Jim West On Chess

Premiere of "Bobby Fischer Live"

2009-11-28T00:25:00.000-08:00

Earlier this month, Damian Chapa's movie Bobby Fischer Live had its premiere.

Performa 09 at Marshall Chess Club

2009-11-27T06:45:00.001-08:00

A couple of weeks ago, Guido van der Werve gave two presentations of Performa 09 at the Marshall Chess Club. I have heard that both were sellouts, with 100 spectators at each.

Here is an article describing the event.

Berg - West @ "Contre Gambit Philidor"

2009-11-26T04:43:00.001-08:00

At Contre Gambit Philidor, Frederic Fournier provides a link to my game as Black against George Berg.

The name of the tournament "What a Turkey Open" may have affected us because we both played endgame moves that were turkeys!

The above diagram shows the position after 29.Nb3. I should have maintained equality by 29...Ke5, prepared to answer 30.Na5 by 30...Nd8. My 29...b6 led to a favorable endgame for White after 30.Nd4+ Nxd4 31.cxd4, which became losing for Black when I played 31...h4.

Eventually we arrived at this position, following 39...Kxc5.

White played 40.Ke3, throwing away the win by 40.g5 Kd6 41.Kf5.

Photos from Hamilton Quads 11/21/2009

2009-11-25T03:21:00.001-08:00

During Saturday's quads in Hamilton, I took these pictures.

July-September 2009 "ACN"

2009-11-24T07:54:00.001-08:00

My article "Both Sides of the Board" can be found on pages 17-18, in the July-September 2009 issue of Atlantic Chess News.

Marshall Chess Club Swiss 11/22/2009

2009-11-23T05:53:00.001-08:00

Playing in the one day schedule of a FIDE rated tournament, yesterday at the Marshall Chess Club, I finished at 2-1-1. These are my games as Black.

Round Two: Philidor Counter Gambit

Alan Zhang (USCF 1834) - Jim West (USCF 2200), Marshall Chess Club 11/22/2009

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 d6 3.Bc4 f5 4.d3 c6 5.O-O f4 6.d4 Qf6 7.Nxe5 dxe5 8.Qh5+ g6 9.Qxe5+ Qxe5 10.dxe5 Bg7 11.Bxf4 Nd7

12.c3 Nxe5 13.Bxe5 Bxe5 14.f4 Bc7 15.Nd2 Nf6 16.h3 Nh5 17.e5 Rf8 18.Ne4 Bf5 19.g4 Bxe4 20.gxh5 O-O-O 21.Rae1 Bb6+ 22.Kh2 Rd2+ 23.Re2 Rxe2+ 24.Bxe2 Be3 25.Kg3 g5 26.Bg4+ Kc7 27.f5 Bf4+ 28.Kf2 Bxe5 29.Re1 Bxf5 30.Rxe5 Bxg4+ 31.Kg3 Bxh5 32.Rxg5 Bg6

33.h4 Bb1 34.a3 Rf7 35.Re5 Rd7 36.Re2 a5 37.Kf4 a4 38.Rg2 b5 39.Rg1 Bg6 40.Rg2 Rd5 41.Re2 Kb6 42.Rg2 Kc5 43.Ke3 Kc4 44.Rg4+ Kb3 45.Rb4+ Ka2 46.c4 Rd3+ 47.Kf4 Rb3 48.cxb5 Rxb4+ 49.axb4 cxb5, White resigns.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Round Four: Philidor Counter Gambit

George Berg (FIDE 2045) - Jim West (FIDE 2159), Marshall Chess Club 11/22/2009

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 f5 4.dxe5 fxe4 5.Ng5 d5 6.e6 Bc5 7.Nxe4 Be7 8.Ng5 Bxg5 9.Qh5+ g6 10.Qxg5 Qxg5 11.Bxg5 c6 12.Bd3 Bxe6 13.O-O Nd7 14.Re1 Kf7 15.c3 Ngf6 16.Nd2 Rhe8

