Gens Una Sumus!
Newsletter #884
Sept 13, 2019
By Abel Talamantez
Table of Contents
- FM Stearman Saves a Draw to Keep Lead in Brandwein TNM, Robert Drane Slows the Mansoor Mohammed Train, Sterling Albury Remains Perfect
- Tournament Director's Corner
- Scholastic Corner
- Mechanics' Visitor from New York
- Greg Young: A Chess Life
- Tony's Teasers
- Wednesday Night Blitz
- Paul Whitehead's Column: Chess: images and social media
- Nick de Firmian's Column: Magnificent Magnus
- Brandwein Memorial TNM Games Round 6
- Submit your piece or feedback
FM Stearman Saves a Draw to Keep Lead in Brandwein TNM, Robert Drane Slows the Mansoor Mohammed Train, Sterling Albury Remains Perfect
Youth met experience on the top board as FM Josiah Stearman faced off against IM Elliott Winslow. Though facing a losing position at points in the game, Stearman was able to save the draw when Winslow did not find the winner. Stearman preserves sole lead of the championship section with a commanding 5.5/6, with the next closest player being Eric Yuhan Li at 5/6. Li defeated CM Sriram Krishnakumar in round 6, pitting a battle of two of the nations top young talents. Stearman defeated Li in round 5, so they will not meet in later rounds, and the next closest players are standing at 4; FM Kyron Griffith, IM Elliott Winslow, Ethan Boldi, who is playing very well of late, and WFM Natalya Tsodikova, who has also put together a string of impressive victories.
Ethan Boldi has been playing impressively in this TNM, making a run at the leaderboard
In the A/B section, Mansoor Mohammed was trying to continue his amazing run that began at the previous TNM, but faced a tough challenge to his perfect score this weekend against TNM veteran Robert Drane. Mohammed led during much of the match, securing a pawn advantage heading into the endgame. He missed opportunities to win, and even was losing during the endgame when he blundered. But Drane missed the tactical shot in time pressure and the position developed into a draw. This was his first blemish in this TNM, and Mohammed now leads with 5.5/6, with 4 players one full point behind at 4.5/6. These players are Kristian Clemens, Venkatagi Acharya, Robert Drane and Ako Heidari.
Kristian Clemens pulled off a very nice win against Teodoro Porlares, finding a tactical shot in an endgame with 1 second left on his clock to seal the win
In the u/1600 section, Sterling Albury continues to chase perfection as he defeated Jahaan Ansari to get to 6/6. He is a full point ahaead of 2 players at 5/6; Jerry Simpkins and John Bielic. Bielic received two half point byes in the first two rounds, so he is also undefeated in this TNM, setting up a likely huge matchup between him and Albury for next week, since Albury already defeated Simpkins in round 5.
For a complete list of standings, please follow this link:
https://www.milibrary.org/tuesday-night-marathon#standings
To watch our broadcast of round 6 with insightful commentary, please click on this link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y2oVpMbQb1E
Please subscribe to our Twitch and YouTube channels to stay up to date on all our events!
Tournament Director's Corner
I wanted to take the column this week to address some common bad spectator behavior we see at events. We do realize many of these are not intentional, and spectators may not even realize the potential consequences of what they do. Although we normally see this in a scholastic events, We have seen this in regular events as well.
That Was a Bad Move!
The most common thing we see is people spectating games engaging in a form of back seat driving, where they whisper to someone what the player should have done in a live game, or worse, start shaking their head in diagreement or disbelief, or nodding their head in agreement regarding a move made or the position on the board. There seems to be some human need to show off your ability to analyze or see the board, but please keep such actions to yourself, as it can tip off players who see this as a judgment of the position of the game. I have told many players to keep from nodding while looking at the board and have often removed them from the area. The only bad move going on here is you comprimising the integrity of the game, and believe me, you would not want it done to you in your own game, especially if you just hung mate in 1.
I Gotta See!
Another one of the more common things that happen is spectators, in an effort to fully see the board, stand way too close to the players in their game. There should be a respectable distance in viewing the games, which is at the very least not touching the table or leaning in like a vulture over the player. Please keep a reasonable distance so that players can concentrate on their game.
Turn Off the Phone!!!
For those of you playing the Tuesday Night Marathon, you know where I'm going with this...
We have taken a much stricter enforcement of the cell phone rule, which requires phones be off and not in use during the whole duration of a tournament game. This is a standard USCF rule which carries the following penalties:
1. First incident, be it phone ringing, making noise, player texting, etc. carries a 10 minute penalty to the player or half the remaining time on the clock if less than 10 minutes left.
2. Second incident is a forfeit of the game.
This rule is in place to so that there is not the opportunity or appearance of cheating by using an app, going online for help or soliciting the assistance of an outside party. Aside from the obvious cheating, having a cell phone go off in a quiet room is very annoying and distracting. As we continue to offer high qulaity events, which include special GM events, state championship events, and national championship events next year, we want to represent the gold standard in quality, and adherence to this rule is essential. I will say our players have responded very positively and we expect that to continue as we move forward. Help us help Mechanics' as a whole in continuing to represent high qulaity by turning off the phone during play. If a player needs to make contact with someone, they can always come to a TD and make a call or text in front of us in the office. Seeking out a TD when you need help will always be the best course of action.
So pretty please with sugar on top, turn off the phone!!!
Scholastic Corner
by Judit Sztaray
Last two weeks have been busy with start of the enrichment classes! It's so wonderful to see all the kids returning or trying out chess class this new school year!
We are fortunate to have an amazing team of chess coaches, and the team is growing steadily! Starting next TNM, we'll take the Scholastic Corner to feature one coach each round/newsletter, so that you can get to know them, and perhaps join our team! We have some regular players coaching for us one or more sites, like Elliott, Arthur and Mugi. Coach Andy, who often helps out Tuesdays with the directing, is also a lead coach at many sites and provides excellent leadership for our coaches. If you are intereested, please feel free to email Judit at jsztaray@ milibrary.org or find her on Tuesdays and ask about opportunity!
Classes vary in size and type, but one thing remains: our coaches have a clear goal to instill the love of chess into the kids with a fun and educational class. We keep a 12 students to a coach ratio to ensure attention and quality, and we continue to support our coaches throughout their teaching.
First class at West Portal Elementary with Coach Andy and Coach Moogi
Mechanics' Visitor from New York
The Mechanics' Institute Chess Club frequently gets out of town visitors, and it is always a pleasure to show the club. A few weeks ago we had a visitor from New York that plays at the Marshall Chess Club visit San Francisco to see the club and I had the pleasure to play this rising star. His name is Oliver and he started playing tournament chess last year. He is a very active player and has a genuine enthusiasm for playing, which was a joy to experience. We will keeep our eye on Oliver as he progresses, and we look forward to his next visit to Mechanics.
Greg Young: A Chess Life
I included a piece last week written by NM Michael Walder in which he annotated a game from his recent Expert section win at the 2019 CalChess State Championship. In the annotation, Walder went over a line from a game played by Greg Young. This caught the attention of Michael "f-pawn" Aigner, who wrote me an email about Greg Young, as he was a former student of his and a very strong rising player. He has allowed me to share the email about Greg, as it serves to provide a bit of history about one of our top talented junior players who frequently played at Mechanics. Enjoy!
Dear Abel,
I enjoyed reading Michael Walder's comments in Chess Room Newsletter 883, especially about Senior Master Greg Young. Permit me to add some words about one of my favorite former students. Many current Mechanics' Institute players will not know about this superstar who was a frequent visitor at the club from 2003 to 2010.
Greg Young (USCF 2477, FIDE 2386) remains the most successful scholastic chess player to grow up within the city limits of San Francisco during the 21st Century. I chose those words carefully, as National Master Nicholas Nip showed more talent. Indeed, Greg was foremost a hard worker and self-motivated to excel - not just at chess. Walder described him as multi-talented, but didn't list all of those talents: chess, music, drama / acting, basketball, and academics in general. Not only could he checkmate you in the blink of an eye, he also could skewer you with a witty joke or dunk over you on the basketball court.
Walder pointed out that Greg won the prestigious US Junior Invitational twice. He shared first at Lindsborg, Kansas in 2008, but Tyler Hughes of Colorado had superior tiebreaks. Three years later in Saint Louis, Greg didn't need tiebreaks, dominating the field and winning by 2 full points, despite being seeded only 7th out of 10 players. Second place went to a player familiar to Bay Area readers: now-GM Conrad Holt.
When Greg left the chess scene, he was close to International Master strength, a title he might have achieved had he chosen to pursue it. He earned his first IM norm at his final rated tournament on American soil, the 2013 North American Open in Las Vegas. Instead, he concentrated on academics and went to college at Cambridge University in the U.K. Greg briefly represented Cambridge in the Four Nations Chess League (4NCL), but has not played competitively since 2016.
Here are two games that illustrate Greg's aggressive "take no prisoners" style. The first is a victory in the Scheveningen Sicilian against a prominent California IM at the 2011 US Junior. The latter is a win on the black side of the Dutch against a Mexican IM at the 2013 North American Open.
