Almost the end of the year

While I often look back at the highlights of the chess year, I don't often look back at my own. This is because my usual highlights are a tournament I directed, or a chess meeting I attended, which is hardly riveting stuff. There is also the issue of my results, which are normally a few good games, followed by ones decided by silly blunders.
However this year turned out to be  little more exciting for me, especially as a player. It started with a trip to Guam to play in the 2019 Oceania Zonal. My main reason for attending was for an Oceania Chess Confederation meeting, but once the smoke cleared, I also collected 2nd place in the Zonal.
Following up this result, I seemed to score some good results in local Canberra events, and had a nice undefeated streak up until June.
Then in August I received the news that GM Max Illingworth was unable to attend the World Cup and I was the next player on the list. While the experience was both memorable and exciting, it was also quite scary as a player, but overall it was overwhelmingly positive.
The second half of the year also saw me do a lot of other travel, presenting an Arbiters course in the Solomon Islands, being the Chief Arbiter at the New Caledonia Open, and finishing the year arbiting the Lidums Australian Young Masters.
Looking back I'm pretty sure I've never had a year in chess like this one, and at my age, I'd be surprised if anything in the future comes close. For 2020 there is still a lot to look forward to, with the 2020 O2C Doeberl Cup running at Easter (I'm the new Chief Organiser), and a trip to the 2020 Olympiad (as a member of the Technical Administration Panel). As for playing, hopefully I can squeeze a few games in, and the form I had this year does no desert me!

Hastings 2019/20

In the last few years the annual Hastings International has faced a somewhat uncertain future. It had relied in part on local council funding, but this wasn't always guaranteed, and a more substantial sponsor was required to keep the event going. Fortunately the search for a new sponsor was successful, with Caplin coming on board.
It looks as though the additional sponsorship has resulted in a much larger and stronger event this year, with the Open attracting more than 120 players, including 18 GM's. GM David Howell is the top seed, with GM Edouard Romain second seed. One Australian is playing this year (Penelope Drastick), with 27 other countries also being represented.
First round was last night, and with the tournament using accelerated pairings, there were a couple of upsets. 2 GM's were upended (Gergely Kantor and Danny Gormally), while a few more were held to draws.
You can follow the action (including live games) from the tournament website, although the 2:15pm start (local time) means a late night if you wish to watch it from Australia.

Faulks,Nick (1900) - Ratnesan,Radha (1477) [C18]
Hastings International Chess Congress Horntye Park, Hastings, United (1.55), 28.12.2019

1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e5 c5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 Ne7 7. h4 Qc7 8. h5 cxd4 9. cxd4 Qc3+ 10. Bd2 Qxd4 11. Nf3 Qe4+ 12. Be2 Nf5 13. Kf1 b6 14. Bb5+ Kf8 15. h6 gxh6 16. Bb4+ Kg7 17. g4 Nd4 18. Qxd4 Qxf3 19. Rh5 Ba6 20. a4 Nc6 21. Qd2 f6 22. Ra3 Qxg4 23. Rg3 Qxg3 24. fxg3 Bxb5+ 25. axb5 Nxb4 26. exf6+ Kxf6 27. Qf4+ Ke7 28. Qxb4+ Kd7 29. Rxh6 Rac8 30. Qg4 Rhf8+ 31. Kg1 Rce8 32. Rxh7+ Re7 33. Rxe7+ Kxe7 34. Qb4+ Kf7 35. Qa4 Ra8 36. Qf4+ Ke7 37. Qc7+ Kf6 38. Kg2 a6 39. Qb7 Rd8 40. bxa6 d4 41. a7 1-0

A very rapid win

The World Blitz and Rapidplay Championship is underway, with the first 5 rounds of the Rapid played last night. The 6th round started about an hour ago, and will run for the next 5 hours (Canberra time). While the event has no Australian players involved, there are a few players well known here who have had some interesting results. GM Hrant Melkumyan drew with World Champion Magnus Carlsen, while 'Blindfold King' Timur Gareyev scored a quick win against South Koran GM Alexey Kim.


