The Marshall Spectator (2024)

In This Issue: From The Skittles RoomFIDE Premier Games Analyzed, by GM Alex LendermanAcross the Table, with Konrad KlinknerChess Toons En PassantProblems, Problems, curated by Alexander GeorgeEditor's Note

Welcome back, fellow chess players,to this edition of the Marshall Chess Club's fortnightly bulletin,The Marshall Spectator.

As the days grow longer and summer approaches, there is a very special event that we looking forward to: The New York 1924 Centennial. This will be a 9 round, FIDE rated Swiss event held in July. For full details and an updated list of confirmed players, click here.

Last Tuesday, we had a very special event to pay tribute to the two-time U.S. Women’s Chess Champion and former regular at the club, Lisa Lane, who passed away recently. A very close friend of Lisa’s, President Emeritus Dr. Frank Brady, told us many stories about her chess years and the times they spent together. Board member and Marshall Chess Foundation President IM Sal Matera also analyzed two of her games. A full replay of the event will be available soon here.

Over the last two weeks we have had a plethora of events for our members to play in.

The Brother John McManus Action that concluded on May 9 had a remarkable 61 players registered and was won by FM Tanitoluwa Adewumi and IM Jay Bonin who scored a perfect 4 out of 4 to win $187.50 each. Vladimir Bugayev and Michael Glick scored 3.5 out of 4 to win $56.50 each, while Mitchel Stern and Aleem Awan scored 3 out of 4 to share in a class prize winning $113 each.

The FIDE Monday that concluded on May 6 had 35 players registered and was won by IM Jay Bonin, who scored a near perfect 5.5 out of 6 to win the $350 first place prize. Nkosi Nkululeko, Aditeya Das, Chase Knowles, and Sarathi Ray scored 4 out of 6 to win $87.50 each, while Colin Diamond won a class prize of $117 for the same score. Moshe Blank and Kimani Stancil scored 3.5 out of 6 to share in a class prize, winning $29.50 each.

The Monday Under 1800 that concluded on May 6 had 30 players registered and was won by Chris Weldon, Richard Koppenaal, and Mark Limperis who scored 4.5 out of 6 to win $145.33 each. Ryan Dugre and Reginal Denis shared in a class prize, scoring 3.5 points to win $73 each.

The Marshall Premier Under 2000 on May 5 had 54 players registered and was won by Levon Tadevosyan, who scored 4.5 out of 5 to win the $939 first place prize. Rachel Miller, Nathan Booncharoen, and Derek Zhang scored 4 out of 5 to win $136.33 each. Aileen Lou scored 3.5 out of 5 to win a class prize of $320.

The Marshall FIDE Premier Open on May 5 had 39 players registered and finished with a 3 way tie between IM Mykola Bortnyk, IM Gus Huston, and IM Jay Bonin who scored 4 out of 5 to win $444.67 each. Linxi Zhu, Calen Jude Klenoff and Aritro Chakravarty scored 3.5 out of 5 to win $89 each.

The Rated Beginner Open on May 5 had 32 players registered and was won by August Prasertsom, Clayton Stoker, and Anshel Kenkare who scored a perfect 3 out of 3 to win $133.33 each.

The Under 2000 Action on May 4 had an incredible turnout with 49 players registered. No fewer than 5 players scored a perfect 3 out of 3 to win $86 each: Davin Chen, Mouhamadou Tall, Gary Chan, Noah Feldman, and Grayson Xiang. Marquis Brown and Michelle Huang scored 2 out of 3 to share in a class prize, winning $92 each.

The Morning Masters on May 4 had 8 players registered and was won by FM Tanitoluwa Adewumi who scored a perfect 3 out of 3 to win the $60 first place prize. Aakaash Meduri and Jessica Hyatt scored 2 out of 3 to win $20 each.

The Alexei Navalny Action on May 2 had an impressive turnout with 55 players registered. IM Alexander Katz and IM Jay Bonin scored 4 out of 4 to win $166 each, while Michael Li and Evan S Rosenberg scored 3.5 out of 4 to win $50 each. Aditeya Das, Mitchell Stern, Alec Hyunmook Choi and Mihir Bafna scored 3 out of 4 to share in a class prize, winning $50 each.

The Weekly Under 2200 that concluded on May 1 had 38 players registered and was won by Aleksandr Gutnik and Kimani Stancil, who scored 5 out of 6 to win $308.50. Keith Espinosa and Jose De Villa scored 4.5 out of 6 to win $62 each, while Ishaan Rajendran and Bhavya Thakur shared in a class prize, winning $93 each for their 4 out of 6 performance.

