Nevada Chess, Inc.

FLASH…Here are the results of the recent national scholastic chess tournaments from Madison, Wisconsin. Nevada representatives Raymond Seid scored 3/6 in the Denker event, Royce Pereira scored 2.5/6 in the Barber event, and Aisha Sanwal scored 2/6 in the NGIT

2013 Denker Tournament of High School Champions 27-30 July· Madison, Wisconsin

LIVE GAMES! PAIRINGS STANDINGS WINNERS Rating Reports: Main Tournament
Individual Standings Denker Tournament of High School Champions
No. Name Gr Team St Rate Pts TBrk1 TBrk2 Rnd1 Rnd2 Rnd3 Rnd4 Rnd5 Rnd6
1 Chandran, Kapil 9 Foster CT 2330 5.0 22.0 24.5 W 36 W 5 W 15 W 8 D 3 D2
2 Bora, Safal 9 Foster MI 2316 5.0 19.5 22.5 W 24 W 21 D 4 W 14 W 13 D1
3 Brown, Michael William 10 Foster CA 2333 5.0 19.0 22.0 W 29 D 20 W 22 W 7 D 1 W9
4 Katz, Alexander Ross 10 U-18 NJ 2362 4.5 19.5 21.5 W 25 W 37 D 2 D 13 W 15 D6
5 Zhou, Kevin L 12 U-18 VA 2079 4.5 18.5 19.0 W 48 L 1 W 24 D 17 W 14 W13
6 Velikanov, Alexander 9 Foster WI 2332 4.5 18.0 20.5 W 34 L 14 W 18 W 27 W 16 D4
7 Kogen, Jonathan S 11 U-18 IL 2281 4.0 18.5 21.0 W 32 D 16 W 20 L 3 W 21 D11
8 Cao, Kevin Y 10 U-18 MO 2307 4.0 18.5 20.5 W 39 W 35 W 10 L 1 L 9 W20
9 Ulrich, Thomas M 12 U-18 WI 2374 4.0 18.5 20.5 W 28 L 15 W 25 W 37 W 8 L3
10 Brattain, Mika Andrew 9 Foster MA 2364 4.0 17.5 20.5 W 30 W 17 L 8 D 21 D 11 W27
11 Tyagi, Kushan 10 U-18 IA 2062 4.0 17.5 19.0 W 44 L 13 W 39 W 12 D 10 D7
12 Mo, Kevin 12 U-18 PA 2337 4.0 17.0 20.0 W 18 W 26 L 13 L 11 W 23 W22
13 Chakraborty, Dipro 11 U-18 AZ 2304 3.5 22.0 24.5 W 31 W 11 W 12 D 4 L 2 L5
14 Fishbein, Matthew E 9 Foster ME 2103 3.5 20.0 22.0 W 40 W 6 D 16 L 2 L 5 W31
15 Mu, Joshua Wang 12 U-18 NC 2270 3.5 19.5 21.5 W 38 W 9 L 1 W 31 L 4 D18
16 Colas, Joshua 9 Foster NY 2405 3.5 19.0 22.0 W 19 D 7 D 14 W 26 L 6 D17
17 Rosenthal, Nicholas 11 U-18 FL 2188 3.5 18.0 21.0 W 23 L 10 W 28 D 5 D 20 D16
18 Cheng, Tony R 9 Foster KS 1959 3.5 16.0 18.0 L 12 W 41 L 6 W 40 W 37 D15
19 Thompson, Reece Eric 11 U-18 GA 2045 3.5 14.0 16.0 L 16 W 32 L 23 W 39 D 31 W34
20 Offertaler, Bendeguz 10 Foster MD 2100 3.0 14.0 20.0 W 45 D 3 L 7 W 33 D 17 L8
21 Klotz-Burwell, Hunter P 9 Foster CA 2090 3.0 13.5 20.5 W 43 L 2 W 36 D 10 L 7 D23
