01-01 November Cover_Layout 1 16/10/2017 20:14 Page 1 03-03 Contents_Chess mag - 21_6_10 16/10/2017 20:18 Page 3

Chess Contents Founding Editor: B.H. Wood, OBE. M.Sc † Executive Editor: Editorial...... 4 Editors: Richard Palliser, Matt Read Malcom Pein on the latest developments in the game Associate Editor: John Saunders Subscriptions Manager: Paul Harrington 60 Seconds with... Maxime Vachier-Lagrave...... 7 Twitter: @CHESS_Magazine The French star would like to see a stable calendar from FIDE Twitter: @TelegraphChess - Malcolm Pein Website: www..co.uk And Then There Was One...... 8 128 players were whittled down to just in Tbilisi Subscription Rates: United Kingdom How Good is Your Chess? ...... 16 1 year (12 issues) £49.95 Daniel King was impressed by Richard Rapport at the World Cup 2 year (24 issues) £89.95 3 year (36 issues) £125 Two Hundred Years... And Counting ...... 20 Europe Graham Phythian on the commemoration of an important date 1 year (12 issues) £60 2 year (24 issues) £112.50 Magnus, Master of the Manx...... 22 3 year (36 issues) £165 Carlsen triumphed in the Isle of Man, watched by John Saunders

USA & Canada How to Lose to a 9-Year-Old at Chess...... 30 1 year (12 issues) $90 2 year (24 issues) $170 Steve Barrett bemoans having to play so many children 3 year (36 issues) $250 Opening Trends...... 33 Rest of World (Airmail) The Catalan Opening has shot up the chart 1 year (12 issues) £72 2 year (24 issues) £130 Never Mind the Grandmasters...... 34 3 year (36 issues) £180 Carl Portman pays tribute to CHO’D Alexander and Bletchley Park Distributed by: Post Scriptum (UK only), Find the Winning Moves ...... 36 Unit G, OYO Business Park, Hindmans Way, Some tricky positions from the Chess.com Isle of Man International Dagenham, RM9 6LN - Tel: 020 8526 7779

Endgame Revision...... 40 LMPI (North America) 8155 Larrey Street, Montreal (Quebec), Can you do the pawnless mates? Cyrus Lakdawala explains if not H1J 2L5, Canada - Tel: 514 355-5610 Studies Winners...... 42 Views expressed in this publication are not The solutions to two of Brian Stephenson’s positions necessarily those of the Editors. Contributions to the magazine will be published at the Editors’ Blasts from the Past...... 43 discretion and may be shortened if space is limited. A reminisicing James Essinger presents two games from yesteryear No parts of this publication may be reproduced without the prior express permission of the publishers. Home News...... 46 Danny Gormally triumphed at the English Rapidplay Championship All rights reserved. © 2017 Chess Magazine (ISSN 0964-6221) is published by: Forthcoming Events ...... 48 Chess & Bridge Ltd, 44 Baker St, London, W1U 7RT Where will you be playing in November? Tel: 020 7288 1305 Fax: 020 7486 7015 Email: [email protected], Website: www.chess.co.uk Overseas News ...... 50 Success for Georg Meier, Alexander Motylev and Shreyas Royal FRONT COVER: Cover Design: Matt Read Solutions...... 52 Cover photography: 123rf.com New Books and Software...... 54 US & Canadian Readers – You can contact us via our Kanwal Bhatia and Sean Marsh have been enjoying Sakaev & Landa American branch – Chess4Less based in West Palm Beach, FL. Call toll-free on 1-877 89CHESS (24377). You can even order Subscriber Special Offers online Saunders on Chess ...... 58 via www.chess4less.com John would like the rules of chess to be respected

Printed in the UK by The Magazine Printing Photo credits: Max Avdeev/FIDE (p.17), Calle Erlandsson (pp.51, 58), Maria Emelianova (pp.10-11; 13; 15, top, 46), Amruta Mokal (pp.9, 12, 14; 15, Company using only paper from FSC/PEFC middle), Brendan O’Gorman (p.50), Lennart Ootes (p.7), Adam Raoof (p.47), suppliers www.magprint.co.uk Fiona Steil-Antoni (pp.22-24, 26, 28).

