TWIC 938(HUN) Almasi,Z 2/3 at the Chigorin Memorial

There is not much action to report for Hungarian players in TWIC 938.

Chigorin Memorial 2012(In progress)
A large group of players are at 3/3. Almasi,Z is at 2/3 after an upset loss to a 2425 player.

1 GM Negi Parimarjan IND 2657 3.0 6.0 2.0 6.0
GM Smirin Ilia ISR 2638 3.0 6.0 2.0 6.0
IM Demchenko Anton RUS 2610 3.0 6.0 2.0 6.0
4 GM Khismatullin Denis RUS 2638 3.0 5.5 2.0 6.0
GM Shimanov Aleksandr RUS 2599 3.0 5.5 2.0 6.0
IM Gladyszev Oleg RUS 2446 3.0 5.5 2.0 6.0
IM Matinian Nikita RUS 2439 3.0 5.5 2.0 6.0
8 GM Hovhannisyan Robert ARM 2610 3.0 5.0 2.0 6.0
GM Epishin Vladimir RUS 2574 3.0 5.0 2.0 6.0
GM Grigoryan Avetik ARM 2572 3.0 5.0 2.0 6.0
GM Stupak Kirill BLR 2520 3.0 5.0 2.0 6.0
IM Hayrapetyan Hovik ARM 2450 3.0 5.0 2.0 6.0
FM Alekseenko Kirill RUS 2434 3.0 5.0 2.0 6.0
14 GM Malakhatko Vadim BEL 2558 3.0 4.5 1.5 6.0
GM Cori Jorge PER 2522 3.0 4.5 1.5 6.0
16 GM Zhigalko Andrey BLR 2582 3.0 4.0 1.0 6.0
IM Popilski Gil ISR 2475 3.0 4.0 1.0 6.0
76 GM Almasi Zoltan HUN 2707 2.0 5.5 2.0 4.0

Here is an Almasi win in the popular Sicilian Taimanov English Attack(B48).

Almasi,Z (2707) - Zalkind,K (2232) [B48]
Chigorin Memorial 2012 St Petersburg RUS (1.3), 27.10.2012
Some of the themes examined in this game include

• Transition to queenless play
• Weak pawns
• Convert P+ technique 

White to play

BTCh Div 4 Rd2: Wesselenyi SK 2.5-Rakosligeti AC 3.5

RAC won the monday night match against the Blind Institute 3.5-2.5 despite fielding only 5 of the 6 required players.

Wesselenyi            RAC
Eros,P     0      -    Nadasi,B 1
Rev,M     +
Vojan,I    0      -     Stenner     1
Nemes,G 0      -    Yip,M      1
Almadi,B 1      -    Szili,A     0
Denes,J    0     -     Balla.A     1

After the round I visited the Hungarian High School Team Ch which was nearby. I was promised some pictures for the blog by one the the coaches-GM Joseph Horvath who was particularly happy as his team was in the lead. The event will last a couple more days.

Here is my game from this evening(Monday Oct 29).

Vemes,G (2007) - Yip,M (2087)
Sicilian Kan[B42]
Division 4 BTCh (2), 29.10.2012

White tried an unsound queen sacrifice early in the opening and is now being pushed back. Black has Q+P for 3 minors pieces and has consolidated nicely.

Black to play

Vintage Portisch on the 3.Bb5+ Sicilian(B52)

Here is an interesting game in a very popular sideline.

The middlegame themes illustrated include

• Queenside counterplay
• Quiet maneuvering
• Small tactics
• Choosing the right pawn center

Garcia Martinez,Silvino - Portisch,Lajos [B52]
Palma de Mallorca Palma de Mallorca (2), 1971

Critical Position 1
Black has an equal position. The forces are not yet in direct contact. Now it is time to form a plan. What do you propose for black?

Black to play

Critical Position 2
White is attacking Nb6. What should black do?

