Gens Una Sumus!
Mechanics' Institute Chess Room Newsletter #541
Fischer divided people, even in death. People had strong feelings. There were people who were incredibly devoted to the idea that Bobby Fischer was totally sane and that any project that approached him and wanted to explore the more tragic aspects of his personality, was invalid. And there were people on the other side of the equation. For a filmmaker it was a challenge, Bobby's life was so original and fascinating - it was a challenge, but we hope that we were able to bring in all the threads of what made Bobby such an interesting human being and also to capture the excitement. I think it is particularly relevant today as we live in an increasingly bipolar world, just as we did back then, in the seventies.
Liz Garbus
Interviewed by Jonathan Berry in the Globe and Mail on June 2, 2011
1) Mechanic's Institute Chess Club News
2) US Record in Olympiads and World Team Championships
3) Here and There
4) Upcoming Special Events at the Mechanics' Institute
5) Upcoming Events
1) Mechanic's Institute Chess Club News
Berkeley Expert Todd Rumph maintained his lead in the Summer Tuesday Night Marathon with a fifth round draw against Igor Traub to extend his score to 4.5 from but there is a big pack of players half a point behind him. This includes Traub, FM Robin Cunningham, NMs Sevan Buscara, Peter Zavadsky and Evan Sandberg plus Expert Oleg Shakhnazarov.
Here is key fourth round win by Rumph with his own annotations.
Todd Rumph (2152) - Robin Cunningham (2274) [D34]
San Francisco - Summer TMN (4) 2011
1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 c5 4.cxd5 exd5 5.Nf3 Nc6 6.g3 Nf6 7.Bg2 Be7 8.0-0 0-0 9.dxc5
More popular is 9.Bg5.
9...d4!?
A dangerous gambit. The main alternative is 9...Bxc5 10.Na4 Be7 11.Be3.
10.Na4 Bf5 11.Bf4 Be4 12.Rc1 Qd5 13.Qb3 Qh5
13...Qxb3 14.axb3 Nd5 15.Bd6 Bxd6 16.cxd6� followed by 17.Nc5.
14.Rfd1 Rad8
14...d3 15.Rxd3 Bxd3 16.exd3 Nd5 17.Bd2 with good compensation for the exchange.
15.Qxb7 d3
15...Rd7 16.Qa6 Rfd8 17.a3�
16.Nc3! dxe2 17.Rxd8 Nxd8?!
17...Rxd8 18.Nxe4 Nxe4 (18...Rd1+ 19.Ne1+-) 19.Ne1 Qd5 20.Qa6 f5 21.Qxe2�
18.Qxe7 Re8?
18...Nc6 19.Qxf6! gxf6 20.Nxe4 Qf5 21.Nh4 Qe6 22.Re1 Nd4 23.Be3 Rd8 24.Nd6 with material and positional advantages.
19.Qxe8+ Nxe8 20.Nxe4+- Ne6
20...Qd5 21.Nc3 Qxc5 22.Nxe2 Qd5 23.Rc8 Qd1+ 24.Bf1 Qd7 25.Bh3+]
21.Be3 N8c7 22.Nc3 g5 23.h3 f5 24.Nxe2 g4 25.hxg4 fxg4 26.Nd2 Ng5 27.Ne4 Nxe4
27...Nf3+ 28.Bxf3 gxf3 29.Nf6+; 27...Nh3+ 28.Bxh3 Qxh3 29.c6 and the black queen is out of the game.
28.Bxe4 Qe5 29.Nc3 h5 30.Bf4 Qxc5 31.Nd5 Qd4 32.Rxc7 Qxb2
32...Qxe4 33.Nf6+ Kh8 (33...Kf8 34.Bh6#) 34.Nxe4
33.Bg5 Qxa2 34.Nf6+ Kf8 35.Bh6# 1-0
The Mechanic's Institute Chess Club will be proud to host a lecture on Tuesday, July 5th, by America's newest Grandmaster, Sam Shankland of Orinda. The talk will run from 5:15 pm to 6:15pm and is free to all.
Mark Sunday, July 31st, down on your calendar. That afternoon the Mechanic's Chess Club will honor Neil Falconer with a blitz tournament. A former California Open and US Senior Champion, Neil has been involved with Mechanics' activities since the late 1930s when he first visited the club for a team match. He has served as a Mechanics' Institute Trustee for close to 40 years and was a key player in helping to organize the great Pan Pacific International Grandmaster tournaments of 1987, 1991 and 1995 which including such luminaries as Mikhail Tal, Viktor Kortchnoi and Tony Miles.
