Tag Archives: Rhys Goldstein

News

The Magnetic Queen – a chess lecture

February 6, 2017 king Leave a comment

“The Magnetic Queen” by Rhys Goldstein

“Let us say that a game may be continued in two ways: one of them is a beautiful tactical blow that gives rise to variations that don’t yield to precise calculations; the other is clear positional pressure that leads to an endgame with microscopic chances of victory. I would choose the latter without thinking twice. If the opponent offers keen play I don’t object; but in such cases I get less satisfaction, even if I win, than from a game conducted according to all the rules of strategy with its ruthless logic.”
~ Anatoly Karpov

Despite his reputation for “boring” play, in this masterpiece, Karpov uses his queen like a magnet and essentially moves the enemy pieces.

Here are the PDF notes for The Magnetic Queen, a lecture given on February 13, 2017 at Annex Chess Club (just before Round Two of the What’s My Name Swiss).

And here is the featured Karpov game:

[Event "Alekhine Memorial"] [Site "Moscow RUS"] [Date "1992.11.??"] [EventDate "?"] [Round "6"] [Result "1-0"] [White "Anatoly Karpov"] [Black "Gata Kamsky"] [ECO "E60"] [WhiteElo "?"] [BlackElo "?"] [PlyCount "107"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nf3 Bg7 4. g3 c6 5. Bg2 d5 6. cxd5 cxd5 7. Nc3 O-O 8. Ne5 e6 9. O-O Nfd7 10. f4 Nc6 11. Be3 Nb6 12. Bf2 Bd7 13. e4 Ne7 14. Nxd7 Qxd7 15. e5 Rac8 16. Rc1 a6 17. b3 Rc7 18. Qd2 Rfc8 19. g4 Bf8 20. Qe3 Nc6 21. f5 Ba3 22. Rcd1 Nb4 23. Qh6 Qe8 24. Nb1 Bb2 25. Qd2 Nc2 26. Kh1 Qe7 27. Bg1 Nd7 28. Rf3 Qb4 29. Qh6 Qf8 30. Qg5 Qg7 31. Qd2 b6 32. Rdf1 a5 33. h4 Nb4 34. a3 Rc2 35. Qf4 Nc6 36. Bh3 Nd8 37. Be3 b5 38. R3f2 b4 39. axb4 axb4 40. Rxc2 Rxc2 41. Rf2 Rxf2 42. Qxf2 Ba3 43. Qc2 Nxe5 44. dxe5 Qxe5 45. Qc8 Qe4+ 46. Bg2 Qxb1+ 47. Kh2 Bb2 48. Qxd8+ Kg7 49. f6+ Bxf6 50. Bh6+ Kxh6 51. Qxf6 Qc2 52. g5+ Kh5 53. Kg3 Qc7+ 54. Kh3 1-0 You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

The featured image is from the tomb of Queen Nefertari (1295-1255 BCE). She was known by many titles, including Great of Praises (wrt-hzwt), Sweet of Love (bnrt-mrwt), Lady of Grace (nbt-im3t), Lady of The Two Lands (nbt-t3wy), and in the words of her husband Ramses II, ‘The one for whom the sun shines.’ There is no record of her ever having been known as The Magnetic Queen.

News

A Chess Lecture on Losing

March 11, 2015 king Leave a comment

“The Role of the Loser” by Rhys Goldstein

…a lecture on losing inspired by the following quote:

“What we shouldn’t forget is that it takes two very good players to create a brilliant game. I always feel the role of the loser in a brilliancy is underestimated. I always thought the loser should really get the money for the brilliancy prize. The winner’s happy anyway.”

– Bill Hartston

6:50-7:20 pm
918 Bathurst
Mon March 23
$5 casual drop-in fee
Free for ACC members and chess students

If you missed the lecture, here is a great article version (pdf) of the lecture: Role_of_the_Loser

News

Rhys Goldstein

December 1, 2013 king 1 Comment

Player Profile: Rhys Goldstein (2038)

Rhys plays chess for the beauty of the game. Every chess player celebrates a good result against a strong opponent, but Rhys looks beyond ratings and results to the rigour and creativity behind the moves: “I am always hoping,” he says, “for a great game featuring inspiring ideas combined with impeccable logic.”

Rhys is delivering this week’s pre-tournament chess lecture at ACC: “Selected Double Piece Sacrifices,” Monday December 2, 6:50 to 7:20 pm.

Early days

Rhys first learned the game in Vancouver, where he grew up. As a curious seven-year-old, he was watching a child and an adult playing chess at a community centre. Seeing his interest, they called him over and taught him the basics. His parents then bought him his first chess set, and many of his early games were played at home with his father. While not a strong competitive player, Rhys’ father was a great teacher who tailored his games with his son to illustrate tactical and strategic themes: skewers, forks, mate with two rooks, etc. – things Rhys could use in his games against his friends.

inspiring ideas combined with impeccable logic

It was not until high school, however, that Rhys started playing regularly. He and his high-school chess club friends played almost every day: at lunch, after school, sometimes even in class (“passing a sheet of paper back and forth with a board drawn in pen and the pieces scribbled over top in pencil”). These high-school games led to lasting friendships. Indeed, the first person Rhys played at his high-school chess club – Rhys remembers his friend “fell for the four-move mate” in their first game – became the best man at his wedding.

Family life

The demands of family (Rhys and his wife have a young son) and professional life (Rhys investigates applications of architectural computer modelling for improved energy efficiency) haven’t kept Rhys away from chess. He still plays and lectures at Annex Chess Club. While his wife is “indifferent” to chess, he does play the occassional game with his one-year-old son, who likes “to smash through the king’s defenses with both hands.”

Just as every young hockey player dreams of playing in the NHL, every young chess player wants to become a grandmaster. Rhys, however, at 33, is old enough to have more modest goals: “It would be nice to get to 2200 [master level] one day, but I am not in any rush. For the time being, my goal is to slowly improve in the areas where I am weak, which include playing open positions, managing the clock, and not blundering so often!”

Chess at Annex Chess Club

Rhys likes a lot about the ACC, starting with its welcoming atmosphere. “Some clubs make you feel like an outsider when you first walk in the door. That’s not the case with the Annex Chess Club, where it’s easy to meet someone and start playing a casual game.” He is also impressed with the number of tournament players who come out regularly on Monday nights, with the range of playing strengths at the club, and (as a computer programmer) with the “terrific website.” Given the need for silence during tournament play, he thinks an online forum is an important place for ongoing conversations.

chess should be fun

Rhys not only plays at ACC; he is also one of our most regular lecturers. Like his father, he loves teaching chess: lecturing and writing articles, he says, “can be more rewarding than actually playing the game.”

In the end, the highest praise he gives ACC is personal and very simple. He credits the club for his own return to competitive chess after a decade-long hiatus: “The Annex Club is the reason I started playing chess again.”

Chess for fun

At ACC, where we promote chess for everyone,™ it’s music to our ears when we hear that we’ve brought a player to the game – or brought one back. On this point, however, Rhys might not subscribe to full ACC orthodoxy.

Should everyone play chess? We say yes, but Rhys is not out to convert the nonbelievers. “Maybe everyone should try chess once or twice in their life, but only those that enjoy it should keep playing.”

you must have the courage to play the move you think is best

Rhys’ first rule is that “chess should be fun,” but he admits it is not always fun, even for him: sometimes chess can become “more frustrating than entertaining.” When that happens, he takes a different tack in his games until he starts “learning new things and having fun again.”

For Rhys, also, there are limits to the educational value of chess. “The worst thing about chess is that, when you’re playing a game, you’re not really learning how to cooperate with other people. Team sports are a little better that way. At the moment I am playing both chess and soccer, and they complement each other well.”

Tips and advice

Apart from his advice that chess should be fun, and his suggestion to mix it with cooperative team activies, Rhys has two tips for the developing chess player. The first is to practise chess puzzles: “If your goal is to improve your rating as quickly as possible, then buy a book with hundreds of chess puzzles that you can solve in your head in less than one minute.”

With his second piece of advice, Rhys returns to the theme that chess is about the ideas behind the moves: “I agree with Capablanca that the beginner or average player must develop their imagination. According to the legendary world champion, this means you must attack when possible, and you must have the courage to play the move you think is best regardless of what other people might say. For inspiration, I recommend books of historical games annotated by passionate authors. The Most Instructive Games of Chess Ever Played, by Irving Chernev, will do nicely.”

