Missed Chances Part II
In the first part of this post, I described a night at a local chess club where I missed some chances and only scored 0.5 / 3. It was demoralizing at first, but I think I took the right lessons from it, returned with confidence and won 8 out of 9 games over the next three tournaments I played.
My last night at this club for 2015 didn't see this winning streak continue, and again featured some missed opportunities. This time, my opposition was significantly stronger (As joked about at the club, I was 'Master Food' for the night). I had been hoping to give the masters there some indigestion, but it didn't help that I arrived rushed and 3 minutes late to my first game, against the strongest player present that night no less!
Not suprisingly, I got soundly outplayed and beaten, never having any real chances to win (although I thought I was figthing hard for a draw)
Perhaps this game threw my focus or confidence abit; I started the next game very well, but started to play a series of bad moves; I lost the thread and blew a promising Kingside attack. This could have been an excellent victory, or at least a draw, if I had reacted correctly.
To me, the pivotal moment was when Black played Bf5; this was a good defensive idea, trying to introduction tension into the position. I didn't react in the best way; on a night when my thinking was alittle more clear, I would have either kept the tension or played Nf2, which prepares (rather than hinders) my g4 push, which is the main idea in the position. Oh, what could have been!
I also had some missed chances in my last game, which featured an unsound attack by my opponent, and good but less than stellar defence by myself. Worst of all, on the move that I finally blundered the game away, I had a forced draw!
So, I went 0 / 3 this night. Fortunately, I only shed a few rating points (since my opposition was so highly rated).
What can I conclude from this performance? It is clear that my higher rated opponents play consistently better, more focused, more accurate chess than I do. However, they are beatable, and I am not far behind them. On a better night, with a little luck, I might score upwards of 2/3 from these positions.
I think it is important to remain confident in the face of these defeats, and I certainly will be inspired to be more consistent and bring home a point or two next time.
As for this blog, or my other Chess / Science blog, there will likely not be another time; this is my final post, as I will be again turning more attention to my professional and family responsibilities. You can still follow my chess activities on my youtube channel, where I may occassionaly post a video.
