Bologna tournament, Round 9: Reggio defeats Rosselli to claim lead

In a classic battle worthy of tournament leaders Milan's Arturo Reggio defeated Stefano Rosselli del Turco of Florence to claim sole possession of first place after 9 rounds of the Italian national tourney at Bologna. Rosselli, playing White in a Ruy Lopez, obtained a promising position in the early going and appears to have missed a chance for advantage with 22.Qh3! in place of the chosen 22.h4.  From that point forward Reggio gradually began to advance on his own; a glance at the position after Black's 21st and 31st moves will demonstrate the progress made in the interim by the second player.  The critical point of the contest came at White's 35th move when Rosselli, seeking to stem the Black advance, first sacrificed the exchange via 35.Rxe4 dxe4 and then left his remaining Rook en prise with 36.Qh3.  Capture of the offered Rook, while perhaps not fatal for Black, would have allowed the Florentine Master to unleash an extremely dangerous King-side attack, as the variations adduced below - for which we are indebted to our friend Herr Fritz - will clearly demonstrate. Reggio, exhibiting the cool-headedness of an experienced fighter, declined the sacrifice with the safe and sound 36...Qf5 and soon brought about an endgame in which his extra exchange played the decisive role.  Rosselli resigned at the 44th move in view of the unavoidable loss of his a-pawn and the resultant creation of a winning Black passed pawn on that file.

Today's loss, though undoubtedly a heavy blow to Rosselli, in no way extinguishes his chances for top honors, as Reggio will be idle during the next (10th) round and thus Rosselli with a victory over his opponent D'Amelio can once again claim a share of first place entering the 11th and final round of the tourney.

In the day's other action Giovanni Cenni maintained his solid grip on third place by outplaying Gastone Montessori in a heavy-piece endgame, Camillo D'Amelio defeated Giuseppe Benini, and Pietro Belli, who at last seems to be rounding into form, scored his second victory in succession by topping Guido Matteucci. Alberto Batori was awarded a forfeit victory over Efrem Ferraris, who has been forced to leave the tournament owing to exigent circumstances.  Corrado Buono had the bye.

Scores after 9 rounds:  Reggio 7 1/2; Rosselli* 6 1/2; Cenni* 6; Batori* 4 1/2; Montessori*, Buono* 4; Matteucci 3 1/2*; D'Amelio* 3; Benini* 2 1/2; Belli* 2, Ferraris 1 1/2.

We are in receipt of two games from the tourney's 9th round, the victory by Reggio over Rosselli and the defeat of Montessori by Cenni.  We naturally begin with the battle between the tournament leaders.  The complexities attendant to the acceptance of the Rook sacrifice offered by Rosselli at his 36th move are so numerous that we have taken the extraordinary step of providing two supplementary diagrams with analysis of the apposite variations. Those readers who prefer to play through a game score unencumbered by lengthy alternative lines will find their preference reflected immediately below; those, on the other hand, who delight in the variegated possibilities of a fearsome King-side attack will find much to their taste in the additional offerings.      

  

We conclude today's lengthy report with the victory by Cenni over Montessori.

 

Capablanca in St. Petersburg: Cuban gives simultaneous performance, will face three Russian Masters in exhibition play

We are most pleased to report that José R. Capablanca has safely arrived in St. Petersburg, where on the 7th inst. he faced 30 opponents in simultaneous play, scoring 24 wins, three losses, and three draws.  Our sources relate that during his stay in that city the Cuban visitor plans to face three Russian Masters in short exhibition matches set to begin in approximately one week's time, his opponents being Eugene Znosko-Borovsky, Fyodor Dus-Chotimirsky, and Alexander Alekhine.  The Alekhine match in particular, the first meeting between the Russian and Capablanca, two of the brightest stars of the rising generation, is certain to arouse great interest in the chess world and may well give some indication as to their relative strength at the present time.  We eagerly await the coming battles, and will as always share them with our readers as soon as they come to hand. 

