Gambito #406

Gambito #406   1/31/09

19 players, including 4 Masters (Lakdawala, Graves, Baker and Zaydenberg). We used a McMahon pairing system where M/E=2, A=1, B/C=0.  Bruce Baker continued his hot streak, earning a draw with Cyrus in Rd 3 and defeating Zaydenberg in Rd 4. Varun Krishnan held Bruce to a draw in Rd 1, despite being a pawn down in a Rook and Pawn ending and playing his last 40 moves or so on time delay only. Very impressive as Bruce was trying everything to win, using all of his time and all the tricky tactics he could think of.

Class B player Datris Robinson has become more comfortable at the club after playing for a about a month now, and today he broke through with a win over Class A Fausto Robles in the last round and held another strong Class A player, Kyron Griffith to a draw in Rd 3. Also Mike Friedel won the Class C for the 4th time in a row. Robinson is #4 on the Top Prize winner list for 2008 and Friedel is #7, which I mention because it goes to show that the Gambito is very friendly for lower rated players. You can win lots of money, pick up lots of tips from higher rated players and have a chance for lots of upsets too. With the McMahon pairings, you most play players rated close to you, you don't get crushed by much higher rated players. Those guys play each other. For instance Cyrus, the #1 rated player, played the #4, #2, #3 and #5 in that order, unlike a regular Swiss where he would be playing the top of the bottom half in the first round etc.     

It was also good to see Andy Bell playing today, he hasn't played in quite a while - and the rust showed, he even let me, Chuck Ensey, beat him with a lucky move near the end of the game when he gave me his Rook by mistake (time pressure was a factor). Fritz found a nice saving move for Andy, but it was tough to find (Ne8+!), By the way Andy, I renewed your USCF membership, so you owe me!     

Here are the prize winners:

First Place: Cyrus Lakdawala (5 1/2), $100     U2400: Bruce Baker (5), $50

Second Place: Peter Graves (4 1/2), $20

U2200 (tie): Varun Krishnan (3 1/2) and Leonard Sussman (3 1/2), $25

U2000/U1800 (tie): Datris Robinson (3 1/2) and Roberto Aiello (3 1/2), $45 each

U1600: Mike Friedel (2 1/2), $30

Total Prizes $340 

Next week is a Special 5 Round Super Gambito, it starts at 10 AM instead of 10:30 to squeeze that extra round in, so remember to get there early. $2,000 in prizes, entry is $50 if you sign up in advance (you can just email me at chucnglo@aol.com), or $60 at the door on event day. Special rate of only $25 for players rated U1400 or anyone who has never played in a Gambito Open...I will add a blog page soon with all the details...   

 

Chessboxing on ESPN Sports Center

Here is more about chessboxing, this time from ESPN

Markowski Round 5

Here are the results from 2/04/09:

Bd 1  Bruce Baker (3 1/2) - Lennart Mathe (3 1/2)  1/2-1/2

Bd 2  Ignacio Sainz (3 1/2) - Paul Agron (3 1/2)  0-1

Bd 3  Carey Milton (3 1/2) - Pejman Sagart (3 1/2)  1-0

Bd 4  Carl Wagner (3) - Manuel Herrera (3)  1-0

Bd 5  Bassam Shammas (3) - Brad Salz (3)  0-1

Bd 6  Rick Aeria (3) - Jamieson Pryor (3)  0-1

Bd 7  Ben Barquin (3) - Leonard Sussman (3)  1-0

Bd 8  Alejandro Garamendi (3) - Thomas Fries (3)  1-0

Bd 9  Raoul Crisologo (2 1/2) - Fausto Robles (3)  1-0

Bd 10  Mario Amodeo (2 1/2) - David Hart (2 1/2)  0-1

Bd 11  Todd Smith (2 1/2) - Damani Fair (2 1/2)  1-0

Bd 12  Peter Bisgaard (2 1/2) - David Delgadillo (2 1/2)  1-0

Bd 13  Robert Defore (2 1/2) - John Funderberg (2 1/2)  0-1

Bd 14  Ron Soto (2 1/2) - William Wijaya (2 1/2)  1-0

Bd 15  Jens Lundell (2 1/2) - James Mahooti (2 1/2)  0-1

Bd 16  Robert Richard (2) - Ron Rezendes (2)  1-0

Bd 17  Mariano Lozano (2) - Chuck Ensey (2)  1-0

Bd 18  Jeff Turner (2) - Buddy Morris (2)  1-0

Bd 19  Roberto Aiello (2) - Jerry Soelberg (2)  1-0

Bd 20  Alfredo Deleon (2) - Fawsi Jose Murra (2)  1/2-1/2

Bd 21  Julian Rodriguez (2) - Marty Lower (2)  1-0

Bd 22  Erik Marquis (2) - Esteban Escobedo (2)  0-1

Bd 23  Joel Batchelor (2) - Mark Lawless (2)  1-0

Bd 24  Datris Robinson (2) - Shaun Sweitzer (1 1/2)  1-0

Bd 25  Nestor Dagamat (1 1/2) - Anthony Harbone (1 1/2)  1/2-1/2

Bd 26  Fred Borges (1 1/2) - Karen Kaufman (1 1/2)  0-1  

Bd 27  Caley Anderson (1 1/2) - Patrick Edwards (1 1/2)  1-0

Bd 28  Rocio Murra (1 1/2) - Michael Friedel (1 1/2)  0-1

Bd 29  Fausto Robles Jr (1 1/2) - Steve Perry (1 1/2)  0-1

Bd 30  James Coulston (1 1/2) - Tom Kuhn (1 1/2)  0-1

Bd 31  Larry Vikander (1 1/2) - Donald Klaas (1)  1-0 

Bd 32  Brian Kelly (1) - Morgan Fox (1)  1-0

Bd 33  Michael Ryan (1) - Michael Wang (1)  0-1

Bd 34  Jerry Kavanau (1) - Tom Lavoy (1)  1-0

Bd 35  Bill Murray (1) - Mayra Murra (1)  1/2-1/2

Bd 36  Yair Soto (1) - Robert Samuel (1)  1-0

Bd 37  Darryl Woodson (1/2) - Keith Wetterer (1/2)  1-0

Bd 38  Cristhian Garcia (0) - Matt Souza (1/2)  1-0

Bd 39  Steve Gordon (1/2) - Glenn Rose (0)  1-0 

Bd 40  Kirk Branner - Helmut Keil  1-0   extra house game

Byes: Alejandrino Baluran (3 1/2), Eric Montany (3), Fawsi Murra Jr (2 1/2), Dayne Freitag (2 1/2), Phillip Roth (2 1/2), Robert Draper (2 1/2), Hector Gonzalez (2)

Withdraw: George Zeigler, Jim Humphrey 

Tentative Pairings for Rd 6 will be posted Friday night

   

Gambito #405

Gambito #405  1/24/09

17 Players. Bruce upset Cyrus in Rd 3 and went on to meet Carey in Rd 4. Both players were 3-0, and Carey was fiesty as ever, but this time went down in flames in a very short game.

