Fpawn Takes a Vacation

This blog will be quiet for the next two weeks as I take a vacation with my family. No chess! Little net access! No cell phone! No Blogger or Twitter! The break allows me to relax and avoid the hectic life in the 21st century. At times, I wonder how I'll manage.

Good luck to those who play at the Western States Open in Reno this weekend. And in the US Chess League, may the San Francisco Mechanics team build on last week's success to earn the #2 seed in the Western Division playoffs.

Steven Zierk Defeats GM Loek Van Wely!

Playing on the top board tonight at the Western States Open in Reno, FM Steven Zierk scalped former world class Grandmaster Loek Van Wely of Holland. Although Van Wely no longer competes with Kasparov and company, he remains a formidable opponent rated 2733 USCF and 2650 FIDE. Check out the spectacular 27 move long attacking game below. Even Tal may have been impressed. Way to go Steven!!

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Bay Area Well Represented on All-America Team!

(FM Naroditsky presents a lecture at left while Sevian calculates a position at right.)

According to this press release by the US Chess Federation, eight CalChess stars earned a spot on the 2010 All-America Chess Team sponsored by Trophies Plus! The requirements for this prestigious honor are quite strict: players must exceed a very high rating depending on their age (ranging from 1800 for age 8 & under to 2450 for age 18). Only 43 juniors made the team--an average of merely four per age group.

Kudos to the following CalChess kids! Readers of this blog are already familiar with the names, and now folks around the country will recognize them as well.

Bay Area juniors on All-America Team (age as of January 1).

• IM Sam Shankland (17)
• FM Steven Zierk (15)
• FM Daniel Naroditsky (13)
• NM Greg Young (13)
• NM Yian Liou (11)
• Samuel Sevian (8)
• Cameron Wheeler (8)
  
• Tanuj Vasudeva (7)

The All-America team highlights a fact that Bay Area coaches have known for several years: the local kids can compete with those from the scholastic hotbeds of New York and Texas! With eight All-Americans, CalChess narrowly edged New York and Texas, both with seven. No other state has more than four.

The Bay Area has become a prime breeding ground for the nation's elite kids, sharing the role that New York dominated for many years. Much of the credit goes to the Mechanics' Institute for fostering an environment that motivates kids. Regular tournaments offer the rising stars a chance to match wits with experienced adult masters and experts, while the San Francisco School of Chess hosts lectures by experienced Grandmasters from around the world. A final factor is that Silicon Valley kids tend to become comfortable with computers at a young age; I have watched kids as young as 5 and 6 playing chess on ICC!

Countdown to Western States Open

(Photos from past Reno tournaments: parking lot entrance, playing room and lecture hosted by GM Larry Evans and organizer Jerry Weikel.)

The Western States Open in Reno is one of my favorite events to play. I participated in every WSO since 2000, a streak which will end this year because of the timing of my family's annual vacation. Nonetheless, a number of my top students will attend. Check out the advance entry list at the Reno tournament website.

The two annual Reno events offer the opportunity to escape the hassles of work or school. The organizers, Jerry and Fran Weikel, and the Sands Regency Hotel go out of their way to keep players happy. No wonder they come back year after year! The Open section will be strong with a dozen or more GMs and IMs. Even with the poor economy, I am sure that the attendance will approach 300 players, more than any Bay Area adult tournament. The advance entry list shows 170 names as of last Thursday!

Some parents are shy about Reno because of the casino atmosphere. Rest assured that the chess tournament maintains a quiet family-friendly atmosphere. Second-hand smoke has decreased since 2007 when Nevada banned smoking except on the casino floor. I recommend that parents request a room in either the Regency or Dynasty towers so that the kids can take the elevator straight up from the playing hall to your hotel room. Then you only pass through the casino on the way to restaurants.

Best of luck to all players! May all your pawns promote!

GM Ian Rogers Teaches Top Kids at Mechanics Institute

(The elite chess class is hard at work! From left to right: GM Rogers with students Samuel, Greg, Yian, Kyle and Tanuj.)

Grandmaster Ian Rogers visited the Mechanics' Institute last weekend in conjunction with a meeting of the Ken Whyld Association of chess historians. Known as the strongest player ever from Australia, GM Rogers achieved a peak FIDE rating of 2618 in 1999 (about top 50 of the world back then). He faced many of the world's top players in the 1980s and 1990s, earning a draw as black versus Anatoly Karpov and swindling a checkmate against Viktor Kortchnoi!

On Sunday, October 11, GM Rogers (seated next to FM Naroditsky at right) took time from his busy schedule to tutor some of the Bay Area's elite juniors. The lecture carried on the inspiration of the San Francisco School of Chess, a program seeking to boost promising young chess players in Northern California both through interactions with GMs and IMs as well as their fellow juniors. Sunday's topic quickly caught the attention of the audience: the rapid improvement of teenager Magnus Carlsen to 2800 and beyond. The class delved deeply into Carlsen's openings and middlegames from the recent Nanjing tournament, with lengthy variations and occasional jokes flying around the room from all sides.

The group was small and intimate, yet highly competitive with five of six students ranked in the top three of the nation for their age! These kids no doubt comprise the present and future stars for the San Francisco Mechanics squad in the US Chess League. The team has a seemingly endless supply of underrated juniors for the next few seasons. If the kids keep improving like this, next year's team may field a GM plus three 2300+ rated juniors! (a.k.a. Panda and the three bamboo sprouts)

• FM Danya Naroditsky, 2378, #1 age 13 (Board 3)
  
• NM Greg Young, 2272, #2 age 14 (Alternate)
  
• NM Yian Liou, 2226, #2 age 12 (Board 4)
  
• Kyle Shin, 2088, #6 age 11
  
• Samuel Sevian, 2079, #1 age 8
  
• Tanuj Vasudeva, 1904, #3 age 8

Busy Weekend at the Mechanics' Institute

The top seeds at the Dolan Memorial G/45 tournament sit side-by-side for the early rounds. IM Ricardo DeGuzman (sitting at left) and expert Romulo Fuentes (not in photo) split the top prizes with a last round draw after Fuentes took down NM Michael Pearson (wearing white shirt). A total of 33 participants (see photos below) visited the historic Mechanics' Institute despite the nice weather, nearby Navy show and other conflicts.

