How to Swindle in Chess

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Paul Cooksey
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Re: How to Swindle in Chess

Post by Paul Cooksey » Sat Feb 06, 2021 7:09 am

Larsen's theory was van Scheltinga thought he had a clear advantage and wanted to keep things simple.

I have the Batsford version of the book. Larsen agrees he was lost until Bc4?? allowing the very nice Nf4. To be honest, the computer doesn't really support the narrative though. Black is a bit better, but all of the really ambitious tries fail tactically. Rxg7 is an important resource as Chris says. So it looks like a game in which Black was a bit better but blundered in the cold light of stockfish.

I wonder if we have a different perspective on this sort of position now because sometimes the computers show us the side with the visually worse position has enough dynamic chances to hold.

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JustinHorton
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Re: How to Swindle in Chess

Post by JustinHorton » Sat Feb 06, 2021 7:42 am

That's definitely the game and passage I was thinking of. Dunno where the P was coming from. There's a longer excerpt here.
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Tim Spanton
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Re: How to Swindle in Chess

Post by Tim Spanton » Sat Feb 06, 2021 8:46 am

Stockfish12 and Komodo12.1.1 reckon the position is dead-equal after 27...Be2

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Christopher Kreuzer
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Re: How to Swindle in Chess

Post by Christopher Kreuzer » Sat Feb 06, 2021 8:59 am

Thanks for the longer excerpt, Justin. The extra bit about Spanjaard is interesting. I presume Eduard Spanjaard (1909-1981) according to chessgames.com. That would make him about 55 in 1964 when sitting down to watch that game. Not that old, but apparently short-sighted and watching the developing drama with interest. Was he an IM or a GM or neither? Found entries for Spanjaard here (with nice photo) and here. Is there a definitive list somewhere of IMs and FMs - I am presuming this is far back enough that any title would have been honorary? Can we say he would have been somewhere around IM-strength? Why would Larsen refer to him as "the Dutch master" - is that a polite general term, or an indication of some actual formal title (maybe a national one)?

Interesting that Larsen does not bother providing any analysis for 28...Bg4 - is that bad or just less interesting than the alternatives? Maybe after Rxg7+ and Qg3, White has the big threat of h3 and Black's bishop ends up misplaced on g4?

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JustinHorton
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Re: How to Swindle in Chess

Post by JustinHorton » Sat Feb 06, 2021 11:40 am

Just to reinforce my unreliability on this subject - it's not an article, and it is in my best games collection.

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Ian Thompson
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Re: How to Swindle in Chess

Post by Ian Thompson » Sat Feb 06, 2021 11:44 am

Christopher Kreuzer wrote:
Sat Feb 06, 2021 6:50 am
Still, given a choice between putting the bishop on e2 on g4 (which as far as I can tell forces the exchange sacrifice on g7 - surely Qh6 is met by Rf7)
The computer thinks White is winning after 28... Bg4 29. Qh6 Rf7. The reason being that Black cannot prevent all White's threats:
  • A central pawn advance
  • Bb4 to divert the black queen from the kingside
  • e4 to allow a subsequent Bxg5
There are also lines where white's e-pawn has moved and White then has the possibility of Ne3 with threats of Nd5 or Nf5.

Nick Ivell
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Re: How to Swindle in Chess

Post by Nick Ivell » Sat Feb 06, 2021 11:46 am

I like that tear in your book cover Justin.

Shows that the book (and it's a good one) is READ, rather than gathering dust, as so many chess books do.

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Re: How to Swindle in Chess

Post by Nick Ivell » Sat Feb 06, 2021 11:56 am

Moving on to more substantive matter than the condition of our books.

I draw attention to a game no one ever talks about: Redolfi - Fischer, Mar del Plata 1959.

Swindle or cheapo? I'm not even sure I accept Jonathan's interesting distinction (great article, by the way).

One thing I am sure of is this: it was a terrible game by Bobby, and perhaps representative of the luck he sometimes enjoyed early in his career, as opponents ran scared from the Brooklyn wunderkind.

Or maybe luck has nothing to do with it at all, and the good player is always 'lucky'...

