Battling the Smith Morra Gambit | Classical Chess

In this video, I play in a game against Kholpilova (2331) in the Monthly Classical Arena on lichess.org. The game features a Smith Morra Gambit in which I share my preparation from the black side. After the game, I share some analysis of the critical lines and traps from both perspectives, inspired by the legendary IM Marc Esserman.
Analyze the game here: lichess.org/ThQhoeqc
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Eric Rosen
4579 Laclede Ave #205
St. Louis, MO 63108
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[@shutup881]

Your voice is weirdly soothing.

[@mortadahasaad530]

Tell that to botez

[@honest_bishop5905]

@@mortadahasaad530 thirst...

[@crypastesomemore8348]

He can put a coked up squirrel to sleep

[@danieldarnell8188]

10:26 "more like a smith morra gift" the casual trash talk gets me every time

[@KeithMascarenhas]

I enjoy these longer games Eric! Would love to see more of these. Keep up the great work!

[@nathaniellynch6542]

^

[@andrewkaplanc]

Same, blitz is hard to really follow

[@harshilsangal6226]

@@andrewkaplanc Classical also allows for more thought and greater depth, and is simply a nice change of pace from Eric's usual content

[@RenounceDarkness_]

Things I learned : Sicilian defense, counter against Sicilian defense, counter against counter against Sicilian defense

[@matthiasernst8633]

Moin! In the Year 1996 I played the Morragambit often in Tournaments, but I played the Grand Prix- Variation ( 4.f4!)

[@amarkanani2012]

I really enjoy watching you play the longer time controls, thank you for uploading this :)

[@garryjack6937]

"Taking f2 is like taking candy from a stranger" genius hahaha

[@joebrett3614]

Or is it "Giving candy to a baby?"

[@AyleidCraft]

Joe Brett giving candy to a baby is incredibly easy idiot

[@MeskDaKrull]

he said this about playing f6 :P

[@albertsanvura8039]

Woooow i felt proud when u Saïd an analysis that i was exactly thinking about

[@whisper3856]

I remember this one, very interesting. I wonder if Eric will show my game against him, cuz I got checkmated via castling lmao

[@_Crumpet]

Randomly woke up at 2am, ended up watching 40 minute Rosen video. Really enjoyed the longer time format :D

[@sheeperskipps]

Thanks for doing these! Man, I didn't know a bit of who you were when you made this but for the person you are today, you seem to make others happy. That's something.

[@AT-ye7te]

“Taking f2 is like taking candy from a stranger.” Love it.

[@Toggik]

Toggi emote is the best emote on twitch in 2020 😀

[@greysub924]

Yes eric! I have been waiting for a youtube video longer than 15min for a while now 😍

[@sillychinas]

The trap that Eric was showing in the morra in the beginning is called the Siberian trap btw

[@dumpstersauce4514]

Love ur shit! Mostly the recent stuff. Thanks for helping love chess.

[@toprak7976]

It is really hard to decide between Esserman's Morra and your Nc3 recommendation against Sicilian but still I love both.

[@remainconfident1]

Please post more and more longer videos too. 5-10 minute games are good enough. 20 minute game was agony....AGONY!!!

[@eugenek68]

totally soothing and calming.

[@Tombsar]

Thanks again, Toggi! MVP

[@buk1733]

Oh no! He lost a sub. Almost as bad as me loosing my queen! 😂

[@colwem]

Appreciate it, learned something.

[@Musicrafter12]

I wouldn't be surprised if white's game ended up being some kind of prepared variation. You don't just sac a knight like that unless you're literally Mikhail Tal. And this is one of those wild and crazy lines which is hard even for the engine to evaluate correctly.

[@woodys9841]

Hey Eric, can you please make a video about tactics in the stafford gambit? You love playing it and i would love to adopt it but there are no opening guides on the Stafford.

[@leadnitrate2194]

You madlad.. you predicted the Stafford apocalypse of 2020

[@lillcrumb]

I'm so happy to be a part of the end times

[@maximlejaeghere1730]

I am following your KZbin videos for quite a while. I already looked into Twitch, but I did not see you live so far. If I would subscribe somewhere it would be at your Twitch channel for sure! Maybe this year. Anyway thanks for all the great content and have a wonderful 2020.

[@jaredmitchell1324]

Little did Eric know the storm that would follow a few more months after this stream

[@PinkSoldierx]

“Maybe opponent will resign now” *opponent resigns* LMFAO

[@debabratalaik9296]

Let my fucking arrogant opinion

[@samcatsam]

yo, long plays! heck yeh Eric!

[@NamasteBbooktube]

Great content. I appreciate you taking the time to play longer time controls!

