Facebook Instagram Linkedin Twitter Youtube
Home Blog Page 11102

The economics of splendor

Splendor is a tabletop card-based game created by Marc Andre, designed by Pascal Quidault, and first released by Space Cowboys in 2014. At first glance, the game looks complicated, maybe even daunting, because the cards look a bit like those of Magic: The Gathering, another card game. I was delighted to learn that some topics I learned in business school are demonstrated in Splendor. Below are my top management and economics lessons from Splendor.
TRADE-OFFS AND OPPORTUNITY COSTS
Splendor is a race to 15 prestige points, played by 2 to 4 players. The players are merchants who take turns in getting gems and gold tokens, which are used to purchase development cards that symbolize mines, transportation methods, and artisans, which will allow you to earn points, as well as get bonus gems that can be used to buy other development cards.
At every turn, a player can get tokens, purchase a card, or reserve a card, which he or she may not be able to afford yet, but will be working towards paying off. A player usually uses the first few turns to collect tokens until he or she has enough to buy cards. Once he or she has enough tokens, the decision to either use the turn for collecting more tokens or letting go of some of these tokens to buy a card becomes harder.
Many of us face a similar dilemma in real life: should I continue working at my current job, or use the resources that I have already saved to invest in something that could make me happier and/or earn more money in the future, such as an entrepreneurial venture or a graduate degree? In economics, an opportunity cost is the cost of the option that one did not take. Unfortunately, most of us cannot tell beforehand which opportunity costs are worth it. We just have to keep playing long enough to know for sure.
LIMITED RESOURCES VS. RENEWABLE RESOURCES
To facilitate transactions, this game uses tokens and development cards. If you use tokens to purchase a development card, the tokens are returned to the bank for the other players to use. If you use a development card to buy another card, you still get to keep the card you used for succeeding transactions, making it a renewable resource. However, there are only 7 tokens for each of the 5 kinds of gems (emerald, sapphire, ruby, diamond, and onyx), and only 5 gold tokens. The number of tokens per gem is reduced to 5 if there are only 3 players, or to 4 if there are only 2 players.
Tokens are limited resources; when they get depleted, players have to wait until the stocks are replenished to be able to use them again. To earn the 15 points as quickly as possible, players cannot depend solely on the limited tokens that can be spent only once. They ought to also invest in something that they can use over and over.
SAVING VS. HOARDING
Splendor allows players to hold 10 tokens at a time. However, that doesn’t prevent some players from hoarding one type of gem. After a few rounds, the rest of the players will have a shortage of diamonds or rubies, making it difficult or even impossible for them to purchase cards. Meanwhile, the hoarder sits on his or her loot and refuses to spend them and put them back in circulation. He or she eventually makes a grand purchase, which allows him or her to earn the 15 points and end the game.
Of course, all the other players will laugh and talk jokingly about how crafty the hoarder’s moves were. But you can be sure that in the next round, these players will gang up on the hoarder and block his or her every move. Worse, the hoarder might not be invited to the next game.
Splendor reminds me of why countries have anti-hoarding laws. In economics, I learned that when I deposit my savings in a bank, my money can be used by other entities to expand their businesses. However, if I merely keep my cash in a coin bank or under my mattress, nobody benefits from it until it is spent or invested.
I don’t know if the game developers intended to impart these lessons to Splendor players. It would be interesting to find out if playing this game in class and relating it to the above topics will reinforce a student’s understanding of and appreciation for economics.
 
Liza Mae L. Fumar is a PhD in Business student of De La Salle University, where she also teaches Management and Organization and Human Behavior in Organizations.
liza.fumar@dlsu.edu.ph

