February Tournament And Other News

The February Rating Tournament turned out to be another quad. Click here to view the X-table. The poor lady above passed out when she saw the results!

Johnny and Joe played their second game with Joe being the victor; the score stands at 1.5 to .5 in Joe's favor with two more games to play.

At the business meeting prior to the tournament it was decided to set dues at $10 for 2013, hold the Annual April Tournament at the Family Buffet, tabulate TD expenses since last April's tournament and issue checks to the TD's to cover rating fees.

Johnny Owens has been invited to be a floor TD at the Super Nationals in Nashville! And...believe it or not they are paying him and covering all his expenses!

Reminder

Reminder:Tuesday 12 February; we will meet at ECTC for the 2nd Tuesday Rating Tournament.

Good To Know

If you haven't set your preferences for e-mails from USCF yet you are missing out on a valuable asset for tournament players. Would you like to receive TLA's for area tournaments? Be notified when a tournament you played in is rated? If so have your USCF # and Pin ready, then click on the link below.

Local Tournaments do not always pay for a TLA; check  "Tournaments" section on the above green menu bar for the latest announcements.

https://secure2.uschess.org/email/email-pref-update.php

Alternative To Football

For those who didn't have time to follow the recent Gibraltar Tournament here is a link to the "Master Classes" which are great. Out of the 5 classes 3 are by women! I have found that the "girls" play tough, come up with very innovative ideas, are brutally honest and don't have the "over inflated egos" of some of the top male players.

Check out Jovana Vojinovic's class for an exciting draw! (against my current favorite opening)

http://www.gibraltarchesscongress.com/video_masterclasses.htm

Note: Added after original post by author: Jovana's game analysis is fast and furious to ease in following the "Master Class" I would suggest printing out the game score at http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1705315

Terry Fathauer Scores 4-0 To Win "The Snowflake Open!"

Terry Fathauer (right) played Jennifer Ishee in the 1st round of The Snowflake Open.

Terry Fathauer of Owensboro beat the top 4 rated players to win "The Snowflake Open" and take home the 1st place prize money. Johnny Owens and Jennifer Ishee of Nashville, TN both scored 3-1 to share the 2nd place and Under 1800 money. Sal Mancuso took home the Under 1400 money.

The complete crosstable can be viewed here:

2012 Championship Matches

The results of the 2012 Championship matches will be published under the 2013 Championship Tab on the green menu bar at the top of the page. Farrell and Owens drew their first game 24 January which means at least 3 more games will be played.

Snowflake Open this Saturday!

This Saturday is The Snowflake Open at the Family Buffet! For details look in the Tournament Tab above!

January Tournament

Original art by Anna

Like an owl swooping in on a field mouse; the new year was upon us before we knew it.

Sadly 2013 began as 2012 left off... with only 4 players showing for the monthly tournament.

Click here to view X-table

Mike Anders Dead After Plane Crash

Mike Anders popular area chess player and chess equipment/book seller died Friday when the plane he was piloting crashed into a house in Florida. To read a news account click here,

For additional news and to hear the 911 calls click here.

Note: Johnny and I were both working on a post at the same time and decided to go with both. See Johnny's post next under.

Mike Anders Dies in Plane Crash in Florida!

The Kentucky Chess community is sadden to hear of the passing of Mike Anders of Albany, KY. He died on Friday, Jan.4, 2013. He died on his birthday (1/4/55) in a plane crash in Florida.

Mike not only played in our tournaments in Elizabethtown, he sold books, chess sets and other chess equipment here. He was a nice guy and will be missed!

Read the article here:

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!

It's been a big year for Elizabethtown Chess! We've played 2 matches with the Chess Club of Southern Indiana. We hosted the "King of Kings" tournament for KCA and we've held several Saturday tournaments in E-town!

I want to thank Jerry for directing tournaments throughout the year and hope someone else will step-up to help in 2013!

I want to take this time to wish all the Elizabethtown Chess Club members and friends a very Merry Christmas and a wonderful New Year! Let's hope we can build on our successes in 2012 during 2013!

John M. Marcisk Wins The E-Town Christmas Open!

