Blitz- and Rapid WCC: List of participants

10/9/2015 – AGON now published the list of participants for the WCC in blitz and rapid which will begin on Saturday in Berlin. Top seed is Magnus Carlsen with a blitz rating of 2914. Ten participants can boast of a blitz rating of 2800+, more than 40 have 2700+ in blitz. They play for a prize fund of 200.000 USD, of which the winner will receive 40.000 USD. Here's the list.

A moment of shock

10/9/2015 – Tactics can seem deceptively simple, particularly when seeing an engine analysing grandmaster games. Strange, however, how difficult it is to find the right move and to calculate variations properly when playing yourself. It is easier if you solve tactical puzzles regularly. In the ChessBase Magazine and his tactics column Oliver Reeh helps you to do so.

Isle of Man: Nigel Short wins brilliancy

10/8/2015 – Nigel Short, born 1. June 1965, is the oldest player in the World's top 100. And he is still tactically alert. Which he proved in round 5 of the Isle of Man PokerStars Open when he countered a dangerous piece sacrifice by Alon Greenfeld with a countersacrifice, which brought him a quick win. With 4.0/5 Short now shares the lead with ten other players.

Magnus at the Qatar Masters Open 2015

10/8/2015 – The Qatar Masters Open 2015 just got bigger, better and stronger. The reason: reigning World Champion and world number one Magnus Carlsen confirmed he'll play in what is going to be one of the most amazing open events in chess history. We have inputs from the tournament director Mohamed-Al-Modiahki, and also a brief recollection of the last open tournament played by Magnus Carlsen.

Millionaire Open begins in Las Vegas

10/8/2015 – The Millionaire Chess Open in Las Vegas can boast of a prize fund of more than 1.000.000 USD, more than any other open in chess history. The open attracts world class players such as Fabiano Caruana, Hikaru Nakamura, Wesley So or Yu Yangyi but amateurs can also win huge prizes in their respective rating groups. David Llada sends pictures from the opening ceremony.

New In Chess reviews: Kasimdzhanov and Ramirez

10/8/2015 – He spent a month "relaxing with a bottle of wine and some chess DVDs". GM Matthew Sadler reviewed them for the magazine New In Chess. Of Rustam Kasimdzhanov on the Nimzo-Indian with 4.Qc2 he says: "I do like his DVDs a lot ... excellent insights!" And on Alejandro Ramirez' Ragozin: "He does a super job of structuring the material and delivers it with enthusiasm and clarity." NiC reviews.

Carlsen will defend titles in Berlin

10/8/2015 – Magnus Carlsen is World Champion in classical, rapid, and blitz chess. In a few days he will defend his titles in the FIDE World Chess Rapid and Blitz Championship in Berlin. The Rapid tournament takes place from 10. to 12. October, the Blitz tournament from 13. to 14. October. More than 150 grandmasters will come to Berlin to challenge the World Champion. Press release.

Chess stars on the Isle of Man

10/7/2015 – PokerStars is one of the biggest internet platforms for poker. But they also support chess and organise the PokerStars Isle of Man Tournament, a nine round swiss open with attractive prizes, a strong field, and a lot of chess stars. Four players can boast of a rating of 2700+, 13 players of 2600+. After four rounds seven players share the lead with 3.5/4 each.

Huffington: Karjakin Lifts the Chess World Cup

10/7/2015 – "It is the best result of my life," said Sergey Karjakin, 25, after he won the 2015 FIDE World Chess Cup, the grueling 128-player elimination tournament that took 25 days and finished on Monday in Baku, Azerbaijan. Karjakin defeated Peter Svidler in the all-Russian final match 6:4. Huffington Post columnist Lubomir Kavalek provides analysis of the resounding first-round win – of Peter Svidler.

Three fascinating books

10/6/2015 – The chess books published by McFarland are special. They are carefully designed and edited and attract excellent writers. If you are interested in chess history or the lives of outstanding chess personalities they are an absolute must. Recently, the American publisher presented a number of new titles that are definitely worth reading and offer fascinating insights.

Solid as a rock?

10/6/2015 – Every week ChessBase magazine author and renowned endgame expert Karsten Müller presents a remarkable or particularly instructive endgame in his blog. A click on the diagram opens a larger board. Test your endgame skills, improve and have fun!

Turkey: Chess Across the Streets

10/6/2015 – This is a unique action: at the end of September, just before the start of the new school year, chess players of all levels in Turkey were asked to play the game in public, wherever possible – recreational parks, regular streets, or even downtown, you name it. And send in memento photos, a small selection of which we share with you today. Something for the rest of the world to emulate?

