The Players: James Sawaski
James Sawaski may be the “number five seed” in this tough-guys tournament, but he is clearly a master class writer: Sawaski's novel “The Chess Team” tells a fine story about a coach and his team of high school players in Escanaba.
Have you played the other guys in the tournament OTB or Correspondence? What are your impressions of your opponents?
I have been on hiatus from OTB chess for about 5 years. Although I’ve played in several tournaments that Eric has been to, we have yet to get paired (Probably because he’s been on board 1 the whole tournament – and I wasn’t lol) … I have not played any of the other players yet either in an OTB skirmish – I have played Barry once in correspondence and the game was a draw. My impressions of the other players – “This is one strong field!” I have read a lot about my opponents in Michigan chess magazines and articles – I am looking forward to playing everyone. I’m the lowest rated player in this group, so draws will be good!
Who do you think is likely to score the most points?
When it comes to correspondence, you just don’t know. One win and seven draws could win this tournament. With everyone within 300 rating points of each other, it is statistically impossible to predict a winner in this kind of format – Eric would be the favorite of course – he is the epitome of a true chess player (both correspondence and OTB), but the strength of this field is stunning. I will say, if I can’t win, I’d like to see my fellow U.P. resident Barry Endsley win it.
Does your style change when you play correspondence instead of over-the-board?
VERY MUCH SO! I think anybody familiar with both would say OTB and correspondence are two different games. I am much more a student of the game, than I am real OTB chess player. When practicing OTB chess, one should practice 50% of the time and play 50% of the time. In the last 15 years, life has been so demanding with work and family that I have literally practiced 100% of the time and played 0% of the time. It’s hard to get a good OTB rating just practicing and it gets frustrating, because you know more, but somehow it doesn’t translate to playing better. With correspondence, all that is forgiven because it is more knowledge based. You have the time, resources and energy levels to make good chess decisions. I find in my OTB games, I get nailed down on an idea and then with loss of time, I have to follow through with it, good or bad. Some times it’s pretty – some times it’s quite ugly. In correspondence, I can take 2 hours or 2 days. If I’m not sure, I can move the pieces around, find a game that is similar, tons of resources to make sure my decision is the best I can make. There is no such luxury in OTB chess. Openings are my weakest point of my OTB game for some reason. Always have been, but in correspondence, I can play ANY opening at a high level. I have seven bookcases of books, (over 500 total) and tons of DVDs– if I get an opening I don’t fully understand, or haven’t seen in a long time, I know where to go to have the ideology all explained properly. If someone makes a crazy – non book move in OTB – I have trouble making them pay. In correspondence, the surprises are much more subtle, simply because you can make your opponent pay for their risk.
Do you have a favorite correspondence player?
Not really. Unfortunately correspondence chess has very little glamour. Correspondence players seem to play for TRUTH – OTB players seem to play to outlast or outwit. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out which version is more exciting and appeals to the masses. Still – correspondence can be quite entertaining and if one can handle a long term approach, it is very instructive. I started playing correspondence, because I live way up in the U.P. and to get to OTB tournaments is very hard, with having a full time job and family and other sorts. To go to an OTB tournament, I have gas, driving, hotel, food, time off work, entry fee – before you know it, I’ve got $300-$500 wrapped up in a weekend, where first place in my class is like $150 bucks. Not that I play in chess tournaments for monetary purposes, it’s just that the investment is very high for a U.P. chess player. I started correspondence as a way to really work on my OTB game. It turned into something much more. The rating system seems to be much more forgiving and becoming 2200 in OTB which seems to be a near impossible task, is actually quite possible in correspondence. I think the reason for this is in OTB you really need some natural talent. Otherwise the amount of work, energy and time that must be invested is extremely great. correspondence on the other hand rewards HARD WORK more. I find I can outwork a lot of other good chess players, even though I might not be as talented in a timed condition. My goal in life has always been to be an official chess master. I always thought that it would be OTB (if at all possible), but I’m finding that becoming a correspondence chess master isn’t all that bad of a thing either. Like I said before, there is not much glamour in correspondence, but an official chess master is a chess master no matter how you look at it. Even though OTB master appears to be more impressive than correspondence master, both players are indeed masters at their trade. Then you get players like Eric who are both OTB and correspondence masters! It’s almost not fair. Still, I will be happy if some day I can reach 2200 correspondence – it does count in its own realm.
Do you think about your games in the shower or when you should be sleeping?
Outside of being AT work – I think about my games day and night. I may be one of the last players in the world that actually still uses a Post-A-Log. I have five Post-A-Logs altogether, I had to order my last one from Canada. That dealer told me when he was out, he said that was it – game over - no more ever. Kind of sad in a way, because I depend totally on mine. It really is an extension of ME – like a pinky finger or something. When I misplace it I sometimes panic until it’s recovered. Or if I forget to bring it with me, I will drive all the way home and get it. Wherever I go, so goes my Post-A-Log. When I’m caught up, I bring a chess book with me as well, but my games come first. As much as I study the positions, you can fatigue on them. Before I make a move, I always play the game from move 1 to the current position. I have lost a couple games to clerical error (this is more for email chess) and after I lost a won game to a 2050 rated player that had taken a year to get that position – I realized real quick that – that can never happen again. Going over the game from move 1 also helps keep it in my head long term and I have noticed that when I see the same opening in OTB chess, the game/idea is fresh – so clear learning does take place and I can pull up that position in my head when I’m at work or doing something where I can’t check the Post-A-Log. I have a personal limit of no more than 24 games. When I first played postal chess 20 years ago – I had anywhere from 60-80 games going at one time. I remember playing in club tournaments where you played each player 6 games! Lol. Kind of sickening when I think about it now. I see other players get bogged down, and their strength clearly goes down the more they play. I prefer 12 games tops, but one just can’t always choose how many games they play with qualifiers and things like that.