The Marshall Spectator
May 28, 2025
In This Issue: From The Skittles Room Endgame Corner, by IM Silas Esben Lund SuperNationals Games Annotated, by K-5 National Champion Sasha Milo Schaefer 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.
The Memorial Day Marshall Invitational this weekend was a huge success. The event was a 9 round, FIDE Rated Round Robin Norm tournament powered by NYC Chess Norms. Congratulations to all of the players who came together to make this such a special event, and we look forward to the next one in July. All of the games from the tournament can be seen here. The editorial board of The Marshall Spectator would like to congratulate Liam Putnam on his phenomenal performance, scoring 7 out of 9 in the GM A group, and earning a GM norm in the process.
During the event, Eric Hansen visited the club for the first time ever and even played a few friendly blitz games with one of the tournament participants, Paul Iinuma.
Looking ahead on the calendar, we are thrilled to announce an upcoming Chess 960 tournament on June 6, featuring our club champion IM Mykola Bortnyk as well as GM Andrew Tang. There will be prizes for top scorers as well as 4 class categories to offer chances to win something for everyone on the wall chart.
Looking further ahead on the calendar, we will once again be hosting some of the best chess camp programming in New York City at our centrally located, West Village townhouse at 23 West 10th Street.
Last call for Summer Camps! As a reminder, here are our upcoming camp sessions: June 5, June 6
Summer Camps officially start on June 16! Thanks to the Tournament and Membership Committees, we are excited to share that for kids who register for multiple weeks of camps, we will have special prizes! See below:
2 weeks: Marshall Chess Academy T-shirt
3 weeks: MCC Tournament Credit into select tournaments
4 weeks: A complimentary yearly scholastic Marshall Chess Club Membership
Although we are still finalizing our guest list for August (we are trying to get a World Class player to New York!), we can assure you that GMs Mark Paragua, Oliver Barbosa, and GM Alexander Shabalov will be at our camps this summer! This will be in addition to special guests who will pop up at the camp on various days such as GM Andrew Tang and club champion IM Mykola Bortnyk!
A detailed email of schedule (including an extended day and breakfast!) and logistics will be shared with you all in the next few days. Our discounted prices will end this weekend on Sunday- make sure to purchase the camp dates before the deal ends!
We know that the entry fee for several weeks of camp can be a financial challenge for you- now that camp logistics are more or less settled- you can email Kevin at kevinf@marshallchessclub.org and he will do his best to work with you on this.
Looking back over the last two weeks, we have had a plethora of events for our members to participate in.
The Marshall Masters on May 20 had 18 players registered and was won by Nikita Meshkovs, IM Nico Chasin, and Nathaniel Mullodzhanov who scored 3.5 out of 4 to win $105.33 each, while Johsua Block won $57 class prize for a 3 out of 4 score.
The Monthly Under 2400 that concluded on May 18 had 64 players registered and was won by FM Marcus Miyasaka who scored 4.5 out of 5 to win the $1,050 first place prize. Leo Shen and Chase Knowles scored 4 out of 5 to win $341.50 each, while Marzouq Chowdhury, Anvith Reddy Marri, Alan Stolyarov, Theodore Pimanoff, and Jack Boyer-Olsen scorec 3.5 out of 5 to win $63 each. The following 8 players scored 2.5 out of 5 to win $39.38 each: Misha Raitzin, Shiv Dubey, Nico Alvarado-Yoshida, Daniel Ray, Wan Qin Li, Eli Stern, Yunhui Ma, and Summer Loh.
The Rated Beginner Open on May 18 had 33 players registered and concluded with the following 4 players winning $103.25 each for their 3 out of 3 score.
The Monthly Under 1800 on May 18 had 32 players registered and was won by Mikhail Razygraev, who scored 4.5 out of 5 to win the $534 first place prize. Marissa Lu, Kara Chan, and Dervin Kouyate scored 4 out of 5 to win $169.33 each, while Eito Nishida won $160 for a 3 out of 5 performance.
The Morning Masters on May 17 had 6 players registered and was won by CM Krish Bhandari who scored 3 out of 3 to win the $45 first place prize, while Chase Knowles and Corin Gartenlaub scored 2 out of 3 to win $15 each.
The Under 2000 Morning Action on May 17 had 60 players registered and was won by the following 4 players who finished with a perfect 3 out of 3 score to win $131.25 each: Daniel Yassky, Sascha Mayers, Charles Bernstein, and Chris DeDona. No fewer than 8 players shared in a class prize, winning $28.13 each for their 2 out of 3 score: Emileo Martinez, Fabrizzio Quinonez, Aditya Singh, William Chan, Marko Scekic, Arjun Murti, Dario Golden, and Philip Anderson.
The Friday Rapid on May 16 had 21 players registered and concluded with nearly half of them winning a prize. IM Justin Sarkar and FM Megan Paragua scored 3.5 out of 4 to win $75 each, while Rishith Bhoopathi, Viyaan K Doddapaneni and Nicolas Marchese scored 3 out of 4 to win $8.33 each. The following 4 players shared in a class prize, winning $18.75 for their 2 out of 4 score: Matt Biancuzzo, Nishka S Doddapaneni, Maxwell Medley, and Victor Kenny-Maheux.
