USCF Election and Endorsements

(From left to right: FM Bill Goichberg, WIM Ruth Haring and Jim Berry.)

Update on June 3. I included my most relevant USCF forum posts in the comments section at the bottom of this item. They offer additional insight into the entire legal mess.

The US Chess Federation faces a severe leadership crisis during which two elected members of the Executive Board have neglected their responsibilities to the Federation and, instead, filed a lawsuit against the USCF, other Board members and several third parties. In my opinion, the $25 million (later reduced to $10M) lawsuit by GM Susan Polgar is frivolous and without merit, especially as it pertains to the Federation.

To the contrary, I believe that Polgar and her husband FM Paul Truong engaged in a pattern of selfishness and deception dating back to the previous election two years ago. They hid the nature of their relationship from the voters and later Truong declined to cooperate with an investigation of allegedly slanderous internet posts. I deeply regret endorsing Polgar in 2007 and I am further disappointed that the electorate made the mistake of also electing her husband.

The lawsuits must end for the USCF to move forward and promote chess in a positive manner. Unfortunately, Polgar and Truong remain on the Board for another two years. If two candidates loyal to them get elected, then they have the potential to destroy the USCF as we know it. That makes the election so highly important.

All USCF adult members (age 16 and older) will receive a ballot in the June issue of Chess Life magazine, or through a separate mailing if they don't receive the periodical. Please vote! One contributing cause to this mess is that less than 15% of eligible voters do, in fact, vote, increasing the odds of a fringe candidate being elected (e.g. Sam Sloan in 2006).

Here are my endorsements for the 2009 USCF Executive Board election. You may vote for up to 4 candidates.

• Bill Goichberg. A FIDE master and a veteran of chess politics, Goichberg owns the Continental Chess Association and organizes many of the largest tournaments around the country, including the World Open, Chicago Open and North American Open (plus lesser events such as Concord and Agoura Hills). He is the ultimate insider, but has the knowledge and leadership to guide the Federation in this time of need. While owning the CCA does present a conflict of interest on the Board, he has demonstrated the ability to manage both roles well over the years. Goichberg currently serves as USCF President, but term limits would prevent him from continuing in that role if reelected.
• Ruth Haring. Living in Chico, Haring is the local candidate in this election. She holds the international title of WIM and recently returned to the chess community after a layoff of over 20 years. During this time off, she managed large projects for well-known corporations such as IBM, Lockheed and eBay, gaining skills that she seeks to apply to the USCF crisis. Her commitment to chess is also unquestioned; she played in the US women's championship many times in the 1970s and represented the USA at five Olympiads. Haring's husband is GM Peter Biyiasas and one son, Theodore Biyiasas, is an active 1600 level player.
  
• Jim Berry. Hailing from Oklahoma, Berry came to national prominence when he and his brother Frank personally organized and financed the US Championship in 2007 and 2008. He is an easygoing man who loves chess, playing in about 10 tournaments a year. As the second incumbent in the race (Goichberg is the other), Berry has contributed his lifelong expertise in business and finance to the USCF.

I only endorsed three candidates. Readers may wish to vote for a fourth, choosing between Mike Atkins, Mike Nietman and Mikhail Korenman. However, I have modest reservations about each of these individuals and cannot give them my stamp of approval.

I strongly oppose the other candidates in the election: IM Blas Lugo, Eric Hecht, Brian Mottershead, Brian Lafferty (he withdrew recently) and Sam Sloan. I do not believe any have the skills or temperment needed to promote chess and get us out of the legal mess.

US Champion Yury Shulman

With a short draw in the last round, Grandmaster Yury Shulman of Chicago won the 2008 Frank K. Berry US Championship in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He finished with an undefeated score of 7.0 out of 9, half a point ahead of top rated GM Alexander Onischuk. In an interview with Chess Life Online, Shulman pointed out his round 7 win with black against GM Julio Becerra (Winawer French) as the most critical game of the tournament. However, it was the victory in round 5 with black against GM Gregory Kaidanov (Alapin Sicilian) that propelled the eventual champion into the lead. Congratulations to GM Yury Shulman for winning his first national championship!

