Isaac Chiu (2095) – Nick Fallon (1716) [E63]

2016 Scholastic Championships Round 6, I did analysis this year at the Chess Kids booth.  It’s funny how lots of players bypass me when they get, “good” at chess?! After 5 yrs of VSCA tournament analysis, I’ve learned knowing your opening, and taking your time annoys experience based opponents!! In Scholastics, it is very important to look at a player’s history. Isaac Chiu has been to 145 events starting in 2011 and Nick Fallon has been to 33 events since 2009. Most of the players that dominate are doing it with experience, not study. Sitting down with Nick to look at this game was very refreshing! He played a true sacrifice and novelty! It’s not in chess.com’s explorer, it’s not in Batsford Chess Openings, It’s not mentioned in the, “E” volume of ECO. Fritz says it’s almost equal after an hour. Every great Kings Indian Grandmaster has played this position! Many of them as white and black. I am honored to be the 1st person to write about this novelty and I thank Nick for sharing it with me!! 1.¤g1–f3 ¤g8-f6 2.d2-d4 g7-g6 3.g2-g3 ¥f8-g7 4.¥f1–g2 0–0 5.0–0 d7-d6 6.c2-c4 ¤b8-c6 7.¤b1–c3 a7-a6 8.d4-d5 ¤c6-a5 9.¤f3-d2

My Fritz shows Panno, Bronstein, Spasski, Petrosian, Keen, Nunn, Unzicker, Vladimirov, Ivanov, Shirov, and Schmidt coming to this position on both sides of the board. Nick is the 1st one to play the next move! 9…b7-b5!?N This move must have surprise value! This is a true sacrifice of a pawn. Can White switch gears after thinking they had acheived a quite game? Nick knew the lines, the risks, and the benefits! I think it’s disruptive enough to be 100% playable. The variation Nick played is original and can stand on its own without comparison. In my mind this will always be the Fallon variation. [9…c7-c5™ 10.d5xc6 ¤a5xc6 11.¤d2-b3=; 9…¤f6-g4 10.£d1–a4 c7-c5 11.¤d2-b3 b7-b6 12.¤b3xa5 b6xa5 13.£a4-c2 ¥g7-e5=; 9…¤f6-d7 10.£d1–c2 ¤d7-e5 11.b2-b3 c7-c6=; 9…¤f6-h5 10.£d1–c2 c7-c5 11.d5xc6 ¤a5xc6 12.¤d2-e4 ¥c8-e6 13.c4-c5 ¦a8-c8÷] 10.c4xb5 a6xb5 11.¤c3xb5 ¥c8-a6!? [11…¥c8-b7?! I don’t trust this!? It dictates white’s moves. 12.e2-e4 £d8-d7 13.a2-a4 ¥b7-a6 14.¦f1–e1! ¥a6xb5 15.a4xb5 £d7xb5 16.¦e1–e3! ¤f6-d7 17.¥g2-f1 £b5-c5 18.¦e3-a3 ¤d7-b6²] 12.¤b5-c3! £d8-d7© White has to find the one and only continuation that leads to an advantage. The only problem is that will open the, “dreaded” bishops diagonal! That’s going to get a little complicated! By the time its done, Kings Indian, Benko, Benoni, and double fianchetto theory will have to be used and intermingled to create a new type of middlegame mind field. I have to believe there is compensation in introducing these types of complications into what is normally a mild position. White misses the mark! 13.¦f1–e1?! [13.b2-b4! I didn’t really see the value of this move until the analysis started. I wonder how good you’d have to be to play this at the board in a game!? 13…¤f6-g4 (‹13…¤a5-c4?! 14.£d1–b3 ¤c4-b6 15.b4-b5 ¥a6-b7 16.¥c1–b2±) 14.£d1–c2 £d7-f5 15.¤d2-e4 ¤a5-c4 16.a2-a4 ¤c4-b6™ 17.¥c1–d2 ¥g7xc3 18.£c2xc3 ¤b6xd5 19.£c3-b3 ¦a8-b8 20.b4-b5 ¥a6-b7± Black’s position lacks range and mobility.] 13…¦f8-b8 14.h2-h3 ¦b8-b7 [14…c7-c6=] 15.£d1–c2 ¦a8-b8 [15…c7-c6 16.£c2-a4 ¤f6xd5 17.¥g2xd5 ¥g7xc3 18.b2xc3 ¥a6-b5 19.¥d5xf7+ ¢g8xf7 20.£a4-h4 ¢f7-g8 21.a2-a4 ¥b5-a6 22.¤d2-e4÷] 16.e2-e4 ¤f6-e8! 17.f2-f4 ¥g7-d4+ 18.¢g1–h2

