Round 5: Midway Reflections

After five rounds it really is too early for nostalgia. But, halfway through the tournament, this feels like a good moment to take stock and answer some of the many questions and comments we've received since moving the tournament from HZ University of Applied Sciences to Scheldemond College.

First and foremost: we are incredibly grateful to Scheldemond College for daring to welcome such a large group of chess players into their building. Although we mind-sports enthusiasts aren't exactly known for smashing things to pieces, we do have our... peculiarities—and I won't mention names or examples; you all know who you are. Their trust meant a great deal, because the future of the tournament really was hanging by a thread.

Is the playing hall less attractive?

Well, it's a sports hall. Neither particularly beautiful nor ugly. But anyone who wishes may compare it with the endless list of unavailable venues.

Is the playing hall a bit smaller?

Yes. That's why we accepted fewer participants this year.

Is it warmer in the playing hall?

No. The HZ Atrium could also become quite hot during sunny periods because of its large glass façade.

The Chess Café

Does the Chess Café still exist?

Absolutely—and it's much bigger than before! There are plenty of boards, sets and clocks available, so everyone can analyse games or enjoy blitz chess to their heart's content.

Where is the Zeeland grandmaster?

A fair question. Our local star, GM Koen Leenhouts, is missing from this year's field because of moving-house obligations, something we're genuinely sorry about. Especially since it recently became apparent that Koen is currently going through a difficult period as a chess player.

Like a blues singer producing his finest songs alone in a hotel room after his manager has run off with his money, his wife and his mistress, blog author Koen also writes his very best pieces whenever life over the chessboard isn't going quite his way.

Hopefully he'll be back next year—even if only in top form.

Koen Leenhouts disguised as an incognito tourist at Scheldemond College

OK, time to look at today's games. Then again, a longer introduction isn't such a bad thing today, because it compensates somewhat for the non-event on board one. GM Raunak Sadhwani wasn't entirely happy with the position he obtained from the opening and offered a draw after only 15 moves. GM Slava Ikonnikov immediately accepted the outstretched hand. An easy draw with Black against the tournament's top seed is, in his book, an excellent way to spend a Tuesday evening.

Since the other top boards continued for quite some time, it's worth mentioning a bit of girl power during the prize ceremony at the start of the evening. Every round, sponsor Thinkers Publishing awards two chess books, and this time both prizes went to young ladies. Jinchen Zhang won the junior prize as the youngest round winner, while Lara de Boer received the "David versus Goliath" award for defeating the opponent with the biggest rating advantage.

Jinchen collecting her prize

Back to the top boards.

On board three, GM Daniel Fernandez, the 2024 tournament winner, capitalized on a serious blunder by GM Daniel Hausrath.

Hausrath - Fernandez, after 24. d4

After 24.d4??, Hausrath probably expected Black's knight to retreat. Instead came 24...Nxe4 25.Nxe4 Rxb4!, and the bold knight calmly remained on e5. Had White continued with 26.dxe5, then Rxe4 would have led to an easily winning rook ending for Black. Hausrath instead tried to muddy the waters, but things only went downhill faster:

26.Nc5 Rxd4 27.Rb3 b5 28.Rxb5

Hausrath - Fernandez, after 28. Rxb5

The tactical shot 28...cxb5 29.Ne6+ Kb6 30.Nxd4 Rd8 was already excellent for Black, but after the played 28...Nf3+, the German grandmaster must have thought something along the lines of, "Ach du je, das auch noch!” Following 29.Kg2 cxb5, the rook on d4 was safely protected, and Hausrath had seen enough.

Neininger - L'Ami

The game on board four between surprise package Sarah Neininger and GM Erwin l'Ami also came to an abrupt end.

Neininger - L'Ami, after black's 27th move

Although 28.f4 would still have left Black with a very pleasant position, Neininger's 28.Qh2? was met by Qe5!, after which she resigned immediately. I'm not sure whether she noticed that 29.Qh7+ Kf8 30.Qh6+ Bg7 31.Qc1 just barely avoids mate or losing material, but the resulting position after 31...Qxg3 is certainly not one anyone would voluntarily continue.

De Boer - Warmerdam, after white's 16th move

If anyone doesn't shy away from a healthy dose of self-inflicted suffering, it's IM Eelke de Boer.

Against GM Max Warmerdam on board two, Eelke sacrificed a pawn in the opening. The compensation was obvious: both bishops were eyeing White's queenside, while White's bishop on f1 and rook on h1 were still doing absolutely nothing on their starting squares.

Had Eelke continued increasing the pressure immediately with moves such as 16...a5 or 16...Ba3, the position would have remained roughly balanced. Instead, after 16...Rd7, Max gradually untangled his pieces:

17.Bc4 Bd5 18.Bxd5 Rxd5 19.Rc7 Rbd8 20.Rxe7

De Boer - Warmerdam, after 20. Rxe7

Now 20...Rxd2 21.Re8+ Rxe8 22.Kxd2 would have led to a rook ending that White should win without too much difficulty. Eelke therefore chose 20...Kf8 21.Rxe7 Rxd2, fighting on stubbornly for a very long time despite being two pawns down, but the ending never really offered him any saving chances.

Chanda - De Jong, after black's 24th move

Those looking for fireworks found them on board five.

Indian GM Sandipan Chanda was clearly in an adventurous mood and surprised IM Migchiel de Jong with the spectacular sequence:

25.Bxh7+ Kxh7 26.Rxf7 Kg8 27.Rxf6 Ng7

Chanda - De Jong, after 28. ... Ng7

White was now down an exchange, but the attack was far from over. After

29.Qf7+ Kh7 30.Nd7 Kh8 31.Be5 Rxe5 32.Nxe5

the material balance had more or less been restored, while Black's king was still under severe pressure. Migchiel managed to prolong the struggle for quite some time, but never received a real opportunity to save the game.

Joey Grochal back among the chasing pack.

Good news for the local supporters: Zeeland's great hope, FM Joey Grochal, has now fully recovered from his setback in round two. He scored another convincing victory today, bringing his score to 4 out of 5. Tomorrow he'll take his place on one of the top boards, hoping to further enhance his status as the highest-rated player from Zeeland.

Wednesday, 18:30 – Round 6

Top pairings:

• Fernandez – Warmerdam
• l'Ami – Sadhwani
• Ikonnikov – Chanda
• Hausrath – Beukema
• De Boer – Muis
• Grochal – Sparenberg

Report: René Tiggelman
Photos: Tina Rouwendal