What's the difference?

Sean and I have been playing chess together now for at least 12 years. It seems like only yesterday we were having our all night blitz sessions in his parents basement. We used to play 40 blitz games a night and want to keep coming back for more. It's probably a good thing that we never got into drinking and partying! Then again, there are worse things than guitars and tiki bars.

When Sean and I first started playing chess I was the stronger one. We used to play on occasion with Dave Hall. Dave was a real life chess player. He knew openings, played in chess tournaments, and even beat a master once in a blitz game. But that's another story! That first summer we started playing with Dave he would beat us constantly, while playing us both at the same time. Finally, near the end of that first summer I had my first win against Dave. It wasn't long after that for Sean either, and we never looked back.

The interesting thing is, for as long as Sean and I have been playing, it seems like people want to beat Sean, but think they can beat me. For some reason I was giving this some thought this evening. The only answer I can come up with is that Sean is a very active player. He blows the position open, keeps it as complicated as possible, and crushes you with his great tactical mind. I've had many winning, or superior, positions against Sean over the years that have slowly faded away because I just couldn't keep up with the complications he would keep throwing on the board. When you get blown away like that, it's easy to be amazed. When I win a game against someone, it's usually a slower, more methodical win. Small advantages that slowly make way to a winning endgame. Those are the games where it's much easier to feel like you should have been able to win somehow.

Anyway, just some brain dumping for the night. It came to my mind after I had played a game against a weaker opponent on the ICC. It wasn't a great game by any means, but it was a sound beating. If you are a beginning chess player yourself, I strongly recommend that you study tactics. Lots and lots of tactics! I've seen so many games in U1400 sections of tournaments where I wanted to cry. So much is missed. Tactics, definitely the heart of chess.

Though it pains me, here is the game I played tonight that inspired me to write this entry. Enjoy!

Internet Chess Club G/15
White: Ed Borowski
Black: Wondermonk
1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. cxd5 cxd5 4. Nc3 Nf6 5. Nf3 Bg4 6. e3 e6 7. Bb5+ Nbd7 8. h3 Bh5 9. g4 Bg6 10. Ne5 Be7 11. g5 {Black resigns} 1-0



And with that, I wish you all a good night!

Ed.