This event will be the second of three large blitz tournaments held every year at the MI with the others being the Ray Schutt (May) and Mike Goodall (October) Memorials. The Schutt drew 50 players including 3 GMs and 4 IMs and we hope to increase these numbers for the Falconer. We would like to thank Jim Eade for his help in sponsoring this event.
Neil Falconer Blitz Tournament
July 31st (Sunday)
When: Sunday, May 31st from 1 to 5 pm.
Registration from 1pm to 1:45 pm.
The tournament will be held from 2 to 4 pm.
Where: Mechanics' Institute, 57 Post St, San Francisco (Montgomery BART)
Format: Five Double-Round Swiss or Roundrobin depending on entries.
Prizes (guaranteed):
1st $300
2nd $150
3rd $100
4th $50
5th $30
6th $20
Entry Fee: $10. Free to IMs and GMs. Entries close at 1:45 pm. No phone entries.
NM John Blackstone sends the following games from Frank Marshall's simul at the Mechanics' almost one hundred years ago. Incidentally, during this event Marshall became the first person to sign the M.I. Chess Club guest book. This oversized book is stored in a lockcase in the Chess Room and includes the signatures of many prominent visitors including World Champions Alekhine, Spassky and Karpov.
Marshall,F - Bernstein,B [A00]
Simul Marshall +24 -01 =06 San Francisco, CA, 01 Jul 1913
[SF Call 1913.07.20 p.44 Su]
1.e4 e5 2.d4 exd4 3.c3 d5 4.exd5 Qxd5 5.cxd4 Nc6 6.Nf3 Bg4 7.Be2 Nf6 8.0-0 Be7 9.Nc3 Qd8 10.d5 Nb4 11.Qa4+ c6 12.dxc6 Nxc6 13.Bg5 Bd7 14.Rad1 0-0 15.Bxf6 Bxf6 16.Ne4 Be7 17.Bb5 a6 18.Bxc6 Bxc6 19.Qc2 Qa5 20.Nd4 Qxa2 21.Nxc6 bxc6 22.Rfe1 Bb4 23.Ng5 g6 24.Re4 a5 25.Qe2 Rad8 26.Rxd8 Rxd8 27.Re8+ Rxe8 28.Qxe8+ Kg7 29.Qe5+ Kg8 30.Qe8+ Kg7 �-�
Marshall,F - Epsteen,A [A00]
Simul Marshall +24 -01 =06 San Francisco, CA, 01 Jul 1913
[SF Call 1913.07.20 p.44 Su]
1.e4 e5 2.d4 exd4 3.c3 d3 4.Bxd3 Nc6 5.Nf3 Bc5 6.0-0 d6 7.Be3 Bxe3 8.fxe3 Nf6 9.Nbd2 Be6 10.Nd4 Ne5 11.Be2 d5 12.Qb3 Qc8 13.Rxf6 gxf6 14.exd5 Bd7 15.Ne4 f5 16.Nf6+ Ke7 17.Nh5 c5 18.dxc6 Bxc6 19.Qb4+ Kd8 20.Qd6+ Nd7 21.Nxf5 Qc7 22.Qe7+ Kc8 23.Rd1 Nb6 24.Qf6 Rf8 25.Nf4 Nd7 26.Qg7 Qe5 27.Bg4 Qxg7 28.Nxg7 Rg8 29.Bxd7+ Bxd7 30.Ngh5 Bc6 31.c4 a5 32.Nf6 Rg7 33.N4d5 Kb8 34.Nb6 Rxg2+ 35.Kf1 Ra6 36.c5 Rxh2 37.Rd8+ 1-0
There is still space available in the Mechanics' Institute Chess Club Intermediate/Advanced Camp with GM Nick deFirmian, IMs Vince McCambridge and John Donaldson, FM Mark Pinto and MI Scholastic Director Anthony Corrales. This camp is open to players of all ages and offers an excellent student to teacher ratio.
2) US Record in Olympiads and World Team Championships
While the list of American players to play a match for the World Championship is small the United States has enjoyed an excellent record in team events. The following information shows that for U.S. teams the whole is really greater than the sum of its parts.
Chess Olympiads (1927-2010)
Gold - 1931, 1933, 1935, 1937 and 1976(*)
Silver - 1928, 1960, 1966, 1990 and 1998
Bronze - 1974, 1978, 1980, 1984, 1986, 1996, 2006, 2008
4th Place - 1958, 1962, 1988, 1992, 2004
The US did not play in 1927, 1939, 1954 and 1956.
