TransWarp Chess

Let's Play "Find the Errors in this crap spam"

2010-10-07T12:58:00.000-05:00

A HONEST CRY FOR HELP

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	from	Saddiq Al-Tayyib
reply-to		al.saddiq011@yahoo.com.hk
to
date		Sat, Oct 2, 2010 at 5:56 PM
subject		A HONEST CRY FOR HELP

hide details Oct 2 (4 days ago)

Dear Friend,

I hope this mail gets to you in the best frame of mind. I am sorry if I am
intruding into your privacy by contacting you since we do not know each
other physically. The fact is that I have been directed by the spirit of
humanity to you hoping you will be fair enough to respond to this task
that I shall be putting forward to you.

As you rightly know, our today's world is govern by greed, wickedness,
hostility and hatred. People no longer feel safe dealing with close
friends,relatives, neighbours and loved ones and trust are often betrayed
by people you least expected.

I am sorry for not introducing myself to you before now. I am Saddiq
Al-Tayyib from Riyahd, Saudi Arabia. I do not fancy racial discrimination
and am not a religious fanatist sso if you are one of those that thinks
his or her religion or race is superior to that of other persons, please
do me the favour of not replying this mail.

I have spent 57 good years in this world and have witness the beautiful
and ugly sides of life. I have learnt not to view life from one
perspective because life itself is very unpredicatble.

My reason for contacting you is to combine our ideas and dedication to
touch the lives of the less-privilege in some part of the world so that a
good name and legacy would be left after our time on earth.

I am actually in the hospital sending this mail to you as I have
experienced one trauma after the other. Medical experts have informed me I
might never live to survive this ailment that has plagued the last few
years of my life. This is because this deadly ailment has affected my
vital organs. Somehow, I now feel safer dealing with strangers than people
I know due to constant betrayals I have received from loved ones.

Nowadays, only few people think about assisting orphanage homes and other
charity organisations around the world due to self-centredness. The rich
are getting richer at the expense of the poor. Please respond to this mail
as soon as you finish reading to let me know your opinion about assisting
the less-privilege and if you have given it a thought to help them one way
or the other. I have a dream to share with you and I hope and pray I am
communicating with the right person.

Thanks for now as I await your soonest reponse with your Full Names,
Address, Phone/Fax Number and Country. Your response should be sent to
this address: al.saddiq011@yahoo.com.hk

Thanks for your anticipated response and do have a great day.
Regards
Saddiq Al-Tayyib

Long treatment ahead

2010-08-13T07:53:00.000-05:00

I'm still fighting a set back in my condition that started about in January, I have had many supporters including Family and Friends as well as people like Rybka's creator IM Vasik Rajlich (who I feel I'm letting down at the moment).

When I started logging TransWarp back online I had no idea what was about to hit me, massive weakness to the point I cannot work on TransWarp's settings, I need to read to find out how to set the "Don't accept draw" function as well as a variation of the old "contempt" function in Deep Rybka 3... These two problems, until I get them fixed will have TransWarp "No Rated" by admins on ICC, this is to avoid skewing ratings by TransWarp accepting easy draws as early as move 8 I believe.

One of my main supporter's on ICC, FREEBIRD, has been most helpful in understanding what happened to me and why I haven't been online when I answered his e-mail regarding my finding out how to keep Deep Rybka 4 under control in the TransWarp account, I'm sorry to Vas, in habit, I've been referring to TransWarp and not Deep Rybka 4, which has many new controls when it came out, I was so excited, it went right online with some recommendations for a "contempt" setting on the Rybka Forum by GM Larry Kaufman, sadly it didn't pan out and the problem started with the easy draws...which was a bit of deja vu for me with Rybka 2.3.2a, which could be blockaded easily, despite taking the lines out of the book.

I'm having good days and bad days, but it's my fault really that TW hasn't been back online to answer one person's question. I haven't had the strength to try to research the problem and then try to put a solution into effect. I feel TW has been a great part of the ICC community and I miss it greatly!! I miss all of my regulars, people who supported TW, I feel I'm letting everyone down. But it cannot be helped until a therapy they put into affect (which MIGHT be working, but it's so hard to tell when you are this weak), I've been pretty much bed ridden since January and now am looking seriously at the scooter commercials. I can't use a wheelchair by myself because with polymyositis, one of the first muscles that get weak are in the shoulder area, like when I first got ill and though it was a work injury way back in '88, I had noticed I was washing my hair with one arm propped on the shower wall,,,it's back to this stage again, I've fell several times and had to crawl to my bed to get up. So when the easiest thing for the regular person, causes extreme fatigue and pain, it's tough to concentrate on a problem as hard as this. And then thinking of trying to put together a new opening book..scares the heck out of me.

I apologize to those who look forward to seeing TW play, I know there are some GM's salivating at the thought of it coming back with the same problem to boost their ratings, but first tests (when they happen) will be unrated. But this is good, it will give some of the high rated players a chance to play TW who couldn't before due to the put up at least a point policy...I feel that when there is nothing to risk, even 1 point, play is different. Like when playing poker on fake money sites..people going all in with 7 2 offsuit....you get the picture. As many pro chess players have went the poker route in downtime.

My hands are going to sleep, I will TRY to work on this soon, but I've said that before, it's how long the therapy takes to regain strength, IF it works and I'm so scared it won't. No one wants to be bedridden. So not only physical, but mental aspects have to be broken to get to working on this, when it's a program...or your personal health, you take your health first..at least I put up a new post for the Chinese spammer who keeps trying to post comments on here despite the fact they are all previewed and I have a policy of English only now...as it's my language, not because of any personal bias..I actually like other languages, it's just when they take advantage of me commenting in Chinese about porn sites that I have to go with what I know. Luckily there are translation programs online and saved me from leaving a comment on one of the posts that was totally not related to the site or it's content which is supposed to be family friendly.

Again, Thanks for your support, those who pray, I sure wouldn't mind it! It's proven to help, faith is a powerful thing...even to top chessplayers but in their play usually but a lot to personal faith with God.

Deep Rybka 4 & TransWarp back on ICC

2010-06-05T10:41:00.000-05:00

Well not back, but with Deep Rybka 4 instead of 3 instead, but I have to learn some new settings. I may just try soon in default mode and tweak as I go along. Maybe today!

