Mig Greengard (on the faster FIDE time controls)

1) Mechanics' Institute Chess Club News

2) Vinay, Vedi Vici - Vinay Bhat makes 3rd GM norm

3) Khachian takes Pacific Coast Open

4) USCF Elections

5) Here and There

6) Upcoming Events

1) Mechanics' Institute Chess Club News

After a three week run at the Mechanics' Institute the 2nd Imre Konig Memorial, run on the Scheveningen system, has finished. The MI would again like to thank Tibor Weinberger whose generosity made this event possible.

GM Team

1. GM Atalik 8/10

2. GM Fedorowicz 6.5

3. GM Yermolinsky 6

4. GM Baburin 5

5. IM K. Atalik 4.5

IM Team

1. IM Friedel 4.5

2. IM Zilberstein 4.5

3. IM Pruess 4

4. IM Stein 3.5

5. IM Mezentsev 3.5

1st overall Atalik

2nd overall Fedorowicz

3rd overall Yermolinsky

GM team 30 - IM 20

The following was not Suat's best game of the event but it was a very clean win.

Atalik,Suat - Mezentsev,Vladimir [D53]
Konig GM/IM San Francisco, CA

1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bg5 Be7 5.e3 h6 6.Bh4 b6?!

6...0-0 7.Nf3 b6 is the usual way to enter the Tartakover-Bondarevsky-Makogonov variation.

7.cxd5 Nxd5

7...exd5 8.Bb5+ c6 9.Bd3 would also favor White.

8.Bxe7 Qxe7 9.Nxd5 exd5 10.Qa4+

Suat introduces a novelty, borrowing an idea from the 4.a3 line of the Queen's Indian, which is designed to prevent Black from achieving his ideal development. Previously seen were 10.Ne2 ( Petrosian), 10. Be2 ( Portisch) and 10. Rc1 ( Polugaevsky). Note that from a4 the Queen can sometimes meet ...c5 with Qa3 ( especially after Black has castled) and play Ba6 or Bb5 to try to gain control of the queenside light squares (a6 and c6).

This move picks up a tempo but the Bishop is not well-placed here ( it belongs on b7 or e6) and will soon have to move again. 10...c6 was more solid.

11.Qb3 0-0

Vladimir is a dangerous tactician and here he stays true to his style trying to solve his positional problems with tactics.

12.Ne2 c5 13.dxc5 bxc5

13...Qxc5 14.Rc1 with a clear positional disadvantage. The text commits him to gambiting material.

14.Nf4 Nc6 15.Nxd5 Qd6 16.Rd1 Rab8 17.Qc3 Nd4

Black tries to complicate but White simply develops. 1

18.Bc4 Bc6 19.Nf4 Qf6 20.exd4 Qxf4 21.0-0 cxd4 22.Rxd4 Qf6 23.Rfd1

White has emerged from the opening with a winning position with an extra pawn and more active pieces but Suat does not make the common mistake of relaxing with the win in sight.

23...Rfc8 24.Qg3 Be8 25.b3 Rb6 26.h4 Kf8 27.Qd3 Qg6 28.Qe3

The endgame after 28.Qxg6 Rxg6 29.Kf1 would still involve a lot of work.

28...Qf6 29.Rf4 Qe7 30.Re4 Qf6 31.Re1 Qc6 32.Re7 a6

Can you find the win?

Mechanics' member Vinay Bhat made his 3rd and final GM norm by tying for first in the 12th Balaguer Open Chess International Tournament held from July 16th-25th in Balaguer, Spain. Vinay scored 8 points out of 10 and was tied for the first place with GM Aleksander Delchev, ahead of 10 GMs and 14 IMs . He will receive the title conditionally this September the full title being bestowed when his FIDE rating crosses 2500.

Here are key games from rounds seven and eight.

GM Narciso Dublan,Marc (2552) - Bhat,Vinay S (2450) [D30]
XII Balaguer op (7), 22.07.2007

Bhat,Vinay S (2450) - IM Flores,Diego (2560) [A42]
XII Balaguer op (8), 23.07.2007

GM Melik Khachiyan won the Pacific Coast Open held in Agoura Hills just outside LA July 19-22 with a score of 5-1. Tying for second at 4.5 were GMs Suat Atalik, Lars Bo Hansen and Rogelio Antonio and IM Enrico Sevillano. MI Grandmaster-in-Residence Alex Yermolinsky finished just outside the prizewinners with an undefeated score of 4-2 against strong opposition. Bay Area players NMs Michael Aigner and Daniel Schwarz and Expert Greg Young ended up with 3.5 points. Young's performance was impressive as he played up all six rounds and lost only to GM Antonio picking up 23 points to move near a master ranking at 2172.

Yermo gives a clinic to his highly rated opponent from Southern California in the following game. Thanks to NM Michael Aigner for supplying the score.

