Chess Room Newsletter #445

Alex Yermolinsky

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1) Mechanics Institute Chess Club News
2) Hikaru Nakamura wins US Championship
3) Remembering Igor Ivanov
4) The Last Exit by Dennis Fritzinger
5) 2009 Continental Chess Championship of the Americas by Beatriz Marinello
6) Places to Play in the South Bay

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Congratulations to 13-year-old MI member Daniel Naroditsky who turned in a fine result in the World's Youth Stars event in Kirishi, Russia. Daniel, who was one of the lower rated participants going into the competition with a FIDE rating of 2335 scored 6 from 11 for a performance rating of 2406. Daniel's score belies the eventfulness of the tournament. He started off well scoring two and a half points from his first three games before castling queenside. Daniel then showed excellent character by not losing another game in the event, closing with three and a half from five against the higher rated players in the competition.

Here is a nice win by Daniel in a line he normally plays as Black. 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.Nf3 0-0 6.Be2 Na6 7.0-0 e5 8.Be3 Ng4 9.Bg5 Qe8 10.c5 exd4 11.Nd5 Nxc5 12.Nxc7 Qxe4 13.Bc4 Rb8 14.Re1 Qf5 15.Be7 Ne5 16.Nxd4 Qf4 17.Nd5 Qh6 18.Be2 Be6 19.Bxf8 Rxf8 20.Ne3 Qf4 21.Nxe6 fxe6 22.Rf1 h5 23.g3 Qe4 24.Qxd6 Ned3 25.Bxd3 Nxd3 26.Rad1 Ne5 27.Qxe6+ Kh7 28.Qd5 Nf3+ 29.Kh1 Qb4 30.Qc4 Qxb2 31.Qb3 Qf6 32.Qxb7 Qe6 33.Rd7 Kh6 34.Rxg7 Qh3 35.Ng4+ Qxg4 36.Rh7+ Kg5 37.Qe7+ 1-0 The United States Chess Federation has announced that the following players from Northern California and MI Chess Club regulars have qualified to participate in the 2009 World Youth Chess Championship to be held in Antalya, Turkey from November 11 – 23.

BOYS UNDER 18
SAMUEL SHANKLAND

BOYS UNDER 14
DANIEL NARODITSKY
GREGORY YOUNG

BOYS UNDER 12
YIAN LIOU

BOYS UNDER 10
SAMUEL SEVIAN

BOYS UNDER 8
TANUJ VASUDEVA

GIRLS UNDER 8
ALISHA CHAWLA

Thanks to Colin Ma for more generous chess book donations including several Quality Chess titles. The thoughtfulness of MI members like Colin and money set aside by the Mechanics' Library each year allow the Institute to acquire all new chess books by publishers like Gambit, Everyman, Quality Chess and Batsford. Access to an up-to-date chess library of over 1500 volumes is yet another reason why all Bay Area chess players should be members of the Mechanics'. As an added bonus the library also subscribes to Chess, BCM and New in Chess.

Congratulations to MI member IM Walter Shipman who shared top honors in the Berkeley Open last weekend at 3-1 with Arjoe Loanzon, Jim Heiserman, Paul Gallegos and Zach Han. The event, organized and directed by Richard Koepcke, fell short of the hoped for 80 entries but with 64 players was well up from last year's debut with 30. The venue, the Hillside School, home of the Berkeley Chess School, is proving to be a fine site for tournaments in nice weather with excellent natural lighting.

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Congratulations to Hikaru Nakamura who won the US Championship for the second time by scoring an undefeated 7 from 9, good for $40,000. his FIDE performance rating was 2807!! Tying for second at 6.5 in the 24 player event held at the St. Louis Chess Club were Alex Onischuk and one of the revelations of the event, 17-year-old GM-elect Robert Hess ( FIDE PR of 2789!). The list of top finishers was completed by top-seed Gata Kamsky ( also undefeated) and Varuzhan Akobian who ended the event with 6 points. That this was a particularly tough event can be judged by the fact that Kamsky performed slightly above his FIDE rating of 2720 as did defending champion Yury Shulman who ended up on five points.

Unlike last year where veteran players dominated youthful upstarts, the 2009 Championship will be remembered for the many upsets turned in by the younger part of the field. One example was the result of the event's lowest seeded player, Colorado High School student Tyler Hughes, who at 2293 USCF was over 500 points lower-rated than Gata Kamsky, but still finished with 4 from 9, only missing an IM norm because local seed NM Charles Lawton amazingly had no FIDE rating.

Two MI members participated. GM Josh Friedel continued his record of excellence in US Championships scoring 5 from 9 against a very strong field to tie for 6th. Among his results were wins over GMs Ehlvest, Kaidanov and Benjamin and draws with GMs Kamsky and Onischuk. Only a last round loss to Champion Nakamura prevented Josh from an even higher finish. IM Sam Shankland, who tied for first in last year's World Under 18 Championship, started well with two and a half points from three before fading. This was undoubtedly a difficult experience for the youngster from Orinda who will soon graduate from high school but he gained valuable experience which will serve him well this summer.

