Gens Una Sumus!
Mechanics’ Institute Chess Club Newsletter #765
November 11, 2016
If drink is the curse of the working classes and work is the curse of the drinking classes then chess is the curse of the thinking classes.
—John J. Ross
1) Mechanics’ Institute Chess Club News
National Master Josiah Stearman and Experts Derek O’Connor and Oleg Shaknazarov are tied for first with 4–0 scores with five rounds remaining in the Fall Tuesday Night Marathon.
From round 4 of the Fall Tuesday Night Marathon:
 |  |
| White to move (O'Connor–Handler after 23...Bxe6) | Black to move (Bayaraa–Shakhnazarov after 29 Ba6) |
 |  |
| White to move (Sevall–Melville after 36...Qh8) | White to move (Montoya–Reichwein after 14...Rf8) |
 |  |
| White to move (Paquette–McEnroe after 20...Nc5) | Black to move (Trapani–Harris after 19 bxc3) |
 | |
| White to move (Adams–Bayaraa after 12...Re8) | For the solutions, see the game scores for round 4. |
The following game was played in the last round of the Carroll Capps Memorial, and allowed the winner to tie for second place.
Blumenfeld Counter Gambit E10
Elliot Winslow–Sevall,Jacob
San Francisco (6) 2016
1.Nf3 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.d4 c5 4.d5 b5 5.Bg5
5...d6?!
A rarely played line in the Blumenfeld, where 5...Qa5+, 5...exd5, 5...h6, 5...b4 and 5...bxc4 are much more commonly seen.
6.Nc3
6.dxe6! fxe6 (6...Bxe6 7.cxb5 d5 8.Nc3 Be7 9.e3) 7.cxb5 also makes sense, as Black will lose a tempo to play ...d5.
6...b4 7.Ne4 Be7 8.Bxf6 gxf6 9.a3 Qb6
9...f5 10.Ned2 Qb6.
10.axb4 Qxb4+ 11.Nc3 Qxb2 12.Nb5 Qb4+?
12...Kd8 or 12...Na6 needed to be played immediately. The text puts the queen in jeopardy.
13.Nd2 Na6?
13...0–0 14.Nc7 Qb7 15.Nxa8 Qxa8 16.Qa4 a6 17.e4 and Black does not have enough compensation for the pawn. That said, Black should have tried this. If 13...Kd8 then 14.Qc2 a6 15.Ra4.
14.Qc2!
Trapping Black's queen.
14...exd5
14...Rb8 15.e4 Rxb5 16.cxb5 Qd4 17.Nb3 Nb4 18.Nxd4 Nxc2+ 19.Nxc2 winning.
15.Ra4 Bf5 16.Qa2 dxc4 17.Rxb4 Nxb4 18.Qxc4 Be6 19.Nc7+ Kd7 20.Nxe6 fxe6 21.e4 d5 22.exd5 exd5 23.Qg4+ Kc6 24.Be2 Rhg8
24...Nc2+ 25.Kd1 Nd4 26.Nf3 Rab8 27.Nxd4+ cxd4 28.Bd3.
25.Qe6+ Bd6 26.0–0 a5 27.Nb3 Rgd8 28.Rc1 c4 29.Nd4+ Kc5 30.Bxc4
1–0
The Mechanics’ Institute Chess Club will be closed from December 24, through January 2.
This closure will enable vital work to be done to upgrade the wiring to the Mechanics’ network, dramatically increasing the speed of our internet service.
2) Bay Area Chess News
Grandmasters Melik Khachiyan and Alexander Ivanov were joined by International Master John Bryant in the winners’ circle in the Western States Open held October 20–23 in Reno. Fran and Jerry Weikel directed the 155-player event
Visiting New York Grandmaster Alex Lenderman won the Milpitas Fall Classic with a 4½ from 6 score. Judit Sztaray organized and Jordan and Tom Langland directed the 90-player event held October 14-16.
One of the strongest blitz tournaments in Northern California history was organized by Bay Area Chess on October 14. Azerbaijan Olympiad team member Rauf Mamedov won the ten-round event with 8½ points, followed by fellow Grandmaster Zviad Izoria with 7½. IM Faik Aleskerov was third with 7, and Grandmasters Daniel Naroditsky and Christian Chirila, FIDE Master Konstantin Kavutskiy and Class A player Vinesh Ravuri shared fourth place with 6½ points. Judit Sztaray organized and directed this event.