[Event "US Junior Invitational"]
[Site "Saint Louis"]
[Date "2011.06.17"]
[White "Young, Greg"]
[Black "Bryant, John"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "B87"]
[WhiteElo "2327"]
[BlackElo "2413"]
1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 Nf6 4. Nc3 cxd4 5. Nxd4 a6 6. Bc4 e6 7. Bb3 b5 8. O-O Be7 9. Qf3 Qc7 10. Qg3 O-O 11. Bh6 Ne8 12. Rad1 Bd7 13. Nf3 a5 14. a4 b4 15. Ne2 Na6 16. e5 d5 17. Rd4 Kh8 18. Bg5 f6 19. Bf4 Qb7 20. Be3 fxe5 21. Nxe5 Bf6 22. Rfd1 Rc8 23. Bg5 Nc5 24. Rh4 Bxe5 25. Qxe5 Rf5 26. Qe3 Nxb3 27. cxb3 e5 28. Ng3 d4 29. Qd3 Nd6 30. Be7 e4 31. Qxd4 e3 32. fxe3 Rc2 33. e4 Rff2 34. Bxd6 Rxg2+ 35. Kh1 Bg4 36. Rf1 h5 37. Nxh5 Kg8 38. Rf8+ 1-0
[Event "North American Open"]
[Site "Las Vegas"]
[Date "2013.12.27"]
[White "Ibarra, Luis Fernando"]
[Black "Young, Greg"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A80"]
[WhiteElo "2489"]
[BlackElo "2367"]
1. d4 f5 2. Nc3 d5 3. Bg5 g6 4. Qd3 Bg7 5. O-O-O Nc6 6. e3 a6 7. f3 Nf6 8. Nge2 Be6 9. h3 h6 10. Bh4 g5 11. Bf2 Qd7 12. g4 h5 13. gxf5 Nb4 14. Qd2 Bxf5 15. h4 g4 16. Ng3 Bxc2 17. Re1 Bg6 18. e4 dxe4 19. fxe4 Nc6 20. Be3 e6 21. Bg2 O-O-O 22. Rd1 Qe7 23. Nge2 Rd7 24. Nf4 Bf7 25. Nfe2 Bg6 26. Nf4 Bh7 27. Qe2 e5 28. Nfd5 Nxd5 29. Nxd5 Rxd5 30. exd5 Nb4 31. Qc4 exd4 32. Bf4 b5 33. d6 Qe3+ 34. Bxe3 bxc4 35. Rxd4 Bxd4 36. Bxd4 Re8 37. a3 Nd3+ 38. Kd2 Be4 39. Bxe4 Rxe4 40. Kc3 c5 41. Bf6 Nf4 42. Rd1 Kd7 43. Kc2 g3 44. Rg1 g2 45. Kd1 Re2 46. Bg5 Rf2 0-1
Tony's Teasers
Last week's problem: Mate in 3 white to move, Shinkman, 1872.
Solution:
1. e8=R!! Kxa5
2. a8=N!! Kb5
3. Re5#
This weeks problem:
White to move and mate in 3; Shinkman,1890
Wednesday Night Blitz Update
Expert Carlos Davila was clear 1st in the September 11th edition of the Wednesday night blitz with a 5 - 1 score. Tied for 2nd and 3rd with 4.5 each were FM Paul Whitehead and Expert Jules Jelinek. Ten players participated.
Chess: images and social media.
By FM Paul Whitehead
3. Surrealism.
Chess lends itself to absurd imagery. Cats and dogs play with humans (and each other) in clips on YouTube. Surrealist and Dada artists Marcel Duchamp, Man Ray and Max Ernst used chess in painting, film and photography.
Man Ray and Salvador Dali designed chess sets.
People play chess while bullets whizz by, and people play chess on a first-date – is this not strange, absurd - surreal?
Chess to a Surrealist is both prop and puzzle – visually arresting and unfathomable; it is a serious vocation and a fabulous waste of time.
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All images are untitled - follow the links for dates, titles, etc.
https://www.facebook.com/MILibrary/photos/a.240345046171/10155057893066172/?type=3&theater
https://www.facebook.com/MILibrary/photos/a.240345046171/10154942445931172/?type=3&theater
https://www.facebook.com/MILibrary/photos/a.240345046171/10153798935361172/?type=3&theater
https://www.facebook.com/MILibrary/photos/a.240345046171/10154863896796172/?type=3&theater
https://www.facebook.com/MILibrary/photos/a.240345046171/10154380763816172/?type=3&theater
https://www.facebook.com/MILibrary/photos/a.240345046171/10153834623331172/?type=3&theater
https://www.facebook.com/MILibrary/photos/a.240345046171/10154361246991172/?type=3&theater
https://www.facebook.com/MILibrary/photos/a.10153983070596172/10153983070601172/?type=3&theater
https://www.facebook.com/mechanicschess/photos/a.153126558641429/386059755348107/?type=3&theater
GM Nick de Firmian's Column
Magnificent Magnus – Middlegame Maneuvers
Some players (and some World Champions) are incredible opening specialists. Kasparov for example was far ahead of all others in his era, including Karpov. He would usually have a sizeable advantage out of the opening and much of his job in the middle game would be to press his opening edge. Nowadays with computer programs to analyze, there are fewer opening aces at the top level. But still, players like Maxim Vachier-Lagrave show excellent preparation above the rest. We have also discussed in this column the endgame play of top players and World Champions, as that is a phase to outplay the opponent and score points.
There have been some players in the history of chess who are superb middle game players. Capablanca is first to come to mind. He would place his pieces on principled squares and proceed with deep logic to reduce his opponent to a crumbled position. Karpov would not seek undue complications, but would orchestrate a harmonious coordination of his forces that had an organic feel to it. The games of Bobby Fischer showed delightful middle game play that gave the viewer a sense of seeing the search for truth in chess.
Magnus also belongs in this rarified club of world champions whose middlegame play make you think they are born to be a chess player. Those who find the best move, seemingly without effort, appear to have a special gift from the gods. We quote our young champion - “I love the middle game because there you get pure chess.” We give two examples of his elegant, natural play.
(1) Carlsen,Magnus (2848) - Polgar,Judit (2705) [A33]
London Classic 4th London (6), 07.12.2012
In this game Magnus plays against the greatest woman player of all time - the famous Judit Polgar. Judit was a top ten player in her time (the only woman to have reached that level). She beat Kasparov one time, and would have won another time if he didn't take back a blundering move. Magnus proceeds carefully, having proper respect for his renowned opponent. 1.c4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 e6 6.a3 This move is safe and simply gets to a middle game with chances for both sides. 6...Bc5 7.Nb3 Be7 8.e4 0-0 9.Be2 b6 10.0-0 Bb7 Diagram
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The position is about even. We have a variant of the hedgehog defense where White has more space but Black has full development and breakout chances. 11.Bf4 d6 12.Rc1 Rc8 13.Re1 Ne5 14.Nd2 Diagram
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White doesn't seem to be going forward, but it is most important for him to hold the central squares against the black pressure. Magnus is perfectly happy to move his pieces around to achieve the best set-up, allowing his opponent to choose her own path. 14...Nfd7?! Polgar seems not as much at ease with the position compared to Magnus. She places her knights in a somewhat passive role. 15.Be3 Qc7 16.b4 Qb8 17.f4 Ng6 18.g3 Rfe8 19.Bf3 Diagram
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Magnus has advanced his wing pawns to control a little more of the board. White has now staked out his territory in the center. 19...Qa8 20.Bf2 Ngf8 21.Qe2 Qb8 22.Red1 g6?! 23.e5! Diagram
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This advance begins the assualt. It is tactically justified as 23...dxe5 24, fxe5 Nxe5? 25. Bxb7 wins a piece. 23...Bc6 24.Bd4 Red8 25.Bxc6 Rxc6 26.Nf3 dxe5 27.fxe5 Rdc8 28.Ne4! Note that the black knights have little freedom of action. This difference gives White a clear advantage. The pawn structure would be fine for Black if her pieces were active. 28...Qc7 29.Nfd2 a6 30.Nf2! Bg5 31.Rf1 The right square for the rook. Magnus is planning an attack on the f-file so Polgar must react. 31...Bxd2 32.Qxd2 Nxe5 33.Bxe5 Qxe5 34.Ng4 Diagram
