World Chess Championship and UFO's

The World Championship match where Viswanathan Anand will defends his World title against Vladimir Kramnik in Bonn, Germany will now take place October 14th-2nd November, 2008.

Blossom Goodchild’s Predicted Mass UFO Sighting An Aussie actress received channeled information about an event to take place on October 14th, 2008. --UFO Digest

Could there possibly be a correlation?

Half Moon

Twenty one players entered the TNF, including Joe Moon and his little brother, Ben. Things pretty much held form in the first round, except for Shawn Zhu's (836) win over Frankie Sanders (450). These were the two lowest rated players and should not have been paired. Eric Lu (1521) received a 1/2 point bye for arriving late. So much for the rule instituted just a short time ago about late arriving players. It would appear the manager's atavistic tendencies have overwhelmed his logic.
James Stack (1648) let it be known that he was in the House with his upset win over The Pipe (2082) in round two. Alexander Foster (1053), because he had NOT requested a half point bye in the last round, received the full point bye even though two others were lower rated. The late pairing changes would come back to haunt the tournament later.
Mr Stack had to take a half point bye in the final round because of work. Mr Zelman, after wins versus former House employee and cat lover, Armand Goldstein, and Shawn Zhu, also took a half point bye, both finishing with 2 1/2 points. They were joined by almost half the field, as eight others took the gift. That left The Stud to play Joe Moon, while his brother, Ben (2-0), squared off against Eric Lu (1 1/2). Damir Studen beat Joe, while Ben beat Mr Lu. They therefore tied for first place, each winning $26. Mr Zelman and Mr Stack tied for third, taking home $7.
The under 1500 prize was won by Alexander Foster with his last round win over Robert Steen (1397). Mr Foster was actually eligible for the under 1300 prize (I have absolutely no idea why there was an under 1300 prize in addition to the under 1500 prize. The prize fund is arbitary and capricious, made up from week to week, unlike, say, the weekly backgammon tournaments in which I used to participate a quarter century ago, where the percentage for winning players was known in advance of entering), but actually won the under 1500 prize of $22 (!). That's right, the under prize was much more than the second prize of only a paltry $18...Jonathan Choi (1113) and Shawn Zhu each won $6.50 by winning one and losing one and taking a half point bye.
Mr Foster gained 39 rating points in addition to his windfall, while Honathan Choi picked up 35. Mr Stack gained 28.
$101 was paid out and the percentage won was, roughly, 33% first; 18% second 14% third. 22% under 1500 and 13% under 1300. I would prefer to see a more professional 50% for first; 25% second; and 12.5% third. The remainder could be distrubited to the lower rated players who should be playing, not for a chance to win money, but to improve their skill at chess! Comments welcome.

Wed Night G/15 and Senior Chess

I have been asked by Ron Benel (1624 Reg; 1286 p Quick) to post that he and Charles Curry (1807 Reg; 1645 Quick) will be coming to the House Wednesday evening for the G/15. They are hungry to play chess, but do not wish to see their hard-earned Regular ratings affected by the vagaries of half hour chess. Ron won all four games at the recent Peach State Open, winning the U1600 section, seeing his rating jump from 1525p to 1624. I hope those of you reading this will give some serious consideration to coming to the House Wed evening!

