2017 Tata Rd1: A slow start in Masters

The elite Tata Steel tournaments in Wijk aan Zee are underway and take place from January 13-29, with two main tournaments, the Masters with both Magnus Carlsen and Serget Karjakin as headliners, as well as Wesley So, Levon Aronian, Anish Giri, Baskaran Adhiban, Radoslaw Wojtaszek, Ian Nepomniachtchi, Richard Rapport, Dmitri Andreikin, Wei Yi, Pavel Eljanov, and Loek van Wely. All rounds in Wijk aan Zee begin at 1.30pm, except for the last round on 29 January 2017, which begins at 12.00pm. Both rounds on the Chess On Tour days start at 2.00pm.

Opening

Preceding the start of the tournament was the Opening ceremony, or rather ceremonies with an 'S'. The Challengers enjoyed their own get together joined by the other participants, many of whom are friends, at a dinner where the drawing of lots was held.

It was an informal affair held at the Zeeduin Hotel in Wijk aan Zee

Numbers were drawn and the pairings were announced

Once done, the players enjoyed a pleasant dinner and friendly chats as seen here with Wesley So and his surrogate mother

The local press was present and is here interviewing Polish GM Radoslaw Wojtaszek

The following day several of the players went to visit Haarlem together with the famous Dutch TV presenter and chess expert Hans Böhm. It took place in the beautiful "De Vishal" building in the "Grote Markt" where chess could be seen everywhere.

Players get a chance to play against their heroes

Anish Giri, Anne Haast, Hans Böhm and Jorden van Foreest

Finally the day of the Opening cermony and drawing of lots for the Masters came

Fittingly, considering how many of the players are die-hard football fans, football jerseys were used for the drawing of lots

The players show the numbers they drew

As expected, there were some musical performances...

...But not all the entertainmnet was quite so lofty

A fun event with the NK Schools was held also

Masters tournament

Tata Steel has brought back their video group with some high quality editing of snapshots from round one

The first round of the Wijk aan Zee tournament was more than simply the opening round, at least symbolically. It brought with it the promise of a bit of history on several levels. On the one hand, Magnus Carlsen has now tied Vishy Anand with five tournament wins, the current record, and while tying the record is certainly wonderful, beating it is even more so. Will he be able to show his magic and some of his legendary fighting spirit for a sixth title? Then there is the matter of Sergey Karjakin, his recent rival. Although Carlsen eventually prevailed in his title defense during the rapid games, the fact is he was unable to show his superiority in the traditional standard games. Now, one and a half months later, they are scheduled to face off once more, in what some may see as a potential tiebreaker.

A scrumptious start

If you belong to the group of fans who scoffs at this view, realize it is not so strange. After the unfinished and drawn match result between Bobby Fischer and Samuel Reshevsky in their 1961 match, which ended equal with 5.5-5.5, their next encounter at the 1962 US Championship was considered by many as the unofficial 12th game (Fischer won). Whatever your opinion, it promises to be one of the high points of the event, and is scheduled only for the last round.

Magnus Carlsen is still World Champion, and still number one, but his edge over the rest has been reduced. Will he restamp his authority?

In spite of this intrigue, Wesley So is the actual second seed of the Masters and is in many ways the ‘man in form'. He had a stupendous year in 2016, winning both the Sinquefield Cup and the London Classic, securing the Grand Chess Tour title, as well as being one of the absolute stars of the US team in their Gold Medal effort at the Baku Olympiad. There is no question Wesley So will have something to say about the tournament.

After an incredible year in 2016, Wesley So is now firmly in the 2800 club

Daniel King quick recap of round one

With both top seeds meeting straight out in the opening round, it had seemed it could be either a blessing (the two best), or a curse (they might not want to take big risks in the first round). It was a bit of both as the two players quickly liquidated into a dead draw.

In his post-game interview, Carlsen opined that So was avoiding a fight with him. He added, "He didn't play in the most critical way, and then it only takes a couple of decent moves to secure the draw."

Anish Giri, playing in the Masters, seemed more interested in what his wife Sopiko was doing in the Challengers, understandably as she had been inactive after gving birth to their new son.

Giri drew his game with Sergey Karjakin, an uneventful affair

Although Vishy Anand continues to be the big number one in chess in India, it is nonetheless remarkable to see the Masters with two Indian players in the group, neither of whom is the former world champion.

Pentala Harikrishna's presence is no big surprise as he is world no. 12

Adhiban earned his place by rite of fire as he edged out his rivals in the 2016 Challengers. He almost had a hero's start as he squandered multiple chances to leave with a full point against Loek Van Wely. Unfortunately for him, and fortunately for Dutch fans, Van Wely had the last word and they drew.

Dmitri Andreikin is another unexpected but welcome choice. He drew against Wei Yi.

Daniel King analyzes Eljanov vs Rapport

The only decisive game of round one in the Masters is analyzed by GM Daniel King

Pavel Eljanov shares his views with on-site live commentator Yasser Seirawan

Levon Aronian was also a welcome sight, and is quite capable of frustrating the 'favorites'

Round one games of Masters

Challengers tournament

In spite of this intrigue, Wesley So is the actual second seed of the Masters and is in many ways the ‘man in form'. He had a stupendous year in 2016, winning both the Sinquefield Cup and the London Classic, securing the Grand Chess Tour title, as well as being one of the absolute stars of the US team in their Gold Medal effort at the Baku Olympiad. There is no question Wesley So will have something to say about the tournament.

The Challengers brings many intriguing names to the table, with juniors on the rise, such as Jeroen van Foreest, Jeffery Xiong, and Aryan Tari, to grizzled veterans such as Gawain Jones, Nils Grandelius, and Markus Ragger. Since past editions have seen both young over old, and old over young take the title and the qualification spot, the only unquestionable advice is to sit back and enjoy the show.

The perfect contrast of youth versus experience, with Xiong against Ragger. Experience prevailed this time.

As annotator GM Georg Meier himself comments: "The Challenger group promises to be very interesting this year, with many players who we can expect to have ambitions for first prize. There is an added special motivation to fight for first as it means a promotion to next year's super-tournament. Already in the first round a crucial match-up took place: The hard-working Austrian grandmaster Ragger, who is about to establish himself as a 2700-player, versus the truly rising star Jeffery Xiong, who took last year's U20 Wch in a runaway performance."

Markus Ragger - Jeffery Xiong (annotated by Georg Meier)

It wasn't all bad news for the juniors as Jorden Van Foreest dispatched Erwin L'Ami with white

The cordoned off area was jam packed with fans and players trying to watch the elite games live

Say what you like, but there is something special about seeing in person the top players fighting over the board

Round one games of Challengers

Schedule, pairings, and results

Tata Steel Masters 2017

Tata Steel Challengers 2017

Links Official tournament site All Masters games in PGN All Challengers games in PGN The games are being broadcast live on the official web site and on the chess server Playchess.com. If you are not a member you can download a free Playchess client there and get immediate access. You can also use ChessBase 14 or any of our Fritz compatible chess programs.