Sometimes winning feels like your heart will explode

Wow. I really need to read some of that "Don't get to high on your wins" stuff because I am jazzed right now! Maybe it's because I haven't played since missing Mate in Two. Right now I feel like I can play chess.

Here's the game with off the cuff commentary and Crafty analysis (some of the diagrams have the White to move when its not- oops!):

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6


That's about all I know of the Spanish!

4. Bc4 Bc5

Hey- this is like the Italian Game!

5. O-O Nf6 6. d3 O-O 7. Re1 d5 8.
exd5 Nxd5 9. Nxe5 Nxe5 10. Rxe5



I spent about 3 minutes considering 10. ... Bxf2+ before deciding my opponent wouldn't play 11. Kxf2 allowing 11. ... Qf6+ winning the Rook. (Crafty liked Bxf2+, but with moves I hadn't considered! Need to look at that later...)

10. ... c6 11. d4 Bb6 12. c3 Bc7 13. Re1 Qd6



I've decided to gun for the Kingside with everything I've got. After forcing his Rook back, I realized he still hasn't activated 4 pieces. you'd almost think I dropped that pawn in exchange for the activity!

14. g3 Bh3 15. Bf1 Bxf1

Sweet! I get to exchange what was my worst piece for his best!

16. Rxf1 Rfe8 17. c4 Nf6

Sure- make me go to the Kingside.

18. Bf4 Qd7



Given how the game ended, I'm sure he wished he'd exchanged Bishops at this point. instead, he 'forces' me to centralize my Knight and score what I consider a badass finish.

19. Bg5 Ne4 20. Be3 Qh3
21. Nd2



21. ...Nxg3 22. Qf3 Ne2+ {Letto resigns} 0-1

I can't believe I found this win (even after Crafty tells me Nxg3 wasn't all that I thought it was :D)! I watched a few videos yesterday on the Grand Prix Attack, a system I'm thinking of using in conjunction with the Scotch Game, and reading the unmarked half of my Bobby Fischer Teaches Chess so I can only assume my brain was primed for assault and mate!

Here's the game in raw PGN:

[Event "rated standard match"]
[Site "Free Internet Chess Server"]
[Date "2007.11.17"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Letto"]
[Black "gorckat"]
[Result "0-1"]
[WhiteElo "1658E"]
[BlackElo "1475P"]
[ECO "C60"]
[TimeControl "G/30"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Bc4 Bc5 5. O-O Nf6 6. d3 O-O 7. Re1 d5 8.
exd5 Nxd5 9. Nxe5 Nxe5 10. Rxe5 c6 11. d4 Bb6 12. c3 Bc7 13. Re1 Qd6 14. g3
Bh3 15. Bf1 Bxf1 16. Rxf1 Rfe8 17. c4 Nf6 18. Bf4 Qd7 19. Bg5 Ne4 20. Be3 Qh3
21. Nd2 Nxg3 22. Qf3 Ne2+ {Letto resigns} 0-1

I just let Crafty take a hack at it. Crafty never went over one pawn either way until 22. Qf3. Here's what he gave at that point: 22. hxg3 Rxe3 23. Nf3 Re7 24. Re1 Rae8 25. Rxe7 Rxe7 26. d5 a5 27. dxc6 bxc6 with a pretty even game, slight edge to Black.

At no point had I considered Qh5 by White which came up in several of Crafty's lines. If I had seen it and decided to make my moves anyway, then fine. Its a glaring weakness of mine- failing to consider all my opponent's moves. I can probably work on it better in G60, but it gets so hard to find two hours when I have the energy for it.