The Only Chess Rule

The last game of Chess played by this writer was prior to the lockdown caused by the Covid pandemic. The game was contested at the last ever meeting of the Ironman Chess Club. My opponent was a middle aged gentleman with whom I was unfamiliar. Nothing was known about the strength of my opponent but after the game I learned he was a class B player. He opened with 1 e4 to which I responded 1…c6. After he played 2 d4 we made eye contact. Knowing nothing about the player sitting across from me I contemplated playing the usual move, 2…d5, but rejected the notion after thinking about the ‘good ol’ daze’ at the Stein Club (https://xpertchesslessons.wordpress.com/2021/06/06/shanglei-lu-seeks-bishops-opening-truth/) and moved my Queen to c7. He looked up, saying, “Hummm, haven’t seen that one before.” After winning the game the gentleman asked for the name of the opening and was surprised to hear I had no idea. “Maybe it’s listed under the Caro-Kann,” he said. “Could be,” was all I said. “Why did you play it?” he inquired. “Just a spur of the moment decision,” came the reply. “You just shot out some random move?” he asked. “That’s about the size of it,” I said. Then came the question every Chess player has been asked, “What’s your rating?” At this point NM Sulaiman Smith spoke up, saying, “Mike was the Atlanta Champion ‘back in the day’.

Chess player Sulaiman Smith came from Atlanta to pay tribute. https://www.thechessdrum.net/blog/2015/10/27/im-emory-tate-laid-to-rest-legacy-lives-on/

The next morning I went to 365Chess.com to check the moves, seeing this, Top Games by Average ELO: “Venkatesh, M vs Gareyev, T”. The “T” would be for “Timur”. The first post written about Timur was, GM Timur Gareyev Lost In Space (https://xpertchesslessons.wordpress.com/2018/01/12/gm-timur-gareyev-lost-in-space/). There have been other posts concerning GM Gareyev (https://xpertchesslessons.wordpress.com/2021/08/11/gm-timur-gareyev-plays-4th-move-theoretical-novelty/).

This memory was brought on by one of the most recent posts, Qe2 Versus The Caro-Kann (https://xpertchesslessons.wordpress.com/2023/08/14/qe2-versus-the-caro-kann/). It was also caused by an accident. Sometimes late in the evening I will listen to music when winding down and occasionally will input opening moves into the analysis program at lichess.org and just simply watch the program do its thing in order to learn how the program will play the opening. The intention was to input the moves, 1 e4 c6 2 Nc3 d5, but I did not complete the move properly and the pawn wound up on d6. As the saying goes, in for a penny, in for a pound. 3 d4 was inputted, followed by 3…Qc7, and this is what followed:

1 e4 c6 2 Nc3 d6 3 d4 Qc7 4 Nf3 e6

Position after 4…e6

4…e6 could be a Theoretical Novelty. What followed was one of the most amazing Chess games you will ever see…

1. e4 c6 2. Nc3 d6 3. d4 (After this move the Stockfish analysis program at lichess.org shows 3…e5 as best) 3…Qc7 (The most played move according to 365chess.com has been 4 f4, with (57) games contained in the database. There follows, 4 Nf3 (30); 4 Be3 (20); 4 a4 (9); 4 h3 (7); 4 Bc4 (5); 4 g3 (3); 4 Bd3 (2); and then there are 5 moves that have been played only once: 4 Bg5; 4 Bf4; 4 d5; 4 a3; and the move Stockfish considers best, 4 Nge2 (see game below). Let me add that the Stockfish program will, if you allow it to show two moves, show that 4 h3 is the secondary choice of Stockfish. It should be readily apparent to most that the SF program does not want black to be able to exchange the queen Bishop for the white King Knight.