A good chuckle

2010-05-30T09:42:00.000-05:00

As most of you know, I'm not feeling to well..well, at least those who know me and actually read this darn thing. I often need humor to help my days go by when in these funks. But since this one has lasted so long and worries of a relapse fly through my head, dreading the possible prednisone attack, maybe I can hire this little guy to protect me from the big bad meds...secretly shaped like kid's vitamins to keep me off guard!

Great Day for those who have waited for so long! It's here!

2010-05-26T16:42:00.000-05:00

Rybka 4 has been released! No Joke! At least the download version has, it's available at www.chessok.com (I like the Chess Assistant 9 I have) I was very surprised to see that CA 11 is here as well and will be packaged with Rybka 4, If I was a guaranteed income that wasn't way below the poverty level, you can bet I would be bouncing off the walls waiting to get my version! But the prices of such things has left me on the street looking in the window, I think the manager is getting ready to shoo me off because of the nose print, he doesn't look happy! ;)

So computer chess fanatics click, click and click to the site, check the box and send your money...I know from Rybka 3 and my CA 9, it will be well worth it. There also is the straight uci engine download available too, even that is a tad..lol a BIG tad, too expensive for this cat..but I've had fun, TransWarp will always be the computer that broke 4000 blitz elo on ICC (chessclub.com) and I will be proud of that always. TW is up for renewal on the 4th, I'm in a quandry as to whether or not to renew the account. I would be able to do so...but never be able to upgrade to Deep Rybka, the multi-processor version. There also is a Chessbase version as well, I believe it comes with a Fritz package or Chessbase package..not really familiar with Chessbase as much.

So gamers, enjoy Rybka 4! Start your Engines!! You can get to the purchase link via the Rybka link at the right, have fun!

Rybka 4

2010-05-23T10:55:00.000-05:00

Quick update, downloadable version of Rybka 4 will be available at ChessOK.Com on the 26th of May and DVD orders sent on the 28th, I think you can pre-order now! I do believe I have a chessok.com link here somewhere!!

Rybka 4 is on it's way!

2010-05-23T10:51:00.000-05:00

I know I'm late with this news, and very late in posting, but I have been ill lately, since January...numerous tests, bloodwork, an MRI, a CT scan and multiple x-rays..I should be glowing in the dark!

But that's not the main news, the main news is that FINALLY! Rybka 4 is to be released for sale, i haven't seen a definite date, but I have seen some ads at chess program selling sites. Wow, i wish I could afford the new monster, but TransWarp's ICC renewal is coming up as well. I was late in trying to renew my human account and lost years of stats..all erased. But while I DO have an excuse, the fact that the info was erased is a big loss to me.

I could start over, try to reach my 1700 blitz rating once more, but that will never happen as I am way out of shape, can't move the pieces fast enough anymore...the young have taken over. But that's life..out with the old, in with the new, like Rybka 4!! It has been said to be late May, which is here..but i haven't checked the forum yet today to see if there's been a release date set and how much the basic mp uci multi-processor version costs...the thought scares me. I have really only used Rybka as my chess engine, I never could afford to buy all these Deep Junior, Deep Fritz, Deep Sjeng and new names popping up as well...with all those engines and guis going for about $100.00 per shot, on a meager 760.00/mo income (after medicare D deduction) there wouldn't have been a chance in Hades that I could have gotten those and had matches between them...which I've always wanted to do...I would love to get the new Rybka 4 and do that vs Rybka 3 on my machine and see the outcome, the thought is exciting and bittersweet.

I may be having a relapse of my polymyositis...I can barely stand for 10 minutes or so if that, I go in the kitchen to try and get my big cooler cup (you find in those quick stores) that's about 17 years old now, wow)...and fill it up with ice and a mixture of cold water from a jug in the fridge and one of the sports drinks to try and regain electrolytes and such I lost overnight with the night sweats or discomfort from the cpap machine's hose and nose piece filling up with condensation..roll over and get a nose full of water..yay.. But as I have put on more weight due to now also because of a hormone imbalance (The night sweats may have been a clue that got overlooked) so now I get monthly shots as well..male menopause, who heard of that? sheesh...as well as the possibility of the polymyositis going into some involuntary muscles has made the last 5-6 months a time i couldn't even think of TransWarp..I had just renewed it's account as well...but lack of play led to boredom which took me to Facebook and it's plethora of games..so I'm guilty of being an attempted mob boss and farmer...go figure.

The release of Rybka 4 has stimulated the chess fever once more...but I may have to be on the sidelines...this darn hobby has gotten very expensive...I don't get any money from the banner ads..some Chinese spammer has gotten his jollies posting Chinese pr0n sites in the comments, I missed the first one, luckily google has Chinese (simplified)/English translations..he tried with a harder version of Chinese, but it's English or nothing now. But I would like to wish Vasik Rajlich & the Rybka Team (which has gotten huge) Good Luck with Rybka 4 and may they have nothing but great things from her.

As for TransWarp, I may try to renew the account...at least it was the first to break the 4000 elo "barrier" lol, on ICC in it's rating system. It had an Awesome run with GM Hikaru Nakamura, who I can't thank enough for playing TransWarp and in doing so, making the games something ICC'ers looked forward to watching and their hopes got high every time the two were logged on at the same time and Smallville was in a blitz playing mood vs a computer.

Of course, I would like to thank all the other players who took time out of their day to play TW...it was so much fun for me when I got the chance to watch them live. However, as my days often like a farmer's, early to rise and early to bed, I missed so many of them. But whatever happens, I look forward to seeing how Rybka 4 does out there and hopefully, I will manage to get it as well. When I mentioned all those other versions of engines up above, I imagine there are some who are saying, "well, why didn't you just look for them online, wink" I just don't believe in that, these guys work hard to make these engines and I believe deserve all the reward for that hard work! People have a funny way of thinking sometimes, they would never think of going into say Best Buy and stealing a copy of one the commercial engines, but looking for it online, virus risks and all, won't stop them. But there's always Karma..they may not get caught doing that...but it evens out int he end. Anyway...I'm off my soapbox/"news conference" about where I went with TW..which of course was nowhere..TW just relaxed amongst the other programs chatting away I suppose..while I did the gangster bit, probably laughing at me..especially when I started farming and planted my first crop..some sort of berry, think blueberries..lol..But my farm is packed with animals and it's field surrounded by trees, barns, gnomes, you name it..but it kept me busy and not looking at a screen where no one was playing. However, Armcomposer(GM) did play some unrated games recently, that was fun to watch. You can't help but root for the underdog. Anyway, Rybka 4, when you make your debut, Welcome!!

