenside. In addition to centralizing the Knight, this move has another
purpose (as we'll soon see). } 10... Bc5 { Alekhine creates a major
threat with this move. Do you see it? He threatens to mate on his next move
with ...Qf2! } { [%cal Rh4f2,Rc5f2] } 11. Ne4 { The White Knight comes to the rescue by jumping to the
central square e4 and protecting the f2 square from the Black Queen's invasion. } 11... Ne3+ { Alekhine begins a maneuver designed to stick his Bishop right into
White's throat. The Knight starts the operation by jumping to e3 and forking
the White King and Queen. } 12. Bxe3 { White's reply is forced. It's either
capture the offending Black Knight or face catastrophic loss of material (12.
Kg1 Nxd1). } 12... Bxe3 { Obviously, this is Black's only sensible reply (anything
else just loses the Knight for nothing). } 13. Qe1 { Notice
how the Black Bishop is choking White's position. Maroczy sets up a double
attack. The White Queen now attacks both the Black Queen and Bishop. Alekhine
must make a move that saves both pieces... } { [%cal Re1e3,Re1h4] } 13... Qh6 { ...which he does. Alekhine
could have exchanged Queens, but that would violate a fundamental chess
principle: when you're attacking, don't exchange pieces needlessly. (Look for
more on this later on). } 14. Ng3 { The
White Knight backs up to allow the f3-Bishop more scope along the long
diagonal (a8-h1). } { [%csl Ya8,Yb7,Yc6,Yd5,Ye4,Yf3,Yg2,Yh1] } 14... Nd4 { Alekhine keeps up the pressure by
continuing to make threats. He now menaces the c2-pawn (and after ...Nxc2, the
Knight will fork both the White Queen and a1-Rook!). } { [%cal Rd4c2] } 15. Qb4 { Rather than play the weak defensive move 15.Bd1 (which cuts off the a1-Rook
from the center), Maroczy responds by making a threat of his own. The Queen
threatens to play Qxb7+, winning a pawn and driving the King to the center. } { [%cal Rb4b7] } 15... c6 { The simple pawn move stops the threat. Now that the White f3-Bishop no longer
attacks b7, White can't play Qxb7+. Black would simply reply ...Kxb7! } 16. Qa4 { Now Maroczy goes gunning for another pawn, this time the one on
a7. } { [%cal Ra4a7] } 16... Kb8 { Another simple move which holds the position. Now if Qxa7+, then
simply ...Kxa7. } 17. Rd1 { Maroczy centralizes his Rook and minimizes the
danger of a possible ...Nxc2 from Black. } 17... Rhe8 { Alekhine
centralizes his Rook on the half-open e-file and attacks the White e5-pawn.
Notice the excellent placement of both of Black's Rooks on the two important
half-open center files. } { [%cal Re8e5] } 18. h4 { Since Maroczy's h1-Rook is buried, he plans
to free it by advancing it along the h-file. The h-pawn jumps ahead to clear
room for the Rook. } 18... Qf4 { Rather than immediately capturing the
e5-pawn with his Rook, Black hunts bigger game by assaulting the unprotected
White Knight on g3. The White position is becoming harder and harder to defend. } { [%cal Rf4g3] } 19. Rh3 { Maroczy advances his Rook to defend the threatened
Knight. Although the Rook has a little more space than it did several moves
ago, it's still trapped on the h-file. } { [%cal Gh3g3] } 19... b5 { Alekhine launches yet another
attack, lashing out at White's Queen. The strain of defending such a tough
position is beginning to show on Maroczy's face. } 20. Nh5 { Maroczy throws a
counter-punch, striking at the Black Queen. Unfortunately, this loses a piece
for White, as we'll soon see. However, retreating the White Queen doesn't work
either (see the variation). } (20. Qb4 { Here's what happens if White tries to
retreat his Queen... } 20... a5 { Our first impulse is to question this move. After
all, doesn't this just lose a pawn for Black? } 21. Qxa5 { Obviously, White
grabs the pawn. } 21... Nxf3 { Now the Black Knight
snatches the Bishop. Black's pieces are closing in on the White King. Notice
that White can't sidetrack Black with a check, because the Black d3-Bishop
controls all of the White Queen's possible checking squares. } { [%csl Ya7,Yb6,Yc5,Yd4,Ye3,Yf2,Yg1] } 22. gxf3 { For White, it's either recapture or stay a piece behind. Other possibilities
are too brutal to contemplate...(see the sub-variation) } (22. Ne2 { ...but
let's contemplate one anyway! White tries to be clever and save his bacon by
attacking the Black Queen. } 22... Nh2+ { Black responds with a
brutal double-check that carries the day. Notice that since it's a double
check, White can't respond by simply snapping off the Black Queen. } { [%cal Rh2f1,Rf4f1] } 23. Ke1 { The White King's only flight square is e1. } 23... Qf2# { And it's curtains for His
Majesty. }) 22... Qxf3+ { The obvious move in this case is also the best one.
The White King is now a sitting duck. } 23. Ke1 { Now it's all over, except for
the crying. } 23... Qf2# { The White King falls at last. (Variations by Alekhine and
Lopez). }) 20... bxa4 { Alekhine snags the White Queen. True, his King is
exposed and his Queenside pawn structure is a mess, but this is all immaterial
due to the inactivity of the White pieces. } 21. Nxf4 { Maroczy takes the Black
Queen, but exposes his Knight to capture in the process. } 21... Bxf4 { Alekhine takes
the White Knight. Black is now ahead by a minor piece, his Rooks are
powerfully placed, his minor pieces severely cramp White's position, and two
of his pieces threaten the e5-pawn. It looks very bad for Maroczy! } 22. c3 { Maroczy pushes his c-pawn, trying to kick the Black Knight off of d4. If the
Knight moves away, White can win a pawn with Bxc6. } 22... Nxf3 { Alekhine saves the
pawn by trading his Knight for the White Bishop. Remember what we went over in
the last game: if you're ahead in material, start trading off pieces and head
for the endgame! } 23. Rxf3 { Instead of just recapturing with the g-pawn,
Maroczy takes back with the Rook and now attacks the Black Bishop. } 23... Bxe5 { Finally! The White e-pawn falls at last! Although Alekhine gave up one of his
attacking pieces (the Knight) to reach this position, he's also cleared the
e-file as a path for his Rooks to get into the fight. } 24. Rxf7 { Maroczy grabs
a pawn. His expression seems hopeful once again. Maybe he can start a
Queenside pawnstorm. But wait a minute...Alekhine's face lights up with savage
glee! He snatches up his e8 Rook... } 24... Rf8 { ...and POW!! The Black Rook on f8 hopelessly pins the f7-Rook to the
White King. This forces 25.Rxf8 Rxf8+, leaving White with a lone Rook against
a Rook and Bishop. Maroczy knows it's just a matter of time until he's mated,
so he resigns. } { [%csl Yf1,Yf2,Yf3,Yf4,Yf5,Yf6,Yf7,Yf8] } 0-1

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.17"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Marshall, Frank James"]
[Black "Tartakower, Ksawery"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[PlyCount "73"]
[ECO "A85"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 { Marshall (White) opens with his d-pawn. Games that begin
with d2-d4 usually lead to closed positions. That's because the advanced
d-pawn is automatically protected by the Queen, which makes it harder for
Black to capture it. } { [%cal Gd1d4] } 1... e6 { Tartakower (Black) plays cautiously and disguises
his intentions. Will he play 2...d4, 2...Nf6, 2...Nc6, or something else
altogether? Marshall must proceed without any real idea of what his opponent's
plans are. } 2. c4 { This move is common for White in the d-pawn openings. The
idea is to advance the c-pawn before playing Nb1-c3 (which would block the
pawn's advance). With the pawn on c4, White increases his control over the
center. } 2... f5 { Tartakower's intentions are now clear. This is the
Dutch Defense, in which Black hopes to set up an outpost on e4 and launch an
attack on the Kingside. } { [%csl Ge4] } 3. Nc3 { Marshall
continues with the usual d-pawn opening set-up. Notice how his pawns control
b5-e5 and his Knight disputes Black's control over e4. } { [%csl Gb5,Gc5,Gd5,Ge5][%cal Gc3e4] } 3... Nf6 { Tartakower continues his development. This move is in keeping with the idea of
establishing an outpost on e4. } { [%cal Gf6e4] } 4. Bg5 { Marshall develops another
piece, pinning the Black f6-Knight to the Queen. The other reason he made this
move was to allow him to make the pawn push e2-e3 without trapping the
dark-square Bishop behind his pawn chain. } { [%cal Ye2e3] } 4... Be7 { Tartakower breaks the pin and
completes his Kingside development. Now the f6-Knight is free to move and
uncover an attack from the e7-Bishop on White's Bishop on g5. } 5. e3 { Marshall's e-pawn advances and allows his light-square Bishop and Queen to
develop. This move also props up the d4-pawn. Notice that Marshall waited
until his dark-squared Bishop was developed before he pushed the e-pawn. } 5... O-O { Black castles early to get his King off of the dangerous center files and
develop his Rook. After the f6-Knight moves, it may also be possible for the
Black f-pawn to safely attack White's Kingside under the Rook's protection. } 6. Bd3 { Marshall continues to develop his pieces before undertaking any offensive
operations. The Bishop exerts its influence over e4 and helps prevent the
Black Knight from advancing there. } 6... b6 { Tartakower sees that the
pawns on the c8-h3 diagonal have hopelessly blocked his c8-Bishop from
developing through the center, so he advances the b-pawn to allow him to
fianchetto his Bishop instead. } { [%cal Yc8b7] } 7. Nf3 { Marshall develops his last minor piece.
The Knight defends the g5-Bishop, controls the square e5, and clears the way
for castling. It also blocks the easy win of a pawn by the soon-to-be
fianchettoed Black Bishop (...Bb7xg2). } 7... Bb7 { As anticipated, Tartakower fianchettos his light-square Bishop. This
piece is extremely well-placed, controlling the long a8-h1 diagonal and
bearing down on White's Kingside. } { [%csl Ya8,Yb7,Yc6,Yd5,Ye4,Yf3,Yg2,Yh1] } 8. O-O { Although it's pretty obvious that
Black's attack will come on the Kingside, Marshall fearlessly castles "into"
the attack. } 8... Ne4 { Since e4 is attacked twice by White and defended twice by
Black, Tartakower feels that it's now safe to occupy this square. But Reti
leans over to us and whispers, "That costs him a pawn!" We'll see... } 9. Bxe7 { Marshall, like a shark, smells blood. He sees what Reti and others in the
crowd saw, and begins his campaign to win a pawn. He starts by grabbing the
Black e7-Bishop and threatening the Black Queen. } 9... Qxe7 { Tartakower makes the
obvious recapture. But could he have ignored the threat and played 9...Nxc3,
setting up his own threat on White's Queen? See the variation to find out. } (9... Nxc3 { Let's look at a possible variation to Black's ninth move. Here
Black grabs the c3-Knight. The material is still even. (Variation by Alekhine). } 10. Bxd8 { White chooses to capture the Black Queen. He could also have
played bxc3, but that leaves him with a buried d3-Bishop and an ugly Queenside
pawn structure. } 10... Nxd1 { Of course, Black must take the White Queen to keep the
material even. } 11. Bxc7 { White replies by clipping the c7-pawn. } 11... Nxb2 { The Black Knight responds in kind by snatching the b2-pawn. } 12. Be2 { Now
White sets about trapping the Black Knight. Black will be hard-pressed to get
his Knight to safety (and odds are that the Knight won't make it). So Black is
better off playing the actual game move and only losing a pawn. }) 10. Bxe4 { Marshall gives up a Bishop for a Knight, but only temporarily. See the
variation for the reason why he captures with the Bishop instead of the
c3-Knight. } (10. Nxe4 { If White were to capture with the Knight instead of the
Bishop... } 10... fxe4 { ...he'd get nailed with an ugly pawn fork
that loses a piece to Black! } { [%cal Re4d3,Re4f3] }) 10... fxe4 { Tartakower must recapture or remain
behind by a piece. He recaptures with the pawn in order to preserve his
powerful Bishop on the long diagonal. The pawn also threatens the White
f3-Knight. } 11. Nd2 { Of course the Knight must move, so why not go to a square
where it attacks the Black pawn on e4? } 11... Qh4 { Tartakower is laboring under the
misconception that this Queen move saves the e4-pawn. See the variation to his
next move (Black's move 12) to find out why it doesn't. } 12. Ncxe4 { Marshall
sees that he can safely take the pawn. However, we're still scratching our
heads. Then the answer comes to us... } 12... Nc6 { Tartakower advances his Knight.
His Rooks are now connected and protect each other. For the reason why the
Bishop can't just capture on e4, see the variation. } (12... Bxe4 { Here's what
might have happened had the Bishop captured on e4... } 13. g3 { White lashes out
at the Black Queen. } 13... Qf6 { The Queen is forced to retreat... } 14. Nxe4 { ...and
now the Bishop is easy pickings for the Knight. Black finds himself behind by
a pawn. }) 13. f4 { Marshall advances his f-pawn to allow his f1-Rook to join in
the fun. } 13... Ne7 { Tartakower begins to reposition his Knight. The
Knight is heading for f5, from which White will be hard-pressed to remove it
(g2-g4 would leave the White King dangerously exposed). } { [%cal Ye7f5] } 14. Rf3 { Marshall
boldly pushes his Rook forward, in preparation for a Kingside attack. } 14... Nf5 { As expected, Tartakower's Knight comes to f5 and
prevents the White Rook from occupying g3. } { [%csl Gg3][%cal Gf5g3] } 15. Rh3 { Marshall attacks the
Black Queen in order to drive it away from the Kingside. } 15... Qe7 { The Black Queen
withdraws to one of just two squares available to it. } 16. Qh5 { White's Queen
comes crashing into the fight. Now Marshall threatens Qh5xh7+, winning a pawn
and breaking up Black's Kingside pawn structure. } 16... g6 { The advance
of the Black g-pawn threatens White's Queen and allows the Black Queen to
guard the h7-pawn. } { [%cal Ge7h7] } 17. Qe2 { Marshall's attack has lost its sting,
so the Queen bails out. Because Marshall intends to play Ne4-g5, the Queen
occupies d2 to keep f3 clear as a possible later retreat square for the Knight. } { [%cal Ye4g5] } 17... Rf7 { Tartakower advances his f-Rook, clearing a space for his other Rook to
occupy f8 and aid in the defense of the Kingside. } 18. Ng5 { Marshall's Knight
leaps forward and attacks the Black f7-Knight. But White had more constructive
moves. See the variation lines. } (18. Nc3 { In these variations by Alekhine,
we'll see that White could have successfully shifted his attack from the
Kingside to the center. He would begin by moving his Knight to c3 to support
the advance of the e-pawn. } 18... g5 { In one of Black's two choices, he decides to
advance the g-pawn. He hopes to trade it off and open up lines for
counterattack against White's King. } (18... Qb4 { In the second of Black's two
choices, his Queen shifts to the Queenside to assault White's b-pawn. } 19. Rb1 { White simply defends the pawn, and after a2-a3, Nd2-f3, and e3-e4, sets up a
position similar to the one in the other variation. }) 19. fxg5 { White obliges
him by indeed trading off the pawns. } 19... Qxg5 { Black regains his pawn (although
he's still a pawn down). Now his Queen and Rook lurk ominously on the Kingside. } 20. Nf3 { The White Knight comes to the rescue, driving the Black Queen back
once again. (Too bad Black has a Knight on f5, guarding g3, or else White
could set up a truly hideous pin with Rh3-g3!). } 20... Qe7 { The Black Queen is
forced back by the advance of White's Knight. } 21. e4 { Now White begins action
in the center by advancing his e-pawn. After the Black Knight retreats,
Black's position will be cramped and White can use his space advantage to
attack either in the center or on the Kingside. }) 18... Rg7 { The Black Rook
simply sidesteps the White Knight's attack. Now, since Marshall's attack has
fizzled, the posting of the Knight on g5 seems kind of pointless, aside from
the slight cramping effect on Black's game. } 19. Ngf3 { Marshall, seeing that
the Knight isn't accomplishing much on g5, pulls it back to f3 where it can
defend the d4-pawn, allowing the e3-pawn to advance. } 19... Qb4 { Tartakower shifts
his attention to the Queenside. The Black Queen menaces the b2-pawn. } 20. Rb1 { The White b-pawn must be defended, so Marshall decides to protect it with his
a-Rook. } 20... c5 { Tartakower decides that it's time for his a8-Rook to join the
fight. He advances his c-pawn in order to open up a file for the Rook. Now
either the c- or d-file is guaranteed to become half-open. } 21. Qd3 { Marshall
doesn't want to reply to ...c5xd4 with e3xd4 (he wants to save the e-pawn for
a future e3-e4), so he moves the Queen to d3 in order to defend the d-pawn a
second time. } 21... cxd4 { Tartakower swaps the pawn off, half-opening the c-file for
his Rook. } 22. Nxd4 { Marshall doesn't want to play 22.exd4 (for reasons
already mentioned) and 22.Qxd4 is obviously bad (22...Nxd4!), so he's left
with the capture by the Knight. } 22... Rc8 { Tartakower siezes the half-open c-file
with his Rook. This has the additional effect of tying the White d2-Knight to
the defense of the c4-pawn (if the Knight moves away, then ...Qxc4, Qxc4 Rxc4
wins back Black's pawn). } 23. e4 { Marshall, tired of seeing his space and
mobility being whittled away, finally pushes the e-pawn and digs at the Black
Knight. } 23... Nxd4 { Tartakower responds by trading his Knight for White's. } 24. Qxd4 { This was Marshall's only move (otherwise he would lose a piece). } 24... d5 { Tartakower offers to sacrifice another pawn. True, he'll be behind by two
pawns, but Marshall will be stuck with a weak isolated d-pawn. He'll have to
tie up a piece to defend it, which more than offsets Black's two lost pawns. } 25. a3 { In order to trade off pawns on d5, Marshall must kick the Black Queen
off of b4 (to allow White to play c4xd5 without having to worry about Qb4xd4). } 25... Qf8 { The Black Queen slips back to f8, a square from which it can attack
White's f4-pawn. } 26. exd5 { Marshall begins the pawn slaughter on d5, and at
the same time allows his Queen to protect the f4-pawn from Black's Queen. } 26... exd5 { Tartakower continues with his plan of a pawn sacrifice designed to leave
White with a weak d5-pawn. } 27. cxd5 { Marshall completes the pawn
trade. Now his d5-pawn is isolated (without c- or e-pawns to protect it) and
is consequently very weak. It will require the constant protection of a piece
to prevent its capture. } { [%csl Rd5] } 27... Rd8 { Tartakower doubles up on the weak pawn,
attacking it twice (with Bishop and d-Rook). } 28. Ne4 { At first glance, this
seems to give up the d5-pawn. But this move actually prevents Black from
capturing it! For the reason why, see the variation to Black's next move. } 28... Rf7 { Black stops White's planned Ne4-f6 cold (see variation). Now what will
Marshall do about his threatened pawn? } (28... Bxd5 { If Black had tried to win
the d5-pawn... } 29. Nf6+ { ...White would simply have forked the Bishop and
King. } 29... Kh8 { The Black King, in check from the Knight, must move (...Kg8-f7 is
possible, but unwise). } 30. Nxd5 { Now the Knight can grab the Black Bishop,
leaving Black a piece behind. It's true that the Knight is pinned, but White
has plenty of ways to move the Queen while still defending the Knight, so the
pin isn't critical. }) 29. d6 { Seeing that the pawn is lost, Marshall advances
it. He hopes that the game will run 29...Bxe4 30.Qxe4 Rxd6, where White will
still be a pawn ahead while fewer pieces on the board will be to White's
advantage. } 29... Rxf4 { But Tartakower will have none of that! Instead, he grabs the
White f-pawn and pins the White Knight to the Queen. } 30. Qc4+ { Marshall's
Queen slides over and gives check. If Tartakower plays 30...Rf7, then 31.Re3
or Re1 holds the fort, while the White Queen keeps a pin on the Black f7-Rook. } 30... Qf7 { Tartakower blocks the check on his King and forces the exchange of Queens.
Once the White d6-pawn falls (a few moves from now), the material will once
again be even. } 31. Qxf7+ { Marshall is forced to exchange Queens, or else
he'll lose his Knight with no compensation. } 31... Rxf7 { Tartakower completes the
exchange of Queens. Now the White pieces are scattered and disorganized. What
will Marshall do? } 32. Re3 { Marshall moves the Rook to protect the piece (the
Knight) which protects his pawn. In theory, this is a good idea. In practice,
however, ... } 32... Bxe4 { ...it doesn't work (not this time, anyway). Tartakower
makes use of a tactic called "removing the guard". He removes the piece
guarding the d6-pawn in order to safely capture the pawn on his next move. } 33. Rxe4 { Marshall has to capture the Black Bishop or else he'll find himself a
piece behind. } 33... Rxd6 { With the protecting Knight removed, Tartakower can now
safely capture the d6-pawn. The material is now dead even. } 34. Re2 { Marshall
prepares 35.Rf1 Rxf1 36.Kxf1, clearing off a pair of Rooks and making it safer
for his King to advance toward the center. Centralizing the King is a common
endgame theme. } 34... Rd3 { Tartakower get his Rook ready to harass White's Queenside
pawns. After a future ...Rb3, one of White's Rooks must stay tied to the
b-file or second rank to protect the White b-pawn. Then Black's pawns can
advance unmolested. } 35. Rf1 { Marshall prepares the f-file Rook swap. } 35... Kg7 { Tartakower decides not to exchange Rooks. Instead, he gets the jump on White
in King centralization. Now, after 36.Rxf7 Kxf7, the Black King will be closer
to the center than White's will. } 36. Rc2 { Marshall gets a jump of his own. If
Tartakower decides to start the Rook trade on f1 (...Rxf1,Kxf1), the c2-Rook
will be able to advance to c7 and start attacking Black's Queenside pawns. See
the variations to Black's next move. } 36... Rfd7 { Rather than make the trade (see
variations), Tartakower doubles his Rooks on the d-file, threatening to swap
off Rooks (with check!) on d1. } (36... Rxf1+ { Let's start the Rook trade on f1
to see what might have happened... } 37. Kxf1 { Obviously forced. } 37... Rb3 { Here,
Black tries to tie the White Rook to the second rank so that the Black pawns
can freely advance. } (37... Kf6 { If the Black King moves to prevent check... } 38. Rc7 { ...the White Rook advances to attack both the a7- and h7-pawns. We
end up with a position similar to the main variation. }) (37... Rd1+ { Black
could try to check White's King, but this leads nowhere... } 38. Kf2 { Now that
the White King has moved, the Black Rook can't attack the White h-pawn
successfully (38...Rh1 39.h3). In fact, all Black has done is drive the White
King toward the center (where the King wants to be anyway!). }) 38. Rc7+ { White surprises Black by simultaneously checking the Black King and attacking
the a7-pawn. } 38... Kf6 { Of course, Black must move, so he decides to continue to
centralize his King. } 39. Rxa7 { White has his choice of a7 or h7 pawns. Now,
if Black tries to even it up by ...Rxb2, White grabs the h7 pawn. If Black
tries h7-h6, White plays Ra7-a6, preventing the pawn's advance (because of
discovered check!). }) 37. h3 { Anticipating the Rook trades on d1, Marshall
advances his h-pawn to give his King an "escape hatch" on h2. Here the players
decide to call it a day. The game is drawn. } 1/2-1/2

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.17"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Lasker, Edward"]
[Black "Bogoljubow, Efim"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[PlyCount "101"]
[ECO "C41"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 { Lasker (White) advances his e-pawn. This is White's most aggressive
opening move. It grabs a healthy chunk of the center (the d5- and f5-squares)
and allows White free development of his Queen and light-square Bishop. } 1... e5 { Bogoljubow (Black) responds with an equally aggressive move of his own. He,
too, grabs a couple of center squares (d4 and f4), and opens lines for the
development of his Queen and dark-square Bishop. } 2. Nf3 { Lasker continues in
an aggressive fashion. He develops his Kingside Knight and attacks the Black
d5-pawn at the same time. } 2... d6 { Most people play 2...Nc6 here in
order to guard the e5-pawn. Instead, Bogo opts to play Philidor's Defense
(named after the greatest chessplayer of the 18th Century), in which Black
defends the pawn with 2...d6. } { [%cal Yb8c6] } 3. d4 { Lasker's
d-pawn charges ahead and attacks the Black e5-pawn a second time. Notice, too,
that the White dark-square Bishop is now free to develop. } { [%csl Yc1,Yd2,Ye3,Yf4,Yg5,Yh6] } 3... Nf6 { Rather than try to defend the pawn again (see the variation),
Bogo launches a counterattack. The f6-Knight threatens the White e4-pawn. Will
White capture the Black e5-pawn or defend his own endangered pawn? } { [%csl Re4][%cal Rf6e4] } (3... Nc6 { In this variation, Black tries to defend his e5-pawn a second time. } 4. d5 { White advances his d-pawn and attacks the Black Knight! Now Black must move it
or lose it! } 4... Nce7 { The Knight retreats to e7. Now his
position is horribly cramped. He'll have a hard time developing his pieces
since White controls so many of the squares that Black needs (like c6, e6, and
f5). } { [%csl Gc6,Gd5,Ge6,Gf5] }) 4. Nc3 { Lasker chooses to develop another piece and defend the e4-pawn
at the same time (doing two things with one move!). In your games, look for
moves like this that serve more than one purpose. } 4... Nbd7 { Since c6 is off
limits for the Knight (because of White's reply d4-d5), Bogo develops it to d7.
The problem is that now the Knight blocks in the Bishop on c8. } 5. Bc4 { Lasker clears the deck for Kingside castling by
developing his light-square Bishop. This Bishop helps to control d5 and puts
pressure on Black's vulnerable f7-square, adjacent to his King. } { [%csl Yc4,Yd5,Ye6,Yf7] } 5... Be7 { Bogo
gets his Bishop off the back rank, paving the way for castling on the Kingside.
Notice how cramped the Black position is. Bogo lacks good squares for his
pieces. } 6. O-O { The King heads for the safety of the flank, while the Rook
develops toward the center. } 6... O-O { Black castles as
well. The Rook on f8 helps ease the pressure on the f7-pawn. But now the pawn
is pinned by the White c4-Rook. Should the f6-Knight move, the f7-pawn can't
advance because of the pin. } { [%csl Yc4,Yd5,Ye6,Yf7,Yg8] } 7. Bg5 { Lasker prepares to trade dark-square
Bishops if the Black f6-Knight moves. All of the White minor pieces are
developed, while Black's c8-Bishop is still at least two moves away from
freedom. } 7... c6 { Bogo prepares a Queenside push. He plans to play
b7-b5 in order to drive back the White Bishop on c4, and then follow it up
with b5-b4, driving away the c3-Knight, the e4-pawn's only defender, making ...
Nxe4 possible. } { [%cal Yb7b5] } 8. Bb3 { Lasker sees the coming pawn push and
pulls his Bishop back now. However, a2-a4 would have prevented the Black pawn
push b7-b5 just as easily, and would have grabbed still more space for White. } { [%cal Ya2a4] } 8... h6 { Bogo threatens the other White Bishop and forces Lasker to decide whether
to capture the f6-Knight now or waste a tempo by moving the Bishop again. This
is known as "putting the question to the Bishop". } 9. Bh4 { Lasker decides to
spend the tempo necessary to move the Bishop. By coming back to h4 the Bishop
keeps the pressure on the Black f6-Knight. } 9... Re8 { Bogo gets ready for the
opening of the e-file by sliding his Rook over. He'll move his f6-Knight, and
if White plays Bxe7, he can play ...Rxe7. Then Bogo will play...Qe8 and ...
exd4, then begin to pile up on White's e-pawn. } 10. Qd3 { Lasker, seeing that Bogoljubow is planning to free his game by
opening up the e-file, hits upon a plan to prevent it. The first step is to
bring his Queen to d3, where it has access to the a6-f1 diagonal. } { [%csl Ya6,Yb5,Yc4,Yd3,Ye2,Yf1] } 10... Nh5 { Bogo, unaware of Lasker's counterplan, proceeds with his own plan. He expects
Lasker to play Bxe7. } 11. Qc4 { Now Lasker threatens to win
material by 12.Qxf7+ Kh8 13.Qxh5, getting a pawn and Knight for free! } { [%cal Rc4f7,Rf7h5] } 11... Rf8 { This forces Bogo to bring his Rook back to f8 to defend the pawn. Now it's
White's move. His Bishop on h4 is threatened. Should Lasker exchange it for
the e7-Bishop, or retreat it to g3? } 12. Bxe7 { Of course, he exchanges it. If
he had played Bg3, then Black could have replied ...Nxg3, forcing White to
double his pawns on the g-file (and doubled pawns are weak, remember?). } 12... Qxe7 { Bogo has to re-capture or be behind in material. Now look at the board.
Because of the exchange of Bishops, Black's position is now less cramped. How
should White proceed? } 13. Ne2 { Lasker doesn't like the
looks of Black's threatened ...Nf4 (establishing an outpost in the heart of
the White position). The e2-Knight covers f4 and keeps the Black Knight from
occupying it without threat of capture. } { [%csl Gf4][%cal Ge2f4] } 13... a5 { Bogo
begins to expand on the Queenside. His obvious threat is a5-a4, winning the
b3-Bishop. Among his other threats is ...exd4, to be followed by ...Nc5
(allowing him to pile up on the e4-pawn). } { [%cal Ra5a4,Re5d4,Rd7c5] } 14. Qc3 { Lasker doesn't play c2-c3
to give the Bishop an escape hatch. Instead, he pulls back his Queen to let
the Bishop escape to c4. } 14... a4 { At first glance, b7-b5 (to prepare to trap the
Bishop via a5-a4) might look tempting. Look closer -- you'll see that White's
reply Qxc6 loses a pawn! } 15. Bc4 { The White Bishop makes good its escape! } 15... b5 { Now that the White Bishop blocks the White Queen from capturing Black's pawn
on c6, it's safe for Bogo to continue his Queenside pawn mobilization. He's
getting more room, little by little! } 16. Bd3 { The White Bishop finally
retreats to a safe haven on d3. Of course, the poor Bishop has no squares to
move to. It's stuck like a fly in a block of amber! Now it's Lasker who is
finding his position cramped! } 16... Bb7 { Since White was threatening
Qxc6, Bogo has to make a move to protect it. He (finally!) develops his
light-square Bishop. He can also later play c6-c5 to get more room for his
d7-Knight (...c5, then dxc5, Nxc5). } { [%cal Gb7c6] } 17. dxe5 { Lasker decides to open the
d-file for exploitation by his Rooks. He forces the elimination of both
d-pawns with this move. } 17... dxe5 { Obviously, Bogo recaptures with his d-pawn. } 18. Rad1 { The a1-Rook slides over to d1 where it would command the file except for
that problem d3-Bishop in its way. How will Lasker free the trapped Bishop? } 18... Rfe8 { Seeing that the e5-pawn is attacked twice and defended twice, Bogo
decides to overprotect the pawn. This will free up one of the three defending
pieces should one of them be required elsewhere. } 19. Ng3 { Lasker decides that
the fastest way to free his trapped Bishop is to provide it an outlet on e2.
He clears this square by moving his Knight to g3. Of course, Bogo can now make
White double his pawns with ...Nxg3... } 19... Nxg3 { ...which he does. Bogo didn't
want the g3-Knight to jump to f5 and establish an outpost there. Now Lasker is
faced with the choice of which pawn to recapture with. } 20. hxg3 { He chooses
to recapture with the h-pawn. Taking back with the f-pawn would leave him with
TWO weaknesses: doubled g-pawns and an isolated e-pawn. These would be
somewhat offset by the open f-file for his Rook, though. } 20... Nf6 { Here's where Black's overprotection of the e5-pawn pays off. One of the
protecting pieces, the Knight, jumps to a better square and attacks the pawn
on e4, while the other two pieces stay behind to defend the e5-pawn. } { [%cal Rf6e4] } 21. Nh4 { Like a bulldog with a bone, Lasker hangs on to the idea of
posting a Knight on f5. He shifts his remaining Knight to h4 and eyes up f5. } { [%cal Rh4f5] } 21... g6 { Bogoljubow denies Lasker yet again. The g-pawn
advances and prevents the White Knight from occupying f5. } { [%csl Gf5][%cal Gg6f5] } 22. Qd2 { Lasker brings his Queen back to menace the Black h6-pawn. Will
Bogo now protect the pawn by advancing it or by defending it with another
piece? } { [%csl Rh6][%cal Rd2h6] } 22... Kg7 { Bogo decides to make the Black King earn its keep by putting it
to work defending the h-pawn. } 23. Qe3 { Lasker repositions his
Queen, preparing to attack Black's Queenside by moving to b6 later. } { [%cal Ye3b6] } 23... Ng4 { Bogo attacks White's Queen. He secretly hopes that
Lasker will proceed with his plan to invade the Queenside by Qb6, because ...
Ra6 will trap and win the White Queen (see the variation to White's next move). } { [%csl Re3][%cal Rg4e3] } 24. Qd2 { Since the White Queen is prevented from moving to b6 (see the
variation) and is also attacked by the Black g4-Knight, Lasker has no choice
but to retreat the piece. } (24. Qb6 { Here's why White can't attack the Black
Queenside with his Queen... } 24... Ra6 { The Rook advances and
attacks the Queen, trapping it. The White Queen has no square to retreat to
(remember the Knight on g4?) and so is lost. } { [%csl Rb6][%cal Ra6b6] }) 24... Qc5 { Bogo sees that the White position is very cramped and understands
that White would like to play f2-f4 to get some more elbow room. The Black
Queen on c5 pins the f2-pawn to the White King and prevents the pawn's advance. } { [%csl Yc5,Yd4,Ye3,Yf2,Yg1] } 25. Be2 { The Black Knight sticks in the White
position like a bone in Lasker's throat, so he dislodges it by threatening it
with the Bishop. } { [%csl Rg4][%cal Re2g4] } 25... Nf6 { The Black Knight is forced to abandon its advanced post,
and retreats to the only safe square available. } 26. Bd3 { Now Lasker is
troubled by the possibility that one of the Black Rooks might move to d8 and
menace his Queen. His Bishop comes back to d3 to block that threat. } 26... Rad8 { Bogo moves his a-Rook to the central d-file. Now there is every possibility of
the Black Knight returning to g4, because the White Bishop is now pinned to
the Queen and can't move to e2 again to kick the Knight back out. } 27. Qe2 { Since the White Bishop or f-pawn can't keep the Black Knight from reoccupying
g4, the White Queen is forced to come over and defend that square. This has a
further cramping effect on White, since the Queen no longer holds a5-e1. } 27... Bc8 { Bogo again demonstrates the advantages of having greater space
and mobility. His Bishop moves to c8, which springs a new threat: ...Bg4!
which wins either the White Queen or d1-Rook. } { [%cal Rc8g4] } 28. Kh1 { Lasker is moves his
King to h1 to dissolve the pin on the f-pawn. If Black plays ...Bg4, Lasker
can now reply f2-f3, saving both his Queen and d1-Rook. . } 28... Bg4 { The Black
Bishop predictably advances to g4 and attacks the White Queen, and should the
Queen move, the d1-Rook. } 29. f3 { Lasker saves the two threatened heavy pieces.
(Qxg4 was impossible because of ...Nxg4, and Nf3 lets Black advance his pawns).
Now White has a bad Bishop, an immobilized Knight, a weak g3-pawn, and
restricted heavy pieces! What next? } (29. Nf3 { White doesn't want to use his
Knight to block the attack on his Queen, because then White gives up his
threat of Nh4-f5, which prevents the Black g6-pawn from advancing... } 29... g5 { ...like so. Since Black no longer had to worry about guarding against a White
Knight outpost on f5, his g-pawn can advance and restrict White's mobility
even further! }) 29... Be6 { The Black Bishop was
attacked by the White f-pawn, so it had to move away. Now it threatens White's
a2-pawn! Bogo is smiling a little now. Why not? Just look at White's position:
the White pieces are all in each other's way! } { [%csl Ra2][%cal Re6a2] } 30. a3 { Lasker sighs and
advances the a-pawn. Pushing the b-pawn to b3 instead would be bad for White
because it would allow Black to pry open the Queenside through pawn exchanges. } 30... Re7 { Bogoljubow prepares to double his Rooks on either the d- or e-files. } 31. Rde1 { It's a old chess saying: when you're cramped, free your game by
exchanging pieces. Lasker prepares to exchange Queens with this move. He plans
to next play Qe2-e3 or Qe2-f2, offering to swap Queens with Bogo. } 31... Qd4 { Bogo seems to like the idea of a trade, but he wants White to initiate it by
playing Qxd4. After exd4, Black will enjoy a 4-3 Queenside pawn majority that
he should be able to convert into a win. There's also a hidden point... } 32. Qf2 { Lasker feels that the exchange of Queens on f2 would be more to his
advantage than if it happens on e3, so his Queen comes to f2 to provoke a
trade. But there's a hidden point here, too... } 32... Qxb2 { Bogo's hidden point: he
wins a pawn by not trading Queens. But remember that Lasker had a hidden point
as well... } 33. Qc5 { Lasker's hidden point: since Bogo didn't trade, the White
Queen is suddenly set loose on the Queenside! White now has a lot more
maneuvering room. So who fooled who? Did Lasker sacrifice the pawn on purpose?
Hmmmm... } 33... Rc7 { Bogo has to defend the endangered c6-pawn. He could have
protected it with the other Rook (...Rd8-c8) but that would take a square away
from his Bishop and tend to cramp his game. } 34. Rb1 { Lasker shifts his Rook
over to strike at the Black Queen. } 34... Qd4 { The Black Queen must retreat to d4,
as it's the only square where it's protected (by the e5 pawn). } 35. Rxb5 { The White Rook comes crashing in and wins back the pawn. If the Black c6-pawn
captures the Rook, White's Queen takes the Black Rook on c7 and the material
stays even (although the game becomes complex -- see the next variation). } 35... g5 { Bogo begins counter-measures on the Kingside. This pawn advance threatens the
White Knight. He could also have played ...cxb5 (see the variation). } (35... cxb5 { Let's examine what might have happened had Black decided to capture the
Rook. } 36. Qxc7 { The White Queen captures the c7-Rook and the material stays
even. } 36... b4 { Black advances his pawn in order to obtain a passed pawn on either
the a- or b-files. } 37. axb4 { White makes the capture on b4 and is now ahead
by a pawn. Black now has a passed a-pawn, while White has connected passed
pawns on the b- and c-files. The Black a-pawn is more dangerous due to its
potential rapid advancement. } 37... a3 { Black proceeds to advance the pawn another
step toward promotion, making it still more dangerous to White. } 38. Qa5 { White's Queen comes back to a5 to threaten the Black a-pawn, while still
keeping an eye on the d8-Rook (if the Black Queen moves off of the d-file, the
Rook falls). } 38... a2 { The passed pawn advances to a square where the e6-Bishop
protects it. Now the a-pawn is just a step away from promotion. } 39. b5 { White feels that it's high time he came up with a threat of his own. He begins
the advance of his passed b-pawn. Notice that Black can't play a2-a1 because
the White Queen and Rook both defend that square, stopping the pawn's advance. } 39... Rb8 { Now the White b-pawn can't advance either (because of the Black Queen and
Rook). Things are really knotted up now. Both players will have to do a lot of
maneuvering to press home an advantage. (Variation by Ed. Lasker) }) 36. Nf5+ { The White Knight leaps to absolutely the ONLY square it had on the board! It
checks Black's King in the process, but it doesn't matter; the Knight is not
long for this world. } 36... Bxf5 { Bogo makes a questionable trade here: he's traded
his good Bishop for White's badly misplaced Knight. He'll win a pawn soon, but
the price may have been too high. We'll see... } 37. exf5 { The recapture must
be made to keep an even material balance. Now White has doubled f-pawns AND
doubled g-pawns. OUCH! } 37... Nh5 { The Knight leaps ahead and attacks the g3-pawn,
which can't be defended! If White tries g3-g4, then ...Ng3+ forks the f1-Rook
and the King! Kh2 looks like a good try too, but that leads to checkmate (see
the next variation)! } 38. Re1 { Bogoljubow is more clever than we gave him
credit for. He's obviously foreseen that White can't save the g3-pawn. In fact,
all that Lasker can do is move his Rook to prevent the hideous Knight fork
after ...Nxg3+. } (38. Kh2 { On the surface, Kh2 looks like an excellent way for
White to protect his pawn on g3, but not only does it fail to protect the pawn
-- it leads to death for the White King! } 38... Nxg3 { WOW! What a spectacular
sacrifice! The Black Knight grabs the pawn and menaces the f1-Rook. } 39. Kxg3 { And if the White King snares the Black Knight... } 39... Qh4# { CHECKMATE! Incredible!
White thought that his King was safe in taking the Knight (and that he'd go up
by a minor piece) but he was mated instead! }) 38... Nxg3+ { So Bogo gets his
way, and the White g3-pawn goes off the board and back into the box. } 39. Kh2 { Lasker makes the only move he has on the board (Kg1 is impossible because of
the Black Queen). Of course, the Black Knight isn't really threatened and
doesn't have to move, because if Kxg3 then ...Qh4#! } 39... Qh4+ { Now the Black Queen
gets into the act, checking the White King. Due to the Black Queen's superior
mobility, Bogoljubow is able to switch his whole focus from the Queenside to
the Kingside in an instant. } 40. Kg1 { Literally the only move. No White piece
can block check, so the King is forced to move to its only available square. } 40... f6 { Qh1+ just gets Black a draw (see the variation), so Bogo defends his
e5-pawn which has been left hanging (in chess slang, "leaving a piece hanging"
means leaving it unprotected). } (40... Qh1+ { What if Black had decided to keep
up the pressure on the White King by Qh1+? Let's find out... } 41. Kf2 { The
King has to come to f2; it's the only possible move to escape check (Kxh1 is
impossible because the g3-Knight guards the Queen). The King move creates a
discovered attack on the Black Queen by the e1-Rook. } 41... Qh4 { The Black Queen
moves out of danger, retreating to a file where it has easy access to both
sides of the board. But the e5-pawn is left hanging... } 42. Qxe5+ { ...a fact
which is not lost on White, who siezes the chance to grab the pawn and set up
a double attack (checking the Black King and threatening the Rook on c7)! } 42... Kg8 { The King is forced to retreat. Blocking check by advancing the f-pawn doesn't
work: after Qxc7, Black would be in check again, would have to lose his other
Rook, and would soon be mated! See the variation. } (42... f6 { Blocking the
check by advancing the f-pawn leads to a quick end for Black, as we'll soon
see... } 43. Qxc7+ { If your opponent is going to let you grab all of his pieces
for free, take them -- especially if it leads to a forced mate! } 43... Kg8 { The
Black King is forced to go to the back rank (g6 is off-limits due to the White
f-pawn's influence). } 44. Qxd8+ { White grabs more material. Mate is now only a
move away... } 44... Kg7 { It makes no difference whether the Black King moves to f7,
g7, or h7; the end result is still the same... } 45. Re7# { ...CHECKMATE! All of
this was caused by one little pawn push. Once that pawn advanced, mate was
inevitable. The moral of the story is: choose all of your moves carefully --
any miscalculation could be your last one! }) 43. Qxc7 { White would obviously
grab the free material. Now the d8-Rook is threatened, but Black doesn't plan
to give White the chance to capture it... } 43... Ne4+ { The Knight springs back and
reveals a double check! The Knight and Queen both check the White King. } 44. Kg1 { The ONLY way to get out of a double check is to move the King. However,
White had to be careful here: if he'd been silly enough to play Kf1 (to guard
the e1-Rook), Black would have ended it with ...Qf2#! } 44... Qxe1+ { As it is, the
White Rook is lost and the White King is in check again. } 45. Kh2 { The King
has to retreat to h2. Although Bf1 looks perfectly safe, it leads to tough
times for White! See the variation. } (45. Bf1 { It looks like White is
perfectly safe in blocking check with his Bishop, but this choice leads to a
draw at best and a loss for White at worst! } 45... Qf2+ { The Black Queen checks yet
again! The Black d8-Rook has been hanging for several turns, but Black has no
intention of giving White a chance to capture it! } 46. Kh1 { The White King is
forced to move again. The King could also have gone to h2, which would lead to
a draw by threefold repetition (46.Kh2 Qh4+ 47.Kg1 Qf2+ 48.Kh2 Qh4+, etc.). } 46... Qxf1+ { The Queen grabs the White Bishop and checks the King again. } 47. Kh2 { White plays his only possible move to get out of check. } 47... Rd2 { Black has
finally run out of checks, so he brings his Rook into the attack. Now Black is
threatening a checkmate by ...Qxg2! How should White respond? } 48. Rb8+ { With a check of his own! Now it's the Black King's turn to run... } 48... Kg7 { The only move. If Black plays ...Kh7, then Qxf7 is mate! } 49. Qe5+ { White
springs another double attack, this time checking the Black King and menacing
the Black Knight. } 49... Nf6 { The Black Knight leaps to f6 to block the check. Now
White has to stop the threatened mate on g2. } 50. Qg3 { The Queen comes to the
rescue of the White King, preventing Black from mating with ...Qxg2. } 50... Rxc2 { The Rook gobbles the c2-pawn, while keeping up the pressure on the g2-pawn.
Black could also have tried ...Ne4, but if White responds Qe5+ it leads to a
draw, and if White tries Qh3 the g2 pawn is still covered by the White Queen. } 51. Rb4 { White brings his Rook to a point where it can get into the action on
the Kingside. } 51... Rc1 { This move of the Black Rook sets up a new mating threat.
Black threatens Qh1#. } 52. Kh3 { White moves the King forward to give it an
escape square on g4. Black is a piece and pawn ahead, but the fight is far
from over. Even so, with proper play, Black should have no trouble winning
from this position. }) 45... Qh4+ { The Black Queen checks yet again. } 46. Kg1 { The White King comes back... } 46... Qe1+ { ...and the Black Queen checks again! This
will shortly lead to a draw by threefold repetition of the position. }) 41. Rxe5 { WHAM! Another startling sacrifice! Lasker seems determined to give away
material in return for other forms of advantage. In this case, he gives up a
Rook in order to obtain a strong attack against Black. } 41... fxe5 { Unlike the last
time White offered to give up a Rook, Bogo this time takes him up on the offer. } 42. Qxe5+ { Now Lasker unleashes a double attack against Black, checking the
King and attacking the c7-Rook. } 42... Kg8 { Bogoljubow has no choice but to retreat
the King, leaving his c7-Rook to White's tender mercy. } 43. Rb4 { Another
surprise move! Lasker leaves the c7-Rook alone for the moment and goes after
the Black Queen instead! } 43... Qh1+ { But Bogo has a forcing move up his sleeve. He
attempts to grab back the initiative by checking the White King. } 44. Kf2 { The attempt to sieze the initiative fails,
because White's still has a double attack: the Queen now threatens both the
c7-Rook and g3-Knight with capture! } { [%csl Rc7,Rg3][%cal Re5c7,Re5g3] } 44... Rf7 { Faced with the choice of losing
either a Rook or a Knight, Bogo goes with the lesser of two evils and decides
to give up the Knight. } 45. Rb8 { WOW! Lasker is relentless in the pursuit of a
Black Rook for his trophy case! } 45... Rxb8 { Bogo decides to trade Rooks. If he
plays ...Rdf8, White's reply Bc4 puts the f7-Rook in an ugly pin, while ...
Rff8 leads to Black's sad demise (see the variation). } (45... Rff8 { If Black
would have played ...Rff8, it leads to a forced mate. Take a moment and see if
you can spot the winning combination... } 46. Bc4+ { Since it's a forced mate,
you should look for forcing moves like checks. } 46... Kh7 { The Black King is forced
to get out of the line of fire. } 47. Rb7+ { White plays another forcing move
(another check). } 47... Rd7 { The d-Rook tries valiantly to block the check... } 48. Rxd7+ { ...but to no avail. The White Rook rudely bowls the Black d-Rook over
in its headlong rush to get to the Black King. } 48... Rf7 { The second Rook bravely
throws itself into the path of the oncoming White locomotive... } 49. Rxf7+ { ...and like its brother, is mashed flat by the White juggernaut. } 49... Kg8 { The
Black King makes a last-ditch effort to save himself... } 50. Qg7# { ...but
White will not be denied the scalp of the Black King! Checkmate! }) 46. Qxb8+ { Lasker completes the trade and checks the
Black King as well! Also it's a double attack because the g3-Knight is still
squarely in the White Queen's sights! } { [%csl Rg3,Rg8][%cal Rb8g8,Rb8g3] } 46... Kg7 { Rather than try to block the check
with ...Rf8 and have to face Bc4+, Bogo still hides the King behind the Rook,
but on the next rank instead. } 47. Qe5+ { Lasker, down a Rook for a pawn,
doesn't see much chance of winning the game even if he does grab the g3-Knight.
So he plays to force a draw instead. } 47... Kf8 { Bogo doesn't like the looks of 47...
Kh7 (which leads to a forced mate for White -- see the variation), so he
decides to settle for the draw. } (47... Kh7 { If the King retreats to h7
instead, it leads to a pretty gruesome finish for Black (as we'll soon see...). } 48. f6+ { The clever pawn push by White uncovers a
check from the White Bishop. } { [%csl Rh7][%cal Rd3h7] } 48... Ne4+ { Black blocks check with the Knight (this
is known as "interposing"). } 49. Qxe4+ { Not that the interposition of the
Knight did a lot of good. White just grabs it with the Queen and checks Black
again. } 49... Kg8 { The King is forced to run away to g8. } 50. Qe8+ { The White Queen
ruthlessly checks again... } 50... Rf8 { ...and Black is forced to interpose his Rook
to thwart the check. } 51. Qg6+ { Undaunted, White checks the Black King yet
again. It won't be long now... } 51... Kh8 { The Black King is forced to cower in the
corner. } 52. Qh7# { White administers the lethal blow. Checkmate! }) 48. Qb8+ { Lasker returns his Queen to b8. } 48... Kg7 { The King hides again. } 49. Qe5+ { The
Queen checks again. The players are headed for a draw by threefold repetition
(if the exact same board position occurs three times in the same game, the
game is declared a draw). } 49... Kf8 { The King moves to f8 again. } 50. Qb8+ { The
draw is obvious, but the players continue to go through the formalities. } 50... Kg7 { Again, the Black King hides behind the Rook } 51. Qe5+ { And Lasker repeats the
position for the third time. This incredible, hard-fought game, ends in a draw. } 1/2-1/2

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.17"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Yates, Frederick"]
[Black "Janowski, Dawid"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[PlyCount "91"]
[ECO "C79"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 { Yates (White) opens aggressively by advancing his e-pawn, grabbing
center space and allowing his light-square Bishop and Queen to develop freely. } 1... e5 { Janowski (Black) opens his game in the same manner, carving out some of
the center for himself and giving his Queen and dark-square Bishop the ability
to develop freely. } 2. Nf3 { Yates continues his development. He develops his
Knight toward the center and at the same time makes a threat: he threatens to
capture the Black e-pawn. } 2... Nc6 { Janowski is forced to respond to White's
threat. He develops one of his Knights and defends his menaced e-pawn at the
same time. } 3. Bb5 { This move initiates the Ruy Lopez
opening. Yates puts pressure on the Black center with this move -- if the
Black d-pawn advances, the c6-Knight will find itself pinned to the King! } { [%csl Rc6][%cal Rb5c6] } 3... a6 { Janowski decides to kick out the offending Bishop by
attacking it with his a-pawn. Will Yates now retreat the Bishop or exchange it
for the c6-Knight? } { [%csl Rb5][%cal Ra6b5] } 4. Ba4 { The Englishman retreats his Bishop. Before giving
Black the advantage of two Bishops vs. two Knights (see Glossary), Yates wants
to see how the game will develop. He decides to preserve his Bishop pair until
later. } 4... Nf6 { Now Janowski develops and makes his own threat. In addition to
centralizing the Knight, he threatens to capture the White e-pawn. (This isn't
a real threat, however, as we'll soon see). } 5. O-O { Master practice has shown
that Black can take the e4-pawn, but he can't hold on to this one-pawn
advantage. Knowing this, Yates decides to castle to get his King off of the
half-open e-file and develop his Rook toward the center. } 5... d6 { Janowski
advances his d-pawn to insure the safety of his e5-pawn. Now his c8-Bishop is
free to develop, but his f8-Bishop is buried and his Knight on c6 is pinned! } (5... Nxe4 { If Black dares to capture the pawn... } 6. Qe2 { The White Queen simply attacks the Knight. } { [%csl Re4][%cal Re2e4] } 6... Nf6 { The Knight must withdraw. Now the Black e-pawn is pinned and can
be captured... } { [%csl Ye2,Ye3,Ye4,Ye5,Ye6,Ye7,Ye8] } 7. Nxe5 { White can now force a series of exchanges which will
even the material. } 7... Qe7 8. Re1 Nxe5 9. Qxe5 Qxe5 10. Rxe5+ Be7) 6. Re1 { The White Rook slides over to one of the vital center files and also protects
the e4-pawn. } 6... b5 { Janowski violently breaks the pin on his Knight by lashing
out at the offending White Bishop. Now Yates must move it or lose it! } 7. Bb3 { Obviously, Yates must move the Bishop to the only square available to it! } 7... Na5 { Now Janowski's Knight boldly charges ahead and attacks the White Bishop
again! Where can the embattled Bishop go? It's trapped! The squares a4, c4,
and d5 are all off-limits... } 8. d4 { Since the Bishop is lost, Yates decides
to grab some more of the center. Now he threatens the Black e5-pawn and has
cleared a path for his dark-square Bishop to develop freely. } (8. Bd5 { The
attacked White Bishop could conceivably have come here to d5. Let's find out
what might have happened if it had... } 8... Nxd5 { Certainly, the Black Knight would
have captured it. } 9. exd5 { Then White would have recaptured with the pawn. } 9... e4 { Black advances his e-pawn and attacks the White f3-Knight. } 10. Nd4 { The
Knight must move, so it goes to the only available square where it will not
immediately be captured by the Black Queen. } 10... c5 { Black attacks the Knight
again and grabs control of some more of the Queenside. } 11. Nc6 { Instead of
capturing the Black c-pawn en passant, the White Knight moves again, jumping
to a square where it attacks both the Black a5-Knight and Queen. } 11... Nxc6 { Black has to recapture with the Knight, or else he'll lose a piece. } 12. dxc6 { And White must recapture or he would be behind by a piece. } 12... Qc7 { Now Black
threatens the c6-pawn. White has no way to defend it, so the pawn is lost.
Look at the board. Blacks has a piece and five pawns developed to only one
pawn and a castled Rook for White! This position is NOT good for White! }) 8... Nxb3 { Janowski finally snares the Bishop that he's been stalking for several
moves. } 9. axb3 { Usually, when faced with a choice of which of two pawns to
recapture with, you should capture toward the center. Yates follows this
advice, takes the Knight, and now may be able to develop his Rook later along
the a-file. } 9... Bb7 { Janowski fianchettos his light-square Bishop, simultaneously
developing it and attacking the White e4-pawn. Since the pawn is attacked
twice and defended just once, Yates needs to find a move that protects the
pawn. } 10. dxe5 { Yates springs a surprise: he takes Black's e-pawn instead of
defending his own! Now the Black Knight on f6 is threatened. } 10... Nxe4 { As long as
Janowski is forced to move the f6-Knight, he might as well capture the White
pawn on e5! Notice that White can't reply Rxe4 because of ...Bxe4. Now Black's
Knight is nicely centralized. } 11. Nc3 { Yates isn't happy with the Black
Knight's central post, so he hopes to bait Janowski into playing ...Nxc3. If
Janowski doesn't opt to trade Knights, then Yates always has the option of
playing Nxe4 later. } 11... d5 { Janowski shores up his Knight on e4. Now if White
plays Nxe4, Black replies ...dxe4. Then the well-placed Black pawn on e4
threatens the f3-Knight, plus it's protected by the b7-Bishop! } 12. Nd4 { Black's light-square Bishop on b7 can't control the c8-h3 diagonal. Yates sees
an opportunity to start posting pieces on this diagonal. He repositions his
Knight in preparation to play Nf5, trying to get closer to Black's position. } 12... Qd7 { Janowski sees where the White d4-Knight is heading, so he posts his Queen
on the c8-h3 diagonal in order to deny it to White's Knight. } 13. e6 { Yates is
now troubled by the possibility of an attack on his d4-Knight by either ...
c7-c5 or ...Bc5, so he sets up his own threat in order to head Black off at
the pass. Watch... } 13... fxe6 { Since his Queen was attacked by the White e6-pawn,
Janowski is forced to either move his Queen or capture the White pawn. He
chooses the latter option. } 14. Qg4 { Now Yates' threat becomes apparent: he's
piling up on the Black e6-pawn. He threatens to win back the pawn he
sacrificed on his last move. } 14... O-O-O { Janowski could have protected the e6-pawn
with ...Bc8, but he decides to give back the sacrificed pawn and castles
instead. Now his King is out of the center (where it was becoming exposed and
endangered). } 15. Qxe6 { The Englishman wins back his pawn and offers to trade
Queens with Janowski. } 15... Bb4 { Janowski springs his own threat: he wants to play
16...Nxc3 17.bxc3 Bxc3!, forking White's d4-Knight and both of his Rooks! How
will Yates respond? } 16. Nxe4 { After coolly thinking his way through the
problem, Yates grabs the Black e4-Knight and offers his own e1-Rook in
exchange! Janowski stares at the board in disbelief for a moment, shakes his
head, and begins to think... } 16... dxe4 { Janowski ponders the position for a long
time, then recaptures the Knight on e4! Why didn't he take the e1-Rook with
his Bishop? See the variation to find out. } (16... Bxe1 { In this variation (by
Alekhine) we'll see that 16...Bxe1 doesn't actually win any material for Black. } 17. Nc5 { The White Knight leaps to c5 and
forks Black's Queen and Bishop. } { [%csl Rb7,Rd7][%cal Rc5b7,Rc5d7] } 17... Qxe6 { Black is forced to capture here -- it's
the ONLY move that makes sense (remember that the Black Queen couldn't move:
it was pinned by the White Queen and it didn't have a safe square to retreat
to anyway!). } 18. Ndxe6 { White has his choice of Knight captures; he opts to
take with the d4-Knight. } 18... Bb4 { Black retracts the Bishop to threaten White's
c5-Knight, hoping to dissuade White from leaving it unprotected after Nxd8.
Fat chance... } 19. Nxd8 { White grabs the Rook while he has the chance. Now
Black has a choice of captures: ...Rxd8 or ...Bxc5. } 19... Bxc5 { Black likes this
better than ...Rxd8. Now both of the Black Bishops bear down on White's
castled King. } 20. Ne6 { White has to retreat the Knight,
so he does so with the threat of Nxc5. } { [%csl Rc5][%cal Re6c5] } 20... Bb6 { Black gets his Bishop out of
danger. } 21. Be3 { And White attacks it again. Now Black must play ...Bxd3 (...
c7-c5 doesn't work: Bxc5 Bxc5, Nxc5 and the b7-Bishop is threatened). After
the Bishops are swapped, White should have no trouble defending this position. }) 17. c3 { Yates advances his pawn to drive off Black's b4-Bishop. } 17... Bc5 { The Bishop, forced to retreat, threatens to capture the
White Knight (the White Queen's sole protector!). He also threatens to stick
White with an isolated d-pawn (after ...Bxd4, cxd4). } { [%csl Rd4][%cal Rc5d4] } 18. Be3 { Yates prevents
the possibility of getting an isolated d-pawn with this move. Now if Janowski
plays ...Bxd4, Yates will simply reply Bxd4 and not be stuck with an isolated
pawn. } 18... Rhe8 { Janowski decides to mix it up. Here he attacks the White Queen
and forces White to make a decision: whether to trade Queens or retreat the
White Queen to h3. } 19. Qxd7+ { Yates makes the logical choice and trades
Queens, checking the Black King. To see the consequences of Qh3, check out the
variation. } (19. Qh3 { This move by White would lead to a severe weakening of
the White King's position. } 19... Qxh3 { Black trades Queens, forcing White to
recapture. } 20. gxh3 { Now White has VERY weak doubled h-pawns, which can never
be protected by another pawn. The f2-pawn is also isolated and weak, and
there's also a whopping hole in White's Kingside. }) 19... Rxd7 { Of course,
Janowski makes the logical move and captures the White Queen. The Black Rooks
can double up on one of the center files now, too, if Janowski chooses. } 20. b4 { Yates keeps on pushing at the Black Bishop. Now two of his three Queenside
pawns are protected, and Black is forced to spend a tempo to relocate his
Bishop. } 20... Bf8 { The Black Bishop slips back to f8, because on d6 or e7 it blocks
the Black Rooks, and on a7 or b6 it could easily be attacked by the White
e3-Bishop once the White Knight moves (and Black wants to keep the advantage
of two Bishops). } 21. Nb3 { The White Knight drops back into the pocket, and
now can easily set up an outpost on a5 or c5. The only problem with c5 is the
possibility of Black playing ...Bxc5. } 21... Rd3 { The main problem with White's last
Knight move was that it cleared the d-file for Black's Rook, which scoots down
to d3 and sets up its own outpost. } 22. Bc5 { Yates solves two problems with
this move: first, the problem of how to set up a safe Knight outpost on c5 and
second, how to dislodge the Black Rook on d3. Watch what happens... } 22... Bxc5 { Janowski sees that he can't get his Bishop off of the a3-f8 diagonal. He
figures that since he's going to lose it anyway (after White plays Bxf8) he
might as well take the initiative and make the swap on c5. } 23. Nxc5 { Janowski is probably cursing under his breath. He's
given Yates just what he wanted: a Knight outpost near the Black King. The
Knight now also forks the d3-Rook and Black's remaining Bishop! } { [%csl Rb7,Rd3][%cal Rc5b7,Rc5d3] } 23... Rd2 { It's a
great idea to post a Rook on your seventh rank (your opponent's second rank)
whenever you can do it safely. In fact, get BOTH Rooks there if you can and
set up a lateral battery along the seventh rank. } 24. Re3 { With this move,
Yates prevents the Black e4-pawn from advancing to get out of danger. Now two
White pieces are still attacking the Black pawn. White doesn't want to capture
it immediately because he'd give up his Knight outpost on c5. } 24... Rf8 { Janowski
realizes that just moving the Rook to f8 threatens ...Rfxf2, and White can't
reply Kxf2 because of the presence of the other Rook on d2! Black would have a
mighty Rook battery on the seventh rank! } 25. Rf1 { Yates has no chioce but to
defend the f2-pawn to prevent Janowski from obtaining his seventh-rank Rook
battery. But now the b2-pawn is hanging... } 25... Rxb2 { ...so Janowski captures it.
He smiles slightly as he greedily eyes the weak c3-pawn. If he can somehow get
the White Rook off of the sixth rank... } 26. Nxe4 { Yates saves him the trouble
of devising a complex plan. Seeing that his Knight outpost didn't do him much
good because of the Black counterattack, Yates starts an exchange that wins
back the pawn he just lost. } 26... Bxe4 { Janowski swaps off his Bishop (which has
been pretty inactive so far) for White's active Knight. } 27. Rxe4 { Yates has
to recapture or he'll be behind by a minor piece. Now the Rook is no longer
guarding the c3-pawn... } 27... Rc2 { ...so Janowski attacks it. } 28. Re3 { The Rook
must come back and protect the c3-pawn. } 28... Rf6 { Janowski advances his Rook. He's
thinking of playing ...Rc6 to strike at the White c-pawn a second time. } 29. h4 { Yates begins the advance of his Kingside pawns. He wants to exploit his 3-2
pawn superiority on the Kingside. } 29... Kd7 { Janowski wants to prevent White from
playing Re7. His King now guards that square and takes it away from White. } (29... Rc6 { We'll look at what happens if Black tries an immediate attack on
the c3-pawn. (Variation by Alekhine). } 30. h5 { White advances his pawn to set
up what is to come... } 30... R2xc3 { Black captures the pawn. Now he's a pawn ahead,
but not for long. } 31. Re7 { The White Rook advances to
the seventh rank. Now either the Black g- or h-pawns will fall to the White
e7-Rook. The Rook also restrains Black's King and White would have an
overwhelming Kingside pawn majority. } { [%csl Rg7][%cal Re7g7] }) 30. h5 { Yates continues to advance his
h-pawn, grabbing as much space as he can. } 30... Rd2 { Janowski gives up on the idea
of winning the c3-pawn (see the variation), and decides to prevent White's
possible "annoyance" check (via Rd3 or Rd1). } (30... Rc6 { We'll see that in
this variation the players would reach a position similar to the last
alternate line we looked at. (Variation by Alekhine). } 31. Rd1+ { White checks
the Black King to drive it off the d7-square, freeing up e7 for his other Rook. } 31... Kc8 { The King must retreat (...Rd6 provokes the exchange of a set of Rooks,
which is probably to White's advantage). } 32. Re7 { Now we see a position like the one in the last variation. Black can
capture the c3-pawn, but one of his Kingside pawns will fall as well. } { [%csl Rc3,Rg7][%cal Re7g7] }) 31. f4 { Yates grabs more Kingside territory. Notice that as the f-pawn
advances, the f-Rook's sphere of influence expands. White now owns f1-f4 and
can double up his Rooks on the third rank or attack Black's d-Rook with Rf1-f2. } { [%cal Gf1f3] } 31... g6 { Janowski tries to stop the White Kingside expansion. Now f4-f5 might not
be so good for White. } 32. h6 { The White h-pawn advances and fixes the Black
h7-pawn in place. Now it'll be very hard for Black to get anything going on
the Kingside. } 32... Re6 { Janowski offers to swap Rooks with Yates. Since White's
position is better, Janowski hopes to weaken it with an exchange of heavy
pieces. } 33. Rfe1 { Yates thinks, "Nothing doing!". He props up his menaced
e3-Rook. Now Black can still trade Rooks, but the trade on e3 is better for
White than the same swap on e6 (since after ...Kxe6 the Black King would be
much more centralized). } 33... Rxe3 { Janowski must retreat or trade. He decides to
knock a pair of Rooks off the board. } 34. Rxe3 { Yates completes the
transaction. Now how will the Frenchman proceed? } 34... c5 { Janowski starts the
mobilization of his Queenside. He'll try to convert his extra Queenside pawn
into a passed pawn. } 35. Re1 { The White Rook steps back to the first rank to
have unobstructed access to the Queenside. From here it can shift to the
Queenside files and thwart Black's attempts at gaining a passed pawn. } (35. bxc5 { Why can't White just play bxc5? Watch... } 35... a5 { YOW! Now Black has a
passed a-pawn (with an escort on the b-file), while White is stuck with weak
doubled pawns on the c-file! }) 35... cxb4 { Janowski picks off the b-pawn. Now
he anticipates 36.cxb4 Rd4 and he'll have his choice of either the White
b-pawn or f-pawn. } 36. cxb4 { Yates makes the capture. If he doesn't, Black's ..
.bxc3 nets the c-pawn for free. Yates decides that his pawn should sell its
life dearly and at least take a Black pawn with it. } 36... Rd4 { As anticipated, Janowski pulls back his Rook and lashes out at
two White pawns at the same time. Which one will Yates protect? } { [%csl Rb4,Rf4][%cal Rd4b4,Rd4f4] } 37. Ra1 { Neither one! Yates decides to do a little board-clearing of his own. } 37... Rxb4 { Janowski snaps off White's last Queenside pawn. Now there are (temporarily)
two Black connected passed pawns on the Queenside. } 38. Rxa6 { Correction: make
that ONE Black passed pawn on the Queenside. Since the Black Rook obstructs
the path of its own pawn's advance, Black could have a tough time promoting
the pawn. } 38... Rxf4 { Janowski's Rook gobbles up another White pawn. Now White can
use the tactic known as a "skewer" to win another pawn. Can you spot the move? } 39. Ra7+ { The White Rook checks Black's
King, which has to move to escape check. This clears a path straight to the
Black h-pawn. This tactic is called a "skewer" (and it's easy to see why it's
sometimes called an "x-ray attack"). } { [%csl Ya7,Yb7,Yc7,Yd7,Ye7,Yf7,Yg7,Rh7] } 39... Kc6 { The Black King must move out of
check. Here it goes to a square where it can provide protection for the
b5-pawn. } 40. Rxh7 { Yates completes his combination by nailing the h-pawn. } 40... Rh4 { Janowski attacks the White h-pawn. He hopes that by threatening the pawn he
can keep the White Rook on the h-file, preventing the Rook from attacking the
Black passed b-pawn. } 41. Kf2 { Yates' King starts heading for the Queenside in
order to prevent the promotion of the Black b-pawn. } 41... b4 { The b-pawn begins
racing for the eighth rank and promotion. } 42. Rh8 { The Rook goes to the
eighth rank to be able to get to the b-file without being captured by the
Black King. } 42... b3 { The b-pawn single-mindedly continues its march to death or
glory. } 43. Rb8 { Yates brings his Rook to the b-file and attacks the b-pawn
(which cannot be defended and is lost). But the White h6-pawn is hanging, so
Black can make an even swap (passed pawn for passed pawn). } 43... Rxh6 { Obviously.
Otherwise Janowski gives up his b-pawn for nothing. } 44. Rxb3 { Yates finally
grabs Black's passed pawn. Now what? } 44... Kd6 { The Black King starts to head back
over to the Kingside to guard the last Black pawn. This will free up the Black
Rook for other duties. } 45. Re3 { White's Rook cuts off the Black King, setting up an "invisible force field" on
the e-file that the Black King can't cross. } { [%csl Ye1,Ye2,Ye3,Ye4,Ye5,Ye6,Ye7,Ye8] } 45... Rh5 { Janowski wants to get his
King off of the same rank as his pawn. He advances the Rook rather than
pulling it back a rank in order to keep it between his King and the White
forces. } 46. Kg3 { With equal forces and the pawns on the same file, the game
should eventually wind down into a draw. The players themselves reach this
assessment and agree to call it quits here. The game is drawn. } 1/2-1/2

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.18"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Alekhine, Alexander"]
[Black "Lasker, Emanuel"]
[Result "0-1"]
[PlyCount "72"]
[ECO "D35"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 { Chess openings revolve around the struggle to occupy, control, or influence
the center. Alekhine (White) occupies d4 with a pawn. The pawn controls c5 and
e5, the Queen controls d2 and d3, and the c1-Bishop controls d2-h6. } { [%csl Gc5,Gd2,Gd3,Ge3,Ge5,Gf4,Gg5,Gh6][%cal Gd4c5,Gd4e5,Gd1d3,Gc1h6] } 1... d5 { Lasker
(Black) controls his own piece of the center. The Black pawn on d5 stops any
further advance of White's d-pawn into Black territory. } { [%csl Gc4,Gd6,Gd7,Ge4,Ge6,Gf5,Gg4,Gh3][%cal Gd5c4,Gd5e4,Gd8d6,Gc8h3] } 2. c4 { Alekhine
advances the c-pawn in an effort to goad Black into trading a vital center
pawn (his d-pawn) for a less-valuable White flank pawn (the c-pawn). } 2... e6 { Lasker knows that White's ultimate goal here is to play e2-e4 and gain a
central pawn duo on d4 and e4. After e7-e6, he insures that he'll still have a
pawn on d5 (to prevent e2-e4) even after pawns are swapped on d5 (cxd5, exd5). } 3. Nf3 { The White Kingside Knight develops to a useful square where it keeps
an eye on the White d-pawn or can possibly leap to an outpost square on e5
later. } 3... Nf6 { Lasker has much the same idea with his Knight move. He
overprotects the pawn on d5, eyes a possible outpost on e4, starts clearing
the deck for Kingside castling, and seeks to prevent the White pawn push e2-e4. } 4. Nc3 { Alekhine develops another minor piece,
strikes out at the d5-pawn again, and adds the influence of another piece to
e4, trying to support the planned e2-e4 pawn advance. } { [%csl Ge4][%cal Gc3e4] } 4... Nbd7 { Lasker develops his other Knight. He protects the f6-Knight and
supports his own possible pawn advance from e6 to e5 (at an opportune moment). } { [%csl Ge5][%cal Gd7e5] } 5. cxd5 { Alekhine decides that the time is right to trade a flank pawn for a
more valuable center pawn. } 5... exd5 { Lasker recaptures. Would 5...Nxd5 have
worked? See the variation. } (5... Nxd5 { Here we'll see that capturing with the
Knight would actually HELP White's game... } 6. e4 { Rather than 6.Nxd5, White
plays 6.e4 (which is really what he's wanted all along). Now the Black Knight
is forced to move. } 6... Nxc3 { Capturing White's Knight is Black's best bet here. 6.
..Nf6 only prompts White to play 7.e5 and kick the Knight again. } 7. bxc3 { Now White has the d4-e4 pawn center he's dreamed of, open diagonals for the
development of his Bishops, and a half-open b-file for his a-Rook. No wonder
Black didn't play this variation in the actual game! }) 6. Bf4 { Alekhine
develops another minor piece. He's looking at the possibility of posting a
piece at e5. The usual move here is Bg5, pinning the Black f6-Knight to the
Queen. } 6... c6 { Lasker allows his Queen access to the Queenside via
the a5-d8 diagonal, and keep White from launching a double attack against his
c7-pawn after 7.Nb5. } { [%cal Yd8a5] } 7. e3 { Alekhine props up his Bishop, and at
the same time gives his Kingside Bishop a route to get off the first rank (via
the a6-f1 diagonal). Notice that he moved his dark-square Bishop first, so
that it wouldn't get trapped behind the pawn. } { [%cal Yf1a6] } 7... Nh5 { Lasker launches a sortie
against the well-placed f4-Bishop. Notice that the Bishop can't move to escape
capture; it's attacked no matter where it moves. The Bishop is Black's if he
wants it. } 8. Bd3 { Rather than waste time on fruitless moves of the f4-Bishop,
Alekhine continues his development by moving his last Kingside minor piece.
Now the way is clear for castling Kingside. } 8... Nxf4 { Lasker trades his Knight
for White's bad Bishop. } 9. exf4 { Alekhine recaptures. Black has won White's
bad Bishop and saddled him with doubled f-pawns, but it took him three Knight
moves to do it. Black has fallen way behind in development. } 9... Bd6 { In an effort to make up some of his lost time, Lasker develops a
piece and simultaneously threatens the White f4-pawn. In your own games,
develop with a threat whenever possible. } { [%csl Rf4][%cal Rd6f4] } 10. g3 { Alekhine shores up his endangered f4-pawn. But now the light squares on
his Kingside are incredibly weak. This is especially true of f3 and h3, as no
White pawns can ever guard those squares again. } { [%csl Ye2,Ye4,Yf3,Yg2,Yg4,Yh3] } 10... O-O { Lasker continues his
development by castling. Now his King is safe behind a protective wall of
pawns, and his Kingside Rook is a move away from taking over the open e-file. } 11. O-O { Neither the Kingside nor Queenside pawn structures look particularly
safe for a castled King, but White has to get the King out of the center
before Black plays 11...Re8+. Alekhine bites the bullet and castles Kingside. } 11... Re8 { The old chess adage bears repeating: Rooks belong on open
files! Lasker knows this, and siezes the open e-file. Now he's only one move
behind in development but getting his c8-Bishop out is going to be a problem. } { [%cal Ge8e1] } 12. Qc2 { Alekhine grabs the opportunity to develop his
Queen with a threat. He's threatening to win a pawn with Bxh7 (Black couldn't
recapture with his King because the Bishop is protected by the Queen). } { [%csl Rh7][%cal Rd3h7] } 12... Nf8 { Rather than create a weakness in his Kingside pawn
structure with g7-g6 (which would weaken f6 and h6), Lasker repositions his
Knight in order to guard the h7-pawn. This also solves the problem of how to
get his c8-Bishop out. } { [%cal Gf8h7,Yc8h3] } 13. Nd1 { Alekhine begins to reposition
his Knight (since it's not doing much on c3). He's heading for e3 obviously,
where the Knight will have a little more play. } { [%cal Yd1e3] } 13... f6 { Lasker prevents White from establishing a Knight outpost on either e5
or g5. He's trying to grab space and restrict White to his own half of the
board. } { [%csl Ge5,Gg5][%cal Gf6e5] } 14. Ne3 { Alekhine's Knight jumps again, closing off part
of the e-file to Black's Rook on e8. But this move has another purpose. He's
trying to control f5... } { [%cal Ge3f5] } 14... Be6 { Lasker finally gets his Bishop off of the first
rank. He doesn't attack the Kingside by moving the Bishop to g4 or h3, because
White has too many options there for an immediate attack to work. The Bishop
is held in reserve instead. } 15. Nh4 { Alekhine prepares a Kingside attack. Now
he has complete control of f5, and will probably post a Knight here. A White
Knight on f5 will attack the Black d6-Bishop. White hopes to trade a Knight
for one of Black's two Bishops. } 15... Bc7 { Lasker stops
White's threat before it even gets started by moving the target of the attack.
But there's an ulterior motive to this move: Black will try to play Bc7-b6 and
attack White's isolated d-pawn. } { [%csl Rd4][%cal Gc7b6] } 16. b4 { Alekhine launches a "minority attack".
The b-pawn is a "kamikaze" that will try to sacrifice itself in order to
create weaknesses on Black's Queenside. Watch and see... } 16... Bb6 { Lasker can't do much yet about the kamikaze pawn, so he sticks with his
plan to attack the isolated d-pawn. He follows a good principle: don't switch
plans in the middle of an operation without an important reason. } { [%csl Rd4][%cal Rb6d4] } 17. Nf3 { Alekhine withdraws the Knight to protect the menaced d-pawn. Why didn't he
just play Qc3? Because it conflicts with his plan to advance the kamikaze pawn.
You'll see... } 17... Bf7 { Lasker starts to maneuver his Bishop to h5,
where it will attack the hanging Knight at f3. The two Bishops are acting like
a pair of scissors, striking at the center from two directions at once. } { [%cal Yf7h5] } 18. b5 { The kamikaze pawn advances again. Now White threatens to win a pawn with 19.
bxc6 bxc6 20.Qxc6. But as soon as he moves the pawn, Alekhine grimaces! Too
late, he spotted a better move! See the variation. } (18. Bf5 { In this
variation (by Alekhine himself, with additions by Tartakower), we see the
alternate move that Alekhine spotted too late. This Bishop move takes the
sting out of Black's threatened ...Bf7-h5. } 18... Bh5 { Black carries out his threat. } 19. Bg4 { White interposes the Bishop (protected by the e3-Knight). } 19... Rxe3 { Black might try to knock out the defending Knight (in a tactic known as
"removing the guard")... } 20. Bxh5 { ...but White could just nail the hanging
Black Bishop. Now Black has lost the advantage of the Bishop pair. True, the
Black Rook on e3 is an annoyance, but White should be able to hold the
position and get an even game. }) 18... Bh5 { Lasker proceeds to threaten the
f3-Knight with his Bishop. } 19. g4 { Alekhine
defends it by interposing the g-pawn, which also counterattacks the Bishop.
But the White Kingside looks sick, with a hanging f-pawn and holes for Black
to invade later. } { [%csl Ye2,Ye4,Yf3,Yg2,Yh3,Yh4] } 19... Bf7 { Discretion is the better part of valour. The Bishop
retreats, having no intention of sacrificing itself for a lowly pawn. } 20. bxc6 { Alekhine proceeds with his plan to win a pawn on the Queenside. The kamikaze
grabs the Black c-pawn. } 20... Rc8 { AH-HA! Lasker
temporarily sacrifices the pawn, but ONLY temporarily, as the White c6-pawn is
pinned to the White Queen! The White pawn can't take the Black b7-pawn,
because of Black's reply ...Rxc2! } { [%csl Yc2,Yc3,Yc4,Yc5,Yc6,Yc7,Yc8] } 21. Qb2 { Alekhine curses under his breath.
He has no choice but to get his Queen out of the line of fire, moving it to a
square where it still defends the isolated d4-pawn. } 21... bxc6 { Lasker gets his
pawn back with ease. While it's true that the c-file is closed to his Rook,
the b-file is wide open should he choose to shift the Rook to b8. He can also
now hit the d4-pawn again with c6-c5 if he wants to try that. } 22. f5 { Alekhine strengthens his sickly f-pawn by advancing it. He
also takes e6 away from the Black Knight, preventing it from invading White's
Kingside via e6 and f4. } { [%csl Ge6][%cal Gf5e6] } 22... Qd6 { Lasker advances his Queen to a new
post, from which it prepares to invade the White position by moving to f4. At
f4 it will attack both the White f3-Knight and g4-pawn. } { [%cal Yd6f4] } 23. Ng2 { Alekhine
drops the Knight back to defend f4, keeping the Black Queen from occupying it. } 23... Bc7 { Lasker sees that the dark-square Bishop's options are limited on b6, so
he pulls it back to c7 where it forms a battery in conjunction with the Black
Queen. The b-file is now open, ready for a Black Rook to occupy b8. } 24. Rfe1 { Alekhine sees that his position is inferior to Black's. He seeks to trade off
Rooks on the e-file, clearing off a possible future attacker and simplifying
the game. } 24... h5 { Lasker attempts to wreck the White Kingside even further. If 25.
gxh5, then ...Bxh5 clears out more lines for Black's attack and brings in
another attacking piece (the Bishop, which attacks White's f3-Knight). } 25. h3 { Alekhine bails frantically to keep the ship from going under. The pawn on h3
allows White to answer ...h5xg4 with h3xg4, and White's position should hold
(for a while, at least). } 25... Nh7 { Lasker sets up a future Knight
jump to g5, where it would attack both the White f3-Knight and h3-pawn. He
holds this move in reserve, to be used at an opportune moment later. } { [%cal Yh7g5] } 26. Rxe8+ { Alekhine decides to simplify the game, trading off a pair of Rooks. } 26... Rxe8 { Lasker kills the checking Rook and maintains control of the e-file. Notice
that the e8-Rook can still slide over to b8 later to harass the White Queen. } 27. Re1 { I'm sure you remember this principle from earlier games: if you're
under attack, blunt your opponent's assault by exchanging pieces. Here
Alekhine seeks to do just that by swapping off the remaining Rooks. } 27... Rb8 { But Lasker will have none of that! Instead, the Rook
slips away to b8 where it attacks the White Queen. } { [%csl Rb2][%cal Rb8b2] } 28. Qc1 { Of
course, the Queen must retreat, so it goes to c1 where it can control the open
c1-h6 diagonal leading to the heart of Black's Kingside. Alekhine is also
trying to keep the Black Knight from advancing to g5... } { [%cal Yc1h6] } 28... Ng5 { ...but the
Knight leaps forward anyway! The Black Knight now attacks the White Knight
which is left hanging on f3. } 29. Ne5 { Rather than trade Knights on g5 (see
the variation), Alekhine finds another ingenious way to make the trade... } (29. Nxg5 { Let's look at what would have happened if White had decided to trade on
g5... (Variation by Alekhine). } 29... Qh2+ { Now that the White Knight no longer
guards h2, it's safe for the Black Queen to begin an invasion of White's
Kingside. } 30. Kf1 { The only way to escape check (since Kxh2 is impossible;
the c7-Bishop guards the Queen). } 30... fxg5 { Black evens up the material by
capturing the Knight. What will White do next? } 31. Ne3 { White has to move the
Knight, otherwise Black will capture it with the Queen: 31...Qh1+ 32.Ke2 Qxg2.
Even so, Black will now go up by a pawn... } 31... Qxh3+ { Black grabs the pawn with
check. } 32. Ke2 { The only move that makes sense is to retreat the King. } 32... hxg4 { Black wins a second pawn. The White Kingside is a shambles. The White King has
been driven to the center of the board, where it will be hounded and harassed
by Black's pieces. No wonder Alekhine didn't trade Knights on g5! }) 29... fxe5 { Lasker finds his pawn to be overworked: it can't defend the g5-Knight and
take the White e5-Knight at the same time. Since a White Knight outpost on e5
is unpleasant for Black, Lasker decides the best thing to do is to trade
Knights. } 30. Qxg5 { The White Queen crashes in and grabs the Black Knight. Now
the Black e5-pawn cuts its own pieces off from the White Kingside. The pawn
has to move. Will it capture its White counterpart on d4? } 30... e4 { NO! It advances, attacking the d3-Bishop. White is also in danger
of losing his Knight after 31...Qh2+ 32.Kf1 Qh1+ 33.Ke2 Qxg2. Now Alekhine may
have to choose which piece to give up, unless he can come up with a plan to
save them. } { [%csl Rd3][%cal Re4d3,Yd6h2] } 31. f6 { Alekhine takes advantage of the pin on the g7-pawn to
attack it and threaten mate with 32.Qxg7#. How will Lasker respond? He could
dissipate his attack by swapping Queens: 31...Qxf6 32.Qxf6 gxf6. Or he could
try something else... } 31... g6 { Lasker salvages his attack by just advancing the
pawn. Now he still threatens both of White's minor pieces. } (31... Qh2+ { Here's another move that Black could have tried. It leads to a Black win, but
it's like taking the long way around the barn. (Variation by Alekhine) } 32. Kf1 { The only square for the King to escape check. (By the way, keep in mind that
White has a mate-in-one with Qxg7# hanging over Black's head). } 32... Qh1+ { The only
way to avoid the mate-in-one is to continue to check the White King, which
doesn't allow White to play the mating move. } 33. Ke2 { White again plays the
only move. How will Black check him now? } 33... exd3+ { Exactly!! Now White has to
deal with the pawn check... } 34. Kxd3 { The King grabs the pawn. 34.Kd2 loses
to 34...Ba5+. } 34... Qxh3+ { Black grabs another pawn and checks the White King again. } 35. Ne3 { White saves his Knight and blocks check at the same time. Now how
will Black respond? } 35... Kf8 { Call the bank! Black's run out of checks! Now he has
to shift his King over to prevent the mate on g7. } 36. Qxg7+ { White wins back
a pawn and checks the Black King (but it's not mate now, because the King has
moved). } 36... Ke8 { The King retreats to the only possible square. } 37. Kc2 { The
White King comes to the c-file to prevent the Black Rook from invading on the
other flank. But the White position is a mess, with pawns hanging all over the
place. It's only a matter of time before Black comes crashing in again. }) 32. f4 { Alekhine seals off the b8-h2 diagonal, preventing Lasker from invading
with the Queen. } 32... hxg4 { Lasker could have played e4xf3 , but he'd have to
give up his attack on the d3-Bishop (although he'd then have an attack on the
g2-Knight). Either way, there's not much hope for White's game. } 33. Be2 { Alekhine extricates his Bishop from danger and attacks
the Black pawn on g4. } { [%csl Rg4][%cal Re2g4] } 33... gxh3 { Lasker swipes another pawn
and attacks the Knight on g2. Notice how the White pawn structure is
fragmented while Black has a strong pawn chain from c6 to e4. } { [%csl Rg2][%cal Rh3g2] } 34. Bh5 { Taking advantage of the pin on the g6-pawn, Alekhine prepares to break through
on Black's Kingside. } 34... Rb2 { Lasker invades on
the other wing, threatening the g2-Knight and the a2-pawn. } { [%csl Ra2,Rg2][%cal Rb2a2,Rb2g2] } 35. Nh4 { Alekhine
piles up on the pinned g6-pawn, hitting it a third time with the Knight. } 35... Qxf4 { Lasker sees a way to bring the game to a rapid conclusion. He begins by
offering to trade Queens. Of course, this breaks the rule about not exchanging
pieces when you're attacking. } 36. Qxf4 { Alekhine, thinking that he's breaking
up the Black attack, accepts the trade. } 36... Bxf4 { Lasker, who saw farther ahead
than Alekhine, completes the swap. Alekhine, already three pawns down and soon
to lose more material, resigns. What's going on? See the variation to find out. } (36... Bxf4 37. Nxg6 { White thinks that
he'll win a pawn after 37...Bxg6 38.Bxg6, but Black has a trick up his sleeve..
. } 37... Rg2+ { The Rook, protected by the h3-pawn, piles into the attack! Now, due
to the check on his King, White is forced to lose a piece. } 38. Kh1 { The King,
forced to move to avoid the check, slides over to a square where it blocks the
advance of the Black h3-pawn. } 38... Bxg6 { Black wins a minor piece by taking the
Knight. } 39. Bxg6 { White, now behind by a minor piece no matter what (even
after Bd1), decides to deny Black the use of his dangerous Bishop pair. } 39... Rxg6 { Black completes the swap and is now ahead by a minor piece and two pawns (with
the f6-pawn soon to fall). This game is a virtual lock for Black. The only way
White could win this game is if Black were to suddenly be hit by lightning. }) 0-1

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.18"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Bogoljubow, Efim"]
[Black "Marshall, Frank James"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "111"]
[ECO "D02"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. Nf3 { Bogo develops his Kingside Knight
toward the center, supporting the d2-d4 push and denying the e5-square to
Black. This move is non-committal: Black doesn't know if White will set up a
pawn center or try for control from the flanks. } { [%csl Gd4,Ge5][%cal Gf3e5,Gf3d4] } 1... d5 { Marshall (Black) tips his
hand from the start, committing to controlling the center by occupying it with
his pawns. From now on, he'll try to keep at least one pawn established in the
center. } 2. d4 { Bogo reveals that he, too, plans on a policy of central
control by occupation. Now he may try to set up an e2-e4 pawn advance, or else
try to increase his control of e5 to be able to safely post a piece there. } 2... e6 { Marshall plays a questionable pawn push.
Although he props up the d5-pawn (which was not yet endangered) and releases
his dark-squared Bishop, he's penned in his light-squared Bishop. Maybe 2...
Nf6 or 2...c5 were better. } { [%csl Yc8,Yd7][%cal Yg8f6,Yc7c5] } 3. Bf4 { Bogo
develops another piece and increases his grip on e5. Perhaps he'll be able to
establish an outpost here later. Also, he can now release his other Bishop by
playing e2-e3 without blocking in his dark-square Bishop. } { [%cal Gf3e5,Gd4e5,Gf4e5,Ye2e3] } 3... Bd6 { Marshall
challenges the White control of the center with this move. He dares White to
trade off the Bishops: after 4.Bxd6 Qxd6 Black would actually have a slight
lead in development. } 4. e3 { Bogo declines the Bishop trade, preferring
instead to prop up both the d4-pawn and f4-Bishop, releasing his light-square
Bishop as well. } 4... Bxf4 { Marshall makes another questionable move. He decides to
trade his "good" Bishop for White's "bad" Bishop -- usually a bad idea. In
return, he'll stick White with doubled f-pawns... } 5. exf4 { ...which in this case isn't too bad! Now White has a firm grip on e5
and can easily post his Knight there (although Black can still kick the Knight
out by playing ...f7-f6). } { [%cal Gf4e5,Gd4e5] } 5... c5 { Marshall again challenges White, threatening
one of the guardians of e5. He's hoping to trade off his flank pawn for
White's only remaining center pawn. } 6. dxc5 { Bogo makes the trade, giving up
his only center pawn. Now White has a pawn superiority on each flank while
Black enjoys a central majority. White should attack on the flanks while Black
should strike in the center. } 6... Qa5+ { Marshall springs a
double attack! He checks the White King and attacks the c5-pawn at the same
time! How should White respond? } { [%cal Ra5e1,Ra5c5] } 7. c3 { Bogo blocks the check. He could also
have tried Nc3, but c2-c3 gives his Queen open access to the Queenside and
adds the c3-pawn's influence to d4, helping to prevent the advance of Black's
d-pawn. } 7... Qxc5 { Of course, Marshall brings his double attack to its logical
conclusion by capturing the c5-pawn. } 8. Bd3 { Bogo develops another Kingside piece. The Bishop is
better placed here than on e2, because it controls more space on two diagonals
(b1-h7 and a6-f1). } { [%csl Ya6,Yb1,Yb5,Yc2,Yc4,Yd3,Ye2,Ye4,Yf1,Yf5,Yg6,Yh7] } 8... Nf6 { Marshall centralizes his Knight and clears the deck
for castling on the Kingside. } 9. O-O { Since there are no longer any White
center pawns, the White King is finding the center kind of drafty. Bogo gets
his King to safety on the flank and moves his Rook toward the two center files,
where it will be better placed. } 9... O-O { Marshall flanks his King as well. Now
he'll need to consider developing his Queenside pieces and bringing a Rook to
c8 to command the open c-file. } 10. Nbd2 { Bogo develops his
Queenside Knight to its logical square (better than Na3), where it threatens
to leap to b3 and chase away the Black Queen. The drawback to this move is
that it blocks the White Queen's defense of the d3-Bishop. } { [%cal Rd2b3,Rb3c5] } 10... Nc6 { The
development of Black's Queenside pieces begins. Marshall centralizes his
Knight, supporting a possible e6-e5 advance. The Knight also has chances of
relocating to the Kingside later (Nc6-e7-f5 or g6). } 11. Ne5 { Bogo's Knight
jumps to the natural outpost on e5 (safe now because the Black f6-Knight
blocks f7-f6). Even if Black plays ...Nxe5, White's reply fxe5 gives White a
center pawn again. } 11... Rd8 { Marshall brings his Rook to d8 to help support the
advance of his c8-Bishop. He may also be contemplating a d5-d4 advance
(remember, you usually want to attack where you have a pawn majority). } 12. Re1 { Bogo's Rook grabs the half-open e-file, supporting his Knight. White has a
pawn disadvantage in the center but it's somewhat offset by the open d- and
e-files which can be dominated by his Queen and Rooks. } 12... Bd7 { Marshall proceeds
with his planned Bishop advance. It would be to White's disadvantage to trade
his well-placed e5-Knight for Black's ineffective Bishop. } 13. Ndf3 { Bogo threatens to play 14.Ng5 (doubling up on the
f7-pawn, striking at the base of the Black d5-f7 pawn chain). See how Bogo
hangs on to the initiative by making moves that force a response from Black. } { [%csl Rf7][%cal Rf3g5,Re5f7,Rg5f7] } 13... h6 { Marshall takes away any chance of White playing Ng5 by guarding that
square with a pawn. But now he's weakened his Kingside pawn structure slightly. } 14. g4 { WOW! Bogo fearlessly weakens his own Kingside pawn structure in
order to bring another unit up for the attack. He threatens 15.g5, followed by
either ...Nh7 16.gxh6 gxh6 or 15...hxg5 16.Nxg5, both of which are bad for
Black. } 14... Nxe5 { Marshall has to defuse the White time bomb, so he decides to
weaken the White attack by exchanging pieces. } 15. Nxe5 { Obviously, Bogo must
recapture or remain behind by a Knight. He maintains his Knight outpost on e5. } 15... Bc6 { Now that there's no White Knight on f3, some of the sting is taken out of
the g4-g5 pawn push. This buys Marshall time to shift his Bishop out of his
d8-Rook's way. } 16. Qe2 { Sensing that Marshall is going to try to open up the
center by pushing his d-pawn, Bogo decides that it would be wise to get his
Queen off of the same file as the Black Rook (to cut down the chances of an
unpleasant surprise!). } 16... Ne4 { Marshall establishes his
own Knight outpost in White's territory. He also puts pressure on the pinned
(!) f2-pawn. } { [%csl Rf2][%cal Re4f2] } 17. Rad1 { Bogo brings his Rook over to d1 and takes control of
the half-open d-file. Notice how well-placed the White Queen and Rooks are,
commanding the half-open center files. } 17... Rac8 { If commanding a half-open file
is good for White, it must be just as good for Black. Marshall's Rook slides
over to the half-open c-file. } 18. Kg2 { The King advances, stopping the pin on
the f2-pawn. Now White could try f2-f3, kicking the Black Knight off of its
outpost, but that cuts off the White e5-Knight's only retreat square after
Black plays f7-f6! } 18... Ba4 { Marshall nudges the d1-Rook off of the half-open file. } 19. Rc1 { Bogo saves the Rook and threatens to push his c-pawn to c4. Would
19.b3 have worked? See the variation. } (19. b3 { 19.b3 would most certainly NOT
have worked, and in this variation, we'll find out why. White blocks the
attack on his Rook by pushing the pawn and attacking the Black Bishop. But the
c3-pawn is hanging... } 19... Nxc3 { ...so Black
snags it and forks the White Queen and d1-Rook to boot. We could end the
variation here, but things get even worse for White so we'll sadistically
continue... } { [%csl Rd1,Re2][%cal Rc3e2,Rc3d1] } 20. Qc2 { White has to move his Queen, so he'll bting it to a
square where it can recapture the Knight after 20...Nxd1. } 20... Nxd1 { Black
obviously makes the capture. Now he's a Rook and pawn ahead. } 21. Bh7+ { White could either play Qxd1 immediately, or play the "spite check" here
(which isn't possible after Qxd1). He goes for the check. } 21... Kf8 { The King must
move to stop the check. Rather than cornering the King, Black moves it toward
the center of the board. } 22. Qxd1 { Now White grabs the offending Knight. } 22... Bc6 { The Bishop (which has been in danger all this time!) pulls back to a safe
square. } 23. Nxc6 { White trades his Knight for the Bishop and threatens the
d8-Rook. What's the best way for Black to recapture? } 23... Qxc6 { Now Black is ahead
by the exchange and a pawn. He also has a dangerous supported passed d-pawn
and, when the pawn advances, a discovered check on the White King by the
Queen! White says, "This stinks!" }) 19... f6 { Marshall continues to upset
White's game by driving the e5-Knight off of its outpost square. Now the
e6-pawn is hanging. White has no immediate threats against it, but it could
become a weakness later. } 20. Nf3 { The Knight retreats to the only safe square. } 20... Bc6 { The Bishop comes back to c6, where it could check the White King later
(after a lot of wood gets out of the way, of course!). } 21. Nd4 { Bogo's Knight leaps forward and strikes at the weak
e6-pawn, threatening a fork of the Black Queen and d8-Rook. The square f3 is
now clear for White to push f2-f3 and drive out the Black Knight as well. } { [%csl Re4,Re6][%cal Rd4e6,Rf2f3,Rf3e4] } 21... Qd6 { Marshall withdraws his Queen to cover e6, preventing the White Knight from
capturing the pawn and setting up the vicious fork. He also provides a retreat
square for his Knight after White plays f2-f3. } 22. f3 { Bogo plays the
anticipated move and drives the Black Knight from its outpost. } 22... Nc5 { The Black
Knight retreats to the square prepared for it. } 23. Bb1 { Bogo likes the way
his Bishop commands the b1-h7 diagonal and pressures the Black Kingside. Not
wanting to give up the Bishop to 23...Nxd3, he pulls it back to a safe square. } 23... Bd7 { Marshall has no intention of trading his Bishop for a Knight either, so
he withdraws his Bishop to a safe square. } 24. Qc2 { Bogo
threatens to invade the Black King's domain with 25.Qh7+. The Black King
couldn't recapture because the b1-Bishop would be protecting the White Queen. } { [%cal Rc2h7] } 24... f5 { Marshall advances his pawn and blocks the White Queen's path to h7. If you
look ahead, you'll see that Black can't possibly come out ahead in material
here. It's a planned pawn sacrifice to open up somes lines for Black. } 25. gxf5 { TRIPLED PAWNS!!! How often do you see that?! Of course,
the pawns won't stay tripled for long, as Black is about to recapture. } { [%csl Yf3,Yf4,Yf5] } 25... exf5 { As anticipated, Black recaptures at f5. Now the Black Queen has easy access to
the Kingside, where it will help to blunt White's attack. } 26. Nxf5 { The
Knight recaptures and threatens the Black Queen. If 26...Bxf5 27.Qxf5, White's
threat of Qh7+ stands, so how should Black reply here? } 26... Qg6+ { Black saves his
Queen, checks White, and piles up on the White f5-Knight. } 27. Ng3 { Bogo pulls
back his Knight to block check and uncovers an attack on the Black Queen from
the White Queen. } 27... Qxc2+ { Marshall has no choice but to trade Queens. Other
moves lead Black down the road to ruin. However, once the Queens come off the
board, Black doesn't stand too badly. The pawn sacrifice on move 24 worked! } 28. Bxc2 { Bogo completes the trade. Now White is a pawn ahead, but his attack
has been stopped. Bogo will have to come up with a new plan. } 28... Ne6 { Marshall shifts his Knight and threatens to capture the f4-pawn
with check. } { [%csl Rf4][%cal Re6f4] } 29. Ne2 { Bogo pulls back his Knight to defend the f4-pawn. The
downside is that he blocks the e1-Rook's control of the e-file. Maybe 29.Nh5,
defending the pawn and putting pressure on the Black Kingside would have been
better. } 29... Rf8 { The Rook piles up on the poor f4-pawn. Marshall looks up from
the board and stares at Bogoljubow. The American is determined to win back his
sacrificed pawn! } 30. f5 { Bogo smiles and simply advances the pawn, which is
protected by the c2-Bishop. Now the Black Knight is under attack! } 30... Nd8 { The Knight is forced to retreat. Although moving to d8 breaks communication
between the Rooks, it's probably still better than ...Nc7. From d8 the Knight
can jump to a center-controlling post on c6. } 31. Nd4 { Bogo adds his Knight's
support to the menaced pawn on f5. } 31... Nc6 { Uh-oh. Marshall seeks to undermine
the f5-pawn by attacking one of its defenders. This is a valuable tactic to
learn -- you can frequently win a pawn or piece by capturing or exchanging off
one of its defenders. } 32. Bb3 { Rather than give up a pawn by exchanging
Knights, Bogo springs a counterthreat by attacking the Black d5-pawn. If Black
now takes the f5-pawn, White responds by capturing the d5-pawn... } 32... Bxf5 { ...which is exactly what happens. Black knocks off the annoying pawn. Now his
Bishop and f8-Rook have open lines leading to the White Kingside. } 33. Bxd5+ { Whiite picks off the d5-pawn and checks the Black King as well, picking up a
tempo (since Black must waste a move reacting to the check). } 33... Kh8 { The most
intelligent move to get out of check. 33...Kh7 puts the King on another light
square, subject to future harassment by the White light-square Bishop. } 34. Bxc6 { Why trade a Bishop for a Knight? Why not 34.Nd4xc6? See the variation.
In this position, Black must recapture on c6, and White still threatens Nxf5. } (34. Nxc6 { White could play Nxc6... } 34... bxc6 { ...but after ...bxc6, the White
Bishop is threatened and must retreat. } 35. Bb3 { After the forced retreat,
it's now Black's move to do what he wants. White has lost the initiative. }) 34... bxc6 { As stated before, Black must recapture. Now
White still has the threat of 35.Nxf5 Rxf5, getting the last two minor pieces
off the board and leaving Black down a pawn in a Rook-and-pawn endgame. } { [%csl Rf5][%cal Rd4f5] } 35. Re5 { Bogo surprises everyone with this move. He hits the Bishop a second time,
but now the Bishop can escape. Better were either 35.Nxf5 or 35.Re7, attacking
the a7-pawn. } 35... Bd7 { Marshall retreats the Bishop to d7, the only safe square.
On d7, it also prevents the White e-Rook from menacing the a-pawn after 36.Re7
(i.e. 36.Re7 Rcd8). } 36. b4 { Bogo, enjoying a 3-2 Queenside pawn advantage,
begins the mobilization of his pawn majority. Why the b-pawn? Generally
speaking, mobilize your pawn majority by advancing the unopposed pawn first. } 36... Rf6 { Marshall advances his Rook to a more flexible square. Now he can double
his Rooks (...Rcf8) or attack the White King (...Rg6+). } 37. Rce1 { Bogo
doubles his Rooks and creates a battery on the e-file. Doubling your Rooks
means doubling their strength. } 37... Kh7 { Although two pieces (the c8-Rook and
d7-Bishop) prevent White from playing Re8+, Marshall doesn't want to tie the
two pieces up. He gets his King off of the back rank and into a cozy little
pocket, sheltered by friendly pawns. } 38. Ra5 { Bogo undoubles his Rooks in
order to lash out at the undefended a7-pawn. } 38... Rc7 { Marshall just advances his
Rook to defend the threatened a-pawn. } 39. Rc5 { Why here? Because after 40.b5,
Black can't capture the pawn by ...cxb5 because of White's reply 41.Rxc7! The
Black c-pawn is pinned! } 39... a6 { Of course, you always try to hit a pinned piece
again and again until you have enough force piled up on it to win it. Marshall
knows this and prevents White from hitting the c6-pawn again with the b-pawn.
Now the b-pawn can't advance. } 40. a4 { Bogo is relentless in his pursuit of
the c6-pawn. He brings up the a4-pawn to support the b4-pawn's advance. Now he
threatens 41.b5 axb5 42.axb5, after which the Black c6-pawn is history. } 40... Rc8 { Marshall defeats Bogo's plan by dropping the Rook back to a square where it's
defended by the d7-Bishop, releasing the pin on the c6-pawn. Check out the
variation to White's next move to see how this works. } 41. h4 { Since his
attack on the c6-pawn has been foiled, Bogo has to come up with another plan.
He grabs space on the Kingside and restricts Black by advancing his h-pawn.
Now ...g5 is met by hxg5 hxg5, Rh1+. } (41. b5 { Here's how 40...Rc8 stymies
White's plan to win a second pawn. In this variation, White blindly forges
ahead with his original plan and pushes the b-pawn. } 41... axb5 { Black grabs the
pawn, preventing White from winning the c-pawn after 42.bxc6. } 42. axb5 { White, thinking that the c6-pawn is still pinned, recaptures and piles up on
the c6-pawn at the same time. } 42... cxb5 { Black's c-pawn surprises White by
grabbing his b-pawn. } 43. Rxc8 { White grabs the Rook... } 43... Bxc8 { ...and the
Bishop recaptures. The Black Rook dropped back to c8 earlier to allow this
very move. } 44. Nxb5 { The Knight snaps up the hanging pawn. True, Black is
still behind by a pawn, but if the Black Rook hadn't dropped back to c8, Black
would have been TWO pawns down! }) 41... Rg6+ { Marshall's Queenside is secure
for the moment, so he shifts his attention to the Kingside. He begins an
attack by checking White's King. } 42. Kh2 { The White King retreats to a dark
square, where it can't be molested by Black's light-squared Bishop. } 42... Rf8 { Marshall brings his other Rook over to the Kingside. He threatens
to play ...Rf4, which attacks the White h-pawn. } { [%cal Rf8f4] } 43. h5 { Bogo advances the h-pawn, nullifying the threat of ...Rf4 and launching a
threat of his own -- the h-pawn attacks Black's g6-Rook. } { [%csl Rg6][%cal Rh5g6] } 43... Rd6 { The Rook
retreats to the only possible square (any other square loses material for
Black. Check it out and see!). } 44. Re7 { Bogo shoves
his e-Rook into the midst of the Black position, where it sticks like a bone
in Marshall's throat. Now the g7-pawn is pinned. } { [%csl Ye7,Yf7,Yg7,Yh7] } 44... Kg8 { Marshall prepares to
play Rf8-f7 in an attempt to get the e7-Rook out of his hair, either by
exchanging it off or forcing it to move. } 45. Ra5 { Bogo
sidetracks Marshall by attacking the a6-pawn with his Rook. } { [%csl Ra6][%cal Ra5a6] } 45... Ra8 { Marshall
abandons his idea of a Rook trade and defends his menaced pawn instead. } 46. Re4 { Bogo has reached an impasse here. There really aren't any moves to be
made that significantly improve his position, so he decides to drop back,
waiting to see what Marshall does. } 46... Kf7 { Marshall advances his King, denying White's Rook the use of e7 and e8. } { [%csl Ge7,Ge8][%cal Gf7e7,Gf7e8] } 47. Re2 { Bogo continues his policy of playing non-committal moves, awaiting further
developments by Black. } 47... g6 { Marshall plays aggressively. He advances his
g-pawn in an attempt to get a Kingside passed pawn. } 48. hxg6+ { Bogo grabs the
pawn. After Marshall recaptures with the King, BOTH players will have a
Kingside passed pawn: White on the f-file, Black on the h-file. } 48... Rxg6 { SURPRISE! Marshall recaptures with the Rook instead of the King! Now he'll
probably advance the h-pawn and put the g6-Rook behind it on h6 for support. } 49. Rae5 { Bogo doubles up his Rooks again on the e-file. Now, since the
a6-Rook is no longer endangered, Black's a8-Rook is freed up for duty
elsewhere. } 49... Rd8 { The a-Rook shifts over to guard the Bishop, preventing White
from winning it by 50.Re7+ Kf8 51.Rxd7. } 50. Re7+ { The White Rook piles in
anyway and checks the Black King. } 50... Kf8 { The Black King retreats to the first
rank, leaving the g6-Rook unattended. } 51. R7e6 { Bogo's Rook comes back and
attacks the Black Rook on g6, hoping to provoke a massive series of trades on
e6 (see the variation to Black's next move). } 51... Kf7 { The Black King returns to
f7 and defends the g6-Rook. Why didn't Black play Bxe6? See the variation to
find out why. } (51... Bxe6 { If Black plays ...Bxe6, White wins another pawn.
Here's how... } 52. Nxe6+ { The Knight dives in and snaps off the Bishop. Now
the Knight has set up a three-way fork of the Black King and both Rooks! } 52... Rxe6 { Black has no choice but to recapture. If he doesn't, White will win the
exchange by trading his Knight for one of Black's Rooks. } 53. Rxe6 { Now White recaptures and threatens two Black pawns.
Black can only defend one of them (probably the c-pawn). White will grab the
other pawn and should win easily with his two-pawn advantage. } { [%csl Rc6,Rh6][%cal Re6c6,Re6h6] }) 52. Nxc6 { Black didn't play 51...Bxe6 because it would allow White to win a pawn. But
there's more than one way to skin a cat! Bogo finds another way to win a pawn,
starting by sacrificing his Knight! } 52... Bxc6 { The Bishop has to recapture, or
else White will grab a Rook with 53.Nxd8. } 53. Rxg6 { Bogo continues his
combination by making another forcing move, this time capturing the g6-Rook. } 53... Kxg6 { Again, Black is forced to recapture or fall behind in material. } 54. Re6+ { And now Bogo gets to the point: a double
attack against the Black King and Bishop! Bogo wins the Black Bishop (which
gets back the equivalent of the Knight he sacrificed) and he'll be two pawns
ahead. } { [%csl Rc6,Rg6][%cal Re6c6,Re6g6] } 54... Kg5 { Marshall gets the King out of check, moving to a square where it
still defends the h6-pawn. } 55. Rxc6 { Bogo grabs the Bishop and wins back his
sacrificed material. Now White is up by two pawns and should have no trouble
winning this game. } 55... a5 { Marshall advances the threatened pawn. If White
replies 56.bxa5, the White pawn structure is wrecked: doubled a-pawns, and all
four pawns would be isolated. The four pawns would become targets for Black's
Rook. } 56. Kg3 { Bogo doesn't intend to play 56.bxa5 and give Marshall a
fighting chance. He advances his King instead to protect his f-pawn and
inhibit the advance of the Black King and h-pawn. Marshall knows he's busted,
so he resigns. } 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.18"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Capablanca, Jose Raul"]
[Black "Lasker, Edward"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[PlyCount "53"]
[ECO "D52"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 { The main idea for White in most chess openings is to establish a
central pawn pair at d4 and e4. Capa is halfway there! This pawn advance also
opens avenues of development for the dark-square Bishop and Queen. } 1... d5 { Lasker disputes White's plan to advance the e-pawn to e4. Both player's pawns
control center squares, always a good idea in the opening. } 2. c4 { Capablanca
offers a pawn sacrifice, in the hope of luring the Black pawn off of d5. Then,
after ...dxc4, White can safely advance the e-pawn and uncover an attack on
the Black c4-pawn from the f1-Bishop! } 2... e6 { Lasker refuses the gambit (hence
the name of this opening -- the Queen's Gambit Declined), preferring to prop
up the d5-pawn instead. Now the f8-Bishop can get out, but the c8-Bishop is
blocked in. } 3. Nf3 { The Kingside Knight develops toward the center, where it
supports the d4-pawn and eyes a possible outpost on e5. } 3... Nf6 { Lasker's Knight
does much the same thing as White's Knight does: it eyes a future outpost on
e4 and overprotects the d5-pawn (in conjunction with the d6-pawn). } 4. Bg5 { Capa pins the f6-Knight to the Queen, neutralizing it. Now the Knight is
powerless to move amd can't help control the center or join in the fight. } 4... Nbd7 { In the (unlikely) event that White plays an immediate Bxf6,
Lasker's other Knight is prepared to jump in with ...Nxf6, keeping a
well-posted Knight on f6 where it can keep a watchful eye on the center. } { [%cal Yd7f6] } 5. Nc3 { Capa continues his development, threatening to win d5-pawn by 6.cxd5 exd5
7.Nxd5 (since the pin on the f6-Knight prevents 7...Nxd5!). } 5... c6 { Lasker is
forced to find a way to defend his d-pawn a second time. He advances the
c-pawn to c6, where it guards the d-pawn. The Black position looks awfully
cramped! } 6. e3 { Since e2-e4 is out of the question, Capa advances his e-pawn
just one square. Now the light-square Bishop is free for action along the
a6-f1 diagonal. } 6... Qa5 { Lasker develops his Queen and puts pressure on the White
position by pinning the c3-Knight to the King. The Queen also helps
overprotect the d5-pawn. } 7. Bxf6 { Since the central pawn position is fully
developed, Capa knows that his pawns will be operating mainly on the dark
squares. This makes the dark-square Bishop the "bad Bishop" (see Glossary), so
Capa decides to swap it off. } 7... Nxf6 { Lasker recaptures with the Knight instead
of the g7-pawn. Capturing with the pawn would severely weaken the Black
Kingside pawns and make castling on that side a very bad idea. } 8. Bd3 { Capa clears the way for castling Kingside and brings his Bishop to a square
where it operates on two good diagonals (a6-f1 and b1-h7). The Bishop is more
actively placed here than it would be on e2. } 8... Bb4 { Lasker turns up the heat on the White c3-Knight, threatening to win a pawn by
9...Bxc3+ 10.bxc3 Qxc3+. He's also cleared the way for his King to castle on
the Kingside. } { [%csl Rc3][%cal Rb4c3] } 9. Qb3 { Rather than sliding his Queen laterally to c1 to guard
the threatened Knight, Capa develops it off of the back rank to b3 where it
guards the Knight and gets into the thick of the action. } 9... dxc4 { Lasker makes
Capa "waste a tempo". Capa is now forced to capture the c4-pawn with one of
the threatened pieces. Both of these pieces have already moved once in the
opening; having to move one again "burns up" a move for White. } 10. Bxc4 { By capturing with the Bishop, Capa sets up a battery on
the a2-g8 diagonal. But the battery "bites on granite", running smack into a
protected pawn on e6. } { [%csl Yb3,Yc4,Yd5,Ye6] } 10... O-O { Lasker decides to castle, shuttling his King to
safety and developing a Rook at the same time. } 11. O-O { Capa follows suit.
Now the pressure on his c3-Knight is relieved, as the Knight is no longer
pinned. } 11... Bxc3 { Lasker trades a Bishop for the White Knight which defends d5.
Now, if he can find a way to break up the White Queen & Rook battery, he may
be able to post a piece on d5. } 12. bxc3 { Capa recaptures with the pawn,
deciding that it's best to hang onto his Queen for now (12.Qxc3 Qxc3 13.bxc3).
The White Queenside is much stronger with the Queen on the board. } 12... b6 { Lasker
prepares to fianchetto his Bishop by advancing his b-pawn. Why not play 12...
b5? See the variation. } (12... b5 { Why not 12...b5? The idea of fianchettoing
a Bishop is to control the long diagonal (in this case a8-h1). That means that
the c6-pawn must advance and clear the diagonal for the Bishop. } 13. Bd3 { The threatened Bishop must retreat. } 13... Bb7 { Now Black fianchettos the Bishop,
but the c6-pawn can't safely advance due to White's reply dxc5. Had Black
played b7-b6 instead, the b6-pawn's defense of c5 would make the advance c6-c5
possible. }) 13. Ne5 { Capa attacks the weak c6-pawn. "But this doesn't
accomplish much," Lasker thinks, "since I intend to fianchetto the Bishop to
b7 anyway." Could Capa have a hidden motive? } 13... Bb7 { Lasker is forced to make
the move he wanted to make anyway! } 14. Be2 { Capa voluntarily breaks up his
battery! But wait a minute...if the e5-Knight jumps to c4, then it attacks the
Black Queen... } 14... c5 { Lasker advances the c-pawn and clears the long diagonal
for his Bishop. The Bishop is now lord and master of the a8-h1 diagonal. } 15. Nc4 { As expected, the Knight jumps to c4 to menace the Black Queen. Now Lasker
sees the purpose of 13.Ne5. } 15... Qa6 { The Black Queen retreats to the only safe
square. Now, if the White Knight moves, it uncovers an attack on the Queen
from the e2-Bishop. But that attack wouldn't work, because the Bishop is
undefended (the Queen could take it)... } 16. Qb2 { So Capa's Queen drops back
and defends the Bishop! Now Lasker is just one move away from disaster! } 16... Bd5 { This Bishop move serves a dual purpose: it attacks the c4-Knight (which is now
attacked twice and defended just once) and gives the Black Queen an escape
route via the a6-c8 diagonal. } 17. Ne5 { Capa moves the threatened Knight back
to its outpost on e5 and uncorks the discovered attack on the Black Queen. } 17... Qc8 { Obviously, Lasker retreats his Queen. Maybe 17...Qb7, setting up a battery on
the long diagonal and menacing the g2-pawn, would have been better. In any
case, White's combination has relieved the pressure on his Queenside. } 18. a4 { Capa advances his a-pawn with a couple of ideas in mind: the a1-Rook is no
longer tied to the pawn's defense, and there is now the possibility of a White
Queenside minority attack. } 18... Nd7 { Lasker pulls back his Knight to threaten the
White e5-Knight. Lasker hopes to provoke Capa into giving up his
centrally-posted Knight by playing 19.Nxd7 Qxd7. } 19. c4 { Rather than play the
anticipated Knight trade, Capa looks ahead and sees a way to unbalance the
game and retain the initiative. He begins by grabbing some Queenside space and
attacking the Black Bishop. } 19... Be4 { Lasker saves his Bishop by bringing it to the strong
central square e4. From here it commands two diagonals (b1-h7 and a8-h1) and
can retreat to either the Kingside or Queenside if it's threatened again. } { [%csl Ya8,Yb1,Yb7,Yc2,Yc6,Yd3,Yd5,Ye4,Yf3,Yf5,Yg2,Yg6,Yh1,Yh7] } 20. Nxd7 { Capa continues by grabbing the Knight and menacing the f8-Rook. } 20... Qxd7 { Lasker recaptures to keep the material even. } 21. dxc5 { Capablanca hangs on to
the initiative by grabbing another pawn, forcing Black's response. } 21... bxc5 { Lasker again has to recapture to keep the material balance even. Capa is
controlling the initiative by forcing these recaptures. } 22. Qe5 { Capa gets to
the point of what he started on move 19. The Queen gets to the center of the
board (a GREAT post for the Queen in the late middlegame and the endgame) and
attacks the Black Bishop. } 22... Qc6 { Lasker answers a threat with a threat: he
threatens to save his Bishop, grab a pawn, and attack a White Rook by playing .
..Bxg2. } 23. f3 { Capa nonchalantly plays 23.f3, stopping Black's threat cold
and attacking the Black Bishop a second time. } 23... Bg6 { Lasker pulls back the
Bishop where it's guarded by two pawns and still controls the b1-h7 diagonal. } 24. Rfd1 { Capablanca continues to build
up his position. Now his Rook commands the open d-file. } { [%csl Yd1,Yd2,Yd3,Yd4,Yd5,Yd6,Yd7,Yd8] } 24... Rfd8 { Lasker disputes
Capa's ownership of the d-file. } 25. Rxd8+ { Capa decides to trade off a pair
of Rooks, checking the Black King in the process. } 25... Rxd8 { Lasker has no choice
but to capture the checking Rook. The position becomes simpler as pieces leave
the board. } 26. Rd1 { Capa, who rarely likes to take chances, continues to
simplify the position, offering another Rook trade. The chances of your
opponent being able to spring a surprise move on you decrease as more pieces
come off the board. } 26... Rxd1+ { Lasker has only two choices: trade off the Rooks
or give up control of the d-file. } 27. Bxd1 { Capa grabs the Black Rook and
then offers Lasker a draw. Lasker thinks for a few moments and accepts the
offer. The game is drawn. } 1/2-1/2

