2009 New England Open

This was my first regional tournament since March 2009, and my first chess rated event/game in over 35 days.

I contemplated for a week as to whether or not I'd play in the multiple day tournament or the 1-Day tournament. Usually, I prefer the multi-day tournament schedules and make a big-to-do about the event, but as I'm just recovering from a recent surgery and just now gaining my strength to play, I opted for the 1-Day event and played in the U1700 section.

When I arrived on Monday morning, the event was in full swing. The 2009 New England Open was directed by Alex Relyea assisted by his wife, Nita Patel and MACA officials. It was held at the Holiday Inn in Nashua New Hampshire -- a convenient location for most Massachusetts chess players. And, I must say that Alex did a fantastic job once again; the unfortunate understanding I have, however, is that Alex suffered a financial loss at this tournament, even though he collected over a 100 entry fees.

If these events are going to continue, a resolution needs to be found to ensure financial stability for the organizers of these tournaments. I know that people are screaming "Don't raise tournament fees!", but something needs to be done. The CCA has a very successful model with their events and their fees are tripled in comparison to the fees that local organizations charge for their events here in New England.

But I digress...congratulations Alex and team for a job well done! The 2009 New England Open had a vibrant appeal and you could feel the energy in the competition room as chess players sat quietly entwined with their thoughts...contemplating all sorts of combinations and various strategies to outwit their opponent!

As for me, well, I just wanted to get back to playing chess and aspired to having a good tournament; good as in playing .500 or better. I went into this event with one game at a time mentality, letting the chips fall as they may. Never did I imagine that I would go on to place 1st in this tournament; especially after going through the surgery I did and not playing any chess for over 30 days!

Now, naturally when the lowest tournament section is U1700, your field of players are going to include under 1300 rated players in your section. Being one of the higher rated players, I knew that my first round game would "probably" be an easy game. But, you never know with young kids; you know the ones...being coached by Gary Kasparov and are on their way to reaching class A status by end of year and you just happen to be in their way when they start out on such a trek.

This section had 26 participants for this one day event; rather impressive I'd say. In the first round I was Black and drew a young adolescent named Rohan Shankar with a rating of 1264. For a 1200 rated player, he played quite strong. The line played in this game was the Sicilian Najdorf and 48 moves later I had prevailed. Rohan did not have a very good tournament and went on to place 24th with a score: 0.5 - 3.0
1-0

In the second round I was due White and was paired against a young teen named Edward Li with a rating of 1524. Edward decided to play the French Defense...Damn! I can not stand this opening. I find it totally boring and uninspiring! As one who dislikes the French Defense, I naturally, of course, don't play into any of the French lines. Rather, I meet boring with boring and play the KIA against this lack-luster defense.

Black was behind this entire game and it was only a matter of time before I would overcome this useless defense. It did get down to an end game, but I had 3 pawns up and an active King. Black's King was MIA. 2-0

Edward went on to have a good tournament, placing 5th overall with a score of: 3.0 - 1.0

After the end of the second round, I was feeling pretty good about my play after taking a 30+ day hiatus from chess. My confidence was returning and the games I had played were solid wins. In round 3 I was due Black and got paired up against an older gentleman named David Raymond with a rating of 1535. David was having a strong tournament and had just knocked off the number one seed in our section in round 2.

For two strong players who had just played two great games in a row, I'd say that our game was a little careless. The line played in this game was the Closed Sicilian. Personally, I have not experienced a lot of games with this line, but enough to know what strategies to incorporate when playing out this particular version of the Sicilian.

Our game was pretty even up until move 22 where I decided to open it up a little with a pawn sacrifice. This is where the carelessness on my part begins; thinking that I had calculated correctly a knight pin, I over looked White's Queen playing a "check" move to escape the fork. Thus, I was down a Rook for a Bishop. But it did not stop there, I immediately followed up with a Knight move to an uprotected square and...whala...I was down a solid piece with no compensation.

At this point, I knew my game was lost, but I wanted to give David a run for his money. My pieces were active and better coordinated, so I just dug in and fought it out. Well, to my amazement, David entered the club of careless play and made a move where I was able to pin his rook and win the piece. Next thing I knew, our game was dead even again and, eventually, it played itself out to a draw. Whew...
2.5 - 0.5

In the final round, I was in the money and a shot to place 1st in our section. The only issue was, I would not be afforded the right to play the current one seed due to our color pairings. We were both due White and therefore, the pairings would work itself into way that I would not be able to control my own destiny.

In the final round I was White and drew Thomas Laaman with a rating of 1636. Thomas entered the tournament with a first round bye and he too, was in the money if he could knock me off this round.

This game was my best game of the tournament. I played the Evans Gambit against Thomas and after playing 6.Qb3, I knew I had the game in the bag. Just watching my opponent twist and turn with that uncomfortable feeling of being in uncharted waters was enough to satisfy my intuition, that my opponent was lost and unsure of his position.

