Nevada Chess, Inc.

23rd Annual North American Open
December 26-30, 2013
The 23rd Annual North American Open was held at Bally’s Casino Resort, 3645 Las Vegas Blvd S, Las Vegas, Nevada.

GM Giorgi Kacheishvili had the best tie-breaks out of 8 players who finished tied 1st-8th in the Open Section with 6½ points to claim the title of North American Open Champion and take his winnings to nearly $3,000. GMs Yi Wei, Sergey Erenburg, Timur Gareev, Alex Shimanov, Varuzhan Akobian and Alex Lenderman, along with IM Chen Wang completed the group at the top. Along with his top place finish, Wang’s performance was also good enough for a GM norm.

IM norms were achieved by Ryan Goldenberg, FM Razvan Preotu, FM Roman Sapozhnikov, FM Arthur Shen and Gregory Young.

As usual, this writer was a spectator, and I saw as well as our resident, GM Timur Gareev, Ryan Phillips, Juan Jauregui, Raymond Seid, John Currell, Vivian Liu, Karl Ulbrich playing in this event. Juan finished with a great 4.5/7, and commented it was a hard event.

The final standings for all sections and the prizes are posted at http//www.northamericanopen.com for all those who played in this annual event.

here are a couple games from one of the winners, Timur Gareev and another themetic game where Larry Christiansen pitches his queen away.

[Event “Las Vegas, NV”]
[Site “Las Vegas, NV”]
[Date “2013.12.26”]
[Round “2.1”]
[White “Mulyar, Michael”]
[Black “Gareev, Timur”]
[Result “0-1”]
[ECO “A46”]
[WhiteElo “2423”]
[BlackElo “2650”]
[PlyCount “106”]
[EventDate “2013.12.??”]
[EventType “swiss”]
[EventRounds “9”]
[EventCountry “USA”]
[Source “MonRoi”]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 e6 3. g3 b5 4. Bg2 Bb7 5. O-O Be7 6. Nbd2 O-O 7. c4 a6 8. b3
c5 9. dxc5 Bxc5 10. Bb2 d6 11. Qc2 Nbd7 12. Rad1 Rc8 13. Qb1 Rc7 14. b4 Bb6 15.
cxb5 axb5 16. Qd3 Qa8 17. a3 Qa6 18. e3 Ba7 19. Rc1 Rfc8 20. Rxc7 Rxc7 21. Rc1
Rxc1+ 22. Bxc1 Bd5 23. Bb2 Qb7 24. Ne1 Bxg2 25. Nxg2 d5 26. Ne1 Ne8 27. Nef3
Nd6 28. Qc3 f6 29. Nd4 Bxd4 30. Qxd4 e5 31. Qd3 Nb6 32. Nb3 Na4 33. Na5 Qf7 34.
Bc1 Nb6 35. Nb3 Nbc4 36. Nc5 e4 37. Qd1 Ne5 38. h4 Nf3+ 39. Kf1 g5 40. hxg5
fxg5 41. Bb2 Nc4 42. Bc3 h5 43. Kg2 h4 44. Nxe4 h3+ 45. Kh1 dxe4 46. Qd8+ Kh7
47. Qh8+ Kg6 48. g4 Nfe5 49. Qh5+ Kf6 50. Qh6+ Ke7 51. Qxg5+ Ke6 52. Qh6+ Kd5
53. f4 exf3 0-1

[Event “Las Vegas, NV”]
[Site “Las Vegas, NV”]
[Date “2013.12.29”]
[Round “7.2”]
[White “Gareev, Timur”]
[Black “Yermolinsky, Alex”]
[Result “1-0”]
[ECO “D90”]
[WhiteElo “2650”]
[BlackElo “2510”]
[PlyCount “79”]
[EventDate “2013.12.??”]
[EventType “swiss”]
[EventRounds “9”]
[EventCountry “USA”]
[Source “MonRoi”]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. Nf3 Bg7 5. h4 c6 6. Bg5 O-O 7. Bxf6 Bxf6 8. h5
g5 9. h6 Bf5 10. e3 e6 11. Bd3 Bg6 12. Qe2 Nd7 13. Rd1 Re8 14. Kf1 a6 15. g3 b5
16. cxd5 cxd5 17. a3 Nb6 18. Kg2 Rc8 19. Bxg6 hxg6 20. e4 Kh7 21. Rd3 Nc4 22.
e5 Be7 23. a4 bxa4 24. Nxa4 Rb8 25. b3 Na5 26. Qe3 Rb4 27. Rc3 Nxb3 28. Rxb3
Rxa4 29. Rb7 a5 30. Qd3 Rf8 31. Nh2 Rb4 32. Ra7 Kxh6 33. Ng4+ Kg7 34. Qf3 Rg8
35. Nf6 Rh8 36. Rd7 Qf8 37. Rc1 Rc4 38. Rxc4 dxc4 39. d5 c3 40. Qxc3 1-0

[Event “Las Vegas, NV”]
[Site “Las Vegas, NV”]
[Date “2013.12.29”]
[Round “7.17”]
[White “Sapozhnikov, Roman”]
[Black “Christiansen, Larry”]
[Result “1-0”]
[ECO “E43”]
[WhiteElo “2293”]
[BlackElo “2582”]
[PlyCount “129”]
[EventDate “2013.12.??”]
[EventType “swiss”]
[EventRounds “9”]
[EventCountry “USA”]
[Source “MonRoi”]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. e3 O-O 6. Bd3 b6 7. O-O Bb7 8. a3
Bxc3 9. bxc3 Be4 10. Be2 Nc6 11. Ng5 Bg6 12. f3 d5 13. Bd2 cxd4 14. cxd4 dxc4
15. Bxc4 Nxd4 16. Rc1 b5 17. Ba2 Nf5 18. Qe2 Qb6 19. g4 Nd6 20. h4 h6 21. Nh3
Nc4 22. Nf4 Nd5 23. Nxg6 fxg6 24. Bxc4 bxc4 25. Rxc4 Rad8 26. Rf2 Qd6 27. f4
Qxa3 28. Bc1 Qe7 29. g5 h5 30. Qc2 Kh7 31. Qe4 Nb6 32. Rc6 Rfe8 33. Rfc2 Rd1+
34. Kh2 Nd5 35. Qf3 Rd3 36. Qe4 Rb3 37. Qe5 Qd7 38. Rc7 Nxc7 39. Rxc7 Qxc7 40.
Qxc7 Reb8 41. Kg3 R8b7 42. Qe5 R7b6 43. Bd2 Rc6 44. Kf3 a6 45. Qe4 Rd6 46. Bb4
Rd1 47. Bc5 Rf1+ 48. Ke2 Rbb1 49. Qe5 Rbe1+ 50. Kd3 Rd1+ 51. Ke4 Rd5 52. Qc3
Rb1 53. Bd4 Rb7 54. Qc6 Rdd7 55. Qxa6 Re7 56. Be5 Rb4+ 57. Kf3 Rbb7 58. Bd6
Red7 59. Qc6 Ra7 60. Ke4 Rdb7 61. Ke5 Rb3 62. Bc5 Ra5 63. Kxe6 Rc3 64. Kd6 Ra2
65. Qb7 1-0

Old news is good news.

