Conclusion to the (long overdue!) report on the Olympiad

Tromso Rounds 1-3
Tromso Rounds 4-5
Tromso Rounds 6-8

While playing a couple of training games with Russian FIDE Master Andrey Terekhov, the dude reminded me that my Olympiad report was inconclusive and there are still a few rounds that were not covered. I immediately cooked up some random excuse (no time to write, too tired etc) but the truth is that the remaining few rounds, particularly rounds 9 and 10 were extremely painful as I quite literally threw away any last ditch attempt for a GM norm. But well, here goes anyway....

In round 9, we faced a young Indonesian team led by their, by now, undisputed number 1 GM Megaranto Susanto.

[Event "41st World Chess Olympiad"] [Site "?"] [Date "2014.08.11"] [Round "9"] [White "Goh Wei Ming, Kevin"] [Black "Farid Firman Syah"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C55"] [WhiteElo "2433"] [BlackElo "2400"] [Annotator "Goh,Wei Ming, Kevin"] [PlyCount "92"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 {The Italian has worked well for me so far and I didn't see a need to find another opening against 1...e5. However, that came to haunt me in the Qatar Masters when I lost 3 painful games with it.....} Nf6 4. d3 (4. Ng5 d5 5. exd5 Na5 6. Bb5+ c6 7. dxc6 bxc6 8. Bd3 {is another fashionable line that I have played from time to time.}) 4... Be7 (4... Bc5 { is the other big main move here.}) 5. O-O O-O 6. Bb3 d6 7. c3 Be6 ({My blog had also covered an important game that continued} 7... h6 8. Nbd2 Nh7 9. Nc4 Bg4 {½-½ (64) Goh Wei Ming, Kevin (2426)-Harikrishna Pentala (2693) Asian Nations Cup 2012.}) 8. Nbd2 Qd7 ({A common question that I've asked myself many times is what happens if Black exchanges the important light square bishop. A rather vague and general middlegame theory is that the side with less space should be trying to exchange pieces in order to gain more room for manoeuvring. However, what is equally important is determining the right piece to exchange. Here, exchange on b3 helps White to gain a tempo (by attacking b7) , increase his control over the important d5 square, and gives White the easy plan of re-routing the knight to the e3 square and playing for d3-d4.} 8... Bxb3 9. Qxb3 Qc8 10. Nc4 Nd8 $5 {[%cal Gd8e6,Gc7c6]} 11. Ne3 Ne6 12. Nf5 Re8 13. Ng5 {with a nagging initiative.}) (8... d5 {is also perfectly viable but White retains play on the light squares after} 9. Re1 dxe4 10. dxe4 Qd7 11. Qe2 ) 9. Re1 Kh8 $6 {Black appears to be struggling for ideas although it is hard to suggest anything constructive.} ({Perhaps, the computer suggestion of} 9... a5 {, beginning some kind of queenside operation makes sense.}) 10. d4 exd4 11. Nxd4 $6 {A rather counter-intuitive move.} ({Of course,} 11. cxd4 {is natural and a better move. White should keep pieces in view of his space advantage.}) 11... Nxd4 12. cxd4 d5 $2 {Rather cooperative play by Black.} (12... c6 {, retaining some control over d5 and e5 is more sensible.}) 13. e5 Ng8 14. Bc2 { Now, if White ever manages to play f4 and g4, Black would be in serious trouble.} Bg4 15. f3 Bh5 16. Nf1 Rae8 ({I had also intended} 16... c5 17. dxc5 Bxc5+ 18. Be3 d4 19. Bf2 {with a pleasant edge.}) 17. g4 Bg6 18. Ng3 Bb4 (18... c5 19. Be3 c4 $5) 19. Bxg6 hxg6 20. Rf1 {Here, I was already feeling rather confident of my position. The plan to play f4-f5 is a simple and natural plan and I hadn't seen how Black could defend against this plan. Unfortunately, I had already spent a lot of time to reach this position and that would cost me tremendously.} f6 21. f4 fxe5 22. dxe5 Bc5+ 23. Kg2 g5 $2 {Black basically gets a lost position after this.} 24. f5 (24. Ne4 $1 Be7 25. f5 {is probably even more effective.}) 24... Rxe5 25. Bxg5 Nh6 26. Bf4 Ree8 27. Qf3 Bd6 28. Rae1 $2 {This move is played completely against the spirit of the position. White should be trying to attack and attack fast!!} (28. Bxd6 $1 Qxd6 29. g5 Nf7 30. Qh5+ Kg8 31. f6 {would have inspired resignation. There is no way to defend against White's surging attack.} Qe5) 28... Bxf4 29. Qxf4 Kg8 $2 (29... Rxe1 30. Rxe1 d4 {was Black's best chance.}) 30. Rxe8 Rxe8 31. h3 $4 { Sometimes, we all make decisions that we fail to comprehend during the aftermath. This is one of those.} ({I had seen the very strong and logical} 31. g5 Nf7 32. g6 Nh6 33. f6 {which again wins on the spot. How I failed to play this out remains an unsolved mystery to date.}) 31... d4 32. g5 Nf7 33. g6 Nh6 34. Kh2 $2 {The final blunder that throws away a direct win.} (34. f6 $1 Qc6+ 35. Kh2 Qc2+ 36. Rf2 Qxg6 37. Qxc7 $3 {continues to give Black problems to solve. That last move in the sequence was particularly hard to find for me personally.}) 34... Qd6 35. Qxd6 cxd6 36. Rd1 (36. f6 gxf6 37. Rxf6 d5 38. Rd6 Re5) 36... Re5 37. Rxd4 Nxf5 38. Nxf5 Rxf5 39. Rxd6 Kf8 40. Kg3 Rg5+ 41. Kf4 Rg2 42. Rd7 Rxb2 43. h4 Rxa2 44. Rf7+ Kg8 45. Rxb7 Ra4+ 46. Kf5 Ra5+ 1/2-1/2

The match eventually ended 2-2 after wins are traded on board 3 and 4.

In Round 10, we were paired against the formidable Peruvian team which boasts 2600 GMs on all 4 boards. Before the round, Qian Yun, Jingyao and I all boast chances to make norm results but we all required to get a result in this critical match. For me personally, a win would clinch the norm, while a draw would give me another chance to make the norm in the final round. Of course, a win with Black against a strong 2630 was anything but easy but I did get rather decent chances to complicate the position:

[Event "41st World Chess Olympiad"] [Site "?"] [Date "2014.08.12"] [Round "10"] [White "Emilio Cordova"] [Black "Goh Wei Ming, Kevin"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "A15"] [WhiteElo "2629"] [BlackElo "2433"] [SetUp "1"] [FEN "rn1qr1k1/1p3p1p/p1pb1np1/P2p4/NPPP2b1/1Q2PB2/1B1N2PP/2R2RK1 b - - 0 17"] [PlyCount "48"] {I had played reasonable from an innocuous opening and had managed to obtain a dynamic position which suited my needs just fine. However, I again failed to appreciate the spirit of the position. Here, I played} 17... Nbd7 $2 {which is a normal developmental move but again, I should have played something more direct and try to pose immediate problems for White to solve.} ({With this in mind, I should have at least tried to calculate} 17... Qc7 18. h3 Bh2+ 19. Kh1 Nh5 $1 {Here, White has the resource} 20. Rf2 $1 (20. Bxg4 Ng3+ 21. Kxh2 Nxf1+ $19) 20... Bg3 21. Bxg4 (21. Re2 $2 Bxf3 22. Nxf3 dxc4 23. Rxc4 Nd7 {is fine for Black.}) (21. Rff1 Bh2 22. Rf2 Bg3 {repeats}) 21... Bxf2 22. Bxh5 Bxe3 $1 23. Re1 Nd7 $1 24. Rxe3 Qf4 {with a complex position.}) 18. h3 Bf5 19. cxd5 cxd5 20. Nc5 Nxc5 21. dxc5 Be5 22. Bxe5 Rxe5 23. c6 bxc6 (23... Qe7 24. cxb7 Qxb7) 24. Rxc6 Qe7 25. Qc3 {The position is roughly equal here, with the weaknesses on e3 and a6 cancelling out each other. However, White's position is slightly the more pleasant in view of his control over the c-file which at this point is more important and also the slightly weakened Black kingside. Black had to tread with extreme caution to maintain equilibrum and I was sadly not up to the task.} Re6 $2 (25... Ne8 $1 {, threatening to capture on e3 was best. Here,} 26. Qc5 (26. Kf2 Nd6 {is dangerous for White.}) 26... Bd3 27. Qxe7 Rxe7 28. Rfc1 Bb5 29. Rb6 Rxe3 30. Bxd5 Rd8 {and Black has solved most of his problems.}) 26. Rxe6 Qxe6 27. Nb3 $1 {From here, it is excruciating pain all the way to the finish.....} Re8 28. Nc5 Qd6 (28... Qxe3+ 29. Qxe3 Rxe3 30. Rd1 Bc8 31. Bxd5) 29. Qd4 Ne4 $2 30. Bxe4 Bxe4 31. Qf6 Qc7 32. Nxa6 Qa7 33. Nc5 Rb8 34. h4 h5 35. Qe5 Bf5 36. Rxf5 gxf5 37. Nd7 Rd8 38. Nf6+ Kf8 39. Nxh5 d4 40. Qh8+ Ke7 41. Qf6+ 1-0

We were smashed 4 to nothing against the South American powerhouse, arguably a well deserved result in view of how superior our opponents were in all aspects of the game.

