Schutt Blitz Results and Photos

FM Yian Liou

IM Daniel Naroditsky

NM Daniel Schwarz

Now in its seventh year, the Ray Schutt Memorial Blitz Tournament continues to attract many of the strongest and fastest local players to the Mechanics' Institute.  The 5 double-round swiss (10 games) featured a generous $750 prize fund, augmented by free books for everyone, including multiple signed copies by Bay Area authors.  Even ten days later, the fond memories remain fresh.  Thanks to photographer Richard Shorman and webmaster Mark Shelton for uploading more than 100 photos on ChessDryad.

6-time US Champion
GM Walter Browne

A blast from the past:
NM Mike Arne

Out of a record 63 participants, 17 were masters, including two Grandmasters and seven International Masters.  The defending champion IM Daniel Naroditsky was poised to three-peat, but he faced stiff challenges in the final two rounds from Italian IM Niccolo Ronchetti (1.5-0.5) and 3-time US Champion GM Nick deFirmian (1-1).  This allowed high school sophomore FM Yian Liou to snatch clear first place by sweeping IM Ricardo DeGuzman (2-0).

Three of my former students finished in the money: Yian, Danya and recent Stanford graduate Daniel Schwarz.  Way to go guys!  All that blitz practice pays dividends!

Final Standings

• 9.0 FM Yian Liou
• 8.5 GM Nick deFirmian and IM Daniel Naroditsky
• 8.0 IM Ray Kaufman, IM Odondoo Ganbold and NM Daniel Schwarz
• 7.5 IM Niccolo Ronchetti
• 7.0 IM Ricardo DeGuzman and FM Andy Lee
• 6.5 GM Walter Browne
• 5.5 NM Michael Aigner

On the day before the blitz, the Mechanics' hosted the 13th Powell Memorial (G/45).  For the first time in four years, Yours Truly ended up victorious!  I beat master Romulo Fuentes and improving expert Aleksandr Ivanov before drawing with National K-8 champion Siddharth Banik.  Most importantly, I finally got off my life master floor!

The Chess Room

A Call to Action by Lateknight

Faraday Chess Team from Chicago.  Coach Ocol stands at far left.

Chess is called the royal game.  It is a competitive endeavor, a tool to challenge ourselves to become sharp mentally.  Indeed, many articles describe the educational benefits of chess in a variety of fields, from math to psychology to business.  Quite a few successful executives around the world can skewer your pieces, according to this list published by Business Insider last year.

Marty Grund - Lateknight on ICC
Credit: Ben Finegold

The impact that exposure to chess has on a young child must not be understated.  Schools and youth groups around the country recognize chess as far more than just a game.  Books such as Game of Kings and films like Brooklyn Castle detail the life-changing impact that a teacher with a chessboard has on dozens if not hundreds of disadvantaged New York City youths.  There are more such stories in other communities around the country.

Marty Grund, better known by the username Lateknight, is an owner of the Internet Chess Club and serves as the public face of the company.  He has traveled far and near, meeting fans of the royal game from all corners of the Earth.  Last month in Nashville, Marty met Joseph Ocol from Chicago, an inner-city high school math teacher who organized a chess club as keep vulnerable teens out of gangs.  Lateknight penned the following touching article about Saint Joseph of Chicago.

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After a couple of days at the event I met a short, humble appearing man by the name of Joseph Ocol, a math teacher from John Marshall Metropolitan High School located in Garfield Park on the West side of Chicago. This is a neighborhood where gangs thrive and murders happen all too often.

Joseph and I took a walk and I listened to him describe how several years previous he began teaching high school students chess after school from 3 to 6 PM, the most vulnerable time of the day for children loose on the streets. When Joseph began the afterschool curriculum, he knew that hosting these children after school would lessen the chance that they would be involved with the morbid side of activities that take place during these hours.

Out of his own pocket, Joseph had to purchase chess equipment and even food, so the kids wouldn't be hungry, in order to make this happen. One afternoon, one of the young men didn't make to the afterschool chess class because he was murdered on the street that day. Many of these children went to school hungry on a daily basis. Some had parents or brothers in prison, mothers addicted to drugs and saw horrors that most of us never see in a lifetime. That horrible reality aside, another student took a chess board home and his mother asked what it was he was carrying. When he answered, "mom, it's a chess board", she answered "you must be smart". Hearing that comment from his mother was an epiphany for him. He said, "that's the first time anybody's ever said that to me, that I must be smart".

Please read the entire Call to Action at the ICC website.

Kayden Troff is the 007

If you are a fan of James Bond or the royal game, this 8-minute video is a must-watch! 

IM Kayden Troff, the World U14 gold medalist who turned 15 three days ago, stars as Britain's top spy in the production by the intrepid youth music group TLC Trio.  The live chess game reenacts Garry Kasparov's Immortal Game, played against Veselin Topalov at the Wijk aan Zee tournament in 1999.  Most of my private students will find this double rook sacrifice familiar.

Rated PG-13 for mild violence and blood.

Print Your Own Scoresheets

Perhaps uou don't want to pay between $3 to $8 for a notation booklet to record your tournament games?  Or you simply want to record a friendly practice game.  No scoresheet?  No problem!

Print out free notation sheets from these PDF files.  Choose from a large scoresheet (8.5x11 page) or four small scoresheets all on the same page.  For the latter, you may wish to cut or fold twice the printouts. 

I added these links to the Cool Chess Websites section in the right sidebar.

2013 US Championship Begins

The most prestigious annual event in America kicks off on Friday.  The US Championship brings 24 of the best chess players in the country to the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis for a 9-round swiss.  The winner earns $30,000 and five players punch their ticket to the FIDE World Cup in August.  Does that sound exciting?  You betcha!  Make sure to watch live video coverage starting at 11am PDT daily through May 12th (except the rest day on Wednesday).

• Click Here for Pairings and Standings
• Live Coverage from St. Louis
• Broadcast on Internet Chess Club

Gata Kamsky

The heavy favorites are the top three seeds: Grandmasters Gata Kamsky, Timur Gareev and Alexander Onischuk.  Each spent a different way preparing for this important event.  Kamsky (age 38) participated in the elite FIDE Grand Prix in Switzerland until Tuesday.  He somehow beat Sergey Karjakin (2786) from the black side of a sharp a6 Slav in the penultimate round to finish at 50%. On the other hand, the energetic Timur Gareev (age 25) took on a superhuman challenge: taking on St. Louis club members in a 33 board BLINDFOLD simul!! 

