[Event "Tasmanian Open 2016"]
[Site "Launceston College, Tasmania"]
[Date "2016.03.11"]
[Round "1.5"]
[White "ROLPH, Charlie"]
[Black "COX, Aidan"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "B01"]
[WhiteElo "1689"]
[PlyCount "64"]
[EventDate "2016.03.14"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "AUS"]

1. e4 d5 2. exd5 Qxd5 3. Nc3 Qd8 $6 {not a mistake, but not in the spirit of
the opening either. White has a lead in development and has retained the right
to move. It is true that this was once the main line, but theory has moved on
and practice shows this is generally a little too slow if white can grab the
initiative.} (3... Qa5 {is the mainline reply when recapturing with the queen,
with black getting a fair game after some standard developing ideas from both
sides.} 4. d4 Nf6 5. Nf3 c6 {[%csl Ya5][%cal Ya5d8,Ya5c7]} 6. Bc4 Bf5 (6... Bg4
7. h3 Bh5 8. g4 Bg6 9. Ne5) 7. Bd2 e6 (7... Qc7 8. Ne5 e6 9. g4 Bg6 10. h4) 8.
Qe2 {[%cal Yd4d5]} Bb4 9. O-O-O {[%cal Ya2a3]}) (3... Qd6 {is also a newer way
to play the position.}) 4. Bc4 Nf6 5. d4 a6 6. Bg5 h6 7. Bh4 b5 {white's
pieces have sprung out of the box, and while it's true the bishops are getting
chased around a little, white should be able to consolidate his development
advantage and have an easier game.} 8. Bb3 Bb7 9. f3 $6 {[%csl Yf3][%cal Yg1f3]
not the best choice, white should have stuck to his original plan of
developing quickly.} (9. Nf3 {when white can develop the queen and stand ready
to castle either side in response to black's play.}) 9... c5 {a good practical
move. While a computer will tell you this is not the best, it's a move that
asks white some serious questions about his plans. White may want to castle on
the queenside as is thematic in the Scandinavian, but this move puts the
breaks on that plan.} 10. dxc5 {taking is all but forced here.} Qxd1+ 11. Rxd1
Nbd7 {the recent captures have taken the sting out of the position. Black is
ready to play e6 with tempo, castle and be super solid with even a slight
initiative.} 12. Nd5 (12. Nge2 {development is key} e6 13. O-O (13. c6 Bxc6 14.
Nd4 Bb7 15. O-O $11 {is perhaps the most accurate, but a little too GM.}) 13...
Bxc5+ {is the safest way for white to play.}) (12. a4 {is an ambitious
computer-esk plan, but it does help solve the issue of black's queen-side play.
} Nxc5 13. axb5 Nxb3 14. cxb3 axb5 15. Nxb5 {black has some long-term static
advantages in his pawn structure and bishop pair, but this position is
playable for white if he's prepared to work for many moves to slowly improve
his position.}) 12... Nxd5 13. Bxd5 Bxd5 14. Rxd5 e6 {all the exchanges here
favoured black, but white can retreat the rook, give back the pawn and go into
a standard 3 and 3 vs 4 and 2 pawn structure that is certainly playable. White
has some development issues, but if he can solve them an consolidate the game
will be equal.} 15. Rxd7 $2 {this move is a clear blunder, but it has an air
of frustration about it, as if white was annoyed with his play and just forced
the issue too much. Objectively this just loses an exchange and initiative.} (
15. Rd1 Bxc5 16. Ne2 Rc8 17. c3 Nb6 {and it's still a game of chess.}) 15...
Kxd7 16. b4 a5 17. a3 axb4 18. axb4 {[%csl Ra1][%cal Ra8a1] opening the a file
was not advisable.} Ra4 19. c3 g5 20. Bg3 Bg7 21. Kd2 Ra2+ 22. Kd3 Rxg2 23. Ne2
Ra8 24. Rd1 Kc6 25. Nd4+ $2 {a tactical blunder, but things were already
terrible for white.} Bxd4 26. Kxd4 (26. cxd4 $4 {not possible due to} Ra3+ 27.
Ke4 Re2#) 26... Rxg3 $1 {and the problem with Nd4+ is revealed, white has no
time to recapture as Rd8+ wins the lone white rook.} 27. Ke5 Rxf3 28. Rd6+ Kc7
29. c4 bxc4 30. b5 Rf5+ 31. Kd4 Rd5+ 32. Rxd5 exd5 {a rook and 2 pawns down
there is no way to save this, white resigned.} 0-1

