Southern California Chess Federation
News & Notes

Jan. 31, 2012

Metropolitan Chess, Inc. hosted an International Master norm round robin tournament on January 25th to 29th 2012. The tournament was sponsored by California Market Center, Fashion Business, Inc, Chess.com, MonRoi, LawyerFy, and Betty Bottom Showroom.

This tournament is the 15th in its series and was held in Suite C1002 of the California Market Center on 110 East 9th Street, Los Angeles 90079. The tournament was organized by Ankit Gupta and the chief arbiter was Randy Hough. The participants included: IM Zhanibek Amanov (KAZ), IM Andranik Matikozyan (ARM), IM Enrico Sevillano (USA), FM Harutyan Akopyan (USA), FM Mark Duckworth (USA), FM Konstantin Kavutskiy (USA), Vadim Kudryavtsev (RUS), Garush Manukyan (ARM), and NM Craig Clawitter (USA).

The tournament was a 10 player round-robin (all play all), with rounds scheduled as follows – 25th: 7:00 PM, 26th: 11:00 AM & 5:00 PM, 27th: 11:00 AM & 5:00 PM, 28th: 11:00 AM & 5:00 PM, 29th: 10:00 AM & 4:00 PM. The tournament was won by IM Enrico Sevillano in a convincing fashion with a score of 7.5-1.5. No norms were achieved. The only non international master who was able to hold IM Sevillano to a draw -- FM Konstantin Kavutskiy -- came closest to an IM norm performance with a score of 5.5-3.5. 6.5 was necessary for the norm.

Keep updated with events by Metropolitan Chess, Inc, by visiting www.metrochessla.com and by visiting the standings page http://metrochessla.com/schedule.php

Jan. 22, 2012

ChessPalace edged La Palma CC, San Diego CC, and Hemet CC in this year's edition of the Club Match Championship. Details here.

Jan. 17, 2012

Golden State Open results from Concord, CA here.

Jan. 21-22, 2012

Metropolitan Chess plans its first workshop on January 21st to 22nd, 2012. The workshop is a new instructional monthly weekend class that will be led by IM Andranik Matikozyan, IM Zhanibek Amanov, and FM Konstantin Kavutskiy with 1- and 2- day options. Flyer here.

Dec. 12, 2011

Metropolitan Chess, Inc. hosted an International Master norm and a International Grandmaster norm round robin tournament in tandem from December 7th to December 11th of 2011. The tournaments were sponsored by California Market Center, Fashion Business, Inc, MonRoi, Chess.com, LawyerFy, and Betty Bottom Showroom.

The tournaments were the 13th and 14th in the series and were being held in Suite C1002 of the California Market Center on 110 East 9th Street, Los Angeles 90079. The tournaments were both organized by Ankit Gupta, International FIDE Organizer. The arbiters for this event were both IA Randy Hough & IA Hal Bogner.

IM Enrico Sevillano scored 6½-2½ in the 13th Metropolitan Chess FIDE Invitational to achieve his second GM norm. GM Mikheil Kekelidze scored 7-2 in the same event to win it outright.

SM Faik Aleskerov scored 6½-2½ in the 14th Metropolitan Chess FIDE Invitational to achieve his final IM norm, making him IM-elect. He also outright won the event.

The participants in the 13th Metropolitan Chess FIDE Invitational, a GM norm event, included: GM Georgiev, Vladimir (MKD), GM Kekelidze, Mikheil (GEO), GM Khachiyan, Melikset (USA), IM Molner, Mackenzie (USA), IM Arnold, Marc (USA), IM Matikozyan, Andranik (ARM), IM Sevillano, Enrico (USA), IM Ginsburg, Mark (USA), SM Yankovsky, Roman (RUS), and FM Kiewra, Keaton (USA).

The participants in the 14th Metropolitan Chess FIDE Invitational, an IM norm event, included: IM Zhanibek, Amanov (KAZ), IM Stopa, Jacek (POL), IM Remlinger, Larry (USA), FM Kavutskiy, Konstantin (USA), WGM Abrahamyan, Tatev (USA), FM Akopyan, Harutyan (USA), CM Carreto, Giovanni (MEX), SM Aleskerov, Faik (AZE), NM Lee, Dan (USA), and NM Akopian, Robert (USA).