Timur Gareev

Over 10 hours, he beat 29 opponents, drew with 4 and lost none, all the while seated and wearing a heavy black blindfold!!  By comparison, the third seed Onischuk (age 37) took it easy, studying in his office at Texas Tech University and giving this interview. Regretfully, the country's higher rated player and defending champion GM Hikaru Nakamura chose to skip this year's event to challenge Magnus Carlsen, Viswanathan Anand and many other Top 10 Grandmasters at the spectacular Norway Chess event beginning on Monday.

Northern California chess fans will want to cheer for two local players.  GM Sam Shankland (age 21) grew up in Orinda and learned the moves at the Berkeley Chess School.  The other, IM-elect Sam Sevian, is the tournament's youngest (age 12) and lowest rated (2467 USCF) invitee, although he made quite a name for himself by winning the World Youth U12 last fall.  Good luck to Sam and Sam!

Participants in 2013 US Championship

Ranked by May FIDE Rating

1. GM Gata Kamsky 2741 Seeded (by USCF Rating)
2. GM Timur Gareev 2674 Seeded



Alex Onischuk

3. GM Alex Onischuk 2666 Seeded
4. GM Ray Robson 2620 Seeded
5. GM Varuzhan Akobian 2616 Seeded -- CA/S
6. GM Sam Shankland 2612 Seeded -- CA/N
7. GM Robert Hess 2595 Seeded
8. GM Gregory Kaidanov 2593 Seeded
9. GM Larry Christiansen 2579 Seeded
10. GM Yury Shulman 2570 Seeded
11. GM Alexander Stripunsky 2570 Seeded
12. GM Alejandro Ramirez 2551 Seeded
13. GM Alexander Shabalov 2544 Seeded
14. GM Marc Arnold 2538 Junior Champ
15. GM Joel Benjamin 2534 Seeded
16. GM Aleksandr Ivanov 2529 Senior Champ
17. GM Melikset Khachiyan 2518 Wildcard -- CA/S
18. GM Conrad Holt 2513 Wildcard
19. GM Ben Finegold 2505 Wildcard
20. FM Jorge Sammour-Hasbun 2463 Seeded
21. IM-e Yaacov Norowitz 2451 Seeded
22. FM John Bryant 2442 US Open Winner -- CA/S
23. IM Kayden Troff  2421 Wildcard
24. IM-e Sam Sevian 2371 Wildcard -- CA/N

Ten of the country's top female players compete in the concurrent US Women's Championship, vying for a first place prize of $18,000 in a Round-Robin format.  The two overwhelming favorites are IM Irina Krush (2470 FIDE) and IM Anna Zatonskih (2466 FIDE).  Between them, they have captured the past seven titles (4-3 edge to Zatonskih, but Krush won last year).

World Top 20 List

FIDE Rating List May 2013

List includes Grand Prix but not Alekhine Memorial.  

Check out updated Live Ratings.

1. Magnus Carlsen (NOR) 2868 (age 22)
2. Levon Aronian (ARM) 2813 (30)
3. Vladimir Kramnik (RUS) 2811 (37)



Veselin Topalov

4. Veselin Topalov (BUL) 2793 (38)
5. Viswanathan Anand (IND) 2783 (43)
6. Alexander Grischuk (RUS) 2779 (29)
7. Hikaru Nakamura (USA) 2775 (25)
8. Fabiano Caruana (ITA) 2774 (20)
9. Peter Svidler (RUS) 2769 (36)
10. Sergey Karjakin (RUS) 2767 (23)
11. Alexander Morozevich (RUS) 2760 (35)
12. Vassily Ivanchuk (UKR) 2755 (44)
13. Shakhriyar Mamedyarov (AZE) 2753 (28)
14. Teimour Radjabov (AZE) 2745 (26)
15. Boris Gelfand (ISR) 2744 (44)
16. Wang Hao (CHN) 2743 (23)
17. Ruslan Ponomariov (UKR) 2742 (29)
18. Gata Kamsky (USA) 2741 (38)
19. Peter Leko (HUN) 2737 (33)
20. Anish Giri (NED) 2734 (18)

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Cool Statistics and Comparison to May 2012

Anish Giri

Rating of Player 20 = 2734 (+6 in Last Year)
Avg Rating of Top 20 = 2769 (+4.7)
Avg Age of Top 20 = 31 (+0.3)

Youngest in Top 20 = Giri (18), Caruana (20), Carlsen (22)
Oldest in Top 20 = Gelfand (44), Ivanchuk (44), Anand (43)

Countries Most Represented = Russia (5), USA (2), Azerbaijan (2), Ukraine (2)

Biggest Gain in Last Year = Topalov (+41), Giri (+41), Carlsen (+33)
Biggest Loss in Last Year = Radjabov (-39), Karjakin (-12), Aronian (-12)

38th CalChess Scholastics Winners

Main playing hall at the Santa Clara Convention Center.  Photos by Azleena Azhar.

Around 1000 Bay Area youngsters descended on the Santa Clara Convention Center for the 38th annual CalChess State Scholastic Championships.  Participants ranged from novices attending their first serious chess tournament to a co-champion of the World Youth U12.  Many wide-eyed kids were accompanied by equally bewildered parents.  This turnout proves that scholastic chess still thrives in California!

K-12 Champ FM Cameron Wheeler

Twenty juniors rated 2000+ entered the FIDE-rated High School Championship, which this year seemed more like a local Open section (except without IM DeGuzman).  Indeed, one-third of the players, including the three masters at the top, had not yet begun high school.  Paradoxically, only three high school students sat at the first half-dozen boards in the last round.  And surprising few, the 2291-rated 7th grader FM Cameron Wheeler from Cupertino swept the field.  No doubt he faced a stiffer challenge at the World Youth U12 in Slovenia last year.  The next two in the final standings were his friends Kesav Viswanadha and Vignesh Panchanatham, both also in Middle School, and National Masters too.

Only a pair of High School students went undefeated (each yielded two draws) in the 5-round tournament: sophomore Taylor McCreary of San Luis Obispo and freshman Hunter Klotz-burwell of Palo Alto.  Taylor, underrated at 1872, earned respect and rating by beating 1960 and 2050 plus drawing with two even higher experts. However, she technically lives in Southern California, and consequently Hunter, rated 2083, qualified for the prestigious Denker Tournament of High School Champions in Wisconsin this summer.  Fair travels and good luck!

