When you have the advantage...

According to past World Champion Wilhelm Steinitz, when a player has an advantage, he must attack, or the advantage will fizzle away.

To put this another way, for less-skilled players like myself: When you have the advantage, finish off your opponent quickly, before you blow the game yourself.

Like in the following debacle...

perrypawnpusher  - DrHilarius
blitz, FICS, 2011

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Nc3 Bc5 5.Bxf7+

The Italian Four Knights Jerome Gambit.

5...Kxf7 6.Nxe5+ Nxe5 7.d4 Bxd4 8.Qxd4 Re8

9.0-0

An alternative was 9.Bg5 followed by 10.0-0-0, as in Wall,B - PLMW, FICS, 2010 (1-0, 24).

9...Nc6 10.Qc4+ Kf8 11.Bg5 Ne5

This move struck me as a bit odd, and certainly provocative, but Rybka 3 did not censure it. My best response was probably 12.Qd4.

12.Qe2 Nf7 13.f4 h6 14.Bh4 g5

Breaking the pin, but loosening the Kingside too much.

15.fxg5 Nh7

He sees that to continue as planned (15...hxg5 16.Bxg5 Nxg5) would be dangerous (after 17.Qh5 Nf7 18.Qg6 Re6 19.Nd5), but his alternate choice should prove disastrous.

16.g6

This move is "okay", but deadly would have been 16.Qh5.

16...Qxh4 17.Rxf7+ Kg8 18.Rxh7

Since White is a couple of pawns up, with an aggressive position, it seems unkind to nag, again, that there was a far stronger move, 18.Qc4.

The problem is that for every "knockout punch" that I miss, my opponent stays on his feet a bit longer, and there is always the chance that he can get lucky.

18...d5 19.Qf3 Rf8 20.Rf7

Stop me if you've heard this one before... The snappy 20.Rh8+ led to mate.

20...Bg4 21.Qf4 Qg5 22.Qxg5

Competent, but 22.Nxd5 mates. 

22...hxg5 23.Rxf8+ Rxf8 24.exd5 Bf5 25.Re1 Bxc2 26.Re7 Bd3

All that fire power, wasted. Still, White has a winning endgame with a strongly placed Rook and a couple of extra pawns.

27.Rxc7 Rf1 checkmate

Ooops...

I am sure that my opponent saw my oversight as hilarious!

(Note to self: tactics, tactics, tactics!)