GM Spraggett's Blog Returning Soon

Message From GM Spraggett
Yesterday blogger closed down my popular blog for reasons that Blogger itself knows. I was informed only after the fact that my blog contained ''malicious javascript'' and that the powers that be deemed this sufficient cause to close a blog that had millions of pageviews over the past 4 years. Ofcourse, Blogger can do as it wishes. No doubt complaints about the often controversial political commentary must be factored into the equation. 

As must the fact that my blog is NOT for children, but aimed precisely towards a very much neglected segment of our population: adults. However, as I have said time and again, anyone who wishes to challenge my opinions or actions is free to do so in a court of law...

My blog has always operated within the policy guideline of Blogger as well as legal principles concerning freedom of expression. In any case, this is all a small issue, as I have been planning to move my blog over to Tumblr or/and Wordpress. Yesterday's action only speeds it up. 

My popular blog ''Spraggett on Chess'' will start up tonight or tomorrow. 100% of the Blogger content will also follow in the coming days. I have no doubt that my tens of thousands of blog readers will continue to receive the same high quality content and service. And I can asure you that my political commentary will continue to be as much a thorn in the side of some inside our chess community. 

My new blog would have already been up and running today, except that today is the final day for me to submit my tax returns here in Portugal, and this takes priority. 

Yesterday's action by Blogger is just a minor affair... best regards Kevin Spraggett I just received this from the chess Grand Master. This will be my last post here at the BaconLOG.

I urge you to surf on over to my new Armchair Warrior blog 

Pretty Woman-Movie/Song

BCCF Bulletin #263-Available Now

BCCF Bulletin #263
I just received my issue today. Subscribe here to the valuable work of Stephen Wright.

Bulletin #262	05/16/2013	B.C. - Washington Scholastic Match
Bulletin #261	04/25/2013	Vancouver Rapid Chess Team Championship
Bulletin #260	04/11/2013	7th annual Grand Pacific Open
Bulletin #259	03/14/2013	2012 Canadian Chess Player Of The Year
Bulletin #258	02/14/2013	B.C. Open Championships
Bulletin #257	01/24/2013	B.C. Active and B.C. Senior Championships
Bulletin #256	01/10/2013	December Active

Ashley Tapp at the GPO 2013

'Thank you WGM Katerina Rohoyan, and my friend Jill for going over one of my chess games during the GPO in Victoria, it was very helpful and Congratulations to you for coming in best women for the higher OPEN Section. I am also happy that I came in as first girl for my section U1800.'-Ashley

Winawer Review 2013-05

e4ChessNews
A review of 7 recent games in the French Winawer. Material should be useful to French Defence and/or 1.e4 players. Most games come with  videos.

For example: More About Poland
Gdańsk is Poland's principal seaport as well as the capital of the Pomeranian Voivodeship. It is also historically the largest city of the Kashubian region. 




Game 1
Robson,R (2620) - Shulman,Y (2570)
FR Winawer 4.ed ed[C15]
ch-USA 2013 Saint Louis USA (6), 09.05.2013

Game 2
Vocaturo,D (2511) - Bruno,Fabi (2428)
FR Winawer 4..b6[C16]
45th Italian Teams 2013 Bratto ITA (2), 28.04.2013

Game 3
Hector,J (2512) - Berg,E (2561)
FR Winawer 4.e5 c5 5.Bd2 [C17]
21st Sigeman & Co Malmo SWE (3.2), 24.05.2013

Game 4
This brilliant positional game is my favorite.

IM Artemiev(left)

Aravindh,Chithambaram VR (2328) - Artemiev,V (2524)

FR Winawer 6…Qa5[C18]
The Black Queen Blues Variation
Somov Memorial 2013 Kirishi RUS (6.4), 13.05.2013

Game 5
Franklin,S (2322) - Pert,N (2557)
FR Winawer Poisoned Pawn 12..d4[C19]
4NCL 2012–13 Hinckley ENG (10.116), 05.05.2013

Game 6
Tazbir,M (2555) - Socko,B (2651)
FR Winawer 7.h4 [C19]
ch-POL 2013 Chorzow POL (6.4), 18.04.2013

Game 7
Bartel,Mat (2619) - Socko,B (2651)
FR Winawer 7.a4[C19]
ch-POL 2013 Chorzow POL (8.1), 20.04.2013

Kasparov-FM Marc Ghannoum(CAN)

Former chess world champion Garry Kasparov participates in a fundraiser in Naples, Fl. After dispatching 12 patients in a simul, he defeats Marc Ghannoum in a 2-game blitz match

Chess & Bridge(UK)-Cool 3-D Shop Viewer(!)

