November 18, 2001

1. e4 d6
2. d4 Nf6

   Let's run the Pirc Defense against "Mr. 1983", shall we?

3. Bd3 g6
4. f4 Bg7

   Fuck, the Austrian Attack. This is known to be Black's greatest fear when playing the Pirc Defense. The main reason I chose this game to annotate is so that I'll learn how to handle this attack.

5. Nf3 Bg4

   Here is my first mistake. In a lot of Pirc games, it's good to trade off your light square bishop because the bishop proves difficult to utilize. However, against the crushing Austrian Attack, I think it is better to hang onto the bisop for defensive purposes.

6. Be3 O-O
7. Nd2 c6
8. h3 Bxf3
9. Qxf3 Qc7

   Great, with the king side pawn storm beginning, I kindly pave the way for White's queen to jump right into the action. I had been thinking he would play Nxc6, which I felt was bad enough - circulating his other knight around to the king side. Getting his queen out turns out to be pretty nice for White. Note to self: don't move your light square bishop to g5 when under the Austrian Attack!

10. g4 Nfd7

    The pawns are marching relentlessly down. I've read that d7 is a nice place for the knight to retreat in the Pirc. But perhaps playing Nbd7 would have been better. At this point, I can use the help of all my forces. White's king looks pretty naked, but there is no way I can get to him.

11. h4 e5

    I fire off my e-pawn, trying to get some center counterplay.

12. dxe5 dxe5
13. f5 b5

    Oh. Right. Hadn't thought about that one - him just pushing the pawn like that. I was hoping for a big pawn exchange in the center, but that was apparently not to be. My move might seem a little out there, but it actually prevents something very important: a White attack along the g8-a2 diagonal. In general with the Pirc, it is nice to have a pawn on the b5 square. In this situation, I know I am going to be losing some king side pawns, and I don't want the king to be hit with an attack on that flank. It's... too dangerous!

14. h5 Qd6
15. hxg6 fxg6

    Now note the clear line of fire to my king along the g8-a2 diagonal. My b-pawn prevents White from getting his light square bishop in action. I didn't play hxg6 because the reply of Qh3 scares me.

16. Qh3 Nf6

    Of course it's still a good move. It's pretty much over at this point. At the very least, an attack this strong is going to win White some material.

17. O-O-O Qe7??

    Sigh... and Black is forced to lose his bishop.

18. g5 Nh5
19. f6 Qf7?

    I should play Bxf6 and trade the bishop for two pawns. Instead I think how cool it would be if I can manage to play Qxa2. Actually, it is not very cool - White has the easy Nb8 to prevent any threat in that area.

20. fxg7 Kxg7
21. Kb8 Rh8

    Okay, its definitely over here.

22. Be2 Nf4
23. Bxf4 Qxf4
24. Qh6+ Kg8
25. Rhf8 Qxf1

    No choice. White either wins my queen or checkmates with Qf8++.

26. Rxf1 Nd7
27. Qh3 ...

    I stop keeping score at this point, but you get the idea. The initial bad strategy with the light square bishop, followed by the tactical blunder of 17. ... Qe7 did me in. A very instructive game. It is nice to play with really good players, but I do miss the closer games which occur in the lower section.