SEA Games Selection Highlights - Tiger meets Mountain

The Chinese have a saying 上得山多终遇虎 (shàng de shān duō zhōng yù hǔ). This can be translated literally as "When you go up to the mountain too often, you will eventually encounter the tiger.". In plain English, well um ... dont go up the mountain too often.

In round four of the men's selection, the tiger (IM Mok) tried his Mokdern once too often and paid dearly for it against the mountain. If you dont understand this then first read this post and then let me whisper in your ear - mountain in Chinese is pronounced "shān" or "san" (as in Fong Yit San). If you still dont get it ...forget it let's move on to the game.


Fong, Yit San - Mok, Tze Meng, Round 4
1. e4 g6 2. d4 Bg7 3. Nc3 c6 4. Nf3 Yee Weng played 4. e5 in the first round and came away with a draw.

d5 5. h3 Nh6 This might look unusual but it is a book move. The knight is heading for f7.

6. Bf4 f6 7. Be2 O-O 8. O-O Nf7 9. Bh2 e6 10. Re1 Nd7 11. Bf1 f5 Its hard for me to understand this move. Black just gives up the e5 square which guarantee that he will end up with the worse position as he has no compensation in return.

12. exd5 12. e5 will be a positionally mistake, as black will immediately under-mine the pawn with 12...c5

12....exd5 13. Ne2 Yit San understands that he must take control of the e5 square. This knight is heading there via f4 and d3.

Re8 14. Nf4 Nf6 15.Nd3 Ne4 16. c3 Qb6 17. Qc2 Be6 18. Nfe5 White is too eager to occupy e5. This move allows black to exchange some pieces and relieve his cramped position. White should be thinking about the c5 square and also to eject the white knight on e4. 18. Nd2 should be the right move here.

Nxe5 19. Bxe5 Bxe5 20. Nxe5 f4 ?! In order to prevent white f3 and f4 securing his strong knight outpost on e5. However the f4 pawn is weak and the knight on e4 cannot be supported and will be exchanged or forced away. Black should have played 20...c5! with space on the queen-side. He could later exchange on d4 or even push ...c4 followed by ...b5 , ...a5 etc

21. Bd3 Bf5 22. Nf3 Nd6 23. Bxf5 Nxf5 24. Ne5 Kg7 After this black will lose the f4 pawn. 24...Qd8 was the last chance to hold the f4 pawn.

25. Qd2 Re7 25...g5? 26. g3 and white wins the pawn anyway as 26...fxg3 27. Qxg5 wins the knight.

26. Qxf4 Rf8 Black cannot recapture on b2. 26...Qxb2?? 27. g4 Nd6 (or ...Nh6) 28. Nd3 Rxe1+ 29. Rxe1 followed by Re7+ mates.

27. Nd3 Rfe8 28. b3 Qa5 29. Qd2 Nxd4?? 30. b4 Ne2+ 31. Rxe2 Rxe2 32. Qxe2 Rxe2 33. bxa5 Rc2 34. Rc1 Rxa2 35. Rb1 Rxa5 36. Rxb7+ Kf6 37. Rc7 Ra6 38. Nb4 Ra1+ 39. Kh2 a5 40. Nxc6 a4 41. Nb4 Ke6 42. Rc5 a3 43. Rxd5 Rc1 44. Rc5 Kd6 45. Rc6+ Kd7

after 45...Kd7

White calculates a nice forcing sequence into a won pawn ending.



 46. Ra6!
Rxc3 47. Nd5 Rb3 48. Nb6+ Kc6 49. Nc4+ Kb5 50. Rxa3 Kxc4 51. Rxb3 Kxb3 52. Kg3 Kc4 53. Kf4 Kd3 54. g4 Ke2 55. f3 Kf2 56. h4 Kg2 57. h5 Kf2 58. hxg6 hxg6 59. g5 Ke2 60. Ke5 1-0

SEA Games Selection

After five rounds at the half-way stage, here is the current standings. Fong Yit San beat IM Mok yesterday. On Saturday he had a great chance against IM Mas but missed a strong move. At a quick glance, I thought that move was winning. Nevertheless it was a great achievement to draw the top seed.