The Thursday Action on May 15 had 46 players registered and was won by FM Marcus Miyasaka who scored 4 out of 4 to win $165, while IM Alexander Katz and FM Leif Pressman scored 3.5 out of 4 to win $96.50 each. Daniel Wang and Yuxing Jack Yang scored 3 out of 4 to win $41.50, while Kameliia Sharuda, Saye Oyama and Aileen Lou scored 2.5 out of 4 to win $27.67 each.
The Sunday G/50 Open on May 11 had 8 players registered and was won by IM Jay Bonin, who scored 3.5 out of 4 to win the $75 first-place prize. Charles Bernstein scored 2 points to win a class prize of $38, while Alisher Podavonov and Adam Gordon won $25 each for their 3 out of 4 score.
The Rated Beginner Open on May 11 had 20 players registered and was won by Aaron Reyes, who scored 3 out of 3 to win $150. Jude Mahmoud and Vasuman Moza scored 2.5 out of 3 to win $50 each.
The Adults Only Tournament on May 11 had 11 participants registered and was won by Ben Davar, who scored 3.5 out of 4 to win the $75 first place prize. Jeffrey Ho won the $50 second place prize for his 3 out of 4 performance, while Robert Thorstad, Artem Aleksenko, and Kanav Bhatnagar won $12.67 each for their 2.5 out of 4 score.
The Under 2000 Morning Action on May 10 had 22 players registered and was won by Marko Scekic and Philip Anderson who scored 3 out of 3 to win $105.50 each, while Samuel M Curran and Dario Golden scored 2.5 out of 3 to win $26.50 each.
The Saturday G/50 Open on May 10 had 11 players registered and was won by IM Jay Richard Bonin who scored 3.5 out of 4 to win the $75 first place prize, while the following 5 players scored 2.5 out of 4 to win $17.60 each: Ethan Kozower, Mike Wai Chong Ching, Anson Leong, Sergei Zakharov, and Gavin Liu.
The Saturday G/50 Under 1800 on May 10 had 25 players registered and was won by Grigory Razygraev, who scored a perfect 4 out of 4 to win the $150 first place prize. Mikhail Razygraev finished in 2nd place, with a score of 3.5 out of 4, to win the $100 second place prize. Sean Huang and Patrick Luo won $37.50 each for a score of 3 out of 4.
The FIDE Blitz on May 9 had 32 players and was won by FM Juan Pereyra who scored 8 out of 9 to win $160. CM Luc William Crim Hoffman won an $80 prize for his 7 out of 9 score, while Neel Yerramilli, FM Rushaan Mahajan, Glenn Cabasso and Lucas Yang won $40 each for their performance.
The Thursday Action on May 8 had 27 players registered and was won by FM Leif Pressman and IM Jay Richard Bonin, who scored 3.5 out of 4 to win $81.50 each. Joshua Block won a $49 prize for his 3 out of 4 score, while Bryan Weisz, Mark DeDona, and Oliver Chernin won $16.33 each for the same score. Finally, Alec Hyunmook Choi, Matthew Biancuzzo, Saye Oyama, and Victor Kenny-Maheux scored 2.5 out of 4 to win $12.25 each.
The Thursday Open that concluded on May 8 had 19 players registered and concluded with a large tie, with the following 5 players scoring 4 out of 6 to win $144.40 each: Aleksandr Gutnik, George Berg, Nirupam Kushalnagar, Joseph Segich, Liam D McGovern. Ruari Morrison won $38 for a 3 out of 6 performance.
We look forward to seeing you at the club soon!
EndGame Corner, by IM Silas Esben Lund
As promised in the last column, we shall have a closer look today at positions where all 3 rings are in action in positions with knight versus pawn. For the next 2 diagrams, try to outline the ring system and find the connecting points 1-2-3. This will help with the orientation and to help move the knight around on an open board. The solutions will follow later, and at the end, I will present a very nice study by Mees that plays on these ideas. As you will see from this study, it takes a bit of knowledge to truly appreciate Mees' effort. White to move and draw. (The promotion square of the pawn is b1.) * You can play through the positions with analysis here.
Grigoriev
Mees, Nouveau Traite complet d'Echecs
White to move and draw. (The promotion square of the pawn is h1.) 1/2-1/2
Grigoriev
1. Nc7+ (1. Kg2 Kc5 2. Nc7 b3 3. Ne6+ Kc4) 1... Kc4 2. Ne8
The knight moves into the connecting point of ring 3 - from which it has three ways to the saving b1-square: 1) The direct way through the connecting points 3-2-1: the route e8-d6-c4 brings the knight into ring 1, with a draw. 2) The way c7-b5-a3 is one step longer, but also brings the knight into ring 1. 3) The other way f6-e4-d2 also brings the knight into ring 1. The point is that when the knight is in a connecting point, it has maximum flexibility with 3 ways to try to stop the pawn. In the following, White must stay within the ring system to make the draw.
2…b3 (Black can try 2... Kd5 White plays 3. Nf6+ Kd4 and now the difficult move 4. Ne8 That move the knight backwards, into the connecting point of ring 3. We shall see this idea again later.)
3. Nd6+ Kc3 A great try by Black - White now has to choose the correct way for the knight: is it via b5 or e4 to get to b1?
4. Ne4+ The argument is the knight check that eliminates the pawn. (4. Nb5+ Kb4)
4... Kc2 (4... Kd3 5. Nc5+) 5. Nd6 Here we are again: White moves the knight back into the connecting point of ring 2.
