Thursday, May 31, 2012

Tourney Results at Collins Elementary School

The spring session of the chess class, at Collins Elementary School in Livingston, ended yesterday. This after school enrichment class was run by Enrich and Grow Academy, and coached by me.

Of the fifteen students in the class, three received medals in the tournament that was held over the final weeks. Andrew Dai won the event, while Jessica Furman finished second. Daniel Siegal and Joseph Arena tied for third place, with the medal being awarded to Daniel Siegal on tie-breaks.

Wednesday, May 30, 2012

Anand Retains Title

World champion Viswanathan Anand retained his title by winning the tie-break games, by a score of 1-0-3, against challenger Boris Gelfand.

Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Memorial Day Camp at "Chess Mates"

Yesterday I instructed the Memorial Day camp at Chess Mates

The students [pictured, from left to right] were Sumer Maini, Michael Yin, and Dilsher Maini.

Monday, May 28, 2012

Frederic Fournier Analyzes Ernst - West

At Contre Gambit Philidor, Frederic Fournier analyzes my game as Black against Leo Ernst.

Sunday, May 27, 2012

Marshall Chess Club Swiss 5/26/2012

On Saturday, I finished the game/60 Swiss tournament at the Marshall Chess Club with a score of 1-0-3.

Round One: Philidor Counter Gambit

Leo Ernst (USCF 1695) - Jim West (USCF 2216), Marshall Chess Club 5/26/2012

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 f5 4.Bd3 fxe4 5.Bxe4 d5 6.Nxe5 dxe4 7.Qh5+ g6 8.Nxg6 Nf6 9.Qe5+ Kf7 10.Nxh8+ Kg7 11.Bh6+ Kxh8 12.Bxf8 Nc6 13.Qc5 Nd7 14.Qc3 Qxf8 15.d5+ Nce5 16.O-O Qc5


17.Qxc5 Nxc5 18.Nc3 Bf5 19.Rfe1 Rg8 20.Kh1 Ng4 21.Re2 Nf6 22.h3 h5 23.b4 Ncd7 24.Rae1 Nb6 25.Rd1 Rd8 26.Red2 Nc4 27.Rd4 Nd6 28.Ne2 b5 29.a4 a6 30.Nf4 Re8 31.Re1 Kg7 32.c3 Kf7 33.Re3 Rb8 34.a5 Re8 35.Rg3 h4 36.Rg5 e3 37.fxe3 Rxe3


38.Nh5 Nxh5 39.Rxh5 Rxc3 40.Rhxh4 Rc4 41.Rhf4 Rxd4 42.Rxd4 Kf6 43.Rd2 Ke5 44.Kg1 Ne4 45.Rc2 Nf6 46.Rxc7 Nxd5 47.Rc5 Kd6 48.g4 Be6 49.Rxd5+ Kxd5 50.Kf2 Kc4 51.Kg3 Kxb4 52.h4 Kc3 53.h5 b4 54.h6 Bg8 55.g5 Bh7 56.Kg4 b3 57.Kh5 b2


58.g6 Bxg6+ 59.Kxg6 b1=Q+ 60.Kg7 Kb4 61.h7 Kxa5 62.h8=Q Qb2+ 63.Kh7 Qxh8+ 64.Kxh8 Kb4 65.Kg7 a5, White resigns.


Saturday, May 26, 2012

My Review of Fischer Psychobiography

Let me start by saying that I dislike books on psychology.  One psych course as an undergraduate was enough.  It seemed to me at the time that psychologists wanted to turn us all into well-adjusted nobodies.  Since then, little has changed in my outlook.

That said, my first impression of A Psychobiography of Bobby Fischer is mostly a favorable one.  Author Joseph Ponterotto avoids psycho-babble as much as possible in stating his opinion that Bobby Fischer suffered from a delusional disorder, not from schizophrenia or Asperger's Syndrome or paranoid personality disorder (although genetically predisposed to the latter).  Ponterotto also makes the case that Paul Morphy suffered from a delusional disorder, as well.

