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Chessplayers want to live like bohemians, earn like sporstmen and have the reputation of scientists. IM Ilya Odessky Players in Northern California should be receiving their replacement ballots for the USCF Executive Board elections this week. Please don't forget to vote! Past Newsletters provided websites for the Candidates where you can find information on their positions on many issues. |
1) Mechanics' Institute Chess Club News 2) GM Igor Ivanov - Part One: Battle versus three connected passed pawns 3) Chess Drug 4) National Open revisted 5) Memories of Kolty 6) Here and There 7) Upcoming Events 1) Mechanics' Institute Chess Club NewsFormer US Champion IM John Grefe is among those tied for first in the Summer Tuesday Night Marathon with a score of 3-0. This event has tied the all-time TNM attendance record, set last summer, with 85 entries, in the series going back to the early 1970s. Last weekend NM Nicolas Yap won the 5th Annual William Addison Open with a perfect score, defeating NMs Michael Pearson and Batchimeg Tuvshintugs in the final two rounds. Tuvshintugs (who beat IM Ricardo DeGuzman), Pearson, DeGuzman, Batsaikhan Tserndorj and IM Ganbold Odondoo shared second at 4-1 in the 38-player event directed by Anthony Corrales. 2) GM Igor Ivanov - Part One: Battle versus three connected passed pawns
I. Ivanov- K. Lerner D25 1.Nf3 d5 2.d4 Nf6 3.c4 dxc4 4.e3 Bg4 5.Bxc4 e6 6.Nbd2 Nbd7 7.Qb3 Nb6 8.Ne5 Bh5 9.0-0 Bd6 10.a4 0-0 11.a5 Nxc4 12.Ndxc4 Be2 13.Re1 Bxc4 14.Nxc4 Rb8 15.h3 Ne4 16.Qc2 Qh4 17.Nxd6 cxd6 18.g3 Nxg3 19.fxg3 Qxg3+ 20.Kf1 Qxh3+ 21.Qg2 Qh5 22.Re2 Rbc8 23.Ke1 e5 24.Qh2 Qg6 25.Rg2 Qe4 26.Qg3 g6 27.Rh2 f5 28.Qh4 Qxh4+ 29.Rxh4 e4 30.Bd2 Rc2 31.Bc3 d5 32.Ra3 Kg7 33.Rb3 Rf7 34.Rb5 g5 35.Rh3 Rd7 36.Rc5 g4 37.Rh4 Kf6 38.Kf1 Kg5 39.Be1 Rxc5 40.dxc5 d4 41.exd4 f4 42.a6 bxa6 43.Rh2 g3 44.Rd2 e3 45.Rd3 Kg4 46.c6 Re7 47.Rc3 This position is number 127 in John Nunn's excellent Chess Puzzle Book. 47...f3! 47...Re8 48.c7 Rc8 49.d5 Kf5 50.d6 Ke6 51.Rc4 Kxd6 52.Rxf4 Rxc7 53.Bxg3 Rc1+ 54.Ke2 Kc5 55.Kxe3 with winning chances for White. 48.Bxg3! 48.c7? e2+ 49.Kg1 f2+ 48...Kxg3 49.c7 Kf4 If 49...e2+ then 50.Ke1 Kg2 51.Rxf3 Rxc7 52.Rf2+ Kg3 53.Rxe2 saves the day. 50.Rc1! After 50.c8Q e2+ 51.Ke1 f2+ 52.Kd2 e1Q+ 53.Kc2 f1Q 54.Qf8+ Kg4 55.Qg8+ Kh4 Black wins material. 50...e2+ 50...Kg3 51.Rc3 repeating. 51.Ke1 Ke3 51...f2+ 52.Kxf2 e1Q+ 53.Rxe1 Rxc7 54.Re6 is also a draw. 52.Rc3+ Kxd4 52...Kf4? 53.Rxf3+ Kxf3 54.c8Q and White wins. 53.Rc4+! To the point as 53..Rc1 f2+ 54.Kcf2 e1(Q)+ 55.Rxe1 Rxc7 would offer Black fair winning chances. ½ - ½ 3) Chess DrugDuring the National Open there was a booth set up for a company extolling a pill that was alleged to make chess players play better. Returning home I was surprised to discover that the USCF and President Beatriz Marinello were supporting it. ''Can a Brain Pill Make You a Better Chess Player?''; 2005 US Open Chess Masters Get a Sin City View of the New Cognitive Supplement That Helps Them Think Faster! Chess masters and fans at the 2005 US Open Chess Championship will get a sneak preview of Natrol(R) brainSpeed(TM), the new cognitive health supplement designed to help improve mental agility, promote attention and maintain memory.(a) This innovative nutritional product hits the chess world June 11, 2005 at the famed Riviera Hotel grand ballroom. In a twist on chess tradition, Natrol and the US Chess Federation will present the brainSpeed Human Chess Challenge, a regulation match where two world-famous Grandmasters control a gigantic chessboard featuring human beings as the chess pieces. Natrol brainSpeed has been developed to take chess players to the next level by targeting the cholinergic system - the key to mental processing speed - by helping to accelerate reaction time, improve decision making velocity and promote mental acuity. US Chess Open attendees are invited to find out for themselves by attending the match and visiting the Natrol table onsite at the Riviera. According to Beatriz Marinello, President of the US Chess Federation, "Clearly chess is a game of the mind and working at the top of your mental processing powers is critical