Kim,Alexey - Gareyev,Timur [B12]
World Rapidplay, 27.12.2019

1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. Nd2 g6 4. e5 Bf5 5. h3 Bg7 6. Ngf3 f6 7. g4 Bc8 8. Bd3 c5 9. c4 cxd4 10. cxd5 fxe5 11. Qc2 Nf6 12. Nxe5 O-O 13. Bc4 b5 14. Bb3 Qd6 15. f4 Bb7 16. Ne4 Nxe4 17. Qxe4 a5 18. a3 Na6 19. Qxd4 Nc5 20. Ba2 Nd7 21. Be3 Nxe5 22. fxe5 Bxe5 23. Qd2 b4 24. Rc1 Qf6 25. g5 Qf3 26. Rg1 Bg3+ 0-1

2019 World Blitz and Rapid

The 2019 World Blitz and Rapid is starting tomorrow in Moscow. Of course these means that the players taking part had to send at least part of the Christmas in transit, as the opening ceremony is this evening (Moscow time).
Apart from the players taking part (Carlsen, MVKL, Aronian etc) there are a couple of other points of interest.
Firstly, Carlsen isn't the top seed in the Blitz, with that honour going to Nakamura. This is because each event is seeded with the rating list matching the event. As a result the bottom seed in the Rapid is GM D Gukesh from India, who still has a rapid rating of 1799!
Secondly, GM Alireza Firouzja is playing under the FIDE flag, instead of the Iranian one. This is due to the Iranian governments policy of not allowing athletes to compete against players from Israel. So as to compete in this tournament (and not be forced to default games against Israeli players), Firouzja has left the Iranian Federation with a view to changing to a new one shortly.

Congratulations Ian Rogers

Although Christmas isn't until tomorrow, I received one of my presents a little early. It was a Google Nest Mini. described as a 'Family Present' by my son, the purchaser. After setting it up, I decided to test how 'smart' it was.
"Who is the current Australian Chess Champion?" I asked. "The current Australian Chess Champion is .... Ian Rogers" came the reply. This answer not only surprised me, but I suspect would surprise Ian (who retired on 2007) and the 6 player who have won it more recently. It even gave me a helpful reference on Wikipedia for Ian, but not the one it should have, which was the list of Australian Chess Champions.
So congratulations Ian. According to Google you are still the reigning Australian Chess Champion.

Killing time

"Does being good at chess mean you're good at other things?" Probably not, is my usual response when asked this question, as the list of "other things" can be quite vague. But the skills you develop in chess can be carried over to other activities, especially those that require information organisation.
Certainly chess players have also succeeded at Poker, bridge and Share Trading (although many have failed as well). Add Fantasy Football to the list, with World Champion Magnus Carlsen also doing extremely well in the Fantasy Premier League competition. As of last week he was in first place (ahead of a couple of million players), but I'm not sure if he has maintained his lead this week.
One thing working in his favour is having the time to work on his team selections. IM Gary Lane once told me that a number of English IM's and GM's used to enter lots of different competitions, as it was something could do while travelling (and between rounds), and it provided rewards outside chess. In Carlsen's case I suspect the motivation isn't material, but like most people, the desire to succeed at something they think is important.

Mirror, Mirror

In the Sicilian Defence, conventional wisdom has White attacking on the kingside while Black looks for play on the queenside. So much so, a quick kingside attack for Black is a rare sight indeed. But I have just seen one, and I thought I'd share it. It was played at the JZMC Rising Stars event, which is a small round robin for Sydney juniors, organised by WGM Jilin Zhang. It is the first time it has been held, and is designed to provide some extra competition for local juniors. f you want to see the live games (past and future) click on this link, while results can be seen here.


Wu,Celina - Melamed,Daniel [B45]
JZMC Rising Stars, 19.11.2019

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 Nc6 6. Ndb5 Bb4 7. Nd6+ Ke7 8. Bf4 e5 9. Nf5+ Kf8 10. Bd2 d5 11. exd5 Bxf5 12. dxc6 bxc6 13. Be2 h5 14. a3 Bc5 15. O-O Ng4 16. Be1 Qh4 17. h3 Qg3 18. Bxg4 hxg4 19. Ne2 Qh4 20. Kh2 Rd8 21. Qc1 gxh3 22. g3 Qe4 23. Rg1 Qf3 24. g4 Be4 25. Qg5 f6 26. Qc1 Bxf2 0-1

Deciding when to castle

I've lost a lot of games of chess by putting off castling until it is too late. Not that I always have a choice mind you, as sometimes my opponent creates enough threats that castling isn't the best choice.
Here is a game from the current Australasian Masters IM tournament, with young Canberran Albert Winkelman punishing a king caught in the centre. 6.Nh3 is a move I'm not familiar with, but it looks no worse than other main lines. However the real killer move is 17.Bh6! which connects the White rooks while exposing the Black king. After that the game was essentially over, although Black did try a couple of tricks before resigning.