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.18"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Reti, Richard"]
[Black "Maroczy, Geza"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[PlyCount "69"]
[ECO "A37"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. Nf3 { Reti begins in the usual hypermodern style,
developing a piece instead of a pawn. The Knight controls d4 and e5,
preventing Black from playing e7-e5. } { [%cal Gf3e5,Gf3d4] } 1... c5 { Maroczy chooses
not to develop a center pawn, instead advancing a flank pawn. The pawn on c5
prevents White from playing d2-d4, and allows the Black Queen unrestricted
access to the Queenside. } { [%cal Gc5d4,Yd8a5] } 2. g3 { In the hypermodern opening style,
players choose to control the center with flanked pieces. Reti proceeds in
this vein, advancing the pawn to allow a Kingside Bishop fianchetto (Bf1-g2). } { [%cal Yf1g2] } 2... Nc6 { Maroczy advanced the c-pawn before playing this move
so as not to block it in. Now he's strengthened his control over the center
(especially d4). } { [%cal Gc5d4,Gc6d4] } 3. Bg2 { Reti continues to play the opening that's named
after him. The Bishop exerts control over e4 and d5. In hypermodern openings,
the center isn't occupied by pawns, but controlled by the influence of flanked
pieces. } 3... g6 { Maroczy advances this pawn to enable him to later fianchetto his
Bishop. BOTH players are playing hypermodern chess! } 4. c4 { Reti advances this pawn for the same reason that Maroczy advanced his c-pawn:
he intends to play Nc3 without trapping his c-pawn behind the Knight. This
flank pawn advance also inhibits Black from playing d7-d5. } { [%cal Yb1c3,Gc4d5] } 4... Bg7 { As expected, Maroczy fianchettos the Kingside Bishop.
This Bishop now commands the long a1-h8 diagonal, and the potential threat to
the b2-pawn makes it hard for White to effectively develop his c1-Bishop
(which must guard the pawn). } { [%csl Ya1,Yb2,Yc3,Yd4,Ye5,Yf6,Yg7,Yh8] } 5. Nc3 { Reti develops his Knight and blocks the
threat against the b2-pawn. It would be unwise for Black to play ...Bxc3,
giving up the very strong Bishop and surrendering control of the long diagonal! } 5... d6 { Maroczy makes another preparatory pawn move: this time he
opens up a diagonal for the development of his light-square Bishop. } { [%cal Yc8h3] } 6. d3 { Reti follows suit, preparing to develop his dark-square Bishop along the c1-h6
diagonal. } 6... Bd7 { Maroczy gets his Bishop off of the back rank, to a square
where it doesn't block any future pawn advances (as it would on e6 or f5). } 7. O-O { Reti completes his Kingside development by castling. Now the King is
safer than it was in the middle of the board and the Rook is much more
actively placed than it was on h1. } 7... Rb8 { Maroczy gets his Rook
off of the dangerous a8-h1 diagonal (dangerous because of the latent power and
influence of the White g2-Bishop). He also prepares a possible later advance
of the b7-pawn. } { [%cal Yb7b5] } 8. Be3 { Reti prepares a series of moves designed to exchange
off the mighty Black Bishop on g7. He begins by getting his own dark-square
Bishop off of the back rank. } 8... Nd4 { Maroczy posts his Knight in the heart of
White's territory! This move looks dangerous for Black, but the Knight is
(temporarily) quite safe. See the variation to White's next move. } 9. Qd2 { Instead of trading on d4 (see the variation), Reti continues on
his original course. He plans (after Black develops his g8-Knight) to play Bh6
and attempt to force the exchange of the powerful g7-Bishop. } { [%cal Ye3h6] } (9. Bxd4 { NOT 9.Nxd4, because 9...cxd4 forks the White Knight and Bishop and forces
further trades on d4. Instead White begins with Bxd4, which is still bad for
White, because he gives up a Bishop for a Knight. } 9... cxd4 { The Black pawn merely
recaptures. White can't play 10.Nxd4 Bxd4 (that just loses material), so he's
forced to move the threatened c3-Knight. } 10. Ne4 { The menaced Knight leaps
out of danger. While it's true that Black now has doubled d-pawns, they're not
really weak since the g7-Bishop protects one of them. The trade of Bishop for
Knight wasn't worth it for White. }) 9... h5 { Maroczy safeguards against any
possibility of a Bishop exchange by advancing his h-pawn, allowing his h8-Rook
to provide additional control over h6. Now he can even safely advance his
Bishop to h6 if he wants to! } 10. Rab1 { Reti removes his Rook from the long
a1-h8 diagonal, getting it away from any possible danger from the g7-Bishop.
The Rook also defends the b2-pawn, allowing the c3-Knight to move with out the
loss of the b2-pawn. } 10... Bc6 { Maroczy's Bishop, protected by the b7-pawn,
disputes White's control of the other long diagonal (a8-h1). Little by little,
the Hungarian is carving out a spatial advantage for himself. } 11. b4 { Reti
does some carving of his own. He threatens both 12.bxc5 (opening the b-file
for his Rook) and 12.b5 (driving the Black Bishop off of the long diagonal and
gaining a little more space for his Rook). } 11... Nxf3+ { Maroczy decides to clarify
the situation in the center. He could also have played 11...b6 here (see the
variation). In the actual game line, White is about to get stuck with doubled
pawns. } (11... b6 { Here, in a variation by Alekhine, we'll look at what might
have happened had Black decided to support his c-pawn with 11...b6. } 12. Nxd4 { White embarks on a variation that will leave Black with an inferior pawn
structure. He begins by capturing the central Black Knight and uncovering an
attack on the Black c6-Bishop. } 12... Bxg2 { Rather than just retreat his Bishop and
abandon the long a8-h1 diagonal, Black says, "If I can't have it, no one can!"
He trades off the powerful Bishops on the long diagonal. } 13. Ne6 { White
surprises by moving his threatened Knight -- and attacking the Black Queen! } 13... fxe6 { Black must either capture the Knight or lose a piece (to 14.Kxg2) if he
moves his Queen. Obviously, he retains the piece by capturing the Knight. } 14. Kxg2 { White maintains the material balance by capturing the Bishop. } 14... Nf6 { Black develops his remaining Knight. Although his position isn't exactly bad,
the doubled e-pawns are a liability. In the moves that were actually played in
the real game, it's White who gets stuck with doubled pawns. }) 12. exf3 { This is much better than 12.Bxf3 Bxf3. Here, White blocks in his g2-Bishop (a
situation that's remedied by a later f3-f4). But at least he keeps it, rather
than trading it off. } 12... b6 { Maroczy advances the pawn to allow his c6-Bishop a
retreat to b7 or a8; this also allows him to keep the center closed after bxc5
bxc5. } 13. d4 { Reti piles up on the c5-pawn. Now the Queens may be exchanged
after a massive pawn swap on c5. } 13... cxd4 { Maroczy pre-empts the pawn swap and Queen exchange by initiating an exchange
himself on d4. See how the pawn forks both the White Bishop and Knight! Now
White is forced to respond! } { [%csl Rc3,Re3][%cal Rd4c3,Rd4e3] } 14. Bxd4 { The only move that doesn't lose
material. Now Reti's Bishop threatens the powerful g7-Bishop. It's move it or
lose it or... } 14... Nf6 { ...BLOCK IT! Now Maroczy has kept his Bishop on the long
diagonal (although it's now blocked for awhile) and managed to develop his
Knight at the same time! } 15. Nd5 { Reti puts the squeeze on Black's position,
knowing that it's to Black's disadvantage to take the Knight (15...Bxd5 gives
up the long a8-h1 diagonal, while 15...Nxd5 hangs the other Bishop). } 15... O-O { Now that the Kingside minor pieces have finally been developed, Maroczy tucks
his King away on the flank by castling. } 16. Nxf6+ { "Turnabout is fair play,"
Reti thinks as he snaps off the Black Knight. Now 16...Bxf6 gives up the
powerful long-diagonal Bishop... } 16... exf6 { ...so Maroczy must recapture with the
pawn, sealing in his g7-Bishop. Except for the h-pawns, the White and Black
Kingside positions look remarkably similar! } 17. Be3 { Reti puts pressure on
the Black Kingside, aiming at the hole on h6. Now, after White plays Bh6,
Black will be forced to trade off the dark-square Bishops. } 17... Qd7 { Maroczy
advances his Queen. Now the Queen controls more space on two diagonals and
supports the c6-Bishop. The Black Rooks are now connected as well. } 18. Rfd1 { Reti forms a battery on the d-file, planning to win a
pawn after 19.Qxd6 Qxd6 20.Rxd6. } { [%csl Rd6][%cal Rd2d6] } 18... Rbd8 { Maroczy nips White's plan in the bud
by shifting his Rook to the d-file. Now the d6-pawn is attacked twice and
defended twice. } 19. b5 { Reti sees a way to grab some more space, squuezing
Black even further. The c6-Bishop is threatened and must retreat (as d5 and e4
are guarded by White pawns). } 19... Ba8 { The Bishop withdraws to the corner (where
it still controls the long a8-h1 diagonal). Here it can be protected by a
Black Rook (even if one of the Rooks moves off of Black's first rank). } 20. c5 { Reti sees a way to trade off a pair of pawns,
open lines for his pieces, and crowd Black even further. He starts by
advancing his c-pawn, hitting the Black d6-pawn a third time and threatening
to win it. } { [%csl Rd6][%cal Rc5d6,Rd2d6] } 20... bxc5 { Obviously NOT 20...dxc5 21.Qxd7 Rxd7 22.Rxd7, losing a Rook
for Black. But now White is behind by a pawn. How will he recover it? } 21. Bxc5 { WOW!! Who would have thought of this?!? Maroczy can't capture the Bishop (see
the note to Black's last move) and his d-pawn is threatened a third time! How
will the master of defense save it? } 21... Rfe8 { WHAT?? How does this save the
d-pawn? For the answer, see the variations to White's next move. } 22. Qa5 { Upon deeper observation, Reti sees that he can't win the d-pawn (see the
variations), so he attacks the a-pawn instead. } (22. Qxd6 { In this variation
(by Alekhine), we see what happens to White if he captures the Black d-pawn
with the Queen: he loses the c5-Bishop! Watch... } 22... Qc8 { The Black Queen attacks
the c5-Bishop, unveiling a discovered attack by the d8-Rook against the White
Queen! The White Queen must move, but it has no squares to go to where it
still defends the Bishop! The c5-Bishop is lost! }) (22. Bxd6 { In this
variation (by Alekhine), we see what happens if the White Bishop captures the
d6-pawn. } 22... Bf8 { Trying to bait White into giving up the Exchange. } 23. Bf4 { The Bishop pulls back to where it can help defend d2 (23.Bxf8 loses the
exchange; try it and see!). } 23... Qxd2 { Black simplifies by trading Queens. } 24. Rxd2 { White must recapture or be a Queen behind. } 24... Rxd2 { Black continues the
simplification process. } 25. Bxd2 { Again, White must recapture or be behind
materially. } 25... Re2 { The remaining Black Rook swoops in and attacks the White
Bishop. } 26. Rd1 { White has to protect the Bishop. If the Bishop just moves
away, then Black will take the a2-pawn with the Rook! } 26... Bc5 { Black wins a pawn
anyway! He threatens to capture the f2-pawn, against which White has no
defense! }) 22... Qf5 { Maroczy defends by attacking! He threatens to win a pawn
by 23...Bxf3 24.Bxf3 Qxf3. } 23. Bxa7 { Reti clearheadedly examines the
situation and determines that he has nothing to fear from Maroczy's
counterattack. He proceeds with his own plans to win the a7-pawn. } 23... Bxf3 { The Black Bishop comes screaming down the long diagonal and kills the White
f3-pawn, avenging the sad demise of the Black a7-pawn. } 24. Bxf3 { Rather than
wait for 24...Bxg2 25.Kxg2 Qe4+ (handing the initiative over to Maroczy), Reti
takes the bull by the horns and makes the capture himself, knocking off the
Black Bishop on f3. } 24... Qxf3 { Maroczy, of course, has to recapture or fall behind
by a Bishop. But now Black has his pieces concentrated on the Kingside and has
a pawn majority there as well! } 25. b6 { Reti pushes his passed pawn. But can
he get it through in time? Maybe Reti should try to convert his advantage into
a win by trading off pieces instead. } 25... h4 { UH-OH!! RED ALERT!! Maroczy
threatens to checkmate White in two moves: 26...h3 followed by 27...Qg2#! Reti
has to do something about this right away! } 26. Rd4 { It may look funny to you,
but this move saves Reti's bacon. Now he can play 27.Qd5 to prevent the mate
without having to worry about Black playing ...Re1+ (see the variations). } (26. Qd5 { Here's why 26.Qd5 doesn't work. White hopes to avoid the mate threat by
trading off the Queens. } 26... Re1+ { But Black has a surprise for White: he checks
with the Rook! Only one move gets White out of check... } 27. Rxe1 { ...so White
is forced to make it. Of course, the White Queen is now hanging... } 27... Qxd5 { ...so Black grabs it and is ahead a Queen for a Rook. The game is far from
over, but (with proper play) the only way White can win is if a huge crack
appears in the earth and Black falls in. }) (26. Qa6 { Here's another way that
White could try to prevent the mate. The White Queen shifts to a6 to prepare
to move to f1. From f1, the Queen prevents a mate on g2... } 26... Re2 { ...but
Black's Rook just blocks the White Queen's path!! }) 26... Re5 { Maroczy
prepares to shift forces to the Kingside. From e5, the Rook can slide over to
the g- or h-files as needed. } 27. Qa6 { The White Queen prepares
to take up a defensive post at f1. Now 27...Re2 doesn't work because of 28.Rf4. } { [%cal Ya6f1] } 27... hxg3 { Since the mate threat after h4-h3 is no longer valid, Maroczy begins
to open up lines for his attack by swapping off the White King's shielding
pawns. } 28. hxg3 { Capturing with the g-pawn would open too many lines leading
from the center straight to the White King. Reti makes it tougher for Maroczy
by capturing with the h-pawn. Now Black must horn in from the flank... } 28... Rh5 { ...so Maroczy does just that. Now he threatens mate again (29.Rh1#)! } 29. Rh4 { Reti puts a stop to Black's latest mate threat by blocking the Black Rook.
Where does Black go from here? } 29... Rxh4 { Maroczy sees a way to force a draw. He
starts by trading Rooks. } 30. gxh4 { Now White has left plenty of holes on the
Kingside for Black to invade. The problem for Black is lack of forces (a Queen
can't mate by itself). } 30... Qg4+ { Maroczy could try to bring his remaining Rook
into play on the Kingside, but this would give White time to promote his
b-pawn to a Queen. } 31. Kf1 { The White King avoids check. The White pieces on
the Queenside are too far removed to help the King by blocking check. } 31... Qh3+ { The Black Queen checks again. The White King has to move to escape check. It
could take cover at e2, but it would get chased to the center of the board
after 32...Re8+... } 32. Kg1 { ...so the King just returns to g1. } 32... Qg4+ { Maroczy,
faced with the possibility of the b6-pawn promoting to a second White Queen,
is unable to bring up more forces for his attack. He has to content himself
with a draw. } 33. Kf1 { Reti could prolong the agony by playing 33.Kh1, but
this game is headed for a draw by threefold repetition no matter what. } 33... Qh3+ { Maroczy has no choice but to check again. } 34. Kg1 { Again, it would be a
mistake for the King to head for the center of the board (where it can be
trapped and killed by the Black pieces), so Reti just shifts it back to g1. } 34... Qg4+ { Maroczy checks again... } 35. Kf1 { ...and Reti evades again. The game is
a draw by repetition of position. } 1/2-1/2

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.18"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Tartakower, Ksawery"]
[Black "Yates, Frederick"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "89"]
[ECO "C33"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 { This is probably the most flexible opening move. It establishes center
control and allows for the easy development of two of White's pieces. } 1... e5 { The same ideas are achieved by Black. } 2. f4 { Tartakower again plays the
King's Gambit (the same opening he used in Round One). This was the most
popular opening throughout the late 1800's. White gambits his f-pawn to
achieve speedy development for his pieces. } 2... exf4 { Yates gives up his control
of the center, but he's now ahead by a pawn. } 3. Be2 { This is an old variation
of the King's Gambit that Tartakower has obviously analyzed extensively. Now
he can play 3.Nf3 and if Black replies 3...Qh4+, the White King will just
sidestep to f1. } 3... Nc6 { The standard move here is 3...d5, giving back the gambit
pawn and contesting White's domination of the center. Does Yates have a better
idea, or is he just unfamiliar with this varaition? Time will tell... } 4. d4 { Tartakower's aggressive little pawns dominate the
center, controlling c5-f5. The dark-square Bishop takes aim at Black's
advanced f4-pawn, too. } { [%csl Rf4][%cal Rc1f4] } 4... d5 { Yates contests White's center control and opens up
a path for the development of his light-square Bishop. } 5. exd5 { "Why not?"
thinks Tartakower as he captures the pawn and attacks the Knight on c6. "If
Yates recaptures with his Queen, I can just chase it away by advancing my
b1-Knight." } 5... Qxd5 { Yates does recapture with his Queen and retains his
one-pawn advantage in material. But now White enjoys a 1-0 pawn advantage on
the center two files. } 6. Nf3 { Tartakower protects his g2-pawn from the Black
Queen's attack by interposing his Knight. He's also managed to defend his
d4-pawn (which before now was attacked twice but only defended once). } 6... Bg4 { Yates prepares to knock out one of the d-pawn's defenders. After ...Bxf3, he
can safely capture the d-pawn and hold a two pawn material advantage. } 7. Nc3 { Tartakower forestalls the Black attack by counterattacking, developing a piece
with a threat (the c3-Knight threatens the Black Queen). } 7... Bb4 { Yates
creatively nips White's counterthreat in the bud by pinning the White
c3-Knight to the King! } 8. O-O { Tartakower, thinking clearly, simply castles.
This develops the Rook, brings the King to safety, and ends the pin on the
c3-Knight (which again attacks the Black Queen!). } 8... Bxc3 { Yates trades his
Bishop for the Knight. This saves his threatened Queen and forces White to
double his pawns on the c-file. } 9. bxc3 { Tartakower must recapture, of course.
Now he has doubled c-pawns and an isolated a-pawn. His Queenside pawn
structure is pretty weak. } 9... Nge7 { To capture the d-pawn, Yates must first trade
his remaining Bishop for the f3-Knight, leaving him with two Knights against
the White Bishop pair. Yates decides that the second pawn isn't worth it and
develops a Knight instead. } 10. Bxf4 { Tartakower wins his pawn back and evens
up the material. } 10... Qe4 { Yates' Queen advance threatens
the White f4-Bishop. } { [%csl Rf4][%cal Re4f4] } 11. Bxc7 { Instead of retreating the Bishop, Tartakower
aggressively captures the Black c7-pawn! The tables have turned: now it's
Tartakower who's ahead by a pawn! (Of course, Yates saw this coming; it's a
deliberate sacrifice). } 11... O-O { Yates has sacrificed a pawn; he has a space
advantage and pressure against the White position in return for it. As White
has no immediate threats that must be dealt with, Yates takes the time to
castle the King into a safe corner. } 12. Qd2 { This
Queen advance gains space for White: he's in total control of f4. Now he can
safely retreat his c7-Bishop there, or even offer an exchange of Queens (after
first guarding the e2-Bishop by moving a Rook to e1). } { [%csl Gf4][%cal Gd2f4] } 12... Nd5 { Yates fights White for control of f4 and attacks the
c7-Bishop at the same time. You can plainly see how a centralized Knight
controls a lot of space and can perform multiple functions at once! } { [%csl Gf4,Rc7][%cal Rd5c7,Gd5f4] } 13. Bg3 { The threatened Bishop withdraws. It could also have retreated to e5, but after
13...Nxe5 14.dxe5 White would have been saddled with an isolated e-pawn. } 13... Qe3+ { Yates decides to ram his minor pieces down White's throat. He begins by
offering a Queen trade. If White declines the trade, Black wins back his pawn
by ...Nxc3. } 14. Qxe3 { Of course, Tartakower makes the swap (and retains his
one-pawn advantage in the process). } 14... Nxe3 { Yates recaptures with his Knight, which now threatens the f1-Rook and the pawn
on c2. If you want to make your opponent uncomfortable, posting a Knight on
your sixth rank (especially on a center file) is a great way to do it! } { [%csl Rc2,Rf1][%cal Re3c2,Re3f1] } 15. Rfc1 { Not much of a Knight fork! Tartakower saves both pieces by moving one to
protect the other. No matter -- the Black Knight sticks like a bone in White's
throat, and Black still holds the initiative. } 15... Rfe8 { The f-Rook shifts over
one file to back up the advanced Black Knight. } 16. Bd3 { Tartakower slowly
begins to wriggle his pieces free. By moving his Bishop off of the d1-h5 file,
he releases the pin on his Knight. } 16... Nd5 { Since this Knight wasn't threatening any White pieces and wasn't really
cramping White's mobility, Yates decides to pull the Knight back to attack the
c3-pawn. (But maybe he should have done this on his last move!) } { [%csl Ye1,Ye2,Ye3,Ye4,Ye5,Ye6,Ye7,Ye8] } 17. c4 { You can often defend a pawn by simply advancing it! That's exactly what
Tartakower does here. He defends the pawn and turns the tables by attacking
the attacker! } 17... Bxf3 { Time out for a brief intermission: over on the Kingside,
Yates trades his last Bishop for White's Knight. This gives White the
advantage of the Bishop pair, which is somewhat offset by his horrible pawn
structure. } 18. gxf3 { Of course, Tartakower
must recapture the Bishop. He now has the Bishop pair and an extra pawn, but
his own pawn structure is in tatters. } { [%csl Ya2,Yc2,Yc4,Yd4,Yf3,Yh2] } 18... Nc3 { Yates
doesn't retreat the Knight. Instead, he prevents White's Rooks from seizing
the half-open b-file. Now White has another small crisis: the d4-pawn is under
attack from the c6-Knight. } { [%csl Rd4][%cal Rc6d4] } 19. d5 { If it worked once, it'll work again! The
menaced pawn advances, turning the tables on its attacker. } 19... Nd4 { The Knight
still occupies d4 (albeit without winning a pawn). Now another White pawn is
under attack! The f3-pawn is attacked by the Knight that's newly-posted on d4. } 20. Kg2 { The only way to save the pawn is to advance the
King to protect it. The square g2 is better than f2 for this purpose because
on g2 the King doesn't interfere with the mobility of the g3-Bishop. } { [%csl Ye1,Yf2,Yg3] } 20... Nde2 { The Black Knight swoops in with another fork,
this time attacking the c1-Rook and the g3-Bishop. Now he'll eliminate White's
advantage of the Bishop pair. } { [%csl Rc1,Rg3][%cal Re2c1,Re2g3] } 21. Re1 { Obviously, Tartakower saves the more
valuable of the two menaced pieces. He also looks ahead to a Rook trade on the
e-file. The best way for Tartakower to convert his one-pawn advanatge is to
trade pieces and head for the endgame. } 21... Nxg3 { As anticipated, Yates kills one
of White's Bishops. Now he'll have a fairly well-placed Knight against a bad
Bishop for White. However, White's pawns are farther advanced than Black's
(which still rest on their home squares). } 22. Rxe8+ { Surprise! Tartakower
decides to force the exchange of Rooks before recapturing the Knight (if 22.
hxg3, Black could refuse to simplify and move the e8-Rook away). The check on
the Black King forces him to swap off a pair of Rooks. } 22... Rxe8 { Yates plays the
only move possible. } 23. hxg3 { And Tartakower makes the obvious reply. Taking
stock, we see that White is a pawn ahead and has a bad Bishop. Black has a
Knight sticking in the heart of White's position and command of the e-file,
but his pawns haven't budged! } 23... Na4 { Yates begins the
repositioning of his Knight. Its immediate destination is c5 where it can
attack White's Bishop. A more significant reason for this move is that White
threatened 24.a4, which would trap the Knight! } { [%cal Ya4c5,Rc5d3] } 24. Kf2 { The White King slides over one square to prevent a
Rook invasion along the e-file. The squares e1, e2, and e3 are all denied to
the Black Rook due to the influence of White's King. } { [%csl Ge1,Ge2,Ge3][%cal Gf2e3,Gf2e2,Gf2e1] } 24... g6 { Yates gives his King
an "escape hatch" on g7 to prevent an embittering "back rank" mate from
White's Rook sometime in the future. Now that the chance of a "cheapo" mate is
gone, White must work for the win! } 25. Rb1 { Tartakower
attacks the b7-pawn. 25.Re1 was another possibility, but not a good idea. It
will be easier to force the win with a Rook and Bishop than with the Bishop
alone (due to the White's terrible pawn structure). } { [%csl Rb7][%cal Rb1b7] } 25... b6 { Yates defends the
pawn by advancing it. Now its brother pawn on a7 protects it. Black now
threatens to play ...Nc3, running the White Rook off of the b-file. How should
White proceed from here? } 26. Rb4 { The Rook charges
ahead and attacks the Knight before the Knight has a chance to attack the Rook! } { [%csl Ra4][%cal Rb4a4] } 26... Nc5 { The Black Knight retreats to its protected
outpost on c5, where it assails the White Bishop. However, due to his one-pawn
deficit, it's really not in Yates' best interest to trade down by capturing
the Bishop. } { [%csl Rd3][%cal Rc5d3] } 27. a4 { Tartakower proceeds methodically. He plans 28.a5. After
28...bxa5, he can play 29.Rb5 and fork the Black Knight and a5-pawn. If Black
waits for 29.axb6, then 29...axb6 30.Rxb6. } 27... Kf8 { Yates begins to bring his
king over to the Queenside to aid in the defense. Why didn't he play 27...Nb7
to prevent White from pushing his a-pawn? See the variation to find out. } (27... Nb7 { In this variation by Alekhine, we'll see why 27.Nb7 is a BAD idea
for Black. } 28. a5 { Surprisingly (unless you can see far enough ahead), White
pushes his a-pawn anyway! } 28... Nxa5 { The Black Knight captures it to even up the
material, and everything seems all right for Black. But is it really...? } 29. c5 { White advances his c-pawn and attacks the Black Knight's support pawn. } 29... bxc5 { Black has no choice but to take the White pawn. So what's the big deal?
If White plays 30.Rb5, Black pushes the c-pawn and counterattacks the Bishop.
White and Black swap evenly, minor piece for minor piece, right? } 30. Rb5 { White bravely forges ahead with the Rook and
forks the Black Knight and pawn. } { [%csl Ra5,Rc5][%cal Rb5a5,Rb5c5] } 30... c4 { Black proceeds
with his own planned counterattack, trading his Knight for the White Bishop... } { [%csl Rd3][%cal Rc4d3] } 31. Be2 { HAAAA! The Bishop nimbly
escapes, but the Black Knight can't get away!! All of the squares that it can
move to are covered by White's forces!! The Knight is trapped and will be
captured on White's next move!! } { [%csl Yb3,Yb7,Yc6][%cal Rb5b7,Rb5b3,Rd5c6] }) 28. a5 { Tartakower pushes ahead with his
Queenside assault. The b6-pawn is attacked twice and defended just once... } 28... Rb8 { ...so to save the pawn, Yates must put another defender on it. Yates is
beginning to sweat as he wonders "What happened?!? I was doing so well just a
few moves ago!" } 29. Ke3 { Since the Black Rook no longer has its "force field"
set up along the e-file, the White King can now cross the file to get over to
where the action is. Remember, centralize your King in the endgame! } 29... Ke7 { Maybe Yates read our minds! He, too, begins to bring his King over toward the
center and Queenside. But Tartakower has a one-square jump on him (his King is
a square closer to the center than Yates' is). } 30. Kd4 { Tartakower's King
continues his drive into the center, the ideal place for the King in the
endgame. } 30... Kd6 { Yates gets his King as close to the center as he can. Now
neither King can advance toward the other (remember the "invisible force
field"? See the entry on "Opposition" in the Glossary). } 31. Rb1 { Tartakower
continues to conduct the endgame with precision. He pulls back his Rook to the
first rank. From here it has easy access to any file on the board. } 31... Rb7 { The Rook advances to a square where it can be protected by the Knight. This
makes it possible for Yates to play ...bxa5 and safely win a pawn. } 32. axb6 { Tartakower heads Yates off at the pass. Instead of losing a pawn, White makes
an even trade. } 32... axb6 { Yates completes the transaction. As
pieces and pawns come off the board, White gets closer to a win. Remember,
though, that White's c2-pawn is blocked behind the c4-pawn and is consequently
very weak (so White has just a slight edge). } { [%csl Yc2,Yc4] } 33. Ra1 { Tartakower's Rook grabs the open a-file. Now the Rook can
range along both the a-file and first rank. } { [%csl Ya1,Ya2,Ya3,Ya4,Ya5,Ya6,Ya7,Ya8] } 33... Re7 { Yates slides his Rook
over to command the e-file. Its range is limited though, because it can be
captured on any square on the file except for e7 and e8! The Black pieces'
mobility is practically nil! } { [%csl Ye7,Ye8,Re1,Re2,Re3,Re4,Re5,Re6][%cal Rd5e6,Rd4e5,Rd3e4,Rd4e3,Rd3e2,Ra1e1] } 34. g4 { Since his Kingside pawns are safe from
the Black Rook, Tarakower decides that now would be a good time to expand. He
starts advancing his Kingside pawns. } 34... f6 { Yates prevents White from playing 35.
g5 (which would, in one stroke, prevent any of the Black Kingside pawns from
advancing). In addition, e5 is now safe for the Black Rook (White can't play
Kxe5 because of the f6-pawn). } 35. Rb1 { Tartakower hits
the b6-pawn with his Rook to lure the Black Rook away from the e-file. } { [%csl Rb6][%cal Rb1b6] } 35... Rb7 { Yates slides his Rook back over to the b-file and protects the pawn... } 36. f4 { ...giving the White f-pawn time to advance and take e5 away from Black. The
White pawns are gobbling up space on the Kingside and restricting Black's
pawns. } 36... Rb8 { Yates, at a loss for a really constructive move, is reduced to
playing a waiting move to see what Tartakower will do. } 37. g5 { Tartakower
tries to bait Black into playing 37...fxg5 38.fxg5, after which the White Rook
can invade Black's position along the open f-file. But Black has other ideas... } 37... f5 { Yates closes off the Kingside position! The pawns are locked! Now what
will Tartakower do? } 38. Rh1 { He plays the obvious move,
striking at his opponent's most glaring weakness: the backward h7-pawn. } { [%csl Rh7][%cal Rh1h7] } 38... Rb7 { The Black Rook now does double duty -- protecting both the b- and h-pawns.
That seems to hold the fort. What can White do now? } 39. Bxf5 { The crowd
gasps! What a shocker! Tartakower sacrifices his Bishop for a pawn!
Incredible! How can he get away with it? } 39... Rf7 { The Black Rook attacks the
Bishop. Why didn't Yates just play 39...gxf5? See the variation! } (39... gxf5 { In this variation by Alekhine, White gives up a Bishop but gets a Queen in
return. } 40. Rh6+ { White uses the newly-opened sixth rank to check the Black
King... } 40... Kc7 { ...which is forced to retreat to the seventh rank, blocking the
Rook's defense of the h7-pawn. } 41. Rxh7+ { White snags the pawn, at the same
time checking Black! } 41... Kc8 { The King must retreat again. Will White now
exchange Rooks? } 42. g6 { NO(!), because Black can get his Knight to g8 in time
to stop the coronation. Instead, White advances the pawn, which will now
proceed to g8 under the Rook's protection. Black is dead lost. }) 40. Rb1 { Another shocker! Tartakower hangs his Bishop to pursue
another pawn! } { [%csl Rb6][%cal Rb1b6] } 40... Kc7 { The King comes back to defend the threatened pawn. If
either the Rook or pawn capture the Bishop, White breaks through to win the
game. See the variations. } (40... Rxf5 { Either way Black captures, the White
Rook captures the b-pawn and the Black Queenside collapses. } 41. Rxb6+ { The Rook check drives the Black King back to the second rank. } 41... Kc7 { At this
point, one second-rank square is as good as another. The King backs up in an
attempt to attack the White Rook. } 42. Kxc5 { Oh, well, it's the thought that
counts! The White King takes the Knight and defends the Rook. The game still
isn't over, but with a three-pawn lead, White should have no trouble icing
this one. }) (40... gxf5 { If the pawn captures the Bishop, the same thing
happens as in Variation A... } 41. Rxb6+ { ...the Rook captures with check,... } 41... Kc7 { ...the King retreats and counterattacks,... } 42. Kxc5 { ...and the White
King snags the Knight and defends the Rook. White is actually in a little
better shape here than in Variation A, so the result should still be the same:
a clear win for White. }) 41. d6+ { The pawn advances, checking Black's King. If
the King captures, we run into the same type of position as in the variations
to Black's last move (with the same results). } 41... Kd8 { The only move. If 41...Kb8,
then 42.Rxb6+ snags the pawn with check (and Black STILL doesn't get a chance
to capture the hanging Bishop!). } 42. Bh3 { Tartakower decides that he's played "carrot on a stick" long enough. He pulls
the Bishop back to a safe square (where it still controls two squares adjacent
to the Black King!). } { [%csl Gc8,Gd7][%cal Gh3c8] } 42... Rxf4+ { Yates finally gets to pick off a pawn (and check
the White King besides). } 43. Kd5 { The White King flees check. 43.Ke5 is no
good, as it drops a pawn to 43...Rxc4 and sets up a later ...Nd7+ (which also
blockades the White passed pawn). } 43... Nd7 { Yates blockades the pawn anyway (but
without check in this position!). } 44. Ra1 { Tartakower prepares the ugly (but
game-winning) threat: 45.Ra8+ Nb8 46.Rxb8#. } 44... Kc8 { The Black King slides over
to throw a wet blanket over White's mate threat. Unfortunately, this also puts
the Black Knight in a pin. You know what to do when you have an opponent's
piece pinned, don't you?... } 45. Ra7 { ...HIT IT
AGAIN! The best Black can do is 45...Rf7, after which White hits the Knight a
third time with 45.Kc6 (which also threatens Ra8#!). Black must lose at least
a minor piece. Yates knows when he's licked and resigns. } { [%csl Rd7][%cal Ra7d7,Rh3d7] } 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.21"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Janowski, Dawid"]
[Black "Lasker, Emanuel"]
[Result "0-1"]
[PlyCount "136"]
[ECO "B83"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 { In the vast majority of openings, White seeks to establish pawns on e4
and d4. Janowski (White) is halfway toward that goal already, and has provided
for the future development of his Queen and light-square Bishop. } 1... c5 { Dr.
Lasker (Black) plays the Sicilian Defense (which will, in future years, become
the most popular response to 1.e4). He immediately challenges White's
intention to play d2-d4. } 2. Nf3 { Janowski develops his Knight toward the
center and disputes Black's control over d4. } 2... Nc6 { Lasker develops usefully,
bringing out a Knight toward the center and increasing his hold on d4. } 3. d4 { Janowski challenges Black's control over the center. He's looking for a series
of exchanges on d4 that will leave him with a lead in development. } 3... cxd4 { Black cannot allow White to dominate the center by posting pawns on both d4
and e4. He trades a flank pawn for one of these dominating center pawns. } 4. Nxd4 { Of course, Janowski must recapture with the Knight so that the material
on the board stays even. Now will Black continue trading by playing 4...Nxd4? } 4... Nf6 { No, because after 5.Qxd4 Black is behind in development and has no real
way to harass the White Queen. Instead, Lasker develops the other Knight and
attacks the remaining White center pawn. } 5. Nc3 { Janowski develops his other
Knight and defends the menaced pawn. } 5... d6 { Lasker releases his light-squared
Bishop and prepares a future e7-e5 pawn push. } 6. Be2 { Janowski develops the
last Kingside minor piece to a spot where it controls squares on two diagonals
(d1-h5 and a6-f1). Now he can castle freely, } 6... e6 { Rather than play an
immediate ...e7-e5 (which gives Black a weak, backward d-pawn), Lasker pushes
the pawn just one square. Now he has the option to advance EITHER center pawn
later (as the situation becomes clearer). } 7. O-O { Janowski completes his
Kingside development by castling. } 7... Be7 { Lasker gets his dark-squared Bishop
off of the back rank and prepares to castle. } 8. Be3 { Janowski develops his
second Bishop to a good spot where it has the flexibilty to operate on two
diagonals (a7-g1 and c1-h6). } 8... O-O { Lasker gets his King to safety. Now he's
completed his Kingside development. } 9. Qd2 { Janowski continues developing,
getting the Queen off of the back rank and connecting his Rooks. } 9... a6 { Lasker grabs some Queenside space and takes b5 away from the marauding
White pieces. This lets Black play ...Re8 without worrying about a pin on the
Black c6-Knight after White plays Bb5. } { [%csl Rb5] } 10. Rad1 { Janowski sets up a battery
on the half-open d-file. He sees that Lasker has a potential weakness in the
d6-pawn and begins to build up tension in the position by putting pressure on
the pawn early. } 10... Qc7 { Lasker shifts the Queen to the c-file. He'll now try to
clear the c-file for the Queen by playing 11...Nxd4. Lasker is also a move
closer to connecting his Rooks. } 11. Nb3 { The idea of 11...Nxd5 12.Bxd5 e5 is
unappealing to Janowski, so he pulls back the Knight. Notice that had Black
not previously played ...a7-a6, the Knight could have gone to b5, attacking
the Queen and piling up on the d6-pawn. } 11... b5 { Lasker gets his minority attack
rolling, grabing lots of space on the Queenside and threatening to play 12...
b4. } 12. f3 { Seeing that 12...b4 will drive away the e4-pawn's only protector
(the Knight on c3), Janowski shores up the pawn by advancing its brother on
the f-file. } 12... Rd8 { Lasker gets one of his Rooks to the same file as the White
Queen. Now if he can only find a way to open the d-file...maybe if he pushes
the pawn to d5? } 13. Qe1 { Janowski sees the potential danger to his Queen, so
he retreats it off of the d-file. Lasker has been holding on to the initiative
for the last few moves by making threats that Janowski is forced to react to. } 13... Ne5 { Lasker has run out of threatening moves and now just concentrates on
improving his position. He centralizes his Knight (which may be able to jump
to c4 at an opportune moment) and clears the c-file for his Queen. } 14. Qf2 { Janowski retakes the initiative by making a threat of his own. He
threatens to play 15.Bb6, attacking the Black Queen. After the Queen moves,
White wins the exchange with 16.Bxd8. } { [%cal Re3b6] } 14... Rb8 { Lasker just shifts his Rook to the
b-file and stops the threat cold. Now what will Janowski do? } 15. Bd3 { Janowski wants Lasker to play 15...Nxd3, giving up his centralized Knight.
Then White can rebalance the pawn structures with 16.cxd4. He'd then be able
to shoot his Queen over to c2 to help deal with Black's Queenside attack. } 15... Nc4 { Lasker has no intention of letting Janowski equalize this game.
If Janowski takes this Knight, he wastes a tempo in moving the Bishop again.
Then Black replies 16...Qxc4 and the pawn structure remains unbalanced. } { [%cal Rc4b2] } 16. Bc1 { Janowski slides the Bishop back to defend the menaced b2-pawn. } 16... Bb7 { Lasker finally gets his Rooks connected by putting his Bishop on the long
a8-h1 diagonal. } 17. Qg3 { Janowski pins the pawn on d6. If it advances now,
White wins Black's hanging Queen with Qxc7. } 17... Rbc8 { Lasker
takes care of his little "hanging Queen" problem by defending it with a Rook.
Incidentally, Black now has a battery set up on the c-file. } { [%cal Rc7b6,Rc4e3] } 18. Rfe1 { Janowski sees Black's ugly threat of ...Qb6+ followed by ...Ne3, forking both
of the White Rooks. The Rook covers e3, so now the c1-Bishop can safely block
the check by Black's Queen. } 18... Nd7 { Lasker repositions his Knight.
Now it can leap ahead to e5 and crowd White even more. } { [%cal Rd7e5] } 19. f4 { It's pretty
obvious where the Black d7-Knight is headed, so Janowski advances his f-pawn
and takes that square away from Black. } 19... Bf6 { Lasker now threatens
to win a pawn: 20...Nxb2 21.Bxb2 Bxc3 22.Bxc3 Qxc3. White must take preventive
measures... } { [%cal Rc4b2] } 20. Bxc4 { ...so he bags the attacking Knight. Unfortunately for
Janowski, this will leave Black with the advantage of having both Bishops. } 20... bxc4 { Lasker recaptures on c4 and threatens the White b3-Knight. By the way,
not only does Black have the advantage of having two Bishops, but both of them
are well-placed on the board's long diagonals. } 21. Nd2 { Rather than retreat
to the corner square a1 (a TERRIBLE place for a Knight!), the attacked Knight
pulls back to d2, where it has more mobility and still exerts some control
over the center. } 21... Qa5 { Lasker shifts his Queen to a spot where it controls
more of the board. Now it can swiftly move to the Kingside should the
situation warrant. He's also trying to control d5, to support the advance of
his d-pawn. } 22. Ndb1 { Janowski gets his Knight off of the d-file, enabling
his d1-Rook to influence d5. } 22... Nf8 { Lasker follows suit. Now his d8-Rook can
support the d-pawn's advance. Should Lasker decide to invade White's Kingside,
the Knight can jump to g6 to help in the attack. } 23. Be3 { Janowski 1) allows his Rooks access to the Queenside, 2) prevents an annoying
check on his King along the a7-g1 diagonal, 3) begins to set up a double
attack against the Black Queen and d8-Rook (24.Qf2, 25.Bb6). } { [%cal Rg3f2,Re3b6] } 23... Qb4 { Lasker simply attacks the b2-pawn. } { [%cal Rb4b2] } 24. Bc1 { 24.b3 loses a piece (see
variation), so Janowski must bring the Bishop back home to c1 to defend the
b-pawn. Compare this position to the one after Black's 22nd move; it's as
though Black got to move twice in a row! } (24. b3 { 24.b3 is a horrible move
for White: it loses a piece by removing the b-pawn's protection from the
c3-Knight! } 24... Bxc3 { Black takes the Knight and attacks the e1-Rook. } 25. Nxc3 { White recaptures... } 25... Qxc3 { ...and Black takes back with the Queen. White is
now behind by a minor piece! }) 24... Ng6 { Lasker relentlessly keeps up the
pressure by setting up a Kingside attack: he threatens to play 25...Bh4,
attacking the White Queen and winning the e1-Rook (after the Queen has moved
to safety). } 25. Qf2 { Janowski retreats his Queen -- but it's still on the
deadly e1-h4 diagonal! Has he miscalculated? } 25... Bh4 { Lasker's Bishop swoops in
and attacks the White Queen and Rook. } 26. g3 { Janowski advances the g-pawn
and blocks the attack, counterattacking the Bishop in the process. } 26... Bf6 { Lasker must retreat the Bishop. Yet he hasn't wasted a tempo,
because he's created a weakness on White's Kingside: f3 and h3 are weak
because they can never again be controlled by a White pawn. } { [%csl Rf3,Rh3] } 27. a3 { Janowski
tries to wrest the initiative back from Lasker by attacking his Queen. } 27... Qa5 { Obviously the Queen must retreat, and a5 happens to be the only safe square!
How will Janowski follow up? } 28. Be3 { Janowski sets up the
threat we looked at before, namely 29.Bb6, forking the Black Queen and d8-Rook.
Even better is 29.e5 dxe5 30.Bb6, which wins the Queen (because the Black
Queen has NO escape squares!). } { [%cal Re3b6] } 28... Qh5 { Unfortunately for
Janowski, Lasker spots the threat and scoots his Queen over to the Kingside.
By shifting his forces over to this side of the board, he plans to exploit the
weakness of the light squares on the White Kingside. } { [%csl Yf3,Yg2,Yg4,Yh3] } 29. Bb6 { By continuing
to make threats, Janowski doesn't give Lasker time to proceed with his plans.
Here he attacks the Black d8-Rook, forcing Lasker to respond. } 29... Rd7 { The Black
Rook just advances one square to get out of danger. } 30. Rd2 { Janowski
advances one of his own Rooks to prevent loss of material (30...Bxe4 31.Rxe4
Qxd1+ etc. [even just 30...Bxe4 loses a pawn]). Now 30...Bxe4 loses material
for Black as the e1-Rook can freely recapture the Bishop. } 30... Bc6 { Lasker plans
to shift his d7-Rook over to the half-open b-file, attacking both the White
b6-Bishop and the b2-pawn. He moves the Bishop to clear the way for this
maneuver. } 31. Red1 { Janowski counters with a threat of his own -- he
threatens to win a pawn by 32.Rxd6. } 31... Be7 { Lasker's Bishop drops back to defend
the menaced pawn. } 32. a4 { Janowski prepares to stop Lasker's planned attack
in which he'll skewer the b6-Bishop to win the pawn on b2. He'll prop up the
Bishop with the a-pawn. } 32... Rb7 { Lasker proceeds with his plan, attacking the
White Bishop. If it moves away, the Rook will capture the b2-pawn. } 33. a5 { Janowski defends the Bishop with the a-pawn. Notice how the pawn and Bishop
defend each other! } 33... f5 { Lasker piles up on the White
e4-pawn. Black attacks the pawn twice and White only defends it once. White
must respond to this threat and defend the pawn again. } { [%cal Rf5e4,Rc6e4,Gc3e4] } 34. Qe3 { The Queen
moves up to guard the menaced pawn. } 34... e5 { Lasker keeps battering at the gates.
He strikes at the White f-pawn, hoping to blow more holes in White's already
drafty Kingside pawn chain. } 35. Rf1 { The Rook moves over to help in the
defense of the Kingside. The White King will certainly need defenders once
Lasker smashes the White pawn structure! } 35... exf4 { Lasker initiates the
anticipated pawn exchange... } 36. gxf4 { ...and White completes it. Remember
the story of the "Emperor's New Clothes"? The White King is certainly starting
to look naked with most of his covering pawns missing! } 36... Bf8 { Lasker now
intends to shift his Rooks back over to the Kingside, so he gets his
dark-squared Bishop out of the way. } 37. Nd5 { Janowski blocks the long a8-h1
diagonal and positions his Knight to a center square where it exerts a
cramping effect on Black's game. } 37... Rf7 { Lasker brings one of his Rooks over to
the Kingside, exactly as we anticipated. Notice that the Black pieces are
shifting to the Kingside, since that's where White's weaknesses are. } 38. Nbc3 { Janowski continues to centralize his pieces, trying to get them over to the
Kingside to fight off the Black attack. } 38... Re8 { The Black pieces continue to
head for the Kingside. Also, the Black Rook on the e-file holds potential
dangers for the White Queen on the same file. } 39. Qd4 { Janowski, therefore,
gets his Queen off of the e-file. The Queen goes to a central square where it
bears down on the Black King's position via the long a1-h8 diagonal. It also
attacks the Black pawn on c4. } 39... fxe4 { Lasker creates a passed pawn on the
e-file. The pawn is supported by the Rook on e8. This is the ideal way to
support a passed pawn; as the pawn advances, the number of squares that the
Rook controls increases. } 40. Qxc4 { Lasker just captured a White pawn on his
last move; Janowski replies by taking a Black pawn. Notice that the material
is still equal; even so, Black has the advantage of the Bishop pair, and
White's King is awfully exposed. } 40... Bd7 { Lasker must do something about his
hanging Bishop (White was threatening 41.Qxc6). He'd rather not give up the
Bishop pair with 40...Bxd5, so he retreats the Bishop instead (to a square
where it aims at White's Kingside). } 41. Be3 { Since the a-pawn is no longer in
danger from the Black Queen (due to the presence of the White d5-Knight),
Janowski pulls the Bishop back to e3 where it blockades the passed pawn on e4. } 41... Nh4 { The Black Knight advances ominously. Now Black threatens 42...Nf3,
forking White's King and d2-Rook. The f3-square would be a great outpost for
the Knight. It would be protected by the e4-pawn and the Queen. } 42. Rdf2 { Since f3 is a hole (no White pawn can guard the square), Janowski can't keep
the Black Knight off of it. He can prevent the fork, however, by moving one of
the pieces in danger of being forked. Lasker must devise a new plan. } 42... Bh3 { One of Black's Bishops comes crashing in! Now the White Rook on f1 is under
attack! Lasker is bringing more of his pieces in for the attack and is trying
to drive away the White pieces defending the exposed King. } 43. Nxe4 { See the
variation to find out why Janowski didn't just move the f1-Rook. Here he grabs
a pawn (possible because his Queen protects the Knight) and gets another piece
closer to his besieged Kingside. } (43. Ra1 { White will lose the exchange
(giving up a Rook for a minor piece) whether he plays Ra1, Rb1, Rc1, or Nxe4
(as he does in the main line of the game). We'll try Ra1 (hoping to activate
the Rook along the a-file) for this example. } 43... Qg4+ { Black replies with the
obvious checking move. } 44. Kh1 { The White King makes its stand in the corner,
rather than allow itself to be driven to the center of the board. } 44... Bg2+ { Black continues to force a reply from White by checking again. } 45. Kg1 { The only sensible move, as 45.Rxg2 leads to mate-in-one: 45...Qxg2#. } 45... Nf3+ { Another check, another forced move. Black keeps his attack strong by retaining
the initiative. } 46. Rxf3 { Absolutely the ONLY legal move. } 46... Bxf3+ { Black
recaptures. White has now lost the exchange by giving up a Rook for a Knight.
White is now in check as well. } 47. Kf1 { Again, White plays the only legal
move. } 47... Qg2+ { By checking your opponent, you're in effect getting two moves in
a row. While he's busy trying to get out of check, you can pursue your own
plans. Here Black gives check and attacks the c2-pawn. } 48. Ke1 { Again, the
White King goes to the only available square. } 48... Qxc2 { The Black Queen snaps up
the free pawn. } 49. Qxa6 { White takes the opportunity to grab a free pawn, too.
White is behind by the exchange and the Black pieces are in the midst of the
White position. In fact, the Black Rooks haven't even joined the attack yet!
Things look bad for White. }) 43... Qg4+ { Checking your opponent is like
getting a free move. You take away his freedom of action while you improve
your position. Now Janowski is forced to find a way out of check, while Lasker
can just proceed with his plans. } 44. Ng3 { Now the point of 43...Nxe4 becomes
clear. The centralized Knight dives into the Kingside and blocks the check. } 44... Nf5 { The Black Knight steps back and attacks the White Knight that impudently
blocked the check. How will White stop the attack now? } 45. Rf3 { The Rook
advances to guard the g3-Knight. But after ...Bxf1, the f3-Rook hangs (or does
it?)... } 45... Bxf1 { Lasker forges ahead and snags the Rook, leaving the f3-Rook
hanging... } 46. Qxf1 { ...but only for a moment. Now Janowski is the exchange
behind, but almost all of his pieces are on the Kingside. Black's pieces are
bearing down on the White position. Can Janowski hold on? } 46... Nxe3 { Lasker's
Knight swoops in, killing the Bishop and attacking the White Queen. Notice how
paths are slowly being opened on the e- and f-files for the Black Rooks. } 47. Nxe3 { Janowski takes the offending Knight and attacks the Black Queen. } 47... Qc8 { Janowski has successfully fought off the attack of the Black pieces, so it's
time for Lasker to reorganize his forces. The Black Queen moves to c8 and
threatens the c2-pawn. But Lasker has a deeper plan in mind... } 48. Qd3 { Rather than move the Queen to a square on the second rank (where its freedom
of movement would be restricted by the other White pieces), Janowski brings it
to d3 to defend the c2-pawn. } 48... Qc5 { Lasker continues to improve his position.
He centralizes his Queen and pins the White Knight on e3. } 49. Qd2 { Janowski
pulls back his Queen, but wouldn't 49.Ne4 (attacking the Black Queen) have
been better? Then 50.Ng5 threatens mate-in-one! } 49... d5 { Lasker sees the possible
White Knight move, so he prevents it (the pawn guards e4 now). } 50. Kg2 { Janowski decides that it's high time he broke the pin on his Knight, so he
removes his King from the deadly a7-g1 diagonal. Lasker had hoped to break in
by 50...d4 51.Ng4 d3+, creating all sorts of havoc for White. } 50... d4 { He plays it
anyway! Now the White Knight must move, but without the White King on g1 51...
d3 loses its zing. What's Lasker up to now? } 51. Ng4 { The White Knight gets
out of danger. The reason Janowski places it on g4 instead of f1 should be
obvious: on f1, the Knight's mobility is absolutely NIL! It would have no
spaces to move to! } 51... Bd6 { Lasker continues to put pressure on the White forces.
Here, the inactive Bishop moves to a better post and attacks the White g4-pawn
(which is now attacked twice and defended twice). Should a defender move, the
pawn is lost. } 52. Nf2 { The White Knight continues to caper around the board,
searching for a good post. The square d3 (where it would blockade the Black
d-pawn and attack the Queen) looks good, or maybe e4 (where it closes off the
e-file to Black)... } 52... Qd5 { The Black Queen prevents 53.Ne4 (if White plays that
move, he'll lose a minor piece) and pins the White Rook to the King. } 53. c4 { Janowski decides to sacrifice a pawn in order to obtain more space for his
pieces. He wants to draw the Black Queen off of d5 so that he can post a
Knight on e4 and attack the d6-Bishop. } 53... Qxc4 { Lasker accepts the offered pawn..
. } 54. Nge4 { ...and a Knight jumps to e4. Now the d6-Bishop is in danger. What
should Lasker do? } 54... Qd5 { The course Lasker chooses is probably the simplest:
the Queen returns to d5, where it defends the menaced Bishop. } 55. Nxd6 { Even though he's behind in material, Janowski trades a Knight for the Black
Bishop. Eliminating the Bishop will slightly ease the pressure on the White
Kingside. There's even a (slight) chance of White Queenside counterplay. } 55... Qxd6 { The Queen recaptures and Black retains his material advantage. } 56. Nd3 { Janowski blockades the dangerous d-pawn with his Knight. The Knight also helps
to guard the f4-pawn and is more centrally placed to react to emergencies on
both sides of the board. } 56... Qd5 { Lasker pushes his Queen forward one square and
re-establishes the pin on the White Rook. } 57. Kg3 { Janowski again advances
his King to break a pin. Now the Rook is freed up for action (and since the
f4-pawn is overprotected, the White Rook, Knight, King, or Queen are free to
move and aren't tied to the pawn's defense). } 57... Rf6 { Lasker increases his
position's flexibility. Now he can double his Rooks on the f-file, shift the
f6-Rook to the h-file to attack the White h-pawn, or move it to the g-file to
check the White King. } 58. Kf2 { Janowski sees how deadly 58...Rg6+ 59.Ke2 Qh5
would be for him (the two heavy Black pieces would soon smash through and
force checkmate), so he saves his neck by retreating his King. } 58... Rh6 { Lasker slides the Rook to the h-file and attacks the hanging h2-pawn. } { [%cal Rh6h2] } 59. h3 { Janowski advances the pawn to h3, where it is protected by his Rook.
See the variation to find out why 59.Kg3 doesn't work (this will also clarify
the commentary to White's last move). } (59. Kg3 { The White position in the
actual game is hanging by a thread. One false move (like 59.Kg3) and it's
curtains for White. } 59... Qh5 { Two of Black's heavy pieces on the h-file spell
almost certain doom for White. } 60. Ne5 { This repositioning of the Knight will
allow it to jump to g4 to block a g-file check. It also closes the e-file to
the Black e8-Rook. Unfortunately for White, Black has a check that White can't
prevent... } 60... Qh4+ { ...so he plays it! Of course, the King has only one way to
get out of check... } 61. Kg2 { ...by moving to g2. Obviously the Black Queen
will now check the King again. } 61... Qxh2+ { The Queen checks, eliminates a pawn,
and skewers the White Queen!! The game is essentially over, but we'll
sadistically watch a few more moves... } 62. Kf1 { The White King has no choice.
This is the only way to avoid check. } 62... Qxd2 { The Black Queen assassinates her
counterpart. } 63. Rg3 { The White Rook slides over to prevent 63...Rh1#. If the
Black Rook does move to h1, White simply blocks check with 64.Rg1. } 63... Rh2 { Remember the tip about getting a pair of Rooks to the seventh rank? It works
even better with a Rook and Queen! Black doubles up his heavy pieces on the
seventh rank. } 64. Rxg7+ { White's last gasp is a kamikaze attack on the Black
King. } 64... Kxg7 { The Black King grabs the free Rook (of course!) } 65. f5 { No
matter what move White makes here, he can't avoid mate on Black's next move. } 65... Qf2# { And White goes down in flaming ruins. }) 59... Rf6 { Lasker's Rook returns
to f6. This non-committal move keeps Black's position flexible (this is
exactly the same position as the one after White's 58th move, except that it's
now White's turn to move). } 60. Kg3 { Janowski's problem is that he doesn't
really have any good moves to make. He's reduced to just waiting for the axe
to fall. But, being the fighter that he is, he valiantly struggles on. } 60... Rg6+ { There's actually much more to this move than just a simple check, as we'll see
in a moment. The noose around White's neck is about to get tighter. Judging
from the pained look on Janowski's face, he feels the rope tightening. } 61. Kf2 { Janowski sighs and retreats his King. Wait until you see what's next... } 61... Re3 { BRILLIANT! Who except Lasker would have seen this? If you're confused and
wondering why Janowski doesn't just play 62.Rxe3, see the variation to White's
next move. } 62. Ne5 { 62.Rxe3 is suicide, so Janowski instead cuts off the
Black Rook's retreat along the e-file. } (62. Rxe3 { If White wants to end the
game, the only way he could do it more quickly than this is to flip the board. } 62... Qg2+ { The Black Queen zooms in, checking the King and skewering the White
Queen. But the skewer doesn't quite work... } 63. Ke1 { ...because the White
King can step back and defend the Queen. If Black wants to behead Her Majesty,
he's going to have to work a little harder... } 63... Qg1+ { The check by the Black
Queen drives the White King back to the second rank... } 64. Ke2 { ...to e2, in
fact (it's the only legal move that White had!). } 64... Rg2+ { Now here's a REAL
skewer for you! The King is again forced to the only legal square it has... } 65. Kf3 { ...one where it can't protect the Queen! The next move should not be
viewed by the extremely squeamish... } 65... Rxd2 { The White Queen meets with a
bloody and untimely end. Black has a crushing material advantage. }) 62... Qe4 { Lasker toys with White like a cat with a mouse. He increases his hold on White
by defending his e3-Rook. } 63. b4 { Janowski, after thinking for several
minutes, sighs again and pushes his b-pawn. This move does nothing to help his
position (but at least it doesn't hurt it, either). } 63... h5 { Lasker's threat is 64.
..h4 and 65...Rg3, making White's life truly miserable by attacking the
twice-defended f3-Rook a third time. White must find a way to pile more
protection on the Rook. } 64. Qd1 { Of course. But all of White's pieces are now
tied up, while Black's g6-Rook is still active. } 64... Rf6 { Black's new threat is to
win the f4-pawn. What should Janowski do? } 65. Nd3 { The complicated dance of
the chesspieces continues. The White Knight comes to the f4-pawn's rescue. } 65... g5 { Lasker hits the hapless f4-pawn again! Of course, 66.fxg5 leads to White's
total annihilation. How will Janowski respond to this new threat? } 66. Nc5 { Janowski answers a threat with a threat. The Knight assails the Black Queen. } 66... Qd5 { The Black Queen has to drop back. It still attacks the f3-Rook, but it no
longer strikes at the f4-pawn. } 67. Nd3 { Janowski brings the Knight back to
cover the f4-pawn. } 67... gxf4 { Lasker looks ahead and sees that he can safely grab
the pawn. } 68. Nxf4 { The Knight takes back the pawn and simultaneously attacks
the Black Queen. } 68... Qe4 { The Black Queen returns to e4 and attacks the Knight.
Janowski sees that he'll soon lose the Knight and be behind a whole Rook
(instead of "just" the exchange). He shakes his head in disgust and tips his
King over. } 0-1

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.21"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Capablanca, Jose Raul"]
[Black "Alekhine, Alexander"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[PlyCount "124"]
[ECO "C12"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 { Capablanca (White) opens with 1.d4, a move that usually leads to closed,
positional games. } 1... e6 { Alekhine (Black) surprises us by not disputing White's
intention to set up a central pawn pair on d4 and e4. } 2. e4 { Capa achieves in two moves the ideal central pawn setup for White. } { [%csl Gd4,Ge4] } 2... d5 { NOW Alekhine disputes the pawn pair! What started as a d-pawn opening has been
transformed into the French Defense, an e-pawn opening better suited to
Alekhine's open style. The French usually begins 1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5. } 3. Nc3 { Capa's Knight develops off of the first rank and defends the endangered e-pawn. } 3... Nf6 { Alekhine piles up on the White e-pawn, developing usefully as he does
so. } 4. Bg5 { Rather than put another piece's protection on the e-pawn, Capa
defends it by pinning one of its attackers! (He's continuing his development
at the same time). } 4... Bb4 { Alekhine knocks out the White e-pawn's support by
pinning the defending piece. } 5. exd5 { Capablanca decides it's better to trade
off the e-pawn rather than to continue trying to defend it. } 5... Qxd5 { Surprise!
Alekhine brings the Queen out early (usually a bad idea!) and recaptures on d5.
Notice that the c3-Knight can't take the Queen because it's pinned, and that
the f6-Knight is no longer pinned. } 6. Bxf6 { The d-pawn's inability
to advance tells Capa that his pawns will probably be posted on dark squares
and that his dark-squared Bishop will become bad. He trades it for a Black
Knight. } { [%csl Gd4] } 6... Bxc3+ { Instead of immediately playing 6...gxf6 (which would hand the
initiative over to White), Alekhine keeps the initiative by interposing
another move: a capture WITH CHECK. } 7. bxc3 { Capa is forced to expend a tempo
to get out of check. He makes the most sensible reply. He's now saddled with
doubled pawns, but he also has a half-open b-file for his Rooks. } 7... gxf6 { Now Alekhine captures the Bishop. He, too, now has a set of doubled pawns, but
the half-open g-file offers some compensation. } 8. Qd2 { The reason that Capa
plays this may seem obscure, but he prevents Black from fianchettoing his
c8-Bishop. If 7...b6, then 8.Be2 threatens to skewer the Black Queen and Rook
by 9.Bf3. } 8... Nd7 { The Knight devlops off of the first rank and intends to wind
up on the hole on c4 by way of b6. } 9. c4 { Capa assaults the centrally-placed
Queen. } 9... Qe4+ { Rather than retreating to d6 (and cramping Black's position),
the Queen advances with check. } 10. Ne2 { Capa develops another piece usefully
while he blocks check. } 10... Nb6 { Alekhine continues with his Knight maneuver. Next
stop: c4 (unless White prevents it). } 11. f3 { Capa kicks the Queen out of the
center. Once the Black Queen moves away, the pin on his Knight will be
released. } 11... Qc6 { By pulling the Queen back to c6,
Alekhine attacks the c4-pawn twice. The pawn is totally undefended. How can
Capa save it? } { [%csl Rc4][%cal Rb6c4,Rc6c4] } 12. c5 { Capa defends the pawn by
advancing it! The pawn now counterattacks the Black Knight on b6. } { [%csl Rb6][%cal Rc5b6] } 12... Nd5 { The Black Knight could easily be knocked off of c4 by White's Queen and Bishop,
so Alekhine decides to shift it over toward the sparsely-defended Kingside. } 13. c4 { Capa decides to prod the Knight a little to
hasten its departure from the center. } { [%csl Rd5][%cal Rc4d5] } 13... Ne7 { The Black Knight abandons the
center, backing up to a new post where it can shift to the Kingside at a
moment's notice. Now both players have to find a way to effectively develop
their Bishops. } 14. Nc3 { Capa accomplishes two
objectives with this move: 1) He sets up the move Ne4, which threatens the
Black f6-pawn; 2) he allows his Bishop to develop off of the first rank. } { [%cal Yc3e4,Re4f6,Yf1d3] } 14... f5 { Alekhine doesn't plan to wait for White to play Ne4. He advances
his f-pawn and denies the Knight access to e4. But Black is now incredibly
weak on the Kingside dark squares (since no pawns guard these squares). } { [%cal Gf5e4] } 15. Be2 { If the Bishop advances to d3, its mobility is limited by the pawns on c4
and f5. On e2, the Bishop will at least have access to the Kingside after the
White f3-pawn advances. } 15... Rg8 { Alekhine takes control of
the half-open g-file and attacks the g2-pawn. } { [%csl Rg2][%cal Rg8g2] } 16. O-O { Capa castles. In addition to the usual benefits of castling,
the White King now defends the (pinned!) g2-pawn. } { [%csl Yg1,Yg2,Yg3,Yg4,Yg5,Yg6,Yg7,Yg8] } 16... Bd7 { Alekhine finally gets
his Bishop off of the first rank. Notice, though, that White has a big lead in
development, as Black's Rooks are not yet connected. } 17. Qe3 { The White Queen
comes to e3 to allow Capa to push the d-pawn (otherwise the pawn push would
leave the c5-pawn hanging!). Now if White plays d4-d5, the Queen will protect
the c5-pawn. } 17... b6 { Things are getting a little dicey for the Black
Queen, which has very limited mobility. Alekhine advances a pawn to give the
Queen an "escape hatch" on b7 should White get frisky and lauch an attack in
the center. } { [%cal Yc6b7] } 18. Rfd1 { It looks as though Capa DOES plan an attack on the
center files. The Rook on d1 helps to support a d-pawn advance and prevents
the loss of a pawn after 18...bxc5 19.d5 exd5 20.cxd5 Qd6. } 18... bxc5 { With each move, White improves his position a little more.
Alekhine can do very little to improve his, so he decides to undertake some
offensive action, throwing White off guard and delaying any more White
improvements. } { [%csl Rd4][%cal Rc5d4] } 19. d5 { Allowing 19...cxd4 just loses a pawn for White, so Capa
pushes the pawn and attacks the Black Queen. He anticipates 19...exd5, which
will allow him to regain the pawn that Black took on the last move. } 19... Qd6 { 19...exd5 20.cxd5 leaves Black with a White pawn stuck in his throat, so he
plans to make the swap on e6 instead... } 20. dxe6 { Capa grabs back his lost pawn and sets up two attacks: Rxd6 and exd7.
Of course, Black can simply sidestep both attacks... } { [%csl Rd6,Rd7][%cal Re6d7] } 20... Qxe6 { ...which he does.
Black remains a pawn ahead (offset somewhat by his TWO sets of doubled pawns).
The White Queen's presence increases the weakness of these pawns, so Alekhine
offers an exchange of Queens. } 21. Qxc5 { Capablanca will have none of it. He's
more interested in regaining his lost pawn. The material balance is even once
again. } 21... Qb6 { The Black Queen pins its White
conterpart and siezes the open b-file. Now White is powerless to prevent a
Queen exchange if Alekhine desires it. } { [%csl Yb6,Yc5,Yd4,Ye3,Yf2,Yg1] } 22. Qf2 { Other than 22.Qxb6, this is
the only move for the White Queen that doesn't lose material. } 22... f4 { The White
Bishop will be stronger if it can become mobile. Alekhine blocks the
mobilizing advance of the White f-pawn. The problem is that the Black f-pawn
is undefended. } 23. Rab1 { Capablanca is undistracted by
the juicy pawn, ripe for the picking. He goes after the Black Queen instead. } { [%csl Rb6][%cal Rb1b6] } 23... Qxf2+ { Alekhine decides that it's time to trade off the Queens. } 24. Kxf2 { The only sensible response for White is to take back. } 24... Bc6 { Alekhine gets his Bishop onto the long a8-h1 diagonal,
where it overlooks the White Kingside. This Bishop's presence makes a White
Kingside pawn advance more difficult. } { [%csl Ya8,Yb7,Yc6,Yd5,Ye4,Yf3,Yg2,Yh1] } 25. Rd4 { Capa
advances his Rook and attacks the hanging f-pawn. } { [%csl Rf4][%cal Rd4f4] } 25... Ng6 { Alekhine defends the f-pawn with his Knight. } { [%csl Gf4][%cal Gg6f4] } 26. Bd3 { Capa plans to knock out
the f-pawn's defender. Now Bxg6 followed by Rxf4 wins a pawn for White. } 26... Nh4 { Alekhine makes his own threat: if Rxf4, then ...
Nxg2! The White King would be unable to take the Knight (because of the
g8-Rook's protection!). } { [%csl Rg2][%cal Rg8g2,Rh4g2] } 27. Bf1 { Capa stops the
Black threat of ...Nxg2 by protecting the endangered pawn with his Bishop. } { [%csl Gg2][%cal Gf2g2,Gf1g2] } 27... Ng6 { Alekhine, who's no fool, slides the Knight back to again protect his f4-pawn. } 28. Ne2 { Capa hits the f4-pawn again. It's
impossible for Alekhine to defend it a second time, so the pawn is lost. } { [%csl Rf4][%cal Re2f4,Rd4f4] } 28... Ke7 { Alekhine abandons his pawn and advances the King. Now the Black Rooks are
finally connected! } 29. Re1 { What's this?
Capa doesn't take the pawn right away. He sets up a discovered check instead... } { [%csl Ye1,Ye2,Ye3,Ye4,Ye5,Ye6,Ye7] } 29... Rgb8 { Since White's Rook abandoned
the b-file, the Black Rook grabs control of it. Alekhine hopes to be able to
get an attack going along the b-file. } { [%csl Yb1,Yb2,Yb3,Yb4,Yb5,Yb6,Yb7,Yb8] } 30. Nxf4+ { Capa grabs the pawn, checks Black (with the e1-Rook), and sets up 31.
Nxg6 (since he's a pawn ahead, Capa wants to trade down and head for the
endgame). } { [%csl Re7,Rg6][%cal Rf4g6] } 30... Kf8 { Since 29...Rgb8 made sure that his Rooks would stay connected,
it's better for the Black King to return to the first rank than run to the
board's center and get mated there. } 31. Nxg6+ { Capa's
one-pawn advantage ought to be enough to win, so he starts swapping off pieces
to get to the endgame. This move also allows him to control the initiative
(since Black must now get out of check). } { [%csl Rf8][%cal Rg6f8] } 31... hxg6 { Alekhine has the choice of
which pawn to recapture with, so he follows the principle "Capture towards the
center". } 32. Bd3 { Capa shifts his Bishop
to a better post. He's probably thinking of moving his Bishop to e4 to trade
it for Black's Bishop. } { [%csl Yb1,Yc2,Yd3,Ye4,Yf5,Yg6,Yh7] } 32... Rb2+ { Alekhine begins
his counterattack on the b-file, getting his Rook to the seventh rank and
attacking White's King and a2-pawn. } { [%csl Ra2,Rf2][%cal Rb2f2,Rb2a2] } 33. Re2 { Capa simply blocks the check and
attacks the Black Rook. This also prevents Black from regaining his lost pawn
with 33...Rxa2. } 33... Rab8 { Alekhine defends his menaced Rook. } 34. Be4 { The White
Bishop attacks its undefended Black counterpart. } 34... Rxe2+ { Taking the Rook with
check gives Alekhine the initiative and will allow him to stop a White Rook
counter-invasion on the seventh rank. Watch... } 35. Kxe2 { Forced. Otherwise
Capa loses his material advantage. } 35... Bxe4 { NOW Alekhine trades Bishops. } 36. fxe4 { Again forced. Alekhine still has the initiative. What will he do? } 36... Ke7 { Alekhine prevents White from playing 37.Rd7 by covering
that square with his King. } { [%csl Gd7][%cal Ge7d7] } 37. Rd2 { Capa makes his own covering move. Now 37..
.Rb2, attacking the a2-pawn, is impossible. What now for Black? } 37... Ke6 { Centralizing your King is important in the endgame. If you ever get stuck
trying to come up with a plan, playing by the general chess principles is
usually a good idea. } 38. Ke3 { Now that the players have reached the endgame,
each will try to promote their pawns. The forces will jockey for position and
each player will try to outmaneuver the other. Capa begins centralizing his
King. } 38... c6 { Alekhine gets his pawn a step closer to promotion and prevents the
White Rook from moving to d5. } 39. h4 { Capa gets his Kingside pawns rolling. } 39... Rh8 { Alekhine attacks the boldly-advancing h-pawn... } 40. g3 { ...so Capablanca
defends it. If White could move twice in a row, he'd probably play c4-c5 here,
controlling d5 and d6 with pawns, allowing the White Rook to move while still
cutting the Black King off from the d-file. } 40... Rh5 { Alekhine's Rook is
well-placed here, preventing White from advancing his c-pawn. The Rook also
has rapid access to the Queenside. } 41. Rh2 { Capa prepares 42.g4 (impossible
before, because of ...Rxh4). } 41... Ra5 { Here's that "rapid access to the
Queenside"! Alekhine can now play ...Ra3+ (skewering the King and winning the
g3-pawn) or Ra4 (attacking the c4-pawn). The threat against the a2-pawn also
keeps the White Rook on the same rank. } 42. Kf4 { Capa prevents the ...Ra3+
skewer. Notice how Capa is being kept busy reacting to Black's threats. } 42... f6 { Alekhine continues to improve his position by inching his pawn forward. } 43. Rc2 { Capa backs up his c-pawn, intending to play c4-c5, cutting the Black Rook
off from most of the board. } 43... Re5 { The Black Rook slides back to the center
before White can slam the gate shut with c4-c5. } 44. c5 { "No problem," Capa
thinks, advancing the pawn anyway. The c-pawn now controls d6 and limits the
movements of the Black King. } 44... Rh5 { Preventing the g-pawn's advance (45.g4 Rxh4)
. } 45. Rc3 { Capa increases his own Rook's mobility. Possible now is 46.Ra3
Rxc5 47.Rxa7 (where Capa remains a pawn ahead). } 45... a5 { Now 46.Ra3 doesn't work
for White (46.Ra3 Rxc5, the Black a-pawn is protected, and the material is
even). } 46. Rc2 { It's hard to say what Capa is thinking here. Perhaps the Rook
will return to the h-file to prepare the advance of the g-pawn. Or maybe Capa
is just making a waiting move... } 46... Re5 { Alekhine is thinking of starting a
Kingside pawn advance, but doesn't want to block the ...Rxc5 threat. On e5,
the Rook is guarded by the King, allowing the f6-pawn to move. } 47. Rc3 { Capa keeps his options open. Now he's looking at invading Black's position via
the open b-file. } 47... Rh5 { Alekhine hustles the Rook back to a half-open file
where it can respond to a White invasion of the position. } 48. Kf3 { Capa has
few options here: his Kingside pawns can't advance and his Rook is restricted
to the c-file (tied to the defense of the c5-pawn). He makes a non-committal
King move. } 48... Ke7 { The King backs up, allowing Alekhine to play f6-f5 without
the complications following e4xf5+ (the net result of these complications
being that Black would be stuck defending an isolated f-pawn). } 49. Kg4 { The White King heads for h3, where it can support the h-pawn, allowing the
g-pawn to advance. } 49... Kf7 { The King continues his march. From here, the King
supports the f- and g-pawns. Alekhine is anticipating a White Kingside pawn
push. } 50. Rc4 { Capa cautiously makes sure that the e-pawn will be defended
before starting Kingside operations. } 50... Kg7 { The Black King heads for the
"pocket" on h6 (again, to support his own pawn advance or defend against
White's). } 51. Rd4 { Capa gets ready to invade the seventh rank with his Rook.
Of course, he's abandoned his c-pawn... } 51... Rxc5 { ...so Alekhine kills it! The
material is even once again. } 52. Rd7+ { The Rook invades, getting behind the
Black lines and checking the King. } 52... Kf8 { The Black King retreats to the open
rank, rather than ducking into the h6 "pocket" (where it could get trapped). } 53. Kf4 { The King slides over next to the e-pawn, offering to protect it. } 53... Kg8 { Alekhine's King has to stay on the f- and g-files to prevent the White Rook
from attacking the Black pawns. } 54. Ra7 { Capa turns his attentions toward the
Black a-pawn. Now the Black Rook is tied to the a-pawn's defense. He also
prepares Ra6 (which attacks TWO Black pawns). } 54... Kf8 { Alekhine lacks a really
good move, so he contents himself with making waiting moves. } 55. a4 { Capa,
still looking at the Ra6 double pawn attack, advances his a-pawn and freezes
the Black a-pawn in place. } 55... Kg8 { Alekhine has come back from a pawn down to
even up the game. He'll be content with a draw here. He decides to let Capa do
the heavy mental work of devising a plan. } 56. g4 { Capa reveals his plan: he
finally begins his Kingside pawn advance. } 56... g5+ { Alekhine counters with a pawn
advance of his own. It will be hard for White to realize any advantage here. } 57. hxg5 { Capa must either advance the h-pawn or capture Black's g-pawn (he
can't allow 57.gxh4, which puts Black a pawn ahead and gives Black a passed
pawn). } 57... Rxg5 { By recapturing with the Rook, Alekhine ensures that the material
stays even. Now his c6-pawn's path is unobstructed by the Rook as well. } 58. Ra6 { Capa menaces ALL THREE Black pawns with
this move! } { [%csl Ra5,Rc6][%cal Ra6c6,Ra6a5] } 58... Rc5 { The only way to hold the fort. If 58...c5, then 59.Rxf6
leaves Black a pawn behind. } 59. Ke3 { Capa decides to shake things up a bit.
The White King is heading for d4, where it attacks the Black Rook. } 59... Kf7 { Since the White Rook isn't about to give up its post on a6, Alekhine sees that
it's safe for his King to advance toward the center and guard the f-pawn. } 60. Kd4 { The White King drives the Black Rook from c5. Now it's impossible for the
Rook to defend both of his menaced pawns -- one of them must fall. } 60... Rg5 { If one Black pawn must fall, then it's only logical for Black to retaliate by
attacking a White pawn (which cannot now be defended). } 61. Rxc6 { Obviously!
Capa couldn't take the a5-pawn! } 61... Rxg4 { An eye for an eye... Now the e4-pawn is
pinned! } 62. Rc5 { Capa prevents Black from winning a pawn with f6-f5, and
attacks the Black a-pawn at the same time. } 62... Rg5 { Alekhine offers to exchange
Rooks (and since the position is dead even, offers Capablanca a draw). The
World Champion accepts, and the game ends. } 1/2-1/2

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.21"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Bogoljubow, Efim"]
[Black "Reti, Richard"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "89"]
[ECO "C12"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 { Bogoljubow (White) makes a bid for center control and opens lines for
the development of his pieces. } 1... e6 { White's plan in the opening is to
establish pawns on d4 and e4; Black's plan is to prevent this. How does Reti's
move do this. Watch... } 2. d4 { Bogo has achieved his aim of getting two
central pawns on d4 and e4. Now he will develop his forces around the pawn duo
in an effort to keep them there. } 2... d5 { Now we see the point of 1.e6: the e-pawn
supports the d5-pawn. This is the French Defense (see the last game --
Capablanca-Alekhine), in which Black pushes the d-pawn and challenges White's
center. } 3. Nc3 { Since the e4-pawn is under attack, Bogo must find a way to
defend it. 3.exd5 is possible, but leads to drawish positions. Bogo instead
develops a Knight to protect the pawn. } 3... Nf6 { Reti, who took grabbed the initiative with his second move, keeps it by
hitting at the White e-pawn a second time. } { [%csl Re4][%cal Rd5e4,Rf6e4,Gc3e4] } 4. Bg5 { Rather than guarding the pawn directly, Bogo defends it indirectly by pinning
one of its attackers (and develops another piece as well!). } { [%csl Yd8,Ye7,Yf6,Yg5] } 4... Bb4 { Reti pins one of the White e-pawn's defenders
(and clears the deck for castling, too). Now the e-pawn is attacked once and
is undefended! } { [%csl Yb4,Yc3,Yd2,Ye1,Re4][%cal Rd5e4] } 5. Ne2 { Bogo decides to give up the e4-pawn. He develops the
other Knight. Now, after ...Bxc3, he can reply Nxc3, threatening Nxe4 (after
the pawns are exchanged, of course). } 5... dxe4 { Reti is finally able to kill the
White e-pawn, wrecking White's ideal d4-e4 pawn pair. } 6. a3 { Bogo attacks the
pinning Black Bishop, forcing Black to make up his mind whether to take the
c3-Knight or retreat the Bishop. This is called "putting the question to the
Bishop". } 6... Be7 { Reti releases the pin on White's c3-Knight and breaks the pin
on his f6-Knight at the same time. } 7. Bxf6 { Bogo wants to even up the
material with Nxe4. He begins by eliminating the Black e4-pawn's defender. } 7... Bxf6 { Recapturing with the Bishop is much better than recapturing with the
g-pawn. Now the Bishop is posted on the long a1-h8 diagonal. } 8. Nxe4 { Bogo
realizes his objective of capturing the e-pawn. The material balance is equal
once again. } 8... Bd7 { Reti continues to develop his pieces. The light-square
Bishop goes to the only available square. } 9. Qd3 { Bogo gets his Queen off of
the first rank and paves the way for castling Queenside (sometimes called
castling "long"). } 9... Bc6 { The e4-Knight controls a large number of squares on
Black's half of the board, so Reti decides to kill it. The light-square Bishop
maneuvers into position. } 10. O-O-O { Unperturbed, Bogo proceeds to castle
Queenside. Now his Rook is well-placed on a central file. } 10... Bxe4 { The Black
Bishop bumps off the White Knight that was cramping Black's game... } 11. Qxe4 { ...giving itself up in the process! White still has a space advantage; his
pieces cover ten squares on Black's half of the board compared to Black's
control of three squares on White's half (more on this after the game). } 11... Qd5 { Reti contests White's space advantage by attacking his Queen. If White decides
to trade Queens, Black will wind up with a space advantage. } 12. Qe3 { Bogo
doesn't want to trade Queens, so he retreats. But now Black has a slight space
advantage (9-6). } 12... O-O { We've already discussed the reasons why castling is
benificial. Reti knows these reasons, too. } 13. Nc3 { Bogo opens up the a6-f1 diagonal for his light-square
Bishop by advancing the Knight. The Knight also endangers the Black Queen. } { [%csl Ya6,Yb5,Yc4,Yd3,Ye2,Yf1,Rd5][%cal Rc3d5] } 13... Qa5 { Since the Queen must retreat, it runs to a square
where it can still exercise some influence over White's position (via the
a5-e1 diagonal). } { [%csl Ya5,Yb4,Yc3,Yd2,Ye1] } 14. Ne4 { Bogo replaces his lost Knight on e4 with its
brother. Now he enjoys a space advantage (count the squares and see). } 14... Nd7 { Reti may be at a disadvantage in space, but he
has a superiority in development. By getting his Knight off of the back rank,
he's connected his Rooks. } { [%csl Ya8,Yb8,Yc8,Yd8,Ye8,Yf8] } 15. h4 { Bogo just keeps on grabbing space. He
intends to advance his Kingside pawns and storm the ramparts in front of the
Black King. } 15... Be7 { In games where the players castle on opposite wings, they
tend to attack on opposite wings (it makes sense to attack the enemy where his
King is, right?). The Black attack will be on the Queenside. Now the Bishop
can join in. } 16. g4 { Bogo continues preparing an attack by grabbing still
more space on the Kingside. } 16... b5 { Reti does some preparation of his own. He
intends to control as much space as he can on the Queenside in support of his
own attack there. } 17. b4 { Gutsy move! Bogo pushes one
of the pawns in front of his King in order to attack the Black Queen (and
counter Black's activity on the Queenside). } { [%csl Ra5][%cal Rb4a5] } 17... Qb6 { It's "move it or lose it"
for Reti! The square b6 is less restrictive to the Queen's mobility than a6,
so the Queen moves here. Notice that the White forces have an enormous space
advantage. } 18. Nc5 { Bogo sees a plan to cramp Black even more. The Knight
jumps into Black's territory on the fifth rank. } 18... Nxc5 { Reti examines his
options and decides to capture the invader. Would ...Nf6 have worked? See the
variation. } (18... Nf6 { In this variation by Alekhine, we'll examine another
option for Black: keeping the Knight by moving it to f6. } 19. Bg2 { White siezes the long diagonal and grabs the initiative by
attacking the Rook on a8. } { [%csl Ra8][%cal Rg2a8] } 19... Rad8 { The Rook must move,
so it finds a good home on d8 (where it commands a half-open file). } { [%csl Yd4,Yd5,Yd6,Yd7,Yd8] } 20. g5 { White maintains the initiative by prodding the f6-Knight. } 20... Nd5 { Black centralizes his Knight and assaults the White Queen. The
initiative has passed to Black. } { [%csl Re3][%cal Rd5e3] } 21. Qd2 { By moving to d2, the Queen prevents
a further advance to f4 by the Knight. Now it's Black's move, but he doesn't
have a really strong continuation here. He'll have trouble holding on to the
initiative (21...Bxc5 22.dxc5 loses it). }) 19. dxc5 { Bogo recaptures, threatens the Black Queen, and establishes a
pawn chain from a3 to c5. The c5-pawn is particularly annoying to Black,
putting a big cramp in his game. } { [%csl Ya3,Yb4,Yc5,Rb6][%cal Rc5b6] } 19... Qb7 { Here's something
unique: Black, forced by White to retreat his Queen, turns the tables by
retreating to a square where the Queen attacks the h1-Rook! } { [%csl Rh1][%cal Rb7h1] } 20. Bd3 { Bogo's Bishop gets off of the first rank, allowing the
d1-Rook to defend its brother. Now the development of the White army is
complete. } { [%csl Yd1,Ye1,Yf1,Yg1,Yh1] } 20... a5 { Reti moves to break up the White Queenside pawn chain. 21.bxa5
Rxa5 is very bad for White, while allowing 21...axb4 22.axb4 Ra1+ is
unacceptable as well. What will White do? } 21. Qe4 { Bogo decides to trade
Queens, figuring that his space advantage and control of the initiative will
see him through to victory. } 21... Qxe4 { Reti decides to swap Queens since White's
advantages aren't overwhelming ones. } 22. Bxe4 { Bogo completes the transaction,
maintaining control of the initiatve by threatening the Black Rook on a8. } 22... Rad8 { Reti keeps Bogo off-balance and maintains the tension in the position by
opposing White's control of the open d-file. } 23. c3 { Instead of trading Rooks,
Bogo decides to strengthen his Queenside pawn structure by adding another pawn
to the complex. } 23... axb4 { 23...Rxd1 24.Rxd1 just gives White the open file, so
Reti instead opts to trade pawns and disrupt the White Queenside pawn position. } 24. axb4 { Bogo reasons that a base pawn on c3 will be easier to defend than
one on a3 (since c3 is closer to the center). This pawn structure may be
uglier, but it should be more defensible. } 24... f5 { The Black pawn advances (under
the Rook's protection) to create a little havoc on the Kingside. } 25. gxf5 { Bogo decides that trading is a good idea. If Black replies 25...exf5 to attack
the White Bishop, the f-file is blocked to the f8-Rook, and White just plays
26.Bc6 (attacking the b5-pawn). } 25... e5 { Reti declines to recapture and block his
f-Rook's access to the file. He reasons that this is just a temporary
sacrifice; he can always pick up one of the White f-pawns later to even the
score. } 26. h5 { Bogo advances the pawn to a light square (where it's safe from
Black's Bishop) and gets it closer to the Black King's fortress. Of course, g5
is left unguarded by the pawn's advance... } 26... Bg5+ { ...so
Reti's Bishop slides in and checks the White King. } { [%csl Rc1][%cal Rg5c1] } 27. Kc2 { Bogoljubow bumps the King up one square to get out of check.
It also covers both the c3-pawn and d1-Rook from here. } { [%csl Gc3,Gd1][%cal Gc2c3,Gc2d1] } 27... Kf7 { While it's true
that Reti has blocked his own Rook along the f-file, he sees the possibility
of a rapid transition into an endgame (through exchanges). He tries to get a
jump on things by starting to centralize his King. } 28. Bc6 { Bogo attacks the b5-pawn (which he'll win; Black can't defend it with
28...Rb8 because of 29.Rd7+, which drops the c-pawn. Either way, a Black pawn
must fall!). } { [%csl Rb5][%cal Rc6b5] } 28... Kf6 { Reti continues to inch his King forward. } 29. Bxb5 { A Black
pawn bites the dust. Now Reti is behind by two pawns... } 29... Kxf5 { ...but not for
long! Now he's behind by one pawn (the one he sacrificed on the f-file). If
the Black King moves off of the f-file, it will uncover an attack by the
f8-Rook on the f2-pawn. } 30. Bc6 { Bogo is well-aware of the possibility of a
discovered attack on his f-pawn, so he prepares for this eventuality with this
Bishop move. Watch... } 30... Ke6 { The King predictably moves
aside, uncovering a Rook attack on the f2-pawn. } { [%csl Rf2][%cal Rf8f2] } 31. f3 { Bogo defends the pawn by advancing it to a square that's under the protection
of the recently-moved Bishop on c6. } { [%csl Gf3][%cal Gc6f3] } 31... Be7 { There's nothing really constructive
for Black to do here, so Reti's Bishop backs up to a square where it covers
both Rooks. } 32. Ra1 { Bogo lets Reti have the open d-file; he's going to
invade the Black position along the open a-file. } 32... Bg5 { Reti is nobody's fool;
he sees that Bogo intends to play 33.Ra7 to attack the c7-pawn. The Bishop
clears the second rank to allow for the pawn's defense. Look... } 33. Ra7 { Bogo plays the anticipated move... } { [%csl Rc7][%cal Ra7c7] } 33... Rf7 { ...and Reti advances the Rook to defend the pawn (which would
have been impossible had the Bishop remained on e7). } { [%csl Gc7][%cal Gf7c7] } 34. Be4 { The White Bishop takes up a beautiful central post, controls two
diagonals (b1-h7 & a8-h1), blockades the e5-pawn, keeps the Black King off of
d5 and f5, and attacks the h7-pawn! } { [%csl Rh7][%cal Re4h7] } 34... h6 { Reti protects the pawn by advancing it out of harm's
way. } { [%csl Ya8,Yb1,Yb7,Yc2,Yc6,Yd3,Yd5,Ye4,Yf3,Yf5,Yg2,Yg6,Yh1,Yh7] } 35. Rha1 { Bogoljubow doubles his
Rooks on the open file, increasing their power. } { [%csl Ya1,Ya2,Ya3,Ya4,Ya5,Ya6,Ya7,Ya8] } 35... Rd2+ { Reti finds a way to
free up both of his Rooks while keeping his c7-pawn protected. The maneuver
begins with a check. (Notice that the Black Bishop guards the checking Rook). } 36. Kb3 { The White King moves to a square where it continues to guard the
c3-pawn. } 36... Bd8 { Reti completes the maneuver by sliding his Bishop back to
defend the pawn, freeing up his f7-Rook. Of course, nothing guards the Bishop
(but Reti has thought of this, too, as we shall see...). } 37. b5 { Bogo pushes
a pawn and increases his hold over the Queenside. If he can find a way to
clear some material off of the board, the b5 and c5 pawns could advance
"arm-in-arm" up the board to promotion squares. } 37... Rfd7 { Reti accomplishes two things with this move: he
defends his Bishop and doubles his Rooks on the d-file. } { [%csl Gd8,Yd1,Yd2,Yd3,Yd4,Yd5,Yd6,Yd7][%cal Gd7d8] } 38. R1a6+ { After 37.b5, Bogo had probably considered Reti's reply and was
planning 38.c6. But that would close off the sixth rank for his Rook, so he
was forced to find another way to undouble Black's Rooks. I think he's found
it... } { [%csl Re6][%cal Ra6e6] } 38... Kf7 { The King has no choice but to retreat, leaving f5 uncovered. } 39. Bf5 { Bogo takes advantage of Black's (forced)
abandonment of the f5 square. Where do you think the menaced Rook will run to? } { [%csl Rd7][%cal Rf5d7] } 39... Re7 { The only move. If you don't know why 39...Rd5 doesn't work, see the
variation. } (39... R7d5 { Why not 39...Rd5? It's really quite simple... } 40. Be6+ { It loses the exchange to a double
attack! The Bishop is protected by the Rook on a6, so Black has no choice but
to move his King. Then comes 41.Bxd5 Rxd5, and White has won the exchange! } { [%csl Rd5,Rf7][%cal Ga6e6,Re6f7,Re6d5] }) 40. Bg6+ { Bogo continues to harass Black, checking his
King. } { [%csl Rf7][%cal Rg6f7] } 40... Kf8 { Reti's King retreats to a dark square where it can stand,
unmolested by the White Bishop. } 41. Ra8 { Bogo keeps up
the pressure by attacking the Black Bishop. } { [%csl Rd8][%cal Ra8d8] } 41... Red7 { Reti slides the Rook over
to clear e7 for his King. Getting the King off of the back rank will eliminate
the pin on his Bishop. } 42. Re6 { Bogoljubow is relentless:
the new threat is 43.Re8#! } { [%cal Re6e8,Gg6e8] } 42... Re7 { Reti blocks the check. Will Bogo trade Rooks? } 43. Rc6 { Of course not! Remember the rule: when attacking, don't weaken your
attack by needlessly exchanging pieces! Rather than swap, Bogo slides over to
attack the c7-pawn. What is he planning? } 43... Red7 { Reti brings his Rook back to
pile protection up on the Bishop while still maintaining the defense of the
c7-pawn. } 44. Rxd8+ { HUH?? Has Bogo lost his mind? } 44... Rxd8 { Reti recaptures, of
course. } 45. Rxc7 { Bogo snags the pawn. What has Bogoljubow accomplished?
VICTORY!!! Reti resigns! Confused? You won't be, after you look at the
variation! } (45. Rxc7 R2d7 { This is Black's most reasonable reply, intending to exchange off a pair
of Rooks to increase his advantage. } 46. Rxd7 { White complies!?! Now how can
White possible win? } 46... Rxd7 { Black completes the trade. On the surface, he
appears to have an overwhelming advantage. Remember, though, that White has a
pair of connected passed pawns. } 47. c6 { White begins march of the passed
pawns. } 47... Rc7 { Black prevents the b-pawn from advancing (b5-b6 would be followed
by ...Rxc6). } 48. Be4 { By protecting the c-pawn with the Bishop, White allows
his b-pawn to advance. } 48... Rc8 { Black retreats the Rook (he'd have to anyway,
after 49.b6). } 49. b6 { The passed pawns continue to march forward. } 49... Ke8 { The Rook can't stop the passed pawns by itself, so the King starts to come
over to offer its support. } 50. b7 { The rambunctious pawn steps ahead again
and attacks the Rook. } 50... Kd8 { Any other move allows White to promote a pawn. } 51. bxc8=Q+ { White captures the Rook and (temporarily) gets a Queen. } 51. Kxc8 { Black must recapture. With a Bishop and (passed) pawn advantage, White has no
problem going on to win this game. }) 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.21"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Tartakower, Ksawery"]
[Black "Maroczy, Geza"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[PlyCount "113"]
[ECO "A00"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. b4 { WHAT?!?! In the true hypermodern style, Tartakower develops a FLANK
pawn (!), probably to allow for the fianchetto of the dark-square Bishop. } 1... e6 { Maroczy (Black) makes an illogical move of his own. He blocks in his c8-Bishop
while allowing his other Bishop to attack the b4-pawn. } 2. Bb2 { Tartakower doesn't need to defend the pawn yet (2...Bxb4
3.a3 Be7 gambits a pawn for the initiative and a lead in development). He
fianchettos the Bishop in an attempt to control the center rather than occupy
it. } { [%csl Yb2,Yc3,Yd4,Ye5,Yf6,Yg7,Yh8] } 2... Nf6 { Maroczy follows more conventional lines, developing a Knight toward
the center. } 3. b5 { Tartakower inhibits the
development of Black's other Knight (by taking away a6 and c6). } { [%csl Ga6,Gc6][%cal Gb5a6,Gb5c6] } 3... d5 { Maroczy
occupies the center with a pawn. Now White's task is to undermine Black's
center. } 4. e3 { This move doesn't block anything, since the dark-square Bishop
is already developed. Tartakower's light-square Bishop protects the b-pawn,
and the pawn on e3 prepares the advance of the d-pawn to d4. } 4... Be7 { Maroczy
develops his last Kingside minor piece and prepares for castling. } 5. f4 { Tartakower pushes this pawn so that he will have total control of the dark
squares in the center and on the Kingside. He wants to be able to safely post
his pieces on these dark squares. } 5... O-O { Maroczy castles, as expected. } 6. Bd3 { Tartakower begins the deployment of his Kingside forces. Maybe e2 would have
been better for the Bishop (since it wouldn't block the d-pawn like it does on
d3). } 6... a6 { Maroczy decides to rid himself of the cramping b-pawn. If White
plays 7.bxa6, Maroczy can recapture with either the Rook or the Knight. } 7. a4 { Tartakower wants to maintain a cramping pawn on b5, so he defends it with
another pawn (7...axb5 8.axb5). } 7... axb5 { Maroczy captures the pesky pawn... } 8. axb5 { ...and Tartakower recaptures, maintaining a cramping pawn on b5. } 8... Rxa1 { Maroczy has no choice but to trade Rooks (there was no way to defend the Rook
on a8, and he had no protected square to move it to). } 9. Bxa1 { Of course,
Tartakower recaptures to maintain the material balance. } 9... Nbd7 { Maroczy really
doesn't want to block in his c8-Bishop, but he really has no choice. The only
safe square for his Queenside minor pieces is d7. One or the other has to move
there. } 10. Nf3 { Tartakower develops his Kingside
Knight, which now eyes e5 (Ne5 Nxe5, fxe5 -- threatening Black's f6-Knight and
opening the f-file for White's Rook). } { [%csl Ye5][%cal Yf3e5] } 10... Ne4 { Maroczy beats White to the draw.
The Black Knight leaps into the center. Now if 11.Bxe4, ...dxe4 menaces the
White f3-Knight and give Black the initiative. } 11. O-O { Tartakower castles,
removing his King from the center (which was getting kind of drafty). } 11... f5 { Maroczy fortifies his e4-Knight and stakes his claim to the light squares. } 12. Be2 { The Bishop retreats a step to allow the d-pawn to advance to d3, kicking
out the Knight. } 12... Nd6 { Maroczy voluntarily retreats the Knight (instead of
waiting to be forced into it). } 13. Qc1 { Tartakower predicts that Black will
try to sieze the long a1-h8 diagonal with ...Bf6. He moves the Queen over one
square so that he can meet Black's Bishop move with Bb2. } 13... Bf6 { Maroczy's
Bishop grabs the long diagonal as predicted. } 14. Na3 { Tartakower sees another
way to defend the Bishop (and develops a piece at the same time). The Knight
move makes it possible for the White Queen to guard the Bishop (but is the
Knight well-placed on a3?). } 14... c6 { Maroczy will now remove the annoying b5-pawn
once and for all... } 15. bxc6 { If one of your pawns is attacked by an opposing
pawn, capturing is usually the way to go. Your opponent must recapture to keep
the material even, and this hands you the initiative). } 15... bxc6 { Maroczy has to
recapture (if he moves the Knight, he winds up a pawn down after 16.cxb7 Bxb7). } 16. Ne5 { Now Tartakower makes his bid for central domination. He begins by
offering a trade. How should Maroczy capture the invading Knight? } 16... Bxe5 { Maroczy decides to give up his "bad" BIshop and keep both of his Knights
(after all, this IS a closed position, and Knights are better than Bishops in
closed positions). } 17. fxe5 { Recapturing with the pawn (rather than with the
diagonal-controlling Bishop) makes sense. } 17... Nf7 { 17...Nxe5 is clearly impossible (due to 18.Bxe5), so the menaced Black
Knight retreats. Now the e5-pawn is attacked twice and only defended once.
What's the best move for White? } { [%csl Re5][%cal Rd7e5,Rf7e5] } 18. d4 { Of course. Now the e5-pawn is totally
safe, and White has a possible outpost square on d6. This is what Tartakower
envisioned when he played 16.Ne5. } 18... Ng5 { Maroczy maneuvers his Knight closer to
the White position. Most likely he intends to re-establish his Knight outpost
on e4. } 19. c4 { Tartakower proposes to break up Black's central pawn structure.
He also prevents Black from doing the same to him with c6-c5. } 19... Ba6 { Maroczy skewers the attacking White c-pawn, preventing it
from capturing on d5 (20.cxd5 Bxe2, and Black wins a piece!). } { [%csl Ya6,Yb5,Yc4,Yd3,Ye2] } 20. Re1 { By defending his Bishop, Tartakower renews the threat of cxd5. } 20... Qa8 { The Queen
defends the Black Bishop. Now if White plays cxd5, Black can immediately
recapture the White pawn without worries of White's Bxa6. } 21. Bc3 { Tartakower
jockeys toward a future Bb4, striking at the Black Rook. } 21... Rb8 { Maroczy siezes the open file and keeps the White
Bishop off of b4. } { [%csl Yb1,Yb2,Yb3,Yb4,Yb5,Yb6,Yb7,Yb8] } 22. Qc2 { Tartakower plans on opening
the c-file with cxd5. He advances the Queen in preparation for playing Rc1,
doubling his forces on the soon-to-be-opened file. } { [%csl Yc1][%cal Ye1c1] } 22... Ne4 { Maroczy gets his Knight to a great central square, from which it
controls plenty of territory on White's half of the board. } { [%cal Ge4c3,Ge4d2,Ge4g3] } 23. Bd3 { The
e4-square can't be attacked by a White pawn, so Tartakower must use a piece to
get the Black Knight off of e4. } 23... Rb7 { Maroczy may be thinking of doubling his
heavy pieces on the b-file (once the situation in the center has been
clarified). } 24. Rc1 { Tartakower continues his plan of doubling his heavy
pieces on the c-file. } 24... Nb6 { Instead of doubling the heavy pieces, Maroczy
works his Knight closer to the White position. The Knight attacks the c4-pawn
a third time. } 25. Be1 { Tartakower retreats the Bishop and lets his Queen and
Rook help defend the c4-pawn. } 25... h6 { Maroczy prepares a new post
for his e4-Knight on g5. Should White play Bh4 (to cramp Black's position by
controlling the d8-h4 diagonal), Black can close off the diagonal with ...Ng5. } { [%cal Ge4g5] } 26. Bxe4 { Tartakower figures that if he's going to grab the Knight, it had
better be done now. He trades his bad Bishop for Black's centralized Knight. } 26... dxe4 { Maroczy captures toward the sparsely-occupied Kingside (this also
eliminates the possibility of White's cxd5). } 27. Qc3 { Tartakower sets up a Queen & Bishop battery on the a5-e1 diagonal,
increasing his control of the dark squares. He plans to move the Queen to a5
and his Rook to b1, attacking the Black Knight. } { [%csl Ya5,Yb4,Yc3,Yd2,Ye1] } 27... Nd7 { The Black Knight gets
out of the b7-Rook's way. Now the Rook controls the b-file once again. } 28. Rb1 { The White Rook slides over and challenges Black's command of the open file. } 28... Rxb1 { By trading Rooks, Maroczy clears the b7-square for his Queen to occupy
and eases the congestion that was limiting his pieces' freedom of movement. } 29. Nxb1 { Tartakower completes the Rook swap. } 29... Qb7 { Maroczy's Queen occupies b7 (as we expected). Now the White Knight is in peril. } { [%csl Rb1][%cal Rb7b1] } 30. Na3 { Guarding the Knight on b1 would be foolish (it does no good sitting
at the rear), so Tartakower advances the Knight instead, getting it closer to
the action. } 30... Qb6 { The Black Queen inches ahead, taking the a5-square away from
its White counterpart. } 31. Bd2 { Tartakower anticipates 31...c5 32.dxc5 Qxc5,
so he overprotects the e3-pawn (so that his Queen will not become overworked
trying to defend the c- and e-pawns and the Knight. } 31... Kf7 { Here's that old
theme again: centralize your King in the late middlegame and endgame. } 32. g3 { Tartakower pushes the pawn in order to control more Kingside space (possibly
restricting the movements of the Black King should it try to advance). } 32... Nf8 { Maroczy's Knight heads for the Kingside (Nd7-g8-h7-g5-f3), but this seems
awfully slow. } 33. Qb4 { Tartakower, unhappy with the Black Queen's command of
the b-file, offers to trade the Queens off. } 33... Qxb4 { Maroczy takes him up on the
offer. } 34. Bxb4 { In completing the trade of Queens,
Tartakower increases the range of his bad Bishop. } { [%csl Yb4,Yc5,Yd6,Ye7,Yf8] } 34... Nd7 { Maroczy decides not to
advance his Knight on the Kingside and brings it back to the center instead.
Next stop: b6, where it attacks the c4-pawn. } 35. Ba5 { Tartakower takes b6 away from the Black Knight. } { [%csl Gb6][%cal Ga5b6] } 35... g5 { Maroczy begins a
demonstration on the Kingside, advancing his pawn and grabbing some space. } 36. Kf2 { Tartakower begins the centralization of his King. } 36... Ke8 { Maroczy's King is
shut out of the center (since White controls d8, d6, & f6). He brings his King
toward the Queenside (if the White Bishop abandons the a5-d8 diagonal, the
Black King might reach the center via the Queenside). } 37. Ke2 { The White King
keeps marching toward the center. } 37... c5 { Maroczy begins a breakthrough in the
center. (38.dxc5 Nxc5 and the Knight invades via b3; if White allows 38...cxd4
39.exd4, Black has a protected passed pawn.) } 38. Nb5 { Tartakower blocks the Bishop's attack on his c4-pawn and
has two possibilities of his own: Nc7, forking the King and Bishop, or Nd6,
protecting the c-pawn with check. } { [%cal Yb5c7,Rc7a6,Rc7e8,Gd6c4,Rd6e8] } 38... Kf7 { By moving the King, Maroczy eliminates
the threat of a Nc7 fork by White. } 39. Kd2 { The White King continues its
interrupted travels (getting off of the dangerous a6-f1 diagonal in the
process). } 39... cxd4 { Maroczy begins his central breakthrough. } 40. exd4 { If
Tartakower doesn't recapture, Black gets a passed pawn anyway (40...d3). By
recapturing, he keeps the material balance even. } 40... f4 { Maroczy begins his pawn
onslaught. If 41.gxf4, the Black g- and h-pawns (supported by the King) drive
through to the eighth rank. } 41. Nd6+ { The
Knight forks the King and e4-pawn. However, if 42.Nxe4, then 42...fxg3 43.fxg3,
and the Black King and two pawns steamroll down to the eighth rank. } { [%csl Re4,Rf7][%cal Rd6e4,Rd6f7] } 41... Kg6 { Maroczy has to move his King to get out of check, so he places it where it
supports his Kingside pawns. } 42. Kc3 { The White King heads for the Queenside,
where it might support the advance of the c-pawn. } 42... e3 { Uh-oh. Maroczy advances
one of his e-pawns. How will Tartakower respond? } 43. Kd3 { The White King scampers closer to the advancing pawn, unblocking the
White Bishop's access to the e1 promotion square at the same time. Now the
c4-pawn can't advance (it's pinned to the King!). } { [%csl Ya6,Yb5,Yc4,Yd3] } 43... Nb8 { The Black Knight
maneuvers to better its position. Maroczy plans to have it enter the fray via
b8 and c6. } 44. Ke4 { The White King still watches the center (remember that
the Bishop covers e1) and unpins the c-pawn. } 44... Nc6 { The
Black Knight lands on c6 and threatens White's Bishop. } { [%csl Ra5][%cal Rc6a5] } 45. Bc3 { By pulling
back to c3, the Bishop will help defend the e5-pawn if Tartakower pushes the
d-pawn. } 45... e2 { Maroczy inches the pawn toward promotion. Now the White Bishop is
stuck on the a5-e1 diagonal (if it leaves the diagonal, the pawn promotes). } 46. gxf4 { Tartakower begins the elimination of Black's threatened Kingside
pawnstorm. By capturing the f-pawn, he separates Black's Kingside pawns. } 46... gxf4 { Maroczy recaptures, keeping the material even. He hopes to prevent the
e2-pawn from becoming isolated by maintaining a pawn on the f-file. } 47. Bd2 { The Bishop hits at Black's f-pawn and discourages 47...
Kg5 (because of the pin on the Black King). } { [%csl Rf4][%cal Rd2f4] } 47... f3 { The f-pawn is doomed, but
Maroczy advances it for a reason... } 48. Kxf3 { ...if the White King captures
it... } 48... Nxd4+ { ...the Black Knight evens up
the material, defends the e2-pawn, AND gives check! } { [%csl Ge2,Rf3][%cal Rd4f3,Gd4e2] } 49. Ke3 { It's not often that you get to see a King fork! Since the
Knight can't be defended, it must move away, leaving the e2-pawn at White's
mercy! } { [%csl Rd4,Re2][%cal Re3e2,Re3d4] } 49... Nf5+ { The Knight checks... } { [%csl Re3][%cal Rf5e3] } 50. Kxe2 { ...and
the King escapes, killing the dangerous Black pawn at the same time. } 50... Nxd6 { Maroczy sees no way to promote one of his pawns (they're both blocked by White
pawns), so he decides to trade Knights to reduce White's offensive chances. } 51. exd6 { After the recapture, Tartakower has connected passed pawns! Will he
be able to promote one? } 51... Bxc4+ { Nope! The Bishop evens the material and gives
check. } 52. Ke3 { The King escapes check and heads for the center. } 52... Bb5 { The Black Bishop heads the d6-pawn off at the pass. Now
the pawn can't safely advance. } { [%csl Yb5,Yc6,Yd7,Ye8] } 53. Kd4 { The White King runs to the aid of the
d-pawn. } 53... h5 { Maroczy advances one of his pawns, hoping that his King and
h-pawn duo can break through to promote. } 54. Kc5 { The King valiantly attacks
the Black Bishop... } 54... Ba4 { ...which simply sidesteps, being careful to stay on
the a4-e8 diagonal, where it impedes the d-pawn's progress. } 55. Kb6 { The
White King makes its way toward c7, where it will cover d7. Tartakower wants
to play d6-d7, and after ...Bxd7, Kxd7 he'll be ahead a Bishop for a pawn. } 55... Kf7 { Unfortunately for Maroczy, he must abandon his plans to force his h-pawn
through. The King must come to the defense of d7 to prevent the loss of the
Black Bishop. } 56. Kc7 { The White King finally reaches c7, where it can cover
the d-pawn's advance. Again, Tartakower wants to play d6-d7 to trade the pawn
for Black's Bishop. } 56... Ke8 { Maroczy gets his King to a square where it, too,
covers d7. Now d6-d7 is impossible, because the Black Bishop can capture it
without fear of retribution. } 57. Bf4 { By playing Bf4, Tartakower prevents the
e6-pawn's advance. The players agree that they're both stymied and call it a
day. The game is drawn. } 1/2-1/2

