Since I published 2 wins on here in the last 24 hours in this forum and since I promised to start posting some losses now, I figured I'd round out this ninja 'trilogy' with the game that cost me a shot at clear first. The following is my 6th round game against Jesse Turner (who I named the bullet dodger after his last round win). Jesse hails from Fresno, and his perfect score at the NAO took clear 1st as well as the only point from yours truly.  My ninjas at g2 and b2 didn't shake his disposition one bit!

         For whatever reason, I've always scored higher with the black pieces. It's not that I enjoy defending, but rather, I feel that players in the class sections I'm used to playing in often violate Steinitz' maxim: The player with the advantage not only has the right to attack, but the obligation to do so. I've found it easier to capitalize on this from the black pieces. Here, with white, I violate the rule myself. Jesse, a proponent of 'Tactical Vision' (an idea you read about in Dvoretsky's books), saw the shot Nxc5 instantly to his credit. After making a natural move (and blunder), I never regained my footing and promptly entered a lost endgame. Enjoy!