Games from the US Senior Championship

[samsloan]

[Event "US Senior Championship"]
[Site "Tarrytown New York USA"]
[Date "2013.05.31"]
[Round "01"]
[White "Sloan, Sam"]
[Black "Videtti, Nicholas"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A00"]
[WhiteElo "1909"]
[BlackElo "1615"]

1.g4 d5 2.Bg2 e6 3.Nc3 Nc6 4.d3 Bb4 5.Bd2 b6 6.h3 Bb7 7.e4 d4 8.Nce2
Bxd2+ 9.Qxd2 e5 10.O-O-O Qd6 11.f4 f6 12.Nf3 O-O-O 13.Rdf1 Nge7
14.fxe5 Nxe5 15.Nexd4 Nxf3 16.Nxf3 Bxe4 17.dxe4 Qe5 18.Qc3 Qxe4 19.Re1
Qf4+ 20.Kb1 Nd5 21.Qa3 Kb8 22.Rhf1 Rhe8 23.Nh4
Rxe1+ 24.Rxe1 Qf2 25.Rd1 Nc3+ 26.bxc3 Rxd1+ 27.Kb2 c6 28.Qf8+ Kc7
29.Qxg7+ Rd7 30.Qh6 Qc5 31.Qf4+ Kb7 32.Nf5 a5 33.Nd4 Rd6 34.Qe4 1-0

[Event "US Senior Championship"]
[Site "Tarrytown New York USA"]
[Date "2013.05.31"]
[Round "02"]
[White "Rizzitano, James"]
[Black "Sloan, Sam"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E76"]
[WhiteElo "2424"]
[BlackElo "1909"]

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.f4 O-O 6.Nf3 c5 7.d5 e6 8.dxe6
fxe6 9.Bd3 Nc6 10.O-O a6 11.Kh1 Rb8 12.a4 Qa5 13.Ra3 Nh5 14.f5 exf5
15.exf5 Ne5 16.Nxe5 Bxe5 17.fxg6 Rxf1+ 18.Qxf1 hxg6 19.Bxg6 Nf6 20.Bf4
Kg7 21.Bxe5 dxe5 22.Nd5 Qd8 23.Rg3 Bg4 24.Rxg4 Nxg4 25.Qf7+ Kh6
26.Qh7+ Kg5 27.Qh5# 1-0

[Event "US Senior Championship"]
[Site "Tarrytown New York USA"]
[Date "2013.05.31"]
[Round "03"]
[White "Sloan, Sam"]
[Black "Gertler, David"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A00"]
[WhiteElo "1909"]
[BlackElo "2259"]

1.g4 d5 2.Bg2 c6 3.h3 e5 4.d3 Bd6 5.Nc3 Ne7 6.e4 Bb4 7.Bd2 d4 8.Nce2
Bxd2+ 9.Qxd2 Ng6 10.f4 exf4 11.Nf3 Nh4 12.Nexd4 c5 13.Nb3 c4 14.Nbd4
cxd3 15.cxd3 O-O 16.O-O-O Be6 17.Kb1 Nxg2 18.Qxg2 Qb6 19.Qd2 Na6
20.Qxf4 Bxa2+ 21.Kxa2 Nb4+ 22.Kb1 Qa6 23.Nc2 Qa2+
24.Kc1 Rac8 25.Nfe1 Rc6 26.Kd2 Qxb2 27.Rc1 Rfc8 28.Ke2 Nxc2 29.Nxc2
Rxc2+ 30.Kf3 Rxc1 31.Rxc1 Qxc1 0-1

[Event "US Senior Championship"]
[Site "Tarrytown New York USA"]
[Date "2013.05.31"]
[Round "04"]
[White "Krostosky, Jeffrey"]
[Black "Sloan, Sam"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D00"]
[WhiteElo "1200"]
[BlackElo "1909"]

1.d4 d5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Bf4 e6 4.Nc3 c5 5.e3 a6 6.Ne5 Be7 7.Be2 O-O 8.Nb1
Qb6 9.b3 Nc6 10.a3 cxd4 11.Nxc6 Qxc6 12.exd4 Bd7 13.O-O Rfc8 14.c3 Ne4
15.c4 Bf6 16.c5 Nxc5 17.Be5 Ne4 18.f3 Bxe5 19.dxe5 Qb6+ 20.Kh1 Nf2+
21.Rxf2 Qxf2 22.Nd2 Qe3 23.Nf1 Qxe5 24.Ra2 Rc7
25.Qd2 Rac8 26.f4 Qf6 27.g3 Rc1 28.Kg2 Bb5 29.Bxb5 axb5 30.Ne3 Qc3
31.Nd1 Qxb3 32.Rb2 Qxd1 33.Qxd1 Rxd1 34.Rxb5 Rd2+ 35.Kh3 Rcc2 36.Ra5
f5 37.Ra8+ Kf7 38.g4 Rd3+ 39.Kh4 Rxh2+ 40.Kg5 h6# 0-1

[Event "US Senior Championship"]
[Site "Tarrytown New York USA"]
[Date "2013.06.01"]
[Round "05"]
[White "Solonkovitch, Ilya"]
[Black "Sloan, Sam"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "B38"]
[WhiteElo "2166"]
[BlackElo "1909"]

