The Marshall Spectator
June 24, 2026
In This Issue:
From The Skittles Room
Games Analyzed, by GM Aleksandr Lenderman
Reflections on My Simul Win, by Woosung Lee
Chess Toons
En Passant
Problems, Problems, curated by Alexander George
Editor’s Note
Welcome back, fellow chess players, to this edition of the Marshall Chess Club’s fortnightly bulletin, The Marshall Spectator.
Last night we were joined by legendary chess author and nine-time Marshall Chess Club Champion, GM Andy Soltis. He gave a lecture on his newest book, Reveal Your Chess Style: Are you a Kasparov, a Carlsen, or a Fischer? The book is an intriguing collection of positions from real games, where a variety of possibilities are given in multiple choice format. It is rich, ready made material for chess lessons if you happen to be a teacher of the game, and if you’re a student of the game it is an enlightening look at different styles and the way in which chess positions sometimes have more than one “correct” way of playing.
The lecture was very well attended, with luminaries such as Bruce Pandolfini, problemist Andrew Kalotay, and current and former presidents Luka Glinsky and Marianna Belizzi in attendance among many others. If you were unable to attend, a full video of the lecture and presentation will be made available on our events replay page soon.
This last week, we were joined by Iron Man International Master Jay Bonin, who gave a lecture and signed copies of his book, Active Pieces: Practical Advice from America’s Most Relentless Tournament Player. Afterwards, he gave a simultaneous display to members in attendance. While his record was impressive, Woosung Lee managed to win a game against the IM during the simul and provides some analysis of his game later in this very issue.
Former club president, NM Sarathi Ray, recently took part in a hand and brain charity chess tournament, and his team made it to finals! You may enjoy the commentary by Maurice Ashley and Jennifer Shahade of his match. The finals start at 3:14 of the stream linked on this gofund me page dedicated to the cause of the event. If you are able to make a donation to this worthy cause, please take a moment to do so.
Summer is finally here, and with it our Summer Camps are back in action. We’re excited to share that this summer, GM Djurabek Khamrakulov will be onsite all summer long, as well as an additional GM for most weeks this summer! This means that the top two groups will receive GM instruction.
June 22, 23, 24, 25, 26 (GM Oliver Barbosa)
June 29, 30, Jul 1, 2, 3 (GM Andrei Maksimenko)
July 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 (GM Andrei Maksimenko)
July 13, 14, 15, 16, 17 (GM Andrei Maksimenko)
July 20, 21, 22, 23, 24 (GM Andrei Maksimenko)
July 27, 28, 29, 30, 31 (GM Andrei Maksimenko)
August 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 (GM Elshan Moradiabadi)
August 10, 11, 12, 13, 14 (GM Elshan Moradiabadi)
August 17, 18, 19, 20, 21
August 24, 25, 26, 27, 28
We are also excited to share some additional perks if you register multiple weeks in advance this summer:
2 weeks: 1 Marshall Chess Academy Shirt 2 weeks: 1 MCA hoodie 3 weeks: $50 tournament credit per week registered 4 weeks: 1 year club membership extension
Financial support will be available- please reach out directly to Kevin at kevinf@marshallchessclub.org
Also coming up we will be having the second Marshall Chess Academy Blitz Championship:
Date: June 28
Format: 9-SS, G/3 +2
Entry Fee: $100 (Members Only)
Eligibility & Discounts
GMs, IMs, and FMs: Free
Camp Attendees: $35
Contact: kevinf@marshallchessclub.org to register
Tournament Format
After the 9-round Swiss, the Top 4 players (by tiebreaks) qualify for playoffs.
Semifinals:
2 games, G/3 +2
If tied 1–1, additional games are played until a winner is decided.
Final & 3rd Place Match:
2 games, G/3 +2
If tied, continue playing until the first decisive result.
Schedule
Round 1: 1:30 PM Remaining rounds: ASAP Pizza & Soda Break: 4:00 PM Semifinals: 4:30 PM Finals: 5:15 PM Awards Ceremony: 6:00 PM
Prizes ($1,450 GTD)
1st Place: $600 + MCA Hoodie 2nd Place: $400 3rd Place: $200 4th Place: $100 U1900: $75 U1700: $75 Trophies to all playoff finishers
Additional Information
Pizza and soda provided at 4:00 PM Live commentary during the event Winner’s interview after the finals Maximum 3 byes (must request at entry) Registration closes 2 hours before the event starts
Marshall Chess Club Academy Blitz Championship U1500 — At Club!
Date: June 28
Format: 9-SS, G/3 +2
Entry Fee: $75 (Members Only)
Eligibility & Discounts
Camp Attendees: $25
Contact: kevinf@marshallchessclub.org to register
Schedule
Round 1: 1:30 PM Remaining rounds: ASAP Pizza & Soda Break: 4:00 PM Awards Ceremony: 4:15 PM
Prizes ($600 GTD)
1st Place: $200 + MCA Hoodie 2nd Place: $150 3rd Place: $100 U1000: $75 U600: $75 Trophies to all finishers
Additional Information
Pizza and soda provided at 4:00 PM Live commentary during the event Winner’s interview after the finals Maximum 3 byes (must request at entry) Registration closes 2 hours before the event starts
Looking ahead to this summer, we’re thrilled to announce our annual Super Swiss will once again be held at 23 West 10th Street.