The critical point in the game came at move 30. I had just played Qxh6 and my opponent played 30...Bg5? Can you see the winning tactic?



I played 31.Bg6+ where an eventual exchange led to winning a full piece and positional advantage. I went on to easliy win this game 8 moves later and finished the tournament at 3.5 - 0.5. As luck would have it, David Raymond, whom I played in round 3, forced a draw in his final round with the current one seed, Timothy Lung.

The Chess Gods had favored me greatly this day as I found myself sharing first place with Timothy and splitting the winnings at the tournament's conclusion.

Reviewing the 78th Massachusetts Open

This traditional MACA event was held at the Holiday Inn in Boxborough MA over Memorial weekend. And I must say, with great success! Over the last several years, I have noticed a severe decrease of participants playing in the Massachusetts Open; not this year. There was success written all over the place, from the playing hall to the main corridor just outside the hall, chess players, young and old, mingled about talking of their games, playing bug-house on the floor and just buzzing around with jargon only understood by fellow chess players. It was just good to see, but good for MACA too. They needed a successful tournament beyond the bread and butter of pure scholastic medicine.

But what makes me most thrilled about the success of this tournament was the evidence that chess still lives among the adult population despite recent indicators of a decline in adult chess players over the age of 25. MACA provided the full gambit; a three day six round event, a one day 4 round event, blitz tournament, scholastics tournament and prize money for submitted games that had the most interesting and convincing win. I offer my congratulations and sincere gratitude to the folks of MACA, who made this tournament possible and successful; especially to the TD’s, who got their hands dirty and provided a smooth tournament.

As for the hosting site, you can’t ask for a better location and setting for the money. Hopefully, the Holiday Inn was able to benefit from such a wonderful turn out, as this would only favor the chess community and MACA for future events.

Now, let’s get to the over the board results. I enrolled in the 3-day event U1600 Section and finished 3.0/6. Meh…I know I am better than what the results provided and I am not going to take anything away from my opponents by providing excuses. I do have my reasons for not playing at the level I’m capable of, but the same could be said for a lot of players. But to provide some evidence, I will say that my wins came at the hands of one whom placed 2nd in our section and one whom was the top rated player in our section.

Round One:
I draw Black and am paired up against Ramasay Subramani, a young man from the state of Washington. His play is much stronger than his advanced class D rating would suggest and made evident from his final results 4-2 in the U1600 section. This particular game I played the Sicilian Najdorf variation where White plays the non-confrontational 7.Be2.

This game was the longest game I’ve ever played during my chess career at over 5 hours and 12 minutes to complete. The end game came down to a Rook-Bishop for Black vs. Bishop-Pawn for White on move ...60. White made me play out the mate, so I did…nineteen moves later.

It was a good win, but it came at a cost. It was mentally and physically exhausting and would haunt me the rest of the tournament. Subramani went on to place second at this tournament.

Round Two:
Playing White this round, I am paired up against a lower 1400 rated player named Jeffery Wright. I’ve seen Jeff at the local club from time to time mingling about watching the masters play, but I’ve never seen him actually play at the club.

In this game I go into the KIA against a reverse French Defense, which is usually the case with players wanting to play the Alekhine Defense against 1.e4 only to realize that I won’t even entertain it with 2.d3. Anyway, the opening was well played out, but my concentration was just not there going into the later stages of the game; I only had a half-hour break since playing my last marathon game and that game was still pressing on the mind.

Jeffery was able to open up my c-file and load up the cannon against an un-coordinated defense, and eventually ripped open my center pawn structure. I was in no mood for another long played out game, especially being down material, so I resigned early. Jeffery, like my first opponent, went on to place 2nd in this tournament.

Round Three:
The following morning I am paired against Pierre Fleurant, a fellow club player who has just recently broke out of the U1400 section and is gradually increasing in playing strength. Pierre is a methodical and deliberate player, using his time wisely. All good qualities that will serve him well as he moves up to greener pastures with stronger players.

Once again, I go into the Sicilian Najdorf against White’s English Attack, but I’m playing the opening on auto- pilot and am more interested in my IPOD than the game itself. My ignorance and lack of concentration on the game drops a piece immediately to my opponent on move 10.

At this point, I’m cursing my opponent from round one…blaming him for my own failures; its becoming a mental game with me. Well, anyway, after I lost my Bishop, I was determined to give my opponent a better game and rolled up the sleeves. Eventually, I did regain some material, but not enough to equalize the game and to my opponents credit he finished off the game with a nice mating combination.

Round Four:
By now, I’m frustrated with my game play. I just can’t seem to let go of round one, and even though I won that round it just destroyed my psyche for some unknown reason. I just didn’t have the mo-jo going and was dreading playing another game; I was considering withdrawing at this point.

