Steady hands
Both Awonder Liang and Carissa Yip won due to their untimely high level of maturity. Liang displayed the same confidence that he had shown in this year's U.S. Championship to finish as the only player in both competitions that did not lose a single game. Meanwhile, Yip had a more dominating run amongst the girls, as her sixth round loss against Sophie Morris-Suzuki did not prevent her from taking first place with a one-point advantage.
After half time in the open section, Advait Patel was leading the standings. His fall from grace came in round six, when he was almost mated by Akshat Chandra. This game — which finished with an overwhelming attack — proved to be essential to Liang's eventual victory:
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1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.h3 Nbd7 6.Nf3 e5 7.d5 Nc5 8.Qc2 a5 9.g4 0-0 10.Be3 Qe7 11.Nd2 c6 12.Be2 Bd7 13.Rg1N 13.0-0-0± 13.a4 Na6 14.Kf1 Nb4 15.Qd1 Ne8 16.Kg2 f5 17.f3 Bf6 18.Rc1 c5 19.Nf1 Bg5 20.b3 Ng7 13...Ne8 14.h4 Nc7 15.h5 Rfc8 16.a3 cxd5 17.exd5 N7a6 18.hxg6 hxg6 19.Nde4 Nxe4 20.Nxe4 Nc7 20...Nc5 21.Qd2± Ne8 22.g5 Bf5 23.Nc3 Qd7 24.a4 Nc7 25.Bd3 Na6 26.Nb5 Bxd3 27.Qxd3 e4 27...Nc5!= 28.Bxc5 e4 28.Qxe4 Bxb2 29.Rb1 Bg7 30.Kf1 30.Qg4 Qe7 31.Kf1 30...Nc5 30...Qh3+ 31.Ke2 Nc5 31.Qh4 Nxa4? 31...Re8± 32.Rh1+- 32...Qf5 33.Kg2 Be5 34.Nxd6 Qd7 35.Bd4 Rxc4 36.Qh8+! 1–0 - Start an analysis engine:
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| Chandra,A | 2486 | Patel,A | 2461 | 1–0 | 2018 | | USA-ch Juniors 2018 | 6 |
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This DVD offers Black a complete repertoire against all weapons White may employ on move six. The recommended repertoire is not as risky as other Sicilians but still offers Black plenty of counter-play.
Advait Patel could not hold on to the lead | Photos: Austin Fuller / Saint Louis Chess Club
Patel still had chances to finish first in the last round, though for that to happen he needed to win and Liang had to lose. Liang drew quickly against Chandra, securing first place, but Advait defeated the rating favourite Ruifeng Li anyway. In the game, Patel survived a strong attack against his open king and later converted his big material advantage into a win:
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1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 g6 6.Be3 Bg7 7.f3 a6 8.Qd2 Nbd7 9.Be2 9.a4 Ne5 10.Be2 Bd7 11.a5 Rc8 12.g4 Nc4 13.Bxc4 Rxc4 14.g5 Nh5 15.Nd5 0-0 16.Nb6 Rc7 9...Qc7 10.g4 b5 11.g5 b4 12.Nd1 12.gxf6 bxc3 13.Qxc3 Qxc3+ 14.bxc3 Bxf6 12...Nh5 13.Qxb4N 13.c3 a5 14.Rc1 Qb7 15.cxb4 axb4 16.Rc4 b3 13...Rb8 14.Qd2 Nc5 15.0-0 0-0 16.Nb3 Bh3 17.Rf2 Be5 17...Na4 18.Nc3± Rfc8 19.Nd5 Qd8 20.c3 20.Rd1± e6 21.Nc3 20...Rxb3!= 21.Bxc5 Rxb2! 22.Qxb2 Rxc5 23.f4 Nxf4 23...Rxd5!? 24.exd5 Nxf4 24.Rxf4 24...Rxd5! 25.Rf3 Qc8? 25...Rc5! 26.Rxh3 Qc8 26.exd5+- Qg4+ 27.Rg3 Qh4 28.Kf2 28.Bxa6 Bxg3 29.hxg3 Qxg3+ 30.Kh1 Qf3+ 31.Kh2 Qh5= 28.Qb8+ Kg7± 28...Bf5 29.Kg2 Bxg3 30.hxg3 Qh3+ 31.Kf2 Qh2+ 32.Kf3 h5 32...Bh3 33.Rd1 Qg2+ 34.Ke3 Qxg3+ 35.Kd2 Qxg5+ 36.Kc2 h5 37.Qb8+ 37.Bxa6 h4+- 37...Kg7 33.gxh6! Qh5+ 34.Ke3 Qxh6+ 35.Kd4 Qg7+ 36.Kc4 Qe5 37.Qd2 Be4 38.Rd1 e6 39.Kb4 Bxd5 40.Bxa6 Bf3 41.Qxd6 Qe4+ 42.Qd4 Qc2 43.Rd2 Qb1+ 44.Ka5 1–0 - Start an analysis engine:
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| Patel,A | 2461 | Li,R | 2583 | 1–0 | 2018 | | USA-ch Juniors 2018 | 9 |
