[Event "ch-USA 2022"] [Site "Saint Louis USA"] [Date "2022.10.08"] [Round "4.1"] [White "So, Wesley"] [Black "Shankland, Sam"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "B92"] [WhiteElo "2774"] [BlackElo "2712"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "91"] [EventDate "2022.10.05"] 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 6. Be2 {A very solid line.} e5 7. Nb3 Be7 8. O-O O-O 9. Be3 (9. Kh1) (9. Qd3) 9... Be6 10. Re1 Nbd7 11. a4 Qc7 (11... Rc8 {is more common. Here are a couple of examples freom earlier this year.} 12. a5 Qc7 13. Qd2 (13. Bf3 Kh8 14. Nd2 Rg8 15. h4 Qb8 16. g4 Nf8 17. g5 N6d7 18. Bg4 Bd8 19. Nd5 Bxg4 20. Qxg4 Rxc2 21. Qf5 f6 22. Nf3 Rxb2 23. Rec1 Rb5 24. gxf6 Bxf6 25. Kh2 Rb2 26. h5 Qe8 27. Nd2 Be7 28. Nc4 Rb3 29. Rg1 g6 30. Qh3 Nc5 31. Rg4 g5 32. h6 Rg6 33. Rd1 Bd8 34. Kg1 Qe6 35. Qg2 Nd3 36. f3 Nf4 37. Qc2 Rb5 38. Qd2 Nxd5 39. exd5 Qf5 40. Bb6 Bxb6+ 41. Nxb6 Rb3 {0-1 (41) Sadhwani,R (2622)-Erigaisi,A (2689) Abu Dhabi 2022}) 13... Rfe8 14. h3 h6 15. Bf1 Nf8 16. Rec1 Qc6 17. f3 Ng6 18. Rd1 Nh7 19. Qf2 Bh4 20. g3 Bd8 21. h4 Rf8 22. Qd2 Bc7 23. Nd5 Bxd5 24. Qxd5 Qxd5 25. Rxd5 Nf6 26. Rd2 Bb8 27. Ra4 Ne7 28. Rb4 Rc7 29. Bb6 Rc6 30. Bf2 Rc7 31. Bb6 Rc6 32. c4 Nc8 33. Bf2 Rc7 34. c5 dxc5 35. Nxc5 Ba7 36. Nxb7 Bxf2+ 37. Kxf2 Ne7 38. Bxa6 Ra8 39. Rc4 Rc6 40. Bb5 Rxc4 41. Bxc4 Nc6 42. a6 Kf8 43. Rd6 Rc8 44. b4 Ke7 45. b5 Na5 46. Nxa5 Kxd6 47. b6 Rf8 48. a7 Nd7 49. b7 {1-0 (49) Nepomniachtchi,I (2773)-Giri,A (2772) Chess.com INT 2022}) 12. a5 Rfc8 13. Bf3 h6 14. h3 b5 (14... Qc6) ({and especially (now)} 14... Rab8 {are more usual.}) 15. axb6 Nxb6 16. Na5 {With one sub-professional exception, this position hasn't arisen in a decade or so. Back then, Black generally played 16...Nc4, but the engine prefers the move chosen in the game. Ergo...} Rab8 17. Bc1 $146 {? White played 17.Qd2 in the only previous game to see 16...Rab8, which isn't as good.} Nc4 (17... Bf8 $142) 18. Nxc4 Bxc4 19. Be2 (19. Re3 $1 $14 {/? is better, with two ideas. First, it defends the knight so White can play b3 (and possibly Ba3). Second, after Black's bishop retreats to e6, White may play Be2 and Rg3.}) 19... Bxe2 (19... Rb4 $1 $11) 20. Rxe2 $14 Qb7 (20... a5) 21. Qd3 Rc6 22. b3 Bd8 23. Kh2 (23. Ra2 $5) 23... Bb6 (23... Rbc8 $142) 24. Nd1 $6 (24. Nd5 $142 Nxd5 25. exd5 $16) 24... Bd4 $11 25. c3 Rbc8 (25... Qc8 $142 $11) 26. Bd2 $14 Ba7 27. Ra3 (27. b4 Rd8 28. Ra5 d5 $1 29. exd5 Qc7 $1 $132) (27. Rb1 $1 $14) 27... Bc5 $2 (27... d5 $1 28. exd5 Rd6 29. c4 e4 30. Rxe4 Nxe4 31. Qxe4 Bc5 32. b4 Bxb4 33. Bxb4 Qxb4 34. Rg3 Rf6 35. Ne3 $44) 28. b4 Ba7 29. f3 $6 (29. Be1 $16) 29... Rd8 $11 30. Be3 (30. c4 Bd4 $11) 30... Bb8 31. Rea2 (31. c4 $5 Qxb4 32. Rc2 $44) 31... d5 32. Nf2 Rdc8 $6 ({It was better to double the other way:} 32... Rcd6 $11) 33. Bc5 $14 Bd6 $2 (33... d4 $1 34. Rxa6 Nd5 $3 {The point of the previous move, and very easy to miss. Only this would have (mostly justified 32...Rdc8.} 35. Nd1 $1 Nf4 36. Qc4 Ne6 37. Rxc6 Qxc6 38. Nb2 Nxc5 39. bxc5 Qxc5 40. Qxc5 Rxc5 41. c4 {is still a little better for White, but it's almost certainly a draw.}) 34. Bxd6 Rxd6 35. Rxa6 $16 {/+- It's a free extra pawn.} Rdd8 $4 (35... Rxa6 36. Rxa6 d4 37. cxd4 exd4 38. Rd6 Qxb4 $16 {keeps some chances, as there are some drawn 4 vs. 3 endings with all the pawns on the same side of the board.}) 36. Rxf6 $1 gxf6 37. Ng4 $18 {Now it's completely over, provided So has more than five seconds left to reach move 40.} Kg7 38. Qd2 Rh8 39. exd5 Qc7 40. Ra3 (40. Ne3 $142 $1 Qxc3 41. Nf5+ Kg6 (41... Kf8 42. Qxc3 Rxc3 43. Ra8+ Rc8 44. Rxc8#) 42. Ne7+ Kg7 43. Nxc8 $18) 40... e4+ $2 (40... Qc4 $142) 41. d6 Qd7 42. Qf4 Qe6 43. fxe4 Rc4 44. Ne3 $1 {A nice finishing touch.} Rxe4 45. Nf5+ Kg6 46. Qg3+ $1 (46. Qg3+ $1 Kxf5 47. Ra5+ Re5 48. Qg4#) 1-0 [Event "ch-USA 2022"] [Site "Saint Louis USA"] [Date "2022.10.08"] [Round "4.2"] [White "Lenderman, Aleksandr"] [Black "Yoo, Christopher Woojin"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "E04"] [WhiteElo "2535"] [BlackElo "2563"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "139"] [EventDate "2022.10.05"] {[%evp 0,139,28,23,29,-9,-10,-21,-30,-33,0,0,20,17,26,15,22,29,7,-29,-45,-50,-48,-21,8,-10,-10,12,37,69,1,-49,31,70,27,52,63,78,78,78,75,0,41,62,25,25,26,25,39,15,85,89,88,94,90,47,38,57,64,41,39,65,64,70,64,47,39,43,30,30,57,59,103,62,64,65,57,70,116,115,129,121,84,71,163,163,169,155,155,157,157,157,225,251,321,312,312,340,325,242,325,305,288,304,298,254,254,288,288,282,283,304,358,411,29985,29986,29995,700,29975,344,523,510,651,507,526,476,513,531,524,501,1346,625,675,746,759,759,790,791,1174,1325,1553,1930]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 d5 4. Bg2 dxc4 5. Nf3 a6 6. Ne5 Bb4+ 7. Nc3 Nd5 8. O-O O-O 9. Ne4 b5 10. b3 c3 11. a3 Be7 12. Qe1 b4 13. axb4 f6 14. Nd3 Nc6 15. e3 Bxb4 16. Ba3 Rb8 17. Nxb4 Ncxb4 18. Bxb4 Rxb4 19. Nc5 e5 20. dxe5 Rb5 21. Na4 c2 22. Nc3 Rc5 23. Nxd5 Rxd5 24. Qc3 Rxe5 25. Qxc2 c5 26. Rfd1 Qb6 27. Rd5 Be6 28. Rxe5 fxe5 29. Rb1 Rb8 30. Be4 h6 31. Qc3 Qd6 32. Bf3 Kh8 33. Rd1 Qc7 34. Bd5 Rd8 35. e4 Qf7 36. Qd3 a5 37. h4 Qf6 38. Qc3 Bh3 39. Rd2 Rf8 40. Kh2 Bg4 41. Qxc5 $2 {White has been better for a long time, but "better" is one thing and "winning" is another. White's last move was inaccurate, despite its coming after the time control, and Black's next move is even worse. (In fairness, he had only one satisfactory move.)