Greenpoint Chess and Go Club

It’s difficult to make a valid novelty in the main line of the ruy lopez, nay, nearly impossible. That’s what makes D. Blagojevic’s 17th move in the following game so remarkable. Glenn Flear, in his book on the ruy lopez main line, credits Blagojevic with a “meritorious novelty.” After the moves 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0-0 Be7 6. Re1 b5 7.Bb3 d6 8 c3 0-0 9 h3 Nd7 10 d4 Bf6 11 a4 Bb7 12. Na3 exd4 13 cxd4 Re8 14 axb5 axb5 15 Bf4 Na5 16 Bc2 b4 17 Nb5…
And now….the novelty …Nf8! Flear says that Blagojevoc is trying to avoid the beaten path here. Look here http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1255082 for the full game.

I’ve recently become a great admirer of the Grunfeld Defence from the Black side.

It’s a perfect opening for blitz. Here’s why:

Black has great initiative from the very start. It’s White’s position that is under duress. Sure, in classical chess, White can put the long-term squeeze on Black with a trump like the complete occupation of the center, but this is blitz we’re talking about here.

A virtue of the Grunfeld so important in blitz is the strong activity and natural placement of the pieces. The more natural and obvious your moves means less book time and more play time.

The White players who play against the Grunfeld are often positional players. The Grunfeld, while it certainly has positional considerations like any other opening, tends to be more tactical, thus unsettling many White players anticipating the positional comfort zone. It can be a jarringly different mindset from most other d4 or c4 openings.

And lastly– and probably most important for me– the Grunfeld is an answer to the English Opening. There really is nothing quite as annoying as being under the thumb of a good English Opening player. That constant nagging positional edge along the long, light diagonal ages you years prematurely, I swear. Sure, I could learn to meet the English Opening properly, of course, but… that’s a lot of work! Let’s not forget: I’m just a lazy, casual blitz player here. As I’m sure you are too. So, I like to look for a multi-purpose opening– one setup for many different occasions. In the past, I’ve tried the King’s Indian setup against the English, but, even then, White can still keep that annoying English Opening flavor to the game. But with the Grunfeld as an answer to the English Opening, I feel like it’s White who must play MY game. Sure, there are options available to an English Opening player that aren’t to a 1.d4 player (like an early Qa4+), but the game STILL has the character of a Grunfeld for Black: the active, natural placement of pieces; the strong pressure on the center should White decide to occupy it; a slight lead in development. And as any experienced blitz player will tell you: it’s far better to be in a familiar position for you than to be in a familiar position for your opponent, if only for the edge in time.

I highly recommend studying– who am I kidding? looking– over the games of the British GM David Howell.

Out of the 22 games that Tal and Karpov played, Karpov beat Tal 2-1 with 19 draws and Tal only wone once. Having said that, his one win against the world champ was in fashion and came out of a minor line of the Panov Attack in the Caro-Kann, known as the Steiner System. The basic concept after 1. e4 c6 2. c4!? is to grab the d5 square. The game can take one of two directions, Black can open the game up with d5, even though this loses a pawn temporarily, or keep it closed and push it towards Nimzo/Queen's Indian territory. For a look at Tal's insanely sacrificial spanking of Karpov, look here: http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1067017.

The opening is named after Lajos Steiner, who published a series of analytical articles in the 20s arguing that the move 2. c4 was a refutation of the Caro-Kann. At that time, the Caro was a relatively young opening and had not been explored to the depths that it has been today, so the idea that it could be refuted on the second move did not sound quite as absurd as it does now. Currently, the hot lines in the Caro are in the advance, particularly where black plays Bf5 and White plays Nc3, however, the Panov Attack contains a wealth of attacking ideas, and of course there's always the added bonus that your opponent with Black may be all prepared for an advance 15 moves deep, but not as comfortable in the Panov. After hitting Karpov's new book on the line, I've surprised myself with a couple decent wins online, much like Martin Crane from the television show Frasier did in season 3 episode 18, "Chess Pains," when he beats Frasier for the first time when he accidentally stumbles into the Panov-Botvinnik attack.