The chess players were joined this weekend by a group of (mostly) gray haired men attending the Ken Whyld Association of chess historians. Presenters at this two day seminar include chess club director IM John Donaldson, IM Tony Saidy, GM Ian Rogers and FM Danya Naroditsky. Surely the former World U12 champion will be a tad out of place among the celebrities, but none of them had their first book published at age 13! (To be released in spring 2010.)

Fpawn Rating List - November 2009

Within the last week, the USCF posted the Top 100 lists for October and official ratings for November. As usual, the Bay Area is well represented among the elite of the nation. Three kids are ranked #1 for their age: FM Danya Naroditsky (13), NM Nicholas Nip (11) and expert Samuel Sevian (8). Four more follow in the top 3: IM Sam Shankland (17), NM Greg Young (14), NM Yian Liou (12) and A player Tanuj Vasudeva (8). Another four check in at either #5 or #6, bringing the total to 11 Bay Area stars ranked in the Top 6 of the nation for their age!

The November USCF rating supplement includes the 154 player Labor Day Festival (not officially the state championship this year) plus an assortment of smaller tournaments. A total of 25 present and former students attended on Labor Day weekend, but only one became "pseudo state champion." Props to Alan Naroditsky (see photo at right) for scoring an undefeated 5-1 in the Expert section, playing against three talented juniors and three conniving adults! Alan's annual improvement has been quite steady: 1784 in 2006, 1927 in 2007, 2014 in 2008 and now 2092 in 2009. He began his freshman year at UCLA a few weeks ago, but I expect to see him push some more pawns during school holidays.

Look for both Naroditsky brothers among the rankings of all my 2000+ rated students.

Top Students Overall (minimum rating = 2000, current students in red)

1. FM Danya 2378
2. FM Steven 2333
   
3. NM DanielS 2313 -- Stanford
   
4. NM Gregory 2272
5. NM Yian 2226
6. David 2095 -- UC Berkeley
   
7. Alan 2092 -- UCLA
   
8. EvanS 2092
9. Kyle 2088
10. Nicholas 2049
11. Arthur 2014

I updated my student rankings as well. Click here for the Fpawn Rating List or check out the National Rankings page on my website. I copied my trio of Top 5 lists below.

Top 5 Grades K-6

1. Kyle 2088 -- 2008 National 5th Grade Champion
   
2. Neel 1800 -- 2009 CalChess K-5 co-Champion
   
3. Richard 1620
4. Leland 1600
5. Rahul 1449
   

Top 5 Grades 7-8

1. NM Yian 2226 -- 2009 CalChess K-12 co-Champion
   
2. Sam 1953
3. James 1848
4. Roland 1773
5. Tyler 1654

Top 5 Grades 9-12

1. FM Steven 2333 -- 2008 CalChess K-12 co-Champion
   
2. NM Gregory 2272 -- 2008 US Junior co-Champion
   
3. EvanS 2092 -- 2009 CalChess K-12 co-Champion
   
4. Arthur 2014
5. Brian 1854
   

New Hot Rod!

After waiting six months, I finally got my new wheelchair today! I cannot tell you how relieved I am that this episode has come to a close. The process was frustrating; it should never have taken this long. One more reason why this country needs health care reform!

Those of you who visit the Mechanics' Institute for either the Dolan G/45 tournament on Saturday or the SF School of Chess lecture on Sunday (by Australian GM Ian Rogers) will get to see my new hot rod. It is similar to my old one, except that I now can pop a wheelie.

Team 45 45 League and Standard Tournaments on ICC

One big advantage that young chess players have today over their counterparts 15 or 20 years ago is the internet. In the old days, a parent had to drive to chess club one evening each week. Now kids log into an online play site from home and can train as much as they want. For many kids, the more time you devote to study and practice, the faster you will improve. As an extreme example, IM Sam Shankland (see photo at right) played over 5000 standard games on the Internet Chess Club in 2004 and 2005. While averaging 10 slow games a day is a bit *too* much, the effort contributed to his accelerated USCF rating improvement from 1500 to 2000 and he currently stands at the threshold of Grandmaster.

There are two primary means to start a standard game (G/15 or slower) on ICC.

• BlitzIn users:

1. Select Seek Graph from the Window menu and click on a dot or issue your own seek.
2. Type: 15-minute and hit enter. G/15 begins automatically within 1-2 minutes.

• Dasher users:

1. Click on the Seek Ads tab in Activities window or Seek a Game under Actions menu.
2. Push the 15 button at the top to automatically begin a G/15 contest.
   

I can also recommend several leagues or tournaments on ICC. You compete against other opponents who enjoy playing slower games online.

• The Team 45 45 League is accepting team registrations for T43! Starting on October 27, you play one game per week for six weeks, plus 2-3 rounds of playoffs. At the beginning of each round, you contact your opponent to schedule the game at a mutually convenient time and day. A typical game of 45 45 (that's 45 seconds per move increment) may last 2-3 hours or more. The league, which started on ICC over ten years ago, has sections at 200 rating point intervals, giving everyone the opportunity to play opponents near their own rating. Before joining, carefully read the Quick Guide and Player Handbook. The league has strict rules which require a minimum level of personal responsibility, plus parental support. I know at least a dozen Bay Area kids who are active in the league.
• The Tuesday night ST-Tourney series runs four rounds each month at a G/60 time control. California players will be interested in the 8pm and 11pm sections (note: ICC uses Eastern time). This event is convenient because the games are at a fixed time each week. To play, log in before the round and add channel 32 (type: /tell 32 hello!). Join Pear robot (type: /tell Pear join), or if U1500, join Automato robot (type: /tell Automato join). Ask questions and watch for announcements in channel 32.
• Finally, if you are available to play on Sundays, check out the Sunday Swiss from 10am to 3pm. Rounds are scheduled at 10:15, noon and 1:45 with a time control of 45 5 (note: ICC uses Eastern time). Depending on entries, there are two or three sections: Open, U1900 and U1600, based on ICC standard rating. To participate, log in by 10:00 and add channel 90 (type: /tell 90 I want to join the Sunday Swiss). When registration opens up, send a message to register (type: /message STC-TD Join Sunday Swiss, Section Open). Watch channel 90 for updates from the TD.
  

