Chess to enjoy: The Café Batavia tournament

by André Schulz
3/3/2016 – The Batavia tournament in the Batavia Café in Amsterdam celebrates Dutch coffeehouse chess culture. Back in the days Max Euwe, who in 1935 became World Champion, played his very first tournament in such a café. Three grandmasters started in the Batavia tournament 2016: Lars Schandorff, Sabino Brunello, and Friso Nijboer. And they showed no respect for the young.
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The Café Batavia is close to central station of Amsterdam, right in the middle of the city. And the Batavia café is the venue for an attractive chess tournament the first edition of which was played in 2009. Chief organizer of the tournament is IM Merijn van Delft who is supported by Peter Tames, the owner of the Cafe Batavia. In the eighth edition of the tournament, which took place from 18th to 28th February 2016, ten players - a good mix of talent and experience - took part to play a nine-game round robin.

Among the more experienced players were GM Sabino Brunello from Italy, GM Friso Nijbour from the Netherlands and Danish GM Lars Schandorff. Anne Haast and Lucas van Foreest were two representatives of the young Dutch talents. However, the three grandmasters more than hold their own against the younger generation and took the first three places.

Café Batavia

The tournament started

Tournament winner Lars Schandorff

Lars Schandorff won four games and drew five to share first place with Friso Nijbour.

Here is Schandorff's win against Thomas Willemze. After Black had equalized he became a bit careless and gradually lost the thread.

Schandorff-Willemze

 
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1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 e6 3.g3 b5 Black wants to make use of the fact that White omitted to play c4. 4.Bg2 Bb7 5.0-0 Be7 6.Bg5 a6 White scores well after 6...0-0 7.Qd3 a6 7.c3 d6 8.Bxf6 Bxf6 9.a4 Nd7 10.Na3 Rb8 11.axb5 axb5 12.Qd3 Of course not 12.Nxb5? Bxf3 12...b4 12...c6!?= 13.Nc2 bxc3 14.bxc3 0-0 15.Nd2 Bxg2 16.Kxg2 c5 17.Ra7 Qb6 18.Rfa1 Qc6+?! Playable, but the position of the black queen and the black king makes the white knights dream. 18...Rb7= 19.Nf3 Rfc8 20.Ne3 How to bring a knight to e7? Well, d5 or f5 are inviting squares... cxd4 21.cxd4 Nb6 22.R1a6 The white pieces are more active but Black's position is solid. But now Black gets careless. g6? Leaving the bishop f6 unprotected. 22...Qc1 23.g4!? 22...h5!? 23.h4 23.d5! exd5 24.Nf5 and if Black plays gxf5 White simply continues with 25.Qxf5 and Black cannot protect the bishop with Kg7 because White now wins with 26.Ng5+- 23...Ra8?
23...Bg7= 24.d5 Better late than never. exd5 25.Nxd5 Bd8 25...Qxd5 26.Qxd5 Nxd5 27.Rxa8 and White is an exchange up. 26.Rxa8 Rxa8 27.Rxb6 After 27.Rxb6 Bxb6 28.Ne7++- the dreams of the white knights come true. 1–0
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WhiteEloWBlackEloBResYearECOEventRnd
Schandorff,L2500Willemze,T24181–02016A468th Batavia Chess Tournament5.4

 

For Anne Haast, the only woman in the field, things did not go too well. 
(The picture in the background shows Alina l'Ami)


 