} (41. Qxa5) (41. Ra2) 41... g5 $2 (41... Qf3 $3 $11 {was the only move, with the big idea of ...Bh3 forcing a draw. (The forced Kxh3 is met by ...Qh1+, ...Qf3+, ...Qh1+ etc.) White can avoid the perpetual with a move like 42.Qe3, but the draw is a "gimme" there as well, albeit for different reasons.} 42. Qe3 Qxe3 43. fxe3 Rf1 $11) 42. hxg5 hxg5 43. Bc4 $18 Rc8 (43... Qf3 $2 {fails here for all sorts of reasons, e.g.} 44. Qxe5+ Kh7 45. Qe7+ Kh8 46. Qxg5 $18 {and Black will be mated soon; the only question is how many pieces he's willing to surrender to postpone the inevitable.}) 44. Qxa5 Bf3 {Threatening mate in two. White has only one way to maintain a winning advantage.} 45. Kg1 $1 g4 (45... Qh6 {fails to both 46.Qxe5+ and} 46. Rd8+ Rxd8 47. Qxd8+ Kg7 48. Qg8+ Kf6 49. Qf7#) 46. Rd5 Re8 {Defending e5 and renewing the threat of ...Qh6, now that Rd8 in reply won't come with check.} 47. Qd2 Bxe4 48. Rd6 Qg7 49. Rd8 Bc6 50. Rxe8+ Bxe8 51. Qd8 {White's b-pawn is too strong, and Lenderman does a nice job of converting his advantage.} Qd7 52. Qh4+ Kg7 53. Qg5+ Kh7 54. Qxe5 Bg6 55. Bd5 Kh6 56. b4 Qa4 57. Qh8+ Kg5 58. Qd4 Qc2 59. Kg2 Qb1 60. Bc6 Kh6 61. Qxg4 Bd3 62. Qf4+ Kg7 63. Qd4+ Kf7 64. Bd5+ Kg6 65. Kh2 Qc2 66. b5 Qe2 67. b6 Qh5+ 68. Kg2 Qd1 69. Be4+ Bxe4+ 70. Qxe4+ 1-0 [Event "ch-USA 2022"] [Site "Saint Louis USA"] [Date "2022.10.08"] [Round "4.3"] [White "Moradiabadi, Elshan"] [Black "Xiong, Jeffery"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "B30"] [WhiteElo "2534"] [BlackElo "2690"] [PlyCount "78"] [EventDate "2022.10.05"] 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. e5 Nd5 5. Nc3 Nc7 6. a4 g6 7. O-O Bg7 8. Re1 O-O 9. d3 d6 10. exd6 exd6 11. Bg5 f6 12. Be3 Nxb5 13. axb5 Nb4 14. Ne4 Nd5 15. Bd2 f5 16. Nc3 Nf6 17. Qc1 b6 18. Bh6 Bxh6 19. Qxh6 Bb7 20. Nd2 Qd7 21. Qh4 Kg7 22. f3 Bd5 23. Nc4 Rae8 24. Qf4 Rxe1+ 25. Rxe1 Re8 26. Ra1 Bxc4 27. dxc4 Re7 28. Rd1 Qe6 29. h3 Rd7 30. Nd5 Nxd5 31. Rxd5 Qe1+ 32. Kh2 Qb1 33. Rxd6 Rxd6 34. Qxd6 Qxc2 35. Qe7+ Kg8 36. Qe6+ Kg7 37. Qe7+ Kg8 38. Qe6+ Kg7 39. Qe7+ Kg8 1/2-1/2 [Event "ch-USA 2022"] [Site "Saint Louis USA"] [Date "2022.10.08"] [Round "4.4"] [White "Swiercz, Dariusz"] [Black "Dominguez Perez, Leinier"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "E47"] [WhiteElo "2652"] [BlackElo "2747"] [PlyCount "55"] [EventDate "2022.10.05"] 1. c4 Nf6 2. d4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 O-O 5. Bd3 c5 6. Nge2 d5 7. cxd5 cxd4 8. exd4 Nxd5 9. O-O Re8 10. Nxd5 exd5 11. Nf4 Nc6 12. Be3 Bd6 13. Qf3 Qh4 14. g3 Qg4 15. Qxg4 Bxg4 16. Nxd5 Rad8 17. Nc3 Be5 18. Be2 Bxe2 19. Nxe2 Nxd4 20. Nxd4 Bxd4 21. Bxd4 Rxd4 22. Rfd1 Rxd1+ 23. Rxd1 Kf8 24. Rd7 Re7 25. Rd8+ Re8 26. Rd7 Re7 27. Rd8+ Re8 28. Rd7 1/2-1/2 [Event "ch-USA 2022"] [Site "Saint Louis USA"] [Date "2022.10.08"] [Round "4.5"] [White "Niemann, Hans Moke"] [Black "Caruana, Fabiano"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "E32"] [WhiteElo "2699"] [BlackElo "2763"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "160"] [EventDate "2022.10.05"] {[%evp 0,160,29,20,27,-3,9,6,20,-13,-3,-10,-15,-17,-5,-6,37,29,34,35,15,8,8,24,19,-6,0,-2,31,17,53,8,21,8,0,-29,22,10,13,29,28,13,8,-68,-57,-7,-3,-3,-24,-24,-44,-65,-58,-44,-36,-28,-31,-54,-64,-70,-71,-68,-59,-109,-104,-104,-87,-115,-115,-96,-97,-96,-96,-109,-110,-112,-99,-118,-77,-99,-84,-61,-73,-74,-69,-87,-88,-79,-79,-84,-84,-120,-123,-123,-123,-137,-152,-152,-152,-137,-136,-156,-151,-151,-99,-99,-95,-105,-111,-96,-107,-112,-108,-104,-102,-121,-137,-126,-118,-106,-106,-106,-106,-94,-96,-88,-80,-80,-80,-98,-80,-80,-74,-105,-74,-74,-105,-103,-105,-105,-105,-109,-130,-163,-176,-176,-169,-176,-152,-177,-185,-258,-261,-261,-261,-497,-261,-261,-289,-250,-468,-507,-485] Why comment? Chess speaks for itself. (Other than the facetious annotation on move 2.)} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 $1 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 d5 7. Bg5 h6 8. Bxf6 Qxf6 9. Nf3 dxc4 10. Qxc4 Nc6 11. Qc3 Re8 12. Rd1 e5 13. d5 Nb8 14. e3 Bf5 15. Be2 Nd7 16. O-O Rac8 17. a4 c6 18. d6 Rcd8 19. a5 Bg4 20. h3 Bxf3 21. gxf3 Nf8 22. Qb4 Rd7 23. Rd2 Ng6 24. Rfd1 Nh4 25. Qg4 Re6 26. Kf1 Nf5 27. a6 bxa6 28. Bxa6 Rdxd6 29. Rxd6 Nxd6 30. Bd3 g6 31. h4 h5 32. Qg3 Kg7 33. e4 Qe7 34. Qg5 Qb7 35. Qc1 Qb4 36. Qd2 Qxd2 37. Rxd2 Kf6 38. b4 g5 39. Ra2 Nc8 40. Ba6 Nd6 41. Be2 Nc8 42. f4 gxh4 43. Bxh5 Nd6 44. Rxa7 exf4 45. f3 Re5 46. Bg4 Nc4 47. Kg2 Rb5 48. Ra4 Ne5 49. Kh3 Kg5 50. Ra8 Rxb4 51. Rh8 Kf6 52. Rh5 Rb5 53. Rf5+ Ke7 54. Bh5 Ng6 55. Bxg6 fxg6 56. Rxf4 g5 57. Rg4 Kf6 58. f4 Rb3+ 59. Kh2 Rb2+ 60. Kh3 Rb3+ 61. Kh2 gxf4 62. Rxf4+ Ke5 63. Rxh4 Re3 64. Rh6 Rc3 65. Kg2 Kxe4 66. Rd6 Ke3 67. Re6+ Kd2 68. Rd6+ Kc2 69. Kf2 c5 70. Rc6 Kd2 71. Rc8 c4 72. Rc7 Rc2 73. Rd7+ Kc3+ 74. Ke1 Rh2 75. Kd1 Rh1+ 76. Ke2 Kc2 77. Rd2+ Kb3 78. Rd8 c3 79. Rb8+ Kc2 80. Ra8 Rh7 0-1 [Event "ch-USA 2022"] [Site "Saint Louis USA"] [Date "2022.10.08"] [Round "4.6"] [White "Sevian, Samuel"] [Black "Liang, Awonder"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C65"] [WhiteElo "2684"] [BlackElo "2608"] [PlyCount "101"] [EventDate "2022.10.05"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. d3 d6 5. O-O a6 6. Bxc6+ bxc6 7. d4 Be7 8. Re1 exd4 9. Nxd4 Bd7 10. c4 O-O 11. Nc3 Re8 12. h3 h6 13. Qd3 c5 14. Nc2 Bc6 15. Ne3 a5 16. Nf5 Bf8 17. Bf4 Nd7 18. Rad1 Qf6 19. Bc1 g6 20. Ne3 Bg7 21. Ned5 Qd8 22. b3 a4 23. Qc2 axb3 24. axb3 Nf6 25. Bb2 Nxd5 26. exd5 Bd7 27. Rxe8+ Qxe8 28. Qc1 Qe7 29. Re1 Qg5 30. Re3 Bf5 31. Ne2 Bd7 32. Bxg7 Kxg7 33. Qc3+ Qf6 34. Re7 Qxc3 35. Nxc3 Rd8 36. g4 Kf8 37. Re3 Re8 38. Rxe8+ Kxe8 39. Kg2 f5 40. Kg3 Ke7 41. Nb5 Bxb5 42. cxb5 Kf6 43. f4 g5 44. Kf3 fxg4+ 45. hxg4 gxf4 46. Kxf4 Kg6 47. Ke4 Kg5 48. Kf3 Kg6 49. Ke4 Kg5 50. Kf3 Kg6 51. Ke4 1/2-1/2 [Event "ch-USA 2022"] [Site "Saint Louis USA"] [Date "2022.10.08"] [Round "4.7"] [White "Aronian, Levon"] [Black "Robson, Ray"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "D38"] [WhiteElo "2755"] [BlackElo "2690"] [PlyCount "113"] [EventDate "2022.10.05"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Bb4 5. cxd5 exd5 6. Bg5 h6 7. Bh4 O-O 8. e3 Bf5 9. Qb3 Bxc3+ 10. bxc3 Nbd7 11. Be2 c5 12. dxc5 g5 13. Nd4 Nxc5 14. Qb5 Qc8 15. Nxf5 Qxf5 16. Qxc5 gxh4 17. Qd4 Qg5 18. O-O Rfe8 19. Rab1 b6 20. Rb5 Re4 21. Qd1 h3 22. g3 Rd8 23. c4 Ree8 24. Qd4 Qf5 25. cxd5 Re5 26. Qh4 Rdxd5 27. Rb4 Rd2 28. Bg4 Qg6 29. Qxh3 Rxa2 30. Bf3 Kg7 31. Qc8 Qf5 32. Qb7 Qd7 33. Rg4+ Rg5 34. Qxd7 Nxd7 35. Rf4 Rd2 36. Rd4 Rxd4 37. exd4 Rg6 38. Rc1 Rd6 39. Rc7 a5 40. d5 Kf6 41. Kf1 Ne5 42. Be4 b5 43. Ke2 Ra6 44. f4 Nc4 45. Rc6+ Rxc6 46. dxc6 Ke7 47. c7 Kd7 48. Bc6+ Kxc7 49. Bxb5 Nd6 50. Ba4 Kd8 51. Kd3 Ke7 52. Kd4 Kf6 53. Kd5 Nf5 54. Ke4 Nd6+ 55. Kd5 Nf5 56. Ke4 Nd6+ 57. Kd5 1/2-1/2 [Event "ch-USA 2022"] [Site "Saint Louis USA"] [Date "2022.10.09"] [Round "5.1"] [White "Robson, Ray"] [Black "Swiercz, Dariusz"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "D12"] [WhiteElo "2690"] [BlackElo "2652"] [PlyCount "232"] [EventDate "2022.10.05"] 1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. e3 Bf5 5. Nh4 Bg6 6. Nxg6 hxg6 7. Nd2 e6 8. g3 c5 9. dxc5 Bxc5 10. Bg2 Nc6 11. O-O O-O 12. cxd5 exd5 13. Nb3 Bb6 14. Bd2 Qe7 15. Bc3 Rad8 16. Nd4 Rfe8 17. Qa4 Qd7 18. Nxc6 bxc6 19. Rad1 Qe6 20. Bd4 Ne4 21. b4 Rc8 22. Qc2 Nd6 23. a4 Nc4 24. Qc3 Bxd4 25. Rxd4 Qf6 26. Qd3 a6 27. Rf4 Qe7 28. b5 axb5 29. axb5 g5 30. Rd4 cxb5 31. Bxd5 Rc5 32. Bxc4 bxc4 33. Rxc4 Rxc4 34. Qxc4 Qe4 35. Qe2 g4 36. Rc1 Rb8 37. Qc4 Qf3 38. Qf4 Qxf4 39. gxf4 f5 40. Rc5 g6 41. Rc7 Rb2 42. Kg2 Kf8 43. Kg3 Ra2 44. Rb7 Rc2 45. Rh7 Kg8 46. Ra7 Kf8 47. Rd7 Ra2 48. Rc7 Rb2 49. Rh7 Kg8 50. Ra7 Kf8 51. h4 gxh3 52. Rh7 Rb1 53. Rxh3 Kg7 54. Kg2 Ra1 55. Rh1 Ra2 56. Rb1 Kf6 57. Kg3 Rc2 58. Rb6+ Kf7 59. Kf3 Ra2 60. Rd6 Rb2 61. Kg2 Ra2 62. Kf1 Rb2 63. Ke1 Ra2 64. Rd2 Ra3 65. Ke2 Ke6 66. Rc2 Ke7 67. f3 Ra6 68. e4 Ke6 69. Rc3 Kf6 70. e5+ Ke6 71. Kf2 Kf7 72. Rc7+ Kf8 73. Ke3 Ra4 74. Rd7 Rb4 75. Rd4 Rb3+ 76. Kf2 Rb2+ 77. Kg3 Kg7 78. Rd7+ Kf8 79. Rd1 Re2 80. Rf1 Kf7 81. Rf2 Re1 82. Ra2 Rg1+ 83. Kf2 Rb1 84. Ra4 Rb3 85. Rc4 Ra3 86. Ke2 Rb3 87. Ra4 Rc3 88. Rd4 Ra3 89. Kf2 Ra2+ 90. Kg3 Re2 91. Rd6 Kg7 92. Rd7+ Kf8 93. Kh4 Rg2 94. Ra7 Rg1 95. Ra2 Kf7 96. Re2 Rh1+ 97. Kg3 Rg1+ 98. Kf2 Ra1 99. Re1 Ra2+ 100. Kg3 Rb2 101. Kh3 Rf2 102. Kg3 Rb2 103. Rc1 Re2 104. Rc7+ Kf8 105. Kh4 Rg2 106. e6 Rg1 107. Ra7 Rg2 108. Rf7+ Kg8 109. Rb7 Kf8 110. Rb3 Ke7 111. Re3 Rg1 112. Re2 Rf1 113. Re3 Rg1 114. Re2 Rf1 115. Re3 Rg1 116. Re2 Rf1 1/2-1/2 [Event "ch-USA 2022"] [Site "Saint Louis USA"] [Date "2022.10.09"] [Round "5.2"] [White "Liang, Awonder"] [Black "Aronian, Levon"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C44"] [WhiteElo "2608"] [BlackElo "2755"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "63"] [EventDate "2022.10.05"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 exd4 4. Bc4 Bc5 {White can play 5.c3, with an almost guaranteed transposition to the Giuoco Piano, but the 19th-century approach chosen here is an interesting alternative.