I'm something of a "seasonal" chess player. When the leaves turn brilliant colors and that New England chill is in the air, my mind hungers for chess tournaments. Unfortunately for me, my late autumn games tend to be rusty and full of errors. By January I hope to regain some sense of consistency and accuracy. My usual goal is to peak at the US Amateur Team Championship in Parsippany, NJ each February. Then the snows melt and my mind returns to things like hiking, golf, and the joys of being a soccer dad. This cycle certainly limits my chess progress but seems to fit with the rest of life. This game was played in the third round of the Fairfield Quads. My first round loss to jovial Joe Bihlmeyer was filled with poor decisions and rusty miscalculations. My second round win over Derek Chen helped me refocus on tactical accuracy, but did little to help me think strategically. My third round opponent, Arslan Otchiyev (rated 2390) would definitely push me to get rid of the rust in a hurry. What should I play as White? The psychology of this and other decisions was interesting throughout the game.

 

 

Now I add the psychology of time pressure. I'm way behind on time. I like the pawns on c4 and d4, but worry that it will take me a lot of precious time to figure out how to work them for continued pressure. So I search for a tactical solution that is more forcing and can be played quickly. It is the equivalent of an all-or-nothing or "Hail Mary" desperation pass. Of course, there was no reason on the board to feel desperation, only psychological reasons. 21. d5 is one example of a more levelheaded move.