To play the games, just click on the moves in the score in the right hand side. Moves in black are the ones actually played in the game, and moves in color are variations and analysis. You can also click on these moves to see the position on the board. Or you can use the control panel under the board to step through each move manually, or the game can be played automatically. In autoplay mode, you have the option of stepping into the analysis variations or bypassing them completely. Select games by scrolling in the right hand panel, or use the drop down list under the board. The interface is quite natural and easy to get used to. We hope you find it useful and enjoyable.


Martin Bonomi - Matt Bolinder [C50]

McHenry Area Chess Championship (1) 2004


1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 d6 3... Bc5 to play the Guicco Piano would be better. With the move played, Black makes it difficult to develop his dark squared bishop. 4. h3 Nf6 5. Nc3 5. Ng5 d5 6. exd5 Na5 7. Bb5+ Bd7 8. Be2 is a playable aggressive line for White and gives Black plenty of opportunity to make mistakes. 5... Nd4 6. d3 Be6 7. Bxe6 Nxe6 8. O-O Be7 9. Be3 d5 This move drops the e pawn, which is now unprotected. 10. exd5 Nxd5 11. Nxe5 Nxe3 12. fxe3 O-O 13. Qh5 f6 14. Nf3 Qd6 15. Nd5 Rad8 16. Nxe7+ Qxe7 17. Qg4 Ng5 18. Qc4+ Kh8 19. e4 Nxf3+ 20. Rxf3 Qe5 21. Rff1 Qxb2 22. Rab1 Qd4+ Black does better not to take the pawn, as White has better maneuverability to attack the Black queenside pawns in return. Acceptable alternatives are 22... b6 or 22... c6 or 22... Rd4 23. Qxd4 Rxd4 24. Rxb7 Ra4 25. Ra1 h6 25... Rc8 and then both sides rush their kings into the fray is the best approach. Black is already a pawn down, and though rook and pawn endings are often drawn, after white takes the c pawn Black has almost no hope. 26. a3? 26. Rxc7) {is winning. 26... Ra5 27. Ra2? Again, 27. Rxc7 is winning. 27... f5 28. exf5 Raxf5 29. Rxa7 29. Rxc7 is better because it makes white's connected pawns passers. Black's rooks, even when doubled, don't present near as great a threat as White's passed pawns. 29... Rf1+ 30. Kh2 R8f2 31. Rxc7 Re1 32. Kg3 Ree2 33. a4 Rxg2+ 34. Kh4 1-0


Sean Johnston - Martin Bonomi [B20]

McHenry Area Chess Championship (2) 2004


1. e4 c5 2. c4 d6 3. Nf3 Nc6 4. d4 cxd4 5. Nxd4 Nf6 6. Nxc6 bxc6 7. Nc3 Be6 An ugly move that commits Black to fianchettoing the light squared bishop. 8. Be2 g6 9. O-O Bg7 10. Be3 O-O 11. Qd2 Qc7 12. Bh6 Ng4 Black does better to ignore the bishop since the exchange can't be prevented and continue to develop with 12... Rab8 13. Bxg7 Kxg7 14. Bxg4 Bxg4 15. Rfe1 Rab8 16. Qd4+ f6 17. e5 Qd7 18. exd6 exd6 19. Ne4 Rxb2? Oops. Black drops a major piece. 20. Qxb2 h5 21. Qd4 Rf7 22. Nxd6 Rf8 23. Re3 h4 24. Rae1 Kh6 25. f3 25. Re7 is much better and wins almost immediately, as in 25... c5 (25... Qd8 there is nowhere else for the queen to run 26. Nf7+! Rxf7 (26... Kh7 27. Nxd8+) 27. Qxd8) 26. Qxc5 White missed a golden opportunity. 25... Bh5 26. Qf4+ g5 27. Nf5+ Kg6 28. Nxh4+ An necessary sacrifice of material. If 28. Ne7+ Qxe7 29. Rxe7 gxf4 is worse for White. 28... gxh4 29. Qe4+ Again, 29. Re7 and the Black queen has no where good to run. 29... Kh6 30. Qf4+ Kg6 31. Qxh4 Rh8 32. Re6 32. g4 picks up the bishop. 32... Qd8 33. R1e5 Qd1+ 34. Re1 Qd8 35. Qe4+ Kg7 36. Re7+ Bf7 37. Qg4+ Kf8 38. Rxf7+? Why? White is giving away material with no clear winning line in sight. Better would have been 38. Rb7 planning to double the rooks on the seventh. 38... Kxf7 39. Qe6+ Kg6 40. g4 Qc7 41. Qf5+ Kf7 42. Re2 Qb6+ 43. Kg2 Qc7 44. Kg1 44. h3 is simpler. 44... Qb6+ 45. Rf2 Rxh2? This looks good, but it fails to 46. c5! Fortunately for Black, White missed this response. 46. Kxh2 Qxf2+ 47. Kh3 Qf1+ 48. Kg3 Qxc4 49. g5 Qe6 50. Qxf6+ White had one last chance in 50. g6+! Ke7 51. Qc5+! Ke8 52. g7 Qg8 53. Qxc6+ Kf7 54. Qd7+ Kg6 55. Qxa7 and white has a winning game as long as he doesn't hand Black any perpetual checks, which should be easily avoidable. With the move played, the game is a draw. 50... Qxf6 51. gxf6 Kxf6 52. Kf4 Ke6 53. Ke4 c5 54. Kd3 Kd5 55. f4 a5 56. f5 a4 57. f6 Ke6 58. Kc4 Kxf6 59. Kxc5 Ke6 60. Kc6 Ke7 and if White tries to snatch the Black a pawn, the enemy king tucks himself in the corner and White cannot dislodge him. Black made a major mistake on move 19 and White had many chances to win this game, but couldn't find the right way to go about it. 1/2-1/2