[Event "Tasmanian Open 2016"]
[Site "Launceston College, Tasmania"]
[Date "2016.03.12"]
[Round "2.2"]
[White "BONHAM, Kevin"]
[Black "FRIEBE, Martin"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "B22"]
[WhiteElo "1858"]
[PlyCount "135"]
[EventDate "2016.03.14"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "AUS"]

1. e4 {an unusual start for Kevin who is predominately a c4 or Nf3 player.} c5
2. Nf3 e6 3. c3 d5 4. exd5 (4. e5 Nc6 5. d4 {gets the players into an advanced
French.}) 4... Qxd5 {taking advantage of the c3 move, not allowing Nc3 to hit
the queen and gain a tempo to develop.} (4... exd5 5. Bb5+ Nc6 6. Qe2+ Qe7 7.
d4 {is another way to play the position.}) 5. d4 Nc6 6. Be3 e5 7. c4 Qd6 8. d5
Nd4 9. Nc3 Nf6 10. h3 Bd7 11. Bd3 h6 12. Nd2 Qc7 13. Nde4 Nxe4 14. Nxe4 O-O-O
15. Bxd4 exd4 (15... cxd4 {may have been the better capture, as it creates
immediate pressure. f5 is a move to worry about if white castles kingside, but
keeping the king in the middle too long is also dangerous.}) 16. O-O f5 17. Ng3
g6 18. Re1 Bd6 19. Qf3 Rde8 20. Re2 Rxe2 21. Nxe2 Re8 22. b4 cxb4 23. Rc1 Qc5
24. h4 Bc7 25. h5 Qd6 26. g3 Rg8 27. Nxd4 Qf6 28. Ne2 gxh5 29. c5 Kb8 30. d6
Bd8 31. Bc4 Rg7 32. Bd5 f4 33. Qxf4 Qxf4 34. Nxf4 h4 35. Kh2 hxg3+ 36. fxg3 Bg5
37. Rb1 {for the bulk of the middle game both players have played somewhat
cautiously, and liquidated into this position with white's advanced connected
pawns as compensation for black's bishop pair.} Bxf4 $2 {this was potentially
fatal as the following exchange doesn't only give up the bishop pair, but it
relinquishes control of the dark squares, including e7, which we'll see could
have been decisive.} 38. gxf4 a5 39. Rf1 (39. Re1 {[%csl Ye7][%cal Ye1e7] and
the absence of the dark squared bishop would have been felt.} a4 40. Re7 Rxe7
41. dxe7 b3 42. axb3 a3 43. b4 Kc7 44. f5 Be8 45. f6 {with a decisive
advantage for white.}) 39... Bc6 40. Bxc6 bxc6 41. Re1 Kc8 42. f5 Kd7 43. f6 {
after some misadventures from both sides we've arrived at this dead equal
position.} Rf7 44. Kg3 a4 45. Rb1 Rxf6 46. Rxb4 Rf5 47. Rc4 a3 48. Rc3 Rd5 49.
Kg4 h5+ 50. Kh4 Re5 51. Kg3 Ke6 52. Kf4 Rd5 53. Ke4 Rg5 54. Kf4 Rd5 55. Ke4 h4
{refusing the draw by repetition here, and pressing on for the win.} 56. Kf4
Kf6 57. Kg4 Rd4+ 58. Kh3 Rd5 59. Kxh4 {with black now having lost his trump
card of the outside passed pawn, it's only white that can win, but this
position is still holdable for black.} Ke6 60. Kg4 Rd4+ 61. Kf3 Rd5 62. Ke4 Kd7
63. Ke3 {[%cal Yd7c8,Yd7d8,Yd7e8] remarkably going backwards is the way
forwards. The key being that the black king must stay in the proximity of the
d7 square and the back rank to stop the d pawn from advancing.} Ke6 $2 {seems
fine, but allows the white rook onto the d file.} 64. Rd3 {and black is in
Zugzwang} Re5+ (64... Rxd3+ 65. Kxd3 {is a clear win for white.}) 65. Kd4 {
[%cal Yd4c3,Yc3b3,Yb3a3] and now the white king has crossed the line to the a
file, it's just a matter of time before he collects the extra pawn and runs
the a pawn home.} Rh5 66. Kc4 Kd7 67. Kb4 Rh4+ 68. Kb3 1-0