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.21"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Yates, Frederick"]
[Black "Lasker, Edward"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "107"]
[ECO "C91"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 { A strong opening move, controlling the center and allowing easy piece
development. } 1... e5 { Likewise a stong move (as we have already seen in previous
games). } 2. Nf3 { Yates (White) develops the Knight and attacks Black's e-pawn. } 2... Nc6 { Lasker (Black) defends his pawn, developing a piece at the same time. } 3. Bb5 { Yates chooses the Ruy Lopez opening. He attacks the Black Knight, the
e-pawn's sole defender. } 3... a6 { Lasker "puts the question" to the Bishop. Will
the White Bishop retreat or capture the Black Knight? } 4. Ba4 { The Bishop
pulls back but stays on the a4-e8 diagonal, putting pressure on the center by
attacking the Knight. } 4... Nf6 { Lasker develops his other Knight and attacks the
White e-pawn. } 5. O-O { Master practice has shown that if Black takes the pawn,
he can't keep it. He must give up one of his own pawns in return. Yates
doesn't defend it; he completes his Kingside development by castling instead. } 5... Be7 { Lasker continues developing his Kingside, preparing to castle. } 6. Re1 { Yates moves his Rook to the e-file; if the game opens up later, this Rook will
be well-placed here. } 6... b5 { Lasker kicks the White Bishop again, making it move
a third time. } 7. Bb3 { Even though this Bishop has moved three times, White
really doesn't fall behind in development. a7-a6 and b7-b5 did nothing to aid
the development of Black's minor pieces. } 7... d6 { Advancing the
d-pawn allows Lasker to develop his light-square Bishop, but his dark-square
Bishop is buried on e7. } { [%cal Yc8h3] } 8. c3 { By advancing this pawn,
Yates gives his light-square Bishop an escape square in case Black plays ...
Na5. } { [%cal Rc6a5,Yb3c2] } 8... O-O { Lasker completes his Kingside development by castling. } 9. d4 { Yates achieves White's ideal central pawn setup (pawns on d4 and e4). But how
long will it last? } 9... Bg4 { Lasker begins to apply pressure to White's position
by pinning the f3-Knight to the Queen. } 10. Be3 { Yates begins the development
of his Queenside pieces by deploying the Bishop. } 10... Na5 { This is a
common move for Black in the Ruy Lopez. The Knight advances and assaults the
White b3-Bishop. } { [%cal Ra5b3] } 11. Bc2 { If the center opens up later, the c2-Bishop will be
bearing down on Black's Kingside. } 11... Nc4 { The Black Knight
continues its advance and this time attacks White's other Bishop (which is
defended by the e1-Rook). } { [%cal Rc4e3] } 12. Bc1 { Yates retreats the Bishop. If he allows 12.
..Nxe3, he gives Black the advantage of having two Bishops, while White only
has one. Yates prefers to hang on to his Bishop pair. } 12... exd4 { Lasker opens up
the game. Since his pieces are better-developed, he opens up lines to the
enemy position so that they can attack White. } 13. cxd4 { Yates trades back,
equalizing the material and maintaining a cenrtal pawn pair. } 13... c5 { Lasker challenges the White center pawns. } { [%cal Rc5d4] } 14. b3 { Yates counterattacks the
Black Knight. } 14... Nb6 { Of course, Lasker must "move it or lose it". } 15. Bb2 { Yates overprotects the d-pawn. If he advances it
later, his two Bishops will bear down on the Black Kingside. } { [%csl Gd4][%cal Gb2d4,Gd1d4] } 15... Rc8 { Lasker
anticipates exchanging his c-pawn for White's d-pawn, opening the c-file. The
c8-Rook will command the file once it's been opened. } 16. Nbd2 { Now that the b2-Bishop protects the d-pawn, Yates can afford to
block his Queen along the d-file. Now the d2-Knight defends the e4-pawn. } { [%csl Ge4][%cal Gd2e4] } 16... Nfd7 { Lasker's Knight jumps back to d7 to overprotect
the c5-pawn. Now if White plays dxc5, Lasker has the option of recapturing
with either the Knight or the d-pawn. } { [%csl Gc5][%cal Gd7c5,Gc8c5] } 17. h3 { Yates continues his efforts to
uncramp his position. The h-pawn "puts the question" to the Black Bishop. } 17... Bh5 { Lasker retreats his Bishop but maintains the pin on the f3-Knight. } 18. e5 { Now that Yates has caught up to Black in development, it's OK for him to try
to open up the game. He decides to dissipate his pawn center, and advances the
e-pawn. } 18... cxd4 { Lasker decides to capture the d-pawn before the e-pawn. } 19. exd6 { By capturing on d6 (instead of d4), Yates controls the action. Black is
now forced to either recapture the pawn with his e7-Bishop or else move the
Bishop away. } 19... Bxd6 { Lasker makes the recapture, rather than displacing the
Bishop. } 20. Bxd4 { Yates captures the d4-pawn and evens up the material
balance. } 20... Bb4 { Like a boa constrictor, Lasker squeezes White's position by
pinning the Knight on d2 to the e1-Rook. } 21. Re2 { Yates removes the pin on
the d2-Knight by advancing the Rook. Don't look now, but the f3-Knight is in a
real jam! It's pinned to the e2-Rook and (indirectly) to the Queen! } 21... Nd5 { Lasker advances one of his Knights closer to the White position. } 22. Bf5 { "Turnabout is fair play," thinks Yates, as he pins the d7-Knight to the Rook
on c8. } 22... Nc3 { Lasker finds a way to exchange one of his Knights for a White
Bishop, giving him the advantage of the Bishop pair. He starts by forking the
White Queen and e2-Rook! } 23. Bxc3 { Yates has no other option. He must capture
the Knight or else lose material. } 23... Bxc3 { Lasker recaptures and now has the
advantage of owning the Bishop pair. } 24. Rc1 { Yates attacks the Bishop. Of
course, he can't capture it (25.Rxc3 Rxc3 loses the exchange); he wants the
Bishop to move away so that after 25.Rxc8 Qxc8 the f5-Bishop will pin the
Black Knight to the Queen. } 24... Rc7 { By advancing the Rook, Lasker removes all of
the f5-Bishop's pin possibilities against the d7-Knight. } 25. Re3 { Yates'
Rooks double up on the c3-Bishop. } 25... Bxd2 { Lasker ponders the position for a
long while, and decides that it's best to give up one of his Bishops in order
to start a series of exchanges that will simplify the position. } 26. Rxc7 { Rather than recapture the Bishop immediately, Yates decides to clear a pair of
Rooks off of the board. } 26... Qxc7 { Lasker completes the Rook swap... } 27. Qxd2 { ...and Yates grabs the Bishop. Now the f3-Knight is unpinned and he has a
double attack against the Black Knight on d7. } 27... Nf6 { The Knight wasn't
especially well-posted on d7, so instead of tying up pieces by defending it
there, Lasker advances it toward the center and gets it out of harm's way. } 28. Rc3 { Yates maintains the initiative by continuing to make threats. The Rook
will command the c-file after Black's Queen vacates it. } 28... Qa5 { WHOA! Lasker
makes the surprise move of pinning the White Rook to the White Queen! } 29. g4 { Undaunted, Yates keeps up the pressure by starting an operation designed to
compromise the Black Kingside pawn structure. He starts by attacking Black's
Bishop... } 29... Bg6 { ...which flees to the only available square. } 30. Bxg6 { Yates swaps off the Bishops... } 30... hxg6 { ...leaving Lasker with an inferior
Kingside pawn position. If Yates can manage to trade off the pieces, he should
be able to win by virtue of his better pawn setup. } 31. Rc6 { The pin on the
Rook was a false pin (the White Knight defends the Queen). Yates would love to
see 31...Qxd2 32.Nxd2 (getting him closer to his goal of exchanging off all
the pieces). } 31... Qxd2 { "YES!" thinks Yates, as he picks up his Knight... } 32. Nxd2 { ...and completes the exchange of Queens. Now his Rook threatens the a6-pawn... } 32... Ra8 { ...so Lasker has to defend it. The Black position looks pretty solid;
how will White proceed? } 33. a4 { Yates wants to get his Knight over to the
Queenside, but the b5-pawn's control of c4 prevents it. If Yates can eliminate
or divert the pawn, his Knight will be able to utilize c4. } 33... bxa4 { By capturing
the a-pawn, Lasker gives up control of c4 and allows the White Knight to
occupy the square. } 34. bxa4 { Yates recaptures the pawn and restores the
material balance. } 34... Kf8 { Lasker begins the centralization of his King for the
endgame. } 35. Nc4 { Yates achieves his goal of getting the Knight to c4. Now he
can begin work on the next stage of his plan: the capture of the Black a-pawn. } 35... Ke7 { Lasker continues to centralize his King. Unfortunately, he plays right
into White's hands by doing so. } 36. Nb6 { The White Knight dives in and
attacks the Black Rook. } 36... Rd8 { The Black Rook is forced to give up the defense
of the a-pawn (if 36...Ra7, 38.Nc8! wins the exchange). } 37. Rc7+ { Yates would
have advanced his Rook to the seventh rank anyway, but doing it with check is
even better! Now he keeps the initiative (since the King is forced to avoid
check). } 37... Ke6 { Interposing the Rook doesn't work (37...Rd7 38.Nxd7 Nxd7 39.Ra6
leaves White ahead the exchange plus a pawn); neither does blocking with the
Knight (37...Nd7 38.Nd5+), so Lasker just moves the King. } 38. Ra7 { Yates
attacks the helpless a-pawn. } 38... Ke5 { Since he's powerless to defend the pawn,
Lasker centralizes his King. } 39. Rxf7 { Surprise! By moving his King, Lasker
left the f7-pawn undefended. Yates, always the opportunist, snags the pawn,
threatens the g7-pawn, and can always go back for the a-pawn later. } 39... Nd5 { For some reason known only to him, Lasker offers to exchange Knights (almost
always a bad idea when you're behind in material). } 40. Nxd5 { Yates eagerly
complies with Lasker's wishes. } 40... Rxd5 { Lasker completes the trade. } 41. Rxg7 { Yates wastes no time in grabbing the pawn. Now his Kingside pawn majority
should be decisive. } 41... Kf6 { Lasker fights on against the odds. The Black King
attacks the Rook and defends the g6-pawn. } 42. Rb7 { Instead of attacking the
pawn immediately (42.Ra7 Rd6), Yates looks ahead to a better way of attacking
it (43.Rb6+, double-attacking the King and a-pawn). } 42... Kg5 { Lasker prevents the
double-attack and keeps the White Kingside pawns from advancing. } 43. Rb4 { 43.Rb6 fails (43...Ra5), so the Rook covers f4, allowing for the f-pawn's
advance and preventing the Black King from moving to f4. } 43... Kh4 { The Black King
slips in through the back door and attacks the h3-pawn. } 44. Kg2 { By advancing
to g2 rather than h2, the White King does double-duty by protecting two pawns
instead of just one. } 44... a5 { Lasker battles on in a lost cause, attacking the
White Rook with his a-pawn. } 45. Rb6 { In saving the Rook, Yates launches an
attack of his own by striking out at the g6-pawn. } 45... Rd4 { The Black Rook will
eliminate the a4-pawn, which blocks the forward progress of Black's own a-pawn. } 46. Rxg6 { Yates kills the Black g-pawn... } 46... Rxa4 { ...and Lasker reciprocates.
Now the Black a-pawn's progress is blocked by its own Rook! } 47. Rh6+ { Yates
sees a way to tie up Black's Rook. He begins by delivering a check. } 47... Kg5 { g5 is the only possible flight square. An added benefit of this move is that
the Black King now attacks the White Rook. } 48. Rh5+ { The White Rook checks
again, this time from the protected square h5. } 48... Kf4 { The Black King moves out
of check. Now the White Rook attacks the Black pawn, forcing the Black Rook to
stay on the a-file to defend it. } 49. Rf5+ { Yates wants to advance his h-pawn,
but his Rook blocks the file. He has to move it, so why not check Black at the
same time? He keeps the initiative this way. } 49... Ke4 { Lasker again retreats to
the only possible square. } 50. h4 { Yates begins the h-pawn's advance. } 50... Kd3 { By moving his King, Lasker uncovers an attack on the White g-pawn by the Black
Rook. } 51. Kg3 { The White King comes to the pawn's defense. } 51... Ra1 { Lasker will
attack the White position from the rear. The Black Rook will next move to g1
or h1. } 52. h5 { The h-pawn steps ahead to a square where it's defended by both
the g-pawn and the Rook. } 52... a4 { Before he can move his Rook off of the a-file,
Lasker must advance his pawn to prevent its capture by White's Rook. } 53. h6 { The h-pawn presses ahead... } 53... Rh1 { ...and the Black Rook attacks it! How can
Yates protect it? } 54. Rh5 { The White Rook (protected by the g-pawn) blocks
the Black Rook's attack on the h-pawn. Lasker sees that he's fighting a lost
cause and resigns. } (54... Rh5 54. Rc1 { Black has
to reposition the Rook to an open file. } 55. h7 { The White pawn continues to
advance. } 55... Rc8 { Now the Black Rook controls h8... } 56. h8=Q { ...but that
doesn't stop the pawn from promoting! } 56... Rxh8 { Black has no choice but to
capture. } 57. Rxh8 { After the recapture, White is a Rook and pawn ahead. He
may have to give up his Rook to kill the Black a-pawn, but one of the other
White pawns is sure to promote to a Queen. }) 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.22"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Lasker, Emanuel"]
[Black "Tartakower, Ksawery"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[PlyCount "52"]
[ECO "B43"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 { Dr. Lasker (White) makes a center-controlling pawn move that allows the
future development of his Queen and Kingside Bishop. } 1... c5 { Dr. Tartakower
(Black) discourages White's planned d2-d4 pawn push, exercising control over a
center square (d4) with a flank pawn. } 2. Nf3 { Lasker replies by developing
the Knight (which now itself influences d4). } 2... e6 { Tartakower grabs control of
central square d5, releases his Queen and Kingside Bishop, and paves the way
for a possible d- or f-pawn advance. } 3. Nc3 { The
usual move here is 3.d4. Lasker instead develops his Knight and influences d5
and e4. This Knight also eyes a possible jump to b5. } { [%cal Gc3e4,Gc3d5,Yc3b5] } 3... a6 { Tartakower takes the Nc3-b5 possibility away from White by advancing the pawn,
which now controls the b5-square. } { [%cal Ga6b5] } 4. d4 { Lasker now plays d2-d4 (which is
usually played on move 3). He's going to trade off the pawn in return for
greater control of the board. } 4... cxd4 { Tartakower takes the d-pawn (as expected),
trading a flank pawn for a more valuable center pawn. } 5. Nxd4 { The Knight recaptures and occupies a center square. Just
look at all the squares that the White Knights control! } { [%csl Ga4,Gb5,Gc6,Gd5,Ge4,Ge6,Gf5] } 5... Qc7 { Early
development of the Queen is usually a bad idea, but there's no real harm yet
as White is a long way from developing an attack. Black could advance his
e-pawn to e5 under the Queen's protection, attacking the d4-Knight. } 6. Be2 { Lasker completes the development of his Kingside minor pieces. The Bishop
controls squares along the d1-h5 and a6-f1 diagonals. } 6... Nf6 { Tartakower continues his development as well. Note that the e4-pawn isn't
threatened (it's guarded by the c3-Knight). But now Tartakower could win the
pawn by playing Bf8-b4, pinning the defending Knight. } { [%cal Yf8b4] } 7. O-O { Lasker doesn't
intend to give Tartakower the chance to pin the c3-Knight. He castles, getting
the King out of the middle and taking the sting out of ...Bb4. } 7... Bb4 { Tartakower plays ...Bb4 anyway! The reason for this is to make Rf1-e1 a tad
uncomfortable for White (if White plays the Rook move, he creates a pin on his
own Knight!). } 8. Bf3 { Lasker was in immediate danger of losing his e-pawn (8..
.Bxc3 9.bxc3 Nxe4), so he's forced to make a move that defends the pawn. This
wastes a tempo (since he's moving a piece that he's already moved). } 8... Nc6 { Tartakower could have tried to win a pawn by playing ...Bxc3 (see variation),
but continues to develop his pieces instead. } (8... Bxc3 { In this variation by
Alekhine, we'll see what would have happened had Black decided to capture the
Knight. } 9. bxc3 { White must, of course, recapture... } 9... Qxc3 { ...and the Black
Queen captures the pawn. The Queen also threatens the a1-Rook. } 10. Bf4 { By developing the Bishop, White allows his Queen to defend the menaced Rook.
White has the advantage: his development is almost complete (except for the
Queen) and his pieces are well-placed. }) 9. Nxc6 { By trading Knights, White
loses a couple of tempi by trading a piece that's moved three times for one
that's only moved once; in exchange for the lost tempi, he re-balances the
pawn structure. } 9... dxc6 { Now the pawn structure is balanced (White and Black have the same
number of pawns and they're on the same files). } { [%csl Ya2,Ya6,Yb2,Yb7,Yc2,Yc6,Ye4,Ye6,Yf2,Yf7,Yg2,Yg7,Yh2,Yh7] } 10. Be3 { Lasker develops
another minor piece. The Bishop moves to a good post where it controls a lot
of squares along the a7-g1 and c1-h6 diagonals. } 10... O-O { Tartakower completes his
Kingside development by castling. } 11. h3 { Lasker anticipates the loss of
another pawn by ...Bd6 followed by ...Bxh2+. The check is bad enough, but
losing the pawn would really hurt! He advances the pawn out of danger. } 11... e5 { Tartakower grabs a little more space (he now
controls d4 and f4) and now can develop his light-squared Bishop to e6 if he
chooses. Mainly, he's blocking the advance of the White e-pawn (e4-e5
threatens the Black f6-Knight). } { [%csl Gd4,Gf4][%cal Ge5f4,Ge5d4] } 12. Na4 { Lasker intends to play havoc with
the Black Queenside by maneuvering his Knight to b6 (where it will be
protected by the e3-Bishop. } 12... b5 { By pushing this pawn, Tartakower clears a
path for the Rook to attack the White Knight (13.Nb6 Rb8). } 13. Nb6 { The
Knight makes it to the post on b6, forking the Black Rook and Bishop. } 13... Rb8 { Tartakower proceeds with his plan to attack the Knight. Now 14...Rxb6 15.Bxb6
Qxb6 nets two minor pieces for a Rook. } 14. Nxc8 { Lasker gives up a piece
that's moved four times for a piece that hasn't moved at all! Yet Tartakower
has been unable to make any good use of the massive time advantage that Lasker
has given him. } 14... Rfxc8 { By recapturing with the f8-Rook instead of the Queen,
Tartakower shifts the Rook out of the "pocket" that it was in and gets it over
to the Queenside, where it supports the advance of the Black Queenside pawns. } 15. a4 { Lasker is going to try to get his Rook into the game. If 15...Bxa4, 16.
Rxa4. If Black doesn't capture the a-pawn, then 16.axb5 cxb5 17.Rxa6. Or
there's 16.axb5 axb5 17.Ra7 (the Rook would be guarded by the e3-Bishop). } 15... Qe7 { Unless Tartakower moves his Queen, White will force the exchange of Queens
after 16.axb5 axb5 17.Ra7 Qd8 19.Qxd8+ Rxd8, or an exchange of Rooks after 17.
Ra7 Rb7 18.Rxb7 Qxb7. } 16. axb5 { Lasker makes the expected move and trades
pawns. } 16... axb5 { Tartakower completes the swap, opening the a-file for the White
Rook... } 17. Ra7 { ...which moves to a7. Will Tartakower elect to exchange
Rooks, or will he try to retreat his Queen? } 17... Rb7 { Tartakower offers to swap
Rooks. Moving the Queen back to the first rank was also possible. } 18. Rxb7 { Lasker takes him up on the offer. Every trade takes the game closer to the end.
By now, it should be obvious that Lasker is playing for a draw; each even
trade in this dead-even position brings him closer to that goal. } 18... Qxb7 { Tartakower completes the trade (but his Queen lacks scope on this square). } 19. Qd3 { Lasker advances his Queen, clearing d1 for his Rook. He plans to set up a
d-file battery. } 19... h6 { Tartakower sees that Be3-g5 followed by Bxf6 frees the
White Queen and f3-Bishop from the drudgery of overprotecting the e4-pawn. By
advancing the h-pawn one square, he makes Bg5 impossible for White. } 20. Rd1 { Lasker, of course, has plans other than Bg5. He sets up a battery on the open
d-file. } 20... Ra8 { Tartakower counters by putting his Rook at the head of the open
a-file. Always try to put your pieces on squares where they have the most play
and can control plenty of territory. } 21. g3 { Speaking of controlling
territory, Lasker increases his control by advancing the g-pawn. } 21... Qc8 { Tartakower responds by attacking the White h-pawn (which has been left hanging)
. } 22. Qb3 { Lasker meets a threat with a threat. Instead of defending his
h-pawn, he counterattacks the Black Bishop. } 22... Be7 { Tartakower retreats the
Bishop, saving it (after all, a Bishop is certainly worth more than a pawn!). } 23. Kh2 { Now Lasker takes defensive action. The King comes to the menaced
pawn's rescue, defending it from the Black Queen. } 23... Ra4 { Black's Rook piles up
on the White e4-pawn (which is also attacked by the Black f6-Knight). Now
White must defend the pawn a second time. } 24. Qd3 { The Queen slides over and
re-establishes the d-file battery, defending the e-pawn at the same time. } 24... Qe6 { Tartakower repositions his Queen, preparing to invade White's Queenside via
the a2-g8 diagonal. } 25. b3 { Lasker blocks the crucial diagonal and
simultaneously attacks the Black Rook. } 25... Ra8 { Tartakower pulls the Rook back to
the first rank, where it will enjoy more lateral movement than on any of the
other ranks it could have moved to. } 26. Bg2 { Lasker anticipates ...Rc8 (when
the Black Rook will back up the c6-pawn's advance), so he prepares h3-h4 and
Bh3 (skewering the c8-Rook and Queen). } 26... Rd8 { Tartakower prepares the Rook
exchange (27.Qe2 Rxd1 28.Qxd1). With the pawn formations symmetrical, and both
players trying to whittle each other's forces down evenly, the game appears
drawish. The players agree to a truce. } 1/2-1/2

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.22"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Reti, Richard"]
[Black "Capablanca, Jose Raul"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "61"]
[ECO "A15"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. Nf3 { Reti (White) begins the game in the hypermodern style: he opts to
control the center from the flank, rather than by occupying it with a pawn. } 1... Nf6 { Capablanca (Black), unsure of Reti's intentions concerning the center,
makes a non-committal developing move and waits to see what Reti will do next. } 2. c4 { The c-pawn advances to the fourth rank, where it extends White's
control to d5. Now if Black plays d7-d5, White replies cxd5, exchanging a
flank pawn for a valuable center pawn. } 2... g6 { Capa sees that neither of his
center pawns can advance two squares, so he continues his development by
preparing to fianchetto his Kingside Bishop. } 3. b4 { Reti needs to clear b2
for his Queenside Bishop, so the b-pawn must advance. Why not advance it two
squares? If Black attacks it by e7-e6, he's wasted a tempo by advancing the
g-pawn. } 3... Bg7 { Capa fianchettos his Kingside Bishop. Once the f6-Knight moves,
he'll control the long a1-h8 diagonal and maybe even attack White's a1-Rook. } 4. Bb2 { Reti moves his own Bishop to the long a1-h8 diagonal, disputing
Black's control of it. He's also frozen the f6-Knight in place (if the Knight
moves, then Bxg7 wins Black's Bishop). } 4... O-O { By castling, Capa has not only
completed his Kingside development but unfrozen his Knight as well (now
White's Bxg7 can be met by ...Kxg7). } 5. g3 { Now Reti prepares to fianchetto
his other Bishop. } 5... b6 { Capa does the same. } 6. Bg2 { See how both of White's
Bishops control the four central squares: the Bishop on b2 controls d4 and e5,
while its brother on g2 (indirectly) controls e4 and d5. } 6... Bb7 { Capa continues
to fight for his fair share of the center. His b7-Bishop wrestles with White's
g2-Bishop for control of the central light-colored squares. } 7. O-O { By
castling, Reti completes his Kingside development and unfreezes his f3-Knight
(which was transfixed by the b7-Bishop's skewer). } 7... d6 { Capa wants to develop
his b8-Knight, but doesn't want to block the b7-Bishop's control of the long
diagonal. The d-pawn inches forward, clearing d7 for the b8-Knight and
controlling e5 with the d-pawn. } 8. d3 { Reti likewise provides for the
development of his b1-Knight (which will now go to d2) and shores up his
c-pawn at the same time. } 8... Nbd7 { Capa develops the Queenside Knight and
increases his hold over e5. } 9. Nbd2 { Reti develops his own Queenside Knight.
The positions are almost symmetrical, except for White's advanced Queenside
pawns which give him a space advantage. White is slightly ahead. } 9... e5 { Due to
Capa's control of e5, he can finally safely advance his pawn there. But this
move also has the disadvantage of blocking the long a1-h8 diagonal to the
Black Bishop on g7. } 10. Qc2 { By getting his Queen off of the first rank, Reti
completes his development by connecting his Rooks. } 10... Re8 { It's often a good
idea to post your Rooks on the d- and e-files. They'll be well-placed there if
the center opens up later. } 11. Rfd1 { Reti envisions the game opening up as
well. In his case, he'll probably post his Rooks on c1 and d1 to support a
Queenside attack. He may leave one Rook on a1 instead, in case Capablanca
launches his own Queenside assault. } 11... a5 { Capa's Queenside sortie comes quicker
than we'd imagined! White's pawns have dominated the Queenside for too long.
Black fights for elbow room. } 12. a3 { Reti props up the b-pawn. Now 12...axb4
13.axb4 Rxa1 14.Rxa1 gives White control of the open a-file. } 12... h6 { Capa pushes
the h-pawn to clear h7 for his Knight (Nf6-h7-g5). When the Knight reaches g5,
Nxg5 can be met by ...Qxg5 and Black will begin to strike at the White
Kingside. } 13. Nf1 { Reti begins the repositioning of the Knight, working it
toward a better post at e3 (where it will control squares on Black's half of
the board). } 13... c5 { Capa continues to chip away at White's Queenside in an
attempt to open up the game. } 14. b5 { Reti refuses to open the game up.
Instead he locks the Queenside tight by advancing the b-pawn. But what if he'd
decided to open up the game? See the variation to find out. } (14. bxa5 { In this variation by Alekhine, we'll see that exchanging pawns was not in
White's best interest. } 14... Rxa5 { By taking back with the Rook instead of the
b-pawn, Black creates an imbalance in the pawn structure, plus his Rook
controls the half-open a-file. } 15. Nxe5 { White can get away with this move,
because 15...dxe5 16.Bxb7 blocks in the Black e8-Rook and puts White a pawn
ahead. } 15... Bxg2 { Black has to either take the White Bishop or retreat from b7. 15.
..Nxe5 16.Bxb7 was another possibility, but ...Bxg2 is better for Black. } 16. Nxd7 { White keeps up the pressure by taking the Knight. } 16... Bc6 { Surprise!
Instead of immeditely recapturing the White Knight, Black safeguards the
Bishop on the long diagonal. } 17. Nxf6+ { The White Knight continues to
terrorize the Black forces. } 17... Bxf6 { The Black Bishop finally eliminates the
White Knight... } 18. Bxf6 { ...and is itself slain. } 18... Qxf6 { After the Black
Queen recaptures we see that White is still ahead by a pawn, but Black's
pieces are much better placed. Black controls much of the board and has the
advantage of a Bishop vs. a Knight. } 19. Qd2 { White attacks Black's weak
h-pawn. } 19... h5 { Black defends the pawn by advancing it. Now Black controls lots
of territory and has strong chances for a Kingside attack. }) 14... Nf8 { Capa repositions one of his Knights. He may play either Knight to h7, then on
to g5, or else the f8-Knight may go to e6 with the possibility of later moving
to d4 or f4. } 15. e3 { Reti heads Capa's Knight off at the pass. By advancing
the e-pawn, he denies both d4 and f4 to the Black pieces. The e-pawn now also
supports the advance of the d-pawn to d4. } 15... Qc7 { If the game opens up, Capa
certainly doesn't want his Queen on the same file as a White Rook. Also, if
the b8-h2 diagonal becomes cleared of Black pawns, the Black Queen will bear
down on the White King's castled position. } 16. d4 { Reti advances the d-pawn,
intending to open the game up. } 16... Be4 { Capa won't comply with Reti's wishes.
Instead, he makes a bold counterattack with his Bishop against the White Queen. } 17. Qc3 { Reti is forced to save the Queen, so he advances it out of danger. } 17... exd4 { Capa decides that now is the right time to open up the center. Notice
that Capa, ever the master at attaining a draw, captures with the e-pawn
instead of the c-pawn (so that after White's exd4, the pawns remain
symmetrical). } 18. exd4 { Reti recaptures. Again, notice how symmetrical the
pawn structure is (each player has the same number of pawns on each side of
the board). } 18... N6d7 { By removing his Knight from the a1-h8 diagonal, Capa allows
his g7-Bishop to skewer the d4-pawn. Now it's impossible for Reti to play dxc5
because of ...Bxc3. } 19. Qd2 { Reti gets his Queen out of the g7-Bishop's line
of fire while continuing to overprotect the d4-pawn. } 19... cxd4 { Capa captures a
pawn and uncovers an attack on a second pawn (c4) from the Black Queen. } 20. Bxd4 { Looking ahead, Reti foresees a sequence of moves that will allow him to
sieze the initiative and win back the pawn that he's about to lose to ...Qxc4.
The first step is to recapture on d4 with the Bishop. } 20... Qxc4 { Capa thinks he's
won a pawn, but Reti's about to prove him wrong. } 21. Bxg7 { Reti captures the
g7-Bishop. Black must recapture or lose a piece with only a pawn to show for
it. } 21... Kxg7 { The King was the only piece that could capture the White Bishop. Of
course, the King is now exposed on the long diagonal... } 22. Qb2+ { ...so Reti
grabs the initiative by checking with his Queen. } 22... Kg8 { Capa reaches for the
d7-Knight, to move it to f6 to block the check. Then he sees White's next move
and how it prevents ...Nf6. He pulls his King back to g8 instead. } 23. Rxd6 { Now Reti has won back his pawn. Do you see why 22...Nf6 wouldn't work?
(Because White could play 24.Qxf6+ and win the Knight. The Black King can't
recapture because of the White d6-Rook). } 23... Qc5 { The Black Queen drops back and
attacks the White d6-Rook. } 24. Rad1 { White's other Rook slides over to defend
its twin. Although it was Capa's idea to open up the game, Reti has turned
that plan against him. } 24... Ra7 { As White was threatening 25.Rxd7 Nxd7 26.Rxd7
(winning two Knights for a Rook) Capa defends his d7-Knight a second time by
advancing the a-Rook to the second rank. } 25. Ne3 { The f1-Knight finally
advances to e3, getting closer to the action. } 25... Qh5 { Now Capa is threatening to
win a piece by 26...Bxf3 27.Bxf3 Qxf3. } 26. Nd4 { Reti takes everyone by
surprise with this move. The Knight breaks the contact between the Rooks
(possible now because the d6-Rook is no longer attacked). Notice that the
d4-Knight is defended by the Queen and both Rooks. } 26... Bxg2 { Capa knows that he's
in a little trouble, so he angles for a draw by simplifying by trading down
while there's still a symmetrical pawn structure on the board. } 27. Kxg2 { 27.Nxg2 would be a mistake because of 27...Qxd1, so Reti is forced to retake
with the King. } 27... Qe5 { The Black Queen scoots back to the center to attack the
d6-Rook. Why didn't Capa play 27...Rxe3? See the variation. } (27... Rxe3 { At first glance, this looks like a good move. Black removes the d1-Rook's
defender. } 28. fxe3 { White recaptures and is (temporarily) the exchange ahead. } 28... Qxd1 { By capturing the d1-Rook, it looks like Black is ahead by a minor piece.
But this is just an illusion... } 29. Nf5! { Amazing! If Black plays 29...gxf5,
then White captures the Queen (30.Rxd1). But if Black saves his Queen (by 29...
Qxd6, for example), then 30.Qg7 is mate! }) 28. Nc4 { Reti moves the Knight to
the defense of the endangered Rook. } 28... Qc5 { Capa makes another threat, this time
against the c4-Knight. } 29. Nc6 { Moves like this separate the men from the
boys! Reti surprises yet again by making a counterthreat. If Black dares to
capture the hanging c4-Knight, he loses the exchange by 30.Nxa6. } 29... Rc7 { Capa
eliminates the possibility of 30.Rxa6. Now Reti must do something about his
hanging Knight on c4. } 30. Ne3 { Reti saves the Knight by retreating it to e3. } 30... Ne5 { Now one of Capa's Knights swoops into the fray. } 31. R1d5 { POW! Reti
strikes at both the Knight and Queen. Capa reaches for his Knight, stops,
stares at the board dumbfounded for a moment, then tips his King! RETI HAS
WON!! (See the variation for what Capa saw). } (31. R1d5 Nc4 { ...Black's only choice is to attack the White Queen. } 32. Rxc5 { If 32.Nxc4, ...
Qxc4 allows the Black Queen to escape. So White decides to swap Queens rather
than Knights. } 32. Nxb2 { Black finishes the transaction, but his Knight is now
deep inside White's territory and cut off from its comrades. } 32... Rc2 { White
attacks the unfortunate Knight... } 33. Na4 { ...forcing it to retreat. } 33... Nd5 { WHAM! This is what Capa saw. White threatens both 35.Nxc7 and the forking 35.
Nf6+. } 34. Re6 { This is Black's only defense, but he still loses a Rook no matter
what. } 34... Rxe6 { 35.Nxc7 was clearly impossible, due to ...Rxd6. White must
trade Rooks. } 35. Nxe6 { Much better than ...fxe6, because the Knight now defends
the c7-Rook. } 35... Nxc7 { That doesn't stop White! He takes the Rook anyway! } 36. Nxc7 { Black recaptures. White is the exchange ahead, but he wants more... } 36... Ne7+ { ...so he launches a double attack! The Knight checks the King,
uncovering an assault on the c7-Knight by the White Rook! } 37. Kf8 { The Black King
is forced to move, so it flees to a square where it attacks White's Knight. } 37... Rxc7 { The Rook captures the Knight and defends the White Knight on e7.
White is a whole Rook ahead and should have no trouble winning this game. }) 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.22"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Marshall, Frank James"]
[Black "Yates, Frederick"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[PlyCount "80"]
[ECO "A48"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 { Marshall (White) advances his d-pawn, occupying the center. This
prevents e7-e5, and will probably lead to a slow positional game -- a war of
maneuver rather than of direct attack. } 1... Nf6 { Yates (Black) keeps his
intentions a secret. Will he attempt to occupy the center with his own pawns,
or is he more interested in controlling the center with his pieces posted on
the flank (in hypermodern style)? } 2. Nf3 { Marshall increases his grip on the
center. The Knight protects the d4-pawn and tightens the White hold on e5. } 2... g6 { This move gives away part of Yates' plan. He plans on
fianchettoing his Bishop to g7, and will most likely try to influence the
center with his minor pieces, rather than occupy it with pawns. } { [%cal Yf8g7] } 3. Nbd2 { Why?? Marshall has blocked in his c1-Bishop and moved the Knight to a square
where it influences very little of the center. c2-c4 followed by Nc3 is
probably better. } 3... Bg7 { Black is playing the King's Indian Defense (called
"Indian" because pawns can only move one square on their first move the way
chess is played in India). He's brought his Bishop to a good square,
overlooking the long a1-h8 diagonal. } 4. e4 { Now we see the reason for
Marshall's unusual move Nb1-d2. The d2-Knight supports the pawn on e4. White
has achieved the ideal d4-e4 central pawn formation (but can he maintain it?). } 4... d6 { By playing d7-d6, Yates prevents White from playing the space-grabbing
e4-e5 (attacking the f6-Knight and making Black waste a tempo by moving it
again). By the way, the opening has now transposed into the Pirc Defense. } 5. Bd3 { Marshall makes another unusual move. Other than the fact that the
d3-Bishop overprotects the e4-pawn, it's difficult to find a good reason for
this move. } 5... Nc6 { The c6-Knight attacks the d4-pawn. If
the f6-Knight moves, the d4-pawn will be attacked twice and only defended once.
The c6-Knight also disputs White's control of e5. } { [%csl Rd4][%cal Rc6d4] } 6. c3 { Marshall brings the
c-pawn forward to protect its brother on the d-file. } 6... O-O { Yates completes his
Kingside development, getting his King over to the well-defended Kingside
"pocket". } 7. O-O { Marshall follows suit, getting his King off of the
dangerous central file (where it could later easily become the object of
attack). } 7... e5 { Yates challenges the White pawns' domination of the center. } 8. Nc4 { Marshall flails out at the e5 pawn, which is now attacked three times by
White but has just two Black defenders. } 8... exd4 { Rather than wait for further
protection, the Black pawn opts for suicide (first making sure to take a White
pawn with it). } 9. cxd4 { The c-pawn clobbers the Black d4-pawn.
White has (temporarily) re-established his central pawn duo. } { [%csl Yd4,Ye4] } 9... Bg4 { Yates sees
that the d4-pawn is attacked once and defended once. He pins the pawn's only
defender to the White Queen. Now the d4-pawn is ripe for the picking! } 10. Be3 { Marshall takes emergency measures by developing his dark-square Bishop to a
spot where it saves the endangered pawn. } 10... d5 { If Yates can trade off a pair of
center pawns, his Queen will have a direct line to the center along the d-file. } 11. exd5 { Marshall takes the pawn instead of moving the Knight (11.Nd2 dxe4
forking the White d3-Bishop and f3-Knight). } 11... Qxd5 { Yates retakes the pawn and
gets his Queen into the game. Note that the White d-pawn has become isolated. } 12. Ncd2 { Marshall begins repositioning the Knight to b3, where it will aid in
the d-pawn's defense. } 12... Rad8 { Yates establishes a powerful battery on the
d-file, aimed straight at the isolated d4-pawn. Both players are building up
enormous tension in the position with these maneuvers. } 13. Rc1 { Marshall sees
the explosion about to take place. He brings his Rook to the half-open c-file,
where it will bear down on the c7-pawn once the c6-Knight has moved. } 13... Nxd4 { Like a rubber band snapping, the buildup of tension is released as the
position breaks wide open. Yates starts the release of this pent-up energy by
capturing the d-pawn. } 14. Bxd4 { This is the only way that Marshall can
recapture without losing his Queen. } 14... Qxd4 { Interesting! Yates encourages the
exchange of Queens, which will simplify the position and get the players
closer to the endgame. } 15. Nxd4 { Marshall proceeds with the Queen exchange,
taking the Black Queen and leaving his own Queen subject to capture. } 15... Bxd1 { Yates finishes the transaction. But the carnage is far from over... } 16. Rfxd1 { The Rook clobbers the Black Bishop... } 16... Rxd4 { ...while the Black Rook replies
by snapping up the Knight. } 17. Nb3 { Marshall's Knight attacks the Black Rook
and allows the White d1-Rook to defend the Bishop. } 17... Rd6 { The Black Rook
retreats to d6 rather than d8 because from d6 it can slide over to a6, b6, or
c6 and attack the White Queenside. } 18. Be2 { White shifts his Bishop,
uncovering an attack by the d1-Rook against the Black Rook on d6. Why didn't
Marshall play Rxc7? See the variation. } (18. Rxc7 { White can grab a pawn with
Rxc7, but it will ultimately cost him a piece. } 18... Rfd8 { Black doubles up his
Rooks on the d-file, putting the White d3-Bishop in immediate danger. } 19. Nc1 { White has no choice but to guard the Bishop (19.Bf1 Rxd1 loses the Rook right
away and leads to more trouble later). } 19... Bh6 { Black attacks the c1-Knight.
There's no defense. Move the Knight, lose the Bishop. Move the Bishop, lose
the Rook. Allow 20...Bxc1 21.Rxc1, lose the Bishop to 21...Rxd3. White is sunk. }) 18... Re6 { Yates attacks White's hanging Bishop. } 19. Bf3 { 19.Kf1 (to
protect the Bishop) was possible, but Black could play 19...Rfe8 to double up
the attack. Marshall thinks it's better to regain the initiative by moving the
Bishop and attacking the b7-pawn. } 19... c6 { Yates blocks the attack on his b-pawn
by interposing the c-pawn. } 20. Na5 { Now Marshall takes aim at the b7-pawn. If
Yates advances the b-pawn, the c-pawn falls. How will Yates defend himself? } 20... Re7 { Obviously one of the Rooks had to defend the threatened pawn. Why this
Rook and not the other? Because Black still can double his Rooks on the e-file. } 21. Rc4 { Marshall brings up fresh troops. The Rook is headed for b4, where
it will attack the b7-pawn another time. } 21... Nd5 { The Black Knight jumps to the
protected d5-square, where it controls b4 and takes it away from the White
Rook. } 22. g3 { Marshall prepares a "pocket" for the
King to hide in, thereby preventing any possibility of a back-rank mate. } { [%csl Yg2][%cal Yg1g2] } 22... Rfe8 { This was exactly the kind of move Marshall feared. Had the g-pawn not
advanced Black could possibly have mated White with a Rook on e1 (23...Re1 24.
Rxe1 Rxe1#). } 23. b3 { The g7-pawn was attacking the b2-pawn (did you notice?).
Marshall advances the pawn out of danger. } 23... Nc3 { Advancing the b-pawn created a
hole on c3. Yates is quick to capitalize on it, moving his Knight to c3 (where
the g7-Bishop protects it) and attacking the d1-Rook and a2-pawn. } 24. Rd2 { Marshall gets the Rook out of danger and defends the threatened pawn at the
same time. } 24... Bh6 { Yates continues to harass the White Rook. } 25. Rb2 { The Rook
comes to the only safe square where it can still defend the a2-pawn. } 25... Nd5 { The Knight hangs on c3, so Yates backs it off. Moving the Bishop back to g7 to
defend it could have led to a draw by repetition of position. } 26. b4 { Marshall launches a minority attack against the Black Queenside pawns. The
kamikaze b-pawn will sacrifice itself to weaken Black's position. } 26... Bg7 { The Bishop continues to pester the White Rook. } 27. Rb3 { The Rook is forced to
move to avoid being captured by the Black Bishop. } 27... a6 { Yates advances his
a-pawn and stops the minority attack cold. } 28. Rc2 { Once the a-pawn advances,
this Rook will move to a2, supporting the a4-pawn. } 28... Nb6 { Yates predicts that
White will advance his a-pawn, so he prevents a2-a4 by covering a4 with his
Knight. } 29. Rd3 { Marshall may be planning to move the Rook to d1 where
(protected by the f3-Bishop) it will overlook both the d-file and the e1
square. } 29... Nd7 { Yates sees an opportunity: if Marshall doesn't immediately pull
the d3-Rook back, he'll move his Knight to e5 and fork both the d3-Rook and
f3-Bishop. } 30. Nc4 { Marshall sees through Yates' scheme and repositions his
Knight, taking e5 away from Black. } 30... Bf8 { Yates can still play 30...Ne5 31.Nxe5
Bxe5, but that gets him nothing. Instead he plays Bf8, planning to uncover an
attack on the b4-pawn after he moving the Rook on e7. Unfortunately, he's
abandoned the long diagonal. } 31. Kg2 { Marshall figures that it's time to get
the King off of the first rank and prevent an annoying check by a Black Rook
on e1. } 31... Rb8 { Yates wants to advance his c-pawn, but that allows White to play
Bxb7. He makes sure that the b-pawn is defended first before advancing the
pawn. } 32. a3 { Marshall props up the hanging b-pawn. } 32... c5 { Yates, ahead by a
pawn, seeks to simplify the position by trading down. He's hoping for 33.bxc5
Nxc5 (attacking the d3-Rook). } 33. Rcd2 { Marshall makes
his own threat: 34.Rxd7 Rxd7 35.Rxd7 winning the Knight. } { [%csl Rd7][%cal Rd3d7] } 33... Nf6 { The Black
Knight escapes capture by moving away... } 34. bxc5 { ...but this allows
Marshall to capture the c-pawn and equalize the material balance. } 34... Rc7 { The Black Rook slips over to the c-file to assail the c-pawn. } 35. Nd6 { Believe it or not, this move actually defends the c5-pawn! How? See the
variation to Black's next move for the answer. } 35... Nd7 { Yates doubles up on
White's c-pawn, attacking it a second time. } (35... Rxc5 { Let's see what
happens if Black dares to capture the c-pawn... } 36. Nxb7 { The White Knight
snags the Black b-pawn. If Black chooses not to capture it (moving his c5-Rook
out of danger instead), then it's a simple pawn-for-pawn swap. } 36... Rxb7 { If Black
does choose to capture it... } 37. Bxb7 { ...the White Bishop drives in and
takes the Rook, winning the exchange for White. }) 36. Nb5 { Surprise! At first
glance, this appears to be a sacrifice of the White Knight. } 36... axb5 { Of course,
Black captures it. Wouldn't you? } 37. Rxd7 { Marshall re-equalizes the material
by taking the Black Knight. Now you see that 36.Nb5 wasn't a true sacrifice. } 37... Rxd7 { Due to the weakness of the doubled b-pawns, it's to Yates' advantage to
try to get as many pieces off of the board as possible (so that there will be
fewer White pieces to attack the weak pawns). } 38. Rxd7 { Marshall completes
the Rook trade. Where does Yates go from here? } 38... Bxc5 { Yates takes out another
White pawn. } 39. Bd5 { Marshall sets up a combination designed to win major
material... } 39... Rf8 { ...but Yates sees through it and saves himself a world of
grief. What was Marshall's plan? To see it in action, check out the variation. } (39... Bxa3 { Here's what might have happened to Black if he'd missed the point
of White's last move. In this variation, Black goes pawn-grabbing, oblivious
to the danger. } 40. Rxf7 { At this point, White's won at least a pawn. He'll
win even more if warning bells don't start sounding in Black's head. } 40... b4 { 40...Rd8 is Black's best move. But we'll assume (for the sake of our example)
that he misses the point and instead tries advancing his passed pawn. } 41. Rxb7+ { BANG! It's a double attack -- the
Bishop checks the King while the Rook attacks its Black counterpart. You can
probably see why 40...Rd8 was better: it would set up 41...Rxd5. } { [%csl Rb8,Rg8][%cal Rd5g8,Rb7b8] } 41... Kf8 { The
Black King must move out of check. The squares f8 and h8 are its only options. } 42. Rxb8+ { White winds up a whole Rook ahead and is controlling the initiative
by again checking the Black King! This game is all but won for White. }) 40. Rxb7 { Marshall evens the material, grabbing another pawn and setting up 41.
Rxb5. } 40... Bxa3 { Yates snaps up another pawn. Both players see that 41.Rxb5 will
even up the material. Due to the symmetrical pawn structure and the lack of
any real advantage for either side, the players decide to pack it in. It's a
draw. } 1/2-1/2

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.22"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Maroczy, Geza"]
[Black "Bogoljubow, Efim"]
[Result "0-1"]
[PlyCount "54"]
[ECO "D05"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 { It's a well-known fact that Maroczy hates to see 1.d4 when he has the
Black pieces. It's only logical that when he has White he plays the same move
that makes him the most uncomfortable as Black. } 1... Nf6 { Bogo doesn't commit
himself to occupying the center with pawns by playing 1...d5. He stays
flexible by developing his Knight first, waiting to see how White will respond. } 2. Nf3 { Maroczy doesn't want to go into the positions arising from 2.c4 for
some reason, so he plays a less-conventional developing move. } 2... e6 { Bogo
supports his d-pawn's advance to d5 and telegraphs his intentions about the
f8-Bishop: it won't be fianchettoed but will be developed through the center. } 3. e3 { Maroczy braces his d-pawn and allows for the development of his
f1-Bishop. The drawback: he's blocked in his c1-Bishop. } 3... c5 { Bogo challenges
the White center. If White plays 4.dxc5, then 4...Bxc5 will give Black the
lead in development. } 4. Bd3 { Maroczy clears the deck
for castling, moving the Bishop to a spot where it covers e4, making that
square unattractive to Black's f6-Knight. } { [%csl Ge4][%cal Gd3e4] } 4... d5 { Bogo carves out a healthy slice
of the center for himself by advancing his d-pawn. Developing the c8-Bishop is
still a problem, but at least it can move to d7 now. } 5. b3 { This prevents the
advance of the Black c-pawn (otherwise Black gets to play 5...c4 6.Be2 Ne4,
making White very sad). Maroczy is also able to play Bb1, solving the problem
of that Bishop's development. } 5... Nc6 { Bogo continues his development. ...Nb4 may
be possible at a later opportune moment. } 6. O-O { Maroczy castles, completing
his Kingside development. } 6... Bd6 { Bogo need
to get the Bishop off of his first rank to be able to castle. It's better to
develop the Bishop to d6 rather than e7 because on d6 the Bishop controls the
b8-h2 diagonal. } { [%csl Yb8,Yc7,Yd6,Ye5,Yf4,Yg3,Yh2] } 7. Bb2 { Maroczy fianchettoes his Bishop. He may decide to get
his d-pawn out of the way with dxc5, after which the Bishop will have control
of the long a1-h8 diagonal. } 7... O-O { Bogo tucks the King away toward the corner
and brings his Rook over toward the center. } 8. Ne5 { Maroczy gambles that Bogo
will be unwilling to trade a Bishop for a Knight at this early stage of the
game, and establishes a Knight outpost on e5. } 8... Ne7 { Bogo doesn't like the look
of the e5-Knight and both Bishops bearing down on his Kingside. He shifts the
Knight toward that side of the board to help defend against any possible
attacks there. } 9. Nd2 { The Knight has limited potential for active play on
the Queenside, so Maroczy begins to shift it toward the Kingside. } 9... b6 { By
advancing the pawn, Bogo creates a good developing square for his Bishop. On
b7, the Bishop will control the long a8-h1 diagonal and take aim at White's
Kingside. } 10. f4 { The pawn advances so that it won't be
blocked in by a White piece posted on f3. Maroczy might later bring his Rook
into the game by way of Rf1-f3-h3 to help in a Kingside attack. } { [%cal Yf1f3,Yf3h3] } 10... Bb7 { Bogo
does the expected and fianchettos his Bishop. In tight, closed games like this,
the players are forced into a battle of maneuver. Their pieces have to shift
and squirm to find the absolute best squares to be posted on. } 11. Qf3 { Maroczy sees that ...Ne4 is now possible (11...Ne4 12.Nxe4 dxe4 13.Bxe4 Bxe4),
so he places the Queen on f3 to help keep the Black Knight off of e4. } 11... Rc8 { Bogo anticipates opening the c-file by ...cxd4. The Rook is poised to take
command of the c-file once it opens up. } 12. Ng4 { Maroczy decides that it's
time to rid himself of the pesky f6-Knight and the threat of ...Ne4 (which is
tying up most of his forces) once and for all. } 12... Nxg4 { Bogo's displeasure shows
on his face. He doesn't like being forced into moves. He must play ...Nxg4;
otherwise 13.Nxf6 gxf6 leaves his King horribly exposed. } 13. Qxg4 { Maroczy
has finally eliminated the threat of ...Ne4. This will free up his forces for
other activities. } 13... Ng6 { "Nice try," thinks Bogoljubow. He saw the trap: 14.
dxc5 Bxc5 15.Qxg7# (the Queen is defended by the b2-Bishop). This kind of trap
is called a "cheapo". Bogo spots it and interposes the Knight to block off g7
from White's Queen. } 14. Nf3 { It's becoming evident that White's attack will
be launched on the Kingside. Maroczy continues to prepare by shifting his
Knight over to f3. The Knight's next post will be g5. } 14... f5 { The White Kingside
buildup is making Bogo uncomfortable. The pawn chases the White Queen. } 15. Qh5 { Maroczy advances the Queen out of danger, instead of retreating it. By doing
so, he keeps up the pressure on the Kingside and provides for Ng5. } 15... Be7 { Bogo puts another defender on g5 (15...h6 obviously doesn't work because of 16.
Qxf6), keeping the White Knight out of his half of the board. } 16. g4 { Maroczy
attacks the f5-pawn, which is keeping his d3-Bishop from participating in the
attack. But he's severely weakened his own King's fortress! } 16... c4 { Bogo
counterattacks on the opposite wing. The pawn's advance not only assails the
pivotal White Bishop, but increases the c8-Rook's space as well. } 17. gxf5 { Boldly, Maroczy proceeds with his own attack. Which player's assault will
strike home first? The crowd is on the edge of their seats! } 17... Nxf4 { Bogo guarantees the demise of the crucial
d3-Bishop by doubling up on it, with the added bonus of forking it and the
White Queen! What a move! } { [%csl Rd3,Rh5][%cal Rf4d3,Rf4h5,Rc4d3] } 18. exf4 { Maroczy has no choice but to capture the
rude Knight. Bogo is smiling now as he contemplates future misfortunes for
White. } 18... cxd3 { Bogo has plenty to smile about.
While the material is even, he holds the Bishop pair and has a double attack
on the c2-pawn by the d3-pawn and c8-Rook. } { [%csl Gb7,Ge7][%cal Rd3c2,Rc8c2] } 19. Ng5 { Maroczy's plan is to take
away some of Bogo's advantage by denying him possession of the Bishop pair. If
Bogo doesn't reply with 19...Bxg5, Maroczy will play 20.Nxe6, forking the
Queen and f8-Rook. } 19... Bxg5 { Bogo sighs. Here's another move that he's forced to
make! } 20. fxg5 { Maroczy gets his f-pawns undoubled. He could have played 20.
Qxg5 Qxg5 21.fxg5, but trading Queens wouldn't be to White's advantage owing
to Black's Queenside counterplay. } 20... Rxc2 { There's no two ways around it: the
c2-pawn was destined to fall. Now Maroczy is behind by a pawn. He saw it
coming and that's another reason why he decided to keep his Queen on the board
(don't trade when you're behind). } 21. g6 { Instead of just passively defending
his threatened b2-Bishop or moving it away, Maroczy takes a more active course
by setting up the threat of Qxh7#. } 21... h6 { Bogo plays the only move that prevents
the mate. } 22. Ba3 { NOW Maroczy gets his Bishop out of
danger, threatening the f8-Rook at the same time. } { [%csl Rf8][%cal Ra3f8] } 22... Rxf5 { In saving his Rook by moving it, Bogo gets in an attack of his own. Now
Maroczy must save his Queen. } { [%csl Rh5][%cal Rf5h5] } 23. Rxf5 { Retreating the Queen would leave the
g6-pawn to Black's tender mercies, so Maroczy chooses the lesser of two evils:
trading off the Rooks rather than losing the advanced g-pawn and being a
second pawn behind. } 23... exf5 { Bogo snags the Rook... } 24. Qxf5 { ...and Maroczy completes the sequence. Now he
threatens to win a piece by 25.Qf7+ Kh8 26.Qxb7. } { [%csl Rb7,Rg8][%cal Yf5f7,Rf7g8,Rf7b7] } 24... Qf6 { Bogo is certainly not
smiling now. He's again forced to make a particular move; this time the Black
Queen must block the White Queen's access to f7. } 25. Re1 { Maroczy threatens
again: this time it's a threat to win the Black Queen and mate at the same
time. 26.Re8+ Qf8 27.Rxf8#. } 25... Re2 { Bogo has to interpose his Rook to cut the
White Rook off from e8. } 26. Rf1 { Maroczy could have had an easy draw after 26.
Rxe2 (see the variation). He shoots for more than a draw with this move (27.
Qxf6 gxf6 28.Rxf6 to be followed by Rf8#). Will he get more? } (26. Rxe2 { At first glance, this look like it loses the White Queen. But if Black plays
26...Qxf5, then 27.Re8+ Qf8 28.Rxf8#! } 26... dxe2 { The pawn recaptures to even up
the material and is now a step away from promotion. } 27. Qxf6 { White has no
choice. Moving the Queen away allows 27...Qf1#, and letting the Queen sit
loses it next move. } 27... gxf6 { Black recaptures and now has another passed pawn. } 28. Kf2 { The King prevents the e2-pawn's promotion. Despite his extra pawn,
Black will be hard-pressed to win this one. Alekhine (who devised this
variation) called this position a draw. }) 26... Qxd4+ { Bogo grabs a pawn WITH
CHECK. This is important, because if it wasn't for the check, White could
reply 27.Qf8#! } 27. Kh1 { Maroczy plays the only saving move that doesn't lose
material. Unfortunately, it's also a move that puts the White King one square
farther away from the passed Black e3-pawn. } 27... Qf6 { 28.Qxf6 gxf6 29.Rxf6 e2 and
the e-pawn is unstoppable. There are other possibilities here and all of them
are ugly ones for White. Maroczy knows when he's licked; he resigns. } 0-1

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.22"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Lasker, Edward"]
[Black "Janowski, Dawid"]
[Result "0-1"]
[PlyCount "124"]
[ECO "A47"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 { Lasker (White) remembers Janowski's reputation as a tactician, so he
opens with a move that usually leads to slower, more positional play. This
will give Janowski less of an opportunity to show off his tactical skills. } 1... Nf6 { Rather than commit himself to occupying the center with pawns (with 1...d5),
Janowski develops a Knight to a center-controlling square and adopts a "wait
and see" attitude. } 2. Nf3 { Lasker develops a Knight to a center-controlling
post. From f3, the Knight controls d4 and e5. } 2... b6 { By advancing the b-pawn,
Janowski clears b7 for his light-square Bishop. } 3. c4 { Lasker increases his
center control with this move. He now controls three of the four central
squares (e4 being the only one that he doesn't control). } 3... Bb7 { The Bishop
moves to b7 to be able to command the long a8-h1 diagonal and to bear down on
White's Kingside. Janowski now has two pieces exercising control over e4. } 4. Nc3 { Lasker strengthens his grip on d5 and begins to dispute Black's control
over e4. } 4... d6 { Janowski prevents White from playing Ne5. He also sets up an
e7-e5 pawn push. He can't push the pawn yet, though, because of 5...e5 6.dxe5
dxe5 7.Qxd8 Kxd8 and Black loses his right to castle. } 5. Bg5 { Lasker tries to
make the e-pawn push less attractive for Black. If Black now advances the
e-pawn, his f6-Knight will be pinned to his Queen. } 5... Nbd7 { Janowski makes the
e-pawn push possible. Now it's safe to play 6...e5 7.dxe5 dxe5 because the
d7-Knight blocks the exchange of Queens. } 6. Qc2 { Lasker continues to position
his pieces so that they control e4. If he can put more control over this
square than Black can, he'll be able to safely play e2-e4. } 6... e5 { Janowski
doesn't want White to have the d4-e4 central pawn duo, so he lashes out at the
d4-pawn. } 7. e3 { If White plays dxe5, he loses the central pawn duo. With 7.e3,
he protects the d-pawn and holds the threat of e3-e4 in reserve for the future. } 7... h6 { Janowski could have played ...exd4, but opening up the game would be in
White's favor (since White has a lead in development). He "puts the question"
to the Bishop instead. } 8. Bh4 { 8.Bxf6 Nxf6 doesn't really get White anywhere,
so Lasker retreats the Bishop to a square where it maintains the pin on the
f6-Knight. } 8... g5 { Janowski goes headhunting after the White Bishop. } 9. Bg3 { Lasker's only chioce. } 9... Nh5 { Janowski traps the White Bishop like a rat. } 10. O-O-O { His Kingside pawn structure is about to be ruined, so it's only logical
for White to castle on the Queenside. } 10... Nxg3 { Janowski captures the Bishop. He
now has the advantage of owning the Bishop pair (but it's just a small
advantage in closed positions. It may become a significant advantage later on
after the game opens up). } 11. hxg3 { "Capture toward the center." It's a valid
principle, and Lasker follows it here. } 11... Bg7 { Janowski fianchettoes his other
Bishop. When the game opens up later, his Bishops will attack both wings and
strike scissor-like in the center. } 12. Bd3 { Lasker completes his development
by getting the Bishop off of the first rank and connecting his Rooks. } 12... g4 { The frisky pawn advances to dislodge the f3-Knight from its defense of d4. } 13. Nh4 { It's not much of an outpost, but at least h4 is free from future pawn
attacks. } 13... exd4 { Janowski decides that now's the time to open up the center.
The reason will become obvious in a minute. } 14. exd4 { Lasker has to play 14.
exd4 or be behind by a pawn. Sadly, this capture opens up the c1-h6 diagonal... } 14... Qg5+ { ...a fact which is not lost on Janowski. By checking with the Queen,
he forces White to use his next move to get out of check. This buys Janowski
time to get his King off of the open e-file. } 15. Kb1 { The White King ducks
out of check... } 15... O-O-O { ...and the Black King ducks to the Queenside. Janowski
has finally completed his development. White's lead in development has
practically disappeared. } 16. Be4 { The Black b7-Bishop was threatening the
g2-pawn. Lasker challenges the powerful fianchettoed Bishop and hopes for 16...
Bxe4 17.Nxe4, dislodging the Black Queen. } 16... Rhe8 { No two ways about it:
Janowski must either lose the Bishop or keep it and give up the long diagonal.
He decides to trade one type of positional advantage for another: lose the
a8-h1 diagonal, but get control of the open e-file. } 17. Bxb7+ { Lasker snaps
up the Bishop... } 17... Kxb7 { ...giving up his Bishop in return. Black still has a
minor-piece advantage: a Bishop and Knight against two Knights. } 18. Ne4 { The White Knight, protected by the White Queen, occupies a good central square
and forces the Black Queen to move. } 18... Qa5 { Black's open fourth rank allows the
Queen's rapid transit from one side of the board to the other. } 19. Nf5 { White's other Knight jumps ahead and attacks the Black Bishop. But there's
nothing protecting the Knight from the Black Queen! How is this possible? } 19... Bf8 { Janowski makes the wise choice and retreats his Bishop. To see the
unfortunate consequences of 19...Qxf5, look at the variation. } (19... Qxf5 { Here's why Janowski didn't play 19...Qxf5. Notice that both Queens are on the
b1-h7 diagonal with just the White Knight between them. Now if White can just
find a way to move the Knight while gaining a tempo... } 20. Nc5+ { A-HA!!
SUCCESS!! The White Knight moves off of the diagonal while giving check and
uncovers an attack on the Black Queen at the same time. } 20... dxc5 { Black has no
choice but to respond to the check, leaving the Queen to her fate. } 21. Qxf5 { White, of course, wastes no time in grabbing the Queen and gaining a winning
advantage. }) 20. Rh5 { Lasker is gunning for the Black Queen. His plan is to
win the exchange: 21.Ng7 Qa6 (21...Qxh5 22.Nxh5) 22.Nxe8 Rxe8. } 20... Qa6 { Janowski
pulls back the Queen, making Lasker's planned Ng7 impossible. } 21. Ne3 { Lasker finds another useful move for his Knight: by moving to e3, the Knight
attacks the g4-pawn. } 21... c5 { Janowski is unable to defend the g4-pawn. Instead,
he proceeds with a plan to open up lines for his Queen (which is sitting
uselessly on a6). } 22. Nxg4 { Lasker goes up a pawn in the material count. } 22... cxd4 { Janowski captures a pawn and opens a space for his Knight on c5. But his real
plan is to clear b6. Watch... } 23. Rxd4 { Of course, Lasker recaptures and
retains his one-pawn lead. } 23... Nc5 { The Black Knight swoops in and attacks its
White counterpart on e4. } 24. Nxc5+ { With a one-pawn lead, Lasker would be
foolish to not trade down. } 24... bxc5 { Janowski clears b6 (the real point of this
operation) and attacks the White Rook with his pawn. } 25. Re4 { Lasker invites
a Rook swap which will be advantageous for White (25...Rxe4 26.Qxe4+, trading
closer to the endgame and giving White the initiative). } 25... Qc6 { Janowski wants
no part of an even Rook swap. Instead, he doubles up on the e4-Rook,
threatening to win it unless White takes some defensive action. } 26. Nf6 { Lasker can't move the Rook away (26.Rf4 Re1+ 27.Qc1 Rxc1 28.Kxc1 gives Black a
winning advantage), so he moves the Knight to the Rook's defense. The Knight
does double-duty by attacking the e8-Rook at the same time. } 26... Re6 { By advancing
the Rook to a protected square on the same file, Janowski maintains the
pressure on the e4-Rook and attacks the f6-Knight. } 27. Rf5 { The second White
Rook slides over to defend the menaced Knight. } 27... Kb8 { The King pulls back on
the general principle that it's usually a bad idea to have the King and Queen
on the same diagonal. Keeping them on the same diagonal sometimes invites ugly
pins that force unfavorable trades. } 28. f3 { The f-pawn advances to
overprotect the e4-Rook. Now the White Queen or Knight are free to perform
other tasks. } 28... Bg7 { That f-pawn advanced just in time! Janowski ruthlessly
attacks the f6-Knight. } 29. Nd5 { The Knight saves itself and comes to rest on
a good protected outpost on d5. } 29... Rd7 { Janowski prepares to shift this Rook to
the Queenside by advancing it to a rank with open access to that side of the
board. } 30. b3 { Black's plan was to move the Rook to b7, setting up a double
attack on the b2-pawn (from the Rook and Bishop). Lasker advances the target
pawn, forcing Janowski to devise another plan. } 30... a5 { Janowski launches a
minority attack to weaken the White Queenside. He wants to trade his a-pawn
for the obstructing White b-pawn. } 31. a4 { Lasker advances the a-pawn and
stops any further encroachment by its Black counterpart. } 31... Ra7 { The Rook stands
guard over the a-pawn, preventing a White breakthrough attempt (such as
Qc2-d2-a5, for example). } 32. Qe2 { Lasker schemes to win another pawn by 33.
Rxe6 fxe6 34.Qxe6. } 32... Qe8 { The Queen backs up the threatened Rook. } 33. Nf6 { The Knight can safely come to f6 and attack the Black Queen (33...Bxf6 34.Rxf6
and Black can't play 34...Rxf6 because 35.Rxe8+ loses the Queen. Also, the
e6-Rook would be attacked three times and defended just twice). } 33... Qc8 { The
Queen moves out of danger and still covers the e6-Rook. } 34. Nh5 { Lasker keeps
control of the initiative by making another threat: this time, it's against
the g7-Bishop. } 34... Bd4 { If the Bishop retreats to f8, its own pawns on c5 and d6
block it in. The Bishop stays active by moving to the outpost square d4. } 35. Nf4 { Here's another threat from White: the Knight becomes the e6-Rook's third
attacker. } 35... Re5 { The menaced Rook advances and counterattacks the White Rook on
f5. } 36. g4 { Lasker sets a trap for Janowski. He plans to give back the pawn
he previously captured in order to open up the e-file, allowing White's pieces
to invade Black's position. } 36... Rxf5 { Janowski sees nothing wrong with trading
down now; after all, isn't he about to get his pawn back? } 37. gxf5 { Lasker
finishes the Rook swap... } 37... Qxf5 { ...and Janowski regains his pawn, levelling
the material balance. White can't immediately invade by way of the e-file
because the White Rook is pinned to the King. } 38. g4 { Lasker attempts to
break the pin by attacking Black's Queen. } 38... Qh7 { The pin is maintained as long
as the Black Queen stays on the b1-h7 diagonal. } 39. Kc1 { Lasker has no choice
but to expend a tempo in moving the King off of the diagonal... } 39... Be5 { ...
giving Janowski time to close off the e-file with his Bishop. } 40. Nd5 { The White Knight jumps to the d5 outpost square, clearing f4 for the advance
of the White f-pawn. Once the pawn advances, the Black Bishop will have to
move and the e-file will again be open for the White pieces. } 40... f5 { Janowski
decides to do a little line-clearing of his own. He starts by striking at the
e4-Rook. } 41. gxf5 { Retreating the Rook would allow 41...f4, short-circuiting
White's plans. Lasker determines that it's better to remove the attacking pawn. } 41... Rg7 { Janowski doesn't recapture! Instead, he sacrifices the pawn so that he
can take charge of the open g-file and use it as a highway leading to behind
the White lines. } 42. f4 { Lasker continues with his established plan of
opening up the e-file. } 42... Rg1+ { Janowski ignores the threat to his Bishop and
starts his invasion, picking up a tempo by attacking the White King. } 43. Kd2 { The King moves to safety behind the Queen. } 43... Rb1 { Janowski continues his
threats, giving White no time to capture the Black Bishop. The new threat is
44.Rb2+, skewering the King to the White Queen. } 44. Qh5 { Lasker prevents the
skewer by moving his Queen off of the second rank. From h5, the Queen can move
to e8 and attack the Black King. } 44... Qg7 { The Black Queen can now use the open
g-file to join in the attack on the White King. } 45. Qe8+ { Lasker grabs the
initiative by checking the Black King. Unfortunately, he missed the winning
move! See the variation. } (45. fxe5 { Lasker should have just captured the
Bishop, as this variation by Alekhine shows. } 45... Qg2+ { This move is what Lasker
was trying to delay or prevent. But the check is harmless (as we'll soon see). } 46. Re2 { White can interpose his Rook and attack the Queen. } 46... Rb2+ { Black would
then logically attack the White King from the other side. } 47. Kc3 { The White
King must move, trapping the White Rook between a rock and a hard place. } 47... Rxe2 { Black could also play 47...Qxe2 without affecting the final result. } 48. Qe8+ { NOW White should check the Black King (instead of on move 45). This leads to
a forced mate! } 48... Ka7 { The King must move out of check. 48...Kb7 is also
possible (but doesn't change the result). } 49. Qd7+ { The Queen keeps up the
attack by checking again. } 49... Ka8 { The King is forced to retreat again. } 50. Qc6+ { Again, a check from White... } 50... Kb8 { ...followed by another evasion by Black. } 51. Qc7+ { The Queen, protected by the Knight, zeros in on the King. } 51... Ka8 { The King makes the only move possible. } 52. Nb6# { The Knight delivers the
fatal blow. CHECKMATE! }) 45... Ka7 { The Black King gets out of the way. Notice
that the combination we saw in the variation to White's last move doesn't work
here due to the presence of the Black Queen and Bishop. } 46. Qg6 { Lasker,
shook up by the possibility of the Black Queen's invasion behind his lines,
offers to trade Queens. 46.fxe5 Qg2+ leads to the same winning variation that
we looked at before. } 46... Bxf4+ { Janowski, still a clever tactician after all
these years, finds another way to get his Queen behind the White lines. To do
so, he must offer up his Bishop... } 47. Rxf4 { ...an offer that Lasker gladly
accepts (especially because the Bishop was checking the White King!). } 47... Qb2+ { By removing his Bishop from the long a1-h8 diagonal, Janowski opened it up for
his Queen's use. The Queen slides down the diagonal and attacks the White King. } 48. Ke3 { The King has no choice but to flee to the third rank. } 48... Qxb3+ { Janowski nabs the pawn with check. } 49. Kf2 { The White King continues to back
away. } 49... Qc2+ { Janowski shows no mercy. The checks keep coming. } 50. Kg3 { This is really ugly for White! The King and Queen are on the same file, which
should give you a good idea of what's next! 50.Ke3 is worse for White, though.
See the variation. } (50. Ke3 { This is worse for White than what was actually
played, believe it or not! The key here is that the White King is heading
straight into the Black pawns. } 50... Rb3+ { Black closes in for the kill. } 51. Nc3 { White stops the check by interposing his Knight. But this is just a temporary
measure... } 51... Rxc3# { The axe falls. The White King has no retreat square (since
d4 is held by a Black pawn). MATE! }) 50... Rg1+ { OUCH! Some members of the
crowd groan audibly. The King is skewered to the Queen. } 51. Kh3 { And since
the King is compelled to move out of check... } 51... Rh1+ { ...Black can take the
Queen -- wait a minute! Janowski doesn't capture the White Queen! Oh, I see...
he's hoping for 52.Kg4 Qg2#. } 52. Kg3 { Lasker sees the mate threat. It's
(marginally) better to lose the Queen than lose the game. } 52... Rg1+ { Janowski
checks again. } 53. Kh3 { The King retreats again. This time I'm sure that the
Queen is history. } 53... Rxg6 { Yes. The net result here is that Janowski has traded
a Rook and Bishop for a pawn and Queen. In economics, this is called "good
business practice"! } 54. fxg6 { By recapturing the Rook, White has an advanced
passed pawn on g6. Don't expect it to live long... } 54... Qxg6 { Sorry. I
miscalculated. Black has given up a Bishop and Rook for a Queen and TWO pawns.
In economics, this is known as a "windfall profit". } 55. Kh4 { Lasker could
resign, but a Queen vs. Rook and Knight endgame can be a tough one for both
sides, and Lasker is feeling up to the challenge. } 55... Kb7 { Janowski, realizing
that Lasker has no intention of resigning, prepares for the endgame by
centralizing his King. } 56. Kh3 { Lasker has no real position-improving moves
at hand, so he plays it safe by shuffling his King back and forth, waiting for
further developments. } 56... Qe8 { Janowski increases his options. He could capture
the White a-pawn and try to force his own a-pawn through to promotion, or his
Queen could invade the White position again (via the e-file this time). } 57. Kh4 { Lasker continues to follow his "wait-and-see" policy. } 57... Kc6 { Well, at
least we know Janowski won't capture the a-pawn now. By coming to c6, the King
is ensconced in a pocket, safe from attacks by the White Rook. } 58. Rg4 { The Rook moves to the g-file, where it may be able to generate counterplay
(Rg4-g7-a7, perhaps). } 58... Qe2 { The Queen prevents the White Rook from moving to
g7 (59.Rg7 Qxc4, eliminating the Knight's defender). } 59. Kg3 { Lasker doesn't
want to give up the g-file (his only source of counterplay) but he's forced to
make a move. The King moves, remaining adjacent to the Rook so that the Rook
will be protected. } 59... Qd3+ { Janowski buys clock time by quickly making the
obvious check. This allows him to think about how to obtain the win while
Lasker searches for the best way to get out of check. } 60. Kh4 { Lasker is
forced to retreat his King. } 60... Qc2 { Janowski has TWO threats here! He threatens
the White a-pawn. Do you see the second threat? } 61. Ne7+ { Lasker makes an
"annoyance" check while he thinks about the situation. } 61... Kd7 { The best response
is to get out of check while making an attack at the same time. } 62. Nd5 { Did you spot Janowski's second threat yet? If you didn't, don't feel bad.
Lasker didn't spot it either... } 62... Qh2# { Here's a rarity for you: a master-level
game that ends in an actual mate instead of a resignation! Janowski feels like
he's on top of the world! } 0-1

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.23"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Lasker, Emanuel"]
[Black "Lasker, Edward"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[PlyCount "206"]
[ECO "C99"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 { For clarity, the players will be referred to as White and Black.
White's opening move is a good one, controlling d5 and f5 and allowing for
easy piece development. } 1... e5 { Black controls d4 and f4 and creates paths for
the development of his pieces, too. } 2. Nf3 { White develops with an attack --
he threatens to capture the Black e5-pawn. } 2... Nc6 { Black develops a minor piece
and guards the threatened pawn at the same time. } 3. Bb5 { White puts pressure
on the Black center by attacking the piece that guards the e5-pawn. } 3... a6 { Black tries to chase away the Bishop by attacking it with the a-pawn. } 4. Ba4 { The Bishop must retreat, but it flees to a4, where it still attacks the Black
Knight. } 4... Nf6 { Black counterattacks. He develops another minor piece and
menaces the central White pawn. } 5. O-O { White is unconcerned. It's widely
known that if Black takes the e-pawn, he'll just lose it right back in a few
moves. White instead completes his Kingside development by castling. } 5... Be7 { Black develops another Kingside piece. It's too early to tell where the best
post for the Bishop is, so e7 is the safest place for now. } 6. Re1 { Games that
begin with e2-e4 tend to open up later. White anticipates this clearing of the
center and places his Rook on the best square to take advantage of it. } 6... b5 { Black hits at the White Bishop another time, closing off the a4-e8 diagonal to
it. } 7. Bb3 { The White Bishop retreats to the only available square. } 7... O-O { Black castles and completes his Kingside development. } 8. c3 { By advancing the
c-pawn, White prepares the d2-d4 pawn advance and gives his Bishop a flight
square in case of ...Na5. } 8... d6 { The Black d-pawn supports the e-pawn. The
c6-Knight is now free to perform other duties. } 9. h3 { Another advantage of
d7-d6 is that it lets the Black c8-Bishop into the game. White prevents the
Bishop from moving to g4 and pinnning the f3-Knight. } 9... Na5 { The Knight, freed
from guard duty, attacks the White Bishop. } 10. Bc2 { The Bishop retreats into
the pocket on c2. } 10... c5 { Black advances the pawn two squares to carve out some
more Queenside territory. } 11. d4 { White counters by advancing in the center.
Now there may be a massive pawn exchange that will blow the game wide open. } 11... Qc7 { 12.dxc5 dxc5 threatens a Queen exchange and will lose Black a pawn after
Nxe5. Black halts any possibility of a Queen swap and makes sure that the
e5-pawn will stay guarded. } 12. Nbd2 { White plans to attack on the Kingside,
so he begins to shift his pieces over to that side of the board. The Knight
will go to f1 and then either e3 or g3. } 12... cxd4 { Black opens up the c-file. Now
his Queen occupies a commanding post on c7 and will most likely be backed up
by a Rook on c8. } 13. cxd4 { White maintains a symmetrical pawn structure by
recapturing on d4. } 13... Bd7 { Black completes his development by connecting his
Rooks. He also clears c8 for one of his Rooks. } 14. Nf1 { White continues to
shift his Knight over to the Kingside. } 14... Rfc8 { By moving the f8-Rook to c8
(instead of moving the a8-Rook there), Black builds up his forces for an
attack on the Queenside. } 15. Re2 { White prepares to double his heavy pieces
on the d-file, creating a battery there. } 15... Nh5 { The Black Knight prepares to
take up an advanced post on f4. } 16. dxe5 { White believes that it's time to
launch an attack. He starts by opening up the center. } 16... dxe5 { If Black doesn't
recapture, he goes down a pawn in the material count. } 17. Nxe5 { White can
safely win a pawn. He needn't fear ...Qxe5. See the variation to Black's next
move. } 17... Bxh3 { Black offers to sacrifice a Bishop to destroy the White Kingside
pawn structure. } (17... Qxe5 { If Black takes the White Knight... } 18. Qxd7 { ...White retaliates by capturing the Black Bishop. White stays a pawn ahead. }) 18. Nxf7 { White can safely grab another pawn. If Black replies 18...Kxf7, 19.
Qd5 Kf8 20.Qxh5 and White has a strong attack going. } 18... Be6 { Black removes his
Bishop from the lion's den and attacks the miscreant White Knight. } 19. Ng5 { Protected by the c1-Bishop, the Knight turns the tables and attacks its
assailant. } 19... Bc4 { 19...Bxg5 20.Bxg5 gives White the advantage of the Bishop
pair. Black instead strikes at the White e2-Rook. } 20. Bd3 { The White Bishop
blocks the attack and counter-punches at the Black Bishop. } 20... Rd8 { Black complicates matters by pinning the d3-Bishop to the White
Queen. } { [%csl Re2][%cal Rc4e2] } 21. Rc2 { White makes things even more complex
by counter-pinning Black's Bishop to the Black Queen! } { [%csl Rc7][%cal Rc2c7] } 21... Nf4 { Black sees a way to break the pin on his Bishop. He hits at the White
Bishop with his Knight. } { [%csl Rd3][%cal Rf4d3] } 22. Bxf4 { White has no choice but to take the Knight
with his Bishop. } 22... Qxf4 { The Black Queen completes the trade. Now Black has the
advantage of possessing a pair of Bishops in a open position (compared to a
Knight and Bishop for White). } 23. Nh3 { The White Knight nudges the Black
Queen. } 23... Qe5 { The Queen retreats, but still keeps an eye on the White e4-pawn. } 24. Bxc4+ { White denies Black the possession of the Bishop pair. However,
Black's Bishop and Knight team is still more of an advantage than White's pair
of Knights. } 24... Nxc4 { By capturing with the Knight,
Black piles up attacks on the b2-pawn (the Knight and Queen both attack the
pawn). } { [%csl Rb2][%cal Re5b2,Rc4b2] } 25. Qe2 { The Queen advances to e2, where it can both defend the
e4-pawn and help the c2-Rook guard the b2-pawn. } 25... Rd4 { Black relentlessly keeps
threatening the White pieces. The Rook attacks the e4-pawn a second time. } 26. f3 { White advances the f-pawn to defend the e-pawn. } 26... Rad8 { Black creates a
battery on the d-file. Now if he can just find a way to invade the White
position... } 27. Rac1 { White creates his own battery on the c-file, but it
really has nowhere to go because of the file-blocking effect of the Black
c4-Knight. } 27... Bc5 { Black threatens to win the White Queen by way of a discovered
check: 28...Rd2+ (the Rook move uncovers the Bishop check, forcing the White
King to move) 29.Kh1 Rxe2 30.Rxe2 (winning the Queen for a Rook). } 28. Kh1 { White spots the threat in time and gets his King out of the line of fire. } 28... Bb4 { Black's aim is to be the ultimate controller of the square d2. He now has
four pieces piled up on that square compared to three for White. The idea is
to use d2 as an entry point for the invasion of White's position. } 29. b3 { White tries to drive away one of the four Black pieces controlling d2. } 29... Nd2 { Black advances the threatened Knight to d2. Now the Knight attacks White's
f1-Knight. } 30. Ne3 { 30.Nxd2 would be a MAJOR mistake (after the resulting
exchanges, Black would have possession of d2 and could invade White's position)
. White repositions the Knight instead. } 30... Ba3 { Black keeps up the pressure. Now
he attacks one of the White Rooks. } 31. Rd1 { The menaced Rook has to leave c2,
but it comes to a better square: d1, where it can help in the fight for
control of d2. } 31... Bb4 { The Black Bishop returns to b4, where it overlooks d2. } 32. a3 { White turns the tables and attacks Black. The pawn advances and
attacks the Black Bishop. } 32... Ba5 { The Bishop stays on the a5-e1 diagonal, where
it continues to influence d2. } 33. b4 { White keeps hitting at the Bishop. Now
the b-pawn keeps the Black Bishop from putting pressure on d2. } 33... Bc7 { The Bishop is forced into retreat, but it does so with a threat: 34...
Qh2#! } { [%cal Re5h2] } 34. f4 { The pawn advances (protected by the h3-Knight) and blocks the
mate threat. } 34... Nxe4 { Surprise! Black captures a pawn instead of retreating the
Queen! Why? See the variation to White's next move. } 35. Kh2 { White saw
Black's threat and negates it by advancing his King to h2. What was Black's
threat? See the variation. } (35. fxe5 { In this variation, White plays the
natural-looking 35.fxe5. Nine players out of ten would play this move without
a second thought. } 35... Ng3+ { The Black Knight
forks the White King and Queen! } { [%csl Re2,Rh1][%cal Rg3e2,Rg3h1] } 36. Kh2 { The King must move to get out of
check. 36.Kg1 is possible, too, but this just runs into another check after
Black's next move. } 36... Nxe2 { Black wins back the Queen he lost just a couple of
moves ago. } 37. Rxe2 { White snaps up the Knight... } 37... Rxd1 { ...but the carnage
isn't over yet! By playing 37...Rxd1, Black threatens 38...Bxe5+ with possible
mate to follow. } 38. Nxd1 { White's not about to let that happen! He plays the
obvious move, recapturing the Rook. } 38... Rxd1 { Black evens up the material. Notice
that Black can't play ...Bxe5 now (the e2-Rook defends the pawn), but White
can't advance the passed e-pawn either (it's pinned to the King). The game
will go on, with equal chances. }) 35... Rxd1 { Black gives up on the idea of
invading via d2. He'll now reposition his forces. He dislikes the idea of the
White Knight pair attacking his King, so he offers a Rook trade to decoy away
one of the White Knights. } 36. Nxd1 { White is forced to recapture to keep the
material even. } 36... Qe7 { The Queen pulls back to defend the c7-Bishop (which is
attacked by the Rook on c2). } 37. Rxc7 { Interesting! White captures the Bishop
anyway! You'll see why in a few moves. } 37... Qxc7 { The Queen recaptures, but has to
leave the e4-Knight undefended to do it. } 38. Qxe4 { White grabs the hanging
Knight (and defends the f4-pawn from Black's Queen). Now White is SLIGHTLY
ahead (since he has two Knights against a Rook). But this is still anybody's
game... } 38... Qc4 { Black offers a Queen exchange. 39.Qxc4 bxc4 gives Black a
dangerous passed pawn, so... } 39. Qe7 { ...White declines and attacks Black's
Rook instead. } 39... Qc8 { The Black Queen pulls back to defend the endangered Rook.
Why didn't Black just play ...Rxd1? See the variation. } (39... Rxd1 { The
consequences are pretty grim for Black if he plays this move! Here he wins a
Knight... } 40. Qe8# { ...but loses the game! Oops! }) 40. Ndf2 { White gets his
Knight out of danger. (Since the Black Queen is on the eighth rank now, it's
safe for Black to play ...Rxd1). } 40... h6 { Black prepares to move his heavy pieces
off of the back rank by making an "escape hatch" for his King. } 41. Qa7 { White shifts his attention to the Queenside and attacks the Black a-pawn. } 41... Qe6 { The Queen moves to a square where it can cover the attacked pawn. } 42. Qb7 { White increases his Queen's flexibility by moving it to b7. Here the Queen
maintains watch over both of Black's Queenside pawns and can rapidly move back
to the Kingside via the a8-h1 diagonal should circumstances dictate. } 42... Qd5 { Black again offers a Queen swap, virtually ensuring a drawn game. } 43. Qb6 { White wants no parts of a draw. He feels that he can convert his slight
advantage into a win. } 43... Rd6 { Black's pesky pieces keep after the White Queen. } 44. Qe3 { The White Queen gets out of the hotseat. Notice that Black has
relieved the pressure on his Queenside pawns. } 44... Re6 { Black's Rook acts like an
annoying gnat, constantly buzzing around and pestering the White Queen. } 45. Qc3 { The White Queen is forced to shift position again. } 45... Qc4 { Black is bound
and determined to trade the Queens off! } 46. Qf3 { The Queen slides into a
protective pocket, but still commands the long diagonal. At an opportune
moment the Queen may be able to move to a8, checking the King and attacking
the Black a-pawn at the same time. } 46... Qc6 { Black offers a Queen swap again! He's
certainly confident in his ability to hold a draw with a lone Rook against two
Knights, } 47. Qd3 { White continues to play hard-to-get. } 47... Rd6 { Black keeps up
the pressure, attacking the Queen and dislodging it yet again. } 48. Qb3+ { White wrests the initiative from Black by checking the Black King. } 48... Qd5 { OOPS! I spoke too soon! Black grabs the initiative back by blocking the check
and AGAIN offering to exchange Queens! } 49. Qb1 { White again declines the
trade (unless it's on his own terms: he may be planning 50.Qe4 Qxe4 51.Nxe4
[threatening the Rook] Re6 [with a counter-threat against the Knight] 52.Nf2. } 49... Re6 { Black prevents the scheme we just considered (50.Qe4, etc.). He also now
controls both center files with his heavy pieces. He may be contemplating 50...
Re3, launching his own Queenside attack by threatening the a3-pawn. } 50. Ng4 { The White Knight advances to cover e3, preventing the Black Rook from moving
there. } 50... Re2 { Black now threatens 51...Qxg2#! How is White to stop it? } 51. Nxh6+ { Amazing! White sacrifices his Knight to check the Black King (delaying
the g2-mate) and wreck the Black King's pawn cover! } 51... gxh6 { Of course, Black
takes the Knight! Moving the King just puts Black further behind in the
material count. } 52. Qg6+ { checking Black's King and preventing 52...Qxg2# at
the same time! } 52... Kf8 { The King must move to avoid check. } 53. Qxh6+ { White
grabs another pawn. The game is still pretty even (a Queen, Knight, and four
pawns vs. a Queen, Rook, and two pawns). White may even have an advantage
since two of his pawns are connected passed pawns. } 53... Ke8 { Black gets out of
check again. He now controls both e6 and e7, two squares that may prove useful
to his Rook. } 54. Qg6+ { White checks again, and again covers g2. } 54... Kd8 { The
Black King is forced to move to avoid check once again. } 55. Qg3 { White's
Queen has to remain on the g-file to prevent Black from playing ...Qxg2#. } 55... Re8 { Black begins to reposition his Rook. Next stop: g8, attacking the White Queen. } 56. Qf2 { White sees ...Rg8 coming, so he gets his Queen out of the way
(while still keeping watch over g2). } 56... Rg8 { By playing ...Rg8, Black keeps the
White Queen tied to the defense of g2. } 57. Qb2 { White seeks to move his Queen
to f6, checking the King while defending the pawn on f4. This will allow the
White Knight to get into the game by moving to g5, while the check prevents ...
Qxg2#. } 57... Qd6 { Black has to move his Queen back to keep White's Queen off of f6. } 58. Qc3 { White's plan is to play Qc3-f3-a8+, and then capture the Black Rook
after the King moves out of check. } 58... Kd7 { Black foils White's plan by moving
his King off of the same rank as the Rook. } 59. Qf3 { The Queen moves to f3
anyway. On f3 the Queen is more flexible, operating on two diagonals and
overprotecting the f-pawn. } 59... Kc7 { White may have been planning Qb7+, so Black
takes the b7 square away from the White Queen. } 60. Qe4 { The war of maneuver
continues. White would like to get his Knight into the game, so he begins a
repositioning maneuver to control more squares for occupation by the Knight. } 60... Rg7 { Black begins some repositioning of his own. He wants his Rook to control
the e-file but the immediate ...Re8 is impossible. He advances his Rook one
square to be able to play ...Re7 (on e7, the Rook is protected by the Queen). } 61. Qf5 { The Queen moves to f5 to make Ng5 possible (otherwise Black's Rook
could just capture the Knight. The White f-pawn is pinned and thus couldn't
recapture!). } 61... Re7 { Black gets his Rook over to e7 as planned. } 62. Ng5 { White's Knight, freed from the defense of the f-pawn, finally begins to stir. } 62... Re3 { The Black Rook attacks the White a-pawn. } 63. Ne4 { White counterattacks
against the Black Queen. } 63... Qe7 { The Queen is forced into retreat. The Queen
moves to e7 to prevent mischief against the Black King (Qf7+, for example). } 64. Nf6 { White sets up a killer Knight fork. He's hoping for 65.Nd5, forking
the Black King and Queen (or Rook, depending on what Black plays next). } 64... Kb8 { The Black King retreats, removing the chances of a checking fork. } 65. g3 { White braces up his f-pawn. Why not play the Knight fork 65.Nd5? See the
variation. } (65. Nd5 { If White plays the forking move, he's in for a world of
grief. Remember that this is no longer a CHECKING fork (since the Black King
has moved). } 65... Qh4+ { YIPES! The fact that 65.Nd5 wasn't a check made this move
possible. White has just two ways to get out of check. } 66. Qh3 { White is
caught between a rock and a hard place: it's either lose the Queen or lost the
game! 66.Kg1 allows ...Re1#! } 66... Rxh3+ { Obviously! } 67. gxh3 { Black has won a
Queen for a Rook, and will have no trouble winning this game! }) 65... Rxa3 { Unfortunately for White, he ran out of moves to distract Black from capturing
the pawn. } 66. Kh3 { The King is uncomfortable on the open second rank, so it
takes cover behind the pawn. } 66... Ra1 { The Rook stays flexible and keeps its
options open. It can either go to b1 to menace White's b-pawn or to h1 to
harass the White King. } 67. Nd5 { The White Knight centralizes and attacks the
Black Queen. } 67... Rh1+ { Black distracts White by checking the King. But there is a
deeper meaning to this move... } 68. Kg2 { 68.Kg4 Qg7+ 69.Qg5 Qxg5 70.fxg5
forces the exchange of Queens and leaves White with extremely weak pawns.
Unfortunately, 68.Kg2 plays straight into Black's hands as well... } 68... Qh7 { Now if the White Queen moves off of the b1-h7 diagonal, the Black Queen checks
at c2 and begins a mating attack in conjunction with the Rook. So... } 69. Qxh7 { ...White has no choice but to trade off the Queens. } 69... Rxh7 { Black completes
the swap. It's still a close game, but Black's Rook has the advantage over
White's Knight. } 70. Kf3 { The White King gets into position to support the
advance of the pawns, as well as defend them from attack. } 70... Kb7 { In the endgame,
the King can become a powerful attacking piece. The Black King hungrily sets
eyes on the White Knight. } 71. g4 { White begins the pawn advance, supporting
them with his King. } 71... Kc6 { The Black King zeros in on the White Knight. The
King is also heading for the board's center (a good idea in the endgame). } 72. Ke4 { The White King comes to the Knight's rescue. } 72... Rh8 { Black wants to check
with his Rook, but 72...Re7 is suicide (73.Nxe7). The Rook heads for the back
rank where it can safely check the White King. } 73. Ne3 { The Knight backs up
to defend the White g-pawn in the event Black plays ...Rg8. } 73... Re8+ { Black
checks as planned. } 74. Kd4 { Rather than meekly retreating to f3, the King
stays in the center so that it can react to threats on both sides of the board. } 74... Rd8+ { Black checks again... } 75. Ke4 { ...and the King returns to e4,
refusing to abandon the center. } 75... a5 { 75...Re8+ is the road to Draw City, so
Black must come up with another plan. He decides to create a Queenside passed
pawn. } 76. bxa5 { It makes more sense for White to capture the Black pawn than
be tied up trying to defend his own. } 76... b4 { The newly-created passed pawn begins
a mad dash toward promotion. } 77. a6 { White's new passed pawn does the same
thing. However, it looks like Black's pawn has a much better chance than does
White's! } 77... Kc5 { Black plays a space-grabbing move, making things tougher on
White. Now the c4 square is off-limits to White's Knight. } 78. a7 { White must
have read "The Charge of the Light Brigade". The pawn continues its mad dash
toward certain death. However, if White could somehow decoy the Rook off of
the back rank... } 78... b3 { The Black pawn forges ahead... } 79. Nd1 { The White
Knight leaps back to stop the Black pawn from any further advances. But isn't
the Knight hanging? } 79... Ra8 { Black won't fall for it. If 79...Rxd1, then 80.a8=Q!
Black refuses to be taken in by the deception and decides to rid himself of
the pesky White pawn once and for all. } 80. g5 { White sees that his a-pawn has
no future, so he begins the advance of his pawns on the other side of the
board. } 80... Rxa7 { Black swats the a-pawn like a gnat. } 81. g6 { Now Black is faced
with another pesky advancing passed pawn. } 81... Rd7 { There's time to come back and
nail the pawn later. Right now, Black is concentrating on the Knight. } 82. Nb2 { The Knight blockades the b-pawn and prevents it from advancing. } 82... Rd2 { The
Rook keeps after the Knight... } 83. Kf3 { ...but White realizes that it's not
much of a threat (see the variation to Black's next move). White moves his
King to control f2 and g2, preventing mischief against his passed pawns. } 83... Rd8 { 83...Rxb2 is madness (see the variation), so the Rook gets into position to
try to stop the advance of the White passed pawns. } (83... Rxb2 { If Black
takes the Knight... } 84. g7 { ...White advances his pawn. The Black b-pawn
blocks the Rook from b8, and the White King controls g2 and blocks that means
of getting at the pawn. Black has no way of preventing the g-pawn from
promoting! }) 84. Ke4 { White centralizes his King to support the advance of his
f-pawn to f5. } 84... Rd2 { The Black Rook threatens the Knight. But it's really not
much of a threat... } 85. Kf3 { ...because (after 85.Kf3) 85...Rxb2 leads to the
same variation we just looked at (in which Black can't stop the passed pawn). } 85... Rd8 { Black must retreat and come up with another plan. } 86. Ke4 { The White
King returns to e4 and supports the advance of the f-pawn. } 86... Kd6 { 86...Rd2 (to
force the White King back to f3) is futile and just heads down the road to a
draw, so Black starts moving his King over to the Kingside to aid in attacking
the White passed pawns. } 87. Kd3 { The Black Rook on d8 had been keeping the
White King from crossing over to the Queenside. But now the Black King blocks
its own Rook's control of the file, so the White King can safely cross the
frontier line. } 87... Rc8 { The Rook seals off the c-file to the White King. The
Black b-pawn is again safe (for the present). } 88. g7 { The White pawn advances.
White's idea is to promote the pawn, sacrificing it so that he can kill the
Black passed pawn. } 88... Ke6 { The Black King is positioned so that it prevents the
safe advance of the f-pawn. } 89. g8=Q+ { The White pawn promotes... } 89... Rxg8 { ...and is promptly clobbered by the Black Rook (which has to leave the c-file).
.. } 90. Kc4 { ...making the c-file safe for the White King. } 90... Rg3 { The Black
Rook must move to either b8 or g3 to defend the Black passed pawn. g3 is the
more active of the two squares, since it's behind the White lines. Now the
White pawn can be attacked from the rear. } 91. Na4 { White's plan is to play 92.
Nc5, forking the Black King and pawn. } 91... Kf5 { The Black King moves in on the
White pawn for the kill, and prevents White's intended Knight fork. } 92. Kb4 { The White King stays in the vicinity of the Black pawn. } 92... Kxf4 { The White pawn
finally falls. } 93. Nb2 { The Knight blockades the Black pawn's advance. } 93... Ke4 { The Black King heads for where the action is. } 94. Na4 { White must prevent the
advance of the Black pawn. He has no constructive moves left, so he's reduced
to shuffling his pieces back and forth. } 94... Kd4 { The Black King continues its
advance. It stalls here, however, since the White King controls both c3 and c4. } 95. Nb2 { White just keeps moving his Knight back and forth. } 95... Rf3 { Black is
doing much the same thing -- he's shifting his pieces back and forth and
waiting for White to make a mistake. } 96. Na4 { The dance continues... } 96... Re3 { Black is still waiting for a fatal White error. } 97. Nb2 { White is too cagey
to make a mistake. He knows that with just a King and Knight, the best he can
hope for is a draw. Who cares if it's by threefold repetition or by
insufficient material? } 97... Ke4 { Black is content to just move back and forth. The
game is rapidly winding down to a draw, but Black won't concede it. } 98. Na4 { White just lights up another cigar and patiently moves his Knight again. } 98... Kf3 { At last, Black takes some semblance of constructive action. He moves his King
behind the Rook and allows for ...Re4+. } 99. Ka3 { The White King retreats
behind the Black pawn, staying close to it. His only chance of survival is to
prevent the pawn's promotion. } 99... Ke4 { The Black King begins to approach the pawn
once again. } 100. Kb4 { The White King moves back to b4 to deny Black the use
of c3 and c4. } 100... Kd4 { The Black King again advances, but Black is just clutching
at straws here. } 101. Nb2 { White makes another waiting move. } 101... Rh3 { By moving
the Rook back to h3, Black hopes to avoid a draw by repetition. But that's a
forlorn hope, as the position is hopelessly drawn. } 102. Na4 { The White Knight
returns to a4. What else is there for White to do? } 102... Kd3 { OOPS! Now the game is
drawn for sure! The Black King blocks the Rook's defense of the pawn... } 103. Kxb3 { ...allowing White to finally capture it! K+R vs. K would be a natural
win for Black, but K+R vs. K+N is almost impossible without a major error by
White. } 103... Kd4+ { The King moves back, uncovering a check by the Rook against the
White King, but the Laskers finally agree to a draw. } 1/2-1/2

