Sicilian Dragon at Chess.com

My post on the Sicilian Dragon has been viewed more than any other at Jim West Talks Chess.

Polgar CC Quads 12/30/2007

In the following game from today's game/30 quad at the Polgar Chess Center, where I had a score of 1-0-2, my opponent misplayed the black side of a Ruy Lopez.

Round Three: Ruy Lopez, Exchange Variation

Jim West (USCF 2200) - Edward La Marca (USCF 2010), Polgar Chess Center 12/30/2007

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Bxc6 dxc6 5.O-O Bd6

Bobby Fischer places a ? after Black's last move in My 60 Memorable Games.

6.d4 exd4 7.Qxd4 Bf8

Fischer gives 7...f6 8.Nbd2! Ne7 9.Nc4 as better for White.

8.Qxd8+ Kxd8 9.Rd1+ Ke8 10.Bf4 Nf6 11.Nc3 Bb4 12.Bxc7 Bg4 13.Be5 Bxc3 14.Bxc3 Nxe4 15.Re1 f5 16.Ng5 Kd7

Kingside castling is better.

17.Nxe4 fxe4 18.Rxe4 Bh5

White has won a pawn, with another one soon to follow.

19.Rae1 Rae8 20.Rxe8 Bxe8 21.Bxg7 Rg8 22.Bd4 Bf7 23.f3 Bd5 24.Kf2 c5 25.Bxc5 Rc8 26.b4 Bxa2 27.Re7+ Kc6 28.Rxh7 Bb1 29.Rh6+ Kd5 30.c3 Kc4 31.Bd4 Re8 32.Rb6 Re7 33.h4

Three pawns up, White has an easy win.

33...Bc2 34.h5 Bd1 35.h6 Rh7 36.Bg7 Ba4 37.Rxb7 Bb5 38.Rb6 Kd3 39.Rd6+ Kc4 40.g4 Kb3 41.g5 Bc4 42.g6 Rxg7 43.hxg7 Kxc3 44.Rc6, Black resigns.

Viking Quads 12/29/2007

The Viking Last Saturday Quads were held today at a new venue, the Ramada Somerset. Below is a nighttime view of the hotel.


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Next you can see the final round contests in quad two between Atlantic Chess News editor Steve Ferrero and Levy Rozman in the foreground, and between Alexander Katz and Arthur Shen in the background. Leaning against the wall is Boris Privman, against whom I drew my game in quad one.


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Fellow blogger Atomic Patzer, pictured below, also participated.


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I played in the top quad where I finished with a score of 1-1-1. In the third round, the Sokolsky Opening made a rare appearance.

Round Three: Sokolsky Opening

Sandi Hutama (USCF 2190) - Jim West (USCF 2200), Somerset NJ Quad 12/29/2007

1.b4 e6 2.b5 a6 3.e3 axb5 4.Bxb5 Qg5 5.Bf1 Nf6 6.Nf3 Qa5 7.Bb2 Be7 8.Be2 O-O 9.Nc3 d5 10.O-O c5 11.d3 Nc6 12.Nd2 Qc7 13.e4 Nd4 14.Nb3 Bd7

15.Nxd4 cxd4 16.Nb1 Qb6 17.Qc1 dxe4 18.dxe4 Nxe4 19.Bd3 Bc6 20.f3 Nc3 21.Nd2 Bb5 22.Bxb5 Qxb5 23.Bxc3 dxc3 24.Ne4 Ba3

25.Qe1 Bb2 26.Rd1 Rxa2 27.Kh1 Qf5 28.Qh4 h6 29.Rd7 Qb5 30.Rfd1?? Qxd7, White resigns.

Dean of Chess Academy

Tonight, and every Friday night, you can play USCF rated chess at the new Dean of Chess Academy in Branchburg. Here is editor Steve Ferrero's article on it from the latest issue of Atlantic Chess News.

Chess Center Opens in Branchburg, NJ !!

On November 10th, Dean Ippolito, LLC opened the doors to a new chess center located at 1161 US Highway 202 North, Branchburg, NJ 08876. The company headed by International Master and NJ Chess Teacher of the Year, Dean Ippolito, has taught in after-school programs throughout New Jersey and has decided to add a much needed central location. Dean of Chess Academy will offer many unique events along with traditional instruction and opportunities for the public to play.