Black to play

Critical Position 3
The stray rook is almost trapped. How do you play?

Black to play

Vintage Portisch in the 2.c3 d5 Sicilian(B22)

Here is an interesting game that can be studied under the following theme(s)

• IQP defence
• Small tactics
• Weak king position
• Attack on the king

Braga,Fernando Alberto (2375) - Portisch,Lajos (2630) [B22]
Mar del Plata Mar del Plata, 1982

Critical Position 1(17.Bd3)
White is threatening Qxh7# How should black defend the kingside?

Black to play

Critical Position 2(24.Rac1)
Black has beaten back the first wave of white's attempted attack and has sucessfully secured the kingside. Now black is looking for more. How do you continue? Is there a way to press the kingside? Maybe ...Nf4 or ...g5 perhaps?

Black to play

Critical Position 3(35.Qc8)
The attack is well under way. How do you play?

Black to play

Trends in the Sicilian Kan 5.c4 Bind(B41)

Here is an interesting game in the topical Maroczy Bind featuring Chinese GM Ni Hua.

'Ni Hua (born May 31, 1983 in Shanghai)[1] is one of China's top chess grandmasters and is the national team captain. In 2003, he became China's 15th Grandmaster at the age of 19.

Ni Hua at World Mind Games 2008-Wikipedia

On April 2008, Ni Hua and Bu Xiangzhi both became the second and third Chinese players to pass the 2700 Elo rating line, after Wang Yue. He also played 4th board at the World Team Chess Championship in January 3–14, 2010..-Wikipedia



Ni Hua (2637) - Lin Chen (2446) [B41]
TCh-CHN 2012 Hangzhou CHN (11), 22.09.2012

Critical Position 1(28...Kh7)
All white's pieces are pointed at the queenside and poised for action. c5 is the theatic break. Does this need more preparation(with say Nb3)? or can c5 be played right away?

White to play

Critical Position 2(40..Bd7)
White has made some progress. Na5 ties up the queenside pawns and the passed d-pawn is in a menacing position. But what is the next step?

White to play

Readership Breakdown after 17 Days

Readershiop information after 17 days shows some interesting facts.

Country Breakdown
The blog's main audience so far is largely Hungarian and coming in a surprising second is the U.S. I was expecting more from Canada but very surprising is the popularity of Kuwait.

Country of Entry     Pageviews
Hungary                    524
United States            295
Canada                     169
Russia                       69
Kuwait                      62
Israel                         20
Germany                   17
France                      14
Portugal                    12
Ireland                      10

Post Subject Breakdown
The most popular subjects are the team championships, local tournaments and GM Portisch. Kuwait and Hungarian women players are also very popular. Farkas,R(2112) and Koczo,K(2199) are local players generating a large viewership.

Post                                                                       Pageviews
Budapest Team Ch Rd Division 4(unrated) Rd1
Oct 11, 2012, 1 comment                                          60

Vintage Portisch on the g3 King's Indian(1964)
Oct 26, 2012                                                             35

Kuwait Chess Team at Oct 2012 First Saturday
Oct 15, 2012                                                             23

First Saturday FMA2 Koczo wins 8/9
Oct 22, 2012                                                             21

Papp,P(2303) at Chess House IM 2012-07
Oct 26, 2012                                                             20

GM Hoang at the Istanbul Olympiad 2012
Oct 26, 2012                                                             19

Józsefvárosi Open-Budapest, 2012. október 20–22
Oct 16, 2012                                                             18

Budapest Team Ch Rd2 Oct 14 2012
Oct 13, 2012                                                             17

Farkas,R(2112) in FSFMA 2012-10
Oct 27, 2012                                                             15

TWIC 936(Oct 16 2012)-Hungary
Oct 16, 2012                                                             14

Vintage Portisch on the Closed Sicilian

Here is an instructive game from the Larsen-Portisch Candiates Match 1977  in the Closed Sicilian.

