Tag: ELO

  • Settling Above 1100

    Settling Above 1100

    The cycle of life ebbs and flows with some periods being more demanding than others. August to October of this year has been particularly demanding, which forced me to cut down on my chess writing and playing. Curiously, that break preceded a jump in my online game successes both in live challenges and on the damnable [Chess.com Tactics Trainer](). My online ELO currently sits at 1101, which is the first time it has surpassed that benchmark since March 13 of this year.

    Pretty charts, but still a long way to go. (Credit: Chess.com/Campfire Chess)

    Of course, some of my recent wins were clearly undeserved (abandoned by opponent, etc.) but I believe that many of them are starting to reflect my constant dedication to studying and learning about the game. For example,

    [pgn]
    [Event “Live Chess”]
    [Site “Chess.com”]
    [Date “2016.09.25”]
    [Round “?”]
    [White “Internet Opponent”]
    [Black “AmishHacker”]
    [Result “0-1”]
    [ECO “A00”]
    [WhiteElo “1081”]
    [BlackElo “1074”]
    [Annotator “Surber, Wesley A. “]
    [PlyCount “28”]
    [EventDate “2016.??.??”]
    [Source “Campfire Chess”]
    [SourceDate “2014.10.11”]
    [TimeControl “900+10”]
    [WhiteClock “0:16:08”]
    [BlackClock “0:16:38”]

    1. h3 {0 I cannot remember the last time I seen this used as an opening move
    against a Chess.com opponent. My wife uses it at times, always to her peril.}
    d5 {2 Almost ignoring White’s opening move, I played for control of the center.
    } 2. e3 {3 No doubt sensing the coming buildup, White engages on the e3 square.
    } Nc6 {1} 3. a3 $2 {3 Another unusual move. White seemed less interested in
    building up his forces in the center and more interested in guarding the
    outside files…} Bf5 {2 Putting pressure on the c2 pawn in the event White
    wanted to play to c4. With such an unusual collection of opening moves, it
    seemed as though anything could happen.} 4. d4 {6 White blocks the d-pawn from
    advancing and intends to force an engagement on e5 or c5 if I were to advance.}
    e6 {2 Reinforcement for the d5 pawn.} 5. Be2 {6} Nf6 {3 An attempt to
    pressurize White’s kingside by preparing a combo attack.} 6. Nc3 {6 White made
    an empty threat to the d5 pawn, but had no option unless he wanted to lose
    material.} Bd6 {2 An attempt to assert control of the d6-h2 diagonal and
    prevent any future castle option for White.} 7. h4 $4 {12 I am still unsure
    why this move was made…} O-O {2 Safety!} 8. g4 {2 White forces an exchange
    of pieces.} Be4 {3} 9. Nxe4 {2} Nxe4 {3 I am typically not happy with trading
    Bishops for Knights, but White’s counterplay made the Knights much more
    powerful for the scenario.} 10. Bd3 {17} Qf6 $6 {2 This was a gamble to see if
    White noticed the #1 move. Of course, he did and I was prepared for the
    counterplay.} 11. Bxe4 {4} dxe4 {2} 12. g5 {4} Qf5 {7} 13. Ne2 {5} Qf3 $1 {
    8 Dangerous territory given the potential for a trap by the Queen and Rook.}
    14. Nc3 $4 {2 White made a tragic mistake that changed the course of the game
    entirely. The Rook (and the game) is lost.} Qxh1+ {AmishHacker won by
    resignation} 0-1
    [/pgn]

    Winning and losing in chess is like the tides, so I am trying to prepare myself mentally for the time when the wins don’t come and the only way ahead seems to be down, like this heartbreaking loss:

    [pgn]
    [Event “Live Chess”]
    [Site “Chess.com”]
    [Date “2016.09.25”]
    [Round “?”]
    [White “Internet Opponent”]
    [Black “AmishHacker”]
    [Result “1-0”]
    [ECO “D00”]
    [WhiteElo “1041”]
    [BlackElo “1064”]
    [PlyCount “41”]
    [EventDate “2016.??.??”]
    [Source “Campfire Chess”]
    [SourceDate “2014.10.11”]
    [TimeControl “900+10”]
    [WhiteClock “0:13:54”]
    [BlackClock “0:15:43”]