Classes are offered throughout the week at a variety of times to accommodate schedules. All ability levels are represented in scholastic classes but adults, seniors and parent/tot classes are also forming.

In addition to classes, the center will host weekly league play. With a $25 annual membership, participants may play every Friday night in US Chess Federation rated games. The games are played at a time control of G/60 and begin at 7:30pm. Please arrive by 7pm to ensure that you will be paired to play. For those who are just looking for casual play, the center also offers open play which is free-of-charge.

Dean of Chess Academy will host tournaments and opportunities to learn from some of the nation’s top players including Grandmaster Gregory Kaidanov. Chess-themed birthday parties can also be booked for those looking for a unique experience.

Register for newsletter and e-mail update mailings by visiting www.deanofchess.com.

What some chess players have said so far about this new chess playing venue...

Kudos to Dean of Chess Academy

We were thrilled to attend the opening of the Dean of Chess Academy in Branchburg, New Jersey. Dean and Dawn provide an exciting, fun-filled, challenging environment for chess players AND chess-playing families — a far cry from the smoke-filled, filthy places that I used to attend with my son (although they were wonderful as well).

Dean’s quiet dignity and excellence with the game pervade the place and give it extraordinary karma. Charles had such a good time; I had to drag him out of there. Hopefully, this is just the beginning of many such oases in New Jersey.

Chessically yours,

Roz Katz and Charles Pole

Children's Chess in Northern NJ

Here is an article, on children's chess in northern New Jersey, that appeared earlier this year in The Record of Bergen County.

First Anniversary

Today marks the first anniversary of my Jim West On Chess blog.

In honor of the occasion, I have added some new features. These include photos and a link list.

Ehlvest is Marshall CC Champion

This year's Marshall Chess Club championship was won by grandmaster Jaan Ehlvest, the fourth time that he has won the event.

Wolfson - Liu

Here is the final round draw from the ICA Early Winter 2007 tournament that enabled Ziping Liu to tie for first place in section 4. Both sides made mistakes in this game.

Round Four: King's Indian Defense

Ben Wolfson (USCF 1456) – Ziping Liu (USCF 1362), Hackensack NJ 12/16/2007

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Bf4 Bg7 4.e3 d6 5.Nc3 O-O 6.Nf3 Bg4


A better move is 6...Nbd7.

7.Be2 Bxf3

Black should wait for White to spend a tempo with 8.h3 before making this exchange.

8.Bxf3 Nc6 9.O-O e5

Now 10.Bxc6 is worth considering.

10.dxe5 dxe5 11.Bg3 Re8 12.e4

Blocking in the bishop is a positional error.

12... Nd4 13.Qd3 Nxf3+ 14.Qxf3 Nh5

Black needed to played 14...c6.

15.Rfd1 Qg5

Now 15...Qe7 would allow 16.Nd5. The best that Black can do here is 15...Qc8.

16.Rd7 Re7

White can win a pawn by force after 17.h4 Qf6 18.Qxf6 Bxf6 19.Bxe5.

17.Rxe7 Qxe7 18.Nd5 Qc5 19.Rc1 Nxg3 20.Qxg3

Preferable is 20.hxg3.

20...c6 21.Nc3, draw.

No better is 21.Ne3 because, with White's queen on g3, 21...Qd4 snares a pawn. In the final position, Black still wins a pawn by 21...Qxc4. But he may have been worried about 22.Rd1.

Marshall Chess Club Swiss 12/23/2007

Usually I play the exchange variation against the Caro-Kann defense. But, in today's game/30 Swiss at the Marshall Chess Club, I tried a King's Indian Attack, barely managing to draw.

Round Four: Caro-Kann Defense

Jim West (USCF 2200) - Vladimir Polyakin (USCF 2115), Marshall Chess Club 12/23/2007

1.e4 c6 2.d3 d5 3.Nd2 e5 4.Ngf3 Bd6 5.g3 Nf6 6.Bg2 O-O 7.O-O Nbd7 8.Re1 Re8 9.Nf1 dxe4 10.dxe4 Nc5 11.Nh4 Qc7 12.Bg5 Be7

13.Nf5 Bxf5 14.exf5 Rad8 15.Qe2 h6 16.Bxf6 Bxf6 17.Ne3 e4 18.Rab1 a5 19.Ng4 Qe7 20.f3 exf3


