Played November - December 2002
White: Sam Trenholme
Black: Ed Holzman
1. f4 Kf10 Unlike many other Grand Chess players, I do not think that the first rank should be used for Rook redeployment, but rather as a "safe zone" for tucking the King away. I can see why black makes this kind of move in the opening
2. d5? d4 is better
2. ... Nh7 This seems to be the best square for knight development 3. e5 This pawn really needs the support of the d pawn d6
4. g4 Bg5
5. Bf4 forced
5. ... Bxf4 6. Cxf4 It's either this move or Qxf4
6. ... de 7. Cxe5 or white is down a pawn
7. ... Me7 pin
8. Qe3 breaking the pin
8. ... Qxd5 I was concerned about white making the move Cxb8 and forking the two of them...which is the big reason why I moved the Queen out to d5 as a deterrent.
9. Cxb8?? Nc4 was the move to do here
9. ... Qb5+ winning the cardinal
One thing that really helps with playing Grand Chess is to have a good way of visualizing the board, which I did not have when playing this game. As a result, I now have a GIMP file which uses layers to allow one to move the pieces around without affecting the board.