17.Bxf6 Kxf6 18.Re3 Kg7 19.Rae1 Bf7 20.f3 Nc5 21.Rxe8 Rxe8 22.Rxe8 Bxe8 23.Bc2 g5 24.Kf2 Bg6 25.Bxg6 Kxg6 26.b3 h5 27.Ke3 Kf5 28.b4 Ne6 29.Nb3 b6

30.Nd4+ Nxd4 31.cxd4 h4 32.g4+ hxg3 33.hxg3 a5 34.bxa5 bxa5 35.a4 Ke6 36.g4 Kd6 37.f4 gxf4+ 38.Kxf4 c5 39.dxc5+ Kxc5 40.Ke3 d4+ 41.Kd3 Kd5 42.g5 Ke5 43.g6 Kf6 44.Kxd4 Kxg6 45.Kc5 Kf7 46.Kb6 Ke8 47.Kxa5 Kd7 48.Kb6 Kc8 49.a5 Kb8, draw.

Hamilton Quads 11/21/2009

2009-11-22T04:51:00.001-08:00
Yesterday's top quad in Hamilton ended today at 1am! I finished with a score of 1-1-1 against three masters. Here is my win.

Round One: Caro-Kann Defense, Exchange Variation

Boris Privman (USCF 2205) - Jim West (USCF 2200), Hamilton NJ 11/21/2009

1.d4 Nf6 2.Bf4 g6 3.e3 Bg7 4.Nf3 O-O 5.h3 c5 6.c3 Nc6 7.Nbd2 cxd4 8.exd4 d5 9.Bd3 Bf5 10.Qe2 Bxd3 11.Qxd3 Qd7 12.g4 h5 13.g5 Ne8 14.O-O-O Rc8 15.Kb1 Nd6

16.Nh4 a5 17.Rde1 a4 18.a3 Na5 19.Bxd6 Qxd6 20.Qb5 Nc4 21.Nxc4 Rxc4 22.Ng2 e6 23.Ne3 Qc6 24.Qxc6 Rxc6 25.f4 Rd8 26.Nc2 Bf8 27.Re2 Bd6 28.Rf1 Kg7 29.Ne1 b5 30.Nd3 Rc4 31.Ne5 Bxe5 32.fxe5 Rd7

33.Kc2 Rb7 34.Kd3 Ra7 35.Ref2 Rb7 36.h4 Ra7 37.Rb1 Rc6 38.b3 Rac7 39.Rc2 Rc8 40.Kd2 Kf8 41.bxa4 bxa4 42.Rb4 Rc4 43.Rxc4 Rxc4 44.Rb2 Rc7 45.Rb8+ Ke7 46.Ra8 Rc4 47.Kd3 Kd7 48.Ra7+ Ke8 49.Rb7 Rc6 50.Rb4 Ra6 51.c4 dxc4+ 52.Kxc4 Rc6+ 53.Kb5 Rc3

54.Rxa4 Rh3 55.d5 exd5 56.Kc5 d4 57.Kd6 Kf8 58.e6 fxe6 59.Kxe6 Rxh4 60.Kf6 Rf4+ 61.Kxg6 h4 62.Kh7 h3 63.Ra8+ Ke7 64.Ra7+ Kd8, White resigns.

NJKO Beaten to Punch by Knights

2009-11-21T04:20:00.001-08:00
The New Jersey Knockouts were beaten to the punch by the New York Knights, in the eastern semifinal of the U.S. Chess League.

Bryant - West @ "Contre Gambit Philidor"

2009-11-20T03:42:00.001-08:00
Frederic Fournier gives a link, at Contre Gambit Philidor, to my game against Nigel Bryant.

Millburn Library Chess Tournament

2009-11-19T03:41:00.000-08:00
On Saturday, December 12th, the Millburn Library chess tournament will be held, for youngsters aged 4 to 14.

Jennifer Shahade Book Signing

2009-11-18T04:10:00.001-08:00
On Tuesday, November 24th, WGM Jennifer Shahade and Francis M. Naumann will host a presentation and book signing of Marcel Duchamp: The Art of Chess, at the Marshall Chess Club.

Jennifer Shahade is editor of Chess Life Online and winner of the Women’s U.S. Championships in 2002 and 2004. Francis M. Naumann is a renowned art scholar and curator, specializing in the Dada and Surrealist periods.