Winners:

First Place: Bruce Baker (4), $100    Second Place: Cyrus Lakdawala (3), $20

U2400/2200: Carey Milton (3) and Ken Hopper (3), $45 each

U2000: Ben Barquin (2 1/2), Roberto Aiello (2 1/2) and Marlon Icban (2 1/2), $13 each

U1800: Datris Robinson (2 1/2), $40    U1600: Mike Friedel (1 1/2), $30

Total Prizes $320 

1st Chessboxing Worldchampionship PT2

And here is part 2

1st Chessboxing Worldchampionship PT1

This sport is actually gaining some popularity in Europe, I thought that some club members would want to get a sampling of what chess boxing is all about. The only club member I know of that may qualify for chess boxing is Nikolai Arytunov who is a strong Category A Player and has/is trained as a boxer recently.

Games from Round 3 of the Markowski

Here are two interesting games from the third round of the Markowski Open which is turning out to be a historic event in terms of upsets.  My thanks to Perry Sagart who is one of the three leaders at 3-0 and Mariano Lozano and Bassam Shammas for sharing their hard-fought draw with us.

Sagart,Pejman - Herrera,Manuel [E12]
Markowski (3), 21.01.2009

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 b6 4.Nc3 Bb7 Queen Indian Defence 5.a3 Be7 6.Qc2 d5 7.cxd5 exd5 8.Bf4 a6 9.e3 0-0 10.Bd3 Re8 11.0-0 Bf8 12.Rac1 c5 13.dxc5 bxc5 14.Be2 Nbd7 15.Rfd1 Qb6 16.Na4 Qa5? 17.b4! Diagram

winning 17...Qd8 [17...cxb4 18.Bc7] 18.bxc5 Bc6 19.Nb6 Ra7 20.Nd4 Ba8 21.Nxa8 Qxa8 22.c6 Nc5 23.h3 Rc8 24.Rb1 Ne6 25.Nxe6 Rxc6 26.Qd3 Diagram

26...fxe6? [26...Rxe6] 27.Rb8 Qxb8 28.Bxb8 Rb7 29.Be5 Ne4 30.Rb1 Rxb1+ 31.Qxb1 Bxa3 32.Qb7 Rc1+ 33.Kh2 Bf8 34.Bg4 1-0

(2006) Lozano,Mariano - Shammas,Bassam [B03]
Markowski (3), 21.01.2009

1.e4 Nf6 Alekhine Defence 2.e5 Nd5 3.d4 d6 4.c4 Nb6 5.f4 Four Pawns Variation 5...dxe5 6.fxe5 Nc6 7.Be3 g6 A rare line [Most commonly played is 7...Bf5 ] 8.Nf3 Bg4 9.Be2 Bg7 10.Nbd2 0-0 11.h3 Bxf3 12.Nxf3 f6 13.exf6 Bxf6 14.0-0 Qd7 15.d5 Ne5 16.Nxe5 Bxe5 17.Bg4 Qa4 18.b3 Qa3 19.Be6+ Kg7 Diagram

20.c5?! [20.Qd2!] 20...Nxd5 21.Bxd5 Rxf1+ 22.Qxf1 Rf8 23.Bh6+? [23.Qc1+-; 23.Qe1+-] 23...Kxh6 24.Qxf8+ Bg7 25.Qf4+ g5 Diagram

26.Qxc7? [26.Qc1! Qb4 (26...Bb2? 27.Qc2 Bxa1 28.Bg8+-) 27.Kh1+/-] 26...Bxa1 27.Qxe7 Qc1+ 28.Kh2 Qf4+ 29.Kh1 Be5 30.Qe6+ Kg7 31.Qg8+ Kh6 32.Qe6+ Kg7 33.Qg8+ Kh6 34.Qe6+ All-in-all an entertaining tactical battle! 1/2-1/2

Noise

Excluding planes most of the noise during rounds comes from the squeeking of chairs as players get up and sit down.

Carpeting would reduce this noise substantially and muffle much of the other ambient sound resulting in fewer noise distractions and better play.

There are downsides of course, but carpeting the playing area should be an interesting discussion topic. Has this come up in the past?

Jeff Turner

Markowski Open Round 4 Results

Total # of players = 90 (not including house players) This is a 7 round event...  

Lots of people took byes for some reason this round... And guess what - more big upsets!  

