In a super important game, GM Gelashvili’s creativity once again paid off as his nice exchange sacrifice sent his team to the postseason.
This is the final part in a series of articles which has counted down to revealing what game was voted as the 2012 USCL Game of the Year. For more information on exactly how this process worked and the prize information, please refer to: Game of the Year Contest
————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————-
2nd Place: GM Alex Stripunsky (NJ) vs GM Tamaz Gelashvili (NY) 0-1
With the nice tactical sequence 30… Rxc3! 31. bxc3 e4 32. Bd4 Nxh3+!, GM Gelashvili won a critical game for his team and sent them to the Playoffs
FM Ron Young (2nd Place, 19 Points): I consider myself to be fairly literate from a chess point of view, but one thing I never did get around to reading was “The White Rook in Chess Strategy”. Stripunsky though seems here to have read it too many times. I obviously liked this game, from my ranking it second, but deadline is fast approaching, so let it suffice to say Black’s adjectival attack completely verbed the noun, and even the mopping up was not all drudgery.
GM Alex Yermolinsky (4th Place, 17 Points): Another great effort from Gelashvili. It started as a Pirc Defense, but soon the game took a Sicilian shape. Taking advantage of White’s carefree play, Gelashvili achieved a great concentration of forces on the Kingside. Stripunsky decided against winning a piece with 20. g3, but his choice proved to be much worse. The fantastic exchange sacrifice 20… Rxc3 opened the inroads to the White King, and soon Stripunsky had to part with his Queen, effectively ending his resistance.
GM Alejandro Ramirez (5th Place, 16 Points): After having some problems out of the opening, it seems that Gelashvili’s fabulous maneuvers gave him an unexpected and powerful attack. This game is high on the list because of the Rxc3! and e4! resource.
GM Robert Hungaski (8th Place, 13 Points): I’m not too crazy about these types of positions for White where you have a type of King’s Indian with the Pawn on c2. Having had a similar position as Black, I got the impression that Black’s position is just ready to burst into action at a moment’s notice. While Black’s pieces seem to run into each other it only takes one cataclysmic breakthrough (in this case a thematic sacrifice) to make sense of it all. I think this game was a good example of that. After 20… Rxc3 and 21… e4, Black enjoyed a very comfortable position where his pieces were finally able to flow freely. Meanwhile, with the Pawn still on c2 White was unable to generate meaningful counterplay.
FM Alisa Melekhina (10th Place, 11 Points): Stripunsky has a knack for sacrificing his Queen, but here it shouldn’t have come down to such desperate measures. White could have dealt with Black’s impending Kingside attack by setting aside time for moves such as 19. Be3 or 19. g3. Instead, the erudite 19. Rb4 permitted Black to continue his Knights’ tango with the ominous f4 outpost.
This game reminded me of Stripunsky’s loss against Sammour-Hasbun, where he seemed to underestimate his opponent’s Kingside attack and proceeded almost nonchalantly with his own plan.
To Gelashvili’s credit, the Knights march was aesthetic. They were almost moving in lockstep – Nf5, Nh5; Nh4, Nf4; Nh3, Nf3! Coupled with the inspired exchange sacrifice on c3, Black affirmed his understanding of the attacking potential of his position. A formulaic attack that makes playing against a GM look deceivingly easy.
IM David Pruess (12th Place, 9 Points): I’m torn here, because I think I hate White’s play about as much as I love Black’s in this game. Black’s calculation is fantastic, but the strategic set-up for it was mostly done by White unprovokedly discoordinating himself bizarrely.
Total Score of Stripunsky vs Gelashvili: (2nd Place, 85 Points)
————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————-
Final 2012 Game of the Year Standings:
1st Place (98 Points): SM Matt Herman (NY) vs IM Eli Vovsha (MAN) 1-0 Article Elimination Article
2nd Place (85 Points): GM Alex Stripunsky (NJ) vs GM Tamaz Gelashvili (NY) 0-1 Article Elimination Article
3rd Place (82 Points): GM Vladimir Romanenko (MAN) vs GM Alex Stripunsky (NJ) 0-1 Article Elimination Article
4th Place (80 Points): GM Alex Stripunsky (NJ) vs SM Jorge Sammour-Hasbun (BOS) 0-1 Article Elimination Article
5th Place (79 Points): GM Tamaz Gelashvili (NY) vs GM Sam Shankland (NE) 1-0 Article Elimination Article
6th Place (77 Points): SM Robert Perez (MIA) vs GM Julio Sadorra (DAL) 0-1 Article Elimination Article
7th Place (77 Points): GM Mikheil Kekelidze (CON) vs FM Kassa Korley (CAR) 0-1 Article Elimination Article
8th Place (75 Points): IM Priyadharshan Kannappan (STL) vs FM Kassa Korley (CAR) 1-0 Article Elimination Article
9th Place (72 Points): GM Tamaz Gelashvili (NY) vs SM William Fisher (PHI) 1/2-1/2 Article Elimination Article
10th Place (71 Points): FM Kazim Gulamali (BOS) vs GM Larry Kaufman (BAL) 1-0 Article Elimination Article
11th Place (66 Points): FM Eric Rodriguez (MIA) vs IM Justin Sarkar (CON) 1/2-1/2 Article Elimination Article
12th Place (59 Points): IM Mackenzie Molner (ARZ) vs IM Jonathan Schroer (CAR) 1-0 Article Elimination Article
13th Place (59 Points): GM Vladimir Romanenko (MAN) vs GM Tamaz Gelashvili (NY) 1-0 Article Elimination Article
14th Place (58 Points): IM Georgi Orlov (SEA) vs GM Conrad Holt (DAL) 1-0 Article Elimination Article
15th Place (57 Points): NM Jared Defibaugh (BAL) vs NM Justus Williams (NY) 1-0 Article Elimination Article
16th Place (48 Points): GM Ben Finegold (STL) vs GM Niclas Huschenbeth (BAL) 1-0 Article Elimination Article
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