The Marshall Spectator
April 17, 2024 edition
In This Issue: From The Skittles Room Endgame Corner, by IM Silas Esben Lund Across the Table, with Dmitriy Guller 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.
Looking ahead on the calendar, we have a very special Memorial planned to honor the life and achievements of U.S. Women’s Chess Champion Lisa Lane on May 7.
Another exciting event coming up is our Spring Chess Class. Join the current NYS Champion, GM Djurabek Khamrakulov, for a 5-session course tailored to your skill level. In this class, you'll get personal, focused, and hands-on instruction designed to take your game to the next level. Classes are best experienced cumulatively, but can be joined on a per-session basis.
Last week, GM Maurice Ashley came to the club for a lecture and book signing for his new book, Move by Move: Life Lessons On and Off the Chessboard. He told stories about his time at the club such as having to go through the Jay Bonin school, winning the Marshall Chess Club championship, and getting his first GM norm. He also talked about the beginning of his long and successful career as a chess commentator.
During the lecture, the audience discovered an error in one of his problems that was included in the his Chess Life cover story, leading to the discovery of the Marshall Mate! Check out the full lecture on out replay page here.
Our recent Speyer Quads were a huge success, with a sold out group of scholastic players. We’re thrilled to share the below report from the event from Bob Olsen.
I was invited to play in the Speyer Quad held on April 7th by Kevin Feng. I was surprised since I am 65 years old and the event was listed for K-12 students. Kevin said some parents and kids wanted a stronger player for Quad 1 so they asked me. I accepted and was entered as a 12th grader!. I met Sean the tournament organizer and many parents who were all very nice to me. The playing area was excellent and the energy was great. I won 2 games and drew one. I would like to share my last game since it involved a sacrifice on h7. I played Raza Patel who is energetic and positive.
Olsen-Patel
1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.e3 e6 5.b3 ( a solid move I just started playing) 5…Nbd7 6.Bb2 Bd6 7.Bd3 0-0 8.Nbd2 Re8 (Better is 8...b6 90-0 Bb7) 9.Ne5 c5 10.f4 dc (I think Black should develop 10...b6 110-0 Bb7) 11.Ndc4 Be5 (this move gets Black into trouble 11...Bf8 120-0 and White is better) 12.fe5 Nd5
Instantly saw Bh7 and hesitated like I always do. This time I decided to try it. 13.Bh7+ (Stockfish thinks 13.0-0 is better 13…Rf8 14.Rf3 g6 15.Qe2 cd 16.Bd4 +1.9) 13…Kh7 14.Qh5+ Kg8 15.0-0 f5 (Stockfish 15...N7f6 16.ef6 Nf6 17.Qh4 +1) 16.Rf3 White is winning 16…N7f6 17.ef6 Nf6 18.Qg6 Ng4 19.dc5 e5 20.Nd6 Rf8 21.Rh3 Nf6 22.Be5 f4 23.Bf6 Rf6 24.Qh7+ Kf8 25.Qh8+ Ke7 26.Qg7+ Ke6 and White won in 49 moves.
I had a great time at this event. I would like to thank Sean, Kevin, the many parents I met and the young enthusiastic chess players for this wonderful opportunity. - Bob Olsen.
Over the last two weeks we have had a plethora of events for our members to play in.
The FIDE Premier Under 2000 that concluded on April 14 had 60 players registered and was won by Leandro Ulloa who scored 4.5 out of 5 to win $984. Adrian Harrison Sommerstein and Anurag Angara won class prizes of $295 each, while the following players shared in the remaining prize funds winning $98.50 for their 4 out of 5 performance: Andrew Colwell, Levon Tadevosyan, Luis Ulloa, and Derek Zhang.
The Rated Beginner Open that concluded on April 14 had 46 players registered and concluded with a 6-way tie with the following players winning $93.75 each for their perfect 3 out of 3 performance: Emerson Gaskins, Fred Walsh, Philip Xia, Milan Dev Chadha, Taykyum Kim, and Shaan Raut.
