22 May 07
2 edits
Originally posted by KunsooI would say psychology is definitely a factor. For example, pretending your Tal in a correspondence game against someone rated higher than you hasn't worked out for me (yet 😛). I think the thing to look for is tempo. Will giving a piece away or voluntarily losing an exchange give you a definite attack on your opponent (usually his king)? If I can weaken my opponents king by sacrificing a pawn or a knight or something, I often feel it is worth it.
What goes into your decision to make a speculative sacrifice - ie. a sacrifice in which you cannot work out a definitive winning line at the time of a sacrifice? What factors do you look for? Have you made sacrifices that didn't pan out? Is psychology a factor?
Here's a game when I sacrificed a pawn without being entirely sure what I'd get for it. Game 3481649
Here's another one. In this case, it turns out that my sac was entirely sound and my opponent resigned immediately, but when I made the move I had only expected to open my opponents king up and have a chance to attack with my queen. Worked out well. Game 3506367
22 May 07
Originally posted by KunsooLook at the Topalov-Sasi game from the final round M-Tel masters with Sasi down to minutes on the clock and only about 28 moves made.
What goes into your decision to make a speculative sacrifice - ie. a sacrifice in which you cannot work out a definitive winning line at the time of a sacrifice? What factors do you look for? Have you made sacrifices that didn't pan out? Is psychology a factor?
22 May 07
This is probably the part of the game I am least knowledgable about... I would love to be able to make sound sacrifices. In blitz games I have done it alot, saccing a bishop and getting a wonderful attack... but I have had trouble doing it here or during most OTB games I've played. It probably has something to do with luck, and that is why its my weakest area.
22 May 07
Its not luck its calculation. You may need tactical exercises such as from CTS. Note that CC is different to what you can do in blitz and OTB, as shock and psychology can be overcome in CC by sleeping over the move.
The Topalov-Sasi game was a good example of the tradeoff between time and a sac. Had Sasi got as much time as Topalov he would have seen how to draw easily in that game.
22 May 07
I didn't believed that my best choice would be the sacrifice of a rook, a pawn, and the two bishops.. Game 3524690😛
22 May 07
Originally posted by aGoRessivEInteresting game. It is one thing to sac a pawn for increased mobility or exposure of a weak point on the board, but it's different when the pieces are more valuable and put you at a large material disadvantage. The sacrifices you made exposed his king out in the open and allowed you to apply constant pressure.
I didn't believed that my best choice would be the sacrifice of a rook, a pawn, and the two bishops.. Game 3524690😛
One thing it requires is advanced and detailed planning, something I am in the early process of understanding. When you make one of those moves such as a bishop sac to move a king, sometimes it doesn't work. It makes me very hesitant to try it again when my plan was foiled early in developing, leaving me feeling like a dope and in a hopeless position (so embarrassed i can't even bring myself to challenge again).
I'm a little confused by your statement; why did you make those sacrifices when you thought they were inferior moves?
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23 May 07
Originally posted by aGoRessivEA fun game! Looks like one of those great games of the 19th century before Steinitz ruined the game by introducing "positional chess."
I didn't believed that my best choice would be the sacrifice of a rook, a pawn, and the two bishops.. Game 3524690😛
23 May 07
Originally posted by aGoRessivEI see your rook, pawn and two bishops .. and raise you a queen and two knights 😀
I didn't believed that my best choice would be the sacrifice of a rook, a pawn, and the two bishops.. Game 3524690😛
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. Nf3 O-O 6. Be2 e5 7. O-O Nc6 8.
d5 Ne7 9. Ne1 Ne8 10. Nf3 f5 11. exf5 Nxf5 12. Qb3 Nf6 13. Bd3 Re8 14. Bg5
h6 15. Bxf6 Qxf6 16. Rae1 g5 17. c5 g4 18. Nd2 Qh4 19. Nb5 e4 20. Nxc7 Be5
21. g3 Nxg3 22. fxg3 Bxg3 23. Re2 Be5 24. Bb5 g3 25. Bxe8 Bh3 26. Nxa8
gxh2+ 27. Kh1 e3 28. Qxb7 Bxf1 29. Qf7+ Kh8 30. Nxf1 Qe4+ 31. Rg2 Qxg2+ 32.
