Checa Wins Denker, while Wang Takes Haring

GM Nico Checa continued his winning ways on Sunday, scoring 5.5/6 to take clear first place in the 2020 GM Arnold Denker National Tournament of High School State Champions. IMs Andrew Hong and Carissa Yip finished a half-point back at 5/6 to share second place, while FM Robert Shylakhtenko was clear fourth at 4.5/6.

Nicolas Checa (photo Austin Fuller)

Perhaps the key matchup in Checa’s run to the title was his Round 5 victory over Hong. After drumming up serious counterplay in the late middlegame, Hong falls victim to Checa’s enviable endgame technique.

[pgn][Event "2020 Denker HS State Champions"] [Site "Chess.com"] [Date "2020.07.26"] [Round "5"] [White "Checa, Nicolas"] [Black "Hong, Andrew"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "A13"] [WhiteElo "2644"] [BlackElo "2533"] [Annotator "Hartmann,John"] [PlyCount "177"] [EventDate "2020.07.25"] [EventType "swiss"] [EventRounds "6"] [SourceTitle "200727 Haring Denker"] [SourceDate "2020.07.27"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2020.07.27"] [SourceQuality "1"] [WhiteClock "0:04:14"] [BlackClock "0:01:24"] 1. c4 e6 2. Nf3 d5 3. g3 dxc4 4. Bg2 Nf6 5. Qa4+ Nbd7 6. Qxc4 a6 7. Qb3 Rb8 8. d4 b5 9. Ne5 Nxe5 10. dxe5 Nd7 11. O-O Nxe5 12. Rd1 Bd6 13. Bf4 Qe7 14. Nd2 O-O 15. Ne4 Bb7 16. Nxd6 cxd6 17. Qb4 a5 18. Qxa5 Bxg2 19. Kxg2 Nc4 20. Qb4 e5 21. Bc1 Qb7+ 22. Kg1 Qe4 23. b3 Qc2 24. Re1 Nb6 25. Qxb5 d5 26. Qd3 Qc6 27. Bb2 Rfe8 28. Rac1 Qe6 29. Rc7 d4 30. Rec1 Nd5 31. R7c6 Qg4 32. Qc4 Nf4 33. f3 Qg5 34. Rc2 Nh3+ 35. Kg2 Nf4+ 36. Kf1 Ne6 37. Bc1 Qf5 {[#]} 38. Qd3 $6 e4 $1 { Now Hong gets serious counterplay.} 39. Qxe4 Qh3+ 40. Kg1 d3 $1 41. Rxe6 { Nearly forced.} (41. Qxd3 $2 {shows the power of Hong's idea:} Rbd8 $1 42. Rd6 Rxd6 43. Qxd6 Rd8 {and White has to give up the queen to stop the backrank threat.}) 41... Qxe6 42. Qxe6 fxe6 43. exd3 Rec8 44. Rc4 Rd8 45. Kf2 Ra8 (45... Rxd3 {now gives White tempi to activate the king.} 46. Ke2 Rd5 $13) 46. a3 Rxd3 47. b4 Kf7 48. b5 Rb3 49. a4 Rb1 (49... e5 {[%cal Gf7e6]}) 50. Bf4 Rd8 51. g4 Rd3 52. Ke2 Ra3 53. Be5 Ra2+ (53... Rbb3 $1 $132) 54. Kd3 Rd1+ {Chasing the king to the queenside, where it can support the pawns as they run down the board, proves to be the wrong decision.} 55. Kc3 Ra3+ 56. Kb4 Rxf3 57. b6 Rb1+ 58. Kc5 Rfb3 59. Bc7 e5 60. Kc6 Ra3 61. Bxe5 g6 62. b7 Rab3 63. b8=Q { Transposing to a winning single rook endgame.} Rxb8 64. Bxb8 Rxb8 65. a5 Rc8+ 66. Kd5 Rd8+ 67. Ke5 Ra8 68. Ra4 Ra6 69. Kd5 Ke7 70. Kc5 Kd7 71. Kb5 Re6 72. a6 Kc7 73. a7 Re5+ 74. Kb4 Re4+ 75. Kb3 Rxa4 76. Kxa4 Kb7 77. Kb5 Kxa7 78. Kc6 Kb8 79. Kd7 h5 80. g5 h4 81. Ke6 Kc7 82. Kf6 Kd7 83. Kxg6 Ke6 84. Kh7 Kf5 85. g6 Kg4 86. g7 Kh3 87. g8=Q Kxh2 88. Qg4 h3 89. Kh6 1-0 [/pgn]

Only FM Christopher Shen was able to hold the champion to a draw, although Checa could have won had he found the correct move in a knight ending.

