Gelfand, B. – Rapport, R.

2777 2014 · Black wins (resignation, time or agreement)

Budapest Gambit, 2014: Rapport (2691) hands the pawn back early against Gelfand (2777) but keeps the freer piece play. Once the queens come off, the rook-and-knight versus bishop ending tilts clearly his way, and the accuracy figures agree: 92% for Black, 87% for White. Two moments slow the conversion. At move 39, 39...Rh2 gives back part of the edge, from −4.6 to −2.5, and at move 50, 50...Kg4 drops the evaluation again, from −2.9 to −1.1. Rapport still brings it home, 0-1. The takeaway for club players: a winning endgame is not self-playing — sloppy moves return ground you already earned.