Round 1

[Event “nosom13”]
[Site “Tonopah, NV”]
[Date “2013.09.28”]
[Round “1”]
[White “Alsasua, E..”]
[Black “Reyes, Virgil”]
[Result “1/2-1/2”]
[ECO “B32”]

{318MB, Fritz11.ctg, USER-BF45D6A2CE} 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3

Nc6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 e5
5. Nb5 a6 6. Nd6+ Bxd6 7. Qxd6 Qf6 8. Qxf6 Nxf6 9. Bd3

d5 10. exd5 Nb4 11. Nc3
Nxd3+ 12. cxd3 Bf5 13. O-O Bxd3 14. Re1 e4 15. Bg5 O-O-O

16. Rac1 Kb8 17. Bf4+
Ka7 18. Bc7 Rde8 19. b4 b5 20. d6 Kb7 21. a4 Nd7 22.

axb5 axb5 23. h3 f5 24.
Nd5 Re5 25. Ne7 Bc4 26. Ba5 Ra8 27. Red1 Ra6 28. Rd4 f4

29. Re1 g5 30. Rdd1
1/2-1/2

[Event “nosom13”]
[Site “Tonopah, NV”]
[Date “2013.09.28”]
[Round “1”]
[White “Patterson, Cameron”]
[Black “Casten, Fred”]
[Result “1-0”]
[ECO “B08”]

{318MB, Fritz11.ctg, USER-BF45D6A2CE} 1. e4 d6 2. d4 Nf6

3. Nc3 g6 4. Nf3 Bg7
5. Be3 c6 6. h3 Qa5 7. Qd2 Nbd7 8. Be2 e5 9. O-O O-O 10.

a4 Re8 11. Rad1 Qc7
12. dxe5 dxe5 13. Ng5 Nf8 14. f4 h6 15. Bc4 Be6 16. Nxe6

Nxe6 17. Bxe6 Rxe6 18.
f5 gxf5 19. exf5 Ree8 20. Bxh6 Nh7 21. Bxg7 Kxg7 22. f6+

Kh8 23. Qh6 Rg8 24.
Rf5 Rg6 25. Qh4 Kg8 26. Rh5 Nxf6 27. Rh8+ Kg7 28. Rxa8

Qb6+ 29. Qf2 Qb4 1-0

[Event “nosom13”]
[Site “Tonopah, NV”]
[Date “2013.09.28”]
[Round “1”]
[White “Fischer, George”]
[Black “Dease, Dan”]
[Result “1/2-1/2”]
[ECO “D93”]

{318MB, Fritz11.ctg, USER-BF45D6A2CE} 1. Nf3 Nf6 2. d4

g6 3. c4 Bg7 4. Nc3 d5
5. Bf4 c5 6. e3 O-O 7. h3 Nc6 8. Ne5 cxd4 9. exd4 dxc4

10. Nxc6 bxc6 11. Bxc4
Qb6 12. Qd2 Bf5 13. O-O Rad8 14. Be5 Ne4 15. Qf4 Bxe5

16. Qxe5 Qxd4 17. Qxd4
Rxd4 18. Nxe4 Rxc4 19. Ng3 Bd3 20. Rfd1 Rd8 21. Rd2 Rcd4

22. Rc1 R4d6 23. Rc3
f5 24. Ra3 a6 25. Ne2 e5 26. Ra5 e4 27. Kh2 Bb5 28. Rxd6

Rxd6 29. Nc3 Rd2 30.
Nxb5 axb5 31. b3 Rxf2 32. Kg3 e3 33. Ra8+ Kg7 34. Re8

f4+ 35. Kg4 Kf7 36. Re4
h5+ 37. Kg5 c5 38. a4 bxa4 39. bxa4 Rxg2+ 40. Kxf4 Ra2

41. Kf3 e2 42. Kf2 g5
43. Re5 Kf6 44. Rxc5 e1=Q+ 45. Kxe1 Rxa4 46. Kf2 Re4 47.

Rb5 Re5 48. Rxe5 Kxe5
49. Ke3 h4 50. Kf3 Kf5 51. Ke3 g4 52. hxg4+ Kxg4 53. Kf2

1/2-1/2

[Event “nosom13”]
[Site “Tonopah, NV”]
[Date “2013.09.28”]
[Round “1”]
[White “Zavala, Jonathan”]
[Black “Peterson, David”]
[Result “0-1”]
[ECO “A07”]

{318MB, Fritz11.ctg, USER-BF45D6A2CE} 1. e4 {0} e6 2. d3

d5 3. Nd2 Nc6 4. Ngf3
e5 5. c3 Nf6 6. g3 Be7 7. Bg2 O-O 8. O-O dxe4 9. dxe4

Be6 10. Qe2 Qd7 11. Re1
Bg4 12. b3 h6 13. Bb2 Qe6 14. Qb5 Rab8 15. Nh4 Rfd8 16.

Ndf3 a6 17. Qe2 g6 18.
Qe3 Kh7 19. c4 Nb4 20. Nxe5 Nc2 21. Qc3 Nxe1 22. Rxe1

Rd1 23. Rxd1 Bxd1 24. f4
Bg4 25. Nxg4 Qxg4 26. Bf3 Qe6 27. f5 Qb6+ 28. Kh1 Rg8

29. e5 Qf2 30. Bg2 Ne8
31. fxg6+ fxg6 32. Nf3 Rf8 33. e6 Qe2 34. Ng1 Qxe6 35.

Bd5 Qc8 36. Qe3 Bg5 37.
Qc5 Nd6 38. Be5 Be7 39. Qd4 Ne8 40. Qe3 Nf6 41. Bf4 Nxd5

42. cxd5 Qd7 43. d6
Qc6+ 44. Nf3 Bxd6 45. Kg1 Bxf4 46. Nd4 Bxe3# 0-1

[Event “nosom13”]
[Site “Tonopah, NV”]
[Date “2013.09.28”]
[Round “1”]
[White “Herald, Matthew”]
[Black “Leung, Eric”]
[Result “0-1”]
[ECO “C42”]

{318MB, Fritz11.ctg, USER-BF45D6A2CE} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3

Nf6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Bc4 d6
5. d3 h6 6. h3 Nc6 7. Be3 Na5 8. Bb3 Nxb3 9. axb3 d5 10.

Bd2 d4 11. Ne2 Bd6 12.
O-O c5 13. Nh2 g5 14. Ng3 Be6 15. Nh5 a6 16. Ng7+ Kd7

17. Nxe6 fxe6 18. Ng4 Qe7
19. Nxf6+ Qxf6 20. Qh5 Rag8 21. c4 Rg6 22. Ra4 Rhg8 23.

f3 Qd8 24. Rfa1 Be7 25.
Qg4 Rh8 26. b4 h5 27. Qg3 g4 28. bxc5 h4 29. Qxe5 gxf3

30. Ba5 Rxg2+ 31. Kh1
Qg8 32. Qxd4+ Ke8 33. Bc7 Rh2+ 0-1

[Event “nosom13”]
[Site “Tonopah, NV”]
[Date “2013.09.28”]
[Round “1”]
[White “Galima, Tim”]
[Black “Chinnici, Tony”]
[Result “1/2-1/2”]
[ECO “B90”]

{318MB, Fritz11.ctg, USER-BF45D6A2CE} 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6

3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6
5. Nc3 a6 6. Bd3 Nc6 7. Be2 g6 8. Be3 Bg7 9. Qd2 O-O 10.