22 Zhang, Vincent 11 U-18 TX 2175 3.0 13.0 20.5 D 33 W 27 L 3 D 23 W 29 L12
23 Adams, Stephen W 10 U-18 AL 1871 3.0 13.0 20.0 L 17 W 30 W 19 D 22 L 12 D21
24 Tsao, Kevis 9 Foster SC 1935 3.0 12.0 19.0 L 2 W 43 L 5 D 35 D 28 W37
25 Seid, Raymond 11 U-18 NV 1973 3.0 12.0 18.5 L 4 W 42 L 9 D 32 W 33 D26
26 Chakrasali, Samarth 9 Foster MN 2157 3.0 12.0 18.0 W 41 L 12 W 29 L 16 D 34 D25
27 Grabinsky, Aaron 9 Foster OR 2055 3.0 11.5 17.0 W 46 L 22 W 38 L 6 W 36 L10
28 Mau, Stephen Li Jian 11 U-18 HI 2035 3.0 11.0 17.0 L 9 W 33 L 17 D 38 D 24 W41
29 Bagga, Gilman K S 9 Foster KY 1958 3.0 10.0 16.0 L 3 W 45 L 26 W 41 L 22 W42
30 Chu, Xiaoman 9 U-18 WA 2016 3.0 10.0 14.5 L 10 L 23 L 33 W 48 W 32 W38
31 Sorensen, Andy 11 U-18 TN 1917 2.5 14.5 18.0 L 13 W 44 W 35 L 15 D 19 L14
32 Casteel, Jerry John, Iii 11 U-18 SD 1876 2.5 13.5 17.5 L 7 L 19 W 43 D 25 L 30 W40
33 Nimmagadda, Kaushik Raghu 9 Foster RI 1847 2.5 13.5 16.5 D 22 L 28 W 30 L 20 L 25 W44
34 Andersen, Gunnar James 9 Foster CO 1950 2.5 12.0 16.5 L 6 W 40 L 37 W 44 D 26 L19
35 Baumgartner, Blake K 12 U-18 OH 2058 2.5 11.0 15.0 W 47 L 8 L 31 D 24 D 38 D36
36 Welling, Aashish 9 Foster NH 1938 2.5 10.0 15.0 L 1 W 48 L 21 W 45 L 27 D35
37 Manchanda, Sameer 11 U-18 IN 2117 2.0 15.0 19.5 W 42 L 4 W 34 L 9 L 18 L24
38 Mathine, Thomas 9 Foster NM 1876 2.0 12.5 16.0 L 15 W 46 L 27 D 28 D 35 L30
39 Wolf, Alexander Patrick 12 Foster AR 1919 2.0 11.5 15.5 L 8 W 47 L 11 L 19 L 40 W46
40 Li, Brandon 10 U-18 NE 1754 2.0 11.5 15.0 L 14 L 34 W 47 L 18 W 39 L32
41 Salzgeber, Kyle Andrew 11 U-18 MS 1797 2.0 10.5 14.0 L 26 L 18 W 48 L 29 W 45 L28
42 Jiang, Nathan 9 Foster ID 1788 2.0 9.5 12.5 L 37 L 25 L 44 W 47 W 43 L29
43 Timmons, Sam 10 U-18 WV 1312 2.0 9.5 12.5 L 21 L 24 L 32 W 46 L 42 W45
44 Hales, Jonathan Reid 11 U-18 UT 1217 1.5 10.0 14.0 L 11 L 31 W 42 L 34 D 48 L33
45 Yu, Nathan Q 10 U-18 OK 1491 1.0 10.5 13.5 L 20 L 29 W 46 L 36 L 41 L43
46 Bottrell, Carl 12 MT 1.0 8.0 11.0 L 27 L 38 L 45 L 43 W 47 L39
47 Wolf, Stuart 9 U-18 ND 100 1.0 7.5 10.0 L 35 L 39 L 40 L 42 L 46 W48
48 Sivori, Thomas 11 U-18 LA 1221 0.5 10.0 14.5 L 5 L 36 L 41 L 30 D 44 L47