Bologna tournament, Round 8: Reggio catches idle Rosselli with win; Leaders will meet in 9th round

Arturo Reggio engineered a decisive breakthrough in a pawn endgame to defeat Giuseppe Benini and join the idle Stefano Rosselli del Turco atop the score table after eight rounds of the Italia Scacchistica national tournament at Bologna.  Rosselli, with three games left to play versus two for Reggio, in theory still retains the better chances of overall victory in the event, but much will depend on the result of the next (9th) round, when the two rivals will meet.

The surprise of the day came when Giovanni Cenni let slip a chance to move within one half-point of the leaders by losing from an advantageous position vs. Guido Matteucci, thereby severely damaging his prospects for top honors in the event. In another unexpected reversal of fortune Corrado Buono outplayed Alberto Batori to win an endgame that originally looked lost for him, while Camillo D'Amelio suffered a quick defeat at the hands of Gastone Montessori.  The day's final encounter saw Pietro Belli at last open his account with a victory over Efrem Ferraris in a Queen and Knight endgame. Rosselli, as noted, was free.

Standings after 8 rounds:  Rosselli*, Reggio 6 1/2; Cenni* 5; Buono, Montessori* 4; Batori*, Matteucci* 3 1/2; Benini* 2 1/2; D'Amelio* 2; Ferraris 1 1/2; Belli* 1.

Those players marked with an asterisk * have already had the bye.

We present what we have received from Bologna, beginning with the endgame between Reggio and Benini. Aficionados of this phase of the game will wish to study carefully both the winning process and its attendant variations, which have been kindly supplied by the winner.

  

Next, the victory by Buono over Batori, who committed a serious oversight with 33.f4??

 

And here we present Belli's victory over Ferraris.

Bologna tournament, Round 7: Rosselli wins again, increases lead

Tournament leader Stefano Rosselli del Turco maintained his torrid pace with yet another victory in the seventh round of the Italia Scacchistica national tourney at Bologna.  Rosselli's win over Giuseppe Benini brought his score to 6 1/2 points from 7 games and increased his lead over Arturo Reggio to a full point after the latter was only able draw his game vs. Gastone Montessori.  Giovanni Cenni, currently well clear of the remainder of the field in third position, defeated Efrem Ferraris to remain within 1 1/2 points of the leader, a gap he will certainly look to close in the next round when Rosselli will be free with the bye.  In other games, Corrado Buono dealt yet another defeat to Pietro Belli, while Guido Matteucci and Camillo D'Amelio fought to a draw.  Alberto Batori had today's bye.

Scores after 7 rounds:  Rosselli 6 1/2; Reggio 5 1/2; Cenni* 5; A. Batori* 3 1/2; Montessori*, Buono 3; Benini*, Matteucci* 2 1/2; D'Amelio* 2; Ferraris 1 1/2; Belli* 0.

Those players marked with an asterisk * have already had the bye.

The victories by Rosselli and Cenni were unfortunately not included in today's cable from Italy, and so we begin with the draw between Montessori and Reggio, a game that the latter seemed at times likely to lose. Montessori, playing White, chose a quiet line of the Ruy Lopez. Queens were exchanged at the 21st move, after which the first player appeared to enjoy a slight endgame superiority.  White won a pawn at his 34th turn, with Black thereafter looking to his strong central Knight and passed d-pawn for counterplay.  The draw was agreed at the 52nd move in a position with Montessori still in possession of an extra pawn, and, to our eye at least, still with excellent chances of achieving victory, as the reader may verify for himself:

  

Buono pressed Belli in a French Defense, the latter defending himself well until the unfortunate 26...Qc7? allowed 27.Qh7!, threatening a crushing capture on e6.  Our friend Herr Fritz has found a most interesting variation beginning with the superior 26...Rc8, which we have included with the game score; as matters went, the Black position fell apart move by move, with Belli resigning at his 32nd turn when faced with mate in 2.

