Mechanics' Institute Chess Room Newsletter # 98
"If the position after my move becomes more complicated then the
game is going in the right direction." 1) Bio on Imre Konig 2) Konig Blitz 3) Here and there 4) Upcoming events Honor Roll of Imre Konig Memorial donors: fund raising is now at $14,540 - only $5,460 to go! Tibor Weinberger, Mark Pinto, Jim Eade, Neil Falconer, John Keker, Toshio Imai, Vince McCambridge, Bryan Bilby, Bear Stearns, Tom Allen, Max Wilkerson, John Cannon, Mervyn Field, Dr. Joe Wagner, Haluk Akol, Mike Goodall, Dr. Ben Gross, Smartchess, Peter Stevens, Kevan Gross and anonymous. GM Alex Baburin writes: "I would like to help the Konig fund raising by making a special offer on new subscriptions to my daily Internet chess magazine Chess Today - rates ($19 for 4 months, $25 for 6 months and $44 for one year) and encourage them to subscribe. When they subscribe, in the reference field they should write 'Imre Konig' and I will give 50% of their subscription to the tournament." Go to http://www.chesstoday.net for more information on one of the best chess magazines in the world and help support the Konig! 1) Bio on Imre KonigThe following piece was written by IM Imre Konig for the book British Chess:
Konig, Imre R. I was born on 9th February 1901 in Kula, Hungary, learnt chess at the age often and soon became the best player in the school in which I had enrolled ( Gymnasium; the highest school in Middle Europe). When my interest increased I began to study chess books, first Hungarian, later German ones. Tarrasch's Die Moderne Schachpartie (that time considered the bible of chess) made a great impression on me. My first real step in chess occurred when at the age of 19 I had gone to study in Vienna, which was really the chess centre of the world as Wolf , Gruenfeld, Spielmann, Dr. Tartakower and Reti lived there. Though there were many chess clubs that organized interclub matches, the main meeting place was the chess room of the Cafe Central, where the international masters met. I had the chance to play many quick games with Dr. Tartakower and Dr. Vidmar. My real teacher was, however , Reti who when returning from tournaments always showed and explained his games to me. It was the time of the start of the' Hypermodern Chess' , of which Breyer and Reti were the main advocates. I was soon carried away with their ideas and my game published by Vukovic in his The Art of Attack is a good example of the fierce attacking style I adopted. The real test came in 1922, with Vukovic and Kmoch, I was invited to play in a tournament. It was my second tournament, but a good way to gain experience. I drew with Bogoljubov, who was one of the Hyper-moderns, and Dr. Tarrasch, who was still advocating his modern school known for its dogmatic style. I began to realize that it is not schools in chess that make the masters great, but their individual approach, especially when I was able to watch Dr. Lasker who belonged to no chess school. Chess life in Vienna lost much of its vitality after the death of Reti and the departure of Dr. Tartakower, who left for Paris. I returned to my native country and chess virtually came to an end for me. The second great event in my chess career occurred in 1931 when in the company of Dr. Vidmar, Kostic and Pirc I represented Yugoslavia in the Chess Olympiad in Prague. (I became a Yugoslav citizen after the first world war, when the Austro-Hungarian empire was broken up). We did well and my game with Lundin was considered one of the best in the Olympiad. Watching and analyzing with the great players like Alekhine, Rubinstein, Spielmann and others greatly improved my outlook on chess. Though I represented Yugoslavia in the Chess Olympiad in Warsaw 1935, and Munich 1936, I realized that occasional games do not help one to become competitive in chess. In 1937 I went to visit Paris. My intention was to learn more about French life and culture, the dream of all Europeans. Chance has helped me to come in contact with chess as at that time not only Dr. Tartakower but also Dr. Bernstein and Dr. Alekhine lived there permanently and Capablanca came to live there. I became a regular visitor to the famous Cafe de la Regence, famous as a visiting place for Napoleon. (The table where he played was still exhibited.) It was the time of the return match of Dr. Alekhine-Dr. Euwe, played in Holland but eagerly watched everywhere. It was a great chance for me to analyse the games with Capablanca. I had heard about him from Reti but I was still surprised by his penetrating look and the way he found his way in the most complicated positions. While I was living in Paris in 1937-38 I went to visit England and played in the Hastings and Margate premier reserves tournament. Life in London greatly impressed me and I decided to spend some time in