OT: Chess

[Harbour Dog]

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"FTX Crypto Cup - Live!

5/23/2021 – The FTX Crypto Cup is taking place on May 23-31 and offers a record $320,000 prize pot for an online event — $100,000 of that is a bonus paid in crypto by new sponsor FTX. World champion Magnus Carlsen takes centre stage as the current leader of the Meltwater Champions Chess Tour, but faces stiff competition in a field of 16 star names. Follow the games live with commentary starting at 17.00 CEST."

I only posted the current standings to show how incredibly strong the field is. @Harbour Dog

I never even knew this tourney was going on until about five minutes after today's games ended haha. Will make sure to catch some over the next few days!

 

[Say Hey Kid]

" FTX Crypto Cup: Three leaders, Carlsen still in danger | ChessBase

Fabiano Caruana, Hikaru Nakamura and Teimour Radjabov are sharing the lead on 6½/10 points in the preliminaries of the FTX Crypto Cup after two days of action. Out of the 16 participants, those that finish at the top half of the standings table will move on to the knockout stage. World champion Magnus Carlsen is currently sharing 6th-9th place with a 5½/10 score." @Harbour Dog​

 

[Harbour Dog]

" FTX Crypto Cup: Three leaders, Carlsen still in danger | ChessBase

Fabiano Caruana, Hikaru Nakamura and Teimour Radjabov are sharing the lead on 6½/10 points in the preliminaries of the FTX Crypto Cup after two days of action. Out of the 16 participants, those that finish at the top half of the standings table will move on to the knockout stage. World champion Magnus Carlsen is currently sharing 6th-9th place with a 5½/10 score." @Harbour Dog​

Watching the quarters now. Magnus' poor day one has lead to him and Hikaru being seeded against one another for this round.

 

[Say Hey Kid]

 

[Say Hey Kid]

 

[Harbour Dog]

Radjabov was determined to play a bland four-draw round against Magnus. Looks like that's about to go awry.

 

[Say Hey Kid]

 

[Harbour Dog]

The first tournament of the Grand Chess Tour 2021 starts on June 5th. A 10-man classical tourney in Bucharest.

Caruana, Giri, MVL, Mamedyarov, Aronian, So, Grischuk, and Radjabov are all playing. Should be a fun couple weeks!

2021 Superbet Chess Classic | Grand Chess Tour

 

[Say Hey Kid]

Superbet Chess Classic: Giri Escapes In Peaceful Opening Round - Chess.com​

 

[Say Hey Kid]

Superbet Chess Classic: Deac Beats MVL, Leads With Caruana - Chess.com​

 

[Harbour Dog]

Grischuk and So each beat one of the leaders today and supplanted them both.

Grischuk almost always has one of the most exciting games in every tournament. He used up an incredible amount of time before move 10, just because Deac decided to play the Semi-Tarrasch for the first time in any of his recorded competitions. He obviously hadn't prepared for it to be played that game, but lol... it's the Semi-Tarrasch, not some obscure rarely seen line. But of course, Grischuk being Grischuk, he dragged Deac into mutual time trouble and managed to come out on top.

 

[Say Hey Kid]

Grischuk and So each beat one of the leaders today and supplanted them both. Grischuk almost always has one of the most exciting games in every tournament. He used up an incredible amount of time before move 10, just because Deac decided to play the Semi-Tarrasch for the first time in any of his recorded competitions. He obviously hadn't prepared for it to be played that game, but lol... it's the Semi-Tarrasch, not some obscure rarely seen line. But of course, Grischuk being Grischuk, he dragged Deac into mutual time trouble and managed to come out on top.

