Author: Simon

A note that the Club Champs will be held starting on June 18th. It will be over 9 rounds with the top two grades FIDE and Nationally rated Round robins while the C Grade with be a Nationally rated Swiss.

There is a signup sheet at the club or you can email or Text Simon Lyall to enter.

• Autumn A Grade in Vega
• Autumn B Grade in Vega

Autumn Cup 2018 R4 PGN by Ewan Green

A Grade

Bruce Watson vs Mike Steadman – Both players missed the best tactics (see the PGN for one line). White resigned after he dropped at Rook. 0-1

Allen Fan vs Alphaeus Ang – Black picked up a pawn and left White’s pawns looking lonely. He then found an attack which became a checkmate when. 0-1

Paul Garbett vs Nathan Goodhue – White had a big attack and gave up a bishop for two pawns to keep it moving. He eventually Queened and mated. 1-0

Roy Seabrook vs Daniel Gong – Black picked up a pawn in the opening and then successfully stopped a White attack and gaining more material. 0-1

Felix Xie vs Alex Nagorski – Black picked up a pawn and then swapped to a winning endgame. 0-1

Tim Ha vs Aaron Wang – Black blundered a Queen on move 8.  1-0

Simon Lyall vs John Duneas – Black gave up two pawns for an attack. White managed to stabilize the position and then gave up an exchange to take out Blacks good Bishop.  White failed to find the best move however and let Black back into the game. Both players missed wins and the game was finally drawn.

Clinton Wells vs Lewis Jordan – White picked up a pawn and managed to stop Blacks passed pawns long enough to win on the other side of the board. 1-0

Winston Weng vs Virginia Milne – White picked up a pawn and kept it into the endgame. 1-0

Stephen Peak vs Don Eade – Black’s position slowly got better and he ended with a won ended. 0-1

James Liu vs David Xu – Quick draw.

Biggest upsets:
Winston Weng beat Virginia Milne
Simon Lyall drew with John Duneas
Mike Steadman beat Bruce Watson.

Three players are now in the lead on 3.5. Alphaues Ang, Paul Garbett and Mike Steadman.

B Grade

Hugh Gao vs Ying Wang  – 0-1

Jason Huang vs Kenny Zhang –  1-0

John Liu vs Isabelle Ning – Black was looking good until she blundered a piece – 1-0

Saasha Ghadiali vs Joe Wang – White got a worse position in the opening and then game under a sustained attack from black. Eventually she made a mistake. 0-1

Jeffery Yu vs Abraham Deng – White picked up an early piece. 1-0

Philip Te Whata vs Leo Li – White lost a piece. See diagram

Erica Hu vs Wayne MacDougall – White failed to find the move to prevent checkmate.

Upsets:

John Liu beat Isabelle Ning

Leaders are Hugh Gao and Jason Huang on 3.5

A reminder that there will be a May Weekender at the Club on the 19th, 26th and 27th of May. Download the Entry form

• Autumn A Grade in Vega
• Autumn B Grade in Vega

2018 Autumn Cup Round 3 PGN by Tim Ha

After the mismatches of the first 2 rounds round 3 saw mostly close match-ups.

A Grade

Mike Steadman vs Paul Garbett – Mike played his favored “1 b4” and both players survived the the opening evenly. A draw was agreed on move 28 in an even position. Draw

Ben Hague vs Nathan Goodhue – White got better early and picked up a pawn which he converted to a passed pawn. Eventually black picked it up and quickly took the draw in relief not realizing he was a pawn up. Draw

Caroline Yan vs Bruce Watson – White’s position got increasingly cramped and she resigned faced with a lost endgame. 0-1

Alphaeus Ang vs Clinton Wells – White aggressively attacked and picked up a couple of pawns which was enough. 1-0

John Duneas vs Allen Fan – White looked better almost throughout and had a huge attack. But he failed to find the winning moves (see one in the diagram below) and was a piece down when the attack faltered. 0-1

Daniel Gong vs Stephen Peak – Another “1. b4” . Black played well but lost a pawn on move 34 and his rapidly collapsed. 0-1

Roy Seabrook vs Rodney Li – White got a strong attack and black resigned after he gave up a piece. 1-0

Aaron Wang vs Don Eade – Black got lost in the opening and ended up well behind. Black managed to recover but a couple of bad moves allowed white to launch a fatal attack. 1-0

Lewis Jordan vs Tim Ha – Black made a mistake and allowed white to sacrifice a bishop on h7 and attack the under-guarded king. He couldn’t find the knockout move however and the game ended in a draw.

