Round 2 of our club championship was another exciting affair with a number of very close games, including several of those on the top boards. I will try to publish some or all of the games in a Lichess study, as with a couple of our previous events, a task which is always made easier if you send me a timely pgn file of your game score (thank you to those who are already doing so). The second and third tables below include the wall chart and the prize group standings, and all prizes remain very much up for grabs in each group. I’ve received the entry fee payment from a smattering of players so please send that along (or pay at the club) at your earliest convenience. Regards,
Below are the pairings for round two of our club championship, which begins promptly at 7pm Thursday, November 2nd, 2023. Please call Mark Drury at 650-400-6393 if you are unable to play for any reason and try to arrive no later than 6:50pm to check in.
The two tables which follow the second round pairings, below, are the wall chart and the prize groups–we have two groups with 9 members and two with 8 and the ratings distributions seen in this event make the groups reasonably equitable (though please let me know if you have any questions or concerns, of course). Regards,
Below are the results from round 1 of our club championship, which occurred Thursday, October 26th, 2023. Note that, due to my forgetting an email exchange in the aftermath of COVID, I paired someone who had requested a bye for this past Thursday, a lacuna that resulted in a forfeit win for one player and the agreed-upon half-point bye for the other. We also had one no-show which resulted in another forfeit win, but all-in-all it was a decent start to this much-delayed tournament. Regards,
Below are the pairings for round one of our club championship, beginning promptly at 7pm Thursday, October 26th, 2023. Please call Mark Drury at 650-400-6393 if you are unable to play for any reason and try to arrive no later than 6:50pm to check in. Regards,
I tested positive again for COVID late last night so I won’t be at the club Thursday and our championship will now be delayed an additional two weeks, given I was already planning to be out of town October 19th. The new start date is October 26th, then continuing the weeks of November 2nd, 9th, 16th and 30th (the 23rd is Thanksgiving, no chess). This change may or may not work for some of you who have registered or added your name to our wait list so please let me know if you wish to withdraw or take a bye on one of the indicated days. You may also review the details of this event, as well as update/cancel your registration or add yourself to the wait list here: https://menloparkchess.club/…/second-menlo-park-chess…/.
This Thursday and October 19th will be casual, blitz, bughouse and ladder chess game evenings–please bring your own equipment if you plan to attend: https://menloparkchess.club/events/. I hope you see many of you on October 26th! Regards,
Well, after three and a half years of deftly avoiding the infernal virus my wife and I tested positive for COVID Tuesday afternoon. Kim feels worse than I do and may have gotten it earlier (my symptoms are like a bad cold with body aches but will likely worsen). This clearly throws a wrench in the club championship which was supposed to begin Thursday but I’m hoping I’ll test negative well before October 12th and perhaps we can begin then (I’m reasonably certain I wasn’t contagious last Thursday). This again highlights the need for another tournament director in the club, when my absences would be a non-issue. I know a few members are interested in directing so perhaps we can make this happen early next year.
You are still welcome to stop by the club Thursday, of course, but you’ll need to bring your own equipment and set up the room for play (and return the tables to the center of the room before you leave). I’m very sorry for the delay but I’m certain everyone understands, and I hope to see many of you at the club next week! Regards,
We enjoyed another excellent turnout for our casual evening this past Thursday and 26 people played in our impromptu G/2+3 double-round blitz tournament (two games played against each opponent), with Andy Applebaum taking sole first with a perfect 8 points. One point behind in sole second was first-time club visitor Ramkumar Jeyaraman, while Cesar Tamondong claimed sole third with 6 points. Of particular note was the result of Hayden Brongersma at 5 points, a young player who seems to get stronger each week and, if memory serves, only took up the game seriously earlier this year. Full results for the tournament are given below and we’ll continue to offer these blitz events (with different formats and time controls) on casual nights given it’s clearly what club membership wishes to do.
