22nd Bangkok Chess Club Open 2025
Annotated by Paul Raynes
1.e4 e5 2.Nc3 Nc6 3.f4 The Vienna Game 3…exf4 4.d4 The Steinitz Gambit, often played by first World Champion Wilhelm Steinitz. Steinitz trusted this move enough to play it in a World Championship game against Zukertort in 1886, and won in 19 moves! It went out of fashion around 1900, but was revived by a young Paul Keres in 1933. Very risky, and an excellent choice for a Tiger to catch out a Heffalump ( kid’s word for an Elephant ), as described in Simon Webb’s Chess For Tigers (2002). In this case young Indonesian IM Arif Abdul Hafiz is the Tiger, and top Indian GM Surya Ganguly – six-time Champion of India no less, from 2003-2008 – is the Heffalump he is hoping to lure into a swamp. 4…Qh4+! The best move, forcing the White King out into the open. The resulting positions are mind- blowingly complicated and very counter-intuitive. 5.Ke2 The only move, 5. g3 loses to fxg3 6. Nf3 g2+ 7. Nxh4 gxh1=Q and there are no tricks. 5…d5 A good and natural move which equalises. But “bloody Iron Monsters” as GM Michael Stean once memorably described them, chess computers, now engines in the cloud, say the best move is 5. …b6! which has been known since the 1870 and was first played by Von Minckwitz against Steinitz.
[ 5…b6! 5. …b6! was played by Heffalump Mickey Adams, when he faced the Tiger IM Andy Martin in London 1992. In that game the trap worked perfectly, as Adams – normally regarded as a consummate positional genius rather than a hacker ! – was lured into a murky swamp, Martin winning the game in 37 moves. . 6.Nb5 Ba6 7.a4 0-0-0 8.Nf3 Qg4! 9.h3 Qg3 10.Qd2 Nf6 11.Qxf4 Nh5 12.Qxf7 Nf6 13.e5 Bxb5+ 14.axb5 Nxd4+ 15.Nxd4 Qxe5+ 16.Kd3 Bc5+= ]
6.Nf3?! Even more daring ! 6. exd5 Bg4+ 7. Nf3 Nce7 8. Bxf4= leads to less swampy areas.
[ 6.exd5! Bg4+ 7.Nf3 Nce7! 8.Bxf4= 0-0-0 9.g3 Qh5 10.Bg2 Nxd5 11.Nxd5 Qxd5 12.Kf2 Nf6 13.Re1= ]
6…Bg4!? Surprisingly, this natural pin is inaccurate. 6… Qe7 ! is correct
[ 6…Qe7! 7.Bxf4 dxe4 8.Nd5 exf3+ 9.Kf2 Qe4 10.Nxc7+ Kd8 11.Qd2 fxg2 12.Bxg2 Qf5 13.Kg1 Rb8 14.Nd5 Be6 15.Rf1 Qg6 16.Ne3 Ke8 17.d5 Rd8 ]
7.exd5 0-0-0 Risky. Heffalumps normally steer clear of swamps, but not Ganguly!
[ 7…Nce7! ]
8.dxc6± With accurate play, White is slightly better ! But Ganguly must have known this , because he was still playing fast. 8…Nf6?! All played a tempo by Ganguly
[ 8…Bc5! is the most common move – and has been played xxx times in practice – after which White is hanging on for dear life to his extra material. 9.Qe1!± ]
9.Qd2? White took a long time over this dubious move, he is presumably out of his prep.
[ 9.Qd3! was best Re8+ 10.Kd2 Qf2+ 11.Be2 Re3 12.Qc4 Qxg2 13.Rg1 Rxe2+ 14.Qxe2 Qxf3 15.cxb7+ Kb8 16.Qxf3 Bxf3 17.Kd3 – just impossible for a Human Being to navigate ! ]
9…Bc5! 10.Kd1! Well played, it is thematic of this variation to go walkies with the King until a safe haven is found. 10…Rxd4?! Ganguly goes wrong and gives White a chance!
[ 10…Bxd4-+ 11.Bd3 Rhe8 with a massive attack ]
11.Bd3+= White’s position is surprisingly resilient now, but he had left himself with only 20 mins for the remaining 29 moves, whereas Black had about 50 minutes
11…Qh5 12.Rf1 Rhd8 13.Ne2! Well played again.
13…Ra4? Such is the complexity of the position that even the world-class Ganguly has lost the thread.
[ 13…Bb4! 14.Nxf4! Qa5! 15.c3 Rxf4! 16.Qxf4 Rxd3+ 17.Bd2 Bd6 was best ! ]
14.Bf5+? A clever but faulty combination.
[ 14.Nxf4+- wins, eg Qe5 15.h3 Bxf3+ 16.Rxf3 and White has hung on, clinging to his material advantage ]
14…Qxf5! 15.cxb7+ Kxb7 16.Qxd8 Bd6! Now White’s Queen is cut off from the defence of her King. Even now though, it is still unclear after 16. Bd2. 17.b4?
[ 17.Bd2! Re4 18.Re1 Qh5 ( 18…Re8 19.Ned4! Rxd8 20.Nxf5 Bxf5= ) 19.Qh8! only a computer could see this move ]
17…Qd5+!-+ A deadly check.
[ 17…Rxb4? 18.Bd2 ]
18.Bd2 Ne4! 19.Ke1 White is pinned every which way and helpless against the threat of the removal of the guard, the knight on f3.
19…Bxf3 20.Rxf3 Qxd2+ 21.Kf1 Rxa2 22.Re1 Bxb4 0-1