2018 New Jersey Open

Three wins, two draws, no losses (I had to skip the 6th round). A surprisingly successful event! I ended up winning the top senior prize in the under 1800 group. But unless you're a strong master, there's always a letdown when you subject the games to scrutiny. Remember the way those pebbles from the sea shore, the ones that gleamed like precious gems when you picked them up on the beach, turn out just to be a bunch of dull little stones when you get them home? My games also lose a lot of their luster when I examine them more closely. This second round game isn't too bad. My young opponent shrugged off this defeat and racked up a draw and three straight wins to tie for second in his class with 4.5 points.

[Event "NJ Open"] [Site "?"] [Date "2018.09.02"] [Round "2"] [White "Gottlieb"] [Black "Feng, Andrew"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C01"] [Annotator "Gottlieb,Paul"] [PlyCount "75"] 1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. exd5 exd5 4. Nf3 Bd6 5. c4 c6 6. Bd3 Nf6 7. O-O O-O 8. h3 h6 9. Nc3 Be6 10. cxd5 ({The computer likes} 10. c5 Bc7 11. Ne5 (11. b4)) 10... Nxd5 11. a3 Nf4 12. Bxf4 (12. Bc2 {Seems just about as good}) 12... Bxf4 13. Bc2 Nd7 14. d5 cxd5 15. Nxd5 Bd6 (15... Bxd5 $142 16. Qxd5 $11) 16. Qd3 g6 17. Nc3 $2 (17. Rad1 $142) 17... Nb6 (17... Ne5 $1 {And Black has at least equality }) 18. Rfe1 $6 {The reason the habit of playing for cheap shots is so hard to break, is because those cheap shots often work!} (18. Rfd1 $14) 18... Rc8 $2 19. Rxe6 $1 Bh2+ (19... fxe6 20. Qxg6+ Kh8 21. Qh7#) 20. Kxh2 Qxd3 21. Bxd3 fxe6 22. Bxg6 {White has two pieces and a pawn for a rook, and Black has two isolated pawns to worry about. The win is a "matter of technique"} Nd5 23. Nxd5 exd5 24. Rd1 Rcd8 25. Kg1 Rd7 26. Bb1 Kg7 27. Ba2 Rfd8 (27... d4 28. Rxd4 Rxd4 29. Nxd4 {Is also hopeless}) 28. Ne5 Rd6 29. f4 a5 30. Rd2 Kf6 31. Kf2 Ke6 32. Kf3 Rg8 33. g4 b5 34. h4 b4 35. axb4 axb4 36. Bb3 Rh8 37. Rd4 Rb8 38. Nd3 1-0