Chess: Exchange and martyr
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Your support makes all the difference.THE BRITISH champion, Julian Hodgson, has been trying to learn a proper opening system. After years of mucking around very successfully with 1. d4 and 2. Bg5, he has started playing proper Queen's Gambits, but given half a chance he will always succumb to the lure of a messy position, writes William Hartston.
In the following game, from this year's Wijk aan Zee tournament, Hodgson met a curious line of the Slav Defence in which Black tries to hang on to the gambit pawn for a little longer than usual. On move six, White can make sure of regaining the pawn with 6. axb5 cxb5 7. b3, but Hodgson turned it into a real gambit with the immediate 6. b3?] As a result, Black gained a protected, passed, extra pawn on c3, which White used to shelter his king. In compensation, White had control of more space in the centre. For a long time, Piket defended sensibly and the position was more or less level until Black started exchanging pieces with 38 . . . Nf5.
Usually it is a good idea to exchange pieces when you are a pawn ahead, but on this occasion every exchange emphasised White's advantages. By the time pairs of knights, bishops and rooks had been exchanged, White's h-pawn was ready to spring through on the outside. Piket's 47 . . . Rh8 was a nice trick (48. Qxh8?? Qe2] wins for Black) but against 48. d7 he had no reply.
White: Hodgson
Black: Piket
1 d4 d5
2 c4 dxc4
3 Nf3 c6
4 e3 b5
5 a4 e6
6 b3 Bb4+
7 Bd2 Bxd2+
8 Nbxd2 c3
9 Ne4 b4
10 Ne5 Nf6
11 Qf3 a5
12 Bd3 Ra7
13 Nc5 0-0
14 0-0-0 Nd5
15 Qh3 g6
16 Qg3 Qc7
17 e4 Nb6
18 f4 N8d7
19 Ng4 Kg7
20 e5 Nxc5
21 dxc5 Nd5
22 h4 h5
23 Nf2 Rh8
24 Ne4 Ba6
25 Bc2 Be2
26 Rd4 Bg4
27 Nd6 Ne7
28 Be4 Raa8
29 Qf2 Qa7
30 Rd3 Rad8
31 Re1 Rd7
32 Qd4 Rhd8
33 Qc4 Kf8
34 Rd4 Kg7
35 Re3 Nd5
36 Re1 Ne7
37 Bc2 Kf8
38 Bd1 Nf5
39 Nxf5 gxf5
40 Rd6 Ke7
41 Bxg4 hxg4
42 Red1 Rxd6
43 exd6+ Kd7
44 Qd4 Kc8
45 h5 Qa6
46 Qe5 Kb7
47 h6 Rh8
48 d7 1-0
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