O-O-O Qc7 11. f3 Ne5
12. Bh6 Nc4 13. Bxc4 Qxc4 14. Bxg7 Kxg7 15. h4 b5 16. h5

b4 17. Nd5 Qxa2 18.
Nb3 Nxd5 19. exd5 Bf5 20. hxg6 Bxg6 21. Qh6+ Kg8 22. Nd4

Qa1+ 23. Kd2 Qxb2 24.
Nc6 Qxc2+ 25. Ke1 Qc3+ 26. Rd2 Rac8 27. Qg5 Rxc6 28.

dxc6 Qa1+ 29. Ke2 Qxh1 30.
Qxe7 Qc1 31. Rxd6 b3 32. c7 1/2-1/2

[Event “nosom13”]
[Site “Tonopah, NV”]
[Date “2013.09.28”]
[Round “1”]
[White “Arteaga, Rick”]
[Black “Turner, Rob”]
[Result “0-1”]
[ECO “B00”]

{318MB, Fritz11.ctg, USER-BF45D6A2CE} 1. e4 b6 2. g3 Bb7

3. Bg2 e6 4. Nc3 Bb4
5. Nge2 Ne7 6. a3 Bxc3 7. Nxc3 O-O 8. O-O c6 9. d3 d6

10. b4 Nd7 11. Bb2 f5 12.
Ne2 e5 13. f4 Nf6 14. fxe5 Ng4 15. Qd2 dxe5 16. h3 Nh6

17. Bxe5 Ng6 18. Bb2
fxe4 19. Rxf8+ Nxf8 20. Bxe4 Ne6 21. b5 Rc8 22. Rf1 Rc7

23. Be5 Rc8 24. Nf4 Qg5
25. Qg2 Qxe5 26. Bxc6 Bxc6 27. bxc6 Nxf4 28. Rxf4 Qc5+

29. Kh2 Rxc6 30. Rc4
Ng4+ 31. hxg4 Rh6+ 32. Qh3 0-1

[Event “nosom13”]
[Site “Tonopah, NV”]
[Date “2013.09.28”]
[Round “1”]
[White “Moscow, Elliot”]
[Black “Chung, Kevin”]
[Result “0-1”]
[ECO “A06”]

{318MB, Fritz11.ctg, USER-BF45D6A2CE} 1. b3 Nf6 2. Bb2

e6 3. e3 d5 4. Nf3 c5 5.
Bb5+ Nc6 6. O-O Bd7 7. Bxc6 Bxc6 8. Ne5 Bd6 9. f4 Bb5

10. d3 Qc7 11. Nd2 O-O
12. Rf3 Nd7 13. Nxd7 Bxd7 14. Rg3 f6 15. Qg4 Bc6 16.

Qxe6+ Kh8 17. Rf1 b5 18.
Nf3 Rae8 19. Qh3 d4 20. exd4 Bxf4 21. Rg6 Qf7 22. Nh4

Re3 0-1

[Event “nosom13”]
[Site “Tonopah, NV”]
[Date “2013.09.28”]
[Round “1”]
[White “Olson, Jeff”]
[Black “Johnson, Marc”]
[Result “1/2-1/2”]
[ECO “B35”]

{318MB, Fritz11.ctg, USER-BF45D6A2CE} 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3

Nc6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 g6
5. Nc3 Bg7 6. Be3 Nf6 7. Bc4 O-O 8. Qd2 Ng4 9. Nxc6 dxc6

10. h3 Nxe3 11. Qxe3
Qc7 12. O-O-O b6 13. Rd2 Bb7 14. Rhd1 Rad8 15. Rxd8 Rxd8

16. Rxd8+ Qxd8 17. Qf3
e6 18. Qd3 Qd4 19. Qxd4 Bxd4 20. f3 Kg7 21. Ne2 Be3+ 22.

Kd1 e5 23. g4 c5 24.
Bd5 Ba6 25. c4 b5 26. b3 bxc4 27. bxc4 Bc8 28. Nc3 f5

29. Nb5 fxe4 30. Bxe4 a5
31. a4 Bd7 32. Ke2 Bg5 33. Kd3 h5 34. Bd5 hxg4 35. hxg4

Kf6 36. Ke4 Bf4 1/2-1/2

[Event “nosom13”]
[Site “Tonopah, NV”]
[Date “2013.09.28”]
[Round “1”]
[White “Johnson , Rhomer”]
[Black “Pease, Andrew”]
[Result “1-0”]

{318MB, Fritz11.ctg, USER-BF45D6A2CE} 1. d4 d5 2. Nf3

Nf6 3. e3 Nc6 4. c4 e6 5.
c5 b6 6. Bb5 Bb7 7. Ne5 bxc5 8. Nxc6 Qd6 9. Ne5+ Ke7 10.

b3 c6 11. Ba4 Ke8 12.
Ba3 Qc7 13. O-O Bd6 14. Nf3 h5 15. Bxc5 Bxc5 16. dxc5

Rd8 17. Qd4 Ke7 18. Qe5
Qd7 19. Qd6+ Ke8 20. Qxd7+ Rxd7 21. Ne5 Rc7 22. Nc3 Ke7

23. b4 Rd8 24. b5 cxb5
25. Nxb5 Rxc5 26. Rac1 Rxc1 27. Rxc1 Kf8 28. Rc7 Ba8 29.

Rxf7+ Kg8 30. Rxa7 Rb8
31. g3 Ne4 32. Nc7 Bb7 33. Nd7 Bc8 34. Nxb8 1-0

Round 2

[Event “nosom 13”]
[Site “LV, NV”]
[Date “2013.09.28”]
[Round “2”]
[White “Reyes, Virgil”]
[Black “Alsasua, Eluterio”]
[Result “1/2-1/2”]
[ECO “B70”]

{318MB, Fritz11.ctg, USER-BF45D6A2CE} 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6

3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6
5. Nc3 g6 6. f3 a6 7. Be3 b5 8. Qd2 Bb7 9. Be2 Nbd7 10.

O-O Bg7 11. Rad1 O-O
12. Bh6 Qb6 13. Kh1 Rac8 14. Bxg7 Kxg7 15. a3 h6 16. Nb3

Ne5 17. Qd4 Qxd4 18.
Rxd4 Rc7 19. Na5 Ba8 20. Rfd1 1/2-1/2

[Event “nosom13”]
[Site “Tonopah, NV”]
[Date “2013.09.28”]
[Round “2”]
[White “Casten, Fred”]
[Black “Patterson, Cameron”]
[Result “0-1”]
[ECO “D02”]

{318MB, Fritz11.ctg, USER-BF45D6A2CE} 1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3

d5 3. Bf4 c6 4. Nbd2 e6
5. e3 Bd6 6. Ne5 Qc7 7. Bg3 Nbd7 8. f4 c5 9. c3 c4 10.

Bh4 b5 11. Bxf6 gxf6 12.
Nef3 Bb7 13. g3 f5 14. Nh4 Nf6 15. Be2 Rg8 16. Ndf3 Ne4

17. Ne5 Bxe5 18. fxe5
a5 19. a3 Qe7 20. Ng2 Kd7 21. Bf3 b4 22. Bxe4 dxe4 23.

Nf4 Qg5 24. Qe2 Qg4 25.
Qxg4 fxg4 26. Nh5 bxc3 27. bxc3 Rgb8 28. Nf6+ Ke7 29.

