Born on the 4th of July. No, I wasn't, but my mother was. Even without that special significance, this date has always been a special holiday to me. But that's a story for another time.
This morning, before the day turned too hectic with all its celebrations, I played a little game on the net, hoping as always, to get in a special holiday BDG. It all worked out.
Tonight, after coming in from watching fireworks along the beach, I hurriedly put together this post. I rushed because I wanted it to be born on the 4th also.
Showing posts with label Ziegler Defense. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ziegler Defense. Show all posts
Wednesday, July 4, 2012
Tuesday, May 15, 2012
Kokholm Coldcocks Kallenbach in Copenhagen
Sorry about that title. Couldn't help myself. This game is so fresh there are no fruit flies yet. I found it in yesterday's TWIC. What a great resource that is. I tip my hat to Mark Crowther every Monday night, even when there are no BDGs in his presentation of the week's games.
This is a BDG with 5...c6, know in the BDG world as the Ziegler Defense, only because a fellow by that name lost a poorly played game with it to Diemer, who promptly attached his name to it. As Scheerer mentions in his introduction to this variation in his book, it would better be called the Gunderam Defense, considering all the work Gunderam did on it. But Gunderam's name is already attached to the 5...Bf5 defense, so we'll just leave things the way we found them.
Anyway, 5...c6 is really a very flexible answer to the BDG, and Black reserves numerous options while waiting to see how White is going to develop. Consequently, positions found in the Ziegler can also arise out of the other main BDG defenses, especially the Teichmann and the Euwe, and of course, the Gunderam.
This is a BDG with 5...c6, know in the BDG world as the Ziegler Defense, only because a fellow by that name lost a poorly played game with it to Diemer, who promptly attached his name to it. As Scheerer mentions in his introduction to this variation in his book, it would better be called the Gunderam Defense, considering all the work Gunderam did on it. But Gunderam's name is already attached to the 5...Bf5 defense, so we'll just leave things the way we found them.
Anyway, 5...c6 is really a very flexible answer to the BDG, and Black reserves numerous options while waiting to see how White is going to develop. Consequently, positions found in the Ziegler can also arise out of the other main BDG defenses, especially the Teichmann and the Euwe, and of course, the Gunderam.
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Hard Drive Miseries
I had a hard drive go belly up over the weekend. Fortunately I have an off-site backup, but it will be a few days till I get the drive replaced. In the meantime, here's a position from a recent BDG. How should it go from here?
I'll post the complete game later.
r2qr1k1/pp1nbppp/2p1p1b1/4N1Bn/3P3Q/2NB1R2/PPP3PP/3R2K1 w - - 0 15
White to move after 14...Nh5
I'll post the complete game later.
Friday, March 27, 2009
Repairing the Blackmar-Diemer?
Now and then a line suffers a theoretical blow, made known in a new book, and then the BDG player has to do his best to find a novelty that repairs the damage. This is true for any opening, but when a BDG player ignores such a gap, he risks a lot more than a Queen’s Indian player. A case study: how to mend a critical BDG variation.
So writes Stefan Bücker in his latest column at ChessCafe.com. The line he sets out to rehabilitate is this: 1 d4 d5 2 e4 dxe4 3 Nc3 Nf6 4 f3 c6! 5 Bc4 exf3 6 Nxf3 Bf5! in the O'Kelly Defense, but which also transposes from the Gunderam and Ziegler.
This has always been a tough nut to crack. Stefan gives it a heroic try, and at the very least provides White some ideas, Black a lot to think about. See what you think. The column is here. Highly recommended.
So writes Stefan Bücker in his latest column at ChessCafe.com. The line he sets out to rehabilitate is this: 1 d4 d5 2 e4 dxe4 3 Nc3 Nf6 4 f3 c6! 5 Bc4 exf3 6 Nxf3 Bf5! in the O'Kelly Defense, but which also transposes from the Gunderam and Ziegler.
This has always been a tough nut to crack. Stefan gives it a heroic try, and at the very least provides White some ideas, Black a lot to think about. See what you think. The column is here. Highly recommended.
Friday, February 6, 2009
A routine Bishop sacrifice on h6
In a BDG that showed up in TWIC recently White missed a fairly routine Bishop sac on an imprudently advanced h-pawn.
The game went 1. d4 d5 2. e4 dxe4 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. f3 exf3 5. Nxf3 c6 6. Bc4 e6 7. O-O Be7 8. Bg5 O-O 9. Qe1 b5 10. Bd3 Nbd7 11. Qh4 h6?
Here White played 12. Bxf6 and the game was drawn after sixty moves. You can clip the PGN at the end of this post and play through the game if you'd like. But the point is that this position cried out for the Bishop sac on the h-pawn. After 12.Bxh6 Black's best defense is probably 12...g6, giving up the exchange, although White may find something better than that. But if Black accepts the sac?
