US Junior Championship 2015

by Priyadarshan Banjan
7/14/2015 – The US Junior Closed Championship 2015 takes place from 7th July, 2015 to 15th July, 2015 at the Chess Club and Scholastic Center St. Louis. It is a ten-player round robin event, in which the best juniors of the USA take part. After seven rounds IM Akshat Chandra and FM Arthur Shen lead with 5.0/7, half a point ahead of IM Jeffery Xiong. Pictures, games, analyses.
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The US Junior Championship is a prestigious tournament with a long history. Among the past winners are former World Champion Bobby Fischer, Arthur Bisguier, Yasser Sairawan, and Hikaru Nakamura. Since 1966 the US Juniors are played as an invitational, separating it from the US Junior Open tournament.

For the sixth consecutive edition, the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of St. Louis hosts this tournament. The time control is 90 minutes for the first 40 moves followed by 30 minutes for the rest of the game plus 30 seconds increment per player per move.

The games in progress

(from left to right) FM Awonder Liang, IM Jeffery Xiong, IM Luke Hermon-Vellotti, FM Michael Bodek, NM Mika Brattain

The line-up for the 2015 edition is led by GM in waiting Jeffery Xiong (2523), followed by IM Akshat Chandra (2495), FM Michael Bodek (2425), IM Luke Harmon-Vellotti (2430), FM Ruifeng Li (2394), IM Yian Liou (2417), FM Arthur Shen (2339), Mika Brattain (2357), FM Awonder Liang (2404), Curran Han (2079).

A short biography of the players

Awonder Liang and Akshat Chandra

Akshat Chandra had a good start: he won with Black against IM Luke Hermon Vellotti, one of the tournament favorites.

Luke Vellotti during his game against Akshat Chandra

 
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1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.Nf3 Bg7 5.Bg5 Ne4 6.Bh4 Nxc3 7.bxc3 dxc4 8.e3 8.Qa4+ is another possibility. 8...b5 9.a4 c6 10.Be2 a6 11.0-0 Bb7 '?!' 11...Nd7! 12.Qb1 Nb6 Good counterplay 12.Nd2 12.Qb1! Ra7 12...Qc7 13.Qb4! 13.Qb4 12...Nd7 13.Bf3 Qc8 13...0-0 Black should take the opportunity to castle, with a solid position. 14.Qb1 f6 15.Bg4 f5 16.Bf3 16.Be2 Nf6! Black is ready to castle, with the preferable chances 16.Bh3!? e6 Black's position is becoming more and more solid, with the extra pawn giving Black an advantage 16...e5 '!' 17.Qb4 Bf8 '!' 18.Qb2 Bd6 A critical position where White goes astray 19.Rfb1 '?!' 19.Bg3 This move keeps the game very tense, with chances for both sides. It prevents Black's response from the game, 19... e4 19...e4 '!' 20.Be2 Rb8 The game is slowly turning more and more in Black's favor, with White having less compensation for the pawn with each move. 21.f3 exf3 22.Bxf3 Qc7 23.axb5 cxb5 24.Bxb7 Rxb7 25.Rxa6 Bxh2+ 26.Kh1 0-0 27.Qa3 Bg3 28.Bxg3 Qxg3 29.Nxc4 Nf6 30.Ne5 Ng4 31.Nxg4 fxg4 '!' 32.Qd6 Qh4+ 33.Qh2 Qf2 34.Qh6 '?' g3 '!' 35.Rg1 Rbf7 '!' Bringing the last piece into the attack. Black threatens Qxg1 as well as Rf5. Both threatens win on the spot, so White resigned. An exciting and spectacular start to the tournament! 0–1
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WhiteEloWBlackEloBResYearECOEventRnd
Harmon-Vellotti,L2526Chandra,A25890–12015D912015 US Junior Closed Championship1.1

Awonder Liang

One of the biggest talents in the US is the 12-year old FM Awonder Liang. In the first round he came to an easy victory against NM Curran Han. Liang first restricted the opportunities of his opponent and then infiltrated the enemy position with his rook.

Arthur Shen

Arthur Shen used the first two rounds to debate the pros and cons of the Sicilian. In the first round he lost a sharp Sicilian with Black against Liou Yian, in the second round he won a sharp Najdorf against Ruifeng Li. Shen tried the variation with 6.h3, which these days is Vishy Anand’s main weapon against the Najdorf.

