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So I was just playing a game of #chess and then this happened! 50

What’s better than finding money in an old jacket that you haven’t worn in years? Perhaps discovering a notation sheet to a nice game you forgot you played stuffed inside an old chess book.

My old copy of 107 Great Chess Battles, 1939-1945 by Alexander Alekhine.

Back in 2013, I recall regularly experimenting with Grob’s Attack. Occasionally I did so while running my now legendary Fremont Chess Club. This chess club was made up of a group of the most talented youngsters from powerhouse chess schools such as MSJE, Weibel, Gomes, etcetera and we would come together to train ever Saturday afternoon at the now closed Achiever Institute in Fremont, California. After I taught a lesson, all the kids in attendance would play a round in a rated chess tournament. If there was an odd number of children playing, a lucky student would get a chance to go 1-on-1 against the coach. And I so it is that on March 16th, 2013 I used Grob’s Attack in a training game against a student. When the game finished, I folded the recording sheet in half and stuffed it inside a well used copy of “107 Great Chess Battles 1939-1945” to be forgotten. Nearly a decade later, while doing research, I opened the old orange chess book and found this game.

[Event “Fremont Achiever Chess Club”]

[Site “Fremont, California”]

[Date “3/16/2013”]

[Round “?”]

[White “Chris Torres”]

[WhiteElo “”]

[Black “Student”]

[BlackElo “”]

[Result “1-0”]

1.g4 e5 2.g5 Qxg5 3.d4 Qe7 4.Nc3 exd4 5.Nd5 Qd6 6.Bg2 c6 7.Bf4 Qg6 8.Nc7+ Kd8

9.Bg3 Nf6 10.Qxd4 Na6 11.Nxa6 bxa6 12.Bxc6 Bc5 13.Qxc5 dxc6 14.Qxc6 Qe4 15.Bc7+

Ke7 16.Qd6+ Ke8 17.Qd8#

1-0

Link to game gif on chess.com

Grob’s Attack (opening with 1. g4) was pioneered by the Swiss IM Henri Grob in the early half of the twentieth century. Clearly unorthodox and frowned upon by chess elitists, Grob’s Attack is a fun surprise weapon for players who enjoy playing eccentric chess. If it tickles your fancy, be sure to check The greatest known defeat of a chess master with the Grob Opening!

Published by chessmusings

Chris Torres is a nationally renowned scholastic chess coach working in the San Francisco Bay Area. His classes have attracted players of strengths ranging from rank beginners to world champions. A chess professional since 1998, Chris is widely recognized as one of the main driving forces behind the explosion in popularity and sudden rise in quality of scholastic chess in California. Chris Torres served as the President of the Torres Chess and Music Academy from 2005-2020 and currently is recognized as a correspondence chess master with the United States Chess Federation. Since 1998 Chris Torres has taught 6 individual national champions as well as led multiple school teams to win national championship titles. In addition, Chris Torres has directed and taught at 10 different schools which have been California State Champions at chess. In 2011 and 2012, several former and current students of Chris Torres have been selected to represent the United States at the World Youth Chess Championships. Mr. Torres’ hobbies include playing classical guitar and getting his students to appear on the national top 100 chess rating lists.

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