But, I stuck it out and drew Robert Ernest King who ended up playing the Sicilian against me with an accelerated move of 5…e5. During this game I was up material and liked my position over Black’s, but somewhere down the road, I just didn’t follow my instincts and played a rather off-tempo move allowing my opponent to sneak in the back door and earn a perpetual check against my King. This game ended in a draw.

I left the day down and out and upset with my play. I was fighting a psychological war with my own mental state of well being and questioning my own potential as a chess player. Later in the evening, my wife encouraged me with positive feedback, reminding me that I had been down this road once before and pulled out of it like a champ; then went on to blast me for not getting a good breakfast in me before the games.

The next morning, I awoke in a good mood and in a fresh mental state. I had finally let go of the last two days of miserable chess and sat down for breakfast.

Round Five:
This would be my final round as I had put in for a bye on round six. I went into this game reinvigorated and was hoping to draw a strong opponent. My wish came true as I drew the top rated player in our section, a man from central Massachusetts by the name of Eduardo Valadares.

For the third time, I played the Sicilian Najdorf, and boy did I ever play this defense to its very name; cunning, edgy and with some risk. But, I like the Najdorf because it always allows you to play for a win! I don’t like stodgy games and openings that enter easily into drawn positions.

In this game my opponent, after castling king-side, immediately decides to go forward with a king side attack, pushing his g and h pawns and weakening his dark squares around his King. My plan was simple, I would exchange for his dark colored bishop and then play for those squares.

After I sacrificed my Queen for two minor pieces; Rook and Knight, I got the bishop exchange I wanted. My intention with the sacrifice and exchange was to gain position and eventually spawn a passed pawn on the queen-side of the board for compensation. Moreover, I liked the proposition of having more pieces to exert pressure on White's weakened dark squares around his King. My calculations worked out precisely as planned. I put the pigs on the 7th rank, exposed his weak squares as outposts for my knights and with a passed pawn it was just too much for my opponent to handle.

This game was a clean, well played and satisfying win for me, especially for my chess ego; it desperately needed a slight boost. Moreover, I submitted this game to MACA as a contender for the most interesting and decisive win competition.

RATING WATCH: 1562

2009 Nashua Open

This last weekend I played in the 1st Nashua Open up in New Hampshire. The event was held at the Holiday Inn located at 9 Northeastern Blvd and hosted by a newly organized group called, RELYEA CHESS.

For a small organization, I’d say that their first Nashua Open was a success story. The event was made up of two sections; Open and U1750 and both sections had a field of at least 22 participants. The only shortcoming I noticed at this particular event was the absence of adolescent chess players. If this event is to successfully continue for years to come, then the organization will have to come up with a strategy to promote chess to the youth of southern New Hampshire and get the word out through better communication channels regionally.

Fortunately for me, I had checked the MACA site earlier for local tournaments being played in the month of March and just happened to notice a small announcement for the Nashua Open. I, of course, enrolled in the U1750 section for this particular event, and had quite a successful tournament finishing at 3.5/5; taking the third round as a bye. I even won a little prize money for finishing as top player with a published rating under 1500. I will definitely return to Nashua N.H. to play in the tournament again.

The competition, for the most part, was solid. I had faced off with two opponents holding Class B ratings, and a player with a 1591 rating. My only loss of the tourney came at the hands of Thomas Provost Sr. with a rating of 1707, and I must say, I had him on the ropes for most of the game, but as we shall soon see, gambits aren’t designed for endgames.

Smith,Warner (1553) - Provost,Thomas (1706)
[C52] Evans Gambit Accepted
2009 Nashua Open Nashua N.H.

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4
You would think that a much lower rated player would stay away from playing gambits against their stronger opponents. But I love the Evans Gambit and what better way to test your mettle in chess than to do so with the mighty gambit against a stronger opponent!

4...Bxb4 5.c3 Ba5 6.d4 exd4 7.0–0 d6 8.cxd4













Before making this move, I had taken a few minutes to decide between my favorite move 8.Qb3 or the wanting move of 8.cxd4. I wanted to try something different for a change and see what waters I could tread with the obvious and more accurate cxd4.

8...Nf6 9.Qa4
The timing for this move is slightly off and if I may say, a bit awkard. The thinking here is to pin the Knight and then follow up with 10.d5. I've been here before and have played d5 first to move the Knight off of c6 and then follow up with Qa4+. The correct move, however, is 9.e5! If Black follows up with 9...dxe5, then White plays 10.Ba3 and prevents Black from castling.

9...Bd7
A solid move by Black that now forces White to follow up with 10.Bb5 or lose tempo and play 10.Qa3.

10.Bb5 Bb6!
Another good move by Black; the threat of losing his dark squared bishop is no longer and now sits comfortably along the strong a7-g1 diagonal targeting White's weak d4 pawn.