 
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1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.h3 An aggressive variation that is gaining in popularity. White is preparing a quick kingside advance e6 6...e5 7.Nb3 h5 This is also a very popular way for Black to meet White's 6th move 7.g4 Nfd7 8.g5 b5 9.a3 Bb7 10.Be3 Be7 11.h4 Nc6 12.Qd2 Nde5 This knight maneuver is very common in the Najdorf. Often times when the knight arrives on this square, it is with devastating effect. The downside of this maneuver is that it is quite time consuming. 13.Be2 0-0 14.f4 Li faces a critical decision about how to relocate his most powerful piece. Li chose 14. Nc4 which proved not to make the most of all the moves already invested with that knight. Nc4 '?' 14...Nxd4! 15.Bxd4 Nc6 16.Be3 Both sides have chances in this sharp position 15.Bxc4 '!' Due to all of the time lost with the knight before the exchange, and Black's lack of flexibility to pawn storm, White had an ideal attacking situation. 14. Nxd4 was needed in order to maintain Black's fair share of counter-chances. bxc4 16.0-0-0 Rb8 17.h5 Qa5 18.Rdg1 Nxd4 19.Bxd4 e5 20.Ba7 Ra8 21.Be3 d5 As a Najdorf player myself, I can commiserate with the intimidating pawn storm that Li was facing in this position. In these situations, Black needs to be very precise, while White usually has a series of automatic moves, just pushing pawns until Black's king is completely exposed. There is a natural tendency for Black to lash out, hoping for counterplay before getting checkmated. This is precisely what happened with Black's current move.. Unfortunately, Black's lashing out only worsens Li's position. Black needed to play 21... exf4 in order to contain White's pawn storm, although Li would still be in a difficult position. 21...exf4! 22.exd5 22.g6! White has a nearly unstoppable attack 22...Rad8 23.fxe5 Bxd5 24.Nxd5 Qxd5 25.Qc3 Qe4 26.h6 '!' Rd5 27.e6 '!' A strong move clearing the path to g7. All defenses are ready to be broken down. Black's only chance to defend is to sacrifice material in order to shed White's attack. Qe5 28.hxg7 Rfd8 28...Qxg7 29.exf7+ Kxf7 30.Qxc4+- 28...Kxg7 29.Qxe5+ Rxe5 30.Bd4+- 29.exf7+ Kxf7 30.Qxe5 Rxe5 31.Bd2 Red5 32.Rxh7 Rxd2 33.g8Q+ Kxg8 34.Rxe7 From here on out, Shen displays excellent technique. Rh2 35.Rc7 '!' Combining attack and defense. Black's only counterplay is based on an attack on the second rank. With 35. Rc7 Black is forced to make one of the rooks a passive defender. The remainder of the game is a good illustration of how to build up advantages while preventing counterplay. Rh4 36.Kb1 Rd6 37.g6 Rd8 38.g7 a5 39.Ka2 a4 40.Rg5 Rb8 41.Rgc5 Rd8 42.Rxc4 Rb8 '!?' A nice practical move from Li. 43.Rc8+ 43.Rxh4?? The only way that White could go wrong Rxb2+‼ 44.Ka1 44.Kxb2 Stalemate 44...Rb1+ 45.Ka2 Rb2+ With a surprising perpetual check 43...Rxc8 44.Rxh4 Kxg7 45.Rxa4 Rxc2 46.Rf4 Here Black resigned because White's pawns are unstoppable. A strong and very convincing performance from Arthur Shen! 1–0
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Shen,A2477Li,R25021–02015B902015 US Junior Closed Championship2.4

In round two Akshat Chandra won against Curran Han but his winning streak ended in round three against Liou Yian.

Liou Yian (left, with White) during his game against Akshat Chandra

This was another Sicilian. Liou Yian attacked on the kingside but Akshat Chandra easily parried the attack and the game ended in a draw.

