12th Norway Chess R2: Magnus humbles Hikaru in Armageddon
The second round of 12th Norway Chess 2024 also witnessed three Armageddon. Magnus Carlsen (NOR) got the better of Hikaru Nakamura (USA) in Armageddon. The latter decided to play actively and not defend a pawn. He lost two more pawns after that and the game. Alireza Firouzja (FRA) was determined to beat Fabiano Caruana (USA). It was evident from the way he started the Classical battle. In Armageddon, despite getting the upperhand, Caruana misplayed, made an incorrect exchange sacrifice and allowed his opponent to get back in the game. A few mistakes later, he lost the game. Ding Liren (CHN) is slowly getting back to his old form. In the Armageddon, he showed his opponent, R Praggnanandhaa, why he is the world champion. Round 3 starts today from 5 p.m. CET, 8:30 p.m. IST. Photos: Norway Chess/Stev Bonhage
White wins all three Armageddon
Carlsen - Nakamura: 1.5-1
Last year, the Classical game between Magnus Carlsen (NOR, 2830) and Hikaru Nakamura (USA, 2794) had ended in a draw. Magnus won the Armageddon. This time also, the results were the same. Only difference is the color got inverted. Armageddon also witnessed another Ruy Lopez. However, the Norwegian deviated when he went 5.0-0 instead of 5.c3 like their Classical battle.
Armageddon
Nakamura chose to play actively and not defend the d6-pawn. 24...h6 25.Rxd6 Rxd6 26.Qxd6 Kh7 Black never got enough compensation for the lost pawn. He went on to lose a couple of more and then the game.
Firouzja - Caruana: 1.5-1
Alireza Firouzja (FRA, 2737) had a tough time against Fabiano Caruana (USA, 2805) last year. He lost both Blitz and Classical games. This time, Firouzja was determined to change that. The Classical game had an exciting start.
A careful observation reveals that despite Black having two of his pieces hanging, he is not going to lose material as Bxh4 comes with a check. The game continued 14.gxh5 Bxh4+ 15.Kf1 Bd3 16.Bxd3 cxd3 17.Kg2 Qd8 the lack of enough pieces meant Black not getting the desired attack that he wanted. The game eventually fizzled out into a draw.
Armageddon
Despite having an advantageous position for the better part of the middlegame, Caruana made a strange decision to sacrifice an exchange 30...Rc3?! 31.Nxc3 dxc3 32.Bxc3 bxc3 33.Qxc3 Bxa4 34.Qxa5 soon Black blundered material and lost the game.
Liren - Praggnanandhaa: 1.5-1
R Praggnanandhaa (2747) defeated Ding Liren (CHN, 2762) with the black pieces at 86th Tata Steel Masters earlier this year. The World Champion had not forgotten about it. The Classical battle ended in a draw.
Armageddon
20...b5 invited 21.Nxb5 Ba6 22.Nd6 Bxd6 23.cxd6 Nxb4 24.Qa4 Nxd3 25.Qxa6 Nxe1 26.Rxe1 Rb6 27.Qa3 Qf6? 28.Nxd4 and White eventually won the game.
Replay live stream
Replay Round 2 games
Round 2 results
Standings after Round 2
Round 3 pairings
Format
6 players will take part in the Tournament.
The Tournament is a double-round event with Armageddon.
The Tournament consists of 10 rounds.
Time Control
Each player will have 120 minutes on the clock with an increment of 10 seconds starting from move 41. The time control for the Armageddon game: white has 10 minutes and black has 7 minutes with an increment for both players of 1 second per move, starting from move 41.
Draw by Mutual Agreement
Players are not allowed to agree to a draw until at least 30 moves have been made by each player. This rule does not apply to Armageddon games.
Armageddon
If the classical game is drawn, an Armageddon game will be played. It shall start within 20 minutes of the conclusion of the classical game. The player with White pieces will continue with White in Armageddon. If the Armageddon game is drawn, black will win.
Points
Players will get the following points per round:
Win in the classical game: 3 points
Loss in the classical game: 0 points
Draw in the classical game & win Armageddon: 1½ points
Draw in the classical game & loss Armageddon: 1 point
Schedule
From 27th May to 7th June, every day game starts at 5 p.m. local time and 8:30 p.m. IST. Rest days are on Friday 31st May and Wednesday 5th June.
Prize money
Prize Money The total prize fund of the Tournament is 1690000 NOK. Distribution of Prize money occurs as followed:
1st - NOK 700000
2nd - NOK 350000
3rd - NOK 200000
4th - NOK 170000
5th - NOK 150000
6th - NOK 120000
Watch the tournaments live at the venue:
SR-Bank in Stavanger City.
Address: Christen Tranes Gate 35, 4007 Stavanger
All tickets are purchased directly at the venue. No pre-sale.
It is possible to reserve tickets, however, this is normally not necessary due to good capacity at the venue. Reserve your ticket by e-mailing the desired dates and names to: bjorn@norwaychess.com.
Ticket prices per day:
Adults: 200 NOK
Children: 100 NOK
Family: 400 NOK
Links
Norway Chess: Official site, facebook, twitter, instagram, youtube, linkedin