21.Qxe7 f2+ 22.Nxf2 Rxe7 23.Rxe7 Bxe7 24.Rd1 Na4 25.Rxd8+ Bxd8 26.Nd3 Bf6 27.c3 Kf8 28.Bf3 Ke7 29.Bd1 Nb6 30.Nc5 Nc4


31.Nxb7 Nxb2 32.Bf3 Bxc3 33.Bxc6 Kf6 34.g4 Kg5 35.h3 h5 36.Bf3 Kf4 37.Kg2 Nd3 38.Be2 Nc1

39.Bc4 hxg4 40.hxg4 Kxg4 41.Bxf7 Kxf5 42.Nd6+ Kf4 43.Bc4 g5 44.Nb5 Bb2 45.a4 Ke3 46.Kg3 Nd3 47.Bxd3 Kxd3 48.Kg4 Bc1 49.Na7 Bd2 50.Nc6 Kc4 51.Nxa5+ Bxa5, draw.

Hamilton Quads 12/22/2007

At today's Hamilton quads, I finished with a score of 1-1-1.

In the final round, my opponent allowed a standard exchange sacrifice against the Sicilian Dragon that ended the game quickly.

Round Three: Sicilian Defense, Dragon Variation

Jim West (USCF 2200) - Gregory Nolan (USCF 2164), Hamilton NJ Quad 12/22/2007

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 g6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nc6 5.Nc3 Bg7 6.Be3 Nf6 7.Bc4 O-O 8.Bb3 a5 9.f3 d6 10.Qd2 Bd7 11.a3 Qb8 12.O-O-O Rc8


13.h4 Ne5 14.h5 b5 15.hxg6 hxg6 16.Bh6 Bh8 17.Bg5 Nc4?? 18.Rxh8+ Kg7 19.Bxf6+ Kxf6 20.Qf4+ Kg7 21.Rh7+, Black resigns.

Pictures from Book Signing

For those of us who were unable to attend Garry Kasparov's book signing on Tuesday, here is what we missed.

Ziping Ties for First

This past Sunday, at the ICA Early Winter 2007 tournament in Hackensack NJ, my student Ziping Liu had a performance rating of 1572. His score of 3-0-1 was good enough for a first place tie in section 4.

Preparing for USATE 2008

On Monday, I received this e-mail.

Hi, Jim:

Just a quick queston about the Amateur Team East held each February in New Jersey.

Can any group of chessplayers make up a chess team name with four members and an alternate, or does the chess team have to be made up of local chess club members, and what is the breakdown on the chess ratings of the chess team members, and finally how does each chess team advance in the Amateur Team East chess event?

Thank you in advance.

Diamondback

The short answers to your multi-leveled question are: yes, no, average of 2199 or below, and winning each match by at least 2.5-1.5.

Any group of four USCF rated players (plus one alternate, if you choose) whose combined ratings average out at less than 2200 can form a team. They do not have to be local chess club members, although quite often that is the case.

Your team advances by winning its matches. The margin of victory in each match determines tie-breaks at the end of the tournament. Naturally, sweeping a match 4-0 provides the best tie-break points; a narrow victory, the least. When my team won the USATE 1999, it happened on tie-breaks.

My advice to you when forming a team is to avoid the top-heavy approach of very highly rated players on the top boards and extremely weak players on the lower boards. Try for a more balanced mix. The most important player on your team could be your lowest rated one! In 1999, my board four scored 4-0-2. Basically, we started every match feeling that we were already ahead of our opponents!

Kasparov Book Signing

This morning, Garry Kasparov will be signing copies of his book How Life Imitates Chess at Borders Bookstore in New York City.

61*

Supposedly Bobby Fischer has written an improved book My 61 Memorable Games. Or is it just a hoax?

Stalemate

In the following game from today's International Chess Academy tournament in Hackensack NJ, my opponent found an ingenious way to draw what looked like a lost position. The time control was game/90. I could have won easily with 40...Qc2!.

