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"Chess, with all its philosophical depth, its aesthetic appeal, is first of all a game in the best sense of the word; a game in which are revealed your intellect, character and will. " Boris Spassky 1) Mechanics Chess Club News 2) Yermo tops in Medicine Hat 3) Khaciyan, Peters and Bagheri tie for first in Burbank 4) AF4C, USCF and ICC announce online 'Champion of Champions' event: 5) Here and There 6) Upcoming Events Mechanics Chess Club NewsAn audience of 30 showed up for Slovak GM Lubomir Ftacnik's instructive lecture last Saturday. Immediately afterward a 14 player Blitz was won by IM Ricardo DeDuzman. Batsikan Tserendorj was second while 8-year-old Hugo Kitano picked up the under 1800 prize. David Ray won the weekly Wednesday blitz on September 8. The next event is this evening at 7pm. IM Ricardo DeGuzman is now tied for first in the Robert Jordan Tuesday Night Marathon after reeling off four wins in a row after taking a first round bye. Tied with him at 4.5 are NM Russell Wong and young Expert Nicolas Yap. The 4th Howard Donnelly Memorial (5 rounds; G/45) will be held this Saturday at the MI starting at 10am. 2) Yermo tops in Medicine HatMechanics' Institute Grandmaster-in-Residence Alex Yermolinsky went 5-0 to take first place in the Medicine Hat Open held September 11-12. Organized by Bill Taylor, the event drew players from as far away as Edmonton and Calgary to the rapidly growing city located not far from the Alberta-Montana border. Yermo reports the 2005 Canadian Open is scheduled to be held in Edmonton. 3) Khaciyan, Peters and Bagheri tie for first in Burbank1-3. IMs Melik Khaciyan and Jack Peters and Iranian GM Amir Bagheri tied first in the Southern California Open over Labor Day weekend with 5 from 6. Bagheri and Khaciyan drew quickly in the last round allowing LA Times Chess Columnist Jack Peters to catch up with a last round win over IM Andranik Matikozyan. Here are two key games.
(31) Bagheri,A (2491) - Sevillano,E [A46]
(38) Matikozyan,A - Peters,J (2424) [C76] 4) AF4C, USCF and ICC announce online 'Champion of Champions' eventTHE America's Foundation for Chess, the United States Chess Federation and the Internet Chess Club are pleased to announce a new online event of US State Champions, the winner of which will go forward as the final competitor in the 64-player field for the 2005 Chessmaster US Championships in San Diego. First held in 1845, the US Championship is rightly regarded as one of the world's oldest and most famous national titles. Yet, in its long and illustrious history, there has never been a way to recognize the State Championship structure by finding a way for the best-of-the-best to directly win through for a coveted spot at the US Championships. Now, thanks to the cooperation of our online partners the ICC, the AF4C will hold a Champion of Champions event that will see State Champions from as far as Alaska through California to Hawaii, and from Maine through New York to Florida coming together in an innovative new online event that will run 18-19 September, with the top four going forward to the knockout finals 25-26 September. Apart from the lure of a lucrative spot for the US Championships for the winner, thanks to the ICC and Erik Anderson, co-founder and president of AF4C, there will also be a $1,000 prize fund ($500 to the winner, $250 to the runner-up and $125 each for 3-4 place) on offer to the four players going forward to the knockout final. The first stage of the new event will be a 9-round Swiss-styled tournament split into two sections of East and West. On Saturday, 18 September at 15.00 ICC Time (EST), the East coast State Champions will battle it out to find their top two players, and the following day Sunday, 19th September at 15.00 ICC Time (EST), the West coast will do likewise to find their top two. Both of these events will operate under a fast time control of 3 minutes plus one second per move to successfully whittle down the numbers. All four will then go forward to the grand knockout finals the following week with a time control of Game 60 minutes and with official independent observes on hand to ensure fair play with so much at stake. On Saturday, 25 September at 15.00 ICC Time (EST), the winner of the East coast stage will meet the runner-up of the West coast stage and vice-versa. The two