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The threats on the kingside are serious. Polgar cannot simply retreat her queen and allow Nh6+ followed by the capture on f7. 34...Rd6! 35.Nh6+ Kg7 36.Rxf7+ Kh8 37.Qf2 Qd4 Black has manage to pin the queen so that she reaches an endgame. Unfortunately for her the white pieces still control the game in the ending. 38.c5 bxc5 39.Qxd4+ Rxd4 40.Rxc5 Rcd8?! The last chance was to echange the rooks on c5 despite White getting a passed pawn to go with the rook on the 7th. Polgar thinks to attack the white king, but Magnus is not afraid. 41.Rcc7! Rd1+ 42.Kg2 R1d2+ 43.Kh3 R2d5 44.Ng4 Rh5+ 45.Kg2 Rd2+ 46.Kf3 Rf5+ 47.Ke3 The white king was made to dance, but he was not in real danger. However the black king is. 47...Rxf7 48.Rxf7 Rd8 49.Nf6 Diagram
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Complete domination. The black king cannot move, the black knight is stuck on f8 to prevent checkmate and the black rook must stay on the back rank to guard the knight. Magnus' king can go where he pleases - to pick up pawns or attack the black knight. 49...Rb8 50.Kf4 h6 51.Ke5 a5 52.bxa5 Ra8 53.a6 1-0
(2) Magnus Carlsen (2834) - Helgi Olafsson (2508) [E11]
Pro Chess League chess.com INT (4), 04.02.2018
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 d5 4.e3 Diagram
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Magnus plays against the veteran Icelandic grandmaster Helgi Olafsson. His 4th move is quiet - not seeking a theoretical battle or a big gain from the opening. He just wants a positon he can play. 4...c5 5.a3 Nc6 6.dxc5 Bxc5 7.b4 Be7 8.Bb2 0-0 9.Nbd2 a5 Diagram
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Olafsson fights for squares on the queenside. The game takes on an original character for a queens pawn opening. Active play is called for. 10.b5 Nb8 11.g4!? Nbd7 Olafsson could have captured the g-pawn, though White would have gained sufficient play against the king after Rg1. 12.g5 Ne8 13.h4 Nc5 14.Qc2 b6 15.cxd5 Bb7?! Black sacrifices a pawn for active pieces. Magnus finds a way to consolidate his forces. 16.dxe6 fxe6 17.Rh3! Rc8 18.Rd1 Diagram
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The black pieces look very threatening yet Magnus has well defended his position due to his clever rook moves. 18...Nd6 19.Qc3 Nf5 20.Bc4 Qe8? Better would have been to play the defensive 20...Bd5. This allows Magnus a tactical advance. 21.e4! Na4 22.Qe5 Nxb2 23.Qxb2 Diagram
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23...Rxc4 24.Nxc4 Bxe4 The black forces look threatening yet White can keep control. 25.Qe2 Bxf3 26.Rxf3 Bc5 27.Qe4 Qxb5?! Under pressure Olafsson tries a tactic which almost works. 28.Qxe6+ Kh8 29.Rxf5 Re8 Diagram
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White's queen is pinned. Is there anyway to save her? 30.Re5! Taking the queen allows 31. Rd8+ and mate thereafter. Olafsson resigned. 1-0
Brandwein Memorial TNM Games Round 6
Annotations by GM Nick de Firmian
(1) Stearman,Josiah P (2427) - Winslow,Elliott (2222) [B26]
MI Brandwein TNM: 2000+ San Francisco (6.1), 11.09.2019
[Winslow,Elliott]
1.e4 I expected queenpawn! He's been playing that. 1...c5 2.Nc3 d6 3.g3 Nc6 4.Bg2 g6 5.d3 Bg7 6.Be3 We've been here a few times in the 20 or so times we've played (!). [He's played 6.f4 as well] 6...Nf6 [6...e5 has happened.] 7.h3 e5 Kasparov 8.f4?! He pointed out in the postgame video with Paul that this is suspect. 8...Nh5 9.Qf3 exf4 10.gxf4 Qh4+? [10...Qa5] 11.Qf2 Qxf2+ 12.Kxf2 Nd4 13.Rc1 f5 [13...0-0] 14.Nd5 0-0 15.c3
15...fxe4! 16.dxe4 Nc6 [16...Ne6!=/+] 17.Ne2 Nxf4 18.Nexf4 g5 19.Bf3 gxf4 20.Bxf4 Ne5 21.Rcd1 Bd7 22.Rhg1 Kh8 23.Rg5 Bc6 24.Rf5 Bd7 25.Rg5 Bc6 26.Kg3?! Bxd5 27.Rxd5 Rxf4?! Another cheap shot on f4, in this case a suspect one. 28.Kxf4 Bh6 29.Rxd6? [29.Bg4!+/=] 29...Bxg5+ 30.Kxe5 Rf8 31.Bg4 [31.Rd3 c4!] 31...Bf4+ 32.Kd5 Bxd6 33.Kxd6 Kg7 [33...Rf2!] 34.e5 Rf2 Right after I thought I'd blown it, but in fact... 35.Ke7
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35...Rf7+? [35...Rxb2! with a winning ending 36.e6 b5!] 36.Ke8 Rf8+ 37.Ke7 Rf7+ 38.Ke8 Rf8+ 39.Ke7 Josiah is now a clear point ahead of Yuhan Li whom he's already played, so the path is clear for him. 1/2-1/2
(2) Li,Eric Yuhan (2282) - Krishnakumar,Sriram (2056) [D46]
MI Brandwein TNM: 2000+ San Francisco (6.2), 11.09.2019
[de Firmian,Nick]
1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nc3 e6 5.e3 Nbd7 6.Qc2 Bd6 7.Bd3 0-0 8.0-0 dxc4 9.Bxc4 e5 10.h3 Qe7 11.Bb3 Bc7 12.Bd2 h6 13.Rad1 e4 14.Nh4! Qd6 15.f4 Re8? [15...exf3] 16.Ng6 Nd5?
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17.Bxd5 cxd5 18.Nb5 Powerful play from Eric Li. 18...Qxg6 19.f5 Qc6 20.Qxc6 bxc6 21.Nxc7 Bb7 22.Nxa8 Rxa8 23.Bb4 a5 24.Bd6 a4 25.b3 Ba6 26.Rf2 Bb5 27.Rc2 Ra6 28.Rdc1 f6 29.Kh2 Kf7 30.g4 Rb6 31.Kg3 Ra6 32.Kf4 Rb6 33.h4 Rb7 34.Rg2 Ra7 35.Rcg1 Kg8 36.g5 h5 37.Be7 Kh8 38.gxf6 Nxf6 39.Bxf6 gxf6 40.Rg6 Kh7 41.Rxf6 axb3 42.axb3 Ra2 43.Rf7+ Kh8 44.f6 1-0
(3) Griffith,Kyron (2452) - Lin,Michael (2161) [C16]
MI Brandwein TNM: 2000+ San Francisco (6.3), 11.09.2019
[de Firmian,Nick]
1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.e5 b6 5.Qg4 Bf8 6.Nf3 Ne7 7.Bg5 Qd7 8.Bxe7 Kxe7 Courageous play! But you could just take with the queen. 9.Bd3 Ba6 10.h4 Kd8 11.h5 Kc8 12.Bxa6+ Nxa6 13.a3 Kb7 14.Qf4 h6 15.0-0 g6 16.b4 c6 17.Ne2 Nc7 18.Ng3 a5?! These French's are strange games, when you never know which side to open a front on. This is might not be justified. 19.bxa5 Rxa5 20.a4! g5 21.Qd2 Be7 22.Nh2 f5 23.exf6 Bxf6 24.Ng4 Qg7 25.c3 Rha8 26.Qc2 b5 Black has initiated all the pawn breaks, but he's just given White targets! 27.Rfb1 Kc8
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28.Qg6! Suddenly White is attacking on the kingside, and Black falls apart. 28...Qxg6 29.hxg6 Bg7 30.Nh5 Ne8 31.Re1 Kd7 [Better try: 31...Rxa4 32.Rac1 Kd7] 32.Re3! bxa4 33.Rae1 c5 34.Rxe6 a3 35.Rxe8! a2 36.Rxa8 Rxa8 37.Ra1 cxd4 38.Nxg7 dxc3 39.Nf6+ Kd6 40.Nge8+ Ke5 41.g7 c2 42.g8Q c1Q+ 43.Rxc1 1-0
(4) Wong,Russell (2200) - Boldi,Ethan (2001) [C01]
MI Brandwein TNM: 2000+ San Francisco (6.4), 11.09.2019
[de Firmian,Nick]
1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.exd5 exd5 4.c4 Nf6 5.Nc3 Bb4 6.Qb3 Nc6 7.Nf3 0-0 8.Be3 Re8 9.Ne5 Be6 10.Nxc6 Bxc3+ 11.Qxc3 bxc6 12.c5 Ne4 13.Qc2 Bf5 14.Bd3 Bg6 15.0-0 Qf6 16.Rae1 Qh4 17.f3 Ng5 18.Bxg6 hxg6 19.Qa4 Kh7 20.Bf2 Qf4 21.Qxc6 Rxe1 22.Rxe1 Rb8 23.b3 Rd8 24.Qa6 Ne6 25.Qd3 Qg5 26.Bg3 Re8 White was a clear pawn ahead, but now he starts to drift, allowing Ethan to infiltrate. 27.Qe3 [27.Kf1] 27...Qf5 28.Qe5?! Qc2 29.Qe2 Qc3 30.Qe3 Qb2 31.Qf2 Qc3 32.Be5?
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32...Nxd4! 33.Qh4+ Kg8 34.Bg3 Ne6 35.b4 g5 36.Qg4 d4 37.Qe4 Qxb4 38.Qc6 Kf8 39.h4 gxh4 40.Bxh4 d3 41.Re4 Qxc5+ 42.Qxc5+ Nxc5 43.Rd4 Rb8 44.Bf2 Rb1+ 45.Kh2 Rb2 46.Bh4 f6 47.Be1 Ne6 48.Rxd3 Rxa2 49.Bb4+ c5 50.Bd2 Ke7 51.Kg3 a5 52.f4 a4 53.f5 Nd4 54.Kf4 Kd6 55.Ke4 Kc6 56.g4 Nb3 57.Bc3 c4 58.Rd8 Rc2 59.Rc8+ Kb5 0-1
(5) Askin,David Benja (2053) - Tsodikova,Natalya (2196) [E63]
MI Brandwein TNM: 2000+ San Francisco (6.5), 11.09.2019
[de Firmian,Nick]
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.Nf3 0-0 5.g3 d6 6.Bg2 Nc6 7.0-0 a6 8.Re1 Rb8 9.Rb1 Na5 10.Nd2 c5 11.d5 b5 12.b3 Nd7 13.Qc2 bxc4 14.bxc4 Rxb1 15.Ncxb1 Qb6 16.Nc3 Ne5 17.Na4 Qc7 18.Bb2 Bd7 19.Rb1 Rb8 20.a3? Rb7 21.f4?