The FIDE Premier Open that concluded on April 14 had 35 players registered and was won by FM Liam Putnam, who scored 4.5 to win the $827 first place prize. Bryan Enming Lin won second place scoring 4 points to win the $456 prize, and the following 3 players won $86.33 each for their 3.5 out of 5 performance: Nkosi Nkululeko, Santhosh Ayyappan, and Aakaash Meduri.
The Morning Masters on April 13 had 12 players registered and was won by Jessica Hyatt who scored 2.5 out of 3 to win $90. The following 5 players scored 2 out of 3 to win $12 each: John Hughes, Caleb Klenoff, Leo Shen, Dominic Paragua, and Elliot Goodrich.
The Under 2000 Morning Action on April 13 had 52 players registered and was won by Kyle Clayton, Aidan Amin and Lucas Fugate who scored a perfect 3 out of 3 to win $151.67 each. Jack Boyer-Olson scored 2.5 out of 3 to win a class prize of $195.
The Alexei Navalny Action on April 11 had 58 players registered and was won by GM Semyon Lomasov, IM Mykola Bortnyk and FM Tanitoluwa Adewumi who scored 4 out of 4 winning $136 each. There were 5 players who shared in a class prize, winning $27.20 each for their 3 out of 4 performance: FM Jonathan Subervi, Nura Baalla, Aakaash Meduri, Grant Rheingold, and Mitchel Stern. Â
The Sunday Game 50 Under 1600 on April 7 had 41 players registered and was won by Paulo Paz, Kimani Thompson and Lowell Begley who scored 3.5 out of 4 to win $173.33 each.
The Sunday Game 50 Open on April 7 had 20 players registered and was won by IM Jay Bonin and Phineas Weingarten, who scored 3.5 out of 4 to win $100 each. Abigail Zhou and Nicholas Bear scored 3 out of 4 to share in a class prize, winning $30 each.
The Rated Beginner Open on April 7 had 44 players registered and was won by Cory Yau, Lily Aponte, Shaan Raut and August Malueg who scored 3 points to win $137.50 each.
The Saturday Morning Masters on April 6 had 6 players registered and was won by Caleb Klenoff who scored a perfect 3 out of 3 to win $38, while Rohan Lee got clear second with 2 points, winning $19.
The Saturday Under 2000 Action on April 6 had 37 players registered and was won by Chris Weldon, Noah Michael Feldman and David Ologunleko who scored 3 points to win $108.33 each. The following 6 players shared in a class prize winning $23.17 for their 2 out of 3 score: Favor Idemudia, Colton Choi, Mattingly Taveras, Miles Stringer, Lucas Wu, and Kyle Xu.
The Saturday Game 50 Under 1800 on April 6 had 37 players registered and was won by Justin Rosales, who scored 4 points to win the $222 first place prize. Kabir Mutha and Liam L Kojuharov scored 3.5 out of 4 to win $129.50.
The Saturday Game 50 Open on April 6 had 39 players registered and was won by Bryan Lin, who scored a perfect 4 out of 4 to win $234. IM Kevin Wang scored 3.5 out of 4 to win the second place prize of $156, while Lucas Lu and Leon Chu scored 3 points winning a class prize of $58.50 each.
The Women & Girls Open on April 5 had ten players registered and was won by Aileen Lou who scored a perfect 3 out of 3 to win $54, while Abigail Zhou and Sam Sharf scored 2.5 out of 3 to win $12.50 each.
The Friday Blitz on April 5 had 26 players registered and was won by FM Tanitoluwa Adewumi who scored 7.5 out of 9 and won $130. Linxi Zhu scored 7 out of 9 to win the second place prize of $65, while Aakaash Meduri, Roman Malyshev, and Neal Thio Hong scored 6 out of 9 to win $32.50. WCM Arabella Fang and Gautam Narula scored 5.5 to win $16.25 each.
