2008 Chess Club Championship, Round 2

Here is the Retired Pawn during his second round game. If you look back by the vending machine, you will find me wearing a yellow shirt at board 7. One of the brighter spots of not moving off the last board is the proximity of the coffee pot...lol. Enjoy the following annotated game. Thanks.

The 2008 Chess Club Championship, Round 1

I had hopes of coming away this year as my class champion, but this year they changed the format at the last minute, thereby making me play against much higher rated oponents. I never gave up, nevertheless, I lost in each round. I let Mr. Fritz analyze my games. In some of the games I added anotations. Someone please help me!!!!

Kansas City Quick Championship 2008

This is a position from my last game in the Kansas City Quick Championship. At this point I was tied for first place and had the white pieces; however, in time pressure I lost the tread. What is the winning sequence of moves? White to move.

GM Christiansen crushes Retired Pawn

I played Grandmaster Larry Christiansen on November 4th. It went as expected...I lost! You can see me (Extreme left...with my hand covering my mouth) right after my move 7. Qf3.

Forbes,Todd (1294) - Christiansen,Larry Mark (2669)

The Chess Club Simultation Kansas City, Missouri, 11.04.2007

B33: Sicillian Defense, Pelikan and Sveshnikov variations

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 e5 6.Nb3 Bb4

7.Qf3 (My intention with this move is to cover both c3 and e4 squares and develope a piece. Silly really. 7. Bd3 is better). 7...d5 8.exd5 Qxd5 9.Qxd5 Nxd5 10.Bd2 Bxc3 (Nothing new in the game, all of the previous moves have been tried before. Now all I have to do is take with the b pawn and Mr. Grandmaster has the pawn structure weakness he wanted. Being one not to cooperate, I make my move)

11.0–0–0?? Bxd2+ (White goes down a piece against a Grandmaster...game over!)

12.Rxd2 Nde7 13.Bc4 0–0 14.f3 Bf5 15.a3 Rfd8 16.Rhd1 Rxd2 17.Rxd2 Rd8 18.Rxd8+ Nxd8 19.Nc5 Kf8 20.Ne4 Bxe4 21.fxe4 f6 22.Kd2 Ke8 23.c3 Kd7 24.b4 Kd6 25.a4 b6 26.Ke3 g6 27.h3 Ne6 28.Bxe6 Kxe6 29.g4 g5 30.Kd3 Ng631.b5? Nf4+ 32.Kc4? Nxh3 33.Kb4 Nf2 34.a5 Nxe4 35.c4 Nc5 0–1

The Chess Club Championship...A Reflection

Oh, my god! I could hardly believe it, and the thought I was daydreaming crossed my mind. When the tournament results were announced at the end of the 2007 Chess Club Championship my name was included as the under 1300-class champion. Surely, one of the tournament directors had made a mistake. After all, they are human and humans are prone to oversights. However, when it came time to take the club’s champions group photograph, there I was in my yellow t-shirt shyly holding a champion’s plaque, and as the camera’s strobe flashed, my mind was replaying those four rounds...hmm.

As my mind recalled the events, suddenly I was back to the beginning of June when I registered for the championship. My expectations were simply to play chess to gain tournament experience, and to gather four United States Chess Federation rated chess games. The thought of winning something never crossed my mind.

My round one pairing was against a young man named Yury Markushin. This was just my luck! It was only the beginning of the tournament and I was playing a Russian. At 10 A.M., the director explained the rules of the championship, and then the handshakes signaled the starting of the chess clocks. I had the white chess army and I commenced the game by advancing the King’s pawn two squares. Yury played the mirror move and play continued until we eventually entered into a chess formation named the Italian game. At black’s 19th move, the position was complicated and I sat thinking about my reply.

However, the harder I thought the more the confounding the background noise became. My mind focused on the ticking of the chess clocks...tic, tic, tic, and tic! It was maddening to listen to this while trying to concentrate on improving my position. It reminded me of hearing a dripping faucet while you are trying to fall asleep; the more you try not to listen to it, the louder it becomes. I looked around the tournament room as a form of relief from this lunacy, and all I saw were nervous chess players with worried, anxiety filled, faces. I watched as these participants obsessively ran their fingers through their hair. I witnessed the various twitches of their bodies that occur as a direct result of intense concentration and frantic thought.

