Wildcard Game #7

Wildcard #7: GM Julio Becerra (MIA) vs GM Josh Friedel (SF) 1-0


So as outlined a few days ago, after each GOTW judge chose one more potential Wildcard game, we independently ranked those games from first to fifth, with the two games with the highest totals becoming the final two Wildcards. The judges' votes were:


Arun: 1. Ehlvest vs Ramirez, 2. Becerra vs Friedel, 3. Perelshteyn vs Lopez, 4. Zorigt vs Adelberg, 5. Becerra vs Kacheishvili

Greg: 1. Becerra vs Kacheishvili, 2. Becerra vs Friedel, 3. Ehlvest vs Ramirez, 4. Zorigt vs Adelberg, 5. Perelshteyn vs Lopez

Jim: 1. Becerra vs Friedel, 2. Zorigt vs Adelberg, 3. Ehlvest vs Ramirez, 4. Perelshteyn vs Lopez, 5. Becerra vs Kacheishvili

Jeff: 1. Ehlvest vs Ramirez, 2. Becerra vs Friedel, 3. Perelshteyn vs Lopez, 4. Zorigt vs Adelberg, 5. Becerra vs Kacheishvili

Michael: 1. Perelshteyn vs Lopez, 2. Zorigt vs Adelberg, 3. Ehlvest vs Ramirez, 4. Becerra vs Kacheishvili, 5. Becerra vs Friedel


so the total for each game was:


1. Ehlvest vs Ramirez: 19
2. Becerra vs Friedel: 18
3. Perelshteyn vs Lopez: 14
4. Zorigt vs Adelberg: 14
5. Becerra vs Kacheishvili: 10


making the final two Wildcards as noted.


And so the twenty games in the GOTY Contest are officially set! They are:



Week 1: IM Dean Ippolito (NJ) vs GM Pascal Charbonneau (NY) 1-0 Article

Week 2: GM Josh Friedel (SF) vs IM Marko Zivanic (DAL) 1-0 Article

Week 3: GM Boris Gulko (NJ) vs FM Oleg Zaikov (CAR) 1-0 Article

Week 4: SM Marc Esserman (BOS) vs FM Tom Bartell (PHI) 1-0 Article

Week 5: GM Giorgi Kacheishvili (NY) vs GM Josh Friedel (SF) 1-0 Article

Week 6: GM Alejandro Ramirez (ARZ) vs GM Joel Benjamin (NJ) 1-0 Article

Week 7: IM Daniel Fernandez (DAL) vs FM Oleg Zaikov (CAR) 0-1 Article

Week 8: IM John Bartholomew (DAL) vs GM Julio Becerra (MIA) 1-0 Article

Week 9: IM John Bartholomew (DAL) vs IM Jan van de Mortel (CHC) 0-1 Article

Week 10: GM Gregory Serper (SEA) vs IM Jan van de Mortel (CHC) 1-0 Article

Quarterfinals: GM Giorgi Kacheishvili (NY) vs GM Larry Christiansen (BOS) 1-0 Article

Semifinals: GM Pascal Charbonneau (NY) vs IM Dean Ippolito (NJ) 1/2-1/2 Article

Championship: GM Julio Becerra (MIA) vs GM Giorgi Kacheishvili (NY) 0-1 Article

Wildcard #1: FM Victor Shen (NJ) vs IM Marc Esserman (BOS) 1-0 Article

Wildcard #2: FM Andrei Zaremba (QNS) vs SM Marc Esserman (BOS) 1-0 Article

Wildcard #3: IM Jan van de Mortel (CHC) vs GM Jaan Ehlvest (TEN) 1-0 Article

Wildcard #4: NM Matt Herman (NY) vs FM Daniel Naroditsky (SF) 1-0 Article

Wildcard #5: SM Marc Esserman (BOS) vs FM Ron Simpson (CAR) 1-0 Article

Wildcard #6: GM Jaan Ehlvest (TEN) vs GM Alejandro Ramirez (ARZ) 1-0 Article

Wildcard #7: GM Julio Becerra (MIA) vs GM Josh Friedel (SF) 1-0 Article



And with that, everything leading up to the GOTY contest is complete! All that is left is for the contest itself to begin which will occur in a few days so be certain to keep checking the USCL site so you don't miss any of the eliminations as the order will be announced at the rate of about one game per day!