    1. d4 {3} d5 {3} 2. Nc3 {8} Nf6 {3} 3. f3 {14} Nc6 {6} 4. Bg5 {6} e6 {4} 5.
    Bxf6 {3} Qxf6 {2} 6. e4 {56} dxe4 {12} 7. Nxe4 {5} Qf5 {14} 8. Bb5 {10} Bd7 {3}
    9. g4 {28} Qd5 {12} 10. Bxc6 {6} Bxc6 {3} 11. c3 {13} O-O-O {2} 12. Ne2 {7} f5
    {11} 13. gxf5 {27} exf5 {4} 14. Nf4 {7} Qc4 {10} 15. b3 {9} Qa6 {9} 16. Ng5 {23
    } Re8+ {8} 17. Ne2 {13} h6 {15} 18. Nf7 {6} Bxf3 {3} 19. O-O {17} Bxe2 {17} 20.
    Qe1 {4} Bh5 {16} 21. Qxe8# {Internet Opponent won by checkmate} 1-0
    [/pgn]

    Until next time, keep the flame burning, campers!

  • Carlsen’s Amazing Hamburg Simul

    Carlsen’s Amazing Hamburg Simul

    You really have to hand it to Magnus Carlsen. As one of the youngest chess champions in history, he has transformed the professional chess world with major brand endorsements, [his own clothing line](www.g-star.com/en_us/featured/collaborations/magnus-carlsen.htm), his own brand/chess app, and is noteworthy as the first World Champion to develop his chess abilities in the age of prevalent chess computers. In the [2014 World Chess Championship](sochi2014.fide.com), Carlsen effectively destroyed former champion Viswanathan Anand where there were no shortage of comments and questions about him being [*past his prime*](www.chess.com/forum/view/general/end-of-era-for-vishy-anand) and Carlsen being the *young* wave of the future.

    Earlier this week on February 21 in Hamburg, [Play Magnus](www.playmagnus.com) hosted a simul exhibition with 70 players. The German paper [Die Zeit](www.zeit.de) organized the event to commemorate its 70th birthday, which puts its first publication right after the end of World War II. In this competition sat one person for every year that *Die Zeit* has faithfully published to its readers.

    ![simulsetup](http://www.campfirechess.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/carlsensimul01.jpg)

    70 boards ready to take on Magnus Carlsen. (Credit: Play Magnus)

    As you can see, the setup for the event was stunning with each player receiving a *Play Magnus* chess set which was autographed by the World Champion after the event. Some of the competitors were invited to the event while others were chosen from a pool of over 1,000 applicants.

    ![simulcarlsen](http://www.campfirechess.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/carlsensimul02.jpg)

    Carlsen’s six-hour battle. (Credit: Chess24.com)

    At the halfway point of the event, Carlsen had shut his opponents out with an amazing 30 wins and 0 losses or draws. At the conclusion of the event, which lasted around six hours, the World Champion emerged with an exceptional record of 67 wins, 2 draws, and 1 loss. It is easy to lose sight of the wins in this situation because of the startling number of losses. This defeat came at the hands of Jens-Erik Rudolph, who is identified by [Chessbase](www.chessbase.com) as a City League chess player with an 1981 ELO.

    [pgn]
    [Event “Simultan – 70 Jahre DIE ZEIT”]
    [Site “Hamburg”]
    [Date “2016.02.20”]
    [Round “?”]
    [White “Carlsen, Magnus”]
    [Black “Rudolph, Jens-Erik”]
    [Result “0-1”]
    [ECO “A42”]
    [WhiteElo “2844”]
    [BlackElo “1981”]
    [PlyCount “114”]
    [EventDate “2016.??.??”]
    [EventType “simul”]
    [EventCountry “GER”]
    [TimeControl “180+2”]