Kxg2 e2 33. Bb5 e1=Q 34. Qxa7 Qe4+ 35. Kf2 h1=N+ 36. Kg1 Qg4+ 37. Kxh1 Qh3+
38. Kg1 Bd4+ 39. Ne3 Bxe3#
23 May 07
Originally posted by allosteryAt first, I started the game trying to make the Blackburne Shilling mate (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4 4.Nxe5 Qg5 5.Nxf7?? Qxg2 6.Rf1 Qxe4 7.Be2 Nf3# 0-1) but he does the best response with 5. Bxf7+, after that, though I have more material, my kinG is out and he starts to pressure my pieces. When he put his queen in 12. Qb3 I know he wants to block my knight, so I planning to sacrifice the rook (and I recognized that my first intention was to look for a draw, because he would mate me at first chance if I didn't pressured the king).
Interesting game. It is one thing to sac a pawn for increased mobility or exposure of a weak point on the board, but it's different when the pieces are more valuable and put you at a large material disadvantage. The sacrifices you made exposed his king out in the open and allowed you to apply constant pressure.
One thing it requires is advanced and de ...[text shortened]... your statement; why did you make those sacrifices when you thought they were inferior moves?
16. Rf2 Qe4+
17. Kg3? h5! (with threat of mate on next move with Qg4)
18. Bf4 Nxf4 (hey, my knight were dead at first of all)
19. Rxf4 h4! (my second sacrifice forcing him to eat the pawn with the rook to pressure the king without he could put his rook in front of my queen if Qe3)
20. Rxh4 (or this or I take his rook) Qe3 (I still were looking for a draw)
21. Kg4?! (but after that move I started to see the light) d5! (blocking her queen)
22. Nc2 (threating my queen and at the same time with the intention of put the rook on Re1 and take my queen) Bxf5!! (my third sacrifice forcing him to take my bishop in f5 -now I have the king where I want-)
23. Kxf5 Qf3!! (forcing the king to move to Kg5, because if he put the rook in Rf4, then I mate him with Qh5)
24. Kg5 (he's dead) Bh6!! (my fourth sacrifice -and now my Rook is free!-)
25. Rxh6 Rg8+
26. Rg6 Qg2+
27. kf4 (where do you go?) Rf8+
28. ke3 (ahh my friend, don't you think that Rf3 isn't mate?) Rf3#
Game 3524690
23 May 07
1 edit
Originally posted by KunsooMy mood generally decides such things. I usually do such sacrifices when I am in the right mood.
What goes into your decision to make a speculative sacrifice - ie. a sacrifice in which you cannot work out a definitive winning line at the time of a sacrifice? What factors do you look for? Have you made sacrifices that didn't pan out? Is psychology a factor?
I generally lose those games unless the opposition is quite weak.
23 May 07
Game 3502085
My move 16....Nxe4 sacrificing my queen for a big attack which proved fatal. I don't know whether it was sound or not as I cannot calculate that far ahead, however I won and that's what matters. 😏
23 May 07
I'm quite cautious with sacrifices. If I can't see a forced win (or at least a way to force recapture of equal material later in the combination) then won't go for it. However when playing OTB sometimes it's easy to think you have a forced win when you don't...but with correspondence chess it should be fairly easy to check out whether your sacrifice 'works' or not - get a board set up and play it a few times against yourself!
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23 May 07
Originally posted by adricsrevengeI'm the same way, although I'll sometimes sacrifice if it leaves me with a position that looks like I can win - usually involving exposure of the king with the opponent's pieces bunched up and immobile. But I go through some of the professional games and I just don't see what they're giving up the material for.
I'm quite cautious with sacrifices. If I can't see a forced win (or at least a way to force recapture of equal material later in the combination) then won't go for it. However when playing OTB sometimes it's easy to think you have a forced win when you don't...but with correspondence chess it should be fairly easy to check out whether your sacrifice 'works' or not - get a board set up and play it a few times against yourself!