CHESS HORIZONS
Cambridge Springers First At U . S . Amateur Team East
by NM Greg Kaden
The 40th Annual “ World ” Amateur Team Championship attracted 271 teams and 1131 players to lovely Parsippany , New Jersey on February 13-15 , 2010 . For many players , the event was more than just an chance to play in one of the most enjoyable chess tournaments of the year . It was an opportunity test the devotion of their spouses and significant others by choosing a three-day-weekend of chess over romantic Valentine ’ s Day activities . After six competitive , and decidedly un-romantic , rounds , the second-seeded “ Cambridge Springers ” ( FM Bill Kelleher , IM Joe Fang , expert Len Morrissey and A-player Anatoly Levin and WIM Vesna Dimitrijevic as alternate ) claimed first place on tiebreaks and a year of bragging rights , with a score of 5 1 / 2 - 1 / 2 . Two New York-based teams , “ Hunter High School ” and the tastefully-named “ Our Weiner Is Looking To Mate ”, fell short on tiebreaks and settled for second and third place , respectively .
The local chess scene was wellrepresented in Parsippany . While only 48 players identified Massachusetts as their current state of residence ( at least for purposes of receiving their Chess Life magazine ), there were many other familiar faces in attendance , including numerous Bostonarea college students and out-ofstaters who have made recent appearances at area events .
Several of the top teams also had a local flavor . Apart from the tournament champs , three teams with strong Massachusetts ties finished with solid 5-1 scores : “ The
Bill Kelleher and Joe Fang
Shmelov Money ” ( SM Denys Shmelov , FM Charles Riordan , expert Derek Slater and newlyminted Class A player Matt Phelps ); “ Lordy , Lordy , I Can ’ t Believe She ’ s Forty ” ( FM Paul MacIntyre and experts Evan Rabin , David Plotkin and Nick Panico ); and “ The Jackson Four : Long Live The King ” ( NM Lawyer Times , NM Carey Theil , NM Greg Kaden and expert Charlie Mays ).
After tiebreaks , The Jackson Four was awarded the prize for the highest scoring Massachusetts team .
White : Greg Kaden Black : David Kaufman [ C11 ] French Defense Annotated by Greg Kaden
1 . e4 e6 2 . Nc3 d5 3 . Nf3
The Two Knights is hardly the most challenging line against the French , but it can give White active piece play and interesting tactical
opportunities . 3 ... Nf6 4 . e5 Nfd7 5 . d4 c5 6 . dxc5 Bxc5 7 . Bd3 Nc6 8 . Bf4 f6
8 ... O-O invites the classic " Greek gift " sacrifice 9 . Bxh7 +, which leads to mate after 9 ... Kxh7 10 . Ng5 + Kh8 ?? 11 . Qh5 . Although Black can stay in the game after 10 ... Kg6 , 11 . Qd3 + f5 12 . Qg3 Ndxe5 13 . Nxe6 + Ng4 14 . Nxd8 Bxf2 + 15 . Qxf2 Nxf2 16 . Nxc6 Nxh1 17 . Ne5 + Kh7 18 . Nxd5 leaves White with a clear edge . 9 . exf6 Nxf6 10 . Qe2 O-O 11 . O-O- O Bd6 ?!
Black should not be in such a rush to exchange his good bishop . More common ( and more sensible ) is 11 ... Qa5 , as in Kosteniuk- Giddins , Port Erin 1999 , which continued 12 . Kb1 Nb4 13 . Be5 Bd7 with mutual chances . 12 . Bxd6 Qxd6 13 . Rhe1 Bd7 14 . Kb1 ?
Inaccurate . Better is 14 . h3 , which preserves the option of
APRIL-JUNE 2010 7