A very smooth win by the victor earned him some nice praise, but the loser clearly not having his best day seemed to prevent this from finishing higher in the contest.
This is the sixth part in a series of articles which will count down to revealing what game was voted as the 2014 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
————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————-
15th Place: GM Mackenzie Molner (ARZ) vs GM Eugene Perelshteyn (BOS) 1-0
In a dominating performance, GM Molner struck with 24. h4!, overwhelming his opponent’s position in short order
FM Alisa Melekhina (8th Place, 13 Points): If the game headers were removed and I had to guess who had the White pieces, my first pick would certainly not have been Molner. I recall judging his creative victories in the Evans Gambit and Najdorf from previous years, ranking them highly for the tactical fireworks.
In transitioning from an IM to GM, and making a run at the US Championships, the young GM has matured as an all-around player. Here, he positionally suffocated a veteran GM like a pro. After the flippant 13… Nb8, Black was never given another chance.
As a homage to his previous style, Mac finished off his opponent with the tactical flares prepared by h4-h5. It was also entertaining to see how White dominated the game after 21. Bg4. Almost every move that followed was a threat, which forced Black to react by defending.
The game wasn’t as positionally brilliant as some of the others, nor was it as tactically explosive as the others. However, its hybrid nature produced a well-balanced game that was still captivating.
IM Priyadharshan Kannappan (10th Place, 11 Points): Black made a few inaccuracies in the opening which led to a very cramped position and was on a ventilator breathing for life after move 20. A slow and painful death for him.
GM Alejandro Ramirez (14th Place, 7 Points): Despite Perelshteyn famously playing these systems ever since I have known him as a chess player, it is clear that he messed up badly somehow. Out of the opening his position was simply bad, and Molner played good and efficient moves to take a clean point. Again, however, I don’t feel there was much to the game.
FM Ingvar Johannesson (17th Place, 4 Points): Molner played solidly against the Accelerated Dragon and just set up a Maroczy Bind position. He enjoyed the usual space advantage and Bishop pair when Black tried to get dynamic with the 19… e5 break. After that it was difficult to play and defend the Black position, and Molner didn’t need any NASA qualifications to increase the pressure and then exploit the final blunder, 29… Ne7, after which it was just completely game over.
FM Ron Young (18th Place, 3 Points): Every once in a while you come across a game that takes everything you thought you knew about chess and stands it on its feet; shows that your teachers maybe knew what they were talking about, that it isn’t all lies out there. This game reinforced my attitudes toward the Bishop pair and away from Pawn islands and moving pieces backwards.
Total Score of Molner vs Perelshteyn: (15th Place, 38 Points)
————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————-
Stay tuned for fourteen more such articles as the field shrinks by one game almost every day to see which of the following games will be the 2014 Game of the Year!
Week 1: GM Anton Kovalyov (RIO) vs GM Daniel Naroditsky (SF) 1-0 Article
Week 2: GM Varuzhan Akobian (STL) vs GM Renier Gonzalez (MIA) 1-0 Article
Week 4: GM Wesley So (STL) vs GM Alex Lenderman (CON) 1/2-1/2 Article
Week 5: GM Alex Lenderman (CON) vs GM Gata Kamsky (NY) 1-0 Article
Week 6: GM Niclas Huschenbeth (BAL) vs GM Wesley So (STL) 1/2-1/2 Article
Week 7: GM Joel Benjamin (NJ) vs GM Holden Hernandez (RIO) 1-0 Article
Week 8: GM Daniel Naroditsky (SF) vs GM Conrad Holt (DAL) 1/2-1/2 Article
Week 9: GM Julio Becerra (MIA) vs GM Julio Sadorra (DAL) 1-0 Article
Week 10: IM David Vigorito (NE) vs FM Andrew Shvartsman (MAN) 1/2-1/2 Article
Quarterfinals: GM Daniel Naroditsky (SF) vs GM Conrad Holt (DAL) 1-0 Article
Semifinals: GM Wesley So (STL) vs GM Julio Becerra (MIA) 1-0 Article
Championship: GM Wesley So (STL) vs GM Conrad Holt (DAL) 1-0 Article
Wildcard #1: GM Niclas Huschenbeth (BAL) vs GM Julio Becerra (MIA) 1/2-1/2 Article
Wildcard #4: GM Anton Kovalyov (RIO) vs GM Gata Kamsky (NY) 0-1 Article
Eliminated:
15th Place (38 Points): GM Mackenzie Molner (ARZ) vs GM Eugene Perelshteyn (BOS) 1-0 Article Elimination Article
16th Place (36 Points): IM Jeffery Xiong (DAL) vs GM Varuzhan Akobian (STL) 0-1 Article Elimination Article
17th Place (36 Points): GM Pascal Charbonneau (NY) vs IM Jeffery Xiong (DAL) 0-1 Article Elimination Article
18th Place (32 Points): GM Pascal Charbonneau (NY) vs GM Conrad Holt (DAL) 0-1 Article Elimination Article
19th Place (20 Points): IM Georgi Orlov (SEA) vs GM Alex Stripunsky (NJ) 1-0 Article Elimination Article
20th Place (19 Points): IM Kassa Korley (CAR) vs GM Julio Becerra (MIA) 0-1 Article Elimination Article