Suddenly, my head was filled with every non-chess related thought I could have. It was my move, and I had to play something because the time was ebbing away. Furthermore, I wanted to make a move that would impress this young Russian, and in this, I failed. My 20th move was a disappointment because I missed a clear win, and the game would end in a draw 24 moves later.

I do not know about most people, but when I play in tournaments, I get tired. This is in the form of mental fatigue, and it is especially bad after a loss. I think deep down I knew I was losing the endgame against Yury, and was lucky to have the draw. Little did I know that the next round would be a disaster.

Feeling exhausted both mentally and physically, I started the second round game. My new opponent was a young man from New Mexico named Zach Stuart. I could not help thinking that Zach was a little far of field, but chess is chess and people travel to play our game. During this game, I have command of the black pieces. White’s first move was the now familiar King’s pawn advance and my reply was to have the Queen’s Bishop pawn advance two squares. We have entered into a chess formation called the Sicilian Defense and a few moves later, it turned into the Four Knights variation. I was losing the game by move seven and nothing improved for the next 28 moves. Facing a checkmate in two on my 35th move, I resigned and lost the round.

After completing two rounds of play, my score stood at a half point out of the two possible. Oh, how easy it is to fracture one's ego. My feelings toward chess had reached into a new depth of despair with this loss. Perhaps I was suffering a form of chess related Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. My thoughts were jumbled and my speech incoherent as I wandered out the club’s front door, and I was in this state when a fellow chess sufferer named Doug entered into my life to stop my aimless staggering around the parking area. I confided in him that I really did not think much of my present play, and I thought even less about my chances of winning the under 1300 class. Doug listened patiently as I poured out my heart and as I finished he simply asked if I wanted to go with him to get something at the Sonic across the street. What was he saying to me? I could not even get my mind around the fact that another human being was asking for my company. I needed help! There must be a twelve-step program out there for chess related trauma.

"Hi, my name is Todd and I suffer from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder," I would say at some meeting.

An old army veteran would respond, "Hey man, you catch that in the 'Nam?"

"Naw, it’s from playing chess. There was a checkmate in two. I had pawns coming over the back rank!" would be my frazzled reply.

Doug saved my life, my chess life, by a simple act of kindness to a pawn shocked chess combat veteran while eating at the Sonic. He told me to have fun, stop worrying about your opponent’s rating, and just play the position on the board. These words helped me overcome my self-doubt and to enter into a new phase where I did not worry about the other players calling me a “Patzer” behind my back as they laughed at my feeble games. There would be no more worrying about the gossip of the others from me. I would just relax from here on out and have fun.

My opponent in round three was my old friend Leroy Asher. We had played each other in the Kansas City Open last February. That game ended in a draw and I looked forward to this game, as I had the white chessmen. I commenced play with my King’s pawn advancing two squares and Leroy responded with his Queen’s pawn advancing two squares. Of course, I took his pawn on the next move and the game entered a chess formation named the Scandinavian Defense. The game remained close for the next 31 moves. Finally, on black’s 33rd move Leroy blundered and I checkmated him three moves later. My score increased to one and a half points out of the three possible and this gave me some hope of finishing even.

The fourth and final round began at 4:30 P.M. with a new opponent named Fred Smith. He was in command of the white chess pieces, and he commenced the game with the now standard King’s pawn advance. I went into the Sicilian Defense and was determined to win this one. We played like professionals for the first twelve moves and then Fred made a mistake, which cost him one of his Knights without compensation. This blunder must have affected him psychologically because his next three moves were inaccurate. On white’s 16th move he lost his Queen and the game quickly ended with checkmate. My final score was two and a half points out of a possible four, and I was quite pleased with this result.

After I collected my champion’s plaque and headed for home, it hit me. I was very proud of myself for winning a class championship. I had overcome my self-doubt and that horrible tournament start in order to win. Since then my tournament results have improved because of this confidence boosting experience and I look forward to my continuing success.