to tournament play. We are delighted to be embarking on this alliance with Natrol and we see a direct connection between brainSpeed and our membership. We look forward to many unique events together in the future." The human chess pieces will also issue brainspeeding tickets to attendees, inviting them to take the brainSpeedOmeter(TM) online test to measure their current mental agility. This test establishes a brainSpeed benchmark for attention, memory and mental performance and then allows people to track their progress as they use the product. The product will also be made available for sales during the Open before its official retail launch in August. 4) National Open revistedAF4C's John Henderson wrote the following about one of the latest qualifiers. June 20, 2005 - It was Viva Las Vegas! for the third leg of the U.S. Championship qualifying cycle, as the 2005 National Open took place at the Riviera Hotel & Casino in Sin City. The five-day chess festival ended in a four-way tie at the top, as GM Nick De Firmian of Denmark, IM Benjamin Finegold of Michigan, GM Dmitry Gurevich of Illinois and GM Dashzeveg Sharavdorj of Texas all tied for first place with 5/6. Although Gurevich won the Edmondson Cup in a blitz playoff against former three-time U.S. champion De Firmian, the latter had the consolation prize of being the top qualifier for San Diego! Also joining De Firmian by booking their passage to San Diego were: IM Renier Gonzalez of Florida, IM Stanislav Kriventsov of Los Angeles and IM Dmitry Schneider of New York, who all scored 4.5/6. While the competition for the overall spots was as fierce as ever, sadly this wasn't the case with the two women's spots on offer. Only one player registered to have the National Open act as a qualifier. So Kelly Cottrell of Michigan goes forward to play in her first U.S. Championship. With no player taking the second spot on offer, this will now be filled by a a player from the October 2005 USCF Rating List. The AF4C are concerned about this recent lack of interest shown by women players for qualifying spots in the last two tournaments. Presently we are in discussion with the USCF and other parties to find a solution to this problem. Chris Bird, who produced an excellent bulletin of the National Open, has circulated the following correction to information that appeared in a recent Newsletter. The list of US Championshipn qualifiers from the 2005 National Open should have included IM Stanislav Kriventsov and not IM Eugene Perelshteyn as originally reported. Also, Kelly Cottrell-Finegold qualified as the top female. Apologies for any confusion this may have caused. Immediately after the National Open the US Senior Open ( age 50 and over) and US Under 50 Championships wrere held in downtown Las Vegas. The former was won by 6-time US Championship Walter Browne with a score of 5.5 from 6, nicked only by FM Joe Bradford who was coming back from a layoff of over 10 years from competitive chess. GM Anatoly Lein was second with an undefeated 5 from 6. The US Under 50 was dominated by Las Vegas number one IM David Vigorito who scored 5.5 from 6, well ahead of second place finisher FM Emory Tate who finished with four points. IM Stan Kriventsov and Expert Albert Rich of San Jose were among those tied for third with 3.5. 5) Memories of KoltyCasey Bush, author of the biography of Arthur Dake - Grandmaster from Oregon passes on the following recollections. by George Swift In the case of George Koltanowski, yes, he was a friend of my father's, and Kolty told me so. No, they were not what you would call "bosom buddies", but, yes, they were certainly more than chess acquaintances. Maybe they could be called "business" friends. They corresponded for a number of years, which began to dwindle when Kolty started to become famous and had little idle time. It seems that Kolty came to the United States about the time of the Great Depression. Trying to make a living at chess was not easy. Dad negotiated chess engagements for him in Salem. The chess club members did not have the money to pay Kolty's normal fee, so compromises were reached. Each time Kolty came, he played about a thirty game simul, an eight game