Browse our store! 

Fully interactive 3D view - use the arrows in the middle of the screen to move about the store, click the mouse and move it to change your view and zoom in on any set or book on our shelves using your mouse scoller or buttons on the top left - enjoy browsing!

Check out the cool store browsing feature. I have never seen anything like this before. 

Calgary International 2013 Rd2-GM Wesley So(PHI)

More on Chess in Israel
GM Wesley So won a tough game against GM Mikhalevski(ISR) who finished tied for 2nd in the Ch-ISR. Here is more on the Israeli grandmaster.

Rk.		Name	FED	FIDE	Total
1	GM	Nabaty Tamir	ISR	2564	6.5
2	GM	Smirin Ilia	ISR	2663	6
3	GM	Mikhalevski Victor	ISR	2530	6
4	GM	Avrukh Boris	ISR	2572	6
5	GM	Postny Evgeny	ISR	2635	5.5
6	GM	Rodshtein Maxim	ISR	2639	5.5
7	GM	Golod Vitali	ISR	2573	5.5
8	GM	Roiz Michael	ISR	2623	5.5
9	IM	Raznikov Danny	ISR	2488	5
10	GM	Soffer Ram	ISR	2516	5
11	GM	Kantsler Boris	ISR	2427	5
12	GM	Zoler Dan	ISR	2553	5
13	FM	Axelrod Arie	ISR	2328	5
14	GM	Greenfeld Alon	ISR	2545	4.5
15	GM	Gofshtein Leonid	ISR	2457	4.5
16		Judkovsky Yair	ISR	2355	4.5
17	IM	Berkovich Mark	ISR	2364	4.5
18	IM	Boruchovsky Avital	ISR	2445	4.5
19	FM	Givon Asaf	ISR	2407	4.5
20	GM	Baron Tal	ISR	2473	4.5
21	GM	Popilski Gil	ISR	2523	4
22	IM	Nakar Eylon	ISR	2389	4
23		Steinberg Nitzan	ISR	2425	4
24	IM	Caspi Israel	ISR	2461	4
25	FM	Shachar Ehud	ISR	2357	4
26	GM	Gruenfeld Yehuda	ISR	2434	3.5
27	FM	Arlinsky Uriel	ISR	2318	3.5
28	WFM	Shvayger Yuliya	ISR	2273	3.5
29		Svoisky Daniel	ISR	2227	3
30	IM	Birnboim Nathan	ISR	2370	3
31	FM	Zalkind Konstantin	ISR	2254	3
32		Katzir Moshe	ISR	2201	1.5

TWIC 967
GM So came back in a tough game to eventually grind out a victory against GM Mikhalevski in rd2. So went with 5.Qa4+ against the Gurnfeld and gave his queen for three minor pieces. Later black got Q+2ps for the three minors and the better chances.

So,Wesley (2701) - Mikhalevski,Victor (2551)
Grunfeld 5.Qa4+[D90]
2013 Calgary International Calgary, Alberta (2), 15.05.2013

Position 1
The RBN should be able to outplay the lone queen. What do you recommend for white?

White to Play

42..Qb4

Chesstalk is Back(!)-May 29 2013

The Chesstalk message board has come back to life.

Sunningdale Open 2013 Rd3-IM Hambleton A(CAN)

More on GM Williams
IM Hambleton played Williams in the feature game so here is some background on the colorful English GM.




TWIC 968
Hambleton consolidated a 2 pawn advantage with ruthless attacking play against GM Williams.

Hambleton,Aman (2468) - Williams,Simon K (2511) 
Dutch Classical 5.Nh3 d6[A96]
e2e4.org.uk Sunningdale Open 
Sunningdale Park, Ascot, Engl (3), 25.05.2013

Position 1
Black keeps Rf1 under attack with 18...Bxf4. How should white respond?