John M. Marcisk beat Chris Bush in the last round of The E-Town Christmas Open to win 1st place. Joe Farrell and Mike Thomas tied for 2nd with 2.5-1.5. Also with 2.5 was Larry Bell who took home the Under 1900 prize and Kerry Fatula took home the Under 1700 prize with 2 points.

 In the Reserve section Romallis St Cyr won with a perfect score of 3-0!

The completed crosstable can be found here:

For The Record

For the record the meeting of 18 December was attended by Joe Farrell, Johnny Owens, and Kerry Fatula. They decided the 2012 Club Championship matches would be played @G/45;d5 - 1 game per setting, top seed having White in the first game.

Additionally it was decided that the 2013 Club Championship will consist of:
The top 4 rated Club members per the 2013 December Rating Supplement; to be joined by the top two finishers in the monthly tournaments (Jan-Dec 2013) who are not already seeded by rating.

As with the 2012 format, matches must be won by a minimum of 2 points after the completion of an even number of games. Example : 2-0; 2.5-1.5; 3.5-2.5 etc. The high seed will get the bye in the second round of match play.

In closing a reminder that due to Christmas and New Years falling on Tuesdays this go round; our next meeting will be 8 January at ECTC for the first "Second Tuesday" rating tournament of 2013.

To keep from suffering "Chess Withdrawal" sign up for Johnny's "Christmas Open" 22 December! Johnny already has at least 3 Experts, 2 Class A players and several others Class B and below preregistered. 

E-Town Christmas Open on Saturday!!

This Saturday we will be having the Christmas Open! Look at the Tournament link on this blogsite for details! Let me know NLT Thursday by phone or email in order to get registered early and save $5.00. Look forward to seeing you!

The Club Championship is Set

Amy Nunn outdistances the field and is the Club's Reserve Champion for 2012. The four finalists in the Club Championship are . . . Current champion Jerry Weldin who scored an impressive 24 points. Three time champion Johnny Owens is second with 17.5 points. Two time winner Joe Farrell cruised into third with 13 points. Prior second place finisher, Ernie Weaver scored 10 points. One match will pit Jerry Weldin against Ernie Weaver, while Johnny Owens will square off against Joe Farrell. The winners will then face each other for the Club Championship and a position in King of Kings Tourney. The winner must score at least 2 points (i.e. 2 wins or 1 win and 2 draws) and also lead after an even number of games. I am not certain of the time control, it was either G45 or G60.

Caution Chess Ahead Please Yield

Coming to Club Meetings is like watching the Lotto; you never know what number will show up.

Last night was another "Quad" click here to see who played.

December Business Meeting

Before the start of the 2011 Club Championship we held our monthly business meeting.

1. the tie breaks for the 2011 Club Championship will be

First: Colors - who had black more often

Second: Opponents score

Third: Head to Head Match

2. The 2012 Club Championship will use the score from all 12 monthly tourneys. Then the top 4 players will be compete in match play (1 vs 4; 2 vs 3; winners head to head). These matches will be in the 1st quarter of 2013 and will comply with the KCA requirements for the King of Kings Tourney.

3. There will be a Reserve Champion. This will be set by dividing the membership in half based on the January Rating Supplement. The Reserve Champion will be determined by the total score in the 12 monthly tourneys.

With that the games began for the Club Championship.

This post is being moved out of it's chronological order due to many questions received from the Club membership.

See reminder next under for the final qualifying information. .....Jerry

E-town Chess Club Wins Return Match With The Chess Club Of Southern Indiana!!

Seven players from our club traveled up to New Albany, IN for our return match with "The Chess Club of Southern Indiana." We won the first match 4-1 on October 30th and this time we won 5.5 to 1.5. We won four games and drew three! A good time was had by all and we hope to do this again soon. Perhaps some of us will share our game scores with the club!

A Truly Fun Game from The Tired of Turkey Open

Below is my game against Larry Bell. A really fun game that just played itself. Can you find the resource for Black on Move 12?