The tournament will be held from July 15-19, 2026.
Prize Fund: $10,150, Norms possible!, Rating floor: 2000+ FIDE
Escalating entry fee: $550 Now through June 30th, $650 July 1st-12th, $750 July 13th-15th.
Registration is now live on our event webpage. You can register HERE.
Looking back over the last two weeks, we have had a plethora of events for our members to participate in.
The Morning Under 1600 on June 21 had 22 players registered and was won by Anderson Chen and Yidong Dennis Chen who scored a perfect 3 out of 3 to win $192.50 each.
The Rated Beginner Open on June 21 had 25 players registered and was won by Ryan Chen Justin Kulla, and Robert Allet who scored a perfect 3 out of 3 to win $96 each.
The Morning Masters on June 20 had 13 players and was won by FM Arun Dixit and GM Michael Rohde who scored 2.5 out of 3 to win $96.50 each.
The Under 2000 Morning Action on June 20 had 39 players and was won by Aaron Kudryavsky and Somario Blagrove who scored a perfect 3 out of 3 to win $233 each, while the following players shared in a class-prize winning $40 each for their 1 out of 3 score: Reid Kipp Parker, Edison Kean Chen, Vasu P Varun, Rian Dubey, and Sarvesh Sakthivel.
The Juneteenth Action on June 19 had 41 players registered and was won by FM Justin Chen who scored 5.5 out of 6 to win the $334 first-place prize. GM Michael Rohde scored 5 out of 6 to win $200, and FM Arun Dixit scored 4.5 out of 6 to win $67. NM Elliott Goodrich scored 4.5 out of 6 to win a class-prize of $134. The following players scored 4 out of 6 to win $26.80: Alec Hyunmook Choi, Max Asher Friedman, Maximilian Mills-Wren, Viaan Suthar, and Farirai Gumbe. Finally, Travis Hentry-Reid and Nathan Lewinger scored 3.5 out of 6 to win $67 each as a class prize.
The FIDE Friday Rapid on June 19 had 17 players registered and was won by Rishith Bhoopathi who scored a near-perfect 3.5 out of 4 to win the $100 first-place prize. FM Linxi Zhu, IM Justin Sarkar, and Forest J Sherwood scored 3 out of 4 to win $16.67 each, while Leon Shevelenko won a $25 class prize for the same score. Jose De Villa and Shiva Deepak scored 2 out of 4 to win $25 each, while Garbiel Gaidamour won a $25 class-prize for his 1 out of 4 performance.
The Thursday Action on June 18 had 35 players registered and was won by the three IM’s, IM Tanitoluwa Adewumi, IM Alexander Katz, and IM Jay Bonin who scored a near-perfect 3.5 out of 4 to win $129.33 each. Daniel Yassky, Moshe Blank, and Arhan Javeri scored 3 out of 4 to win $30 each, while the following players won $22.50 each for their 2 out of 4 score: Najee-Ana Carmel Walthrust, Rohit Jagga, Aileen Lou, and Aziz Abdijalilov. Nathan Lewinger won the Upset prize.
The Thursday Open on June 18 had 27 players registered and was won by Oliver Chernin and Quan Anh Le who scored 4.5 out of 6 to win $217 each, while the following players won $21.75 each for their 4 out of 6 score: Aleksandr Gutnik, Nathan Peyton, George Berg, and Brian Gilbert. Ben Davar and Joshua Shou scored 2.5 out of 6 to share in a class-prize winning $65.50 each.
The Marshall Masters on June 16 had 21 players registered and was won by IM Alexander Katz and Luc Hoffman who scored a near-perfect 3.5 out of 4 to win $225 each. IM Tanitoluwa Adewumi and Richard Yi won $42 each for their 3 out of 4 score, while Luis Ulloa and Wan Qin Li won $33.50 each for their 2.5 out of 4 score.
The Morning Under 1600 on June 14 had 26 players registered and was won by Jacky Weng and Eduard Sluzhevsky who scored 3 out of 3 to win $219 each.
The Rated Beginner Open on June 14 had 28 players registered and was won by Ben Bar and Marcus Massiah who scored 3 out of 3 to win $169 each.
The FIDE Premier Open on June 14 had 55 players registered and was won by GM David Brodksy who scored a near-perfect 4.5 out of 5 to win the $1000 first-place prize, while IM Josiah Stearman, FM Danila Poliannikov, and FM Aditeya Das won $250 each for their 4 out of 5 score. Finally, CM Rachel Miller and Yegna Sairam Jandhyala shared in the remaining prize funds winning $125 each for their 3.5 out of 5 score.
The FIDE Premier Under 2000 on June 14 had 50 players registered and was won by Ciprian Solomon, who scored a near-perfect 4.5 out of 5 to win the $834 first-place prize. Hillel Doron-Repa and Kimani Thompson tied for the remaining prize funds, winning $292 each for their 4 out of 5 score.
The Under 2000 Morning Action on June 13 had 36 players registered and was won by Aaron Kudryavsky, Alexander Hrithik Soll, and Holden Wen who scored 3 out of 3 to win $147 each, while Max Debenedittis and Edison Kean Chen scored 2 out of 3 to win $94.50 each.
