2013 Madison Spring Championship

Took place June 1 - 2, 2013 in Madison, Wisconsin.  GM Josh Friedel was the TD.

Top ranked player was GM Aleksandr Lenderman (I have a soft spot for him) and many of Wisconsin's best players came out to play in the Open section.  Lenderman took clear first, finishing with with a perfect 5.0/5. 

Anumpama Rajendra
 12 | ANUPAMA SHASHIKALA RAJENDRA    |3.5  |W  36|L   5|W  23|W  14|D   7|
   WI | 14061227 / R: 1849   ->1891    |     |     |     |     |     |     |
finished in a tie with several other players with 3.5/5, but on the table I'm looking at she's in 12th place overall out of 48 players.  Not bad!  She played against the following:

Result		Score	Pre Rtg.	Post Rtg.	Opponent
W 36		2.0	R: 1362	1401	KENNETH R RASMUSSEN (12533630)
L 5		3.5	R: 2129	2134	ALLEN J BECKER (10481783)
W 23		2.5	R: 1680	1693	ROBIN J GROCHOWSKI (11164412)
W 14		3.0	R: 1926	1902	WADE CHRISTENSEN (12439617)
D 7		3.5	R: 2075	2081	AKSHAY INDUSEKAR (14640961)

2011 Unive Hoogeveen

Rank	Name	Score	M/F	Rating	TPR	W-We	1	2	3	4	5	6
1	GM Kramnik, Vladimir	4.0	M	2791	2955	+0.98	1	1	½	½	1
2	GM Giri, Anish	2.5	M	2722	2740	+0.13	0	½	½	½	1
3	GM Vachier-Lagrave, Maxime	2.0	M	2715	2669	-0.33	½	½	½	½	0
4	GM Polgar, Judit	1.5	F	2701	2584	-0.78	½	0	½	½	0

Judit's pic from today, official website.  Tres chic!  Classic
Burberry scarf, flattering black cuffed top, gorgeous shiny
hair, trendy jeans, purse and right-on-trend stiletto "shoeties."

In the Open, GM Alex Lenderman (USA) is having a good tournament!  He's currently in 1st place (again) but the battle is fierce and tight at the top.  Tomorrow's final round - who knows?  Here are the current leaders in the Open:

Rank	Name	Score	Fed.	M/F	Rating	TPR	W-We	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8
1	GM Lenderman, Aleksandr	6.5	USA	M	2562	2684	+1.29	1	1	1	1	½	½	½	1
2	GM Nyzhnyk, Illya	6.5	UKR	M	2561	2684	+1.28	1	½	1	1	1	½	1	½
3	GM Tiviakov, Sergei	6.0	NED	M	2647	2609	-0.17	1	1	1	½	½	1	0	1
4	GM Ernst, Sipke	6.0	NED	M	2581	2506	-0.41	0	1	1	1	1	½	½	1
5	GM Haslinger, Stewart G	6.0	ENG	M	2542	2571	+0.44	1	1	½	1	0	1	1	½
6	IM Van Kampen, Robin	6.0	NED	M	2529	2585	+0.78	½	1	1	1	½	½	½	1
7	IM Grover, Sahaj	6.0	IND	M	2514	2575	+0.75	1	½	1	1	0	1	1	½

He's going to have his toughest match yet, though, tomorrow for the final round, going up again Tiviakov, who will have the white pieces.  Here are the top pairings:

Table	White	Score	Fed.	Rating	Black	Score	Fed.	Rating	Result
1	GM Tiviakov, Sergei	6.0	NED	2647	GM Lenderman, Aleksandr	6.5	USA	2562
2	GM Nyzhnyk, Illya	6.5	UKR	2561	GM Ernst, Sipke	6.0	NED	2581
3	IM Van Kampen, Robin	6.0	NED	2529	GM Haslinger, Stewart G	6.0	ENG	2542
4	GM Baklan, Vladimir	5.5	UKR	2617	IM Grover, Sahaj	6.0	IND	2514
5	GM Zherebukh, Yaroslav	5.5	UKR	2580	IM Popilski, Gil	5.5	ISR	2381

2010 City of Montreal Open Chess Championships: Chesnut Interviews Lenderman

American player and 2010 Championnat participant Walter Chestnut interviews American GM Alex Lenderman after Round 2, Goddesschess' Don McLean recording.

2010 City of Montreal Open Chess Championships

Screen shot Round 2 action - Qin v. Lenderman:

As you can see, Gerzhoy and Sambuev have already won their games.  Qin still giving Lenderman fits!

Updated 2:01 p.m.  Lenderman wins.  Here is the final position:

Lenderman has under an hour before R3 begins.  Will he be able to rebound from such an unexpectedly long game?  Either Lenderman is not in form or Qin is very under-rated.  A GM rated more than 400 points above his opponent ought to have won this game with a minimum of fuss and bother. Pairings aren't up yet, I don't know who Lenderman will be playing, but I expect it won't be an easy game! 

2010 City of Montreal Open Chess Championships

Round 2 started at 10:00 a.m. Montreal time, which was an hour and 10 minutes ago on my clock (it's now 10:11 a.m. here).  Here are the top pairings from the Open for R2:

Games of the top 3 boards can be watched here.  Ohmygoddess - Lenderman has 2 rooks, a knight, a bishop and his queen all bunched together in one corner of the board - looks like he can't bust them out.! Hmmm...(currently on move 18). 

Update 12:28 p.m. Milwaukee time (1 hour behind Montreal time):  Qin Zi Yi (2176) with white seems to be causing some problems for GM Alex Lenderman.  On Move 39 now - Queens are off the board, just went through a bloody swap of pieces.  Lenderman has six pawns though he is down a bishop, are Qin's three pawns plus bishop adequate compensation for him?  Lenderman's king looks much better defended to my inexperienced eyes.  He seems to be taking his time before making a push with some of his 'extra' pawns...

Update 12:41 p.m. Milwaukee time (1 hour behind Montreal time):  Lenderman has simplified the game down to his six pawns and a knight v. Qin Zi Yi's now two pawns, a knight and a bishop.  Things do not look promising for Qin.

GM Alex Lenderman To Do Fundraising Simul in New York

I saw this at Susan Polgar's chess blog.  Sounds like a great deal of fun - where else could you play a GM for $10 except New York?  Goddess, I love New York!  Hope to get back there once again...
Renowned Chess Master to Lead Fundraiser for Upcoming Production of "Art of Attack," an Insightful Dramatization of the World of Competitive Chess

Brooklyn, NY - August 6, 2010: The Cadre, an emerging theater company, today announced that Alex Lenderman, renowned Grandmaster chess player, will lead a fundraiser for Art of Attack, the company's upcoming original play about two Russian brothers' addiction to chess.

The event will take place on Saturday, August 21st, from 2 PM - 6 PM, at Holley Plaza in Washington Square Park and will give attendees the opportunity to compete against Lenderman for $10 per game. Prizes include tickets to see Art of Attack as well as chess sets and free lessons courtesy of the New York Chess and Game Shop.

Buy Tickets for Art of Attack. The play is part of the annual New York International Fringe Festival (http://www.fringenyc.org/) and can be seen at the First Floor Theater of La Mama (74 East 4th Street, New York, NY) at the following dates/times:

· Wed 8/18 @ 5:15
· Fri 8/20 @ 3
· Sat 8/21 @ 8
· Mon 8/23 @ 7
· Fri 8/27 @ 5:15

More information at Susan Polgar's chess blog.