CHESS.

Otago Witness, Issue 3994, 30 September 1930, Page 71

CHESS.

Conducted by

L. D. COOMBS.

Solutions of problems, original compositions, panics, and analyses invited for tills column. All correspondence should bo addressed to the (Chess Editor, Otago Witness Ofllcc. Dunedin.

PROBLEM No. 411. By O. Balk (Dunedin). .Black (Six Pieces).

White (Nine Pieces)'. ?K2Bl|B|2PKt 1 k kt P | 4 Kt p 2 sqlkt|3Q4|3B4|2bß4. White to play and mate in two moves.

PROBLEM No. 412. By Sam Lloyd. Black (Five Pieces).

White ’(Four Pieces). EKtlk|sPpp|B|B|2Q3pl I 8 | 8 | b 6 K. This problem is an old favourite. We are publishing it by request. SOLUTIONS TO PROBLEMS. No. 407 (Cheney).—K to Kt 7. Solution received from E. A. Le Petit (Invercargill) and A. O. Gray (Christchurch). Problem No. 408 (Harder). — 1. Q to R 4 R to Q 5 2. Q to K 8, etc. If 1. . .B to Q 5; .21 Q to B 2, etc. If 1. . .Kt to Q 5 or Q 3 ; 2. R to Kt 4, etc. Solution received from E. A. Le Petit. < END GAME No. 111. By H. Mattison. • . • . Black (Three Pieces).

White (Three Pieces). Kt2k4|p7|B|B | 4 K 3 | 8 | P 7 | 6 b 1.

White to play and draw.

SOLUTION TO END GAME No. 109 (Saavedra.) 1. P to B 7 R to Q 3, ch 2. K to Kt 5 R to Q 5, ch 3. K to Kt 4 R to Q 5, ch 4. K to B 3 R to Q 8 5. K to B 2 R to Q 5 6. P to B 8 becomes R (not Q, because of 6. . ,R to B 5, ch ; 7. Q takes R, stalemate) and wins. F. K. Kelling (Wellington) writes:—“The end game that you publish this week, No. 109, by the Rev. Saavedra, Is, as you say, an ‘ old friend.’ If I had not known the solution 1 could never have solved another end game that is built around it—viz., your No. 57, by Platoff Bros., which, strangely enough, you published exactly a year ago.” GAMES. A lively game played in the masters’ tournament at Scarborough :— (Alekhine’s Defence.) White. Black. M. Sultan Khan. E. Colle. 1. P to K 4 Kt to K B 3 2. P to K 5 Kt to Q 4 r 3. P to Q B 4 Kt to Kt 3 4. P to Q 4 P to Q 3 5. P takes P BP takes P 6. B to K 2 (a) P to Kt 3 7. Kt to Q B 3 B to Kt 2 8. B to K 3 Castles 9. P to K R 4 (b) P to K R 4 10. Kt to R 3 (c) Kt to B 3 11. Kt to K Kt 5 P to Q 4 12. P to B 5 Kt to B 5 13. B to B 3 Kt takes B 14. P takes Kt P to K 4 15. B takes Q P P takes P 16. Castles (d) P takes Kt . ’ 17. QtoKt 3 . ..’ Kt to K 4 (e) 18. B takes P, ch K to R so 19. P takes P (f) Q to K 2 20. B to Q 5 B to B 3 21. Q to Kt 4 Kt to Kt 5 (g) 22. B to K 4 P to R 4 23. Q to Kt 3 B takes Kt 24. P takes B B to B 4 25. B takes B Q takes P, ch . 26. K to R sq ' - P takes B ' 27. R to B 3 - Q takes Kt P (h) 28. K to Kt sq Q to K 2

29. Q to Kt 5 Q R to B sq 30. Q takes R P Q takes P, ch 31. Q takes Q R takes Q Black won (i)

(a) Good alternatives here are 6.. B to K 3 (followed, if P to Kt 3*by Q to Q 2) and 6. P to Q 5. (b) Premature, but it has to be met with care.

(c) Played instead of Kt to B 3 in order to retain the possibility of a sacrifice by B takes P.

(d) White had already the inferior game, and the complications resulting from the text move perhaps gave him his best chance. (e) If, instead, P takes P, then Q R to Q sq. (f) Although White, after 19. B takes P, B to B 3; 20. B takes P, B takes Kt, has several Pawns for the piece, they are so badly placed that he has the inferior game. (g) Threatening to win by Q to K 4. (h) Q to K 4 would have won at once. (i) White resigned after about a dozen more moves.