Bd 1  James Mahooti (2 1/2) -  Bruce Baker (2 1/2)  0-1

Bd 2  Brad Salz (2 1/2) - Rick Aeria (2 1/2)  1/2-1/2

Bd 3  Dayne Freitag (2 1/2) - Ignacio Sainz (2 1/2)  0-1

Bd 4  David Delgadillo (2 1/2) - Carey Milton (2 1/2)  0-1

Bd 5  Jim Humphrey (2 1/2) - Paul Agron (2 1/2)  0-1

Bd 6  Carl Wagner (2) - Mariano Lozano (2 1/2)  1-0

Bd 7  Fawsi Murra Jr (2) - Todd Smith (2)  1/2-1/2

Bd 8  Thomas Fries (2) - Robert Richard (2)  1-0 

Bd 9  Bassam Shammas (2) - Roberto Aiello (2)  1-0

Bd 10  Leonard Sussman (2) - Alfredo Deleon (2)  1-0

Bd 11  Marty Lower (2) - Alejandro Garamendi (2)  0-1

Bd 12  Raoul Crisologo (2) - Esteban Escobedo (2)  1-0

Bd 13  Manuel Herrera (2) - Joel Batchelor (2)  1-0

Bd 14  Robert Draper (2) - Ron Soto (2)  1/2-1/2

Bd 15  Ron Rezendes (2) - Jamieson Pryor (2)  0-1

Bd 16  David Hart (1 1/2) - Shaun Sweitzer (1 1/2)  1-0  

Bd 17  John Funderberg (1 1/2) - Nestor Dagamat (1 1/2)  1-0  

Bd 18  William Wijaya (1 1/2) - George Zeigler (1 1/2)  1-0

Bd 19  Mario Amodeo (1 1/2) - Fred Borges (1 1/2)  1-0

Bd 20  Phillip Roth (1 1/2) - Caley Anderson (1 1/2)  1-0 

Bd 21  Robert Defore (1 1/2) - Rocio Murra (1 1/2)  1-0

Bd 22  Steve Perry (1 1/2) - Jens Lundell (1 1/2)  0-1 

Bd 23  Damani Fair (1 1/2) - Karen Kaufman (1 1/2)  1-0 

Bd 24  Anthony Arciga (1) - Chuck Ensey (1)  0-1  

Bd 25  Buddy Morris (1) - Jerry Kavanau (1)  1-0

Bd 26  Donald Klaas (1) - Datris Robinson (1)  0-1

Bd 27  Mark Lawless (1) - Brian Kelly (1)  1-0

Bd 28  Hector Gonzalez (1) - Michael Ryan (1)  1-0

Bd 29  Robert Samuel (1) - Julian Rodriguez (1)  0-1

Bd 30  Morgan Fox (1) - Erik Marquis (1)  0-1

Bd 31  Tom Kuhn (1) - Bill Murray (1)  1-0

Bd 32  Patrick Edwards (1/2) - Darryl Woodson (1/2)  1-0

Bd 33  Michael Friedel (1/2) - David Whitten (house)  1-0 

Bd 34  Matt Souza (1/2) - Larry Vikander (1/2)  0-1 

Bd 35  Helmut Keil (house) - Cristhian Garcia (0)  1-0 

Bd 36  Tom Lavoy (0) - Glenn Rose (0)  1-0

Bd 37  Michael Kantro (house) - Yair Soto (0)  0-1

Bd 38  Steve Gordon (0) - Michael Wang (1/2)  0F-0F

Byes: Lennart Mathe (3), Pejman Sagart (3), Alejandrino Baluran (3), Ben Barquin (2 1/2), Eric Montany (2 1/2), Fausto Robles (2 1/2), Peter Bisgaard (2), Jeff Turner (1 1/2), Jerry Soelberg (1 1/2), Fawsi Jose Murra (1 1/2), Fausto Robles Jr (1), Anthony Harbone (1), James Coulston (1), Keith Wetterer (1/2), Mayra Murra (1/2)

Withdrawals: Jason Qu (1/2) 

     

 

 

 

 

Markowski Round 3 Results

A big thank you to TD Chuck Ensey for the original compilation and posting of the results for round 3. 

Total # of players = 90, not including house players. Joining in this round: NM Todd Smith and Class A player Esteban Escobedo

Only three players have a perfect 3-0 score: Lennart Mathe, Alejandrino Baluran and Pejman Sagart.

 

Bd 1  Ignacio Sainz (2) - Ben Barquin (2)  1/2-1/2

Ben Barquin continues to show us that he may be the man to watch as he holds the formidable Ignacio Sainz to a draw.

Bd 2  Lennart Mathe (2) - Alejandro Garamendi (2)  1-0 

Lennart Mathe demonstrated cool sang-froid under attack from Garamendi to win this game.

Bd 3  Alejandrino Baluran (2) - Fawsi Murra Jr (2) 1-0 

This was an all out battle with heavy tactical blows being exchanged. In the end, the more experienced 'Balladeer' prevailed. For this victory, the 'Balladeer' gets the honor to occupy Board 1 next week in round four as the top-rated seed with 3-0!

Bd 4  Pejman Sagart (2) - Manuel Herrera (2)  1-0

Perry Sagart is playing some excellent chess of late.  Here he takes out a very strong expert with logical moves and alert tactical shots and makes it look easy!

Bd 5  Bruce Baker (1 1/2) - Phillip Roth (1 1/2)  1-0

Bd 6  Brad Salz (1 1/2) - David Hart (1 1/2)  1-0

The big upset of the night as Brad Salz lives up to his potential and beats one of the tournament favorites, David Hart.

Bd 7  Mariano Lozano (1 1/2) - Bassam Shammas (1 1/2)  1/2-1/2

Bassam essayed an Alekhine Defence and Mariano aggresssively chose the sharpest variation variation against it - the Four Pawns Attack.  Mariano had matters well in hand with an advantageous position but he miscalculated and finally had to settle for a perpetual check. 

Bd 8  Eric Montany (1 1/2) - Jeff Turner (1 1/2)  1-0

Bd 9  Rick Aeria (1 1/2) - Robert Defore (1 1/2)  1-0

Bd 10  Paul Agron (1 1/2) - John Funderberg (1 1/2)  1-0

This was another notable upset of the night with relative new-comer Paul Agron defeating the Thunderbird.

Bd 11  George Zeigler (1 1/2) - Dayne Freitag (1 1/2)  0-1

Another upset with fearless Viking Dayne Freitag winning a rook-and-pawn endgame from George Zeigler.

Bd 12  Carey Milton (1 1/2) - Jens Lundell (1 1/2)  1-0

Bd 13  Jim Humphrey (1 1/2) - Damani Fair (1 1/2)  1-0

Bd 14  Shaun Sweitzer (1 1/2) - James Mahooti (1 1/2)  0-1

Bd 15  Fausto Robles (1 1/2) - Mario Amodeo (1 1/2)  1-0

In the battle of the club folk heroes, feisty Fausto tops Super Mario Amodeo in a wild tactical melee.

Bd 16  Karen Kaufman (1 1/2) - Carl Wagner (1)  0-1 

Karen Kaufman's Cinderella ride comes to an end at the hands of a relentless master Carl Wagner who is courageously playing himself back into contention.

Bd 17  Todd Smith (1) - Buddy Morris (1)  1-0

Master Todd Smith begins his debut for 2009 with a win against a familiar opponent for him, the Budmeister, Buddy Morris.