The Morning Masters on June 13 had 9 players registered and was won by GM Mackenzie Molner who scored a near-perfect 2.5 out of 3 to win the $70 first-place prize, while Akhil Velampalli scored 2 out of 3 to win $52.50.
The Afternoon Action on June 12 had 14 players registered and was won by Sasha Arthur Kagle who scored 3 out of 3 to win the $105 first-place prize. Harshil Jagga scored a near-perfect 2.5 out of 3 to win the $70 second-place prize.
The Friday FIDE Rapid on June 12 had 22 players registered and was won by Alisher Podavonov, Rishith Bhoopathi, and Thomas Y Li who scored 3.5 out of 4 to win $64.17 each. Matthew Shirvell and Travis Henry-Reid won $27.50 each for their 3 out of 4 score, while Jeffrey Ho also won a $27.50 class-prize for this 2 out of 4 performance.
The Thursday Action on June 11 had 41 players registered and was won by IM Tanitoluwa Adewumi and Luc Hoffman who scored a perfect 4 out of 4 to win $175 each, while Richard Ye won $105 for his 3.5 out of 4 score. Farirai Gumbe won a $105 class-prize for his 3 out of 4 performance, while Ethan J Klein and Arhan Javeri won $52.50 each for their 3 out of 4 performance.
The Monday Under 1800 that concluded on June 8 had 33 players registered and was won by Sean Pagaduan and Micahel A Shea who scored 5 out of 6 to win $192.50 each. Nathaniel Neveu won a $110 class prize for his 4 out of 6 performance, while the following players won $27.50 each for the same score: Gary Chan, Michael Bamford, Christopher P Alferd, and Nicolas Lemercier. The following players shared in the remaining prize funds, splitting a class prize to win $18.33 each for their 3 out of 6 score: Patrice Bericourt, Dane A Jackson, and Alexander Hunter Amaral.
The FIDE Monday Open that concluded on June 8 had 27 players registered and was won by Luc Hoffman who scored 5.5 out of 6 to win $260, while IM Jay Bonin, Nkosi Nkululeko, and Aleksandr Gutnik won $87 each for their 4 out of 6 score. Stephen Hrop and Andrew Colwell shared in the remaining prize funds, winning $65.50 each for their 3.5 score.
We look forward to seeing you at the club soon!
Games Analyzed, by GM Lenderman
One of the things that stood out to me in this month’s edition of the Marshall Premier is the amount of positional sacrifices that happened. Aditeya (Adi) Das, who tied for second in the tournament, and was leading at some point with 4/4, had two very interesting such sacs in the tournament, including against one of the pre-tournament favorites, Tani.
You can play through the games with analysis here.
GAME 1, Round 3: Ma, Jin - Das, Aditeya
1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 6. Bd3 e5 7. Nde2 Be7 8. O-O O-O 9. Ng3 Re8 10. Re1 b5 11. Bg5 h6 12. Bxf6 Bxf6 13. Nd5 (13. a4) 13… Bb7 14. Nf5 (14. Nxf6+ Qxf6 15. a4)
14... Bg5 15. a4 bxa4 16. c4 g6 17. Nfe3 Bc6 18. Bc2 Nd7 19. Bxa4 Bxa4 20. Qxa4 Nc5 21. Qc2 a5 22. b4
After a bit of a difficult opening, Black has an important choice to make. To retreat the knight or play the principled exchange sac. Adi chose correctly here, leading to an interesting unbalanced position, which he ended up eventually winning.
22... Bxe3! (22... Ne6? Instead, this seemingly logical move would give White a large advantage after 23. b5)
23. fxe3 axb4! 24. Rxa8 Qxa8 Obviously, Adi saw that he’s losing an exchange to a tactic, but still, correctly evaluated the compensation he has thanks to a strong passed pawn supported by a very strong knight and White’s king being not super safe in the long run. Also, Black’s pawn structure is better (thanks to White’s doubled pawns). Interestingly, in his last round game that he lost to GM Brodsky for first place, Adi made the mistake of allowing a similar structure.
25. Nf6+ Kf8 26. Nxe8 Kxe8 White has sufficient compensation, but Black eventually won this.
27. Qd2 Ke7 28. Rd1 Qb8 29. Qf2 f6 30. Rf1 Qf8 31. Qa2 Qc8 32. Qa7+ Nd7 33. Qa2 Qb7 34. Qd2 b3 35. Qd5 Qb6 36. Kf2 b2 37. Qb5 Qa7 38. Qxb2 Nc5 39. Ke2 Qa4 40. Rc1 Qa8 41. Qb6 Nxe4 42. Qc7+ Ke6 43. Rc2 Nc5 44. Kf2 Kf5 45. h3 Qe4 46. Re2 Qxc4 47. Qg7 h5 48. Kf3 h4 49. Qh8 Kg5 50. g3 Qe4+ 51. Kf2 Nd3+ 52. Kg1 hxg3 53. Qc8 Nf2 54. Rxf2 gxf2+ 55. Kxf2 Qf5+ 0-1 Black wins. 0-1
GAME 2, Round 4: Adewumi, Tanitoluwa - Das, Aditeya
1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. Bb5+ Nd7 4. a4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 6. Be2 e5 7. Bc4 Be7 8. d3 O-O 9. h3 Nb6 10. Ba2 Be6 11. Bxe6?! Inaccuracy. a5 was best.
