Worst Opening Ever?

February 23, 2019

As you know, I often blog about games against the computer. When I do this, I feel guilty about the fact that these games are cherry-picked. Usually I only show my best games, although occasionally I might show a game where I played well in general but then missed a winning move, because such games […]

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Quick PRO Chess Standings Update

February 21, 2019

When I wrote my last post I couldn’t tell yet how much the San Francisco Mechanics had moved up in our division of the PRO Chess League. Now today’s two Battle Royales are in the books, and the league standings have been updated. Here is how our division looks: Dallas – 159.5 Chengdu – 152 […]

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When Second Feels Like First

February 20, 2019

There are only three words to describe the San Francisco Mechanics’ performance in the PRO Chess League last night: Danya! Danya! Danya! But if I were allowed three more words, they would be: Epic. Unbelievable. Comeback. Either description is perfect. But first, let me back up and set some context. Going into week 7 (out […]

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More Fun With Shredder

February 14, 2019

I haven’t written about any of my games with Shredder in at least three or four months, partly because I realized I was overdoing it. Also my tournament results showed me that playing against the computer was not really doing anything good for my game, and maybe even hurting it in some ways. So I’ve […]

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Mission (Half) Accomplished

February 13, 2019

Last week I wrote that the San Francisco Mechanics’ PRO Chess League match this week was one that we “really have to win to achieve our team goals.” Hm, perhaps that was a bit of exaggeration. In a very hard-fought match against the San Diego Surfers, the Mechanics ended up with an 8-8 tie. I’m […]

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Avalanche in Berkeley!

February 7, 2019

First, let’s get one thing straight. Avalanches never happen in Berkeley. Reason one: There’s no snow. But yesterday, for the first time since 2011, there was snow in the mountains to the east of San Francisco (the Diablo Range, for those of you who are really up on your geography). As I drove from Santa […]

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The Big Trade-off

January 27, 2019

Today’s post is about two players on the San Francisco Mechanics who are both coming to a turning point in any young chess player’s career—or indeed, in the life of anyone in their early twenties: graduation from college. This is the point where they have to decide, am I going to keep on pursuing chess […]

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PRO Chess Overview — First 3 Weeks

January 24, 2019

So far in this PRO Chess League Season I’ve been focusing on the San Francisco Mechanics, since they asked me to be their official team blogger. But for a change let’s look at what else has been happening in the rest of the league through the first three weeks. This gives us a chance to […]

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Positively Gutted, I Tell Ya

January 23, 2019

My wife is a big fan of reality television, and has watched almost every episode of the Great British Baking Show and has moved on to watching the not-so-great British interior design show. Even if the shows fail to teach us interior design, they at least educate us to some of the finer points of […]

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More Thoughts on Bay Area International

January 10, 2019

The ratings for the 2019 Bay Area International went up on the USCF website this morning, and this gives me an excuse for writing a few more reflections on the chess week that just ended three days ago. The tournament truly lived up to its name as an international. It’s not possible from the rating […]

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