12.Bxh6 gxh6 13.Qxh6
This is one of those positions where you don't have to calculate every possibility. If you play the BDG you've seen it or a close relative dozens of times. As long as White has the bishop on d3, the knight that can go to g5 and the rook on the half open f-file that can sac on f6 or double with the rook from a1 or get to the g or h- files, a successful Black defense is highly unlikely.
13...Re8 Not the best, but often tried. 14. Ng5 Nf8 (This doubles the guard on h7, opening a line to White's d-pawn while still guarding against an immediate sac on f6. (14... Bf8?? 15. Bh7+ Kh8 16. Nxf7# happens now and then in blitz.) 15. Ne2 and 16. Rf4
13...e5 14. Ng5 Qb6 15. Bh7+ (Gaining a tempo to get the Bishop in position to remove the Knight on d7) Kh8 16. Bf5+ Kg8 17. Bxd7 Qxd4+ 18. Kh1 Qxd7 19. Rxf6
13...Qb6 14.Ng5 Qxd4+ 15.Kh1 and Black has no good continuation.
[Event "ch-Nassau"]
[Site "Mineola USA"]
[Date "2008.12.08"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Mennella, James"]
[Black "Kan, Andrew"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
1. d4 d5 2. e4 dxe4 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. f3 exf3 5. Nxf3 c6 6. Bc4 e6 7. O-O Be7 8. Bg5 O-O 9. Qe1 b5 10. Bd3 Nbd7 11. Qh4 h6 12. Bxf6 Nxf6 13. Ne5 Bb7 14. Rad1 b4 15. Ne2 Qc7 16. Rde1 c5 17. c3 bxc3 18. bxc3 Qd6 19. Rb1 Rab8 20. Qf4 Qd5 21. Qg3 Ne4 22. Bxe4 Qxe4 23. Nd7 Bh4 24. Qh3 Qxe2 25. Nxf8 Kxf8 26. Rxb7 Rxb7 27. Qxh4 Qe3+ 28. Kh1 Re7 29. dxc5 Qxc5 30. Qg3 Qc4 31. Rb1 Rb7 32. Qd6+ Kg8 33. Rc1 Qxa2 34. Qd8+ Kh7 35. Qd3+ g6 36. h4 Qf2 37. Qe4 Rb2 38. h5 Qf5 39. hxg6+ Qxg6 40. Qf3 a5 41. Rf1 Rb1 42. Rxb1 Qxb1+ 43. Kh2 Qb8+ 44. Kh1 Qa7 45. Qe4+ Kg7 46. Qe5+ Kg8 47. Qg3+ Kh7 48. Qd3+ Kg7 49. Qg3+ Kf8 50. Qd6+ Ke8 51. Qc6+ Qd7 52. Qa8+ Qd8 53. Qc6+ Kf8 54. c4 Qd1+ 55. Kh2 a4 56. c5 Qd4 57. Qa8+ Kg7 58. c6 Qh4+ 59. Kg1 Qe1+ 60. Kh2 Qh4+ 1/2-1/2
The game went 1. d4 d5 2. e4 dxe4 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. f3 exf3 5. Nxf3 c6 6. Bc4 e6 7. O-O Be7 8. Bg5 O-O 9. Qe1 b5 10. Bd3 Nbd7 11. Qh4 h6?
After 11...h6?
Here White played 12. Bxf6 and the game was drawn after sixty moves. You can clip the PGN at the end of this post and play through the game if you'd like. But the point is that this position cried out for the Bishop sac on the h-pawn. After 12.Bxh6 Black's best defense is probably 12...g6, giving up the exchange, although White may find something better than that. But if Black accepts the sac?
12.Bxh6 gxh6 13.Qxh6
After 13.Qxh6
This is one of those positions where you don't have to calculate every possibility. If you play the BDG you've seen it or a close relative dozens of times. As long as White has the bishop on d3, the knight that can go to g5 and the rook on the half open f-file that can sac on f6 or double with the rook from a1 or get to the g or h- files, a successful Black defense is highly unlikely.
13...Re8 Not the best, but often tried. 14. Ng5 Nf8 (This doubles the guard on h7, opening a line to White's d-pawn while still guarding against an immediate sac on f6. (14... Bf8?? 15. Bh7+ Kh8 16. Nxf7# happens now and then in blitz.) 15. Ne2 and 16. Rf4
After 15.Ne2
13...e5 14. Ng5 Qb6 15. Bh7+ (Gaining a tempo to get the Bishop in position to remove the Knight on d7) Kh8 16. Bf5+ Kg8 17. Bxd7 Qxd4+ 18. Kh1 Qxd7 19. Rxf6
After 19.Rxf6
13...Qb6 14.Ng5 Qxd4+ 15.Kh1 and Black has no good continuation.
