Pulling the trigger

It takes a certain amount of intestinal fortitude to sacrifice a piece against a Grandmaster. Even strong masters can be faint of heart at the critical moment, as Kevin Bachler explains:

Tough nuts to crack

A trap in the Three Knights Game

After 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6, White's 3.Nc3 invites Black to play the Four Knights Game with 3...Nf6. If Black doesn't want to do that, 3...g6 is an alternative. But Black has to be vigilant after 4.d4 exd4 5.Nd5!? Bg7 6.Bg5! Correct is the counterintuitive 6...Nce7!, when Black will drive back White's pieces with ...c6 and ...h6. For a famous example where this strategy succeeded, see Gufeld-Petrosian, USSR (ch) 1969. The natural 6...Nge7? on the other hand (see diagram), is a bad mistake. After 7.Nxd4!, Black is in big trouble. Black drops the queen after 7...Nxd4? 8.Bxe7. Best is 7...f6!, when Black loses a pawn but can play on. What happens after 7...Bxd4?? Black found out in the following game.

A trap in the Richter-Veresov

The Richter-Veresov Attack (1.d4 d5 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.Bg5 or 1.d4 Nf6 2.Nc3 d5 3.Bg5) is the mirror image of the Ruy Lopez. It's generally considered harmless, but, as I discovered in an Internet blitz game today, that doesn't mean that Black can afford to be careless. After 3...Bf5 4.f3, White hopes to expand in the center with 5.e4. Black's most popular response is 4...Nbd7; 4...Bg6 and 4...c6 are also playable. If I got this position again, I'd probably play 4...c5, which is a little unusual but scores well. I was surprised to discover that the natural 4...e6 is a fatal blunder! After simply 5.e4! (see diagram) White wins a piece, e.g. 5...dxe4 (5...Bg6 6.e5 is similar) 6.fxe4 and now (a) 6...Bxe4 7.Nxe4 Nxe4?? 8.Bxd8; (b) 6...Bg6 7.e5 h6 8.Bh4! and Black's usual rejoinder, 8...g5, is illegal; (c) 6...h6 7.Bxf6 Qxf6 8.exf5; (d) 6...Bg4 7.Bxf6! and White will end up a piece ahead after either 7...Qxf6 8.Qxg4 or 7...Bxd1 8.Bxd8. In our illustrative game, Black resigned after 7.Bxf6; in my blitz game, I soldiered on with 7...Qxf6 8.Qxg4 Qxd4 with a dead-lost position that I eventually won.

I was surprised to learn that Milan Vukevich, who later immigrated to the United States and became an International Master, once played 4...e6?? in a Yugoslav Championship! His opponent responded with 5.Qd2?? and eventually drew.

Rated Beginners' Open on November 17th

This event, at Concordia University in River Forest, is a good event for beginners from ages 6 to 96 (sorry, Erik Karklins, you're too strong, if not too old, to play).

ICC RATED BEGINNERS' OPEN

Koehneke Community Center, Concordia University, River Forest

Saturday, Nov. 17
5/SS, G/30 + d5

Open to players rated under 1200 or unrated. U.S. Chess Federation membership is required. To become a member, visit the USCF website or choose the appropriate option in the registration cart.

Sets will be provided; if you have a clock, bring it.

Schedule: Rounds at 10 and 11:15 AM, 1, 2:15 and 3:30 PM

Prizes: Trophies for 1st, 2nd and 3rd place, top U800 and top unrated

Entry Fee: $25 before Nov. 3, $30 before Nov. 15, $35 on site

Registration: To register in advance using a credit or debit card or Paypal, use the online shopping cart. To register by mail, send checks payable to the Illinois Chess Association to ICC RBO, 6021 N. Wickwood Road, Peoria, IL 61614. On-site registration (cash or check only) will be available from 9 to 9:45 AM.

Of course, the Illinois Class Championships will also be held concurrently at the same River Forest site.