The final round was all about trying to secure a good ranking and we duly secured a 3-1 victory against Cyprus, with Qianyun and Jing Yao again delivering the goods. I personally finished with 6/10 and a decent 2500 TPR. It could have been a lot better of course, and I was hovering around the 2600 TPR mark until the final few rounds. It was of course disappointing to have come so close to my final GM norm but given how inactive I was the entire year and the number of games where I fell into severe time trouble, the result was entirely satisfactory and in a way predictable. This also meant that I would have to continue waiting for my final GM norm though.

I had played in many team events and I could safely say that this particular team had the best chemistry and team spirit throughout. Leslie was an incredible captain and really took care of every single non-playing aspect and I am personally very grateful for his leadership. All in all, despite the slightly anti climatic finish to the event, the team played well above expectations and I think we put up a good show for the local community.

Funnily enough, the one prize I won from the Olympiad was an all expenses paid trip to Qatar to take part in the Qatar Masters Open. I didn't score too well from that event but I did play some interesting games and I will put up my analysis soon...in due time....

Jarred Neubronner sweeps the 6th NTU IIICC title by Junior Tay

The 6th NTU Inter-Institutional Invitational championships had 29 participants from local tertiary institutions participating from 23-24th May 2015 and it was held at the Sports and Recreation Centre.

NTU's FM Jarred Neubronner won the event with one round to spare after chalking up 6 wins in a row.

Republic Polytechnic's Hu Yang (left), playing a Sveshnikov against NTU's FM Jarred Neubronner (right)

However, his team-mate, 2nd seeded Ng Shi Hao, (who had earned a FIDE rating of 2037 following his 6th placing at the Grand Asian Chess Challenge 2015) did not find the going that smooth sailing.

NTU's Ng Shi Hao (left)

Republic Polytechnic's Hu Yang dealt him a loss with an impressive controlled squeeze. He did however, beat fellow Johor state player, Melvin Chin of Singapore Polytechnic to help keep NTU way ahead of the other challengers in the team stakes. 

Melvin however, kept his chances alive with a fierce tactical sequence in the King's Indian 4 pawn attack over Hu Yang, and eventually clinched the bronze medal.

Singapore Polytechic's Melvin Chin (left)

After Round 6, Jarred and Shi Hao (5/6) were in clear 1st and 2nd positions. Hence, quick draws with their nearest challengers Melvin and Hein Zin (Singapore Polytechnic) in the final round ensured them the individual gold and silver medals as well as the team champion's title for NTU. 

Final top results - 7 rounds swiss

Individual

1st FM Jarred Neubronner 6.5

2nd Ng Shi Hao 5.5

3rd-5th Melvin Chin, Dennis Wongso and Peng Junyuan 5

6th-8th Hu Zhen, Hein Zin and Sharon Teo 4.5

Team

1st NTU

2nd Republic Polytechnic

3rd Singapore Polytechnic

Games Section

[Event "NTU Open"] [Site "?"] [Date "2015.05.26"] [Round "?"] [White "Dennis Wongso"] [Black "FM Jarred Neubronner"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "B30"] [Annotator "Junior Tay"] [PlyCount "70"] [EventDate "2015.??.??"] 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. c4 {Taking Jarred out of his theory. This move had been played successfully by GMs Yermolinsky, Arkell and Oll. If permitted, White will play d2-d4 next, with a Maroczy Bind type structure.} e5 {No bind. Now, instead, Jarred opts for a Botvinnik system structure, where the c5,d6,e5 structure accords Black the flexibility to play both ....b5 and ...f5 breaks while clamping on the d4-square. White's Nf3 is not flexibly placed, as a result. However, Black cedes the d5-square.} 4. d3 Nc6 5. Nc3 g6 6. Nd5 h6 ( 6... Bg7 7. h4 h6 8. h5 g5 9. Be2 Nge7 10. Ne3 a6 11. Nd2 Nd4 12. Bg4 Be6 13. Rb1 b5 14. b3 O-O 15. Bb2 Qd7 16. Ndf1 Nc2+ 17. Qxc2 Bxg4 18. Nxg4 Qxg4 19. Ne3 Qd7 20. Bc3 b4 21. Bb2 {Ivanov,I (2495)-Masculo,J (2225)/USA 1/2-1/2 (35)}) ({ Unthinkable is} 6... Nge7 $4 7. Nf6#) 7. a3 a5 {Not giving White a free hand on the queenside. White will need to give up the a-file if he intends to push b2-b4 through.} 8. Rb1 Bg7 9. Bd2 (9. b4 axb4 10. axb4 b6 $11) 9... a4 $6 { This pawn is kind of loose.} 10. Be2 $6 ({White can win the a4-pawn with} 10. Nc3 {though Black gets some compensation after} Nd4 11. Nxd4 cxd4 12. Nxa4 Bd7 13. b3 b5 14. cxb5 Bxb5) 10... Nge7 11. b4 axb3 12. Rxb3 Nxd5 13. cxd5 Ne7 14. h3 O-O 15. Qc1 Kh7 16. Nh2 ({After} 16. g4 {, Black can simply play} f5 {, not fearing} 17. gxf5 gxf5 18. Rg1 Ng6 {when White doesn't have enough firepower to attack the black king.}) 16... f5 17. f4 $2 {Too loosening. Jarred is quick to exploit the weakness of e4.} (17. Nf1 {with the idea of Ne3 is better.}) 17... fxe4 18. dxe4 exf4 19. Bxf4 Ra4 $1 $19 {The stinger. This is a good example of how a rook can hit from the rank (other than the usual 2nd/7th rank press).} 20. Bf3 $2 {Missing Jarred's idea.} ({Since there's no good way to save the e-pawn, White might as well use it to put pressure on g6 with} 20. O-O Rxe4 21. Bd3) 20... Nxd5 $1 {The e-pawn is pinned down as the Bf4 hangs after pawn is deflected.} 21. Bxd6 (21. exd5 Raxf4 $19) 21... Qxd6 22. exd5 Qg3+ 23. Kf1 Re4 {Black's extra pawn and huge lead in development give him winning chances. Jarred noted that he did not find the most efficient way of finishing this off though.} 24. Ng4 Bxg4 (24... b6 $1 25. Nf2 Ba6+ 26. Kg1 Bd4 27. Qd2 Re2 $1) 25. hxg4 Rxg4 26. Qd2 h5 27. Rd3 (27. Rh3 Qd6 28. Kg1 Bd4+ 29. Kh1 Rg3 $19) 27... c4 28. Re3 Rd4 (28... Bd4 $5 {is also very strong.}) 29. Qe1 Qg5 30. Kg1 Rd3 $5 {The computer does not like this move but I feel that it shows the depth of calculation Jarred had engaged in.} 31. Rxd3 cxd3 32. Qe4 {The d3-pawn seems to be lost since White threatens the dardstardly Rxh5, banking on the pin of the g6-pawn. Jarred thus unleashed the deflecting} Bd4+ $3 {, nullifying the h-file pressure totally and rendering the h1-rook a useless piece.} 33. Qxd4 Rxf3 {White cannot resist further.} 34. Kh2 Rf4 (34... Qg3+ 35. Kg1 Rf4 {is IM Terry Toh's preferred sequence, leading to a kill after} 36. Qc5 (36. Qc3 Qf2+ 37. Kh2 Rh4#) 36... Qe1+ 37. Kh2 Rh4#) 35. Qc3 Rh4+ (35... Rh4+ 36. Kg1 Qe3+ 37. Kf1 Rxh1#) 0-1

