2006 Spielvogel Memorial - Round 7
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The final round of the Spielvogel memorial, and James Eldridge took on tournament leader Jamie Brotheridge. Jamie defended with the Caro-Kann, and in the sharp, cut and thrust struggle he appeared to gain the upperhand. James, however, created enough confusion in the tactical melee for Jamie to seek safety in a draw, and at least a share of 1st. Rob Bailey played second placed Patrick Cook and, not surprisingly, they did battle in a Queen’s Indian for the umpteenth time. After slightly misplaying the opening, Patrick gradually gained the upper hand to reach a winning endgame, whereupon Rob suffered a bizarre hallucination and sacrificed a rook for no compensation. Thus Patrick caught up to Jamie and shared victory in the tournament. John Frangakis played his usual Trompovsky opening against Tim Commons. By the time they reached a Queen’s and Rook’s endgame, Black had offered 4 draws! To White’s 1. John subsequently reched a winning position, only to walk into a mate in one, continuing his recent tragic run of poor results. Joel Beggs faced Darren Young’s regular Philidor. Aggressive play by White saw him drop 2 pieces for rook and pawn, but he eventually gained a material advantage with sustained pressure against stiff opposition. Joel then finished him off with a crisp combination. Peter Miitel won by a forfeit against Michael Schreenan, and John Abson had the bye.
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