***

Note for newbies: "5/SS" means (very roughly) that you'll be playing five games, and that winners play winners and losers play losers (no one is eliminated).  

"G/30 + d5" means that each player has thirty minutes to make his or her moves for the game, and that you're guaranteed at least five seconds to make a move, no matter how many moves you make. But if you run out of time, your opponent will probably be able to claim a win.

Now all the National Tournament Directors in Illinois will post comments about how I didn't get this quite right. But I think this is kinda close! 

Evanston CC Tri-Level on November 3rd

Another email cut-and-paste.

$5, such a deal.  I'll use this as my warmup for Kings Island, which will in turn be my warmup for the Illinois Class 

Levy Senior Center, 300 Dodge Ave., Evanston, IL 60202

Evanston Chess Presents:

November 3, 2012, 9:00am-5:00pm

Tri-Level, 4SS G/40 delay 5

Three Sections, USCF Dual Rated

Our guest master will be FM Albert Chow

Section Gold: 1700 and over

Section Silver: 1200 - 1699
Section Bronze: Under 1200 and Unrated

1600 - 1699 may play up to Gold.

1100 - 1199 may play up to Silver. 
Published USCF Regular Rating determines eligibility.
Unrated players may be placed up at TD discretion.

Please pre-register if you plan to attend.

Our last tournament had record attendance and we had to turn players away. Our space is limited and we will cap attendance at 52 players. Priority will be given to players who pre-register by email to enter@evanstonchess.org before 7 p.m. on November 2 and arrive at the tournament before 9:20 a.m. on November 3. Thanks for your understanding and support.

From time to time Evanston Chess pays one or more titled players to play in our events. We usually do not pair them against each other. Even if they should lose (it does happen) we may pair them with the highest score groups.

Four rounds. Digital clocks are required and will be set to G/40 plus 5 seconds delay. Accelerated or decelerated pairings at TD discretion. Sections may be combined at TD discretion.

Registration from 9:00 to 9:30 AM. Players must check in by 9:30 am; players who arrive late will receive a half-point bye for the first round. First Round 9:45 am, last round over roughly 5:00 pm. No Lunch Break: We need to be finished by 5:00 PM, so there will be no extra time between rounds for lunch.

You may take one half-point bye in any round but the last.

Entry fee is $5, please pay cash (no checks) at the door. Masters and Experts play free.

Pre-registration is encouraged: Help us start on time. Send name, USCF number, and telephone number to enter@evanstonchess.org

Junior players (under fourteen years) rated 900+ are welcome. Sorry, but we do not accept junior players rated under 900. Must be accompanied by a parent throughout the event.

Bring clocks. -- Wheelchair accessible. No Smoking.

A great teaching position

White to play and win: Rovner-Kamyschev, 1947

Something is missing in Chicago . . .

Last year, I ran some numbers. More than one-third of Chicagoland residents live in the city of Chicago itself. About one-quarter of all U.S. Chess Federation members in Chicagoland live in the city. Yet in 2010, 90 percent of all open, rated chess competitions in Chicagoland took place in the suburbs. In 2011, it was a little better: 87 percent. But out of 18 events held in Chicago, that's counting 12 that were kids-only scholastics.

There were more than twice as many open, all-ages chess events held in Moline in 2011 as there were in Chicago.

It's been 22 years since Jules Stein's Chicago Chess Center on Southport Avenue closed its doors, 34 years since the Chicago Chess Club, going nearly nine decades strong, left the Loop and faded away. Now, of the 10 largest metropolitan areas in the United States (New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Philadelphia, Washington, Miami, Atlanta and Boston), only Chicago is without a primary metropolitan chess club serving the center city as well as surrounding areas.

Along with Bill Brock, Albert Chow, Chris Christmas, Alyse Hammonds and Hector Hernandez, I'm working to establish a new Chicago Chess Center, because we think a world-class city deserves a full-time chess center, and we think it should be in the city.