Tiebreak Karjakin vs Svidler: Daniel King analyses

10/6/2015 – The tiebreak between Sergey Karjakin and Peter Svidler was dramatic and full of blunders and oversights. Thus Daniel King decided to summarize the match briefly and "to concentrate on what was really good". Pointing out Karjakin's "superb endgame technique" and his coolness under pressure, King concludes that "Karjakin was a deserving winner of the World Cup".

Baku Finals TB: Karjakin Wins

10/5/2015 – A titanic struggle, full of blunders, missed chances, hanging rooks and more. The only thing that this match didn't have was a single draw! After ten decisive games, Karjakin crowns himself as the winner of the 2015 World Cup in Baku. Today Svidler had more than one chance to win the event, but it was as if it was not destined to be. Analysis of every single game inside.

Baku Final Tiebreaks: Watch it live on Playchess!

10/5/2015 – He won the first two games (of four) in the World Cup final. Then Peter Svidler blundered in game three and was outplayed by Sergey Karjakin in game four. Today, with the scores even, are the tiebreaks rapid and blitz games. You can watch the action live on Playchess – or right here in your browser (or on your tablet or smart phone). You can even start an engine and chat.

Karjakin vs Svidler, g4: Daniel King analyses

10/5/2015 – After trailing 0-2 in the final of the World Cup in Baku Sergey Karjakin had to win twice to reach the tiebreaks. Which he did. With a lot of luck in game three but a deserved win in game four. After an early exchange of queens Karjakin found ways to put Peter Svidler under pressure. Daniel King analyses highlights of this quietly dramatic game.

Mumbai remembers Bobby Fischer

10/5/2015 – The 19th of September was a special day: ChessBase India invited all players in Mumbai to celebrate the greatest chess player that ever lived – Bobby Fischer. The movie Pawn Sacrifice premiered in the city, and in spite of very short notice a number of chess players gathered to watch it together – and then follow one of our most popular biographical DVDs.

October 2015 ratings: Nakamura is world no. 2

10/4/2015 – The latest ratings brought American Hikaru Nakamura to world no.2 making him the first American since Bobby Fischer to achieve it. It also marked the comeback of the great Armenian Levon Aronian, who interrupted his slump with a fantastic win at the Sinquefield Cup. Bear in mind the World Cup results are not included yet. In the meantime enjoy the numbers, stats, and results.

Baku Finals G4: Karjakin forces TB

10/4/2015 – It won't go down in history as one of the best games of chess, but at least there weren't any major blunders in the fourth game of the finals of the World Cup. Svidler's choice of opening left him in a passive position and shortly after concluding theory his position deteriorated. Karjakin's pressure and Svidler's missed chances mean that tomorrow we go into Tie Breaks!

Baku Final G3: Svidler blunders, Karjakin wins

10/3/2015 – After getting crushed in game one of the World Cup final, and blundering badly in game two, Sergey Karjakin was a hair's breath away from booking his ticket back home. But then in a very promising position (move 28) Peter Svidler blundered and Sergey was able to clinch game three. The score is now 1:2, and in the must-win game four he has white. Game three report.

CNN Money blitz interview with Nakamura

10/2/2015 – Red Bull’s marketing department is easily one of the most powerful and astute in the world, and they sponsor no fewer than 600 athletes in the world, in a wide variety of fields. One of their most recent forays is into a resurgent chess in the United States as they added Hikaru Nakamura to their numbers. Here is a quick video interview on CNN Money.

Baku Finals g2: Massive Blunders

10/2/2015 – It started out as a classical struggle between titans. Long things with calculations, backed by positional prowess. Karjakin played his typical 1.e4, while Svidler contended with the solid Breyer defense in the Spanish. Svidler was doing an excellent job of holding on, Karjakin couldn't find a way through. It all seemed headed to a draw... when Karjakin blundered horribly... twice!

Did you guess who annotated Rogoff-Spencer 1969?

10/2/2015 – In a previous article we reproduced a report on the 1969 US Junior Championship in which Ken Rogoff, today a world famous economist, won the title with a two-point lead over the field. The key game in the final round was witnessed by a kibitzing chess columnist, who expressed his admiration for the sixteen-year-old and annotated his game – with advice for budding chess players.

Baku Finals g1: Svidler Flawless

10/1/2015 – He simply played a perfect game. His development was good, his pawn breaks timely, and Karjakin simply couldn't cope with this precarious position. Despite Black's extra pawn, Svidler's pieces coordinated much better and created real pressure all over the board, especially on the long white diagonal. Karjakin blundered in an already very difficult position, and Svidler leads one to nothing.