The Chess Mind
http://chessmind.powerblogs.com/
en-us2009-11-08T05:11+00:00The New Website is Up!
http://chessmind.powerblogs.com/posts/1257640397.shtml
As I mentioned some time ago, PowerBlogs is shutting down, permanently, on November 30, so I've had to pack my bags and find new lodgings. The new location is here,...Dennis Monokroussos2009-11-08T00:11+00:00here, and I'm confident that all the strengths of this site, and more besides, will carry over to the new place.
There's a lot of work to be done, but what's there is at least a start. There's a brief welcome post and a report on round 3 of the Tal Memorial. (I'll pass on a ND football post for today - Navy won 23-21.) There are some links (you have to click on the "Link" link), a bit of info in the "About Me" section, and the original version of my blog (from blogspot) under "First Blog".
Please update your bookmarks to go to http://thechessmind.net, and send all your friends over as well! We have three weeks to make sure everyone goes to the right location; please help!]]>Tal Memorial, Round 2: Five More Draws
http://chessmind.powerblogs.com/posts/1257527924.shtml
While today's games weren't as impressive as yesterday's, they had their moments. Even so, the players ended the round where they started the tournament: in a ten-way tie for last place....Dennis Monokroussos2009-11-06T17:11+00:00
The first game to finish was Kramnik-Anand, a main line 8.Rb1 Exchange Grünfeld. About a decade ago, this variation was insanely hot; today, most White players have looked for other anti-Grünfeld approaches. It was a lively game, but it had the sort of forcing flow that suggests that at least one of the players - Anand, to judge by his time usage - had already worked everything out at home.
The next game to finish was Svidler-Ivanchuk, a Berlin/Classical hybrid that looked very promising at the start, with lots of open lines and potentially vulnerable kings. Sadly, a quick queen trade and a repetition put paid to those hopes, and the game was drawn on move 25.
Leko-Gelfand was the only game to make it past move 40, but it wasn't really a long game in any interesting sense. Gelfand used his mighty Petroff power and easily achieved the draw. From the opening the players entered a tactical sequence where Gelfand sacrificed the exchange for a pawn, and when the smoke cleared on move 28 it was pretty clear that Black would hold the draw without much trouble.
The next-to-last game to finish was Carlsen-Morozevich. It was a 4.f3 Nimzo-Indian, and Morozevich went for the main line with 4...d5. White gets the bishop pair and an extra pawn, while Black gets easy development and the better structure. Carlsen had the initiative throughout, but with so many potential weaknesses Morozevich held comfortably.
Finally, Ponomariov-Aronian looked like the best chance for a decisive result. In another Exchange Grünfeld, Ponomariov did his best to build up an attack, but when he sacrificed a piece to break up Black's kingside he did so to force a perpetual. This was fortunate for Aronian, as Ponomariov could given him the choice between an unpleasant endgame or a lost middlegame.
There's no need to elaborate the standings, as everyone has one point out of two. Here are tomorrow's pairings:
Games here, with my brief comments.]]>This Week's ChessVideos Show: Viewer Games, Episode 10
http://chessmind.powerblogs.com/posts/1257484415.shtml
Every so often ChessVideos viewers will submit games or questions for discussion, and the resulting shows are often especially valuable. It's important to see master and grandmaster play - to see...Dennis Monokroussos2009-11-06T05:11+00:00
This may include some of my readers, so you might have a look here and see for yourself. The show is free (though free registration is required), and available on-demand for the next month or so.]]>Tal Memorial, Round 1: 5 Draws
http://chessmind.powerblogs.com/posts/1257483694.shtml
But very good draws! Carlsen-Kramnik in particular was a thriller, but Morozevich-Leko had its high points, and none of the other games could be described as dull. If the play continues...Dennis Monokroussos2009-11-06T05:11+00:00 Round 1 Results:
Carlsen - Kramnik 1/2-1/2
Morozevich - Leko 1/2-1/2
Ivanchuk - Anand 1/2-1/2
Gelfand - Ponomariov 1/2-1/2
Aronian - Svidler 1/2-1/2
Reports on the first round are available here, here and here. For this round, I'll only present the games, without notes - here.]]>The 2009 Tal Memorial: First Round Pairings