We want to create a welcoming, attractive and comfortable gathering place for chess players of all ages, backgrounds and skill levels. We intend to provide a regular schedule of chess classes. We plan to serve players in the city as well as the suburbs with a full calendar of rated tournament chess. And we hope to become the focal point of an active, vibrant and expanded chess scene, a place where the benefits of chess are accessible to everyone, where anyone can walk in off the street and find a game and a community.

This costs money.

We're looking to raise $100,000 so that we can secure a site, build it out, open our doors and know that we won't have to worry about whether we can pay the rent in our first year of operation. Early stability is key to making the Chicago Chess Center a viable and enduring civic and cultural institution. Speaking solely for myself, I'd love to see us raise $40,000 in the next 30 days so that we can be open for business in early 2013.

That's where you come in, dear reader. Your generosity will provide the regularly scheduled instruction and training. Your generosity will provide the central site where chess players from all over Chicagoland -- and beyond -- can gather and establish a learning and playing community. Your generosity will help curious beginners and experience-seekers to see chess as an enjoyable and beneficial activity that everyone can participate in and to discover that chess competence is within their reach. Your generosity will create a place where parents know they can bring their children for high-quality chess instruction in a safe and friendly environment. And your generosity will bring Chicago back into the company of America's top-shelf chess cities. It's you who will make all this possible by becoming a founding member of the Chicago Chess Center.

But donations aren't all we're asking for. We'd also like to ask you to help us spread the word. Tell your fellow chess players -- casual, serious and in between -- but also tell educators, civic boosters, patrons of culture, business owners, board members of other nonprofits. To make it easier, we've created a Facebook page that you can connect to and share with others. You can also sign up for our mailing list to receive announcements and updates on our progress. And if you'd like to get more directly involved, you can give your time -- particularly if you have experience with nonprofit finance and governance, business administration or community outreach. Send a secure message through our website, or e-mail us directly at info@chichess.org.

Let's change those numbers!



Chicago Chess Center NFP Inc. is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. All donations are tax-deductible.

The Hon. George N. Leighton turns 100

George Neves Leighton, retired federal judge, former assistant state attorney general, onetime president of the NAACP and a longtime Class A player, turns 100 years old today.

Happy birthday, Judge Leighton.

Move-ordered

In this game, our victim gets tricked into an opening he isn't prepared to play.

October Chicago Chess Player is out

“The Final Round” By Patrice Connelly

Boo!  New issue is here.  It's the first issue of the season, so basically a roster update.

A trap in the Vienna Game

If Black plays symmetrically against the Vienna Game (1.e4 e5 2.Nc3) with 2...Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5, White can set a nice trap with the primitive 4.Qg4! threatening 5.Qxg7. This is surprisingly awkward for Black to meet: 4...Bf8 is obviously unattractive, 4...g6 is weakening, and no one wants to move their king with 4...Kf8 (ugly, but perhaps best). The most plausible move, and indeed Black's most common move, is 4...Qf6?, meeting queen move with queen move and counterattacking the pawn on f2. However, White gets a large advantage with the shocking 5.Nd5!, threatening both 6.Nxf6+ and 6.Nxc7+. Since the queen can't defend g7 and c7 at the same time, and 5...Bxf2+? would be met by 6.Kf1!, winning material, 5...Qxf2+ is forced.

After White's also forced reply 6.Kd1, White's king is surprisingly safe, while Black's is in trouble. White again threatens both 7.Qxg7 and 7.Nxc7+. 6...g6!?, hoping for counterplay with 7.Nxc7+ Kd8 8.Nxa8 d5! threatening White's queen and bishop simultaneously, is met by 7.Nh3! Qd4 8.d3 (threatening 9.c3, trapping the queen) Bb6 (8...d6 9.Qf3) 9.Qf3 (threatening 10.Nxb6 axb6 11.Qxf7+ Kd8 12.Qf8#) d6 10.c3 Qc5 11.b4, winning material, as in Emms-Hawkworth, where future grandmaster Emms upset his higher-rated opponent:

Instead, Black usually tries to meet both of White's threats with 7...Kf8. Then 8.Nh3 forces 8...Qd4 (8...d6? 9.Nxf2 Bxg4+ 10.Nxg4 wins a piece), when 9.d3 threatens to trap the queen with 10.c3. The following games well illustrate White's possibilities:

All-Grade in West Chicago on October 27th

The site is the Benjamin School in West Chicago (the western suburb, not to be confused with the west side of the city).  Tournament info on the ICA website.