Round Two: Philidor Counter Gambit

Solomon Lerner (USCF 1869) - Jim West (USCF 2200), ICA Winter 2007 Open 12/16/2007

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 d6 3.Bc4 f5 4.d3 c6 5.Nc3 Nf6 6.Ng5 d5 7.exd5 cxd5 8.Bb5+ Nc6 9.Qe2 Bd6 10.Nf3 O-O 11.Bd2 Nd4

12.Qd1 a6 13.Ba4 b5 14.Bb3 Nxb3 15.axb3 Bb7 16.d4 e4 17.Ng5 Qb6 18.Ne2 Rae8 19.O-O Ng4 20.Bf4 Bxf4 21.Nxf4 Qh6 22.Ngh3 e3 23.f3 Nf2 24.Qe2 g5 25.Nd3 Nxd3 26.cxd3 f4 27.Rac1 Rc8


28.Kh1 Qf6 29.Rc3 h6 30.Rfc1 Qxd4 31.Ng1 Rxc3 32.bxc3 Qb6 33.d4 Bc8 34.Qe1 Bf5 35.Ne2 Bd3 36.Qd1 Qg6 37.Ra1 Bxe2 38.Qxe2 Rc8 39.Rc1 Rxc3 40.Ra1 Rxb3?! 41.Qa2 Qd3 42.h3 h5 43.Kh2 g4 44.hxg4 hxg4

45.Qxa6 Qh7+ 46.Kg1 Rb1+ 47.Rxb1 Qxb1+ 48.Kh2 g3+ 49.Kh3 Qf5+ 50.Kh4 e2 51.Qa8+ Kg7 52.Qg8+! Kxg8, stalemate.

Wanted: Chess Instructor

FIDE master Jairo Moreira works in a couple of schools in the Princeton NJ area, including Princeton Day School. He is looking for a chess instructor to work for him, two days a week, in after-school programs near Princeton.

You can phone him at (718) 710-2717, or e-mail him at imjairo@gmail.com.

The Day Kasparov Quit

In America, we have a saying: "You can't fight city hall!"

On Wednesday, Garry Kasparov found out that it is even more difficult to fight the Kremlin when he was forced to give up his quest for the Russian presidency.

November Blog Trek

In his Blog Trekking, November 2007 post, Mark Weeks includes my review of King's Gambit in the books section.

December Chess Carnival

Everyone is a winner at this month's chess carnival!

E-mail from Paul Hoffman

Paul Hoffman, author of King's Gambit, sent me an e-mail yesterday in response to my review of his book. Here, in part, is what Hoffman wrote regarding my criticism that some of his anecdotes were inaccurate.

Before I wrote the footnote on Rossolimo's death, I researched it. I had remembered two conflicting stories from 1975. The one I ultimately reported, and the one that he was pushed. I tracked down people who knew him very well then, and they said there were no muggers or other people involved, so I went with that.

I am of course quite embarrassed by the Caro-Kann mistake, I've played the exchange Caro-Kann my entire chess life, so I have no idea why my neurons misfired and I wrote French Defense. Nor, obviously, did I catch it on subsequent readings. I'm not sure of the psychological phenomenon here, but I've noticed that sometimes when I make an obvious mistake, I keep on making it until someone else points it out. Which is why everyone needs a good editor. Some very strong chess players read the whole manuscript and caught much subtler stuff, but this too went by them. The good thing, though, is that when my book goes to paperback, I can fix errors like this. I've put a page on my Web site where I report corrections: http://paulhoffman.wordpress.com/kings-gambit-corrigenda. I think that you might find, if you wrote a book of 150,000 words, that some obvious-in-hindsight errors would slip in. I'm not proud of this, but it happens. Hey, I know very well what opening Noah played!

I can agree with Hoffman's statement about "obvious-in-hindsight errors" from my own experience with both books on the Philidor Counter Gambit. No matter how meticulously you proofread, you always miss something!

Polgar CC Quads 12/9/2007

Yesterday at the Polgar Chess Center, I played the following game in a game/30 quad, finishing with a score of 2-1-0.

Round Two: King's Indian Defense

Gabor Schnitzler (USCF 1830) - Jim West (USCF 2200), Polgar Chess Center 12/9/2007

1.Nf3 d6 2.d4 Nf6 3.e3 c5 4.c4 cxd4 5.exd4 g6 6.Nc3 Bg7 7.Be2 O-O 8.O-O a5 9.h3 Nc6 10.d5 Nb4 11.a3 Na6 12.Be3 Nd7

13.Bd4 Bxd4 14.Qxd4 Qb6 15.Qd2 Nac5 16.Rab1 a4 17.h4 Nf6 18.Nh2 Bf5 19.Rbd1 h5 20.Qc1 Kg7 21.Nb5 Rfc8 22.Qe3 Ncd7


23.Qg5 Ne5 24.Qf4 Nfg4 25.Qd4 Qxd4 26.Rxd4 Nxh2 27.Kxh2 Bc2 28.Rc1 Bb3 29.Rc3 Ra5 30.Rg3 Bxc4 31.Bxc4 Rxc4 32.Rxc4 Nxc4 33.Nc3 Nxb2


34.Re3 Kf8 35.Re4 Rc5 36.Nxa4 Nxa4 37.Rxa4 Rxd5 38.Rb4 b5 39.Kg3 Rd3+ 40.Kf4 Rxa3 41.Rxb5 Kg7 42.f3 Ra4+ 43.Ke3 Rxh4, White resigns.

