nygren.ca

Bc3 delays mate but not long.

well...

yes, I know, but I rarely let john get the mate, so I figured he might like the satisfaction.

You can delay the inevitable, that's about it. From what I see, only one move delays checkmate in two.

hmmm, not much i can do here.

Ahhhh, right. I had forgotten about that. What about Qe7? The main reason I wanted to use the rook was to bring it into play, but using the queen works, no?

yesterday I tried to post twice but my message didn't show up... anyway...
Devin, Re8 might be tempting, but ... notice 11. Bf7+

I actually expected 10 ... Re8. Pins the knight and guarantees it's loss. You can try defending it with 11 Qe2, but 11 ... Bg4 forces the queen to flee, allowing for a quick piece pickup without sacrificing a pawn.

But... I must be missing something here. I don't see why you didn't playing 14 Qxa5. I'm quite sure that there is a reason, but I don't see it.

ahh, now I see why.

You shouldn't. You removed the pawn that was in the way of his ability to attack your king, while at the same time putting your knight in a bad spot AND giving him a free move. Best case scenario now is you losing a knight. I think mate is not far off. You were in a much better position ignoring that pawn.

also I will take that as a personal victory if that is the case:)

maybe. I know my primary worry all game has been whether or not I would be able to develop my queen's side.

I think he gave you back the pawn for tempo and positioning.

c'est la vie

don't know what you have planned here.....perhaps a sacrifice?

ahh, I was hoping bishop to g4