It is sad but true that you can ruin a chess game with just one move. In the following game, that applies to both players. The most vigilance must be practiced after you have a won game. Conversely, never give up the fight – every tournament contains examples of won games that were not won.

Every chess player hopes for the opportunity to make a brilliant sacrifice and then crush a superior player. In my mind, there's no better feeling than to win a tournament in the last round in exactly that fashion. For a brief, fleeting moment, I had just such an achievement within my grasp. Alas, I let it slip away. Interestingly, at the final moment, my opponent did as well.

Kevin Burnett (2412) vs. Randy Bauer (2235)
Shoquoquon Open, Burlington, Iowa, 3-10-91
English Opening

1.c4 e5 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.Nf3 Nc6 4.e3 Bb4

Of course a Sicilian defender like myself wouldn't consider an open Sicilian minus a tempo with 4...d5 (although the line is definitely very playable).

5.Qc2 0-0 6.Ne2?!

I'd never seen this move before, objectively it's not very good, but Kevin wanted to get out of book early. While the knight might be effective on g3, the maneuver is time-consuming. 6.a3 or 6.Nd5 are playable alternatives.

6...Re8 7.a3 Bf8 8.Ng3

8.b4 appears more aggressive, but white's development is slow. 8...d5 opens the game at a time when black is better developed.

8...a5 9.b3 d6 10.Bb2 h6

In these types of positions, black wants to play ...e5-e4, so he takes away g5 from the knight. If white prevents this (with, for example, 11.d3), then the bishop can be developed to e6.

11.Rc1?

TOO SLOW

White moves the rook because he thinks that he's preventing 11...e4, because 12.Bxf6 Qxf6 13.Nxe4 wins a pawn. White could not play this combination before because after ...Qxf6 the rook would be hanging on a1. Now, however, white's slow development allows black a strong sacrifice. Better for white was 11.Bd3!?, with an interesting game.

11...e4! 12.Bxf6?

Now white should try 12.Nd4 (12.Ng1 is miserable), but black is likely better after 12...Ne5.

12...Qxf6 13.Nxe4 Rxe4! 14.Qxe4 Bf5 15.Qd5

Black has sacrificed the exchange and a pawn, but all of his pieces can come to active posts, while white's pieces are defensive or undeveloped. Now 15.Qf4 g5 gains a valuable tempo for bringing the bishop into play via g7.

15...Qb2 16.Rc3

No better is to return the exchange with 16.Qxf5 Qxc1+ 17.Ke2 a4! when white loses his queenside, gets mated, or watches black's a-pawn motor to a1 (18.b4? Nxb4! 19.axb4 a3). Likewise, 16.Rd1 Bc2 or 16.Kd1 Qxb3+ 17.Ke1 Qxa3 18.Kd1 Qb3+ and the passed a-pawn will cost white a piece.

16...Qb1+ 17.Ke2 Be4!

AN EASY MOVE TO MISS

The move that Kevin said he missed. The materialistic 17...Bc2? 18.Rxc2 Qxc2 19.Qd3 leaves white with all the winning chances.

18.Qb5

After a long think, but 18.Qh5 g6 is obviously bad, and 18.Rc1 Bxf3+ 19.Qxf3 Qxc1 wins.

18...Re8

Obvious, but there were other choices. 18...g6 is possible, intending ...Bg7. An even more radical idea was 18...Nb4!? since 19.axb4 axb4 20.Qxb4 Ra1 wins, but I didn't see a clear follow-up against 19.Ne1.

19.Rg1

Obviously not 19.Qxb7?? Bxf3+ 20.gxf3 (20.Kxf3 Qe4+) Nd4+ or 19.d3?? Qc2+. White is completely tied up, and black should now win, but I don't know what white should play.

Interestingly, in reviewing this game with my silicon friends, it appears that 19.h4! is the best defense, allowing the white king to escape via h2 in many lines. The calculating machines rate the position as dead even after 19.h4.

19...Bxf3+ 20.Kxf3

20.gxf3? Nd4+ wins the queen.

20...Qe4+(?)

Originally, I thought this was the losing move, but our tactically adept webmaster, IM Jeremy Silman (I just hate those guys) pointed out that (after 20…Qe4+ 21.Kg3) 21…Qg6+ (instead of my mistaken 21…Re5?) 22.Kf3 Re5, freeing the black queen, still wins.

To add insult to injury, he also pointed out that the move I've been wanting to play for some time, 20…Nd4+!!, does the trick here. After 21.exd4 Qe4+ 22.Kg3 g5! Black wins.

WHITE MUST RESIGN

This, by the way, points out the necessity of 19.h4.

21.Kg3

Obviously not 21.Ke2? Nd4+

21...Re5? 22.Bd3!

I DIDN'T SEE IT!

The in-between move that I missed in my haste to finish white off. Suddenly the black queen is under fire, and the exchange of queens would leave white with a won endgame. My face got very red, and I had a sinking feeling in my stomach.

I was able to pull myself together, however. I was not willing to throw in the towel just yet. Black does, after all, have a lot of pieces pointed at the white king, which is constrained by his own pawns.

22...Nd4(!)

It ultimately doesn't work, but at least it sets problems. Often it is difficult for a player who has been under fire the entire game to change their mindset and close out a win.

23.Bxe4(?)

This seems logical. At first I thought that if white tries for more with 23.exd4 Qxd4! 24.Qxe5 dxe5! white's king is still insecure and his pieces misplaced, giving black the better chances. However, that spoilsport Silman rightly points out that 24.Qd7! gives white a winning advantage. Now, however, black has a problem-like drawing method.

23...Ne2+! 24.Kf3 Nxg1+

Not 24...Nxc3? 25.bxc3! Rxb5 26.cxb5 with a clear edge for white in the endgame.

25.Kg3 Ne2+

A VERY PRETTY DRAW

26.Kf3 Ng1+, Draw Agreed.

Curiously, white cannot escape the perpetual knight checks, as a king move to h4 allows ...Be7+, and a move to g4 allows ...h5+. The ending combination has the appearance of a study.

I think this game is a typical example of chess as a fight. Both sides had winning advantages, both players didn't throw in the towel. There were some fantastic concepts – and some horrible blunders as well. The fact this was contested by a couple of masters should give players of all level hope. Everybody makes mistakes, and everybody can overcome them if they keep playing till the bitter end.