US Chess Scoop Video from Las Vegas with GM Gata Kamsky
Las Vegas Chess Round 5: So, Ramirez, Hoyos in Lead
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2013
Hi everyone,
There are three Grandmasters in joint lead at the Las Vegas Chess International 2013 after five rounds: Filipino Grandmaster (GM) Wesley So defeated Georgian GM Tamaz Gelasvili to share the lead after five rounds in the 2013 Las Vegas International Chess Festival at the Riviera Casino & Hotel in Las Vegas. So hiked his total to 4.5 points, the same output of GM Alejandro Ramirez of Costa Rica, and GM Manuel Leon Hoyos of Mexico.Ramirez defeated GM Ruben Felgaer of Argentina, while Hoyos subdued defending champion GM Aleksandr Lenderman of the United States. Another Filipino entry, GM Enrico Sevillano, defeated American GM Conrad Holt to earn 4.0 points.
Sevillano is now in a six-way tie for fourth place along with Gelashvili and GMs Ray Robson of the US, Jaan Ehlvest of Estonia, Varuzhan Akobian of Armenia and Victor Mikhalevski of Israel. (Marlon Bernardino)
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US Chess Championship 2013: Gata Kamsky Wins Playoff vs Alejandro Ramirez to Secure 4th Title
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2013Hi everyone,
Maurice Ashley with Gata Kamsky.
SAINT LOUIS (May 13, 2013)--The 2013 U.S. Championship went extra innings today in a gripping tiebreak final. After splitting a pair of rapid games, GM Gata Kamsky won $30,000 and his fourth title in an Armageddon game against GM Alejandro Ramirez, who was seeking his first title.
In all three hours of competition, and for more than 150 moves, Kamsky was the aggressor. Despite the constant pressure, he could not break through the stalwart and creative endgame defense of Ramirez until the waning moments. “It feels a bit awkward,” Kamsky said. “I consider us equals. Someone just got luckier than the other.”
The two went into a playoff by virtue of being tied after nine rounds of classical chess. Both players had 6.5/9; they drew their face-to-face battle in round eight. Kamksy was undefeated with four wins and five draws, while Ramirez had a loss but also one more win, thus necessitating today’s action.
Games one and two were played at a time control of 25 minutes per player with a five second increment per move. Ramirez seemed determined not to get behind on the clock, but an early misstep allowed Kamsky to embed a knight on d5. Shortly after, black’s pawns were crippled, but Ramirez found all the necessary countermeasures to prevent any white pawn from reaching paydirt. Of the many players who were spectating, GM Robert Hess said Kamsky did not need to be so quick to exchange his best piece.
After a short break, they switched colors and resumed the rapid play. This time Kamsky broke through on the queenside, and probed Ramirez’s position with his rook. Sensing that the black bishop would soon enter the fray, Ramirez offered a pawn with the clever 35. g4, intending to occupy e4 with his knight. Kamsky offered a pawn in turn with 36…e4, preventing the knight from landing there. Naturally, Ramirez had one last rejoinder, 38. e5, clearing the square once and for all.
Also Read:
US Chess Championship 2013: GoddessChess Fighting Chess Award goes to Anna Zatonskih
US Chess Championships 2013: Krush Crowned; Kamsky, Ramirez Await Playoff
The minor pieces traded and another rook-and-pawn ending was reached, with Kamsky having all the chances. One again Ramirez was up to the task, using a stalemate tactic to extend the tiebreak. 64. Rg2+ was the only move to draw. The rare ending to a grandmaster game caused the supremely focused Kamsky to look at the crowd and laugh. Later, he said he had almost the same ending at the World Cup in 2011 against GM Ian Nepomniachtchi, but was able to win that game.
The rules dictated that in case of a 1-1 tie, the playoff would end in an Armageddon match, where players bid for time and color. In sealed envelopes, Ramirez wrote the time 19:45, while Kamsky’s envelope read 20 minutes even. Ramirez thus got 19:45 to Kamsky’s 45 minutes, while Ramirez had black and draw odds.
“I was starting to get really nervous,” Kamsky said. “It wasn’t clear until the last move.”
Ramirez said the experience of playing worse positions was “torture”, then he was reminded that he still pockets $20,000. “I’ve never won that much in chess, ever,” he said.
After the tense playoff, Kamsky seemed more relieved than elated. He flew in from a tournament in Switzerland just days before the championship, and he has less than one week until he competes against the world’s best in Greece. “I just want to get some sleep,” he said. (The detailed report by FM Mike Klein is at the official website.)