winners will then go forward to the grand final on Sunday, 26 September starting at 15.00 ICC Time (EST), the winner of which will be crowned Champion of Champions and will go forward to the US Championships in San Diego as a representative of all the states. Over Labor Day Weekend of 3-6 September, almost half of the 50 states within the US held their individual State Championships - and the field is now ready to take part in this new online event. With the world's top prize fund on offer of $253,600, the 2005 Chessmaster US Championships will take place 24 November through December 5 at the Hilton Torrey Pines in La Jolla, San Diego, Calif. "The national title championship is a prestigious event in the world of chess," said Erik J. Anderson, president and co-founder of AFC4. We have always looked at ways we could bring all of America together to take part in the US Championships and thanks to the help of our online partners the ICC, this new event helps us work towards that goal. This will be the fourth year that AF4C has hosted the US Championships and its first year doing so in conjunction with the NTC Foundation in San Diego. Added Mr. Anderson: Since taking over the US Championships in 2000, we have found new ways to help revamp and reenergize this sleeping giant by continually moving forward. From opening the field up with our cycle of qualifying tournaments to having all sexes do battle as one, and now to this exciting new online event, we've strived to show that change can be good for all the Championship, its players and the sponsors. The Internet Chess Club is proud to join with America's Foundation for Chess and the United States Chess Federation to present the 2004 Champion of Champions online tournament. "ICC is excited to be hosting this first ever online qualification tournament," said George MacDonald, General Manger of ICC. "We host hundreds of tournaments for our members every week, but this event is unique. It offers USCF State Champions a chance to compete for a slot in the 2005 United States Chess Championships. ICC wishes all the participants good luck!" For further information contact John Henderson at the AF4C on 206-229-9233 or George MacDonald of ICC at 408-363-0701 Full rules and regulations for the event will be posted on the AF4C site at www.af4c.org and on the ICC site at http://www.chessclub.com/. 5) Here and ThereNM Michael Aigner writes: I posted about two dozen pictures from the Labor Day tournament on my website. Your readers might be particularly interested in some photos of the players in the Master section. Some images came out a little dark because I refused to disturb the players with flash. http://www.fpawn.com/pictures.html (Aigner's main picture page) http://www.fpawn.com/CalChess2004/page1.html (Labor Day tournament Master section) Teenage NM Oleg Zaikov won the Oregon Open with a score of 5.5 from 6 on Labor Day weekend while NM Dan Scoones took top honors in the Victoria Labour Day Open in British Columbia with 5 from 6. Noted journalist Seymour Hersh recently gave a talk at Hampden-Sydney College in Virginia and used a chess analogy. Early on Mr. Hersh said, "We're in trouble in Iraq and Afganistan. Basically we are playing chess & they are playing go. We cannot win with force." 6) Upcoming EventsUpcoming Tournaments at the MI
Howard Donnelly Memorial - Sept. 18 Mechanics Institute Scholastic Quads 2004 Tournaments:
September 25, October 16, November 13, December 18 Rounds : 10:30am, 12:15pm, 2:00pm Late Registration: 9:30am - 10:15am Open: to the first eighty players Note: Quads based on rating. USCF Rated. Unrated players face each other. You must be a USCF member to play in the quads. Time Control: Game in 45 minutes Entry Fee: $20 / $30 day of tournament/ $15 for MI members Checks payable to Mechanics' Chess Club Prizes: Trophies for the winners of each quad Northern California Events
Sept. 25-26 3rd Frank Harris Memorial Chess Tournament