The tournaments were 10 player round-robin events (all play all), with rounds scheduled as follows – 7th: 7:00 PM, 8th: 11:00 AM & 5:00 PM, 9th: 11:00 AM & 5:00 PM, 10th: 11:00 AM & 5:00 PM, 11th: 10:00 AM & 4:00 PM. Spectators were welcome and encouraged to come to watch the games in person at the tournament site at the California Market Center.

The IM norm in the 14th Metropolitan Chess FIDE Invitational was 6½/9 whereas the GM norm in the 13th Metropolitan Chess FIDE Invitational was 6½/9 as well. The full standings can be found on the Metropolitan Chess, Inc. website here. Simply go to the schedule section, scroll down to the list of recent events, and click on the red bar titled '13th Metropolitan Chess FIDE Invitational' or '14th Metropolitan Chess FIDE Invitational' to view a complete crosstable with standings.

Dec. 16 & 18, 2011

ChessPalace will be having its annual Blitz Championship at 8 p.m. Friday on December 16th that will determine the 2011 Blitz Champion. A new feature this year is a $600 projected prize fund with added under-class prizes, U2000, U1800, and U1600. In addition, it will be USCF-rated and an added round to the event totals it up to 12 USCF quick-rated games!

Then two days later on December 18th, ChessPalace will have its G/15 Quick Chess tournament (no delay and no notation). It will be 5-double rounds and will offer cash prizes as well as ChessPalace gift certificates.

Here are the links to each events for more tournament details and registration:
Blitz: www.chesspalace.com/blitzentry.htm
Quick: www.chesspalace.com/quickchess.htm

Thanks and hope to see you there! ChessPalace

Dec. 5, 2011

Massachusetts CC Chess Horizons back issues here.

Dec. 5, 2011

Free Chess Clubs Join Forces. The Antelope Valley Vets Chess Club & Checkmate Chess Club become one. When the now 16-months-old Checkmate Chess Club met at the Lancaster Library, between 30 and 50 people showed up each week to play chess. This past August, when the library became too busy and could no longer host weekly meetings, the club moved to the Old Fire Station a block away. Since then, unfortunately, attendance has dwindled. Similarly, although the AV Vets Chess Club has been meeting at the Vets Home (30th & West Avenue I) since it began in October, only 3 Vets have attended. Because both clubs have attendance issues, they are being combined. As of Wednesday, December 7th, this free ‘new’ Checkmate Chess Club is open to all ages and skill levels and meets Wednesdays, 5-6:30pm at the AV Chess House, 3710 Neola Way (near 37th & West Avenue J). Chess sets are provided. (No food allowed on the premises. Please park across the street from the building.) For more information, contact: daa@mahowald.org

Sept. 4, 2011
Certification of Election Results

Mike Nagaran reported the following were elected to two-year terms on the SCCF Executive Board:

Chuck Ensey (23 votes),
Randy Hough (20 votes),
Phil Chase (17 votes),
Ankit Gupta (16 votes),
Takashi Iwamoto (15 votes), and
Elliot Landaw (14 votes).

Sept. 6, 2011

GM Akobian won clear first place in the Southern California Open with an undefeated score of 5½-½. SDCC report here. Games and pictures here.

Aug. 27, 2011

GM Gareev won the 11th Metropolitan Chess FIDE Invitational (GM Round Robin) with a score of 7-2. IM Zhanibek Amanov, who needed to win the 9th round for his GM norm, lost to IM Mark Ginsburg. No GM or IM norms were achieved. GM Dejan Bojkov scored 2nd in the event. ~ Metropolitan Chess Club.

Aug. 29, 2011

Southern California's round-robin state championship invitational ended in a close finish at the Beverly Hills Chess Club August 28. Eighteen-year-old IM-elect (he has three norms) Roman Yankovsky, a Russian currently living in California, scored 5½-1½, finishing a half-point ahead of IM Tim Taylor in an exciting finish. IM Jack Peters and FM Eugene Yanayt were on 4½-2½.  Wall chart here, games here.