Winkelman,Albert (2283) - Maguire,Tom (2139) [B18]
2019 Australasian Masters IM Norm Tourna Melbourne Chess Club (6.1), 19.12.2019

1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 dxe4 4. Nxe4 Bf5 5. Ng3 Bg6 6. Nh3 Nf6 7. c3 Nbd7 8. Bc4 e5 9. f4 exd4 10. O-O Nb6 11. f5 Bc5 12. Qe2+ Kf8 13. Kh1 d3 14. Bxd3 Bh5 15. Nxh5 Nxh5 16. Qxh5 Qxd3 17. Bh6 gxh6 18. Qxh6+ Ke8 19. Rfe1+ Be7 20. Qf6 Qf1+ 21. Ng1 Qxg1+ 22. Kxg1 1-0

2020 Australian Championship

The 2020 Australian Championship is being held in Sydney from the 2nd to the 13th of January, at the St George Leagues Club. Unlike the last Australian Open, this is being run as a single round per day event, which may result in a smaller entry, but will also see higher quality chess.
The Championship is a restricted event, with the Reserves tournament open to all players who do not qualify for the top tournament. There is also a 7 day Under 1800 tournament, scheduled in the morning, so some players can play two events if they wish.
There are over 120 players already entered for the 3 long time control events, and I suspect the final total will be well over 150. Details for the tournament can be found at https://aus2020.chesschamp.net/
I will be at the championship as one of the tournament arbiters (proudly wearing my PNG shirts!)

Climate Change Chess

The ACT Chess Association is holding the 2019 ACTCA Rapidplay Championship on Saturday 21 December 2019. This is the traditional end of year event for ACT chess, and is usually held on the last Saturday before Christmas. As it is normally held outdoors, weather can always have an effect on play, and attendance.
The forecast for this Saturday is for extremely hot weather. At one point it was forecast to be around 42 degrees, but the latest forecast is or a slightly(!) cooler 39. As a consequence it is more likely than not that the tournament will be held in the air conditioned comfort of King O'Malley's.
The tournament will run from 11am to 2:30pm. There will be over $300 in prizes, with entry $10 ($5 for juniors). The format is a 7 round swiss, with G/15m or each game. Registration is from 10:30am at King O'Malley's, City Walk, Canberra City.

2019 Australasian Masters

Following on from the 2019 Lidums Australian Young Masters, the 2019 Australasian Masters is underway in Melbourne. There are 2 events, an GM norm tournament, and an IM norm tournament. A number of players are backing up from the Adelaide event, while both events also see some new faces.
Once again players from Canberra are represented, with IM Junta Ikeda in the GM event and (FM) Albert Winkleman in the IM tournament. Ikeda is off to a good start on 1.5/2, scoring a nice win in tonight's game.  Winkelman drew his first game against IM Alexej Khamatgaleev, but as I write this, the second round results aren't available.
Coverage for both events can be found via https://chessnews.asia/2019-australasian-masters/


Ikeda,Junta (2439) - Liu,Xiangyi (2385) [E91]
2019 Australasian Masters GM norm Melbourne (2.5), 16.12.2019

1. Nf3 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. d4 O-O 6. Be2 a6 7. O-O c6 8. e5 dxe5 9. Nxe5 Nbd7 10. Bf4 c5 11. Nxd7 Nxd7 12. d5 Re8 13. Qd2 Qa5 14. Rac1 Nf6 15. Rfe1 Bd7 16. Bf3 Rad8 17. Be5 Bf5 18. Qf4 Qb4 19. g4 Bd3 20. b3 b5 21. d6 bxc4 22. dxe7 Rd4 23. Bxd4 cxd4 24. g5 Nh5 25. Qxf7+ 1-0