Kd2 Bc6 30. Rhb1 Rb3 31.
Rxb3 cxb3 32. c4 h5 33. Kc3 a4 34. d5 exd5 35. cxd5 Bb5

36. Rc1 h4 37. Kd4 b2
38. Rb1 Rc8 39. Kxe4 Rc2 40. d6+ Ke6 41. d7 Rc4+ 42. Kd3

Rc1+ 43. Kd2 Rxb1 44.
d8=Q Rd1+ 45. Kxd1 b1=Q+ 46. Kd2 Qb2+ 47. Kd1 Qb1+ 48.

Kd2 Qb2+ 49. Kd1 Qe2+
50. Kc1 Qxe3+ 51. Qd2 Qxa3+ 52. Qb2 Qc5+ 53. Qc2 Qxe5

54. Ne4 Qa1+ 55. Kd2 Qd4+
56. Kc1 hxg3 57. hxg3 Ke5 58. Nc3 Bd3 59. Qb2 Qe3+ 60.

Qd2 Qxg3 61. Qg5+ Kd4
62. Nxa4 Qe3+ 63. Qxe3+ Kxe3 64. Nc3 g3 65. Nd1+ Kf3 66.

Kd2 g2 0-1

[Event “nosom13”]
[Site “Tonopah, NV”]
[Date “2013.09.28”]
[Round “2”]
[White “Dease, Dan”]
[Black “Fischer, George”]
[Result “1-0”]
[ECO “B07”]

{318MB, Fritz11.ctg, USER-BF45D6A2CE} 1. e4 d6 2. d4 Nf6

3. Nc3 g6 4. Be3 Bg7
5. Qd2 b6 6. O-O-O Bb7 7. f3 Nbd7 8. g4 c6 9. h4 h5 10.

g5 Nh7 11. f4 Qc7 12.
Bd3 b5 13. Nf3 b4 14. Na4 Qa5 15. b3 Nb6 16. Nxb6 axb6

17. Qe2 Qxa2 18. Kd2 O-O
19. e5 c5 20. Rhf1 Qb2 21. Ke1 Bxf3 22. Rxf3 Ra1 23.

Rxa1 Qxa1+ 24. Qd1 Qc3+
25. Qd2 cxd4 26. Qxc3 dxc3 27. exd6 exd6 28. Bxb6 Re8+

29. Re3 Rxe3+ 30. Bxe3
d5 31. f5 gxf5 32. Bxf5 Bf8 33. Ke2 Bd6 34. Kf3 Nf8 35.

Bf2 Ng6 36. Bc8 Kg7 37.
Bb7 Ne7 38. Bd4+ Kg6 39. Ba6 Kf5 40. Bd3+ Ke6 41. Bf1

Kf5 42. Bf6 Ng8 43. Bh8
Ne7 44. Bg2 Be5 45. Bh3+ 1-0

[Event “nosom13”]
[Site “Tonopah, NV”]
[Date “2013.09.28”]
[Round “2”]
[White “Peterson, David”]
[Black “Zavala, Jonathan”]
[Result “0-1”]
[ECO “A11”]

{318MB, Fritz11.ctg, USER-BF45D6A2CE} 1. Nf3 Nf6 2. c4

g6 3. g3 c6 4. b3 d5 5.
Bb2 Bg7 6. Bg2 O-O 7. O-O Nbd7 8. e3 e6 9. Qe2 Qc7 10.

cxd5 exd5 11. Nc3 Re8
12. d3 Nf8 13. Rac1 Qe7 14. Qd2 Bg4 15. h3 Bxf3 16. Bxf3

Ne6 17. Bg2 h5 18. Ne2
g5 19. Rce1 h4 20. g4 Qc7 21. Rc1 Rad8 22. Kh1 Qd6 23.

Nd4 Nxd4 24. Bxd4 b6 25.
b4 Re6 26. Qb2 Bf8 27. f4 Nh7 28. f5 Ree8 29. f6 Rc8 30.

Qf2 Qxb4 31. Qf5 Qd6
32. e4 Bh6 33. e5 Qe6 34. Qxe6 Rxe6 35. Bxd5 Nf8 36. Be4

Rd8 37. Bb2 c5 38.
Rfd1 Nd7 39. d4 Nxf6 40. Bf5 Ne8 41. d5 Re7 42. d6 Rb7

43. Be4 Rbb8 44. Bd5 Bg7
45. Rf1 Nxd6 46. Rc2 Ne8 47. Bxf7+ Kh8 48. Bc4 b5 49.

Be6 c4 50. Rf7 Rb6 51.
Bf5 a6 52. Kg2 Kg8 53. e6 Bxb2 54. e7 Rd2+ 55. Rxd2 Kxf7

56. Rd7 Ba3 0-1

[Event “nosom13”]
[Site “Tonopah, NV”]
[Date “2013.09.28”]
[Round “2”]
[White “Leung, Eric”]
[Black “Herald, Matthew”]
[Result “1-0”]
[ECO “B50”]

{318MB, Fritz11.ctg, USER-BF45D6A2CE} 1. e4 e6 2. b3 d6

3. Nf3 c5 4. d4 cxd4 5.
Qxd4 Nc6 6. Bb5 e5 7. Bxc6+ bxc6 8. Qe3 Nf6 9. Bb2 Qb6

10. Qe2 Be7 11. Nbd2 O-O
12. h3 Re8 13. O-O Bf8 14. Rfe1 a5 15. Nc4 Qc7 16. Qe3

Rb8 17. Bc3 Ra8 18. Qd2
a4 19. Rad1 axb3 20. axb3 Rd8 21. Bxe5 Be6 22. Bxf6 gxf6

23. Ne3 Ra2 24. Qc3
Bg7 25. Nd4 c5 26. Ndf5 Bf8 27. Qxf6 Qb8 28. Nd5 Bxf5

29. exf5 Rxc2 30. Rd3 Re8
31. Rg3+ 1-0

[Event “nosom13”]
[Site “Tonopah, NV”]
[Date “2013.09.28”]
[Round “2”]
[White “Chinicci, Tony”]
[Black “Galima, Tim”]
[Result “1-0”]
[ECO “A15”]

{318MB, Fritz11.ctg, USER-BF45D6A2CE} 1. Nf3 Nf6 2. g3

c6 3. c4 e6 4. Bg2 d6 5.
d4 Be7 6. O-O O-O 7. Nc3 d5 8. b3 Nbd7 9. Bb2 dxc4 10.

bxc4 Nb6 11. Qb3 Nfd7
12. e4 Rb8 13. a4 a5 14. e5 Na8 15. Qc2 b6 16. d5 cxd5

17. cxd5 Nc5 18. d6 Bg5
19. Nxg5 Qxg5 20. f4 Qd8 21. Rac1 Ba6 22. Rfd1 Rc8 23.

Nb5 Qd7 24. Bxa8 Rxa8
25. Nc7 Rac8 1-0

[Event “nosom13”]
[Site “Tonopah, NV”]
[Date “2013.09.28”]
[Round “2”]
[White “Turner, Rob”]
[Black “Arteaga, Rick”]
[Result “1-0”]
[ECO “C42”]

{318MB, Fritz11.ctg, USER-BF45D6A2CE} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 d6

3. Nc3 Nf6 4. Bc4 Be7
5. O-O O-O 6. d3 Nbd7 7. Ng5 Nb6 8. Bb3 Bd7 9. f4 Ng4

10. f5 Bxg5 11. Qxg4 Bxc1
12. Raxc1 Qf6 13. Ne2 g6 14. Rf3 Qg7 15. Rg3 c6 16. Rf1

d5 17. Qh4 h6 18. f6
Qh7 19. exd5 cxd5 20. Qb4 Bc6 21. Qd2 g5 22. c4 Rad8 23.

cxd5 Nxd5 24. Bc2 Nf4
25. Nxf4 exf4 26. Rxf4 Bd7 27. Rf2 Bf5 28. Qa5 Qg6 29.