The meeting between Matteucci and D'Amelio produced an interesting if truncated battle, with the draw being agreed at the 37th move in a position where Black, holding two connected passed pawns for the exchange, might at least have required his opponent to demonstrate a clear path to equality.

  

World Champion on tour: Dr. Lasker faces stiff opposition in Prague

We report once again on the current exhibition tour through central Europe by Dr. Lasker, the World Champion. The Doctor has continued his peripatetic ways since we last looked in on him, and has visited Magdeburg, Chemnitz, Brno, Vienna, and Bratislava, among other cities, facing 25 opponents simultaneously at each stop along his way.  On none of these recent occasions did the Champion lose more than one game, while in general conceding only a handful of draws.

We relate the above not only to recognize the consistently high level of Dr. Lasker's exhibition play, but also to underscore the outstanding collective achievement by the members of Prague's Dobrusky Chess Club, site of the Doctor's most recent exhibition on the 4th inst.  The lone performer was able to record only 10 victories from the 25 games played, as against 5 defeats, with the remaining 10 contests being drawn.  The Prague men can thus rightly claim from Mannheim, subject of our previous report, the honor of having offered the sternest resistance to the Champion of any group on his current travels.

We present below two games from the Prague exhibition, one a victory by Dr. Lasker and the other a fine win over the performer by the Czech player Riha, who offers his Queen at the 14th move and later decides matters in a well-played Bishop endgame.

  

Bologna tournament, Round 6: All games decisive; Leaders keep pace with victories

The sixth round of the Italian national tournament at Bologna saw all five games finish decisively, with the tourney's three leaders, Stefano Rosselli del Turco, Arturo Reggio, and Giovanni Cenni recording victories against opponents further down the score table. Rosselli, with the move, bested Gastone Montessori in a Petroff Defense, the first player winning a pawn at his 16th turn and later profiting from a questionable exchange sacrifice by his adversary.  Reggio took advantage of an opening error by Guido Matteucci to claim the full point, while Cenni topped Corrado Buono in only 23 moves, finishing the game with a pretty combination. In other contests Efrem Ferraris scored his first victory of the tourney at the expense of Camillo D'Amelio, and Alberto Batori added to the continuing woes of Pietro Belli, who has yet to score.  Giuseppe Benini had the bye.

Scores after 6 rounds:  Rosselli 5 1/2; Reggio 5; Cenni* 4; A. Batori 3 1/2; Benini*, Montessori* 2 1/2; Buono, Matteucci* 2; Ferraris, D'Amelio* 1 1/2; Belli* 0.

Those players marked with an asterisk * have already had the bye.

We have three games to share with our readers today, beginning with the victory by Rosselli, the tournament leader.

Cenni took the full point from Buono in a game with an attractive finish.

Ferraris employed some clever back-rank threats to record his first win:

Correspondence chess: Spirited club contests

We present three recent correspondence games, all played during current year.  Two were contested between the Newcastle and Liverpool Central chess clubs, the result being a 1 1/2 - 1/2 margin in favor of the former side.  We find the drawn game particularly fascinating, and so give it pride of place below, urging our readers not to pass it by.  Often a hard-fought draw contains more of interest than many a decisive battle, as is in fact the case in the present instance, where the other game, the victory by the Newcastle club, comes to a sudden and unexpected end after an unfortunate blunder by the Liverpool men.

The third game included with today's offerings was played between the Utrecht and Geneva chess clubs and finished in favor of the Dutchmen, who as White in a familiar line of the Open Ruy Lopez successfully adopted a known but comparatively rare move, 10.Qd3, against their Swiss opponents.  We leave for our readers the question of whether Black could have held the position after 28...Ng8.