Bd 18  Robert Richard (1) - Phil Skiba (1)  1-0

Bd 19  Chuck Ensey (1) - Leonard Sussman (1)  0-1

Bd 20  Julian Rodriguez (1) - Raoul Crisologo (1)  0-1

Bd 21  Ron Soto (1) - Donald Klaas (1)  1-0

Bd 22  Erik Marquis (1) - Thomas Fries (1)  0-1

Bd 23  Roberto Aiello (1) - Anthony Arciga (1)  1-0

Bd 24  Alfredo Deleon (1) - Mark Lawless (1)  1-0

Bd 25  Anthony Harbone (1) - Marty Lower (1)  0-1

Bd 26  Esteban Escobedo (1) - James Coulston (1)  1-0

Bd 27  Jerry Kavanau (1) - Robert Draper (1)  0-1 

Bd 28  Bill Murray (1) - Joel Batchelor (1)  0-1

Bd 29  Fausto Robles Jr (1) - Ron Rezendes (1/2) 0-1

Bd 30  Steve Perry (1) - Jason Qu (1)  1F- 0F called in too late to get a bye! 

Bd 31  Nestor Dagamat (1/2) - Mayra Murra (1/2)  1-0

Bd 32  Patrick Edwards (1/2) - William Wijaya (1/2)  0-1

Bd 33  Michael Wang (1/2) - Jerry Soelberg (1/2)  0-1

Bd 34  Darryl Woodson (1/2) - Fawsi Jose Murra (1/2)  0-1

Bd 35  Fred Borges (1/2) - Keith Wetterer (1/2)  1-0

Bd 36  Matt Souza (1/2) - Rocio Murra (1/2)  0-1

Bd 37  Brian Kelly (0) - Tom Lavoy (0)  1-0

Bd 38  Cristhian Garcia (0) - Hector Gonzalez (0)  0-1

Bd 39  Larry Vikander (0) - Tom Kuhn (0)  1/2-1/2

Bd 40  Datris Robinson (0) - Steve Gordon (0)  1-0

Bd 41  Glenn Rose (0) - Robert Samuel (0)  0-1

Bd 42  Morgan Fox (0) - Yair Soto (0)  1-0

Bd 43  Michael Ryan (0) - John Crawford (0)  1F-0F 

Byes: David Delgadillo (2), Peter Bisgaard (1 1/2), Jamieson Pryor (1 1/2), Caley Anderson (1) and Michael Freidel (0)

House Player: Phil Skiba, John Crawford  

Searching For Bobby Fischer part 2 (English)

Gambito #404

Gambito Open #404  1/17/09

17 players today, light turnout most likley due to several players traveling to Los Angeles for the Western Class Championships (Bryant, Householder and Wijaya were a few of the names I noticed on the advanced registration list). We used a "mini"-McMahon with players rated 1800 and above getting one bye point and those rated under 1800 getting zero bye points. This saves the first round from being a total mismatch. Winners were as follows:

First Place: Cyrus Lakdawala (5), $100     BU2400: Ben Barquin (4), $50       

BU2200: Marlon Icban (3 1/2), $40            2nd Place: Leonard Sussman (3), $20

BU2000: Edgardo Navera (3), $40             BU1800: Jason Arbeiter (3), $40

BU1600: Mike Friedel (1), $30                  Total Prizes = $320  

 

The greatest player

I voted for Kasparov because I think he would probably win a round robin tournament of the five given players (assuming we're pulling them through time at the moment when they were at their best and accounting for weaker opening theory, etc. in past chessic ages).

I think three of those players could be said to be the "greatest" in one sense or another.  Whenever I look at a Capablanca game, I always have to remind myself that the man hardly studied chess at all compared to modern grandmasters.  His natural understanding of the game was so good that he could defeat Dr. Lasker and become world champion while spending about as much time on the game as your average middling club player.  I think he had the best natural hardware of any chess player; his lack of study simply provided him with insufficient software.  Any of the other players on the list would almost certainly defeat him easily because they would be prepared.

Fischer had what I would call the best over the board intangibles, as well as a prodigy's natural understanding.  Fischer was a downright scary person to play over the board because you knew that in more or less EVERY SINGLE POSITION he was digging deep for moves that would kill you.  It's Fischer's killer instinct that made him so powerful, as well as his "styleless" play.  Instead of unnaturally hampering himself by adopting a certain "style" of play, Fischer was simply concerned with good moves.  His style was always whatever style was dictated by the position.  His all-consuming desire to win made him who he was, both before and after 1974.

Kasparov, on the other hand, has a- the best work ethic of any of the given players, and b- the best calculative ability and intuitive position analysis of any of the given players.  Importantly, he was not born with the ability for deep calculation, nor was he born with the ability to analyze and understand with lightning quickness the essentials of the game.  He did the best job that any chess player has ever done of coming to an understanding of the game.  That is why he consistently won (and won big) over the world's very best for two decades straight, and that is why he would go 4-0 against the field of Fischer, Alekhine, Capablanca, and Anand.

-Caley

 

     

Poll: Who is the Greatest Player?

Who do you consider to be the greatest chess player of all time?

Bobby Fischer

 

 16

Gary Kasparov

 

 15

Alexander Alekhine

 

 3

J. R. Capablanca

 

 4

Vishy Anand

 

 4

It's time for another poll.  If you do not agree with the choices given add a comment by clicking on the "Reply" icon below and tell us why.

Kasparov vs Machine Pepsi Commercial

An amusing Pepsi commercial with Gary Kasparov

Lasker-Capablanca 1914 St.Petersburg

A classic game. World Champion Lasker was trailing by a point and had to play for a win but selects the Exchange Variation of the Ruy Lopez...

Endgame:Pryor v Montany

An interesting endgame was played between young Jamieson Pryor and Eric Montany in round two of the Markowski.

Pryor,Jamieson - Montany,Eric
Markowski (Round 2), 14.01.2009

A game fragment. Appearances can be deceiving, I thought White had the edge in this endgame but Black is actually winning in this position! 49...Ke8 Diagram

50.Rxb7 Ne7+ 51.Kh6 Diagram

[51.Kg5?? or any King retreat to the fifth rank is met by 51...Rf5+; 51.Kh7 Rf7+ 52.Bg7 d4 53.Rb3 d3 54.Rxd3 Nf5 winning] 51...Nc6 52.Bg7 Diagram

[52.Kg7 Rf2] 52...Rf7 53.a6 Nd8 [53...d4! 54.Kg6 Ne7+ 55.Rxe7+ Rxe7 56.Bxd4 e5 57.Be3 Re6+ 58.Kf5 Rxa6 59.Kxe5 Kd7 Analysis Diagram

 

with a problematical win for Black] 54.Rxf7 [54.Rb8 Rd7 55.Bd4 Kf7 is good for Black] 54...Kxf7 55.b4 Nc6 56.b5 Diagram

56...Ke7! This excellent move saves the game! 57.bxc6 Kd6 58.Bd4 Kxc6 59.Bxa7 Kb5 60.Kg6 Kxa6 61.Bd4 Kb5 62.Kf6 Kc4 63.Ke5 Diagram

1/2-1/2

Both players are to be congratulated for a fine fighting performance!

