There were upsets galore in last week’s Garden State Chess League action. Sparta defeated West Orange… the Kramniks beat the Kortchnois… and Summit drew the Karpovs.
For full reports & some games, visit my GSCL blog.
Archive for January 10th, 2010
#609 Garden State League – Round 4
Sunday, January 10th, 2010#608 Mann & Sherry Win New Year’s Quad
Sunday, January 10th, 2010Ted Mann & Bob Sherry tied for 1st in a New Year’s Eve Quad hosted by the latter. Both had 2-1 scores. Ari Minkov was 3rd with 1.5.
I forgot to bring my glasses, squandered won positions against the co-victors & finished last at 0.5.
Moldovan-Sherry
after 13…Nxe4?
White to win
after 13…Nxe4?
White to win
Mann-Moldovan
after 24.Kb1
Black to win
after 24.Kb1
Black to win
The quality of play was very poor but, in an attempt to make amends for the un-announced hiatus, I have annotated all 6 games for you.
Thomson – Stoyko, Kenilworth 2010
Sunday, January 10th, 2010
Thomson – Stoyko, Kenilworth 2010
White to play and draw.
I have annotated the game Thomson – Stoyko, Garden State Chess League 2010, played Thursday night at the Kenilworth Chess Club in the match between Summit and Kenilworth. Steve Stoyko chose an interesting approach as Black against Simon Thomson’s Tarrasch French, closing up the center and setting up a classic struggle on opposite sides of the board. Though the pawn structure gave White great potential for a kingside attack, Stoyko struck first with a queenside attack, eventually sacrificing a piece in order to create dangerous passed pawns in that region. Thomson battled back with a dangerous kingside attack (despite the exchange of Queens) and should have been able to force a draw by perpetual check (see diagram above) with the surprising 33.Bxh6! But time pressure mistakes gave Black the point. Steve said after the game that practically every move was “a study in choices.” Sort of a “Stoyko Exercise” at every turn!
Jeff Sarwer Interview: Poker and Chess
Sunday, January 10th, 2010
Jennifer Shahade’s “Lost and Found: An Interview with Jeff Sarwer” at the USCF website is worth a read, especially if you are among those numerous chess players with an interest in poker. I have made mention of Sarwer before on this blog (”Jeff Sarwer, Chess Prodigy Turned Poker Star” and “Jeff Sarwer – Josh Waitzkin, National Primary Championship 1986“) and his story is worthy of full Hollywood treatment, especially now that he has reached what seems the sort of happy place where the film might end (though his life seems just getting interesting again). I am still waiting for the full story, but I liked his reflections on the difference between poker and chess:
Shahade: How do you compare the wrenching feeling of blundering in chess to the wrenching feeling of getting knocked out of a poker tournament?
Sarwer: Can’t compare, blundering in chess feels much worse for me. In poker getting knocked out usually doesn’t hurt as much because you lose a coin-flip that was out of your control or someone sucks out on you, things like that. Those type of things tend to effect me very little these days, simply because they have nothing to do with myself, it’s just life playing variance with me. Occasionally in poker you feel bad when you do make a mistake, like a bad read, but since it is a game of incomplete information usually it doesn’t feel that bad. It’s more like a “hmmm got it wrong this time”. Not a “how could I miss this? I just missed this stupid knight fork?”
Bursa WTC: Nakamura beats Gelfand in round five
Sunday, January 10th, 2010We single this round and this game in the World Team Championship in Bursa, Turkey, because of its sheer audacity. Hikaru Nakamura of the US, facing the world’s number six, Boris Gelfan, with the black pieces, sacrificed a knight on move 23, left his queen hanging to a pawn and won in great style. After six rounds Russia and the US lead. Illustrated report.