Kasparov on "The Journal Editorial Report"

Last night at 11 o'clock, the Fox News Channel aired an interview of Garry Kasparov on The Journal Editorial Report.

You can view Kasparov's Next Move here, in the Past Shows area.

Cherry Hill Swiss 12/8/2007

Of the ten players who participated in today's game/30 Swiss at Cherry Hill, seven including myself were masters.

Here are my best games.

Round One: Center Counter Defense

Jim West (USCF 2200) - Zakhar Fayvinov (USCF 2200), Cherry Hill NJ 12/8/2007
1.e4 d5 2.exd5 Qxd5 3.Nc3 Qd6 4.d4 c6 5.Nf3 Nf6 6.Be2 Bg4 7.h3 Bxf3 8.Bxf3 e6 9.Be3 Be7 10.Qd2 Nbd7 11.O-O O-O 12.Rfe1 Qc7


13.Bf4 Bd6 14.Bxd6 Qxd6 15.Ne4 Nxe4 16.Bxe4 Nf6 17.c3 Rfd8 18.Rad1 Nxe4 19.Rxe4 Qd5 20.Rg4 f5 21.Rg3 Qxa2 22.Re1 Rd7 23.h4 Qd5 24.Qf4 Rf8 25.h5 Qd6 26.Re5 Rf6


27.h6 Rg6 28.Rxg6 hxg6 29.Qg5 Kh7 30.hxg7 Kxg7 31.Re3 Qe7 32.Qf4 Qd6 33.Qg5 Qe7 34.Qf4, draw.




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Round Three: Philidor Counter Gambit

Zachary Dimmerman (USCF 1715) - Jim West (USCF 2200), Cherry Hill NJ 12/8/2007

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 f5 4.Nc3 fxe4 5.Nxe4 d5 6.Nxe5 dxe4 7.Qh5+ g6 8.Nxg6 Nf6 9.Qe5+ Kf7 10.Nxh8+ Kg7 11.Nf7 Kxf7 12.Bc4+ Kg7 13.Bg5 Be7

14.O-O-O Qd6 15.Bxf6+ Qxf6 16.Qd5 Nc6 17.Qg8+ Kh6 18.h4 Rb8

19.g4 Qf4+ 20.Kb1 Bxg4 21.Qd5 Rd8 22.Qb5 Bxd1 23.Rxd1 Rxd4 24.Rg1 Qxf2 25.Rf1 Qxf1+, White resigns.

Marshall CC Championship

Tonight at 7:30, the 91st annual Marshall Chess Club championship begins. It is a nine-round Swiss that will take two weekends to complete.

Ferrero - Hall

Steve Ferrero is my team captain at the U.S. Amateur Team East, as well as editor of Atlantic Chess News. His favorite opening move as White is 1.b3, which I have tried occasionally myself. Here Ferrero draws against a stronger player at the Viking Last Saturday Quads in Mount Arlington.

Round Two: Larsen's Opening

Steve Ferrero (USCF 1884) - Tim Hall (USCF 2021), Mount Arlington NJ Quad 9/29/2007

1.b3 e5 2.Bb2 Nc6 3.e3

Bobby Fischer preferred to play 3.c4.

3...d5 4.Bb5 Bd6 5.Nf3 Qe7 6.c4 Nf6 7.c5

Instead 7.cxd5 Nxd5 8.Nc3 Nxc3 9.Bxc3 Bd7 leads to an equal position.

7...Bxc5 8.Nxe5 Bd7 9.Nxd7 Qxd7 10.Bxf6 gxf6 11.Qf3 Qe6 12.O-O a6 13.Bxc6+ Qxc6 14.Rc1

White has a clear advantage.