11…fxe6 12. a5 Nc8 13. Ne2 h6 14. Ng3 Na7 15. c3 Nc6 16. Qb3 Qd7 17. Ra4 d5 18. O-O Rac8 19. Re1 Qc7 20. Qa2?! Inaccuracy. exd5 was best.
20… Rf7 21. Bd2 Rd8 22. Qa1 Bf8 23. Qa2 Kh8 24. Be3 Qc8 25. Qb1 d4 26. Bd2 Kh7 27. Qc2 Qc7 28. cxd4?! Inaccuracy. Rea1 was best.
28… exd4 29. Qc4 Re8 30. Qc1 Bd6 31. Nf1?! Inaccuracy. e5 was best. 31…Nh5? Mistake. Nd7 was best.
32. Qd1 Nf4 33. Bxf4 Bxf4 34. Qe2 Ref8 35. e5 Kg8 36. Qe4 Rf5?! Inaccuracy. Bg5 was best.
37. Ng3 Bxg3 38. fxg3 Nxa5 39. b4 Nb3 40. Qe2 cxb4 41. Rxb4 Qc3 42. Rxb7? Mistake. Rc4 was best. 42… Nc1 43. Qd1? Mistake. Qd2 was best. 43... Nxd3 44. Re2 Nc5 45. Rc7? Mistake. Rb1 was best. 45... d3? Mistake. Rxf3 was best. (45... Rxf3!) 46. Qe1? Mistake. Rd2 was best.
Up to here, Adi is playing a great game and built up a winning position against the rating favorite, Tani Adewumi. However, Tani is very resourceful, and it is very important to play precisely, especially in winning positions. Aditeya found a very good route to convert the position with a nice positional exchange sac.
46… Rxf3 47. gxf3 Qd4+ 48. Rf2 Rxf3 49. Kg2 Re3! A very important move. Without this move it would be unclear. Now, Black is totally dominating.
50. Qb1 Rxg3+ 51. Kxg3 Qxe5+ 52. Kf3 Qxc7 53. Qb4 Qe5 Black converted nicely from here, setting himself up for a showdown for first place with GM Brodsky.
54. Qf4 Qd5+ 55. Ke3 a5 56. Qd4?! Inaccuracy. h4 was best.
56… Qxd4+ 57. Kxd4 d2 58. Rf1 Nb3+ 59. Kc3 a4 60. Kc2 e5 61. Rb1? Mistake. Rg1 was best.
61…e4 62. Kd1 e3 63. Ke2 Kh7 64. h4 Kg6 65. Rg1+ Kh5 66. Rb1 Kxh4 67. Rh1+ Kg5 68. Rg1+ Kf6 69. Rf1+ Kg6 70. Rg1+ Kh7 71. Rb1 h5 72. Kd1 Kh6 73. Rb2 h4 74. Rb1 g5 75. Ke2 Kh5 76. Kd1 h3 77. Ke2 g4 78. Kd1?! Checkmate is now unavoidable. Rf1 was best.
78…h2 79. Ke2 Nc1+ 80. Rxc1 dxc1=Q 81. Kd3 h1=Q 82. Kd4 e2 0-1 Black wins. 0-1
GAME 3, Round 5: Das, Aditeya - Brodsky, David
This was the aforementioned game for first place where Adi had 4/4 and Brodsky had 3.5/4 after giving up a draw to NM Anthony Levin in round 2 after Anthony’s very stubborn defense in the endgame. In this game for first place in the last round, Adi made a critical error allowing a bad pawn structure, which caused him to lose in the endgame. Sometimes what goes around comes around.
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. c3 d6 9. h3 Nb8 10. d4 Nbd7 11. a4 Bb7 12. Nbd2 c5 13. Bc2 Qc7 14. d5 c4 15. Nf1 Nc5 16. Ng3 Rfb8 17. Be3 Bc8 18. Nd2 Nfd7?! Inaccuracy. g6 was best.
19. Qe2?! Inaccuracy. Nf5 was best.
19…g6 20. Ra2 Nb6 21. a5 Nbd7 22. Bh6 Qd8 23. Nf3 Bf8 24. Bg5 f6 25. Be3 Bg7 26. Nd2 Qf8 27. Rf1 Bh6 28. Bxh6 Qxh6
This position is around equal, and several moves maintain rough equality, but White made a bad decision here, which caused him to have a very difficult endgame.
29. Qe3?! Inaccuracy. b4 was best. (29. b4 cxb3 30. Bxb3) (29. b3) 29... Qxe3 30. fxe3 Kg7 Black eventually won a very nice technical endgame to get first place.
31. Ne2 h5 32. Raa1 Nf8 33. Nc1 Bd7 34. Na2 Nh7 35. Nb4 Ng5 36. h4 Nf7 37. Rf3 Nh6 38. Nf1 Rf8 39. Ng3 Rf7 40. Raf1 Nb7 41. Ra1 Nc5 42. Raf1 Ng4 43. Re1 Raf8 44. Ref1 Nh6 45. R3f2 Bg4 46. Re1 g5 47. Nf5+ Bxf5 48. exf5 Ng4 49. Rf3 e4 50. Rh3 Ne5 51. Rf1?! Inaccuracy. Rb1 was best.
