by scribe | Nov 3, 2018 | 2018 world championship, chess clubs, current news, endings, positions, tournaments
As many of you know, I had a disappointing tournament in Reno last month, and I plan to write at least two or three posts trying to understand the reasons for my failure. But I’d like to start with a “failure” that really wasn’t — it was...
by scribe | Oct 23, 2018 | current news, people, tournaments
What a strange tournament I had this weekend at the Western States Open. But before I talk about my experience, let me recap the bigger picture. The victor was Grandmaster Fidel Corrales Jimenez, with a score of 5-1. He benefited a bit from the fact that the other two...
by scribe | Oct 19, 2018 | current news, games, positions, tournaments
This weekend I’m in Reno to play in my second chess tournament of the year, the Western States Open. When I got up this morning I wanted to wash my hair, but I couldn’t find the complimentary bottle of shampoo provided by the hotel. I looked high, I looked...
by scribe | Oct 5, 2018 | current news, tournaments
Two years ago, American chess fans were justifiably proud and thrilled when our team brought home the gold in the 2016 Chess Olympiad. However, it’s worth remembering that we actually won by the slimmest possible margin on tiebreaks; the outcome of one game on...
by scribe | Sep 23, 2018 | Chess Lecture, current news, games, people, positions
Once upon a time there were two guys who liked to play chess in a park. One of them worked for a tech company, and the other had an idea. Why not build a chess website that would be both a hangout and a database? They didn’t really have a plan for making money,...
by scribe | Sep 4, 2018 | current news, people, positions, tournaments
When you are an adult playing chess in the San Francisco Bay area, it sometimes feels as if you are that last person holding your finger in the dike, trying to keep the sea of young players from completely wiping out the older generation. Sometimes, the old folks...
