Hello again! The classic game for this week features a game between Bobby Fischer and Bent Larsen. The game was played during the Portoroz Interzonal Chess Tournament, Slovenia in 1958.
The tournament had a huge field, of 21 players, with the top six finishers qualifying for the upcoming Candidates Tournament. The winner of that would play Mikhail Botninnik for his World Title in 1960. Ultimately, this turned out to be Mikhail Tal (who won the tournament with 13.5/20 (!)), Svetozar Gligoric, Tigran Petrosian, Pal Benko, Friorik Olafsson and Bobby Fischer. Tal would also win the Candidates and would play Botvinnik in 1960, winning the match but losing the rematch in 1961.
Bobby Fischer was fifteen years old when the tournament was held and already showing his potential. 1958 was the year that he became Grandmaster, setting the record as the youngest in history at the time. He would also become the youngest World Chess Championship Candidate, with an impressive score of 12/20 in this tournament. Of course, this was only the beginning of Bobby’s achievements at the chess board. If events away from it had been different, who knows what he could have achieved ultimately.
The game versus Larsen, was played in round 16 and sees a very spicy game. It features opposite side castling in the Sicilian Defence. These kinds of games can be hugely exciting! They are often sharp affairs, blatant hunts for the King with pawn storms galore. This game is no exception. There is no quiet manoeuvring here, dear reader. As soon as the players have set out their stalls, their eyes are firmly set on the opposing monarch.
[pgn][Event “Portoroz Interzonal”]
[Site “Portoroz SLO”]
[Date “1958.08.16”]
[Round “8”]
[White “Robert James Fischer”]
[Black “Bent Larsen”]
[Result “1-0”]
[ECO “B77”]
[PlyCount “61”]
[EventDate “1958.08.05”]{Annotations by John Lee Shaw for www.hotoffthechess.com.} 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6
3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 g6 {The Sicilian Dragon — a tried and tested
opening which has remained popular.} 6. Be3 Bg7 7. f3 O-O 8. Qd2 Nc6 9. Bc4 {
This move announces the Yugoslav attack, regarded by many as the most testing
answer to the Sicilian Dragon.} Nxd4 {I have to admit, I am not very
knowledgable on the Dragon, my Sicilian days were spent misplaying the
Scheveningen and Taimanov. However, this move seems a little too compliant for
my liking and I am not surprised to see that …Bd7 is much more popular.} 10.
Bxd4 Be6 11. Bb3 Qa5 12. O-O-O b5 {This seems a new approach by Larsen at the
time. I have a couple of games in my database that have continued 12…Bxb3.
The first was a draw between Dworzynski-Pilnik, Lazne 1956 and the other a
victory for white in Suetin-Barsauskas, Minsk 1957. Laskers move immediately
jumps on Fischer’s castling decision. With the King on opposite wings, play is
often about opening lines by which to attack it. Pawn storms are often
employed, to move pieces and provoke holes and exchanges. It is one of those
positions in which pawns can be thrown forwards without exposing ones own King.