Oct. 9, 10 Burlingame Open Oct. 15-17 22nd Annual SANDS REGENCY RENO-WESTERN STATES OPEN GPP: 200 Nevada Special guest for 5 days-former World Champion GM Boris Spassky!!! 6SS, 40/2, 20/1. Sands Regency Hotel/Casino, 345 N. Arlington Ave., Reno, NV 89501. 1-800-648-3553 or (775) 348-2200. $$52,400 b/500, $$33,550 Gtd. G-$5,000-2500-1500-1200-1000-900-800-700-600-500 in Open Section plus 1/2 of all other prizes. 7 Sections: OPEN: EF: GMs & IMs free, Masters $150, (2000-2199) $201, (1999-below) $301. $$ Prizes 1-10 listed above, (2400-2499) $1000, (2300-2399) $1000-600-400, (2299-below) $1000-600-400. If a tie for 1st overall then (G/15) playoff for $100 from prize fund. (Note: GM/IM w/free entry not eligible for class prizes 2499and below, may elect to pay entry fee and become eligible). EXPERT: (2000-2199) EF: $149 $$2,000-1000-500-400-300-200-200-200-200-100-100-100-100-100 (under 2100) $700. "A" Sec. (1800-1999) EF: $148, $$1,900-1000-500-400-300-200-200-200-200-100-100-100-100-100-100. "B" Sec. (1600-1799) EF: $147, $$1,800-1000-500-400-300-200-200-200-200-100-100-100-100-100-100. "C" Sec. (1400-1599) EF: $146, $$ 1,700-1000-500-400-300-200-200-200-100-100-100-100-100-100-100. "D" Sec. (1200-1399 including adult unrateds) EF: $145 (unrated EF: $10 + must join USCF membership for 1 additional year through this tournament ($49 adults). $$1,500-800-500-400-300-200-200-200-100-100-100-100-100-100-100 (top unrated wins 1 yr. USCF membership plus trophy). "E" Sec. (1199-below including unrated Jrs.) EF: $75 (unrated EF: $10 + must join USCF membership for 1 additional yr. through this tournament ($25 Jrs.) (Note: each entry counts as 1/2 paid player towards total prize fund). $$500-400-300-200-100-100-100-100-100-100-100-100-100-100-100; 1st unrated - 1 year USCF membership + trophy. Seniors (65/over) $$500-300-200-100 (Srs not eligible: provisionally rated, unrated, "E" & masters) - Club Championship $$1000-500-300-200 decided by total score of best 10 scores form one club or area (not eligible - masters, unrated and Sec "E") Trophies to Top 3 (A-E Sections). ALL: $11 more if postmarked after 9/27/04 and $22 more if postmarked after 10/10/04 or at site. $20 off EF to Sr 65/over and Jrs 19/under (does not apply to "E" Section or Unrateds) Players may play up. Unrated players not eligible for cash prizes except Open 1-10. Provisionally rated players may win up to 50% of 1st place money except open Section 1-10. CCA ratings may be used. Note pairings not changed for color alternation unless 3 in a row or a plus 3 and if the unlikely situation occurs 3 colors in a row may be assigned. Reg: 5-9pm (10/14), 8:30-10am (10/15) rds 12-7, 10-7, 9:30-6. Byes available any round if requested before 1st round. Side events: 10/14 6-7:30pm GM Larry Evans lecture (free), Blitz (5 min) Tourney ($20) 7:30pm. GM Boris Spassky's schedule: Wed (10/13) "An Evening with Boris" dinner, cocktails & more advanced reservations required $30, 8:30pm. Thurs (10/14 Simul (25 boards) $100 (includes commemorative pen to all players), Spectator fee $5, 7:30pm. Fri (10/15) Book Signing Session 10-11am. Sat (10/16) Clinic - $10 4:30-6pm. Sun (10/17) film "Clash of the Titans" (Boris Spassky & Bobby Fischer) followed by questions & answers with Boris Spassky & Larry Evans, $10, 4-5:30pm. NOTE: All paid players receive free non transferable admission to all Spassky events except Wed dinner. Ent: Make checks payable and send to: SANDS REGENCY (address above) HR: $39 (Sun-Thurs) & $59 (Fri-Sat) + 13.5% tax. Info: Jerry Weikel, 6578 Valley Wood Drive, Reno NV 89523, (775) 747-1405 (wackyykl@aol.com) FIDE, W.
Oct. 30-31 Blacknight October Open Southern California Events
Sept. 18 Joshua Tree September Open GPP: 6 S. California
Sept. 24-26 Los Angeles Open GPP: 50 S. California National Events Sept. 3, 4, 5, 6 23rd North American FIDE Open GPP: 150 Oklahoma 8SS, G/90+30 sec, Holiday Inn (Holidome) 2515 W. 6th Ave (Hwy-51) Stillwater, OK 1-405-372-0800. HR: 60-60-60-60. EF: $50. Free to FIDE rated players. Reg: Fri 11am-12:30pm. Rds: 1-6, 11-4, 11-4, 9-2. $$G 9,900 will not be lowered. $$G$1,500, $1,300, $1,100, $900, $700, $500. 11 plaques. $$G 600 each class X-E & below. Unr $200-$100. 2 byes rds 1-6. OCF req. Free Parking. Ent: Jim Berry PO Box 351 Stillwater, OK 74076. 1-405-624-2281. jaberrycg@aol.com. LS, W. FIDE. Acc pairings may be used
Oct. 29-31. GPP: 80 South Dakota Masrk these two events down on your calendar. The PAN AM Intercollegiate will be held in Kansas right after Christmas.Email Mikhail Korenman for more information at mkorenman@yahoo.com 4th Annual Lindsborg Open December 17-22 GM & IM norms are available; $4,000 guaranteed prize fund! Rapid Knock-out Tournament Lindsborg, Kansas December 23-25, 2004 $11,500 guaranteed prize fund! 9SS; |