White to Play

18..Bxf4

Calgary International 2013 Rd9-GM Wesley So(PHI)

More on IM Richard Wang(CAN)
Here's a look back at the WYCC 2009 where Wang placed third.
Video by Andrei Botez.




TWIC 968
GM So converted a pawn up ending in routine looking fashion. There were no flashy tactics in this game so perhaps this game will escape public attention.
The overall strategy was grab a pawn in the opening and force a queen trade for a risk-free ending.

So,W (2705) - Wang,Richard (2365)
Sicilian Dragon Yugoslav 9.Bc4[B78]
6th Calgary International 2013 Calgary CAN (9), 20.05.2013

Position 1
The technical RR-RR pawn+ conversion phase has begun. What do you recommend for white?

White to Play

22...Rfc8

BC Junior Championship 2007

Some familiar faces here. Video by Andrei Botez

Grand Erie HS Championship-Brantford,Ontario

For Players, Chess is a Like a Puzzle

By Michelle Ruby, Brantford Expositor

Grand Erie HSCC in the library at Pauline Johnson Collegiate

Photo-Michelle Ruby, The Expositor

With the quiet broken only by the tap of moving chess pieces and the slapping of timers, more than 50 students faced off Monday in the Grand Erie high school chess championship.

Lining a long row of tables in the library at Pauline Johnson Collegiate, students played in teams of four in two divisions.

In this blitz chess tourney, each player was given 15 minutes to complete a game. The top three from each division advanced to the playoffs.

North Park Collegiate, championship winner for the past two years, was looking to defend its title.

"I like the almost infinite combination of moves," Henri Romel, a Grade 12 student at North Park, said of his love of chess. "Every game is unique."

Students from Bellview Public School this year joined players from 

• Pauline Johnson, 
• Brantford Collegiate Institute, 
• North Park, 
• Tollgate Tech, 
• Simcoe Composite, 
• Delhi District 
• McKinnon Park in Caledonia

Chris Mallon, a math teacher at Pauline Johnson and organizer of the championship, said students are used to the fast chess format because their playing time is usually limited to lunch hours.

Romel had already finished two games by mid-morning, winning both with times under six minutes.

For the first time this year, the championship partnered with the Chess 'n' Math Association, a non-profit organization with provincial co-ordinators dedicated to bringing chess to schools across Canada.

The game sets were supplied by the association and some were taken home by students as consolation prizes.

In Canada, a growing number of elementary schools have incorporated chess into the regular school curriculum.

Most of the players at Monday's event were boys. Mallon said that, for whatever reason, most girls don't continue to play competitively beyond elementary school.

Ten-year-old Lucas Samwell, a Grade 5 student at Bellview who was among the competitors, has been playing on his school's chess team since Christmas.

Mallon is a former teacher at Bellview and invited students from that school to join the event to even up the number of teams. He also opened the competition to schools outside Brant County.

"Chess is like a puzzle where you're trying to figure out how not to get in checkmate," said Lucas.(more)'

TWIC 968(CAN) INDEX-2013-May 28

Introduction
TWIC is produced by Mark Crowther. 

Chicago Open May 23-27 2013 Results
IM Porper did very well to finish second with 6.5/9 but GM Ray Robson took first with better tiebreaks over Friedel and Mitkov.

• Porper,E 6.5
• Gerzhoy,L 5.5
• Kleinman,M 4.5
• Preotu,Razvan 3.5

Report-ChessVibes
'Ray Robson won the strong Chicago Open on Monday with a score of 7/9. The 18-year-old American grandmaster edged out GMs Joshua Friedel and Nikolai Mitkov on tiebreak (modified median).

GM Ray Robson

Photo-Chessvibes

The tournament drew over 20 grandmasters, including Aleksandr Lenderman and Victor Mikhalevski. The 22nd annual Chicago Open was held May 23-27 and organized by the Continental Chess Association.

The venue was the Westin Chicago North Shore Hotel in Wheeling, Illinois. In 2010 Loek van Wely won, in 2011 Timur Gareev, in 2012 Gabriel Sargissian and this year Ray Robson took the title of Chicago Open Champion. Robson (18), who became a grandmaster just before turning 15, is a freshman at Webster University.