2013 Barber Tournament of K-8 Champions 27-30 July· Madison, Wisconsin

PAIRINGS STANDINGS WINNERS Rating Reports: Main Tournament
Individual Standings Barber Tournament of K-8 Champions
No. Name Gr Team St Rate Pts TBrk1 TBrk2 Rnd1 Rnd2 Rnd3 Rnd4 Rnd5 Rnd6
1 Liu, Andrew 8 MA 2283 5.0 21.5 24.5 W 23 W 20 W 4 W 2 L 5 W8
2 Tang, Andrew 8 MN 2249 5.0 20.5 23.5 W 19 W 21 W 9 L 1 W 10 W7
3 Panchanatham, Vignesh 7 CA 2254 5.0 19.0 22.0 W 25 D 15 W 22 W 7 D 6 W5
4 Hilby, Craig 7 CA 2219 5.0 18.0 20.0 W 41 W 31 L 1 W 24 W 15 W6
5 Feng, Roland 6 WA 2268 4.5 21.5 24.5 W 27 W 12 W 16 D 6 W 1 L3
6 Checa, Nicolas De T 5 NY 2241 4.0 21.5 24.5 W 29 W 28 W 10 D 5 D 3 L4
7 Liang, Awonder 4 WI 2233 4.0 21.0 23.5 W 18 W 34 W 17 L 3 W 13 L2
8 Song, Edward 8 MI 2235 4.0 19.5 22.5 D 11 W 30 D 15 W 21 W 9 L1
9 Patel, Advait 4 WV 2111 4.0 19.5 22.0 W 14 W 26 L 2 W 32 L 8 W17
10 Shi, Jason 7 CT 2118 4.0 18.5 20.5 W 39 W 24 L 6 W 26 L 2 W16
11 Sun, Maxwell S 7 OR 1868 4.0 17.0 19.5 D 8 W 23 L 13 D 20 W 32 W21
12 Bian, Alex 7 IL 2071 4.0 17.0 19.0 W 42 L 5 W 18 D 25 D 20 W26
13 Rivero, Danilo 8 FL 2093 4.0 16.5 18.5 W 36 L 22 W 11 W 39 L 7 W23
14 Proleiko, Julian 8 MO 1788 4.0 16.0 18.0 L 9 W 45 W 31 L 15 W 22 W24
15 Ghatti, Sanjay 7 GA 2028 3.5 21.5 24.0 W 33 D 3 D 8 W 14 L 4 D19
16 Vaidya, Atulya 8 TX 2153 3.5 17.5 20.0 W 35 W 32 L 5 W 28 D 17 L10
17 Wlezien, Alexander 8 PA 2089 3.5 17.0 19.0 W 38 W 43 L 7 W 22 D 16 L9
18 Zhou, Jonathan 8 IN 1837 3.5 15.5 17.0 L 7 W 37 L 12 D 33 W 46 W31
19 Roach, Andrew 5 UT 1889 3.5 15.0 16.5 L 2 L 46 W 47 W 37 W 34 D15
20 Xie, Luke Bohua 5 OH 2076 3.0 14.0 21.0 W 40 L 1 D 29 D 11 D 12 D27
21 Lohr, Justin 7 VA 2025 3.0 13.5 20.0 W 46 L 2 W 35 L 8 W 25 L11
22 Tang, Arthur 8 NH 1952 3.0 13.5 18.5 W 50 W 13 L 3 L 17 L 14 W40
23 Swerdlin, Ryan David 7 CO 1937 3.0 13.0 20.0 L 1 L 11 W 42 W 40 W 28 L13
24 Sinha, Sahil 6 MD 1985 3.0 12.5 19.0 W 44 L 10 W 46 L 4 W 35 L14
