Finals Matchup Breakdown

Board One:

GM Larry Christiansen (BOS)

VS.

IM Marko Zivanic (DAL)

December 2008 USCF Rating: Christiansen: 2680, Zivanic: 2527

Current FIDE Rating: Christiansen: 2588, Zivanic: 2465

2008 Record: Christiansen: 3 – 2 – 2 (+1, 57%), Zivanic: 1 – 1 – 6 (=0, 50%)

Overall Record: Christiansen: 12 – 5 – 11 (+7, 63%), Zivanic: 1 – 1 – 6 (=0, 50%)

2008 Performance Rating: Christiansen: 2609, Zivanic: 2619

Overall Performance Rating: Christiansen: 2658, Zivanic: 2619

2008 Record with color in upcoming game: Christiansen: 2 – 1 – 1 (+1, 63%), Zivanic: 0 – 1 – 5 (-1, 42%)

Overall Record with color in upcoming game: Christiansen: 7 – 4 – 4 (+3, 60%), Zivanic: 0 – 1 – 5 (-1, 42%)

2008 MVP Points: Christiansen: 2, Zivanic: 3

Overall MVP Points: Christiansen: 34, Zivanic: 3


General: League veteran Christiansen, the main face of Boston's top board in all four seasons of the league takes on rookie Zivanic. Christiansen obviously has nothing lacking in general or league experience, but I would definitely venture that there will be much more pressure on him to win this year in the Finals than last as the colors and rating matchups which lent credence to the fact that a swift draw might be all that was needed to win the Championship last year, don't seem to be available this time. Fortunately for Boston, there are few people that anyone would rather have in a necessary win situation than Christiansen, and he definitely demonstrated why in his crushing win in the Quarterfinals. On the other hand, Zivanic has held strong GM after strong GM to a standstill, including a strong draw against Ehlvest and one against Becerra, two near MVPs, without breaking a sweat, moving with Nakamura-esque speed in all of his games. It will be interesting to see if the legendary attacker can come through with a big win in this most important league encounter, or if the speedy, solid Dallas IM can hold his own once again and help spark his team to victory.

Board Two:

IM Davorin Kuljasevic (DAL)

VS.

SM Jorge Sammour-Hasbun (BOS)

December 2008 USCF Rating: Kuljasevic: 2530, Sammour-Hasbun: 2563

Current FIDE Rating: Kuljasevic: 2521, Sammour-Hasbun: 2460

2008 Record: Kuljasevic: 4 – 0 – 3 (+4, 79%), Sammour-Hasbun: 2 – 2 – 2 (=0, 50%)

Overall Record: Kuljasevic: 12 – 2 – 5 (+10, 76%), Sammour-Hasbun: 8 – 2 – 3 (+6, 73%)

2008 Performance Rating: Kuljasevic: 2750, Sammour-Hasbun: 2533

Overall Performance Rating: Kuljasevic: 2681, Sammour-Hasbun: 2694

2008 Record with color in upcoming game: Kuljasevic: 4 – 0 – 1 (+4, 90%), Sammour-Hasbun: 1 – 1 – 1 (=0, 50%)

Overall Record with color in upcoming game: Kuljasevic: 10 – 0 – 2 (+10, 92%), Sammour-Hasbun: 3 – 1 – 1 (+2, 70%)

2008 MVP Points: Kuljasevic: 10, Sammour-Hasbun: 0

Overall MVP Points: Kuljasevic: 35, Sammour-Hasbun: 14


General: The only individual game rematch from last year's finals, and given last year's encounter won Game of the Year, it would be hard to ask for a better rematch when considering that along with the two players being last year's top Board Two All Stars. The two also met earlier in the season and fought to a standstill, but considering both player's histories along with Sammour-Hasbun's style, I think it's safe to say that we'll see some fireworks in this encounter, but who will come out on top is anyone's guess. Considering Sammour-Hasbun's amazing season last year, facing him clearly had to be a daunting task for anyone this season, but now the shoe may be on the other foot to an extent as he will have to rise to the occasion to overcome Kuljasevic's incredible 92% record in the league with the White pieces – an obviously daunting task.

