Wacky Wednesday: Philidor Kerfuffle

Wacky Wednesday always rolls around sooner than expected, and with it comes pressure to find a suitably goofy game for the occasion. This week I didn’t have time to root around in my database, so I went online and played some two-minute bullet games in the hope of getting something fresh. It’s a high-percentage strategy for producing weird games, since as likely as not I will blunder idiotically and lose quickly under such absurd time controls, or, with any luck, some hapless opponent will do so first.

Mirabile dictu, this time it was the latter.

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 Bg4 4.dxe5 Bxf3 5.Qxf3 f6 6.exd6 Qxd6 7.Qd3
Not the best move, I’m sure, though it’s a developing move for me if we exchange queens (8. Qxd3 Bxd3), and if Black doesn’t take the bait we stare down each other with delicious “tension” in the position.

7. . . . Qc5 8.Be3 Qe5 9.Nc3 Nc6 10.Nd5 O-O-O 11.O-O-O Nb4 12.Qd4 Qe6
This person really doesn’t want to exchange queens. What brilliant tactical maneuver does he have in mind for his?

13.Qxa7 Qe5 14.Bb5
I can’t honestly claim that this move was part of my ultimate mating attack. Here I just wanted to develop the bishop and unite the rooks.

14. . . . Qxb2+
I don’t know much about chess, but this doesn’t strike me as very good move. Did Black think his queen was protected here? I’ve made that mistake.

15.Kxb2 Nxd5 16.Qa8# 1-0