A 2500 in a Millionaire Event (2/2)

10/19/2014 – The second report on Alejandro Ramirez's Las Vegas adventure. This article focuses on the second half of the tournament, shines a light on some of the organizational details of the event, and explains how one should go around to winning the big money in Las Vegas! After a stressful five days of chess, the author can only say one thing: "I can't wait for this event to happen again."

Isenegger Memorial Study Tourney (3)

10/19/2014 – The David vs. Goliath motif – pawns fight pieces – in chess studies was the speciality of the Swiss study composer Samuel Isenegger. It was also the theme of the commemorative composition tournament staged by the Dutch-Flamish endgame study society ARVES. In the final section of our report the event director Yochanan Afek shows us studied that received special commendations.

A 2500 in a Millionaire Event (1/2)

10/18/2014 – $100,000. For a grandmaster that has not breached the top 100, let alone the top 20, and besides the World Cup, when can a grandmaster compete in a tournament that has $100,000 as its first prize? GM Alejandro Ramirez took his risk of $1,000 to participate in a unique tournament in Las Vegas. He brings us his unique Millionaire Chess impressions.

World Junior 10/11: Goryachkina and Wei Yi lead

10/18/2014 – Twelve gruelling rounds, and two amazing players are set to take Gold. Alexandra Goryachkina has made it (update), while Wei Yi faces stiff resistance. In our big illustrated report from Pune, India, with five annotated games, we do not forget younger players who have gained massive amounts of rating points: 170 and 197 just in this event. The final round is on Sunday.

Isle of Man: rain and sunshine (part 2/2)

10/17/2014 – In this second part of her chronicle, Alina L'Ami shares her impressions of a place that mixes the deeply traditional with the modern at every step of the way, and that remains both part of the neighboring world, and apart in its own ways, such as a currency that can only be used there. It certainly helped that it had a friendly people and beautiful landscape.

Trashed trio

10/17/2014 – There's a simple truth about chess: tactics decide most games. Playing a stunning novelty in a popular variation of the Sicilian after hours, weeks or months of preparation is fine, but useless if you fail to see the mate in five afterwards. There's also a simple truth about tactics: the more you practice, the better you get. Oliver Reeh helps to do so.

Bust this! A philosophical opening

10/17/2014 – Think of the worst blunder in the opening that does not lead to immediate checkmate. Say, giving away your queen on the second move with 1.e4 d6 2.Qg4. It is a losing move, as every beginner will tell you. But do we really know it, or are we just making an educated guess that is impossible to demonstrate? This is the philosophical problem of chess knowledge, explained by Pedro Múrias.

Isle of Man: rain and sunshine (part 1/2)

10/16/2014 – The combination of poker and chess at the Isle of Man was a fun change of pace, but in spite of this, for most players, it was the open that was the biggest draw, attracting top British and foreign players. The star was eventual English legend Nigel Short who beat Howell in the last round to take first, but there was so much more to it as told by Alina L'Ami in her wonderful report.

World Junior R08+09: Chinese and Russians top

10/16/2014 – After nine rounds two powerhouses of world chess are in the forefront. In the Open section the two Chinese GMs Wei Yi and Lu Shanglei remain in the lead with 7.0/9, but are joined by a Russian: Vladimir Fedoseev. In the Girls section last year's winner Aleksandra Goryachkina of Russia is in the sole lead with 7.5/9. Big pictorial report by Sagar Shah.

World Championship Guide to Sochi

10/16/2014 – The World Championship match between Magnus Carlsen and Viswanathan Anand is just three weeks away. It takes place in a volatile political region of Russia, but in a city that is a very attractive seaside resort. It can be reached in half-hourly flights from Moscow or in two hours from Istanbul, and stay in a five-star hotel for a special rate of €88 (US $112) per night. Here are all the details.

Baku Closing

10/16/2014 – The first leg of the Grand Prix series has finished, and since the series is now only four tournaments long every result will count (unlike previously where you could 'replace' a bad result). This means that immediately we have some players well positioned for the top spots, while others will have to work hard for their qualification to the Candidate's.

World Junior rest day: a journey into Maratha

10/15/2014 – The rest day at the World Juniors is a wonderful tradition. Apart from giving players the much needed break from this strenuous event, it presents them with an opportunity to bond with each other and make new friends. Nearly 75 foreign players enrolled themselves for an outing to some historical sites in Pune and get aquainted with the Maratha culture. Big pictorial report.