14...Qd6 15.d4 Ba7 16.Qf5 c6 17.Nc3 Qe6 18.Qxe6+ fxe6 19.Na4 Ke7 20.Nc5 Rab8

A more ambitious player as White might have kept queens on the board, but Ferrero is happy to draw against his higher rated opponent. Probably Black's reluctance to allow a draw explains why he did not exchange with 20...Bxc5 21.Rxc5.

21.Kf1 Kd6 22.Rc2 Rhe8 23.Rd1 Re7 24.b4 e5 25.dxe5+ fxe5 26.Ne4+ Ke6 27.Nc5+, draw.

PCG Clamp at Chess.com

At Jim West Talks Chess, my post on 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 d6 3.Bc4 f5 4.d3 c6 5.O-O f4 (dubbed "the Philidor clamp" by Michael Goeller of The Kenilworthian) has been viewed frequently.

Chess Carnival

On Friday, I received an e-mail from Steve Owens who is hosting a chess carnival, scheduled for December 10th, at website http://blogcarnival.com/bc. As a blogger, I was invited to submit articles for inclusion in this blog carnival.

These are the posts that I submitted, arranged by categories: book reviews, opening theory, chess culture and politics, annotated games, humor, and chess events.

Dallas Wins USCL Finals

In the United States Chess League, the Dallas Destiny edged out the Boston Blitz to win the finals.

Kasparov's Ordeal

In a Wall Street Journal article, Garry Kasparov describes his five-day ordeal in a Moscow jail.

Trompovsky Attack

In the following game, Atlantic Chess News editor Steve Ferrero upsets a higher rated opponent at the Ernesto Labate Grand Prix in Westfield.

Round Four: Trompovsky Attack

Joseph Lux (USCF 2090) - Steve Ferrero (USCF 1877), Ernesto Labate Grand Prix 11/4/2007

1.d4 Nf6 2.Bg5 c5 3.Bxf6 exf6

For 3...gxf6, see my game as Black against Asa Hoffmann.

4.d5 Qb6 5.Qc1 Be7 6.e3 O-O 7.Nd2 Qa5 8.c3 b5 9.a4 bxa4?!

Black should have played 9...b4.

10.Nc4 Qc7 11.Bd3 d6 12.Qc2 g6

Now White has a slight advantage.

13.Ne2 Bd7 14.h4 f5 15.h5 Qb7 16.hxg6 fxg6 17.Nf4 Kg7 18.g4 Na6 19.Ke2 Nc7 20.gxf5 Bxf5 21.Bxf5 Rxf5 22.Rag1 Raf8 23.Qe4 R8f7

24.Rxh7+ Kxh7 25.Rxg6??

White could have forced a draw by 25.Qh1+ Kg8 26.Nxg6 Rxf2+ 27.Ke1 Bf6 28.Ne7+ Kf8 29.Ng6+ Kg8 30.Ne7+, etc.

25...Rxf4 26.exf4 Qxd5! 27.Qb1 Qxc4+ 28.Ke1 Rg7 29.Rxd6+ Kg8 30.Rg6 Qxf4 31.Qa2+ Kh7 32.Rxg7+ Kxg7

Perhaps White continues playing this hopeless position because, with a time control of game/40, Black may be behind on the clock.

33.b3 Qe5+ 34.Kd2 Bg5+ 35.Kd3 Qd5+ 36.Ke2 Qxb3 37.Qa1 Nd5 38.c4+ Nf6 39.Qe5 Qxc4+, White resigns.

Chaos in Russia

After being released from prison in Moscow, Garry Kasparov gave an impromptu news conference during which he warned that Russia was heading toward chaos.

Kasparov on Hunger Strike

Garry Kasparov has been on a forced hunger strike, for fear of being poisoned, while serving his five-day sentence in a Moscow jail.

Kasparov's release is expected today.

Karpov Denied Jail Visit

When Bobby Fischer was in a Japanese prison, Boris Spassky wrote a letter to president George W. Bush in which he famously declared, "Arrest me. And put me in the same cell with Bobby Fischer. And give us a chess set."

Yesterday, in a scene that was eerily reminiscent of Spassky's letter, Anatoly Karpov attempted to visit Garry Kasparov in a Moscow jail. But Karpov was not permitted to see his old rival. He told Radio Free Europe, "In Russia right now we have, what, four world chess champions? And of course the fate of any one of them is important to other chess players, both in Russia and abroad."

