2017 Lakeway Spring Open Round 2 Anton Taylor, 1950 - NM Alan Kantor, 2027 Caro-Kann Panov-Botvinnik Attack (B13)

2017 Lakeway Spring Open Round 2
Anton Taylor, 1950 - NM Alan Kantor, 2027 
Caro-Kann Panov-Botvinnik Attack (B13)

1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. exd5 cxd5 4. c4 e6 5. Nc3 Nf6 6. Bg5 Be7 7. cxd5 This exchange is considered an equal position with not a lot of poison for either side. I considered it a good way to provoke the opponent. After all, who wants to draw against a player 70 rating points their junior and not a National Master? 7. ... Nxd5 8. Bxe7 Nxe7 9. Nf3 Nbc6 10. Bc4 After I had seen several games during preparation where Alan played the Panov (on both sides) I decided to play for an immediate d-pawn exchange if i'm allowed. Also, this move discourages Nd5 because of the symetry after NxN. 10. ... O-O 11. O-O Nb4 This is probably the best try to control the square d5 and actually offers me the chance for a perpetual. 12. Qb3 Nbc6 13. Qd1 returning to the previous position and asking black if he'd like to repeat. There are other moves but they involve awkward bishop or queen moves to avoid the knight fork Na5. 13. ... Qa5 Here was the chance I was hoping for. Black makes an aggressive but not dangerous move and allows me to gain a small advantage in the center. 14. Qe2 Rd8 15. Rad1 Nb4 The bishop on c4 is bothering black in trying to control his center (d5). so he makes this odd move once more. It is far less powerful here than in the previous incarnation. 16. Ne5 Qb6 and c7 are among the top candidates for komodo here for black. Qa5 was obviously useless if the queen has to move again. Black is losing. 16. ... Nbd5 17. Ne4 This move signals a move in the direction of the black king but Black has no alarm bells anbd quickly goes wrong. 17. ... a6 18. Rd3! I spent a lot of time on this move and the calculations are fairly monstrous in my opinion. the Nf4 fork is not sufficient so yet another white piece joins the fray. Komodo considers black as fine by playing the simple Rf8 but only starts to see black's difficulties at a depth of 22 ... an eleven move calculation.  If I were a Grandmaster or World Champion I would declare mystical knowledge of how things would go ... but truthfully I only calculated about four favorable lines and Black seemed bad in all of them. 18. ... f6 19. Qh5 fxe5 20. Ng5 Nf6 21. Qf7+ Kh8 22. Qxe7 Re8 23. Nf7+ Kg8 24. Nh6+ Kh8 25. Qf7 Rg8 1-0