Still Dark - But You Can Join Us on Chess.com

We are on Chess dot Com, having matches with other clubs!
We are on Lichess.org, having fun tournaments among ourselves. Come join the action there until our location re-opens!

Now for Part 1 of an article on a famous chess player!


Akiba Kivelovic Rubinstein was born December 12, 1882 in the Polish border town of Stawiski. It was then part of the Russian Empire. He was the youngest of twelve children. His family expected him to become a rabbi, but when he was 16, he discovered some chess books written Hebrew and the rest we say is history!

Akiba took to studying chess 6 to 8 hours a day for 300 days a year, for 5 straight years. Results came fast due to his enormous God given talent and tenacious work ethic.

In 1901, he won this beautiful game against a strong Polish master:

      1.     e4             e5

      2.     Nf3           Nc6 

      3.     Bc4           Nf6

      4.     d4             exd4

      5.     O-O          Bc5

      6.     e5             d5

      7.     exf6          dxc4

      8.     Re1+!       Kf8

      9.     Bg5?         ……..

This is a very dubious move. Much better is 9. fxg7, Kxg7  10. Ne5 with some compensation.


 9………..            gxf6

10.  Bh6+            Kg8
 11.  Nxd4!

This was the point of White’s combination.


  11………..          Bxd4

  12. c3                  Bf5?

Position after Black's move 12. …...Bf5?

Missing 12. ….Be5! 13. Qxd8, Nxd8  14. f4,  Nc6  15. Fxe5, fxe5 – leaving Black with a winning position.


       13. cxd4           Nxd4

       14. Nc3             Bg6?


This is a terrible blunder. Black has to give the knight on d4 more protection with 14. ……. C5

        15. Re8+!           Qxe8

        16. Qxd4            Qe5

        17. Nd5!             Resigns

               
Mate is soon to follow.

More on Akiba Rubinstein next article.

Still Dark - But Not on Chess dot com! Join the LCCC On Line!

LCCC is upgrading our focus on our internet presence on the biggest chess site in the world. And it is all FREE!

It is free to join Chess . com and it is free to join our Club once you make an account there.

Some members opened up a tournament on Monday Nights on Li Chess that was successful and fun. 

But on Chess dot Com we are going to up the game where our Club challenges other clubs to matches!

We will set the tournaments up. You will see an invite either to your message board on the site or the Note section on the Club site on Chess. com.

Each tournament will allow 3 days for you to make a move! 

Pick and choose how many tournaments for the Club you want to enter.

Lets walk you thru how to make an account on Chess. com and join LCCC there:

Hit the sign up button

Pick a cool username and sign up to Chess. com

Click on the 'chat' bubble (red circle) and then click on "Clubs"

Type in Livingston County Chess Club in the search box

Click on the Club name

Hit "Join" and you are done!

Hey, I'm Winning! Now I Can Relax - NOT! (LCCC Still Dark - Due to C-19)

IM Yates (White) vs GM Tartakover (Black) - Hamburg, 1927

Having a winning position in a chess game is a great feeling. But sometimes you can feel too good and lose your focus.
Is there a psychological reason for this? Yes, as we all tend to let our guard down when we no longer perceive any danger. We all tend to relax when no threat seems imminent.
But, in chess that is rarely the case even in dominating positions.
We also tend to want to 'finish things up'. In our minds we are screaming "Look pal, this game is over. You are toast! Resign already. I want to go grab a sandwich and get ready for the next round."
And it can be especially true if you have been playing for a long time before getting the advantage or have been building an ever bigger advantage over time.
Look at the position here, as played by two very strong chess masters. Black has a big advantage both material wise and position wise.  According to Igor3000 the lead is the equivalent of 11 pawns (-10.9)! An overwhelming advantage.
But the GM was frustrated that his opponent had not given up yet and decided to end things quickly.

1. ……          Qxb4?
Black gives up his queen to eliminate White's last defender while winning a pawn (-2.2)and is sure his extra pawn will bring his queen back to life to win the game

2. axb4           axb3
3. Kb2            Kc4
4. Ka3            ........

Black to make move #4

 None of this was a surprise to GM  Tartakover. He had seen all of this. He also saw that if he plays 4. …Kc3, it is a stalemate.
Tartakover saw that 4.....b2 5. Kxb2, Kxb4 is a win for Black. So, 

4. ……            b2
5. Ka2!
But White had one other legal move available to him and he took it!
Now the game is a book draw.

