My opponent in this game was Steven Shaw, a former New Yorker living in Hialeah, Florida. He carries on a lively conversation during the game, which I appreciate. He remarked that in his youth, he was asked by Al Horowitz to be "mail chess editor" of Chess Review. He declined, since graduate studies were pressing at the time.

1.e4 e5 2.f4 exf4 3.Nf3 d5 4.exd5 Nf6 5.Bc4

This has been championed by Gallagher, but interest in it seems to be waning. There are some other ideas that the player of the Black pieces also needs to be familiar with:

5.c4 c6

A. 6.dxc6 Nxc6 7.d4 Bg4

A1. 8.Be2 Bb4+ 9.Nc3 (9.Bd2 Ne4 10.Bxb4 Bxf3 11.Bxf3 Qh4+ 12.g3 fxg3) 9...Ne4 with good play for Black;

A2. 8.Bxf4 Bb4+ 9.Nc3 (9.Kf2 Ne4+ 10.Kg1 Nxd4!) 9...Bxf3 10.Qxf3 Qxd4 and Black is doing well;

A3. 8.d5 8...Bxf3 9.gxf3 (9.Qxf3 Ne5 10.Qxf4 Bd6 is good for Black) 9...Bb4+ 10.Bd2 0-0! 11.dxc6 Re8+ 12.Be2 Ne4 and Black's attack is crushing;

B. 6.Nc3!? A move recommended by Alexander Bangiev in his book, Das Angenommene Koenigsgambit, Drier 1996. 6...cxd5 7.cxd5 Nxd5 8.Bb5+ Nc6 9.Qa4

Analysis position after 9. Qa4

9...Qe7+ (9...Qd6 is also good).

B1. Bangiev gives 10.Kd1 and claims a significant advantage for White without further analysis. But the king is obviously misplaced on d1, and White's play for advantage is difficult to see. 10...Qd6 and now:

B1a. 11.Re1+ Ne3+ 12.Ke2 Nxg2 13.Rg1 Bh3 14.Kf2 Be7 15.Rxg2 (15.Bf1 Nh4 16.Bxh3 Nxf3 17.Kxf3 Qd3+ 18.Kg2 f3+ with a win for Black, is a fanciful line) 15...Bxg2 16.Kxg2 0-0 favors Black because of his better development and his opponent's problem with king safety;

B1b. 11.Ne4 Qg6 12.Ne5 (12.Re1 Be7 13.Ne5 Qh5+ 14.Re2 0-0 with a significant advantage to Black) 12...Qh5+ 13.Nf3 Bd7 and Black is better;

B1c. 11.Nxd5 11...Qxd5 12.Re1+ Be7 13.Re5 (13.Ne5 Qxg2 favors Black) 13...Qd6 and Black is a slightly better;

B2. 10.Kf2! (a thematic response to ...Qe7+ in the King's Gambit) 10...Qd6

B2a. 11.Re1+ Be6 (not 11...Be7?! 12.Qd4) 12.Nxd5 Qxd5 13.d4 Be7;

B2b. 11.Nxd5 Qxd5 12.d4 Be7! (12...Bd6 13.Re1+ Be6 14.Bc4 is excellent for White) 13.Bxf4 Be6 followed soon by ...O-O and Black is slightly better, since White can play Bxc6 only at the expense of the two bishops;

C. 6.d4 Bb4+! (6...cxd5?! 7.c5) 7.Nc3 cxd5 8.Bxf4 0-0 9.Be2 dxc4 (9...Nc6 10.0-0 Bf5 11.Re1) 10.Bxc4 (10.0-0?! Bxc3 11.bxc3 Nd5) 10...Re8+ 11.Be5 Nc6 12.0-0 Nxe5 13.Nxe5 (13.dxe5 Qxd1 14.Raxd1 Ng4 15.Ng5 Be6 is good for Black) 13...Be6 and Black stands well enough;

5.Nc3 Nxd5 6.Nxd5 Qxd5 7.d4 Be7! 8.c4 (quiet moves allow ...g5) 8...Qe4+ 9.Kf2 Bf5!