} (4... Nf6) (4... Bb4+ $5) 5. Ng5 $5 Nh6 (5... Ne5 $2 {is a grossly inferior version of the same thing.} 6. Nxf7 Nxf7 7. Bxf7+ Kxf7 8. Qh5+ g6 9. Qxc5 $18) 6. Nxf7 Nxf7 7. Bxf7+ Kxf7 8. Qh5+ g6 9. Qxc5 d5 $1 {A nice move, but standard at this point. (Which one would expect of the best move, given that it was first played in 1853.)} 10. c3 $146 {A novelty, but since White usually plays 10.0-0 and meets 10...dxe4 with 11.c3, it's a mere transposition.} dxe4 11. O-O Re8 (11... Qd6 {is more common (and arguably better), resulting in a sharp equality after} 12. Qxd6 cxd6 13. cxd4 Nxd4 14. Nc3 Bg4 $1 15. Nxe4 Nc2) 12. cxd4 Qxd4 13. Qg5 $1 $14 Nb4 $146 (13... Qf6 $142) 14. Bd2 $1 {White is correctly unafraid of 14...Nc2, which would lose.} Qd6 $2 (14... Nc2 $4 15. Bc3 Qd8 16. Qh6 Re6 17. Nd2 Nxa1 18. Qxh7+ Ke8 19. Nxe4 Qe7 20. Bg7 $1 Kd7 $8 (20... Rxe4 $2 21. Qxg6+ Qf7 (21... Kd8 22. Bf6 $18) (21... Kd7 22. Rd1+ $18) 22. Qxe4+ $18) 21. Nc5+ Kc6 (21... Qxc5 22. Bf8+ Re7 23. Bxe7 Qxe7 24. Rd1+ Ke8 25. Qg8+ Qf8 26. Re1+ Be6 27. Qxe6+ $18) 22. Nxe6 Qxe6 23. Rc1+ Kb5 24. Bc3 Bd7 25. Rxa1 $18) (14... Kg8 $1 15. Bc3 Qd6 16. Na3 $16 {Because of Black's more or less permanent problems on the long dark-squared diagonal, he is clearly worse. That's better than the game situation, though, as he is losing after his next move.}) 15. Nc3 $18 c6 16. Rad1 Bf5 17. g4 $1 (17. f3 $1 $18 {is also strong.}) 17... h6 18. Qh4 $1 Bc8 (18... g5 {isn't meaningfully better:} 19. Qg3 $1 Qxg3+ 20. fxg3 $1 e3 21. Rxf5+ Kg6 22. Be1 $18) 19. Bxh6 (19. Rfe1) 19... Nd3 20. Bg5 Qe5 21. f3 Rh8 22. fxe4+ Kg8 23. Bh6 Qd4+ 24. Kh1 Be6 25. Qg5 Bf7 26. Rxf7 $1 Rxh6 (26... Kxf7 27. Rf1+ Ke8 (27... Nf2+ 28. Kg2 $18) 28. Qxg6+ Kd8 29. Bg7 Nf2+ 30. Kg2 Qd2 31. Qf6+ Kc7 32. Rxf2 $18 {is terminal and then some.}) 27. Rxd3 Qxd3 28. Qf6 $1 Rxh2+ 29. Kxh2 Qd2+ 30. Kg1 Qc1+ 31. Kf2 Qh6 {The checks run out quickly in any case.} (31... Qd2+ 32. Ne2 $18) (31... Qc2+ 32. Ne2 Qc5+ 33. Kg2 $18) 32. g5 (32. g5 Qh2+ 33. Ke3 Qg1+ 34. Kd3 Rd8+ 35. Kc2 {and with Kb3 on tap, Black is reduced to a rapidly dwindling supply of spite checks.}) 1-0 [Event "ch-USA 2022"] [Site "Saint Louis USA"] [Date "2022.10.09"] [Round "5.3"] [White "Dominguez Perez, Leinier"] [Black "Niemann, Hans Moke"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2747"] [BlackElo "2699"] [PlyCount "72"] [EventDate "2022.10.05"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. h3 Bd7 10. Rd1 Be7 11. Nc3 Ke8 12. g4 Nh4 13. Nxh4 Bxh4 14. Kg2 h5 15. f3 hxg4 16. hxg4 f6 17. Bf4 f5 18. g5 Rh5 19. Ne2 Ke7 20. Rh1 Rah8 21. Rh3 Bxg5 22. Rxh5 Rxh5 23. Rh1 Bxf4 24. Rxh5 Bxe5 25. b3 c5 26. c4 a5 27. Kf2 a4 28. Ke3 axb3 29. axb3 Kf6 30. f4 Bd6 31. Nc3 Bc6 32. Rh8 b6 33. Rg8 Kf7 34. Rh8 Kf6 35. Rg8 Kf7 36. Rh8 Kf6 1/2-1/2 [Event "ch-USA 2022"] [Site "Saint Louis USA"] [Date "2022.10.09"] [Round "5.4"] [White "Yoo, Christopher Woojin"] [Black "Sevian, Samuel"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C53"] [WhiteElo "2563"] [BlackElo "2684"] [PlyCount "230"] [EventDate "2022.10.05"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. c3 Nf6 5. d4 exd4 6. e5 d5 7. Be2 Ne4 8. cxd4 Bb6 9. Nc3 O-O 10. O-O Kh8 11. Be3 f5 12. exf6 Nxf6 13. h3 Bf5 14. Na4 Ne4 15. Rc1 Qe8 16. Bb5 Bd7 17. Bxc6 Bxc6 18. Nxb6 axb6 19. a3 Nd6 20. Bd2 Nc4 21. Bb4 Rf4 22. Re1 Qg6 23. Rc3 Re4 24. b3 Nd6 25. Ne5 Qe8 26. Rxe4 dxe4 27. Qg4 Rd8 28. Rg3 Qe7 29. Bd2 Re8 30. Qh5 Qe6 31. Rg6 Qg8 32. Rxd6 Rxe5 33. dxe5 cxd6 34. exd6 Qxb3 35. Qf5 e3 36. Qc8+ Qg8 37. Qxg8+ Kxg8 38. Bxe3 b5 39. f3 Kf7 40. Kf2 Ke6 41. Bc5 b6 42. Bb4 Kf5 43. Kg3 Be8 44. Bc3 g6 45. Bd2 Ke5 46. Bb4 Kf5 47. Kf2 Ke5 48. Ke3 Bd7 49. Kf2 Be8 50. Ke2 Bc6 51. Kf1 Bd7 52. Kg1 Bc6 53. Kh2 Be8 54. g4 Kf4 55. Kg2 Bc6 56. Kf2 Ke5 57. Kg3 Ke6 58. f4 h6 59. Kf2 Bd7 60. Kf3 Bc6+ 61. Ke3 Bd7 62. Ke4 Bc6+ 63. Kd4 Bd7 64. Kd3 Kd5 65. Ke3 Ke6 66. Kf3 Bc6+ 67. Kg3 Bd7 68. h4 Be8 69. Kf3 Bc6+ 70. Kf2 Bd7 71. Ke3 Bc6 72. Kd3 Bd7 73. Ke4 Bc6+ 74. Ke3 Bd7 75. Kf2 Bc6 76. Ke2 Be8 77. Ke3 Bc6 78. Kd4 Bd7 79. h5 gxh5 80. gxh5 Bc6 81. Ke3 Be8 82. Ke4 Bxh5 83. f5+ Kd7 84. Ke5 Bd1 85. Be1 h5 86. Bg3 Bb3 87. Kf6 h4 88. Be5 h3 89. Kg7 Ke8 90. f6 Be6 91. Bh2 Ba2 92. Kg6 Bf7+ 93. Kg5 Kd7 94. Kf5 Be6+ 95. Ke5 Bf7 96. Bg3 Ba2 97. Bh2 Bf7 98. Bf4 Ba2 99. Kf5 Be6+ 100. Kg5 Bf7 101. Kg4 Be6+ 102. Kh5 Bf7+ 103. Kh6 Be6 104. Be5 Ba2 105. Kg5 Bf7 106. Kf5 Be6+ 107. Kg6 Ke8 108. Bf4 Bf7+ 109. Kf5 Kd7 110. Be5 Be6+ 111. Kg5 Bf7 112. Kh6 Be6 113. Kg5 Bf7 114. Kh6 Be6 115. Kg5 Bf7 1/2-1/2 [Event "ch-USA 2022"] [Site "Saint Louis USA"] [Date "2022.10.09"] [Round "5.5"] [White "Shankland, Sam"] [Black "Moradiabadi, Elshan"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "B28"] [WhiteElo "2712"] [BlackElo "2534"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "117"] [EventDate "2022.10.05"] 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 a6 {The O'Kelly Sicilian isn't highly regarded, but perhaps it's not *that* bad.