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21...Nexc4! 22.Nxc4 Nxc4 23.Qxc4 Bxa4 24.Qxa4 Bxb2 25.Be4 Bd4+ 26.Kg2 Rxb1 27.Bxb1 Qb7 28.Be4 Qb5 29.Qc2 c4 30.g4 Qc5 31.Qd1 Be3 32.f5 Qxa3 33.fxg6 hxg6 34.Qc2 Qa1 35.Qxc4 Qg1+ 36.Kh3 Bf4 37.Bg2 Qxh2# 0-1
(6) Shaw,Tenzing (2276) - Walder,Michael (2011) [A45]
MI Brandwein TNM: 2000+ San Francisco (6.6), 11.09.2019
[de Firmian,Nick]
1.d4 Nf6 2.Bg5 Ne4 3.Bf4 d5 4.f3 Nf6 5.e4 Tenzing plays macho chess! 5...c5 6.e5 Nfd7 7.c3 e6 8.Be3 Nc6 9.f4 Qb6 10.Qd2 cxd4 11.cxd4 Bb4 12.Nc3 0-0 13.Bd3 f6 14.Nf3 g5 Mike also plays caveman chess, but this is a bit too loose. 15.exf6 gxf4 16.Bxf4 Rxf6 17.Be3 Rxf3 18.gxf3 e5
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19.Rg1+ Kf7 20.Qg2 White goes on the attack. 20...Nf6 21.Qg7+ Ke6 22.Bxh7! Bd7 23.Rg6 Be7 24.Bg8+ Kd6 25.Rxf6+ Bxf6 26.Qxf6+ 1-0
(7) Ivanov,Aleksandr (2192) - Davila,Carlos (2079) [B19]
MI Brandwein TNM: 2000+ San Francisco (6.7), 11.09.2019
[de Firmian,Nick]
1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 dxe4 4.Nxe4 Bf5 5.Ng3 Bg6 6.h4 h6 7.Nf3 Nd7 8.h5 Bh7 9.Bd3 Bxd3 10.Qxd3 Ngf6 Such normal play from Carlos -- hard to believe! 11.Bd2 e6 12.0-0-0 Be7 13.Kb1 0-0 14.Ne4 c5 15.g4 Nxe4?! Black must be courageous and take on g4 16.Qxe4 cxd4 17.g5! Nc5 18.Qg4 hxg5 19.Bxg5 f5 20.Qg2 d3 21.h6! Rf7 22.h7+ Kh8 23.Ne5 dxc2+ 24.Kxc2 Qxd1+ 25.Kxd1 Rd8+ 26.Kc2 1-0
(8) Ostrovsky,Sergey (2032) - Argo,Guy (1859) [B01]
MI Brandwein TNM: 2000+ San Francisco (6.8), 11.09.2019
[Argo,Guy]
1.e4?! My opponent is usually a d4/c4 player. 1...d5!? I smell opening prep and decide to try something that I've never played before. 2.exd5 Nf6 3.d4 Bg4 Fashionable 10+ years ago 4.f3 Bf5 5.c4 e6 6.dxe6 Bb4+ [6...Nc6 is book.] 7.Nc3 Qe7?! [7...fxe6 is more precise.] 8.Kf2?! 0-0 9.Nd5? White trades his only developed piece for a shaky pawn centre justifying Black's dubious double pawn sacrifice. 9...Nxd5 10.cxd5 fxe6 11.dxe6?! Too greedy. [11.Bc4 put up more resistance.] 11...Nc6 12.d5?? The fatal mistake. Black is winning now. 12...Rad8!? [Silicon says 12...Bc5+ is faster but I couldn't resist developing my last piece.] 13.Ne2? [Better was 13.g3 to create a haven for the king.] 13...Bxe6 14.Nf4 Bc5+ 15.Ke1 Bb4+ 16.Kf2 [Offering White the opportunity to lose a piece to 16.Bd2 Rxf4] 16...Bc5+ 17.Ke1 Bxd5+ Okay, back to the original plan. 18.Be2 [18.Qe2 gets mated by the very pretty 18...Bxf3!!] 18...Bc4 Black cashes in his development lead to win material on the open files by force. 19.Qc2 Bxe2 20.Nxe2 Nd4 21.Qc4+ Kh8 22.Bd2 b5! That shrieking sound is the White Queen having a meltdown: "I can't do everything!" 23.Qd3 Nxf3+ 24.Qxf3 Rxf3 25.gxf3 Re8 0-1
(9) Melville,Cailen (1905) - Busch,Jonah M (1871) [A62]
MI Brandwein TNM: 2000+ San Francisco (6.11), 11.09.2019
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 e6 4.g3 exd5 5.cxd5 d6 6.Nc3 g6 7.Nf3 Bg7 8.Bg2 0-0 9.0-0 a6 10.a4 Bg4 11.Nd2 Qc8 12.Nc4 Qc7 13.Bf4 Rd8 14.h3 Bc8 15.g4 Ne8 16.Ne4 f5 17.gxf5 Bxf5 18.a5 Bxe4 19.Bxe4 Nd7 20.Bh2 b5 21.axb6 Nxb6 22.Na5 Bxb2 23.Rb1 Bg7 24.Qb3 Nf6 25.Bg2 Nbd7 26.Nb7 Re8 27.Nxd6 Rxe2 28.Nf7 Qc8 29.d6 Rb8 30.Qc4 Rbb2 31.Ne5+ Kh8 32.Nf7+ Kg8 33.Bb7 Qb8 34.Rxb2 Rxb2 35.Bc6 Qc8 36.Be5 Qxc6 37.Nh6+ Kh8 38.Qg8+ Nxg8 39.Nf7# 1-0
(10) Marcus,Joel (1835) - Rudyak,Felix (1900) [D02]
San Francisco San Francisco (6.12), 11.09.2019
[de Firmian,Nick]
1.d4 d5 2.Bf4 Nf6 3.Nf3 Bf5 4.e3 e6 5.Bd3 Bg6 6.0-0 c5 7.c4 Nc6 8.Nc3 cxd4 9.exd4 Bd6 10.Bg5 dxc4 11.Bxc4 0-0 12.d5 Na5! 13.Be2 exd5 14.Bxf6 Qxf6 15.Qxd5 Nc6 16.Qg5 Material is even and Black has the two bishops. He starts to take over the initiative in the endgame. 16...Qxg5 17.Nxg5 Be7 18.Nf3 Rad8 19.Rfe1 Bb4 20.a3 Ba5 21.b4 Bb6 22.Rac1 h6 23.Na4 Bd4 24.b5 Na5 25.Nxd4 Rxd4 26.Bf3?? Rxa4 0-1
(11) Hakobyan,Sos (1799) - Lehman,Clarence (1900) [C57]
MI Brandwein TNM: 2000+ San Francisco (6.14), 11.09.2019
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Ng5 Bc5 5.Bxf7+ Ke7 6.Bb3 Rf8 7.0-0 d6 8.Nc3 Bg4 9.Nf3 Nd4 10.d3 Qe8 11.Bg5 c6 12.Nxd4 Bxd1 13.Nf5+ Kd7 14.Raxd1 Qg6 15.Bh4 Rae8 16.d4 exd4 17.Nxd4 Nxe4 18.Na4 Bxd4 19.Rxd4 b5 20.Nc3 Nxc3 21.bxc3 Re4 22.Bg3 Rxd4 23.cxd4 Qe4 24.f3 Qxd4+ 25.Bf2 Qd2 26.c4 bxc4 27.Rd1 Qb4 28.Bc2 g6 29.h3 Qb2 30.Be4 c3 31.Bc5 Rf6 32.Be3 Qe2 33.Rd3 c2 34.Rc3 Qe1+ 0-1
(12) Mohammed,Mansoor (1885) - Drane,Robert (1800) [A91]
San Francisco San Francisco (6.9), 11.09.2019
[de Firmian,Nick]
1.d4 f5 2.g3 Nf6 3.Bg2 e6 4.c4 Be7 5.Nh3 d6 6.b3 0-0 7.Nd2 e5 8.dxe5 dxe5 9.0-0 c6 10.Qc2 Be6 11.Ng5 Bc8 12.e4 Ng4 13.Ngf3 Bd6 14.h3 Nf6 15.exf5 e4 16.Nxe4 Nxe4 17.Qxe4 Bxf5 18.Qd4 Be7 19.Qxd8 Bxd8 20.Ba3 Re8 21.Rfe1 Rxe1+ 22.Rxe1 Nd7 23.Re8+ Kf7 24.Rh8 White is up a pawn plus activity, but Black now puts up a heroic defense. 24...Rb8 25.Bd6
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25...Bc7! 26.Rxb8 Bxb8 27.Ne5+ Ke6 28.Bxb8 Nxb8 29.f4 Nd7 30.Nxd7 Kxd7 31.a3 b6 32.Kf2 Kd6 33.b4 a5 34.Ke3 axb4 35.axb4 Be6 36.Bf1 c5 37.b5 h5 38.Kf3 Ke7 39.g4 hxg4+ 40.hxg4 Kf6 41.f5 Bf7 42.Bd3 Ke5 43.Ke3 Be8 44.Be4 Bf7 45.Kd3 Kf4 46.Bd5 Be8 47.Be6 Ke5 48.Ke3 g6 49.Kf3 gxf5 50.gxf5 Bh5+ 51.Kg3 Be2 52.Kh4 Kf6 53.Kh3 Ke5 54.Kg3 Bd1 55.Bd7 Be2 56.Kh4 Kf6 57.Be6 Bd3 58.Kg4 Be2+ 59.Kf4 Bf1 60.Bd5 Bd3 61.Be6 Bf1 62.Ke4 Bg2+ 63.Kf4 Bh3 64.Bd7 Bg2 65.Bc6 Bh3 66.Be4 Bf1 67.Bd5 Bh3 68.Be6 Bf1 1/2-1/2