My view on Bobby Fischer is best summarized by this quote from grandmaster Mark Taimanov: "[Fischer] was a genius, which means he had the right to certain oddities, as after all genius is an abnormality in itself." The same is true of Paul Morphy.

My main criticism of Ponterotto's approach is that he attempts to solve the mystery of Fischer and Morphy by looking at the wrong side of the chessboard, figuratively speaking.  By that I mean, he fails to address the question of American society's role in driving both geniuses into madness.  As a chess master myself in the United States for over 30 years, I can speak to this issue firsthand.  Chessplayers are held in low regard here.  The current membership in the U.S. Chess Federation is approximately 79,000, fewer than the number of fans who attend a home game of the football Giants.  To be a chess genius like Fischer or Morphy in a country where chessplaying gets little respect is enough to send anyone off the deep end.  Both Ponterotto and Liz Garbus, in her documentary film Bobby Fischer Against the World, err in putting the victims on trial, rather than taking on the unpleasant task of criticizing America for its cultural backwardness.

In my opinion, Bobby Fischer's so-called delusional disorder in ranting against the Jews and the United States was nothing more than a game of dissociation that runs throughout his life.  Fischer was an individualist who wanted it all for himself.  Here is how FIDE master Asa Hoffmann described Fischer in the Game Show Network program Anything to Win: "He would sign his autograph, let's say, for a hundred dollars. But if you get a dollar and he gets ninety-nine, he feels he's entitled to get it all."  The Jews (by claiming Fischer as one of their own) and the United States (by claiming Fischer as a Cold War hero) tried to take "a dollar" from Fischer.  And so, he dissociated himself from both groups.

Friday, May 25, 2012

"Brooklyn Castle" at Brooklyn Film Festival

The documentary film Brooklyn Castle will be screened at the Brooklyn Film Festival 2012.

Thursday, May 24, 2012

May Game/90, Round 4

Yesterday I finished the Wednesday game/90 Swiss at Chess Mates with a score of 3-0-1.

Round Four: Dutch Defense

Serge Adelson (USCF 1913) - Jim West (USCF 2207), Rahway NJ 5/23/2012

1.d4 e6 2.c4 f5 3.g3 Nf6 4.Bg2 Bb4+ 5.Nd2 a5 6.a3 Bxd2+ 7.Bxd2 a4 8.Nf3 O-O 9.O-O d6 10.Qc2 Qe8 11.Rae1 Nc6 12.Bc3 Ne4 13.Nd2 Nxd2 14.Qxd2 Bd7 15.f4 Qh5


16.e4 fxe4 17.d5 exd5 18.cxd5 Ne7 19.Bxe4 Rae8 20.Qd4 Qf7 21.Qc4 c5 22.Bc2 b5 23.Qd3 Bf5 24.Qd2 Bxc2 25.Qxc2 Nxd5 26.Bd2 Nb6 27.Qd3 Nc4 28.Bc3 Rxe1 29.Rxe1 Re8 30.Re4 Rxe4 31.Qxe4 d5 32.Qe2 d4 33.Be1 Kf8 34.Qg4 Qd5


35.Qc8+ Kf7 36.g4 h6 37.Qc7+ Kg8 38.g5 hxg5 39.Qc8+ Kh7 40.Qh3+ Kg6 41.Qg3 Qf5 42.Qf3 gxf4 43.Qc6+ Kh7 44.Kh1 Ne3, White resigns.


Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Overview of My Blog

With nearly 2,600 pageviews, a post dated January 1, 2007 on the exchange variation in the French Defense is my most popular by a wide margin.

In second place, with almost 800 pageviews, is a post dated July 26, 2007 on my Philidor Counter Gambit against Fabiano Caruana.

Tuesday, May 22, 2012

FIDE Mondays 5/21/2012

Last night, I finished the FIDE Mondays tournament at the Marshall Chess Club with a score of 3-0-1 plus two half point byes.