After a recent spate of losses to Greg following the Shabalov Attack, I have been forced to do some research.

The Shabalov Attack is a gambit in the Meran variation of the Semi-Slav. It does not have its own ECO code, but is subsumed within D45. Using the Opening Explorer, I was able to locate 376 games at ChessGames.com.

Resources

• I was surprised to find a really nice article on the Shabalov on this blog! I had totally forgotten about Greg's post "Not too Shabby: Shabalov's 7.g4!?" (24 August 2008). Please note that this post has recently been updated with diagrams and stats from ChessGames.com.
• Shabalov Attack game collection at ChessGames.com

Another of the five  kinds of chess still played in Asia today (in addition to the international, or European, game we all know and love), this game is played in Thailand, Cambodia, and probably Laos.

Basic info & rules: http://history.chess.free.fr/cambodian.htm

Vladimir Kramnik has demonstrated an interest: http://www.chessvariants.org/oriental.dir/thaikramnik.html

Free web server: http://www.thaibg.com/TSOnline/index.php

One note of caution about the server—it often shuts down Firefox, so it’s best to use a different browser if you’re going to visit this site.

I find the idea behind the website ibeatgarry.com hilarious.

It’s a cross between Six Degrees of Separation and the dream of toppling arguably the best chess player ever.

For example, this obscure FM from Houston, Texas “beat” Garry like so: http://www.ibeatgarry.com/?from=Land%2C%20Chris%20K&to=Kasparov%2C%20Garry

The world chess championship match between Kramnik and Anand starts tomorrow!

Like everyone else I’m anxious to know who’ll come out on top. But more than that, as a fan, I’m eager to know what chess openings they’ll have prepared for each other.

No doubt their choices will influence chess fashion, especially with casual and amateur players like myself. Will some relatively obscure openings like the Scotch or the Berlin Defense be reinvigorated? Will some novelty breathe new life into discarded lines? Or destroy a previously solid variation?

Assuming Anand will play 1.e4 with White, I’m really interested in seeing what Kramnik will use to defend with Black. In championship match play, Kramnik adopts the old school Russian approach of being content to draw with Black against 1.e4. Against Kasparov, it was the Berlin defense. Against Leko, the Petroff. (Topalov played d4 openings against Kramnik in their championship match.)  But you have to think Anand will have unearthed weapons against the Berlin and Petroff for sure. So where will Kramnik find safe haven? What if the Ruy Lopez Marshall Gambit is Kramnik’s surprise drawing weapon?!

Likewise, I’m really curious to see which defense Anand will use to against Kramnik’s d4 opening assault. Anand’s bread and butter is the Semi-Slav or the Queen’s/Nimzo Indian pair but Kramnik will surely have some novelties in these laying in wait. But maybe Anand has things in store for Kramnik’s Catalan! The Grunfeld would be an interesting surprise.

Personally I’m picking Anand to win. My reasons:

- Anand is likely hungrier than Kramnik. (Kramnik has already cemented his legacy when he convincingly took the crown from Kasparov. Anand, despite all of his chess accomplishments, in my opinion, has yet to do so.)

- Anand’s flexible style, wide breadth of openings, and strength with both colors will test Kramnik.

- Kramnik has never won a game with Black in classical chess against Anand! Assuming Anand retains the title on a tie, this may be a big long-term strategic advantage for him. If it’s a playoff of rapid games to break the tie, this heavily favors Anand (see Notes).

How will the match unfold? What kind of mind fucks will they employ on each other? Will Anand finally show the nerves to win the big championship match?  Will Kramnik’s physical health be a factor as the match wears on?

Regardless of how it all plays out, it’s a good time to be a chess fan.

