Don't Give Up When You Blunder Your Queen!

Okay, so we've all been in this position at one point or another - you start off playing a relatively normal opponent in a relatively normal game. The opening goes smoothly, and you start off into the middlegame pretty confidently. Then your opponent makes a strange move. After a puzzled look, you move on. A second later - poof! Your queen is gone. 

So, at this point, you probably and an inch away from resigning. But wait - there may be hope yet. 

This is a lesson out to anyone around my rating - even if the game seems like it's over, until it's really over, it's not over. Okay, so if you're in the endgame and have a pawn vs half your opponent's pieces, it might be reasonable to resign. Or if he's above your 2000 yeah, it might be unwise to keep playing. But if not? Why not keep playing if you suspect they're a weak player? Not only will you learn something worthwhile from the rest of the game, but there is still that tiny chance you could win. So, unless you're crushed for time to get somewhere important, you've got nothing to lose. 

Below is a game I played in which this actually happened to me. Generally, the opportunity to win will only be there for people of my rating and lower, but who knows? This game could have been an easy win for my opponent, but he got risky and started sacking pieces all over the place. Anyway, I'll leave you to decide for yourself, but here it is.

As you can probably guess, I was pretty stunned after winning this game. Beating someone 200 points above me down a queen?? It was pretty great, but most of all I learned three valuable lessons:

1. Don't give up after you blunder your queen! - I pretty much gave you my reasoning for this above, but unless there's no chance to win, there's a chance. 

2. Don't get cocky! - Honestly, don't think at the beginning of the game that your opponent is worse than you, because they really could be severely underrated 1800s. And, a tip for lower players that has helped me immensely - don't be scared of your opponent based on their rating! If you are going to lose, that's OK 'cause they were higher rated in the first place, but if you think you can't win then you really can't. There's no point in guaranteeing the game is a loss before it even starts. I know these two different views might go completely against each other, but keep them in mind. Anyway, back to the main point - don't get cocky! If you play sloppily because you believe your opponent is weak, you're just going to lose. It's really not worth thinking you're superior if you're really not!

3. Don't sac pieces for no reason! - Before you sacrifice a piece, ask yourself, "Why am I doing this sacrifice?" Along with that, be sure to calculate or look at the positioning of your pieces to see if the sacrifice really is worthwhile. I've used these tips numerous times, especially before sacking on a3,b4, h3, or g4 (when my opponent has castled.)

You may have also noticed that I missed an opportunity to win after (Re2) because (Nh4) instead would have allowed for a mate in 3. Along with that, I had quite a few mistakes and inaccuracies. Still, I learned a lot from this game, and even if I had lost the game I still would have learned some of these valuable lessons! So in conclusion -- don't lose hope when you blunder. 

Thank you for reading my article, and have an excellent day!

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