Robson finished on 7/9 together with Josh Friedel and Nikolai Mitkov, but had the best tiebreak.(more)'

Some background on the Chicago Open.

 

Final Standings

#	Name	Rtng	St	Total
1	GM Ray Robson	2620	MO	7
2	GM Joshua E Friedel	2485	WI	7
3	GM Nikola Mitkov	2484	MKD	7
4	IM Edward Porper	2423	CAN	6.5
5	GM Alexander Shabalov	2544	PA	6.5
6	GM Aleksandr Lenderman	2585	NY	6
7	GM Varuzhan Akobian	2616	KS	6
8	GM Victor Mikhalevski	2551	ISR	6
9	GM Fidel Corrales	2604	CUB	6
10	GM Alex Yermolinsky	2497	SD	6
11	GM Mikheil Kekelidze	2509	GEO	6
12	GM Alexander Fishbein	2506	NJ	6
13	GM Conrad Holt	2513	KS	5.5
14	GM Yaroslav Zherebukh	2629	UKR	5.5
15	IM Michael A Mulyar	2383	CO	5.5
16	IM Leonid Gerzhoy	2469	CAN	5.5
17	IM Irina Krush	2470	NY	5.5
18	GM Zviad Izoria	2585	NY	5.5
19	GM Dmitry Gurevich	2492	IL	5.5
20	GM Andre Diamant	2479	BRA	5.5
21	GM Vladimir Georgiev	2559	MKD	5.5
22	GM Mesgen Amanov	2510	TKM	5.5
23	IM Daniel Fernandez	2396	TX	5.5
24	FM Jeffery Xiong	2376	TX	5
25	IM Darwin Yang	2485	TX	5
26	Tigran Ishkhanov	2306	CA	5
27	GM Benjamin P Finegold	2505	MO	5
28	FM John Danie Bryant	2442	CA	5
29	Bradley J Denton	2270	AL	5
30	Thomas M Ulrich	2213	WI	5
31	FM Akshat Chandra	2270	NJ	5
32	Sam A Schmakel	2192	IL	5
33	IM Kayden W Troff	2421	UT	5
34	Denys Konstantin Shmelov	2431	UKR	5
35	Kevin Y Cao	2201	MO	5
36	FM Kevin Wasiluk	2322	MN	5
37	FM Michael Kleinman	2302	CAN	4.5
38	Deepak Aaron	2257	NY	4.5
39	GM Yury Shulman	2570	IL	4.5
40	FM Seth Homa	2307	MI	4.5
41	Walker Kyle Griggs	2202	OH	4.5
42	Benjamin Coraretti	2151	NM	4.5
43	FM Shivkumar Shivaji	2272	CA	4.5
44	Iskandar Aripov	2196	UZB	4.5
45	FM Gregory Markzon	2191	NJ	4.5
46	IM Vitaly Neimer	2420	ISR	4.5
47	FM Samuel Sevian	2371	CA	4.5
48	Sean Vibbert	2255	IN	4.5
49	Richard Tyler Francisco	2277	GA	4.5
50	FM Ali Morshedi	2227	CA	4.5
51	WGM Anna Sharevich	2265	BLR	4.5
52	FM Adarsh Jayakumar	2336	IL	4.5
53	IM Florin Felecan	2375	IL	4
54	Alexand Velikanov	2210	WI	4
55	Joshua Colas	2201	NY	4
56	Christopher Wu	2199	NJ	4
57	FM Cameron Wheeler	2193	CA	4
58	WFM Sarah Chiang	2098	TX	4
59	Derek Richard Paitrick	2094	WI	4
60	FM Eric S Rosen	2289	IL	4
61	GM Wesley So	2705	PHI	4
62	Badamkhand Norovsambuu	1922	MGL	4
63	FM Konstantin Kavutskiy	2268	MO	4
64	Jarod M Pamatmat	2113	TX	4
65	Razvan Preotu	2221	CAN	3.5
66	FM Steven D Greanias	2132	VA	3.5
67	Edward Song	2093	MI	3.5
68	Kai Jie Edward Lee	2164	SIN	3.5
69	Safal Bora	2195	MI	3.5
70	Erik Santarius	2292	WI	3.5
71	Yuanchen Zhang	2045	ON	3.5
72	FM Robby Adamson	2284	AZ	3.5

e2e4 Sunningdale Open 2013
Hambleton clear first with 6.5/7

Calgary International 2013
GM Wesley So clear first 8/9.

