The Amateur’s Mind – Part 3

Two installments have been posted. We are taking a position from an Alekhine – Marshall game in 1925. First we showed how Alekhine masterfully turned White’s small opening advantage into an 18 move crush.

We then showed how a 1500 turned that same position into a probable loss against IM Jeremy Silman. Silman wrote this article for Chess Life back in 1993 and it is re-printed here for your enjoyment. IM Silman’s notes are marked with [JS] and the student’s [rating] show his thoughts. In this installment we will see how an [1800] player approached this same position.

[1800]  I like White. He has his minor pieces out and he has a pawn controlling the center. He has both the Queen-file and a Queen-bishop file to work with. He has a pawn majority on the King-side while Black has one on the Queen-side. We have to kill his majority and get ours going. How do we do this?

1. Qb3 slows his development, but he just goes ….b6 and fianchettos. At some point I could play b4 stopping his pawns. But I can’t do this at the moment so I’ll just castle and prepare to get my own pawns going with f4.

[JS] As a higher rated player, he looked deeper than the other two. Never the less, his error is basically the same. By seeing the game as some mad race between rival majorities, he fails to take into account other possibilities for Black and falls to the same pressure on the d-file of which the others ran afoul.

1.  O-O     Be6

[1800] He has a pin coming up but there is nothing he can do with it yet. I’ll get my majority rolling.

[JS] Like the 1700 player, he sees Black’s first move but discounts it’s usefulness.

2. f4    Qd4+

3. Kh1   O-O-O

[1800] I’m pinned and I don’t see any counter play for me.

[JS] Here we go again! All the players saw the punch coming, but did nothing about it. They refused to give it credence until it kicked their teeth in.

How can C to A players avoid this type of position reversal? By working harder at the chessboard than these players did. They only gave the position a cursory examination. It’s good to come up with an aggressive plan for yourself, but you have to take a look at what your opponent can do. Then work to stifle his initiative, before or while creating your own. Go back and study Alekhine’s method for doing this.

4. Bc2   …..

[1800] I need to consolidate and this does it.

4. ……    Qe3

[1800] He’s in my position and I don’t know what to do!

[JS] A once confident commander of the White pieces succumbs to panic.

5. Qf3   Qxf3

6. Rxf3   Rd2

[1800] Black stands better. I need to sacrifice a pawn and get out of this bind.

[JS] White is a little too eager to give up material. Your position may be unpleasant, but you must hold on tight and refuse to give up anything!

7. Bb3  Rxb2

end

In Part 4, we will look at how a 1700 player handled this position.

LCCC Week 26-13 and an Amateur’s Mind Installment

It was a rainy night and we had ten players. A disappointing turnout considering the weather, but that happens sometimes. It was still a nice night of chess.

Just a reminder to everyone thinking of stopping by; there is no cost what so ever to come on in and play some chess on Monday night. We do graciously take a $1 donation if you would like to donate to the Hartland Senior Center to cover the cost of the lights and building, but it is not mandatory.

So, stop on by and get reacquainted with the best game in the world.

Now back to the article by IM Jeremy Silman:  Amateur’s Mind: a 1500’s Analysis:

Take a look a post back and we showed a game between Alekhine (White) and Marshall (Black) and how Alekhine knew what was important in the position and won a fine game. Here, a 1500 player (not your humble scribe by the way) takes the same position against Jeremy, and can’t hold it. The speaker is in brackets

[1500] White has a space advantage. Black has the more active queen, but it could turn out to be a target. White can activate his majority with tempo by playing f4. How to do this?  I’ll castle and then play f4.

[JS] To his credit, he notices the advantages that an active central majority can bring. Unfortunately, he neglects to take Black’s plans into account.

1. O-O   Be6

2. f4      Qd4+

It is worth noting here that Alekhine was very careful not to give his opponent this square!

3. Kh2    O-O-O

[1500] I should have prevented this! I’ll play 4. Rf3. What else can I do? No, that is too passive.

4. Bc2    Qe3

[1500] Can’t play 5. Qe2 because of Qxe2 and then 6…..Rd2. I need to trade queens!

5. Qf3   Qxf3

6. Rxf3   Rd2

[1500] Ouch! Now I have to defend my bishop.

[JS] Ever since Black placed his queen on d4 and castled queenside, White has forgotten his own plans and done nothing but fend off his opponent’s threats. This all stemmed from White’s refusal to look for Black’s plan on the first move.

Next installment: A view from a 1700 player. Let's see how he does.

