Best of US Chess #10- Jamaal Abdul-Alim on World Open
The #10 article in Best of US Chess 2017 is Jamaal Abdul Alim’s piece “Petrosian Wins World Open: ‘Forget About the Draw’“. Abdul-Alim interviewed GM Petrosian as well as 17-year-old IM/WGM Zhansaya Abdumalik, who had a sensational tournament.
GM Tigran L. Petrosian knew if he drew in the final round of the World Open he might have to split first place with half a dozen or so other players.
And Petrosian is not the kind of guy who likes to share — at least not when it comes to big money prizes at chess tournaments thousands of miles away from home.
“I don’t like this idea,” Petrosian, of Armenia, said of splitting the $20,000 prize for clear first with several other players. “I said, ‘OK, forget about draw and go and try to win.”
Even though he only had a few minutes to consult ChessBase to analyze the openings of his final-round opponent — GM Oliver Barbosa, of New York — Petrosian said he reviewed enough of
Barbosa’s openings to feel comfortable going forth.
“Of course it’s hard for professionals but this time I did it,” Petrosian said of the quick analysis.
Jamaal Abdul-Alim is the Education editor @ConversationUS. He was US Chess journalist of the year in 2013, and is a frequent contributor to uschess.org. Follow Jamaal on twitter and read his latest piece, a review of Great Moves: Learning Chess Through History.
The World Open piece also featured photos from Dr. Francine Silver, who you can follow at https://www.instagram.com/chessphotos/.
“Petrosian’s personality shines in this piece and games shown are brilliant. What jumped out to me most however was the profile of young talent IM Zhansaya Abdumalik, a name I am sure we will hear more and more in the future.”- Dan Schultz
“A fascinating article on the World Open. Petrosian wins the tournament, butZhansaya Abdumalik ‘steals’ the show. She shows that she is a force to reckon with, as she was a win away from sharing first with GM Petrosian. The article also features an exclusive interview with Zhansaya Abdumalik. A must read!”- GM Denes Boros
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10. Petrosian Wins World Open: ‘Forget About the Draw’ by Jamaal Abdul Alim
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