The event begins at 7pm. It is presented free to club members ($10 non-members) by the Marshall Chess Foundation. Refreshments will be served.

Marshall Chess Club
23 West 10th Street
New York, NY 10011
Phone 212-477-3716 Fax 212-995-9281
http://www.marshallchessclub.org/

Pix from Book Fair

2009-11-17T05:05:00.000-08:00
While the Marshall Chess Club November Open was being played downstairs on Sunday, the book fair was taking place upstairs.

At the top of the stairs, the bulletin board has advertisements and the list of club members.

This is the advertisement for the book fair.

Here is blogger Ed Gaillard of Der Alter Goniff.
FM Asa Hoffmann browsed through the thousands of chess books.
So did many others.

Marshall Chess Club Swiss 11/15/2009

2009-11-16T00:12:00.000-08:00
Yesterday I played in the one day schedule of a Swiss tournament at the Marshall Chess Club, where I finished with a score of 2-0-2. Here are my games.

Round One: Philidor Counter Gambit

Nigel Bryant (USCF 1807) - Jim West (USCF 2200), Marshall Chess Club 11/15/2009

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 f5 4.Nc3 fxe4 5.Nxe4 d5 6.Ng3 e4 7.Ne5 Nf6 8.Bg5 Bd6 9.Be2 O-O 10.Ng4 Bxg4 11.Bxg4 Qe8 12.O-O Nxg4 13.Qxg4 Qg6 14.Qh4 Nc6 15.c3 h6 16.Be3 Ne7

17.Qh3 Nf5 18.Nxf5 Qxf5 19.Qxf5 Rxf5 20.f4 exf3 21.Rxf3 Rxf3 22.gxf3 Re8 23.Re1 Bf4 24.Kf2 Bxh2 25.f4 Rf8 26.Kg2 Bxf4 27.Bxf4 Rxf4 28.Re5 c6 29.Re8+ Rf8 30.Re7 Rf7 31.Re8+ Kh7

32.b3 g5 33.c4 dxc4 34.bxc4 Rd7 35.Re4 Kg6 36.Kf3 Kf6 37.Kg4 Re7 38.Rxe7 Kxe7 39.Kf5 b5 40.c5 a5 41.Ke5 g4 42.d5 cxd5 43.c6 g3 44.a4 bxa4 45.Kxd5 g2 46.c7 Kd7 47.c8=Q+ Kxc8 48.Kc6 g1=Q 49.Kb5 a3 50.Kc4 a2 51.Kb3 a1=Q 52.Kc2 Qgd1#.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Round Two: French Defense, Exchange Variation
Jim West (USCF 2200) - Isaac Barayev (USCF 1803), Marshall Chess Club 11/15/2009
1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.exd5 exd5 4.Nf3 c5 5.c3 Nc6 6.Be3 Qb6 7.Qb3 c4 8.Qxb6 axb6 9.Nbd2 Bd6 10.g3 Nge7 11.Bg2 Be6 12.O-O Nf5 13.Rfe1 O-O

14.Ng5 Rfe8 15.Nxe6 fxe6 16.a3 h6 17.Re2 Nxe3 18.Rxe3 Re7 19.Rae1 Rae8 20.f4 g6 21.h4 Nd8 22.Nf3 Kg7 23.Bh3 Kf6 24.Nh2 Kg7 25.Ng4 Bc7 26.R3e2 Bd6 27.Ne3 b5 28.Kg2 Kf6 29.Kf3 Kg7

