Game Of The Week
This week's game comes from LM Brian Wall's email list. One of the things that the pandemic interrupted, besides Over-The-Board chess, was the reading of my Wallmails. I had formed a habit of stopping by the library to get online and check emails several times a week. However, with the library shuttered, I fell behind and created a backlog of Wallmails that go back to April of 2020. I have a new habit of checking the current ones and just started going back through the old ones I missed.
You can sign up for his emails and to get into the archives here:
I have backtracked to April 2021 (only a year's worth of emails to go!), and, to my surprise, Brian sent out the 2021 Jim Burden Award winner on the customary award date of April Fool's Day. Well, sort of. The game was actually played on April 2nd, but that is pretty darn close for a guy who can forget his annual award for years at a time.
The Jim Burden Award is for a chess player who drops their Queen but comes back to win. It is one of my favorite email themes that Brian does, and I have made it my mission to keep the award alive. However, it looks like the pandemic may have interrupted the annual tradition of this award. Of course, the 2020 winner could still be somewhere in my backlog of Wallmails.
http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1089372
2022 Paul Anderson - game
2021 Lorna Idol - game
2020 LM Brian Wall - game
2019 Chris Motley - game
2018 Larry Osborn - game
2017 LM Brian Wall - game
2016 Paul Anderson - game & game
2015 Daniel Herman
2014 Tim Brennan - game
2013 Scott Massey - game
2012 Tom Mullikin - game
2011 Devon Wall - game
2010 Paul Anderson - game
2009 Francisco Baltier
2008 Tim Fisher - game
2007 Chris Peterson - game
2006 Tobias Lingaard - game
2005 Josh Smith - game
https://www.chessvideos.tv/chess-game-replayer.php?id=116775
On July 11th, the Colorado Springs Chess Club held the How It Started Rapid Online (4SS, G/10+10). The newcomer took home gold, I won the silver, and Jose Llacza got the bronze.
2019 Chris Motley - game
2018 Larry Osborn - game
2017 LM Brian Wall - game
2016 Paul Anderson - game & game
2015 Daniel Herman
2014 Tim Brennan - game
2013 Scott Massey - game
2012 Tom Mullikin - game
2011 Devon Wall - game
2010 Paul Anderson - game
2009 Francisco Baltier
2008 Tim Fisher - game
2007 Chris Peterson - game
2006 Tobias Lingaard - game
2005 Josh Smith - game
One of the reason I like this award so much is because of my stoic nature. I realized that I have a high degree of stoicism when my son had me read a book called The Obstacle Is The Way. This philosophy dates back to ancient Greeks and tries to create a person who can endure pain or hardship without showing their feelings or complaining. Instead of trying to avoid obstacles, the stoic embraces the obstacle as a means to improve his character.
“The impediment to action advances action. What stands in the way becomes the way.”
Marcus Aurelius
Blunders happen. If you are going to play chess, you are going to drop pieces. And there is no bigger obstacle to winning at chess than to blunder your Queen. It is such a major mistake that most chess player will resign immediately. Usually, it will occur with an outburst of emotion and a myriad of complaints directed towards their opponents.
But in reality, blundering your Queen is a blessing.
If you can sow the pain of playing down a Queen, you will reap a harvest of joy and freedom from materialism. You will be a better chess player and better equipped for life. In fact, the hardship of dropping a Queen is the best preparation for the drudgery of life, like marriage and kids.
A foolish son is the calamity of his father: and the contentions of a wife are a continual dropping.
Proverbs 19:13 KJV
But I digress.
The game that Brian Wall chose for the 2021 Burden Award was a classic. Lorna blunders her Queen early on, and I was riveted to my chair to see how she would salvage this game. Does she take the Fork and get the Queen back? No! Does she Skewer the Queen to the King and pull into the lead? No! How many more opportunities could she possibly have left? Finally, she found the right move in this position, but that still wasn't the end of the hardship. There was plenty of drama to come.
 |
| Black to move |
Blunders Are The Way
[Event "2021 Jim Burden Award"]
[Site "https://cschessnews.blogspot.com/"]
[Date "2021.04.02"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Rjgragg"]
[Black "Idol, Lorna"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "C50"]
[WhiteElo "540"]
[BlackElo "623"]
[PlyCount "146"]
[EventDate "2021.04.02"]
[TimeControl "2700+45"]
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Nge7 4. d3 d5 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bh4 Ng6 7. Bxd8 Nxd8 8.
Bxd5 f6 9. Nc3 Bg4 10. O-O Nf4 11. h3 Bh5 12. Qd2 Ng6 13. Nb5 c6 14. Nc7+ Kd7
15. Bc4 Kxc7 16. Qa5+ b6 17. Qc3 Nb7 18. g4 Nf4 19. gxh5 Nxh3+ 20. Kh1 Rd8 21.
Kh2 Nf4 22. d4 Nxh5 23. dxe5 Nc5 24. exf6 Nxf6 25. Qe5+ Kb7 26. Ba6+ Nxa6 27.
Rfd1 Ng4+ 28. Kg3 Nxe5 29. Nxe5 Rxd1 30. Rxd1 Rh7 31. Rd8 Be7 32. Rd7+ Nc7 33.
Rxe7 Rh8 34. Rxg7 Re8 35. Nf7 Rxe4 36. f3 Re2 37. Nd8+ Kc8 38. Nxc6 Rxc2 39.
Nxa7+ Kb7 40. Nc6 Kxc6 41. Rg6+ Kb7 42. Rxh6 Rxb2 43. f4 Rxa2 44. f5 Ra3+ 45.
Kg4 b5 46. f6 Re3 47. f7 Re4+ 48. Kg5 Ne6+ 49. Rxe6 Rxe6 50. f8=Q Re5+ 51. Kg6
b4 52. Qf7+ Kb6 53. Qf6+ Ka5 54. Qxe5+ Ka4 55. Kf5 b3 56. Qe4+ Ka3 57. Ke5 Ka2
58. Kd4 b2 59. Kc3 b1=Q 60. Qe2+ Ka1 61. Qb2+ Qxb2+ 62. Kc4 Qd2 63. Kc5 Ka2 64.
Kb5 Qc2 65. Kb6 Ka3 66. Ka5 Qc3+ 67. Kb5 Qb4+ 68. Kc6 Qd4 69. Kc7 Kb4 70. Kc6
Qc5+ 71. Kb7 Kb5 72. Kb8 Kb6 73. Ka8 Qc8# 0-1
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