Martin Bonomi - Rick Wawrzyszuk [C50]

McHenry Area Championship (3) 2004


1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Nh6? 4. d3 d6 5. Be3 Be6 6. Bb3 d5 7. exd5 Bxd5 8. Bxh6 White should have done this earlier and saved himself the move. 8... gxh6 9. Ba4 Bxf3 10. Qxf3 Qd7 11. Bxc6 bxc6 Material is even but Black has terrible pawn structure. At this point, White clearly has a won game. 12. Qf6 Bb4+? Giving material away. 13. c3 Rf8 14. cxb4 Qxd3 15. Qxc6+ Ke7 16. Qxc7+ Kf6 17. Nc3 Rfc8 18. Qb7 18. Rd1 is even better, but most anything works for White. 18... Rd8 19. Qf3+ Again, 19. Rd1 is preferable. However, White has an extra piece, so the damage to his pawn structure is an acceptable price for simplifying the position by trading queens. 19... Qxf3 20. gxf3 Rd3 21. Ke2 Rad8 22. Rhd1 R3d6 Anywhere but d6! After this, White's game more or less plays itself. 23. Rxd6+ Rxd6 24. Ne4+ Ke6 25. Nxd6 Kxd6 26. Rc1 f5 27. a4 e4 28. fxe4 fxe4 29. a5 Ke5 30. b5 h5 31. b6 axb6 32. axb6 h4 33. b7 Kf4 34. b8=Q+ Kg4 35. Qf8 h5 36. h3+ Kxh3 37. Qf4 e3 38. Qf3+ Kh2 39. Rh1# 1-0


Everado Gamino - Martin Bonomi [A47]

McHenry Area Chess Championship (4) 2004


1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 e6 3. e3 c5 4. Bd3 cxd4 5. exd4 g6 6. O-O Bg7 7. a3 O-O 8. b3 b6 9. Nbd2 Bb7 10. Bb2 Qc7 11. Re1 d5 12. Ne5 Nbd7 13. f4 This isn't a bad move, but it might be overly ambitious. 13. Rc1 would have been more prudent, but this is more a matter of taste and style at this point. 13... Nh5 14. Rf1 f6 15. Nxg6?! An interesting but inherently unsound attack, as the game shows. It's a complicated position and deserves a lot of calculation. With all of the variations possible, it's easy to become enamored of one line a bit too soon. 15... hxg6 16. Bxg6 Nxf4! 17. Rxf4 Consistent with previous play, but at this point White should have seen that the attack doesn't work and avoided sacrificing more material. On the other hand, White has already sacrificed too much and is down, so it might be time for desperate measures. 17... Qxf4 18. Qh5 Qh6 19. Re1 Qxh5 20. Bxh5 e5 21. dxe5 fxe5 Black's center pawns look very intimidating, but they can't be held. 22. Bg4 Nf6 23. Be6+ Kh7 24. Bf5+ Kh6 25. Bc1 Nh5 26. Ne4+ Better is 26. Nf3+ Nf4 27. g4! Bf6 (Necessary for Black now is 27... Rxf5 28. gxf5 Rg8 but would Black see it?) 28. Nxe5 Bxe5 29. Rxe5 Kg5 30. Kf2 and the Black knight must fall. This makes the game about even again. 26... Nf4 27. Nd6 Rxf5 Unnecessary at this time. Instead, Black could have played 27... Bc6 28. g3 Rad8 29. gxf4 e4! and now White must return the piece, leaving Black ahead. 28. Nxf5+ Kg6 29. Nh4+ White misses his last chance. Much better is 29. Nxg7 Kxg7 30. Bxf4! exf4 31. Re7+ Kf6 32. Rxb7 and white has a pawn up. Granted, rook and pawn endings are difficult to win, but even a draw was a remarkable comeback. 29... Kh5 30. Nf3 e4 31. Bxf4 exf3 32. Re7 Bd4+ 33. Be3 Bxe3+ 34. Rxe3 fxg2 35. Rd3 Re8 36. Kxg2 Re2+ Everado must have been disappointed with this result, having won his previous three games with major upsets (all against opponents at least 400 rating points higher than him). Perhaps for a moment his attack would have given him a quick victory and the tournament champion title. Even a draw would have put Everado solidly in second place. But Martin accepted the challenge of beating back the attack, and played well to avoid traps. This game combined with his others to earn Martin third place in the tournament with three wind and one draw. 0-1




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