GM Tartakover was guilty of shutting down his full analysis of the position and getting in a hurry to win a won game.

LCCC Still Dark, But Here is a Lively Game!

Position after Black's 14th move ........f5

Here is the position after fourteen moves. Games with Kings castled on opposite wings usually lead to fireworks. Who can get there first is usually the strategy. Here is no exception. Both sides go for the win.

15. exf5             g6
16. f6                h5
Black is two move late. This move was better played at move 14 instead of the f5 actually played. White is up a half-pawn positionally (+.5).

17. Qg5?          …....
A small error as 17. Qe4,  h4 18. Ne3 kept White in the lead. Game even.

17. .......            Bh6?
Black would do better to block the invading pawn with 17. .....Qf7 first. White back on top by that half-pawn.

18. Qxg6          Qh3?
As stated, Black is all about the attack, but this is premature. 18. ......h4 was more to the point. White is up the full pawn now.

19. f7?             ........
White is also on full aggression mode and gives his extra pawn a little too much credit. It's not getting to the end zone for a while yet. Meanwhile Black is making threats, and it is never ever wise to ignore your opponent's moves. 19. Ne3 was needed. The game is back to even again.

19. .......           h4
20. Ne3??        hxg3?!
This is one move too late! 20. f4 was needed to keep White alive! 20. ...hxg3 21. Qxg3, Bxf4 22. Qxh3, Rxh3 23. Rael and White is actually up a fifth of a pawn (+.2) instead of down (-1.5)! Black has a more accurate 20. ....Qh5 21. Ng4 Bf4. So now Black is only up (-1.2), but still with an advantage.

21. Qxg3         Qe6
22. Kh1??        Bf4
Getting out of the probable rook pin on the White King and Queen with Black playing Rg8 at some point was admirable, but 22. Qf3, Bf4 23. Ng4 kept it a game. Black is up now over 6 pawns!

23. Qg4           Rxh2+
24. Kg1           Qxf7
25. Qf3            Rg8+
26. Ng4           Qd5!
27. Rfd1          Qxf3
28. Rf1            Qxg4 mate

LCCC Still Closed - But Come Join Us On-Line!

Monday Night is Chess Night!

The Club is closed due to the quarantine effort. But you can still join us for chess action on line!

We at LCCC have some innovative members. They have set up a Monday Night Tournament on a site called Li Chess!

All you need to do is make an account on Li Chess. It is completely free!

Then head to the LCCC page on Li Chess:

https://lichess.org/team/Livingston-county-chess-club

and join us by clicking on the "Join Team" button.

Then in the center of the LCCC page you will see a listing of our previous and future tournaments. The next one will be at the top.

Sign up or sign up Monday night before 6pm and get ready for a couple of hours of chess action!
The tournament runs from 6pm to 8:30pm
Time control is 15minutes with a 5 second increment.
During the tournament, you will be paired with the next available player.
You can be there at the start, you can come late and you can leave whenever you wish with no penalty.
You can also take a break and watch other games
There is also a chat feature so feel free to ask questions if you have any problems, or if you just want to say hello!
After the tournament has finished at 8:30, the site will announce the winner, 2nd and 3rd.
But this is just really for fun and to keep the Club going.

See you Monday Night!

LCCC Shut Down Until at Least April - and an Interesting Game

If they can do it, you can!

LCCC is at the mercy of the State of Michigan, the State of Michigan Board of Education, and the Hartland School System. 

The Hartland Senior Center graciously allow us to use their facility on Monday evening. But as the school system goes, so goes the Hartland Senior Center. School is closed, so the Senior Center is closed, so we are closed.

When we get the green light to re-open, this site will let you know.

But feel free to play chess on line. Chess .com and Lichess .com are great sites on which to play. Both have a Livingston County Chess Club to join on their sites. Register and sign up for our chess club. Then you can challenge club members to games!

Now for a game I found on the internet. In an actual tournament game, a 3 year old beat a 6 year old! This game you can actually search on You Tube and see it for yourself. Very cute video. But here is the game with my commentary.

1.   e4          e5

2.   Qh5?

Which is a terrible move as Black can develop with tempo (an extra move) with 2. …..Nf6 attacking the queen and making her move again. White is up the equivalent of 6 pawns already (+6).

2.   .......            g6??