www.chess.co.uk 3 07-07 60sMVL_Chess mag - 21_6_10 16/10/2017 20:20 Page 7

playing tournaments and meeting friends. V.Ivanchuk-A.Yusupov And the worst? When things go wrong and 9th matchgame (rapid), Brussels 1991 you’re all on your own in a remote place. Then King’s Indian Defence you can’t wait to be back home. 1 c4 e5 2 g3 d6 3 g2 g6 4 d4 d7 5 Your best move? Probably not the best, but Í Ì c3 g7 6 f3 gf6 7 0-0 0-0 8 c2 27... h7 against Morozevich in Biel 2009. If only Ì Í Ì Ì Ë Î e8 9 d1 c6 10 b3 e7 11 a3 e4 12 because that rook stayed en prise for 24 moves. Î Î Ë Í Ìg5 e3 13 f4 Ìf8 14 b4 Íf5 15 Ëb3 h6 16 Ìf3 Ìg4 17 b5 g5 18 bxc6 bxc6 19 e5 gxf4 20 xc6 g5 21 xd6 A.Morozevich-M.Vachier Lagrave Ì Ì Ë Í Ìg6 22 Ìd5 Ëh5 23 h4 Ìxh4!? 24 Biel 2009 gxh4 Ëxh4 25 Ìde7+ Êh8 26 Ìxf5 Ëh2+ 27 Êf1 Îe6 28 Ëb7?

Born: 21st October 1990, Nogent-sur- Marne, France.

Place of residence: Paris.

Occupation: Chess. 27...Îh7!! 28 Îe1 Íxc6 29 Ëxc6 Íd4 30 Êd2 Ëxb2 31 Ëc4+ Êh8 32 Êd3 a5 28...Îg6!! 29 Ëxa8+ Êh7 30 Ëg8+ Enjoyable? Yes; my job turns out to be my 33 Ëc8 Ëa3+ 34 Êe4 b3 35 cxb3 a4 Êxg8 31 Ìce7+ Êh7 32 Ìxg6 fxg6 33 lifelong passion. 36 Îb1 Ëb4 37 Ëc4 Ëb7+ 38 Ëd5 Ëb4 Ìxg7 Ìf2 34 Íxf4 Ëxf4 35 Ìe6 Ëh2 39 Ëc4 Ëd2 40 Íg4 a3 41 Ëf7 Ëc2+ 36 Îdb1 Ìh3 37 Îb7+ Êg8 38 Îb8+ And home life? Living alone, but having a 42 Êd5 Ëc5+ 43 Êe4 a2 44 Îc1 a1Ë Ëxb8 39 Íxh3 Ëg3 0-1 serious group of friends to go out with. 45 Îxc5 Íxc5 46 Ëd5 Ëe1+ 47 Êd3 Ëd1+ 48 Êc4 Ëxd5+ 49 Êxd5 Ía3 The best three chess books: Endgame Strategy But sometimes good to escape to: The 50 Íf5 Êg8 51 Êxe5 Îh8 52 Êd5 Ìh7 by Mikhail Shereshevsky, David Bronstein’s Alps. I don’t go hiking seriously yet, but I 53 gxh7+ Êf7 54 Íg6+ Êf6 55 f4 Íc1 The Sorcerer’s Apprentice and Chess Endings: might seriously consider it in the future. 56 f5 Íd2 57 Êd6 Íe1 58 Êd7 Íb4 Essential Knowledge by Yuri Averbakh. 59 Êc7 Êe5 60 Êd7 Ía3 61 Êc6 Êd4 Sports played or followed: I don’t have 62 Êc7 Êc3 63 Êd7 Êb4 64 Êd6 Is FIDE doing a good job? The situation is enough opportunities to play them, but I can Êxb3+ 65 Êd5 Íb2 66 Êd6 Íf6 not as unstable as one would think at first, watch and bet on any! Football, tennis and 67 Êc5 Êc3 68 Êd6 Êd4 69 Êc6 Îd8 but FIDE should really work on getting a basketball are my main TV schedule. 70 Êb6 Êd5 71 Êc7 Êc5 72 Íf7 g5 stable calendar for events in advance. 73 fxg6 Îd6 74 Íe8 Íe5 75 Êb7 Îb6+ A favourite novel? I have too many 76 Êc8 Êd6 0-1 Any advice for them? To stop trying to addictions to spend time reading these days. change things that already work properly and But less memorable than your worst move? instead fix what doesn’t work. Piece of music? I’m more of a playlist guy. Those moves are the ones which you can’t They generally turn out to be mostly rock music. explain the rational behind them to your Can chess make one happy? I don’t think it coach without feeling a sense of shame. should on its own, but I personally wouldn’t Film or TV series? TV series, and if I had to They’re more frequent than you’d think... be able to switch to a no-chess diet. keep only one it would be Breaking Bad. Favourite game of all time? Ivanchuk- A tip please for the club player: Fear (of What’s the best thing about playing chess? Yusupov from the 1991 Candidates would be complications, of an opponent, etc) is your I love the game, and I love the experience of one of many plausible picks. biggest obstacle to improvement.

