Spokane Chess Club

Two games from Curt Collyer, co-champion of this year’s Inland Empire Open:

Herbers,P (1950) - Collyer,C (2214) [C00]

Inland Empire Open (4), 10.04.2005

[Curt Collyer]

1.e4 e6 2.f4 As NM Mike MacGregor would enlighten: "Out of book. The main move is 2.d4." 2...d5 3.exd5 exd5 4.Nf3 Bd6 5.d3 Qf6 I don't know if this is good or not, but I was somehow attracted to putting my queen here. 6.g3 c6 7.Bg2 Ne7 8.0–0 0–0 9.Nbd2 Nf5 10.Nb3 a5 11.c3? I can hear Paul Bartron kibitzing: "Why'd he'd move there it just loses a pawn..." 11...a4 "Right, kick the knight." -P. Bartron 12.Nbd4 "Can't go back, Ne3..." -Bartron 12...Bc5 "Pin the knight what's he gonna do? Bishop can't come to e3--we just take it." -Paul 13.Kh1 Nxd4 14.Nxd4 Bxd4 "Take, take, take, we're just up a pawn." -Paultron 15.cxd4 Qxd4 16.f5! I think this was a good move by Herbers; it stops 16...Bf5 while freeing up his dark square bishop, which happens to be his only claim to compensation in this position. 16...Nd7 17.Qe2 Qe5 18.Qf2 Nf6 19.d4 Qd6 20.Bf4 Qd7 21.Bg5 Qd6 22.Rae1 [22.Bf4 Qd8 was my idea, when the f-pawn must be defended and after  23.Bg5 Black has  23...Ne4 trading some pieces.] 22...b6 23.Bf4 Qd8 24.Bg5 [24.Re5 Ng4; 24.Bh3 Ba6 25.Rg1 Ne4] 24...Ne4 [Actually 24...Ba6 25.Rg1? Ng4 26.Qf4 Qxg5! would have been more fun.] 25.Bxd8 Nxf2+ 26.Rxf2 Rxd8 27.Re7 Bd7 28.f6 [28.g4 Kf8 29.Rfe2 Re8 and Black would be able to trade down.] 28...Kf8 29.Re5 Herbers was in rather bad time trouble here and his flag was beginning to rise.  As Geoff Gale would calmly point out: "Two minutes?!?!" 29...gxf6 The beginning of a planned sequence to take advantage of Herber's time pressure. 30.Rxf6 Re8 31.Rh5 Re1+ 32.Bf1 Kg7 33.Rf4 h6! This was my idea, keeping the white rooks contained.  Now it is rather difficult to suggest anything for White. 34.Kg2 Rae8 35.Rfh4 R8e6 36.Kf2 Rb1 37.Bd3 Rxb2+ 38.Kf3 Rf6+ 39.Ke3 Rxa2 40.g4 Re6+ 41.Kf3 Ra3 42.g5 Flag. 0–1

Collyer,C (2214) - Gale,G (1995) [A14]

Inland Empire Open (5), 10.04.2005

[Curt Collyer]

