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    Sunday
    May152011

    Book Notice: Wojo's Weapons: Winning With White, Volume 2

    Jonathan Hilton and Dean Ippolito, Wojo's Weapons: Winning With White, Volume 2. (Mongoose Press, 2011). $29.95. 320 pp. Reviewed by Dennis Monokroussos.

    It seems we're suffering from sequelitis here at The Chess Mind. Every day at the Candidates is Groundhog Day, and then it's volume 2 on the Hedgehog followed by more of Wojo's weapons! "Wojo", as many American readers will know and many non-Americans won't, refers to the late Polish-Latvian-American GM Aleksander Wojtkiewicz. A strong though not elite GM, Wojtkiewicz (generally referred to as "Wojo") was a very successful competitors in US Swiss-system events, and authors Jonathan Hilton (a USCF national master) and Dean Ippolito (an IM) attribute a fair amount of that success to his well-worked opening repertoire. Needless to say (nothing beats an oxymoronic phrase purporting to be superfluous!), Hilton and Ippolito (if we can use "Wojo", we'll turn them into "HI") believe that their readers can adopt these weapons and enjoy comparable success at their level on the food chain.

    Volume 1 (reviewed here) covered Wojo's treatment of the Catalan; this time around it's Wojo vs. the King's Indian Defense (KID). (That leaves at least three major openings yet to come: the Gruenfeld, the Dutch and 1.Nf3 c5.) As with volume 1, they are again following in Boris Avrukh's footsteps, as both authors recommend the Fianchetto Variation against the KID. Surprisingly though, HI don't use Avrukh this time around, or at least he isn't cited in the bibliography. (Importantly, though, Bologan's pro-KID book from 2009 is mentioned, so they've done their due diligence on "enemy" material.)

    There are three parts in WWWWW II, further divided into 14 chapters. Part 1 covers ...Nbd7 lines, part 2 hits ...Nc6 lines (there's only one chapter on the critical Panno Variation, which the authors justify in part by noting that it's a rare bird at sub-master levels [it's a substantive chapter though, fear not]) and part 3 includes everything else. Together with a short intro, a very helpful index of recommended variations and a player index, there are 320 pages on the Fianchetto KID - quite a lot.

    Part of that length is accounted for by the "complete games" format, and it's not just the space taken up by the additional moves, but by the annotations that come even after anything resembling theoretical significance has passed. Another feature that adds to the book's length is their possibly excessive thoroughness. If Wojo had a game in the Fianchetto KID, HI seemingly include it no matter how dubious or theoretically irrelevant Black's play.

    I'm of two minds as to whether this is a good idea or not. The plus is that most of us aren't going to be playing GMs, so it's worth seeing these second-rate lines get busted. There are several counter-arguments to this, or rather to the amount of space these second-rate lines get, but I'll just offer one that's perhaps in keeping with the philosophy of the pro-side: the second-rate lines Wojo faced generally came from 2200-2400 players. So what most of it really need are third-rate lines, the kinds of moves 1600-2000 players are likely to put out there!

    So it's possible to quibble with some of HI's authorial decisions. I haven't had time to examine the book closely, but from browsing it and in part based on trust from volume 1, it looks as if they have done a pretty thorough job. Both Hilton and Ippolito use Wojo's lines in their own tournament play, and there's a fair combination of game citations, independent analysis and explanatory prose. It's sophisticated material, so I don't think this is a book for lower- or mid-range club players. If you're 1800, maybe 1900 and up and looking for an anti-KID line, this might be the book for you.

    Saturday
    May142011

    A Brief Review of Sergey Shipov's The Complete Hedgehog, Volume 2

    Sergey Shipov, The Complete Hedgehog, Volume 2 (Mongoose Press, 2011). $29.95. 584 pp. Reviewed by Dennis Monokroussos

    In a couple of recent posts I praised Sergey Shipov's work as an annotator, and he's a fine author of opening books, too, at least when they're on the Hedgehog. The Complete Hedgehog, Volume 1 came out in 2009 to rave reviews, and the second volume, fresh off the presses, is likely to receive a similar reception.

