Impromptu Blitz #41 Results & Summer Schedule

Twenty intrepid people, including five first-time visitors to the club, joined us this past Thursday for another excellent lecture followed by seven rounds of G/3;d3 blitz, which is fast becoming the favored (or least despised) time control at the club of late. Alex Su once again shared first place with 6.0 out of 7 points, though this time with relative newcomer Vishesh Agrawal, a strong blitz player who took third the previous week, while Adam Ferrell had another strong showing with sole third at 5.0, ahead of the usual dejected throng of 4.0 players. I was expecting a lighter turnout given we met on the eve of a national holiday but attendance was good and it was great to see so many new people at the club.

This coming Thursday we’ll do the same, with a lecture and free, unrated blitz tournament, then we’ll take the weeks of July 17th and July 24th off (I’ll be riding my bike across Iowa with the RAGBRAI horde). I’m including the tentative summer schedule below but always check https://menloparkchess.club/events/ for the latest event and tournament information:

Jul 10: Lecture & Free Blitz Tournament
Jul 17: No Chess Meeting
Jul 24: No Chess Meeting
Jul 31: Lecture & Free Blitz Tournament
Aug 07: Rounds 1-2, August Double-Round Quick-Rated Event
Aug 14: Rounds 3-4, August Double-Round Quick-Rated Event
Aug 21: Rounds 5-6, August Double-Round Quick-Rated Event
Aug 28: No Chess Meeting

Registration is now open for our August Double-Round Quick-Rated Quads & Small Swisses for those who are interested. Participation is limited to 32 players so please register early. Regards,

Mark Drury

Impromptu Blitz #40 Results

Twenty people took part in last week’s free, 7-round G/3;d3 blitz tournament, with several new visitors and some returning players in the mix. Alex Su and Yoyo He shared first place with 6.0 points out of 7, first-time visitor Vishesh Agrawal took sole third with 5.0 points and a raft of players tied for fourth at 4.0. This G/3;d3 time control seems to be working for us, with little in the way of complaint, but we’re always willing to try something different if earlier arrivals at the club have a request.

We will meet tonight, July 3rd, for a lecture and another free blitz tournament and will do the same the following week, July 10th, before taking two weeks off for a summer break of sorts. In August the tentative plan is to hold double-round quick-rated quads or small Swisses over 3-4 weeks, as we’ve done in the past, but please let me know if you’d prefer some other format which might work with our ~7-9pm time constraint. I hope to see many of you at the club this evening! Regards,

Mark Drury

Impromptu Blitz #39 Results

We had an excellent turnout for our lecture and blitz tournament last week, with 28 people playing a full seven rounds of G/3;d3. After five rounds Breakwell Loyalka found himself alone in first place with 4.5 points, before running afoul of Simon Rubinstein-Salzedo in round six. Similarly, young Austin Chen was sole first after six rounds with 5.0 points, before falling to Simon in the final round, leaving Breakwell and Simon tied for first at 5.5 out of 7 when all was said and done. Austin held on to sole third with 5.0 points, ahead of some very strong players. The full results are in the attached image and thank you to everyone who joined us for this event.

Note that this evening there will be no lecture, given Frisco is covering the Golden State Valkyries game at Chase Center tonight, so we’ll hold casual play until 7pm then start our free, unrated blitz tournament at that time, perhaps with a team twist to mix things up. I hope to see many of you at the club this evening! Regards,

Mark Drury

Impromptu Blitz #36 Results & Casual Play/Blitz Evening Tonight

Twenty-two people played in our Impromptu Blitz #36 last week, a G/5;d2 affair over six rounds and, when the final flag fell, Pranav Jindal and David Flores tied for first place with five points each out of six. Breakwell Loyalka had another good result and sat alone in third with 4.5 points, followed by three of the club’s typically strong blitz players at 4.0 points. Full results are in the attached image, congratulations to all of our top finishers and thank you to everyone who joined us for this fun, free event.

Tonight is another casual evening with a free lecture beginning at 6:30pm followed by another free, unrated blitz tournament round 7pm. Next week we commence our four-week rated Swiss event with the G/45;d5 time control and four rounds over four consecutive weeks in two sections. A couple spots remain if you’d like to join us for this event:

https://menloparkchess.club/event/may-dual-rated-g-45d5-swiss-in-two-sections-round-one/

Please let me know if you have any questions or suggestions and I hope to see many of you at the club this evening. Regards,

Mark Drury

Lecture & Blitz Tournament Tonight

Just a quick update to let you know we will hold a typical “casual” chess evening tonight, with a lecture beginning at 6:30pm followed by a free, unrated blitz tournament round 7pm. Also, if you haven’t yet registered for our rated tournament beginning May 8th please do so asap at https://menloparkchess.club/event/may-dual-rated-g-45d5-swiss-in-two-sections-round-one/. I look forward to seeing many of you this evening! Regards,

Mark Drury