I have posted a request on the USCF forum (Senior rating divisions), asking why there is only one listing on the Top lists for Seniors, with that being over age 65. In reply, Mike Nolan posted some sobering numbers for Seniors who belong to USCF. For the 50-54 age group, there are only 2171 members. It gets worse...For my age group, 55-59, I was astounded to learn that I am one of only of 1502! 60-64 drops to 1009, while the 65-69 group has only 653. Before giving you the numbers for the 70's, I want you to keep in mind that the Viktor Korchnoi of Southern chess, Klaus Pohl, just won a tournament at the House of Pain and the Grand Prix points that go with it, a truly extraordinary feat for a Senior! There are only 434 in the 70-74 age group and only 397 for the last age group, which is 75+. That's less than a thousand for the over 70 group and just one and a half thousand members over age 65! When one contemplates the reason for the drop in membership in each of the divisions...Well, let's just say that when most of these players stop playing it is not because they have decided to take up poker!
With that said, I must say that the owner of the House, Thad Rogers, has asked me to not say anything else concerning the upcoming Georgia Senior. At least I think it's upcoming...You see, it keeps geeting changed, as I've written. One of the Seniors who is planning on playing asked why the first round on Sunday morning had to be at nine o'clock in the morning? Good question. But, then again, I thought it had been changed to later? Or was that the first set of round times? So we looked in the new issue of CHESS LIFE...only to find that the tournament is NOT LISTED!
Now, I want you to know that I have been told by a member of the GCA board that I do not have the "standing" to comment on the Georgia Senior. Mr A C Davis, the winner of the Georgia State Championship in 1948 and 1959, passed away recently. I was asked to get in touch with the 1976 winner, my old friend Michael Decker, but the fact is that I pre-date him! I got in touch with one of the very few players who were before ( and during) my time, Dr Richard Long. He has stopped playing OTB chess because, as he put it, "After 75, the competitive fire has stopped burning." Then I got to cogitating...I started playing chess in and around Atlanta in 1970. Although there are a few players who started before me (Dr Cano comes to mind, but he did not play in Atlanta until much later), there just are not very many who still play the game. Where are you Jared Radin?!
I do not know if longevity gives one "standing." It counted for something in Native American society, and it still counts for something in Oriental societies today. But I do know that bloggers, whatever their age, are considered to be "journalists" today. As a blogger, I am a JOURNALIST, whether the GCA board thinks of me as one, or not. As a journalist it is my duty to put the facts out there.
The fact is that the GCA board changed the format of the Georgia Senior a month before it is to begin. I have questioned the efficacy of that decision, yet have not received any answers. Instead I have been told that I do not have the right to ask the question! I do not have to explain to you what kind of government acts this way. This is not the kind of government I want to see acting on my behalf. How about you?

Old and New Rivals

Twenty four players sat down for the first round of the TNF, two of whom were House men, as one player came late and was paired with houseman #2. So much for the rule concerning showing up on time...May as well go ahead and call in your entry as the rule about having to pay to be paired has left the House too!
Reece Thompson scored the major upset in round one with his win over Scott 'the visitor' Parker. No matter where he goes, he's just "visiting."

Reece Thompson (1413)- Scott Parker (1861) [B00]
1.e4 Nc6 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 Bg4 4.Be2 Nf6 5.Nc3 e6 6.Be3 d5 7.e5 Nd7 8.h3 Bh5 9.0–0 Be7 10.g4 Bg6 11.Bd3 f6 12.Bxg6+ hxg6 13.Qd3 Kf7 14.Bf4 Nb4 15.Qd2 Rxh3 16.Kg2 Rh8 17.Rh1 c5 18.Rxh8 Qxh8 19.Rh1 Qe8 20.a3 Nc6 21.Nb5 Rc8 22.exf6 Nxf6 23.Ng5+ Kf8 24.Rh8+ Ng8 1–0 (eventually)

Carter Peatman (1595) held Joe Moon (2073) to a draw, as the other favorites held form.
In the second round, Ananya Roy (1661) beat David Bernat (1843). Two friendly rivals squared off in this round, with Samuel Zimmerman playing Carter Peatman.

Carter Peatman (1595) - Samuel Zimmerman (1647) [B76]
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 g6 6.Be3 Nc6 7.f3 Bg7 8.Qd2 0–0 9.Nb3 Be6 10.0–0–0 Bxb3 11.axb3 a6 12.h4 Ne5 13.Be2 Rc8 14.g4 Qa5 15.h5 Qa1+ 16.Nb1 Nxf3 17.Bxf3 Nxe4 18.Qc3 Nxc3 19.bxc3 Bxc3 0–1