Senior Master Arun Sharma writes:
Bay Area Chess will be hosting a GM-norm Round Robin at the beginning of 2017 and would like to know if you would be interested in participating.
The event will be held at the Bay Area Chess Office which is located at 2050 Concourse Dr., #42, San Jose, CA 95131. The nearest airport is San Jose (SJC) and the probable best choice for a hotel is the nearby Courtyard Marriott, where Bay Area Chess can get guest room rates for around $100/night.
The event will be a six-day event, January 2, Monday, to January 7, Saturday, with the usual FIDE time control of 40/90, SD/30, 30-second increment. The round schedule will be as follows:
January 2: 2:00 pm
January 3: 11:00 am, 6:00 pm
January 4: 2:00 pm
January 5: 11:00 am, 6:00 pm
January 6: 2:00 pm
January 7: 11:00 am, 6:00 pm
The GM-norm requirement for the event will almost certainly be 6/9, with the three GMs participating being Parimarjan Negi (2670), Cristian Chirila (2533), and Giorgi Margvelashvili (2530).
The entry fee for the event will range from $250–400 based on location. Local players will pay $400, semi-local players (Southern California or similar distance) will pay $325, and those far out of state will pay $250. The prize fund for the event is 1st: $1500, 2nd: $1000, 3rd: $500.
Please understand that this being a ten-player round robin, there are only seven non-GM spots available, and there may well be more than that number interested, so the spots will largely be given out on a first-come, first-served basis.
If you are interested or have any questions please let me and Judit Sztaray (who is also included on this email - the head of Bay Area Chess and the main organizer of this event) know.
3) George Koltanowski–Erik Osbun, Sonoma 1957
The following postcard comes from the chess archive of the late Peter Grey.
Giuoco Piano C53
George Koltanowski–Erik Osbun
Sonoma 1957
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.0–0 d6 5.c3 Bb6 6.d4 Qe7 7.d5 Nd8 8.a4 a6 9.a5 Ba7 10.Bg5 Nf6 11.Nbd2 h6 12.Bh4 g5 13.Bg3 Nh5 14.Kh1 Nf4 15.b4 h5 16.h4 f6 17.Ne1 Ng6 18.Be2 Qh7 19.Ndf3 Nf7 20.Nd3 Bg4 21.c4 Bxf3 22.Bxf3 gxh4 23.Bh2 Ng5 24.c5 h3 25.Rc1 Nh4 26.Re1
26...Nhxf3
26...hxg2+ 27.Bxg2 Nxg2 28.Kxg2 Nxe4 should win.
27.gxf3 0–0 28.Qe2 Rae8 29.Nb2 Kh8 30.Rg1 Nf7 31.Rg3 f5 32.Rxh3 f4 33.Nd3 h4 34.Rg1 Rg8 35.Rxg8+ Rxg8
36.Bxf4! exf4 37.Qb2+ Rg7 38.Qf6 Ng5 39.Qf8+ Rg8 40.Qf6+ Rg7 41.Qf8+ ½–½
4) Mechanics’ Institute Chess Room Chair appeal
Our Chess Room, the oldest dedicated chess club in the United States, has recently replaced the chairs after 80 years of constant use, and now we need your help.
Take advantage of this opportunity to commemorate a loved one, or honor a person, family, or business, by naming a chair in either the world-renowned Chess Room or the Meeting Room of the Mechanics’ Institute.
Your gift will entitle you to an engraved, brass, personalized nameplate mounted on the back of a Mechanics’ Institute chair.
This opportunity is available for a donation of $500 per chair.
When you sponsor a seat, we will acknowledge your gift to the recipient of your choice. Chair donations are tax-deductible to the full extent allowed by law.
You can dedicate a chair
• As an individual, couple, or family
• For your children, grandchildren, or parents
• In memory of a loved one
• With the name of your business or organization
• Marking a birthday, anniversary, or other special occasion
• To honor an employee, friend or colleague
• Or with your favorite quotation
Go to https://secure.milibrary.org/chair-appeal.php for more information.
5) This is the end
In this study, White has the two bishops, but Black has the two pawns. Who is better?
White to move
Show solution
