Game Of The Week
“Better is the end of a thing than the beginning thereof: and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit.”
Ecclesiastes 7:8 (KJV)
This is one of those proverbs that seem to have a direct chess application. Just change “end of a thing” to endgame and “beginning” to opening and you will get my drift.
Can you win a chess game when losing the opening? I think so.
Can you win a chess game when losing the endgame. I think not.
I have gotten to where I am in chess today by taking advantage of this truth. I have not worried about studying opening theory. I was just hoping to develop my pieces without being too far behind when my opponent had to start thinking.
I started chess so late; I never had any thoughts about becoming a Grandmaster. I just wanted to play well against my dad, but when I focused on endgame skills and increasing my level of patience, my rating increased.
I reached a peak of 1994 and was hoping to make the expert level before I start learning about these chess openings. However, it is never easy to cross these milestones for some reason. I remember trying to break into the class A rating for 3 years before landing at 1805 on December 5th, 2004.
Breaking 1900 was even harder, as it took another 3 years, falling from 1885, 1897, and 1899 before crossing over with 1904 on January 5th, 2008.
Now, in one year, I had a shot at passing 2000. Would my endgame skills and patience be up to the challenge?
I am not the quickest endgame player. I know I have to move fast in the opening to avoid the pitfalls of time pressure. I would rather suffer some weaknesses in the opening than try to rely on my endgame skills with 2 minutes on the clock.
Some players have mastered the art of patience in time pressure, but they are usually masters. My dad’s favorite quote from his senior yearbook was, “Make haste slowly” (D. Anderson, 1961).
I think he was just trying to be clever then, but now I find a lot of wisdom in his statement. I currently lack the ability to think patiently yet move quickly. I am just not a clutch player.
They wouldn’t give me the ball with 2 seconds left on the clock. I would probably be the guy who threw it to the other team when trying to get it inbounds.
They wouldn’t put me in the lineup with 2 minutes left and down 4 points. I would probably be the guy who missed hearing the play and threw the ball out of bounds on 4th down. This inability cost me my first shot at expert.
Make Haste Slowly
[Event "Colorado Springs Open"]
[Site "hhttps://cschessnews.blogspot.com/"]
[Date "2009.03.08"]
[Round "5.2"]
[White "Deloslado, Edelreich"]
[Black "Anderson, Paul"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "B06"]
[WhiteElo "1697"]
[BlackElo "1990"]
[PlyCount "77"]
[EventDate "2009.03.07"]
1. e4 c6 2. d4 d6 3. Nc3 g6 4. Nf3 Bg7 5. Be3 Bg4 6. Be2 Nd7 7. Qd2 Qc7 8. h3
Bxf3 9. Bxf3 Ngf6 10. O-O O-O 11. Bh6 Rfe8 12. Bxg7 Kxg7 13. Rfe1 Rad8 14. Rad1
e5 15. d5 c5 16. Nb5 Qb6 17. c4 a6 18. Nc3 Qa5 19. Be2 h6 20. g3 Rb8 21. a4 Nf8
22. Rf1 N8h7 23. Kh2 Qc7 24. h4 Qd7 25. Qe3 g5 26. Rg1 Rh8 27. f4 Rbe8 28. f5
Reg8 29. Rg2 Kf8 30. Rdg1 Ke7 31. Na2 Qxa4 32. b4 Qxa2 33. bxc5 Qxc4 34. cxd6+
Kd7 35. Qb6 Qc8 36. Bd1 Ke8 37. Rc2 Qd8 38. Rc7 Kf8 39. Qxb7 1/2-1/2
On move 31. Na2, with little time left on his clock, Edelreich pins all his hopes on one last ditch effort to get to my king. This is the last time I put much thought into my move. I considered the possibility that sending my queen out on a material raid could leave the door to the hen house open, but I saw the potential queen trade and figured that would be too hard for him to see in his time pressure. Plus, it appears as if he is already starting to crumble in the time pressure, as I am getting at least a couple of pawns.
31...Qxa4-+ 32.b4? [>=32.Qa3 Qxa3 33.bxa3 Nxe4 34.Bf3-+ ]
Ok, I get a knight too and the queen sac is still in play.
32...Qxa2 33.bxc5 Qxc4 34.cxd6+ [34.Bxc4?? White will choke on that 34...Ng4+ 35.Kh1 Nxe3-+ ]
Well, this was not the move I wanted and should have been easy to see, but I did not. Perhaps I should have taken this as a sign to reconsider my plan, but I did not.
 |
| Black to move |
34...Kd7 [>=34...Kf8 and Black has prevailed 35.Rb1 Qxe4 36.Qxe4 Nxe4 37.Rxb7 Kg7-+ ] 35.Qb6+- [35.Bxc4?? materialistic play, which will be punished 35...Ng4+ 36.Kh1 Nxe3-+ ]
My planning has failed me. He hasn’t taken the bait…twice. Now, I am in panic mode. He is playing too well in extreme time pressure, and my dreams of an easy endgame have disappeared.
35...Qc8 [35...Qxe4?? will allow the opponent to give mate in 2 36.Qc7+ Ke8 37.Qe7# ] 36.Bd1 Ke8 37.Rc2 Qd8?? but even a better move would not have saved the game [>=37...Qb8 38.Rc7 Kf8 39.Rxb7 Kg7 40.Rxb8 Rxb8 41.Qxa6 Nxe4+- ] 38.Rc7 Kf8 39.Qxb7 1/2-1/2
Edelreich offers a draw with 2 seconds left on his clock. His offer awakens me from my time pressure haze. I realize my clock is fine. I have not made the most of my time. I rushed through my last eight moves just to keep his clock running.