} 3. g3 {This also has its logic, inviting Black to carry out the "threat" of b5 in a situation where White is likelier to get the better grip on the long diagonal.} (3. c4) ({and (to a lesser extent)} 3. c3 {are the "refutations". Of course they don't win, but they aim for positions where ...a6 isn't particularly useful.}) 3... Nc6 4. Bg2 g6 (4... e5) 5. O-O (5. c3 $142 $16 {followed by d4 seems better.}) 5... Bg7 6. Re1 e5 $11 7. Nc3 Nge7 8. a3 d6 9. Rb1 O-O 10. b4 b5 $15 {This worked out well for Black!} 11. d3 cxb4 (11... Nd4 $142) 12. axb4 Bg4 13. Nd5 Nxd5 14. exd5 Nd4 15. c3 Nxf3+ 16. Bxf3 Bxf3 (16... Bf5) 17. Qxf3 a5 $11 18. Ba3 (18. bxa5 Qxa5 19. Bd2 Qa2 20. Be3 $11) 18... axb4 19. Bxb4 f5 (19... Qd7) 20. Ra1 (20. c4 $142) 20... Qd7 21. Rxa8 Rxa8 22. Qe3 (22. d4 $5 exd4 23. cxd4 Bxd4 24. Re6 Be5 25. Qe3 $44) 22... Bf8 23. f4 Re8 24. Kf2 (24. Kf1 $142) 24... e4 25. Qd4 Bg7 26. Qe3 Qb7 27. dxe4 fxe4 28. Rd1 (28. Bxd6 Qxd5 29. Be5 $1 Bxe5 30. Qxe4 $1 $11) 28... Qa6 29. Kg2 Qa2+ 30. Rd2 Qc4 31. Qe2 Qxe2+ 32. Rxe2 Rc8 $1 33. Re3 (33. Bxd6 Bxc3 34. Rxe4 Rd8 35. Be5 Bxe5 36. Rxe5 b4 37. Re4 Rxd5 38. Rxb4 h5 $11 {is a dead draw for these guys.}) 33... Rc4 34. Kf1 Bf6 35. g4 g5 36. f5 (36. fxg5 Bxg5 37. Re2 Bf6 38. Bxd6 Bxc3 $11) 36... Be5 $15 37. Re2 e3 $11 (37... Kf7) 38. Rxe3 Bxh2 39. Kg2 Bf4 40. Re7 Be5 $2 {I guess this is what Moradiabadi had in mind when he played 37...e3. If so, it was most unfortunate that he didn't take the time (or maybe didn't have the time) to double check his preliminary analysis before making this blunder.} (40... Bd2 $11) 41. Rxe5 $1 Rxg4+ $1 {In conjunction with his next move, it's the best try.} (41... dxe5 42. d6 Rc8 43. Ba5 $18 {leaves Black without a decent answer to the straighforward d7-d8Q.}) 42. Kf3 Rxb4 43. cxb4 dxe5 44. d6 Kf7 45. Ke4 $1 g4 (45... Kf6 46. Kd5 $1 e4 47. d7 Ke7 48. Kc6 Kd8 (48... e3 49. Kc7 e2 50. d8=Q+ $18) 49. f6 e3 50. Kd6 e2 51. f7 e1=Q 52. f8=R+ Qe8 53. dxe8=R#) 46. Kd5 $1 g3 47. d7 g2 (47... Ke7 48. Kc6 g2 49. f6+ Ke6 50. d8=Q g1=Q 51. Qd6+ Kf5 (51... Kf7 52. Qe7+ Kg6 (52... Kg8 53. Qe8#) 53. Qg7+ $18) 52. f7 $18) 48. d8=Q g1=Q 49. Qc7+ Kg8 (49... Kf6 50. Qxe5+ Kf7 51. Qe6+ Kf8 52. Qf6+ Kg8 53. Qd8+ Kf7 54. Qd7+ Kf8 55. Qxb5 $18) 50. Ke6 h6 51. Qf7+ Kh8 52. Qe8+ Kh7 53. Qd7+ Kh8 54. f6 e4 55. f7 Qg4+ 56. Ke7 Qg5+ 57. Ke8 Qg6 58. Qd4+ Kh7 59. Ke7 (59. Ke7 Qg5+ 60. Qf6 {The (safe) checks are over, and now White will promote his pawn.}) 1-0 [Event "ch-USA 2022"] [Site "Saint Louis USA"] [Date "2022.10.09"] [Round "5.6"] [White "Xiong, Jeffery"] [Black "Lenderman, Aleksandr"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "A07"] [WhiteElo "2690"] [BlackElo "2535"] [PlyCount "97"] [EventDate "2022.10.05"] 1. Nf3 d5 2. g3 c6 3. Bg2 Bg4 4. O-O Nd7 5. h3 Bh5 6. d3 Ngf6 7. Qe1 e5 8. e4 dxe4 9. dxe4 Be7 10. Nbd2 O-O 11. Nc4 Qc7 12. Bd2 Rfe8 13. a4 Bf8 14. Nh4 b5 15. axb5 cxb5 16. Ne3 Nb6 17. b3 Bc5 18. Nhf5 a6 19. Bb4 Bg6 20. Qc3 Nbd7 21. Rfd1 Qa7 22. Bxc5 Nxc5 23. Nd6 Ncxe4 24. Qb4 Nxd6 25. Rxd6 Rab8 26. Raxa6 Qe7 27. Qh4 Red8 28. Rxd8+ Qxd8 29. Qb4 h6 30. Ra5 Qd4 31. c4 Ne4 32. Rxb5 Rxb5 33. Qxb5 Nxf2 34. Kxf2 Qd2+ 35. Kg1 Qxe3+ 36. Kh2 e4 37. c5 Qf2 38. Qb8+ Kh7 39. Qf4 Qxc5 40. Bxe4 Bxe4 41. Qxe4+ f5 42. b4 Qb5 43. Qc2 Qxb4 44. Qxf5+ Kh8 45. Qc8+ Kh7 46. Qf5+ Kh8 47. Qc8+ Kh7 48. Qf5+ Kh8 49. Qc8+ 1/2-1/2 [Event "ch-USA 2022"] [Site "Saint Louis USA"] [Date "2022.10.09"] [Round "5.7"] [White "Caruana, Fabiano"] [Black "So, Wesley"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2763"] [BlackElo "2774"] [PlyCount "149"] [EventDate "2022.10.05"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. Re1 Nd6 6. Nxe5 Be7 7. Bf1 Nxe5 8. Rxe5 O-O 9. Nc3 Ne8 10. Nd5 Bd6 11. Re1 c6 12. Ne3 Be7 13. Nf5 Bg5 14. d3 Bxc1 15. Qxc1 d5 16. Ne7+ Kh8 17. Nxc8 Rxc8 18. g3 Nf6 19. c4 c5 20. Qf4 b6 21. Rad1 Qc7 22. Qxc7 Rxc7 23. d4 cxd4 24. cxd5 Nxd5 25. Rxd4 Nf6 26. Rd6 Kg8 27. b3 Rfc8 28. Ba6 Rc1 29. Rdd1 Rxd1 30. Rxd1 Re8 31. Rc1 Kf8 32. Kg2 g5 33. Rc7 Re7 34. Rxe7 Kxe7 35. Kf3 Kd6 36. Bc4 a5 37. Bxf7 Ke5 38. a4 Kd4 39. Bc4 h6 40. h4 Ke5 41. hxg5 hxg5 42. Ke3 Ng4+ 43. Ke2 Kd4 44. Bb5 Nf6 45. Kf3 Ke5 46. Ke3 Ng4+ 47. Ke2 Kd4 48. Bc6 Ne5 49. Bb5 Ng4 50. f3 Ne3 51. Bd3 Nd5 52. Kd2 Nf6 53. Bg6 Nd5 54. Bf7 Nf6 55. Ke2 Nd7 56. Bg8 Nc5 57. Kd2 Nd7 58. Bh7 Nf6 59. Bg6 Nd5 60. Ke2 Nc3+ 61. Kf2 Nd1+ 62. Ke1 Nc3 63. f4 gxf4 64. gxf4 b5 65. axb5 Nxb5 66. Kf2 Nc3 67. Kf3 a4 68. bxa4 Nxa4 69. Kg4 Nc3 70. Bf7 Ne2 71. f5 Ke5 72. Bc4 Ng3 73. Kg5 Nxf5 74. Bd5 Kxd5 75. Kxf5 1/2-1/2 [Event "ch-USA 2022"] [Site "Saint Louis USA"] [Date "2022.10.11"] [Round "6"] [White "So, Wesley"] [Black "Dominguez