The Menlo Park Chess Club will hold our second annual club championship beginning Thursday, October 26th, at 7pm, a five-round USCF-rated Swiss system event using the dual-rated G/60;d5 time control over five weeks . Our championship is aimed at players with at least some tournament experience (one or two rated events, say) and may not be suitable for children under the age of 10, given games could last past 9pm on a school night. Additionally, if your child has trouble sitting still or remaining quiet for an hour or two then we would humbly request that you consider registering him or her in one of our other rated events and forego the club championship (we love our junior players but there are a few who truly struggle to remain quiet during even the shorter time controls). Details follow:
Format: Five-round Swiss-system tournament in one section, one game per evening
Rounds: October 26th, November 2nd, 9th, 16th and 30th—games begin promptly at 7:00pm (there is no round on November 23rd, Thanksgiving)
Control: G/60;d5 (dual-rated game of 60 minutes for each player plus a 5-second delay per move)
Entry Fee: $15 (the entire entry fee will be returned in prizes)
Prizes: Four prize groups based upon ratings with roughly 8 players per prize group (Group 1: $100, $60, $40; Group 2: $80, $60, $40; Group 3: $60, $40, $20; Group 4: $60, $40, $20, with adjustments as needed based on group size)
Byes: One half-point bye is available for any round save the last
Boards, sets, clocks, score sheets and pens will be provided by the Menlo Park Chess Club (bring a clock if you own one)
The Menlo Park Chess Club will hold our second annual club championship beginning Thursday, October 26th, at 7pm, a five-round USCF-rated Swiss system event using the dual-rated G/60;d5 time control over five weeks . Our championship is aimed at players with at least some tournament experience (one or two rated events, say) and may not be suitable for children under the age of 10, given games could last past 9pm on a school night. Additionally, if your child has trouble sitting still or remaining quiet for an hour or two then we would humbly request that you consider registering him or her in one of our other rated events and forego the club championship (we love our junior players but there are a few who truly struggle to remain quiet during even the shorter time controls). Details follow:
Format: Five-round Swiss-system tournament in one section, one game per evening
Rounds: October 26th, November 2nd, 9th, 16th and 30th—games begin promptly at 7:00pm (there is no round on November 23rd, Thanksgiving)
Control: G/60;d5 (dual-rated game of 60 minutes for each player plus a 5-second delay per move)
Entry Fee: $15 (the entire entry fee will be returned in prizes)
Prizes: Four prize groups based upon ratings with roughly 8 players per prize group (Group 1: $100, $60, $40; Group 2: $80, $60, $40; Group 3: $60, $40, $20; Group 4: $60, $40, $20, with adjustments as needed based on group size)
Byes: One half-point bye is available for any round save the last
Boards, sets, clocks, score sheets and pens will be provided by the Menlo Park Chess Club (bring a clock if you own one)
The Menlo Park Chess Club will hold our second annual club championship beginning Thursday, October 26th, at 7pm, a five-round USCF-rated Swiss system event using the dual-rated G/60;d5 time control over five weeks . Our championship is aimed at players with at least some tournament experience (one or two rated events, say) and may not be suitable for children under the age of 10, given games could last past 9pm on a school night. Additionally, if your child has trouble sitting still or remaining quiet for an hour or two then we would humbly request that you consider registering him or her in one of our other rated events and forego the club championship (we love our junior players but there are a few who truly struggle to remain quiet during even the shorter time controls). Details follow:
Format: Five-round Swiss-system tournament in one section, one game per evening
Rounds: October 26th, November 2nd, 9th, 16th and 30th—games begin promptly at 7:00pm (there is no round on November 23rd, Thanksgiving)
Control: G/60;d5 (dual-rated game of 60 minutes for each player plus a 5-second delay per move)
Entry Fee: $15 (the entire entry fee will be returned in prizes)
Prizes: Four prize groups based upon ratings with roughly 8 players per prize group (Group 1: $100, $60, $40; Group 2: $80, $60, $40; Group 3: $60, $40, $20; Group 4: $60, $40, $20, with adjustments as needed based on group size)
Byes: One half-point bye is available for any round save the last
Boards, sets, clocks, score sheets and pens will be provided by the Menlo Park Chess Club (bring a clock if you own one)