Rxf5 1-0

[Event “nosom13”]
[Site “Tonopah, NV”]
[Date “2013.09.28”]
[Round “2”]
[White “Chung, Kevin”]
[Black “Moskow, Elliot”]
[Result “1-0”]
[ECO “C10”]

{318MB, Fritz11.ctg, USER-BF45D6A2CE} 1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5

3. Nc3 dxe4 4. Nxe4 Nd7
5. Bc4 Ngf6 6. Ng5 Be7 7. Qe2 c5 8. Nxf7 Qa5+ 9. Bd2 Qb6

10. Nxh8 Qxb2 11. Rd1
Nf8 12. Nf3 cxd4 13. O-O Bd7 14. Ne5 b5 15. Bb3 Bd6 16.

Nxd7 Kxd7 17. Qxb5+ Kc8
18. Bxe6+ 1-0

[Event “nosom13”]
[Site “Tonopah, NV”]
[Date “2013.09.28”]
[Round “2”]
[White “Johnson, Marc”]
[Black “Olson, Jeff”]
[Result “1-0”]
[ECO “A47”]

{318MB, Fritz11.ctg, USER-BF45D6A2CE} 1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3

e6 3. e3 Be7 4. Bd3 O-O
5. O-O b6 6. Nbd2 Bb7 7. b3 Nc6 8. Bb2 Re8 9. a3 h6 10.

Qe2 Nh7 11. Rac1 a5 12.
c4 d6 13. e4 Bf6 14. e5 dxe5 15. dxe5 Be7 16. Rfd1 Qc8

17. Ne4 Nf8 18. Ng3 Nd7
19. Ne4 f5 20. exf6 gxf6 21. Qe3 Kg7 22. Nh4 Nce5 23.

Qg3+ Kf8 24. Ng6+ Nxg6
25. Qxg6 Ne5 26. Qxh6+ Kf7 27. Ng5+ fxg5 28. Bxe5 Rg8

29. Qh7+ Kf8 30. Qh6+ Kf7
31. Bh7 a4 32. Bxg8+ Qxg8 33. Rd7 axb3 34. Qf6+ 1-0

[Event “nosom13”]
[Site “Tonopah, NV”]
[Date “2013.09.28”]
[Round “2”]
[White “Pease, Andrew”]
[Black “Johnson, Rhomer”]
[Result “1-0”]
[ECO “B32”]

{318MB, Fritz11.ctg, USER-BF45D6A2CE} 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3

Nc6 3. d4 d5 4. exd5 Qxd5
5. Nc3 Qe6+ 6. Be2 cxd4 7. Nxd4 Nxd4 8. Qxd4 Nf6 9. Bf4

a6 10. O-O-O g6 11.
Qd8# 1-0

Nevada State Championship 2013

David Lucky and Jerry Weikel, who commented that he was playing some of his best chess ever squared off for the 2 game match in Tonopah Nevada at the Station House on September 28, 2013. In the first game, Jerry was slowly outplayed in a double rook ending, and he put up a tenacious defense in a long game. The second game was a quick affair when David easily refuted an early knight sacrifice to win 2-0.

[Event “NVStCh13”]
[Site “Tonopah, NV”]
[Date “2013.09.28”]
[Round “1”]
[White “Lucky, David”]
[Black “Weikel, Jerry”]
[Result “1-0”]
[ECO “B10”]

{318MB, Fritz11.ctg, USER-BF45D6A2CE} 1. e4 c6 2. c4 d5 3. exd5 cxd5 4. cxd5
Nf6 5. Nc3 Nxd5 6. Nf3 Nxc3 7. bxc3 Qc7 8. d4 e6 9. Bd2 Nd7 10. Bd3 g6 11. c4
a5 12. h4 h5 13. Ng5 Nf6 14. Qf3 Bg7 15. Bf4 Qc6 16. d5 exd5 17. Qe2+ Ne4 18.
Rc1 O-O 19. Nxe4 dxe4 20. Bxe4 Qf6 21. Bg5 Qe5 22. Bd5 Qxe2+ 23. Kxe2 Be6 24.
Bxe6 Rfe8 25. Rhd1 Rxe6+ 26. Kf1 Bf6 27. Rd7 Bxg5 28. hxg5 b6 29. Rcd1 Kf8 30.
Rb7 Rae8 31. g3 f6 32. gxf6 Rxf6 33. Rdd7 Kg8 34. Rdc7 Kf8 35. Ra7 Kg8 36. a4
Kf8 37. c5 bxc5 38. Rxc5 Re7 39. Rcxa5 Rd6 40. Rxe7 Kxe7 41. Ke2 Kf6 42. Rb5
Rd4 43. a5 h4 44. Rb6+ Kf5 45. Rb5+ Kf6 46. Ke3 Ra4 47. gxh4 Rxh4 48. Rb6+ Kf5
49. Rb8 Ra4 50. Ra8 g5 51. a6 Kf6 52. Kd3 Kg7 53. Kc3 Kf6 54. Kb3 Ra1 55. Kb4
Rb1+ 56. Kc5 Rc1+ 57. Kb6 Kf5 58. Rf8+ Ke6 59. a7 Rb1+ 60. Kc5 1-0

[Event “NVStCh13”]
[Site “Tonopah, NV”]
[Date “2013.09.28”]
[Round “2”]
[White “Weikel, Jerry”]
[Black “Lucky, David”]
[Result “0-1”]
[ECO “C10”]

{318MB, Fritz11.ctg, USER-BF45D6A2CE} 1. e4 {0} e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nd2 dxe4 4. Nxe4
Bd7 5. Bd3 Bc6 6. Nf3 Nd7 7. Neg5 h6 8. Nxe6 Qe7 9. O-O fxe6 10. Bg6+ Kd8 11.
Re1 Qf6 12. Ne5 Kc8 13. Qd3 Nxe5 14. Rxe5 Ne7 15. Bh5 Nf5 16. c4 Bd6 17. g4
Nxd4 0-1