There are a few games I would like to highlight but I just do not have the time. I still have not submitted my tax forms! And coming up is the Selangor Open as well. Hopefully in the next post this Wednesday :)

			Mens
R	SNo.		Name	Rtg	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	Pts
1	4	IM	Mas Hafizulhelmi	2418	*			½	1		1	½		1	4
2	10	IM	Liew Chee-Meng-Jimmy	2302		*		1		½	½		1	1	4
3	5	IM	Lim Yee-Weng	2248			*	½	½	½	½	1			3
4	1		Subramaniam Sumant	2065	½	0	½	*					1	1	3
5	9		Lim Zhuo Ren	2080	0		½		*	½			1	1	3
6	6	IM	Mok Tze-Meng	2394		½	½		½	*	1	0			2½
7	7		Wahiduddin Kamalarifin	2169	0	½	½			0	*	1			2
8	8		Fong Yit San	1945	½		0			1	0	*	½		2
9	3		Fong Yit Ho	1995		0		0	0			½	*	½	1
10	2		Tan Jun Feng	1849	0	0		0	0				½	*	½
			Womens
R	SNo.		Name	Rtg	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	Pts
1	10	WCM	Fong Mi Yen	1890	*			½	1	1	½	1			4
2	9		Camilia Bt Johari	1721		*	½		½		1	1		1	4
3	4	WFM	Nur Najiha Hisham	1819		½	*	½		½		1	1		3½
4	7	WCM	Nur Nabila Azman Hisham	1886	½		½	*	½				1	1	3½
5	6		Azhar Puteri Rifqah Fahada	1822	0	½		½	*				1	1	3
6	1		Tan Li Ting	1827	0		½			*	½	1		1	3
7	3		Sarika Subramaniam	0	½	0				½	*	0	½		1½
8	2		Wahiduddin Nurul Huda	1977	0	0	0			0	1	*			1
9	8		Tang Kar Khei	0			0	0	0		½		*	½	1
10	5		Azhar Puteri Munajjah Az-Zahra	1732		0		0	0	0			½	*	½

SMK Hillcrest Chess Championship

SMK Hillcrest is organizing its first ever Chess Championship. There are five categories, Under-9 , Under-12, Under-15 , Under-18 and Open. All categories have attractive prizes.

Entry form below:

                                                                                                        

Date                 :           10^th  July 2011 (Sunday)

Venue              :           SMK HILLCREST

Category          :           Under-9, Under-12, Under-15, Under-18, Open

(Boys And Girls Mix)

Entry Fees         :           RM25 for all junior categories

                                                RM30 for Open category

Closing date     :           1^st  July 2011

Only entries with the entry fee will be considered to have entered for the tournament.

Enquiry                        :           i)          Ms Wong Yen Lee 017-357 7788                                                                                                (yenlee741011_u@hotmail.com)

                                                ii)         Ms Farah Alwani   013-333 6849

                                                iii)        Mr Manivannan   018-375 7339

Prizes for each age category:

Juniors categories			Open Category
1st	Trophy + Certificate + RM 150		1st	Trophy + Certificate + RM 400
2nd	Trophy + Certificate + RM 100		2nd	Trophy + Certificate + RM 200
3rd	Trophy + Certificate + RM   50		3rd	Trophy + Certificate + RM 100
4th	Trophy + Certificate + RM   40		4th	Trophy + Certificate + RM   75
5th	Trophy + Certificate  + RM  30		5th	Trophy + Certificate + RM   50
6th – 10th Trophy + Certificate			6th – 10th Trophy + Certificate

ü Prizes will be given to youngest boy & girl participants.

ü Certificate of Participation for all players.  

