Wednesday, August 28, 2013

2014 Candidates Qualifiers (post-World Cup)

Vladimir Kramnik and Dmitry Andreikin have reached the finals of the World Cup, so the Candidates qualification picture has firmed up a lot. Here's where things stand:

1: Anand/Carlsen loser
2: Kramnik
3: Andreikin
4: Topalov
5: One of (Mamadyarov, Grischuk, Caruana)
6: Aronian
7: Karjakin
8: ? (see list below)

The Organizer nominee (slot 8) must have had a 2725 rating on the July, 2013 list, and not have qualified in another manner. That leaves the following eligible players (The Grand Prix runner-up would be removed from the list), listed in ratings order:

Caruana, Grischuk, Nakamura, Gelfand, Kamsky, Mamedyarov, Dominguez Perez, Ponomariov, Wang, Svidler, Adams, Leko, Morozevich, Giri, Vitugov, Ivanchuk, Radjabov.

Thursday, August 22, 2013

2014 Candidates Qualification

In my prior post, it seems I had the Candidates qualification priority a bit backwards. According to the regulations posted on FIDE's website, this is the priority for Candidates qualification:

1: Anand/Carlsen loser.
2, 3: World Cup Finalists
4, 5: Top two from Grand Prix
6, 7: Top two on the ratings list (average of Aug/2012 through July/2013, must have played in Grand Prix or World Cup to be considered)
8: Organizer nomination. (Must be rated at least 2725 in the July/2013 ratings list.)

So, we're currently looking at the following situation:

1: Anand/Carlsen loser
2: One of (Tomashevsky, Kamsky, Vachier-Lagrave, Caruana, Kramnik, Korobov, Andreikin, Svidler)
3: One of (Tomashevsky, Kamsky, Vachier-Lagrave, Caruana, Kramnik, Korobov, Andreikin, Svidler)
4: Topalov
5: One of (Mamadyarov, Grischuk, Caruana)
6: Aronian
7: Kramnik (next three qualifiers are, I believe, Karjakin, Caruana, then Nakamura)
8: ? (see list below)

If someone qualifies at a higher-priority level, an alternate is used for the lower-priority spot. So, as an example, if Kramnik makes the finals of the World Cup, he qualifies that way, and Karjakin would get spot #7.

Got it?

And, FWIW, the pool of possible organizer nominations is below. Remember if any of these players qualify for spots 2, 3, 5, or 7 above, they get removed from this list. Players already in the candidates (or the world champ) aren't listed. Players are listed in ratings order from the July 2013 ratings list.

Caruana, Grischuk, Karjakin, Nakamura, Gelfand, Kamsky, Mamedyarov, Dominguez Perez, Ponomariov, Wang, Svidler, Adams, Leko, Morozevich, Giri, Vitugov, Ivanchuk, Radjabov, Andreikin.

Tuesday, July 16, 2013

FIDE Grand Prix Standings - Post Beijing


Things have clarified significantly after Mamedyarov's clear win in Beijing. He and Topalov are the leaders in the clubhouse. Vasselin has clinched a birth in the Candidates tournament with his 410 points. He can't be caught and wins the Grand Prix series.

2nd place, and the other birth in the Candidates tourney, however, is still up for grabs. Mamedyarov is in the driver's seat having posted a 390 score. The only way he can be caught is if either Grischuk or Caruana can score a sole first in Paris. A two-way tie for first involving either player won't be enough, as that scores 155 points and Caruana needs 165 to tie, while Grischuk needs 160. Everyone else has been eliminated from qualification.

I'll be honest - with the time differences between Beijing and the west coast of the US, it was very hard for me to keep up with this tournament. It felt like an afterthought.

So, here's the current state of Candidates 2014 (March? Location?) qualification:

  1. Carlsen/Anand loser
  2. Topalov
  3. Grand Prix 2nd place
  4. World Cup winner
  5. World Cup 2nd place
  6. Top rated player not otherwise qualified*
  7. 2nd highest rated player not otherwise qualified*
  8. Organizer nomination
* = My understanding is to be considered for either of these spots, the player must have participated in the World Cup.