A. 10.Qa4+ Nc6 11.Bd2 0-0-0 12.Re1 Qc2 13.Qxc2 Bxc2 14.Bxf4 Rhe8 with equality;

B. 10.c5 Nc6 11.Bb5 (11.Bc4 0-0-0 12.Re1 Qc2+ 13.Qxc2 Bxc2 14.Bxf4 Bf6 with some advantage to Black based on his better pawn structure) 11...Qd5! (11...0-0-0? 12.Re1 drops a piece) 12.Bxf4 (12.Re1 Be4 13.Qe2 f5 14.Bxf4 0-0-0 15.Be3 Bf6 and Black is least equal ) 12...0-0-0 13.Be3 Bf6 is good for Black;

C. 10.Be2 Nc6 11.Re1 0-0-0 12.Bf1 Qc2+ 13.Qxc2 Bxc2 14.Bxf4 Rhe8 with equality;

5.Bb5+ see Martinovsky-Morss.

5...Nxd5 6.0-0

6.Bxd5 Qxd5 7.Nc3 Qf5 8.Qe2+ Be7 9.d4 c6 10.0-0 (10.d5!? cxd5 11.Nd4 Qg4 warrants further examination, but I doubt that Black will be found to be worse) 10...Be6 11.Ne5 g5! 12.g3 Nd7 "and the white king position becomes vulnerable in the end." Kallai.

6...Be7 7.d4

7.Bxd5 Qxd5 8.d4 0-0 (8...g5!? 9.Nc3 Qd8 is unclear) 9.Bxf4 c6! 10.Nc3 Qd8 Here Gallagher prefers White, and McDonald says that Black, with best play, should be able to equalize.

7...Be6 8.Qe2

"Plans with Bb3 and c4 are not so effective when White has already played d4 as Black will be able to answer c4 with ...Ne3." Gallagher.

8...0-0 9.Nc3 Nc6

9...Nxc3. At the time the game was played, I was referring mainly to GM Joe Gallagher's book, Winning with the King's Gambit, Henry Holt 1993. There he says that 10.bxc3 Bxc4 11.Qxc4 Bd6 12.Qb5 b6 13.Ng5 is better for White.

Analysis position after 13. Ng5

This point was debated in Van der Sterren-Gallagher, San Bernardino, 1992: 13...Qe7! 14.Qf5 (14.Bxf4 Bxf4 15.Rxf4 Qe3+ 16.Rf2 c5! 17.Nf3 Qxc3 as given by McDonald in his excellent work, The King's Gambit, Batsford 1998, favors Black.) 14...g6 15.Qg4 h5 16.Qh4 f6 17.Nf3 Nd7 18.Bxf4 g5 19.Bxd6 Qe3+ 20.Qf2 Qxf2+ 21.Rxf2 cxd6 and McDonald opines that "the ending is clearly better for Black in view of the serious weakness of the c-pawns."

10.Nxd5

10.Ne4 Re8! 11.Bb3 Bf6! "and it is White who must fight for equality." Kallai.

10...Bxd5 11.Bxd5 Qxd5 12.Bxf4 Bd6 13.Bxd6?

White walks into a notable book error (Gallagher's) which was repeated in one of those SI Editrice publications that are so dreadfully unoriginal. It was even repeated by Bangiev. 13.c4? Nxd4 is remarked upon by Gallagher.

13...Nxd4

My opponent wrote, "15... Nxd4 is a neat finesse! One of us should inform Gallagher of the mistake for his next revision? 13. Qd2 would have been better."

Yes, but I never informed Gallagher. By now, I suppose, he must be aware of his mistake. Gallagher envisioned 13...Qxd6 14.c3 with a slight advantage for White in his queenside pawn majority.

14.Qd3 Nxf3+ 15.Rxf3 Qxd6 16.Qxd6 cxd6

Now instead of White having a slight advantage, Black does. If White takes the time to win d-pawn, Black can penetrate White's position with his rooks.

17.Rd1 Rac8

Game position after 17...Rac8

18.Rxd6

I believe White's drawing chances would have been somewhat greater with 18.c3 Rfd8 19.Rfd3 Rc6 since it gives White a little plus in piece activity that partly makes up for the pawn.

18...Rxc2 19.Rb3

White plays actively. The less active 19.Rf2 Rc7 20.Rfd2 g6 21.Rd7 Rfc8 is not particularly hopeful for White.