Walter Wright (1982) vs John Paukan (1656)
Event: Internet Section 15-B
Site: Dos Hermanas Date: 03/15/2003
Round: 8 Score: 0-1
ECO: B00 King’s pawn opening
1.e4 d6 2.d4 c6 3.Nc3 Qc7 4.Nge2 Nf6 5.g3 Bg4 6.Bg2 Nbd7 7.O-O e5 8.h3 Bh5 9.Be3 Be7 10.f4 Bxe2 11.Nxe2 exf4 12.Nxf4 O-O 13.c4 a6 14.Rc1 b5 15.cxb5 axb5 16.Nd5 Qd8 17.Nxe7+ Qxe7 18.Bg5 Rxa2 19.Qb3 Ra6 20.Qb4 Ra4 21.Qb3 Rxd4 22.Rxc6 Qe5 23.Bf4 Qe7 24.Qxb5 Nxe4 25.Re1 d5 26.Kh2 Qb4 27.Qxb4 Rxb4 28.Bxe4 dxe4 29.Bd6 Rxb2+ 30.Kg1 Re8 31.Rxe4 Ra8 32.Re1 h6 33.Rc7 Nf6 34.Be5 Rb6 35.Bd4 Rd6 36.Bc5 Rd2 37.Be3 Rda2 38.Bd4 Nd5 39.Rb7 Rc8 40.Rb5 Nc7 41.Rc5 Rd8 42.Be3 Ne6 43.Rc4 Rd3 44.Bf2 Ng5 45.Kg2 Rdd2 46.Rf1 f5 47.h4 Ne4 48.Rc8+ Kh7 0-1
https://www.365chess.com/game.php?back=1&gid=39426&m=8

Make of it what you will, but it appears a class player somehow stumbled upon the best move while playing Chess online…

In the Stockfish analysis game after 1. e4 c6 2. Nc3 d6 3. d4 Qc7 (SF will play 3…e5) the move 4 Nf3 was forced by this writer. I did this because most players who are unfamiliar with an opening will probably move the Knight to f3. SF shows 4 Nge2 as best. Surely black would follow with 4…Bg4, right? WRONG, Kemo sabe! Much to my surprise the program produced 4…e6. The proverbial feather knocked me over… The move is not one of the four, 4…e5; Bg4; Nd7; or g6; found at 365chess.com.

After 4…e6 there followed: 5. e5 Nd7 6. Bf4 dxe5 7. Nxe5 Nxe5 8. Bxe5 Qb6 9. a3 Ne7 10. Bd3 Ng6 11. Bxg6 hxg6 12. Qd3, bringing us to this position:

Position after 12 Qd3

Would you take the proffered pawn? Would you advocate a novice take the pawn? If you were attempting to teach Chess to a neophyte would you advocate he take the poisoned pawn? Certainly not, because all who teach Chess stress the fundamentals, one of which is to not waste time taking pawns in the opening before completing development. Every Chess player has heard, “He who takes the Queen’s Knight pawn sleeps in the Gutter.”

The strongest Chess program currently in use, Stockfish, takes the pawn. I kid you not! There follows: 12…Qxb2 13. O-O Qb6 14. Rfe1 Qd8 15. Ne4 g5 16. c4 f5 17. Nd2 Kf7 18. h3 Kg8 19. Nf3

Position after 19 Nf3

Take a good, long look at the position. Frankly, it looks like the kind of position from one of my games from ‘back in the day’ when I was fond of playing the Poisoned Pawn variation of the Najdorf Sicilian. IM Boris Kogan would look at the position from one of my games and say, “Cannot play Chess like this!” After nineteen moves White has completed his development while Black has “developed” nothing and his King looks out of place on g8, does it not? If you taught Chess and one of your students presented this game how would you respond? What is your evaluation of the position?

Many Chess players have said something like, “I spent the first decade of my Chess career learning the rules and the next decade learning when to break the rules.”

From everything I have learned from the program(s) there are no rules. Each and every position is sui generis. The only “rule” is the one that fits the position.