2019 Lidums Australian Young Masters - GM Bobby Cheng wins with a picket fence score

It is very rare that a chess tournament is won with a perfect score. It is even rarer in a field that contains a couple of GM's, an IM, and a few FM's. So GM Bobby Cheng's 9/9 at the 2019 Lidums Australian Young Masters, is a result for the record books.
He finished 2 points clear of FM Zhuo Ren Lim (MAS), and a whopping 3.5 points ahead of IM Erlend Mikalsen (NOR) and GM Frode Urkedal (NOR) in third place. His winning run almost came to an end in his final game against Kyle Leaver, but Leaver went wrong in the ending, giving Cheng his 9th win.
Lim's 7 points was good enough for an IM norm, the third he has achieved. He now needs to get his rating about 2400 to be awarded the title.
Of the other players, Tom Maguire and Kyle Leaver both had good performances. Maguire was very 'all or nothing' with 4 wins, 5 losses and no draws, while Leaver was a little more solid with 4 draws do go along with his 2 wins. Albert Winkelman started strongly with 3/4, but a disastrous run of 4 straight losses left him well down the standings. FM Michael Kethro picked up some rating points with his 3.5/9, but time trouble was a constant issue.
Sterling Bayaca won the Open with 8/9. After a loss in the early rounds he strung together 7 straight wins to finish a point and a half ahead of Chathula Kiripitige

2019 Lidums Australian Young Masters - Day 6

GM Bobby Cheng has wrapped up first place in the 2019 Lidums Australian Youngs Masters, winning his 8th consecutive game to be on 8/8 with 1 game to play. He defeated IM Erlend Mikalsen in a fairly short game, to maintain his 1.5 point lead over FM Zhuo Ren Lim.
Lim mover closer to an IM norm with a win over FM Michael Kethro, and he now only needs a draw in tomorrows game to achieve this. GM Frode Erkadel was made to work hard by Aaron Lee before winning his 3rd game of the tournament, while Kyle Leaver and Tom Maguire also scored wins to reach 50%.
Tomorrow Cheng plays Leaver and a win will give him a rare (and possibly unique) 100% in an Australian norm event. Lim will also go into his final round as a favourite against Winkelman, whose form has deserted him in the later half of the tournament. All the action begins at 9:30am Adelaide time, with the final placing likely to be known soon after lunchtime.


Maung, Maung Kyaw - Maguire, Tom
2019 Lidums AYM 12.12.2019

1. Nf3 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. d4 O-O 6. Be2 e5 7. O-O Nc6 8. d5 Ne7 9. b4 a5 10. Ba3 axb4 11. Bxb4 b6 12. a4 Re8 13. a5 c5 14. dxc6 Nxc6 15. Bxd6 Nd4 16. c5 bxc5 17. Bxc5 Nxe2+ 18. Qxe2 Qc7 19. Nb5 Qxc5 20. Rfc1 Qe7 21. Nc7 Bb7 22. Nxe8 Qxe8 23. a6 Bxe4 24. a7 Bxf3 25. Qxf3 e4 26. Qb3 Ng4 27. Ra4 Nxf2 28. Rac4 Bf8 29. Qb7 Nd3 30. Rc8 Qe5 31. R8c4 Bc5+ 32. Kh1 Nf2+ 33. Kg1 Ng4+ 0-1

2019 Lidums Australian Young Masters - Day 5

GM Bobby Cheng continues to dominate the 2019 Lidums Australian Young Masters, scoring his 7th straight win today. He had a quick win over FM Leo Maung and now holds a 1.5 point lead with 2 rounds to play.
FM Zhuo Ren Lim kept his chances of an IM norm alive with a win over top seed GM Frode Urkedal. In an even position Urkedal offered a pawn for play against Lim's exposed king, but Lim was able to keep his king safe, and eventually reached a winning ending.
IM Erland Mikalsen has completely recovered from his jet-lagged start, beating Albert Winkelman, and getting to 4.5. Wins were also recorded by Tom Maguire and Michael Kethro, improving the standings for both.

2020 Olympiad?

The announcement that the World Anti-Doping Agency has imposed a 4 year ban on Russia hosting any 'major' international sporting events has thrown a cloud over the 2020 Chess Olympiad, due to be held in Moscow in August 2020.
When the ban was announced FIDE were very quick to release a statement saying that as contracts had already been signed, that the Olympiad would not be affected. However this is already been called into doubt, and the statement itself is no on the FIDE website.
There have already been rumors of another venue change, with China being mentioned in this regard. As this is early days I assume the FIDE lawyers are now going over the ruling from WADA to see what it actually imposes on both FIDE and the Russian organisers. There is also the matter of the Russian team itself, as it may not be able to play under its own flag.
More news as it comes to hand!