Felix Xie vs Xinyang Liu – White was better for most of it but black put up a solid defense. Black resigned after losing a piece. 1-0

Erwin Koestanto vs Euan McDougall – Black misplayed the opening and lost quickly. 1-0

Simon Lyall vs David Xu – Black missed a tactic and lost his queen.  1-0

Winston Weng vs Sarah Yan – White pushed a strong attack and won material. Black resigned but she may have been early (see diagram). 1-0

Own Jin vs James Liu – Black was slightly better but then made a mistake and white was winning. However white missed the killer move and the players drew.

Virginia Milne vs Andrew Michael – after a lot of back and forth white got a winning attack. 1-0

Top Upsets:
Aaron Wang beat Don Eade
Winston Weng beat Sarah Yan
Nathan Goodhue drew with Ben Hague
Felix Xie beat Xinyang Liu

Add 4 people on 2 points drew so there are now 7 players in the lead on 2.5.

B Grade

Top upsets
Mathew Steadman beat Wayne McDougall
Ying Wang beat Jocob Barry

Of the 5 undefeated players last round only one won their game so Ying Wang goes into the sole lead. 4 players are just behind her on 2.5 points.

 

 

A reminder that there will be a May Weekender at the Club on the 19th, 26th and 27th of May. Download the Entry form

The 2nd round of the Autumn Cup was on April 30th, a few more upsets this time as players’ ratings got closer togeather

Autumn Cup 2018 R2 PGN by Tim Ha

• Autumn A Grade in Vega
• Autumn B Grade in Vega

A Grade

The majority of the games went with rating or were fairly quiet.

Allen Fan vs Ben Hague – Neither player gained much ground and they swapped to a drawn endgame.

Bruce Watson vs John Duneas – Same as the game above.

Nathan Goodhue vs Daniel Gong – White got one of those cramped positions that he favors and eventually Black slipped up to allow White gain a lead.

Upsets:

Nathan Goodhue beat Daniel Gong
Allen Fan drew with Ben Hague
Rodney Li drew with Virginia Milne
John Duneas drew with Bruce Watson.

4 players were on 2 points after 2 rounds: Michael Steadman, Leo Zhang, Nathan Goodhue and Paul Garbett.

B Grade

Only a few upsets.

Vincent Cai drew with Erica Hu
Kendrick Zhang beat Philip Te Whata

5 players are on 2 points: Ying Wang, Hugh Gao, Kendrick Zhang, Jacob Barry and Abraham Deng.

 

The Autumn Cup is being held in April though June 2018. There are two rated Swiss grades with around 70 entries between both grades.

2018 Autumn Cup Rd1 PGN by Ewan Green

• Autumn A Grade in Vega
• Autumn B Grade in Vega

Both grades saw a large number of first round byes, mainly due to school holidays.

A Grade

The first round saw wide ranges in ratings and only two upsets. I’ll only cover the interesting games below.

Alphaeus Ang vs Tim Ha – White launched into push but black defended well and stayed a little better.  Black missed his chance to go a pawn up and agreed on a draw in an even Queen+pawns position.

Virginia Milne vs Mike Steadman. Black almost got into trouble (see diagram) but White missed the best move..

Stephen Peak vs Allen Fan – A cute finish

Alex Nagorski vs Rodney Li – See the PGN for Ewan’s analysis – White was better at the start but failed to find the best continuations. He made a couple of mis-steps in the endgame but Black failed to find the correct move to take advantage and White won a couple of pawns to give him the game.

Don Eade vs Winston Weng – White was in a bit of trouble but Black failed to follow though with his attack and quickly fell to White’s counter-attack.

Filix Xie vs Joy Qin – Black’s errors eventually caught up with her.

Upsets:

Felix Xie beat Joy Qin
Tim Ha drew against Alphaeus Ang

B Grade

A large number of byes and only one upset.

Renae Ghadiali beat Boyuan Zhang.

 

 

Apologies for the delay in posting the results. There were a couple of catchup games played after the finish date.

The Summer cup was played in February and March 2018 over 7 rounds. There were 3 Round-robin grades (A-D) and a Swiss grade (D).

Vega Links: A Grade , B Grade , C Grade , D Grade

A Grade

Alexei Kulashko and Ben Hague dominated the grade dropping just a loss and a draw each.

1st= Alexei Kulashko & Ben Hague on 5.5
3rd Alphaeus Ang on 5.0

B Grade

The grade was a little messy due to a couple of players dropping out and thus some missed games. Erwin and Qi Le stepped in to fill the gaps although they struggled a little. Leo Zhang is still regaining form after taking time off.