Denker rep Hunter Klotz-burwell

Bravo to all of the winners!  The following State Champions were crowned.  Click here for full Individual Results and Team Results, including the 11 Junior Varsity, Booster and Rookie sections.  Trivia: A whopping 109 children turned out to play in the 1-3 Rookie (unrated) division, the largest of the weekend.  Can you say Scholar's Mate?

K-12 Championship

• Champion: FM Cameron Wheeler with 5-0
• Runners-up: NM Kesav Viswanadha, NM Vignesh Panchanatham, Taylor McCreary, Siddharth Banik, Allan Beilin and Hunter Klotz-burwell all with 4-1
• Denker Qualifier: Hunter Klotz-burwell
• Top Team: Kennedy Middle (Cameron, Kesav, etc)

6-8 Championship

• Champion: Steven Li with 5.5-0.5
• Runner-up: Anirudh Seela with 5-1
• Top Team: Hopkins Junior High (all MSJE graduates)

4-6 Championship

• Champions: Bryce Wong, Seaver Dahlgren and Daniel Hwan all with 5-1
• Top Team: Mission San Jose Elementary

4-5 Championship

• Champion: Dante Peterson with 5.5-0.5
• Runners-up: Pranav Senthilkumar, David Pan, Daniel Mendelevitch and Amir Dhami all with 5-1
• Top Team: Mission San Jose Elementary

1-3 Championship

• Champion: Callaghan McCarty-snead with 5.5-0.5
• Runner-up: Robert Reyes with 5-1
• Top Team: Mission San Jose Elementary

Kindergarten

• Champion: William Chui with 5-0
• Runners-up: Samit Pattanayak and Arnav Lingannagari with 4.5-0.5

MSJE K-6 Champions with Coach Joe Lonsdale

MSJE K-3 Champions

Seemingly every year, Mission San Jose Elementary earns praise from this blog.  What have they done this spring?  Three weeks ago, they won SuperNationals K-6 and finished Top 5 in two other sections.  Then last weekend, the Giants of chess crushed the local competition, taking on all those who dared and easily winning all three CalChess Elementary team championships, two Junior Varsity divisions, and one Booster.  Coach Joe Lonsdale, his experienced staff, and private coaches (e.g. Ted Castro, Chris Torres, Wei Liu and the veteran magician Richard Shorman) have molded quite a dynasty over the years!  Frankly, I am always amazed how they can teach a 6 or 7 year old how the pieces move in September, by April they are rated 600 and by the second year they have crossed 1000. Well done!!

The influence of MSJE extends far beyond 6th grade.  The CalChess Middle School champion team at Hopkins Junior High consists of alumni of this great chess program.  And by the time they reach High School, the former students return to teach the youngsters, sharing their wisdom from over the years.  However, even the dominance of MSJE has limits.  In the K-12 Open, the all-star lineup of Kennedy Middle, featuring two masters and two experts, predictably steamrolled the field.  Veni! Vidi! Vici!

A special thank you goes to Organizer Salman Azhar of BayAreaChess.com for putting in literally hundreds of hours to prepare for the CalChess Scholastics.  Nothing ever goes off perfectly, but by many accounts, the 2013 edition proceeded quite smoothly.  Of course, a lot of credit goes to Chief Tournament Director and NTD Tom Langland (also CalChess President), his computer guru NTD John McCumiskey, plus the entire staff of directors and volunteers.  All I can say personally, is that I wish I could have been there. :-)

CalChess Bear

• Tournament Website
• Individual Results 
• Team Results
• USCF Rating Report (not yet available)
• Photo Album by Richard Shorman (171 pics) -- also on ChessDryad
• Photo Album #1 by Azleena Azhar (212 pics)
• Photo Album #2 by Azleena Azhar (154 pics)

7th Schutt Memorial Blitz This Sunday!

GM Browne faces the Fpawn in 2011. Yes, that's a Caro Kann!

Over the past half decade, the Ray Schutt Memorial has become the largest and most prestigious annual blitz tournament in the Bay Area.  The last three years saw an average of over 45 players, including many masters with several GMs + IMs.  The 2-time defending champion IM Daniel Naroditsky and 6-time US Champion GM Walter Browne have already committed.  Come down for a fun afternoon of chess in the City!

7th Ray Schutt Memorial Blitz Tournament Sunday, May 5
Location: 57 Post Street, San Francisco (Montgomery BART)   FORMAT: Five double-round Swiss

TIME CONTROL: G/4 + inc/2 (bring your digital clock)

ENTRY FEE: $10 (free for GM/IM)
This tournament is UNRATED. (Membership in USCF not required)

PRIZES: $750 total
1st place: $300
2nd place: $200
3rd place: $100
4th place: $75
5th place: $50
6th place: $25

These prizes are guaranteed due to the generosity of the Schutt family.
Every player takes home a book, including new ones by GM Browne and IM Naroditsky!

REGISTRATION: 1 to 1:45 pm on-site only

There will be no registration in advance.  The tournament will be held between roughly 2 and 4 pm. The entire event will last from 1 to 5 pm. The Schutt family puts on a tremendous spread of food and drink each year. Even if you don't play, please come and enjoy the atmosphere as we pay respect to the popular 2300 rated master.

I regret never knowing Ray. However, we did play one tournament together, and apparently sat next to each other in the first round. It was the 1998 CalChess Labor Day held in Union City, and, rated 2124, I played up. Ray finished with 3.5 while I scored 2.5.   

Note from Fpawn: I plan to attend both the Powell G/45 on Saturday and the Schutt Blitz on Sunday. Health permitting, I will play in both tournaments. I really look forward to meeting people, especially my old friends and students.

Chess Events Around the World

Alexander Alekhine

Mikhail Tal

One of the best ways to improve in chess is to play through master games.  I strongly encourage any student rated 1800+ to regularly review the games of recent elite Grandmaster tournaments.  Watch the world's top rated players or pick your own favorites.  Bay Area fans often follow American stars Hikaru Nakamura and Gata Kamsky or local prodigies Sam Shankland, Daniel Naroditsky and Sam Sevian.  Chinese families, for example, may cheer for Wang Hao, Ding Liren or rising star Wei Yi, who currently leads the national championship at just 13 years old.

What should you pick up from these games?  If you're an A player, you will want to learn from the positional strategies and tactical creativity of the super Grandmasters.  As you improve, you should imitate the style of your superiors.  Chess experts and masters will concentrate on their favorite openings, picking up new moves based on the latest trends.

