Chess Chatter
This page is for news and recent results of the local chess community.
If you have news send it to, Bill at feellikeapawn@comcast.net
CASTLE SCHEDULE POSTED ON ONLINE REGISTRATION
MSCA SUMMER GRAND PRIX LINK
September 3 I have been informed that Sammy Narayanan has acheived his third and final norm for the IM title. He played in New York at the same invitational he got his first norm at. FIDE will review things in due course before the IM title is official. I have found a game that he played against IM Rozman Levy of Gotham Chess fame who is trying for a GM title. Congratulations to team Sammy. Narayanan-Levy.
August 19 The North American Junior Open was held in Calgary. MSCA has the details and a nice picture. Sammy Narayanan secured his second IM norm for his 2nd place performance.
Early entry for the Northern is August 24th for best price.
August 12 The Roger Hale Celebration had a capacity crowd. using an extra room in Southdale to handle the crowds. The event is rated. Sammy Narayanan was clear first. Games from the RHC. Pictured is Roger Hale and his plaque. Roger was responsible for bringing the Castle to the Waterbury building. He did many of the administrative and promotional tasks for ten years. He also stepped up when the sewer pipe ruptured at Southdale. He has made substantial financial donations that have allowed the Castle to survive and grow. He is in the Minnesota Hall of Fame also.
July 29 Catfish Days was a success. Okey Iwu and Chris Gill shared first with 6/7. Chris is back after a 12 year break and doing well. The two Sunday byes were the only thing that slowed him down. Dane Zagar and Joseph Wan were close behind with 5.5/7. Joseph, our friend from Iowa, took two byes on Sunday which cost him first I think. Dane just continued his winning ways. The potluck was the best ever thanks to chess Moms. Thanks too to Andy Grube for directing and Dane for organizing the 30th Catfish Days Open. It is rated. Grand Prix has been updated to include Catfish Days Open.
Information on the South Dakota Governor's Cup is available. Next up is the Roger Hale Chess Celebration at the club.
July 26 If you are looking to follow the US Open Invitationals check here. Results page.
Alice Lee played some nice endgames to win the Junior Girls Championship in St. Louis. Round nine was my favorite. Chessbase has round by round games.
July 21 James Neal, Okey Iwu and Josiah Jorenby tied for first in the Rochester leg of the Grand Prix. Full results and Grand Prix totals are on the MSCA site. Next up is the annual Catfish Days Tournament. Dane Zagar is directing and there are some strong players entered.
July 3 The results from the Superior Open are posted on the MSCA site and the Grand Prix totals have been updated. Superior was a little drawish but Okey Iwu and Kyler Weatherspoon managed to secure a tie for first with 4/5. In the U1800 Ethan Harrison, Harry Breheim and Marv Mattson shared first with 4/5. Ryan Elling and Joshua Wang were first with 4.5/5. 84 players took part. 126 are entered for the third leg of the Grand Prix in Rochester.
The Monday night action quads are getting very popular with some strong players.
June 17 In this position Alice blundered after an hour of playing on increment at the Cairns Cup. Not one to play for a draw in a bad position she played actively. After the mistake the commentators assumed she was lost. As we all know there is no quit in her. With the tricky Knight she struggles on. With brilliant play she draws the game. To play the GIF just refresh the page. I do not know how to auto replay. Chess.com link to the game.
June 9 NM Andrew Titus won the State Blitz Championship with a score of 15/18. NM Jackson Wahl and Alec Aimdilokwong were second with 14/18. 90 players participated.
IM Alice Lee will be back in action at the Cairns Cup in St. Louis. A world class tournament with 10 top Women players. First round Thursday at 1:00 pm.
Dane also won money at the National Open.
May 28 The results for the Chicago Open are posted. Chess Events. The big news is Dane Zagar won the U2100 with clear first with 6.5/7. Foiling a cheater along the way. Ask him to show you his round seven game. He partnered with Ksenija Matus to take the Mixed Doubles prize for $1,000 each. Big Sister Nastassja was undefeated bringing her streak to 12 games with out a loss. Impressive. More information on the cheating at the Chicago Open.
