My 61* Memorable Games

The asterisk indicates that the book is a hoax!

At least, that is the opinion of GM Larry Evans in his article at Chess Life Online.

Fajarowicz TN

In analyzing my Marshall swindle against Jason Margiotta, I have found a theoretical novelty in the Fajarowicz variation of the Budapest.

After the opening moves 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e5 3.dxe5 Ne4 4.a3 Nc6 5.Nf3, Tim Harding in his book The Fighting Fajarowicz gives 5...a5?! as dubious following 6.Qc2! d5 7.exd6 Nxd6 8.Nc3! which is "marvelous for White," according to Joel Benjamin and Eric Schiller in their book Unorthodox Openings. Harding adds, "I think they are right. Obviously 8...Nxc4? loses to 9.Qe4+...."


But it does not lose!

What everyone has overlooked is that 9...Be6 10.Ng5 Nd6 11.Nxe6 (better 11.Qc2=) works out to Black's advantage after 11...Nxe4 12.Nxd8 Rxd8! 13.Nxe4 Nd4!! when Black will win the exchange by 14.Kd2 Nb3+ 15.Kc3 Nxa1 16.Bf4 Rd1.

Mario Russo - Ziping Liu

On his way to a tie for eighth place in the under 1500 section at Foxwoods, Ziping Liu defeated Mario Russo in the following game.

Round 3: Pirc Defense

Mario Russo (USCF 1310) - Ziping Liu (USCF 1454), Foxwoods Under 1500 3/21/2008

1.e4 d6 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Nc3 g6 4.d4 Bg7 5.Be2 O-O 6.O-O Bg4 7.h3 Bxf3 8.Bxf3 Nc6

In this position, White usually plays 9.Be3.

9.e5 dxe5 10.dxe5 Nxe5 11.Bxb7 Rb8 12.Ba6 Qd6

Instead the game Ristic-Barlov, Osijek 1982 continued with 12...Nfd7 followed by 13...Nc5.

13.Qe2 Rb6 14.Nb5 Qc6 15.Nxa7 Qa8 16.Qxe5 Qxa7

Now White would have a clear advantage by 17.Bd3.

17.Bb5 Qa5 18.c4 c6 19.Be3 Rb7

This inaccurate move should have been punished by 20.b4 Qxb4 21.Bxc6. Correct for Black is 19...Rbb8.

20.Rfb1 cxb5 21.b4 Qa6 22.cxb5 Rxb5 23.Bc5 Nd7 24.Qxe7 Nxc5 25.a4 Rb7 26.Qxc5 Bxa1 27.Rxa1 Qb6

28.Qxb6 Rxb6 29.a5 Rxb4 30.a6 Ra8, White forfeits.

Boris Gulko Simul

According to blogger Chessbuff on Chess, New Jersey resident GM Boris Gulko has accepted an invitation to give a 30-board simul next Monday, April 14th, at Dumont Chess Mates. The cost to play in the simul is $20, plus a $5 admission fee. For more information, contact club president Lawrence Constance at lacon1963@yahoo.com.

HBO Film "Fischer-Spassky"

Marshall Chess Club president Frank Brady will serve as a consultant for HBO on a docudrama about the chess match of the century, between Bobby Fischer and Boris Spassky in 1972.

Pix from Polgar Chess Center

At yesterday's Polgar Chess Center quad, I found time to snap these photos.

The first picture was taken before round one.


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

This is a photo of the many books for sale.


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

Here you see a wall poster as well as a magnetic chess set.

Polgar CC Quads 4/6/2008

Earlier today, I finished with a score of 2-1-0 in a game/45 quad at the Polgar Chess Center. Here is my best game. I am calling it a Philidor Counter Gambit because the opening transposes into a line often reached by the move order 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 d6 3.Nc3 f5 4.d3, etc.

Round Two: Philidor Counter Gambit

Gabor Schnitzler (USCF 1856) - Jim West (USCF 2234), Polgar Chess Center 4/6/2008

1.Nf3 d6 2.d3 e5 3.g3 f5 4.Bg2 Nf6 5.Nc3 c6 6.a4 Be7 7.e4 O-O 8.O-O a5 9.Bg5 Na6 10.Qb1 f4


11.gxf4 exf4 12.Bxf4 Nxe4 13.Bg3 Nxg3 14.hxg3 d5 15.d4 Bf6 16.Ne5 Nb4 17.Na2 Bf5 18.Nxb4 axb4 19.Qd1 Qe8 20.f4 Bxe5 21.dxe5 Qg6 22.Qe1 Bxc2 23.Qxb4 Qxg3 24.Ra3 Qg6


25.a5 Be4 26.Qd2 Rae8 27.Kh2 Bxg2 28.Qxg2 Qxg2+ 29.Kxg2 g6 30.b4 Rf5 31.Kg3 Rexe5 32.a6 bxa6 33.fxe5 Rxf1 34.Rxa6 Re1 35.Rxc6 Rxe5 36.b5 d4 37.b6 Rb5


38.Kf3 Rb3+ 39.Ke2 d3+ 40.Kd2 Kg7 41.Rc7+ Kh6 42.Rc3 Rxb6 43.Rxd3 Re6 44.Rh3+ Kg7, White resigns.

Sicilian Najdorf @ Chess.com

My post at Jim West Talks Chess on the Sicilian Najdorf 6.Bg5 line has received some favorable comments.

Saturday Quads in Ridgewood

The following tournament life announcement does not appear in Chess Life or at the USCF website, but it can be found at the NJSCF website.

Apr. 5 Dumont Chess Mates Announces Saturday Quads
Ridgewood United Methodist Church, 100 Dayton Street, Ridgewood, NJ 3RR G/75 EF: $25 Prizes: $50 first each quad. Rds: 10, 1:30, 4 Reg.: 9-9:45 Info: Lawrence Constance 201-568-1506/lacon1963@yahoo.com. NS, NC, W. Free refreshments served during registration.

Dumont Chess Mates president Lawrence Constance tells me that the refreshments will include coffee, bagels, and doughnuts.

The Talk of the Town

A half-century ago, a teenager named Bobby Fischer was the talk of the town in The New Yorker magazine.

Brady Interview

On the bulletin board at the Marshall Chess Club, there are many newspaper clippings about Bobby Fischer, including this interview with club president Frank Brady.

"My 59 Memorable Philidor Counter Gambits"

At a recent seance, I posed this question to the ghost of Philidor, "Is it really true that you never played your own defense?"

The astonishing reply: not only had Philidor played the PCG but before his death he penned a book, as yet unknown in modern chess literature, bearing the title My 59 Memorable Philidor Counter Gambits. The one remaining copy was being kept in a safe place by a man in Paris known only as Henri.

As the seance drew to a close, Philidor's ghost uttered these ominous words, "You were much more than Jonathan, mon ami," leaving me to ponder the meaning of this cryptic message. Could "Jonathan" be GM Jonathan Mestel who played the PCG a few times in the 1970's? Was Philidor trying to tell me that I am now the leading practitioner of his opening?

While these questions swirled in my mind, I followed Philidor's instructions by sending an e-mail to Henri, telling him to ship the book in a crate to the seller, a Haitian woman in Quebec City. This rare edition will become the prized possession of the first person to bid 1 million euros. Philidor's ghost will not accept checks drawn on French banks.

Happy April Fools' Day!