Midnight Chess Madness

Last night I couldn't get settled for a night in the house. I was pacing the floors, compulsively cleaning, and generally looking for something to do. I believe this was cause by some emotional issues brought on by a letter form my former employer. Distraction was call for! So I call Ken Fee from The Chess Club to inquire into the late night Blitz Tournament. Yes, there was a tournament. There were six players signed up already with more expected, and he would not start it until I arrived. Now it is a forty minute drive from my home in Leavenworth, Kansas, to the club in Kansas City, Missouri, and it was 9:45 PM.

My arrival at The Chess Club at 10:30 was expected, and I was promptly greeted by Ken, who by the way relieved me of $10. Oh, boy. Late night blitz action with...oh, my god...all the higher rated players in the club. Great. How the hell am I supposed to win any money against these guys, and what about my rating? Crap!! I was intimidated to say the least.

The first round was paired, and the clocks started at 11:00 PM. Blitz is so much different than the slow time control games. I think you can get an advantage against stronger players if you have a repertoire for it. I choose to use the one I use for all my tournament games, but with some modifications. Aggression is key. Get the initiative and pound away at some weakness. All out King side assaults often work, but they must succeed to win. I find I have a knack for relieving my opponent of their Queen. I do this on a regular basis, and against experience players. My downfall is that I can't manage to win in only 5 minutes.

My first games I played a very experienced 1750+ player. He has been at it for years...very fast on the clock. I had the White pieces, and chose to play the Scotch. By move 10 I had a clear advantage, and soon I would win his Queen. Near the end he had 11 seconds on the clock, and all I needed to do is play good moves. I didn't. I was checkmated with 6 seconds left on his clock. Sadly I had over a minute and twenty seven seconds. This would be the pattern my eight games. Only twice did I suffer a quick defeat, and these were against much stronger players.

The tournament went on until 1:30 AM. My score was a dismal 3/8. The good news is that I found a small boost to my rating (1294 to 1299). The bad news is that I never had a chance to unleash some of these checkmating tactics I have been studying. I will continue to train and hope the day will come when I will see the possibility in the position to launch an irresistible attack.

The Chess Club's Birthday Bash...CASH!

Last Friday night my chess club celebrated it's 5th Birthday. I believe I had mentioned in a previous post that I was preparing and had made plans to play in the Open. I studied my repertoire and practised tactics and endgames until I thought I was as ready as I was going to get. This put me into wee hours of Friday morning. Then the unexpected happened. My spouse had just had some surgery and the site had become infected. She would need to go to the doctor's office first thing in the morning, like 6 Am. That meant I would have to be up at 5 o'clock to get a shower. No time for sufficient sleep. Maybe after the doctor's visit...it never came to pass.

I arrived at the Chess Club in a zombie-like state. How in the name of goodness would I be able to play chess? Hmm...free pizza. That is going to help. Oh, coffee! Maybe that would get me going? Birthday Cake!! That tastes good, but will the sugar sustain me or will I crash further after the sugar high? Questions with no answers.

The Open kicked off at 7 PM with the starting of the clocks. My first opponent was a guy named Kiran and he seemed to know what he was doing at first. However, I noticed he was unprepared for complications in the middle game; so I endeavored to make it as messy I could. I would go on and win this first game, but only after struggling to write the notation on the score sheet. My mind was not working very well and I had two competing disciplines to deal with...aggghhh! The next round started at 8:45 PM. I played my friend Dan. Last time we had met over the board he had the Black pieces, and went for the Sicilian Dragon set up. That time I missed a win at move 15 and that game ended in a draw. As luck would have it, he once again would have the Black pieces. I was waiting to see if he would try the Dragon one more time. The first victory in chess is to actually make someone give up their pet opening against you...by this standard I won. He opted for the Caro-Kann. The only time I played with this system was during my reading of "Tal-Botvinnik 1960" (I highly recommend this book). Great! How to proceed? I played my heart and lost. I believe that some improvements can be made to my play to increase my chances. My first suggestion would be try a different system within the Caro-Kann. The Next would be at sixth move. I played 6. Bd3 (which was logical), but theory says 6. Nxf6 is correct. There are other places where my play was less than I should except. Notably, both the move 9. Bd2N and 13. Bc3 are inaccurate and lead to my demise. Completely spent from that ordeal, I gathered more of the cake and ate myself into shape (perhaps if I kept on eating I would have a new shape). The last round started at 11 PM and my opponent's name was George. He played some wacky English set up with the White pieces that lead to a small, but steadily increasing advantage for me. We would play 50 moves before I delivered mate.

