Sinequefields Purchase Bobby Fischer's Chess Collection

6/12/2009 – About 320 volumes on chess, 400 periodicals, nine unexamined personal floppy disks, proofs for My 60 Memorable Games, preparation notes for Taimanov, Petrossian and Spassky – all of this was up for sale at Bonhams and Butterfield on Madison Avenue. It was snapped up for US $61,000 by Rex and Jeanne Sinquefield, sponsors of the 2009 US Championship. Press release and details.

Your judgement, please

6/11/2009 – The ChessBase CD "The greatest tournaments in the history of chess" has a remarkably detailed review of the most beautiful game in the 1883 London tournament. In the diagram position the d5-square has been cleared; but White now has to deal with threats on the c-file. Which evaluations is correct: A) Black has the initiative firmly in his hands since he is threatening ...Rc2; B) It's obvious how White can get the advantage – what are long diagonals for? C) The bishop on b2 will play a decisive part in the attack – but first White needs some more open lines. The solution is here, but first ponder over it with a larger version of the diagram

Feedback and facts on FIDE's 'zero tolerance' rule

6/11/2009 – Last week the Chinese Championship was decided, amongst other things, by a winner getting a full point when his last-round opponent did not appear at his board in time for the start. A lot of readers have commented, some eloquently, some stridently, some tongue-in-cheek, on FIDE's "zero tolerance" rule. We, on the other hand, were hard put to find the exact wording. Who can help clear this up?

Congratulations to Natalia and Peter, the new chess couple

6/10/2009 – He had read about her in chess magazines and websites. In August 2008 they met at the Tal Memorial. Peter Zhdanov and Natalia Pogonina played some blitz, and a new friendship was born, which eventually blossomed into love and led to a marriage between the two young Russian chess players. They are currently working on an extraordinary book, one you are not going to want to miss.

Chinese Championship – a closer look at Ding Liren

6/9/2009 – The sixteen-year-old winner of the 2009 Championship, with 8½/11 and a near-2800 TPR, was undefeated and beat three of the four highest-rated players in the tournament. In this week's Playchess lecture Dennis Monokroussos takes a first look at Ding's chess, specifically that the game that decided the championship: his win over Wang Hao. Be there to watch at 9 p.m. ET.

Chinese Championship – decision by default

6/9/2009 – The 2009 Chinese Championship was won by Ding Liren, an untitled 16-year-old, rated 2458, the youngest national champion ever. But Ding's victory was overshadowed by the last-round default of his opponent, who was not seated at the board when the clocks were started. The only female contender, 15-year-old GM Hou Yifan, also lost a game by default when she arrived five seconds late for the start.

Miskolc Day 4: Anand wins Rapid match 5:3

6/8/2009 – Both games were hard-fought draws, with World Champion Vishy Anand pressing, but unable to overcome Peter Leko's defence. In the end Anand had won 5-3. We bring you games with GM analysis and pictures of the final day in Miskolc. For his victory Anand received an equisite crystal glass trophy (and Peter Leko a smaller one). We used the opportunity to visit the artist who made them.

XXII León Masters: Carlsen beats Ivanchuk in final

6/7/2009 – Once again it was a real cliff-hanger: the first two rapid chess games were drawn, then Vassily Ivanchuk won and took the lead, after which Magnus Carlsen equalised. A blitz decider was required. The first two games were drawn, in the final Armageddon game Carlsen won by trapping Ivanchuk's knight. So the 18-year-old Norwegian, number three in the world, once again shows his class.

Sigeman & Co: Nigel Short wins with a 2990 performance

6/7/2009 – We have known him for decades, and he never fails to surprise us. Just a week after his 44th birthday Nigel Short delivered a stunning performance at this six-player classical tournament in Malmo, Sweden. After conceding just one draw in the first four rounds he defeated second seed Ivan Sokolov, rated 2669, with the black pieces to take the event with a 1.5 point lead. Pictorial report.

A key encounter in the Slav Stonewall

6/7/2009 – One of the key encounters at the weekend was the 4th game between Carlsen and Ivanchuk in the final of the rapid chess event in Leon. The Ukrainian required only a draw to achieve victory in the tournament, but nevertheless he turned to an opening which is actually well suited to an aggressive repertoire for Black. He had obviously not read the article by Alexey Kuzmin in CBM 125, which we publish here in full. In the position in the diagram the Russian had recommended 8…dxc4 or 8…Na6. You can replay the game Carlsen - Ivanchuk or read the article Kuzmin: The Slav Stonewall

Miskolc Day 3: Anand strikes again, leads 4:2

6/7/2009 – Vishy Anand took the full point with black in the first game of the day, a Gruenfeld Russian with the first eleven moves mirroring the previous game. In the second game Anand was pressing with white, but just when it looked over Peter managed to hold the draw. We bring you grandmaster commentary and historic photos of a world chess champion being mobbed by adoring female fans.

