Robert Goerlich |
In quoting the "article" I mentioned that it stated Garry Kasparov, who once said President Trump knows as little about chess as he does everything else, had changed his mind and that, “President Trump ranks right up there with George Washington and Honest Abe Lincoln.” The "article" also stated that the USCF would administer the funds, but they had to promise not to squander the money.
I assumed it was obvious that the post was nothing more than a little humor...I was wrong. The other day I was flabbergasted when I ran across an old political post on Twitter that was made by a rabid anti-Trumpite who was ranting against the two of them and referenced the "article" in the belief that it was real!
Moving on...I was not able to locate much information on the Chess by Mail Correspondence Bureau, but the March 1915 issue of the American Chess Bulletin carried a request by Dr. W. C. Browne, of Burnside, Pennsylvania, director of the CMCB, who hoped to promote interest in and make more popular the playing of correspondence chess.
All players that were interested in correspondence play were asked write him stating what their preference was regarding the arrangements for holding correspondence tournaments, considering especially amount of entry fee, number of players in each section or one-round
tournament, time limit for each move, time limit for finishing games, at the expiration of which unfinished games would be adjudicated, limitation of games to certain openings, such as gambits, etc. In addition, any suggestions that would benefit the
game and promote interest in correspondence would be gladly received.
At the time the Bureau is conducting a number of one round tournaments with an entry fee of fifty cents. There were four players with a prize for the winner and special prizes for the most brilliant games played in each event as well as a prize for the player who won the greatest number of games each year.
The Bureau had already sent out letters to members and they had indicated the desire for larger tournaments with larger entrance fees and larger, more valuable prizes. As a result the Bureau was considering special one-round tournaments with either two or five dollar entry fees.
One of the Bureau's most active players was Robert S. Goerlich (? - 1937), of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. He began play with the organization in 1911 and won several of the regular tri-monthly tournaments; he also finished first in his section in the club's first annual championship tournament.
Goerlich believed that it was possible to play a considerable number of games at the same time and give each one the required attention. He proved the point by winning the Kimbal prize which went to the member winning the greatest number of games in a year which he three times.
Goerlich began playing correspondence chess in April, 1909, when he responded to a request for opponents by Junior Parrish of Fort Leavenworth, Kansas that appeared in the American Chess Bulletin.
The following game against Fred A. Glick, of Staten Island, New York was played in the first annual championship tournament of the Chess By Mail Correspondence Bureau in 1911. It's a good example of how even strong amateurs play far from perfect chess. Both players repeatedly missed white's Nf5+, but the finish is pleasing.
Fred Glick–Robert Goerlich0–1C96Chess By Mail Corres. Bureau1911Owner
Ruy Lopez: Chigorin Defense 1.e4 e5 2.f3 c6 3.b5 a6 4.a4 f6 5.0-0 e7 6.e1 b5 7.b3 d6 8.c3 a5 9.c2 c5 10.d4 c7 In his notes Goerlich wrote that this move was played in a game
Erich Cohn-Edward Lasker that was published in the January 1911 issue of the
AMerican Chess Bulletin. The game was actually from their match that took
place in Berlin in 1909 and it appeared in the 1910 issue, not 1911. 11.h3 11.g5 c6 Black should have played either 11...h6 or 11...O-O 12.h3 b7 13.bd2 0-0 14.f1 e8 15.d5 White is better. Erich Cohn-Edward Lasker,
Match, Berlin 1909 11...c6 12.e3 12.dxc5 dxc5 13.bd2 e6 14.h4 g6 15.f1 d7 16.f3 d8 17.3h2 c4 18.e3 With about equal chances. Mecking,
H (2540)-Pilnik,H (2420) Mar del Plata 1971 12.d5 d8 Better is 12...Na5 13.a4 bxa4 14.xa4+ d7 15.bd2 0-0 16.c4 White is considerably better.
Ernst,T (2409)-Barkhagen,J (2449) Stockholm 2001 12...0-0 13.bd2 Black
has plenty of options here. b7 13...d8 14.c1 d7 15.f1 b4 16.d5 a7 17.c4 c8 18.g4 b6 19.b3 a5 20.g3 g6 21.h2 a4 22.g1 axb3 23.axb3 f8 White is better. Capablanca, J-Kupchik,A New York 1915 1-0 (45) 13...e8 14.a4 b8 15.axb5 axb5 16.f1 d8 17.g5 xg5 18.xg5 f6 19.f3 e6
White is better. Levenfish,G-Salwe,G Karlsbad 1911 13...d8 14.f1 h8 15.g3 g6 16.d2 e6 17.ad1 b7 White s slightly better. Steiner,L-Johner,P
Dresden 1926 14.f1 A better plan was to close the center with 14.d5 d8 14...cxd4 and Black stays safe. 15.cxd4 Black's winning of a P is only
temporary. b4 16.b1 xe4 17.xe4 xe4 18.a3 c6 19.c1 b7 20.c2 d8 21.dxe5 15.g3 g6 16.d2 e8 17.d5 f6 18.h2 Not bad, but a good plan,
as it almost always is in the Ruy Lopez is for white to try and open the
a-file with 18.a4 g7 19.h4 f5 20.h6 This
should have turned out poorly. A better plan was 20.exf5 eliminating the
possibility of black playing ...f4 f4 Suddenly it is black who has seized
the initiative and is conducting a K-side attack. 21.e2 f7 22.xg7 xg7 23.g3 fxg3+ 24.xg3 This only makes matters worse. 24.fxg3 was somewhat
better. h6 25.f1 g4+ 26.g2 c8 and white is on the defensive. 24...h6 Too slow as it allows white back in the game because now the N can't join
in the attack. 24...h6 25.d1 f4 and white is pretty much helpless. 25.g1 All of a sudden it's a whole new game. c8 26.g2 g4 27.e3
And now it's no longer equal! 27.f5+ A great move! gxf5 28.exf5 h5 29.f6+ xf6 30.d3 g8 31.g6+ f8 32.xf6 e7 and it's likely
going to be a draw. 27...xf3 Yet another miscue! 27...d8 28.f5+ gxf5 29.exf5 h5 30.f6+ xf6 31.e4 h8 and wins because the B is defended by
the Q 32.g6+ f8 28.xf3 To repeat...Correct is 28.Nxf5+ xh4 Black
returns the favor. 28...g5 is hard to answer. After 29.e3 f3+ 30.h1 xh4 in order to stay in the game white has to find 31.f5+ Again! xf5
Best 32.exf5 xg2 33.xg2 gxf5 34.xf5 f8 and black can only claim the
better ending. 29.f5+ White finally finds the move and it wins...or
should have. h7 30.xh4 g5 31.g3 f4 32.f1
An outright blunder that loses immediately. 32.h1 af8 33.h2 White is
building up a very strong position, but he will still have his work cut out
trying to nurse it to victory. e7 34.g1 g7 35.d1 f6 36.f3 Black has
succeeded in defending against the threats to his K and white's attack is at a
standstill. He must now try to fond a way to win which Stockfish was able to
do in five Shootouts. However, it must be pointed out that it took the engine
another 40 moves or so. 32...xh4+ This pretty move forces
white's resignation. In his notes to the game Goerlich incorrectly stated that
black's R and N mate against the Q and two Rs, but there is no forced mate. 32...xh4+ 33.g1 33.xh4 also leads to a lost position. f3+ 34.g3 xh4 35.xh4 and black wins. 33...f8 34.h2 xh2 35.xh2 f3 36.g4 e7 37.g2 h5 38.h1 f6 39.h4 f4 40.g3 xe4 41.xe4 xe4 with a won
ending. 0–1
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