The May Check is in the Mail
By Alex Dunne   
May 22, 2013
Holroyd_Kenneth.jpgIM Kenneth Holroyd

Kenneth Holroyd, our newest International Correspondence Chess Master was born April 20, 1958. Kenneth works at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee as Medical Director for the Technology Commercialization Center. Kenneth, who was an OTB Master, found little time for chess other than blitz chess online.  Then in 2010 he was speaking with Dan Fleetwood, an ICCF Grandmaster, who offered some encouraging words about correspondence chess.  Those words and Kenneth's skill led to the ICCM title in his first two attempts at international play.

Kenneth notes that the thing he particularly enjoys about cc is that "it is a more ‘perfect' chess, and each game can be like a work of art.  The games often have a certain logical flow.  Very often the games involve developing new opening theory and improvements, and many theoretical contributions are made.  Spending a lot of time trying to determine the truth of a position deepens your appreciation for the depth and complexity of chess.  It can only help a player's over the board and blitz chess for openings, middlegames, and endgames".

GAME OF THE MONTH

ICCM Holroyd wrote about both the work of art and the logical flow of a CC game.  This game may well be an example of both !

KING'S INDIAN DEFENSE (E97)

6798

Notes by Kenneth Holroyd

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.Nf3 0-0 6.Be2 e5 7.0-0 Nc6 8.d5 Ne7
A complex position in the King's Indian Defense, which is popular in correspondence chess, offers chances for both sides.
 9.b4
The Bayonet Attack, a favorite of former World Champion Vladimir Kramnik. The ensuing sharp play can shift rapidly from the queenside, to the center, to the kingside.
9...Nh5 10.c5
More common in recent years are 10 g3 or 10 Re1
10...Nf4 11.a4!?
Much more common is 11 Bxf4. Instead, White immediately continues his queenside expansion. This uncommon move was experimented with in 2011 by V. Kramnik in a game against H. Nakamura, which the former world champion lost after a sharp battle. Subsequently it has been played in a few other over the board games.. This game was its first use of 11 a4 in the ICCF databases. Since this game I have completed two other ICCF games with this move, with two wins. Performing new analysis of little used lines can be a fruitful area for success in correspondence chess.
11...f5 12.Bc4 fxe4 13.Nxe4 Bg4!?
Nakamura preferred 13.....h6, after which I believe 14 Ra3 is an improvement on Kramnik's play. I currently have three ICCF games ongoing with this new move.
14.Ra3 Nf5 15.h3 Bh5!?
Sharper than ...... Bxf3 on move 15 or 16, after which White has a slight advantage.
16.Kh2 Nxg2 17.Bg5
Otherwise Black has a very strong attack and advantage.
17...Qc8?
I believe better is 17.....Qe8, although after 18 Kxg2 h6 19 Bd2 Nh4+ 20 Nxh4 Bxd1 21 Rxd1 White's three pieces eventually overwhelmed the Black queen in the game Holroyd-Balabanov from the same ICCF Master Norm 82 tournament.
18.Kxg2 h6 19.Be3 Nh4+ 20.Nxh4 Bxd1 21.Rxd1 Kh7 22.Bd3
The strongest and clearest way to press White's advantage seemed to be the following knight sacrifice.
22...Qd8 23.cxd6 cxd6
23...Qxh4 does not help as after 24 dxc7 Qh5 25 Rg1 White's position is near winning.
24.Nxg6!!
Much stronger than 24 Nf3
24...Kxg6
If 24.....Re8 then 25 Ng3 still gives White a winning attack.
25.Nxd6+ e4!?
The best chance to survive. The two alternatives are 25....Kh5 26 Ne4, after which Black has 10 different reasonable moves as defensive attempts, and 25.....Kf6 26 Bc5, after which the strongest move for Black is 26....Rg8, and then for White 27 Ne4+ is stronger than 27 Bh7. I invite the reader to explore these variations. I found many of them to be very beautiful. As an example, my favorite variation demonstrating the coordination of White's pieces was 25... Kh5 26 Ne4 Kg6 27 Rc3 Kh7 28 d6 Kh8 29 Rc7 Rf5 30 Rdc1 b6 31 Kh2! and White has a winning advantage. Working out all of these possibilities to an winning advantage for White was necessary before playing 22 Bd3, and planning 24 Nxg6.
26.Bxe4+ Kh5 27.Bc5 Be5 28.Nf5
Black can hang on quite awhile after 28 Nxb7.
28...Rxf5 29.Bxf5 b6 30.Re3 Qg5+ 31.Bg4+ Kg6 32.Rde1 Bf6 33.Be7 Qxd5+ 34.Bf3 Qg5+ 35.Kf1 Re8
Unfortunately necessary at the end of this long forced sequence.
36.Bxf6 Qxf6 37.Rxe8 Qxf3
White has a winning advantage, as his two rooks create mating threats, and Black cannot defend by trading his queen for the two rooks, as the king and pawn endings will be won for White, due to his extra pawn. This also was reassuring to be worked out when playing 22 Bd3.
38.R1e6+ Kh5 39.Kg1 Qd1+ 40.Kg2 Qd5+ 41.Re4 Kg6 42.b5 h5 43.R8e6+ Kg7 44.R6e5 Qa8 45.Kf3 Kh6 46.Re6+ Kh7 47.Re8 Qd5 48.R8e5 Qf7+ 49.Rf4 Qb7+ 50.Ke2 Kg6 51.h4 Kg7 52.Rg5+ Kh6 53.Rgf5 1-0