11.e5



The Evans Gambit gives White a lot of play early on, but you have to maintain tempo and keep attacking! Should White let the fire die, so does his chances of getting a win with this opening.

11...a6
Black continues to fight fire with fire...it's his only way to survive in the early going.

12.exf6 axb5 13.fxg7!



Why do I give this just move an exclamation point? Because it accomplishes one of the major themes I play for when playing this opening, and that is to prevent Black from a Kingside castle. A Kingside castle by Black in this opening can be devastating for White because all positional compensation for the gambit is lost.

13...Rg8
Black's only move, anything else just loses.

14.Re1+ Ne7 15.Qc2
The alternative 15.Qb3 was considered, but I believed that I could get more play with 15.Qb2 and focus on a back-door attack to Black's king after a pin with 16.Bg5.

15...Rxg7 16.Bg5 f5 17.d5?



And...the steam runs dry with this less than whiff of a move. White needed to either continue to apply pressure, attack or develop his Queen Knight to keep the wrecking train moving. But, alas, White plays d5. The thought at the time was to open up the a1–h8 diagonal for White's Queen or Bishop and follow up with the idea of applying pressure on King's back rank...ya know, a cozy little spot for White's Queen to visit perhaps. In the end, this move allows Black to gain tempo, clear out White's steam and equalize.

17...Bd4?!
This move is rather dubious and when Black played it, I felt like it was a mistake; an opportunity for White to regain steam and the game's tempo. And I could have done that with 18.Nc3! Its a move I tentatively considered but did not reach deep enough in my analysis to see what opportunities could arise for White. Regardless, I should have, at the very least, considered the simple means of development that this move would give me. Now my Rooks would be connected along the back rank and the Knight is out to wreak havoc.

18.Nxd4
So, I play the safe move against my stronger opponent. Isn't that always the case when you sit opposite a higher rated player? Well, all is not lost with this move and I still like my position.

18...Rxg5 19.Qc3
Still time to play Nc3, but I'm convinced that a1–h8 diagonal is the key to this game! Such infatuation leads to inaccurate play against Black. Moves that grant Black time and resolve to get to an end game.

19...Kf7 20.Ne6 Bxe6 21.dxe6+ Kg8 22.Qf6
Finally making use of this diagonal, but there isn't much light to see here. I'll be honest, I'm just continuing to push an attack whenever I can in hopes of finding some exploitation in Black's play before the end game arrives!

22...Rg6 23.Qb2?
I have no idea what I was thinking here. I just got done explaining White's strategy in his previous move and I had every intention to play 23.Qf7+; continuing to push the envelope whenever I can. I guess I just didn't want to hop off the diagonal...pretty lame huh?

23...c6



Black solidifies his Queen side pawn structure and bides time now that his King is no longer under any legitimate attacks and tucked under the safety of his loyal subjects. Who would you rather be, White or Black? I like Black, I mean...c'mon look at White's pieces tucked away in the lower corner of the board smoking the peace pipe rather than doing the war dance.

24.Nd2
Just can't seem to play Nc3 for the life of me! Must be high from that peace pipe.

24...Qc8!
Black takes advantage of White's sluggish play with his best available move.

25.Nf3 Rxe6 26.Rxe6
I should have tried harder to find a better move. 26.Nd4 offers some interesting play for White, but I'm feeling the engine losing its steam and I'm beginning to feel lazy. The fact still remains, that when you're down material, you don't willingly exchange pieces off the board without compensation!

26...Qxe6 27.Re1 Qd7 28.Qf6



Been here before; now to take advantage of the open g-file and available space around Black's king.

28...Ng6 29.Ng5
The Knight move really doesn't accomplish much here for White and time is running out to make something happen. If anything, this move allows Black to fight for the e-file and force more exchanges. Something White does not want to happen. Better would have been 29.h4 towards moving the Black Knight off of g6. 29...Rf8 30.Qg5 Qg7 31.Re6 Ne5 is a slightly better line for White to undertake.

29...Rf8 30.Qc3 Re8 31.Rd1
Avoiding exchanges...

31...Qe7 32.Nf3 d5 33.Re1 Qf7 34.Ne5?



When I made this move, I had resigned myself to accepting an exchange in hopes of finding some holes in Black's defense to go pawn grabbing. However, this move loses outright, but Black did not see the proper course to take to win this position. Black too, was mentally exhausted by this time in the game. 34...Qg7! pinning the Knight temporarily. 35.f4 Nxf4 36.Qg3 Qxg3 37.hxg3 Ng6 38.Nf6 Rxe1 39.Nxe1 c5!

34...Nxe5 35.Rxe5 Rxe5 36.Qxe5
Funny enough, I got the exchange on my terms thanks to Black's temporary lapse of tactical analysis.

