The Bulldog Magazine Issue 7: Time Is Up

The New Year got off to a rough start. We had an increase of games completed from last month, with a total of 31. However, 16 of those games were timeouts! That's over 50% . We can do better!

The magazine is a few days late this month, so thank you to for those wondering where it was for your patience. Let's dive in.

Ratings

*Current Top 10*

Patzer's win streak has ended, but they still hold onto second rank.

Newcomers like @AwesomeBen and @Sollieman83 join the top 10, with AwesomeBen even breaking 1500. 

Trends?

@haoming09 can been seemingly unbeatable since mid-november, and their win-streak has now carried them into third rank, past @Marks1420.

@evert823 seems to be in one of his  slumps again. Just wait a bit before he shoots back up. 

Games

evert823 (1561) v thegreatauk (1407)

One of the early games in the Winter Dog to complete, white seems to have a better position currently. evert has done a nice job centralizing his angel and dwarf, and he is ahead in development.

...Qe7, Nd3

evert failed to sense, or if he did, deal with, the idea behind Qe7. The move sets up a battery towards white's king, but evert decided to try to develop his last piece. Now Auk goes in for a vicious combination.

...Rxj2!, Kxj2, Qxi3+, Ki1, Nj3+

After Nj3 in the above position, white resigned. Ah2 provides no help because of Nxh2, Rxh2, Qj2, Kh1, and Qj1#. Perhaps evert's best chance was to play Ah2 right after Rxj2.

AwesomeBen (1285) v TonyL103 (1370)

White has just played Wb3. This opens up a lot of diagonals and files for white's pieces, all pointed towards black's kingside. Black should castle here to get his king to safety. I would take queen simply because a pawnstorm on that side seems less feasible. However, TonyL103 played a rather odd move, and AwesomeBen took advantage right away.

...Qf8?, e5, fxe5, dxe5, Nb5, Qxd7+, Kf7, Bc4#

A pretty cool combo! Like the game before, it was probably best for white to bite the bullet and give up material to ensure king safety. 

DukeOfHelsinki (1303) v JustARandomPatzer (1681)

Our upset of the month. Helsinki played a very nice game to defeat one of our premier players. This game was a 378 point upset. It that our biggest one yet?

As you can see, this game features Jokers! It was part of the Joker tournament. The game got off to a rough start for Helsinki, with him losing castling privileges pretty early. 

Nh5, Nf5, Bxh4, Jxh5, g4, Nxg4, Bg5, Jg2, Kd1

White's position is crippled. Patzer is going through what seems like a routine for him lately: playing aggressively and complicating the position to steamroll his opponents. Helsinki played on, however. The pieces for black are a bit loose, and if he can secure his king, he is only down two pawns, after all.

...Nf2+, Kc1, Nxd3, Bxd3, h6, Bi3, Qd6?, Jxg2

Qd6 is a strange blunder from Patzer. Helsinki captured on g2 with the Joker, imitating black's queen. Suddenly, Helsinki is up material. The bishop on d3 is protected from capture from the queen because of the Joker on b1.

Bj5?, Jxj5, Ng3, Jxi7!, Jxi7, Qxg3

Patzer has fallen apart the last few moves. White is up a clean bishop pair due to another minor piece blunder in Bj5. Helsinki needs to bring his rooks into the game and it should be smooth sailing.

...j5, b3, j4, Bh2, 0-0, Kc2, Rj5, Jf1, Rh5, Bxj4

...Rj8, Bi3, Jj6, Qf3, Jj7, Qe2, Ri5, Jf3, Rd5, e4

Patzer, perhaps already running out of hope, gave up the exchange here. There is nothing much he can do. White successfully connected his rook and secured his king. The game went on for a little longer before Patzer resigned here.

Well played by Helsinki. Not only an upset, but a comeback in the process!

Interview With haoming09

@haoming09 is well deserving on an interview. It seems like every month, there is someone who pulls together a win streak and shoots up. Here is what he had to say.

1) Why is your username haoming09?

My first name is Hao Ming. I joined chess.com when I was almost 9 years old. So, combine my name and the age I joined chess.com, you'll have my username.

2) Where do you rank yourself amongst the best players?

If I were to rank myself among the best players, I think I'll rank myself as 6 or 7 base on actual strength because I know there's way more players that are better than me... I think I'll rank myself in the Top 8 base on actual strength.

3) What is your favorite game of bulldog?

My favorite game so far is, my game with @thegreatauk in the A. Micro Dog #3 Finals. I would say I am slightly better in position than him but his defense was still strong. He tried protecting his king as long as he can. I sighed in relief when I reached a position where I could win easily. It was a very interesting game.

4) How do you explain your win streak up to 1700?

 I think my secret of my win streak is to join more tournaments because the more you play, the more you games you might win. For my wins, I'll usually try to watch out for upcoming threats and see what I can do to my opponent. That way, when I reach the expected position, I'll be more prepared.

Other News

-The Giga Dog winner's final is set to start. @Martin0 withdrew from the tournament, leaving @musketeerchess2017 to face off against @Marks1420. Both of these players started their Bulldog careers with this tournament.

- The 30x30 game between ry and Auk nearly ended in a draw, with ry offering. Auk declined. 

- The championship game is nearly over. tugwash has been able to get a materialistic advantage, but the game still has to play out. Will we get a new champion? Or will Martin0 deny tugwash once again?