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Tired Of Turkey Renamed "Dead Turkey Open"

Joe Farrell, shown above, posted a perfect 3 points out of 3 to win the "Dead Turkey Open". The Under 1200 Section was won by Robert M Woodruff, from Owensboro with 2.5 out of 3. Due to an error on the part of the TD (me),  I was forced to rename the tournament in order to get it submitted for rating. Thanks to all who attended; especially those who traveled  long distances to attend - Davy Williams from Adair County, Larry Bell from Lexington, and Robert Woodruff from Owensboro. Click on this link to see the X- Table.

Tired Of Turkey Open

Click on flier for larger view.

As of 21 November we have 4 preregistered for the Open and 2 for the Under 1200.

Farrell And Weldin Tie For First!

Six showed, four played, and two tied. Kerry and Sal both elected not to play; Kerry was inroute to work and Sal didn't want to force a "bye situation".*********** Amy, Joe, Johnny and Jerry played a "Quad" with Jerry and Joe tieing for first. Click here for the X-table. ********* First through third place appear to be sewn up with only one point separating Amy, Ernie, and Steve for the #4 spot.

Election Results Are In

Joe was unable to attend the special business/election meeting due to family health problems. Joe, you and your family are in the Club's thoughts and prayers.******** Amy Nunn chaired the meeting with Kerry Fatula, Rudy McKinney, Johnny Owens, and Jerry Weldin attending as well as new member Larry Bell.********* The new officers, elected unanamously are: President................Johnny Owens ****** Vice President...........Kerry Fatula ****** Secretary................Jerry Weldin ****** Treasurer................Steve Parsons ****** Additionally the attending members voted to amend the Club Constitution striking the requirement to be a member of USCF from the Club membership requirements.***** Many present reported problems with the web site; not being able to get on to post articles, comments, etc. It was resolved that Ernie Weaver be asked to investigate and Jerry Weldin did so 7 November. Ernie will check into the problem and suggested that we devote a portion of a meeting to a class on how to access the web site.***** Skittles and speed chess followed the official part of the meeting.***** The site still won't allow me to create paragraphs, please bear with us. I have went back in and tried to make the post easier to read.

Election Time

After my singularly poor performance as president, I'm amazed I haven't been impeached! On the positive side, thanks to Johnny Owens and Jerry Weldin, Chess in Etown has flourished this year with many opportunities to play in well run tournaments. Nonetheless it's time for a general election of the Etown Chess Club. Our next regular business meeting is November 6th. This would be an ideal time to elect our 4 officers (President, VP, Secretary and Treasurer). Please forward nominations to either myself or Amy Nunn. If you cannot attend the meeting and still want to be heard, send in an absentee ballot.

My Game From Our Match With The Southern Indiana Chess Club

This is my game against John Warth. John is the "Sponsor" of the Southern Indiana Chess Club. John told me after the game that his rating was 1254. A quick check with USCF revealed that John had let his USCF membership expire in 2006 after playing in a three round tournament;USCF considers him as unrated. It was interesting to see that all of the other players in the section John played in, with the exception of John and one other, are still playing in USCF events. Check out their "then and now" ratings. The site will not let me list the information in a column (nor let you have separate paragraphs) so the name will appear first followed by the "Then" rating and then the "Now" rating. James Ballard : 1473 -- 1606 , Ron Lipman : 1396 -- 1654 , Andrew Lipman : 1319 -- 1748 , John M Marcsik ; 1395 -- 2024 , Greg Miller : 1457 -- 1665 , John beat Greg Miller in the tournament while losing to both Lipmans. One can only guess what John's rating would be today if he had remained active in USCF events! As usual I forgot to reset the board. Please click on the extreme left arrow before you start. I have not ran this through any "engines" so the flaws are all there to be found for both sides.

Play chess online

Editor's note: Both Johnny and myself have been unable to get the site to allow paragraphs, etc. I'm sure things will get sorted out eventually.

Elizabethtown Chess Club Wins Match With Chess Club of Southern Indiana!

Here our own Joe Farrell was held to a draw with Melvin Person. We won our match last evening with the 'Chess Club of Southern Indiana' 4-1! We had 3 wins and two draws! Thanks to all those that showed up to support our club! We will travel to New Albany, IN on November 29th to play a return match. They said that they would have at least 7 players next time, so we will need to have you all back!

