IM Mashafizul win 2009 Malaysian Master

IM Mashafizul Helmi (right) received the winning check (RM 4,000) from Malaysian Chess Federation Vice President - Tn. Hj. Ibrahim Abu Bakar (left)

20th December 2009 - IM Mashafizul beat FM Nicholas Chan 3.5-0.5 to win the 2009 Malaysian Master Champion. Mas received RM 4,000 as the champion and FM Nicholas Chan received RM 2000 as the runner - up.

FM Nicholas Chan (right) received the runners-up check (RM 2,000) from Tn. Hj. Ibrahim Abu Bakar

Nicholas - Mashafizul Game 4: LIVE

Game 4 start at 3.30 pm. Nicholas can't afford to lose this game, if Mas win the match is over.

FM Nicholas Chan (2402) - IM Mashafizul (2419)
Malaysian Master (Final), Game 4, 20.12.09

Analysed by Hairulov and Fritz

1. Nf3 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qb3 Probably Nicholas doesn't one to double his c-pawn as happen in game 2 yesterday which he lost 4...a5 5. g3 d5 Fritz opening book end here. The computer suggest three alternative - 5...b6; 5.0-0 or 5...Nc6 6. a3 Be7 7. d4 O-O 8. Bg2 c6 9. O-O a4 10. Qa2 Not a normal square for the queen to reside especially in just 10th move. I prefer 10.Qd1 and the queen has more option later 10...b6

We got Mr.Ibrahim, Tan Kei Wei , NM Edward Lee and....

IM Lim Yee Weng in the house for game 4

11.Rd1 Ba6

Black has to settle his light square bishop problem especially when he has c6-d5-e6 pawn centre 12.Ne5 Nfd7

yours truly analysing and blogging game 4 live .

13.Nxd7 Former National player- Mohd Saprin Sabri suggest an intersting line 13. cxd5 Nxe5 14. dxe5 cxd5 15. Nxd5 exd5 16. Bxd5 Kh8 17. Bf4 Ra7 and advantage to white

13...Nxd7 14.cxd5 Mas is using quite a lot of time to consider whether to take with 14...cxd5 or 14...exd5

14...cxd5 15. e4 Bc4 16. Qb1 Nf6 17. e5 Nd7 18. Re1 b5 19. Qc2 Qb6 20. Qd1 Nb8 21. Qg4 Kh8 22. Be3 Nc6 23. Ne2 Bxe2?! 23...b4!? is probably better . Probably Mas didn't want white to play Nf4-Nh5

24. Rxe2 Na5 25. Rd1 Rac8 26. h4 Rc4 27. h5 Nb3 28.Bf1 28.h6 look more promising

28...b4 29.axb4 Qxb4 30.f3 IM elect Mok Tze Meng doesn't like this move ...as he said to me about 30.f3 - "what for?"

30..Rfc8 31.Qf4 Kg8 32.Rf2 R4c7 33.Bd3 Bf8 34.Kg2 Na5 35.Ra1 could'nt understand this move. But according to Mok Tze Meng, white has no plan .

35...Qb3 36. Bb1 Qb5 Time for both players now :- Nicholas 13 minutes - Mas 7 minutes

37.Kh2 Nb3 38.Ra2 Nc1 39.Ra1? This could be the desicive mistake. White should have take the dangerous knight with 39.Bxc1

39... Ne2! 40.Qg4 Qxb2 Time to resign - as what Mok said

41.h6 Qxa1 42.hxg7 Qxb1 43.hxf8+=Q Kxf8 44.Bh6+ Ke7 45.Rxe2 Rc2 46.Bd2 R2c4
Mas should have just push the pawn with 46... a3! for e.g 47. Qg5+ Kd7 48. Qg7 Re8 49. Qxf7+ Re7 50. Qf8 a2 47. Qg5+ Kd7 48. Qf4 Qf5 49. Qe3 f6 50.g4 Qg5 51.Qd3 both players in time trouble . 51... Qh4+ 52.Kg2 f5 53.Be1 Qe7 54.gxf5 Qg5+ 55. Kf1 Qxf5 56.Qa3 Qf8 57. Qd3 Rb8 58. Qxh7+ Qe7 59. Qh6 Rb3 60. Bh4 Rxf3+ 61. Kg2 Qf8 62.Qg6 Qf5 63. Qg7+ Qf7 64. Qg4 Rcc3 65. Rb2 Kc6 66. Be1 Rce3 67. Rc2+ Kd7 68. Bh4 Re4 69. Qg5 Rxh4 70. Qxh4 Qg6+ 71. Kxf3 Qd3+ 72. Kf4 Qxc2 73. Qh8 Qf2+ 74. Kg4 Qxd4+ 75. Kg3 Qd3+ 76. Kg2 Qe2+ 77. Kg3 a3 78. Qb8 Qd3+ 79. Kh4 Qc4+ 80. Kg5 Qc7 81. Qb5+ Kd8 82. Qa6 Qxe5+ 83. Kg6 Qf5+ 84. Kg7 Qg5+ 85. Kf7 Qe7+ 86. Kg6 Qb4 87. Kf7 Kc7 88. Qa7+ Kc6 89. Kf6 Kb5 90. Kxe6 Qc5 91. Qh7 a2 92. Qd3+ Qc4 93. Qa3 d4+ 94. Kd7 Qa4 0-1 Nicholas Resign 0-1 Mas win the game and the match 3.5-0.5

Mashafizul - Nicholas Game 3 : LIVE

20th December 2009 - Game 3 proceed today with Mas leading the match 2-0. The Final Malaysian Master Match between Malaysian no.1- IM Mashafizul vs Malaysian no.2 - Nicholas Chan consist six classical time control game . Nicholas can't afford to lose game 3 if he want to avoid playing under a must winning situation for game 4,5 and 6.