Round Six: Sicilian Defense, Najdorf Variation

Benjamin Katz (FIDE 2118) - Jim West (FIDE 2112), Marshall Chess Club 5/21/2012

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Bc4 e6 7.Bb3 b5 8.O-O Be7 9.Qf3 Qd7 10.Qg3 Bb7 11.Bg5 Nc6 12.Rad1 O-O


13.Bh6 Ne8 14.a4 Kh8 15.Bg5 Bxg5 16.Qxg5 b4 17.Nce2 Nxd4 18.Rxd4 a5 19.c3 Ba6 20.c4 Qc7 21.Rc1 Rc8 22.Rd3 Nf6 23.Rg3 Rg8 24.Rh3 Qc5 25.Qf4 Bb7 26.Ng3 Qe5 27.Qxe5 dxe5 28.f3 Rgd8 29.Nf1 Nd7 30.Bd1 Nc5


31.g4 Nd3 32.Rb1 Rxc4 33.Rg3 Nf4 34.Ne3 Rcd4 35.Kf1 Ba6+ 36.Ke1 Nd3+ 37.Kd2 Nxb2+ 38.Kc2 Rd2+, White resigns.


Monday, May 21, 2012

Marshall May Grand Prix

Yesterday I played this game at the Marshall Chess Club.

Round Three: Caro-Kann Defense, Exchange Variation

Jim West (FIDE 2112) - Vladimir Polyakin (FIDE 2078), Marshall Chess Club 5/20/2012

1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.exd5 cxd5 4.Bd3 Nc6 5.c3 Nf6 6.Bf4 g6 7.Nf3 Bg7 8.O-O O-O 9.Nbd2 Nh5 10.Be3 Qd6 11.Re1 Bd7 12.Nb3 Rad8 13.Nc5 Bc8 14.Bf1 f6


15.Bb5 b6 16.Nb3 a6 17.Bxc6 Qxc6 18.h3 Qc7 19.Qd2 f5 20.Bg5 Bf6 21.Ne5 f4 22.Bh6 Bg7 23.Bxg7 Kxg7 24.f3 Bf5 25.Nc1 e6 26.Ncd3 g5 27.Nf2 Ng3 28.Nh1 Nxh1 29.Kxh1 Kh8 30.Qe2 Qg7 31.Kg1 Ra8 32.a4 Rfc8 33.Ra3 Qc7 34.Rb3 Rcb8


35.Ng4 Qg7 36.Qe5 Qxe5 37.Nxe5 Rb7 38.Ra3 Rc8 39.Rc1 Kg7 40.Kf2 h5 41.Ke2 Kf6 42.Kd2 Ke7 43.Rh1 Kf6 44.Rb3 Rcc7 45.Ra3 Rh7 46.Raa1 Rbc7 47.b4 Bg6 48.a5 b5 49.Rae1 Bf5 50.Re2 Rc8 51.Rhe1 Rhc7 52.Rc1 Rg7 53.Rce1 Rgc7 54.Rc1 Rg7 55.Rce1 Rgc7, draw.


Sunday, May 20, 2012

"Chess is Child's Play"


Can Parents Teach Their Preschoolers to Play Chess?

Clearwater, FL, May 15, 2012 - How soon can parents start teaching their children to play chess? In their Mongoose Press book, Chess is Child's Play, chess educators Laura Sherman and Bill Kilpatrick contend that parents can teach their children before they reach school age. By breaking down the elements of the game into "mini-games," parents and young children alike can learn chess at their own pace.

"The first challenge was to teach chess to the parent who isn't familiar with the game," Sherman says. "We found that some parents were intimidated by chess. However, after applying our techniques they realized that they could learn to play, along with their children. Really anyone can learn to play the game if they are taught properly."

Sherman and her husband Dan founded Your Chess Coach in Clearwater, Florida, where they teach dozens of children aged 3-16 each week in various schools. This experience helped them to discover what works and what doesn't.