Chris Bush Wins The Harvest Festival!

We had a low turn out today, but it was a strong tournament! Chris Bush took home 1st place with a perfect score. (4-0) John M. Marcsik won 2nd place with 3-1 and Johnny Owens won the Under 1800 prize with an even score. (2-2) The crosstable can be found here! Thanks to all those that played!

Southern Indiana Chess Club vs. E-town Chess Club!!

We will be hosting a 6-7 board match with the Southern Indiana Chess Club from New Albany, IN this Tuesday, October 30, 2012! It will be held at the Family Buffet and will start at 7:30 pm!! It will be one round at Game/60. Club members that are interested in playing should contact me immediately. I've got several members lined up, but we may need alternates! Call me at 270-272-3061 or see me at tomorrow's tournament! If you can't play, why not show up and support our team!

Tournament Reminder

Don't forget that Hub City has a tournament this Saturday the 27th of October. Click on "Tournaments" in the green menu bar above to view flier.

The Harvest Festival

The Harvest Festival October 27, 2012 USCF Rated * 4SS * G/45 * EF: $20 if mailed by Oct. 22nd PLACE/SITE: FAMILY BUFFET *121 Towne Drive * Elizabethtown, KY 42701 http://etownchess.blogspot.com OPEN (1400+) 1st 35% of Section Entry Fee 2nd 20% of Section Entry Fee U 1800 15% of Section Entry Fee U1600 15% of Section Entry Fee RESERVE (U 1400) 1st 35% of Section Entry Fee 2nd 20% of Section Entry Fee U 1000/unr 15% of Section Entry Fee Top Female 10% of Section Entry Fee Late/On-Site Registration Sat: 11-11:25 am – Late EF: $5.00 more. (Cash only at site) ROUND TIMES 11:30 AM – Others ASAP (Eastern Time) Make check payable to: Johnny Owens and mail by October 22nd to: Johnny Owens; P. O. Box 266, Elizabethtown, KY 42702 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION OR QUESTIONS Email: chessnut@insightbb.com / Phone: (270) 272-3061

John M Marcsik Abuses The Elderly? LOL

John M Marcsik (facing the camera) defeated four opponents more than twice his age in route to winning the E-Town Chess Day Open. A genuine credit to his generation; John generously conducted  "post mortems" and gave freely of his chess expertise to eager listeners between rounds. Jim Mc Mahon, an old friend of the E-town Club, pocketed the second place purse with three points. E-town's own, Kerry Fatula placed third overall and carried home the "Under 1700" prize. The "Under 1400" monies was split between Clyde Alexander and Greg Jackson. Click here for the full X-table.

A good time was had by all and several players expressed a desire for continuing Saturday tournaments.

Additionally, I shaved my head and wore a pink (yes Andrew...PINK) baseball cap to the tournament. A donation jar was present for the Folino family and a size able amount was raised. Stan Mullins was kind enough to pick up the jar and deliver it on his way home from work.

13 October - National Chess Day

          13 October is National Chess Day, what better way to celebrate than a chess tournament!

Reposted by request.(moved to the top)

Six Show Four Play

Jerry Weldin went banana's last night winning the October Rating Tournament and maintaining first place in the standings for the Championship Qualification. Johnny Owens has locked in at least second place and Joe Farrell vaulted into third position ahead of Ernie Weaver who was absent. Click for X-Table. With two months remaining the third and fourth spots are still up for grabs.

Kerry Fatula dropped by and watched the first round game between Amy Nunn and Johnny Owens before leaving for work. Steve Parsons was unable to play but stopped in to make a donation for the Folino family.

Calling All Military

2012 Armed Forces Open is open to all active duty, retired, guard, reserve, and even ROTC!

 Click here for complete details. And results.

My Senior Open Third Round Game

Here is my game against Joe at the Senior Open. We have played the first eight moves several times! You may have to press the extreme left double arrow to reset to the starting position.