Here is a favorite game of his own:

[Event "UBC Tues Night"] [Site "Vancouver"] [Date "1998.09.15"] [Round "2"] [White "Rhys Goldstein"] [Black "Peter de Vries"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C06"] [WhiteElo "1795"] [BlackElo "1700"] [Annotator "Rhys Goldstein"] [PlyCount "83"] [EventDate "1998.??.??"] [TimeControl "9000"] 1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nd2 Nf6 4. e5 Nfd7 5. Bd3 c5 6. c3 Nc6 7. Ne2 cxd4 8. cxd4 f6 9. f4 Be7 10. O-O O-O 11. Nf3 Qb6 12. Kh1 f5 13. Nc3 h6 14. Na4 Qd8 15. Qe1 Nb4 16. Bb1 {The only reasonable move. With center pawns fixed on dark squares, White must not allow the light-squared bishop to be exchanged for Black’s knight.} b6 17. Bd2 Ba6 {It’s now or never if Black wants to develop his bishop here. If instead 17…Nc6 18.Bd3, White has full control of a6.} 18. Bxb4 {The position was tricky for White. If 18.Rf2, then 18…Nd3 forces 19. Bxd3 Bxd3 and Black is happy with the trade. White’s best move was 18.Rg1, after which g4 is an interesting attacking option. Instead White just sacrifices the exchange. What is White’s plan?} Bxb4 19. Qxb4 Bxf1 20. Qd6 Re8 {An error. The correct way to defend e6 was 20…Qe8. Now White’s plan is revealed.} 21. Bxf5 {Destroying Black’s pawn chain while discovering an attack on Bf1.} Bxg2+ 22. Kxg2 exf5 23. Qxd5+ Kh7 24. Rc1 {Sometimes it is a mistake to routinely develop a rook to an open file. Black now seizes the initiative. White should have closed the file with 24.Nc3, which also supports a future d4-d5 advance.} Nf8 {The best move of the game, offering the f5 pawn to establish a blockade on e6.} 25. Qb3 {White could have won the f5 pawn with 25. Qf7, but eventually either d4 or f4 would then fall.} (25. Qf7 Ne6 26. Qxf5+ Kg8 27. Rd1 Qd7 28. Nc3 Rf8 29. Qe4 Nxf4+ 30. Kh1 Rad8 31. d5 Qh3 {With aggressively placed pieces, Black stands better.}) 25... Ne6 26. Qe3 Rc8 27. Rxc8 Qxc8 28. Nc3 Qc4 29. b3 Qd3 30. Kf2 {Of course 30.Qxd3 would be met with 30…Nxf4+, stealing a pawn and regaining the queen.} Qc2+ 31. Ne2 Rc8 {This natural rook move to an open file is actually a mistake. Better was 31…Rd8 to hold back White’s d4 pawn. Recall that White lost the advantage in a similar fashion on move 24.} 32. d5 Nc5 33. Nfd4 Ne4+ 34. Kg2 Qxa2 35. Nxf5 Rc2 {An unfortunate blunder, though White had the advantage anyway with the connected passed pawns.} 36. Nfd4 Nc5 37. Nxc2 Qxc2 38. e6 Qg6+ 39. Ng3 Qc2+ 40. Kh3 Nd3 41. e7 Qc8+ 42. f5 {An exciting game with imaginative play on both sides.} 1-0 You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

Results

Dave Southam wins the ACC Summer Love!

August 6, 2012 king 6 Comments

jennifer beals playing chess — Susan Polgar asks, “What movie is this chess scene from?”

“Summer lovin’, had me a blast. Summer lovin’, happened so fast!”

Annex Chess Club – Summer Love Swiss Tournament

To celebrate the end of a fantastic summer in Toronto – and before the summer days drift away – we’re launching another CFC-rated club tournament on August 20 (the week after the last round of our Beach Blanket Swiss). As per usual, it’s a 5-round Swiss in 3 sections: Premier (>1900), Reserve A (1500-1900), and Reserve B (U1500). And as per usual, the Premier section is also FIDE-rated.

Complete results are on the table below.

“Tell me more, tell me more…”

Round Five – September 24

In the Premier section, Dave Southam, with the better tie-break, needed only a draw against rival Pavel Peev in the last round to secure first place. Dave did just that and finished first with 4.0/5. Congratulations, Dave!

In the U1900 section, Arkadiy Ugodnikov, with a last-round win over Zaki Uddin, finished alone in first with 4.0/5. Congratulations, Arkadiy!

Finally, in the U1500 section, six-year-old Harmony Zhu, with a win against Shabnam Abbarin, took first place, finishing undefeated at 4.5/5. Harmony will be playing in the U1900 section next tournament. Way to go, Harmony!

Next week, Monday October 1, we’ll be starting a new tournament, the Autumn Colours Swiss. The first round starts at 7:30 pm, but please arrive by 7:00 pm to register if you haven’t already.

Final Results

SwissSys Standings. Summer Love: Premier

#	Name	ID	Rating	Rd 1	Rd 2	Rd 3	Rd 4	Rd 5	Total
1	David Southam	102535	2176	W8	W9	W13	D3	D2	4.0
2	Pavel Peev	122223	2209	W7	B—	W3	H—	D1	4.0
3	Wajdy Shebetah	148432	2132	W18	W6	L2	D1	W5	3.5
4	Daniel Wiebe	132137	2012	W5	H—	H—	U—	W7	3.0
5	Hayk Oganesyan	152587	1827	L4	D8	W18	W12	L3	2.5
6	Rolando Renteria	152626	2249	H—	L3	L8	W18	W16	2.5
7	David Cohen	100234	1812	L2	W18	L11	W17	L4	2.0
8	Zehn Nasir	148198	1878	L1	D5	W6	D14	U—	2.0
9	Geordie Derraugh	132393	2242	W15	L1	H—	H—	U—	2.0
10	Melissa Greeff	153598	2112	W19	H—	H—	U—	U—	2.0
11	Morgon Mills	127517	2206	H—	H—	W7	U—	U—	2.0
12	Adrian David Valencia	153521	1967	H—	W15	U—	L5	U—	1.5
13	Pepin Manalo	112277	1845	H—	H—	L1	U—	D18	1.5
14	Alex T. Ferreira	127516	2051	H—	H—	U—	D8	U—	1.5
15	Andrew Pastor	127521	1926	L9	L12	H—	H—	U—	1.0
16	Scott Cliff	137007	1989	H—	H—	U—	U—	L6	1.0
17	David Krupka	102648	1943	H—	H—	U—	L7	U—	1.0
18	Daniel Zotkin	146857	1920	L3	L7	L5	L6	D13	0.5
19	Adie Todd	125156	1718	L10	U—	U—	U—	U—	0.0

SwissSys Standings. Summer Love: U1900

#	Name	ID	Rating	Rd 1	Rd 2	Rd 3	Rd 4	Rd 5	Total
1	Arkadiy Ugodnikov	146626	1679	D13	H—	W11	W2	W4	4.0
2	Ulli Diemer	153538	1576	W4	W10	W3	L1	D5	3.5
3	Manuela Renteria	152627	1654	H—	W13	L2	W7	W11	3.5
4	Mohammad Zaki Uddin	152024	1631	L2	W20	W15	W10	L1	3.0
5	Hooshang Ab-barin	152910	1669	L12	W19	D7	W8	D2	3.0
6	Josep Sobrepere	152976	1503	H—	H—	U—	W14	W10	3.0
7	Jack Maguire	144604	1514	W8	L9	D5	L3	W19	2.5
8	Marcus Wilker	102713	1667	L7	H—	W13	L5	W14	2.5
9	Adie Todd	125156	1726	B—	W7	H—	U—	U—	2.5
10	Abdolreza Radpey	149018	1424	W19	L2	W14	L4	L6	2.0
11	Daniel Sirkovich	145096	1541	H—	H—	L1	B—	L3	2.0
12	Chris Wehrfritz	151679	1660	W5	L16	H—	H—	U—	2.0
13	Kevin Gaffney	102701	1596	D1	L3	L8	W19	U—	1.5
14	Peter McNelly	106141	1645	H—	H—	L10	L6	L8	1.0
15	Nicholas O'Bumsawin	151261	1756	H—	H—	L4	U—	U—	1.0
16	Ian Prittie	153588	1135	U—	W12	U—	U—	U—	1.0
17	David Tolnai	126875	1571	W20	F—	U—	U—	U—	1.0
18	George Supol	152286	1393	U—	U—	W19	U—	U—	1.0
19	Bill Thornton	131181	1641	L10	L5	L18	L13	L7	0.0
20	Edmond Jodhi	150171	1679	L17	L4	U—	U—	U—	0.0