So how do kids from the city make it all the way to West Chicago? Jerry Neugarten writes:

Most of you know that the Illinois All Grade Championship is coming up on Saturday, Oct. 27th at the Benjamin School in West Chicago.  Because public transportation to the location is limited, ICA has allocated funds to run free buses from Whitney Young Magnet High School in Chicago's west loop  (221 S. Laflin, near the Eisenhower Expressway) to Benjamin that morning, returning in the afternoon.  Family members can travel with their kids. We are prepared to run up to four buses, accommodating close to 200 riders.

The flyer for the event is attached.  As you'll see, the fee for the tournament goes up on Oct. 12th.  USCF membership is separate.  If kids are not presently USCF members, the least expensive USCF memberships (for 3 months) run from $8 to $15 depending on age.    
The bus ride is approximately 45 minutes.  Buses will leave at 7 a.m., and return at staggered intervals during the afternoon as they fill.

Email me the names of anyone wishing seats, along with a contact email address (coach or parent).  Sign-ups will be on a first-come, first served basis.

Procedure to minimize no-shows: In the past, when offerings have been free, we've experienced a large number of no shows.  As a result, if there is a waiting list for these bus seats, this is the procedure we'll follow:  On the Monday morning before the tournament (i.e. Monday Oct. 22), we'll compare the names of those who have requested seats against the names of those who have registered for the event in advance, which will appear at http://www.illinoischessteachers.com/download/AllGradePreregistrations.pdf.  Where "bus kids" do not appear on the registration list, their seats (and those for family members) will be given to those on the waiting list.  The exception is if I hear from unregistered kids no later than 9 am Monday, by email, that the child will still be registering by the tournament deadline (Friday Oct. 26th at 8 pm).

Let me know if you have any questions.

Jerry Neugarten
Chair, ICA Youth Committee

$10 plus-score open this weekend in River North

Based in Mexico City, the National Autonomous University of Mexico (Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México) has a strong tradition of supporting chess. The university has an on-campus chess center offering courses in recreational and competitive chess, and in 2010 it hosted an international chess festival that featured simultaneous exhibitions by Anatoly Karpov and Garry Kasparov. The university's goal is "that all of UNAM plays chess and that every plantel [college within the university] has a teacher," says Astrid Martín del Campo, president of the University Chess Association at UNAM. "This way, the seedbed will grow."

Here in Chicago, UNAM has a satellite campus in River North, where it has formed a chess club as an extension of the university's mission of support for chess. The club meets on the first floor of the UNAM Chicago building, 350 W. Erie St. in River North, Wednesdays from 6 to 8:30 PM.

Recently, Hector Hernandez of the Knight Moves Chess Club in Pilsen introduced me to Arturo Castro, a great guy who holds the cumbersome title of Cultural, Business Development and Special Projects Coordinator at UNAM Chicago. Castro told me about UNAM's relationship with chess and about his campus's chess club, and he offered his building as a site for a tournament. It's a nice building, so I said yes.

This Saturday, Oct. 20, I'm directing a four-round plus-score open at UNAM Chicago. Time control is G/45 + d5, with rounds at 10 AM and 12:15, 2 and 3:45 PM. Entry fee is $10; prize schedule is $55 for a final score of 4.0, $35 for 3.5, $20 for 3.0 and $10 for 2.5. UNAM is also offering certificates for one free and one half-price Spanish language or Mexican culture course, which will be given away in a door prize drawing. UNAM Chicago chess instructor and USCF Expert Honorius Constantin will be on hand to provide postgame analysis. Registration is from 9 to 9:45 AM. Sets will be provided; bring clocks.

