Larry Evans Memorial in Reno

Downtown Reno on Virginia Street.

The Larry Evans Memorial in Reno on Easter weekend--just a week away--has always been one of my favorite events. The trip up into the mountains truly feels like a mini-vacation. Each year, the two Reno tournaments attract more chess players than most of the adult events that the Bay Area has to offer--only the Golden State Open can compare.  Plus there's the opportunity to watch, learn from and compete with strong masters.  Grandmasters Sergey Kudrin and Alexander Ivanov shared top honors last year with FM John Bryant.

After a disappointingly sparse turnout in 2012 (only 149 players), I expect to see a rebound this year.  The long-range forecasts call for pleasant spring weather.  Already 91 players have been registered, including five Grandmasters (Ivanov, Kudrin, Sevillano, Khachiyan and Browne) and three International Masters (Mezentsev, Odondoo and Formanek).  Plus, some of "the usual suspects" have not signed up yet.

• Event: Larry Evans Memorial (formerly Far West Open)
• Dates: March 29-31
• Location: Sands Regency Hotel in Reno, NV
• Format: 6 rounds in 5 sections: Open, A, B, C, U1400
• Time control: 40/2, G/1 (maximum length game can go 6 hours)
• Entry fee: $133-137 + $22 late fee
• Prize fund: $21,000 based on 250 entries (2/3 guaranteed)
• See this website for complete details.
• Check advance entries by section
• Rating report from 2012.

Look for this sign from I-80.

This tournament last year was my first since surgery in 2010.  I had fun despite being able to only play three rounds.  I hope to play more this year, if health permits.  After facing three opponents age 10 last year, I look forward to being paired with someone, anyone, a wee bit older.  Say hello to me if you read this blog. 

A final note to chess parents: I know conventional wisdom says that casinos and kids do not mix well, but this tournament seems to be an exception. Dozens of kids rated from 800 to 2400 play each year. I recommend to request the Regency or Dynasty tower while reserving your hotel room so that the kids can take the elevator directly to the playing hall without walking through the casino.  This weekend is also the final opportunity to practice before SuperNationals in Nashville, TN.

2011 FIDE World Cup Begins

Bay Area star GM Sam Shankland (right) stunned super-GM Peter Leko (left) in round 1!

The FIDE World Cup has evolved into the largest and one of the most prestigious chess tournaments. An incredible 128 players arrived in the remote Russian oil town of Khanty-Mansiysk for a Wimbledon style knockout championship. Each mini-match consists of two classical games, one per day. If still tied, the match goes to a third day of tiebreaks, first rapid, then blitz and, if necessary, an Armageddon finale. Only one competitor can advance, meaning the competition is both grueling and nerve-wracking. The field shrinks in half after every round; round 2 has 64 players, round 3 has 32 and so forth.

The participants play for a huge prize fund of $1.6 million and three spots in the next World Championship cycle. Most players qualified either by rating (top 20) or by placing near the top of a country or continental championship (e.g. US Championship). The winner takes home $96,000; each of the 64 losers in round 1 gets $4,800. The two finalists plus the winner of the third place match advance into an 8-player Candidates Tournament (2013) to determine the challenger for a World Championship match (2014).

Considering these stakes, it seems a little surprising that only half of the top 10 rated players chose to participate. Of course, Viswanathan Anand and Boris Gelfand are already busy preparing for a title match in May 2012. Then Magnus Carlsen, Levon Aronian and Vladimir Kramnik probably expect to be invited to the Candidates Tournament by rating (top 3). However, the absence of Veselin Topalov and Hikaru Nakamura is more difficult to understand.

Six Americans made the lengthy trip to the middle of nowhere, or more precisely, 500 miles due north of Kazakhstan. Gata Kamsky earned his spot by rating; he actually won the 2007 World Cup. The other five (Alexander Onischuk, Yury Shulman, Ray Robson, Sam Shankland and Alexander Ivanov) all qualified at the 2011 US Championship in St. Louis.

Official website: http://chess.ugrasport.com/ (very good site!)

• List of Players
• Pairings Bracket
• Live Games - Unfortunately begin at 2am Pacific Time. :-(
• Complete Results
• Fpawn Twitter - Or see right sidebar of this blog.
• Daily Photo Albums
  

Games also available on ICC. Type "/finger WorldCup11" with library links at bottom.

American Results: MAJOR UPSET! Shankland eliminated Leko in round 1!!  Click here to view his win.  Unfortunately, only Kamsky managed to get past round 2.  Kamsky was knocked out by Svidler, who subsequently won the entire tournament!

• #8 Kamsky - eliminated by #9 Peter Svidler (Russian champ) 0.0-2.0 in round 4
• #51 Onischuk - eliminated by #14 David Navara in round 2
• #83 Shulman - eliminated by #43 Vladimiir Potkin in round 1
• #103 Robson - eliminated by #26 Etienne Bacrot in round 1
• #111 Shankland - eliminated by #82 Abhijeet Gupta in round 2
• #112 Ivanov - eliminated by #81 Igor Lysyi in round 2

Schedule:40/90, G/30 + 30 sec/move added from move 1

• Opening ceremony, August 27
• Round 1, August 28, 128 players
• Round 2, August 31, 64 players
• Round 3, September 3, 32 players
• Round 4, September 6, 16 players
• Quarterfinal, September 9, 8 players
• Semifinal, September 12, 4 players
• Rest Day, September 15
• Final + 3rd place, September 16 (two 4 game matches)
• Closing ceremony, September 20