Two Against One Leaves None by Bruce Pandolfini You can take it back to the Borgias. Hey, you can take it back further, maybe to the Greek City States. You can even get antediluvian. But why do that? You don't have to go back that far. Let's look no further back than the 1960s. I'm especially thinking of that revelatory experience, that game-changing movie, "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly." So tell me, when the three bad guys faced off in the end, what happened when two ganged up against one? The two won, right? That brings us to this month's offering, the situation of bishop and knight vs. bishop. With nothing else on the board, it's remarkable all the tactics that can emerge to … [Read more...]
Interview With Yasser Seirawan
Inside Chess, 1989/24 Interview With Yasser Seirawan by Mike Franett Yasser Seirawan was born of an English mother and a Syrian father on March 24, 1960, in Damascus, Syria. In 1964 the Seirawans moved to England. They emigrated to the United States in 1967, and in the spring of 1972 the family moved to the Seattle. In the fall of that year twelve-year-old Yasser began to play chess in the local hang-outs. At-the time, I was the Washington State Champion and soon felt a little like the New Orieans city champion in the 1840s. Something was happening, and I definitely knew what it was. I found it fascinating to watch this talent grow. In a few years, Yasser was a Master and our new … [Read more...]
Proof Games: Switchback City
Proof Games: Switchback City The task in a proof game is to show how a given position can be reached in a legal game. The puzzles in this column have a move stipulation. The position must be reached in a precise number of moves, no more and no less. With one exception, they are proof games in 4.0 which means four moves by each side. There is a distinct lack of strategy in these games. But the moves are legal. Proof Game #37 The diagrammed position, with White to play, was reached in a game after each player made exactly four moves. Can you figure out how? A switchback is a move in a chess problem where a piece returns to a square that it previously stood on. This tactic can … [Read more...]
Chess Tables
Chess Tables by Geurt Gijssen Regarding chess tables, the FIDE Handbook sets forth the following in the Tournament Regulations: The size of a table should have a minimum length of twice the length of the chessboard and a width of 15 – 20 cm more than the chessboard. It is recommended to use tables with a minimum size of 120 x 80 cm for top level FIDE tournaments. The height of a table and the chairs should be comfortable for the players. Any noise when moving the chairs should be avoided. During the meeting of the Technical Commission in Tromsö it was discussed to change this Article as follows: For all official FIDE Tournaments the length of the table is 110 cm (with 15% tolerance). T … [Read more...]
Odds and Ends #2
Novice Nook #162 Odds and Ends #2 by Dan Heisman Quote of the Month: A lost opportunity to learn something leaves you at best stagnant.. Some of my favorite Novice Nooks cover more than one short subject: Techniques A Fistful of Lessons Examples of Chess Logic Odds and Ends Just because a subject was not “large” enough to merit an entire column did not mean it was any less important than ones that do. In fact, sometimes important advice about improving at chess is short and sweet, and that brevity may actually help the reader get the point. Pick Your Opponent’s Brain As mentioned in My Top Tips for Improvement, one of the best ways to improve is to hang out with s … [Read more...]
More Deep Duels
Endgame Corner #160 by Karsten Müller More Deep Duels It is a coincidence that not only FM Dr Heinrich Rolletschek has sent me a deep analysis of a same-colored bishop ending, which was published in Endgame Corner #159, but also GM Efstratios Grivas and Harald Fietz. I want to thank them that they have given permission to publish it in my column. I want to start with another example: 160.01 Onischuk,Alexander (2668) - Naroditsky,Daniel (2543) ch-USA 2014 Saint Louis USA (10.4), 18.05.2014 White's extra pawn can be converted, but care is required as White's king can not invade easily: 51.Bf5!? The direct 51.f5? violates the endgame principle do not rush because of51...Bc8 … [Read more...]
Unlucky 13
Unlucky 13 by Mark Donlan Tutorial: How to install ChessBase 13, by ChessBase, DVD, Various pricing Thirteen might be a lucky number for Garry Kasparov, but it’s not for ChessBase. This column was designed to be a walk-through for installing the latest iteration of their flagship product ChessBase 13. Yet things didn’t go quite so smoothly as I’ve come to expect from ChessBase products. Perhaps it has something to do with only meeting the minimum requirements rather than the recommended requirements. I’ve found it is usually beneficial to meet the latter, rather than the former. However, even though I was installing on a Windows Vista machine, it is one that meets the recommended re … [Read more...]
Smorgasbord V: December Sweets
Smorgasbord V: December Sweets This week our dessert menu features a selection of six puzzles with a variety of flavours. Try one, or try them all. We hope you find something to your taste. The types of problems presented in this column have appeared previously on The Puzzling Side of Chess. If you are unfamiliar with any of them, examples with more detailed explanations are available in the archives. 1. Triple Loyd #40 Place the black king on the board so that: A. Black is in checkmate. B. Black is in stalemate. C. White has mate in one. The holiday season means lots of travelling from point A to point B. And sometimes a late trip home. Take care. Take a cab. 2. Passing … [Read more...]
Garry Kasparov, Part III 1993-2005
Garry Kasparov on Garry Kasparov, Part III 1993-2005 by Garry Kasparov Match with Anand World Championship Match Kasparov - Anand (New York, 10 September - 10 October 1995): 10½-7½. Initially it was planned that my match with the winner of the PCA cycle would be held in Germany - such an offer had been made to me during the 1994 Moscow Olympiad by the organisers of the Dortmund tournaments. The venue had already been selected and all the conditions agreed. However, the German Chess Union, who were one of the Federations unhappy with the outcome of the FIDE Congress in Moscow and the conditions of the proposed agreement with the PCA, effectively announced a boycott of the match. Early i … [Read more...]
Senior Moments
Senior Moments by Tim Harding Senior chess tournaments are increasing in popularity and this year the FIDE World Senior team tournament was revived. Although it drew a quite small entry, interest in future years is likely to increase and in 2015 team and individual championships are scheduled for both World and Europe seniors. A big change this year, not universally popular, was that instead of the traditional 60+ age group events (50+ for women), FIDE introduced a two-tier structure. The "real" seniors are now 65+ (players born 1949 or earlier were eligible) while a 50+ "junior senior" category was introduced. The 2014 World Seniors Congress was held at the Mediterranean Village … [Read more...]
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