(13) Porlares,Teodoro (1766) - Clemens,Kristian (1944) [D02]
MI Brandwein TNM: 1600-1999 San Francisco (6.15), 11.09.2019
1.Nf3 d5 2.d4 Nf6 3.Bg5 c5 4.c3 Nc6 5.e3 Bf5 6.Bd3 Bxd3 7.Qxd3 Qb6 8.b3 e6 9.0-0 Bd6 10.Nbd2 0-0 11.h3 Rad8 12.Rfe1 Rfe8 13.Bxf6 gxf6 14.Nh2 f5 15.f4 cxd4 16.exd4 Bxf4 17.Ndf3 Bg3 18.Re2 Kh8 19.Nf1 Bf4 20.Kh1 Rg8 21.Ng1 Rg6 22.Qf3 Bd6 23.Rd1 Rdg8 24.Qh5 Qd8 25.c4 Ne7 26.Nf3 Qf8 27.Ne5 Bxe5 28.dxe5 Rh6 29.Qf3 Qg7 30.Ne3 Ng6 31.cxd5 Nxe5 32.Qf4 Ng6 33.Qd4 Qxd4 34.Rxd4 f4 35.Ng4 f3 36.gxf3 Rxh3+ 37.Kg2 Rh5 38.d6 Nh4+ 39.Kf2 Nf5 40.Rd1 Rd8 41.d7 Kg7 42.Rg1 Kf8 43.Ke1 Ke7 44.Rd2 Nd6 45.Kf2 Rf5 46.Kg3 h5 0-1
(14) Heidari,Ako (1856) - Huberts,Alexander (1767) [A16]
MI Brandwein TNM: 1600-1999 San Francisco (6.16), 11.09.2019
1.c4 Nf6 2.g3 g6 3.Bg2 Bg7 4.d3 0-0 5.Nc3 c6 6.e4 d6 7.Nge2 Nbd7 8.0-0 Rb8 9.Be3 c5 10.h3 Ne5 11.Kh2 a6 12.Qd2 b5 13.f4 Ned7 14.Rae1 bxc4 15.dxc4 Nb6 16.b3 Bb7 17.f5 Nbd7 18.Bh6 Ne5 19.Bxg7 Kxg7 20.Nf4 Qd7 21.Ncd5 Nxd5 22.exd5 Rh8 23.Rxe5 dxe5 24.Nd3 f6 25.Nxc5 Qc8 26.Ne6+ Kf7 27.Be4 g5 28.c5 Rd8 29.Qe2 Ke8 30.c6 Rd6 31.Qh5# 1-0
(15) Acharya,Venkatagi (1706) - Robeal,Rafik (1800) [C90]
MI Brandwein TNM: 1600-1999 San Francisco (6.17), 11.09.2019
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0-0 Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 0-0 8.a3 d6 9.h3 Na5 10.Ba2 c5 11.c3 Qc7 12.d4 Bb7 13.d5 Bc8 14.Nbd2 c4 15.Nf1 Nb7 16.Ng3 Nc5 17.Re2 Nd3 18.Be3 Nd7 19.Ne1 N7c5 20.Nxd3 Nxd3 21.Bb1 Nf4 22.Re1 a5 23.Bc2 Bd7 24.Nf5 Bf6 25.Qf3 Ng6 26.g4 Bxf5 27.gxf5 Ne7 28.Kh2 Kh8 29.Rg1 b4 30.Rg2 Ng8 31.Rag1 bxc3 32.bxc3 Rab8 33.Bc1 Qe7 34.Rg4 g6 35.h4 Bxh4 36.Qh3 Bxf2 37.R1g2 Be1 38.fxg6 fxg6 39.Rxg6 Rf2 40.Rxf2 Bxf2 41.Bg5 Qf8 42.Bc1 Rb7 43.Rg2 Rf7 44.Bd2 Rf3 45.Qg4 Rf6 46.Kh1 Bc5 47.a4 Nh6 48.Qh3 Ng8 49.Bd1 Rf1+ 50.Kh2 Rxd1 51.Bg5 Rd3 52.Qd7 Be3 53.Bh4 Bf4+ 54.Kh1 Rh3+ 55.Qxh3 Qh6 56.Rg4 Nf6 57.Bxf6+ 1-0
(16) Kaplan,Glenn (1651) - Maser,Thomas F (1902) [A17]
San Francisco San Francisco (6.18), 11.09.2019
[de Firmian,Nick]
1.c4 Nf6 2.Nc3 e6 3.g3 d5 4.cxd5 exd5 5.Bg2?! d4 6.Nb1 Na6 7.Qa4+ c6
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8.Bxc6+!? bxc6 9.Qxc6+ Qd7 10.Qxa8 Nb4 Black has a lot of compensation for his exchange and two pawns. Practically White has a hard task ahead. 11.Na3 d3 12.e3 Bc5 13.Qg2 Bb7 14.f3 0-0 15.Nh3 Ng4 16.0-0 Ne5 17.Ng5 f5 18.Kh1 Rf6 19.e4? [19.b3 Gotta develop! Without the rook and bishop in the game, Black will surely win on the kingside.] 19...h6 20.h4? hxg5 21.hxg5 Rg6 22.Qh3 Rxg5 23.Qh4
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23...fxe4! 24.g4 Nxf3 25.Rxf3 exf3 26.Kh2 Qxg4 Nice game! 0-1
(17) Xu,Jayden (1797) - Tamondong,Cesar (1617) [A57]
MI Brandwein TNM: 1600-1999 San Francisco (6.19), 11.09.2019
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 b5 4.cxb5 a6 5.b6 Qxb6 6.Nc3 d6 7.e4 g6 8.Qc2 Bg7 9.Nf3 0-0 10.Be2 Bg4 11.h3 Bxf3 12.Bxf3 Nbd7 13.Be3 Ne5 14.Be2 Rab8 15.Rb1 Qa5 16.0-0 Rfc8 17.g4 Ne8 18.f4 Nd7 19.g5 Bd4 20.Bf2 Nc7 21.h4 Nb5 22.Nxb5 axb5 23.a3 Qb6 24.Bg4 Rc7 25.h5 Bxf2+ 26.Qxf2 c4 27.Kg2 Qxf2+ 28.Rxf2 Nc5 29.e5 Nd3 30.exd6 exd6 31.Rf3 Re7 32.Kg3 Rbe8 33.hxg6 hxg6 34.f5 Ne5 35.Re3 Nxg4 36.Rxe7 Rxe7 37.Kxg4 Re4+ 38.Kf3 gxf5 39.Rh1 Kg7 40.Rh6 Rd4 41.Rxd6 Rd2 42.Kf4 Rxb2 43.Kxf5 Rd2 44.Ke5 Score unclear here, but Black won after about 8 more moves. 0-1
(18) Mercado,Adam (1699) - Tuck,Drew (1490) [C56]
MI Brandwein TNM: 1600-1999 San Francisco (6.20), 11.09.2019
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 exd4 4.Bc4 Bc5 5.c3 Nf6 6.e5 d5 7.Bb5 Ne4 8.Nxd4 0-0 9.Bxc6 bxc6 10.0-0 Bd7 11.Be3 Bb6 12.Nd2 Nxd2 13.Qxd2 f6 14.e6 Bxd4 15.Bxd4 Bxe6 16.Bc5 Re8 17.Rfe1 Qd7 18.b3 a5 19.Rad1 a4 20.Qf4 axb3 21.axb3 Bf7 22.f3 Re6 23.Qd2 Rae8 24.Kf2 Qc8 25.Bb4 Re5 26.Rxe5 Rxe5 27.Re1 Qe6 28.Ra1 Qd7 29.Bc5 Re8 30.Ra4 Bg6 31.Qf4 Qe6 32.Be3 c5 33.g4 d4 34.cxd4 cxd4 35.Qxd4 Qxb3 36.Qc4+ Qxc4 37.Rxc4 Rc8 38.Bf4 c6 39.Bd6 Bf7 40.Rc5 Bd5 41.h4 Re8 42.Rc3 Kf7 43.f4 Re4 44.Ra3 Ke6 45.Bf8 Rxf4+ 46.Kg3 g5 47.Bh6 Rb4 48.hxg5 fxg5 49.Bxg5 Rb3+ 50.Rxb3 Bxb3 51.Kf4 Kd5 52.Ke3 Bd1 53.Kf4 c5 54.Kg3 Ke4 55.Kh4 c4 56.Bf6 Kd3 57.Kg5 Be2 1/2-1/2
(19) McKellar,Daniel (1854) - Chalissery,Jossy (1668) [B07]
MI Brandwein TNM: 1600-1999 San Francisco (6.21), 11.09.2019
1.e4 d6 2.d4 Nd7 3.Nc3 e5 4.f4 Be7 5.Nf3 exf4 6.Bxf4 b6 7.Bb5 a6 8.Bc6 Rb8 9.e5 Bb7 10.Bxb7 Rxb7 11.Qe2 dxe5 12.Nxe5 Nxe5 13.Qxe5 Nf6 14.0-0 0-0 15.Rad1 Bd6 16.Qe2 Ra7 17.Be5 Be7 18.Qf3 Nd7 19.Bg3 Nf6 20.Rfe1 Bd6 21.Bh4 Kh8 22.Ne4 Be7 23.Nxf6 Bxf6 24.Bxf6 gxf6 25.Qc6 Qd6 26.Qf3 Rg8 27.Rf1 Rg6 28.c3 c6 29.Rde1 Qd5 30.Re8+ Kg7 31.Qxd5 cxd5 32.Rfe1 Rd7 33.Rb8 f5 34.Re5 Rf6 35.Kf2 Kg6 36.Kf3 Re6 37.Rxe6+ fxe6 38.Rxb6 Kf6 39.Rxa6 Rg7 40.h3 h5 41.c4 dxc4 42.d5 Ke5 43.dxe6 h4 44.Ra4 Kxe6 45.Rxc4 Rg3+ 46.Kf2 Rd3 47.Rc2 Ke5 48.a4 Kd4 49.Ke2 Rg3 50.Kf2 Rd3 51.a5 Re3 52.Rc3 1-0
