Area Event Updates
Check out several events coming up in
the next couple of months by clicking on the Area Events link above!
ANOTHER BUSY SCHOLASTIC WEEKEND
GSL Team, Groundhog Gambit Feb. 3 & 4
We have another busy scholastic weekend coming up, with the GSL Team Championship being played Friday, February 3, at Gonzaga Prep. The following day, February 4, sees the Groundhog Gambit again being played at St. George's. The flyers are available on our Scholastic Events page (link at left).
Currently at Club
WINTER CHAMPIONSHIP: TWO ON TOP AFTER TWO
After two rounds of the club's Winter Championship, which started its five week run on January 26, there are only two perfect scores among the 15 player field. Second seed Michael Cambareri and fourth seed Nikolay Bulakh are the only 2.0 scores. With most of the other high seeds hanging only 1/2 point back, this tourney looks like it will not be decided before the final round.
Previously at Club
There were 14 players who took part in an evening of quick chess on January 12. The four round g/15 event was won by top seed John Julian with a 3.5 score. Second place (3.0) was shared by Michael Cambareri, Jeremy Krasin, and Kevin Korsmo. The under 1500 prizes were shared by Ted Baker, David Blue, and Ron Weyland with 2.0 scores. The cross table is available on our Recent Results page (link at left).
Nine players took part in a round robin blitz tourney on January 5. Top seeds Michael Cambareri and John Julian tied for first at 7-1, while Jeremy Krasin was right behind them at 6-2.
20TH DAVE COLLYER MEMORIAL THIS MONTH
ENHANCED PRIZE FUND THIS YEAR
It's only a month away now and getting ever closer -- this year's installment of the Dave Collyer Memorial, Spokane's largest tourney, is scheduled for February 25-26, 2012, at St. Anne's Children's Center. The flyer for the event is now posted on our Area Events page (link at left).
IM John Donaldson will once again return to compete, as well as give his always well-received lecture and simul the evening before, February 24. There are two new features this year in honor of the 20th anniversary. First, there will be a door prize for every entrant. Second, an anonymous donor has given us $400 for this year's prize fund to raise the amount to a guaranteed total of $2,000! The top three prizes have been increase, the class D players will have their own class prizes separate from the E and unrated players, and a third upset prize has been added! See the flyer for details.
In addition, long time northwest chess figure Rusty Miller has donated $200 for a Stephen Christopher Memorial Perfect Score prize.
For those of you flying in for the tournament, the Peppertree at the airport will be offering special room rates and having a shuttle to the playing site. Contact Kevin Korsmo for more information (kmkorsmo@comcast.net) on that offer or for information about downtown-area hotels.
The first entries were received in early November and more have come in since -- expect to see your old friends back once again! We hope to make this the largest Collyer ever!
Scholastic Report
WINTERFEST REPORT
The 2012 segment of this year's local scholastic calendar kicked into gear with Winterfest at Arcadia school in Deer Park on January 21. Dr. James Stripes, who directed the event, submits this report:
Eight schools were represented by forty-four players at Saturday's Winterfest Scholastic chess tournament, the tenth time that this annual tournament has been held. Aside from a single player who made the trip north from Pullman, all the others were from north Spokane. Friday's freezing rain deterred others who had planned to attend.
Northwest Christian playes were unbeatable until they were forced to play one another. They easily captured the team trophy. Nick Seleski won the Grand Champion trophy in K-6 on tiebreaks, as he dispatched two of the players scoring 4.0. The next five places all received trophies: Nathan Sacpopo was first in grade 5, Jacob Gray was second in grade 5, Ray Johnson was third in the same, Torrey Casper was fourth in grade 5, and Kenny King was first in grade 4. The top 3.0 player was Tristan Udby, winner of an in-house tournament at his school last spring. First place in grade 6 went to Zeph Johnson, who edged out the other sixth grader with 2.0 on tiebreaks.
Competition between Saint George's School and Arcadia was strong in the K-3 section that had well over half of the entries from SGS. The top SGS second grader elected to play in the K-6 section where he earned valuable lessons from the Northwest Christian players before earning two wins against Arcadia players, helping secure second place in the team competition for his school.
James Gunn won the Grand Champion trophy in K-3 with slightly stronger tiebreaks than Zac Johnson. The two drew each other in the second round. Zac won first place in grade 3. He was followed by Dana Mogensen was second in grade 3, and Holden Adams was third in the same. My admonition to the third graders at a previous tournament that age does not always prevail and that the second graders were the hard ones to beat in that section appears to have spurred a few to improve. Jack Morris and Tariq Ravasia won first and second in grade 2 behind their classmate, the Grand Champion. Sam Morris, also with 3.0, was first place in kindergarten. Gabe Gustafson was first in grade 1 with 2.5.
Some K-6 action:
The MS/HS section was small. Peter Schumaker easily won all six games in the double round robin. Dane Lindh won all his other games, taking the second place prize.
The Groundhog Gambit, an event older than Winterfest, is two weeks away at Saint George's School. The Saturday after the Groundhog will be the Eastern Washington championships February 11 in Richland. Scholastic players have an opportunity to play International Master John Donaldson on the eve of Spokane's strongest annual open tournament—the Collyer Memorial. In March, Arcadia and Saint George's each host a tournament, offering additional chances for K-6 players to qualify for the Washington State Elementary Chess Championship to be held in Pasco April 21.
The cross table link is posted on our Scholastic Events page (link at left) We also have another photo from the event posted on that page.
FIELDS WINS SPOKANE GAME 10 CHAMPIONSHIP
Youth was served at this year's installment of the perennially popular Spokane G/10 championship, a round-robin quick tournament, which once again was once again played at the Spokane Valley Library on December 10. Tacoma sixth-grader Noah Fields claimed first place in the 9-player double round robin event. Ninth grader Savanna Naccarato of Sandpoint finished second, while Jeremy Krasin was third and Tacoma chess veteran Steve Buck placed fourth. The tournament cross table link is posted on our recent results page (link at left).
Dave Griffin directed and financially sponsored the tourney. The presence of two strong Tacoma-area players was the result of their top-three standing in the Northwest Grand Prix. This event presented the best opportunity for northwest players to improve their standings in the final month of the competition.
US OPEN RETURNS TO WASHINGTON
2012 -- VANCOUVER
The 2012 U.S. Open Chess Championship will be played in Vancouver, Washington, August 4-12. It is the first time the Open has been back to Washington state since Seattle hosted the event in 1966 (Portland hosted in 1987). Make your plans to attend! The playing site is to be the Vancouver Hilton. More details will be available later this year.
James Stripes Visits London
Samples U.K. Chess
Spokane's James Stripes managed to fit some chess into his schedule during a vacation to England in early October. He forwarded the following report on his visit to a London chess club:
James Stripes played a few five-minute games with Tryfon Gavriel in the Wargrave Arms at the September 28 meeting of the King's Head Chess Club. This club meets in a pub on Tuesday nights. Gavriel is a British Regional Master who is known worldwide as "kingscrusher"--a name he uses on his online playing site ChessWorld and for his instructive YouTube videos, which often feature him talking his way through victories over tough competition on ICC. Despite being "completely knackered from travelling," as Gavriel put it, the upstart American took some games in the pub ending a fairly impressive blitz winning streak for the Brit.
We also received a photo from that visit:
(from left: Dr. James Stripes, Teri Stripes, and the "kingscrusher" Tryfon
Gavriel.)
James also visited the British Museum, where he captured the following picture of the famed Lewis chess set.