 
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1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Be3 e6 7.Be2 The players reach a common position in the Najdorf, although White begins to play several moves which are usually not combined together. Qc7 8.Qd2 If White wants to play a quieter game, a4 is the best alternative, and a good way to limit Black's activity 8.a4!? 8...b5 9.a3 Bb7 10.f3 As a player who plays systems like this for both colors, I am left with a bit of a strange impression by White's set up. The moves Be2 and f3 are rarely coupled together because Be2 usually becomes an unnecessary move when White plays for g4. In addition to this, a3 is also rarely played so early in English Attack type setups such as this. Nc6 Kasparov's move when playing Black in this position 11.Nxc6 Bxc6 12.g4 h6 12...d5!? This move would have led to some wild complications. 13.g5 dxe4 14.gxf6 Rd8 15.Bd4 Bc5 16.fxg7 Rg8 17.Nxe4 Bxe4 18.c3 The computer calls this position equal but the chance of two human players reaching this position is very slim. Akshat's move is a more natural response to White's play 13.Rg1 '?!' Usually the rook is better placed on h1 because it will be actively placed once White follows through with h4 and g5 13.0-0-0! d5 13...d5 14.exd5 Nxd5 15.Nxd5 Bxd5 16.f4 Be7 17.0-0-0 0-0 Castling into the storm but Akshat correctly evaluates that White's pawn storm is not yet threatening 18.Bd4 Rfd8 19.Qe3 Rac8 20.c3 Bc4 21.Bb6 Rxd1+ Objectively this move isn't the strongest but it's hard to blame anyone for not finding the following continuation beginning with 21... Qb8 21...Qb8! 22.Bxd8 Bc5! 23.Qe5 Qxe5 24.fxe5 Bxe2 With so many pieces under attack, Black will regain the invested material with a better position 22.Rxd1 Qc6 23.Bf3 Bd5 24.Bxd5 exd5 25.Bd4 25.Qxe7 A good alternative to the move played in the game Qxb6 25...Bd6 26.Qf3 a5 27.g5 hxg5 28.fxg5 Be7 29.h4 b4 30.axb4 axb4 31.Rf1 Qe6 32.Qf5 With a very simplified and completely equal endgame about to take place, the players agreed to a draw ½–½
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Liou,Y2501Chandra,A2589½–½2015B90Chess Club and Scholastic Cent3.1

Awonder Liang continued the Sicilian discussions by beating Michael Bodek in round three with White in a Sicilian Dragon and thus Akshat Chandra and Awonder Liang were off to a flying start with 2.5/3.

But in round four Akshat Chandra won again: after some unusual
play in the opening he reached a won rook endgame.

 
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1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nc3 a6 5.e3 Bf5 6.Bd3 Bg6 7.Bxg6 hxg6 8.Qb3 Ra7 9.0-0 e6 10.Re1 b5 11.cxd5 cxd5 12.a4? 12.e4! is the correct method to improve white's pieces. Stockfish: Nxe4 13.Nxe4 dxe4 14.Rxe4 Be7 15.Bd2 Nd7 16.Rc1 Rc7 17.Ree1! Rxc1 18.Rxc1 0-0 19.Rc6= 12...b4 13.Na2 a5 14.Qd3 Bd6 15.h3 0-0 16.Bd2 Nbd7 16...Ne4! 17.Nc1 g5 17.Rec1 Qb6 18.b3 Qa6? Not fightning for the c-file turned out to be a wrong idea. 19.Qxa6 Rxa6 20.Rc2 Rfa8 21.Nc1 Kf8 22.Nd3 Ke8 23.Rac1 Kd8 24.Nfe5 Bxe5 25.dxe5 Ng8 26.f3 Ne7 27.e4 dxe4 28.fxe4 Rc8 29.Rxc8+ Nxc8 30.Bg5+ f6 31.exf6 gxf6 32.Nc5! Nxc5 33.Bxf6+ Ke8 34.Rxc5 Nd6 35.e5 Ne4 36.Rc8+ Kf7 37.Rc7+ Ke8 38.g4 Nxf6 39.exf6 Rd6 40.Rg7 Rd3 41.Kg2 g5 42.Rxg5 Kf7 43.Rxa5 Kxf6 44.Ra8 Rxb3 45.a5 Ra3 46.a6 b3 47.a7 b2 48.Rb8 Rxa7 49.Rxb2 Kg5 50.Re2 Ra6 51.Kf3 Kh4 52.Re5 Ra3+ 53.Re3 Ra6 54.Kf4 Ra4+ 55.Ke5 Kg5 56.Kxe6 Kf4 57.Rb3 Ra6+ 58.Kf7 Ra5 59.Kg6 Ra6+ 60.Kh5 Ra5+ 61.Kh4 Ra8 62.Rb4+ Kf3 63.Rb5 Rg8 64.Rf5+ Ke4 65.Rf1 1–0
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Chandra,A2589Brattain,M24571–02015D15Chess Club and Scholastic Cent4.1

Awonder Liang could not keep pace with Akshat Chandra. He played too ambitiously against Shen and lost.