Corrupted science to justify renewables cronyism

In a letter “Response to ‘Cheap, stable electricity vs climate alarmism’” published in BusinessWorld yesterday, Oct. 10 2018, Mr. Eddie O’Connor of wind-solar lobby wrote the following weird claims:
1. “Our species emerged over 3 million years when there was a stable quantity of CO2 in the atmosphere, and this was the figure up until industrialization: 270 parts per million.”
This is corruption and distortion of earth science. Earth’s climate history is one of natural warming-cooling cycles since the planet was born some 4.6 billion years ago. In a paper by Davis, W.J. (2017), “The relationship between atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration and global temperature for the last 425 million years,” Climate 5: 76; doi: 10.3390/cli5040076, this chart shows that atmospheric CO2 levels were up to 400 to 600 ppm some 325 to 450 million years ago and it was characterized by global cooling.
450 Million Years of Unrelatedness between Atmospheric CO2 and Temperature
2. “Since 1998 we have trapped the energy of 2,667,000,000 Hiroshima bombs in the atmosphere.”
This is pure alarmism and Frankensteinism, inventing own data to scare the public unless they accept the renewables cronyism agenda.
From the “Global Temperature Report: September 2018” by the Univ. of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH), global average lower tropospheric temperature, Dr. Cristy and Dr. Spencer summarized the data:
“Globally, the coolest September in the last 10 years. Global climate trend since Dec. 1 1978: +0.13 C per decade. September Temperatures (preliminary): Global composite temp.: +0.14 C (+0.25 °F) above seasonal average (departure from average 1981-2010). Northern Hemisphere +0.15 C (+0.27°F), Southern Hemisphere +0.14 C (+0.25 °F), Tropics +0.24 C (+0.43 °F).” (http://www.drroyspencer.com/2018/10/uah-global-temperature-update-for-september-2018-0-14-deg-c/)
Planet Earth is currently experiencing declining temperature in the lower troposphere, data are collected by NASA satellites 24/7.
3. “Mr. Oplas didn’t talk about the price of coal-generated electricity… CIA estimates that the cost of electricity coming from coal-fired … station is $9.2 cents per unit… my company bid $4.1 cents per unit… Solar came in at a price of $2.92 cents per unit.”
Game, if wind-solar are indeed that cheap, then will the lobby agree to (a) abolish the priority and mandatory dispatch of wind-solar to the grid, and (b) abolish the feed-in-tariff (FIT) scheme of guaranteed high price for wind-solar, other variable REs for 20 years?
Fit Cronyism for Solar and Wind under RE Law of 2008 (RA 9513)
Solar price of P9/kWh at P54/US$ is not 2.9 cents but 17 cents/kWh. Wind price of P8.5/kWh at P54/$ is not 4.1 cents but 16 cents/kWh.
The FIT-Allowance in our monthly electricity bill has been rising from 4 centavos/kWh in 2015 to 12.40 in 2016, 18.30 in 2017, and 25.32 centavos /kWh starting June 2018 billing. This is to cover under-recoveries in 2017 alone.
4. “Mr. Oplas is associating himself with an invite-only conference where there will be no challenge to his views.”
Ignorance of the private event. That Stratbase-ADRi forum last Sept. 27 has four speakers, Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian, Dir. Mario Marasigan of DOE, Dr. Raul Fabella of EPDP and UPSE, and Atty. Saturnino Juan of IEMOP. I was not a speaker, I was only one of three reactors, and about one-fifth of the audience were media people.
5. “Let us choose a public auditorium and let us have a debate on energy policy in the Philippines.”
Sure. One projector each, charts vs charts, tables vs tables, with an independent referee who will cut off over-talking and hysterical speaker/s. Let the jokers and inventors of fake energy data be exposed.
Meanwhile, the Nongovernmental International Panel on Climate Change (NIPCC), an independent organization founded in 2003 to fact-check the work of the UN on climate change has released this week the “Summary for Policymakers of Climate Change Reconsidered II: Fossil Fuels.”
In that report, 117 scientists, economists, and other experts show that “Fossil fuels deliver affordable, plentiful, and reliable energy that is closely associated with human development. There is a strong positive relationship between low energy prices and economic prosperity. Wind and solar power are incapable of delivering the affordable, plentiful, and reliable energy that is delivered by fossil fuels.”
 
Bienvenido S. Oplas, Jr. is the president of Minimal Government Thinkers
minimalgovernment@gmail.com