Yury Shulman and I have known each other for a while, dating back to the 1st President's Cup (Intercollegiate Chess Final Four) in Dallas, Texas in April, 2001. I played board 5 for Stanford University while he manned the top board for the University of Texas at Dallas. We were seated together at the social mixer on the night before round 1 and have been cordial ever since. A few years later, Shulman won the 2006 US Open in Oak Brook, IL while I finished tied for 2nd place. Thanks to this tournament, we both qualified for the 2007 US Championship, where Shulman finished near the top while I languished at the bottom.

Final Standings of 2008 US Championship

• 7.0 Yury Shulman
• 6.5 Alexander Onischuk
• 6.0 Sergey Kudrin
• 5.5 Josh Friedel, Eugene Perelshteyn and Varuzhan Akobian
• 5.0 Benjamin Finegold, Alexander Ivanov, Julio Becerra and Boris Gulko
• 4.5 John Fedorowicz, Dmitry Gurevich, Gregory Kaidanov and Alexander Shabalov
• 4.0 Daniel Ludwig, David Pruess, Jesse Kraai and Alex Yermolinsky
• 3.5 Larry Kaufman, David Vigorito, Michael Langer and Dean Ippolito
• 2.5 Sam Shankland
• 1.5 Sergey Galant

The US Women's Championship came down to the wire, as described in detail at Chess Life Online. IM Irina Krush was leading by 0.5 heading into the last round, but needed a miracle just to save a draw against WGM Katerine Rohonyan (2318). IM Anna Zatonskih had already won her final game and was waiting for a playoff to determine the title of US Champion. Both ladies finished with an impressive score of 7.5. Unfortunately, the quality of play in the tiebreak games was low considering the amount of effort both ladies expended getting to this point. After a win and a loss at G/15 and another win and a loss at G/5, Zatonskih won on time in the final Armaggedon game. Congratulations to IM Anna Zatonskih (see photo at right) for winning her second national title!

Final Standings of 2008 US Championship

• 7.5 Anna Zatonskih and Irina Krush
• 6.0 Tatev Abrahamyan and Katerine Rohonyan
• 5.5 Batchimeg Tuvshintugs
• 4.5 Tsagaan Battsetseg
• 3.5 Iryna Zenyuk
• 2.0 Esther Epstein and Chouchanik Airapetian
• 0.5 Courtney Jamison

Five players with strong ties to Northern California travelled to Oklahoma for this premiere tournament. Two put together strong results while the other three must be unhappy. Mad props to GM-elect Josh Friedel for earning his third and final Grandmaster norm! His most exciting game was in a wild round 4 victory against veteran GM Boris Gulko. Friedel now needs only 10 more FIDE rating points to complete the requirements for the GM title. In fact, his next opportunity to score points comes this weekend, at the Chicago Open. Batchimeg Tuvshintugs also put together a strong performance of "plus 2" in the Women's Championship, even winning in round 7 against the eventual champion Zatonskih.

Unfortunately, GM Alex Yermolinsky, IM David Pruess and NM Sam Shankland didn't perform so well. Both the "Yermonator" and David apparently ran out of gas in rounds 7 and 8, each losing consecutive games. Sadly, Sam's will to win was crushed by a long and tragic loss to IM Benjamin Finegold in round 5. Sam: I know that you are disappointed because you did poorly, but down the road you should look back at this trip as a learning experience that propels you to even greater successes. I speak from experience as a fellow competitor who also struggled in the very same event last year.

To close, I would like to thank organizer Frank K. Berry for putting his money where his mouth is by sponsoring the US Championship for the second straight year. Mr. Berry has now donated over $150,000 to support the top chess players in America. For this, he deserves a big round of applause! Thank you! Signed, chess player and chess fan.

Yermolinsky Stuns Shabalov in Round 1 of US Championship

(Final position of today's game Yermolinsky-Shabalov. White to move and win.)

What do GM Alexander Shabalov and IM Ricardo DeGuzman have in common? They both overlooked the same elementary knight tactic to lose material. DeGuzman blundered at the People's Replacement tournament (click here for the game) to end an undefeated streak of 27 games against me. Shabalov's gaffe, however, was far more painful as it came during round 1 of the US Championship, a tournament which he impressively won last year. The solution to the position above appears at the end of this column.