[@andreydidenko8352]

im a sicilian player myself and i like to play after white BC4 i play a6 and then b5 kicking the bishopp and then bb7

[@kevinperera131]

Hi Eric. After 8 ... Ng4, what would you do if 9. g3? wouldn't that end Black's attack?

[@al97093]

it seems you were playing Alex Kholpilov from Severodvinsk - the heart of the russian nuclear submarine fleet. Hope this will not trigger a diplomatic incident. :)

[@alanmccormick6911]

Eric, before playing the Siberian trap (Nf6-g4) you should have played a6. White should have played Nb5. After Qb8 e5!? Nxe5? Nxe5 Qxe5 Re1 +-. If instead of Nxe5 Ng4, then Bf4 +=.

[@bjornforsberg9239]

Around 24:00 in all these lines can't black just recapture on c8 with the knight should white sac the exchange? Am I missing something?

[@pieceofpecanpie]

Happy 2020!

[@collindruck4273]

Heya, I’m in the Edwardsville area and have recently taken up chess. How would I go about joining a st. Louis chess club?

[@Pablo360able]

I’m currently playing my first Smith-Morra in a daily game. It’s going well, mostly because my opponent hung the wrong pawn and lost a knight, then lost another knight for no reason I can figure out.

[@Pablo360able]

I think maybe they thought it was a trade, and missed that my bishop was guarded. Either way they shouldn’t have been careless with their own fianchettoed bishop, even if they were building up for a back rank battery with the queen and rook. Now I’m gonna have a passed pawn on the sixth rank escorted by a Tarrasch rook, up two (centralized) knights with equal pawns. It’s all cleanup from here.

[@jim3394]

"Taking f2 is like taking candy from a stranger" ~ Rosen, 2020 That is inspiring philosophy

[@jakobmersch3359]

Could someone explain to me why at 11:40 Queen D6 is not a move worth considering ? I am not trying to be cocky, I am just a beginner and I was wondering.. :D

[@mikegiordano6646]

Fishing Pole with 9. … h5 also!

[@smithapa4949]

is there any classical tournament on lichess please tell

[@isakzeljkovic]

2:27 that's ortodox christmas lol

[@ghotrix]

that is a Christmas on Julian calendar, not every orthodox Christians celebrate it using an outdated calendar

[@AT-ye7te]

How do I see live stream??

[@icarus106]

Eric your voice sounds like it should be on the Calm app. P.S. how about a shout-out for good karma in the next KZbin video? 🙌

[@mikeroll9868]

Thanks from a new player.

[@siLence-84]

I honestly didn't realize how strong of a player you were. I learn something from literally every video/game you post/play. Im getting back into chess after 20+ years (seriously trying to improve for the first time in my life), and admittedly ignorantly I thought IM was a scrub title after watching that video years ago of a fat young cocky 13 year old (sam scrubby or something) demolishing IM Greg Shahade. After that video I thought "OK i have nothing to learn from IMs other than how to lose to fat kids who slurp their caffeinated drinks to a sugar high, and would only watch videos from grandmasters. Im happy to say you've changed my opinion completely and I'm glad I found you.

[@pellythirteen5654]

I played the Morra-gambit during my entire amateur carriere so you might understand me not being pleased with the pleasure you seemed to enjoy in … destroying it.

[@ianmendham6671]

29:19 Didnt realise Eric lives in Area 51

[@aaronalexander2543]

This is scary chess.

[@madhuau3582]

Hello bro why can't oppent play pawn f2 to f3 while he was in check mate on next move that was queen to H2

[@Laola97]

Isn't there a free pawn for like 5-7 moves or am I crazy?

[@_vblax]

I have a question. At move 12 (can say it's at 12:00) why Qd6 is a bad move and Eric didn't even consider it? Edit: is it the bf4 threat?

[@Life-Sky]

It solves the same issue but with more cons. 1- Doesn't help with checkmate or trade. 2- Blocks light bishop forever (you can't even get out a good square in b7) 3-White can continue developing an attack, while the other variations was either winning material in a crazy line or slowly trading.

[@_vblax]

@@Life-Sky thanks a lot!

[@janmejayadehury8691]

Why you are not streaming here, i mean in youtube 😓

[@AshokKumar-dx4zz]

Nice

[@mrturtlesaurus]

Nice.

[@darkfury6113]

4:01 - oh no, my mouth

[@isaacgonzalez7909]

At 11:00, why not Qd6?

[@asetr3w45]

that guy got crushed

[@biscuitfn5204]

8:16 if king goes to h1, then black could have just taken h2 with queen for checkmate, right?

[@josephahearn5121]

I thought about that move too but the knight on f3 is defending h2

[@biscuitfn5204]

Joseph A'Hearn oh. I see it now, thanks!

