Stefan Levitsky vs Frank Marshall (1912) The Gold Coin Game

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Stefan Levitsky vs Frank Marshall
"The Gold Coin Game" (game of the day Jul-25-2012)
18th DSB Congress, Breslau (1912), Breslau GER, rd 6, Jul-20
Sicilian Defense: Marshall Gambit (B23) · 0-1

ANALYSIS [x]

FEN COPIED

Given 87 times; par: 35 [what's this?]

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May-12-15		tanu123: very very very beautiful!!!!!!!!

Jun-28-15		Ferari: 23...Qg3 is a cute move, but the move is way over-rated. Black also has other wins, such as 23...Qe3. Black can also win by interposing the move order with 23...Ne2+, 24. Kh1 and then 24...Qg3. Also, black can even win in a boring fashion with 23...Qb2, 24.Rc7 Ne2+, 25. Kh1 Rh6, 26. c3 Rg6 etc. Black is up a whole piece, and white has zero compensation!

Jun-29-15		Ferari: Actually the interposition of 23...Ne2+ only leads to a small advantage for black. However, black actually has no less than (5) clear wins, from the key position after 23.Rc5. Black easily wins, with a piece up, with either 23...Qe3, 23...Qb2, 23...Qa3, 23...Qb4, or Marshall's pretty move 23...Qg3! A pretty move, but not a great problem, since black is a piece up, and has (5) clear, and easy ways to win.

Feb-29-16		socratos: what a finish that is. wonderful!

Mar-26-16		SimplicityRichard: A brilliant move that perhaps inspired another: (Nicolas Rossolimo v. Paul Reissmann 1967).#

May-30-16		thegoodanarchist: Black's knight on d4 is one of the most well-placed knights in the lore of chess, it seems.

Nov-27-16		The Kings Domain: Astonishing game. This is probably the only game in the history of Chess where an unexpected move could be so final and decisive where the losing side has several options to consider all leading nowhere.

Nov-27-16		Howard: That statement is rather debatable, in my view. There are many other games where the winning move was comparable to that one. Not only that, wouldn't 24...Ne2+ have also won, too? Either move wins-it's largely a matter of taste. Karpov, no doubt, would have played the simplier move.

Dec-17-16		kamalakanta: Here is another game that has a similar Queen move to end the game! Bronstein vs Geller, 1961

Mar-28-19		Sally Simpson: * Horowitz liked this game. In his 1958 book 'All about Chess' which is a collection taken from his chess column in the Saturday Review he gives this game twice (pages 63 and 150) In both cases Horowitz adds that Marshall's wife. Caroline, debunks the shower of gold story. *

Dec-18-19		Chesgambit: Qh5?? black to play and forse varition

Dec-19-19		Chesgambit: knight + rook windmill

Feb-17-20		dinkstover: nice game!

Apr-05-20		MordimerChess: Frank Marshall: "Perhaps you have heard about this game, which so excited the spectators that they 'showered me with gold pieces!' I have often been asked whether this really happened. The answer is - yes, that is what happened, literally." It's also interesting how Frank Marshall play Sicilian Defense against 1. d4 hahahaha :D Improvements: 10. Na4 Qa5 11. b3 Ne4 12. Bxe7 Nxe7 13. Bd3 Nxc5 14. Nxc5 Qxc5 ⩲ 16. a3 Ba5 17. Ne4 Bxd 21 8. Nxd6 Re7 19. g3 = 20.Qe4 Rf4 21. Qe5 Qc4 22. Rd7 Ne2+ 23. Kh1 Ng3+ 24. hxg3 Qxf1+ 25. Kh2 Rf6 26. Qc7 Rg6 ∞ My video-analysis: https://youtu.be/FjByjyOwCy8 Enjoy the game and thanks for support.

Jul-01-20		Bishoprick: You might want to look at Nicolas Rossolimo vs Paul Reissmann. Before Reisman's resignation, Rossolimo leaves his queen "en prise" three different ways, any of which will lead to Reisman being mated.

Sep-28-20		Chesgambit: 23...Qf3?? Rc7

Dec-11-20		Justin796: Black is already up a piece...Qg3 accomplishes what exactly...queen and rook trades according to the engine lines...although I wouldnt see a GM defending any other way.

Apr-03-21		FSR: 24.Qe5 Nf3+ would have added to the picturesqueness.

Jan-03-22		N.O.F. NAJDORF: By a strange coincidence, I was considering that variation for the first time just before reading your comment, and noticed that 24 ... Ne2+ wins just as quickly. I don't want to take anything away from Marshall, but even if he had not spotted 23 ... Qg3, he would have won easily by: 23...Qa3 24. Rc7 Ne2+ 25. Kh1 Rxh2+ 26. Kxh2 Qd6+ with an extra pawn compared with the result of the variation actually played.

Jan-24-22		Stonehenge: Photo: https://learningchess.net/blog/wp-c...

Aug-24-23		EvanTheTerrible: What do you even do at the board when your opponent plays a move like this?

Jul-28-24		probium: 23... Qg3!! is iconic for a golden coin shower and for good reason. But we must not let slip the first blow made by Marshall - 22... Rxh3!! Directly preceding the queen sac is a rook sac that you must not accept, otherwise you fall victim to a knight fork that targets the king, queen and rook. Most likely, you will lose your queen. After 23. Rc5 there are some alternate moves such as 23... Ne2+, which also results in checkmate similarly to 23... Qg3!!. If one is to ask why the move 23... Qg3!! is overrated, it is not because it has been repeated a few times but because of the move that precipitated it - 22... Rxh3!!. This deserves two exclamation marks, not one.

Jul-28-24		Granny O Doul: Possibly Frank denied the gold coins story to Carrie because he spent all the money in a wild night on the town.

Jul-28-24		perfidious: 'Wild night in Breslau'? Hard to imagine.

Aug-24-24		Sally Simpson: Thanks to this game Nepomniachtchi vs Giri, 2024 I am back going though Marshall's games looking for a Qh1-a8 move. Always a pleasant experience revisiting Marshall. Played over half-a-dozen games. Pure joy. I never went over this game, I've done that more times than I can remember but I re-read the last comment about the gold coins. "I have often been asked whether this really happened. The answer is - yes, that is what happened, literally." 'Marshall's 'My 50 Years of Chess' almost certainly ghost written by Reinfeld with Marshall's memories tagged on https://www.chesshistory.com/winter... and we know the shower of gold coins never happened. I now see 'literally' as every time someone praises this game in print then that is another gold coin dropped on the board..literally. A wonderful game - ching, yet another gold coin.

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