In some sense, growth of the internet has diminished the importance of studying collections of games by the champions of yesteryear.  Nonetheless, any disciple of Caissa should read a few classics, e.g. Alekhine's Best Games of Chess (2 volumes), Life and Games of Mikhail Tal and My Sixty Memorable Games by Bobby Fischer.  The internet offers an expanding wealth of information to supplement the foundation presented in these books.  The modern chess student benefits from the resources at his fingertips, but must stay dedicated to keep up with an evolving body of theory.

My favorite website to watch tournaments is, of course, the Internet Chess Club.  You can also find quality chess reports, analysis, photos and videos elsewhere on the net, including Chessbase, Chessvibes, Chessdom, and The Week in Chess.  The MonRoi game database covers the top boards at major American tournaments.  (Hint: add these to your bookmarks.)

The international chess calendar is filled with exciting events over the next two months.

Magnus plays on "The Pulpit Rock" 2000 ft above a fjord to promote Norway tournament.

• 3rd FIDE Grand Prix in Zug, Switzerland (thru April 30) - 12 players including 11 of Top 20; favorites = Karjakin, Topalov, Nakamura; dark horse = Giri
• Alekhine Memorial in Paris (the Louvre) and St. Petersburg (thru May 1) - 10 players all 2700+; favorites = Aronion, Kramnik, Anand; dark horses = Adams, Ding Liren
• US Championships in St. Louis (May 2-13) - 24 players including 19 GMs; favorites = Kamsky, Gareev, Onischuk, Robson, Shankland; dark horses = Shabalov, Ramirez 
• Norway Chess in Stavanger (May 7-18) - 10 players including 7 of Top 10; favorite = World #1 Carlsen; dark horses = anyone except Hammer could win!
• 4th FIDE Grand Prix in Madrid (May 22 - June 4) - 12 players including at least 9 of Top 20; favorites = Caruana, Topalov, Nakamura; dark horse = TBA
• Tal Memorial in Moscow (June 12-24) - 10 players including 6 of Top 10; favorite = World #1 Carlsen; dark horses = two Russians: Kramnik and Morovezich

Advice to Chess Parents Reprinted

2010 CalChess 9-12 team champs from Saratoga High, a record 6th consecutive title.

This is one of my all-time favorite posts; I am publishing it for the fifth time. This advice seems especially relevant now: the CalChess Scholastics takes place this weekend, April 27-28.

The main point is that a parent's behavior is critical for a youngster to feel confident and play well. I have seen many examples of parents discouraging their children, instead of positive reinforcement. Is it any surprise that many of the same juniors quit chess soon?

If you haven't entered the State Championship yet, the final online entry deadline is Thursday ($20 late fee). If you already registered, check out the 897 advance entries here (as of 4/24). Good luck!!

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The annual CalChess State Scholastic Championship take place this weekend. As a chess coach, I spend my time preparing juniors for the most challenging weekend of their lives. What role do the parents have? How should a parent behave at a chess tournament? I published this article several years ago and now is a good time to reprint it.

CalChess is state chapter for NorCal.

To start out, you should prepare your child with the necessary food and rest before and during the weekend. Make sure to get plenty of sleep; an extra hour of sleep will help a lot during the last games at the end of each long day. Of course, the kids need something big and healthy to eat for breakfast (very important) and between each game. Those players in the older sections tend to have longer games and may wish to take a bottle of water and a small snack (chocolate, candy, or gum) with them for each round.

Somewhat more challenging is to strike a balance between keeping your child focused between rounds while not draining all their energy. Refrain from chess activities, except for reviewing the tournament games briefly with a coach or a computer. Avoid blitz and bughouse between rounds because both games cause the children to play impulsively instead of carefully thinking about the best move. Older kids may wish to bring a book or a deck of cards to play with their friends. Younger kids may prefer video games. Another idea may be to bring a ball and go outside for a little while—enough to relax but not too much to drain all of their energy.

What should the parent say right before the round? My advice is simple: try your best and have fun! For example, one big aspect to trying your best is to take your time during the game. Of course, when you get to the board, make sure to be respectful to the opponent and parent. While chess is a war game, the battle should take place only on 64 squares.

The hard part about the motto “try your best and have fun” is to stick to it afterward. If your child tried their best, then you must encourage them no matter what the result. Never get angry with your son or daughter simply because they lost, even to a lower rated opponent. A few common and legitimate reasons to get upset include moving too fast, lack of focus by looking at other games or failure to record the moves. Most children will be eager to talk about the game afterward and even parents who aren’t strong chess players may pick up key details (e.g. “I blundered” or “I had a win but I lost” or “I didn’t see his piece”). Be aware that even chess players who try their best might blunder and miss a move that they should have seen.

Let me close by profiling four kinds of parent behaviors that I hope to discourage.

1. Parent measures performance merely by wins, losses and rating points. They become upset when the child draws or loses to a lower rated player, without considering whether the game was well played or the opponent simply had a good day. My response: Chess ratings are based on a statistical formula that predicts your winning percentage. For example, a player rated 200 points higher should win 75% of games and one rated 400 points high should win 90%. We must come to expect an occasional bad result against a lower rated player. Even an improving player may have one bad game or a disappointing tournament. As I’ve told many people, progress typically comes through two steps forward and one step backwards. Look at the big picture instead of every single game.

2. Parent relies on Fritz too much. I have seen many cases where a parent reviews a game with Fritz or another computer program and finds out that the child missed one or more key tactics. The parent will typically quote a computer evaluation, often mentioning scores like +5. My response: No human can play like Fritz and even top Grandmasters sometimes overlook mate in 1 (Kramnik) or hang a piece for no reason at all. Fritz is merely a tool to get better but an impossible standard to measure your performance against. Parents (and even coaches) sometimes forget or never realized how much more difficult it is to play the game with the clock ticking than to review it afterwards with a computer.

David Chock and Daniel Schwarz, former students and friends.

3. Parent hates child’s rival(s). Unfortunately, I see all too often when a parent measures his or her own child against the result of the rival. It is important to score more points or achieve a milestone first. The child is often forbidden to socialize with the rival, purely for competitive reasons. My response: In recent years, the best young players in the Bay Area have benefited from the interaction with their closest rivals. Masters Nicolas Yap, Drake Wang and Daniel Schwarz, who all graduated from High School in 2007, competed for the same trophies at the CalChess Scholastics for an entire decade, yet also forged strong friendships that included many hours of chess analysis and blitz games. The benefits of having friends in the chess community and someone to study with far outweigh any competitive disadvantage. Take the opportunity this weekend meet your child’s rivals and their parents. Set a positive example for the children to follow.

