Style Analysis by GM Michael Rohde:
Yermolinsky's grinding style and great results in the last couple of years have earned him the appellation "The Yerminator". Yermolinsky is particularly adept at the transitional phases of the game; against him, a normal middlegame can easily become a lost endgame. Yermolinsky rivalled Kamsky in sitzfleisch, which is essentially the ability to just sit there until the opponent drops. But to Yermolinsky, all this is happenstance; he is just playing his regular chess. Yermolinsky impresses as being a player who can really mobilize his inner resources and respond to the needs of the position. Not a privileged beneficiary of the Soviet chess system, he nevertheless soaked up a great education there, which became a springboard for his continued success here. Yermolinsky enjoys tense positions; something is always cooking in his games and he is equally at home in tactical melees or strategical campaigns. Yermolinsky has done his due diligence with respect to chess theory, and plays a wide variety of positions.

Openings: Yermolinsky has made a practice out of the Classical Sicilian as Black and he seems especially conversant in Richter-Rauzer lines. Yermolinsky can easily switch to other sharp Sicilian lines, such as the Najdorf or the Taimanov. Yermolinsky also likes to vary as White, occasionally using 1 e4 although closed openings are his preference; in playing 1 d4 openings, he will often start with 1 Nf3 and explore move order opportunities. Yermolinsky has a wide repertoire of defenses to 1 d4 - notable among them are the King's Indian, the Slav and the Nimzo-Indian.

Style Analysis by GM Michael Rohde

Style: Shaked, the World Junior Champion, is a super-hard worker who has made the most of his opportunities and has established himself as the premier player of his generation. Always extremely talented, Shaked grew up in Tucson where there were not so many chances to play against strong players. When Shaked was awarded the Samford Fellowship a few years back, he used it to travel extensively, playing about 70 FIDE-rated games per six-month rating list, and arranging to take lessons from such luminaries as Dvoretsky and Yusupov. Shaked is polite and modest, and also a very accomplished student; Shaked will attend the University of Maryland, Baltimore Campus - UMBC has instituted a scholarship program for strong chess players. Shaked has a well-rounded chess style marked by youthful exuberance and grounded in an industrious study of contemporary opening theory. Shaked's style is incisive in the best tradition of strong young players, and where an opponent deviates from theory, Shaked will seek to logically exploit the move if it is a mistake or otherwise react appropriately. Having played well in the 1997 Championship, Shaked is treated as one more tough opponent by all of the players. But recognizing that his Championship opponents have tons more experience than him, Shaked will likely seek safety in active openings, try to use theory to his advantage, and use attack as the best defense.

Openings: Shaked has switched from 1 e4 to 1 d4, in time for his victory last year at the World Junior. As Black against 1 d4, Shaked is very well booked up on the King's Indian, which is perfect for his style. As Black against 1 e4, Shaked has always liked the French Defense, and will also try variations of the Sicilian.

US Chess Federation

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