FAVORITES: Larsen vs Korchnoi 1973

Only to arrive at the exact same position.

Okay, it's true that "amazing" isn't always the same as "good"; playing the thing over is after all what I did the first time I ever saw St Amant's blunder (which was the subject of another blog).

Here though it most definitely is. :) And yep, as soon as I came to Black's 16th move, I went "Whoops" and set em up again.

And naturally found the very same setup when I got there. Then, when I looked a bit further in the score, I noticed that 17 Ne6 had in fact been played. Good grief, what was Black doing?!

Well, giving up the two bishops, for starters. And shattering his pawns. But he also got a clear line of play against White's center. And of course psychologically it was all quite provocative and calculated to intensify the fight a few notches (much in the spirit of Korchnoi's idol, Lasker). One very important aspect of chess which all those little engine numbers eternally fail to convey.

(Note incidentally that in this game Viktor seems to have full grasp of the rules when he castles queenside with the b8 square attacked...even though the following year in a game against Karpov he famously became a bit befuddled on the subject). :)