I've gotta feeling these two will be doing battle for years to come!
That brings us to the match-ups for the last round. On board one was David Vest (2218) vs Larry Johnson (2026). These two have a long, intense rivalry going back years. On board two: Chris Wiley (1838) vs Damir Studen (2175). All had a perfect 2-0, as did Ananya Roy, who was White on board three vs Joe Moon, who had a point and a half.
Damir was the first to win, although Chris was up a Queen when he lost on time. The funny thing is that Chris eschewed using a time delay clock! Joe Moon beat Ananya to finish with 2 1/2, and that left the High Plains Drifter playing Longshot Larry. The Drifter had a Queen and Rook on the seventh rank, but Longshot had his Queen checking the Drifter's King, and he had a time advantage. Could it be that he had a time advantage because he stopped keeping score after about 15 moves? The Drifter brought his Queen back to stop the checks, but that left Larry with a longshot! He had a pawn loose that the man from the High Plains could not stop. For Larry, the longshot came in, as he tied with The Stud for first, each winning a paltry $27.50. Joe Moon took home $14.00 for his clear third place finish.
The only player to win chump change by actually playing a game in the last round was Reece Thompson, who drew with the rapidly improving Richard Lin (1346), to finish with 1 1/2 -1 1/2 and take home $7. Zimmy, Bob Peatman (1268), Jonathan Choi (1113), and Tianming Liu (1002), each took a half point bye in the third round and "won" $7 for their "efforts." Ten of the twenty-two players took a half point bye in the last round. That's an astounding 45%!
Mention must be made of the two last round opponents, Walter Overman and Alexander Foster. Walt is visiting from Raleigh, NC, while taking a training course and came to visit the House both Saturday and Sunday. He has played in many of Thad's tournaments in the Tarheel state and speaks very highly of him. There was a possibility Thad would make it up this weekend, and Walt was looking forward to seeing him, but, alas, Thad did not make it until Tue morning...Walt is full of energy, and he came in, looked around, and proclaimed the ACC the best place in the universe! I can't but help thinking the players in and around the House have come to take it for granted, as if, even without support, it will always be here. Seeing the reaction of a newcomer like Walt puts it all in perspective. The chess players here simply have no idea how lucky they are. The chess players there do!
Speaking of support, Alexander Foster played in the ACCC, telling me he wants to get ready for Foxwoods next spring. I told him Boris Kogan said it was important to play about once a month to stay sharp and prepare for the big tournaments in the future. The next time Alexander made an appearance, he joined the ACC! And he has been spending more time in the House...
Tianming Liu gained 48 points. Reece Thompson gained 29. Walt lost as many, but always has a good time! Mr Parker lost 20 big ones, and if he's not careful, he may be paying another visit to the dreaded "B" class! Ms Roy gained 18, while Longshot Larry picked-up 16.

Former Georgia Chess Champion Dies

The Georgia State Chess Champion in 1948 and 1959, A C Davis died Saturday.
From the Atlanta Journal and Constitution:
AC Davis, 94, chess devotee, supervisor at Southern Bell

You can't go anywhere without seeing a chessplayer

Arriving late at the Decatur Book Festival and seeing a sign proclaiming a "Full House" at the Presbyterian church where author Rick Bragg was speaking, I told the nice doorkeepers the story of how I had met Rick in St Louis back in 2002, where I had given him a cassette tape of Love and Danger by Joe Ely as we were leaving. Either taking pity on me or just wanting to get rid of me, I was told I could stand in the balcony. Once there, I saw an opening down front, right behind a guy filming. I was able to see Rick on the monitor while listening to him read from his new book,
The Prince of Frogtown
After he finished he was to sign copies across the street at a tent set up by EAGLE EYE BOOKS. I walked up as he was about to begin, with a long line of people standing in the sun waiting. "Did you like that tape by Joe Ely I gave you in St Louis about six years ago?" I asked. "I did. I DID!" he exclaimed, extending his hand. "How are you, brother?" he asked. "I'm OK, Rick, and you're looking pretty good yourself," I said, continuing, "But I can't help noticing you've put on some weight. Is it getting married, or those chili pups from Krystal?" He broke into a wide grin as he answered, "A little of both!"
By now the folks waiting to obtain an autograph were becoming exasperated, so I decided I'd better head on and said goodbye, but Rick held my hand, asking if I wanted to get a beer after he finished. Reluctantly, I had to tell him I had to open the chess center at 3 pm.
I walked on over to the Hoiliday Inn to see the rare books and anyone I might know from my Oxford bookstore days. On my way back to the car who should I see but GCA baord member Colin Potts! He said he had been at a poetry reading. I asked why he wasn't home working on the long overdue magazine, and he laughed, saying he had actually wondered if he would see Mark Taylor there, with him "being the literary sort." I told him I would NOT put the fact that I'd seen him in the blog, but he insisted it was ok, as he said he was going "right home to work on the magazine." And I thought he had said earlier he was heading home to walk the dogs...