[Event "NTU Open Rd 6"] [Site "?"] [Date "2015.05.24"] [Round "?"] [White "Hu Zhen"] [Black "Melvin Chin"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "E77"] [PlyCount "72"] [EventDate "2015.??.??"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. f4 O-O 6. Nf3 c5 7. d5 e6 8. dxe6 { This relatively rare trade has been played by Ponomariov and especially Moskalenko. Of course, most Kaspy followers would remember the Christiansen-Kasparov game.} ({Incidentally, we had a brief session before that round and he wanted to test his KID. And coincidentally, I tried the 4 Pawns attack too.} 8. Be2 exd5 9. e5 dxe5 (9... Ng4 $6 10. cxd5 dxe5 11. h3 e4 12. hxg4 exf3 13. gxf3 Re8 14. f5 $1 {Vaisser,A (2385)-Kasparov,G (2630)/ Moscow 1981}) 10. fxe5 Ng4 ({The simplest way out is} 10... Ne4 $1 11. cxd5 Nxc3 12. bxc3 Bg4 13. O-O Bxf3 14. Rxf3 Nd7 15. e6 Ne5 16. exf7+ Kh8 17. Rf1 Rxf7 18. Bf4 c4 19. Bxe5 Rxf1+ 20. Qxf1 Bxe5 21. Bxc4 Qd6 22. g3 {1/2-1/2 Kaidanov,G (2405)-Vasiukov,E (2480)/Moscow 1986}) 11. Bg5 Qa5 12. cxd5 Nxe5 13. O-O Nxf3+ 14. Bxf3 Bf5 15. Be7 Re8 16. d6 Nc6 17. Nd5 Rac8 $6 18. Bg4 $1 $16 { Jr Tay-Melvin Chin, Training 2015.}) 8... Bxe6 (8... fxe6 9. Bd3 Nc6 10. O-O Nd4 11. Ng5 e5 12. f5 h6 13. Nh3 gxf5 14. exf5 b5 15. Be3 bxc4 16. Bxc4+ Kh8 17. Bxd4 cxd4 18. Nd5 Ba6 19. Nxf6 Bxc4 20. Nh5 Bxf1 21. Qg4 Qd7 22. Rxf1 d3 23. Qf3 d2 24. g4 Rac8 25. Qd3 Qa4 26. Nf2 Qd4 27. Qxd4 exd4 28. Nf4 Rfe8 29. Ne6 Rc1 30. Nd1 Bf6 31. Kf2 Bg5 32. Ke2 Rc5 33. Kd3 Re5 34. Nxg5 hxg5 35. Rf2 Re4 36. h3 Re3+ 37. Kxd4 R8e4+ 38. Kd5 Re2 39. Rf3 Re1 40. f6 Rf4 {0-1 Christiansen,L (2575)-Kasparov,G (2675)/Moscow 1982}) 9. Be2 $6 (9. Bd3 {is the principled continuation. defending the e4-pawn and with f4-f5 ideas in the future.} Nc6 10. O-O Na5 $1 11. Qe2 Re8 $11 {Turov,M (2634)-Berg,E (2608)/ Maastricht 2011}) 9... Nc6 10. O-O Bg4 (10... Re8 11. h3 Nd4 12. Bd3 Bd7 13. Re1 Bc6 14. Rb1 a6 15. Be3 Nxe4 $1 16. Bxd4 Bxd4+ 17. Nxd4 Nxc3 18. bxc3 cxd4 19. cxd4 Qf6 20. Rxe8+ Rxe8 21. d5 Bd7 22. Rxb7 $4 Qd4+ 23. Kh1 $4 Bf5 24. Rb3 Re3 {0-1 Genov,P (2425)-Minasian,A (2540)/Berlin 1996}) 11. Kh1 $146 {An unnecessary loss of a tempo.} (11. Be3 Re8 12. Bd3 (12. h3 Nxe4 $1) 12... Nb4 13. h3 Bf5 $1 $15) (11. h3 Bxf3 12. Bxf3 Nd4 $11 {Saralegui Cassan,M-Curi,G/ Uruguay 1987/1/2-1/2 (27)}) (11. Bd3 Nd4 $11) 11... Re8 12. Qd3 $4 (12. Bd3 { admitting the folly of her 9th move is still better.}) ({or} 12. h3 Bd7 13. Bd3 $15) 12... Nb4 $3 {A fascinating continuation. This looks like a wasted tempi, as the knight might end up going back to c6 after a2-a3. However Black goes on a deep forcing sequence which exploits White's lack of development and weakened pawn centre.} ({Personally, I would have played} 12... Qe7 {to win the e-pawn simply.}) 13. Qb1 d5 $3 {Very pleased with Melvin. Before the game, he was quite tentative about playing this Chinese opponent who had bashed the NTU No 2 player yesterday. I told him to play his forte, tactical and combinative play, noting that he gives me more trouble in training simul or blitz sessions with tactical play than positional fights. He mentioned that he remembered what I said during the game and thus played for tactical complications.} 14. cxd5 (14. Nxd5 $4 Nxe4 {and Black's powerful developmental lead will tell soon enough.} 15. Ne3 Bxf3 16. Bxf3 Qd4 17. g3 Rad8 {with ... Nd3 to follow.}) 14... Nfxd5 $6 {Although this isn't totally accurate, it suits him to a T. The point is, he feels like a fish in the water in tactical complications..} ({I saw} 14... Nxe4 $3 15. Nxe4 Qxd5 {with a won position. One particularly beautiful variation is} 16. Nc3 Bxc3 17. bxc3 Rxe2 18. cxb4 Bxf3 $1 19. gxf3 Qh5 {with mate to follow.}) 15. Nxd5 ({The point is} 15. exd5 $4 Bf5 {wins the queen.}) 15... Nxd5 16. Rd1 $6 {White thought she got Melvin with this pin. However, Melvin saw a little further.} ({Both sides missed} 16. Bb5 $1 Bxf3 17. gxf3 Nb4 18. Bxe8 Qxe8 $14 {[%csl Gd3][%cal Ge8b5] and Black has some compensation for the exchange.}) 16... Qa5 $1 $11 17. Rxd5 $2 { Falling into a deep trick!} (17. h3 $1 Bxf3 18. Bxf3 Ne7 {is probably best with an unclear position.}) 17... Bxf3 {Threatening back rank mate.} 18. Bd2 { White was relying on this to rescue her extra piece. Black has a nice retort} ( {Most definitely not} 18. gxf3 Qe1+ 19. Kg2 Qxe2+) ({or} 18. Bxf3 Qe1#) 18... Bxe4 $1 {The whole point of the combination, Black wins a pawn after the massive exchanges..} 19. Qxe4 $2 ({Better is} 19. Bxa5 $5 Bxb1 20. Bb5 Be4 21. Rd2 Re7 {though Black remains a solid pawn up.}) 19... Rxe4 20. Bxa5 Rxe2 21. Bc3 Bxc3 22. bxc3 Rae8 23. h3 b6 24. f5 Kg7 25. fxg6 hxg6 26. Rd7 R8e7 27. Rad1 $2 Re1+ 28. Rxe1 Rxd7 29. Re2 Kf6 30. Kg1 b5 31. Rb2 Rb7 32. Kf2 Ke5 33. Ke3 Kd5 34. a4 b4 35. cxb4 Rxb4 36. Rf2 f5 {and Black later won the ending.} 0-1

Singapore Masters Blitz Invitational 2015 - Best games of the tourney

Olimpiu Urcan had placed 25 games from the above-mentioned event on the sgchess.net blog. I went through the lot and decided to showcase the best games from that lot here. First up, the 'Caveman Attack Award' goes to Andrean Susilodinata for a barnstormer of an attack.