* I'm now at DATCC doing live coverage. IM elect Mok Tze Meng is also here blogging with Andrew Gilachess, Shirajuddin and few others.

IM Mashafizul (2419) - FM Nicholas Chan (2402)

Malaysian Master (Final), Game 3, 20.12.09

Analysed by Hairulov and Fritz

1. d4 c5 2. d5 Nf6 3. Nc3 d6 4. e4 g6 5. Nf3 Bg7 6. Nd2 O-O 7. Be2 Nbd7 Fritz opening book suggest 7...Na6 and game can continue for e.g 8.0-0 Nc7 9.a4 b6 10.Nc4 Ba6

8. O-O Ne8 9. a4 Rb8 10. f4 a6 11. a5 It's clear that Mas will focus on b6 square. Both of his knight going towards that direaction for e.g Nc4-Nb6 and/or Na4-Nb6

11...Nc7 12. Nc4 Nb5 13. Na4 Nf6 14. Bd3 14.Bf3 is probably better

14...e6 15. Nab6 exd5 16. Nxd5 Nxd5 17. exd5 f5 18. c3 Mas take his own sweet time to prevent black's to put his piece (knight,bishop) on the active d4 square

18...Nc7 The knight see no future on d4 square so that's probably why Nicholas choose to relocate it

19. Nb6 Bd7 20. Be3 Be8 The idea of this move if to play Bf7 later- attacking d5

21. Qd2 Na8 Black choose to trade his passive knight with white's active one on b6

22.Nc4 Bb5?! 22...Bf7 look more consistent. If black want to play Bb5 he should play it from d7 and not waste move by playing Bd7-Be8 and then Bb5

23.Bf2 Re8 24.Rfe1 Qc7 25.Ne3 Bxd3 26.Qxd3 Bh6 27.g3 after this move White bishop look passive. Fritz suggest 30.g4!? to open the position . The possible continuation is 30...Bxf4 31.gxf5

27...Qd7 28.Nc4 Qb5 29.Re6 I think this is the first aggresive move by both player . Mas is planning to double the rook on e-file and also attack the d6 pawn.

29...Bf8 30.Rae1 Nc7 31.R6e2 It looks like Mas has lost all his advantage. The move 32.Re6 is probably the reason because it looks like white's has wasting move playing Re6 -Re2 while black gain tempo by playing Nc7

You can see Andrew Ooi, IM Mok Tze Meng blogging and others help providing the moves

31...Rxe2 32.Rd8 33. h3 Ng7 34. Re2 Nh5 35. Kg2 Bh6 36. Kf3 Rf8 ?

This move is condemn by everyone - Fritz, Rybka and carbon based - IM Mok Tze Meng !

37. Re6! Nf6? 37...Rf6 must be played to protect the vulnerable d6 . The move also can allow the bishop on h6 to retreat on f8 later

38.Qe2 Qb3 39.Be3?! why not taking the d6 pawn ? for e.g 39.Rxd6 Ne4 40.Nd2! probably Mas missed this move

39...Ne4 40.g4! Now i see "real" Mas - according to Mok Tze Meng !

40...Bg7 41.g5?! Fritz didn't like this move and suggest 42...Bc1 instead. 41... Bg7 42.h4 Kf7

43.Bc1 Rd7 44.h5?! Mas missed 44.Rxd6 for e.g 44...Nxd6 45.Qe6+ Kf8 46.Nxd6

44...Rd8 45.Kg2 Mas should have just take the d6 pawn with 45. Rxd6! Rxd6 ( 45... Nxd6 47. Qe6+) 46. Nxd6+ Kg8 47. Nxe4 fxe4+ 48. Qxe4

45... Qb5 46. Kh3 Qb3 47.Ne3 Qb5 48.Nc4 Bh8 49. Kg2 Rd7?

50. Kf3? Both players is in time trouble so they start to make mistake. Mas missed 50.Rxd6! and if 50...Nxd6 51.Qe6+ Kf8 52.Nxd6 and black has serious problems

50...Bg7 51. Be3 Qb3 52. Qd3 Qa2?

53. hxg6+ hxg6 54. Rxe4! 54... fxe4+ 55. Qxe4 Re7

56. Qd3? In severe time trouble Mas missed the winning move 56. Nxd6+ Kf8 The different is now black's king is force to retreat on f8 to guard his rook on e7 57. Qd3 Qxb2 58. Bxc5 56... Kg8 57. Nxd6 Qxb2 58.Qxg6 Qh2 1/2-1/2 both players agreed to draw. Mas lead the match 2.5-0.5

Nicholas - Mashafizul Game 2: 0-1

FM Nicholas Chan (2402) - IM Mashafizul (2419)
Malaysian Master (Final) Game 2, 19.12.2009

Analysed by Hairulov and Fritz

1. c4 e5 2. Nc3 Nf6 3. g3 Bb4 4. Qb3 Nc6 5. Bg2 5.Nd5 is suggest by Fritz in its opening book 5...Nd4 6. Qd1 O-O 7. e3 Bxc3 8. bxc3 Mas give black a double pawn but concede his bishop pair 8...Ne6 Quite unusual , 8...Nc6 looks more logical 9.e4 9...d4 to open the game is probably better. Nicholas probably want to prevent black's to play d5 but actually open the game will only give White's the upper hand due to his bishop pair advantage .
9... Qe7 10. Ne2 Nc5 11. d3 Qd6? This move is a mistake because white have 12. d4! Mas must have realised now that his 11th move was a mistake because after 12...Ncxe4 13.Qc2 or 13. f3 will simply trap Black's knight!