36...Qg7



When Black made this move, I was sure I had a draw...and I initially analyzed the moves correctly to do so; but then I saw a hanging pawn and got greedy...thinking that I could still pull off the draw. Why I did what I did? Who knows...mental wear down perhaps. The correct move to play is 37.Qe6+! Black is then unable to stop White from a bombardment of constant checks.

37.Qb8+
Its the greedy side of me...

37...Qf8 38.Qxb7 Qe8 39.Kf1
And this move only helps Black's cause. Better is 39.h4, a move that could still, perhaps, get us a draw.

39...d4 40.Qb6?
This is the losing move for White. 40.h4 was still a viable move for White to consider.

40...d3 41.Qe3 Qxe3 42.fxe3 c5 43.Ke1 c4
White resigns. 0–1

2009 Eastern Class Championships

This event was held at the Host Hotel in Sturbridge, MA and was my first major chess event of the year. If you recall from an earlier post last year, I did not have many good things to say about the Host Hotel's accommodations. Needless to say, I spent my nights at the Hampden Hotel down the street for less money and much cleaner rooms! But, I must admit, there is something to be said about having a room on the premises that hosts the event. The first thing that comes to mind; a place to immediately retire to and rest. Perhaps go over your game in private and if you own Chessbase, enter your game for immediate analysis. Having a room a few minutes down the road does not easily translate to such niceties, something for me to think about when the Continental Open comes to town.

The Eastern Class Championships, put on by the CCA, is a popular event here in the Northeast with a relatively strong turnout. What is attractive about this specific event is how the sections are categorized per class. Most of your opponents sitting across the board are of comparative chess skill and strength. I entered the "Class C" section with a current published rating of 1472, which had about 30 entrants.

Playing the 3 day cycle versus two days is my preferred choice. Playing in a tournament where you begin with shortened move/time controls only to be assimilated into longer time controls in later rounds is hard to adjust too and, quite frankly, puts you at a mental disadvantage.

This tournament drew in a lot of players from my club which always adds a little social flare to the event. Personally, I had a good tournament. I finished 3.0/5, but my play was better than my score. Here is how it went down:

Round 1: I am Black and draw Walter Chesnut(1583) as my opponent. Walter is a strong player and probably more of a chess fiend than me. Why do I say this? Well, I arrived at our board first and had pretty much everything set up when he finally arrives and says, "I have these," as he opens up a box to reveal a beautifully hand carved wooden set produced by the House of Staunton; total cost, $1500.00 plus. Hey, who am I to argue with that? I said sure and got the opportunity to play with a very nice set indeed. As for the game, the line was a classical King's Indian Defense and it was a good solid game played well by both sides that ended in a draw after White's 28th move. Walter offered the draw after realizing the position to be equal, but moreover, knowing that if he was to forfeit a tempo move my way, I could come crashing down his King side with a violent attack. Of course the same could be said of me, if I were to allow White to get in one additional move on the Queen side without proper defensive measures on my part, he could have torn up that side of the board. Walter goes on to finish in a tie for second place with a score of 4.0/5.

Round 2: I'm due White and draw William Phelps(1488) from Maine, an older gentleman with a friendly demeanor. William decides to play the French Defense...I strongly dislike this defense. I find it rather boring and stodgy and rarely play into any of the "French" variations. I decided to play against this lack luster defense with something rather conservative as well; the KIA. I've always had good results against French players with the KIA. I finish this game with a strong victory which is rather reminiscent of a game I played against a fellow club player a few months ago. William finishes with a respectable 3.0/5.

Round 3: I am paired up against Greg Gelsomino(1483) from New York. Greg opens with 1.e4 that leads to a Closed Sicilian opening. Of all my games at this event, this game was perhaps the most un-interesting. I felt that my opponent was playing for a draw, exchanging pieces whenever opportunity presented itself. Of course, perhaps he just didn't see any better moves, in any case, I couldn't find any thing interesting myself to complicate the position to prevent these sort of exchanges. In the end, this game ends up in a draw, nothing much else to say about this one. Greg goes on to finish 3.0/5.

Round 4: This game was my most exciting game of the tournament and wraps up a strong win. For your viewing pleasure, I offer annotations of this particular game. Enjoy!

Smith,Warner (1553) - Sifter,Thomas (1528)
[B87] Sicilian Najorf/Fischer Attack
Eastern Class Championships Sturbridge, MA

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Bc4 e6 7.Bb3
The Fischer Attack is my choice of weapon when facing the Sicilian Najdorf. White focuses on attacking the center; specifically targeting Black's pawn on e6. If Black does not play accurately, White may sacrifice his light colored Bishop on e6 to open up a strong attack with his Knight on d4 leading the way.

7...b5
Black's usual reply, however, 7...Nbd7 has become quite popular where Black has been able to obtain some promising positions.

8.Qf3!














Usually, White castles here, but I like to mix it up once in a while and play the strong Qf3! as soon as I can. The plan is two-fold; first if Black fails to play either 8...Bb7 or 8...Qc7, then White has the strong 9.e5! The follow up for White's Queen is to eventually play Qg3 after Black decides to castle King side.