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My Senior Open Moment

Here is my last round game against Johnny in the E-town Senior Open. I forgot to reset to the starting position so please click on the extreme left double arrow to begin. This is a very instructive game and I tried to put in detailed commentary after the moves, but when I did the game wouldn't post correctly. So I will add some brief comments here and below the game. The opening is The London System which allows the White side to develope without having to memorize extensive tabia. It can be met in various ways, I decided to deviate from my usual defense and exchange the white bishops early. I had only tried this once previously and lost because I left my knight enprise.

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I can only try to explain my "senior moment" this way. After 36.h3 if you removed the d&e pawns, all things being equal, we have an end game win for black after 37.hxg4 f4 which has been "hard wired" into my brain for 45 years. Hopefully this game is as instructive to the reader as it was for the players.

The First Round of the Senior Open

My game against De Fiore, I haven't fed it to Fritz yet, so there are errors to find.

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Joe Farrell Wins Elizabethtown Senior Open!

Joe Farrell scored 3.5-0.5 to take 1st place in the Elizabethtown Senior Open! Johnny Owens and Romallis St Cyr tied for 2nd-3rd! This tournament was open to players age 50 and over. I plan on doing it again next year! The USCF rated crosstable can be view here:

E-Town Senior Open This Saturday!

Elizabethtown Chess Senior Open (50 yrs of age or older at time of tournament.) September 29, 2012 USCF Rated * 4SS * G/45 * EF: $20 if mailed by September 22nd FAMILY BUFFET 121 Towne Drive * Elizabethtown, KY 42701 $ b/20 $100, $60 Class B, C, D, E & below/unrated (If at least 2 in section) Late/On-Site Registration Sat: 11:00-11:25 am – Late EF: $5.00 more. (Cash only at site) ROUND TIMES Round 1 - 11:30 AM – Others ASAP Eastern Time Make check payable to: Johnny Owens and mail by September 22nd to:Johnny Owens; P. O. Box 266, Elizabethtown, KY 42702 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION OR QUESTIONS Email: chessnut@insightbb.com / Phone: (270) 272-3061

Louisville Open Results Are In!!

IM Ron Burnett of Tennessee (shown in file picture above) and FM Andrew Karlins from Illinois both finished with 4.5 out of 5 to win the Louisville Open this weekend! Chris Bush was the highest finisher from Kentucky at 6th place with 3.5 points.Click here for the entire x-table.

Best Meeting In A Long Time!!

Last night we came very close to pleasing everyone; well at least those who came to the meeting. The seven members in attendance enjoyed rated tournament play, skittles, and group analysis. It was almost a real chess party. Maybe next week we can draw an even number of players.

Weaver Wins On 9/11

Ernie Weaver won last nights tournament and vaulted into 3rd place in the qualification for the 2012 Club Championship. Ernie had a full head of steam rolling over Johnny and Jerry before Amy held up his train and took home all the rating points with a draw in the last round.

The real story of the night was that Amy went to the Family Buffet, and while wondering what had happened to the rest of the Club, ran into non-chess friends and decided to eat! Luckily Johnny had her number and called to see if she was stalled in traffic. The moral to this story is: "check the Blog daily".

Click here for the rest of the story.

Larry Bell Wins The Back To School Open!

Larry Bell (right) vs. Romallis St Cyr in the above photo.

   Larry Bell won the "Back to School Open" with a score of 3.5-0.5!  Terry Fathauer took 2nd place and Johnny Owens, Gerald Weldin, and Louis De Fiore shared the Under 1800 prize. The Under 1400 prize went to Chuck Miller and Amy Nunn took home the Top Female prize.

   The rated crosstable can be viewed here:

Back to School Open

Back to School Open
September 8, 2012

USCF Rated * 4SS * G/45 *

EF: $20 if mailed by September 4th

PLACE/SITE: FAMILY BUFFET
121 Towne Drive
Elizabethtown, KY 42701

First Place: 35% of entry fees
Second Place: 20% of entry fees
Under 1800: 11% of entry fees
Under 1400: 10%: of entry fees
Top Female: 9% of entry fees

Late/On-Site Registration Sat: 11-11:25 am – Late EF: $5.00 more. (Cash only at site)

ROUND TIMES: Round One - 11:30 AM – Others ASAP Eastern Time

Make check payable to: Johnny Owens and
mail by September 4th to: Johnny Owens; P. O. Box 266, Elizabethtown, KY 42702

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION OR QUESTIONS
Email: chessnut@insightbb.com/ Phone: (270) 272-3061

Johnny Owens Wins By A Full Point!!