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.23"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Capablanca, Jose Raul"]
[Black "Tartakower, Ksawery"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "103"]
[ECO "A84"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 { Capablanca (White) opens with a d-pawn advance, which will probably
lead to a positional (rather than tactical) game. } 1... f5 { Tartakower (Black)
finally settles down and replies with the Dutch Defense. Remember that White's
ideal setup is a pawn duo on d4 and e4. The Black pawn on f5 makes this setup
impossible. } 2. Nf3 { Capa develops a Knight and increases his control of the
center. } 2... e6 { Tartakower props up his f-pawn and releases his Queen and
dark-square Bishop. } 3. c4 { Capa advances the c-pawn so as to not block it in
with his Knight on c3. } 3... Nf6 { Tartakower develops a Knight toward the center... } 4. Bg5 { ...and Capa pins it! He's also developed a second minor piece. } 4... Be7 { Tartakower blocks the pin on his f6-Knight and develops a piece at the same
time. } 5. Nc3 { Capa gets his other Knight out. You can see that if he'd played
this move before he advanced the c-pawn that the pawn would now be blocked in. } 5... O-O { Tartakower completes his Kingside development by castling. } 6. e3 { By advancing the pawn AFTER developing the dark-square Bishop, Capa prevented
the Bishop from being blocked in. The move order a player chooses in the
opening is often very important. } 6... b6 { It will be impossible to develop the
light-square Bishop through the center because of the line of pawns on d7-f5,
so Tartakower prepares to fianchetto it. } 7. Bd3 { Capablanca gets his Bishop
off of the back rank and prepares to castle. } 7... Bb7 { Tartakower fianchettos his
Bishop. Now it commands the long a8-h1 diagonal. } 8. O-O { Capa's Kingside
development is now complete. All he has to do now to totally finish his
development is to move his Queen off of the back rank to connect his Rooks. } 8... Qe8 { Tartakower is thinking of developing his Queen to h5
for a Kingside attack (...Qh5, ...Ng4, etc.). } { [%cal Ye8h5,Yf6g4] } 9. Qe2 { Capablanca connects his
Rooks and finishes up his development. } 9... Ne4 { Tartakower saw definite
possibilities for a White e-pawn advance to e5, so he blocks the pawn with a
centrally-posted Knight. He also uncovers a double attack on the White
g5-Bishop (from the Black e7-Bishop and e4-Knight). } 10. Bxe7 { Capa decides to
trade his Bishop for Black's. He anticipates the immediate reply of ...Qxe7. } 10... Nxc3 { Good thing Capa wasn't holding his breath! Instead of ...Qxe7,
Tartakower snaps up the White Knight and attacks the White Queen. } 11. bxc3 { Capa is forced to capture the Knight and double his pawns on the c-file. But
these pawns aren't really weak, as each one contributes in some way to White's
control of the center. } 11... Qxe7 { Tartakower evens the material by grabbing the
White Bishop. } 12. a4 { Capablanca grabs more Queenside space. He's preparing
to bring both Rooks to the Queenside and launch an assault there. } 12... Bxf3 { Tartakower misjudges the position. He sees that it's likely to remain closed,
so he feels that his Knight will be better in the long run than White's Bishop.
But he gives up his wonderfully-placed Bishop to take away the Knight. } 13. Qxf3 { The Queen recaptures and attacks the a8-Rook. } 13... Nc6 { By moving the Knight,
Tartakower not only blocks the Queen's attack but also allows the two Rooks to
defend each other. The Rooks are connected, and Black's development is finally
complete. } 14. Rfb1 { Capa prepares a Queenside attack by bringing his Kingside
Rook over to the half-open b-file. } 14... Rae8 { The best way to meet a flank assault
is to counterattack in the center. Tartakower means to do just that. He
prepares by bringing his Queenside Rook to the e-file to support an advance of
the e-pawn. } 15. Qh3 { Capablanca wants to play f2-f4, guarding e5 and
preventing the Black e-pawn from occupying it. He moves his Queen to make his
own f-pawn advance possible. } 15... Rf6 { The Rook advances and may be shifted to the
h-file to attack the White Queen. } 16. f4 { Capa is unconcerned. He advances
the f-pawn as planned. Now if Black plays ...Rh6, the Queen can simply return
to f3. } 16... Na5 { Tartakower prevents a minority attack by the White a-pawn, an
attack that would lead either to a Black Queenside pawn weakness or the
opening of the a-file for White's Rooks. } 17. Qf3 { The White Queen has no
future on the h-file, so it returns to f3. The Queen may later head for the
Queenside via the light squares on the d1-h5 and a4-d1 diagonals. } 17... d6 { Black
won't easily give up the idea of an e6-e5 pawn push. The d-pawn adds its voice
to the argument over who owns e5. } 18. Re1 { Capa conceives his own plans for a
White e-pawn push! The e1-Rook backs up the pawn. } 18... Qd7 { Tartakower finally
gives up on trying to advance his e-pawn. He removes his Queen from the
dangerous e-file and the possibility of attack by the White e1-Rook. } 19. e4 { The White e-pawn advances. Now Capablanca threatens to open the e-file. } 19... fxe4 { Tartakower captures the e-pawn... } 20. Qxe4 { ...and has his pawn captured in
return. Now Capa threatens to win another pawn (21.Qxh7+). } 20... g6 { Tartakower blocks the threat, but his Kingside is now very weak. } { [%csl Rf6,Rf7,Rg7,Rh6] } 21. g3 { Capa has no problems advancing his Kingside pawns due to the closed nature
of the position (Black has little maneuvering room, so there is little chance
of a surprise attack). } 21... Kf8 { The Black King moves closer to the e8-Rook, to
help in its defense should the e-file be completely opened. } 22. Kg2 { The
White King steps forward to support the White Kingside pawn advance. } 22... Rf7 { Tartakower starts to put the wagons in a circle. He sees that a White attack
is coming, and he doesn't want to leave any pieces hanging. } 23. h4 { The White
Kingside pawnstorm continues unabated. } 23... d5 { Tartakower sees a chance to divert
White's attack before it has a chance to strengthen. The d-pawn advances and
forks the White Queen and c-pawn. } 24. cxd5 { Capa must either take the pawn or
retreat the Queen. Retreating the Queen allows 24...dxc4 and the White Bishop
must give ground too. Capa decides that swapping pawns is the lesser of the
evils. } 24... exd5 { Now both the Black d-pawn and e8-Rook attack the White Queen.
Retreating the Queen leads to a sequence that gives Black command of the
e-file, so... } 25. Qxe8+ { ...Capa decides to trade down, rather than give
Black a positional advantage. } 25... Qxe8 { The only move; otherwise, Black is a Rook
behind for nothing. } 26. Rxe8+ { Taking the Queen checks the King... } 26... Kxe8 { ...and leads to material equality. Actually, since the position is semi-open,
White's Bishop is a little stronger than Black's Knight, giving White a slight
edge. } 27. h5 { Capa's plan is to open up the h-file, then use it as an avenue
of invasion for his Rook. } 27... Rf6 { Tartakower seeks to discourage hxg6, but White
is unconcerned... } 28. hxg6 { He makes the pawn swap anyway. } 28... hxg6 { This is
probably better than ...hxg6. The White Rook is going to invade the Black
position anyway, and at least the Rook defends the g-pawn now. } 29. Rh1 { The Rook slips over to the h-file. All is going according to White's plan. } 29... Kf8 { Tartakower again circles the wagons. The King moves closer to the Rook and
pawn to aid in the defense. } 30. Rh7 { An open file is only valuable if it
yields a penetration point by which a friendly Rook can infiltrate the enemy
position. The White Rook moves to the penetration point on h7. The invasion
has begun! } 30... Rc6 { 30...Rf7 31.Rxf7 Kxf7 only helps White because of his strong
Bishop. The Black Rook must move to the Queenside to defend the menaced c-pawn. } 31. g4 { Capablanca means to exploit his 2-1 Kingside pawn majority. The
White Kingside pawns advance ominously. } 31... Nc4 { The Black Knight swoops in and
cuts down the White Bishop's mobility. } 32. g5 { The Kingside pawnstorm
relentlessly continues. } 32... Ne3+ { The Knight checks and keeps the f-pawn from
advancing. } 33. Kf3 { The White King attacks the annoying Knight. } 33... Nf5 { The
Black Knight achieves its goal: it blockades the f-pawn and stalls the White
pawnstorm. } 34. Bxf5 { OUCH! That didn't last long! At least Black has traded
off his lame Knight for White's superior Bishop... } 34... gxf5 { ...but at the cost
of allowing White a passed g-pawn in return. } 35. Kg3 { Capa's King heads for
the h-file, where it will support the advance of the passed pawn. } 35... Rxc3+ { Tartakower's Rook rudely captures a pawn with check. } 36. Kh4 { The White King
ducks under cover. } 36... Rf3 { The Black Rook gets into position to gobble up
another pawn. } 37. g6 { The capture of the f4-pawn cannot be prevented, so Capa
concentrates on advancing the passed g-pawn. } 37... Rxf4+ { Another White pawn falls
with check. } 38. Kg5 { The White King advances in support of the g-pawn and
attacks the Black Rook at the same time. } 38... Re4 { The Black Rook can't check by ..
.Rg4 (or else the f-pawn falls), so the Rook returns to the open e-file. } 39. Kf6 { The White King gets as close to the Black King as it can in order to
force the pawn through to the eighth rank. } 39... Kg8 { By moving adjacent to the
Rook, the Black King prevents the advance of the g-pawn (40.g7 Kxh7). } 40. Rg7+ { Capa checks the Black King, hoping to drive it into the corner. } 40... Kh8 { Tartakower complies with White's wishes. } 41. Rxc7 { Capa does a little
pawn-snatching of his own. Now 42.Rc8+ leads to mate! } 41... Re8 { Tartakower stops
the mating threat by making 42.Rc8 impossible. } 42. Kxf5 { Capa just grabs
another pawn. Now the material is even again. } 42... Re4 { Since the White King is no
longer on c6, Rc8+ is no longer a mate threat. The Rook is now free to move to
e4 and menace White's d-pawn. } 43. Kf6 { Now the Rc8+ mate threat is on again! } 43... Rf4+ { Rather than passively retreat to e8, Tartakower aggressively checks
White, giving him no time to play the winning Rook move. } 44. Ke5 { Capa
defends the attacked pawn, gets out of check, and attacks the Rook and Black
d-pawn all at one shot! } 44... Rg4 { Tartakower turns his aggressions toward the
passed g-pawn. } 45. g7+ { Capa defends it by advancing it to the seventh rank
(where it enjoys the Rook's protection and incidentally checks Black's King). } 45... Kg8 { The Black King avoids check and blockades the passed pawn. } 46. Rxa7 { Capablanca grabs another pawn and gets ahead in the material count. } 46... Rg1 { Tartakower's Rook prepares to head for the open c-file where it will cut the
White King off from the Queenside, preventing it from aiding in the advance of
the a-pawn. } 47. Kxd5 { The White King snaps up another pawn, further reducing
Black's chances for victory. } 47... Rc1 { The Black Rook takes control of the open
c-file and cuts the White King off from the Queenside. } 48. Kd6 { The White
King creeps forward and opens up space for the d-pawn's advance. } 48... Rc2 { Tartakower is unable to come up with a constructive move, so he marks time by
shifting his Rook. } 49. d5 { The d-pawn marches ahead... } 49... Rc1 { ...while the
Black Rook continues to just mark time. } 50. Rc7 { Capa offers to exchange
Rooks (an offer that is to his advantage -- with the Rooks off the board,
there's no way for Black to prevent one of the White pawns from promoting). } 50... Ra1 { Tartakower wisely decides against the trade, instead preferring to attack
a White pawn. } 51. Kc6 { The White King gets out of the d-pawn's way and zeros
in on the Black b-pawn. } 51... Rxa4 { The White a-pawn falls... } 52. d6 { ...while its
brother on the d-file advances. Tartakower realizes that with the White King
and Rook protecting the pawn, he can't stop its promotion without giving up
his own Rook. He resigns. } 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.23"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Alekhine, Alexander"]
[Black "Janowski, Dawid"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "79"]
[ECO "A53"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 { Despite his arrogance, Alekhine is taking no chances. He remembers
Janowski's former reputation as a feared attacker, so he limits his risk by
playing 1.d4, which usually leads to quieter positional games. } 1... Nf6 { Will
Janowski occupy the center with pawns, or control it from a distance with
pieces? Will he develop his Bishops through the center or fianchetto them?
Janowski keeps Alekhine guessing. } 2. c4 { Alekhine increases his center
control. He now owns b5, c5, d5, and e5. Why didn't he play 2.e4? Because this
could transpose into an open game (as though he'd played 1.e4), a route that
Alekhine doesn't want to take. } 2... d6 { Janowski frees his light-square Bishop and
sets up a future e7-e5 pawn push. The pawn on d6 will support the e-pawn after
the latter moves to e5. } 3. Nc3 { Alekhine quietly continues his development,
making solid center-controlling moves. } 3... Bf5 { Janowski's plan is clear: he's
trying to prevent White from playing e2-e4 at a future time. The Knight and
Bishop both control e4, making it undesirable for the pawn. } 4. g3 { Alekhine
decides against developing his Bishop through the center. He'll flank it
instead and control the long a8-h1 diagonal. } 4... c6 { Janowski's position is
already pretty cramped, so he does what he can. The advance of the c-pawn
gives him a way to develop his Queen and may support a later advance of the
d-pawn. } 5. Bg2 { Alekhine fianchettos his Bishop and controls the long
diagonal. Notice that the Black b7-c6 pawn pair provide an obstacle for the
Bishop. This is another reason for 4...c6. } 5... Nbd7 { The square a6 would be a
terrible post for the Knight, so Janowski develops it to the only other square
possible. d7 has the advantage of being closer to the center than a6. The
disadvantage is that Black's position is more cramped. } 6. e4 { Surprise! Now
it's safe to push the e-pawn because the pawn is defended by the White Knight
and g2-Bishop. } 6... Bg6 { Move it or lose it! Now Janowski's position is REALLY
cramped and Alekhine has built up an awesome pawn center. } 7. Nge2 { The Knight
can't go to f3 (it would block the g2-Bishop's defense of the e-pawn), so it
moves to e2 instead. } 7... e5 { The e-pawn advances, supported by the d7-Knight and
d6-pawn. Janowski is trying to get a little more elbow room. } 8. h3 { Alekhine
wants to play Be3, but Black's reply of ...Ng4 would chase the Bishop away.
Alekhine takes g4 away from the Black Knight, making it safe for his Bishop to
occupy e3. } 8... Qb6 { Janowski annoys Alekhine. If White plays Be3, then Black now
replies ...Qxb2, costing White a pawn. } 9. O-O { Alekhine grits his teeth. The
Frenchman is really getting on his nerves! He scans the board and quickly
spots another good devloping move: castling. His Kingside development is now
complete. } 9... O-O-O { Members of the crowd exchange delighted looks. Opposite-side
castling! We're really going to see a dogfight now! } 10. d5 { Alekhine doesn't
like the look of the d8-Rook on the same file as his Queen. He advances the
d-pawn and challenges Black. Whether Black advances his c-pawn or captures
White's d-pawn with it, the d-file will be closed. } 10... Nc5 { Janowski does neither.
Instead, he pops his Knight onto the protected square c5. } 11. Be3 { Alekhine
finally plays Be3 and pins the Knight to the Queen, risking the loss of the
b2-pawn. } 11... cxd5 { Janowski knows that if he captures the b2-pawn, White can
simply harass his Queen while continuing to improve his position. He instead
opts to clarify the pawn situation in the center. } 12. cxd5 { Alekhine closes
the center and opens the c-file (which leads straight to the Black King!). } 12... Qa6 { Janowski figures that he'd better unpin his Knight by getting his Queen off
of the a7-g1 diagonal before White tries something unpleasant (like Na4, for
instance). } 13. f3 { A two-edged move. Although he's blocked in his g2-Bishop,
Alekhine has freed his c3-Knight for action. The Knight is no longer tied to
the defense of the e4-pawn because the f-pawn now guards it. } 13... Kb8 { "Time to
get my King off of the open c-file," Janowski says to himself (in French, of
course). } 14. b4 { Here's the moment the crowd's been waiting for: the White
Queenside pawns begin their forward advance. The idea is for the pawns to
advance together and sweep the Black defenders out of their way. } 14... Ncd7 { Consider the Knight swept. It retreats to the only available square. } 15. a4 { The second pawn steps forward. } 15... Qc4 { This is the ONLY move that the Queen has
to get out of the way of White's pawn-roller! Notice that the White a1-Rook,
c3-Knight, e3-Bishop, and Queen are all positioned to be able to attack on the
Queenside. } 16. Qd2 { Alekhine sees that Black can capture the b-pawn. He's
willing to give up the pawn -- to launch an attack on Black's King! Besides,
the pawn isn't really lost (you'll see why in a minute). } 16... Qxb4 { The Black
Queen takes the pawn... } 17. Bxa7+ { ...while the White Bishop grabs a Black
pawn with check! The crowd is aghast! Doesn't this lose the Bishop?? } 17... Ka8 { NO!! Check out the variation to see why not! } (17... Kxa7 { There's no way that
Black could take the Bishop (unless he wants to commit chess suicide, that is!)
. Why? } 18. Nb5+ { Because the White Knight checks and uncovers an attack on
the Black Queen by its White counterpart! } 18... Kb8 { The fact that the White Knight
CHECKS is important because it forces Black's reply. Black MUST get out of
check... } 19. Qxb4 { ...giving White time to capture the Queen! He's traded a
Bishop for a Queen. You or I would make a trade like that anytime! }) 18. Rfb1 { The a7-Bishop is still safe for the moment, because Black doesn't have time to
capture it. His Queen is attacked! } 18... Qa5 { The Black Queen uses the White pawn
as a shield. Now the Black Queen attacks the a7-Bishop. } 19. Be3 { Alekhine
retreats his Bishop out of danger. Take a moment and look at all of the White
pieces that are bearing down on the Black King! There are two Rooks and a
Bishop, with the White Queen and light-square Bishop ready to jump in. } 19... Nc5 { The White e3-Bishop bears down on the Black King's position, so Janowski
blocks its path with his Knight. } 20. Rb5 { The White Rook, protected by the
c3-Knight and a-pawn, advances to harass the Black Queen. } 20... Qc7 { Janowski must
expend another tempo to save his Queen. } 21. a5 { The mighty pawn marches
forward, covered by the a1-Rook. } 21... Nfd7 { Janowski continues to shift pieces
over toward the threatened King's position. } 22. Nc1 { Alekhine also begins
shifting more troops over toward that side of the board. } 22... Rc8 { Janowski
continues to strengthen his King's position. He sets up a battery on the
c-file (to give himself some counterplay after he moves the c5-Knight). But
his poor f8-Bishop and h8-Rook have no way to join the battle! } 23. Nb3 { The repositioning of the White forces continues. But can't Black play 23.Nxb3? } 23... Na6 { Since both Black Bishops and a Rook are out of the action, Janowski
decides that its better to not trade pieces in this case. Instead, he
withdraws the Knight, unmasking his c-file battery. He threatens 24...Qxc3 25.
Qxc3 Rxc3. } 24. Na4 { Since Black was threatenimg to win his Knight, Alekhine
moves it out of harm's way. } 24... Be7 { The Black dark-squared Bishop is very bad
(as it's blocked in by its own pawns), but Janowski figures that at least he
can get it off of the back rank and clear a path for his h8-Rook to join the
fight. } 25. Nb6+ { OUCH! Alekhine's Knight forks the Black King and Rook! } 25... Kb8 { The only ways to get out of a Knight check are to capture the Knight or move
the King. Black can't capture without losing material, and 25...Ka7 just sets
up a discovered check after 26.Nxc8. So Janowski makes the only other move. } 26. Rc1 { Alekhine relentlessly continues the attack! Now both the Black Queen
and c8-Rook are under fire. } 26... Ndc5 { Janowski can't possibly save both pieces,
so he shields the most valuable one by blocking the attack. } 27. Nxc5 { Alekhine begins to break up the Black position. He starts the demolition
process by swapping Knights. } 27... dxc5 { Janowski must recapture or be behind in
the material count. } 28. Nxc8 { Finally! The threat of this move hung over
Black's head for the longest time! Alekhine used this continued threat to keep
Janowski off-balance. } 28... Rxc8 { There were a number of ways to capture the Knight,
but this one is the most sensible. The former h8-Rook finally gets into the
game. Now what will White do to continue the attack? } 29. Bf1 { Alekhine
squints at the board for a long time before deciding on the Bishop move. With
this move, he defends the b5-Rook and sets up a threat against the a6-Knight. } 29... Qd7 { Janowski tries to tie the White Bishop to the f1-h3 diagonal by attacking
the White h-pawn. Now, if the Bishop moves off the diagonal, ...Qxh3 grabs a
pawn. } 30. Rb6 { Alekhine is unafraid. He knows that 31.Bxa7 will win the
Knight (Black can't reply bxa6, because the b-pawn is pinned!). A pawn for a
Knight? Alekhine will take that trade any day! } 30... c4 { Janowski bails frantically.
The pawn advances to block the f1-Bishop's attack on the Black Knight. } 31. Rxc4 { The White Rook swats the annoying pawn. } 31... Rxc4 { Janowski, with his King
under fire, decides that trading pieces is his only hope. If he can get enough
of the attacking pieces off of the board, he may still have a chance... } 32. Bxc4 { The White Bishop recaptures and again attacks the Knight. Why doesn't
Black just move the Knight away? Because that would allow the a-pawn to
advance and attack the b-pawn (the Black King's last defending pawn). } 32... Qxh3 { Janowski gives his Knight up for dead and extracts some slight compensation by
capturing the White h-pawn. } 33. Qg2 { WHAT?!? Why doesn't Alekhine just play
33.Bxa7? We'll have to ask him about this later. } 33... Qxg2+ { Janowski figures that
removing the Queens from the board cuts down on White's attacing chances. } 34. Kxg2 { Alekhine plays the only move that gets him out of check. } 34... Bd8 { Janowski
counterattacks! Now, if White plays 35.Bxa7, Black counters with 35...Bxb6. } 35. Rb2 { Alekhine retreats the Rook, while maintaining the pin on the b7-pawn. } 35... Kc8 { By shuffling the King to the side, Janowski dissolves the pin on the pawn. } 36. Bxa6 { Alekhine begins the process of trading down to a winning endgame. } 36... bxa6 { Forced (otherwise Black falls even farther behind in the material count). } 37. Bb6 { Alekhine continues to offer trades (which will be to his advantage.
With an equal number of pawns on the board, his Rook would be superior to
Black's Bishop in the endgame). } 37... Bg5 { Janowski declines the trade. He instead
hopes to sneak his dark-square Bishop in behind the White pawn chain to
prevent them from advancing to dark squares. } 38. Rc2+ { Alekhine checks along
the open c-file and plans to advance his Rook to the seventh rank to invade
the Black position. } 38... Kb7 { The King advances, both to protect his a-pawn and to
try to prevent the White Rook from penetrating into the Black position. } 39. d6 { Alekhine sees a way to win one of Black's Bishops and lock in the win... } 39... f5 { By advancing the pawn, Janowski allows his light-square Bishop to get into
play along the e8-h5 diagonal. Even so, Black's game is pretty much a lost
cause. } 40. d7 { The pawn marches forward. Since the White dark-squared Bishop
controls the promotion square d8, Alekhine can play 41.d8(Q) Bxd8 42.Bxd8,
winning one of Black's Bishops. Janowski sees that it's hopeless and throws in
the towel. } 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.23"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Maroczy, Geza"]
[Black "Marshall, Frank James"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "161"]
[ECO "C42"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 { Maroczy (White) decides to make the most of it by playing the attacking
move 1.e4. } 1... e5 { Marshall (Black) meets him head-on in the center. } 2. Nf3 { Maroczy continues his development and attacks Black's e-pawn. } 2... Nf6 { Rather
than defending his pawn, Marshall counterattacks the White e-pawn. This is the
opening known as Petroff's Defense (sometimes called the Russian Game). } 3. Nc3 { White usually plays 3.Nxe5 here. But Maroczy, ever defensive-minded, develops
his other Knight and defends his threatened e-pawn. } 3... Bb4 { Marshall keeps up
the pressure by attacking the White e-pawn's defender. He's also developed
another Kingside piece. } 4. d3 { Maroczy insures that the e-pawn will remain
defended, but in doing so has placed his own c3-Knight into a pin! } 4... d5 { Marshall continues his central development and strikes again at the White
e-pawn. } 5. exd5 { Maroczy can't allow 5.d4 (winning the c3-Knight!), so he's
forced to capture Black's d-pawn. } 5... Nxd5 { Marshall recaptures and hits the
c3-Knight a second time. } 6. Bd2 { By developing the Bishop to d2, Maroczy
disolves the pin on his Knight. } 6... O-O { 6...Nxc3 7.bxc3 makes Black waste a
tempo by moving the Bishop again, while exchanging on c3 sarting with 6...Bxc3
gives up a valuable Bishop (that Marshall would rather hang on to), so he
castles instead. } 7. Be2 { Maroczy wants to castle Kingside, so he develops his
last Kingside minor piece to the only available square. } 7... Nc6 { If you don't see
any immediate attacks or threats in the position, it's almost always a good
idea to continue your development. } 8. O-O { Maroczy shuffles the King off to
safety. } 8... Be6 { Marshall is now just a move away from connecting his Rooks and
completing his development. } 9. Re1 { Maroczy anticipates the eventual opening
of the e-file and prepares by posting his Rook there. If you're not sure of
where to place your Rooks, the d- and e- files are often good spots for them. } 9... h6 { Marshall prevents the annoying 10.Bg5 (which would threaten the Queen) and
gives his King an "escape hatch" to prevent back-rank disaster. } 10. Nxd5 { Relieve cramped positions by exchanging pieces! That's what Maroczy is trying
to do here. } 10... Bxd2 { Marshall can't allow 10...Bxd5 11.Bxb4 Nxb4 12.Nxe5 (which
loses him a pawn) so this move is virtually forced. } 11. Nxd2 { Maroczy
naturally recaptures (or else it's 11...Bxe1 -- OUCH!). } 11... Bxd5 { And Marshall
evens up the material balance. } 12. Bf3 { Maroczy aims for 12...Bxf3 13.Qxf3,
gaining a tempo by trading his Bishop which has moved only twice for Black's
which would have moved three times by capturing, plus White's Queen would be
developed to boot! } 12... Qd6 { Marshall doesn't bite. Instead he connects his Rooks
and completes his development. } 13. Ne4 { Maroczy grabs the initiative by
attacking the Black Queen. } 13... Bxe4 { Marshall hates to give an inch! Instead of
retreating the Queen, he eliminates the attacker. } 14. Bxe4 { Maroczy
recaptures. Now his Bishop can operate on both sides of the board from its
central post. } 14... Rae8 { Marshall prepares to activate his Rook by playing
Ra8-e8-e6-f6. This maneuver is called a "Rook lift". } 15. Bxc6 { Maroczy
further simplifies the position by getting the last minor pieces off of the
board. } 15... Qxc6 { Marshall recaptures with the Queen. 15...bxc6 would give him a
terrible Queenside pawn structure. } 16. Qd2 { Maroczy finally gets his Rooks
connected. } 16... Re6 { Marshall continues the Rook lift. Now (since White no longer
has a Bishop on e4) he has the option to post the Rook on either f6 or g6. } 17. Re3 { Maroczy initiates his own Rook lift. } 17... Rg6 { The Rook goes to g6. Do you
see Black's threat? He threatens 18...Qxg2#! } 18. g3 { Maroczy could have
blocked with 18.Rg3, but 18...Rxg3 19.fxg3 (or hxg3) would shatter his
Kingside pawns. Advancing the g-pawn is the best bet. } 18... f5 { The f-pawn advances
ominously. 19...f4 20.gxf4 exf4 (and White must retreat the Rook). But can't
White play 19.Rxe5 here? } 19. Rxe5 { White can, and does! Surely this wasn't an
oversight on Marshall's part! He's deliberately sacrificed the pawn. But why? } 19... f4 { The f-pawn continues to advance. Marshall's plan becomes clear. The
kamikaze pawn will break up the White Kingside pawn structure, opening lines
for Black's attack. } 20. d4 { Maroczy is unconcerned. He advances the d-pawn to
a square where it props up the Rook and can march ahaed to d5, attacking the
Black Queen and blocking its path to the White Kingside. } 20... Qd7 { The Queen
shifts away from the oncoming pawn's attack. } 21. Qd3 { Maroczy keeps up the
pressure by attacking the Black g6-Rook. } 21... Rgf6 { The Black Rook abandons its
post and sets up a battery with its brother on f8. Now, after fxg3, the Rooks
will bear down on the White Kingside along the f-file. } 22. Rae1 { Maroczy
creates his own battery on the open e-file. } 22... fxg3 { Remember that by capturing
with a pawn, you open up a file for your own pieces. As expected, Marshall
opens the f-file. } 23. fxg3 { Maroczy, of course, takes back. } 23... Rf3 { The Rook,
supported by its brother, attacks the White Queen. } 24. R5e3 { White blocks the
attack. } 24... R3f7 { Marshall withdraws, rather than give up the battery. Remember
that exchanging unnecessarily tends to blunt your attack. Exchanging here
would make Black's pawn sacrifice pointless. } 25. c3 { Maroczy strengthens the
d-pawn. } 25... Qd5 { Marshall attacks the a2-pawn, hoping to cause it to advance
prematurely (which would weaken the White Queenside). } 26. c4 { Maroczy
continues his expert defense by blocking Black's attack and simultaneously
attacking the Black Queen. The best defense is a good offense! } 26... Qd7 { The Queen
has no choice but to withdraw. The initiative passes back to White. } 27. d5 { Another strong move that serves both offensive and defensive purposes. The
d-pawn advances under the c-pawn's protection and siezes control of c6 and e6,
taking them away from Black. } 27... Qd6 { Marshall anticipates 28.b4, so he takes
that square away from White. } 28. Qd4 { Maroczy counters by attacking a7. } 28... Qg6 { Marshall plans to invade White's second rank with moves like ...Qc2 and ...Rf2. } 29. Re6 { Maroczy counterattacks by striking at Black's Queen. } 29... Qc2 { Marshall
just slides his Queen down to c2 anyway. Phase 1 of his plan is complete. } 30. R6e2 { OOPS! Maroczy smashes Black's plan by attacking the Queen and cutting it
off from f2. } 30... Qf5 { Marshall retreats the Queen and sets up a "super-battery"
on the open f-file. } 31. Re8 { Maroczy threatens to break up the
"super-battery" and attacks a7 with his Queen at the same time. } 31... b6 { Marshall
blocks the attack on his a-pawn... } 32. Qe3 { ...but this gives Maroczy time to
set up a "super-battery" of his own! } 32... Kh8 { Marshall prepares to play 33...Kh7
and 34...Rxe8, but it's too late for that. } 33. Rxf8+ { Maroczy exchanges Rooks
on e8. } 33... Rxf8 { Marshall response is forced. Now some of the pressure has been
relieved on White's tender f2-square. } 34. b3 { Maroczy puts the last link into
his a2-d5 pawn chain. } 34... Qc2 { Marshall again invades, and this time threatens
the a2-pawn. Remember to always attack an opponent's pawn chain at its base! } 35. Qe2 { Maroczy could have defended the pawn by advancing it to a4, but this
would weaken his Queenside pawns. He instead defends it by threatening the
Black Queen. } 35... Qg6 { Marshall feels that an exchange of Queens at this time
would be to his disadvantage, so he retreats the Queen instead. } 36. Qe4 { Maroczy continues to harass the Black Queen. } 36... Qf6 { Marshall still doesn't want
to exchange. Instead, he attacks the sensitive f2-square again. How will White
defend it? } 37. Qf4 { The White Queen shuts Black off from f2 and again is
offering an exchange of Queens. } 37... Qd8 { The Black Queen retreats to a square
where it defends the f8-Rook, uncovering an attack on the White Queen. } 38. Qe5 { The White Queen must abandon the dangerous f-file. By going to the e-file,
Maroczy has once again set up a battery on the open file. } 38... Qc8 { Seeing that
the White Queen was threatening the c7-pawn, Marshall shifts his Queen to the
pawn's defense. } 39. Qe6 { White again offers a Queen trade. The reason why
he's so eager to eliminate the Queens is that with his one-pawn advantage, he
should easily be able to win a Rook and pawn endgame. } 39... Qa6 { Marshall again
refuses to exchange Queens, opting instead to again attack the base of the
White pawn chain. } 40. Qe7 { Maroczy counters with a double attack! His Queen
strikes at the Black Rook and c-pawn. } 40... Kg8 { Marshall slides his King over to
defend the menaced Rook. } 41. Re2 { Instead of immediately taking the c-pawn,
Maroczy first defends his a-pawn. He sees that if Black plays ...Qxa2, he
could easily nab the other three pawns in the chain. } 41... Qa5 { Marshall abandons
the c-pawn! What in the world is he up to? } 42. Qxc7 { Maroczy increases his
advantage to two pawns. } 42... Qc3 { Marshall's plan is becoming clearer! He again
intends to invade White's position. He'll maneuver the Queen to the f-file and
strike at f1. } 43. Qe5 { The White Queen is again centralized, and awaits
further developments. In the late-middlegame and endgame it's often a good
idea to centralize your Queen. } 43... Qf3 { Marshall proceeds with the relocation of
his Queen. } 44. h4 { Maroczy sees the coming Queen invasion and advances the
pawn to give his King some elbow room. } 44... Qf1+ { Under the protection of the
Black Rook, the Black Queen attack's White's King. } 45. Kh2 { The King flees to
the newly-created flight square. } 45... h5 { Marshall sets a trap for White. He hopes
for 46.Qxh5 Rf2+ 47.Rxf2 Qxf2+ 48.Kh3 leading to a draw by perpetual check!
Behind by two pawns, Marshall would LOVE a draw here! } 46. Rg2 { The wily
Hungarian sees through the trap! He moves his Rook to cover his King. } 46... Qb1 { Marshall prepares to withdraw the Queen, since his trick has failed. } 47. d6 { Maroczy wastes no time in launching his own threat: he's going to try and
promote the d-pawn. } 47... Qd1 { Marshall prevents the pawn from stepping ahead to d7. } 48. Qe6+ { Maroczy just bumps the Queen up another square to cover the pawn's
advance (and gets a check in as a special bonus!). } 48... Kh7 { Marshall stops check
by moving the King. } 49. Qe2 { Now Maroczy springs another double attack -- he
threatens both the Black Queen and h-pawn (the capture of which would also
result in check!). } 49... Rf1 { Marshall resigns himself to the fact that an exchange
of Queens is inevitable. By playing ...Rf1 (instead of ...Qxe2) he insures
that his Rook will be placed BEHIND the White pawns (the best placement for
the endgame). } 50. Qxd1 { Maaroczy finally gets to trade off the Queens. } 50... Rxd1 { Marshall completes the trade. Now the ball's in White's court. What will he do? } 51. b4 { Maroczy can see that his d-pawn is dead, so he begins to mobilize
his Queenside pawn majority. } 51... Rxd6 { As expected, Marshall kills the d-pawn.
Now he's only down a pawn. } 52. Rc2 { Maroczy safeguards his c-pawn. Now the
Black Rook has no immediate way to attack the White Queenside. } 52... Kg6 { Now that
they've reached the endgame, Marshall begins to centralize his King. } 53. Kg2 { Maroczy begins to do the same. } 53... Kf5 { The Black King continues its trip toward
the center. } 54. c5 { Maroczy begins his Queenside push. He's trying to press
his one-pawn Queenside advantage to convert his extra pawn into a new Queen. } 54... Rc6 { Marshall prevents White from swapping off a pair of pawns (55.cxb6 Rxc2). } 55. Kf3 { Maroczy siezes the opposition. Now the Black King can't advance any
closer to the White one. } 55... Ke5 { The Black King sidesteps toward the Queenside.
Marshall hopes that his King will be able to help his Rook break up White's
pawn majority there. } 56. g4 { Maroczy opens up the fight on a second front.
Notice that the Black King can't head directly back toward the Kingside
because the White g-pawn controls f5. } 56... hxg4+ { Although simplification normally
favors the side with a material advantage, this move really isn't bad here.
Marshall is trying to draw the White King away from the center. } 57. Kxg4 { Maroczy must recapture or else lose his material advantage. } 57... Ke4 { Now that e4
is no longer covered by the White King, Black's King can move there. Now the
White King is cut off from the Queenside. } 58. Rc1 { Maroczy backs his Rook
away from the advancing Black King. } 58... Ke3 { The King relentlessly marches
forward. } 59. Re1+ { Maroczy checks the Black King... } 59... Kd4 { ...driving it to
the d-file. Will Maroczy now play cxb6? } 60. Rd1+ { There's no reason to, as
long as he can keep checking Black. } 60... Ke5 { 60...Kc4 could lead to the Black
King's becoming boxed in, so Marshall retreats to the e-file. } 61. Rc1 { Maroczy's Rook backs up the c-pawn again (preventing 61...bxc6 62.bxc5 Rxc5). } 61... Ke4 { Say, haven't we seen this position before? } 62. a4 { Maroczy knows that
he's seen it before, and that he doesn't want to see it again (otherwise the
game would be drawn by repetition!). He advances the a-pawn, both the change
the position and launch a Queenside assault. } 62... Ke3 { Marshall advances his King
again, for lack of a better plan. He's waiting to see what White is up to. } 63. b5 { Maroczy continues Queenside operations by striking at the Rook. } 63... Rg6+ { Since the Rook must retreat, it might as well do so with check! } 64. Kh3 { The White King hides in the shadow of the h-pawn. } 64... bxc5 { Since the Black Rook
controls White's sixth rank, Marshall sees no reason to delay the
simplification of the Queenside. } 65. Rxc5 { Maroczy completes the swap and
holds on to his one-pawn advantage. } 65... Rf6 { Marshall sees White's plan (66.Rc6
Rxc6 67.bxc6 and the pawn promotes), so he shifts his Rook to a square where
it's defended by the g-pawn. Now, if 66.Rc6, Black doesn't have to take OR run. } 66. Rc3+ { Maroczy checks, hoping to drive the Black King further away from
the Queenside. } 66... Kf2 { Why here instead of ...Kd4? Perhaps Marshall is trying to
stall White by getting him to chase the King around. } 67. Rc7 { Maroczy LOVES
these double attacks! Here he attacks both of Black's pawns! } 67... a6 { Marshall
defends the a-pawn by advancing it. } 68. Rc2+ { Maroczy knows that if he plays
68.Rxg7 it would give Black time to smash up the powerful White pawn duo. By
checking, White doesn't give Black the time. } 68... Kf3 { The Black king moves out of
check. } 69. Rc6 { It's crunch time for Marshall -- he can't play 69...Rxc6 or
sit tight and do nothing (either way White gets a new Queen). What can he do? } 69... Rf4 { Marshall decides to attack the White a-pawn and break up the powerful
White pawn pair. } 70. Rxa6 { Maroczy grabs another pawn. But now his Rook is
tied to the a-pawn's defense. } 70... Rg4 { Marshall continues to make trouble for
White. Now he intends to harass the White King. By continuing these annoyance
tactics, Marshall isn't giving White time to promote a Queenside pawn. } 71. Ra7 { Maroczy's Rook, tied to the a-pawn's defense, makes sure that the Black Rook
is tied to the defense of the g-pawn. } 71... Rg3+ { Marshall continues his annoyance
tactics by checking White. } 72. Kh2 { The White King's only move. } 72... Rg2+ { Marshall keeps up the pressure. He's angling for a draw by repetition. } 73. Kh1 { Maroczy isn't going for it. By moving to h1, he insures that Black runs out
of checks. } 73... Rg4 { Marshall has the opportunity to pick off the h-pawn. This
will mean that he'll have a passed g-pawn. It's a longshot, but at this point
he has nothing to lose. } 74. b6 { Maroczy can advance his b-pawn now that the
checks have stopped. } 74... Rxh4+ { Marshall takes the h-pawn with check. } 75. Kg1 { The White King was again limited to just a single move. } 75... g5 { It's a longshot,
but Marshall is going to try to promote the g-pawn. } 76. Rf7+ { It's Maroczy's
turn to be annoying. } 76... Kg3 { The Black King keeps the opposition and keeps the
White King cooped up, but unfortunately blocks its own pawn in the process. } 77. b7 { The b-pawn is just a step away from glory! } 77... Rb4 { The Black Rook has no
choice but to try and stop it. } 78. Kf1 { The White King begins a journey to
the Queenside. } 78... g4 { The Black pawn marches ahead. It's Black's only hope. } 79. a5 { The White pawn follows suit. If it can reach a6, it will defend the b-pawn
and free the White Rook for other jobs. } 79... Kh3 { The Black King gets out of the
g-pawn's way... } 80. Rh7+ { ...which allows the White Rook to check it. } 80... Kg3 { The Black King has no choice but to return to g3... } 81. a6 { ...which gives
Maroczy time to advance the a-pawn to a6, where it defends the b-pawn. Next is
82.a7, followed by the promotion of one of the pawns. Marshall sees that it's
hopeless and resigns. } 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.23"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Reti, Richard"]
[Black "Yates, Frederick"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "61"]
[ECO "A13"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. Nf3 { Reti (White) keeps his options open. He could be intending to play a
Hypermodern opening. Then again, he could be waiting to play 1.e4 or 1.d4. We
(and Yates) are kept guessing. } 1... d5 { 1...e5 is obviously out of the question
for Yates (Black) so he carves himself out a piece of the center with 1...d5. } 2. c4 { Reti challenges him immediately. If 2...dxc4, Black will have traded a
center pawn for a less-valuable flank pawn (plus he'll have a hard time
holding on to his one-pawn advantage anyway). } 2... e6 { Instead, Yates defends his
challenged center pawn. } 3. g3 { Now it's clear: Reti will play in the
Hypermodern style. He intends to fianchetto his Bishop to g2. } 3... Nf6 { Yates
proceeds with his center-controlling development. } 4. Bg2 { Reti prepares to
attack Black's pawn center from the flanks. The g2-Bishop is well-placed to do
this. } 4... Bd6 { Yates develops his second Kingside minor piece and prepares to
castle. } 5. b3 { Reti props up the c4-pawn and prepares to fianchetto the other
Bishop. } 5... O-O { Yates continues to develop in the classical style, getting out
his minor pieces and castling early. } 6. O-O { Even Hypermoderns believe in
early castling! } 6... Re8 { As we've seen before, the d- and e-files are often good
places to post your Rooks. They'll be well-placed to take part in the action
after the center opens up. } 7. Bb2 { The other White Bishop is fianchettoed.
Once the f3-Knight moves, the two White Bishops will "scissor" through the
center of the board. } 7... Nbd7 { Yates continues to develop. The d7-Knight is
flexible. It could take up a post on either b6, c5, or e5, or even shift over
to the Kingside via f8 and g6. } 8. d3 { By advancing to d3, the pawn prevents
Black from placing his Knight on e4. } 8... c6 { Yates anticipates sliding his Queen
over to a5 or b6. Advancing the c-pawn makes this possible. } 9. Nbd2 { By
developing his Queenside Knight to d2 instead of c3, Reti keeps the Knight out
of the way of the b2-Bishop. } 9... e5 { Yates has established the classic center
pawn duo. Notice that the d7-Knight, d6-Bishop, and e8-Rook all contribute to
the e-pawn's defense. } 10. cxd5 { Why does Reti capture? After all, 10...cxd5
re-establishes the Black pawn center. Here's a clue: every pawn capture
half-opens a file for your Rooks. } 10... cxd5 { Yates recaptures with the c-pawn. Now
the c-file is open... } 11. Rc1 { ...so Reti siezes it with his Rook! } 11... Nf8 { This move serves two purposes: first, it allows the Knight to move to g6 to
help defend the Kingside. Second (and more important), it allows the c8-Bishop
to develop to d7 and get off of the back rank. } 12. Rc2 { Reti evidently
intends to set up a battery on the c-file. He'll probably move his Queen to a1
(setting up a battery along the a1-h8 diagonal) and shift the f1-Rook to c1. } 12... Bd7 { Yates gets his Bishop off of the back rank. } 13. Qa1 { Reti does what we
expected. The Queen now supports the b2-Bishop. } 13... Ng6 { The Black Knight moves
to the Kingside and overprotects the e5-pawn. } 14. Rfc1 { The c-file battery is
in place. What's next in White's plans? } 14... Bc6 { The Bishop blocks off the c-file
from the White Rooks. } 15. Nf1 { Reti begins to reposition his Knight. It
really had no future on d2, so it's headed to e3, where it could move to f5 or
else stay put and pressure the Black d5-pawn. } 15... Qd7 { Yates connects his Rooks
and completes his development. The Queen may possibly have some scope along
the c8-h3 diagonal (and, after White's Ne3, keeps the Knight off of f5). } 16. Ne3 { The White Knight leaps to e3 as expected. } 16... h6 { Yates advances the pawn to
prevent White from playing Ng5. But when is he going to start his center pawns
rolling? Yates seems to be playing without a clear plan. } 17. d4 { Reti, on the
other hand, has been playing with a plan all along. Now that his pieces are in
place, he gets the ball rolling by attacking the Black pawn center. } 17... e4 { Yates doesn't much care for 17...exd4 18.Nxd4 (giving White a centralized
Knight). He instead advances the menaced pawn and attacks the White f3-Knight. } 18. Ne5 { The Knight leaps ahead and menaces the Black Queen. } 18... Bxe5 { Yates has
several ways of capturing the White Knight. It's hard to fathom why he gives
up his "good" Bishop for a Knight. } 19. dxe5 { The pawn recaptures... } 19... Nh7 { ...and the Knight retreats! This looks surprising until you realize that the
White pawn is protected by BOTH the b2-Bishop and (indirectly) by the Queen! } 20. f4 { Now Reti has his own dangerous pawn duo! The e- and f-pawns threaten
to charge ahead and destroy Black's Kingside! } 20... exf3 { Yates really has no
choice but to give up his own pawn duo to demolish White's. } 21. exf3 { A
two-edged sword. Reti undoubles his pawns, but blocks his fianchettoed
g2-Bishop. } 21... Ng5 { The Knight is either headed for e6 to block the White pawn's
advance or to h3 to harass the White King. } 22. f4 { Reti forces the issue.
Where will the Black Knight go? } 22... Nh3+ { The Black Knight (under attack from the
f4-pawn and forced to move) jumps ahead to h3 to annoy the White King. } 23. Kh1 { The King ducks into the corner. 23.Bxh3 Qxh3 is not as good, because White
would be giving up his "good" Bishop for a Knight. } 23... d4 { Yates attacks the
e3-Knight. But notice that he's opened up the long a8-h1 diagonal. This could
come back to haunt him... } 24. Bxd4 { The Bishop (still protected by the Queen
on a1) picks off the pawn. } 24... Rad8 { Yates piles up on the d4-Bishop by setting
up a d-file battery. } 25. Rxc6 { POW! Reti shocks Yates and delights the crowd
by sacrificing the exchange! This move is possible because the c6-Bishop was
attacked by three White pieces and defended by only two of Black's. } 25... bxc6 { Of course, Yates must recapture with the pawn or lose the Bishop outright! } 26. Bxc6 { HOLY COW! Look at what Reti's done! He gave up the Rook for a Bishop and
pawn and now has skewered the Black Queen and e8-Rook! The audience is beside
itself! Mr. Helms calls for silence... } 26... Nf2+ { Yates checks the White King, but
it's only a temporary measure. } 27. Kg2 { The King moves out of danger (and
attacks the Knight!). Yates is really in the soup now! } 27... Qxd4 { Yates knows that
he must lose material, so he decides to do as much damage as possible before
he goes down in flames. } 28. Qxd4 { Reti, with a soon-to-be-realized material
advantage, is only too happy to exchange down to an endgame. } 28... Rxd4 { Yates
completes the swap... } 29. Bxe8 { ...and Reti's Bishop does its damage. He's
gone from being the exchange behind to being two pawns ahead (plus he has a
Bishop vs. Knight advantage to boot!). } 29... Ne4 { The Black Knight gets out of
harm's way. } 30. e6 { Reti hits Yates with another tactical shot! The f7-pawn
can't capture because of 31.Bxg6! } 30... Rd2+ { Yates stalls for time by checking the
White King. While Reti is considering his reply, Yates is weighung his options. } 31. Kf3 { After a short time, Reti places the King on f3. Yates shakes his
head. He sees that it's hopeless and topples his King. Reti has won again! } 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.25"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Maroczy, Geza"]
[Black "Lasker, Emanuel"]
[Result "0-1"]
[PlyCount "60"]
[ECO "B02"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 { Maroczy (White) starts with 1.e4, which will probably lead to an open
position. } 1... Nf6 { Lasker (Black) counters with Alekhine's Defense, in which he
develops a piece and immediately counterattacks the White e-pawn. } 2. Nc3 { Rather than advance the pawn to e5 (and attack the Knight), Maroczy prefers to
continue his development. Now the c3-Knight defends the e-pawn. } 2... d5 { Lasker
hits the pawn again... } 3. e5 { ...so Maroczy chooses to now advance and
counterattack. } 3... Nfd7 { Lasker preserves his Knight by retreating to d7. } 4. d4 { Maroczy blocks any further advance of the Black d-pawn. } 4... e6 { Now the opening
has transposed into a French Defense (usually reached by 1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.e5
-- the Advance Variation). Since the center pawns are locked, this will
probably be a game of maneuver. } 5. Nce2 { Maroczy sees the possibility of a
pin on his c-Knight (after ...Bb4). So he withdraws the Knight to prevent the
pin. He's blocked in his light-square Bishop, though, so maybe this isn't such
a good move. } 5... c5 { Lasker puts pressure on White's d-pawn. He can also develop
his Queen to the Queenside via b6 or a5. } 6. c3 { Maroczy reinforces his d-pawn
and prevents checks along the a5-e1 diagonal. } 6... Nc6 { Lasker develops another
minor piece and keeps putting pressure on the White d-pawn. } 7. f4 { Maroczy
begins to expand on the Kingside. Unfortunately, he's also blocked his
dark-square Bishop. What in the world is he up to? } 7... Be7 { Lasker develops yet
another piece (he now enjoys a 3-1 lead in piece development) and prepares to
castle on the Kingside. } 8. Nf3 { Maroczy develops his other Knight. Perhaps
playing f2-f4 first was an attempt to prevent the f-pawn from being blocked by
this Knight. } 8... O-O { Lasker gets his King out of the center. } 9. g3 { Maroczy's
play is unusual. He props up his f-pawn and has created a double pawn chain,
with e5 as the head of both. Very pretty, but is this good chess? } 9... cxd4 { Lasker breaks one of White's pawn strings. } 10. cxd4 { Maroczy recaptures.
Fortunately, the d-pawn is overprotected by the Queen and both Knights. } 10... Nb6 { Lasker would like to get his light-squared Bishop off of the back rank, but
the Knight on d7 was in the way. } 11. Bh3 { More curious development from
Maroczy. Both his light-square Bishop and f3-Knight are unsupported. What's he
up to? Maybe he's planning to advance the f-pawn to f5. } 11... Bd7 { As we
anticipated, Lasker moves his Bishop off of the back rank. } 12. O-O { The King
gets out of the center, but notice how the advanced Kingside pawns create a
"drafty" haven for the White King. } 12... Rc8 { Lasker's Rook grabs the open c-file. } 13. g4 { Now this is really strange...perhaps Maroczy is trying to prevent
either ...f5 or ...h5 by Black. In any event, he's blocked in his light-square
Bishop! } 13... f6 { Lasker begins to crack open the White position. If 14...fxe5 15.
dxe5, Black gets a passed d-pawn. If 14...fxe5 15.fxe5, Black may be able to
use the open f-file to attack White's King. So... } 14. exf6 { ...Maroczy really
has no choice but to capture. } 14... Bxf6 { Now Lasker has half-opened the f-file and
has isolated White's d-pawn (which may become a target for the Black forces). } 15. g5 { What Maroczy has going for him is that his pieces control a bunch of
squares on Black's side of the board. He increases that control by advancing
the pawn and attacking the Bishop. } 15... Be7 { Lasker makes the only move that
doesn't lose material. } 16. Kh1 { Maroczy anticipates the b6-Knight taking up a
post on c4, allowing the Black Queen to come to b6. He doesn't like the
thought of the Black Queen and White King on the same diagonal, so he
sidesteps the King. } 16... Nc4 { Black's Knight takes up an outpost on c4. Now, if
White lets his guard down and forgets to defend e3, the Knight could leap to
e3 and fork the White Queen and f1-Rook! } 17. Nc3 { Maroczy begins to untangle
his pieces. By moving this Knight, he clears e2 for his Queen. (He also has a
trick up his sleeve -- but will Lasker fall for it?) } 17... Bb4 { Lasker is looking
ahead to possibly trading off his dark-square Bishop for the c3-Knight,
ensuring that his Knight will always have a safe outpost on c4. } 18. Qe2 { Maroczy continues setting up his trap. Will Lasker see it in time? } 18... Re8 { Lasker defends the threatened e-pawn. } 19. Qd3 { Maroczy's plan continues, but
it requires getting his Queen off of the same file as Black's e8-Rook. What
could he be plotting? } 19... Nd6 { The Knight prepares to take up a new post at f5.
It also (indirectly) defends the e-pawn (from f4-f5). } 20. f5 { Maroczy makes
the pawn advance anyway (preparing this advance was another reason for 19.Qd3). } 20... Nxf5 { Lasker gets his Knight outpost on f5, but do you see why this may not
be so good? } 21. Nxd5 { POW! Maroczy springs his trap. Do you see why 21...exd5
is impossible? Because it would leave the f5-Knight defended just once against
two attackers. He's evened up the material and isolated the Black e-pawn. } 21... Bd6 { Lasker's dark-square Bishop was attacked by the White d5-Knight, so it has to
retreat. } 22. Bxf5 { Maroczy can't allow Black to maintain a Knight outpost on
f5, so he captures the Knight. } 22... exf5 { Unfortunately for White, this allows
Lasker to recapture with the e-pawn. Now Black isn't stuck with an isolated
e-pawn anymore. } 23. Nf4 { The White King's position is looking a little bare,
so Maroczy shifts the Knight toward the Kingside to help in the defense. } 23... Re4 { Lasker begins to create problems for White. Now the White Knight on f4 is
attacked twice and only defended once. } 24. Qb3+ { Maroczy buys some time with
a check. } 24... Kh8 { 24...Be6 (to block the check) doesn't work because of 25.Nxe6.
So Lasker moves the King out of check. } 25. Nh4 { By moving this Knight,
Maroczy allows the f1-Rook to help defend the f4-Knight. } 25... Nxd4 { Of course, the
d-pawn was left up for grabs, so the Knight captures it and attacks the White
Queen. } 26. Qh3 { Using the open third rank, the Queen shifts rapidly to the
Kingside and prepares to join in the attack on the Black King. } 26... Rc2 { Lasker
posts one of his Rooks on the seventh rank, where it will have a disruptive
effect on White's maneuverability. } 27. g6 { Maroczy's assault continues. He
puts pressure on the Black King's fortress. After 28.Nxf5, 29.Qxh7 will be
mate! } 27... Bc6 { Of course, Lasker can't play 27...hxg6, because of 28.Nxg6+
(DOUBLE CHECK!) Kg8 29.Qh8+ Kf7 30.Qxd8, and White has won the Black Queen!
Instead, he prepares a discovered check (once the e4-Rook moves). } 28. Nf3 { Playing 28.Nxf5 allows Black some counterthreats (once he prevents the Qxh7
mate, of course), so Maroczy thinks it's best to block the a8-h1 diagonal. Now
he threatens mate-in-one! } 28... h6 { Advancing the pawn is Black's best way of
stopping mate here. How will White renew the attack? } 29. Ne6 { The Knight
leaps forward to attack the Queen. But doesn't that allow 29...Nxe6? Is there
another purpose to this move? } 29... Nxe6 { Lasker does the expected and captures the
Knight. } 30. Bxh6 { The hidden purpose of 29.Ne6 becomes clear. Maroczy was
clearing the c1-h6 diagonal for his dark-square Bishop to capture the h-pawn.
30...gxh6 would be a serious mistake. What will Lasker do? } 30... Rh4 { Lasker
double-attacks the White Queen and Bishop! Maroczy looks ahead into the
position (see the variation) and tips his King over. Lasker has won! } (30... Rh4 31. Rf2 { If the White
Queen abandons the h-file, it's curtains for White. The best bet is to stop
one of the Black Rook attacks. } 31... Rxf2 { Of course, it was only a temporary
measure. Black is in no hurry to capture the Queen; as noted earlier, the
Queen isn't going anywhere. } 32. Kg1 { The King gets out of the corner and
attacks the Black Rook. } 32... Rxh3 { Black decides that the time is right to grab
the Queen. } 33. Kxf2 { The King captures the second Rook, but no matter --
Black is already way ahead in material. With both Bishops aiming at the
Kingside, plus a Queen in reserve, Black will have no trouble winning this
game. }) 0-1

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.25"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Capablanca, Jose Raul"]
[Black "Yates, Frederick"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "153"]
[ECO "D00"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 { Capablanca (White) opens with his preferred d-pawn. Opening with the
d-pawn usually will lead to positions that suit his precise, methodical style. } 1... Nf6 { Yates (Black) carves out some of the center (d5, e4) and keeps his
options open as to the placement of his center pawns. } 2. Nf3 { Capa develops a
minor piece to a good, center-controlling post. The Knight controls e5 and
backs up the d4-pawn. } 2... g6 { Yates will fianchetto his dark-square Bishop. This
tells us that he won't move it through the center (via e7) and that he may
defer the advance of his center pawns until later in the game. } 3. Nc3 { Capa advances his other Knight and stakes a claim to d5 and e4. } 3... d5 { A-HA! Now
that Capa has blocked in his c-pawn (preventing c2-c4), Yates takes the
opportunity to advance his d-pawn. Now Capa can't transpose into Queen's
Gambit lines (1.d4 d5 2.c4 is the normal Queen's Gambit pattern). } 4. Bf4 { Capa is developing this Bishop in preparation for e2-e3 (if he advanced the
pawn first, he'd block in the Bishop). } 4... Bg7 { Yates fianchettos the Bishop.
Kingside castling is next. } 5. e3 { As we anticipated, Capa advances the pawn
and unleashes his light-square Bishop. } 5... O-O { Yates gets his King out of the
center. The King also supports the g7-Bishop. } 6. h3 { Capa prevents ...Bg4,
which would pin his f3-Knight to his Queen. A purely defensive move. } 6... c5 { Yates challenges the White d-pawn, plus he gives his Queen free access to the
a5-d8 diagonal. } 7. dxc5 { This looks like Capa gets a free pawn, but
appearances can be deceiving... } 7... Qa5 { The Black Queen simultaneously attacks
the c5-pawn and pins the c3-Knight to the White King. } 8. Nd2 { The White
Knight jumps to d2 and breaks the pin... } 8... Qxc5 { ...while the Black Queen wins
back the pawn. The material balance is again even. } 9. Nb3 { Here's the real
reason behind 8...Nd2: Capa saw that the Black Queen would capture the c-pawn,
so he shifted his Knight to d2 so that it could get to b3 to threaten the
Queen. } 9... Qb6 { Of course, Yates withdraws the Queen. } 10. Be5 { Capa prevents the
establishment of the d5-e5 pawn duo, and prevents Black from moving the
f6-Knight (unless, of course, Black wants to give up his beautifully-placed
g7-Bishop). } 10... e6 { Since the f6-Knight was "pinned", the d5-pawn was hanging.
The e-pawn advances to defend the d-pawn. } 11. Nb5 { The White Knight
(protected by the f1-Bishop) eyes the d6-square as a possible outpost. } 11... Ne8 { Yates moves to prevent 12.Nd6 (which would severely cramp his game!). Of
course, he's just opened the a1-h8 diagonal... } 12. Bxg7 { ...so Capa picks off
the well-placed Black g7-Bishop. } 12... Nxg7 { Yates doesn't have to worry about
keeping the White Knight off of d6 now (since the Knight can't safely go there
in the Bishop's absence anyway), so he recaptures with his Knight instead of
exposing his King. } 13. h4 { The h-pawn advances in an effort to crack open the
Black Kingside pawn formation. This maneuver is actually more common than
you'd think. } 13... a6 { The Black a-pawn kicks out the White Knight. } 14. Nc3 { The Knight retreats (toward the center -- retreating the Knight to a3 would
render it next-to-useless). } 14... Nc6 { Yates wants to generate some counterplay,
but he needs to develop his pieces before he can do so. } 15. Bd3 { The
light-square Bishop takes up a post where it bears down on Black's Kingside
pawns. The combination of this Bishop, the h-pawn, and the h1-Rook threatens
to smash up Black's Kingside. } 15... f5 { The f-pawn advances to safeguard the
Kingside by blocking the d3-Bishop's influence along the b1-h7 diagonal. } 16. Qd2 { If he can't smash the Kingside, Capa will try to invade it via the dark
squares (which are weak in the absence of a Black dark-squared Bishop). The
Queen prepares by advancing to a dark square. } 16... Ne5 { White is also missing a
dark-squared Bishop, so he's weak on the dark squares too. The Black Knight
pops into the dark-square hole and threatens to knock off White's remaining
Bishop. } 17. Be2 { Capa makes the only move that preserves his Bishop. } 17... Nc4 { Yates sees a way to trade a Knight for White's remaining Bishop. The Knight,
by moving to c4, double-attacks the White Queen and b2-pawn. Capa can't save
both, so he must make a decision... } 18. Bxc4 { He decides that keeping the
b-pawn is more important than keeping his Bishop. He captures the Knight, but
this means that he must let the Bishop go. } 18... dxc4 { Yates now has the advantage
of owning a Knight and Bishop compared to White's two Knights. } 19. Qd4 { Surprise! Capa doesn't retreat his threatened b3-Knight. He instead attacks
the unprotected Black Queen (which doesn't give Black time to play ...cxb3). } 19... Qc7 { Yates had to decide whether or not to trade Queens. He concludes that
he'd rather keep his Queen and take his chances in the middlegame, rather than
trade down toward an endgame with an asymmetrical pawn structure. } 20. Qc5 { Capa feels that (despite his minor-piece inferiority) he can outplay Yates in
an endgame (after all, Capa enjoys a reputation as an excellent endgame
technician). So he relentlessly pursues the Black Queen. } 20... Qxc5 { Yates is more
receptive to a Queen trade here, since after 21.Nxc5 the pawn structure will
remain symmetrical. } 21. Nxc5 { Capa makes the only logical move. } 21... b6 { Not only
does the pawn attack the Knight, it also grabs space on the Queenside. } 22. N5a4 { The Knight withdraws to the ONLY square it has! Black is doing a fine
job of controlling the initiative. But can he keep it up? } 22... Rb8 { Yates sees
that he can't chase the Knight forever, and that 23.Nxb6 forks the valuable
Bishop and Rook! The Rook slides over to cover the b6-square (more so than it
needs to cover the b6-pawn). } 23. O-O-O { Capa castles on the opposite wing
from Black and simultaneously grabs control of the open d-file. This prevents .
..Bd7, and the Black Bishop can't develop to b7 without dropping the b-pawn to
Nxb6. An amazingly good move by White! } 23... b5 { Since there's no longer a forking
threat from Nxb6, Black links up his Queenside pawns and enables himself to
play ...Bb7 (since the Rook no longer needs to cover b6). } 24. Nc5 { But the
White Knight, in the course of saving itself from 24...bxa4, takes b7 away
from the Black Bishop (and attacks the Black a-pawn as well!). } 24... Rb6 { The Rook
advances to defend the a-pawn. It looks like Yates has just lost the
initiative! } 25. a4 { In a gutsy move, Capablanca advances one of the pawns in
front of his castled King. He's trying to weaken Black's Queenside pawns. } 25... Nh5 { Yates, by moving the Knight, is playing a waiting move more than anything
else. } 26. b3 { Capa keeps hacking away at the Black Queenside. But there is
some danger here! Remember that he's advancing the pawns in front of his
castled King. } 26... cxb3 { Yates feels that the time has come to act! By taking the
b-pawn (instead of the a-pawn), he forces either cxb3 (which leaves the White
King on an open diagonal) or Nxb3 (which allows his Bishop to escape the back
rank via b7). } 27. cxb3 { Capa thinks that a slightly exposed King is a lesser
evil than allowing the activation of the Black Bishop. } 27... bxa4 { Yates captures
the a-pawn and anticipates bxa4, opening the b-file for his Rook... } 28. N3xa4 { ...but Capa won't allow that! Instead, he keeps the pawn blocking the b-file
and grabs the Black pawn with a Knight (attacking Black's Rook in the process!)
. } 28... Rc6 { Yates pins the c5-Knight. There's no danger of the Rook taking it (the
Knight is still guarded by the a4-Knight), but the pinned Knight can't
possibly prevent the Black Bishop from occupying b7. } 29. Kb2 { It's simple
enough for Capa to break the pin. Now the Black Bishop is trapped on the back
rank once again. } 29... Nf6 { The action is on the Queenside, so that's where the
Knight is headed. } 30. Rd2 { Capa prepares to set up a battery by doubling his
Rooks on the d-file. } 30... a5 { Yates wastes a tempo. He's afraid that White will be
able to eventually take this pawn. We look at Tartakower for an explanation,
but he's puzzled too. } 31. Rhd1 { Capa establishes the Rook battery... } 31... Nd5 { ...but Yates successfully blocks the file with his Knight. } 32. g3 { Since the
Queenside has wound down into a standoff, Capa makes a tentative, safe
Kingside move. This type of move is typical for Capablanca, who rarely takes
chances in unclear positions. } 32... Rf7 { Yates advances the Rook to the open second
rank, where he can quickly and easily shift it to the Queenside. } 33. Nd3 { Capa, alert to the danger that another Black piece on the Queenside will pose,
sees that the time has come to reposition his forces. } 33... Rb7 { The Black
reinforcements charge in. } 34. Ne5 { The White Knight drops into the hole on e5
and attacks the c6-Rook. } 34... Rcc7 { Yates doesn't want to abandon the open c-file,
so the menaced Rook drops back to c7. } 35. Rd4 { The Rook moves forward to the
fourth rank in preparation for the advance of either the e- or g-pawn. } 35... Kg7 { Yates sees the endgame looming on the horizon, so he prepares by beginning the
centralization of his King. } 36. e4 { As expected, Capa advances a pawn to the
fourth rank. Why? We'll see in a moment... } 36... fxe4 { Yates captures (as Capa had
hoped). } 37. Rxe4 { Now that Capa has recaptured, Yates sees that he's stuck
with a weakness: an isolated e-pawn (which is also blockaded by the White
Knight). } 37... Rb5 { There are a couple of possible motives for this move. Yates may
be planning to double his Rooks on the b-file. He may also be planning to move
his Knight, attacking the White Knight. } 38. Rc4 { With his usual precision,
the Champion spots an opportunity. The Rook attacks two pieces. If the c7-Rook
moves, the Bishop is lost. If Black allows 39.Rxc7 Nxc7, then the other Rook
invades along the d-file. } 38... Rxc4 { Yates doesn't want to allow White any
flexibility, so he (reluctantly) swaps Rooks. } 39. Nxc4 { Too bad the b3-pawn
is pinned! 39.bxc4 would have been an awesome pawn fork! } 39... Bd7 { The Bishop
finally gets off of the back rank! The idea here is for the b5-Rook to pull
back along the b-file. Then the Bishop will capture the a4-Knight. The b3-pawn
will be unable to recapture, because it will still be pinned! } 40. Nc3 { Discretion is the better part of valour. The Knight withdraws before it gets
into trouble, attacking the Rook in the process. } 40... Rc5 { Yates now intends to
play 41...Nxb3 42.Kxb3 Bb4 double-attacking the pinned c4-Knight. } 41. Ne4 { By moving the Knight, Capa prevents the Knight swap and, at the same time,
attacks the Black Rook again. } 41... Rb5 { The best bet for the Rook is to return to
the b-file and re-pin the pawn. } 42. Ned6 { The frisky Knight attacks the Rook
yet again! } 42... Rc5 { The Rook moves yet again... } 43. Nb7 { ...and Capa attacks it
for a fourth consecutive time! The annoyance is beginning to show on Yates'
face. } 43... Rc7 { In frustration, Yates attacks the pesky Knight... } 44. Nbxa5 { ...and Capa bags the pawn that Yates was so worried about losing several moves
ago! Now we see that the repeated Knight attacks on the Rook weren't just a
pointless annoyance. } 44... Bb5 { Yates is a little rattled now. He's threatening to
exchange his valuable Bishop for a less-valuable Knight in order to open the
b-file (and give up a permanent advantage for a temporary one). } 45. Nd6 { Bishops are usually better than Knights on an open board, but this game is
proving to be an exception. Knights excel at the type of close-quarters combat
that we've seen in this game. } 45... Bd7 { The threatened Bishop must withdraw. } 46. Nac4 { The b-pawn props up the c-Knight, which props up the d-Knight, which in
turn controls a lot of squares on Black's half of the board, cutting Black's
mobility down. } 46... Ra7 { Yates grabs the open a-file. There's no immediate plan
here; he just does it on general principle. } 47. Ne4 { By dropping back to e4,
the Knight prevents the Black King from advancing to the center via f6. } 47... h6 { Yates is really at a loss for constructive moves here. Down a pawn to the
World Champion, he seems to want to make quiet moves that (hopefully) don't
put him at a further disadvantage. } 48. f4 { Capa continues to chip away at
Black's mobility by controlling squares on Black's half of the board. Now he
can blockade the e-pawn with a Knight outpost on e5. } 48... Be8 { Yates sees the
coming (unpreventable) 49.Ne5, so he moves the Bishop back out of harm's way. } 49. Ne5 { If Black had kept his Bishop on d7, the e5-Knight would now be
attacking it. } 49... Ra8 { Yates keeps reshuffling his pieces. His plan now is to
move the Bishop off of the back rank so that the Rook can use the rank to
quickly shift to the Kingside. } 50. Rc1 { Capa's Rook takes over the open
c-file. It now controls c6, making a future Nc6 or Rc6 possible. } 50... Bf7 { Yates
would like to get rid of White's powerful, centrally-posted Knights. He offers
his Bishop in exchange for one of them. } 51. Rc6 { Capa correctly sees that a
central Knight is more of an advantage in this position than a "bad" Bishop,
so he declines the trade. He's more interested in moves like 52.Nd6, driving
the Bishop back to g8. } 51... Bg8 { The poor Bishop is driven back to g8. Black's
mobility is approaching nil. } 52. Nc5 { The White Knight doubles up on the
blockaded e-pawn. } 52... Re8 { The Rook defends the endangered pawn. } 53. Ra6 { Capa intends to next check the Black King with Ra7+. } 53... Re7 { The Black Rook
advances to control a7 (taking it away from White) while still defending the
e-pawn. } 54. Ka3 { Capa starts thinking about advancing his passed pawn. The
King covers b4 to allow the pawn to move ahead. } 54... Bf7 { Yates doesn't have a
whole lot of options here. He plays a "waiting move" that doesn't damage his
position. } 55. b4 { The White passed pawn continues its advance. } 55... Nc7 { Yates
can't sit still forever. He begins an attempt to free his position, starting
with an attack on the White Rook. } 56. Rc6 { The Rook counters by striking back
at the Knight. } 56... Nb5+ { The Black Knight blockades the pawn and checks the King. } 57. Kb2 { 57.Ka4 just leads to 57...Ra7+, so Capa backs up with the King. } 57... Nd4 { The Black Knight continues its tour, attacking the Rook again. } 58. Ra6 { The Rook withdraws to the open file. } 58... Be8 { The Black Bishop now covers b5,
preventing the further advance of the b-pawn. } 59. g4 { The g-pawn advances to
cut down the Knight's mobility. Now f5 is off-limits to the Black Knight. } 59... Kf6 { Yates hopes to trick Capa into playing g5+, after which the Black Knight will
be able to occupy the hole on f5. } 60. Ne4+ { Capablanca doesn't fall for it.
He checks the King instead, driving it back. } 60... Kg7 { The Black King is forced to
back off. } 61. Nd6 { A White Knight once again encroaches on Black's territory,
this time attacking the Black Bishop. } 61... Bb5 { Yates makes an evaluation of the
position. He realizes that a centrally-placed White Knight is more valuable
than his own Bishop. He offers the Bishop in exchange for White's e6-Knight. } 62. Ra5 { Capa chooses to decline the trade, and doubles up on the Bishop
instead. } 62... Bf1 { Since White declined the trade, Yates finally gets some use out
of his Bishop. The Bishop is moving around behind the White pawns, to attack
them from the rear (and to control h3. Why? You'll see...). } 63. Ra8 { Capa
makes another space-grabbing move. The Rook now controls Black's first rank,
limiting the mobility of the Black pieces. } 63... g5 { Yates will now stick White
with doubled pawns. If White allows ...gxh4, the Black h-pawn will be
difficult to stop (Ra3 doesn't work, because the Black Bishop controls h3). } 64. fxg5 { This is practically forced, for reasons we've already seen. } 64... hxg5 { Black keeps on trading pawns... } 65. hxg5 { ...and White takes back. Capa has a
two-pawn advantage, but it doesn't mean much since these pawns are very weak
(doubled AND isolated!). } 65... Bg2 { The White Rook is now forced to move, since the
Bishop attacks it. } 66. Re8 { Capa offers a Rook exchange (66...Rxe8 67.Nxe8+). } 66... Rc7 { With no hope of getting his passed pawn going, Yates declines the trade.
He'll take his chances with the Rooks on the board. } 67. Rd8 { If Yates won't
trade voluntarily, Capablanca will trick him into a trade! Capa knows his
opponent, and knows that he'll play 67...Nc6 to attack the White Rook. } 67... Nc6 { Yates does the expected. He'd love nothing better tha for Capa to play 68.Nxc6
so that he can reply ...Rxc6 and get one of the hated White Knights off of the
board. } 68. Ne8+ { But Capa fools him! Now Black is forced to trade Rooks
(Black can't save both the Rook and Knight)! But first, Black must get his
King out of check... } 68... Kf8 { ...which he does. } 69. Nxc7+ { Capa grabs the Black
Rook, unveiling a discovered check against the Black King. } 69... Nxd8 { Yates
exercises the only reasonable option. Now White is sitting pretty, with two
Knights in Black territory (posted on dark squares, where the Black Bishop
can't touch them), and passed pawns on both sides of the board. } 70. Kc3 { The White King heads for the board's center (using the dark squares, of
course!). } 70... Bb7 { With two of his pieces (the pawn and Knight) "frozen", Yates
must move either the Bishop or King. The Bishop moves to the b-file to block
the White b-pawn from reaching the promotion square. } 71. Kd4 { The White King
has made it ot the board's center. Now it can quickly move to any spot on the
board where it's needed. } 71... Bc8 { The Bishop backs up to c8 to overprotect the
e-pawn. Now either the Bishop or Knight will be free to act when needed (as
long as one of them stays behind to guard the pawn). } 72. g6 { With passed
pawns on both sides of the board, Capa can create multiple threats that are
hard to meet. } 72... Nb7 { The Black Knight becomes active (while the Black Bishop
guards the e-pawn). From b7 the Knight prevents the White King from moving to
c5 to support the advance of the b-pawn. } 73. Ne8 { Surprise move! Capa tries
to trap Yates! Do you see why the Black King can't possibly capture the Knight? } 73... Nd8 { If Yates had fallen for the trap and captured the Knight, White would
have promoted the g6-pawn. The Knight comes back and resumes the
overprotection of the e-pawn. Yates must come up with another defensive plan. } (73... Kxe8 { Black can't capture on e8... } 74. g7 { ...because the pawn will
now promote! The Black King can't approach the pawn, because White controls
both f7 and f8. Black is powerless to prevent the pawn from becoming a Queen
next move. }) 74. b5 { Now the other passed pawn advances. Pawn advances on two
sides of the board in the endgame are often very difficult for the opponent to
deal with. } 74... Kg8 { Yates blocks the f-pawn's promotion square. Notice that f6,
f7, g6, and g7 are all controlled by White's Knights and are therefore
off-limits to Black's King. } 75. g5 { Capablanca sees that Black is in
"zugzwang" -- any move Black makes will weaken his posistion. Capa plays a
"waiting move" to pass the move back to Black. } 75... Kf8 { Yates curses under his
breath. He's in "zugzwang" and forced to move when he doesn't want to (because
all he has left are moves that weaken his game). } 76. g7+ { The pawn advances
under the protection of the e8-Knight. Black is running out of time. } 76... Kg8 { Yates again blocks the pawn's promotion... } 77. g6 { ...and Capa moves up the
other pawn, trapping the King. Yates forsees the inevitable White moves: Ke3
(to prevent ...e6-e5+), Ng4, and Nf6 mate. The Englishman resigns. } 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.25"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Alekhine, Alexander"]
[Black "Marshall, Frank James"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[PlyCount "123"]
[ECO "E76"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 { Alekhine (White) opens with 1.d4, a good center-controlling move that
will probably lead to a game of maneuver. } 1... Nf6 { Marshall (Black) keeps his
options open regarding the placement of his center pawns. He may yet choose to
occupy the center with his pawns, or he may allow White to occupy the center,
so that Black can attack it from the flanks. } 2. c4 { Alekhine advances a flank
pawn, but this pawn still controls some of the center. The fifth-rank squares
b5 through e5 are all under White's control. } 2... d6 { This d-pawn advance prevents
further encroachment by the White c-pawn and releases the Black light-squared
Bishop. } 3. Nc3 { We see now the other reason for 2.c4. Alekhine wanted to
develop this Knight to c3 without imprisoning the c-pawn. } 3... g6 { The g-pawn
advances to allow Marshall to fianchetto his Bishop to g7 (where it will
command the long a1-h8 diagonal). } 4. e4 { Alekhine continues his campaign to
dominate the center. The e-pawn advances under the c3-Knight's watchful eye. } 4... Bg7 { The Bishop is well-posted on the long diagonal. Marshall can now complete
his Kingside development by castling. } 5. f4 { WOW! Look at White's phalanx of
center pawns! These pawns control Black's fourth rank from b5 to g5! } 5... O-O { Marshall gets his King out of the center. Now he can concentrate on developing
his Queenside. } 6. Nf3 { Alekhine has again developed a Knight without blocking
in a pawn. } 6... Bg4 { Marshall pins the Knight that Alekhine has just developed. } 7. Be2 { And Alekhine develops another piece, breaking the pin at the same time. } 7... Nc6 { Marshall develops his last minor piece. Now he's just a move away from
connecting his Rooks and completing his development. But 7...Nbd7 may have
been better because of... } 8. d5 { ...this! By advancing the pawn, White grabs
a nice chunk of Black's half of the board while chasing the newly-developed
Black Knight. } 8... Nb8 { Marshall must retreat the Knight. He's now wasted two
tempi with nothing to show for it. } 9. O-O { Alekhine can afford the luxury of
castling, since Black has just effectively wasted two moves. } 9... Nbd7 { Marshall
now does what he should have done in the first place: he develops the Knight
to d7. } 10. Ng5 { Alekhine decides to clarify the whole Bishop situation,
offering his "bad" Bishop in exchange for Black's Bishop on g4. } 10... Bxe2 { Marshall has no choice. The Bishop has no good retreat square (10...Bh5 11.
Bxh5 gxh5 gives Black weak doubled h-pawns, while 11...Nxh5 posts the Knight
on the board's edge). } 11. Qxe2 { Of course, Alekhine must make this recapture
to even the material balance. } 11... h6 { Marshall doesn't want the Knight so close
to his King's castled position, so he kicks the Knight out. } 12. Nf3 { Alekhine
retreats the Knight, but he's succeeded in his goal of trading off his bad
Bishop for one of Black's Bishops. } 12... e6 { Marshall challenges the White d-pawn.
If White replies dxe6, then Black will have a 2-1 central pawn majority after
Black replies ...fxe6. } 13. e5 { Instead of dxe6, Alekhine counterattacks by
advancing his e-pawn. Black must either capture the e-pawn or waste a tempo by
retreating the Knight. } 13... dxe5 { Marshall captures... } 14. fxe5 { ...and Alekhine
recaptures. White now has a 2-1 central pawn majority, and the Black Knight
must move anyway! } 14... Ng4 { Rather than meekly retreating to e8, the Knight
aggressively advances toward White's Kingside. } 15. Bf4 { Alekhine completes
his development, connects his Rooks, and protects his e-pawn. } 15... exd5 { Marshall
captures the d-pawn in order to open up the e-file. Next he'll move the Rook
to e8, pinning the White e-pawn. } 16. e6 { Alekhine advances the pawn and
attacks the Knight... } 16... Re8 { ...and Marshall pins the pawn to the Queen. } 17. exf7+ { Surprise! How can Alekhine do this? Because he captures the f-pawn WITH
CHECK! Stopping check takes precedence over ...Rxe2. } 17... Kxf7 { Marshall must
capture the pawn; if 17...Kf8 18.fxe8=Q Qxe8 19.Qxe8 Kxe8 and Black is down a
Rook. } 18. Qd2 { Because Black had to get out of check, Alekhine has time to
save his Queen. } 18... Ndf6 { Marshall clears the Knight off of the d-file. He plans
to win a pawn with ...dxc4 (when White must either move or guard his Queen). } 19. cxd5 { Alekhine beats him to the punch, making the material balance even
once again. But the White d-pawn is now isolated and could become weak. } 19... g5 { Marshall expands on the Kingside and attacks the White Bishop. } 20. Bg3 { By dropping back to g3 (instead of retreating along the c1-h6 diagonal) the
Bishop controls the square in front of the d-pawn, as well as poses a possible
threat to the Black c7-pawn. } 20... Qe7 { Since his King is so exposed, Marshall
would feel safer with the Queens off of the board. He plans to play 21...Qe3+,
forcing 22.Qxe3 Nxe3. } 21. Kh1 { Alekhine sees Marshall's intent and slides his
King into the corner. Now ...Qe3 is still possible, but no longer forces a
Queen exchange. } 21... Kg8 { Marshall backs his King up toward the relative safety of
the corner, making sure to stay on light squares (since White has no
light-squared Bishop). } 22. Rfe1 { Alekhine siezes the initiative by attacking
the Black Queen. } 22... Qc5 { Marshall saves his Queen by retreating it off of the
e-file. Why ...Qc5? The Black Queen maintains control of g1, making the White
King a prisoner in the corner. } 23. Re6 { Having an isolated d-pawn can
sometimes have advantages as well as drawbacks. One advantage is that the pawn
frequently provides you with outpost squares on your opponent's half of the
board. } 23... Rad8 { Even if the file is only half-open, it's often a good idea to
place a Rook on the same file as the enemy Queen. The pin on the pawn may
later prove to have great value. } 24. Qe2 { Alekhine prevents Black from
capturing the d-pawn with his Knight (24...Nxd5 25.Rxe8+ Rxe8 26.Qxe8+,
winning a Rook for a pawn). This also takes the sting out of a Rook capture of
the d-pawn. } 24... Kh8 { Marshall corners his King to prepare for an exchange of
Rooks on e6. (If the King doesn't abandon g8, then 25...Rxe6 26.Qxe6+ and
White has the initiative) } 25. h3 { Unfortunately for Black, he hasn't noticed
that his g4-Knight is trapped! Alekhine's pawn advances to show Marshall the
error of his ways. } 25... Rxe6 { Marshall sidetracks White by capturing his Rook. } 26. dxe6 { There's no advantage to Qxe6 (now that the Black King has moved) and the
pawn on d5 is indefensible. Alekhine, by capturing with the pawn, moves it
over to the e-file, where it's no longer attacked and is covered by the Queen. } 26... Nh5 { Marshall appears unconcerned about his threatened Knight on g4. Instead,
he counterattacks by striking at the White Bishop. } 27. Ne4 { Instead of moving
the Bishop, Alekhine elects to guard it and attack the Black Queen at the same
time! } 27... Qc6 { Marshall has to save the Queen. } 28. Bxc7 { Now Alekhine sees a way
to win a pawn -- by first sacrificing his Bishop! But it's only a sham
sacrifice, as we'll soon see. } 28... Qxc7 { Marshall captures the Bishop (of course,
or else White will play 29.Bxd8!). } 29. hxg4 { The Knight has been up for grabs
for several moves, but only now does Alekhine take it. Don't just capture
automatically; always look around in case there are better moves that win more
material or gain you a big advantage. } 29... Nf4 { The endangered Black Knight leaps
forward to fork the White Queen and e-pawn. } 30. Qe1 { Of course, the Queen is
more valuable than the pawn, so Alekhine must save it. } 30... Nxe6 { And Marshall
bags the pawn. It seems that 28.Bxc7 wasn't such a good move after all. Though
the material count is even, Marshall has the advantage of owning a Bishop, and
Alekhine is stuck with doubled g-pawns. } 31. Ng3 { Alekhine pulls his Knight
back to g3. From here it can jump to a outpost on either f5 or h5. } 31... Nf4 { The outpost idea has occurred to Marshall, too. His Knight takes up residence
on f4. } 32. Rd1 { Normally, exchanging pieces when you're at a disadvantage is
a bad idea. So why does Alekhine offer a Rook swap? He sees a way to drive his
Queen into the enemy position and harass the Black King... } 32... Rxd1 { Marshall
sees no reason to refuse the trade. } 33. Qxd1 { Alekhine recaptures (of course,
he had no choice anyway!). } 33... Bxb2 { Marshall grabs a pawn and increases his
advantage. } 34. Qa4 { Alekhine's Queen has two possible destinations: a7
(taking back the pawn) or e8 (annoying the Black King). } 34... Bg7 { Marshall brings
the Bishop back to the Kingside because 1) it's safer there than hanging out
there on b2; 2) it may be needed for the defense of the King. } 35. Qe8+ { And now Alekhine's Queen becomes annoying to Black. } 35... Kh7 { The only sensible
way to get out of check. } 36. Qe4+ { The Queen continues its pesky ways. } 36... Ng6 { Marshall must either block the check or face a draw by repetition. His Knight
is forced to leave its f4 outpost square. } 37. Nh5 { Alekhine continues his
harassment tactics, this time attacking Black's Bishop. } 37... Qc1+ { But this gives
Marshall time to engage in a little harassment of his own! } 38. Kh2 { There
were several ways to block the check, but Alekhine decides that moving the
King is the best course. } 38... Qc6 { Marshall offers a Queen trade, hoping to gain a
passed pawn (39.Qxc6 bxc6). } 39. Qd3 { Alekhine refuses to cooperate. He merely
withdraws the Queen while maintaining the pin on the Black Knight. } 39... Qc7+ { Another check. Marshall has to make his 45th move by the end of the third hour
of play (a time that is fast approaching). He makes an annoyance check to buy
time on the clock while he considers his options. } 40. Kh1 { By retreating the
King to h1, Alekhine welcomes 40...Qc1+ and a possible draw by perpetual check.
Alekhine has no problem with taking a draw in an inferior position. } 40... Bh8 { Marshall isn't ready to entertain the thought of a draw. He decides instead to
preserve his threatened Bishop (which was attacked by the h5-Knight, remember?)
. } 41. Qe4 { Now it's Alekhine's turn to stall. Qe4 doesn't really help his
game, but it's not hurting it, either. } 41... Qc1+ { Since the Bishop has been moved
to h8, it's safe for the Queen to check again without fear of repeating the
position. } 42. Kh2 { The King retreats again... } 42... Qc7+ { ...and the Queen checks
again. Now each player has to make just three moves by the end of the third
hour (this is called "making the time control"). The time control for this
tournament is fifteen moves an hour. } 43. Kh1 { Alekhine invites another Queen
check... } 43... Qf7 { ...but Marshall has something else in mind. He attacks the
a-pawn! Capturing it would give him connected passed pawns on the Queenside
(which would be very hard to stop from promoting). } 44. Qc2 { Alekhine defends
the a-pawn while retaining the pin on the Black Knight. } 44... b5 { Marshall decides
that the time is right to activate his Queenside pawns (since the Kingside is
pretty much locked up). } 45. Qc6 { The White Queen attacks the b-pawn (which
can't be defended by the a-pawn because of Qxa6). } 45... b4 { The b-pawn is forced to
advance far ahead of its partner on the a-file (which is exactly what White
wants). } 46. Ng3 { Alekhine plans to relocate the Knight to f5, which is a much
better square (since it's not on the edge of the board and close to the center)
. } 46... Qxa2 { The Queen kills White's remaining Queenside pawn. Now Marshall has a
pair of connected passed pawns. But will he be able to promote one? } 47. Qb7+ { Not likely, as the White Queen double-attacks the King and b-pawn. } 47... Bg7 { Marshall blocks the check (a move that also puts his Bishop into a pin). } 48. Nf5 { Uh-oh! Alekhine threatens Qxg7 mate! What will Marshall do? } 48... Qa1+ { Marshall's Queen comes to the rescue by defending the attacked Bishop (and
checking White at the same time!). } 49. Kh2 { The White King ducks into the
pocket. } 49... Qf6 { The Queen moves to f6 where it has a dual role: defending the
Kingside and covering the advance of the a-pawn to a6. } 50. Qxa7 { Alekhine
surprises everyone by snapping off the a-pawn instead of grabbing the more
advanced b-pawn. } 50... b3 { Marshall advances his sole remaining passed pawn,
knowing that it can reach the protected b2-square before White has the chance
to attack it. } 51. Qb7 { Alekhine can't stop the pawn from reaching the safe
haven of b2, but putting the Queen on the b-file prevents the pawn from
advancing further to b1. } 51... b2 { The pawn reaches the safety of b2 (where it's
defended by the Black Queen). } 52. N3d4 { One of the White Knights (defended by
its brother) cuts off the b-pawn's protection from the Queen. } 52... Ne5 { Marshall
sighs. He sees that the b-pawn is lost. Suddenly, his face brightens. "An eye
for an eye," he thinks, as he attacks the g4-pawn with his Knight. } 53. Qxb2 { Alekhine kills the b-pawn (in the nick of time, since it was just one square
away from becoming a new Queen!). } 53... Nxg4+ { Marshall nails the g-pawn and checks
the White King. } 54. Kh3 { The King moves out of check and turns the tables on
its assailant. } 54... Qe5 { Marshall comes up with a deadly threat -- ...Qh2 mate! } 55. g3 { The pawn advances and blocks h2 off from the Black Queen. } 55... Qe4 { The Black Queen advances and defends the menaced Knight. Notice, too, that the
Bishop pins the d4-Knight to the White Queen, which leaves the f5-Knight
defenseless from the Black Queen's attack. } 56. Qc2 { Alekhine, a pawn down,
hates to offer a Queen trade, but it's the only way to keep from losing one of
his Knights outright. } 56... Qxc2 { Marshall, in a superior position (with a Bishop
vs. a Knight and an extra pawn) gladly makes the trade. } 57. Nxc2 { Alekhine
completes the trade. The New York crowd is on the edge of their seats. Can
their hometown hero slay the "Grandmonster of Chess"? } 57... h5 { Marshall advances
the pawn to defend his Knight from the White King's attack. } 58. Nce3 { Alekhine offers another trade! This time it's a Knight swap! Why? We'll see in
a minute. } 58... Nxe3 { Marshall grabs the Knight... } 59. Nxe3 { ...and Alekhine
recaptures. He knows that Knights are better than Bishops in endgames with
pawns on only one side of the board. Why? Because Knights are able to operate
on squares of BOTH colors. } 59... Bd4 { The Bishop needs to play a more active role,
so Marshall uses it to attack the White Knight. } 60. Nf5 { Turnabout is fair
play! The Knight moves out of danger and attacks the Bishop. } 60... Bc5 { By backing
off to c5, the Bishop severely cuts down the Knight's mobility. All seven of
the squares that the Knight can move to are guarded by Black pieces! } 61. g4 { Alekhine doesn't have much choice. His best plan is to try to trade off a pair
of pawns and deal with Black's remaining pawn as best he can. The Knight also
has a square to move to now (g3). } 61... Kg6 { Rather than trade off the pawns,
Marshall chooses to prevent a pawn swap (if White plays gxh5, the Knight is
lost and Black can easily destroy the White pawn before it promotes). } 62. Nh4+ { Alekhine temps Black to play gxh4 to stop the check, after which the pawns
are liquidated and the game is drawn. If Black plays ...Kh6, White can draw by
perpetual check. The players agree to end hostilities and the game is drawn. } 1/2-1/2

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.25"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Reti, Richard"]
[Black "Lasker, Edward"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "111"]
[ECO "A13"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. Nf3 { Reti (White) begins the game by developing his Kingside Knight to a
good post where it controls the center squares d4 and e5. Is he going to allow
Black to occupy the center with pawns, or will he later advance his d- or
e-pawn? } 1... d5 { Lasker advances his d-pawn to take control of a piece of the
center. The pawn influences c4 and e4, taking them away from White. } 2. c4 { Reti offers to gambit a pawn. He's immediately contesting Black's control of
the center. If Black captures the c-pawn, he'll be giving up a valuable center
pawn for a less-valuable flank one. } 2... e6 { Lasker doesn't take the bait. Instead,
he defends his d-pawn from White's attack (but blocks in his light-square
Bishop in the process). } 3. g3 { Reti could have played 3.cxd5 exd5, but this
only helps Black by releasing his light-square Bishop. He decides to prepare
for the fianchetto of his own light-square Bishop instead. } 3... c6 { Lasker is
planning to develop his Queenside Knight to d7, but doesn't want the Knight to
become pinned by White's possible Qa4. The advance of the c-pawn shields the
d7-square and makes it safe to develop the Knight there. } 4. b3 { Reti props up
the c-pawn and prepares to fianchetto his dark-square Bishop. } 4... Nf6 { Lasker
continues his development. The f6-Knight controls d5 and e4. } 5. Bg2 { The
light-square Bishop is fianchettoed and the deck is cleared for Kingside
castling. } 5... Ne4 { Lasker encroaches on White's territory. Lasker intends to play
...Qb6, putting pressure on the f2-pawn. Also, the Black Knight inhibits
White's development somewhat (6.Nc3 Nxc3 7.dxc3 with doubled c-pawns). } 6. Qc2 { Now a Knight exchange on c3 can be met by Qxc3 without doubling the pawns. } 6... Be7 { Lasker proceeds with his development. Now the way is cleared to castle on
the Kingside. } 7. Bb2 { Reti fianchettos his other Bishop. Now the Bishops
strike at the center from both flanks. } 7... O-O { Not only does this move get the
King out of the center and develops a Rook, it also defends the g7-pawn (which
was threatened by Bxg7). } 8. O-O { Reti also castles. Now he's a Knight move
away from connecting his Rooks and finishing his development. } 8... Nd7 { Lasker
gets his second Knight off of the back rank, but now his Bishop is imprisoned
on c8. } 9. d3 { Reti's had enough of this pesky Knight, so the pawn advances to
drive it away. (He's reconsidered the move Nc3; now he plans to develop his
Knight to d2.) } 9... Ng5 { The Knight retreats under the protection of the Bishop
and Queen. Now it attacks the f3-Knight. } 10. Nbd2 { Reti connects his Rooks,
finishing his development. Now the d2-Knight overprotects its brother on f3. } 10... Nxf3+ { The Black Knight was pretty lame, hanging around on g5. The Knight had
nowhere to move and had no future, so Lasker decides to trade it for White's
healthy Knight. } 11. Nxf3 { Reti completes the trade. } 11... Bf6 { Lasker threatens
White's well-placed b2-Bishop. } 12. d4 { Reti isn't prepared to give up his
dark-squared Bishop just yet, so he blocks the attack with his d-pawn. } 12... Re8 { Lasker continues to follow general principles of development and brings his
Rook to a center file. He's also building up protection on e5 to prepare for a
future e6-e5 pawn push. } 13. e4 { For someone who started out playing a
Hypermodern opening, Reti certainly has established a lot of pawns in the
center! How ironic! } 13... Nb6 { Lasker expects a series of pawn exchanges on d5. He
hopes to post his Knight there (protected by the Queen) when the smoke clears.
He also clears the d7-square so that his Bishop can get off of the bank rank. } 14. Ne5 { Reti doesn't initiate a pawn slaughter on d5. His Knight leaps to the
hole on e5 and establishes an outpost there. } 14... Bd7 { As expected, Lasker's
Bishop goes to d7. He doesn't really care if White plays 15.Nxd7, because
White would be trading a well-placed Knight for a "bad" Bishop. } 15. Ng4 { The Knight wasn't really taking up a post on e5; it was just using e5 as a
stepping-stone to g4, where it attacks Black's "good" Bishop. } 15... Rc8 { Lasker
moves the Rook to the same file as the White Queen to prevent the massive pawn
exchange in the center (the exchange of pawns would open the c-file and allow
the Rook to attack the White Queen). } 16. Nxf6+ { Reti gives up his Knight for
Black's "good" Bishop. } 16... Qxf6 { And Black's Queen completes the transaction.
Lasker has also completed his development (his Rooks are finally connected). } 17. a4 { Reti sees that the Black Knight has only one square that it can move
to (a8), so he advnces the pawn toward the Knight. } 17... Red8 { Lasker sees what's
happening, but doesn't retreat the Knight. He rather have a weak a-pawn to
attack in return for the indignity of a cornered Knight. He instead prepares
to play ...Be8 and ...dxc4 to half-open the d-file. } 18. a5 { Reti's pawn
strikes at the Black Knight... } 18... Na8 { ...which retreats to the corner (the
absolute WORST square on the chessboard for a Knight!). } 19. e5 { Another White
pawn steps forward, driving into Black's half of the board. This pawn attacks
the Black Queen. } 19... Qg6 { Lasker offers to trade Queens. If 20.Qxg6, then Black
can reply 20...fxg6, half-opening the f-file for his Rooks. He needs to do
SOMETHING to relieve his cramped position! } 20. Qe2 { Reti knows that the best
way to ease a cramped position is to trade pieces, so he doesn't help Black
out. The Queen sidesteps to avoid the swap. } 20... Nc7 { The Knight gets out of the
corner, but it still doesn't have a lot of scope! } 21. Ba3 { Reti is using his
army like a boa constrictor, squeezing Black tighter and tighter. The Bishop
commands the a3-f8 diagonal, taking all of these squares away from Black. } 21... Na6 { The Knight was headed back to e8, but Lasker sees that this move is
impossible (because of White's reply Be7 and the d8-Rook is trapped and lost!).
The Knight has become a "flying Dutchman" -- wandering around the board! } 22. Rfe1 { The Rook has little scope behind the f-pawn, but it can spring to life
on the e-file after the Queen moves. } 22... Be8 { Black is completely tied in knots!
Lasker prepares to attempt to free himself. If he pushes the f-pawn, the
Bishop will finally have some play along the e8-h5 diagonal. } 23. Bd6 { Reti
cramps Black even further! It will now be impossible for Black to remove the
Bishop from the "hole" on d6 without sacrificing some material. } 23... f5 { Lasker is
doing what he can to uncrowd his half of the board... } 24. f4 { ...but Reti has
no intentions of letting him squirm free. He locks up Black's central pawns on
the same color squares as the Black Bishop! (This is possible because Reti's
dark-square Bishop is developed OUTSIDE the pawn chain!) } 24... Qh6 { Lasker sets up
his next move -- ...Bh5, threatening the White Queen. } 25. Bf3 { But Reti
blocks that threat and takes another square (h5) away from Black! } 25... g5 { Lasker
is playing true kamikaze chess now (since he has little to lose!). He attempts
to open up the Kingside. It's risky to expose your King while Queens are still
on the board. } 26. Ra2 { Reti sees Lasker's intention -- open up the g-file and
check the White King. with a Black Rook. By advancing his own Rook, he covers
the key g2-square with another piece. Now he can safely block check with Qg2. } 26... gxf4 { Lasker proceeds to pry the g-file open. } 27. gxf4 { Reti completes the
trade. Now the Kings face each other along an open file. } 27... Rd7 { Here come the
reinforcements! The Rook is headed for g7, where it will check White's King.
Of course, the White Queen can't commit suicide by blocking the check, and
blocking with the Bishop results in a pin. What can White do? } 28. Qe3 { Now we see the reason for 26.Ra2! The Queen sidesteps and allows the Rook to
move to g2 to defend the King. } 28... Rg7+ { Despite White's answer of 29.Rg2, Lasker
checks the King anyway. He's giving himself a little breathing room by getting
pieces out from behind the pawn chain and then trading them off. } 29. Rg2 { As expected, the Rook blocks the check... } 29... Rxg2+ { ...and Lasker trades the
Rook off. } 30. Kxg2 { If 30.Bxg2, then ...Qg6 pins the Bishop. Better to
recapture with the King than to immobilize a piece. } 30... Bh5 { Another piece is
offered up... } 31. Bxh5 { ...and accepted. } 31... Qxh5 { White is still controlling a
big chunk of territory on Black's half of the board, but Black has some chance
of getting his remaining pieces out from behind the locked pawns. } 32. Rg1 { Reti threatens to move his King and discover check against the Black King. } 32... Kf7 { The King abandons the g-file before White can spring the discovered check. } 33. Kh1 { The White King bails out, too (because of 33...Rg8+). } 33... Rg8 { Lasker
considers the position carefully and offers yet another trade... } 34. Rxg8 { ...which Reti accepts. } 34... Kxg8 { This is an interesting position. White has a
"bad" Bishop (developed OUTSIDE the pawn chain, though) and Black has a badly
misplaced Knight. Both Kings are exposed, and with Queens still on the board
anything can happen! } 35. cxd5 { The time is right to clear up the mess in the
center. If Black replies ...exd5, then White has a protected passed pawn on
the e-file. If ...cxd5, then White has opportunities on the Queenside. } 35... cxd5 { Lasker keeps the pawn structure symmetrical (which we know to be a good idea!)
and takes his chances, rather than allowing White a passed e-pawn. } 36. b4 { The b-pawn advances to a square where it's defended by the Bishop and can
protect the a5-pawn. } 36... Kf7 { Lasker is unsure of where the threats will come
from, so he gets his King closer to the board's center so that he can better
deal with them from either side (plus the threat of Qg3+ was still hanging in
the air). } 37. Qd3 { The Queen moves to the d-file to prevent ...Qd1+ (with a
chance of a draw by perpetual check). It also supports the advance of the
b-pawn (winning the Knight). Look for multi-purpose moves like this in your
own games. } 37... Qh4 { Lasker will now try to check on the e-file. } 38. Qf1 { No
problem for Reti; he just covers the whole first rank and eliminates any check
possibilities there. } 38... Qd8 { Lasker has been making his own multi-purpose moves.
His last move set up his Queen's withdrawal to d8, where it covers the Black
Knight's escape squares (b8 and c7). } 39. Qh3 { Reti's Queen is threatening to
pick off the h7-pawn. } 39... Kg8 { Lasker guards it the only way he can. If the Queen
moves to guard the pawn, 40.b5 wins the Black Knight for White. } 40. Qg3+ { The Queen checks... } 40... Kf7 { ...which drives the King away from the h-pawn's
defense. Of course, Reti can't try to attack it without risking a draw by
repetition. } 41. Qg5 { Reti offers to trade Queens. Will Lasker make the trade? } 41... Qc8 { Of course not! The Queen has to cover c7 and b8, or else the White b-pawn
will advance and win the Knight (which would have no retreat!). } 42. b5 { Can Reti win an endgame with just Queens and pawns on the board? HE thinks so! } 42... Qc1+ { SURPRISE! Instead of retreating his Knight (and trading it for the White
Bishop), Lasker checks the White King! He's trying for a draw by perpetual
check (not a bad idea, considering the circumstances). } 43. Kg2 { 43.Qg1 Qxf4
won't do -- Black would be trading his Knight for a couple of White pawns (and
Black would have TWO passed pawns!). The King has to move to escpae check. } 43... Qd2+ { Lasker smells a draw and checks again. } 44. Kh3 { The White King keeps on
running. } 44... Qe3+ { The Queen checks the White King and attacks the d4-pawn. } 45. Kh4 { The King continues his flight. } 45... Qe1+ { Lasker keeps checking. He sees a
way to win the h-pawn now. } 46. Kh5 { Notice that the White King is running
toward the Black King. While Lasker fishes for a draw, Reti is looking for a
mate (by the White Queen, supported by the White Bishop and King)! } 46... Qe2+ { Lasker springs another double attack by checking the King and menacing the
h-pawn. } 47. Kh6 { The King runs yet again. } 47... Qxh2+ { And Lasker snags the pawn.
Tartakower groans, leans over to us and says, "He's won a pawn, but lost a
Knight!" } 48. Qh5+ { Look carefully...this move is forced! This is the only way
for White to escape from check! } 48... Qxh5+ { Lasker makes the trade. } 49. Kxh5 { Now study the board again; the Black Knight is attacked and has no safe haven! } 49... Kg7 { Lasker shakes his head, then writes off his Knight. He moves his King
closer to the h-pawn to prevent the White King from approaching it. } 50. bxa6 { Reti has worked hard to win the Knight; now he claims his prize. } 50... bxa6 { Lasker recaptures. The position is worse than he thought: his a-pawns are
doubled AND immobile! The a7-pawn is stuck on a dark square and ripe for the
White Bishop's picking. } 51. Bc5 { Reti leaps at the chance to win another pawn. } 51... Kf7 { Lasker must move either the King or h-pawn -- there are no other legal
moves. } 52. Kh6 { The King approaches the h-pawn with murderous intent. } 52... Kg8 { Lasker must defend his endangered pawn. } 53. Bxa7 { Black was powerless to
prevent the capture of the a-pawn. All of the pawns on the board are locked.
The only mobile pieces are the Kings and the White Bishop. } 53... Kh8 { The King is
Black's only mobile piece, so Lasker makes the only move that defends the
h-pawn. } 54. Bb6 { The fact that the King is Black's only mobile piece holds
the key to victory for Reti. } 54... Kg8 { Lasker is reduced to shuffling the King
back and forth. } 55. Bd8 { The mobile Bishop zig-zags ominously toward the
Kingside. } 55... Kh8 { Lasker again plays his only move. } 56. Bh4 { Checking
immediately doesn't work -- Reti must play a waiting move first. Lasker sees
the writing on the wall and resigns. Do you see why? Check the variation to
find out. } (56... Bh4 56. Kg8 { Do you see what White will play here? } 57. Bf6 { The Bishop takes
the h8-square away from the Black King. Do you remember the term for this kind
of position (where a player MUST move, but would rather not)? } 57... Kf8 { ZUGZWANG!
Black would love to be able to "pass", but he MUST move the King (his only
mobile piece). The only legal move takes the King away from the pawn's defense. } 58. Kxh7 { White captures the pawn. Since the White King is closer to Black's
pawns than the Black King is to White's, White will be able to capture one or
two, create a passed pawn, and go on to win the game. }) 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.25"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Bogoljubow, Efim"]
[Black "Janowski, Dawid"]
[Result "0-1"]
[PlyCount "88"]
[ECO "D26"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 { Bogoljubow (White) opens hostilities by advancing his d-pawn (which, as
we know, is a good move that claims a share of the center for White). } 1... d5 { Janowski (Black) reciprocates with a mirror-image of White's move (which is
good for the same reasons). } 2. Nf3 { Bogo develops a Knight toward the center.
The Knight exercises its influence over d4 and e5 (and, in fact, may later be
able to establish an outpost on e5). } 2... Nf6 { Janowski's Knight serves a similar
purpose. It controls d5 and e4, and may post itself on e4 at a later opportune
moment. } 3. c4 { Bogo offers to sacrifice (or "gambit") a pawn in return for
speedy development. Now Black can either accept or refuse ("decline") the
gambit pawn. } 3... dxc4 { The Frenchman accepts White's gift (which is why this
opening is called the "Queen's Gambit Accepted"). However, long years of
master practice has proved that it's hard for Black to hang on to the gambit
pawn. } 4. e3 { And this is why. By advancing the e-pawn, White unleashes an
attack on the c4-pawn (from his light-squared Bishop). If Black tries to
defend it with ...b5, White just plays a2-a4 and attacks the defending pawn. } 4... e6 { Janowski advances his e-pawn and releases his dark-squared Bishop from its
back-rank prison. } 5. Bxc4 { Bogo snags the pawn, and the material is even
again. But development is uneven; White has developed two pieces and two pawns,
while Black has just a single piece and pawn off of their starting squares. } 5... c5 { Janowski challenges the White center, offering to swap a flank pawn for a
more valuable center one. He can also now play ...Nc6 without trapping the
c-pawn behind the Knight. } 6. Nc3 { Bogo is unconcerned. If ...cxd4, then Nxc4
and White's developmental lead increases to three pieces and a pawn versus a
piece and a pawn for Black. } 6... Nc6 { Janowski develops another piece and piles up
on the d-pawn, attacking it for a third time. But White has it covered three
times, so there's no danger yet. } 7. O-O { It's usually a good idea to get your
King out of the center as soon as possible. } 7... Be7 { Janowski thinks that early
castling is a fine idea, so he moves his Bishop out and clears the way for
Kingside castling. } 8. Qe2 { Bogo (after some quick calculation) sees that he
has time to shift his Queen and bring his Rook to d1 before Black starts
swapping on d4 (8...cxd4 9.Rd1 and the Black d-pawn is pinned to the Black
Queen!). } 8... O-O { Janowski realizes the futility of starting an exchange on d4,
so he insures his King's safety instead. } 9. Rd1 { Putting the Rook onto the
same file as the opponent's Queen often carries hidden dangers for your
opponent. Here, Bogo could play dxc5 at an opportune moment and possibly win
some material by uncovering an attack on the Queen. } 9... Qc7 { Janowski takes no
chances. He removes the Queen from the d-file before White has a chance to
cook up any surprises. } 10. a3 { This pawn advance takes b4 away from the Black
Knight and prepares a possible advance of the b-pawn to b4. } 10... a6 { Likewise,
Janowski denies b5 to the White Knight and supports the advance of his own
b-pawn. } 11. dxc5 { Bogo takes the initiative and captures Black's c-pawn. } 11... Bxc5 { Janowski must recapture with the Bishop to restore the material balance. } 12. b4 { Bogo hangs on to the initiative by making moves that force a reply from
Black. If your opponent is busy responding to your moves, he doesn't have time
to carry out his own plans. } 12... Be7 { The only choice for Black is to withdraw the
Bishop. } 13. Bb2 { Not only does this move grab the long a1-h8 diagonal for
White, it also allows a Rook to occupy c1. } 13... Bd7 { The light-squared Bishop is
limited in mobility, but at least it's off the back rank. Now Black's Rook are
connected and his development is complete. } 14. Rac1 { Bogo once again posts a
Rook on the same file as Black's Queen. } 14... Rac8 { Janowski sets up a c-file
battery, but that's really not his intention here. He wants to guard c7 to
prevent White's Rook from using it as a penetration square (after the other
pieces leave the file, of course). } 15. Bd3 { Bogo starts clearing the file to
give his Rook more space. } 15... Rfd8 { "Rooks belong on open files". Now both
players have their Rooks established on the two open files. Since the Kings
are trapped behind pawn walls, a single misstep from either player could spell
a quick mate! } 16. Ne4 { Bogo clears another minor piece out of his Rook's way.
He feels that it's better to advance the Knight to the board's center than to
pull it back toward the corner. } 16... Nxe4 { Allowing 17.Nxf6 Bxf6 18.Bxf6 gxf6
would blow open a hole in the Black King's fortress, so Janowski finds it
preferrable to exchange Knights. } 17. Bxe4 { Now both White Rooks have a clear
path along the open files. But Bogo has to be cautious! A single careless move
could be disastrous! } 17... Be8 { The Bishop steps back to let the heavy artillery
command the file. The opposing Rooks stare each other down along the d-file. } 18. Nd4 { The Knight blocks the file. Now there is a possibility of another
exchange of Knights. } 18... Qb6 { Janowski wasn't crazy about the Rook's pin on his
c6-Knight, or about the latent danger to his Queen. The Queen slips over to
the b-file, out of harm's way. } 19. Qf3 { Bogo piles up on the c6-Knight... } 19... Ne5 { ...which promptly counterattacks the White Queen! } 20. Bxh7+ { Amazing! Bogo
sacrifices his Bishop for the h7-pawn and checks (which is actually a
not-uncommon maneuver! There are frequent opportunities to sacrifice a piece
to blow open a castled King's position!). } 20... Kxh7 { There is no time for ...Nxf3
(due to the check). Janowski's King recaptures (otherwise he loses a pawn with
no return). } 21. Qh5+ { Bogo's Queen leaves the hotseat on f3 and checks
Black's King. Will his Bishop sacrifice pay off? } 21... Kg8 { This move is forced.
It's the only legal move that stops the check. } 22. Qxe5 { And Bogo grabs the
Knight (and gets vengeance for the dead Bishop). The net result is that White
has won a pawn. } 22... Bf6 { Janowski is not just attacking the White Queen, he's
preventing a really ugly combination! White threatened 23.Nxe6 fxe6 24.Qxg7
mate! } 23. Qh5 { Bogo must save his Queen, but he really doesn't want to give
up control of his fifth rank. On h5, the Queen stays on the rank, plus can
quickly retreat along the d1-h5 diagonal if the need arises. } 23... Ba4 { Janowski
keeps a firm grip on the initiative. He sets forth to disrupt White's position. } 24. Re1 { The Rook is forced to abandon the d-file. } 24... Qd6 { The Queen and Rook
form a battery on the d-file. Janowski intends to invade the White position
using d2 as a penetration point. } 25. h3 { Bogo sees that there's a lot of
Black pieces bearing down on his first and second ranks, so he prepares an
"escape hatch" for his King (which is presently unusable because of the Black
Queen's influence). } 25... Bc2 { The light-squared Bishop drives in (under the
c8-Rook's protection) to cramp White's game. Now both b1 and d1 are off-limits
to the White Rooks. } 26. Qf3 { The b7-pawn is now under attack. Why not 26.
Nxc2? See the variation. } (26. Nxc2 { Playing this move will ultimately cost
White a piece. } 26... Bxb2 { Black evens the material and attacks the c1-Rook. } 27. Rcd1 { The Rook counterattacks the Black Queen, but must leave the Knight
undefended to do so. } 27... Qc5 { The Queen dodges the bullet and attacks the Knight.
White may or may not play 28.Rxd8, but either way, the c2-Knight must fall. }) 26... b5 { Remember that you don't always have to guard a pawn to defend it.
Sometimes the best way to defend an attacked pawn is to advance it to a new
square. } 27. Qe2 { Bogo attacks the annoying Black Bishop on c2. The Bishop is
now threatened by Knight, Rook, and Queen. } 27... Ba4 { While it's true that the
Bishop is cornered on this square, it still bears down on d1 and takes the
a4-d1 diagonal away from White. } 28. Qf3 { The White Queen resumes its post on
the long a8-h1 diagonal. } 28... Rc4 { The Rook advances to c4, where it's guarded by
the b-pawn. The White Knight is now attacked four times, plus Janowski has the
option of forming a Rook battery on the c-file. } 29. Ba1 { Bogo could have
exchanged Rooks on c4, but that would have given Black a passed pawn. He
decides instead to drop his Bishop back to a square where the two Rooks
protect it. } 29... Rdc8 { Janowski doubles his Rooks on the file, forming a powerful
Rook battery. } 30. Rb1 { Bogo has three choices: 1) 30.Rxc4 Rxc4 and Black
controls the c-file; 2) 30.Bb2 and though the Bishop guards c1, the Bishop
itself is undefended; 3) abandon the file. He opts for 3. } 30... e5 { The Black pawn
steps forward and attacks the Knight... } 31. Ne2 { ...driving it from its post..
. } 31... Bc2 { ...which leaves c2 undefended and able to be occupied by the Black
Bishop. } 32. Rbc1 { Bogo's Rook can now reoccupy c1 because the Black Bishop
shields c1 from the Black Rooks and the White Knight helps guard c1 (which is
why the Knight retreated to e2 instead of attacking the Black Queen from f5). } 32... Be4 { Defended by the c4-Rook, the Bishop moves to e4 to attack White's Queen. } 33. Qg4 { Bogo must move the Queen to save it... } 33... Bb7 { ...and the Bishop pulls
back along the long diagonal and uncovers an attack on the White Queen by the
c4-Rook! (Notice how through a series of threats the Bishop has improved its
position from being cornered on a4). } 34. Rxc4 { The Queen is in danger of
being trapped, so Bogo removes the attacking piece. } 34... Rxc4 { Janowski promptly
exchanges Rooks and renews the attack on White's Queen. } 35. f4 { Bogo's pawn
blocks the attack. } 35... Qd2 { The Black Queen invades White's position. The Rook on
e1 is in immediate jeopardy. } 36. Qg3 { The Queen steps back to cover the
endangered Rook. White's position is holding together, but the walls are
starting to crack! } 36... Re4 { The Rook piles up on the e3-pawn, threatening to win
it and punch another hole in the White defenses. } 37. Bc3 { Bogo's best hope is
to counterattack. The Bishop threatens the Black Queen. } 37... Qd5 { The wily
Frenchman sets a trap. Next is 38...Rxe3. If 39.Qxe3 then 39...Qxg2 is mate!
But if White just moves the Queen away, Black has won a pawn! } 38. Bxe5 { Bogo doesn't see any way around the trap, but he DOES see a way to take the
sting out of it: he grabs a pawn of his own with the Bishop. } 38... Rxe3 { Janowski
plays the expected Rook move. The immediate danger is 39...Qxg2 mate. } 39. Qg4 { The White Queen must flee, but has to stay on the g-file to prevent the mate
on g2. } 39... Bxe5 { Janowski keeps trading pieces. Usually this is a bad idea when
you're attacking, but it works in this case -- Black is opening up lines
toward the White King. } 40. fxe5 { Bogo completes the Bishop trade, but now his
e-pawn is hanging. } 40... Rxe5 { Although the material is dead even, Black is
obviously ahead here, due to his pieces' greater mobility. } 41. Kh2 { The White
pieces are tied in knots -- all are either pinned or tied to the defense. Bogo
makes what amounts to a waiting move -- there's little else that he can do. } 41... Qd2 { At first glance, 41...Rg5 looks good, until you realize that this allows
the White Knight to move to f4 and simultaneously attack the Queen and defend
g2. No, it's better for Black to keep the heat on by doubling up on the Knight. } 42. Qg3 { Since there's no longer a mate threat at g2, the White Queen is
free to make threats of its own. The Queen attacks the Black Rook. } 42... f6 { The pawn promptly steps up to cover the Rook. } 43. h4 { 43...Rg5 is ugly for
White, so his pawn steps ahead to deny that square to Black. } 43... Bd5 { The walls
are beginning to fall in on White! The Bishop prepares to move to c4 (tripling
the attacks on the White Knight!). } 44. Qf2 { The best that Bogo can do is
continue to defend the Knight twice... } 44... Bc4 { ...so Janowski hits it a third
time. Faced with a catastrophic loss of material (try it yourself, perhaps by
using a chess computer), Bogoljubow resigns. } 0-1

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.26"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Bogoljubow, Efim"]
[Black "Lasker, Emanuel"]
[Result "0-1"]
[PlyCount "142"]
[ECO "C65"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 { Bogoljubow (White) opens aggressively by grabbing control of d5 and f5
and allowing for the development of his Queen and light-squared Bishop. } 1... e5 { Dr. Lasker (Black) follows suit, controlling a piece of the center for himself
and allowing for the development of his forces. } 2. Nf3 { Another aggressive
move from Bogo. The Knight develops to a good post for controlling the center
and attacks the e5-pawn. } 2... Nc6 { Lasker has to defend the pawn, so he does it in
the most efficient way, by developing a piece that defends the pawn. } 3. Bb5 { Bogo puts pressure on the pawn's defender. The immediate threat is 3.Bxc6,
capturing the Knight and leaving the pawn undefended. } 3... Nf6 { Lasker develops
his other Knight and counterattacks the White e4-pawn. } 4. d4 { The position
becomes more complicated with each passing move. Bogo doubles up on the Black
e-pawn, attacking it a second time. } 4... exd4 { Lasker decides to clear things up
in the center by trading pawns. } 5. Nxd4 { Bogo recaptures with the Knight (of
course, NOT 5.Qxd4 Nxd4!). } 5... Be7 { Rather than playing 5...Nxd4 (which leaves
the d7-pawn pinned), Lasker plans to castle early. He prepares for this by
developing his last Kingside minor piece. } 6. O-O { Bogo gets the King out of
the center and develops the Rook toward the important center files. } 6... a6 { By advancing the a-pawn, Black kicks the Bishop off of b5. Will the Bishop
retreat to a4, where it still pressures Black's Knight, or will it go
elsewhere? } 7. Nxc6 { Surprise! Bogo captures the Knight (and threatens Black's
Queen) instead of withdrawing the Bishop! } 7... bxc6 { There's no time to play 7...
axb5, since the Black Queen is in jeopardy. Lasker must take the White Knight.
7...dxc6 promotes the exchange of Queens, so he captures toward the center and
keeps the Queens on the board. } 8. Bd3 { 8.a4 is pretty pointless (since the
road to the Black King is now blocked by TWO Black pawns), so Bogo pulls his
Bishop back to defend the e-pawn. } 8... d6 { Lasker now has pawns controlling b5
through e5, and he's released his light-squared Bishop. Unfortunately, his
dark-squared Bishop is blocked in. } 9. Nc3 { Bogo figures that the d-pawn came
to d6 to support the c-pawn's advance to c5. By developing his Knight, Bogo
threatens to occupy the "hole" on d5 if the c6-pawn steps forward. } 9... O-O { King safety should be one of your main concerns, and castling is a great way
to safeguard your King. } 10. f4 { Bogo, by advancing his pawn, grabs Kingside
space and allows more freedom for his Rook on f1 (the farther the pawn
advances, the more space that the Rook will control). } 10... Re8 { We've seen this
before. It's often a good idea to place your Rooks at the head of the d- and
e-files. They'll be well-posted there after the center opens up. } 11. Kh1 { Bogo sticks his King into the corner. He's afraid of a possible check by Black
later along the a7-g1 diagonal. } 11... Nd7 { The Knight drops back, allowing the
dark-squared Bishop freedom of movement. The Knight now has the option of
moving to b6, c5, or e5 (once the square f4 is cleared, of course). } 12. Be3 { Bogo develops his Queenside Bishop and cuts down the mobility of the Black
Knight. The Bishop controls b6 and c5, discouraging the Knight from moving to
one of these squares. } 12... Bf6 { The Bishop occupies the long a1-h8 diagonal,
putting pressure on the f3-Knight and (indirectly) on the b2-pawn. } 13. Qf3 { Bogo finishes his development by getting his Queen off of the back rank. Now
his Rooks are connected. } 13... Rb8 { Now we see the purpose behind 12...Bf6. Lasker
threatens ...Rxb2 and ...Bxc3 (since the Knight would then be undefended). } 14. Rab1 { The ONLY move (since 14.b3 Bxc3 loses the Knight, and 14.Bc1 Bxc3 15.
bxc3 Rxb1 loses the Rook!). } 14... Bxc3 { Normally, a player wouldn't trade a
long-diagonal Bishop for a Knight, but Lasker has his reasons (as we'll see
soon). } 15. bxc3 { Bogo has to take back with the pawn or else be behind in
material. But the b-file is now open... } 15... Rxb1 { ...allowing Lasker to trade off
a pair of Rooks. } 16. Rxb1 { Bogo now has control of the open b-file, but his
doubled c-pawns are weak and are targets of attack for Black. This is why Dr.
Lasker traded his Bishop for the Knight. } 16... c5 { By pushing this pawn, Lasker
cuts down the mobility of the e3-Bishop, plus the c5-pawn screens b6 from the
Bishop, allowing the Black Knight to move there if Lasker so chooses. } 17. c4 { Bogo wants to prevent the further advance of the Black c-pawn (possible after .
..Nb6), but now his light-squared Bishop has become just a glorified pawn. } 17... Qe7 { Nothing dazzling here, just a quiet, position-strengthening move. Lasker has
established a battery on the half-open e-file. } 18. h3 { Bogo looks ahead and
foresees Black playing ...Nf6 and ...Bg4, attacking the White Queen. He pushes
the h-pawn to deny g4 to Black. } 18... Nf6 { Lasker piles up on the White e-pawn,
which is now attacked three times and defended just twice. } 19. Bf2 { Bogo
anticipates an exchange on e4 and wants to clear his Bishop out of the line of
fire. } 19... Bd7 { Lasker could have won a pawn through a massive exchange on e4, but
he prefers to retain his attacking possibilities by keeping his pieces on the
board. By moving the Bishop instead, he encourages White to advance the pawn... } 20. e5 { ...which he does. Bogo could have defended the pawn a third time
with Re1, but he didn't want to abandon the open b-file. } 20... dxe5 { Lasker takes
the pawn... } 21. fxe5 { ...Bogo recaptures... } 21... Qxe5 { ...and Lasker emerges a
pawn ahead. Now Lasker commands the open e-file with his battery, while Bogo
has open diagonals for his Queen and light-squared Bishop. } 22. Bg3 { Bogo
spots a way to win back his pawn. He skewers the Queen and c7-pawn. } 22... Qe6 { The Queen has no option other than retreat. } 23. Bxc7 { Bogo snaps up the
hanging pawn. The material is even, Bogo has the advantage of the two Bishops,
but his pieces aren't placed as well as Black's. } 23... Bc6 { Lasker attacks the
White Queen to drive it off of the long a8-h1 diagonal. Then he could safely
play ...Qxh3+ (since the g-pawn would be pinned). } 24. Qf5 { Bogo offers a
Queen exchange. If Black declines, Bogo could win a pawn via Qxc5. Bogo also
sees drawing chances for himself in the endgame. } 24... Qxf5 { Due to White's weak
Queenside pawns and the bad placement of White's King (far from the center)
versus Black's good placement of his Bishop and Knight, Lasker feels that it's
to his advantage to trade down to an endgame. } 25. Bxf5 { Bogo completes the
trade... } 25... Be4 { ...but now his Bishop is trapped! There's no way for White to
avoid giving up the advantageous Bishop pair. This was the hidden reason
behind 24...Qxf5. } 26. Bxe4 { Bogo figures that as long as he has to give up
this Bishop, he may as well get another Bishop for it (instead of a Knight). } 26... Nxe4 { Now Lasker has a slight disadvantage in owning a Knight versus a Bishop,
but this is somewhat offset by the centralized position of the Knight on a
square of the opposite color from White's Bishop. } 27. Rb6 { Now the open
b-file comes into play. Bogo uses the open file to attack the Black Queenside
pawns. } 27... Ra8 { The Black Rook moves to defend the a-pawn... } 28. Rc6 { ...so the
Rook just attacks the c-pawn instead. Of course, it's defended by the Knight,
so reinforcements are needed. } 28... h5 { The pawn advances as a preparatory step to
an attack on White's cornered King. } 29. Bb6 { The Bishop attacks the Black
c-pawn a second time. } 29... h4 { Lasker has no way to save his c-pawn, so he
continues the preparations for the attack. Now ...Ng3+ traps the White King in
the corner, making it possible for the Black Rook to slide down a center file
and deliver mate. } 30. Kg1 { Bogo sees the coming attack and decides that it's
best to get the King out of the corner immediately, rather than wait a move. } 30... Re8 { Lasker continues to set up his attack. There's no longer a mate threat,
but a Kingside attack will allow him to control the initiative and possibly
win some material. } 31. Bxc5 { Bogo had been sidetracked from his attack on the
Black c-pawn, but now he finally has time to win the pawn. } 31... Rd8 { Lasker now
threatens ...Rd1, driving the King back into the corner (with a strong attack
to follow). Had he played 31...Nxc5, he would have derailed his own attack! } 32. Kf1 { The White King runs farther into the open, preventing any possibility
of being cornered and mated. } 32... Rd2 { His mating threat stymied, Lasker must
content himself with winning back the lost pawn. } 33. a4 { Bogo gets his a-pawn
off of the same rank as the invading Rook. } 33... Rxc2 { Lasker gets back his pawn
and now threatens the c4-pawn. } 34. Bb4 { By shifting the Bishop, Bogo allows
his Rook to defend the menaced pawn. } 34... Rf2+ { The Rook checks, supported by the
Knight. } 35. Kg1 { The King has no choice but to head back toward the corner to
escape check (35.Ke1 Rxg2 loses a pawn). } 35... Ra2 { The Rook now attacks the a-pawn. } 36. Be1 { Bogo sees that there's no way to defend his a-pawn, so he instead
launches a counterattack against the h4-pawn. } 36... Rxa4 { Lasker's Rook gobbles up
the one pawn... } 37. Bxh4 { ...while Bogoljubow's Bishop swallows the h-pawn.
Lasker's best bet now is to try to eliminate the Queenside pawns (Knights are
better than Bishops in endgames with pawns on only one side of the board;
remember?). } 37... Nd2 { The Black pieces attack the White c-pawn twice. Bogo must
decide whether to try to defend it (by 38.c5) or pursue another plan. } 38. Bd8 { Bogo decides to let the pawn go. His Bishop now controls the square directly
in front of Black's a-pawn, preventing its advance. } 38... Nxc4 { The Knight
(protected by the Rook) picks off the White c-pawn. Now Lasker must get ready
for the long, slow grind of trying to convert his one-pawn advantage into a
win. } 39. g4 { Bogo gives his King some more breating room and prevents the
Black f-pawn from advancing to mid-board (f5). } 39... Nd2 { By removing his Knight
from the same file as the White Rook, Lasker frees his Rook from having to
defend the Knight. } 40. Rc8 { The White Rook prepares to get behind the Black
a-pawn (the rule about Rooks belonging behind passed pawns also applies to
ENEMY passed pawns! It's hard for the pawn to promote with your Rook breathing
down its neck). } 40... Kh7 { The Black King gets off of the back rank to prevent 41.
Bg5+ (discovered check from the Rook) Kh7 42.Bxd2 (with a winning advantage). } 41. Ra8 { Now the pawn will have a tough time promoting, plus the Black Rook is
tied to the pawn's defense. Of course, Lasker could just give up the pawn,
hoping that his theoretical Knight vs. Bishop advantage (with pawns on one
side of the board) will carry the day. } 41... Ra2 { Lasker looks forward to next
moving his Knight and penning the White King on the back rank (remember the
Rook's "invisible force field"? The Rook would control the second rank and the
King would be unable to cross it). } 42. Kg2 { Bogo sees through Lasker's plan.
The King enters the second rank, shielded (ironically) by the Black Knight! } 42... Nb3+ { The Knight begins a trek to get closer to White's pieces, and uncovers a
check on the White King. } 43. Kg3 { The King flees to the third rank (to
prevent getting trapped on the back rank). } 43... Nd4 { The Knight gets to the center
of the board. Now it has the choice of heading to the Kingside to harass
White's King, or to the Queenside to harry White's pieces. } 44. h4 { Bogo
sneaks his pawn forward toward Black's King and pawns. He hopes to liquidate
the Kingside and perhaps force a draw. } 44... Ra3+ { The Black Rook just keeps
annoying the White King. Now it's either 45.Kf4 (and Black's pieces and pawns
have a good chance of trapping the King), or else... } 45. Kf2 { ...45.Kf2,
which means that the White King is cut off from the rest of the board (because
of the Rook's "force field" along White's third rank). } 45... Nc6 { Foresight is
necessary in endgames, particularly in those where Knights are involved. Black
isn't just attacking the Bishop; he's planning to attack the h4-pawn via
Nc6-e7-g6-h4. } 46. Bc7 { The Bishop must abandon the d8-h4 diagonal. 46.Bg5 is
met with 46...f6, forcing the Bishop far out of play. } 46... Ne7 { The Knight keeps
traveling to the Kingside, where it will attack the White pawns. But there's a
problem here... } 47. Bd6 { OUCH! The Bishop springs a double-attack against
both of Black's pieces! But there's a way out -- will Lasker find it? } 47... Ra2+ { He does! Remember that checking the opponent's King buys you time and
effectively gives you an extra tempo. This is a great example of this
principle in action. } 48. Kf3 { White has no time to capture the Knight. He
must spent his tempo in getting out of check... } 48... Nc6 { ...which, in effect,
buys Black an "extra" tempo to save the Knight. } 49. Bc7 { By moving the Bishop
to c7, Bogo cuts down on the Black Knight's mobility as much as he can. Now
the Knight can't move to a5 or e5; these squares are owned by the White Bishop. } 49... Nd4+ { Lasker again centralizes his Knight, also checking White's King. } 50. Kg3 { The King must move to get out of check, so it moves to a new square where
it can guard its pawns. } 50... Ra3+ { This allows the Rook to again drive the King
away. Where will the King run now? } 51. Kf2 { It's pretty obvious that the King
has to withdraw to the second rank (see the variation). } (51. Kf4 { Moving the
King to f4 would be a serious mistake. Do you see why? } 51... Ne6+ { The deadly
Knight fork wins the Bishop! The White King is forced to move to get out of
check, allowing the Knight to capture the Bishop. }) 51... Ra4 { Lasker now
intends to win a pawn (...Ne6 attacks the Bishop and uncovers an attack by the
Rook on the g4-pawn). } 52. Kg3 { Bogo has to keep the bases covered, so the
King returns to g3 to defend the pawns. } 52... Ne6 { Lasker has no intention of
allowing a draw by repetition (possible if he plays ...Ra3+). His Knight move
attacks the White Bishop and covers f4, denying that square to White's King. } 53. Bb6 { It's move it or lose it for White. } 53... Ra3+ { Since the Knight and Bishop
are on different squares than they were several moves ago, it's all right for
Black to check from a3 again without fear of heading for a draw by repetition. } 54. Kg2 { The King retreats to a light square to keep the dark squares open for
his Bishop. } 54... Nf4+ { The retreat to g2 unfortunately allows this Knight check. } 55. Kf2 { You'll remember that the only ways to get out of a Knight check are
to capture the Knight or move the King. } 55... Nd3+ { The Knight continues the
harassment (with an object in mind). } 56. Kg2 { The King returns to g2 (Bogo
doesn't want to move the King too far away from his pawns). } 56... Ne5 { Now we see
the point of the repeated checks -- the Knight has positioned itself to attack
the g-pawn, and the Rook prevents the White King from coming to the pawn's
rescue. } 57. g5 { Advancing the pawn is the only defense. Unfortunately, this
creates holes at f5 and h5 that Black can drop his pieces into. } 57... Ng6 { Lasker's
Knight makes another threat. This time it menaces the h4-pawn. } 58. Bf2 { The best defense, as advancing the h-pawn would leave both pawns hanging and
vulnerable to attack. } 58... Nf4+ { Lasker is relentless with threats from the Knight.
This time he checks the White King. } 59. Kh2 { The King must move, so it comes
to h2 where it can stay close to the pawns. } 59... Kg6 { Now we see the significance
of the weak "holes" at f5 and h5. The Black King will move to h5 and the
Knight will return to g6, doubling up on the h4-pawn. } 60. Ra7 { Bogo
resourcefully prevents the Black King's advance to h5 by attacking the g7-pawn.
Now the King is tied to the pawn's defense. } 60... a5 { Black advances his passed
pawn. But I'm sure you can see the difficulty here: Black's own Rook blocks
the passed pawn's advance. } 61. Bg3 { White lashes out at the Black Knight. } 61... Ra2+ { Instead of merely retreating the Knight, Black responds with a check.
This fails to grab the initiative, however, as the Black Knight will still be
threatened even after the White King moves. } 62. Kh1 { The King retreats to
avoid the check. } 62... Nh5 { Retreating, but grabbing the initiative by
attacking the White Bishop. } { [%cal Rh5g3] } 63. Be5 { The Bishop
backs off to a square where it menaces a pawn as well as controlling the
a-pawn's promotion square. } { [%csl Ra1][%cal Re5g7,Re5a1] } 63... Ra4 { The Rook threatens to
pick off the h-pawn. } { [%csl Rh4][%cal Ra4h4] } 64. Kg2 { White is incapable of saving
the pawn, as 64.Bg3 would be met by 64...Nxg3. } { [%cal Ye4g3,Rh5g3] } 64... Rxh4 { Black not only wins another pawn, but threatens White's last remaining pawn as
well. The Rook killed the g-pawn's protector, leaving the g-pawn ripe for the
picking. } { [%csl Rg5][%cal Rg6g5] } 65. Ra6+ { Inexplicable. White should have just captured the a5-pawn
immediately, as there is no way to save the g-pawn. } 65... Kxg5 { The obvious choice.
White's last pawn is gone and so is any hope for White to salvage this game. } 66. Rxa5 { The correct move, though White could have played it a move sooner. } 66... Kg6 { The King scampers back to overprotect the g7-pawn. } 67. Kf3 { Centralizing
the King is usually a good idea in the endgame, but it's far too late for this
now. White is dead but he just won't lie down. } 67... f6 { Black's plan for victory
involves advancing his passed-pawn duo. Harassing a White piece st the same
time just makes it better. } 68. Bd6 { White saves the Bishop, but also hopes to
get behind the pawn duo and menace them on the dark squares. } 68... Rd4 { More
harassment by Black. } 69. Bc7 { 69.Bf8 would just be met by 69...Kf7 (a
necessary move anyway, as the King has to get out of the way of the advancing
pawns). White chooses not to help Black's game along by giving him a helpful,
initiative-gaining reply. } 69... Rc4 { The Rook keeps pushing, but there's a method
to the madness. } 70. Bd6 { Another Bishop move is forced by the Black attack. } 70... Rc6 { Here's the point: Black wants to advance his g-pawn. After his King backs
up (probably to h6 or h7 to prevent annoying checks from the White Rook) and
the g-pawn advances, the f-pawn would be undefended. The Black Rook will now
defend the f-pawn laterally. The Rook is also posted on a light-colored square,
free from attack by the White Bishop. } 71. Bb8 { The Bishop must retreat again.
White has had no time to develop an attack by his Rook against the Black pawns
as he's been too busy saving his Bishop. } 71... Kh6 { As expected, the Black King clears the
way for his connected pawns to advance. 72.Ra7 would just meet with 72...g6.
Black controls all the good squares for White's Bishop. White sees the
futility of further action and resigns. } { [%csl Rc7,Rd6,Re5,Rf4,Rg3][%cal Yb8f4,Rh5f4,Rc6c7,Rc6d6,Rf6e5,Rh5g3] } 0-1