Now, I have a decision to make. Do I take the draw or not?
I knew before this game started that not playing this game would give me a rating of 1999. So, a win would be the only way to make expert rating (2004). A draw to a lower rated player would move me back to 1994.
However, I have totally ruined my position, and he is only one move away from gaining another hour on his clock. My only hope is to find a move that is complicated enough to make him hesitate, so that the 2 seconds elapse before he hits his clock.
Of course, if he makes the move fast enough, the draw offer is not likely to return, and I will lose the 2nd place prize money.
So, do I choose greed or vanity? I just sat there wishing it had never come to this.
The money and the feeling that I did not deserve to win compelled me to take the draw. My first shot at expert was gone. My second strike would come a couple weeks later, as a victory over Mitch Anderson would have put me at 2005, but he didn’t want his rating to fall below 2000 and didn’t give me any chances for a win. Maybe I will get another shot this summer and this goal will end better than it has begun.
This Week In Chess
On July 14th, the CSCC had 9 members in attendance. The participants played in a single, round robin tournament (G15). Anthea Carson and David Meliti suffered only 1 loss to tie for the top spot. Here are the results:
Score Player
4.0 David Meliti
4.0 Anthea Carson
3.5 Paul Anderson
2.5 Buck Buchanan
1.0 Tikila Nichols
0.0 Jason Feith
Colorado Springs Chess Club 3rd Quarter Schedule
By Buck Buchanan
Here is the chess club schedule for the next quarter:
******************************************
COLORADO SPRINGS CHESS CLUB
July - September 2009
The Colorado Springs Chess Club meets Tuesday evenings in the downstairs Game Room of the Acacia Apartments Building at 104 E. Platte, just north of Acacia Park. The building opens about 6:30 PM. Most activities begin registration about 7:30, with play starting at 8:00. On most evenings, club ladder games are also available, including USCF-rated G/90 games. For more information call Buck at 685-1984 or e-mail buckpeace@pcisys.net .
Players should arrive no later than 8:00 to get into the building.
In addition to Tuesday evenings, club members are gathering for chess at these times:
Wednesdays: East Coast Deli, 24 S Tejon. Rated tourney, G/90, 1 game a night., games start 6:00 PM.
Thursdays: USAFA Chess, Rated G/90 tourney, Milazzo Center, Bldg 5226, games start 6:00 PM.
3rd Saturday of month (7/18, 8/15, 9/19) Agia Sophia coffee house, 2902 W Colorado, 8:00 PM.
Air Force Academy Quads, USCF rated. 7/25, 8/29. See Dean Brown or websites for info.
*********************************************
July
7 Speed tournament
14 Round Robin G/15
21 Quads: USCF rated G/30, otherwise G/20
28 Players’ choice
August
August 1-2, Manitou Spgs City Hall: Pikes Peak Open. Register with Jerry Maier.
4 Speed tournament
11 Fischer-random tournament, 4-SS, G/10
18 Anderson(s) simul
August 22-23, Monument Open. See websites for info.
25 Ladder games
September
1 Speed tournament
Sept 5-6, Denver: Colorado Open state championship tournament
8 Ladder games
15 “Pick-from-a-hat” thematic 4-SS G/15
22 Bughouse
29 Team tournament, 4-SS, G/15. 2 players alternate moves, no consultation
Club Championship tournament October 13 - November 3.
Upcoming Hot Time in Town Tonight chess tournament in Pueblo
By Liz Wood
August 8, 2009
It's a Hot Time in Town Tonight Tournament --- An Open One-Day Rated Chess Tournament5SS, G/30 TD 5
Location: at the Daily Grind, 209 S. Union, Pueblo (take 1st Street exit, three blocks to Union; Union & D Street)
Registration 9:00-9:45, Rounds 10, 11:15, 12:30, 2:30, 3:45.
Entry fee: $20; Sr, Jr, Unr $15; CSCA & USCF required, OSA. Pre-registration entry fee: $15, which must be paid at the time of pre-registration. Cash prizes based on entry fees will be distributed at the conclusion of the event. Final round byes must be requested before the start of Round 2, and are irrevocable.
For further information, contact Liz Wood, chessliz@comcast.net ( 719-566-6929 ) or Jerry Meier, (719-660-5531) Send pre-registrations to: Jerry Maier at 229 Hargrove Court, Colorado Springs CO 80919-2213 or pmjer77@aim.com by August 6th.
Upcoming Events
7/21 Quads: USCF rated G/30, otherwise G/20, CSCC
7/22,29 2009 July East Coast Deli Final Rounds, CSCC
7/23,30 2009 July USAFA Chess Final Rounds, CSCC
7/25-26 Boulder Chess Festival Open, BCC
7/25 USAFA Quads #12, CSCC
7/28 Players’ choice, CSCC
For event details and additional events, see the following websites:
Colorado Springs Chess Club: CSCC (http://springschess.org/)
Boulder Chess Club: BCC (http://www.geocities.com/boulderchessclub/)
Colorado State Chess Association: CSCA (http://colorado-chess.com/)
Wyoming Chess Association: WCA (http://www.wyomingchess.com/)
Kansas Chess Association: KCA (http://www.kansaschess.org/)
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