The 2008 Frank K. Berry US Championship began today in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Sponsored once again by the financial generosity of Mr. Berry, the tournament drew 24 men and 10 women to the geographic center of the nation for nine days of intense chess. The players will compete for a first place award of $8,000 (and $5,000 for women) out of a total prize fund of $80,000. The rounds begin daily at 12:30 Pacific time and may last up to six hours under the time control of 40 moves in 100 minutes followed by the rest of the game in 30 minutes, plus an increment of 30 seconds starting on move 1. At the end of the tournament next Wednesday, May 21, the new US Champion shall be crowned.

Five masters with ties to Northern California are participating: GM Alex Yermolinsky, IM Josh Friedel, IM David Pruess, NM Sam "Shanky" Shankland and WIM Batchimeg "Chimi" Tuvshintugs. The Yermonator, who moved to South Dakota last fall after many years at the Mechanics' Institute, stunned the defending champion Shabalov in 18 moves in the above featured game. Batchimeg outplayed Esther Epstein (2194) with the black pieces. David did well to draw with the very strong Cuban-American Grandmaster Julio Becerra. Unfortunately, Josh and Sam both lost to veteran Grandmasters and, as punishment, are paired against each other in round 2. Check out the MonRoi website for all of the games (registration is free).

Each day, I will pick one Game of the Day for the readers of this blog to enjoy, with a bias towards the games involving CalChess players. While I was tempted by the Yermolinsky miniature, it was decided by just one blunder. Instead, I chose the wild and imperfect tactical slugfest Tuvshintugs-Epstein in the Ponziani opening (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.c3). The position after move 7.Ke2 looks more like a game between scholastic players than the country's top women. I dedicate my choice to chess teacher extraordinaire Richard Shorman (see photo) and the hundreds of players attending this weekend's CalChess Scholastics who have been touched by his many lessons.

Some of my readers have inquired which players that I selected for the US Championship fantasy contest. I picked a mixture of veteran players and younger up-and-coming stars: GM Yury Shulman, GM Julio Becerra, IM Josh Friedel, IM David Pruess, IM Irina Krush, FM Daniel Ludwig and NM Sam Shankland. Despite a slow start of 3.0/7 in round 1, I have high expectations for my lineup.

Solution to the position: The black queen and knight on e7 are both undefended, so white can play the double attack 19.Nxd5. If Qxd2 then 20.Nxe7+ Kf7 21.Rxd2 Kxe7 22.Bc5+ wins an exchange plus a pawn. Objectively best is the response Nc6 when white is simply two pawns up after 20.Qxa5 Nxa5 21.Nxf6+ gxf6 22.Bxa7.

Games from US Championship Qualifier

Extra! Extra!

I just received a PGN file with 172 games from the Qualifier in Tulsa, Oklahoma last weekend. This is quite a treat because of the high number of competitive pairings. Thanks once again to organizer Frank Berry (photo at left) and his awesome staff!

Final Impressions of US Championship Qualifier

I am back home in California after spending five days in Tulsa for the strongest and biggest open chess tournament ever in Oklahoma. The field of the US Championship Qualifier included over 20 GMs and IMs among 60 masters and 104 players total. For a thorough and informative report, check out the column written by Tom Braunlich for Chess Life Online. Here are the final standings at the top, with the seven qualifiers in bold, plus all 10 Northern California players.

• 1st - 5th at 5.5 GM Jesse Kraai, GM Julio Becerra, GM Alex Yermolinsky, IM Dean Ippolito and GM John Fedorowicz
• 6th - 14th at 5.0 GM Alex Ivanov, GM Sergey Kudrin, FM Daniel Ludwig, GM Eugene Perelshteyn, NM Sam Shankland (see photo at left), IM David Pruess, IM Joe Bradford, IM Michael Brooks and FM Todd Andrews
• 4.5 IM Vinay Bhat (16th), NM Michael Aigner (26th), FM Daniel Naroditsky (27th)
• 4.0 IM Walter Shipman (36th)
• 3.5 IM Dmitry Zilberstein (51st)
• 3.0 IM Josh Friedel (61st, withdrew after six rounds)
• 2.5 Dana Mackenzie (77th), Alan Kobernat (84th)

NM Sam Shankland and FM Danya Naroditsky represented CalChess quite well. The "Shankinator" swindled his chess teacher IM Friedel in round 5 and then drew GM Ivanov and GM Kudrin back-to-back on the final day. Danya followed up a spectacular result in Reno by scoring two draws on Sunday with IM Brooks and IM Lugo. The other qualifier from the Bay Area, IM David Pruess (photo from Chessville at right) had a respectable performance but didn't defeat any notable opponents.