"My father taught me to play chess when I was nine years old," Sherman notes. "I think many parents feel that a child needs to be at least that age to learn, but I have found that very young children love to learn chess and do quite well. Young boys and girls gravitate naturally to a chess set!"

The "Learning to Think Project" in Venezuela showed that IQ increased in elementary school children when they learned to play chess. A study in New York showed that even reading skill can improve thanks to chess. Many other studies around the world give similar results: chess helps children to do better in school and in life.

Chess can even improve children's social skills. According to Joyce Brown, an educator at the Roberto Clemente School in New York, "Our studies have shown that incidents of suspension and outside altercations have decreased by at least 60 percent since these children became interested in chess.''

About the book:

Chess is Child's Play - Teaching Techniques That Work
by Laura Sherman and Bill Kilpatrick
ISBN: 978-1936277315
Publisher: Mongoose Press
Date of publish: April 16, 2012
Pages: 304
S.R.P.: $19.95

About the authors:


Laura Sherman, a.k.a. "Laura the Friendly Ghostwriter," is a professional ghostwriter and author. She enjoys writing fiction and nonfiction and is happiest when juggling multiple projects.

She recently authored Chess is Child's Play to introduce the next generation to the game of kings and queens. As a parent of three, and having been one of the top 50 women chess players in the United States, Laura wrote this book to teach any parent to teach any child, of any age, to play chess.

Laura lives with her family in Florida, where she spends her spare time at the beach and writing haiku, the Japanese art of short poetry.


Bill Kilpatrick became a serial-entrepreneur by creating many successful business ventures. He developed advanced chess skills at an early age playing game after game with his mother, father, and sisters. In high school Bill coached his own team, and as a crew of underdogs they swiftly rose to become a dominant force winning the Florida state and southeastern U.S. championships. He took the knowledge that was given to him as a young man, and returned it to others by building businesses that each have a common theme of teaching or coaching diverse skills. The ventures include acting, business management, software development, creative writing, and of course chess.

His passion is to take a specific skill; then he keeps digging down more and more deeply toward the root or foundation until the true core of the subject becomes crystal clear. From that core he progressively works back upwards, laying down a direct route that is very easy for others to travel. His forte is building paths, then roads, and finally super-highways of educational techniques to help others master important life skills.

Saturday, May 19, 2012

Lecture on Chess Psychology at Marshall CC

Please join us at the Marshall Chess Club for a lecture by Dr. Roy Shapiro on "The Psychology of Chess Competition."  Dr. Shapiro has been a lifelong chess player and a competitive bridge player.

Sports psychology will not make you a better chess player. Only diligent devotion to the game characterized by long hours of practice, dedication to chess, working with your teacher, being active in competition, and studying your errors will over time improve your play.

Sports psychology can offer you techniques used by successful athletes that will assist you in being able to play at the best level more frequently. It will help play the best chess you are capable of playing.

We invite you to come to the lecture and demonstration. Find out how sport psychology techniques can work for you.

In this lecture, you will learn the following:

1) The difference between playing a winner's game and a loser’s game.

2) Living with fear and the “Amygdala hijack.” How hard should I play? (You will be asked to participate in an activity to create fear and then to let it go.)

3) An introduction to developing your stance which is a three part process that consists of controlling your thoughts, dictating how you will move and act, and determining emotions that you will foster during play.

Tuesday, May 22, 2012

7pm

Lecture fee: members free, non-members $10.

Roy Shapiro, Ph.D., is a practicing psychologist with 35 years of experience helping individuals achieve excellence in their personal lives, at work, and in competitive activities. He will lecture and demonstrate the basic aspects of sports psychology as it applies to chess.

Roy Shapiro, Ph.D.
80 University Place
New York, NY 10003
Phone 212-475-8899
e-mail: shapiror@aol.com

Marshall Chess Club
23 West 10th Street
New York, NY 10011
Phone 212-477-3716
Fax 212-995-9281
www.marshallchessclub.org/

Friday, May 18, 2012

May Game/90, Round 3

On Wednesday, I won a good knight versus bad bishop endgame at Chess Mates.