30.f5 exf5 31.h5 Nf7 32.hxg6 Ng5+ 33.Kg2 Kxg6 34.Bxf5+ Kg7 35.Bg4 Kg6 36.Nxd5 Rxe2+ 37.Rxe2 Rxe2+ 38.Bxe2 Ne4 39.g4 Ng5 40.Bf3 Nxf3 41.Kxf3 Kg5 42.Nb6 Bc7 43.Nd7 Bf4 44.Nc5 Bc1 45.Nxb7 Bxb2 46.Nd6 Bxc3 47.Nxb5 Bb2 48.d5 c3 49.Nd4 Bxa3 50.Nc2 Bd6 51.Ne3 Be5, draw.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Round Three: Budapest Gambit, Fajarowicz Variation
Jason Margiotta (USCF 1942) - Jim West (USCF 2200), Marshall Chess Club 11/15/2009
1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 d6 3.c4 e5 4.dxe5 Ne4 5.g3 Nc6 6.Bg2 dxe5 7.Qxd8+ Kxd8 8.Nxe5 Nxe5 9.Bxe4 Nxc4 10.Bd5 Bb4+ 11.Nc3 Nd6 12.O-O Re8 13.Bf3 Be6 14.Rd1 Ke7

15.Nd5+ Bxd5 16.Rxd5 c6 17.Re5+ Kf8 18.Rxe8+ Rxe8 19.Bf4 Nc4 20.b3 Ne5 21.Bg2 Bc5 22.Rc1 Bb6 23.Rd1 h6 24.h4 Ng4 25.e3 Nf6 26.Bd6+ Kg8 27.Ba3, draw.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Round Four: Sicilian Defense, Accelerated Fianchetto
Jim West (USCF 2200) - Miguel Garcia (USCF 1917), Marshall Chess Club 11/15/2009
1.e4 g6 2.d4 Bg7 3.Nc3 c5 4.Nf3 cxd4 5.Nxd4 Nc6 6.Be3 Nf6 7.Bc4 O-O 8.Bb3 a6 9.f3 e6 10.Qd2 d5 11.exd5 Nxd5 12.Nxd5 exd5 13.O-O-O Re8 14.Rhe1 Qf6 15.c3 Bd7

16.Bxd5 Rac8 17.Bg5 Qxd4 18.Rxe8+ Bxe8 19.cxd4 Nb4+ 20.Kb1 Nxd5 21.Qa5 Bb5 22.Qa3 h6 23.Qd6 Bc6 24.Be7 Ne3 25.d5 Bb5 26.a4 Bxa4 27.Rc1 Nc4 28.Qb4 Bb5 29.d6 Bf8 30.Bxf8 Rxf8 31.Rxc4 Bxc4 32.Qxc4 Kg7 33.Qc7, Black resigns.

IM Bryan Smith to Lecture at ATKM

2009-11-15T04:54:00.001-08:00
On Monday evening, November 23rd, international master Bryan Smith will lecture at All the King's Men in Pitman NJ.

Kingfishers Clipped by NJKO

2009-11-14T06:58:00.001-08:00
In round one of the USCL playoffs, the Baltimore Kingfishers had their wings clipped by the New Jersey Knockouts.

500th Event at Westfield Chess Club

2009-11-13T02:56:00.001-08:00
On Sunday, November 22nd, the Westfield Chess Club will celebrate its 500th event at the Westfield YMCA, where the club has been located since autumn 1990.

Before the start of the Grand Prix tournament, a luncheon will be held from 12 noon to 2pm. According to the invitation that I received in the mail, the purpose of the luncheon is:

1) to honor those who have served in the club for the last 20 years;
2) to show appreciation for the Westfield Y where we have met for the last 20 years;
3) to honor the accomplishments of the players for the last 20 years who have played at the Westfield Chess Club;
4) to show that we make a difference in people's lives.

Executive director of the Westfield Y, Mark Elsasser, will be in attendance. The cost of the luncheon is $15. To attend the luncheon and play in the Grand Prix tournament, the cost is $38 for club members and $48 for non-members. The tournament begins at 2:30pm and already has guaranteed prize money of $615, which may be increased. A skittles room will be available for those who want to play casual chess.

The luncheon will consist of chicken Francaise, London broil, salad, vegetable platter, red potatoes, coffee, and tea. The caterer is Five Star by Thomas.

Tournament director Todd Lunna can be reached at his e-mail address lunnaco@aol.com or by phone at 732-526-7163, by November 15th to let the caterer know the number of people who will attend.