blindfold simul, a blindfold knight's tour exhibition, gave a lecture on chess, and told jokes. He could correctly repeat the scores of all the games from memory. It was wonderful for a young lad like me to witness. And, it was obvious that Kolty appreciated the "business" a lot, especially when money was hard to come by. One time, because Dad was busy, he asked me to meet Kolty at the Greyhound bus depot, which was only a few blocks away. I walked with him as he told me that he had the flu. "Oh, I am so sorry that you cannot play; will your schedule permit you to stay over a day or two?" I asked. He answered "No, no matter how sick I feel, my schedule must be kept, so I shall perform, anyway". And, he did. After one of his exhibitions, one of my cousin's invited him to stay a few days at his family's ranch near Sutherlin, Oregon. He accepted the invitation, and had a good time. They did not play chess. George Koltanowski wrote a little book on chess, which I think I still have, in which he recommended the Colle opening for white. I looked at the Colle carefully, when I was in high school, and decided that I could defend against it, adequately. So, after WWII when I was a student at the University of Oregon, I played into the Colle confidently in one of Kolty's simuls. It was the last game still being played, so Kolty sat down and the game became "over the board". A position occurred where it appeared to me that I could draw with the famous chess master by trading off both rooks, and I quickly went for it. Disaster!! After the game, Koltanowski gave me two pieces of advice: first, trading just one rook (not both) would have resulted in a draw; and, second, playing against a master by using the very opening recommended by that master is not a smart thing to do. 6) Here and ThereJEFF SIEBRANDT CLAIMED THE 2005 USCF BLIND CHESS CHAMPIONSHIP ON TIEBREAKS (CROSSVILLE, TN)The U. S. Blind Chess Championship held June 24-25, 2005 in Elkins, West Virginia was organized by Rich Varchetto at the Hampton Inn. Jeff Siebrandt and Alex Barrasso with 3.5 points each split the first and second place prize money to collect $300 each. Agan Hajric took third place honors and $175 with 3 points. With 2 points out of 4 each and tied for the U1800, U1600, and U1400 prize Michael Davis, Albert Pietrolungo, Henry Olynik, Richard Mc Straw, James Hart, and Virginia Alverson all took home $62.50 each. Joseph Wassermann and Allen Betts rounded out the field of 11 players with each scoring 1.0. Three different scholastic programs supplied the game scorers each round while Rich Varchetto and the Elkins Lions Club (PO Box 1002, Elkins, WV 26241 for donations--Please make a note that the donation is for the 2005 US Blind Championship) supplied the financial support to present this event. Tim Just and Ira Lee Riddle were the Tournament Directors. The Hampton Inn supplied the playing site, sleeping rooms and food. Additional details, the wallchart and the games in PGN can be found at: http://www.chessforlife.com/chess/blind05.html, provided by Chess For Life, LLC. Big time chess arrives in USA then goes around the world with American savvy: Nashville International Studios announces production of a 2-hour television program on chess. Spokesperson Rob Mitchell said that the match, New York City, USA, versus St Petersburg, Russia, is a 2-round match over four boards played at distance chess, and will be the biggest televised broadcast of a chess event of all time. Board One feature a clash of two former World Champions:Board One: Khalifman vs Polgar Board Two: Sakaev vs Onishuck Board Three: Alekseev vs Gulko Board Four: Vitiugov vs Stripunsky Alternates: Ivanov; Alburt or Polatnik Historically, said Mitchell, it reconnects the two countries since the last distance play event over 60 years ago. It is being broadcast in 30 major US markets on broadcast Television. It is being sent via satellite to 40 countries world wide. Chess clubs, tell your members. Tune in your dials. Check the internet. For more information, write to mailto:robmtchl@bellsouth.net IM Tony Saidy writes that the August issue of Psychology Today has an eleven-page article on the Polgars entitled "The