Unive 03: So at the top

by ChessBase
10/23/2013 – So solo leads after his opponen'ts so-so handling of the opening, he currently has 2.5/3 which is a full point more than Van Kampen who is still in second place despite his loss today. Van Wely and Adams are still both at -1 as they drew each other in an uneventful game that was mainly simply theory leading to an equal endgame. GM Analysis and report
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The small town of Hoogeveen is again a center of attention for the chess world. Both the Unive Crown Tournament and the Unive Open have started in Hoogeveen, sponsored by the Unive cooperative insurance company in the Netherlands. The main attraction is of course the super grandmaster double round robin tournament that will run from the 20th of October until the 27th.

The playing area

Round 3

Not a super gigantic chess set, but comfortable enough for four spectators to analyze a devious position

Wesley So showed good technique against Van Kampen, whose small mistake in the opening slowly snowballed into big difficulties

Van Wely chose a not very promising variation against Adams' Nimzo-Indian and the Englishman had no problem holding a draw

In the open section Maxime Rodshtein (left) and Viktor Moskalenko (not pictured) have taken a lead with 4.5/5. Today Rodshtein defeated the German GM Felix Levin (right).

The area for the top boards of the open

And their pursuers! The tournament has a few surprises. For example, FM Goudriaan, FM Okkes and IM Sachdev have 4.0/5, half more than Krasenkow!

The lower boards don't have as much room, but that doesn't make their games any less intense

As usual, the top games are being relayed live and with commentary

Pictures by Johan Valk

Replay Games

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MoveNResultEloPlayers
1.e41,184,21554%2421---
1.d4958,93255%2434---
1.Nf3286,32756%2441---
1.c4184,72256%2443---
1.g319,88456%2427---
1.b314,59854%2428---
1.f45,95348%2377---
1.Nc33,90650%2384---
1.b41,79048%2378---
1.a31,25054%2406---
1.e31,08149%2409---
1.d396950%2378---
1.g467046%2361---
1.h446654%2382---
1.c343951%2425---
1.h328956%2420---
1.a411860%2461---
1.f310047%2427---
1.Nh39267%2511---
1.Na34762%2476---
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 d5 4.Nc3 Nbd7 completely playable, but definitely not fashionable. Defining the knight so early in the opening has lost ground to the other Black options, mainly playing a quicker Be7, playing a Semi-Slav with c6 or a Ragozin with Bb4. 5.e3 So chooses a line that is not the most topical, but simply wants to play chess. With the knight on d7 certain c5 breaks are not as strong, and White retains some pressure in most lines. Be7 6.b3 0-0 7.Bb2 b6 8.Bd3 Bb7 9.Qc2 c5 10.cxd5 exd5 11.0-0 This position is more commonly reached with Black to play in White to play in Semi-Slav formations with a quick c6-c5. However Black didn't have to waste time on the c6 move first. Rc8 12.Rac1 Bd6 13.Qe2 Qe7 14.Ba6 Bxa6 15.Qxa6 it's not entirely clear that the queen wants to be on a6. After all, a7 is untouchable. Nb8 15...Qe6 16.Rfd1 16.Qxa7?? Ra8 17.Qb7 Rfb8 18.Qc6 Bxh2+ is the point of Qe6. 16...Rfe8= 16.Qd3 Rfd8 17.Nb5 This truly exploits the awkwardness of Nb7. With the dark squared bishop captured it will be easy for White to determine a good time to liquidate the center and force favorable trades. Nc6 18.Nxd6 Qxd6 19.dxc5 bxc5 20.Bxf6 White exploits the fact that the queen es tied down to the defense of the c5 pawn. gxf6 20...Qxf6 21.Qb5! wins a pawn. 21.Rxc5? Ne5 22.Qd4 Nxf3+ 23.gxf3 Qxf3= and Black has nothing to fear. 21.Rfd1 Ne5 22.Qe2 Nxf3+ 23.Qxf3 Black's position is probably acceptable if his pawns on the kingside weren't crippled, but as it stands his king is too weak. White will use a combination of threats on the pawns and threats against the king to make progress. Qe6 24.g3 Kg7 25.Rd3 d4 26.Rc4 dxe3 27.Rxe3 Qd6 28.b4! A timely transition. Qd1+ 28...cxb4? 29.Rxc8 Rxc8 30.Qg4+ picks up the rook on c8. 29.Qxd1 Rxd1+ 30.Kg2 Rd4 31.Rxc5 Rxc5 32.bxc5 Rc4 33.Ra3 Rxc5 34.Rxa7 This endgame should be a draw in most scenarios, but with Black's pawans being crippled the draw is at least harder to achieve. Rc2 35.Kf3 Kg6 36.a4 Ra2 37.a5 h6 38.a6 Kf5 39.Ra8 Kg6 40.Ke4 Kg7 41.Kd5 beautiful timing. Rxf2 42.Rb8 Ra2 43.Rb6 The king simply marches to b7 and pushes the pawn forward. Black's crippled pawns means that there is no hope for counterplay in the other wing. A clean game by Wesley So. 1–0
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WhiteEloWBlackEloBResYearECOEventRnd
So,W2706Van Kampen,R26071–02013D3717th Unive Crown3.2
Van Wely,L2693Adams,M2753½–½2013E5417th Unive Crown3.1

Standings

Schedule

Round 1 – October 20
So, Wesley 2706
1-0
 Van Wely, Loek 2693
Van Kampen, Robin 2607
1-0
 Adams, Michael 2753
Round 2 – October 21
Van Kampen, Robin 2607
½-½
 Van Wely, Loek 2693
Adams, Michael 2753
½-½
 So, Wesley 2706
Round 3 – October 22
Van Wely, Loek 2693
½-½
 Adams, Michael 2753
So, Wesley 2706
1-0
 Van Kampen, Robin 2607
Round 4 – October 24
Van Wely, Loek 2693   So, Wesley 2706
Adams, Michael 2753   Van Kampen, Robin 2607
Round 5 – October 25
Adams, Michael 2753   Van Wely, Loek 2693
Van Kampen, Robin 2607   So, Wesley 2706
Round 6 – October 26
Van Wely, Loek 2693   Van Kampen, Robin 2607
So, Wesley 2706   Adams, Michael 2753

Links

The games will be broadcast live on the official web site and on the chess server Playchess.com. If you are not a member you can download a free Playchess client there and get immediate access. You can also use ChessBase 12 or any of our Fritz compatible chess programs.
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