Everything was all said and done at 12:20 AM. My score of 2/3 was good enough to win some ca$h and give me a small boost in my USCF rating. The drive home was another adventure.

The 2007 Chess Club Championship Round 3

How easy it is to fracture one's ego. My feelings toward chess had reached into the depths of despair. Perhaps I was suffering a form of chess Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). My thoughts were jumbled and my speech incoherent, and I was in this state when a fellow chess sufferer named Doug enter into my life to stop my aimless stagger around the club's parking area. I confided that I really didn't think much of my present play and I thought even less of my chances of winning the Under 1300 class. Doug listened patiently as I poured out my woes and as I finished he simply asked if I wanted to go with him to get something at the Sonic across the street. What? I couldn't get my mind even around the fact that another human being was asking for my company. I needed help! "Hi...my name is Todd and I suffer from PTSD..." "Hey man, you catch that from the 'Nam?" "Naw...chess...checkmate in two...had pawns coming over the wire!!!" Doug saved my life, my chess life, by a simple act of kindness to a pawn shocked chess combat veteran.

My round 3 opponent was my old friend Leroy from the Kansas City Open. I have the White pieces.

Forbes,Todd (1293) - Asher,Leroy (1127)
The Chess Club Championship 2007 Kansas City, MO (3), 16.06.2007

B01: Scandinavian Defense

1.e4 d5 2.exd5 Nf6 3.d4 (frankly, I have little knowledge of this system and no plan against it. However, Back's next move surprised me as it seems to increase White's advantage) 3...Bf5 4.c4 c6 5.Bd3 (I was thinking of trading light square Bishops so I would have control over b1-h7 diagonal. Perhaps I should have considered 5.dxc6 Nxc6 6.d5) 5...Bxd3 6.Qxd3 cxd5 7.Nf3 h6 8.Nc3 e6 9.0–0 Be7 10.Bf4 0–0 11.Ne5 a6 12.Rfe1 Nbd7 13.cxd5 Nxd5 14.Nxd5 exd5 15.Re3 Nxe5 16.dxe5 Rc8 17.Ree1 Rc6 18.Red1 Bg5 19.Bxg5 Qxg5

20.Qg3 (Breaking my vow and throwing away my advantage. Best was 20.Qxd5!) 20...Rfc8 21.Qxg5 hxg5 22.h3 Rd8 23.Rd4 Rc4 24.Rad1 Rxd4 25.Rxd4 Kf8 26.g3 Ke7 27.f4 gxf4 28.gxf4 g6 29.Kf2 Ke6 30.a4 a5 31.b4 axb4 32.Rxb4 (Along about here I was thinking draw) 32...Rd7 33.Ke3 Kf5?

34.Rb6! d4+ 35.Kf3 d3 36.Rf6#

1–0

The 2007 Chess Club Championship Round 2

My last post was of my round 1 game. I don't know about most people, but when I play at tournaments I get really tired. This is in the form of mental fatigue and it is especially bad after a loss. I think deep down I knew I was getting the worse of it during the ending with my game with Yury and was lucky to have the draw. Exhausted is how I felt during the start of my second round game. My new opponent was a young man from New Mexico. I couldn't help thinking he was a little far of field, but chess is chess and people travel to play our game. I have the Black pieces this game.

Stuart,Zach (1238) - Forbes,Todd (1293)
The Chess Club Championship 2007 Kansas City, MO (2), 16.06.2007

B45: Sicilian Four Knights

1.e4 c5 2.d4 cxd4 3.Nf3 Nc6 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Bc4 e6

(Let just face it. Black is behind in development and the Bishop on c8 isn't moving anytime soon) 7.Bf4N (Novelty. White usually aims for 7.Be3) 7...e5? (Bad...just dreadfully bad. 7...Bb4!? was best)

8.Nxc6! bxc6 9.Bxe5 (Black goes down a pawn with no compensation) 9...Be7 10.Bd6 0-0 11.e5 Re8? (Better 11...Bxd6 but 12.Qxd6 Ne8 still leaves White with a winning advantage) 12.0–0 Bxd6 13.exd6 (This d6 pawn would prove to be a bone in my throat. Even better 13.Qxd6!? locking down the position) 13...Bb7 14.Qd3 Qb6 15.b3 a5 16.Na4 Qa7 17.Rfe1 Rab8 18.Qf5 Qa8?? (Blunder. The position was bad, and any move in a bad position is bad!)