SwissSys Standings. Summer Love: U1500

#	Name	ID	Rating	Rd 1	Rd 2	Rd 3	Rd 4	Rd 5	Total
1	Harmony Zhu	151635	948	D10	W16	W14	W9	W4	4.5
2	Ian Prittie	153588	1135	L9	B—	W17	W11	W8	4.0
3	Kuhan Jeyapragasan	147906	1467	H—	H—	W10	W14	W5	4.0
4	Shabnam Abbarin	151181	1385	W22	W11	D9	W6	L1	3.5
5	Vinorth Vigneswaramoorthy	153938	1349	W18	L9	W15	W7	L3	3.0
6	George Supol	152286	1393	W7	L14	B—	L4	W10	3.0
7	Jean-Marc David	151900	1203	L6	W12	W16	L5	W14	3.0
8	Alejandro Renteria	152628	1379	H—	H—	W19	W13	L2	3.0
9	Yanfeng Zhao	154318	unr.	W2	W5	D4	L1	U—	2.5
10	James Mourgelas	108540	1393	D1	W15	L3	W19	L6	2.5
11	Marc Antonio Nunes	154427	1034	W19	L4	H—	L2	W20	2.5
12	Enrique Rodriguez	154428	1433	L14	L7	W18	W15	D13	2.5
13	Nick Harding	154309	1234	H—	W21	H—	L8	D12	2.5
14	Christopher Field	108098	1244	W12	W6	L1	L3	L7	2.0
15	Raymond Lin	150193	960	X23	L10	L5	L12	D17	1.5
16	Milan Cvetkovic	150817	1286	H—	L1	L7	W18	U—	1.5
17	Eli Teram	107314	1287	H—	H—	L2	U—	D15	1.5
18	Dennis Li	153129	982	L5	L19	L12	L16	W21	1.0
19	Jeffrey Zhu		unr.	L11	W18	L8	L10	U—	1.0
20	Michael Vermont	151783	1474	H—	H—	U—	U—	L11	1.0
21	Stone Hu	153507	653	H—	L13	U—	U—	L18	0.5
22	Brian Groat	153518	634	L4	H—	U—	U—	U—	0.5
23	Lawrence Garcia	106367	1438	F15	U—	U—	U—	U—	0.0

Round One – Aug 20

Almost forty players came out for the start of the tournament – including three masters and a WGM!

With just one round in the books, it’s too early to announce tournament leaders, but with so many mismatched games on opening night, there are, as usual, a few nice (or painful, depending on your perspective) upsets to announce. In the top section, there were no surprises: the favourites won every game. In the bottom section, there was one upset draw (Harmony Zhu against Jim Mourgelas). But in the middle section, every single winner was a rating underdog! Special congratulations to Abdolreza Radpey, Jack Maguire, and David Tolnai, whose opponents out-rated them by over 100 points!

Chess Lecture

Before the tournament started, players were treated to a chess lecture by Rhys Goldstein: “Safety Behind Enemy Lines,” 6:50 to 7:20 pm. If you missed the lecture, you can check Rhys’s lecture notes. (Even if you saw the lecture, you’ll enjoy the bonus material in the notes.)

It would be great to have chess lectures more regularly. You don’t have to be a master. If you have an interesting game to analyse, or an opening line to explain, or a few examples of a middle-game or endgame theme to share, or any other aspect of chess culture or history you’d like to delve into, let us know and we’ll find you a slot in the schedule.

A couple of games from Round 1

Featured games this week include father-and-son games in the same opening: Jack Maguire was victorious (finally!) in what must be his fourth essay of the Budapest Gambit against Marcus Wilker, while his son Zehn (in the top section) was not so lucky with 2…e5 and 3…Ng4 against David Southam.

[Event "ACC Summer Love"] [Site "Toronto, CAN"] [Date "2012.08.20"] [Round "1"] [White "Wilker, Marcus"] [Black "Maguire, Jack"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "A52"] [WhiteElo "1667"] [BlackElo "1514"] [Annotator "Microsoft"] [PlyCount "102"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e5 3. dxe5 Ng4 4. Bf4 g5 5. Bg3 Bg7 6. Nf3 Nc6 7. Qc2 Ngxe5 8. Nxe5 Nxe5 9. e3 d6 10. Nc3 Be6 11. Be2 Nxc4 12. Bxc4 Bxc4 13. Qa4+ b5 14. Nxb5 Bxb5 15. Qxb5+ Kf8 16. Rb1 Rb8 17. Qe2 Qf6 18. b3 Qc3+ 19. Qd2 h5 20. h4 g4 21. Rc1 Qxd2+ 22. Kxd2 Rb7 23. Rc2 Ke7 24. Rhc1 Kd7 25. Rc6 Re8 26. Kd3 Be5 27. Bxe5 Rxe5 28. R1c2 f5 29. Ra6 Rd5+ 30. Ke2 Kc8 31. Rc4 Kb8 32. Rca4 Rc5 33. Kd2 Rd5+ 34. Rd4 Rbb5 35. Rc6 Kb7 36. Rcc4 Kb6 37. Ke2 Rxd4 38. exd4 a5 39. Ke3 Rd5 40. Kf4 c5 41. dxc5+ dxc5 42. Rc2 Kb5 43. Kg5 f4+ 44. Kxf4 a4 45. Ke4 (45. bxa4+ Kxa4 46. Ke4) 45... axb3 46. Rb2 Rd4+ 47. Ke3 Kc4 48. Rxb3 Rd1 49. Rb2 Kc3 50. Ke2 ?? (50. Rb5 Kc4 51. Rb7) 50... Kxb2 51. Kxd1 c4 0-1 [Event "ACC Summer Love"] [Site "Toronto, CAN"] [Date "2012.08.20"] [Round "1"] [White "Southam, David"] [Black "Nasir, Zehn"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "A52"] [WhiteElo "2180"] [BlackElo "1881"] [PlyCount "57"] [SourceDate "2012.08.24"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e5 3. dxe5 Ng4 4. Nf3 Bc5 5. e3 Nc6 6. a3 a5 7. b3 Ngxe5 8. Bb2 d6 9. Be2 Bf5 10. O-O O-O 11. Nc3 Rb8 12. Nd4 Bxd4 13. exd4 Ng6 14. Qd2 Bd7 15. g3 f5 16. f4 Nce7 17. Rfe1 c6 18. Bf3 Be8 19. Re3 Bf7 20. d5 cxd5 21. Nxd5 Nxd5 22. Bxd5 Bxd5 23. Qxd5+ Kh8 24. Rd1 Re8 25. Qf7 Rg8 26. h4 Rc8 27. h5 Rc7 28. Qxf5 Ne7 29. Qe6 1-0 You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

Round Two – Aug 27

After two rounds of play, there is a three-way tie for the lead in the top section, as David Southam, Pavel Peev, Wajdy Shebetah all have two points. In the middle section, there are just two leaders: Ulli Diemer and Adie Todd, with two points apiece. And finally, in the bottom section, unrated Yanfeng Zhao is tied for the lead with Shabnam Abbarin and Chris Field.

Labour Day – Sept 3

We were closed Monday September 3, but a number of our players played in the Labour Day Open, September 1, 2, and 3 at Hart House. Results are now posted on the CFC site.

Round Three – Sept 10

After three rounds of play, David Southam is leading the Premier section, with three wins and a 3.0/3 record. Pavel Peev is tied for first with two wins and a full-point bye. The two are due to face off in Round 4.

In the middle section, Ulli Diemer is alone in first, perfect at 3.0/3. George Supol, who was re-paired to the middle section after his opponent didn’t show, debuted in fine style with an upset win over Bill Thornton.

In the bottom section, unrated Yanfeng Zhao is tearing it up with 2.5/3 after a draw with co-leader, Shabnam Abbarin. Young Harmony Zhu, with a Round-three win over Chris Field, is tied for the lead.

Finally, in the casual section, Yakos Spiliotopoulos was proud finally to win a game against Brian Fiedler, after years of unsuccessful attempts.

A couple of games from Round 3

Featured games this week include George Supol’s debut upset win in the middle section, and Dave Southam’s third win in the top section. Dave gave a great demonstration of how to go for the kill in a relatively level-looking position.