51… g4 52. Rh1 Re8 53. Rb1 Ned3 54. Nc6 Rb7 55. b4 Nd7 56. Kh2 Nb8 57. Nd4 Re5 58. Kg3?! Inaccuracy. g3 was best.
58… Rxd5 59. Rhf1 Re5 60. Bd1?! Inaccuracy. Rf4 was best.
60… Kh6 61. Be2 Rc7 62. Rbd1 Nc6 63. Nxc6 Rxc6 64. Rd2 Rc7 65. Rf4 Rce7 66. Rd1 Rd5 67. Rff1 Ree5 68. Bxd3?! Inaccuracy. Rb1 was best.
68… exd3 69. Rfe1 Re4 70. Rd2 Rde5 0-1 Black wins. 0-1
GAME 4, Round 2: Yi, Richard - Stearman, Josiah
This is a nice game by GM-elect Josiah, who ended up sharing 2nd in this event. This game illustrates the power of strong positional sacrifices in the Kings Indian when opponent’s king isn’t castled yet.
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. Be2 O-O 6. Be3 Nc6 7. d5 Ne5 8. Rc1 e6 9. f4 Ned7 10. dxe6 fxe6 Up to here, White plays the opening well but then, makes an instructive error allowing a strong dynamic idea to Black.
11. g4?! Inaccuracy. Nh3 was best.
(11. Nh3! Is the main line in the position where White has an advantage and good results. (11. Nf3?! The more natural move allows a strong Ng4. 11... Ng4! 12. Bd2 Nc5)
11... b5! A very nice dynamic idea. It is important to not let white play g5 followed by h4 comfortably since then, white would have a free attack.
12. g5 b4 (12... Nh5!? 13. Bxh5 b4 Was also interesting.)
13. gxf6 Nxf6 14. Na4 Nxe4 (14... e5!?)
15. Bf3? Mistake. Nf3 was best. (15. Nf3 When in doubt, better to develop.)
15... Bb7 16. Qc2?? Blunder. h4 was best.
16…Qh4+! White made several non-obvious errors and Black is already winning.
17. Ke2?! Inaccuracy. Kd1 was best.
17... Rxf4! Another strong positional sac. Now, black will be down a rook for a few pawns, but white’s position is a wreck since their king isn’t safe and their pieces are uncoordinated.
18. Bxf4 Qxf4 19. Rf1 Bh6 20. Kd1?! Inaccuracy. Bg2 was best.
20…Nd2 21. Qd3 Nxf3 22. Nxf3 Bxf3+ 23. Rxf3 (23. Qxf3 Qd2#)
23... Qc1+ 24. Ke2 Qxh1 Black gets back all the material and their attack continues.
25. Qe4 Qxh2+ 26. Kf1 Re8 27. Qc6 Rf8 28. Rxf8+ Kxf8 29. Qxc7 Be3 30. Qc8+ Kg7 31. Qb7+ Kf6 0-1 Black wins. 0-1
GAME 5, Round 1: Paruchuri, Naveen - Brodsky, David
Finally, we have a game by our tournament winner this month, GM David Brodsky where he illustrates a very nice concept on the Black side of the Kings Indian.
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nf3 Bg7 4. g3 O-O 5. Bg2 d6 6. O-O Nbd7 7. Nc3 e5 8. e4 exd4 9. Nxd4 Re8 10. h3 Nc5 11. Re1 h6 12. f4 c6 13. Kh2 a5 14. Nb3 Nxb3 15. Qxb3? Mistake. axb3 was best.
Allowing a very powerful positional pawn sac. (15. axb3 Kept a slight advantage for White due to their space.)
15... a4! Suddenly, White’s pieces get uncoordinated and Black’s pieces spring into life.
16. Nxa4 Be6?! Inaccuracy. Qa5 was best. (16... Qa5 17. Nc3 Qh5 Was even stronger.) 17. Nb6 (17. Nc3 Might’ve been safer.)
17... Ra5! It turned out that Ra5 was a multi-purposeful move. The ideas were to 1) move the rook away, 2) aim for Rh5, and 3) the most important point: threaten Rb5 winning a piece. Here, White likely, saw the first two points of the move, but missed the the most important point. For this reason, it is very important to always ask ourselves the question: What are ALL the things our opponent’s move does, with the emphasis on the word “ALL”.
18. Bf3?? Blunder. a4 was best. (18. a4 Was the only move not to lose immediately. 18... Rh5 19. Be3 Ng4+ 20. Kg1 Nxe3 21. Qxe3 Bxb2 Where Black is doing well but white is very much in the game and maybe not even worse.)
18... Rb5 From here on, Black wins the piece and wins easily.
19. Qe3 Rxb6 20. Rd1?! Inaccuracy. Qf2 was best.
20... Bxc4 21. b3 Bd5 22. exd5 Rxe3 23. Bxe3 Nxd5 24. Bxb6 Qxb6 25. Rac1 Qf2+ 26. Bg2 Ne3 27. Rg1 Nf5 0-1 Black wins. 0-1
GAME 6, Round 1: Poliannikov, Danila - Jayden Li
Danila was able to also share 2nd-4th with Adi and Josiah. I liked his wins, though, I found his first round draw (from which he was able to bounce back) the most instructive, first due to an interesting pawn sac by black, and then, because of an interesting rook endgame.