12...Ncxe4 The problem with move like 12...Na6 is white have the strong 13.f4! Ne8 (13...exd4? 14.e5 losing a piece) 14.fxe5 and black is hopeless 13. Qc2 Nxf2 14. Kxf2 Mas got two pawn for his knight and White's king is tuck in the centre because he has lost the right to castle 14...Ng4+ 15. Ke1 Re8 16.Qf5?! Now Black's have the opportunity to complicate the game with 16...exd4 17.Qxg4 d3! 16...exd4 17. Bd5? Nicholas should just take the knight for e.g 17. Qxg4 d3 18. Bf3 Qf6 19. Bd2 dxe2 20. Qf4 and still held the advantage despite the ugly looking position 17... Nf6 18. cxd4 c6 19. Bf3 Qxd4 20. Rb1 Qxc4 "Mas - The Pawn Grabber" 21. Bb2 d5 22. Qf4 Ne4 23. Rc1 Qxa2 24. Bh5? A mistake in already difficult position 24...Be6 Stronger is 24... g6! and White will lost his his bishop on b2 or h5 for e.g 25. Rf1 Bf5 26. Bc3 Nxc3 27. Rxc3 gxh5 25. Rf1 Qxb2 0-1 Mas lead the match 2-0

Mashafizul - Nicholas Game 1 LIVE !

Sorry guys, i couldn't make it to DATCC to cover live for game 1 and 2 today because my daughter is not feeling well and i have to look after her. But the good news is i still can follow and comment the game thanks to Andrew Ooi who is doing live game broadcasting in his blog !

Analysed by Hairulov and Fritz

IM Mashafizul Helmi vs FM Nicholas Chan

Malaysian Master (Final), Game 1, 19.12.09

1. e4 c5 2. f4 Mas old favourite variation. Sicilian Grand Prix Attack . 2...d5 3. exd5 Nf6 Black sacrifice a pawn for active play. This is all normal and approved by theory. 4. Bb5+ Bd7 5. Bxd7+ Qxd7 6. c4 e6 7. Qe2 Bd6 8. d3 O-O 9. dxe6 fxe6 10. Nf3 Nc6 11. O-O Rae8 12. Nc3 e5 13. f5 Nd4 14. Qd1 Nxf5 15. Bg5 Ng4 16. Qd2 Nd4 17. Ne4 Be7 My opening book end here . 18. Bxe7 Qxe7 19. Rae1 Nxf3+ 20. Rxf3 Rxf3 21. gxf3 Nh6 22. f4 exf4? Looks like this is a clear mistake. Black have to give material after 23.Nf6+ .
23. Nf6+ Qxf6 24. Rxe8+ Kf7 25. Re4 g5 26. h4 Nf5 27. hxg5 Qxg5+ 28. Qg2 Qh4 29.Re2 Kf6 Black can also sac a pawn for initiative with 29...Ne3!? 30.Qxb7+ Kf6. 30.Qxb7 My old friend Fritz 11 prefer 30.Re8 instead, probably with the idea of attacking the king from behind !? 30...Qg3+ 31.Qg2 Nd4 32. Rf2 Kg5? Black should retain the queen with 31...Qe3 . Now Mas has less problem after exchanging the queen with 33.Qxg3 fxg3 34.Rf8 attacking the King and pawn dangerous g-pawn from behind 33. Kf1 33. Qxg3+! fxg3 34. Rf8 would be much simpler. The rook attack from behind. 33...
Nf5 34. Qf3 h5 A nice tricky move by Nicholas. 35. b4 Mas decide to push his pawn majority on the queenside before it's too late. If 35. Rg2? and the advantage turn to black after 35... Ne3+! 36. Qxe3 Qxg2+ 37. Kxg2 fxe3 35... Qxf3 ? 35...Ne3 will give more headace to white 36. Rxf3 36...Kg4? 36... cxb4 must be play and black at least have a chance to create passed pawn on the queenside with a and b pawn vs white's a pawn 37. Rf2 Ne3+?! once again cxb4 should be played 38. Ke2 Kg3?! ..and again cxb4 39. bxc5 Nf5 40. Rf3+
Kg4 41. Rf1 To avoid 41...Nd4+ forking white's rook and King 41...h4 42. Kf2 Nd4 43. Rg1+ Kf5 44. Rg7 Black's isolated passed pawn is weak and black's rook can attack it from behind while his king faced the passed pawn from the front 44...h3 45. Rxa7 Nc6 46. Rh7 Kg4 47.
Rh6 Ne5 48. c6 Nxd3+ 49. Ke2 1-0 Mas win game 1.