    Volume 1 covered the "English Hedgehog", which we can think of for simplicity's sake as White setups with a fianchettoed bishop on g2. There are Englishes where the bishop doesn't go to g2, and there are a few positions in volume 2 where the bishop goes to g2 anyway, but in general Shipov's new book deals with alternative setups. In part 1, White has played f3, generally accompanied by Be2, and 360 pages later he turns to ambitious attacking setups where White puts the king's bishop on the b1-h7 diagonal. Finally, another 150 pages later, we're treated to another framework for about 55 more pages: a Queen's Indian Hedgehog with White castling queenside.

    These are long books - Volume 2 makes it all the way to page 584 - but this is neither an encyclopedia nor a database dump. Shipov writes clearly, energetically and with enduring enthusiasm for the Hedgehog. There's enough analysis and explanatory prose to satisfy any curious reader. And not just any kind of prose, either: if you like a colorful turn of phrase, Sergey Shipov is your man. Literally opening the book at random, here are some nuggets from pages 180:

    An unpleasant surprise. The white bishops, like cockroaches, don't succeed in simultaneously escaping the path of the e8-rook. At least one will get crushed.

    Evidently this game froze the development of the idea for a while. The rout was too quick and harsh....All smart players know examples like this, dating back to the 19th century. And no one wanted to look like an ignoramus and become the co-author of the next instructive example.

    However, in the mid-'80s, in the search for a way to fight against the improved and suddenly very strong Hedgehog, players again turned to the a2-a4-a5 raid, and this time with success! In many games the beast was vividly and demonstratively crushed on the queenside, and moreover Black didn't manage to stir up any counterplay. With a heavy heart, I will show you a few sad examples....

    From these short excerpts we not only see a prose stylist in action, we get some clues about his pedagogy. Shipov often provides an historical approach, showing the evolution of both sides' ideas over the decades. We also see that although he's very much a pro-Hedgehog partisan, he's not a propagandist. We aren't just told the glorious stories of Black's conquests; we're shown White's best ideas too, and get to see the Hedgehog both as victor and as roadkill.

    Finally, let's look at some of his analysis. The following (abridged) excerpt comes near the end of the book, from the section on the Queen's Indian Hedgehog where White castles queenside. It's one of his own games, where he's Black against E. Pospelov from Balassagyarmat 1992.

    Pospelov-Shipov:

    1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 b6 4.a3 Ba6 5.Qc2 Bb7 6.Nc3 c5 7.e4 cxd4 8.Nxd4 d6 9.Bg5 Nbd7 10.0-0-0 a6 11.f4

    White is hanging over Black's center and already intends to explode it with e4-e5. In those happy years I was an optimist, used to giving blow for blow. So I played

    11...h6 12.Bh4 g5!

    [Now Shipov discusses 13.fxg5, as played in an earlier game, and then wraps up that discussion as follows:]

    I also studied roughly the same variations at the board, and White's next blow was like a bolt out of the blue for me.

    13.e5!

    The idea is to break through on g6 with the queen. What to do?

    I wasn't enthusiastic about the co-operative variation 13...gxh4 14.Nxe6 fxe6 15.Qg6+ Ke7 16.exd6#.

    I didn't want to open a file the d1-rook on principle, although I didn't see why 13...dxe5 loses. I still don't see it today, 20 years later - even after exhaustive analysis. Believe me, Black holds! The variations are complicated and have no clear conclusion. I'll just mention the beginning of the two main lines: 14.Nxe6 fxe6 15.fxe5! Kf7!, and 14.fxe5 gxh4 15.Nxe6 Qe7!. Playing this without preparation at the board is not easy, you'll agree...

    So the move

    13...Rg8!

    was born.

    14.Bf2! dxe5 15.fxe5 Ng4 16.Nxe6! fxe6 17.Be2! Ngxe5!