Aug. 29, 2011

SLOCC had a nice turnout for is SLO County Championship with 22 players in the Open section and 10 in the Reserve section. Taking first place in the Open Section with a perfect score was Senior Master Andrey Chumachenko 4-0. Second place was both Master Eduardo Ortiz 3-1, losing only to Chumachenko, and Michael D'Acri, 3-1. The "A" prize was shared by Solomon Ruddell and Taylor McCreary, each scoring 2½-1½. The Top "B" player was Mark Donovan, 2½-1½, and the Top C-D-E prize went to Michael D'Acri. Two players shared First and Second place prizes in the Reserve Section, Robert Jertberg and Stan Liao, each scoring 3½-½. Mike Bess and Will Bensky each scored 2-2 to share the Top U1000 prize, and Saul Lopez Monzon was the Unrated winner at 2-2. Michael D'Acri became the San Luis Obispo County Champion for 2011. Two players qualified for the next State Championship: Eduardo Ortiz of Santa Maria, and Michael D'Acri of San Luis Obispo.

Aug. 22, 2011

GM Michael Adams of England won clear first place with 7½-1½ in the 1st Metropolitan Chess FIDE International. Video Update of 8 & 9 here, and rounds 5-7 here. Articles here and here. Complete standings here.

Aug. 17, 2011

Chess Palace celebrated its 21st Anniversary on Sunday August 14th, 2011. Ever since its establishment in 1990 the chess club marches on with regular friendly play and competitive tournaments. During the Anniversary, both strong players and strong supporters alike enjoyed the five round tournament filled with raffles and prizes. In a scholastic section, a group of young players joined the crowd for lunch with Italian sandwiches, salads, and Asian cuisines. The winner in the end is none other than IM Zhanibek Amanov with 4½ points. The IM's draw was against the Jeff Phillips who tied for second with FM Ortiz and experts Alex King and Nicanor Navarro. In the kid's section, Siddarth went undefeated, followed by Justin Kao for second and Jacob Wiczyk for third. The club looks forward to an upcoming innovative 4-round and two-man team tournament, the Double Header on August 28th.

Aug. 8, 2011

IM Dionisio Aldama of Arizona won the San Diego County Championships with a perfect score of 5-0. Bruce Baker, Peter Graves and Shirin Navabi scored 3½-1½ each. On tie breaks, Bruce Baker becomes San Diego County Champion.

Aug. 8, 2011

Leo Kamgar and Dylan Quercia placed first and second, respectively, in the 9th Metropolitan Chess FIDE Qualifier. Both posted performances well above 2200 USCF, and both have projected USCF point gains in excess of 70 points each. See www.metrochessla.com for more details.

Aug. 1, 2011

IM Zhanibek won the 9th Metropolitan Chess FIDE Invitational with 7.0-2.0. Yusheng Xia and Alejandro Ruiz Jr won the qualification spots in the 8th Metropolitan Chess FIDE Qualifier. See www.metrochessla.com for more details. Games in java and pgm here.

July 25, 2011

IM Andranik Matikozyan won the 8th Metropolitan Chess FIDE Invitational named the Landon Brownell Memorial. Tied for first was IM-elect Joel Banawa. The 7th Metropolitan Chess FIDE Qualifier was won by National Master Jeff Phillips. In second place in the qualifier was Expert Kofi Tatum. See www.metrochessla.com for more details. Games in java and pgm here.

July 22, 2011

USCF EXECUTIVE BOARD ELECTION RESULTS
Gary Walters 1596 (elected)
Mike Nietman 1573 (elected)
Allen Priest 1552 (elected)
Sevan Muradian 406
Congratulations to the winners and thanks to all who voted!

July 17, 2011

The Pacific Coast Open finished in a 4-way tie at 4½-1½, with Sevillano, Khachiyan, Matikozyan and Howard Chen (from Washington State) each winning $1,120. This year Sevillano squeaked by on Median tiebreaks, 20 to 19½ over Khachiyan, to capture the additional $80 bonus prize while successfully defending his coveted Pacific Coast Open Championship title for the second year in a row. The Under 2300 prize money, $640 per player, went to Konstantin Kovutskiy, Steven Breckenridge and America’ youngest Master, Samuel Sevian of Santa Clara. Complete standings and prizes here.

June 6, 2011

With a convincing 7.0-2.0 score, IM Zhanibek Amanov won Metropolitan Chess, Inc.'s 10-player International Master norm round robin tournament held on June 1 to 5, 2011. FM Joel Banawa and FM Philip Xiao Wang achieved IM norms scoring 6½-3½. This was Philip's 2nd IM norm, and Joel's 3rd IM norm, making FM Joel Banawa International Master-elect. Games in java and pgn are here.

