The exhibition match was sponsored by business consultant Jeff Smith who loves the Sicilian. He raised the prize fund of $16,000 for the following game order: 1) Sveshnikov, 2) Dragon, 3) Najdorf, and 4) Scheveningen. The classical time control of 90min/40 moves was used, and both players were required to make no draw offer before move 40. None was offered. All the games were sharp and White won all of them. In a blitz tiebreaker, White won the first two games, but Polgar won the third as Black to clinch victory.
Now everyone knows who Judit is, but her opponent is no pushover either.
Born on Oct. 11, 1959 in Berdychiv, in the then-Soviet republic of Ukraine, Kaidanov topped the Russia’s boys under-14 championship and became a grandmaster in 1988. Three years later, he moved to Lexington, Kentucky in 1991, with his two children and wife. In 1992, he won the 1992 World Open and the U.S. Open.
As of April 2007, his Elo rating was 2587, making him the no. 9 player in the U.S. His peak rating was 2646 in 2002. He is now the head coach of the www.uschessschool.com and is one of the most active grandmaster teachers in the United States.
Game of the week. IM Jack Peters annotates.
White: GM Judit Polgar (2687)
Black: GM Gregory Kaidanov (2583)
Game No. 2, Southern Carolina 2010
1 e4 c5 2 Nf3 d6 3 d4 cxd4 4 Nxd4 Nf6 5 Nc3 g6 6 Be3 Bg7 7 f3 The Yugoslav Attack against the Sicilian Dragon. Nc6 8 Qd2 0-0 9 Bc4 Bd7 10 0-0-0 Rc8 11 Bb3 Ne5 12 Kb1!? A fashionable finesse. The immediate 12 h4 h5 13 g4 hxg4 seems defensible for Black. Re8 The insertion of 12 Kb1 and 12…Re8 favors White, but Black has few other useful moves. He has scored poorly with 12…a5 13 a4 and 12…Nc4 13 Bxc4 Rxc4 14 g4 b5?! 15 b3 Rc8 16 Ndxb5, while 12…a6 13 h4 h5 14 g4!? lets White attack as in the game. 13 h4 h5 14 g4!? hxg4 15 h5 Nxh5 16 Rdg1 The Rook lines up against Black’s King, imagining a variation such as 16…gxf3?? 17 Rxh5 gxh5 18 Bh6 Bg4 19 Qg5 Ng6 20 Qxg6, mating. e6 17 Bh6 Qf6 Black’s last two moves are customary, but hardly cure-alls. He welcomes 18 Bg5? Nxf3 and 18 Bxg7?! Kxg7 19 fxg4 Qf4!, but White selects a third path. 18 fxg4 Bxh6 19 Qxh6 Qg7 20 Qd2 Nf6 21 g5 Nh5 22 Nce2 To eliminate the Knight that blocks the h-file. Nc4 Neither 22…Kf8 23 Qb4 nor 22…Nc6 23 Nb5 helps. If 22…Bc6, hoping for 23 Rh4 d5, White ignores Black’s threat and attacks with 23 Ng3! Nxg3 24 Rxg3 Bxe4 25 Rh4 d5 26 Rgh3. Perhaps Black should return the pawn by 22…d5 23 exd5 exd5 24 Bxd5 Nc4. 23 Bxc4 Rxc4 24 b3 Rc5 25 Ng3 Black cannot prevent disaster on the h-file. The Dragon has been slain again! Nxg3 After 25…Bc6 26 Nxh5 gxh5 27 Nxc6 Rxc6 28 Rxh5 Rec8 29 c4 Qg6 30 Rh4, White’s King is much safer than Black’s. If 30…d5 31 Qh2! Kf8 32 Qe5!, White threatens both 33 Qf6 and 33 cxd5. 26 Rxg3 Rec8 White refutes 26…e5 by 27 Nf5! gxf5 28 Qxd6 f4 29 Qxd7 Rec8 30 Rg4, foreseeing 30…Rxc2 31 g6 and 30…R5c7 31 Qf5 Rc6 32 Rgh4, setting up 33 Rh7. 27 Rgh3! e5 28 Rh4! exd4 29 Qh2 Kf8 30 Qxd6+ Kg8 31 Qxd7 Not 31 Qf6?? Qxf6 32 gxf6 because 32…Rh5 stops checkmate. d3 Black would lose a Rook by 31…Rxc2 32 Qh3 Kf8 33 Rh8+. 32 c4 Qc3 33 R4h2 Very convincing. If Black tries 33…R5c7 34 Qd6 Rc6, one method is 35 Qe7 d2 36 Rxd2! Qxd2 37 Qe5 f6 38 gxf6. b5 34 e5! Qxe5 35 Rh7 R5c7 Or 35…Rf8 36 Qh3 Qxg5 37 Rh8+ Kg7 38 Qh7+ Kf6 39 Rxf8. 36 Qd6! and Black Resigns. It’s mate after 36…Qc3 37 Qf6.
Puzzler.
White — Ka4, Ba6, Nb8, Nc6, Qc1, pawns on e3 and h4
Black — Kd5, Nd6, Rf7, Bh7, Rh3, pawns on b3, c4, c7, d4, e6 and f3
White to play and mate in four.
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