After 15.Kh1
It's been said before: in a gambit you have to tolerate a little uncertainty. But in this position it's very little.
Here's the full game:[Event "ch-Nassau"]
[Site "Mineola USA"]
[Date "2008.12.08"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Mennella, James"]
[Black "Kan, Andrew"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
1. d4 d5 2. e4 dxe4 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. f3 exf3 5. Nxf3 c6 6. Bc4 e6 7. O-O Be7 8. Bg5 O-O 9. Qe1 b5 10. Bd3 Nbd7 11. Qh4 h6 12. Bxf6 Nxf6 13. Ne5 Bb7 14. Rad1 b4 15. Ne2 Qc7 16. Rde1 c5 17. c3 bxc3 18. bxc3 Qd6 19. Rb1 Rab8 20. Qf4 Qd5 21. Qg3 Ne4 22. Bxe4 Qxe4 23. Nd7 Bh4 24. Qh3 Qxe2 25. Nxf8 Kxf8 26. Rxb7 Rxb7 27. Qxh4 Qe3+ 28. Kh1 Re7 29. dxc5 Qxc5 30. Qg3 Qc4 31. Rb1 Rb7 32. Qd6+ Kg8 33. Rc1 Qxa2 34. Qd8+ Kh7 35. Qd3+ g6 36. h4 Qf2 37. Qe4 Rb2 38. h5 Qf5 39. hxg6+ Qxg6 40. Qf3 a5 41. Rf1 Rb1 42. Rxb1 Qxb1+ 43. Kh2 Qb8+ 44. Kh1 Qa7 45. Qe4+ Kg7 46. Qe5+ Kg8 47. Qg3+ Kh7 48. Qd3+ Kg7 49. Qg3+ Kf8 50. Qd6+ Ke8 51. Qc6+ Qd7 52. Qa8+ Qd8 53. Qc6+ Kf8 54. c4 Qd1+ 55. Kh2 a4 56. c5 Qd4 57. Qa8+ Kg7 58. c6 Qh4+ 59. Kg1 Qe1+ 60. Kh2 Qh4+ 1/2-1/2
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
Naming the Variations: the Ziegler Defense
As I mentioned in yesterday's post, there's a discussion going on over at the ChessPub forum about antidotes to the Blackmar-Diemer. Someone wondered why the 5...c6 defense was called the Ziegler Defense anyway. Here's a little background I printed in BDG WORLD 5, May 1983:
At the beginning of 1950, Diemer began to experiment with the 5.Nxf3 variation in games with his friend Paul Locher. He has written that the first tournament test of this variation (instead of 5.Qxf3) came in the spring of that year, in the following game:
Game 68
DIEMER — ZIEGLER
Easter Tournament
Wangen, 1950
1. d4 d5 2. e4 dxe4 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. f3 exf3 5. Nxf3 c6
6. Bc4 Bg4? 7. Ne5 Qc8 8. Bxf7+ Kd8 9. Qd3 Qf5 10. Qe3 Qxc2?? 11.0-0 and Black resigned.
The Queen is trapped and Rf2 is coming.
Very weak play by Black, of course, and we printed the game solely on the basis of its historical interest. Not only is it the point where Diemer turned to 5.Nxf3, it is also apparently the basis for Diemer’s calling 5…c6 the Ziegler Defense. If this is in fact the case, then until we find examples of stronger play of this line by Ziegler we must be sympathetic to Gunderam’s claim that this defense is inappropriately named.
At the beginning of 1950, Diemer began to experiment with the 5.Nxf3 variation in games with his friend Paul Locher. He has written that the first tournament test of this variation (instead of 5.Qxf3) came in the spring of that year, in the following game:
Game 68
DIEMER — ZIEGLER
Easter Tournament
Wangen, 1950
1. d4 d5 2. e4 dxe4 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. f3 exf3 5. Nxf3 c6
6. Bc4 Bg4? 7. Ne5 Qc8 8. Bxf7+ Kd8 9. Qd3 Qf5 10. Qe3 Qxc2?? 11.0-0 and Black resigned.
The Queen is trapped and Rf2 is coming.
Very weak play by Black, of course, and we printed the game solely on the basis of its historical interest. Not only is it the point where Diemer turned to 5.Nxf3, it is also apparently the basis for Diemer’s calling 5…c6 the Ziegler Defense. If this is in fact the case, then until we find examples of stronger play of this line by Ziegler we must be sympathetic to Gunderam’s claim that this defense is inappropriately named.
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