Downers Grove tournament for grades 1-8 on March 10

Kristi Kattapong sends us an email: the organizer is Downers Grove FRoG (Friends of the Gifted and Talented).

Top 200 players in Illinois

Here's the February list!

1	GM YURY SHULMAN	2666
2	GM MESGEN AMANOV	2586
3	GM NIKOLA MITKOV	2586
4	GM DMITRY GUREVICH	2533
5	FM ERIC S ROSEN	2423
6	FM LEO KAUSHANSKY	2412
7	IM FLORIN FELECAN	2406
8	TANSEL TURGUT	2385
9	IM ANGELO YOUNG	2372
10	FM NIKHILESH KUMAR KUNCHE	2362
11	WIM VIKTORIJA NI	2349
12	TIMUR ALIYEV	2346
13	FM AUNG THANT ZIN	2323
14	ADARSH JAYAKUMAR	2320
15	FM IGOR TSYGANOV	2298
16	WILLIAM J ARAMIL	2275
17	FM ALEKSANDA STAMNOV	2256
18	JEREMY KANE	2253
19	FM ANDREW KARKLINS	2252
20	SAM A SCHMAKEL	2246
21	STEVEN TENNANT	2240
22	GOPAL MENON	2231
23	TREVOR S MAGNESS	2230
24	PETROS DEMETRIOS KARAGIANIS	2230
25	FM ALBERT C CHOW	2229
26	FM DAN WOLF	2218
27	TENZING W SHAW	2205
28	AUDRIUS MACENIS	2205
29	KENNETH T WALLACH	2202
30	FREDERICK S RHINE	2201
31	FM KEVIN BACHLER	2200
32	LEN J WEBER	2200
33	STEVEN J SZPISJAK	2200
34	MARIANO A ACOSTA	2200
35	JON L BURGESS	2187
36	MATTHEW E MICHAELIDES	2179
37	ALEX ZIQI DING	2178
38	MINDRAG M JEVRENOVIC	2155
39	JONATHAN S KOGEN	2151
40	STEFFEN HELMUT KLUG	2132
41	MATTHEW K WILBER	2129
42	MICHAEL W AUGER	2128
43	TIMOTHY E KRAS	2126
44	TAM NGUYEN	2115
45	WILLIAM H BROCK	2115
46	KEITH B HOLZMUELLER	2112
47	FM ANDREW D HUBBARD	2106
48	MARK ROBLEDO JR	2106
49	GLEN E GRATZ	2105
50	GEOFFREY CAVENEY	2101
51	RENE ANCHETA	2083
52	ZACH KASIURAK	2081
53	FRED SCOTT ALLSBROOK	2078
54	JAMES MICHAEL PAVESE	2077
55	GAVIN JACOB MC CLANAHAN	2077
56	SEDRICK PRUDE	2074
57	FLORENTINO V INUMERABLE	2073
58	ISAAC MAURICE BRASWELL	2067
59	KRZYSZTOF FLAGA	2065
60	D GREGORY BUNGO	2063
61	AAKAASH MEDURI	2060
62	ZHAOZHI LI	2051
63	ROBERT JAMES RASMUSSEN	2048
64	ROBERT LONCAREVIC	2045
65	THOMAS D MURPHY	2037
66	SERGE MININ	2037
67	CHRISTOPHER A MERLI	2034
68	ROBBIE S KLEINMUNTZ	2033
69	CHRISTOPHER GIRARDO	2031
70	JORDAN S COHEN	2030
71	ERIK KARKLINS	2028
72	KEVIN JOSEPH VELAZQUEZ	2028
73	DAVID LONG	2027
74	YULIY KLEBAN	2027
75	YURI FRIDMAN	2023
76	ROBERT D MORRIS	2021
77	VINCENT J HART	2020
78	ROBBY HECHT	2020
79	MIOMIR STEVANOVIC	2019
80	GENE G SCOTT	2018
81	PAUL D MECHEM	2015
82	YANJINLKHAM BAYARSAIKHAN	2011
83	KENT Y CEN	2010
84	JAMES B FAGAN	2010
85	DUSAN TUTUSH	2008
86	THOMAS WOODROW KACZYNSKI	2005
87	GADDIEL TAN TAN	2003
88	WALLACE GORDON	2002
89	WILLIAM A NAFF	2001
90	GHULAM DASTGIR-BUTT	2000
91	LAWRENCE S COHEN	2000
92	ALEX BIAN	2000
93	MARK MAROVITCH	2000
94	LEONID BONDAR	2000
95	SITARAM AUDIPUDY	1999
96	JEFF S DIXON	1990
97	MIKHAIL KORENMAN	1986
98	DANIEL MC NALLY	1974
