ODT060620

=**Croad wins Otago Queen's Birthday Open**=


 * Problem:** Black to play and mate in 3.

The annual Queen's Birthday tournament hosted by the Otago Chess Club attracted a field of 21 this year. Players came from Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch, Ashburton, Queenstown and Invercargill to compete with the locals. The previous winner, Nic Croad of Wellington, looked to have a tougher assigment this year, seeded only second of five 2000+ rated players at the head of the field.

In the event Croad scored an emphatic victory, winning all six games to take first by a full point ahead of fellow Wellingtonian Mark van der Hoorn. Bruce Gloistein of Christchurch had a strong tournament to finish on 4/6 to share third overall with your correspondent and take the 1st grade prize, ahead of Chris Benson, 2nd on 3½ and Amy Cater-Milano 3rd on 3.

Today's game from the 5th round was the calm win that guaranteed at least equal first for Croad. He is playing with White against Dunedin's Duncan Watts. media type="custom" key="27072042" Lasker's Defence to the Queen's Gambit Declined. Black plays for simplifying exchanges to reduce White's attacking chances. Though this has been played many times, it allows White to adopt the easy plan of a queenside minority pawn attack, which is all the more powerful for the piece exchanges that have already taken place. An alternative was 11 ... dxc4 12 Bxc4 Nd7, with the idea of challenging in the centre by 13 ...b6 and 14 ...c5. White's knight should be challenged with 14 ... Nd7. After the following exchange White's knight easily outperforms the Black bishop. Black's e-pawn is indirectly defended, so White prepares the classic minority attack pawn thrust b4-b5 to weaken the Black queenside pawns. Missing an opportunity to play for kingside counterchances via 20 ... Rd5! holding up b5 and with the idea of attacking g2 with 21 ... Rg5. White takes a sensible precaution against back-row mates before proceeding. More determined was keeping the White pieces out by 23 ... Qe7. Now White is able to infiltrate and tie the Black pieces down to the defence of his last queenside pawn. The last hope to hang on was 29 ... Re6. Instead of losing the a-pawn with slow but sure death in the endgame, Black suddenly cannot prevent mate.
 * 1. Nf3 d5**
 * 2. d4 e6**
 * 3. c4 Nf6**
 * 4. Nc3 Be7**
 * 5. Bg5 O-O**
 * 6. e3 h6**
 * 7. Bh4 Ne4**
 * 8. Bxe7 Qxe7**
 * 9. Rc1 Nxc3**
 * 10. Rxc3 c6**
 * 11. Bd3 Nd7**
 * 12. cxd5 exd5**
 * 13. O-O Nf6**
 * 14. Ne5 Ne4?!**
 * 15. Bxe4! dxe4**
 * 16. Qc2 Re8**
 * 17. Rb1**
 * 17. --- f6**
 * 18. Nc4 Bg4**
 * 19. b4 Rad8**
 * 20. Na5 Be6**
 * 21. a4 Bd5**
 * 22. b5 cxb5**
 * 23. Rxb5 Rd7**
 * 24. h3**
 * 24. --- Qd8**
 * 25. Qb2 b6?!**
 * 26. Nc6 Bxc6**
 * 27. Rxc6 Rc7**
 * 28. Rxc7 Qxc7**
 * 29. a5! bxa5?!**
 * 30. Rb7 Qc4**
 * 31. Rxa7 a4?**
 * 32. Qb7**


 * 1-0**


 * Solution:** 1 ... Qxa3+! 2 Kxa3 axb4+ 3 Kb2 Ra2#.