    Of course, not 17...Nxf2? 18.Bh5+ Ke7 19.Qxf2 Rg7 20.Rhf1 Qc7 21.Qf6+! Nxf6 22.exf6# - that kind of finale would have suited the ancient textbooks by Stamma and de Lucena. But I'm afraid that they wouldn't ahve included me in them, as I showed up several centuries too late.

    18.Bh5+ Ke7 19.Rhe1

    A slight weakening.

    It is not clear whether I could have survived after the very strong and, most importantly, more flexible continuation 19.Bg3!. The reality is that the white rook can attack not only from e1, but also from f1.

    For example, 19...Qc8 20.Rxd7+! Nxd7 21.Rd1 Qc6 22.Qf2 Rg7 23.Nd5+! exd5 24.Re1+ loses, and saving his king is too costly for Black.

    Only 19...Bg7! 20.Rhf1 Rf8 saves me, and here it is worth having a short pause...

    In the event of 21.Bxe5 Nxe5 22.Rxd8 (or 22.Qh7 Nd3+! 23.Kc2 Qd4! with approximate equality) 22...Rxf1+ 23.Rd1 Rxd1+ 24.Nxd1 Rd8, Black gets a decent material equivalent and good counterplay for the queen.

    But there is another, apparently wild possibility for White. I can imagine what kind of nervous shock I would have had to get through if the game had reached this position, in which White makes the dazzling move 21.Qg6!!

    The bait cannot be taken because of mate in three - find it yourself! Salvation is found by process of elimination: 21...Rxf1 22.Qxg7+ Rf7 23.Bxe5!! (another gem adorning White's attack; 23.Bxf7 is bad due to 23...Qh8!) 23...Nxe5! (the queen is inedible again - 23...Rxg7? 24.Bd6+ Kf6 25.Rf1+!) 24.Qxe5 Qb8! (fortunately, there is another move by the black queen out to f4 with check) 25.Qxb8 Rxb8 26.Bxf7 Kxf7 27.Rd7+ Kf6 28.g3 Ke5 29.Rh7 Bf3 30.Rxh6 Rc8 and in the end Black's counterplay is enough to equalize.

    Evidently this is also the result of the entire opening variation. It is not as pleasing as we'd like it to be, you'll agree.

    [From here I'll give only the remaining moves of the game, with his punctuation.]

    19...Bg7 20.Bg3 Qc7 21.Rxd7+! Qxd7 22.Bxe5 Bxe5 23.Rxe5 Qd4 24.Qh7+ Kd6 25.Re1 Qf4+ 26.Kd1 1/2-1/2 (You can replay the game and variations here, albeit without the prose.)

    Great games, original analysis and sparkling prose - what more could you want? If you're interested in playing the Hedgehog, or want to combat this spiny little beast, this is a must-have.

    Saturday
    May142011

    Capablanca Memorial Update: Three Lead after Round 4 (Updated)

    Thanks primarily to the troubles of Lazaro Bruzon, three players are tied for first with 2.5/4: Le Quang Liem, David Navara, Dmitry Andreikin. With a draw against Bruzon in round 4 Vassily Ivanchuk would have joined the tie, and with a win he'd have been in clear first. He was better for a long time, but somehow lost (on time?), so he's half a point behind the leaders while Bruzon finally made it onto on the scoreboard. More info here, including links to the official site and the live relay.

    Saturday
    May142011

    ChessVibes Training

    ChessVibes Openings has been around for over a year, and while it isn't big enough to compete with or replace a monster site like ChessPublishing.com, it has its place in the world. What it does best is highlight in a timely way what's hot at the higher levels, offering useful summary and occasionally some fresh analysis pointing in unexplored directions.

