The Fabulous 00s: The Politiken Cup 2000

Let’s get the weird news out of the way first. I’m in the electronic Time magazine (online version) submitting a question for Sir Ben Kingsley! OK that’s done. Let’s move on to the photos.

It’s Maiken! Also known as Quote on ICC, photo Copenhagen Denmark in the year 2000 by the author of these pages. This photo was taken during the tough Politiken Open chess tournament.

Watch this space, I will post some interesting games from the Politiken Cup, including an abject disaster vs GM Tiger Hillarp-Persson.

Here’s a good one, GM Nick DeFirmian from this 2000 Politiken Cup in Copenhagen, fetching some beer (perhaps during his game with me in which he improved his personal score versus me to 2-0). What a nice tournament! I went broke after one week though – expensive town.

Here’s a tough battle versus a veteran Danish master.

NM Jorgen Hvenekilde – IM Mark Ginsburg

Politiken Cup 2000, Round 5 Modern Defense

1. d4 g6 2. e4 Bg7 3. Nc3 d6 4. Be3 a6!? This move is approved in GM Hillarp-Person’s Modern Defense book.

5. Qd2 b5 6. O-O-O Bb7 7. f3 7. h4 first is interesting.

7…Nd7 8. g4 The developing 8. Nh3!? comes into consideration.

8…c5 9. Nge2 Rc8 10. h4 b4! Clearly white has played inaccurately because already black is more comfortable.

11. Nb1 Ngf6!? The cat and mouse maneuver 11…Qa5!? 12. a3 Qc7!? is interesting. The text prepares a speculative sacrifice.

12. h5 Nxe4! Having said “A”, black has to say “B”. The situation is quite unclear.

13. fxe4 Bxe4 14. Rh2 Bxc2! 15. Re1?? A gross blunder. White must play 15. Qxc2 cxd4 16. Nxd4 Rxc2+ 17. Rxc2 with counter-chances.

15…Be4?? A blunder in reply. Black wins with the obvious 15…cxd4 16. Nxd4 Ba4+ 17. Nc3 bxc3 18. bxc3 Qa5.

16. d5! Of course. White prevents the opening of the c-file and should turn the tables.

16…Qa5 17. Ng3 Bf3 18. Bh6? 18. Bf4! is correct with a big plus.

18…Be5 19. Rxe5! dxe5 White’s counter-sacrifice clarifies the situation and it’s about equal.

20. Be2? Yet another blunder. 20. d6! is OK for white and so is 20. hxg6 hxg6 21. Bg5.

20…Bxe2 21.Rxe2 Qxa2 Now black is simply winning.

22. Ne4 Qc4+ 23. Kd1 If 23. Qc2 Qxc2+ 24. Kxc2, black has the crushing 24…Rg8! and wins.

23… f5! 24. gxf5 gxf5 25. Ng5 Rg8! A perfect square. White has no moves left.

26. Rf2 Nf6 27. Qe2 Qxd5+ 28. Nd2 c4 29. Rxf5 c3 30. bxc3 bxc3

0-1

Not all games in Denmark went this well. Here’s a complete debacle in which I throw away a winning game versus GM Tiger Hillarp-Persson. We both played well under our strengths, and I managed to try harder to give the game away.

IM M. Ginsburg – GM T. Hillarp-Persson

Politiken Cup.  Colle System. 

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 g6 3. Bg5 Bg7 4. Nbd2 d5 5. e3 c5 6. c3 Ne4? An outright blunder. Moving the same piece twice gives white a simple reaction that leaves black with a dreadful game.

7. Nxe4 dxe4 8. Nd2 cxd4 9. exd4 f5 10. f3 10. Bc4 is also very good as black can’t get his pieces out easily. Here’s an amusing line: 10…Nc6 11. O-O h6 12. Bh4 g5 13. Qh5+ Kd7 14. Bg3 f4 15. Bxf4! gxf4 16. Qg4+ picking up the bishop on g7 and winning.

10…h6 11. Bf4 O-O 12. Bc4+ Kh7 13. fxe4 fxe4 14. O-O All should be well; white is completely winning as the pawn falls. It’s not usually the case that it’s so easy to achieve a crushing position versus a Grandmaster.

14…Nc6 15. Nxe4 Qb6 16. Bd3?? What an awful blunder. 16. Qb3 and black has less than nothing for the pawn minus. I cannot explain why 16. Qb3 was not one of my candidate moves.

16…e5! Of course. Black is fine now.

17. Be3 Bf5 18. g4 exd4 19. cxd4 19. gxf5 dxe3 20. fxg6+ Kh8 21. Rxf8+ Rxf8 22. Qb3 was another way to play. The text is probably somewhat stronger.

19…Be6 20. Nc5? 20. Rxf8 first was correct.

20…Rxf1+ 21. Qxf1 Nxd4 22. Bxg6+ Kh8 White is left with a lost game. What a total botch!

23. Rc1 Bxg4 24. Bd3 Rc8 25. Qf4 Ne2+? The comedy of errors continues. Correct is 25…Nf3+ 26. Kh1 Qxb2! 27. Rb1 Qxa2 28. Rxb7 Qa1+ 29. Rb1 Qe5 and black is winning.

26. Bxe2 Bxe2 27. Bd4 Now white is more or less OK again. He just has to worry a little about a loose king.

27…Qg6+ 28. Kf2 Bg4 29. Rc3 There’s a nice tactical detail here. The apparently strong 29. Rg1 h5 30. h3 is met by the stunning 30…Rc7!!.

Rd8 30. Be5 Kh7? Correct is 30…Kg8!.

31. Ne4! Rd7 32. Ke3? A last blunder in time trouble. All I had to do in mild trouble was find the rather elementary 32. Bxg7 Kxg7 33. Qe5+! (Centralizing!) Kf7 34. b4 and white is fine.

34…Rf7 Oops!

0-1  A very poorly played game.