Nakamura Wins 3rd Straight Gibraltar Title In Playoff
Maybe he is slowing down though? Last year he needed 15 games to take the title. This year, it took him 16. For a man who loves frequent flier miles, let's hope he also gets some special status for all this chess. Counting playoff games, he's now played 46 consecutive games on the The Rock without a loss.
GM David Anton (left) and GM Yu Yangyi (right) tied for first but both ran into the blitz maestro in the playoffs.
He didn't need to go to Armageddon this year, but the American did need to expend a ton of energy on today's final day. First he won as Black in round 10 just to make the playoff against pre-round leader GM David Anton. Then GM Yu Yangyi also won to make it a three-way playoff.
"I've played so many tiebreaks at this point that it doesn't faze me at all," Nakamura said.
Per rule, Anton got an automatic chair in the finals due to his higher (2859) performance rating, meaning Nakamura had to first play twin rapid games and then blitz against Yu. After outlasting him and drawing Anton in their first rapid game, he finally ended the event by beating Anton in their rematch.
Nakamura, Hikaru (2785) vs. Anton, David (2650)
Tradewise Gibraltar Chess Festival | Gibraltar | 2 Feb 2017 | 1-0
1. Nf3 Nf6 2. d4 e6 3. c4 b6 4. g3 Bb75. Bg2 Be7 6. O-O O-O 7. Nc3 Ne48. Bd2 Bf6 9. Rc1 d6 10. d5 Nxc311. Bxc3 Bxc3 12. Rxc3 e5 13. e4 a514. Nd2 Nd7 15. f4 Qe7 16. Nf3 f617. Re1 Nc5 18. Rce3 Bc8 19. Qc2 Bd720. b3 Rfb8 21. a3 b5 22. cxb5 Rxb523. Nd2 Rb7 24. Rb1 Be8 25. b4 axb426. axb4 Nd7 27. Nc4 Nf8 28. Na5 Rba729. f5 g6 30. g4 h5 31. Bf3 Qh7 32. Kh1Qh6 33. Rc3 Nh7 34. fxg6 Bxg6 35. gxh5Bxh5 36. Qf2 Bxf3 37. Rxf3 Kh8 38. Rg1Ra6 39. Qf1 R6a7 40. Rh3 [[Qf4 41. Qe2(41. Qg2 Qg5Nakamura saw this move and therefore rejected 41. Qg2, but he forgot 42. Rg3 Qf4 43. Rg8+"Oh!" was his response after being shown the 42nd move.)41... Rg8 42. Rxh7 Kxh7 43. Qh5 Qh644. Qxh6 Kxh6 45. Rxg8 Ra6 46. Kg2Rb6 47. Nc6 Ra6 48. Ne7 Ra4 49. Nf5Kh5 50. h4 Rxb4 51. Kh3 Rc4 52. Rh8Kg6 53. h5 Kg5 54. Ng3 Rc3 55. Rg8
"Objectively Anton played a better tournament than me," Nakamura said afterward. "They should have been rooting for the other guy. I've won too many times!"
Nakamura has broken each of their hearts before. He beat Anton on board one in the final round of regulation last year in Gibraltar. He also beat Yu in the rapid semifinals of Millionaire Chess II in 2015, which he called much more "up and down" than his games against the Chinese grandmaster here.
In his winner's speech, Nakamura alluded to the turmoil that unfolded on his native soil while he's been away. "It's good to see people from Iran, for example, [and] Israel...It's great to see that, regardless of what's going on in the world."
Like Roger Federer, Nakamura hasn't gone anywhere.
GM Hikaru Nakamura's trio of titles have come after his initial win nine years ago (he's also the first to win four career titles in Gibraltar, passing GM Nigel Short).
"For the first half of the this tournament, I was so preoccupied watching the Australia Open," said Nakamura, a big tennis fan and player. He said watching Federer-Nadal in the finals "took me back to 2008."
Here's how he won the opening leg of the tiebreak games. The format was twin 10+5 games, and if tied, which was the case against Yu, twin 3+2 games.
