Mechanics' Institute Chess Club Newsletter #490

If you think your intelligence matches that of your opponent, then it is only a matter of out-concentrating them. The moves are there - if he can see them, so can you.

Raymond Weinstein (British Chess Magazine, February 1964, p. 49)

1) Mechanics Institute Chess Club News
2) Nakamura to relocate to Saint Louis by Mike Wilmering
3) Boris Kostic in Los Angeles
4) Here and There
5) Upcoming Events

1) Mechanics Institute Chess Club News

FM Andy Lee and NM Romy Fuentes, who upset IM John Grefe last night, are tied for the lead in the 57-player Spring Tuesday Night Marathon with one round to go. They will face off next Tuesday evening.

George Sanguinetti reports on the Mechanics' Institute Chess Club Wednesday Night Blitz.

April 14

5 minute

1. Fuentes 4.5/6; 2-3. Ismakov and Jelinek 4

3 minute

1. Lopez 5/5 2. Ismakov 4 3. Fuentes 3

April 21

5 minute

1. Ismakov and Fuentes 8/10 3. Jelinek 7

The Ray Schutt Memorial Blitz, featuring the participation of 6-time US Champion Walter Browne is this Sunday!

4th Annual Ray Schutt Memorial Blitz Tournament

A chance to remember and pay tribute to an old friend
May 2 (Sunday)

When: Sunday, May 2nd from 1 to 5 pm. The blitz tournament will be held from 2 to 4 pm. There will be a chance to reminiscence about Ray over light refreshments both before and after the event.
Where: Mechanics' Institute, 57 Post St, San Francisco (Montgomery BART)


Format: Five Double-Round Swiss or Roundrobin depending on entries.

Prizes (guaranteed):
1st $300
2nd $200
3rd $100
4th $75
5th $50
6th $25

Entry Fee: $10. Free to IMs and GMs. Enter at tournament from 1pm to 1:45. Entries close at 1:45 pm please take note. No phone entries. Come honor Ray's memory and help make this the largest and strongest blitz tournament in the history of Northern California chess!

 

2) Nakamura to relocate to Saint Louis by Mike Wilmering

SAINT LOUIS, April 27, 2010--Grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura, the reigning U.S. Champion and the highest-rated American player, announced today he will be moving to Saint Louis following the U.S. Championship, which is scheduled for May 13-25.

The two-time U.S. Champion is relocating to Saint Louis from Seattle because of the support the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis has provided for American chess, particularly at the top level. The Chess Club's creation of a burgeoning chess scene in Saint Louis also factored into Nakamura's decision.

"It feels like what's happening in Saint Louis, both at the top level and the scholastic, grassroots level, is something I want to be a part of, and I feel like this is the one area of the country where things are really happening," Nakamura said.

Nakamura's tournament schedule will not be affected as he plans to continue to compete in elite events throughout the coming year. Between travels, Nakamura will conduct periodic lectures and simuls, participate in special events and provide occasional content for the club's website,
www.saintlouischessclub.org.

Currently, the reigning U.S Champion is preparing to defend his title at the 2010 U.S. Championship, scheduled to be held at the CCSCSL May 13-25.

"That's my main focus right now," Nakamura said.

Nakamura traveled to Saint Louis in April for the Bill Wright Saint Louis Open, an event that brought out seven GMs and a number of other titled players. The trip turned out to be fortuitous for both Nakamura and the CCSCSL as it sparked his decision to relocate.

"It feels like all of the events that are being held here are organized so professionally, and I'm really excited about being a part of it," Nakamura said.

CCSCSL Executive Director Tony Rich said Nakamura's decision will benefit not just Saint Louis, the club and the American chess scene as whole, but Nakamura as well.

"We hope that the support Nakamura will receive in Saint Louis will help him reach his full potential," Rich said. "He has achieved so much in just the past year, it is impossible to predict how far he could go. Nakamura's appearance and success on the world stage can help promote American chess at all levels."

Nakamura's recent results on the world stage have proved that he ranks among the very best players in the world. At the 2010 World Team Championship in Bursa, Turkey, Nakamura earned a gold medal for his board one performance and also led the U.S. team to silver medals. Along the way, he defeated reigning World Cup Champion Boris Gelfand in a no holds-barred attacking game, a perfect example of his uncompromising chess style. Nakamura is currently rated 2735, #17 in the world. The 2010 World Team squad was sponsored by the Chess Club Scholastic Center of Saint Louis, which helped to develop Nakamura's relationship with the club.

The 22-year-old Japanese-American is used to winning tournaments and breaking records. Born in Osaka, Japan in 1987, Nakamura was raised in New York, just outside of Manhattan. At the age of 10, he became the youngest American master in history, and when he was 15, he broke Bobby Fischer's record as the youngest ever American GM (which was since broken by Italian-American GM Fabiano Caruana and GM Ray Robson, who became the youngest GM ever to play for America.) Nakamura is also a legendary blitz player, and author of "Bullet Chess: One Minute to Mate."

 

3) Boris Kostic in Los Angeles

John Blackstone sends in the following report that was published in the Brooklyn Daily Eagle on August 5, 1915.

Boris Kostic of Budapest, who Is touring the Pacific Coast met with stout resistance at Los Angeles, where on July 26 and 27, he played at the Los Angeles Chess and Checker Club, of which E. R. Perry, former Harvard player, Is now the president. In a simultaneous performance given the first night, sixteen players opposed the expert, who made a score of nine wins, three losses and four draws. Perry was one of those to defeat the Hungarian in an exciting game. The following night. Kostlc played four games in a blindfold exhibition, sitting before an empty board. He won two, lost one and drew one. Again Perry proved too much for him. The drawn game was scored by Smith. The scope of the simultaneous game lost to Perry is given herewith:

Kostic,B - Perry,E
Los Angeles (simul) 1915

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.Nd5 Nf6 5.Nxb4 Nxb4 6.c3 Nc6 7.d3 d5 8.Qc2 Be6 9.Be2 Qd7 10.0-0 h6 11.Nd2 g5 12.Re1 Ne7 13.Nf1 Ng6 14.Ng3 Nf4 15.Bf1 0-0-0 16.Be3 Kb8 17.d4 Nxe4 18.Nxe4 dxe4 19.Qxe4 f6 20.dxe5 Bd5 21.Qd4 b6 22.exf6 Qg4 23.Bxf4 gxf4 24.h3 Qh4 25.Rad1 Rhg8 26.Kh2 Rd6 27.Qe5 Qxf2 28.Rxd5 f3 29.Qe8+ Rxe8 30.Rxe8+ Kb7 31.Rxd6 cxd6 32.f7 Qxf1 33.gxf3 Qf2+ 0-1

4) Here and There

NM Romy Fuentes and Expert Kyle Shin tied for first with 3-1 scores in the top section of the Frank Doyle Memorial last weekend in Santa Rosa. Paul Stagnoli directed the three section, 42-player event.

Congratulations to Fremont high school student NM Rohan Agarwal, one of five winners of the 2010 US Chess Trust Scholar-Player scholarships.