CHESS BY VICTOR STRUGO
Eddie Price, who died earlier this year, was one of the most remarkable people I have had the privilege to meet through chess. He was academic yet down to earth, knowledgeable yet humble. Most remarkably (for a chess player!) he put interest above ego. His curiosity welcomed exploration of the unknown, even during serious tournaments.
So, when low-rated club-mate Arnie Witkin told him that he’d invented a new gambit, Eddie sportingly agreed (during a round of Johannesburg’s largest annual tournament!) to play the (to him completely unfamiliar) Alekhine’s Defence, to give Arnie a chance to test-drive his novelty against opposition of SA championship quality.
Arnie Witkin - Eddie Price (Twins Open, Johannesburg 1975): 1 e4 Nf6 2 e5 Nd5 3 f4!? (The move that local lore has named The Witkin Gambit) 3 ... Nxf4 4 d4 Nd5 5 Bc4 e6 6 Nf3 Be7 7 O-O d6 8 Qe2 (8 Qe1 eyeing g3 is better. White has enough play for his Pawn, so the gambit must be deemed sound) 8 ... Nc6 9 Nc3 Nb6 10 Bd3 Nb4 11 Ne4 dxe5 (In The Star, columnist Kurt Dreyer suggested the radical 11... f5?! 12 exf6 Bxf6 13 Nxf6+ but missed that instead 13 Nfg5! is almost winning) 12 dxe5 Nxd3 13 Rd1 O-O 14 Rxd3 Qe8 {Best was surely
14... Nd7! adding rather than removing vigilance to the f6 square) 15 Bg5 (The energetic 15 Nfg5! was preferable e.g, ... f5 16 exf6 Bxf6 17 Nxf6+ Rxf6 18 Qe4 Rg6 19 Nxh7 Kxh7 20 Qh4+ Kg8 21 Rd8) 15 ... Bd7? (Unappealing as the grovelly 15 ... Nd7 looks, it would prevent White’s very promising next) 16 Nf6+! gxf6 17 Bxf6 Qd8 18 Ng5 Bxf6 19 exf6 Qxf6 20 Ne4? (Loses the plot. The attack would grow with 20. Rg3 and Black must defend very accurately: 20 ... Kh8 21 Rf1 Qd4+ 22 Kh1 f5 23 Nxh7 Rf7 24 c3 Qc4 25 Qe5+ Kxh7 and 26 Rff3 will bag Black’s Queen after 26 ... Rg8! 27 Rh3+ Kg6 28 Rfg3+ Qg4 29 Rh4 Rff8! and if Black had found the right R moves, he’d have at least a draw after 30 Rgxg4+ fxg4 31 Rxg4+ Kf7 32 Rxg8 Kxg8 33 Qg3+) 20 ... Qe7 21 Rg3+ Kh8 22 Qh5 f6 23 Rf1 Rac8 and with his position now hopeless, White lost on time.
Once this game became known, the gambit was analysed by a Bulgarian GM (chess.com/blog/ dbojkov/the-witkin-gambit) and deemed risky but playable. Thanks to Eddie’s generosity, Arnie’s name has been immortalised!
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I welcome comments, games and news at victor.strugo@ gmail.com. Find local news at www.chesshub.org.za and FACEBOOK.COM/SACHESSPLAYERS.