Notes:

Anand vs Kramnik past games statistics

Total (127 games): +19 =93 –15 in Anand’s favour.

Blitz (9 games): +2 =5 –2.
Blindfold (13 Amber games): +4 =6 –3 in Kramnik’s favour.
Rapid (45 games): +10 =33 –2 in Anand’s favour.
TV game 60′ (1 game, Cologne 1996): =1.
Classical (51 games): +6 =41 –4 in Kramnik’s favour.
Classical, Anand White (21 games): +2 =19 –0 in Anand’s favour.
Classical, Kramnik White (30 games): +6 =22 –2 in Kramnik’s favour.

(src: Susan Polgar’s blog)

All Kramnik vs. Anand chess games.

Anand’s games.

Kramnik’s games.

The Korean form of chess is very similar to Chinese chess, but has its distinctive rules and characteristics.  Following are some sites about this game:

http://history.chess.free.fr/changgi.htm

http://ancientchess.com/page/play-janggi.htm

http://www.banaschak.net

The last mentioned site is maintained by Peter Banaschak, a German scholar who has written a book about chess in East Asia (so far not translated, I believe). The site is mostly in German, but there are parts in English. There is interesting information about Chinese as well as Korean chess here.

Somewhere on Korean Yahoo there is a server for playing janggi, but you have to know Korean to navigate it.

Some relevant sites relating to the most popular board game in the world:

World Xiangqi Federation—http://wxf.org

Asian Xiangqi Federation—http://www.asianxiangqi.org

Yahoo group on xiangqi—http://games.groups.yahoo.com/group/chinese-chess

xiangqi Web server (free)—http://www.clubxiangqi.com

Information about shogi is available at http://www.shogi.net.

There is a server on the Web where you can register and play for free: http://www.shogidojo.com/eng/engindex.htm

The New York Shogi Club meets on Wednesday evenings from about 7 p.m. with games going on till 10:30 or 11 at the Naniwa restaurant, 4 East 46th Street, zip 10017.

From today's New York Times:

Could a grandmaster become a member of the next administration? Possibly. Kenneth S. Rogoff, a professor at Harvard, is an economics adviser to the Republican presidential nominee, Senator John McCain. Rogoff is also a grandmaster.

Rogoff said an understanding of chess helped him learn economics: "The whole logic of game theory, which is a big part of economics, came easily to me."

He also said his knowledge of chess had helped him in his career. "I was the chief economist of the International Monetary Fund from 2001 to 2003, and you are involved in a lot of high-stakes negotiations," he said, "and chess teaches you to think about what the other person is thinking."

some good & interesting websites devoted in whole or in part to the history of chess:

http://www.mynetcologne.de/~nc-jostenge

http://history.chess.free.fr

http://www.goddesschess.com

http://www.chesscafe.com

Via puddingpie:

Greg Chamitoff, an American astronaut stationed at the International Space Station, is a chess player who plays Mission Control at the rate of one move per day! Barred from bringing magnetic pieces, he uses a lightweight plastic set fitted with Velcro.

He is currently playing six simultaneous games—one against each of the mission's ground stations. NASA is keeping a record of the games at http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/expeditions/expedition17/chess_chamitoff.html.

Read the entire story at the New York Times.

Chess was all over yesterday's New York Times:

• Dealing in Chess Futures? Bet on This Norwegian a short bio on Magnus Carlesen in Arts & Leisure
• Georgia Conflict Resounds at Chess Championships on protesting the women's world championship in International
• Saluting the Game's Greats in Events Named for Them, a weekly column in the Metro Section

All three are by Dylan Loeb McClain.

Hilarious game and worth all 271 moves: Rybka (Computer) vs Hikaru Nakamura.

Via bicyclethief!

SHABALOV'S 7 G4!?