Perez, Leinier"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "A36"] [WhiteElo "2774"] [BlackElo "2747"] [PlyCount "80"] [EventDate "2022.10.04"] {[%evp 0,80,25,-25,19,2,19,8,10,10,2,0,25,7,-1,-1,24,23,21,7,7,7,23,18,-7,-21,-18,-17,-7,-13,-9,-36,-39,-15,-19,-18,13,23,33,20,10,10,6,21,0,9,8,10,20,17,-10,-19,-19,-22,0,0,11,-7,9,0,0,18,12,4,10,8,10,11,9,7,5,0,0,0,0,-3,0,0,0,0,0,0,0]} 1. c4 c5 2. g3 g6 3. Bg2 Bg7 4. Nc3 Nc6 5. a3 b6 6. Nf3 Bb7 7. O-O Nd4 8. e4 Nxf3+ 9. Bxf3 d6 10. d3 e6 11. Be3 Ne7 12. Bg2 Nc6 13. Qd2 Nd4 14. Rab1 O-O 15. b4 Qd7 16. Ne2 Nxe2+ 17. Qxe2 cxb4 18. axb4 d5 19. exd5 exd5 20. c5 d4 21. Bxb7 Qxb7 22. Bf4 Rfe8 23. Qc2 Rac8 24. Bd6 Be5 25. Bxe5 Rxe5 26. Rfe1 Rxe1+ 27. Rxe1 bxc5 28. bxc5 Qd5 29. Rc1 Rc6 30. Qc4 Qxc4 31. Rxc4 Kg7 32. Kg2 Kf6 33. Rxd4 Rxc5 34. Rd6+ Kg7 35. Ra6 Rd5 36. Rxa7 Rxd3 37. Rb7 Rc3 38. Ra7 Rd3 39. Rb7 Rc3 40. Ra7 Rd3 1/2-1/2 [Event "ch-USA 2022"] [Site "Saint Louis USA"] [Date "2022.10.11"] [Round "6"] [White "Moradiabadi, Elshan"] [Black "Caruana, Fabiano"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "B46"] [WhiteElo "2534"] [BlackElo "2763"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "88"] [EventDate "2022.10.04"] {[%evp 0,88,30,10,32,55,53,36,44,39,48,40,87,68,48,44,44,35,49,41,41,16,3,8,16,18,16,15,18,18,17,25,39,15,33,-33,7,-19,-39,-35,-45,-72,-95,-102,-116,-113,-84,-149,-145,-142,-129,-136,-136,-130,-136,-127,-122,-127,-79,-55,-55,-119,-140,-177,-177,-178,-183,-181,-186,-186,-123,-134,-156,-156,-144,-135,-151,-144,-143,-205,-183,-240,-244,-289,-303,-336,-340,-399,-379,-426,-453]} 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nc6 5. Nc3 a6 6. Bf4 {Rare.} d6 7. Bg3 (7. Nxc6 {is more common, and after} bxc6 {White usually plays} 8. Qd2 ({or} 8. Bc4 {.})) 7... Be7 8. Be2 Bd7 9. Nb3 e5 $146 (9... Qc7 $142 10. Qd2 Rd8 11. O-O-O Bc8 12. Kb1 Nf6 13. Rhe1 O-O 14. Qe3 b5 15. a3 Ne5 16. f4 Nc4 17. Bxc4 bxc4 18. Nd4 Bd7 19. e5 dxe5 20. fxe5 Nh5 21. Bf2 Rb8 22. Ka2 Qa5 23. Rb1 f5 24. Red1 Rb7 25. Be1 Rfb8 26. Ncb5 Qb6 27. Nd6 Bxd6 28. exd6 Nf6 29. Qe5 Ng4 30. Qe2 e5 31. h3 exd4 32. Qxc4+ Kh8 33. hxg4 Qxd6 34. Rxd4 Qe7 35. gxf5 Bxf5 36. Ka1 Qxa3+ 37. Qa2 Qxa2+ 38. Kxa2 Bxc2 39. Rc1 Rxb2+ 40. Ka1 R2b3 41. Rxc2 Rb1+ 42. Ka2 Rxe1 43. Ra4 Re6 44. Rb4 Ree8 45. Ra4 Rb6 46. Re4 Reb8 47. g4 h6 48. Ka3 Rb1 49. Ra2 R8b5 50. Ka4 Rg1 {0-1 (50) Prraneeth,V (2457)-Puranik,A (2612) Biel 2022}) 10. Bg4 (10. Nd5 $142 $14 {/?}) 10... Bxg4 11. Qxg4 h5 $1 12. Qh3 $8 h4 13. f3 Bg5 14. O-O Rh6 $15 {Kids, don't try this at home.} 15. Bf2 Nf6 16. Rad1 Qc7 17. Nc1 {A knight on b3 always stands badly, says Tarrasch. A knight on d5 is another matter, so off he goes.} Kf8 18. a3 $2 (18. Nd3 $142) 18... Na5 $2 (18... Nd8 $1 19. Nd3 Ne6 $17 {/-+}) 19. Nd3 Nc4 $15 20. Nb4 $2 (20. Rfe1 $15) 20... Qc8 $1 $19 21. Qxc8+ Rxc8 {White's problem is simple to state and difficult to defend against: Black threatens both 22...Nxb2 and 22...Nxa3.} 22. Na4 {That takes care of a and b, but there's also c...} a5 23. Na2 Ne3 24. N2c3 (24. Bxe3 $2 Bxe3+ 25. Kh1 {and now} Rxc2 $19 {is completely winning, but} (25... Nh5 $1 $19 {is even better, threatening mate in two starting with ...Ng3+.})) 24... Nxd1 (24... b5 $1 {was even better, but Black is comfortably winning in any case.}) 25. Rxd1 Rc6 (25... b5 $1 {was again the better move.}) 26. Kf1 (26. Nb6 $142) 26... Bf4 (26... b5 $142) 27. h3 Kg8 28. Bb6 Rg6 (28... Nh5 $142) 29. Bxa5 Be3 $6 (29... Nh5) 30. Rd3 $2 ({After} 30. Bd8 {the win is gone unless Caruana finds} Bd4 $1 31. Rd2 Ra6 $1 {. The threat is ...b5, and after} 32. b3 Bxc3 33. Nxc3 Rxa3 {Black's advantage should still suffice for the full point.}) 30... Bd4 31. Bd8 $2 b5 $1 {Finally! The rest is a breeze.} 32. Bxf6 gxf6 33. Nd5 Rxc2 34. Ne7+ Kh7 (34... Kf8 $142) 35. Nxg6 Kxg6 36. Nc3 Rf2+ 37. Ke1 Rxb2 38. Nd5 Bc5 39. f4 Rxg2 40. Ne7+ Kh5 41. fxe5 fxe5 42. Rf3 Rg3 43. Rf5+ Kh6 44. Rf6+ Kg7 0-1 [Event "ch-USA 2022"] [Site "Saint Louis USA"] [Date "2022.10.11"] [Round "6"] [White "Lenderman, Aleks"] [Black "Shankland, Sam"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "D30"] [WhiteElo "2535"] [BlackElo "2712"] [PlyCount "60"] [EventDate "2022.10.04"] {[%evp 0,60,25,20,20,6,15,19,11,-23,23,26,26,-5,-5,-7,34,15,15,15,33,14,14,-31,26,-4,-2,-31,32,37,51,54,66,59,61,38,40,57,57,48,39,30,70,62,58,84,53,53,53,53,53,53,53,53,53,45,47,56,52,60,47,63,47]} 1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. g3 Bb4+ 5. Bd2 Be7 6. Bg2 O-O 7. O-O c6 8. Qc2 Nbd7 9. Bf4 a5 10. Rd1 h6 11. Ne5 Qb6 12. Be3 Qa6 13. Nd2 b5 14. Nxd7 Bxd7 15. c5 Be8 16. Bf4 Qa7 17. e4 g5 18. Be5 Ng4 19. Nf3 Nxe5 20. Nxe5 f6 21. Nxc6 Bxc6 22. exd5 Bxd5 23. Qg6+ Kh8 24. Qxh6+ Kg8 25. Qg6+ Kh8 26. Bxd5 exd5 27. Qh6+ Kg8 28. Qg6+ Kh8 29. Qh6+ Kg8 30. Qg6+ Kh8 1/2-1/2 [Event "ch-USA 2022"] [Site "Saint Louis