Mac Intyre annotates his Round 1 encounter with Cherniack

In today's BCC newsletter Paul provided annotations to Round 1: Mac Intyre-Cherniack 1-0. I have reprinted them below:

MacIntyre came out of the starting gate with guns blazing. His round 1 victory over NM Alex Cherniack was perhaps his most impressive of the tournament.

[Event "BCC Championship"]
[Site "Somerville, MA USA"]
[Date "2004.09.08"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Mac Intyre, Paul"]
[Black "Cherniack, Alex"]
[Result "1-0"]
[WhiteUSCF "2303"]
[BlackUSCF "2228"]
[ECO "C19"]
[Opening "French"]
[Variation "Winawer"]
[Sub-Variation "Main Line 7. a4"]
[Annotator "FM Paul MacIntyre"]

1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.e5 c5 5.a3 Bxc3+ 6.bxc3 Ne7 7.a4 Qa5 8.Qd2 Nbc6 9.Nf3 Bd7 10.Bd3 c4!?

[The “all-out” approach which is the hallmark of Cherniack’s style. Some think that by c:d and exchanging queens, Black can count on equality in the endgame due to white’s worse pawns. Alex’s move initiates a complex war of manouver]

11.Be2 f6 12.Ba3 0-0-0 13.0-0 Rdf8 14.Rfb1 Rf7 15.Rb5 Qa6 16.Qc1!

[The transfer of all the heavy pieces to the queenside is Botvinnik’s recipe in such positions]

16....Ng6 17.Bd6 b6 18.Qa3 Kb7?!

[Instead, the thematic 18....fe 19.fe Rf3! would have bagged the important King’s pawn and given black plenty of compensation for the exchange]

19.Rab1 Ka8 20.exf6!

[Black won’t get a second chance]

gxf6 21.Nd2 Nh4 22.R5b2 Qc8? 23.a5! Nxa5 24.Rxb6 Nc6??

[Black crumbles. He had to take the rook, after which there is no clear win available for White]

25.Nxc4!

25...dxc4 26.Bxc4 +–

[Black can no longer defend the King. White has a number of ‘coups de grace’ including moving a pawn to d5 or a Bishop incursion via a6]

Qg8 27.Bg3 Nf5 28.Qa6 Qc8 29.Rb7 Nxg3 30.d5 Qb8 31.dxc6 Bxc6 32.Rxb8+ Rxb8 33.Qxc6+ Rfb7 34.Ba6 Ne2+ 35.Kf1 Nxc3 36.Bxb7+ Rxb7 37.Qc8+ Rb8 38.Qxb8# 1-0