http://chessmind.powerblogs.com/posts/1257397343.shtml
Thanks to the many readers, who have already provided them in the notes to this post. For those who aren't comment-browsers or are brand new to this site, here's what...Dennis Monokroussos2009-11-05T05:11+00:00this post. For those who aren't comment-browsers or are brand new to this site, here's what we'll see if we watch live at 7 a.m. ET:
Predictions for the games and the tournament? I'll go with the winner of the first game mentioned above. If it's a draw, then...I'm not sure.]]>This Week's ChessBase Show: Lombardy-Fischer, US Championship 1960
http://chessmind.powerblogs.com/posts/1257294652.shtml
Tomorrow, Magnus Carlsen makes his debut as a 2800 in the Tal Memorial, and it's not much of an exaggeration to say he has taken the chess world by storm. Although...Dennis Monokroussos2009-11-04T00:11+00:00
By age 15, Fischer had already qualified for the Candidates (the final elimination tournament to see who would play for the world championship), and at 19 he had done it twice, won an Interzonal and no less than five U.S. Championships. And as fantastic a player and talent as Carlsen is, the gap between him and his contemporaries is significant but not (yet?) huge; with Fischer, however, only the young Spassky was even in the same galaxy, and it took him three years longer to become a grandmaster than it did for Fischer.
The point of the comparison is not to denigrate Carlsen, who may be on his way to becoming the greatest player of all time, but to remind the reader of Fischer's early achievements, before he demolished the chess world in his run from 1970-1972. Speaking of those early achievements, we'll look at one this week: his victory over William Lombardy from the 1960 U.S. Championship. It was played in round 2, but may have decided first place, as Fischer won the event two points ahead of Lombardy.
It's a very interesting game (and possibly well-known to you, if you have a copy of Fischer's My 60 Memorable Games), with interesting moments in the opening (5.f3 vs. the 2...d6 Sicilian), middlegame (a dynamic ...d5 pawn break/sacrifice, and a long combination with a sneaky punchline), and endgame (no foreshadowing for this one). It's a very nice game to watch, and you can do so tomorrow night. Here's how:
Log on to the Playchess server at 9 p.m. ET (Wednesday night; that's 3 a.m. Thursday morning, CET), go to the Broadcast room, and select Lombardy-Fischer under the Games tab. The show is free for Premium Members (in most cases, this will be individuals who have a registered copy of Fritz 12); it's 50 ducats for everyone else.
Hope to see you there!]]>The 2009 Tal Memorial Starts Tomorrow
http://chessmind.powerblogs.com/posts/1257292300.shtml
The participant list looks like this:...Dennis Monokroussos2009-11-03T23:11+00:00
1. Carlsen 2801
2. Anand 2788
3. Aronian 2786
4. Kramnik 2772
5. Gelfand 2758
6. Svidler 2754
7. Leko 2752
8. Morozevich 2750
9. Ivanchuk 2739
10. Ponomariov 2739
It's a round robin starting in Moscow tomorrow and continuing through the 15th, after which there will be the usual high-prestige blitz tournament. It's clearly a very strong tournament; the only question is if it will be a bloodthirsty one. (At least half the players are occasionally a bit draw-happy, so we'll have to see.)
The official site is here, but it's in Russian. If those of you who can read it can find the first-round pairing information and what time the games start tomorrow, please include it in the comments. (Oddly, the English version of the site - see its upper-right corner - gives Tal Memorial info from 2007. Not very helpful.)]]>Maxime Vachier-Lagrave: World Junior Champion
http://chessmind.powerblogs.com/posts/1257291600.shtml
Sergei Zhigalko led or co-led from round 4 all the way to the finish, but despite this it was Maxime Vachier-Lagrave who won the World Junior Championship title on tiebreaks. From...Dennis Monokroussos2009-11-03T23:11+00:00
Zhigalko, obviously, came in second, and then there was a huge gap - a point and a half! - to the next score group. Three players had nine points - Michal Olszewski, Ivan Popov (who drew with Zhigalko in the last round), and Alex Lenderman. (The other U.S. representative, Ray Robson, finished with 7.5.) The nine-pointers are given in tiebreak order, so Olszewski was the bronze medalist. Congratulations to the winners!