In the last round, I faced my traveling companion Geoff Gale, who, in my opinion, is a serious chessplayer. 1.c4 Nf6 2.g3 e6 3.Bg2 d5 4.Nf3 Be7 5.0–0 0–0 Geoff has a lot of experience on the black side of the main line Catalan (6.d4 dc 7.Qa4 a6 8.Qxc4 b5). 6.Qc2 a6 Inviting a transposition after 7.d4 dc. 7.b3 Hoping to prove that Qc2 is more useful than a6 in the Reti. 7...c5 8.cxd5 Nxd5 8...ed may be a little better but such IQP/Hanging Pawns structures are not to everyone's taste. 9.a3 Really a rather insipid move, but it does provoke Geoff into trying to seize the initiative. 9...Bf6 10.Bb2 10.Ra2!? was looking a little too "Morozevich". 10...Nc6 11.d3 Nd4 Quite optimistic.  Black is hoping to put a knight on c3. 12.Nxd4 cxd4 13.Nd2 Bd7 14.Ne4! Rc8 15.Qd2 I was rather satisfied with this position. Black has some potential problems with d4 and b7 and maybe White can just grab the two bishops at some point and torture Black in the ending. 15...Qb6 [15...Nc3?! 16.Nxf6+ Qxf6 17.Bxb7 is an example of the pawn on a6 being a problem for Black.] 16.Nxf6+! Nxf6 [16...gxf6? 17.Bxd5! exd5 18.Qf4 and Black is in serious trouble on the dark squares.] 17.Rfc1 Rxc1+?! This was a real shock. [However, 17...Qxb3 18.Bxd4 also looked good for White. For example 18...Rxc1+ 19.Rxc1 Qxa3? 20.Bc5; The natural move seemed to be 17...Bc6 but during the game I thought that after 18.Bxc6 Rxc6 19.Rxc6 bxc6 (19...Qxc6 20.Bxd4) 20.Qb4!? Qxb4 21.axb4 Black would still have some problems.] 18.Rxc1 Rc8 19.Rxc8+ Bxc8 20.Qf4! A deadly move, which Geoff had missed this when he went for the rook exchange.  Now Black's d-pawn is falling. 20...Nd5 Geoff decides to enter an ending a pawn down. [Before playing 20. Qf4, I was looking for a direct win after 20...Qxb3!? with  21.Qb8 but decided 21...Qd1+ 22.Bf1 Qc2 23.Bxd4 Nd7 was inconclusive.; Then I looked at 20...Qxb3 21.Qc7! and decided it was winning after 21...Qd1+ 22.Bf1 Bd7 23.Qd8+ Be8 24.Bxd4 with the idea 24...Kf8 25.Bc5+ Kg8 26.Be7.  However Black always has the move Qa4! in these lines (Geoff and I missed this resource) when White is not winning a piece, though he maintains a nice advantage.] 21.Qxd4 Qxd4 Black has to exchange, otherwise he is mated on g7. 22.Bxd4 f6 23.f4 [I thought Black may have some drawing chances after the natural 23.e4 Ne7 24.f4 Nc6 25.Bc3 e5! followed by bringing the king up and possibly putting a knight on d4.] 23...Ne7 24.Kf2 Kf7 25.Bb2 Nf5 26.e4 Nd6 27.Ke3 Bd7 28.Kd4?! Trying to bring the king over to pressure Black's queenside, but this plan may be inaccurate. [The simple 28.g4 Bc6 29.d4 would have been better, when White can eventually break through with d5.] 28...Bc6 29.a4?! [29.Kc5 Nf5?! 30.d4 followed by d5 is good for, but Black can play 29...Ke7 instead when White still has some work to do because the d-pawn cannot advance without dropping e4.] 29...Nf5+! 30.Kc5 Ne3 Black's active knight creates some complications. 31.Bh3 h5 [31...f5 32.Bc1 Ng4 33.exf5 exf5 34.d4 is similar to the game continuation.; During the game I was looking at 31...g5!? with the idea of playing g4, trapping my bishop. but I thought White could probably win the ending after 32.Bc1 g4 33.Bxe3 gxh3 34.g4] 32.Kd6! f5? [After 32...Ng4 (this is probably Black's best move). 33.Bd4 g6 (The idea is to play f5 and recapture with the g-pawn so that White will not get a passed d-pawn.) 34.Bg1 f5 35.e5!? looks reasonable for White as Black's knight is locked out of play, and White can bring the light square bishop back into the game via f1.] 33.Bc1 Now White can create a passed pawn. 33...Ng4 34.exf5 exf5 35.d4 Be4 36.Bf1! The key manoeuver, bringing the bishop to the a2-g8 diagonal to aid the advance of the d-pawn. 36...Nxh2 This pawn is irrelevant. 37.Bc4+ Ke8 38.d5 Bg2 [38...Kd8 39.Bb2 g6 40.Bf6+] 39.Kc7 Nf1 40.d6 1–0