Save Your Mechanical Clocks!

After writing an article about the "death" of mechanical clocks, I thought it only appropriate to announce their continued longevity. Now that USCF has added the "Blitz Rating" there will be time controls that use no delay. In fact the longest time control will be G/10;d0 (10 minutes - no delay). The shortest time control is G3;d2 and any combination of minutes plus delay that does not exceed 10 is permissible. Examples: G5;d5, G7;d3, G5;d0, and so on.
While mechanical clocks may be passe, watching a flag fall will still stir the passion in the hearts of old timers.
I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that your mechanical clocks can be used in cooking. Set the clock for how long you like your steaks grilled per side and punch the clock when you flip it over! Or - boil for 5 minutes, reduce heat and simmer for two minutes.

Match With The New Albany Club Set For April 18th!

We have a 7 board match set with the "Chess Club of Southern Indiana" for Thursday, April 18th!

They are bringing in some ringers this time, so I'm asking the club to come out and support this match.  We have 3 players confirmed for this, so if you want to play, give me a call or send me an email as soon as possible.

The match will start at 7:45 pm at the Family Buffet in Elizabethtown. We need 4 more players to commit to this match!

The April Monthly Swiss Was Another Quad!

Joe Farrell, Johnny Owens, Amy Nunn and Sal Mancuso played in this month's Monthly Swiss!

The crosstable can be view here:

It's time to register for the club's annual tournament - The Elizabethtown Tornado!

King of Kings Results

Whaley wins King of Kings with a perfect score in a 4 man shootout! Elizabethtown was not represented.
Read the KCA report here, to include the winners games.

Here Is A Post From The Past - Jackson Whipps Showalter

If you thought the title was a typo and were looking for a game between two new members; it was an intentional "curve ball" thrown to get your attention.

Showalter who was known as "The Kentucky Lion" for his huge mane of hair in addition to his ferocity at the chess board; was the 5th US Chess Champion. Also the 7th, 9th, 11th, and 13th!!
Showalter was held in such high regard by his peers that both Pillsbury (after his triumph at Hastings-1895) and Marshall (after winning in Paris -1909) refused to accept the title of United States Chess Champion; which their fans tried to thrust upon them; until they could arrange (and win) a match against Showalter!

If you think Showalter was a backwoods push over; think again, the list of players he beat is a "who's who" list of his era including two World Champions: Bird, Blackburne, Burn, Chigorin, Albin, Alapin, Janowski, Lasker (Emanuel), Maroczy, Marshall, Mieses, Pillsbury, Steinitz, and Von Bardeleben.

Showalter had to satisfy his chess appetite through correspondence chess for most of his early years due to work/family responsibilities and the transportation limitations of his day or his chess accomplishments might have even been greater.

Oh yeah; that curve ball thing. Showalter was an avid baseball player in his youth and is credited with inventing the curve ball by some sources. He was probably the first to throw a curve ball in Kentucky; it is doubtful if anyone can prove who among the 7-9 claimants really deserves the honor of "discovering" the curve ball and in all likelihood it was discovered by several players independent of each other.

I could go on; but then I'd rob my readers of the joy derived from investigating for his/her self; was his wife Nellie a knock out in both beauty and chess; why did he go to Texas, and who was William "Candy" Cummings?

For more explorations try:
http://www.correspondencechess.com/campbell/articles/a060615.htm
http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessplayer?pid=10532
http://1heckofaguy.com/2009/03/11/jackson-whipps-showalter-chess-champion-curve-ball-proponent-cigar-aficionado/
http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?_r=1&res=9405E0D81039E433A25756C2A9679C94699ED7CF
http://www.wtharvey.com/show.html
http://www.chessclub.org/news.php?n=447
http://www.georgetownky.gov/content/view/22/44/
http://www.rookhouse.com/blog/?p=325
http://www.chessbase.com/newsdetail.asp?newsid=712

Note: While I researched and wrote this article in 2009; Bob Lenning added the links and "more explorations" which made it one of the best Blog posts ever (in my opinion) - Jerry

Latest News / Reminder

Tuesday saw a weak turnout as many of our members either had family/personal obligations, were enjoying other pursuits, or weren't able to overcome their Chinese Restaurant phobia. We ended up with 4 players to include "first timer" Frank Little who is enrolled in the "Wounded Warrior" program at Fort Knox. Frank was very eager to expand his chess experience and stayed until the restaurant was closing. Frank intends to join USCF and play in next weeks tournament!

Kerry Fatula dropped by and announced that he and his wife have made an offer on a house in Pennsylvania. Stay in touch Kerry and show those boys in Allentown,PA how the game is played!

Amy and I rounded out the meeting.

Johnny left for Nashville and the Super Nationals today.

Joe got delayed in Colorado, where Steven receives medical treatment from time to time, and will not be able to play in the "Kings" tournament this weekend. His post on KCA (1 April) was not an April Fools hoax. We all wish Steven a speedy recovery and a safe trip home. Joe has passed the baton to Ernie Weaver. Good luck Ernie!

Again, this serves as a reminder that we will meet at the College next Tuesday.