5…b2 6. Nc4 White has entered ring 1 and uses a tactic to draw.
6…b1=Q 7. Na3+ Kb2 8. Nxb1 1/2-1/2
Mees, Nouveau Traite complet d'Echecs
This study is originally by Grigoriev in 1932. Mees probably repeated the study to make the world aware of where he got his brilliant idea from - see the next position.
1. Nb4 h5 2. Nc6 This move wins an essential tempo for White in the fight to stop the pawn. Black must move his king now. (2. Nd5+ Kf3 is a well-known win for Black. Needless to say, the white knight is way outside the ring system.)
2... Ke4 (2... h4 3. Ne5 h3 (3... Kf4 4. Ng6+ eliminates the pawn.) 4. Ng4+ White has entered ring 1.) 3. Na5 White moves backwards into the connecting point of ring 3.
3…h4 4. Nc4 Kf3 A nice try from Black. Which way/check should White choose here?
5. Ne5+ (5. Nd2+ Ke2 wins as White is unable to stay in the ring system. 6. Ne4 h3 7. Ng3+ Kf2 (7... Ke1) 8. Ne4+ Kg2)
5... Kg3 6. Nc4 The knight moves back into the connecting point of ring 2.
6…h3 7. Ne3 The knight has entered ring 1. 1/2-1/2
Mees, 1946
Remember the brilliant knight move 3.Na5!! from the last position? What if the king can be lured onto that square, so the knight is unable to make this vital move back into the connecting point of ring 3?
1. h7 Re2+ 2. Kd8 White is hiding behind the black knight. (2. Kxd7 Rd2+ and the white king has nowhere to hide as he must prevent the black rook from entering the back rank.)
2... Re8+ The only way to stop the pawn from promoting. 3. Kxe8 Nf6+ 4. Ke7 Nxh7
5. h4 This position is reversed compared to the previous study, so a5 became h4. The pawn stops the knight from getting to g5, so it must be captured by the king; but then this vital h4-square is no longer available to the knight later on. (5. a4 Ng5 6. Kd6 Nf3 7. Kd5 Nh4 ultimately stops the pawn - as we saw in the previous study.)
5... Kxh4 6. a4 Ng5 7. Kd6 Nf3 8. Kd5 The black king is occupying the connecting point of ring 3, and thus Black is unable to stop the pawn from promoting. 1-0
IM Silas Esben Lund, Marshall Spectator Contributor
Games Annotated by the K-5 National Champion, Sasha Milo Schaefer
You can play through the games with annotations here.
Schaefer, Sasha Milo v Pavuluri, Vivaan
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. g3?! This is a very dubious line that I was preparing for before the game. The idea is that you basically play the Italian, but with a bishop on g2 and a pawn on g3 preventing any annoying Nf4 ideas.
3... Nf6 4. d3 Bc5 5. Bg2 d6 6. O-O These moves are all following the main line. This position has been reached many times.
6... a5 (6... O-O 7. c3 a5 8. a4 This reaches the same position in the game, but it is a more common move order.)
7. a4 O-O 8. c3 h6 9. Na3 Re8 10. Nc4
You can see that I am spending a lot of time here. This is because I spend a lot of time in positions that don't have a clear plan. I analyzed all choices like Be3, Nc2, Re1, and Qc2. (10. Nc2 d5! I remembered that you shouldn't move your knight to c2 as soon as possible. Suddenly, the position opens and my d3 pawn is going to be weak. 11. Qe2 dxe4 12. dxe4 Bg4 Even without computer analysis, you can tell that black has the easier position. Their two bishops are dominating while ours are stuck.) (10. Re1? Ng4! 11. Rf1 f5 We lose a tempo that will be hard to get back. 12. h3 Nf6 13. exf5 Bxf5 Black is dominating. Just look at their pieces cooperating!) (10. Qe2 This was probably the best choice out of the three alternatives. We can bring our rook to d1 if the d and e pawn trade. 10... d5 11. exd5 Nxd5 12. Nc4 This is what I would've done in the game. I just didn't like how weak my d pawn was.)
10... Be6 11. Ne3 Ba7 A very nice move by him, making sure that d4 is not a tempo. I felt a little uneasy that he was playing so quickly and well because I was sure that no one knew my 3.g3 line. (11... Kh8?? 12. d4 exd4 13. cxd4 Ba7 14. d5 You get the point.)
12. Nh4 The idea of this move is that now our bishop on g2 is x-raying the d5 square. Another idea is that we can play f4 at some point, undermining the center.
12... d5 13. exd5 Nxd5 14. Qc2 Funnily enough, I saw the top engine move Nxd5 followed by Be4 but didn't play it. (14. Qe2 Nxe3 15. fxe3 (15. Bxe3! I am being completely honest. I didn't see this move at all! I suspected that after Qd7 I was stuck because Rad1 is met with Bb3. Lets analyze this a little bit to find the idea behind Be3. 15... Qd7 16. Bxa7 Rxa7 17. Qc2! This is the idea. Now we can play Rad1 safely. But it seems that we just wasted a tempo and could have played Qc2 on move 14.) 15... Qd7 16. d4 exd4 17. exd4 Nxd4 18. cxd4 Qxd4+ 19. Kh1 Bc4 I saw this entire line, which was why I decided not to play Qe2. I wanted to get out of the skewer with Bc4 and the pressure on d4.)