USA"] [Date "2022.10.11"] [Round "6"] [White "Niemann, Hans Moke"] [Black "Robson, Ray"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "E00"] [WhiteElo "2699"] [BlackElo "2690"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "70"] [EventDate "2022.10.04"] {[%evp 0,70,25,23,27,11,11,-33,-11,-28,-28,-11,1,-15,-30,-30,-12,8,8,-10,-20,-20,4,11,32,35,53,44,47,41,32,25,51,48,59,42,49,52,39,44,42,14,6,2,0,-31,-15,-30,1,-47,-50,-101,-23,-112,-59,-61,55,-350,-285,-338,-327,-347,-347,-347,-399,-387,-359,-819,-849,-659,-845,-870,-901]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Bf4 {A rare line featured in an old S.O.S. (Secrets of Opening Surprises) article in New in Chess, if I recall correctly. It doesn't have a dangerous reputation for Black, but nowadays almost anything leading to non-traditional positions is getting a look. This move in particular has been tried by, among others, players like Carlsen, Duda, and Rapport, so it's probably going to experience an upswing.} d5 (3... Bb4+ {is also good, and lets us see why the bishop came out early - to allow} 4. Nd2 {without hemming in the bishop. (Not that this is particularly impressive.)}) 4. cxd5 Nxd5 (4... exd5 {is also playable, with a sort of QGD Exchange variation.}) 5. Bg3 c5 6. e4 Nf6 7. Nd2 Nc6 ({Both} 7... Qxd4 $146) ({and} 7... cxd4 {are playable. (In fact, this move was played in the Yoo game, given below.)}) 8. dxc5 $146 (8. e5 Nd7 9. Ngf3 cxd4 10. Bc4 Be7 11. O-O O-O 12. Rc1 Nc5 13. a3 a5 14. Nb3 (14. Qe2 b6 15. Ne4 Bb7 16. Nd6 Qc7 17. Rfd1 Rad8 18. Nb5 Qb8 19. Nbxd4 Nxd4 20. Nxd4 Ne4 21. Nf3 Rxd1+ 22. Rxd1 Rd8 23. Bd3 Nxg3 24. hxg3 Qc7 25. Qe3 h6 26. Re1 Qd7 27. Rd1 Qc6 28. Re1 Bc5 29. Qe2 Qa4 30. Rd1 Rd5 31. Rc1 Qg4 32. Qe4 Qxe4 33. Bxe4 Rd7 34. Bxb7 Rxb7 35. Kf1 Rd7 36. Ke2 g5 37. g4 Kg7 38. Rc4 Rd5 39. Re4 b5 40. Ne1 Rd4 41. Rxd4 Bxd4 42. Nd3 Kg6 43. Kf3 h5 44. Ke4 Bb6 45. f3 Ba7 46. Nc1 Bb6 47. Ne2 Bc5 48. Nc1 a4 49. Na2 hxg4 50. fxg4 f5+ 51. exf6 Kxf6 52. Nc3 b4 53. axb4 Bxb4 54. Nxa4 Ke7 55. Nc3 Kd6 56. Nb5+ Kc6 57. Nd4+ Kd6 58. Nf3 Ba5 59. Nxg5 Bd8 60. Nf7+ {1-0 (60) Yoo,C (2550)-Vokhidov,S (2552) Chess.com INT 2022}) 14... b6 15. Nbxd4 Nxd4 16. Nxd4 Bb7 17. Nb5 Ne4 18. Nd6 Qb8 19. Qd4 b5 20. Bxb5 Nxg3 21. hxg3 Bd5 22. Bc6 Bxd6 23. exd6 Ra6 24. Bxd5 Rxd6 25. Rc5 Rxd5 26. Rxd5 exd5 27. Qxd5 Qxb2 28. Qxa5 g6 29. Qb4 Qf6 30. a4 Rc8 31. a5 h5 32. Qa4 Rc6 33. Qa1 Kg7 34. Rb1 Qxa1 35. Rxa1 Ra6 36. f3 Kf6 37. Kf2 Ke5 38. Ke3 Kd5 39. Kf4 f6 40. g4 hxg4 41. Kxg4 Ke5 42. f4+ Ke6 43. Ra2 Ke7 44. Kf3 Kd6 45. Ke4 Ke6 46. Ra1 Kd6 47. f5 gxf5+ 48. Kxf5 Ke7 49. Kg6 Ke6 50. Re1+ Kd7 51. g4 Kd8 52. Kf7 Rd6 53. Re4 Rc6 54. Rd4+ Kc8 55. Rf4 {1-0 (55) Carlsen,M (2847)-So,W (2772) chess24.com INT 2021}) 8... Bxc5 9. e5 Nd5 10. Ngf3 O-O 11. a3 b6 (11... Nd4) 12. Ne4 a5 $1 {More or less committing himself to a pawn sac, which Niemann rightly declines to accept.} 13. Rc1 (13. Bd3) 13... Nce7 14. Bd3 (14. Nxc5 $143 bxc5 15. Rxc5 Bd7 $11 (15... Qb6 $11)) 14... Ba6 (14... Nf5) 15. Bxa6 Rxa6 16. O-O (16. Nxc5 $6 bxc5 17. Rxc5 Rb6 $15) 16... Qa8 (16... Nf5 $142) 17. Re1 (17. Nd6 $142) (17. Qe2 $142) 17... Nf5 18. Nh4 (18. Nfd2) 18... Nxg3 (18... Nde7) 19. hxg3 Be7 20. Qh5 $11 {With the pawn on e5 keeping Black's knight away, and with Black's queen on a8 and rook on a6 (very) far from the kingside, Niemann understandably starts amassing the troops for an attack. It's not so easy though - there are no bishops to help, the knight on h4 is misplaced, and the center is open.} (20. Nf3 $142 $14) 20... b5 {Making way for ...Rc6.} 21. Nf3 Rc6 22. Rcd1 {Not (yet) terrible, but certainly too ambitious.} (22. Nd4 $142 Rxc1 23. Rxc1 Rc8 $11) 22... Rc2 $15 23. b3 Ra2 (23... Qb8 $142) 24. Nd4 Rxa3 25. f4 $2 (25. Qg4 $44) 25... Ra2 $17 {Watch out for g2!} 26. f5 $2 (26. Nxb5 $142 $17) 26... Nc3 $19 {Just like that, it's gg.} 27. f6 $1 Bxf6 $1 28. Nxf6+ (28. exf6 Nxe4 29. fxg7 Rc8 $19) 28... gxf6 29. Nf3 (29. exf6 Qxg2#) 29... Nxd1 30. exf6 Kh8 {Forced, but good enough.} 31. Rxd1 (31. Ng5 {forces mate - or would, if Black didn't get to give mate first.} Qxg2#) 31... Rg8 32. Kh2 Qe4 33. Rd7 Qe2 $1 34. Qh3 (34. Nh4 Qxh5) 34... Qxf3 35. Rxf7 Rxg2+ $1 (35... Rxg2+ $1 {is not the only winning move, but it's best.