White threatens Rf7 and R4f6 mate, and defending by trading the queen for the two rooks results in a lost king and pawn ending. Therefore Black resigned.

QuoteFor players with a good imagination: before going to sleep analyze the position without sight of the board.  Thereby his subconscious is also included in the creative process during sleep - Horst Rittner

OBITUARIES

Auro Bustillo

Bustillo.jpg Auro Bustillo  was born Aug. 11, 1934,died March 14, 2013. Auro was born in Bolivia but lived in  San Jose, CA. Auro reached Expert strength. His daughter remarked that one of Auro's greatest loves was the game of chess.

SCOTCH GAME (C44)
6799

Joseph J. Kennedy of Chalfont, PA  born December 1, 1933, died this January. Joseph played in CCLA and USCF tournaments and OTB.

BLACKMAR GAMBIT (D00)

6800

Robert Byrne

Byrne.jpgRobert Byrne, Grandmaster at OTB,  was born April 20, 1928 and died April  12, 2013.  He developed his early skills in the game at postal  chess. Here is 15 year old Robert in a game against the strong John Staffer. Ratings are old style (add approximately 700 points)

DUTCH DEFENSE (A10)

6801

Robert Reynolds

Robert Reynolds was born July 20, 1950, died March 10, 2013.  Robert was an International Master at correspondence chess, but he was also much more.  In 1988 his record at correspondence play was 33 ½- ½ . That half point?  That was when he won the 6th US Correspondence Chess Championship with a 13 ½- ½ score. In the early Nineties Robert was listed in the top 10 in the world in ICCF rating. 

Robert also issued the "Reynolds Challenge" in the mid-eighties where he offered to bet that no computer could beat him in a match.  That challenge was never accepted.

COLLE OPENING (D05)

6802

APRIL RESULTS

Walter Muir
      Fletcher Penney  12W40  6-0
        Mark Reeves       12W38  4-2
        Donald Wade      12W38  4-2
        Gregory Sanders 12W19  6-0
        Nathaniel Wood  13W05  5 ½-½
        Gregory Sanders 12W32  5 ½-½
        Charles Gibson   13W03  6-0
        Doug Frame        12W23  4 ½-1 ½
        Francis McDyer  12W24  4 ½-1 ½
        Jonathan Allen    12W24  4 ½-1 ½

Palciauskas Tournament
            James Ruth   12P01   6-0
            Joel Levine   11P05  5 ½-½
John Collins
            Vernon Simmons     11C20  5-1
            Philip DeAugustino 11C20  5-1
            John Flanagan          10C32  4 ½-1 ½

Swift Quad
            Eric Arnold       13SQ01     6-0

LEARN CHESS BY MAIL !  Lessons given by mail, telephone, ICC - many different ways.  I specialize in players rated 800-2100 who would like to improve their game.  Contact me for information.  Alex Dunne, 324 West Lockhart St., Sayre, PA 18840 or [email protected]

Chess booklet for sale:  2004 Golden Knights Championship  --  booklet of the 57th USCF CC Championship -- $10.00 postage  paid.  35 pages, 90+ games

THE ABSOLUTE CORRESPONDENCE CHAMPIONSHIP OF THE UNITED STATES CHESS FEDERATION 1976-2010

is now available at McFarland Publishers and Amazon for $45.00 and also Kindle at $16.49

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Doug Frame defeated his main rival in this key game from 12W23.

OLD BENONI DEFENSE (A43)

6803

The Fantasy Variation of the Caro Kann isn't seen too often.  Here it gives White some bad dreams.

CARO KANN (B12)

6804 

ICCM Holroyd demonstrates that advanced center Pawns are more valuable than passed but passive wing Pawns.

 SEMI SLAV DEFENSE (D43)

6805

Two raking bishops more than compensate for the exchange.

SEMI SLAV DEFENSE (D43)

6806


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