Surprisingly, Yu outrated Nakamura by a solitary point (2791 to 2790) in rapid, but I guess it depends on if you called 10+5 rapid. What is not debatable is Nakamura's large lead in blitz, which he certified by winning both games (the second was Yu going ballistic trying to get even; the first game blitz was essentially the decider).
Nakamura, Hikaru (2785) vs. Yu, Yangyi (2738)
Gibraltar Masters TB | Caleta ENG | Round 1.3 | 2 Feb 2017 | ECO: A14 | 1-0
1. c4 Nf6 2. g3 e6 3. Bg2 d5 4. Nf3 Be75. O-O O-O 6. d4 c6 7. Qc2 b6 8. Nbd2Bb7 9. e4 Na6 10. a3 c5 11. exd5 exd512. Rd1 Rc8 13. dxc5 Nxc5 14. b4 Ne615. Bb2 dxc4 16. Nxc4 Qc7 17. Rac1Qb8 18. Qe2 Qa8 19. Nh4 Bxg220. Nxg2 Rfe8 21. h4 Ne4 22. Nge3 Bf823. Qg4 b5 24. Ne5 Nf6 25. Qf3 Qxf326. Nxf3 Ne4 27. Rxc8 Rxc8 28. Rd7 Rc729. Rxc7 Nxc7 30. Nd4 f6 31. Nc6 a632. Bd4 Bd6 33. Nf5 Ne8 34. Kg2 Nd235. Be3 Nc4 36. Bc1 Kf7 37. Kf3 Ne5+38. Nxe5+ Bxe5 39. Ke4 Ke6 40. Nd4+Kd7 41. Nb3 Kc6 42. Kd3 Nc7 43. f4 Bd644. Ke4 Na8 45. Be3 Nc7 46. h5 Kd747. g4 Ke6 48. Bc5 Ne8 49. Nd4+ Kd750. Nb3 Ke6 51. Bd4 g6 52. f5+ gxf5+53. gxf5+ Kd7 54. h6 Be7 55. Kd5 Nc7+56. Ke4 Ne8 57. Bc5 Bxc5 58. Nxc5+ Kc659. Ne6 Nd6+ 60. Kf4 Nf7 61. Nf8 Nxh662. Nxh7 Kd5 63. Nxf6+ Kc4 64. Ne4Nf7 65. f6 Kb3 66. Nc5+ Kxa3 67. Nxa6Kb3 68. Kf5 Kc4 69. Ke6 Ng5+ 70. Ke7
The semi-final between Yu and Nakamura.
That endgame push made up for Nakamura's late mistake in one of the rapid games. Do you know the two winning moves here?
Nakamura, Hikaru (2785) vs. Yu, Yangyi (2738)
Gibraltar Masters TB | Caleta ENG | Round 1.2 | 2 Feb 2017 | ECO: A01 | 1/2-1/2
1. b3 c5 2. Bb2 Nc6 3. Nf3 d6 4. d4 cxd45. Nxd4 Nf6 6. Nxc6 bxc6 7. e3 g68. Be2 Bg7 9. O-O O-O 10. c4 c5 11. Bf3Rb8 12. Nc3 Nd7 13. Qd2 Ne5 14. Be2Bb7 15. Rad1 a6 16. Qc1 Re8 17. Qa1Nd7 18. Rd2 Qc8 19. Rfd1 Bc6 20. Nd5Bxb2 21. Qxb2 a5 22. Bg4 a4 23. e4axb3 24. axb3 Bxd5 25. Rxd5 Qb726. Bxd7 Qxd7 27. e5 Qb7 28. exd6exd6 29. R5d3 Re6 30. Rxd6 Rxd631. Rxd6 Qe4(31... Qxb3? 32. Rd8+! Rxd833. Qxb3and the queen covers the mate on d1!)32. h3 h5 33. Rd5 Qe7(33... Qxc4? 34. Rd8+ Kh7 35. Rh8+!Rxh8 36. bxc4)34. Qc3 Re8 35. Qd2 Qe1+ 36. Qxe1Rxe1+ 37. Kh2 Rb1 38. Rd3 h4 39. g4hxg3+ 40. Kxg3 Rb2 41. Kf3 Kf8 42. Re3f5 43. h4 Kf7 44. Kg3 Kf6 45. Rd3 g546. f3 Kg6 47. hxg5 Kxg5 48. f4+ Kh549. Re3 Rb1 50. Kh3 Rf1 51. Kg3 Rb152. Rc3 Rf1 53. Rd3 Rb1 54. Kh3 Rf155. Kg2 Rb1 56. Kg3 Rf1?(56... Rb2holds)57. Rd5 Rg1+ 58. Kf2 Rb1 59. Rxf5+ Kg460. Rxc5 Rxb3 61. f5 Rf3+ 62. Ke2 [[Rxf563. Rb5?(63. Rc8wins, as Nakamura pointed out afterward, but so does)(63. Rc6)63... Kf4 64. Kd3 Rxb5 65. cxb5 Ke5
The final between Anton and Nakamura.