Nevada North-South Match 2013

The two teams met in conjunction with the state championship for the annual match to see who takes that big trophy back home. This writer knew that if the south was to win, we would have to take the match, and most of the north players sported higher ratings.
The south team lead 6-4 after the first round and with two very(!) quick victories in round two, they were even. The rest of the games were all tough games,with the balance shifting back and forth, and the match hung in the balance for a long time. A couple of south players converted lost or equal positions to win their games. Cameron Patterson’s brilliant endgame combination with Fred Casten’s sealed the match that ended 6.5-3.5 in the second round. Score South 12.5 North 7.5

nvstch-nvnosom13 — nvstch-nvnosom13 Wall Chart, Page 1

Name/ID Rate Rnd 1 Rnd 2
————————————————————–
1. Lucky, David |2359 | W 5 | B 5 |
10462967 | | 1.0 | 2.0 |
————————————————————–
2. Alsasua, Eleuterio A. |2174 | W 4 | B 4 |
10492211 | | 0.5 | 1.0 |
————————————————————–
3. Casten, Frederick |2098 | B 7 | W 7 |
10102570 | | 0.0 | 0.0 |
————————————————————–
4. Reyes, Virgilio T |2024 | B 2 | W 2 |
12455050 | | 0.5 | 1.0 |
————————————————————–
5. Weikel, Jerome V |2007 | B 1 | W 1 |
10429170 | | 0.0 | 0.0 |
————————————————————–
6. Fischer, George E. |1950 | B 8 | B 8 |
12516864 | | 0.5 | 0.5 |
————————————————————–
7. Patterson, Cameron |1895 | W 3 | B 3 |
14400926 | | 1.0 | 2.0 |
————————————————————–
8. Dease, Daniel |1820 | W 6 | W 6 |
12745558 | | 0.5 | 1.5 |
————————————————————–
9. Peterson, David Norman |1815 | B 10 | W 10 |
12442267 | | 1.0 | 1.0 |
————————————————————–
10. Zavala, Jonathan |1800 | W 9 | B 9 |
13836980 | | 0.0 | 1.0 |
————————————————————–
11. Herald, Matthew Bruce |1787 | W 14 | B 14 |
13200825 | | 0.0 | 0.0 |
————————————————————–
12. Chinnici, Charles |1779 | B 13 | W 13 |
12662705 | | 0.5 | 1.5 |
————————————————————–
13. Galima, Tim |1772 | W 12 | B 12 |
12706608 | | 0.5 | 0.5 |
————————————————————–
14. Leung, Eric |1755 | B 11 | W 11 |
12475574 | | 1.0 | 2.0 |
————————————————————–
15. Turner, Robert L |1540 | B 18 | W 18 |
12698895 | | 1.0 | 2.0 |
————————————————————–
16. Moskow, Elliot |1482 | W 17 | B 17 |
12954778 | | 0.0 | 0.0 |
————————————————————–
17. Chung, Kevin |1471 | B 16 | W 16 |
14677331 | | 1.0 | 2.0 |
————————————————————–
18. Arteaga, Ricardo |1435 | W 15 | B 15 |
12582988 | | 0.0 | 0.0 |
————————————————————–
19. Olson, Jeff |1395 | W 21 | B 21 |
12575990 | | 0.5 | 0.5 |
————————————————————–
20. Pease, Andrew |1320 | B 22 | W 22 |
14991370 | | 0.0 | 1.0 |
————————————————————–
21. Johnson, Marc D |1305 | B 19 | W 19 |
13038428 | | 0.5 | 1.5 |
————————————————————–
22. Johnson, Rhomer |1211 | W 20 | B 20 |
12511853 | | 1.0 | 1.0 |
——————————————————–

On Friday, December 6th, 2013 not just one, but two grandmasters came to visit the Las Vegas Chess Center at the corner of Fremont Street and 8th Street in downtown Las Vegas. GM Timur Gareev is number 3 on the most recent list of top USA players with a USCF rating of 2769 and 102 in the world with a current FIDE rating of 2650. GM Jaan Ehlvest is number 16 on the most recent list of USA players with a USCF rating of 2627 and 297 in the world with a current FIDE rating of 2577. And both of these players demonstrated their abilities at the Las Vegas Chess Center on Friday night.
The evening began with a presentation by Timur on how to play the white pieces against the dragon variation of the Sicilian defense. Then the two grandmasters teamed up against 20 club members in a tandem simultaneous chess exhibition. Many chess aficionados have seen a simultaneous chess exhibition, in which a strong player plays against many opponents simultaneously. But a tandem simultaneous exhibition is even more impressive. The two grandmasters moved from board to board, taking turns making moves without ever speaking to each other. This is much more difficult than a normal simultaneous exhibition, because the two grandmasters had to manage to play a coherent game of chess on every board without ever communicating with each other in any way (other than making the best moves they could on the chess boards). The grandmasters’ task was made even more difficult by the strength of the field, which included three masters. So it was hardly a surprise that one of the masters managed to achieve a victory.
J. Ehlvest/T. Gareev – FM Brownscombe,Tom (2226) [B82]
tandem simul, 06.12.2013
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 d6 6.f4 Nc6 7.Be3 Be7 8.Bd3 0–0 9.0–0 a6 [Active play with 9…Nxd4 10.Bxd4 e5 is the right way.] 10.Kh1 Qc7 11.Qf3 Nxd4 12.Bxd4 e5 13.fxe5 dxe5 14.Be3 [White misses an opportunity to gain an advantage with 14.Qg3 Bd6 15.Be3±] 14…Be6= 15.Nd5 Bxd5 16.exd5 Rad8 17.Rad1 [17.c4 e4 18.Bxe4 Qxc4=] 17…Rxd5 18.Bxh7+ Kxh7 19.Rxd5 Nxd5 20.Qxd5 Qxc2 21.Qxb7 Qe2 22.Qe4+ [My engine says that 22.Rg1 is the move that holds this position together, but it is not easy to find such a counterintuitive move when playing a simul.] 22…Kg8 23.Qf3 Qxb2 24.Qg3 f5 25.Bc1 Qb5 26.Rd1 Rd8 27.Rxd8+ Bxd8 28.Qb3+ Qxb3 29.axb3 Kf7 30.Kg1 Bb6+ 31.Kf1 Ke6 32.Ke2 Bd4 33.h3 f4 34.Ba3 e4 35.Bf8 Kf5 36.Bd6 g5 37.Bb4 g4 38.hxg4+ Kxg4 39.Bd6 f3+ 40.Kf1? [40.gxf3+ is the only way to keep fighting.] 40…e3 41.gxf3+ Kxf3 0–1

The big surprise of the night occurred in Rhomer Johnson’s game. Rhomer holds a current USCF rating of just 1113. He has not even played against a master level opponent in USCF rated tournament competition in over 20 years. And in the opening and early middlegame, he appeared to be completely outclassed by his grandmaster opponents. Rhomer traded off his good bishop. Then he lost a center pawn. Then his opponents gained space and generated play on the queenside and in the center. But Rhomer didn’t give up. Despite having an objectively lost position, he kept on fighting. Rhomer played for a kingside attack and generated threats against black’s castled king. And those threats led to a blunder by one of the grandmasters, followed by resignation.
Johnson,Rhomer (1113) – J. Ehlvest/T. Gareev [A46]
tandem simul, 06.12.2013
1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 e6 3.e3 c5 4.c3 d5 5.Bb5+ Bd7 6.Qa4 Nc6 7.Ne5 Nxe5 8.dxe5 a6 9.Bxd7+ Nxd7 10.0–0 b5 11.Qc2 [11. Qf4 Qc7 does not hold the e-pawn] 11…Nxe5 12.b3 Bd6 13.Nd2 0–0 14.Qd1 c4 15.Bb2 Nd3 16.Qc2 f5 17.f4? The weak pawn on e3 will quickly become a serious problem. 17…Rc8 18.b4 Qb6 19.Rf3 Bxb4 [19…Bxf4 would be crushing.] 20.cxb4 Nxb2 21.Qc3 [21.Qxb2 c3 is objectively better, but black is still winning.] 21…Na4 22.Qe5 Rfe8 23.Rg3 Rc7 24.Nf3 Rd7 25.Nd4 [Black has an easy win with 25…Qc7, but…] 25…Qd6?? 26.Rxg7+ Now black must choose between losing the queen with 26…Rxg7 27.Qxd6, losing a rook to 26…Kh8 27.Rxd7+, getting mated after 26…Kf8 27.Qf6+, or resigning. 1–0

Congratulations Rhomer Johnson, bane of the grandmasters.