(20) Cortinas,Martin A (1697) - Cohee,James (1654) [D15]
MI Brandwein TNM: 1600-1999 San Francisco (6.22), 11.09.2019
[de Firmian,Nick]
1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nc3 a6 5.Qc2 g6 6.cxd5 cxd5 7.Bg5! Bg7 Diagram
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8.Bxf6 Bxf6 9.Nxd5! Nc6 10.Nxf6+ exf6 11.e3 Be6 12.Bc4 Qa5+ 13.Nd2 Bxc4 14.Qxc4 0-0 15.Qc3 Rac8 16.Qxa5 Nxa5 17.Kd1 Rc7 18.Rc1 Rfc8 19.Rxc7 Rxc7 20.b3 f5 21.Nf3 Kf8 22.Kd2 Ke7 23.Rc1 Rxc1 24.Kxc1 f6 25.Nd2 Nc6 26.a3 Ke6 27.Kc2 Kd5 28.Kd3 b5 29.Nb1 Na5 30.Nd2 Nc6 31.f3 b4 32.a4 Na5 33.e4+ fxe4+ 34.fxe4+ Kc6 35.Kc2 Kd6 36.Nc4+? This leads to a problematic pawn ending where Black gets a protected passed pawn. Usually a pawn up ending is an easy win, but here the white king must watch the protected passer. 36...Nxc4 37.bxc4 a5 38.g4 g5 39.c5+ Kc6 40.Kb3 Kc7 41.d5 Kd7 42.Kc4 Kc7 43.c6?! [43.d6+! Kc6 44.Kd4 Kd7 45.Kd5 b3 46.c6+ Kd8 47.Ke6 b2 48.c7+ Kc8 49.Ke7 b1Q 50.d7+ Kxc7 51.d8Q+ Kb7 52.Qd5+ Should be winning] 43...Kd6 44.Kd4 Kc7 45.e5 fxe5+ 46.Kxe5 b3 47.d6+ Kxc6 48.Ke6 b2 49.d7 b1Q 50.d8Q Qe4+ 51.Kf6 Qf4+ 52.Kg7 Qe5+?? [52...Qxg4] 53.Qf6+ Qxf6+ 54.Kxf6 Kc5 55.Kxg5 Kb4 56.Kh6 Kxa4 57.Kxh7 Kb3? 58.g5 a4 59.g6 a3 60.g7 The black king is on an unfortunate square that allows the white pawn to queen with check. 1-0
(21) Perlov,Alexander (1770) - Rakonitz,David (1639) [E04]
MI Brandwein TNM: 1600-1999 San Francisco (6.23), 11.09.2019
[de Firmian,Nick]
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.Bg2 dxc4 5.Nf3 a6 6.0-0 Be7 7.Qc2 b5 8.a4 Bb7 9.b3 cxb3 10.Qxb3 Bd5 11.Qc2 Nbd7 12.Nc3 Bb7 13.axb5 axb5 14.Rxa8 Bxa8 15.Nxb5 Bd6 16.Re1 Be4 17.Qd1 0-0 18.Nc3 c5 19.Nxe4 Nxe4 20.Qd3 Ndf6 21.Ne5 Qa5 22.Rd1 cxd4 23.Nc4 Qa4 24.Nb2 Diagram
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24...Nxf2? This loses a piece. The retreat 25...Qa8 would hold on to the material. 25.Kxf2 Qb4 26.Nc4 Ng4+ 27.Kg1 Rd8? 28.Ba3 Qb8 29.Bxd6 Qc8 30.Qxd4 Nf6 31.e4 h6 32.e5 Ne8 33.Qb6 Nxd6 34.Nxd6 Qb8 35.Qxb8 Rxb8 36.Rf1 Rf8 37.Be4 f6 38.g4 Rd8 39.Rd1 fxe5 40.Rd3 Rb8 41.Kg2 Rb6 42.Kg3 g5 43.Bg6 1-0
(22) Albury,Sterling C (1117) - Ansari,Jahaan (1459) [D36]
MI Brandwein TNM: U1600 San Francisco (6.10), 11.09.2019
[de Firmian,Nick]
1.d4 e6 2.c4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bg5 Nbd7 5.cxd5 exd5 6.e3 c6 7.Bd3 Bd6 8.Nge2 0-0 9.Qc2 Qc7 10.Bf4 Re8 11.0-0-0 b5? Diagram
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12.Nxb5! cxb5 13.Qxc7 Bxc7 14.Bxc7 Bb7 15.Ba5 a6 16.b3 Nb8 17.Kb2 Nc6 18.Bd2 b4 19.f3 Rec8 20.Rc1 Ne8 21.Nf4 Nc7 22.Rc2 g5 23.Nh5 h6 24.h4 gxh4 25.Rxh4 a5 26.Nf6+ Kg7 27.Nd7 Rd8 28.Nc5 Rdb8? 29.Nxb7 Rxb7 30.Rxc6 Ne6 31.e4 Nxd4 32.Bxh6+ Kh7 33.Bg5+ Kg8 34.Bf6 Nxc6 35.Rh8# A smooth game by Sterling. 1-0
(23) Casares Jr,Nick (1600) - Barreyro,Romeo (1657) [B00]
MI Brandwein TNM: 1600-1999 San Francisco (6.24), 11.09.2019
1.e4 d6 2.d4 Nf6 3.Nc3 Nc6 4.Nf3 Bg4 5.Be2 g6 6.h3 Bd7 7.Be3 Bg7 8.Qd2 h5 9.0-0-0 b5 10.Bxb5 Rb8 11.Ba4 Na5 12.Bxd7+ Nxd7 13.Qd3 c6 14.Nd2 Qb6 15.Nb3 Qb4 16.Nxa5 Qxa5 17.a3 Qb6 18.b4 a5 19.Kd2 axb4 20.axb4 Qxb4 21.Rb1 Qa5 22.Ra1 Qc7 23.Ra6 e6 24.Rha1 0-0 25.g4 h4 26.Bg5 e5 27.Qc4 exd4 28.Nd5 Ne5 29.Nxc7 Nxc4+ 30.Ke2 Rb2 31.Kd1 Ne5 32.Be7 Rfb8 33.Kc1 d3 34.Ra8 Rxc2+ 35.Kd1 Rxa8 36.Rxa8+ Kh7 37.Ne8 Nc4 38.Nf6+ Bxf6 39.Bxf6 Nb2+ 40.Bxb2 Rxb2 41.Ra3 Rxf2 42.Rxd3 Rf6 43.Ke2 Re6 44.Kf3 g5 45.Re3 Kg7 46.Rc3 c5 47.Rd3 f6 48.Rd5 Kf7 49.Ke3 Ke7 50.Kd3 Re5 51.Rxe5+ fxe5 52.Kc4 Ke6 53.Kc3 d5 54.exd5+ Kxd5 0-1
(24) Boldi,Nicholas (1598) - Carron,Joel (1573) [B31]
MI Brandwein TNM: 1600-1999 San Francisco (6.25), 11.09.2019
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 g6 4.Bxc6 bxc6 5.d4 Bg7 6.dxc5 Qa5+ 7.Bd2 Qxc5 8.Nc3 Qb6 9.Rb1 Ba6 10.Na4 Qc7 11.Nc5 Qc8 12.Nd3 Nf6 13.Qe2 0-0 14.0-0 d6 15.b3 c5 16.c4 Bb7 17.e5 Ne8 18.exd6 exd6 19.Nf4 Nf6 20.h3 Re8 21.Be3 Ne4 22.Qd3 Qc6 23.Rbc1 Rad8 24.Nd5 Bc8 25.Ng5 Bf5 26.Nxe4 Bxe4 27.Qd2 Bxd5 28.cxd5 Qb7 29.Qd3 Re5 30.Rfd1 Qb4 31.Rc4 Qb7 32.Ra4 Rd7 33.Bf4 Re8 34.Ra6 Be5 35.Bxe5 Rxe5 36.Rc6 Rd8 37.Qf3 Qd7 38.Qd3 Rc8 39.Rxc8+ Qxc8 40.Qb5 Qe8 41.Qa5 Qa8 42.Qd2 Qe8 43.Kf1 Qb5+ 44.Qd3 Qa5 45.a4 Qb4 46.Qc4 Qa3 47.Qc2 Qb4 48.Qc4 Qa3 49.Qc2 Qb4 50.Qc4 Qa3 51.g4 Qa2 52.Qd3 Qa3 53.Kg2 Qb4 54.Qc4 Re4 55.Qxb4 Rxb4 1/2-1/2
(25) Sablon,Hadrien (1626) - Khamkar,Susheel (1470) [C01]
MI Brandwein TNM: 1600-1999 San Francisco (6.26), 11.09.2019
1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bg5 Be7 5.exd5 exd5 6.Bd3 Bg4 7.f3 Be6 8.Nge2 0-0 9.Nf4 Qd7 10.Qe2 Nc6 11.Nxe6 fxe6 12.Bb5 a6 13.Bxc6 Qxc6 14.0-0 Qb6 15.Kh1 Rfe8 16.Nd1 Nd7 17.Be3 Bf6 18.c3 Qd6 19.f4 Bd8 20.Nf2 Nf6 21.Rae1 b6 22.Nd3 Ne4 23.Qh5 Rf8 24.g4 c5 25.g5 Rf5 26.Rf3 g6 27.Qh4 Bxg5 28.Qh3 cxd4 29.Bxd4 Bf6 30.Ne5 Rf8 31.Ng4 Kh8 32.Nxf6 Nxf6 33.Qh6 Rh5 34.Rxe6 Qd8 35.Qxf8+ Qxf8 36.Bxf6+ Kg8 37.Rfe3 Rf5 38.Bd4 Qh6 39.Rxb6 Qxf4 40.Rg3 Qe4+ 41.Rg2 h5 42.Rbxg6+ Kf7 43.h3 Rf1+ 44.Kh2 Qf4+ 45.R2g3 h4 46.Kg2 hxg3 47.Rxg3 Qc1 1-0
(26) Chambers,Don (1367) - Mays,Jerry (1700) [C50]
MI Brandwein TNM: 1600-1999 San Francisco (6.27), 11.09.2019