Round Three: Modern Defense

Jim West (USCF 2207) - Roger Pedersen (USCF 1906), Rahway NJ 5/16/2012

1.e4 d6 2.d4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.f4 e6 5.Nf3 Nc6 6.Be3 Nf6 7.Qd2 O-O 8.O-O-O a6 9.h3 b5 10.Bd3 Nb4 11.Kb1 Nxd3 12.cxd3 Bb7 13.Rdf1 Rc8 14.g4 c5


15.g5 Nh5 16.Ne2 c4 17.Rhg1 cxd3 18.Qxd3 Qa5 19.Rc1 Rc4 20.Nd2 Rxc1+ 21.Rxc1 Rc8 22.Rxc8+ Bxc8 23.Qc3 Qxc3 24.bxc3 f5 25.e5 d5 26.Nb3 Bf8 27.Kc2 Kf7 28.Bc1 h6 29.h4 hxg5 30.hxg5 Ng7 31.Na5 Ke8 32.Kb3 Kd7 33.Ba3 Bxa3 34.Kxa3 Kc7 35.Kb4 Kb6 36.Nb3 Nh5 37.Nc5 Ng7


38.a3 Nh5 39.Kb3 Ng7 40.Kc2 Nh5 41.Kd3 Ng7 42.Ke3 a5 43.Ng1 Nh5 44.Nf3 Ng3 45.Nh4 Nf1+ 46.Kd3 Ng3 47.Nxg6 Ne4 48.Ne7 Ba6 49.Nxa6 Kxa6 50.g6 Nf2+ 51.Kc2 Ng4 52.g7 Nh6 53.g8=Q Nxg8 54.Nxg8 a4 55.Nf6 Kb7 56.Nd7 Kc8 57.Nc5 Kd8 58.Nxe6+ Kd7 59.Ng7, Black resigns.


Thursday, May 17, 2012

FIDE Mondays 5/14/2012

On Monday evening, my opponent blundered a piece at the Marshall Chess Club.

Round Five: Center Counter Defense

Jim West (FIDE 2112) - Juan Sena (FIDE 2140), Marshall Chess Club 5/14/2012

1.e4 d5 2.exd5 Qxd5 3.Nc3 Qd6 4.d4 a6 5.Nf3 Nf6 6.Be2 Nc6 7.O-O Bf5 8.Be3 e6 9.Qd2 O-O-O 10.a3 Ne4 11.Nxe4 Bxe4 12.Rad1 Be7 13.c3 Rhg8


14.Ng5 Bxg5 15.Bxg5 f6 16.Bf4 Qd5 17.f3 Bf5 18.Bd3 Nxd4 19.Be4 Bxe4 20.fxe4 Nf3+ 21.gxf3, Black resigns.


Wednesday, May 16, 2012

Pix from Cherry Hill Spring Open

These photos were taken by me on Sunday, during the Cherry Hill Spring Open tournament.




Tuesday, May 15, 2012

Memorial Weekend Camp at "Chess Mates"

On Memorial Day weekend, Chess Mates will be running a camp from May 26th to May 28th.

Monday, May 14, 2012

Cherry Hill Spring Open

On Sunday, I won this game in the Cherry Hill Spring Open at the Wyndham Hotel.

Round Three: Sicilian Defense, Sicilian Counter Attack

Jim West (USCF 2207) - George Leonard (USCF 1840), Mount Laurel NJ 5/13/2012

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 Bb4 6.Ndb5 O-O 7.a3 Be7 8.e5 Ne8 9.Bd3 a6 10.Nd6 Bxd6 11.exd6 f5 12.h4 Nxd6 13.Qh5 Nf7 14.Bg5 Qb6 15.O-O-O g6 16.Qe2 Nc6 17.Be3 Qc7


18.h5 g5 19.h6 Nce5 20.Qh5 f4 21.Bd4 Nxd3+ 22.Rxd3 e5 23.Nd5 Qd6 24.Bc3 Qe6 25.Nc7 Qf5 26.Nxa8 e4 27.Rd4 e3 28.fxe3 fxe3 29.Nb6 Ne5 30.Nd5 Qf2 31.Qxg5+ Ng6 32.Ne7+ Kh8 33.Rf4+, Black resigns.


