Is there an element of luck in chess? It would seem difficult to find; after all, this is a game with perfect information. Nothing is hidden, all the possibilities can be seen, even if, given the number of possibilities, actually calculating them remains a superhuman task.

Perhaps luck consists of having your opponent blunder when you are in a lost position, but if so that is a rather crude example of good fortune. A more interesting definition might be when your opponent plays in such a way as to allow you to uncork an exceptionally beautiful combination of the kind all chess players dream about. We saw this kind of luck crop up in a game between two less-than-wellknown players in the team championship of Belgium.

AHN VS. RUCK (white) (black) Scotch Game

1.e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 exd4 4. Nxd4 Bc5 5. Nb3 Bb6 6. Nc3 Nf6 7. Bg5

A trickier path here is first 7. Qe2!? 0-0 and only now 8. Bg5 h6 9.h4!? with chances for an attack, as Rublevsky played against Anand in 2004.

7… h6 8. Bh4 d6 9.a4?

(See Diagram)

The usual move here is 9. Qe2! In Linares this year this was played in Ivanchuk-Morozevich, where after 9…0-0 10.0-0-0 Re8 11.f3 a5!? a complicated position arose. The move played by Ahn in this game looks logical. Harassing the b6 bishop, white tries to force black to push the a-pawn and, after this, by moving the knight to d5, he will obtain an excellent game. But this move also gives black an opportunity to play an exceptionally beautiful combination.

9… Nxe4!! 10. Bxd8 Bxf2+ 11. Ke2 Bg4+ 12. Kd3 Ne5+!

After sacrificing his queen, black now sacrifices his knight. Obviously, bad for black was 12…Bxd1

13. Nxe4. 13. Kxe4 f5+! 14. Kd5

The king has to go forward. If he moves to the side there is 14. Kf4

Ng6 mate. 14… Rxd8! 15. Qxg4

The offer to return the queen is white’s best defense. In case of 15. Nd4 c6+ 16. Ke6 0-0! 17. Nd5Rfe8+ 18. Ne7+ Kf8 the white king is firmly in a mating net.

15… c6+!

Black has to continue the attack. The meek 15…fxg4 16. Ke4; or 15… Nxg4 16. Kc4 would permit the white king to escape.

16. Ke6 0-0! 17. Nd5 fxg4 18. Bd3 g6

After a series of brilliant moves, black misses the most economical path to mate the white king: 18…Rde8+! 19. Kxd6 (19. Ne7+ Kh8 20. Kxd6 Rf6+ 21. Kc7 Rxe7+ 22. Kd8 Rd7+ 23. Ke8 Re6+ 24. Kf8 Rf7#) 19…Rd8+ 20. Kxe5 (Mate was also inevitable after 20. Ke6 Rxd5.) 20…Rxd5+ 21. Ke4 g5 and mate follows on the next move. But the move in the game wins as well.

19. Rhf1 Kg7! 20. Nd4

20. Rxf2 Rxf2 21. Rf1 Nxd3 22. Rxf2 Nxf2 didn’t change the outcome but made it more prosaic.

20… Rfe8+ 21. Ne7 Bh4 22. Bxg6 Rxe7+ 23. Kf5 Rf8+ 24. Ke4 Nxg6+

Black simply eliminate the white pieces. More consistent was 24… d5+ 25. Ke3 Nc4+ 26. Kd3 Re3#.

25. Kd3 Ne5+

26. Kc3 Bf2

0-1