If you have any questions, don't hesitate to send an ICC message to "fpawn" or email me using michael(at)fpawn.com (no spam). Good luck in your standard games!

RIP Jerry Hanken (1934-2009)

The venerable chess master Jerry Hanken passed on to a higher chess board on October 1, succumbing to complications of diabetes. He was 74. Jerry was best known as a correspondent for Chess Life magazine and Chess Life Online, mixing in human interest stories with tournament results. He would interview not only with the Grandmasters, but also winners of the lower class sections. His byline included the title "Original Life Master," referring to the old days when masters earned a 2200 floor by playing 300 games. Everywhere he went, Jerry would spread his infectious enthusiasm for the royal game.

For more information about the life of Jerry Hanken, check out the two obituaries written by former USCF President Bill Goichberg and close friend Randy Hough. Or read Jerry's final online article about the Pacific Coast Open in July.

To close, I wish to share a funny--and true!--personal story about Jerry Hanken. As he grew older, his chess playing strength deteriorated sharply from a peak of about 2350. He would lose to 1800 and 2000 rated kids with alarming frequency, yet his rating remained stuck at 2200 because of the floor. (Aside: Jerry still showed flashes of his old brilliance. In fact, he defeated teenage FM Daniel Yeager, rated 2388, in his next to last tournament.)

Back in 2005, the Saratoga High School chess team and I traveled to play at the Western Class Championships held at a hotel near LAX airport. After seeing my round 3 pairing, white against Hanken, I boldly informed my teenage charges that, should I lose this game, I would jump out of the hotel room window. There was absolutely no way I could afford to go down against the old man without losing face before my students!

The game started out with a boring Bird's Opening (1.f4) setup. Perhaps I showed some of my overconfidence because the aggressive play on the kingside (9.h4) was not justified. The alert sacrifice 16... Nxg3 allows black to force a draw by repetition, but I had little interest in a peaceful result with an old man. Yet by move 26, I was practically mated and would have had to resign after 26... Rf2+ 27.Kg1 Ne2+. Very embarrassing indeed!

My students followed the game in the hotel room using Fritz and knew the end was near. Even Caissa saw my desperate situation. At the last possible moment, I set a subtle trap--and Jerry unwittingly walked right into it. After the seemingly reasonable 26... Nf3+, I replied with a stunning queen sacrifice to turn the tables! The Fritz evaluation changed from -6 to +7 in a single move. And with this fateful move, Jerry Hanken snatched defeat from the jaws of victory. Poor guy!

Returning to the hotel room, my students immediately became quiet. One quickly moved in front of the window, just in case I was a man of my word. Expecting me to be depressed, another started to express his sympathies. The chessboard on the floor showed my hopeless position. Little did they know that, by the grace of Caissa, I had won!

Always a fan of queen sacrifices (he called them "parting with the lady"), Jerry illustrated the final combination in his magazine article. More than once since then, he told people how he saved my life. Thank you Jerry, for your infectious love of chess, your tireless efforts on behalf of the USCF and, of course, for saving my life! RIP YHR.

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RIP Jay Blem (1957-2009)

I don't like posting such sad news on my blog, but make an exception to reflect on the life of a true gentleman and dedicated fan of the royal game. Most of us knew Jay Blem as tournament director, bookseller, demo board helper and simply as the guy with all of the answers. He would strike up a friendly conversation with anyone, whether about chess, sports, politics or just about any other topic. Readers of this blog may remember him as the bookstore guy and assistant TD in Reno; he also sold books at Bay Area tournaments in the 1990s and early 2000s. Jay Blem was just 51 years old when he moved on to a higher chess board, a life taken way too young.

I knew Jay for at least 10 years and always enjoyed the opportunity to chat with him in Reno or in Los Angeles. He was often the first chess player that I would meet after arriving at a tournament. Frankly, he will be missed a lot and by many!

Please read this obituary written by his sister at the Southern California Chess Federation website. A memorial service is scheduled for October 11 in Ontario, CA. I anticipate another tribute to him at the upcoming Western States Open on October 23-25.

To close, I compiled the following quotes from the USCF Forums and Facebook:

• I was shocked to hear the news. Jay did a great job selling books and equipment for many years at the North American Open in Las Vegas, and was always friendly and helpful. He left us much too young. -- Former USCF President Bill Goichberg
• So very sorry to hear of this. Jay was a fine man and his wit just blossomed in private. -- Allan Fifield (Visalia)
  
• What a great loss -- As a friend, and friend of the game. -- Barbara Rainey (Reno)
• Jay was a great person and always happy about everything. I have worked with Jay at numerous events and he was an awesome person. I think he was liked by all. Jay, you will be missed! -- Alan Kantor, USCF Staff
• There are many very nice folks in our chess community, and Jay was among the best-liked and most enjoyable of them all. I, too, shall miss his presence. Rest in peace, friend. -- Hal Bogner (Half Moon Bay)
  

Robson 0-1 Bhat at SPICE Cup

(GM Vinay Bhat makes a move with the black pieces against IM Ray Robson. Photo taken by FM Paul Truong at SPICE Chess Picasa Album.)

Bay Area native Grandmaster Vinay Bhat has spent this month traveling around the continent to compete in elite invitational round-robins, seeking the experience necessary to raise his game to the next level. Considering his pedigree as a former record holder of youngest USCF master (at age 10), Vinay has already demonstrated the talent to succeed at the highest level of chess. Yet despite earning the Grandmaster title last year, his current FIDE rating of 2474 is still low for a player of his skill.

First, Vinay played in the Montreal International beginning on August 27. He finished with a solid 5.0 out of 11 as the lowest rated participant. He faced opponents rated an average of 2628, about 150 points above his own FIDE rating, and scored three wins and four draws against four losses. Highlights include a shocking miniature versus reigning US Champion GM Yury Shulman, a successful sacrificial attack against the veteran GM Sergei Tiviakov and a solid draw as black with top seed GM Etienne Bacrot, rated 2721! Visit Vinay's chess blog for his own thoughts, observations and several annotated games.