"NY Times" Article on Marley Kaplan

2009-11-12T02:57:00.000-08:00
[photo by Tom White]

Here is an article in The New York Times on Marley Kaplan, of Paterson NJ, who is president of Chess-in-the-Schools.

From Newark with Lev

2009-11-11T04:28:00.001-08:00
At Contre Gambit Philidor, Frederic Fournier provides a link to analysis by Craig Evans on the Newark Gambit, a variation in the Philidor Counter Gambit that is favored by Lev Zilbermintz [pictured above].

Guido van der Werve at Marshall CC Friday

2009-11-10T03:40:00.001-08:00
The Marshall Chess Foundation presents “The King's Gambit”, a musical/chess performance by Guido van der Werve, accompanied by a 9-piece string orchestra.

Mr. van der Werve will perform his piece, using a specifically built chess table, which functions as a mechanical piano. When the chess pieces are moved, the piano will sound the crucial notes throughout the performance.

Mr. van der Werve’s works have been performed in such places as the Tate Modern in London, MoMa in New York, and the National Centre for Contemporary Art in Moscow.

Friday, November 13, 2009
1st performance: 7pm
2nd performance: 9pm
Refreshments will be served.
Event fee: members $8, non-members $10
Tickets can be purchased online at performa-arts.org.

Marshall Chess Club
23 West 10th Street
New York, NY 10011
Phone 212-477-3716, fax 212-995-9281
http://www.marshallchessclub.org/

Marshall CC Amateur Team Championship, Day 2

2009-11-09T02:17:00.001-08:00
On the final day of the Marshall Chess Club Amateur Team Championship, I won this game.

Round Three: French Defense, Exchange Variation

Jim West (USCF 2200) - Max Schwartz (USCF 2034), Marshall Chess Club 11/8/2009

1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.exd5 exd5 4.Nf3 Bd6 5.Bd3 Bg4 6.O-O Ne7 7.Re1 Nbc6 8.c3 Qd7 9.Nbd2 O-O 10.h3 Bf5 11.Nf1 Bxd3 12.Qxd3 Ng6

13.Ne3 Nce7 14.Ng4 f6 15.Bd2 Rae8 16.Re2 Nf4 17.Bxf4 Bxf4 18.Rae1 Ng6 19.Kf1 Bd6 20.Rxe8 Rxe8 21.Rxe8+ Qxe8 22.g3 Qe6 23.Kg2 c6 24.Ne3 Bc7 25.a4 Ne7 26.h4 Nc8 27.b3 Nd6 28.c4 a6

29.cxd5 cxd5 30.Qc3 Bb6 31.Qb4 Ne4 32.a5 Bc7 33.Qxb7 Bxa5 34.b4 Bd8 35.Nxd5 Qd6 36.Nf4 Nc3 37.Qc8 Qc7 38.Qxa6 h6 39.Ne6 Qd7 40.Nxd8 Qxd8 41.b5, Black resigns.

Marshall CC Amateur Team Championship, Day 1

2009-11-08T05:39:00.000-08:00
Yesterday I won this game at the Marshall Chess Club Amateur Team Championship.

Round One: Larsen's Opening

Jim West (USCF 2200) - Dale Hammer (USCF 2050), Marshall Chess Club 11/7/2009

1.b3 Nf6 2.Bb2 g6 3.f4 Bg7 4.Nf3 O-O 5.e3 d6 6.Be2 Nc6 7.O-O e5 8.fxe5 Ng4 9.Qc1 Ncxe5 10.Nxe5 dxe5 11.h3 Nh6 12.a4 Nf5 13.Qe1 Qg5 14.Kh2 h5 15.Nc3 Nd6

16.Ba3 e4 17.Bxd6 cxd6 18.Rd1 Be5+ 19.Kh1 d5 20.Nxd5 h4 21.Nf4 Bf5 22.d4 Bc7 23.Qf2 Rac8 24.c4 a5 25.c5 Kh7 26.Bc4 Kh6 27.Bd5 Rb8 28.Qc2 Qg3 29.Qf2 Qg5 30.Rc1 Qe7 31.c6 b6 32.Bc4 Rbd8