19.Nb6 Rxe1+ 20.Rxe1 Re8 21.Nxa8 Rxe1+ 22.Bf1 Bxa8 23.Qxa5 Re8 24.b4 Nd5 25.b5 c5 26.c4 Nf4 27.Qc7 h6 28.Qxd7 Re1 29.Qc8+ Kh7 30.Qf5+ Ng6 31.d7 Be4 32.Qxf7 Bd3 33.h3 Rxf1+ 34.Kh2 Nh4 35.d8Q (35.d8Q Rh1+ 36.Kxh1 Nxg2 37.Qdg8#) 1–0

What a disaster! I felt down and dejected...hoping that the lunch break would help going into round 3.

A Plaque in Hand

I really couldn't believe it...I still don't. When the results were announced at The Chess Club of the 2007 Championship, I was included as the Under 1300 Champion. Someone made a mistake, surely? However, there I am (yellow T-shirt) holding my plaque and thinking back on those 4 rounds...hmm?!

Round 1:
Forbes,Todd (1293) - Markushin,Yury
The Chess Club Championship 2007 Kansas City, MO (1), 16.06.2007

C50: Hungarian Defence and Giuoco Pianissimo

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 exd4 4.Bc4 d6 5.Nxd4 Ne5 6.Bb3 Nf6 7.Bg5N (I am having trouble believing that is a theoretical novelty...I only wanted to pin the Knight) 7...Be7 8.Bxf6 (8.Nc3!? is worth a look) 8...Bxf6 9.Nc3 0–0 10.h3 Bh4 11.Qe2 a6 12.0–0–0 12...Bd7 (Yury missed 12...Qg5+ 13.Kb1 Qxg2 winning a pawn. However with 14.Rdf1 White is still in charge) 13.g3 Be7 14.f4 Nc6 15.Nd5 Nxd4 16.Rxd4 Bf6? (16...a5!? is a better try) 17.e5 (This pawn advance gives an edge to White) 17...dxe5? (Better for Back was 17...Be7)18.Nxf6+! gxf6 19.fxe5 Qe7

20.Rh4? (I blew it with this simple looking Rook move. Best was 20.Qh5 and the rest is a matter of technique 20...Bf5 21.Qxf5 Qxe5 22.Qxe5 fxe5 23.Rd7 and White has a winning advantage) 20...Qxe5 21.Qxe5 (I am just throwing away any advantage with this. Better here is 21.Qf2!?) 21...fxe5 (Black has equality with this passed pawn) 22.Bd5 c6 23.Be4 f5 (Black is now in full control of the game) 24.Bd3 Rae8 25.Bc4+ Be6 26.Bxe6+ Rxe6 27.Rc4 h5 28.a4 Rd8 29.a5 Kf7 30.Rd1 Rdd6 31.Rxd6 Rxd6 32.Rb4 Rd7 33.Rb3 Kf6 34.Rd3 Rxd3 35.cxd3 Kg5 36.Kd2 f4 37.Ke2 (37.gxf4+ would allow the White King to penetrate Black's Queen side) 37...fxg3 38.Kf3 g2! 39.Kxg2 Kf4 40.Kf2 c5 41.b3 h4 42.Ke2 Kg3 43.Ke3

Kxh3 44.Kf3 Draw (While Yury and I agreed on a draw, and I honestly believed at the time it was a drawn position, alas it is not. Play should have continued 44...Kh2 the White King is forced to keep the opposition with 45. Kf2 h3! this pawn move hands the opposition to Black and with it...the game. Interesting!)

I was disappointed with my play in round 1. Little did I know that round 2 would be a disaster.

Blitz Action!