This week, Vinay attends the SPICE Cup Invitational in Lubbock, Texas, where he plays in the "B" Group. This time he is the third lowest rated out of ten players, with an average rating of 2503 FIDE. After three rounds, he is tied for second place with an undefeated 2.0 out of 3, including the following tactical win today against the talented teenager IM Ray Robson. Check it out in the game viewer below.

Vinay, here's wishing all the best in your chess travels!

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Kiddie Plays with Fire in US Chess League

(White to move and win! What short combination did GM Jesse Kraai play to force resignation? Hint: remember that opposite colored bishops always favor the attacker.)

The San Francisco Mechanics faced their stiffest test to date last Wednesday evening against the undefeated Miami Sharks. Led by the most dominant player in the US Chess League, Grandmaster Julio Becerra, the challengers from South Florida appeared poised to play the locals tough, perhaps motivated by a 4.5-4.5 record over the past four years.

While Becerra indeed earned his customary full point with the white pieces, the Mechanics cleaned up on the other boards to secure an important 3-1 victory. GM Jesse Kraai (photo at left) solved the diagram above for his first ever league win while the youngsters IM Sam Shankland and NM Yian Liou both outplayed their opponents in the Najdorf to improve to +2 on the season. Sam pushed hard to win as black in a sharp line while "Kiddie" calmly milked a pair of connected passed pawns from his small opening advantage as white.

Three rounds into the ten week season, the San Francisco squad sits atop the Western Division standings with 2.5-0.5. They already faced the teams tied for second, tying 2:2 with Seattle and defeating Miami 3:1. Two team members appear in the latest league MVP rankings, with the 2009 CalChess High School co-champion (Yian) debuting at #8 and the 2008 World U18 co-champion (Sam) at #9. 12-year old Yian (see photo at right) looks a wee bit out of place as the only NM on this list full of GMs and IMs!

Week 3: Miami 1.0-3.0 San Francisco

1. GM Julio Becerra vs GM Josh Friedel 1-0
   
2. GM Jesse Kraai vs FM Bruci Lopez 1-0
3. IM Blas Lugo vs IM Sam Shankland 0-1
   
4. NM Yian Liou vs NM Ernesto Alvarez 1-0

The fourth round sees the Mechanics matched up against the Chicago Blaze. Team captain and historian IM John Donaldson is well aware that the Mechanics' Institute Chess Club already survived the Great San Francisco Fire of 1906. Unwilling to take chances just in case the Blaze would be fueled by 2009 US Champion Yury Shulman, Donaldson tapped the Mechanics' biggest water guns: GM Josh Friedel, GM Kraai, IM Shankland and NM Liou. Using the latest online ratings, this is the highest rated lineup ever seen in the US Chess League at a whopping 2494 USCF!

The last two weeks, elite teams from Dallas and Miami tried to match up evenly on the top boards. The strategy did not work very well--both lost convincingly by 3:1 scores! Chicago took the opposite approach: win board 4 at all cost and pray for the best on the top boards. On paper, this is a mismatch! The Chicago players are lower rated by at least 130 points on every board; the average rating of all four boards is 2416, fully 78 points less!

Certainly IM Mehmed Pasalic is the heavy favorite to hand the Mechanics' young board 4 his first league loss. Now up 1-0, Chicago simply needs the recent trend of blunders throughout the league to continue. Perhaps Josh may hallucinate another knight sacrifice, or Jesse drop another piece to a double attack, or Sam become distracted by the latest chick he met on BART. This is the US Chess League, where chess nuts crack!

Will this match be a mismatch or will it be decided by blunders? Watch the action LIVE on the Internet Chess Club beginning Monday evening at 5:30pm PDT. Log in and type "/finger USCL" for links to the games.

Week 4: Chicago vs San Francisco (Update: SF won 2.5-1.5)

1. IM Jan van de Mortel (2456) vs GM Josh Friedel (2601) 1/2
   
2. GM Jesse Kraai (2584) vs FM Florin Felecan (2452) 1-0
   
3. IM Angelo Young (2398) vs IM Sam Shankland (2564) 1-0
   
4. NM Yian Liou (2226) vs IM Mehmed Pasalic (2356) 1-0
   

GM Josh Friedel Earns Game of the Week

Over the years, GM Josh Friedel built his reputation not only as one of the nicest young adult players around the country, yet also as one of the meanest competitors that you could ever face across a chess board. In case IM Marko Zivanic of Dallas did not know before Wednesday night, I rest assured that he knows all too well now. This week's miniature earned Friedel the Game of the Week honors for the US Chess League! Thanks to Mechanics' Institute Chess Club director IM John Donaldson for providing the annotations below.

Check out Josh's cool website! He has written many interesting stories for Chess Life Online about his chess travels around the globe, including this recent article from Sao Paulo, Brazil. Within the past 24 hours, Friedel learned that he has been officially invited to play in the FIDE World Cup (knockout championship) in Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia beginning on November 20. Kudos on this high honor!

First Two Rounds of US Chess League

At the beginning of September, the San Francisco Mechanics resumed fixing cars around the country. Teams from 14 cities compete in the fifth season of the US Chess League, with matches played on ICC on Monday or Wednesday nights for most weeks. The captain submits a lineup of four players each week, averaging less than 2401 USCF on a previously specified rating list. Read my prior blog post for the entire Mechanics roster and a brief summary of each player. (Note: captain Donaldson swapped Young and Wolff so that Wolff is now on the main roster while Young plays as an alternate.)

After two weeks, the Mechanics have 1.5/2 and are tied for second place in the Western Division. The home team got off to a shaky start in round 1 when GM Josh Friedel lost a piece after hallucinating in a favorable position. (Click on the links to view each game.) Fortunately, IM David Pruess pulled out a full point in an even rook endgame. The second week turned out better, as the Mechanics crushed the two-time league champions by an impressive 3-1 score. GM Friedel bounced back with a miniature crush of the 2... e6 Sicilian while 12-year old NM Yian Liou improved his league record to 1.5-0.5, both games as black in the Dutch defense.