www.chess.co.uk 7 25-25 ChessBase Advert_Layout 1 16/10/2017 20:04 Page 1 29-29 Quality Advert_Layout 1 16/10/2017 20:03 Page 1 30-32 Losingto9YO_Chess mag - 21_6_10 16/10/2017 20:02 Page 30

How to Lose to a 9-year-old at Chess Grumpy old git Steve Barrett bemoans the increasingly common experience of playing highly talented precocious youngsters at chess tournaments – and what to say to your friends when you lose to someone barely tall enough to see over the board

Gone are the days of old men smoking pipes, playing chess in silence in draughty church halls. There has been an influx of youth, especially since the rise of extremely strong computers that allow youngsters to learn and advance in the game much faster than previously. This is especially the case in the U.S., where there is a seemingly endless stream of young talent coming through, most of them wildly underrated and poisonous for your ELO standing. Talented young chess players are not a new phenomenon, of course. There have been prodigies before. Think of Paul Morphy, already one of the best players in New Orleans by the age of nine; Sammy Reshevsky giving high-profile simultaneous displays aged six; and Capablanca beating his father in skittles games at the age of four. What has changed is an explosion in youth and school chess that has multiplied the number of precocious young players on the Steve Barrett (far right) congratulates Gawain Jones at last year’s Millionaire Chess. scene. I didn’t even start playing chess competitively until I was 13 years old. These enough to lean over the board to shake hands, you down during the game, presumably days, if you’re not on the path to becoming an who frankly doesn’t know how to shake hands thinking you are going to be intimidated. And IM by then, you’re as good as past it. properly anyway. They display the brashness they never blow their noses, preferring Chess is hard and stressful at the best of and confidence of youth and hundreds of instead to sniff constantly – and annoyingly. times. I was struck by Simon Williams’ and hours playing online, bolstered by regular Then there are their entourages of parents Lawrence Trent’s discussion on a recent episode sessions with their IM or GM coaches. They and siblings, who cluster in every available free of the Full English Breakfast podcast about how rarely bother centring the pieces on the space in the chess venues as they pass the difficult it is to win any game these days, no squares at the start of the game and they toss interminable hours during and between games, matter who you are playing. They were their moves out casually and with bravado. causing you to trip over them when you head bemoaning their respective performances at I’m not sure if they are taught to play their to the bathroom. And those parents so want the British Championship in Llandudno and games to the bitter end by their coaches, but their kids to do well. You can feel their vicarious noting how even lowly-rated players nowadays their refusal to resign in totally lost positions ambition on behalf of their offspring as they fight so hard and are capable of great chess. is very irritating. I once played next to a survey their games and stock them up with The days of cruising through the first few former Russian GM now residing in drinks and snacks designed not to send their rounds of an open Swiss are long gone – you Connecticut who was forced to checkmate hyperactivity through the roof. have to be on your mettle from the start. his young opponent when two rooks and a I’m being a grumpy old git of course. What But in addition to this it’s now quite knight up. He was not impressed and told the is most annoying is that many of them are possible to play a weekend tournament and boy gruffly afterwards in no uncertain terms: really good at the game I have spent decades not get to face off with an adult in any of the “Why you not resign? I am Grand Master.” trying unsuccessfully to master, despite being five or six rounds. There is little doubt chess is The little mites also have an inappropriate so young. They will outplay you if you give now a young person’s game, and this old tendency to offer multiple draws in the same them the merest sniff of a chance, especially timer has observed that good manners and game, when it is not their place to do so in the in sharp positions. Even the tried and trusted attention to chess etiquette are not top of first place and is in fact against the laws of technique of taking them into endgames to the new generation’s agenda. the game, as noted in his New in neutralise their computer-like tactical abilities Most regular tournament players have Chess column after drawing with an 11- isn’t a sure-fire winner, because they never experienced it. You turn up for the round to be year-old Indian player in the Abu Dhabi give up and are always looking for resources confronted by a small human who is barely big Masters this summer. They also like to stare – another benefit of their coaching.