8...Qc7
I like this move for Black as he safeguards against White's play for an immediate 9. e5 push where Black would then just play 9...Be7. By playing Qc7, Black leaves his Bishop to protect the weak pawn on e6.

9.a3
To prevent Black from "kicking" my Knight off of c3 and to provide an escape route for the light colored Bishop.

9...Be7 10.Be3 0–0 11.0–0 Re8














After this move, I got the warm and fuzzies...an internal mechanism that soothes the chess soul with dreams of winning combinations. Not that this move by Black is bad, but it was just one of those moves where I felt the tide was about to change in my favor. The one draw back with this move is that it does take away an important escape route for Black's Knight on f6.

12.Qg3
Putting a heavy emphasis on Black's ability to play very accurate. Should Black make a move to remove the Bishop guard to e6, white comes in fast with a Bishop sacrifice. For example, 12...Nbd7? 13.Bxe6! If Black plays 13...fxe6?? 14.Nxe6 Nh5 15.Nxc7 Nxg3 16.fxg3 Bb7 17.Nxa8 Bxa8 +-

12...Nc6
Now that White's Queen has moved to g3, Black can now play Nc6.

13.f4 Nxd4
Black plays to remove some tension in the center.

14.Bxd4 Bd7?!
I found this move quite interesting and in White's favor. The problem with this move is Black has taken away the last viable retreat square for his Knight on f6. And as we will soon see, Black is left scrapping to maintain some sort of equalized position with White. Personally, I like the very Najdorf like move 14...Bb7 for Black.

15.e5!














There is no other move to consider here. Black will have to move his Knight off of the important f6 square and give way to White's play for this very important square. White's desire for f6 involves placing his own Knight on f6 for a very strong King attack.

15...dxe5 16.fxe5 Bc5
Black is reaching; hoping that White will play 17.exf6? Unfortunately, White has time and position, so he is not concerned with the up-coming lack-luster check on his King. If White did play 17.exf6? then 17...Bxd4+ 18.Kh1 Qxg3 19.hxg3 Bxf6 =+

17.Bxc5 Qxc5+
I couldn't have planned it any better; this move order by Black plays directly into Whites desire to bring his Knight into play and eventually to f6!

18.Kh1 Nd5 19.Ne4!














Maintaining tempo over Black and forcing his Queen to move, White will play to rid Black's guard to f6 and then follow up with Nf6!

19...Qf8?
This move just loses for Black and as we shall see, two moves later Black resigns.

20.Bxd5! exd5 21.Nf6+! 1–0

Thomas goes on to finish at 3.0/5.

As for Round 5: I'm due Black and I'm paired up against a young adolescent, Joshua Abady(1393). Now I lost this game and I'm giving Joshua his due, he played a well thought out game and pretty much won his game against me hands down. But one thing I've learned about myself in these tournaments: Always put in for a bye on the final round! Fact of the matter is, after playing in these weekend long tournaments, by the time the final round rolls around in the late part of a Sunday afternoon, my mental state is just less than sharp. And, of course, having more than an few hours of down time before the last round leads to boredom and dull senses.

Needless to say, I wasn't mentally in this game from the start. I rushed my analysis short of critical lines and didn't take my opponent seriously. Thus, I deserved what I got. Joshua, with this win, ties for second place in our section with a 4.0/5 score. This game did leave me with some exciting analysis to review and will be the subject of my next blog.

RATING WATCH: 1567

Groundhog Round-Up!

As my quest for chess perfection continues forward; OK, as my quest for improved play moves forward, this month's Groundhog Day Swiss tournament had its share of ups and downs.

To start with some basic facts; the section I signed into was the U1600 with a field of 13 players ranging from low 1200 ratings to upper 1500's. On the wall chart, I was the 5th highest ranked player in our section with a rating of 1471. Overall, the turnout for this tournament was on the low end and I'd say that the field competition was moderate in our section.

Round 1: Smith(1471) vs. Cermak(1297)
This game was a rather convincing win for me. I played a gambit opening that my opponent had never seen before. Needless to say, he spent the entire game on the defensive and quickly fell short on material. We went over the game afterwards and I'm sure he'll feel a little more comfortable in the future against the sort of gambit I played.

I didn't annotate this game publicly. However, I was quite pleased with Fritz's analysis of my play -- I played quite accurate.

Round 2: Thompson(1477) vs. Smith(1471)
It would appear that Doug Thompson and myself have been joined at the hip in recent tournaments. In this game I played the Sicilian Defense in response to Doug's 1.e4 - 3.c3 opening. Because I had already just blog-annotated a game played between us in an earlier match, I decided not to blog another game between us.