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US Chess Championships 2013: Krush Crowned; Kamsky, Ramirez Await Playoff
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2013
Hi everyone,
SAINT LOUIS (May 12, 2013) -- After four unsuccessful attempts, IM Irina Krush finally defended her U.S. Women’s Championship title. Her draw with WGM Camilla Baginskaite made her score 8/9 and put the tournament out of reach for IM Anna Zatonskih, who won but finished a half-point behind Krush. The U.S. Championship offered no such clarity, as GM Gata Kamsky nursed a half-point margin but could not defeat GM Ray Robson. Three players could have won to catch Kamsky, but only GM Alejandro Ramirez got a full point. The two will play on Monday at noon in a two-game rapid playoff.
“This has been my smoothest victory,” Krush said of her five championships, before pausing to recall them all. “Well, actually when I won my first with 8½ out of nine, that also went well.” That first title was in 1998, the only time she competed without Zatonskih in the field. The two have mostly traded titles the last few years. “We have to break this pattern,” Krush joked.
In the game, Krush got exactly the position she wanted against Baginskaite. There were no intricate tactics and no strategic imbalances. Krush won a pawn in a riskless knight-and-pawn endgame, so she decided to play for the win. “I’m supposed to win this endgame, but all of the sudden, I allowed all this counterplay. I decided to offer the draw before things got out of hand.” The win nets her $18,000, which she said she will use for a down payment on an apartment in Brooklyn. “I also like to take exotic vacations. Maybe Belize.”
Krush could not explain why she did so well. “Sometimes you just wonder why it all comes together. This is what I came to do, and I got the job done. I think I’m getting happier by the minute.” She said that her round three win as black against Zatonskih essentially set the table for the rest of the event. “That basically decided the result.” She also won as black in the penultimate round against the third seed and third-place finisher, WGM Tatev Abrahamyan.
Kamsky had a chance to clinch clear first place, and it looked for a time like a win as black would be possible. Robson, fighting for a top six finish for a 2013 World Cup qualification, mixed it up early by jettisoning some pawns to open lines.
“He surprised me with b4, sacrificing two pawns for an attack,” Kamsky said. “I thought I should be winning, but somehow he had all these tactical resources.” Later, Robson kept the fire burning by sacrificing an additional exchange to keep the initiative.
Robson said he would have played solidly if possible, but he took what the position gave him. “There’s no way you can force a win against Gata,” Robson said. “[Kamsky] can punish you if you go for a win too much. Probably I just overestimated my position.”
The draw might still have been good enough for clear first, were it not for the continued heroics of the much lower ranked GM Alejandro Ramirez. He first offered his a-pawn to tie down black’s bishop and rook, and then switched to probe the other side of the chessboard. Eventually weaknesses were created, and a passed e-pawn sealed the deal. “His queen is so badly placed on b6 that it is difficult to hold the kingside together,” Ramirez explained. “I didn’t see a defense for him.”
His game finished before Kamsky, so the only way he could be taken out of contention would have been for Robson to blunder. “I haven’t cheered for Ray this much ever,” Ramirez said about the waning moments of the top board.
“I really didn’t ever expect to be in this position,” Ramirez said of his impending playoff tomorrow. “It’s like a dream. Wow! It’s actually happening.” The two will meet Monday at noon in a pair of 25-minute rapid games, followed by an Armageddon bidding match if the score is tied 1-1.
“Tomorrow’s going to be very stressful. I’ve never played a rapid playoff,” Ramirez said. Kamsky has played several tiebreaks in the World Cup, and has been successful twice in Saint Louis at previous U.S. Championships.
Read more »Labels: alejandro ramirez, gata kamsky, irina krush, us chess championships 2013
US Chess Championships 2013: Pivotal Matchups Loom in Round 8
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2013
Hi everyone,
GM Alejandro Ramirez.
SAINT LOUIS (May 10, 2013) -- Despite missing a startling tactic, a shaken GM Gata Kamsky collected himself to hold a draw against the much lower-rated GM Alejandro Ramirez in round seven of the 2013 U.S. Championship. The oversight cost him any chance to expand his central majority to fight for the win, but since GM Alex Onischuk could also only draw, Kamsky retained his half-point lead over both Ramirez and Onischuk.
In the 2013 U.S. Women’s Championship, leader IM Irina Krush also found herself in difficulties, at least that was her perception of the game. In mutual time pressure with WIM Viktorija Ni, Krush pulled out her sixth win in seven games to protect her lead.