[Event "Tasmanian Open 2016"]
[Site "Launceston College, Tasmania"]
[Date "2016.03.12"]
[Round "3.1"]
[White "ROUT, Ian"]
[Black "STEFKO, Luke"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A04"]
[WhiteElo "1948"]
[BlackElo "1770"]
[PlyCount "33"]
[EventDate "2016.03.14"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "AUS"]

1. Nf3 f5 {the fireworks have started, no symmetrical Reti today.} 2. d3 d5 3.
c4 c6 4. cxd5 cxd5 5. g3 Nc6 6. Bg2 e6 7. O-O Nf6 8. Bf4 Bd6 9. Bxd6 Qxd6 10.
Nc3 O-O 11. e4 d4 ({an interesting alternative is} 11... f4 12. Rc1 Bd7 (12...
fxg3 13. hxg3 Bd7 14. a3) 13. a3 {white has a small positional advantage, but
the game is basically equal.}) 12. Nb5 Qd7 ({more active is} 12... Qb4 {[%cal
Yb4b5,Yb4b2]} 13. Nc7 {[%cal Yc7a8,Yc7e6]} fxe4 14. dxe4 (14. Nxa8 exf3 15.
Bxf3 Bd7 {and black has a small edge in the imbalance.}) 14... Rb8 15. e5 Ng4
16. Ng5 $11) 13. exf5 e5 $2 (13... exf5 {is still advantage white, but better
than the game.}) 14. Ng5 {[%csl Ye6,Yf7][%cal Yg5f7,Yg5e6] immediately looking
at the weakened light squares around the king.} a6 15. Qb3+ Kh8 16. Ne6 Rf7 (
16... axb5 17. Nxf8 Qxf5 18. Qxb5 {and white is winning.}) 17. Nbc7 {black
resigned here, white is dominating the position, and will soon win decisive
material or mate the black king.} 1-0

[Event "Tasmanian Open 2016"]
[Site "Launceston College, Tasmania"]
[Date "2016.03.13"]
[Round "4.1"]
[White "BONHAM, Kevin"]
[Black "ROUT, Ian"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "A38"]
[WhiteElo "1858"]
[BlackElo "1948"]
[PlyCount "104"]
[EventDate "2016.03.14"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "AUS"]

