theopenfile (1280) vs. pfren (2207)

 Okay, Here is a game i played against IM pfren, Im currently trying to learn my endgame as im i am terrible, so what do i do, i trade off my pieces with an international master of course lol.

 The game is short and i believe i played terrible, blocking most of my pieces, and trading my good pieces, hopefully my endgame will improve.

Any advice on the game or endgame principles would be great!

I think you played fine, theopenfile! Black was merely lucky

I'm not sure that this really reached the endgame.

I think that there are ways out of the mate, but you would have been down a lot of material.  I hope IM pfren will comment.

well i dont really play by rating most of my games are unrated, and is there really such thing as a too high opponent ?

Your biggest error was ignorance of the open file. You didn't fight for the d file even after your king wing pawns were blocked.

Your opening choice wasn't very lucky either. The Berlin Wall is so deeply explored and analysed that an experienced opponent will know that your plan on the e file can't work. If it could, it would already be well known. So you weren't fighting pfren only but also the collective wisdom of opening theory.

But it was no bad game at all. While some of your moves may not have been the best, none of them were completely unreasonable either. You started blundering only after your position became very difficult, and this happens to everyone.

Hey!

I'm impressed by your theoretical knowledge. The opening is called The Berlin Wall in case you didn't know. For a long time it was considered to give White a slight edge if White plays like you. In 2000 Wch Match Kramnik played this line with Black vs Kasparov and Kasparov couldn't win the endgame. Since then at least among Grandmasters this opening is a popular opening with Black aiming for a draw, though Aronian stated "he only plays this opening with Black if he wants to win". xD

After move 9.Nc3 there are a lot of different setups for Black and White and less concrete variations. In my opinion it is very hard to understand the whole position, but I can share my own thoughts:

-Black got the bishop pair, but a doubled pawn

-White has a pawn majority on the kingside. In general he would like to create a passed pawn there. E.g. if Black and White traded both rooks and all minor pieces, the majority of pawn endings would be lost for Black.

-But with 3 or at least 2 minor pieces and 2 rooks there is another fact Black has to worry about: He didn't castle and doesn't have a safe King. In some lines (if he trades enough minor pieces/gets a blockade) this fact could even favor Black -as in your game- when he comes faster to the center of the board. In other lines he has to worry about an early attack, e.g. initiated with the pawn sacrifice e5-e6.

-I can add, compared to exchange variations White already has an advanced pawn on e5 that disturbes White's setup and becomes easily weak in the endgame.

-Black's strong piece is the light squared bishop. He has to control the light squares and normally Black does not want to trade it.

-White often has the plan of jumping with a knight to g5 if Black does not prevent this with h6. A dream square for one of his knights is e4.

-The dream scenario for White would be to get the kingside pawn majority rolling with g4/f5, but in most cases he can't allow Black to get the open h-file after hxg4.

An important question is where to put the rooks. In your game perhaps doubling on the d-file is the better idea. Instead of 14.Rfe1 maybe 14.Rad1/15.Rd2/16.Rfd1 is better.

In the position after 23. ...Rgd8 you are already worse: The position is still closed. You have the bad bishop vs the strong knight. And Black managed to double rooks on the d-file while your rooks are slightly unorganized. After letting both rooks to the first rank it's hopeless. The final position of course is completely lost, but you can prevent mate with f5 check/Rook takes g4/Ke3. :)

I might be that the Berlin type of endgame is not the best to start with when studying endgames. Anyways - no blunders vs an IM - good job! ;)

I watched a blitz game where a 2100 lost to a 1600. 

What are you talking about?

I have even seen 1800's lose to 1600's.

The argument is void.

My first impression is well done for lasting until move 35 against pfren - I told you he was good   

I think you played sensible moves on the whole but maybe 32.Re1 might have been better ?  It wrecks black's plan's to control that first rank & I can't see any way of mating after that.

That bishop move wasn't good but perhaps there was a way out ? - the one chance of escaping mate that I can see is 37.f5+ which provides an escape (by taking the knight) but you end up losing material. 

 .

Silentiarus summed it up not contesting the d-file was unthinkable.

You played well in a tough position but once you commited to the e-file after Nd2 and black played ..Bb7 you should have played (e6) to get counterplay on that file!