    Hoping to build off their successes, they have started a second newsletter called ChessVibes Training. This is aimed at a somewhat lower audience, although the level seems to vary throughout each issue. There have been two issues so far, and the pattern is this:

    1. A somewhat informally annotated game by Anish Giri.

    2. A guess-the-move exercise, with multiple choice answers the reader must choose between. IM Merijn van Delft handles this section.

    3. "Improve Your Play", in which IM Thomas Willemze highlights a particular theme with both GM and amateur games. (The "h6" hook is the topic of issue #2, for example, showing how a black pawn there can be used by the attacker to help White open lines against the enemy king.)

    4. Twelve tactical puzzles.

    5. A practical endgame, commented on by IM Robert Ris.

    It's early yet and I'd expect that some things will change over time in response to feedback. For now, I'd say that the general concept is pretty good, but the execution of that concept is uneven.

    To start on the most positive note, I thought Ris's endgame columns were good, especially the first one. The general idea is great, the types of endings he has picked out so far are excellent, and the particular examples and the notes have been good as well, and I think players of a pretty wide range can benefit from what he has written.

    The "Improve Your Play" section has a great concept, but this is one of those places where it seemed that the execution could improve. Maybe Willemze could be a bit more didactic in his presentation, for instance by explicitly categorizing several typical situations where ...h6 is a clear weakness because the enemy has plan X, Y or Z at his disposal.

    The guess-the-move exercise was fairly easy, and it seems to me that the way it is set up, with far fewer questions than moves and multiple choice hints, readers won't get anywhere near as much from the game as they could. It's not that it's a bad exercise, it's just that more should be possible.

    Giri's second column was a bit disappointing to me, but here too there is a lot of promise. There are (at least) three ways in which CVT can use a super-GM like Giri: two bad, one good. The first bad way is to have him offer a deep analysis of some game or other. The reason why that's bad is that it's the kind of thing that's widely available: in New In Chess Magazine, in Chess Today, occasionally on ChessBase's website, from online annotators like Sergey Shipov, etc. The second bad way is to have him offer light and breezy notes, which is more or less what has happened so far. There's nothing wrong with his notes, but they don't really require a player of Giri's very high caliber. Here's a third possibility that I think might be more interesting: some kind of close, deeply personal look at moments from his own games. (This is in fact how the column is advertised on the CVT page, and the first issue fulfilled that promise to some extent. But the second one goes in a completely different direction, as Giri isn't even discussing one of his own games.)

    The idea isn't to bury less experienced players under a tremendous mountain of variations - though that might not be such a terrible thing every now and then, properly done - but to give the reader a sense of his mental and psychological processes in the heat of battle. How does an elite player react to the sorts of situations a more casual and less able player experiences: a surprise, a novelty, having blundered, etc.? Maybe he can share his account of the birth of an idea from his home workshop. In short, Use Giri in a unique way that takes advantage of his special abilities.

    Finally, the tactics section is very disappointing. I recognize that I'm not their target audience, but these puzzles are far too easy - a 2000-rated player could finish them all in under two minutes, and I don't think an 1800 would break a sweat on them either. Replacing these 12 with something from a Dvoretsky book would be crazy in the opposite direction, of course, but why not step up the level every few problems? The first three could be solved with a little effort by, say, 1200s, the next three should still be solvable with a little work for 1500s, the next three for 1800s, and then the last three should offer a reasonable challenge to 2000ish players. Just about everyone has something they can solve and just about everyone gets a challenge.

    So once again, it's a mixed bag, but one with promise. For more info, have a look here.

    Saturday
    May142011

    Candidates Semi-Finals, Day 3: Guess the Result! (With Games)

    If you guessed that both games today were drawn, you are absolutely right. It was a mix of day 1 and day 2, with one absolutely lame game and one harrowing contest.

    The lame game was Grischuk-Kramnik, though I say that not to condemn the players but, I suppose, in praise of Kramnik's bulletproof prep with the Black pieces. Grischuk decided it was time for 1.e4, and rather than head for a Berlin (as he did against Rajdabov in both of his black blitz games) it was time for old trusty: the Petroff. Grischuk got nothing and they called it a day after 25 moves.