14... Qd7 15. Nxd5 Bxd5 16. Be3 Rad8 He has the threat of taking my bishop on g2 followed by the pawn on d3. I have to protect this pawn.
17. Rad1 Bxg2 18. Nxg2 At this moment, I would be satisfied with a draw. Instead having more time, he fought on.
18... Qe6 19. Rfe1 Qf6 20. Qb3! The computer doesn't favor this move over other moves, but in my opinion, it was beautiful. The idea is that if he plays b6 then the bishop on a7 is dead. I will take on a7 followed by taking on b7 winning an extra pawn. The only move is to take on e3 now where I will take with the f pawn. No more wanting a draw!
20... Bxe3 21. fxe3 b6 22. e4 I wanted to fight on, so I chose this move making the f5, d5, and c4 squares great for my knight. The pawn is on c3 so there is not Nd4 ever.
22... Rd6 (22... Rd7 I thought this was better for him to play because now they are no knight tempos on c4 of f5 in the future. 23. Ne3 Red8 24. Rf1 Qe6! Winning a pawn or gaining control of the diagonal. The computer says its equal, but I think black is most likely to win here.)
23. Ne3 Ne7 24. Qb5! Again, I gave one exclamation point because of the idea. My idea is that know the pawn on d3 is protected and simultaneously I have ideas like Ne3-g4-e5 in the future. I am also attacking his rook on e8 so he has to move it. The queen on f6 is very awkwardly placed and I want to exploit that.
24... Red8 25. Rf1 I want to play Rf3 and then Nc4. (25. Ng4? In my opinion this is a mistake because the resulting position will be completely drawn. 25... Qe6 26. Qxe5 Qxe5 27. Nxe5 f6 28. Nc4 Rxd3)
25... Qg5 26. Rf3 f6 Now he has the position under control, and can keep putting pressure on my d3 pawn.
27. Kf2 I spent 5 minutes on this move, and I was already spoiling my position. (27. Qc4+ Kh7 28. Qxc7 Rxd3 29. Rxd3 Rxd3 30. Kf2 Again, I saw the drawn line in the game but didn't play it. I thought that the position would be too hard to play with under 1 minute.)
27... Kh8 28. Qc4 This is a cheap trick :) 28... R6d7 (28... Rc6?? 29. Qf7 We are up a piece and better/winning.)
29. h4 Qh5 30. Nf1 Don't ask me why I played this move. I just felt stuck and tried to make a waiting move, hoping that he would give me chances.
30... Nc8 31. Qb3 From this move until the end -- 111 moves -- I played entirely on delay with less than 10 seconds left. Watch.
31... Nd6 32. Re3 He was threatening to take my pawn on e4 because then my rook on d1 would be hanging. (32. Qc2?? Random move 32... Nxe4+ 33. dxe4 Rxd1)
32... Nb7 (32... f5! I knew that he could have played this and won. He opens up the position and he will attack my king on the f file.)
33. Qc2 Nc5 34. Nh2 Qf7 (34... f5! Again, I knew this move was the best for him.)
35. Nf3 Qb3 36. Qxb3 Nxb3 37. Ke2 (37. d4 exd4 38. cxd4 Nxd4 39. Red3 c5 40. Nxd4 cxd4 41. b4 The computer says that this is a draw because there is not enough material on both sides for black to play for a win. We will eventually get our king on d3 and win the d4 pawn.)
37... Nc5 38. d4 Nxa4 39. b3 I thought I had won his knight!!!
39... Nc5 I can't take the knight with the d4 pawn because then my rook on d1 will be captured.
40. Rb1 (40. dxc5?? Rxd1) 40... exd4 41. cxd4 Ne6 42. d5 Nc5 43. Nd4 Re8 44. Kf3 g6 Preparing f5, undermining my d5 pawn. He could have just played f5 immediately but that is hard to see. (44... f5 45. Nxf5 Rf7! 46. h5 Nxe4 47. Rxe4 Rxf5+ They will get too many pawns.)
45. g4 Now I feel comfortable with my position. I can play h5 in the future to make the f5 square an outpost. I may be able to push for a win.
45... Rf7 46. Kf4 Ra8 47. h5 g5+ 48. Kf3 a4?
I knew that this was a mistake, and that I now had the chance to play for a win.
49. b4 Nd7 50. Rc3! Not allowing the knight to give a check on e5 and then go to c4 supporting the passed pawn.
50... Ne5+ 51. Kg3 a3 52. Ra1 I win the a pawn by force in the following line.
52... Ra4 53. Nc2 a2 54. Ra3 Rxa3+ 55. Nxa3 Nd3 (55... Rf8! This was the best move in the position. If I take the pawn then he can play Ra8 with a long term pin. 56. Rxa2 Ra8 57. Ra1 Nd3 58. Nc2 Rxa1 59. Nxa1 Nxb4)
56. Nc2 Re7 57. Kf3 Ne5+ 58. Kg3 I thought that he would play Nd3 and make a draw, but instead he thought he could win this position.
58... Nc4 59. Rxa2 Rxe4 60. Ra8+ I wanted to play this before Ra7 because I wanted Rxb7 to come with a tempo.
