ISABELLA LAI VS BERNARDO IGLESIAS:: CRITICAL POSITION // RESOLVED? // MAYBE // MAYBE NOT // BY STEVE STEPAK

 Isabella Lai vs Bernardo Iglesias

Cambridge, MA (BCC Polar Vortex, U1800 Section, R=3) 2018

CRITICAL POSITION

[BACKSTORY: I had already finished my game

scoring a total of 2.5/3. So I felt good that I 

would win some money. How much? Well

If Isabella won her game with Bernardo, She

too would have scored 2.5 points and we would

have tied for 1-2nd place. If Isabella drew or 

Bernardo won, I would have clear 1st place.

That is what prompted me to take a photo of

the position, with Bernardo to move, which

is provided above. Ooh! I thought, it looks like

Isabella might be able to pull a rabbit out of

the proverbial hat. Could she find the moves

to draw this game(?), or if Bernardo played

inaccurately, could Isabella actually win(?)!

This is the question facing all of us now, as

we look at the above position. Well I think

I have a resolution to my "issue" provided by

Suraj Ramanathan. Two "winning" lines are

provided below. What do you think?

Give us feedback on the BCC Blog!]
The best try is this: After Black's best move:
1.  . . .  Rd7; White should play:
2.e6 Re7; 3.Nf7+ Kg7; 4.Nxh8 Kxh8;
5.d5 Kg7; 6.Rf4 Nd6; 7.Kf1 Rc7; 8.Ke2 Rc5;
9.Rd4 Kf6; 10.Kf3 Nf5; 11.Rd1 Nxh4+;
12.Kg3 Nf5+ 13.Kf4 Nd6; 14.Kf3 Ke7;
15.Kf4 Rc8; 16.Ke5 Rf8
[STUDY THIS DIAGRAM]
THE QUESTION IS:
CAN WHITE HOLD
(MEANS DRAW)?

and the computer
(Houdini 4 Pro x 64B: 3408 Elo rating) gives
an evaluation of -1.68 which I would depict,
in the old style as -/+: good but not necessarily
winning, for Black, provided Isabella did
not mess up playing this position, or of course,
provided Bernardo did not make a serious
mistake from which he could not extricate
himself. Well, we shall never know but!!
I suggest taking the position resulting
from the move 2.e6 above and try to continue
to explore winning moves for Black or
drawing for White.)

Another way to play the position would be:
Instead of 2.e6, the rather dubious 2.d5?!:
So we have 1. . . . Rd7; 2.d5 Rxd5; 3.Nf7+ Kg7;
4.Nxh8 Rd1+ 5.Kh2 Rd3! 6.Rf7 Kxh8;
7.Rf8+ Kg7; 8.Rxe8 Rxc3 - + (Black's king
is better placed and his c-pawn will promote).

PHOTO: STEVE STEPAK

BCC LEGENDS OF CHESS: FRIEDRICH SAEMISCH // SURAJ RAMANATHAN 3.5 / OPEN SECTION // 1st / KELSEY LIU / DAVID MARTIN / ALEXANDER FANG MENG 3.0 / 1-3rd / U1800 SECTION // 32 PLAY //

BCC LEGENDS OF CHESS

4SS / G60 / 5" DELAY IN 2 SECTIONS

OPEN SECTION

3 FOR 3 + 1/2 POINT BYE LAST ROUND!

SURAJ RAMANATHAN: CLEAR 1ST!

BRAVO SURAJ: +18 TO 2170

ON THE ROAD TO 2200!

KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK!

Suraj Ramanathan vs Lawrence Tu, Round 1.

Joe Perl, Esq., black vs David Milliern (BCC Asst TD)

Round 1. Joe scored 3 points to share 2-5h place.

NM Chris Williams plays Timothy Bromley, Round 3.

Chris scored 3 points to share 2-5th place.

Jake Garbarino held NM Williams to a

draw in the last round to claim a piece

of 2nd-5th place with 3 points.

Lewis Tu scored 3 point to share

2-5th place and a +42 to 1898 rating!

Bravo, Lewis!

U1800 SECTION

Kelsey Liu, black vs Jeffrey Liu, Round 2. Kelsey was undefeated

with 2 wins and 2 draws for 3 points to share 1-3rd place and a

+13 to 1730 rating. Brava, Kelsey!