There is one catch (pāce suburbanites): Parking in the area is not good. On-street parking is governed by the deplorable LAZ pay boxes, and the private lot around the corner at Sedgwick and Huron costs about what you'd expect (though carpooling and splitting the cost may be a reasonable option). Better you know this now than arrive and be surprised and frustrated. On the flip side, the campus is an easy five-minute walk from the Chicago/Franklin station on the Brown Line, and there are plenty of lunch options within walking distance.

The weather forecast for Saturday is partly sunny, with a high near 57. I love fall in Chicago.

A trap in the Vienna Gambit (II)

In the Vienna Gambit, after 1.e4 e5 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.f4 d5! (rather than 3...Nc6? or 3...exf4?, which I looked at previously), play usually continues 4.fxe5 Nxe4. Then 5.d3!? (the second most common move, behind 5.Nf3), tempts Black to play 5...Qh4+ 6.g3 Nxg3. At first blush, this looks very attractive, winning a pawn, further weakening White's king position, and attacking White's rook. Appearances are deceiving: White's counterattack is stronger. After 7.Nf3 Qh5 8.Nxd5! (threatening Nxc7+), Black will be in trouble whether he tries to save his rook, or takes White's rook, allowing White to win his.

The first alternative was seen in Perez Pietronave-Campagnoni, 1996, where Black tried 8...Na6. White chased Black's queen around, beginning with 9.Nf4!, and won Black's knight on g3. Bruce Pandolfini in Chess Openings: Traps and Zaps gives a similar line after 8...Kd8. Note that in either case (8...Na6 or 8...Kd8) if Black responds to 9.Nf4 with 9...Qg4, White wins the queen with 10.Bh3!

The second alternative was seen in Sax-Petran, 1973, where Black played 8...Bg4 (the immediate 8...Nxh1 9.Nxc7+ scores even worse for Black) 9.Bg2 Nxh1. After the dust settled White was left in an endgame a piece up.

The moral of the story: resist temptation with 5...Nxc3! 6.bxc3 and now the most common move, 6...d4, or better yet 6...Be7 7.Nf3 O-O 8.d4 f6, which scores very well for Black.

A new way to lose

In my video "Sicilian Defense: The Most Useful Trap You've Never Seen," I explained in my delightfully nasal voice that White in the Sicilian can drop a piece to d5-d4 in at least five different ways. My opponent today found a sixth. Yes, 29...Qxd4+ and mate next was an improvement.

A trap in the Vienna Gambit (I)

The Vienna Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.f4) was popular around the turn of the 20th century, but is rarely seen today. As such, it has the potential to surprise Black. By far Black's best response is 3...d5! One plausible but horrible response is 3...Nc6?, when 4.fxe5 Nxe5 5.d4 5...Nc6 (or 5...Ng6) 6.e5 gives White a position like the Halloween Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Nxe5?! Nxe5 5.d4) without sacrificing a piece.

Another lemon is 3...exf4?, à la the King's Gambit Accepted. This is a different opening! 4.e5 is very strong for White, whether Black plays the immediate 4...Ng8 or 4...Qe7 5.Qe2 Ng8. Here are a couple of illustrative disasters:

Mail from USCF Executive Director Bill Hall

Just found the following in my inbox.  For those of you who aren't USCF members, it's a great time to join! 

USCF Online Newsletter October 2012 - A Message from the Executive Director

Dear Fellow USCF Member,

CHANGING THE FACE OF US CHESS

Over the years I have had many conversations with chess players talking about what it takes to grow chess in the United States. While chess is played casually by millions, one of the biggest obstacles has been making the competitive sport more broadly known as well as promoting the many societal benefits of the game. Well there are some significant tools to help change this perception and USCF is trying to support each of these endeavors plus a few more we'll be telling you about soon.