FIDE'S TOP 10 January 2010 Rating List

2009-12-30T10:47:00.007-06:00

FIDE, the official organization of worldwide chess, has put out it's January 2010 rating list. Rising Super GM Magnus Carlsen is officially #1 in the World with a rating of 2810! He's followed by World Chess Championship Challenger GM Veselin Topalov at 2805, with current World Champion GM Viswanathan Anand coming in at 2790. Here is a list of the new top 10 in the world, I will post the link to the top 100 following this small list.

Rank Name Title Country Rating Games B-Year

1. Carlsen, Magnus g NOR 2810 16 1990

2. Topalov, Veselin g BUL 2805 4 1975

3. Anand, Viswanathan g IND 2790 9 1969

4. Kramnik, Vladimir g RUS 2788 16 1975

5. Aronian, Levon g ARM 2781 17 1982

6. Gelfand, Boris g ISR 2761 25 1968

7. Gashimov, Vugar g AZE 2759 21 1986

8. Ivanchuk, Vassily g UKR 2749 13 1969

9. Wang, Yue g CHN 2749 8 1987

10. Svidler, Peter g RUS 2744 27 1976

FIDE's List of the Top 100 Active players: (Men + GM Judit Polgar)

Internet Chess Club's Favorite Blitz Player GM Hikaru Nakamura comes in at:

28. Nakamura, Hikaru g USA 2708 7 1987

Still hanging in there above 2700 and being in the top 30 of 1264 active Grandmasters in the list and now the number 1 player in the US isn't too shabby. I still don't think it's fair to see the lack of invitations he gets to major tournaments, unless he does get them and doesn't accept, I really don't know. But being above 2700 should bring more major tournaments I think.

Another note, the US gains another Grandmaster with young Ray Robson getting his title in a week or so, he's already rated above 2500, so having to wait for that is no problem, congrats to GM Ray Robson!

The First "Must Have" - " Reassess Your Chess" By International Master Jeremy Silman

Russia Superfinals 2009 Final Standings

2009-12-30T10:26:00.001-06:00

I missed out on these games due to a problem with some meds, kind of bummed I couldn't keep updating so as to keep some traffic this way, but that's the way it goes with me....kind of pitiful. After the 10 player 9 round, round-robin format tournament the final standings are:

Final Standings after Round 9:

1 6.5 GM Alexander Grischuk 2736

2 6.0 GM Peter Svidler 2754

3 5.0 GM Nikita Vitiugov 2694

4-5 4.5 GM Evgeny Alekseev 2715

4-5 4.5 GM Dmitry Jakovenko 2736

6-8 4.0 GM Denis Khismatullin 2643

6-8 4.0 GM Alexander Riazantsev 2661

6-8 4.0 GM Evgeny Tomashevsky 2708

9 3.5 GM Artyom Timofeev 2651

10 3.0 GM Sanan Sjugirov 2612

GM Alexander Grischuk had a good tournament to win outright, this was a pretty tough bunch of customers, the favorite GM Peter Svidler did well at first but evidently suffered a rare loss vs GM Sanan Sjugirov, the lowest seed in the tournament, after this GM Grischuk had no problems holding off the rest of the pack.

Here's GM Grischuk's win in a Ruy Lopez over GM Dmitry Jakovenko:

photo courtesy of Chessdom.com

One Smallville Blitz game

2009-12-28T10:22:00.001-06:00

Here's one of the Smallville blitz games, this one is where the Grandmaster mind knows much more than the patzer (my) mind. According the Rybka, he was just -0.24 at a depth of 21, but I used a little more analysis time than the game would have allowed, at an earlier eval at a depth of 18 the score was -0.50 or half a pawn. However, GM Nakamura could easily see the position's potential and the chance of winning or drawing in what short time he had to look at it just by his pure chess knowledge. What we look at (the average player) there is no reason to quit just yet, but to the mind of someone who can visualize far ahead and see weaknesses and strong points that we can't comprehend in such a short time, it's I guess a better position for black and not worth the effort to fight a machine that can evaluate blitz just as fast, only in a different way. He has the brain power just to look at a position and know it's potential, while the computer has to go through algorithms using fast cpu power, but not actually KNOW what it's doing. That is what makes the human mind an awesome thing and to see a person who CAN beat the machine do it, makes my day. Contrary to the popular thought, I am not someone who takes a loss by his computer badly, in fact when I see it done live, it's the most enlightening thing to see. Someday, this won't happen and probably Chess 960 will have to be the computer's realm, but now is a point where the power of the human mind to prevail is still there and great to see in action. Computer vs Computer is cool if you can afford the computers that do this battle now, I cannot, so I enjoy still watching Man vs Machine and secretly rooting for Man. When Man has no chance or the game is solved to a draw, sadly this crucial time will be gone, it's nearly there already, probably is with the real high end machines battling each other. Think of when Kasparov played Fritz3D, that program would get toasted now but it was one of the most watched matches ever. Ah, the days of the old Radio Shack magnetic press and move consoles, put them on level 6, the one I had, I would move, go to class, come back and it still hadn't moved. Any lower, I would beat it most of the time. Now this age...I will enjoy watching TransWarp get beaten, knowing that sadly, there are computers out there that Grandmasters will be lucky to get a draw against.

00:03:55.4 [-0.24] d=20 bxc4 Rb8 Bg2 Ne5 Nxe5 Bxe5 Re1 Bf4 Ne4 Bxh2+ Kxh2 Nd7 a4 Rb3 Rd1 Ra3 Kg3 Bxe4 Bxe4 Nb6 Kf3 Nxc4 Rc1 Nd2+ Ke2 Ra2 Ke1 Nxe4 dxe4 Rxa4 Rxc5

Thanks to GM Nakamura (Smallville) for the blitz games!