3.   Qxe5+        Be7

4.   Qxh8          d6??

Black just leaves the knight there to die. (+9)

5.   Qxg8          Kd7

6.   Qg7            Kc6?

Letting another pawn fall.  (+10)

7.   Qxf7           Bd7?

Black walks into a mate in three: 8. Qc4+, Kb6  9. Qb4+, Kc6 10. Qb5 mate. But these are very young beginning chess players. Missing this is understandable. But moving your queen for 9 straight moves is not understandable or acceptable. White has a huge material and positional advantage. He needs to bring those extra resourses into the battle AND get his king out of the center of the board. Ohterwise, his king may end up as exposed as Black's king is right now.

8.   Qf4?            h6  

9.   Qxh6          Na6

10. Qxg6          Bh4?  (+12.5)

11.  g3              Be7

12.  Qh6?         Bg5    (+10)

13.  Qh7           d5

14.  exd5+        Kxd5?  (+15.5)
Black is completely lost with his king in the center of the board. White just needs to bring some of his vast army advantage into the fight. Beginning chess players often fall in love with their queen and can't stop moving her every or nearly every move! 15. Nc3 and Black has no hope at all.
  

15.  Qd3+         Kc6    (+12)
16.  Qf3+          Kb6
17.   h4             Be7
18.   Qb3+        Nb4?
19.   c3             a5
20.   cxb4         axb4
21.   Qe3+        Bc5
22.   Qf3?         Bc6
White has no plan at all. (+9.5)

23.   a3??          Qe8+ ??
24.   Be2           Bxf3
25.   Nxf3         Qe7
Black has something up his 3 year old sleeve, which is fine because the best move for Black 25. ….Bd6 doesn't save anything after 26. d4. (+10)

26.   axb4?          Re8?
(+3.5) after White's move and then (+14.5) after Black's move. But a trap is set.

27.   bxc5+        Kxc5
28.   Ra5+         Kb6
29.   Ra4???      Qxe2++

And one of the greatest come from behind victories ever videoed is complete!

Chess Club Kid's Night March 9, 2020 - and Chess Ethics

This coming Monday is Kid's Night at the chess Club. It is the night once a month where we focus on the younger chess players.
Bring your aspiring Grandmaster to the club for friendly games with players more his age, or against more seasoned opponents. Or maybe your child wants a chess lesson. Either way, the club is here for you every Monday night. But especially on Kid's Night.

Ethics Questions


Let’s check your chess ethics shall we?

Problem I – You are a spectator at the last round of a weekend Swiss tournament. The pairings go up and you see Player A – a friend of yours – is paired with Player B. You suggest what opening he should play. Is there anything wrong with that?

A no-brainer right? Not a problem. Your friend can take your advice or ignore it. Ok, let’s tweak it a bit.

Problem II – You are not a spectator but playing in the tournament. If Player B loses, you get a prize. You don’t know Player A very well.

Should you give him opening advice if he asks you?

Should you offer the advice if he doesn’t?

It’s getting a little troublesome now.

Problem III – It’s very late in the last round of a major tournament. The A vs B game is adjourned by the tournament director and the two players will resume playing in the morning. You want that prize so you go uninvited to Player A’s hotel room and offer to study the position with him.

Is that ethical?

This situation actually happened in the 1962 Candidate’s Tournament to determine who would play Mikhail Botvinnik for the World Championship. Paul Keres was tied with Tigran Petrosian in 1^st place with one round to go. Petrosian drew his game and Keres would pass him with a victory over Pal Benko. The Benko-Keres game was adjourned until the next day.

That evening Petrosian and his friend GM Yefim Geller went up to Benko’s hotel room and offered to help analyze the position. Benko was disgusted and told them to leave.

The game resumed in the morning, Keres lost, Petrosian was crowned the Candidate and he went on to defeat Botvinnik for the title.

Like most people, your humble scribe was offended by Petrosian and Geller’s actions, and was very proud of my fellow American Pal Benko. The thinking is no third party should provide help. However, at the world class level, when games were adjourned, it was considered normal.

Let’s put a human face on it like Problem II. What if Keres best friend GM Max Euwe had gone to Keres room to help him?

So let’s ask an expert in Ethics studies, who is also an international chess player – IM Dr. Stuart Rachels.

The verdict is that despite their dubious motives, Petrosian and Geller did nothing wrong. As Dr. Rachels puts it, saying that Petrosian and Geller acted for bad reasons is not exactly to say that what they did was wrong – because the same thing, if done for different reasons, could have been just fine.

Life is confusing sometimes.