Normally the local seeded players don't do particularly well but this year 48-year-old IM Michael Brooks of Kansas City surprised many. Brooks is one of few American titled players to never play in Europe. He was probably GM strength throughout the second half of the 1980s and the early 1990s when he played actively and was rated over 2500 FIDE but never got the opportunities. He came out of semi-retirement in St. Louis to score 4 from 9, including wins over GMs Shabalov and Becerra and IM Robson for a 2529 performance rating . The strength of the field he played can be judged by the fact that he faced Nakamura in round eight!

American chess owes a great debt to Rex Sinquefield who sponsored this event which had a prize fund of just over $130,000.

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GM Igor Ivanov, who passed away on November 17, 2005, was a great exponent of the White side of the Petrosian system of the King's Indian. A fine strategist, Igor had an excellent feel for the subtleties of this system which he used to defeat many strong players included Boris Gelfand. Here he annotates a brilliancy against the late Chicago Master Billy Colias who died much too young. 1.Nf3 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.d4 0–0 6.Be2 e5 7.d5 The Petrosian System is a very solid one, in which White bases his hopes on the space advantage. 7...a5 8.Bg5 In this position I have tried 8.h3; 8.h4; 8.g3 and 8.a3 and consider all of them quite good, but 8.0–0 or the text are more in "the book". 8...h6 9.Bh4 Na6 10.0–0 Qe8 11.Ne1 Nc5 I like this move although the book says that 11...g5 12.Bg3 Nxe4 leads to a quick draw. 12.f3 12.Bxf6 Bxf6 13.Bg4 is a reasonable alternative, but have a bad memory of it. 12...Nh7 12...Nh5 heading for f4 looks more energetic. 13.Nb5 This move forces the Black Knight back to a6 or the uncomfortable text move by the Black Queen. 13...Qd7 14 .Nd3 Nxd3 15.Bxd3 c5 Black wants to close the Queen's flank but the slow 15...c6 16.Nc3 c5 would be more prudent - the Knight on b5 is too dangerous. 16.a3 White decides on Queenside action, but Black finds an interesting defense. 16...b6 Now on 17.b4 Black has 17...Ba6 18.bxc5 Bxb5 19.cxb5 dxc5! (but not 19...bxc5 20.b6! and White is on top). Now the resulting position looks defendable for Black unless White decides on the pawn sacrifice 20.d6 Qxd6 21.Bf2, when White will dominate the light squares. Whether such an advantage is enough for a win is puzzling. I would not want to bet my wallet on it! But a much less evident continuation, namely 18.bxa5!, was a very good try for a win. 17.Bc2 With the idea of meeting 17...Ba6 by 18.Ba4 and White's light squared Bishop becomes active. 17...Bf6 A natural maneuver, but it opens some more new opportunities for White, this time on the Kingside. 18.Bxf6 Nxf6 19.Qd2 With the obvious intention to continue with f3-f4 so Black strives to stop it. 19...g5 20.f4 Now that 20.f4 is seemingly impossible three different plans come to mind: Some of the text here should be after Black's 19th move.I am proud of this move although the idea is as old as the game of chess. Remember 1.e4 e5 2.f4!.

20.b4 does not promise a certain victory due to massive exchanges, for example 20...Ba6 21.Ba4 Bxb5 22.Bxb5 Qc7 23.Bc6 Rab8 24.Rfb1 Kg7 25.Rb3 Ng8 26.Rab1 Ne7 27.bxc5 bxc5 28.Rb7 Nxc6 29.Rxc7 Rxb1+ 30.Kf2 Nd4 and Black is doing fine Of course White could play differently on many occasions, e.g. 2 9.dxc6 with the better position, but the fact is that I wasn't sure, while trying to imagine a possible course of events after 20.b4, that White would win.; Another obvious assault begins with 20.h4 Once again it was difficult to forsee how the open h-file alone would bring White the victory.For example: 20...Nh7 21.hxg5 hxg5 22.Kf2 Kg7 23.Rh1 Rh8 24.Rh5 f6 25.Rah1 Ba6 26.g3 Bxb5 27.cxb5 Rag8 28.Kg1 Nf8 It is quite possible that White can improve this line which is no more than just an illustration of a master's thinking over the board.Finally the question: Could f3-f4 be prepared by g2-g3? The question is sad and simple:; 20.g3 Nh7 21.f4 f6 and Black remains solid.But doesn't Black's position look somewhat flimsy, and couldn't that perforated construction be opened somehow? With violence if necessary. 20...gxf4 20...exf4 21.g3 Nh5 22.Bd1 (22.gxf4 Nxf4 23.Rxf4 gxf4 24.Kh1 is good, too.) 22...g4 23.Rxf4 and White is on his way to victory. 21.g3 Kh7 Black wants to exploit the g-file and to keep his h-pawn protected, but the position of the Black King on the same diagonal as the White Bishop suggests recapture of the f4-pawn with the Rook. 22.Rxf4 exf4 23.e5+ Kh8 The Black King position is no longer defensible. 24.exf6 Qg4 25.Rf1 Bf5 26.Rxf4 Qg5 27.Bxf5 Qxf6 28.Bc2 1-0 Chess Life, July 1992, page 44.