'Jørgen Bent Larsen (4 March 1935 – 9 September 2010) was a Danish chess Grandmaster and author. Larsen was known for his imaginative and unorthodox style of play and he was the first western player to pose a serious challenge to the Soviet Union's dominance of chess.[1] He is considered to be the strongest chess player born in Denmark and the strongest from Scandinavia until the emergence of Magnus Carlsen.

Larsen was a six time Danish Champion and a candidate for the World Chess Championship on four occasions, reaching the semi final three times. He had multiple wins over all seven World Champions who held the title from 1948 to 1985: Mikhail Botvinnik, Vasily Smyslov, Mikhail Tal, Tigran Petrosian, Boris Spassky, Bobby Fischer, and Anatoly Karpov.,[2] but lifetime minus scores against them. On a percentage basis, his best score against a World Champion was with Max Euwe. Larsen and Euwe met over the board only once, at the Munich Olympiad in 1958; the game ended in a draw.[3] From the early 1970s, he divided his year between Las Palmas and Buenos Aires,[1] with his Argentinian-born wife. He suffered from diabetes and died in 2010.-Wikipedia


Larsen,Bent (2615) - Portisch,Lajos (2625) [B25]
Candidates qf3 Rotterdam (1), 01.03.1977
1.e4 c5 2.Nc3 Nc6 3.g3 g6 4.Bg2 Bg7 5.d3 d6 6.f4 e5  
Black intends a postional battle from the solid Botvinnik structure.

 

Critical Position 1
The early middlegame has been reached and black must form a cohesive plan. White has just played 19.cd. How do you play?

Black to play

Critical Position 2
The game is deep into the middlegame. Black is well established on e5 and has the bishop pair. White has just played  34.Ne2. What should black play next? Undermine d5 with ..f5? Improve the kingside first with ..Kg7? Or is there something else?

Critical Position 3
The ending has been reached. Black has been pressing hard but now must do something about the Rxg5 threat. White has just played 41.Nxd2. How do you play?

Black to play

Farkas,R(2112) in FSFMA 2012-10

Al Hajeri,B(KUW-1978) managed to beat both Koczo,K and Farkas,R in the same tournament so I had to see how as I have recently lost to both these strong local players.

Pic and info from Kuwaitchess.net

• Name: Bader Al Hajeri (currently the top player of Kuwait)
• Age: 39
• Favorite White Opening: 1. e4!
• Favorite Black Opening: Petrof Defence and the Slav defence 

Farkas,R had been taking some risks to get winning chances against a tough Petroff Defence. Black has just attacked the queen with  20..Nd4 and is taking over the game. What should white do with the queen?

 

White to play

 

 

 

GM Berkes,F(2679) in the Bundesliga 2012-2013

Here is an interesting game from recent Budesliga 2012-13 action. Let us see how a GM plays for a win against another strong GM.

Romanov,E (2611) - Berkes,F (2679) [A13]
Bundesliga 2012–13 Muelheim GER (2), 21.10.2012
1.c4 e6 2.g3 d5 3.Bg2 dxc4 4.Qa4+ c6 5.Qxc4 b5 6.Qc2 Bb7 7.Nc3 a6 8.a4 Nd7 9.Nf3 Ngf6 10.0–0 Be7 11.d4 0–0

Critical Position 1
The opening phase was nothing special. White pushed ambitously on the kingside and seems to be making progress. But now what? The critcal moment has arrived. What plan should white adopt? Maybe there is a combination?

White to play

Critcal Position 2

Much later in the game, white is playing a sharp ending but black has confused matters with a passed a-pawn. How should white play?

-Take the a6-pawn?

-Take the a3-pawn?

-Or is there something else?

White to play

Budapest TCh Rd1-Benko Gambit

The Benko Gambit has been getting a lot of attention lately.

The Dynamic Benko Gambit-NIC

Here is an interesting effort from the Budapest TCh Rd1.