Here is the full game:

1. e4 c6 2. Nc3 d6 3. d4 Qc7 4. Nf3 e6 5. e5 Nd7 6. Bf4 dxe5 7. Nxe5 Nxe5 8. Bxe5 Qb6 9. a3 Ne7 10. Bd3 Ng6 11. Bxg6 hxg6 12. Qd3 Qxb2 13. O-O Qb6 14. Rfe1 Qd8 15. Ne4 g5 16. c4 f5 17. Nd2 Kf7 18. h3 Kg8 19. Nf3 Rh5 20. Qb3 b6 21. Rad1 Bb7 22. Qc2 Qe8 23. c5 Rd8 24. Nh2 Ba6 25. Qb3 Rd7 26. a4 bxc5 27. dxc5 Bxc5 28. Bxg7 Rb7 29. Qc2 Bxf2+ 30. Qxf2 Rxg7 31. Qxf5 exf5 32. Rxe8+ Kf7 33. Re5 Bc8 34. Nf3 Rh8 35. Ra5 Kg6 36. Rd6+ Kh7 37. Nd4 Rf8 38. Rxc6 g4 39. hxg4 Bb7 40. Rd6 Rxg4 41. Rd7+ Kg6 42. Rxa7 Be4 43. Rg7+ Kf6 44. Rxg4 fxg4 45. Ra6+ Ke5 46. Ne2 Rc8 47. Ra5+ Kf6 48. Ng3 Rc1+ 49. Kh2 Bc6 50. Nh5+ Kg6 51. Kg3 Rc4 52. Re5 Bxa4

This is the oldest game I have found, and it the reason I have named the variation the Lutikov Defense.

Vladimir A Savon (2545) vs Anatoly S Lutikov (2500)
Event: Dubna
Site: Dubna Date: ??/??/1976
Round: ? Score: 1-0
ECO: B00 King’s pawn opening
1.e4 d6 2.d4 c6 3.Nc3 Qc7 4.a4 e5 5.Nf3 Bg4 6.Be2 Nf6 7.O-O Be7 8.Be3 O-O 9.Nd2 Bxe2 10.Qxe2 Na6 11.a5 Nb4 12.dxe5 dxe5 13.Nc4 Nd7 14.Na4 Na6 15.c3 Nac5 16.Nxc5 Bxc5 17.Rad1 Bxe3 18.Qxe3 b5 19.axb6 Nxb6 20.Nd6 Rfd8 21.Nf5 f6 22.Qc5 Kf7 23.g3 g6 24.Ne3 Rac8 25.b4 Qe7 26.Qa5 Rc7 27.Rxd8 Qxd8 28.c4 Rd7 29.c5 Nc8 30.Qa2+ Kg7 31.Qe6 Qc7 32.Ng4 Rf7 33.Rd1 h5 34.Nxf6 Rxf6 35.Rd7+ Kh6 36.Qe8 Qb8 37.h4 Nb6 38.Qxb8 Nxd7 39.Qh8# 1-0
https://www.365chess.com/game.php?gid=2453828

Marani Rajendran Venkatesh (2450) vs Timur Gareyev (2525)
Event: Wch U20
Site: Kochin Date: 11/23/2004
Round: 7 Score: ½-½
ECO: B12 Caro-Kann defence
1.e4 c6 2.d4 Qc7 3.Nc3 d6 4.Nf3 e5 5.a4 Nf6 6.Bg5 Be7 7.dxe5 dxe5 8.Bc4 O-O 9.Qe2 Nh5 10.g3 Bg4 11.Bxe7 Qxe7 12.h3 Bxf3 13.Qxf3 Nf6 14.g4 Qb4 15.Bb3 Na6 16.g5 Nd7 17.O-O-O Nac5 18.Ba2 Nb6 19.Rhe1 Nc4 20.Bxc4 Qxc4 21.Qf5 Rae8 22.h4 a5 23.h5 Qe6 24.Re2 g6 25.Qf3 Qe7 26.Qg3 Rd8 27.Rh1 Rfe8 28.f3 Ne6 29.hxg6 fxg6 30.Rg2 Qc5 31.Rgh2 Qe3+ 32.Kb1 Nxg5 33.Rxh7 Qf4 34.Qxf4 exf4 35.Rxb7 Nxf3 36.Rhh7 Ne5 37.Rbg7+ Kf8 38.Ra7 Kg8 39.Rag7+ Kf8 40.Ra7 Kg8 ½-½
https://www.365chess.com/game.php?gid=3063741

Stockfish prefers 5 h3 over the move played in the game.

Maybe the move 2…Qc7 should be called the Gareyev defense. From what I have been reading about the cad he will probably need a good defense in the future.