The FIDE Rated Thursday Open that concluded on April 4 had 17 players registered and was won by Juan Luis Herrero Estrada, who scored 5 out of 6 to win the $117 first place prize. Aleksandr Gutnik came in second place, scoring 4 points to win $114, while Alan McMichael and Rajesh Uppala won $43 each for their 3.5 performance. The following 4 players shared in a class prize winning $14.25 each for the 3.5 performance: Nathan Resika, George Berg, Aliana Fausto, and John Brendel.
The Alexei Navalny Action on April 4 had 48 players registered and was won by IM Kevin Wang and Tanitoluwa Adewumi, who scored a perfect 4 out of 4 to win $166 each. Aakaash Meduri scored 3.5 in the event, winning $111 plus the upset prize.
The Sunday Game 50 Under 1600 on March 31 had 53 players registered and concluded in a 5-way tie. Daniel Zahzouhi, Bryant Anson Chen, Maximilian Almers, Miles Stringer and Henry Li all won $135.20 each for their 3.5 out of 4 score.
The Sunday Game 50 Open on March 31 had 43 players registered and was won by IM Jay Bonin and Anthony Wang who scored 4 out of 4 to win $215 each, while Isaac N Lui scored 3.5 out of 4 to win $129.
The Rated Beginner Open on March 31 had 39 players registered and was won by Austin Farr-Hardy, Taekyum Kim, Andrew Zeng and Ayan Shrestha who scored 3 out of 4 winning $112.50 each.
The Saturday Under 2000 Action on March 30 had 37 players registered and was won by Claudio Martin Mariani and Raitzin Misha who scored a perfect 3 out of 3 to win $157.50 each, while the remaining class prize was shared by Arlo Joshua Scherr, Ethan Nazimowitz and Jake Exkorn who scored 2 out of 3 winning $45 each.
The Saturday Game 50 Open on March 30 had 57 players registered and concluded in a 5-way tie with the following players scoring 3.5 points to win $114 each: IM Sal Matera, IM Kevin Wang, IM Justin Sarkar, Jessica Hyatt, and Elliot Goodrich. There was also a large tie for the remaining class prize money between the following 6 players who scored 3 points and won $28.50 each. Suvan Baranwal, Jack Yang, Harper Wallace, Richardson Jingsi Qiao, Mouhamadou Tall and Kevin Zhang.
The Saturday Game 50 Under 1800 on March 30 had 40 players registered and was won by John Silva who scored a perfect 4 out of 4 to win $240. David Gelpi, Grayson Xiang and Ayodele Dawodu scored 3.5 out of 4 to win $93.33 each.
The Friday Blitz on March 29 had a massive turnout with 50 players registered! It was won by IM Liran Zhou, who scored 8.5 out of 9 to win the $245 first place prize. Levon Tadevosyan scored 7 out of 9 to win $123, while the following three players scored 6.5 out of 9 to win $62 each:Ted Belanoff, Luc Hoffman, and Leo Vu. Harper Wallace and Anson Leong scored 6 out of 9 to win $31 each as a class prize.
The Alexei Navalny Action on March 28 had a huge turnout with 51 players registered and concluded with a tie between Paul Schepel and Kimani Stancil for first place. They both scored a perfect 4 out of 4 and won $176.50 each. Mitchell Stern scored 3.5 out of 4 securing a class prize of $118, while Ethan Kurian won the same amount as a class prize for his 3 out of 4 score. Â
We look forward to seeing you at the club soon!
Endgame Corner, by IM Silas Esben Lund
We will continue our comparison of knight and bishop from the last issue with a new position. Again, the knight is the superior minor piece to the bishop in the position, and again I will show just how difficult it can be to win these positions. A chess player should be prepared for that.
In the diagram above, find a continuation for White that allows him to transform the position and settle it into one where the principle of two weaknesses can be used. That is, the goal is not to win material, but to improve the position so much that we can eye a potential win by using the principle of two weaknesses from there. 1-0
Abdusattorov, Nodirbek vs Giri, Anish Tata Steel Chess 2024 (You can play through the position here.)
34. c4 bxc4 (34... cxb4 35. cxb5 Kc7 36. Kb3 White picks up the b-pawn with a winning endgame.)