Final Malaysian Master 2009 - Mas vs Nicholas

After a hectic weeks working non-stop to prepare reports for the parliment session and attending meetings in Johore to discuss and prepare next year target for my deparment , i'm happy that all the works have been settle which give me time to catch up with the Mashafizul-Nicholas , Malaysia Master Final ! If God willing, i will be covering all the games live .


According to DATCC blog, the schedule for the finals is as follow:-

Saturday 19 Dec 2009

Game 1 1030 hours

Game 2 1500 hours

Sunday 20 Dec 2009

Game 3 1030 hours

Game 4 1500 hours

* Game 5 and 6 to be decided at a later date

Venue: Dato' Arthur Tan Chess Centre, Wilayah Kompleks , Kuala Lumpur,

lim yee weng - Nicholas game 2

Nicholas (photo left) win the second game in style.

FM Nicholas Chan (2402) - IM Lim Yee Weng (2336) [B00]
Malaysian Master semifinal (Game 2), 27.11.2009

Analysed by Hairulov and Rybka

1. d4 d5 2. c4 dxc4 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. e3 e6 5. Bxc4 a6 6. O-O c5 7. Qe2 b5 8. Bb3 Bb7 9. Rd1 Nbd7 10. a4 b4 11. a5 Qc7 12. Nbd2 Be7 13. Bc4 O-O 14. Bd3 Rfd8 15. h3 Nd5
My opening book give 15... h6 16. Ne4 cxd4 17. exd4 N7f6 18. Ne5 Nxe4 19. Bxe4 Nf6 20. Bd3 g6 21. Be3 Rdc8 22. Rdc1 Qd8 23. Nc4 black plan the obvious Nb6 forking black rooks 23...Nd5 24. Be4 Rab8 25. Bd3 not 25. Bxd5?! because after 25...Qxd5 black threaten mate on g2 and black have no serious problem after 26. f3 Rc7 25... Bc6 26. Ne5 Bb5 27. Bxb5 Rxb5 28. Qf3 Bf6 29. Rxc8 Qxc8 30. Rc1 Qe8 31. Ng4 Bg7 32. Nh6+ Bxh6 33. Bxh6 Rxa5

Although black is a pawn up, he has serious weakness on his king side's dark square 34. Qg3 Rb5 35. Qe5 f6 36. Qd6 Rb6 37. Qc5 Rb8? Yee Weng mistakenly let white's queen to penetrate black 7th rank 38. Qa7 white simply threaten mate on g7! 38...Ne7 39. Rc7 Now come another major pieces into black 7th rank ! 39...Nf5 40. Rg7+ ! This tempo gaining move is probably missed by Yee Weng. Maybe he taught that Nicholas will fall into a perpetual after the greedy 40. Rxh7 Ra8 41. Qb7 Rb8 42. Qc7 Rc8 = draw 40... Kh8 of course 40... Nxg7 ?? 41. Qxg7# checkmate 41. Rxh7+ Kg8 Now the bishop is free to move with a tempo 42. Bf4 Ra8 43. Qb7 Black does not have the perpetual 43...Rb8 because white's bishop simply guard the b8 square 43...g5 44. g4 Qg6 of course not 44... gxf4?? 45. gxf5 Qf8 46. Rh4 and black can simply resign 45. gxf5 exf5 46. Qxa8+ Kxh7 47. Qb7+ Kh6 48. Bd6 a5 49. Qc8 Qf7 50. Qxf5 1-0

Lim Yee Weng - Nicholas Game 1

Nicholas start his semifinal match with a psychological "win" against IM Lim Yee Weng. He bravely invite his opponent to play against the Sicilian Dragon which his opponent know inside out. In the end, Nicholas managed to draw the game with black !

IM Lim Yee Weng (2336) - FM Nicholas Chan (2402) [B00]
Malaysian Master semifinal (Game 1), 27.11.2009

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 g6

This is a suicide attempt or act of a sheer bravery . Nicholas must have already know that his opponent has just deliver a seminar recently on the Sicilian Dragon. With 4...g6, he invite Yee Weng to fight against his own opening!? 5.c4 A psychological win for Nicholas ? Yee Weng avoid 5.Nc3 which can lead into the Dragon Variation but instead opt for the boring but effective - Maracozy Bind formation. 5...Nf6 6.Nc3 Nxd4 7.Qxd4 d6 8.Bg5 Bg7 9.Qd2 0–0 10.Bd3 Be6 11.Rc1 Ng4 12.Be2 f6 13.Bxg4 Bxg4 14.Be3 Qa5 15.0–0 Be6 16.b3 a6 17.Rfd1 Rac8 18.Qe2 Qh5 19.f3 Bh6 20.Nd5 Rfe8 21.Bxh6 Qxh6 22.Rc3 Kf8 23.Rcd3 Rc5 24.a4 Rec8 25.R3d2 R5c6 26.Nb4 Rc5 27.Nd5 R5c6 28.Nb4 ½–½

Nicholas beat Yee Weng to proceed to the Final !