There was no Olympiad from 1940-49.
(*) In 1976 there was a boycott of the Olympiad by the Soviet Union and the East Bloc.
World Team Championship (1985-2009)
Gold Silver
1993 1997
2009 (held in January 2010)
3) Here and There
Congratulations to noted chess master, author and problemist Robert Burger for turning 80 on June 21st.
The 2011 Western States Open, which will be held October 21-23, will be dedicated to the memory of the late Larry Evans who did so much to promote this event.
The SF Jewish Film Festival is screening "Bobby Fischer Against the World" in San Francisco at the Castro theatre on Saturday, July 23 at 2pm followed by a Q+A session with IM Anthony Saidy who plays a key role in the documentary..
The US Womens Championship held this past May was the strongest ever with all eight players rated over 2300 USCF. To see just how much progress has been made look at the top-rated women in the US almost forty years ago.
January 1964 USCF top 10 rated women
1. Gisela Gresser 2137
2. Sonja Graf Stevenson 2062
3. Mona May Karff 2047
4. Lisa Lane 2038
5. Eva Aronson 2005
6. Mary Bain 1979
7. Adele Belcher 1915
8. Jacqueline Piatigorsky 1895
9. Mildred Morrell 1867
10. Mabel Burlingame 1865
GM Sam Shankland gives a free lecture on July 5 at the MI.
July 31st Neil Falconer Blitz
5) Upcoming Events
Scholastic Championship - July 9
Charles Bagby Memorial - July 16
Vladimir Pafnutieff Memorial - August 6
Bernardo Smith Memorial - August 20-21
Howard Donnelly Memorial - September 17
J.J. Dolan Memorial - October 8
Carroll Capps Memorial - November 5-6
Pierre Saint-Amant Memorial - November 19
Guthrie McClain Memorial - December 3
July 2-4 or 3-4 2011 Sacramento Chess Championship GPP: 6 California, Northern ROUNDS: 6. FORMAT: Swiss. RATING: Full-K. Best Western Expo Inn, 1413 Howe Ave., Sacramento, CA. ON-SITE REGISTRATION: 7/2-8:30 am-9:45 am; 7/3-8:00 am-8:45 am. ROUNDS: 3-day: 7/2-10 & 3:30, 7/3-10:30 & 4, 7/4- 10 & 3:30. 2-day: 7/3-9, 11:15, 1:30, & 4, 7/4- 10 & 3:30. TIME CONTROLS: 3-day: 30/90 G/60. 2-day: Rounds 1-3, G/60, Rounds 4-6, 30/90 G/60. 5-second delay on all time controls. SECTIONS: Master/Expert (above 1999), Reserve (U2000). ENTRY FEES: 3-day $65 (Juniors $45) postmarked by 6/28. $75 (Juniors $50) after 6/28. IMs/GMs free. Entrants may play up one section for $10. $5 discount to CalChess members (excluding reentries). Reentry after round 2 of the 3-day schedule: $40. PRIZES: Master/Expert 1st Place $350 & trophy, 2nd Place $275. 1st Place Reserve $350 & trophy. Prize fund of $2800 based on 75 full paid adult entries and 10 full paid junior entries overall (with 60 full paid adult entries and 10 full paid junior entries, the prize fund will be $2,000). HOTEL: Best Western Expo Inn, (916) 922-9833 or 1-800-643-4422. Ask for the Sacramento Chess Club rates. ADVANCE ENTRIES & INFO: John McCumiskey (TD), e-mail: [email protected]; phone: (916) 524-9479. Checks payable to Sacramento Chess Club and mailed to 6700 50th St., Sacramento, CA 95823-1306. Full flyer and advance entries: http://sacramentochessclub.org under Weekend Events. OTHER INFO: No Smoking, No Computers, Wheelchair Access. 07/11 rating list only. Please bring clocks and equipment. 1/2 point byes available in any round and must be requested before the completion of the previous round. Maximum two 1/2 point byes per entry. 1/2 point byes for rounds 5 & 6 must be requested prior to round 1 and may not be changed. Chess Magnet School JGP.