Sunday, May 13, 2012

Rahway Quad 5/12/2012

Yesterday I drew this game at Chess Mates.

Round One: Modern Defense

Jim West (USCF 2207) - Lev Zilbermintz (USCF 2104), Rahway NJ 5/12/2012

1.e4 d6 2.d4 g6 3.Nc3 b6 4.f4 Bg7 5.Nf3 Bb7 6.Bd3 e6 7.Be3 Ne7 8.O-O Nd7 9.Qd2 O-O 10.Rae1 a6 11.a4 c5 12.h3 Nf6


13.dxc5 dxc5 14.e5 Nfd5 15.Nxd5 Nxd5 16.Bc4 Nxe3 17.Qxe3 Qc7 18.Rd1 Rad8, draw.


Saturday, May 12, 2012

Chess Article in "The Atlantic"

Santiago Wills writes "How America Forgot About Chess" in The Atlantic.

Friday, May 11, 2012

World Chess Championship Starts Today












The FIDE World Chess Championship 2012 match between Viswanathan Anand and Boris Gelfand starts today in Moscow.

Thursday, May 10, 2012

Taran Idnani - Vrithik Umapathy

In the Wednesday night league, my seven-year-old student Vrithik Umapathy [pictured] won this game yesterday, at the Dean of Chess Academy.

Pirc Defense

Taran Idnani (USCF 1565) - Vrithik Umapathy (USCF 1364), Branchburg NJ 5/9/2012

1.e4 d6 2.d4 Nf6 3.Nc3 g6 4.Nf3 Bg7 5.Be3 O-O 6.Bc4 Bg4 7.Bb3 Nc6 8.O-O e5 9.d5 Ne7 10.h3 Bxf3 11.Qxf3 Nd7


12.Nb5 a6 13.Nc3 f5 14.exf5 Nxf5 15.Qe2 Nc5 16.Bxc5 dxc5 17.Qc4 b6 18.g4 Nd6 19.Qe2 Rf4 20.a3 Qh4 21.Kg2 Raf8 22.Qe3 Rf3


23.Qxf3 Rxf3 24.Kxf3 Qxh3+ 25.Ke2 Qxg4+ 26.Kd2 Bh6+ 27.Kd3 c4+ 28.Bxc4 Qxc4#.


Wednesday, May 9, 2012

QB Michael Vick Plays Chess


Eagles quarterback Michael Vick learned to play chess while in prison.

Tuesday, May 8, 2012

FIDE Mondays 5/7/2012

Last night, I drew this game at the Marshall Chess Club.

Round Four: English Opening

Ed Frumkin (FIDE 1958) - Jim West (FIDE 2112), Marshall Chess Club 5/7/2012

1.c4 f5 2.g3 Nf6 3.Bg2 e6 4.Nf3 a5 5.O-O b6 6.d3 Bb7 7.Nc3 Be7 8.e4 fxe4 9.Ng5 O-O 10.dxe4 e5 11.Be3 Na6 12.h4 Bc5


13.Bxc5 Nxc5 14.Qe2 h6 15.Nh3 Qe8 16.Nd5 Nxd5 17.exd5 d6 18.f3 Qg6 19.Kh2 Qd3 20.Qxd3 Nxd3 21.b3 Bc8 22.Rad1 Nc5 23.Nf2 Bd7 24.Ne4 a4 25.b4 Nxe4 26.fxe4 Rxf1 27.Rxf1 a3 28.Bh3 Ba4 29.Be6+ Kh8 30.Rd1 Be8 31.Bg4 Bg6 32.Bf3 h5


33.Kg1 Kh7 34.Kf2 Kh6 35.Ke3 Bh7 36.Be2 Ra4 37.Rb1 g5 38.hxg5+ Kxg5 39.Bd1 Ra8 40.Be2 Bg6 41.Rc1 Ra4 42.Rb1, draw.


