FBG Chess Tournament- 1st place to Zow, Winner! (2 Viewers)

[AAABatteries]

Scoobus and I are in a tight battle - one mistake will probably win it for the other guy.

 

[scoobus]

Scoobus and I are in a tight battle - one mistake will probably win it for the other guy.

AAABatteries wins, close throughout but he broke through at the end.

 

[AAABatteries]

Scoobus and I are in a tight battle - one mistake will probably win it for the other guy.

AAABatteries wins, close throughout but he broke through at the end.

Great game - really close throughout and I just lucked in to a good position. I think we both made some minor errors toward the end but really fun match - thanks @scoobus !

 

[timschochet]

I beat Nick in a tight endgame. It was well played.

 

[timschochet]

2 games left in round 4:

@Bogart vs @Sand
@tri-man 47 vs @shuke

 

[Bogart]

2 games left in round 4:

@Bogart vs @Sand
@tri-man 47 vs @shuke

We are progressing.

 

[tri-man 47]

2 games left in round 4:

@Bogart vs @Sand
@tri-man 47 vs @shuke

We're moving into the end game stage. An early queen exchange left us with a battle based on our minor pieces, which has been a positional battle. For being the two winless competitors, surprisingly, neither of us has done anything stupid. Yet.

 

[Sand]

2 games left in round 4:

@Bogart vs @Sand
@tri-man 47 vs @shuke

We are progressing.

He's progressing. I'm regressing.

 

[tri-man 47]

Shuke wins. @shuke , sorry that I dragged out the ending. I had some hopes of playing to a stalemate (= a draw) where I couldn't make a move. But you worked it to a checkmate.

A good game! I had a couple pawn advantage and waited patiently for an opportunity to make use of that. But when it came, I fell just short of promoting the pawn to a queen as I was blocked by a bishop. In the meantime, we ended up exchanging other pieces and he got the upper hand in a pawn battle on the opposite side of the board.

 

[shuke]

Shuke wins. @shuke , sorry that I dragged out the ending. I had some hopes of playing to a stalemate (= a draw) where I couldn't make a move. But you worked it to a checkmate.

No need to apologize. I do this every game I play. Good game.

 

[Sand]

Bogart wins.

 

[timschochet]

Standings after Round 4:

4 pts
timschochet

3.5 pts
@Zow

3 pts
@AAABatteries

2.5 pts
@Nick Vermeil

2 pts
@Bogart
@Captain Cranks
@Psychopav
@scoobus

1 pt
@Dezbelief
@Sand
@shuke

0 pts
@tri-man 47

 

[timschochet]

Round 5

@Zow vs timschochet
@Nick Vermeil vs @AAABatteries
@Captain Cranks vs @scoobus
@Psychopav vs @Sand
@shuke vs @Bogart
@Dezbelief vs @tri-man 47

 

[timschochet]

Woz defeated me with an excellent endgame. Brilliantly played.

 

[timschochet]

Here is my game vs Zow. He was white. It’s worth taking a look at to see how somebody (Zow) plays a near perfect endgame, while the other guy (me) deliberately gives himself a bad bishop.

1. e4 d5
2. exd5 Qxd5
3. Nc3 Qa5
4. d4 Bf5
5. Nf3 Nf6
6. Bc4 e6
7. Bd2 c6
8. Ne4 Qc7
9. Nxf6+ gxf6
10. Qe2 Nd7
11. Bb3 O-O-O
12. O-O-O Bd6
13. Nh4 Bg6
14. g3 f5
15. Ng2 Nf6
16. Bg5 Be7
17. Nf4 Nd5
18. Bxe7 Nxf4
19. gxf4 Qxe7
20. h4 h5
21. Qe5 Qd6
22. c3 Kd7
23. a4 Qxe5
24. dxe5+ Ke7
25. Rxd8 Rxd8
26. Rd1 Rxd1+
27. Bxd1 f6
28. b4 fxe5
29. fxe5 Kf7
30. Kb2 f4
31. Kb3 Kg7
32. a5 Kh6
33. Bf3 Bf5
34. c4 Bg4
35. a6 bxa6
36. Bxc6 Kg6
37. f3 Bh3
38. Be8+ Kf5
39. Bxh5 Kxe5
40. c5 Bf1
41. c6 Kd6
42. Bg6 Bb5
43. h5 Ke7
44. c7 Bd7
45. h6 Kf6
46. h7 Kg7
47. Be4 Bc8
48. Kc4 1-0

 

[Captain Cranks]

@scoobus invite sent.