Week 1: San Francisco 2.0-2.0 Seattle

1. GM Josh Friedel vs GM Gregory Serper 0-1
   
2. IM Eric Tangborn vs IM David Pruess 0-1
   
3. IM John Donaldson vs FM Michael Lee 1/2-1/2
   
4. NM Joshua Sinanan vs NM Yian Liou 1/2-1/2

Week 2: San Francisco 3.0-1.0 Dallas

1. GM Josh Friedel vs IM Marko Zivanic 1-0
   
2. IM Daniel Ludwig vs GM Jesse Kraai 1-0
3. IM Sam Shankland vs IM Sal Bercys 1-0
   
4. Adarsh Jayakumar vs NM Yian Liou 0-1

GM Benjamin Gives Advice to Parents of Young Talents

"Hi GM Joel, My son is 8-year-old with a rating of 1600. He consistently beats lower rated players simply because he waits until his opponent blunders. He often lost to higher rated players because they don't blunder and his positions are getting worse and worse. Based on the feedback I have, including from his coach, a local IM, he often doesn't have a plan and sometimes he makes mistakes in the opening. He reacts to his opponents' moves, even when playing White."

To read the response by 3-time US Champion GM Joel Benjamin (see photo), go to Chess Life Online. This article should be interesting and relevant for many families in the Bay Area and around the country. Frankly, I must add that I completely agree with the advice from GM Benjamin. Here are a few key quotes:

"Ratings improve because children develop certain skills that are strong enough to defeat players at certain levels, but it doesn’t mean that all their skills have reached that level."

"To me, improvement is a long-term, ongoing process, that doesn’t necessarily manifest itself in wins in the next tournament."

"Every player is competing against the game, to unlock its secrets and become stronger. What other people (families) are doing—and what their ratings are--should not affect your own approach."

You may also wish to browse through other tidbits of advice that I have blogged about over the past year and a half, including my suggestion for how much to practice and appropriate parental behavior at tournaments.

Labor Day Festival in San Francisco

Check out the advance entry list, updated through Tuesday night. A total of 106 players have signed up so far. Have you? At first glance, the Master section appears unusually weak this year, but many of the usual suspects sign up on-site each year.

The annual Labor Day Festival in San Francisco is coming up soon. In an era of declining attendance at adult chess events, this has been the lone exception, drawing at least 160 players to the Holiday Inn Golden Gateway at Van Ness and Pine for each of the past seven years. Certainly one big reason that people keep coming back is the friendly and competent staff: organizer Richard Koepcke assisted by TDs John McCumiskey and Tom Langland.

Over these years, no other adult or open tournament in Northern California has attracted this many players, including multiple International Masters and even an occasional Grandmaster. The list of recent winners is quite formidable: Sam Shankland (2008), Josh Friedel (2006, 2007), Alex Yermolinsky (2005), Vladimir Mezentsev (2004), Dmitry Zilbertstein (2003) and Ricardo DeGuzman (2002). Who will win this year?

• Event: Labor Day Festival
  
• Date: September 5-7 (3-day) or September 6-7 (2-day)
  
• Location: Van Ness at Pine in San Francisco
  
• Format: 6 round swiss in 6 sections (Open, Expert, A, B, C and D/E/Unrated).
• 3-day schedule: Reg: Sat 8-9:30. Rounds: Sat 10, 4; Sun 11, 4:45; Mon 10, 3:30.
• 2-day schedule: Reg: Sun 8-9, Rounds: Sun 9:30, 11:45, 2, 4:45; Mon 10, 3:30.
  
• Time control: 30/90, G/60 except G/60 for rounds 1-3 of 2-day schedule.
• Entry fee: $70 adults, $60 juniors postmarked by August 31; $10 more on-site.
• Prize fund: $5400 based on 160 players, including $700 for 1st place in Open section and $380 for 1st place in each lower section.
  
• Tournament flyer
• Advance entry list

I highly recommend this event to all of my students and friends! Of course, I will be there, with or without my power wheelchair. I suggest the 3-day schedule to serious players because G/60 tends to be like roulette (i.e. more luck than skill), but the 2-day schedule requires less of a time commitment. A weird feature of this tournament is that many kids play up a section, especially those rated within 100 points of the next class. For example, if you're rated above 1700, you should play in the A section for practice.

WARNING: The Bay Bridge will be closed over Labor Day weekend! If you are driving, please make sure to take I-280 or US-101 or cross at the San Mateo Bridge. You may also take BART to Embarcadero Station, walk one block north to California street and catch a #1 Muni cable car to the hotel on Van Ness. Use the trip planner at 511.org for maps and route schedules.

Finally, I must lodge a small protest. Most readers are probably unaware that the CalChess Board voted to strip this festival of its longtime "state championship" designation. Mind you that the USCF encourages states to use Labor Day weekend for state tournaments, and, in fact, many big states do run theirs on Labor Day. Instead, the Board saw fit to endorse a yet untested big money event at a brand new venue on Thanksgiving weekend. The motto "Build it and they will come" has not worked well at Bay Area tournaments in the past (e.g. the Firecracker Open fiasco in 2001). I won't say more now, but count me as a big skeptic of this Board decision. We shall see in November.

CalChess FIDE Rated Juniors -- September 2009

After the graduation of five high school seniors in June, the Bay Area seeks fresh blood to fill its elite ranking lists. Earning an international (FIDE) rating is one mark of an elite player. To achieve a FIDE rating, you must enter one or more official FIDE rated events, play at least 9 games with rated opponents and score a minimum 1600 performance.

There are two new faces on the Northern California list: Kyle Shin (photo at right from ChessDryad) and Hayk Manvelyan (who actually earned his first rating in April) . Both start out with solid initial ratings in the high 2000s, a tad higher than my 2054 way back in January 2000. Kudos also to new master Yian Liou for posting an impressive gain over the past two months.

Due to a recent policy change, FIDE now publishes its ratings six times a year, up from four. The following represents the official September 2009 FIDE rating list.

