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Arcade MateRound 06

Levy's Best Game

GothamChess calls it the best game he ever played. A king walks from g1 to c2, straight into a mating net.

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Levy's Best Game: the video's coverPress start

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PeruEmilio CórdovaK.O. · material 25/39
United StatesLevy RozmanWins · material 25/39
White
Emilio CórdovaGrandmaster from Peru, rated 2624. Age 26.
Black
Levy RozmanGothamChess. Rated 2417. Age 22.
Event
World Open, round 5
Place
Philadelphia, USA
Date
6 July 2018
Opening
Réti Opening, Navara Gambit (A09)
Result
0-1White resigned, facing a forced mate, 32 moves
Video
2:54Published 11 November 2026

The story

Philadelphia, 6 July 2018, round 5 of the World Open. Levy Rozman is 22 and rated 2417. His opponent, Emilio Córdova of Peru, is a grandmaster rated 2624, more than 200 points above him. They have met before: two years earlier Levy lost a six-hour game to him in a time scramble. In his notes he writes that "revenge is always nice".

With Black, Levy offers a pawn on move 3: 3...g5, the Navara Gambit. According to his notes, Córdova thought for 48 minutes over the reply.

The black king cannot castle, so the rook comes out another way. 15...h5 is, in Levy's words, one of his favourite moves ever, and 16...Rh6 lifts the last sleeping piece into the attack.

On move 22 the white king takes its first step, 22.Kf2, and that is the losing move: only 22.Bc1 held, and both players missed it. Córdova gives up a rook for a knight to slow the attack. Levy gives one back with 27...Rxf5, and his queen comes in on h2.

The king keeps walking: g1, f2, e2, d1, c2, across the whole board. On c2 it walks into the net. 32...Bc6 threatens mate on a4, every one of White's 23 replies loses, and Córdova resigned.

Two years later Levy made a video about the game. Its title: "The Best Chess Game I Ever Played".

Key moments

Frames from the video, one for each turning point.

  1. 3...g5 in the video: the navara gambit

    3...g5!?

    The Navara Gambit

    A pawn offered on move 3. By Levy's notes, Córdova spent 48 minutes on his reply.

  2. 16...Rh6 in the video: the rook lift

    16...Rh6

    The rook lift

    The king cannot castle, so the rook leaves the back rank through the h-file.

  3. 22.Kf2 in the video: the king steps out

    22.Kf2?

    The king steps out

    The losing move, and the first step of a long walk. Only 22.Bc1 held.

  4. 27...Rxf5 in the video: the exchange sacrifice

    27...Rxf5!!

    The exchange sacrifice

    A rook for a knight. One move later the black queen lands on h2.

  5. 32...Bc6 in the video: córdova resigns

    32...Bc6!

    Córdova resigns

    The threat is 33...Ba4 mate. Of White's 23 replies, 18 allow mate in one.

Questions

Who won Córdova vs Rozman, 2018?

Levy Rozman won with the black pieces. White resigned, facing a forced mate, on move 32.

Why is it called Levy's best game?

Because Levy Rozman (GothamChess) says so himself: in 2020 he made a video about it called "The Best Chess Game I Ever Played". He beat Emilio Córdova, a grandmaster rated more than 200 points above him.

What was the key move of Levy's best game?

The game turns on 22.Kf2, White's losing move (only 22.Bc1 held). The white king then walks from g1 to c2, and 32...Bc6 threatens mate on a4: every one of White's 23 replies loses, and Córdova resigned.

Was it a perfect game?

Not quite, and Levy says so himself: he calls his own 20...Kg8 "completely unnecessary and too slow". Córdova was not checkmated either: he resigned with mate threatened. The 48 minutes Córdova spent on one move comes from Levy's own notes.

How long was Córdova vs Rozman, 2018, and what opening was played?

32 moves. The opening was the Réti Opening, Navara Gambit (A09). Played: World Open, round 5, Philadelphia, USA, 6 July 2018.

