Normally, on the first Saturday of the month we present one or more "speed" problems, in which you get to race against our unforgiving Javascript clock. We're going to break the routine this month, and from time to time in the future, to present a "stroke" problem instead.

Our large and varied readership, predictably, has large and varied tastes. Some people love speed problems, while others don't; and the same is true of stroke problems, hard problems and easy problems, and on and on.

Presenting variety, and something for everyone at least from time to time, are our goals in presenting our weekly column. So, let's mix things up with a stroke problem that is without any doubt on the easier side.... after all, it's the beginning of March, and in the U.S. at least we'd best be thinking about working on income tax returns.... we do need a bit of a break from time to time.

BLACK

WHITE
White to Play and Win

W:WK4,K14,23,24,26:B8,11,15,16,28,K30.

By all means, don't stroke out if you can't find the solution! Instead, click on Read More for instant relief.

The American Checker Federation and GoldToken have announced the signing of a contract agreement which will make GoldToken the official ACF online checker play site. Under the terms of the contract, GoldToken will provide a wide-ranging set of checker-play enhancements to their site.

GoldToken was chosen by the ACF via a rigorous competitive bidding process. Potential bidders were pre-qualified and those who passed the first screening were sent a detailed set of bid specifications. The responses were evaluated and GoldToken emerged as the top bidder. Contract negotiations proved successful and contract signing was completed a little over a week ago.

The exact contract terms and conditions contain vendor proprietary information, so we're not allowed to give all the details here. But we can tell you that GoldToken will be adding a lot of checker-related improvements and additions to their site in the coming months. Completion of this work is expected in six to twelve months, and we know we'll find the wait practically unbearable--- but definitely worth it.

The Checker Maven was subject to another cyberattack: our checker postcard site was mildly defaced. It seems that, unknown to us, the postcard software we use had a certain flaw which allowed a type of attack called "SQL injection." We won't bore you with all the technical details; suffice it to say that we've restored the site to normal and patched up our software to hopefully avoid such problems in the future.

More importantly, we do need to (someday!) redo our postcard site. While we think it's a great feature, it relies on the postcard recipient clicking on a link to our site to see their postcard. Unfortunately in today's world, clicking on links to sites that are unfamiliar (and we admit that not quite everyone knows about our site, at least not yet!) can be very risky. So when we redo the site, we'll provide a postcard mechanism that won't require anything more than opening your email.

Today we bring you a checker problem that's a little bit easier than some others; it's called "The Ace in the Hole" and is by E. A. Jones. It's really more in the nature of a study or a lesson.

In the position below, forces are even, but the Black king seriously threatens the two White men. To get a draw, White will indeed need an "ace in the hole." If you were a betting person, which side would you take?

BLACK

WHITE
White to Play and Draw

W:WK3,17,22:B1,5,K30.

Find out for yourself by solving the problem; is there an Ace in the hole or just a losing low card? A sure bet, though, is clicking on Read More; that's guaranteed to bring you the answers.

Preparing articles for our ongoing Checker School series is something we find fascinating, if a bit time-consuming; the hours rush by almost unnoticed. We first find an interesting classic position, usually, as is the case today, from Boland's Famous Positions in the Game of Checkers. Then we work through the position, games, and notes, knowing that if we ourselves can understand the play, the average checkerist will easily do so as well. Finally we check the solutions with the computer--- interesting discoveries are often made that way--- and add our own explanatory notes, amplifying on those things which Mr. Boland found obvious but we, with our far lesser skills, did not.

The offering below is one of those in which you really must read "the fine print" to benefit fully. Mr. Boland's notes were a bit less complete than usual, and there is much worthwhile play and answers to puzzling questions in the variants and branches. Let's look at the problem:

E. McMILLAN
BLACK

WHITE
White to Play and Win

W:W29,14,K2:B8,5,1.

White clearly has the upper hand, but how to stop the Black man on 8 from crowning and evening things up--- without releasing the men in the double corner? Finesses abound in this position and it takes precise play to gain the win.

Solve it yourself, and then be sure to read the fine print, easily accessible by clicking on Read More.

It's been said that practically no one has made a living at checkers, and those few that did found that living to be pretty slim.

We're not saying that this has all changed now, but thanks to the great generosity of an anonymous donor, Big Money has come to youth checkers!

This year's Arther Niederhoffer Youth Tournament, to be held in Las Vegas at the Plaza Hotel on July 21 and 22, offers a five thousand dollar first prize to the winner of the top section. That's no misprint; the top prize is five thousand dollars in the "Expert Youth" group, intended for ages 16-21. Clocks will be used and games recorded, just like they do uptown.

If you're in the age range listed and have what it takes (or you know someone who qualifies), you won't want to miss this incredible event, with a cash prize the likes of which youth checkers has never seen.

More information can be found on the American Checker Federation website.

It's been a little while since we searched our admittedly disordered and dusty library for a Tom Wiswell gem, and we've frankly missed the pleasure and enjoyment that his problems infallibly deliver. Finally, this week we did a little reorganizing of our offices, and we happily came across a fine (and long-overdue) example of Mr. Wiswell's incomparable art.

Here, then, is a situation which is based on actual play.

BLACK

WHITE
White to Play and Win

W:WK21,28,31:B4,19,K32.

The title of our article, which is congruent with Mr. Wiswell's title for the problem, is a pretty obvious hint. But nonetheless, the problem isn't necessarily all that easy.

Spend a little time trying to stack up the solution, but if your mental processes are blocked, clicking on Read More will cause the answers to tumble into your lap.

