A Rollercoaster Game @ Singapore Chess Meetup

I'm drawing quite a number of 'bad' conclusions from this 57 move, 4-hour game (90+30, game both players have < 10 minutes on the clock).

General Description on the Course of the Game

1. Black (me) got into a completely lost position out of the opening.

2. The biggest turning point arise on 22.Nf6+ This checking move turned out to be a blunder allowing Black to turn the situation around.

3. Black played too conservatively despite having a better, winnable position (really too much like a turtle!)

4. In the end, an endgame position unwinnable for both sides arise (after move 36...Rcx5, the evaluation is equal). 

Personal Conclusions / Learning Points

1. Opening play really matters! What's important is to find yourself in a playable position you enjoy playing and understand well. I (Black) failed to do and slipped into a completely lost position within the opening phase of the game. 11...Ne7! is a huge resource and idea I want to drill into my head.

2. Luck does matter in chess ^o^ Can't thank Caissa enough for not losing the game.

3. My play when in a better position is still too timid. This is similar to 1 of the games I played in the QCD Adults Chess League in the earlier half of this year. After defending for some time since the  beginning of the game, the need to switch into an offensive move in the middle is something I don't do very well.

4. Opening play, endgame play was terrible on my part. Can't emphasise this enough.

5. On the bright side, it was not all bad -- notwithstanding the mistakes / blunders made in the bad opening position, at least I didn't fall into any direct / 1-2 move combinations or drop any pieces too easily. Also, I like my own fighting spirit to squeeze the endgame -- even if its an equal / drawn position, there is practical value to play on -- it forces me to understand the demands of the position and play the move (even if just to hold/draw the position).

Special Shout-out to Weng Chew
It was a great game -- you almost had me! With this game, my 100% head-to-head winning record has been broken. More importantly, I actually learned a couple of important ideas from the game, especially in the opening phase -- not just how Black could player better, but also how White could have pressed in such positions. I guess Slav exchange variation is not that harmless after all!

Also, I take back everything I said in the past about your training methods -- if anything, it is paying huge dividends for you -- I'm glad you found a method you enjoying using which works for you. I'm still working on mine -- but it would be a bit more systematic with a special focus on the opening phase of the game. As you can see, my opening play is really very bad -- I simply need to work on it more so that I don't get into bad / lost positions out of the first 10+ moves in every game. Endgame will be the next area I need to work on... interesting way both sides played it out ^o^

Shout-out to Asia Square Folks Watching (parts of) the Game Live
I'm glad to see so many of you after some time (I have decided to cut down my play time to spend more time on opening preparations in a more systematic way, so I will only be visiting Asia Square on a monthly basis while keeping to my weekly Sunday sessions at Siglap South CC. Was super surprised to see Carleton, the founder of the Pub X Chess movement in Singapore! I just wonder if everyone at the Singapore Chess Meetup knows who he is ^o^

Thank you for helping me pack up my DGT chess set! I hope you guys enjoyed playing with it. Also, I'm really sorry for my misbehaviour towards some of you addressing me while I was playing the game -- Especially for shouting back at Roy -- that happens to be a super critical moment of the game, the "distraction" could not have come at a worst time. But thank you so much for reminding me to bring home my DGT chess board. Please accept my apologies ^o^


Yours sincerely
Ong Yujing (Eugene)
a.k.a. newbie_learner