25 Zhou, Ziwen 6 IA 1894 3.0 12.0 19.0 L 3 W 40 W 44 D 12 L 21 D30
26 Chen, Andy 7 NJ 1955 3.0 12.0 18.0 W 45 L 9 W 43 L 10 W 39 L12
27 Liang, Adream 6 WI 1905 3.0 11.0 17.5 L 5 D 42 D 30 D 38 W 33 D20
28 Alexander, Joshua 7 OK 2009 3.0 11.0 17.0 W 37 L 6 W 41 L 16 L 23 W39
29 Wan, Joseph Cheng-Yue 5 NE 1877 3.0 10.5 16.5 L 6 W 33 D 20 L 34 D 36 W42
30 Xie, Ethan 6 AZ 1994 3.0 10.0 16.0 L 43 L 8 D 27 W 44 W 41 D25
31 Katz, Gabriel 8 VT 1988 2.5 13.5 18.5 W 48 L 4 L 14 D 36 W 38 L18
32 Cremisi, Daniel 8 NC 1986 2.5 13.5 17.5 W 49 L 16 W 38 L 9 L 11 D36
33 Poston, Donald Mars 7 NM 1675 2.5 13.0 16.5 L 15 L 29 W 45 D 18 L 27 W47
34 Webster, Dex 6 LA 2004 2.5 12.5 16.5 W 47 L 7 L 39 W 29 L 19 D35
35 Pereira, Royce Trentin 7 NV 1799 2.5 11.5 15.0 L 16 W 49 L 21 W 43 L 24 D34
36 Wright, Brian 8 KY 1713 2.5 11.0 15.0 L 13 L 44 W 48 D 31 D 29 D32
37 Mishra, Apramay 8 KS 1444 2.5 10.5 14.0 L 28 L 18 W 50 L 19 W 44 D41
38 Qin, Alexander Charles 8 TN 1710 2.5 9.5 13.0 L 17 W 50 L 32 D 27 L 31 W46
39 Sowa, Aidan 8 RI 1789 2.0 13.5 17.5 L 10 W 48 W 34 L 13 L 26 L28
40 Lee, Conrad 5 MT 1704 2.0 12.0 15.0 L 20 L 25 W 49 L 23 W 43 L22
41 Wang, Kevin 6 AL 1823 2.0 11.5 16.5 L 4 W 47 L 28 D 46 L 30 D37
42 Han, Qiyu 7 MS 1681 2.0 11.5 15.5 L 12 D 27 L 23 D 47 W 48 L29
43 Fejzulai, Aidan 6 SC 1326 2.0 11.5 15.0 W 30 L 17 L 26 L 35 L 40 W48
44 Wong, Nicholas N 7 HI 964 2.0 11.0 14.0 L 24 W 36 L 25 L 30 L 37 W50
45 Kenney, Sawyer 7 ND 698 2.0 7.5 11.5 L 26 L 14 L 33 L 48 W 50 W49
46 Parker, Wesley M 8 ME 1625 1.5 14.0 17.5 L 21 W 19 L 24 D 41 L 18 L38
47 Zhuravskiy, Seva 8 DC 1352 1.5 10.0 13.5 L 34 L 41 L 19 D 42 W 49 L33
48 Fuhs, Alexander 7 SD 1119 1.0 10.5 13.0 L 31 L 39 L 36 W 45 L 42 L43
49 Nathan, Jacob Ari 3 ID 1023 1.0 8.0 10.5 L 32 L 35 L 40 W 50 L 47 L45
50 Kidd, J Michael 7 AR 482 0.0 10.0 13.0 L 22 L 38 L 37 L 49 L 45 L44