Our game was interesting for a while, but things turned pretty bad for Doug later in the game. He was feeling a whole lot of heat coming down on his Monarch and his pieces were just not properly aligned to meet the onslaught. This was another solid win in my column.

So, after two rounds I scored two solid victories in comfortable fashion and according to Fritz, my play was pretty accurate in both those games. From an improvement perspective, I've been very happy with recent tournament play. My positional awareness and understanding has dramatically improved; strategic and tactical comprehension greatly increased as well. But, most importantly, I had ridden myself of some very nasty habits. Especially the one habit where I use to "exchange for the sake of exchanging".

I was looking forward to round three to test my skill against a stronger player.

Round 3: Smith(1471) vs. Harrington(1539)
In this game I played the same gambit opening I played in round 1 with succinct success. Again, my opponent was unfamiliar with the opening I sprung on him and by move 9 he was down a piece and on a fast track to being mated.

After the game, I was left with a funny thought. Since my return to tournament chess after a 3 month hiatus, my last 5 wins were downright convincing...not a lot of sweat and no end games to knuckle out. Had my play improved that much as a result of professional instruction, time and study? I would like to think so, and rested my thoughts on the idea that I had a chance to sweep the section with 4 wins by the end of the final round.

But alas, as life's funny ironies come into play, I am stricken with the flu and was bacterially forced to call in for a bye on the final round! As it turns out, I still placed 1st, just had to share it with two other people.

Rating Watch: 1553

13th Bradley Open

This event is organized by the Continental Chess Association (CCA) and is annually hosted at the Bradley International Airport in Connecticut.

It is another popular tournament with solid turnouts; albeit not as strong as say the Continental Open or Foxwoods Open. However, this tournament is my second favorite competition to play; Foxwoods deserving my top spot. This will be my fourth time attending this particular tournament.

What attracts me to this tournament, in addition to its energetic and competitive nature, is the ambiance and comforts offered by the hosting hotel. Clean, efficient and courteous staff and amenities that you can use without questioning the hygienic state of these facilities. The rooms are cozy and offer great room service! The function rooms are spacious enough to provide comfort and quiet for this competitive tournament. Right outside the function rooms are clean rest rooms, a bar, restaurant and a coffee stand!

The CCA deserves its due here too; they provided an efficient running tournament with top quality TD's to ensure a fair and fun competition. My hat is off to those folks everytime they put these events to together. Such volunteer work requires a lot of love for the game in general; and they have it!

This was a successful tournament for me. I scored 4.0/5 in the U1600 section to share a second place finish and prize money. However, as for the quality of play from my opponents, well, not to take anything away from them, but with the exception of the final round, they played up to the level of their D ratings. Yes, that's right, I was in the U1600 section and I did not see a "C" rated player until round 5. Needless to say, the games from this tournament were not of very high quality and what I mean by this; the games didn't generate anything exciting enough for me to blog about.

The exception was in round 2, where I suffered my only loss of the tournament. And by exception, I mean the level of play offered by my opponent. I played a young man from New York with a provisional rating of 1299 - Chandler Natarajan. He played a solid game as White and took advantage of my inability to come up with any strategies throughout the game. In this game he played like a "C" rated player and I played like a tangerine monkey looking to find a tree to climb in.

The line in this game was an ill fated King's Indian Defense. Usually, I have a solid game plan and formulate all sorts of strategies in this line of play, but not this round. I was moving pieces without any thought to position and then moving some of them back to the sqaure they just came from. I don't know why, but I just couldn't think in this game...it was a wierd experience. The only thing I could think of that would attribute to such a strange quandery was the fact that I just gulped down a venti quad latte and I was wired to the point where I couldn't settle down to think.

Lesson here, don't drink a quad latte before a calming game of chess!

Rating Watch: 1492

2008 Continental Open

This event is organized by the Continental Chess Association (CCA) and was hosted in Sturbridge Massachusetts.

This is a popular and strong tournament, generating a good attendance of chess talent from all over the north east corridor of the United States. For me, this was my first time as an attendee, and I was both excited and anxious to play. I had just come off of two consecutive tournament wins and felt confident going into this one. It would be a good test to help me correctly gauge my true playing strength and uncover weaknesses in my game.

However, before I get into the actual tournament, I need to say that the Sturbridge Host Hotel for this event was not all that spectacular. I know that writers for Chess Life and MACA praise this place; probably more so because of convenience and the "amenities" that the hotel offers, and of course to help maintain a good rapport for future events.

Personally, I found the rooms disgusting! Damp and moldy carpets in desperate need of replacement, spiders in two of four ceiling corners, a half cleaned shower and an odor that lends itself to a damp environment. I did try to get a different room, but, with such a popular event, there were no other available rooms. I will not be staying at this hotel in future events.

The tournament itself is a good one and the facilities that accommodate the event are excellent; plenty of well ventilated space for the games and chess vendors to set up shop, rest rooms easily available, food vendors and quick access to the exit doors for a breath of fresh air.