Yermolinsky,Alex (2577) - Matikozyan,Andranik (2528) [E70]
Pacific Coast Open (3), 21.07.2007

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.Bd3 0-0 6.Nge2 e5 7.d5 Nh5 8.0-0 f5 9.exf5 gxf5 10.Ng3 Nxg3 11.fxg3 Qe8 12.Be3 c5 13.Bc2 Kh8 14.Nb5 Qe7 15.Qh5 a6 16.Bg5 Bf6 17.Bxf6+ Rxf6 18.Nc3 Nd7 19.Bxf5 Nf8 20.Ne4 Rxf5 21.Rxf5 Bxf5 22.Qxf5 Ng6 23.Rf1 Rf8 24.Qe6 Rxf1+ 25.Kxf1 Qf8+ 26.Qf6+ Qxf6+ 27.Nxf6 Ne7 28.g4 Nc8 29.Ne4 b5 30.b3 Kg7 31.h4 Kf7 32.g5 Ke7 33.h5 bxc4 34.bxc4 1-0

4) USCF Elections

Frank Camaratta, Chief Teller, has authorized releasing the following
overall totals as complete and final:

Polgar 3004
Bauer 2325
Truong 2056
Berry 2026
Jones 1774
Korenman 1648
Schultz 1580
Lux 1231
Sloan 677
Goodall 482

Polgar, Bauer and Truong have been elected to four year terms on the
Executive Board, Berry has been elected to complete the remaining two
years of Robert Tanner's term.

Jim Berry has accepted these results and has not requested a recount.

America's top players are shining in foreign events.

1-2- Alexander Onischuk and Magnus Carlsen- 3/4
3- Boris Avrukh- 2.5/4
4-8- Judit Polgar, Alexander Motylev, Teimour Radjabov, Yannick Pelletier- 2/4
9- Bu Xianghzi, Alexander Grischuk 1.5/4
10- Loek Van Wely- .5/4

Onischuk-Van Wely, Biel (4) 2007

1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Nf3 e6 5.Bg5 dxc4 6.e4 b5 7.e5 h6 8.Bh4 g5 9.Nxg5 hxg5 10.Bxg5 Nbd7 11.exf6 Bb7 12.g3 c5 13.d5 Nxf6 14.Bg2 Bh6 15.Bxf6 Qxf6 16.O-O O-O-O 17.Nxb5 a6 18.Nc3 exd5 19.Re1 Kb8 20.Na4 Bf8 21.Rc1 Bc6 22.b3 Bh6 23.Rc2 Qd4 24.Qb1 Ka7 25.bxc4 Bxa4 26.Rb2 Rd6 27.Bxd5 Rxd5 28.Rb7+ Ka8 29.Qb6 1-0

1. Tiviakov, Sergei g NED 2648 5.5;

2. Ivanchuk, Vassily g UKR 2762 5.0;

3-4. Kamsky, Gata g USA 2718 and Harikrishna, P g IND 2664 4.5;

5. Eljanov, Pavel g UKR 2701 4.0;

6. Miton, Kamil g POL 2648 3.5;

7-8. Bluvshtein, Mark g CAN 2520 and Sutovsky, Emil g ISR 2656 2.5;

9. Charbonneau, Pascal g CAN 2503 2.0;

10. Short, Nigel D g ENG 2683 1.0;

Monroi International Women's Grand Prix Finale - Montreal

Standings after five rounds

1-3. IM Jovanka Houska ENG 2401, GM Pia Cramling, SWE 2533 and IM Ketevan Arakhamia-Grant GEO 2418- 3.5

4. IM Lela Javakhishvili GEO 2460 3.0

5-6. IM Irina Krush USA 2479 and IM Iweta Rajlich POL 2406 2.5

7. IM Cristina Adela Foisor ROM 2372 1.5

8. Myriam Roy CAN 1925 0.0

IM Anna Zatonskih, NMs Tatev Abrahamyan and Michael Langer tied for first at 4-1 in the 62nd Jerry Spann Memorial held in Stillwater, Oklahoma, directed and organized by Frank and Jim Berry. MI member Batchimeg Tuvshintugs was among those for fourth at 3.5. Her coach Batsaikhan Tserendorj had 2.5.

Several Newsletters ago Kerry Lawless wrote about a San Francisco column in the 1880s that published in the Argonaut . Here he provides more information.

CHESS LIFE

Volume 6, Number 14, March 20, 1952

After 66 years, the Argonaut, published in San Francisco, has added a chess column, edited by Dr. H. J. Ralston, already the editor of the excellent California Chess Reporter. This weekly feature of the Argonaut magazine recalls the fact that sixty-eight years ago in the issue of January 5, 1884 of this same Argonaut began a chess column edited by J. Fennimore Welsh, which was probably the first regular chess column on the Pacific Coast. Mr. Welsh was succeeded by J. E. Tippett who conducted the column until March 6, 1886 when the feature was discontinued, to be revived on February 8, 1952 under the skilled direction of Dr. Ralston.

Contribution in game scores, original problems and news items are requested by the editor, who may be addressed: Dr. H. J. Ralston, The Argonaut, 544 Market Street, San Francisco, Calif.

6) Upcoming Events

Vladimir Pafnutieff - August 11th
Bernardo Smith Amateur - August 18th and 19th

Sacramento Chess Club Weekend Swiss #18

August 25 & 26, 2007