Thus, after four rounds Akshat Chandra took the sole lead.

 
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1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.d3 An opening that has a quiet reputation, usually leading to slow maneuvering Nf6 5.0-0 d6 6.c3 a6 Always a useful move for Black. Now Black can guarantee that they will not lose the bishop pair to a move like Na4. In addition to this point, Black may soon consider Na5, winning the bishop pair. 7.Bb3 Taking the sting out of Na5 Ba7 8.Re1 0-0 9.h3 h6 10.Nbd2 Be6 11.Bc2 Ne7 12.Nf1 Ng6 13.d4 '!' After this move, the secures a more pleasant position for White. c6 In a few moves Black plays c5, which seems inconsistent with this move. If this were Black's plan, it probably makes more sense to play c5 immediately. 13...c5!? 14.Be3 With similar play to the game 14.Be3 Qc7 15.Ng3 c5 16.Qd2 Rfd8 17.Nf5 d5 By this point, the game had reached a critical boiling point. d5 was an extravagant but unsound choice. Watching this game live, it didn't seem like such an easy choice to began the necessary sacrifices that are the only way to take advantage of Black's move. 18.Bxh6 '!?' Shen is up to the task, and finds this strong move. 18.Nxg7‼ Sacrifices on g7 like this are very uncommon, not to mention much more unnatural for a person than taking on h6. The computer makes a strong case that this is quite a powerful move though. A sample variation could be Kxg7 19.Bxh6+ Kh8 20.exd5 Rxd5 21.Bxg6 fxg6 22.Nxe5 Rg8 23.Qg5 White's threats are too numerous for Black to handle. 18...Nxe4 19.Bxe4 dxe4 20.Nxg7 exf3 21.Qg5 21.Nh5 21...Qe7 22.Nxe6 Qxg5 22...Qxe6 Despite holding on to extra material, White's pieces here are too strong after 23.Rxe5 Qd6 24.Rae1 Threatening Re6!! Kh7 25.Qh5 23.Nxg5 fxg2 '?' This is probably the last point in the game where Black could have offered serious resistance. 23...exd4! This keeps Black's material disadvantage to a mimimum although White is still clearly better. 24.dxe5 Re8 25.e6 '!' fxe6 26.Nxe6 c4 27.Re4 Re7 28.Kxg2 Rae8 29.Rae1 b5 30.Bg5 Rf7 31.f3 Rf5 32.h4 Bb8 33.f4 '!' This move signaled the end for Black. White's position is rock solid on the kingside and there is no counterplay for Black. White can slowly improve with moves like h5 as well as Kf3-g4 Rd5 34.Nd4 Rf8 35.Re8 Ba7 36.h5 Nxf4+ 37.Bxf4 Bxd4 38.Rxf8+ Kxf8 39.cxd4 Rxh5 40.Re6 Rh4 41.Be5 A disappointing loss for Awonder but Shen must be pleased with this strong performance. 1–0
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Shen,A2477Liang,A24281–02015C502015 US Junior Closed Championship4.2

After his loss in round four Awonder Liang also lost against IM Vellotti in round five.

Ruifeng Li had a more than promising attack against Akshat Chandra
in round five but spoiled it to a draw. Here he is just about to play 45.Rc6,
after which the game soon ends with a stalemate trick.