V Gashimov vs Grischuk, 2010 0-1
Grischuk vs Ponomariov, 2000 1-0
Grischuk vs Rublevsky, 2007 1-0
Grischuk vs Fressinet, 2000 1-0
Grischuk vs Bareev, 2001 1-0
Jobava vs Grischuk, 2009 0-1
I Cheparinov vs Grischuk, 2008 0-1
Gelfand vs Grischuk, 2014 0-1
Grischuk vs A Filippov, 2014 1-0
Svidler vs Grischuk, 2013 1/2-1/2

The anti-GM of the clock is fascinating. Some of his best games are listed above.
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[Say Hey Kid]

" Superbet Chess Classic: Mamedyarov Strikes With Wonderful Combination - Chess.com
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GM Shakhriyar Mamedyarov caught the leaders GM Alexander Grischuk and GM Wesley So in first place in the fifth round of the Superbet Chess Classic. Mamedyarov was the only winner of the day as he defeated GM Constantin Lupulescu with a wonderful combination. Thursday is a rest day and four more rounds remain. Of the three leaders, GM Garry Kasparov picked So as the slight favorite to win the tournament but with a rather tight leaderboard, anything can happen. Or, as GM Alexander Grischuk put it: "Leader is a joke with plus one, it's like in basketball, at half-time you lead by one point."

 

[Harbour Dog]

And Mamedyarov wins the tourney. I never bothered to get up for this round; suspected that MVL wouldn't try to put up and a fight and it would be a quick draw.

I suspected correctly.

 

[Say Hey Kid]

" Sam Shankland Wins Prague Masters With 2900 Performance - Chess.com

GM Sam Shankland won the third edition of the Prague Masters. Playing his first over-the-board tournament in 16 months, the California-based grandmaster finished on 5.5/7, half a point more than Polish GM Jan-Krzysztof Duda. Like so many chess players these days, Shankland was thrilled to finally return to the chess arena and touch the wooden board and pieces again. His last OTB tournament had been the 2020 Prague Masters, and it was also the Czech capital where he returned more than a year later. On the eve before the first round, he posted the following, touching message on Facebook:" @Harbour Dog

 

[Harbour Dog]

" Sam Shankland Wins Prague Masters With 2900 Performance - Chess.com

GM Sam Shankland won the third edition of the Prague Masters. Playing his first over-the-board tournament in 16 months, the California-based grandmaster finished on 5.5/7, half a point more than Polish GM Jan-Krzysztof Duda. Like so many chess players these days, Shankland was thrilled to finally return to the chess arena and touch the wooden board and pieces again. His last OTB tournament had been the 2020 Prague Masters, and it was also the Czech capital where he returned more than a year later. On the eve before the first round, he posted the following, touching message on Facebook:" @Harbour Dog

I wanted to watch this tournament, but the only coverage was in Czech. Still followed it a little; Shankland and Duda stood apart from the rest for sure.

I was a little disappointed in van Foreest. He still uncorked some of his normal well-prepared crazy novelties, but they weren't really effective at any point. I was really hoping to see him start taking steps higher into the 2700s so we could get to his style of play a little more.

 

[Say Hey Kid]

United States of America (Active players)

#	Name	Title	Fed	Rating	G	B-Year
1	Caruana, Fabiano	g	USA	2820	0	1992
2	So, Wesley	g	USA	2770	0	1993
3	Dominguez Perez, Leinier	g	USA	2758	0	1983
4	Nakamura, Hikaru	g	USA	2736	0	1987
5	Xiong, Jeffery	g	USA	2709	0	2000
6	Shankland, Sam	g	USA	2691	0	1991
7	Robson, Ray	g	USA	2673	0	1994
8	Sevian, Samuel	g	USA	2660	0	2000

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

" Wesley So Wins 2021 Paris Rapid & Blitz - Chess.com

Leading from start to finish, GM Wesley So won the Paris Rapid & Blitz tournament as the best and most consistent player in the field. The American player secured the $37,500 first prize with a round to spare before beating his closest rival GM Ian Nepomniachtchi in the final round. After he won the tournament, So revealed that he had considered Nepomniachtchi to be the favorite going into the final day, even though the Russian player was half a point behind him. Throughout the day, Nepomniachtchi kept the pace and stayed close behind, knowing that he would still face So in the final round—a great pairing, purely by chance. As it went, that final round didn't even matter anymore. When Nepomniachtchi lost to GM Alireza Firouzja in the penultimate round, the gap was suddenly 1.5 points and it was all over."