Showing audience reaction

By Tony Samson
IT IS a staple of basketball telecasts for the TV camera in dull moments, like a dead ball, between foul shots, or referees conferring on what violations to call, to pan the camera on the audience. The camera catches reaction shots of celebrities with unexpected seatmates or teammates waiting to be fielded in. It is good for the spectator to appear unmindful of stolen shots. (Please don’t wave.) The ideal demeanor should approximate someone who just emptied his bladder and is contented with his present state.
The cameraman is probably given a list of prominent fans to look for. So, unless you own a team, come out on noontime shows as a host or selected, was a former player who just came out of rehab, or are part of a crowd of five picked to promote a ready-to-eat meal (looking excited to eat cold food), you can simply enjoy the game and not be worried about being televised.
In politics too, especially in long-winded congressional hearings where grandstanding is routine, the “live coverage” strays to onlookers without speaking parts. Reaction shots are specifically selected for the editorial slant favored by the TV host or producer. Certain characters are sure to be caught yawning or looking pissed.
The droning voices of interlocutors, commentators, and witnesses turn into white noise. The body language of spectators provide punctuation marks. Stolen shots of the interrogators waiting their turn or personalities alluded to in testimonies offer candid images, as they turn to whisper to their lawyers, perhaps to ask for some guide on how to respond — isn’t this part of your retainer fees?
A worried look can indicate guilt. A smirk shows disdain and a misplaced confidence that allies who have been incentivized will come to the rescue of the aggrieved party — what’s taking them so long?
The TV camera catches spectators in a gotcha moment. The TV program producer is looking at different screens of many cameras covering the event as he chooses which shot to show to the viewers. TV coverages of legislative investigations, fugitives in hiding in the premises, death watches outside hospitals, search and rescue operations in a disaster area, and rallies can become tedious obliging the producer to train cameras on onlookers and conduct interviews with peripheral characters. (So, how did you get here; were you bused in?)
Candid shots can be revealing, sometimes embarrassing. Someone burying an index finger into a nostril on a concentrated hunt for debris, or furiously expectorating a wet fly that has strayed into the open mouth can attract a TV cameraman’s attention. A short pan is enough, and then it’s back to the talking heads.
An accused abuser of a traffic enforcer caught by video phone cameras uploaded to the news may dutifully read an apology written by her lawyer. It is advisable for the ghostwriter beside him to maintain a stoic expression. A smug smile can be perceived as arrogance. The mind needs to be blanked out by imagining an acupuncture needle being applied to the eyeballs. This thought elicits an ideal facial expression that combines dread and humility — please don’t shake your head.
Reaction shots establish the narrative of a televised event. They serve as the background music to a boring movie being viewed. They also guide the mood of the TV audience and highlight characters that serve as proxies for the bigger public. Without any editorial commentary in words, the visual clues of indifference, anger, or puzzlement at what is going on serves as a proxy for public reaction.
It is worth noting then that we had two staged events, one of a press conference with a subordinate and the second, a history lesson on a long-ago regime. Both involved only two people on a stage, agreeing with each other and finishing each other’s sentences. This type of performance is televised without any commercial breaks — what advertiser will pay for such a low-rating program?
This variant of fake news does not even bother to look real. When the camera pulls out from the stage, what is shown are empty seats, without any semblance of an audience or its reaction to this performance. It’s just a fadeout in the end.
 
Tony Samson is chairman and CEO, TOUCH xda
ar.samson@yahoo.com

Fuel Masters regain winning touch, crush Road Warriors

By Michael Angelo S. Murillo
Senior Reporter
THE PHOENIX Fuel Masters got back on the winning track of the Philippine Basketball Association Governors’ Cup in grand fashion on Wednesday, steam-rolling past the NLEX Road Warriors, 123-97, at the Cuneta Astrodome in Pasay City.
Had a monster of a first half that had them scoring 71 points, the Fuel Masters were simply a handful and more for the Road Warriors as they booked their sixth win in eight games while sending NLEX (4-4) to back-to-back losses.
Import Eugene Phelps got the Phoenix motor humming right from the opening tip, helping his team to an 11-2 lead in the first five minutes of the contest.
NLEX though gathered itself, going on a 13-2 run in the next two minutes, behind import Aaron Fuller, to overtake the Fuel Masters, 15-13.
That was the last time the Road Warriors would take the lead as Phoenix went on a tear after to build a 34-18 cushion at the end of the first 12 minutes.
In the second period, the Phoenix juggernaut continued with more players joining the scoring parade.
Phoenix held a 49-27 advantage with 5:32 to go in the frame before speeding to a 38-point lead by the halftime break, 71-33.
With firm control of the match, the Fuel Masters went to completely zap the fight out of the Road Warriors in the third canto.
The Fuel Masters’ distance reached the 40-point plateau at the 9:02 mark, 81-40.
NLEX, however, would encroach on Phoenix’s lead as the third quarter wound up, cutting it to 27 points, 94-67, heading into the final quarter.
The Road Warriors tried to build on the momentum they got in the third canto early in the fourth quarter but the Fuel Masters was quick to nip things in the bud.
Mr. Phelps And Company held a 31-point lead, 109-78, at the halfway juncture of the final period and cruised to the victory from there.
Mr. Phelps had a monster double-double of 51 points and 20 rebounds to go along with three blocks to lead the Fuel Masters.
Calvin Abueva had 17 points while Matthew Wright had 10 points and seven assists.
For NLEX, it was Mr. Fuller who led the way with 38 points and 14 rebounds with Bong Galanza and Larry Fonacier adding 13 and 10 points, respectively.
The Fuel Masters next play on Oct. 12 against the San Miguel Beermen while Road Warriors try to bounce back on Oct. 14 versus the Meralco Bolts.