[Event "ACC Summer Love"] [Site "Toronto CAN"] [Date "2012.09.10"] [Round "3"] [White "Supol, George"] [Black "Thornton, Bill"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "D03"] [WhiteElo "1393"] [BlackElo "1641"] [PlyCount "49"] [SourceDate "2012.09.13"] 1. Nf3 d5 2. d4 Nf6 3. Bg5 e6 4. Ne5 Be7 5. e3 O-O 6. Bd3 h6 7. Bxf6 Bxf6 8. Ng4 Be7 9. Nxh6+ gxh6 10. Qh5 Kg7 11. Qg4+ Kh8 12. Qh5 Kg7 13. Qg4+ Bg5 14. h4 f5 15. Qg3 Qd6 16. f4 Kg6 17. hxg5 h5 18. Qh4 Rh8 19. g4 Qb4+ 20. Ke2 Qe7 21. gxh5+ Kf7 22. g6+ Ke8 23. Qxe7+ Kxe7 24. g7 Rg8 25. h6 1-0 [Event "ACC Summer Love"] [Site "Toronto CAN"] [Date "2012.09.10"] [Round "3"] [White "Southam, David"] [Black "Manalo, Pepin"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "D06"] [WhiteElo "2180"] [BlackElo "1845"] [PlyCount "101"] [SourceDate "2012.09.13"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 d5 3. cxd5 Qxd5 4. Nc3 Qa5 5. Bd2 Qb6 6. e3 Bg4 7. f3 Bd7 8. Bc4 e6 9. Nge2 c5 10. Na4 Qc7 11. Nxc5 Bxc5 12. dxc5 Qxc5 13. Rc1 Qd6 14. O-O O-O 15. Bc3 Qe7 16. Be5 Rd8 17. Bc7 Rc8 18. Bd6 Qd8 19. Qd2 Nc6 20. b4 Ne7 21. e4 b5 22. Bb3 Ng6 23. Rcd1 Qb6+ 24. Qd4 Qxd4+ 25. Nxd4 e5 26. Nf5 Be6 27. Bc5 Rd8 28. Nd6 Bxb3 29. axb3 a6 30. Nb7 Rdb8 31. Na5 Rc8 32. Rd6 Nf4 33. Nc6 Ng6 34. Rfd1 h6 35. g3 Re8 36. Na5 Nf8 37. Rb6 N6d7 38. Rb7 Nb8 39. Rd5 f6 40. Bxf8 Kxf8 41. Rc5 Re7 42. Rc8+ Re8 43. Rcc7 Rd8 44. Rf7+ Kg8 45. Rxg7+ Kf8 46. Rh7 Kg8 47. Rbg7+ Kf8 48. Rh8+ Kxg7 49. Rxd8 Ra7 50. Rxb8 Rc7 51. Rb7 1-0 You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

Round Four – Sept 17

Six-year-old Harmony Zhu is on a rampage. She entered the bottom section with a 948 rating, but mid-tournament she scored 5.0/6 (+4 =2 -0) in the Toronto Labour Day Open, so her rating is actually now sitting at 1330. She’s continuing her unbeaten streak in the ACC Summer Love, with a 3.5/4 score, winning her last game in only ten moves. Shabnam Abbarin, who also won her Round-4 game, is still tied for the lead with Harmony.

In the middle section, Arkadiy Ugodnikov beat previously undefeated Ulli Diemer, to catch him at 3.0/4. Zaki Uddin also won his Round-4 game, joining the two leaders in a three-way tie for first.

In the top section, Dave Southam ended his winning streak but held onto his lead with a draw against Wajdy Shebetah; Dave now has 3.5/4. Pavel Peev, with a bye, is tied for the lead at 3.5/4.

Chess Lecture

We started off the night with a lecture by Michael Sutton, “Chess 960: Is this the future of chess?” 6:50 to 7:20 pm.

Michael says he quit playing “Classic Chess” four years ago and never looked back. A self-confessed Chess-960 evangelist, Michael argues that 960 saves the game from the computers and gives it back to human players.

If you missed the lecture, check out Michael Sutton’s lecture notes, and the 960 demo game, below:

[Event "960 Lecture"] [Site "ACC"] [Date "2012.09.05"] [Round "2-1"] [White "Michael Sutton"] [Black "Adel Gorgis"] [Result "1-0"] [Variant "fischerandom"] [FEN "qrkbbrnn/pppppppp/8/8/8/8/PPPPPPPP/QRKBBRNN w Ff - 0 1"] [SetUp "1"] 1. e4 d6 2. Ng3 g6 3. b3 Nf6 4. Bf3 e5 5. Qc3 b6 6. N1e2 Be7 7. d4 a5 8. Bd2 Nd7 9. d5 h5 10. O-O Nc5 11. Nc1 h4 12. Nge2 Bb5 13. Bh6 Rg8 14. Be3 g5 15. Bxc5 bxc5 16. Bg4+ Kb7 17. a4 Be8 18. Nd3 Ng6 19. b4 axb4 20. Nxb4 cxb4 21. Qxb4+ Ka6 22. Qxb8 Qxb8 23. Rxb8 Rf8 24. Rfb1 Ka7 25. Nc3 Bxa4 26. R1b7+ Ka6 27. Be2+ You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

Round-4 Games

Here are a few games from Round 4, including two 10-move wins by Harmony Zhu and Hayk Oganesyan, and the Shebetah-Southam draw from board one.

[Event "ACC Summer Love"] [Site "Toronto CAN"] [Date "2012.09.17"] [Round "4"] [White "Zhao, Yanfeng"] [Black "Zhu, Harmony"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "D37"] [PlyCount "20"] [SourceDate "2012.09.24"] 1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. Bf4 c6 5. e3 Nbd7 6. Nf3 Qa5 7. a3 Ne4 8. Rc1 Bxa3 9. Qc2 Nxc3 10. Qxc3 Bb4 1-0 [Event "ACC Summer Love"] [Site "Toronto CAN"] [Date "2012.09.17"] [Round "4"] [White "Oganesyan, Hayk"] [Black "Valencia, Adrian David"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C41"] [PlyCount "19"] [SourceDate "2012.09.24"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 Nd7 4. Bc4 c6 5. Ng5 Nh6 6. O-O Be7 7. Ne6 fxe6 8. Bxh6 gxh6 9. Qh5+ Kf8 10. Bxe6 1-0 [Event "ACC Summer Love"] [Site "Toronto CAN"] [Date "2012.09.17"] [Round "4"] [White "Shebetah, Wajdy"] [Black "Southam, David"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C00"] [PlyCount "69"] [SourceDate "2012.09.24"] 1. e4 e6 2. d3 c5 3. c3 Nc6 4. f4 g6 5. Be2 Bg7 6. Nf3 Nge7 7. O-O b6 8. Na3 O-O 9. Nc2 d6 10. Qe1 Ba6 11. Kh1 f5 12. d4 Bxe2 13. Qxe2 Qd7 14. e5 cxd4 15. cxd4 Nd5 16. Bd2 Rac8 17. Rac1 Bh6 18. g3 Rc7 19. h4 Rfc8 20. Ne3 Nxe3 21. Bxe3 Ne7 22. Rxc7 Rxc7 23. h5 Nd5 24. exd6 Qxd6 25. hxg6 hxg6 26. Ne5 Bg7 27. Kg1 Nxe3 28. Qxe3 Qd5 29. b3 Bf6 30. Rf2 Rh7 31. Rh2 Bxe5 32. Qxe5 Qxe5 33. dxe5 Rc7 34. Rd2 Kf7 35. Kf2 1/2-1/2 You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

Round Five – September 24

In the U1900 section, Arkadiy Ugodnikov, with a last-round win over Zaki Uddin, finished alone in first with 4.0/5. Congratulations, Arkadiy!

“Uh, well-a, well-a, well-a, uh!”

Summer Lovin’

john-and-olivia — **John Travolta** and **Olivia Newton-John** sang “Summer Lovin'” in *Grease* (1978).

Results

Michael Humphreys wins Fall Swiss!

November 5, 2011 king Leave a comment

2011 ACC Fall Swiss

Our second annual (Steve Fairbairn won the last one) ACC Fall Swiss is all wrapped up, and Michael Humphreys has won the Premier section with a perfect 5.0/5! Greg Beal and Dan Geambasu are the Reserve A and B winners.

A new club tournament, the Holiday Swiss, starts at 7:30 pm next Monday, December 12. Pre-register now!

Check complete final results from the Fall Swiss on the cross-tables, below.