ü Free Chess Board for the first 500 entries who registered with payment

ü Bread and drinks sponsored by Gardenia, F & N and Marigold

Schedule of play
08.00am 08.30am	09.00am 10.00am	10.15am 11.15am	11.30am 12.30pm	12.30pm 01.15pm	01.30pm 02.30pm	02.45pm 03.45pm	04.00pm 05.00pm	05.00pm 05.15pm	05.30pm
Registration	Round 1	Round 2	Round 3	Lunch	Round 4	Round 5	Round 6	Lucky Draw	Prize Giving

Apparel                        :           Singlet and shorts are not allowed

                                    School t-shirt ( Hillcrest Students)

                                                                                                        

Rules & regulations

1. FIDE Laws of chess
2. Time control: 25 minutes to the finish
3. The Organizer/Arbiter reserves the right to accept or reject any entry without assigning any reasons.
4. The conduct of players forbids smoking, consulting with a third party, distracting or annoying the opponent, foul languages or bad behaviors.
5. Recording of all chess moves is compulsory. The winner or the White player in the case of drawn games must submit both score sheets duly signed by both players.
6. No audible comments should be passed on a game in progress. This rule applies not only to the players but also to spectators.

Name of participant			:
I/C  number			:
D.O.B (dd/mm/yy )			:
PLEASE TICK 0NE CATEGORY ONLY TO PLAY
Under – 9   (born in or after 2002)
Under – 12 (born in or after 1999)
Under – 15 (born in or after 1996)
Under – 18 (born in or after 1993)
Open category
Payment mode			Cash				Cheque no
Contact no.	:	Hand phone					House phone

 All cheques are payable to Intelligent Minds Academy ( Eon Bank 0053-10-004865-0)

 I understand that the organiser reserves the right to cancel any age group  for a particular category without earlier information.

……………………………………………

Participant’s/Parent’s Signature

 (Name ____________________________)

2011 Thailand Open, All leaders win, three way tie for first

All three leaders won the final round to end in a three way tie for first. I'm a bit surprised how easily they won their games. Very anti-climatic as there was totally no opposition.

Niaz Murshed was down a pawn in a R+B v R+B ending.  He has a very weak pawn on e5.  It certainly will not be clear to some observers that white is lost. He resigned. Vallejo is a very strong grandmaster for sure, but I'll like to see a few more moves.

Indian grandmaster Kunte Abhijit look like a 2200 player against Nigel Short. He dropped a pawn as early as the tenth move and another on move twenty-three (though he was already lost and may be just trying to complicate things).  Short finished with some nice tactical play.

 Kjetil  Stokke also started dropping pawns against Jan Gustafsson. Were all of them in awe of their highly rated opponents.

Email from Lim Zhuo Ren

He requested that I publish this:


I have a problem with a post in firstgm.blogspot.com. He has written a post stating that NM LZR and Sumant have enrolled under FGM on Wednesday, 13th April. I have sent him an email regarding the matter. I have also posted a comment there under my google account twice, hoping to clarify things  but the comments were deleted each time. I hope you can do me a big big favour by posting my comment on your blog. I know that you and him are not exactly on speaking terms and I know that by posting this, you will be attacked and haranged. For this reason, I would like to apologise beforehand if you get attacked. I'm Sorry. And thank you for your time.


The comment is as follows:

I have sent Raymond Siew an email regarding his recent postings about me on his post http://firstgm.blogspot.com/2011/04/nm-lim-zhuo-ren-and-sumant-subramaniam.html. I have also commented on the post but the comments were deleted. I want to clarify matters with everyone else involved in Malaysia Chess who may care to know. So here is the simplified version of the email

1.       Why I enrolled – mainly to HELP YOU, Mr. Siew to get sponsors to help Malaysia Chess

-          My name could be used to add weight to your proposals to corporate firms and increase the chances of you getting sponsors to get GM training for our players, organize tournaments like Malaysia Open and get educational scholarship from Taylors University

2.       What I didn’t enroll for- NOT to be your student and NOT to promote your blog or ‘methods’

-          Under IM Mok, I have been doing quite well and my parents and I would like to continue with him. His ‘Method’ works for me so there is no reason to change

3.        USING MY NAME to promote your ‘Method’ and blog

-          I do not wish my name to be used to promote your blog especially since I am not your student. I thought by helping you, I could help Malaysia chess as a whole.

4.       Effect of your Actions- Fear in my Mind and Not being able to focus on Selection

-          By posting my name on your blog, it has caused me a lot of mental stress because a lot of people have questioned me. I can’t handle that and I did not play chess to make enemies. I do not want to be hated by a majority of the chess community, I’m still a teenager and this is the kind of thing that can make people lose interest or quit.