Command list

Córdova vs Rozman · 32 moves · 0-1

Download
  1. 1.Nf3d5
  2. 2.c4d4
  3. 3.b4g5!?
  4. 4.Qa4+c6
  5. 5.Qb3Bg7
  6. 6.Nxg5e5
  7. 7.Qg3Qe7
  8. 8.Ne4Kf8
  9. 9.b5Nd7
  10. 10.bxc6bxc6
  11. 11.Ba3c5
  12. 12.Qf3Bb7
  13. 13.e3Ngf6
  14. 14.Bd3Rc8
  15. 15.O-Oh5!
  16. 16.Qf5Rh6
  17. 17.f3Rc6
  18. 18.Qh3h4
  19. 19.Nxf6Nxf6
  20. 20.Bf5Kg8
  21. 21.exd4exd4
  22. 22.Kf2?Rh5
  23. 23.Re1Qd6
  24. 24.d3Bh6!
  25. 25.Re4Nxe4+
  26. 26.fxe4Qe5
  27. 27.Ke2Rxf5!!
  28. 28.Qxf5Qxh2
  29. 29.Qh3Qf4
  30. 30.Qf3Qg5
  31. 31.Kd1Rb6
  32. 32.Kc2Bc6!
The PGN file
[Event "World Open 2018"]
[Site "Philadelphia, PA USA"]
[Date "2018.07.06"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Cordova, Emilio"]
[Black "Rozman, Levy"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A09"]
[WhiteElo "2624"]
[BlackElo "2417"]
[PlyCount "64"]
[Source "chessgames.com gid 2119602 (annotations by Levy Rozman); the same score in the description of GothamChess, The Best Chess Game I Ever Played (YouTube hF9NYZrNjD0, 2020-09-21)"]

1. Nf3 d5 2. c4 d4 3. b4 g5 4. Qa4+ c6 5. Qb3 Bg7 6. Nxg5 e5 7. Qg3 Qe7 8. Ne4 Kf8 9. b5 Nd7 10. bxc6 bxc6 11. Ba3 c5 12. Qf3 Bb7 13. e3 Ngf6 14. Bd3 Rc8 15. O-O h5 16. Qf5 Rh6 17. f3 Rc6 18. Qh3 h4 19. Nxf6 Nxf6 20. Bf5 Kg8 21. exd4 exd4 22. Kf2 Rh5 23. Re1 Qd6 24. d3 Bh6 25. Re4 Nxe4+ 26. fxe4 Qe5 27. Ke2 Rxf5 28. Qxf5 Qxh2 29. Qh3 Qf4 30. Qf3 Qg5 31. Kd1 Rb6 32. Kc2 Bc6 0-1

What we checked

Every caption in the video was checked against the sources. Some well-known stories did not survive.

  • Córdova was checkmated.

    He resigned after 32...Bc6, with no mate on the board. The threat was 33...Ba4 mate. All 23 of White's legal replies were checked: each loses to a forced mate, 18 of them in one move, and the longest defence, 33.Kd1, lasts seven. The video shows the mate as the threat, after the resignation.

  • 13.e3 was too slow, and it lost the game.

    Levy's notes call it too slow. The engine sees only a small slip there. White's real mistakes came later: 17.f3, and then 22.Kf2, the losing move.

  • A perfect attack.

    Not quite, and Levy says so himself: he calls his own 20...Kg8 "completely unnecessary and too slow". One move later White could still have held with 22.Bc1.

  • 48 minutes on one move.

    This comes from Levy's own annotations of the game. No clock record of the game was found to check it against, so the video gives it as his note.

  • International Master Levy Rozman.

    He earned the title in 2018, but no source gives the date, and the game was played in July. The video's player card shows his rating and age and no title.

Credits

  • Photos: Emilio Córdova by Andreas Kontokanis (CC BY-SA 2.0), cropped and cut out, via Wikimedia Commons. Levy Rozman by Piaras Ó Mídheach / Collision via Sportsfile (CC BY 2.0), cropped and cut out, via Wikimedia Commons.
  • Music and voices: original.

Sources

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