Author: Dann Corbit
Date: 00:09:55 01/05/02
Go up one level in this thread
On January 05, 2002 at 02:18:52, Scott Gasch wrote:
>Hi all,
>
>I just watched an interesting game on ICC between my engine (monsoon) and
>Steve's (Chesterx). In the game monsoon is ahead by a few pawns but ends up
>losing because its king is out of position and chester is able to queen a pawn
>with the help of its knight. Here's a position:
>
>[D]2n3k1/p4p2/2N5/P5pp/1P6/5K2/8/8 b - - 0 34
>
>Monsoon loves black in this position even after a 13 ply search -- my pawn
>majority code is boosting the score and it thinks between the knight and the
>pawn it will be able to contain the white pawns on the queenside. I'm only a
>chess amateur but it looked to me like black was in pretty good shape too.
>
>Well just a few moves later the picture has changed!
>
>[D]2n5/N4pk1/8/PP4p1/7p/5K2/8/8 b - - 0 36
>
>By now monsoon realizes it's in trouble. My question is this: how deep does
>your engine need to search to realize the danger in position 1? Is there any
>static eval rule that might help to understand these positions bettwe? Did
>monsoon blunder the endgame? If so, where?
>
>I think my aggressive pawn push extensions are hurting me in the endgame.
>
>Here's the full PGN:
>
>Event "ICC 5 2"]
>[Site "Internet Chess Club"]
>[Date "2002.01.04"]
>[Round "-"]
>[White "ChesterX"]
>[Black "monsoon"]
>[Result "1-0"]
>[ICCResult "Black checkmated"]
>[WhiteElo "2817"]
>[BlackElo "2784"]
>[Opening "English: symmetrical, Benoni formation"]
>[ECO "A31"]
>[NIC "EO.46"]
>[Time "23:36:26"]
>[TimeControl "300+2"]
>
>1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. Nf3 cxd4 4. Nxd4 e5 5. Nb5 d5 6. cxd5 Bc5 7. e3 O-O 8.
>N5c3 e4 9. Be2 Qe7 10. a3 Rd8 11. O-O Nbd7 12. Qc2 Nb6 13. Nd2 Bf5 14. g4
>Nxg4 15. Bxg4 Bxg4 16. b4 Bd6 17. Qxe4 Bxh2+ 18. Kxh2 Qc7+ 19. d6 Rxd6 20.
>Qxg4 Qxc3 21. Bb2 Qxb2 22. Nf3 Re8 23. Nh4 Rf6 24. Kg2 Rxf2+ 25. Rxf2 Qxa1
>26. Nf5 Qf6 27. Qf3 Qc6 28. Qxc6 bxc6 29. Nd4 Rxe3 30. Rf3 Rxf3 31. Kxf3 h5
>32. Nxc6 Nc8 33. a4 g5 34. a5 Kg7 35. b5 h4 36. Nxa7 Nd6 37. Kg2 g4 38. b6
>h3+ 39. Kh2 Nb7 40. Nc6 Nc5 41. Nb4 f6 42. a6 Nxa6 43. Nxa6 f5 44. b7 Kf7
>45. b8=Q Kg6 46. Qg8+ Kf6 47. Nc7 Ke5 48. Qd5+ Kf6 49. Qe6+ Kg7 50. Qxf5 Kh8
>51. Qxg4 Kh7 52. Kxh3 Kh8 53. Ne8 Kh7 54. Qg7# {Black checkmated} 1-0
Here is where the problem actually occurs:
[D]2n3k1/p4pp1/2N5/7p/PP6/5K2/8/8 b - - acd 16; acn 56347718; acs 99; ce 207; pv
Kf8 b5 Ke8 Kg3 g5 a5 Kd7 Nxa7 Nxa7 b6 Kc6 bxa7 Kb7 Kf2 f5 Ke3 Kxa7; c0 "Actully
moved the g pawn instead of the king. Oops number 1.";
[D]2n3k1/p4p2/2N5/6pp/PP6/5K2/8/8 w - g6 acd 16; acn 57780766; acs 100; ce -120;
pv b5 f5 a5 g4+ Kg3 Kf7 a6 Kf6 Nxa7 Nb6 Nc6 Kg5 a7 f4+ Kf2 f3 Ne5 Kf4; c0
"Choosing b5 was probably better, but a5 is just about as good...";
[D]2n3k1/p4p2/2N5/P5pp/1P6/5K2/8/8 b - - acd 16; acn 58373700; acs 100; ce 154;
pv a6 Nb8 g4+ Kg3 Ne7 Nxa6 Nc6 Nc5 Nxb4 a6 Nc6 Nd3 Na7 Nf4 f5 Nxh5 Kf7; c0 "move
to a6 despite the knight to b8... Instead, the chosen move was bad.";
[D]2n5/p4pk1/2N5/P5pp/1P6/5K2/8/8 w - - acd 16; acn 58815303; acs 99; ce 96; pv
b5 g4+ Kg2 a6 bxa6 Kf6 a7 Nxa7 Nxa7 Ke5 Kg3 Kd5 a6 f5 Nb5 Kc6 a7 Kb7; c0
"optimal move for white";
[D]2n5/p4pk1/2N5/PP4pp/8/5K2/8/8 b - - acd 15; acn 59039940; acs 100; ce -96; pv
g4+ Kg2 a6 bxa6 Kf6 a7 Nxa7 Nxa7 Ke5 Kg3 Kd5 a6 f5 Nb5 Kc6 a7 Kb7; c0 "g4+ is
the last hope.";
[D]2n5/p4pk1/2N5/PP4p1/7p/5K2/8/8 w - - acd 15; acn 57612892; acs 100; ce 300;
pv Nxa7 Nd6 a6 h3 Kg3 f5 Kxh3 g4+ Kg2 f4 b6 f3+ Kh1 Ne4 b7 Ng3+ Kg1 Ne2+ Kf2; c0
"death, mayhem, and destruction await.";
My own numbskull commentary for this position (which is where you first went
seriously wrong IMO):
[D]2n3k1/p4pp1/2N5/7p/PP6/5K2/8/8 b - -
You should be more than happy to give up a knight and the a pawn in exchange for
the two white pawns on a and b. If that happens, it is impossible for you to
lose and you still have good chances of winning. The three passed pawns on
f,g,h are not very far advanced and the white king is there to defend, so you
should get your king into the fray as soon as possible. I think black should
win this, but it is a slippery slope and you were not worried enough about the
two pawns on a and b.
I imagine that it is just my bad intuition going awry again.
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