FM Nicholas Chan beat IM Lim Yee Weng in the Malaysian Master 2nd Semifinal Match which ended today. The Dr. to be lead 1.5 -0.5 yesterday and conclude the match by winning the third game today . With this win, Nicholas will meet IM Mashafizul in the final of the Malaysian Masters final which will be played over six rounds ( best of 6). In the event the score is tied the organizers will arrange for a play off as per FIDE regulations. The details of the Final is as follow:-


Date

20 th Dec 2009 Friday 7.00 pm round 1

21 st Dec 2009 Saturday 10.30am round 2

21st Dec 2009 saturday 3.00pm round 3

22nd Dec 2009 Sunday 10.30pm round 4

22nd Dec 2009 sunday 3.00 pm round 5

* In the event no definite results over 5 rounds the six round schedule will be announce in due course .

Venue

DATCC 4th Floor Wilayah Complex

all games will have live coverage and all are invited to watch these games


* Mas Hafizulhilmi will be playing in Vietnam and Singapore before his match with Nicholas.

Nicholas is currently doing his final year medicine in Malacca and sitting for his final papers in February.

source : DATCC blog

Malaysian Masters (SEMI FINAL) - IM Yee Weng vs FM Nicholas Chan

The Malaysian Masters Semi Finals Knock Out Match between newly crowned IM Lim Yee Weng vs FM Nicholas Chan will be played over 2 days as follows:


Friday, 27 Nov 2009

Game 1 0930
Game 2 1500

Saturday, 28 Nov 2009

Game 3 0930
Game 4 1500

In the event there is a tied (2-2) result, then the playoff rapid match will be held on Sunday, 29 Nov.

All games will be held in Dato' Arthur Tan Chess Center in Wilayah Kompleks. Spectators are welcome to watch.

Mok - Mas Game 2 (Rapid Tie-break) : Mas draw game 2 and win the match!

IM Mashafizul (right) deliverd the check to losing semifinalist - FM Mok Tze Meng

I just arrive at DATCC and missed the early part of Mas-Mok game 1 of the rapid tie break. Mas won the game after Mok blunder a rook at the end of the game .

Mok Tze Meng- IM Mashafizul [B20]
Rapid Tie break(2), Malaysian Master (Semifinal) 01.11.2009

1.e4 c5 2.d4 Mok play Smith Morra Gambit ! 2...cxd4 3.c3 g6 4.cxd4 d5 5.exd5 Nf6 6.Bb5+ Nbd7 7.Nc3 a6 8.Bxd7+ Qxd7 9.Qb3!? Rybka opening book give 9.Nf3 . Mok's move is probably to play for initiative at the cost of weakening his king safety. 9... Qg4 10.Nge2 Qxg2 11.Rg1 Qh3 Rybka endorsed black to capture the h2 pawn but Mas said to me that after 11...qxh2 white have strong initiative with 13.Bf4 followed by castling queenside 12.Rg3 Qf5 13.Rg5 Qf3 14.Rg3 Qf5 15.Na4 b5 16.Nb6 Rb8 17.Rg5 Qh3 18.Rg3 Qf5 19.Rg5 Qh3 20.Rg3 Qf5 1/2-1/2 Mas offer a draw and Mok agree. Mas win the match and will proceed to the final !

Mas vs Mok Game 3 and 4 Photos!

Below is some of the photos taken in Mas - Mok Semifinal Malaysian Master Match ( game 3 and 4) .

Mok waiting for Mashafizul before game 3 start. Mas was trapped in the traffic jam in KL.

Mas wear his employer shirt - PETRONAS and arrive at 2.30pm. International Arbiter (IA) Abdul Hamid Majid gave a short briefing to the players before they start game 3.

Many chess lovers visit and kitbiz during the match. Among others Sirajuddin, Wong Zi Jing father- Mr. Wong, Hisyam Ismail - son of Ismail Ahmad, Firdaus from Putrajaya , NM Yeoh Chin Seng and his son Yeoh Li Tian, Chuah Heng Meng, Mr. Ibrahim Abu Bakar - MCF Vice President...

Mas start game 3 with 1.d4 and win

Hisyam Ismail - son of the World Police Chess Champion Ismail Ahmad was there too. Hisyam is the one who post the Mas-Mok first and second game moves at the datcc's blog.

NM Yeoh Chin Seng (left) and his son Yeoh Li Tian take a break from analysing game 4 and play Chinese chess!?

My friend - Firdaus came all the way from Putrajaya!

The player shake hand before game 4 start

Mok - Mas Game 4 LIVE !

Game 4 start now!

Refresh this page from time to time to get the latest move/comment.

FM Mok Tze Meng - IM Mashafizul Hilmi
Malaysian Master (Semifinal), Game 4, 31.10.09