    Kamsky-Gelfand was just the opposite, a real adventure story. Kamsky played 6.Be3 e5 7.Nb3 Be7 8.h3!? against the Najdorf and soon sacrificed a pawn for compensation. First Kamsky was better, and he missed a big chance on move 29 - 29.Bxc4 followed by 30.Qb6 was winning. After missing his best chances, and then playing the inaccurate 32.Na5?!, Gelfand got more and more active. Under pressure on the board and the clock, Kamsky blundered with 37.Bxe3?, but got bailed out after 37...Nxe3 38.Ne5 Qf5?? - 38...Qh5, getting off the f-file, would have won easily. But Gelfand was in time trouble too, and after his move there were mass liquidations leading to a drawn double-rook ending.

    So both matches are tied entering the final game in "regular time", and Kramnik and Gelfand will have White. If the trends continue, we'll have rapid (and possibly blitz) games in a couple of days. For today, we have these games, which you can replay with my notes.

    Friday
    May132011

    Candidates Semi-Finals, Day 2 Games

    With notes, but my comments to Gelfand-Kamsky are pretty light, in part because I'd like to refer my readers to Sergey Shipov's excellent annotations done during the game itself, rendered from Russian to English at the Chess in Translation site.

    Friday
    May132011

    Candidates Semi-Finals, Day 2: Two More Draws

    Between the quarter-finals and the semi-finals, of the 20 games played at classical time controls, only two have been decisive. Two! A pretty (un)healthy number of those games have been short and insipid, but that was not the case today. Vladimir Kramnik has an advantage against Alexander Grischuk, and he was able to convert it into an extra pawn. It turned out that Black's fantastic knight on d6 kept everything together, though, and it doesn't seem that Grischuk was ever actually losing.

    The same cannot be said for Gata Kamsky, who was in huge trouble - "totally lost", in his own words. The main missed opportunity came when he played 27.Nc3 rather than 27.Nc5, maintaining a tremendous bind. After this he maintained an advantage for a long time, but with dogged defense Kamsky managed to split the point 39 moves later.

    Games, with notes, later tonight.

    Friday
    May132011

    This Week's ChessVideos Show: The Quick Ruy Lopez, Part 4

    The series marches on, and in this week's show we finally finish on the Schliemann Defense (3...f5, aka the Jaenisch Variation). The main lines with 5...Nf6 are covered (4.Nc3 fxe4 5.Nxe4 Nf6 and now 6.Qe2 d5 7.Nxf6+ and 6.Nxf6+), and in enough detail that anyone who wants to play or has to face the variation should be set up to use it against pretty much anyone.

    As always, the show is free (free registration is required, if you haven't already done it at some point in the past couple of years), and will be available on-demand for the next month or so.

    Thursday
    May122011

    Korchnoi Not Coming to St. Louis

    Viktor Korchnoi was scheduled to play a match with Ben Finegold in St. Louis next week, concurrent with the Hikaru Nakamura-Ruslan Ponomariov match, but has had to cancel due to health concerns. According to the organizers, the concerns are not serious in the big picture, but are enough to impair Korchnoi's ability to travel internationally. It's a pity Finegold and for fans who hoped to see the legend in person, and of course for Korchnoi himself. There will still be a Finegold match, however, as Ray Robson has been enlisted to fill in.

    Thursday
    May122011

    The 46th Capablanca Memorial, Starring Ivanchuk, Is Underway

    And not only Vassily Ivanchuk, mind you; it's a very strong tournament. Ivanchuk is the top seed, with his 2776 rating, but there's also Leinier Dominguez (2726), David Navara (2702), Lazaro Bruzon (2693), Le Quang Liem (2687) and Dmitry Andreikin (2687). After yesterday's first round, it's Andreikin who leads after beating Bruzon with White; Ivanchuk-Navara and Dominguez-Le were both drawn.

    Tournament website here.