Around a dozen players got out of the Holiday rush for some "Stress Free" chess and congratulate the 2011 Club Award Winners. Congratulations to this year's winners!!
Player of the Year : Darell Hunt
Jr. Player of the Year : Ben Caiello
Most Improved Player : Adam Shaw
Most Improved Jr. Player : Ben Caiello
Most Active Player : Paul Farb
Next week will be Ashland Action II. Note that Round 1 starts at 7:00!!!
Open Section 4 round SS G30 (Dual Rated!). Prize fund $480 b/28
Entry fee $20 club members, $25 non members.
Prizes: 1st $150 2nd $100 3rd $50 U1605 $95 U1205 $85
Rounds 7:00 8:15 9:30 & 10:45 Registration for first round ends at 6:50. Register by 8:05 and receive a .5 point bye for first round.
Two half point byes available. Must commit before 8:05.
The first episode of Xtreme Chess Championship on YouTube.
Be sure to check out this good interview with Magnus Carlsen on WhyChess.
Coming up in Jan:
Jan 14 - Reverse Angle 25 - Charlotte, NC
Jan 27-29 - Land of the Sky XXV - Asheville, NC
Hope everyone has a MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!
Friday, December 23, 2011
Monday, December 19, 2011
Columbia defeats QCCA 13.5 - 12.5 !!
The Columbia Chess Club hosted the Queen City Chess Association as the clubs met across the board for the third time. This was a huge battle with QCCA sending an army of thirteen players and Columbia having a last minute scramble due to cancellations to match the invaders from the north. If you were unable to follow the match on Twitter, here is what happened:
When the battle lines were drawn the substitutions favored the Cola team in avg rating by almost 50 points instead of the less than 10 with the original lineup. Thanks to QCCA for allowing these last minute changes!
The match was very competitive with Cola leading at halftime 7-6. First round winners for Columbia were Keith Eubanks, Paul Farb, Bill Taylor, Adam Shaw, Dan Caiello and Mike Boone with draws from Ben Caiello and Richard Watts. First half winners from QCCA were Alexander Tong, Winfred Gatlin, Suhas Madiraju, Nathan Tong, David Blackwelder with draws from Mike Eberhardinger and Ishaan Maitra.
In the second half QCCA quickly evened the score when Blackwelder posted his second win.
Dan Caiello scored his second win to put Cola back ahead 8-7.
QCCA fought back with wins from Taefi and Blackwell to take the lead 9-8.
Ben Caiello scored a win for Columbia to level the score at 9-9.
Watts (Cola) and Maitra (QCCA) drew for the second time bringing the score to 9.5-9.5 as the tension built.
Patton wins to put Cola out front 10.5 - 9.5.
Gatlin (QCCA) and Robinson (Cola) draw bringing the score to 11 - 10 with five games in progress.
Morton scores a win for Cola to extend the good guys lead to 12-10. Two point lead for Columbia with only four games left.
QCCA fights back again as Gottiparthi and Taylor-Brill both score wins to tie the match at 12-12 with only two games still going.
In a very tense battle Daniel Smith held the advantage over Suhas Madiraju but with the clock ticking down it wasn't clear how to win and with one misstep the attack could fail. Living on delay at 7 seconds the position cleared and after a hesitation brought the clock down to 3 seconds Daniel was able to sack his Queen for Suhas's Knight leaving Daniel up with 3 pawns against a lone King creating a simple win. Suhas played it out to mate hoping for another hesitation to save the half point but Daniel was up to the task and put Columbia ahead 13-12 with only one game left going and it was on Board 1.
Gary Newsom was up a pawn against Keith Eubanks but now with Cola ahead by a point Keith only had to hold the draw while Gary had to win bring his team even. To the kibitzers gathered around it looked like Gary had found a win in a same colored Bishops endgame but Keith saved the half point when Gary was left with a wrong color rook pawn and he couldn't keep Keith's King from blockading the queening square. It looked to be a very instructive endgame since it appeared as if there was a win for Gary hiding somewhere within the 64 squares. Eubanks' ability to save the half point gave Columbia the win 13.5 - 12.5 over Queen City.
Edit: Gary Newsom has posted a report with his endgame in the final game HERE.
This was a very enjoyable afternoon and it was pleasure to have the QCCA visit us again. The QCCA hosts the very successful Reverse Angle series in Charlotte. RA25 will be Jan 14 and will be a great warm up to the Land of the Sky tournament in Asheville Jan 27-29.
A very nice photo album is HERE provided by the Tong family. The rated results are HERE.
The record is now Columbia 2 wins QCCA 0 wins and one draw. We will try to schedule the next match in the spring.