99	ROBERT MOSKWA	1965
100	TODD A PLAGEMANN	1956
101	JOSHUA DUBIN	1955
102	CHENGLIANG LUO	1953
103	DANIEL R DUGOVIC	1951
104	JEFF K WIEWEL	1949
105	MAXIMILIAN JOSEPH ZINSKI	1948
106	CHRISTOPHER WOOD	1947
107	BRIAN THOMAS	1941
108	ETHELBERT P GAZMEN	1940
109	DR JOE CIMA	1939
110	LUIS M PERALTA	1937
111	JAMES EGERTON	1936
112	DMITRI A SERGATSKOV	1935
113	HARRY A SMITH	1932
114	RUDY NEIL ENRIQUEZ	1922
115	DUSHYANTH REDDIVARI	1921
116	MICHAEL A BARKDOLL	1921
117	VALDIS M TUMS	1921
118	DOUGLAS ALAN MIDDLETON	1920
119	DEREK H LYON	1916
120	RAJIV S DESHPANDE	1914
121	DAVID L LEE	1908
122	DANIEL EDWARD PARMET	1908
123	SCOT L HENDERSON	1907
124	NATHANIEL AUSTIN KRANJC	1905
125	ZACHARY HOLECEK	1905
126	DAVID J MASON	1903
127	STEVEN CRAIG MILLER	1901
128	DAVID TIANJIAN PENG	1901
129	JOSEPH O ALFORD	1900
130	LEON SHERNOFF	1900
131	JAMES K CONDRON	1900
132	JOE DAMOCLES	1900
133	RICHARD K KUJOTH	1900
134	DENNIS PLOTT	1899
135	ROBERT HILL	1899
136	ABE SUN	1899
137	SAM FORD	1896
138	DANIEL R MODES	1895
139	RAFEH R QAZI	1893
140	CHRISTOPHER BAUMGARTNER	1892
141	THOMAS FRISKE	1882
142	MIKE CRONIN	1881
143	MICHAEL LEALI	1880
144	SAAGAR GUPTA	1878
145	RYSZARD GRABOWSKI	1878
146	GEORGE WILLIAM STONE	1876
147	AKSHAY INDUSEKAR	1873
148	JAMES WEI	1872
149	WILLIAM LYLE HAYHURST	1872
150	JOSEPH CYGAN	1870
151	JUAN HERNANDEZ III	1870
152	CONRAD OBERHAUS	1869
153	JACK M MALLERS	1869
154	MIKE MEI 13301021	1867
155	DAVID KASSIN	1865
156	YUE XU	1864
157	DAVID C HINTERLONG	1862
158	KYLE J MILES	1862
159	BENJAMIN P STERN	1859
160	PAUL SEET	1859
161	JONATHAN BONWELL	1858
162	BRYCE MC CLANAHAN	1858
163	CHARLES SWAN	1858
164	MARK STEVEN ENGELEN	1857
165	BILL SMYTHE	1855
166	DAVID S GILCHRIST	1852
167	MATTHEW Y YANG	1851
168	ANSHUL ADVE	1849
169	FRANCISCO III CABALLERO	1849
170	WILLIAM G COX	1848
171	MICHAEL GRANATA	1847
172	HECTOR R HERNANDEZ	1842
173	NIDAL M AKER	1841
174	PETER MC CONAGHIE	1840
175	RISHI SETHI	1838
176	ADAM LEVINE-WEINBERG	1837
177	BRUCE T DAWSON	1834
178	HOWARD COHEN	1830
179	KEVIN J POTTS	1830
180	MICHAEL J BRUN	1827
181	MARTIN WILBER	1820
182	CALEB S LARSEN	1820
183	TOM TAYLOR	1819
184	JAMES M THOMSON	1819
185	DAVID W FERRIE	1819
186	TARANIKANTA MOHAPATRA	1818
187	JIRI V KABELAC	1817
188	JOHN DE MASTRI	1816
189	GEORGE RUAN	1816
190	MICHAEL A CHINITZ	1816
191	JEFFREY P BRUNELLE	1813
192	JOSEPH R GUTH JR	1813
193	DAVID ROCKWELL	1809
194	EVAN SPIEGEL	1805
195	STANISLAN KAMYS	1802
196	JOSEPH G ZEMGULYS	1801
197	ROMAN, M KUPERMAN	1801
198	PHIL JARRETTE	1800
199	VINCE SPRINGER	1799
200	MATTHEW JAMES STEVENS	1797

Request for bids: 2012 Illinois All Grade Championship

Details on ICA website.