2013 National Girls Invitation Tournament 27-30 July· Madison, Wisconsin

PAIRINGS STANDINGS WINNERS Rating Reports: Main Tournament
Individual Standings National Girls Invitational Tournament
No. Name Gr Team St Rate Pts TBrk1 TBrk2 Rnd1 Rnd2 Rnd3 Rnd4 Rnd5 Rnd6
1 Gorti, Akshita 4 Foster VA 2010 5.0 22.0 24.5 W 28 W 16 W 5 D 2 D 4 W3
2 Virkud, Apurva 9 U-18 MI 2084 5.0 20.5 23.5 W 22 W 12 W 7 D 1 D 3 W11
3 Chen, Michelle 10 U-18 MA 1997 4.5 20.5 24.0 W 17 W 15 W 11 W 13 D 2 L1
4 Tallo, Emily K 12 IN 2080 4.5 19.5 22.5 W 24 D 9 W 19 D 8 D 1 W7
5 Deland, Rebecca 11 U-18 NM 1699 4.5 18.0 19.0 W 37 W 10 L 1 D 9 W 27 W12
6 Avirneni, Saithanusri 7 U-18 GA 1703 4.5 18.0 19.0 W 40 L 7 W 25 W 14 D 8 W10
7 Poteat, Lilia Meilan 9 U-18 NY 1992 4.0 20.5 22.5 W 29 W 6 L 2 W 20 W 13 L4
8 Xiang, Ellen 10 U-18 NH 2072 4.0 18.5 21.5 D 19 W 26 D 9 D 4 D 6 W20
9 Hajiarbabi, Kiana 7 U-18 KS 1871 3.5 20.0 22.0 W 32 D 4 D 8 D 5 D 18 D13
10 Dong, Alice 9 U-18 NJ 1974 3.5 19.0 22.0 W 25 L 5 W 26 W 15 D 11 L6
11 Peters, Epiphany M 9 U-18 TN 2041 3.5 19.0 21.5 W 27 W 20 L 3 W 21 D 10 L2
12 Ravi, Saisree 10 U-18 MN 1870 3.5 19.0 21.0 W 33 L 2 W 22 D 18 W 19 L5
13 Munoz, Claudia E 9 U-18 TX 2026 3.5 18.5 21.5 W 23 W 21 W 14 L 3 L 7 D9
14 Rajendra, Anupama Shashikala 7 U-18 WI 1928 3.5 18.0 20.0 W 30 W 18 L 13 L 6 W 22 D15
15 Reiches, Madeleine 12 U-18 IL 1733 3.5 16.5 18.5 W 36 L 3 W 29 L 10 W 24 D14
16 Zhao, Audrey 9 U-18 CA 1764 3.5 15.5 17.5 W 35 L 1 D 17 L 27 W 29 W28
17 Du, Katherine 8 U-18 CT 1403 3.5 15.5 17.5 L 3 W 36 D 16 L 19 W 32 W27
18 Moolten, Shira 8 U-18 PA 1675 3.5 15.5 16.5 W 38 L 14 W 30 D 12 D 9 D21
19 Huang, Alena 7 U-18 WI 1552 3.0 14.0 21.5 D 8 W 24 L 4 W 17 L 12 D23
20 Wyzywany, Annastasia Marie 9 U-18 LA 1861 3.0 13.5 19.5 W 31 L 11 W 23 L 7 W 26 L8
21 Morejon, Helen 8 U-18 FL 1776 3.0 12.5 18.0 W 34 L 13 W 28 L 11 D 23 D18
22 Kim, Madeline H 10 U-18 MD 1624 3.0 12.0 19.0 L 2 W 33 L 12 W 25 L 14 W30
23 Gadson, Keturah 8 U-18 MO 1472 3.0 11.0 16.5 L 13 W 34 L 20 W 33 D 21 D19
24 Cherepakhin, Olga 7 U-18 WA 1609 3.0 10.5 17.0 L 4 L 19 W 31 W 30 L 15 W33
25 Dias, Neha 9 U-18 SC 1287 3.0 10.5 16.0 L 10 W 37 L 6 L 22 W 35 W34
26 Pemsler, Carmen 9 U-18 ID 1635 3.0 10.5 15.5 W 39 L 8 L 10 W 34 L 20 W29
27 Cancio, Aiya 9 U-18 AZ 1527 2.5 14.5 19.0 L 11 D 31 W 32 W 16 L 5 L17
28 Zhang, Hanshi 10 U-18 CA 1445 2.5 12.5 17.5 L 1 W 35 L 21 D 32 W 31 L16
29 Salzgeber, Karen Elizabeth 9 U-18 MS 1295 2.0 13.0 17.0 L 7 W 40 L 15 W 35 L 16 L26
30 Knecht, Teresa Phivan Eleanor 7 U-18 IA 1198 2.0 12.5 16.0 L 14 W 38 L 18 L 24 W 36 L22
31 Perkins, Sarai 10 U-18 OR 905 2.0 12.0 15.0 L 20 D 27 L 24 W 36 L 28 D32
32 Bills, Devon 11 U-18 OH 1191 2.0 11.5 15.0 L 9 W 39 L 27 D 28 L 17 D31
33 Santos, Clarrisa E 9 U-18 OK 1128 2.0 11.0 14.5 L 12 L 22 W 40 L 23 W 38 L24
34 Venkataraja, Triyakshari 2 Foster NC 854 2.0 11.0 14.0 L 21 L 23 W 38 L 26 W 39 L25
35 Djuric, Milica 8 Foster DC 753 2.0 9.5 13.0 L 16 L 28 W 37 L 29 L 25 W38
36 Sanwal, Aisha 6 Foster NV 572 2.0 9.5 13.0 L 15 L 17 W 39 L 31 L 30 W37
37 Tran, Jacey 2 Foster NE 469 1.0 9.0 13.5 L 5 L 25 L 35 L 39 W 40 L36
38 Smyth, Rayya 4 Foster AR 407 1.0 9.0 12.5 L 18 L 30 L 34 W 40 L 33 L35
39 Kamtekar, Saey Sanjay 6 Foster UT 1.0 8.0 11.0 L 26 L 32 L 36 W 37 L 34 L40
40 Kenney, Lindsey 9 U-18 ND 504 1.0 7.0 11.5 L 6 L 29 L 33 L 38 L 37 W39

After having organized, directed, and played in hundreds of chess tournaments in more than 3 decades, I thought that I had seen just about every type of chess tournament. But I was wrong. The chess tournament at the first US Mind Sports Festival was like no other tournament that I have ever seen. Imagine playing in a chess tournament amidst other gamers playing a variety of strategy games. That is exactly what happened July 5-7 at the luxurious Palazzo hotel and casino in Las Vegas. The chess tournament was held in the center of the Lando ballroom, and we were literally surrounded by a Go tournament, a scrabble tournament, a mahjong tournament, and a Magic the Gathering tournament.