Thirty-eight chess players came to the Venetian®|The Palazzo® Congress Center on Saturday, December 7th and Sunday, December 8th to compete in the Second Las Vegas Mind Sports Open Chess Tournament. This tournament was part of the second Las Vegas Mind Sports Festival. The Festival included competitions in chess, scrabble, go, the trading card game Magic the Gathering, and other strategy games. Grandmasters Timur Gareev and Jaan Ehlvest were the pre-tournament favorites in the open section of the chess tournament, and they demonstrated their skills by drawing against each other and defeating all others to tie for first place in the open section with 4.5 out of a possible 5 points. Timur won the first place medal on tie-breaks, but the two grandmasters shared the first and second place prize money equally. FM Nachum Salman, NM Ronald Gross, Glenn Bidari, Virgilio Reyes, Juan Jauregui, Daniel Dease, William Wijaya, and Jonathan Zavala all tied for third through tenth place in the open section with 3 points each. They split the remaining prize money equally. But young Jonathan Zavala earned the third place medal due to his excellent tie-break score, even though he was the lowest rated player in this massive tie. Here are two of the key games, with notes by GM Gareev:

GM Gareev, Timur (2739)- GM Ehlvest, Jaan (2624) [D61]
MSI 2013, 07.12.2013
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 d5 4.Nc3 Be7 5.Bg5 0–0 6.e3 Nbd7 7.Qc2 h6 8.Bh4 c5 9.Rd1 Qa5 [9…cxd4 10.Rxd4] 10.Nd2 [10.cxd5 Nxd5 11.Bxe7 Nxe7 12.Be2 cxd4 13.Rxd4 Nc6 14.Rd1 Nf6 15.0–0 Bd7 16.Rd6 Rfd8 17.Rfd1 Be8] 10…cxd4 11.Nb3 Qc7 [11…Qb6 12.Rxd4] 12.Rxd4 a6 13.Bg3 Qc6 14.cxd5 Nxd5 15.Rc4 Qb6 16.Be2 Nxc3 17.Qxc3 Nf6 18.0–0 [18.Qd4 Qxd4 19.Nxd4 Bd7 20.Rc7] 18…Bd7 19.Qd4 Qxd4 20.Nxd4 Rac8 21.Rfc1 Rxc4 22.Rxc4 Rc8 23.Rxc8+ Bxc8 24.Bf3 Nd5 25.Bxd5 exd5 26.Be5 Bd7 27.Ne2 f6 28.Bc3 Bd6 29.f3 h5 30.h4 ½–½

Zavala, Jonathan (1830)– GM Gareev, Timur (2739) [C63]
MSI 2013, 08.12.2013
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 f5 4.d3 fxe4 5.dxe4 Nf6 6.Bxc6 bxc6 7.0–0 d6 8.Nc3 [8.Qe2! a5 9.Rd1 Ba6 10.c4 Qc8 11.Nc3 Be7 12.Nh4 Qg4] 8…Be7 9.h3 a5 10.Be3 0–0 11.Re1 Qe8 12.Nd2 Qg6 13.Kh1 d5 [13…Be6!] 14.exd5 [14.Nf3 Qh5 (14…Bd6 15.exd5 cxd5 16.Nxd5 Bb7 17.Nxf6+ Rxf6 18.Nh4 Qf7 19.Qg4 Rf8) 15.exd5 Bg4 16.Kg1 Bxf3 17.Qxf3 Qxf3 18.gxf3 Nxd5³] 14…cxd5 15.Bf4 Bb7 [15…d4 16.Nb5 Nh5 17.Bxe5 Rxf2; 15…Ng4 16.hxg4 Bxg4 17.Nf3 d4 18.Nd5 Qh5+ 19.Bh2 Bd6] 16.Rxe5 d4 17.Rg5 Qf7 [17…Qh6 18.Ne2 Bd6] 18.Ne2 Nd5 19.Re5 Nxf4 20.Nxf4 Qxf4 21.Rxe7 Qg5 [21…Qh4] 0–1

Daniel Quinones won the under 1800 section with 4.5 points, and Michelangelo Barozzi took clear second place with 4 points. Jason Cruz and Eric Leung tied for third place in the under 1800 section with 3 points each, with Jason Cruz winning the third place medal on tie-break points. Matthew Kursar won the under 1400 section with 4.5 points, and David Sletten, Jr. took clear second place with 4 points. Kevin Yarwood and Richard Zhou tied for third place in the under 1800 section with 2.5 points each, with Richard Zhou winning the third place medal on tie-break points.

The next Las Vegas Mind Sports Festival will be held on the University of Nevada Las Vegas campus on the weekend of January 25th and 26th. The chess tournament was organized and directed by Juan Jauregui and Tom Brownscombe on behalf of the Las Vegas Chess Center in cooperation with Mind Sports International. To see the full tournament results, please visit http://www.uschess.org/msa/XtblMain.php?201312088982.0. For more information about the Las Vegas Chess Center, please visit http://www.vegaschessclub.com. For more information about Mind Sports International, please visit http://www.mindsportsacademy.com.

There will be a meeting of the Nevada Chess Board of Directors on Sunday, December 8th in the Galileo Ballroom, located on the 2nd Level of The Venetian®| The Palazzo® Congress Center, immediately after the conclusion of the Mind Sports International Chess Tournament (approximately 6PM). This will be an open meeting. Anybody who wishes to express their opinion(s) about Nevada chess is welcome to attend. The main item on the agenda will be planning for the 2014 Nevada Scholastic Chess Championship.

Have you ever tried to play an entire game of chess blindfolded? Have you ever tried to remember an entire chess game move by move just from the notation, without ever looking at a chess board? With some practice, most experienced tournament players can manage this. What about two games? With practice, most strong tournament players can manage to keep track of two blindfold games without looking at a chess board. But what about 14 games? Keeping track of 14 different games of chess simultaneously while blindfolded is an amazing feat that most ordinary players can only dream of. But for GM Timur Gareev, it’s just another practice session.

On Sunday, September 29, GM Timur Gareev visited the Las Vegas Chess Center and gave a 14 board blindfold simultaneous chess exhibition. A comfortable seat was created in the middle of the room using bean bag chairs, and tables were put in a circle around that seat. After a brief introduction and explanation of the rules, Timur literally put on a blindfold and started to play 14 games simultaneously. The club members announced their moves verbally and made the moves on the chess boards that were in front of them. But Timur could not see any of those chess boards. He had to keep track of all 14 of the positions in his head. When Timur was ready to make his move he announced it verbally, and his assistant made the move on a physical chess board. Timur played like this for more than seven hours without ever looking at a chess board. Timur won ten games, drew two, and lost two.

John Trivett and Jonathan Mikolic achieved draws against the grandmaster. With an over the board rating of just 1591, Jonathan Mikolic was one of the lowest rated players participating in the exhibition. But he played very solid chess. Timur probed Jonathan’s position, but Mikolic gave no ground. Eventually Mikolic forced a queen trade, and a few moves later Timur offered a draw in a completely equal minor piece ending.

Trivett appeared to be gaining an advantage in his game. But Timur sacrificed a rook for a knight, a pawn, and active play. Timur was able to use his well placed king and knight to force trades that lead to an equal endgame. In a dead drawn position, Timur offered a draw and Trivett accepted.

