Hastings

[Alex Holowczak]

Dave,

The video seems to stop after 1:24. returning to 1:22 when you try to go forward. Is there a problem?

Works fine for me. The rest of the video is just Howell turning up late, faffing about with his coat, adjusting his pieces, before finally moving.

[Leonard Barden]

young Williams has played the birds again once is a suprise twice is crazy as i think the birds can be suspect with best play if its been looked up on the database.

Today is actually his fourth White and his fourth 1 f4.......At least today he's acquiring some experience of Caro-Kann type positions.

[Ian Lamb]

thanks for the video link Dave

[John Moore]

Bob Eames has gone berserk - he has forgotten about the bishop on a5 which moves smoothly back to c7 - and White is lost

[John Saunders]

Yes, I think you're right about Bob Eames, John. Fritz reckoned he should have played 20 Bc4! when he might have had a big advantage but this looks hopeless.

Incidentally, I've put up the games played so far in a viewable window at http://www.saund.co.uk/britbase/200910hastings.html - and given the BCM website a bit of a spring clean (http://www.bcmchess.co.uk/index.html).

[John Saunders]

Looks like Peter Williams could be vulnerable to a Nxe5 cheapo here. Pity. Today's results lack "romance" (I just heard a TV football pundit make the same comment about this afternoon's 3rd round of the FA Cup).

[Ian Lamb]

well the birds was shown how sound it is buy defeat in 28 moves for young williams ! never play suspect openings twice in an event!!!

[IM Jack Rudd]

well the birds was shown how sound it is buy defeat in 28 moves for young williams ! never play suspect openings twice in a event!!!

What a magnificent piece of logic. Applying the same principle, the 1972 World Championship match proved the Najdorf Sicilian to be unsound.

[Ian Lamb]

there was no datebases Jack then which there are now!

[benedgell]

I dare say the 380 point rating difference probably affected the result rather more then the opening choice. I remember Tom Rendle had the better of a draw with a GM who's name I can't recall at the British a few years back with 1.f4. Having said all that I do think an opponent who prepares well can get a decent game against it, so it's probably best used as a surprise weapon.

[benedgell]

On a slightly different note, it's a bit worrying how quickly some of the games on the top boards have finished drawn so far in this tournament. I hope we see some fighting chess in the last rounds, and not quick draws to secure the prizes. I imagine if Howell is up there near the end we'll see some fully played out games.

[IM Jack Rudd]

I dare say the 380 point rating difference probably affected the result rather more then the opening choice. I remember Tom Rendle had the better of a draw with a GM who's name I can't recall at the British a few years back with 1.f4.

Peter Wells, I think.

[Mark Howitt]

I don't think 1f4 is best move in the world but white looked fine out of the opening. After 6.h3 he's got a slight edge at least. And 17 Qxd4 again looks to me decent enough to give a slight edge with little losing risk.

[Jonathan Bryant]

... David's clock handling linked with being 15-20 minutes late for most rounds is obviously a problem that needs to be addressed if he is to move to the next level ....

Peter Wells is another who (judging by the last couple of years at the Staunton Memorial) often combines arriving late with getting into v. bad time trouble.

I wonder if there's some kind of mental process at work here that means you're more likely to see both of these things together for some people rather than the apparently more logical approach of somebody who knows that they're prone to time trouble making double sure they get to use every minute they have.

That said, Sokolov was even more likely to be late arriving at Simpsons than both Howell and Wells and I don't recall him ever getting into time trouble.

[benedgell]

Is Keith Arkell actually losing a dull ending? Can't imagine I'll be saying that again this decade