1. FM Danya Naroditsky 2339
2. FM Steven Zierk 2303
3. NM Gregory Young 2264
4. NM Yian Liou 2208 -- gained 74 points in two months!
   
5. NM Rohan Agarwal 2197
6. NM Nicholas Nip 2147
7. Evan Sandberg 2130
8. Hayk Manvelyan 2082
   
9. Kyle Shin 2071

San Francisco - Seattle at 9:00

GM Josh Friedel (left)

squares off against

GM Gregory Serper (right).

The San Francisco Mechanics kick off the fifth US Chess League season against the Seattle Sluggers. Tonight will be the lone meeting this year between these two traditional rivals, unless they meet again in the playoffs. The top boards, Grandmasters Josh Friedel and Gregory Serper, have met five times with white winning every game, a trend that bodes well for the home team. This week is also the debut of 12-year old master Yian Liou, but he faces a difficult opponent in NM Joshua Sinanan. Let's go Mechanics!

The games take place at the Mechanics' Institute, but readers may watch LIVE on the Internet Chess Club beginning at 6pm Pacific time. Type: "/finger USCL" for links or finger each of the players: Friedel-SF, Pruess-SF, Donaldson-SF or Liou-SF.

Round 1 lineups (San Francisco in red with latest ratings from MSA)

1. GM Josh Friedel (2601) vs GM Gregory Serper (2592) 0-1
   
2. IM Eric Tangborn (2455) vs IM David Pruess (2419) 0-1
   
3. IM John Donaldson (2390) vs FM Michael Lee (2399) 1/2-1/2
   
4. NM Josh Sinanan (2268) vs NM Yian Liou (2226) 1/2-1/2

Final score: 2.0-2.0

Yours truly has been selected by the US Chess League commissioner IM Greg Shahade to help judge the Game of the Week for each round. I am one of five judges. Winners earn cash prizes of $150, $75 and $50 per week. Sorry Josh, bribes will not be accepted.

US Chess League Begins on Monday Night

The US Chess League begins on Monday night with three dynamite matches. The one most likely to attract attention on the west coast will pit the San Francisco Mechanics against division rival Seattle Sluggers. While Seattle's top board GM Hikaru Nakamura will no doubt be unavailable because he is playing in Holland at the Rising Stars Versus Experience tournament, the Sluggers still have solid GM Gregory Serper, star teenager FM Michael Lee and a diverse supporting cast.

With what lineup will the Mechanics counter? First read about the 2009 team roster in this post from two weeks ago. Next check out intriguing possibilities:

• Wolff, Friedel, Shankland, Liou = 2397, 2492
  
• Friedel, Bhat, Shankland, Liou = 2372, 2465 -- top two are just about "GGGg"
  
• Friedel, Kraai, Naroditsky, Liou = 2378, 2443
• Kraai, Shankland, Naroditsky, Young = 2384, 2437
• Kraai, Pruess, Naroditsky, Young = 2400.75, 2409

(The first number is the official rating, using the September 2008 list. This average must be below 2401 each week. The second number is current USCF average.)

Log into ICC next Monday evening to watch LIVE beginning at 6:00pm PDT. Type the command "/finger USCL" to find the games, or look under the Events window.

US Chess League Schedule for San Francisco Mechanics

• Mon 8/31: Seattle Sluggers
• Wed 9/9: Dallas Destiny
• Wed 9/16: Miami Sharks
• Mon 9/21: Chicago Blaze
• Wed 9/30: New York Knights
• Wed 10/7: Miami Sharks
• Wed 10/14: Arizona Scorpions
• Wed 10/21: Queens Pioneers
• Mon 10/26: Tennessee Tempo
• Wed 11/4: Dallas Destiny
• Wed 11/11: Quarterfinals
• Wed 11/18: Semifinals
• Sat 12/5: League Championship

Tanuj Captures Gold at Pan Am Under 8!

South America, you've just been Tanuj'ed! With the final round yet to be played tomorrow, Bay Area star Tanuj Vasudeva (1902 USCF) already clinched the gold medal for U-8 at the 20th Campeonato Panamericano de Ajedrez. After winning his first eight rounds, the only remaining question is whether he can complete a perfect 9-0 sweep. Even more impressively, several of his games have been miniatures (under 25 moves). Kudos to Tanuj on winning your first international tournament!

Update on Friday morning: Tanuj finished with an impressive 9-0 sweep!

(The photo at left from the official website shows our young hero practicing the classical Sicilian against an unidentified victim.)

For first-hand insight on this adventure to Mar Del Plata, Argentina (see photo of the beach at right) and the experience of playing chess in another country, check out the blogs by Tanuj and Girls U-10 gold medalist Simone Liao (1847 USCF) from Southern California. While the parents help out with the blog, they try to report from the perspective of their child.

The final round takes place on Friday morning, with the awards ceremony to follow. In addition to Tanuj and Simone, the 23 member American delegation has good chances to pick up more medals in Girls-8, Boys-10, Boys-12, Boys-14, Boys-16 and Girls-18.

Tanuj Juega en Mar Del Plata

CalChess star Tanuj Vasudeva traveled to Argentina to compete in the Pan American Youth Chess Festival. As the highest rated 7-year old (now age 8) earlier this year, he earned the right to represent the USA in Mar Del Plata. He faces some elite kids age 7 and 8 from throughout South America plus Mexico. Undoubtedly, none of the Latin American kids have the vast experience that Tanuj amassed over the past two years in Bay Area events!

So far, so good! Tanuj won his first three rounds, including today's showdown against a 1966 FIDE rated player from Colombia. Only two have 3-0, and Tanuj is paired versus a Mexican kid in a battle for the early lead. Go Tanuj!!

There are 23 kids in the American delegation, accompanied by their parents and four coaches. Other notable participants include Tommy He (3-0), Jarod Pamatmat, Arthur Shen (3-0), Victor Shen, Vincent Huang (3-0), Simone Liao, Alisa Melekhina and Courtney Jamison.