Vancouver Sun-Sohal,Tanraj(CAN)

GM first then Doctor-Vancouver Sun

Future GM Tanraj Sohal

'Tanraj Sohal hopes to become a doctor but, first things first, he’d like to be a grandmaster in chess.

Sohal, a Grade 11 student at Fleetwood Park in Surrey, is well on his way to that goal. The 16-year-old just snagged his eighth national title at the Canadian Chess Challenge in Ottawa.

The competition pits the best provincial school age players in two days of timed round robin play.

“The games were pretty quick,” said Sohal, who holds the title of national master.

He said his second round, against a player from Ontario was the most intense. 

“No game is easy. If you lose one game, you know you are not going to come in first. You can’t make any mistakes.”

Competing is a lot of pressure, said Sohal, but he loves the game. Earlier, Sohal snagged the top title at the B.C. open, meaning he was the best player in the province of any age group.

Sohal started playing in Grade 1, and found the endless puzzles and possibilities of the game kept him engaged and wanting to play more.

“It’s creative. Your whole personality can be seen in your game. If you’re a risk-taker in life you’ll be a lot more attacking, more willing to weaken yourself for the chance to win. If you’re cautious, you’ll be more positional, not attacking but being careful and going after others’ weaknesses.”

Sohal describes himself as a combination of the two, with a “pretty universal style.”

He admires grandmaster and No. 1 ranked player Magnus Carlsen, a Norwegian that has been credited with bringing back the cachet chess hadn’t enjoyed since the 1970s, when American grandmaster Bobby Fischer achieved celebrity status after routing Russian Boris Spassky.

Like anyone his age, Sohal loves computer games, but he’s more likely to spend hours a day playing chess online.(more)'

Sunningdale Open 2013-05:IM Hambleton(CAN)

From Spraggett's Blog
'Congrats to Canadian IM Aman Hambleton for winning the Sunningdale Open held over the long weekend (24 to 27 May)! The seven round Open tournament was held in two sections, with the top section fielding 3 GMs and 3 IMs. 

Time control was the standard 90/game plus 30 seconds per move. One game Friday evening; two rounds for the rest.(more)'

More on the e2e4 Tournament Series
These tournament are held in nice hotels to ensure strong participation. Here's an example.



Hambleton was the top scoring Canadian.

Rank	Name	Score	Fed.	Rating	TPR	W-We
1	IM Hambleton, Aman	6.5	CAN	2468	2783	2.14
32	Gedajlovic, Max	3.5	CAN	1751	2048	2.07
36	Oussedik, Elias	3	CAN	2010	2129	0.89
53	Dydak, Mateusz	1.5	CAN	1937	1733	-1.44

Final Standings
Hambleton took clear first by a full point with 6.5/7.