Final Results through Round 5:

Premier (>1900)

#	Name	ID	Rating	Rd 1	Rd 2	Rd 3	Rd 4	Rd 5	Total
1	Michael Humphreys	131628	2299	W4	W5	W2	W6	W8	5.0
2	David Southam	102535	2154	W11	W7	L1	W5	W4	4.0
3	Robert Bzikot	132541	1949	H—	L10	H—	W13	W9	3.0
4	Pavel Peev	122223	2146	L1	W13	D7	W10	L2	2.5
5	Rolando Renteria	152626	2289	W13	L1	H—	L2	W6	2.5
6	Juliaan Posaratnanathan	146059	1878	H—	W11	W10	L1	L5	2.5
7	Wajdy Shebetah	148432	2086	H—	L2	D4	H—	W10	2.5
8	Alex T. Ferreira	127516	2025	H—	H—	H—	W12	L1	2.5
9	Manuela Renteria	152627	1743	H—	H—	H—	H—	L3	2.0
10	Hugh Siddeley	120619	1982	H—	W3	L6	L4	L7	1.5
11	Carlos Romero Alfonso	153128	2360	L2	L6	L13	H—	W12	1.5
12	Venci Ivanov	153031	1862	H—	H—	H—	L8	L11	1.5
13	Bruce McKendry	111714	1903	L5	L4	W11	L3	U—	1.0

Reserve A (>1500)

#	Name	ID	Rating	Rd 1	Rd 2	Rd 3	Rd 4	Rd 5	Total
1	Greg Beal	101490	1708	W9	W4	W3	W10	L2	4.0
2	Nicholas O'Bumsawin	151261	1781	H—	D7	D9	W3	W1	3.5
3	Edmond Jodhi	150171	1693	W15	W10	L1	L2	W9	3.0
4	Marcus Wilker	102713	1679	W12	L1	L8	W15	W10	3.0
5	Zehn Nasir	148198	1843	H—	H—	H—	H—	W7	3.0
6	Arkadiy Ugodnikov	146626	1814	L10	L13	W12	D9	W11	2.5
7	Yakos Spiliotopoulos	151471	1689	H—	D2	W14	H—	L5	2.5
8	Erik Malmsten	100196	1852	H—	H—	W4	H—	U—	2.5
9	Josep Sobrepere	152976	1475	L1	W12	D2	D6	L3	2.0
10	Jack Maguire	144604	1528	W6	L3	W15	L1	L4	2.0
11	Adie Todd	125156	1667	H—	H—	H—	H—	L6	2.0
12	Mohammad Zaki Uddin	152024	1826	L4	L9	L6	H—	W15	1.5
13	Alex T. Ferreira	127516	2025	H—	W6	U—	U—	U—	1.5
14	Daniel Zotkin	146857	1673	H—	H—	L7	U—	U—	1.0
15	Bazil Whitehead	153156	unr.	L3	H—	L10	L4	L12	0.5

Reserve B (U1500)

#	Name	ID	Rating	Rd 1	Rd 2	Rd 3	Rd 4	Rd 5	Total
1	Dan Geambasu	134119	1395	W9	W2	W7	W8	W6	5.0
2	Bill Thornton	131181	1290	W13	L1	W3	W7	W8	4.0
3	Milan Cvetkovic	150817	1190	L11	W4	L2	W10	W7	3.0
4	Adam Palmer	153127	1060	L5	L3	W10	W13	W12	3.0
5	Christopher Field	108098	1298	W4	L7	W11	W9	U—	3.0
6	Larissa Souchko	145490	1157	H—	L13	W15	W12	L1	2.5
7	George Supol	152286	1363	W15	W5	L1	L2	L3	2.0
8	Alexandre Johnson	109239	1449	W16	H—	H—	L1	L2	2.0
9	Jean-Marc David	151900	1116	L1	W15	W13	L5	U—	2.0
10	Hooshang Abbarin	152910	1470	H—	H—	L4	L3	W15	2.0
11	Francis He	153130	713	W3	H—	L5	U—	U—	1.5
12	Jason Waugh	152118	938	H—	H—	H—	L6	L4	1.5
13	Raymond Lin	150193	951	L2	W6	L9	L4	U—	1.0
14	Alan Yulun He	141522	1016	U—	U—	U—	W15	U—	1.0
15	Dennis Li	153129	1077	L7	L9	L6	L14	L10	0.0
16	Jennifer Ugodnikov	151196	1155	L8	U—	U—	U—	U—	0.0

Round 1 (November 7)

Week one of a Swiss always sees mismatched games, but it’s exciting to see the underdog win some of them. In the top (Premier) section, Dave Southam beat a 2300, but Carlos Romero Alfonso’s 2360 rating is provisional – based on only two games. In the bottom (Reserve B) section, young Francis He defeated Milan Cvetkovic. Finally, there were two big upsets in the middle (Reserve A) section: Marcus Wilker beat top seed Mohammad Zaki Uddin, and the wily Jack Maguire miniatured Arkadiy Ugodnikov!

Get a copy of the lecture notes from Rhys Goldstein’s November 7 chess talk “Long Journeys on Horseback”.

And check out the upset of the week – Jack Maguire, known for his straight-for-the-jugular opening play, takes down one of our club’s giants in 17 moves!

White: Maguire, Jack (1528)
Black: Ugodnikov, Arkadiy (1814)

ACC Fall Swiss (1)
2011.11.07
Toronto, ON

D01 Veresov Attack

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nc3 d5 3. Bg5! {Exclam for shock value. Jack busts out the Veresov for the first time, in order to avoid Arkadiy’s Hübsch} (3. e4 Nxe4) 3... Ne4 4. Nxe4 dxe4 5. f3 Bf5 6. g4 Bg6 7. Bg2 exf3 8. Nxf3 h6 9. Bh4 c6 10. O-O Qa5 11. Ne5 Na6 12. Nxc6 bxc6 13. Bxc6+ Kd8 14. Bxa8 f6 15. c3 Nc7 16. Qb3 Ke8 17. Bc6+ (1-0) You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

Round 2 (November 14)

After two rounds, all three sections have two-way ties for the lead. In the Premier section, it’s Michael Humphreys (with a win over Rolado Renteria) and David Southam (with a win over Wajdy Shebetah). In Reserve A, it’s Edmond Jodhi and Greg Beal. And in Reserve B, it’s Dan Geambasu and George Supol. All three pairs of co-leaders are due to face off in Round 3.

Take a copy of Mohammad Zaki Uddin’s November 14 chess talk, “Saving a Lost Game”.

Here are a few selected second-round battles:

White: Renteria, Rolando (2289)
Black: Humphreys, Michael (2299)

ACC Fall Swiss (2)
2011.11.14
Toronto, ON

B12 Caro Kann: Fantasy

1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. f3 Qb6 4. Nc3 Nf6 5. e5 Nfd7 6. e6 fxe6 7. f4 g6 8. Nf3 Bg7 9. b3 c5 10. Na4 Qd6 11. c3 Nc6 12. g3 {(on 12. dxc5 Nxc5 13. Ba3, there’s an interesting Q-sac line: 13… Nxa4!? 14.Bxd6 Nxc3 15. Qc2 exd6)} 12... cxd4 13. cxd4 Nxd4 14. Nxd4 Qb4+ 15. Bd2 Qxd4 16. Nc3 Nc5 17. Bb5+ Bd7 18. Qe2 Ne4 19. Bxd7+ Kxd7 20. Nxe4 Qxa1+ 21. Kf2 Qd4+ 22. Be3 Qxe4 23. Qb5+ Kd8 24. Rc1 Bd4 (0-1) You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

White: Shebetah, Wajdy (2086)
Black: Southam, Dave (2154)

2011.11.14 ACC Fall Swiss (2)
Toronto, ON

C11 French Defence: Two Knights

1. e4 e6 2. Nf3 d5 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. e5 Nfd7 5. d4 c5 6. Bf4 Nc6 7. dxc5 Bxc5 8. Bd3 f6 9. exf6 Nxf6 10. Qe2 O-O 11. O-O-O a6 12. Ne5 Nb4 13. g4 Nd7 14. Nxd7 Bxd7 15. Be3 Bxe3+ 16. Qxe3 Qf6 17. Qh3 Nxd3+ 18. Qxd3 Bc6 19. Qe2 d4 20. Ne4 Qf4+ 21. Nd2 Bxh1 22. Qxe6+ Qf7 (0-1) You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

White: Siddeley, Hugh (1982)
Black: Bzikot, Robert (1949)

ACC Fall Swiss (2)
2011.11.14
Toronto, ON

B33 Sicilian: Sveshnikov

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 Nc6 6. Ndb5 d6 7. Bf4 e5 8. Bg5 a6 9. Na3 b5 10. Bxf6 gxf6 11. Nd5 f5 12. Bxb5 axb5 13. Nxb5 Ra4 14. b4 Rxb4 15. Nbc7+ Kd7 16. Nxb4 Nxb4 17. Nd5 Qa5 18. O-O Nxd5 19. exd5 Ba6 20. Re1 Bc4 21. Qh5 Qxd5 22. Qxf5+ Qe6 23. Qe4 Bd5 24. Qa4+ Ke7 25. Qa7+ Kf6 26. Re3 Rg8 27. Rg3 Rxg3 28. hxg3 Qg4 29. Qb6 Qe4 30. f3 Qxc2 31. Qd8+ Be7 32. Qh8+ Ke6 33. a4 Qd3 34. Qc8+ Kf6 35. Qc1 Kg7 36. a5 Bf6 37. a6 e4 38. Ra4 Bd4+ 39. Kh2 e3 40. a7 Ba8 41. Qc8 e2 42. Qg4+ Kh6 43. Rxd4 Qxd4 44. Qxd4 e1=Q 45. Qf6+ (1-0) You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

Round 3 (November 21)

After three rounds, a clear leader has emerged in each of the three sections. In Reserve A, Greg Beal is in clear first, after defeating Edmond Jodhi. In Reserve B, it’s Dan Geambasu, with a win against George Supol. And in the Premier section, Michael Humphreys has the top spot, after beating David Southam.