2009-12-28T08:43:00.001-06:00

Grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura, whose handle is Smallville on the Internet Chess Club, where TransWarp resides, played 5 blitz games yesterday! I thank GM Nakamura for taking time out of his day to mess with a computer, I know he likes to play other GMs blitz or 1-minute where he dominates, 1-minute is a special pool where you cannot pick your opponents, there are no computers and you are paired with someone close to your rating. However, GM Nakamura is so good at 1 minute chess vs other humans, he has chances to lose a lot of points just for a draw, like 15 or 31 for a loss, gaining only 1 point per win most of the time, because of the rating difference. These games are against players, who at normal tournament speed, would give GM Nakamura a good game, so he can't make a major mistake and if he does, he has to try to survive the minute with fast, defensive moves and win on time, this isn't really frowned on in 1-minute chess as it is in regular blitz chess. Some Grandmasters don't like it when they have a won game and have to play it out because the other guy wants to win on time in blitz, some would say that's part of the game, but at their level, it can be tedious.

So thanks to GM Nakamura for playing, I will try to post one or two if he didn't resign early because it's kind of futile to try to win after making a mistake against a computer. Not trying to brag, it's how strong the computers have become. I won't be able to afford the next level computer any time soon, TransWarp will become a memory eventually as many great computer accounts on ICC have, too many to name but well respected, mostly crafty chess engines, before Rybka and other types came. Computer chess is an expensive hobby, to where the real competition, computer vs computer engine games, are played on computers that would buy me a nice used car! And I don't have a car. I also want to thank Smallville because the pharmacy made an error and didn't fill my pain meds, I have been suffering over the weekend on small rations of my mophine and percocet so as to not go into full withdrawl, although I am suffering some until my scripts are filled soon. Both pain and withdrawl symptoms, I have forgotten to take my meds several times in the past and getting towards full withdrawl is terrible. But it's the lesser of two evils in order to live a productive life. There's another word they use, but I can't think of it now... So it was a nice surprise and took my mind off the bad for a while. Thanks again, GM Nakamura.

Russian Championship SuperFinal 2009 Starts tomorrow 12/20-12/30, 2009

2009-12-19T10:17:00.004-06:00

The Russian Superfinal, a 10 player Round Robin (9 Rounds) Tournament starts tomorrow at 7am EST with relays available on chessclub.com and I suppose other chess playing sites on the net. I see that the official site http://russiachess.org/ does have some sort of relay set up, but when you try to look at the English version of the page, you are taken back in time two years. I hope this will be fixed before the tournament start, but find it unlikely. But you still may be able to watch the games for free on this site by clicking on the Online link in the area where for the first part says Cynep**Ha* 2009 (* cyrillic letters, phoetically would say Superfinal) I will post the official logo and link it to the page.

Participants are by FIDE elo rating:

1. GM Peter Svidler 2754

2. GM Dmitry Jakovenko 2736

3. GM Alexander Grischuk 2736

4. GM Evgeny Alekseev 2715

5. GM Evgeny Tomashevsky 2708

6. GM Nikita Vitiugov 2694

7. GM Alexander Riazantsev 2661

8. GM Artyom Timofeev 2651

9. GM Denis Khismatullin 2643

10. GM Sana Sjugirov 2612

Not a Chess Pro? Me either, So there are some books that are "must haves" I will put two here first "Reassess Your Chess" By IM Jeremy Silman followed by "My System" by Aron Nimzowitsch (21st century edition, more complex than Silman's book, but with computer software making setting up boards and following variations easier, more friendly to the user).

The First "Must Have" - " Reassess Your Chess" By International Master Jeremy Silman

The More advanced second "Must Have" - "My System" 21st Century Edition by Aron Nimzowitsch

Round 7 Final Round London Chess Classic 2009 Magnus Carlsen wins!

2009-12-15T07:18:00.007-06:00

GM Magnus Carlsen draws with GM Nigel Short and wins the 2009 London Chess Classic!

Round 7 started off early today as a lot of tournaments do, that is have the final round a little earlier so the players can get home without having to stay an extra day or such. However, some of the games are still in the opening phase at this moment and with the Sofia rules, there are no early draws to be had. Fighting chess all the way with only forced drawn situations accepted.

Pairings For Round 7 Tue Dec 15th, 12:00 GMT, 7:00am EST

3 GM Hikaru Nakamura USA  1/2-1/2 2 GM Vladimir Kramnik RUS
6 GM Ni Hua CHN 0-1 8 GM David Howell ENG
5 GM Michael Adams ENG  1-0 7 GM Luke McShane ENG
4 GM Nigel Short ENG  1/2-1/2 1 GM Magnus Carlsen NOR

GM David Howell after drawing with all the other players, finishes with a win over GM Ni Hua putting him on the + side, finishing with 9 points, not too bad considering he was the lowest seed in the tournament. GM Hikaru Nakamura finished up with a draw vs GM Vladimir Kramnik finishing on the - side after his earlier loss vs GM McShane and despite a great game vs GM Magnus Carlsen, which was voted Best Game of Round 4, shared with GM Carlsen. I'm not sure what GM Nakamura's rating will be after this tournament, but it will be close to the 2700 mark after he had worked it up to 2735 unofficially on the Estimated Live Rating Chart of those over 2700 done by Hans Arild Runde http://chess.liverating.org/ . This is all unofficial but a well watched list by the avid chess fan. I often wish I had the widget for the unofficial top 10, but he doesn't have a link for that available, unless I contact him I guess. But I do have a link to his site on the right, it's just down a bit.

Final Standings

1 13.0 GM Magnus Carlsen NOR 2801
2 12.0 GM Vladimir Kramnik RUS 2772
3 9.0 GM David Howell ENG 2597 *
4 9.0 GM Michael Adams ENG 2698
5 7.0 GM Luke McShane ENG 2615
6 6.0 GM Ni Hua CHN 2665 *
7  6.0 GM Hikaru Nakamura USA 2715
8  5.0 GM Nigel Short ENG 2707

* After Tiebreaks, GM David Howell gets 3rd for a win with Black, while GM Ni Hua gets 6th for winning a game, while GM Nakamura had no wins.

Offer Ends 12/31/09

London Chess Festival 2009 Round 6

2009-12-14T11:37:00.003-06:00

Round 6 has started at the London Chess Festival with one game posting a result, GM David Howell held GM Hikaru Nakamura to a draw. With just one round to go, this tournament hasn't been the one that GM Nakamura had hoped for, needing a win in the final round vs GM Vladimir Kramnik to end with a bang.