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.26"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Capablanca, Jose Raul"]
[Black "Maroczy, Geza"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[PlyCount "59"]
[ECO "D02"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 { Capa opens with a center-controlling pawn push. Because the d-pawn is
defended by the Queen, it's harder for Black to exchange it. The position is
therefore liable to stay closed. } 1... Nf6 { Maroczy responds with a different kind
of center-controlling move. The Knight controls e4 and d5. This move is less
committal than 1...d5; Black can continue with ...g6 (in the hypermodern style)
or the more traditional ...d5. } 2. Nf3 { The Kingside Knight springs forward
and adds its influence over the center squares d4 and e5. } 2... d5 { Maroczy mirrors
Capablanca's moves. But he can't do this forever. Sooner or later, he must
vary his approach. } 3. Bf4 { Capa plans to advance the e=pawn to e3, but
doesn't want to trap the Bishop behind the pawn. So he develops the Bishop
first. } 3... c5 { Maroczy puts pressure on the White center. He wants to play ...
cxd4 (after some further preparation), exchanging a flank pawn for a more
valuable center pawn. } 4. e3 { As expected, Capa props up the d4-pawn by
advancing the e-pawn one square. } 4... Qb6 { This is a pretty
well-known ploy; now that White's dark-squared Bishop has moved, the b2-pawn
is undefended. The Black Queen moves out and threatens the b2-pawn. } { [%csl Rb2][%cal Rb6b2] } 5. Qc1 { The White Queen slides over and covers the b2-pawn. } { [%csl Gb2][%cal Gc1b2] } 5... Nc6 { Maroczy continues his development, putting further pressure on the White
center. The d4-pawn is attacked three times and only defended twice. } 6. c3 { The c-pawn covers the d-pawn, which is now sufficiently defended. } 6... Bf5 { The Bishop develops usefully, slicing across the central e4-square and
attacking the b1-Knight. } 7. dxc5 { The fact that his most powerful piece, the
Queen, is tied to the defense of a lowly pawn isn't lost on the World Champion.
He decides to maneuver a Knight to b3 to block the Black Queen's threat to the
b2-pawn. But to successfully post the Knight there, he must first eliminate
the possibility of ...c4 (which would drive away the Knight). He removes the
Black c-pawn from the board. } 7... Qxc5 { Of course, Maroczy must recapture or be
behind in material. } 8. Nbd2 { The Knight is headed for b3, as we discussed. } 8... Rc8 { Rooks belong on open files. As there are no Black pawns on the c-file,
it's a good spot for the Rook. } 9. Nb3 { And the Knight finally lands on b3,
bringing with it a threat to the Black Queen. } 9... Qb6 { The Queen must retreat,
giving White the initiative. } 10. Qd2 { Capa puts pressure on Maroczy's d-pawn,
which is defended by the f6-Knight. } 10... e6 { Maroczy overprotects his d-pawn and
clears a path for the development of his dark-squared Bishop. } 11. Bd3 $15 { An old chess maxim is "when you have a cramped position, free it by
exchanging". Here Capa attemps to do just that, offering a trade of
light-squared Bishops. Now all of his Kingside pieces are developed. } 11... Be4 { Maroczy's idea is to tempt White into playing Bxe4; after the reply ...Nxe4,
the Black Knight will dominate White's position, as well as threaten the White
Queen. } 12. Qe2 { There are several reasons for this move: the Queen protects
both the Bishop and Knight (...Bxf3 followed by Qxf3 instead of gxf3, doubling
the White pawns) and White now has the option of playing a future Bxe4 without
worrying about a threat on his Queen after ...Nxe4. } 12... Be7 { Maroczy completes
his Kingside development by moving his dark-squared Bishop to the only safe
square. } 13. O-O { Capa protects his King by castling away from the center... } 13... O-O { ...and Maroczy does the same. } 14. Bg5 { This is one reason why Black's
move ...e7-e6 was a good idea. Had the e-pawn not been pushed, the d5-pawn's
only defender (the f6-Knight) would be attacked by Capa's Bishop. } 14... Bxd3 { Maroczy decides to swap off his bad Bishop. He may also be thinking of moving
his Knight to e4 (once he's resolved the question of how to defend his
e7-Bishop). } 15. Qxd3 { Capa is forced to recapture or be behind materially. } 15... Rfe8 { Maroczy protects his e7-Bishop, making the move ...Ne4 a real
possibility (cramping White's game in the process). } 16. Bxf6 { Capa doesn't
want to see the Black Knight find a home at e4, so he removes it from the
board... } 16... Bxf6 { ...and Maroczy recaptures. } 17. Rfd1 { The Rook goes to the
open file. However, there may be a deeper meaning. Capablanca is one of the
world's foremost endgame players. He may be considering a massive exchange in
the center (18.Nd4 Nxd4 19.Bxd4 Nxd4 20.Qxd4 Qxd4 21.Rxd4), bringing on an
early endgame where his skill may provide him with an advantage. } 17... Red8 { Maroczy seems unsure about how to proceed. This seems to be a useful waiting
move -- the Black Rook now stands on the same file as the White Queen. } 18. Qe2 { When your opponent moves a Rook to the same file your Queen stands on, it's
generally a good idea to move your Queen away. There's no immediate threat in
this position, but accidents do happen. Capa sees that Maroczy is considering
opening the center and decides to get his Queen out of harm's way. } 18... Ne5 { Maroczy is interested in advancing his central pawn pair, but White has many
pieces guarding the center. Maroczy deems this a good time to thin out White's
ranks. } 19. Nxe5 { Capa accepts the offer of a Knight... } 19... Bxe5 { ...and Maroczy
again evens the material. } 20. Rd2 { Capablanca prepares to create a Rook
battery, doubling them on the d-file. } 20... Bf6 { Maroczy pulls back the Bishop,
enabling the e-pawn to advance when the time is right. } 21. Rad1 { As expected,
Capa doubles the Rooks. } 21... Rc4 { The Black Rook moves to a square from which is
can shoot to either side of the board at a moment's notice. By vacating c8,
the Rook also makes way for its brother to move to that square, creating a
battery on the c-file. } 22. Nc1 { Most players would have chosen 22.Nd4 without
hesitation. But that move actually encourages Black to play ...e5. Capa
instead eyes the possibility of playing Nd3, turning his position into a
defensive fortress. } 22... Rdc8 { Black creates a battery on the c-file. } 23. Nd3 { And Capa's position is now like a stone castle. The b2-pawn is defended by
both the Knight and d2-Rook (and indirectly by the Queen). Should Black strike
at the a2-pawn, all White needs to do is advance it one square. There is no
immediate danger on the Kingside, as all of Black's forces aim at the other
side of the board. In short, White has no weaknesses, and Maroczy will be
hard-pressed to find a way to make any progress. } 23... a5 { Maroczy's idea is to
start a Queenside minority attack to break up the White pawns. } 24. a3 { But the plan is doomed to failure. The a3-pawn prevents the kamikaze Black
pawn from advancing close enough to do any harm. } 24... Qc7 { Maroczy's new idea is
to shift the action over to the Kingside. The Queen takes aim down the
diagonal, eyeing up the h2-pawn. The plan is to play ...Rh4. } 25. g3 { Capa
scotches another of Maroczy's plans. The Queen "bites on granite" and h4 is
now off-limits to the Black Rook. } 25... b5 { Maroczy still has thoughts of prying
open the Queenside. } 26. Kg2 { The White King steps up into the pocket. It's
relatively safe here, as Black lacks a light-squared Bishop. } 26... Be7 { In this
position, it's harder for Black to blunder than it is for White (a false move
by White could destroy his fortress from within). so Maroczy is content to
make waiting moves. A possibility here was 26...Qb7, setting up a discovered
check after ...d4. } 27. Kg1 { The inactivity on the Kingside gives Capa the
freedom to make waiting moves of his own. The two masters could call it a draw
here and no one would think the less of them for it. There's really no way for
either side to make progress without a gross blunder being committed first. } 27... Bd6 { Maroczy plays another quiet move, avoiding the fireworks that would
result after 27...b4. } (27... b4 { Prying open the Queenside. } 28. cxb4 { White could also take with the a-pawn. } 28... axb4 { Forced, to keep the material
balance even. } 29. axb4 { Otherwise 29...bxa3 30.bxa3 Bxa3 loses a pawn. } 29... Bxb4 { Again evening the material. } 30. Nxb4 { Removing the d2-Rook's attacker. } 30... Rxb4 { Balancing the material once again. } 31. Rd4 { Now the Black Rook must run.
White has a passed pawn, but nothing really will come of it. The position is
still even. All those firewoks, and essentially nothing came of it. (Variation
by Alekhine) }) 28. Ra1 { Discouraging ...b4, because of 28...b4 29.axb4 axb4
and the a1-Rook sits on a nice open file. } 28... Qc6 { Maroczy continues to probe,
but the game is essentially dead. } 29. Rdd1 { Each player is now just waiting
to see if his opponent will err. } 29... h6 { Another essentailly pointless move.
Maroczy may be thinking of advancing his Kingside pawns. } 30. Qh5 { The idea is
to play Ne5, attacking the Black Queen with a double attack (Knight and Queen)
on f7. But the obvious reply is ...Qe8, holding everything together nicely.
Capa proposes a draw and Maroczy accepts. The players split the point. } 1/2-1/2

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.26"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Alekhine, Alexander"]
[Black "Reti, Richard"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "87"]
[ECO "E62"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 { Alekhine opens with his d-pawn, which should generally lead to a closed
position. } 1... Nf6 { Reti's Knight leaps toward the center where, as you know, it
will be well placed to take part in the action to come. } 2. c4 { By moving the
c-pawn before playing Nc3, Alekhine ensures that the pawn's advance won't be
blocked by the Knight. } 2... g6 { Reti advances the pawn to prepare a
Bishop fianchetto (...Bg7). } { [%cal Yf8g7] } 3. g3 { Alekhine will also fianchetto
his Kingside Bishop. } { [%cal Yf1g2] } 3... Bg7 { The Bishop moves to the long a1-h8 diagonal, from
which it can easily influence the center. } 4. Bg2 { The White Bishop's move is
the counterpart to Black's; White's Bishop now dominates the a8-h1 diagonal. } 4... O-O { Reti completes his Kingside development by castling, though it's not
strictly necessary here (as the center pawns have not developed). } 5. Nc3 { Alekhine advances his Knight, a move he planned as far back as Move 2. } 5... d6 { By advancing the d-pawna single square, Reti paves the way for his c-pawn or
e-pawn to advance two squares, possibly breaking up White's pawn center. } 6. Nf3 { Alekhine continues to develop usefully, moving his Kingside Knight toward
the center. } 6... Nc6 { All of the Knights are now developed to their natural
center-controlling squares. } 7. d5 { Alekhine plays a move with several
purposes: the pawn advance attacks the c6-Knight, it controls two squares deep
in Black's territory, and it makes it harder for Black to break the center by
advancing the c- or e-pawn. } 7... Nb8 { If Reti plays ...Ne5, Alekhine would counter
with Nxe5. After ...dxe5, the doubled e5-pawn becomes a weak target. The move .
..Na5 is possible, but encourages White to harass the Knight by advancing the
Queenside pawns. } 8. O-O { Satisfied with his space advantage and with Black's
lack of immediate threats, Alekhine takes time to castle his King out of the
center. } 8... Bg4 { Reti advances the Bishop, looking to trade it for White's Knight. } 9. h3 { Alekhine "puts the question" to the Bishop: either capture or retreat! } 9... Bxf3 { Reti swaps his Bishop for a Knight. But this exchange seems a little
premature. With many pieces undeveloped and the position still somewhat
unclear, it's a good idea to hang onto both Bishops until the position becomes
better defined. } 10. exf3 { At first glance, this looks like it blocks the
light-squared Bishop. But Alekhine has an idea... } 10... e6 { The old chess maxim
says "When your position is cramped, free it by exchanging", which is exactly
what Reti seeks to do here. } 11. f4 { Now we see the idea behind 10.exf3. The
f4-pawn carves out space on the Kingside, the f1-Rook can slide over to e1 to
command the e-file, and the light-squared Bishop on g2 once again controls the
long diagonal. } 11... exd5 { Reti clears some space by swapping center pawns. His
eventual goal is to plant a Knight on c6. } 12. cxd5 { Alekhine, of course,
completes the swap, leaving him with an isolated pawn on d5. } 12... c5 { Reti really
isn't too concerned with making the d5-pawn a target. The fact that he has a
pawn on d6, directly in front of the isolated White pawn, means that the White
pawn will be hard to attack anyway (the Rooks and Queen can't get at it along
the d-file). So Reti advances his c-pawn, inviting White to capture en passant. } 13. dxc6 { The rules for en passant capture state that it must be done
immediately or not at all, so Alekhine snaps up the pawn. } 13... Nxc6 { And Reti has
his second Knight out. But his d-pawn is now isolated (plus it's advanced only
one square), so it may become a liability later. } 14. Be3 { Alekhine develops
his last minor piece. 14.Bd2 was out of the question, as the Bishop would then
block the Queen's influence along the d-file. } 14... Qd7 { Reti pushes the Queen
forward. This gets the Queen a bit more play along the c8-h3 diagonal, as well
as opens up the square d8 for occupation by a Rook (adding to the defense of
the isolated d6-pawn). } 15. Qa4 { Alekhine completes his
development by pinning the c6-Knight (should the Knight move, the Black Queen
is hanging undefended. Notice, though, that the c3-Knight guards the White
Queen). } { [%cal Gc3a4] } 15... Rac8 { Rooks belong on open files, as the old adage says. } 16. Rad1 { White puts pressure on the d6-pawn as well as indirectly attacks
the Black Queen (by pinning the pawn). Alekhine is planning Bc5, piling up on
the d6-pawn (...dxc5 would be impossible due to the reply Rxd7). } { [%cal Ye3c5] } 16... b6 { Reti keeps the White Bishop off of c5 by controlling the
square with a pawn. } { [%csl Gc5][%cal Gb6c5] } 17. b3 { Alekhine overprotects the Queen. Both the b3-pawn
and the c3-Knight defend the Queen; now either one of them is free for another
duty should the need arise. } 17... Rfd8 { Reti adds another defender to the d6-pawn,
in anticipation of White's Nb5 (which would attack the pawn). } 18. Rd3 { Alekhine clears d1 for the second Roook. He plans to double the Rooks on the
d-file and put further pressure on the d6-pawn. } 18... Ne7 { Reti's thought here is
to relieve some of the pressure on his center by swapping off the Queens. } 19. Nb5 { Alekhine will have none of it. He deftly
blocks the Queen swap and adds another attacker to the push against d6. } { [%cal Rb5d6,Rd3d6,Gd7d6,Gd8d6] } 19... d5 { Sometimes the best way to defend a threatened
pawn is to advance it. Rather than scramble to find another defender for the
pawn, Reti advances it to a square already controlled by four of his pieces.
Now the pawn is attacked just once and securely overprotected. } { [%cal Gd8d5,Ge7d5,Gf6d5,Rd3d5] } 20. Nxa7 { Alekhine begins operations against Black's Queenside pawns, which will quickly
melt away. } 20... Ra8 { Pinning the White Knight. Even if the White
Queens moves, Black still thrusts at the a2-pawn with an x-ray attack.
Unfortunately, the Rook must abandon the open c-file to make this possible. } { [%cal Ra8a2] } (20... Qxa4!? { Swapping the Queens immediately was another possibility (and
better than what was actually played). } 21. bxa4 { The obvious recapture. } 21... Rc2 { The Rook slides down the open file to attack the a2-pawn. } 22. Bxb6 { White
gobbles the second pawn. Black might play ...Rxa2 here or may try another
threat (such as attacking one of White's minor pieces with his d-Rook). Either
way, White retains a pawn advantage, the Bishop pair, and a freer position. }) 21. Bxb6 { White grabs up the last Queenside pawn. } 21... Qxa4 { Reti makes the Queen
swap. } 22. bxa4 { Alekhine must recapture. Compare this board position to the
one after 22.Bxb6 in the last variation we looked at. The positions are
identical save for one Black Rook, which is on a8 here, as opposed to c2 in
the variation. The Rook would have better chances of winning a pawn if it was
on c2 than it does at its present post. This is why 20...Qxa4 was better. } 22... Rd7 { Reti's plan is 23...Rxa7 24.Bxa7 Rxa7, winning two minor pieces
for a Rook. } { [%cal Rd7a7] } 23. Nb5 { Alekhine must retreat the Knight to save his minor
pieces... } 23... Rxa4 { ...but does so at the cost of a pawn. } 24. Nc3 { Alekhine attacks the marauding Rook. } { [%cal Rc3a4] } 24... Ra6 { Reti retreats the Rook
with a threat to the b6-Bishop. } { [%cal Ra6b6] } 25. Rb1 { The
Rook defends the threatened Bishop. Alekhine might have retreated the Bishop
instead, but chose to leave it at its current post, as it controls a number of
squares in the heart of Black's position. } { [%csl Ga7,Gc7,Gd8][%cal Gb1b6] } 25... Rb7 { Reti strikes at the Bishop a
second time... } 26. Bc5 { ...forcing Alekhine to withdraw it to a safer square. } 26... Rxb1+ { Reti, concerned about future threats to his isolated d-pawn, decides to
do a little board-clearing to head for an endgame. } 27. Nxb1 { Alekhine
completes the trade. } 27... Nc6 { Reti is intending to
play ...Ra5, so the Knight advances to provide coverage for that square. } { [%csl Ga5][%cal Gc6a5,Ya6a5] } 28. Nc3 { Alekhine replies by putting pressure on the
isolated pawn. } { [%cal Rc3d5,Rd3d5,Gf6d5] } 28... Ra5 { Reti attacks the hanging Bishop. The idea is to force the
Bishop to move so that the a5-Rook will help defend the d-pawn. But this seems
a bit awkward. } 29. Bb6 { The Bishop moves (of course) but
to a square from which it threatens the a5-Rook. } { [%cal Ga5d5,Rb6a5] } 29... Ra6 { The Rook creates
another threat to the Bishop. By keeping White off-balance this way, Reti
doesn't give his opponent time to capture the isolated pawn. } (29... Ra3 { This was another possibility to consider. The Rook pins the Knight to the
White Rook. } 30. Bf1 { The Bishop defends the Rook, allowing the Knight to move.
But White's pieces seem a bit uncoordinated. }) 30. Bc5 { Alekhine merely moves
the Bishop back to its former post. } 30... Ra5 { Reti, a pawn down, is only too happy
to repeat the position. } 31. Be3 { Alekhine must find another plan, as he is
unwilling to settle for a draw. The Bishop now goes to the only other square
that makes sense. } 31... Nb4 { Reti keeps the pressure up by attacking
the d3-Rook. } { [%cal Rb4d3] } 32. Rd2 { The Rook must withdraw. } 32... h6 { Having done all he can on
the Queenside, Reti now turns his attention to the Kingside. } 33. a4 { Alekhine
advances the pawn, taking space away from the a5-Rook (the pawn is guarded by
the Knight on c3). } 33... Ne4 { Reti sees a way to
try to improve his position. He begins by attacking the Rook on d2. } { [%csl Rc3,Rd2][%cal Re4d2,Re4c3] } 34. Nxe4 { The Knight swap is forced, as White has no way to save both the Rook and the
c3-Knight. } 34... dxe4 { The obvious conclusion to the trade. } 35. Rd8+ { Alekhine
picks up a tempo by attacking the King. } 35... Kh7 { Moving the King to safety is
better than ...Bf8 as the latter move just pins the Bishop. } 36. Bxe4 { Alekhine snares the hanging pawn... } 36... Rxa4 { ...and Reti returns the favor. The
idea of these exchanges was to eliminate the central and Queenside pawns. Now
Reti's Knight will be as valuable as a Bishop in an endgame with pawns on just
one side of the board. Now his problem is how to get his Knight back across
the board. } 37. f5 { Alekhine wants to play fxg6 fxg6. His pawns will then be
undoubled and his 3-2 pawn majority should be capable of promotion. } 37... Ra6 { Covering c6 so that the Knight can start crossing back over to the Kingside. } 38. h4 { Preventing ...g6-g5. } 38... h5 { Likewise grabbing space and making it
difficult for the White g-pawn to advance. } 39. g4 { Surprise! White is
unafraid of ...hxg4, as Black will have doubled g-pawns. } 39... Ra5 { Reti puts flank
pressure on the Kingside pawns. } 40. fxg6+ { Alekhine breaks up the Black pawns
around the King. } 40... fxg6 { Reti recaptures, but he's in dire straits.
His g-pawn is now pinned. } { [%cal Re4h7] } 41. gxh5 { Alekhine picks at the pawns around the
White King. There is now a threat of mate: hxg6! } 41... Rxh5 { It was either this or
the awful ...Bf6. } 42. Bg5 { And now the Black Rook is cut off. } 42... Bc3 { Reti
gives his King a bit of breathing room, but it's a pretty hopeless situation.
Black could resign here. } 43. Rd7+ { By checking the King, Alekhine forces it
to the back rank. } 43... Kg8 { ...Kh8 was also possible, though iy would hardly make
a difference. } 44. Bxg6 { With his King cornered and its protection gone, Reti
calls it a day and resigns. } 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.26"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Janowski, Dawid"]
[Black "Marshall, Frank James"]
[Result "0-1"]
[PlyCount "150"]
[ECO "A46"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 { Janowski open with his d-pawn, which generall leads to slower
positional games; the central pawns aren't easily traded off, since the White
Queen defends the d-pawn. } 1... Nf6 { Marshall's opening is a bit more circumspect.
Instead of ...d5, which stops the White d-pawn cold but also commites Black to
a strategy of occupying the center, he plays ...Nf6, which controls the center
while keeping other options open. } 2. Nf3 { White piles up force on e5, making
it difficult for Black to occupy key central squares. } 2... d6 { Marshall puts some
influence of his own on e5, while also making it possible to develop the
c8-Bishop. } 3. h3 { Janowski keeps the Black Bishop off of g4. But this is
essentially a wasted move, as Black threatens nothing if his Bishop goes there. } 3... g6 { Marshall tips his hand. He'll fianchetto his Bishop to g7. } 4. Bf4 { Janowski keeps putting the pressure on e5, making sure that Black can't plant
a pawn there. } 4... Bg7 { Marshall plays the anticipated fianchetto, influencing e5
indirectly. } 5. Nbd2 { By coming here the Knight doesn't interfere with the
advance of the c-pawn. Janowski may have to prop up his d-pawn by playing
c2-c3. } 5... c5 { Marshall challenges White in the center. } 6. e3 { Janowski could
also have played c2-c3 first. As we'll see, it ultimately doesn't matter. } 6... cxd4 { Marshall trades (and half-opens the c-file). } 7. exd4 { Do you see the
tactical reason why Nxd4 is impossible? } (7. Nxd4 { If White recaptures this
way... } 7... e5 { ...he gets forked by the Black
e-pawn. } { [%csl Rd4,Rf4][%cal Re5d4,Re5f4] }) 7... Nc6 { Marshall keeps up the pressure on the White center. } 8. c3 { As anticipated, the d-pawn needs to be propped up. Now you see why it didn't
matter whether the c- or e-pawn advanced first -- either way, the same
position arises. } 8... O-O { This is a case where castling isn't performed to
protect the King. Marshall wants to get his Rook toward the center. } 9. Be2 { White is merely continuing his development. } 9... Re8 { The reason for Black's
decision to castle. The Rook now supports an e-pawn advance. } 10. Nc4 { Janowski begins to reorganize his pieces. The Knight is headed to e3, where is
influences d5, f5, and g4. } 10... Be6 { The time is not yet right for the e-pawns
advance, so Marshall gets his Bishop out to a square where it slashes across
the center. The problem with this move is that it violates a basic chess
principle: don't block an undeveloped center pawn with a piece. } 11. O-O { Janowski gets a step closer to completeing his development. } 11... Nd5 { Attacking
the f4-Bishop... } 12. Bd2 { ...which retreats. } 12... Rc8 { This move was a major idea
behind Marshall's trade of his c-pawn for White's d-pawn. Besides the fact
that it's generally a good idea to trade one of your flank pawns for an
opponent's central pawn, it also half-opened the c-file for Black's Rook. } 13. Ng5 { Janowski drives back the poorly-placed Black Bishop. } 13... Bd7 { The Bishop
backs off. } 14. Qb3 { Janowski completes his development
with a threat against the b-pawn. } { [%csl Rb7][%cal Rb3b7] } 14... h6 { Marshall
counters the threat on his pawn with a threat on a minor piece. The position
is starting to heat up and get complicated. } { [%csl Rg5][%cal Rh6g5] } 15. Bf3 { Yet another threat! The Bishop menaces the hanging Knight. With all this
tension, something has to let loose! } { [%csl Rd5][%cal Rf3d5] } 15... hxg5 { Marshall grabs the Knight... } 16. Bxd5 { ...and Janowski returns in kind. } 16... e6 { Another threat -- this time
against the Bishop. } 17. Bf3 { The Bishop backs off. } 17... Qc7 { The Queen defends the menaced pawn. Marshall's Kingside pawns are bit
of a wreck, but he does hold a 2-1 pawn majority in the center. Meanwhile,
he's lost a centrally-placed Knight for one that wasn't as well placed on the
flank. On the other hand, his pieces are a bit better-placed (a battery on the
c-file and two pieces bearing down on d4). } { [%csl Gb7][%cal Gc7b7] } 18. Ne3 { The White Knight finally
gets to e3. This quiet continuation is better than the fireworks that erupt
after Bxg5 (see the variation). } (18. Bxg5 Nxd4 19. cxd4 Qxc4 20. Qxb7 Rc7 21. b3 Rxb7 22. bxc4 { And Black definitely gets the
better of it. He can pressure the White pawns with ...Rc7 and he has fewer
pawn islands. } { [%csl Rc4][%cal Yb7c7,Rc7c4] }) 18... Na5 { Marshall controls more Queenside space, so this is
where he'll attack. He starts by driving off the White Queen. } 19. Qd1 { The Queen hits the bricks and goes the whole way back. Janowski might have
played Qc2, but he preferred to have his Queen and Bishop on the same diagonal. } 19... b5 { Grabbing more space and preventing a2-a4. } 20. Re1 { The repositioning continues. The plan is for the Knight to go to g3, opening
the e-file for the e1-Rook. } { [%cal Ye3f1,Yf1g3] } 20... f5 { Marshall intends to play ...Bf6, covering the
hanging pawn on g5 while still controlling the long diagonal with the Bishop. } 21. Nf1 { Next stop: g3. } 21... Bf6 { The Bishop does double-duty: guarding the pawn
while controlling the a1-h8 diagonal. } 22. Ng3 { Normally the Knight would be
well-placed here (it could jump quickly to the center or participate in a
Kingside attack). But Black's Kingside pawns are advancing and the Knight
probably won't be able to stay here for long. } 22... Nc4 { The Knight leaps into the hole on c4 and forks the pawn and Bishop. } { [%csl Rb2,Rd2][%cal Rc4b2] } 23. Bc1 { The only move that saves all of the threatened material. } { [%cal Gc1b2] } 23... d5 { Black is grabbing up space at a prodigious rate. } 24. Nf1 { Janowski's
original plan (back at move 21) was probably to sacrifice the Knight for a pwn
and blow open Black's Kingside. But Black's constant repositioning of his
pieces have made that impossible, so Janowski gives up on the idea. However,
24.Ne2 was probably better. } 24... Kg7 { Clearing the back rank. The idea is for a
Rook to shoot to h8 and start a flank attack. Marshall is using both sides of
the board to attack! } 25. Be2 { Janowski want to trade his Bishop for the
Knight that is cramping his Queenside... } 25... Nd6 { ...but Marshall will have none
of it. } 26. Bd3 { Again clearing the e-file for the Rook on e1. } 26... Rh8 { The
anticipated attack has begun! } 27. Re3 { Janowski lifts the Rook to get it in
front of his pawn chain. } 27... Rh4 { The Rook charges ahead, putting flank pressure
on White's center. } 28. Rg3 { Janowski
attempts to win a pawn... } { [%csl Rg5][%cal Rc1g5,Rg3g5,Gf6g5] } 28... Nf7 { ...but Marshall
nips that in the bud. Now ...f4 is possible, harassing White's Rook. } { [%csl Gg5][%cal Yf5f4,Gf7g5] } 29. Nh2 { The idea is Nf3, driving off the annoying Black Rook. } { [%cal Yh2f3] } 29... e5 { The pawn phalanx pushes forward, threatening to crush all in its path. } 30. dxe5 { Janowski has to take; otherwise ...e4 cramps him and will ultimately
cost him the Exchange (...e4, followed by ...f4 and after White plays Rg4,
Black responds ...Bxg4). } 30... Bxe5 { Marshall completes the
pawn swap and now another Black piece enters the attack. } { [%csl Rg3][%cal Re5g3] } 31. Nf1 { Preparing to meet ...Bxg3 with ...Nxg3. } { [%csl Gg3][%cal Gf1g3] } 31... f4 { Marshall shocks
everyone with this move! Why not just win the Exchange immediately? See the
variation. } (31... Bxg3 32. fxg3 { Now we
see the real reason for Nf1 -- to defend the pawn which drives off the Black
Rook. } { [%csl Rh4][%cal Rc7g3,Yf1g3,Rg3h4] } 32... Rhh8 { And White now has the possibility of
harassing counterplay with his Bishop. } { [%cal Yc1e3,Ye3d4,Rd4h8] }) 32. Rf3 { The Rook has to move or be
lost. } 32... g4 { The pawnstorm is sweeping forward menacingly. } 33. Rxf4 { Much
better than hxg4. } (33. hxg4 { This opens the h-file for an
attack by Black. } { [%cal Yc8h8,Rh8h1] }) 33... Bxf4 { Now a tactical firestorm erupts. First to go is
the Rook... } 34. Bxf4 { ...followed by a Bishop... } 34... Qxf4 { ...then another
Bishop bites the dust... } 35. g3 { ...and a
crushing pawn fork! } { [%csl Rf4,Rh4][%cal Rg3h4,Rg3f4] } 35... Qh6 { The Queen retreats to a square from which it can
recapture. } 36. gxh4 { The Rook falls... } 36... Qxh4 { And the Queen
beheads the offending pawn. But Black's attack continues. He's cleared away
much of the wood around the White King. Now the Knight threatens to enter the
brawl. } { [%cal Rf7g5] } 37. Be4 { Janowski offers a Bishop to get some counterplay. } 37... Rc4 { Marshall rejects White's offer and instead brings his Rook into the fray. } (37... dxe4 38. Qxd7 { Pinning the Knight and
preventing it from joining the attack, while attacking the Rook. } { [%csl Rc8][%cal Rd7g7,Rd7c8] }) 38. Bxd5 { Janowski snaps off the offered pawn... } 38... Rf4 { ...
and the Rook uses the cleared rank to slip to the Kingside. Now the f-pawn is
menaced. } { [%csl Rf2][%cal Rf4f2,Rh4f2] } 39. Qd2 { The Queen steps up to cover the pawn. } { [%cal Gd2f2] } 39... gxh3 { More wood flies off the table. Black still has an attack but it's running out
of steam, and his own King is horribly exposed. } 40. Re1 { Janowski gets his
Rook closer to the action. } 40... Qg5+ { Marshall keeps the initiative by checking
White. } 41. Ng3 { Janowski blocks the check with his Knight. } 41... Ne5 { Things get a
bit complicated here. Marshall has several possibilities here. The first, more
risky plan, is 42...Re4 43.Re3 Nf3+ 44.Rxf3 h2+ 45.Kh1 Qxd2. The second, more
cautious plan, is 42...Nc4 43.Qd3 Nxb2, winning a pawn. Then there's the
unclear ...Ng4, getting the Knight into the attack. } 42. Re3 { Janowski blocks
the opposed Queens on the diagonal, preventing any ugly surprises that might
occur after the Black Rook moves. But the immediate 42.Qe3 may have been
better. } (42. Qe3 Ng4 43. Qe7+ Kh6 44. Qxg5+ Kxg5 45. Re7 { Black's attack has
become less potent in the absence of the Queen. }) 42... Qf6 { And now,
unfortunately for him, Marshall makes a mistake that lets White back into the
game. His best bet was to continue the attack with h2+, a more forcing move
than what he actually played. The attack on f2 is premature and should go
nowhere. } (42... h2+ 43. Kf1 Bh3+ 44. Ke2 Nc4 45. Bxc4 bxc4) 43. Qe1 { White's Queen does triple-duty: it still defends
f2, while simultaneously keeping an eye on the promotion square h1 and backing
up the Rook on the e-file.. } { [%csl Gf2][%cal Ge1f2,Ye1e3,Ye1h1] } (43. Ne4 { This
move, attacking the Queen and guarding the f2-pawn, is better. } { [%csl Gf2,Rf6][%cal Re4f6,Ge4f2] }) 43... h2+ { Another step toward promotion. Also, by checking White, it's an
initiative-grabbing move. } 44. Kh1 { Blocking the pawn's promotion, but also
cornering the King. White would have done better to play 44.Kg2. } (44. Kxh2 Ng4+ { Black wins the exchange. } { [%csl Re3,Rh2][%cal Rg4e3,Rg4h2] }) 44... Ng4 { Marshall keeps a nice grip on things
despite his earlier misstep. The Knight adds to the attack on f2, while
covering the h2-pawn. } { [%csl Re3][%cal Gg4h2,Rg4e3,Rg4f2] } 45. Re7+ { Janowski
hits Marshall with a nice tactic -- he forks the King and Bishop. } { [%csl Rd7,Rg7][%cal Re7g7,Re7d7] } 45... Kh6 { The Bishop is lost, so Marshall moves his King into the fray. Moving the King
back, away from the center, will hurt Black in the endgame (provided that the
game lasts long enough!). } (45... Kf8 46. Rxd7 Nxf2+ 47. Kg2 Qg5 48. Qe7+ Qxe7 49. Rxe7 Kxe7 50. Kxh2 Nd1 { Black, ahead by a pawn and
the exchange, should win. } { [%csl Rb2][%cal Rd1b2] }) 46. Rxd7 { Janowski grabs up the Bishop and is a
minor piece ahead. But Black still has an attack in progress. } 46... Nxf2+ { Marshall
captures a pawn that was obstructing the attack. } 47. Kg2 { The only move that
makes sense, as Qxf2 just loses loads of material. } 47... Qh4 { Black is threatening
mate-in-one. Can you spot it? } 48. Qxf2 { One of two moves that removes the
mate threat. The other was Be6, covering h3 (where Black's Queen was
threatening to move to deliver mate). } (48. Be6 { White could have played this
instead of giving up the Queen. } 48... Ne4 49. Bg8 Qxg3+ 50. Qxg3 h1=Q+ 51. Kxh1 Nxg3+ 52. Kg2) 48... Rxf2+ { Marshall wastes no time in snapping up White's
Queen. } 49. Kxf2 { Janowski recaptures. The position here is very unusual.
White has three pieces for a Queen, but his passed pawn is a monster. } 49... Qg4 { A maneuvering move. Marshall wants to get his Queen to the last rank where it
can harass the White King. } 50. Rf7 { Janowski sees the move ...Qd1 coming and
doesn't want his Bishop to become pinned to the Rook, so he plays this
preventive move. } 50... Qd1 { The Queen now has the option of
going to the Kingside to harass the White King or going to the Queenside to
attack the pawns there. } { [%csl Rd5][%cal Rd1d5] } 51. Bg2 { The Bishop has to move but must stay on the
a8-h1 diagonal to prevent the Black pawn's promotion. } 51... Qg1+ { Harasses the
White KIng and drives it away from the corner. } 52. Kf3 { The King must retreat
to get out of check. } 52... Qd1+ { Marshall checks again. He sees that his attack has
withered away, so maybe he's hoping for a draw. } (52... Qb1 53. b4) 53. Kf2 { Janowski again avoids check. } 53... Qg1+ { Marshall checks again. } 54. Kf3 { Janowski
again retreats. } 54... Qd1+ { Marshall checks again. } 55. Kf2 { And again Janowski
retreats. } 55... Qc2+ { It turns out that Marshall
wasn't trying for a draw after all, but was merely playing for time while he
thought of a new plan. He now sees that he can win a pawn by forking the King
and b-pawn. } { [%csl Rb2,Rf2][%cal Rc2f2,Rc2b2] } 56. Kf3 { Of course, the King must get out of check... } 56... Qxb2 { ...allowing Marshall to snap off the pawn. } 57. Rf4 { Janowski's pieces are tied down. The King guards the buried
Bishop, while both the Bishop and Knight watch over the promotion square. So
Janowski gets his Rook closer to the action. 57.Ne4 would have saved the
c-pawn and prevented the check. } { [%csl Gg2,Gh1][%cal Gf3g2,Gg3h1] } (57. Ne4 Qa1 { The a2-pawn must die next. }) 57... Qxc3+ { Marshall hangs onto the initiative by snaring another pawn with
check. } 58. Kg4 { At this point, it's pretty futile for White no matter what he
does. A single pawn has tied up most of his forces, allowing a lone Queen to
make threat after threat. } 58... Qd2 { Yet another
fork by the Black Queen. } { [%csl Ra2,Rg2][%cal Rd2g2,Rd2a2] } 59. Be4 { The Bishop saves itself, leaving the pawn
to fend for itself. } 59... Qd7+ { Marshall surprises everyone by not capturing the
a-pawn. Instead he continues to harass the White King. } 60. Kf3 { Janowski is
becoming visibly frustrated. He has a material superiority but has had no
chance to use it due to Marshall's skillful play. } 60... Kg5 { Marshall's plan is really quite simple. He intends to suddenly turn the tables
on White. The threat is ...Qh3, after which Black will promote the pawn. After
Nxh1 Qxh1, Black will again have a material superiority. } { [%cal Rd7h3] } 61. Rf8 { Janowski
gets his Rook out of a cramped spot. The Rook's mobility is increased along
the last rank. } 61... Qd1+ { Marshal holds the initiative by checking the exposed
King. } 62. Kg2 { Of course, the King must get out of check. } 62... Qg1+ { Another
check... } 63. Kh3 { ...and another escape. Notice that the King stays close to
the h2-pawn, on the verge of promotion. } 63... a5 { The Black pawn duo advances on
the Queenside. } 64. Bd5 { Janowski makes a mistake with this aimless Bishop
move. Had he played a different (Rook) move, he could have won a pawn (see the
variation). } (64. Rg8 { The immediate threat is Rxg6+ (the Rook is protected by
the Bishop). } 64... Kf4 65. Rxg6 Ke3 66. Rg5 { Even if the
b-pawn advances, White still wins the a-pawn. } { [%csl Rb5][%cal Rg5b5] }) 64... Qd4 { And now Marshall
takes over the initiative! } 65. Be4 { The menaced Bishop moves to a square
movered by the Knight. } 65... Qd7+ { The check means that Marshall keeps the
initiative. } 66. Kg2 { Janowski performs a questionable retreat. His idea is to
hide the King in a cluster of material (the White Knight and Black pawn),
making it harder for Black to get at him, while still keeping an eye in the
h2-pawn. But he should have just captured the pawn immediately. } (66. Kxh2 Qd2+ 67. Kh3 Qxa2 { Black would probably still have won here, but it would have been
a more difficult game for him than what was actualy played. }) 66... h1=Q+ { Marshall now sees a nice tactic that will win him a piece. First he promotes
his pawn with check. } 67. Nxh1 { This forces Janowski to recapture. By
recapturing with the Knight, he leaves his Bishop unprotected and makes
Marshall's next move possible. } (67. Kxh1 Qh3+ { [%csl Rg3,Rh1][%cal Rh3g3] } 68. Kg1 Qxg3+ 69. Kf1) 67... Qe7 { Marshall springs a double attack. White must loses a piece. } { [%csl Re4,Rf8][%cal Re7f8,Re7e4] } 68. Rf3 { Janowski
saves the more valuable piece. } 68... Qxe4 { Now Marshall has a distinct advantage.
Janowski could easily resign here. } 69. Nf2 { Janowski valiantly keeps trying.
He tries to seize the initiative by attacking Black's Queen. } (69. a3 { Had
White decided to try to solve his Queenside problems, he'd have failed. } 69... b4 70. Nf2 Qd5 71. axb4 axb4) 69... Qd5 { Any chance of a White
initiative is nipped in the bud, as Marshall retreats the Queen with a threat. } { [%csl Ra2][%cal Rd5a2] } 70. a3 { The pawn advances to a square where the Rook defends it. } 70... b4 { Here's
where Marshall cashes in on his 2-1 Queenside majority. } 71. axb4 { Janowskin
has no choice but to trade pawns. } 71... axb4 { Marshall completes the swap. } 72. Nh3+ { Janowski makes another attempt at grabbing the initiative. } 72... Kg4 { The King can
easily move in, as the Rook is pinned by the Black Queen. The King's approach
creates the threat of ...Qxf3 with mate to follow. } 73. Nf2+ { Janowski's check
prevents ...Qxf3. } 73... Kh4 { Marshall makes the only move that avoids check but
still keeps the Black King in the vicinity. } 74. Nd3 { The Knight moves away
and clears f2 for the King (after Kf2 the pin on the Rook will be relieved). } 74... b3 { The White Knight blocks its own Rook's coverage of b3, allowing Marshall
to advance the pawn. } 75. Kf2 { Janowski plays the planned King move... } 75... b2 { ...and sees too late that the pawn's advance has cost him the game (see the
variation). He resigns (in a unique manner, as we shall see). } (76. b2 75... Nxb2 76... Qd2+ { [%csl Rb2,Rf2][%cal Rd2f2,Rd2b2] } 77. Kg1 77... Qxb2 { Every square in the pawn's path is covered by a Black piece.
Black can just advance the pawn, then mate the blockading King on the back
rank. } { [%cal Gh4g5,Gh4g4,Gb2g2] }) 0-1

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.26"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Tartakower, Ksawery"]
[Black "Lasker, Edward"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[PlyCount "66"]
[ECO "C45"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 { Tartakower opens with a fine center-controlling move. } { [%cal Yf1b5,Yd1h5] } 1... e5 { Lasker responds in kind. } { [%cal Yd8h4,Yf8b4] } 2. Nf3 { White
develops with a threat: 3.Nxe5. } { [%cal Rf3e5] } 2... Nc6 { Black develops with a
purpose -- the Knight stops White's threat of Nxe5. } { [%cal Gc6e5] } 3. d4 { White sets up the ideal center, with pawns at d4 and e4, He's also renewed the
threat against the e5-pawn. } { [%cal Rd4e5,Rf3e5] } 3... exd4 { One way to stop the threat is to just trade
off the pawns, which is what Lasker does. He initiates an exchange which will
ultimately eliminate the target of White's threats. } 4. Nxd4 { Tartakower
recaptures in the logical manner (Qxd4 would be a hideous blunder). } 4... Nf6 { Now Lasker develops with a threat of his own. } { [%cal Rf6e4] } (4... Nxd4 { There's a reason why this is a bad idea... } 5. Qxd4 { White's Queen is very
strongly placed in the center, as there is now no chance of a Knight driving
it off from the c6-square. } 5... c5 { This move is possible, but it leaves a
weakness: a backward pawn on d7 which has almost no hope of advancing without
being picked off by a marauding White piece. } 6. Qd1 { Even if the White Queen
retreats to d1, White has a better position. His e-pawn is better than Black's
c-pawn and Black's d-pawn is permanently weak. }) 5. Nxc6 { Tartakower ignores the threat to his c-pawn and wrests the initiative back
from Black by making a strong threat of his own. } { [%cal Rc6d8] } 5... bxc6 { Lasker doesn't want to
trade Queens and give up his right to castle, so he recaptures with the b-pawn
instead of the d-pawn. } (5... dxc6 6. Qxd8+ Kxd8 7. Bg5 { [%cal Ye4e5] }) 6. Nd2 { The idea of Nd2 instead of
Nc3 is that the Knight will maneuver to b3. From that square it can control a
lot of space on the Queenside. It also avoids an annoying pin by ...Bb4. } { [%csl Ya5,Yc5,Yd4][%cal Yd2b3,Yb3d4,Yb3c5,Yb3a5] } 6... Bc5 { Lasker completes his Kingside development and prepares to castle. } 7. e5 { An interesting move. Tartakower neglects his development (again!) to hang on
to the initiative. He moves the pawn a second time to attack the Black Knight. } 7... Qe7 { Instead of retreating the Knight, Lasker pins the pawn to
the White King (removing the threat to the Knight). This type of pin (in which
the pinned piece is unable to move without breaking the rules of the game is
called an "absolute" pin). } { [%cal Re7e1] } 8. Qe2 { Tartakower renews the threat by blocking
the pin. } 8... Nd5 { Now the Knight must move. The Knight can't go back to its home
square without getting in the way of Kingside castling, so it goes to the only
other available safe square. } 9. Nb3 { As expected, the Knight leaps to b3 and
attacks the Black Bishop. } 9... Bb6 { Black is in no real danger of losing material
(10.Nxc5 Qxc5). He withdraws the Bishop because he doesn't want to give up the
Bishop pair at this early stage of the game. } (9... Bb4+ 10. c3 (10. Bd2 Bxd2+ 11. Nxd2) 10... Bc5 { And White has picked up a move for "free". }) 10. Bd2 { Tartakower wants to get the King out of the center, but will have a hard time
clearing the Kingside (the f1-Bishop is presently buried). He instead develops
his last Queenside piece and gets ready to castle on that side of the board. } 10... a5 { Lasker prepares to play ...a4, driving the White Knight backward. } 11. a4 { Tartakower nips Lasker's idea in the bud. } 11... O-O { Lasker moves a step closer
toward completing his development. } 12. O-O-O { Tartakower's light-squared
Bishop is buried on f1, making Kingside castling impossible, so he opts to
castle long. } 12... d6 { Now Lasker makes a mistake by advancing the wrong pawn,
which will allow White to free his cramped position. } (12... f6 13. exf6 Qxf6 { In this variation, suggested by Alekhine, we see that White is still bottled
up. }) 13. exd6 { Tartakower recaptures. } 13... cxd6 { Lasker could have delayed this
move in favor of ...Qxe2 (see the variation). } (13... Qxe2 14. Bxe2 cxd6 { This variation would have been better for Black than
what was played in the actual game. } { [%csl Rf2][%cal Rb6f2] }) 14. Qxe7 { The trades
continue. Tartakower realizes that trading pieces will help free his game. } { [%cal Yf1a6] } 14... Nxe7 { Lasker evens the material balance. } 15. Bf4 { Tartakower grab the initiative by making a threat against the d-pawn. } { [%csl Rd6][%cal Rf4d6] } 15... d5 { Remember that you can sometimes defend a pawn by advancing it. Here the c-pawn
defends the d-pawn so that no pieces are tied up by covering the pawn. } 16. Bd6 { Tartakower continues to threaten -- this time he
may win the Exchange, or even a whole piece. } { [%csl Re7,Rf8][%cal Rd6f8] } 16... Re8 { The obvious reply. The Rook
is no longer menaced by the x-ray attack and it now defends the Knight. } 17. Bc5 { Tartakower is about to take advantage of Black's weakness on the dark
squares. He drops his Bishop into the hole on c5. } 17... Bxc5 { Lasker accepts the
trade. } 18. Nxc5 { And now White's Knight is posted strongly on a square from
which it may never be driven away by a pawn. } 18... Ng6 { Lasker starts a maneuver to
drive away the invading c5-Knight. } 19. Bd3 { Tartakower finally completes his
development by connecting his Rooks. } 19... Nf4 { The Knight maneuver continues... } 20. g3 { Tartakower has completely missed the point of Black's Knight moves. He
expends a tempo to drive away the Knight (which had no intention of staying at
f4 anyway). } (20. Rhe1 Bg4 21. Rxe8+ Rxe8 22. f3 { This sequence would probably
have served White a bit better. }) 20... Ne6 { We now see the point of Lasker's
last several moves! The White Knight was strongly posted at c5, controlling
many squares on Black's half of the board. Lasker would love to get rid of the
White Knight. } (20... Nxd3+ { Getting rid of the Bishop was another possibility. } 21. Rxd3 Bf5 22. Re3 { This position is about equal. }) 21. Rhe1 { The White Rook now attacks its Black counterpart on e8, right
through the Knight (preventing ...Nxc5). } { [%csl Re8][%cal Re1e8] } 21... Kf8 { The King slides over to protect
the Rook, again enabling ...Nxc5. } 22. Nxe6+ { Tartakower can't possibly
maintain the Knight on c5, so he trades it off. } 22... Bxe6 { This was better than ...
Rve6 (see the variation). } (22... Rxe6 23. Rxe6 Bxe6 24. Re1 { White could advance the f-pawn against the e6-Bishop. Meanwhile,
if Black contests control of the e-file, the White King slides over one square
to protect the Rook on e1. } { [%cal Yf2f5,Yc1d1] }) 23. Re3 { Tartakower's intention is to double the
Rooks on the e-file. } (23. Bxh7 g6 { The Bishop is
trapped. } { [%csl Rh7][%cal Yf8g7,Rg7h7] }) 23... h6 { Lasker wasn't worried about an immediate Bxh6. He's more
concerned with safeguarding the pawn's future (in case ...g6 becomes necessary)
and in starting a general advance of his Kingside pawns. } 24. Rde1 { As
expected, the White Rooks are now doubled. } 24... Rab8 { The Rook grabs the open file,
with possible threats later against the b-pawn, as well as the possibility of
moves like ...Rb4. } 25. b3 { Tartakower makes sure the b-pawn is defended. He
can now activate his King for the endgame. } 25... Bd7 { Black offers simplification
into an endgame. } 26. Kd2 { Tartakower decides to get his King one step closer
to the center. He probably thinks that if Black wants the Rooks off the board,
let him initiate the trade! } (26. Rxe8+ Rxe8 27. Rxe8+ Kxe8 { White wouldn't
really lose anything by swapping off the Rooks, but he doesn't gain anything
either. }) 26... Rxe3 { Lasker does just that, swapping off a pair of Rooks. } 27. Rxe3 { Tartakower completes the trade, and the e-file is now his (at least
temporarily). } 27... Re8 { Lasker disputes White's command of the e-file. } 28. c3 { Tartakower's plan is to play b3-b4. After ...axb4 cxb4, White has a passed
a-pawn. } (28. Rxe8+ Kxe8 29. Ke3 Ke7 30. Kd4 Kd6 { Black could later drive
White's King from the center with ...c5. But examine the pawn structures;
neither side has an obvious advantage. The game would probably end in a draw.
(Variation by Alekhine). }) 28... Rb8 { Lasker will have none of it. The Rook's
control of the file prevents the trade of pawns and the creation of a White
passed pawn on the a-file. } 29. Bc2 { The Bishop steps back to
give the King a direct route to the center. } { [%cal Yd2d4] } 29... f6 { With the idea ...Kf7. } 30. Bd1 { The idea is to be able to shoot over to the Kingside along the d1-h5 diagonal. } 30... c5 { Lasker continues with his incremental pawn advances. White's planned
b3-b4 is definitely stopped now (as two Black pawns control that square) so
the Black Rook is now free to move. } 31. Bc2 { Tartakower sees nothing
contructive to do, so he marks time by shuffling his Bishop. } 31... Rb6 { Planning to again contest control of the e-file by playing ...Re6. } { [%cal Yb6e6] } 32. Kc1 { Another waiting move. Tartakower sees that the game is drawn as long as he
maintains a strong position. Attempting to force matters could cause him to
make a bad move and turn the draw into a loss. } 32... Rb8 { Lasker also sees that the
game is likely drawn, so he makes his own waiting move to see if Tartakower
has any tricks left up his sleeve. } 33. Bd1 { Tartakower continues to mark time.
.. } 33... Bf5 { ...so Lasker moves and offers a draw. Tartakower accepts and the
players split the point. } 1/2-1/2

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.27"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Marshall, Frank James"]
[Black "Lasker, Emanuel"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[PlyCount "124"]
[ECO "D10"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 { This opening is known as the Slav Defense. Some players
consider it to be more advantageous for Black than the standard Queen's Gambit
(1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6) because Black's light-squared Bishop is not blocked in by a
pawn. } 3. cxd5 { Marshall chooses the Exchange Variation of the Slav, in which
a pair of pawns is traded off early. } 3... cxd5 { The position is completely
symmetrical. The c-file is completely open and will be a fine post for a Rook. } 4. Nc3 Nf6 5. Qb3 { This seems to violate a principle we all
learn as beginners: "never bring your Queen out early". But Marshall has a
reason for this move. His Queen attacks the b7-pawn, preventing Black from
developing his light-squared Bishop (which is now tied to the pawn's defense). } { [%cal Rb3b7,Yc8b7] } 5... e6 6. Bf4 { Although Bg5 was possible, Marshall thinks
this placement of the Bishop is better. From f4 it controls the e5-square,
discouraging the pawn break ...e6-e5. Marshall is also thinking about planting
a Knight on e5 later on. } { [%csl Ye5][%cal Yf4e5] } 6... Nc6 { Disputing White's
control of e5. You'll often see openings which center around control of a key
square. } { [%csl Ye5][%cal Yc6e5] } 7. Nf3 { Marshall continues the struggle
for e5. } { [%csl Ye5][%cal Yf3e5,Yf4e5] } 7... Be7 8. e3 { Opening lines for the light-squared Bishop. } 8... Nh5 { [%csl Rf4][%cal Rh5f4] } 9. Bg3 { [%csl Rg3][%cal Rh5g3] } 9... O-O 10. Bd3 f5 { Lasker is gunning for the sequence ...Nhh-f6-e4 and wants
to add some influence over the e4-square. Unfortunately, nothing in chess is
free -- he's left a gaping hole on e5 which can be exploited by White. } { [%csl Re5][%cal Yh5f6,Yf6e4] } 11. Be5 Nf6 12. Bxf6 { Preventing ...Ne4. } 12... Rxf6 13. Rc1 { Marshall grabs the open file. } 13... Bd6 14. Na4 { Heading for c5. } { [%csl Yc5][%cal Ya4c5] } 14... Qa5+ 15. Nc3 { Black's
check has stymied the White Knight's advance. } 15... Rb8 { The Rook defends the
b7-pawn, enabling the light-squared Bishop to finally move off the first rank. } 16. O-O a6 { Lasker prevents the move Nb5. } 17. Na4 { [%csl Yc5][%cal Ya4c5] } 17... Bd7 18. Nc5 Qc7 19. Ne5 { White's Knights are
sitting pretty, controlling many squares in Black's half of the board. } { [%csl Ya6,Yb7,Yc6,Yd7,Ye6,Yf7,Yg6] } 19... Be8 { The threat was Nxd7. } (19... Nxe5 20. dxe5 Bxe5 21. f4 Bd6 22. Nxe6 { [%csl Rc7][%cal Rc1c7] } 22... Qa5 23. Nd4 { Black's d-pawn is isolated and weak. }) 20. f4 (20. Nxe6 Rxe6 21. Qxd5 Bf7 22. Nxf7 Qxf7 23. Bc4 Nd8 { And White maintains a slight
advantage. }) 20... Qe7 (20... Nxe5 21. fxe5 Bxe5 22. dxe5 Qxe5 23. Be2 { An interesting material imbalance, but White has the edge. }) 21. a3 { Marshall's idea is to remove his Queen from b3. By pushing the a-pawn first,
he prevents ...Nb4. } 21... Rh6 { "An attack in the center should be countered by one
on the wing". Lasker starts operations on the Kingside. However, the White
Knights severely impair communications between his pieces. How will he get
more firepower over to the Kingside? } 22. Rf2 g5 23. g3 Kh8 (23... gxf4!? { Black might have tried turning the tables with this move. } 24. exf4 (24. gxf4 Nxe5 25. fxe5 Rg6+ 26. Kh1 Bxc5 27. dxc5 { White's pawn structure offers
several inviting targets. }) 24... Nxd4 { [%csl Rb3][%cal Rd4b3] }) 24. Qd1 { The Queen becomes a bit more flexible here, looking over both sides of the
board. Marshall might now consider playing b2-b4. } 24... gxf4 25. Nxc6 { Heading
Black off at the pass by keeping him from playing ...Nxe5 (see the variation
for an example). } (25. gxf4 Nxe5 26. fxe5 Bh5 { Black has the initiative. }) 25... bxc6 26. exf4 Qg7 { Lasker pursues his Kingside attack, but most of his
army is still too far out of touch. } 27. Bxa6 Bh5 28. Qd2 Rg8 { Lasker now has
his entire army on the Kingside, but at the cost of a pawn. } 29. Be2 { Marshall
threatens to pick off another pawn. } (29. Qe3 { This
was another way to achieve a similar threat. } { [%cal Rc5e6,Re3e6,Gh6e6] }) 29... Be8 (29... Bxe2 30. Qxe2 Qxd4 31. Nxe6 Qf6 32. Nc5) 30. Qe3 { The White
Queen must cover g3 because of the threat of mayhem after ...Rxh2: 30. --
Rxh2 31. Kxh2 Qxg3+ 32. Kh1 Qxf2 And Black is winning big. } 30... Rf6 { His Kingside ambitions stalled, Lasker plans to reposition
the Rook to the Queenside. } { [%cal Yf6f7,Yf7a7] } 31. Bf1 Qe7 { Preventing Nxe6. } 32. a4 { Notice how
much more quickly White can switch the action from one side of the board to
the other than can Black. } 32... h5 { Lasker starts another assault on the Kingside. } 33. Rg2 { Marshall is a bit unnerved by the h-pawn's advance. He moves the Rook
to cover the g-file, which he feels will soon be opened. } (33. a5 { White
should have continued with his plan, as Black poses no real threat on the
other side of the board. }) 33... h4 34. Nd3 { [%csl Ye5][%cal Yd3e5] } 34... Qa7 35. b3 Rg7 { The Rook advances to the open second rank. } { [%cal Yg7b7] } 36. Ne5 hxg3 37. hxg3 Qb6 (37... Bxe5 38. Qxe5 Rh6 39. Rh2 Rxh2 40. Kxh2 { And White has stamped
the fire out. }) 38. a5 { Marshall decides to give back the extra material. With
the g7-Rook now able to easily switch to the Queenside, there is not much hope
of a White pawn promoting. Now the a-file will be open and may perhaps give
Marshall chances of attacking along it. } 38... Qxa5 39. Nxc6 { [%csl Ra5][%cal Rc6a5] } 39... Qb6 40. Ne5 { The Knight took a long path to get to e5, but note now how easily
it can lash out to snag a pawn and then snap back into place like a frog's
tongue darting out to catch a fly. } 40... Rc7 41. Rxc7 Qxc7 42. g4 { Back to the
Kingside goes Marshall. } 42... fxg4? (42... Rh6 { Black might have tried making an
end run with his Rook. } 43. g5 Rh4 { White is still better but Black gets a
tiny bit of counterplay. }) 43. Nxg4 (43. Rxg4 { On the surface, this move looks
good... } 43... Bf8 { ...but it allows Black to reposition his Bishop so that both Bishops
control squares on two sides of the board. } { [%csl Ya3,Ya4,Yb4,Yb5,Yc5,Yc6,Yd6,Yd7,Ye7,Ye8,Yf7,Yf8,Yg6,Yg7,Yh5,Yh6] }) 43... Rxf4 (43... Rg6 44. f5 Rxg4 45. Qh3+ Qh7 46. Qxg4 exf5 47. Qg5 { White is winning, but the game is far from
over. Black's Bishop pair is strong. }) 44. Qxe6 { Marshall goes pawn-grabbing, but in doing so
allows Black to grab the initiative. 44.Bd3 was the winning move. } (44. Bd3 Bh5 45. Nh6 Rf8 46. Qg5 { [%cal Yg5g8] }) 44... Rxf1+ { Lasker will takes the
initiative and will hold it by making threat after threat. } 45. Kxf1 Bb5+ 46. Re2 (46. Kf2 Qc2+ 47. Kf3 Qd1+ 48. Re2 Bxe2+ 49. Qxe2 Qxb3+ { And Black has
clawed his way back into the game. }) 46... Bxe2+ 47. Qxe2 (47. Kxe2 Qc2+ 48. Kf3 Qxb3+ 49. Ne3 Bf8 { Black is still behind but has chances for counterplay. }) 47... Qf7+ 48. Qf2 Kg7 (48... Qxf2+ 49. Kxf2 { Black would have no way to save his d-pawn. } { [%csl Rd5][%cal Yg4e3,Re3d5] }) 49. Ne3 { Looking for Qxf7 and
Nxd5. } 49... Bf4 { The wrong move. } (49... Ba3 50. Qxf7+ Kxf7 51. Nxd5 Bb2 { Black could have forced a draw with this variation. He would have
captured the d-pawn next move, then sacrificed his Bishop for the pawn on the
promotion square b8. This would have left White with a Knight and King,
insufficient material to force a mate. (Variation by Edward Lasker) } { [%csl Rd4][%cal Rb2d4] }) 50. Ke2 { Getting the King off of the same file as Black's Queen. This frees the White
Queen to attack. } 50... Qc7 51. Qg2+ Kf8 52. Nxd5 { A nice fork, but there was nothing wrong with Qxd5. } { [%csl Rc7,Rf4][%cal Rd5c7,Rd5f4] } 52... Qc2+ 53. Kf3 Bd2 (53... Qxg2+ 54. Kxg2 { Black's previous plan for a draw no longer works, as the White
Knight controls the dark squares from which the Bishop could attack the
d4-pawn. }) 54. Qf1 Qxb3+ 55. Ke2+ { [%csl Rf8][%cal Rf1f8] } 55... Ke8 56. Qf5 { Closing in on the Black King. } 56... Qc4+ { Black needs to keep the initiative
through repeated checks. } 57. Kxd2 Qxd4+ 58. Ke2 Qc4+ 59. Kf2 Qc5+ 60. Kg2 Qd6 { Even though Black has failed to check the White King, the Black Queen has
worked its way back to a point from which it can guard the approach squares to
the Black King. } 61. Kf3 Kd8 62. Ke4 { With a single move, Marshall throws away
the win. } (62. Qf7 { This would have thrown Black back into a purely defensive
mode. }) 62... Qe6+ { And Lasker forces the draw. White has no choice but to
exhange Queens. If he plays 63.Qxe6, Black has no legal moves -- stalemate! If
White moves his King (63.Kf4), Black just plays 63...Qxf5 and White is left
with just a King and Knight -- insufficient mating material. } 1/2-1/2

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.27"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Bogoljubow, Efim"]
[Black "Capablanca, Jose Raul"]
[Result "0-1"]
[PlyCount "64"]
[ECO "D05"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 d5 3. e3 e6 4. Bd3 c5 5. b3 { Preventing the advancement of
the Black c-pawn as well as preparing for Bb2. } 5... Nc6 6. O-O (6. dxc5 Bxc5 { This just helps Black's development. }) 6... Bd6 7. Bb2 O-O 8. Nbd2 Qe7 { Capablanca prepares the advance of his e-pawn by backing it up with the Queen. } 9. Ne5 { Bogoljubow's Knight blocks the Black e-pawn's advance and prevents
Black from dominating the center. } 9... cxd4 10. exd4 Ba3 11. Bxa3 Qxa3 { The battle
lines are now drawn. White will try to use his dominating position in the
center. Black will try to exploit the dark-square weaknesses on the Queenside
(caused by the exchange of White's dark-squared Bishop and the holes on a3 and
c3) as well as the half-open c-file. } 12. Ndf3 { Ensuring that a Knight will
remain well-posted at e5 (12...Nxe5 13.Nxe5). } 12... Bd7 13. Nxc6 Bxc6 14. Qd2 { Alekhine later said that he thinks 14.Qc1 was better. } (14. Qc1 Qb4 15. Qd2 Qb6 16. Ne5 { Alekhine's idea in this variation is for White to push the Black
Queen back while still controlling the center. }) 14... Rac8 { Capa looks to the
future. Once the c6-Bishop moves, his Rook will create a bit of pressure along
the c-file. } 15. c3 { Bogo should have played Ne5 right away, as there was no
real danger to the c-pawn. } 15... a6 { Capablanca creates an anchor point for his
Bishop. } 16. Ne5 Bb5 17. f3 (17. Bxb5 axb5 { And Black now has another
half-open file on the Queenside. }) 17... Bxd3 18. Nxd3 Rc7 { Preparing to
double the Rooks on the c-file and pile up on the c3-pawn. } 19. Rac1 Rfc8 20. Rc2 Ne8 { [%cal Ye8d6,Yd6b5,Rb5c3] } 21. Rfc1 Nd6 22. Ne5 { The main purpose for
a Knight on the fifth rank is to hamper the movement and development of the
opposing pieces. But Black already has his pieces where he wants them on the
Queenside, so there's no point to this move anymore. } (22. Nc5 b6 23. Na4 { This would have made life much more
difficult for Black. } { [%csl Gc3][%cal Ga4c3,Gc2c3,Gc1c3,Gd2c3] }) 22... Qa5 { And now everything is piled up on c3. } { [%cal Ra5c3,Rc7c3,Rc8c3,Gc1c3,Gc2c3,Gd2c3] } 23. a4 { We're not sure what Bogo was
thinking with this move, unless it was to play b3-b4 next move. The fact is
that Bogo now has two weak pawns on the Queenside. } 23... Qb6 { Cpap zeros right in on the fresh weakness White just created. } { [%csl Rb3][%cal Rb6b3] } 24. Nd3 { Bogo has decided to drop the pawn in favor of playing Nc5. He might have done
a bit better to follow his original plan of playing b3-b4. } (24. b4 a5 25. bxa5 Qxa5 { Now the c-pawn is under fire again, but at least this doesn't drop a
pawn as in the actual game. }) 24... Qxb3 25. Nc5 Qb6 26. Rb2 Qa7 27. Qe1 { Bogo had to do this, as Black was threatening ...Nc4, forking the Queen and
b2-Rook. } 27... b6 28. Nd3 Rc4 { White is really hurting now.
Capa is able to exploit the weak Queenside squares to his full advantage. } { [%csl Ra4][%cal Rc4a4] } 29. a5 (29. Rb4 Qc7 $19 { [%csl Rc3][%cal Rc8c3] }) 29... bxa5 30. Nc5 Nb5 31. Re2 { Now Capa sees a brilliant way of finishing the game... } (31. Kh1 { Getting the
King off of the same diagonal as the Black Queen would have saved Bogo a lot
of grief (but in his defense, the actual game's finale wasn't a bit obvious). }) 31... Nxd4! 32. cxd4 R8xc5 { Bogo sees no future for this game, so he throws
in the towel. } (33. R8xc5 32... Rd1 33... Rc8 { Even with all the
major pieces on the board, Black's extra pawns will win the day. }) (33. R8xc5 32... dxc5 33... Qxc5+ Kh1 34... Rxc1 { And White is
doomed -- he's behind by way too much material. }) 0-1

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.27"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Tartakower, Ksawery"]
[Black "Alekhine, Alexander"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[PlyCount "78"]
[ECO "C33"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 e5 2. f4 { How surprising! Tartakower, a proponent of the Hypermodern
school of chess, begins the game with a Classical opening: the King's Gambit,
in which White offers Black a pawn in return for faster development. } 2... exf4 3. Be2 { This is a fairly unusual move. 3.Nf3 is more typical. } 3... Ne7 { Alekhine
tries a move that's never been played before in master chess. } 4. d4 { Tartakower replies by occupying the center with his pawns -- exactly opposite
to the way he usually plays. } 4... d5 5. exd5 (5. e5 Ng6 { Making it more difficult for White to win back his gambitted pawn. } { [%csl Gf4][%cal Gg6f4] }) 5... Nxd5 { The pawn is still guarded, but the Knight is easier to
dislodge from d5 than from g6 (see the previous variation). } { [%csl Gf4][%cal Gd5f4] } 6. Nf3 Bb4+ { A seemingly pointless check at first glance. But Alekhine would prefer that a
White pawn move to c3 rather than the White Knight (this makes the d5-Knight
more secure). } 7. c3 Be7 8. O-O O-O 9. c4 Ne3 10. Bxe3 fxe3 { Why would Black
give up his well-placed Knight for White's Bishop? Look at the board: White no
longer has a dark-squared Bishop and the advanced Black pawn sits on a dark
square in the middle of White's territory. It will be difficult for White to
remove this bone in his throat as he no longer has the properly-colored Bishop
to perform this task. } 11. Qd3 Bf6 12. Nc3 { Tartakower prepares
to centralize his Knight. } { [%cal Yc3d5] } (12. Qxe3 c5 { [%cal Rd8d4,Rc5d4,Rf6d4,Gf3d4,Ge3d4] }) 12... Nc6 { Alekhine piles up on the
d-pawn. He also has the threat of ...Nb4, harassing White's Queen. } { [%cal Rc6d4,Rd8d4,Rf6d4,Gd3d4,Gf3d4] } 13. Nd5 { Blocking at least one of the attacking pieces. } 13... Bg4 14. Nxf6+ Qxf6 15. d5 { With the center open, the game moves into wilder channels. } { [%cal Rd5c6,Rf6b2] } 15... Bxf3 16. Rxf3 { Better than 16.Bxf3; capturing with the
Rook endangers the Black Queen while still maintaining the blockade against
the e3-pawn. } { [%csl Rf6][%cal Rf3f6] } 16... Qxb2 { [%csl Ra1][%cal Rb2a1] } 17. Rb1 Qxa2 18. Rxe3 { Tartakower
has eliminated the advanced pawn, but his King is a bit exposed on a wide-open
board, and he's down two pawns besides! } 18... Nd4 { This looks weird at first, but
White can't capture the Knight: the White Queen defends the b1-Rook. } (18... Na5!? { This was better for Black. } { [%cal Ra5c4,Ga5b7] }) 19. Rxb7 Nxe2+ 20. Rxe2 Qa1+ 21. Rb1 Qf6 22. c5 { Tartakower is down material, so his best bet is to
advance the pawns, taking space away from Black while preparing for the
endgame. } 22... Rfd8 23. Rbe1 { Tartakower's Rooks command the open file.
The Black Rooks are now tied to covering e8. } { [%cal Ye1e8] } 23... Qg6 24. Qd4 { Tartakower wants to
keep his pawn pair and with it the possibility of pressure on Black (he must
always be wary of the pawns advancing). } (24. Qxg6 fxg6 { Now the Black Rooks are free to move off of the first rank, as the Black King
has a flight square. } { [%csl Rd5][%cal Rd8d5] }) 24... Qf6 25. Re5 (25. Qxf6 gxf6 26. Re7 Rac8 { [%csl Rd5][%cal Rd8d5] }) 25... Kf8 26. Rf1 { With no chance of a mate on e8 (the
Black King now covers it), the White Rook is available to harass the Black
Queen. } 26... Qg6 27. h4 { Tartakower continues his harassment techniques by chasing
after the Black Queen. He intends to play h4-h5, } 27... Rd7 { xx } 28. h5 Qh6 29. Qe4 { Tartakower sets up a second threat: tripling his heavy pieces on the e-file
for a winning attack on the Black King. } 29... f6 { Obviously, there's no real threat
to the e5-Rook, as the f-pawn is pinned. Alekhine anticipates the move c5-c6
(attacking the d7-Rook). He'd like to keep a Rook on his second rank to keep
White from invading it with Re7. } 30. g4 Rad8 31. c6 { Had Black not advanced
his f-pawn, his game would now be over. } (31. g5 Qxh5) 31... Rf7 (31... Rd6 32. Re7 { The White Queen will follow to e7. } { [%csl Rc7][%cal Re7c7] }) 32. Re6 Qg5 { Alekhine has worked his way out of his difficulties.
Now the Black Queen can squeeze out on White's Kingside and force a draw. } { [%cal Yg5h4] } 33. Qxh7 { Threatening mate by Qh8. But Alekhine won't give Tartakower the chance
to play it. } 33... Qxg4+ 34. Kf2 Qf4+ 35. Ke2 Qc4+ 36. Kf2 Qf4+ 37. Ke2 Qc4+ 38. Ke1 Qc1+ 39. Ke2 Qc4+ { The position has repeated itself three times -- the game
ends as a draw. } 1/2-1/2

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.27"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Janowski, Dawid"]
[Black "Reti, Richard"]
[Result "0-1"]
[PlyCount "88"]
[ECO "A48"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 g6 3. h3 { This move makes absolutely no sense. Black has no
designs on g4. } 3... Bg7 4. Bf4 b6 { This move has a dual purpose: to allow ...Bb7
and to support ...c7-c5. } 5. e3 c5 6. c4 { Bringing about a sort of Queen's
Gambit position. } 6... cxd4 { Trading a flank pawn for a more valuable center pawn. } 7. exd4 O-O 8. Nc3 { Janowski would be better off developing his Kingside
Bishop, then castling his King out of the center. } 8... d5 9. Be2 Bb7 10. b3 { Now White has some serious dark-square weaknesses on his
Queenside. Remember that the Black g7-Bishop bears down on this side of the
board (even though it's temporarily blocked by the f6-Knight). } { [%csl Ra3,Rb2,Rc3] } 10... Ne4 { [%cal Rg7a1] } 11. Rc1 (11. Nxd5 Bxd5 12. cxd5 Nc3 13. Qc2 Nxe2 14. Qxe2 Qxd5 15. O-O Nc6 { Black has a centralized Queen and a strong fianchettoed Bishop.
(Variation by Alekhine) }) 11... Nxc3 12. Rxc3 { The Black
dark-squared Bishop keeps getting stronger. } { [%cal Rg7a1] } 12... dxc4 13. bxc4 { Look at
the pawn structure here. Black has two pawn islands, White has three. It will
be harder for White to defend his pawn weaknesses. Note in particular the
lonely pawn on a2. } { [%csl Ra2] } 13... Nc6 { Everything now
centers on d4. } { [%cal Rc6d4,Rd8d4,Rg7d4,Gd1d4,Gf3d4] } 14. Rd3 Na5 { Black gets the initiative } { [%csl Rc4][%cal Ra5c4] } 15. c5 { Janowski advances the pawn (remember, this is one of the
key ways of protecting a menaced pawn), but in doing so he leaves a hole on d5. } { [%csl Rd5] } 15... Qd5 { Reti is quick to exploit the new weakness. } { [%csl Ra2][%cal Rd5a2] } 16. O-O Qxa2 17. Re1 { Janowski would be better off playing Ne5 to centralize the
Knight and try to get some counterplay. He's playing too passively. } 17... Qd5 18. Bf1 { The point of 17.Re1. Janowski is trying to rearrange his pieces to get
them to better squares. But does he have time for this? } 18... Ba6 { [%csl Rd3][%cal Ra6d3] } 19. Rc3 Bxf1 20. Kxf1 { When you're ahead in material, trade pieces
(not pawns). Every piece that comes off the board brings you closer to an
endgame (in which your pawn advantage should win the day). } 20... Nc6 { Blocking the
White c-pawn and clearing the way for a general Queenside pawn advance. } 21. Be3 Rfd8 22. Qc1 { We really can't figure out why Janowski didn't play cxb6
while he had the chance. This would create a Black pawn weakness for him to
attack. } 22... b5 { Too late now. White has connected passed pawns (which will be
very hard to stop). } 23. Rd1 b4 { The move ...a5 will follow and now White is
in a world of trouble. } 24. Rc2 a5 25. Ng1 { Janowski fools around
repositioning his Kingside pieces. Doesn't he see the danger on the Queenside? } 25... a4 26. Ne2 { [%cal Ye2f4] } 26... b3 { Reti puts White off-balance with another threat } 27. Rcd2 (27. Rc3 { This wouldn't help White hold things together. } 27... e5 28. Rcd3 a3 { The pawns continue marching. }) 27... a3 28. Nf4 { [%csl Rd5][%cal Rf4d5] } 28... b2! { Reti is unconcerned by the threat against his Queen -- he'll have another
soon enough. } 29. Qc3 (29. Nxd5 bxc1=Q 30. Rxc1 Rxd5 { [%cal Rg7d4,Rd5d4,Rc6d4] }) 29... Qf5 { Aiming at the promotion square. } { [%cal Yf5b1] } 30. Nd3 Bxd4 31. Bxd4 Rxd4 32. Kg1 (32. Nxb2 Rxd2 33. Qxd2 a2) 32... Rxd3 { And now Reti sees a
way to win a piece. } 33. Rxd3 Qxd3 34. Qxd3 a2 35. Kh2 { To prevent promotions
with check along the back rank. } 35... a1=Q 36. Rb1 (36. Rxa1 bxa1=Q { Black is up
much material. }) 36... Rb8 37. h4 { It's better for White to leave the new
Black Queen alone -- if he captures with the Rook, Black just creates a new
Queen (in effect, White gives up a Rook for a mere pawn and is down a Rook and
minor piece). } 37... Qa4 { [%cal Ya4f4,Rf4h2] } 38. g3 { [%csl Gf4][%cal Gg3f4] } 38... Qd4 39. Qc2 (39. Qxd4 Nxd4 { And White is doomed to a passive game. }) 39... Qf6 40. Kg2 h5 41. Kg1 Nd4 42. Qd1 Qf5 43. Kg2 (43. Qxd4 Qxb1+) 43... Qxc5 { Reti will have
no trouble now. White could resign at any time. } 44. Qd2 Qd5+ { Janowski
resigns as he sees that Reti will have no trouble forcing the win (see the
variation for a possible continuation). } (45. Qd5+ 44... f3 45... Rb3 { [%csl Rf3][%cal Rd5f3,Rb3f3,Rd4f3] } 46. Qf2 46... Nxf3 Kh3 47... Qf5+ Kg2 48... Qxb1 Qc5 49... Nxh4+ Kh2 50... Qf1 Qc8+ { Forced, otherwise 52.Qg2#. } 51... Kh7 gxh4 { Eliminating
the immediate mate threat, but Black wins easily anyway. } 52... Qf2+ Kh1 53... b1=Q+ Qc1 54... Qxc1#) 0-1

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.27"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Yates, Frederick"]
[Black "Maroczy, Geza"]
[Result "0-1"]
[PlyCount "138"]
[ECO "C13"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 e6 { The French Defense. Black's idea is to support the advance of the
d-pawn (...d7-d5). He hopes that White will play e4-e5; Black will then try to
wreck White's pawn center with ...c7-c5. } 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 { White instead
chooses to support the e-pawn rather than advance it. } 3... Nf6 4. Bg5 { Yates plans
to play e4-e5, striking at the pinned Knight a second time. } 4... Be7 { Breaking the
pin. } 5. e5 Nfd7 6. h4 f6 7. exf6 (7. Bd3 fxg5 8. Qh5+ { Alekhine recommended
this variation, in which White gets a nice Kingside attack. }) 7... Nxf6 8. Bd3 c5 9. dxc5 { White now has no central pawns. But Black has three pawn islands
to White's two. It's an interesting imbalance. } 9... Nc6 10. Nh3 Qa5 11. Bd2 Qxc5 12. Nf4 O-O 13. Qe2 { White strikes at the backward
e6-pawn. } { [%cal Re2e6,Rf4e6,Gc8e6] } 13... Nd4 { [%cal Rf4e6,Re2e6,Gd4e6,Gc8e6] } 14. Qf1 (14. Qe3 { Better than
the actual move, as White maintains the pressure on the center. On f1, the
Queen is out of the action. }) 14... Bd6 15. O-O-O Ng4 16. Nh3 Nxf2 17. Nxf2 Rxf2! { Maroczy plays a startling move. At first glance, the Rook is hanging..
. } 18. Qe1 { ...but Yates sees that he can't safely capture the Rook. } (18. Qxf2 { Loses immediately. } 18... Nb3+ 19. axb3 Qxf2) 18... Bd7 (18... Rxg2 19. Be3 Be5 { This allows White a little too much counterplay. White could play either Rg1
(to challenge its Black counterpart) or Rf1 (seizing the open file). }) 19. Kb1 { Eliminating the threat of the Knight check, but Yates could have played
something better (see the variation). } (19. Be3 Bf4 20. Bxf4 Rxf4 21. Qe5 { This gives White better chances than he found in the actual game. }) 19... Rf6 { Maroczy decides to regroup, but playing ...Rf7 immediately was certainly
better. } 20. Bg5 { Yates grabs the initiative. } 20... Rf7 21. h5 { Yates launches a
common Kingside attack. The h-pawn races ahead to break up the pawn wall
around the Black King. } 21... Nc6 22. h6 { Yates slips up and his attack will now
fizzle out. } (22. Bg6 Rff8 { This would be Black's best bet. } (22... hxg6 23. hxg6 Rf6 24. Qh4 { And suddenly Black is a world of trouble! }) 23. Be3 Qa5 24. Bd3) 22... g6 { The White attack has been stopped. } 23. Be3 Qa5 24. Qh4 Qd8 25. Bg5 Be7 26. Bxe7 Qxe7 27. Qg3 (27. Qxe7 { Avoid trading pieces when behind in
pawns. Every capture brings the game closer to the endgame, where the side
with the most pwans usually has a strong advantage. } 27... Nxe7 { Playing ...Rxe7
abandons the file. }) 27... Qf6 { At first glance this might seem silly (because
of Rf1), but Maroczy wants to invite trades so that he can convert his pawn
advantage into a win. } 28. Rdf1 Qe5 29. Qg4 Rxf1+ 30. Rxf1 Rf8 31. Rd1 (31. Rxf8+ Kxf8 { Still favorable for Black, as White's pieces are uncoordinated. }) 31... Qf4 { Maroczy invites another trade, but also clears e5 for the Knight. } 32. Qh3 Ne5 33. Bb5 Bc8 (33... Bxb5 34. Qxe6+ Nf7 (34... Qf7 35. Qxe5) 35. Nxb5 { And White is back in the driver's seat! }) 34. a3 a6 35. Be2 (35. Rf1 Qd4 36. Rxf8+ Kxf8) 35... Bd7 36. Rf1 Qg5 37. Rxf8+ Kxf8 38. Qh2 { Yates anticipates ...Nf7 (attacking the h6-pawn twice). He sees the pawn is
lost, so his idea is to work his Queen over to the other side of the board
where it could do some damage against the Black pawns there. } { [%cal Yh2g1,Yg1b6] } 38... Ke7 39. Qg1 Qxh6 40. Qb6 { [%csl Rb7][%cal Rb6b7] } 40... Bc6 41. Qc7+ Nd7 42. Bxa6 Qh1+ (42... bxa6 43. Qxc6 Qh1+ 44. Ka2 Qxg2 45. Qxa6 Qxc2) 43. Ka2 Qxg2 44. Bxb7 Bxb7 45. Qxb7 { Now the strategy for both players is to advance their pawns in an attempt to
promote. } 45... Qg4 { Preventing Qb4+. } 46. a4 Qc4+ 47. Kb1 h5 { Maroczy sees that the
White Queen is shut off from the Kingside, so he begins to march the h-pawn
forward. } 48. Qa8 Nc5 49. Qa7+ (49. a5 { White should have seen to his own
pawn's advance instead of pointlessly checking the Black King. } 49... h4 50. Qh8) 49... Kf6 50. Qb8 { The White Queen now has two paths to the
Kingside. } { [%cal Yb8h8,Yb8h2] } 50... Kf5 (50... Nxa4 51. Qf8+ Ke5 52. Qg7+ Kf4 53. Nxa4 Qxa4 54. Qxg6) 51. Qf8+ Kg4 52. Qf6 g5 53. Nd1 { 53.a5 or at least 53.b3 should have been
played to get the a-pawn out of danger. } (53. b3 Qf4 54. Qxf4+ gxf4) 53... Qf4 (53... Qxa4 { Not as good as the actual game. } 54. Ne3+ Kg3 55. Nf1+ Kg2 56. Ne3+ Kg3 57. Nf1+ Kg4 58. Ne3+ Kg3 { Drawing. }) 54. Qc3 Nxa4 { Yates is down two
pawns and his remaining pawns are still on their home squares. He could
realistically resign at any time. } 55. Qc6 Kf5 56. Qe8 h4 57. b3 Qd2 58. Qf8+ Ke5 59. Qg7+ Kf4 60. Qf6+ Kg3 61. Qe5+ Kf3 { Yates tries valiantly to hang on
to the initiative and get a draw, but sooner or later he's going to run out of
checks. } 62. Qf6+ Kg2 (62... Ke2 63. Qf2+ Kxd1 64. Qf1+ Qe1 65. Qd3+ Qd2 66. Qf3+ Qe2 67. Qh1+ { With an eventual draw. }) 63. bxa4 Qxd1+ 64. Kb2 Qg4 65. a5 h3 66. Qc3 (66. a6 h2 67. a7 h1=Q 68. a8=Q Qb4+ 69. Ka2 Qhb1# { Variation by
Alekhine. }) 66... Qe2 67. a6 Qb5+ { [%csl Ra6,Rb2][%cal Rb5b2,Rb5a6] } 68. Kc1 Qxa6 { Taking away White's last hope. } 69. Qd2+ Kf3 { 0-1 White resigns. } (70. Kf3 69... Qxg5 70... Qa1+ Kd2 71... Qd4+ { No matter which way the King goes, the
Black Queen will check on the next move. Then Black's plan will be to use the
King and Queen to trap the White King on the first rank. } { [%cal Yd2c1,Yd2e1,Yd4e3] }) 0-1

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.29"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Lasker, Emanuel"]
[Black "Reti, Richard"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "63"]
[ECO "C12"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. Bg5 Bb4 { This counterpin gives a French
Winawer-like setup that is a bit off the beaten path. } 5. Ne2 dxe4 6. a3 { Dr. Lasker puts the question to the Bishop -- retreat or capture? One
shouldn't automatically push the a- or h-pawn to nudge the Bishop, but in this
case the good doctor has a reason: he'd like to be able to play Nxe4 but is
unable to because of the pin. } 6... Be7 7. Bxf6 gxf6 { This is better than ...Bxf6
in this position. Reti is anticipating Nxe4; after ...gxf6 he's able to play ..
.f6-f5 to boot the Knight out of the center. } 8. Nxe4 f5 { This does drive off
the Knight (as Reti planned) but it's also weakened his Kingside pawn
formation. The centralized White Knight was not yet a problem, so Reti should
probably have started developing his Queenside instead. } 9. N4c3 Bd7 10. Qd2 Bd6 11. O-O-O Qe7 { This actually helps White (see the note to White's next
move). Black would have been better off playing ...c6 (controlling the
d5-square). } (11... c6 { [%cal Yc6d5] }) 12. Ng3 { White's threat is 13.Nxf5 exf5
14.Re1 (this is why Black's 11th move actually helped White) Be6 15.d5
(hitting the pinned Bishop again). } 12... Qh4 13. Qe1 { White's idea is Nxf5, forking
the d6-Bishop and Queen (...exf5 is impossible due to the pin). } 13... Nc6 14. Nxf5 Qf4+ 15. Ne3 Nxd4 { Reti wins back the pawn but he's created a problem: he's
opened the d-file. Both center files are either open or half-open for White's
heavy pieces and the Black King is still sitting in the center. } 16. g3 Qe5 17. Bg2 Nc6 (17... Bc6 { This doesn't work; White will be happy to trade Bishops,
since all the action is on the center files. }) 18. f4 Qg7 19. Nb5 { Better than
19.Nf5, as it wins a pawn. } (19. Nf5 { This looks good at first
glance, since the e-pawn is pinned and cannot capture the Knight. But Black
has a clever reply... } { [%cal Rf5g7] } 19... Bxf4+ 20. gxf4 (20. Kb1 Qg5 { [%cal Rg5f5] }) 20... Qxg2) 19... O-O (19... O-O-O { Black's not a whole lot better off castling the other
way. } 20. Bxc6 Bxc6 21. Nxa7+ Kd7 22. Nxc6 Kxc6 { And the Black King is near
the center, where it will be harassed by the White pieces. }) 20. Nxd6 cxd6 21. Rxd6 Rfd8 22. Qd2 { Putting pressure on Black along the open d-file. } 22... Be8 23. Rd1 Rdc8 (23... Rxd6 { This was possible, but after White's reply... } 24. Qxd6 { ...the White Queen sits too close to the heart of Black's position for comfort. }) 24. f5 e5 { Reti is forced to accept a weakening of the pawns around his
King. 24...exf5 strands a pawn on f5, while waiting for 25.fxe6 fxe6 leaves a
nice juicy target pawn for White on e6. } 25. f6 Qf8 26. Nf5 Kh8 { Reti
anticipates White's next move. } 27. Qg5 Rc7 28. Bxc6 Rxc6 (28... Bxc6 { Forces
mate. } 29. Qg7+ Qxg7 30. fxg7+ Kg8 31. Rd8+ Be8 32. Rxa8 Re7 33. Rdd8 f6 34. Rxe8+ Rxe8 35. Rxe8+ Kf7 36. g8=Q#) 29. Rd8 Rcc8 30. Qg7+ Qxg7 31. fxg7+ Kg8 32. Ne7+ { 1-0 Black resigns. } (32... Ne7+ 32. Kxg7 Nxc8) 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.29"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Marshall, Frank James"]
[Black "Capablanca, Jose Raul"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[PlyCount "131"]
[ECO "A48"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 g6 3. e3 { If Marshall really wanted to play this, he should
first have developed his dark-squared Bishop (perhaps to f4). Now the Bishop
is blocked in. } 3... Bg7 4. Nbd2 b6 5. Bc4 O-O 6. Qe2 c5 7. c3 Bb7 8. O-O d5 { Capablanca gains a tempo by forcing the Bishop to retreat. } 9. Bd3 Ne4 10. Bxe4 { When your position is cramped, free it by exchanging pieces. Of course, it's
even better to not play passively (as Marshall has) and avoid the cramped
position to start with! } 10... dxe4 11. Ng5 e5 12. Ngxe4 { A convoluted maneuver, but
it was the only way to try to regain the center. } 12... exd4 13. exd4 Ba6 { This is a
bit questionable. White can obviously block the attack by c3-c4 and the
resulting pin on the c-pawn doesn't mean anything. Positionally speaking, it
would be better to leave the Bishop on b7. } 14. c4 Qxd4 15. Rb1 Nc6 16. b3 Rad8 17. Bb2 { Marshall finally completes his development, seventeen moves into the
game (see the note to White's third move). } 17... Qd3 18. Qxd3 Rxd3 19. Nf3 { The
Knight goes to a square where it enjoys more mobility while still covering the
Black Rook's penetration square on d2. } 19... Bxb2 { Capa gives up the Bishop pair,
but still enjoys the advantage of Bishop + Knight vs. two Knights. } 20. Rxb2 f5 21. Neg5 Re8 { Now Black's Rooks domintate the open
center files. } { [%cal Ge8e1,Gd3d1,Gd3d8] } 22. Nh3 Bb7 { Back to the long diagonal (from which it should
never have left). } 23. Nf4 Rd6 24. Nd5 Ne7 { Capa is trying to bait Marshall
into playing Nxe7, which will increase Capa's advantage by simplifying the
minor piece tally (Bishop vs. Knight as opposed to Bishop + Knight vs. two
Knights). } 25. Nc7 Red8 26. Re2 R6d7 27. Ne6 { Keeping Black off-balance. The
threat of Nxd8 prevents ...Rd1. } 27... Bxf3 { Capa decides to trade his material
advantage for a positional one: he gives up his Bishop in order to destroy the
White Knigside pawn structure. } 28. gxf3 Rd2 29. Rfe1 Rxe2 30. Rxe2 Rd7 31. Nd8 Kf8 (31... Rxd8 32. Rxe7 { [%csl Ra7][%cal Re7a7] } 32... Rd1+ 33. Kg2 a5 (33... Rd2 34. Rxa7) 34. Rb7 Rd2 35. Rxb6 Rxa2 36. Rb5 { [%csl Rc5][%cal Rb5c5] }) 32. Ne6+ Kf7 33. Ng5+ Kg7 34. Ne6+ Kf6 35. Kg2 h6 36. h4 Kf7 37. Nf4 Rd1 38. Re3 Rd4 39. Nd3 { Marshall decides it's better to give up a pawn now (see the variation). } (39. Kg3 Rd2 40. Re2 Rxe2 41. Nxe2 { White has a distinct disadvantage in this
endgame due to his bad pawn structure on the Kingside. }) 39... Rxh4 40. Ne5+ Kf8 (40... Kg7 { This would have been much better, as it defends the Kingside
pawns. }) 41. Nd7+ Ke8 42. Ne5 Kd8 { This is a rare example of an endgame error
by Capablanca. He should have kept his King on the Kingside, concentrating his
forces where the enemy is weakest. Instead, he heads for the Queenside to
attempt a breakthrough there. } 43. Nf7+ Kd7 44. Ne5+ Kc7 45. Nf7 Nc6 46. Re6 { Now Marshall will win back the lost pawn. } 46... Rd4 47. Rxg6 Rd2 48. f4 (48. Nxh6 { An interesting move, but one that winds up immobilizing the White Kingside. } 48... f4 49. Rg7+ Kb8 50. Nf7 { White's pawns are frozen and his King is tied down to
their defense. Capa may have been looking for a position like this when he
began moving his King to the Queenside. }) 48... Rxa2 49. Rg7 Nd4 50. Nxh6+ Kc6 51. Nf7 Kd7 (51... Nxb3 52. Ne5+ Kd6 53. Rg6+ Ke7 54. Rg7+ Kf8 55. Rf7+ Ke8 56. Rg7 { Fritz finds this variation, which looks to be better for Black (though
the Black King is very exposed!) }) (51... Ne6 { Alekhine later discovered a
clever mate from this position: } 52. Ne5+ Kd6 53. Rd7#) 52. Ne5+ Ke6 53. Rg6+ Ke7 54. Rg7+ Kf8 55. Rb7 Nxb3 56. Rf7+ Ke8 57. Rxf5 { Both sides have passed
pawns, but White's is more advanced and can stay a step ahead of Black's pawn. } 57... Nd2 (57... a5 58. Rh5 a4 59. f5 a3 60. f6 Kd8 { Avoiding the threatened Rh8#. } 61. Rf5 { And White will promote first (with check!). }) 58. Rh5 Rc2 59. Rh8+ { Marshall would have been better off playing f4-f5 (with a result similar to
the variation to Black's 57th move). } 59... Ke7 60. f5 Ne4 { gives the opponent new
chances } 61. Kf3 Nd6 62. Rh7+ Kf6 63. Ng4+ Kxf5 64. Ne3+ { Marshall, having
scattered Black's forces with the threat of the f-pawn's promotion, now goes
to work on the Queenside. } 64... Kg6 65. Rxa7 Rc3 66. Ra6 { And the rest is just a
demolition derby with both sides gobbling up the pawns to then be left with
even material. The players pack it in and call it a day. } 1/2-1/2

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.29"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Lasker, Edward"]
[Black "Alekhine, Alexander"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[PlyCount "115"]
[ECO "C78"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Bc5 { An unusual approach. Most
players plant the Bishop on e7. Alekhine later indicated in the tournament
book that this was an old idea of Moeller's. } 6. d3 Qe7 7. Nc3 { Lasker's idea
is 8.Nd5 Nxd5 9.exd5, attacking the Knight on c6. } 7... Nd4 8. Nxd4 Bxd4 9. Ne2 { This move has a dual purpose: the Knight heads for the Kingside and threatens
the d4-Bishop. } 9... Ba7 10. Ng3 { Lasker's idea is to post the Knight on f5. } 10... g6 { Alekhine stops the Knight dead in its tracks, but weakens the
dark squares on the Kingside. } { [%csl Rf6,Rh6] } 11. Bh6 { Lasker is quick to exploit the
Kingside weakness. Now the Black King can't castle on the Kingside. } 11... b5 12. Bb3 d6 13. h3 { This keeps Black from playing ...Ng4 with
the idea of removing the annoying h6-Bishop. } { [%csl Gg4][%cal Gh3g4] } 13... Be6 14. Qf3 { Lasker's plan now
is to play Bg7, forking the h8-Rook and f6-Knight. } 14... Nd7 15. Nf5 { This appears
to lose the Knight, but it's just an illusion; Lasker will regain the piece
quickly. } 15... gxf5 16. exf5 d5 (16... Bxb3 { This doesn't work. } 17. axb3 { The Rook bears down on a6. } { [%csl Ra6][%cal Ra1a6] }) 17. fxe6 fxe6 { The e6-pawn
covers d5, but Black's Kingside pawns have been ripped away. } 18. Be3 { "Why??!!??" we wonder. There was no threat to the Bishop and it was cramping
Black from its post on h6. Lasker appears to have made a big mistake! } 18... Rf8 { This move was made possible by the Bishop abandoning its post on h6. } 19. Qh5+ Qf7 20. Qxf7+ { If Lasker doesn't play this, Black will castle Queenside and
the Black Queen and two Rooks will use the open f- and g-files to attack the
White King. } 20... Rxf7 21. c3 Ke7 22. Rae1 a5 { Alekhine's pawns advance ominously
towards White's Queenside. The advantage has suddenly shifted over to Black. } 23. Bd1 Kd6 { Centralizing the King. Despite the wealth of material on the
board, this is technically already an endgame. Black's King seems safe from
attack, so Alekhine is doing the right thing by centralizing it. } 24. Bh5 Rf6 25. Bg4 Bxe3 { Alekhine prepares a further pawn advance by swapping Bishops.
This also helps to safeguard his King (the Black King is on a dark-square, so
trading off dark-squared Bishops makes the King more secure). } 26. fxe3 b4 27. c4 { Lasker is trying to keep the Queenside closed. Otherwise Black's Rooks
could attack simultaneously on open files on both sides of the board. } 27... Raf8 28. Rxf6 Nxf6 (28... Rxf6 { This is still met by 29.Rf1. } 29. Rf1 { Black must
either trade Rooks or abandon the f-file. If the Rook leaves the file, the
White Rook invades on either f7 or f8. }) 29. Rf1 e4 { Alekhine's plan now is to
swap off pawns to get a 3 to 2 pawn majority on the a- to c-files. } 30. cxd5 exd3 31. dxe6 c5 { Alekhine's plan has succeeded, but both players now have an
advanced passed pawn. Note, however, that both promotion squares are covered
by opposing minor pieces. } 32. b3 d2 33. Bf3 Ne4 { A startling move at first
glance, until you look a bit deeper. White can't take the Knight (see the
variations to White's next move). } 34. Rd1 (34. Bxe4 { Note that the Bishop no
longer covers d1. } 34... Rxf1+ 35. Kxf1 d1=Q+) 34... Nc3 35. Rxd2+ Kxe6 { Now each
side must rely on their respective pawn majorities if a win is to be had. } 36. Kf1 Rf7 37. Ke1 Ke5 38. Rd8 { "Get your Rook behind the pawns" is good endgame
advice. This includes getting one's Rook behind the enemy pawns! Lasker is now
gunning for the a- and c-pawns. } 38... Rc7 39. Re8+ (39. Ra8 a4 40. bxa4 Nxa2 41. a5 b3 42. a6 b2 43. Re8+ { White has to play this -- his Rook was in the way of
his own pawn's advance. By checking the King, White gains a tempo. } 43... Kd6 44. Rb8 Nb4 { Blocking the Rook's threat to the b-pawn. } 45. Be4 Re7 { The position is
better for Black. (Variation by Alekhine). }) 39... Kf6 40. Rf8+ Ke5 41. Re8+ (41. Ra8 Nxa2 (41... a4 42. bxa4 Nxa2 { Similar to Alekhine's variation given
above. }) 42. Rxa5) 41... Kf6 42. Rf8+ (42. Ra8 { This variation was still
possible. } 42... Nxa2 (42... a4 43. bxa4 Nxa2) 43. Rxa5) 42... Kg7 { It's either play
this or agree to a draw. Alekhine later said he should have taken the draw
here. } 43. Ra8 a4 44. bxa4 Nxa2 45. a5 c4 { Even though the b-pawn is farther
along toward promotion, Alekhine chooses to advance the c-pawn as it's
supported by the Rook. } 46. a6 c3 (46... b3 47. a7 b2 48. Be4 { [%csl Gb1][%cal Ge4b1] }) 47. Bd1 { The Bishop cuts off the advance
of both pawns. } { [%csl Gb3,Gc2][%cal Gd1b3] } 47... Nc1 { Covering for the b-pawn. } 48. a7 { The a8-Rook is in the
way of the pawn, so now it's stuck -- it can't move without the loss of the
pawn. Consequently, Black's attention now shifts to the Kingside. } 48... Kh6 49. g4 Rg7 50. h4 (50. Bc2 { An interesting move that gives the Bishop
possibilities on both sides of the board. } { [%cal Gc2h7,Gc2a4] } 50... b3 51. Kd1) 50... b3 51. Rc8 Rxa7 52. Rxc3 b2 53. Rc6+ Kg7 54. Rb6 Ra1 { The idea of course is to win a piece. } 55. Rb7+ { otherwise 55...b1=Q 56. Rxb1 Rxb1 and Black is up a Rook for two pawns. } 55... Kg8 56. Rb8+ Kg7 57. Rb7+ Kg8 58. Rb8+ { Lasker's only hope to avoid a loss is
a draw by threefold repetition. } 1/2-1/2

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.29"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Yates, Frederick"]
[Black "Bogoljubow, Efim"]
[Result "0-1"]
[PlyCount "66"]
[ECO "C91"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3 O-O 9. d4 Bg4 10. Be3 { So far this has been standard theory for the Ruy Lopez. } 10... exd4 { Why does Bogo play this? It seems to defy standard chess wisdom (the
White pawn on e4 faced by a Black pawn on d6 is known to be inferior for Black.
But Bogo has a plan... } 11. cxd4 Na5 12. Bc2 Nc4 { The Knight strikes at the
b2-pawn. Bogo can slide his Rook to c8 immediately, while White has to devlop
the b1-Knight before he can do anything with his own Queenside Rook. White is
in no position to exploit the half-open c-file. } 13. Bc1 c5 14. b3 Na5 15. Nbd2 { White's development is tied up in knots. The Bishops are looking a bit hemmed
in. } 15... Nc6 16. h3 Bh5 17. e5 { Every pawn advance creates a weakness. By
advancing the e-pawn, Yates has left a hole on d5. This is why Bogo traded the
e-pawn for the d-pawn on move 10 -- he planned to put pressure on the White
center pawns, forcing them to advance. The absence of a c-pawn would force
White to create holes on the d-file. } 17... Nd5 18. Bb2 { Yates tries to defend the
d-pawn. But the f3-Knight is pinned and can't participate in the defense.
Yates just loses a pawn here. } 18... Nxd4 { Bogo wins a pawn outright. } 19. exd6 Bf6 { The tactical possiblilites are mind-boggling. } 20. Be4 { The threat was 20...Nxf3+ 21. Nxf3
Bxb2 } 20... Qxd6 21. Qb1 { Yates is angling to play Bxh7+ to win back the pawn,
but Bogo doesn't fall for it. } 21... Bg6 22. Nxd4 Bxd4 23. Bxd4 cxd4 24. Qd3 Nb4 { Another nice tactic. White can't play Bxa8 because of the reply ...Bxd3. } 25. Qf3 Rac8 26. a3 Rc3 { Bogo gives White no time to take the b4-Knight. He'll now
just push White farther back. } 27. Qe2 d3 28. Qg4 Nc2 29. Bxg6 hxg6 30. Ne4 Qc6 31. Nxc3 Qxc3 { Here's a chess rarity: a double fork! The Black Queen and the
c2-Knight each fork both White Rooks. } 32. Qd1 d2 33. Rf1 Nxa1 { Yates finally
admits defeat. } (33... Nxa1 34. Qxa1 Qxa1 35. Rxa1 35. Re8 Rd1 36. Re1+ Rxe1 37. dxe1=Q+) 0-1

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.29"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Janowski, Dawid"]
[Black "Tartakower, Ksawery"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[PlyCount "84"]
[ECO "D43"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 d5 3. c4 e6 { The players have transposed into the Queen's
Gambit Declined. A prominent feature of this opening is Black's difficulty in
developing the c8-Bishop. } 4. Nc3 c6 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bh4 dxc4 7. e3 { There is
absolutely no reason why Janowski couldn't have played 7.e4. } 7... b5 { Now White will have to live for a while with a restricted
Queenside. } { [%csl Ya4,Yb3,Yb5,Yc4,Yd3,Yd5] } 8. Be2 Nbd7 9. a4 Qb6 { Tartakower prevents 10.axb5 cxb5 11.Nxb5. } 10. O-O Bb4 11. Qc2 Bb7 12. b3 { Janowski miscalculates. More constructive
moves were possible here, such as reinforcing the Queenside with 12.Rfc1. } 12... cxb3 13. Qxb3 Bxc3 14. Qxc3 b4 { Tartakower has a protected passed b-pawn. Its
creation was made possible by White's error on move 12. } 15. Qb2 a5 16. Ne5 { Janowski, a pawn down, shouldn't be trading down since the resulting endgame
would not give him good chances. } 16... Nxe5 17. dxe5 Nd5 18. Rfc1 Qc7 { Tartakower
anticipates what's coming next and gets his Queen off of the b-file. } 19. e4 Nc3 { Imagine for a
moment that the Black Queen is still on b6... } { [%csl Ya2,Ya4,Yb1,Yb5,Yd1,Yd5,Ye2,Ye4][%cal Yc3e2,Yc3e4] } 20. Rxc3 { ...Black could not
have recaptured on c3 due to Qxb6. This is why Tartakower abandoned that
square on move 18. } 20... bxc3 { Janowski sacrifices the exchange to get rid of the
pesky Knight. } 21. Qxc3 g5 22. Bg3 O-O-O { For crying out loud! Why does
Tartakower castle to a side of the board where he has no real cover for the
King??? Castling Kingside would have been infinitely better! } 23. Rb1 c5 24. Rb5 { Janowski now has an attack brewing. His major
pieces go gunning for the Black a-pawn. } { [%cal Rb5a5,Rc3a5,Gc7a5] } 24... Kb8 25. f3 { Janowski can't go pawn
hunting yet (see the variations). He creates a flight square for his King in
case of a Black counterattack along the open file. } (25. Qxa5 Qxa5 26. Rxa5 Rd2 { Black counterattacks along the open file. }) (25. Qxc5 Qxc5 26. Rxc5 Rc8 27. Rxc8+ Rxc8 { Black, ahead the exchange, will win the endgame. }) 25... Rd4 26. Rxc5 (26. Rxa5 Rhd8 27. Rxc5 Qd7 { [%cal Rd8d1] }) 26... Qd7 27. Bf2 Rxa4 28. Rxa5 Rxa5 29. Qxa5 { Scary stuff for Black! His King stands
uncovered on the Queenside and White's Bishops aim in its direction along the
open diagonals. } { [%cal Yf2a7,Ye2a6] } 29... Qc7 { Tartakower's idea is that a best defense is
a good offense. When in doubt, complicate the game! } { [%cal Yc7c1] } 30. Bb6 { The threat is
mate in four: 1. Bxc7+ Kc8 32. Bd6 Kd7 33. Qc7+ Ke8 34. Qe7# } 30... Qc1+ 31. Kf2 { Now you see the reason for the move 25.f3. } 31... Kc8 32. Bc5 g4 33. Bd6 gxf3 34. Qa7 { Here's another threat of mate in four with 35. Qb8+ Kd7 36. Bb5+ Bc6 37. Qc7+
Ke8 38. Qe7#. But, even more important,
Janowski is on the horns of a dilemma. He really needs the e2-Bishop to join
in the attack on the Black King, but moving the Bishop will allow Black a
dangerous counterattack. What can he do? } (34. Bb5 fxg2 35. Kxg2 Rg8+ 36. Kf3 Qh1+ 37. Kf2 Qg2+ 38. Ke1 Qxe4+ 39. Be2 Rg1+ 40. Kd2 Qd4+ 41. Kc2 Be4+ 42. Bd3 Qxd3+ 43. Kb2 Rb1+ 44. Ka2 Qb3#) 34... fxe2 (34... Bxe4?? { This would just
take away the Black King's last remaining cover and further aid White. } 35. Ba6+ Bb7 36. Qxb7+ Kd8 37. Qe7#) 35. Qb8+ { The best Janowski can do here is chase the Black King
around and hope for a mistake by his opponent. } 35... Kd7 36. Qxb7+ Kd8 37. Qb8+ Kd7 38. Qa7+ Kd8 39. Qa5+ Kc8 40. Qa6+ Kd7 41. Qb7+ Kd8 42. Qb6+ Kd7 { ½-½ The game is a draw. } 1/2-1/2