Chicago Public Library Chess - King Branch, Bronzeville

Thursdays from 4:00-5:30 p.m. at 3436 S. King Drive.  Contact info here.

Question: is there a place where all the various programs at CPL branches are listed?

Illinois Elementary School Association championship

Today and tomorrow in Bloomington at the U.S. Cellular Coliseum: details here.

The Quietest IHSA Sport?

Not to be pedantic, but to IHSA, chess is an "activity."

Article here.

Carlsen on 60 Minutes

Story on Chess Life Online.

Preview available on the 60 Minutes website.  If Carlsen is the "Mozart of Chess," then Kasparov is Beethoven?  (Yeah, I realize that "Mozart" is often shorthand for "prodigal talent," but Magnus is twenty, which is like being forty in most careers.)

Games from IHSA State Tournament

In the first round, Prospect's Robert Moskwa had the Black pieces against Benet Academy's 1968 rated Max Zinski.  By a somewhat circuitous route, the players wound up in a Sicilian Dragon with White playing the system with Bc4, h3 and 0-0.  Max played the opening well and put Robert in a very cramped position by landing a White pawn on f6.  However, Robert defended well and as often happens in the Sicilian, if White cannot find a way to convert his space advantage into an attack on Black's king, he often finds himself over extended and vulnerable.

This win turned out to make the difference in the competition for the the top medal on first board as Max didn't lose another game and finished 5.5-1.5.  As none of Eric Rosen or Matt Wilber's opponents finished with scores that good, Robert ended up getting the edge on tie break points.

In the last round, Robert played White against Stevenson's 2043 rated senior Kent Cen.  Again Robert found himself in a tough position out of the opening, and again he defended well.  The game wound up in a king and pawn ending where Kent played an instinctive move with less than ten seconds on his clock that turned out to be the losing move.

Black to play and draw.  Kent instinctively played to get his king in front of the White pawns with the natural looking 56...Ke4?? which lost to 57.Kc4 Ke5 58.Kb5 Kd6 59. Kxb6.  He could have drawn with 56...Ke2! 57.Kc4 Kd2, when White has nothing better than 58.Kb5 Kc3 59.Kxb6 Kb4=.

U.S. Amateur Team North in Northbrook this weekend!

Details here! You still have just enough time to put a team together, or come and kibitz.

Preview on Chess Life Online. Again, the location is Crowne Plaza Hotel, 2875 N. Milwaukee Ave., Northbrook, IL 60062. But there's a very dangerous typo in the article: if you go to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and not Milwaukee Avenue, you will be disappointed....

 I'll be playing for Evanston on Friday and Sunday: see you there!

Lotsa Latvian

If the Latvian Gambit is unsound, then why doesn't four-time U.S. Champion Alexander Shabalov refute it? OK, Shabalov may be an ethnic Russian, but he was born and raised in Latvia, and was a student of Tal.

The Grandmaster escapes with the full point.

The Latvian lives!

The Latvian Gambit, that is.  I had a pleasant Sunday afternoon analyzing with Andrew Karklins.
Here's one of the games we looked at:

"Niles North team, Prospect’s Moskwa are state’s best in chess"

Read all about it.

Who Was that Guy at State?

Most of the top high school players in Illinois have been playing organized chess for the better part of a decade or more. It is interesting to see that the cross table for the the Primary Section of the 2003 Illinois K-8 Tournament includes the names of almost all the top players from last weekend’s IHSA State Championship: Niles North’s Eric Rosen took first in 2003 followed by Stevenson’s Kent Cen and Josh Dubin at third and fourth, Whitney Young’s Sam Schmakel at fifth, and Hinsdale Central’s Aakash Meduri at seventh. Also participating in 2003 were Buffalo Grove’s Matt Wilber and University Urbana’s George Ruan as well as Denker Tournament invitees Adarsh Jayakumar and Jonathan Kogen. One name is conspicuously absent from that cross table however, 2012 IHSA 1st Place Medalist on first board and Denker invitee, Robert Moskwa of Prospect High School. In fact, despite his 1998 rating, you won’t find Robert’s name in any USCF cross table before December 2010, a mere fourteen months ago.