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 exd4 4.Bc4 Be7 5.c3 Na5 6.Qxd4 Nxc4 7.Qxc4 d6 8.h3 c6 9.Bf4 Nf6 10.0-0 0-0 11.Nbd2 Be6 12.Qd3 Qb6 13.b3 Rad8 14.Nd4 Bc8 15.Nc4 Qa6 16.Nf5 Bxf5 17.exf5 Nd5 18.Qg3 Nxf4 19.Qxf4 b5 20.Ne3 Bf6 21.Rfc1 b4 22.Qxb4 Qb5 23.Ng4 Qxf5 24.Qb7 Bg5 25.Rd1 Qc5 26.c4 h5 27.Ne3 Bxe3 28.fxe3 Qxe3+ 29.Kh1 Qb6 30.Qe7 Rfe8 31.Qh4 Qc5 32.Rf1 f6 33.Qg3 Qg5 34.Qf3 d5 35.Qf2 d4 36.Rae1 Re3 37.h4 Qe5 38.Rd1 d3 39.Rfe1 Re2 40.Rxe2 Qxe2 41.Qxe2 dxe2 42.Rxd8+ Kf7 43.Rd7+ Ke6 44.Rxg7 e1Q+ 45.Kh2 Qxh4+ 46.Kg1 Kf5 47.Rxa7 Qd4+ 0-1
(27) Radaelli,Lucas (1444) - Bielec,John [A57]
MI Brandwein TNM: U1600 San Francisco (6.28), 11.09.2019
[de Firmian,Nick]
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 b5 4.cxb5 a6 5.Nc3 d6?! Black should take on b5 with the pawn to cause White some trouble in the opening. When White has the possibility to capture on b5 with the bishop in the Benko he will have the advantage. 6.e4 g6 7.Nf3 Nbd7 8.Bc4 Bg7 9.0-0 0-0 10.Bf4 axb5 11.Bxb5 Ba6 12.Bxa6 Rxa6 13.Qd2 Qa5 14.Rfe1 Nb6 15.Qd3 Rb8 16.e5! c4 17.Qc2? [17.Qd2!] 17...Nfxd5 18.Nxd5 Qxd5 19.exd6 exd6 20.Rad1 Qb5 21.a3? [21.Bxd6!] 21...Qxb2 22.Qxb2 Bxb2 23.Bxd6 Rc8 24.Rb1 c3 Now the black c-pawn is a monster. 25.Bf4 Rxa3 26.Bc1 Ra2 27.Re2 Na4 28.Bh6 c2 29.Rbe1 Ra1 30.Rxa1 Bxa1 31.Re1 Bb2 32.Bc1 Bxc1 33.Rxc1 Rd8! 0-1
(28) Baer,Michael A (1430) - Simpkins,Jerry (1426) [C40]
MI Brandwein TNM: U1600 San Francisco (6.29), 11.09.2019
[Baer,Michael]
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 f5 The brazen Latvian Gambit. 3.Nxe5 Qe7!? Diagram
 |
4.Qh5+ g6 5.Nxg6 Qxe4+ This line starting with 3..Qe7 is a Jerry Simkins specialty and is very confusing. Now White should block the check with 6. Be2 to try for the advantage. 6.Kd1?! [6.Be2+/=] 6...Nf6! 7.Qh3? [7.Qh4=] 7...Ng4 Suddenly things don't work for White. Such a quick turnaround. 8.Qh4 hxg6! 9.f3 Ne3+ 0-1
(29) Allen,Tom Carter (1400) - Starr,Albert Mart (1575) [C42]
MI Brandwein TNM: U1600 San Francisco (6.30), 11.09.2019
[de Firmian,Nick]
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Nxe5 d6 4.Nxf7!? Kxf7 5.d4 Be7 6.Nc3 Re8 7.Bc4+ d5?! 8.Nxd5 Nxd5 Diagram
 |
9.Qh5+! Kf8?! 10.Bxd5 Bb4+ 11.c3 Qf6 12.cxb4 c6 13.Bg5?! [13.e5 cxd5 14.Qxe8+ Kxe8 15.exf6 would be a clean win.] 13...Qg6 14.Qxg6 hxg6 15.Bc4 Rxe4+ 16.Be2!? [16.Be3!] 16...Rxd4 17.a3 Bf5 18.0-0 Nd7 19.Be3 Rd6 20.Rad1 Rxd1 21.Rxd1 Kg8 Black has fought back to a playable position. 22.Rd6 Nf6 23.h3 Kh7 24.g4 Bc2 25.g5 Nd5 26.Bd4 Bf5 27.Kh2 Re8 28.Bc4 Re4 29.Bxd5 cxd5 30.Rxd5 Rh4 31.Kg3 Rxh3+ 32.Kf4 Rh4+ 33.Ke5 a6 34.f4 Rh2 35.Kd6 Rc2 36.Rc5 Rd2 37.Ke5 Re2+ 38.Kd6 Re4 39.Be5 Re3 40.Rc7 Rd3+ 41.Kc5 Rd7 42.Rxd7 Bxd7 43.Kd6 Bf5 44.Ke7 Kg8 45.a4 Bc2 46.a5 Ba4 1/2-1/2
(30) Chan,John (1515) - Chambers,Wolfe Na (1369) [A43]
MI Brandwein TNM: Extra Rated San Francisco (6.31), 11.09.2019
[de Firmian,Nick]
1.d4 c5 2.d5 g6 3.Nf3 Bg7 4.c3 Nf6 5.Nbd2?! Nxd5 6.e4 Nb6 7.Be2 Nc6 8.a4 a5 9.Nb3 d6 10.Bb5 Bd7 11.Be3 0-0 12.0-0 c4? This weakens the c-pawn and the queenside. 13.Nbd2 Na7?? 14.Bxb6! Qxb6 15.Bxd7 Qxb2 16.Nxc4 Qxc3 17.Rc1 Qb4 18.Qe2 e6 19.Rb1 Qc5 20.Rfd1 Rfd8 21.Rxb7 Nc6 22.Rb5 Qa7 23.Bxc6 Rac8 24.Rxa5 Qe7 25.Bb5 d5 26.exd5 Bc3 27.Ra6 Rxd5? 28.Rxd5 1-0
(31) Robertson,Wade (1249) - Reyes,Victor Hugo (1497) [B12]
MI Brandwein TNM: U1600 San Francisco (6.32), 11.09.2019
[de Firmian,Nick]
1.e4 e6 2.d4 c6 3.Nf3 d5 4.e5 f5 5.Bd3 Be7 6.b3 g5? Too brave! 7.Nxg5! h5 8.Nh3 c5 9.Nf4?! [9.c3] 9...cxd4 10.0-0 h4 11.Ng6?! Rh7 12.Nxe7 Nxe7 13.Bb5+ Bd7 14.Bxd7+ Qxd7 15.Qxd4 Nbc6 White has allowed Black to develop all his pieces. The game has swung in Black's favor. 16.Qa4 0-0-0 17.f4 d4 18.Rd1 Rg7 19.Nc3 Rdg8 20.Nb5 Rxg2+ 21.Kh1 Qd5! 22.Nxa7+ Kb8 23.Nxc6+ Nxc6 24.h3 Rg1+ 25.Kh2 Qg2# 0-1
(32) Chen,Bryant Alan (1468) - Cole,Tony (1400) [D53]
MI Brandwein TNM: U1600 San Francisco (6.33), 11.09.2019
[de Firmian,Nick]
1.c4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Bg5 h6 5.Bh4 Be7 6.Nc3 c5 7.e3 b6 8.a4 Ba6 9.Nb5 0-0 10.Ne5 Ne4 11.Bxe7 Qxe7 12.Bd3 Nd6 13.0-0 Bb7 14.a5 Nd7? Diagram
 |
[14...Nxb5 15.cxb5 bxa5 would be quite fine for Black.] 15.a6! Bc8 16.Nc6! Qg5 17.Nc7 Trapping the rook on a8. 17...e5 18.cxd5 exd4 19.Qf3 Ne5 20.Nxe5 Qxe5 21.Nxa8 dxe3 22.fxe3 Qxb2 23.e4 Qd4+ 24.Kh1 c4 25.Bc2 b5 26.Qf4 Ne8 27.Nc7 f6 28.Nxb5 Qb2 29.Nxa7 Bxa6 30.Rxa6 Qxc2 31.Rc6 Qa4 32.Nc8 Qb5 33.Rc1 g5 34.Qd2 Ng7 35.R6xc4 Nh5 36.Ne7+ Kg7 37.Nf5+ Kh7 38.Qb4 Qe8 39.Qe7+ Kg6 40.g4 Qxe7 41.Nxe7+ Kf7 42.gxh5 Kxe7 43.Rc6 Rd8 44.Re6+ Kd7 45.Rxf6 Re8 46.Re1 Rh8 47.Ra1 Ke7 48.Re6+ Kf7 49.Ra7+ Kf8 50.Ra8+ Kg7 51.Rxh8 Kxh8 52.d6 Kg8 53.d7 Kf7 54.Re5 Kf6 55.Rd5 g4 56.d8Q+ Ke6 57.Qd7+ Kf6 58.Rf5# 1-0
(33) Ahmed,Enile - Hilliard,Michael (1429) [D43]
MI Brandwein TNM: U1600 San Francisco (6.34), 11.09.2019
[de Firmian,Nick]
1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nc3 e6 5.Qb3 dxc4 6.Qc2? Bb4 7.Bg5 Nbd7 8.e4 Qc7 [8...b5 9.e5 h6 10.Bh4 g5 Would be the aggressive way to play for Black.] 9.Bxc4 b5 10.Bb3 h6 11.Bh4 Bb7 12.0-0 a5?! 13.e5 Nd5 14.Nxd5 exd5 15.Bxd5 a4? Black needs to castle. 16.e6! fxe6 17.Qg6+ 1-0