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.Nf3 O-O 6.Be2 c5 7.O-O cxd4
8.Nxd4 Nc6 9.Be3 a6 10.Kh1 Bd7 11.f3 Rc8 12.Rc1 Qa5 13.Qd2 Rfd8
14.Rfd1 Re8 15.Bf1 Ne5 16.b3 Nc6 17.Qf2 Nxd4 18.Bxd4 Qc7 19.Bxf6 exf6
20.Nd5 Qc6 21.Qh4 Re6 22.Rc2 Rce8 23.Rcd2 g5 24.Qf2 h5
25.Ne3 Bf8 26.Nf5 Qc7 27.c5 Bb5 28.Bxb5 axb5 29.cxd6 Qd7 30.Rd5 Ra8
31.R1d2 Ra6 32.Qf1 b4 33.h3 Re5 34.Qc4 Rc6 35.Qxb4 Rc1+ 36.Kh2 Qc6
37.Qd4 Rxd5 38.Qxd5 Qb6 39.Qd4 Qd8 40.b4 Kh7 41.a4 Kg6 42.a5 h4 43.Qd5
Rb1 44.Qxb7 Qe8 45.Ne7+ Kg7 46.Qc6 Qb8 47.Qb6 Qe8
48.Nf5+ Kg6 49.Qd4 Qb8 50.e5 Rxb4 51.Qd3 fxe5 52.Ne7+ Kg7 53.Nc6 Qb7
54.Nxb4 Qxb4 55.d7 Qf4+ 56.Kh1 Qg3 57.Rd1 g4 58.fxg4 Be7 59.Qxg3 hxg3
60.d8=Q 1-0

[Event "US Senior Championship"]
[Site "Tarrytown New York USA"]
[Date "2013.06.02"]
[Round "06"]
[White "Sloan, Sam"]
[Black "Westing, Edward"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A00"]
[WhiteElo "1909"]
[BlackElo "1603"]

1.g4 d5 2.Bg2 Bxg4 3.c4 c6 4.cxd5 Bd7 5.Qb3 Qc7 6.Nc3 Nf6 7.d3 e6 8.e4
exd5 9.exd5 Bf5 10.d4 Qb6 11.Nge2 Qxb3 12.axb3 Bb4 13.O-O O-O 14.Bg5
Bxc3 15.bxc3 Nxd5 16.c4 Nf6 17.Bxf6 gxf6 18.Ng3 Be6 19.Nh5 Nd7 20.Nf4
Nb6 21.Rfe1 Rfe8 22.Nh5 Red8 23.Nxf6+ Kg7
24.Nh5+ Kf8 25.Nf4 Bf5 26.c5 Nd5 27.Nxd5 cxd5 28.Re5 Be6 29.f4 Re8
30.Rae1 Bd7 31.Bxd5 Bc6 32.Bxc6 bxc6 33.Rxe8+ Rxe8 34.Rxe8+ Kxe8
35.Kf2 Ke7 36.Ke3 Ke6 37.Ke4 f5+ 38.Ke3 Kd5 39.Kd3 a5 40.Ke3 Ke6
41.Kd2 Kd5 42.Kd3 h6 43.h4 h5 44.Ke3 Ke6 45.Kd2 Kd5 46.Kd3
Ke6 47.Kc4 Kd7 48.d5 cxd5+ 49.Kxd5 1-0

[samsloan]

I will use as an example the problem of computer cheating a game I
played last weekend at the US Senior Championship against USCF Rated
Master David Gertler.

[Event "US Senior Championship"]
[Site "Tarrytown New York USA"]
[Date "2013.05.31"]
[Round "03"]
[White "Sloan, Sam"]
[Black "Gertler, David"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A00"]
[WhiteElo "1909"]
[BlackElo "2259"]

1.g4 d5 2.Bg2 c6 3.h3 e5 4.d3 Bd6 5.Nc3 Ne7 6.e4 Bb4 7.Bd2 d4 8.Nce2
Bxd2+ 9.Qxd2 Ng6 10.f4 exf4 11.Nf3 Nh4 12.Nexd4 c5 13.Nb3 c4 14.Nbd4
cxd3 15.cxd3 O-O 16.O-O-O Be6 17.Kb1 Nxg2 18.Qxg2 Qb6 19.Qd2 Na6
20.Qxf4 Bxa2+ 21.Kxa2 Nb4+ 22.Kb1 Qa6 23.Nc2 Qa2+ 24.Kc1 Rac8 25.Nfe1
Rc6 26.Kd2 Qxb2 27.Rc1 Rfc8 28.Ke2 Nxc2 29.Nxc2 Rxc2+ 30.Kf3 Rxc1
31.Rxc1 Qxc1 0-1

In this game I played the winning move 1.g4 so I got a good game and
soon won a pawn.

Gertler realized that he was in trouble and that if he played
routinely he was lost so instead he played a speculative sacrifice of
a bishop, which he admitted that he had not been able to analyze
thoroughly.

I had to take the bishop or otherwise be lost. Now the question was
how to defend.

Had I been a computer cheater, I could have run to the toilet, pull
out my pocket Fritz and it would have told me that the move 23. Rh2
holds the piece, defends against all mates and wins the game.

However, as a human, I could never have been able to see that 23. Rh2
is a good defense. It looks like all Gertler has to do is put one of
his rooks on c8, preventing the escape of the king, and then move in
with his queen and knight to administer checkmate.

It looks like an easy mate but in fact there is no mate there. The
attack fizzles and White wins.

My point is that the cheater does not need to have Fritz, Rybka or
Houdini tell him every move. In this case all he would have needed was
just one move, 23. Rh2 to win. Many games are like that, where just
one mistake or one good move decides the game.

Sam Sloan