Pejman Sagart Produces A Combination

Pejman (or Perry) Sagart has been on fire lately and has raised his game to new heights.  Tonight Perry dominates his higher-rated opponent and produces a sparkler of a combination (36. ... Qxf3+!) .  Crisologo determinedly tries to hold on but walks in a crowd-pleasing mate!

 

Crisologo,Raoul - Sagart,Pejman [E20]
Markowski (2), 14.01.2009

1.c4 Nf6 2.Nc3 e6 3.e4 Nc6 4.d4 Bb4 5.f3 d6 6.a3 Bxc3+ 7.bxc3 h6 8.Bd3 0-0 9.Be3 e5 10.d5 Ne7 11.c5 Ne8 12.Ne2 b6 13.cxb6 axb6 14.0-0 f5 15.Qb3 f4 16.Bf2 Ng6 17.c4 Qg5 18.Kh1 Nf6 19.Rg1 Nh4 20.Bc2 Qh5 21.Bd1 g5 22.g4 fxg3 23.Nxg3 Qf7 24.Be2 Nh5 25.Nxh5 Qxh5 26.Rg3 Ng6 27.Rag1 Nf4 28.Bf1 Bh3 29.Qe3 Ra4 30.c5 Bxf1 31.Rxf1 bxc5 32.Rb1 Rd4 33.Rb3 Rd1+ 34.Bg1 Rf1 35.Rb2 Nh3 36.Qe2 Qxf3+ Diagram

37.Qxf3 R8xf3 38.Rxh3 Rxh3 39.Kg2 Rhf3 40.a4 Rf8 41.Rb7 Ra1 42.Rxc7 Rxa4 43.Rc6 Ra2+ 44.Kg3 Rf1 45.Be3 Ra3 46.Kg2 Re1 47.Bg1 Ra2+ 48.Kf3 Rxg1 49.Rxd6 g4+ 50.Ke3 c4 51.Rc6 Re1# Diagram

0-1

A Thunderbird Brilliancy

Ex-Club Champion, John Funderburg took a bye in round one and then produced this sacrificial brilliancy against a very capable William Wijaya who held off Bassam Shammas in an upset last week.

Funderburg,John - Wijaya,William [B23]
Markowski (Round 2), 14.01.2009
[Annotated by John Funderburg]

1.e4 c5 2.Nc3 Nc6 3.f4 d6 4.Nf3 Nf6 5.Bb5 Bd7 6.d3 a6 7.Ba4 b5 8.Bb3 Qb6 9.e5 dxe5 10.fxe5 Ng4 11.Bxf7+! Diagram

11...Kxf7 12.e6+ Kg8?! [Better is 12...Bxe6 13.Ng5+ Kg8 14.Nxe6+/=; 12...Kxe6? 13.Ng5+ Kd6 14.Nge4+ Ke5 15.Qf3+-] 13.exd7 Nf6 14.Qe2 Nd4 15.Nxd4 cxd4 16.Ne4 Nxd7 17.0-0 h6 18.Bf4 [18.Qf3! Threatening Qf7 check and a discovery on Ra8 18...Rd8 19.Qf7+ Kh7 20.Rf3 with idea Bh6 or Ng5] 18...e5 19.Bg3 Re8 20.Rf2 Be7 21.Qh5 g6 22.Qg4 Qc6 23.h4 h5 24.Nf6+!! Diagram

24...Bxf6 Forced [24...Qxf6 25.Qxd7; 24...Nxf6 25.Qxg6+ Kf8 26.Raf1+-] 25.Qxg6+ Kf8 26.Raf1 Ke7 [The best try is probably 26...Re6 27.Bxe5 Rg8 28.Qh6+ Kf7 29.Qxh5+ Rg6 30.Bxd4 with four pawns and initiative for the piece] 27.Rxf6! Diagram

27...Nxf6 [27...Qxf6 28.Rxf6 Nxf6 29.Bxe5 Rhf8 30.Bxd4] 28.Qg7+ Kd8 29.Rxf6 Qc5 30.Rxa6 Qd5 31.Ra7 Qc6 32.Bxe5 Rhg8 33.Ra8+ 1-0

Some very enterprising chess was played in this round.  Our thanks to the 'Thunderbird' for providing this game.

Round Two Results of the Markowski Qualifier

Round 2 Results

Well this was not "The Night of the Iguana" but it was sure ugly - for the top seeds anyway! The first six boards suffered some kind of setback for the top rated players. So after a brief two rounds, here are the early tournament leaders at 2-0: Ignacio Sainz, Alejandro Garamendi, Ben Barquin, Fawsi Murra, Jr., Pejman Sagart, Alejandrino Baluran, Manuel Herrera, Lennart Mathe and David Delgadillo!

Board 1   Mario Amodeo (1) v Bruce Baker (1)  (1/2-1/2)

Last game to finish for the night and 'Super Mario' holds off top seed Bruce Baker in a titanic struggle!

Board 2  Ben Barquin (1) v Robert Richard (1) 1-0

A stunning upset of yet another master by wily expert Ben!

Board 3  Peter Bisgaard (1) v Brad Salz (1) 1/2-1/2

Board 4  Jamieson Pryor (1)  v Eric Montany (1) 1/2-1/2

A most entertaining endgame struggle to which both participants must be lauded.

Board 5  Jeff Turner (1) v Rick Aeria (1)  1/2-1/2

Lakdawala Labs, Inc. outfitted Jeff Turner with a camouflaged Torre Attack.  From a slightly superior position Jeff's draw offer was readily accepted.

Board 6  Leonard Sussman (1)  v Fawsi Murra, Jr (1)  0-1

Fawsi grabs a share of the lead by beating Sussman with the black pieces.

Board 7  Thomas Fries(1)  v Ignacio Sainz (1) (1)  0-1

Ignacio Sainz also joins the leaders at 2-0!

Board 8 Alejandro Garamendi (1)  v Roberto Aiello (1)  1-0

Roberto put up a valiant struggle an exchange down but Garamendi brought home a full point.

Board 9  George Zeigler (1)  v Paul Agron  (1) 1/2-1/2

This encounter was marred in the latter stages by a noisy altercation.  After the TD intervened, a draw was agreed.