England. Luck helped me again as the war broke out in the meantime and I was saved from the invasion of Paris. In England I regularly played in tournaments. Even in the first year of the war, in 1940, there was great interest in chess -the National Chess Centre was the regular meeting place. When this was bombed out chess came to a stand-still until the war was over. After the war I played in a few tournaments in London and Hastings. In 1952 1 went to visit the USA and life in California with its eternal sunshine greatly impressed me. My interest in chess was concentrated mainly on writing and my book Chess from Morphy to Botvinnik published in England and the USA fulfilling my aspirations in chess. I live now in Santa Monica, retired but still interested in chess. In retrospect chess was very useful. It helped me to meet many interesting people and live in many different countries. 2) Konig BlitzAs part of the Imre Konig Festival, the MI will be holding the Konig Blitz on Saturday, September 7 from 5-7 PM, giving spectators the chance to watch a weekend round and then face some of the participants one-on-one. This event, which is being conducted through the auspices of the World Blitz Chess Association, will feature a guaranteed prize fund of $500, as well as books and other items. Entry fee is $15 for WBCA members, $18 for others. The event will be run as a five, double-round Swiss. 3) Here and ThereFormer World Champion, Anatoly Karpov, has just been confirmed as a special guest for the Lindsborg Open, to be held in Central Kansas, right before Christmas. Full details for the tournament are available below. This even offers a unique North American opportunity for GM and IM norms. Los Angeles IM Jeremy Silman, who made his home in the Bay Area from the mid 1970s to the early 1980s, has put together a tremendous, free website. Check it out at: Click here: Jeremy Silman International Chess Master or (to cut and paste): http://205.214.64.205/ One of the brightest developments of the past few years has been the rise of full fledged chess programs at the University of Baltimore at Maryland County and the University of Texas at Dallas. The latter features GMs Yury Shulman and Marcin Kaminski. UMBC just made a huge upgrade to their program with the addition of America's highest rated player, GM Alex Onishuk, who recently moved from Denver to Baltimore. He, and GM Wojtkiewicz, give a top two that would be one of the best combinations in a Chess Olympiad, much less a college Pan Am! Santa Cruz has a new Senior Master. Donny Ariel, who attended UC Santa Cruz as an undergraduate, is back in town and is now the highest rated, active player in the city, but not the highest rated period. That honor goes to GM James Tarjan, who works as one of the head librarians for the city of Santa Cruz public library. Max Burkett, who long ago dropped the moniker "Motorcycle Max," and would be better known today as "Bicycle Max," is moving from Missoula, Montana, to Louisiana. We wish Max well in his new home and well remember his contributions to California chess, including the publishing of bulletins for many Lone Pine tournaments. 4) Upcoming eventsNote two new additions to the calendar under national listings: the always popular Governor's Cup and a rare opportunity for GM and IM norms this December in Lindsborg, Kansas. Vladimir Pafhutieff Memorial: August 17 This event is a 5-rounder, G/45, run on the Swiss system starting at 10 AM. August 12-16 3rd Annual Mechanics' Institute Chess Camp for Intermediate and Advanced Players (1200-2200) This is not a camp for players that want to jump two rating classes in five days. You won't learn how to win against the Sicilian every time using the Grand Prix Attack. So why our camp and not others? At the MI camp you will get a look inside a GM's laboratory and get a feel for how they work on their game from the ground up. You will learn not only the importance of analyzing your own games, but also how to do it properly. You will learn to identify the critical points of the game and to understand when and why things went wrong. You will learn how to use ChessBase and Fritz efficiently as part of a daily training program as well as utilizing resources on the Internet such as TWIC and the Internet Chess Club. Today chess books are cranked out at an incredible rate. Some of them are very good, many are quite bad. We will help students learn to select that which is truly useful. On the fun side our instructors have unique experience in international competition. Expect to hear stories and anecdotes about what it's like to play against Kasparov and defend first board in a Chess Olympiad. Instructors: Grandmasters Alex Yermolinsky, International Masters John Donaldson and Guillermo Rey, and MI Scholastic Director Anthony Corrales.