November 2017 30 36-38 FTWM_Chess mag - 21_6_10 16/10/2017 19:57 Page 36

Find the Winning Moves

Test your tactical ability with these positions grouped in rough order of difficulty. The games come from various recent events, not least the Chess.com International in Douglas. Don’t forget that whilst sometimes the key move will force mate or the win of material, other times it will just win a pawn.

Solutions on page 52.

Warm-up Puzzles

(1) M.Carlsen-B.Birkisson (2) A.Zatonskih-E.Sutovsky (3) F.Caruana-P.Vishnu Douglas 2017 Douglas 2017 Douglas 2017 White to Play Black to Play White to Play

(4) G.Vucinic-I.Marinkovic (5) Ge.Moore-R.Mitra (6) C.Higgie-H.Parry Serbian Team Championship 2017 Doncaster 2017 Holywell 2017 Black to Play and Draw White to Play Black to Play

36 November 2017 39-39 Everyman Advert_Layout 1 16/10/2017 19:56 Page 1 49-49 Thinkers_Layout 1 16/10/2017 19:50 Page 1 TRAIN THE BRAIN

Chess Calculation Training Bishop Endgames Volume 2: Endgames An Innovative Course by Romain Edouard by Efstratios Grivas 270 pages, paperback 180 pages, paperback

The 2600+ French ’s debut work The Greek Grandmaster and Senior FIDE Chess Calculation Training Volume 1: Trainer has a highly impressive back Middlegames appeared last year to critical catalogue, and we are delighted to welcome acclaim. Now Romain is back with another this, his debut work for Thinkers Publishing. testing puzzle book based on positions which occurred in actual games. Two of Grivas’s favourite features of chess are the endgame and a certain piece, the A little hard work on the endgame can easily bishop. Fellow fans of the prelate may think lead to several extra points over the board, of the Ruy Lopez, where White’s light-squared but aren’t endgames dull you want to ask... bishop can play such a pivotal role, but That’s actually far from the truth and, besides, Grivas prefers to examine the endgame to what better way to improve your endgame show just how effective the bishop can be. ability - and calculation - than by solving this wide range of puzzles, covering many different Improve your handling of the bishop! See how aspects of them! best to use your bishop & pawns in the ending!

RRP £24.00/ Subscribers’ £21.60 RRP £22.00/ Subscribers’ £18.80 + post free in the UK! + post free in the UK! 59-59 LCC Ticket Details_Layout 1 16/10/2017 19:45 Page 1 60-60 Subscriber Specials November_Layout 1 16/10/2017 19:43 Page 1

Subscribers Only November Order online*: www.chess.co.uk/shop - Call 020 7288 1305 - Or use the included carrier sheet * Enter SUBSCRIBER in the ‘Coupon Code’ box to claim the subscriber discount when ordering online. * UK based readers should also enter SUBSCRIBERSPECIAL in the ‘Coupon Code’ box to ensure they receive free postage on their order.