All games

 
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1.f4 b6 2.Nf3 Bb7 3.e3 f5 4.b3 Nf6 5.Bb2 e6 6.c4 c5 7.Nc3 Nc6 8.a3 d5 9.d4 Bd6 10.Ne5 0-0 11.Be2 cxd4 12.exd4 Ne4 13.Nxe4 fxe4 14.0-0 Qe7 15.b4 Bxe5 16.fxe5 Rxf1+ 17.Bxf1 Qg5 18.Bc1 e3 19.cxd5 Ne7 20.dxe6 Rf8 21.Ra2 Bd5 22.Re2 Bf3 23.Bxe3 Qxe3+ 24.Rxe3 Bxd1 25.d5 Ba4 26.d6 Nd5 27.Re1 Bb3 28.Bb5 Nc3 29.e7 1–0
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WhiteEloWBlackEloBResYearECOEventRnd
Nijboer,F2545Van Foreest,L23501–020168th Batavia Chess Tournament1.1
Willemze,T2418Soors,S23900–120168th Batavia Chess Tournament1.2
Ly,M2480Haast,A23811–020168th Batavia Chess Tournament1.3
Schandorff,L2500De Ruiter,D2312½–½20168th Batavia Chess Tournament1.4
Brunello,S2562Pijpers,A2476½–½20168th Batavia Chess Tournament1.5
Nijboer,F2545Willemze,T24181–020168th Batavia Chess Tournament2.1
Haast,A2381Schandorff,L25000–120168th Batavia Chess Tournament2.2
Soors,S2390Ly,M2480½–½20168th Batavia Chess Tournament2.3
De Ruiter,D2312Brunello,S25620–120168th Batavia Chess Tournament2.4
Van Foreest,L2350Pijpers,A2476½–½20168th Batavia Chess Tournament2.5
Ly,M2480Nijboer,F2545½–½20168th Batavia Chess Tournament3.1
Schandorff,L2500Soors,S2390½–½20168th Batavia Chess Tournament3.2
Pijpers,A2476De Ruiter,D2312½–½20168th Batavia Chess Tournament3.3
Brunello,S2562Haast,A23811–020168th Batavia Chess Tournament3.4
Willemze,T2418Van Foreest,L23501–020168th Batavia Chess Tournament3.5
Haast,A2381Pijpers,A24760–120168th Batavia Chess Tournament4.1
Van Foreest,L2350De Ruiter,D2312½–½20168th Batavia Chess Tournament4.2
Nijboer,F2545Schandorff,L2500½–½20168th Batavia Chess Tournament4.3
Soors,S2390Brunello,S2562½–½20168th Batavia Chess Tournament4.4
Willemze,T2418Ly,M2480½–½20168th Batavia Chess Tournament4.5
Pijpers,A2476Soors,S23900–120168th Batavia Chess Tournament5.1
Brunello,S2562Nijboer,F25451–020168th Batavia Chess Tournament5.2
Ly,M2480Van Foreest,L23501–020168th Batavia Chess Tournament5.3
Schandorff,L2500Willemze,T24181–020168th Batavia Chess Tournament5.4
De Ruiter,D2312Haast,A23810–120168th Batavia Chess Tournament5.5
Soors,S2390De Ruiter,D23121–020168th Batavia Chess Tournament6.1
Willemze,T2418Brunello,S25620–120168th Batavia Chess Tournament6.2
Ly,M2480Schandorff,L2500½–½20168th Batavia Chess Tournament6.3
Nijboer,F2545Pijpers,A24761–020168th Batavia Chess Tournament6.4
Van Foreest,L2350Haast,A23811–020168th Batavia Chess Tournament6.5
Haast,A2381Soors,S2390½–½20168th Batavia Chess Tournament7.1
Brunello,S2562Ly,M2480½–½20168th Batavia Chess Tournament7.2
Pijpers,A2476Willemze,T24181–020168th Batavia Chess Tournament7.3
De Ruiter,D2312Nijboer,F2545½–½20168th Batavia Chess Tournament7.4
Schandorff,L2500Van Foreest,L23501–020168th Batavia Chess Tournament7.5
Schandorff,L2500Brunello,S25621–020168th Batavia Chess Tournament8.1
Van Foreest,L2350Soors,S23900–120168th Batavia Chess Tournament8.2
Ly,M2480Pijpers,A24760–120168th Batavia Chess Tournament8.3
Willemze,T2418De Ruiter,D2312½–½20168th Batavia Chess Tournament8.4
Nijboer,F2545Haast,A23811–020168th Batavia Chess Tournament8.5
Pijpers,A2476Schandorff,L2500½–½20168th Batavia Chess Tournament9.1
Soors,S2390Nijboer,F25450–120168th Batavia Chess Tournament9.2
Brunello,S2562Van Foreest,L2350½–½20168th Batavia Chess Tournament9.3
Haast,A2381Willemze,T24180–120168th Batavia Chess Tournament9.4
De Ruiter,D2312Ly,M24800–120168th Batavia Chess Tournament9.5

 