1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nd2 c5 4. exd5 exd5 5. Ngf3 Nc6 6. Be2 Bd6 7. dxc5 Bxc5 8. O-O Nf6 9. Nb3 Bb6 10. h3 Ne4 11. c3 O-O 12. Nfd4 Bc7 13. Bg4?! Inaccuracy. Be3 was best.
13... Qd6 14. f4 Bxg4 15. Qxg4 Bb6 16. Be3 h5 17. Qf3 Nxd4 18. Nxd4 Bxd4?! Inaccuracy. Rfe8 was best.
19. Bxd4 Qg6 20. f5 Qg5 21. Be3 Qg3 22. Qxg3 Nxg3 23. Rf3 Ne4 24. Rd1 Rad8 25. Bf4 g5!? I’d like to believe this was a pawn sac, and not a blunder.
26. Bxg5 Nxg5 27. Rg3 Kh7 28. Rxg5 Kh6 29. Rg3 Rfe8! Now, Black has good compensation for the pawn, thanks to their piece activity. Black has good drawing chances now.
30. Rgd3 Re5 (30... Re2)
31. Kf2?! Inaccuracy. a4 was best. 31… Rxf5+ 32. Rf3 Kg6 33. Rxf5 Kxf5 34. Rd4 b5 35. Kf3 Kg5 36. b3 Rc8? Mistake. Rd6 was best.
37. Rxd5+ f5 38. Rd3 h4 39. g3? Mistake. c4 was best.
39… hxg3 40. Kxg3 a5 41. h4+ Kf6 42. Kf4 Rh8 43. Rd6+ Ke7 44. Rd5 Rxh4+ 45. Kg3 Rg4+ 46. Kf3 b4 47. Rxf5 Rh4 48. Rxa5
Now, we reach a critical point in the rook endgame.
48... Rh3+?? Blunder. bxc3 was best. (48... bxc3 Was necessary to draw. 49. Rc5 Rh2 50. a4 Kd6 51. Rc4 c2)
49. Ke4 bxc3 50. Rc5?? Blunder. Kd4 was best. (50. Kd4 Would win for white since now, black won’t be able to create counterplay on a2 in the same way as in the game continuation. 50... c2 51. Re5+! (51. Rc5? Perhaps White only considered this, which draws. 51... Rh2 52. Kd3 c1=Q 53. Rxc1 Rxa2) 51... Kd6 52. Re1)
50... Rh2 51. a4 Rh3 52. Kd4 c2 53. Rxc2 Rxb3 54. Kc4 Rb7 55. Rd2 Rd7 56. Rb2 Kd8 57. a5 Ra7 58. Ra2 Kc8 59. Kb5 Kb8 60. Re2 Rh7 1/2-1/2
GAME 7, Round 1: Pranav Prasanna - Yi, Richard
This round 1 game didn’t have a strong impact on the final tournament standings, but had an instructive missed opportunity by the lower-rated player, Pranav.
1. e4 g6 2. d4 Bg7 3. Nf3 d6 4. Bc4 Nf6 5. Nc3 O-O 6. O-O Nxe4 7. Nxe4 d5 8. Bd3 dxe4 9. Bxe4 Nd7 10. c3 c6 (10... c5) 11. Bg5 Nf6 12. Bc2 Be6 (12... Qb6)
13. Re1 Re8? Mistake. Bg4 was best.
14. Bb3? Mistake. Rxe6 was best. White is just trying to trade off, but while doing that, they miss a golden opportunity of a strong exchange sac. (14. Rxe6 fxe6 15. Qe2 After this thematic exchange sac, White’s pieces become incredibly active, Black’s king becomes chronically weak, and the engine already gives White a decisive advantage!)
14… Bd5 15. Bc2 Qb6 Black has equalized and eventually the higher-rated player prevailed in the endgame. This is an instructive game in a sense that if you are a lower-rated player playing a higher-rated player, it is important to take advantage of your dynamic chances that your higher-rated player might give you given that they might be taking some risks to try to play for a win early on.
16. Bb3 Rad8 17. Nd2 Qc7 18. Bh4 Nh5 19. Bxd5 Rxd5 20. Qc2 c5 21. dxc5 Qxc5 22. Ne4 Qc6 23. f3 f5 24. Nd2?! Inaccuracy. Nf2 was best.
24… Nf4 25. Nb3 e5 26. Rad1 Rxd1 27. Qxd1 e4 28. Nd4 Qd5 29. fxe4 fxe4 30. Qb3?! Inaccuracy. Qa4 was best.
30… Bxd4+ 31. cxd4 Qxb3 32. axb3 e3 33. Bg5 Nd5 34. g3 Re6?! Inaccuracy. Kg7 was best.
35. Kg2 Rb6 36. Bxe3 Rxb3 37. Bc1 Kf7 38. Re5 Ne7 39. Re3 Rxe3 40. Bxe3 Nf5 41. Bf2 a5 42. Kf3 Ke6 43. Ke4 Nd6+ 44. Kd3 Kd5 45. g4? Mistake. Be1 was best.