The Shabalov Attack is an all out attempt for the full point against the Meran-Semi Slav.  Following the moves 1 d4 d5 2 c4 c6 3 Nf3 Nf6 4 Nc3 e6 5 e3 Nbd7 6 Qc2 Bd6 7 g4!?, Black is faced with the difficult question of whether to accept the "gambit." The g4 pawn thrust is a common attacking move in many Sicilian systems for White: the Keres attack, the Yugoslav attack, and the English attack, only to name a few.  However, the move is rarely seen in Queen's pawn games.  With 7 g4!?, White is threatening to boost Black's knight from its comfortable home on f6 and steamroll on with an early kingside initiative.  In his book The Meran System, Steffan Pederson offers four logical replies to the tactical gauntlet implicit in 7 g4:

1. 7…h6 (White wins 45.2% of 93 games, draws 23.7% and loses 31.2%)
2. 7…dxc4 (117 games. 36.8%, 35% and 28.2%)
3. 7…Nxg4 (80 games. 53.8%, 30% and 16.2%)
4. 7…Bb4 (83 games. 43.4%, 30.1% and 26.5%)

Pederson considers Nxg4 the critical reply.

7…Nxg4

After 7…Nxg4, 8 Rg1 f5 (suggested by Kasparov) Black is behind in development, though White's uncoordinated pieces nearly compensate for this.  A suggested line leading to equality following this move continues: 9 h3 Ngf6 10 Rxg7 Ne4 11 Bd2 Qf6  (here, Black can also try to exchange rooks with 11…Kf8, releasing some of the tension in the position—this move is more to my taste than the text move.) 12 Rg2 Nf8 13 0-0-0 Ng6 14 Be2 (consider 14 Kb1 Bd7 15 Ka1? a6? 16 cxd5 Nxc3 17 Bxc3 exd5 18 Bd3+-) Bd7 15 Rdg1 0-0-0 16 Be1 Kb8 17 Kb1 Ka8 18 Ka1 Qe7 with equal chances Soffer-Wells Budapest 1994.

7…h6

Perhaps the best way to answer the Shabolov attack is to follow what Shabalov himself does when faced with his own idea.  In the following game, Shabalov reaches equality easily.  7…h6 8 Rg1 Qe7 9 h4 dxc4 10 e4 e5 11 g5 Nh5 12 Bxc4 exd4 13 Nxd4 Nb6 14 Be2 Nf4 15 Be3 h5 16 0-0-0 g6 17 Kb1 Bd7 =   Nakamura-Shabalov Foxwoods 2007 0-1.

7…Bb4

The move 7…Bb4 is recommended by Pederson, and seems to be at once a fighting and positional response to the Shabalov. The Bishop develops to a logical square, where it pins the knight and raises the tension in the center to a fever-pitch. This gives Black enough counter play to parlay White's kingside initiative. Personally, 7…h6 seems more natural, and I feel more comfortable in the positions that arise following that move.  However, the adventurous may prefer the sophisticated 7…Bb4.

After spending some time revisiting From's Gambit, I thought I'd be prepared to play 1 f4 against my roommate. However, instead of playing either the Lasker variation (4…g5) or the Mestel variation (4…Nf6), Greg played 4…Bg4! Faced with this suprise variation and given Greg's strength, I crumbled in 17 moves (download this embarrassing game in PGN format).

Since Taylor doesn't mention this variation in Bird's Opening, I decided to do a little research. ChessGames.com only has seven 4…Bg4 games in their database: two wins for White, four wins for Black and one draw.

So I plugged the position into Fritz 9, ran infinite analysis and it gave the following two lines:

Unclear, but with a 0.38 advantage to White: 5 e3 Qd7 6 Be2 Nc6 7 0-0 0-0-0 8 Na3 Nf6 9 Nc4 Be7 10 d3

Equal, with a 0.24 advantage to White: 5 e4 Nf6 6 d4 Nxe4 7 Bd3 Nf6 8 Qe2+ Be7 9 0-0 0-0 10 Nbd2 Re8

There is only one 5 e3 game at ChessGames.com, Albin vs Marshall, and Marshall wins (though they don't play the line recommended by Fritz). Since Marshall is the only player represented twice in ChessGames.com collection of seven 4…Bg4 games, I've decided to call this the Marshall variation.

