The average rating was 2732, making it a Category 20 event. The time controls were 90 minutes for the first 40 moves, then 30 minutes to finish the game, with 30 seconds increment from move one.
The games were played on Oct. 16-22 with a free day on the 19th.
The top seed and oldest player, Russia’s Kramnik, dominated the tournament, scoring 3 wins and 3 draws. Seventeen-year-old Giri finished second, 1.5 points behind. Vachier Lagrave of France was third while Hungary’s Polgar was dead last, losing to Vlad and Anish.
Game of the week. According to ChessBase, which provides the annotations, Judit “had never won a classical tournament game against Kramnik, losing 10 times and achieving nine draws (her score against him in rapid play is even more disastrous). In this, their 20th, the Hungarian GM, strongest female player in history, at long last… no, wait a minute, that did not happen!”
As Leonard Barden noted, “The phenomenon of the difficult opponent against whom you have poor results which create a psychological mountain is well known to many chess players…. All-time best woman Judit Polgar’s…most difficult opponent has been Kramnik…. [But] Kramnik’s last win was six years ago, so Polgar fans hoped she could end the hoodoo.”
White: V. Kramnik (2791)
Black: J. Polgar (2701)
Queen’s Indian Defense
Hoogeveen 2011
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 b6 4.e3 Bb7 5.Nc3 Bb4 6.Bd3 c5 7.0-0 0-0 8.Na4 cxd4 9.exd4 Re8 10.a3 Bf8 11.Re1 d6 12.Nc3 This is following a recent game: Potkin,V (2653)-Bologan,V (2671)/Olginka 2011. 12.Bf4 Nbd7 13.Rc1 g6 14.h3 e5 15.dxe5 dxe5 16.Nxe5 Nh5 17.Bf1 Nxf4 18.Qxd7 Qxd7 19.Nxd7 Rxe1 20.Rxe1 Bc6 21.Nxf8 Bxa4 22.g3 Nh5 23.Nxh7 Kxh7 24.Re7 Be8 25.Bg2 Rd8 26.Bd5 Kg7 27.Rxa7 Nf6 28.Ra8 Rd6 29.Bf3 Rd3 30.Kg2 Rxf3 31.Rxe8 Rb3 32.Re2 Nd7 33.a4 Nc5 34.a5 bxa5 35.Re5 Nd3 36.Rxa5 Rxb2 37.Kf3 Nxf2 38.h4 f5 39.h5 Ng4 40.Kf4 Kh6 0-1. 12…Nbd7 13.b4 Rc8 14.Bb2 Qc7 15.d5 e5 16.Nd2 g6 17.Bf1N Kramnik deviates from theory. Qd8 18.Qa4 a6 19.Nce4 Nxe4 20.Nxe4 Rc7 21.f4 b5? Judit, who was probably getting a little nervous with the position, decided to sacrifice a pawn…instead of the very sane 21…exf4. Kramnik said he did not know what he would have done after this move: 22.Qxd7 (or 22.Nf6+ Nxf6 23.Bxf6 Qxf6 24.Qxe8∞) 22…Rxd7 23.Nf6+ Qxf6 24.Bxf6∞ These are probably the lines Judit was afraid of. 22.cxb5 Bxd5 23.bxa6 Qb8 24.Kh1 exf4 25.b5 h6 26.Rad1 Ba8 27.Qd4 Re5 28.Nxd6 Precision play by Kramnik, who has a winning position. Rcc5 29.Rxe5 Rxe5 30.Nc4 Bc5 31.Qxd7 Re8 and it is mate in 45! 1–0.
Puzzler.
White: Ka5, Nb5, Qc1, Bd3, pawn on d4
Black: Kd5, Ne5, pawns on a6 and f3
White to play and mate in three moves.
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