[Event "S'pore Masters Blitz 2015"] [Site "?"] [Date "2015.03.01"] [Round "8"] [White "Susilodinata, Andrean"] [Black "Neubronner, Jarred"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "B42"] [Annotator "Junior Tay"] [PlyCount "72"] [EventDate "2015.03.02"] [SourceDate "2015.03.02"] 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 a6 5. Bd3 Bc5 6. Nb3 Be7 7. c4 d6 8. O-O Nf6 9. Be3 O-O 10. Nc3 b6 11. f4 Nbd7 {All these are pretty standard in the Sicilian Kan though Black usually delays castling until necessary.} 12. g4 $5 { According to my database, this bayonet stab was first played by Polish GM Jacek Tomscak in 2009.} (12. Qf3 {is the main line.}) 12... Bb7 $2 {A natural reaction to complete development. The way Andrean brutally conducted the attack showed that this move which completes development is the key to Black's problems!} ({The age old adage - meeting a flank attack with action in the centre applies here. Black cannot allow White to fully concentrate on the kingside attack unimpeded.} 12... Nc5 $1 13. Nxc5 (13. Bc2 Nxb3 14. axb3 Bb7 15. g5 Nd7 16. Qh5 g6 17. Qh6 Re8 18. Rf3 Bf8 19. Qh4 Bg7 20. Rd1 Qc7 21. Rh3 Nf8 {and Black is holding firm, Miranda Rodriguez,T (2167)-Borges Feria,Y (2406)/Havana 2011.}) (13. g5 Nfd7 14. Bc2 {was Lhotka,J (2082)-Suchomel,A (2044)/Prague 2012. Now,} e5 $1 {looks like an appropriate counter as} 15. Nd5 $6 exf4 16. Bxf4 Ne5 {gives Black good play.}) 13... dxc5 14. h3 (14. g5 $6 { is met by} Ng4) 14... Bb7 15. e5 Nd7 16. Qc2 g6 17. Be4 Qc7 {and the action has been transferred to the centre, Tomczak,J (2465)-Miton,K (2595)/Chotowa 2009}) (12... e5 {, jabbing at the centre, is another move to consider.}) 13. g5 Ne8 14. Qh5 $1 {White goes for the jugular.} g6 15. Qh6 Ng7 16. f5 $1 ({ Another demolition job follows} 16. Rf3 $1 Re8 17. Rh3 Nh5 18. Rxh5 gxh5 19. Qxh5 {when resistance is futile. For example,} Nf8 20. f5 $1 {followed by Rf1 and f5-f6 wins hands down.}) 16... Nh5 (16... exf5 17. exf5 Nxf5 {and after} 18. Rxf5 {, the rook cannot be taken.}) 17. Be2 $1 ({Black gets a good chance to hold out, especially in blitz after} 17. f6 Nhxf6 18. gxf6 Bxf6) 17... Re8 { Seeking to trap the queen with ...Bf8 but Andrean had everything worked out.} 18. fxg6 hxg6 19. Rxf7 $3 {This hammer blow ends all discussion. The band can start playing 'Bohemian Rhapsody' and start 'calling momma!'. The rest do not require annotation as White just picks off copious amount of material and more. ..} Kxf7 20. Bxh5 Rg8 21. Qh7+ Rg7 22. Bxg6+ Kf8 23. Qh8+ Rg8 24. Qh6+ Rg7 25. Qh8+ Rg8 26. Rf1+ Bf6 27. Qh6+ Rg7 28. gxf6 Nxf6 29. Bg5 Kg8 30. Bxf6 Qf8 31. Bxg7 Qxg7 32. Qxg7+ Kxg7 33. Rf7+ Kxg6 34. Rxb7 Rc8 35. Rxb6 Rxc4 36. Rxd6 Kf6 1-0

Olimpiu and I agreed that the following was the best game of the event. Wei Ming wins the 'Carlsen Chokehold' award for this asphyxiation demonstration.

[Event "S'pore Masters Blitz 2015"] [Site "?"] [Date "2015.03.01"] [Round "10"] [White "Goh, Wei Ming"] [Black "Suelo, Robert Jr"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "B40"] [Annotator "Junior Tay"] [PlyCount "123"] [EventDate "2015.03.02"] [SourceDate "2015.03.02"] 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Bg5 $5 {The scumbag opening - Aussie Attack.} Qb6 ({In bullet or blitz play, a common move would be} 4... a6 $4 5. Bxd8 { followed by an opponent disconnect or a litany of profanity...}) ({Personally, I find} 4... Nf6 {to be the hardest to meet.}) 5. Qxd4 Qxd4 6. Nxd4 a6 7. Nd2 $1 {Already, White is eyeing the juicy b6-square for the knight.} Nc6 8. Nxc6 dxc6 9. a4 {Clamping down on Black's ...b5.} ({I've always preferred} 9. Nc4 Bc5 10. O-O-O {in online blitz.}) 9... Nf6 10. f3 Bc5 11. c3 h6 $6 {Wei Ming is more than happy to see this move as he seeks to remove Black's only active piece- the dark-squared bishop.} 12. Bh4 g5 13. Bf2 Bxf2+ 14. Kxf2 Ke7 15. Nc4 {White starts to pull his weight on the queenside dark squares.} Bd7 16. Nb6 Rad8 17. b4 Bc8 18. Ke3 Nd7 19. Nc4 f6 20. Be2 Ne5 21. Nb6 Nd7 22. Nc4 Ne5 23. Na5 $1 {No repetition!} Rd7 24. Rhd1 {It would seem strange to trade a pair of rooks but once Black doubles rooks on the d-file, he can play for ...f5-f4 with a ...Rd2 invasion.} ({Opening another front with} 24. h4 {looks good also. }) 24... Rhd8 25. Rxd7+ Rxd7 {I like the reorganising that Wei Ming embarks on. He first gives himself more options with his knight and kingside pawns.} 26. Nb3 Rd8 27. g3 Nd7 28. b5 $5 {Finally, a commital move.} axb5 29. axb5 cxb5 30. Bxb5 e5 {Black seems to have almost unravelled from the squeeze but the position still requires accuracy.} 31. c4 b6 $6 {Finally, a concession. Perhaps Suelo was concerned about Ra7 followed by Na5 hitting the b7-pawn.} ({ The Black king belongs on c7 but that's very hard to see in blitz.} 31... Kd6 32. c5+ Kc7 {and Black is ok after ...Nb8-c6 or ...Nf8-e6.}) 32. Ra7 {After the patient manouvering, Wei Ming finally has a clear weakness to latch onto, the 7th rank.} Kd6 33. Nc1 $1 {Re-routing the knight to d5 where it hits the b6- and f6-pawns.} Rh8 $2 ({Black must not remain passive and he has to try for activity with} 33... Nc5 {and now} 34. Rh7 Be6 35. Rxh6 Ra8 {, Black gets sufficient counterplay. It's easy to see this of course, with an engine in the background but over the board, it's only natural to cover the weakness (the h6-pawn).}) 34. Nd3 h5 {Suelo is systematically trying to eradicate his h-pawn weakness.} 35. Nb4 h4 (35... Nc5 36. Nd5 f5 37. Ra8 $1 $18 {and Black is in zugzwang.}) 36. g4 (36. Nd5 {is also very strong.}) 36... Rf8 {Now he covers his f-pawn. Black's plan is just to hold firm and ...hope White does not have a tactical breakthrough, as the kingside is closed up and everything seems guarded staunchly.} 37. Nd5 Rd8 38. Ra8 $1 {Well, it only took Wei Ming 1 move to set up a tactical solution. It dawned on Black that White will just set up Bxd7 and trade the whole house leading to a winning king and pawns ending for White.} Nc5 {There is no choice but to give up the b-pawn.} (38... Rf8 39. Bxd7 Kxd7 40. Nxb6+ Kc7 41. Rxc8+ Rxc8 42. Nxc8 Kxc8 43. c5 Kc7 44. Kd3 Kd7 45. Kc4 Kc6 46. h3 {and White will invade into the Black camp.}) 39. Nxb6 Kc7 40. Nd5+ ({Most definitely not a minor piece ending with} 40. Rxc8+ $2 Rxc8 41. Nxc8 Kxc8 {as White's king cannot get in once the Black king sits on the d6-square.} ) 40... Kb7 41. Ra1 Rd6 ({Also futile is} 41... Be6 42. Rb1 Bxd5 43. exd5 Kc7 44. Bc6) 42. Rb1 {Wicked! Now Black now has to worry about the plight of his king as well.} Ka7 43. Ra1+ Kb7 44. Be8 Bd7 45. Rb1+ Ka7 46. Bxd7 Nxd7 47. Rb5 $1 {Supporting the c4-c5 push.} Ka6 $2 {This allows White to win more quickly but Suelo must have been worn out by the big squeeze.} ({In any case,} 47... Ra6 48. Nb4 Ra3+ 49. Kd2 $1 Rxf3 50. c5 $1 {wins.}) 48. Nb4+ Ka7 49. c5 Rd1 50. c6 Nb6 51. Nd5 Nc8 52. Rb7+ Ka6 53. Nxf6 Rc1 54. Rc7 Nd6 55. Nd5 Nc4+ 56. Ke2 Nd6 $4 57. Rd7 Nb5 58. Re7 Rxc6 {Walking into a fork. However, the game has already been lost for quite a while.} 59. Nb4+ Kb6 60. Nxc6 Kxc6 61. Rxe5 Kb6 62. Rxg5 1-0

I was very impressed by the way Benjamin handled the opening against the acknowledged expert of the ...Nc6 Centre Counter. Before the event, I wanted to prepare against those strong opponents I would be facing but gave up after 5 minutes, realising that it would be too much work. But I did click on some of Nelson's Centre counter games where he (as well as his elder brother and sister) outplayed many masters with it by constantly combining central pressure with slick piece play. Here, Benjamin Foo gets the 'Take the bull by the horns' award by entering into Nelson's main line and coming out with a powerful idea to blast the queenside open. With this, we've come to the end of my annotated series for this event. Thank you for viewing!

