Chess

[Federberg]

hilarious goings on with the official website (Agon) of the Candidates. Not sure if you've been following it @Twisted. But it seems as if they are trying to monetize the tournament somehow. They've tried to block other sites from showing it, which has p1ssed all the fans off. I'm monitoring the boards via chessbomb and chess24, but I heard that the Agon site had been attacked and went down. Not surprised at all. Antagonising what must surely be the most tech savvy group of sports fans was never the smartest idea

 

[Federberg]

I can't help laughing. After the first round Anand in the lead again. Carlsen - Anand 3 anyone? ::sw1::

 

[DarthFed]

They have to try to bring money into the sport somehow. I can't blame them. If chess was like poker my life path would be a lot different. I've always been bitter at how much more money there is in Texas Hold'em.

 

[DarthFed]

I can't help laughing. After the first round Anand in the lead again. Carlsen - Anand 3 anyone? ::sw1::

Well it's early of course. The more I think about the tournament the more I think that Topalov is a real wild card. No chance to win the tournament but he is dangerous and is more than capable of slapping a loss on one of the contenders while handing out easy wins to others...In a tournament that figures to be tight among 2-3 players that could be the difference.

 

[Federberg]

I'm hoping for any of Karjakin, Svidler, Aronian or Caruana winning the whole thing. I'm a huge fan of Vishy, but another one of those finals wouldn't be good for chess. Wouldn't want to see Hikaru in a final against Magnus. Girl would be unappealing. Can't see Topalov putting up much of a fight against Magnus. I do agree about Topalov. That was some game against Vishy today. In many ways it highlights both of their deficiencies. I thought that Levon was strong in the middle game, equalising in a tough position. If it means that it's strong Levon playing then it could be exciting. He is such a talent and a very nice guy too.

I actually like the Norway Chess model of trying to make chess tournaments financially viable, as opposed to what we get at Sinquefield, i.e., support from one wealthy individual. I would have had sympathies for Agon, but for the craven way they tried to do this. Why would they only announce exclusivity of the games in the last week. They knew they didn't have a legal right to do it. They did it to try to frustrate challenges. It was low class stuff. They've had months to make a case for doing this, but we only heard about this in the last few days. And worst of all, I don't know if you went on to the site... www.worldchess.com it was rubbish. Compare that to the superb live coverage and analysis one would normally get on chess24 and all I can think is that these people not only care nothing about chess, they actively want to set back interest in the sport.

This is the Candidates for goodness sakes. This should have been on a par with the one in 2013, surely one of the most exciting and dramatic tournaments in history. Now we're all fumbling to get good coverage of the games

 

[DarthFed]

Well hopefully it gets sorted out. I'm able to follow live on ICC (Internet Chess Club) but you have to pay a little bit to be a member there.

Huge blunder by Nakamura today handed over the win to Karjakin. Apparently there was some time trouble. Karjakin did have an edge in the position before the big blunder but it'd have been difficult to convert. The other three games were draws with only Caruana-Giri being an active one. The latter defended well from an uncomfortable position.

 

[Federberg]

Well hopefully it gets sorted out. I'm able to follow live on ICC (Internet Chess Club) but you have to pay a little bit to be a member there.

Huge blunder by Nakamura today handed over the win to Karjakin. Apparently there was some time trouble. Karjakin did have an edge in the position before the big blunder but it'd have been difficult to convert. The other three games were draws with only Caruana-Giri being an active one. The latter defended well from an uncomfortable position.

Yes I watched the games. Horrific blunder by Naka. You wouldn't expect him to mess up a tactical sequence like that by not seeing it to the end. Amazing! And I certainly agree, Giri was impressive as usual. That boy is tough to beat!

 

[Federberg]

Good save by Hikaru yesterday. Although I felt Svidler was a bit listless in trying to convert the advantage. Somehow I feel that the likes of Giri, Karjakin, Anand and Carlsen would have made a better fist of that position. Perhaps this is why Peter is always a nearly man. As for Toppy... jeepers! That wasn't good at all. When he's poor he's really poor

 

[DarthFed]

Totally agree about Svidler. I like him, definitely a solid player but there's no way he wins enough games against this competition to win the tournament. I do think he will finish top 4 in this tournament (my bold prediction).

I lost a lot of respect for Topalov with how he handled that Kramnik championship match awhile ago. He truly thought based on his rating that he was too good for Kramnik and didn't think he was worthy of challenging him for the title. Then when Kramnik started kicking his ass in the match, as me and most others figured would happen, he accused him of cheating. Topalov plays a fun, attacking style, but his limitations are clear. He defends a position like a 1600 rated player and simply takes too many losses.

 

[DarthFed]

Topalov in trouble again but he's fortunate to even have a chance for a draw. It is a wild game but Caruana not taking the rook on move 41 was just bizarre especially since he had just got more time on the clock after making move 40. Anand lost against Karjakin in a game where it was really tough to see where Anand went wrong. Maybe a few small mistakes and that's all Sergey needed. Karjakin now leads the tourney with wins over Nakamura and Anand.

 

[Federberg]

Topalov in trouble again but he's fortunate to even have a chance for a draw. It is a wild game but Caruana not taking the rook on move 41 was just bizarre especially since he had just got more time on the clock after making move 40. Anand lost against Karjakin in a game where it was really tough to see where Anand went wrong. Maybe a few small mistakes Sergey needed. Karjakin who now leads the tourney with wins over Nakamura and Anand.