Week 25 13 Saw Chess Action and a Club Meeting

Fourteen players made it to LCCC on a hot Monday night. The highlights were some chess instruction by Terry G and some fine casual games played. In addition, Tom H became a voting member of LCCC. Thanks Tom.

We ended the evening a little early to hold a Club Meeting. All three Board members, two other Officers, and four other members were in attendance. Here are the highlights

> To replace the Ladder Tournament, The “Challenge Chess” concept was discussed as a new club “rating” method that would play as a more serious tournament type game & facilitate club ratings for members.  All seemed to be in agreement with the concept. Action items include Mike K and Terry G will e-mail draft copies of the proposed rules to the rules committee members for review & consideration.

> Team Challenges (challenge other clubs to matches) are being considered. Matt T discussed the history of this activity from 2 years ago. Ken L will lead the action to determine other clubs that will accept team challenges and develop a list of volunteers that want to play in these games.

> LCCC holding USCF rated tournaments were also discussed. Ken T  Will continue with necessary steps to become USCF certified as a “club tournament Director”, and will also be the lead person to coordinate all the activities of the first club hosted open tournament. Matt T volunteered to assist as a consultant who has the actual experience.

> Getting some guest speakers to come to LCCC was also discussed. Mike K suggested that other club presidents might consider coming by to discuss club building strategies. Mike N will research this possibility.

> A Club bank account is needed. Treasurer Vince V will research this for availability of a free checking account, and what might be required by a bank or credit union.

> As always, gaining new members is the focus of any club that wants to survive. Mike N will lead this effort starting in a couple of weeks. Paul M came up with some great suggestions as to how to contact the schools and let them know of the benefits of LCCC. Mike N would like to hear more suggestions on how to get free advertising for LCCC.

Benefits of playing chess at LCCC:

Free lessons for most skill levels by Terry G, Jason M and Mike N primarily. But all club members have - and will - help the less experienced players gain knowledge. It's what LCCC does.

Your games can be posted on the Web Site by sending Mike K a PGN file or on the Blog if you send Mike N a copy of your game sheet.

Free Club Forum on the Web Site or free Blog Posts – open to any attending member of LCCC (

Free Member's Chess League.

Free Club Rating (via the LCCC League and hopefully Challenge Games), so an estimate of your USCF rating is possible without entering tournaments. Mike K volunteered to process the ratings and include on the web site.

The Amateur’s Mind – Part 1

This is a re-print of an article by IM Jeremy Silman (JS) that appeared in Chess Life in January 1993. I think it is a great article that looks at the fascinating differences between how the different level of player evaluates the same position. We will watch a grandmaster (2400+) work, then see how a 1500, a 1700, an 1800 and a 2100 see it.- MN

Starting position - White to move.

JS: “All examples will start from the following diagram:

I presented this position from a game between Alehkine – Marshall (editor’s note: uh…neither one a wood pusher), Baden-Baden, 1925 to various students and asked them to figure out what was going on. Once that was done, we would finish the game with them playing White and me playing Black.

But, let’s first see how Alehkine took care of business:

1.       Qd2

A flexible move. White prepares to make use of his king-side majority with f4. He also now has the option of castling queenside.

1.       ….  Bd7

2.       Qe3!   

A very fine idea. Black is prevented from castling queenside (a-pawn would be hanging) and the Black queen is kept out of the d4 square (restricting Black’s play). Keep that square in mind as we look at how the amateurs handled this position.

2   …..   Bc6?!

Black decides to castle king-side, but it is rarely a good idea to castle into your opponent’s strength (pawn majority side). Better was 2. ….Qa5, then 3. ….O-O-O.

3.       O-O-O

With his king safely tucked away on the queen-side of the board, White can now advance his kingside pawns without safety concerns.

3           …..    O-O

4.       f4   Qe6

5.       e5   Rfe8

6.       Rhe1   Rad8

7.        f5     ……

White takes over the initiative because his advancing pawns gain tempos by attacking Black’s pieces. White’s assault is in full swing, while Black’s counter-attack has not even started.

 7    ….    Qe7

8.       Qg5   Nd5

9.        f6   Qf8

10.   Bc4!   ……

After 10. Bc4!

 From this point on every move is a hammer blow. Alekhine doesn’t give his opponent a moment’s respite.

 10   …….   Nxc3

11.   Rxd8   Rxd8

12.    fxg7!    …..

Taking advantage of the fact that the Black queen is the only defender of the rook on d8.

13.   Kb1!   …..

The “automatic” 13. Bxa2 would give Black a saving check at c5.

 13   …..    Qe8

14.   e6!   Be4+

15.   Ka1   …..

Of course 15. Kxa2??? Allows 15. …..  Qa4 mate!