 
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1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 This already is a bit of a surprise. Earlier in the tournament Chandra played the Najdorf against Yian Liou. 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nc6 5.Nc3 Qc7 6.Be2 Nf6 7.Be3 a6 8.a3 Be7 9.f4 d6 10.g4 It seems like in every Sicilian White is playing g4. This is yet another game that shows why it is so dangerous... Nd7 11.g5 b5 12.Nxc6 '!' A nice way to help accelerate White's development Qxc6 13.Qd4 0-0 14.0-0-0 Black is already in a serious dilemma. White's fully developed and is ready to launch f4-f5. It's clear that the opening has turned out strongly in White's favor. Rb8 15.f5 Ne5 16.f6 '!' Li is playing perfect attacking chess. He is wasting no time, playing forceful moves, trying to pry open his opponent's king at the cost of a pawn. gxf6 '?' This is a very cooperative move. White's attack along the g-file will be overwhelming 16...Bd8 This is not an appetizing move to have to play but compared to the alternative, it is a massive improvement. White will still have a clear advantage after the following 17.fxg7 Kxg7 18.Qxd6 Qxd6 19.Rxd6 This is still relatively playable for Black, although White is clearly better. 17.gxf6 Bxf6 '??' 18.Bh6 '?' 18.Rhg1+! If Li had played this, the game would not have lasted much longer. The best case scenario for Black is going into an endgame a full rook down after Kh8 19.Bh6 Qc5 20.Qxc5 dxc5 21.Bxf8 Bb7 22.Bxc5 18...Bh8 '!' This is the only move that keeps the game going. From this point on, Chandra defends resourcefully despite being a significant time disadvantage. 19.Bxf8 19.h4! This idea looks very strong. White intends to play h4-h5 and follow up with a check in the guarantee that will win material. It's hard to offer Black a worthy defense. 19...Kxf8 20.Qd2 Ke7 21.Rhf1 Kd7 22.Qh6 Kc7 23.Qxh7 Bd7 24.Rd2 Qc5 25.Qh3 b4 A good move. Black has another good alternative 25...a5!? The threat of b4 is a major inconvenience to White. In spite of White's material advantage, most players would prefer to play black here. Unbelievably, it is now White's king that is in greater danger than Black's! 26.Nb1 '?' Bg7 27.Kd1 bxa3 28.Qxa3 Bh6 29.Qxc5+ dxc5 30.b3 Bxd2 '?!' This is the last chance for Black to fight for more than a draw. The remaining moves don't need much explanation 30...c4! White's rook has nowhere to go and can be captured whenever Black deems it necessary. The b3 pawn is a serious weakness. White will need to defend accurately to make a draw. 31.Nxd2 Rh8 32.Nc4 Nxc4 33.Bxc4 f5 34.exf5 exf5 35.Bd3 Rxh2 36.Bxf5 Bxf5 37.Rxf5 Kb6 38.Kc1 Rg2 39.Kb2 Rh2 40.Rf4 Rg2 41.Kc3 Rh2 42.Kd3 Rg2 43.Rf6+ Kb5 44.c4+ Ka5 45.Rc6 Rg3+ 46.Kc2 Rc3+ A cute trick that brings the game to an immediate end. Capturing the rook here or on the next turn results in an immediate stalemate. 47.Kb2 Rxb3+ 48.Kxb3 ½–½
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Li,R2502Chandra,A2589½–½2015B47Chess Club and Scholastic Cent5.1

Jeffery Xiong

After five rounds Jeffery Xiong’s solid chess had brought him 3.5/5 and place two. In round six he was a bit lucky that Li Riufang missed a winning computer move.

 
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1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nd2 Be7 4.Ngf3 Nf6 5.Bd3 c5 6.c3 cxd4 7.cxd4 dxe4 8.Nxe4 Nxe4 9.Bxe4 Bb4+ 10.Bd2 Bxd2+ 11.Qxd2 Nd7 12.0-0-0 Nf6 13.Bc2 Bd7 14.Ne5 Bc6 15.Kb1 0-0 16.f3 Rc8 17.g4 Nd7 18.Qd3 g6 19.Nxc6 Rxc6 20.h4 Qf6 21.h5 Rd8 22.hxg6 hxg6 23.f4 Rdc8 24.Rh2 Qxf4 25.Qh3 Kf8 26.Rf1 Qxd4 27.Bxg6 Ne5 28.Qh6+ Ke8 29.Rd2 Qxg4 30.Qh8+ Ke7 31.Qf6+ Kf8 32.Rd8+ White could have won with the computer move 32.Bh7 Amazing, but Black is helpless against the threat of 33.Rd8+ Rxd8 34.Qxg8+ Kg7 35.Qg8+. 32...Rxd8 33.Qxd8+ Kg7 34.Qf6+ Kf8 35.Bxf7 Qe4+ 36.Ka1 Qf5 37.Qh8+ Kxf7 38.Rxf5+ exf5 39.a4 Rf6 40.Qb8 ½–½
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Li,R2502Xiong,J2606½–½2015C032015 US Junior Closed Championship6.2

After a bad start Arthur Shen got going and in round six he won his third game in a row by dismantling Mika Brattain’s Caro Kann.