Filipino para wood pushers deliver gold medals

By Michael Angelo S. Murillo
Senior Reporter
THE Philippines climbed back in the medal standings of the 2018 Asian Para Games in Indonesia after Filipino para chess players delivered gold medals on Wednesday.
FIDE Master Sander Severino chalked up two gold medals for the Philippines, topping the individual standard P1 (physically handicapped) competition and the team event in tandem with Henry Lopez and Jasper Rom.
Also winning gold was the trio of Menandro Redor, Arman Subaste and Israel Peligro, who ruled the team standard B2-B3 (visually impaired) category.
Mr. Redor, too, copped silver in the individual standard B2-B3 while Messrs. Rom and Subaste bagged a bronze each in the individual standard P1 and individual standard B2-B3, respectively.
The medal haul on Wednesday padded the Philippines’ total to five gold, six silver and six bronze medals as of this writing, good for 10th place, four rungs higher when they started the day at 14th place.

Asian Para Games: Silver, bronze medals go the Philippines’ way

By Michael Angelo S. Murillo
Senior Reporter
THE Philippines’ campaign in the ongoing Asian Para Games in Indonesia continues to bear fruit with the country’s para athletes adding to their total medal haul.
As of 12 noon on Wednesday, the Philippines has accumulated a total of 10 hardwares, broken down to two gold, four silver, and four bronze medals, with four days left in the competition.
Para table tennis player and Rio de Janeiro Olympian Josephine Medina added a silver medal to the Philippines’ collection after placing second in the women’s singles TT8 event to China’s Mao Jingdian on Tuesday, Oct. 9, at the Ecovention Ancol in Jakarta.
Polio-stricken Medina, who won bronze in the Rio Paralympics two years ago, fell, 11-8, 11-3 and 11-6, in the finals to settle for the silver medal.
She had a lot of momentum heading into the finals, having beaten convincingly Thailand’s Kanlaya Kriabklang and China’s Huang Wenjian in earlier matches.
Also adding silver to the Philippines’ haul was swimmer Ernie Gawilan, the most successful Filipino para athlete so far in the ongoing Games.
Wounding up second in the men’s 100m freestyle S7 event also on Tuesday, Mr. Gawilan, who was born with no legs and an underdeveloped left limb, has now won three medals.
Previously, Davao City’s Gawilan won the gold in the men’s 200m individual medley SM7 and silver in the men’s 50m freestyle S7.
In the men’s 100m freestyle S7 event, Gawilan registered a time of one minute, 6.74 seconds behind gold medal winner Wei Soong Toh (1:03.16) of Singapore.
Donggu Lee of South Korea ended up third in the race with a time of 1:11.87.
Meanwhile, giving bronze were cyclist Godfrey Taberna and swimmer Gary Bejino.
Competing in the men’s road cycling C4 event, Mr. Taberna finished third best with a time of two hours, 11 minutes and 24.359 seconds to bag the bronze.
Ruling the event, held at the Sentul International Circuit, was Wei Guoping of China (2:11:23.665) followed Najib Mohb of Malaysia (2:11:24.307).
Mr. Bejino, for his part, chalked up his second bronze with a third-place finish in the men’s 100m freestyle S6.
The Filipino para swimmer timed in at one minute and 15.32 seconds, behind gold medallist Kazakhstan’s Salimgereyev Yerzhan (1:12.22) and silver winner Yang Hong (1:14.04) of China.
The bronze was in addition to the one he won in the men’s 100m backstroke S6 event.
As of this writing, the Philippines sits at 14th place in the medal standings.
Other Filipino medal winners are Kim Ian Chi (gold) in bowling, Achelle Guion (silver) in powerlifting, and Arthus Bucay (bronze) in cycling.
China continues to top the medal race with a total so far of 81 gold, 38 silver and 30 bronze medals followed by South Korea (25-21-15) and Uzbekistan (19-9-6).