Here’s the game from board 1:

White: Humphreys, Michael (2298)
Black: Southam, David (2154)

ACC Fall Swiss (3)
2011.11.21
Toronto, ON

A41 Modern Defence

1. Nf3 g6 2. c4 Bg7 3. Nc3 d6 4. d4 Bg4 5. g3 Bxf3 6. exf3 c6 7. Bg2 e6 8. d5 exd5 9. cxd5 c5 10. Qa4+ Kf8 11. Bf4 Ne7 12. O-O h6 13. Ne4 Nc8 14. Rfe1 Kg8? 15. Nxc5! Kh7 (15... dxc5 16. Re8+) 16. Nxb7 Qb6 17. Qb3 Bxb2 18. Rab1 Qxb3 19. axb3 Bf6 20. Bxd6 Na6 21. Bf1 Nxd6 22. Nxd6 Nb4 23. Nxf7 Rhf8 24. Ne5 Nxd5 25. Nd7 Rf7 26. Nxf6+ Nxf6 27. Bc4 Rc7 28. Re6 Kg7 29. Rd1 Re8 30. Ra6 Nh7 31. Rdd6 Nf8 32. f4 Ree7 33. h4 Rcd7 34. h5 Rxd6 35. Rxd6 gxh5 36. f5 Rc7 37. f6+ Kg6 38. Rd8 {1-0} You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

Round 4 (November 28)

The leaders are undefeated! In Reserve A, Greg Beal is running away with the tournament. Going into the last round, he is in clear first – and out of reach, at a point and a half ahead of the competition! In Reserve B, Dan Geambasu is perfect and a full point ahead. And in the Premier section, Michael Humphreys is still perfect, a point ahead of his closest rival, David Southam.

Get a copy of Erik Malmsten’s lecture, “Q-KN3 What!!” (also available zipped with a .pgn file)

Round 5 starts at 7:30 pm on Monday December 5. Remember, it’s never too late to join an ongoing club tournament. The Holiday Swiss starts the following Monday December 12.

Check full Round 4 results on the cross-tables, below.

Here are a couple selected games:

White: Southam, David (2154)
Black: Renteria, Rolando (2289)

ACC Fall Swiss (4)
2011.11.28
Toronto, ON

E94 King’s Indian: Orthodox

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. Nf3 O-O 6. Be2 Nbd7 7. O-O e5 8. Be3 Ng4 9. Bg5 f6 10. Bc1 f5 11. exf5 gxf5 12. dxe5 dxe5 13. Ng5 Ndf6 14. Qxd8 Rxd8 15. Nb5 Ne8 16. Bxg4 fxg4 17. Be3 c6 18. Nc3 Nd6 19. Rad1 Bf5 20. c5 Nf7 21. Nge4 Rd4 22. Bxd4 exd4 23. Ng3 Bg6 24. Nce2 Bc2 25. Rxd4 Bxd4 26. Nxd4 Bg6 27. Rd1 Rd8 28. Rd2 Rd5 29. Nb3 Ne5 30. Rxd5 cxd5 31. Na5 b6 32. c6 Be8 33. c7 Bd7 34. Nb7 Nf7 35. Nh5 Bc8 36. Nf6+ Kf8 37. Nd8 d4 38. Ne4 Ba6 39. Nxf7 Kxf7 40. Nd6+ Ke6 41. c8=Q+ Bxc8 42. Nxc8 Kd5 43. Kf1 {1-0} You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

White: Siddely, Hugh (1982)
Black: Peev, Pavel (2146)

ACC Fall Swiss (4)
2011.11.28
Toronto, ON

B52 Sicillian: Rossolimo

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. Bb5+ Bd7 4. Bxd7+ Qxd7 5. c4 Nc6 6. d4 cxd4 7. Nxd4 Nf6 8. Nc3 g6 9. O-O Bg7 10. Nde2 O-O 11. f3 b6 12. Bg5 Qb7 13. Qd2 Rfc8 14. b3 Ne5 15. a4 Ned7 16. Rab1 Nc5 17. Nd5 Nxd5 18. exd5 Re8 19. Nc3 Rac8 20. Rfe1 Qd7 21. Nb5 a6 22. Nd4 Bxd4+ 23. Qxd4 e5 24. Qh4 f5 25. Be3 b5 26. axb5 axb5 27. Red1 f4 28. Bf2 bxc4 29. bxc4 Na4 30. Rb4 Rb8 31. Rdb1 Rxb4 32. Rxb4 Nc3 33. Qf6 Qe7 34. Qxe7 Rxe7 35. Rb8+ Kf7 36. Rh8 Kg7 37. Rd8 Rc7 38. c5 Nxd5 39. Rxd6 Ne7 40. Bh4? Nf5 41. Bf6+ Kf7 42. Bxe5 Rxc5 43. Rd7+? Ke6 44. Rc7 Rxe5 {0-1} You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

Round 5 (December 5)

In Reserve A, going into the last round, Greg Beal had already clinched the section, leading by a point and a half. After a last-round loss to Nick O’Bumsawin, he still wins clear first with 4.0/5. Nick finishes second, with 3.5/5.

In Reserve B, Dan Geambasu remained perfect, finishing with 5.0/5. Bill Thornton came second, with 4.0/5.

And in the Premier section, Michael Humphreys finished with a fifth win. (Alex Ferreira, making a third cameo appearance in the tournament, was his unlucky opponent this time.) Michael’s perfect result leaves him a point ahead of David Southam, who finished in clear second, with 4.0/5.

Here are Michael’s and Dave’s last-round games:

White: Ferreira, Alex (2025)
Black: Humphreys, Michael (2298)

2011.12.05 ACC Fall Swiss (5)
Toronto, ON

A45 Trompowski

1. d4 Nf6 2. Bg5 e6 3. e4 c5 4. d5 d6 5. Nc3 Be7 6. dxe6 Bxe6 7. Bb5+ Nc6 8. Nf3 O-O 9. Bxc6 bxc6 10. e5 Nd5 11. Bxe7 Qxe7 12. exd6 Qxd6 13. O-O Qf4 14. Ne2 Qf6 15. c4 Nb6 16. b3 Bg4 17. Nd2 Rad8 18. f3 Qb2 19. Qe1 (19. fxg4 Rxd2 20. Rb1 Qxa2 21. Ra1 Qb2 22. Rb1 Rxd1 23. Rxb2) 19... Rxd2 20. fxg4 Rxe2 21. Qg3 Qe5 22. Qf3 Qe3+ 23. Qxe3 Rxe3 24. Rf5 Rfe8 25. Rxc5 Re1+ 26. Rxe1 Rxe1+ 27. Kf2 Re6 28. a4 Kf8 29. Ra5 Nc8 30. b4 Ke7 31. Rh5 h6 32. Kf3 g5 33. h4 Nb6 34. hxg5 hxg5 35. Rxg5 Nxc4 36. Rc5 Nd2+ 37. Kf4 Re4+ 38. Kf5 Rxb4 39. Rxc6 Rxa4 40. g5 Nc4 41. g6 Ne3+ 42. Kg5 Rg4+ 43. Kh5 fxg6+ 44. Kh6 Nf5+ 45. Kh7 Kf7 {0-1} You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

White: Peev, Pavel (2146)
Black: Southam, David (2154)

