The 2009 U. S. Senior Open Chess Championship was held over the Labor Day weekend in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Fifty-two chess players age 50 or older participated in the six round event. My record of four wins and two losses topped those rated Under 1900 and paid $200. I won both rounds on the last day against higher rated opponents. My win in the morning session featured my favorite opening, the King’s Gambit. Although most chess players consider the advantage to be with the player of the White pieces, all of my other contests ended with Black victories. In my last round game, my opponent spurned my draw offer only to later blunder and lose. To win in competitive chess usually requires a little luck. Fortunately, I was the recipient of some luck this time. My opponents were from the following states: New Jersey, Oklahoma, Florida, Indiana, Texas, and Ohio. Grandmaster Larry Christiansen, the top rated player, qualified for the U. S. Closed by winning with five games and drawing once. Grandmaster Larry Kaufman was clear second with five points, four wins and two draws. He is the defending World Senior Chess Champion and qualified, by reason of being the top finisher age 60 or older, to defend his title in Italy in October. Interestingly, my high finish put me in the succession list for this honor to represent the U.S. Several other chess tournaments were held simultaneously, including the first U. S. Women’s Chess Championship, the Okie Open, and the Okie Master’s Invitational. It has been two years since my last over-the-board chess tournament. What a great return and first Senior Open!
Ohio Collegiate Chess Championship 2009 Saturday, Apr 4 2009
Chess 8:27 pm
Eleven Ohio college students representing four schools participated in the 12th annual Ohio Collegiate Chess Championship. Sinan Murat Baughman, a student at Columbus State Community College, won all four of his games. He received $100 and the individual trophy.
Ryan Schwiebert, Ohio University, finished in second place with a 3-1 record. He received $50 and the Class D medallion. His only loss was in the second round to top finisher Baughman.
Viktor Kitsis, Ohio State, had two wins, one draw, and one loss. He received $25 and the Class B medallion. His only loss was to Baughman.
Devon Purtz, Ohio Wesleyan, and Mason Korb, Ohio University, split the Class E/Unrated prize money of $25 for their records of 2-2. Purtz received the medallion on tie break.
With nine points from their top four finishers The Ohio State University will have their name engraved on the traveling trophy.
Golden Knights 2000 Tuesday, Jan 13 2009
Chess 7:49 pm
Yesterday I received a $50 check for my 20th place finish in the 2000 Golden Knights postal chess championship. The U. S. Chess Federation sponsors the Golden Knights, also known as the U. S. Open Correspondence Chess Championship. Postal chess is not for the feint of heart. It can take 2.5 years to complete all of the games in a section. In this tournament, seven players are assigned to a section, with each player playing six games, three with the white pieces and three with black. I was one of thirty masters competing among 546 entries. After the prelimnary section, I was one of only nine masters with a perfect score. Only those players with 4.5 points out of six (one point for a win, a half point for a draw) advanced. The semi-final consisted of 22 sections, but only five players made perfect scores and only three of those were at 12-0. In my semi-final section I was nicked with a draw against Jason Braun so I was in contention for a top finish. The final round had six sections. Interestingly, Jason Braun was again in my section, but with the opposite color. I beat him in the final and drew three games, including one against Chuck Cullum who finished ninth. Through a preliminary, semi-final, and final section, my final weighted point score was 29.35. So, although my last game finished in 2004, games played by others in my section or in other sections may have continued until recently. Anyway, it was a nice surprise to receive the check.
Trick or Treat Mini-Swiss 2008 Monday, Oct 27 2008
Chess 9:10 am
Twenty-six chess players competed October 26th in the 17th annual Trick or Treat Mini-Swiss chess tournament. The three-round chess tournament was held in the Benes Room of Ohio Wesleyan’s Hamilton-Williams Campus Center. This U.S. Chess Federation rated event was divided into three sections based upon each player’s chess rating. The eight highest rated players formed Section A. Tom Britt, a chess master from Hilliard, won $50 for winning two of his games and drawing one. Carl R. Boor, Mansfield, Phillip Seitzer, a senior at Case Western Reserve, and Dave Rutherford, Millfield, split the $25 second place prize money for their records amassing two points. Interestingly, in the first round, when most of the games are usually decisive, three of the four games ended in draws.
Keith Motschman, Columbus, received $50 for winning two games and drawing one in Section B. Greg Clemens, Roseville, and Will Kirby, Columbus, split the $25 second place prize money for their records of two wins and one loss.
Christian Smith, Columbus, was the clear winner in Section C. He received $60 for winning all three of his games in this ten-player section. Garrett Bell, an eighth grader at LibertyMiddle School, Daniel Moyer, Dublin, Andrew Zhang, an eight year old at Glacier Ridge Elementary, and Peyman Majidi, a sophomore at Ohio Northern, split the $40 second place money for their records of two wins and one loss. A beautiful fall day and hard fought games made this a memorable tournament.
Ohio Collegiate Chess Championship 2008 Sunday, Mar 30 2008
Chess 11:46 am
Fourteen college students representing five schools participated in this year’s Ohio Collegiate Chess Championship held March 29, 2008 in the Beeghly Library on the campus of Ohio Wesleyan University.
Andy Jetter, a junior at the University of Cincinnati, captured first place with three wins and one draw in the four-round event. He received $100 and the individual trophy.
Tony Rotella, a senior at Case Western Reserve University, and Peter June, a sophomore at Case Western, tied for second place with records of three wins and one loss. They split $75 and Rotella received a medallion on tiebreak as the top Class A player.
Philip Green, a sophomore at Ohio University, Jeff Lindquist, Ohio State, and Jason Gordon, a graduate student at Ohio State, shared the $25 Class B prize money for their records of two wins and one draw. Green received the medallion on tiebreak as top Class B player.
Rick Marshall, Ohio State, received the $25 Class C prize money and medallion for his two wins and one draw.
Vikram Kirikera, University of Cincinnati, was the top Class D player. He won $25 and a medallion for his 1-3 score.
Eric DeWees, Ohio State, was the top Class E finisher with a 1.5-2.5 record. He received $25 and a medallion.
The Ohio State University won the traveling team trophy with 10 points.