    1. c4 g6 2. Nc3 Bg7 3. d4 d6 4. e4 e5 5. d5 a5 6. Bd3
    Na6 7. Nge2 Nf6 8. Bg5 h6 9. Bh4 O-O 10. f3 Nc5 11. Bc2 Bd7 12. O-O Qe8 13. Kh1
    Nh7 14. b3 f5 15. a3 b6 16. b4 Nb7 17. Qd2 f4 18. Bf2 g5 19. Nb5 Bxb5 20. cxb5
    h5 21. Nc3 g4 22. Qe2 Qg6 23. Rfc1 Nf6 24. Bd1 Bh6 25. Be1 Rf7 26. Ra2 Rg7 27.
    Rac2 Kh8 28. Qf1 Rag8 29. Bh4 Bg5 30. Bf2 g3 31. Be1 gxh2 32. Na4 Ne8 33. Nb2
    axb4 34. axb4 h4 35. Nd3 Bd8 36. Kxh2 Rh7 37. Nf2 Nf6 38. Nh3 Nh5 39. Ra1 Ng3
    40. Qd3 Bf6 41. Ra7 Nd8 42. Raxc7 Rxc7 43. Rxc7 Nf5 44. Rc2 Ne3 45. Ra2 Nxg2
    46. Qe2 Ne3 47. Bb3 Nf7 48. Qf2 Qh5 49. Qe2 Rg2+ 50. Qxg2 Nxg2 51. Kxg2 Ng5 52.
    Ng1 h3+ 53. Kh1 Qg6 54. Rh2 Nxf3 55. Nxf3 Qxe4 56. Rxh3+ Kg7 57. Kg1 Qe3+ 0-1
    [/pgn]

    Magnus Carlsen’s single loss in the simul.

    After struggling somewhat last year, it is refreshing to see Magnus playing such good chess recently. Additionally, it was nice to see that there was an eclectic mix of people participating in the simul including a nine-year old chess player and a famous futbol coach among others. Although I have to consider variables such as the number of people Carlsen played in this simul it is nice to know that the World Champion himself is not impervious to defeat at the hands of players < 2000 ELO. Rudolph's 1981 ELO gives me hope, I tell ya. Additional Credit: Featured Image by [IM Anna Rudolf](https://www.facebook.com/AnnaRudolfChess/) -w.s

  • Ending on a High Note

    This will be the last post of 2015 on this site. This has been a rollercoaster year for chess around the world and it has also been a wild ride for me as I continue to work on improving my game. 2014 concluded with my online ELO rating sitting at just around 900. This year I am excited to end on a high note sitting at 1100 with a peak rating of 1170 in early December! It is incredible how much work goes into just a few hundred ELO points but the reward of persevering through unnerving losing streaks and perilous blunders is well worth it.

    2014finals

    2014 was a hard year for me because it was a time of major transition. I moved from Ohio to Texas that year and was still very green when it came to learning the nuances of chess education.

    2015finals

    2015 was much more rewarding in that I managed to find a rhythm and method that works for studying, analyzing, and integrating my game experiences into future play. Here is the final game I am playing this year so that I can focus on my family during the New Year’s holiday. From the Campfire Chess family to yours, I wish you a very Happy New Year and much joy and chess success! See you in 2016!

    [pgn]

    [Event “Internet Chess”]

    [Site “Chess.com”]

    [Date “2015.12.28”]

    [Round “?”]

    [White “AmishHacker”]

    [Black “Internet Opponent”]

    [Result “1-0”]

    [ECO “B30”]

    [WhiteElo “1100”]

    [BlackElo “1078”]

    [PlyCount “49”]

    [EventDate “2015.??.??”]

    [EventType “game”]

    [EventCountry “USA”]

    [Source “Campfire Chess”]

    [SourceDate “2014.10.11”]

    [TimeControl “15”]

     

    1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 d6 3. Bc4 c5 4. d3 Nc6 5. Nc3 h6 6. O-O Nf6 7. Be3 Be6 8. Nh4

    Bxc4 9. dxc4 Be7 10. Nf5 O-O 11. Bxh6 gxh6 12. Nxh6+ Kh7 13. Nf5 Rh8 14. Qf3

    Kg8 15. Qg3+ Kf8 16. Qg7+ Ke8 17. Qxh8+ Kd7 18. Qh3 Bf8 19. Nxd6+ Kxd6 20.

    Rad1+ Nd4 21. Nb5+ Kc6 22. Nxd4+ cxd4 23. c3 Qb6 24. cxd4 exd4 25. Qf5 {

    AmishHacker won by resignation} 1-0

    [/pgn]