Last Thursday night I went to The Chess club in Kansas City, Missouri, for the Summer Blitz (5 minute games) Grand Prix (a long term cash prize tournament). I had only gone to view the spectacle and had not plan to play. However, I was roped into participating by the friendly staff and an offer of a free meal. Hey, I like spaghetti and meatballs! The games started at 7 P.M. with the ticking of the chess clocks, followed by the slamming of the chessmen and the bashing of the chess clocks. Excitement builds during these games due to the wild attempts to win. One mistake is often fatal because you don't have time to regroup your thoughts and calculate your way out of the mess you created. My first game I won against a much stronger player. What followed was a slow trip into hell...losing me next 3 games. The above diagram is of one of my games against a very seasoned player named Tony. I have the white pieces. The previous moves have been: 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 exd4 4. Bc4 Bc5 What would you do next? I'll tell you this. Whatever I did do wasn't correct because I lost in a most humiliating manner! You just can't overcome this and act as nothing has happened. Finally, I was to finish the night playing a lesser opponent and I was glad. I wanted to have an equal score for the evenings work. Unfortunately, it didn't work out that way. I won the second to last game convincingly, but in the final tragedy struck as I banged on the chess clock in an aggressive manner and my flag fell...meaning I lost on time. I had a winning position. Crap! So the ultimate score was 2 games out of 6. I did receive a quick chess rating of 1297 Elo USCF. Really, not bad for the first time out in this type of quick game. I know I can do better!

I have had some suggestions for play from the above positon. One suggestion was 5. Bxf7+. I think Black gets a Bishop for a pawn and holds the postion. An example of play would be 5...Kxf7 6. Ng5+ Kf8 7. Qf3+ Nf6 and I believe Black has a slight plus. We could improve the line on the sixth move with 6. c3 d5! 7. 0-0 dxe4 8. Ng5+ but black is still holding an advantage with 8...Kf8. Finally, someone suggested 5. 0-0 and safely tuck White's King away. In my opinion that allows Black to much compensation for an unnecessary move. Black will simply play 5...d6 freeing his light square Bishop and increasing the scope of his Queen. Does anyone have anything better?

The Depot

The other day I was telling my faithful readers about my home town of Dansville, New York. I had mentioned the Lackawanna Railroad had a depot on the East Hill. Now some folks called it Lackawanna Hill because the railroad owned the wye that ran for miles along the hill. The depot was atop a road called...Depot Road of course. My Mother, Freda, was telling me all about the great trains of yesteryear. She says that the building was black, but it looks blue to me. Now I am not one to say much about the woman that gave me life, but..."Mother, you may be color blind and in need of glasses!" Actually, she sees fine. I understand these events took place over 50 years ago. So she tells me that the grade was steep up Dansville Hill (that is what the Railroad called the grade between Groveland Station and Perkinsville) and each East-bound train needed a helper Engine to pull the load up this 12.6 mile stretch. I wish I could have seen, heard, and remembered those behemoths chugging up the grade. Wow, what a sight to see. My Mother and my Aunt Colleen are a great source of information about things past. Enjoy the photo! If anyone is a rail buff let me know.

Today is bill paying day. The U.S. Government giveth and then taketh away. Since I get paid once a month I have to pay all the living expenses at the first of the month and have loads of fiscal discipline to make it to the next payday.

Yesterday I spent about 3 hours with my chess openings. My little data base of openings is improving and soon I will be training myself to be an expert at what I have prepared. This system is much better than the old school way I was doing it. Now I have the means of trimming those bad, inaccurate, and wasted moves from my repertoire. I was looking at adding the Stonewall Attack and with a few clicks of the mouse I now have it in my opening book and I am learning it. Next I will invest about $50 in a tactical trainer and I'll be on my way to a good showing in the club championship!

The chopper chat

Late last night I received a call from a my good friend, Father Carroll Thorne. It seems that he wanted my company for breakfast. So early this morning I went to meet him at the Price Chopper (A local supermarket). He was glad I came and asked me question after question, "What would you like for breakfast?" I thinking of biscuits and scrambled eggs, Father. "What...no meat? You realize Lent is over, don't you?" Yes, Father. The meat hurts my stomach. "You should get that checked out...by a Doctor!" Yes, Father! So our friendship goes. He talks and I listen. He is an older gentleman who has seen his share of horrors in the Philippines (He was removed by General Marcos for telling the Dole Plantation workers to raise and stand up for there rights) and while serving with the United States Army in such places as Viet Nam and Iraq. Now he is the Roman Catholic Priest for the United States Disciplinary Barracks (Military Prison). I see he is tired and he explains that there had been some "business" at the prison. He talks and I listen. This is how it should be. The elders passing on their wisdom to the respectfully listening youths. I speak only when an answer is expected from me. He shares his knowledge without condescension and I learn without intervention. A mutually agreeable relationship! No power struggle at all. We both enjoy our station. I wish my son would understand this type of relationship between men.