Club Welcomes New Members

Tuesday saw two new additions to the Club!! Mike Jocko recently relocated from Buffalo, NY and Phillip Laws who has migrated from Texas. Both men found us on line and Mike played in last weeks "Half Off" Tournament. Welcome to the Club guys!
With 6 regular players showing up the count was 8 for chess.

Half Off Open

I don't have a good file photo of Chris Bush; who won going away with a perfect score of 4 points. So for all you basket ball fans enjoying your "March Madness"; here is a picture of 3 famous professionals playing our game. Hint = "Boston". If you give up or just want to verify your guess click here for the "rest of the story" to include game scores.

10 players did battle with no quarter asked and none given. A special thanks to Sal for representing the Club! Click here to view the X-table.

"Half Off" Tournament This Saturday

Just a reminder that the "Half Off" Tournament is this Saturday, 23 March. Click on "Tournaments" at the green menu bar above to view particulars.

So far there are 1 "F" player, 1 "B" player, and 2 "C" players registered.

Farrell wins Club Championship

Joe & Ernie played game #2 of their match last night with four other club members in attendance. Ernie varied first in the Grunfeld with 5 e3. Joe wins the match 2-0 after a long end game involving all four bishops and six pawns each. I enjoyed playing a single serious game at a slower time control and would like to continue that in the coming weeks. I think was good preparation. Joe

Games Must Go on!

                                                Sal Mancuso - 1 vs. Rudy McKinney - 0


The 2nd Tuesday had only three participants, but we still had some interesting games!

The cross table can be view here!

Another Strong Showing At The Shamrock Open!

                                               Arvind Prasad vs. Louis De Fiore (1/2-1/2)
                                          Is this the youngest competitor playing the oldest?


Two Experts and two 1900+ rated Class A players came to Elizabethtown to play in the Shamrock Open! Top seeded, Expert John M. Marcsik was held to only one draw on his way to sole first place! Mike Thomas and Samuel Hunt each scored 3 points to share the 2nd place and Under 1800 prize. The Under 1400 prize went to 9-year-old Arvind Prasad.

We had three Elizabethtown Chess Club members to represent our club. They were Louis De Fiore, Kerry Fatula and Johnny Owens.

I want to thank two new-comers to our chess events in Elizabethtown, Arvind Prasad, from the Cincinnati, OH area and Tim Sawyer from Erlanger, KY. Thanks to all the others that played and made this an enjoyable event to direct and play in!

The complete cross table can be viewed here!

News From John Coffey

John Coffey has sent us some games which you can access through his blog by clicking here. Thanks John!

"Shamrock Open" - March 9th, 2013

Please view the flyer for the "Shamrock Open" chess tournament here:

2013 Club Championship Revised!

Some members are upset that players can be seeded into the club championship without even playing in a 2d Tuesday tournament!
The club champion should be someone that participates in the club and helps to represent our membership. So I'm revising the rules! You must play in at least 5 club monthly tournaments and be among the top 4 USCF rated club members to be seeded into the 2013 Elizabethtown Chess Club Championship event. Additionally, the 2 members, not among the top 4 rated, that score the most points in our 2d Tuesday tournaments, will be added to the match play. Again, this is to promote and reward participation in our club.</>

It's Time To Pay Your Dues!

If you are not a life member of the Elizabethtown Chess Club, it's time to pay your annual dues of $10.00! You can pay one of the club officers or maill your check to: Elizabethtown Chess Club; PO Box 266; Elizabethtown, KY 42702-0266
The dues must be paid before April 1, 2013 in order to get the $5.00 discount to our annual April Tornado tournament. (details to follow) Additionally, you will not be allowed to play in the 2nd Tuesday tournament unless you are a paid club member. The club pays a $40.00 affliate membership every year to USCF and there are rating fees that must be paid to get our events rated.

Weaver Wins!

Ernie Weaver defeats Jerry Weldin in straight sets to advance to the finals against Joe Farrell !!

Eight players showed up tonight and fun was had by all.

Don't forget the Shamrock Open on the 9th of March.

John M. Marcsik Wins "The 2nd Annual Winter Blues Open!"

The good weather brought 18 players to Elizabethtown for the 2nd Annual Winter Blues Open! John M. Marcsik won 3 games and drew 1 to take 1st place. Chris Bush, Taylor Bagley and Jennifer Ishee each score 3 points to share 2nd place. Floyd Beauchamp, Johnny Owens and Josiah Hereford each scored 2.5 to share 2nd place under 1800 money and Greg Jackson took home the under 1400 money. This was a strong event as you can see from the crosstable! REMEMBER: The Shamrock Open is on March 9th. Five players have already pre-registered!

News

Ernie beat Jerry in the first game of their match last night!

It was decided that if you will be playing in the 2nd Tuesday tournament you need to place a comment on the "reminder post" NLT noon the day of the tournament. Remember the top two finishers are seeded into the 2013 Club Championship.

Don't forget the Second Annual Winter Blues Tournament this Saturday. Particulars are posted under "Tournaments" at the green menu bar above.

Reminder

                   Just a reminder that we return to the Family Buffet for the 19 February meeting.

Match update: Joe wins game #3 and will advance to the finals with a score of 2.5 with one game to play in order to satisfy KCA requirements.
Ernie and Jerry will begin their match tomorrow night.

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?

Play online chess

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.

Play chess online

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.

Play online chess

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.