The 6 Elements of Chess pt10

The 6 Elements of Chess Part 10

by NM Steve Colding

Exploiting a Force Advantage.

     Exploiting a force advantage has to do with trading in the right and proper way. What is the right and proper way you ask reader? Well fortunately we have a textbook example in our featured game. Meek-Morphy, First National Congress, NY 1857.

	Meek vs Morphy National Chess Congress First U.S. Championship     Second Match      Game Three       New York   October 17, 1857
Alexander Beauford Meek		Paul Morphy

 The game starts off with the moves 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 exd4 4.c3 (The Scotch Gambit) dxc3 5.Nxc3 leaving us with the diagrammed position:

     Now let us assess the position. White has sacrificed a Pawn and for that he has space. He also has out one more piece than Black. White is likely to gain another move since Black must move a Pawn to bring another piece out. So I think that the position is dynamically equal but hey that's only my opinion.

     Black continued with 5...Bc5. white played 6.Bc4 threatening to win th Pawn back by playing 7.Bxf7+ and 8.Qd5. Black protected the Bishop by 6...d6. White can bring out another piece and have another tempo for his Pawn. I like either 7.Qb3 or Bg5. The move White actually plays is 7.h3?.

     What piece does h3 develop? The answer is none! Therefore this move must be suspect and do I dare call it a mistake? Well thanks to Morphy's great play, I do. Now let's look at the position:

     White's pluses were before that move more space and slightly ahead in tempo. Now let's look at it from Black's point of view. Black's last move was suspect because he moved a Pawn rather than a piece. This gives Black a chance to bring out a piece, but which piece? Well he is ahead in force so he should seek exchanges. Where is White's strongest piece. Without a dount it is the Bishop at c4, so Black's move choice becomes very easy.