[Event "S'pore Masters Blitz 2015"] [Site "?"] [Date "2015.03.01"] [Round "8"] [White "Foo, Benjamin"] [Black "Mariano, Nelson III"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "B01"] [Annotator "Junior Tay"] [PlyCount "85"] [EventDate "2015.03.02"] [SourceDate "2015.03.02"] 1. e4 d5 2. exd5 Qxd5 3. Nc3 Qa5 4. d4 Nf6 5. Nf3 Nc6 $5 {The ...Nc6 Centre counter is a specialty of American IM Alexander Reprintsev. Other experts in this line are French GM Etienne Bacrot and ...the Mariano family! Both brother GM Nelson Mariano II and sister WIM Cristine have utilized this line frequently too with success.} 6. Bd2 $1 (6. d5 Nb4 7. Bb5+ c6 8. dxc6 Nxc6 9. Ne5 Bd7 10. Nxd7 Nxd7 11. O-O e6 12. Re1 Be7 13. Bf4 Nf6 14. a3 O-O 15. Bxc6 bxc6 16. Qf3 Rac8 17. Rad1 Qf5 18. h4 Nd5 19. Nxd5 cxd5 {and Mariano's elder sibling has gained the edge, Chong,C (2127)-Mariano,N (2466)/Kuala Lumpur 2005} ) ({The theoretical continuation is supposed to be} 6. Bb5 {but that doesn't faze Nelson.} Nd5 7. a4 Nxc3 8. bxc3 a6 9. Bxc6+ bxc6 10. O-O Bg4 11. Qd3 Bf5 12. Qd2 e6 13. Ne5 Bd6 $1 14. Ba3 Bxe5 15. dxe5 c5 16. Rfd1 O-O {and the future World Junior Champion agreed to a draw against Nelson, Lu,S (2538) -Mariano,N (2292)/Kuala Lumpur 2013.}) 6... a6 ({I've studied many years ago that} 6... Bg4 7. Nb5 Qb6 8. c4 Bxf3 9. Qxf3 Nxd4 10. Nxd4 Qxd4 11. Qxb7 Qe4+ 12. Qxe4 Nxe4 13. Be3 {gives White a big plus in the ending.}) 7. Bc4 Qh5 { Black's plan is to put as much pressure as possible on the d4-pawn with ...Bg4 and ...0-0-0.} 8. O-O Bg4 9. Be2 O-O-O 10. h3 $1 {With natural moves, White has seized the edge and Black has no time to threaten the d4-weakie.} Bxf3 11. Bxf3 Qf5 12. Bxc6 {The point of White's trade. He gets to damage the Black queenside and the tempo to defend the d4-pawn.} bxc6 {This position has been encountered by Nelson in tournament praxis!} 13. Qe2 $1 {Gaining more time to set up his own offensive plan.} (13. Ne2 e6 14. c4 Qd3 $1 15. Rc1 Ne4 16. Be3 Qxd1 17. Rfxd1 Bd6 18. a3 Rhg8 {White has a structural edge though Nelson eventuallly ecked out a win, Dela Cruz,N (2371) -Mariano,N (2251)/Manila 2013}) 13... Kb7 14. Be3 e6 $146 {This is Nelson's improvement over a prior game.} ({ Black has attempted to straighten his pawns after} 14... Nd5 $2 15. Nxd5 cxd5 { but this gave White time to pummel down the queenside with} 16. c4 $1 e6 17. c5 Ra8 18. Rfc1 c6 19. Rc3 Be7 20. Rb3+ Kc7 21. Qd2 Rhc8 22. Bf4+ Kd7 23. Rb7+ $18 {Fomichenko,E (2492)-Scheblykin,S (2348)/Anapa 2008}) 15. b4 $3 {Benjamin gives him no rest and demonstrates the sustained initiative play that has earned him scalps over IMs in recent months.} Bd6 16. Rfb1 {Bringing the whole chain gang into the attack.} e5 {Black meets the flank action with central activity but it's too little too late.} ({After} 16... Nd5 17. Nxd5 exd5 18. a4 {is also daunting for Black.}) 17. b5 $3 {The king's cover is blown away just like that.} cxb5 18. Nxb5 $1 axb5 19. Rxb5+ ({Even more incisive is} 19. Qxb5+ Kc8 20. c4 {with the idea of c5-c6.}) 19... Kc8 20. dxe5 {The Rb5 also helps to set up a horizontal pin.} Bxe5 21. f4 Rhe8 $2 ({Black must bail out into an ending a pawn down with} 21... Rd5 $5 22. Rxd5 Nxd5 23. fxe5 Nxe3 24. Qxe3) 22. fxe5 $18 {The rest is a clinical mop-up by Ben and he never relinquished his sustained initiative thanks to the floundering Black king.} Rxe5 23. Rxe5 Qxe5 24. Qa6+ Kd7 25. Rd1+ Ke7 26. Qa3+ Ke8 27. Qa4+ Rd7 28. Re1 Kf8 29. Qa8+ Ke7 30. Bf2 Qxe1+ 31. Bxe1 Nd5 32. Qc6 Rd6 33. Qc5 Kd7 34. Bg3 Re6 35. Qxd5+ Kc8 36. a4 c6 37. Qb3 Kd7 38. a5 c5 39. a6 Re8 40. a7 Kc6 41. Bb8 Re1+ 42. Kf2 Re6 43. a8=Q+ 1-0

Singapore Masters Blitz Invitational 2015 by Junior Tay

Personally, I would prefer to play in events where I can get a decent number of rounds with stronger players to ‘teach me a lesson’. I also believe my contemporaries also feel the same way, that is, they would prefer tourneys where they could be put to the test by strong masters. Hence, these days, I would rather take part in Chess.com’s Titled Tuesday event, where the US$1000 prize fund pulls in ELO 2700+ type super-GMs like Hikaru Nakamura, Baduur Jobava, Maxime Vachier Lagrave just to name a few. In my two attempts at the event, I have played GMs Jon Ludwig Hammer (got a lucky draw) and Laurent Fressinet (got hammered) and both were incidentally King Magnus’ World Championship seconds.

A recent innovative concept by Olimpiu Urcan caught my attention immediately. Together with Mark Tan Koh Boon, they co-sponsored one of the strongest local events possible. By the way, Mark is no slouch at chess, having beaten Wei Ming and Julio Sadorra (now GM) in tournament play before.

Not since the last TCA Mega Open (a cool $1100 first prize won by your blogmaster Wei Ming) had we seen such an impressive line-up. It’s not just about the money (1st - $600, 2nd - $300, 3rd -$200, 4th-6th 1 year Chesscafe membership, 3 lucky draw prizes- Kevin Goh’s autographed Everyman Chess Development 6 Bg5 book).

 The conditions established were equally promising too, for example,
*Early personal invitations to the masters to take part with no deadline to reply – as long as they do so before the start of the event
*Big spacious, air-conditioned condo function room
*Low entry fees - $10, which is easily 3 to 10 times lower than the local events
*Generous time-frame to decide whether to participate
*Bottled mineral water supplied during games
*Flexibility – the participants, by majority vote, can decide on changes to the schedule for example

*Publicity – the event would be covered via pictures, video, and game scores swiftly afterwards.

What more can you ask for? Soon, 16 ELO 2100-2400+ players signed up and with 3 IMs, 6 FMs and 1 WIM in tow, a jolly good chess tussle was in the works with no easy rounds for anyone. In fact, Jarred Neubronner got it absolutely right when he stated that ‘the winner will not score more than 8 points’.