Her Brilliant Brain

Susan Polgar was the first woman to achieve the rank of grandmaster. Recently, she was featured on British television in a series called My Brilliant Brain.

My favorite part is when Polgar undergoes an MRI scan of her brain while she is looking at photographs of famous chess players, and then at chess positions from games that she has played in the past. The MRI scan reveals that, in both cases, she uses the same part of her brain. This means that, for Polgar, remembering a chess position is no more difficult than recognizing a familiar face!

You can watch the program here.

Kasparov in Jail

Garry Kasparov was arrested Saturday in Moscow for organizing an unsanctioned anti-government rally.

Kasaparov was sentenced to five days in jail.

Viking Quads 11/24/2007

Yesterday, at the Viking quads in Mount Arlington, I had a score of 1-0-2. These are the games.
Round One: Sicilian Defense

Jim West (USCF 2200) - Sandi Hutama (USCF 2191), Mount Arlington NJ 11/24/2007

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 a6 5.Bd3 Qc7 6.O-O Nf6 7.Qe2 d6 8.c4 Nbd7 9.Be3 Be7 10.Nc3 O-O 11.Rac1 b6 12.f3 Bb7 13.Rfd1 Rfe8 14.b3 Bf8 15.Qf2 Rab8 16.Bf1 Rbc8 17.g3 Qb8 18.Bh3 Ba8

19.g4 g6 20.g5 Nh5 21.Bg4 Ng7 22.Nd5 exd5 23.Bxd7 dxe4 24.f4 Rcd8 25.Bxe8 Rxe8 26.Rc2 Ne6 27.Nxe6 Rxe6 28.Bxb6 e3 29.Bxe3 Qb7 30.Rd5 Qe7 31.Re2 Bxd5 32.cxd5 Re4 33.Kf1 Qb7 34.Bd2 Rxe2 35.Kxe2 Qxd5


36.Qf3 Qb5+ 37.Qd3 Qb7 38.Qf3 d5 39.Bc3 Bc5 40.Kd1 Bf8 41.Qe3 d4 42.Qxd4 Qh1+ 43.Kc2 Qxh2+ 44.Qd2 Qxd2+ 45.Kxd2 h5 46.gxh6 Bxh6 47.Ke3 Kf8


48.Bf6 Ke8 49.Ke4 Kd7 50.a4 Ke6 51.Bc3 f5+ 52.Ke3 Kd5 53.b4 Kc4 54.Be1 Bg7 55.b5 axb5 56.axb5 Kxb5 57.Kf3 Kc4 58.Bh4 Kd3 59.Be7 Bh6 60.Bd8 Kd4 61.Bf6+ Kd5 62.Bd8 Ke6 63.Ba5, draw.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Round Two: English Opening

Danny Arceo (USCF 2084) - Jim West (USCF 2200), Mount Arlington NJ 11/24/2007

1.c4 f5 2.g3 e5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bg2 Bc5 5.d3 Nc6 6.e3 f4 7.exf4 O-O 8.Nf3 exf4 9.Bxf4 Re8+ 10.Ne2 Qe7 11.h3 d6

12.Be3 Bxe3 13.fxe3 Qxe3 14.Qd2 Bf5 15.Qxe3 Rxe3 16.Kf2 Rae8 17.Ned4 Bxd3 18.Nxc6 bxc6 19.Nd4 c5 20.Nb5 Re2+ 21.Kg1, White resigns.



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Round Three: Philidor Defense

Jim West (USCF 2200) - Boris Privman (USCF 2233), Mount Arlington NJ 11/24/2007

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 exd4 4.Qxd4 Bd7 5.Bg5 Nc6 6.Qd2 Nf6 7.Nc3 Be7 8.Bc4 h6 9.Bf4 Bg4 10.O-O-O Nd7 11.Kb1 Bxf3 12.gxf3 Nb6 13.Bb5 a6 14.Bxc6+ bxc6 15.Rhg1 Bf6

16.e5 dxe5 17.Rge1 Qxd2 18.Rxd2 Nc4 19.Rd4 O-O 20.Rxc4 exf4 21.Rxc6 Bd4 22.Re2 Rfe8 23.a4 Rxe2 24.Nxe2 Bxf2 25.Nxf4 Bg1 26.h3 Bh2 27.Nd5 a5 28.c4 Kh7 29.Kc2 Re8, draw.