(Disclaimer: I am a paid official for the 2020 Olympiad. This post is made in a private capacity, and does not represent the views of FIDE or the organisers)

2019 Lidums Australian Young Masters - Day 3

Although the tournament is only half way through, GM Bobby Cheng is the overwhelming favourite to win the 2019 Lidums Australian Young Masters. He is on 5/5, winning a wild game against FM Michael Kethro, where both players were down to their last few seconds for their last few moves. Albert Winkelman's attempts at keeping pace with Cheng were dealt a cruel blow after he came unstuck against FM 'Leo' Maung, pushing him back into third place.
Malaysian FM Zhuo Ren Lim has moved into 2nd place, beating Aaron Lee in a quick game. The win keeps his chances of an IM norm alive, although it is a tough 3.5/4, including a game against GM Frode Urkedal.
The Open event saw the lead change once again with George Bartley losing to Ethan Retnaraja, and allowing Sankeertan Badrinarayan and Sterling Bayaca to join Retnaraja in equal first.

2019 Lidums Young Australian Masters - Day 2

GM Bobby Cheng is the clear leader of the 2019 Lidums Young Australian Masters, finishing the 2nd day on 4/4. The 4th round saw him up against the tournaments other GM Frode Urkedal, and in a long hard battle, he emerged victorious.
In 2nd place is Albert Winkelman, who drew both his games today to finish on 3/4. With his draw against Urkedal in round 3, his 'live' FIDE rating went over 2300, which means he has earned the FM title (when the event is submitted for ratings).
Winkleman is still well placed to earn an IM Norm (which is a tough 7/9), while FM Zhuo Ren Lim (2.5/4) and Kyle Leaver (2.5/4) still have a hance of getting there as well.
In the Open, George Bartley and Chathula Kiripitige lead with 3.5/4. Having already played each other, it is their results against the rest of the field which will decide the tournament.


Urkedal, Frode - Cheng, Bobby
2019 Lidums AYM 8.12.2019

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Be7 4. Bf4 Nf6 5. e3 O-O 6. Nf3 b6 7. Be2 Bb7 8. O-O Nbd7 9. Rc1 c5 10. h3 cxd4 11. exd4 Rc8 12. cxd5 Nxd5 13. Nxd5 Bxd5 14. Qa4 Nf6 15. Rxc8 Qxc8 16. Rc1 Qd8 17. Qxa7 Bd6 18. Ne5 Qb8 19. Qxb8 Rxb8 20. a3 Rd8 21. Bb5 Kf8 22. Bg5 Bb7 23. Bc6 Ba6 24. Bf3 h6 25. Bf4 Bb5 26. Bg3 Ne8 27. Rc3 Be7 28. Nc6 Bxc6 29. Rxc6 b5 30. Rb6 Nd6 31. d5 e5 32. Be2 f6 33. Kf1 Rc8 34. Bxb5 Rc5 35. Bc6 g5 36. Ke2 h5 37. h4 gxh4 38. Bxh4 Nf5 39. g3 Rc2+ 40. Kd3 Rxf2 41. Rb8+ Kg7 42. Rb7 Kh6 43. a4 Bc5 44. b4 Bd4 45. a5 Rf3+ 46. Ke2 e4 47. Rf7 Rf2+ 48. Ke1 Nxh4 49. gxh4 e3 50. Bb5 Bc3+ 51. Kd1 Bxb4 52. a6 Rd2+ 53. Kc1 Ba3+ 54. Kb1 Rb2+ 55. Ka1 Rxb5 56. Rxf6+ Kg7 57. Re6 Bc5 58. d6 Rb8 59. Ka2 Kf7 60. Re5 Bxd6 61. Rxe3 Rb6 62. a7 Ra6+ 63. Kb3 Rxa7 64. Kc4 Ra4+ 65. Kd5 Be7 66. Re4 Ra5+ 67. Kd4 Bxh4 68. Ke3 Bg5+ 69. Kf3 Ra3+ 70. Kg2 Kg6 71. Re5 h4 72. Re4 Kf5 73. Rc4 Bf4 74. Rc8 Kg4 75. Rg8+ Bg5 76. Kh2 Ra2+ 77. Kh1 h3 78. Kg1 Kh4 79. Rf8 Kg3 0-1

Smirnov wins London Chess Classic Open

Australian GM Anton Smirnov has tied for first at the 2019 London Chess Classic Open. He finished with a very impressive 7.5/9 to share first place with GM R. Praggnanandhaa, who he drew with in their individual game.
The result will certainly cement Smirnov's reputation as a future superstar. Having just finished High School Smirnov is playing a number of events in Europe, the most important being the Tata Steel Challengers in January. As well as providing some tough competition, the winner of this event qualifies for the Masters tournament the following year.
While Smirnov was winning the Open, the final of the Grand Chess Tour was also taking place the same venue.  Maxime Vachier-Lagrave and Ding Liren qualified for the final, and their first classical game was a completely bonkers 4 queen ending!