Round 6 Pairings and Results:

2 GM Vladimir Kramnik RUS 1-0 4 GM Nigel Short ENG
1 GM Magnus Carlsen NOR 1/2-1/2 5 GM Michael Adams ENG
7 GM Luke McShane ENG 0-1 6 GM Ni Hua CHN
8 GM David Howell ENG 1/2-1/2 3 GM Hikaru Nakamura USA

Standings after Round 6

1 12.0 GM Magnus Carlsen NOR 2801
2 11.0 GM Vladimir Kramnik RUS 2772
3 7.0 GM Luke McShane ENG 2615
4-6 6.0 GM Michael Adams ENG 2698
4-6 6.0 GM David Howell ENG 2597
4-6 6.0 GM Ni Hua CHN 2665
7 5.0 GM Hikaru Nakamura USA 2715
8 4.0 GM Nigel Short ENG 2707

World Cup 2009 Tied after 4 Rapid Games, Goes to Blitz! Gelfand Champ!

2009-12-14T09:17:00.009-06:00

GM Ruslan Ponomariov made a great recovery with the black pieces to save his bid to win the 2009 World Cup by beating GM Boris Gelfand, who only needed a draw to take the prize. Now we are headed to Blitz Finals, 2 games, up to 10, if still tied followed by an armageddon game. The tiebreak rules posted earlier here was evidently wrong info provided to chessdom.com as to the finals tiebreak format, instead groups of 2 games (Blitz) up to 10 will be played before an armageddon game or (sudden-death).

Total Match Score, including Classical and Rapid Games at the front:

Pairings for Blitz Games:

Blitz 1: 5-4 Gelfand, Boris (ISR) 1-0 Ponomariov, Ruslan (UKR)
Blitz 2: 5-5 Ponomariov, Ruslan (UKR) 1-0 Gelfand, Boris (ISR)

Blitz 3: 6-5 Gelfand, Boris (ISR) 1-0 Ponomariov, Ruslan (UKR)
Blitz 4: 5-7 Ponomariov, Ruslan (UKR) 0-1 Gelfand, Boris (ISR)

Here is the final blitz game where #1 seed GM Boris Gelfand of Israel won World Cup 2009 after a lot of work, fighting off the strong GM Ruslan Ponomariov, who had won "have to win" games to stay in the hunt.

GM Ruslan Ponomariov vs GM Boris Gelfand (Final Blitz Game)

A Great World Cup 2009, that's for sure!

World Cup 2009 Results after 3 tiebreak games

2009-12-14T08:25:00.004-06:00

After 3 Rapid games, GM Boris Gelfand is leading GM Ruslan Ponomariov 2-1, having won game 2 with the White pieces. GM Ponomariov has to win this final Rapid Game to stay alive, a draw or loss and GM Boris Gelfand is the 2009 World Cup Champion.

Rapid Game Results World Cup 2009

Game 1 0.5-0.5 Ponomariov, Ruslan (UKR) 1/2-1/2 Gelfand, Boris (ISR)
Game 2 1.5-0.5 Gelfand, Boris (ISR) 1-0 Ponomariov, Ruslan (UKR)
Game 3 1.0-2.0 Ponomariov, Ruslan (UKR) 1/2-1/2 Gelfand, Boris (ISR)
Game 4 2.0-2.0 Gelfand, Boris (ISR) 0-1 Ponomariov, Ruslan (UKR)

GM Ponomariov wins with Black in Game 4 Rapid to send Finals to Blitz!

Game 2 (Rapid) GM Boris Gelfand vs GM Ruslan Ponomariov

GM Gelfand vs GM Ponomariov Game 4 Rapid Great game by GM Ponomariov to stay in!

London Chess Classic 2009 Round 5

2009-12-13T10:53:00.003-06:00

Round 5 Pairings Sunday Dec 13, 2009 8:00am EST 14:00 GMT

8 GM David Howell ENG 1/2-1/2 2 GM Vladimir Kramnik RUS
3 GM Hikaru Nakamura USA 0-1 7 GM Luke McShane ENG
6 GM Ni Hua CHN 0-1 1 GM Magnus Carlsen NOR
5 GM Michael Adams ENG 1/2-1/2 4 GM Nigel Short ENG

Standings After Round 5

1   11.0 GM Magnus Carlsen NOR 2801
2   8.0 GM Vladimir Kramnik RUS 2772
3   7.0 GM Luke McShane ENG 2615
4-5   5.0 GM Michael Adams ENG 2698
4-5   5.0 GM David Howell ENG 2597
6-7   4.0 GM Hikaru Nakamura USA 2715
6-7   4.0 GM Nigel Short ENG 2707
8       3.0 GM Ni Hua CHN 2665

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World Cup 2009 Update: Rapid Tiebreak will decide Winner!

2009-12-13T10:28:00.002-06:00

After 4 games of classical chess, GM Boris Gelfand and GM Ruslan Ponomariov will go to Rapid Tiebreaks tomorrow to decide the winner, I missed round 2 and 3 coverage as for the past few days, I've actually slept in late! But as all 4 traditional games were drawn, it seems I would have gotten excited at times only to be brought back to down to Earth as the games ended peacefully.

World Cup 2009 Finals Round 1-4 Classical

Game 1 0.5-0.5 Ponomariov, Ruslan (UKR) 1/2-1/2 Gelfand, Boris (ISR)
Game 2 1.0-1.0 Gelfand, Boris (ISR) 1/2-1/2 Ponomariov, Ruslan (UKR)
Game 3 1.5-1.5 Ponomariov, Ruslan (UKR) 1/2-1/2 Gelfand, Boris (ISR)
Game 4 2.0-2.0 Gelfand, Boris (ISR) 1/2-1/2 Ponomariov, Ruslan (UKR)

Tomorrow, lots will be drawn to determine colors for the 2 Rapid Games that will be played to determine the winner, of course if those are drawn, then 2 blitz games will be played after another drawing of lots for colors. Perchance it is still yet tied, then we get to the Armageddon game, one blitz game where lots are drawn for colors, however whoever has White MUST WIN, as White will have a 1 minute time advantage, Black only needs to hold a draw while giving up 1 minute of his time, this has been a great addition to the Chess Tiebreak system in the viewer's opinion, but I doubt the players enjoy it very much! It sure makes for an exciting game. The two Rapid Games will be played with 25 minutes and a 10 second increment after each move, the Blitz games will be played with 5 minutes per side and again a 10 second increment after each move, I have explained the Armageddon game time system. I DO know I have to try to get up early in the morning tomorrow!

