MSC157 vs. Pulpofeira match

We are playing a 15/10 match Botvinnik style: 24 games, if the match is a draw I retain the title, if he's ahead he must throw a game, if I lose I'm entitled to a rematch, my drink must be always bigger... 

This is our first game. Feel free to mock at will. Constructive comments would also be appreciated.

Second game coming tomorrow! (GMT +2:00).

I always thought something like this would be fun to do.

If someone wants to do a 24 game match at 15|10 time controls let me know lol.

It seems here the players, just like world champions, don't want to risk too much at the start, and game one ends in a draw.

Like the great champs of history, like the truly memorable boxers of yesteryear - testing each other's mettle with a well thought-out draw on the first round, feeling each other out...

This will grow into something remarkable. Cheers for the initiative!

Good one, Guys! Nice idea of a match!

When all is said and done, it was at least strange not to see the simple 37. Nd8+ or at least 39. Nd8+ on the board, winning the f7 pawn, when black quickly collapses (obviously as the game went, 38...Ke7 is still drawn). 

There's 23 more games to do that, of course...

Yeah... good one 37.Nd8+, looks simple indeed and thereafter White can even extract the knight to e5 or g5, whereas Black's knight seems stuck at being inactive. But maybe they had time pressure and then it's easy to miss these moves. Especially if you fail to see if the knight is safe after the capture... ah well, 23 games!

STANDINGS

should have just done 1 d4 draw agreed.

...Kc7 rather than ...Kc6 is a different animal altogether

Omg! Stupid me!

Thanks for the valuable comments, anyway!

The first game is like watching grass grow with dramatic music in the background.

The blitz kid! Sorry but I'm too old and dumb for shocks. 15/10 is like bullet for me.

For all commentators (thanks for coming, some strong players there! ), 17.Bxb5!?

<MSC157> if you could win the rook and both pawns for the two minors, that would be very promising.

Actually, at the tail end of the variation 17. Bxb5 ab(??) 18. Nxb5 Q (moves) 19. Nxc7 Qxc7, there's a very nasty STING in the form of b5, winning the knight!

That said, one should consider counter-blows such as ...Nxb4/...Nxd4, which would make a later ...Rxc1 "in-between move" possible.

Calculating and evaluating this is quite a task - but for black that would probably be the way to go.

I would guess that black wouldn't come out inferior. 

Rather, make it just 17...Nxb4.

17...Nxd4 would allow 18. Qxd4, where after 18...ab 19. Nxb5, ...Rc1 wouldn't be effective as it wouldn't attack the white queen.  

After 17. Bxb5 Nxb4! 18. ab (perhaps not the strongest, but the only way to try to prove the original idea) ab 19. Nxb5 Rxc1, the b4 pawn will probably fall pretty quickly, after either 20. Nxd6 Rxd1 21. Rxd1 Rd8 and 22...Rb8, or more simply 20. Qxc1 Qxb4.

I believe that black is doing fine in both cases. 

Thanks, solskytz, those are very interesting variations!

:-) !!!!

And fun to look at

And now look - I've just added another cute detail in my first answer to the 17. Bxb5 idea...