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a visit to the last exit--
seattle coffeehouse, hangout--
in the U district.
students studying at tables,
a game or two of go in progress,
cappuccinos being sipped
(coffee boosts brain power!),
big slabs of apple pie
drenched in cinnamon sauce
and topped with a gob of vanilla ice cream
(a house favorite)
being consumed.
at several tables
furious activity:
elbows flying,
hands slapping clocks,
plastic chess pieces being moved
in familiar patterns.
recreation,
but so much more:
it keeps the mind sharp.
all the while
music blasts from loudspeakers
the popular songs of the day,
and students come and go
come and go,
till the wee hours of the morning.

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Beatriz Marinello
President Zone 2.1.
Beatriz@chesseducators,com

The Confederation of Chess for Americas (FIDE America) and the Brazilian Chess Federation are pleased to invite all National Chess Federations of the Americas to the 2009 Continental Chess Championship of the Americas . This event will be held in CXSP in São Paulo, a Sports and Financial city and capital of the Department of São Paulo, from July 25th to August 2, 2009. São Paulo is a city located near Rio de Janeiro and is the main economic center of Brazil.

This is the first time that this tournament will be played in Brazil and it’s open to players with a minimum FIDE ELO of 1800 and20above.

The 2009 Continental Chess Championship of the Americas qualifies SIX (6) players for the FIDE World Cup.

Eligibility: Each National Federation may register as many players as it wishes. All participants must be endorsed by their FIDE recognized, national federations.

Please contact Jerry Nash at [email protected] and Beatriz Marinello at [email protected] if you are interested in participating in this event.

The top FIVE U.S. representatives are entitled to accommodations and meals starting from lunch on July 25, until dinner on August 2, 2009. Accommodations are provided in double rooms. Upgrades are available. The list of top official players must be sent to the organization by July 9, 2009.

For more information visit: http://www.continental2009.com

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Thanks to Eric De Mund ( http://ixian.com/ba-chess.htm ) for the following information.

• Saturday mornings, starting at 9:45am. Jan-Apr 2009 meeting dates: Jan3+24, Feb28, Apr4+25.
• Rated tournament play.
• Bay Area Chess Headquarters; 4423 Fortran Court, Suite 160; San Jose, CA 95134.
• Contact Salman Azhar <tournaments AT bayareachess DOT com> and see tournament web site at http://www.bayareachess.com/.
• Adult time controls are G/60.
• Updated 2009.01.06 (SAzhar/EDeMund).

• First Friday of the month, 6:00-8:00pm. Jan-Dec 2009 meeting dates: Jan2, Feb6, Mar6, Apr3, May1, Jun5, Jul3, Aug7, Sep4, Oct2, Nov6, Dec4.
• Unrated tournament play, casual play. Chess sets provided, but feel free to bring your own.
• Crosswalk Community Church; 445 South Mary Avenue; Sunnyvale, CA 94086; meet in the gymnasium.
• Contact Mike Jones at <fridayknightchess AT yahoo DOT com>.
• "We have new people show up each month. We are averaging about 50 kids and adults. Everyone has fun playing chess. Pizza and soda available. This no cost, monthly event is open to young and old of all ages. Lessons for beginners available, tournaments will be conducted and we will all have fun playing chess together." --Mike Jones
• Updated 2009.03.27 (MJones/EDeMund).

• Rated tournament play, casual play.
• Campbell Community Center, Building F, Orchard City Banquet Hall; 1 West Campbell Avenue; Campbell, CA 95008. See Campbell Community Center map at http://www.ci.campbell.ca.us/Recreation/downloads/CCCMap4email.pdf.
• Club web site is http://fofv.com/page.php?id=1.
• 50+ active members.
• Updated 2009.03.04 (FLeffingwell/EDeMund).

• Daily.
• Casual play, played at the outdoor chess tables.
• Median strip of Santana Row between Olin Avenue and Olsen Drive; San Jose, CA 95128.
• See map at http://www.santanarow.com/concierge/location/santana_row.
• Reconfirmed 2009.03.01 (EDeMund).

• Periodic meetings; check club web site for news. [2009.01.04] There are no tournaments scheduled for the Jan-Apr 2009 interval.
• Rated tournament play.
• Century Arts Alliance Foundation; 2146 Ringwood Avenue; San Jose, CA 95131. Web site for venue is http://www.centuryarts.org.
• Club web site is http://sunchessclub.googlepages.com.
• Reconfirmed 2009.01.04 (CSun/EDeMund).

• Tuesday and Friday afternoons, 12:00-4:00pm.
• Casual play.
• Willows Senior Center; 2175 Lincoln Avenue; San Jose, CA 95125.
• Contact Jerry Marshall at <marshalljerry AT msn DOT com> or (408) 267-1574; also, Willows Senior Center phone number is (408) 448-6400.
• Reconfirmed 2009.01.06 (JMarshall/EDeMund).