Legend Leads Day One of Chess9LX
The 13th World Chess Champion, Garry Kasparov, is leading the Chess 9LX Champions' Showdown after day one - an impressive feat which only shows that the now sixty-year old still has what it takes to compete with (and triumph over) the best chess players in the United States. In the first round, Garry outplayed his illustrious opponent, Wesley So, and in the second round he held his own against the speed demon Hikaru Nakamura. Round three was particularly impressive in the way in which he handled the black pieces against Olympian Ray Robson:
The selected position featured weaknesses on h2 and h7, which had to be dealt with in the beginning stages. In doing so, though, Ray overextended his forces, allowing Garry to combine pressure against the f5 and g5 pawns with infiltration into Ray's kingside. And even though the material was equal, the evaluation was greatly in the former World Champion's favor.
A true masterpiece, and when Kasparov is on form, there is no telling how good his performance will be. Will he be able to keep up his streak over the next two days? Only time will tell.