When the battle lines were drawn the substitutions favored the Cola team in avg rating by almost 50 points instead of the less than 10 with the original lineup. Thanks to QCCA for allowing these last minute changes!
The match was very competitive with Cola leading at halftime 7-6. First round winners for Columbia were Keith Eubanks, Paul Farb, Bill Taylor, Adam Shaw, Dan Caiello and Mike Boone with draws from Ben Caiello and Richard Watts. First half winners from QCCA were Alexander Tong, Winfred Gatlin, Suhas Madiraju, Nathan Tong, David Blackwelder with draws from Mike Eberhardinger and Ishaan Maitra.
In the second half QCCA quickly evened the score when Blackwelder posted his second win.
Dan Caiello scored his second win to put Cola back ahead 8-7.
QCCA fought back with wins from Taefi and Blackwell to take the lead 9-8.
Ben Caiello scored a win for Columbia to level the score at 9-9.
Watts (Cola) and Maitra (QCCA) drew for the second time bringing the score to 9.5-9.5 as the tension built.
Patton wins to put Cola out front 10.5 - 9.5.
Gatlin (QCCA) and Robinson (Cola) draw bringing the score to 11 - 10 with five games in progress.
Morton scores a win for Cola to extend the good guys lead to 12-10. Two point lead for Columbia with only four games left.
QCCA fights back again as Gottiparthi and Taylor-Brill both score wins to tie the match at 12-12 with only two games still going.
In a very tense battle Daniel Smith held the advantage over Suhas Madiraju but with the clock ticking down it wasn't clear how to win and with one misstep the attack could fail. Living on delay at 7 seconds the position cleared and after a hesitation brought the clock down to 3 seconds Daniel was able to sack his Queen for Suhas's Knight leaving Daniel up with 3 pawns against a lone King creating a simple win. Suhas played it out to mate hoping for another hesitation to save the half point but Daniel was up to the task and put Columbia ahead 13-12 with only one game left going and it was on Board 1.
Gary Newsom was up a pawn against Keith Eubanks but now with Cola ahead by a point Keith only had to hold the draw while Gary had to win bring his team even. To the kibitzers gathered around it looked like Gary had found a win in a same colored Bishops endgame but Keith saved the half point when Gary was left with a wrong color rook pawn and he couldn't keep Keith's King from blockading the queening square. It looked to be a very instructive endgame since it appeared as if there was a win for Gary hiding somewhere within the 64 squares. Eubanks' ability to save the half point gave Columbia the win 13.5 - 12.5 over Queen City.
Edit: Gary Newsom has posted a report with his endgame in the final game HERE.
This was a very enjoyable afternoon and it was pleasure to have the QCCA visit us again. The QCCA hosts the very successful Reverse Angle series in Charlotte. RA25 will be Jan 14 and will be a great warm up to the Land of the Sky tournament in Asheville Jan 27-29.
A very nice photo album is HERE provided by the Tong family. The rated results are HERE.
The record is now Columbia 2 wins QCCA 0 wins and one draw. We will try to schedule the next match in the spring.
Columbia Downs Queen City
The Columbia Chess Club downed the Queen City Chess Club for the second straight match with a final score of Columbia: 13.5 - QCCA 12.5.
Dan Caiello was the only Columbia player to win both games. Keith Eubanks continues his brilliant play by outscoring expert Gary Newsome with a score of 1.5 - .5.
Here is the full crosstable of the results.
Dan Caiello was the only Columbia player to win both games. Keith Eubanks continues his brilliant play by outscoring expert Gary Newsome with a score of 1.5 - .5.
Here is the full crosstable of the results.
Friday, December 16, 2011
Murrah wins 960 with a perfect 4-0!!
Ten players competed in the first Ashland 960 as Erik Murrah cruised to a perfect score. Gil Holmes placed second with 3 points. Bill Taylor and Darell Hunt tied for third with 2.5.
Sat, Dec 17, the QCCA will visit and try reclaim some dignity after the 11-3 thrashing in our last Club Match . This will be our third meeting and by far the largest rosters. Time control is G90, first game at 10:00. There will be Twitter updates through out the match.