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 both player repeat game 2 move. Will Mok play 3.Bb5+ Moscow variation? 3.Bb5+ Yup. Mok choose to divert from yesterday theoretical game. 3...Nd7 Kasparov favourite choose. He prefer to keep the double bishop. Alternative is 3...Bd7 4.0-0 Nf6 5.Re1 a6 6.Bf1 Note : According to the Arbiter Mr. Hamid, if game 4 draw, the tie break will be held tomorrow. 6...b6 7.d4 cxd4 8.Nxd4 Bb7 9.Nc3 One interesting line is 10.c4!? sacrificing the e4 pawn 10...Nxe4 11.f3 Nef6 12.Nf5! e6 13.Nxd6 and get the pawn back with initiative 9...e6 10.Bg5 Rybka opening book give 10.g3 Be7 11.Bg2 10... h6 11.Bh4 g5 Mas played aggresively. He can opt for safer option with 11...Be7 12.Bg3 Ne5!? Mas doesn't mind to double his pawn for double bishop after 13.Bxe5 dxe5 14.Nf3 Qc7 13.Nf3 Qc7 14.a4 Be7 15.Ra3!? A surprise move by Mok. Is he planning Rb3 later? 15...Nh5 Rybka give a wild suggestion 16.Nb5! axb5 17.Nxe5 Nxg3 18.Bxb5 16.Nxe5 Nxg3 17.Nb5! Thing is getting hotter and hotter plus the air-condition in the computer room in DATCC where i'm blogging live is not working :) ..Ok now the air condition is working but the game is still hot. Mas spent quite sometime to reply to Mok interesting sacrifiece. 17...Qb8 Mas choose not to take the bait. If 17...axb5 18.Bb5+ Kf8 19.Nd7+ Kg8 20.Rc3 Qd8 21.hxg3 and white have strong initiative. Meanwhile NM Yeoh Chin Seng and his son Yeoh Li Tian is playing chinese chess . Probably they decide to take a rest from kitbizing the wild position in Mas and Mok game right now :) 18.Rc3! the knight on g3 can wait ( to be capture!) Mas has to be carefull. He is walking in a dangerous field full with minesweeper! 18...dxe5 The only move. Others lead to disaster. 19.Nc7+ Kf8 20.Nxa8 Rybka suggest 20.hxg3 instead for e.g 20...Bb4 21.Nxa8 Bxc3 22. Nxb6 Qc7 ( not 22...Bxe1?? 23.Nd7+ win the queen1) 20...Nxe4 21.Nxb6 21.Rxe4 is stronger according to Rybka for e.g 21...Bxe4 22.Qd7 threatening Rc8! 21...Nxc3 Now black is ok 22.bxc3 Mok have 24 minutes and Mas 26 minutes. 22...Qc7 23.Nd7+ Kg7 24.Nxe5 Bf6 25.Nc4 Rd8 Mok has 14 minutes and Mas 25 minutes. Gentlemen note that there's mistake on the 25 move. Mas actually play 25...Rd8 not 25...bxc3 26.Qb1 Bxc3 27.Rd1 Bd4 28.c3 there's trap here 28...Bxc3?? 29.Rxd8 Qxd8 30.Qxb7 and black will lose 28...Bf6 29.Rxd8 Bxd8 30.a5 Bd5 31.Qb4 Bf6 32.h3 Mok make a luft probably to avoid back rank mate. Just in case ! 32...Qc6 33.Kh1 Anyone know the idea behind this move? It actually my Rybka second chooise. Now Mas is behind on time ! Mok 3 minutes and Mas 2 minutes 33...Qc7 34.Kg1 draw? 34...Qc6 35.Kh1 1/-2 1/2 draw ..so see tomorow. The players will play two rapid game 25 minute + 10 second increment. The game will start at 9 am. If still draw then blitz game will decide the winner.

Mas beat Mok Game 3 , Malaysian Master 2009 (semifinal(

I'm at DATCC to cover the 3rd game - Mas vs Mok . The game is rescheduled to start at 2 pm, however Mas is now stuck in traffic jammed somewhere in KL so probably we have to wait a little bit longer. Stay tune !

There's many visitor today! NM Yeoh Chin Seng, Yeoh Li Tian, Chuah Heng Meng, Hisyam Ismail Ahmad ...etc...

IM Mashafizul Helmi vs FM Mok Tze Meng
Game 3, Malaysian Master (Semifinal),31.09.10

Will Mas play 1.d4? Mok think Mas will play 1.e4 but he said the question is whether he will play Mo(k)dern or not? To fuel thing up ..i said to Mok who patiently wait for Mas that Mas will play Nf3-g3 1.d4 so both of us wrong. Mas played 1.d4. The question now is whether Mok will play Mo(k)dern or Benko Gambit ? 1...g6 "hari-hari pun Mo(k)dern - Sirajuddin! 2.e4 Bg7 3.Nc3 d6 with this Mok will not have the c6-d5 option. The game now can transpose to Pirc 4.Be3 if Mas play f3 the game will lead to English attack set-up 4...e5 Now this is not in the book! As game 1 yesterday, Mok prefer to divert from normal path at early stage. We will see how Mas react. 5.dxe5 dxe5 Mok willing to lose his castling option after 6.Qxd8+ Kxd8 probably because without the queens , the need of castling is not that important 7.0-0-0 Nd7 8.Bc4 f6 9.h4 c6 10.h5 g5 11.a4 Kc7 12.Nge2 Nh6 13.f3 Re8 14.Ng3 Yeoh Chin Seng is not really sure about this move. Rybka suggest 14.Rd3 followed by 15.Rhd1 - doubling the rook on d-file 14...Nb6 Mok intention is clear. He will play Be6 next to exchange his passive bishop 15.Bb3 Yeoh Chin Seng think that black will play 15...Be6 then 16.Bxe6 Rxe6 and then white will play 17.b3 to prevent black's knight to go to c4. Mok has already take a long time over this move, about 30 minutes. What is he thinking? Meanwhile, we got more visitor..Mr.Ibrahim (MCF Vice President), Mr.Wong (father of IM Wong Zi Jing). 15...a5 Probably Mok choose to prevent a4-a5 first and then only play Be6 16.Rd3 Mas played this instantly. He got 1 hour and 14 minutes and Mok only 30 minutes! 16...Bf8 17.Rhd1 Mas played this instantly but Rybka suggest nice sacrifiece with 17.Nb5+! 17...cxb5 18. Rc3+ Kb8 19.Bxb6 17...Bb4 18.Na2?! Mas should have play 18.Bxb6! Kxb6 then 19.Rd8! penetrating black position with his rooks 18... Be7 Now he can't play Rd8 19.Nc3 Mok really down on time. He has 11 minutes only and Mas got 1 hour! 19...Nd7 20.Nf5 Nxf5 21.exf5 Nc5 22.Bxc5 Bxc5 23.Ne4 Be7 24.g4 h6 25.Be6 Bxe6?! Rybka didn't like this move. Mok should have play 25...Kb6 26.fxe6 Rad8 27.Rd7+ Rxd7 28.Rxd7 Now white penetrate black's position 28...Kc8 29.c3 Kb8 30.Kc2 Mas improve his King position. He got all the time in the world 30...Kc8 31.Kb3 Kb8 Mok's King is oscillating between b8-c8 without any clear direction but probably he want to gain more time. 32.Kc4 Kc8 33.Ng3 Bd8 34.Rh7 Rxe6 35.Rxh6 White's passed h- pawn will win the game 35...b5+ 36.Kd3 Rd6+ 37.Kc2 bxa4 38.Rg6 Rd7 39.h6 1-0 Mok resign. The last game will be interesting ! Game 4 will start at 6.15pm