5.       My Demands-NOT ASSOCIATED with FGM ACADEMY in any way

6.      What I want to clarify to everyone involved in chess

-          IF I QUALIFY for SEA GAMES, it is ONLY because of my parents’ support, IM Mok Tze Meng’s guidance, effort, my own skills and some luck as well as help from other people over the years, the same reasons I won NC 2011.

-          IF I DO NOT QUALIFY for SEA GAMES, then it is because I am not good enough yet and didn’t put in enough effort, no other reasons.

7.       Comments on your blog

-          Please do not delete the comment

What I want to say is that I am NOT a product of FGM or FGM methods (See 2 & 5). That is not to say I am against your methods. IM Mok has known my family and me since I was in primary school. I would like to cast away all doubts on this matter by saying I am IM Mok’s student (See 2). I tried to help you so please don’t take advantage of me by posting my name (See 1, 3). If you feel like I have wronged you, (See 4). And I am sorry about doing this. Thank you for everything.

2011 Thailand Open, Short joins the leaders

It seems the top players here are not ambitious to try to beat each other. There is another tame draw between leaders  Jan Gustafsson and  Vallejo Pons Francisco in the eight and penultimate round.

This allowed Nigel Short to join them in the lead with a clean technical win over India's Sriram Jha. Pieter Hopman needed to beat Niaz Murshed to join the leaders. The game is still in progress but it does not look likely to happen, if anybody is doing any winning it will be Murshed.

As the leaders have all played each other, it remains to be seen which opponent they will get in the final round tomorrow and who will be able pull away from the rest.

2011 Thailand Open, Vallejo Pons, Jan Gustafsson leads with 6 points

Nigel Short lost the lead after losing to Jan Gustafsson. He seemed to ignore black's build-up on the king-side (26. Qb3 ?! ), taking the queen away from the king-side. Two moves later he sacrificed a piece for just two pawns and nothing more. His position may be worse but this was the fastest way to lose and he resigned a couple of moves later.

Vallejo outplayed the Chinese IM Yang Kaiqi to take the joint lead. The pawn sac with 31...a6 to get the queen-side pawns moving is very nicely timed. White never had a chance after that.

Both games can be re-played below

2011 Thailand Open - Short takes lead

Nigel Short has become the clear leader of the 2011 Thai Chess Open in Pattaya beating Myanmar GM Zaw Win Lay. Zaw got into trouble after weakening his white squares. The English grandmaster showed superior understanding and pocketed the point easily.

Spain's Paco Vallejo, was held to a draw by Abhijit Kunte, the highest rated of the 21-strong Indian contingent in Pattaya.  Vallejo had the edge in the opening after the Indian GM played a less known line in the Sicilian. The move 7...h6 cannot be good as white was always ready to take on f6 anyway.

White then went wrong with 12. Ng3 retreating his knight but perhaps missed the very strong 12. Qg4. There is a long sequence which white has to see in order to play this move. The white knight captures the rook on a8 winning the exchange and all attempts to trap the knight does not work.

After 12.Ng3 black had no problems to reach a drawish game and Vallejo had to settle for a draw. This means Short leads with half a point with only three more rounds to go.

Thailand Open , Round 2 Game

Bakre - Steinbrecht, Round 2

White was taking a lot of liberties against an opponent rated more than 300 points below him. Now, black can finish with 27...Rxe2! and if 28. Rxe2 Bxd3 , white can resign. Instead

27. ... Bxd3 28. exd3 Rxe1+ 29. Bxe1 Nd5 30. Rc5 Ne3+ 31. Kg1 Ne5 

Black is still winning (both d and f white pawns are under attack.

32. Rc8 Rxc8 33. Qxc8+ 1/2-1/2 ???

Black missed a great chance to defeat his much higher rated opponent. After 33...Kg7 34. Bg2 Qb5 35. Qc7 (to stop ..Qxd3) Nxg2 36. Kxg2 Qd5 , black wins the f3 pawn as well.