Vachier-Lagrave,Maxime - Liren,Ding
Grand Chess Tour Final 6.12.2019

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. d3 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. a3 O-O 9. Nc3 Na5 10. Ba2 Be6 11. b4 Bxa2 12. Rxa2 Nc6 13. Bg5 Qd7 14. Bxf6 Bxf6 15. Nd5 a5 16. c4 Ne7 17. Qb3 bxc4 18. Nxe7+ Bxe7 19. dxc4 axb4 20. axb4 Qc6 21. Re1 Rxa2 22. Qxa2 Ra8 23. Qb3 g6 24. b5 Qc5 25. Qc2 c6 26. bxc6 Bd8 27. Nd2 Bb6 28. Nb3 Qxc6 29. Ra1 Rc8 30. Rc1 h5 31. h4 Ra8 32. Ra1 Rxa1+ 33. Nxa1 Qd7 34. g3 g5 35. Qd2 gxh4 36. c5 Bxc5 37. Qg5+ Kf8 38. Qxh4 Ke8 39. Nb3 Qa4 40. Nxc5 dxc5 41. Qxh5 Qxe4 42. Qh8+ Ke7 43. Qc8 Qd4 44. g4 c4 45. g5 c3 46. Kg2 Kd6 47. f3 Qd2+ 48. Kh3 Kd5 49. Qf5 Kc6 50. Qc8+ Kd6 51. Qf8+ Kc6 52. Qc8+ Kb5 53. Qb7+ Kc5 54. Qa7+ Kd6 55. Qb8+ Kd5 56. Qb7+ Kd4 57. Qe4+ Kc5 58. Qxe5+ Kc4 59. Qe4+ Kb3 60. Qb1+ Ka3 61. Qa1+ Kb4 62. Qb1+ Kc5 63. Qf5+ Qd5 64. Qc8+ Kd4 65. Qg4+ Kd3 66. g6 c2 67. gxf7 c1=Q 68. f8=Q Qh1+ 69. Kg3 Qe5+ 70. Qgf4 Qg1+ 71. Kh4 Qh1+ 72. Kg3 Qee1+ 73. Kg4 Qhh4+ 74. Kf5 Qh5+ 75. Kf6 Qa1+ 76. Ke6 Qa2+ 77. Kf6 Qb2+ 78. Ke6 Qb3+ 79. Kf6 Qb2+ 80. Ke6 Qb3+ 81. Kf6 Qc3+ 82. Ke6 Qg6+ 83. Q4f6 Qc6+ 84. Ke7 Qc5+ 85. Ke6 Qc6+ 86. Ke7 Qc7+ 87. Ke6 Qb6+ 88. Ke7 Qc5+ 89. Ke6 Qcf5+ 90. Ke7 Qc5+ 1/2-1/2

2019 Lidums Australian Young Masters - Round 1

The first round of the 2019 Australian Young Masters and Open and have been completed with Canberra players having some success. Albert Winkelman scored a nice first up win in the Masters, although FM Michael Kethro was less fortunate, although time trouble may have been a factor. In the Open event, 2nd seeded Sankeerten Badrinarayan had a first round win, and followed this up with another full point in round 2.
The tournament home page is lidumsaym.com but you can shortcut to the results (and pgn files) via tournaments.streetchess.net


Winkelman, Albert - Lee, Aaron [A00]
2019 Lidums Australian Young Masters 7.12.2019