Pine, San Francisco. $$B 160 paid entries (not counting free or unrated entries). Six Sections: Master $1500-750-400-350 U2300 $300; Expert $700-350-200-150. "A" $700-350-200-150. "B" $700-350-200-150. "C" $700-350-200-150. "D/E" $700-$350-$200 U1200 $200-150. Unr:
Trophy First. Trophy to top finisher (State Champion) in each section. All, EF: postmarked
by 8/29 $115. $125 at site. Unrateds $20 in the D/E section or may play up to the Master
section for the regular fee. $5 discount to CalChess members. USCF memb. req'd. May
play up one section for add'l $10. GM/IM free entry. Reg.: Sat 9/3 8:30-9:30am, Sun 9/4
8-9am. RDS.: Choice of schedules- 3-day, 2-day merge at round 4, all compete for the same prizes. 3-day schedule: Sat 10:00-3:30; Sun 11:00-4:45; Mon 10:00-3:30. 2-day schedule: Sun 9:30-11:45-2:00-4:45; Mon 10:00-3:30. 1/2 pt bye(s) any round(s) if requested in advance
(byes rds 5-6 must be requested before rd 1). 2011 September Ratings List, CCA minimums and Directors discretion will be used to place players as accurately as possible. Please bring
clocks and equipment. HR: Golden Gateway Holiday Inn (415)-441-4000. INFO: Richard
Koepcke (650)-224-4938. Ent: Richard Koepcke, P.O. Box 1432, Mountain View, CA 94042. No Phone entries. Master Section FIDE Rated. Chess Magnet School JG
2012 Northern California International Presented by NorCal House of Chess
Dates: January 2nd - January 8th
Location: NorCal House of Chess at Northwestern Polytechnic University
47655 Warm Springs Blvd.
Fremont, CA 94539
Rounds: Jan 2nd: 6:00; Jan 3rd, 5th: 11:00 & 6:00; Jan 4th, 6th, 7th: 4:00; Jan 8th: 11:00
Time Control: 40/90, SD/30 with 30 second increment
Organizers: Arun Sharma <asharma AT math.berkeley.edu> and Ted Castro <ted0712 AT yahoo.com>
Section A (GM-norm Round Robin)
Section B (Swiss)
GM and IM norms possible in both sections!
GMs interested in playing and potentially receiving conditions should contact Arun as soon as possible if they wish to have the best chance of doing so.
The Northern California International begins only a couple of days after the North American Open in Las Vegas ends so is a very convenient event for those who are playing in the latter.
http://dotq.org/chess/
Southern California Events
July 2-4 or 3-4 51st Annual Pacific Southwest Open A Heritage Event
Grand Prix Points: 30 6-SS, 40/2, SD/1 (2-day schedule rds 1-3 G/1, then merges).
Location: LAX Hilton, 5711 W Century Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90045.
Prizes: $8,000 b/200, 50% of each prize guaranteed. 2 sections: Open, $1400-700-400-300-200, U2200 600-300-150, U2000 600-300-150. Amateur, open to U1800/Unr, 600-300-150, U1600 500-250-150, U1400 400-250, U1200 150, Unr 150. Unr may win Unrated prize only.
All EF: $69 if rec'd by 7/1, $79 at site. SCCF memb. required ($18, jrs. U18 $10, includes Rank & File magazine), OSA.
Reg: 3-day 9-10 am 7/2, 2-day 8:30-9:30 am 7/3. Rds: 3-day: 10:30-5 Sat-Sun, 10-4:30 Mon. 2-day: 10-12:14-2:30 Sun., then merges.
Ent: SCCF, PO Box 205, Monterey Park, CA 91754, online at www.scchess.com.
HR: $89 (310) 410-4000, mention chess. Parking: $8/day.
Inf: (626) 282-7412 or [email protected].
State Championship Qualifier
Chess Magnet School JGP.
NS, W, F.
And upcoming at Metropolitan Chess:
July 8-10, July 22-24, July 29-31 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th Metropolitan Chess FIDE Qualifier
Qualify into an International Norm Event! FIDE Rated!
Run under Metropolitan Chess, Inc (2011 USCF Chess Club of the Year)
Organized by National Master Ankit Gupta (2011 USCF Organizer of the Year) Invitation Based. Minimum of 1800 USCF and maximum of 2249 FIDE to participate. Requires organizer approval to participate.
Two (2) qualification seats per event.
E-mail [email protected] to inquire into specific details about event or visit www.metrochessla.com.
July 9-10, July 23-24, July 30-31 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th Metropolitan Chess Booster Qualifier
Run under Metropolitan Chess, Inc (2011 USCF Chess Club of the Year)
Organized by National Master Ankit Gupta (2011 USCF Organizer of the Year) Invitation Based. Minimum of 1200 USCF and maximum of 1899 USCF to participate. Requires organizer approval to participate.
E-mail [email protected] to inquire into specif
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