19...b6 20.Rd7 g6 21.h3

21.h4 allows Black to make the h-pawn a target: 21...Re8 22.Rxa7 Ree2 23.Rg3 Rxb2 24.a3 Rb1+ 25.Kh2 Re4 26.Rh3 (26.h5 Rh4+ 27.Rh3 Rxh3+ 28.Kxh3 Rh1+ also favors Black) 26...h5 is good for Black.

21...Re8 22.Rxa7 Ree2 23.Rg3 Rxb2 24.a3

The pawn is less vulnerable here than it would be on a4.

Game position after 24. a3

24.a4 Ra2 looks good for Black.

24...Kf8?!

It is somewhat difficult to understand why I played this. I believe that I was thinking about playing ...Re7, but that would have been a bad plan, since Black's main strength is his more active pair of rooks. Better, as I look at the position now, seems the immediate 24...h5! 25.h4 (25.Rf3? Rxg2+ 26.Kf1 Rgc2 27.Re7 f5; 25.Kf1 Ra2 intending ...Reb2 ; 25.Kh2 h4) 25...Rb1+ 26.Kh2 Re4 27.Rf3 (27.Rh3 Rg4) 27...Rxh4+ 28.Kg3 Rg4+ 29.Kh2 Rb2 and Black has a substantial advantage.

25.Kh1?!

He should have played 25.Kh2 so as to be able to meet 25...h5 with 26.h4. Black's win would have been more difficult in that case.

25...Rf2

Black protects the f-file. Worse is 25...h5 26.Rf3 with counterplay for White.

26.Rb7 h5

Finally!

27.a4

27.h4 Rb1+ 28.Kh2 Rf4 29.Rh3 Rb2 is great for Black.

27...h4 28.Rf3

28.Rg4 g5 29.Rb8+ (29.Rxg5? Rb1+ 30.Kh2 Rff1) 29...Ke7 with a substantial advantage.

28...Rxf3 29.gxf3 Rf2 30.Rxb6 Rxf3

White must now defend the h-pawn. If it falls, Black's king and pawns escort each other up the board while his rook keeps the a-pawn under observation from a3.

31.Kg2 Rg3+

A finesse that ensures that White's king will hemmed in on first rank.

32.Kh2 Ra3 33.Rb4 Ra2+ 34.Kg1 g5 35.Kf1 f6!

One of Shereshevsky's endgame principles is "do not hurry." Black prepares the march of his king by first strengthening his pawns. White can only sit and wait.

36.Kg1 Kf7 37.Rc4 Ke6 38.Rd4

Eventually the same is 38.Rb4 f5

38...Ke5 39.Rc4 f5 40.Rb4 Kd5

White's rook is out of moves on the 4th rank, so he must let Black's king cross the line.

41.Rb5+ Ke4 42.Rb4+

42.a5 g4 43.hxg4 (43.Rb4+ Kf3 44.Rb3+ Kf4 45.Rb4+ Kg5 and Black is winning) 43...fxg4 44.Rb4+ Kf3 45.Rb3+ Ke2 46.Rb4 g3 47.Kg2 (47.Rxh4 Kf3 with checkmate soon) 47...Ke3+ and Black wins.

42...Kf3 43.Rb3+ Ke2 44.Rb5 f4 45.a5

45.Rxg5 Rxa4 and the f-pawn queens soon enough.

45...Ra1+ 46.Kh2 f3 47.Rb2+ Ke1 48.Kg1 Rxa5

The win is now quite easy.

49.Rb1+ Ke2 50.Rb2+ Ke3 51.Rb3+ Kf4 52.Rb4+ Kf5?

Idiotic when you look at in on a correctly set-up board, but when I hauled out the pieces and set up the game-position, I put Shaw's king on h2! There's a lesson there for correspondence players! Fortunately, there is still a win.

53.Kf2 Ra2+ 54.Kxf3 Rh2 55.Rb5+ Kg6 0-1

I shall remember this game not the least for Shaw's cards, which were type-written, and were redolent of the ink of the ribbons of those antique machines. "Aroma engenders memory," they say, and it did indeed bring back nights I spent hunched over my Olivetti when I was at William and Mary.