Wildcard Game #6

Wildcard #6: GM Jaan Ehlvest (TEN) vs GM Alejandro Ramirez (ARZ) 1-0


As noted, the five GOTW judges independently ranked the five games mentioned yesterday, and the top two finishers were to be the final two Wildcards. Receiving two first place votes and three third places votes, Ehlvest vs Ramirez ended up being the top pick from these five and becoming the next Wildcard.


So what will the final Wildcard be? Keep tuned in as in the next day or two that will be revealed along with the entire vote by the judges on these five games and then the GOTY Contest will start only a few days later!

Wildcard Game #5

Wildcard #5: SM Marc Esserman (BOS) vs FM Ron Simpson (CAR) 1-0


Arun Sharma: Like the previous Wildcard pick, Herman vs Naroditsky, this was definitely a game that caused a good deal of controversy during the GOTW discussion. While I don't really know if a consensus was ever really agreed upon on as to what place this game really should have gotten that week, one thing that no one really seemed to be debating was how well White played in this very interesting game. That being the case, this seemed like a very good Wildcard choice.

Wildcard Game #4

Wildcard #4: NM Matt Herman (NY) vs FM Daniel Naroditsky (SF) 1-0


Greg Shahade: A great game and while I had no real problem with it not winning Game of the Week (because I also thought very highly of the Kacheishvili vs Friedel game), some of the comments and scores it received really surprised me. This was a fantastic attacking game by Herman, who really threw all caution to the wind while going after Naroditsky's King. Many say that Black had many ways to defend this attack, but even if this was somehow true, it's extremely hard to face such pressure in a 75+30 time control.

I think this game should have a good chance at success in the Game of the Year contest, but it's possible that the lesser prestige of the players involved may hurt it a bit in the eyes of the judges. We will see!

Wildcard Game #3

Wildcard #3: IM Jan van de Mortel (CHC) vs GM Jaan Ehlvest (TEN) 1-0


Jim Dean: This game narrowly missed out on being GOTW, losing only by tiebreaker to a very entertaining Open Sicilian. That, combined with being a game where a very strong GM was beaten in an opening system he has written a book about, led me to picking this fine victory as my Wildcard choice.

Wildcard Game #2

Wildcard #2: FM Andrei Zaremba (QNS) vs SM Marc Esserman (BOS) 1-0


Jeff Ashton: As some have noticed, I enjoy games that are relatively simple, positionally imbalanced, with straight forward plans executed with near perfection. If the losing side helped the winner by making a poor decision or two, I won't let it hurt my opinion of the game too much.

I believe that these games are enjoyable and educational for players of all levels and the best way for most players to play their USCL games. The more "creative" games that I didn't rank as highly had some interesting artistic elements, but I preferred the more simple and "logical" games. Zaremba's win against Esserman is a good example of the type of game that I liked to vote for.

I do believe that creative, "brilliant", attacking play is good for chess (and I voted for some games that showed such characteristics), however it is rarely the most practical way to play fast time controlled team tournament games. I truly sensed that some players were trying to force their games to be exciting or interesting, most likely motivated by GOTW accolades and stardom. Other times players might have forced complications because their team needed to throw a "Hail Mary" due to the fact that a decisive victory would be the only way for the team to win, and this is commendable.

But again, this is not designed to be commentary on how one should play their USCL game (although some team managers and players might want to think about this). I am commenting on why I voted the way I did the majority of the time.

In Zaremba vs Esserman we see White execute a simple attack on Black's King. White played many precise moves and when the game required a tactical finish, Zaremba delivered.

Wildcard Game #1

Wildcard #1: FM Victor Shen (NJ) vs IM Marc Esserman (BOS) 1-0


Michael Aigner: I nominated my top choice from Week Eight as a Wildcard for Game of the Year. This impressive attacking game featured well-timed moves 15. d4, 19. Bxh6, 23. Qe5, 25. d6, 30. g4, and 38. Nf6, leaving zero doubt who was the better player this week. The game felt smooth and convincing, despite facing a newly minted and successful IM.