2011.12.05 ACC Fall Swiss (5)
Toronto, ON

C06 French: Tarrasch

1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nd2 Be7 4. Ngf3 Nf6 5. e5 Nfd7 6. Bd3 c5 7. c3 Nc6 8. O-O g5 9. dxc5 g4 10. Nd4 Ndxe5 11. Nxc6 bxc6 12. Nb3 Nxd3 13. Qxd3 e5 14. Qe3 Qc7 15. Re1 f6 16. Qh6 Be6 17. Nd4 Qd7 18. Nxe6 Qxe6 19. Bf4 Kd7 20. b4 Qf5 21. Bg3 Qg6 22. Qd2 h5 23. b5 Bxc5 24. bxc6+ Kxc6 25. Bh4 Rhd8 26. Qd1 Bb6 27. Qa4+ Kb7 28. Rad1 Rac8 29. Qb3 Qf7 30. Rd3 Rd6 31. Red1 Rcd8 32. a4 Ka8 33. Kh1 R8d7 34. Bg3 d4 35. Qb4 Rd5 36. Qc4 Kb7 37. f3 f5 38. Qb3 e4 39. fxe4 fxe4 40. c4? Rf5 {0-1} You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

Besides winning the tournament, Michael also gave our weekly chess lecture. Michael’s lecture (Coffee’s for Closers, Part One?) was on the King’s Indian Defence, Orthodox variation. He showed an array of plans for both sides, and explained the tempo battles that are involved in the execution of plans in closed positions. We saw these positional struggles in action in the illustrative game, Mikhahil Tal v. Bobby Fischer (from the 1959 World Championship Candidates Tournament) – and we saw why Black needs his dark-squared bishop in these closed King’s Indian positions, even though it’s his bad bishop!

Here’s the illustrative game from Michael’s lecture:

White: Mikhail Tal
Black: Robert James Fischer

Candidates Tournament (3)
1959
Yugoslavia

E93 King’s Indian: Petrosian

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. Be2 O-O 6. Nf3 e5 7. d5 Nbd7 8. Bg5 h6 9. Bh4 a6 10. O-O Qe8 11. Nd2 Nh7 12. b4 Bf6 13. Bxf6 Nhxf6 14. Nb3 Qe7 15. Qd2 Kh7 16. Qe3 Ng8 17. c5 f5 18. exf5 gxf5 19. f4 exf4 20. Qxf4 dxc5 21. Bd3 cxb4 22. Rae1 Qf6 23. Re6 Qxc3 24. Bxf5+ Rxf5 25. Qxf5+ Kh8 26. Rf3 Qb2 27. Re8 Nf6 28. Qxf6+ Qxf6 29. Rxf6 Kg7 30. Rff8 Ne7 31. Na5 h5 32. h4 Rb8 33. Nc4 b5 34. Ne5 {1-0} You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

.pgn for games

[Event “ACC Fall Swiss”]
[Site “Toronto, CAN”]
[Date “2011.11.07”]
[Round “1”]
[White “Maguire, Jack”]
[Black “Ugodnikov, Arkadiy”]
[Result “1-0”]
[ECO “D01”]
[WhiteElo “1528”]
[BlackElo “1814”]
[PlyCount “33”]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nc3 d5 3. Bg5 (3. e4 Nxe4) 3… Ne4 4. Nxe4 dxe4 5. f3 Bf5 6. g4
Bg6 7. Bg2 exf3 8. Nxf3 h6 9. Bh4 c6 10. O-O Qa5 11. Ne5 Na6 12. Nxc6 bxc6 13.
Bxc6+ Kd8 14. Bxa8 f6 15. c3 Nc7 16. Qb3 Ke8 17. Bc6+ 1-0

[Event “ACC Fall Swiss”]
[Site “Toronto, CAN”]
[Date “2011.11.14”]
[Round “2”]
[White “Renteria, Rolando”]
[Black “Humphreys, Michael”]
[Result “0-1”]
[ECO “B12”]
[WhiteElo “2289”]
[BlackElo “2299”]
[PlyCount “48”]

1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. f3 Qb6 4. Nc3 Nf6 5. e5 Nfd7 6. e6 fxe6 7. f4 g6 8. Nf3
Bg7 9. b3 c5 10. Na4 Qd6 11. c3 Nc6 12. g3 (12. dxc5 Nxc5 13. Ba3 Nxa4 $5 14.
Bxd6 Nxc3 15. Qc2 exd6) 12… cxd4 13. cxd4 Nxd4 14. Nxd4 Qb4+ 15. Bd2 Qxd4 16.
Nc3 Nc5 17. Bb5+ Bd7 18. Qe2 Ne4 19. Bxd7+ Kxd7 20. Nxe4 Qxa1+ 21. Kf2 Qd4+ 22.
Be3 Qxe4 23. Qb5+ Kd8 24. Rc1 Bd4 0-1

[Event “ACC Fall Swiss”]
[Site “Toronto, CAN”]
[Date “2011.11.14”]
[Round “2”]
[White “Shebetah, Wajdy”]
[Black “Southam, Dave”]
[Result “0-1”]
[ECO “C11”]
[WhiteElo “2086”]
[BlackElo “2154”]
[PlyCount “44”]

1. e4 e6 2. Nf3 d5 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. e5 Nfd7 5. d4 c5 6. Bf4 Nc6 7. dxc5 Bxc5 8.
Bd3 f6 9. exf6 Nxf6 10. Qe2 O-O 11. O-O-O a6 12. Ne5 Nb4 13. g4 Nd7 14. Nxd7
Bxd7 15. Be3 Bxe3+ 16. Qxe3 Qf6 17. Qh3 Nxd3+ 18. Qxd3 Bc6 19. Qe2 d4 20. Ne4
Qf4+ 21. Nd2 Bxh1 22. Qxe6+ Qf7 0-1

[Event “ACC Fall Swiss”]
[Site “Toronto, CAN”]
[Date “2011.11.14”]
[Round “2”]
[White “Siddeley, Hugh”]
[Black “Bzikot, Robert”]
[Result “1-0”]
[ECO “B33”]
[WhiteElo “1982”]
[BlackElo “1949”]
[PlyCount “89”]

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 Nc6 6. Ndb5 d6 7. Bf4 e5 8.
Bg5 a6 9. Na3 b5 10. Bxf6 gxf6 11. Nd5 f5 12. Bxb5 axb5 13. Nxb5 Ra4 14. b4
Rxb4 15. Nbc7+ Kd7 16. Nxb4 Nxb4 17. Nd5 Qa5 18. O-O Nxd5 19. exd5 Ba6 20. Re1
Bc4 21. Qh5 Qxd5 22. Qxf5+ Qe6 23. Qe4 Bd5 24. Qa4+ Ke7 25. Qa7+ Kf6 26. Re3
Rg8 27. Rg3 Rxg3 28. hxg3 Qg4 29. Qb6 Qe4 30. f3 Qxc2 31. Qd8+ Be7 32. Qh8+ Ke6
33. a4 Qd3 34. Qc8+ Kf6 35. Qc1 Kg7 36. a5 Bf6 37. a6 e4 38. Ra4 Bd4+ 39. Kh2
e3 40. a7 Ba8 41. Qc8 e2 42. Qg4+ Kh6 43. Rxd4 Qxd4 44. Qxd4 e1=Q 45. Qf6+ 1-0

[Event “ACC Fall Swiss”]
[Site “Toronto, CAN”]
[Date “2011.11.21”]
[Round “3”]
[White “Humphreys, Michael”]
[Black “Southam, David”]
[Result “1-0”]
[ECO “A41”]
[WhiteElo “2298”]
[BlackElo “2154”]
[PlyCount “75”]
[SourceDate “2011.11.23”]

1. Nf3 g6 2. c4 Bg7 3. Nc3 d6 4. d4 Bg4 5. g3 Bxf3 6. exf3 c6 7. Bg2 e6 8. d5
exd5 9. cxd5 c5 10. Qa4+ Kf8 11. Bf4 Ne7 12. O-O h6 13. Ne4 Nc8 14. Rfe1 Kg8 $2
15. Nxc5 $1 Kh7 (15… dxc5 16. Re8+) 16. Nxb7 Qb6 17. Qb3 Bxb2 18. Rab1 Qxb3
19. axb3 Bf6 20. Bxd6 Na6 21. Bf1 Nxd6 22. Nxd6 Nb4 23. Nxf7 Rhf8 24. Ne5 Nxd5
25. Nd7 Rf7 26. Nxf6+ Nxf6 27. Bc4 Rc7 28. Re6 Kg7 29. Rd1 Re8 30. Ra6 Nh7 31.
Rdd6 Nf8 32. f4 Ree7 33. h4 Rcd7 34. h5 Rxd6 35. Rxd6 gxh5 36. f5 Rc7 37. f6+
Kg6 38. Rd8 1-0