First Shankland and now So. 8 US players rated 2660+ and 2709 Xiong and 2660 Sevian are only 21 years old. It's a Golden Age for US Chess. @Harbour Dog

 

[Say Hey Kid]

"Goldmoney Asian Rapid: Aronian, Ding Lead - Chess.com

After the second day of the preliminaries in the Goldmoney Asian Rapid, GMs Levon Aronian and Ding Liren are tied for first place with 7/10, closely followed by GM Wesley So and Vladislav Artemiev. GM Alireza Firouzja and Daniil Dubov need a good third day to qualify for the knockout phase; GM Hou Yifan cannot make it anymore."

I've been trying to cut down on my images in this thread, but it's always good to see the serious Levon in a good mood, especially after the death of his wife. He's a great player with a peak rating of 2830! Here's a game where he beat former WC Anand:

Levon Aronian vs Viswanathan Anand
"Levon For Good" (game of the day Jun-03-2008)
Morelia-Linares (2007), Morelia MEX, rd 5, Feb-22
Slav Defense: Modern Line (D11) · 1-0
Levon Aronian vs Viswanathan Anand (2007) Levon For Good (chessgames.com)​

@Harbour Dog

 

[Harbour Dog]

"Goldmoney Asian Rapid: Aronian, Ding Lead - Chess.com

After the second day of the preliminaries in the Goldmoney Asian Rapid, GMs Levon Aronian and Ding Liren are tied for first place with 7/10, closely followed by GM Wesley So and Vladislav Artemiev. GM Alireza Firouzja and Daniil Dubov need a good third day to qualify for the knockout phase; GM Hou Yifan cannot make it anymore."

I've been trying to cut down on my images in this thread, but it's always good to see the serious Levon in a good mood, especially after the death of his wife. He's a great player with a peak rating of 2830! Here's a game where he beat former WC Anand:

Levon Aronian vs Viswanathan Anand
"Levon For Good" (game of the day Jun-03-2008)
Morelia-Linares (2007), Morelia MEX, rd 5, Feb-22
Slav Defense: Modern Line (D11) · 1-0
Levon Aronian vs Viswanathan Anand (2007) Levon For Good (chessgames.com)​

@Harbour Dog

This article is actually several rounds behind; chess.com hasn't kept up very well with it.

Firouzja and Dubov failed to qualify, and in the quarters, Aronian managed to get past Erigaisi in tie breaks, Artemiev dominated Giri, Carlsen-So had another epic match with Carlsen coming out ahead in tie breaks, and Ding got through Duda.

Semis start tomorrow: Aronian vs Carlsen and Artemiev vs. Ding.

 

[Say Hey Kid]

This kid is better than you. @Harbour Dog

Abhimanyu Mishra Becomes Youngest Grandmaster In Chess History - Chess.com

"IM Abhimanyu Mishra became the youngest chess grandmaster in history today. The 12-year-old player from New Jersey scored his third GM norm in Budapest, having already crossed the required 2500 Elo rating barrier. Mishra (often called "Abhi") broke GM Sergey Karjakin's record that has stood for 19 years. On August 12, 2002, Karjakin, a world championship challenger in 2016, secured the grandmaster title at the age of 12 years and seven months. Mishra, born on February 5, 2009, took 12 years, four months, and 25 days to obtain the highest title in chess." In his last GM norm winning game he played the D83: Gruenfeld, Gruenfeld gambit (365chess.com) as Black. 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. Bf4 Bg7 5. e3 O-O. Ian Nepomniachtchi has played this variation as Black 10 times. 365Chess.com - Biggest Chess Games Database Online​

 

[Say Hey Kid]

Aronian Wins Goldmoney Asian Rapid - Chess.com

"On a somewhat anticlimactic last day, GM Levon Aronian won the Goldmoney Asian Rapid final rather quickly. Needing just two game points, Aronian defeated GM Vladislav Artemiev twice to clinch the $30,000 first prize after an hour and 25 minutes of play. GM Magnus Carlsen eventually came in third after losing three straight games to GM Ding Liren in the rapid segment but winning the blitz tiebreak." @Harbour Dog​