Mok draw first blood!

30.09.2001 - The underdog-FM Mok Tze Meng produced a stunning result by winning the first game (as black!) against Malsyian no.1 - IM Mashafizul in the Malaysian Master (semifinal match) held in DATCC, KL . Mok show no fear by playing his beloved opening - Mo(k)dern Defense which his opponent must have studied it deeply before the match. Instead Mok come with a new "dubious" looking move (6...e6) which manage to confuse Mas who failed to choose the correct plan against it. With Mas looking clueless in the middlegame, Mok slowly but steadily invade Mas position. Somewhere in the middle game, Mas blundered a pawn and his position getting worse move after move. In the end, Mas had to resign due to black's passed pawn armada which is hard for him to handle.

IM Mashafizul Helmi vs FM Mok Tze Meng

Malaysian Master (Semifinal) Game 1, 30.09.2009

1. e4 g6 2. d4 Bg7 3. Nc3 c6 4. f4 d5 5. e5 h5 6. Be3 e6?! Voluntarily restrict the mobility of his light square bishop which look like a dubious looking plan but Mok has his own idea! 7. Nf3 b6 8. Qd2 Ba6 An original way to dispose his passive piece. 9. O-O-O Nh6 10. g3 Bxf1 11. Rdxf1 Nd7 12. h3 b5 13. Rfg1 Nb6 14. Bf2 Nc4 15. Qd3 Qa5 16. Kb1 Bf8 17. Nd1 Rb8 18. g4 Rb6 19. Be1 b4 20. Bh4 Be7 21. Rg2? Mas main problem start here. He should have play 21.Bxe7 21...Ra6 22. Qb3 Bxh4 23. Nxh4 hxg4 24. hxg4 Nxg4! Mas probably missed this cute tactic. 25.Rxg4? is of course lost to 25...Nd2+ and white lost his queen. 25.Kc1 Qxa2 26. Qxa2 Rxa2 27. Kb1 Nge3 28. Re2 Nxd1 29. Kxa2 Ndxb2 30. Kb3 Kd7 31. Ree1 a5 32. Rb1 a4+ 33. Kxb4 Rb8+ 34. Kc3 a3 35. Ra1 Na4+ 36. Kd3 c5 37. Nf3 Ke7 38. dxc5 Nxc5+ 39. Kd4 Ne4 40. Rhb1 Rb2 41. Rc1 Rb8 42. Ne1 Rh8 43. Nf3 Rb8 44. Rab1 Rb2 45. Ne1 Ned2 46. Ra1 Rb8 47. Nd3 Rh8 48. Rh1 Rc8 49. Nb4 Rc7 50. Rh8 g5 51. f5 Nf3+ 52. Kc3 Nfxe5 53. fxe6 fxe6 54. Rg8 g4 55. Rh1 Kd6 56. Rd8+ Rd7 57. Ra8 Rc7 58. Ra6+ Nc6 59. Kb3 Kc5 60. Nd3+ Kd4 61. Rh4 e5 62. Rxg4+ e4 63. Ra4 Rb7+ 64. Nb4 Nxb4 65. c3+ Kd3 66. Rxb4 Rxb4+ 67. cxb4 e3 0-1

Lim Yee Weng beat Edward Lee and advance to the semifinal !

I arrive around 2pm at DATCC and surprisingly found that the game is already draw so FM Lim Yee Weng win the match with 2.5-1.5 and advance to the semifinal.

NM Edward Lee - FM Lim Yee Weng
Malaysian Masters (Round 4), 13.9.09

1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.e5 Nfd7 5.f4 c5 6.Nf3 Nc6 7.Be3 cxd4 8.Nxd4 Bc5 9.Qd2 Nxd4 10.Bxd4 Bxd4 11.Qxd4 Qb6 1/2-1/2

IM elect - Mok Tze Meng (centre) analysed the 3rd game with the players after the match finish.