Board 10 Raoul Crisologo (1) v Pejman Sagart  (1) 0-1

Pejman scores a big upset with a sparkling combination! Game will be published in a later blog.

Board 11  Fausto Robles (1)  v  Carey Milton (1)  1/2-1/2

Fausto found himself in a difficult endgame of queen versus Carey's two rooks but extricated himself with a perpetual check..

Board 12 Robert Draper (1)  v  Alejandrino Baluran (1)   0-1

The 'Balladeer' joins the leaders with a perfect 2-0 score!

Board 13 Manuel Herrera (1)  v  Alfredo Deleon (1) 1-0

Board 14 Joel Batchelor (1)  v Lennart Mathe (1)   0-1

Lennart beats the club's undisputed Class 'B' champion and quietly joins the tournament leaders.

Board 15 David Delgadillo (1) v Ron Soto (1)  1-0

A huge win for "El Mariachi" David Delgadillo over the dangerous Ron Soto to stand amongst the tournament leaders.

Board 16  David Hart (1/2)  v Theron Pummer (House)  1-0

Master David Hart improves his score with a steady win over up-and-comer Theron.

Board 17 Bassam Shammas( 1/2)  v Nestor Dagamat (1/2)  1-0

Bassam returns to his winning ways at Nestor's expense.

Board 18 John Funderburg (1/2)  v  William Wijaya (1/2)   1-0

After a 1/2 bye in round one, the 'Thunderbird' opens his account with a brilliancy against William Wijaya. Game will be published shortly.

Board 19  Jerry Soelberg (1/2) v  Mariano Lozano (1/2)   0-1

Board 20 Phillip Roth (1/2)  v Fred Borges (1/2)  1-0

Board 21 Robert Defore (1/2)  v Steve Perry (1/2)  1-0

Robert Defore makes his bid for qualification early by dropping Steve Perry.

Board 22  Dayne Freitag (1/2)  v Kirk Branner (house)  1-0

Board 23  Jason Qu (1/2)  v Karen Kaufmann (1/2)  0-1

This upset was a stunner! Karen beats one of the young stars of the club!

Board 24 Jens Lundell (1/2) v Patrick Edwards (1/2)  1-0

Board 25 Damani Fair(1/2)  v Darryl Woodson (1/2)  1-0

Damani stays in the qualification hunt with this victory!

Board 26 Shaun Sweitzer (1/2) v Matt Souza (1/2) 1-0

Board 27 Keith Wetterer (1/2)  v Carl Wagner (0)  0-1

Keith was unfortunate to be paired with master Carl Wagner who was hungry for a point against anyone.

Board 28  Ron Rezendes (0)  v Datris Robinson (0)  1-0

The club president scores his first win of the new year.

Board 29 Robert Samuel (0) v Chuck Ensey (0)   0-1

The club "Veep" also scores his first win of this tournament.

Board 30 Buddy Morris (0)  v Morgan Fox  (0) 1-0

Sentimental favorite Buddy Morris posts his first point over Morgan Fox.

Board 31 Donald Klaas (0)  v Michael Ryan (0)  1-0

Board 32 James Coulston (0) v Brian Kelly (0)  1-0

Board 33 Caley Anderson (0)  v Cristian Garcia (0) 1-0

Board 34 Hector Gonzalez (0) v Bill Murray (0) 0-1

Board 35 Tom Lavoy (0) v Julian Rodriguez (0) 0-1

Board 36 Tom Kuhn (0) v  Fausto Robles,(0) Jr  0-1

Board 37 Larry Vikander (0) v  Erik Marquis  (0) 0-1

Board 38 Steve Gordon (0)  v Anthony Harbone (0)  0-1

Board 39 Anthony Arciga (0)  v Glenn Rose (0) 1-0

Board 40 Michael Friedel(0)  v Jerry Kavanau (0)   0-1

Board 41 Mark Lawless (0)  v Maria Elena Villarreal (house) 1-0

Board 42 Carolina Villarreal (house) v Michael Wang (0) 1-0

Byes:  Jim Humphrey (1)  1/2, James Mahooti (1) 1/2, Marty Lower (1/2) 1/2, Rocio Murra (1/2) 1/2, Mayra Murra (0) 1/2, Yair Soto (0) 1/2

Total Players = 88, plus some house players. Filling in as a house player in Rd 2 were Theron Pummer, Kirk Branner, Maria Elena Villarreal and Carolina Villarreal. Kevin Gassaway withdrew after round 1.   

Special thanks to TD Chuck Ensey for providing this information.

 

SDCC Board Meeting

Start:	Jan 21, '09 6:00p
Location:	2225 Sixth Avenue, San Diego

The SDCC Board meets before the third round of every tournament to take care of club affairs. Club members welcome to attend.

31st Annual Southern California Open

Start:	Sep 5, '09 10:00a
End:	Sep 7, '09
Location:	Crowne Plaza Hotel, 2270 Hotel Circle North, San Diego, CA 92108

31st Annual Southern California Open on Sept 5-7, 2009
at the CROWNE PLAZA HOTEL (see http://www.cp-sandiego.com)

-------------------------------------- $20,000 PRIZE FUND ---------------------------------------------------------
Based on 200 players, 60% of each prize guaranteed

6 Round Swiss Format in 5 Sections, Time Controls 40 moves/ 2 hours, then SD/1 hour + 5 second delay per move

#1 OPEN SECTION: 1st $2,600, 2nd $1,800, 3rd $1,200
4th $ 900, 5th $ 600, 7th $ 400
BU2300 $ 800, 2nd U2300 $ 400
BU2200: 1st $1,000, 2nd $ 600, 3rd $ 400, 4th $ 200

# 2 PREMIER (U2000): 1st $1,000, 2nd $ 600, 3rd $ 400, 4th $ 200
# 3 AMATEUR(U1800): 1st $1,000, 2nd $ 600, 3rd $ 400, 4th $ 200
# 4 RESERVE(U1600): 1st $1,000, 2nd $ 600, 3rd $ 400, 4th $ 200
# 5 BOOSTER(U1400): 1st $ 600, 2nd $ 400, 3rd $ 200, 4th $ 100
BU1200 $ 300, 2nd $ 150, Best Unrated $ 100
Unrated players must play in the Booster or go for place prizes only in the Open

Plus Best Game Prizes: $75, $50, $25, one reserved for non-Open sections

Directions: Freeway 5 to Freeway 8 East, take first exit: Taylor Street/Hotel Circle
then take Hotel Circle North

Registration: 8:00 AM to 9:30 A; September official rating list used.
Wheelchair access, no smoking, no computers

Rounds: 10 AM & 5 PM Saturday & Sunday
9 AM & 4 PM on Monday

Entry Fee: $120 if received by 8/31, $140 by 9/04, $160 after 9/04 or at door.
Only $75 if rated under 1400 or unrated.
Free entry for GMs & IMs (Entry fee deducted from winnings)
Open Section will be FIDE rated.

