The 2010 CalChess Scholastic Chess Championships got underway this morning. This years Calchess Scholastic State Championship drew around 900 players and was noticeably smaller in size than some previous years. Even with the smaller turn out, it is clear that scholastic chess is alive and well in Northern California. Mission San Jose Elementary School ofContinue reading "CalChess Scholastic Chess Championships: Part Two"
CalChess Scholastic Chess Championships
For the last month I have been neglecting my blog in favor of focusing all my energy toward preparing chess students for the CalChess Scholastic State Chess Championships. Everyone involved in Northern California chess regards the CalChess State Championships as the paramount scholastic chess tournament on the west coast. As a professional chess coach forContinue reading "CalChess Scholastic Chess Championships"
Top Chess Children to Play Chess Near San Francisco
The Bay Area's best scholastic chess players are cordially invited to join the World Journal Chess Team in Millbrae. (Millbrae is located just South of San Francisco.) This program is perfect for North Bay chess players who are serious about studying to quickly improve their chess rating. Chris Torres, chess instructor for the 2009 NationalContinue reading "Top Chess Children to Play Chess Near San Francisco"
Chess Quads for Children
A children's chess quad run by the Torres Chess and Music Academy is the ideal way for new chess players to begin playing in tournaments. Children are separated into groups of four based on rating and age so that each quad tournament represents the closest chess experience grouping possible. This structure assures that all threeContinue reading "Chess Quads for Children"
Correspondence Chess News: SIM Kristo Miettinen
The month of January was full of accomplishments for correspondence chess player Major Kristo Miettinen. Kristo Miettinen clinched first place in the Eleventh North American Invitational Correspondence Chess Championship (NAICCC.) Later in the same month, Kristo Miettinen was awarded with the Senior International Master title by the International Correspondence Chess Federation. Like many players aroundContinue reading "Correspondence Chess News: SIM Kristo Miettinen"
Correspondence Chess News
It has been said that "The plight of the Correspondence Chess player is to toil in anonymity to add a grain of sand to the body of chess knowledge." As a regular part of my blog, I will now feature the often misunderstood hobby of correspondence chess. Many of the chess opening novelties we haveContinue reading "Correspondence Chess News"
Corus Chess 2010
Top rated Magnus Carlsen proved that his favorite status was justified at the 2010 edition of the Wijk ann Zee Chess Tournament. He simply outplayed everyone else. Viswanathan Anand was clearly reserving his best chess for the upcoming World Championship match with Vladimir Topalov and ended tied for fourth with Hikaru Nakamura. In fact, WorldContinue reading "Corus Chess 2010"
Corus Chess 2010: Americans Shine Brightly and Fade
For the first time in recent history, American chess players were commanding respect and attention in Wijk aan Zee. Hats off to Hikaru Nakamura and Ray Robson for shining bright enough that the chess world took notice. Unfortunately for the American chess fans, it appears that our two rising stars have been swallowed by theContinue reading "Corus Chess 2010: Americans Shine Brightly and Fade"
Report on the 2010 Corus Chess Tournament
In round 6 of the 2010 Corus Chess Tournament, Alexei Shirov was forced to settle for a draw against Nigel Short. Shirov's remarkable win streak came to a soft ending. Short remarked to reporters, “I stopped the unstoppable machine!” [Event "Corus"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2010.01.22"] [EventDate "2010.01.16"] [Round "6"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [White "Shirov"]Continue reading "Report on the 2010 Corus Chess Tournament"
Алексей Дмитриевич Широв at Corus 2010
Alexei Shirov is absolutely destroying GM after GM in the 2010 edition of the prestigious Corus Super Tournament. His pace of 5 points in 5 rounds borders on ridiculous and has landed him an astronomical performance rating that can not be truly calcualted until he does not win a game. Once again I find myselfContinue reading "Алексей Дмитриевич Широв at Corus 2010"