} 13. Kb1 {Exchanging on e6 is viable and engines seem to like it, but I don’t
personally. It doesn’t fit with Bobby’s intentions, either. He is going to be
getting his g and h pawns rolling as soon as he can with his rooks lined up on
the Kingside right towards Larsen’s King. For this reason, he likes the Black
Kingside how it is, with the King’s own army hemming him in.} b4 14. Nd5 Bxd5 {
With threats to b4 and e7, the Knight really had to go. This is a better way
to do it than capturing with the Nf6, after which White whops off on g7 with
quite the swagger.} 15. Bxd5 {? A strange decision. Why give Black the chance
to get the light-squared bishop off? Especially when capturing with the e-pawn
would have had quite some influence on the e6-square. Was Bobby nervous about
a7-a5-a4? If so, it seems needless.} (15. exd5 Qb5 {The best way to prepare
the a-pawn charge.} 16. Qd3 {! an excellent device to hold Black up with his
intentions.} Qxd3 {There is nothing better.} 17. Rxd3 Rfc8 18. Re1 Rc7 {
…Kf8 is also a rather useful move, here but either way, White is better. He
has the bishop pair, which is no small thing in this position, the e6-square
is under his control, and Black carries little threat over on the Kingside
currently. It’s a very nice position.}) 15… Rac8 {? missing an opportunity
to test White with …Nxd5. Instead, Larsen lets Fischer consolidate.} (15…
Nxd5 16. exd5 (16. Bxg7 Nc3+ {! The only way to proceed, anything else is good
for White. Instead, he must be accurate.} 17. Bxc3 (17. bxc3 Rab8 18. cxb4
Qxb4+ 19. Qxb4 Rxb4+ {and after the King moves (or Bb2, but …Rfb8 will
follow so it hardly seems worth it) Black may be slightly better. Or it is
equal — White certainly is not better.}) 17… bxc3 18. Qxc3 Qxc3 19. bxc3
Rfc8 {With a probable draw after 20.Rd3.}) 16… Qxd5 17. Qxb4 {And Black has
at the very least solved his problems. However, the b and c files are now
semi-open, which is not really what White should have allowed. The Black rooks
will be situated along them very speedily, begining with 17…Rfb8. From here
I believe that Black may even be on the cusp of being better.}) 16. Bb3 {
Fischer would have been quite happy with this setup, and his action on the
Kingside is about to get going. This being said, if this is what he had in
mind at his previous move, he is very lucky that his opponent co-operated!} Rc7
17. h4 Qb5 {? Inadequate. It has to be said that Larsen is playing technically
correct, he is freeing the a-file for the a-pawn to advance, his Queen is
quite well placed on b4 and he is ready to double rooks along the c-file or
switch them where needed on the Q-side. The problem is that he doesn’t have
time for this. Fischer demonstrates this with his next.} 18. h5 {! With a very
big initiative. Black could not allow this because in this situation, the pawn
is very powerful on h5. It can go to h6, it can capture on g6 (opening the
h-file for the Rh1) or it can just sit there. It may appear that it can be
taken (and perhaps Larsen assumed that, otherwise why allow it?) but, that
would allow Bxg7 after which the h6-square is gaping, due to the rook now
firing along the h-file. This is what can make games so exciting when Kings
are on opposite wings. Open lines can be decisive and this makes material,
(especially pawns), very expendable!} Rfc8 19. hxg6 {It makes no sense to not
open the h-file while he has the chance.} hxg6 20. g4 {Staying relevant to his
plan. Engines don’t rate this move, preferring to play towards advancing c2-c4
or e4-e5. Positionally, those ideas make little sense. Their suggestion of Be3
is the most respectable, aiming for h6, but Bobby knows he doesn’t need to do
that. His move is much more positionally aware and to the point. He has
everything worked out in his mind. Larsen must be accurate, but even so, he is
under great positional pressure here.} a5 {It is a race, a question of who
makes the other defend first.} 21. g5 Nh5 22. Rxh5 {! The optimum way to go.
Bxg7 was also playable, but exchanging off makes no sense if White wants the
full point. And he does.} gxh5 {?? The wrong way to go. Larsen had to play …
Bxd4 in order to have a chance at splitting the point. As it is, Black’s fate
is no longer in his own hands.} (22… Bxd4 {The most testing way to play. A
long variation follows during which Black can afford nothing but perfection in
order to have a chance at saving the point. Either Larsen didn’t like his
chances or he hadn’t seen the concrete idea behind Fischers Rxh5.} 23. Rh6 {
g6 is the target of course, White’s Bb3 making it as though the f7-pawn is not
there. Rdh1, and Qf4 are also possibilities.} Bg7 24. Qf4 e5 25. Qh4 a4 26.
Rxg6 axb3 27. Rxg7+ Kf8 28. Rh1 Qc4 29. Rg8+ Ke7 30. g6+ Ke6 31. Qg4+ Ke7 32.
Qg5+ Kd7 33. Qf5+ Ke7 34. Rxc8 Rxc8 35. Qg5+ Kd7 36. cxb3 Qd3+ 37. Ka1 Qxf3 38.
Qf5+ Qxf5 39. exf5 {This will take good play to hold. Of the two, White is the
one with the chance for more than half a point.}) 23. g6 {!! Absolutely
winning. The pinned pawn is actually the least of Black’s worries, here. Just
how quickly Larsen’s position disintergrates, is startling.} e5 (23… Bxd4 24.
gxf7+ {with Qxd4 to follow.}) 24. gxf7+ Kf8 25. Be3 d5 {The pawn is
undefendable, but Larsen surrenders it on his own terms, dictating that White
captures with the pawn.} 26. exd5 Rxf7 27. d6 {The final nail in the coffin.