Johnny Owens, on the left in this file photo, scored 2.5 to win the G/45 Tournament which was played at Club meetings over the last three weeks. Due to low participation the originally planned 4-Rd event ended up as a Quad; disappointing those who signed up  looking for a norm. Click here for X-table.

2012 Chess Olympiad - Updated

Chess may not be an Olympic event yet; but the Chess Olympiad only needs a change of venue if it ever comes about. The link has been updated, you can now see pictures, live games, etc.Click here. If you don't have time for anything else check out the photo's from the opening ceremonies.

 As you may know already Nakamura has surpassed Fischer's top rating at the Olympiad and is now the #5 player in the world. For those who want the quickest updates on top player rating changes, Live Chess Ratings provides daily updates.

Taylor Bagley Wins "The Dog Days Of Summer Open" With a Perfect Score!!

Taylor Bagley went 4-0 to take 1st place in the Open section of "The Dog Days of Summer Open." Chris Bush, Randas Burns and Larry Bell each scored 3-1 to share the 2nd-3rd place money. Terry Fathuaer took home the Under 1700 cash!

Michael Williams and Dan Bulleit scored 3.5-0.5 each in the Reserve section to take the 1st and 2nd place money, while W. Chuck Miller was 3rd and Robert Woodford took home the Under 1000 prize.

Special thanks goes out to Amy Nunn and Rayane Chatrieux our local club members that participated!

The complete rated crosstable can be found here:

Dog Days of Summer

Dog Days of Summer Open
Saturday, August 25, 2012

USCF Rated * 4SS * G/60 *

EF: $20 if mailed by August 20th

PLACE/SITE: FAMILY BUFFET;121 Towne Drive * Elizabethtown, KY 42701
Late/On-Site Registration Sat: 11-11:25 am – Late EF: $5.00 more. (Cash only at site)

ROUND TIMES: 11:30 AM - 2:00 PM - 4:30 PM – 7:00 PM Eastern Time

OPEN (1400+) $$b/15
1st $100, 2nd $75, 3rd $45, U1700 - $45

RESERVE (U 1400) $$b/10
1st $75, 2nd $50, 3rd $25, U1000/unr - $25

Make check payable to: Johnny Owens and mail by August 20th to:
Johnny Owens; P. O. Box 266, Elizabethtown, KY 42702

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION OR QUESTIONS
Email: chessnut@insightbb.com / Phone: (270) 272-3061

Reminder Of "The Dog Days Of Summer" Open!!

I have 10 pre-registered for this Saturday’s tournament with 7 actually paying in advance! A few more have said that they plan to play but, haven’t really committed. I will accept preregisters through midnight tonight (August 23, 2012) either by email or phone calls. After that it's $25.00 to play! Details of this tournament are below!

Tuesday Knights Rated Games Returns to the Family Buffet!!

Next Tuesday, August 21, 2012 I will direct a tournament that will run 2 consecutive Tuesdays at the Family Buffet. We will play 2 rounds each evening and the time control will be Game/45 with a 5 sec. delay.

The cost will be $1.00 to cover the cost of the rating fee. So, we will play 4 rounds of chess! Round one will start promptly at 6:30 pm. Please email me at chessnut@insightbb.com if you have any questions or wish to preregister. If there is an odd number of players, the last one to register will be dropped out to ensure we don't have any byes!

Parsons Perfect!

Steve Parsons took no prisoners last night, scoring a perfect 3 points to win the August Rating Tournament a half point ahead of Louis De Fiore who was also unbeaten.
Clyde Alexander was baptised by fire in his first USCF rated over the board tournament. Clyde has been playing on line and decided to try his hand at "live action". Clyde plays much stronger than last night's results reflect and hopefully will become a regular member of the Club.
Click here for the complete X-table.