c7-c6?? [18…c7-c5™© It was thematic time and black missed it. 19.¤d2-f3 ¦b7-b4 20.b2-b3 ¤e8-c7 21.¥c1–d2 ¥d4-f2÷] 19.d5xc6?? Ouch! And white returns the favor. 18…c6 did kind of look inevitable but once you get away from the theory, every thematic move isn’t thematic anymore!! That’s why I don’t play the sicilian!! [19.£c2-a4! ¥d4xc3 20.b2xc3 £d7-c7 21.¤d2-b3 ¤a5xb3 22.a2xb3 ¥a6-b5 23.£a4-a5 c6xd5 24.e4xd5 £c7-c8 25.¥c1–e3 ¤e8-g7 26.¦e1–c1+-] 19…¤a5xc6 20.¤d2-b3 ¤c6-b4 21.£c2-d2 ¥d4xc3 22.b2xc3 ¤b4-d3 23.¦e1–e3 £d7-a4 24.¤b3-d4?! [24.¦a1–b1! ¤d3xc1 25.¦b1xc1 ¥a6-c4 26.e4-e5 ¦b7-a7 27.¤b3-d4 d6-d5 28.¦c1–c2=] 24…¤d3xc1 25.£d2xc1 ¦b7-b2 26.e4-e5

¦b2xa2? [26…¦b2-f2!–+ The winning move! We both saw this during analysis. Nick saw it before he came to my table. He was getting in time trouble and missed it. 27.¦e3-f3 (27.¢h2-g1 ¦b8-b2 28.¥g2-f3 ¦f2-f1+ 29.£c1xf1 ¥a6xf1 30.¦a1xf1 d6xe5 31.¦e3xe5 e7-e6 32.¦f1–a1 ¤e8-d6–+) 27…¦f2xa2 28.¦a1xa2 £a4xa2 29.g3-g4–+] 27.¦a1xa2 £a4xa2 28.£c1–g1 ¦b8-b1?! [28…¦b8-b2! 29.¢h2-h1 ¢g8-f8 30.¥g2-f3 ¥a6-c4 31.¦e3-e1 ¥c4-d5 32.£g1–e3 d6xe5 33.f4xe5 ¤e8-c7 34.¢h1–g1 ¦b2-g2+ 35.¢g1–f1 ¥d5xf3 36.£e3xf3 ¦g2-d2µ] 29.¦e3-e1 ¦b1–b2 30.¢h2-h1 ¥a6-c4 [¹30…d6xe5]

31.¤d4-f3?? Nick said white still had a good amount of time left. This move should have cost the game! [31.¤d4-c6 ¥c4-e6 32.¥g2-f3 (32.¤c6xe7+?? ¢g8-f8 33.e5xd6 ¤e8xd6 34.¤e7-c6 ¦b2xg2 35.£g1xg2 ¥e6-d5) 32…¢g8-f8 33.e5xd6 ¤e8xd6 34.£g1–d4 f7-f6 35.¤c6-b4 £a2-c4÷] 31…¥c4-d5 32.¤f3-h4 ¥d5xg2+ 33.¤h4xg2

¤e8-g7?? [33…d6xe5! 34.¦e1xe5 e7-e6 35.¦e5-e1 ¤e8-f6 36.¦e1–d1 £a2-c4 37.¦d1–d8+ ¢g8-g7–+] 34.e5xd6 e7xd6 35.¦e1–a1 £a2-e6 36.g3-g4 h7-h5 37.£g1–e3 £e6-d5 38.¦a1–g1 ¦b2-d2?? Black’s last chance to get the full point. [38…¢g8-h7!µ 39.¢h1–h2 ¤g7-e6 40.g4xh5 £d5xh5 41.¦g1–f1 £h5-a5 42.f4-f5 g6xf5 43.£e3-d3 £a5-e5+ 44.¢h2-g1 ¤e6-g7 45.£d3-d4µ] 39.c3-c4 £d5-d3 40.£e3xd3 ¦d2xd3 41.¢h1–h2 h5xg4 42.h3xg4 ¦d3-d4 43.¦g1–c1 ¤g7-e6 44.f4-f5 ¤e6-f4 45.¤g2xf4 ¦d4xf4 46.¢h2-g3 ¦f4-d4 47.c4-c5 d6xc5 48.¦c1xc5 ¢g8-g7 49.f5xg6 ¢g7xg6 50.¢g3-h4 ¦d4-f4 Congratulations Nick for finding this interesting pawn sac and to Isaac for surving such well prepared analysis. This game was from the K-8 section of the tournament!!!!!!! ½–½