4. Parent lives vicariously through their child’s achievements. Most parents are proud of the success by their son or daughter, but a few take it to another level by bragging. They seek success, often even more than the kids. Those same parents become resentful when the result does not meet expectations. My response: It is always of utmost importance that your child has fun. Juniors who don't truly enjoy chess (independent of their parents) simply will not improve as rapidly. You can lead a camel to water, but you cannot force it to drink. Unfortunately, these youngsters, who often have been pushed hard for many years, become prime candidates to drop out of chess entirely as they turn 13 or 14.

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For another insightful perspective on competitive chess parents, please read two reports on Chess Life Online written by New York parent Mark Schein from the venue of the recent Bert Lerner National Elementary School Championships. Mr. Schein writes about years of experience attending national competitions as a father. Click here for the first article and the second article.

Three Superb National Champs!

Siddharth Banik (by Shorman)

Rayan Taghizadeh (by Shorman)

The last pawn has been pushed and one more Scholar's Mate was played.  Mercifully for the directors and parents, the fifth SuperNationals has drawn to a close.  Some kids proudly show off their shiny trophies while others bemoan lost opportunities.  Regardless of their final score, fond memories of a weekend in Nashville will remain for many years for the record 5,335 participants.

Once again, the delegation from Northern California--82 players strong-- has left their mark.  Out of seven championship sections, three were won by Bay Area stars.  Many hearty congratulations go to Siddharth Banik (K-8), Rayan Taghizadeh (K-5) and Chinguun Bayaraa (K-1)!  Andrew Hong (K-3) scored 6.5/7, but alas, that proved sufficient only for 2nd place.  In K-9, FM Cameron Wheeler and NM Vignesh Panchanatham fought valiantly with aspirations of a tie for 1st, but both succumbed in the final hour of the 7th round.

Two teams captured national titles.  Mission San Jose Elementary of Fremont competed in K-1, K-3, K-6 and K-8 (if you count Hopkins Junior High).  Amazingly, they finished Top 5 in all four sections, and captured a surprising 1st place in K-6 (ahead of I.S. 318)!  Coach Joe Lonsdale has conducted a championship team for several years, incredibly with a different bunch of students each time.  Crosstown rival Gomes Elementary already tasted success at the annual CalChess Scholastics, and now they upgraded by winning K-5 nationals!  Last year's K-8 national champions from Kennedy Middle competed in K-9 and came within a half point of a repeat performance.

• Full Standings and Trophy Winners
• USCF Rating Report

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Final Standings

K-12 Championship (327 players)

Taylor McCreary - 3.5

K-9 Championship (145 players)

FM Cameron Wheeler (KENN) - 5.5 - 5th place trophy
NM Vignesh Panchanatham - 5.5 - 6th place trophy
Pranav Srihari (KENN) - 5.0 
Joshua Cao - 4.5
Justin Wang (IRVG) - 4.5
Daniel Ho (IRVG) - 4.0
Solomon Ruddell - 4.0
Vikram Vasan - 4.0
Arhant Katare (KENN) - 4.0
Nikhil Jaha (IRVG) - 3.0
Kingsley Wang (KENN) - 3.0
Amarinder Chahal (IRVG) - 2.5
Kennedy Middle School - 17.5/28 - 2nd place team
Irvington High School - 14.0/28 - 6th place team

K-8 Championship (256 players)

Siddharth Banik - 6.5 - NATIONAL CHAMPION
Allan Beilin - 5.5 - 6th place trophy
Armaan Kalyanpur (HOPK) - 5.0 - honorable mention
Shalin Shah (HOPK) - 4.0
Isaac Ruddell - 4.0
Alvin Kong (HOPK) - 4.0
Eric Zhu (HOPK) - 4.0
Hopkins Junior High School - 17.0/28 - 5th place team

K-6 Championship (198 players)

Amit Sant (MSJE) - 5.5 - 13th place trophy
FM Tanuj Vasudeva - 5.0 - 15th place trophy
Christopher Pan (MSJE) - 4.0
David Pan (MSJE) - 4.0
Anjan Das (MSJE) - 3.0
Mission San Jose Elementary - 16.5/28 - NATIONAL CHAMPIONS

K-5 Championship (355 players)

Rayan Taghizadeh - 6.5 - NATIONAL CHAMPION
Anthony Zhou (WEIB) - 5.5 - 22nd place trophy
Ganesh Murugappan (GOME) - 5.5 - 23rd place trophy
Joanna Liu (GOME) - 5.0 - honorable mention
Jason Zhang (GOME) - 5.0 - honorable mention
William Sartorio (GOME) - 4.5 - U1400 class prize 
Daniel Mendelevitch - 4.5
Atri Surapaneni (WEIB) - 4.0
Serafina Show (WEIB) - 4.0
Jeremy Chen (WEIB) - 3.5
Gomes Elementary School - 20.0/28 - NATIONAL CHAMPIONS
Weibel Elementary School - 17.0/28 - 8th place team

K-3 Championship (278 players)

Andrew Hong - 6.5 - 2nd place trophy
Milind Maiti - 5.5 - 9th place trophy
Chenyi Zhao - 5.5 - 18th place trophy
Rishith Susarla (MSJE) - 5.0 - 20th place trophy
Ben Rood - 5.0 - honorable mention
Zhiyi Wang - 5.0 - honorable mention 
Callaghan Mccarty-Snead - 4.5
Oliver Wu (WEIB) - 4.5
Louis Law (WEIB) - 4.0
Annapoorni Meiyappan (MSJE) - 4.0
Kavya Sasikumar (MSJE) - 4.0
Jeffrey Liu (MSJE) - 4.0
Eshaan Mistry (WEIB) - 3.0
Aaron Lee (WEIB) - 3.0
Mission San Jose Elementary - 17.0/28 - 5th place team
Weibel Elementary School - 14.5/28 - 9th place team

K-1 Championship (349 players)

Chinguun Bayaraa - 7.0 - NATIONAL CHAMPION
Maurya Palusa - 6.0 - 8th place trophy
Pradyum Chitlu (WEIB) - 5.0 - honorable mention
Stephen He (MSJE) - 5.0 - honorable mention
Weslie Chen (WEIB) - 5.0 - honorable mention
Aidan Chen (MSJE) - 5.0 - honorable mention
Arnav Lingannagari (MSJE) - 4.5
Kevin Pan (MSJE) - 4.5
Vasudeva Rao (MSJE) - 4.0
David Sartorio - 4.0
Allyson Wong (MSJE) - 4.0  
Erin Law (WEIB) - 3.5
Aaron Hu (WEIB) - 3.0
Mission San Jose Elementary - 19.0/28 - 5th place team
Weibel Elementary School - 16.5/28 - 11th place team 

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If you find a typo or someone else worthy of mention here, please email me.

