Game of the Year -- 20th Place

This is the first part in a weekly series of articles which will count down to revealing what game was voted as the 2007 USCL Game of the Year. The eligible entrants are the thirteen Games of the Week along with the seven Wildcards (full list). There are five judges who ranked the games from 1st to 20th. If a game is ranked in 1st place by a judge, it receives 20 points, if it's ranked 2nd place it receives 19 points, and so on with 20th place receiving 1 point with the games then being placed based on their total number of points. If there is a tie at a certain total, whichever amongst those games have a higher individual ranking will win on tie-break. (e.g. a game which gets a 1st + 4th ranking is higher than a game which gets a 2nd + 3rd).


The five judges are:

FM Robby Adamson
NM Dennis Monokroussos
GM Alex Shabalov
WGM Jennifer Shahade
FM Ron Young


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20th Place: IM Jay Bonin (NY) vs NM Denys Shmelov (BOS) 1-0


Below are the comments from the judges on why they ranked the game where they did and in parentheses is the ranking given by that judge and the number of points awarded for that ranking.



WGM Jennifer Shahade (18th Place, 3 points): I ranked this game 18th because Boston had already clinched the match while Shmelov was still in the game and also because Bonin was lost after a series of exchanges. On the other hand, I definitely could sense a lot of determination and fighting spirit from Bonin in this game, so I respect its inclusion as a Wildcard pick.



FM Robby Adamson (20th Place, 1 point): This game really should not have been even in consideration given that Shmelov outplayed Bonin for most of the game, and Bonin only won when the match had been decided, and Shmelov clearly relaxed and let his guard down. Therefore, I awarded this game only one point.



NM Dennis Monokroussos (20th Place, 1 point): In my opinion, this game shouldn’t have been eligible in the first place. If this was a contest for swindle of the year then okay, I’d understand. But not for Game of the Year! Shmelov was winning, easily, for many moves, before self-destructing in the face of White’s one and only trump. I’m a Bonin fan, but I’m not blind!



GM Alex Shabalov (20th Place, 1 point): A dramatic change of events, but both players were hardly in control of this game.



FM Ron Young (20th Place, 1 point): It is unfair to call this game "twentieth-best". Let’s call it "last among equals". I wish I could just split the prize twenty ways. The honor lies in the competing, not in the outcome. You’re all winners.


Total Score of Bonin vs Shmelov: (20th Place, 7 Points)


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Stay tuned for eighteen more such articles as the field shrinks by one game each week to see which of the following games will be the 2007 Game of the Year!


Week 1: IM Josh Friedel (SF) vs IM Lev Milman (CAR) 0-1 Article

Week 2: IM Vinay Bhat (SF) vs IM John Bartholomew (DAL) 1-0 Article

Week 3: IM Vinay Bhat (SF) vs GM Hikaru Nakamura (NY) 1-0 Article

Week 4: GM Eugene Perelshteyn (BOS) vs GM Pascal Charbonneau (NY) 0-1 Article

Week 5: FM Slava Mikhailuk (SEA) vs IM Jonathan Schroer (CAR) 0-1 Article

Week 6: GM Larry Christiansen (BOS) vs GM Patrick Wolff (SF) 1-0 Article

Week 7: IM Lev Milman (CAR) vs IM Ron Burnett (TEN) 0-1 Article

Week 8: GM Julio Becerra (MIA) vs IM Ron Burnett (TEN) 1-0 Article

Week 9: NM Mackenzie Molner (NJ) vs IM Larry Kaufman (BAL) 1-0 Article

Week 10: IM Jay Bonin (NY) vs NM Mackenzie Molner (NJ) 1-0 Article

Wildcard Round: FM Marcel Martinez (MIA) vs IM Dmitry Zilberstein (SF) 1-0 Article

Semifinals: GM Julio Becerra (MIA) vs IM Drasko Boskovic (DAL) 0-1 Article

Championship: SM Jorge Sammour-Hasbun (BOS) vs IM Davorin Kuljasevic (DAL) 1-0 Article

Wildcard #1: IM Dmitry Zilberstein (SF) vs IM John Bartholomew (DAL) 1-0 Article

Wildcard #2: GM Julio Becerra (MIA) vs GM Alex Stripunsky (QNS) 1-0 Article

Wildcard #3: IM Josh Friedel (SF) vs GM Gregory Serper (SEA) 1-0 Article

Wildcard #5: IM Eric Tangborn (SEA) vs IM Davorin Kuljasevic (DAL) 0-1 Article

Wildcard #6: NM Mackenzie Molner (NJ) vs FM Marc Arnold (NY) 1-0 Article

Wildcard #7: IM Bryan Smith (PHI) vs GM Eugene Perelshteyn (BOS) 1-0 Article


Eliminated:


20th Place (7 Points): IM Jay Bonin (NY) vs NM Denys Shmelov (BOS) 1-0 Article