1. Nf3 Nf6 2. g3 c5 3. Bg2 g6 4. O-O Bg7 5. c4 O-O 6. Nc3 Nc6 {the symmetrical
English, solid but equal, white has nothing here other than the right to move.}
7. Rb1 (7. d4 cxd4 8. Nxd4 Qb6 9. e3 {is a more active way to break the
symmetry, but the position is still about equal.}) 7... d5 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. a3 (
9. Qb3 {would transpose into the previous position but with colours reversed.
The subtle difference would be black's ability to play Bf5 with tempo before
playing e6.}) 9... Bf5 10. Ra1 (10. d3 {is the better move, but gets in the
way of white's plan of b4.}) 10... Nc7 (10... c4 {is a strong prophylactic
idea which grabs more space on the queen-side.}) 11. d3 e5 {[%csl Yc5,Ye5]
[%cal Ye5d4,Yc5d4] black clamps down on the centre with a reverse Maroczy bind
structure.} 12. Be3 Nd4 13. Rc1 Rc8 14. Nh4 Be6 15. Bxb7 Rb8 16. Bg2 Rxb2 17.
Bxd4 ({is another way to play the position, but it comes down to a matter of
taste.} 17. Rb1 Rxb1 18. Qxb1 c4 19. Qb7 f5 20. Qxa7 f4 21. Bxd4 (21. Bc1 cxd3
22. e3 Ne2+) 21... exd4 22. Ne4) 17... cxd4 18. Ne4 Nd5 19. Rc2 Rxc2 20. Qxc2
Qe7 21. Qc5 Qxc5 22. Nxc5 Nc3 23. e3 Bg4 24. Bf3 Bh3 25. Bg2 Bxg2 26. Kxg2 Rc8
27. exd4 exd4 28. Nb3 Rb8 29. Nd2 Rb2 30. Nc4 Rb3 {after 30 moves we reach
this very drawish position, black has had some initiative in the past moves,
but both players have played it safe and avoided sharp confrontation. While
black has a symbolic bishop advantage, it's not working for him at the moment.}
31. Re1 Bf6 32. Re8+ Kg7 33. Ra8 (33. Nf3 Nd5 34. Ra8 {and black must chose
between taking the d pawn, and defending his a pawn. But, either way the
remaining king-side structure is symmetrical, and looking very drawish}) 33...
Nd5 34. Rxa7 Bxh4 35. gxh4 Nf4+ 36. Kf3 Nxd3 {the recent exchanges have given
black some pull in this position. the structural advantage is only slight, but
the d pawn is passed and could be more challenging to stop than white's a pawn.
} 37. Ke4 (37. Ke2 $6 {saving the pawn, leads to} Nf4+ {with Rb1 to soon
follow and the king-side pawns fall}) 37... Nxf2+ 38. Kxd4 Rh3 {the position
balances on a knife edge, it's technically a draw but only with accurate play.}
39. a4 Rxh2 40. a5 Rxh4+ 41. Kd5 Nd3 42. Nd6 Nb4+ 43. Kc5 Rf4 {in the analysis
room this position drew a fair bit of attention, what happened on the game
board was exactly what was analysed - which is a great rarety.} 44. Rxf7+ Rxf7
45. Nxf7 Na6+ 46. Kb6 Kxf7 47. Kxa6 g5 48. Kb5 g4 49. a6 g3 50. a7 g2 51. a8=Q
g1=Q 52. Qd5+ Kf6 {in the end Ian was a gentleman and agreed a draw here,
rather than trying to push on for the win.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Tasmanian Open 2016"]
[Site "Launceston College, Tasmania"]
[Date "2016.03.13"]
[Round "5.3"]
[White "MCMAHON, Denis"]
[Black "FRIEBE, Martin"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "B12"]
[WhiteElo "1781"]
[PlyCount "60"]
[EventDate "2016.03.14"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "AUS"]

1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. f3 e6 4. Be3 dxe4 5. Nd2 exf3 6. Ngxf3 Nf6 7. Bd3 Nbd7 8.
O-O Qc7 9. Ng5 Bd6 10. g3 Bxg3 11. Qf3 Bd6 (11... Bxh2+ 12. Kh1 {and white is
in big trouble.}) 12. Nxh7 $6 {an interesting but questionable move.  Bxh2+,
b6, and Nb6 all lead to a large advantage for black.} Nf8 $6 {not the most
active reply, though a good practical move over the board. The resulting open
lines to white's king could prove hard to meet.} 13. Nxf6+ gxf6 14. Qxf6 Bxh2+
15. Kf2 Bg3+ 16. Ke2 Rh2+ 17. Kd1 {white has fended off the black attack and
despite being material down has good compensation.} e5 18. Ne4 Bg4+ 19. Kc1
exd4 20. Qxd4 (20. Bg1 {and black has some problems to solve, despite white's
somewhat awkward piece placement.}) 20... Be6 (20... Be5 {getting some
material off the board and into a position where black's extra pawn is a
menace to white.} 21. Nf6+ Bxf6 22. Qxf6 Qe7) 21. Nf6+ Ke7 22. Bg5 Qe5 23. Qb4+
c5 24. Qxb7+ Nd7 25. Ne4+ Kf8 26. Qxa8+ Kg7 {at this point white is an entire
rook up and is simply winning.} 27. Qd8 {white is still clearly winning here,
but this move does give black one critical counter chance.} (27. Bd2 $1 {a
subtle but powerful move. The idea being that the rook is no longer hitting
the c pawn and white's king is absolutely safe.}) 27... c4 28. Nxg3 (28. Qxd7
Bxd7 29. Bf6+ Qxf6 30. Nxf6 cxd3 31. Nxd7 Rxc2+ 32. Kb1 {while the advanced d
pawn looks scary, this is actually nothing for black, white will take home the
point without much trouble.}) 28... cxd3 29. Ne4 $4 {a heartbreaking blunder,
white has gone from being +7 several moves ago, to #6.} Rxc2+ 30. Kd1 Bg4+ {
and white is seeing the bright light, he resigned here.} 0-1