Changes to Georgia Senior

At the meeting of the GCA board last night in the House it was decided to change the format of the previously published Georgia Senior! The round time has been speeded up to G/2, and the round times have been changed. The new round time for the first round is 1 pm, in lieu of the old 11 am. The second round is now at 6 pm, starting one hour later than before. The round times for Sunday are now 10 am and 3 pm, changed from 9:30 am & 3:30 pm. If one goes to the GCA website, http://www.georgiachess.org/ , one will find the new format listed upon clicking on the Senior at the calender, but also the old format upon clicking on "More Info" at the bottom of the page: http://www.georgiachess.org/downloads/2008_Georgia_Senior_Open.pdf One of the strange things concerning this meeting is that one of the board members, after informing me of the changes, was extremely surprised to learn that the changes to the website had ALREADY BEEN MADE BEFORE THE MEETING!

I was told the first round had been moved to the afternoon to allow the "players from SC to drive over Sat morning." When I mentioned it was the "Georgia Senior" I was informed that it was a long drive from Savannah. There's nothing better to prepare yourself for two games of chess than driving for hours! I mentioned that players from out of town could drive in early and stay in a hotel Friday night, but was informed that hotels are expensive and seniors did not have much money. The last round was moved up to allow those very same outta towners to drive home earlier. I have written about my conversations with Seniors all over the country previously. The one thing I have heard most often, is that Seniors do NOT want to play at night! We have more energy early and it begins to fade as the day wears on...I have sent emails concerning this issue, to no avail. As a matter of fact, just a few years ago I expressed my feelings concerning the US Senior to be held in the great state of Tennessee and was told by the Executive Director of the USCF that what I said may be true, but that he intended on running the tournament his way! I told him he would be lucky to get half of the based on 89. There were 43 players...
I cannot understand why these changes have been made at this time. I have been informed that some checks have already been sent in under the impression the format would be what was published. Why the urgency? It is no secret that I have advocated a G/2 format for the Ga Senior. As a matter of fact, I had a talk concerning this issue with the President of the GCA at the ACCC this past weekend and was told that the GCA board was considering instituting a change to a G/2 format for NEXT YEAR! I did overhear Mr Parker asking Mr Vest what he would think of a G/2 format for the Senior, but would never have thought in my wildest dreams that the board, in it's wisdom, would completely revamp the format of a tournament that had already been published!
One thing I kept hearing concerned the response of the Legendary Georgia Ironman, who, as everyone knows, is opposed to a G/2 format. I heard the same thing from several board members regarding Mr Brookshear; that he did not play in the Senior last year. I had to correct them on that, as Tim did, in fact, play in the Ga Senior last year. I have talked with the Ironman and can tell you he is disappointed that the format has been changed and will not attend, although he had made plans to play. He simply cannot understand why the changes have been made if there is no reason, such as a change in venue, like when the Ga State Championship had to be moved to the House. The Ironman did mention that this has not been a particularly good year for the administration of the current President, who, like the captain of a ship, is ultimately responsible for the multiple disasters, including the yet to be published July issue of the award winning GEORGIA CHESS, that have seemed to plague his time at the helm.

CHANGES written by David Bowie

Oh yeah/MmStill dont know what I was waiting for/And my time was running wild/A million dead-end streets and/Every time I thought Id got it made/It seemed the taste was not so sweet/So I turned myself to face me/But Ive never caught a glimpse//Of how the others must see the faker/Im much too fast to take that test/Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes/(turn and face the strain)Ch-ch-changes/Dont want to be a richer man/Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes/(turn and face the strain)Ch-ch-changes/Just gonna have to be a different man/Time may change me/But I cant trace time/I watch the ripples change their size/But never leave the stream/Of warm impermanence/So the days float through my eyes/But stil the days seem the same/And these children that you spit on/As they try to change their worlds/Are immune to your consultations/Theyre quite aware of what theyre going through/Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes/(turn and face the strain)/Ch-ch-changes/Dont tell them to grow up and out of it/Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes(turn and face the strain)/Ch-ch-changes/Wheres your shame/Youve left us up to our necks in it/Time may change me/But you cant trace time/Strange fascination, fascinating me/Ah changes are taking the pace Im going through/Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes/(turn and face the strain)Ch-ch-changes/Oh, look out you rock n rollers/Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes/(turn and face the strain)Ch-ch-changes/Pretty soon now youre gonna get a little older/Time may change me/But I cant trace time/I said that time may change me/But I cant trace time