Winner was John Duneas with 5.5 while Alex Nagorski played well above his rating to get second. Third was Nathan Goodhue.

1st John Duneas 5.5
2nd Alex Nagorski  4.5
3rd Nathan Goodhue 3.5

C Grade

Simon Lyall won the grade, just conceding just two draws. Nicole Qin led the the grade initially with 4 early wins but then faded in last 3 rounds. This allowed Roy Seabrook to pip her for 2nd place with 4 wins in his last 4 games.

1st Simon Lyall 6.0
2nd Roy Seabrook 5.0
3rd Nicole Qin  4.5

D Grade

Euan McDougall led the grade by a full point with 5 points in 5 rounds but lost on round 6 and then took a bye in round 7. Several others leaders took byes in the last round and Jordon Lewis was able to push though to claim first.

1st Jordan Lewis 6.0
2nd= James Liu, Euan McDougall 5.5

News:

• The Autumn Cup starts on April 23rd. It is almost full and only 1 or 2 more entries may be accepted.
• The ACC ANZAC weekender will be played on Wednesday the 25th, Saturday the 28th and Sunday the 29th of April. Entry forms are here or see the Vega page.

The Autumn Rapid was played across 6 rounds on the 9th and 16th of April. There was a single grade for the whole club.

Vega page for the Autumn Rapid

Results were:

1st Allen Fan on 5.5
2nd= Danial Gong, Alexei Kulashko on 5.0
4th= Bruce Watson, John Duneas, Don Eade on 4.5

Upsets:

Round 1:

Uday Jain beat Alex Nagorski
Charlotte Wen beat James Liu
Renae Ghadiali beat Arkadi Poliakevitch

Round 2:

Salena Hu beat Kendrick Zhang

Round 3:

Joe Wang beat Arkadi Poliakevitch
Hannah Xu beat Ying Wang

Round 4:

Jacob Chai beat Sarah Yan
Uday Jain beat Stephen Peak
Vincent Cai beat Leo Li
John Duneas beat Ben Hague

Round 5:

Euan McDougall beat Mike Steadman
Jame Liu beat Clinton Wells
Renae Ghadiali beat Hugh Gao

Round 6:

Allen Fan beat Bruce Watson

 

The list of Entries so far to the Autumn Cup is now up. There is room for only about 10 more players so please enter as soon as possible if you want to play.

The Cup will be two Swiss Tournaments, both rated. The cut-off for A Grade is around 1500.

Please talk to Simon if you would like to move up (or possibly down) a grade.

• Autumn A Grade in Vega
• Autumn B Grade in Vega

 

The 2018 Autumn Rapid will be held on April 9th and 16th.

Entries so far are on the Vega page.

If you wish to enter and are not listed please text (021 575 233) or email Simon Lyall.

 

Just one more round to go. Some notices:

1. Due to a cricket match at Eden Park on March 26th there is no parking on the street near the Club. Please park elsewhere (or if early you might be able to park inside the club).

2. Club fees are due this week. Please pay or arrange payment with Mike Steadman.

3. Next week (Monday the 2nd of April) is Easter Monday so the club is closed

4. The Autumn Rapid will start on the 8th of April. Make sure you register to ensure you get in.

• Draw: A Grade , B Grade , C Grade
• Vega Links: A Grade , B Grade , C Grade , D Grade

2018 Summer Cup Round 6 PGN by Ewan Green

A Grade

Paul Garbett vs Ben Hague – Black was a little better but was unable to make progress. Draw

Alphaeus Ang vs Michael Steadman – The computer suggests White could have sacrificed a piece for 3-4 pawns and a great position on move 14 but white played another move and black equalised. Players agreed on a draw in an equal position.

Alexei Kulasho vs Daniel Gong – Black was looking much better in the middle-game as he went two pawns up. But he realized too late that White had a dangerous attack against his king and White was able to force a mate. 1-0

Gino Thornton vs Bruce Watson – Swaps left White a pawn better in the endgame but with pawns on the wrong colour and opposite coloured bishops a draw was agreed.

Going into the last round Hague and Kulashko lead on 4.5 while Ang has 4.0

B Grade
Paul Macdonald vs Leo Zhang – Black got a nice advanced Knight on g3 and then found a nice win (see digram).

Qe-Li Kong Lim vs Erwin Koestano -Black look better throughout and eventually won.

Alex Nagorski vs Nathan Goodhue 0 See commentary from Alex in the PGN – A long game but fairly even throughout. Black briefly had a advantage with a passed pawn but failed to find the best continuation. Draw

Allen Fan vs John Duneas – Draw

John Duneas and Alex Nagorski are on 4.0 and Nathan is on 3.5 with John having a game in hand.

