Chess

By PHILIDOR No. 282. BLACK (7 men)

Specially contributed by G. F. ANDERSON (Rapallo).

WHITE to play and

moves; solution next week. In re- flex chess you must give mate on the move if you can (a second move. Sup- WHITE (7 men,

pose White had an

extra pawn on (say) Q R 3 and could play the waiting move P—R 4 then you will find he can cope with any Black move, e.g. ... Kt—Kt 6 ; 2 K—B 3!, P x B= Kt mate. However you will find there isn't a pure waiting move available—so a little more work is necessary : it's worth it. Solution to No. 28t (Mc- Intyre) : Kt—Q 8! Variations left to readers.

Success is a relative term—and Bobby Fischer's victory for the eighth consecutive year in the 1966 US championship with Wit which would have been a Walter Mitty dream for most of us was a comparative failure for him with a score of Hitt in 1965 behind him. In the eighth and ninth rounds he lost to Robert Byrne and to Reshevsky—thus opening up an almost inconceivable disaster which he did manage to avert : that he would actually fail to win the championship. The ninth-round game—too long for this column— was a fine one ; Reshevsky, still a master of world class, is the only US player who can meet Fischer on something like equal terms. The eighth-round loss was a curious disaster ; Byrne undermined an opening variation and blew Bobby up when he tried it.

White, R. FISCITER Black, R. BYRNE Opening, FRENCH

(US championship 1966) P—K 4 P—K 3

2 P—Q 4 P—Q 4 3 Kt—Q 2 Kt—Q B 3 This looks—and may yet be

shown to be—anti-positional. Black's normal plan against the French is to counter-attack in the centre with P—Q B 4 which this prevents (or at least delays). Black however plays to free him- self in a different way, taking advantage of White's rather artificial method of development.

4 P--(1 B 3 • • 4 K Kt—B 3 is the alternative

and, if this game stands up to further analysis, may replace P—B 3 altogether.

4 . P—K4! I think the exclamation mark ■ S correct.

5 K PxP QxP 6 KKt-133 PxP

■ 7 8—B 4 Q—K R 4 8 0-0 Kt—B 3 8 ... P x P; 9 Kt—K 4 gives White a strong attack. 9 Q—Kr ch . . . This may be wrong; however the alternatives 9 P xP and 9 Kt xP offer White at best equality: probably the whole Line is bad, with 4 P—Q B 3 the basic error. B—K ro Kt x P . . . The critical moment; Fischer had previously commented that now Black could not castle-- because of ix Kt x Kt, P x Kt; 12 QxB in which case White has a good game. ro 0-01!

rr B—K 2 . . . If ix Kt X Kt then zz . B—Q 3!; 12 Kt—K 7 ch, K—R I and now (a) z3..Kt—B 3, B—K Kt 5! (b) 13 P—K Kt 3, B—K R 6 (c) 13 B 4, Q—

B 4 ch (or Kt—Kt 5) and 14 B x Kt.

rr B—IC Kt 5! 12 Kt x Kt? . . . A fatal blunder. 12 P—K R 3, B x B ... Kt xKt?; z3 B xB); 13 Q x B would allow White to escape with his lifen-lf 12 . . . B—Q 3; then 13 B xB, Kt xB; z4 Q Kt—B 3 is playable. ri B—Q 3! The deadly Zwischenzug. P—K R3 BxB

r4 Kt—Q 4 B x R

QxB K R—K r The exchange down in a bad position, White should resign—but Bobby is never in a hurry to do this; he has too much confidence in his own powers. The remaining moves, of little interest, were z6 Kt (2)—B 3, P—Q R 3; 17B—Kt5,Q—Kt 3; z8R—Qz,R—K5; z9 B—K 3,Kt—Q.4;zo B—B e, Q R—K ; 21 Kt—Q 2, R (5)—K 2; 22 Kt—B 4, B—B 5; 23 Kt—B 3, P—Q B 3; 24 Kt—Kt 6, B x El; 25 Kt x Kt,

P x Kt; 26 R x B, R—K 7; 27 R—Kt t, Q—B 7; 28 R—B z,

Q x Kt P (the rest of the game is a complete waste of time by White); 29 R—Kt t, QxB P; 3o R x P, R x R P; 31 K—R 2, P—R 3; 32 Q---Q Kt t, R x P; 33 Q—B 5, Q x Kt! (the quickest way of persuading White to resign); 34 Q x Q, R xQ; 35 P xR, R—Q t ; 36 R—Kt 6, P—Q 5 L,37 Resigns (37 R xP, P—Q 6; 38 R—R z, P—Q 7; 39 R—Q z, tc„—R 2 winning very easily).