For Immediate Release: Scholastic Chess Tournaments in the Bay Area
For Immediate Release: Torres Chess and Music Academy, Inc. Presents: The SPHDS Quads At the South Peninsula Hebrew Day School – 1030 Astoria Dr., Sunnyvale, CA 94087 Sunday, February 7th, 2010 AND Sunday, March 7th, 2010 Where: South Peninsula Hebrew Day School When: 1:00pm – 4:00pm What: Scholastic (K-12) 3 Round Quad - G/30 Cost:Continue reading "For Immediate Release: Scholastic Chess Tournaments in the Bay Area"
California Chess Tournaments
Chris Torres has been one of the most successful scholastic chess organizers since 1998. His chess tournaments are extremely well organized and offer young chess players an opportunity to compete in a structured format and receive chess instruction from the best chess teachers in California. For information on these chess tournaments please visit SiliconValleyChess.com andContinue reading "California Chess Tournaments"
2009 CalChess Grade Level Championship: Part 2
Wall Chart. 2009 CalChess State Grade Level: Kindergarten (standings) # Name/Rtng/ID Rd 1 Rd 2 Rd 3 Rd 4 Rd 5 Tot 1 Jack Chin B 16 W 6 B 4 B 2 W 5 unr. 14288146 1.0 2.0 3.0 4.0 5.0 5.0 2 Gia Peterson B 18 Continue reading "2009 CalChess Grade Level Championship: Part 2"
CalChess Grade Level Championship
This weekend I am enjoying my duties as a coach at the CalChess Grade Level Championship in Stockton. I will be posting tournament crosstables, games and photos both nights of the tournament. This blogger is extremely grateful that Calchess President Tom Langland performed the chief tournament director duties. Below is a very instructional game playedContinue reading "CalChess Grade Level Championship"
Tal Memorial 2009: Round 7
In round 7 Vassily Ivanchuk punishes Boris Gelfand's small inaccuracies with authority. Now Ivanchuk and Anand are just a half game behind Kramnik. Below is Ivanchuk's win followed by a game where the opening line was first played. [Event "Tal Memorial"] [Site "1:06:33-0:46:33"] [Date "2009.11.12"] [EventDate "?"] [Round "7"] [Result "1-0"] [White "Ivanchuk"] [Black "Gelfand"]Continue reading "Tal Memorial 2009: Round 7"
2009 Tal Memorial: Round 6
Today Kramnik was able to win his game multiple times do to inaccurate play on both his and Ponomariov's part. I am in shock that the same Kramnik that missed 19.Qxh7+ played such a precise endgame. Thanks to Ponomariov, Kramnik was able to pull ahead of Anand and is now in first place all byContinue reading "2009 Tal Memorial: Round 6"
Tal Memorial: Anand vs. Leko
One of the strongest chess tournaments ever assembled moved to Russia's Red Square today. Viswanathan Anand demonstrated to the world that he is not satisfied to "rest on his laurels" but is willing to use whatever means necessary to defeat his challengers at the Tal Memorial. The first 21 moves are considered book. It isContinue reading "Tal Memorial: Anand vs. Leko"
Kramnik vs. Svidler: 2009 Tal Memorial
Below is Kramnik's win over Svidler in a Gruenfeld Defense: Exchange Variation. A lot could be stated about the opening theory as Kramnik tried a new move successfully with 12. h4. However, I do not believe Kramnik's courageous new move is to blame for Svidler's failure. Instead, Svidler seemed to have forgotten that "Knight's onContinue reading "Kramnik vs. Svidler: 2009 Tal Memorial"
FIDE Top 100
Below is the FIDE top 100 list for November(source http://www.chess.co.uk/twic/). Vugar Gashimov broke into the top 10 for the first time in his career. Born in 1986, Mr. Gashimov hails from Azerbaijan and is known for his extreme skill in one minute chess. Below is a recent example of his Brilliant play against American grandmasterContinue reading "FIDE Top 100"
Fremont Achiever Chess Team
Today was the start of the Fremont Achiever Chess Team. Our group will meet every Saturday from 1:00 until 3:00 at the Achiever Institute in Fremont. This program is aimed at the serious young chess player who aspires to improve his/her game through hard work and practice. Each week we will play one rated gameContinue reading "Fremont Achiever Chess Team"