(background): Alexander Fang Meng vs Bob Oresick;

David Martin vs Ryan Donnelly;

Zhipeng Chen, black vs Lydia Shen

Kelsey engineers her endgame against Alexander Fang Meng 

in Round 4: draw! Alexander was also undefeated with 2 wins 

and 2 draws to share 1-3rd place for a +59 to 1623 rating.

Bravo, Alexander. [Eyes on the board: David Martin, sitting

and Mr. Liu, proud father of Kelsey intensely observe.]

CLOSE UP

KELSEY - MENG: ENDGAME!

SO FAR: NO MISTAKES!

David Martin, black vs Steve Stepak, Round 1: draw!

David was undefeated with 2 wins and 2 draws for 3 points

to share 1-3rd place. Bravo, David!

(background): Thomas King, black vs Kelsey Liu;

Bob Oresick plays Will Wisdom.

SCENES FROM

AROUND THE HALL

NM Professor Alejandro Botta, black vs Eric Feng, Round 4.

Alexander Fang Meng, black vs BCC Veteran Robert

Holmgren, Round 1.

ALWAYS A NEW BEGINNING

BCC JUNIORS

KIDS: ALWAYS CURIOUS!

GOOD MORNING AMERICAN CHESS!

DOWN TO THE WIRE

BLITZ CHESS!

Bernardo Iglesias, Chief Event TD plays white

vs Donnelly in an extra game.

TOURNAMENT ADMINISTRATION:

BERNARDO IGLESIAS CHIEF TD

NATASHA CHRISTIANSEN ASST TD

DAVID MILLIERN ASST TD

PHOTOS: STEVE STEPAK

February Educational Chess Clinic with Jacob Rasin

banner:  Tony Cortizas, Jr.

February Educational Clinic

 

Date	February 20, 21, 22, 23, 2018
Event Format	9:00am to 12:30pm each day
Registration	2/20, 9:00am onsite
Round Times	9:00am to 12:30pm each day
Description	This program invites young chess players who already have a complete understanding of the rules of chess to come and develop their abilities. With a combination of lecture, question/answer and guided cooperative learning, the instructor will cover essential elements of the game: Tactics, Strategy, Openings, Middlegames, Endgames, Problems. Students will develop their memory, visualization ability, attention span, critical thinking skills, as well as their sense of fairness and good sportsmanship — all while having fun!  . Who can join? School-age children, K-12, who are interested in improving at chess and maturing from motivated beginners to skilled intermediate players. How much does it cost? Club membership is required for participation (Junior: $120/yr; $67/6 months; Family: $180/yr; $100/6 months). Participation fee: $160; $120 per child, if two or more per family. For first-time Club members, the fee is reduced to $125. Please make checks payable to the Boylston Chess Foundation and please pay on site.  . Registration: Located in the renovated former Ellis School building, there is plenty of room at our pristine site. Reservation is not required. Just show up to unit B103, at 40 Norris Street the morning of the first day, before or around 9:00 a.m.! Use the right-side door of the building.  . About the instructor: A master of the game and a Boylston Chess Club member for over 25 years, Jacob Rasin has been a professional chess teacher for over 35 years in the Soviet Union and the United States. 1978-1989, Jacob served as head coach at the Pioneers Palace of the Leningrad Province; 1982-1985, he had the additional assignment of training Soviet grandmasters and international masters. Since 1990, he has taught privately and at schools in the Boston area. His students have won dozens of scholastic state championships and medals, and more than ten national championships in various brackets. Jacob has directed the School Break Program since 1994.  . For more information, call Jacob Rasin at home after 9pm (617) 783-6307; cell (857) 225-1297 or email boylstonchess@gmail.com

Milesstones Sunday

banner:  Tony Cortizas, Jr.

Milestones Sunday  

Register Online Now

Date	Sunday, February 4, 2018
Event Format	3SS
Time Control	G/55 d5
Sections	TBA
Entry Fee	$35, $20 for BCF Members, $5 more if not registering online
Prizes	TBA
Registration	9:30am - 9:45am
Round Times	10:00am, 12:50 pm, 3:00pm
Description	Open to all players born in 1997 or earlier. Accelerated pairings may be used. Free parking on Sundays! All games will finish in time for the Super Bowl!
Entry List	Current Pre-Registration List

Feb Quads

banner:  Tony Cortizas, Jr.