The chess began on Friday morning with a free simultaneous exhibition by chess expert Virgilio Reyes. It is impossible to say how many players Virgilio faced. Whenever a game finished, Virgilio graciously allowed a new player to take a seat and play. The exhibition lasted for several hours, but Virgilio did not lose a single game.

The main tournament was a five round swiss held in four sections. The players in the open section competed for cash prizes and a very unusual trophy: an artistic four level chess board. There were two titled players in the open section: FMs Tom Brownscombe and Nachum Salman. But by the end of round three, both masters had suffered an upset. So on Sunday morning experts Glenn Bidari and Jeffrey Gallegos battled for the tournament lead. Gallegos won a pawn, but Bidari had excellent compensation. But the compensation wasn’t good enough, and Gallegos secured the win. Gallegos and Bidari both won in the final round, leaving Bidari in clear second place with 4 points. And Jeffrey Gallegos won the trophy and the first place prize money with a score of 4.5.

Alex Stiger, rated only 1549, won the under 1800 section. And she did it despite starting the tournament with a half point bye in round one. She followed up her swiss gambit with four straight wins to take clear first place with 4.5 points. Michelangelo Barozzi and William Wijaya tied for second place in the under 1800 section with 4 points each. In the under 1400 section, Robert Lucero proved that chess coaches can also be successful competitors. Lucero, who is a high school chess coach, won the under 1400 section with 4.5 points. And Anthony McCarthy secured clear second place in the under 1400 section with 4 points. Paul Ventura won the under 1000 section with the tournament’s only perfect 5-0 score, and Karl Ulbrich earned clear second place in the under 1000 section with 4 points.

Of course, a tournament report is only written after the tournament is over. But even though the tournament is over, you haven’t missed all the action. The tournament sponsors provided live internet coverage of the event throughout the weekend. And you can find that coverage recorded on You Tube.  The featured game from round one can be found at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Glf2rj3om0Y, and the featured game from round 4 can be found at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vpJvcD_oM1g.

On behalf of all of the chess players who participated in the First US Mind Sports chess tournament, I would like to thank the tournament sponsors: 888 poker. Juan Jauregui of the Las Vegas Chess Club organized the tournament. Tom Brownscombe and Juan Jauregui served as the tournament directors. The sponsors were so pleased with the event that they plan to hold another one December 7&8. I will definitely be there, and I hope to see you there as well.

Tom Brownscombe

National Open 2013
With the 2013 National Open in the books, it is time for a small report on the performance of our local players. We had some big performances, and some even had a chance to play against some titled players.

On Thursday, June 6, there were two events. First, the simultaneous exhibition with GM Alexander Lenderman, last year’s National Open champion. In this event, our local players Jeff Gallegos, Stephen Barbre, Scott Raymond, and Karl Ulbrich participated, with Mr. Gallegos managing to score a draw.

The second Thursday event was the National Open Game in 10. The really nice part about this event is the opportunity of playing against titled players. Three of our local players participated: Ryan Phillips, Chad Badgett, and Royce Pereira.

Ryan’s performance was the most impressive. He scored 5 points in 8 games, and was tied for first on the U2100 prize. He would have most likely be the sole first place, but for a Fide Master forfeiting his last game, and thus allowing another player to tie Ryan. Also of note is that, Ryan played against not one, but two International Masters.

On the other hand, Chad played Israeli GM Victor Mikhalevski on the first round, and Royce played former U-12 World Champion, IM Daniel Naroditsky.

On the main event, we also had the participation of several local players. On the U2200 section, Jeff Gallegos, finished with 4 points out of 6. He tied 10th place to 14th, and earned a $97 prize. Also on the U2200 was Stephen Barbre, who scored 3.5 points out of 6.