Grandmaster Experiment". U.S. CHESS FEDERATION ANNOUNCES TWO MORE NATIONAL CHAMPIONS CROWNED 2005 U.S. Cadet Championship (CROSSVILLE, TN) Kings Island, Ohio was the site of the 2005 U.S. Cadet on June 12-16, 2005 where a close battle was waged between Elliott Liu (2230), from California, and Sarkis Agaian (2123), from New York. A double round robin was played to determine the title of U.S. Cadet Champion and it was so close that a playoff was used to determine first place and the scholarship. Although both Liu and Agaian are considered co-champions, Liu earned the four-year scholarship which was offered by University of Maryland at Baltimore County (UMBC). The tournament was organized by the United States Chess Federation and the Warren County Convention and Visitors Bureau and directed by Mike Anders. The U.S. Cadet Championship is an invitational tournament held every year for the top players under 16 years old. The Jerry Spann Memorial and 60th Oklahoma State Championship took place in Norman, Oklahoma 18th-19th June 2005. Movses Movsisyan won the Oklahoma State Championship title with a score of 4.5 from 5 games at the Oklahoma University Student Union in Norman, Oklahoma held June 18-19, 2005. Sergey Galant came in 2nd with 4 pts followed by Jake Ferguson with 3.5. The Reserve section was won by Marvin Lee with 4.5 pts from 5. Alex Relyea directed. Time rate: G-120 + 10 sec. Event sponsored by Oklahoma Chess Foundation. News Frank K. Berry Canadian Open The Canadian Open takes place July 9th-17th 2005. Players include: GM Vassily Ivanchuk 2739 GM Alexei Shirov 2737 GM Viktor Bologan 2700 GM Alexander Moiseenko 2665 GM Alexander Shabalov 2631 GM Igor-Alexandre Nataf 2603 GM Dmitri Tyomkin 2549 GM Mark Bluvshtein 2529 IM Pascal Charbonneau 2527 IM Irina Krush 2466 IM Thomas Roussel-Roozmon 2425 IM Eric Lawson 2373 IM Martha Fierro 2330. Shirov will give a lecture during the event. The official website is: http://www.edmontonchess.org/CdnOpen2005/ 7) Upcoming EventsUpcoming Tournaments at the MI
Charles Bagby Memorial - July 16 http://www.chessclub.org/Bagby.html Northern California
J2005 Sacramento Chess Championship. July 2-4. GPP: 6
EAST BAY CHESS CLUB Location: 1940 Virginia St., Berkeley, CA (cross street is Milvia; a short walk from Downtown and North Berkeley BART; free weekend parking) Event and Schedule: A USCF-rated, 4-round swiss in one open section.
Registration: 9 - 9:45 AM on Saturday
Entry Fee: $30 mailed before 7/2/05, $35 at site
Prizes: (based on 35 full entries, but top 4 prizes guaranteed) Info: www.eastbaychess.com http://www.eastbaychess.com, (510) 845-1041 (no phone entries)
2005 Reno Western States Open Chess Tournament $52,400 PRIZE FUND!!! for this Six Round Swiss in Seven Sections (based on 500 paid players, $33,550 Guaranteed). At least 15 places paid in every section! Large prize fund made possible by the generosity of the Sands Regency Casino Hotel. RUB ELBOWS WITH THE MASTERS: Reception with Former World Champion GM Boris Spassky on Wednesday night. FREE lecture by GM Larry Evans on Thursday evening. $100 simul with GM Boris Spassky on Thursday night. Book signing session with GM Boris Spassky on Friday morning. Clinic by GM Boris Spassky on Saturday afternoon. Favorite game analysis with GM Boris Spassky on Sunday afternoon Chief TD (NTD) Jerry Weikel wackyykl@aol.com mailto:wackyykl@aol.com http://www.uschess.org/tournaments/InvitationfromArgentinaFederation.pdf Southern California
July 2-4 or 3-4
July 21-24, 22-24 or 23-24 10th Annual Pacific Coast Open GPP: 120 S. California
International I plan to organize in Teheran /Iran/ a GM and IM closed tournament with the title of: FRIENDSHIP and PEACE. GM group: 6 IRI players + 6 players from various NATO countries. - 12 players altogether, 11 rounds round robin, the IM event is the same. I would do it from 7th until 17th of January 2006. I have sent my info to the Iranian government across their diplomatic bodies in Budapest. If you like, you can publish that in the USA. Who wish to come there amongst the USA players around 2400 and 2300 ELO? Friendly regards:
Nagy Laszlo
The list of the chess tournaments from July till December 2005 in Hungary: |