35. bxc5 (35. b5 is perhaps tempting, but Black is doing fine after Kc7 36. a4 Rd8 The passed pawns look impressive, but can also be attacked, and it's hard to get to the c4-pawn.)
35... dxc5 36. Rxd7+ Kxd7 37. Kc3 Kc6 38. Kxc4
White has transformed the position into one where the principle of two weaknesses can be used. We talked about this idea in an earlier Endgame Column. White has an outside passed pawn a-pawn, and both c5 and the kingside pawns are potential targets.
38…Kb6 39. a4 Kc6 40. Nf2 Bd8 41. Ne4 Be7 42. a5 Bd8 43. a6 Be7 44. Nc3 Bg5 (44... Bh4 45. Nb5 Bf2 46. Nd6 Kb6 47. Nxf7 (47. Ne4 Be3 48. Nxc5 The pawn endgame is winning after 48…Bxc5 49. a7 Kxa7 50. Kxc5 Kb7 51. Kd6) 47... Kxa6 48. f6 At this point, the only winning move. 48… gxf6 49. Nxh6) (44... Kb6 45. Nd5+ )
45. Nb5 Be3 46. h4 White needs this pawn on h5 for a successful breakthrough later. The difference between this pawn on h3 and h5 makes the difference! That's how hard it is to win a position like that. (46. Nd6 Kb6 47. Nxf7 Kxa6. Now 48. f6 doesn't work as h6 is protected.) (46. a7 Kb7 47. Kd5 (47. h4) 47... Bf2 48. Kd6 c4 49. Ke7 (49. Kd5 Bxa7 50. Nxa7 Kxa7 51. Kxc4 Kb6 Without the pawn on h5, the break with g4-g5 is no longer a threat. 52. Kd5 Kc7) 49... Bxa7 50. Kxf7 (50. Nxa7 c3) 50... Bc5 With this tactic, Black defends g7. The c3-pawn gives Black sufficient counterplay. 51.h4 (51. Kxg7 Kb6) 51... Kc6 52. Nc3 Bd4 White will have to give up the knight for the c-pawn, and can then break with g4-g5 to eliminate pawns and make a draw.)
46... Kb6 47. a7 Kb7 48. h5 Ka8 49. Kd5 Kb7 50. Kd6 c4 51. Kd5 Bxa7 52. Nxa7 c3 A desperate attempt at counterplay. (52... Kxa7 53. Kxc4 Kb6 54. g5. This breakthrough only works with the white pawn on h5. hxg5 (54... f6 stops the breakthrough, but now the white king can enter via e6: 55.gxh6 gxh6 56. Kd5 Kc7 57. Ke6) 55. f6 gxf6 56. h6)
53. Nc6 c2 54. Na5+ Kc7 55. Nb3 Kd7 56. g5 Not the only way to win. 56…Ke7 57. gxh6 gxh6 58. Ke5 f6+ 59. Kd5 Kd7 60. Nc1 Black resigned.
The knight can only stop the c-pawn, but a waiting move suffices to break the opposition of the kings. 1-0
If you enjoy Silas Esben Lund’s writing, considering checking out some of his books. We are thrilled to have some of his recent titles now available in the club library.
IM Silas Esben Lund, Spectator Columnist
Across The Table
 Q: When did you start playing chess and how did you learn?
I learned the basics of playing chess when I was little, but it never grabbed me back then. Before there was online chess, it was hard to find someone to play chess with, let alone someone on your level. I also didn't enjoy studying chess books.
I rediscovered chess three years ago, after a viral video of Alexandra Botez playing the hustlers in the park ended up on my Youtube feed. I gave chess another try, and quickly found out that I enjoyed it a lot more than I did when I was little. Being able to play with thousands of people all over the world, and being able to learn from watching videos from content creators, made all the difference to my engagement level. Â
Q: How long have you been a member of the club?Â
I've been a member for almost two years now. Not long after I rediscovered chess, I was looking for a way to play it over the board. At first I felt intimidated at the thought of playing in a club, assuming that everyone was much stronger than I was.  Once I took the plunge and registered for my first tournament, I realized how silly that was, and that in fact there were many people at all levels who enjoyed playing chess in person.