According to the match arbiter - IA Mr. Hamid Majid, IM Mashafizul will meet FM Mok Tze Meng and FM Nicholas Chan will meet FM Lim Yee Weng in the semis.

The 4th Quarter Final Match Winner - FM Lim Yee Weng(left) give the prize money (RM 500) to NM Edward Lee

Lim Yee Weng beat Edward Lee, 3rd Game, Malaysian Masters 2009 !

Game 3 and game 4 resume today. Sirajuddin is providing the moves via DATCC blog.

FM Lim Yee Weng vs. NM Edward Lee

Malaysian Masters, Game 3, 13.9.09

Analysed by Hairulov and Rybka 3

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nc3 d5 3. Bg5 Veresov Opening a rather off beat opening . IM Jimmy Liew is an expert in this opening. I noticed that Yee Weng never (read: usually) played main line opening. 3... Nbd7 4. f3 h6 I prefer one dynamic line starting with h 4...c6 5.e4 dxe4 6. fxe4 e5! 7.dxe5 Qa5! 8.exf6 Qxg5 9.fxg7 Bxg7 with active play 5. Bf4 The bishop usually retreat to h4. At f4 white is threatening Nb5 attacking the c7. 5...a6 6. e4 dxe4 7. fxe4 e6

Probably better is 7...g5 8. Be3 b5 9.e5?! b4! 10.exf6 bxc3 11.fxe7? Qxe7! 8. Nf3 Bb4 9. e5 Nd5 10. Bd2 Nxc3 11. bxc3 Be7 12. Bd3 b5 13. a4! A good move. With this move white threaten to take on b5 so black has to play 13...bxa4 ( 13...c6?! is an ugly move which made the c8 bishop look passive) which give white chance to strengthen his centre with c4 13... bxa4 14. c4 !? Yee Weng can take the pawn immediately with 14.Rxa4 but after 14...Nb6 black has manage to cover the c4 and d5 square. Yee Weng probably has decide that black's weak a- pawn can be capture later so he choose to rapidly booster his centre pawn 14...Bb7 15. O-O c5 16. d5! The start of an interesting idea. White sac more pawns to destroy white centre. Black's king who is still stuck in the centre make thing worse. 16... exd5 17. e6! 17... Nf6 In case you are not aware. The natural 17... fxe6?? 18. Bg6+ Kf8 19. Ng5+ (19...Kg8?? 20. Bf7+ Kf8 21. Nxe6#) 19...Bf6 20.Nxe6 and black will lost his king 18. Ne5 I bet this is not a position Edward expect to face today. 18... dxc4 19. exf7+ Kf8 20. Ng6+?! Yee Weng decide to cover back his material deficit which is not the best idea in this position. He should maintain the pressure with 20.Nxc4! 20... Kxf7 21. Nxh8+ Kg8 22. Bxc4+ Not 22.Ng6?! cxd3 22...Kxh8 23. Bc3 Qxd1 24. Rfxd1 Bc6 Suddenly black's previously weak a-pawn become a force to reckon with 25. Re1 Bd8 26. Bd3 c4 How things has change. In my comment after white 18th move, i mentioned how difficult black's position is but now i rather be black then white. This game is really a roller-coaster one ! Now 27.Bxc4 would be a serious mistake because black's has the deadly attack for e.g 27...Bb6+ 28.Kh1 ( 28.Kf1? Ne4!) 28...Ng4! 27. Bf5 27. Bxc4 Bb6+ 28. Kf1 Ne4 29. Bb2 Nd2+ 27... Bb6+ 28. Kh1 Nd5 ? The correct move is 28... Bb5 29. Re6 Bc5 30. Bxf6 gxf6 31. Rxf6 29. Re6 Nxc3 30. Rxc6 Bd4 31. Rxc4 Now black lost his c4 pawn. 31...Bf6 32. Rc8+ Rxc8 33. Bxc8 a5? Black should protect his most advance a-pawn with 33... Be7 34. Bxa6 a3 35. Kg1 34. Bd7 Now Black will lose his a4 pawn. Nd5 35. Ra2 Nb4 36. Rxa4 Nxc2 37. Rxa5 White is clearly better in term of material advantage. However because of the play is now restricted to one wing only, there's posibilty ( a small one maybe ) that black can draw especially if he can trade all the remaining pawns. . 37... Nd4 38. Be8 Kg8 39. Bg6 Kf8 40. Ra7 Nc6 41. Rc7 Ne7 42. Be4 Kf7 43. g3 Ke6 Black's king decide to get some "fresh air". 44. Kg2 White's king realise that his army need his assistance. 44...Kd6 45. Ra7 Nc8 46. Ra6+ Ke7 47. Kf3 Nd6 48. Bd5 Nb5 49. Bc4 Nc7 50. Ra7 Kd6 51. Ke4 Bc3 52. Ra3 Bf6 53. Kf5 Bb2 54. Rd3+ Ke7 55. Kg6 White king has walk the talk. I think if white want to win he has to sacrifiece his rook on black's g7 pawn. 55... Ba1 56. Re3+ Kd6 57. Bf7 Bb2 58. Rf3 Ba1 59. Bb3 Ne8 60. Rf7 Be5 61. Ba4 Nf6 62. Rxg7 White managed to captured the g7 pawn 62...Ng4 63. Rd7+ Ke6 64. Rd2 1-0 Yee Weng win. The score is now 2-1 and Edward is in a must win situation in game 4.