Winning against the Caro-Kann: Arthur Shen vs. Mika Brattain

 
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1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.f3 A very aggressive move from White, known as the Fantasy variation. Play sometimes resembles the King's Gambit, once the pawns are traded on e4 dxe4 4.fxe4 e5 5.Nf3 Bg4 6.c3 Nd7 7.Bd3 Ngf6 8.0-0 Bd6 9.Nbd2 0-0 10.h3 Bxf3 '!' 10...Bh5!? It would be interesting to keep the bishop, retreat it to g6, and further pressure the e4-pawn with Re8. There is absolutely nothing wrong with Mika's choice though. 11.Nxf3 c5 12.d5 c4 13.Bc2 An interesting imbalance has arisen. White's bishop pair can be a valuable asset in the long-term but with the center clogged up, the Black knights have a chance to outplay the White bishops. Ne8 14.Kh1 Be7 15.Qe2 Nd6 16.b3 Rc8 '?!' 16...Qc7! This is probably more accurate. It's not clear yet where Black's rooks need to be placed. 17.Bb2 17.b4!? This would have been good here as well 17...b5 18.Nd2 18.b4 Now this would certainly be best, reaching a pawn structure similar to the Ruy Lopez. White can start with a4, and double up before capturing on b5 in order to secure control of the a-file 18...Nb6 19.a4 cxb3 20.Bxb3 a6 '?!' 20...bxa4! 21.Bxa4 Bg5! Black plans to take on d2 and use the weakened c4 square for their knights, this move also helps to weaken the e4 pawn. Black's counterplay is getting very serious 21.axb5 axb5 22.Ba3 '!' Qd7 23.Bb4 Ndc4 24.Bxc4 bxc4 '?' Unfortunately for Mika, he has played very well up until this point but after this move, he is nearly lost. The newly formed target on c4 is going to be lost. It is only a matter of time. 24...Nxc4! This move would have given Black better chances than the game continuation 25.Nxc4 Rxc4 26.d6 Bxd6 27.Qd3 Rc6 28.Rfd1 Qb7 29.Bxd6 Rd8 White can't hold on to the extra piece, and the game should soon level out to an equal position 25.Rfb1 Bxb4 26.Rxb4 Qd8 27.Nxc4 Nxc4 28.Rxc4 f5 29.Rxc8 Qxc8 30.c4 f4 31.Qg4 Qc5 31...Qxg4 Perhaps this was a better chance, although Black will probably need to catch some breaks in order to draw this 32.hxg4 Rc8 This at least poses White more problems 32.Qe6+ Kh8 33.d6 f3 34.gxf3 Qd4 35.Rg1 Qc3 36.Qg4 36.Rf1 Cleaner according to the computer but White's choice is also good enough 36...g6 37.d7 Qd3 38.c5 Rf4 39.Qg5 39.Qe6! Winning on the spot. Black has no serious checks after capturing on f3. White's d-pawn will soon queen Qxf3+ 40.Kh2 39...Qxd7 40.Qxe5+ Kg8 41.Qd5+ 41.Qxf4?? 41...Qxd5 42.exd5 Rc4 43.c6 Kf8 44.Rd1 Ke8 45.Kg2 Kd8 46.Kf2 Black recognized that the end was near and resigned. An interesting and hard fought struggle 1–0
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WhiteEloWBlackEloBResYearECOEventRnd
Shen,A2477Brattain,M24571–02015B12Chess Club and Scholastic Cent6.5

With a win against Akshat Chandra in round seven Jeffery Xiong could have taken the lead but he missed a couple of good chances and the game ended in a draw.

The focus was on the game between the top two seeds.

