The Joy of Winning a Tough Game - 2

My winning streak against the Level 4 Personality of NagaSkaki continues. Now it is 2/2.

Obviously, it is not as easy as the previous level. I get very fatigued after about twenty-five moves, and my brain shuts down for the day after the game. But I am sure this level will help me improve from where I am.



Suggestions are welcome.

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Many thanks.
Prady.
More links at http://www.facebook.com/groups/195960723787552/

The Joy of Winning a Tough Game

My mind is comfortably numb after this 30 min game against the Level 4 Personality of software NagaSkaki. I had only 30 seconds on my clock when the game ended in my favour. My brain is in no condition to play another game today.



I think I got lucky. Let me know whatever you guys think.

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Many thanks.
Prady.
More links at http://www.facebook.com/groups/195960723787552/

Sweet Victory Kills My Losing Streak

In the last couple of weeks I'd been playing miserably. Terribly bad form. I even lost easily won games from winning positions.

After what seemed to be forever, a little clarity of mind seems to have returned. I enjoyed this game.

Suggestions for improvement are always welcome.
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Many thanks.
Prady.
More links at http://www.facebook.com/groups/195960723787552/

Don't Try This!

I believe I have hit a new low with this game!

This post is a perfect example of how to lose a winning game.

The title says it all. You don't want to play like this. Trust me... It really hurts.

I'm posting this as a reminder to myself. You may refer this when you want to refresh your memory about how not to play. But don't dwell too much on it, because bad style is infectious.

You've been forewarned. Here goes...



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Many thanks.
Prady.
More links at http://www.facebook.com/groups/195960723787552/

My K-p Game!

During the last several months I had concentrated on gaining a bit of experience with positional play, and had therefore only played Reti/KIA/Q-p systems as White.

My opponent had mostly been the Level 3 Personality of the software NagaSkaki, against which I saw some consistent improvement in my game over the period.

Today, a friend who was going through my PGNs gave me a bit of an advice: "You have become comfortable with this level, so now you are not learning anything new. If you really want to improve further, either move on to the next level, or try a different style against the current level."

That made sense. So today I tried my hand at a K-p opening against Level 3, and I sweetly surprised myself with a victory!

I am not sure if I played well or not (that is for better players to tell me), but I enjoyed this open game a bit more than my closed games; I could see more targets; there was more danger; I took more risks...

But hey, a win is a win!




Do let me know what I could have done better.

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Many thanks.
Prady.
More links at http://www.facebook.com/groups/195960723787552/

Where Was I Wrong?

This was a tough game. I enjoyed the challenge. I played with a decent  plan of controlling the center. Of course, I lost. But what exactly did I do wrong?



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Many thanks.
Prady.
More links at http://www.facebook.com/groups/195960723787552/

Practicing The QGD: Game 1

Thanks to IM Jeremy Silman's interesting article, I've decided to take up the QGD as my opening against everything except 1. e4. I plan to gradually improve my understanding of this opening by playing it.


My goals: 
a) To be able to play the QGD with confidence against strong opposition
b) To simultaneously hone my positional understanding.

Okay, then. Here's my first game in the series.

Key Moves:


7. Ne5 - I didn't understand the purpose behind this move. I guess it was to hit the d7 where I'd like to develop my N/b8. Since there was no immediate threat, I decided to solidify my pawn on d5.

10. ...Ba5 - Because I thought if 10. ...Bxc3 11. bxc3, then White could nicely take charge of the b-file.

14. e5 - At this point I couldn't find a comfortable home for my Knight. I thought of taking the path f6-e8-d6, but I couldn't analyze in depth the possibility 14. ...Ne8 15. Bh6 Ng7. So I gave up that attempt. What I did play was obviously worse.

15. f3 - I think this was a mistake. My opponent allows my Knight to expose his King before bidding the world farewell.

18. Bh6 - This insatiable hunger for material marked the beginning of my opponent's end.



All constructive advice that could help me get closer to either/both of these goals is always welcome (please note: I can digest only descriptive advice).

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Many thanks.
Prady.
Fun at http://www.facebook.com/groups/195960723787552/