Black’s position is way beyond resignable.} Rf6 28. Bg5 Qb7 29. Bxf6 Bxf6 30.
d7 Rd8 31. Qd6+ {And here, Larsen resigned. 31…Be7 of course leaves 32.Qh6
mate. After 31…Kg7, the open g-file seals Black’s fate via 32.Rg1+ Kh7 33.
Qxf6 etc. A nice game by Bobby Fischer — not perfect by any means, but good,
human chess!} 1-0[/pgn]
[Site “Portoroz SLO”]
[Date “1958.08.16”]
[Round “8”]
[White “Robert James Fischer”]
[Black “Bent Larsen”]
[Result “1-0”]
[ECO “B77”]
[PlyCount “61”]
[EventDate “1958.08.05”]{Annotations by John Lee Shaw for www.hotoffthechess.com.} 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6
3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 g6 {The Sicilian Dragon — a tried and tested
opening which has remained popular.} 6. Be3 Bg7 7. f3 O-O 8. Qd2 Nc6 9. Bc4 {
This move announces the Yugoslav attack, regarded by many as the most testing
answer to the Sicilian Dragon.} Nxd4 {I have to admit, I am not very
knowledgable on the Dragon, my Sicilian days were spent misplaying the
Scheveningen and Taimanov. However, this move seems a little too compliant for
my liking and I am not surprised to see that …Bd7 is much more popular.} 10.
Bxd4 Be6 11. Bb3 Qa5 12. O-O-O b5 {This seems a new approach by Larsen at the
time. I have a couple of games in my database that have continued 12…Bxb3.
The first was a draw between Dworzynski-Pilnik, Lazne 1956 and the other a
victory for white in Suetin-Barsauskas, Minsk 1957. Laskers move immediately
jumps on Fischer’s castling decision. With the King on opposite wings, play is
often about opening lines by which to attack it. Pawn storms are often
employed, to move pieces and provoke holes and exchanges. It is one of those
positions in which pawns can be thrown forwards without exposing ones own King.
} 13. Kb1 {Exchanging on e6 is viable and engines seem to like it, but I don’t
personally. It doesn’t fit with Bobby’s intentions, either. He is going to be
getting his g and h pawns rolling as soon as he can with his rooks lined up on
the Kingside right towards Larsen’s King. For this reason, he likes the Black
Kingside how it is, with the King’s own army hemming him in.} b4 14. Nd5 Bxd5 {
With threats to b4 and e7, the Knight really had to go. This is a better way
to do it than capturing with the Nf6, after which White whops off on g7 with
quite the swagger.} 15. Bxd5 {? A strange decision. Why give Black the chance
to get the light-squared bishop off? Especially when capturing with the e-pawn
would have had quite some influence on the e6-square. Was Bobby nervous about
a7-a5-a4? If so, it seems needless.} (15. exd5 Qb5 {The best way to prepare
the a-pawn charge.} 16. Qd3 {! an excellent device to hold Black up with his
intentions.} Qxd3 {There is nothing better.} 17. Rxd3 Rfc8 18. Re1 Rc7 {
…Kf8 is also a rather useful move, here but either way, White is better. He
has the bishop pair, which is no small thing in this position, the e6-square
is under his control, and Black carries little threat over on the Kingside
currently. It’s a very nice position.}) 15… Rac8 {? missing an opportunity
to test White with …Nxd5. Instead, Larsen lets Fischer consolidate.} (15…
Nxd5 16. exd5 (16. Bxg7 Nc3+ {! The only way to proceed, anything else is good
for White. Instead, he must be accurate.} 17. Bxc3 (17. bxc3 Rab8 18. cxb4
Qxb4+ 19. Qxb4 Rxb4+ {and after the King moves (or Bb2, but …Rfb8 will
follow so it hardly seems worth it) Black may be slightly better. Or it is
equal — White certainly is not better.}) 17… bxc3 18. Qxc3 Qxc3 19. bxc3
Rfc8 {With a probable draw after 20.Rd3.}) 16… Qxd5 17. Qxb4 {And Black has
at the very least solved his problems. However, the b and c files are now
semi-open, which is not really what White should have allowed. The Black rooks