It is Friday. Supposedly, I am going to The Chess Club in Kansas City, Missouri, to play tonight. I regularly do this so I can get lessons from our local Master, Life National Master Ron Luther. However, on Saturday there is a ratings only tournament. I would like to play in it for training, but I don't want to lose rating points by having to play against much stronger opposition. One can't imagine the agony of chess. You must play to get better, but your ego and emotions are tied into each game. One silly-stupid-wrong move during critical game with a higher rated opponent and it is game over!! You're left feeling naked and exposed, feelings raw, emotions running high and wild. This is the roller-coaster ride of chess. You start off safe and climb higher with each win. Very soon you climb as high as you can and now there is only place to go...down. Crashing down into a depression where your ego is crushed and your confidence trampled. Some people fail recover from this and will not play rated games again. That is why preparation is so important. Study + Practice = Results.

Kansas City Area Chess

This photograph was taken in The Chess Club in Riverside (Think Kansas City), Missouri. It depicts the scene and action of a tournament in progress. What is missing is the ticking of the chess clocks...tic, toc, tic, toc! It is maddening to listen to. What you can't see is the nervous-worried-anxiety filled faces, the fingers running obsessively through ones hair, and the various twitches of the body that is a result of concentration and frantic thought. This was very much the scene on Saturday during the April Rating Only tournament.

My tournament didn't go as planned. First I was late getting out of the house, as I couldn't leave with out my my chess books and things. Then the traffic was heavy for some reason. I arrived before the tournament started, but I wanted about an hour to look through my preparation. This was more like ten minutes. My first opponent was much stronger than I. To make it worse, I would have to play with the black pieces and hold on for dear life. It began at 10 a.m. with the call to start the clocks...tic, toc, tic, toc! Walker-Forbes: 1. e4 c5 2. d4 cxd4 3. c3 Nc6 (better 3...d5!) 4. cxd4 Nf6 5. e5 Nd5 6. Bc4 e6 7. Nc3 Nxc3 (black can get a slight plus with 7...d6) 8. bxc3 Be7 9. Nf3 0-0 10. Bd3 d5 11. h4 a6?? ....Oh, that hurt! I was thinking about controlling the square b5 and about freeing my light square Bishop. What I should of been doing is creating threats with 11...Qa5. This would have kept the game even and even gave my chances to win if white misplays. Instead I allow a mating attack and would resign on move 20. This was to be my only loss and my only game as black.

After reviving myself with a Chinese buffet, 3 cups of coffee, and a brisk walk. I came to my next game with a clear head. I had the white pieces. This would be the pattern for the next two games and I would play almost the same way. My second game of the day started at 1 p.m. and was over in about 30 minutes. His name was Daniel and he was new to the chess scene. He started our game fine, but on move 7 he started moving pieces twice and soon I had an attack the Bobby Fischer would have approved of...sac, sac, mate! Daniel would go on to lose all three of his games this day. Sorry Dan!

My third and last game started at 4 p.m. and I faced a higher rated opponent. This too would be a Sicilian. My first game was in the Smith-Morra Gambit variation, my second game was in the Njadorf variation, and now....the feared Dragon variation! I played the Yugoslav Attack and missed a win on move 15. Instead of playing 15. Bxg5 I should have played 15. h6! and my attack would have been irresistible. We agreed on a draw after move 50. My score for the tournament: 1.5/3 +1 -1 =1. So I had a dead even day and felt okay with the results. I even got a small boost in my rating.

Those of you that are really curious as to my chess career can go to the site and click on schedules, then click on USCF tournaments, find the April RO and click on reports. This takes you to the USCF ratings site and again click on April RO and find my name and click on it. That gives my whole tournament history and rating. If you want to view one of my games? Instead of schedule, you click on games/reports. Find the Kansas City Open and click on it. This takes you to a viewer and if you will find my name on the left hand side and click on it will bring up one of my games.