Club Championship is Underway!

Round one of the 2012 Club Championship was very intense as twenty two players competed in hard fought battles with bloodshed all through the field.

Ron Hinds (1817) set the tone for round 1 scoring the upset win on Board 1 over Paul Farb (1941) to get things off to an exciting start! Ben Caiello (1882) successfully defended Board 2 from Erik Murrah (1691) as Adam Shaw (1837) escaped with the point from Lendel Robinson (1624). Klaus Johnson (1835) claimed the win over Dan Caiello (1601). Gil Holmes (1834) took almost the entire 90 minutes to finally grind out the win over Daniel Smith (1505) in a same color Bishop endgame. Clocks read 8 s for Gil and 2 s for Daniel when the game was finally decided! Bill Taylor (1820) secured the point from Ralph Buske (1501) to finish out the top half of the field and create a six way tie among the 1800 players after round 1.

The bottom half of the field was just as hard fought with Cody Kyzer (1480) finally prevailing over Birney Blind (1177), Darell Hunt (1349) outlasting Julie Sheil (1090), Richard Watts (1243) securing the point over Ron Labrecque (1063) and Josh Lewer (1187) scoring a first round win over Mike Meekins (986). New club member Joey Dean (1153) scored the upset win over Shaun McCoy (1389) showing a fine endgame technique to win a Queen vs. Pawn on the 7th endgame.

Twelve players stand on 1 point heading into round 2. With number 3 seed Paul Farb getting upset in the first round, defending champ Keith Eubanks and number 2 seed James MacDougall taking first round byes the battle for the big trophy looks wide open!

Round 2 is Thursday, March 1. If you missed the first round you can still enter and play!

Casual play is now available on Monday nights from 6:00 - 8:30 at the St Andrews Regional Library on Broad River Road. If there is enough interest we may offer quick rated chess.

The Chess Players of Augusta are very active now and are just down the road. Be sure to check out their schedule for some quick and/or dual rated play. Their next Sat tournament is the Augusta Spring Rapids on March 17. Their first Sat tournament drew 22 players and was well run. If you are interested in going check at the club for car pooling opportunities.

March 17 is the Checkmate Hunger charity tournament in Lexington. This is a game 75, four round swiss.

SC Sr. Open Mar 24-25 - Travelers Rest. Hey you kids!! Stay off my pawn!!! ages 50+: must have been born before 3/24/1962

The Big Enchilada II will be held Mar 30 - Apr 1 in Raleigh. This is a new tournament that got off to a good start last year.

A nice mix of tournaments coming up with something for everyone! Get out and play!

Club Championship begins Feb 23!

The Fifth Columbia Chess Club Championship will be held from Feb 23 - Mar 22. Last year was our largest field with thirty four players. Keith Eubanks claimed his second title and only Keith and Philipp Lamby have won the club championship to date. Philipp has moved to Texas leaving Keith the clear favorite to win the 2012 Title. It looks wide open behind Keith with a surging Ben Caiello, steady Paul Farb and always improving Adam Shaw. And let's not forget two time runner up James MacDougall who could mount a serious challenge for the big trophy.

In addition to the Champion and Runner Up trophies hardware is also awarded to the Top U1600, Top U1200 and Top Jr Player, so everyone has a chance at a trophy! Unrateds will be based on performance after four rounds.

Here are the details:
Five round Swiss. One round a week for five weeks. Club members only, can join on site.

Entry fee $10 ($2/rd). One bye allowed, No last round byes. Rounds start at 7:30.

Open Section only, Game 90/d5. Accelerated Pairings will be used. Trophies to 1st, 2nd, Top U1600, Top U1200 and Top Jr. Trophy winners also receive 1yr club membership.

Casual play is now available on Monday nights from 6:00 - 8:30 at the St Andrews Regional Library on Broad River Road. If there is enough interest we may offer quick rated chess.

The Chess Players of Augusta are very active now and are just down the road. Be sure to check out their schedule for some quick and/or dual rated play. Their next Sat tournament is the Augusta Spring Rapids on March 17. Their first Sat tournament drew 22 players and was well run. If you are interested in going check at the club for car pooling opportunities.

March 17 is the Checkmate Hunger charity tournament in Lexington.

Reverse Angle 26 is coming up on Feb 25 in Charlotte. RA25 drew 62 players so if you're looking for a big tournament with a one day schedule here it is!

SC Sr. Open Mar 24-25 - Travelers Rest. Hey you kids!! Stay off my pawn!!! ages 50+: must have been born before 3/24/1962

The Big Enchilada II will be held Mar 30 - Apr 1 in Raleigh. This is a new tournament that got off to a good start last year.

