Mystery game #19: Startling major piece middlegame decision, but was it sound?

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  • Mystery game #19: Startling major piece middlegame decision, but was it sound?

    Here is the text of an interesting game. Your task, should you decide to accept it, is to discuss the game, and guess at the players, their strengths, era of game, setting, and time controls.

    1.d4 d5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.c4 e6 4.Nc3 c6 5.Bg5 Be7 6.e3 O-O 7.Bd3 Nbd7 8.O-O dxc4 9.Bxc4 Nd5 10.Bxe7 Qxe7 11.Qc2 Nxc3 12.Qxc3 c5 13.Rac1 b6 14.Bb5 Bb7 15.Bxd7 Qxd7 16.dxc5 Bxf3 17.gxf3 bxc5 18.b3 Rfd8 19.Rc2 Rac8 20.Rfc1 Rc6 21.Qe5 f6 22.Qe4 Rdc8 23.b4 f5 24.Qc4 cxb4 25.Qxc6 Rxc6 26.Rxc6 Qd5 27.Rc8+ Kf7 28.R8c7+ Kf6 29.f4 Qxa2 30.Rd7 a5 31.R1c7 Qa1+ 32.Kg2 Kg6 33.h4 h6 34.h5+ Kxh5 35.Rxg7 b3 36.Rg3 a4 37.Rh7 Qf6 38.Rh3+, 1-0.

  • #2
    NM Ted Kret (2230) -- Bryson Powell (1880), Canadian Open, Kapuskasing 2004 (10), played 18-07-2004, time controls 40/120', SD/60'. Queen's Gambit.
    This was another game where I struggled with the game score, while doing the database at the tournament, so I put it aside until recently. I only had Ted's score sheet, it is in Polish, and there was a very significant error at a key juncture. On move 25, Ted's score sheet had Wxc6 (Rxc6), which is impossible in that position. I kept thinking I must have made a mistake earlier in following the notation! I played through the game a dozen times and kept getting the same position. So, my conjecture is 25.Qxc6, and the rest of the game flows from there.
    The game is a fairly routine Queen's Gambit right up to move 25, when in a major piece middlegame (Q+2R for each side, equal pawns) White gives up his queen for two rooks, winning a pawn in the process. Black soon gets two connected queenside passed pawns. But White plays for mate, against Black's boxed-in king! He succeeds! However, I believe Black can win by playing 34...Kh7!, instead of capturing on h5 with the king, which lost quickly. He has to keep g7 protected with his queen and king, against the two rooks attacking it, and can then advance his passers, supported by his queen, making it very difficult for White.

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