Yes a quite astonishing blunder from Fabi. Is he showing he doesn't have championship qualities? I've felt from the start that of all the young ones Karjakin has the depth to win this thing and he's not disappointing me. I'm not sure it's the most marketable outcome for a world title match, but there is a nice symmetry to it. He and Carlsen being rivals from their early teens. I always get the sense with Sergey that if he played as much as the other super GM's he would be comfortably closer to the 2800 barrier. That was a Carlsenesque win against Vishy today. I agree, I couldn't really see what Anand did wrong. It reminds me about playing really strong players, where I hold my own until the game liquidates into a lost ending because I forgot to take care of my pawn structure

 

[DarthFed]

Karjakin definitely does have 2800+ potential and if he continues the strong result here he could get a lot closer. What's great about this tourney is that they are all pretty close in rating. Even Topalov is at 2780 but I don't think that's a true indicator of his present play and hasn't been for a few years. Whereas I'd say Karjakin, Anand, and Svidler are all slightly stronger than their current ratings.

 

[Federberg]

Karjakin definitely does have 2800+ potential and if he continues the strong result here he could get a lot closer. What's great about this tourney is that they are all pretty close in rating. Even Topalov is at 2780 but I don't think that's a true indicator of his present play and hasn't been for a few years. Whereas I'd say Karjakin, Anand, and Svidler are all slightly stronger than their current ratings.

Yes agreed. When I think of the strongest player in the world outside of Carlsen (clear gap between him and the rest), I still think Vishy and Vlad. The only reason I don't consider Sergey is because he just seems to compete less that the rest. But when he's around it always feels like he has a bit more substance to him than most of the young guns. As entertained as I am by Hikaru for instance I just think when it's time to get serious he'll always be found wanting

 

[DarthFed]

I'd like Kramnik to return to form but not sure it will ever happen. Anand still can play great but he is having more and more difficulties with the younger guys (not too surprising). He has an awful record vs. Nakamura and Aronian. I guess today was the first time Karjakin has beaten Anand in classical time controls. Not a good sign for Vishy.

 

[DarthFed]

And Topalov drew the game. That's going to hurt for Caruana.

 

[Federberg]

I'd like Kramnik to return to form but not sure it will ever happen. Anand still can play great but he is having more and more difficulties with the younger guys (not too surprising). He has an awful record vs. Nakamura and Aronian. I guess today was the first time Karjakin has beaten Anand in classical time controls. Not a good sign for Vishy.

Yes agreed not good for Vishy. And the way he lost too. Reminds me of Carlsen's victory in Bilbao. Comprehensively out thought

 

[Federberg]

And Topalov drew the game. That's going to hurt for Caruana.

If it wasn't for his performance at Wijk an Zee this year I would be starting to think of that Sinquefield cup as a one hit wonder. I keep going back to Carlsen's response at the conclusion of that tournament, when people were talking about how close Fabi was to Magnus in the ratings. Carlsen said something like look... that's one of the all time best performances, but don't forget I've had a few good results myself. And more importantly I've repeated consistently. I think that a lot of people felt it was sour grapes, but in retrospect he was right.

I'm happy to see Aronian and Karjakin at the top. I think they'll both give Magnus a good game, although to be honest I can't see anyone beating the big beast for a few years yet. I'm wondering if Wei Yi will be Kasparov to Carlsen's Karpov! By the way have you noticed how immensely solid Magnus has become in the last few months since his mid-2015 wobbles? And his openings seem to be more studied, in addition to a willingness to go for sharper lines. The guy is quietly getting better, it's quite terrifying

 

[DarthFed]

It happens to the best of them in this day and age. Even Carlsen has had games here and there where he is slightly down on position and the opponent plays near perfect to grind out a win. Those type of losses don't bother me as much as a game where I miss an easy tactic or miscalculate the position, but part of that is due to me being an attacking player.

 

[DarthFed]

If it wasn't for his performance at Wijk an Zee this year I would be starting to think of that Sinquefield cup as a one hit wonder. I keep going back to Carlsen's response at the conclusion of that tournament, when people were talking about how close Fabi was to Magnus in the ratings. Carlsen said something like look... that's one of the all time best performances, but don't forget I've had a few good results myself. And more importantly I've repeated consistently. I think that a lot of people felt it was sour grapes, but in retrospect he was right.

I'm happy to see Aronian and Karjakin at the top. I think they'll both give Magnus a good game, although to be honest I can't see anyone beating the big beast for a few years yet. I'm wondering if Wei Yi will be Kasparov to Carlsen's Karpov! By the way have you noticed how immensely solid Magnus has become in the last few months since his mid-2015 wobbles? And his openings seem to be more studied, in addition to a willingness to go for sharper lines. The guy is quietly getting better, it's quite terrifying

Yes, Carlsen had an awful few tournaments in 2015 and seems to have taken it personally as he should. And I agree that his openings have gotten better over time. For awhile it was kind of the one relative weakness he had. I too am interested in seeing how Wei Yi progresses. It's tough sledding in this day and age for hyper aggressive players like Yi. You need to have a positional backbone to go with it (a big part of what separated Kasparov from the other aggressive players). But Yi has a lot of time to develop.

 

[Federberg]

Yes agreed. Much more difficult to be hyper-aggressive. Unsound sacrifices will be brutally punished by the 2700 level guys. One of the reasons I don't believe so much in ratings inflation is the fact that I find it hard to believe that Tal would have got away with a lot of his sacs. Still every now and then Wei Yi pulls up something spectacular like this..