My own tournament went quite well, after a major hiccup in the first round against an 1877 rated high school player from Oklahoma. From the second round onwards, I faced three 2400s and three experts, scoring 3-0 against the experts and scratching out two draws against the senior masters. Here are my results from each round. You may view my games using the links to the online viewer from Chess Publisher or download the PGN file.

1. Drew with Devin Hughes (1877) as black in the English opening after I fell into an opening trap, lost the exchange, but managed to escape into a drawn endgame.
2. Defeated WIM Alexey Root (2006) as white in an endgame out of the French defense where I had a small advantage throughout.
3. Drew with IM Dmitry Zilberstein (2457) as black after equalizing easily in the Rossolimo variation of the Sicilian.
4. Defeated Glenn Bady (2186) as white in the 2... e6 line of the closed Sicilian by converting an opening advantage into an endgame up two pawns.
5. Lost to IM Salvijus Bercys (2474) as black in the mainline Leningrad Dutch when I unsoundly opened up the locked center with 12... e5.
6. Drew with IM-elect Ray Robson (2426) as white in the 7.f4 line of the closed Sicilian after winning a pawn in the opening but exercising poor endgame technique.
7. Defeated Courtney Jamison (2073) as black in the Alapin Sicilian by exploiting weaknesses in my opponent's pawn structure.

The most memorable day in this tournament for me was the last one. At least I woke up early, unlike Saturday when I overslept and arrived late for the morning round. My opponent on Sunday morning was the superstar junior Ray Robson, who at merely 13 years of age has completed all of the requirements for the International Master title. Several astute readers pointed out that Robson is still officially a FM until FIDE approves his title application, so technically speaking he is not yet IM Robson but rather IM-elect.

Regardless of his title, I expected a fierce battle from the America's top rated player age 16 and under. The closed Sicilian opening went very well for me, perhaps an indication of a weakness in my opponent's feared opening repertoire. By move 12, I felt that I had a tangible advantage and then, on move 17, I won the d5 pawn. I managed to avoid trading into a drawn endgame with the tactical shot 22.d4, which seeks to destroy the pawn shield in front of the black king. Robson defended resourcefully down a pawn with the major pieces on the board, but nonetheless I forced a winning rook endgame by move 50. Unfortunately, I failed to win, in part due to the accurate defense by my young opponent. My mistakes included 33.b4 (a5 was more aggressive), 51.Rc4 (Ke3 was correct) and 55.Re5 (better was f5). I will fully annotate this game for this blog in the near future.

This result left me with only 3.5 out of 6 heading into the final round. I was officially out of the hunt for a qualifying spot, but still hoped to finish the tournament on a high note and gain valuable rating points. As it turned out, my teenage opponent, Courtney Jamison from Texas, was in the running for the Women's qualifying spot, thereby greatly raising the stakes for my game. She essayed the same line of the Alapin Sicilian that Southern California IM Enrico Sevillano plays. I didn't play too well, but except for one brief moment, I was never in any danger either. In the end, Jamison created too many pawn weaknesses and I picked off one, then another and pretty soon thereafter she allowed checkmate.

I finished with 4.5 points for a solid 2359 USCF / 2399 FIDE performance rating. Most importantly, I gained 16 FIDE rating points, reversing some of my losses over the past year. I gained confidence in my play against stronger opponents and, if Ray Robson ever becomes a world class player, then I can say that I had him on the ropes in Oklahoma.

To close my summary, I would like to point out that the biggest story of the weekend was the success of young players, both from Northern California and around the country. In my tournament preview on Thursday, I had predicted that the 90+30 time control would benefit the kids, and I was right on the mark. Two teenagers, FM Daniel Ludwig from Florida and our own NM Sam Shankland, qualified for the US Championship. Two more, Robson and World U12 Champion FM Daniel Naroditsky, finished a half point behind at 4.5. Another talented kid, 11 year old FM Darwin Yang, ended up at 4.0 points. There is no doubt that these young players will compete in many future US Championships.

Many thanks to US Championship organizer Frank Berry for donating his own money to support the top level of chess in America! Frank is both a successful businessperson and a true fan of the royal game. Thanks also to his brother Jim Berry and Oklahoma expert Tom Braunlich for making the players comfortable and ensuring a well run tournament.