will be situated along them very speedily, begining with 17…Rfb8. From here
I believe that Black may even be on the cusp of being better.}) 16. Bb3 {
Fischer would have been quite happy with this setup, and his action on the
Kingside is about to get going. This being said, if this is what he had in
mind at his previous move, he is very lucky that his opponent co-operated!} Rc7
17. h4 Qb5 {? Inadequate. It has to be said that Larsen is playing technically
correct, he is freeing the a-file for the a-pawn to advance, his Queen is
quite well placed on b4 and he is ready to double rooks along the c-file or
switch them where needed on the Q-side. The problem is that he doesn’t have
time for this. Fischer demonstrates this with his next.} 18. h5 {! With a very
big initiative. Black could not allow this because in this situation, the pawn
is very powerful on h5. It can go to h6, it can capture on g6 (opening the
h-file for the Rh1) or it can just sit there. It may appear that it can be
taken (and perhaps Larsen assumed that, otherwise why allow it?) but, that
would allow Bxg7 after which the h6-square is gaping, due to the rook now
firing along the h-file. This is what can make games so exciting when Kings
are on opposite wings. Open lines can be decisive and this makes material,
(especially pawns), very expendable!} Rfc8 19. hxg6 {It makes no sense to not
open the h-file while he has the chance.} hxg6 20. g4 {Staying relevant to his
plan. Engines don’t rate this move, preferring to play towards advancing c2-c4
or e4-e5. Positionally, those ideas make little sense. Their suggestion of Be3
is the most respectable, aiming for h6, but Bobby knows he doesn’t need to do
that. His move is much more positionally aware and to the point. He has
everything worked out in his mind. Larsen must be accurate, but even so, he is
under great positional pressure here.} a5 {It is a race, a question of who
makes the other defend first.} 21. g5 Nh5 22. Rxh5 {! The optimum way to go.
Bxg7 was also playable, but exchanging off makes no sense if White wants the
full point. And he does.} gxh5 {?? The wrong way to go. Larsen had to play …
Bxd4 in order to have a chance at splitting the point. As it is, Black’s fate
is no longer in his own hands.} (22… Bxd4 {The most testing way to play. A
long variation follows during which Black can afford nothing but perfection in
order to have a chance at saving the point. Either Larsen didn’t like his
chances or he hadn’t seen the concrete idea behind Fischers Rxh5.} 23. Rh6 {
g6 is the target of course, White’s Bb3 making it as though the f7-pawn is not
there. Rdh1, and Qf4 are also possibilities.} Bg7 24. Qf4 e5 25. Qh4 a4 26.
Rxg6 axb3 27. Rxg7+ Kf8 28. Rh1 Qc4 29. Rg8+ Ke7 30. g6+ Ke6 31. Qg4+ Ke7 32.
Qg5+ Kd7 33. Qf5+ Ke7 34. Rxc8 Rxc8 35. Qg5+ Kd7 36. cxb3 Qd3+ 37. Ka1 Qxf3 38.
Qf5+ Qxf5 39. exf5 {This will take good play to hold. Of the two, White is the
one with the chance for more than half a point.}) 23. g6 {!! Absolutely
winning. The pinned pawn is actually the least of Black’s worries, here. Just
how quickly Larsen’s position disintergrates, is startling.} e5 (23… Bxd4 24.
gxf7+ {with Qxd4 to follow.}) 24. gxf7+ Kf8 25. Be3 d5 {The pawn is
undefendable, but Larsen surrenders it on his own terms, dictating that White
captures with the pawn.} 26. exd5 Rxf7 27. d6 {The final nail in the coffin.
Black’s position is way beyond resignable.} Rf6 28. Bg5 Qb7 29. Bxf6 Bxf6 30.
d7 Rd8 31. Qd6+ {And here, Larsen resigned. 31…Be7 of course leaves 32.Qh6
mate. After 31…Kg7, the open g-file seals Black’s fate via 32.Rg1+ Kh7 33.
Qxf6 etc. A nice game by Bobby Fischer — not perfect by any means, but good,
human chess!} 1-0[/pgn]
