Tag: tournament

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Impromptu Blitz #57 Results

We enjoyed another excellent turnout at the club this past Thursday and 29 people participated in seven rounds of G/3+2 blitz from 7:00-8:30pm. When all was said and done second-time visitor Thomas Allard stood alone atop the wall chart with 6 points out of 7, no surprise given he has a ~2300 blitz rating on chess.com. One half point behind Thomas in sole second was first-time visitor Dmitry Dzhanhirov, a National Master and very strong blitz player in his own right. Club stalwarts Pranav Jindal and Hayden Brongersma shared third at 5.0 while two of the strongest juniors in the club, Austin Chen and Caleb Leong, tied for fifth at 4.5. Full results as well as the latest club blitz ratings and blitz point totals may be seen in the attached images and thank you to everyone who joined us for this fun, free event!

As of this post we have four spots remaining in our March Quadness event beginning Thursday, March 5th. Please register asap if you wish to play as I plan to share the tentative quad groups Monday or Tuesday of this week. Note that we will not hold the unrated blitz tournaments while the quads are in progress but I anticipate we’ll pick that up again March 26th or April 2nd, at the latest, while our next rated event will likely begin in late April or early May—please let me know if you have any suggestions for that or other club events, as always. Regards,

Mark Drury

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Impromptu Blitz #56 Results

Twenty-six people joined our latest “impromptu” blitz tournament, with several first-time and returning visitors participating in seven rounds of G/3+2 chess over 90 or so minutes. Hayden Brongersma once again emerged victorious with 5.5 points out of 7, his lone loss coming in the final round against second-place finisher Yoyo He. Yoyo tied for second at 5 points with Austin Chen and newcomer Thomas Allard, Lauren Goodkind and the club’s house patzer tied for fifth at 4.5 and there followed a raft of strong players in the 4.0 scrum. Full results are in the attached image, along with the latest blitz point totals and club blitz ratings — thank you, as always, to everyone who joined us for this event.

One particularly interesting game between two veteran if cheeky players saw a speculative double under-promotion to two bishops (of opposite colors, thankfully), leaving the king and two prelates against lone king. In the ensuing endgame it became a little unclear if the bishopmonger would garner the full point, given mutual time trouble and a protracted dance around the board by all the pieces, but in the end Hayden the bishops prevailed in a nice demonstration of that mating pattern.

We’ll hold one more impromptu blitz tournament February 26th before beginning our “March Quadness” event on the 5th of next month. If you have not yet registered for the quads please do so asap. Regards,

Mark Drury

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“March Quadness” Registration Opens

With apologies to fans of NCAA Basketball, our next dual-rated quads tournament begins March 5th and runs three consecutive weeks, with a possible makeup round scheduled for March 26th if needed. More details and a registration link may be found here — please register asap if you wish to play in this event as we’re limiting the field to 28 players this time around (7 quads).

Relatedly, the results of our recently-concluded club survey may be seen below and made clear people prefer that our next rated event have a longer time control, so the quads will be played at G/45;d5, one game per evening. In addition to the data shared below we received a large number of helpful comments and suggestions so we’ll try to incorporate all that we can in upcoming events — thank you to those who took the time to complete the survey! Regards,

Mark Drury

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Impromptu Blitz #55 Results

Pranav Jindal found his usual excellent form over the past two weeks, given he won clear first in both of our blitz events during that time, this week with 6.5 points in seven rounds of G/3+2 action, arguably the most popular blitz time control at the club. Twenty-nine people joined the fray, including first-time visitors Carlos Alva, Mert Unsal, Soham Gurjar and Ruperto Guirnela.

Right behind Pranav at 6.0 points and in second place was David Flores, a very strong blitz player who returned to the club after having been away for some time, while Breakwell Loyalka, Cesar Tamondong and Carlos Alva shared third at 5.0 points. Austin Chen managed to remain a half point ahead of the throng at 4.0 points, claiming sole sixth with 4.5, another excellent showing for this talented young player. Last Thursday also saw the return of Nicholas Tan, a longtime member who moved away but has since returned to the Bay Area, so hopefully we’ll see more of him in the future.

Full results for Thursday’s event as well as the latest blitz club ratings and blitz points totals may be viewed in the attached images and thank you once again to everyone who joins us for these free, fun, informal tournaments. Regards,

Mark Drury

Casual, Blitz, Lecture, Ladder Chess Evening

Our regular weekly club meeting occurs Thursday evenings from 6:00-9:00pm in the Oak Room of the Arrillaga Family Recreation Center. Casual, blitz, bughouse and ladder chess games as well as a lecture are in the offing and we will also play another free, unrated blitz tournament beginning round 7pm, given there appears to be a continuing appetite for same. Note that our free weekly lecture begins at 6:30pm and it remains one of the highlights of club attendance.

Casual, Blitz, Lecture, Ladder Chess Evening

Our regular weekly club meeting occurs Thursday evenings from 6:00-9:00pm in the Oak Room of the Arrillaga Family Recreation Center. Casual, blitz, bughouse and ladder chess games as well as a lecture are in the offing and we will also play another free, unrated blitz tournament beginning round 7pm, given there appears to be a continuing appetite for same. Note that our free weekly lecture begins at 6:30pm and it remains one of the highlights of club attendance.

