Back!

OK, I started the blog in January, posted a couple intros and a tournament summary, then disappeared. Lame! So, I have some stuff to get through to get up to date!

February's local tournament saw me lose my first standard time control game at ACC. I lost to a guy I had an excellent record against (several wins and one loss {a game I was much better in before I threw it away and then refused a draw and flamed out terribly} in previous games). And what's worse, I was completely winning before the terrible blunder.

I maintain that almost all losses (at club level) indicate some fundamental flaw in a player's game. Missed tactics and flawed calculation are easy to notice. Mis-assessing a positional or endgame concept is also spotted without much difficulty. The really irritating, and potentially most devastating, flaw is the psychological flaw the prevents a player from playing his best all game.

Some players refuse to be drawn into certain position types, and will damage their position to avoid them. Certain players are "unpleasant opponents" because their style or openings or whatever are irritating. Against such opponents, we sometimes enter the game half-defeated!

But the worst psychological weakness in chess is probably thinking the game is over before it truly is. If the game really is over, then why are the clocks not stopped? Why are moves being made? The game is not over until the scoresheets are signed!!

So, in this game, I played the Scotch, gained a promising position, and used a simple and effective attack to ruin my opponent's King protection. Victory firmly in grasp, I actually looked at my scoresheet to see how many moves had been played. I was hoping to end the game in 25 moves to make it a miniature victory!

Of course, the gods of sport are displeased with such blatant egotism. And when I played the "final touch," I did not have to wait long for my opponent's reply, which instantly equalized the game, perhaps even leaving me a bit worse! So, of course I sighed, pouted, sucked it up and played the rest of the game correctly and dejectedly took my half point. Right?

WRONG! No, I was so shocked at what I had allowed, I was completely unable to find the obvious trading combination. I could see nothing. I even tried to take a few minutes to regain my equilibrium, knowing I was in shock. But I still was beyond help, and ended up giving away a Rook for a cheap mating idea, which of course failed. And I lost.

I shook hands, declined my opponent's offer to look at the game, and quickly exited the premises. I was angry and embarrassed and in no mood to look at a chessboard. A bit of time passed, and I was able to objectively analyze the game and my mental state during it. First off, I was indeed winning and the true nail in the coffin was not hard to spot. Secondly, I had to admit that I had simply stopped playing chess. I felt my strong play had earned me a victory, rather than understanding that victory is earned only when the game is over.

In competition, ego is a terrible enemy. Pride and the refusal to be beaten is one thing. But thinking that you "deserve" anything is ridiculous. You fight hard until the end, and if you win, you take your bow. Not before!



15.exd6 e.p. is also strong.

25.Rxd5! is totally winning (25...Ng6 26.Be3; 25...Qxa7 26.Rxe5).

26.Qxe8 Rxe8 27.Ra7 avoids disaster and White can then probably draw.

In round 3 I defeated a much weaker player without trouble, and in round 4 I was able to win in 12 moves:



The loss stayed with me a while. But, a reminder from time to time that the game is not over until it's truly over is a good thing. Twice since then, when in winning positions that required some work to finish off, I wrote "DURSTON" in capital letters at the top of my scoresheet to remind me not to relax. And I won them both.