33.Nd5 Rxd5 34.Bxd5 Bg3 35.Qc2 Bc7 36.Qf2 Bg3 37.Qg1 Qd6 38.Bc4 Qxc6 39.Bxf7 Qd7 40.Bc4 Rf6 41.Bb5 Qd5 42.Bc4 Qd7 43.Be2 Kg5 44.Bg4 Bxg4 45.Rxf6 Bf3 46.Rxf3 exf3 47.Rf1 f2 48.Rxf2 Bxf2 49.Qxf2 Qc7

50.e4 Qc3 51.Qf3 Qxd4 52.Qg4+ Kf6 53.Qxh4+ Ke5 54.Qh8+ Kxe4 55.Qxd4+ Kxd4 56.h4, Black resigns.

Pix from Marshall CC Amateur Team Championship

2009-11-07T20:32:00.000-08:00
These are pictures that I took earlier today at the Marshall Chess Club Amateur Team Championship.
Blogger Atomic Patzer made his return to tournament chess.
His teammate Kevin Chen played first board on Friday Knights.
Here is my second board Mikhail Sher.

O Pioneers!!

2009-11-06T04:08:00.001-08:00
In week ten of the U.S. Chess League, the Queens Pioneers blazed a trail past the New Jersey Knockouts.

Agarwal Win @ "Contre Gambit Philidor"

2009-11-05T04:26:00.001-08:00
Frederic Fournier has provided a link to Rohan Agarwal's win with the PCG against an international master, at Contre Gambit Philidor.

2009 Westfield CC Championship

2009-11-04T03:15:00.001-08:00
The 2009 Westfield Chess Club Championship was won by NM Peter Radomskyj with a perfect score of 4 points. Tied at 3 points, for second through fourth place, were NM Todd Lunna, Jonathan Cohen, and Ziping Liu.

In the final round, Ziping won when his opponent misplayed a rook-and-pawn ending.

Round Four: Pirc Defense

Andy Chen (USCF 1604) - Ziping Liu (USCF 1756), Westfield CC Championship 10/25/2009

1.e4 d6 2.d4 Nf6 3.Nc3 g6 4.f4 Bg7 5.Nf3 O-O 6.Be3 Bg4 7.h3 Bxf3 8.Qxf3 e5 9.fxe5 dxe5 10.O-O-O Qe7 11.dxe5 Qxe5 12.Bd4 Qe6

13.Nd5 Nxd5 14.exd5 Qd6 15.Bxg7 Kxg7 16.Bb5 Qc5 17.Ba4 b5 18.Bb3 Nd7 19.Qc3+ Qxc3 20.bxc3 Nb6 21.Rd4 Rad8 22.Rhd1 a5 23.a4 bxa4 24.Bxa4 Rd6 25.Bc6 Nc8 26.c4 Ne7 27.c5 Nxc6 28.cxd6 Nxd4 29.dxc7 Nb5 30.d6 Nxc7 31.dxc7 Rc8 32.Rd5 Rxc7 33.Rxa5 f5

34.Kb2 Kh6 35.Kb3 Kg5 36.c4 Kh4 37.Rd5 Kg3 38.Rd2 f4 39.Kb4 h5 40.Kc3 g5 41.Rd5 Kh4 42.Rd3 g4 43.hxg4 hxg4 44.Kb4 Re7 45.c5 Re4+46.Kc3 Re5 47.Kd2 Rxc5 48.Ke1 Re5+ 49.Kf2 Re3

50.g3+ Kh3 51.Rd6 Rf3 52.Kg1 Kxg3 53.Rd2 Kh4 54.Kg2 Rh3 55.Rf2 f3+ 56.Kg1 Kg5 57.Rc2 g3 58.Rc5+ Kf4 59.Rc4+ Ke3 60.Rc3+ Ke2 61.Rc2+ Kd1 62.Ra2 g2 63.Ra1+ Ke2 64.Re1+ Kd3 65.Re3+ Kd4 66.Kf2 Rh1 67.Kxf3 g1=Q 68.Re4+ Kd3 69.Rh4 Qe3+ 70.Kg2 Rg1+ 71.Kh2 Qg3#.