• Official website
• Chess Results website
  
• NEW!!! Tanuj Vasudeva's chess blog and Twitter page
  
• Simone Liao's chess blog (from Southern California)
• Reports on Chess Life Online: First, Second

Update on Wednesday afternoon: After three more wins against the top competition, Tanuj has 6-0 and a 1.5 point lead on the field. Thanks to awesome tiebreaks, he mathematically clinches the gold medal with 1.5 in the last three rounds.

San Francisco Mechanics Gear Up for US Chess League

The San Francisco Mechanics finalized their roster for the upcoming season of the US Chess League. Can the local team add to a rich tradition that includes four straight winning records and the 2006 league title? To find out, watch beginning August 31 live on Wednesday (occasionally Monday) nights at the Mechanics' Institute Chess Club or follow the games at the Internet Chess Club. Of course, I plan regular reports on this blog and my Twitter page.

2009 San Francisco Mechanics' Roster (first rating is 9/08; second is current)

1. GM Josh Friedel 2581 (2601 = +20) -- see photo at right
2. GM Jesse Kraai 2573 (2584 = +11)
3. GM Vinay Bhat 2481 (2491 = +10)
4. IM Sam Shankland 2398 (2534 = +136) -- age 17
   
5. IM John Donaldson 2425 (2390 = -35) -- captain
   
6. FM Danya Naroditsky 2339 (2376 = +37) -- age 13
7. NM Gregory Young 2227 (2272 = +45) -- age 14
   
8. NM Yian Liou 2019 (2226 = +207) -- age 12
   
9. (alt) GM Patrick Wolff 2623 (2623 = +0) -- his 2623 rating actually counts as 2590 for league
10. (alt) IM David Pruess 2464 (2419 = -45) -- assistant captain
    

Each week, the captain chooses four players with an average rating under 2401. Most of the key participants return from last year. The Bay Area's top rated player, GM Josh Friedel, will man the top board for a majority of the matches. GM Vinay Bhat and 2008 World U18 co-Champion IM Sam Shankland (with two GM norms) are two of the more successful players in the history of the league. 2007 World U12 Champion FM Danya Naroditsky and 2008 US Junior co-Champion NM Gregory Young offer a lethal one-two punch on boards 3 and 4. The captains are Mechanics' Institute chess director IM John Donaldson and Berkeley's own IM David Pruess.

The 2009 team adds two new faces. At the top, GM Jesse Kraai will see action on board 2 and perhaps even a couple of games on board 1. And on board 4, CalChess High School co-Champion NM Yian Liou (see photo at left) may be San Francisco's secret weapon. "Kiddie" is only 12 years old, but has already proven himself against the best that California has to offer. Continuing the Mechanics' tradition of fielding underrated juniors, Yian counts as merely 2019 for the league, while his actual rating is nearly 200 points higher at 2212. These rating points are valuable because they allow the team to field stronger players on the top boards without sacrificing strength on board 4.

For more information, check out the official San Francisco Mechanics homepage or browse through the 2009 US Chess League schedule.

US Open in Indianapolis!

(Chess makes you hungry! Kyle Shin and Evan Sandberg chow down between rounds.)

The 110th US Open attracted about 450 chess players to Indianapolis, including 10 Grandmasters and 13 International Masters. A number of high profile players came to compete for five qualifying spots available for next year's US Championship. The three different schedules (9-day, 6-day and 4-day) merged tonight, leaving four players at the top with 6.0 out of 7: Grandmasters Sergey Kudrin, Alex Yermolinsky, Alexandra Kosteniuk and Alex Lenderman, International Masters Michael Mulyar and Ron Burnett plus rapidly improving teenager Jonathan Hilton. One additional celebrity in attendance is the 2009 US Champion GM Hikaru Nakamura, who hosted a simul today. The festival wraps up with rounds 8 and 9 on Saturday and Sunday, respectively.

Unfortunately, only nine Bay Area players made the trip East this year, plus one or two more will attend the political meetings this weekend. Here is the local scorecard:

(final results in red; click here for rating report)

• GM Jesse Kraai (2552) = 5.5/7 = 7.5/9 tied for 1st and qualified for US Champ
  
• IM Emory Tate (2372) = 5.5/7 = 6.5/9
  
• NM Paul Gallegos (2211) = 4.5/7 = 6.5/9
  
• Evan Sandberg (2131) = 4.0/7 = 5.5/9
  
• Kyle Shin (1997) = 3.5/7 = 5.5/9
• WIM Ruth Haring (1885) = 4.0/7 = 5.0/9
  
• Tony Pabon (1800) = 2.5/7 = 4.5/9
• Theo Biyiasas (1706) = 3.5/7 = 4.5/9
  
• Mike Goodall (1800) = 3.0/7 = 3.5/9
  

Evan Sandberg Represents CalChess At Denker

CalChess K-12 co-Champion Evan Sandberg flew to Indianapolis last weekend to compete in the prestigious Arnold Denker Tournament of High School Champions. For more than 20 years, this 48 player invitational has featured many of the best high school players from around the country, one from almost every state. Recent representatives from Northern California included masters Nicolas Yap, Daniel Schwarz and Steven Zierk. This year became Evan's turn after he tied for top honors at the CalChess Scholastics in San Jose. No playoff was necessary because co-champion NM Yian Liou was too young to play in the Denker.

Evan definitely played his heart out in one of the toughest tournaments around the country, but a round 2 defeat on board 1 ended his chances of winning. Having attended in the past two years, I can definitely say that the competition is fierce; there are simply no easy games, even against lower rated opponents. In the end, Evan tied for 5th through 13th place with three wins, two draws and one loss (4.0/6). He had a few ups and downs, but still ended up with a respectable finish as the third lowest rated out of those in the top 13.

Click here for the rating report or check out the story by champion Abby Marshall! (Photos of Evan and all of the Denker participants taken by Joel Sandberg.)

Kyle Shin Plays GM Alexandra Kosteniuk

Bay Area 11-year old Kyle Shin got the pairing of his life today at the US Open in Indianapolis. In round 2 of the 4-day schedule, he played one on one against Women's World Champion GM Alexandra Kosteniuk! Reportedly, Kyle (now rated 2095) even had a decent position, attracting an audience that included several titled players. At the end, the World Champion prevailed against the National 5th Grade Champion. Nonetheless, it was quite a memorable experience for Kyle's first tournament game against a Grandmaster! (Photos taken by Kyle's father.)