The move that I want to play, 5 g3, Fritz sees as equal, but with a very slight edge to Black. So for now, 5 e3 seems to best way to respond.

Clearly, more research remains to be done on this line…

Related tags: birds, froms-gambit, gambits

Two ChessGames.com game collections that feature Bird's Opening:

• Bird's Opening Game Collection
• Bird's Opening (A02-A03): A Reappraisal

From Bird's Opening by Timothy Taylor. Everyman Chess. 2005.

From's Gambit is a blunt attempt to refute Bird's Opening.

After 1 f4 e5 2 fxe5 d6 3 fxd6 Bxd6, White's only good move is 4 Nf3. 4…g5 is the Lasker Variation and 4…Nf6 is the Mestel Variation.

Lasker Variation

According to Taylor, this variation is not sound. It's a succession of one move threats that leave holes in Black's position.

After 4…g5, White plays Bent Larsen's 5 g3, which meets the mate threat. 5…h5 is too slow with the knight out: 5…h5?! 6 d4 f6 7 Qd3 h4 8 Qg6+ Kf8 9 Kxg5! J. Horvath-P. Velvart, Hungarian Women's Championship 1993.

5…g4 is the usual move to remove the defending knight. The main line continues: 6 Nh4 Ne7 7 d4 Ng6 8 Nxg6 hxg6 9 Qd3! This defends against the threats and maintains White's advantage. The other main try for Black is 6…Be7 7 Ng2, which is better for White. The position is uncomfortable, but Black doesn't have enough compensation for the pawn.

Illustrative game: Timothy Taylor (2297) vs Julio J Becerra-Rivero (2552). HB Global Chess Challenge 2005. Bird Opening: From Gambit. Lasker Variation (A02). 1-0. http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1339115

Related tags: birds, froms-gambit, gambits

White to move and mate in two

Add a comment to this post with your solution. Please list all variations.

Related tags: chess-problem

Bird's

From Bird's Opening by Timothy Taylor. Everyman Chess. 2005.

The Classical Bird

Basic setup: 1. f4 d5 2. Nf3 g6 3. e3 Bg7 4. Be2 Nf6 5. 0-0 0-0 6. d3 c5.

White's main idea: To advance the e-pawn to e4. Then the two pawns lined up on e4 and f4 dominate the center, facilitate kingside attacking chances and secure an advantage.

Black can counter by in some positions by advancing the d-pawn to d4, when White's e-pawn is unable to slip by. Black can also also play e7-e5.

According to Taylor, 7. Nc3 to reinforce e3-34 looks promising; he cannot recommend the popular 7. Qe1, because it is too early to commit the queen. Black is able to equalize easily.

John Redmond (2210) vs Sabrina Chevannes (2074). 4NCL 2007-8 2008. Bird Opening: Classical Bird (A02). 1-0. http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1500887. This follows Taylor's Game 8 7…d4 note b closely. Sabrina doesn't take Taylor's advice, though, and plays 9…bxc6, doubling her pawns and giving the advantage to John with 10. e4.

White's Queenside Fianchetto

Avoid this line: "There are only two ways White can get an edge, and both require cooperation from Black."

Alekhine's Defense

From Starting Out: Alekhine's Defence by John Cox. Everyman Chess. 2004

Main Line (Classical and Modern variations)

1. e4 Nf6 2. e5 Nd5 3. d4 d6 4. Nf3

With 4. Nf3, White neither commits to maintaining the pawn on e5 (4. c4 Nb6 5. f4) or to its exchange (4. c4) and waits to see how Black plays.