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.30"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Lasker, Emanuel"]
[Black "Yates, Frederick"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[PlyCount "108"]
[ECO "C87"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 d6 7. Bxc6+ bxc6 { The c6-pawn may become a target later, but Black gains a half-open file in
return. } 8. d4 exd4 9. Nxd4 Bd7 10. Nc3 O-O { Yate's position is very cramped
and his pieces consquently don't have much scope. This is probably his best
move. } 11. Bg5 h6 12. Bh4 Re8 13. Qd3 Nh7 { Yates will try to free himself from
this cramped position by exchanging pieces, starting with the dark-squared
Bishops. } 14. Bxe7 Qxe7 15. Re3 { Dr. Lasker may be considering sliding the
Rook over to the Kingside to participate in an attack, but there are really no
targets over there. } 15... Nf8 { The intent is to centralize the Knight. } { [%cal Yf8e6] } 16. Nce2 Qf6 { The Queen pins the d4-Knight to the b2-pawn. Yates' immediate
tactical threat is 17...c5, forcing the Knight's retreat and allowing 18...
Qxb2. } 17. Qc3 { Lasker shoots for an exchange of Queens. His pawn structure is
better than Black's, so he should fare well in the endgame. } 17... c5 18. Nf3 Qxc3 19. Nxc3 Rab8 { Yates finally takes advantage of the half-open file. } 20. b3 f6 21. Ne1 Bc6 22. Rd1 Ne6 23. f3 Kf7 24. Kf2 { Both sides are centralizing their
Kings for the endgame. } 24... Nd4 25. Ne2 { Lasker can't let the Black Knight remain
on d4 where it controls much territory in White's half of the board. } 25... Nxe2 26. Rxe2 Re7 27. Red2 Rbe8 { Yates has no way to significantly improve his position,
so he just marks time. } 28. Nd3 Rb8 29. Nb2 { Lasker is struggling to get his
Knight into the action. But the Black pawns control the dark squares on
Black's half of the board and the light-squared Bishop can cover the approach
squares of the opposite color. The White Knight is shut out of the action and
White is essentially down a piece. } 29... Bb5 { Yates has now covered every square to
which the White Knight can move. } 30. Rh1 { Lasker has no concrete plan for
attacking the Kingside. He's merely freeing the d1-square for his Knight. } 30... Rbe8 31. Nd1 Bc6 32. Ne3 Rb8 33. h4 Ree8 34. Ke2 Rb4 35. Kd1 Rbb8 { Yates continues
to mark time. He realizes that his position can't be improved and that the
game is likely a draw. He's perfectly willing to allow White to maneuver
around. Yates is simply waiting, hoping to capitalize on any mistake by his
opponent. } 36. Kc1 Re6 37. Rg1 g6 38. g4 Rh8 39. Rh2 Rhe8 40. Kd2 Rh8 41. a3 Rb8 42. Kc3 Ree8 43. g5 { Lasker attempts a pawnstorm (supported by the Rooks)
to break through on the Kingside. } 43... fxg5 44. hxg5 h5 { Yates stops White's
intended breakthrough cold. } 45. Rh4 Kg7 46. Kd2 Rf8 47. Ke2 Rbe8 48. Nf1 Bb5+ 49. c4 Bc6 50. Nd2 a5 51. a4 Re7 52. Ke3 Rfe8 53. Rf4 Rf7 54. Rh4 Rfe7 { All Yates needs to do is shuffle the Rook back and forth, blocking White's
Rook along the f-file when necessary. The game is drawn. } 1/2-1/2

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.30"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Alekhine, Alexander"]
[Black "Bogoljubow, Efim"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[PlyCount "121"]
[ECO "A13"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. Nf3 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 d5 4. Bg2 { Alekhine plays the "hypermodern" Reti
Opening (named for fellow competitor Richard Reti). He'll allow Black's pawns
to occupy the center, but then exert his own influence over the center by
attacking Black's pawns with his flank pawns, Bishops, and Knights. } 4... Nbd7 5. b3 Bd6 6. O-O O-O 7. Bb2 c6 8. d3 Re8 9. Nbd2 a5 10. a3 Rb8 { A wasted tempo.
Bogoljubow may be thinking of supporting an advance of the b-pawn, but there's
really no point or advantage to such an advance. Perhaps he'll fianchetto his
light-squared Bishop and wants it to be defended by a Rook on b8. } 11. Qc2 Qe7 12. d4 b6 13. Ne5 Bb7 14. e4 { Alekhine has completed his development, has
placed his pieces on advantageous squares, has a space advantage, and now
decides to break the center. } 14... Bxe5 15. dxe5 Ng4 16. Nf3 c5 17. exd5 exd5 { Bogo's pieces have piled up on the
e-pawn, which must fall. } { [%cal Rd7e5,Re7e5,Re8e5,Rg4e5,Gb2e5,Gf3e5] } 18. h3 Ngxe5 19. Nxe5 Nxe5 20. cxd5 Qd6 { The smoke
has cleared and we see White with a passed (albeit blockaded) d-pawn. It's
attacked twice but defended just once, } 21. Qc3 { Alekhine distracts Black from
the capture of the d-pawn. The e5-Knight is pinned (due to the threat of Qxg7
mate). White's plan is to increase the strength of the pin by playing f2-f4. } 21... f6 { Now the Knight is free to move away without the threat of Qxg7#. } (21... Bxd5 { fails because of } 22. Rad1 { [%cal Rd1d6] } 22... Qg6 23. Bxd5) 22. Rad1 { Alekhine was concerned about the threat of ...Bxd5. But Black had no intention
of playing it, due to the reply Rad1 pinning the Bishop to the Queen (and
later winning material). } 22... Re7 23. f4 Nf7 24. Rfe1 Rbe8 25. Rxe7 Qxe7 26. Bc1 Nd6 { By making continuous threats, Bogo has succeeded in replacing the Queen
on d6 with a Knight. Knights (due to their low material value) are much better
suited for blockade duty than the mobile and powerful Queen. } 27. Bd2 Qf7 28. Qd3 Qg6 29. Qxg6 { Alekhine swaps Queens before his opponent has the chance to
crank up the pressure on the Kingside with ...Nf5. } 29... hxg6 { The doubled pawns
are no big deal (yet) as White has no way to exploit this weakness. } 30. Kf2 Ba6 31. Bf3 Kf7 32. b4 cxb4 33. axb4 a4 { Bogo wants no part of 33...axb4 34.
Bxb4 (after which his Knight will be threatened and his b-pawn will be
isolated and a target). } 34. Rc1 Bc4 { This move is not designed to pressure
the d5-pawn. Instead, Bogo plans to play ...b5 and didn't want his Bishop to
be blocked behind the pawn. } 35. b5 { Alekhine sacrifices a pawn to launch an
attack. His idea is to vacate b4, which allows Bb4. The point of that move is
to allow the Bishop to control the square in front of the d5-pawn, covering
its advance and making blockading more difficult. Then, if the Knight retreats,
the pawn can safely advance one square. } 35... Ne4+ { Forking the King and
dark-squared Bishop, thereby taking the initiative by forcing White's next
move. } 36. Bxe4 Rxe4 { The d-pawn's defender is gone and White can't save his
passed pawn. Meanwhile, Black has his own passed pawn on a4. The tables have
turned! } 37. Be3 Bxd5 38. Bxb6 { Alekhine has lost his passed pawn, so he just
creates another... } 38... Rb4 { ...which is promptly attacked! Unfortunately, Bogo
should have played ...a3 and backed the pawn up with the Rook when necessary.
In the race to promote, his pawn had an extra tempo on White's as the White
Bishop has to get out of the way of the b-pawn's advance. } 39. Rc7+ Kg8 40. Rc5 Bc4 41. Ba5 Rb2+ 42. Ke3 Bxb5 43. Bc3 Rb3 44. Kd2 Bd7 45. g4 Rb7 { The Rook
maneuvers to get behind the a-pawn... } 46. Ra5 { ...but Alekhine stops it cold. } 46... Kf7 47. g5 Rb6 48. h4 Rd6+ 49. Ke3 Re6+ 50. Kd3 Rd6+ 51. Ke3 Bf5 { Bogo's idea
is to attempt a Kingside breakthrough and brings in the Bishop to aid in the
effort. } 52. Ra7+ Ke6 53. Bd4 Bc2 54. Rc7 Bb1 55. Rb7 Bf5 56. Rxg7 fxg5 57. hxg5 Kd5 58. Ra7 Re6+ 59. Be5 { This position is a great illustration of why
endgames with Bishops of opposite colors are usually drawn, even with other
pieces present on the board. All one has to do to neutralize the enemy Bishop
is place one pieces and pawns on the opposite colored squares from the ones on
which the Bishop operates. This means that the Bishop has no targets to attack;
it becomes basically a useless appendage. This position is a perfect
"snapshot" of this technique in action. } 59... Bc2 60. Rd7+ Kc5 61. Rc7+ { Forcing 61.
..Rc6 62.Rxc6+ Kxc6 with a dead draw. The White Bishop can't be dislodged from
e5 and it controls the a-pawn's promotion square. Likewise, White can make no
headway on the Kingside, as the Black Bishop controls f5 and prevents the pawn
advance f4-f5. The players agree to a truce. } 1/2-1/2

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.30"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Lasker, Edward"]
[Black "Marshall, Frank James"]
[Result "0-1"]
[PlyCount "114"]
[ECO "C26"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nf6 { Petroff's Defense (also known as the Russian Defense).
Black launches an immediate counterattack with his second move. } 3. Nc3 (3. Nxe5 { Today it's common for White to take the pawn immediately. } 3... d6 (3... Nxe4 { This is very wrong and loses the Knight! } 4. Qe2 d5 5. d3 Qe7 (5... Nd6 6. Nc6+ { [%csl Rd8][%cal Rc6d8,Re2e8] }) 6. dxe4)) 3... Bb4 { Marshall's point is
to discourage the d-pawn's advance. If the d-pawn steps forward, a pin is
created on the c3-Knight. } 4. Bc4 { The point here is
to play Ng5 and set up an attack on the weak f7-pawn. } { [%cal Rc4f7,Yf3g5,Rg5f7] } 4... O-O { In theory, White
could still play Ng5 and trade his Knight and Bishop for Black's Rook and pawn.
But the Bishop-Knight combination is a much more potent attacking force than a
Rook and pawn, especially when there is a lot of material still on the board
(due to the Knight's leaping ability). } 5. O-O Nc6 6. Nd5 { Take a look at the piece path for this Knight. If it captures one of the Black
minor pieces, it will have moved three times. } { [%cal Rd5f6,Rd5b4] } 6... Nxd5 { Marshall errs here. The
d5-Knight wasn't hurting him in the least and he wasn't forced to capture it.
He was better off letting White pick which piece he wanted to capture (the
b4-Bishop or the f6-Knight). Had White followed up with a capture, he would
have lost time (the Knight making three moves to capture a piece that's only
moved once). } 7. Bxd5 { The White Bishop has taken up a strong central post. } 7... d6 8. c3 Ba5 9. d3 Bg4 10. h3 Bd7 { Marshall can't maintain the pin (see the
variation). } (10... Bh5 11. g4 Bg6 12. Nh4 { The pawn cover in
front of the Black King will be compromised after Bxg6 and a pawn recaptures. } { [%cal Rh4g6] }) 11. Bg5 Qe8 { Lasker now enjoys a sizeable space advantage. How can he make use
of it? } 12. Nh4 Kh8 { Marshall would like to kick out the Bishop by playing ...
f6, but the f-pawn is pinned. That's why he moves his King -- to get rid of
the pin. } 13. Kh1 { On the other hand, this move doesn't make much sense.
Lasker is wasting time. } 13... f6 14. Be3 Ne7 { [%csl Rb7][%cal Rd5b7] } 15. Bxb7 Rb8 16. Ba6 Rxb2 17. Qc1 Rb8 { Marshall is grabbing some space of his
own in order to turn the tables on White. He now controls the b-file. } { [%cal Yb8b1] } 18. g4 f5 19. f3 fxg4 20. fxg4 d5 21. Qa3 { [%csl Ra5][%cal Ra3a5] } (21. exd5 Nxd5 { And this would solve all of Black's space problems. } { [%cal Rd5e3] }) 21... Bb6 22. Bg5 { [%csl Re7][%cal Rg5e7,Ra3e7] } 22... c5 { Shutting out the White Queen. } 23. d4 Rxf1+ 24. Bxf1 exd4 25. cxd4 dxe4 26. dxc5 Bc7 27. Bg2 Nf5 { A startling
move! But White can't take the Knight -- see the variation! } 28. Bf4 { Lasker
must exchange pieces to block all of the threats. } (28. gxf5 Qe5 { Black threatens to mate instantly with Qh2# or win the
Exchange with Qxa1+. } { [%csl Ra1][%cal Re5h2,Re5a1] }) 28... Bxf4 29. Nxf5 Bxf5 30. gxf5 Bc7 { The material is
even, but the board is wide-open and the Black pieces are better-placed.
Marshall has not only solved the problem of his cramped position, but come out
with an advantage in the bargain! } 31. Qe3 Qe5 { Again threatening
mate at h2. } { [%cal Re5h2] } 32. Qg1 e3 33. Re1 e2 34. Bf3 Rb2 35. Qg2 h6 36. f6 { Lasker could
actually have gained a draw here, but it's difficult to see this sequence
without a computer! See the variation. } (36. Bxe2 Qxc5 37. Bc4 Rxg2 38. Re8+ Kh7 39. Bg8+ Kh8 40. Bf7+ Kh7 41. Bg8+ { etc. }) 36... Qxf6 37. Bxe2 Qc3 38. Rf1 Qxc5 39. Qa8+ Rb8 40. Qg2 { And Marshall manages to hold onto the pawn. } 40... Qc2 41. Bd1 Qc3 42. Bb3 Re8 43. Bc2 Bd6 44. Bb3 Qc8 45. Rg1 { Lasker, after marking
time for a couple of moves, withdraws into a defensive shell. It will be hard
for Black to break through the defense. } 45... Re7 46. Rd1 { Lasker changes his plan.
He decides to play more actively, attacking the Bishop. This course of action
is questionable, though, as the Black Bishop has no targets; most of White's
pieces are on light-colored squares. } 46... Re3 47. Rxd6 { Lasker has won the Bishop,
but look at how scattered and disjointed his pieces have become! They're not
working together. } 47... Rxh3+ { [%cal Gc8h3] } 48. Kg1 { Now the White King must run
out into the open. } 48... Qc1+ 49. Bd1 Qe3+ 50. Kf1 Qf4+ 51. Kg1 Rg3 { White is sunk.
The Queen is lost. } 52. Rd8+ Kh7 53. Bc2+ g6 54. Bxg6+ (54. Rd7+ Kh8 55. Rd8+ Kh7 { And Lasker gets a draw by repetition if he wants one. The Black King
could make a run for it, but the White Rook and Bishop would eventually corral
it. }) 54... Kg7 (54... Kxg6 55. Rg8+ Kh7 56. Rxg3 { And White has a winning
game. This is what Lasker was hoping for when he declined the chance for a
draw by not playing 54.Rd7+. }) 55. Rd2 Rxg6 56. Qxg6+ { The Queen is lost
anyway, so Lasker figures he might as well get some material in exchange. } 56... Kxg6 57. Rg2+ Kf5 { Lasker sees that the endgame will eventually be lost for him, so
he throws in the towel. } 0-1

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.30"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Maroczy, Geza"]
[Black "Janowski, Dawid"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "109"]
[ECO "C50"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Nf6 { The Two Knights' Defense, a popular reply to
the Giuoco Piano. } 4. d3 { A bit passive. White will usually fight for the
center by playing c2-c3 and d2-d4. } 4... Bc5 5. Nc3 d6 6. O-O Bb6 7. Na4 Bg4 { Played to prevent White from playing Ng5, doubling up on the f7-pawn. } 8. Bb5 O-O { Now the c6-Knight is no longer pinned. } 9. Bxc6 bxc6 { The
doubled pawns are weak but White has no way to immediately exploit the
weakness. } { [%csl Rc6,Rc7] } 10. h3 Bh5 11. Nxb6 axb6 { Janowski plays this (instead of the
undoubling ...cxb6) so that his Rook can control the half-open a-file. He now
has a huge space advantage. } 12. Qe2 h6 { Janowski is looking ahead. He wants
to develop his Queen but doesn't like the possibility of White playing Bg5
followed by Bxf6, forcing ...gxf6 which destroys the pawn cover in front of
his King. The h-pawn's advance prevents Bg5. } 13. g4 { Maroczy attempts to
relieve the pin on his f3-Knight, but this only invites a sacrifice by the
tactics-minded Frenchman... } 13... Nxg4 14. hxg4 Bxg4 { The Knight is still pinned
and the area around the White King is pretty drafty now. } 15. Qe3 f5 { Played
to force open lines toward the White King. } 16. exf5 Rxf5 17. Nh2 Bh5 18. Qg3 Qf6 { Notice that if White's Bishop had not been on the c1-h6 diagonal, Black
might have played ...Rg5 to win the White Queen. The reason for 18...Qf6 is to
prevent White's Bxh6 (...gxh6 would be impossible since the g7-pawn is pinned
by White's Queen). } 19. f3 Rf8 20. Be3 Kh7 { Unpinning the g7-pawn. } 21. Rf2 Qe6 { Made possible by the removal of the pin. Now the Queen is out of the
f8-Rook's way. } 22. b3 R8f6 { Aiming to play ...Rg6, winning the White Queen. } 23. Kh1 { Maroczy saves his Queen. } 23... Be8 24. Rg1 { Maroczy finally grabs the
initiative by threatening mate on g7. } 24... g5 { This grabs some space and shuts
down White's play on the g-file. This makes more sense than forcing a Rook
exchange by playing a Black Rook to the g-file. Trading Rooks would only
weaken Janowski's attacking chances. } 25. d4 { Maroczy wants to trade pawns to
open up lines for his Rooks. } 25... c5 26. dxe5 dxe5 27. Re1 { Why not Rd1? Because
the Rook would have no good penetration square into Black's position. The
squares d5, d6, and d7 are all defended and Rd8 threatens nothing. } 27... Bc6 28. Kg1 { No terrors for Maroczy here -- Black closed the g-file with 24...g5, so
there's no way for a Black Rook to pin and win the White Queen. } 28... h5 { This move
is a mystery. Janowski has weakened his Kingside (the h-pawn and g-pawn no
longer work together). } 29. c4 Bb7 30. Qh3 Kg6 31. Rg2 Qe7 32. Rd1 { THe plan
is now Rgd2 and Rd7 with a successful penetration of the Black position. } 32... Rd6 33. Rgd2 Qf6 34. Rxd6 cxd6 { Now the Black pawns are finally undoubled and are
all on dark squares (so they don't interfere with the b7-Bishop). } 35. Qg2 Kh7 36. Qh3 Kg6 37. Qg2 Kg7 38. Rf1 Kg6 39. Qc2 Kg7 40. Qe2 { Maroczy really has no
idea how to proceed. Black's defenses are pretty strong, but there's always
the chance of an error. } 40... Qe6 41. Bd2 Kg6 42. Bc3 Rf4 43. Qd2 Rf6 44. Rd1 Bxf3 { It's hard to figure out what Janowski was thinking here. Most intermediate
players wouldn't touch this move. Perhaps fatigue got the better of him. } 45. Nxf3 Rxf3 46. Qxd6 Kf5 47. Bxe5 h4 48. Qxe6+ Kxe6 49. Bc7 g4 50. Bxb6 g3 51. Bxc5 { Not only winning a pawn but also covering the g-pawn's promotion square. } 51... Rc3 52. Bb4 Rc2 53. Rd2 Rc1+ 54. Kg2 Kf5 55. Be7 { Both Black pawns will now
fall and Janowski has no chance of preventing a White pawn from promoting. The
Frenchman throws in the towel. } 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.03.30"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Reti, Richard"]
[Black "Tartakower, Ksawery"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "147"]
[ECO "B74"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. Nf3 g6 2. e4 c5 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 d6 { The players have
transposed into the Dragon Variation of the Sicilian Defense. } 6. Be2 Bg7 7. O-O Nc6 8. Be3 O-O 9. Nb3 Be6 { Tartakower has two possible plans here: ...Rc8
to exploit the open c-file or ...Qc8 to form a battery on the c8-h3 diagonal,
putting pressure on the Kingside. } 10. f4 Qc8 11. h3 Ne8 { Black prepares for
the advance of the f-pawn. } 12. Qd2 { Reti's idea is to play g2-g4 and follow
it up with Bh6, forcing the exchange of dark-squared Bishops, weakening
Black's Kingside. } 12... f5 13. exf5 gxf5 14. Rae1 Kh8 15. Nd4 Bg8 { Tartakower acts
to preserve his light-squared Bishop. } 16. g4 { It's usually a bad idea to
advance the pawns in front of your castled King. However, a good player knows
when it's all right to go against the general principles of chess. Reti sees
that the Black pieces aren't very well-developed and that Black's chances of
staging a counterattck are remote. So he uses his own Kingside pawns to launch
an assault. } 16... Nxd4 17. Bxd4 e5 18. Be3 fxg4 19. Bxg4 Be6 { Tartakower, having
broken up the pawn assault, now tries to futher tame White's attack by
exchanging pieces. } 20. f5 Bxf5 { Tartakower is committed to breaking up
White's attack at all costs. } 21. Rxf5 { Reti doesn't recapture with the
less-valuable piece for a reason. He wants to threaten Rxf8 and is looking
ahead... } 21... Rxf5 22. Qd3 { ...to setting up a pin on the f5-Rook and adding
pressure to the pin by using his Queen. } 22... e4 { Tartakower's idea is 23.Qxe4 Re5,
exchanging Queens. } 23. Nxe4 h5 24. Ng3 hxg4 25. Nxf5 Qe6 26. Re2 Be5 { Both
sides are treading on dangerous ground as the Kings are horribly exposed. } 27. Bd4 Nf6 28. hxg4 Rg8 29. Bxe5 dxe5 30. Rh2+ Nh7 31. Ne3 Rg7 32. Qd8+ Rg8 33. Qd3 Rg7 { Tartakower's Rook is working very hard, alternately blocking the
check on the back rank and preventing mate on h7. Reti needs to find a way to
increase the pressure. } 34. Qe4 Kg8 35. Rd2 Nf6 36. Rd8+ Kf7 37. Qxb7+ Kg6 38. Qf3 Kg5 39. Rd2 { Reti carefully stalks the enemy King, which has been driven
out into a very exposed position. } 39... e4 40. Qg3 Rd7 41. Rxd7 Nxd7 { Tartakower
blunts White's immediate attacking chances by exchanging pieces, but puts
himself at a long-term endgame disadvantage. } 42. Qf2 Nc5 43. Qf5+ { Reti,
having determined that a mate is now out of the question, simplifies into an
endgame in which he has a two-pawn advantage. } 43... Qxf5 44. gxf5 Na4 45. b3 Nc3 46. a4 a5 47. Kf2 Na2 48. Ke2 Kf6 49. Kd2 Nb4 50. Kc3 Ke5 51. f6 { Why does Reti
give up his passed pawn? To kill Black's passed pawn, of course! } 51... Kxf6 { Tartakower has no choice. If he doesn't capture immediately, the pawn will
advance and promote. } 52. Kd4 { Moving into position to destroy the e4-pawn. } 52... Ke6 53. Kxe4 { The Black passed pawn is now history and the White King holds
the opposition -- preventing the Black King from approaching the c2-pawn. } 53... Kd6 54. Kd4 Nc6+ 55. Kc4 Na7 { From a7 the Knight covers b5 and prevents the White
King from attacking the a5-pawn. } 56. c3 Kc6 57. Kd4 Kb6 58. Nc4+ Ka6 59. Kd5 Nc8 60. Ke6 { THis is something you're not likely to see again. Reti is
creatively taking squares away from Black at a furious pace. He's hoping for
60...Na7 so that he can reply Kd7. This would take every single square away
from Black's Knight. The Black King would be forced to b7 and White would then
win the a-pawn (Nxa5). } 60... Nb6 { Tartakower plays his only move. Now the Knights
will be exchanged and with them most of Black's drawing chances. } (60... Na7 61. Kd7 { [%cal Ra4b5,Rd7c6,Rd7c8,Ya7c8,Ya7c6,Ya7b5] }) 61. Nxb6 Kxb6 62. Kd6 Ka6 63. Kc6 { Reti uses the power of the opposition to drive back Black's King.
Black is now forced to move away from his pawn (losing it in short order). } 63... Ka7 64. Kb5 Kb7 65. Kxa5 Ka7 66. b4 { Tartakower has no hope in this position. The
connected passed pawns are unstoppable. But he plays on for some reason. } 66... Kb7 67. b5 Ka7 68. b6+ Kb7 69. Kb5 Kb8 70. Ka6 Ka8 71. b7+ Kb8 72. c4 { NOT 72.Kb6,
which would be stalemate! Tartakower was evidently hoping that such a trick
could salvage a draw. But Reti is too fine a player to fall for it. } (72. Kb6 { [%csl Ra7,Ra8,Rc7,Rc8][%cal Rb6c7,Rb6a7,Rb7a8,Rb7c8] }) 72... Kc7 73. Ka7 Kc6 74. b8=Q { 1-0 Black resigns. } 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.02"]
[Round "12"]
[White "Lasker, Emanuel"]
[Black "Janowski, Dawid"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "163"]
[ECO "C87"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

{ Let's take a close look at the Ruy Lopez. }
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 { So far this
is just basic opening theory that we examined in the early games of the
tournament. White has attacked the e5-pawn with his Knight, while Black has
defended it with his own Knight. } 3. Bb5 { White puts pressure on Black by
attacking the e5-pawn's sole defender. The immediate idea is to play Bxc6
followed by Nxe5. } 3... a6 { This is called the Morphy Defense. Black "puts the
question" to White's BIshop: capture or retreat? } 4. Ba4 { The only retreat
that maintains the pressure on the Black position is this one. } (4. Bxc6 dxc6 5. Nxe5 Qd4 { Now we see why Bxc6 doesn't really work. The
Queen attacks both the White Knight and e4-pawn. White can't save both, so
he'll retreat the Knight (the more valuable piece). After Qxe4, Black has
regained the lost material. } { [%cal Rd4e4,Rd4e5] }) 4... Nf6 { Black counters with a threat of his
own against the e4-pawn. } 5. O-O { White is unafraid of Nxe4 and instead
completes his Kingside development. } 5... d6 { This move hasn't a thing to do with
guarding the e5-pawn (that's just a side benefit). The pawn advances to
release the c8-Bishop. You'll notice that the c6-Knight is now pinned. This is
a matter of no concren to Black. He can always play ...b5 to eliminate the pin
with a threat on the Bishop to boot. } (5... Nxe4 6. Re1 { [%cal Re1e4] } 6... Nd6 { [%cal Rf3e5,Re1e5] } 7. Nxe5 Nxe5 8. Rxe5+ { The material balance stays even.
Now we see why ...Nf6 wasn't much of a threat. }) 6. Re1 { White proceeds with
his development by moving the Rook to a center file. } 6... Bg4 { Black pins the
f3-Knight. This is more of a minor annoyance to White than anything else, but
could become crucial later if the center opens up. } 7. c3 { This is a standard
move in the Ruy Lopez. White creates an "escape hatch" for the Bishop on c2.
If Black now plays ...b5 and ...Na5, the Bishop just flees to c2. Otherwise
Black could play ...Nxb3, inflicting doubled pawns on White. } 7... Be7 { Now Black
is ready to castle. } 8. h3 { White now puts the question to Black's Bishop. } 8... Bh5 { The light-squared Bishop is Black's "good Bishop", so he decides to keep it. } 9. d3 { White props up the e4-pawn. Note how the moves have all followed a
logical sequence and have a purpose: development, attack, or defense. } (9. g4 { This is also possible, to harass the Bishop, but would generally be a better
idea if White had managed d2-d4-d5 and Black had already castled. } 9... Bg6 10. Nh4 { White will trade his Knight for the Bishop and give Black
doubled Kingside pawns. But the empty space in front of the White King gives
Black some counterattacking chances. } { [%cal Rh4g6] }) 9... Qd7 { Now we start to leave
familiar territory and get into uncharted areas. Janowski's plan in putting
the Queen on an open diagonal is to support a Kingside pawnstorm (...g5-g4xh3,
etc.). } 10. Bxc6 { Lasker hates to make the swap, but he wants to divert the
Black Queen from the open diagonal. } 10... Qxc6 11. Bg5 Bg6 12. Nbd2 { The Knight is headed to e3 via f1. This is a fairly common maneuver in
Ruy Lopez positions. } { [%cal Yd2f1] } 12... h6 13. Bxf6 Bxf6 14. Nf1 O-O 15. Ne3 { [%cal Ye3f5,Ye3d5] } 15... Rae8 16. Qb3 Bd8 { A word is in order here. This move is completely
unexplainable unless you know something about Janowski. The Bishop is his
favorite piece. He will go to great lengths to make sure that he keeps both of
his Bishops on the board if he can. He was afraid of White's upcoming Nd5
followed by Nxf6. He didn't want to lose the Bishop this way, so he retreated
it. } 17. Qd5 Qxd5 18. Nxd5 f5 19. Nd2 Bf7 20. Ne3 f4 21. Nec4 { Janowski's pawn
advance has made the Kingside a bit cramped, so Lasker switches his attention
to the Queenside. } 21... Bf6 22. a4 Rd8 23. Na5 Rb8 24. Nf3 { Playing on both wings.
This is a good example of why Knights are better than Bishops when the center
is closed. One of the Black Bishops is stuck behind it own pawns (a "bad
Bishop") while White's Knights are free to leap all over the board. } 24... g5 25. Nh2 h5 { Cutting off White's intended Ng4. Despite the mobility of his Knights,
Lasker is at a disadvantage here: Black controls more space. Black is slowly
crushing the life from the White position. } 26. Nc4 Be6 27. f3 Rfd8 28. Re2 Kf7 29. a5 Rg8 { Janowski is probing, looking for ways to break the pawn chain to
open files for his Rooks. } 30. Ra4 { Lasker is going to move his Rook out in
front of the pawns. } 30... Rbd8 31. Rb4 Bc8 32. b3 Rh8 33. Nb2 d5 34. exd5 Rxd5 35. Rc4 c6 36. b4 Bf5 37. Rd2 Rhd8 38. Kf2 Rb5 { Why? Janowski could easily have
won the d-pawn (see the variation). } (38... Bxd3 39. Nxd3 Rxd3 40. Rxd3 Rxd3 41. Ke2 Rd7 { Black, a pawn up with a huge space advantage, is winning. }) 39. Ke2 { Now all threats against the d-pawn have been stopped. } 39... Rbd5 40. Kd1 Ke6 (40... Bxd3 41. Nxd3 Rxd3 42. Rxd3 Rxd3+ 43. Ke2 Rd7 { With the same position as
in the previous variation. }) 41. Kc2 Be7 42. Nf1 { When you have nothing else
to do, try to improve the position of your weakest piece. That is what Lasker
is doing with this Knight move. } 42... c5 43. bxc5 Bxc5 44. Ra4 R8d7 45. Rd1 { Preparing d2 for occupation by the Knight. } 45... Ba7 { Note that the
Bishop still controls the a7-g1 diagonal, cutting across the board's center. } { [%cal Ya7g1] } 46. Ra3 g4 47. hxg4 hxg4 48. c4 { Lasker counterattacks, rather than
recapturing on g4. } 48... R5d6 49. Nd2 Be3 50. Rh1 gxf3 51. gxf3 Rg7 { [%cal Yg7g1] } 52. Rh2 Bg1 53. Re2 Rg3 54. Nd1 Rd7 (54... Bc5 { This was a better move
as it keeps up the pressure and maintains the initiative by attacking White's
a3-Rook. }) 55. Rb3 Rdg7 { Janowski's idea is to switch to an "end run" and
attack from the Kingside. But this has taken the pressure off of the center. } 56. Nc3 Be3 57. Nd5 { Suddenly the tables have turned and it's Janowski who
will be put on the defensive. } 57... Rg2 58. Rxe3 { A startling move! Lasker
sacrifices the exchange to kill the annoying Bishop which has dominated the
center for too long. But why not Nxe3? Because he's also spotted a combination
that will win back the material... } 58... fxe3 59. Rb6+ Kd7 60. Nxe3 { [%csl Rf5,Rg2][%cal Re3f5,Re3g2] } 60... Kc7 { Janowski blunders horribly. He must be expecting Nxg2,
after which ...Rxg2 pins the d2-Knight. But he's down material either way. No
one will ever be able to figure out what he was thinking here, I'm sure. } 61. Nxf5 (61. Nxg2 Rxg2 62. Rf6 Rg5 63. Ne4 Rh5 64. Kc3 Bh7 65. Rf7+ Kc6 66. Nf6 { [%csl Rh5,Rh7][%cal Rf6h7,Rf6h5] } 66... Rf5 67. Nd7 Rxf7 68. Nxe5+ { White will win with his extra pawns. } { [%csl Rc6,Rf7][%cal Re5c6,Re5f7] }) 61... Rh7 62. Nd6 Rhh2 63. Ne4 { Knights are at their weakest when they're forced to defend each
other, but in this case we'll see how the Knights work together to totally
baffle Black and his attempts to turn the tables. } 63... Rh1 64. Kc3 Rc1+ 65. Kb4 Rd1 66. Nb3 { Watch carefully the co-operation of the Knights throughout the game's
finale. } 66... Rxd3 67. Rxb7+ Kc8 (67... Kxb7 68. Nbc5+ { [%csl Rb7,Rd3][%cal Rc5b7] }) 68. Rf7 Rb2 69. Nc5 Rd6 70. Rf5 Re2 71. Ne4 Rd3 72. Rxe5 Rb2 (72... Rxf3 73. Nd4 { [%csl Re2,Rf3][%cal Rd4f3,Rd4e2] }) 73. Nc5 Rxf3 74. Re8+ Kc7 75. Re6 Rc2 76. Nxa6+ Kb7 77. Nac5+ Ka7 78. Re7+ Ka8 79. Na4 Rh2 80. Nbc5 Kb8 81. Rb7+ Kc8 82. a6 { As there is no way to stop the pawn's promotion, Janowski
gives it up. } 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.02"]
[Round "12"]
[White "Alekhine, Alexander"]
[Black "Capablanca, Jose Raul"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[PlyCount "35"]
[ECO "D10"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 { The opening of this game is a Queen's Gambit Declined. White
offers to give up (or "gambit") the c-pawn to wreck Black's central pawn pair.
But this is not a true gambit, as it's easy for White to win back the pawn
should Black accept the "gift". } 2... c6 { This is called the Slav Defense. Black
could play ...dxc4 but he then loses the advantage of the central pawn pair,
plus (after e2-e3, the move Bxc4 becomes a possibility. } 3. Nc3 { Notice that
White has advanced the c-pawn before developing the Knight (the move Nc3
doesn't block the c-pawn's advance). } 3... Nf6 { Helping to defend the d-pawn. } 4. e3 { Now ...cxd4 would be met immediately by Bxc4. A common plan for Black here is
to wait for White to play Be2 or Bd3, then play ...dxc4 to make White lose a
temp by playing Bxc4 (thus moving the Bishop twice). } 4... Bf5 5. cxd5 cxd5 (5... Nxd5 { White can now develop with no problems. } 6. Bc4 e6 7. Nge2 { With
Kingside castling to follow. }) 6. Qb3 { Striking at the weak b7-pawn. } 6... Bc8 { Capa decides to waste a tempo by retreating the Bishop, rather than playing ...
b6 and losing the support for a Knight on c6. } 7. Nf3 e6 8. Bd3 { After he
plays this move, we see an odd look cross Alekhine's face. What could he be
thinking? } 8... Nc6 9. O-O Bd7 10. Bd2 Qb6 { Capa offers to trade Queens. He sees
that a White attack could be dangerous, so he wants to reduce the amount of
force that White can bring to bear against him. } 11. Qd1 Bd6 { Count the number
of developed pieces each side and you'll see that Capa has managed to actually
gain a tempo over his opponent, despite his wasted Bishop move in the opening! } 12. Rc1 { To take the open file. } 12... O-O 13. Na4 { Alekhine grabs the initiative by
attacking the Black Queen. } 13... Qd8 { Now White again has the advantage in
development. } 14. Nc5 Bxc5 15. Rxc5 (15. dxc5 { This would close the open file,
plus allow Black to counterattack with ...e5. }) 15... Ne4 16. Bxe4 dxe4 17. Ne5 Nxe5 18. dxe5 { The e4 and e5 pawns are weak and must soon fall. However, the
piece exchanges have taken the life out of the position and the players call
it a draw. } 1/2-1/2

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.02"]
[Round "12"]
[White "Reti, Richard"]
[Black "Bogoljubow, Efim"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "49"]
[ECO "A13"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. Nf3 d5 2. c4 { This is the Reti Opening, devised by the player of the White
pieces in this game. In this hypermodern opening White allows his opponent to
build up a pawn center and then attacks it from the flanks. 2.c4 is the
opening salvo in this attack. Black can capture the c4-pawn but can't hold it
after Qa4 or Na3. } 2... e6 { The move 2...dxc4 gives White what he wants by
exchanging a center pawn for a less-valuable flank pawn. Bogoljubow decides
instead to strengthen his center by advancing the e-pawn. } 3. g3 { Reti's idea
is to attack the center with Bg2. } 3... Nf6 4. Bg2 Bd6 5. O-O O-O 6. b3 { Reti will
now fianchetto the other Bishop. } 6... Re8 7. Bb2 { Note how the Bishops control the center (although the g2-Bishop's
influence is blocked by the f3-Knight). } { [%csl Yb2,Yc3,Yd4,Yd5,Ye4,Ye5,Yf3,Yf6,Yg2] } 7... Nbd7 8. d4 { While
this looks like it blocks the b2-Bishop, it actually strengthens White's grip
on e5. } { [%cal Yf3e5,Yd4e5] } 8... c6 { Giving the Bishop a flight square on c7 in case
White advances the c-pawn to c5. } { [%cal Rc4c5,Yd6c7] } 9. Nbd2 Ne4 (9... e5 { This was Black's best
move here, allowing him to free his cramped game. } 10. cxd5 cxd5 11. dxe5 Nxe5 12. Nxe5 Bxe5 13. Bxe5 Rxe5 14. Nc4 { White could also play 14.Nf3 or 14.e3
here; all are acceptable moves. White's next target will be Black's isolated
d-pawn. Even with this waiting target the position is even. }) 10. Nxe4 dxe4 11. Ne5 { [%csl Re4][%cal Rg2e4] } 11... f5 12. f3 exf3 13. Bxf3 { Reti has half-opened the
f-file and his Rook is already sitting on f1, eager to exploit the file. } 13... Qc7 14. Nxd7 Bxd7 15. e4 { The tables have turned and it is now Reti who has the
powerful pawn center. } 15... e5 16. c5 Bf8 17. Qc2 exd4 18. exf5 Rad8 19. Bh5 Re5 { Bogoljubow isn't attacking the f-pawn so much as he is pinning it (if it
advances, the h5-Bishop falls). He is, however, attacking the c5-pawn
(intending ...Bxc5). } 20. Bxd4 Rxf5 21. Rxf5 Bxf5 22. Qxf5 Rxd4 { Bogoljubow
has avoided material loss, but he's busted positionally. White is in firm
command of the f-file and his pieces are more coordinated than Black's. } 23. Rf1 { [%csl Rf8][%cal Rf5f8] } 23... Rd8 { Now Reti caps the game off with a beautiful
combination. } 24. Bf7+ { The Bishop check drives the Black King away from the
defense of the f8-Bishop. } 24... Kh8 25. Be8 { The Bishop
blocks the d8-Rook's defense of the target square f8. Bogolubow sees that he's
sunk and resigns on the sopt. } { [%csl Rf8][%cal Rf5f8] } (25... Be8 25. Rxe8 Qxf8+ 26... Rxf8 Rxf8#) 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.02"]
[Round "12"]
[White "Maroczy, Geza"]
[Black "Tartakower, Ksawery"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[PlyCount "58"]
[ECO "B03"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 Nf6 { This is Alekhine's Defense, a direct approach to hypermodern
strategy. Black immediately attacks White's central pawn. } 2. e5 Nd5 3. c4 { The move 3.d4 is often played, but generally leads to the same positions.
Playing 3.c4 immediately is more forcing. } 3... Nb6 { Although Black has done
nothing but move his Knight he hasn't really lost any time. White's series of
pawn moves don't really qualify as "useful development", so he hasn't really
gained any tempi on Black. } 4. d4 d6 5. exd6 exd6 6. Nc3 Bf5 7. Be2 Be7 8. Be3 N8d7 9. Nf3 O-O 10. b3 { Maroczy covers the a4 and c4 squares to prevent their
use by a Black Knight. } 10... Nf6 11. O-O Re8 12. h3 { Another preventive move,
keeping Black's Knight off of g4. } 12... h6 13. Bd3 { Alekhine later said that a
Queenside push with 13.a4 and 14.a5 (to drive the Knight back) was a better
plan. } 13... Qd7 { Tartakower decides to defend the Bishop rather than retreat it.
However, this takes a flight square away from the b6-Knight, inviting White to
play 14.a4 and 15.a5. } 14. Re1 Rad8 15. Qc2 Bxd3 16. Qxd3 Nh7 17. Re2 { Getting
ready for Rae1. } 17... Bf6 18. Rae1 Re7 19. d5 Rde8 20. Bd4 { Maroczy invites a mass
liquidation. } 20... Rxe2 21. Rxe2 Rxe2 22. Qxe2 a6 { Keeping White's Knight off of b5.
Now we'll see an interesting exchange of pieces. } 23. Bxb6 Bxc3 24. Qe3 { By attacking Black's Bishop, Maroczy picks up an extra tempo in which to
retreat his own Bishop. } 24... Bf6 25. Bd4 Qe7 26. Qxe7 Bxe7 { The symmetrical pawn
structure and even material mean that the game is probably headed for a draw. } 27. Kf1 Bf6 28. Ke2 Kf8 29. Kd3 { The White King will reach the center first,
but what then? } 29... Ke7 { ½-½ The game is a draw. } 1/2-1/2

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.02"]
[Round "12"]
[White "Lasker, Edward"]
[Black "Yates, Frederick"]
[Result "0-1"]
[PlyCount "100"]
[ECO "A48"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 g6 3. c3 { It's hard to understand what Lasker was
thinking here.The usual move is 3.c4, transposing into the King's Indian
Defense, controlling both e5 and d5. As it stands now, Black can easily occupy
the important center square d5. } { [%csl Rd5] } 3... Bg7 { The Bishop will now control the long
diagonal once the center is opened. } 4. Qc2 O-O 5. e4 d6 6. Bd3 { Why not 6.Bc4,
since the c-pawn doesn't occupy that square? (See the note to move 3) } (6. Bc4) 6... Nc6 { In the King's Indian Defense, Black breaks up White's
center by playing either ...e5 or ...c5. After this Knight move, ...e5 is the
only option Black has for achieving the break. } { [%cal Ye7e5] } 7. Nbd2 { Lasker's play is fast becoming a catalog of opening mistakes. His Knight now
blocks in his c1-Bishop. This pretty much telegraphs his intention to play
either 8.Nc4 or 8.Nb3. } { [%cal Yd2c4,Yd2b3] } 7... Nd7 { Yates prepares to play the
central break ...e5. } { [%cal Gd7e5,Ye7e5] } 8. Nc4 e5 9. Bg5 Qe8 { While it's true that the Queen was
chased here, it gives added support to the e5-pawn from its new post. } 10. d5 Ne7 11. O-O-O Nc5 { The move b2-b4 seems unlikely (since White has castled
Queenside) so this should be a safe square for the Knight. } 12. h4 { Lasker
starts the natural Kingside attack. } 12... f5 13. exf5 Nxd3+ { This in-between move
allows Yates to take the initiative, as we'll no doubt soon see. } 14. Qxd3 Bxf5 { Now we see the point of Black's last (in-between) move. Yates attacks the
White Queen and siezes the initiative. } 15. Qe2 a5 { Yates now launches his
Queenside attack. } 16. Ne3 Bd7 17. h5 Nf5 18. hxg6 Qxg6 19. Nxf5 Bxf5 { The Queen and Bishop form a battery pointing straight at the heart of
the castled King's position. } { [%cal Rg6b1] } 20. Qd2 Qf7 { Why did Yates abandon the diagonal? Because White threatened Nh4, forking the
Black Queen and light-squared Bishop. } { [%csl Rg6][%cal Yf3h4,Rh4f5,Rh4g6] } 21. Bh6 Bg6 22. Bxg7 Qf5 { The threat is ...Qb1#. } { [%csl Rc1][%cal Rf5b1,Rb1c1] } 23. Qd3 Kxg7 24. Qxf5 Rxf5 { Let's
take a moment to check the position. Black has a space advantage, a Rook on
the open f-file, a Bishop on the open b1-a7 diagonal, and will easily be able
to threaten the awkward advanced d5-pawn (as c2-c4 can be undermined by ...
b7-b5). White has a Rook on the open h-file. Black's position is decidedly
much better. } 25. Rd2 Raf8 { Building a battery on the open file. } { [%cal Rf8f1] } 26. Rh4 h6 27. Rc4 R8f7 28. b4 axb4 29. cxb4 { Now the d5-pawn is completely
isolated. } 29... Rf4 30. Rxf4 Rxf4 31. a3 Kf6 32. Kb2 h5 33. Ne1 { Lasker wants to
play g2-g3, but doesn't want to leave the Knight undefended. The solution:
just move the Knight! } 33... Rd4 34. Rxd4 exd4 { The d5-pawn is as good as dead. } 35. g3 Ke5 36. Kb3 Kxd5 37. f3 Bf7 { Black has a definite advantage: Bishops are
better than Knights in endgames when there are pawns on both sides of the
board. } 38. Ng2 c5 39. b5 Ke5+ 40. Kc2 Bd5 { [%csl Ya2,Ya8,Yb3,Yb7,Yc4,Yc6,Yd5,Ye4,Ye6,Yf3,Yf7,Yg2,Yg8,Yh1] } 41. Ne1 c4 42. b6 Bc6 43. Kd2 Kd5 44. Nc2 c3+ 45. Kc1 Kc4 46. f4 d3 47. Ne3+ Kb3 48. Nf1 Be4 49. Nd2+ cxd2+ 50. Kxd2 Kxa3 { Lasker gives it up. If he tries Ke3 to attack the Bishop, Black will just
retreat it back along the b1-h7 diagonal and the d3-pawn remains protected.
Meanwhile, Black can just run his King back to capture the b6-pawn and then
advance the b-pawn toward promotion. The White King will be unable to stop
both pawns. } 0-1

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.03"]
[Round "13"]
[White "Lasker, Emanuel"]
[Black "Bogoljubow, Efim"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "121"]
[ECO "B40"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 c5 { The Sicilian Defense. Black stakes a claim in the center by
preventing d2-d4 (if White dares to advance the d-pawn, Black trades a flan
pawn for a more valuable center pawn). About 25% of 1.e4 games at master level
use this opening. } 2. Nf3 { White's idea is to go ahead and play d2-d4 and
establish a Knight in the center after ...cxd4. } 2... e6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 { Attacking the e4-pawn. } 5. Bd3 { Highly unusual. The common move is Nc3. } 5... Nc6 6. Nxc6 bxc6 { If Black can prevent the threat of Bf4, he can use the half-open
b-file for his Rook. } 7. O-O Be7 8. e5 Nd5 9. Qg4 { White develops with a threat (Qxg7). } { [%csl Rg7][%cal Rg4g7] } 9... g6 { Black saves the
pawn, but is forced to weaken his Kingside. } { [%csl Yf6,Yg7,Yh6] } 10. Nd2 { [%cal Yd2c4,Yc4d6] } 10... f5 11. Qf3 Nb4 12. Nc4 Ba6 { [%cal Yb4d3,Ya6d3] } 13. Bd2 Nxc2 14. Rad1 (14. Bxc2 Bxc4 { [%cal Rc4f1] }) 14... O-O 15. Nd6 { This is what Dr. Lasker was intending
with his tenth move. } 15... Nd4 16. Qe3 Bxd3 17. Qxd3 Bxd6 { Bogoljubow is hideously
weak on the dark squares. He's now trading away his main defender of those
squares. While it's true that he's ahead materially, he has some serious
weaknesses that White can exploit. } 18. exd6 e5 19. Rfe1 Qf6 { The Black Queen
(the only piece that can defend the weakened dark squares) is now stuck
protecting a pawn). } 20. Bc3 Rae8 21. f4 Qh4 22. Qc4+ Ne6 23. Bxe5 { Lasker has
just evened the material. Note that the capture of the pawn took place on a
dark square. } 23... Kf7 24. Re3 Qd8 25. Rb3 { It's Lasker, not Bogo, who gets a Rook
to the b-file first. } 25... Qa5 26. Rb7 Qc5+ 27. Rd4 (27. Qxc5 Nxc5 28. Rc7 { This
was also playable, but not as good for White as what was actually played. }) 27... Rd8 28. b4 { Lasker forces the Queen swap on a square of his choosing. } 28... Qxc4 29. Rxc4 { Lasker pretty much has the game in the bag at this point. He
enjoys a tremendous space advantage and his pieces are more actively placed.
But it was Dr. Lasker himself who once said that the hardest thing to do in
chess is to win a "won game"... } 29... g5 { Preparing ...Nxf4. } 30. Rxa7 Nxf4 31. Bxf4 gxf4 32. Rxc6 { Possible due to the pin on the d7-pawn. The
doubled f-pawns are a lasting weakness. These pawns can be dealt with later. } { [%cal Ya7f7] } 32... Rg8 { Intending ...f3. } 33. Kf2 Rg6 34. b5 Ke6 35. Rc2 Rgg8 (35... Kxd6 36. Ra6+ (36. a4 { This is better for White than trying for a Rook swap with Ra6+. The
Queenside pawns are stronger when they operate as a team. }) 36... Ke5 37. Rxg6 hxg6 { This is actually a little better for Black; all of the pawns are now
supported. }) 36. Kf3 Ra8 37. Re2+ { Lasker begins a combination that ultimately
hastens Black's demise by clearing a lot of wood off of the board. } (37. Rxa8 Rxa8 38. b6 Ra3+ { This check gains the initiative for Black. } 39. Kxf4 Ra4+ 40. Kg5 Rb4 { [%csl Rb6][%cal Rb4b6] }) 37... Kxd6 38. Rd2+ Kc5 39. Rdxd7 Kxb5 40. Rxa8 Rxa8 41. Rxh7 Ra3+ 42. Kxf4 Rxa2 43. Rg7 Rf2+ 44. Ke5 f4 { It's going to
be very hard for Bogo to promote this pawn. It's not a passed pawn (there's a
White pawn on the d-file) and the Black Rook blocks the pawn's progress to the
eighth rank. } 45. Ke4 Kc5 46. h4 Kd6 47. h5 Rf1 48. Rg4 Rh1 49. Rg5 Rh4 50. Kf5 Ke7 51. Kg6 Kf8 52. Ra5 Rh2 53. Ra2 f3 54. Ra8+ { Lasker obviously can't trade
pawns, so he gets his Rook out of danger by checking Black. Remember the
"priority of check": when you check your opponent, you force his next move. } (54. gxf3 Rxa2) 54... Ke7 55. gxf3 Rg2+ 56. Kf5 Rh2 57. Ra7+ Ke8 58. Kg6 Rg2+ 59. Kf6 Rf2 60. Ra8+ Kd7 61. Ra3 { Bogo sees that he's not going to be able to
stop both White pawns (especially since White is able to grab the initiative
at will by checking his King), so he finally tips his own King to end his
agony. } 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.03"]
[Round "13"]
[White "Maroczy, Geza"]
[Black "Capablanca, Jose Raul"]
[Result "0-1"]
[PlyCount "114"]
[ECO "C96"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. c3 d6 9. h3 Na5 { This move has a dual purpose: to chase the White Bishop and to
allow Black to play ...c5. } 10. Bc2 c5 { This is a pretty coomon Queenside pawn
structure for Black in the Ruy Lopez. } 11. d3 Nc6 12. Nbd2 { The Knight is
headed for f1. from there it will move to either e3 or g3 (and possibly to f5). } 12... d5 { Look at Black's Knights and b- through e-pawns! They command the center
and control much space on the Queenside. } 13. Nf1 dxe4 14. dxe4 Be6 15. Bd2 { Maroczy could have traded Queens but didn't want to give Black control of the
open file. } (15. Qxd8 Rfxd8 { [%cal Yd8d1] }) 15... Ra7 { Capa
prepares to swing his Rook over to the open d-file. } { [%cal Ya7d7] } 16. Ng5 Bc4 17. Ne3 Bd3 18. Bxd3 Qxd3 19. Nf5 h6 20. Re3 { Rather than retreating the Knight, Maroczy
boldly attacks the Black Queen. } 20... Qd8 21. Nf3 Rd7 { Capa completes the Rook
maneuver he started on move 15. } 22. Qc2 { The White Queen wisely abandons the
same file as the Black battery. } 22... c4 { Capa
grabs some more space on the Queenside. The pawn, sitting squarely at the head
of the chain, takes both b3 and d3 away from White. } { [%csl Rb3,Rd3][%cal Yc4b3,Yc4d3] } 23. Nxe7+ { This trade
makes no sense. The Knight was well-placed at f5, covering squares deep in the
heart of Black's half of the board. The e7-Bishop, however, was accomplishing
nothing. } 23... Qxe7 24. a4 { Maroczy tries breaking up the Queenside pawns in order
to bring his Rook into the game along the a-file. } 24... Rfd8 25. axb5 axb5 26. Ree1 { Maroczy prepares to set up a battery along the a-file. } 26... Qe6 { The idea is to
make way for ...Ne7-g6-f4. } 27. Be3 Rd3 28. Nd2 Ne7 29. f3 Nh5 30. Nf1 f5 31. Bf2 Qg6 { Capa is now threatening a quick end to the battle (...Nf4 and ...
Qxg2#). } 32. Kh2 { Maroczy plans to counter with ...Bg3 (blocking the Black
Queen's access to g2). } 32... Qg5 33. Be3 Nf4 { Intending ...Ng6. } 34. Ng3 Rxe3 { Capa plans to end the game with a Kingside blitz. He starts clearing out wood
around the White King. } 35. Rxe3 Nxg2 36. Re2 Nf4 37. Rd2 Rf8 38. Nh1 Qh5 { Threatening ...Qxh3+. } 39. Nf2 Neg6 (39... Qxf3 { This wins a pawn but loses
the initiative by opening lines for counterplay by White. } 40. Rg1) 40. Qd1 Nh4 41. Rd8 Nxf3+ 42. Kh1 Nd3! { The Knight breaks the communication between
White's Queen and d8-Rook. Now the Rook is hanging and must be withdrawn. } 43. Rxd3 cxd3 44. Qxd3 f4 { Capa advances his
extra pawn to stabilize the center (the threat of exf5 is gone) and to control
squares near the White King. } { [%csl Re3,Rg3][%cal Yf4e3,Yf4g3] } 45. Qd1 Rf6 46. Ra8+ Kh7 47. Qd5 Ng5 { Capa
prepares to block the White Queen's check. } 48. Qg8+ Kg6 49. Qe8+ Nf7 { The
point of 47...Ng5. The Knight blocks the check. } 50. Qc8 { Preparing to play 51.
Qg4+ Qxg4 52.Nxg4 striking at both the Rook and the e5-pawn. } 50... Qf3+ { The
trouble now is that Black can grab and hold the initiative by checking the
White King. } 51. Kg1 Qg3+ 52. Kf1 f3 53. Qg4+ Qxg4 54. hxg4 Kg5 55. Ra5 Nd6 56. Nd3 Kxg4 { It will be little trouble for Capa to promote the f-pawn. } 57. Nxe5+ { This capture is why Maroczy abandoned the g-pawn. } 57... Kg3 { White forgot that the
Black King is now mobile and is supporting the passed f-pawn. } 0-1

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.03"]
[Round "13"]
[White "Reti, Richard"]
[Black "Alekhine, Alexander"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "61"]
[ECO "A48"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. Nf3 g6 2. d4 Nf6 3. Bf4 Bg7 4. h3 c5 { Who says Alekhine has no sense of
humor? He's playing a reversed version of his opponent's own opening, the Reti! } 5. e3 (5. dxc5 { White could play this, but Black just wins back the pawn
right away (and gains the initiative as well). } 5... Qa5+ 6. Qd2 Qxc5) 5... b6 6. Nbd2 Bb7 { Alekhine's Bishop is well-placed on the long a8-h1 diagonal. } 7. Bd3 O-O 8. O-O d6 9. c3 Nbd7 10. Qe2 { Reti completes his development by setting up
a Queen-and-Bishop battery along the a6-f1 diagonal. } 10... Rc8 { Alekhine
anticipates an exchange of pawns at d4. If White retakes with the c-pawn, the
c8-Rook is in position to control the newly-opened file. } 11. a4 Re8 { Alekhine
gets ready to push his e-pawn by supporting it with the Rook. } 12. Ba6 Qc7 { Defending the b7-Bishop rather than trading at a6 (12...Bxa6 13.Qxa6). } (12... Bxa6 13. Qxa6 Qc7 14. e4) 13. a5 { Reti's intention is to crack open the
Queenside, allowing his a1-Rook to join the fray. } 13... cxd4 14. exd4 { 14.cxd4
would give Black the open c-file. } 14... e5 15. dxe5 dxe5 16. Be3 Nd5 17. axb6 { A gutsy move, as Reti had to accurately calculate numerous possibilities (a
few of which are given here). } 17... axb6 (17... Bxa6 18. Rxa6 N7xb6 19. Rfa1) (17... N5xb6 18. Bxb7 Qxb7) (17... N7xb6 18. Bb5 Nxe3 19. Qxe3) 18. Bxb7 Qxb7 19. Rfd1 { Reti's idea is to move the d2-Knight and control both the a- and d-files. } 19... e4 20. Nd4 f5 { Alekhine has set up a formidable pawn chain. } 21. Nb5 f4 { The
turning point. Alekhine seems to have been struck by a moment of chess
blindness and misses the danger... } (21... Nxe3 22. fxe3 Qb8 { Preventing the Knight fork at d6. } { [%csl Gd6][%cal Gb8d6] } 23. Nxe4 Rxe4 24. Rxd7 { White keeps
a slight edge. }) 22. Nd6 { A major fork! Black must
lose at least the Exchange. } { [%cal Rd6e8,Rd6c8,Rd6b7] } 22... Qc6 23. Nxe8 Rxe8 24. Qc4 Ne5 { Making the best of
a bad situation. Exchanging Queens on c4 would bring the White Knight into the
game. } 25. Qxc6 Nxc6 26. Nc4 Nxc3 { The start of a combination which wins back
a pawn. } 27. bxc3 fxe3 28. Nxe3 Bxc3 29. Rac1 Nd4 30. Kf1 { Forced, otherwise
Black can stab White with a fork of his own. } (30. Rxc3 Ne2+ { And it's suddenly a whole new game for Black. } { [%cal Re2g1] }) 30... Nb5 31. Rd5 { 1-0 Black resigns. } (31... Rd5 31. Bb2 Rb1 { And one Black minor piece must fall. }) 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.03"]
[Round "13"]
[White "Marshall, Frank James"]
[Black "Janowski, Dawid"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "107"]
[ECO "D20"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 { The Queen's Gambit. White offers to gambit a pawn, but this
isn't a true gambit. Should Black accept the offered pawn, White can win it
back with no difficulty. } 2... dxc4 { Janowski surprises all by accepting the
offered pawn. } 3. Nc3 { This is the real reason for 2.c4. If the Knight was
advanced first, the c-pawn would be trapped behind the Knight and unable to
move. } 3... e5 { Janowski now offers a gambit pawn of his own. This move was made
possible by White's failure to play 3.Nf3 (which would have guarded the
e5-square). } 4. e3 { This has the dual purpose of defending the
d4-pawn and attacking the c4-pawn. } { [%cal Rf1c4] } 4... exd4 5. exd4 { Marshall now has an isolated
d-pawn. This is a common strategic element in chess. Standard procedure for
Black at this point would be to try to plant a piece (usually a Knight) on the
square in front of the pawn (d5). } 5... Nc6 { [%cal Rc6d4,Rd8d4] } 6. Nf3 { [%cal Gf3d4,Gd1d4] } 6... Nf6 7. Bxc4 { As anticipated, White wins back the gambit pawn
with no trouble. This Bishop's presence (in combination with the c3-Knight) is
also going to make it difficult for Black to blockade the d-pawn by putting a
Knight on d5. } 7... Bd6 8. O-O O-O 9. Bg5 { Marshall pins the Knight to the Queen in
preparation for his next move. } 9... Bg4 10. Nd5 { The move ...Nxd5 is impossible
because of the pin. } 10... Be7 11. Nxe7+ Qxe7 12. Bd5 { Again, the f6-Knight is
prevented by the pin from capturing on d5. } 12... Rfd8 13. Re1 Qd6 14. Bxc6 bxc6 { Janowski now has to contend with the strategic weakness of the doubled c-pawns. } 15. h3 Bh5 16. Rc1 { Marshall prepares to attack the c-pawns. His idea is to
create a battery on the c-file to bear down on the doubled pawns. } 16... Rab8 { Janowski attacks the b-pawn. While this move seems all right, he's missed the
fact that White's pieces are now in position to cause him a lot of grief. He
should have tried trading off a pair of Rooks with ...Re8, limiting White's
offensive power. } 17. g4 { [%cal Rg4h5] } 17... Bg6 18. Ne5 { [%cal Re5c6,Rc1c6] } 18... c5 19. dxc5 { [%cal Rc5d6] } 19... Qa6 { Notice that White's last three moves have been
threats. This has allowed Janowski no time to capture the b2-pawn as he'd
intended. } 20. Qf3 { Marshall had to move the Queen (it was under attack by the
d8-Rook). But why didn't the Queen flee to e2 where it could defend the
b2-pawn? } (20. Qe2 { This wouldn't have mattered -- Black still would win a
pawn and create Queenside threats. } 20... Qxa2 { [%cal Rb8b2,Ra2b2] }) 20... Rxb2 21. Nc6 { Now you see the point of Qf3. } { [%cal Yf3c6,Rc6d8] } 21... Be4 { This looks like a
blunder, but Janowski really has no choice. Take a look at the variation to
see why. } (21... Rf8 { Any other Rook moves leads to the same result. } 22. Bxf6 gxf6 23. Qxf6 { And now White has the unstoppable threat of Ne7+ followed by
Qxa6. }) 22. Ne7+ Kh8 23. Rxe4 Nxe4 24. Qxe4 { Now that the smoke has cleared,
we can see that Marshall has a small material advantage: two minor pieces for
a Rook. } 24... Re2 25. Be3 Rxa2 26. Nc6 Rg8 27. Qd5 Ra4 28. Ne5 { Of course, the threat is a smothered mate with Nxf7#. } { [%cal Rd5f7,Re5f7] } 28... h6 { Janowski has to
creat an escape hatch for the King. } 29. Qxf7 Qf6 30. Qxf6 gxf6 31. Nf7+ Kh7 32. Nxh6 Rd8 33. Nf5 { In just a few moves, Marshall has managed to destroy the
Black King's fortress. } 33... a5 { Janowski goes ahead and advances the pawn before
c5-c6 forces it. } 34. c6 Re4 35. Rc5 Re5 { Slickly preventing Rxa5. } 36. Rc4 (36. Rxe5 fxe5 { This is possible, but why give Black any chances by letting him
swerve the pawn around the f5-Knight? It will also be harder to pick off the
scattered Black pawns with just a Bishop and Knight. }) 36... Re6 37. Bf4 Rc8 38. Rd4 Kh8 39. Rd7 { See how much easier it is to set up an
attack on a pawn by using a Bishop and Rook instead of a Bishop and Knight? } { [%cal Rf4c7,Rd7c7] } 39... a4 { Janowski is dreaming if he thinks he'll be able to promote this pawn without
a struggle. } 40. Ne7! { Marshall discovers an amazing threat! } 40... Rxe7 { Forced.
The threat is 41.Ng6+ Kg8 42.Bh6 and 43.Rg7#. } 41. Rxe7 a3 42. Bh6 a2 43. Bg7+ Kh7 44. Bxf6+ { [%csl Ga1][%cal Gf6a1] } 44... Kg6 45. Bc3 Rb8 46. Rxc7 Rb3 47. Rg7+ Kh6 48. g5+ Kh5 49. Bf6 Ra3 50. c7 a1=Q+ { Swapping the pawn for White's Bishop. } 51. Bxa1 Rxa1+ 52. Kg2 Rc1 { Janowski's chances are exactly nil. He will be
unable to stop all four White pawns. } 53. f4 Rc3 54. Kf2 { Janowski resigns
himself to the fact that he can't stop both the c- and f-pawns and hangs it up. } 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.03"]
[Round "13"]
[White "Lasker, Edward"]
[Black "Tartakower, Ksawery"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "71"]
[ECO "D48"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 Nf6 { Tartakower picks a cagey move order. He could follow up with 2...g6
or 2...b6 (playing an Indian system), 2...d5 (a standard Queen's Gambit), or 2.
..e6 (with a couple of different choices possible at that point). } 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 { The game has become a Queen's Gambit. } 4... c6 5. e3 Nbd7 6. Bd3 dxc4 { Black usually waits for White to develop his Kingside Bishop before making
this capture. Why? } 7. Bxc4 { Because White must then waste a tempo in movng
the Bishop a second time. } 7... b5 { Tartakower kicks the Bishop yet again. } 8. Bd3 a6 9. O-O c5 10. a4 { Lasker now attempts to thwart his opponent's Queenside
ambitions. } 10... b4 { Black gains space } 11. Ne4 { It
looks like Lasker is starting to pile up on the c5-pawn. } { [%cal Re4c5,Rd4c5,Gf8c5,Gd7c5] } 11... Bb7 12. Nxf6+ (12. Qc2 { We see here why the pileup on the c5-pawn was doomed to failure. } 12... Rc8 { The pawn is attacked three times
and defended three times -- White can't bring up another attacker, so he can't
win the pawn. } { [%cal Rc2c5,Rd4c5,Re4c5,Gf8c5,Gd7c5,Gc8c5] }) 12... Nxf6 13. Qe2 { Preparing to win material; should the
b7-Bishop move, the Bishop-Queen battery wins a pawn. } 13... cxd4 14. Nxd4 Qd5 { An obvious mate threat. } { [%cal Rb7g2,Rg2g1] } 15. f3 { Lasker blocks the mate. } 15... Bd6 { Tartakower continues with the same theme of a Kingside attack. } 16. Rd1 { A common strategic idea: the Rook goes to the open file. } 16... O-O 17. Bc4 Qc5 18. Bd2 { The Bishop vacates c1, which will allow the a1-Rook to take over the
second open file (and the one on which the Black Queen resides, to boot!). } 18... Qc7 { Tartakower creates his own threatening Bishop-Queen battery. } { [%cal Rc7h2] } 19. g3 { Lasker again blocks the threat with a pawn push. But notice the space
that's being created around the White King -- very dangerous with two Black
Bishops bearing down on the Kingside. } 19... Qa5 { Tartakower is overprotecting the b4-pawn. This may seem wasteful at first
glance, but think about it: now either the Queen or d6-Bishop is free to roam
elsewhere, while the pawn will remain protected. } { [%cal Ga5b4,Gd6b4,Rd2b4] } (19... Rfc8 { Tartakower might have tried this, but it leads nowhere... } { [%cal Rc8c4] } 20. Rac1 { The Bishop is adequately protected. White now also
has the threat of Bxa6 with a discovered attack on the Black Queen. } { [%cal Rc8c4,Ge2c4,Gc1c4] }) 20. e4 { Lasker's idea is to fork the Bishop and Knight by advancing the pawn to e5. } 20... Rfd8 { Tartakower kills the intended fork. Check the variaton to White's next
move to see why. } 21. Nb3 (21. e5 { [%cal Re5f6,Re5d6] } 21... Bc5 (21... Qxe5 { More simple, but not as much fun. }) 22. exf6 Bxd4+ { [%cal Rd4g1] } 23. Kg2 Bxf6 { And Black has won a pawn (with an additional threat thrown into
the mix). } { [%cal Rf6b2] }) 21... Qh5 { Tartakower brings his Queen over to the Kingside (the
side his Bishops are aimed at). } 22. Rac1 Nd7 23. Qf2 Bc6 24. Nd4 Bxa4 25. b3 Bb5 (25... Bc5 26. Be3 Bxd4 27. Rxd4 Bb5 28. Bxb5 Qxb5 { White has a slight
edge due to his control of the open files. } (28... axb5 29. Rcd1 { [%cal Rd1d7] })) 26. g4 (26. Bxb5 { Lasker missed this, which leads to a better game for him. } 26... axb5 27. Nc6 Bc5 28. Be3 Bxe3 29. Qxe3 Ra2 { [%cal Ra2h2,Rh5h2] } 30. h4 Rda8 31. Rxd7) 26... Qg6 { The Queen's retreat allows Lasker the chance to to win back
the lost pawn. } (26... Qh3 27. Bg5 Nf6 28. Nxb5 Nxe4 29. fxe4 Qxg4+ 30. Kh1 Qxg5 31. Nxd6 Rxd6 32. Qg3 Qxg3 33. hxg3 Rxd1+ 34. Rxd1 { Despite the deficit
in pawns, White's Bishop gives him the edge. }) 27. Bxb5 (27. Nxb5 axb5 28. Bxb5 Ne5 { Black edges his forces toward the Kingside, but White should have no
problems. }) 27... axb5 28. Nc6 { Lasker surprises everyone by passing up the
pawn and going after the Rook. Why? } (28. Nxb5 { [%cal Rb5d6] } 28... Be7 { White wins
back the pawn with an equal position. }) 28... Rdc8 { Not the best choice (see
the variation). } (28... Re8 { Black's best bet was to let White have the c-file
and get his Rook back toward his King. }) 29. Be3 { And now we see the point of
the Knight move: the Rook no longer defends the d7-Knight. Lasker's Bishop
move uncovers an attack against both minor pieces hanging loose on the d-file. } 29... e5 { Tartakower clears a path to allow the Queen to defend the
d6-Bishop. } { [%cal Gg6d6] } 30. Qd2 { The Queen joins the pileup on the Bishop. } 30... Qf6 { [%cal Rf6f3] } 31. Kg2 { Now Lasker has all of his weaknesses covered. } 31... Bc5 32. Qxd7 Bxe3 (32... Rxc6 33. Rxc5 Rxc5 34. Bxc5 h5 { Black is no better off than he was
in the actual game. }) 33. Ne7+ { WHAM! The steel trap snaps
shut! } { [%cal Re7c8,Re7g8] } 33... Qxe7 { Tartakower has no choice (see the variations). } (33... Kf8 34. Rxc8+ Rxc8 35. Qxc8+ Kxe7 36. Rd7+ Ke6 37. Qc6#) (33... Kh8 34. Rxc8+ Rxc8 35. Qxc8#) 34. Rxc8+ { And the fat lady begins her song... } (34. Qxe7 { While White
would still be winning, he'd be in for a longer haul after this move. } 34... Bxc1 35. Rd7 Rf8 36. Qxe5 Ra2+ 37. Kf1 h6 { Black will still lose, but he'll have the
chance to harass White along the way. }) 34... Rxc8 35. Qxc8+ Qf8 36. Rd8 { Tartakower sees there's no way to avoid defeat, so he throws in the towel. } (36... Rd8 36. Bc5 Rxf8+ 37... Bxf8 Qe8 { Black has (literally) no moves except to
push the pawns in front of his King. White will eventually either win the
Bishop (and the game) or break through on the Kingside using his King as an
attacker in support of the pawnstorm. }) 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.05"]
[Round "14"]
[White "Capablanca, Jose Raul"]
[Black "Lasker, Emanuel"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "99"]
[ECO "D13"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c6 { Dr. Lasker goes for the Slav Defense. His c-pawn supports
the d-pawn's advance to d5. } 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 cxd5 { With the c-pawns
exchanged off, both players have the opportunity to use the open c-file as a
base of operation for their Rooks. } 5. Nf3 Nc6 6. Bf4 e6 7. e3 Be7 8. Bd3 O-O 9. O-O Nh5 { Lasker grabs the initiative by attacking the f4-Bishop. } 10. Be5 f5 { This is odd. Lasker has created a hole on e5; the White Bishop now sits
comfortably there. Playing ...f6 makes much more sense. } 11. Rc1 { Capablanca
is the first one to grab the open c-file. } 11... Nf6 { The Knight
is going to g4, where it will start a Kingside attack or to e4 will it will
dominate the heart of White's position. } { [%cal Yf6g4,Ye7h4] } 12. Bxf6 gxf6 13. Nh4 { This is a
clearance maneuver -- the Knight is getting out of the way of its own f-pawn. } 13... Kh8 { Lasker responds with a clearance move of his own. The King is vacating g8
to make room for the Rook. } 14. f4 Rg8 15. Rf3 { Capa starts a "Rook lift" --
moving the Rook to an open rank where it can move sideways to a new file. } 15... Bd7 16. Rh3 { The next stop for the Knight is g6. The h-pawn is pinned,
making ...hxg6 impossible. } { [%cal Yh4g6] } 16... Be8 { The Bishop thwarts the
White Knight's move. } { [%csl Gg6][%cal Ge8g6] } 17. a3 { To prevent ...Nb4. } 17... Rg7 18. Rg3 Rxg3 19. hxg3 { The pawns are doubled, but not yet terribly weak. Capa's plan now might be to
put his Queen and Rook on the half-open h-file, the highway leading straight
to the Black King. } 19... Rc8 20. Kf2 { [%cal Yd1h1] } 20... Na5 { The Knight is going to c4
to put pressure on White's b- and e-pawns. } 21. Qf3 { Capa wastes a tempo; 21.
Qe2 would have been better. } 21... Nc4 { [%csl Rb2][%cal Rc4b2] } 22. Qe2 { [%csl Gb2][%cal Ge2b2] } 22... Nd6 { Now the nimble Knight will drop onto e4 with check. } 23. Rh1 Ne4+ 24. Bxe4 fxe4 { The Black
pawns control a lot of squares on White's half of the board. However, the e6
pawn is weak and Capa will make it a target. } { [%csl Gc4,Gd3,Re6,Gf3][%cal Gd5c4,Ge4d3,Ge4f3] } 25. Qg4 { [%csl Re6][%cal Rg4e6] } 25... f5 { [%tqu "En","Capa thinks the Black pawns are getting out of hand. What can
he do to tame them and break the game open?","Capa is going to sacrifice some
material to break up the 'pawn diamond' in the board's center.","The sacrifice
involves giving up a Knight.","h4f5","Correct! Capablanca will give up a
Knight for two pawns, plus a dual attack (with a mating threat) on the h7-pawn,
and the initiative besides! In this position, it's worth it to give up a pawn
for the initiative and an attack!",10,"g4e2","No, this abject retreat is what
Lasker was counting on. The correct answer involves a sacrifice.",0,"c3d5",
"Close but no cigar, but you have the right idea! The correct answer does
involve a sacrifice -- this just isn't the right one.",5,"h4g6","At first
glance, this might look good. The trouble is that after 26...Bxg6 27.Qxg6 Qg8
Black has a slight advantage because the White Queen must run again or the
Queens will be traded off. The correct move involves a sacrifice. You do score
a point for creativity, though.",1] } 26. Nxf5 { Amazing! Capablanca sacrifices
a Knight for two pawns and the attack! } 26... exf5 27. Qxf5 { [%tqu "En","The threat is mate via Qxh7. What should Lasker do to stop the
threat?","There are several ways to eliminate a mate threat: block the threat
by interposing material between the attacker and the target, capture the
attacker, remove the target, or run away with the King.","The attacker can't
be captured, so that solution's out. Interposing material between the attacker
and the target won't work here. That leaves removing the target or fleeing
with the King.","h7h5","Correct! Lasker moves the target ahead to a square
where it's defended by the e8-Bishop, stopping the mate threat cold by
blocking the White Rook's access to the intended mating square (h7).",10,
"e8g6","This won't work. After Qxg6, Black's back in the same boat (remember,
the h-pawn is pinned, making ...hxg6 impossible).",0,"e7h4","This simply loses
hideous amounts of material: 27...Bh4 28.Rxh4 and White has a winning positon
already.",0,"e8h5","Sorry, but this move is just plain poor. After Qxh5,
Black's as bad off as he was a minute ago and is missing a Bishop to boot!",0,
"h8g8","Incorrect, but you get partial credit for this one. This move is the
'best' of the wrong answers. After 27...Kg8, White gets to chase the King: 28.
Qxh7+ Kf8 29.Qh8+ Kf7 and the King hunt will continue thereafter.",3] [%cal Rf5h7,Rh1h7] } 27... h5 { Lasker stops the mate threat by moving the target to a protected square. Now
the h1-Rook's access is blocked to the intended mating square (h7). } 28. g4 { Capa attacks the obstructing pawn. } 28... Rc6 { With ...Rf6 to
follow, attacking the Queen (which is rapidly running out of room). } { [%cal Yc6f6,Rf6f5] } 29. g5 { Keeping the Rook off of f6. } { [%cal Gg5f6] } 29... Kg8 30. Nxd5 { The material is even,
but imbalanced. Capa has three extra pawns, but Lasker has an extra minor
piece. Capa enjoys a huge advantage here, though: the e4-pawn is en prise, the
Black King is terribly exposed, and the Black Bishops are bottled up. } 30... Bf7 { [%cal Rf7d5,Rd8d5,Gf5d5] } 31. Nxe7+ { Swapping the Knight for a Bishop (the
latter will be more valuable than a Knight in the endgame with pawns on both
sides of the board). } 31... Qxe7 32. g4 hxg4 (32... Bg6 { Chasing the Queen was
better. } 33. Qd5+ Bf7 34. Qa5 hxg4 { This move makes more sense now that the
White Queen is displaced over on the other side of the board. }) 33. Qh7+ { And the attack is on again! } 33... Kf8 34. Rh6 Bg8 35. Qf5+ Kg7 36. Rxc6 bxc6 { Take a look at the pawn structure! Every one of Black's pawns is isolated!
This should give you a clue as to how Capa should proceed: use the Queen to
harass the King and seize the initiative, create promotion threats to force
the Black pieces to respond, and kill off the Black pawns one-by-one. } 37. Kg3 Qe6 38. Kxg4 Qxf5+ 39. Kxf5 { Now it's really exciting: three pawns versus a
Bishop and White's King holds the opposition. } 39... Bd5 { Look at the big,
pointy-headed pawn! But Lasker doesn't have much else -- all of White's pawns
are on the opposite-colored from his Bishop. } 40. b4 a6 41. Kg4 Bc4 42. f5 { The connected passed pawns are becoming very dangerous, especially since
they're advancing straight at the Black King. } 42... Bb3 43. Kf4 Bc2 44. Ke5 Kf7 45. a4 { A deliberate pawn sacrifice, designed to aid in driving back the Black
King. } 45... Kg7 (45... Bxa4 46. g6+ { [%csl Gd6,Ge6,Gf6,Gh7][%cal Ge5f6,Ge5e6,Ge5d6] } 46... Kg7 47. Kxe4 { The White King can now circle behind the
pawns to aid their advance, plus the e-pawn will advance and join the
attacking line. } { [%cal Ye4f4,Yf4g5] }) 46. d5 Bxa4 (46... cxd5 47. b5 axb5 48. axb5 Bb3 { Black will
find it imposible to prevent pawn advances on two fronts, but this line still
offers better chances than what was actually played. }) 47. d6 { The d-pawn
sneaks past on the way to promotion! } 47... c5 { Lasker is
forced to give up this pawn in order to cover d7 and prevent the d6-pawn's
advance. } { [%csl Yd7][%cal Ya4d7] } 48. bxc5 Bc6 { Blockading the c-pawn while still guarding against the
d-pawn's advance. } 49. Ke6 a5 50. f6+ { Driving the
King back further. Lasker sees that he won't be able to stop all three pawns
from breaking to the eighth rank, so he resigns. } { [%csl Gc7,Gd7,Ge7,Gf7,Gg7] } 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.05"]
[Round "14"]
[White "Alekhine, Alexander"]
[Black "Maroczy, Geza"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[PlyCount "66"]
[ECO "D55"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Be7 5. Bg5 O-O 6. e3 Ne4 7. Bxe7 Qxe7 8. Qc2 { Intending to win a pawn by Nxe4 and Qxe4. } 8... Nxc3 9. Qxc3 c5 10. cxd5 cxd4 11. Nxd4 exd5 { Now Black has an isolated d-pawn. White is doing the right
thing: blockading it with a Knight. } 12. Be2 Nd7 13. O-O Nf6 { [%tqu "En","When
there's not much else to do, you should look to improve the position of your
worst-placed piece. That's what Alekhine chooses to do here. Do you know what
move he made?","Look for the piece that seems to be doing the least.","We know
it's not the Knight, as it blockades Black's d-pawn. It's not the Queen, as it
controls a nice open file.","a1c1","Right! The Rook and Queen form a strong
battery on the c-file.",10,"f1c1","Right idea, but the wrong piece. Moving the
f-Rook to c1 cuts the mobility of the a1-Rook to just one square.",3,"a1d1",
"Right piece, wrong square. The Rook doesn't do much on d1 except support the
d4-Knight. But there are presently no threats to the Knight. Moving this Rook
to d1 also limits the other Rook's move to just one square. Look for a better
Rook move.",3,"a1b1","Right piece, wrong square. There's not much point to
this move, is there? Find a better square for the Rook.",0] } 14. Rac1 { The
Rook forms a strong battery with the Queen on the open c-file. } 14... Be6 { Maroczy
expects Alekhine to put pressure on the d-pawn from the flank, so he moves to
overprotect the pawn as a preventive measure. } 15. Qa5 { As
expected, Alekhine pressures the pawn. } { [%cal Ra5d5] } 15... Rfc8 16. Rxc8+ Bxc8 (16... Rxc8 17. Qxa7 { Losing a pawn. }) 17. Rc1 { Again assuming control of the file. } 17... Bd7 (17... b6 { Why not advance the pawn and give the Queen a little kick? Black misses
the chance to take the pressure off of the d-pawn. }) 18. a3 g6 19. h3 Rc8 { Maroczy doesn't want to see the Rook or Queen invade the 7th rank, so he
decides to sacrifice a pawn to keep that from happening. } 20. Rxc8+ Bxc8 21. Qxa7 Qc7 { Nice. Now it's Black who owns the open file. } 22. Bf1 { Anticipating .
..Qc1+. } 22... Bd7 23. Ne2 { Starting a maneuver that will block the file. } 23... Bb5 24. Nc3 { The file is blocked and pressure is maintained on the d-pawn. } 24... Bxf1 25. Kxf1 Ne4 26. Qd4 { [%cal Rd4d5,Rc3d5] } 26... Nxc3 { Removing one of the attackers. } 27. Qxc3 Qh2 28. f3 { Alekhine blows it! He's so busy watching the
Capablanca-Lasker game that he pays no attention to his own! } (28. Qc8+ Kg7 29. Qxb7 Qh1+ 30. Ke2 Qxg2 31. a4 Qxh3 32. Qb4 { and Black can just
hang it up now. } { [%cal Ya4a8] }) 28... Qh1+ 29. Kf2 Qd1 30. Qc8+ Kg7 31. Qxb7 (31. Qc3+ { After the King moves, White plays Qd4 and after the Queens are swapped off,
White's extra material will win the game. }) 31... Qd2+ 32. Kg3 d4 33. exd4 Qg5+ { Maroczy can force a draw by harassing the White King with repeated checks.
The players agree to the draw. } (34. Qg5+ 33... Kh2 34... Qf4+ Kg1 35... Qe3+ { etc }) 1/2-1/2

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.05"]
[Round "14"]
[White "Tartakower, Ksawery"]
[Black "Marshall, Frank James"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "121"]
[ECO "A15"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. Nf3 { Tartakower plays his cards very close to his chest with this
non-commital opening move. He can follow it up with almost anything,
transposing into another opening. } 1... Nf6 { Marshall, himself a tricky player,
follows suit and for the same reasons. } 2. c4 { The game is now an English
Opening. White controls the key central squares d4, d5, and e5, but doesn't
occupy the center with his own pawns. } 2... g6 { Intending to fianchetto the Bishop. } 3. b3 Bg7 4. Bb2 { A counter-fianchetto. The two opposing Bishops contest
control of the long a1-h8 diagonal. } 4... O-O 5. g3 c5 6. Bg2 { The White Bishops
are well-placed on both of the board's long diagonals, criss-crossing in the
center. } 6... Nc6 7. O-O e6 8. d4 cxd4 9. Nxd4 d5 10. cxd5 exd5 { Now Black has an
isolated d-pawn, which is already blockaded by a White Knight. } 11. Nd2 Re8 12. N2f3 { Now the Knight on d4 is incredibly
well-supported. } { [%csl Gd4][%cal Gb2d4,Gd1d4,Gf3d4] } 12... Bg4 13. Nxc6 bxc6 { The d-pawn
is not isolated anymore, but Marshall is still stuck with three pawn islands,
making his position difficult to defend. } { [%csl Ya7,Yc6,Yd5,Yf7,Yg6,Yh7] } 14. Ne5 { [%cal Re5g4] } 14... Bd7 15. Nxd7 Nxd7 16. Bxg7 Kxg7 { The Bishop swap has made the Black King's position a bit
weaker. } 17. Rc1 { [%csl Rc6][%cal Rc1c6] } 17... Qf6 { [%csl Gc6][%cal Gf6c6] } 18. e3 Rad8 19. Rc2 Re6 20. Qd2 Rd6 21. Rd1 Ne5 22. Qd4 { [%csl Ra7][%cal Rd4a7] } 22... R8d7 { [%csl Ga7][%cal Gd7a7] } 23. Rdc1 Kg8 24. f4 Ng4 25. Qxf6 Rxf6 (25... Nxf6 { This was better, as it avoids the unpleasantness on the c8-h3 diagonal as in
the actual game. }) 26. Bh3 h5 { A nice stopgap, but it still loses a pawn. } 27. Rxc6 Rxc6 28. Rxc6 d4 29. Bxg4 hxg4 30. Kf2 dxe3+ 31. Kxe3 { Let's take a
minute to examine the position. White is a pawn ahead, has a much better pawn
structure, and a centralized King. White's is clearly the better game. } 31... Re7+ 32. Kd3 Rd7+ 33. Kc2 Kg7 34. b4 Re7 35. Kb3 Re2 36. Rc2 Re3+ { Marshall
correctly rejects the Rook swap (see the variation). } (36... Rxc2 37. Kxc2 Kf6 38. Kd3 Ke6 39. Kd4 { White, with the opposition, keeps the Black King from
invading his position. }) 37. Kc4 Ra3 38. b5 Ra4+ 39. Kb3 Re4 40. Rc7 { [%csl Ra7][%cal Rc7a7] } 40... Re3+ 41. Kb4 Re4+ 42. Kb3 Re3+ 43. Rc3 Re1 (43... Rxc3+ 44. Kxc3 { With the same result as the variation to Black's 36th move above. }) 44. Rc2 Kf6 { Marshall now tries to get the jump on attaining the opposition. } 45. Kb4 Ke6 46. Ka5 Re4 47. a4 Kd7 48. Rc6 { The
Black King is now shut out. It can't cross its third rank because of the White
Rook's control of these squares. } { [%csl Ya6,Yb6,Yc6,Yd6,Ye6,Yf6,Yg6] } 48... Kd8 49. Rf6 { [%csl Rf7][%cal Rf6f7] } 49... Ke8 50. Rd6 { Further restricting the Black King. } { [%csl Yd6,Yd7,Yd8,Ye6,Yf6,Yg6] } 50... Re2 { [%csl Rh2][%cal Re2h2] } 51. Ka6 { [%csl Ra7][%cal Ra6a7] } 51... Rxh2 52. Kxa7 Ra2 { [%csl Ra4][%cal Ra2a4] } 53. Rd4 { [%csl Ga4][%cal Gd4a4] } 53... Ra3 { [%csl Rg3][%cal Ra3g3] } 54. b6 Rxg3 55. b7 Rb3 56. b8=Q+ Rxb8 57. Kxb8 { If not for
the Black pawn on g4, all Tartakower would need to do is place his Rook on the
b-file (to keep the Black King from crossing the file) and run his a-pawn up
to promotion. Nevertheless, White's position is still winning -- the g-pawn is
just a minor complication that Tartakower needs to keep in mind. } { [%csl Gg4] } 57... f5 58. a5 g5 59. a6 g3 60. a7 gxf4 61. a8=Q { 1-0 Black resigns. } 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.05"]
[Round "14"]
[White "Bogoljubow, Efim"]
[Black "Lasker, Edward"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "113"]
[ECO "C60"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Qf6 { An interesting approach to the Ruy Lopez which
is seldom (never?) seen today. Lasker seems to violate one of the standard
opening principles: never move your Queen out early in the game. } 4. Nc3 { [%cal Yc3d5,Rd5c7,Rd5f6] } 4... Nge7 { Preventing White's intended
Knight move to d5. } { [%cal Ge7d5] } 5. d3 Nd4 6. Nxd4 exd4 { Now we see
the reason for Black's early Queen development. By trading off his c6-Knight
for the f3-Knight (and with the e-pawn capturing on d4), the pressure is off
of e5. Is this a good plan? Probably not, as the d4-pawn will be hard to
defend. } { [%csl Gd4][%cal Gf6d4] } 7. Ne2 { A useful retreat, going to a square where it counterattacks
the d4-pawn. } 7... c6 { Lasker maintains the initiative by threatening another piece. } 8. Ba4 d5 9. O-O g6 { [%cal Yf8g7] } 10. b4 { Bogoljubow prepares the minority
attack (which we've examined in a previous game). Playing b4-b5 in the future
will break up Black's Queenside pawns. } 10... Qd6 11. a3 Bg7 { [%csl Gd4][%cal Gg7d4] } 12. Bb2 { [%cal Rb2d4,Gg7d4,Re2d4] } 12... b5 { Lasker relentlessly pursues the Bishop. } 13. Bb3 c5 { Now the fireworks start on the Queenside. } 14. bxc5 Qxc5 { Notice how Lasker has deftly managed to defend the
menaced d-pawn. } { [%cal Rb2d4,Re2d4,Gc5d4,Gg7d4] } 15. Rc1 O-O 16. c3 dxc3 17. Nxc3 d4 18. Nd5 Qd6 19. f4 Nxd5 20. Bxd5 { [%cal Rd5a8] } 20... Rb8 21. Rc6 { The tables have suddenly turned! It's
Black who is now on the run! Notice how, over the last eight moves, Bogo's
gradually been able to free up his game, gaining space for his cramped pieces. } 21... Qd8 22. Qb3 { Bogo creates a battery on the diagonal and
intensifies the pin on the f7-pawn. } { [%csl Yf7][%cal Yb3g8] } 22... Bb7 { Lasker starts fighting back. } 23. Rc5 Qd6 24. Qc2 Rfc8 { Now a battle starts for control of the open c-file. } 25. Rc1 Bf8 26. Bxd4 { Bogo grabs the undefended d-pawn... } 26... Qxf4 { ...while Lasker grabs
a free pawn of his own. } 27. Rf1 { Bogo attacks the Black Queen, but this leads
to some crazy complications. } 27... Bxc5 28. Bxc5 { Now the game
has become very complex. White has an attack going, based on the Bishop and
Rook bearing down on f7. However, the other Bishop on c5 is pinned. It can
become unstuck only if it moves with check -- a strong possibility given the
White attack on f7. How does Black proceed here? } { [%cal Rf1f7,Rd5f7] } (28. Rxf4 { This ends up
costing White dearly. } 28... Bxd4+ { [%cal Rd4g1,Rc8c2] }) 28... Qe3+ { Lasker decides to simplify by trading Queens. } { [%cal Re3c5,Re3g1] } (28... Qe5 { Another approach which is harder to spot. } 29. d4 { [%cal Gd4c5,Rd4e5] } (29. Bxf7+ { White needs to delay this capture. } { [%cal Rf7g8,Re5c5,Rc8c5] } 29... Kg7 { Black, being in check, doesn't have time to grab up the c5-Bishop. } 30. d4 { [%cal Rd4e5,Gd4c5] } 30... Qxe4 31. Qxe4 Bxe4 { Black has the better position, being
up the Exchange. }) 29... Qg5 30. Bxf7+ Kg7 { White, with the attack and the
initiative, stands better. }) 29. Bxe3 { Forced. } 29... Rxc2 30. Bxf7+ Kg7 31. Bb3 Rc7 32. Bf4 { [%cal Rf5b8] } 32... Rbc8 33. Be6 { Bogo has the luxury of several approaches
here; he opts for an artistic one -- the simultaneous attack on two Rooks by
two Bishops. } (33. Bxc7 Rxc7 { White, with two passed pawns and an extra pawn,
should win. }) 33... Re7 34. Bxc8 Bxc8 35. Rc1 Bb7 36. Rc7 { Bogo's idea is to
simplify into an endgame in which he'll have an extra pawn plus a pair of
passed pawns. } 36... Kf7 37. Rxe7+ Kxe7 38. Bd2 { In general, all things being equal,
endings with opposite-colored Bishops are usually drawn. But all things are
not equal here. Remember, White is ahead by a pawn, plus has a dangerous pair
of passed pawns. } 38... Ke6 39. Kf2 { In the endgame, it's a good idea to centralize
your King. It then can move to either side of the board (and isn't in any
great danger since most of the pieces are now back in the box). } 39... Kd6 40. Ke3 Kc5 { The King is headed for the Queenisde to support a pawn breakthough. } 41. Ba5 { Bogo limits the Black King's movements by
cutting off most of the squares around it. } { [%csl Rb4,Rb6,Rc4,Rd4,Rd5] } 41... Bc8 42. Bd8 Bd7 43. Ba5 g5 44. Bc3 h5 45. Bd4+ { Black is completely lost. } { [%cal Rd4a7] } 45... Kd6 46. Bxa7 h4 47. Bd4 { [%cal Yd4f6,Rf6g5] } 47... Ke6 { [%csl Gf6][%cal Ge6f6] } 48. Bc3 Kf7 49. d4 Kg6 50. d5 Bc8 51. Ba5 Bd7 52. Bd8 h3 53. gxh3 Bxh3 54. Kd4 Bd7 55. e5 Kf5 56. e6 Be8 57. Bxg5 { 1-0 Black resigns. } (57... Bxg5 57. Kxg5 Ke5 { Shutting the Black King out of the center. The
White pawn pair will now easily advance to promotion. }) 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.05"]
[Round "14"]
[White "Janowski, Dawid"]
[Black "Yates, Frederick"]
[Result "0-1"]
[PlyCount "162"]
[ECO "A48"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 g6 3. Bf4 Bg7 4. h3 O-O 5. e3 d6 6. Bc4 Nc6 7. O-O Nd7 8. Nc3 h6 9. Qd2 e5 10. Bg3 { There's no
point in Janowski capturing the e-pawn; it's defended three times. } { [%cal Rd4e5,Rf3e5,Rg3e5,Gd7e5,Gd6e5,Gc6e5] } (10. dxe5 dxe5 11. Nxe5 Ncxe5 12. Bxe5 Nxe5) 10... Kh7 11. Rad1 { Janowski has built a
battery on the d-file, anticipating a time when the file opens up. } 11... Nb6 { [%cal Rb6c4] } 12. Be2 Qe7 13. Rfe1 Bd7 14. Bd3 { Pinning the
g6-pawn. But why didn't he do this on move 12 (when he retreated the Bishop
from c4)? } { [%cal Rd3h7] } 14... Rae8 { Yates creates his own e-file battery. } (14... f5 { Blocking
the pin. }) (14... Nb4 { Chasing the Bishop. } { [%cal Rb4d3] }) 15. dxe5 dxe5 16. e4 Nb4 17. Bf1 (17. Be2 { This would block the e1-Rook's defense of the e4-pawn. }) 17... Rd8 18. Qc1 { Janowski hates to break up his d-file battery but it would
be very dangerous for the White Queen to remain on the same file as the
d8-Rook. } 18... f6 { The pawn now blocks the path of its own Bishop on g7. } (18... f5 { This was certainly better. } { [%cal Rf5e4] } 19. exf5 Bxf5 20. Bxe5 Rxd1 21. Qxd1 Nxc2 22. Bxg7 Qxg7 23. Re2 Nb4 { The position is even. }) 19. a3 Nc6 20. Nd5 Nxd5 21. exd5 Nb8 22. c4 b6 23. Bd3 Be8 { Clearing the path for the d8-Rook along
the d-file and defending the g6-pawn. } 24. Qc2 { [%cal Rc2g6,Ge8g6,Gh7g6] } 24... Nd7 { [%cal Yd7c5] } 25. b4 { Preventing ...Nc5. } 25... a5 26. Nd4 { After Ne6, both Black Rooks and the c7-pawn will be forked. } { [%cal Yd4e6,Re6f8,Re6d8] } 26... Rc8 { Yates gets the Rook out of harm's way and defends the c7-pawn, taking the bite
out of Ne6. } 27. Ne6 { The e6-square is still a
nice outpost for the Knight (it now commands six squares on Black's half of
the board). } { [%csl Rc5,Rc7,Rd8,Rf8,Rg5,Rg7] } 27... Rg8 28. c5 bxc5 29. bxc5 Bf7 30. c6 { Janowski hurts himself with
this move. He should have kept up the pressure with 30.f4 or 30.Bh4. The move
he actually played allows Black to free his game by making exchanges. } (30. f4 { And Black can't play ...exf4. } 30... Bf8 { [%cal Rf8c5,Ge6c5,Gc2c5,Rd7c5] } (30... exf4 31. Ng5+ { [%cal Rg5h7,Re1e7] } 31... hxg5 32. Rxe7 Ne5 { White has a huge
material advantage and can try almost anything here. }) (30... Nf8 31. Nxg7 Rxg7 32. fxe5 fxe5 33. Bxe5 { Threatening Bxf7 with the secondary threat of Rxe7. }) 31. c6 { And now c6 works. } 31... Nb6 { White has a big lead. The e6-Knight controls a
lot of space in Black's camp and the c- and d-pawns have driven a wedge into
Black's position, separating his forces. }) (30. Bh4 { Pinning the f6-pawn to
the Black Queen. }) 30... Nf8 { Yates intends to play ...Nxe6 (splitting up the
White c-and d-pawns) and then either ...Bxe6 or ...Qxe6. } 31. f4 Nxe6 32. dxe6 Qxe6 33. f5 Qe8 (33... gxf5 34. Bxf5+ { with
a nasty fork of the Black King and Queen. } { [%cal Rf5e6,Rf5h7] }) 34. Be4 gxf5 35. Bxf5+ Bg6 36. Rd7 Bxf5 37. Qxf5+ Qg6 { Yates is trying like mad to trade down to an endgame in
which he'll have a one pawn advantage. He'd like to exchange Queens here. } 38. Qf3 Kh8 39. Re4 Rce8 40. Rg4 Qb1+ 41. Kh2 Re6 { [%csl Rc6][%cal Re6c6] } 42. Qd5 { [%csl Re6][%cal Rd5e6] } 42... Qf5 { [%cal Gf5e6] } 43. Rxc7 h5 44. Rh4 Bh6 45. Qf3 { [%cal Rf3h5,Rh4h5] } 45... Qxf3 46. gxf3 { Yates has achieved his Queen exchange, And
is about to win a pawn. A further source of advantage lies in positional
factors, in this case that all of White's pawns are isolated and can't defend
each other. } 46... Rd6 47. Rxh5 Rd2+ 48. Kh1 Rxg3 49. Rxh6+ Kg8 { Now this is a
little scary for White. Yates must tread cautiously due to the position of the
Black Rooks. } 50. Rd7 Rdg2 (50... Rxd7 { Completely awful. } 51. cxd7 { Nothing
can now stop the pawn's promotion on d8. }) 51. Rd1 { Otherwise ...Rg1+ leads to
mate. } 51... Kg7 { [%csl Rh6][%cal Rg7h6] } 52. Rh4 Rc2 { [%csl Rc6][%cal Rc2c6] } 53. Rg1 { The Black Rooks are more active than their White counterparts (that is,
they have more freedom of movement and can easily create threats). Janowski
decides to cut down on this counterplay by sacrificing a pawn in order to get
a pair of Rooks off the board.   So why Rg1 instead of Rg4+? It's really time
to flip a coin -- both have merit. After 53.Rg1 Rxg1+ 54.Kxg1 the White King
edges over toward the board's center (which is where you want your King in the
endgame). After 53.Rg4+ Rxg4 54.hxg4 White unites his disconnected Kingside
pawns. } (53. Rg4+ Rxg4 54. hxg4 Rxc6) 53... Rxg1+ 54. Kxg1 Rxc6 55. Ra4 Rc5 56. Kf2 { As expected, the White King edges closer to the center. } 56... f5 57. Kg3 Kf6 58. f4 (58. h4 { It's an old chess maxim that "passed pawns must be pushed".
Janowski would have done better had he pushed the h-pawn. Even a King move
would have been better than 58.f4. }) 58... e4 { Uh-oh. Janowski was evidently
expecting ...exf4+ to be followed by Kxf4 or Rxf4. Now Yates has a passed
e-pawn. } 59. Kh4 Ke6 60. Rd4 Rb5 61. Ra4 Kd5 62. Kg3 Rc5 63. Kf2 Ke6 64. Kg3 Rc3+ 65. Kh4 Rf3 { Janowski is on the horns of a dilemma. The f4-pawn is
threatened by the Rook, but if the King comes to the f-pawn's rescue, the
h-pawn gets taken off. } 66. Kg5 Rxh3 67. Rxa5 Rg3+ 68. Kh5 Rg4 { [%csl Rf4][%cal Rg4f4] } 69. Re5+ Kf6 { And now Janowski is in the soup. It's all over for
White now, barring any blunders by Yates. } 70. Re8 Rxf4 71. a4 Rf3 72. Kh4 Ra3 73. Ra8 { The a4-pawn is protected by the White Rook, but can never promote
(the Rook is in the way of its own pawn). Meanwhile the White King can't stop
the Black King and pawn pair. The game is dead lost for White. } 73... Ke5 74. Kg5 Rg3+ 75. Kh5 { The Black Rook shuts out
the White King. } { [%csl Yg1,Yg2,Yg3,Yg4,Yg5,Yg6,Yg7,Yg8] } 75... e3 76. a5 (76. Re8+ { Pointless. } 76... Kf4 { The f5-pawn screens the
Black King from the White Rook. }) 76... Kf4 77. a6 Rg1 78. a7 Ra1 79. Kg6 Ra6+ 80. Kh5 e2 81. Re8 Kf3 { 0-1 White resigns. } (82. Kf3 81... Rxe2 82... Kxe2 Kg5 83... Rxa7 Kxf5 { And
it's a simple win for Black. }) 0-1

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.06"]
[Round "15"]
[White "Capablanca, Jose Raul"]
[Black "Janowski, Dawid"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "91"]
[ECO "A08"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. Nf3 d5 2. g3 c5 3. Bg2 Nc6 4. O-O e5 { This opening goes by a lot of names:
King's Indian Reversed, King's Indian Attack, etc. It's a hypermodern opening,
in which White allows Black to occupy the center. White will then attack it
from the flanks. } 5. c4 { And here comes that flank attack now! Capa plays the
Reti opening (named for fellow competitor Richard Reti). The idea is to trade
a less-valuable flank pawn for a more valuable center pawn. } 5... d4 { Janowski
doesn't go for it. He blocks the center by advancing the pawn. The game will
become what's known as a "positional game", a war of maneuver rather than of
lightning attacks. } 6. d3 Bd6 7. e3 Nge7 8. exd4 cxd4 { Look at what's happened:
Janowski is the one who's traded a flank pawn for a center pawn! } 9. a3 a5 { Janowski makes White's planned b2-b4 impossible. } 10. Nbd2 (10. b4 axb4 11. axb4 Rxa1 { [%csl Rb1,Rb4][%cal Ra1b1,Rc6b4] }) 10... Ng6 { By overprotecting the e5-pawn, Janowski makes it possible for any
of the three defenders to move away when needed elsewhere. } { [%csl Ge5][%cal Gg6e5,Gc6e5] } 11. Re1 O-O 12. Qc2 Re8 13. b3 h6 14. Rb1 Be6 15. h4 Rc8 { Putting the Rook on the same file as the
White Queen in anticipation of the file opening. } 16. c5 { This move serves two
purposes: it lashes out at the d6-Bishop and clears c4 for occupation by the
Knight. } 16... Bb8 17. Nc4 { This Knight is now quite well placed.
It aids in the attack on the e5-pawn and eyes an outpost on b6. } { [%cal Rc4e5,Yc4b6] } 17... f6 { Necessary,
as the pawn would have been lost had Janowski not defended it again. } 18. Bd2 { [%cal Rd2a5,Rc4a5,Gc6a5,Gd8a5] } 18... Kh8 { It's possible that Janowski plans (for
better or worse) ...Bxc4 and doesn't want to worry about the reply Qxc4 being
a checking move. It's hard to say. } 19. b4 axb4 20. axb4 Na7 { The next stop
for the Knight is b5. } 21. Qc1 { Capa might be contemplating a sacrifice on h6
(Bxh6) which will win two pawns but give up the valuable Bishop pair. } 21... Nb5 { The Knight's intended jump to c3 puts White's Bishop
sacrifice on hold. } { [%cal Yb5c3,Rc3b1] } 22. Nh2 { Simplicity itself -- Capa
uncovers an attack on the b7-pawn. } { [%csl Rb7][%cal Rg2b7] } 22... Qe7 { [%csl Gb7][%cal Ge7b7] } 23. Ra1 { Controlling the open file and taking the sting out of ...Nc3. } { [%cal Ya1a8] } 23... Rc7 24. Ra5 { Notice how Capa maintains the initiative by
making repeated threats. } { [%csl Rb5][%cal Ra5b5] } 24... Bd7 { [%csl Gb5][%cal Gd7b5] } 25. Nb6 { Although Nxd7 will be followed by ...Qxd7 (resulting in a
minor-piece trade), Capa would then end up with the Bishop pair... } { [%csl Rd7][%cal Rb6d7] } 25... Bc6 { ...so Janowski prevents the possibility while still defending the b5-Knight. } 26. Qc4 { Another move, another threat. Capablanca threatens to trade a Rook
for two minor pieces by swapping on b5. } 26... Na7 { Janowski is finally forced to
abandon the square. Go back and take a look at position after White's 18th
move and compare it to the position now. Look how much space White has gained
on the Queenside in the course of eight moves.   The interesting thing about
this position is the sheer number of possibilities that Capa has created for
himself. In addition to the forthcoming Knight fork, he might have played Qa2
(to again threaten to win two minor pieces for a Rook) or even Bh3 (to slice
across the center and control even more squares on the Queenside). } 27. Nd5 { Yet another threat (a Knight fork)... } { [%cal Rd5c7,Rd5e7] } 27... Bxd5 { ...and
Janowski responds in the only way he can. } 28. Qxd5 { Capa has
won the advantage of the Bishop pair at last. } { [%csl Gd2,Gg2] } 28... f5 (28... Nc6 { Black might also have lashed out at the Rook to take the initiative and grab
back some space. } { [%cal Rc6a5] }) 29. Qf3 { [%csl Rf5][%cal Rf3f5] } 29... Qf6 30. h5 { Capa keeps
grinding away at Black, increasing his space and hanging on to the initiative. } 30... Ne7 31. g4 f4 32. Qe4 { [%cal Re4e5,Re1e5,Gf6e5] } 32... Nec6 { A double-edged move, defending the e-pawn and attacking the a5-Rook. } { [%cal Gc6e5,Gf6e5,Rc6a5] } 33. Raa1 Rce7 34. Qg6 Qf8 35. Nf3 Re6 36. Nh4 Rf6 (36... Rxg6 37. Nxg6+ { [%cal Rg6h8] } 37... Kh7 38. Nxf8+ Rxf8 39. Be4+ { White, ahead the Exchange, keeps the
initiative. }) 37. Be4 { Threatening 38.Qh7#. } 37... Qg8 38. Bd5 Ne7 (38... Qxd5 39. Qxe8+ { White goes up the Exchange. } { [%cal Re8h8] }) 39. Qxf6 (39. Bxg8 Rxg6 40. Nxg6+ Kxg8 41. Nxe7+ Rxe7 { Again, White is ahead by the Exchange. }) 39... gxf6 40. Bxg8 Rxg8 { Guess what? White is ahead by the Exchange. } 41. f3 f5 42. Bxf4 { This only looks like a sacrifice, but it's a false one. } 42... Nec6 (42... exf4 { Recapturing would only shatter Black's position. } 43. Rxe7 { [%csl Rb7,Rf5][%cal Re7b7,Rh4f5] }) 43. Ng6+ Kh7 44. Bxe5 Nxe5 45. Rxe5 Bxe5 46. Rxa7 { Janowski sees he has a piece and a pawn en
prise, looks at his present material deficit (two pawns), and packs it in. } { [%csl Rb7,Re5][%cal Rg6e5,Ra7b7] } 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.06"]
[Round "15"]
[White "Alekhine, Alexander"]
[Black "Yates, Frederick"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "63"]
[ECO "E76"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 d6 3. Nc3 g6 4. e4 Bg7 { The game has transposed into a King's
Indian Defense ("transposed" as ...g6 usually comes before ...d6). } 5. f4 { Alekhine launches the dangerous Four Pawns Attack. It's evident that he's out
for blood today! } 5... O-O { This seems a bit passive. } (5... c5 { This is often
played immediately these days to make White decide what he wants to do about
his center. }) 6. Nf3 { White has built up a
monsterous center -- his pieces and pawns control six squares of the fifth
rank! } { [%csl Yb5,Yc5,Yd5,Ye5,Yf5,Yg5] } 6... Nc6 { And with this move, Black sinks himself. The c6-Knight is not only
a target (inviting d4-d5) but also blocks the c7-pawn. Now Black can't
challenge White's center by playing ...c7-c5. } 7. Be2 Nd7 { We see Yates' plan:
to play ...e7-e5, supported by the d6-pawn and the two Knights. } 8. Be3 e5 { Now Yates challenges the White center. } 9. fxe5 { Better to take with the flank
pawn than the center pawn. } 9... dxe5 10. d5 { Now Alekhine strikes at the nice
target on c6. } 10... Ncb8 { And now we see why ...Nc6 just doesn't work in the Four
Pawns Attack. Black needs to play ...c5 to challenge the center. Now Black is
behind in development and White has a nice central pawn wedge. } (10... Nb4 11. Qb3 Na6) 11. c5 a5 { When faced with an attack on the center, counterattack on
the flank. Unfortunately, Yates picks the wrong flank. The moves ...f5 or ...
Nf6 were better. } 12. O-O Na6 { The idea is to double up on the c5-pawn after ..
.Qe7. } 13. Na4 { Alekhine sees through Yates' plan and makes sure the c5-pawn
is covered. } 13... Qe7 14. Rc1 { The pawn is attacked three times and defended three
times. } 14... h6 { Yates prevents White from driving away one of the c-pawns
attackers by Bg5... } 15. Bxa6 { ...so Alekhine just picks off a different
attacker. } 15... Rxa6 16. c6 { Alekhine then sees a material-winning combination.
First he thinks that if the c-pawn didn't have to be defended, it would free
up his pieces. Then he sees what those pieces might do... } 16... bxc6 17. dxc6 Nb8 { The Knight must retreat and no longer exercises control over c5... } 18. Bc5 { ...which allows the Bishop to do this. } { [%cal Rc5f8] } 18... Qe8 19. Bxf8 Bxf8 20. Nc3 { Alekhine leaves the c6-pawn to its fate while he reorganizes his forces. } 20... Rxc6 21. Nd5 Rd6 { Yates' Rook pins the White Knight, but he's left the
c7-pawn undefended. } { [%cal Rd6d1] } 22. Rxc7 Na6 { [%cal Ra6c7] } 23. Rc3 Nb4 24. Nxe5 Ba6 { Yates tries heroically to gain the initiative... } 25. Nc4 { ...but
he can't get over on Alekhine, who masterfully defends while creating a threat
of his own. } { [%cal Rc4d6] } 25... Bxc4 { Yates sees there's no way to win back the Exchange, so he
resigns himself to trading pieces. } (25... Rc6 26. Nxa5 { [%cal Ra5c6,Rc3c6] } 26... Nxd5 { Black really must take the Knight here. Otherwise, after the
c6-Rook is captured, White plays Nf6 forking the Queen and King. }) 26. Rxc4 Qe5 27. Qf3 f5 28. Nxb4 axb4 29. exf5 Rf6 30. Qe4 Bc5+ (30... Qxe4 31. Rxe4 gxf5 { Black's position still stinks (he's down the Exchange and a pawn, and all of
his pawns are isolated) but he can probably hold out a bit longer than if the
Queens were still on the board. }) 31. Kh1 Rxf5 { Yates has the worse position
anyway, but he just blows it with this move. } (31... Qxe4 32. Rxe4 { With the
same idea of prolonging the game by removing the Queens. }) 32. Rxf5 { 1-0 Black resigns. } (32. Rxf5 Qxe4 33. Rxe4 gxf5 34. Rf4 { The pawn can't be defended. White is ahead the
Exchange and two pawns. } { [%csl Rf5][%cal Rf4f5] }) (32. Qxf5 Qxf5 33. Rxf5 gxf5 34. Rxc5 { This is even worse for Black, who is
now down a full Rook and a pawn with more carnage to come. }) 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.06"]
[Round "15"]
[White "Reti, Richard"]
[Black "Marshall, Frank James"]
[Result "0-1"]
[PlyCount "60"]
[ECO "D06"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. Nf3 Nf6 { Both players have opened with a non-commital Knight move. The game
can transpose into a number of different openings. } 2. c4 d5 3. cxd5 Nxd5 4. d4 Bf5 { The opening is a very off-beat Queen Pawn variation. Note that the roles
seem to be reversed here: Reti has established a pawn in the center in
orthodox fashion while Marshall is controlling the center with pieces in the
Hypermodern style. } 5. Nc3 e6 6. Qb3 { Reti appears to be
attacking the loose pawn, but in reality he's baiting a trap. } { [%cal Rb3b7] } 6... Nc6 { Marshall
develops the Knight to allow communication between the Queen and Rook. } 7. e4 { Reti springs the trap, forking the two minor pieces with his pawn. } 7... Nxc3 8. exf5 Nd5 { Marshall has deftly sidestepped and limited the damage. The material
is even. } 9. Bb5 Bb4+ 10. Bd2 Bxd2+ 11. Nxd2 exf5 12. Bxc6+ bxc6 { Material is
flying off the board at a rapid clip. Both players have three pawn islands,
but Marshall appears to have the worst of things due to his doubled and
isolated c-pawns. } 13. O-O O-O { Now that the center has opened up, both
players decide it's best to get their Kings to safety. } 14. Qa4 Rb8 { Amazing! Marshall has two losse pawns under attack, but seems
unconcerned. If you look at the variations, you'll see why. } { [%cal Ra4c6,Ra4a7] } 15. Nb3 { Reti
blocks the b8-Rook's attack on his b2-pawn. Now the two Black pawns really are
in jeopardy. } (15. Qxc6 Rxb2) (15. Qxa7 Rxb2) 15... Rb6 { Marshall guards one
of the pawns while keeping his hold on the half-open b-file. } 16. Qxa7 Qg5 { This puts a bit of pressure on the White King, as it now sits on the same file
as the Black King. } 17. Qa5 c5 { Look at this!
Marshall pushes the pawn to a square where it's attacked no less than three
times! Why? } { [%cal Rd4c5,Rb3c5,Ra5c5] } 18. Qxc5 Nf4 19. g3 Rh6 { Now we see Marshall's point. Pushing the
pawn to c5 was a clearance sacrifice -- he sacrificed the pawn to clear a path
for his Rook to zoom over to the Kingside. Now Reti's King is under a furious
attack. } 20. Qxc7 Ne2+ 21. Kg2 Qg4 { Marshall's idea is to play ...Qh3+,
driving the King to h1 where it will be mated after ...Qxh2. } 22. Rh1 { Reti
guards the weak h2-square. } 22... f4 { Now a pawn
comes into the attack. } 23. f3 Qh3+ 24. Kf2 Rc8 25. Qa5 Nxg3 26. Rhg1 { The
variations to this move will show the strength of Black's attack. } (26. hxg3 Qxg3+ 27. Kf1 (27. Ke2 Qg2+ 28. Kd1 Rxh1+ 29. Qe1 Qc2#) 27... Rxh1+ 28. Ke2 Qg2+ 29. Kd3 Qc2#) 26... Qxh2+ 27. Rg2 Qh4 28. Rc1 Re8 { The idea now is to
force mate in two with ...Re2+ followed by Kg1 Qh1#. } 29. Qb5 Ne4+ { A
discovered double-check! } 30. Kf1 Qh1+ { Reti sees that he's about to lose
piles of material and resigns. } (31. Qh1+ 30... Ke2 31... Qxg2+ Kd3 32... Qxf3+) 0-1