Mail Entries to: SCCF, c/o John Hillery, 835 N. Wilton Pl. # 1, Los Angeles, CA 90038
or enter on-line at the SCCF website at http://www.westernchess.com

See advance entries at http://www.westernchess.com/sco09/advance.html
SCCF membership is required for all players ($18 adults/$10 juniors)
Two half point byes available in rounds 1-6, nust be requested at least 1 hour before round, but last round bye must be requested at registration and is irrevocable.

More info: (619) 239-7166

GM Melikset Khachiyan lecture on Friday evening at 7:00 p.m. for beginners and 9:00 p.m. for advanced players at the hotel!

Hotel: Special rate of only $110 single or double, (619) 297-1101 or 1-800-227-6963 if booked by 8/31/09. Must reserve at least 2 nights, book ASAP as rated will go up and rooms may sell out by mid-August.

State Championship Qualifier, 150 Grand Prix Points (enhanced)

San Diego County Championships

Start:	Aug 8, '09 10:00a
End:	Aug 9, '09
Location:	2225 Sixth Avenue, San Diego

San Diego County Championships ---------------$$3,500 guaranteed prize fund ---------------
5-Round Swiss Format, 3 Sections

OPEN Section: 1st $500, 2nd $250
Under 2400 $200, 2nd $50 Under 2300 $200, 2nd $50
Under 2200 $200, 2nd $50 Under 2100 $200, 2nd $50
The OPEN Section is also a State Championship Quailfier

RESERVE Section (Under 2000):
1st $300, 2nd $150 Under 1900 $200, 2nd $50
Under 1800 $200, 2nd $50 Under 1700 $200, 2nd $50

BOOSTER SECTION (Under 1600):
1st $150, 2nd $75 Under 1400 $75, 2nd $25

Plus $25 Best Game Prize for each section
Unrated players eligible for book prizes only.

Parking is free in designated areas on street, arrive early.
No Smoking, No Computers, Wheelchair access available

Registration: 9 AM - 9:45 AM, 1 bye available in Rounds 1-4 only
Rounds: 10 AM, 2 PM & 6 PM on Saturday at time controls Game/90 minutes with 5 second delay
10 AM & 3 PM on Sunday at time controls Game/120 minutes with 5 second delay

Entry Fee: $50 in advance (paid by 8/7/09) or $60 on day of event.
Special rate if rated Under 1400 (or unrated) & paid in advance $25, or $30 at door

SCCF Membership Required for Southern California Residents: $18 Regular, $10 Junior

Mail Entries to: SDCC, P.O. Box 120162, San Diego, CA 92112
For more information call (619) 239-7166

SCCF Senior/Junior Open

Start:	Apr 18, '09 10:00a
End:	Apr 19, '09
Location:	2225 Sixth Avenue, San Diego

2009 Southern California Chess Federation (SCCF) Senior/Junior Open
$3,200 prize fund based on 60 players (60% of all prize funds guaranteed)
5 Round Swiss Format in two Sections:
Senior Section: 50 years and older
"Junior" Section Under 50 years of age
Both Sections: 1st $300, 2nd 150, 3rd $50
U2300 $150, 2nd $50
U2100 $150, 2nd $50
U1900 $150, 2nd $50
U1700 $150, 2nd $50
Plus...
$100 for Best Over 60 years old, $100 for Best Under 20 years old
$100 for Best Over 70 years old, $100 for Best Under 16 years old
$100 for best Over 80 years old, $100 for Best Under 12 years old
Each player is eligible for only one of the above prizes!

Registration: 9 AM-9:45 AM 4/18/09 Call (619) 239-7166 for more info.
Rounds: 10 AM, 2 PM, 6 PM on Saturday, with time controls at Game/90 minutes with 10 second delay
Rounds 10 AM & 3 PM on Sunday, with time controls at Game/120 minutes with 10 second delay

Entry Fee: $50 if paid by 4/17 (or $60 on day of event), special rate for players rated under 1500 only $25
SCCF membership required ($18 reg/$10 Jr)

Mail entries to: SDCC, P.O. Box 120162, San Diego CA 92112
One half point bye allowed in rounds 1 through 4, must request by round 1
No last round bye.

Tournament Director Chuck Ensey

San Diego Chess Club General Information

The San Diego Chess Club is located on 2225 Sixth Avenue, San Diego, California (Sixth & Ivy) in scenic & historic Balboa Park.

Club Manager: Bruce Baker
Club Phone Number: (619) 239-7166

Mail Box address:
San Diego Chess Club, P.O. Box 120162, San Diego, CA 92112

Membership Fees:

Regular $60 a year'
Seniors, active military $48
Juniors $30

Entry fee for Wednesday Night Tournaments (5 or 6 rounds) is $25.

In addition to Wednesday nights, the club is open on Friday evenings for juniors on Fridays as the Jedi Knights Childrens' Club and on Saturdays (10 AM to 7 PM) for the Gambito Tournaments.

For casual play the club remains open from 3 PM to 10 PM on weekdays

Chess Instruction available - see National Master Bruce Baker

The club also has chess equipment available for sale. Chess pieces, boards, bags, chess clocks and score pads.

The club also has an extensive chess library available to it's members.

Elegy to Mikhail Tal

A brief tribute to one of the most popular chess players in history, Latvian-born Mikhail Tal. World Champion in 1960.

Mieses v Alekhine 1913

Alekhine's tactics flow even from an antiquated opening.

Thanks to Bruce Wallace of the Dundee Chess Club in Scotland for producing this video.

Euwe v Najdorf 1953

A sparkling game from Dutch ex-world champion, Max Euwe!

Our thanks to Bruce Wallace of the Dundee Chess Club, Scotland, for sharing this game.

Reti v Alekhine 1925

This is probably one of Alekhine's most well-known brilliancies.

Our thanks to Bruce Wallace of the Dundee Chess Club in Scotland for sharing this classic with the world.

Alekhine v Levenfisch, 1912

Alekhine has a knack for finding unusual move sequences to induce imbalanced, sacrificial possibilities.