The Weekly Under 1600 that concluded on May 1 had 28 players registered and was won by Ken Jennings, Thomas DeDona, and Andrew Ferrante who scored 5 out of 6 to win $156 each. George Rodnikov won a class prize of $94 for his 3 out of 6 performance.

We look forward to seeing you at the club soon!

FIDE Premier Games Analyzed, by GM Aleksandr Lenderman

You can play through the games with the notes from this article here.

Round 5: Bonin, Jay - Klenoff, Caleb

Prior to this game, Jay Bonin was riding a 15 game winning streak, and was currently tied for first with IMs Gus Huston and Mykola Bortnyk. However, his opponent, the young Caleb Klenoff likely had ambitions to win the game, since the win would not only get him potentially a share first by leapfrogging Jay, but also, prior to the tournament, he was extremely close to the NM title (2200 USCF rating), and quite possibly, he might've needed a win to get the title. So, despite being black, Caleb Klenoff chose the sharp Benoni defence, an aggressive opening, playing for a win.

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 e6 3. c4 c5 4. d5 d6 5. Nc3 exd5 6. cxd5 g6 7. Bg5 h6 8. Bh4 g5 9. Bg3 Nh5 10. Nd2 Nxg3 11. hxg3 Nd7 12. Nc4 Nb613. e3 Bg7 14. Qc2 Nxc4 15. Bxc4 Qe7 16. Bb5+ Bd7 17. a4 Rb8 18. g4 a6 19. Bxd7+ Qxd7 20. Qe4+ Kf8 21. Qf5 Qxf5 22. gxf5 Be5 23. Ke2 Kg7 24. Ne4 c4 25. Ra2 Rhc8 26. g3 Re8 27. Kf3 b5 28. axb5 axb5 29. Rc1?! Inaccuracy. Ra6 was best.

(29. Ra6 Ra8 30. Rb6 Reb8 31. Rc6 Rc8 32. Rb6 Rcb8)

29... Ra8 30. Rca1 Rxa2 31. Rxa2 Rb8

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32. Kg4?? Blunder. Nd2 was best. (32. Nd2 Bxb2 33. Rxb2 c3 34. Rb1 cxd2 35. Ke2 h5 36. Kxd2 b4 37. Rb3 h4 38. gxh4 gxh4)

32...b4 33. f4 b3 34. Ra7?! Inaccuracy. Ra4 was best. (34. Ra4 Bxb2)

34…gxf4 35. gxf4 Bxb2 36. Nxd6

We reach the climax point of the game. Caleb's pawns are very menacing, while Jay is going all in, trying to create some sort of counterplay against Black's king. Now, we reach a critical moment, where Caleb still has 46 minutes. He ended up spending about 5 minutes, and sort of bailing out into a draw. However, perhaps if he calculated deeper, he might've come to the right conclusion that Black's pawns will matter more and White's counterplay falls just a bit short. Since this position would likely be the last very critical moment of the game, I would most likely recommend spending at least half of the remaining time here. As it was, a narrow win was missed, and Jay was able to share first in the end, after Gus and Mykola made a draw, thus maintaining his undefeated streak.

36... Bc3?? Blunder. c3 was best.

A bail-out since now, White can sacrifice their two pawns for a piece, leaving Black without enough to create serious winning chances. (36... c3! Was winning! Now White has several tries, but they all lose.

37. f6+!? The best practical chance, and most likely, the move that Caleb feared. (37. Rxf7+ Isn't the most challenging. 37... Kh8 (37... Kg8!? $19) 38. Rc7 c2 39. Nf7+ Kg7 40. Ne5+ Kg8 41. Nd3 Ba3 42. e4 c1=R 43. Rxc1 Bxc1) (37. Nxf7 Is toothless 37... c2 38. Ne5+ Kg8 39. f6 Bxe5 40. fxe5 c1=Q)

37... Kg6!! The key move/idea. Without this move, Black is not winning.

(37... Kh7?? 38. Nxf7 Here, White even creates a mating net.