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In order to reach the final round in such a strong position in the standings, Awonder Liang beat Praveen Balakrishnan in the penultimate day of play. The position remained balanced until the very last moves, when Balakrishnan stumbled in a rook and knight endgame. It is strange to say it when referring to such young boys, but Liang's experience was the key factor in this encounter:
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1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.g3 Bg7 4.Bg2 0-0 5.Nc3 d6 6.Nf3 Nbd7 7.0-0 e5 8.e4 c6 9.h3 a5 10.Be3 exd4 11.Nxd4 Re8 12.Qc2 Nc5 13.Rad1 Nfd7 14.b3 Qb6 15.Rb1 Qc7 16.a3 Ne5 16...Nb6= 17.f4!± Ned7 18.Bf2N 18.b4 axb4 19.axb4 Ne6 20.Nde2 Nb6 21.Qb3 Nf8 22.c5 dxc5 23.bxc5 18...h5 19.b4 axb4 20.axb4 Ne6 21.Rfd1 Bxd4 22.Bxd4 h4 23.Bf2 hxg3 24.Bxg3 Ng7 25.Qd2 Nb6 26.Bf1 26.Qxd6 Qxd6 27.Rxd6 Ra3 26...Be6 27.f5 Bxc4 28.Bxd6 Qd8 29.fxg6 fxg6 30.Bg2 Bf7 31.Qh6 Nd7! 32.Rf1 Qb6+ 33.Rf2 Qd4 34.Qd2 Qxd2 35.Rxd2 Ne5 36.Bxe5 Rxe5 37.Rd7 b6 38.Rf1 Be8 39.Rb7 b5 40.Ne2 Rd8 41.Ra1 Nh5 42.Raa7 Rd2 43.Bf3 Nf6 44.Re7 Rxe7 45.Rxe7 45...Kf8 46.Rc7! Nd7 47.Rxc6 Ne5 48.Rc3 Bf7 49.Nf4 Bc4 50.Nd5 Kg7 51.Bg2 Kh6 52.Bf1 Rd1 52...Rd4 53.Bxc4 Nxc4 54.Kh2 Nd6 55.Rc5 Rxe4 56.Kh1 Rd4 53.Ne3 Rb1 54.Kf2 Bxf1 55.Nxf1 Rxb4= 56.Nd2 Ra4 57.Ke3 b4 58.Rc5 Nf7 59.Rb5 Ng5 60.h4 Ne6 61.h5 Ra3+ 61...gxh5?! 62.Rb6± 62.Kf2 Rd3 63.Nf1 b3 64.Rb6 Nc5 65.Ng3 Na4 66.Rxg6+ Kh7 67.Ne2? 67.e5= Rd2+ 68.Ke3 67...b2-+ 68.Rg1 Ra3 69.e5 Ra1 70.e6 Rxg1 0–1 - Start an analysis engine:
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| Balakrishnan,P | 2411 | Liang,A | 2569 | 0–1 | 2018 | | USA-ch Juniors 2018 | 8 |
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The Nimzo-Indian, the Gruenfeld and the King's Indian Defence are three incredibly uncomfortable defences to meet. This hypermodern DVD gives new ideas on how to squash these setups with sound, positional play based on double fianchetto systems.
Liang and Chandra signed a quick draw in the last round | Photos: Austin Fuller / Saint Louis Chess Club
A player that was a highlight in this year's open event was Alex Bian, who managed to end the nine rounds without drawing a single game. His final win over Balakrishnan lasted only 22 moves and included a very attractive direct attack against Black's king:
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1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 exd4 4.Bc4 Nf6 5.e5 d5 6.Bb5 Ne4 7.Nxd4 Bc5 8.Be3 0-0 9.Bxc6 9.Nxc6 bxc6 10.Bxc5 Nxc5 11.Bxc6 Rb8 12.0-0 Rxb2 13.Qxd5 Qxd5 14.Bxd5 Rxc2 15.Na3 Re2 16.Rac1 Nd3 17.Rxc7 Be6 18.Bb3 a5 19.Ra7 Bxb3 20.axb3 Rxe5 9...bxc6 10.Nd2 Bxd4 11.Bxd4 Qg5 12.Nxe4 dxe4 13.Qd2! Qxg2 14.0-0-0 Be6 15.Bc5N 15.Rhg1!± Qf3 16.Be3 15.Rhg1 Qh3 16.Rxg7+ Kh8 17.Qg5 15...e3 15...Rfb8 16.Qxe3 Rfd8? 16...Rfb8 17.Rdg1!+- Qd5 18.Rxg7+! Kh8 18...Kxg7 19.Qg5+ Kh8 20.Qf6+ Kg8 21.Rg1+ Qg2 22.Rxg2+ Bg4 23.Rxg4# 19.Rhg1 Bf5 20.Qh6! Qxe5 21.Be7 21.Rxf7 Rab8+- 21...Rd6? 21...Rd1++- 22.Kxd1 Bxc2+ 23.Kc1 Bg6 24.Rxh7+ Kg8 25.Rxg6+ fxg6 26.Qxg6+ Qg7 27.Qxg7# 22.Rg8+! 1–0 - Start an analysis engine:
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| Bian,A | 2291 | Balakrishnan,P | 2411 | 1–0 | 2018 | | USA-ch Juniors 2018 | 9 |
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Bian finished in shared third place with John Burke and Akshat Chandra, half a point behind Advait Patel, who was clear second.