The leaders of both events will have their biggest matches of the event in the next round. Kamsky will take black against second-seeded GM Timur Gareev, who can attack with the best of them (his blistering formation today ended GM Ray Robson’s three-game winning streak in round seven). Krush will also take black. She gets WGM Tatev Abrahamyan, and a win would clinch the tournament with one round to go. You can read a detailed report by FM Mike Klein at the official website of the tournament.
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Samford Chess Fellowship goes to GMs Timur Gareev, Alejandro Ramirez
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2012
Hi everyone,
The latest chess news via the US Chess Federation is that the Frank P. Samford Jr. Chess Fellowship has been awarded to Grandmasters Timur Gareev of Brownsville, Texas, and Alejandro Ramirez of Garland, Texas, as its 2012 Fellows.
IM John Donaldson writes, the Samford is the richest and most important chess fellowship in the United States. It identifies and assists the best young American chess masters by providing top-level coaching, strong competition and access to study materials. The Fellowship also supplies a monthly stipend for living expenses so that the winners may devote themselves to chess without having financial worries. The total value of the Fellowship has been increased several times over the years and is now $42,000 annually, which will be divided equally between the two winners. The prize is awarded for one year and can be renewed for a second year. The winners’ term begins July 1st, 2012.
All in all, it gives these brilliant young American Grandmasters the support and resources necessary to enhance their skills and reach their full potential.
Currently rated 2654 by FIDE, Timur Gareev was awarded the GM title at the age of 16. He won the championship of his native Uzbekistan in 2007 and last year took first place in both the Chicago Open and the 11th Metropolitan FIDE Invitational tournament in Los Angeles. Timur is currently a student at the University of Texas at Brownsville which he attends on a chess scholarship.
A native of Costa Rica, Alejandro Ramirez earned the title of Grandmaster at the age of 14, being the first (and still the only) player from Central America to ever hold that title. A graduate of the University of Texas at Dallas with a Master’s Degree in Arts & Technology / Design and Production of Videogames, Alejandro won the 2008 Morelia Open and finished at the top of the 2010 US Open.
The winners were chosen by the Samford Fellowship Committee, consisting of Frank P. Samford III (son of Samford Fellowship founder Frank P. Samford, Jr.), former U.S. Chess Champion Grandmaster Arthur Bisguier and International Master John Donaldson. The winner's potential was determined based on his chess talent, work ethic, dedication and accomplishments. The Fellowship is administered by the U.S. Chess Trust with particularly valuable services provided by Barbara DeMaro.
The Samford Chess Fellowship was created by the late Frank P. Samford, Jr. of Birmingham Alabama. Mr. Samford was a distinguished attorney and CEO of Liberty National Life Insurance Company (now Torchmark). He was active in civic, business, political, educational and cultural affairs. Mr. Samford was also an enthusiastic competitor in chess tournaments. After providing financial support for several chess projects he decided to do something significant for American chess. The result was the Samford Fellowship.
Since its inception the Fellowship has proven very successful. Many Samford Fellows have become strong Grandmasters, members of the United States Olympiad team and US Champions. America’s two top players, Gata Kamsky and Hikaru Nakamura, are not only rated in the top 15 in the world but are former Samford Fellows.
Generous contributions from the late Mrs. Virginia Samford and the Torchmark Corporation support the Fellowship. The Samford Fellowship is a fitting memorial to an extraordinary man. The dedication, creativity and achievement that marked Mr. Frank P. Samford, Jr.'s life are examples for all chessplayers to admire and emulate.
Previous Samford Winners:1987 Joel Benjamin
1988 Maxim Dlugy
1989 Patrick Wolff
1990 Alex Fishbein
1991 Ilya Gurevich
1992 Alex Sherzer
1993 Ben Finegold
1994 Gata Kamsky
1995 Josh Waitzkin
1996 Tal Shaked
1997 Boris Kreiman
1998 Dean Ippolito
1999 Greg Shahade
2000 Michael Mulyar
2001 Eugene Perelshteyn
2002 Varuzhan Akobian
2003 Dmitry Schneider
2004 Rusudan Goletiani
2005 Hikaru Nakamura
2006 David Pruess
2007 Josh Friedel
2008 Irina Krush
2008 Vinay Bhat
2009 Ray Robson
2010 Robert Hess
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Labels: alejandro ramirez, Samford jr chess fellowship, timur gareev
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