PlaceNameRatingLondonTashkentZugThessalonikiBeijingParisTotalMinMax
1Topalov2752140-17045100-410410410
2Mamedyarov27291408020-170-390390390
3Grischuk276390--85140x315315400
4Caruana2773-80100125-x305305395
5Morozevich2770x140752565-280280280
6Leko2737808080-100-260260260
7Karjakin2785-14050-65x255255375
8Hao272670140--30x240240380
9Ponomariov2734-5010085-x235235355
10Dominguez27253520-170-x225225375
11Nakamura277815-14060-x215215370
12Kamsky2746x107512510-210210210
13Gelfand273814030--30x200200340
14Kasimdzhanov268435802070--185185185
15Giri271115-50-65x130130285
16Svidler2749-50-45-x95105265
16Ivanchuk276955--1030x9595255
18Yue----65-6565235
19Adams272255-----555555
20Bacrot2788---25--252525
21Radjabov2788--20--x2040510

Notes:

  • Adams substituted for Svidler in London, and is unlikely to play for the remainder of the Grand Prix.
  • Yue substituted for Radjabov in Beijing. Unclear if Radjabov will play in Paris.
  • Ratings are from the December, 2012 list right before London.
  • '-' means the player either didn't play, or isn't scheduled to play, in that event.
  • 'x' means the player is scheduled to play in that event.
  • Min score is what that player would have if they finished solely in last place in all remaining GPs.
  • Max score is what that player would have if they finished solely in first place in all remaining GPs.

Monday, June 3, 2013

FIDE Grand Prix Standings, Post-Thessaloniki

The 4th round (of 6) in the FIDE Grand Prix series concluded today, with Leinier Dominguez Perez a clear winner with 8/11, half a point ahead of 2nd place finishers Gata Kamsky and Fabiano Caruana. Kamsky was leading going into the final round, but fell to Caruana while Dominguez beat Topalov in a R+P ending that initially looked drawn. This might be Dominguez' best result ever. Will have to track that down. His strong performance propelled him nearly to the top 10, as he's now just 6 ELO points behind Kamsky in 11th on the live list.

Standings are a bit complicated, as each player can participate in four tournaments, but only their best three finishes count. So, I'll add a couple columns to this table to indicate maximum and minimum possible scores.

The top two overall finishers qualify for the Candidates Tournament in 2014, along with the loser of the Carlsen/Anand match, top three finishers from the 2013 World Cup, and the top two rated players in the world that haven't otherwise qualified.

PlaceNameRatingLondonTashkentZugThessalonikiBerlinParisTotalMinMax
1Topalov2752140-17045x-355355480
2Caruana2773-80100125-x305305395
3Mamedyarov27291408020-x-240240410
3Morozevich2770x1407525x-240240385
5Ponomariov2734-5010085-x235235355
6Dominguez27253520-170-x225225375
7Nakamura277815-14060-x215215370
8Kamsky2746x1075125x-210210370
8Hao272670140--xx210220480
10Karjakin2785-14050-xx190200480
11Kasimdzhanov268435802070--185185185
12Leko2737808080-x-180180330
13Grischuk276390--85xx175185430
14Gelfand273814030--xx170180480
15Svidler2749-50-45-x95105265
16Giri271115-50-xx6575390
16Ivanchuk276955--10xx6575395
18Adams272255-----555555
19Bacrot2788---25--252525
20Radjabov2788--20-xx2040510

Notes:

  • Adams substituted for Svidler in London, and is unlikely to play for the remainder of the Grand Prix.
  • Ratings are from the December, 2012 list right before London.
  • '-' means the player either didn't play, or isn't scheduled to play, in that event.
  • 'x' means the player is scheduled to play in that event.
  • Min score is what that player would have if they finished solely in last place in all remaining GPs.
  • Max score is what that player would have if they finished solely in first place in all remaining GPs.

