Marshall Spectator 01.27.2021
Contents 01.27.2021 :
Amateur Team East 2020
Tate Steel 2021
New Tactics Class!
Oscar Leonel Maldonado, 1966-2020
Problem of the Week
Amateur Team East 2020
For a lot of club members, and for chess players in the tri-state area in general, the Amateur Team East tournament is their favorite event of the year. Once President's Day rolls around the holiday season is in the rear view, school is back in full swing, and summer is still a ways away. The long weekend trip down to Parsippany serves not only as a great retreat, but as a chance to catch up with old friends, be part of a team (uncommon outside of scholastic chess!), and do what we love most of all: play chess. But who could have known that the 2020 version of the tournament would be the last time many of us played OTB chess before the world changed forever.
As we approach February and 2021 version of the event, destined to be held online, like pretty much everything else these days, some of us have been feeling rather nostalgic. Club staff member Manuel Najera shares his story from last year:
Now that 2020 is FINALLY over I’m looking forward to the days where we can once again spend time outside and enjoy life to to the fullest. I want to see friends in person again more than I ever thought was possible—I even miss being on the train! I need to get out of my house. I miss playing chess at the Marshall and I really really want to improve my rating. Before the pandemic, I had one of my best tournaments ever at the Amateur Team East. I went into the tournament rated 1329. After scoring some major upsets (and getting lucky) I ended up gaining more than one-hundred rating points, climbing all the way to 1436! I haven't played OTB since.
In the second round, I was playing white against Justin Li, rated 1780. Given his significantly higher rating I was positive I was going to get demolished. After 13 moves, I was already losing an exchange. . .
(Najera v Li. Position after move 13.)
As expected 14. Rc1 Bxd2 15. Qxd2 Bxf1 16. Rxd1 a5 was played. Well, I decided there was only one way for me to fight for a comeback : Go for the King. The center was still closed and I figured I might be able to maneuver for an attack before he knew what hit him.
After my 26th move, the computer still has black ahead by about two pawns, but I could tell my opponent was beginning to sweat. He'd spent his turns sort of aimlessly trading knights and making weakening pawn moves. My offensive kinda hit him by surprise. It's never fun being attacked by a much lower rated player, especially one who feels they can go for broke and have nothing to lose.
(Black is still an exchange up but White is clearly having all the fun now.)
Here Black played 26. . .e5, and I realized my Bishop might find a way to get to the long diagonal and join the party on g7. The game continued: 27. dxe5 fxe5 28. Rf3 and here black made the decisive mistake, a panic move: Rg8. Allowing my bishop to go to e5! I wasn't going to let my chance slip away. 29. Bxe5 Rae8, 30. Qxh6# (thanks to the pin on g7!).
With my confidence soaring, I won my next game and then found myself in a highly tactical battle with Paul Gottlieb, rated 1620, on the final day of the tournament. I was playing black an opened with my favored French defense. After White's 27th move we reached the following position.
(Gottlieb v. Najera. Position after White's 27th move.)
I thought long and hard and was convinced I was a goner. My King is stuck because of that f6 pawn and soon white will crush me. Then, just before all hope was lost, I saw one move that I hadn't considered! 27. . . Rg2! Whoa! Does this actually work!? Yes, it sure does! And the computer verified after the game that it was the only move for Black to avoid destruction. The game continued 28. Kxg2 28.Bd5+ 29.Be4 29.Rxe4 30. Rxe4 30.Qxe3 and White is getting mated sooner than later.
I was so proud of my play in this tournament. My hard work was paying off and yes, I told myself, I will play again soon and see if I can keep improving. Almost a year later and that's still my last OTB event. At least I entered the pandemic on a high note!
—Manuel Najera, MCC Staff
Tate Steel 2021
The Tata Steel Chess Tournament (also known as the "Wimbledon of Chess," if you ask the British anyway) is taking place from January 16-31 as an over-the-board competition in Wijk ann Zee, Netherlands. The Dutch, apparently, will not be deterred by a pandemic! This is the 83rd edition of this event, which has been held every year since 1938 with the exception of 1945.
The Master's section of the tournament is played as a 14-player single round robin. Since 1946, the only World Champions who have not won this event at least once are Vasily Smyslov and another guy named Bobby Fischer, who was reportedly too busy playing in Washington Square to be bothered with attending (we joke! we joke!). Current World Champion Magnus Carlsen has won the event a record seven times; Vishy Anand is the only other player with five victories. Games are played with a time control of 100 minutes for 40 moves, followed by 50 minutes for the next 20 moves and 15 minutes for the rest of the game, with 30-second increments per move.
With three rounds to go, Anish Giri—who has moved up to world #7 in the live rankings thanks to his stellar play—sits in 1st place with a score of 7/10. Fabiano Caruana (world #2) and the young upstart Alireza Firouzja (17 years-old and already world #14!) sit only 1/2 point back. Following a rest day, Giri will face his archnemesis, Magnus Carlsen (trailing by a point and a half with 5.5/10) in the eleventh round and then the aforementioned Firouzja in the penultimate round—so a champion is far from being crowned and lots of drama remains.
You can follow the action live on all the major chess outlets: Chess.com, Chess24, & ChessBase are a few of our favorites.
New Tactics Class
Recently, while discussing the club's educational offerings, something occurred to us. Though we've purported to have classes covering all aspects of chess education there remained one gaping omission! What could that be, you ask? The club has classes for the young, classes for the old, classes on openings and classes on strategy, classes for beginners, masters, and everyone in between. Oh boy. . . We forgot about TACTICS!
Beginning on Tuesday, February 9th, and running continuously on Tuesdays thereafter, we are pleased to offer a new Tactics Class online. The class will be held from 7-8 pm each Tuesday and will be geared for players rated approximately 600-1200. Each week will provide students the chance to sharpen their tactical eye and develop their combinative thinking. If the class proves popular, and attracts players from a wide range of skill levels, we will offer a second, more advanced section at 8 pm each week too.
Long time Marshall member Harold Scott will instruct the class. Harold recently became the Head Coach at Avenues: The World School. He is also currently co-authoring his first book along with GM Joel Benjamin!
Students will be able to sign-up on a weekly basis on our registration page. The (modest) enrollment fee is $10/week for MCC Members.
We wish you well with your pins, skewers, discoveries, and forks!
Oscar Leonel Maldonado
It was with great sadness earlier this month that we learned of the passing of Oscar Leonel Maldonado. He was fifty-four. A National Master, Mr. Maldonado was a regular player at the Manhattan Chess Club and at the weekly "4 Rated Games" tournament throughout the 1990s, before he relocated to California. During that time he was a staple of the Greenwich Village chess scene in particular and met his wife, Yana, at the Chess Forum on Thompson Street. Our thoughts and prayers go out to his family, friends, and students.
Problem of the Week
F. Sackmann, 1913
In the given diagram, White to move and win.
Swap the positions of the white king and knight; white to move and win.
This is a twin study. Neither part is particularly difficult, though each has an unusual ending. But the endings are wonderfully related to one another, so that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.
[Solution to R. Reti’s 1928 study: 1.Kg6! h5, 2.Kxg7 h4, 3.Kxf6 Kb6 (if …h3 then 4.Ke6), 4.Ke5! – walking the tightrope! – and now if 4…KxP then 5.Kf4 and if 4…h3 then 5.Kd6.]
—Alexander George
The Marshall Chess Club
Address: 23 West Tenth Street New York NY 10011
Contact: 212.477.3716; td@marshallchessclub.org
Hours: M-F 1pm-Midnight; S/Su 9am-Midnight