London Chess Classic Round 4 results and Standings

2009-12-12T13:30:00.003-06:00

Here are the results (so far, last game may finish by the time I'm ready to post) of Round 4 of the London Chess Classic 2009 and the standings for the tournament. Remember the tournament uses a scoring system of 3 points for a win, 1 point for a draw and 0 for a loss. This is to try to get more fighting chess during tournaments rather than early draws, it also uses the Sofia Rules, no early draws, draws accepted by arbiter if shown to be perpetual check (or repetition), a theoretically drawn endgame, or just plain down to King vs King.

Round 4 Results

2 GM Vladimir Kramnik RUS 1/2-1/2 5 GM Michael Adams ENG
4 GM Nigel Short ENG 1/2-1/2 6 GM Ni Hua CHN
1 GM Magnus Carlsen NOR 1/2-1/2 3 GM Hikaru Nakamura USA
7 GM Luke McShane ENG 1/2-1/2 8 GM David Howell ENG

Standings after Round 4

1   8.0   GM Magnus Carlsen NOR 2801
2   7.0   GM Vladimir Kramnik RUS 2772
3-6 4.0 GM Luke McShane ENG 2615
3-6 4.0 GM Hikaru Nakamura USA 2715
3-6 4.0 GM Michael Adams ENG 2698
3-6 4.0 GM David Howell ENG 2597
7-8 3.0 GM Nigel Short ENG 2707
7-8 3.0  GM Ni Hua CHN 2665

Round 5 Pairings Sunday Dec 13, 2009 8:00am EST 14:00 GMT

8 GM David Howell ENG * 2 GM Vladimir Kramnik RUS
3 GM Hikaru Nakamura USA * 7 GM Luke McShane ENG
6 GM Ni Hua CHN * 1 GM Magnus Carlsen NOR
5 GM Michael Adams ENG * 4 GM Nigel Short ENG

Round 6 Pairings Monday Dec 14, 2009 8:00am EST 14:00 GMT

2 GM Vladimir Kramnik RUS * 4 GM Nigel Short ENG
1 GM Magnus Carlsen NOR * 5 GM Michael Adams ENG
7 GM Luke McShane ENG * 6 GM Ni Hua CHN
8 GM David Howell ENG * 3 GM Hikaru Nakamura USA

Round 7 Pairings Tuesday Dec 14, 2009 8:00am EST 14:00 GMT

3 GM Hikaru Nakamura USA * 2 GM Vladimir Kramnik RUS
6 GM Ni Hua CHN * 8 GM David Howell ENG
5 GM Michael Adams ENG * 7 GM Luke McShane ENG
4 GM Nigel Short ENG * 1 GM Magnus Carlsen NOR

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Round 3 pairings and Round 2 results of London Chess Classic 2009

2009-12-10T11:19:00.005-06:00

After 2 rounds at the London Chess Classic 2009, GM Magnus Carlsen 2801 is living up to his rating and has sole lead with 6 points. Remember the different scoring system, 3 pts for a win, 1 pt for a draw and 0 for a loss. GM Kramnik made up for his first round loss by posting a win and is at 3 pts with GM Luke McShane who lost. Here are the current standings. I will post the Magnus Carlsen game as well.

London Chess Classic 2009 Round 2 Results and Standings:
The number in front of the player's names is their seeding for the tournament.

2 GM Kramnik, Vladimir RUS 1-0 6 GM Ni, Hua CHN
5 GM Adams, Michael ENG 1/2-1/2 3 GM Nakamura, Hikaru USA
4 GM Short, Nigel ENG 1/2-1/2 8 GM Howell, David ENG
1 GM Carlsen, Magnus NOR 1-0 7 GM McShane, Luke ENG

Standings after Round 2 with new pt system:

1. 6.0 GM Magnus Carlsen 2801 (NOR)
2-3 3.0 GM Vladimir Kramnik 2772 (RUS)
2-3 3.0 GM Luke McShane 2615 (ENG)
4-6 2.0 GM Hikaru Nakamura 2715 (USA)
4-6 2.0 GM Michael Adams 2698 (ENG)
4-6 2.0 GM David Howell 2597 (ENG)
7-8 1.0 GM Nigel Short 2707 (ENG)
7-8 1.0 GM Ni Hua 2665 (CHN)

Round 3 Results. The Nakamura-Short game was interesting.

7 GM Luke McShane ENG 0-1 2 GM Vladimir Kramnik RUS
8 GM David Howell ENG 1/2-1/2 1 GM Magnus Carlsen NOR
3 GM Hikaru Nakamura USA 1/2-1/2 4 GM Nigel Short ENG
6 GM Ni Hua CHN 1/2-1/2 5 GM Michael Adams ENG

Round 4 Results Dec 12, 2009 (Saturday) 8am EST 1400 GMT

2 GM Vladimir Kramnik RUS 1/2-1/2 5 GM Michael Adams ENG
4 GM Nigel Short ENG 1/2-1/2 6 GM Ni Hua CHN
1 GM Magnus Carlsen NOR 1/2-1/2 3 GM Hikaru Nakamura USA
7 GM Luke McShane ENG 1/2-1/2 8 GM David Howell ENG

GM Magnus Carlsen VS GM Luke McShane Round 2

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World Cup 2009 Game 1 Final ends in a draw.

2009-12-10T08:09:00.003-06:00

Finalists Boris Gelfand of Israel and Ruslan Ponomariov of Russia fought to a draw in game one of the four game Round 7 Final. I will post the rules of the final round at the end of this post. But here's the game to check out, again Commentary graciously provided by Chessdom.com

GM Ruslan Ponomariov Vs GM Boris Gelfand 1/2-1/2

All the previous classic games between these two players ended with a draw. Ponomariov is one of the most successful knockout system players: he won the World Championship in 2001-2002 and played World Cup final against Aronian in 2005. Commentary by GM Valeriy Aveskulov

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Nxe5 d6 4.Nf3 Nxe4 5.d4 d5 6.Bd3 Nc6 Petrov's defence. There is no big surprise from Gelfand. But what has Ponomariov prepared for the decisive match? Both played this position many times before.

7.O-O Be7 8.c4 Nb4 9.Be2 O-O 10.Nc3 Bf5 18 games for Gelfand with 10...Bf5. It will be difficult for Ponomariov to surprise his opponent - just once he played this position, in 1998!