(37... Kxf6?? 38. Rxf7+ Kg6 39. f5# Leads to mate for White. )

(37... Kh8?? 38. Nxf7+ Also, leads to mate. )

(37... Kg8? Objectively a mistake, but even this line could've been a safe bailout option for Black in case he didn't see Kg6, since here Black doesn't risk anything, and White has to find only moves to make a draw at best. 38. Nxf7! (38. Rxf7? Rf8! 39. Rg7+ Kh8 40. Nf7+ Rxf7 41. Rxf7 c2) 38... Rf8!? (38... c2 39. Nxh6+ Leads to perpetual check.) 39. Ne5!! The only move to draw! 39... Rxf6 40. Rb7! c2 41. Nd3 And White holds a draw.) (37... Kf8? Leads to an easy perpetual after 38. Rxf7+ Kg8 39. Rg7+ Kf8 40. Rf7+) 38. f5+ (38. Rxf7 h5+! The key, to free the h6 square with tempo. 39. Kf3 (39. Kh4 c2 40. f5+ Kh6) 39... c2) 38... Kxf6 Now, because White has played f5, that opened the escape e5 square for the black king!! 39. Rxf7+ (39. Kf4 Is an interesting try, but Black wins in several ways. 39... Rf8 (39... Rb4+ 40. e4 (40. Ne4+ Kg7) 40... Bc1+) (39... Kg7!? Even this is enough.)) 39... Ke5

37. Nxc4 b2 38. Nxb2 Bxb2 Now, this is more or less a draw. 39. e4 Rb4 40. Kf3?! Inaccuracy. Ra2 was best. (40. Ra2 Bc1 41. Rg2 Rd4 42. Kf3+ Kh7 43. Rc2 Bd2 44. Rc7 Kg7 45. d6 Bb4 46. e5 Bxd6) 40…Rb3+?! Inaccuracy. Bc1 was best. (40... Bc1 41. d6)

41. Kg4 Bd4 42. Rc7 Bf2 43. e5 Rg3+ 44. Kh5 Rh3+ 45. Kg4 A big missed opportunity for Caleb to win the tournament, still a great tournament for Caleb, where he either broke master, or came very close to it. Important update: Tournament has been rated and Caleb ended up making master, so perhaps, Caleb knew that going into the game, that draw might be enough for him to make master, which is why he didn't want to take the risk to play for a win. As a result, everyone was happy. Jay shared 1st-3rd and Caleb ended up becoming a master. Success for everyone. 1/2-1/2

Round 5: Hyatt, Jessica - Zhu, Linxi

Even though this game didn't have tournament implications, potentially master title was on the line here for Jessica Hyatt. I felt like this game was extremely instructive from the standpoint of importance of good calculation and especially, recognizing opponent's ideas better.

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 g6 4. Nc3 Bg7 5. Nf3 O-O 6. e4 d6 7. h3 e6 8. Bd3 Na6 (8... exd5 9. exd5 Re8+ Is the main line 10. Be3) 9. O-O Nc7 10. a4 exd5 (10... e5 Usually, when Black plays Na6-c7 system, they follow with e5, closing the structure, where the engine gives a clear advantage for White, but based on personal experiences, these positions are far from easy to play for White.)

11. exd5 Now, White simply gets an excellent version and has a clear edge. 11... h6 12. Be3 Na6 13. Rc1 Nb4 14. Bb1 Re8 15. Qd2 Kh7 16. Rce1 (16. g4!? There was something to be said for this double-edged move, trying to keep the bishop on c8 restricted. 16... h5 17. Bg5!)

16... b6 17. Re2 (17. g4!?)

17... Bf5!? Black is worse and is trying to imbalance the structure and trying to create some threats. It's something that Linxi is very good at.

18. Bxf5 Played after a long thought for some reason, even though I think Bxf5 is the most natural move, weakening Black's structure, and there wasn't really a great alternative for White from what I can see.