60... Kg7 61. Ra7 Re7 62. Nd4 Now I was almost sure that I would win. All my pieces are more active than their counterparts. My knight can go to the outpost on f5, e6, or c6.
62... Kf7 63. Nf5 63 Rd7 64. Nxh6+ (64. Kf3 Surprisingly, not taking the pawn is better for white. The computers point is that we can take it any time we want.)
64... Kg7 65. Nf5+ Kh7 66. Rb7 Ne5 (66... Kh8! This was the move that I thought he would play. I have no way to make progress and I have to repeat the position 67. Rb8+ Kh7 68. Rb7 Kh8 69. Rb8+ Kh7 70. Rb7)
67. d6 cxd6 68. Rxd7+ Nxd7 69. Nxd6 I assessed this position as better for me. This was because I had the plan to get my king to e4 and my knight is very active.
69... Ne5 70. Ne8 Nd7 71. Kf3 Kg8?? This is a blunder. Now my king can easily advance to the f5 or d5 squares. Keep in mind that if the king gets far enough from the h pawn it will promote. (71... Ne5+ This is what he should have played, not letting my king get active. 72. Kg3 Nd7 73. b5)
72. Ke4 Kf8 73. Nc7 Kf7 74. Kf5 Ne5 75. Nd5 I am attacking both pawns, so he has to move his knight to defend them.
75... Nd7 76. h6 (76. b5 Kg7 77. Ne3 This is another way to win but you have to find Ne3 or Nc3 which is hard to see)
76... b5 This was his only move to avoid losing material right away. (76... Kf8? 77. Nxf6 Nb8 78. b5)
77. Nc7 Ne5 78. Nxb5 Nc4 I have to be very careful. One of his threats is to play Ne3+ and then capture the g4 pawn and the other is...
79. h7 (79. Nc7?? Looks reasonable but fails to a checkmate in one 79... Nd6#)
79... Kg7 80. h8=Q+ Kxh8 81. Kxf6?? This doesn't lose material, but now the position is completely drawn. (81. Ke6 This is much better. I can simply going to play Nd6 and push our passed pawn no matter what. 81... Ne3 82. Nd6 Nxg4 83. b5 Ne5 84. Nf7+ And the pawn will promote.) 81... Ne3!
I can't protect both pawns. 82. Kxg5 Nd5 83. Kh6 Nxb4 84. g5 Nd5 85. g6 The reason why this endgame is a draw is because he can sacrifice his knight for my pawn, and I will never be able to checkmate him.
85... Ne3 (85... Nf4 This would have drawn right away, as he is going to eventually take my pawn with his knight. 86. g7+ Kg8 87. Nd4 Nh5 88. Ne6 Nxg7 89. Nxg7 Draw by insufficient material.)
86. Nd6 Kg8 87. Kg5 Nd5 88. Nf5 I am desperately trying to prevent him from sacrificing his knight for my pawn and trying to win.
88... Nc7 89. Kf6 Ne8+ 90. Ke7 Nc7 (90... Ng7?? I was hoping he would play this. 91. Nh6+ Kh8 92. Kf6 Ne8+ 93. Kf7 Ng7 94. Ke7 Nh5 95. Kf8 Ng7 96. Nf7# With a nice mate. (Not better than what happened in the game though).)
91. Kf6 Nd5+ (91... Ne8+ After this move, we probably would have repeated the position 3 times soon. 92. Ke6 Ng7+ 93. Nxg7 Kxg7 94. Kf5 Kg8)
92. Ke5 Nc7 93. Kd6 Ne8+ 94. Kd7 (94. Ke7 Nc7 The game is over because we repeated the position 3 times.)
94... Nf6+ 95. Ke6 Ne8 96. Ke5 Ng7 97. Nh6+ Kf8 (97... Kh8?? 98. Kf6 Nh5+ 99. Kf7 Ng7 100. Ke7 Nh5 101. Kf8 Ng7 102. Nf7# With the same mate as before.)
98. Kf6 Ne8+ 99. Kg5 Kg7 100. Nf5+ Kg8 101. Kh6 Nf6 102. Kg5 (102. g7 Ng4+ 103. Kg6 Ne5+ 104. Kf6 Ng4+ He can just keep checking me and it will be a draw.)
102... Ne4+ 103. Kh6 Nf6 104. Ne7+ Kf8 105. Nf5 Kg8 106. Kg5 Ne4+ 107. Kh5 Nf6+ 108. Kh6 Ne4?? I was shocked that he played this. Almost any other move would have drawn and he chose one of the losing ones.
109. g7 Nf6 110. Kg6 Nd5 111. Nh6# This game gave me the confidence and drive to win the next one. If I won the next game then I would have 6/6 points 1-0
Li, Sophie vs. Schaefer, Sasha Milo
I felt a lot of pressure in this game because it was the key moment of the entire tournament. Whoever won this game would be in clear first place with six points. The two players who were rated above me drew or lost early in the tournament. I couldn't lose this. I was feeling mentally prepared because I had prepped a decent line for her and I had memorized all the plans.
1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 dxe4 4. Nxe4 Nf6 5. Nxf6+ exf6 6. c3 Bd6 7. Bd3 O-O 8. Qc2 Re8+ 9. Ne2 h5 10. O-O (10. Be3 Nd7 11. O-O-O Nf8 12. h3 I thought that she might want to play this line against me. She will have high attacking chances but of course I know this line very well. 12... Be6 13. c4 b5!)