I personally found that playing chess in a club is much more fun and engaging than playing it online. I like being able to play in classical time controls, as I enjoy the puzzle solving aspect of chess and dislike the time pressure part of it. I also like going over the game afterwards in the skittles room, and take every opportunity to do so. It's always interesting to me to find out what my opponent was thinking throughout the game, and to learn how other people think about chess positions.
Q: What's your favorite opening trap?
I don't like playing for opening traps, as most opening traps leave you with a worse position if your opponent doesn't bite. Even if your opponent bites, you win a quick game and learn nothing from it. Â
That said, I do like playing some openings where an unprepared opponent can get in big trouble while making typical moves. Vienna Gambit and Caro-Kann Two Knights Attack are two of my favorite openings, and I like the positions I get in them even if my opponents don't trap themselves.
Q: Any great game you've played at the Marshall you'd like to share?
About a year ago I played a 90+30 game against Nicholas Beirne. Nicholas kept blitzing out move after move even deep into the game, while I was figuring things out from first principles the whole time, and got more than an hour behind on the clock by the end of the game. Eventually we exchanged all the pieces and it was a forced draw. The game itself was not that exciting tactically, but what makes it memorable is that we both played almost perfect book and engine lines, with 97% accuracy. It gave me a boost of confidence to find out that I could run into a well-prepared opponent and still sometimes figure out all the right moves.
Q: What about yourself would you like other members to know, that we may not know! Any surprising facts?
Before I started competing in chess, I competed in data science competitions on a site called Kaggle. Taking part in these competitions and getting good results allowed me to transition my career and become a professional data scientist. Becoming a chess grandmaster is probably not in the cards for me, but on Kaggle I have 4 of the 5 "norms" required to obtain the Kaggle Competitions Grandmaster title.
-Dmitriy Guller, Marshall Chess Club Member
Chess Toons
En Passant
-12-year-old Turkish chess sensation IM Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus is the new youngest grandmaster in the world and the fourth youngest to achieve the title in history. He earned his third grandmaster norm in Germany on Monday and his title is pending approval from FIDE. Erdogmus is also on the verge of breaking a 35-year-old rating record.
-GMs Hikaru Nakamura and Fabiano Caruana won their games in round 10 of the 2024 FIDE Candidates Tournament to inch closer to the tournament lead. Co-leaders GM Ian Nepomniachtchi and GM Gukesh Dommaraju made a draw in their game and are now chased by three players a half-point behind: Nakamura, Caruana, and GM Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu.
GM Lei Tingjie won for the fourth time in her last five games, this time against GM Aleksandra Goryachkina, to jump into a tie for first with GM Tan Zhongyi in the 2024 FIDE Women's Candidates Tournament. They are a point ahead of their closest competitors, Goryachkina and GM Kateryna Lagno.
-A day after Alireza claimed he was warned by the chief arbiter at the Candidates 2024 chess tournament for his shoes making too much noise during games, FIDE’s Technical delegate for the Candidates chess tournament has alleged that Alireza’s father threatened to call the police if he was not allowed to watch games of his son from the balcony of the playing hall whenever he wanted to.
Problems, Problems, curated by Alexander George
A. Alekhine, 1933
White to move and win.
A little nugget from our next World Champion, Alekhine (1927-35, 1937-46). Does anyone know if this appeared in an over-the-board game of his?Â
(If you have any problems by World Champions—or any feedback at all—please send them my way: mcc-chess@ahg.slmail.me.)
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Last issue’s problem: Capablanca, 1921
Solution to Capablanca, 1921: 1.g4 a5 2.a4 Kf6 3.h4 Ke6 4.g5 Kf7 5. Kf5 Kg7 6.h5 Kf7 7.Ke5 and wins—and not 7.g6+ and draws!
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Alexander George
Editor's Note
As always, if you have any feedback, comments, or would like to submit an article please contact us directly at td@marshallchessclub.org.
Enjoy, and thanks for reading!
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