Energy

The headline on Chessbase (http://www.chessbase.com/) reads: Peter Svidler leads in Russian Super Final. The story begins with: In round four he took a 14-move break... Think of it, the GM has won his first three games and he makes a draw after the opening in the fourth round, with the rest day the NEXT DAY! He only has to play one game a day, and he cannot even do that... Obviously, he lacks ENERGY. That is what set the great Bobby Fischer apart from his fellow GM's; he had the energy to play every game TO WIN! Mikhail Botvinnik once said he was "first among peers." Bobby Fischer HAD NO PEERS! He had no peers because he played UNCOMPROMISING chess. When Bobby sat down across from his opponent, the opponent KNEW, without a doubt, that Bobby was there for one reason, and ONLY one reason; and that was to WIN! Bobby Fischer did not come to draw.
I have been thinking about energy lately after reading the September 24 Dutch Treat by Hans Ree, from the Chess Cafe (http://www.chesscafe.com/). The article concerns the so-called 'Rising Stars' versus the 'Experience' tournament and the videos, such as "Korchnoi speaks." (http://www.nhchess.com/) Viktor talks about the fact that elo points do not only signify chess understanding, but also how much 'energy' a player contains. The main advantage younger players have when playing most older players is more energy. That's why it's so disappointing seeing the older Longshot Larry come down the stairs at the House grinning, saying, "A bird in the hand..." after offering a short draw and having it accepted by the young Ben Moon to share first place in the TNF. Or a player like The Stud give a short draw to a Senior like Wayne Christensen in the third round of a weekend swiss on Saturday night, especially when the older man considers it a favor! I sometimes wonder...If these young players knew of Bobby Fischer's will to win, would they still give these short draws? They put a few bucks in their pocket, but they learn nothing. The combined energy of these two young players does not compare to the energy of the 72 year-old 'Viktor Korchnoi' of Southern chess, LM Klaus Pohl!