Sac Like A Pro: GM Masterclass
Hello chess friends, I'm back today with another blog. It's on a really fun subject; how to sacrifice. In this blog I'm going to focus on sacrificing to kill that king, but there are other types, which I may take a look at. I'm going to use Laszlo Polgar's great book Chess: 5334 Problems, Combinations, and Games. I can't recommend this book highly enough. Suffice it to say, it's a neat collection of 5,334 unique chess puzzles, studies, endgames, and games. I'll take 1 or 2 games on each square that you normally see sacrifices on: f3/f6, g3/g6, h3/h6, f2/f7, g2/g7, and h2/h7. I'll conclude with a game from a friend of mine and Top Blogger, Isaac Snow, aka @Lightning, or NMLightning on Twitch. Since there's so much good stuff in this blog, let's get started.
Sacs on f3/f6
This is maybe the least common of the 6 squares to see sacs on. First of all, if there's a knight on d2/d7, it will protect this square. The queen protects it from her starting square, and of course there's a knight on it, at least in many openings. You might even have a bishop on e2/e7 protecting it.
These are interesting. The g3/g6 pawn is generally not as good of a hook pawn, because it's often protected by both the f- and h-pawns. However, you might see a double sac on that square, allowing the queen to come in. If the g-pawn falls, there's often a perpetual check, according to this pattern.
This leads to a perpetual check, for obvious reasons. Yet if you had a few more pieces on the board, that could easily lead to a win.
This game was played by Marshall and Pillsbury. I've blogged about Marshall before, and there's a hidden reference to his immortal in this blog (Try to find it). I love the American grandmaster's games so much I could blog about him several times. In this game, Marshall throws everything, including the kitchen sink, at the g6 square. He of course wins, because I wouldn't put an unsuccessful sacrifice in the blog (or at least not as an example).
What more can I say? "Chess speaks for itself," as the controversial American Hans Niemann has said recently. In my opinion, it wasn't the clearest and wisest statement to make against the accusations levelled at him, but that's beyond the point.
Forward we go, turning to a game by World Champion Gaprindashvilli.
Of course, the knight must be taken, and the queen will slide over for a checkmate. Summing up on g3/g6: these are another common spot for empty square sacrifices, especially once the f-pawn has been moved. This also allows for spectacular sacs with several pieces being sacrificed on the same square. Let's continue to a personal favorite; h3/h6.
Sacs on h3/h6
Why is this my favorite? It probably has something to do with the fact that Logical Chess: Move by Move was the first chess book I read, and Chernev harps on the point that it's generally unwise to move that h3/h6 pawn on a whim. It can create a hole on g6, provide a target, and weaken the king. The h-pawn is a great hook-pawn. It's often possible to sacrifice a bishop for two pawns and an attack with a queen and bishop battery aiming at h6. The first game I'll show is an elegant Spassky miniature.
This game was played in the World Students Olympiad, in the height of the Soviet era. Spassky easily overpowers his weaker opponent, sending him crashing to the floor with some stunning blows.
That's kind of amazing. I mean, what can you say to that sort of chess? Spassky smashes his defenses to crush the king. To top it off, he plays the trivial, but beautiful nonetheless Qh6, threatening mate and forcing the win.
This game is a more recent one. It comes from the Dortmund tournament, between Kamsky and Lautier, two superb masters.
This game does a superb job of showing the battery idea. This sacrifice looks like something I'd play, by which I mean unsound. The surprising thing is that it actually works. Let's move on to f2/f7.
Sacs on f2/f7
Ah, f2/f7. The most deadly square on the board. f7 is known for being the home of about a million different opening traps. However, this can work against a castled king, as the first game shows. It was played between two rivals. Herbert Seidman and Santasiere (Yes, that guy XD). This was in the US Championship, and is a pretty neat win.