At the Hamburg Congress the world’s champion played for France in about half their matches, and won all his games. The following is one of them :— (French Defence.) White. Black. Hovind (Norway). Dr Alekhine (France). 1. P to Q 4 p to K 3 2. P to K 4 P to Q 4 3. P takes P p takes P 4. B to Q 3 B to Q 3 5. Kt to K B 3 B to Kt 5 6. B to K 3 Kt to K 2 (a) 7. P to B 3 Q Kt to B 3 8. Castles Q to Q 2 9. Q Kt to Q 2 p to K R 4 10. R to K sq (b) p to B 3 11. P to Q R 4 p to R 5 12. B to B sq p to K Kt 4 13. P to Kt 4 B to K B 4 14. Kt takes Kt P ( c ) P takes Kt 15. B takes P Castles (Q R) 16. P to R 5 Q R to Kt sq 17. P to K B 4 Kt to Kt 3 18. P to Kt 5 Kt takes B P (d) 19. P takes Kt Kt to R 6, ch 20. P takes Kt R takes B, ch 21. K to R sq Q to Kt 2 22. Kt to B 3 R to Kt sq (e) 23. B to R 6 (f) R to Kt 7 24. R to K 2 B to K 5 Resigns (a) Niemzowitsch’s asymmetric treatment of the Exchange Variation. To Kt to K B 3 Black replies with Kt to K 2, and to Kt to K 2 with Kt to K B 3. (b) Too slow. P to B 4 should have been played. If, in reply, P takes t£en Kt takes P, or if, instead, Kt to Kt 5, then B to K 2. (c) A heroic measure which, however, fails to hold up the attack. (d) Black finishes in fine style. (e) If now Kt takes R, then Q takes Kt. and mate is inevitable. (f) With the faint hope that Black might play P takes B, to. which he would reply with Q to Kt 3. .

OTAGO CHESS CLUB TOURNAMENTS. The following lists show the number of games played and won by the leading competitors. Other players who are behindhand with their games may still possibly make better scores than these shown.

SENIOR CHAMPIONSHIP. (Eleven Competitors.) Games Played. Won. Morris, J . . 7 4 M’Dermid, R . 6 3J Watt, R "8 4 Balk, 0 6 * 4 Coombs, L. D 5 5 JUNIOR CHAMPIONSHIP. (Twelve Competitors.) Games Played. Won. Penrose, J. .. .. .. .. 9 5 Herbert, W . 8 5 M’Lean, A 6 6 M'Dermott, R. ..... . 5 .3 M’Lean. R .. 5 5 ‘Lawson, C. .. .. .. 4 3 : HANDICAP TOURNAMENT. (Twenty-one Competitors.) Games Played. Won. Herbert, W. 16 5 Hastings, D. H 14 5J Penrose, J. ...... 14 7 J M’Lean, A. 14 12 White, A. H 14 10 Watt, R 13 5 Morris, J 13 10 Ahern, C 12 5 Wright, G , ... 11 7 Merrington. Dr .. .... 7 4 J Grigg. L. D 10 5J Coombs, L. D. . 9 6 M’Dermott, R. . . ... .. 9 6 Lawson, C. ........ 7 4 PIHL TROPHY HANDICAP. (Twenty-three Competitors.) Games Played. Won. Morris, J .. .. 15 11 Penrose, J. ...... 14 7 Lawson, C. 12 11 Watt, R 9 6J Ward, A. E 9 8 Merrington, Dr 7 4J Lawson, J. 6 5 Coombs, L. D .. 7 5 Wright, G. D 4 3J

NOTES. Southland Chess Club.—By the generosity and courtesy of the directors of the Southland Building Society in granting the use of their board room at a nominal rental to the Southland Chess Club, that club will now be enabled to carry on without closing down for the summer months, as was at one time anticipated. Canterbury v. Wellington.—At the end of the second evening’s play in this telegraphic match Wellington had eight wins and Canterbury three. The remaining nine unfinished games were left to the Otago adjudicators for their decision.

Rotorua Congress.—ln order to assist the Rotorua Chess Club with their expenses with their Christmas Congress it is proposed that each of the larger New Zealand Clubs will donate £3, and the smaller clubs £l. This will work out at approximately Is per club member. OTAGO v. OAMARU IN 1895. By O. Balk.

The recent match between the Otago and Oamaru Chess Clubs recalls matches played in the mid-’nineties, when these two clubs met half-way, at Palmerston. ■ In those days the Oamaru Club was very strong, and in a big match played by telegraph on November 9, 16, and 23, 1895, with 15 players a side, it lost the match only by two games. Oamaru was represented by Clayton, Banks. Francis, Bolton, King, Street, Lee, Gould, Crump, Burns, Kettlewell, Macdonald, Earl, Garland, and Davis.

That the Dunedin team was a representative side can be seen by the names of the players, as follows: —Cleland, Mouat, Mellor, Balk, Friedlander, Lyders, Heinemann, M’Donald, Warsaw, Dawe, Dodson, Moody. Colclough, Hamel, and Irwin. It is interesting to note that of these 15 Otago men Who “’held the fort ” 35 years ago Messrs Mellor, Balk, Friedlander, Lyders, Warsaw, Dawe. Moody, and Hamel, are still alive, and of these Messrs Balk, Moody, and Hamel are still members of the Otago Club. Mellor has been in England for many years.

and holds a distinguished professorship there. Friedlander went from here to Japan, and afterwards settled in New York. Three other players who took part in an earlier match are still with us—viz., Messrs Hastings, Throp, and H. J. Cleland. It seems that the mental effort required for the royal game does not tend to shorten life.