 

[timschochet]

I played another game with Woz and he beat me again this time even more decisively. Dude has stepped up his game, much better than me at this point.

 

[tri-man 47]

@Dezbelief and I are off and running …still moving through the openings.

 

[Zow]

Woz defeated me with an excellent endgame. Brilliantly played.

Thanks, Tim!

You opened with d5 in response to my standard e4 and I'm very comfortable playing against that response so that allowed me to settle in with confidence. Then, in perhaps one of the absolute most nerdiest things I've ever done, because you were playing so quickly and I felt comfortable with my position, I went and told my wife I was going to the gym. Which I did, and proceeded to sit on a rarely used piece of equipment and just focus on our game. Did like two sets in 1.5 hrs haha. Got home and my wife and her family asked how the gym was and why I was gone for so long and all I could say was, "I beat this guess at chess I've never beaten before!" Needless to say they were confused. But I ran an errand for them on my way home so they were higher and didn't press for an explanation.

I played another game with Woz and he beat me again this time even more decisively. Dude has stepped up his game, much better than me at this point.

Again, appreciate the words, Tim. Those were probably the best two games I've played that I can think of (I'm still really proud of my draw against @kutta a few years back as I know now how little I knew about the game back then).

If I can provide some helpful advice, it really helps to continue on with lessons and tutorials as opposed to just playing. Watching a GM or IM who can explain thought processes, general principles, and common higher-level tactics is really helpful at least to me as I learn best by having a particular principle explained then seeing an example.

What I think really helps me in our format is that there really is no time clock. So, armed with like 25 solid principles - a couple of which are end game principles that have really helped (such as in our pawn game ending in that first game where I need to create multiple pawn threats that stretch your king too thin) - that span across a whole game and no time pressure, when I'm able to sit in silence and just focus I am usually able to find the best move. I now always employ the principle, "when you see an obvious good move, take the time to look for a not-so-obvious move that may be better." That really helped me in our first match with Tim because when I ran the game through an analyzer afterwards (which I recommend doing to because it really helps to see that oftentimes a top 3 engine move isn't the obvious one and it kind of helps to get a sense of what to look for as the top or a top 3 "computer move" is usually more positional) I was happy to see a lot of my moves were in the top 3. And, at points in both of my games against Tim, old Woz would have surely without hesitation made two aggressive plays (one in each game) that Tim probably would have defended and gotten an advantage. I also really looked for better moves in our end game as I think with almost every move my initial instinct was a lesser move (though I don't think any word have been major blunders, just would have been likely we drew the game). I've also, on my lunch, been doing some end game puzzles online and those have helped with that area and seeing just how often the not-so-obvious move is the far superior move.

The above all said Tim, I still guarantee you kick my butt in a blitz game where your experience and tactics would prevail as I wouldn't have the time to study each and every move and second guess all of my moves like I did in our games this past weekend. In other words, left to my initial instincts and feeling time pressure my confidence level and immediate ability to see the better play just isn't there yet. And, should we get into an opening I'm not as comfortable with like the two we played yesterday, you're in good shape there, too.

 

[Captain Cranks]

Cranks defeats Scoobus. We turned that bad boy into a blitz match.

 

[Sand]

Pav and I are playing the wildest game I've had in memory. Also the hardest one I've played- he's wrung me out. Super sharp game. I traded material for position and have been in a mad scramble to not get mated since.

31 moves in and I still have all eight pawns. Complete nuttiness. I can't wait to see the analysis where I'm sure we made 16 blunders.

 

[Nick Vermeil]

@AAABatteries resigns. GG GB. I do feel like I've gotten a couple of free passes from AAA and Zow. I'm not great at the end game, but I'll take it!

 

[AAABatteries]

@AAABatteries resigns. GG GB. I do feel like I've gotten a couple of free passes from AAA and Zow. I'm not great at the end game, but I'll take it!

Honestly - I screwed up the opening so badly that I should have resigned a few moves ago. Great game!

 

[AAABatteries]

And on that note - big tip if you play against me. I know nothing about openings so if you play something exotic you’ll probably kill me.

 

[Sand]

And on that note - big tip if you play against me. I know nothing about openings so if you play something exotic you’ll probably kill me.

Now you let that out...

