Watch how masters play and you will surely improve in chess.
No doubt about that. And that's EXACTLY what we are going to do here (and in the next articles to come). First off, a little introduction to the annotated chess game that we will look at.
This one is a classic...and RIGHTLY so.
No Shirov, no Anand, no Carlsen for now. This game is a blast from the past - coming all the way from the 1963 United States Chess Championship, which was won by some fella named Robert James "Bobby" Fischer.
The game below is played by...well, you guessed it - Bobby Fischer! (No bonus points there). Fischer's performance in this United States Championship is unprecedented - a jaw dropping 11-0! None of his fellow US grandmasters - the best chess players in his country, could draw, let alone win against him.
With 3 and 1/2 points ahead of the pack, he clearly shows that he is NOT just one of the better chess players in his country...he shows why he is one of the BEST not just in the US but in the WORLD!
Before moving on to the game, one more thing to point: Fischer's style...it's UNIVERSAL! He plays the opening like a machine - exhibiting great accuracy like that of Alekhine in his prime. He plays the endgame like Capablanca. He plays very solid positional chess - NOT lashing out like a madman, slowly building up his position and plays for small advantages. HOWEVER, when given the chance, he will rip you inside and out with combinations as he shows in thi game.
If you want to improve in chess STEADILY, if you want get good at all phases of the game - opening, middle-game, endgame, and everything in between, studying Fischer's game is HIGHLY recommended.
Played in Round 10 of the said tournament, Fischer goes up against a fellow chess Grandmaster - Pal Benko...and DEMOLISHES him in only 21 moves!
Fischer - Benko
1. e4 g6
Benko's move doesn't reveal his intentions. It can pretty much transpose to anything - Sicilian (after 2.Nf3 c5), Modern Defense (2...Bg7 whatever White plays), Pirc (2...d6), etc. Anyway, we're not here for an extensive opening lecture. Let's move on.
2. d4 Bg7 3. Nc3 d6
What started out as the Modern Defense has now transposed to the Pirc. The Pirc (just a little trivia) is one of those hypermodern games where Black allows White to build a strong center with the hope of attacking it from the flanks.
4. f4
This is the Austrian Attack. By playing this, it's like Fischer was saying: "You're giving me the center? Alright! I'll take it. And you better act fast or I will smother you with my central and spatial advantage".
4...Nf6 5. Nf3 O-O
This is the Capablanca-like play by Fischer that I was talking about. Against little known opening systems like the Pirc (it's NOT popular back in the day), Fischer sticks to solid developing moves - bringing out his pieces first before anything else.
6. Bd3
Many experts and masters believe this is the BEST set up in the Austrian attack. And, looking at it, it's really the most logical move. 6.Bd3 develops his last kingside piece while providing more support for his center.
6...Bg4
Benko's move, however, isn't too convincing. It allows Fischer to grab an advantage. What did Bobby play to take advantage of Benko's inaccurate move?
Stop Right There And Think About It
7.h3!
While 7.Be3 is also good, the text is better. Why? First off, it immediately puts the 'question to the Bishop' - should you retreat or capture? Looking at it closely, retreating the Bishop doesn't really bring Black anything. It's more of a time waster since White can play a normal developing move (like Bc1-e3) and catch up in the development department.
Capturing - 7...Bxf3 Qxf3, on the other hand, moves the Queen an inch closer to the Kingside, and MORE importantly, it gives White the Bishop Pair. The White light-squared will have no counterpart. This gives White the opportunity to attack the light squares...squares that Black may have difficulty covering or defending.
Later in the game, you will see how CRUCIAL the role of that light-squared Bishop is for winning this game.
7...Bxf3 8. Qxf3 Nc6
Black immediately attacks the squares left undefended by the Knight on f3.
9. Be3 e5 10. dxe5 dxe5
With Black's 9th move, which initiates the exchange, the center has somewhat stabilized. With White almost completing his development (he's just a move away from connecting his Rooks), it's time to take action. What would you do if you are Bobby's shoes?
Stop Right There And Think About It
11. f5!
A strong move! Divide the board from top to bottom - look at White's pieces, 3 of them (the 2 Bishops along with the Queen) are setting their sights on the Kingside. And by opening lines on that area of the board, he increases the likelihood of creating a successful attack.
11...gxf5
You may be thinking: "What's Benko thinking?! He's doing exactly what Fischer wants!" A closer look, however, reveals that this is the lesser evil. White is threatening to follow it up with g2-g4. What's the BIG deal? Here are some lines I have found.