10... h4 11. Nf4 So far this is all preparation and theory. I have never played against 11.Nf4 but thankfully I studied it for 15 minutes.
11…Qc7 12. g3 Nd7 13. Qd1 Nf8 14. Qh5 Qd7 The idea is that whenever she moves her bishop on c1, I take on f4 and then play Qh3. There are chances that Qg4 will work in some lines. This move also has a tactical idea.
15. Bd2 Bxf4 16. Bxf4 g5 17. Bd2
(17. Bxg5 Qd5! This is the key point of playing Qd7. Now we are putting the white queen in a pin that she can't get out of. (17... fxg5 18. Qxg5+? Kh8 19. Rae1 b5 20. f4 We can't stop their plan of playing f4 and f5.) 18. Bc4 Qxc4 19. Bxf6 Nh7 I calculated this entire line in the game (I didn't prep that deep, only to Qd5). )
17... Qh3 18. Qf3 Kg7 I felt good. I had prepared all this and so far, it had worked perfectly. She had spent 23 more minutes than me, so now I had the time advantage. 19. Be2 I was hoping that she would play something like Rfe1 where I could get a very comfortable position with the following moves. (19. Rfe1 Bg4 20. Qg2 Qxg2+ 21. Kxg2 h3+ 22. Kg1 Bf3 and Ne6 and c5 are next.
19... Ng6 (19... g4! I didn't see this strong tactical resource. 20. Qd3 (20. Bh6+ Kg6! (20... Kxh6? 21. Qxf6+ Ng6 22. Rfe1 It isn't clear how black is going to make progress.) 21. Bd3+ f5 22. Qf4 Nh7 We have trapped the bishop on h6. We will play hxg3 next.) 20... Bf5! 21. Qxf5 Rxe2 22. Be3 hxg3 23. hxg3 Rxe3 24. fxe3 Qxg3+ 25. Kh1 Nd7)
20. Rfe1 Qf5 When I played this move, I asked myself what would the engine play? I found this move that avoids all chances of Bf1 after a long calculation. (20... g4 21. Qg2 Qxg2+ 22. Kxg2 I didn't really like this position that much. I thought that the pawn on g4 is an easy target and white can play f3 in the future. The doubled isolated pawns on the f file will be a weakness in the long run.) (20... Rh8 21. Bf1 Qf5 22. Qxf5 Bxf5 23. c4 Next will be Bc3 and white's pieces are active.
21. Qxf5 Bxf5 22. f3 (22. f4? hxg3 23. hxg3 gxf4 24. gxf4 Rh8 I evaluated this position as better for me as I have full control over the open h file.)
22... hxg3 23. hxg3 Nf8 My idea is that I want to play Ne6, Bg6 and then f5. Another idea behind Nf8 is that now the bishop can go to g6 if white plays g4.
24. Kf2 If she ever goes g4 f4 then I will play g4.
24... Ne6 25. Be3 She plays this move so that she can play Rad1 and then c4. During the game I was a little annoyed by this plan and eventually chose to play Rad8.
25... Rad8 26. Bc4 (26. Rad1 Rd6 Now, if she goes c4 then I can play Rad8.)
26... b5! I am asking the bishop a question whether it will stay on the a2-g8 diagonal or go back to e2. I am also guarding the c4 square so that c4 will be hard for them to play.
27. Bb3 (27. Be2 Nc7 Be6 and Nd5 are next.) 27... a5 28. a4 Rb8! My original reaction was to play b4, but then I found this move! The computer says that this position is equal, but we have the better chances. Our position will be easier to play. (28... b4 29. cxb4 axb4 30. Bxe6 Bxe6 This was what I calculated before, assuming that this position is equal.) 29. Re2 (29. axb5! This is the best move for white, sacrificing a pawn. 29... Rxb5 30. Ba4 Rxb2+ 31. Re2 Rxe2+ 32. Kxe2 Nf4+ 33. gxf4 gxf4 34. Bxc6 Rxe3+ 35. Kd2 Rd3+ This position is equal, but of course we cannot lose this.)
29... Bd3 This is the most natural move in the position. We are attacking the rook and if they go to d2 we can play Bc4.
30. Rd2 Bc4 31. Bd1 (31. Bxc4 bxc4 32. f4 If they don't play this, we have an easy and natural position with Ne6-c7-d5 with the knight on a dream square. (32. d5 cxd5 33. Rxd5 Rxb2+ 34. Kf1 Rc2) 32... g4 33. f5 Ng5 34. Bxg5 fxg5)
31... b4 32. Rc2? This move gives us a really easy position. She should have played Be2 instead. (32. Be2! bxc3 33. bxc3 Bxe2 The bishop has to eventually take on e2, because it was being attacked.)
32... bxc3 33. bxc3 (33. Rxc3 Rxb2+ 34. Rc2 Rb4 We are up a pawn, and white has no counterplay at all.)
33... Nc7 We want to play our knight on the beautiful square d5.
34. Rcc1??
This loses a bishop. Even if she didn't play this move then I would have easily converted it into a win. (34. Be2 Nd5! 35. Bc1 (35. Bxc4 Nxe3 We either win a bishop or the exchange.) 35... Bb3 36. Rb2 Nxc3 This is what I calculated in the game. We are up a pawn and our pieces are more active.