Having fun with beer, blitz, banter, and analysis

Dutch coffeehouse culture

Blitz tournament

Sabino Brunello dominated the blitz tournament and won with a two-point margin

Games of the blitz tournament

 
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1.Nf3 d5 2.g3 g6 3.Bg2 Bg7 4.d4 Nf6 5.0-0 0-0 6.b3 Bf5 7.Bb2 Qc8 8.Re1 c6 9.c4 h5 10.Nc3 Na6 11.Rc1 dxc4 12.bxc4 Rd8 13.Qb3 Ne4 14.e3 Nxc3 15.Bxc3 Be4 16.h4 Rb8 17.a4 Qf5 18.Ng5 Bxg2 19.Kxg2 Bh6 20.e4 Qc8 21.Qb2 Bxg5 22.hxg5 Qg4 23.Bd2 e5 24.f3 Qd7 25.d5 Re8 26.Bc3 Nc5 27.Qc2 Rbc8 28.Rcd1 cxd5 29.cxd5 Nxa4 30.Rd3 b5 31.Qd2 Nxc3 32.Rxc3 Qd6 33.Rec1 Rxc3 34.Qxc3 b4 35.Qb3 a5 36.Rc6 Qb8 37.d6 Qb5 38.Rc7 Qe2+ 39.Kh3 Qf1+ 40.Kh2 Qf2+ 41.Kh3 Qg1 42.Qxf7+ 1–0
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WhiteEloWBlackEloBResYearECOEventRnd
Soors,S2390Haast,A23811–02016A06Batavia Blitz 20161.1
Brunello,S2562van Foreest,L2350½–½2016A46Batavia Blitz 20161.2
Willemze,T2418Nijboer,F25451–02016B07Batavia Blitz 20161.3
Pijpers,A2476de Ruiter,D23120–12016B20Batavia Blitz 20161.4
Ly,M2480Schandorff,L25000–12016D00Batavia Blitz 20161.5
Haast,A2381Schandorff,L25000–12016B13Batavia Blitz 20162.1
de Ruiter,D2312Ly,M24801–02016A61Batavia Blitz 20162.2
Nijboer,F2545Pijpers,A24761–02016A03Batavia Blitz 20162.3
van Foreest,L2350Willemze,T24181–02016B30Batavia Blitz 20162.4
Soors,S2390Brunello,S2562½–½2016A06Batavia Blitz 20162.5
Brunello,S2562Haast,A23811–02016A48Batavia Blitz 20163.1
Willemze,T2418Soors,S23901–02016B10Batavia Blitz 20163.2
Pijpers,A2476van Foreest,L23501–02016C57Batavia Blitz 20163.3
Ly,M2480Nijboer,F25451–02016A04Batavia Blitz 20163.4
Schandorff,L2500de Ruiter,D23121–02016A05Batavia Blitz 20163.5
Haast,A2381de Ruiter,D23121–02016B21Batavia Blitz 20164.1
Nijboer,F2545Schandorff,L2500½–½2016B11Batavia Blitz 20164.2
van Foreest,L2350Ly,M24800–12016B30Batavia Blitz 20164.3
Soors,S2390Pijpers,A24760–12016A06Batavia Blitz 20164.4
Brunello,S2562Willemze,T24181–02016A43Batavia Blitz 20164.5
Willemze,T2418Haast,A23811–02016B40Batavia Blitz 20165.1
Pijpers,A2476Brunello,S25620–12016C50Batavia Blitz 20165.2
Ly,M2480Soors,S23901–02016A05Batavia Blitz 20165.3
Schandorff,L2500van Foreest,L2350½–½2016A05Batavia Blitz 20165.4
de Ruiter,D2312Nijboer,F25450–12016A06Batavia Blitz 20165.5
Haast,A2381Nijboer,F25450–12016B09Batavia Blitz 20166.1
van Foreest,L2350de Ruiter,D23121–02016B40Batavia Blitz 20166.2
Soors,S2390Schandorff,L25000–12016A06Batavia Blitz 20166.3
Brunello,S2562Ly,M24801–02016D02Batavia Blitz 20166.4
Willemze,T2418Pijpers,A24760–12016C00Batavia Blitz 20166.5
Pijpers,A2476Haast,A23810–12016B20Batavia Blitz 20167.1
Ly,M2480Willemze,T24181–02016A05Batavia Blitz 20167.2
Schandorff,L2500Brunello,S25620–12016A06Batavia Blitz 20167.3
de Ruiter,D2312Soors,S23901–02016A05Batavia Blitz 20167.4
Nijboer,F2545van Foreest,L23501–02016A02Batavia Blitz 20167.5
Haast,A2381van Foreest,L23500–12016C44Batavia Blitz 20168.1
Soors,S2390Nijboer,F25451–02016A04Batavia Blitz 20168.2
Brunello,S2562de Ruiter,D23121–02016D02Batavia Blitz 20168.3
Willemze,T2418Schandorff,L25001–02016B18Batavia Blitz 20168.4
Pijpers,A2476Ly,M24800–12016B20Batavia Blitz 20168.5
Ly,M2480Haast,A23810–12016A05Batavia Blitz 20169.1
Schandorff,L2500Pijpers,A24761–02016A04Batavia Blitz 20169.2
de Ruiter,D2312Willemze,T24180–12016A43Batavia Blitz 20169.3
Nijboer,F2545Brunello,S25620–12016A03Batavia Blitz 20169.4
van Foreest,L2350Soors,S23900–12016C47Batavia Blitz 20169.5

The participants: Sabino Brunelli, Lars Schandorff, Friso Nijboer, Moulthun Ly, Arthur Pijpers, Stef Soors, Danny de Ruiter, Thomas Willemze, Lucas van Foreest, Anne Haast

Lars Schandorff explores Amsterdam

Photos: Bas Beekhuizen, Harry Gielen, and Lennart Ootes

Tournament page...

 

André Schulz started working for ChessBase in 1991 and is an editor of ChessBase News.

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