Red Sox survive 9th inning, close out Yanks in Game 4

CRAIG KIMBREL escaped a bases-loaded jam in the ninth inning, and the Boston Red Sox held on for a 4-3 victory over the host New York Yankees on Tuesday night to win an American League Division Series in four games.
Red Sox advance to the AL Championship Series, where they will host Houston Astros in Game 1 on Friday.
Kimbrel created his mess with no outs by loading the bases on four-pitch walks to Aaron Judge and Luke Voit sandwiched around a single by Didi Gregorius. He allowed two runs by hitting Neil Walker in the foot with a pitch and allowing a sacrifice fly to Gary Sanchez to deep left.
Gleyber Torres’ grounder to third ended the game. Torres hit a slow ground ball, and Eduardo Nuñez fielded it. Nuñez threw across the diamond to first baseman Steve Pearce, who stretched to make the catch.
The Red Sox began celebrating, but the Yankees challenged the initial call. After 63 seconds, the original ruling was upheld, and Boston formally began celebrating advancing to its 11th ALCS and first since beating the Detroit Tigers in 2013.
The Red Sox carried a 4-1 lead into the ninth thanks to J.D. Martinez’s sacrifice fly, run-scoring hits by Ian Kinsler and Nuñez and a solo home run by Christian Vazquez.
Rick Porcello (1-0) and three relievers preceded Kimbrel’s high-wire act.
Moved back a day after throwing 15 pitches in the eighth inning of Game 1, Porcello displayed command of the strike zone most of the night. He held the Yankees to one run on four hits in five innings.
Boston scored three in the third off CC Sabathia (0-1), and it started with a sacrifice fly by Martinez. Kinsler made it 2-0 with a double over Brett Gardner’s head in left, and Nuñez boosted the lead to 3-0 with a single to left.
Those hits came a night after Brock Holt and Rafael Devers helped the Red Sox roll to a 16-1 rout in Game 3. Holt and Devers returned to the bench as Kinsler and Nuñez re-entered the starting lineup.
The Red Sox made it 4-0 in the fourth when Vazquez lined a 2-1 fastball into the right field seats off Zach Britton.
Matt Barnes got two groundouts in a scoreless sixth, Ryan Brasier pitched a perfect seventh, and Chris Sale ended a scoreless eighth by striking out Aaron Hicks.
In possibly his final start of a 10-year run with the Yankees, Sabathia allowed three runs on five hits in three innings.
Boston recorded its fourth straight postseason win in New York. Since losing Game 2 of the 2004 ALCS, the Red Sox have outscored the Yankees 34-9 in postseason games in the Bronx. — Reuters

DanceSport holds National Championships

THE DanceSport Council of the Philippines (DSCPI) is set to host the 22nd DSCPI National DanceSport Championships at the Ballroom Hall of Valle Verde Country Club, Pasig City on Saturday.
According to DSCPI President Becky Garcia, a total of 270 Dance-Sport athletes all over the Country will compete in the ranking competition supported by the Philippine Sports Commission, Philippine Olympic Committee, Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp., Flawless, Muebles Italiano, Like-FM 105.9, Studio AK, Ballare Event Studio and The Greenery Bulacan.
World DanceSport Federation licensed adjudicators John Alan Winter of Denmark, Judit Sandor of Hungary, Kazuaki Watanabe of Japan, Joshua Low of Singapore, Roger Hou of Taiwan, Thu Trang Hoang of Vietnam, Pietro Del Bello of Hong Kong and George Tan of Malaysia will adjudicate in the competition.
Tickets for the 22nd DSCPI National Championships are available at the DanceSport Training Center, Philsports Complex, Meralco Avenue, Pasig City and at the entrance of the Ballroom of Valle Verde Country Club on October 13.
For other inquiries, please call Anna or Lorien at 637-2314.

Undermanned UST brings down UP

THE UNIVERSITY of Santo Tomas Growling Tigers ended their first-round campaign in UAAP Season 81 on a high note, defeating the University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons, 86-72, on Wednesday at the Mall of Asia Arena.
Continued to play sans Cameroonian big man Steve Akomo, out indefinitely because of blood clots found in his head, UST played with a lot of spirit and drive to overpower UP and end their first-round assignment in the ongoing season of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines with back-to-back wins.
The Tigers (3-4) defeated the University of the East Red Warriors in their previous game.
UST galloped to start the contest, building an 8-0 lead in the first three minutes of the opening quarter.
It was a leverage they would build on to establish a 14-6 advantage midway before extending it to a 15-point separation, 31-16, at the end of the opening frame.
Rookie CJ Cansino helped UST to another strong start in the second canto, stretching their lead to 23 points, 48-25, with 2:11 left in the half.
The Maroons tried to narrow the gap but only saw the Tigers pound on them and be buried some more, 53-29, at the break.
Veteran Paul Desiderio led a mini run by UP to start the third period.
But the Tigers would not relent on their attack, with Enrique Caunan at the helm of the charge, to hold a 62-37 advantage with 4:30 left in the quarter.
Cansino and Renzo Subido picked up from there and pulled UST even farther, 73-43, heading into the two-minute mark.
When the quarter dust settled, UST was in command, 76-46.
The Maroons opened the fourth period with a 13-3 run to cut their deficit, 79-59, with 5:31 left on the clock.
Four quick points though by UST after restored some order for the Tigers.
UP managed to come within 14 points, 83-69, with two minutes left in the match but it proved to be too late as UST went for the closeout from there.
Cansino paced the Tigers with a double-double of 16 points and 10 rebounds. He also had seven assists.
Subido had 13 points while Ken Zamora and Marvin Lee added 12 and 11 points, respectively.
UP, for its part, was led by Akhuetie with 18 points and 11 boards.
Javi Gomez de Liano finished with 12 points and Diego Dario 10 for the Maroons (3-4), who failed to finish the first round with a winning record.
“Everybody came to play today. We executed our game plan which helped a lot. Steve [Akomo], of course, is a rallying point for us. We are playing for him,” said UST coach Aldin Ayo after their win.
Meanwhile, UST continued to play without Akomo, who is in the hospital after blood clotting due to head trauma was found in his head.
Experienced dizziness and vomiting, Akomo was admitted to the UST Hospital on Monday and is now being observed.
Reports have it that he does not need to undergo surgery as the clots could be rid of through medication.
Akomo’s condition is being pointed to his collision with Adamson University’s Papi Sarr in their game on Sept. 22, giving rise to call for the UAAP to have a clear policy on concussion.
League officials said they would take up the matter in their next policy meeting. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo

