[Event "2014 Club Champ. playoff"] [Site "Rod's office"] [Date "2014.11.02"] [Round "6"] [White "Rob Bailey"] [Black "Rod Jacobs"] [Result "0-1"] [WhiteElo "1638"] [BlackElo "1578"] [ECO "D32"] [Opening "QGD Tarrasch: 5.Nf3"] 1.d4 d5 {This was the final game of the 4 way playoff for the 2014 Championship. If I could win this game, I could be sure of winning the championship. So the game was hugely important to me. I had prepared the Tarrrasch playoffs generally. It provides the chance of being quite aggressive without a huge risk. I'd never played it before, and it worked well for me. (RJ)} 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 c5 4.cxd5 exd5 5.Nf3 Nf6 6.g3 Nc6 7.Bg2 Be7 8.O-O O-O 9.dxc5 d4 {The Tarrasch gambit. (RJ)} 10.Nb5 Bxc5 11.Qd3 a6 12.Na3 Be6 13.Nc2 Qd7 14.Rd1 Rad8 15.Bg5 Bf5 16.Qc4 Ne4! {A critical decision, given the risk and the importance of the game. I felt the potential to embarrass the White queen would outweigh the loss of the exchange. Also, at this point in the championship, my confidence was very high. Now, analysing the position some 3 years later I was very pleased to see that Stockfish 7 recommends this move. But it did involve some chess blindness in my part - i.e. overlooking that in a key subsequent variation the White bishop on d8 covered the a5 square. (RJ)} 17.Bxd8 b5 18.Qb3 Rxd8 {Whoops - can't play Na5 as I intended. But it still turns out OK.(RJ)} 19.Ncxd4 {Both my programs call it dead even here. (RJ)} Bxd4 20.e3 Nc5 21.Nxd4 Nxb3 {It's still even. (RJ)} 22.axb3? {Losing his way in the complications. Correct is Bxc6 and it's still even. (RJ)} Nxd4 23.Rxd4 Qc7 24.Bd5 {Best. (RJ} Be6 {As is this. (RJ)} 25.e4 Bxd5 26.exd5 g6 27.Rad1 Rd6 28.b4 Kg7 29.Kg2 Qc2 30.R1d2 Qf5 31.f4 h5 32.h3 Qd7 33.Kf3 Qxh3 {#R} 0-1