Mechanics' Institute Chess Room Newsletter # 99
"Too often amateurs get the impression that GMs are calculating
wizards who constantly think 10 and 15 moves ahead. Actually, there
are few times in a game where you have to look more than 4 moves
ahead." Honor Roll of Imre Konig Memorial donors: fund raising is now at $14,540 - only $5,460 to go! Tibor Weinberger, Mark Pinto, Jim Eade, Neil Falconer, John Keker, Toshio Imai, Vince McCambridge, Bryan Bilby, Bear Stearns, Tom Allen, Max Wilkerson, John Cannon, Mervyn Field, Dr. Joe Wagner, Haluk Akol, Mike Goodall, Dr. Ben Gross, Smartchess, Peter Stevens, Kevan Gross and anonymous. GM Alex Baburin writes: "I would like to help the Konig fund raising by making a special offer on new subscriptions to my daily Internet chess magazine Chess Today - rates ($19 for 4 months, $25 for 6 months and $44 for one year) and encourage them to subscribe. When they subscribe, in the reference field they should write 'Imre Konig' and I will give 50% of their subscription to the tournament." Go to http://www.chesstoday.net for more information on one of the best chess magazines in the world and help support the Konig! Late breaking news: the USCF is moving from New Windsor, NY, to Miami! More next Newsletter. 1) Zaichik and Najer tie for first in US Open, Pruess qualifies for US Championship 2) DeGuzman wins John Easterling Memorial 3) Imre Konig Blitz: September 7 4) Upcoming Events 1) Zaichik and Najer tie for first in US Open, Pruess qualifies for US ChampionshipGMs Gennadi Zaichik and Evgeny Najer tied for first in the US Open, held July 27-August 4 in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. The two winners, who each scored 8-1, received $3750 apiece, with Zaichik not only taking the title on tiebreak but also a spot in the US Championship. Tying for second at 7 1/2 in the 526-player field were GMs Ivan Morovic, Artur Yusupov, Yury Shulman, Miron Sher, Alex Stripunsky plus IMs Rashid Ziatdinov and Nikolay Andrianov. Each received $500, with Sher also qualifying for the US Championship. Many players finished on seven points including MI members David Pruess and Michael Pearson. David, who beat GM Alexander Ivanov, qualified for the US Championship, while Michael (who beat three 2300 rated players) just missed out, but looks likely to have gone over 2200. Congratulations to both and to Monty Peckham who numbered the scalp of GM Michael Rohde among his six points. Other scores by MI members include: Mike Goodall 4.5, Ricky Yu 3.5 (from 8) and Paul Vayssie 3.5. The qualifiers from the U.S. Open are:
GM Gennadi Zaichik The first alternate is IM Greg Shahade, and the women's alternate is Laura Ross. 2) DeGuzman wins John Easterling MemorialIM Ricardo DeGuzman continued his winning ways by defeating NM Victor Baja in the last round of the John Easterling Memorial held July 3-4 in Hercules. DeGuzman scored 4-0 to win $231. Berkeley Expert Larry Snyder finished second at 3.5 in the 33-player field to take home the second prize of $165 with Baja, Anthony Rosenvasser and Teodoro Porlares sharing third at 3. Rico Adkins organized and directed this event which set a record for attendance in Hercules. 3) Imre Konig Blitz: September 7
Imre Konig Memorial Blitz: Come play the Grandmasters 4) Upcoming eventsNote two new additions to the calendar under national listings: the always popular Governor's Cup and a rare opportunity for GM and IM norms this December in Lindsborg, Kansas. Vladimir Pafhutieff Memorial: August 17 This event is a 5-rounder, G/45, run on the Swiss system starting at 10 AM. August 12-16 3rd Annual Mechanics' Institute Chess Camp for Intermediate and Advanced Players (1200-2200) This is not a camp for players that want to jump two rating classes in five days. You won't learn how to win against the Sicilian every time using the Grand Prix Attack. So why our camp and not others? At the MI camp you will get a look inside a GM's laboratory and get a feel for how they work on their game from the ground up. You will learn not only the importance of analyzing your own games, but also how to do it properly. You will learn to identify the critical points of the game and to understand when and why things went wrong. You will learn how to use ChessBase and Fritz efficiently as part of a daily training program as well as utilizing resources on the Internet such as TWIC and the Internet Chess Club. Today chess books are cranked out at an incredible rate. Some of them are very good, many are quite bad. We will help students learn to select that which is truly useful. On the fun side our instructors have unique experience in international competition. Expect to hear stories and anecdotes about what it's like to play against Kasparov and defend first board in a Chess Olympiad. Instructors: Grandmasters Alex Yermolinsky, International Masters John Donaldson and Guillermo Rey, and MI Scholastic Director Anthony Corrales.
Who: Open to all ages from 8 and up. Regional Events
Aug. 24-25 GPP: 6 N. California
Aug. 31-Sept. 2 GPP: 15 N. California National Events Dear Chess Friends, Hope the 7th Governor's Cup Chess Tournament is on your fall calendar--October 11-13--in Sioux Falls, Sourth Dakota. The tourney will be at a new site this year--downtown at the Holiday Inn City Centre at 100 West 8th Street. Once again we will distribute $10,000 in prize money. Call (605) 339-2000 as soon as possible and ask for the $79 chess rate. ( Let me know if you have any difficulty making a reservation. I know that the state soccer tourney is in town that same weekend which may be a problem for you if you wait too long to reserve a room.) The tourney will begin at 6 p.m. on Friday night. All state chess associations are invited to nominate their current state champion or one of their best to represent their state in this event. Please spread the word to chess association presidents. At this time I do not plan to have the Governor's Office send out invitations like I have done in the past. The entry fee will be $50 in advance--entries must be postmarked by October 5 to receive this rate. After that entry fees will be $70. Free entry to all GM's, IM's, and players rated above 2400. Remember to indicate your section when you register: Open, Premier, or Rserve. (Premier is Under 2000, and Reserve is Under 1600).
2nd Annual
Lindsborg Rotary Open Chess Tournament |