Wei Ming and Benjamin Foo surged into the lead after 3 rounds with maximum points. Some of my chess pals were quite surprised at young Benjamin’s strength but not us. At a blitz team match held at my place, he scored 4.5/6 vs the likes of IM Hsu Li Yang, IM Terry Toh and FM Ong Chong Ghee - a very impressive result. Round 4 was the matchup between Wei Ming and Ben which ended in a draw after careful play by the latter. Ben took over the lead in Round 5 by beating Reggie Olay, a Filipino NM (with 3 IM norms!) while Wei Ming was held to a draw by FM Tin Jingyao. Round 6 turned the leaderboard into a tizzy when Benjamin was ousted by FM Andrean Susilodinata and Wei Ming got outlasted by his nemesis Jarred. So, at the halfway mark, we had Ben with 4.5 pts, followed by Wei Ming, Jarred, Andrean and Timothy Chan with 4. The latter (another triple IM norm holder) had not played competitively since November 2012. So how did he keep up with the heavyweights at the event? According to Wei Ming, Tim had been playing online regularly for the past month just to keep in shape for this event and it has certainly paid off!

After the break, Ben and Wei Ming stepped up the gas by beating Jarred and Tim respectively. At this point, Reggie Olay (with 3/6 only) started to hit an awesome vein of form but more of that later. Your scribe proved to be the spoiler of the event after drawing Wei Ming and beating Ben in the next two rounds (he missed a simple windmill!) in the next two rounds. Thus, by round 9, we had Wei Ming and Ben at 6.5 points followed by Reggie, Tim and your scribe at 6 points. In the penultimate round, I dropped off the title fight after getting comprehensively beaten by Reggie while Wei Ming and Ben clung on to joint lead after beating Suelo and Gong Qianyun respectively. Tim kept pace by accounting for FM Nelson Mariano III.

So at this point, it was Wei Ming and Ben with 7.5 followed by Reggie and Tim with 7 points. All of a sudden, we have the revenge of the Pinoys as ALL of them magnificently won their games in the all important final round. Wei Ming was outplayed by national coach IM Enrique Paciencia and Ivan Gil Biag took down Ben.

Round 11 - Pinoy Power! 

By beating IM Li Ruofan, Reggie completed an incredible feat from Round 7 to 11, reeling off 5 consecutive wins to claim the 1st Singapore Blitz Masters title with 8/11! The day before the event, he had put on his facebook – “ No Tiger Beer day for me…A tournament to play in the ‘Anchor’age, so ‘Tiger’ moves first! (Nice puns eh?) And tiger-ish moves he played indeed as he strode to an impressive TPR 2464 performance and the $600 first prize. A brilliant self-birthday gift for him, as he celebrated his 39th birthday!

 Reggie ready to fight like a tiger! 

We also had Singapore’s strongest kibitzer in the audience, GM Zhang Zhong who was ever helpful with post-game comments and pointers on the games. What more can we ask for?

One final note is the adoption of the 3 minutes + 2 seconds time control used in the tourney. In the local blitz events, the 5 minutes sudden death time control is still used. Hence it is inevitable that in the dying seconds of the game, you will see clock banging, pieces flying and inevitably disputes as players try to beat the flag instead of the opponent. As a consequence, the arbiter might have to step in to settle disputes. With incremental time, most of these issues are eliminated and as evidenced by the tourney proceedings. Players resign when they are well and truly lost without playing till they get mated. A normal chess game lasts 30 to 60 moves and with 3 minutes+ 2 seconds time control, a game will usually last from 4 minutes to 6 minutes (per side), which is probably shorter than a 5+0 time control with the occasional board dispute.

So kudos to the organizers for a very well thought-out and smoothly run event!

Prize winners: 1st Reggie Olay 8/11 ($600), 2nd -3rd Benjamin Foo ($300), IM Goh Wei Ming ($200) 7.5 pts, 4th and 5th FMs Andrean Susilodinata and Timothy Chan (1 year Chesscafe membership) 7 pts, 6th to 7th FMs Tin Jingyao and FM Nelson Mariano III 6.5 pts (1 year Chesscafe membership)

Lucky draw winners (Chess Developments 6.Bg5 book (Everyman 2014)): FM Tin Jingyao, IM Enrique Paciencia and FM Nelson Mariano III.

More pictures from the event:

Singapore's chess Olympians - FM Tin Jingyao vs IM Li Ruofan 

FM Jarred Neubronner neu-tralising IM Goh Wei Ming's advantage after a long tussle.

FM Timothy Chan shows that he is not that rusty after 2 years of absolute tournament inactivity as he upended Jingyao here. 

Edward Lee fought Russian FM Andrey Terekhnov to a draw.

 China vs Philippines? 

WIM Gong Qianyun vs IM Enrique Paciencia and IM Li Ruofan vs FM Ivan Gil 

The strongest chess player in Singapore, GM Zhang Zhong, observing the proceedings and giving powerful kibitzing advice after the games. 

Final Scoretable (Chess-results.com)
Check out a video from this event (courtesy of sgchess.net) and more on the youtube playlist!
Board 1 - Benjamin Foo vs IM Goh Wei Ming, Board 2 - Reggie Olay vs FM Timothy Chan

Games section (courtesy of Olimpiu Urcan)
Reggie offered Tim a poisoned pawn on c4 and the latter really grabbed it and a strange material situation resulted. The funny thing was that Reggie's subsequent plan of ransacking the Black queenside had a major flaw...his queen would get trapped there. Unfortunately for Tim, he missed the chance to shut the queen and Reggie's subsequent powerful queen play ended all discussion.

