2300s are too good 😭

Hey all! I’m currently on holiday in South Africa (which is bl**dy awesome), but I’ve managed to play the occasional chess game while here. I got paired against a 2300, and they clearly saw an opportunity to farm me a bit as they sent rematch offers. We played 3 games: the first, I got a small advantage from the opening, but it was a variation of the Latvian Gambit that I hadn’t studied and so I misplayed and then hung a piece (whoops); the second was a Panov where I was slowly outplayed into a losing endgame; and the third was an absolutely insane game where it was so complicated that I played at just 35% accuracy, and them at barely 50%.

Some of the moments in that game are truly baffling (at one point, the engine suggests that I sacrifice both my rooks to achieve a repetition, I challenge anyone to find that without the engine!)

I figured I’d post that game, mostly for the comedy factor, but I’m posting it without engine feedback: you can be as confused as we were trying to navigate the insanity. In the end, I was low on time and it all went (more) to sh*t. 

First one wasn’t showing up on the app for me, so trying again:

I can see the third game, but not the second nor first game for some reason

2300 is a very strong field in Rapaid, that’s true. At 2500, not many people are playing Rapid anymore unfortunately. GMs can beat every 2400 in Rapid with a near-perfect accuracy (Often 95%) with like 7 minutes or something left on the clock. 😭

But only a few titled players play it. I wonder why there are 3100s in Blitz online that are "only" CMs or FMs in classical otb…

I only posted the interesting one - I wonder, can you find the ridiculous draw the engine finds? If not I can give clues lol

I don’t play bullet - the only recent bullet games are after I accidentally played a rated game drunk with my friend Xav. I do play bullet on lichess where I’m ~2000.

Blitz I think is reasonably within the bounds of normalcy, with the caveat that I’ve recently tanked about 100 elo from a peak of 1850ish

22. Ne8+ Kf7
23. Bg6+ Kxg6
24. Rxa8
Idk if this is a draw, but this provides a lot of compensation for the 2-point material deficit (2-bishops for the rook, and an extra pawn) because of white's superior activity compared to black's pieces

yea I cant see the draw and i’m about the same rating as you in rapid

I cant even see how you could get the other rook to the kingside because moving your king wastes a tempo and in that crazy game a loss of a tempo basically loses another piece no matter when you move the king lol

Not the absurd one the computer finds, let me show you:

Edit: hopefully fixed board

i cant see it

Neither can I.

the game doesn't show up; resend that one Mr. Curry

Resent ^^

Even though this was a sharper game, I actually found your second game more interesting as there is a lot to take away from it:

oh wow! Double rook sac just for a perpetual check. Engine really didn't believe in your chances

Literally!!

Thank you for the analysis - I’ll give it a proper read when not in South Africa, though the line I played in the opening is by design - castles instead of recapturing. In many lines we are very quickly able to recapture and pressure the remaining IQP etc, I’ll chat to you about it sometime it’s an interesting line.

I would never find that draw. Crazy!

Magnus would probably find it after about 5 seconds of pondering ...

That’s why they are 2000