QCCA Team:
Board 1 - Gary Newsom (2013)
Board 2 - Tarokh Taefi (1872)
Board 3 - Mike Eberhardinger (1733)
Board 4 - Seth Taylor-Brill (1711)
Board 5 - Shouri Gottiparthi (1703)
Board 6 - Alexander Tong (1572)
Board 7 - Windy Gatlin (1561)
Board 8 - Suraj Madiraju (1520)
Board 9 - Suhas Madiraju (1500)
Board 10 - Copeland Blackwell (1419)
Board 11 - Nathan Tong (1392)
Board 12 - David Blackwelder (1296)
Board 13 - Ishaan Maitra (1255)
Columbia Team:
Board 1 - Kyle Oody (1915)
Board 2 - Ben Caiello (1839)
Board 3 - Bill Taylor (1825)
Board 4 - Adam Shaw (1817)
Board 5 - Gerald Battaglia (1630)
Board 6 - George Morton (1627)
Board 7 - Lendel Robinson (1617)
Board 8 - Dan Caiello (1536)
Board 9 - Daniel Smith (1527)
Board 10 - Mike Boone (1388)
Board 11 - Darell Hunt (1307)
Board 12 - Richard Watts (1285)
Board 13 - Paul Lowry (1148)
Next week, Dec 22 will be Casual Night and the Year End Awards will be handed out. Casual play and possible blitz tournament. Trophies will be awarded at 8:00. Here are this year's winners:
Most Active : Paul Farb 41 games
Most Improved Jr Player : Ben Caiello +352
Most Improved Player: Adam Shaw +212
Jr. Player of the Year: Ben Caiello 30 points
Player of the Year: Darell Hunt 24 points
Congratulations to all the winners!
Dec 29 will be Ashland Action II.
Open Section 4 round SS G30. Prize fund $480 b/28
Entry fee $20 club members, $30 non members.
Prizes: 1st $150 2nd $100 3rd $50 U1605 $95 U1205 $85
Rounds 7:00 8:15 9:30 & 10:45 Registration for first round ends at 6:50. Register by 8:05 and receive a .5 point bye for first round.
Two half point byes available. Must commit before 8:05.
Sat, Dec 17, the QCCA will visit and try reclaim some dignity after the 11-3 thrashing in our last Club Match . This will be our third meeting and by far the largest rosters. Time control is G90, first game at 10:00. There will be Twitter updates through out the match.
QCCA Team:
Board 1 - Gary Newsom (2013)
Board 2 - Tarokh Taefi (1872)
Board 3 - Mike Eberhardinger (1733)
Board 4 - Seth Taylor-Brill (1711)
Board 5 - Shouri Gottiparthi (1703)
Board 6 - Alexander Tong (1572)
Board 7 - Windy Gatlin (1561)
Board 8 - Suraj Madiraju (1520)
Board 9 - Suhas Madiraju (1500)
Board 10 - Copeland Blackwell (1419)
Board 11 - Nathan Tong (1392)
Board 12 - David Blackwelder (1296)
Board 13 - Ishaan Maitra (1255)
Columbia Team:
Board 1 - Kyle Oody (1915)
Board 2 - Ben Caiello (1839)
Board 3 - Bill Taylor (1825)
Board 4 - Adam Shaw (1817)
Board 5 - Gerald Battaglia (1630)
Board 6 - George Morton (1627)
Board 7 - Lendel Robinson (1617)
Board 8 - Dan Caiello (1536)
Board 9 - Daniel Smith (1527)
Board 10 - Mike Boone (1388)
Board 11 - Darell Hunt (1307)
Board 12 - Richard Watts (1285)
Board 13 - Paul Lowry (1148)
Next week, Dec 22 will be Casual Night and the Year End Awards will be handed out. Casual play and possible blitz tournament. Trophies will be awarded at 8:00. Here are this year's winners:
Most Active : Paul Farb 41 games
Most Improved Jr Player : Ben Caiello +352
Most Improved Player: Adam Shaw +212
Jr. Player of the Year: Ben Caiello 30 points
Player of the Year: Darell Hunt 24 points
Congratulations to all the winners!
Dec 29 will be Ashland Action II.
Open Section 4 round SS G30. Prize fund $480 b/28
Entry fee $20 club members, $30 non members.
Prizes: 1st $150 2nd $100 3rd $50 U1605 $95 U1205 $85
Rounds 7:00 8:15 9:30 & 10:45 Registration for first round ends at 6:50. Register by 8:05 and receive a .5 point bye for first round.
Two half point byes available. Must commit before 8:05.
Sunday, December 11, 2011
Caiello brothers win Bughouse II!!
Six teams battled in a double round-robin of Bughouse. The team of Ben & Dan Caiello took clear first with 8 points ahead of Keith Eubanks & James MacDougall who scored 7 points. Eubanks-MacDougall held a 1 point lead going into the final match but couldn't hold off Ben & Dan who scored 2-0 to win the match and tournament.