Who: Open to all ages from 8 and up. Regional Events The John Easterling Memorial - August 3rd and 4th$1,350 based on 50 paid entries The Mechanics Bank (Operations Center), 725 Alfred Noble Dr., in Hercules, CA!! Directions: From SF/Berkeley: take Interstate I-80 East to State Route 4/ Hercules Exit -(willow Rd.). Make right turn off ramp onto Willow Rd. then make another right turn at light onto Sycamore Dr. Then a right turn at light on San Pablo Ave. Then make a left turn on John Muir Parkway, entrance to North Shore Business Park at the intersection of John Muir Parkway and San Pablo Ave. Then make the only right turn onto Alfred Noble Dr. Go up the hill to 725 Alfred Noble Dr. The Mechanics Bank. From State Hwy 4: Travel East on State HWY 4 to John Muir Parkway Exit. Keep straight into the North Shore Business Park at the intersection of San Pablo Ave. and John Muir Parkway. Then make the only right turn onto Alfred Noble Dr. Go up hill to 725 The Mechanics Bank (Operations Center). From Vallejo/ Napa: take Interstate I-80 West to Willow Rd. Exit. Make Right off interstate and go up to San Pablo Ave.-Make the only left turn. Make a Right turn onto John Muir Parkway at the intersection of State Route 4 and John Muir Pkwy, into the North Shore Business Park. Then make the only right turn on Alfred Noble Dr. Go up hill to 725 The Mechanics Bank. Free Parking / skittles room! See the most beautiful site in the East Bay!! One Section: 4 Round Swiss, G/2, (Limited to 50 Players) $350-250-150, Best X $140, Best A $130, Best B $120, Best C $110, Best D/E/Unr. $100. Pre-entries: $35.00 if postmarked by 7/29/02; $40.00 at site/no checks at site. Make checks payable and send to: Rico Adkins, 15696 Crestwood Dr. #172, San Pablo, CA 94806. Please include your name, address, & USCF number and Exp. Date, and rating with entry. Byes must commit before first round. USCF membership required, membership renewal available at site. Aug. Supplement used. Questions/ Info. (510) 262-9061/e-mail: Fgh348@cs.com. Reg. ends at Sat 10:00 am. Rounds: Sat 10:30am, 3:30pm; Sun 10am 3:00pm. Bring sets, clocks.
Aug. 24-25 GPP: 6 N. California
Aug. 31-Sept. 2 GPP: 15 N. California National Events Dear Chess Friends, Hope the 7th Governor's Cup Chess Tournament is on your fall calendar--October 11-13--in Sioux Falls, Sourth Dakota. The tourney will be at a new site this year--downtown at the Holiday Inn City Centre at 100 West 8th Street. Once again we will distribute $10,000 in prize money. Call (605) 339-2000 as soon as possible and ask for the $79 chess rate. ( Let me know if you have any difficulty making a reservation. I know that the state soccer tourney is in town that same weekend which may be a problem for you if you wait too long to reserve a room.) The tourney will begin at 6 p.m. on Friday night. All state chess associations are invited to nominate their current state champion or one of their best to represent their state in this event. Please spread the word to chess association presidents. At this time I do not plan to have the Governor's Office send out invitations like I have done in the past. The entry fee will be $50 in advance--entries must be postmarked by October 5 to receive this rate. After that entry fees will be $70. Free entry to all GM's, IM's, and players rated above 2400. Remember to indicate your section when you register: Open, Premier, or Rserve. (Premier is Under 2000, and Reserve is Under 1600).
2nd Annual
Lindsborg Rotary Open Chess Tournament |