 
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1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 Chandra's previous handling of the Taimanov was not as impressive as displayed in this game 2...d6 Against Yian Liou, Chandra chose to play the Najdorf. 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nc6 5.Nc3 Qc7 6.Be3 a6 7.Be2 b5 8.Nxc6 Qxc6 8...dxc6 A playable alternative 9.Bf3 Bb7 10.e5 Qc7 11.0-0 Bxf3 12.Qxf3 Rc8 12...Rd8 This move was chosen in the only game I can find in this position. Chandra's move is a perfectly acceptable novelty 13.Rad1 Ne7 14.Rfe1 Ng6 15.Bd4 Be7 16.Ne4 Both players have been playing at a very high level up until this point. Chandra's next move is very reasonable but he could have been more daring with 16... Qxc2! 0-0 16...Qxc2 Black will soon castle and in order for White to regain the pawn, Xiong will need to capture on d7, quickly allowing Black gain activity along the d-file, ending White's attack. 17.Bc3 0-0 18.Rxd7 b4 19.Rd2 Qa4 20.Bd4 Rfd8 An example of how Black's coordination improves by trading the c-pawn for the d-pawn. 17.c3 Nh4 18.Qg4 Nf5 19.Nf6+ Kh8 20.Nd5 Qb7 21.Nxe7 Nxe7 22.Re3 b4 23.cxb4 23.Rh3! It's very unlikely that White can checkmate Black here, but it forces Black's knight to f5 in order to protect the kingside. This is a concession that gives White a better position. Black would rather play bxc3 and be able to meet Bxc3 with Nd5 23...Qxb4 24.Qe2 Nd5 25.Rb3 Qa4 26.Ra3 Qb5 27.Qxb5 axb5 28.Ra7 Rfd8 29.a3 Kg8 30.g3 f6 31.Rd3 Ra8 32.Rb7 Rab8 33.Rxb8 Rxb8 34.Rb3 Kf7 35.f4 Ke8 36.Bc5 Kd8?! 37.Kf2 Kc8 38.Kf3 Rb7 39.Kg4 Kc7 40.Bf8 g6 41.exf6 Nxf6+ 42.Kg5 Nd5 43.Kh6 Kd8 44.Kxh7 Ke8 45.Bd6 Kf7 46.Kh6 Rb6 47.Be5 d6 48.Bd4 Rb8 49.Kg5 Ne7 50.g4 Nc6 51.Bf6?! 51.Be3! With strong chances to win 51...b4! Black's new found counterplay with Rb5 is enough to salvage the game 52.Rd3 bxa3 53.bxa3 Rb5+ 54.f5 gxf5 55.Rxd6 fxg4+ 56.Kxg4 Kxf6 57.Rxc6 Ra5 58.Rc3 Ra4+ 59.Kg3 Kf5 60.Rb3 e5 61.Rf3+ Kg5 62.Re3 Kf5 63.Rb3 Kg5 64.Rf3 Rg4+ 65.Kf2 Ra4 66.Rb3 Kf5 67.Ke1 e4 68.Ke2 Kf4 69.Rc3 Ra8 70.h4 Rb8 71.h5 Rb2+ 72.Kd1 Rh2 73.a4 Rxh5 74.Ke2 Rh2+ 75.Ke1 Ra2 76.Rb3 Rxa4 77.Ke2 Ra2+ 78.Ke1 e3 79.Rb8 Kf3 80.Rf8+ Ke4 An exciting and difficult defense for Chandra. With two rounds left, both players still have everything to play for! ½–½
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Xiong,J-Chandra,A-½–½2015B49US Juniors7

Arthur Shen had more luck. With some help of his opponent FM Michael Bodek he won his fourth game in a row.

After starting with 1.0/3, Shen now has 5.0/7.

After seven rounds Akshat Chandra and Arthur Shen lead the field with 5.0/7. As luck would have it, they meet in the eighth and penultimate round. Jeffery Xiong follows on place three with 4.5/7.

 