Here's how Nakamura got into the finals: a crush of GM Romain Edouard that finished him at nine extra rating points and a chance at that top prize.
Romain Edouard vs. Hikaru Nakamura
Tradewise Gibraltar | Catalan Bay GIB | Round 10.3 | 28 Jan 2017 | ECO: E21 | 0-1
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 O-O5. Bg5 c5 6. Rc1 h6 7. Bh4 cxd4 8. Nxd4 d59. e3 e5 10. Nf3 d4 11. exd4 exd412. Nxd4 Qb6 13. Nf3 Rd8 14. Qc2 g515. Bg3 Nc6 16. Bd3 g4 17. Nh4 Bf818. Qb1 Re8+ 19. Kf1 Be6 20. h3 Nh521. Ne4 Nxg3+ 22. Nxg3 Rad8 23. hxg4Ne5 24. Be2 Bxg4 25. Bxg4 Nxg4 26. Qc2Bb4 27. c5 Qa6+ 28. Kg1 Be1 29. Rh3Bxf2+ 30. Kh1 Re1+ 31. Rxe1 Bxe1 32. Nf3Nf2+ 33. Kh2 Nxh3 34. Nxe1 Ng5 35. Qc3Qg6
GM Ju Wenjun lost but she had already wrapped up the top women's prize going into the day (all five of the chase group trailed by a full point and her TPR was much higher; there is no playoff for the ladies).
GM Ju Wenjun had been the highest-rated female not to win in Gibraltar, but that all changed this time around.
GM Hou Yifan also created quite a scene by opening 1. g4 d5 2. f3 against GM Babu Lalith in an apparent protest to her earlier pairings. She resigned after move five.
She apologized to her fans in the video for the non-game. Yifan was apparently upset at the pairings from earlier in the tournament, which required her to play seven games against women in the first nine rounds.
GM Stuart Conquest called the Hou Yifan game "the biggest crisis" in the 15 years of #gibchess @ChessMike
Several people have attested that they've downloaded the Swiss-Manager pairing program and affirmed the pairings were correct for the final rounds of the tournament. Chess.com has not independently verified this. Chief arbiter Laurent Freyd assured Chess.com that no human hand was involved in the pairings.
Even husband and wife had to play in the final round. IM Anna Zatonskih, in line for a top female prize, had a round-10 encounter with GM Daniel Fridman. They admitted nothing good could happen. If she won a fair game, accusations would fly. Honorable until the end, they drew, denying her £5,000+ in prize money (she would have finished in clear second).
But there is some justice in the world.
Fridman was the "first man out" of the prizes, and as such won the annual award from the Association of Chess Professionals of around £500. And here's some entertaining math: He won slightly more for himself by drawing rather than winning! That's right, the nature of the ACP prize is that it is one extra award equal to the last-place award. If Fridman had won, he would have been one more player factoring into the calculation of the place prizes, thus lowering the amount won. Wrap your head around that!
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