XXII Ciudad de León Masters: Carlsen knocks out Wang Yue

6/6/2009 – After a draw in the first of four rapid chess games Chinese GM Wang Yue dealt Magnus Carlsen a blow by winning game two. But the young Norwegian came back immediately with a 23-move win in game three. The fourth game was drawn, so that a blitz tiebreak was necessary. It was won by Magnus in the final, sixth game. Playchess is broadcasting all games live. Day two report.

Sigeman & Co: Nigel Short on a rampage

6/6/2009 – He promised five rounds of fighting chess, and he is in the process of delivering. In the first three (of five) rounds of the six-player classical tournament in Malmo, Sweden, British GM Nigel Short has scored three victories. The top seed is a full point ahead of his nearest rival, Ivan Sokolov. Don't even bother to calculate the performance. Pictorial report.

Miskolc free day: an encounter with the Miskolc youth

6/6/2009 – The free day between the two halves of the yearly Miskolc Rapid Chess Tournament is always dedicated to public relations, chess promotion and feel-good activities. It starts with a reception a and proceeds to a lecture and Q&A with the chess youth. The players participate with great enthusiasm, and the public enjoy every minute of it, as shown in this report with photos and videos

Your judgement, please

6/5/2009 – In our weekly column, Oliver Reeh presents a simple chess problem in our CBM Blog. In the diagram left – White to move after 24...Qd6 – which of the following evaluations of the position is correct?
A) Black wins, since he conquers the pinned knight;
B) White has a sacrificial continuation which, however, only secures him a draw;
C) White actually wins.
You will find the solution in this annotated game Degraeve-Belezky. You can think about the problem by studying a lager version of the diagram.

XXII Ciudad de León Masters: Ivanchuk beats Morozevich

6/5/2009 – This four-player rapid chess knockout event is under way in the city of León, Spain. The tournament began with Vassily Ivanchuk playing Alexander Morozevich. The Ukrainian won the first game and drew the remaining three to advance to the final on Sunday. On Saturday Magnus Carlsen plays top Chinese GM Wang Yue. Playchess is broadcasting all games live. Illustrated day one report.

Master calculation

6/4/2009 – Even at the highest level you can sometimes watch games suddenly turn due to miscalculation. That underlines the essential role of calculation skills in chess. On this new Powerplay DVD you will find a great novelty: Daniel King not only provides you with training tasks, but you can watch him solve these tasks in front of the camera. Buy Powerplay 10 now or read this review with sampler.

The Cruellest Month – three respected players pass

6/4/2009 – T S Eliot tells us that "April is the cruellest month", but in the chess world of 2009, it is May that has been the bitterest. Three prominent and popular masters passed away within two weeks of one another, two from the former Soviet Union – IM Mikhail Podgaets, Ukraine, GM Alexander Panchenko, Russia – and one from the Netherlands, IM Rob Hartoch. Obituaries by Steve Giddins.

Miskolc Day 2: both games drawn, Anand leads

6/4/2009 – Game three, in which Viswanathan Anand has the white pieces, was a somewhat timid draw in 28 moves. In game four he was under pressure from Peter Leko, and was forced to hoover the board of pawns, ending up with a bishop against two bishops. But Anand put his king into a corner square where he could draw with an unusual fortress. Full photo report with GM commentary.

President Peres at the Shevah-Mofet Chess Academy

6/3/2009 – It is not often that the head of state drops in at a chess school or club. Last week Shimon Peres, the ninth and current President of the State of Israel, who visited the Chess Academy, where he was briefed on the aims and goals of the programme by GM Boris Alterman, former student and advisor of Garry Kasparov. Pictorial report from Tel Aviv.

PVK Kievchess wins Ukrainian Team Championship

6/3/2009 – The event was staged in the Crimean town of Alushta. For the third time in a row PVK Kievchess, led by former FIDE knockout world champion Rustam Ponomariov, took the title. One of the stars of the team was twelve-year-old Ukrainian talent Illja Nyzhnyk, who has increased his rating to 2499. Report, games, and some extraordinary photography by Anastasiya Karlovich.

Svetozar Gligoric – the players from whom we have learnt

6/3/2009 – Positions that were mysterious to masters fifty years ago now strike amateurs as obvious. But remember: we have learned by the example of great players, who had to figure things out for themselves. In this week's Playchess lecture Dennis Monokroussos shows us the game Gligoric-Tolush from a Leningrad team tournament in 1957 to illustrate the point. Be there to watch at 9 p.m. ET.

Miskolc 2009 opens with a Hungarian-Indian spectacular

6/3/2009 – On the day before the start of the rapid chess match between Peter Leko and Vishy Anand there was a press meeting and then a very special treat in the playing venue: one of the most colorful and beautifully choreographed openings ceremony we have seen. The themes were Hungarian and Indian chess, and were vigorously illustrated by supple young dancers. The result? India won – easily!

Miskolc Day 1: Anand wins, takes the lead

6/3/2009 – Vishy Anand dominated on the first day of the rapid chess match in Hungary against Peter Leko. The World Champion was applying pressure with black at the end of game one, and then outplayed his opponent in a very enjoyable game two. Both were Grundfelds. We bring you live photo impressions, a video report including interviews with Anand and Leko, and the games with GM commentary.