NYT chess column dies – but could be resurrected

10/15/2014 – On October 11 a well-known chess column which has been running since 1962 finished with an ominous sentence: "This is the final chess column to run in The New York Times.” The end of an era, brought on by the dominance of chess in the web? Not so fast, says Matt Gaffney in a thoughtful Slate Magazine article. He names two candidates who could take over the NYT chess column.

Chess Down Under

10/15/2014 – There are many reasons to visit Australia: sunny weather, rich wildlife, incredible beaches, vibrant cities to name just a few. In January there is one more: Chess. From 2-11 January 2015 the Australian Open Chess Championships take place in Sydney. In short: a strong tournament with an impressive prize pool in a fascinating city in an attractive country. Give it a go!

Wesley So Wins the Millionaire Chess Open

10/15/2014 – The event in Las Vegas, the brainchild of GM Maurice Ashley, promised $1 million in prize money, spread over six different sections. The starting fee was $1,000 and nearly 600 players signed up. Philippine GM Wesley So, 21, took the first prize of $100,000, the largest in the history of open tournaments. GM Lubomir Kavalek annotates a wonderful game by the second-placed Ray Robson.

Playing chess with GZA

10/14/2014 – The hip-hop artist GZA, who belongs to the Wu-Tang Clan, one of the greatest rap groups ever, breaks many of the prejudices often associated with the genre. He is passionate about science, and is a sponsor of the school program Science Genius, and loves to play chess. VICE published an article in which the artist was challenged to a game with Zach Schwarz.

World Junior Rd6 and Rd7: Cori leads in Pune

10/14/2014 – It has been quite brutal, for many of the top players. But after seven rounds of intense battles the leader was Jorge Cori (2612) of Peru with a score of 6.0/7. In the girls section, no one really is able to run away from the field. As a result we have five leaders with 5.5/7. We show you some highlights from these two round in another big pictorial report by Sagar Shah.

Gelfand and Caruana share first in Baku

10/14/2014 – The final round of the Baku Grand Prix was quite appropriate all things considered. Five of the six games drew, and this was closer to par for the event than the nervy couple of rounds towards the end, while Fabiano Caruana and Boris Gelfand, both of whom headlined the event throughout shared first. The only win was Grischuk's victory over a luckless Dominguez. Last round report.

Hammer's Hammerblow

10/14/2014 – What is better, bishop or knight? Some people prefer bishops, but that is no consolation if they run into a knight fork. Maybe it's best not to have favorites but to use both pieces to your advantage. Endgame expert and enthusiast Karsten Müller has a nice example. Today, 16:00 server-time, playchess.com offers more of Müller's Endgame Magic.

Millionaire Chess: The fortunate four

10/13/2014 – The Millionaire Chess Tournament entered the decisive phase in round seven, determining who the lucky four to play for the biggest bucks would be. The tournament does more than offer record prizes and a revival of the rich section rewards of yesteryear's mega opens, it also innovates in the structure in order to maximize the excitement for spectators around the world.

Baku 10: Caruana and Gelfand retake lead

10/13/2014 – Once more four out of six games ended in decisive results, but the highlights were the wins scored by Fabiano Caruana and Boris Gelfand respectively, after both had suffered losses in the previous round. It is a credit to their fighting spirit and resilience that they bounced back when it matters the most and it all comes down to the wire for the last round. Report and analysis.

Isenegger Memorial Study Tourney (2)

10/13/2014 – The Swiss study composer Samuel Isenegger specialized in the David vs. Goliath theme, in which pawns fight pieces. To commemorate his anniversary the Dutch-Flamish endgame study society ARVES staged a tourney with this motif. In the first part of his report composition judge Yochanan Afek showed us the winning entires, today we get to enjoy further award-winning studies.

Baku 09: Leaders fall; six lead

10/12/2014 – For those hoping for tale of a crushing tournament victory, that dream was effectively erased when the leaders lost today, culminating in a massive six-way tie for first at 5.0/9. Fabiano Caruana lost his second game, this time to Grischuk, while Nakamura, Mamedyarov and Andreikin all racked up wins of their own. The final two rounds promise tension and drama. Round nine summary.

Things heat up in Vegas

10/12/2014 – After six rounds six players lead the Millionaire Chess Open with 5.0/6, nine more follow half a point behind, the four best after seven rounds will qualify for the knock-out, one will win 100.000 USD. The seventh round begins Sunday, 11 am Vegas time. Play-offs will follow right after the round, either rapid or blitz. Sounds like fun and excitement.