Standings after seven rounds

Games

 
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1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.Nf3 Bg7 5.Bg5 Ne4 6.Bh4 Nxc3 7.bxc3 dxc4 8.e3 8.Qa4+ is another possibility. 8...b5 9.a4 c6 10.Be2 a6 11.0-0 Bb7 '?!' 11...Nd7! 12.Qb1 Nb6 Good counterplay 12.Nd2 12.Qb1! Ra7 12...Qc7 13.Qb4! 13.Qb4 12...Nd7 13.Bf3 Qc8 13...0-0 Black should take the opportunity to castle, with a solid position. 14.Qb1 f6 15.Bg4 f5 16.Bf3 16.Be2 Nf6! Black is ready to castle, with the preferable chances 16.Bh3!? e6 Black's position is becoming more and more solid, with the extra pawn giving Black an advantage 16...e5 '!' 17.Qb4 Bf8 '!' 18.Qb2 Bd6 A critical position where White goes astray 19.Rfb1 '?!' 19.Bg3 This move keeps the game very tense, with chances for both sides. It prevents Black's response from the game, 19... e4 19...e4 '!' 20.Be2 Rb8 The game is slowly turning more and more in Black's favor, with White having less compensation for the pawn with each move. 21.f3 exf3 22.Bxf3 Qc7 23.axb5 cxb5 24.Bxb7 Rxb7 25.Rxa6 Bxh2+ 26.Kh1 0-0 27.Qa3 Bg3 28.Bxg3 Qxg3 29.Nxc4 Nf6 30.Ne5 Ng4 31.Nxg4 fxg4 '!' 32.Qd6 Qh4+ 33.Qh2 Qf2 34.Qh6 '?' g3 '!' 35.Rg1 Rbf7 '!' Bringing the last piece into the attack. Black threatens Qxg1 as well as Rf5. Both threatens win on the spot, so White resigned. An exciting and spectacular start to the tournament! 0–1
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WhiteEloWBlackEloBResYearECOEventRnd
Harmon-Vellotti,L2526Chandra,A25890–12015D912015 US Junior Closed Championship1.1
Liou,Y2501Shen,A24771–02015B842015 US Junior Closed Championship1.2
Li,R2502Bodek,M2527½–½2015B762015 US Junior Closed Championship1.3
Xiong,J2606Brattain,M2457½–½2015B672015 US Junior Closed Championship1.4
Liang,A2428Han,C22111–02015E812015 US Junior Closed Championship1.5
Chandra,A2589Han,C22111–02015D852015 US Junior Closed Championship2.1
Brattain,M2457Liang,A2428½–½2015D382015 US Junior Closed Championship2.2
Bodek,M2527Xiong,J2606½–½2015C542015 US Junior Closed Championship2.3
Shen,A2477Li,R25021–02015B902015 US Junior Closed Championship2.4
Harmon-Vellotti,L2526Liou,Y2501½–½2015C952015 US Junior Closed Championship2.5
Liou,Y2501Chandra,A2589½–½2015B902015 US Junior Closed Championship3.1
Li,R2502Harmon-Vellotti,L2526½–½2015C092015 US Junior Closed Championship3.2
Xiong,J2606Shen,A24771–02015B912015 US Junior Closed Championship3.3
Liang,A2428Bodek,M25271–02015B762015 US Junior Closed Championship3.4
Han,C2211Brattain,M2457½–½2015D182015 US Junior Closed Championship3.5
Chandra,A2589Brattain,M24571–02015D15Chess Club and Scholastic Cent4.1
Shen,A2477Liang,A24281–02015C502015 US Junior Closed Championship4.2
Bodek,M2527Han,C22111–02015B902015 US Junior Closed Championship4.3
Harmon-Vellotti,L2526Xiong,J2606½–½2015E382015 US Junior Closed Championship4.4
Liou,Y2501Li,R25020–12015B902015 US Junior Closed Championship4.5
Li,R2502Chandra,A2589½–½2015B47Chess Club and Scholastic Cent5.1
Xiong,J2606Liou,Y25011–02015C442015 US Junior Closed Championship5.2
Liang,A2428Harmon-Vellotti,L25260–12015E252015 US Junior Closed Championship5.3
Han,C2211Shen,A24770–12015D912015 US Junior Closed Championship5.4
Brattain,M2457Bodek,M2527½–½2015A192015 US Junior Closed Championship5.5
Chandra,A2589Bodek,M2527½–½2015D37Chess Club and Scholastic Cent6.1
Li,R2502Xiong,J2606½–½2015C032015 US Junior Closed Championship6.2
Harmon-Vellotti,L2526Han,C2211½–½2015D912015 US Junior Closed Championship6.3
Liou,Y2501Liang,A2428½–½2015B532015 US Junior Closed Championship6.4
Shen,A2477Brattain,M24571–02015B122015 US Junior Closed Championship6.5
Xiong,J2606Chandra,A2589½–½2015B492015 US Junior Closed Championship7.1
Bodek,M2527Shen,A24770–12015A372015 US Junior Closed Championship7.2
Han,C2211Liou,Y2501½–½2015D152015 US Junior Closed Championship7.3
Brattain,M2457Harmon-Vellotti,L2526½–½2015A252015 US Junior Closed Championship7.4
Liang,A2428Li,R2502½–½2015B412015 US Junior Closed Championship7.5

Photos: Austin Fuller

Annotations to the games: Mackenzie Molner

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Priyadarshan Banjan is a 23-year-old club player from India. He works as an editor for ChessBase News and ChessBase India. He is a chess fanatic and an avid fan of Vishy Anand. He also maintains a blog on a variety of topics.

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gmwdim gmwdim 7/14/2015 04:46
It should be mentioned that the ratings shown here are USCF ratings, not FIDE ratings. Hence FMs and IMs rated in the 2500-2600 range.
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