C Grade

Simon Lyall vs Caroline Yan – The game quickly swapped with 3 pieces and 6 pawns each with Black looking better. But black gave up her good piece and white was able to pick up a pawn for a winning endgame. 1-0

Roy Seabrook vs Don Eade – White harassed Black with a pawn push on the King side and picked up a piece, then after Black gave up his Queen for two rooks White managed to fork one of Blacks rooks.  1-0

Simon Lyall is on 5.5 ahead of Nicole Qin and Roy Seabrook. Nicole was previous in the lead but has on rounds 5 and 6. Roy has had 3 wins after a two early loses.

D Grade

Euan MacDougall vs Jame Liu – White missed the best moves under and attack from Black and ended up in trouble. 0-1

Sarah Yan vs Mathew Steadman – After a swap-off the players agreed a draw.

Arkadi Poliakevitch vs Andrew Michael – White missed the win in a complex Mexican-standoff. Black got a winning king and pawn endgame and then was a little loose playing it, but White failed to find the drawing move. 0-1

Upsets in Round 6:
Philbert Zhai beat Philip Te Whata
Tom Fu beat David Xu
Kendrick Zhang beat Tody Zhang
Rosa Ryu beat Selena Xi

With the loss by Euan McDougall there are 3 players in the lead on 5.0 Euan, Jame Liu and Jordan Lewis. Just behind on 4.5 are Sarah Yan, Mathew Steadman and Andrew Michael.

 

With just two rounds to go A & B grade as still close due to losses by the leaders.

• A reminder that if you are in a round-robin grade you need to arrange with your opponent if you can’t make a game and also let Simon know. Try not to leave things until Monday afternoon.
• Sign-ups have started for the Autumn Rapid. We will also have signups for Interclub and the Autumn Cup soon.

 

• Draw: A Grade , B Grade , C Grade
• Vega Links: A Grade , B Grade , C Grade , D Grade

2018 Summer Cup round 5 PGN by Ewan Green

A Grade

Gino Thornton vs Paul Garbett – Paul declined Gino’s early draw offer and regretted it after Gino managed to get a Queenside pawn majority in the endgame and push these to a win. 1-0

Bruce Watson vs Alexei Kulashko – Black got a piece trapped and lost and things went downhill from there. 1-0

Daniel Gong vs Alphaeus Ang – After 25 moves in a cramped position an exchange of pawns on the Kingside left Whites position exposed and Black was able to line up the artillery (although White almost saved the point in the endgame). 0-1

Mike Steadman vs Ben Hague – Black got a passed pawn in the middlegame with a lot of pieces behind it. 0-1

After a loss by previous-leader Alexei Kulashko; Ben Hague is now in first place with 4 points. Just behind on 3.5 are Kulashko and Alphaeus Ang.

B Grade

Allen Fan vs Paul Macdonald – (Annotated in the PGN by Paul). White picked up a couple of pawns and then pushing passed pawns picked up a piece. 1-0

John Duneas vs Alex Nagorski – Annotated by Alex in the PGN – A roller-coaster of a game. Black was two pawns up but allowed a passed pawn which after the dust cleared left each player with a King and 3 kingside pawns. Black then made a mis-step and allowed White to get a passed pawn. 1-0

Nathan Goodhue vs Qi Le Kong Lim – A French exchange led to the game quickly swapping to an endgame. White had a slight advantage but Black was able to hold the draw.

Erwin Koestano vs Leo Zhang – Black’s position fell apart after he underestimate an attack.

As in A Grade the leader (Alex Nagorski) lost in round 5 so the lead is now shared between Alex and John Duneas on 3.5. Just behind are Paul Macdonald and Nathan Goodhue on 3.0

C Grade

Only one game in C Grade was played on Monday, Although Keith Ward has withdrawn so Simon Lyall won by default.

Din Eade vs Tim Ha – Annotate by Tim in the pgn – Black had a good start but his push ran petered out and White seized the initiative and picked up and attack and an exchange. Black tried some tricks but they were not enough. 1-0

Simon Lyall is currently in the led by half a point but Nicole Qin has a game in hand. The rest of the field is well behind those two.

D Grade

Jin Own vs Euan McDougall – White mis-calculated a series of exchanges and ended up a rook down.

Upsets:
Anya Thurner beat Philip Te Whata
Abraham Deng beat Wayne McDougall

Euan McDougall is the only undefeated player and is a point ahead of Sarah Yan, Abrahan Deng, Jame Liu, Jordan Lewis and Mathew Steadman (all on 4 points)