A nice grind by NM Sinanan which was instrumental to helping the Sluggers overcome draw odds and reach their first Championship Match takes its exit from the GOTY Contest.
This is the fourth part in a series of articles which will count down to revealing what game was voted as the 2012 USCL Game of the Year. For more information on exactly how this process works and the prize information, please refer to: Game of the Year Contest
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17th Place: NM Joshua Sinanan (SEA) vs IM Shahin Mohandesi (ARZ) 1-0
With 38. Qa8!, NM Sinanan decisively broke through and lent the Sluggers a huge hand towards advancing to the Championship Match
IM David Pruess (6th Place, 15 Points): A beautiful positional game. Sinanan’s insight and decisions create a work of art. 13. b4 and the subsequent push of the a-pawn, picking up on the awkwardness of Black’s dark-squared Bishop and the potential of a Queenside expansion, then the simple trade of rooks and the repositioning of the Bishop from b2 to d2, and then judging that he could advance the Queenside majority further with Queens still on the board. Delicious!
GM Alejandro Ramirez (14th Place, 7 Points): Positional one sided affair that was well converted by White.
GM Alex Yermolinsky (16th Place, 5 Points): An almost forgotten line in the Catalan seen in this game is not known for producing exciting games. Lots of them ended in boring draws after the last pair of Knights disappeared from the board. This game, however, took a different turn. Sinanan’s idea of immediately advancing his a-pawn required a precise reaction from Black. Allowing the White pawn to a5 was Mohandesi’s first mistake. Later on he probably should have kept one pair of Rooks and tried to get to the White King rather than relying on exchanges to coast him to safety. Also, bringing the King in while the Queens were still on did nothing to help. One blunder later the game was over. Smooth sailing from Sinanan, but one should expect a better effort from IM Mohandesi.
GM-elect Robert Hungaski (17th Place, 4 Points): I love this game, but I don’t think it’s a particularly good game. I say I love it because it’s exactly the kind of game I want to win. Get a better position out of the opening where my opponent hardly has any counterplay and then just lets the point drop in my lap!
FM Alisa Melekhina (18th Place, 3 Points): A methodical Catalan cleanly executed by White. White had a plan in mind and instructively followed through with it. Unfortunately, the game was forgettable relative to the others. Black’s lack of resistance made White’s path to victory easier and detracted from the overall quality. The game’s merit has more to do with its significance in getting the Sluggers to the Championship than with the OTB moves.
FM Ron Young (18th Place, 3 Points): The last English King to lead his troops in battle was George II, at the battle of Dettingen in 1743, back when pneumonia was treated with leeches, bathing was thought hazardous to one’s health, and parents worried about Philidor’s effect on their children. You can see where this is going — one may play the ending like Capablanca’s smarter brother, but it won’t help if one’s opponent is still playing the middlegame.
Total Score of Sinanan vs Mohandesi: (17th Place, 37 Points)
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Stay tuned for sixteen more such articles as the field shrinks by one game almost every day to see which of the following games will be the 2012 Game of the Year!
Week 1: GM Vladimir Romanenko (MAN) vs GM Tamaz Gelashvili (NY) 1-0 Article
Week 2: GM Ben Finegold (STL) vs GM Niclas Huschenbeth (BAL) 1-0 Article
Week 3: SM Robert Perez (MIA) vs GM Julio Sadorra (DAL) 0-1 Article
Week 5: GM Vladimir Romanenko (MAN) vs GM Alex Stripunsky (NJ) 0-1 Article
Week 6: FM Eric Rodriguez (MIA) vs IM Justin Sarkar (CON) 1/2-1/2 Article
Week 7: NM Jared Defibaugh (BAL) vs NM Justus Williams (NY) 1-0 Article
Week 8: GM Tamaz Gelashvili (NY) vs GM Sam Shankland (NE) 1-0 Article
Week 9: GM Tamaz Gelashvili (NY) vs SM William Fisher (PHI) 1/2-1/2 Article
Week 10: FM Kazim Gulamali (BOS) vs GM Larry Kaufman (BAL) 1-0 Article
Quarterfinals: SM Matt Herman (NY) vs IM Eli Vovsha (MAN) 1-0 Article
Wildcard #1: GM Mikheil Kekelidze (CON) vs FM Kassa Korley (CAR) 0-1 Article
Wildcard #2: GM Alex Stripunsky (NJ) vs GM Tamaz Gelashvili (NY) 0-1 Article
Wildcard #3: IM Mackenzie Molner (ARZ) vs IM Jonathan Schroer (CAR) 1-0 Article
Wildcard #4: IM Priyadharshan Kannappan (STL) vs FM Kassa Korley (CAR) 1-0 Article
Wildcard #5: IM Georgi Orlov (SEA) vs GM Conrad Holt (DAL) 1-0 Article
Wildcard #7: GM Alex Stripunsky (NJ) vs SM Jorge Sammour-Hasbun (BOS) 0-1 Article
Eliminated:
17th Place (37 Points): NM Joshua Sinanan (SEA) vs IM Shahin Mohandesi (ARZ) 1-0 Article Elimination Article
18th Place (33 Points): SM Denys Shmelov (BOS) vs GM Conrad Holt (DAL) 1/2-1/2 Article Elimination Article
19th Place (30 Points): FM Ralph Zimmer (BAL) vs NM Joshua Colas (CON) 1-0 Article Elimination Article
20th Place (17 Points): IM Georgi Orlov (SEA) vs SM William Fisher (PHI) 1/2-1/2 Article Elimination Article