18... gxf5 19. Rfe1?? A very serious mistake, played after only roughly a 2 minute think. I would've preferred to play Bxf5 in 2 minutes, and to save the 10-15 minute think on this position, since the position here stabilized, and white needs to make an important decision. Importantly, black has a very serious strategic threat, Ne4! and unfortunately for White, they seemed to either miss or seriously underestimate it. In this position, several good options were possible for White. (19. Nh4! This was the best way for White to play. Now, black has several alternatives, but neither of them are going to be sufficient. 19... Qd7!? In my opinion, the best practical chance since it keeps the tension and gives White a not so easy choice. (19... Re5 20. g3! Followed by Bf4, and White has a clear edge. (20. Bf4)) (19... Nfxd5 Possibly Jessica feared this move, but White has a clear edge here. 20. Nxf5 Nxe3 21. fxe3! With such a knife on f5, White has a winning initiative.) (19... Ne4 20. Nxe4 fxe4 (20... Qxh4 21. Nxd6) 21. Nf5 Qf6 22. Nxg7 Qxg7 23. f3! { White's attack will be too strong against Black's weakened king.) 20. Qd1! (20. f3?! Stops Ne4 but allows another counterplay. 20... Nh5) 20... Ne4 21. Ree1!! The best move but possibly, difficult to find. The idea is to open the queen up to get to h5! (21. Bd2 Would be good enough to maintain a solid edge though, so white was by no means required to see Qd1 followed by Ree1 in order to safely play Nh4 on move 19.) 21... Nxc3 (21... Bxc3?! 22. bxc3 Nxc3 23. Qh5) 22. bxc3 Bxc3 23. Qh5 With a mating attack. (23. Bd2 Again, a move like this also maintains a very serious initiative.) (23. Bxh6 Also works tactically. ) 23... f4 (23... Bxe1 24. Bxh6) 24. Nf5 fxe3 25. Rxe3 Rxe3 26. Qxh6+ Kg8 27. fxe3 Is one sample line.) (19. Qd1 Ne4 20. Bd2 While not the very best option, would still be a very solid prophylaxis for White, maintaining a stable edge.)

19... Ne4

20. Qc1?? Simply accepting a lost position. Not sure if Jessica simply missed Nd3, or whether she already thought she's lost anyway, but even here, White still had a serious chance to make it a very interesting fight. (20. Nxe4! Was a must, and then after 20... fxe4 21. Bg5!! It is better to die standing than living on your knees, is a famous quote. If White just allows Nd3, f5, Qf6 and so on, White will suffer greatly in this position, so when the trend is not in your favor, it is important to try to be creative and try to find the best practical chances, and possibly, change the trend of the game and imbalance the game. (21. Nh2?! Nd3 22. Rf1 f5 Would be an absolute dream Benoni for Black with the all-powerful knight on d3.) (21. Bf4 f5) 21... hxg5 (21... f6!? 22. Bh4! In order to prevent f5 move. 22... Nd3 23. Rxe4! Nxe1 24. Qxe1 Qd7 25. Re6! Rxe6 26. dxe6 Qb7 (26... Qc7 27. Qe4+) 27. Nd2! And White still has an initiative.) 22. Nxg5+ Kg8 23. Nxe4 White has two pawns for the pieces and some potential attacking chances. Meanwhile, Black's center has been eliminated and the black knight isn't coming to d3 anymore, making it quite an idle piece. Overall, White has full compensation for the material deficit, with a 3-result game incoming. Engine evaluates it as zeroes.)

20... Nd3 Now it's all over and the rest of the game requires no comment. 21. Qc2 Nxe1 22. Nxe1 Bxc3! 23. bxc3 Qf6 24. Bd2 Nxd2 25. Qxd2 Rxe2 26. Qxe2 Qxc3 27. Qe7 Kg7 28. Nf3 Qa1+ 29. Kh2 Qf6 30. Qe3 Kf8 31. a5 Re8 32. Qa3 Re4 33. axb6 axb6 34. Qb3 Kg7 35. Qd3 Qb2 36. Nd2 Qe5+ 37. g3 Qd4 38. Qf3 Qxd2 39. Qxf5 Rxc4 A heartbreak for Jessica, but a very important lesson for her to be more aware of opponent's ideas, in her pursue of the NM title. Jessica throughout her chess career has dealt incredibly well with heartbreaking setbacks, and I have no doubt this experience will make her much stronger going forward, and she'll be back playing some great chess. 0-1

Round 1: Gaw, Chloe - Bortnyk, Mykola

Mykola Bortnyk tied for first in the tournament, so I wanted to include at least one of his wins. I found this first round tactic he had against Chloe Gaw to be very instructive, again, emphasizing the importance on good calculation.

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 O-O 5. Bd3 d5 6. Nf3 dxc4 7. Bxc4 c5 8. O-O Nc6 9. Qe2?! cxd4 10. Rd1 e5 11. h3 Qb6 12. exd4 Nxd4 13. Nxd4 exd4 (13... e4) 14. Nb5 Bc5 15. Qd3 Be6 Black equalized comfortably in the opening, and in fact, currently Black is still up a pawn, so the onus is on White now, to find clear compensation. Here, unfortunately for White, they blundered the game in one move, but the refutation isn't the most natural.