First up is a new book from Scribner released this past week, The Queen of Katwe: A Story of Life, Chess and One Extraordinary Girl's Dream of Becoming a Grandmaster. This is a moving story by sports writer Tim Crothers of a young girl in the slums of Uganda who learns chess and finds it a tool that helps her dream of, and achieve, grand successes beyond the subsistence life she has known. This is a book for chess players to give to their friends and family members and to encourage everyone to read, especially young women. Look for coverage in November's Chess Life.

Getting more players introduced to and active in chess starts in our nation's schools. The new Harcourt book, How Children Succeed: Grit, Curiosity and the Hidden Power of Character by noted education writer Paul Tough puts school chess into the broader discussion of character education being just as important for success as high test scores. Many educators are already reading this book; if you want to keep current in what the discussion is, we recommend picking this up, reading it and making sure it is in the hands of every influencer in education you know.

Finally, the most important tool is the film Brooklyn Castle as many folks are more engaged by seeing than reading about something. As you probably already know, Brooklyn Castle follows the successes and challenges of IS 318 in Brooklyn, NY, the most successful middle school chess team in the nation. While working to excel at the chess board, the students and teachers face another major hurdle as cutbacks to after school programs threaten the very existence of their program. It's an inspiring story of what it takes to be a champion, on the chess board, and in life.

Brooklyn Castle is a major resource for the chess community and we urge you to support it; go see the film when it comes to your city (Opens in New York followed by Los Angeles and then many other cities during November). Bring a group. Brooklyn Castle shows the many faces of chess in our schools, shows the importance of tournament play and demonstrates why chess deserves funding. If you are an educator, a parent or a player, there is something for everyone in this film.

Its first screenings begin this weekend in New York City where the USCF has made arrangements for a chess community Sneak Peek screening the night before the film opens to the general public. This screening will take place THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18 AT 7 PM at The Walter Reade Theater in Lincoln Center, 70 Lincoln Center Plaza, New York 10023. Click Here to get your tickets or paste this link into your browser: http://filmlinc.com/pages/tickets?e=8701

Organized chess in America is a fairly small community. We need to demonstrate that we are small but powerful if we truly want to grow. It's great to buy the latest chess book or magazine, but supporting those projects that make chess real to the broad community will be the way we get greater media, corporate and education system support for our sport.

Thank you once again for your time to read this and for your participation in USCF.



Bill Hall, Executive Director

P.S. To view the October issue of Chess Life online, click here.
Or you can download the October issue of Chess Life here.
To view the October issue of Chess Life for Kids online, click here.
Or you can download the October issue of Chess Life for Kids here.

Midwest Class results: GMs Shulman & Mitkov tie for first

Results here!  And the post-event ratings are already up on MSA.

It's procrastinators' tax deadline day: more when I catch my breath.

Student Leaves Teacher in the Dust

After 1st Board Robert Moskwa upped his rating to 2017 over my 2011 two weeks ago, I decided that I had to play in the Midwest Class last weekend in order to see if I could put myself back ahead. For a brief moment Friday night, I had some hope when Robert only managed a draw in the first round with 2137 rated Vijay Raghavan while I beat 2134 rated Robert O'Donnell. Had we stopped then, I would have had the edge by a couple of points. Alas, we played Saturday and I lost twice while Robert won twice. On Sunday, I managed to redeem myself with a couple of wins while Robert picked up a win and a draw.

End result: Robert Moskwa goes 4-1 to tie for 1st in the Expert Section and ups his rating to 2048; Vincent Hart goes 3-2 to tie for 8th and ups his rating to 2016.

Interesting side note for those those of us who get frustrated losing to the youngsters. Ninety-seven year old (That's right 97!) Erik Karklins went 3.5-1.5 to tie for 3rd beating Matthew Stevens 11, Alex Bian 12, and Troy Zimmerman 16.