(34) Sachs-Weintraub,Julian (1447) - Dubensky,Walter B (1078) [D10]
MI Brandwein TNM: U1600 San Francisco (6.35), 11.09.2019
[de Firmian,Nick]
1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.e3 Nf6 4.Nc3 dxc4 5.Bxc4 b5 6.Bb3 e6 7.Nf3 Bb4 8.0-0 Nbd7 9.a4 Bxc3 10.bxc3 Ba6? [10...0-0] 11.axb5! Bxb5 12.c4 Trapping the bishop. 12...Ne4 13.cxb5 Nc3 14.Qd3 Nxb5 15.Ba4 a6 16.Bxb5 cxb5 17.Ba3 Rc8 18.Rfc1 Nb6 19.Rxc8 Qxc8 20.Rc1 Nc4 21.Ne5 Qb7 22.Nxc4 bxc4 23.Qxc4 Kd7 24.Qa4+ Kd8 25.Qc6 Qxc6 26.Rxc6 a5 27.Ra6 Kd7 28.Rxa5 Rb8 29.g3 Rb1+ 30.Kg2 Ra1 31.Bb4 Rb1 32.Bf8 g5 33.Rxg5 f5 34.Rg7+ Ke8 35.Bc5 and 1-0 in a few. 1-0
(35) Olson,David (1407) - Rushton,Peter Jam (1237) [A29]
MI Brandwein TNM: U1600 San Francisco (6.36), 11.09.2019
[de Firmian,Nick]
1.Nf3 Nc6 2.c4 e5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.g3 d5 5.cxd5 Nxd5 6.a3?! Bf5 7.Nxd5?! Qxd5 8.Bg2 Nd4! 9.Nh4?! [9.0-0 Bc2 10.Nxd4!] 9...Be4 10.f3? Bc2! 11.f4 Qb3 12.0-0 Bxd1 13.e3 Ne2+ 14.Kh1 Nxc1 15.Rxc1 Bc2 16.fxe5 Be7 17.Nf3 Bd3 18.Rc3 Qxb2 19.Rxd3 0-0 20.Rd7 Bxa3 21.Rxc7 a5 22.Ng5 Qxe5 23.Bxb7 Qxc7 24.Bd5 h6 0-1
(36) Capdeville,Barry (1226) - Serra,Owen (829) [C65]
MI Brandwein TNM: U1600 San Francisco (6.37), 11.09.2019
[de Firmian,Nick]
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 Bc5 4.d3 Nf6 5.Bg5 0-0 6.a3 h6 7.Bxf6 Qxf6 8.Nc3 a6 9.Bc4 d6 10.h3 Be6 11.Nd5 Bxd5 12.Bxd5 Rab8 13.c3 Ne7 14.Bb3 b5 15.d4 Ba7 16.0-0 Ng6 17.Kh2 Qf4+! 18.g3 Qxe4 19.Bc2 Qa8 20.d5 c6 21.Be4? f5! 22.Bc2 e4 23.Nd4 Bxd4 24.cxd4 cxd5 25.f4 e3? The proud protected passed pawn becomes weak now. 26.Qe2 Rbe8 27.Rf3 Qa7 28.Rd1 Qc7 29.Rxe3?? Taking the pawn too soon! 29...Rxe3 30.Qxe3 Qxc2+ 31.Rd2 Qe4 32.Qf2 Re8 0-1
(37) Acharya,Aravind (1084) - Ahrens,Richard Wi (1206) [C41]
MI Brandwein TNM: U1600 San Francisco (6.38), 11.09.2019
[de Firmian,Nick]
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 d6 3.Be2 Nf6 4.0-0? Nxe4 5.d3 Nf6 6.Bg5 Be7 7.Nc3 0-0 8.Qd2 Bg4 9.Nh4 Bxe2 10.Qxe2 Nc6 11.Nf5 Qd7 12.Nxe7+ Nxe7 13.Qe3 Nf5 14.Qh3 Qe6 15.Rae1 h6? Diagram
 |
16.Bxf6 Qxf6? Black needs to recapture with the pawn to avoid losing a piece. White would have some attack, but not as large an advantage. 17.Nd5 Qg6 18.Qxf5 Qxf5 19.Ne7+ Kh7 20.Nxf5 Rae8 21.Re2 f6 22.Rfe1 g6 23.Nd4 c5 24.Nf3 g5 25.h3 Rg8 26.Nh2 h5 27.g4 Kg6 28.Kg2 Rh8 29.c3 b6 30.d4 Kf7 31.Kg3 h4+ 32.Kg2 d5 33.Nf3? [33.dxe5] 33...e4 34.Nd2 c4 35.f3 exf3+ 36.Nxf3 Rxe2+ 37.Rxe2 Re8 38.Rxe8 Kxe8 39.Nd2 b5 40.b3 Ke7 41.Kf3 Ke6 42.b4 f5 43.a3? f4! Black seeks a blockade a whole knight down in the ending! 44.Nb1 Kd6 45.Nd2 Ke6 46.Nb1 Kd6 47.Nd2 White should transfer the knight to e2 via f3,g1 e2 and then sacrifice on f4 to have a winning pawn ending. 1/2-1/2
(38) Cowgill,Jackie (1169) - Bryan,Robert R (390) [B30]
MI Brandwein TNM: U1600 San Francisco (6.39), 11.09.2019
[de Firmian,Nick]
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.Be2 Nc6 4.c3 e5 5.d3 Nf6 6.Nbd2 Be7 7.Nf1 0-0 8.Ng3 h6 9.0-0 d5 10.Nf5 Re8 11.Nxe7+ Rxe7 12.a3? dxe4 13.Nd2 exd3 14.Bf3 c4 15.Ne4 Re6 16.b3 Nd7 17.bxc4 a6 18.Qxd3 b5 19.c5 Ra7 20.Qd1 Rd6? 21.cxd6 a5 22.Be3 Rb7 23.Ng3 Rc7? 24.dxc7 Qxc7 25.Bh5 Nd8 26.Bf3 b4 27.cxb4 axb4 28.axb4 g6 29.h3 Ba6 30.Rc1 Qb8 31.Re1 Qxb4 32.Qxd7 Qb7 33.Qxd8+ Kg7 34.Bxb7 Bxb7 35.Qh4 f5 36.Bxh6+ Kf7 37.Rc7+ 1-0
(39) Badgett Jr,James (1084) - Krezanoski,Paul [B06]
MI Brandwein TNM: U1600 San Francisco (6.40), 11.09.2019
[de Firmian,Nick]
1.e4 e6 2.Nc3 d6 3.d4 g6 4.Nf3 Bg7 5.Bc4 b6 6.Qe2 Bb7 7.d5 Bxc3+ 8.bxc3 e5 9.0-0 Qd7 10.Ng5 Qa4?? 11.f4 [11.Bb5+] 11...Ba6 12.fxe5!? Diagram
 |
12...Bxc4 13.Qf3 Qd7 14.e6! Qe7 15.exf7+ Kf8 16.Ne6+ Qxe6 17.fxg8Q+ Kxg8 18.Qf8# 1-0
(40) Martin,Michael J (1574) - Anderson,David (793) [C41]
MI Brandwein TNM: U1600 San Francisco (6.41), 11.09.2019
[de Firmian,Nick]
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 d6 3.Bc4 Be6 4.Bxe6 fxe6 5.d4 Nc6 6.d5 exd5 7.Qxd5 Nf6 8.Qd3 Be7 9.Nc3 Nb4 10.Qb5+ Nc6 11.Qe2 d5 12.exd5 Nxd5 13.0-0 0-0 14.Nxe5 Qd6 15.Nxc6 bxc6 16.Nxd5 cxd5 17.g3 Rae8 18.Bf4 Qc5 19.a3 Bd6 20.Bxd6 cxd6?! 21.Qd3 Re5 22.b4 Qc8 23.f4 Qf5?? 24.fxe5 1-0
(41) Tabatabai,Ashkon (1074) - Roberts,Joseph (1369) [C47]
MI Brandwein TNM: Extra Rated San Francisco (6.42), 11.09.2019
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Nc3 Nc6 4.Nxe5 Nxe5 5.d4 Ng6 6.Bg5 Be7 7.Bc4 0-0 8.0-0 h6 9.Be3 Bb4 10.Qd2 Nxe4 11.Qd3 Nxc3 12.bxc3 d5 13.Bb3 Be7 14.Qb5 c6 15.Qa4 b5 0-1
(42) Yamamoto,Craig (1500) - Agdamag,Samuel Za (1549) [E60]
MI Brandwein TNM: Extra Rated San Francisco (6.43), 11.09.2019
[de Firmian,Nick]
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 d6 3.Nf3 g6 4.g3 Bg7 5.Bg2 Bg4 6.Nc3 Qc8 7.e4 Bh3 8.0-0 Bxg2 9.Kxg2 0-0 10.Re1 Nbd7 11.Bg5 h6 12.Bf4 Nh5 13.Be3 e5 14.dxe5 dxe5 15.Nd2 c6 16.f3 Nb6 17.Qc2 Qe6 18.b3 Rad8 19.Rad1 f5 20.Bc5 Rf7 21.Nf1 Rfd7 22.exf5 gxf5 23.Rxd7 Rxd7 24.Re2 Qg6 25.Rd2 Qe6 26.Rxd7 Qxd7 27.Ne3 f4 28.Nf5 Nc8 29.g4 Nf6 30.h3 b6 31.Bf2 Bf8 32.Bh4 Kf7 33.Qe2 Ne7 34.Nxe7 Bxe7 Scores unreadable. Somehow Black won. 0-1
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