Round 5 Standings and Round 6 Pairings

(US Championship organizer and sponsor Frank Berry of Stillwater, Oklahoma. Photo by MonRoi from last year's tournament.)

After five rounds, the tournament standings have settled down. The Grandmasters find themselves at their familiar location at the top of the pairings, followed by various lesser maestros. In fact, all but two of the 24 players with 3.5 or more have the GM, IM or FM title; the last two are rapidly improving NMs who will become FMs themselves soon.

The only guy at 4.5 is none other than GM Alex Yermolinsky, formerly the GM-in-Residence at the Mechanics' Institute in San Francisco, but now the highest rated resident of South Dakota. The group of nine with 4.0 includes Northern California players IM Vinay Bhat and NM Sam Shankland, who swindled IM Josh Friedel this evening. Two more locals have 3.5: IM David Pruess and FM Danya Naroditsky. I am stuck tied for 25th place at 3.0 points.

Here are the tentative pairings for round 6.

• GM Yermolinsky (4.5) vs GM Kraai (4.0)
• NM Shankland (4.0) vs GM Ivanov (4.0)
• GM Kudrin (4.0) vs IM Bercys (4.0)
• GM Fedorowicz (4.0) vs IM Bhat (4.0)
• FM Bick (4.0) vs IM Ippolito (4.0)
• GM Becerra (3.5) vs IM Bonin (3.5)
• GM Perelshteyn (3.5) vs NM Schoonmaker (3.5)
• FM Ludwig (3.5) vs IM Finegold (3.5)
• FM Kleiman (3.5) vs GM Goldin (3.5)
• IM Pruess (3.5) vs IM Burnett (3.5)
• IM Bradford (3.5) vs FM Beelby (3.5)
• FM Naroditsky (3.5) vs IM Brooks (3.5)
• IM Shipman (3.0) vs IM Friedel (3.0)
• NM Aigner (3.0) vs IM Robson (3.0)

The final two rounds are at 9:00am and 2:00pm Central time. You can watch the top boards live on ICC and on MonRoi website.

Toto, We're Not in California Anymore

After a five hour flight from Sacramento via Phoenix, I arrived in Tulsa, Oklahoma for the US Championship Qualifier Open. Actually, I have been in town for 24 hours already to rest for the big weekend, but I spent the first night near the airport before checking into the tournament venue today. The event will be held at the Best Western Trade Winds Central (see photo above) on the southern side of Tulsa. My first impression of the hotel was quite positive and my room is quite comfortable. In fact, I have both a microwave and a refrigerator--and I've stocked up on food for between rounds or at night.

The chess tournament begins on Friday at noon CDT. Unfortunately, there will not be any internet coverage as far as I am aware. The time control is G/90 with a 30 seconds per move increment. In effect, a 60 move game may last up to four hours. Two rounds are scheduled for Friday, three (!) on Saturday and the last two on Sunday. Some players will request a bye for round 5 on Saturday evening, but I have not yet decided.

Seven players will qualify for the final field of 24 in the 2008 Frank K. Berry US Championship, which has once again been sponsored by the generosity of <drum roll please> Frank Berry. Three more players chosen by the organizing committee will receive a wild card invitation. Considering that the field of about 100 players will comprise of at least 8 Grandmasters and 13 International Masters, the odds of qualifying are quite slim unless you're rated at least 2400. I predict a score of 5.0/7 will earn a qualification spot, with possibly one or two players getting in with 4.5 and good tiebreaks.

I am playing for fun and to learn something. My student, FM Danya Naroditsky, signed up to gain experience against strong opponents, but after his success in Reno last weekend, I am sure that now he dreams of achieving even greater success here in Tulsa. Many other players with ties to Northern California will participate: GM Alex Yermolinsky (who moved to South Dakota late last year), IM Josh Friedel (who moved back to New Hampshire), IM Vinay Bhat, IM David Pruess, IM Dmitry Zilberstein, NM Sam Shankland and IM Walter Shipman. Will anyone qualify? Stay tuned!

For more background, check out the wonderful Qualifier Open Preview written for Chess Life Online by Tom Braunlich. Or read the statistics presented by Northern California expert Dana Mackenzie in his fine chess blog. IM Ben Finegold also has a good blog.