Monday, May 7, 2012

GM Rashad Babaev to Lecture at Marshall CC

The Marshall Chess Club presents grandmaster Rashad Babaev.

“Secrets of Positional Chess“

Grandmaster Rashad Babaev, the 2009 national chess champion of Azerbaijan, is one of New York’s most respected chess coaches and players. In this lecture, GM Babaev will talk about basic principles and subtleties of playing successful positional chess.

Among GM Babaev’s accomplishments are tournament victories at the Dubai International (1995), Verdun International (2002), Moscow Open (2003), Madrid Open (2005), and Barcelona Open (2005). He has been the trainer of the national youth chess team of Azerbaijan for seven years.

Tuesday, May 8, 2012

7pm

Lecture fee: members free, non-members $10.

Marshall Chess Club
23 West 10th Street
New York, NY 10011
Phone 212-477-3716
Fax 212-995-9281
http://www.marshallchessclub.org/

Sunday, May 6, 2012

"Bobby Fischer Comes Home" by GM Olafsson

Icelandic grandmaster Helgi Olafsson is the author of Bobby Fischer Comes Home: The Final Years in Iceland, a Saga of Friendship and Lost Illusions.

Saturday, May 5, 2012

Frederic Fournier Analyzes West - O'Connor

At Contre Gambit Philidor, Frederic Fournier analyzes my game as White against Michael O'Connor.

Fournier also provides a link to my game as Black against Paul Rachlin.

Friday, May 4, 2012

May Game/90, Round 1

This game was played on Wednesday evening at Chess Mates.

Round One: Larsen's Opening

Jim West (USCF 2207) - Michael O'Connor (USCF 1840), Rahway NJ 5/2/2012

1.b3 d5 2.Bb2 Bf5 3.Nf3 e6 4.e3 Nf6 5.c4 c6 6.Nc3 h6 7.Rc1 Be7 8.cxd5 exd5 9.Nd4 Bg6 10.f4 O-O 11.Be2 Nbd7 12.O-O Re8


13.a3 c5 14.Nf3 d4 15.exd4 cxd4 16.Nxd4 Bc5 17.Na4 Bxd4+ 18.Bxd4 Nb6 19.Bxf6 Qxf6 20.Nxb6 Qxb6+ 21.Kh1 Be4 22.Bf3 Bd3 23.Rg1 Re7 24.b4 Rae8 25.Qb3 Be4 26.Bxe4 Rxe4 27.Qf3 Qd4 28.Qc3 Qf2 29.Rcf1 Qd4 30.Qxd4 Rxd4 31.Rf2 Red8 32.Rd1 Rd3 33.Ra1 Rxd2 34.Rxd2 Rxd2


35.h3 Kf8 36.Rc1 Ke7 37.Rc7+ Rd7 38.Rc3 Kd6 39.g4 Rc7 40.Rd3+ Kc6 41.Kg2 Kb5 42.Kf3 Ka4 43.f5 b5 44.h4 g6 45.f6 Rc1 46.Rd7 Rf1+ 47.Ke4 Rxf6 48.Rxa7+ Kb3 49.Ra5 Kc4 50.Ra7 Rf1 51.g5 hxg5 52.hxg5 Rf5


53.Rc7+ Kb3 54.Rc5 Kxa3 55.Rxf5 gxf5+ 56.Kxf5 Kxb4 57.Kf6 Ka3 58.Kxf7 b4 59.g6 b3 60.g7 b2 61.g8=Q b1=Q 62.Qa8+ Kb2 63.Qb8+ Ka1 64.Qxb1+ Kxb1, draw.