 

[shuke]

@Bogart and I are underway. Based on history, this game should take about 4 weeks to complete.

 

[Psychopav]

Pav and I are playing the wildest game I've had in memory. Also the hardest one I've played- he's wrung me out. Super sharp game. I traded material for position and have been in a mad scramble to not get mated since.

31 moves in and I still have all eight pawns. Complete nuttiness. I can't wait to see the analysis where I'm sure we made 16 blunders.

Yeah, but I screwed up big league early on. The writing had been on the wall for awhile. Now I should really just concede (but I won't...I won't, dammit!)

 

[Sand]

Pav and I are playing the wildest game I've had in memory. Also the hardest one I've played- he's wrung me out. Super sharp game. I traded material for position and have been in a mad scramble to not get mated since.

31 moves in and I still have all eight pawns. Complete nuttiness. I can't wait to see the analysis where I'm sure we made 16 blunders.

Yeah, but I screwed up big league early on. The writing had been on the wall for awhile. Now I should really just concede (but I won't...I won't, dammit!)

I was sooooo close to getting my queen trapped from like move 15-28. With less pieces on the board I'm in less danger, but the one move queen blunder is always on the table when I'm in control of the pieces.

 

[Zow]

And on that note - big tip if you play against me. I know nothing about openings so if you play something exotic you’ll probably kill me.

Like the bongcloud?

King's Pawn Opening: The Bongcloud - Chess Openings

The Bongcloud is a meme opening where White or Black move their king on the first few moves of the game. Among the worst openings in chess, the Bongcloud ...

www.chess.com

 

[Zow]

Or the crab opening?

chess crab opening - Google Suche

 

[tri-man 47]

@Dezbelief wins. He didn’t castle, so I tried a couple different assaults on his king, but that ended up driving the king to a well-guarded position. Ultimately, I made a misguided move that led directly to checkmate. A good game, though!

 

[Dezbelief]

@Dezbelief wins. He didn’t castle, so I tried a couple different assaults on his king, but that ended up driving the king to a well-guarded position. Ultimately, I made a misguided move that led directly to checkmate. A good game, though!

Definitely a good game and a lucky win for me. I felt out of position for most of the game.

 

[Sand]

Pav and I are playing the wildest game I've had in memory. Also the hardest one I've played- he's wrung me out. Super sharp game. I traded material for position and have been in a mad scramble to not get mated since.

31 moves in and I still have all eight pawns. Complete nuttiness. I can't wait to see the analysis where I'm sure we made 16 blunders.

Yeah, but I screwed up big league early on. The writing had been on the wall for awhile. Now I should really just concede (but I won't...I won't, dammit!)

1 blunder the whole game. That was it. Really, for 11-1200 rated players we played a very good game.

 

[timschochet]

Pav and I are playing the wildest game I've had in memory. Also the hardest one I've played- he's wrung me out. Super sharp game. I traded material for position and have been in a mad scramble to not get mated since.

31 moves in and I still have all eight pawns. Complete nuttiness. I can't wait to see the analysis where I'm sure we made 16 blunders.

Yeah, but I screwed up big league early on. The writing had been on the wall for awhile. Now I should really just concede (but I won't...I won't, dammit!)

1 blunder the whole game. That was it. Really, for 11-1200 rated players we played a very good game.

Wait, is it over?

 

[Sand]

Pav and I are playing the wildest game I've had in memory. Also the hardest one I've played- he's wrung me out. Super sharp game. I traded material for position and have been in a mad scramble to not get mated since.

31 moves in and I still have all eight pawns. Complete nuttiness. I can't wait to see the analysis where I'm sure we made 16 blunders.

Yeah, but I screwed up big league early on. The writing had been on the wall for awhile. Now I should really just concede (but I won't...I won't, dammit!)

1 blunder the whole game. That was it. Really, for 11-1200 rated players we played a very good game.

Wait, is it over?

Ooops - yes. I won this one. The 1200 rated chess engine I use during play would have found between 0 and 14 blunders.

 

[Psychopav]

Pav and I are playing the wildest game I've had in memory. Also the hardest one I've played- he's wrung me out. Super sharp game. I traded material for position and have been in a mad scramble to not get mated since.

31 moves in and I still have all eight pawns. Complete nuttiness. I can't wait to see the analysis where I'm sure we made 16 blunders.

Yeah, but I screwed up big league early on. The writing had been on the wall for awhile. Now I should really just concede (but I won't...I won't, dammit!)