The U2000 section had the biggest number of our local players. The best performance (again) came from Ryan Phillips. Ryan went undefeated, and scored 4.5 out of 6 points, good for a share of 7th to 12th place. For his performance, he earned a $234 prize.

Other players included, Jose Ramirez with 4 out of 6, shared 13th – 15th place, and a $40 prize; Francisco Vela, Todd Imada, and Cameron Patterson with a positive score of 3.5 out of 6. Scott Raymond also participated in this section.

On the U1800 section, we had John Paul Baligad, (Juan’s son), with 5 out of 6 points. This was good for a share of 3rd – 9th place, and a $400 prize. Participants also included Jonathan Zavala with 4.5 points, Rick Holden, and Neil Banerji, who scored a respectable 2.5 points while playing up a section.

On the U1600 section, we had Chris Reynolds with 4 points, Vivan Liu, Jonathan Mikolic with 3.5 points, Elliot Moskow, and Yoseph Debesai, who like Neil, played a section up.

On the U1400 section, local player Rocky Watson scored an even 3 out of 6, and so did Karl Ulbrich on the U1200 section.

In addition to the Game in 10, and the main event, local players also participated in other side events.On Saturday night, June 8, there was a Blitz sectional event. The 60 participants were divided in 5 sections, based on their highest rating.

On Section “A”, the highest in rating, included two Fide Masters, and a Woman Fide Master. Three local players participated. Patrick Lacey scored 9 out of 12 points, good for 3rd place. Paul Heinrich, and Hugo Santiago had even scores with 6 out of 12 points.

On the Section “C”, Royce Pereira was the winner with 10 out of 11 points.

The last event the Blitz Open, and U1900. This event took place on Sunday night, right after the main event.

On the Open section, local players Paul Heinrich scored a positive 8 points out of 14. Two of those games were against none other than the number 39 player in world Wesley So. Also in the Open section was Ryan Phillips, who also played IM Daniel Naroditsky.

In the U1900 section, local players Chad Badgett, and Royce Pereira fared quite well. There were 35 players in this section, and Chad came in 3rd place with 10 points out of 14, and Royce in 4th place with 9.5.

While the 2013 National Open is now over, do not forget that another big tournament is coming up. The Las Vegas Mind Sports International Festival will be held at the Palazzo Hotel on July 5 – July 7, and the Vegas Chess Club will organize the chess tournament.
By Liceu Pereira

The 2013 Annual Members Meeting for the state affliate Nevada Chess will be held at the Meadows School at 8601 Scholar Lane, 89128 on April 13 at about 4 p.m. The Agenda will be Minutes, tally ballots, election results, install officers, members issues, close members mtg, open directors mtg, financial report, issues for directors, closed directors mtg. The is an open meeting for all chess players to express their opinions on state affiliate policies.

All members and prospective members are encouraged to attend.

By Tom Brownscombe

One hundred eighty young chess players came to the Las Vegas Day School on Saturday, March 16^th to compete in the 2013 Nevada State Scholastic Chess Championships.  Third grader Carson Abbott won the individual title in the K-3 section with a perfect 6-0 score.  The home team almost won the team title in the K-3 section, scoring 16 points.  But Saint Viator also scored 16 points, and the tie breaks were in Saint Viator’s favor.  So Saint Viator won the K-3 team title, while Las Vegas Day School (LVDS) received the second place team trophy.

Fifth grader Michelangelo Barozzi was the pre-tournament favorite in the K-5 section with a rating of 1754.  And he lived up to all expectations by winning the individual title with a perfect 6-0 score and also leading his team, the Meadows School, to a team championship in the K-5 section with a team score of 19 points.  Four players tied for 2^nd with 5 points, Reece Iriye, Alexander Ballin, Kian David Samra and Mark Bernales, and were awarded on tiebreak points the 2^nd, 3^rd, 4^th & 5^th place trophies resp.   The home team, LVDS, took the second place team trophy in the K-5 section with 17 team points.

