Dizziness Due to Success

Alexander Kotov, in his classic Think Like A Grandmaster, wrote about players who were

over-confident, complacent in their recognition of the fact that they had a marked advantage, and so their vigilance was blunted.
We call this widespread complacency when the win is near 'Dizziness due to success' .

perrypawnpusher - bnxr
blitz, FICS, 2011

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ng6

7.Qd5+ Ke8 8.Qxc5 d6 9.Qe3 Nf6 10.O-O Kf7

Black returns the tempo that I spent on "the nudge" (see "Nudge 2.0")

11.f4 Re8 12.f5 Rxe4

While analyzing my game against stcamillis (see "Stand up! Fight back!") where I had played 12.d3, I had realized that 12.f5 was playable – in fact, it had been played as early as Vazquez - Carrington, Mexico, 2nd match, 1876, because the immediate threat against the pawn at e4 was an illusion.

That my opponent grabbed the pawn (his plan from move 10) is one more example of the negative "halo effect" that surrounds the Jerome Gambit: If White blunders so badly in the opening, he is going to blunder throughout the game. So any move that appears bad [like 12.f5], must be bad.

13.fxg6+ hxg6

An unfortunate reflex action. Black needed to play 13...Kg8, when 14.gxh7+ Kh8 15.Qd3 would have left White with a pawn advantage.

14.Qxe4

14...Bf5 15.Rxf5

The position looked messy after 15.Qxb7 Bxc2, so I decided to return a bit of my extra material (Rook for Knight + pawn) to reach a quieter position.


15...gxf5 16.Qxf5 Qe7 17.Qf1

This borders on anxiety, however. Simply 17.Nc3 was fine.

17...Rh8 18.d3 Qe5 19.Nc3

Up  a piece, a little bit of development – what could go wrong?

19...Qxh2+

Well, that's annoying.

The game would have been much simpler after the alert 19.h3. Now my opponent had chances to make my life uncomfortable, and I was fortunate that he did not torture me as much as he could have.

20.Kf2 Qh4+

After the game Rybka preferred 20... Re8, and showed that White would be fine after 21.Ne2 Nd5 22.Ke1+ Kg8 23.Bd2 b5 24.Rc1 c5 25.Kd1 Rf8 26.Qg1 Qe5 27.Rb1 Re8 28.Qf1 c4 29.dxc4 bxc4 30.Ng1.

analysis diagram








Uh, right...


21.Ke2 Kg8

I was very happy to see Black block his Rook from the e-file.

22.Bd2 Qg4+ 23. Qf3 Qe6+ 24.Kf2 Ng4+

Enter: the Knight.

25.Kg3 Nh2

I would not be surprised to learn that my opponent was feeling a bit dizzy, himself. This move allowed me to exchange Queens – and win the Knight.

26.Qd5 Qxd5 27.Nxd5 c6

This move is a slight distraction from the fact that Black's Knight has no safe retreat.

28.Nc3 Kf7 29.Rh1 Black resigned