45... a4 46. h4?! Inaccuracy. Bh4 was best.
46…b5 47. Be1 Nc4 48. Kc3 Ne3 49. h5?! Inaccuracy. Bd2 was best.
49…Ke4 50. hxg6 hxg6 51. Bd2 Nd5+ 52. Kc2 Kxd4 53. Bh6 Kc4 54. g5 Kd4 55. Bg7+ Ke4?! Inaccuracy. Ke3 was best.
56. b3? Mistake. Bf8 was best.
56… a3 57. b4 Ne3+ 58. Kb3 Nc4 59. Bf6 Kf5 60. Be7 Nd2+?? Blunder. Kf4 was best.
61. Kxa3 Ne4 62. Kb3 Nxg5 63. Kc3 Ne6 64. Kd3 Kf4 65. Bd6+?? Blunder. Ke2 was best.
65…Kf3 66. Be7 g5 67. Bc5?! Inaccuracy. Bd6 was best.
68… g4 68. Bg1 Nf4+ 69. Kd2 g3 70. Bb6 g2 71. Ba7 Nh3 72. Ke1?! Checkmate is now unavoidable. Kd3 was best.
72… g1=Q+ 73. Bxg1 Nxg1 74. Kd2 Ke4 75. Kc3 Nf3 0-1 Black wins. 0-1
GAME 8, Round 3: Goodrich, Elliott - Kevin Stern
This fairly locked game also caught my attention in that it is very important to always stay vigilant even in a closed game where it seems like nothing can every happen.
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Nf6 4. d3 h6 5. c3 Bc5 6. O-O d6 7. Be3 Bb6 8. Nbd2 O-O 9. Re1 Be6 10. Bb3 Bxe3 11. fxe3 Bxb3 12. Qxb3 b6 13. d4 Re8 14. Rad1 Qd7 15. Qc2 Rad8 16. b4 a6 17. a3 Qg4 18. c4 Nb8 19. Kf2 c5 20. h3 Qc8 21. d5 Nbd7 22. b5 a5 23. g4 Nf8 24. Ke2 N8h7 25. Rh1 Kf8 26. Rdg1 Ke7 27. Kd1 g6 28. Kc1 Kd7 29. Rf1 Kc7 30. Rf2 Re7 31. Qd3 Qd7 32. Kb2 Rf8 33. Qf1 Ree8 34. Rg1 Qe7 35. Ne1 Nd7 36. Rg3 f6 37. Ng2 Qg7 38. h4 Re7 39. h5 g5 40. Rgf3 (40. Rf5 If white plays this, White never risks losing, of course, but not playing this allowed an unexpected idea for Black.)
40... Ref7 41. Kb1 Kb7 42. Qd1
42… f5! Black sacs a pawn to spring his pieces to life.
43. Rxf5 Rxf5 44. Rxf5 Rxf5 45. exf5 Nhf6? A missed opportunity for Black, allowing the position to get locked again after e4. However, instead, Black had a way to get an advantage. (45... e4!! A double pawn sac! Now, White is suddenly in huge trouble. 46. Nxe4 Qe5! 47. Qd3 Nhf6 48. Nxf6 Nxf6 Despite White being up two pawns, their position collapses due to poor harmony. 49. Qe2 Qe4+)
46. e4 Qe7 47. Ne3 Nf8 48. Kc2 Kc7 49. Kd3 Kb7 50. Ke2 N8d7 51. Kf3 Qe8 52. Kg3 Qd8 53. Qe2 Qc7 54. Nd1 Qd8 55. Nf2 Qe7 56. Nh3 Nf8 57. Qe1 N8h7 58. Nb3 Qd8 59. Qe2 Qe8 60. Nf2 Nf8 61. Nd3 N8d7 62. Nf2 1/2-1/2
GAME 9, Round 5: Paruchuri, Naveen - Levin, Anthony
This game also didn’t have a big tournament impact but it still caught my attention for a very instructive pawn endgame.
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nf3 Bg7 4. g3 c6 5. Bg2 d5 6. cxd5 cxd5 7. O-O O-O 8. Ne5 Bf5 9. Nc3 Nc6 10. Nxc6 bxc6 11. Bf4 Ne4 12. Nxe4 Bxe4 13. Bxe4 dxe4 14. Rc1 Qd5 15. Qa4 Qxd4 16. Qxd4 Bxd4 17. b3 Rac8 18. Rc4 Rfd8 19. Rfc1 f5 20. Rxc6 Rxc6 21. Rxc6 Bb6 22. Kg2 Kf7 23. b4 Rd4 24. a3 Ke8 25. Be3 Rd6?? Blunder. Rd8 was best.