How To Chose A Chess Set

When friends and acquaintances learn we are chess players they often ask advice on purchasing a chess set for themselves or their children. Chesshouse has developed a 25 page PDF which answers all the questions and no doubt aids in the sales of their product. Of particular note is their "free" piece replacement policy on their basic club sets. Click here for a free copy of the PDF.

Welcome Noreen!

Tonight 11 year old Noreen Chatrieux joined the Club and will play in next week's 2nd Tuesday Tournament! We now have three ladies in the Club.
Joe Farrell popped in with Steven, Ernie, Rudy, Rayane, and Kerry were also in attendance allowing for action on 3 boards! It's great to see attendance getting back to normal.

A Bird In The Hand.....

A bird in the hand is not worth two in the bush if the Bush is Chris! Chris is merely observing in the file photo above; but today he was storming the Bastille winning with 3.5 out of 4! Randas Burns and Glen O'Banion split the 2nd & 3rd monies with 3 points a piece while Ernie Weaver and John D. Marcsik split the under 1700 prize with 2 points each. Michael Williams had a perfect 4.0 to take 1st place in the Reserve Section; old soldier and sexagenarian Andrew Preston took home the 2nd place purse with 3 points.

Three players traveled from Albany and the young future master Sam Leigers (age 5!!) trekked all the way from Richmond. (Thanks Mom!)

Click here to view the complete X-table.

The Bastille Day En Passant Open

OK, I know that Bastille Day is the 14th of July; but there were too many other chess events going on throughout the state. That's where the "en passant" comes in. A chess tournament by any other name is still an excuse for me to drop rating points like a rose loses petals in the fall.

Anyway....Johnny told me he had received great feedback after the "Summer Open" and folks wanted more Saturday tournaments.

Please note that I have restructured the rounds to help the elderly to better endure and allow our out of state players to get home before dark. I have also "tweaked" the Reserve prize money in order to give those players toward the bottom of the rating spectrum a reason to come and do battle. Hopefully everyone now has a realistic chance to take home some loot.

Remember that you can win a norm if you excel!!

For those who haven't played at the Family Buffet before: the food is excellent and reasonablely priced (all you can eat), beer and wine is available in addition to the regular drinks, it is handicap accessable, there is ample free parking, and the playing room is close to the restrooms. The Towne Mall is within walking distance and a 24hr Krogers is next door. So if your "honey do list" includes bringing home a loaf of bread and a quart of milk...we've got you covered! Should your better half find out that you made a detour to play chess... Hardin Memorial Hospital is only 1/2 mile south on the Dixie.

As entries are received I will post them here.
Andrew Preston ------ Reserve                    Johnny Owens ------------Open
Sal Mancuso --------- Reserve                    Glen O'Banion-------------Open
Stephanie Clayton-----Reserve                    Dan Franklin---------------Open
                                                                  Amy Nunn--------------- Open
                                                                  Rob Dennis--------------Open
                                                                  Ernie Weaver...............Open

Requiem For A Chess Club

Under any other circumstances there would be a death knoll sounding for our Club. But as long as I still breath and can get one other chess player to attend our weekly meetings the Club will live on. I realize that it is "summer" and have heard all the excuses; but attendance has shrunk to such a low that I am fearful that the remaining stalwart members will start to "deprioritize" our weekly meetings as others have done.
Last Tuesday there were 4 players; one - James Ballard drove all the way from Louisville! The meeting was over at 8pm. We will not last long at this rate. I challenge every member to not only attend next weeks meeting, but bring a new member.

Bluegrass X-table

The Bluegrass X-table has finally been published. I have added it to the original post, but give it here also for ease in finding. Bluegrass X-table .

We are still waiting for the results from the 3rd Bulldog Invitational..

Amy Nunn Ties For First

Last night in addition to James Ballard and Rob Dennis dropping by for skittles; we got the news that Amy had tied for 1st in the 3rd Bulldog Invitational at Dale Hollow State Park on Saturday. Way to go Amy!! Click here to view the X-table.                                           

from the Bluegrass State Games

My Easiest Game was against my highest rated opponent!!