    

 

Bologna tournament, Round 5: Leader Rosselli yields first draw; Reggio, Cenni edge closer with victories

Tourney leader Stefano Rosselli del Turco saw his string of four consecutive victories come to an end with a draw vs. Guido Matteucci in the fifth round of the Italia Scacchistica national tournament at Bologna. Arturo Reggio, Rosselli's closest competitor for top honors, took advantage his rival's slackened pace by defeating Efrem Ferraris to close to within one half-point of the lead, while Giovanni Cenni, who holds a game in hand over both Rosselli and Reggio, moved into sole possession of third place via a win against Alberto Batori. The day's other action saw Gastone Montessori top Giuseppe Benini, while Corrado Buono and Camillo D'Amelio shared the point with a draw.  Pietro Belli, currently at the bottom of the score table, was free with the bye.

Scores after 5 rounds: Rosselli 4 1/2; Reggio 4; Cenni* 3; Batori, Benini, Montessori* 2 1/2; Buono, Matteucci* 2; D'Amelio* 1 1/2; Ferraris 1/2; Belli* 0.

Those players marked with an asterisk * have already had the bye.

We are in receipt of only one game from the fifth round, the victory by Cenni over Batori from the Black side of an Open Ruy Lopez.  White at his 21st turn allowed Black to win the exchange after 21.cxd4 Nb4; whether this course represented a sacrifice or an oversight we are not certain, but 21.Qe4, to meet 21...Bf5 with 22.Bb3+, seems a safe alternative.  In the opinion of several strong players who have examined the game the advance 29.f5 can be called White's final error, as following the resultant exchanges the Black Rook entered the White position with decisive effect.

  

    

Bologna tournament, Round 4: Rosselli increases lead with fourth consecutive win

Stefano Rosselli del Turco recorded his fourth successive victory to increase his lead over Arturo Reggio to a full point after four rounds of the Italian national tournament at Bologna.  Rosselli defeated Efrem Ferraris in a King's Gambit Declined while Reggio was held to a draw in an Open Ruy Lopez by Corrado Buono, both games being distinguished by attractive, fighting chess and a heterogeneous material balance.  In other fourth-round encounters, Alberto Batori bested Camillo D'Amelio, Giovanni Cenni topped Pietro Belli, who has yet to score, and Giuseppe Benini and Guido Matteucci played to fighting draw.  Gastone Montessori was free on the day.

Scores after 4 rounds:  Rosselli 4; Reggio 3; Batori, Benini 2 1/2; Cenni* 2; Buono, Matteucci*, Montessori* 1 1/2; D'Amelio* 1; Ferraris 1/2; Belli 0.

Players marked with an asterisk * have already had the bye.

Rosselli offered the King's Gambit vs. Ferraris, who declined via 2...Bc5.  An interesting passage at arms between the 16th and 22nd moves left White with Bishop, Knight, and pawn for a Rook, although the presence of both Black Rooks on White's second rank assured Ferraris of the acquisition of further booty. The turning point of the game came at Black's 25th move, when 25...Rb4 would have led to the win of White's passed e-pawn, whereas the chosen 25...Rxa2? allowed that pawn to advance and quickly decide the contest.  Ferraris resigned six moves later.

    

Reggio essayed the Ruy Lopez vs. Buono, who replied with the Open Defense.  At his 7th turn White chose in place of the usual 7.Bb3 the rare continuation 7.Nxe5, a line, if we recall correctly, played by the late D.G. Baird in several games at the great New York tournament of 1889.  With 22.Rfe1 Reggio offered his Queen and Bishop for both Black Rooks, the White Rooks in consequence breaking through to the eighth rank and promising further material gain.  White seems to have missed an opportunity for advantage at the 33rd move, when 33.Re8+ Kg7 34.Ree7, threatening to capture the Black f-pawn with check, would have been preferable to the immediate 33.Ree7. As played, Buono was soon able to bring about a drawn contest by means of perpetual check with the Queen.

  

The Benini-Matteucci clash saw yet another struggle between dissimilar forces, as White succeeded in obtaining two minor pieces for a Rook.  Active play on the part of the second player, however, soon brought about a draw by repetition of position, although one is left with the sense that Benini may well have missed various opportunities along the way.