SuperNationals Update #3

The evening round on Saturday is often very difficult, for two reasons.  First, it is the third round of high pressure competition in one day.  Second, the top contenders begin to square off against each other.  After the dust settled, two Bay Area kids remain perfect: Rayan Taghizadeh and Chinguun Bayaraa.  Five more stand at 4.5/5 with a shot at earning a share of first in their section, including masters Cameron Wheeler and Vignesh Panchanatham, both in K-9.

Unlike recent years, none of the Bay Area school teams appear poised to win a national championship.  Still, four teams are currently in the Top 4: Kennedy Middle School in K-9 (3rd and 2.0 behind leaders), Hopkins Junior High in K-8 (4th and 3.0 behind leaders), Mission San Jose Elementary in K-6 (4th and 3.5 behind leaders) and again MSJE in K-1 (3rd and 2.0 behind leaders).

Sunday is crunch time!  The games begin early--at 7am PDT.  Good luck to all!

BREAKING NEWS from Nashville: Siddharth Banik won K-8, Rayan Taghizadeh won K-5 and Chinguun Bayaraa won K-1!!! Congratulations to all three National Champions!  

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Standings After Round 5
After Round 6 in Blue
Click here for Pairings and Standings

K-12 Championship (327 players)

Taylor McCreary (1837) - 3.0 - 3.0

K-9 Championship (145 players)

FM Cameron Wheeler (2291) - 4.5 - 5.5! in three-way tie for first
NM Vignesh Panchanatham (2202) - 4.5 - 5.5! also in the three-way tie
Joshua Cao (2030) - 4.0 and defeated #2 seed NM Velikanov (2293) - 4.5
Daniel Ho (1856) - 3.5 - 4.0  
Pranav Srihari (1884) - 3.0 - 4.0
Justin Wang (1714) - 3.0 - 3.5
Kennedy Middle School - 4 players - 15.5/24 and in 2nd place (1.0 behind)
Irvington High School - 4 players - 12.5/24 and in 6th place

K-8 Championship (256 players)

Allan Beilin (2161) - 4.5
Siddharth Banik (2117) - 4.5 - 5.5!
Armaan Kalyanpur (1933) - 4.0
Alvin Kong (1662) - 3.0 
Shalin Shah (1615) - 3.0
Sayan Das (1411) - 3.0
Hopkins Junior High School - 6 players - 13.0/20 and in 4th place

K-6 Championship (198 players)

FM Tanuj Vasudeva (2150) - 4.0 - 5.0 and playing on board 2
Amit Sant (1735) - 3.5 - 4.5
David Pan (1503) - 3.0 - 3.5
Mission San Jose Elementary - 8 players - 13.0/24 and in 3rd place

K-5 Championship (355 players)

Rayan Taghizadeh (2021) - 5.0 - 5.5! in four-way tie for first
Joanna Liu (1847) - 3.5 - 4.5
Ganesh Murugappan (1761) - 3.5 - 4.5
Anthony Zhou (1741) - 3.5 - 4.5
Jason Zhang (1497) - 3.0 - 4.0
Daniel Mendelevitch (1405) - 3.0 - 4.0
Atri Surapaneni (1345) - 3.0 - 4.0
William Sartorio (1358) - 2.5 - 3.5
Gomes Elementary School - 5 players - 16.5/24 and in 5th place (and tied for first!)
Weibel Elementary School - 6 players - 14.5/24 and in 8th place

K-3 Championship (278 players)

Andrew Hong (1692) - 4.5 - 5.5! and playing on board 2
Milind Maiti (1612) - 4.0 and beat World U8 bronze medalist Christopher Shen (1866) - 4.5
Rishith Susarla (1609) - 4.0 - 5.0
Chenyi Zhao (1558) - 4.0 - 4.5
Callaghan Mccarty-Snead (1485) - 4.0 - 4.5
Oliver Wu (1366) - 3.5 - 3.5
Ben Rood (1798) - 3.0 - 4.0
Annapoorni Meiyappan (1225) - 3.0 - 4.0
Zhiyi Wang (1170) - 3.0 - 4.0
Kavya Sasikumar (823) - 2.5 - 3.5
Mission San Jose Elementary - 6 players - 15.5/24 and in 3rd place (only 0.5 behind)
Weibel Elementary School - 4 players - 11.5/24 and in 11th place

K-1 Championship (349 players)

Chinguun Bayaraa (1644) - 5.0 - 6.0!! and still occupying board 1
Maurya Palusa (1306) - 4.0 after losing to Chinguun - 5.0
Stephen He (808) - 4.0 - 4.0
Pradyum Chitlu (806) - 4.0 - 4.0
Aidan Chen (781) - 4.0 - 4.0
Weslie Chen (664) - 4.0 - 4.0
Allyson Wong (236) - 4.0 - 4.0 
Kevin Pan (1277) - 3.5 - 3.5
Arnav Lingannagari (494) - 3.5 - 4.5
Erin Law (377) - 2.5 - 3.5 
Mission San Jose Elementary - 8 players  - 16.5/24 and in 6th place
Weibel Elementary School - 4 players - 14.5/24 and in 12th place

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If I missed anyone worthy of mention, please email me or leave a message on Facebook.

SuperNationals Update #2

The storm has landed. Let the madness begin.  (Photo by Elliott Liu)

The challenge on the first two or three rounds of any Nationals tournament is simply to survive the upset parade.  Case in point: the top seed in K-9 lost in the first round and the second seed lost in the third round, to Bay Area expert Joshua Cao!  Amazingly, all but two of the Bay Area stars have survived three rounds without any blemishes--one kid drew and the other lost.  Of course, the competition will tighten up today.

After round 4, I count 7 perfect scores and another 7 kids who are just 0.5 off the pace.  So far, so good!  Special mention goes to Milind Maiti for beating the World U8 bronze medalist!