[pgn][Event "2020 Denker HS State Champions"] [Site "Chess.com"] [Date "2020.07.25"] [Round "3"] [White "Shen, Christopher"] [Black "Checa, Nicolas"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "D11"] [WhiteElo "2424"] [BlackElo "2644"] [Annotator "Hartmann,John"] [PlyCount "123"] [EventDate "2020.07.25"] [EventType "swiss"] [EventRounds "6"] [SourceTitle "200727 Haring Denker"] [SourceDate "2020.07.27"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2020.07.27"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. Nf3 d5 2. c4 c6 3. d4 Nf6 4. Nbd2 Bf5 5. Nh4 Be6 6. e3 g6 7. b3 Bg7 8. Bb2 O-O 9. Bd3 c5 10. Nhf3 cxd4 11. Nxd4 Bg4 12. Be2 Bxe2 13. Nxe2 Nc6 14. O-O Rc8 15. cxd5 Qxd5 16. Nc4 Rfd8 17. Qxd5 Nxd5 18. Bxg7 Kxg7 19. a4 Ndb4 20. Rfd1 Nd3 21. Kf1 Nc5 22. Rxd8 Rxd8 23. Nc1 Rd1+ 24. Ke2 Rh1 25. h3 Nb4 26. Nd2 Nc2 27. Rb1 Re1+ 28. Kf3 Nb4 29. Ne2 Rxb1 30. Nxb1 Nxb3 31. Nbc3 Nd2+ 32. Kg3 Kf6 33. Nd4 a6 34. f4 e5 35. Nf3 Nxf3 36. Kxf3 Ke6 37. Ne4 exf4 38. Nc5+ Kd5 39. Nxb7 fxe3 40. Kxe3 Nc6 41. Kd3 f5 42. g3 g5 43. Ke3 Ne5 44. h4 h6 45. hxg5 hxg5 46. Nd8 Nc4+ 47. Kf3 Nb6 48. g4 Nxa4 49. gxf5 Nc5 50. f6 {[#]} Ne6 $2 (50... Nd7 $1 51. f7 a5 52. Nb7 a4 {etc}) 51. f7 Nf8 52. Nb7 Ke5 53. Kg4 Kf6 54. Nc5 a5 55. Ne4+ Kxf7 56. Kxg5 Ke6 57. Kf4 Kd5 58. Ke3 Ne6 59. Nc3+ Kc4 60. Kd2 Nd4 61. Na4 Kb5 62. Nc3+ 1/2-1/2 [/pgn]

Meanwhile, IM Annie Wang rampaged her way through the field in the 2020 WIM Ruth Haring National Tournament of Girls State Champions, going a perfect 6/6 to win the tournament. Four players – WIM Rochelle Wu, WFM Martha Samadashvili, Yili Wen, and Gauri Menon – tied for equal second place at 4.5/6, a full 1.5 points behind Wang.

Annie Wang looking up before chess game starts, Photo Lennart Ootes

Annie Wang, Photo Lennart Ootes

Wang’s victories over both Samadashvili and Wu show how fortune favors the bold, as Wang took advantage of tactical errors by her rivals in racing her way to the top of the crosstable.