February Quads 

 

Register Online Now

 

 

Date	Saturday, February 3, 2018
Event Format	3RR
Time Control	G/65 d10
Sections	Players will be arranged into quads by rating
Entry Fee	$35, $20 for BCF Members, $5 more if not registering online
Prizes	$$80 First place in top quad, $$50 First place in each of the other quads
Registration	9:15am - 9:45am; ABSOLUTELY NO ONSITE REGISTRATION AFTER 9:45AM
Round Times	10:00am, 1:15pm, and 4:00pm
Entry List	Current Pre-Registration List

Feb Thurs Night Swiss

banner:  Tony Cortizas, Jr.

February Thursday Night Swiss 

 

Register Online Now

 

 

Date	Thursdays, February 1, 8, 15, 22
Event Format	4SS
Time Control	40/90, SD/20 d10
Sections	Open & U1900
Entry Fee	$35, $20 for BCF Members, $5 more if not registering online
Prizes	$300 based on 25 entries: 1st $125, 2nd $75; U1900 1st $60, 2nd $40
Registration	6:30pm - 7:00pm
Round Times	7:15pm
Entry List	Current Pre-Registration List

WINNING WITH BLACK: CAPABLANCA GAMBITS A PAWN FOR INITIATIVE: SIMPLE CHESS CONCEPTS FOR BEGINNERS

[Event "Moscow"][Date "1925.11.25"][Round "12"][Result "0-1"]

[White "Fyodor Ivanovich Dus Chotimirsky"][Black "Jose Raul Capablanca"][ECO "A48"]

1.Nf3 Nf6 2.d4 g6 3.e3 Bg7 4.Bd3 O-O 5.O-O d6 6.e4 Nbd7 7.h3

c5 8.c3 e5 9.dxe5 dxe5 10.a4 Qc7 11.Na3 c4 12.Nxc4 Nc5 13.Qe2

Nxd3 14.Qxd3 Rd8 15.Qe2 Be6 16.Na3 h6 17.Re1 a6 18.Qc2 Bd7

19.Be3 Bc6 20.Nd2 b5 21.axb5 axb5 22.f3 Nh5 23.Rad1 Bf8

24.Nab1 Bd7 25.Nf1 Nf4 26.Ng3 b4 27.Ne2 g5 28.Nc1 Rdc8 29.c4

b3 30.Nxb3 Ba4 31.N1d2 Bb4 32.g3 Ne6 33.Qd3 Rd8 34.Qe2 Rab8

35.Rf1 Bxd2 36.Nxd2 Bxd1 37.Qxd1 Rxb2 38.Qc1 Ra2 39.Rf2 Rd3

40.Nf1 Raa3 41.f4 Rac3 42.Qe1 exf4 43.gxf4 Nxf4 44.Bxf4 gxf4

45.Qe2 f3 46.Qa2 Rc1 47.Rxf3 Rxf3 48.Qg2+ Rg3 0-1

 Moscow 1925

 Capablanca offers a pawn on 11. . . . c4!

Why? to free up the c5 square for his N . . . 

12. . . . Nc5, hitting the B on d3 and a double

attack on white's pawn on e4 . . . nice!

[White plays Qe2, guarding both, but . . . ]

Capablanca grabs the initiative with the series of

moves: 13. . . . Nxd3; 14.Qxd3 Rd8; 15.Qe2 Be6;

putting a double attack on white's knight on c4!

Nice?  Yes.  So effortlessly: this is like ballet!

Capablanca re-deploys his queen-s bishop to c6

hitting White's pawn on e4, forcing White to play

20.Nd2 . . . and after 20. . . . b5:

CRITICAL POINT IN GAME

The question is: can White play Bxf4?

If White gives up his queen's bishop, dark

squares around the White king will be weak and

black's king's bishop will spring to action with . . . Bc5+

and White's king is in a cross-fire leading to mate

or loss of material. [One might also, from visual

inspection question White's move 22.f3 weakening

White's king position. The point is, could White

stand not to make this move?]