7’s Football League semis set

TAGUIG — Laro, Real Amigos, Super Eagles, and Ghana barged into the semifinals of the 7’s Football League after the final regular season games and the eventual quarterfinals that took place on Monday night at the McKinley Hill Stadium in Taguig.
Laro and Real Amigos secured the outright semifinal berths after romping Futbol Fanatics and Western Bicutan, respectively, in their last elimination round assignments, while Super Eagles and Ghana needed to go through the quarterfinal stage to secure the other two semis berths.
Laro, led by former Kaya Ilo-ilo and Azkals skipper Aly Borromeo, tripped Futbol Fanatics, 5-0, in its elimination round outing to secure the top seed in the semifinals.
On the other hand, Real Amigos, made up of players of the Makati Football School, went on a first-half barrage to turn back Western Bicutan, 5-1, to seal the other semifinal berth and send Super Eagles, who beat Deportivo Matu in their last regular season outing, to the quarterfinals.
Super Eagles would book its own semifinal seat by beating Enderun, 3-1, in the quarterfinals.
In the other playoff match, Ghana mauled Deportivo Matu, 6-0, behind a four-goal showing from Emmanuel Donkor and a brace from Hassan Mohammed.
Laro will face Super Eagles, and Real Amigos battle Ghana in the semifinals on Oct. 15. Finals is for Oct. 22.
The 7’s Football League matches will be shown over ESPN5.

Aussie Open organizers working towards stand on coaching rule

MELBOURNE — Australian Open organizers are working to determine whether coaching will be allowed during the Grand Slam tournament in an effort to end the controversy that led to Serena Williams’ outburst over a code violation during the US Open final.
Coaching while the players are on court is not permitted in Grand Slam tournaments, although the WTA Tour allows it in other events at specified times. It is prohibited in all men’s matches.
Australian Open tournament director Craig Tiley said at the time that he would urge tennis officials to affirm its position on coaching during matches and said on Tuesday that they were working with the governing bodies to clarify the rules. — Reuters

Games from Batumi

43rd Chess Olympiad (Open Division)
Batumi, Georgia
Sept. 23 — Oct. 6, 2018

Final Standings
Country/Points TB1 TB2

1. China 18/22 372.5 28.5

2. USA 18/22 360.5 29.0

3. Russia 18/22 354.5 29.0

4. Poland 17/22 390.0 28.0

5. England 17/22 340.0 27.5

6. India 16/22 388.0 29.0

7. Vietnam 16/22 379.5 30.5

8. Armenia 16/22 371.0 27.5

9. France 16/22 366.0 28.5

10. Ukraine 16/22 337.0 26.0

Total of 185 teams from 183 countries. Georgia as the host country was allowed to field 3 teams.
Time Control is 90 minutes for the first 40 moves, then 30 minutes play-to-finish, with 30 seconds added to your clock after every move starting move 1.
Individual Board Prizes:

Board 1. Gold: GM Ding Liren CHN 2804, 5.5/8. Silver: GM Fabiano Caruana USA 2827, 7.0/10. Bronze: GM Anish Giri NED 2780, 8.5/11.

Board 2. Gold: GM Nguyen Ngoc Truong Son VIE 2620, 8.5/10. Silver: GM Ian Nepomniachtchi RUS 2768, 7.5/10. Bronze: GM Teimour Radjabov AZE 2751, 7.0/10.