[Event "S'pore Masters Blitz 2015"] [Site "?"] [Date "2015.03.01"] [Round "4"] [White "FM Olay, Edgar Reggie"] [Black "FM Chan, Timothy"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "E33"] [Annotator "Junior Tay"] [PlyCount "115"] [EventDate "2015.03.02"] [SourceDate "2015.03.03"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 Nc6 {The Zurich variation prizes piece play above structural considerations.} 5. Nf3 d6 6. a3 Bxc3+ 7. Qxc3 O-O ({ Personally, I prefer to flick in} 7... a5 {first to prevent White from expanding on the queenside so easily}) 8. b4 Qe7 {A relatively rare continuation, as Black tends to play either the ...e5 pawn sacrifice or ...Re8 here.} (8... e5 $5 9. dxe5 (9. Bb2 {is preferred by GMs Ding Liren and Volkov.} ) 9... Nxe5 10. Nxe5 dxe5 11. Qxe5 Re8 12. Qb2 a5 13. Bg5 axb4 14. axb4 Rxa1+ 15. Qxa1 Qd3 $1 16. f3 (16. Bxf6 gxf6 17. e3 Qb3 {and White is suffering.}) 16... Qxc4 17. Bxf6 gxf6 18. Qb2 {and Black has regained the pawn with the initiative, Peng,Z (2443)-Plasman,H (2217)/Hoogeveen 2001}) 9. Bb2 Re8 10. g3 $5 $146 e5 11. d5 ({After} 11. dxe5 dxe5 12. Bg2 Nd4 {, White walked into a devious trap with} 13. e3 $4 Bh3 $1 14. Bxh3 Ne4 $1 15. Qd3 Nxf3+ 16. Ke2 Nfg5 {The point of the combination, Black cannot hold on to the bishop with ...Rad8 and ...Rd2+ looming.} 17. Rad1 {Fick,R (2110)-Eggleston,D (2399)/Bad Wiessee 2013 and now} (17. Bg2 Rad8 18. Qc2 Rd2+ 19. Qxd2 Nxd2 20. Kxd2 {and Black is winning.}) 17... Rad8 18. Qb1 Qf6 $1 19. f4 Qc6 $1 {Hitting the c4-pawn and the h3-bishop simultaneously} 20. fxg5 Nxg5 {with a winning position.}) 11... Nb8 12. Bg2 c6 {Chipping away at the White centre.} (12... b5 $5 {is an attempt to decimate White's centre but White resisted temptation with} 13. Nd2 Bb7 14. O-O Nbd7 15. a4 bxc4 16. e4 c6 17. dxc6 Bxc6 18. Qxc4 Rac8 19. Rfc1 Bb7 20. Qb3 {to keep a slight structural edge, Kishnev,S (2488)-Koch,T (2416)/ Belgium 2003}) 13. dxc6 $1 Nxc6 ({Reggie probably planned to meet} 13... bxc6 { with} 14. c5 $1) 14. O-O Be6 15. Rfd1 Rac8 16. Rac1 Red8 17. h3 h6 18. e3 Bf5 ( 18... e4 $5 {with the idea of meeting} 19. Nd2 Ne5 {can be countered by the dangerous exchange sacrifice} 20. Qd4 $1 Nd3 21. Nxe4 Nxc1 22. Rxc1 {when it's easier to play White especially in blitz.}) 19. Nh4 $1 {The tempi earned allows White to make inroads on the queenside.} Bh7 20. b5 ({White can undermine the centre with} 20. c5 $5 dxc5 21. b5 {and he will pick off the e5-pawn with a durable bishop pair edge.}) 20... Nb8 21. a4 b6 22. Ba3 { Attacks the backward pawn on d6} Ne8 ({Stockfish suggests the 'inhuman'} 22... g5 23. Nf3 Ne4 24. Qa1 Qf6 {with approximate equality but humans tend to bother more about structural consideration.}) 23. Qd2 {Starting to massage the position and apply pressure on d6.} (23. e4 {gives White a solid edge too.}) 23... Qe6 {Targeting the c4-pawn.} 24. Kh2 $5 {Reggie dares Tim to pluck the c4-weakie...} Rxc4 $2 {I'm not sure if Tim missed the bishop poke from d5 but the resulting unbalanced piece setup gave Reggie winning chances.} 25. Bd5 $1 $18 Rxc1 26. Bxe6 Rxd1 27. Bxf7+ $1 Kxf7 28. Qxd1 Ke7 29. Qd5 Nd7 30. Qb7 Rb8 31. Qxa7 $4 {White's play following the massive exchanges has bee geared towards pilfering the queenside. However, at this juncture, both sides did not realise that the queen could be trapped!} Kd8 $4 (31... Be4 $3 {shuts the door on the queen!} 32. a5 Ra8 {and White will regret munching on a7.}) 32. a5 $4 ( 32. f3 {is necessary to blot out the ...Be4 idea.}) 32... bxa5 $4 {Now the queen gets out of jail.} (32... Be4) 33. Qxa5+ $18 Rb6 34. Nf3 Be4 35. Nd2 Bd5 {With Black driven into a defensive shell, Reggie exploits Tim's dilemna with a general pawn advance.} 36. e4 Be6 37. f4 exf4 38. gxf4 Nc7 39. Qc3 $1 { Reggie is not adverse to part with his b-pawn to remove one of Black's knights as Black's kingside has been irretrievably weakened.} Nxb5 40. Qg3 Nxa3 41. Qxa3 Nc5 42. f5 $1 {The prelude to a powerful denoument.} Bb3 43. e5 $1 { Crushing! Removing the knight's pawn support and thus wrecking the Black pieces' coordination totally.} Kc7 44. exd6+ Kc6 45. h4 Bd5 46. Qa7 ({A faster way to convert would be} 46. d7 Nxd7 47. Qc3+ Kb5 48. Qxg7 $18) 46... Rb7 {Tim is really making it very tough for Reggie to make inroads.} 47. Qa3 Kxd6 48. Qg3+ $18 Kc6 49. Qc3 Kd6 50. Qg3+ Kc6 51. Qe5 $1 {The winning plan. Reggie prepares f5-f6 to trade off the g7-pawn, thus removing the support for the hapless h6-pawn.} Nd3 52. Qc3+ Nc5 53. f6 $1 gxf6 54. Qxf6+ Be6 55. Qxh6 Rb2 56. Kg1 Kd7 $4 {Tim blunders his rook away, but there is no stopping the h-pawn anyway.} 57. Qg7+ Kd6 58. Qxb2 1-0

Getting positionally outplayed by FM Andrean Susilodinata, I spotted a really dirty cheapo...

[Event "Singapore Blitz Masters "] [Site "?"] [Date "2015.03.01"] [Round "?"] [White "Junior Tay"] [Black "FM Andrean Susilodinata"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "B23"] [Annotator "Tay,Junior"] [SetUp "1"] [FEN "r4bk1/1bq2p1p/pp4p1/2n1Pp2/P1Bp4/1P4Q1/2P2NPP/R4RK1 b - - 0 21"] [PlyCount "6"] [EventDate "2015.03.03"] 21... Re8 {In this position, White is exchange for a pawn up but the isolated e-pawn is poised to drop as White cannot defend it sufficiently. Once it falls, Black surely is better with his powerful bishop pair and dominance in the centre. I spotted an ultra-dirty cheapo here...} 22. Rae1 {Meekly defending the e-pawn or so it seems.} ({I was also considering} 22. Ng4 $5 {but after} Ne4 $1 23. Qh4 Bg7 24. Nf6+ Nxf6 25. exf6 Re4 $1 {, White is in serious trouble.}) 22... Bg7 $4 {Totally missing the cheapo...} (22... Re7 $1 {first would have avoided all the trouble.}) 23. e6 $3 {All of a sudden, Black is forced to lose a rook as ...exf7+ threatens to win the whole house!} Nxe6 ( 23... Qxg3 24. exf7+ {and Black gets mated after fxe8=Q.}) 24. Rxe6 $1 {The Black queen is left en-prise and ...Qxg3 loses to Rxe8 check(!) and White converted the extra rook advantage later.} 1-0

Finally, some very clever opening play by Reggie allowed him to gain the edge over Andrean.

[Event "S'pore Masters Blitz 2015"] [Site "?"] [Date "2015.03.01"] [Round "3"] [White "Susilodinata, Andrean"] [Black "Olay, Edgar Reggie"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "B75"] [Annotator "Tay,Junior"] [PlyCount "38"] [EventDate "2015.03.02"] 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 g6 6. Be3 Bg7 7. f3 a6 8. Qd2 h5 $5 {A typical motif in the Dragondorf. The main point is White is 'robbed' of his natural Bh6, h4-h5 attacking setup and also the standard g2-g4 bayonet spike has been upended.} 9. O-O-O ({Watch how the irrepressible GM Jobava handle this opening} 9. Bc4 Nbd7 10. O-O-O b5 11. Bb3 Bb7 12. Kb1 Rc8 13. h3 Ne5 14. Rhe1 Nc4 15. Bxc4 Rxc4 16. Nb3 Qc7 17. Bd4 O-O {Here, it looks like conditions are ripe for a central break...} 18. e5 $6 dxe5 19. Bxe5 Ne4 $1 { Ouch! Suddenly, the tables are turned and White is forced on the defensive.} 20. Bxc7 (20. Rxe4 Bxe5 21. Nd5 Bxd5 22. Qxd5 Bf6) 20... Nxd2+ 21. Rxd2 Bxc3 22. bxc3 Rxc7 {and Jobava has secured an edge in this ending, Areshchenko,A (2720)-Jobava,B (2695)/Warsaw 2013.}) 9... Nbd7 10. f4 Qc7 {This position requires some care.} ({After} 10... b5 11. Bd3 Bb7 $2 {White has the powerful break} 12. e5 dxe5 $2 (12... b4 13. Na4 dxe5 14. Ne6) 13. Ne6 $3 fxe6 $2 (13... Qa5 14. fxe5 Nxe5 15. Nxg7+ Kf8 16. Nf5 $16) 14. Bxg6+ Kf8 15. fxe5 Qa5 16. exf6 Nxf6 17. Rhf1 {Tchoupine,V-Vuckovic,A (2338)/Ditzingen 2002, with a huge position for White,}) 11. f5 Ne5 12. fxg6 fxg6 13. Bg5 $5 {A typical idea, with the intention to trade on f6 and dive in with Nd5. The natural reaction here would be to move the queen away from the Nd5 hit with ...Qa5 but Reggie simply ignores the threat!} O-O $5 14. Bxf6 exf6 $1 {An odd looking recapture, weakening the d-pawn irretrievably but this move is well motivated for the sake of keeping the initiative.} ({After} 14... Bxf6 15. Nd5 Qc5 16. Be2 Bd7 17. Rhf1 {, Black's Dragondorf has lost its vitality.}) 15. Nb3 Re8 $5 {Very enterprising play. Reggie refused to be tied down to defending the d-pawn and instead gave it up nonchalantly to carry on his development.} 16. Nd5 {Andrean cautiously declined the pawn offer but his position soon deteriorated.} ({After } 16. Qxd6 Qf7 17. Be2 Be6 18. Kb1 Rac8 19. Rhf1 Rc6 20. Qd2 Rec8 {there is strong counterplay for Black.}) 16... Qf7 17. Kb1 b5 18. Nd4 $6 {Instead of taking over central squares, White needs to focus on development.} Bb7 19. Nf4 $2 Bxe4 $19 {Reggie had nabbed an important pawn and converted the win in another 25 moves.} 0-1

25 games from the event are available for download from the sgchess.net website

Mighty Mok celebrates Christmas and New Year with back to back tourney wins! by Junior Tay

Just a week ago, during a Whatsapp conversation with Malaysian IM Mok Tze Meng, the full time chess coach (as well as 'chapalang' financial adviser, mobile chess book/equipment seller, chess arbiter, intrepid deal-maker and prankster) mused that he might consider ending his playing career to concentrate on work.