34... Nd5 35. Bd2 Rb2 36. Rc2 Rxc2 37. Bxc2 Re2+ We are up a piece, and this will be an easy win because of our activity.
38. Kg1 Rxd2 39. Be4 Nxc3 40. Bxc6 Ne2+ 41. Kh1 Nxg3+ 42. Kg1 Ne2+ 43. Kh1 Nxd4 Now I am leading the tournament with 6 points. My next opponent will be the top seed who has 5.5 points so far. 0-1
Schaefer, Sasha Milo vs. Shangin, Lev
This was the last game of the tournament, and if I won or drew then I would be 2025 K-5 SuperNationals champion. I had a big bowl of rice and beans in my hotel room for lunch while I prepared. I was very confident that I would not lose.
1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. Bb5+ Nd7 4. c3 Nf6 5. Qe2 a6 6. Ba4 g6 7. O-O b5 8. Bc2 Bg7 9. d4 cxd4 (9... Bb7 10. Rd1 cxd4 11. cxd4 O-O 12. a4 Qc7 13. Bd3 e5 14. axb5 axb5 15. Rxa8 Rxa8 16. dxe5 dxe5 17. b4 This was the line that I got mixed up with in the game.) 10. cxd4
This was all basic preparation here. I had played this opening line before with positive results.
10... Bb7 11. a4 The reason why I thought this long is because I was getting confused between lines. I know that I play Re1, a4, and Bd3 but I wasn't sure when.
11... O-O 12. Bd3 e6 (12... e5 13. dxe5 dxe5 14. axb5 axb5 15. Rxa8 Qxa8! Now since the queen is not on c7, they can recapture with the queen, attacking the e4 pawn with 3 pieces.)
13. Re1 Qb8 He wants to play Bc6 and then Qb7 attacking the e4 pawn. Thankfully, our rook is on e1 and defending the e4 pawn.
14. Nbd2 Bc6 15. axb5 (15. a5 This is slightly better to play, because now there are no files opening up.)
15... Bxb5 16. b3 (16. Bxb5 Qxb5 17. Qxb5 axb5 18. Rxa8 Rxa8 Black has a strong open file.)
16... Rc8 (16... Kh8 This shows my idea with b3 very clearly. In the future I can bring my bishop to b2. 17. Bxb5 Qxb5 18. Qxb5 axb5 19. Bb2 Rfc8 20. Rxa8 Rxa8 21. Ra1 This was my idea behind playing b3.)
17. Ba3 Now, if he moves his rook to c2 I have some tactics on my side. 17... Nh5
This was the move that I had been hoping he wouldn't play. He is going to bring his knight to the f4 square and its hard to do anything about it. (17... Rc2 18. Bxd6 Qxd6 19. Bxb5 We are up a pawn with a winning position. 19... axb5 20. Rxa8+)
18. Bxb5 (18. Qe3 This was what I thought of first, but it fails to Rc3. 18... Rc3 The bishop is pinned.) (18. g3 I remember considering this move, but I have no idea why I didn't play it 18... Nhf6 This is the engines top recommendation for black. Lets analyze this line a little bit. 19. Nc4 Nxe4! They will get the piece back. 20. Bxe4 d5 21. Nfe5 dxe4 22. Qxe4 Bxc4 23. bxc4 Our space advantage will be very overwhelming.)
18... axb5 19. Bb4 If I didn't play this move, then he could play b4 and then bring his rook to c2.
19... Qb6 20. Qe3 (20. Qd3? Nf4 21. Qe3 Bh6 I didn't want to go into this line. It looked dangerous at the time, because of the knight's multiple ways to give a discovered attack. Also, our queen is trapped on e3, because of the knight controlling the d3 and e2 squares.) 20... Rxa1 21. Rxa1 Nb8!
This is one of those ideas that I could never find. He plays a backwards knight move, leaving the d7 square to start a new live on a6 or c6.
22. g4 I want to kick the knight out of the h5 square so that it can't go to f4. Then I can play Qd2 keeping control of the important squares on the c file. (22. e5! This would have been a better move for me, because the d7 knight is not controlling the center anymore. 22... dxe5 23. dxe5 Qxe3 24. fxe3 Nd7 25. Bd6 We have an easy position to play and solid plans. I would prefer white here 10/10 times.)
22... Nf6 23. h3 Na6 (23... Nc6? 24. Bxd6 This initiates a long tactical sequence, leading us to a slightly better position. 24... Nxd4 25. Qxd4 Qxd4 26. Nxd4 Ne8 27. e5 Nxd6 28. N4f3 The d6 knight is misplaced, and we will play Rd1 and Ne4 next.)
24. Ba3 (24. Bxd6! This move doesn't change the evaluation by much but it still almost forces a draw. 24... Qxd6 25. e5 Fork! 25... Qb6 26. exf6 Bxf6 27. Qf4 Bg7 28. Ne5 Bxe5 29. dxe5 Nc5 30. Qe3 Rc1 and Ne4 are coming next, and the game will eventually simplify into a drawn endgame.)
24... Nd7 The thing that is hard about my position is that I am stuck and he gets to make all the threats. I actually thought that he had the better position here. I felt that if he had spent a little less time after I had spent a lot of time he would have won.