Nothing stops Carissa
The champion amongst the girls, Carissa Yip, prevailed from start to finish. She showed great endgame technique and admirable patience — especially for a 15-year-old! Only three of her games finished with queens still on the board. However, no one would have thought that this was going to be the style of play that would eventually lead her to a tournament victory after seeing her first round win:
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1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.Nf3 Bg7 5.Bg5 Ne4 6.cxd5 Nxg5 7.Nxg5 e6 8.Nf3 exd5 9.b4 0-0 10.e3 Be6 11.Qb3 Nd7 12.a4 Rc8 13.Bd3 c5 14.Qa3 cxd4 15.Nxd4 Bxd4 16.exd4 Qg5 17.g3 Bh3 18.Ne2 Rfe8 19.Qb2 Qg4 20.Rg1 Re7 21.Rd1 Rce8 22.Rd2 Nb6 23.Qb3 Qf3 24.a5 Rxe2+ 0–1
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| Wu,R | 2110 | Yip,C | 2364 | 0–1 | 2018 | | USA-ch Junior Girls 2018 | 1 |
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1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.e5 c5 4.c3 Nc6 5.Be3!?. Andrew Martin uses the games of Kupreichik to show why this line could catch many French aficionados unprepared and is very dangerous for Black.
Friends and competitors, Yip and Yu | Photos: Austin Fuller / Saint Louis Chess Club
Jennifer Yu finished in shared second place. After signing scoresheets with decisive results in the first seven rounds, she split points in her final two games. In the sixth round, she managed to checkmate Natassja Matus' king in the middle of the board:
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1.c4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.e3 e6 5.b3 Nbd7 6.Bd3 Bd6 7.Bb2 0-0 8.0-0 b6 9.Nc3 Bb7 10.Qc2 h6 10...Qe7 11.Rad1 Rfe8 12.e4 dxc4 13.Bxc4 b5 14.Bd3 e5 15.Ne2 c5 16.dxe5 Nxe5 17.Nxe5 Bxe5 18.Bxe5 Qxe5 19.Bxb5 Qxe4 20.Qxe4 Rxe4 11.Rad1 Rc8 12.e4 dxe4 13.Nxe4 Nxe4 14.Bxe4 Nf6 15.Bd3 Qc7 16.c5N 16.Rfe1 Rfd8 17.c5 Be7 18.b4 16...Be7! 17.Ne5 Nd5 18.a3 Bf6 19.Rfe1 Rfd8 20.g3 Rb8 20...Bxe5 21.Rxe5 21.dxe5 bxc5 22.Qxc5 Qb6 21...Rd7 21.Ng4± Qc8 22.Qe2 Ba8? 22...h5± 23.Nxf6+ Nxf6 23.Bc2 23.Qe4+- 23...Qc7? 23...Be7± 24.Kg2 f5 24.Qe4 24...Kf8 24...g6 25.Nxf6+ 25.Nxh6+ Kh8± 25...Nxf6 25.Qh7+- Ke7? 25...Qd7 26.Nxf6 Nxf6 27.Qh8+ Ke7 28.Qxg7 Qd5 26.Nxf6 Nxf6 27.Qxg7 Rg8 28.Rxe6+! Kxe6 29.Re1+ Kd5 30.Qxf6 Rbe8 31.Qf3+ Re4 32.Qxe4# 1–0 - Start an analysis engine:
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| Yu,J | 2358 | Matus,N | 1960 | 1–0 | 2018 | | USA-ch Junior Girls 2018 | 6 |
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The other girl that finished a point behind Yip was Emily Nguyen. In order to get there she recovered from a penultimate round loss by defeating Matus on Saturday. Coincidentally, Nguyen and Yu were the only players that drew with the eventual winner.
Chess never stops in Saint Louis | Photos: Austin Fuller / Saint Louis Chess Club
Final standings - Open
All games - Open
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Final standings - Girls
All games - Girls
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