[Event "Tasmanian Open 2016"]
[Site "Launceston College, Tasmania"]
[Date "2016.03.14"]
[Round "6.1"]
[White "FRIEBE, Martin"]
[Black "ROUT, Ian"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "B24"]
[BlackElo "1948"]
[PlyCount "55"]
[EventDate "2016.03.14"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "AUS"]

1. e4 c5 2. Nc3 Nc6 3. f4 e6 4. Nf3 Nge7 5. d3 g6 6. g3 Bg7 7. Bg2 O-O 8. O-O
b6 9. Ne2 Bb7 10. c3 f5 {10 moves in and this is not your standard Sicilian,
and certainly not your standard Grand Prix Attack. Still, Martin's style lured
in several players of the weekend, and Ian Rout was no exception. Black has no
trouble here, the position is equal, and now it's time to try and open things
up.} 11. e5 (11. exf5 Nxf5 {and black's edge is small, but definite.}) 11...
Rc8 12. Be3 Nd5 13. Qd2 Qe7 (13... d6 14. Ng5 Qe7 {was another way to approach
the position.}) 14. Ne1 g5 15. Bxd5 exd5 16. d4 cxd4 (16... Na5 {[%csl Yd2,Ye3]
[%cal Ya5c4] is an interesting idea, but after} 17. b3 g4 18. dxc5 bxc5 {does
nothing but hold equality, but the king-side is now blocked.}) 17. Bxd4 gxf4 (
17... g4 {keeping the position closed rather than opening the king-side is a
matter of taste. The structure takes on a bit of a KID appeal, with black
having plans of either opening the king-side with an attack down the h file,
or playing more in the centre with the d6 break.}) 18. gxf4 d6 19. exd6 Qxd6 {
both kings are a little exposed here, so it's difficult to say if opening the
position favoured one player more than the other. However, black's pieces on
the queen-side don't make a good impression and despite the open lines,
white's knights are better than black's bishops at the moment.} 20. Nf3 Nxd4
21. Nexd4 Rce8 22. Rae1 Re4 (22... Ba6 {activating the bishop and forcing off
some material.} 23. Rxe8 (23. Rf2 Rxe1+ 24. Nxe1 {preventing Bd3 in response.})
23... Rxe8 24. Re1 Rxe1+ 25. Qxe1) 23. Ng5 Kh8 $6 {a panic move, while white's
knight is imposing, black can play around it to a certain extent.} (23... Bxd4+
24. cxd4 Rxe1 25. Rxe1 {leaves black a little passive but is still very
playable.}) 24. Nde6 Bh6 $2 25. Rxe4 ({white could simply take the exchange
here, with one possibly line being} 25. Nxe4 Qxe6 26. Ng5 Qd7 27. Qe2 Bxg5 28.
fxg5 d4 29. Qe5+ Kg8 30. cxd4 Rf7 31. Qe8+ Qxe8 32. Rxe8+ Kg7 {with white in
the drivers seat.}) 25... fxe4 26. Qd4+ Kg8 27. Rf2 Rf7 $4 {an unfortunate
oversight that sees black lose too much material, and likely get mated over
the next few moves.} (27... Rf5 {is the computers defensive choice, but after}
28. Rg2 {something's got to give and it won't be long before it's black giving
white material.} Qe7 29. Nf3+ Kf7 30. Qh8 exf3 31. Nd8+ Qxd8 32. Qxd8 fxg2 33.
Qd7+ Kf6 34. Qxb7 Bxf4 35. Kxg2 {with 2 loose pawns and an exposed king, the
white queen will mop up and take home the point.}) 28. Qh8+ {seeing what was
coming, black resigned.} 0-1