(Please point out chess improvements in this analysis if you find one :D)
11...Qe7 12.g4 Nd4 13.Qf2 gxf5 14.gxf5 Rad8 15.0-0-0 Kh8 16.Rhg1 Rg8 17.Nd5 Nxd5 18.exd5 Bf6 (Forced. If Black recaptures the pawn with 18...Rxd5 then 19.Rxg7 Rxg7 20.f6 Qe6 21.fxg7+ and White is winning) 19.c3 Rxg1 20.Rxg1 e4 21.Bxd4 exd3 22.Re1 Qd6 23.Re6 and if 23...fxe6 then White finishes with 24.Bxf6+ Kg8 25.Qg2 Kf7 26.Qg7+ Ke8 27.Qg8+ Qf8 28.Qxe6+ Qe7 29.Qxe7#.
And it all started by allowing White to create a series of threats beginning with 12.g4!
If you want to improve in chess, you should always (especially when the pieces are already clashing...when there is a lot of tension) look for FORCING moves. Forcing moves are often the start of winning combinations.
12. Qxf5 Nd4 13. Qf2 Ne8 14. O-O Nd6 It seems like Black has everything defended for now. How to increase the pressure?
Stop Right There And Think About It
15. Qg3!
Once you have the initiative, don't let go of it! Fischer sure knows this advice. With his move, he threatens 16.Bh6. Always look for threats and attacking moves - this is a crucial advice that GM Igor Smirnov emphasizes over and over again in his chess course Grandmaster's Secrets.
15...Kh8?!
Now, this is more of a panic move. Instead of doing something active (activiting his pieces for example), Benko allows himself to fall into passive defense and gives the driver's seat to his world-famous opponent. Much better would have been 15...f5 creating the counterthreat of 16...f4. And if -
a. 16.Bh6, then 16...Qf6 creating the counterthreat of 17...f4 18.Qg5 Qxh6.
b. 16.Bg5 Qd7 17.Qh4 Rae8 18.Rae1 when White has an advantage due to the Bishop pair and shattered Black Kingside. However, this is far from winning.
16. Qg4!
Stopping ...f7-f5 and moves the Queen closer to the enemy monarch.
16...c6
I think this is another mistake (I could be wrong for all we know). BUT here's why I think this is - it's way too slow to be an effective counterattack. Much better, I believe is 16...c5 17.b3 Qc8 18.Qh5 (still keeping an eye on f5) 18...b5 when Black is still kicking.
17.Qh5 Qe8
This is what Black is counting on - an exchange of Queens after ...f7-f5. BUT Fischer proved that this saving resource is actually a losing one! What move did Fischer find?
Stop Right There And Think About It
18.Bxd4!
As you can see, both the Queen and the d3-Bishop have their sights on the h7-pawn. If only the e4-pawn is out of the way, it would be mate! This move by Fischer forces Black to get the e5-pawn out of the way so the e4-pawn can advance and give life to the blood-seeking Bishop...the Bishop that has been imprisoned by his foot soldier now effectively enters the game!
18...exd4
The e5-pawn is now out of the way. The foot soldier on e4 is free to move forward, which will now allow Bishop to create a mate threat with the Queen on h5. What would you do?
Stop Right There And Think About It
19.Rf6!!If you played 19.e5 right away, that's ok. Many grandmasters watching this game back then are actually thinking the Black has the advantage at his point! And they failed to find this move. This just proves how way ahead Fischer is of the pack. After 19...f5! Black stops White's threat and is still in the game. The text move stops the possibility of ...f7-f5 and threatens 20.e5.
If sincerely want to improve in chess and get better results, keep in mind that you and your opponent has an equal say in the game. Always look for his potential countermoves all the time. This is a part of a good thinking process. A good resource...a chess course, for honing your chess thought process is the Grandmaster's Secrets (written by GM Igor Smirnov).
19...Kg8 20.e5
The final blow.
20...h6 21.Ne2 1-0And Benko throws in the towel and RIGHTLY so. Black cannot move away the Knight as Qh5-d5 would follow with mate next move. And he certainly cannot take on f6 as Qxh6 would lead to mate next move as well.
How did you do?
I hope you did pretty good. If NOT, that's ok. You don't get to be a better chess player overnight. Improving in chess takes a lot of things, BUT step 1 to being taking your game to the next level is having a solid and well structured thought process that would allow you to see and check the possibilities.
One chess video course that tackles the chess thought process REALLY well is GM Igor Smirnov's Grandmaster's Secrets. It contains rock solid advice about how to think in chess. GM Smirnov even dissects both a tactical and strategic position in front of you using the thinking system he's advocating.
And to make sure that you get to practice this newly acquired weapon, he tosses in a mouthful of training games and positions that would allow you to train your newly found thought process.
Combined with tips on tournament preparation, how to train further, how to keep in shape for tournaments, and more, you will surely improve in chess with this course (provided that you apply his advice).
Check Out Grandmaster's Secrets By GM Igor Smirnov RIGHT HERE
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