Main Line Modern variation

1. e4 Nf6 2. e5 Nd5 3. d4 d6 4. Nf3 dxe5 5. Nxe5

Main Line Modern variation Kengis system

1. e4 Nf6 2. e5 Nd5 3. d4 d6 4. Nf3 dxe5 5. Nxe5 g6

If White plays 6. Bc4, the Kengis is non-theoretical and simple; the difficulty is learning to play the resulting positions well. Black is solid, but what are the positive ideas?

Black should try to exchange a minor piece: if possible a knight for the one on e5 or the light-squared bishop for the one on b3, but bishop for knight will do.

Trap: After 1. e4 Nf6 2. e5 Nd5 3. d4 d6 4. Nf3 dxe5 5. Nxe5 g6 6. Bc4, Black cannot play 6…Bg7?? or 7. Nxf7 Kxf7 8. Qf3+

Related tags: birds, alekhines-defense

Reported discoveries of lost works by Leonardo da Vinci are almost as common as, well, images of the Mona Lisa.

The latest attribution to be proposed involves the design for the illustrations in a chess book from around 1500. The book, "De Ludo Scachorum," or "The Game of Chess," is by Luca Pacioli, a Franciscan friar and Renaissance mathematician who was a friend and collaborator of Leonardo. One of the earliest chess books, it contains 114 diagrams of chess problems drawn in red and black.

Long thought to be lost or destroyed, it was discovered in 2006 in a 22,000-volume library in northeastern Italy that belonged to Count Guglielmo Coronini, who died in 1990.

The nonprofit Coronini Cronberg Foundation, which oversees the library, enlisted Franco Rocco, an Italian architect and sculptor whose work has puzzlelike qualities, to examine the book and its illustrations. After a year of study he determined that Leonardo created the design on which the illustrations are based, possibly by building a chess set.

…

In his chess column in The Times of London, Raymond Keene wrote that the sophistication of the chess puzzles themselves could have come only from "a powerful intelligence" and might also be the work of Leonardo. But Martin Kemp, a prominent Leonardo expert who is an emeritus art history professor at Oxford University, has emphatically dismissed the possibility that Leonardo had any hand in the drawings. "There is not an earthly chance of them being by Leonardo," he said in a telephone interview.

→ Read the entire article: "Historical Stalemate: Chess Book May Have Leonardo Illustrations (or Not)." Dylan Loeb McClain. Published 14 April 2008.

White to move and mate in two

Add a comment to this post with your solution.

→ Solution to the last problem

From the Internet Chess Club weekly newsletter, volume III, issue X:

The Morelia-Linares super-tournament has now concluded in Spain—and everyone agrees it rated as one of the most entertaining and interesting elite event of recent years!

Those were more or less the words world champion Vishy Anand used as he talked to Macauley Peterson for Chess.FM after his final round game on Friday, after he successfully held off the challenge of the young pretender to his throne, Magnus Carlsen, to win for the second successive year.

While we rightly congratulate Anand for taking the title by just half a point from Carlsen (who fought till the bitter end against Radjabov to try to seal a final round win to tie with Anand), we also have to recognize the performances of late from the young Norwegian that will see yet another seismic shift in his rating.

With his results at Corus and Morelia-Linares, Carlsen is set to become a new permanent force in the top ten for years to come. His new rating in the upcoming April list is rumored to be as high as world #5, and knocking heavily on the #4 spot. Messers. Kramnik, Anand, Topalov & Morozevich look set to be nervously looking over their collective shoulders if the Carslen rating tsunami continues!

Final Standings

1. Anand, V
2. Carlsen, M
3. Aronia, L
4. Topalov, V
5. Radjabov, T
6. Ivanchuk, V
7. Leko, P
8. Shirov, A

→ Get all games in PGN format

Pic, final standings, and PGN from ChessBase News

White to move and mate in two

Otto Wurzburg
American Chess Bulletin, September–October, 1939

→ Solution | Solution to the last problem

Source: Howard, K.S. (1961). How to solve chess problems. Second revised edition. New York: Dover Publications, Inc.