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Standings After Round 3
After Round 4 in Blue
Click here for Pairings and Standings

K-12 Championship (327 players)

Taylor McCreary (1837) - 2.0 - 2.0

K-9 Championship (145 players)

FM Cameron Wheeler (2291) - 3.0 - 3.5
NM Vignesh Panchanatham (2202) - 3.0 - 4.0
Joshua Cao (2030) - 3.0 - beat #2 seed NM Velikanov (2293) - 3.0
Pranav Srihari (1884) - 2.0 - 3.0
Vikram Vasan (1837) - 2.0 - 2.5
Justin Wang (1714) - 2.0- 2.5
Daniel Ho (1856) - 1.5 - 2.5 
Kennedy Middle School - 4 players - 10.5/16 and in 2nd place
Irvington High School - 4 players - 8.0/16 and in 6th place

K-8 Championship (256 players)

Allan Beilin (2161) - 3.0 - 4.0
Siddharth Banik (2117) - 3.0 - 4.0
Armaan Kalyanpur (1933) - 2.0 - 3.0
Shalin Shah (1615) - 2.0 - 2.0
Sayan Das (1411) - 2.0 - 3.0
Alvin Kong (1662) - 1.0 - 2.0
Hopkins Junior High School - 6 players - 10.0/16 and in 5th place

K-6 Championship (198 players)

FM Tanuj Vasudeva (2150) - 2.5 - 3.5
Amit Sant (1735) - 2.0 - 2.5
David Pan (1503) - 2.0 - 2.0
Christophen Pan (1366) - 2.0 - 2.0
Anjan Das (1151) - 2.0 - 2.0
Mission San Jose Elementary - 8 players - 8.5/16 and in ??? place

K-5 Championship (355 players)

Rayan Taghizadeh (2021) - 3.0 - 4.0 and sitting at board 1
Anthony Zhou (1741) - 2.5 - 3.5
Ganesh Murugappan (1761) - 2.0 - 3.0
Jason Zhang (1497) - 2.0 - 3.0
Daniel Mendelevitch (1405) - 2.0 - 2.0
William Sartorio (1358) - 2.0 - 2.5
Serafina Show (1320) - 2.0 - 2.0
Jeremy Chen (1002) - 2.0 - 2.0
Joanna Liu (1847) - 1.5 - 2.5
Atri Surapaneni (1345) - 1.0 - 2.0
Gomes Elementary School - 5 players - 11.0/16 and in 5th place
Weibel Elementary School - 6 players - 9.5/16 and in 12th place

K-3 Championship (278 players)

Andrew Hong (1692) - 3.0 - 3.5
Milind Maiti (1612) - 3.0 - 4.0 - beat World U8 bronze medalist Christopher Shen (1866)
Rishith Susarla (1609) - 3.0 - 3.0
Callaghan Mccarty-Snead (1485) - 2.5- 3.5
Oliver Wu (1366) - 2.5 - 3.5
Ben Rood (1798) - 2.0 - 3.0
Chenyi Zhao (1558) - 2.0 - 3.0
Louis Law (1118) - 2.0 - 2.0
Eshaan Mistry (899) - 2.0 - 2.0
Edwin Thomas (1022) - 1.0 - 2.0
Aaron Lee (763) - 1.0 - 2.0
Weibel Elementary School - 4 players - 9.5/16 and in 8th place
Mission San Jose Elementary - 6 players - 8.5/16 and in 9th place

K-1 Championship (349 players)

Chinguun Bayaraa (1644) - 3.0 and still occupying board 1 - 4.0
Maurya Palusa (1306) - 3.0 - 4.0
Kevin Pan (1277) - 3.0 - 3.5
Stephen He (808) - 2.0 - 3.0
Pradyum Chitlu (806) - 2.0 - 3.0
Aidan Chen (781) - 2.0 - 3.0
Weslie Chen (664) - 2.0 - 3.0
Vasudeva Rao (588) - 2.0 - 3.0
Aaron Hu (515) - 2.0 - 3.0
Arnav Lingannagari (494) - 2.0 - 3.0
Mission San Jose Elementary - 8 players  - 12.5/16 and in 3rd place
Weibel Elementary School - 4 players - 11.5/16 and in 8th place

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If I missed anyone worthy of mention, please email me or leave a message on Facebook.

SuperNationals V This Weekend

Once again, the magnificent Grand Ole Opry in Nashville hosts the granddaddy of all scholastic chess tournaments.  Held every four years like the Olympics, the SuperNationals draws young chess enthusiasts from across the country, representing their hometown schools and competing to bring home giant trophies.  The 2009 edition attracted a record 5,300 players to Music City, a mark that has apparently fallen.

Indeed, the final tally of advance entries reached 5,344, a number that includes withdrawals, but does not include last minute entries and a few inevitable no-shows.  Despite the distance, an impressive delegation of 82 will represent Northern California, led by a trio of masters who sharpened their skills around the world.  Six schools will compete for team trophies, seeking to demonstrate that the hottest spot for scholastic chess is Fremont and not the Bronx.

No doubt, this will be a weekend filled with ups and downs, stunning victories and maddening upsets, the glee of success and the agony of defeat.  The letters NY automatically indicate that the rating is 200 points too low.  The top boards will be occupied by budding prodigies, perhaps a new generation of American Grandmasters.  A mass of humanity spills from the cavernous hallways into the vast courtyards, filled by nervous soccer moms and hockey dads all praying for the same answer to the same question: Did my son/daughter win?  Three grueling rounds on Saturday can wipe out even the most energetic kids and adults.  Having attended two of the previous SuperNationals, I can personally attest to the stressful atmosphere--and I didn't play!

• 20 sections, 7 rounds, 18,000 games!
• Schedule (PDT): Friday 11am, 5pm; Saturday 7am, 12pm, 5pm; Sunday 7am, 12pm
• Pairings and Results
• Games on MonRoi (currently only K-12)

The following is a list of the top rated players in each section and the six school teams from Northern California.  Check back here for periodic updates throughout the weekend.

Unfortunately, the Pairings and Results appear to be quite a mess.  It is nearly 11pm PDT and there are no results in most sections, or they put standings for Unrated into the file for the Championship section.  Now they took down *all* of the results.

