It was a highly appropriate Fourth of July weekend result. Just one U.S. player was among the eight grandmasters who tied for first in the 43rd World Open, held at the Hyatt Regency Crystal City from June 30 through July 5, but it was the American — New York GM Alex Lenderman — who took the official title and a small cash bonus by winning an “Armageddon” playoff match against Azerbaijani GM Rauf Mamedov.
“It’s a very strong tournament with a lot of worthy competitors,” the Brooklyn-based Lenderman told Chess Life Online after the tournament. “I’m just lucky to be in the winner’s circle.”
Perhaps, but luck doesn’t seem to have played much of a role in Lenderman’s impressive victory over GM Alexander Stripunsky, a former U.S. national co-champion, in their Round 4 game, a win that propelled Lenderman to a 4-0 start. Black achieves an easy equality in this Queen’s Indian, and after 13. Ne5 Nxe5 14. dxe5 Bc5, one already gets the sense that Black’s well-placed bishops are destined for greater things than their White counterparts.
Those bishops make themselves felt after the center opens up, and White is soon obliged to give up his queen to deal with Black’s pressure: 20. Bd3 (g3 allows 20…Rxd4! 21. exd4 [Rxd4?? Qxe3+ 22. Rf2 Bxd4] Qe3+ gives Black a dangerous initiative) Bxd4 21. exd4 Bxg2 22. Bxh7+ Kh8 23. Qxg2 Rg4; with a rook, bishop and pawn for his queen, Stripunsky has sufficient material, at least on paper, for his queen, but the Black queen will prove far more effective than White’s pieces with so much of the middle game still to be played.
After 29. a4 g5 30. d5!? (understandably trying to change the flow of play, but Black also enjoys an edge on 30. Bh3 Kf7 31. d5 Ke8 32. Bxe6 [dxe6 Rxd3 33. Rxd3 Qe4+] Rh7 33. R3d2 Qe4+ 34. Rg2 Qxe5) Qxc4 31. d6 cxd6 32. exd6 Qxa4 33. Bc6 Rd8 34. d7, White appears to have obtained a powerful advanced passed pawn, but Lenderman manages to neutralize the threat while pressing ahead with his own counterplay.
White’s rooks have no entry point and his bishop is frozen, as Black’s kingside pressure and a-pawn combine to deliver the win: 38. Rf1+ (Rxg5 Qxg5 39. Rxg5 Kxg5 40. Kg2 a4 41. Be4 a3 42. Bb1 Rxd7, and the ending is won) Ke7 39. Rgf2 Rh8! 40. Rd2, and White resigned seeing the handwriting on the wall in lines such as 40…Kd8 41. Kg2 g4 42. Rdf2 a4 43. Ra2 Qd6 44. Rh1 a3 45. Re2 Qd3 46. Rxe6 Qd2+ 47. Kg3 Qc3+ 48. Kg2 Qc2+ 49. Kg1 Qb1+ 50. Kf2 Qf5+, picking off the rook.
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With some 600 games being played across eight sections at the World Open, there is a wealth of entertaining games and unexpected results to choose from for a column. Paraguayan GM Axel Bachmann managed to make it with Lenderman into the winners’ circle, but only after overcoming a Round 2 upset at the hands of Bangladeshi IM Shakil Abu Sufian. The grandmaster’s king finds itself lost in a dangerous neighborhood and never quite makes it home.
Black’s pawn structure is damaged in this King’s Indian Attack, but Abu Sufian has clear compensation in the open g-file and the possibility for a kingside initiative. White hurts his own cause by “castling into it” with 15. 0-0?! (the White king would have been safer staying put; 15. Qc3 0-0-0 16. b4 gives Black more to think about) 0-0-0 16. f3 exf3 17. e3?! (simpler was 17. Rxf3 Qxe2 18. Qf5+ Qe6 19. Re1 Bc5+ 20. Kg2 Qxf5 21. Rxf5 Bd4 22. b4, with a playable game) h5!, and suddenly even a queen trade can’t slow down Black’s attack.
Thus: 18. Rxf3 h4 19. Qf5 hxg3 20. hxg3 Rd5! (a highly annoying move that White may have underestimated) 21. Qxe6+ fxe6, when 22. Rxf6? runs into 22…Bg7, skewering the rooks. The Black rooks now flood the position and White’s game collapses.
