Utah Amateur Chess Championship - Round 1 - Kings Gambit Accepted

[MrPawnpusher88]

at 5:53 he could play ...Be6

[JohnQuincyAdams1]

By the way Matt, I thought I'd highlight that your bishop on a1 was attacking a whopping 7 different squares and this made it possible for you to defeat your opponent. If that bishop had been a knight instead, well not so good. The power of the bishops in the middle game and especially the end game can be decisive, as it was in this game. :)

[JohnQuincyAdams1]

Now how about your other 3 games. I hope you post them as well. There are a lot of very good chess players here that can make suggestions to improve your game, so take advantage of that. Besides, it's free! :)

[JohnQuincyAdams1]

....that after black played Qxc2, instead of black going for a complicated and dubious checkmate attack on your king, it may have been a far simpler matter to have used their queen to have taken your undefended b and a pawns, which would end up with black having *3 connected and passed pawns*, which would have taken an act of God to stop from coming down and gaining another queen for black. Instead, black went for a, "Banzaaiii!", attack, which failed, because of your tenacity! :)

[Piewalkermatt]

@JohnQuincyAdams1 Haha, Banzaaiiii! Love it. And yeah, if he pawn-stormed I would've been crushed.

[JohnQuincyAdams1]

@Piewalkermatt - "Banzaaaaiii!", attackers don't succeed against experienced chess players. Against rookies, sure, but that's not saying much. lol :) I run across, "Banzaaaiii!", attackers from time to time in U.S.C.F. rated tournaments and it can be amusing to watch them squirm after their Banzaaiii attack has been repulsed and they don't have anything left materially or position wise to defend their king. :)

[JohnQuincyAdams1]

...might have been better off to castle queen side, if they were going to push the defensive king's pawns away anyhow. Black's Qf2 was a devastating move, but to your credit, you didn't break down, you didn't emotionally or mentally collapse and give up. You kept fighting on trying to salvage the situation, which is the mark of a very good chess player! In analyzing Anatoly Karpov games, I have learned that there is a lot to be said for patience and to go for a winning endgame. It might be....

[JohnQuincyAdams1]

Hi Matt and congratulations on this victory! You didn't give up, even when Darth Vader was pounding on your front door! I applaud your tenacity in order to be able to pull a win from a loss. Well done! If I may share some observations to maybe help expand your knowledge even further, black essentially lost the game very early by pushing the king's pawns early, thereby stripping their king of its defensive pawn wall. Big mistake and you took advantage of that and won because of it! :) Black...

[Piewalkermatt]

@JohnQuincyAdams1 Thanks JQA! Black had some chances and good ideas, definitely, and just like me, made some mistakes. More UACC coverage coming!

[yablecki]

Nice, Matt! It would be great to see your other games from this tournament.

[goosechess]

@Piewalkermatt I thought after Qh3 Rcg8 and white is still losing... thought something like Qf5 was forced instead of Qh3

[btr73186]

Awesome game Matt. At this rate youll be NM Matt before long. 

[Piewalkermatt]

@btr73186 Thanks Brandon!

[MorphysZombie]

Wow...you're an OTB Badass too! In what ways does your bullet or blitz play affect your 60 minute time control games? And what are your chess goals now (specifically ratings or even titles) since you're making it official?

[Piewalkermatt]

@MorphysZombie Thanks :). I don't think my bullet chess affects my longer time controls at all. I think I perform better in longer games simply because I have more time to think. As I get better in long time controls positionally and tactically with combinations, my quick chess should improve, though I'm not too concerned about bullet. That's more for just entertainment. I would one day like to reach 2000 USCF (Expert). I don't know how realistic that is though.

[goosechess]

@11:23 ish doesn't gxh4 give black a winning position?

[DrGenius73]

@goosechess Black already had a winning position but gxh4 is indeed the best move to increase the advantage.

Matt I think you did well trying to liberate the bishop, it totally turned the tables when the beast came alive! Good game and congrats on your first USCF rating!

[Piewalkermatt]

@goosechess Yep, gxh4 would've been crushing...gxh4, Qh3 (if white Qf5 pinning the black rook on G6 to the King, then simply black Bishop to e6 chasing away the White Queen, then the doubling of rooks with Rdg8 on the G file would be mate shortly thereafter.

[AjedrezEnEspanol]

before 9:01, Rh3 seemed like a nice try anyways. Then, maybe

...Bxh3,

Qxf7+ Kh8

e6+ and black seems to collapse.

Nice vid!

[H0rcrux]

Congrats... Fine game Sir! :)

[Piewalkermatt]

@H0rcrux Thanks Horcrux! I learned some tournament tactics from you, too, man!

[ChessNetwork]

What a stud on a1! Congrats on the win Matt. :)

[Piewalkermatt]

@ChessNetwork Thank you, Jerry! You helped me get here. And thanks for the tournament tips, i.e. not beating myself up for previous losses, keeping a positive mental outlook, staying in physical shape, good knight's rest, etc. :) Fun puzzles today, too.