Rubinstein v Grunfeld, 1925

[Tom O'Donnell]

[Event "Moscow"]
[Site "Moscow URS"]
[Date "1925.11.19"]
[EventDate "1925.11.10"]
[Round "8"]
[Result "1-0"]
[White "Akiba Rubinstein"]
[Black "Ernst Gruenfeld"]
[ECO "A10"]
[WhiteElo "?"]
[BlackElo "?"]
[PlyCount "115"]

1.c4 b6 2.d4 Bb7 3.d5 e5 4.e4 d6 5.Nc3 Be7 6.Nf3 Nf6 7.h3 O-O
8.Be3 Nbd7 9.Bd3 Nc5 10.Bc2 a5 11.Qe2 Nfd7 12.g4 Re8 13.h4 Nf8
14.O-O-O Bc8 15.Rdg1 Bd7 16.h5 Qc8 17.Nh4 Bxh4 18.Rxh4 Qd8
19.Rh2 Qe7 20.Qd2 Reb8 21.a4 Be8 22.h6 g6 23.g5 Nfd7 24.Rf1
Rc8 25.f3 Na6 26.b3 Nac5 27.Rhf2 Rab8 28.Kb2 Ra8 29.Rd1 Rab8
30.Nb5 Ra8 31.Qc3 Nf8 32.f4 Bxb5 33.cxb5 Nfd7 34.f5 Rf8
35.Rdf1 Rae8 36.Qd2 Ra8 37.Rf3 Rae8 38.Qf2 Ra8 39.Qh4 Rae8
40.Bd2 Ra8 41.Kb1 Rab8 42.Bd1 Ra8 43.Bc1 Rab8 44.Be2 Ra8
45.R1f2 Rab8 46.Bf1 Ra8 47.Bh3 Rad8 48.Be3 Kh8 49.Rf1 Kg8
50.fxg6 fxg6 51.Rf6 Rb8 52.Bxc5 Nxc5 53.Be6+ Nxe6 54.dxe6 Rxf6
55.Rxf6 Rd8 56.Qf2 d5 57.exd5 Qa3 58.Rxg6+ 1-0

This is the game score from both chessgames.com and chesstempo.com databases. I wonder if there is a mistake in the score? First, it's hard to believe that Rubinstein would allow his b-pawn to be taken on 48 and 49 for no reason.

More significantly, the endgame after 55...Rf8 56.Qf2 Rxf6 57.Qxf6 Qxf6 58.gxf6 is drawn, according to Stockfish. If White's K is on say c2 (somehow) instead of b1 then White is winning as his K can blockade the pawns further back and arrange a Q-side pawn breakthrough.

W/K on b1: 58... g5 59.Kc2 g4 60.Kd2 d5 61.exd5 e4 62.Ke3 g3

W/K on c2: 58... g5 59.Kd3 d5 60.exd5 g4 61.Ke3 -- sorry, typo fixed.

With Black's g-pawn one square further from promoting, White can break through by playing a series of pawn sacrifices starting with b4.

Does anyone have the book on Rubinstein and if so does it have the same moves for this game?

[Egidijus Zeromskis]

I looked at the old "64" chess magazine from that time. They are available online.

I see (I did not play over the board) these different moves:

35. ... Rac8 (that probably not significant, as Black was skating with the rook back and forth)

43. Kc2 (reading your commentary that would be a big change in the evaluation)

[Hans Jung]

Interesting. I have Akiba Rubinstein The Later Years by Donaldson and Minev which has the same as Tom's version above.

However Gelfand's Akiba Rubinstein's Chess Academy differs 41.Kb1 Rae8 42.Bd1 Ra8 43.Bc1 Rab8 44.Be2 Rbe8 45.R1f2 Rb8 46.Bf1 Rbe8 47.Bh3 Rd8 all other moves same.

[Tom O'Donnell]

Thanks Egidijus and Hans. I will email John Donaldson. Perhaps he has some information post-book.

[Sid Belzberg]

Thanks Egidijus and Hans. I will email John Donaldson. Perhaps he has some information post-book.

Yes, I have this book also. Rubinstein was always one of my favorite players. I played John at the venerated Chess Club at the Mechanics Institute Library in San Francisco several years ago at a blitz tournament the night I visited.

[Brad Thomson]

Kevin Spraggett once told me that Rubinstein was his favourite player.

[John Upper]

43. Kc2 (reading your commentary that would be a big change in the evaluation)

This also makes sense of Black's last move 57...Qa3.

FWIW: Chessbase also has the game as Tom posted.

[Frank Dixon]

Rubinstein could not raise the funds for potential title matches against World Champions Emanuel Lasker (prior to World War I) and J.R. Capablanca (mid-1920s). In that era, the challenger had to supply a major portion of the prize fund for a title match. I believe that he would have been a worthy challenger, and had an excellent chance of winning such matches, had they taken place.

There is an impressive win by GM Yanofsky over GM Rubinstein, from a visit made by Abe to Brussels, home for Rubinstein, in 1949. This is in Abe's book, second edition: 'Chess The Hard Way.'

GM Rubinstein was a very productive openings researcher and innovator, and he has been described as one of the top five endgame players of all time (in an earlier era), along with Emanuel Lasker, J.R. Capablanca, GM Vassily Smyslov, and GM Bobby Fischer.

[Tom O'Donnell]

John Donaldson emailed me back to say that 43.Kc2 was new to him and looks convincing.

[Hugh Brodie]

The game isn't included in "Rubinstein's Chess Masterpieces - 100 Selected Games", a 1960 Dover book - translated by Barnie F. Winkelman; annotated by Hans Kmoch. It doesn't seem to mention the source that it was translated from, except that it was published in 1941.

[Egidijus Zeromskis]

John Donaldson emailed me back to say that 43.Kc2 was new to him and looks convincing.

I looked for other sources.

The winner - Bogoljubov - wrote the tournament book ( Международный шахматный турнир в Москве 1925 г., 1927) with all games and he commented many (all?). Even this Rubinstein - Gruenfeld. The moves are as you posted from chessgames and even commentaries that Black could capture the pawn b3 etc.

Russian source with Kc2 was Шахматы и шашки в рабочем клубе «64», издательство: ВЦСПС, Москва, 1925, № 22, С. 1—12 (с пятого по девятый тур);