 15 .  ……      f5
White wins in boring fashion after 15. …..   fxe6, 16. Bxe6+  Qxe6, 17. Qxd8  Kxg7, 18. Qd4+ followed by the capture of Black’s bishop.

16.   Ee7   Rd5

17.   Qf6   Qf7

18.   Ee8(Q)+   

Black resigns as it is mate in two moves.

This powerful performance by the legendary Alekhine was accomplished due to his insight into the possibilities of his opponent. He didn’t just note that his kingside majority was strong. He also looked into consideration the weaknesses that it’s advance would leave him with.

By shoring up these weaknesses before he advanced his pawns, he was able to force the Black army back into a passive stance.”

In the next post, we will look at how mere mortals handled this same position against an IM.

Monday #24 – 2013 – Thirteen Players on a Beautiful Monday Night

Another night in our back up room at the Hartland Senior Center as dance competitions took over our usual location. Well, actually the Dancers took over the Music Room for a dressing room and the musicians took our room. But the result was the same…...different room, but still very nice for chess.

One of the pleasures of the LCCC is our playing location. It is one of the finest around for a chess club. If we get re-located, we are no worse off. We are blessed.

Some of our visitors tonight were …..more or less just that…..visitors. But we are hoping they will become permanent attendees and members.

Jason M brought his son Mack for the first time.

Tom, who has stopped by a few times to take in the action, hung around even longer this time. Maybe next week he will sit down for a game. We sure hope so.

And Luke H brought his friend Matt who is considering taking up the game. Well Matt, you sure came to the right place! Like taking lessons from a golf pro before taking up golf, coming to LCCC to learn to play chess is a jump start! Hope to see you here again soon.

Next week we hope to have a Club Meeting for all those interested. I will post the agenda. I don’t expect the meeting to take very long and I want to start it about 8:30pm – not at 6pm. That way some chess can be played and some lessons taught.

Not to mention that tired, hungry and thirsty meeting members tend to keep the meeting moving toward a quick ending. I will be all three of those by 8:30.

Twelve Players at LCCC on a Rainy Monday Night

Some chess was played, some instruction given by Terry G and game reviews of Jason M’s games from decades ago – analyzed by Jason himself. It was quite educational and as usual – entertaining also! Thanks Jason.

Our room at the Hartland Senior Center was changed temporarily due to a dance competition going on. We will be in that same “different room” again next week. Don’t worry new arrivals or members that missed last week, because we will have a greeter there to direct you to the room and the players. The room was just fine for chess, but just a little harder to find.

On a sad note, one of our strongest chess playing members – Scott M – is moving to Arizona! The club will miss him as a player, a competitor and a friend. Good luck Scott in all your endeavors and don’t forget about us back in Michigan. We will be here if and when you return from the state with one season – summer – for the state with two seasons – winter and road repair.

There is a Bottom Half class tournament in Grand Rapids scheduled for the week of June 22 and 23^rd. See details on the right side of the blog. Some LCCC’ers are thinking of making the trip. Think about joining us there.

See you next week at LCCC!

Twenty-One Players on a Cool Monday Night

It was a nice turnout as maybe the one week layoff kind of re-kindled desire for live chess action. Lots of casual chess was played and a fun time was had by all.

Luigi M, his wife and four sons brought pizza for the entire club! What a nice gesture! Thank you!

Mike S. returned to the LCCC action after a long absence. Great to see you back and we hope you get here a little more regular.

Terry G. gave some chess instruction to our younger players – between bouts of pizza munching and pop of course. Thanks Terry.

Club News:

LCCC now has a non-mandatory club membership fee and we are up to 15 paid members, with a few more soon to join.

LCCC has another 25 “associate members” that are regular and semi-regular attendees.

LCCC also has over 50 inactive members and quite a few on-line members from other states.

Summer time is usually a slower chess time, but the Club President would like to propose a membership push in August. This would be good timing as it is:

• Before school starts – so we can contact schools and let them know we are here.
• Before the LCCC League starts – so we can offer league play to new members
• Before The Michigan Open – in Livonia! - starts – and we can promote team camaraderie and help for new tournament players. And a few weeks at LCCC to prepare with lessons and tourney training.
• Before indoor winter activities begin at churches and other clubs and we can contact them as an option for their members – either as new members here or as a Team Chess Challenge.
• The time when festivals and fairs are happening and we can look to be a presence at a couple of them.

Let the discussions and planning begin! I think fifty weekly attendees on occasion is possible. We average 18 now. Doubling that average is the goal!