I first met Robert in October 2009 at the Prospect Chess Club. Coach Don Barrett had the students playing a consultation game with two teams in adjoining computer labs. I first stopped in the lab that held the first board’s team and I saw that their position was rather dicey. Then I went into the other lab where a newcomer was talking about the other side’s weak squares as well as other positional factors. I didn’t agree with all his assessments, but his reasoning was sound and he was clearly thinking about the game at a more sophisticated level than any player we had had before.

I went outside the lab to ask Don who this kid was. He told me that his name was Robert and that he had been playing freshman soccer up until that time. Don said that he was thinking about trying him on fifth board that week. I said “Put him on first.” Don demurred however since Robert had only played chess on the internet and had never used a clock or taken notation before. Robert crushed his opponent that week and again I said “Put him on first,” but Don decided to move him up to third where he crushed his opponent again. Our next opponent was MSL powerhouse Barrington with its 2000 rated first board Zach Kasiurak. Don wasn’t sure whether to put Robert on first or second, but the choice was taken out of his hands when our first board came down with the flu.

Since Prospect was the home team, Robert would be playing White against Zach. I remembered that Zach had played the Kan variation of the Sicilian against our first board two years earlier so I played it against Robert at the Tuesday practice before the match. Unfortunately, I didn’t know much about the Kan and I didn’t feel like I gave Robert any insights. On the Thursday of the match, Robert asked me to play a quick game before Barrington arrived. I thought about playing the Kan again, but I decided that playing the Najdorf, which I knew much better, might do Robert more good.  As we played, we  discussed some of the nuances of that variation as well as the Sicilian in general.

As it happened, Zach decided to play the Najdorf against Robert and he found himself in a bind pretty quickly. Unfortunately, when it came time to go for the breakthrough, Robert couldn’t quite pull the trigger and Zach gradually untangled his position. Zach managed to win a piece, but Robert took advantage of an inaccuracy to gain a couple of advanced pawns. Robert still had chances but Zach put on one of the most amazing displays of blitz I have ever seen playing the last twenty or so moves with only one second on his clock. Zach won, but he knew that he had been in a game. (You can see it here).  After the game he expressed regret that he hadn’t played the Kan and he rolled his eyes when I told him I had been playing the Najdorf against Robert.

Robert played first board for the rest of the season and continued to improve. He lost to Palatine’s Shiny Kaur during the regular season match but got his revenge at the conference tournament. He didn’t get a shot at Buffalo Grove’s Matt Wilber because Matt missed the match with Prospect. He had a second shot at Zach at conference but again came up short. At State, he went a respectable 4-3. 

Robert continued at first board as a sophomore where he led Prospect to a best ever 7-2 finish and 1st place in the MSL Conference Tournament where he avenged a regular season loss to Matt Wilber. In February 2011, he went 4.5-2.5 at State with his only losses coming to Northside Prep’s Chengliang Luo and Glenbrook South’s Gauri Manoj. Prospect went 5-2 to finish 18th. Robert showed that he could stay in the game with anyone, but he wasn’t ready to beat the top players consistently.

Robert had entered his first USCF tournament in December of 2010 where he went 3-1 in an U1400 section for an initial provisional rating of 1518. By July of 2011, he hit 1884 after tying for first in B Class at the Chicago Class Championship and he followed that up with a tie for second in A Class at the Midwest Class Championship in October. The wins haven’t come quite as easily for Robert over the last three months as he played in the master/expert section of the Illinois Class, the U2100 section at the North American Open and the open section of Tim Just's Winter Open. Still, against sixteen opponents with an average rating of 2042, he managed eight wins against six losses with two draws.

So while Robert is relatively unknown among the high school players who have been competing against one another for years, I was not surprised when he went 7-0 at the IHSA State Tournament last weekend. His wins over Max Zinski and Kent Cen were enough to give him the edge on tie breaks for the 1st Place Medal on first board over Matt Wilber and Eric Rosen. Next up for Robert is the Denker Qualifier at the end of March where he will compete in a round robin against 2320 Adarsh Jayakumar, 2246 Sam Schmakel, 2151 Jonathan Kogen, 2060 Aakash Meduri, and 2010 Kent Cen. It is probably a bit much to expect him to come out on top of that group, but I have learned not to bet against him.