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JustinHorton
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Re: How to Swindle in Chess

Post by JustinHorton » Sat Feb 06, 2021 12:01 pm

Nick Ivell wrote:
Sat Feb 06, 2021 11:46 am
I like that tear in your book cover Justin.

Shows that the book (and it's a good one) is READ, rather than gathering dust, as so many chess books do.
Regrettably I fear it mostly shows I bought it secondhand
"Do you play chess?"
"Yes, but I prefer a game with a better chance of cheating."

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Nick Ivell
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Re: How to Swindle in Chess

Post by Nick Ivell » Sat Feb 06, 2021 12:05 pm

Well Justin, at least the first owner read it!

Though I'm sure you have too. I love those Bell books with the red covers.

Jonathan Rogers
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Re: How to Swindle in Chess

Post by Jonathan Rogers » Sat Feb 06, 2021 12:16 pm

Thanks to Chris, and yes that was the game i had in mind. It is in fact easily found online and is probably in most of Larsen's games collections, and I was doubtless inaccurate about almost every detail EXCEPT that I do regard the opponent to have been an amateur! You can have talented and dangerous amateurs, if i didn't believe that, why did I make so much effort with Barbican 4NCL?

Interesting that Justin and I should have thought of the same game, in fact.

And yes, books should be read, not collected. Most of us are doubtless sinners there, but still.

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Christopher Kreuzer
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Re: How to Swindle in Chess

Post by Christopher Kreuzer » Sat Feb 06, 2021 1:54 pm

Ian Thompson wrote:
Sat Feb 06, 2021 11:44 am
Christopher Kreuzer wrote:
Sat Feb 06, 2021 6:50 am
Still, given a choice between putting the bishop on e2 on g4 (which as far as I can tell forces the exchange sacrifice on g7 - surely Qh6 is met by Rf7)
The computer thinks White is winning after 28... Bg4 29. Qh6 Rf7. The reason being that Black cannot prevent all White's threats:
  • A central pawn advance
  • Bb4 to divert the black queen from the kingside
  • e4 to allow a subsequent Bxg5
There are also lines where white's e-pawn has moved and White then has the possibility of Ne3 with threats of Nd5 or Nf5.
Oh, that was me not realising that in the line 28... Bg4 29. Qh6 Rf7, Black hasn't actually trapped the rook, as the White queen can go to g6, a small 'fact' I failed to pick up on when trying to work out what was going on. :oops: (This is presumably why Larsen doesn't mention this line in his analysis as it is too obvious.)

Kevin Thurlow
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Re: How to Swindle in Chess

Post by Kevin Thurlow » Sat Feb 06, 2021 2:01 pm

"Why would Larsen refer to him as "the Dutch master""

Larsen was good at English and had a sense of humour, perhaps he was punning on "Dutch Master" in the context of art?

Leonard Barden
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Re: How to Swindle in Chess

Post by Leonard Barden » Sat Feb 06, 2021 2:11 pm

Jonathan Rogers wrote:
Sat Feb 06, 2021 12:16 pm
I was doubtless inaccurate about almost every detail EXCEPT that I do regard the opponent to have been an amateur! You can have talented and dangerous amateurs, if i didn't believe that, why did I make so much effort with Barbican 4NCL?

Absurd and patronising choice of word for Theo van Scheltinga, who was a top Netherlands player and a strong IM for three decades, representing his country in five Olympiads.This was the 1950s when there was very little money in chess and like many other IMs and GMs then he needed a full-time outside job to support his preferred career.

Theo shared the 1947 Dutch championship with Max Euwe before a respectable 2.5-5.5 result in their play-off match. Remember Wijk from the chess news this weekend? Van Scheltinga won first prize at Wijk twice and was second there twice.

A polished win against a strong GM: https://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1119589
And here's the 'amateur' in a different game against Larsen:https://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1318085

I feel disrespected by association, too. On board 5 in the 1958 Netherlands v England match we scored a win each, as I tactically crushed his Kan Sicilian with a Nxe6 sac in our first game while van Scheltinga strategically demolished my Schmid King's Indian next day.

Paul Cooksey
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Re: How to Swindle in Chess

Post by Paul Cooksey » Sat Feb 06, 2021 2:35 pm


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