This guy is pretty amazing. 2nd rated highest chess player in the world, and only 25. An Italiano-Americano from Miami. He's challenging Magnus Carlsen, the Norwegian, for the world chess championship in November. This is a fight between the irresistible force in Caruana, who is known as an attacking player, and Carlsen, the immovable object. Should be an exciting match, because Caruana is truly on par with Carlsen, who is famous for drawing against Kasparov when Carlsen was only 13. And it's the first-time an American has competed for a world championship, I believe, since Bobby Fischer. Fabuana drew with Carlsen in their last game recently in St. Louis, when Carlsen felt he had a winning position. Fabuana was playing the Petrov as black, an unorthodox but solid defense against White first move, e4.

https://www.chess.com/news/view/caruana ... inquefield

I wish I were smart enough to really understand and enjoy chess.

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The World Chess Championship started today in London.

Game 1 is ongoing. Here's a link. Caruana is way down on time as white. Carlsen is slightly ahead -0.4.

https://www.chess.com/wcc2018

1st game ended in a draw after 115 moves!

Another draw. I'm kind of getting into this.

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I think JORR knows some authentic Teddy KGBesque Russian chess players . Chess meet up time !’

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Proud member of the white guy grievance committee

It aint the six minutes. Its what happens in those six minutes.

Interesting story about chess on the latest HBO Real Sports. St Louis is the center of USA Chess and it's an interesting story about how
it became so. I haven't played chess in decades.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

That’s a very St. Louis move. The whites always go first.

Yeah we went to the US Chess Museum there when we visited last summer. It was.....as you would expect

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Proud member of the white guy grievance committee

It aint the six minutes. Its what happens in those six minutes.

I'd like to see the players take more risks with the openings. So far it's been two Sicilians in the Rossolimo Variation with Caruana as white playing e4, and a Queen's Gambit Declined and the English for Carlsen as White. The Rossolimo seeks the exchange of white's King's Bishop for black's knight at c6, doubling black's pawns on the file early on. Caruana came out worse from the opening in game 1, when he weakened his kingside where he had castled with the pawn moves f4 and h3, but still managed to draw.

The thing that was astonishing about Fischer's play and victory against Spassky in the '72 World Championship is that he played a range of openings as both white and black. He even played the Alekhine as Black with a first move of Nf6 against e4. You don't see the Alekhine very much at the top level.

After seven straight draws, there might be a win in today's game. In the Sicilian, Caruana opted not to play the Rossolimo, so the move order is different today. It looks like they have gotten into a Pelikan-Lasker/Sveshnikov variation of the Sicilian, a sharp line. Fabiana has continued with a5 to expand on the queenside, while Carlsen as black has opted to gain space on the king-side with f5. Interesting battle brewing.

https://www.chess.com/wcc2018

Game 6 was fun to watch unfold.

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Draw #8.

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"All crowds boycotting football games shouldn't care who sings or takes a knee because they aren't watching." - Nas

Don't like Caruana's 17th move in Game 8, Bxf3? There's no reason for black to have to take the knight at f3 and give up his good bishop, when he will be weaker on the white squares. The bishop is useful there to block white's d pawn from advancing.

Caruana is down on time, 50 minutes to Carlsen's 1:38 on the clock. That might be why Caruana is trading a piece here, but it doesn't really help him. Black had a good position before this move.

Black doesn't gain material advantage after white plays Bxb7. And now the black queen is under attack with Carlsen's e3! on move 21, in which he gains a tempo. White's king is much safer, and he has the king's fianchettoed bishop to boot. Black's pawn at c7 now becomes weak. White has the better bishop and his pawns nicely are on opposite squares. Caruana has problems now.

I believe today is the final game under the standard time controls. Carlsen is currently ahead by 0.5 with Black in a sharp game in the Sicilian.

If it's drawn again, then they go to a tie-break on Wednesday.

They agreed to a draw. Scandalous!

It did not look like a drawish position. Many pieces were still on the board, with Caruana under pressure.

Fischer is rolling over in his grave. He never would have yielded at this stage, let alone in a world championship match.

I was shocked that Carlsen would offer the draw with such a time advantage.

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He said he did not want to spend the time looking for the punch. ??

He does have higher ratings in the playoff formats though, and since it is a draw instead of paying out 60-40 it pays out 55-45, so who knows if that played a role in it or not.

It is a pretty weak move with as much that was there on that board.

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"All crowds boycotting football games shouldn't care who sings or takes a knee because they aren't watching." - Nas

And the playoff format ends in Armaggedon chess (if we ever get there) - White gets 5 minutes, Black gets 4, and a draw is a win for black.

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"All crowds boycotting football games shouldn't care who sings or takes a knee because they aren't watching." - Nas

What happens if a player runs out of time in a rapid or blitz game? Do they lose the game?

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have fun make sense of this if you arent a chess fan

https://deadspin.com/armageddon-looms-o ... 1830671246

Carlsen destroys Fabiano in the rapids to remain champion.

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And Bobby Fischer pops the champagne.

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"All crowds boycotting football games shouldn't care who sings or takes a knee because they aren't watching." - Nas