Hyde Park Middle School dominated the team competition in the K-8 section with an impressive team score of 17 points.  The K-8 and K-12 sections had only five rounds, so this score is just 3 points shy of perfect.  Hyde Park was led by the highest rated player in the section, defending K-8 state champion Royce Pereira.  In round 3 Royce had a very tough game against Saint Viator’s David Tegtmeyer.  Some inaccurate play left Pereira a pawn down with an exposed king.  But Royce’s active defense was rewarded when Tegtmeyer missed the winning lines, allowing Pereira to claim victory from the jaws of defeat.  In round four the Hyde Park Team was so far ahead of all of the other teams that Pereira had to play his teammate, seventh grader Naomi Santiago.  Naomi seemed to have a slight edge in the middle game, but Royce was able to secure the win in the endgame with some well calculated knight maneuvers.  In the final round Pereira had to face another of his teammates, sixth grader Benjamin Ballin, because all of the tournament leaders were from Hyde Park.  Pereira earned a quick win against Ballin to repeat as Nevada state K-8 champion.  Seventh grader Royce Pereira will once again represent the state of Nevada at the Barber Tournament of K-8 Champions in Madison Wisconsin in July.  Sixth grader Shivam Saran of Hyde Park MS earned the second place individual trophy with 4.5 points, and Our Lady of Las Vegas earned the second place team trophy with 9 team points.

There was a new prize in the K-12 section.  The US Chess Federation has announced that the first annual National Girls Invitational Championship will be held this year in Madison, Wisconsin.  So the top scoring girl in the K-12 section won more than just a trophy this year.  She earned the right to represent Nevada in this new tournament.  The girls’ title came down to a final round game between two eleventh graders from Cheyenne High School: Nisha Uy and Rozzele Cruz.  Nisha won the game as well as the opportunity to represent the state of Nevada in the first annual National Girls Invitational Tournament.

The title of 2013 Nevada State High School Champion came down to a final round confrontation between the two highest rated players in the tournament: tenth grader Hugo Santiago and eleventh grader Raymond Seid.  Santiago and Seid were still battling after all of the other tournament games had finished.  Seid offered a draw in an equal ending, but Santiago declined the draw offer and pressed for the win.  Santiago did manage to win a pawn.  But while doing so, he put his rook out of play and left his king trapped on the edge of the board.  Seid used his superior piece placement to create an unbeatable mate threat.  So Santiago, facing mate in one, resigned.  Cimarron High school won the K-12 team title with 14.5 points, and Cheyenne High school took second place in the team competition with 13 points.

Congratulations and best of luck to Raymond Seid, Nisha Uy, and Royce Pereira as they represent Nevada in the Denker Tournament of High School Champions, the National Girls Invitational Tournament, and the Barber Tournament of K-8 Champions, respectively.   Gale Winds served as chief tournament organizer on behalf of Nevada Chess, Inc. and the Las Vegas Day School.  The tournament was directed by Nevada Chess, Inc. board members Tom Brownscombe, Al Losoff, Allen Magruder, Dan Conver, and John Trivett.  We hope that all of the players enjoyed the tournament and that we will see even more competitors at the 2014 Nevada State Scholastic Chess Championship.  We would also like to thank the LVDS staff and the many people who helped make this tournament a success.

Team and individual results are posted here.

Saturday, March 16, 2013 – Las Vegas Day School

3275 Red Rock, 89146 -on the corner of Desert Inn and Jones Blvd.

K-3 & K-5 (6 rounds)   K-8 & K-12 (5 rounds)

Individual and Team Trophies will be awarded and every player who scores 3 or more points will win a medal or trophy!

Entry Fee: $30. postmarked by March 4 or online by March 8,  $40 if received by March 15. On site registration  8:00-8:30 a.m. $60. March 16.  Players who register after 8:30 a.m.   may not be paired in round 1.

USCF Membership required: $20 for new or renewing members.

Download Flyer and Entry Form or Enter On Line.

Advance Entries are posted here.

The 22nd Annual North American Open was held at

Bally’s Casino Resort, 3645 Las Vegas Blvd S, Las

Vegas, Nevada Dec.26-30, 2012.

GM Timur Gareev finished with an undefeated 8/9, a

full point ahead of his nearest rival, to

convincingly claim the title of North American Open

Champion along with a prize of nearly $10,000 for

his efforts throughout the week. FM John Bryant

finished in 2nd place with 7/9, scoring a GM norm in

the process, to claim a prize of $4704.

IM Zhanibek Amanov also scored a GM norm, finishing

in a group of four players with 6.5/9, as well as

taking the Under 2500 prize. FMs Yian Liou and

Michael Bodek both scored IM norms