Game of the Week: Robson, Bryant

The 2013 U.S. Championship returned to a 24-player Swiss system format. I think most fans would consider the tournament a great success, with a good mix of older and younger players having good results. That battle was reflected in the final decision as 38-year-old Gata Kamsky took the “Armageddon” game from 24-year-old Alejandro Ramirez to register his fourth U.S. title and his third in the city of St. Louis. Slightly further down you see 56-year-old Larry Christiansen and 49-year-old Joel Benjamin turn back the clock with plus scores. 19-year-old Conrad Holt and Kayden Troff, who turned fifteen during the event, dazzled with 5.5 and 5 points respectively. It was interesting to see how newcomers like Holt and Troff, as well as John Bryant and 12-year old Sam Sevian put the test to more established young stars like Ray Robson, Sam Shankland, and Robert Hess. In our featured game we see Robson and Bryant, two kids who are happy to plunge into complications, negotiate a landmine of tactics on the cusp of the time control. Let’s take a look and see who made the fatal misstep.