[@biscuitfn5204]

CyrusTheGlitcher Thanks!

[@conz2078]

love you

[@V8SupersQirreL]

Taking on f2 is like taking Candy from a stranger it might be a greek candy?!

[@monte2413]

3:58 Oh No My Lips

[@RedBar_S]

"Its 2020" feelsbadman

[@stylebender9791]

Eric can I give you a pawn hug?

[@_pink_clovers]

ok im literally rated like 420 so this might be extremely stupid but at around 26 minutes, couldn't he skewer the queen and the rook with his bishop supported by the knight

[@_pink_clovers]

OH SHIT HE SAW IT I FEEL SO SMART

[@SahnigReingeloetet]

Rxe5 is in his book.

[@R0llingHard]

Who is toggi? I've been in the chat but I don't get it

[@leadnitrate2194]

Toggi is a mod on Eric's twitch channel and donates to him a lot

[@moeman1933]

Why does the time go up

[@shutup881]

What does he get in winning this tournament?

[@stupidcat9065]

$999000

[@MostLikelyMortal]

Pride of your accomplishment - nothing more, nothing less

[@kevinnick6475]

Hahaha the look of your face on the thumbnail

[@jakethesnake17]

Love your hairline Eric. Rocking the Batman look!

[@leedsmanc]

John "Ghost John" Ghost

[@tincuptan]

Who is taggi..?

[@francoispitre6292]

White clearly missplayed this...they had to play d6 followed by Rac1 after black f6

[@koty4558]

Little did he know...

[@macaroniorjustmac8727]

Siberian trap

[@user-un-known]

Who in the world is Tagi??🙈 I can't concentrate on board, too distracted thinking about this Tagi thing/fellow😂

[@ImprovePath]

Who is toggie ???

[@victorialewin5292]

Top 313 to watch

[@MrBennyC178]

Im new here, is this chess?

[@MordimersChessChannel]

Technically it should be called new decade, except you believe that first decade had only 9 years ;)

[@gabororban7865]

1.1.2020 is not the beginning of a new decade but the beginning of the last year of the recent one - except when we start to count the years with zero.

[@jonathanryals9934]

The first year was 1 not 0, so the decade doesn't start until 2021.

[@Bgraham0189]

DEC 3 2020

[@bazza2974]

Eric, could you make some videos specifically for KZbin rather than clipping twitch streams? You have around 20k followers on twitch (I think) and 60k subscribers on KZbin.

[@ilikecommenting6849]

It’s easy to see why most of his attention is directed towards twitch. It’s much more engaging as he’s talking to followers in real-time. Also, streaming on twitch induces donations and subscribers (worth $5 each). Plus, he can clip his twitch stream and grow his youtube following passively. Twitch is just so much more value from a creator perspective. Edit: btw, I’m curious. Why would you like videos specifically for youtube? What ‘twitchvideo’ aspect could you do without?

[@lebumbcrack7248]

@@ilikecommenting6849 i agree and understand this comment but i feel that Eric can be stream sniped in a sense? Recording off camera he can talk more about what hes thinking or what his opponent would play etc He does it a fair bit already but i did note he said in the video about not mentioning incase his opponent was listening Just my 2 cents

[@sawekk1429]

2020 is not a start of new decade. Recent decade started Jan 1st 2011 and ends 2020 Dec 31st.

[@brianjacob8728]

Not the new decade. There was no Year Zero.

[@Tombsar]

Technically correct. The best kind of correct!

[@ShadowGamer-ex4tj]

He should make a song Ohhhhhhh It’s a mess It’s a mess Oh how I love to play chess It’s a mess It’s a mess I’ll beat everyone on lichess

[@samrangdale8971]

Cringe

[@ianallen738]

Your audio is all over the place on this video, Eric.

[@cannastartover1720]

When you burn your mouth, It reminds me why I don't drink hot drinks. Drink that's not ready for me I'm not ready for it

[@hopsterlynongkhlaw1217]

Mr Eric please reply to my comments, regarding nasty queen sacrifice play by Magnus Carlsen

[@SahilDawka]

do you like 3blue1brown?

[@leadnitrate2194]

Eric did say he likes maths

[@kenthomson9562]

Anyone else think toggi’s creepy and stalkery?

[@AJcheste]

The before time...

[@kevinvoson]

Ayeee

[@manichounds]

Yeah, big opening fail by white. Refuting Siberian line is job one for Morra player.

[@0004332]

Qd6 anyone?

[@omaraljanaideh1555]

first

[@agusbenzaenuri5881]

Because you made a short content, I am starting to leave you Chanel. I like your previous year Chanel, streaming up to 2 or 3 hours.

[@diabl2master]

Too long 😪