26. Rxd6 exd6 27. Bxb6 axb6 28. a4 Kd7?! Inaccuracy. g5 was best. 29. g4 f4?! Inaccuracy. fxg4 was best. 30. g5 d5 31. e3 Kc6 32. exf4 (32. h4 Might’ve been simpler.) 32... d4 33. Kf1 Kd5 34. h4 (34. Ke2 Kc4 35. a5 Is probably simpler.) 34... Kc4
35. a5?? Blunder. Ke1 was best. Probably, Naveen made a similar thought process error as in the first game against GM Brodsky (not considering ALL of ideas of opponent’s last move) where he only might’ve considered Black going after the white pawns, but missed the other big point of Kc4, which is to try to go Kc3. (35. Ke1 Kxb4 36. f5 gxf5 37. h5 Would win easily.) (35. Ke2 Would be similar. 35... Kc3 36. Kd1 Would be the same idea, disarming Black’s pawns.)
35... bxa5 36. bxa5 Kc3! A cold shower. Now Black draws by force.
37. a6 (37. Ke1?? Would now even lose due to } 37... Kc2)
37... d3 38. a7 d2 39. a8=Q d1=Q+ 40. Kg2 Qg4+ 41. Kf1 Qd1+ 1/2-1/2
GM Aleksandr Lenderman, Marshall Spectator Contributor
Reflections on My Simul Win, by Woosung Lee
In last week’s lecture and Simul with Legendary Iron Man IM Jay Bonin, there was a visiting player who managed to win a thrilling game against the former club champion. I was lucky enough to have a chance to chat with him and ask Woosung a few questions about his performance in the event.
1) Could you tell us a little bit about your background as a chess player, who you are, and how you first got started?
Hi! I am Woosung Lee, a chess fanatic and rising high school senior from Korea, and I visited New York City this summer to play chess and experience the historic Marshall Chess Club. I recently became a member of the club and was able to drop by multiple times throughout my trip during Chess.com founder and IM Danny Rensch's book signing, one of the daily USCF-rated tournaments, and IM Jay Bonin's lecture and simul. I have truly enjoyed every moment I have spent at the club, which I believe is not just a hub fostering great chess playing but also a social club where passionate players come together.
2) How long have you been playing and studying chess?
I have been studying and playing chess for roughly 11 years now, but with a significant gap in between from my 4th to 6th grade years (right before COVID). I was always very strategic growing up, and I loved patterns. I drew mazes in my free time and loved the problem-solving and intuition that came with math, so chess was only a natural connection for me. I started in 1st grade and did decently in my age group until I temporarily stopped playing in 4th grade. I found myself with nothing to do during the pandemic, like many others, and turned to chess once more, playing thousands of games and analyzing them on chess.com. I fell back in love with chess and, for the first time, understood the game beyond tactics—diving deeper into positional mechanics and theory.
Here are some of my chess accolades:
- Korea National Team Qualifier & Representative at World Youth Championship in Montesilvano: 1st in U16, 2nd overall; represented Korea at the World Youth Championship with a 2000 performance rating.
- Korea National Selection Champion, U16
- Korea National Selection Champion, U16–18: Scored 6.5/7 with a 2180 performance rating.
- Top 0.1% Chess.com rating: 2518 blitz rating
- Top 25 player in Korea (peak FIDE)
3) What was your impression of the Simul? Do you have any advice for players who might play a Simul in the future?
The simul with IM Jay Bonin was a great experience: it was an honor to be able to play the Ironman himself. He opened with Nf3 (the Reti) against me, which quickly transposed into the Ragozin variation, where he played the aggressive Qa4+ followed by Bg5, pinning both of my knights early. However, I played a very solid opening game early, where I was able to lash out with a counterattack on the kingside and the dark-squared bishop due to his premature aggression. Soon, his kingside became very weak, and I was able to capitalize on the weaknesses and attack his king with my pieces to win the game. As is with any simul, Jay was making his moves very quickly while walking around and playing other games at the same time, so he probably was not playing at his peak performance, but I was very happy with the way I played the game nonetheless.
I think in simul games you should always play confidently and aggressively, because the opponent often doesn't have much time to calculate all the variations on their end.
4) What is your next big goal as a chess player?
As a chess player, I wish to continue playing actively in college and hopefully receive an over-the-board title soon. I would also love to represent my country again if given the opportunity. I had a great time at the Marshall, and it furthered my commitment and passion for the game even more.
Woosung Lee, Marshall Chess Club Visitor
Chess Toons
En Passant
Historic rating drop: Four straight losses cut Carlsen’s rapid rating to 2803, his lowest since FIDE introduced the format in 2012.
Dragon Chilling complete golden double at the FIDE World Team Blitz Championship.
The winner of the U.S. Senior Open was GM Nick De Firmian, who qualified for the 2027 U.S. Senior Championship. He took clear first with a 5/6 score. The U.S. Junior Open had two players tie for first with 5/6 scores: Pennsylvania’s IM Evan Park and New York’s FM Aditeya Das.
Problems, Problems, curated by Alexander George
Gleb Zakhodyakin, 1979
White to move and draw.
Karl Marx said of history that it repeats itself, "the first time as tragedy, the second time as farce." He forgot to add that the third, fourth, ... and nth times as satisfying beauty. At least when it comes to chess problems.
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Solution to last issue’s problem (Arthur Mackenzie, 1900):
White to move and win.
1.Bxc3+ Kxc3 2.h7 a1=Q 3.h8=B+ (3.h8=Q+ Kd2 4.Qxa1 And stalemate!) 3…Kd2 4.Bxa1 and wins.
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Alexander George
Editor’s Note
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Enjoy, and thanks for reading!
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