A new event is introduced this season, an individual Knockout competition at standard play with draw odds. All games G80+10 and ECF standard rated according to the result on the board.
Tuesdays 7 November and 2 January have been set aside with draws on the night to reduce the field to a last 16 who then have about a month to play each round until a final two compete in the Final which we hope to hold alongside Bonanza Night at the end of May.
Thirty-eight players have entered and contested Round 1 on 7 November, the pairings being drawn “out of the hat” immediately before play. The resulting 19 players need to be reduced to ‘the round of 16’ so six players, again drawn and paired at random, are contesting an intermediate round, “Round 2”. The next scheduled round is Round 3 on 2 January – the first action of the New Year.
Round 1 pairings | Intermediate round pairings
The Final
The 1st W&WCC Knockout Final was played 28 My 2024 between:
John Cawdery and Ashley Feeman
The game was broadcast live on the Internet and can followed, move-by-move at this link:
When you get to the game screen, it will be showing the final position. Quickly move back to the starting position by clicking the back arrow in the bottom left corner of the page.
Ashley as Black had “draw odds” – see below.
The first Knockout Champion is John Cawdery, overcoming Ashley’s “draw odds” advantage to win a 72 move game, which was screened live on the Internet as it unfolded. This was an extra point of interest for the players in the other room, contesting “Bonanza Night”, with the KO final being screened alongside the Bonanza pairings.
The Knockout competition was an initiative of Ashley Freeman and it was fitting that he fought his way through to the Final. For a long time, it looked good for Ashley, keeping the position tight with a closed centre while maintaining positivity with the potential of expansion on the K-side where John’s King resided. Remember, as White, John needed to win as Ashley with the Black pieces only needed to draw. But John has the knack of extending the game without losing his objectivity and keeping a level head.
The turning point came at move 28 and Ashley’s break with … f5. This did not turn out well, the resulting exchanges leaving Ashley with an exposed and weak pawn on e6 which soon fell, giving John clear winning chances in the rook and pawn ending – provided he could stay ahead of the clock. The players were soon down to their last minute or two (plus 10 second increments) from around move 36 onwards, leaving the second half of the game – the R & P ending – to be played out at blitz speed. “Cool hand Luke” brought in the win that makes him our first Knockout Champion. Many congratulations, John!
Draw odds
To progress:
- If there is a difference of 100+ rating points the higher-rated player must win, opponent need only to draw;
- If less than 100 rating points difference White must win, Black need only draw;
Random pairings for each round. Anyone can win!
Links: Knockout Rules | WWKO on ECF LMS | Play through the Final game