Board 3. Gold: GM Jorge Cori PER 2664, 7.5/8. Silver: GM Vladimir Kramnik RUS 2779, 6.5/9. Bronze: GM Kacper Piorun POL 2612, 6.5/9.

Board 4. Gold: GM Daniel Fridman GER 2591, 7.5/9. Silver: GM Bu Xiangzhi CHN 2712, 7.5/10, Bronze: GM Rauf Mamedov AZE 2699, 6.5/9.

Board 5. Gold: GM Anton Korobov UKR 2685, 6.5/8. Silver: GM Ilia Smirin ISR 2594, 7.5/9. Bronze: GM Christian Bauer FRA 2629, 7.0/9

Best Rating Performances (Rp):

1. GM Jorge Cori PER 2664, Rp 2925

2. GM Ding Liren CHN 2804, Rp 2873

3. GM Fabiano Caruana USA 2827, Rp 2859

FABIANO CARUANA
All eyes were on Fabiano Caruana, board 1 of the USA, because of his coming world championship match with Magnus Carlsen next month in London. Would he be holding back his opening preparation? Would he be pulling his punches?
Answer to both questions is a big NO. Caruana was the leader of the United States team and fully aware of his responsibilities. He played 10 rounds out of 11, skipping only the first round when their opponent was Panama, one of the weaker teams. Over the course of 10 rounds Fabi defeated former world champion Vishy Anand, world championship challenger Boris Gelfand, GM Denis Kadric (BIH 2543) and the red-hot Shakhriyar Mamedyarov.

Caruana, Fabiano (2827) — Anand, Viswanathan (2771) [E03]
43rd Olympiad 2018 Batumi GEO (4.1), 27.09.2018

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.Bg2 dxc4 5.Qa4+ Nbd7 6.Qxc4 a6 7.Be3!?
A nice new idea, with the aim of preventing Black’s …c7–c5.
7…Bd6 8.Qc2 0–0 9.Nh3 e5 10.0–0 h6 11.dxe5 Nxe5 12.Nc3 Qe7 13.Rad1 Re8 14.Nf4 c6 15.Bd4 g5?!
Played after 15 minutes’ thought, and it turns out to be a bad move.
16.Nd3 Nxd3 17.Rxd3!
This has to be carefully calculated as ideas connected to Black’s Bf5 abound.
17…Be5
[17…Bf5? 18.Bxf6! Qxf6 19.Rxd6! Qxd6 20.Qxf5 White is clearly better]
18.Qd2 Bf5 19.e4 Bg6 20.f4!
Precisely the move that White’s 18.Qd2 was aiming for.
20…gxf4?
Black didn’t like 20…Bxd4+ 21.Rxd4 Rad8 22.e5 Nh5 23.f5 (23.Rd6 gxf4) 23…Rxd4 24.Qxd4 Bh7 but it is better than what he actually got.
21.Bxe5! Qxe5 22.gxf4 Qc5+ 23.Kh1 Nxe4 24.Nxe4 Rxe4
Capturing with the bishop loses: 24…Bxe4 25.Bxe4 Rxe4 26.Qg2+
25.Rg3! Rd4 26.Qe3! 1–0
Not 26.Qf2? because 26…Kh8 saves the piece. But now, after 26.Qe3! Kh8 (26…Kh7 27.f5 Bxf5 28.Rxf5 Qxf5 29.Qxd4) 27.f5 wins the bishop because the White queen has Qxh6+ in reserve]
At the conclusion of the Olympiad Caruana’s ELO rating has climbed up to 2832. This is only seven points behind reigning world champion Magnus Carlsen’s 2839. Anticipation for their match is climbing to a fever pitch as for the first time in a long while we have a match between, ratings-wise, the world no. 1 versus the world no. 2.
WESLEY SO
Anish Giri tweeted that the weak link in the USA team is GM Samuel Shankland, perhaps influenced by the reigning USA champion’s loss to Israel’s Emil Sutovsky. But Shankland turned around and showed that he was no weak link – he scored the decisive win in their victory over Azerbaijan (round 8) and Armenia (round 10).
Surprisingly enough the real weak link was Hikaru Nakamura. The top point-maker of previous Olympiads was surprisingly unable to pull in the wins in Batumi. After a round 1 win over a 2300+ player he had six straight draws and then lost to Poland’s Kacper Piorun in round 9. He was unceremoniously benched in round 10 and then came back in round 11 to draw with Bu Xiangzhi. It looks like his confidence had been affected. At one point during his game with Bu the Chinese GM offered to bring on complications with a pawn sacrifice. Nakamura usually accepts these gifts because he knows he can outplay anyone in tactics. However, he uncharacteristically turned down the pawn and later on had to defend an inferior position.
Wesley So started well with 6/7 but then he lost to Azerbaijan’s Teimour Radjabov in round 8 and could not win another game.
This was more or less the same story as the USA’s performance in the Olympiad. A powerful start to go into the lead and then a nice win over their co-leader Azerbaijan in round 8. At this point many of us thought that the championship is in the bag for the Americans, and apparently they thought so to – but then came a sputtering finish with a loss (1.5-2.5 to Poland), a narrow victory over Armenia 2.5-1.5, then a fight less draw with China 2-2.
Here is one of Wesley’s wins in his “hot” phase.