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Farrell Mows The Blue Grass

Joe Farrell sweep the 2012 Bluegrass Tournament 4-0!! View the X-table by clicking here.

Draw

I did not play well in the E-town Summer Open. My best game was this draw against Johnny which contained trappy play from both sides. I decided to publish it as that seems to be the only way to generate comments on the web site.

Click on the double arrows, extreme left hand side to reset the board.

July Rating Tournament

Every dog has his day and I guess mine was last night. After Amy made me fight for a draw I probably didn't deserve (scaring me to within an inch of my life in the process), Sal gave me an easy point and Johnny either overlooked a hanging Knight or thought I had a swindle prepared. Anyone who doesn't think luck plays a part in chess is full of beans.

Johnny still holds the lead in the Championship qualification, I am 2 points behind, but 3.5 points ahead of Joe (who stayed home with Patty on their 30th anniversary - wise decision Joe)  while Amy and Ernie have moved into a tie for forth.

Stephanie got revenge for her loss to Sal at the E-town Summer Open. And both plan on renewing their fight for bragging rights at the Bastille Day En Passant Tournament.

Congrats to Amy, the big rating points winner, for moving back into the "C" category.

Click here to see the entire X-table.

The E-town Summer Open Drew 24 Players!

24 players decided to play an indoor sport yesterday and get out of the 100 degree plus temperature! In the end Expert Chris Bush won the open section with 3.5-0.5 and took home $100 for his effort. Randas Burns and Matthew McDonald shared 2nd and 3rd place and each took home $60. And, our very own Rayanne Chatrieux won the under 1700 prize of $45!

In the Reserve section, Austin Bridges went 4-0 and won $60.00 for his efforts. Our club secretary, Amy Nunn took home the prize for 2nd place! I want to Thank everyone for coming out and playing! The USCF rating report can be found here!

Hub City Summer Open

Just a reminder that Johnny's Hub City Chess Club is hosting a tournament this Saturday to close out June with a bang. Particulars are contained in the flier below.

Chess Problem

                                                                      HASEK 1951
                                                            White to move and draw

When I saw this problem it immediately reminded me of Kerry. I am putting the solution at comment number 1 below.

Chess Clocks

In the old days of mechanical chess clocks there were "buttons" with stems which were pushed to start your opponents clock. These buttons could be seen for some distance allowing one to walk about while keeping watch on their clock out of the corner of their eye.The Excaliber clock is an example of that feature being carried over to the new digital timers.Recently I have noticed several players at tournaments who turn off the move indicator lights on their chess clocks. Indeed I was even thanked by an elderly opponent in last years Louisville Open for having them turned on on my Chronos. I personally consider turning the lights off unsporting; therefore I decided to see if there were any rules regarding this. While USCF does not cover this in their rules, FIDE does. Reference FIDE Handbook 5.1.(d) covers clocks. Which states that you should be able to see who is on the move from a distance of 10 meters.But more specific is the testing requirements to get FIDE approval of a new clock:"Clocks must provide a clear visibility of which player is to move, from  all sides at a distance of 10 meters".

As USCF gradually gets more instep with FIDE, I predict that  "clock rules" will be upgraded to conform with FIDE standards. Something you should consider if in the market for a clock. Currently the DGT XL Digital Chess Clock is the only FIDE approved clock sold by USCF.

There is no need to panic and trash your old clock; any clock can be used in a non-FIDE sanctioned event. But if you use a Chronos, be a good sport and turn on the LED move indicators!

Nathaniel Emdee Found at KY Open

Above is a file photo of Nathaniel Emdee, Life Member of the E-town Chess Club who surfaced at the Kentucky Open last weekend. Click here to view the X-table and see how he did.

June Rating Tournament

The June Rating Tournament was one of our strongest ever thanks to guests Andy Porter and James Ballard who drove down from Louisville to join the fray. Congratulations to Andy who won with a perfect score.

Additionally Louis De Fiore returned to compete and Rayane Chatrieux  achieved his 25 game mark to escape his "provisional" status.Click here to review the X-table.

KY Open

Just a quick reminder that the KY Open is this week end. For details click on the KCA link (on the right hand side of your screen) then click on "Tournaments".