A nice mix of tournaments coming up with something for everyone! Get out and play!

State Scholastics - Feb 25 Here in Columbia!

More South Carolina Kids Are Enjoying Chess

Columbia, S.C. – The world has become a more competitive place. Our children need every advantage one can grasp in order to succeed in a fast-paced, result-driven society. Some South Carolina students and parents are turning to the age-old game of chess to help sharpen their logic and critical thinking skills. A number of well-researched studies seem to indicate that the benefits of chess do just that, and more. Acknowledging their desire to have these analytical minds of their campuses, a growing list of U.S. colleges and universities offer chess scholarships.

The South Carolina Chess Association (SCCA) stands ready to help guide those that wish to participate in casual or tournament play. The SCCA was originally founded in 1926 and serves the players from our state by furthering the enjoyment of chess. They maintain a website at www.scchess.org which contains noteworthy state chess news, links to local club activity, and information about adult and scholastic tournaments.

One of the SCCA’s premier events, the South Carolina Scholastic Championships, will be held on February 25^th at the Samuel A. Heyward Career & Technology Center. The center is located at 3560 Lynhaven Drive in Columbia. Any K-12 student that wants to play is encouraged to come to the tournament. All levels of experience are welcome and equipment is provided. Over the last several years, the event has annually attracted about 90 contestants from all across the state. Last year’s banner attendance of 137 players shows that the game’s popularity is on the rise in South Carolina. This year’s tournament features a new format, which splits the old K-5 elementary section into a K-3 (primary division) and a 4-5 (elementary division). “This change was made to make our younger players more comfortable by playing someone closer to their age”, said Mr. David Whatley, the State Scholastic Coordinator. Also new this year is a top-female trophy for each of the four sections. “It is my hope that these new changes will make for a more enjoyable tournament experience for all of South Carolina’s scholastic players”, he added.

Columbia Chess club members have claimed the right to represent S.C. at the Denker Tournament of High School Champions twice in the past three years with Daniel Dodds in 2009 and Dan Caiello in 2011. Ben Caiello claimed the Middle School title in 2010 and now has sights set on the big prize.

There are some nominal fees associated with participation. A regular 1-year U.S. Chess Federation membership runs between $17 and $26, depending on age (the USCF membership can be purchased online at www.uschess.org ). The 1-year SCCA membership of $5, and the tournament entry fee of $15 can be paid on site, or in advance (see SCCA website for details concerning advance payment, registration, and match times) or email whatleydavid@bellsouth.net.

Ashland Quick XXIX

In the 29th edition of Ashland Quick night, 16 players battled it out in the tournament hall with a hand full playing casually in the skittles room.

In the Kaspy section James MacDougall(1963) scored a dominating 3 points.  Paul Farb(1732) claimed 2 points in the top quad.  

The Fischer section saw Lendel Robinson(1493) and Gil Holmes(1654) split the reward with each having 2 points.

Chris Labrecque(1287) scored a perfect 3 points and Shaun McCoy(1196) scored 2 points in the Karpov quad.

In the final quad, Christian Dunlap won the section with 2.5 points, improving his quick rating to 1050, and Richard Watts(1152) took second with 2 points.

Final results can be seen here.

February 16th is casual night.  Come join Erik "The Weaksquare" Murrah  for and endgame presentation along with some fun stress free chess.

The Columbia Chess Club Championship starts February 23rd and runs through March 22nd.  Join the fun and pit your wits against the best in Columbia. 

B Caiello wins A25 - Tims takes Amateur Section

Twenty six players competed in Ashland XXV as Ben Caiello (1880) cruised to another tournament win with a last round victory over Gil Holmes (1804). Paul Farb (1946) finally wore down Lendel Robinson's (1628) stubborn defense to tie for second with Darell Hunt (1387) who scored a last round win over Ralph Buske (1501). Dan Caiello (1575) took the point in an upset win over Ron Hinds (1817).

Ron Tims (1389) dominated the Amateur Section scoring his fourth win with a victory over Ron Labrecque (1063) in the final round to finish with 4.5 points after taking a second round bye. Mike Mayfield (1300) bounced back with a win over Birney Blind (1177) to finish tied for second with Shaun McCoy (1285) who escaped with a win over Christian Dunlap (984). Cody Kyzer (1480) picked up the point from Richard Watts (1230).

Next up is Ashland Quick XXIX on Feb 9. The Club Championship will begin on Feb 23.

The 38th Snowstorm Special is coming up Feb 11-12 in Charleston.

Be sure to check out Chess Players of Augusta. Rated play is now available in the Augusta area!