So, Wesley (2776) — Bosiocic, Marin (2600) [B92]
43rd Olympiad 2018 Batumi GEO (7.2), 01.10.2018

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Be3 e5 7.Nb3 Be6 8.Be2 Be7 9.h4!?
A new move in this position, but h4 and/or g4 pawn thrusts in the opening are nowadays very common.
9…h5 10.Nd5 Bxd5 11.exd5 Nbd7 12.c4 g6 13.g3 b6 14.Nd2 a5 15.f4!?
Still the same enterprising play. Wesley opens up the f-file and really pushes through with his attack there.
15…Qc8 16.0–0 Nc5 17.Kg2 Ra7 18.Qc2 Bd8?
Wesley’s aggressive play has discombobulated Black who plays unnecessarily passively. He could have countered with 18…exf4 19.Rxf4 Nfd7 20.Raf1 f5 and nothing is clear yet.
19.f5! Rg8 20.fxg6 Rxg6 21.Rf5 b5 22.Raf1 Rc7 23.Bxh5 Nxh5 24.Rxh5 Rg8 25.Qh7 Qg4 26.Rg5! Rxg5 27.Bxg5 1–0
[27.Bxg5 Kd7 (27…Bxg5 28.Qg8+ Kd7 29.Rxf7+ Be7 30.Qxg4+) 28.Bxd8 Kxd8 29.Qh8+ Ke7 30.Qf6+ Ke8 31.Qxd6 Qd7 32.Qxe5+ Qe7 33.Qd4 with an easy win]
IAN NEPOMNIACHTCHI
GM Ian Nepomniachtchi won the very strong Dortmund Chess Meeting last July and brought his good form with him to Batumi. He scored 7.5/10, with five wins and five draws. Nepom plays fast, attacks hard, and is usually the first game to finish. In the crucial last round match Russia vs France for example he scored the decisive match win (all other games were drawn) and won the brilliancy prize for the round while the other games were still in the opening phase!

Nepomniachtchi, Ian (2768) — Bacrot, Etienne (2678) [A13]
43rd Olympiad 2018 Batumi GEO (11.2), 05.10.2018

The early starting time for the last round (11 am instead of the usual 3 pm) seemed to affect GM Etienne Bacrot, who apparently had not yet woken up!
1.Nf3 d5 2.e3 Nf6 3.c4 e6 4.Nc3 Be7 5.b3 0–0 6.Bb2 c5 7.cxd5 Nxd5 8.h4!?
A new move and one that the Russian team studied in a training camp before the Olympiad. This is one of those “b3 secret weapons” that everyone is trying out these days.
8…b6 9.Qb1 h6 10.g4 Bb7 11.Rh3 Nd7 12.g5 h5 13.Bd3 Nb4 14.Bh7+ Kh8 15.Be4 Nd5 16.Ne2 f5?
POSITION AFTER 16…F5
The losing move. 16…Bd6 is simple and good. At this point Nepom said that he calculated everything to the end, which is an impressive feat considering that a review of game times show that he took only 1 minute on his next move!
17.gxf6 N7xf6 18.Ng5! Nxe4 19.Qxe4 Bxg5 20.hxg5 Nf4
[20…Qxg5 21.Rg3 followed by taking on g7]
21.Qxb7 Nd3+
[21…Nxh3 22.Qxg7#]
22.Kf1 Nxb2 23.Rxh5+ Kg8 24.g6! 1–0
White’s threat is 25.Rh8+ Kxh8 26.Qh1+ Kg8 27.Qh7 mate.
 
Bobby Ang is a founding member of the National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP) and its first Executive Director. A Certified Public Accountant (CPA), he taught accounting in the University of Santo Tomas for 25 years and is currently Chief Audit Executive of the Equicom Group of Companies.
bobby@cpamd.net

1...11,10111,10211,103...13,486Page 11,102 of 13,486
© 2024 BusinessWorld Publishing.
All rights reserved.
Read our privacy guidelines
Facebook Instagram Linkedin Twitter Youtube