by scribe | Apr 8, 2017 | Chess Life, current news, endings, games, positions
In my last entry I wrote about how exciting it is to win a game that you were just hoping to draw. The outcome of this year’s U.S. Championship might end up being determined by just such a game. Round nine. Varuzhan Akobian versus Fabiano Caruana. Akobian...
by scribe | Mar 9, 2017 | current news, endings, PRO Chess League, tournaments
Yesterday I watched the PRO Chess League for the first time since week 2. (By the way, I finally found out that PRO is an abbreviation for Professional Rapid Online. That’s why it is obnoxiously capitalized all the time.) Naturally, I jinxed the team I was...
by scribe | Mar 4, 2017 | current news, endings, games, people, positions
Yesterday I found out on Facebook that Walter Shipman had died. I guess it’s not too much of a surprise, as he was 87 years old, but he is one of those few people who seem determined to keep on going forever. Somehow that plan never seems to work, but he gave it...
by scribe | Aug 28, 2016 | chess clubs, Chess Lecture, endings, games
We’ve arrived at game number six in my series of Six Memorable Games. It is not at all a perfect game, but in some ways it is a perfect illustration of both the good and bad features of my chess: occasional moments of creativity interspersed with frustrating...
by scribe | Apr 25, 2016 | endings, games, people, ruminations
About once a year I like to take a look at my blog stats, just to see what is happening. What are my most popular posts all-time? What are the most popular ones recently? The all-time list never changes very much — it’s always the same post at the top, and...
by scribe | Mar 23, 2016 | chess clubs, endings, games, people, ruminations
At present the two strongest players in the Aptos Library Chess Club are named Luke and Alex. It’s so interesting to watch them play, because they have contrasting strengths. I think Luke overall has a more solid understanding of the game. He has actually done...