Simple and powerful: Capablanca notices that

White's queen is not guarded on the c-file so

by playing 26. . . . b4 he secures a wedge into

White's queen-side position, at the same time

opening up the a4-e8 diagonal for his queen's

bishop on d7. [This kind of play is most instructive

for the beginner. Not really complicated or "deep"

it just takes total advantage of obvious White 

weaknesses in Dus Chotimirsky's position.

Go Capa! Keep the pressure on. Don't let up for
a moment. No wasted moves here.]

Now we see that after 27. . . . g5, if White had chosen

to capture Black's knight on f4 there would become

a black pawn on f4 controlling g3 and e3 squares,

squashing White's king into oblivion. So, white

played the rather passive and sad move 28. Nc1 . . . ;

Black now counters with 28. . . . Rc8; adding to the

pressure on the c-file with Black's pawn now becoming

most prominent in counter-attack. [Note, White's Queen

is still unprotected!]

After Black plays: 31. . . . Bb4; the game is quite

decided. White's piece are tied up in knots. 

Capablanca weaves a web of confusion.  White's

king seems "naked" of protection and Black's

pieces are optimally stationed; and notice that Black's 

king is totally safe. White has no counter-play 

in sight, against Black's king.

White runs but cannot hide and must lose material.

Note that White played 32.g3 to boot Black's knight 

back to e6 freeing up the e2 square for the queen.

No matter, White's pawns are weak and the position

is hopelessly lost.

Now Black's rook invades White's position with

tempo, attacking the bishop on e3.

40.  . . . Raa3; [Note that Black's rooks, doubled

on the 6th rank attack the g-pawn in front of White's

king, made week by 22.f3 move. Now everything

is hanging, so to speak. White is in zugzwang,

essentially running out of good moves because

all of his pieces are defending critical squares in

front of White's king and dare not move without

disastrous results.]

DENOUEMENT

Now, 46. . . . Rc1 is the best move. Why? We note

the key weak spot in White's position is "g3" and

now we see that White's knight on f1 is pinned and

no longer covers this square. So Black threatens

. . . Qg3+ when the roof collapses in White's house.

White might have resigned here but played on just

for "fun" . . . 

Essentially, White has absolutely no moves

to forestall checkmate. So Fyodor resigned.

This game is another example of Capablanca's

"pure" play. Pure and simple, efficient and elegant.

Bravo Capa!

Final comment. I am convinced that, especially for the amateur

and the beginner, playing out master games plus playing tournament

games, writing down the moves and looking over the game for "missed

opportunities" are the correct combination of action to success.

Reliance on "super" computers like Stockfish, Kommodo, Rybka,

and other commercial software packages, though "deadly" accurate

really don't allow the human brain to acquire the simple chess techniques

which may produce wins, and more often draws, but fewer loses.
[I find, that without a chess computer, I must force my brain to
engage in the finding of a "good" move or understanding why
the players made such moves, good or bad. With a chess program,
I found I got lazy.  The computer move was fascinating, but my brain
did not find the move, a silaion chip did.  And,

note in the above game, we have a few basic chess techniques which

Capablanca used to secure his win: sacking a pawn for initiative; knight forks,

attacking opponent's Queen to gain positional penetration, noticing the

condition of pieces [like White's unguarded queen on the c-file for black's

move. . . b4]; and then more simple "tactical" conditions like invasion into

opponent's position with major pieces aiming at weakly guarded pawns

and finally the fatal pin on White's knight on f1.  Playing over this game,

as many times as one might, is so satisfying, like watching a ballet.

Each of Capa's moves has a simple and powerful purpose. All of his pieces

coordinate, working together to create threats on both sides of the board.

This is chess at its best: a learning experience and a beautiful journey

to victory. [Confession of a chess analyst: I got rid of my computer and

my Rybka chess program. Now I just have the printed games on the

chessgames.com website to use, as well as Chess Informant  

and other printed material, especially gems like

to guide me. [No, this is not a promo for Mark Dvoretsky who I met over a 

decade ago in programs at Harvard and BCC lecture series in the '90s. Sadly, 

Mark died September 26, 2016, at the age of 68.]

MATERIAL PREPARED BY 
STEVE STEPAK