Next week, Dec 15, is a Chess 960/Fischer Random tournament. This tournament is open to everyone! No entry fee! No membership required! Open Section, Four round Swiss (Quick Rating will be used for pairing purposes). Game 20/3sec delay. Registration will end at 7:50. One bye available, must commit before round 3. Rounds 8:00, 8:50, 9:40 & 10:30. Check HERE for more information on this variant.
Monday, Dec 12, players will be meeting at the St Andrews Regional library from 6:00-8:30. This is open to everyone for casual play. Here's a chance to get some practice in before the 960 tournament.
The final Award Standings have been posted. If you believe there is an error in the standings contact Ralph . Awards will be given out on Casual Night, Dec 22.
The QCCA is sending a team to battle with Cola Chess on Dec 17. We plan to broadcast a couple boards and there will be twitter updates throughout the match. Here are the lineups:
Next week, Dec 15, is a Chess 960/Fischer Random tournament. This tournament is open to everyone! No entry fee! No membership required! Open Section, Four round Swiss (Quick Rating will be used for pairing purposes). Game 20/3sec delay. Registration will end at 7:50. One bye available, must commit before round 3. Rounds 8:00, 8:50, 9:40 & 10:30. Check HERE for more information on this variant.
Monday, Dec 12, players will be meeting at the St Andrews Regional library from 6:00-8:30. This is open to everyone for casual play. Here's a chance to get some practice in before the 960 tournament.
The final Award Standings have been posted. If you believe there is an error in the standings contact Ralph . Awards will be given out on Casual Night, Dec 22.
The QCCA is sending a team to battle with Cola Chess on Dec 17. We plan to broadcast a couple boards and there will be twitter updates throughout the match. Here are the lineups:
QCCA Team:
Board 1 - Gary Newsom (2013)
Board 2 - Tarokh Taefi (1872)
Board 3 - Mike Eberhardinger (1733)
Board 4 - Alexander Tong (1572)
Board 5 - Windy Gatlin (1561)
Board 6 - Suraj Madiraju (1520)
Board 7 - Suhas Madiraju (1500)
Board 8 - Copeland Blackwell(1419)
Board 9 - Nathan Tong (1392)
Board 10 - David Blackwelder (1296)
Board 11 - Ishaan Maitra (1255)
Columbia Team:
Board 1 - Kyle Oody (1915)
Board 2 - Ben Caiello (1839)
Board 3 - Adam Shaw (1817)
Board 4 - George Morton (1627)
Board 5 - Lendel Robinson (1617)
Board 6 - Dan Caiello (1536)
Board 7 - Daniel Smith (1527)
Board 8 - Mike Boone (1388)
Board 9 - Darell Hunt (1307)
Board 10 - Richard Watts (1285)
Board 11 - Paul Lowry (1148)
Saturday, December 3, 2011
MacDougall & B Caiello tie for first in Ashland Quick XXVIII!!
Sixteen players competed in Ashland Quick XXVIII with James MacDougall (1973) and Ben Caiello (1740) tying for first in the Championship Quad with 2 points. Dan Caiello (1406) takes the top spot in the Candidates Quad with 2.5 points. Mike Mayfield (1347) posted a perfect 3-0 to take the Amateur Quad and Richard Watts (1022) was also perfect with 3 points in the Reserve Quad.
Monday, Dec 5, the club will also meet at the St Andrews Regional Library on Broad River Road starting at 6:00. Come out for some "Stress Free" Chess! You do not have to be a club member to attend and play.
Bughouse Tournament on Dec 8. You do not have to be a member to play and you can form teams on site. Registration ends at 7:50, Round 1 at 8:00. The Bughouse Rules are HERE.
If you've never played don't be shy about jumping in! It's a lot of fun and the only time you can be losing at chess and know the cavalry is coming to save you!
This will be just for fun. No entry fees, no prizes, Just Bragging Rights! Anyone can play in this tournament for Free!
These are Blitz games. Game 5 minutes, no delay.
Come out and play!
Monday, Dec 5, the club will also meet at the St Andrews Regional Library on Broad River Road starting at 6:00. Come out for some "Stress Free" Chess! You do not have to be a club member to attend and play.
Bughouse Tournament on Dec 8. You do not have to be a member to play and you can form teams on site. Registration ends at 7:50, Round 1 at 8:00. The Bughouse Rules are HERE.
If you've never played don't be shy about jumping in! It's a lot of fun and the only time you can be losing at chess and know the cavalry is coming to save you!
This will be just for fun. No entry fees, no prizes, Just Bragging Rights! Anyone can play in this tournament for Free!
These are Blitz games. Game 5 minutes, no delay.
Come out and play!
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