11.a3 Nxc3 12.bxc3 Nc6 13.Re1 13.cd Qxd5 14. Bf4 Na5 15. Bxc7 etc, Ponomariov-Sulypa, Donetsk, 1998

13... Re8 14.cxd5 Qxd5 15.Bf4 Rac8 16.h3 h6 17.Qc1 Akopian played this move against Kasimdzhanov (Jermuk, 2009). Queen goes to b2, attacking on b7 and supporting Bb5 in some moments. Also rooks are being connected. 17...Bf6 18. Qb2 Na5 19. Be5 Qd8 20. Rad1 and white is better - this is how a mentioned game was continued. Square d2 could be useful for the knight probably (Nd2, Bf3). c1 square is definitely useful for Queen only.

Gelfand knows about Akopian's move. I think he is recollecting his analysis right now.

17... Bf6 18.Qb2 Na5 Knight is going to c4 and sometime opponents prevent it masterfully. Many variation are hidden during the game... we just see the moves that are being played and sometime we are not able (without a deep analysis) to realize why some was played...

In this case Na5 was necessary cause b7 was hanging...So the players still follow the game Akopian-Kasimdzhanov, Jermuk, 2009.

19.Be5 19...Bxe5 20. Nxe5 c5 is possible...decreasing the pressure

19... Bxe5 20.Nxe5 c5 20...c5 21.Qb5 b6 22.Rad1 Bc2! 23. Rc1 (23.Rd2 is bad because of 23...Rxe5) 23...Be4 and Black is fine.

Black is supposed to be ok. All the pieces are developed. No pawn problems. Lines are being opened up.

Probably 21.Bf3 (pushing black queen away from the center) Qb3 22.Qd2 could give White something.

It is strange that Ponomariov started thinking so early. 19...Be5 and 20...c5 were the main line (not considering Kasimdzhanov's Qd8)

21.Bf3 I don't see a reason to put the queen on d8. So, Qb3 or Qd6 - let's wait and see what Gelfand does think about this. (21.Qb5 b6 22.Rad1 Bc2 23.Rc1 Be4) and Black is fine.

21... Qd6 22.Rad1 (22.Bxb7 Rb8 23.Qa2 Rxb7 24.Nxf7 Rxe1 25.Rxe1) and White is better I guess. But Black can play 23...Be6 and after 24.d5 reply with 24...Bxh3.

22...f6 looks attractive now. To push Ne5 back and to take the control over c4 square. But in the same time this is a weakness for the future, white plays 23.Ng4 (knight goes to e3) and Black has some problems.

22...b6 is an option for sure. A possible line is 22...b6 23.Qa2 Be6 24.d5 Bxh3! 25.Nxf7! Kxf7 26.gxh3 Rxe1 27.Rxe1 Re8 28.Rxe8 Kxe8 and Black is ok. In the final position Q+N is not worse than Q+B (especially with a pawn on d5 that restricts White bishop).

22... b6 It seems that White has a choice between the more aggressive Qa2 and more positional Qb5 increasing the pressure.

23.Qa2 (23.Qb5 Bc2 24.Rd2 Bb3) with a normal position.

23... Be6 Now 24.d5 is the only logical.

24.d5 Probably Ponomariov wants to look for an advantage in the line 24...Bxh3 25.Nxf7 Rxe1 26.Rxe1 Kxf7 27.gxh3 Re8 28.Be4!?

After 24...Bf5 25.Nc6 Nxc6 26.dxc6 this pawn can be dangerous (there is no way to take it off)

I guess, a capturing on h3 is the best move.

There is a good chance to bring the knight to d6 (in the end of variation) and to get a comfortable position. We remember that Bf3 is restricted with its own pawn d5.

24... Bxh3 25.Nxf7 Rxe1+ 26.Rxe1 Kxf7 27.gxh3 Re8 28.Be4 and then Qe2-a6 somewhere. Example 28.Be4 Re5 29.Qe2 (with idea Bg6) Kf8 30.Qa6.

28.Rxe8 Kxe8 29.Qe2+ White has some time while black knight is coming back. He can bring the bishop to e6 at some moment.

29... Kd8 30.Qa6 I guess Black can play...30...Qg6 31.Bg2 Qb1 32.Kh2 Qc1 33.Qa7 Qf4 34.Kg1 Qc1 35.Bf1 (the only way to escape perpetual) Qg5 36.Kh2 Qe5 37.Kh1 Qd5 38.Bg2 Qd1 39.Kh2 Qd6 40.Kg1 Qf6 defending both b6 and g7. White can do nothing to get more pressure.

30... Qg6+ Perpetual is coming.

31.Bg2 Qb1+ 32.Kh2 Qf5 33.Qxa7 Qf4+ 34.Kg1 Qc1+ 35.Kh2 Qf4+ 36.Kg1 Qc1+ 37.Kh2 1/2-1/2

Rules for Round 7 Final in the World Cup 2009 Event.

The time control shall be 90 minutes for the first 40 moves followed by 30 minutes for the rest of the game with an addition of 30 seconds per move from move one.

If the scores are level after the regular games, after a new drawing of colours, two tie break games shall be played. The games shall be played using the electronic clock starting with 25 minutes on the clock for each player with an addition of 10 seconds after each move. If the scores are level after the games in paragraph 3. 8. 1, then, after a new drawing of colours, 2 five-minute games shall be played with the addition of 10 seconds after each move.

If the score is still level, the players shall play one decisive sudden death game. The player, who wins the drawing of lots, may choose the colour. White shall receive 6 minutes, Black shall receive 5 minutes, without any addition. In case of a draw the player with the black pieces is declared as winner. (Often referred to in chess parlance as an Armageddon game).

Round 2 of London Chess Classic 2009 ongoing at the moment.

2009-12-09T09:59:00.001-06:00

After Round 1 of the London Chess Classic 2009, which has a different scoring system than regular chess tournament, giving 3 points for a win, 1 point for a draw and 0 for a loss, normal is 1 point for a win, a half point, 0.5 or 1/2 as seen in reports, for a draw and 0 pts for a loss. There were two decisive games yesterday in the 8 player double round robin tournament, winning were GM Magnus Carlsen and GM Luke McShane. Draws were achieved by GM's Hikaru Nakamura, Ni Hua, Michael Adams and David Howell. Former World Champion Vladimir Kramnik and Nigel Short both ended up on the losing end.