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. c3 d6 9. h3 Nb8 10. d4 Nbd7 11. Nbd2 Bb7 12. Bc2 Re8 13. Nf1 Bf8 14. Ng3 g6 15. Bg5 h6 16. Bd2 c5 17. d5 c4 18. b3 Rc8 19. bxc4 Rxc4 20. Bd3 Rc8 21. Bf1 Nc5 22. Rb1 Qd7 23. c4 bxc4 24. Bxc4 Bg7 25. Qe2 Ra8 26. Rb6 Qe7 27. Reb1 Ra7 28. Ba5 Nfd7 29. R6b4 Bc8 30. Ne1 h5 31. Nd3 h4 32. Nf1 Qg5 33. Kh1 f5 34. Nxc5 dxc5 35. R4b3 f4 36. Nh2 Kh7 37. Qc2 Ra8 38. Be2 Nf6 39. Nf3 Qh6 40. Bc7 Nxe4 41. Qxe4 Bf5 42. Qc4 e4 43. Nh2 f3 44. gxf3 Rac8 45. d6 exf3 46. Bxf3 Bxb1 47. Rxb1 Qd2 48. Qxh4+ Kg8 49. Kg2 1-0

2019 Australian Young Masters

The 2019 Australian Young Masters begins in a couple of days. It is being held at the University of Adelaide and features an IM event, a FIDE Rated Open, and an Under 1200 tournament. The IM tournament is a mix of local and overseas players, with FM Michael Kethro and Albert Winkelman taking part.
Normally I watch this event from afar, but have called in as an arbiter at the last minute (this seems to be happening a lot recently!). The tournament website is here, with the first round of all 3 events being 9:30 am on Saturday 7th December (Adelaide Time)

Sometimes, sometimes ....

For the second game in a row, my basic tactical vision has deserted me. Last week it was missing a simple check, this time is was missing a two move win of a piece. Need to concentrate more ...

2019 London Chess Classic

The 2019 London Chess Classic has started, with a number of different events on offer. The Grand Chess Tour Final begins this evening, while the FIDE Open has been running for a few days. There is also a number of smaller events, simuls and a Super Blitz Open.
One player already doing well in th FIDE Open is GM Anton Smirnov. Having finished his final year of school he is off to play the winter circuit in Europe, with the LCC being his first event. Currently he is tied for first place on 4/4, in part to this nice win in round 3.


Zujev,Oleg (2316) - Smirnov,Anton (2573) [A00]
11th CSC London Chess Classic Olympia Conference Centre, Lon (3.4), 30.11.2019

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nc3 dxc4 4. e3 b5 5. a4 b4 6. Ne4 Qd5 7. Ng3 Nf6 8. Be2 e5 9. Nf3 exd4 10. exd4 Bd6 11. Nf1 c3 12. bxc3 Ne4 13. c4 Qe6 14. Bb2 O-O 15. Ne3 Bf4 16. Qb3 Re8 17. Ne5 Nd7 18. Bg4 Qh6 19. Bxd7 Bxd7 20. Qd3 Bxe5 21. dxe5 Qf4 22. O-O Rad8 23. Rad1 h6 24. a5 Bg4 25. Qxd8 Rxd8 26. Rxd8+ Kh7 27. Nxg4 Qxg4 28. f3 Qg5 29. Rd3 Nc5 30. f4 Qf5 31. Rd6 Nd3 32. Bd4 c5 33. Be3 Qe4 34. Rf3 b3 0-1

2019 ASTC Day 2

Anglican Church Grammar (QLD) has won the 2019 ASTC Open Secondary Section, by half a point ahead of Scotch College (VIC). The tournament was decided in round 4 with 'Churchie' beating Scotch 2.5-1.5. The final round saw Scotch score 3.5 against PAC (SA), but Churchie's 2 points against Sydney Boys High (NSW) was enough to claim the title.
The Girls Secondary Section was won by PLC (VIC) after they scored a 4-0 result in the final round, to leapfrog Sydney Girls High (NSW) and Lyneham High (ACT). These two teams played in the final round and a 3-1 wing for Sydney Girls left them in outright second, with Lyneham finishing third.
Waverly Christian College (VIC) were the runaway winners of the Primary Open, finishing on 18/20. East Marden Primary (SA) and Somerset College (QLD) tied on 11.5, with East Marden claiming second based on the teams head to head result.
Mount View Primary won a closely contested Girls Primary section on 14/20. The final round saw 3 teams with a chance of first place, but a set of 2-2 results left the standings unchanged. Neutral Bay Primary (NSW) finsihed second on tie-break ahead of Turner School (ACT).
The two day event saw a lot of good chess across all the sections. Canberra Grammar provided excellent facilities for the event, and the feedback from the players and visiting schools was uniformly positive.
Thanks for the successful organisation of the event goes to Kate Woodley who put a massive amount of effort into everything connected with the tournament (trophies, sponsorship, signage, room layout, website etc), all while dealing with the worries of an out of control bushfire quite close to her home!