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K-12 Championship (329 players)

#139 Taylor McCreary (1837)

K-9 Championship (145 players)

#3 FM Cameron Wheeler (2291)
#7 NM Vignesh Panchanatham (2202)
#18 Solomon Ruddell (2065)
#23 Joshua Cao (2030)
#43 Pranav Srihari (1884)
#53 Daniel Ho (1856)
#54 Arhant Katare (1838)
#55 Vikram Vasan (1837)
Kennedy Middle School (Cupertino) 4 players (Wheeler, Srihari, Katare, Wang)
Irvington High School (Fremont) 4 players (Ho, Wang, Chahal, Jaha)

K-8 Championship (260 players)

#3 Allan Beilin (2161)
#5 Siddharth Banik (2117)
#25 Armaan Kalyanpur (1933)
Hopkins Middle School (Fremont) 6 players (Kalyanpur, Kong, Shah, Zhu)

K-6 Championship (203 players)

#1 FM Tanuj Vasudeva (2150)
#37 Amit Sant (1735)
Mission San Jose Elementary (Fremont) 8 players (Sant, Pan, Pan, Das)

K-5 Championship (359 players)

#2 Rayan Taghizadeh (2021)
#15 Joanna Liu (1847)
#29 Ganesh Murugappan (1761)
#31 Anthony Zhou (1741)
Gomes Elementary School (Fremont) 5 players (Liu, Murugappan, Zhang, Sartorio)
Weibel Elementary School (Fremont) 6 players (Zhou, Surapaneni, Show, Mandadi)

K-3 Championship (280 players)

#4 Ben Rood (1798)
#13 Andrew Hong (1692)
#18 Milind Maiti (1612)
#22 Rishith Susarla (1609)
#27 Chenyi Zhao (1558)
Mission San Jose Elementary (Fremont) 6 players (Susarla, Meiyappan, Thomas, Liu)
Weibel Elementary School (Fremont) 4 players (Wu, Law, Mistry, Lee)

K-1 Championship (351 players)

#1 Chinguun Bayaraa (1644)
#10 Maurya Palusa (1306)
#13 Kevin Pan (1277)
Mission San Jose Elementary (Fremont) 8 players (Pan, He, Chen, Rao)
Weibel Elementary School (Fremont) 4 players (Chitlu, Chen, Hu, Law)

Larry Evans Memorial in Reno

Downtown Reno on Virginia Street.

The Larry Evans Memorial in Reno on Easter weekend--just a week away--has always been one of my favorite events. The trip up into the mountains truly feels like a mini-vacation. Each year, the two Reno tournaments attract more chess players than most of the adult events that the Bay Area has to offer--only the Golden State Open can compare.  Plus there's the opportunity to watch, learn from and compete with strong masters.  Grandmasters Sergey Kudrin and Alexander Ivanov shared top honors last year with FM John Bryant.

After a disappointingly sparse turnout in 2012 (only 149 players), I expect to see a rebound this year.  The long-range forecasts call for pleasant spring weather.  Already 91 players have been registered, including five Grandmasters (Ivanov, Kudrin, Sevillano, Khachiyan and Browne) and three International Masters (Mezentsev, Odondoo and Formanek).  Plus, some of "the usual suspects" have not signed up yet.

• Event: Larry Evans Memorial (formerly Far West Open)
• Dates: March 29-31
• Location: Sands Regency Hotel in Reno, NV
• Format: 6 rounds in 5 sections: Open, A, B, C, U1400
• Time control: 40/2, G/1 (maximum length game can go 6 hours)
• Entry fee: $133-137 + $22 late fee
• Prize fund: $21,000 based on 250 entries (2/3 guaranteed)
• See this website for complete details.
• Check advance entries by section
• Rating report from 2012.

Look for this sign from I-80.

This tournament last year was my first since surgery in 2010.  I had fun despite being able to only play three rounds.  I hope to play more this year, if health permits.  After facing three opponents age 10 last year, I look forward to being paired with someone, anyone, a wee bit older.  Say hello to me if you read this blog. 

A final note to chess parents: I know conventional wisdom says that casinos and kids do not mix well, but this tournament seems to be an exception. Dozens of kids rated from 800 to 2400 play each year. I recommend to request the Regency or Dynasty tower while reserving your hotel room so that the kids can take the elevator directly to the playing hall without walking through the casino.  This weekend is also the final opportunity to practice before SuperNationals in Nashville, TN.

Practice Slow Chess on ICC

Shankypanky before he became a GM.

One big advantage that young chess players have today over their counterparts 15 or 20 years ago is the internet. In the old days, a parent had to drive to chess club one evening each week. Now children log into an online play site from home and can train as much as they want. Most people find that the more time you devote to study and practice, the faster you will improve. As an extreme example, GM Sam Shankland played over 5000 standard games on ICC in a year and a half. While averaging 10 slow games a day is a bit too much, no doubt the effort contributed to his accelerated improvement from 1500 to 2200 and beyond.

To play standard games on ICC, I recommend several several options.

• The fastest and most popular standard time control on the internet is 15 0, commonly denoted G/15.  People argue that this rapid pace is too fast for serious practice, but I disagree.  G/15 serves for opening and tactics practice, but allows enough time for a handful of extended calculations.  I recommend joining the 15-minute pool on ICC (automatic pairings, no computers, no adjournments) by clicking on the 15 pool ball.  Take your time! 
• The Tuesday night STtourney runs four rounds monthly at 60 0 time control (aka G/60). California players will prefer the 8pm and 11pm sections (ICC uses EST). To play, log in before the round and add channel 32 (type: /tell 32 hello!). Join Pear robot (type: /tell Pear join), or if U1500, join Automato robot (type: /tell Automato join).  Ask questions and watch for announcements in channel 32.

• The best organized standard club is the Team 45 45 League.  Volunteers run four tournaments a year, with six rounds followed by 2-3 rounds of playoffs.  The next tournament starts on February 19, but teams must register by February 12.  Each round players contact their opponent to schedule the game at a mutually convenient time and day.  This is approximately a 2-3 hour commitment each week (but a long endgame could exceed 4 hours).  The league, which began nearly 15 years ago, has sections at 200 point intervals from 2200 on down, based on the average rating of top 4 players on each team.  Before joining, carefully read the Quick Guide and Player Handbook. The league enforces strict rules requiring personal responsibility and parental/family support. I enjoy playing and know more than a dozen Bay Area players who are active in this league.

Questions?  Do not hesitate to send an ICC message to "fpawn" or email to michael(at)fpawn.com (no spam). Good luck in your standard games!