Our thanks to Bruce Wallace of the Dundee Chess Club in Scotland for producing these videos and showing us a small part of the rich heritage of chess.

Alekhine v Feldt 1916

An Alekhine brilliancy.

Potemkin v Alekhine 1912

The imagination of Alexander Alekhine is extraordinary!

Jerry Soelberg Swiss Tournament, Rd 1

Start:	Jul 1, '09 7:00p
Location:	2225 Sixth Avenue, San Diego

Start of the Jerry Soelberg 6-round Swiss-Format Tournament. Time controls 40 moves/90 minutes followed by SD/60 minutes with a 5-second time delay per move.

This event is named to honor Jerry Soelberg, a long standing club member.

Chuck Ensey Double Header, Rds 1 & 2

Start:	May 27, '09 7:00p
Location:	2225 Sixth Avenue, San Diego

Start of 10-round quick time control, Game in 45 minutes with a 5 second delay. Two rounds will be played each week. For the die-hard slow time control traditionalists, the club usually runs a separate event so that all member needs are accommodated.

Robert Samuel Swiss, Rd 1

Start:	Apr 22, '09 7:00p
Location:	2225 Sixth Avenue, San Diego

Start of a five round swiss format tournament. Standard time controls of 40 moves/90 minutes followed by SD/60 minutes. A 5 second time delay is used.

This event is named to honor long-standing club member Robert Samuel.

Open House & Club Champions Simul

Start:

Apr 15, '09 7:00p

SDCC Open House & Club Champions Simultaneous Exhibition. A festive event with food and drink. An opportunity for socializing and to test the skills of the newly crowned club champion in the simul.

This year a special opportunity to play John Funderburg, perhaps the most strong-willed and disciplined champion in the post-Lakdawala era (as far as the club championship goes).

Lakdawala Championships, Round 2

Start:	Mar 4, '09 7:00p
Location:	2225 Sixth Avenue, San Diego

This includes four separate events running concurrently:
The SDCC Finals, The Fred Borges Open, The Reserve Championship & Women's Championship

I've Got a Secret - Bobby Fischer

15 year old Bobby Fischer appears on a television game show "I've Got a Secret" in 1958

A Very Different Bobby Fischer

A very personable Bobby Fischer appearing on The Dick Cavett Show in the summer of 1972

Botvinnik - Champion

Historical footage of Mikhail Botvinnik, world champion 1948-1957, 1958-1960, 1961-1963

Botvinnik v. Vidmar

An instructive video on play with the isloated queen pawn.

The most beautiful chess game R.Nezhmetdinov vs. M.Tal

A sparkling game between two supreme tacticians

Belenzon v Hart, Round 1 of Markowski Open

Belenzon,Robert - Hart,David [D08]
Markowski (Round 1), 07.01.2009
[Annotations by Belenzon & Aeria]

1.d4 d5 2.c4 e5 The enterprising Albin Counter Gambit 3.dxe5 d4 4.Nf3 Nc6 5.a3 a5 6.h3 [Fritz gives 6.e3 Bg4 7.h3 with a small plus] 6...Bc5 7.b3 f6 8.exf6 Nxf6 9.g3 0-0 10.Bg2 Qe8 11.Bb2 Ne4 12.Nbd2? Bf5 [Belenzon gives 12...Nxf2 13.Kxf2 Qe3+ 14.Ke1 d3 15.Rf1 Re8 Analysis Diagram

threatening 16.-- dxe2] 13.Nxe4 Bxe4 14.0-0 Rd8 15.Ne1 Bxg2 16.Kxg2 Qe4+ 17.f3 Qg6 18.Qd3 Qh5 19.Rd1 Rde8 20.Nc2 Re6 21.Rde1 Rh6 22.h4 Bd6 23.Nxd4? Bxg3! 24.Qe4 Bxe1 [Fritz likes 24...Rg6! ] 25.Rxe1 Re8 26.Qf4 Qxh4 27.Qxh4 Rxh4 28.Nxc6 bxc6 29.Bc3 Rb8 30.Kg3 Rh6 [30...g5!-+] 31.Rb1 a4 32.b4 Rd6 33.Kf2 Rbd8 34.Rg1 g6 35.Rg5 Rd1 36.Rc5 Rc1 37.Be5 Re8 38.f4 Re6 39.Bxc7 Rc3 40.Be5 Rxa3 41.b5 cxb5 42.cxb5 Rb3 43.Rc8+ Kf7 44.Rc7+ Re7 45.Rc4 Rxb5 [Better is 45...a3 46.Ra4 Ke6 preserving the queen side pawns] 46.Rxa4 Rbxe5 Hart does the sensible thing and liquidates to an advantageous, if not winning ending with zero losing chances. 47.fxe5 Rxe5 48.Ra7+ Re7 49.Ra6 h5 50.Kf3 Re6 51.Ra7+ Kf6 52.e4 Rb6 53.Ra5 g5 54.Rf5+ Kg6 55.Rd5 Rb3+ 56.Kf2 h4 57.Rd6+ Kh5 58.e5 g4 59.e6 g3+ 60.Kg2 Rb2+ 61.Kf3 Rf2+ 62.Ke3 Rf8 [After 62...Rf1 Analysis Diagram - there are all kinds of intriguing possibilities...]

] 63.e7 Re8 64.Re6 Kg4 65.Re4+ Kh3 66.Kf3 g2 67.Kf2 Ra8 The game ended in a draw at this point. One possible variation is 68.e8Q Rxe8 69.Rxe8 Kh2 70.Rg8 h3 71.Rg3 g1Q+ 72.Rxg1 stalemate 1/2-1/2

Bobby Fischer - Beats the Russians

Historical footage of Bobby Fischer winning the world championship in 1972.

Capablanca, Jose, Raul

Old video footage of Capablanca. There is no audio but it is still wonderful to see one of the legends of the game.

Alekhine interview

Most audio interview with the BBC of Alexander Alekhine in English. Paul Agron please note how the interviewer pronounces 'Alek-eeene"

Tal - Champion Of The World!

Bringing you back to the days in 1960 when the Magician from Riga, Mikhail Tal reached the pinnacle of chess glory!

Tal in Beograd 1959

Some nice video footage of the candidates in Belgrade, former-Yugoslavia and now Serbia in 1959

Karpov

Video footage of ex-World Champion Anatloy Karpov (1975-1985). Commentary is in Spanish.