So, lets talk about the tournament. Right from day one, there was plenty of excitement and energy permeating throughout the hall space as chess players gathered and mingled with one another, anxiously awaiting for pairings to post.

I was playing in the U1500 section and my first opponent gave me a game that foreshadowed the coming temperaments of games to play in this event. Once again, I begin the tournament playing White against an older gentleman, Brian Clark, from New York; a provisional player playing in his second tournament.

The game played into a Ruy Lopez Exchange with 5. ...f6. A common line of play and one I face often with great success on my part. My opponent played a strong game and it was an even game throughout. But at the beginning of move 22, I liked my position better than Black's.

Position after Black plays 21. ...Rh5. My thinking at this juncture was not of the right mind set. I placed too much emphasis on protecting the weak h-pawn and not enough on taking advantage of White's king position and the open d-file; not to mention that White's pieces are better coordinated to gain some significant space on both wings of the board.

Here I ended up playing 22. Rg2. It's an OK move and the position remains even, but it allows black an opportunity to strengthen and evaluate his current strategy with the possibility of gaining tempo. Better was Rd8+ or Rd2 freeing up the g-file rook to put pressure elsewhere, rather than serve as a protector. Needless to say this game was a slug-fest to the end where White eventually blunders and Black takes advantage for the win.

After the first day of tournament play, I was down 0-2. The following day, I regain some focus and pull off a draw and two straight wins. After five rounds, I had enough and did not play the 6th round to finish the tournament at 2 1/2 points.

I learned a lot at this tournament and discovered a lot of weaknesses in my game. In that respect it was a good tournament for me and I realized that forcing something to happen in chess is an ill-fated attempt to rush the game to a hopeful finality that only serves notice to eventual failure. Patience and understanding positional play is paramount at this stage of my chess ability, if I'm going to become a better player.

Rating Watch: 1428

19th Vermont Resort Open

This event is organized by the Continental Chess Association (CCA) and is hosted annually at Mount Snow in Vermont.

It was a poor turn out at this years event with only twelve players in my section; it was not tended by any strong play on any one's part. Of course, the World Open may have had something to do with the low turn out; that tournament having been played just the week prior to this event.

That being said, I ended up winning my section outright after round 4 with four straight victories. By the time round 5 arrived, I was full of piss and vinegar, arrogant, tired and well, just wanting to get round 5 over with. Let me just say this, playing with a heir of arrogance will never get you a win. Needless, to say I lost round 5, knowing that I had a winning position too. Ah yes...the arrogance of it all.

Of a side note, round 5 of the Vermont Resort Open was also my first loss of the year. Lets look at this game shrouded in arrogance by white:

White: Smith
Black: William Montross
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nd4

I was hoping for a quick game and desperately hoping to play into a Ruy Lopez Exchange variation, but no..., my opponent opts to play into the "Bird Defense". I've only seen this once before in game play, but because I wanted a quick game, exchanging a piece here and there was the game plan. So taking the knight on d4 and hoping to take advantage of his exposed pawn along the d-file should prove a worthy strategy going forward.

4. Nxd4 exd4 5.d3 c6 6. Bc4 b5 7. Bb3 Bb4+

There are a couple moves that could be made here, c3 being the more conservative of the possibilities, but the theme is arrogance and exchange, so I play 8. Bd2!. Not that this is a bad move, but you can see where I'm going here, you know, "bug off mister", exchange bishops so that I can continue forward with my development. Black obliges and continues to "push" White's buttons, striving for that tempo.

8. Bd2 Bxd2+ 9. Nxd2 a5 10. a4 Ba6 11. O-O d5 12.Re1 Ne7 13. Qg4 O-O 14. exd5 Nxd5 15. Qxd4 Nb4 16. Qxd8 Raxd8 17. axb5 Bxb5 18.Rxa5 Ra8

We come to this critical position in the game where white should be feeling really good about himself. After all, he has position, tempo and material. If I were playing this game earlier in the tournament, I would have exercised judicial judgement and properly surveyed the position to play the outright and very strong move 19. Rea8! But, once again, arrogance has its price and I truly felt that my opponent did not have the critical foresight to win this game. So with total disregard to control the open a-file, I exchange rooks straight away and forfeit the file over to my opponent.

Funny thing was...I still didn't feel threatened by my opponent even though I severely weakened my position. This is arrogance at its best!!

I go on to lose the game...yes, that's right...lose a game that White clearly had in the bag. Playing out the rest of the game, you can still sense the arrogance of White's moves and a discontent for Black's strong play in the end.

19. Rxa8 Rxa8 20. g3 g6 21. Re4 c5 22. d4 Ra1+ 23. Nf1 Bxf1 24. Resign...

Yes indeed, arrogance in its purest form will never get you a win. Lesson learned.

Rating Watch: 1468