} 36. Qxg2 Qh5+ 37. Qh3 Qxf7 $19) 0-1 [Event "ch-USA 2022"] [Site "Saint Louis USA"] [Date "2022.10.11"] [Round "6"] [White "Sevian, Samuel"] [Black "Xiong, Jeffery"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "D41"] [WhiteElo "2684"] [BlackElo "2690"] [PlyCount "73"] [EventDate "2022.10.04"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 d5 3. c4 e6 4. Nc3 c5 5. cxd5 cxd4 6. Qxd4 exd5 7. e4 dxe4 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. Ng5 Be6 10. a3 Nbd7 11. Bf4 Bb3 12. Ngxe4 Rc8 13. Nxf6 Nxf6 14. Be2 Bc5 15. O-O Re8 16. Bf3 Re7 17. Rfe1 Rd7 18. Be5 Be7 19. Re3 Be6 20. Rae1 a6 21. h3 Bd6 22. Bxb7 Rxc3 23. Rxc3 Bxe5 24. Rxe5 Rxb7 25. b4 Rb5 26. Re1 a5 27. Rd1+ Nd5 28. bxa5 Rxa5 29. Rc4 Rxa3 30. Rc5 Ke7 31. Rcxd5 Bxd5 32. Rxd5 Ra1+ 33. Kh2 Ra2 34. Kg1 Ra1+ 35. Kh2 Ra2 36. Kg1 Ra1+ 37. Kh2 1/2-1/2 [Event "ch-USA 2022"] [Site "Saint Louis USA"] [Date "2022.10.11"] [Round "6"] [White "Aronian, Levon"] [Black "Swiercz, Dariusz"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "A13"] [WhiteElo "2755"] [BlackElo "2652"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "146"] [EventDate "2022.10.04"] {[%evp 0,146,27,2,15,11,15,10,15,15,47,11,25,25,25,15,17,26,18,40,40,33,32,30,41,-5,-8,-106,-99,-99,2,0,-6,-22,-22,-22,-22,-35,14,0,0,0,0,11,31,-8,0,0,37,-118,-152,-152,-152,-152,-81,-81,-348,-339,-339,-343,-343,-365,-298,-298,-298,-298,-370,-358,-214,-214,-399,-374,-193,-231,-231,-231,-231,-224,-224,-224,-141,-141,-132,-142,-143,-135,-135,-185,-187,-248,-213,-247,-244,-316,-181,-343,-364,-368,-425,-443,-206,-402,-402,-501,-251,-251,-252,-264,-264,-264,-340,-560,-532,-1073,-433,-480,-263,-412,-245,-514,-455,-537,-432,-505,-505,-505,-515,-515,-515,-525,-962,-972,-982,-1012,-1022,-29979,-29980,-29977,-29978,-29987,-29988,-29991,-29986,-29989,-29984,-29985,-29984,-29985,-29980]} 1. c4 e6 2. Nf3 d5 3. e3 Nf6 4. Nc3 c6 5. b3 Bd6 6. Bb2 O-O 7. Rc1 Nbd7 8. h3 $146 dxc4 9. Bxc4 b5 10. Bd3 Bb7 11. Ne4 Be7 12. h4 h6 13. Nfg5 {In case it wasn't already obvious, there's no doubt now: Aronian is going headhunting.} c5 14. Qf3 $2 (14. Qc2 {was the right direction for the queen. It's a little unsatisfying to have her on the wrong side of the bishop along the diagonal to h7, but the bishop can be cleared out of the way if necessary. Best play now is to transpose to the game:} Nxe4 15. Bxe4 Bxe4 16. Qxe4 Bxg5 17. hxg5 Qxg5 18. Rh3 $1 $44) 14... Nxe4 $2 {As in the line given in the preceding comment, but Black had better.} (14... Qb6 15. Bxf6 Bxf6 16. Nxf6+ Nxf6 17. Ne4 Nd7 18. Qg3 Rad8 $17) 15. Bxe4 Bxe4 16. Qxe4 Bxg5 17. hxg5 Qxg5 18. Rh3 $1 $44 e5 19. Rg3 Qh5 20. Qc6 Rad8 21. Qxb5 Nf6 22. Qc6 (22. Qxc5 $4 Rxd2 $1 $19) (22. Rxc5 $4 Ne4 23. Bxe5 Qh1+ $19) 22... Nd5 23. Qxc5 Rfe8 $44 {Now it's Black who is a pawn down, and as with White back around move 18, Black too has sufficient compensation for the pawn.} 24. Rc4 $2 {Now it's going to be much more than sufficient compensation; with correct play, Black is winning.} (24. Qc4 Nf6 25. Bc3 Qh1+ 26. Qf1 Qh5 $11) 24... Qh1+ 25. Ke2 Qb1 $19 26. Qa3 Nf4+ $1 {This is the main problem.} 27. Rxf4 (27. exf4 exf4+ 28. Kf3 {and now there's nothing wrong with 28...fxg3, which is completely winning, except that the less-than-obvious} g5 $19 {forces a relatively speedy mate in 12 moves. (Not that I needed to point that out, right?)}) 27... Qd3+ $1 28. Kf3 Qd5+ $1 {Perhaps Aronian had missed these zwischenzugs.} 29. Re4 (29. Ke2 Qxd2+ $19) (29. Kg4 exf4 {Now there's no Rxg7+.}) (29. e4 Qxd2 $1 $19) 29... f5 {Black collects the material while maintaining play against White's king. Aronian defends heroically, but to no avail.} 30. Bc3 Qxe4+ 31. Ke2 f4 32. Rf3 Qd3+ 33. Ke1 Qb1+ 34. Ke2 Qd3+ 35. Ke1 Rd7 36. Qa4 Qb1+ 37. Ke2 Qd3+ 38. Ke1 Kh7 39. Qc4 Qxc4 40. bxc4 g5 41. Rh3 Rc7 42. d3 Rc6 43. exf4 exf4+ 44. Kd1 Ra6 45. d4 Rxa2 46. c5 Rb8 47. Kc1 Rxf2 48. d5 g4 49. Rh1 g3 50. c6 f3 51. c7 Rc8 52. d6 fxg2 53. Rd1 Rf1 54. Bd4 h5 55. Kc2 h4 56. Bc5 Rf5 57. Bxa7 Kg6 58. Bb6 Rf7 59. Rd2 Kf5 60. Rxg2 Ke6 61. Bc5 Rfxc7 $1 {Very efficient.} 62. dxc7 Rxc7 63. Kd3 Rxc5 {It's surprising that Aronian is still playing, but perhaps time trouble played a role. This is a trivially easy win for Black.} 64. Ke4 Rc4+ 65. Kf3 Kf5 66. Ra2 Rf4+ 67. Kg2 Kg4 68. Kh1 Rd4 {Threatening ...Rd1+ followed by ...h3#.} 69. Ra1 h3 70. Rb1 Kf3 71. Rb3+ Kf2 72. Rb2+ Ke3 73. Rb1 Ke2 {The rooks come off the board, and then even Swiercz's dog could win the resulting ending.} 0-1 [Event "ch-USA 2022"] [Site "Saint Louis USA"] [Date "2022.10.11"] [Round "6"] [White "Liang, Awonder"] [Black "Yoo, Christopher Woojin"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "B47"] [WhiteElo "2608"] [BlackElo "2563"] [PlyCount "94"] [EventDate "2022.10.04"] 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nc6 5. Nc3 Qc7 6. Be2 Nf6 7. Ndb5 Qb8 8. f4 d6 9. Be3 Be7 10. g4 h6 11. Nd4 Bd7 12. h4 Nxd4 13. Qxd4 b5 14. Rg1 b4 15. Nd1 d5 16. Nf2 dxe4 17. O-O-O Qb6 18. Nxe4 Qxd4 19. Rxd4 Nd5 20. Bd2 Bc6 21. f5 Bxh4 22. fxe6 fxe6 23. g5 hxg5 24. Bxg5 Bxg5+ 25. Nxg5 Ke7 26. Bg4 e5 27. Rc4 Rh6 28. Re1 Rf8 29. Ne6 Bb5 30. Rc5 Rf1 31. Rxf1 Bxf1 32. Rxd5 Bc4 33. Ra5 Bxe6 34. Rxa7+ Kf6 35. Ra6 Ke7 36. Ra7+ Kf6 37. Bxe6 Kxe6 38. Rxg7 Rh1+ 39. Kd2 Rh2+ 40. Kd3 e4+ 41. Kxe4 Rxc2 42. Kd4 Rxb2 43. Kc4 Rxa2 44. Kxb4 Rf2 45. Rh7 Rf7 46. Rh6+ Rf6 47. Rxf6+ Kxf6 1/2-1/2