Casual, Blitz, Lecture, Ladder Chess Evening

Our regular weekly club meeting occurs Thursday evenings from 6:00-9:00pm in the Oak Room of the Arrillaga Family Recreation Center. Casual, blitz, bughouse and ladder chess games as well as a lecture are in the offing and we will also play another free, unrated blitz tournament beginning round 7pm, given there appears to be a continuing appetite for same. Note that our free weekly lecture begins at 6:30pm and it remains one of the highlights of club attendance.

March Quadness, Round Three

The Menlo Park Chess Club will hold dual-rated quads beginning Thursday, March 5th, using the G/45;d5 time control and playing one game each evening over three successive weeks, with a possible makeup week March 26th. Players will be grouped into quads based upon current US Chess Regular ratings to keep things as competitive as possible. This tournament is suitable for experienced players as well as newer US Chess members seeking to establish an over-the-board rating. Details follow:

  • Format: Quads (groups of four players) or perhaps small Swiss sections of 6-8 players over three weeks, one game per evening
  • Rounds: March 5th, 12th and 19th with a possible makeup round March 26th — games begin promptly at 7:00pm
  • Control: G/45;d5 (dual-rated game of 45 minutes per player plus a 5-second delay per move)
  • Entry Fee: $20; PayPal: mark@drury.com; Venmo: @Mark-Drury-12; entire entry fee goes to the prize fund
  • Prizes: Each quad will offer a $50 first and $30 second prize with ties splitting the money while any Swiss section prizes will depend upon the number of players therein
  • Byes: No byes are available for this event
  • Register: Registration is now closed for this event
  • Equipment: Boards, sets, clocks, score sheets and pens will be provided by the Menlo Park Chess Club (bring a digital clock if you prefer your own)
  • Membership: All tournament participants must be current US Chess members for the duration of the event
  • Rules: Our tournament chess rules summary is mandatory reading if you’re new to tournament play
  • Info: For more information please send email to info@menloparkchess.club
  • Social: Join our Facebook group, Google group or email list to stay abreast of club news, tournaments and events

March Quadness, Round Two

The Menlo Park Chess Club will hold dual-rated quads beginning Thursday, March 5th, using the G/45;d5 time control and playing one game each evening over three successive weeks, with a possible makeup week March 26th. Players will be grouped into quads based upon current US Chess Regular ratings to keep things as competitive as possible. This tournament is suitable for experienced players as well as newer US Chess members seeking to establish an over-the-board rating. Details follow:

  • Format: Quads (groups of four players) or perhaps small Swiss sections of 6-8 players over three weeks, one game per evening
  • Rounds: March 5th, 12th and 19th with a possible makeup round March 26th — games begin promptly at 7:00pm
  • Control: G/45;d5 (dual-rated game of 45 minutes per player plus a 5-second delay per move)
  • Entry Fee: $20; PayPal: mark@drury.com; Venmo: @Mark-Drury-12; entire entry fee goes to the prize fund
  • Prizes: Each quad will offer a $50 first and $30 second prize with ties splitting the money while any Swiss section prizes will depend upon the number of players therein
  • Byes: No byes are available for this event
  • Register: Registration is now closed for this event
  • Equipment: Boards, sets, clocks, score sheets and pens will be provided by the Menlo Park Chess Club (bring a digital clock if you prefer your own)
  • Membership: All tournament participants must be current US Chess members for the duration of the event
  • Rules: Our tournament chess rules summary is mandatory reading if you’re new to tournament play
  • Info: For more information please send email to info@menloparkchess.club
  • Social: Join our Facebook group, Google group or email list to stay abreast of club news, tournaments and events

March Quadness, Round One

The Menlo Park Chess Club will hold dual-rated quads beginning Thursday, March 5th, using the G/45;d5 time control and playing one game each evening over three successive weeks, with a possible makeup week March 26th. Players will be grouped into quads based upon current US Chess Regular ratings to keep things as competitive as possible. This tournament is suitable for experienced players as well as newer US Chess members seeking to establish an over-the-board rating. Details follow:

  • Format: Quads (groups of four players) or perhaps small Swiss sections of 6-8 players over three weeks, one game per evening
  • Rounds: March 5th, 12th and 19th with a possible makeup round March 26th — games begin promptly at 7:00pm
  • Control: G/45;d5 (dual-rated game of 45 minutes per player plus a 5-second delay per move)
  • Entry Fee: $20; PayPal: mark@drury.com; Venmo: @Mark-Drury-12; entire entry fee goes to the prize fund
  • Prizes: Each quad will offer a $50 first and $30 second prize with ties splitting the money while any Swiss section prizes will depend upon the number of players therein
  • Byes: No byes are available for this event
  • Register: Please sign up in advance using the ‘Register’ button, above
  • Equipment: Boards, sets, clocks, score sheets and pens will be provided by the Menlo Park Chess Club (bring a digital clock if you prefer your own)
  • Membership: All tournament participants must be current US Chess members for the duration of the event
  • Rules: Our tournament chess rules summary is mandatory reading if you’re new to tournament play
  • Info: For more information please send email to info@menloparkchess.club
  • Social: Join our Facebook group, Google group or email list to stay abreast of club news, tournaments and events