Quote from Kosteniuk's chess blog: "The second game was one the toughest of the tournament. I played Black against a talented young boy Kyle Shin."

Check back on Friday for further updates from the US Open, including how Evan Sandberg finished in the Denker Tournament of High School Champions.

Chess Kids, The Next Generation

(Left: Eight years ago, Steven Zierk was ranked as high as #2 in the nation at age 7. Right: Samuel Sevian has been ranked #1 in the nation at both age 7 and 8.)



The latest Silicon Valley Challenge continued one popular trend at Bay Area chess tournaments: the youngest participants stole rating points from adults and even teens! Three young stars (plus one adult master) tied for first place in the Open section: #3 ranked 15-year old FM-elect Steven Zierk, #9 ranked 11-year old Kyle Shin and #1 ranked 8-year old Samuel Sevian. In fact, Steven, who won over $3600 at World Open as a 7-year old prodigy, may now be considered the senior citizen of this group!

Here's just a brief list of upsets in the Open section on Saturday:

• Kyle (2070) drew 2200 teen
  
• Samuel (2055) beat 2250 adult and drew 2300 teen
• Paul (1831) beat 2050 adult
• Neel (1726) drew 2100 adult
• Leland (1560) beat 1700 teen
• Richard Z (1540) beat 1750 teen and drew 2050 adult
• Sankash (1517) drew two 1700 teens
• Richard Y (1465) drew 1750 and 1700 teens

As a coach, I take special pride in watching my students do well. A total of eight of my private students and ten summer class students played! It was a real pleasure meeting everyone face to face, in some cases for the first time. Here are the top results:

Open section

• Top score (private students) = Steven and Kyle, 3.5 each (1st place!)
  
• Most rating gain (private students) = Neel, +34
  
• Top score (summer class) = Armaan, 2.0
  
• Most rating gain (summer class) = Richard Z, +50

U1600 section

• Top score (summer class) = Bryan, 4.0 (1st place!)
• Most rating gain (summer class) = Bryan, +69
  

Four Tie for First at 7th Silicon Valley Challenge

(Two of the nation's top juniors squared off in round 3. Playing white, 8 year old expert Samuel Sevian held a draw against 15 year old FM-elect Steven Zierk.)

Article submitted by organizer Charles Sun.

The Silicon Valley Challenge #7, held on the August 1st, 2009, attracted a total of 43 players to the Century Arts Alliance Foundation near the Great Mall in San Jose. Snacks and bottles of water were complimentary as usual and participants helped themselves between rounds.

The Open section was filled with 32 players. Master players include Steven Zierk (2319), Emmanuel Perez (2267), Michael Aigner (2263), Rohan Agarwal (2227) and Richard Koepcke (2222). Three Expert-players rated 2000 to 2200 and seven A-players rated 1800 to 2000 also joined in fierce competition. After acing his first three games, NM Aigner lost the last round to one of his students, FM-elect Zierk. At the end, Zierk, Koepcke, Kyle Shin (2070) and Samuel Sevian (2055) tied the first place and shared the top prizes.

Neel Apte won the first prize for U1700 and gained 34 rating points for his impressive performance. Also, congratulations to Armaan Kalyanpur who won second prize.

There were 11 players in the U1600 section. Bryan Huang took clear first by an entire point, winning all of his games! Congratulations to Rahul Mohan for the second place and to Vignesh Varadarajan and Colin Ma for taking the U1000 prizes.

Thanks to everyone for participating in the Silicon Valley Challenge. Special thanks to Colin Ma for donating scoresheets and Michael Aigner for his help with tournament preparations. Future events will always be publicized on the Sun Chess Club website and emailed to previous participants.

Samyukta Ties for 4th at Polgar

(Board 1 in the final round. Yang Dai played 1.d4 and Samyukta responds with Nf6.)

Oh so close, and yet so far away. You simply can't win 'em all.

Playing on board 1 against the top seed rated more than 300 points higher, Samyukta Bhat fought all the way to the end, blundering only in time pressure. In the words of Polgar Invitational organizer and namesake GM Susan Polgar, she "fought valiantly. The position was very close." In spite of this setback, Samyukta finished tied for 4th place, together with the defending champion and two other girls. There's no doubt that she made all of us in Northern California proud to have her as official representative!

Final standings of Polgar Invitational

• 6.0 -- Yang Dai (2057) 6.0
• 5.0 -- Rachel Gologorsky (1704) and Epiphany Peters (1797)
• 4.5 -- Linda Diaz (1882), Courtney Jamison (1984), Samyukta Bhat (1740) and Joanne Koong (1683)
  

Check back for Samyukta's round 5 win, which I will post as soon as it is available online. Click here for photo albums from the tournament.

Samyukta Bhat Leads Polgar Championship

Update on Thursday night: Samyukta Bhat won today and is in clear 2nd place with 4.5 out of 5! She faces top seed and tournament leader Yang Dai (2057) in Friday's final round, needing a win to become national champion. On behalf of all of Samyukta's fans back home, here's wishing you all of the best of skill!

Samyukta Bhat, winner of the CalChess Girl's Championship, remains tied for first with a perfect 3-0 score at the halfway point of the Susan Polgar National Invitational for Girls. The photo at right shows Samyukta posing with GM Susan Polgar. The two other girls sharing the lead are the top seeds: Yang Dai (2057) of Virginia and defending champion Courtney Jamison (1984) of Texas. An incoming 9th grader rated 1740, Samyukta started out ranked #9 out of 60 girls. No doubt the competition will soon become much tougher, starting tomorrow against Julia Jones (1869), also from Texas. Here's wishing her all the best of luck!

Samyukta is not the only Fremont area girl playing in Texas. 8-year old Alisha Chawla has a single point (see photo at left), competing against mostly older and higher rated opponents. No doubt she will benefit from the entire experience, including instructional lectures, puzzle contests and blitz tournament.

Watch this post and my Twitter feed for updates throughout the week. There will be one round daily through Friday. For more photos of young ladies playing chess, click on album #1 and album #2.