Tuesday, April 30, 2013

FIDE Grand Prix Standings, Post Zug

The 3rd round (of 6) in the FIDE Grand Prix series concluded today, with Vaselin Topalov a clear winner with 8/11, a full point and a half ahead of clear 2nd place finisher, Hikaru Nakamura. This is probably Topalov's best result since San Luis in 2005.

Standings are a bit complicated, as each player can participate in four tournaments, but only their best three finishes count. So, I'll add a couple columns to this table to indicate maximum and minimum possible scores.

The top two overall finishers qualify for the Candidates Tournament in 2014, along with the loser of the Carlsen/Anand match, top three finishers from the 2013 World Cup, and the top two rated players in the world that haven't otherwise qualified.

PlaceNameRatingLondonTashkentZugMadridBerlinParisTotalMinMax
1Topalov2752140-170xx-310320510
2Mamedyarov27291408020-x-240240410
3Morozevich2770x14075xx-215225480
4Hao272670140--xx210220480
5Karjakin2785-14050-xx190200480
6Leko2737808080-x-180180330
6Caruana2773-80100x-x180190440
8Gelfand273814030--xx170180480
9Nakamura277815-140x-x155165480
10Ponomariov2734-50100x-x150160440
11Kasimdjanov2684358020x--135135285
12Grischuk276390--xxx90110510
13Kamsky2746x1075xx-8595415
14Giri271115-50-xx6575390
15Adams272255-----555555
15Ivanchuk276955--xxx5575510
15Dominguez27253520-x-x5565375
18Svidler2749-50-x-x5070390
19Radjabov2788--20xxx2040510

Notes:

  • Adams substituted for Svidler in London, and is unlikely to play for the remainder of the Grand Prix.
  • Ratings are from the December, 2012 list right before London.
  • '-' means the player either didn't play, or isn't scheduled to play, in that event.
  • 'x' means the player is scheduled to play in that event.
  • Min score is what that player would have if they finished solely in last place in all remaining GPs.
  • Max score is what that player would have if they finished solely in first place in all remaining GPs.




Wednesday, February 27, 2013

Endgames

Yes, I know it's been a while since I posted. More on that in a bit.

In the meantime, here's some endgame rules to keep in mind. (B or F indicates whether the rule came from Ruben Fine or Pal Benko)

  1. Think about the endgame in the middlegame. (B) 
  2. Exchanges. Someone gets the better deal. (B) 
  3. The King is a strong piece. Use it. (F) 
  4. If you are a pawn or two ahead, exchange pieces. (F) 
  5. If you are behind, exchange pawns, not pieces. (F) 
  6. If you have an advantage, do not leave all the pawns on one side. (F) 
  7. A distant passed pawn is half the victory. (B) 
  8. Passed pawns should be avvanced as rapidly as possibly. (F) 
  9. Doubled, isolated, and blocakaded pawns are weak: Avoid them. (F) 
  10. The easiet endings to win are pure pawn endings. (F) 
  11. Passed pawns should be blockaded by the King, the piece that is not harmed by watching a pawn is a Knight. (F) 
  12. Two Bishops, vs. Bishop & Knight constitute a tangible advantage. (F) 
  13. Bishops are better than Knights in all except blocked pawn positions. (F) 
  14. Do not place your pawns on the color of your Bishop. (F) 
  15. The easiest endings to draw are those with bishops of oposite colors. (F) 
  16. Rooks belong behind passed pawns. (F) 
  17. A rook on the 7th rank is suffiecient compensation for a pawn. (F) 
  18. Not all rook endings are drawn. (B) 
  19. Perpetual check looms in all queen endings. (B) 
  20. Every move in the endgame is of the utmost importance because you are closer to the moment of truth. (B)
(h/t to Malbase on Chessforums.org)