[Event "New York"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1924.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Yates,F"]
[Black "Marshall,F"]
[Result "0-1"]
[Annotator "Lopez "Battle Royale""]
[ECO "C90"]
[PlyCount "82"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 { Yates opts to play the Ruy Lopez, which we've discussed in previous games. } 3... a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O { The f7-pawn is now defended twice. Had Marshall not played this, White could have responded with Ng5, with two minor pieces attacking the pawn. } 8. d3 d6 9. c3 { The idea is to create a pocket for the Bishop's retreat after ...Na5. } 9... Be6 { Marshall offers a Bishop trade... } 10. Bxe6 { ..which Yates accepts. } 10... fxe6 { Yes, the e-pawns are doubled, but in this case they actually increase Black's central control. Black pawns now cover three of the four central squares and the f8-Rook sits on an open file. } 11. a4 b4 12. Qe2 ( 12. cxb4 { In this case, doubled pawns would not be good. The pawn has captured away from the center and can be hard to defend (Bd2 would cover it, but the d3-pawn would then be undefended and the Bishop would be tied to the defense of the pawn. } ) 12... Nh5 13. d4 { Yates decides to break up the dominating central pawns. } 13... bxc3 14. bxc3 exd4 15. Nxd4 Nxd4 16. cxd4 { Now both players have two central pawns, but White's are better: they control squares on Black's half of the board. } 16... Nf4 17. Bxf4 Rxf4 18. Nd2 { The e4-pawn is protected very well, but that's not why Yates made this move. } 18... Qd7 19. Nf1 { This was the real point of Nd2. Yates can now advance the Knight to either e3 or g3. } 19... Rf7 20. Rec1 { Grabbing the open file and requiring Black's Queen to defend the pawn. } 20... Raf8 { Doubled Rooks on an open file are very powerful. } 21. f3 d5 22. e5 a5 { The pawn was attacked by the White Queen and needed to be advanced to prevent its loss. } 23. Ng3 { It's hard to know why Yates played this. The Knight can't move toward the center from here -- both squares are covered by Black's pawns. } 23... Bb4 { A nice space-grabbing move. The Bishop and a-pawn protect each other and the Bishop controls several squares in the heart of White's half of the board. } 24. Ra2 { The plan is to double the Rooks on the open c-file. } 24... Rc8 { The f-file is closed to Black, so Marshall moves his Rook to the c-pawn's defense (in anticipation of White's Rac2). } 25. Kh1 { Yates appears to be making waiting moves. } 25... c5 26. dxc5 Rxc5 ( 26... Bxc5 { Less pleasant for Black, since the Bishop must be defended by the Rook. } ) 27. Rac2 Rxc2 { The easiest way to stop the threat of exchange on c5 is to break up White's Rook battery. } 28. Qxc2 { White has established a new battery on the open c-file. } 28... Rf4 29. Rd1 ( 29. Qc8+ Qxc8 30. Rxc8+ Bf8 31. Kg1 Rxa4 { and Black has a passed a-pawn, which can start advancing toward coronation. This will require White's Rook to return back into White's half of the board and assume a defensive role. } ) 29... Qe8 { It's not a good idea to leave your Queen on the same file as an enemy Rook, even if a friendly pawn blocks the file. } 30. Ne2 Rc4 31. Qb3 Qh5 { Now that he's blocked the Queenside, Marshall takes the battle to the other side of the board. There's no threat here -- he's just repositioning the Queen to get it into the action. } 32. Qb2 { Yates doesn't have anything terribly constructive to do with his pieces. } 32... Qf5 { Marshall's threat is to play ...Rc2 (under the Black Queen's protection) and fork the White Queen and Knight. } 33. Qa1 Bc5 { The meaning of this move may not be clear to you now, but you'll see what happens in another couple of moves. Marshall must first create disarray in White's camp. } ( 33... Rc2 { This would make little sense now. } 34. Nd4 Bc3 35. Nxf5 Bxa1 36. Nxg7 Kxg7 37. Rxa1 { And White has an extra pawn. } ) 34. Rc1 Qd3 35. Ng3 { Because the Knight has moved, it no longer covers d4, which allows... } 35... Bd4 { ...forking the White Queen and pawn. } 36. Qb1 Qxb1 { A useful in-between move. Marshall knows he's about to go up by a pawn. Remember that when you're ahead in material, it's usually a good idea to trade off pieces. Marshall decided to trade now and grab the pawn later. } 37. Rxb1 { Forced, of couse. } 37... Bxe5 { Now Marshall is a pawn ahead -- and it's a passed pawn to boot. } 38. Re1 { A bogus "threat". White can't take the pawn, otherwise mate is forced because the King is cornered. } 38... Rxa4 39. Kg1 { Now the mate is no longer forced, but Marshall doesn't care -- he sees a way to get still more material off of the board and force a win at the same time.. } ( 39. Rxe5 Ra1+ { All White can do now is delay the mate. } 40. Re1 Rxe1+ 41. Nf1 Rxf1# ) 39... Ra1 40. Rxa1 ( 40. Kf1 { This doesn't change the eventual outcome. } 40... Rxe1+ 41. Kxe1 Bxg3+ 42. hxg3 Kf7 { The point here is that it's not possible for the White King to stop both of Black's passed pawns. If it goes after the a-pawn, the d-pawn promotes under the Black King's watchful eye. If the White King hangs around to stop the d-pawn, the a-pawn promotes without hindrance. It's tough to be everywhere at once. } ) 40... Bxa1 { Now Black has two passed pawns. } 41. Ne2 Bb2 { This is one very powerful Bishop! The Bishop covers every one of the White Knight's approach squares, while defending the a-pawn's promotion square. White is bound, gagged, and thrown into the river -- there is absolutely no way to prevent the a-pawn from becoming a Queen. Yates is forced to resign on the spot. } 0-1