Mok messing about with Dr J Nithiananthan when the latter swung by KL last year

However, the chess itch got to him as he felt that he still got something to prove to his detractors  (that he was still the same force who overpowered GMs Van Wely and Amin in the 2012 Istanbul Olympiad). In a 62-strong Tesco Setia Alam field comprising 2014 Tromso Olympiad representatives Sumant Subramaniam and Fong Yit San, Mok set out to prove that he can still rack up the titles at 46 years of age.

With 5/6 heading into the final round, Mok was paired against Sumant who had a perfect 6/6 score.

[Event "Setia Alam"] [Site "?"] [Date "2014.??.??"] [Round "7"] [White "Sumant Subramaniam"] [Black "IM Mok Tze Meng"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "A43"] [PlyCount "50"] [EventDate "2014.??.??"] 1. d4 g6 2. Nf3 Bg7 3. g3 c5 4. d5 d6 5. Bg2 e6 6. c4 Ne7 $5 {Taking the game out of the theoretical Modern Benoni highway. Apart from forcing White to find his 'own' moves henceforth, this move allows the Benoni bishop to keep the long Black diagonal open.} 7. O-O exd5 8. cxd5 O-O 9. Nc3 a6 10. a4 Bg4 $6 {A psychological gamble. Mok plays on the notion that White will keep things safe and uncomplicated, given his half point lead in the final round. The crux is that this move weakens the b7-pawn and if White gets to do the standard Benoni knight's tour (Nd2-c4) to hit the b6-square and especially the d6-pawn, Mok would have to defend it passively with ...Nc8 and the g4 bishop and queen knight would both be fighting for the same d7-square when White plays h2-h3.} ( 10... Nd7 11. e4 {gives White an easy game.}) 11. Bf4 (11. Nd2 $1 Nc8 12. Qb3 Ra7 13. e4 {accords White a strong game. Given the rapid time control, perhaps Mok might take his chances with} b5 $5 14. axb5 Rb7 {in Benko gambit fashion.}) 11... h6 {More psychology. Mok wants to boot the f4-bishop off its powerful h2-b8 diagonal and dares White to play the 'weakening' h2-h4.} (11... Bxf3 { White would be pleased to get} 12. Bxf3 {when} Nc8 13. Ne4 {is only fun for White.}) 12. Qb3 (12. h4 $1 {keeps the dark-squared bishop on its excellent diagonal.}) 12... b6 13. Nd2 g5 $1 14. Bxd6 $6 {White insists on keeping the initiative, even at the cost of a piece for a pawn.} (14. Be3 {After} Nf5 {, Black has justified the placing of the Ne7 as it can now help gain the bishop pair by removing the Be3.} 15. h3 Nxe3 16. fxe3 Bh5) 14... Qxd6 15. Nc4 Qd8 16. d6 (16. Nxb6 $5 {White also has insufficient compensation after} Ra7 17. a5 Nc8 {but at least there is still some complexity left in the position.}) 16... Nec6 17. Qxb6 $6 {Mok loves technical positions, even more so with extra material. After this, it is safe to say that Mok is confident of taking home the full point, as the endgame is his forte.} Qxb6 18. Nxb6 Ra7 19. e3 Ne5 20. f3 Be6 21. Rfd1 Nbd7 22. Ncd5 Nxb6 23. Nxb6 Nd7 {Mok welcomes trades of course, bringing him closer to the finish line.} 24. Nxd7 Rxd7 25. Rac1 c4 0-1

Hence, with this win, Mok tied with Sumant for the top spot with 6/7 and clinched the RM 200 + Tesco RM 500 voucher first prize on tie-break. Just to prove that the Tesco result wasn't a fluke, Mok entered the next tourney on the circuit, the Kastam Open. This time, he led from start to finish and by Round 6, was a point clear of the field. A draw with Black against Kamaluddin Yusof sufficed to give him clear 1st place as well as the RM500 first prize. In the penultimate round, Mok was paired with the ex-Malaysian International, Mohd Kamal Abdullah. Even though Mok (with 5/5) was leading Kamal by 1/2 point with another 8 players at 4/5, he dispelled any thoughts of a safe draw to keep his lead. 'First place was not guaranteed yet so I played for the kill', he recounted and added 'if you want to be champion, you must never look back'.

[Event "1st Kastam WPKL"] [Site "?"] [Date "2015.??.??"] [Round "6"] [White "IM Mok Tze Meng"] [Black "NM Kamal Abdullah"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "B30"] [PlyCount "69"] [EventDate "2015.??.??"] 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nd4 $5 {Bologan considers this knight hop inferior to the Ruy Lopez Bird's Defence (1 e4 e5 2 Nf3 Nc6 3 Bb5 Nd4). This didn't stop GMs like Ricardi, Wang Zili and Matjushin from playing this.} 4. Nxd4 cxd4 5. O-O g6 6. c3 $1 {Undermining Black's advanced pawn immediately. If Black is not careful, White will end up with a strong pawn centre.} Bg7 7. cxd4 Bxd4 8. Nc3 Bg7 $6 (8... a6 9. Ba4 b5 10. Bb3 Bb7 {. Zarnicki,P (2493)-Ricardi,P (2544) /Pinamar 2002 gives Black more central play.}) 9. d4 {Black is not only behind in development, but also gifts White a strong centre.} a6 10. Bc4 d6 $6 (10... e6 11. e5 $1 {. Real de Azua,E (2320)-Obregon,C (2268)/Buenos Aires 2003, also looks good for White.}) 11. Qf3 {Of course Kamal, an ex-Olympian and Asian Teams representative, is not going to miss a one mover. This however, forces Black to weaken some dark squares and gains time for Mok to play his next move. } (11. Qa4+ $5 {Even stronger is} Bd7 (11... b5 12. Bxb5+) 12. Qb3 e6 13. Qxb7 {nets a clean pawn as after} Bxd4 14. Rd1 Bc5 15. e5 $1 d5 16. Nxd5 $1 Ra7 17. Qb3 exd5 18. Bxd5 {White has a devastating attack.}) 11... e6 12. Rd1 Ne7 13. Bg5 O-O 14. e5 $1 {Creating chronic dark-square weaknesses.} d5 (14... dxe5 15. dxe5 Qc7 16. Bf6 $1 Nf5 17. Bd3 Bxf6 18. exf6 Qe5 19. Ne4 {and White is still in control.}) 15. Bd3 {It's very difficult already to suggest an unravelling method for Black, especially against Mok who loves these squeeze-type positions.} Re8 16. Bf6 Bf8 17. h4 {This battering ram is going to weaken the Black kingside irretrievably.} Qb6 18. Rab1 Bd7 19. h5 Nc6 20. Ne2 Rec8 21. a3 (21. Qg4 $1 Be8 22. hxg6 hxg6 23. Nf4) 21... Be7 22. Bxe7 $6 {Too casual. Mok just wants to win technically and does not play for mate.} (22. hxg6 fxg6 23. Qg4 Be8 24. Nf4 {gives White an unstoppable kingside breakthrough after a imminent sacrifice on g6.}) 22... Nxe7 23. Qf6 Qd8 24. h6 {Mok aims for a plus minus position where Black's queen is stuck on f8 forever to defend the g7-mating square as well as the back rank.} Qf8 25. g4 Ba4 26. Rdc1 Nc6 27. g5 Na5 28. Rxc8 Rxc8 29. Rc1 Rxc1+ 30. Nxc1 Bb3 31. Kg2 Bc4 32. b4 Bxd3 $4 {Black finally falters and this allows Mok to push the queen off f8 after} 33. Nxd3 Nb3 (33... Nc6 34. Nc5 Nb8 {would allow Mok to win flashily after} 35. a4 b6 36. Nxe6 fxe6 37. Qxe6+ Kh8 38. Qxd5 Qe7 39. e6 Kg8 40. b5 a5 41. f4 Kf8 42. Qe5 {winning}) 34. Nc5 Nxd4 35. Nd7 {and Black's queen cannot move and thus he has to resign.} 1-0

Definitely a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year for Mighty Mok!