Better endgame?

imo white is better here.  I'm guessing the best continuation for black is 38...Ke6, then 39. Rxc5 Rxd6 40. Rxb5 and white has two strong pawns on the and b files.

I don't know. Black could play 38. ..c4 and then the position looks pretty even (Rxb5 followed by Rxd6). Black's pawns are closer together, and his king is in a better position, but white has more maneuverability with his pieces and a better positioned rook, with a passed pawn.

Rybka evaluates 38. ..c4 as 0.00 - a perfect draw.

 Thanks for doing that; I was expecting c4 from my opponent, although I still felt that I was in good position for the endgame due to my rook having advance into his territory and possibly checking from the backside. However, if a computer says it even, it's probably correct over my analysis. I wish the game had continued and not ended the way it did.

BTW, did you have any thoughts on how the game could have been played better? A better alternate lines to the ones played during the game; mistakes or missed opportunities for either side. Or maybe your computer program has some (better) suggestions? Thanks again for taking the time.

Just because Rybka says it's a draw doesn't mean you would draw. That assumes perfect play from both sides, so a mistake by either player could change the outcome drastically.

On the game, I don't know Bird's opening (at all) but the typical opening line was broken by 3. ..Nf6; other than that you played correctly. Rybka maintains a near draw until 8. c4, where white's advantage is at about +0.25. (basically nothing) By 9. ..Bc5 the position is a draw again, about +0.01. The game hovers near this range until 12. ..Nxe4, which raises white to +0.50 (still hardly a noticable advantage). At this point, your play has been quite good. It's not perfect, but your opponent hasn't been able to gain any noticable advantage.

However, 16. Bd2 is an inaccuracy. Better is g3, according to Rybka, although I wouldn't find this move. Bd2 does seem bad, however, since you are chasing around his bishop and he has his queen covering the center of the board. The advantage switches to black at this point, at -0.40. (from 0.00, not game ending in any way) The difference equalizes over the next three moves, but 20. Rf3 is an inaccuracy as well, with black once again at -0.40. Better was 20. Nf3 (for +0.20) The difference increases to about -0.55, until 23. ..b5, which is an inaccuracy by black, and the advantage is white's at +0.35 (This is a 0.8 switch, which is bad, but containable, for black)

26. Rd1 is a minor inaccuracy, better is Rc1. The game is drawn at 0.00 until 31. ..e4, an inaccuarcy by black which gives +0.40 for white. This continues until 38. Rd5, at which point the game is 0.00 drawn.

All in all, this was a very even game. The inaccuracies in moves were within a one-half point advantage for either side, and neither player gained a noticable advantage during the game. Whatever innaccuracies were present were based upon continuations of perfect play by Rybka, which is basically impossible for humans.

 I totally agree, that is why I felt better about the endgame even though the game was really close. I was playing a human opponent and with what seems like a very slight advantage in position (as I felt I had) could cause one to blunder. I never play for a draw so I would either push the game to the edge and win by pressuring my opponent as much as I could or lose spectacularly by making a mistake myself. However, the computer knows a drawish game when it sees one; most likely there will be plenty of chances for either side to steer the game into a drawn endgame and that is why the computer scored it as a drawish position.

I totally disagree with mosqutip: a theoretical draw is a draw. what do you mean by only with perfect play? when we analyze games we assume that none of the players will blunder or make horrendous errors, otherwise there is no point in analyzing different lines. I mean you just said that white is better but that statement holds no validity if in the very next moves white casually drops all his/her pawns and the rook and now the entire line of your analysis fails! The best move for black is c4 not Ke6 and the subsequent moves should be the best possible moves for both sides in order to predict a sensible result.