May 20 The first leg of the Summer Grand Prix was a success. with 107 players the final total. As expected it was won by Sammy Narayanan with 4.5/5. Andrew Titus and Josiah Jorenby were second with 4/5. David Schabert was the U2100 winner. There were many upsets. The tournament brought a lot of new players and a couple of old timers: Brian Campbell and Nathaniel Graham. For those not going to Chicago or the lake there is an Exerciser Quad on Saturday and Action Quads on Monday.
May 14 The St. Cloud Open is going to be great. 85 players and the start of the MN. Grand Prix. State Champ Sammy Narayanan leads the field with I think nine Masters so far. The site is very nice with a restaurant on site. Free parking.
April 17 Updated. Time to get in shape for the Summer chess season. The MSCA Grand Prix is back and will be better than last year. Remember there is a spot in the Closed Playoffs at stake to the winners in several sections. Also prizes for each tournament and overall winners.
The Chicago Open has an early entry date of May 22nd. MSCA's St. Cloud Open has been posted. The Blitz Championships information is posted. Early entry May 15th. The Superior Open information is available at Online Registration. Early entry May 31st. Expedia had a few rooms available but one should check the hotel website too. Dane Zagar has sent out the Catfish Days information and it is posted. Early entry May 1st. I was unable to book a room at the casino due to a concert and chose the Redwood Lodge, in Redwood Falls. The Morton Inn is another choice. Rochester Open is posted. Early entry June 7th.
April 8 Jordan Timm is the newest Master. Winning two events over the weekend put him over the top. He is a regular on Monday night which is getting stronger as the weather improves and is a great place to get in three games. Congratulations to Jordan.
The Rochester Open details are posted. Free entry for Masters with early entry.
April 14 After splitting the two slow games in the tie break for the title of State Champion Sammy and Sean played two rapid games to two hard fought draws. In the deciding Armageddon game Sean bid 12:30 and Sammy 12:29. Low bid gets White but has to win. Black wins with a draw. Sammy won and starts his streak as champion at two. He is also chasing norms and I will report back on his progress. Congratulations to both for a hard fought contest. Dane directed and handled the DGT boards. Games
March 24 IM Sean Nagle and Samrug Narayanan tied at 4/5 in the Closed Playoffs. I assume there will be a playoff, as MSCA rules state, at a later date. The Experts also had a tie with Jordan Timm and Vladimir Maltsev scoring 3.5/5. In the Amateur Eddie Wasserman, returning champ, cruised to victory at 4.5/5. In the Reserve Liam Eriksson won with 4.5/5. More details at MSCA site.
State Champ Samrug Narayanan
FM Samrug Narayanan went undefeated in the Minnesota Open. The State Champ defeated IM Sean Nagle, the speedy Jackson Wahl and now Senior Leonard Johnson on his path to clear first. Sean qualified for the playoffs and will be joined by Radermacher, Richter, Iwu and Wahl for a tough closed tournament to crown the State Champ.
Dan Voje won clear first in the Amateur. MSCA has the crosstables posted already. Pictured below from a file photo.
The Minnesota Open has been rated.
Tim Radermacher was on Minnesota Live plugging chess and the Scholastic Championships.
February 24 Top boards at the MN OPen round 4. State Champ NM Sammy Narayanan, upper right, trying to eliminate some competitors early.
February 5 At the left is a picture of the remodeling that was done after the accident. A huge amount of sewage fell from a broken pipe and covered the floor, tables, sets and clocks. Dane showed me pictures and it was massive. Southdale took no responsibility and it was left to volunteers to fix the problem. Thankfully Roger Hale once again stepped up with carpeting and other items. This was huge. Dane's Dad, Bruno, volunteered his skills at sheet rock repair and all round handyman to help get the club looking great. Many others helped too. The place looks brand new and more tables will be added to get us back to be able to handle bigger events. I advise you to take advantage of one of the best clubs in the nation.
December 7 Dan Voje lost his 3000 game this weekend. He once again beat me but Arvind Thiagarajan dealt Dan the painful blow. Dan will now start to work on getting his 4,000th win.
This design was painted on our wall at Southdale just outside the club for all to see. Thanks to Dane and Brandon for getting the job done. It looks amazing.
The May issue of the Minnesota Chess Journal is now posted on the MSCA site.
Games from the Closed Playoffs
Games from Nagle -Narayanan tie break.