The September recap was written by @SmyslovFan.  Apologies for the delay; it was caused by personal circumstances.

asg2 Wins the Untitled September Tuesday Event in Great Style!

The Untitled Tuesday was won by @asg2, with 8 out of 10 points, a full point ahead of second place @GAR2706. He did it by playing openings that really only work in blitz, but backing them up with tremendous speed, and fantastic endgame technique. @asg2 repeatedly challenged his opponents to refute his openings before their flags fell. He played moves like 1.h3 2.a3 and so on, but did so blindingly fast. He repeatedly reached lost positions, but had so much extra time on the clock and so much strength in the late middle games that he managed to win almost every game, even against strong opposition! He won 7, drew two, and lost only one game with his idiosyncratic blitz style.

Take a look. Here's his second round win against a +1900 opponent, and the eventual runner-up.

You Gotta Be Lucky!

It's often been said that there is no luck in chess. However, I think it was Peter Svidler who pointed out that while it takes skill to win a chess game, it takes luck to win a tournament, especially if the top players are close to evenly matched. 

I was lucky to win the September Saturday Untitled Tournament. This isn't false modesty. I can prove it!

Here's my round one game, against MaddyMoon. In the diagrammed position, I have a slightly more comfortable position, but I go for a cheapo and it works.

Meanwhile, @MGleason scored a famous upset victory over @rock303, who was rated more than five hundred rating points higher! This wasn't a one move blunder, as so often happens in blitz chess. 

And now, back to the luck it takes to win a tournament. In round two, I faced one of the tournament favorites and eventual runner up, CP6033. We reached an even position, I offered a draw, and then. And then, as he himself said, he pushed too hard.

Meanwhile, @Kstorn won his second round game, demonstrating the adage that in a major piece endgame, the most important factor is the initiative. He got the advantage out of the White side of the Budapest, playing a dangerous f4 idea, and built up a beautiful position, which he converted. 

And in round four, I get really lucky. Ridiculously lucky! I played @Guedsirace2, one of my most difficult opponents in these monthly events. He was undefeated and rated more than 150 points higher than myself. Remember round one? Well...

In round five, I played probably my best game of the event, against another +2100 rated opponent, @ghostdragon1212. 

In round six, my luck ran out against @kstorn. This was a strange game. I thought I was making my move instantly, but my clock ran for more than seven seconds and I lost on time in a fairly good position. Of course, I was low on time because @Kstorn, as usual, put me under a ton of pressure. 

And to make matters worse, @CP6033 won a brilliant miniature against @Ghostdragon1212 in round six. 

In round seven, @KStorn won a sharp endgame just when it looked like @CP6033 was closing in on equality.  This put him in first place on tie breaks. 

In round eight, I drew with @Heavhduty90, but fortunately for me, @Kstorn lost to @Ochen_Zlaya (which translates to "very angry"), and @CP6033 and @Guedesirace2 drew, after which, @Guedesirace2 withdrew from the tournament even though he was still in the running for first place. @KStorn must have been ochen' zlaya at himself for blundering his rook in a difficult but tenable position.

After eight rounds, I took a half point lead.

In round nine, @Ochen_Zlaya and @CP6033 had a tactical slugfest where both sides had won positions. It was @CP6033 who landed the fatal blow.

After nine rounds, I was a point ahead of the field, and was paired against @Ochen_Zlaya. 

As in other games, I reached a lost position, but managed to find a saving tactic that guaranteed me first place.

There were other interesting games in the last round. Unfortunately, I've misplaced my analysis of the following endgame between @Midav_Vekhear and @joseph010405, but it really does deserve close study. This endgame is worth studying for several hours without an engine running to work out everything going on. So, with very minimal notes, enjoy!

What a fascinating endgame, and what a way to finish the tournament!

As you can see, it takes luck to win a tournament. It isn't just what happens on your own board, other games have to turn out just right too.