[Event "Tasmanian Open 2016"]
[Site "Launceston College, Tasmania"]
[Date "2016.03.14"]
[Round "7.1"]
[White "BONHAM, Kevin"]
[Black "ROLPH, David"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "B51"]
[WhiteElo "1858"]
[BlackElo "1652"]
[PlyCount "104"]
[EventDate "2016.03.14"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "AUS"]

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. Bb5+ Nc6 4. O-O e6 5. Bxc6+ bxc6 6. Re1 d5 7. d3 Bd6 8.
e5 Bc7 9. Bg5 f6 10. Bh4 g5 {despite the somewhat awkward appearance of
black's pieces, with his snaking pawns and lack of development, the position
is equal. Black's extra space and the closed nature of the position offset the
development disadvantage.} 11. Bg3 f5 12. h4 (12. h3 f4 13. Bh2 Nh6 {etc. and
the bishop remains buried for some time.}) 12... h6 (12... f4 13. Bh2 g4 14.
Nfd2 Qxh4 15. Bxf4 Ne7 {with another interesting but equal position.}) 13. Nfd2
Qd7 14. Qh5+ (14. Nb3 $1 {hitting the loose c pawn} Bb6 15. Nc3 {[%csl Yb6,Yc5]
[%cal Yc3a4,Ya4b6,Ya4c5] and black's backward development and potentially
loose king is starting to show.}) 14... Qf7 15. Qxf7+ Kxf7 $11 {taking the
queens off was a strategic inaccuracy from white. Now the position is once
again dead equal, but options to break through have decreased with the queens
off, and black's space advantage has just increased in value.} 16. hxg5 hxg5
17. f4 gxf4 18. Bxf4 Rb8 19. b3 Ne7 20. Nf3 Bd7 (20... Ng6 21. Bg5 Bb6 {[%cal
Yc5c4]} 22. Nbd2 c4+ 23. d4 c5 {with black starting to take the initiative.})
21. Nc3 Rb4 22. Bd2 Rg4 23. Kf2 Rhg8 24. Rg1 Ng6 25. Rae1 Ba5 (25... c4 {has
been a decent move for the past few moves, the threat of Bb6 and/or d5 ripping
up the centre and activating the bishop pair is pretty hard to meet.}) 26. Na4
Bxd2 27. Nxd2 {the position is once again dead equal, the exchange of bishops
has favoured white and despite Dave getting into time trouble, he went on to
hold the game with relative ease.} Nf4 28. Nxc5 Bc8 29. Rc1 Rxg2+ 30. Rxg2
Rxg2+ 31. Kf3 Rxd2 (31... Nxd3 32. Kxg2 Nxc1 {and black has an extra pawn for
his trouble. Still a drawn game, but on the long road to the ending the extra
pawn could prove too much if white cracks.}) 32. Kxf4 Rh2 {white has a
symbolic edge due to black's extra pawn island. Despite white's passed f pawn,
which is completely blockaded, the pawns are hindering black's bishop.
Furthermore as all the pawns in one area, the abilities of the bishop compared
to the knight are neutered somewhat.} 33. Kf3 Ke7 34. b4 Bd7 35. Rg1 Be8 36.
Rg2 Rh1 37. c3 Bh5+ 38. Ke3 Bg4 39. d4 Re1+ 40. Kd3 Rd1+ 41. Ke3 Re1+ 42. Kd3
Rf1 {no repetition today.} 43. Rh2 Rf3+ 44. Kd2 Bh3 45. Nd3 Kf7 46. Nf2 Bg4 47.
Rg2 Bh5 48. Rh2 Kg6 49. Rg2+ Kh6 50. Nd3 Bf7 51. Rh2+ Kg7 52. Rg2+ Kh6 {still
no repetition, but a draw agreed.} 1/2-1/2