[pgn][Event "2020 Haring Girls K-12 State Champions"] [Site "Chess.com"] [Date "2020.07.26"] [Round "5"] [White "Wang, Annie"] [Black "Samadashvili, Martha"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "E11"] [WhiteElo "2457"] [BlackElo "2340"] [Annotator "Hartmann,John"] [PlyCount "123"] [EventDate "2020.07.25"] [EventType "swiss"] [EventRounds "6"] [WhiteClock "0:00:32"] [BlackClock "0:00:25"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 d5 4. Nf3 Bb4+ 5. Bd2 Be7 6. Bg2 O-O 7. O-O c6 8. Nc3 Nbd7 9. b3 b6 10. Qc2 Bb7 11. Rfd1 c5 12. cxd5 Nxd5 13. dxc5 Nxc5 14. Nxd5 Bxd5 15. Bc3 Qc8 16. Qb2 f6 17. Bh3 Qb7 18. Nd4 b5 19. Nc2 Ne4 20. Bd4 Ng5 21. Bf1 Rfd8 22. h4 Ne4 23. Bh3 e5 24. Be3 b4 25. Ne1 Nc3 26. Rdc1 Qb5 27. Nd3 Bf7 28. Bf1 a5 29. Bd2 {[#] Samadashvili has a decent advantage here, but over the course of the next few moves things begin to go wrong.} Ne4 (29... e4 $1) 30. Be1 Rac8 31. Bh3 Rxc1 32. Rxc1 Rb8 33. Qc2 Qb6 $2 {Missing a small tactic.} 34. Nxe5 fxe5 35. Qxe4 $16 Qd4 36. Qxd4 exd4 37. Rc7 Bd8 38. Rd7 Bb6 39. Bd2 Bc5 40. Bf4 Re8 41. Rc7 Bf8 42. Kf1 a4 43. Bd7 Rd8 44. Bxa4 d3 45. exd3 Rxd3 46. Rc8 Be6 47. Rb8 Bg4 48. Bb5 Rd1+ 49. Kg2 Be6 50. Kf3 h5 51. Ke2 Rd4 52. Be3 Re4 53. Kd2 Re5 54. Bd4 Rd5 55. Ke3 Rf5 56. Bd3 Ra5 57. Bb6 Re5+ 58. Kf4 Rd5 59. Bc4 Rf5+ 60. Ke4 Rf6 61. Bd4 Rg6 62. Bc5 1-0 [/pgn]

[pgn][Event "2020 Haring Girls K-12 State Champions"] [Site "Chess.com"] [Date "2020.07.26"] [Round "4"] [White "Wu, Rochelle"] [Black "Wang, Annie"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "E32"] [WhiteElo "2266"] [BlackElo "2457"] [Annotator "Hartmann,John"] [PlyCount "82"] [EventDate "2020.07.25"] [EventType "swiss"] [EventRounds "6"] [WhiteClock "0:11:13"] [BlackClock "0:03:48"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 d6 7. Bg5 Nbd7 8. e3 b6 9. Ne2 c5 10. Rd1 Qc7 11. Qc2 Ba6 12. Nc3 cxd4 13. Rxd4 h6 14. Bh4 d5 15. cxd5 Bxf1 16. d6 Qc6 17. Kxf1 e5 18. Rb4 a5 19. Qa4 Qxd6 20. Rb5 Rac8 21. Bxf6 Nxf6 22. Ke2 e4 23. Qd4 Qc7 24. Rd1 Qxh2 25. Nxe4 Rc2+ 26. Kf3 Nxe4 27. Qxe4 Qc7 28. g3 Rc6 29. Kg2 Re6 30. Qd5 Rc8 31. Rb3 Qc2 32. Rd2 Qg6 33. Rbd3 Rf6 34. Qb7 Rcc6 35. Rd4 Qh5 36. Rf4 Rc1 37. Qa8+ Kh7 38. Qe4+ g6 39. Rh4 Qb5 40. Rf4 Rxf4 {[#]} 41. exf4 $4 (41. Qxf4 $11) 41... Qh5 $1 {The mate threat on h1 will require White to shed material just to survive. So Wu resigns on the spot.} ( 41... Qh5 42. f3 Qh1+ 43. Kf2 Qg1+ 44. Ke2 Re1+) 0-1 [/pgn]

It's a brave new Zoom world.