The end comes on 23. Raf1? (the last mistake, though Black is still better after 23. Rff1 Rh2 24. Rad1 Be7) Rh1+ 24. Kf2 R8h2+ 25. Ke1 Bb4+ 26. Kd1 b5!, and there’s no safe retreat square for the knight. After 27. Rxf6 bxc4 28. bxc4 Rd2+, White packs it in, and the rooks and bishop combine for mate after 29. Ke1 (Kc1 Rhh2 30. Rxe6 Ba3+ 31. Kb1 Rb2+ 32. Kc1 Rb4+ 33. Kd1 Rb1 mate) Rhh2 30. Rg1 Rxd4+ 31. Kf1 Rd1 mate.
Another fun finish came in Canadian GM Anton Kovalyov’s first-round win over New Jersey NM Aaron Jacobson, where White’s efforts to trap Black’s bishop instead expose his own king to a lethal attack. White has just played 20. Rh3-h5, but Black is unfazed by the “threat” of 21. h4. There followed 20…Ke7! (clearing the back rank for Black’s rooks to mobilize) 21. h4 Bf4 22. g3 Rag8! 23. gxf4 exf4 24. Qf3 Rg7!, when 25. Nf2 is met by 25…Qe3+ 26. Qxe3 fxe3 27. Nd1 Bxe4+ 28. Kh2 Bf3 and wins.
Black is in no hurry, as even with an extra piece, White can’t slow down the coordinated attack: 25. Qxf4 Qxc4 26. Ng3 Rxg3! 27. Qxg3 Qxe4+ 28. Kg1 Rg8! (a final deflection that leads to mate) 29. Qxg8 Qe1+ 30. Kh2 Qh1+ 31. Kg3 Qg2+, and White resigned just ahead of 32. Kf4 Qf3 mate.
Stripunsky-Lenderman, 43rd World Open, Arlington, July 2015
1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 d5 3. c4 e6 4. e3 b6 5. Nbd2 Bb7 6. b4 Nbd7 7. Rb1 a5 8. b5 Bd6 9. Bb2 Ne4 10. Be2 f5 11. O-O Qe7 12. Nxe4 dxe4 13. Ne5 Nxe5 14. dxe5 Bc5 15. Qc2 O-O 16. Rbd1 f4 17. exf4 Rxf4 18. Bd4 e3 19. fxe3 Qg5 20. Bd3 Bxd4 21. exd4 Bxg2 22. Bxh7+ Kh8 23. Qxg2 Rg4 24. Be4 Rd8 25. Kh1 Rxg2 26. Bxg2 Qh4 27. Rd3 Kg8 28. Rfd1 Rd7 29. a4 g5 30. d5 Qxc4 31. d6 cxd6 32. exd6 Qxa4 33. Bc6 Rd8 34. d7 Qc2 35. R3d2 Qc5 36. Rg2 Kf7 37. Rdg1 Kf6 38. Rf1+ Ke7 39. Rgf2 Rh8 40. Rd2 and White resigns.
Bachmann-Abu Sufian, 43rd World Open, Arlington, July 2015
1. Nf3 d5 2. g3 c6 3. Bg2 Bg4 4. c4 dxc4 5. a4 Nd7 6. Na3 e5 7. Nxc4 e4 8. Nfe5 Be6 9. Nxd7 Qxd7 10. b3 Bh3 11. Bxh3 Qxh3 12. Bb2 Nf6 13. Qc2 Qe6 14. Bxf6 gxf6 15. O-O O-O-O 16. f3 exf3 17. e3 h5 18. Rxf3 h4 19. Qf5 hxg3 20. hxg3 Rd5 21. Qxe6+ fxe6 22. d4 Rdh5 23. Raf1 Rh1+ 24. Kf2 R8h2+ 25. Ke1 Bb4+ 26. Kd1 b5 27. Rxf6 bxc4 28. bxc4 Rd2+ White resigns.
• David R. Sands can be reached at 202/636-3178 or by email at dsands@washingtontimes.com.
• David R. Sands can be reached at dsands@washingtontimes.com.
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