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.06"]
[Round "15"]
[White "Maroczy, Geza"]
[Black "Lasker, Edward"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "155"]
[ECO "D38"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. c4 { The English Opening. White controls a center square with a flank pawn.
However, this opening can easily transpose into a number of different openings. } 1... e6 2. Nf3 d5 3. d4 Nf6 4. Nc3 { The opening has transposed from an English
Opening into a Queen's Gambit. } 4... Nbd7 5. Bg5 { Pinning the Knight to the Queen. } 5... Bb4 { A counter-pin! } 6. cxd5 exd5 7. e3 { Shoring up the d-pawn and letting the
light-squared Bishop get out. } 7... c6 8. Bd3 O-O 9. O-O Re8 10. Qc2 h6 11. Bh4 Nf8 { Lasker plans to drive away the h4-Bishop. } 12. a3 Be7 13. b4 { With just two
pawn moves, Maroczy has taken most of the a3-f8 diagonal away from Black's
Bishop. } 13... g5 { Lasker is still gunning for the h4-Bishop, but he's seriously
weakened his Kingside pawns. } 14. Bg3 Nh5 { [%cal Rh5g3] } 15. Be5 { The Bishop now slices right into the heart of the Black King's weakened
fortress. } { [%cal Ye5h8] } 15... Be6 16. b5 f6 17. Bg3 c5 18. dxc5 Nxg3 19. hxg3 { While the White
King's pawn cover is a bit weaker now, it's nowhere near as bad as that around
the Black King. } 19... Bxc5 20. Ne2 Qe7 21. Qb2 { Maroczy anticipates ...Rc8 and
wastes no time in getting his Queen off of the file. } 21... Nd7 22. Ned4 Ne5 23. Be2 (23. Nxe5 fxe5 { [%cal Re5d4,Rc5d4] } 24. Nxe6 Qxe6 { And Black now has two open
or half-open files to exploit with his Rooks. }) 23... Rac8 { Lasker grabs the
open file (as his opponent anticipated). } 24. Rfd1 Bf7 25. a4 Bb4 26. Rab1 Bc5 27. Qb3 { Although the White Queen and Black Bishop
are on the same diagonal, the Queen is in no real danger -- the d4-Knight
prevents the obstructing pawn from advancing. } { [%csl Rb3,Rc4,Rd5,Re6,Rf7] } 27... Qd7 28. Rbc1 Bf8 29. a5 Rxc1 { By trading Rooks, young Lasker gives up control of the file. } (29... Nc4 { Blocking the file with the Knight (while still controlling the squares behind
it) would have been better. }) 30. Rxc1 Rc8 { Now Lasker tries getting the file
back. } 31. Rc2 Nc4 32. a6 bxa6 33. bxa6 Qd6 34. Ra2 { Maroczy isn't ready to
trade Queens yet, so he moves to prevent ...Qa3. } 34... Ne5 35. Qd1 Qb6 { Now Lasker controls two open files. Can he exploit this
advantage? Can he continue to accumulate other advantages? } 36. Ra1 Rb8 37. Nf5 { [%cal Yf3d4] } 37... Qb3 38. Qf1 { Maroczy is starting to have some problems. His
pieces are becoming bottled up. Even so, there are no real weaknesses for his
opponent to exploit. } (38. Qxb3 Rxb3 { Now ...Rb2, attacking the e2-Bishop, is
a strong likelihood. }) 38... Rb6 39. N3d4 Qb2 40. Nb5 { The Knight lands on a protected square and cuts off the communication between
the Black Rook and Queen. } { [%csl Gb5][%cal Gf1b5] } 40... Bh5 { Lasker sees a way to reconnect his Rook and
Queen. } 41. Bxh5 Rxb5 42. Be2 Rb8 43. Qd1 Qb3 44. Qxb3 Rxb3 { When your
position is cramped, relieve it by exchanging. } 45. Rd1 { [%csl Rd5][%cal Rd1d5] } 45... Rb2 { [%csl Re2][%cal Rb2e2] } 46. Kf1 { [%csl Ge2][%cal Gf1e2] } 46... Nc6 47. Rxd5 Nb4 48. Rd1 Kh7 49. g4 Nc6 50. Rd7+ Kh8 (50... Kg6 51. Bd3 { Cutting down the King's mobility. } { [%cal Yd3g6,Yd7h7] } 51... Ne7 { Black is forced to block the
White Rook's Kingside access, otherwise Nh4 is mate. } 52. Nxe7+ Kf7 53. Nd5+ { White has a winning material advantage. }) 51. Bf3 Rb1+ 52. Ke2 Rb2+ 53. Kd1 Rb1+ 54. Kd2 Rb2+ 55. Kc3 Rb6 { This whole sequence was a bit odd. Kings are
better placed near the center for the endgame. Lasker has just helped his
opponent to achieve this goal. } 56. Be2 Bb4+ { We see now that Lasker was
trying to draw the White King toward the center where it could be attacked. } 57. Kc2 Ba3 58. Rb7 Bc5 59. Nxh6 { Not only is the Black attack not working out,
he's also losing more material. } 59... Ne5 60. Bd3 Nxd3 61. Rxb6 (61. Kxd3 Rxa6 62. Nf5 Ra2 { Black's position is still not great, but he has chances for
counterplay now. }) 61... Ne1+ 62. Kd1 Bxb6 63. Kxe1 Kg7 { An interesting
position. Bishops are better than Knights with pawns on both sides of the
board, but the White a-pawn is on the wrong color square for Black to do
anything about it. White has a Kingside pawn majority, but with a set of
doubled pawns. White has the advantage, but needs to play carefully here. } 64. Nf5+ Kf7 65. Kd2 { The right move. White needs to get his King into the center. } 65... Ke6 66. Kc3 Kd5 67. Kb4 Kc6 68. Ne7+ Kd6 69. Ng8 Bd8 70. Kb5 { The White King
makes threats against the Black a-pawn. This is crucial because the White
a-pawn is just two squares from promotion. } 70... Kd5 71. Nh6 Bb6 72. Nf5 { With the Knight covering the e3-pawn (keeping the Black Bishop from
capturing it), the f2-pawn can now advance. } { [%cal Gf5e3] } 72... Bd8 73. f3 Bb6 { Lasker is reduced to making pointless Bishop moves. His King can't move,
or else the White King penetrates to c6 and can swing around to attack the
a7-pawn. } { [%csl Gc6][%cal Gd5c6] } 74. g3 Bd8 75. e4+ { Black's problems are terminal now. The King must leave c6 unprotected (all of
the squares around c6 are covered by White's forces). } { [%csl Gc5,Gc6,Gd6][%cal Gb5c5,Gb5c6,Gf5d6] } 75... Ke5 76. Kc6 { As
expected, the White King takes over c6. } 76... Bb6 77. Nd6 Bf2 { Desperation. There's
no way the Bishop can capture on g3 without allowing White to promote. However,
White can promote regardless. So what's Lasker's point? He hopes to distract
his opponent into making a mistake. Such tricks rarely work. } 78. Nc8 { The
idea is to play 79.Kb7 and the pawn can't be stopped from promoting (see the
variation). Lasker sees that he's busted and throws in the towel. } (78... Nc8 78. Be3 Kb7 79... Bf2 Nxa7 80... Bxa7 Kxa7 81... Kd6 Kb7 { Once a King has reached the
seventh rank and is covering an advancing pawn, there is no way for an
opposing King to prevent the pawn's promotion. This would still work if the
pawn was on c6 instead of a6. }) 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.06"]
[Round "15"]
[White "Bogoljubow, Efim"]
[Black "Tartakower, Ksawery"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "121"]
[ECO "A90"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 f5 { The Dutch Defense. Black controls the central square e4 with a flank
pawn. } 2. g3 e6 3. Bg2 Nf6 { You can easily see
that Tartakower controls most of the center. } { [%cal Ge6d5,Gf5e4,Gf6e4,Gf6d5] } 4. c4 { Bogoljubow grabs a portion of the center for himself. } { [%cal Gd4e5,Gc4d5] } 4... d5 { This move creates
"tension" in the center. The White c-pawn and the Black d-pawn are both poised
for a capture. The center can now open up at any time, when one player decides
it's advantageous to do so. } 5. Nf3 { [%cal Gc4d5,Gd4e5,Gf3e5,Gf3d4] } 5... c6 6. O-O Bd6 { Tartakower now influences
three of the four central squares. } { [%cal Gc6d5,Gd6e5,Ge6d5,Gf5e4,Gf6e4,Gf6d5] } 7. Nc3 { Bogo exerts influence on all four central squares. } { [%cal Gc4d5,Gd4e5,Gc3d5,Gc3e4,Gf3e5] } 7... Nbd7 8. Qc2 { Nearly every move by both players so far has been part of a fight for the
center. } 8... O-O 9. cxd5 { The tension in the center breaks as Bogo decides to
trade pawns. } 9... cxd5 10. Nb5 { Attacking the hanging
Bishop. } { [%csl Rd6][%cal Rb5d6] } 10... Bb8 11. Bf4 Bxf4 12. gxf4 { Although the f-pawns are doubled, this
actually increases White's central grip. Two pawns now control e5 and the
d7-Knight doesn't have much of a future. } 12... Nb6 { Tartakower decides to improve
the weak position of his Knight. } 13. Nc7 { This starts
a round of threats and defenses. } { [%csl Gc7][%cal Gc2c7] } 13... Rb8 14. Ng5 { [%csl Re6][%cal Rc7e6,Rg5e6] } 14... Qd6 { [%csl Ge6][%cal Gd6e6,Gc8e6] } 15. Qc5 { [%csl Rd6][%cal Rc5d6] } 15... Rd8 { [%csl Gd6][%cal Gd8d6] } 16. Qxd6 { Bogo decides the time is ripe to swap off
the Queens. } 16... Rxd6 { [%csl Ge6][%cal Gc8e6,Gd6e6] } 17. Nb5 { [%csl Rd6][%cal Rb5d6] } 17... Rd8 18. a4 (18. Nxa7 Bd7 { While
it's true that White has won a pawn, the Black Bishop cuts off the Knight's
escape squares. Every square the Knight can move to is covered by the Bishop. } { [%csl Rb5,Rc6,Rc8][%cal Rd7b5,Rd7c8] }) 18... h6 19. Nf3 Bd7 20. Ne5 a6 21. Nc3 Rdc8 22. Rfc1 { Making sure that Black
doesn't get undisputed control of the c-file once the c3-Knight moves away. } 22... Bxa4 23. Nxa4 Rxc1+ 24. Rxc1 Nxa4 25. b3 Nb6 26. Rc7 { The Rook comes to the
seventh rank, where it will be strong. Black must now keep the pawns on b7 and
g7 guarded, which ties up some of his army. This makes up for the pawn White
has sacrificed. } 26... Nc8 27. Nd3 Nd6 28. e3 b6 29. Rc6 { While it's true that the
Rook has abandoned the seventh rank, it still attacks the b6-pawn and the
d6-Knight. Black must keep the pawn guarded and find a way to defend the
threatened Knight. } 29... Nfe8 { [%csl Gd6][%cal Ge8d6] } 30. Bf3 { The idea is to capture on e8. Then if ...Rxe8, White replies Rxd6. If ...Nxe8,
then Rxe6 and the d5-pawn is isolated. } { [%cal Yf3h5,Rh5e8] } 30... Kf7 31. Bh5+ Ke7 { The King covers
everything. Both the d6-Knight and e6-pawn are now adequately defended. } 32. h4 Nf6 33. Be2 Nd7 34. Ne5 Nxe5 35. fxe5 Nb5 36. Bxb5 axb5 { Now Black's in some
trouble. The b-pawns are both doubled and isolated. } 37. Rc7+ Kf8 { Forced,
otherwise 38.Rxg7. } 38. b4 { Bogo deftly keeps the b-pawns from advancing. } 38... Ra8 { Tartakower decides to voluntarily give back the pawn in order to get some
play for his Rook along the a-file. } 39. Rc6 { [%csl Rb6,Re6][%cal Rc6b6,Rc6e6] } 39... Kf7 { If Tartakower leaves the e-pawn undefended, White will capture it for
sure. This will leave both b-pawns plus the d-pawn isolated -- a recipe for
certain disaster! } 40. Rxb6 f4 { [%tqu "En","What is White's best move here?",
"The proper move is a forcing move that keeps the initiative.","Remember that
a forcing move is a check or capture.","b6b7","Bogo plays an in-between move.
Instead of automatically recapturing on f4, he checks first to harass the
Black King. Remember that an opponent is forced to respond to check, so the
recapture on f4 isn't going away -- it'll still be there next move.",10,"e3f4",
"This move is all right (White regains the pawn), but White has a better move
that harasses Black and keeps the initiative.",5] } 41. Rb7+ { Bogo plays an
in-between move. Instead of automatically recapturing on f4, he checks first
to harass the Black King. } 41... Kf8 42. exf4 Ra1+ 43. Kg2 Rd1 44. Rxb5 Rxd4 45. Kg3 h5 46. Rb7 g6 47. b5 (47. Rb6 { [%cal Rb6g6] } 47... Kf7 { [%cal Gf7e6,Gf7g6] }) 47... Rb4 48. b6 Rb3+ 49. f3 { Now here's an interesting situation. Black's Rook is
poised to capture the advancing b-pawn. White's Rook is ahead of the pawn,
blocking its advance. How can White get the Rook out of the pawn's way? } 49... Rb4 50. Rb8+ Ke7 51. b7 Kd7 52. Rg8 { The fact is that White can't get the Rook out
of the pawn's way without losing the pawn. The trick for White is to give up
the pawn at the right moment, one at which White can likewise win material. } 52... Rxb7 53. Rg7+ Kc6 54. Rxg6 Kc5 55. Rxe6 d4 { Tartakower's only hope is to be
the first to promote a pawn. } 56. f5 Rd7 57. Kf2 Kd5 58. Re8 Ra7 59. f6 Rc7 60. Re7 Rc8 61. f7 { 1-0 Black resigns. } (61... f7 61. Rf8 e6 62... Ke5 Re8 63... Kf6 Rxf8 64... Kxe6 { Now White is
a Rook up. Guarding the f7-pawn is no longer important. The procedure now
would be to wipe out the Black pawns and either promote a surviving White pawn
or just mate the Black King with the White King and Rook. }) 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.08"]
[Round "16"]
[White "Reti, Richard"]
[Black "Lasker, Emanuel"]
[Result "0-1"]
[PlyCount "90"]
[ECO "A12"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. Nf3 { Reti opens the game in hypermodern style by developing from the flank. } 1... d5 2. c4 { Immediately challenging the center. } 2... c6 3. b3 { Reti is just
supporting the c-pawn before continuing his development. } 3... Bf5 4. g3 Nf6 5. Bg2 Nbd7 6. Bb2 { Notice how each move by both players is one that exerts some
measure of control over the center squares. The White Bishops cut
scissors-like across the center. } 6... e6 7. O-O Bd6 8. d3 O-O 9. Nbd2 e5 { Lasker's
idea is to play ...Re8 (to back up the e-pawn) and then advance the two center
pawns to sweep White's forces away. } 10. cxd5 { Reti plans to open the c-file.
The idea is to counter Black's central advance with an attack on the flank. } 10... cxd5 11. Rc1 { As expected, Reti grabs the open c-file with his Rook. } 11... Qe7 { Rather than play ...Re8, Lasker backs the e-pawn up with the Queen in order to
connect his Rooks. This will help him oppose White on the c-file. } 12. Rc2 { Reti starts a nice little maneuver to double his Rooks on the c-file. He'll
slide his Queen to the side (to get it out of the way) and then place his
f1-Rook on c1. } 12... a5 13. a4 { Before moving the Queen, Reti stops the Black
a-pawn's advance. } 13... h6 14. Qa1 Rfe8 { With this move, it appears that the focus
of Lasker's play will be down the e-file. } 15. Rfc1 { Reti will concentrate on
the open c-file. } 15... Bh7 { Lasker wants to make sure the Bishop can cover e4 while
being removed from a pawn threat after an exchange of pawns on the square. } 16. Nf1 { Reti doesn't have anything terribly constructive here; all of his pieces
are pretty much where he wants them. So he makes a harmless waiting move to
see what his opponent will do next. } 16... Nc5 { Lasker increases his control over e4. There are now three pieces and a pawn
directly controlling the square, plus the Queen and e8-Rook are ready to add
their influence once the e5-pawn advances. } { [%cal Gc5e4,Gd5e4,Gf6e4,Gh7e4] } 17. Rxc5 { Reti sacrifices the
Exchange in order to draw away the d6-Bishop. } 17... Bxc5 { Notice
that the Bishop no longer guards the e5-pawn and that White has two pieces
attacking it. } { [%cal Rf3e5,Rb2e5] } 18. Nxe5 { The e5-pawn looked adequately defended (by two pieces)
but this was just an illusion. Both of the defending pieces are more valuable
than the attacking ones. Reti has solved the problem posed by the threat of
the e5-pawn's advance -- but was the sacrifice of the Exchange too high a
price to pay? } 18... Rac8 19. Ne3 { [%cal Re3d5] } 19... Qe6 { [%cal Ge6d5] } 20. h3 { This is
one of those completely inexplicable moves. Most players of even average
strength would have played 20.d4 to reinforce the e5-Knight and kick away
Black's c5-Bishop. I have absolutely no clue as to what Reti was attempting
here. Even Dr. Lasker looks baffled. } (20. d4) 20... Bd6 21. Rxc8 Rxc8 22. Nf3 { This move is even more baffling than the advance of the h-pawn (see the
variation). } (22. N5g4 { After the game, Alekhine said that this was the point
of the advance of the h-pawn, demonstrating a variation by which White wins a
second pawn. (But if this was the plan, why did Reti switch to 22.Nf3 here?) } 22... Nxg4 23. hxg4 Bf8 24. Bxd5 { The e3-Knight supports
the whole position. } { [%cal Ge3d5,Rd5e6,Ge3g4] } 24... Qd7 25. Bf3 { White has won back the pawn, everything he
has is defended, and now Black must try to find or create another weakness.
The game is even once again. (Analysis by Alekhine) }) 22... Be7 23. Nd4 Qd7 24. Kh2 h5 25. Qh1 { Reti targets Black's d-pawn for
destruction. } { [%cal Re3d5,Rg2d5,Rh1d5] } 25... h4 { Dr. Lasker's plan is to weaken White's Kingside pawns to
expose the King. } 26. Nxd5 hxg3+ { Lasker plays a nice in-between move to
further his own plans. There's no hurry to take the White Knight on d5 because
this in-between move is a check. White is forced to respond, so the d5-Knight
isn't going anywhere. } 27. fxg3 Nxd5 28. Bxd5 { Now that the smoke has cleared,
let's take a look at the position. White has a Rook for a Knight and two pawns.
He has an extra pawn island to defend. His Queen could be a bit better-placed,
as could the b2-Bishop (though this Bishop will improve once the White Knight
moves). The position looks even. } 28... Bf6 { This makes things tough on White. The
d4-Knight is now pinned. } 29. Bxb7 Rc5 30. Ba6 { It looks like the Bishop might
be headed for c4, to block off the file for the Black Rook. But this isn't the
case -- Reti intends to play Qb7 to try to start trading some pieces. } 30... Bg6 31. Qb7 Qd8 { Lasker doesn't want to trade. He knows that each trade will cause
White's pawn superiority to become more of an advantage. After a trade here,
he'd have an even position at best. He has another idea. } (31... Qxb7 32. Bxb7 Bxd4 33. Bxd4 Rc2 34. Bb6 Rxe2+ 35. Kg1 Bxd3 36. Bxa5 Bc2) 32. b4 Rc7 33. Qb6 Rd7 { Reti was hoping for a different move, one
that would allow Qxa5. But taking the pawn now loses the d5-Knight. } { [%cal Rd8d4,Rf6d4,Gb6d4,Gb2d4] } 34. Qxd8+ Rxd8 { Lasker had no way to prevent the trade. } 35. e3 axb4 { This pawn is going
to prove troublesome for White. } 36. Kg2 { Moving the light-squared Bishop to
b5 where it and a pawn could support each other would have been a better move. } (36. Bb5 Rc8 { Black would have a very slight edge. }) 36... Bxd4 37. exd4 { Despite the fact that he has more pawns on the board, Reti's at a disadvantage.
His d-pawns are hideously weak and one of them will probably fall soon.
Although in theory the piece trades should have favored White's pawn majority,
Lasker's creative play in causing weaknesses has turned things around. It is
now Black who has the edge. } 37... Bf5 { The Bishop is
heading for b3 to strike at the passed a-pawn. } { [%cal Yf5e6,Ye6b3,Rb3a4] } 38. Bb7 Be6 39. Kf3 Bb3 40. Bc6 { [%cal Gc6a4] } 40... Rd6 { [%cal Rd6c6,Yd6f6] } 41. Bb5 Rf6+ 42. Ke3 { The King moves
in to guard the doubled pawns. } 42... Re6+ 43. Kf4 Re2 44. Bc1 Rc2 45. Be3 Bd5 { Now we see what Black's maneuvering was all about. He's now
controlling two of the three squares the b4-pawn must traverse on its way to
promotion. The promotion square can't be guarded by a White piece (the Bishop
is shut out from ever defending b1). Reti sees that the b-pawn is now
unstoppable and resigns. } { [%cal Gd5b3,Gc2b2] } 0-1

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.08"]
[Round "16"]
[White "Capablanca, Jose Raul"]
[Black "Marshall, Frank James"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[PlyCount "92"]
[ECO "D38"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 d5 2. Nf3 e6 3. c4 Nf6 4. Nc3 Bb4 { This seems to be a pretty nice
vriation of the Queen's Gambit for Black. He's developed all of his Kingside
pieces (so he can castle quickly) and has pinned the c3-Knight. } 5. Bg5 c5 6. Bxf6 { Modern theory suggests a number of moves here; chief among them is 6.
dxc4. } 6... Qxf6 7. cxd5 exd5 { Capa has traded a flank pawn for a center pawn, but
there is still some tension in the center between the c- and d-pawns. } 8. e3 { Played to be able to reply to ...cxd4 with exd4. } (8. Rc1 { This is another
possibility (and a common move in the Queen's Gambit). }) 8... Nc6 9. Bb5 O-O 10. O-O { The pins on both c-Knights are now relieved. } 10... Bxc3 11. bxc3 Bg4 12. Rb1 { Now we see why Capa waited before moving this Rook. He suspected that a
trade on c3 would open the b-file. } 12... Rac8 13. dxc5 { Capa starts a small
combination to win a pawn. } 13... Qxc3 14. Qxd5 Rfd8 { Marshall plays the natural
move. By kicking the Queen, Black grabs the initiative. } 15. Qe4 Bxf3 16. Qxf3 Qxc5 { Marshall wins back the lost pawn. } 17. Bxc6 bxc6 { Now it's time to take
a look at the position. White has a 4-3 Kingside pawn majority. Black has two
Queenside pawns to White's one, but both Black pawns are isolated and will be
a bit hard to defend. White has the advantage. } 18. Rb7 { [%csl Rf7][%cal Rb7f7] } 18... Rf8 { [%csl Gf7][%cal Gf8f7] } 19. Qf4 Qa5 { [%csl Ra2][%cal Ra5a2] } 20. a4 { [%csl Ga4][%cal Gf4a4] } 20... c5 21. Qc4 { Each Queen simultaneously attacks and
defends a pawn. Note, though, that the c5-pawn is overprotected (by the Queen
and Rook). White offsets this by having a better placed Rook on b7. } 21... Rb8 22. Rb5 (22. Rxb8 Rxb8 { Black gets the open
file and an even game. } { [%csl Yb1,Yb2,Yb3,Yb4,Yb5,Yb6,Yb7,Yb8] }) (22. Rfb1 Rxb7 23. Rxb7 Qe1+ 24. Qf1 Qxf1+ 25. Kxf1 a5 { Bad for Black, as White will win the c-pawn by playing Rc7. } 26. Rc7 { [%csl Rc5][%cal Rc7c5] }) 22... Rxb5 23. axb5 (23. Qxb5 Qxb5 24. axb5 Rc8 { The game
is even. The c-pawn is passed (backed up by the Rook) and White won't be able
to force the b-pawn through. }) 23... Rb8 24. Rd1 { [%csl Yd1,Yd2,Yd3,Yd4,Yd5,Yd6,Yd7,Yd8] } (24. Qxc5 a6 { Giving Black a slight edge. } (24... Rxb5 25. Qc8+ Qd8 26. Qxd8#)) (24. Rb1 a6 25. Qxc5 axb5 26. Kf1 { Preventing an ugly
back-rank mate. But how will White now deal with the problem of the b-pawn? }) 24... h6 { Giving the King an escape square to avoid back-rank surprises. } 25. Qxc5 a6 26. Qa7 { [%csl Rb8][%cal Ra7b8] } 26... Rd8 27. Rf1 Qxb5 { Marshall has dealt
very well with his Queenside problems. He now has a passed pawn, which gives
White something to think about. } 28. g3 { Capa creates an escape hatch for his
King. } 28... Qc6 { Marshall grabs the newly-opened
diagonal while still keeping an eye on his a-pawn. } { [%csl Yc6,Yd5,Ye4,Yf3,Yg2,Yh1] } 29. Ra1 { [%csl Ra6][%cal Ra7a6,Ra1a6] } 29... Rd6 { [%csl Ga6][%cal Gd6a6] } 30. h4 { Little by little, Capa
advances his Kingside pawns to try to exploit his pawn advantage and create a
passed pawn. } 30... Rf6 31. Qb8+ Kh7 32. Qb1+ g6 33. h5 { Trying to take advantage of
the advanced state of the Black Kingside pawns. } 33... Qf3 { A nice dual-purpose move -- the Queen attacks both the h5-pawn
and the f2-pawn (in conjunction with the Rook). } { [%csl Rf2,Rh5][%cal Rf3h5,Rf3f2] } 34. hxg6+ fxg6 35. Qc2 { [%csl Gf2][%cal Gc2f2,Gg1f2] } 35... h5 36. Ra4 Rc6 37. Rc4 Rd6 (37... Rxc4 38. Qxc4 { [%csl Ra6][%cal Rc4a6] } 38... Qb7) 38. Rd4 Rxd4 39. exd4 { Black's outside passed
a-pawn gives him an advantage, but it will be tough to turn it into a win. } 39... a5 40. Kf1 Qd5 (40... Qh1+ { This actually helps White by driving the King toward
the center. } 41. Ke2) 41. Qc7+ Kg8 (41... Kh6 42. Qf4+ g5 43. Qf6+ Kh7) 42. Qb6 { The players again reach a point at which the Queens simultaneously attack
and defend a pawn. } 42... Kf7 43. Qa7+ Kf6 44. Qb8 Qh1+ 45. Ke2 Qe4+ 46. Kf1 Qh1+ { ½-½ The game is a draw. } (46... Kf5 { This might have kept the game going, but Black's advantage (if any)
is still pretty minimal. While he might be able to grind out a win here, it
would require a long tough fight to do so; chances are good that the game
would end up drawn regardless. }) 1/2-1/2

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.08"]
[Round "16"]
[White "Alekhine, Alexander"]
[Black "Lasker, Edward"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[PlyCount "105"]
[ECO "E76"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. c4 Nf6 2. d4 g6 3. Nc3 { Note that even though Alekhine opened with the
c-pawn, the opening has transposed back to a d-pawn opening (the King's Indian
Defense). This transposition from a c-pawn to a d-pawn opening is pretty
common. } 3... Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. f4 { The Four Pawns Attack. This is White's most
aggressive option in the King's Indian Defense and the most dangerous (for
Black!). } 5... O-O 6. Nf3 { Take a look at White's
space advantage! } { [%csl Yb5,Yc5,Yd5,Ye5,Yf5,Yg5] } 6... e5 { Black has to break the center before the White pawns
become overwhelming. } 7. fxe5 dxe5 8. d5 { Now the center is blocked. } 8... Nbd7 { [%csl Ge5][%cal Gd7e5] } 9. Bd3 Nc5 10. Bc2 a5 11. O-O Qd6 12. Qe1 Bd7 13. Qh4 { Note the way both players are maneuvering for position. This is a
characteristic of closed positions (ones in which the center is blocked by
pawns) -- there are no immediate tactics, so both players try to get their
pieces to good squares. } 13... Rae8 14. Kh1 { Alekhine later explained this seemingly
mysterious move in his notes in the tournament book (see the variation). } (14. Bg5 Nh5 15. g4 Nf4 16. Bxf4 exf4 17. e5 Qb6! { Now White has to lose a tempo
by moving the King to h1 (since the Black Queen is on the same diagonal).
Alekhine didn't want to lose the tempo at a critical point in the game, so he
decided to spend the tempo to move the King at move 14. (Variation by Alekhine)
. }) 14... h5 { Lasker cuts off the Queen's communication with h6, making Bh6
impossible for White. } 15. b3 Nh7 16. a3 f5 { Since the center is blocked, both
players must concentrate on the flanks. Black makes his play on the Kingside,
while White plays on the Queenside. } 17. b4 Na6 18. c5 Qf6 19. Qxf6 Nxf6 { Note how quickly the pawns have expanded White's space on the Queenside. } 20. c6 bxc6 21. dxc6 Bxc6 22. b5 { Now we see the point of Alekhine's pawn
sacrifice. But lasker has a trick up his sleeve. } 22... Nxe4 23. Nxe4 (23. Bxe4 fxe4 24. Nd2 e3 25. Rxf8+ (25. Rg1 { Modern day computer analysis prefers to avoid
the exchange of Rooks. } 25... e4 26. Ndb1 Bxb5 27. Bxe3 Bd3) 25... Rxf8 26. Nf3 e4 { Variation by Alekhine. }) 23... fxe4 24. bxc6 exf3 25. Be4 fxg2+ 26. Kxg2 Rxf1 27. Kxf1 Kh7 { The game very quickly became a tactical melee once the center
opened up. Now we see the importance of getting your pieces positioned on good
squares during the early maneuvering phase. } 28. Be3 Bf8 29. Rd1 Bxa3 30. Rd5 Bb4 31. Rd7+ Kh8 32. Bg5 (32. Bxg6 { Alekhine claimed later that this would
lead to a draw, but I'm not convinced. } 32... Re6 33. Be4 { Blockading the e5-pawn
and defending the pawn on c6. } (33. Bxh5 Rxc6 34. h4 { To provide an anchor for
Bg5. }) 33... a4 34. Rd8+ Kg7 35. Ra8 Nc5 36. Bxc5 Rf6+ 37. Kg2 Bxc5 38. Rxa4 Rf2+ 39. Kg3 { There's still a long way to go in this game, and Black still has
an extra pawn. }) 32... Rf8+ 33. Ke2 a4 (33... Bc5 { [%cal Yf8f2,Rf2e2] } 34. Bxg6 Rf2+ 35. Kd1 a4 36. Bh6 Bf8 37. Rd8 Kg8 { White's attack turns the tables,
giving White a slight advantage. }) 34. Bxg6 Nc5 35. Re7 (35. Rxc7 Ne6 36. Rb7 Nxg5 37. Rxb4) 35... a3 36. Rxc7 Ne6 37. Bh6 Kg8 38. Bc1 a2 39. Ra7 Nd4+ 40. Kd3 Rf3+ 41. Ke4 Rf1 42. Bb2 Nxc6 43. Rxa2 Rf4+ { Black now has a chance to go
after White's King on the wide-open board. } 44. Ke3 Bc5+ 45. Ke2 Rf2+ (45... Nd4+ 46. Kd3 h4) 46. Ke1 Rxh2 47. Be4 Nd4 48. Bxd4 Bb4+ 49. Kf1 Rxa2 50. Bd5+ Kf8 51. Bxa2 exd4 52. Bb1 Kg7 53. Kg2 { Black can easily protect his d4-pawn by
using the Bishop, but won't be able to promote it (the White light-squared
Bishop is the same color as the promotion square). He won't be able to force
the h-pawn past the White King either (plus that promotion square, too, is
guarded by the White Bishop). Despite being ahead a pawn, Lasker can't force a
win. } 1/2-1/2

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.08"]
[Round "16"]
[White "Bogoljubow, Efim"]
[Black "Yates, Frederick"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "179"]
[ECO "D65"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Be7 (4... Bb4 { This pin is also possible,
after which White could play a2-a3 and "put the question" to the Bishop. }) 5. Bg5 O-O 6. e3 { Note the way Bogo developed the Bishop before playing e2-e3.
The Bishop is now outside the pawn chain and isn't obstructed by the e-pawn. } 6... Nbd7 7. Rc1 { Bogo anticipates opening the c-file with cxd5; the Rook is now in
position to command the file after the pawn exchange. } 7... c6 8. Qc2 { A good spot
for the Queen -- it commands the b1-h7 diagonal and will dominate the c-file
once it opens. } 8... a6 { Yates prepares to play ...b5. } 9. cxd5 exd5 10. Bd3 { Bogo develops his Bishop to a fine unobstructed diagonal. Take note of his
preparation. He's not just flying into an attack with two or three pieces --
instead he develops his forces to useful squares before launching an offensive. } 10... Re8 { Yates is also making good positional moves. The Rook goes to the
half-open e-file to be able to control it once the dark-squared Bishop clears
out of the way. } 11. O-O Nf8 { The Knight is maneuvering to g6. Yates sees that
White's pieces are pointing toward the Kingside, so he prepares to meet the
attack. } 12. a3 { Grabbing a bit of space. Now b4 is denied to the Black Bishop. } 12... Ng6 13. Ne5 { The White Knight plants itself on an outpost in Black's
territory. Note that the Knight can't be dislodged by a pawn until Black moves
his f6-Knight... } 13... Ng4 { ...which he does, uncovering an attack on the g5-Bishop
from the Bishop on e7.. } 14. Bxe7 Qxe7 { This is probably the best way to
recapture, as it creates a battery on the e-file. } 15. Nxg6 { [%cal Rg6e7] } 15... hxg6 { Now the pawns around the Black King have been weakened. } 16. h3 Nh6 17. Ne2 { Bogo shifts the Knight over to the Kingside. } 17... Qh4 18. Qc5 { Both players are
trying to work their Queens into the game. } 18... g5 19. Qd6 g4 20. g3 (20. hxg4 Bxg4 { Instant attack! Black has three pieces in the vicinity of the White King. } 21. Qf4 { Pinning the Bishop to the Queen. Black's best option now is to just bail
out by retreating the Queen to d8 or e7. }) 20... Qe7 (20... Qxh3 { This is what
Yates had originally planned... } 21. Nf4 { ...but we see now that his Queen
gets trapped. }) 21. Qxe7 Rxe7 { Why did Bogoljubow trade Queens? Take a look at
the position:   1) Black no longer has an attack on the Kingside. With the
Queen gone, Black's firepower is greatly reduced.   2) Black's pieces are very
uncoordinated. The e7-Rook is misplaced and the Knight on h6 has limited range
on the edge of the board. He also has doubled g-pawns.   3) White's pieces are
better coordinated: his Rooks are connected, his Bishop commands the b1-h7
diagonal (leading to Black's King), his Knight is free to move to f4 (where
it's supported by two pawns and controls vital squares on Black's half of the
board), and none of his pawns are doubled.  With an overall better position,
it was to Bogo's benefit to trade the Queens and reduce Black's chances of
creating counterplay. } 22. h4 { Bogo eliminates any threat to the h3-pawn by
simply advancing it. } 22... Bd7 { [%csl Ye8][%cal Ya8e8] } 23. Nf4 g6 24. b4 { Bogo's
done all he can do on the Kingside for now, so he decides to start expanding
on the Queenside. } 24... Bf5 25. a4 (25. Bxf5 Nxf5 { This would only waste a tempo to
help Black improve the position of his Knight. }) 25... Bxd3 26. Nxd3 a5 (26... Nf5 27. b5 axb5 28. axb5 cxb5 29. Rc5 { [%cal Rc5b5,Rc5d5] }) 27. b5 (27. bxa5 Rxa5 28. Ra1 { And now a Rook has to be tied to the defense of the a-pawn. }) 27... cxb5 28. axb5 { While it's true that the b5-pawn is isolated, it also
blocks the advance of the Black b7-pawn, making the Black pawn weak due to its
backward position. } 28... Nf5 29. Ne5 { [%csl Rg4][%cal Re5g4] } 29... Kg7 30. Rc5 { Black now has two pawns in jeopardy. } { [%csl Rd5,Rg4][%cal Rc5d5,Re5g4] } 30... f6 31. Nxg4 Rd7 32. Rfc1 { Doubling the Rooks on the open file -- a standard strategic
theme. } 32... Kf7 33. Rc7 Rd8 34. b6 (34. Rxd7+ Rxd7 { Black's plan now would be to bring his King over to the Queenside in
support of his Rook, then try to trade Rooks. The Black King would then be
well-placed to capture the b5-pawn and support an advance of the connected a-
and b-pawns. This is why White declines the initial trade of a pair of Rooks. } { [%csl Gb7,Gd5][%cal Gd7b7] }) 34... Ke6 { Yates is doing a good job of centralizing his King and improving
his position, however slowly. } 35. R7c5 { [%csl Ra5][%cal Rc5a5] } 35... Ra8 { [%csl Ga5][%cal Ga8a5] } 36. Rc7 Rxc7 37. bxc7 Nd6 { The Knight
keeps the promotion square covered. } { [%csl Gc8][%cal Gd6c8] } 38. f3 a4 39. e4 a3 40. Nxf6 a2 (40... Kxf6 41. e5+ Ke6 42. exd6 Kd7 { Black is all tied up, trying to keep the c-pawn
from promoting. White would then march his Kingside pawns forward, break
through with another passed pawn, and win the game. } (42... Kxd6 43. c8=Q Rxc8 44. Rxc8 { Followed by Ra8 and the capture of the Black a-pawn. })) 41. Ra1 { Forced, otherwise the pawn promotes and White goes down a Rook. } 41... Kxf6 42. e5+ Ke6 43. exd6 Kd7 (43... Kxd6 44. c8=Q Rxc8 45. Rxa2 { White has the advantage
-- he has a one pawn material advantage plus three connected pawns, while all
of Black's pawns are isolated. }) 44. Kf2 { Bogo finally starts getting his King
centralized. } 44... b5 { Red alert! If the b-pawn manages to join up with its brother
on the a-file, White's in serious trouble! } 45. Ke1 b4 46. Kd2 { The King races
to the Queenside to break up the Black pawn duo. } 46... Kxd6 47. c8=Q { 47...Kxc7 was
next, so Bogo gives up the pawn to lure the Rook away from the a-file. } 47... Rxc8 48. Rxa2 { Now the b4-pawn is considerably less dangerous. } 48... Rc6 { Blocking Ra6+. } 49. Ra7 { By coming here, the White Rook prevents the Black Rook from defending
the b-pawn by ...Rb6. } 49... Ke6 50. Rb7 Rc3 { [%csl Rf3][%cal Rc3f3] } 51. Ke2 { [%csl Gf3][%cal Ge2f3] } 51... b3 { [%csl Gb3][%cal Gc3b3] } 52. g4 Kf6 53. Rb6+ Kf7 54. g5 Kg7 55. Rb5 Rc2+ 56. Kd3 Rh2 57. Rxb3 Rxh4 { Yates is following a standard
bit of advice here: when you're behind by a pawn, trade pawns. It's harder for
your opponent to win with just a single pawn on the board than it is for him
to win with multiple pawns. } 58. Rb7+ Kg8 59. Rd7 Rf4 60. Ke3 Rf5 61. f4 Kf8 62. Kf3 Kg8 63. Kg4 Kf8 64. Ra7 Kg8 65. Re7 Rf8 66. Re5 Rd8 67. Re6 Kf7 68. Rf6+ Kg7 69. f5 gxf5+ 70. Kxf5 { This sequence seems to be a contradiction to
the note to Black's 57th move. The reason why Bogo traded off a set of pawns
here is because in doing so he's created a passed g-pawn. This gives Black
something to think about -- he has to prevent this pawn from promoting.
Meanwhile his own pawn is blocked by the White d5-pawn so he can't create
similar promotion threats. } 70... Rd7 71. Ke6 Ra7 72. Ke5 Ra1 73. Rd6 (73. Kxd5 Ra5+ 74. Kd6 Rxg5) 73... Re1+ 74. Kf5 Rf1+ 75. Ke6 Kg6 76. Rxd5 Rd1 77. Kd6 Kh5 78. Kc5 Rc1+ 79. Kb4 Rb1+ 80. Kc3 Rc1+ 81. Kd2 Rg1 82. Re5 Rg3 83. Re3 Rxg5 84. Kd3 { Present-day computer analysis shows that there's no way for Black to win
(assuming perfect play for both sides). Of course, there's always the chance
for a draw (given an error by White), so Yates struggles on. } 84... Ra5 85. Ke4 Kg6 86. Rf3 Kg7 87. d5 Ra7 88. Ke5 Re7+ 89. Kd6 Ra7 90. Ke6 { Yates finally admits
the hopelessness of his position -- it certainly doesn't look like Bogoljubow
is going to make a mistake. The Englishman finally throws in the towel and
resigns. } (90... Ke6 90. Ra2 d6 91... Re2+ Kd7 92... Rd2 Rf4 93... Kh6 Rf6+ 94... Kg5 Ke7 95... Rd3 (95... Re2+ Re6 96... Rh2 d7 97... Kg4 d8=Q 98... Rh7+ Kf6 99... Rh6+ Kg7 100... Rh2 Qd5 101... Kf4 Qe5+ 102... Kf3 Qxh2) 96. Re6 96... Rh3 d7 97... Kg4 d8=Q 98... Rh7+ Kf6 99... Rh6+ Kg7 100... Rh3 Re4+ 101... Kf3 Qh4 102... Rxh4 Rxh4) 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.08"]
[Round "16"]
[White "Tartakower, Ksawery"]
[Black "Janowski, Dawid"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "63"]
[ECO "A09"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. Nf3 d5 2. c4 { As we've come to expect, Tartakower plays in the hypermodern
style, controlling the center from the flanks instead of occupying it with
pawns. } 2... d4 { This odd-looking move serves a number of purposes: it prevents
d2-d4, inhibits e2-e4 (because of ...dxe3 ), and prevents Nc3. } 3. b4 { Tartakower decides to give the center to his opponent. White will now expand
on the Queenside. } (3. g3 { This has also been played successfully.
The idea is to fianchetto the Kingside Bishop and control the center from afar. } { [%cal Yf1g2] }) 3... a5 { You would think that Janowski would continue with his central
strategy. Instead he plays a defensive move to counteract White's Queenside
intentions. } 4. b5 c5 5. e3 g6 (5... dxe3 6. fxe3 { Black has given up his
central pawn majority. }) 6. exd4 cxd4 7. d3 { White has a Queenside pawn
majority, so this is the side from which he should launch his attack. Black
has a central pawn majority, so his attack will probably come straight up the
middle. } 7... Bg7 8. g3 Nd7 9. Bg2 { The fianchettoed Bishop strikes at the
Queenside -- where White will ideally launch his attack. } 9... Nc5 10. Ba3 { [%csl Rc5][%cal Ra3c5] } 10... Qb6 { [%csl Gc5][%cal Gb6c5] } 11. O-O Bf5 { [%csl Rd3][%cal Rf5d3,Rc5d3] } 12. Nh4 { [%csl Rf5][%cal Rh4f5] } 12... Bc8 (12... Bxd3 13. Bxc5 Qxc5 14. Qxd3 { Black would be down a piece for a pawn. }) 13. Qe2 Bf6 14. Nd2 Bxh4 15. gxh4 Ne6 16. Qe5 { [%csl Rh8][%cal Re5h8] } 16... f6 17. Qg3 { The basic problem
here is that Janowski has weakened the pawn structure on both sides of the
board, leaving his King nowhere to run. } 17... Nh6 18. Be4 { Note that Tartakower has
switched his emphasis from the Queenisde to the Kingside in order to take
advantage of the new opportunities there. } 18... Nf5 { [%csl Rg3][%cal Rf5g3] } 19. Bxf5 gxf5 { Note that the White Queen and King are on the same open file. This
is extremely dangerous. Black could play ...Kf8 followed by ...Rg8 and win the
White Queen. } 20. Qf3 { Though there was no immediate danger to the Queen,
Tartakower removes it from the open file to prevent any unpleasant surprises
from happening later. } 20... Nf8 21. Qh5+ Ng6 22. Rae1 e5 { Janowski is plugging the
holes but his King is all alone in the center. This can't be good... } 23. f4 { There are two Black units "controlling" f4 -- but this is just an illusion.
Both the e5-pawn and g6-Knight are pinned. } 23... Kd8 { This eliminates both pins,
but now White can easily break through. } 24. fxe5 Rg8 { The
idea is ...Nf4, checking the King and winning the Queen. } { [%cal Yg6f4,Rg8g1] } (24... fxe5 25. Qg5+ Kc7 26. h5 Rg8 27. Kh1 Bd7 (27... h6 28. Qxh6) 28. hxg6 Rxg6 29. Qe7) 25. Qxh7 { [%csl Rg8][%cal Rh7g8] } 25... Be6 { [%csl Gg8][%cal Ge6g8] } 26. Kh1 Nxe5 { Keep your eye on this four-square block. } { [%csl Ye5,Ye6,Yf5,Yf6] } 27. Qe7+ { Tartakower nicely forks the King and f6-pawn, but the
pawn will not fall quite yet. } { [%csl Rd8,Rf6][%cal Ga3e7,Re7d8,Re7f6] } 27... Kc8 28. Bc5 { Wow!
Janowski's in a world of trouble now. It's easy to see the effect that opening
up his own Kingside has had. The Black Queen is the only piece defending the
e6-Bishop and it has no retreat square from which it can continue to protect
it. } { [%csl Rb6][%cal Rc5b6,Ge7c5] } 28... Qd8 { Desperation. Janowski would like nothing better than a Queen swap,
but that's just not going to happen. } 29. Qxe6+ Kb8 (29... Qd7 30. Qxg8+) 30. Rxe5 { Tartakower sacrifices a Rook to open lines for his attack. } 30... fxe5 31. Qxe5+ Kc8 32. Qxf5+ { 1-0 Black resigns. } (32... Qxf5+ 32. Qd7 Qxd7+ 33... Kxd7 Rf7+ 34... Ke6 Rxb7 { White has a huge material advantage and the Black King is caught in the
board's center. }) 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.09"]
[Round "17"]
[White "Yates, Frederick"]
[Black "Lasker, Emanuel"]
[Result "0-1"]
[PlyCount "106"]
[ECO "B45"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 c5 { The Sicilian Defense. Black's idea is to discourage White from
setting up a classic center with pawns on d4 and e4. } 2. Nf3 e6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 { White has given up a central pawn for a less-valuab;e flank pawn, but he
has a centrally-placed Knight as compensation. } 4... Nf6 { [%csl Re4][%cal Rf6e4] } 5. Nc3 { [%csl Ge4][%cal Gc3e4] } 5... Nc6 6. Nxc6 bxc6 { The central White Knight is
missing, but White still has a foothold in the center -- namely the e4-pawn. } 7. e5 Nd5 8. Ne4 (8. Nxd5 cxd5 { Black has an ugly pawn structure, but White is
left with a pawn that's too far advanced to effectively support. }) 8... f5 9. exf6 Nxf6 10. Nd6+ Bxd6 11. Qxd6 Qa5+ 12. Bd2 Qd5 13. Qa3 { Notice that
everything from move 8 to this point has been completely tactical. The
position is pretty even. The White Queen is preventing the Black King from
castling Kingside, but White has no real way to strike at the centralized
Black King. } 13... Qe4+ { Lasker keeps the initiative with a check. } 14. Be3 a5 15. O-O-O Qb4 16. Qxb4 axb4 17. Bc4 d5 { More tactics -- Lasker keeps the
initiative by creating threat after threat. } 18. Bb3 Nd7 19. Rhe1 O-O { Now
it's time for the Black King to hightail it to the board's edge. Notice that
this normally defensve move carries with it a possible threat to the f2-pawn,
chaining the e3-Bishop to its defense. } 20. f3 { Yates sees to it that the
f-pawn is defended. Now his dark-squared Bishop is free to roam at will. } 20... Ra6 21. Bd2 { [%csl Rb4][%cal Rd2b4] } 21... c5 22. c4 bxc3 23. Bxc3 { Dr. Lasker has to be
a bit uncomfortable here. Both White Rooks are centralized on half-open files
while White's Bishops are gunning for the Black King's castled position. } 23... Nb6 { Clearing d7 for the Bishop's use. } 24. a3 Bd7 25. Be5 Rc8 { The Rook keeps the
White Bishop off of c7. } 26. Rd2 Bb5 { The Bishop finally gets developed to a
decent diagonal. } 27. f4 Bc4 28. Bc2 (28. Bxc4 Nxc4 { [%csl Rb2,Rd2][%cal Rc4d2,Rb6b2,Rc4b2] }) 28... d4 29. f5 Nd7 30. fxe6 Bxe6 31. Bg3 { [%csl Re6][%cal Re1e6] } 31... Nf8 { [%csl Ge6][%cal Gf8e6] } 32. Re5 Rb6 33. Bh4 Bf7 34. Bg3 Bg6 35. Re7 (35. Bxg6 Nxg6 { Black has the initiative due to
the attack on the e5-Rook, threatening to win the exchange. } { [%csl Re5][%cal Rg6e5] }) 35... Re6 36. Rxe6 Nxe6 37. Bxg6 { Since the Knight has been lured away from f8, exchanging
Bishops now guarantees a set of doubled and isolated g-pawns. } 37... hxg6 { Black is
stuck with doubled, isolated pawns. On the other hand, he has a protected
passed d-pawn. White also has a protected passed pawn on a3. Black's is more
advantageously placed than White's, since it's farther advanced. } 38. Be5 Rf8 39. b3 Rf1+ 40. Kc2 Kf7 { Lasker's King starts heading for the center. } 41. Bg3 Ke7 42. a4 { Yates' Queenside pawn pair is inching forward. } 42... Kd7 43. Kd3 Rc1 44. Rc2 Rb1 (44... Rxc2 45. Kxc2 Kc6 { Both sides are pretty much stuck. So it's
not in Black's best interest to trade off the Rooks if he wants to keep the
game alive. }) 45. Kc4 Kc6 46. Re2 { [%csl Re6][%cal Re2e6] } 46... Rc1+ { Instead of
defending the Knight, Lasker responds with a check. } (46... Kd7 { If Black
retreats the King, White uses the opposition to bring his King into the attack. } 47. Kd5 Nd8 48. Bd6 (48. Kxc5 Rxb3 49. Kxd4 Rb4+ 50. Ke3 Rxa4) 48... Nc6 49. Bxc5 d3 50. Rd2 Rxb3 51. Bf8 { [%csl Rg7][%cal Rf8g7] }) 47. Kd3 { "Priority of
check" (when you're in check you must respond to it) means that Yates has no
time to capture the Knight. } 47... Rc3+ 48. Kd2 Kd7 { Now the King can protect the
Knight; it's no longer required to help defend the c5-pawn. } 49. b4 cxb4 50. Kd1 b3 51. a5 Nc5 52. a6 Na4 (52... Nxa6 53. Rd2 Nc5 { [%csl Gb3][%cal Gc3b3] } 54. Rxd4+ Ke6 { Black still has an advantage in this line, but Lasker's
way is clearer. }) 53. Re5 (53. a7 b2 { The White King can't
cross the c-file, so White has no choice but to give up the Rook. } { [%csl Yc1,Yc2,Yc3] } 54. Rxb2 Nxb2+ 55. Ke1 { Black wins with the extra piece. }) 53... b2 { 0-1 White resigns. } 0-1

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.09"]
[Round "17"]
[White "Bogoljubow, Efim"]
[Black "Alekhine, Alexander"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[PlyCount "170"]
[ECO "C12"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. Bg5 Bb4 5. Ne2 dxe4 { Since the c3-Knight is
pinned, Alekhine decides to go ahead and release the tension in the center. } 6. a3 Be7 7. Bxf6 { Bogo removes the e4-pawn's defender. } 7... gxf6 8. Nxe4 { Although Black's f-pawns are doubled, this really isn't a
weakness yet. The f6-pawn is well-defended and helps Black control the center. } { [%csl Ge5][%cal Gf6e5] } 8... b6 { [%cal Yc8b7,Rb7e4] } 9. N2c3 { [%csl Ge4][%cal Gc3e4] } 9... f5 { Alekhine decides
to kick the well-placed central Knight. } 10. Ng3 Bb7 { The Bishop is
strongly-placed, controlling the long a8-h1 diagonal. } 11. Bb5+ c6 { Although
this blocks the Bishop's long diagonal, it's really Black's only choice (see
the variations). } (11... Nd7 { At first glance, this seems to be a reasonable
move... } 12. d5 { ...but it allows White to
advance the d-pawn. } { [%cal Rb7d5,Re6d5,Gc3d5,Gd1d5] } 12... exd5 13. Nxd5 c6 14. Nxe7 Qxe7+ 15. Be2 { White now has the better of it, since the doubled f-pawns have now become a
weakness. } { [%csl Yf5,Yf7] }) (11... Bc6 12. Bxc6+ Nxc6 13. d5 { This is no better -- Black has
given up his great fianchettoed Bishop and White can advance the d-pawn (just
as we saw in the other variation). }) 12. Bc4 Nd7 { It's OK to play the Knight
here now. White can't advance the d-pawn because of the two pawns defending d5,
so blocking the Queen's control of d5 is not a problem. } 13. Qe2 Nf6 14. O-O-O Qd6 15. Rhe1 Nd5 16. Nxd5 cxd5 { Now the b7-Bishop really does run right into a
brick wall. } 17. Bb5+ Kd8 18. Kb1 { This is pretty standard positioning for the
King in Queenside castled positions. The King guards the a-pawn. } 18... h5 { Preventing White's planned Qh5. Meanwhile, Alekhine plans his
own Kingside offensive. } { [%csl Gh5][%cal Gh8h5] } 19. Nxh5 Qxh2 { [%cal Rh2h5,Rh8h5,Ge2h5] } 20. Ng3 Qh4 21. Rh1 Qf6 22. Nh5 { Bogo has a lot of reasonable moves to choose from. This
one is less forcing than the other moves, but it does grab the initiative by
attacking the Queen. } (22. Rxh8+ Qxh8 { Although the Queen is in the corner,
it's not badly placed. It controls both a long diagonal and an open file.
White can't do anything to harass the Queen here -- Rh1 loses a pawn to ...
Qxd4. }) (22. Qe5 Qxe5 23. dxe5 Kc7 { The position is even. White
will have a hard time coming up with a plan in this position. His Bishop can't
get at the f7-pawn and his own g2-pawn can easily become a target. } { [%cal Ga8h8] }) (22. Ba6 Kc7 { This simple-looking move actually accomplishes a lot: it defends the
b7-Bishop while connecting the Rooks. } (22... Rxh1 23. Rxh1 Bxa6 24. Qxa6 Qxd4 25. c3 Qf6 26. Qb7 Rc8 27. Qxa7 { White is on the attack. })) 22... Qg5 23. f4 Qg6 24. Rd3 { Lifting the Rook to the third rank, where it will
swing over to join the Kingside hostilities. } { [%cal Gd3h3] } 24... a6 25. Rg3 { Bogo meets the
threat against his Bishop with a stronger threat against the Black Queen. } 25... Rxh5! { Now the fireworks begin! Alekhine had to calculate a very complex tree of
tactics to be able to come up with this move -- see the variations over the
next several moves. } (25... Qh6 { Playable, but weaker than Black's actual move. }) 26. Qxh5! (26. Rxg6 Rxh1+ 27. Ka2 fxg6 28. Qxe6 axb5 29. Qxb6+ Kc8 (29... Ke8 30. Qxb5+ Kf7 31. Qxb7) 30. Qe6+ Kb8 31. Qxe7) 26... Qxh5 (26... Qxg3 27. Qxf7 axb5 28. Qxe6 Qg7) 27. Rxh5 axb5 { Now that the smoke has cleared, we can
take a look at the position. Alekhine has two Bishops for a Rook, which tends
to be an advantage (the Bishops can team up to cover a lot of territory), but
his pawn structure is a mess. Overall, Black is a bit better, but White will
have plenty of chances in the moves ahead. } 28. Rh7 Kd7 29. Rxf7 Rf8 30. Rh7 { It is definitely not in White's best interests to swap off a pair of Rooks, as
two Bishops working as a team can dominate a lone Rook. } 30... Re8 { The game will
now become one of threats, counterthreats, and maneuvers. } 31. Rg6 Bc8 32. c3 { Bogo links up his pawns to strengthen the d4-pawn. } { [%csl Ya3,Yb2,Yc3,Yd4] } 32... Kc7 33. Kc2 { Now that the endgame is here, it's time to start centralizing the
King. } 33... Bd7 34. Rgg7 { [%csl Re7][%cal Rh7e7,Ge8e7] } 34... Kd6 { [%cal Ge8e7,Gd6e7] } 35. Kd2 Bc6 36. Rg6 { The idea is to snatch another pawn after
Rh5 and Rxf5 (the e6-pawn is pinned and can't recapture). } { [%cal Yh7h5,Rh5f5] } 36... Rf8 { Alekhine provides another defender for the f5-pawn, nipping White's plan in
the bud. } { [%cal Gf8f5] } 37. Ke3 Bf6 38. Ra7 (38. Rgh6 { This accomplishes nothing really
(except the strengthen control of the h-file), but is still better than what
was played. It was a bad idea to separate the White Rooks. }) 38... Bd7 { Good move! Alekhine has now disconnected the White Rooks by blocking the open
rank. The a7-Rook will have a hard time rejoining its brother. } 39. Kf3 Bd8 40. Rg7 { [%cal Rg7d7,Ra7d7] } 40... Bc7 { [%cal Rg7d7,Gd6d7] } 41. Rh7 Rd8 42. g3 Bb8 43. Rb7 Bc7 { Both players are probing for weaknesses by making easily-countered
threats. Sometimes it's a good idea to just make simple threats, racking up a
few moves toward making time control, and saving your clock time for when you
really need it. } 44. Ra7 { Bogo wants to see if Black will play ...Bb8 again
and settle for a draw. } 44... Kc6 { Alekhine is content to sit on his good defensive
position and wait for his opponent to make a mistake. } 45. a4 { Bogo needs to
clear the a-file so that he can break his Rook out. } 45... bxa4 46. Rxa4 b5 47. Ra1 { At last, freedom for the Rook! Now it can still control the
a-file or else swing over to the Kingside and rejoin its twin. } { [%cal Ga1a8,Ga1h1] } 47... b4 48. Ke3 Bb6 49. Ra4 bxc3 50. bxc3 { It's to Alekhine's advantage to clear out some pawns so
that his Bishop pair can fly into action. } 50... Rg8 51. Kf2 Rc8 { Now we return to a
battle of maneuver. } 52. Ra3 Kd6 53. Rh1 Rb8 54. Raa1 Bb5 { [%cal Gb5f1] } 55. Ke3 Rg8 56. Rhg1 { Little by little, Alekhine is using his freedom of movement
to force his opponent into an increasingly defensive position. } 56... Kc6 57. Kd2 Bc4 58. Rae1 Kd6 59. Ra1 Bc7 60. Ke3 Kc6 61. Kd2 Bd8 { Alekhine's plan is to play ..
.e5, allowing his Bishop and King to infiltrate White's position (see the
variations). } 62. Rae1 { Bogo fights back by making repeated
initiative-grabbing threats. } 62... Rg6 63. Ra1 Be7 64. Rae1 { Now, however, Bogo is out of threats, so he just
starts playing waiting moves to see what his opponent will do. } 64... Bd6 65. Kc2 Kd7 66. Ra1 Bc7 67. Kd2 Kc6 68. Rae1 Bd6 69. Kc2 Kc7 70. Kd2 Kd7 71. Ra1 Kc6 72. Rae1 Kc7 73. Ra1 Rg8 74. Rae1 Kd7 75. Ra1 Bc7 76. Rab1 Ra8 77. Ra1 Rh8 78. Rh1 Rg8 { Alekhine doesn't want to trade off a pair of Rooks. He wants a Rook
around to be able to make threats. } 79. Rhg1 Bd8 80. Rae1 Be7 81. Rb1 Kc7 82. Rbe1 Bd6 83. Ra1 Kc6 84. Rae1 Kc7 85. Ra1 Kd7 { It's clear to both players that
Bogo's not going to allow Alekhine to break the center, so the players call a
truce. } 1/2-1/2

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.09"]
[Round "17"]
[White "Marshall, Frank James"]
[Black "Lasker, Edward"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[PlyCount "92"]
[ECO "D00"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 g6 { Well, we know where the dark-squared Bishop is going! } 3. Nc3 d5 4. Bf4 { This makes good sense. Marshall wants to play e2-e3 but doesn't
want to trap the Bishop behind the pawn chain, so the Bishop comes out first. } 4... Bg7 5. e3 Bf5 6. h3 { Taking g4 away from Black's minor pieces. } 6... O-O 7. Bd3 Ne4 8. Bxe4 Bxe4 9. O-O (9. Nxe4 dxe4 10. Nd2 { Marshall might have tried this
instead. }) 9... Nd7? { This just loses a pawn. } (9... Bf5 { Retreating the
Bishop was certainly better. }) 10. Nd2 { Black won't
be able to cover everything. } { [%cal Rd2e4,Rc3e4,Rc3d5] } 10... Bf5 (10... c6 11. Ndxe4 dxe4 12. Nxe4 { Black
loses a pawn either way. }) 11. Nxd5 e5 12. dxe5 Nxe5 13. e4 Be6 14. Bxe5 Bxe5 15. Nf3 Bg7 16. c3 { After the tactical smoke clears, we see Marshall a pawn up
with a space advantage, but Lasker has the Bishop pair with an open center.
White has the advantage. } 16... Qd6 17. c4 { Marshall misses the chance to nullify
the Bishop pair (see the variation). } (17. Ng5 Bxd5 18. Qxd5 Qxd5 19. exd5 { Black no longer has the Bishop pair and White has a 4-3 Queenside pawn
majority. Things are looking pretty good for White. }) 17... Rad8 18. Qe2 c6 19. e5 { Marshall meets his opponent's threat with a stronger threat. } (19. Ne3 { This was better, as it avoids the central exchange of pieces. }) 19... Bxe5 20. Qxe5 cxd5 21. Qxd6 Rxd6 22. c5 { Marshall has not only given back the pawn, but
he's also given away much of his advantage. Black now has a passed pawn and
White no longer controls much of the board. } 22... Ra6 23. a4 { Otherwise the
d-pawn's advance reveals a double attack on the a-pawn (from the Bishop and
Rook). } 23... Bd7 { Now there's a double attack on the
a-pawn anyway. } { [%cal Ra6a4,Rd7a4,Ga1a4] } 24. Rfd1 { Marshall decides to give up the a-pawn (he sees he's
going to get it back with no problems). } 24... Rxa4 25. Rxa4 Bxa4 26. Ra1 (26. Rxd5 { White could also have grabbed the passed pawn. } 26... Bc6 27. Rd3 Bxf3 28. Rxf3 { The players could easily agree to a draw here. }) 26... Bc6 27. Rxa7 Re8 { [%cal Ye8e2,Re2b2] } 28. b4 Re6 29. b5 Bxb5 30. Rxb7 { Marshall has now created a passed pawn of his own and attacks the Bishop as
well. } { [%csl Rb5][%cal Rb7b5] } 30... Ba4 31. Rb8+ Kg7 32. Rc8 { This makes no sense. The worst place for a
Rook is in front of an advancing pawn. } (32. Rd8 { [%csl Rd5][%cal Rd8d5] } 32... Bb3 33. Nd4 { [%cal Rd4e6,Rd4b3] } 33... Re1+ 34. Kh2 Bc4 35. c6 Re7 36. Rd7 Re8 37. c7 Rc8 38. Ne6+ { The pinned pawn can't capture! } { [%cal Rd7g7] } 38... Kf6 39. Rd8 Ba6 40. Nc5 Bb7 41. Nxb7 Rxc7) 32... Bd1 33. Ng5 Re1+ 34. Kh2 h6 35. c6 Ba4 (35... hxg5 36. c7 Bg4 37. hxg4 Rc1 { Now we see why putting a Rook in front of an advancing
pawn is a bad idea. The White Rook can't move without causing the loss of the
c-pawn. }) 36. Nf3 Rc1 { [%cal Rc1c6,Ra4c6,Gc8c6] } 37. Ra8 (37. Ne5 { [%cal Rc1c6,Gc8c6,Ge5c6] } 37... Kf6 38. f4 d4 { White can twist and turn, coming up with
clever temporary solutions all day long, but he can't change the fact that his
own Rook prevents the c-pawn from promoting. }) 37... Bxc6 38. Rc8 { The Bishop is now pinned. } { [%cal Rc8c1] } 38... Rc4 39. Ne5 Bb7 40. Rxc4 dxc4 41. Nxc4 { And now the
players have hit an even position. Knights are a bit better than Bishops with
pawns on one side of the board, but with a symmetrical pawn structure it's not
enough of an advantage to gain a victory. } 41... Kf6 42. f4 Be4 43. Ne5 h5 44. g4 hxg4 45. hxg4 Ba8 46. Kg3 g5 { The players realize that there's no way for
either side to force a win, so they call it a draw. } 1/2-1/2

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.09"]
[Round "17"]
[White "Tartakower, Ksawery"]
[Black "Reti, Richard"]
[Result "0-1"]
[PlyCount "94"]
[ECO "C77"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 { The Ruy Lopez. } 3... a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. d3 { This seems a
bit passive. The usual move here is 0-0, while the aggressive 5.d4 is also
very playable. But that's the beauty of the Ruy: it allows both players to
choose from a variety of plans and options. } 5... d6 { Reti could also have stepped
things right up by advancing the d-pawn two squares (5...d5). } 6. c3 { This provides a safe haven for the Bishop, as well as supports a future
d-pawn advance to d4. } { [%cal Ya4c2] } 6... Be7 7. Nbd2 O-O 8. Nf1 { This is a pretty common Ruy Lopez maneuver. The Knight
works its way over to the Kingside, where it can leap to either e3 (on its way
to f5 or d5) or g3 (headed to f5). } { [%csl Yd5,Yf5][%cal Yf1e3,Ye3d5,Yf1g3,Yg3f5] } 8... b5 9. Bc2 d5 10. Bd2 Re8 11. Ng3 { As
anticipated, the Knight has moved to g3 (see the note to White's 8th move). } 11... Bf8 12. O-O dxe4 13. dxe4 Be6 { The Bishop develops to a
square where it overlooks two diagonals. The next stop is c5 to threaten the
f1-Rook. Another idea would be to pin the f3-Knight immediately by playing ...
Bg4. } { [%cal Ye6c4,Rc4f1] } 14. b3 { Tartakower heads Black off at the pass. The intended ...Bc5 is
now impossible. } 14... Bg4 15. Qe2 { Notice how Tartakower
has overprotected the e-pawn. Now any of the three protecting pieces is free
to move and act elsewhere. } { [%cal Gg3e4,Ge2e4,Gc2e4] } 15... Nh5 { [%csl Yf4][%cal Yh5f4] } 16. Rad1 Qf6 17. h3 { Not good. Tartakower actually forces the creation of a hole on f4 which will
be occupied by the Black Knight. } (17. Nxh5 Bxh5) 17... Bxf3 18. Qxf3 Qxf3 19. gxf3 Nf4 { The Knight drops itself into the "hole" on f4 (a hole is a square
that can't be controlled by enemy pawns). White does have the possibility of
Bxf4, but he'd be trading his good Bishop for the Knight. } 20. Kh2 b4 21. Rfe1 Rad8 (21... bxc3 22. Bxc3 Bc5 { [%csl Rf2][%cal Rc5f2] } 23. Rd2 Rad8 24. Rxd8 Rxd8 25. Rf1 { Black has great development and piece placement. This was better
than what was actually played. }) 22. Ne2 Rxd2 { Not the best move Reti could
have played. He's now given the open d-file to his opponent. } (22... Nxe2 23. Rxe2 bxc3 24. Bxc3 Nd4 25. Bxd4 exd4 { Black has a passed pawn that has
advanced past the center line -- something for White to keep an eye on! }) 23. Rxd2 bxc3 24. Nxc3 Bb4 { The Knight is pinned, but this isn't critical. } 25. Re3 Nd4 26. a3 { Tartakower sacrifices a pawn to create attacking chances... } 26... Bxa3 27. Nd5 { ...but he misses his opponent's reply: } { [%csl Rc7][%cal Rd5c7] } (27. Na2 { This would have kept the Bishop off of c1. } { [%csl Gc1][%cal Ga2c1] }) 27... Bc1 { Reti must now lose the exchange... } { [%csl Rd2,Re3][%cal Rc1e3] } 28. Rd1 Bxe3 29. fxe3 { ...or must he after all? } 29... Nxd5 30. exd4 Ne3 31. Rc1 Nxc2 32. Rxc2 exd4 33. Rxc7 Rd8 { Reti has a dangerous passed pawn backed up by a Rook.
It's hard to say whether he saw all of this when the fireworks started on the
Queenside, but he certainly got the best of things. } 34. Kg3 d3 35. Rc1 d2 36. Rd1 g5 37. Kf2 Kg7 38. b4 Kf6 39. Ke2 Ke5 40. Ke3 { Notice how both Kings move
toward the center in the endgame. } 40... Rd7 41. h4 gxh4 42. f4+ Ke6 43. Kf3 h3 44. Kg3 Rd3+ 45. Kh2 Kf6 46. Kh1 Kg6 47. Kh2 Kh5 { Tartakower gives it up. His King
can't cross the third rank to save the White pawns. Reti can snap them all up
and will have no trouble advancing a pawn to promotion. } 0-1

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.09"]
[Round "17"]
[White "Janowski, Dawid"]
[Black "Maroczy, Geza"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "57"]
[ECO "D15"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 d5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. c4 c6 4. Nc3 { The players have transposed into the Slav
Defense, a branch of the Queen's Gambit, which bears some similarity to
positions arising from the Caro-Kann Defense. } 4... dxc4 5. Bg5 { Janowski gambits a
pawn for some Kingside pressure. } (5. e3 b5 6. a4 { Undermining the b-pawn and
making it possible for White to win the pawn back sooner or later. }) 5... b5 6. e3 Nd5 7. Be2 (7. Nxd5 cxd5 { Trading Knights on d5 would be giving Black just
what he wants -- his pawns are now undoubled. }) 7... Nd7 8. O-O Qc7 { A good
center-controlling move. Maroczy is looking to prevent Ne5 by his opponent. } 9. Qd2 { White has completed his development by connecting his Rooks. But Black
still has the better game because White's forces are so cramped. } 9... N7f6 { White wants to be able to play e3-e4 to get some more room and expand in the
center. The Black Knight keeps an eye on the square in question, as well as
releases the light-squared Bishop.. } 10. Qc2 { Janowski, too, realizes the
importance of e4. } 10... e6 11. e4 { Janowski finally gets to push the pawn. He has
two pieces protecting the square, while Black has but one assaulting it. } 11... Nxc3 12. bxc3 Bb7 { Surprising! Now Maroczy will be able to put some good pressure
on e4 once the c6-pawn advances. } 13. Nd2 Be7 14. f4 h6 15. Bh4 (15. Bxf6 Bxf6 16. e5 { was better. }) 15... Nxe4 16. Qxe4 (16. Bxe7 Nxd2 17. Qxd2 Qxe7 { White would still find himself two pawns down and closer to the endgame, which
is probably why Janowski chose the move he made. }) 16... Bxh4 17. f5 Bg5 18. fxe6 O-O 19. Nf3 f5 { Notice how quickly the game has switched to a battle of
positioning to a battle of tactics. } 20. Qc2 Be3+ 21. Kh1 Rae8 22. Ne5 c5 { Suddenly the Bishop springs to life along the long diagonal. } { [%cal Yb7g2] } (22... Rxe6 23. Rxf5 Rxf5 24. Qxf5 Rf6 25. Qe4 Bd2 26. Qc2 Bf4 { And Black is
enjoying a huge advantage in space and mobility. }) 23. Nd7 Be4 24. Qb2 cxd4 (24... Qc6 { Putting more pressure on the g2-pawn would have been much better. }) 25. cxd4 a6 { A quiet move that shores up the b-pawn. But the f8-Rook is still
in jeopardy... } 26. Nxf8 Rxf8 27. a4 Rb8 (27... Qb6 { [%cal Rb6d4,Re3d4,Gb2d4] }) 28. axb5 axb5 29. e7 { And in this position (in which Black is enjoying a
pretty good advantage), Janowski trimphantly points to his opponent's clock.
The flag has fallen! Maroczy is out of time and the win goes to Janowski! } 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.10"]
[Round "18"]
[White "Lasker, Emanuel"]
[Black "Alekhine, Alexander"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[PlyCount "60"]
[ECO "A48"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. Nf3 Nf6 { Both players have opened with good, though non-committal, moves.
The Knights exert control over the center, but there's still some question as
to whether the center pawns will advance. Neither player has tipped his hand. } 2. d4 { Dr. Lasker declares his intentions of occupying the center. } 2... g6 { Alekhine intends to control the center from a distance. The only
reason for this pawn move is to allow the fianchetto of the Kingside Bishop. } { [%cal Yf8g7] } 3. Bf4 { Lasker wants to support the d-pawn by playing e2-e3, but doesn't want
to trap the Queenside Bishop behind the pawn chain. So the Bishop comes out
first. } 3... c5 { Alekhine continues with the hypermodern strategy of striking at
the center from the flanks. He offers to trade a flank pawn for a more
valuable center pawn. } 4. c3 b6 { Alekhine's hypermodern strategy
continues -- he's now planning to fianchetto both Bishops. } { [%cal Yc8b7] } 5. Nbd2 cxd4 6. cxd4 Bb7 7. e3 { Lasker finally advances the e-pawn (an idea he'd planned back
at his third move). } 7... Bg7 { Alekhine responds by completing his plan of
fianchettoing both Bishops. The Bishops are strong, as they both sit on long
diagonals. However, the b7-Bishop is the better of the two since its brother
runs smack up against the d4-pawn. } 8. Bd3 O-O 9. O-O { King safety is a must.
Both Kings have retreated to the flanks. } 9... Nc6 10. h3 { I'm not sure why Lasker
played this, as the Black Knight wasn't really threatening to come to g4.
Controlling the open c-file by Rc1 would certainly have been more productive. } 10... d6 11. Qe2 { White's Rooks are connected; his development is complete. The
Queen on e2 serves some useful functions. It backs up the Bishop on the a6-f1
diagonal, plus allows Qxf3 (instead of gxf3) in case Black decides to trade
his b7-Bishop for the White Knight. } 11... a6 { Alekhine
suspected that White wanted to force a trade of Bishops by playing Ba6
(eliminating the very well-posted b7-Bishop). Now that move is impossible as
both the a8-Rook and b7-Bishop control a6. } { [%csl Ga6][%cal Ga8a6,Gb7a6] } 12. Rfd1 { Lasker centralizes the Rook. Rfc1 would not be as good because it
traps the a1-Rook behind the a- and b-pawns. } 12... Qb8 { It seems strange to place
the Queen on the same diagonal as White's f4-Bishop, but the Queen isn't
taking up a permanent post. It's headed for a7 where it can support Queenside
operations. } 13. Bh2 Qa7 14. a3 Rac8 15. Rac1 { Both players jockey for control
of the open c-file. } 15... b5 16. b4 Nd7 { Alekhine is switching his attention to the
Queenside. It's not going to be easy for White to counter -- it's harder for
him to switch his pieces to that side of the board. } 17. Nb3 { This move seems odd, but has a purpose. Lasker intends to play Rc2
followed by Rdc1 to double his Rooks on the open c-file. Getting the Knight
out of the way allows the Queen to support the c2-Rook. } { [%csl Gc2][%cal Ge2c2] } 17... Nb6 { [%cal Yb6a4] } 18. Rc2 Na4 19. Rdc1 Qa8 { The Queen adds its support to the
Knight. } { [%csl Gc6][%cal Ga8c6] } 20. h4 Na7 21. h5 { Now this is interesting. Black seems to be stymied
on the Queenside; since his pieces are concentrated on the a- through c-files,
Lasker suddenly switches his attention to the Kingside. } 21... Be4 22. Ne1 { To make
Nxd3 possible. Otherwise, after ...Bxd3 Qxd3, Black can play ...gxh5, ...Kh8, .
..Rg8 and suddenly have a strong attack on the White King. } 22... Bxd3 23. Nxd3 Rxc2 24. Rxc2 Rc8 25. hxg6 hxg6 { White has managed to open the h-file but will have
a tough time getting his heavy pieces over there to exploit it. } 26. Na5 { aiming for
27. Rxc8+ Qxc8 28. d5  After some
preparation, White has the chance to set up a Knight outpost on c6. } { [%csl Yc6][%cal Ya5c6,Gd4d5,Gd5c6] } 26... Nb6 27. Ne1 { Now the Knight is backing up to overprotect the
c2-Rook. This frees the Queen for other duties. } { [%csl Gc2][%cal Ge1c2,Ge2c2] } 27... Qe4 { The c2-Rook has suddenly become the center of attention. It's attacked
twice and defended twice. } { [%cal Rc8c2,Re4c2,Ge2c2] } 28. Bg3 { Lasker makes a waiting move to see if
Alekhine will reveal his plans. } 28... Rxc2 { Alekhine does just that, deciding to
wipe the material off of the board. } 29. Qxc2 Qxc2 30. Nxc2 Kf8 { The material
is even, the pawn structure is balanced, and neither player has been able to
outplay the other up to this point. The combatants decide to call it a day and
agree to split the point. } 1/2-1/2

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.10"]
[Round "18"]
[White "Lasker, Edward"]
[Black "Capablanca, Jose Raul"]
[Result "0-1"]
[PlyCount "120"]
[ECO "B06"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 g6 { Capa surprises us here by adopting the hypermodern
approach. He's preparing to fianchetto the Bishop. } { [%cal Yf8g7] } 2. Nf3 Bg7 3. Bc4 { Taking
aim at the weak f7-square. Lasker might have played d2-d4 here with no problem,
as the d4-pawn would have been protected by the f3-Knight and the Queen. } 3... c5 { Capa has made d2-d4 a bit less attractive for White. } { [%cal Rc5d4,Rg7d4] } 4. O-O Nc6 { Now d2-d4 is right out of the question. } { [%cal Rg7d4,Rc5d4,Rc6d4] } 5. c3 { Lasker is preparing to play d2-d4, but his units are already starting to get
in each other's way. By advancing the pawn to c3, he deprives his Queenside
Knight of its best developing square. } 5... Qb6 { The Queen puts
pressure on two squares: indirectly on d4 and directly on b2 (forcing the
c1-Bishop to stay at home to defend the b2-pawn). } { [%cal Rb6b2,Rb6d4] } 6. Re1 d6 7. Bb3 { Blocking
the Black Queen's attack on b2. } 7... Nf6 8. d4 { Lasker finally advances the pawn.
But it's taken him a lot of work to be able to do this. Why didn't he just do
this back at move three? } 8... cxd4 9. cxd4 O-O 10. h3 { The pawn advance weakens
the castled King's position, but prevents the annoying pin by ...Bg4. } 10... Nh5 { The pawn needs another defender... } { [%cal Rg7d4,Rc6d4,Rb6d4,Gf3d4,Gd1d4] } 11. Be3 { ...so Lasker brings up the Bishop. Notice, though, that it's
only move 11 and White is already being forced to play a defensive game. } { [%cal Ge3d4] } 11... Na5 12. Nc3 Nxb3 13. axb3 { The a-Rook now has an open
file, but at the cost of weak doubled b-pawns. } { [%csl Rb2,Rb3][%cal Ya1a6] } 13... Qd8 { Capa saw Na4 (attacking
the Queen) was on the way, so he decides to reposition his Queen before the
threat is made. } 14. e5 f5 15. Bg5 d5 { Both sides are slowly increasing the
amount of space they control. } 16. Qc1 Be6 17. Ne2 Rc8 18. Qd2 { And Capa has
won the open c-file. } 18... a6 19. Qb4 { [%csl Rb7][%cal Rb4b7] } 19... Qd7 { [%cal Gd7b7] } 20. Qxe7 Qxe7 21. Bxe7 { [%cal Re7f8] } 21... Rfe8 { [%cal Re8e7] } 22. Bb4 (22. Bc5 { Closing off the file to the c8-Rook would certainly have been better. }) 22... Rc2 { A bold move by Capablanca... } { [%csl Rb2][%cal Rc2b2] } 23. Bc3 { ...but
perhaps a bit too bold. The Black Rook is now trapped behind enemy lines. } 23... Bh6 { [%cal Yh6c1] } 24. g3 Bd7 { The Bishop begins a maneuver that will increase the
amount of space it controls. } 25. Rad1 Bb5 { [%cal Rb5e2,Rc2e2,Ge1e2] } 26. Nc1 Ng7 27. Nh2 Ne6 { Notice that Capa has changed blockading pieces -- first the
Bishop was the piece blockading the e5-pawn. Now the Knight becomes the
blockader. } 28. Nd3 Bxd3 29. Rxd3 Bc1 30. Nf1 Ng5 { Capa slowly works his pieces into White's position. Now he threatens to win
back his pawn with check. } { [%csl Rh3][%cal Rg5h3,Rh3g1] } 31. Kg2 Ne4 { [%csl Rf2][%cal Re4f2,Rc2f2,Gg2f2] } 32. Rf3 { [%cal Gf3f2,Gg2f2] } 32... Kf7 33. g4 Ke6 { Centralizing the King and blockading
the pawn. } 34. Ne3 Bxe3 35. Rexe3 Rc8 36. Kf1 b5 37. gxf5+ gxf5 38. Rf4 h5 39. Re2 Rc1+ (39... Rxe2 40. Kxe2 Nxc3+ 41. bxc3 Rxc3 42. Rh4 Rxb3 43. Rxh5) 40. Re1 (40. Kg2 Rg8+ 41. Kf3 Rh1 { [%csl Rh3][%cal Rh1h3,Rh3f3] }) 40... Rxe1+ 41. Bxe1 Rc1 { [%cal Rc1f1] } 42. Rh4 { [%csl Rh5][%cal Rh4h5] } 42... Rb1 { [%csl Rb2][%cal Rb1b2,Rb1f1] } 43. Rxh5 f4 { The idea is to play ...f3 and cut off the White
King's flight squares. } 44. Ke2 f3+ 45. Kxf3 { Forced. White must lose his
Bishop, but the alternative variation would be much worse for him. } (45. Kf1 Nd2+ 46. Kg1 Rxe1+ 47. Kh2 Nf1+ 48. Kh1 Ng3+ 49. Kh2 Nxh5) 45... Rxe1 46. Rh6+ Kf5 47. Rxa6 Ng5+ 48. Kg2 Ne6 49. h4 Re4 { [%cal Re4d4,Re4h4] } 50. Rb6 Rg4+ { This move looks very strange, but there's a method to Capa's madness. } 51. Kf1 Nxd4 { The Knight does double-duty, attacking the b3-pawn
while defending the b5-pawn. } { [%cal Rd4b3,Gd4b5] } 52. e6 Re4 53. h5 Rxe6 54. Rb8 (54. Rxe6 { Believe it or not, trading off the Rooks might have been White's best chance.
The Knight is still a pretty large advantage for Black, but it's not as large
a threat alone as it is in conjunction with the Rook. } 54... Nxe6 55. Ke2) 54... Rh6 55. Ke1 Rxh5 56. Kd2 Rh3 { The Rook and Knight
pile up on the b3-pawn, while the Rook also prevents the White King from
entering the third rank. } { [%csl Rb3][%cal Rd4b3,Rh3b3] } 57. Rf8+ Ke5 58. b4 Rb3 { [%csl Rb2,Rb4][%cal Rb3b4] } 59. Re8+ Ne6 60. f4+ Kf5 { And Lasker gives up the ghost. He's already
down a Rook for a pawn and is about to lose the pawn back. } 0-1

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.10"]
[Round "18"]
[White "Marshall, Frank James"]
[Black "Bogoljubow, Efim"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "75"]
[ECO "D03"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 e6 3. Bg5 d5 4. e3 { Notice that Marshall developed the Bishop
before pushing the e-pawn so that the Bishop wouldn't become trapped behind it. } 4... Nbd7 5. c4 { Striking at the center by offering to trade a flank pawn for a
center pawn. } 5... c6 { Bogo defends the pawn and makes sure he'll still have two
center pawns after a trade. } 6. cxd5 exd5 7. Nc3 Qa5 { [%cal Ra5e1] } 8. Bd3 { Now Marshall is prepared to castle Kingside. } 8... Ne4 { While not technically a
"hole" (the f-pawn can advance to f3 to drive away the Knight after the Knight
moves), it's still a pretty good post for Black's Knight. } 9. Qc2 { Marshall
makes the Black Knight's outpost a bit less attractive.The idea is to win a
pawn with check by 10.Bxe4 dxe4 11.Qxe4+. } 9... Nxg5 10. Nxg5 h6 11. Nf3 { Take a
look at Marshall's position. His pieces are all developed to good squares. The
only thing left to do is take care of safeguarding the King by castling. } 11... Be7 12. O-O O-O 13. a3 Qd8 { Bogo sees that b2-b4 is on the way, so he might as
well retreat the Queen now rather than be forced to do so later. } 14. Rae1 { The Rook moves to e1 to support the e-pawn's advance. } 14... a5 15. Qe2 { Another
supporter for the advancing e-pawn. } 15... Nf6 16. Ne5 { To be honest, I have no idea
why Marshall changed plans here. His last two moves pointed toward the
e-pawn's advance. It's hard to say what he saw that changed his mind. } 16... Bd6 17. f4 c5 18. Bb1 Bd7 19. Qc2 { If not for the f6-Knight, the
threat would be mate in one at h7. } { [%cal Rc2h7,Gf6h7] } 19... Bc6 20. dxc5 Bxc5 21. Kh1 Re8 22. e4 { Marshall finally advances the
pawn, under the watchful gaze of four White pieces. } { [%cal Gc3e4,Gc2e4,Gb1e4,Ge1e4,Rd5e4,Rc6e4,Rf6e4] } 22... Bd4 23. Nxc6 bxc6 24. e5 { Driving off the Knight that was covering h7... } 24... Ng4 25. Qh7+ { ...
but we see that Qh7 is no longer mate (the Rook has moved and left a square
for the Black King). } { [%cal Yg8f8] } 25... Kf8 26. g3 Qb6 27. Bf5 Nf2+ { More forcing than ...Ne3
(which is not a check). White must now give up the exchange. } 28. Rxf2 Bxf2 29. Qh8+ Ke7 30. Qxg7 Kd8 (30... Bxe1 { Black had good board vision to notice that
this wouldn't work -- in fact, it leads to his being mated by force! } 31. Qf6+ Kf8 32. Qxh6+ Kg8 33. Bh7+ Kh8 34. Bg6+ Kg8 35. Qh7+ Kf8 36. Qxf7#) 31. Qf6+ (31. Qxf7 Ra7 32. Qf6+ { This variation was materially better and leads to a
King hunt regardless. But White has a better idea. }) 31... Re7 32. e6 Bd4 33. exf7 Bxf6 34. f8=Q+ { We see now why Marshall didn't play 31.Qxf7. } 34... Kc7 35. Rxe7+ Bxe7 36. Qxa8 { Now Bogo is down a minor piece and pawn with his King
dangerously exposed. } 36... Kd6 37. Qh8 Qd8 { Bogo walks right into a forced mate. } (37... Bf6 { This would have let Black last a little longer, but he's in a lost
position in any event. } 38. Qf8+ Be7 39. Qxh6+ Kc7 40. Qe6 { Black is
completely stuck for a good move here. The game is lost for him. }) 38. Qe5+ { Marshall announced a forced mate in five and Bogo resigned. } (38... Qe5+ 38. Kc5 Na4+ 39... Kc4 Qc3+ 40... Kb5 Bd3+ 41... Kxa4 Qc2#) 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.10"]
[Round "18"]
[White "Maroczy, Geza"]
[Black "Reti, Richard"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[PlyCount "115"]
[ECO "C99"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 { Maroczy opts for the Ruy Lopez, instead of a more
open game (such as the Scotch). This suits Maroczy's style well, as the Ruy
often leads to battles of maneuver rather than tactics. } 3... a6 { The Morphy
Defense. The intent is to drive away the Bishop that's putting indirect
pressure on the e5-pawn (the pressure comes from the Bishop's attack on the
pawn's sole defender). } 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 (5... Nxe4 { This is certainly
possible, but the pawn can't be held. } 6. Re1 Nd6 { [%cal Rf3e5,Re1e5] }) 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3 { This opens a pocket for the light-squared Bishop's retreat
plus supports the future advance of the d-pawn to d4. } 8... O-O 9. h3 { This prevents Black from using g4. } { [%csl Gg4][%cal Gh3g4] } 9... Na5 { [%cal Ra5b3] } 10. Bc2 c5 { This is fairly typical for Ruy Lopez positions. Black gets a lot of Queenside
space, but White can counterattack in the center or on the Kingside. } 11. d4 Qc7 { Reti's Queen is now poised to command the c-file in the event of a pawn
exchange. } 12. Nbd2 { Another typical Ruy Lopez plan: the Queenside Knight is
headed for f1. } 12... Bd7 13. Nf1 { The point of this Knight move
is to allow it to go from here to either d3 or g3. From those squares it can
take up a post at either f5 or d5. } { [%cal Yf1g3,Yf1e3] } 13... cxd4 14. cxd4 Rfc8 { Reti doubles up on the open c-file and threatens to win a Bishop.. } { [%csl Rc2][%cal Rc8c2] } 15. Bd3 Nc6 { [%cal Rc6d4,Re5d4,Gf3d4] } 16. Be3 { [%cal Ge3d4] } 16... Qb7 { Reti
starts a plan to replace the Queen and Rook battery with doubled Rooks. } { [%cal Yc8c7,Ya8c8] } 17. Ng3 { [%cal Yg3f5] } 17... Rc7 18. Rc1 Rac8 19. Bb1 { Allowing the Queen
to support the d-pawn. } { [%cal Gd1d4] } 19... Ne8 { Reti may be intending to play ...g7, followed by
Ne8-g7-e6 to put still more pressure on the d4-pawn. } 20. Qd2 { Maroczy
responds by clearing d1 for a Rook. We're seeing how closed positions in the
Ruy lead to wars of maneuver. } 20... g6 21. Red1 f6 22. Ne2 { Yet another piece comes
to the support of the d4-pawn. } 22... Bf8 { Reti has switched his plan. Now the
e8-Knight supports the f- and d-pawns, while the Bishop is headed for g7 when
the center opens up. } 23. Bc2 { [%cal Yc2b3,Rb3g8] } 23... Na5 { [%cal Ga5b3] } 24. Ng3 Nc4 { An outstanding fork, but White has a clever
defense. } { [%cal Rc4e3,Rc4d2,Rc4b2] } 25. Bb3 { The pin on the Knight prevents it from
capturing any material. } { [%cal Rb3g8] } 25... Kh8 26. Qe2 Nxe3 { And now the tactical fun begins. } { [%cal Re3d1,Rc1c7,Re2e3,Rf2e3,Rc7c1] } 27. Rxc7 { [%cal Rc7d7,Rc7c8,Rc7b7,Re8c7,Re2e3,Rf2e3] } 27... Nxc7 28. Qxe3 Ne6 29. Ne2 { The piece
path diagram doesn't show it, but this Knight keeps bouncing back and forth
between g3 and e2. Maroczy's new plan for the Knight is to bring it to d5 via
c3. } { [%cal Ye2c3,Yc3d5] } 29... b4 { Reti takes c3 away from the Knight. } { [%cal Gb4c3] } 30. Rc1 { Maroczy
decides to put the Knight to another use: to defend the Rook on c1. } 30... Rxc1+ 31. Nxc1 Qb6 { Once again, d4 comes under fire. } { [%cal Re6d4,Rb6d4,Ge3d4,Gf3d4,Re5d4] } 32. Ne2 { [%cal Ge2d4] } 32... Bg7 33. Qd2 Nf8 { This looks odd, but
there's a point to it. Reti expects White to play dxe5. After this, he'd like
to take back with the d6-pawn (to keep from having an extra pawn island), but
this would leave the d7-Bishop undefended. Reti moved the Bishop to g7 to
clear f8 for the Knight -- a square from which the Knight defends the
d7-Bishop. } { [%cal Gf8d7] } 34. Qd3 h6 35. Bc4 { The Queen and Bishop battery
strikes at the a-pawn. } { [%cal Rd3a6] } 35... a5 36. dxe5 dxe5 37. Nd2 f5 { [%cal Yg7f6,Yf6h4] } 38. Kf1 Bf6 39. b3 Bh4 { [%csl Rf2][%cal Rh4f2,Rb6f2] } 40. g3 Bf6 41. Qd5 Be6 42. Qa8 { More tactics suddenly erupt. } { [%cal Re6c4,Ra8f8] } 42... Qd8 43. Qxd8 Bxd8 44. Bxe6 Nxe6 45. exf5 gxf5 { And just that quickly the players have reached an
endgame. Reti has the advantage of a Bishop vs. a Knight, but the disadvantage
of an extra pawn island (three islands to two). The position looks even.
Reti's plan will be to trade off a pair of Knights, while Maroczy will try to
keep him on the defensive by attacking his pawn islands. } 46. Nc4 { [%csl Re5][%cal Rc4e5] } 46... Bc7 { [%csl Ge5][%cal Gc7e5] } 47. Ne3 { [%csl Rf5][%cal Re3f5] } 47... Ng7 { [%csl Gf5][%cal Gg7f5] } 48. f4 exf4 49. Nxf4 { Now the f5-pawn is
pretty weak, as it has no support from an adjacent pawn. } { [%csl Rf5] } 49... Bxf4 50. gxf4 { Reti hated to do this, but now White's ability to threaten him is limited.
It's Knight vs. Knight in a symmetrical pawn structure -- the game is dead
even. } 50... Ne6 { [%csl Rf4,Rf5][%cal Re6f4,Re3f5] } 51. Nxf5 Nxf4 { [%csl Rh3,Rh6][%cal Rf4h3,Rf5h6] } 52. Nxh6 Nd3 { Reti surprises everyone with this move. His
plan is to eliminate the White Queenside pawns and promote one of his own. } 53. Nf5 Nc1 { [%csl Ra2][%cal Rc1a2] } 54. Nd6 Nxa2 55. Nc4 { Unfortunately for Reti, he comes up a tempo or two short. } { [%csl Ra5][%cal Rc4a5] } 55... Nc1 { [%csl Rb3][%cal Rc1b3] } 56. Nxa5 { [%csl Gb3][%cal Ga5b3] } 56... Kh7 57. Nc6 { [%csl Rb4][%cal Rc6b4] } 57... Nxb3 58. Nxb4 { There's no way Maroczy's going to promote this outside
pawn, so the players agree to a draw. } 1/2-1/2

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.10"]
[Round "18"]
[White "Yates, Frederick"]
[Black "Tartakower, Ksawery"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "99"]
[ECO "B48"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 c5 { Tartakower plays the Sicilian Defense, an attempt to
discourage White from setting up the classic d4-e4 pawn center. } { [%cal Rc5d4] } 2. Nf3 { Yates fights for control of d4. } { [%cal Gf3d4] } 2... e6 { This will allow
Black to further challenge White's center by playing ...d5. } { [%cal Yd7d5] } 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 { It seems odd that White would allow the
trade of a central pawn for a flank pawn, but in return he has a
centrally-placed Knight and lots of open lines for further development. } { [%csl Gd4][%cal Yf1a6,Yc1h6,Yd1d3] } 4... a6 5. Nc3 Qc7 6. Bd3 Nc6 { [%csl Rd4][%cal Rc6d4] } 7. Be3 { [%csl Gd4][%cal Ge3d4] } 7... Nf6 8. Nb3 b5 9. Qe2 { Take a look at the development of each side: White is one
move away from completing his devlopment by connecting his Rooks, while Black
is at least three moves away from doing the same. } 9... Ne5 10. f4 { This is not
done only to harass the Knight, but also to give White a space advantage. The
e4 and f4 pawns act like a skirmish line, behind which White can maneuver and
position himself for an attack. } 10... Nxd3+ 11. cxd3 { Better than Qxd3, because the
linked d- through f-pawns can become a powerful attacking force as they march
together up the board. } 11... Bb7 { The long diagonal is usually a great post for the
Bishop, as it slices across the center to the other side of the board,
controlling a lot of territory. Here it puts pressure on the e4-pawn. } 12. O-O { White's development is now complete. } 12... Be7 13. Rac1 { With a
latent attack on the Black Queen. } { [%cal Rc1c7] } 13... Qd8 { Tartakower does the prudent thing and
withdraws the Queen from the line of fire. } 14. h3 { Preventing ...Ng4. } 14... O-O { Tartakower finally castles, but his development is incomplete -- his Rooks
aren't in contact with each other. } 15. Qf2 { Better placement for the Queen --
it can now shoot over to either the Kingside or Queenside. } 15... b4 16. Na4 Bc6 17. Nb6 Rb8 18. Nc4 d5 19. Nca5 { Tartakower must have wanted
that Knight badly. He used up four moves in chasing it but never got it. Now
the two Knights protect each other. This is not idea placement for the Knights
(the b3-Knight is stuck defending its twin), but it'll do for now. } { [%cal Gb3a5,Ra5c6] } 19... Ba8 20. e5 { Yates does a little Knight hunting of his own. } 20... Nd7 { We can see the real reason for the pawn's advance: it cramps
Black's game by taking two squares away from him on his own half of the board. } { [%csl Rd6,Rf6][%cal Re5f6,Re5d6] } 21. Nc6 { Nice fork! } { [%csl Rb8,Rd8,Re7][%cal Rc6b8,Rc6d8,Rc6e7] } 21... Bxc6 { Tartakower had no choice; it was either take the Knight or lose the exchange. } 22. Rxc6 { Yates has pulled off a successful bit of strategic thinking. He's
traded a Knight for a Bishop that was on the long diagonal, pressuring the
White center. His opponent is probably regretting having chased that night
around the board; in effect, Black actually created this opportunity for Yates. } 22... a5 { Linking the Queenside pawns. } { [%cal Gd8a5] } 23. Rfc1 { Doubling Rooks on an open file greatly increases their power. Yates is
undisputed master of the c-file, a highway into the heart of Black's position. } { [%cal Yc1c8] } 23... g5 24. Qg3 { And ...gxf4 is prevented by the pin on the g5-pawn.
Tartakower is practically giving this game away. Despite the even material,
White's game is practically won positionally. What Yates needs to do now is
find a way to exploit his positional advantages. } { [%cal Rg3g8] } 24... Kh8 25. fxg5 { Yates wins a
pawn at the expense of his Kingside pawn structure. But White's ugly structure
isn't a big problem, as his opponent has no means of exploiting it. } 25... Rb5 { This move makes no sense, tactically or positionally, other than to set up an
exchange of Rooks. Tartakower is out of ideas and is just playing a waiting
game, hoping for an error by Yates. } (25... Rg8 { This
makes a lot more sense than 25...Rb5; at least moving the Rook to the open
file applies some pressure to White's position. } { [%cal Rg8g5,Re7g5,Rd8g5] } 26. h4 { White is still
winning regardless. }) 26. Nd4 { [%csl Rb5][%cal Rd4b5] } 26... Rc5 27. R6xc5 Bxc5 28. Nb3 { [%csl Rc5][%cal Rb3c5] } 28... Be7 { The Rook exchange
actually helped White by opening lines, allowing his pieces to control even
more space. } { [%cal Yc1c8,Ye3a7] } 29. h4 a4 { [%csl Rb3][%cal Ra4b3] } 30. Nd4 { The Knight is forced
to the center, where it restricts the e3-Bishop. Tartakower's goal is to
develop counterplay on the Queenside, but he's going to have to find a way to
support the advancing a- and b-pawns. } 30... Bc5 31. Ne2 { [%csl Rc5][%cal Re3c5] } 31... Bxe3+ 32. Qxe3 { Compare this to the position after 28...Be7.
It's pretty much the same, though fewer pieces are on the board. The White
Queen has taken over the Bishop's spot on e3 and now White's heavy pieces
control plenty of space. } { [%cal Yc1c8,Ye3a7] } 32... Qb8 { Tartakower now takes
steps to support the Queenside pawns. } { [%csl Gb4][%cal Gb8b4] } 33. d4 { This
helps keep the Black Knight off of c5, as well as giving the White Rook an
anchor square to go to in the event the Black Knight moves. } { [%csl Gc5][%cal Gd4c5] } 33... b3 34. axb3 axb3 35. Rc3 { This seems to lose Black another pawn,
but Tartakower has something else in mind. } { [%csl Rb3][%cal Re3b3,Gb8b3] } 35... Qb4 36. Nf4 { Yates plan is to renew his Kingside attack. } { [%cal Yf4h5,Yh5f6] } (36. Rxb3 { White can't take the
pawn safely without losing his Kingside pawns. } 36... Qe1+ 37. Kh2 Qxh4+ 38. Qh3 Qxg5 39. Rg3 Qd2 40. Qh5 { White still enjoys a healthy advantage, but why give
Black the counterplay in the first place? This is why White chose not to
capture the b-pawn on move 36. }) (36. Nc1 { After
this move, White can safely win the b-pawn, since ...Qe1+ is impossible after
37.Rxb3. } { [%csl Rb3][%cal Rc1b3,Re3b3] }) 36... Ra8 { [%cal Ya8a1,Ra1g1] } 37. Kh2 { Yates just shifts his King
and eliminates Black's threat. } 37... Qb5 38. Nh5 Qf1 39. Qc1 Qf2 (39... Qxc1 40. Rxc1 Kg8 41. Rc7 Nf8 42. Nf6+ Kg7 43. h5 Ra2 44. h6+ Kg6 45. Rc8 Kxg5 46. Rxf8 Kg6 47. Rg8+ Kf5 48. Nxh7 Rxb2) 40. Rc8+ { Now Black is going to be hurting
materially, but he gets some counterplay to harass White. } 40... Nf8 (40... Rxc8 41. Qxc8+ Nf8 42. Qxf8#) 41. Rxa8 (41. Rxf8+? Rxf8) 41... Qxh4+ 42. Kg1 Qxd4+ 43. Kf1 Qd3+ 44. Kf2 { Now Black is out of productive checks. } 44... Kg8 { Tartakower
walks right into a forced mate in six! } (44... Qd4+ 45. Qe3 Qh4+ 46. Ng3 { Life still stinks for Black, but at least he could have stayed alive a while
longer. }) 45. Rxf8+ { A nice sacrifice that forces the mate. Most players would
have missed this. } 45... Kxf8 46. Qc8+ Ke7 47. Qc7+ Ke8 (47... Kf8 48. Qd8#) 48. Nf6+ Kf8 49. Qd8+ Kg7 50. Qg8# { A fabulous finish to a very interesting game. } 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.12"]
[Round "19"]
[White "Lasker, Edward"]
[Black "Lasker, Emanuel"]
[Result "0-1"]
[PlyCount "102"]
[ECO "D52"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 d5 { The Queen's
Gambit. The d5-square is the focus of both players' attentions. } { [%cal Gf6d5,Ge6d5,Gd8d5,Rc3d5,Rc4d5] } 4. Nf3 { [%cal Yf3e5] } 4... Nbd7 { [%cal Gd7e5] } 5. Bg5 { The Bishop pins one of the d5-pawn's defenders. } { [%csl Rd5][%cal Rg5d8,Rc3d5,Rc4d5] } 5... c6 { [%csl Gd5][%cal Gc6d5,Ge6d5] } 6. e3 { This move props up the d4-pawn and opens a line of
advancement for the f1-Bishop. } 6... Qa5 { A pin on one of the
d5-pawn's attackers. } { [%cal Ra5e1] } 7. Nd2 { Releases the pin. } 7... Bb4 { A multi-pupose move. The Bishop is developed, clearing the way
for Kingside castling, while Black threatens to win a pawn through exchanging
on c3. } { [%csl Rc3][%cal Rb4c3,Gb2c3] } 8. Qc2 { [%csl Gc3][%cal Gb2c3,Gc2c3] } 8... Ne4 { A nice double-attack by the Knight -- the
threats are the loss of the g5-Bishop or the loss of a pawn on c3. } { [%csl Rc3,Rg5][%cal Re4c3,Rb4c3,Ra5c3,Gc2c3,Gd2c3] } 9. Ndxe4 { The only way to meet both threats. The c3-Knight is pinned once
again. } { [%cal Rb4e1] } 9... dxe4 { The e4-pawn is safe for the moment, since the c3-Knight is
pinned. } 10. Bf4 O-O 11. Be2 { Now White has the option to castle in either
direction. } 11... e5 12. dxe5 Nxe5 { The Queen defends the
Knight laterally. Now the d-file is open -- who will be first to control it? } { [%csl Ge5][%cal Ga5e5] } 13. O-O Bxc3 14. Qxc3 Qxc3 15. bxc3 { Black has given up a
Knight for a Bishop (giving his opponent the advantage of the Bishop pair) but
has compensation in that he's created a weakness in his opponent's position:
the doubled c-pawns. } { [%csl Rc3,Rc4] } 15... Re8 { [%csl Ge5][%cal Ge8e5] } 16. c5 { Both of White's
c-pawns are now on dark squares, making them harder for Black to attack (as he
has no longer has a dark-squared Bishop). An additional bonus is that the
e2-Bishop is no longer tied to the defense of a pawn. } 16... Nd7 { [%csl Rc5][%cal Rd7c5] } 17. Bd6 { [%csl Gc5][%cal Gd6c5] } 17... b6 { [%csl Rc5][%cal Rd7c5,Rb6c5,Gd6c5] } 18. cxb6 { White has no choice; he has no way to defend the pawn a second
time. } 18... axb6 { Black now has a hanging pawn pair. They can
advance up the board as a team, each one defending the other. } { [%csl Gb6,Gc6] } 19. Rfd1 Ba6 20. Bxa6 Rxa6 { Black is prepared to head for an endgame, since the
c3-pawn is isolated and remains a terrible weakness. Dr. Lasker's idea is to
clear some wood off the board and then target the isolated pawn. } { [%csl Rc3] } 21. a4 { Preventing Black from playing ...Ra3 and attacking the weak pawn. } 21... Rea8 { Black goes after a different pawn now. } { [%csl Ra4][%cal Ra8a4,Ga1a4] } 22. Kf1 { White wants to prevent any surprise mates on the back rank as well as
centralize his King for the endgame. } 22... f5 { Propping up the
e-pawn, plus giving the King a route off of the back rank via f7. } { [%cal Gf5e4,Yg8f7] } 23. Rab1 { [%cal Rb1b6,Ga6b6] } 23... R8a7 24. g4 { The way to attack a
pawn chain is at its base. } { [%csl Rf5][%cal Rg4f5] } 24... fxg4 { Now Black has his own isolated
pawn to worry about, but it's easily defended (as we'll soon see). } { [%csl Re4] } 25. Rb4 { [%csl Re4][%cal Rb4e4] } 25... Nf6 { The Knight
defends both pawns. This is actually a better post for the Knight anyway, as
it's supported by a pawn instead of defended by a Rook. } { [%csl Ge4,Gg4][%cal Gf6e4,Gf6g4,Gg7f6] } 26. Bb8 { [%csl Ra7][%cal Rb8a7] } 26... Ra8 { [%csl Rb8][%cal Ra8b8] } 27. Rd8+ { [%csl Gb8,Rg8][%cal Gd8b8] } 27... Kf7 28. Bc7 { A tactical nightmare. } { [%csl Ra4,Rb6,Gd8][%cal Gc7d8,Rc7b6,Rb4b6,Ga6b6,Ra8d8,Gb4a4] } 28... Rxa4 29. Rxa8 Rxa8 30. Rxb6 Nd5 { A nice Knight fork, but it's not a powerful
as it appears at first glance. } { [%csl Rb6,Rc3,Rc7][%cal Rd5c3,Rd5b6,Rd5c7] } 31. Rb7 { [%csl Rc3,Rc7][%cal Rd5c3,Rd5c7,Gb7c7] } 31... Ke6 (31... Nxc3 32. Be5+ { This is why the
pawn was actually off-limits to Black. } { [%csl Rc3,Rf7][%cal Rb7f7,Re5c3] } 32... Ke6 33. Bxc3 { And White should win. }) (31... Nxc7 32. Rxc7+ { And White has a fork of
his own, winning a pawn and gaining an even position. } { [%csl Rc6,Rf7][%cal Rc7c6,Rc7f7] } 32... Kf8 33. Rxc6) 32. c4 { The pawns drives off the Knight and eliminates the fork
threat. } { [%csl Rd5][%cal Rc4d5] } 32... Ne7 (32... Nxc7 33. Rxc7 Ra6 34. Rxg7 { The
Rook will gobble up the g-pawn and White gets an even game. } { [%csl Rg4][%cal Rg7g4] }) 33. Rb4 Ra1+ 34. Ke2 Ra2+ 35. Ke1 Nf5 36. Rb6 { The idea is to gain the
initiative by capturing the pawn with check. } { [%csl Rc6][%cal Rb6c6] } 36... Kd7 37. Be5 Ra4 { [%csl Rc4][%cal Ra4c4] } 38. c5 Ke6 { [%csl Re5][%cal Re6e5] } 39. Bd6 (39. Bd4 { Look
at the big pointy-headed pawn! This is why d6 is a better square for the
Bishop. } { [%csl Yd4] }) 39... Kd5 (39... Nxd6 40. Rxc6 { Pinning the
Knight. } { [%csl Re6][%cal Rc6e6] } (40. cxd6 Kxd6 { [%csl Gc6][%cal Gd6c6] }) 40... Kd5 41. Rxd6+ { [%csl Rd5][%cal Rd6d5] } 41... Kxc5 { [%csl Rd6][%cal Rc5d6] } 42. Rd7 { Though Black still has a slight edge it's not as great as in the actual game. } { [%csl Rg7][%cal Rd7g7] }) 40. Rb7 h5 41. Bf8 { [%csl Rg7][%cal Rb7g7,Rf8g7,Gf5g7] } 41... g6 42. Rd7+ Kc4 43. Rd1 Ra3 44. Rd8 Nh4 45. Bg7 Nf3+ 46. Ke2 Ra2+ 47. Kf1 Rd2 48. Rxd2 Nxd2+ { The c5-pawn is hanging, but White has no time to
defend it due to the check on his King. } { [%csl Rc5,Rf1][%cal Rd2f1,Rc4c5] } 49. Kg2 Kxc5 { Black has a 2-pawn
advantage and should have little trouble finishing from here. } 50. h3 gxh3+ 51. Kxh3 g5 { White's problem here is that his King can't be in several places at
once. It can't simultaneously fight the advance of the g- and h-pawns and help
the Bishop stop the c-pawn too. Young Lasker resigns. } 0-1