Rank	Name	Score	Fed.	Rating	TPR	W-We
1	IM Hambleton, Aman	6.5	CAN	2468	2783	2.14
2	GM Hebden, Mark L	5.5	ENG	2537	2572	0.4
3	GM Williams, Simon K	5	ENG	2511	2454	-0.22
4	IM Sarakauskas, Gediminas	5	LTU	2421	2321	-0.66
5	IM Bates, Richard A	5	ENG	2376	2345	-0.05
6	GM Arkell, Keith C	4.5	ENG	2472	2391	-0.48
7	FM Sowray, Peter J	4.5	ENG	2365	2170	-1.33
8	FM Eggleston, David J	4.5	ENG	2354	2358	0.25
9	FM Buchicchio, Giampaolo	4.5	ITA	2306	2326	0.29
10	FM Ledger, Dave J	4.5	ENG	2287	2286	0.07
11	FM Croad, Nicolas	4.5	NZL	2277	2230	-0.29
12	Longson, Alexander	4.5	ENG	2273	2302	0.4
13	Jackson, James P	4.5	ENG	2221	2183	-0.21
14	FM Poobalasingam, Peter S	4.5	ENG	2211	2303	0.91
15	Bird, Andrew	4.5	AUS	2190	2298	1.06
16	Osborne, Marcus E	4	ENG	2263	2244	-0.08
17	Spence, David J	4	ENG	2220	2170	-0.32
18	Tozer, Philip A A	4	ENG	2165	2217	0.44
19	McPhillips, Joseph	4	ENG	2142	2246	0.97
20	Peat, Matthew	4	ENG	2094	2161	0.43
21	Lunn, Matthew	4	ENG	2004	2109	0.98
22	Oyama, Akito	4	ENG	1922	2157	2.15
23	Burrows, Martin P	3.5	ENG	2144	2166	0.22
24	Batchelor, Peter J	3.5	ENG	2132	2016	-1.04
25	Varnam, Liam D	3.5	ENG	2118	2075	-0.36
26	Sullivan, Daniel JS	3.5	ENG	2105 *	1999	1999
27	Bridge, Neil A	3.5	ENG	2075	2133	0.41
28	McCullough, Simon L	3.5	ENG	2070	2121	0.36
29	Sara, Valerio	3.5	ITA	2048	2033	-0.2
30	Bucher, Grant W	3.5	ENG	2039	2066	0.22
31	Taylor, Adam C	3.5	ENG	1961	2074	0.8
32	Gedajlovic, Max	3.5	CAN	1751	2048	2.07
33	CM Friedland, Jon S	3	ENG	2118	1936	-1.7
34	WFM Chevannes, Sabrina L	3	ENG	2083	2253	0.56
35	Bonafont, Philip R	3	ENG	2073	2087	0.06
36	Oussedik, Elias	3	CAN	2010	2129	0.89
37	Amato, Giampiero	3	ITA	1978	2004	0.17
38	Gibson, Christopher A	3	ENG	1947	2144	1.32
39	Sucikova, Svetlana	3	SVK	1901	1990	0.65
40	Crockart, Scott A	2.5	ENG	2147	1913	-1.56
41	Roberts, David L	2.5	ENG	2066	1941	-1.04
42	WFM Kisteneva, Liza	2.5	RUS	2053	2088	0.11
43	McKerracher, Douglas	2.5	SCO	2053	1957	-1.07
44	Savage, Nicholas W	2.5	ENG	2024	1927	-1.05
45	Fegan, Chris	2.5	ENG	2011	2124	0.74
46	Moss, Guy	2.5	ISR	1982	2041	0.33
47	Staniforth, Matthew	2.5	WLS	1940	1884	-0.59
48	Shakespeare, John	2.5	WLS	1919	1936	0.11
49	White, David J	2	ENG	1963	1776	-1.5
50	Kalaiyalahan, Akshaya	2	ENG	1872	1904	0.2
51	Hernandez Castro, Julio Ce	2	ESP	1848	1763	-0.81
52	WFM Stolberg-Rohr, Thomine	1.5	DEN	2037	1898	-1.28
53	Dydak, Mateusz	1.5	CAN	1937	1733	-1.44
54	Truman, Richard G	1.5	ENG	1916	1781	-1.13
55	Kreuzer, Christopher R L	1	ENG	1960	1660	-1.58

Here is Hambleton's win over veteran GM Hebden.

Hebden,Mark L (2537) - Hambleton,Aman (2468)
Queen’s Indian 4.e3[E14]
e2e4 Sunningdale Open Sunningdale Park
Ascot, England (6), 27.05.2013

Position 1

Black has taken over the game after beating back the first wave of white's attempted attack. What do you recommend for black now?

Black to Play

29.R7h4

Canadian Game of the Week-CFC Newsfeed

Canadian Game of the Week
This is a regular feature of the CFC.

Daniluk-Persaud
King's Indian g3    

Analysis by Keith MacKinnon-05/27/2013

 

 

'This week's game was played at the March of Kings, a yearly tradition at the Calgary Chess Club. Black's opening goes wrong in the following game, and white exploits his troubles with some neat moves.(more)'