 

[Say Hey Kid]

Gelfand Wins 34th Leon Masters - Chess.com

GM Boris Gelfand won the 34th edition of the Leon Masters, held on Chess.com for the second year in a row due to the pandemic. Gelfand beat GM Leinier Dominguez in the blitz tiebreak of the final to win his second Leon title. ... In the big final on Sunday, Dominguez started with a win, but Gelfand leveled the score right away. With two draws in the other rapid games, a blitz tiebreak of two 5|3 games was played. Gelfand struck in the second game with the black pieces. It was a continuation of a theoretical discussion in the Rauzer Sicilian in this match and saw some nice tactical possibilities in the middle game. Eventually, Gelfand managed to trick his opponent in a drawn R-B endgame:
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Dominguez Perez, Leinier (2654) vs. Gelfand, Boris (2691)
0-1 Leon Masters 2021 Chess.com 04 Jul 2021 Round: 2.2 ECO: B67. The old master vs one of the top Americans. @Harbour Dog​

 

[Harbour Dog]

World Cup starts Saturday! Top 50 seeds have a bye through to the second round though, so no really big names until Tuesday.

I'm very interested to see how some of the young guys have gotten stronger during the pandemic; I bet there are teenagers that are seriously underrated at the moment.

Some notables that are playing in the first round:
Bareev
Gukesh D
Tari
Tang
Pichot
Saric
Sevian
Bok
Abusattorov
Sarana
Sarin
Praggnanandhaa
Jobava
Mishra(!)

Also, the GCT Croatia Rapid and Blitz starts tomorrow. Very strong field there.

 

[Say Hey Kid]

I'm really looking forward to the World Cup. Some of the players I'm rooting for are Bareev, Mishra, Sevian, and Alexander Onischuk who had a peak rating of 2701. Here's a notable game by him: Alexander Onischuk vs Aleksandar Kovacevic (1991) (chessgames.com) Leningrad, English Opening: King's English Variation. Three Knights System General (A27) · 1-0 @Harbour Dog​

 

[Harbour Dog]

How dare you sit down with me, fool!
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Croatia Rapid & Blitz: Nepomniachtchi Loses To Saric, Still Leads - Chess.com

GM Ian Nepomniachtchi still leads the Croatia Rapid & Blitz despite a loss in round six to the local wildcard participant GM Ivan Saric. GM Vishy Anand and GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, who both scored plus one on Thursday, are tied for second place with Saric.

Nakamura Wins July 6 Titled Tuesday - Chess.com

GM Hikaru Nakamura returned to the top of Titled Tuesday this week, winning outright with a score of 10/11. GM Parham Maghsoodloo, coming off a win in the Round of 16 in the Junior Speed Chess Championship, scored 9.5/11 for second place. Five players tied at 9/11, with GM Gata Kamsky having the top tiebreaker for a third-place finish followed by GM Dmitry Andreikin in fourth. GMs Daniil Dubov, Artur Gabrielian, and Baadur Jobava also scored 9/11. 514 titled players played in this week's Titled Tuesday. The tournament was the typical 11-round Swiss, with a 3+1 time control.

Nihal Sarin Wins Back-To-Back Tournaments, Enters World's Top 100 - Chess.com

16-year-old GM Nihal Sarin has a fantastic month of chess behind him. The Indian prodigy won two strong tournaments in a row in Serbia and gained 35 Elo points, reaching a virtual rating of 2655.

I hope he's in the World Cup! @Harbour Dog

I watched this today. Saric never just beat Nepo, he calmly and methodically dismantled him; very impressive!

I was going to post about Sarin earlier too haha. He is doing exactly what I mentioned might happen earlier. Young kid, took a huge step during Covid and is now underrated. He is so underrated that he doesn't even have a first round bye in the World Cup! He's one of the first round matches I'm most looking forward to.