The 2020 National Tournament of Senior State Champions is on pause for a week after contesting their first three games over the weekend. GMs Alex Fishbein, Michael Rohde, and Alonso Zapata are tied for first at 3/3 heading into Round 4 on Saturday. They are closely followed by GMs Enrico Sevillano and Sergey Kudrin, along with IM Ron Burnett, all at 2.5/3.

Alex Fishbein 2019 Denver Open (John Brezina)

Alex Fishbein (photo John Brezina)

Fishbein’s round 3 win over Yury Barnakov featured an interesting tactical moment, one where Barnakov missed a key resource to keep him in the game.

[pgn][Event "2020 Senior State Champions"] [Site "Chess.com"] [Date "2020.07.26"] [Round "3"] [White "Barnakov, Yury"] [Black "Fishbein, Alex"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "A45"] [WhiteElo "2283"] [BlackElo "2558"] [Annotator "Hartmann,John"] [PlyCount "106"] [EventDate "2020.07.25"] [EventType "swiss"] [EventRounds "6"] [WhiteClock "0:02:20"] [BlackClock "0:04:58"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. Bg5 Ne4 3. Bf4 c5 4. f3 Qa5+ 5. c3 Nf6 6. d5 Qb6 7. Bc1 g6 8. e4 d6 9. c4 Bg7 10. Nc3 O-O 11. Bd3 e6 12. Nge2 Nbd7 13. O-O exd5 14. exd5 Ne5 15. Ng3 Nxd3 16. Qxd3 Nd7 17. f4 Re8 18. Rb1 Qd8 19. Kh1 Nf6 20. h3 {A long-time King's Indian player, Fishbein essays a thematic tactical idea here.} Ng4 $5 ({ Another idea is} 20... Nh5 $5 {and if} 21. Nxh5 Bf5 $1 22. Qf3 gxh5 23. Ra1 h4) 21. Bd2 (21. hxg4 $2 {is verboten due to} Qh4+ 22. Kg1 Bd4+) 21... Bd4 22. Nce2 $2 ({The computer suggests the brilliant} 22. f5 $1 {when White gets good play for the material after} Nf2+ 23. Rxf2 Bxf2 24. Rf1 Bd4 25. Nce4 $44) (22. Nge4 {is also possible. Black gets an edge after} Bf5 23. Qf3 Nf6 24. Nxf6+ Qxf6 25. Rbe1 h5) 22... Nf2+ 23. Rxf2 Bxf2 24. Rf1 Bxg3 25. Nxg3 {Up an exchange, it's time to mop up.} f5 26. Bc3 Qe7 27. Kh2 Qf7 28. b3 h6 29. Ba1 Kh7 30. Ne2 Bd7 31. Ng1 Re7 32. Qg3 Re4 33. Nf3 Qe7 34. Ng1 b5 35. Qc3 b4 36. Qb2 Rg8 37. a4 g5 38. fxg5 Qxg5 39. Nf3 Qg3+ 40. Kh1 Re3 41. Ng1 Rxb3 42. Qc2 Qd3 43. Qf2 Rb1 44. Rxb1 Qxb1 45. Bf6 Qe4 46. Nf3 f4 47. Qh4 b3 48. Kh2 Qf5 49. Ne1 Qg6 50. Qxf4 Rf8 51. Qxd6 Qxf6 52. Qxd7+ Rf7 53. Qe8 Re7 0-1 [/pgn]

Quick Links:

For detailed information on all of the events, please follow these links:

2020 Online Invitationals: Overview, Schedule, & Prizes

2020 Online Invitational: Rules

Pairings: D enker, Barber, Haring, Rockefeller, Seniors

Standings: Denker, Barber, Haring, Rockefeller, Seniors, Weeramantry (2200+), Weeramantry (1600-2199), Weeramantry (U1600)

Thank You!

US Chess thanks the following individuals, organizations, and businesses for their support of the 2020 Online National Invitational Events (in alphabetical order):

Dewain Barber

Dwight Barber

Ralph Bowman

Chess.com and Staff

Ursula Foster Scholarships

Clifford Lester

Rick Lester

Internet Chess Club (ICC)

National State Invitationals Committee

Jon Haskel, Chair

Dewain Barber

David Grimaud