1: The Chess Attacker's Handbook Michael Song & Razvan Preotu, 176 pages, paperback RRP £16.99 SUBSCRIBERS £15.29 2: Extreme Chess Tactics Yochanan Afek, 144 pages, paperback RRP £16.99 SUBSCRIBERS £15.29 3: First Steps: Fundamental Endings Cyrus Lakdawala, 272 pages, paperback RRP £17.99 SPECIAL PRICE £15.99 1 2 3 4 4: My First Chess Opening Repertoire for Black Vincent Moret, 240 pages, paperback RRP £17.99 SUBSCRIBERS £16.19 5: The Complete Manual of Positional Chess Vol.1 Konstantin Sakaev & Konstantin Landa, 320 pages, paperback RRP £25.95 SUBSCRIBERS £23.36 6: The Complete Manual of Positional Chess Vol.2 Konstantin Sakaev & Konstantin Landa, 368 pages, paperback RRP £25.95 SUBSCRIBERS £23.36 7: Mikhail Tal’s Best Games 3: 1972-1992 The Invincible Tibor Karolyi, 544 pages, paperback 5 6 7 8 RRP £19.99 SUBSCRIBERS £17.99 8: Legendary Chess Careers: Alexander Beliavsky Volume 2 Tibor Karolyi, 250 pages, paperback RRP £22.95 SUBSCRIBERS £20.66 ALL ITEMS ARE POST FREE FOR UK CUSTOMERS 9: Playing 1.d4 d5: A Classical Repertoire Nikolaos Ntirlis, 336 pages, paperback RRP £19.99 SUBSCRIBERS £17.99 10: Play 1...d6 Against Everything Eric Zude & Jorg Hickl, 207 pages, paperback RRP £20.99 SUBSCRIBERS £18.89 11: The King’s Indian move by move Sam Collins, 400 pages, paperback RRP £17.99 SUBSCRIBERS £16.19 9 12 10 11 12: The Queen’s Gambit Declined move by move Nigel Davies, 304 pages, paperback RRP £19.99 SUBSCRIBERS £17.99 13: Chess Behind Bars Carl Portman, 312 pages, hardback RRP £19.99 SUBSCRIBERS £17.99 14: Chess Informant 133 (Informator) Various contributors, 328 pages, paperback RRP £31.99 SUBSCRIBERS £28.79 15: New in Chess Yearbook - Volume 124 16 Peter Boel & René Olthof (eds.), 256 pages, 13 14 15 paperback RRP £26.95 SUBSCRIBERS £24.26 16: Corr Database 2018 (PC-DVD) A database of 1,431,813 correspondence games! RRP £169.99 SUBSCRIBERS £152.99 17: The Hedgehog: a universal system against 1.c4 and 1.Nf3 (PC-DVD) Yannick Pelletier, Running time: 5 hrs 46 mins RRP £26.99 SUBS’ £24.29 18: The Tactical Chigorin (PC-DVD) Simon Williams, Running time: 6 hrs 19 mins RRP £26.99 SUBSCRIBERS £24.29 17 18 19 20 19: Houdini 6 Chess - Standard Edition (PC-DVD) See advert on page 23 for full details RRP £69.95 SUBSCRIBERS £62.95

ONLY subscribers to CHESS MAGAZINE may order items at the prices and conditions shown on this 20: Houdini 6 Chess - Pro Edition (PC-DVD) page. All offers expire 30/11/2017. These offers are POST FREE in the UK only. Please add 20% See advert on page 23 for full details (of the undiscounted price) for EU countries and 30% (of the undiscounted price) Rest of the World. RRP £89.95 SUBSCRIBERS £80.95