This is an email game against a friend.  I happend to know that she was not as strong a player as me, and this caused me to be maybe a little too aggressive.  I'd like some oppinions on the knight sacrifice in this game.  I had the white pieces.  Any other analysis is welcome also. 

I'd say the knight sacrifice made it more interesting for you.  A better player probably could have defended herself from the ensuing attack. (I'm too lazy to actually try and analyze the postion.) A better player, though, would not have opened with a5. And would not have played h6 on move 10.

Good job!

dawgface420 wrote:

I'd say the knight sacrifice made it more interesting for you.  A better player probably could have defended herself from the ensuing attack. (I'm too lazy to actually try and analyze the postion.) A better player, though, would not have opened with a5. And would not have played h6 on move 10.

Good job!

This was also my thinking.  After the first few moves, I decided that my opponent was too weak to handle the pressure I could apply with the sacrifice.  I'm still new to really forming effective strategy in chess... and as such a little tentative about my more aggressive decisions such as this one. 

I guess you just have to judge for yourself when it is and isn't right to make a move like that depending on the opponent.

Thanks for the feedback.

I am agreeing with above.  After 10.... Ng4, I think you have to trade queens or lose the bishop, both which win for black.

Interesting game though.

Unfortunately blacks opening really just grinds my gears, it makes me groan, but oh well not my game, anyway it was good, a quick and easy checkmate, black chased your queen and then tried to get you to trade queens to even out the game and lower her risk of losing, but at the same time made a big mistake. A little more assessment for each move required by both sides.

Escapest_Pawn wrote:

I am agreeing with above.  After 10.... Ng4, I think you have to trade queens or lose the bishop, both which win for black.

Interesting game though.

Yes.  Looking back over the game 10...Ng4 is a great move to reduce material and amp up black's material lead.  I don't think I would have played the Knight sacrifice against a stronger player.  I have to admit now after looking over it, it seems to be a foolish move.  Thanks for the feedback.

It paid off with checkmate so I'd say it was a good sac.

I wont someone to challenge me as a prof not a any player

is there anyone?

I like sacrificing one of my Knights if it will give me a superior position. In this instance, I would say it was an excellent decision.

Although, some very good players will see the sacrifice and probably decline. It depends on how you like to play. 

I think that after 6. Ne5 White as virtually lost. After 6. ... fxe5 7. Qh5+ g6 8. Qxe5 Nf6 9. Bg5 I think that the move played by Black, 9. ... Rf8 is really a bad one. I would have castled instead, with all White chances for mate vanishing and an easy way for Black to develop his queenside pieces (for example Nc6 with tempo on the Queen, etc.). I don't think that White's central Pawns really justify the sacrifice. Black should be able to trade all pieces and win the endgame with an extra Knight.

But, I don't agree with the famous "Play the board, not the man" (woman, in this case): if you know that 6. Ne5 is a bad move but you think that your opponent won't be able to handle it, then do it!

I believe that the sacrifice was very unsound and you only gained advantage after the blunder 13. Nxe4? If your opponent had instead played 13. Rg8, I don't see how you can make any headway. 

I also agree that if she had castled instead or played Ng4, your life would have been extremely difficult.

yes, very well said.  I'll think i'll save this move for
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 f6 3.Nxe5

from now on.

Here's a game where it works!  Me playing the same person. 

This is actually from a line called "Damiano's defense".  It is fairly well known and I used to win a lot of games with the Nxe5 move at lower levels.  You are correct in that accepting the sacrifice is very bad for black.  Black's best, in this line is 3...Qe7!  If white tries to continue with the Qh5+ and Nxg6 plan, trying for the discovery slash hxg6 win-the-exchange trick, black wins as in the following line:

Because of this, white should continue 4. Nc4 when 4...Qxe4+ is met by Ne3 and white has the advantage because of the black kingside weaknesses and the misplaced black Queen.  But this is all white can really hope for with Nxe5 as a move.  I think a better objective move is 3. Nc3 or even 3. d4 when the kingside weaknesses and tempo advantage ensure white a comfortable advantage.

The reality, though, is that if black is going to play 2...f6, at a sub-1600 rating, they probably didn't know about Nxe5.  It's probably a pretty good practical choice most of the time.

Cool.  thanks for the insight, bunker.

Knight sac, because your worth it.

Aye, like folk say, Jenny has a bad opening. At the point when your squeezing on the pressure, would 9...d6 help her? It looks for a queen exchance. Obviously with the big lass aff the board things would be different.

Although, this queen exchance is not forced, neither was capturing you knight. I think real sound sacrifices is when the person sort of has to take the piece, this was nae the case here. But, like you said, she was a beginner so why not mix it up and create an exciting game, which it was.

good thinking.

but it doesnt work that much.

what if they didnt do those moves?

what would happen?
and im kind of a queen sacraficer, and queen pinner for checkmate with a bishop.

and queen sacrafices for a fork on a queen.

black is bad. if he had swapped queens by doing 8...Qf6 9.Qxf6 9... Nxf6 would have won the game for black.

a bishop pair is always worst than a knight pair, unless you havent swapped queens yet.

then bishops are better.