[Event “ACC Fall Swiss”]
[Site “Toronto CAN”]
[Date “2011.11.28”]
[Round “4”]
[White “Southam, David”]
[Black “Renteria, Rolando”]
[Result “1-0”]
[ECO “E94”]
[WhiteElo “2154”]
[BlackElo “2289”]
[PlyCount “85”]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. Nf3 O-O 6. Be2 Nbd7 7. O-O e5 8. Be3
Ng4 9. Bg5 f6 10. Bc1 f5 11. exf5 gxf5 12. dxe5 dxe5 13. Ng5 Ndf6 14. Qxd8 Rxd8
15. Nb5 Ne8 16. Bxg4 fxg4 17. Be3 c6 18. Nc3 Nd6 19. Rad1 Bf5 20. c5 Nf7 21.
Nge4 Rd4 22. Bxd4 exd4 23. Ng3 Bg6 24. Nce2 Bc2 25. Rxd4 Bxd4 26. Nxd4 Bg6 27.
Rd1 Rd8 28. Rd2 Rd5 29. Nb3 Ne5 30. Rxd5 cxd5 31. Na5 b6 32. c6 Be8 33. c7 Bd7
34. Nb7 Nf7 35. Nh5 Bc8 36. Nf6+ Kf8 37. Nd8 d4 38. Ne4 Ba6 39. Nxf7 Kxf7 40.
Nd6+ Ke6 41. c8=Q+ Bxc8 42. Nxc8 Kd5 43. Kf1 1-0

[Event “ACC Fall Swiss”]
[Site “Toronto CAN”]
[Date “2011.11.28”]
[Round “4”]
[White “Siddeley, Hugh”]
[Black “Peev, Pavel”]
[Result “0-1”]
[ECO “B52”]
[WhiteElo “1982”]
[BlackElo “2146”]
[PlyCount “88”]

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. Bb5+ Bd7 4. Bxd7+ Qxd7 5. c4 Nc6 6. d4 cxd4 7. Nxd4 Nf6
8. Nc3 g6 9. O-O Bg7 10. Nde2 O-O 11. f3 b6 12. Bg5 Qb7 13. Qd2 Rfc8 14. b3 Ne5
15. a4 Ned7 16. Rab1 Nc5 17. Nd5 Nxd5 18. exd5 Re8 19. Nc3 Rac8 20. Rfe1 Qd7
21. Nb5 a6 22. Nd4 Bxd4+ 23. Qxd4 e5 24. Qh4 f5 25. Be3 b5 26. axb5 axb5 27.
Red1 f4 28. Bf2 bxc4 29. bxc4 Na4 30. Rb4 Rb8 31. Rdb1 Rxb4 32. Rxb4 Nc3 33.
Qf6 Qe7 34. Qxe7 Rxe7 35. Rb8+ Kf7 36. Rh8 Kg7 37. Rd8 Rc7 38. c5 Nxd5 39. Rxd6
Ne7 40. Bh4 $2 Nf5 41. Bf6+ Kf7 42. Bxe5 Rxc5 43. Rd7+ $2 Ke6 44. Rc7 Rxe5 0-1

[Event “Yugoslavia ct Rd: 3”]
[Site “Yugoslavia ct Rd: 3”]
[Date “1959.??.??”]
[EventDate “?”]
[Round “?”]
[Result “1-0”]
[White “Mikhail Tal”]
[Black “Robert James Fischer”]
[ECO “E93”]
[WhiteElo “?”]
[BlackElo “?”]
[PlyCount “67”]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. Be2 O-O 6. Nf3 e5
7. d5 Nbd7 8. Bg5 h6 9. Bh4 a6 10. O-O Qe8 11. Nd2 Nh7 12. b4
Bf6 13. Bxf6 Nhxf6 14. Nb3 Qe7 15. Qd2 Kh7 16. Qe3 Ng8 17. c5
f5 18. exf5 gxf5 19. f4 exf4 20. Qxf4 dxc5 21. Bd3 cxb4
22. Rae1 Qf6 23. Re6 Qxc3 24. Bxf5+ Rxf5 25. Qxf5+ Kh8 26. Rf3
Qb2 27. Re8 Nf6 28. Qxf6+ Qxf6 29. Rxf6 Kg7 30. Rff8 Ne7
31. Na5 h5 32. h4 Rb8 33. Nc4 b5 34. Ne5 1-0

[Event “ACC Fall Swiss”]
[Site “Toronto, CAN”]
[Date “2011.12.05”]
[Round “5”]
[White “Ferreira, Alex”]
[Black “Humphreys, Michael”]
[Result “0-1”]
[ECO “A45”]
[WhiteElo “2025”]
[BlackElo “2298”]
[PlyCount “90”]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Bg5 e6 3. e4 c5 4. d5 d6 5. Nc3 Be7 6. dxe6 Bxe6 7. Bb5+ Nc6 8.
Nf3 O-O 9. Bxc6 bxc6 10. e5 Nd5 11. Bxe7 Qxe7 12. exd6 Qxd6 13. O-O Qf4 14. Ne2
Qf6 15. c4 Nb6 16. b3 Bg4 17. Nd2 Rad8 18. f3 Qb2 19. Qe1 (19. fxg4 Rxd2 20.
Rb1 Qxa2 21. Ra1 Qb2 22. Rb1 Rxd1 23. Rxb2) 19… Rxd2 20. fxg4 Rxe2 21. Qg3
Qe5 22. Qf3 Qe3+ 23. Qxe3 Rxe3 24. Rf5 Rfe8 25. Rxc5 Re1+ 26. Rxe1 Rxe1+ 27.
Kf2 Re6 28. a4 Kf8 29. Ra5 Nc8 30. b4 Ke7 31. Rh5 h6 32. Kf3 g5 33. h4 Nb6 34.
hxg5 hxg5 35. Rxg5 Nxc4 36. Rc5 Nd2+ 37. Kf4 Re4+ 38. Kf5 Rxb4 39. Rxc6 Rxa4
40. g5 Nc4 41. g6 Ne3+ 42. Kg5 Rg4+ 43. Kh5 fxg6+ 44. Kh6 Nf5+ 45. Kh7 Kf7 0-1

[Event “ACC Fall Swiss”]
[Site “Toronto, CAN”]
[Date “2011.12.05”]
[Round “5”]
[White “Peev, Pavel”]
[Black “Southam, David”]
[Result “0-1”]
[ECO “C06”]
[WhiteElo “2146”]
[BlackElo “2154”]
[PlyCount “80”]

1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nd2 Be7 4. Ngf3 Nf6 5. e5 Nfd7 6. Bd3 c5 7. c3 Nc6 8. O-O
g5 9. dxc5 g4 10. Nd4 Ndxe5 11. Nxc6 bxc6 12. Nb3 Nxd3 13. Qxd3 e5 14. Qe3 Qc7
15. Re1 f6 16. Qh6 Be6 17. Nd4 Qd7 18. Nxe6 Qxe6 19. Bf4 Kd7 20. b4 Qf5 21. Bg3
Qg6 22. Qd2 h5 23. b5 Bxc5 24. bxc6+ Kxc6 25. Bh4 Rhd8 26. Qd1 Bb6 27. Qa4+ Kb7
28. Rad1 Rac8 29. Qb3 Qf7 30. Rd3 Rd6 31. Red1 Rcd8 32. a4 Ka8 33. Kh1 R8d7 34.
Bg3 d4 35. Qb4 Rd5 36. Qc4 Kb7 37. f3 f5 38. Qb3 e4 39. fxe4 fxe4 40. c4 $2 Rf5
0-1

“The Magnetic Queen” by Rhys Goldstein

“The Role of the Loser” by Rhys Goldstein

Player Profile: Rhys Goldstein (2038)

Early days

Family life

Chess at Annex Chess Club

Chess for fun

Tips and advice

Annex Chess Club – Summer Love Swiss Tournament

Round Five – September 24

Final Results

SwissSys Standings. Summer Love: Premier

SwissSys Standings. Summer Love: U1900

SwissSys Standings. Summer Love: U1500

Round One – Aug 20

Chess Lecture

A couple of games from Round 1

Round Two – Aug 27

Labour Day – Sept 3

Round Three – Sept 10

A couple of games from Round 3

Round Four – Sept 17

Chess Lecture

Round-4 Games

Round Five – September 24

Summer Lovin’

2011 ACC Fall Swiss

Premier (>1900)

Reserve A (>1500)

Reserve B (U1500)

Round 1 (November 7)

Round 2 (November 14)

Round 3 (November 21)

Round 4 (November 28)

Round 5 (December 5)

.pgn for games

Chess for everyone