16. Nxd4?? (16. b4! Was the way to get compensation. 16... Bxb4 17. Bxe6 fxe6 18. Rb1 White will get at least one pawn back and will have almost full compensation for the pawn due to lots of piece activity.) (16. Bxe6 fxe6 17. b4 { This move order also works.)

16... Bxd4! (16... Rfd8 Probably, White only calculated Rfd8 or Rad8 first, but in chess it is always important to calculate tactics in the area, from all different move orders. 17. Be3 White is worse here but holding.)

17. Qxd4 Rad8

It is all over now, White loses tons of material. 18. Qxd8 (18. Qxb6 Rxd1+ 19. Bf1 axb6) 18... Rxd8 19. Be3 Rxd1+ 20. Rxd1 Qc7 21. Bf4 Qc8 22. Bd3 h6 23. Be2 Bxa2 24. Rc1 Qe6 25. Bd3 Bd5 26. Be3 Bxg2 27. Kxg2 Qd5+ 28. Kh2 Qxd3 29. Bxa7 Qd6+ 30. Kg1 b6 31. Rc8+ Kh7 32. Bb8 Qd1+ 33. Kg2 Qd5+ 34. Kh2 Qd2 35. Bg3 Ne4 36. Kg2 Nxg3 37. Kxg3 Qxb2 38. Kf3 0-1 Black wins. 0-1

Round 3: Huston, Gus - Zhu, Linxi

Gus Huston also tied for first in the tournament, and this interesting endgame win he had against Linxi played a big part in helping Gus get to the podium.

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 b5 4. Nf3 b4 5. Nbd2 g6 6. e4 d6 7. h3 Bg7 8. Bd3 O-O 9. O-O e6 10. dxe6? Mistake. a3 was best. (10. a3 a5 11. axb4 cxb4 12. Nb3 Re8 13. Re1 Nbd7 14. Bf4 Nh5 15. Bg5 Bf6 16. Bxf6 Nhxf6)

10... fxe6? Mistake. Bxe6 was best. (10... Bxe6)

11. e5 dxe5 12. Nxe5 Bb7 13. Qe2 Nbd7 14. Ndf3 Nxe5 15. Nxe5 Nd7?! Inaccuracy. Qc7 was best. (15... Qc7 16. Ng4 Nxg4 17. hxg4 a5 18. Be3 a4 19. Rad1 a3 20. b3 Bc3 21. Bd2 Bd4 22. Be3)

16. Ng4 Qe7 17. Be4 Bxe4 (17... Bc6 18. Bd5 Bxd5 19. Qe4) 18. Qxe4 Nf6 19. Nxf6+ Qxf6 20. a3 Qf5 21. Qxf5 exf5 22. axb4 cxb4 23. Ra6 Rf6 24. Ra4 a5 25. Rd1 b3 26. Rd3 Re6 27. Be3 Bxb2 28. Rxb3 Bc1 29. Bb6 Bf4 30. g3 Rb8 31. c5 Bc7 32. Rxa5 Bxb6 33. Rab5 Bc7?! Inaccuracy. Kf7 was best. (33... Kf7 34. Kg2)

34. Rxb8+ Bxb8 35. Rxb8+ Kf7 36. Rb7+ Kf6 37. Kg2 After a long battle, the smoke has cleared and White has an endgame where he is up a pawn with good winning chances.

37... Ke5 Blunder. Re5 was best. Good practical choice but objectively, shouldn't save the game. (37... Re5!? 38. Rc7 Should still be winning for White in the long run.)

38. Rc7?? Blunder. Rxh7 was best. Played after an 8-minute think (out of 18 minutes he had remaining). (38. Rxh7! It was winning for White to take the pawn. 38... Rc6 This was probably what Gus didn't like. However, here, White has a very nice way to win. (38... Kd5 39. Rc7) 39. Rb7! (39. Ra7! Also works) (39. Rh6? Kf6 (39... Rxc5 40. Rxg6) 40. h4 Kg7) (39. g4 fxg4 40. hxg4 Rxc5) (39. Rg7 Kf6) (39. Rf7 Rxc5) (39. f4+ Kf6) (39. Kf3 Rxc5) (39. h4 Rxc5 40. Rh6 Kf6 41. h5 Kg5) 39... Rxc5 40. Rb6 g5 41. Rg6 The point is that the rook comes from behind, and can attack the g6 pawn, without allowing Kf6 as a defence for Black.) (38. Rb5 Rc6 (38... Kd5)) (38. Rb6 Rxb6 (38... Re7 39. c6) 39. cxb6 Kd6 40. Kf3 Kc6 (40... g5 41. g4) 41. Kf4 Kxb6 42. Kg5)

38... h6 Now, this is objectively a draw, but of course, White is still pressing.