For those who are not familiar with the tournament, the competitors are:

Standings after Round 1 with new pt system:

1-2 3 pts GM Magnus Carlsen 2801 (NOR)
1-2 3 pts GM Luke McShane 2615 (ENG)

3-6 1 pts GM Hikaru Nakamura 2715 (USA)
3-6 1 pts GM Michael Adams 2698 (ENG)
3-6 1 pts GM Ni Hua 2665 (CHN)
3-6 1 pts GM David Howell 2597 (ENG)

7-8 0 pts GM Vladimir Kramnik 2772 (RUS)
7-8 0 pts GM Nigel Short 2707 (ENG)

Round 1 Results:

1 GM Carlsen, Magnus NOR 1-0 2 GM Kramnik, Vladimir RUS
7 GM McShane, Luke ENG 1-0 4 GM Short, Nigel ENG
8 GM Howell, David ENG 1/2-1/2 5 GM Adams, Michael ENG
3 GM Nakamura, Hikaru USA 1/2-1/2 6 GM Ni, Hua CHN

Round 2 Pairings/Results:

2 GM Kramnik, Vladimir RUS * 6 GM Ni, Hua CHN
5 GM Adams, Michael ENG * 3 GM Nakamura, Hikaru USA
4 GM Short, Nigel ENG * 8 GM Howell, David ENG
1 GM Carlsen, Magnus NOR * 7 GM McShane, Luke ENG

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GM Ruslan Ponomariov joins GM Boris Gelfand in World Cup 2009 Finals

2009-12-08T08:30:00.001-06:00

GM Ruslan Ponomariov made short work of GM Vladimir Malakhov, (who has beaten TransWarp in 1 game with Deep Rybka 3.0 and drawn a few times as well, holding her back from the 4000 mark), but the former FIDE World Champion was just a bit too much for him, advancing to the finals to play GM Boris Gelfand, the #1 seed at 2758 in the World Cup 2009 Finals on Thursday.

World Cup 2009 Finals Set!

1. Boris Gelfand 2758 (ISR) vs 7. Ruslan Ponomariov 2739 (UKR)

Meanwhile a tournament in London has started with major players like Carlsen, Nakamura, Kramnik...I will do a post on that when I get back from eye doctor.

*note: There was a short time when there was a World Cup like tournament with 64 players I believe and the winner was FIDE World Champion for that year, GM Ruslan Ponomariov won one of these events and was FIDE World Champion.

World Cup 2009 Gelfand into finals, Ponomariov Joins with 4-2 victory

2009-12-07T09:00:00.007-06:00

After the first 2 games of Round 6, Boris Gelfand showed why he's the top seed by defeating young GM Sergey Karjakin 2-0 while GM Ruslan Ponomariov still holds Ukraine's chance to get to the finals by holding Russian GM Vladimir Malakhov to a couple of draws to go into the Rapid and possibly Blitz tiebreaks.

Already in the Finals:

GM Boris Gelfand 2758 (ISR)

Round 6 Tiebreak Rapid Games: Dec 8, 2009

Game 1 Rapid
1.0-1.0 7. Ruslan Ponomariov 2739 (UKR) 0-1 22. Vladimir Malakhov 2706 (RUS)

Game 2 Rapid
2.0-2.0 22. Vladimir Malakhov 2706 (RUS) 0-1 7. Ruslan Ponomariov 2739 (UKR)

Game 3 Rapid
3.0-2.0 7. Ruslan Ponomariov 2739 (UKR) 1-0 22. Vladimir Malakhov 2706 (RUS)

Game 4 Rapid
2.0-4.0 22. Vladimir Malakhov 2706 (RUS) 0-1 7. Ruslan Ponomariov 2739 (UKR)

And GM Ruslan Ponomariov goes on to face GM Boris Gelfand, the #1 seed in the Chess
World Cup 2009! There will be a rest day tomorrow with hostilities resuming on the 10th!

Rest Day after the tiebreaks on Dec 9, 2009 with Finals to start Dec 10, 2009.

* And on a local note, a nice message from GM Bassem Amin! 37. B-Amin (10:28 05-Dec-09 EST): welcome back my friend ,Icc was boring without you :)
(Thanks GM Amin!) I know I was bored!! Nice to be back, even if it's it's usual quiet self (ICC for TransWarp)

Round 6 Semi-Finals Set! Final Four of World Cup 2009

2009-12-05T08:09:00.001-06:00

Number 2 seed Vugar Gashimov 2758 (AZE) was upset by former FIDE One Year World Champion GM Ruslan Ponomariov of Ukraine, the number 7 seed with a rating of 2739, the ratings were fairly close, so it wasn't a mega-upset like some of the others during the tournament and with one seed at 22. Vladimir Malakhov 2706 (RUS). But the number 1 seed from Israel Boris Gelfand is still hanging in there having defeated #9 Dmitry Jakovenko 2736 (RUS).

Here are the pairings for tomorrow's Round 7, after which the two finalists get a day's rest after this long tournament! Stamina a definate to compete with the likes of these guys.

Round 6 Pairings Game 1

0-1 12. Sergey Karjakin 2723 (UKR) 0-1 1. Boris Gelfand 2758 (ISR) Game 1
2-0 1. Boris Gelfand 2758 (ISR) 1-0 12. Sergey Karjakin 2723 (UKR) Game 2

#1 Seed Boris Gelfand 2758 (ISR) Advances to the finals 2-0

Round 6 Pairings Game 1 & 2
0.5-0.5 7. Ruslan Ponomariov 2739 (UKR) 1/2-1/2 22. Vladimir Malakhov 2706 (RUS)
1.0-1.0 22. Vladimir Malakhov 2706 (RUS) 1/2-1/2 7. Ruslan Ponomariov 2739 (UKR)

After the huge lead of those from Russia, two Ukrainians make it to the semifinals, where it's possible they coud meet, taking on an Israeli and a Russian. Not that countries really make a big deal here in the US, there is Country Pride when it comes to Chess in Europe and Asia and they will rabidly cheer for their countrymen! I think if it was possible, there would be cheering like at football matches right down to the face paint! :-D Nothing wrong with this of course in theory, and I'm sure would make many a chessplayer smile thinking about it, but chess has to maintain it's dignity, right down to a dress code at times! Now if I was a world class Grandmaster, it would be very tough to see me trying to find nice suits in my size...I would make many a tailor happy! :D

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