Board Three:

SM Marc Esserman (BOS)

VS.

FM Igor Schneider (DAL)

December 2008 USCF Rating: Esserman: 2413, Schneider: 2439

Current FIDE Rating: Esserman: 2348, Schneider: 2397

2008 Record: Esserman: 5 – 0 – 4 (+5, 78%), Schneider: 2 – 2 – 5 (=0, 50%)

Overall Record: Esserman: 5 – 0 – 5 (+5, 75%), Schneider: 2 – 4 – 7 (-2, 42%)

2008 Performance Rating: Esserman: 2582, Schneider: 2399

Overall Performance Rating: Esserman: 2584, Schneider: 2329

2008 Record with color in upcoming game: Esserman: 2 – 0 – 3 (+2, 70%), Schneider: 0 – 2 – 3 (-2, 30%)

Overall Record with color in upcoming game: Esserman: 2 – 0 – 3 (+2, 70%), Schneider: 0 – 3 – 4 (-3, 29%)

2008 MVP Points: Esserman: 15.5, Schneider: 4.5

Overall MVP Points: Esserman: 16.5, Schneider: 3.5


General: Esserman's pivotal regular season performance was a big help to the Blitz in overcoming some adversity to aid them comfortably making the postseason, and now he is being called on again to provide another huge boost in a game that the Blitz have to be fervently be hoping to score the full point. Esserman can't be especially happy with some of his recent league games, seeming to get some very shaky positions out of the opening with the White pieces before utilizing some creative middlegame play to fight back and secure draws. Obviously he'll be looking to return to the crushing nature of some of his early season wins, such as this one; Schneider has been one of Dallas's main rocks this season, and although his record this season might not quite match up to some of the other players in the Finals, he has been very solid, and has had a few very nice performances like this. The key to this game will likely be the opening stages as given how well Esserman has been playing in the middlegame, even after some shaky openings, he will be very hard to stop if he can get a favorable position from the get-go; will he do so, or will Schneider be able to utilize the same techniques as Esserman's recent opponents to negate any such notion? How that facet of the game develops is likely to be crucial in determining the game's general rhythm and by transition the tone of the entire match.

Board Four:

WFM Bayaraa Zorigt (DAL)

VS.

NM Ilya Krasik (BOS)

December 2008 USCF Rating: Zorigt: 2244, Krasik: 2171

Current FIDE Rating: Zorigt: 2203, Krasik: NA

2008 Record: Zorigt: 5 – 0 – 4 (+5, 78%), Krasik: 6 – 3 – 1 (+3, 65%)

Overall Record: Zorigt: 7 – 1 – 7 (+6, 70%), Krasik: 12 – 12 – 5 (=0, 50%)

2008 Performance Rating: Zorigt: 2452, Krasik: 2349

Overall Performance Rating: Zorigt: 2367, Krasik: 2210

2008 Record with color in upcoming game: Zorigt: 3 – 0 – 2 (+3, 80%), Krasik: 3 – 3 – 0 (=0, 50%)

Overall Record with color in upcoming game: Zorigt: 4 – 1 – 2 (+3, 71%), Krasik: 6 – 9 – 2 (-3, 41%)

2008 MVP Points: Zorigt: 10, Krasik: 3

Overall MVP Points: Zorigt: 13, Krasik: 4


General: Both players are unquestionably hot right now, with Zorigt's undefeated +5 record this season going up against Krasik's five consecutive wins. Zorigt's victory in the Finals last year was obviously key in helping Dallas take the crown last year, and it's entirely possible that another such victory might accomplish the same thing; Krasik has certainly also had plenty of heroic performances himself in his career, but none probably more so than his recent dramatic Semfinal victory. With Zorigt being one of the keys in denying Boston the Championship they so craved last year and having gotten the better of Krasik, in their first meeting, it should be interesting to see if the obvious revenge motivation this will instill in Krasik will help him to continue his impressive winning streak and lead Boston to their first USCL Championship.