"Inconnux" wrote in message
news:EDDMh.423$__3.220@edtnps90...

You've established nothing. To put it another way, if playing
the best move (aka "playing chess") at the GM level
produces about 25% draws (as evidenced by computers),
then why do GM's not play the best moves? (as
evidenced by their 60+% draw rates)

Larry Tapper hit on the answer exactly. He noted
that "high-level players are canny utility maximizers".
They aren't maximizing good chess, they are maximizing
"highest tournament score". They aren't really
playing chess, they are engaging in a competition
which has chess as a component. They've
concluded that playing the best move is a
sub-optimal strategy and that it is better to
play a number of uncontested or partially
contested games.

You are free to like that situation, but I am free
to dislike it. I think it is ridiculous to dissuade
the world's best players from playing the best
chess possible. To distort the game to the degree
where the draw rate is double or greater the
natural draw rate is lunacy.


Chess Canada November 2006 P.21

IM Zugic vs GM Charbonneau
Canadian Zonal (9) 26.08.2006

Quoting Igor Zugic
2006 Canadian Champion

"Just moments before I played this
move, the game Gerzhoy-Bluvshtein
ended in a draw. It meant I did not
have to win this game anymore. Following
my last move I immediately ofered
a draw to Pascal. He had no better
choice but to accept"

Yet his notes after 47.Bh5

"This wins too but I missed a pretty
checkmate 47.Rh5 Rh6 48.Rh6 Kh6
49.Rc2!! and black does not have a
good way to preventing checkmate"

So In a Zonal Final an IM admits to
having a won game but offers a draw
because

"However, I did not want to wait
a second to become the new
Canadian Champion."


Another clearcut case that
the alleged drawishness of
chess does not explain the
actual draws that occur.

The real question is to what
quantitative degree are draw
rates inflated by these external
factors, and what can be done
about them.

In some sense I think it is a mistake
to focus on special cases like this
one, or the usual target of the
obviously uncontested GM draw,
because it leads people to overlook
that the same factors behind
those events have an insidious
influence throughout chess.