25. Rc1 Rxc1+ 26. Bxc1 Nb4 (26... Qc6 27. Bb2 Qc2 28. Qc3 Qxc3 29. Bxc3 I would have been grateful if this happened in the game.)
27. Bb2 Nc6 28. Qd3 h6 29. Nb1 My knight was not good on d2, so I want to bring it to a3 or c3 so that it's doing something. Now I am not afraid, and I think that I have a very nice position.
29... e5 30. dxe5 Ncxe5 31. Nxe5 Nxe5 (31... Bxe5! This was much better than recapturing with the knight. I was shocked that he didn't play this move and instead tried to attack. 32. Bxe5 Nxe5 33. Qe3 Qxe3 34. fxe3 b4 Even though it is hard for me to lose, he has the much easier position and has better winning chances.)
32. Bxe5 Bxe5 33. Na3 Bd4 I didn't see this move. I thought that he would play b4 and then I could play Nc4 with a comfortable position. (33... b4? 34. Nc4 Qc5 35. Qd5 This is what I calculated in the game. I would have a very easy to play position with big drawing chances.)
34. Qd2 Be5 35. Qd3 Bd4 36. Qd2 Qa6 37. Nxb5 Bc5 (37... Qxb5 38. Qxd4 Qxb3 39. Kg2! I will draw this with ease.) 38. Nc7 Qb6 39. Nd5 Qxb3 40. Kg2!
This move basically makes sure that he can never take my pawn on h3, and I can attack his king as much as I want without defending my own.
40... Qc4 41. Qf4 Qd4 42. h4 I want to try and play h5, opening up the kingside so that I can attack his king.
42... Kg7 43. g5! A draw is okay! I am forcing the queens to be traded off leaving me with a drawn endgame.
43... hxg5 44. hxg5 Qb2 45. Qf6+ (45. Qh4 Kf8 46. Nf6 Ke7 47. Nd5+ Kf8 48. Qh6+ Ke8 49. Nf6+ Ke7 50. Nd5+ Ke8 This attack will not be successful, because the queen is always attacking the f2 pawn so we have to proceed with checks.)
45... Qxf6 46. Nxf6 Kf8 47. f4 The game is over. I might have very slim winning chances but most likely we will trade some pawns and then draw.
47... Ke7 48. Kf3 Ba3 49. f5 gxf5 50. exf5 Bb2 51. Nd5+ Kd7 52. Ke4 Be5 53. Ne3 Kc6 54. Ng4 Ba1 55. g6 (55. Nh6! I would have been winning!)
55... fxg6 56. fxg6 Kd7 57. Kd5 Ke7 58. Ne3 Kf6 59. Kxd6 Be5+ 60. Kd5 Ba1 61. Nc4 Bc3 62. Ne5 Kg7 63. Ke6 Bb2 64. Kf5 Bxe5 65. Kxe5 Kxg6 After 7 rounds of long games, I emerge victorious and win the K-5 Championship section of Super Nationals VIII. 1/2-1/2
Sasha Milo Schaefer, Marshall Chess Club Member
En Passant
The Czech-German grandmaster Vlastimil Hort, a former world number-six, a candidate for the world championship, and a commentator renowned for his wit and humor, died on Monday at the age of 81. The news was confirmed by the Czech Chess Federation. "I lost my life in chess, actually." "Chess is beautiful and it gives you always some idea that maybe you are not so old." "You know, I am a chess entertainer. I want to entertain people." These quotes, from 1981 and from 2014, sum things up pretty well for Hort, who had a long and successful chess career as a player and later turned into a beloved commentator.
With six rounds completed at the Sharjah Masters, Anish Giri and Aleksandar Indjic share the lead on 5 points, closely followed by top seed Nodirbek Abdusattorov on 4½. The open tournament remains tightly contested, with fourteen players trailing half a point behind Abdusattorov. Among the standout performers are lower-rated contenders Dai Changren and Visakh N R, as well as 11-year-old Faustino Oro, who remains undefeated.
Get ready for a rematch between chess Grandmasters Hans Niemann and Daniil Dubov at the end of May in Russia. The controversial American Grandmaster Niemann and Russia’s Dubov played an 18-game blitz match earlier this year in March in Moscow
Vincent Keymer and Dinara Wagner have emerged as the new German chess champions. Keymer confirmed his status as the pre-tournament favorite by winning the title in convincing fashion, while top seed Wagner triumphed over WGM Hanna Marie Klek in an exciting tiebreaker.
Chess Toons
Problems, Problems, curated by Alexander George
Pal Benko, 1974
Helpmate in 2
Two solutions
While direct mate problem are a struggle of one side against the other, helpmates are harmonious dances. White and Black work together to some end (admittedly, often Black's demise). The important thing to remember is that unless otherwise mentioned, Black moves first. So in the above example by a master of helpmate composition, Black will move first, then White will move, then Black makes a second move, and finally White makes a second move mating Black. (Of course, all moves have to be legal.) This can be accomplished in two different ways. You might think that the existence of multiple solutions amounts to a flaw. Normally, this is so. But if the solutions are thematically related to one another, as they are here, an apparent bug turns into a beautiful feature.
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Solution to last issue's problem: Loyd, 1857:
White to mate in 2
1.Qa1! with Qh8 mate next move. The only Black move that might seem to foil this is 1....O-O-O. But it can easily be seen that, with White to move, this is illegal in the position.
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Alexander George
Editor's Note
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