39. Rb7 Rc6 40. Rb6 Kd5! 41. Rb7 Kxc5 42. Rh7 Kd5?! (42... h5 This was probably much easier.)

43. Rxh6 Ke5 44. h4 Rd6?? Blunder. Rf6 was best. Here, Linxi missed or underestimated White's winning idea. (44... Rf6 45. f4+ Ke6 46. Kh3 Ke7 47. Rh7+ Rf7 48. Rxf7+ Kxf7 49. Kg2 Kf6 50. Kf3 Ke7 51. Ke3) (44... Re6) (44... Kf6 45. h5 Kg7 46. Rxg6+ Rxg6 47. hxg6 Kxg6 48. f4 (48. Kf3 Kg5 49. Ke3 (49. Ke2 f4 (49... Kg4 50. Ke3 Kg5 51. Kf3 Kg6 52. Kf4 Kf6 53. f3 Kg6 54. Ke5 Kg5 55. f4+ Kg4 56. Kf6 Kxg3 57. Kxf5) 50. Kf3 fxg3 51. Kxg3 Kf5 52. Kf3 Kg5 53. Ke4) 49... Kg4 50. Ke2 f4) (48. Kh3 Kg5 49. f3 (49. f4+ Kh5 50. g4+ fxg4+ 51. Kg3 Kg6 52. Kxg4 Kf6) 49... Kh5 50. f4 (50. g4+ fxg4+ 51. fxg4+ Kg5 52. Kg3 Kg6) 50... Kg6) (48. f3 Kg5 49. Kf2 Kf6 50. Ke3 Ke5 51. Kd3 Kd5 52. f4 Kc5) 48... Kf6 49. Kf3 Kf7)

45. h5 gxh5 46. Rxd6! The point! Now, the Black king is too far to be able to defend the h5 pawn, and White is winning in this pawn endgame.

46... Kxd6 47. Kh3 Ke5 48. Kh4 Ke4 Inaccuracy. f4 was best. 49. f4! The last accurate move. (49. Kxh5?? Not too late to spoil the win. 49... Kf3 50. Kg5 Kxf2 51. Kxf5 Kxg3) (49. Kg5 Kf3)

49... Kf3 50. Kxh5 Kxg3 Checkmate is now unavoidable. Ke4 was best. 51. Kg5 Kh3 52. Kxf5 Kh4 53. Kg6 Kg4 54. f5 Kf4 55. f6 Ke5 56. f7 Kd4 57. f8=Q Ke4 58. Qf5+ Kd4 59. Kg5 Kc4 60. Kf4 Kd4 61. Qd7+ Kc4 62. Ke4 Kc5 63. Qc7+ Kb4 64. Kd4 Kb3 65. Qc3+ Ka2 66. Qb4 Ka1 67. Kc3 Ka2 68. Qb2# 1-0 White wins. 1-0

• GM Aleksandr Lenderman, Marshall Spectator Columnist

Across the Table, with Konrad Klinkner

Chess Toons

En Passant

Hollywood Reporter, the publication that covers the U.S. film industry, claims that plans are afoot for a new star-studded feature spotlighting the game called Checkmate. According to the website, the action will center around a controversy very familiar to chess fans: the alleged cheating scandal involving GM Hans Niemann and GM Magnus Carlsen that began after a game between the pair at the Sinquefield Cup in September 2022.

Nigerian chess whiz stays up more than 50 hours playing in Times Square to break world record.

Problems, Problems, curated by Alexander George

Max Euwe, 1941

White to move and win.

Another endgame from the fifth World Champion, Machgielis Euwe. Not a difficult or gripping problem, but it's interesting that White's initial moves (in response to natural Black moves) are all forced.

(If you have any problems by World Champions—or any feedback at all—please send them my way: mcc-chess@ahg.slmail.me.)

---

Last issue’s problem: M. Euwe, 1934

White to move and win.

Solution to M. Euwe, 1934: 1.Kd6! g4 2.Kd5 Kf4 3.Kd4 Kf3 4.Kd3 g3 5.Rf7+ Kg2 6.Ke2 and wins.

Alexander George

Editor's Note

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