For our February speed problem offerings, we present two little cuties; a pair of rather easy problems with charming solutions, at least in our humble opinion. We hope you agree. Give them a try; but remember, our relentless timer won't allow you to solve them at a crawl! Fifteen seconds each is all the time you have.

Speed Problem One (rather easy)

Speed Problem Two (easy enough)

However, if you don't solve them in time there is no need to do a diaper change--- clicking on Read More will bring you the solutions without fuss, muss, or mess.

The one and only Willie Ryan, checker great, showman, and all-around character, would have been 100 years old this month, we're told. Who knows what he might have added to his many accomplishments had he not passed on far too soon? But in any event, in celebration of this milestone anniversary, we continue our series from what is arguably Willie's best book, Tricks Traps & Shots of the Checkerboard with an entry Willie calls Beeswax Block Buster. Here's what Willie had to say on the subject, way back in 1950.

"Early in my checkered career I took a strong fancy to the Old Paraffin opening, developing much new play on it, and with it defeating many prominent stars of the board. Eventually, my contemporaries got onto it, and I dropped the opening from my repertoire. Here is one Beeswax ambush that I used with wide and telling effect:

11-15 24-20 8-11 27-24---A 3-8 23-19 9-13---B 26-23 6-9---C 23-18 1-6 31-27 9-14 18-9 5-14 forming the diagram.

BLACK

WHITE
White to Play and Win

W:W19,20,21,22,24,25,27,28,29,30,32:B2,4,6,7,8,10,11,12,13,14,15.

A---Forms the Old Paraffin opening, nicknamed the Beeswax. When properly met, it is somewhat weak for white, though drawable.

B---If 9-14 is tried, continue with 22-17, 5-9, 26-23; now 1-5 is drawable. If 15-18 is taken, it can be nailed neatly by 19-15*, 18-27, 32-23, 11-27, 20-16, 12-19, 24-15, 10-19, 17-3, 27-32, 3-12, and white wins by stealing the piece on square 19.

C---This is where black goes wrong. The only move to draw is: 15-18*, 22-15,11-27, 32-23, 6-9, 25-22, 9-14; now 22-18 or 31-26 will draw."

But don't get "waxed" yourself! Try the problem and then click on Read More for a honey of a solution.

Alex Moiseyev is the reigning World Champion of 3-Move Restriction Checkers, the sixth in a line stretching back over seventy years to the first generally acknowledged 3-Move World Champion, Asa Long. However, with the notable exception of Derek Oldbury, these champions didn't write instructional books about checkers. Mr. Moiseyev has changed all that with his recent book, appropriately titled Sixth, with the subtitle Volume 1: The Way to the Crown.

World Champion Alex Moiseyev and his book "Sixth"

At first glance, the book looks like a college textbook: it's a sturdily constructed hardcover, nearly 400 pages in length, with the printed paper over boards casing style adopted by many text publishers. In fact, the book is in a way an advanced checkers text, though it's far too entertaining and lively to have been published by the typical publisher of college texts.

The book was printed and bound in the Ukraine, perhaps as an economy measure, and our only complaint is that the inking in our copy is uneven, with some pages dark and others quite light. But it's the content that matters, and that really shines.

Mr. Moiseyev presents two complete World Championship matches; his encounter with Ron King in 2003, and his contest with Elbert Lowder in 2002. He also gives us a selection of fifty of his best games from the 1996-2004 timeframe. The games are illustrated and annotated in a way seldom if ever seen in a checker book. Each page has at least one diagram, often more, and diagrams are always near the text section in which they are referenced, making for extraordinary ease of use.

In total, the book contains over 500 diagrams, presents 114 games, and treats 66 openings directly and 114 more indirectly. And you won't want to miss Mr. Moiseyev's coverage of the 3-Move World Championship Title controversy, which stretched out over the 2001-2003 time period. Checkers too has its moments of drama!

But when it comes to analysis of play, which is the real heart of the book, Mr. Moiseyev left no stone unturned. In addition to his own elucidations, he adds commentary and analysis by notables such as Richard Fortman; and finally, he verifies everything with the strong Nemesis computer engine. The result: annotations that are insightful, complete, detailed, easy to follow, and above all, interesting and engaging.

Who can use this book? The play analysis is deep and uncompromising, and there's no doubt that expert players will benefit most fully. But intermediates and even beginners will benefit as well, and will obtain untold enjoyment in playing over these fine games, learning as they go, with more of the analysis becoming accessible at each replaying. We ourselves are certainly at the lower end of the skill spectrum, yet Sixth has already given us numerous hours of entertainment and education, with many more to come.

We surely hope that the subtitle Volume 1 will mean that Mr. Moiseyev will publish additional books in the future similar to this outstanding edition.

With Mr. Moiseyev's kind permission, generous extracts from the book are reprinted here; just click to see them. Mr. Moiseyev has also selected two problems from the book, which we present below for your solving pleasure.

You can order the book through the American Checker Federation Online Store or direct from Alex; write to Alexander Moiseyev, 5676 Springburn Drive, Dublin, OH, 43017 USA. The cost of the book is US $48, or US $78 if you would like an inscribed, personalized copy.

And now, here are the problems:

Problem One
BLACK

WHITE
White to Move, Black to Draw

W:WK11,K12,K15,K18,30:B17,K20,21,K28,K31.

Problem Two
BLACK

WHITE
White to Move and Draw

W:WK7,9,20,24,27:B4,8,11,12,K15,16.

We didn't say they were easy! But clicking on Read More will lead you unfailingly to Alex's solutions.