1 blunder the whole game. That was it. Really, for 11-1200 rated players we played a very good game.

Wait, is it over?

Ooops - yes. I won this one. The 1200 rated chess engine I use during play would have found between 0 and 14 blunders.

I'm confused. One blunder, or 14?

Also you don't really mean that you use it during play, right?

 

[Bogart]

@Bogart and I are underway. Based on history, this game should take about 4 weeks to complete.

We can blitz and finish in two.

 

[Sand]

Pav and I are playing the wildest game I've had in memory. Also the hardest one I've played- he's wrung me out. Super sharp game. I traded material for position and have been in a mad scramble to not get mated since.

31 moves in and I still have all eight pawns. Complete nuttiness. I can't wait to see the analysis where I'm sure we made 16 blunders.

Yeah, but I screwed up big league early on. The writing had been on the wall for awhile. Now I should really just concede (but I won't...I won't, dammit!)

1 blunder the whole game. That was it. Really, for 11-1200 rated players we played a very good game.

Wait, is it over?

Ooops - yes. I won this one. The 1200 rated chess engine I use during play would have found between 0 and 14 blunders.

I'm confused. One blunder, or 14?

Also you don't really mean that you use it during play, right?

Uh, the 1200 rated engine is my poor brain and it's evidently incapable of knowing when it makes a blunder. Maybe the joke wasn't obvious there.

As to whether I use my brain during play, that's still an open question.

 

[Zow]

@Bogart and I are underway. Based on history, this game should take about 4 weeks to complete.

We can blitz and finish in two.

Not trying to be a selfish jerk here, but my schedule is really light and open through this weekend then gets considerably busy through Thanksgiving beginning next week. Would love to play my last match this weekend or I'll be playing slowly and inattentively.

So if you could all play fast and come in on Sunday too, that would be greeeaaaatttt. Mmm'kay?

 

[Bogart]

@Bogart and I are underway. Based on history, this game should take about 4 weeks to complete.

We can blitz and finish in two.

Not trying to be a selfish jerk here, but my schedule is really light and open through this weekend then gets considerably busy through Thanksgiving beginning next week. Would love to play my last match this weekend or I'll be playing slowly and inattentively.

So if you could all play fast and in on Sunday too, that would be greeeaaaatttt. Mmm'kay?

Fine.

 

[Sand]

Not trying to be a selfish jerk here,

I mean, you are a lawyer.

 

[Zow]

Not trying to be a selfish jerk here,

I mean, you are a lawyer.

Right. Like I said, I'm not actively trying - it's just part of me now. I just thought noting the lack of specific intent here would cushion the blow of the request.

 

[Psychopav]

@Bogart and I are underway. Based on history, this game should take about 4 weeks to complete.

We can blitz and finish in two.

Not trying to be a selfish jerk here, but my schedule is really light and open through this weekend then gets considerably busy through Thanksgiving beginning next week. Would love to play my last match this weekend or I'll be playing slowly and inattentively.

So if you could all play fast and come in on Sunday too, that would be greeeaaaatttt. Mmm'kay?

mmm...shellfish jerky......

 

[timschochet]

Not trying to be a selfish jerk here,

I mean, you are a lawyer.

He’s trying to schedule the award ceremony for his trophy.

 

[Zow]

Not trying to be a selfish jerk here,

I mean, you are a lawyer.

He’s trying to schedule the award ceremony for his trophy.

Hey, I still gotta at least draw I think so I need that same peace and quiet and focus I had when we played our match.

 

[timschochet]

@shuke vs @Bogart

any update?

 

[shuke]

@shuke vs @Bogart

any update?

Slowly but surely. It's really Bogart's fault this time.

 

[Psychopav]

@shuke vs @Bogart

any update?

Slowly but surely. It's really Bogart's fault this time.

I can vouch for Shuke. We've been playing a nonsanctioned game and he's been making moves.

 

[Sand]

@shuke vs @Bogart

any update?

Slowly but surely. It's really Bogart's fault this time.

I can vouch for Shuke. We've been playing a nonsanctioned game and he's been making moves.

Hold on a sec here...

The FFA has a sanctioning body? And we put Tim in charge of it?

 

[Bogart]

@shuke vs @Bogart

any update?

Slowly but surely. It's really Bogart's fault this time.

It really is. I'm going to resign to Shuke so we can move forward.

Thanks!!