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.12"]
[Round "19"]
[White "Tartakower, Ksawery"]
[Black "Capablanca, Jose Raul"]
[Result "0-1"]
[PlyCount "60"]
[ECO "C33"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 e5 2. f4 { Tartakower offers the King's Gambit, one of the oldest chess
openings. White's idea is to give up a pawn to deflect the e5-pawn from
controlling d4. Then White can set up the classic d4-e4 pawn center plus have
the half-open f-file for his Rook after castling Kingside. } 2... exf4 { Capa accepts
the pawn sacrifice. } 3. Be2 { A bit unusual in that White often plays d2-d4
right away. The move Bc4 is another popular third move for White. } (3. d4) (3. Bc4) 3... d5 { Capa offers a counter-gambit, played to prevent White from
establishing the d4-e4 pawn pair. } 4. exd5 Nf6 { [%csl Rd5][%cal Rf6d5] } 5. c4 c6 { Capa offers yet another pawn trade. If White plays dxc6, Capa will reply ..
.Nxc6 and have a lead in development. } 6. d4 (6. dxc6 Nxc6 { [%csl Gc6,Gf4,Gf6] }) 6... Bb4+ 7. Kf1 { This move is hard to understand, as it violates an idea of
the King's Gambit (to have the f-file controlled by a Rook at f1). } (7. Bd2 Bxd2+ 8. Qxd2) 7... cxd5 8. Bxf4 dxc4 9. Bxb8 Nd5 { The threat is ...Ne3, forking the White King and Queen. The
secondary idea is to defend the b4-Bishop in case of Qa4+. } { [%csl Gb4][%cal Yd5e3,Re3d1,Gd5b4] } (9... Rxb8 10. Qa4+ { And White wins the Bishop by use of a fork. } { [%csl Rb4,Re8][%cal Ra4b4,Ra4e8] }) 10. Kf2 { Keeping the Knight off of e3. } 10... Rxb8 11. Bxc4 O-O { Now Capa no longer
has to worry about the forking check Qa4+. } 12. Nf3 Nf6 13. Nc3 { White now has an isolated d-pawn. What he wants to do is
control the square in front of the pawn to enable the pawn's advance. } { [%csl Yd4,Gd5][%cal Gc4d5,Gc3d5] } 13... b5 14. Bd3 (14. Nxb5 a6 15. Nc3 Bxc3 16. bxc3 { White could have snatched an extra pawn, but would then have given Black
control of the open b-file. } { [%csl Ya2,Yc3,Yd4,Yg2,Yh2][%cal Yb8b1] }) 14... Ng4+ 15. Kg1 { And now we see a consequence
of the move 7.Kf1. The h1-Rook is completely buried. } 15... Bb7 { As
we've seen before, the long diagonal is the ideal place for the Bishop. } { [%cal Yb7f3] } 16. Bf5 Bxf3 { Capa breaks up the pawn cover in front of his opponent's King. } 17. gxf3 Ne3 { [%csl Rd1][%cal Re3d1] } 18. Bxh7+ Kh8 (18... Kxh7 19. Qd3+ Kg8 20. Qxe3 { And White would have remained a pawn ahead. }) 19. Qd3 { [%csl Gh7][%cal Gd3h7] } 19... Bxc3 20. bxc3 { While it's true that White
is a pawn ahead, it's equally true that three of his pawns are isolated and
that he has four pawn islands that require defending. } { [%csl Ya2,Yc3,Yd4,Yf3,Yh2] } 20... Nd5 21. Be4 Nf4 22. Qd2 Qh4 { The Queen defends the Knight and is positioned to
aid in a Kingside attack. } { [%csl Gf4][%cal Gh4f4] } 23. Kf1 { Things look a bit drafty around the White
King. } 23... f5 { [%csl Re4][%cal Rf5e4] } 24. Bc6 Rf6 { [%csl Rc6][%cal Rf6c6] } 25. d5 Rd8 { The d-pawn appears to be adequately
defended. But there's a problem -- note that the d8-Rook and the White Queen
stand on the same file. This should be suggesting some tactical possibilities
to you. } { [%cal Rf4d5,Rd8d5,Gc6d5,Gd2d5] } 26. Rd1 Rxc6 27. dxc6 (27. Qf2 Qh3+ 28. Ke1 Re8+ 29. Kd2 Nxd5 { And Balck is up a minor piece with the White King a sitting duck in the center. }) 27... Rxd2 28. Rxd2 { We now have an interesting material imbalance. White
has two Rooks and a pawn for a Queen and Knight. Note, though, that one of
White's Rooks is still tucked away in the corner while Black's Queen and
Knight are actively placed. } 28... Ne6 29. Rd6 { [%csl Gc6,Re6][%cal Rd6e6,Gd6c6] } 29... Qc4+ { The Queen does triple duty:
checking the White King, defending the Black Knight, and pressuring the
c6-pawn. } { [%csl Rc6,Ge6,Rf1][%cal Rc4c6,Gc4e6,Rc4f1] } 30. Kg2 (30. Kf2 Qc5+ { [%csl Rd6,Rf2][%cal Rc5f2,Rc5d6] }) 30... Qe2+ { Tartakower sees that there's no escape and thrown in the towel. } (31. Qe2+ 30... Kg3 31... Qe5+ { [%csl Rd6,Rg3][%cal Re5g3,Re5d6] }) (31. Qe2+ 30... Kh3 31... Qxf3+ { [%csl Rh3][%cal Rf3h3] } 32. Kh4 32... Qg4#) 0-1

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.12"]
[Round "19"]
[White "Janowski, Dawid"]
[Black "Alekhine, Alexander"]
[Result "0-1"]
[PlyCount "100"]
[ECO "A48"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 c5 { Alekhine offers to gambit a flank pawn for a central pawn.
He can now develop his Knight to c6 without blocking the c-pawn's advance. } 3. e3 { Janowski is wise not to accept the "offer" -- he wouldn't be able to keep
the pawn anyway. } (3. dxc5 Qa5+ { [%cal Ra5e1,Ra5c5] }) 3... g6 { Alekhine
continues the hypermodern strategy of striking at his opponent's center from
out at the flanks. This pawn move prepares to fianchetto the Bishop to g7,
where it will put pressure on d4. } 4. Bd3 b6 { Preparing a Queenside fianchetto. } 5. O-O Bb7 { Here again, central pressure is
applied from the flank. Alekhine's moves are following this basic theme. } { [%csl Yb7,Yc6,Yd5,Ye4,Yf3] } 6. c4 cxd4 7. exd4 Bg7 { Indirectly putting pressure on the d4-pawn,
which can no longer be protected by a fellow pawn. White would have to advance
it to d5 to ensure its protection by another pawn. } { [%cal Rg7d4] } 8. Nc3 d5 { Alekhine's idea is to isolate the d4-pawn by removing the c-pawn. } { [%csl Rc4][%cal Rd5c4] } 9. Bg5 dxc4 { Now the d4-pawn stands alone. } { [%csl Rd4] } 10. Bxc4 O-O 11. Re1 Nc6 12. a3 Rc8 { Good strategic play -- the Rook moves to the open c-file. } 13. Qd3 Qc7 { Alekhine creates a battery on the open c-file. He's also increased the
scope of the Queen; it now controls space on the h2-b8 diagonal. Most
importantly, he's threatening to ruin White's position with 14...Nxd4 15.Qxd4
Qxd4 16.Qxc4 Rxc4 17.Rxe7 Bxf3 18.gxf3. } 14. Ba2 { Janowski prevents Black's
planned exchange of material while keeping his Bishop on the same diagonal as
the Black King. This prevents Black from playing ...h6 to kick the g5-Bishop,
because White would just reply Qxg6 (...fxg6 is impossible since the f-pawn is
pinned). } (14. Rac1 Nxd4 15. Qxd4 Qxc4 16. Qxc4 Rxc4 17. Rxe7 Bxf3 18. gxf3 Ra8 { The doubled f-pawns will become targets later. } { [%csl Rf2,Rf3] }) 14... e6 { Blocking the pin on the f7-pawn and clearing a square for the
c6-Knight. } { [%cal Yc6e7] } 15. h3 Ne7 { The idea is for the Knight to go to
f5 to aid in an attack on the isolated d-pawn. } { [%cal Ye7f5,Rf5d4] } 16. Rac1 { A
dangerous situation for the Black Queen. } { [%cal Rc1c7] } 16... Qb8 17. Ne5 Rcd8 { Black's forces are
getting into position for an attack on the d4-pawn } 18. Nxf7 { An interesting
sacrifice! Janowski shows a flash of his old tactical wizardry. } 18... Rxf7 19. Bxe6 { Janowski now has two pawns for the Knight and has pinned the
Rook on f7. One possibility is for White to play Bxf7; after ...Kxf7, he'll be
materially ahead. } { [%cal Re6g8] } 19... Rf8 20. d5 { Janowski misplays the position. Instead of
trying to tighten the screws on Black, he should have just gone for the
material edge after 20.Bxf7. This mistake will ultimately cost him the game. } (20. Bxf7+ Rxf7 21. Qc4 { White would still have a pin on an
f7-Rook. } { [%cal Rc4g8] }) 20... Nexd5 { Alekhine has tactical resources of his own! He offers
up his own Knight sacrifice to get himself out of his current predicament. } 21. Nxd5 Bxd5 (21... Nxd5 22. Bxd5 Bxd5 23. Qxd5 Bxb2 { And Black is out of the woods while creating a couple of threats for
White to think about. (This is the identical position to what occurred in the
actual game after 23...Bxb2). } { [%csl Ra3,Rc1][%cal Rb2c1] }) 22. Bxd5 Nxd5 23. Qxd5 Bxb2 { Janowski now has to deal with two simultaneous threats. } { [%csl Ra3,Rc1][%cal Rb2c1,Rb2a3] } 24. Rc2 { The best he can do. He has no move that deals with both threats at once. } 24... Bxa3 25. Bh6 { Janowski tries to keep the pressure
on Black, but he's pretty much blown his chance already. } { [%csl Rf8][%cal Rd5g8,Rh6f8] } 25... Rd8 { [%csl Rd5][%cal Rd8d5] } 26. Qe6 Bc5 { Cutting off the White c2-Rook from part of the open file. } 27. Rce2 { The triple-battery on the e-file looks imposing, but there's no real
threat here. White can't presently mate by means of a big exchange of material
on e8. Try it for yourself and see -- once the Queen moves from e6, the
f7-Rook is no longer pinned and can aid in the Black King's defense. } 27... Qc7 28. Qb3 Qd7 29. Kh1 Bf8 30. Rd2 Qc8 31. Red1 Rxd2 (31... Bxh6 { because of } 32. Rxd8+ Bf8 (32... Qxd8 33. Rxd8+ Bf8 34. Rd7 { With mate to follow. } { [%csl Rf7][%cal Rb3f7,Rd7f7] }) 33. Rxc8) 32. Bxd2 b5 33. Rc1 (33. Qxb5 Qc2 34. Qe2 Rxf2 35. Qxf2 Qxd1+ 36. Qe1 Qxe1+ 37. Bxe1 Bc5 { With a pawn advantage,
Black will probably be able to grind out a win here but it will likely be a
long ordeal. }) 33... Qd7 { [%csl Gb5,Rd2][%cal Rd7d2,Gd7b5] } 34. Bf4 { Janowski's idea is to bring the Rook to c7 to trade his Rook and Bishop for
the Black Queen. Unfortunately, this doesn't work (as Alekhine later pointed
out). } 34... a5 35. Be5 { The idea is to be able to shoot the Bishop back over to the
Queenside to aid in stopping the advancing pawns. } (35. Rc7 a4 36. Qa2 Qd1+ 37. Kh2 Qb3 { This variation is from Alekhine's
post-game analysis. Black now has all his bases covered (the f7-Rook is no
longer pinned) and he's threatening both the White Queen and Bishop. } { [%csl Ra2,Rf4][%cal Rf7f4,Rb3a2] } 38. Qd2 Rxc7 39. Bxc7 b4 { Black's pawn pair will be nearly impossible to stop. }) 35... a4 36. Qa2 b4 37. Qc4 Qd2 38. f4 b3 39. Rb1 Qb4 40. Qe6 { The White Queen has a
tough double assignment. It must keep up the pin on the f7-Rook (to keep Black
from getting the Rook into the game) while helping the b1-Rook pressure the
b-pawn (keeping the a-pawn from advancing). In effect, this makes the White
Queen just as much a prisoner as the Black f7-Rook. } 40... Qe4 { Pinning the White
Bishop. } 41. Rd1 { It seems that Janowski has the
desperate idea of bringing the Rook to d7 to fling a last attack at the Black
King... } { [%cal Yd1d7,Rd7f7,Re6f7] } 41... b2 { ...but this doesn't work, since Black could now play b1=Q+ in
response to a Rook move, winning the initiative and the game. } 42. Qa2 Qc2 43. Rf1 a3 { There was a better move here, but Black is winning either way. } (43... Qc1 44. Rg1 (44. Rxc1 bxc1=Q+ 45. Kh2 a3) (44. Qb1 Qxb1 45. Rxb1 a3 46. Bxb2 Rb7 { [%csl Rb2][%cal Rb7b2,Ra3b2] }) 44... Bc5 { [%csl Rg1][%cal Rc1g1,Rc5g1] }) 44. Kh2 Qd3 45. Re1 Bb4 46. Rh1 Bd2 47. Qe6 Qf5 48. Qb3 Bxf4+ 49. Bxf4 Qxf4+ 50. Kg1 Kg7 { Janowski finally admits that its futile to
try to hold the position and concedes the game. } (51. Kg7 50... Qc3+ 51... Rf6 Qb3 (52. Qe1 52... a2 { [%csl Rb1][%cal Rb2b1] }) 52... Rc6 { [%cal Yc6c1,Rc1g1] } 53. g4 (53. Qb7+ { This looks good in principle but has no bite. The White Queen can't
leave the b-file to capture the Rook without allowing the b2-pawn to promote. } 53... Kh6) 53... Rc1+ Kg2 54... b1=Q Qc3+ 55... Rxc3 Rxb1) 0-1

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.12"]
[Round "19"]
[White "Marshall, Frank James"]
[Black "Maroczy, Geza"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[PlyCount "64"]
[ECO "A48"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 g6 3. Bf4 Bg7 { Maroczy is following the hypermodern strategy
of allowing his opponent to create a strong pawn center, which Black will then
attack from the flanks (using his Kingside minor pieces and his c-pawn). } 4. Nc3 d6 5. e4 { Marshall has now created the classic pawn center.
This is one of the main goals of many chess openings. Black will now attack
this pawn duo from the flanks. } { [%csl Gd4,Ge4] } 5... Nbd7 { Maroczy's
Knight moves to d7 to support either the e7-e5 or c7-c5 pawn push. } { [%cal Ye7e5,Gd7e5,Yc7c5,Gd7c5] } 6. Bc4 { Taking aim at the weak f7-square. After Ng5, the pawn would be
attacked twice (though Black would just reply with ...0-0). } { [%cal Rc4f7] } 6... c5 7. e5 Nh5 { [%csl Rf4][%cal Rh5f4] } (7... dxe5 8. dxe5 Nh5 { [%cal Rh5f4,Rg7e5,Rd7e5] } 9. Be3 Nxe5 10. Qxd8+ Kxd8 11. O-O-O+ Bd7 { Black has destroyed the White pawn
pair, but his own King is sitting perilously in the center, unable to castle. }) 8. Ng5 { [%csl Rf7][%cal Rg5f7,Rc4f7] } 8... O-O (8... Nxf4 9. Nxf7 { [%csl Rd8,Rh8][%cal Rf7d8,Rf7h8] } 9... Qb6 10. e6 { It's possible that Black found all of this too complicated and just
decided to take the simpler route of castling. } { [%csl Rb2,Rd7,Rg2,Rh8][%cal Rf7h8,Rf4g2,Rb6b2] }) 9. Qf3 { [%csl Gf4][%cal Gf3f4] } 9... dxe5 10. Bxe5 Nxe5 11. dxe5 e6 (11... Bxe5 12. Bxf7+ Kh8 13. Rd1 Qa5 { Again, this leads to some tactical complications. Maroczy
is known as a primarily defensive player and can generally be counted on to
take the simpler path. } { [%cal Re5c3,Ra5c3] }) 12. Qe3 { [%csl Ge5][%cal Ge3e5] } 12... Qd4 13. Qxd4 cxd4 { [%csl Rc3][%cal Rd4c3] } 14. Ne2 { [%csl Rd4][%cal Re2d4] } 14... Bxe5 15. Nf3 { [%csl Rd4,Re5][%cal Rf3e5,Re2d4,Rf3d4] } 15... Bg7 16. Nfxd4 Bd7 17. O-O-O { After the
d4-Knight moves, it will uncover an attack from the d1-Rook on the d7-Knight. } 17... Rfd8 { Covering the Bishop in case of a move by the d4-Knight. } 18. Bb5 { [%csl Gb5,Rd7][%cal Rb5d7,Gd4b5] } 18... a6 19. Bxd7 Rxd7 20. c3 { [%csl Gd4][%cal Gc3d4] } 20... Rad8 { Doubling Rooks on an open file dramatically increases their
power. } 21. Nb3 Kf8 { Maroczy wants to prevent an unpleasant back-rank mate.
The King now has a flight square on e7. } 22. Rxd7 Rxd7 23. Rd1 Ke7 { Flip a
coin here. Maroczy decides to preserve his Rook, but he could just as easily
have exchanged it for the White Rook. Either way, the position is even. } (23... Rxd1+ 24. Kxd1) 24. Nc5 { [%csl Rd7][%cal Rc5d7] } 24... Rc7 { [%csl Rc5][%cal Rc7c5] } 25. b4 a5 { Striking at the Knight's support. } { [%csl Rb4][%cal Ra5b4] } 26. a3 { Shoring up the support pawn. } { [%csl Gb4][%cal Ga3b4] } 26... Nf6 { After the Black Knight moves to d5, it will team up with the g7-Bishop for an
attack on the c3-pawn. } { [%cal Yf6d5,Rd5c3] } 27. Nd4 { From here, the Knight can
leap to b5 and attack the Black Rook. } { [%cal Yd4b5,Rb5c7] } 27... axb4 28. axb4 b6 { [%csl Rc5][%cal Rb6c5] } 29. Nb5 { [%csl Rc7][%cal Rb5c7] } 29... Rc6 { The b5-Knight's attack is stronger
than the b6-pawn's attack (the Knight threatens a more valuable pieces), so
the Rook must move. } 30. Na7 { [%csl Rc6][%cal Ra7c6] } 30... Rc7 { [%csl Ra7][%cal Rc7a7] } 31. Nb5 { [%csl Rc7][%cal Rb5c7] } 31... Rc6 32. Na7 { [%csl Rc6][%cal Ra7c6] } 32... Rc7 { Content to repeat the same series of attacks, the
players agree to a draw. } { [%csl Ra7][%cal Rc7a7] } 1/2-1/2

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.12"]
[Round "19"]
[White "Yates, Frederick"]
[Black "Reti, Richard"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "47"]
[ECO "B18"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 c6 { The Caro-Kann Defense. Black plans to challenge White's strong
center by playing ...d7-d5; the pawn on c6 supports this move. } 2. d4 d5 { [%csl Re4][%cal Rd5e4] } 3. Nc3 { [%csl Ge4][%cal Gc3e4] } 3... dxe4 4. Nxe4 Bf5 5. Ng3 Bg6 { This sequence is known as the Classical (or Main Line) Caro-Kann. } 6. Nf3 Nd7 7. c3 { [%csl Gd4][%cal Gc3d4] } (7. h4 h6 { Played to provide a retreat square for the g7-Bishop. } 8. h5 Bh7 9. Bd3 Bxd3 10. Qxd3 Ngf6 { With an equal game. }) 7... Ngf6 8. Bc4 e6 { This allows the
dark-squared Bishop to develop, as well as blocks the White Bishop's pressure
on the vulnerable f7-square. } 9. Qe2 Be7 10. O-O O-O 11. Re1 { Now Yates has
some pressure along the e-file, created by the Queen-Rook battery. } 11... Nd5 12. Bb3 { Yate's plan is to play c3-c4 to kick the Black Knight out of the
center. } { [%cal Yc3c4] } 12... a5 { This will provide an anchor for the Knight in case White plays
c3-c4 immediately (see the variation to White's 13th move). } 13. a3 { Keeping
the Black Knight off of b4. } (13. c4 Nb4) 13... Qc7 { Reti's Queen controls f4, allowing him to play ...Nf4 after c3-c4. } { [%csl Gf4][%cal Gc7f4] } (13... a4 { Black might have played this instead. } { [%csl Rb3][%cal Ra4b3,Ga8a4] } 14. Ba2) 14. c4 Nf4 { [%csl Gf4][%cal Gc7f4] } 15. Bxf4 Qxf4 16. Rad1 { Although the
position is equal, Yates has his Rooks centralized and dominates the e-file. } 16... Bf6 { The d4-pawn isn't supported by another
pawn, so Reti makes it the focus of his attack. However, the pawn is presently
defended adequately, so Yates decides to improve his position. } { [%cal Rf6d4,Rf4d4,Gf3d4,Gd1d4] } 17. Bc2 { The Bishop was badly placed on b3 (it was blocked by the c4-pawn). From c2 it
controls the b1-h7 diagonal and invites a trade of Bishops. } 17... Rfd8 (17... Bxc2 18. Qxc2 a4 { Black would have moved the f8-Rook over the Queenside and started
an advance. }) 18. Bxg6 hxg6 19. Ne4 { [%csl Rf6][%cal Re4f6] } 19... Nb6 { [%csl Rc4][%cal Rb6c4] } 20. b3 Be7 21. Rd3 { Yates plans to move the
f3-Knight and slide the d3-Rook over to the open h-file. } { [%cal Yd3h3] } 21... Bxa3 22. Ne5 Qh4 { Moving the Queen to the open h-file is just asking for trouble. A very
uncharacteristic mistake by Reti. } (22... Bb4 { Attacking the White Rook would have kept the initiative (although White could
easily have regained it with a move like g2-g3). } { [%csl Re1][%cal Rb4e1] }) 23. Rh3 { This Rook move accomplishes two things: it attacks the Black Queen and
plants the Rook on the open h-file, the highway to Black's King. } { [%csl Rh4][%cal Rh3h4] } 23... Qe7 24. Ng5 { Reti sees the combination coming and tips his
King. } { [%csl Rf7][%cal Re5f7,Rg5f7] } (24... Ng5 24. Qxg5 Rh8+ 25... Kxh8 Nxf7+ { A Knight can't do much better than this! } { [%csl Rd8,Rg5,Rh8][%cal Rf7h8,Rf7d8] }) 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.13"]
[Round "20"]
[White "Lasker, Emanuel"]
[Black "Maroczy, Geza"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "99"]
[ECO "C17"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e5 c5 { An aggressive move, common in the
French Defense. Black challenges White's center by attacking a central pawn
with a flank pawn. } 5. a3 cxd4 6. axb4 dxc3 7. bxc3 { White has weak doubled c-pawns, but has compensation in the form of the
two open files. } { [%csl Rc2,Rc3][%cal Yd1d4] } 7... Qc7 { [%csl Rc3][%cal Rc7c3] } 8. Nf3 Ne7 (8... Qxc3+ 9. Bd2 Qc7 { Black has won a pawn, but since it's cost him a tempo (plus White's c2-pawn
can now advance) he doesn't really get full value. }) 9. Bd3 Ng6 { We see now why Maroczy didn't snatch the c-pawn. He's aiming at
the e5-pawn; once this pawn is eliminated, Black's two central pawns will
become powerful. } { [%cal Rc7e5,Gf3e5] } 10. O-O Nd7 { Maroczy seems to have changed plans and is
being overly cautious; we're left wondering why. } (10... Nxe5 11. Nxe5 Qxe5 { [%csl Rc3][%cal Re5c3] } 12. Bd2 O-O { This would have been a better course of
action. White's cramping central pawn would be eliminated and Black would have
a central pawn majority. }) 11. Re1 Qxc3 { Maroczy finally grabs the pawn while maintaining the pressure on e5. } { [%cal Rc3e5,Rd7e5,Rg6e5,Gf3e5,Ge1e5] } 12. Bd2 { [%cal Rd2c3] } 12... Qc7 { The e5-square is still
the center of attention. } { [%cal Rc7e5,Rd7e5,Rg6e5,Gf3e5,Ge1e5] } 13. Qe2 O-O 14. Qe3 { Lasker bides his time. The
Queen still defends e5 but also increases the number of squares it controls. } 14... Nb6 { [%cal Yb6c4,Rc4e3,Rc4d2] } 15. Qg5 Nc4 { [%cal Rc4d2] } 16. Bc3 h6 17. Qg4 Ne7 18. Qh5 Bd7 19. g4 { Now we see why the White Queen has gone over to the
Kingside -- Lasker plans to tear up the pawn cover around the Black King. } 19... Bb5 20. g5 g6 { Obviously wrong. This just gives back the pawn and opens the h-file
for a possible White invasion. } (20... Nb6 21. Bxb5 Qxc3 22. gxh6 Qxc2 23. hxg7 Kxg7 24. Rac1 Qg6+ 25. Qxg6+ Nxg6 26. Rc7 Rab8 { While it's true
that White has a Rook on the seventh rank, his pawn structure is awful. Black
should be better in the long run (he's a pawn ahead plus he has a passed
d-pawn). }) 21. Qxh6 Nb6 { [%csl Rc3][%cal Rc7c3] } 22. Ra3 { [%csl Gc3][%cal Ga3c3] } 22... Bxd3 23. cxd3 { The b-pawn is isolated and might become a
target. } { [%csl Rb4] } 23... Nf5 24. Qh3 Qe7 { Maroczy hits at two
weaknesses simultaneously: the isolated b-pawn and the g-pawn which is
presently unable to be defended by another pawn. } { [%csl Rb4,Rg5][%cal Re7b4,Re7g5] } 25. Qg4 { Overprotecting the pawn and clearing the road for h2-h4. } { [%csl Gb4,Gg5][%cal Gg4g5,Gf3g5,Gc3b4] } 25... Kg7 26. Rea1 { Threatening Rxa7. } { [%csl Ra7][%cal Ra1a7] } 26... Rfc8 { Maroczy deftly counters the threat (see the variation to White's 27th
move). } { [%csl Rc3][%cal Rc8c3] } 27. h4 (27. Rxa7 Rxa7 28. Rxa7 Rxc3 { Black is up a minor piece for a
pawn. }) 27... Na4 28. Bd2 (28. Rxa4 Rxc3) 28... b5 { [%csl Ga4][%cal Gb5a4] } 29. R3a2 Rh8 { Maroczy apparently abandons one open file for the other, but he's
merely improving the positions of both Rooks.. } 30. Kg2 Rac8 { Both of Black's
open files are now commanded by a Rook. } 31. Rh1 { Overprotecting the h4-pawn. } { [%csl Gh4][%cal Gg4h4,Gf3h4,Rf5h4,Rh8h4] } 31... Qc7 { At first glance the battery looks
impressive, but the Queen really has nowhere to go on the c-file... } { [%csl Rc1,Rc2,Rc3,Rc4,Rc5][%cal Rd2c1,Ra2c2,Rd2c3,Rd3c4,Rb4c5] } 32. Nd4 { ...
and Lasker takes yet another square away from the Black Queen. } { [%csl Rc1,Rc2,Rc3,Rc4,Rc5,Rc6][%cal Rd2c1,Ra2c2,Rd2c3,Rd3c4,Rb4c5,Rd4c6] } 32... Qd7 33. Nxf5+ exf5 34. Qd4 { Lasker's plan is to play e6+ and win the Black Queen on the next
move. } 34... Qe6 { Blocking the e-pawn's advance. Unfortunately the a7-pawn is now
undefended. } 35. Qxa7 d4 { Maroczy gives a discovered
attack of his own. } { [%csl Ra2][%cal Re6a2] } 36. Raa1 Qxe5 { The lost pawn has been recovered. } 37. Rae1 Qd5+ 38. Kg3 Rhe8 39. h5 gxh5 40. Rxe8 Rxe8 41. Rxh5 Nc3 { The Black Knight switches outpost squares to get closer to the White King. } { [%cal Yc3e2,Re2g3] } 42. Qb6 { Lasker now threatens mate in two moves: 43.Qh6+
Kg8 44.Qh8# } { [%cal Yb6h6,Yg7g8,Rh6h8] } 42... Ne2+ { "Priority of check" buys Maroczy some time. White has no
time to put his own plans into action since he must react to the check. } 43. Kh2 (43. Kh4 Qh1#) 43... Qe6 { The Black Queen blocks the threatened
mate-in-two, but the b5-pawn must pay the ultimate price. } 44. Qxb5 { White is
a pawn ahead and can develop some serious pressure along the open h-file.
Maroczy needs to find a way to keep White occupied. } 44... Qd6+ 45. Kg2 Nf4+ 46. Bxf4 { An easy move to spot. The Bishop was accomplishing
little on d2, so it trades itself for a more active Black piece. } { [%csl Rd6][%cal Rf4d6] } 46... Qxf4 { Maroczy has run out of checks and the initiative passes to White. } 47. Qxe8 Qg4+ { The double attack appears to buy
Maroczy some more time. } { [%csl Rg2,Rh5][%cal Rg4h5,Rg4g2] } 48. Kf1 Qxh5 49. Qe5+ { Lasker goes his opponent one better with a triple attack. } { [%csl Rd4,Rf5,Rg7][%cal Re5g7,Re5d4] } 49... Kg8 50. Qxf5 { Maroczy, two pawns down, has a losing endgame ahead of him. He throws in
the towel. } 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.13"]
[Round "20"]
[White "Yates, Frederick"]
[Black "Capablanca, Jose Raul"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[PlyCount "57"]
[ECO "C91"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 { The Ruy Lopez. White puts pressure on the e5-pawn
by threatening to capture its defender (the c6-Knight). } 3... a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 (5... Nxe4 6. Qe2 Nc5 7. Bxc6 dxc6 8. Qxe5+ Be6 { White has regained his
pawn. }) 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3 { [%cal Yb3c2] } 8... O-O 9. d4 Bg4 { The whole opening has been a fight for the center. Now, by pinning the Knight,
Black deprives the d4-pawn of the Knight's protection. } { [%cal Rg4d1] } 10. Be3 { [%csl Gd4][%cal Ge3d4] } 10... exd4 11. cxd4 { White has a central
pawn majority, while Black's pawn advantage lies on the Queenside. } { [%csl Ya6,Yb5,Yc7,Yd4,Ye4] } 11... Na5 (11... Nxe4?? 12. Bd5 { [%csl Rc6,Re4][%cal Rd5e4,Rd5c6] }) 12. Bc2 Nc4 13. Nbd2 Nxe3 (13... Nxb2 { Capa could have snapped up a pawn here, but preferred to undermine
White's control of the center instead. }) 14. Rxe3 c5 15. Qe1 Nd7 { Played to be
able to reply to cxd5 with ...Nxc5. } 16. h3 (16. dxc5 Nxc5) 16... Bh5 17. dxc5 Nxc5 18. Rd1 { Centralizing the Rook and getting it to a half-open file. } 18... Rc8 { Capa responds by placing his own Rook on a completely open file. } 19. e5 Bg5 { [%csl Re3][%cal Rg5e3] } 20. Rc3 b4 { Capa gains time and
space by combining developing moves and pawn advances with threats. } { [%csl Rc3][%cal Rb4c3] } 21. Rc4 d5 { [%csl Rc4][%cal Rd5c4] } 22. Rxb4 { Despite
being a pawn down, Capa has the better position. His pieces and pawns control
a lot of territory in White's half of the board. } { [%csl Ya4,Yb3,Yc4,Yd2,Yd3,Ye3,Ye4,Yf3,Yf4,Yg4,Yh4][%cal Yh5f3,Yg5d2,Yd5e4,Yd5c4,Yc5b3,Yc5a4,Yc5e4,Yc5d3,Yg5h4] } 22... Qe7 (22... Be7 { This would
have been better. The threat is ...Ne6 with a discovered attack from the
e7-Bishop on the b4-Rook. It would also have avoided Nxg5 which leads to a
draw (as we'll soon see). }) 23. Nxg5 Bxd1 24. Bxh7+ Kh8 25. Rh4 { This move is
possible only because the g5-Knight blocks the Black Queen's access to h4. } 25... Qxg5 26. f4 { Simultaneously attacking the
Queen and defending the Rook. } { [%csl Rg5,Gh4][%cal Rf4g5,Ge1h4] } 26... Qe7 27. Bc2+ { Discovered
check. } { [%csl Rh8][%cal Rh4h8] } 27... Kg8 28. Bh7+ { We can see what Yates is up to:
he'll settle for a draw by repetition against the World Champion -- no problem! } { [%csl Rg8][%cal Rh7g8] } 28... Kh8 29. Bc2+ { Capa sees that there's no way to avoid
a draw so the players agree to end the hostilities. } { [%csl Rh8][%cal Rh4h8] } 1/2-1/2

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.13"]
[Round "20"]
[White "Lasker, Edward"]
[Black "Reti, Richard"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "71"]
[ECO "C97"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 { The Ruy Lopez. White pressures the e5-pawn by
attacking its protector. } 3... a6 { [%csl Rb5][%cal Ra6b5] } 4. Ba4 (4. Bxc6 dxc6 { This is the Exchange Variation, which will become popular in the 1970's. }) 4... Nf6 { As we've seen in the notes to a previous game,
this is a sham threat (Black can't hold on to the pawn). } { [%csl Re4][%cal Rf6e4] } 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 { [%csl Ra4][%cal Rb5a4] } 7. Bb3 d6 { [%cal Yc8g4] } 8. c3 { Opening a pocket for the light-squared Bishop. } { [%csl Yc2][%cal Yb3c2] } 8... O-O (8... Bg4 { Pinning the
f3-Knight was another possibility. }) 9. h3 { Preventing
the Bishop from pinning the Knight. } { [%csl Gg4][%cal Gh3g4] } 9... Na5 { [%csl Rb3][%cal Ra5b3] } 10. Bc2 c5 { Reti starts a Queenside flank attack (which is fairly common in the main line
Ruy Lopez). } 11. d4 { The best response to an opponent's flank attack is a
counterattack in the center -- and that's what young Lasker does here. } 11... Qc7 12. Nbd2 Nd7 { Reti continues with his theme of a Queenside attack; he's maneuvered
his Queen and Kingside Knight toward that side of the board. } 13. d5 { Lasker
locks the center. The game will now stay in a positional mode until one of the
players decides to break it open. } 13... f5 { Reti opts for an immediate central pawn
break. He wants to trade one of his flank pawns for a more valuable central
pawn. This will also strand White's d-pawn. } 14. exf5 { Note that
the d5-pawn is now unsupported. White can't prop it up by c3-c4, since Black
can just reply ...bxc4. } { [%csl Yd5] } 14... Nb6 { Reti goes after the pawn. } { [%csl Rd5][%cal Rb6d5] } 15. Ne4 { Lasker responds by shifting the Knight to
allow the Queen to cover the pawn. But guarding pawns is not the best use of
one's Queen. Furthermore, the f5-pawn is no longer protected by the c2-Bishop
(the Knight blocks the Bishop's path). } { [%csl Gd5][%cal Gd1d5] } 15... Bxf5 { Reti has evened the material
balance. } 16. Neg5 { The Knights defend each
other. } { [%csl Gf3,Gg5][%cal Gf3g5,Gg5f3] } 16... Qd7 { Reti puts pressure on the
White Kingside defenses and overprotects his Bishop. } { [%csl Gf5,Rh3][%cal Gd7f5,Gf8f5,Rf5h3] } (16... Bxg5 { Black could
easily have traded a Bishop for a Knight; the dark-squared Bishop wasn't
doiing much on e7 anyway. } 17. Nxg5) 17. g4 { [%csl Rf5][%cal Rg4f5] } 17... Bxc2 18. Qxc2 { Completing the trade and setting up mate on the
move. } { [%csl Rh7][%cal Rc2h7] } 18... g6 19. Qe4 { Centralizing the Queen while
continuing to defend the d5-pawn. } { [%csl Gd5][%cal Ge4d5] } 19... Bxg5 20. Nxg5 Qb7 { [%csl Rd5][%cal Rb7d5,Ge4d5] } 21. f4 Qxd5 22. fxe5 Rae8 { Pinning the
e5-pawn, preventing exd6. } { [%csl Re4][%cal Re8e4] } (22... Qxe4 { Trading Queens just hands the
initiative to White. } 23. Nxe4 { [%csl Rd6][%cal Re5d6,Re4d6] } 23... dxe5 24. Be3 { [%csl Rc5][%cal Re3c5] }) (22... Qxe5 23. Qxe5 dxe5 { Black's
isolated pawn will become a target. } { [%csl Re5] }) 23. Qxd5+ Nxd5 { [%csl Re5][%cal Rd6e5,Ge1e5] } 24. e6 { Protecting the pawn by advancing it. Notice that Black's
Queenside attack has stalled. This is why a central counterattack is the best
way to meet a flank attack; if you give the opponent something to think about
in the center, it prevents him from carrying out his plans for the flank. } 24... Rf6 { [%csl Ge6][%cal Re8e6,Rf6e6,Ge1e6,Gg5e6] } 25. Rd1 { Despite the fact that the e6-pawn now has one less
defender, Black doesn't have the time to capture it: White's is the stronger
threat. The Knight is menaced and there's a x-ray attack on the d6-pawn. } { [%csl Rd5,Rd6,Re6][%cal Re8e6,Rf6e6,Gg5e6,Rd1d6] } 25... Nc7 { [%csl Re6][%cal Rc7e6,Re8e6,Rf6e6,Gg5e6] } 26. Rxd6 { A nice maneuver! White picks up a pawn and the Rook
once again defends the e6-pawn. } { [%csl Re6][%cal Re8e6,Gd6e6,Gg5e6,Rc7e6] } 26... h6 { Reti kicks at one of the pawn's defenders.
The problem is that he kicks at the wrong defender. Now he'll lose the
exchange instead of just losing a pawn. } (26... Nc4 { If
Black wanted to attack a defender, he should have done it this way. } { [%csl Rd6][%cal Rc4d6] } 27. Rc6 Nxe6 28. Rxa6 { The move ...Nxg5 is impossible because of Rxf6. }) 27. Ne4 Rfxe6 { [%csl Rd6,Re4][%cal Re6d6,Re6e4] } 28. Nf6+ { Priority of check means that the double-attack fails -- Black has no time to
win the Rook. } { [%csl Re8,Rg8][%cal Rf6g8,Rf6e8] } 28... Rxf6 { Relatively best; Black must lose the exchange either way. } 29. Rxf6 Kg7 { [%csl Rf6][%cal Rg7f6] } 30. Rd6 Re7 31. b3 c4 32. Ba3 { Preparing
to win a pawn by Rxa6, uncovering the Bishop's attack on the e7-Rook. } 32... cxb3 33. axb3 Nxb3 { [%csl Ra1][%cal Rb3a1] } 34. Rb1 { [%csl Rb3][%cal Rb1b3] } 34... Na5 35. Rxa6 Nxa6 36. Bxe7 { And Reti can't prevent the loss of more material, so he
resigns. } (36... Bxe7 36. Nc4 Rxb5 { In both variations, White is up the exchange and
a pawn, forcing Black into a hopeless endgame. }) (36... Bxe7 36. Kf7 { [%csl Re7][%cal Rf7e7] } 37. Rxb5 { [%csl Ra5][%cal Rb5a5] }) 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.13"]
[Round "20"]
[White "Marshall, Frank James"]
[Black "Alekhine, Alexander"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[PlyCount "64"]
[ECO "D35"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

{ The opening of this game is a struggle for the key
center squares. Watch the way each move has an influence on the center. } { [%csl Yd4,Yd5,Ye4,Ye5] }
1. d4 { [%csl Ge5][%cal Gd4e5] } 1... Nf6 { [%csl Gd5,Ge4][%cal Gf6d5,Gf6e4] } 2. Nf3 { [%csl Gd4,Ge5][%cal Gf3d4,Gf3e5] } 2... e6 { [%csl Gd5][%cal Ge6d5] } 3. c4 { [%csl Gd5][%cal Gc4d5] } 3... d5 { [%csl Ge4][%cal Gd5e4] } 4. Nc3 { [%csl Gd5,Ge4][%cal Gc3d5] } 4... c6 { [%csl Gd5][%cal Gc6d5] } 5. cxd5 exd5 6. Bg5 { This
move does influence the center, believe it or not. The White Bishop, by
pinning the Black Knight, removes the Knight's control of d5 and e4. } { [%cal Rg5d8] } 6... Be7 { Another center-influencing move. The Black Bishop interposes itself between
the Black Queen and White Bishop, preventing the pin and allowing the Black
Knight to control the center once again. } 7. e3 { [%csl Gd4][%cal Ge3d4] } 7... Bf5 { [%csl Ge4][%cal Gf5e4] } 8. Bd3 { [%csl Ge4][%cal Gd3e4] } 8... Bxd3 9. Qxd3 { [%csl Ge4][%cal Gd3e4] } 9... Nbd7 { [%csl Ge5][%cal Gd7e5] } 10. O-O { This move isn't
concerned with central control; King safety is the key here. } 10... O-O { Black
follows suit, safeguarding his King on one of the flanks while simultaneously
developing the Kingside Rook. } 11. Qf5 { [%csl Ge4,Ge5][%cal Gf5e5,Gf5e4] } 11... Ne4 { [%csl Rg5][%cal Rd8g5,Re4g5] } 12. Bxe7 Qxe7 13. Nxe4 dxe4 (13... Qxe4 14. Qxd7) 14. Nd2 { [%csl Re4][%cal Rd2e4,Rf5e4,Ge7e4] } 14... Nf6 { The pawn on e4 has become the center of both players' attention. } { [%csl Ge4][%cal Ge7e4,Gf6e4,Rd2e4] } 15. Rac1 { In the absence of an additional way to attack the e4-pawn, Marshall
plays a good positional move: he moves his Rook to a half-open file. } 15... Rfe8 { Alekhine responds by overprotecting the e4-pawn. Now any of the pawn's
defenders (Queen, Rook, or Knight) can move away without risking the loss of
the pawn. } 16. Rc5 { Marshall increases the Rook's
mobility. } { [%cal Yc5a5,Yc5e5,Yc5c1] } 16... Nd5 { The Knight cuts communication between the White Rook and Queen.
Now we see the value of overprotection -- the e4-pawn is still defended. } 17. Rfc1 { Another strong positional move, as the Rooks are now doubled on the
half-open file. } 17... Rad8 { The Black Rook moves to a half-open file as well. } 18. b4 a6 19. a3 Rd6 20. g3 h6 21. Nb1 { [%csl Yc3][%cal Yb1c3] } 21... g6 { [%csl Rf5][%cal Rg6f5] } 22. Qh3 { Marshall threatens an attack
along the h-file. } { [%csl Rh6][%cal Rh3h6] } 22... Qg5 { [%csl Rg5][%cal Rc5g5] } (22... h5 { This was better.
With the actual move, Black has placed his Queen on the same rank with the
White Rook, pinning his own Knight. }) 23. Nc3 { [%csl Rd5][%cal Rc3d5] } 23... b6 { [%csl Rc5][%cal Rb6c5] } (23... Nxc3 24. Rxg5 Ne2+ { [%csl Rc1,Rg1][%cal Re2g1] } 25. Kg2 Nxc1 26. Qxh6 { White is up material with an attack to boot. }) 24. Nxd5 { White is pretty much forced to give up the exchange. } 24... bxc5 25. Nc7 { [%csl Ra6,Re8][%cal Rc7e8,Rc7a6] } 25... cxd4? (25... Red8 26. Rxc5 Qe7 27. Nxa6 { Black could have returned two pawns and still had an even position. }) 26. Nxe8 { [%csl Rd6][%cal Re8d6] } 26... dxe3 { It's really hard to see what Alekhine is doing
here; why is he letting his army be decimated? } 27. Nxd6 exf2+ { [%csl Rg1][%cal Rf2g1] } 28. Kxf2 { And now we see the point -- the draw is forced. } 28... Qd2+ 29. Kg1 Qe3+ 30. Kg2 Qf3+ 31. Kg1 Qe3+ 32. Kg2 Qf3+ { ½-½ The game is a draw. } 1/2-1/2

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.13"]
[Round "20"]
[White "Janowski, Dawid"]
[Black "Bogoljubow, Efim"]
[Result "0-1"]
[PlyCount "164"]
[ECO "D52"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

{ Again (as in the previous game) watch how the players fight for control of
the center. }
1. d4 { [%csl Ge5][%cal Gd4e5] } 1... d5 { [%csl Ge4][%cal Gd5e4] } 2. Nf3 { [%csl Gd4,Ge5][%cal Gf3d4,Gf3e5] } 2... Nf6 { [%csl Gd5,Ge4][%cal Gf6e4,Gf6d5] } 3. c4 { [%csl Rd5][%cal Rc4d5] } 3... e6 { [%csl Gd5][%cal Ge6d5] } 4. Nc3 { [%csl Rd5,Ge4][%cal Gc3e4,Rc3d5] } 4... Nbd7 { [%csl Ge5][%cal Gd7e5] } 5. Bg5 { This move indirectly influences the center. The
Bishop pins the Knight, which was exerting its influence on e4 and d5. } { [%csl Gd5,Ge4,Rf6][%cal Gf6e4,Gf6d5,Rg5d8] } 5... c6 { [%csl Gd5][%cal Gc6d5] } 6. e3 { [%csl Gd4][%cal Ge3d4] } 6... Qa5 { Another move that indirectly has central influence.
The f3-Knight is now pinned and as such no longer controls e4 and d5. This
move also releases the pin on the f6-Knight. } { [%csl Rc3,Gd5,Ge4][%cal Ra5e1,Gc3e4,Gc3d5] } 7. cxd5 { More fighting for
central control (by capturing a central pawn). } 7... exd5 { [%csl Ge4][%cal Gd5e4] } 8. Bd3 { [%csl Ge4][%cal Gd3e4] } 8... Ne4 { This doesn't control the center, but
instead occupies it (which is the whole point of trying to dominate the
central squares -- once you pile up enough force on a square, your pieces are
free to occupy it). } 9. O-O Nxg5 { [%csl Ge4][%cal Gg5e4] } 10. Nxg5 { [%csl Ge4][%cal Gg5e4] } 10... Be7 { [%csl Rg5][%cal Re7g5] } 11. f4 { [%csl Ge5,Gg5][%cal Gf4g5] } 11... Nf6 { [%csl Ge4][%cal Gf6e4] } 12. Qe1 { Opposing the enemy Queen and defending the e-pawn (while also preparing for
its future advance). } { [%csl Ra5,Ge3][%cal Re1a5,Ge1e3] } 12... Qb6 { Removing the Queen from the
danger of a discovered attack by a sudden Knight move. } { [%csl Rb2][%cal Rb6b2] } 13. Rb1 { [%csl Gb2][%cal Gb1b2] } 13... Bd7 14. Nf3 { [%csl Gd4,Ge5][%cal Gf3e5,Gf3d4] } 14... Kf8 { Bogoljubow
makes a pretty ususual choice here. His idea is to avoid White's planned
attack against a castled position (the d3-Bishop is already aimed at h7, the
Queen would go to the h-file, as would the f1-Rook via f3). The problems are
that his King is still near the center and his h8-Rook is close to being
buried. It's going to be tough for Bogo to go on the offensive -- he's now
pretty much stuck with seeing what his opponent plays and reacting to it. } 15. Ne5 { [%csl Rd7][%cal Re5d7] } 15... Be8 16. b4 a6 17. Na4 { [%csl Rb6][%cal Ra4b6] } 17... Qa7 { Black's pieces are being driven back and he's losing a lot of space. } 18. Nc5 { The maurauding Knights control a lot of squares in Black's half
of the board. } { [%csl Ga6,Gb7,Gc6,Gd7,Ge6,Gf7,Gg6][%cal Ge5g6,Ge5f7,Ge5d7,Ge5c6,Gc5e6,Gc5d7,Gc5a6] } 18... h5 { Played to enable the Rook to come out into the game. } 19. a4 Rh6 { Now a battle of maneuver begins. } 20. a5 Rd8 21. g3 Qb8 22. Rb2 Bd7 { [%csl Gd7][%cal Re5d7,Rc5d7,Gf6d7,Gd8d7] } 23. Kg2 { Since the game is pretty
well closed, the King can start to take an active role. The idea is to prevent
...Bh3 (attacking the f1-Rook, and after Rf3 White's heavy pieces are disconnected from each other) and to support an advance of the Kingside pawns. } 23... Bc8 24. h3 Qc7 25. Rh1 Re8 26. Kg1 { The h3-pawn is covered by the Rook, so the King can
drop back into the pocket. } { [%csl Gh3][%cal Gh1h3] } 26... Bd6 27. Rg2 { There's a pawnstorm brewing! } 27... Qe7 28. Qe2 Nd7 { This allows the Black Queen access to the Kingside. } 29. g4 Nxe5 30. fxe5 Bxc5 31. bxc5 hxg4 32. hxg4 Rxh1+ 33. Kxh1 Qh4+ 34. Kg1 (34. Rh2 { [%csl Rh4][%cal Rh2h4] } 34... Qg5 { [%csl Rg4][%cal Rg5g4,Rc8g4,Ge2g4] } 35. Qf2 Bxg4 36. Qf4 { [%csl Rg5][%cal Rf4g5] } 36... Qxf4 37. Rh8+ { [%csl Rf8][%cal Rh8f8] } 37... Ke7 38. Rxe8+ { [%csl Re7][%cal Re8e7] } 38... Kxe8 39. exf4) 34... Ke7 35. Qf2 Qxf2+ 36. Kxf2 g6 37. Kg3 { With the Queens off the board, the Kings can take a more active part in
the game. } 37... Rh8 { Grabbing the open file and denying it to the
White Rook. } { [%cal Yh8h1] } 38. Rg1 { Preventing the Black Rook from playing ...Rh1 to get
behind the White pawns. } 38... Rh6 39. Rf1 Bd7 { The players are really just making
waiting moves, trying to make the fortieth move time control. } 40. Be2 { [%csl Gg4][%cal Ge2g4] } 40... Rh8 41. Bf3 Bc8 42. Bg2 Be6 { The players are still
making waiting moves. Neither wants to offer a draw yet, so they warily circle
each other and look for a slight error to exploit. } 43. Rb1 { [%csl Rb7][%cal Rb1b7] } 43... Bc8 { [%csl Gb7][%cal Gc8b7] } 44. Rb6 { This is a completely
inexplicable move. It accomplishes nothing productive and cuts down on the
mobility of the Rook. } 44... Rd8 45. Bf3 Rh8 46. Rb2 f6 { Bogo's intent is to open up
the Kingside to allow his King to march to g5 (joining in the attack on the
g4-pawn). } 47. exf6+ Kxf6 48. Rf2 (48. Kf4 { This would have prevented the
Black King from getting to g5. } 48... g5+ 49. Kg3 { Now the Black King is totally shut out by
White pawns and has no way to get into the game. The players could now easily
call this one a draw. } { [%csl Gb6,Gd6,Ge5,Gf5,Gh5][%cal Gg4h5,Gg4f5,Gd4e5,Gc5d6,Ga5b6,Gc5b6] }) 48... Kg5 { Black's plan
now should be to play Rh4 and increase the pressure on the g4-pawn. } { [%cal Rg5g4,Rc8g4,Gf3g4,Gg3g4] } 49. Rb2 { This discourages the planned exchange on g4, as Black would gain
nothing from it. } { [%cal Rb2b7] } 49... Re8 { [%csl Re3][%cal Re8e3] } (49... Rh4 50. Rb1 Bxg4 51. Bxg4 Rxg4+ 52. Kf2 Rh4 53. Rxb7 { And Black's whole position is now
compromised. The White King is able to defend the e3-pawn (the base of the
White pawn chain), while the Black King isn't able to come to the defense of
the two unsupported Black pawns. } { [%csl Ra6,Rc6] }) 50. Re2 { [%csl Ge3][%cal Ge2e3] } 50... Re7 51. Re1 { It's a standoff. As long as the Black Rook remains on the e-file, White's
Rook must stay on the file as well. The players could call it a draw here as
neither player can make any real headway without an error from his opponent.
But for some reason they play on. } 51... Re8 52. e4 Re7 (52... dxe4 53. Rxe4 Rxe4 54. Bxe4 Bxg4 55. Bxg6 Kxg6 56. Kxg4 Kf6 57. Kf4 Ke6 58. Ke4 Kd7 59. Kf5 Kc7 60. Ke6 Kc8 { With a forced draw. Analysis by Alekhine. }) 53. e5 Be6 54. Kf2 Rh7 (54... Kf4 { Black could have (and probably should have) inserted the King
immediately. }) 55. Rb1 { The attack on the pawn prevents
the Black Rook's infiltration via the h-file. } { [%csl Rb7][%cal Rb1b7] } (55. Ke3 { Preventing the Black King from intruding via f4. This would probably have
saved White from losing. } { [%csl Gf4][%cal Ge3f4] } 55... Rh3 56. Rg1 { Preventing ...
Rg3 and maintaining the balance. } { [%csl Gg3][%cal Gg1g3] }) 55... Kf4 56. Rb3 Rh2+ { The check doesn't give White time for Rxb7. } { [%csl Rf2][%cal Rh2f2] } 57. Bg2 Bxg4 { Black
finally wins the pawn. } 58. Kg1 { Janowski still can't play Rxb7 (see the
variation). } (58. Rxb7 Bh3 { [%csl Rg2][%cal Rh2g2,Rh3g2] }) 58... Rh7 { [%csl Gb7][%cal Gh7b7] } 59. Kf2 g5 60. Rc3 Rf7 { I typically don't quote much of
Alekhine's analysis in these games, but I think it's appropriate to let him
have the floor here: "Starting a tedious series of Rook moves, obviously to
gain time, the chief difficulty being for Black to avoid a three-fold
repetition of position with the same player to move". } (60... Bh5 { Alekhine
gives this as the correct move. The plan is to support the g-pawn's advance. }) 61. Rb3 Rh7 62. Rc3 Rf7 63. Re3 Re7 64. Rb3 Rg7 65. Re3 Rc7 66. Rb3 Rd7 67. Re3 Rc7 68. Rb3 Rg7 69. Re3 Rd7 70. Rb3 Re7 71. Re3 Rf7 72. Rb3 Rc7 73. Re3 Rh7 74. Rb3 Bd1 { Finally -- a non-Rook move. } { [%csl Rb3][%cal Rd1b3] } 75. Rd3 { [%csl Rd1][%cal Rd3d1] } 75... Bh5 76. Re3 g4 77. Re1 Bg6 78. Rh1 { Janowski hopes to
simplify the game, stave off the g-pawn's advance, and fix the Black King in
place by the threat of his own e-pawn's advancement. But he had much better
chances of getting at least a draw by keeping his Rook on the board. } 78... Rxh1 79. Bxh1 Bf5 80. Bg2 Be6 { Now the passed e-pawn is blockaded, freeing the Black
King. White is completely stuck for a good move in this position. } 81. Bh1 g3+ 82. Ke2 Bh3 { And Janowski (no doubt embittered now that he didn't take Bogo's
earlier draw offer) finally resigns. } (83. Bh3 82... Bf3 83... g2 Bxg2 84... Bxg2 e6 85... Bf3+ Kd3 86... Bh5 { And
White has no hope of promoting his passed pawn. It'll take some work, but
Black (with the Bishop advantage) will win. } { [%csl Ge8][%cal Gh5e8] }) (83. Bh3 82... Kd2 83... Kf5 Kc3 84... g2 Bxg2 85... Bxg2 { And Black will win (with some additional time and effort). }) 0-1

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.15"]
[Round "21"]
[White "Tartakower, Ksawery"]
[Black "Lasker, Emanuel"]
[Result "0-1"]
[PlyCount "96"]
[ECO "A20"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. c4 { The English Opening. } 1... e5 { Rather than play the
symmetrical English (1...c5), Dr. Lasker carves out a bit of the center for
himself, } { [%csl Gd4][%cal Ge5d4] } 2. a3 { This looks weird but has a valid point.
Tartakower stops his opponent from playing ...Bb4 which would pin the White
d-pawn to the King and prevent it from advancing. } { [%csl Gb4][%cal Ga3b4] } 2... Nf6 { [%csl Gd5,Ge4][%cal Gf6e4,Gf6d5] } 3. e3 { Challenging Black's control of d4. } { [%csl Gd4][%cal Ge3d4] } 3... Be7 { Lasker is just clearing the way to castle. } 4. Qc2 { [%csl Ge4][%cal Gc2e4] } 4... O-O 5. Nc3 { [%cal Gc3e4,Gc3d5] } 5... d6 { [%cal Gd6e5] } 6. Nf3 { [%cal Gf3d4,Gf3e5] } 6... Re8 { Both players are making center-controlling moves.
Note that this one is indirect: the Rook won't influence the center directly
until the e7-Bishop moves. } { [%csl Ge4][%cal Ge8e4] } 7. Be2 { Played not to influence the center but to
clear the Kingside for castling. } 7... Bf8 { Now we see the
Rook take part in the struggle for the central squares. } { [%csl Ge5][%cal Ge8e5] } 8. O-O Nc6 { [%csl Gd4,Ge5][%cal Gc6d4,Gc6e5] } 9. d4 { [%csl Ge5][%cal Gd4e5] } 9... Bg4 { Another move that indirectly controls the center. The Bishop puts
pressure on the f3-Knight, which covers d4 and e5. } { [%cal Rg4f3,Gf3e5] } 10. d5 { Driving off a piece that, too, covers d4 and e5. } { [%csl Rc6][%cal Rd5c6] } 10... Ne7 { The Knight still keeps its hand in the center by pressuring d5. } { [%csl Gd5][%cal Ge7d5] } 11. h3 { Tartakower puts the question to the Bishop: "Capture or retreat!" } 11... Bd7 12. Nh2 { The idea is for the f-pawn to advance and break the center. } { [%cal Yf2f4] } 12... Qc8 13. e4 { The center is now blocked. Unless the center is broken, the Knights
will become more valuable than the Bishops. } 13... Ng6 { Lasker tries to
discourage the planned move f2-f4. } { [%cal Gg6f4] } 14. f4 exf4 (14... Nxf4 15. Bxf4 exf4 16. Rxf4 { With the same position as after White's 16th move in the actual game. }) 15. Bxf4 Nxf4 16. Rxf4 Be7 17. Raf1 { Tartakower has siezed the open file with
both of his Rooks. He also has a pretty big space advantage -- all of the
Black units are confined to Black's first three ranks. } 17... Rf8 18. Qd3 { [%cal Yd3g3] } 18... Be8 19. Qg3 { Tartakower now has all three heavy pieces bearing down on
the Black Kingside. } 19... Qd8 20. Nd1 Nd7 21. Ne3 { Tartakower brings another piece
toward the Kingside. But Lasker doesn't have much to worry about yet; his King
is adequately defended. } 21... Bg5 { [%csl Rf4][%cal Rg5f4,Gd8g5] } 22. Rg4 { [%csl Rg5][%cal Rg3g5] } 22... f6 { [%csl Gg5][%cal Gf6g5] } 23. Qf2 { Played to give
the g4-Rook a flight square. } { [%cal Yg4g3] } 23... h5 { [%csl Rg4][%cal Rh5g4] } 24. Rg3 h4 25. Rg4 Bh5 { [%csl Re2][%cal Rh5e2] } 26. Nf5 Bxg4 27. Nxg4 { Tartakower has given up
the exchange, but what has he really gained here? The Black King is still
comfortably defended. } 27... Qe8 28. Bf3 Ne5 29. Nxe5 Qxe5 { Lasker has turned the
tables and is now pushing forward on the Kingside. } 30. Nxh4 Bxh4 31. Qxh4 f5 (31... Qd4+ 32. Qf2 Qxc4 { Black could have played this if all he wanted was
material gain. But this is risky -- the Black Queen is cut off from the
Kingside. }) 32. exf5 Rxf5 33. Re1 { [%csl Re5][%cal Re1e5] } 33... Qxb2 { With open
lines and less Kingside congestion, Lasker can now afford to grab a pawn on
the other side of the board. } 34. Bg4 { [%csl Rf5][%cal Rg4f5] } 34... Qd4+ { [%csl Rg1][%cal Rd4g1] } 35. Kh2 Raf8 36. Qe7 (36. Bxf5 { Of course, this can't be played..
. } 36... Qxh4 { [%csl Re1,Rf5][%cal Rf8f5,Rh4e1] }) 36... Qf4+ 37. Kh1 Re5 { [%cal Re5e1,Re5e7] } 38. Rxe5 dxe5 (38... Qxe5 39. Be6+ Kh7 40. Qxf8 { And White is
winning. }) 39. Qxc7 e4 { Passed pawns must be pushed! Nimzovitch hasn't said
this yet (at the time this tournament is being played) but he will in a few
years. } 40. Qe7 Qf6 { Lasker wants to exchange Queens to get his pawns
connected. Then the pawn duo will march striaght up the board, supported by
the Rook. } 41. Qxb7 { This pawn grab will come back to haunt Tartakower, as
we'll soon see. } (41. Qxf6 gxf6 { [%cal Yf6f2,Ye4e2] }) 41... Qa1+ 42. Kh2 Qe5+ 43. Kg1 Rb8 { The idea here is not really to attack the
White Queen. Instead, Lasker wants to clear the b-file for his Rook to use it
as an avenue to attack the White King. } { [%cal Ge5b8,Rb8b7] } 44. Qd7 Rb1+ 45. Kf2 e3+ 46. Ke2 Rb2+ 47. Ke1 Qc3+ 48. Kf1 Qc1+ { 0-1 White resigns. } (49. Qc1+ 48... Bd1 49... Qxd1#) 0-1

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.15"]
[Round "21"]
[White "Capablanca, Jose Raul"]
[Black "Reti, Richard"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "71"]
[ECO "C14"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 e6 { The French Defense. Black supports the advance of his d-pawn to d5. } 2. d4 d5 { [%csl Re4][%cal Rd5e4] } 3. Nc3 { [%csl Ge4][%cal Gc3e4] } 3... Nf6 { [%csl Re4][%cal Rd5e4,Rf6e4] } 4. Bg5 { Here's a good example of a Bishop
influencing squares of the opposite color. White's dark-squared Bishop pins
the f6-Knight to the Queen, preventing the Knight from capturing on e4. Thus
the dark-squared g5-Bishop influences the light-colored square e4. } { [%cal Rg5d8] } 4... Be7 { Breaking the pin. } 5. e5 { [%csl Rf6][%cal Re5f6] } 5... Nfd7 6. Bxe7 Qxe7 { The
center is now closed. At some point, Black will try to break the center with
the pawn advance ...c7-c5. } 7. Qd2 O-O 8. f4 c5 { Reti
plays the expected break. } { [%csl Rd4][%cal Rc5d4] } 9. Nf3 { [%csl Gd4][%cal Gf3d4,Gd2d4] } (9. dxc5 f6 10. exf6 Qxf6 { [%csl Rf4][%cal Rf8f4] } 11. g3 Nxc5 { White has an edge because
of his better Bishop. }) 9... Nc6 { [%cal Rc6d4,Rc5d4] } 10. dxc5 Nxc5 (10... f6 11. exf6 Qxf6 { [%csl Rf4][%cal Gf8f4] } 12. g3 Nxc5 { With the same position as
at the end of the 9.dxc5 variation, except that both players have an extra
Knight developed. }) 11. Bd3 f6 12. exf6 Qxf6 { [%csl Rf4][%cal Rf8f4] } 13. g3 { [%csl Gf4][%cal Gg3f4] } 13... Bd7 { Reti is the first to complete his development,
but his Bishop is blocked in by his other pieces and pawns. } 14. O-O Nxd3 15. cxd3 { This looks odd when compared to Qxd3, but Capa plans to occupy the open
c-file and half-open e-file with his Rooks. } 15... Be8 { Improving the
Bishop's position by moving it to an open diagonal } { [%cal Ye8h5] } 16. Rfe1 Bg6 17. Nb5 { [%cal Yb5c7,Rc7e6] } 17... e5 { Reti sees Capa's plan and nips it in the bud by
advancing the pawn. } 18. Nc3 d4 { [%csl Rc3][%cal Rd4c3] } 19. Ne4 { [%csl Rf6][%cal Re4f6] } 19... Bxe4 20. Rxe4 { The e5-pawn
becomes the center of attention. It's attacked three times and defended just
twice. } { [%cal Rf4e5,Re4e5,Rf3e5,Gf6e5,Gc6e5] } 20... exf4 21. Rxf4 { [%csl Rf6][%cal Rf4f6] } 21... Qd6 22. Re1 { Capa grabs the
open file. } 22... Rxf4 23. Qxf4 Qxf4 24. gxf4 { The players have simplified into an
endgame. White has four pawn islands to Black's three, so Black's plan is now
to create attacks on the extra island. White needs to grab the initiative by
making immediate threats of his own. } 24... Kf8 25. Re4 { Capa doesn't give his opponent time to organize an attack; he grabs the
initiative by attacking the isolated d-pawn right away. } { [%cal Re4d4,Rf3d4,Gc6d4] } 25... Re8 { Instead of
defending the menaced pawn, Reti counterattacks one of the attackers. } 26. Kf2 h6 27. Ne5 Nxe5 28. fxe5 { Capa has created a passed pawn. } { [%csl Ge5] } 28... Kf7 29. Kf3 Rd8 30. Rg4 g5 31. h4 Kg6 32. hxg5 hxg5 33. Ke4 { The White forces inch
forward. } 33... Kh5 { [%csl Rg4][%cal Rh5g4] } (33... Rf8 { Black
should have moved the Rook to the open file, with the idea of infiltrating via
f2 and attacking the White Queenside pawns. } { [%cal Yf8f2,Rf2b2] }) 34. Rg1 Kh4 35. e6 g4 36. e7 { Reti sees the writing on the wall (see the variation) and resigns. He knows
that Capablanca's near-perfect endgame technique will allow him to convert the
extra pawn into a win. } (36... e7 36. Re8 Kf5 37... Rxe7 Rxg4+ 38... Kh5 Rxd4 39... Re2 Rb4 { And the extra pawn will carry the day for White. Variation by Alekhine. }) 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.15"]
[Round "21"]
[White "Yates, Frederick"]
[Black "Marshall, Frank James"]
[Result "0-1"]
[PlyCount "82"]
[ECO "C90"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 { Yates opts to play the Ruy Lopez, which we've
discussed in previous games. } 3... a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 { [%cal Rb3f7] } 7... O-O { The f7-pawn is now defended twice. Had
Marshall not played this, White could have responded with Ng5, with two minor
pieces attacking the pawn. } { [%cal Gf8f7,Gg8f7] } 8. d3 d6 9. c3 { The idea is to create
a pocket for the Bishop's retreat after ...Na5. } { [%cal Yb3c2] } 9... Be6 { Marshall offers a Bishop
trade... } 10. Bxe6 { ..which Yates accepts. } 10... fxe6 { Yes, the e-pawns are doubled, but in this case they actually increase
Black's central control. Black pawns now cover three of the four central
squares and the f8-Rook sits on an open file. } { [%cal Ge5d4,Ge6d5,Gd6e5] } 11. a4 b4 12. Qe2 (12. cxb4 { In this case, doubled pawns would not be good. The pawn has captured away from
the center and can be hard to defend (Bd2 would cover it, but the d3-pawn
would then be undefended and the Bishop would be tied to the defense of the
pawn. }) 12... Nh5 { [%cal Yh5f4,Rf4e2] } 13. d4 { Yates decides to break up the
dominating central pawns. } 13... bxc3 14. bxc3 exd4 15. Nxd4 Nxd4 16. cxd4 { Now both players have two central pawns, but White's
are better: they control squares on Black's half of the board. } { [%cal Ge4f5,Ge4d5,Gd4e5,Gd4c5] } 16... Nf4 { [%cal Gf8f4] } 17. Bxf4 Rxf4 18. Nd2 { The e4-pawn is protected
very well, but that's not why Yates made this move. } { [%cal Ge1e4,Gd2e4] } 18... Qd7 19. Nf1 { This was the real point of Nd2. Yates can now advance the Knight to
either e3 or g3. } { [%cal Yf1e3] } 19... Rf7 20. Rec1 { Grabbing the open file and
requiring Black's Queen to defend the pawn. } { [%cal Rc1c7,Gd7c7] } 20... Raf8 { Doubled Rooks
on an open file are very powerful. } { [%cal Yf8f2] } 21. f3 d5 22. e5 a5 { The pawn was attacked
by the White Queen and needed to be advanced to prevent its loss. } 23. Ng3 { It's hard to know why Yates played this. The
Knight can't move toward the center from here -- both squares are covered by
Black's pawns. } { [%csl Re4,Rf5][%cal Rd5e4,Re6f5] } 23... Bb4 { A nice space-grabbing move. The
Bishop and a-pawn protect each other and the Bishop controls several squares
in the heart of White's half of the board. } { [%cal Gb4a5,Ga5b4,Yb4e1] } 24. Ra2 { The plan is
to double the Rooks on the open c-file. } { [%cal Ya2c2] } 24... Rc8 { The f-file is closed to Black,
so Marshall moves his Rook to the c-pawn's defense (in anticipation of White's
Rac2). } 25. Kh1 { Yates appears to be making waiting moves. } 25... c5 26. dxc5 Rxc5 (26... Bxc5 { Less pleasant for Black, since the Bishop must
be defended by the Rook. } { [%cal Gc8c5,Rc1c5] }) 27. Rac2 Rxc2 { The easiest way to stop the threat
of exchange on c5 is to break up White's Rook battery. } 28. Qxc2 { White has established a new battery on the open c-file. } { [%cal Yc1c8] } 28... Rf4 { [%cal Yf4c4] } 29. Rd1 (29. Qc8+ Qxc8 30. Rxc8+ Bf8 31. Kg1 Rxa4 { and Black has a
passed a-pawn, which can start advancing toward coronation. This will require
White's Rook to return back into White's half of the board and assume a
defensive role. }) 29... Qe8 { It's not a good idea to leave your Queen on the
same file as an enemy Rook, even if a friendly pawn blocks the file. } 30. Ne2 { [%cal Re2f4] } 30... Rc4 { [%cal Rc4c2] } 31. Qb3 Qh5 { Now that he's
blocked the Queenside, Marshall takes the battle to the other side of the
board. There's no threat here -- he's just repositioning the Queen to get it
into the action. } { [%cal Yh5f5,Yf5b1] } 32. Qb2 { Yates doesn't have anything terribly constructive
to do with his pieces. } 32... Qf5 { Marshall's threat is to play ...Rc2 (under the
Black Queen's protection) and fork the White Queen and Knight. } 33. Qa1 (33. h3? Rc2 34. Nd4 Rxb2 35. Nxf5 exf5) 33... Bc5 { The meaning of this move may not be
clear to you now, but you'll see what happens in another couple of moves.
Marshall must first create disarray in White's camp. } (33... Rc2 { This would
make little sense now. } 34. Nd4 Bc3 35. Nxf5 Bxa1 36. Nxg7 Kxg7 37. Rxa1 { And White has an extra pawn. }) 34. Rc1 { [%cal Rc1c4] } 34... Qd3 { [%cal Rd3e2] } 35. Ng3 { Because the Knight has moved, it no longer covers d4, which allows... } 35... Bd4 { ...forking the White Queen and pawn. } { [%cal Rd4e5,Rd4a1] } 36. Qb1 Qxb1 { A useful in-between move. Marshall knows he's about to go up by a pawn.
Remember that when you're ahead in material, it's usually a good idea to trade
off pieces. Marshall decided to trade now and grab the pawn later. } 37. Rxb1 { Forced, of couse. } 37... Bxe5 { Now Marshall is a pawn ahead
-- and it's a passed pawn to boot. } { [%csl Gd5][%cal Yd5d1] } 38. Re1 { A bogus "threat".
White can't take the pawn, otherwise mate is forced because the King is
cornered. } { [%cal Re1e5] } 38... Rxa4 39. Kg1 { Now the mate is no longer forced, but Marshall
doesn't care -- he sees a way to get still more material off of the board and
force a win at the same time.. } (39. Rxe5 Ra1+ { All White can do now is delay
the mate. } 40. Re1 Rxe1+ 41. Nf1 Rxf1#) 39... Ra1 40. Rxa1 (40. Kf1 { This
doesn't change the eventual outcome. } 40... Rxe1+ 41. Kxe1 Bxg3+ 42. hxg3 Kf7 { The point here is that it's not possible for the White King to
stop both of Black's passed pawns. If it goes after the a-pawn, the d-pawn
promotes under the Black King's watchful eye. If the White King hangs around
to stop the d-pawn, the a-pawn promotes without hindrance. It's tough to be
everywhere at once. } { [%csl Ga5,Gd5] }) 40... Bxa1 { Now Black has two passed
pawns. } { [%csl Ga5,Gd5] } 41. Ne2 Bb2 { This is one
very powerful Bishop! The Bishop covers every one of the White Knight's
approach squares, while defending the a-pawn's promotion square. White is
bound, gagged, and thrown into the river -- there is absolutely no way to
prevent the a-pawn from becoming a Queen. Yates is forced to resign on the
spot. } { [%csl Rc1,Rc3,Rd4][%cal Rb2c1,Rb2d4,Ya5a1] } 0-1

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.15"]
[Round "21"]
[White "Bogoljubow, Efim"]
[Black "Maroczy, Geza"]
[Result "0-1"]
[PlyCount "96"]
[ECO "D30"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 { Maroczy decides on the Slav Defense -- a variation of the
Queen's Gambit. It has some features in common with the Caro-Kann Defense (1.
e4 c6). } 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. e3 e6 { Maroczy had to think a bit before playing this.
His d-pawn is well-supported, but his c8-Bishop is now blocked. That's the
main bugaboo with the Queen's Gambit -- Black usually has to bury his
light-squared Bishop behind his own pawns. Chessplayers have been wrestling
with this for decades. } 5. Nbd2 Ne4 6. Nxe4 dxe4 { [%cal Re4f3] } 7. Nd2 { [%cal Rd2e4] } 7... f5 { An interesting pawn formation, but things look
a bit drafty around the Black King. There's lots of open space -- can White
use it to his advantage? } { [%cal Gf5e4] } 8. Qb3 { Bogo puts
pressure on the b7-pawn. This roots the c8-Bishop in place. Realistically,
though, the Bishop doesn't have anyplace really productive to go. } { [%csl Yc8][%cal Rb3b7,Gc8b7] } (8. Qh5+ { [%cal Rh5e8] } 8... g6 { And the White Queen has no choice but to waste
time by scampering back. This is why White didn't play this series of moves. } { [%cal Rg6h5] }) 8... Bd6 9. c5 { Believe it or not, this is what Maroczy
had in mind when he played ...Bd6. Bogo has now committed to a f2-c5 pawn
chain. His pawn structure isn't as fluid as it once was and Marocy can think
about attcking the pawn chain at its base (e3, not f2, since the f-pawn is
capable of advancing). } { [%csl Ye3][%cal Rc5d6] } 9... Bc7 10. Nc4 { The Knight
has two squares in Black's camp available to it. But Black has the option of
trading his dark-squared Bishop. It's more likely that Bogo is thinking of
protecting the base of his pawn chain. } { [%cal Yc4e5,Yc4d6,Gc4e3,Gc1e3] } 10... Nd7 11. Bd2 Nf6 { Maroczy
can drop the Knight into the hole on d5 if he so chooses. } { [%cal Yf6d5] } 12. f3 { Bogo starts
to waver here. He should have thought about developing his last piece. 12.Be2,
followed by castling Kingside, would have been better. } 12... O-O 13. O-O-O b6 { Perfectly safe -- it's attacked three
times and defended three times. It's going to be tough for Maroczy to attack
the base of the pawn chain, so he attacks its head instead. } { [%cal Rc5b6,Rc4b6,Rb3b6,Gd8b6,Ga7b6] } 14. Ne5 bxc5 15. Bc4 { [%cal Rb3e6,Gc8e6] } (15. Nxc6 { Bogo could have immediately
regained the pawn. Instead he plays a Bishop move that pressure the e6-pawn
(which is shielding the Black King). } { [%cal Rc6d8] }) 15... Qe8 { Simultaneously defending two pawns. } { [%cal Ge8e6,Ge8c6] } 16. g4 fxg4 17. fxg4 a5 18. g5 { Interesting. How will Maroczy respond to the threat? } { [%cal Rg5f6] } 18... Bxe5 { He responds
to it indirectly... } 19. gxf6 (19. dxe5 Ng4 { The idea
is to fork both of the White Rooks. } { [%cal Yg4f2,Rf2h1,Rf2d1] } 20. Rdf1 Nxe5 { And Black is two pawns
ahead. }) 19... Bxf6 { ...and winds up (temporarily) two pawns ahead. } 20. dxc5 Qh5 { [%cal Rh5c5] } 21. Qc2 { Preventing ...Qxc5 (see the next variation). } 21... Kh8 { Getting the Black King out of the Bishop's line of fire. } (21... Qxc5 22. Bxe6+ { Discovering an attack
on the Black Queen, but with check (so Black has no time for ...Qxc2). } { [%cal Re6g8,Rc2c5] } 22... Bxe6 23. Qxc5 { With a won game for White. }) 22. Bb3 Ba6 { Heading
for d3. } { [%cal Ya6d3,Rd3c2] } 23. Qxe4 { Bogo scotches that plan. Now he's won back the material,
but his pieces are in disarray -- they're scattered and there's no harmony
among them. } 23... Be2 { [%cal Re2d1] } 24. Bc2 Bf3 { [%cal Rf3e4,Rf3h1] } (24... Bxd1 25. Rxd1 { Black wins the exchange, but he's also created harmony among the
White pieces. Though he would be ahead materially, he'd actually be helping
White to organize a defense. }) 25. Qxe6 Bd5 { [%cal Rd5e6,Rd5a2] } 26. Qd6 { The Bishop and pawn defend each other and the Bishop is
wonderfully placed: it can easily reach either side of the board. Although
Maroczy is down a pawn, his positional advantages more than make up for it:  1)
Both Bishops are well-placed on long diagonals and one attacks Black's h1-Rook;
2) His f8-Rook is on an open file;  3) His Rooks are connected;  4) His Queen
controls more space than its White counterpart. } { [%cal Gc6d5,Gd5c6] } 26... Rad8 { Maroczy
continues his harassment of the White Queen, giving his opponent no time to
save the h1-Rook. } { [%cal Rd8d6] } 27. Qg3 Bxh1 28. Rxh1 { Maroczy is ahead a Rook for a Bishop
and pawn. What does he do next? } 28... Rxd2 { A surprisng sacrifice! His plan is to
draw the White King out to d2... } 29. Kxd2 Qd5+ { ...giving
him a devastating double-attack! } { [%cal Rd5d2,Rd5h1] } 30. Ke2 Qxh1 31. Qh3 { Bogo threatens Qxh7#. } { [%cal Rh3h7,Rc2h7] } 31... h6 { The mate threat is stopped simply. } 32. Qf5 { Whoops! Now Bogo threatens another mate -- Qh7#. How does Black stop it? } 32... Qg2+ { "Priority of check" -- White must get out of check and doesn't
have time to deliver the mate. } { [%cal Rg2e2] } 33. Kd1 Qd5+ { And another
double-attack saves the day. Maroczy won't win material (the White Queen is
defended by the Bishop) but the mate threat is ended. } { [%cal Rd5d1,Rd5f5] } 34. Qxd5 { The
alternative was to move the White King, followed by ...Qxf5 Bxf5. Bogo decides
that he might as well trade them off. } (34. Ke2 Qxf5 (34... Qg2+ 35. Qf2 Qxf2+ 36. Kxf2 Bxb2+) 35. Bxf5) 34... cxd5 { Bogo now has a passed pawn.
But he's down a Rook for a pawn, so Black shouldn't be too troubled by the
passer. } { [%csl Yc5] } 35. Bf5 { The idea is to control the pawn's
promotion square. } { [%csl Yc8][%cal Gf5c8] } 35... Bxb2 36. Be6 { [%cal Re6d5] } 36... g5 { Maroczy has promotion ideas
of his own. } 37. Kc2 { [%cal Rc2b2] } (37. Bxd5 { Bogo would have done better by
just grabbing the pawn. }) 37... Rf2+ { Great move! The Rook
attacks the King and the h2-pawn, plus defends the Bishop. } { [%cal Rf2c2,Rf2h2] } 38. Kd3 Rxh2 { Now Maroczy has a pair of connected passed pawns -- very dangerous for White. } 39. Bxd5 { Bogo, too, has two passed pawns (though not connected). But his
opponent is a clear Rook ahead. } 39... Kg7 40. Kc4 Be5 { [%cal Rh2a2] } 41. Kb5 { [%cal Rb5a5] } 41... Re2 { The e3-pawn is more dangerous since
there's not another pawn blocking its path, so Maroczy decides to concentrate
on it first. } { [%cal Re2e3,Re2a2] } 42. Kxa5 Rxe3 43. a4 Bd4 { [%cal Rd4c5] } 44. Kb5 { [%cal Gb5c5] } 44... g4 { [%cal Yg4g1] } 45. a5 { [%cal Ya5a8] } 45... Rc3 { [%cal Rc3c5,Rd4c5,Gb5c5] } 46. Bc4 { Blocking the attack on the pawn, but now the Bishop no longer
covers g2 (in the path of the advancing Black pawn). } { [%csl Yg2] } 46... g3 47. c6 g2 48. c7 Rxc4 { Bogo sees the inevitability of defeat (see the variations) and resigns. } (49. Rxc4 48... Kxc4 49... g1=Q c8=Q 50... Qc1+ Kxd4 51... Qxc8) (49. Rxc4 48... c8=Q 49... Rxc8) 0-1

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.15"]
[Round "21"]
[White "Janowski, Dawid"]
[Black "Lasker, Edward"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[PlyCount "142"]
[ECO "D00"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 d5 2. Bf4 Nf6 3. e3 { We see the point of 2.Bf4 -- the Bishop is outside
the pawn chain and isn't blocked in by the e3-pawn. } 3... e6 { Freeing the dark-squared Bishop while trapping the light-squared one. } { [%cal Yf8b4,Yc8d7] } 4. Bd3 c5 { Lasker offers a gambit pawn... } 5. c3 { ...but Janowski, not wanting to aid
Black's development, refuses it. } (5. dxc5 Bxc5 { And now Black is a tempo
ahead in development. }) 5... Qb6 { [%csl Rb2][%cal Rb6b2] } 6. Qc2 { [%csl Gb2][%cal Gc2b2] } 6... Nbd7 7. Nd2 Bd6 8. Bxd6 { Janowski jumps at the chance to get rid
of the bad Bishop. } 8... Qxd6 9. f4 { This creates a hole on e4, but
restricts the movements of the Black Queen. } { [%csl Ye4] } 9... Ng4 { [%csl Re3][%cal Rg4e3] } 10. Nf1 { [%csl Ge3][%cal Gf1e3] } 10... cxd4 11. cxd4 (11. exd4 Qxf4) 11... Qb4+ 12. Ke2 (12. Qc3 Qxc3+ 13. bxc3 { And the a-pawn gets left on its own. } { [%csl Ya2] }) 12... Nb6 13. a3 Qe7 14. Nf3 Bd7 15. h3 { [%csl Rg4][%cal Rh3g4] } 15... Rc8 { Whoops! Janowski has no time to take the Knight because of the
threat on his Queen. When your opponent makes a threat, you can sometimes
reply with a stronger counterthreat -- look for these opportunities! } { [%csl Rc2][%cal Rc8c2] } 16. Qxc8+ { Wow! Janowski gives up the Queen for a Rook and minor piece! } 16... Nxc8 17. hxg4 { Janowski is the equivalent of a pawn down, but
has some play for his minor pieces in return. } { [%cal Yd3a6,Yd3g6,Yf3g5,Yf3e5] } 17... Nd6 18. Rc1 { [%csl Yc1,Yc2,Yc3,Yc4,Yc5,Yc6,Yc7,Yc8] } 18... Nc4 { Lasker deftly blocks the open file. } 19. Bxc4 dxc4 20. N1d2 { [%csl Rc4][%cal Rd2c4] } 20... b5 { [%csl Gc4][%cal Gb5c4] } 21. Rh5 { [%csl Gb5][%cal Rh5b5,Gd7b5] } 21... f6 22. g5 Kd8 23. Rch1 { [%csl Rh7][%cal Rh1h7] } 23... Be8 { [%csl Rh5][%cal Re8h5] } 24. Rxh7 Rxh7 25. Rxh7 { This is a pretty wild position.
On point count, the material is even. But the position is a little harder to
assess than that. Janowski has an advantage in that he has two Knights in a
pretty closed position. But the Knights aren't well developed and really
aren't doing much at the moment. It's Janowski's job to improve the
positioning of his Knights and put them to work. } 25... fxg5 26. Nxg5 { That's a
pretty good start. The Knight sits on an outpost square from which it can't be
driven off by a Black pawn. } 26... Kc8 27. Rh8 { Pinning the Bishop, but there's no
way to intensify the pin. } 27... Kb7 { Breaking the pin. } 28. Nde4 { The
other Knight enters the battle. The next stop is the outpost on c5. } { [%cal Ye4c5] } 28... Kb6 29. Nc5 Bc6 30. Ngxe6 { [%cal Gc5e6] } 30... Bd5 { Threatening to win a minor piece after ..
.Bxe6 followed by Nxe6 Qxe6. } 31. Ng5 Ka5 (31... Bxg2 32. e4 { And the Bishop is trapped -- nearly every square it can
move to is covered by White. } { [%cal Yg5f3,Ye2f1,Yg5e4] }) 32. e4 Bc6 33. Ke3 Be8 34. Nf3 { [%cal Yf3e5] } 34... b4 35. Ne5 Bb5 36. a4 Bxa4 37. Nxc4+ Kb5 38. Ne5 Ka5 39. Rb8 Bb5 40. g3 (40. Rb7 { [%cal Rb7a7,Rb7e7] } 40... Qh4 41. Rxa7+ Kb6 42. Rb7+ (42. Rxg7 { Dead wrong! } 42... Qe1+ 43. Kf3 Be2+ 44. Ke3 Bd1+ 45. Kd3 Qe2#) 42... Ka5 43. Kf3 Qe1 44. Kg4 Qe2+ 45. Kf5 Qxg2) 40... g5 41. Nf3 gxf4+ 42. gxf4 Qh7 43. f5 (43. Rb7 { The fork opportunity was again rejected. Janowski wants to delay the Black
Queen from invading his half of the board. } { [%cal Rb7a7,Rb7h7] } 43... Qh1 44. Rxa7+ Kb6 45. Rb7+ Ka5 46. Kf2 Qd1 { [%csl Rd4][%cal Rd1d4] }) 43... Qh1 { The Queen invades anyway. } 44. Nb3+ Ka4 45. Nbd2 Qh6+ 46. Kf2 Bd3 47. Rg8 Qf4 48. Rh8 b3 49. Rh4 Qc7 50. f6 Bc4 { Stopping the passed pawn dead in its tracks. } { [%csl Yf7][%cal Yc4f7] } 51. Rh5 Be6 52. Re5 Qf7 { [%csl Rf6][%cal Rf7f6] } 53. Rxe6 Qxe6 54. e5 { Janowski
has two slow Knights backing up three connected passed pawns. Meanwhile Lasker
has two connected Queenside pawns and a Queen (which is limited to stopping
the passed pawns from advancing). } 54... Kb4 55. Ke3 a5 56. Kf4 a4 57. Ng5 Qd7 58. f7 Qe7 { [%csl Yf8][%cal Ye7f8] } 59. d5 a3 60. bxa3+ Kc3 61. d6 Qf8 62. Nge4+ { Check! This gives Lasker no time for ...Qxf7. } 62... Kd3 63. e6 Qh6+ { [%cal Yh6f8] } 64. Kf5 b2 65. d7 Qf8 { Blocking the f-pawn and stopping
the d-pawn's promotion. } { [%cal Yf8d8] } 66. a4 { Janowski has another passed pawn with which
to annoy his opponent! } 66... Qa8 { Blocking the a-pawn while preventing
the promotion of the other two advanced pawns. This is a great example of the
Queen's mobility in the endgame. } { [%cal Ya8f8] } 67. e7 { Now Lasker has a problem. How will
he prevent a pawn promotion now?? } 67... Qd5+ { By giving his opponent no time to
promote! } 68. Kf6 Qd4+ 69. Ke6 b1=Q 70. Nxb1 Qxe4+ 71. Kf6 Qh4+ { And Black can
draw easily by repeatedly checking the White King. This is a great endgame
trick to remember -- when your opponent looks like he's going to force a win,
look for a draw by repeatedly checking him. } 1/2-1/2

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.17"]
[Round "22"]
[White "Lasker, Emanuel"]
[Black "Marshall, Frank James"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "87"]
[ECO "C68"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Bxc6 { The Ruy Lopez Exchange Variation.
White's idea is to undermine the e5-pawn's support and compromise Black's
Queenside pawn structure. } 4... dxc6 { Black now has doubled c-pawns.
It's not really a big weakness yet, but it can be if the contest goes down to
an endgame } { [%csl Rc6,Rc7] } 5. d4 { Dr. Lasker's preferred move. He'd like to see an exchange
of Queens (in order to bring on the endgame quickly). } 5... Bg4 { Marshall surprises
by pinning the Knight. } (5... exd4 6. Qxd4 Qxd4 7. Nxd4 { This is what Dr.
Lasker anticipated. }) 6. dxe5 Qxd1+ 7. Kxd1 O-O-O+ 8. Ke1 { Although White
hasn't had time for development, his position isn't bad. He's a pawn up (even
though it's doubled, it's not a problem -- gaining and using a Kingside pawn
majority is one of White's goals in the Ruy Exchange, and the e5-pawn is
controlling space and discouraging the f7-pawn's advance and the g8-Knight's
development) and his Knight is no longer pinned. } 8... Bc5 9. h3 Bh5 10. Bf4 { Lasker overprotects the pawn (which is doing a nice job of
cramping Black's game -- the Kingside Knight can't get to its preferred
development square, f6). } { [%cal Gf4e5,Gf3e5] } 10... f5 11. Nbd2 { To be able to reply to ...Bxf3 with
Nxf3. } (11. exf6 Nxf6 { And the Knight has been released. }) 11... Ne7 12. Bg5 { [%cal Rg5d8] } 12... Bxf3 { An in-between move that dictates White's response. } 13. gxf3 Rhe8 { [%cal Ge8e7] } 14. Rd1 fxe4 15. fxe4 h6 16. Bh4 { Retreating, but maintaining the pin. } { [%cal Rh4d8] } 16... Bd4 { [%cal Rd4b2] } 17. Nc4 { [%cal Gc4b2] } 17... g5 18. c3 { Offering to trade Bishops. This trade would not be to
Black's advantage. } { [%cal Rc3d4] } 18... Ng6 { [%cal Rg5h4,Rg6h4] } (18... gxh4 19. cxd4 { Black has doubled
isolated pawns on the h-file, while White has strengthened his center and
controls a lot of space on Black's half of the board. Not good for Black at
all. } { [%csl Rh4,Rh6][%cal Gd4c5,Ge4d5,Ge4f5,Ge5f6,Ge5d6,Gc4d6,Gc4b6] }) 19. cxd4 Nxh4 { White still has the central grip we saw in the last
variation, but Black has avoided the doubled isolated pawns. } 20. Ke2 { This move is played to prepare f2-f3 (to support the center). } { [%cal Ge2f3] } 20... Rd7 21. f3 { Had White not prepared for this move by playing Ke2, the f3-pawn would
have fallen to the Black Knight. } 21... Ng6 22. Ne3 c5 { Knocking the support out from under the e5-pawn. } { [%csl Ye5][%cal Rc5d4,Rd7d4] } 23. dxc5 Nf4+ 24. Kf2 Rxd1 25. Rxd1 { The Rook commands the d-file,
but this can easily be disputed by Black should he choose to do so. } { [%csl Yd1,Yd2,Yd3,Yd4,Yd5,Yd6,Yd7,Yd8] } 25... Rxe5 { [%cal Re5c5] } 26. Nd5 Nxh3+ { [%cal Rh3f2] } 27. Kg3 { [%cal Rg3h3] } 27... g4 28. Nf6 { [%cal Rf3g4,Rf6g4,Rg3g4] } (28. fxg4 Ng5 { The e-pawn gets
piled on and White has no good reply. } { [%cal Rg5e4,Re5e4] } 29. Kf4 Rxe4+) 28... h5 { [%cal Gh5g4] } 29. f4 { [%cal Rf4e5] } 29... Rxc5 { Black is a pawn up, but can he hold this material
advantage? } 30. Re1 { Lasker plans to advance the e-pawn toward promotion and
supports it with the Rook. } 30... Rb5 { [%cal Rb5b2] } 31. e5 Kd8 (31... Rxb2 32. e6 { Black can stop the pawn, but it'll hurt. } 32... Rg2+ 33. Kxg2 Nxf4+ 34. Kg3 Nxe6 (34... Ng6 { This winds up in almost the same place but by a different path. } 35. e7 Nxe7 36. Rxe7) 35. Rxe6) 32. Nxh5 Ke7 33. f5 { It's going to be hard to stop
these connected passed pawns. } 33... Ng5 34. Kxg4 Nh7 35. Nf4 Rxb2 36. Nd5+ Kd7 37. e6+ Kd6 38. e7 Kxd5 39. Re6 { Taking f6 away from the Knight (to avoid the fork
-- see the previous variation). } (39. e8=Q Nf6+ { [%cal Rf6e8,Rf6g4] }) 39... Rg2+ 40. Kf4 Rg8 41. e8=Q { Sacrificing the
new Queen but ensuring a material advantage. } 41... Rxe8 42. Rxe8 c5 43. Rd8+ Kc6 44. Rh8 { And Marshall resigns. The move ...Nf6 is forced, but also loses. } (44... Rh8 44. Nf6 Rh6 { [%cal Rh6c6] }) 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.17"]
[Round "22"]
[White "Capablanca, Jose Raul"]
[Black "Bogoljubow, Efim"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "129"]
[ECO "C12"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. d4 e6 2. e4 d5 { Despite the fact that the game started with a d-pawn move,
the players have transposed into a French Defense (1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5). } 3. Nc3 { [%cal Gc3e4] } 3... Nf6 { [%cal Rd5e4,Rf6e4] } 4. Bg5 { Neutralizing the
Knight's attack on the e4-pawn by pinning the Knight to the Queen. } { [%cal Rg5d8] } 4... Bb4 { A similar move: the c3-Knight no longer defends the e4-pawn.
Unlike the pin on the f6-Knight, the pin on the White Knight is an absolute
pin -- the Knight can't legally move, as this would put the White King in
check. } { [%cal Rb4e1] } 5. exd5 { Capa eliminates the target pawn by exchanging it for another. } 5... Qxd5 6. Bxf6 gxf6 { Usually it's not a good idea to trade a Bishop for a Knight
so early in the game, but Capa thinks it's a fine move here. The f-pawns are
doubled, the h7-pawn is isolated, and the Black Kingside pawns are broken up,
discouraging Black from castling on that side. } 7. Qd2 { [%cal Ye1c1,Ya1d1] } 7... Qa5 8. Nge2 { [%cal Ge2c3] } (8. Nf3 Bxc3 9. Qxc3 Qxc3+ 10. bxc3 { And White's
Queenside pawns are broken up in a manner similar to those on Black's Kingside. }) 8... Nd7 9. Nc1 { [%cal Yc1b3,Rb3a5] } 9... Nb6 10. Nb3 { [%cal Rb3a5] } 10... Qg5 { [%cal Rg5d2] } 11. a3 { [%cal Ra3b4] } (11. Qxg5 fxg5 { White doesn't want to do
this, as it straightens out the mangled Black Kingside. }) 11... Qxd2+ 12. Kxd2 { Well, this does solve White's castling questions. } 12... Be7 13. Bb5+ c6 { Bogo blocks the check, but buries his light-squared Bishop. } { [%cal Yc8d7,Rc6b5] } (13... Bd7 { This is another way to block the check, but doesn't really do
anything for Black. } 14. Bxd7+ Kxd7 { Like White's King, the Black monarch is
unable to castle now. } (14... Nxd7 { Black can now castle, but now has some
other problems to think about. } 15. Nb5 { [%cal Rb5c7] } 15... Kd8 { [%cal Gd8c7] })) 14. Bd3 Bd7 15. Nc5 { [%cal Rc5b7,Rc5d7] } 15... O-O-O { Bogo covers
both threatened pieces with a single move. } { [%cal Gc8b7,Gd8d7] } 16. Nxd7 Rxd7 { [%cal Rd7d4] } 17. Ne2 { [%cal Ge2d4] } 17... c5 { [%cal Rd7d4,Rc5d4] } 18. dxc5 { Once again,
Capa eliminates a target by exchanging it, but places his Bishop into a pin in
the process. } { [%cal Rd7d2] } 18... Bxc5 { [%cal Rc5f2] } 19. Ke1 { Breaking the pin and
defending the pawn. } { [%cal Ge1f2] } 19... f5 { This cuts down on the range of the White Bishop. } 20. Rg1 { Preparing to advance the g-pawn, but placing the f2-pawn in
a pin situation. } { [%cal Rc5g1] } 20... h5 21. g3 Nd5 22. Bb5 { [%cal Rb5d7] } 22... Rdd8 23. Rd1 a6 { [%cal Ra6b5] } 24. Bc4 { Threatening to create an isolated pawn after 25.Bxd5 exd5. } 24... Nf6 25. Rxd8+ Rxd8 { the Black Rook commands
the d-file, but White still controls (or disputes control of) a lot of squares
on it. } { [%csl Gd1,Gd2,Gd3,Gd4,Gd5][%cal Gc4d5,Ge2d4,Gc2d3,Ge1d2,Ge1d1] } 26. Nf4 Ne4 { The f2-pawn is in danger. } { [%cal Rc5f2,Re4f2] } 27. Rg2 { [%cal Gg2f2,Ge1f2] } 27... h4 28. Bd3 { Closing off the file to the d8-Rook and
threatening the e4-Knight. } 28... hxg3 29. hxg3 Rh8 { [%cal Yh8h1,Rh1e1] } 30. g4 Rh1+ 31. Ke2 Rh4 { Pinning the g4-pawn. } { [%cal Rh4f4] } 32. Bxe4 fxe4 33. f3 e3 { [%cal Gc5e3] } 34. Nd3 Bd4 { The Bishop's a long-range piece. Bogo should have
considered moving back along the file to a7 or b6. } 35. c3 Bb6 { The net result
is that Bogo wasted a tempo by going to d4 with the Bishop. } 36. Ne5 { [%cal Re5f7] } 36... Rh1 37. Nc4 { Had the Black Bishop gone to a7, this
fork would have been prevented. } { [%cal Rc4b6,Rc4e3] } (37. Nxf7 Rc1 { [%cal Yc1c2,Rc2g2] } 38. Kd3 Rd1+ 39. Kc2 Rf1 40. Re2 Rxf3 41. Ne5 { [%cal Re5f3] } 41... Rg3 { with an equal
position. }) 37... Ba7 38. Nxe3 b5 39. g5 Kd7 40. Nf1 Kd6 41. a4 bxa4 42. Rg4 { [%cal Rg4a4] } 42... a3 43. bxa3 a5 44. Rf4 { [%cal Rf4f7] } 44... Bc5 { [%cal Rc5a3] } 45. Nd2 { As we'll see, this prevents ...Bxa3. } 45... Ke7 (45... Bxa3 { The Bishop can't take
the pawn... } 46. Nc4+ { [%cal Rc4d6,Rc4a3] }) 46. Ra4 { [%cal Ra4a5,Ga4a3] } 46... Rg1 { [%cal Rg1g5] } 47. Ne4 { [%cal Re4c5,Ge4g5] } 47... Bb6 48. Rc4 Kd7 49. Nf6+ { [%cal Rf6d7] } 49... Kd8 50. Ng4 { Blocking the Rook from taking the g5-pawn. } 50... Rg2+ 51. Kd3 Rg3 { [%cal Rg3f3] } 52. Ke4 { Capa has been increasing his space
little by little; Black is being slowly pushed back. } { [%cal Ge4f3] } 52... Rg1 53. Rc6 { [%cal Rc6b6] } 53... Bc7 54. Ra6 Kd7 55. Ra8 Ra1 { [%cal Ra1a3] } 56. Nf6+ { [%cal Rf6d7] } 56... Kc6 57. Rf8 { [%cal Rf8f7] } 57... Re1+ { [%cal Re1e4] } 58. Kd3 Bf4 59. Ne4 Kb5 60. Rxf7 e5 61. g6 { [%cal Yg6g8] } 61... Re3+ { [%cal Re3f3,Re3d3] } 62. Kc2 Re2+ (62... Rxf3 63. g7 { And the Black Rook can't get to g3 to stop the pawn -- the White
Knight controls that square. } { [%cal Ge4g3] } 63... Rg3 64. Nxg3 Bxg3 65. g8=Q { With a forced mate. }) 63. Kd1 { [%cal Rd1e2] } 63... Rg2 64. g7 { [%cal Gf7g7] } 64... Kc4 65. Nf6 { Now
that the White Knight controls the promotion square, Bogo decides he's sunk.
He resigns. } { [%cal Gf6g8] } 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.17"]
[Round "22"]
[White "Reti, Richard"]
[Black "Janowski, Dawid"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "85"]
[ECO "A09"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. Nf3 d5 2. c4 { Reti offers a gambit pawn to draw one of Black's central
pawns to a flank file. } 2... dxc4 3. Na3 { [%cal Ra3c4] } 3... Nf6 { Janowski decides to
develop instead of wasting another tempo in trying to defend the pawn. } 4. Nxc4 { Reti now enjoys a 2-1 pawn superiority in the center. } 4... e6 5. g3 { Reti, of
course, plays in the hypermodern style. Instead of occupying the center with
pawns, he'll seek to control it from the flanks. } 5... Nbd7 6. Bg2 Nb6 7. O-O { Has Reti blundered by leaving his Knight unguarded? } 7... Nxc4 8. Qa4+ { Reti develops with a double attack. } { [%cal Ra4e8] } 8... c6 9. Qxc4 Be7 10. b3 { The point is not to defend the Queen -- it's to clear the long diagonal for
the dark-squared Bishop. } { [%cal Yc1b2] } 10... O-O 11. Bb2 Nd5 { Janowski's a bit behind in
development, but his position is solid. } 12. d4 { This looks pretty weird,
since Reti just put his Bishop on the long diagonal. But he does have an idea. } 12... f5 { Odd. Janowski creates a hole on e5... } 13. Ne5 { ...which Reti is quick to
exploit. Now the Knight can never be driven away by an opposing pawn. } 13... Bf6 14. e4 { Reti aggressively opens up the position. } 14... Bxe5 15. dxe5 fxe4 16. Bxe4 { It's an ugly position, but Reti's actually doing pretty well here. Janowski
still hasn't developed all of his pieces; in fact, the range of his
light-squared Bishop is very limited. Meanwhile, Reti has all the room in the
world. } 16... Bd7 17. Qd3 { [%cal Rd3h7] } 17... h6 (17... g6 { was much better. }) 18. Ba3 { Now the Black Rook's in trouble. } 18... Re8 19. Bh7+ Kh8 20. Bg6 b6 { The idea is to
block out White's dark-squared Bishop by playing ...c5. } 21. f4 { Reti takes
the time to shore up his Kingside pawns. The Black Rook can wait -- it's not
going anywhere. } 21... Qc8 (21... c5 22. Bxe8 Qxe8 23. f5 { Alekhine }) 22. Bxe8 Qxe8 23. Rf2 g6 { [%cal Gg6f5] } 24. h4 c5 25. h5 { The idea is to break open a file
and then scoot the f2-Rook over to the newly-opened file. } 25... Kg7 26. Qxg6+ (26. hxg6 Bb5 27. Qe4 Ne7 { Though still materially behind,
Black is slowly starting to develop some counterplay. This is an improvement
over his previously bottled-up position. } { [%cal Re8g6,Re7g6,Rg7g6] }) 26... Qxg6 27. hxg6 Kxg6 28. Re1 { Reti's planning to advance the f-pawn, so he makes sure his
e5-pawn is defended. } { [%cal Ge1e5] } 28... h5 29. f5+ exf5 30. e6 Bc6 { Janowski has finally found
good homes for his remaining pieces, but now he has an advanced passed pawn to
contend with. } 31. e7 { Reti's not thinking of
promotion here. His plan is to play Re6+ and win the Black Bishop. } { [%cal Ye1e6,Re6c6,Re6g6] } 31... Nc7 { Nipping the Rook fork in the bud. But now the d-file is open. } { [%cal Gc7e6] } 32. Rd2 { [%cal Yd2d8,Yd2d1] } 32... Kf7 33. Rd8 Ne8 34. Bc1 a5 35. Rxa8 Bxa8 36. Bg5 Bd5 (36... Kg6 37. Bh4 Be4 38. Kf2 Kf7 39. Rd1 { Looking at the squares controlled by White, we
see that the Black King really has nowhere to go. } { [%csl Gd1,Gd2,Gd3,Gd4,Gd5,Gd6,Gd7,Gd8,Ge3,Ge7,Gf4,Gf6,Gf8,Gg5] }) 37. Kf2 Ng7 38. Bf4 { [%cal Yf4c7,Rc7b6] } 38... Ne6 { [%cal Ge6c7] } 39. e8=Q+ Kxe8 40. Re5 { Egad! This is a
really ugly position for Janowski. His Knight is pinned to the King. The
Bishop is defending the Knight, but it's attacked by the White Rook and has no
safe squares to which it can move while still defending the Knight. } 40... Bxb3 { We can almost hear Janowski thinking, "I might as well get *something* for
it!" Any other move by the Bishop just loses the Knight with no material
return. } 41. axb3 Kd7 42. Rd5+ Ke7 43. Be3 { Janowski could struggle on, but he
realizes that it's just hopeless. He resigns. } 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.17"]
[Round "22"]
[White "Maroczy, Geza"]
[Black "Yates, Frederick"]
[Result "1-0"]
[PlyCount "79"]
[ECO "C90"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 { Once again we see the Ruy Lopez, discussed in
previous games of the tournament. } 3... a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3 { We've seen this before. White creates a flight square for the Bishop in
case of ...Na5. } 8... O-O 9. d3 { You might think that Maroczy is allowing for the
development of his Queenside Bishop, but the real purpose of the pawn move is
to clear d2 for the development of the Queenside Knight. } 9... Be6 10. Nbd2 { [%cal Yd2f1,Yf1e3,Yf1g3] } 10... Nh5 { [%cal Yh5f4] } (10... Bxb3 11. Qxb3 Na5 { Black
could try to run the Queen off. } 12. Qd1 c5 { And Black has the standard Ruy
Lopez Queenside pawn formation. }) 11. d4 Bxb3 12. axb3 (12. Nxb3 { Overprotecting the d4-pawn might be a bit better. } { [%cal Gb3d4,Gf3d4] }) 12... Nf4 13. Nf1 Qc8 14. Ng3 { A very coomon theme in the Ruy Lopez -- the
White Queenside Knight moves to the Kingside. } { [%cal Yg3f5] } 14... g6 { [%cal Gg6f5] } 15. d5 Nd8 16. Bxf4 exf4 17. Ne2 { Now two Knights have the potential to
move to d4. } { [%cal Ye2d4,Yf3d4] } 17... g5 { Yates has to defend the pawn, but in doing so has
created a weak square on f5. } { [%csl Rf5] } 18. Nfd4 { Eyeing the hole on f5. } { [%cal Yd4f5] } 18... Re8 19. Nf5 { We can easily see the weaknesses in
Black's Kingside. } { [%cal Rf5e7,Yf5h6,Rh6g8] } 19... Bf8 { Yates kills two birds with one stone: he
prevents the exchange of minor pieces on e7 while simultaneously preventing
the annoying check at h6. } { [%cal Gf8h6] } 20. Ned4 { The Knights defend each other. } 20... f6 { Creating another weakness at e6, a square which can never again be
defended by a pawn. } { [%csl Re6] } 21. g3 { Maroczy's intent is to open the h-file. } 21... fxg3 22. hxg3 { Once the White King advances to g2, the h-file becomes a highway for the
White heavy pieces leading straight to Black's King. } 22... c5 23. Nf3 Nf7 { [%cal Yf7e5] } 24. Nh2 { Planning to play Ng4 (under the Queen's
protection) to contest Black's planned ...Ne5. } { [%cal Yh2g4,Gd1g4] } 24... Ra7 { The idea is
for the Rook to be able to swing to the Kingside and blunt an attack there. } { [%cal Ya7h7] } 25. Qh5 Bg7 26. Ng4 { The walls are closing in on Black as the White pieces
move to attacking positions. Will Yates be able to defend? } 26... Qd7 { [%cal Yd7g7] } 27. Kg2 { Preparing for the Rooks to join the attack. Notice how
all of White's pieces will soon be in the attack, while the Black defenders
are scattered. } { [%cal Ye1h1] } 27... Ne5 28. Nxd6 Rd8 (28... Qxd6 29. Qxe8+ Qf8 30. Qe6+ Kh8 31. Qb6 { [%cal Rb6a7,Rb6c5] } (31. Rh1 { [%cal Yh1h7] } 31... Nxg4 32. Qxg4 { And White is ahead
by the exchange, with a good attack going. })) 29. Nxe5 { Thinning the ranks of
the defenders. } 29... fxe5 30. Nf5 { [%cal Rf5g7] } 30... Bf6 31. Rh1 { And a Rook enters the
attack. } 31... Rf8 32. Qg4 { Making way for the Rook to lead the attack. } 32... Kh8 33. Rh6 a5 { Yates is probably considering ...Ra6, to defend the Bishop and free up the
other Rook. } 34. Ne3 Qe8 { Yates prefers to keep as many defenders on the board
as he can. } (34... Qxg4 35. Nxg4 Bg7 36. Rh5 { And the other Rook
enters the attack, with harsh consequences for Black. } { [%cal Ya1h1] }) 35. Rah1 { The second
Rook enters the fray. Black's barely holding on -- we can see the consequences
of the many pawn pushes Yates made earlier in the game. Most of his half of
the board is wide open. } 35... Rff7 36. Qf5 Qf8 37. Ng4 Bd8 { Dead wrong -- this move
allows mate in three. But in this position, there really aren't any good moves.
Yates' position is so bad now that nothing can save it. His King is under
furious attack and the passed d5-pawn is a potential killer. } (37... Qg7 38. Nxf6 Qg8 (38... Rxf6 39. Rxf6 Qg8 40. Rf8 { And mate is unstoppable; in fact,
White has a choice of ways to do it. } 40... Rg7 (40... Re7 41. Qf6+ Rg7 42. d6 Qxf8 43. Qxf8+ Rg8 44. Qf6+ Rg7 45. d7 { The pawn advances unhindered due to the pin
on the Black Rook. } 45... h5 46. Rxh5+ Kg8 47. d8=Q#) 41. Rxg8+ Rxg8 42. Qxh7#) 39. Rxh7+ (39. Nxg8 Rxf5 40. exf5 Kxg8 41. Rxh7 Rxh7 42. Rxh7 Kxh7 (42... Kf8 { Black is lost materially. }) 43. d6 { The pawn is unstoppable. } { [%cal Yd6d8] }) 39... Rxh7 40. Nxg8 Rxh1 41. Qxe5+ Rg7 42. Nf6) 38. Rxh7+ Kg8 39. Qg6+ (39. Rh8+ Kg7 40. Qh7#) 39... Rg7 40. Rh8# (40. Nh6#) 1-0

[Event "New York it"]
[Site "New York USA"]
[Date "1924.04.17"]
[Round "22"]
[White "Alekhine, Alexander"]
[Black "Tartakower, Ksawery"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[PlyCount "64"]
[ECO "C46"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[Annotator "Steve Lopez"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Nc3 { Alekhine anticipates 3...Nf6, the Four Knights
Defense, but the game moves off into unexpected areas. } 3... Bb4 4. Nd5 { Alekhine
is known to be aggressive with his Knights. } 4... Be7 { Tartakower offers a sort of
pseudo-sacrifice. } 5. d4 (5. Nxe7 Qxe7 { Had this been played, Black would have
a 3-2 lead in development. }) 5... exd4 6. Nxd4 Nxd4 7. Qxd4 { Now it's Alekhine
who has the big development advantage (3-1). } 7... Nf6 8. Nxe7 (8. Nxf6+ Bxf6 { [%cal Rf6d4] }) 8... Qxe7 { [%cal Re7e4,Rf6e4,Gd4e4] } 9. Bd3 { Defending the
threatened pawn. } 9... c5 10. Qe3 (10. Qa4 { Preventing the
d-pawn's advance and locking in the c8-Bishop, while still defending the
e4-pawn. } { [%cal Ra4e8,Ga4e4] } 10... O-O (10... b5? 11. Qxb5 Nxe4) 11. O-O { Getting the White King out
of danger and relieving the pin on the e4-pawn. } 11... d6) 10... d5 { [%cal Rd5e4,Rf6e4,Ge3e4,Gd3e4] } 11. exd5 Nxd5 12. Qxe7+ Kxe7 { Now the Black King is
unable to castle. } 13. Bg5+ { Alekhine keeps the initiative by continuing to
make threats. } 13... f6 14. Bd2 Be6 { Tartakower sees castling and Re1 coming, so he
blocks off the e-file. } 15. O-O-O Kf7 { Further insurance against Re1. } 16. Rhe1 Rad8 17. Re2 { Preparing to double the Rooks on the open file. } { [%cal Yd1e1] } 17... g6 18. Rde1 { [%cal Re2e6] } 18... Rhe8 { [%cal Gf7e6,Ge8e6] } 19. h4 Bg4 { [%cal Rg4e2] } 20. Rxe8 { Alekhine decides to trade off the Rooks and head for a minor-piece
ending. } 20... Rxe8 21. Rxe8 Kxe8 { Alekhine has the advantage here -- he has the
Bishop pair against a Bishop and Knight with pawns on both sides of the board.
Black's task is to find a way to trade his Knight for one of the White Bishops. } 22. Be4 { [%cal Re4d5] } 22... Be6 { [%cal Ge6d5] } 23. b3 b6 24. c4 { [%cal Re4d5] } 24... Nc7 25. h5 f5 { [%cal Rf5e4] } 26. Bf3 Kd7 27. Bf4 { [%cal Rf4c7] } 27... Bf7 28. hxg6 hxg6 { [%cal Gf7g6] } 29. Kd2 { Alekhine starts centralizing his King -- a
good idea in the endgame. } 29... Ne6 { [%cal Re6f4] } 30. Be5 Nd8 31. Ke3 Nc6 { Despite
the Bishop pair advantage and his more-centralized King, Alekhine sees that
this will be a tough position to crack. The pawn structure is symmetrical
(it's harder to outplay your opponent in such positions), the Black Bishop
defends the base of the Kingside pawn chain, and the Black King will be able
to stop the White Bishop from coming to b8 to attack the base of the Queenside
pawn chain. So... } 32. Bxc6+ { ...he decides to trade on of his Bishops for the
Black Knight and call it a day. } 32... Kxc6 { ½-½ The game is a draw. } (33. Kxc6 32... Bb8 { [%cal Rb8a7] } 33... Kb7 { Even if the White King works itself into the Black position
(Kf4-e5-f6), Black can just shuffle the King and Bishop (...Ka8-b7, ...Be8-f7)
and prevent White from making progress. } { [%cal Gb7a7] }) 1/2-1/2