Farkas,Lajos Dr (2228) - Juhasz,Mark (2155) [A59]
BUD tch Lilienthal 12/13 Budapest (1), 30.09.2012
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 b5 4.cxb5 a6 5.bxa6 Bxa6 6.Nc3 g6 7.Nf3 d6 8.e4 Bxf1 9.Kxf1 Bg7 10.g3 0–0 11.Kg2 Nbd7 12.a4 Qb6 13.Qe2 Rfc8N


Critical Position 1
Black has just played the novelty 13...Rfc8. Normally black would play ..Rfb8 with play on the a.b files. Now black can support ...c4 and follow with ...Nc5-d3 with light square play. How do you assess the move? What should white do next? Seek a refuation? Play a normal move and keep the tension?

White to Play

Critical Position 2
The position is complicated. What is the right plan for black?

Black to Play

Canada-Ottawa Open 2012-10 19th-21st

The National Capital Open was held in 3 sections. Qn and Plotkin shared first place with 4/5 in the Open section.

2012 National Capital Open: Open Section
1 Zi Yi [joey] Qin  2453     4.0 Tied 1-2 for $300
3 Victor Plotkin     2335     4.0 Tied 1-2 for $300
(17 players)

2012 National Capital Open: U1900

5 Ryan Yang 1800              4.0 First $200
8 Herb Langer 1773            3.0 Tied 2-3rd $87.50
10 Steven Dale                    3.0 Tied 2-3rd $87.50
(13 players)

2012 National Capital Open: U1600
2 John If Lukezich 1432          5.0 First $125
4 Curtis Barlow Wilkes 1307  4.0 Second $75
(7 players)

Here is an interesting ending from the tournament

Plotkin Victor (CAN) (2335) - Sun Mike (1928) [B22]
2012 National Capital Open/U2200 Ottawa (Canada) (3), 20.10.2012

Position 1
White is trying to make progress in an equal postion. How should white try for the win?

White to play

Position 2

The action has heated up. White has just played 52.Kb3. White has an extra pawn but black has the more active king in this sharp position. How should black continue?

Vintage Portisch on the g3 King's Indian(1964)

'Lajos Portisch (born 4 April 1937 in Zalaegerszeg, Hungary) is a Hungarian chess Grandmaster, whose positional style earned him the nickname, the "Hungarian Botvinnik". One of the strongest non-Soviet players from the early 1960s into the late 1980s, he participated in twelve consecutive Interzonals from 1962 through 1993, qualifying for the World Chess Championship Candidates' cycle a total of eight times (1965, 1968, 1974, 1977, 1980, 1983, 1985, and 1988). Portisch set several all-time records in Chess Olympiads. In Hungarian Chess Championships, he either shared the title or won it outright a total of eight times (1958, 1959, 1961, 1964, 1965, 1971, 1975, and 1981). He won many strong international tournaments during his career. In 2004, Portisch was awarded the 'Nemzet Sportoloja', Hungary's highest national sports achievement award.'-Wikipedia

Portisch,L at Malta OL-Wikipedia

Here is a nice game featuring a plan which is still relevant today in the King's Indian.

Portisch,Lajos - Gligoric,Svetozar [E69]
HUN-YUG Budapest (2.1), 1964
This middlegame is can be divided into distinct parts
(1)A quiet building phase where e4 is overprotected and small improvements are made to the position
(2)A favorable transformation in the pawn structure
(3)Concrete attacking play to break down the kingside

Critical Position 1
Nothing seems to be happening. What is white's plan? Continue building? or is there a chance for concrete play?

White to play

Critical Position 2
The position still looks very calm. What is white's plan? Build? A combination? Maneuver around?

White to play

Critical Position 3
Black's kingside looks too well fortified for a direct attack. What should white do? Press the compromised queenside pawns? Fight for the d-file? Patiently look for building moves? or is there something else?

White to play