This tournament was held in Suite C998 of the California Market Center on 110 East 9th Street, Los Angeles 90079. The tournament was organized by Ankit Gupta, the chief arbiter was Randy Hough, and the deputy arbiter was Michael Belcher. The participants included: IM Zhanibek Amanov (KAZ), IM Timothy Taylor (USA), IM Andranik Matikozyan (ARM), FM Joel Banawa (USA), FM Pedram Atoufi (IRI), FM Phillip Xiao Wang (USA), CM Giovanni Carreto (MEX), FM Harutyan Akopyan (USA) and NM Alessandro Steinfl (ITA).

The tournament was sponsored by California Market Center, Fashion Business, Inc., Chess.com, MonRoi, LawyerFy, and Betty Bottom Showroom.

June 1, 2011

Here's the link to the NPR interview of IM Tony Saidy and the maker of the latest Fischer documentary, Liz Garbus. I saw the documentary and liked it. It's going to be aired on HBO next week at various times, starting on Monday evening. ~ IM Jack Peters

Metropolitan Chess, Inc. was voted 2011 Chess Club of the Year by United States Chess Federation (USCF). NM Ankit Gupta, Chief Organizer of Metropolitan Chess, Inc, was voted 2011 Organizer of the Year by the USCF.

Craig Faber and Miss Taylor McCreary drew in the last round and shared first place with a score of 3½-½ in the San Luis Obispo Chess Club's Spring Open held April 30, 2011. James Wilson won the reserve section with a perfect score. More results and wall charts are posted here.

ChessPalace is bringing back monthly Super Sunday starting this Sunday on April 17, 2011 with regular large cash prizes. April's event has a $650 guaranteed prize fund. The tournament is broken down into two sections Master/Expert (over 2000) and U2000. April rating supplement OR most-updated will be used. Players rated 2000 can play in either section. It's 5-round Swiss, USCF-rated event. Time control: G/30 + 10sec/move (digital clocks required). Registration ends at 12:20pm. Round 1 starts at 12:30pm. GMs and IMs free with one day notice. FMs, half of entry. $10 extra for players U2000 in the Master/Expert section. Flyer here. Register online here.

Joel Banawa won the 4th Metropolitan FIDE Invitational with 7½-1½, a full point ahead of the field. And, in doing so earned his second IM norm! Michael Brown won the 2nd Metropolitan FIDE Qualifier with a score of 4½ on 5. Complete standings here.

USC won the 2011 Amateur Team West with a perfect team score of 6 points. Complete standings and prizewinners here. Games and pictures from the USAT playoff here. USCF article here.

Back issues of Rank and File are posted on a new page here. ~ Webmaster

GM Mark Paragua won the Jimmy Quon Memorial Final (a.k.a. the 2nd Metropolitan Chess FIDE Invitational) with 7½-1½.  A final report is here, pictures here.

IM Enrico Sevillano won the Metropolitan Chess Club's first FIDE Invitational with 7½-1½.  A final report is here, pictures here.

A site on California chess history, games, and pictures here. ~ Webmaster

Al Pena provided a PDF of the November 1935 issue of the "Western Chess Chronicle," published by the Southern California Chess League. This is but one of many lost chess publications, many (like this one) of high quality with interesting articles and hard-to-find games. Can anyone offer information about the publication or the organization which produced it? Later: IM John Donaldson sends us the following:

Hi John,

Yesterday I happened to notice Al Pena's scan of issue 1 of the Western Chess Chronicle which was much appreciated. Below is the history of the publication from the ChessDryad website - www.chessdryad.com. Kerry Lawless, who runs the site, has issue nine scanned and available for download as jpegs here. I had a chance to view all the issues at the Cleveland Public Library a few years ago and recall the magazine's content continually improving right up until the final issue which featured annotations by Reuben Fine.

John Donaldson
WESTERN CHESS CHRONICLE (1935-36)
Editor: Alfred L. Paul (Lomita 1936)
"Official Organ of the Southern California Chess League"

Volume 1, Number 1: November 1935
Volume 1, Number 4: February 1936
Volume 1, Number 5: March 1936
Volume 1, Number 6: April 1936
Volume 1, Number 7: May 1936
Volume 1, Number 8: June 1936
Volume 1, Number 9: July 1936