Daniel Dease and FM Tom Brownscombe managed to defeat the grandmaster. Here are their games:

Dease,Daniel (1791) – GM Gareev,Timur (2769) [B57]
blindfold simul, 29.09.2013

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 d6 6.Bc4 Qb6 7.Nb3 g6 8.0–0 Bg7 9.Be3 Qc7 10.Qd2 0–0 11.Be2 Ne5 12.Bh6 Nc4 13.Bxc4 Qxc4 14.Bxg7 Kxg7 15.Rfe1 b6 16.Rad1 Bb7 17.Qd4 Rac8 18.e5 Qxd4 19.Rxd4 dxe5 20.Rxe5 e6 21.f3 Rc7 22.Re2 Rfc8 23.Rdd2 a6 24.Nd1 a5 25.c3 Ba6 26.Re1 Nd5 27.Ne3 Nf4 28.Nc1 Bb7 29.c4 b5 30.c5 Rxc5 31.Nb3 Rh5 32.Nxa5 Bd5 33.Rd4 g5 34.a3 Rh4 35.Rd2 Rh5 36.Nf1 Rh6 37.g3? Nh3+ 38.Kg2 g4 39.Rxd5 exd5 40.Ne3 gxf3+ 41.Kxf3 Re6 42.Rd1 Ng5+ 43.Kf2 Rf6+ 44.Ke2 Rh6? After more than six hours of blindfold play, Timur overlooks a knight fork. 45.Nf5+ Kg6 46.Nxh6 [46.Ne7+ Kf6 47.Nxc8 would win more material. But after 47…Rxh2+ Black would have more counter play.] 46…Kxh6 47.Rxd5 Rc2+ 48.Rd2 Rxd2+ 49.Kxd2 Nf3+ 50.Ke2 Nxh2 51.Nb7 Kg6 52.b4 Kf6 53.Nd6 Ke5 54.Nxb5 Kd5 55.Nc3+ Kc4 56.Nd1 Kb3 57.Ne3 Excellent technique by Dan! The black knight is trapped. 57.b5 Ng4 would be less clear. 1–0

FM Brownscombe,Tom (2226) – GM Gareev,Timur (2769) [E83]
blindfold simul, 29.09.2013

1.e4 g6 2.d4 Bg7 3.c4 d6 4.Nc3 Nc6 5.Be3 Nf6 6.f3 0–0 7.Qd2 a6 8.0–0–0 Rb8 9.g4 e5 10.Nge2 b5 11.d5 Na5 12.Ng3 Bd7 13.c5 b4 14.Nb1 [14.c6 or 14.g5 would be better.] 14…Ba4! I underestimated this move. 15.Bxa6 Bb3 16.Qd3 Bxa2 17.Nd2 Ra8 18.c6 Qb8 19.h4 Nxd5 This sacrifice is a good idea, but 19…Bxd5 20.exd5 Nxd5 would be more accurate. 20.exd5 Bxd5 21.h5 Bxf3? This is the losing move. Timur gets a lot of pawns and some strong play for his sacrificed pieces, but it isn’t enough. In a normal tournament game, Timur would probably have found a better move. But when playing 14 games simultaneously against a field of opponents that includes master and expert level players, even a strong grandmaster sometimes has trouble keeping track of all of the tactics. 22.Nxf3 d5 23.Qb5 Qxb5 24.Bxb5 d4 25.Bg5 Rfb8 26.Bd3 Rb6 27.Kd2 Nb3+ 28.Kc2 Nc5 29.Ne4 Nxd3 30.Kxd3 Rxc6 Timur could try to regain some of his material with 30…f5, but after 31.gxf5 gxf5 32.Rhg1 White’s active pieces would create unbearable pressure against Black’s exposed king. 31.h6 1–0 White is driving back the few remaining black pieces and taking control of the game. Timur wisely resigns this hopeless game in order to focus his attention upon the other games still in progress.

Timur gave this exhibition as part of a series of blindfold exhibitions in various cities. George Koltanowski currently holds the record for playing the largest blindfold simultaneous chess exhibition, but Timur hopes to set a new world record before the end of this year.

I would like to thank PostNet for sponsoring this exhibition. Please show your appreciation of PostNet’s sponsorship by using them for all your printing needs. Juan Juaregui organized the exhibition, and Marck Cobb assisted GM Gareev by making most of his moves on the physical chess boards.

If Nevada was the world… then this qualifer comprised

6 world champions, current and past. That’s right, 6

state champions entered the lists, with 4 masters, 4

experts and 12 class players at the City of the World

Art Gallery Aug. 10-11, 2013. There was a California

player playing hors concours, Brian Allen at 2325,

coming back after a 25 year layoff. Tom Brombescombe(!)

was back for a shot 20 years after he won the title 2

times. Tim Galima shined with a 3.5/5 result. This was

a fighting tournament as the scores indicated. David

Lucky and Tom Brownescombe tied for first with 4.5/5

playing very powerful chess, in a league of their own

one point ahead of the field. Stan Vaughan 3.5/5 and

Ryan Phillips 3/5 won the expert prizes. Tim Galima

3.5, Dan Dease 2.5, and Scott Raymond 2.5 won the A/B

prizes. Robert Lucero 2.5, Elliot Winslow 2, and both

Paul and Pancritius Ventura 2 won the C/D…prizes.

David Lucky won the qualifer narrowly on tiebreak.This

writer directed the event. I would like to thank the

players, Juan and Sabrina Jauregui, City of the the

World Gallery, Vegas Chess Club, SNCC.

No. Name Rate Pts Rnd1 Rnd2 Rnd3 Rnd4 Rnd5
1 Lucky, David 2359 4.5 W9 W7 D2 W11 W5
2 Brownscombe, Tom 2200 4.5 W18 W5 D1 W12 W7
3 Vaughan, Stan 2160 3.5 W19 W8 W6 -H- -N-
4 Galima, Tim 1742 3.5 D11 W9 L5 W14 W12
5 Phillips, Ryan 2009 3.0 W10 L2 W4 W8 L1
6 Allen, Brian 2325 2.5 W13 W12 L3 -H- -N-
7 Bidari, Glenn 2149 2.5 W14 L1 D11 W17 L2
8 Raymond, Scott Gre 1826 2.5 W20 L3 W16 L5 D9
9 Dease, Daniel 1820 2.5 L1 L4 W20 W15 D8
10 Lucero,Robert 1390 2.5 L5 L18 D13 W16 W17
11 Salman, Nachum 2200 2.0 D4 W17 D7 L1 -N-
12 Reyes, Virgilio T 2024 2.0 W16 L6 W18 L2 L4
13 Currell, John 1800 2.0 L6 L16 D10 W20 D14
14 Moskow, Elliot 1482 2.0 L7 W15 D17 L4 D13
15 Ventura, Paul Guil 1424 2.0 L17 L14 W19 L9 W20
16 Ventura, Pancratiu 1194 2.0 L12 W13 L8 L10 -X-
17 Pereira, Royce Tre 1880 1.5 W15 L11 D14 L7 L10
18 Landsem, Lars 1770 1.5 L2 W10 L12 -H- -N-
19 Diaz, Nephtali T 1639 1.0 L3 L20 L15 -B- -F-
20 Sletten Jr, David 1172 1.0 L8 W19 L9 L13 L15