TOBIN ON CHESS formerly "The CENTRAL OREGON CHESS JOURNAL"

OREGON CLOSED CHESS CHAMPIONSHIP 2012 - Round two encounter between master Radu Roua and expert Brian Esler!

2012-02-15T18:18:00.000-08:00

MAGNUS CARLSEN 30 SECOND BLITZ CHESS CHALLENGE!

2012-02-14T11:45:00.000-08:00

Recently Magnus Carlsen has been playing some public games at 30 seconds odds to his opponents - quite an experience for any player to get in such a game with a top notch player of Mangus's caliber. Of course Chessbase recently reported upon such a televised match for Magnus - against a fellow Norwegian celebrity Lars Monsen. However I am unable to give the link to that Norwegian site due to some of the other unsavory offerings attached there-on. However this match off of youtube is quite acceptable!

Long live the champ Peter - photo from round 1!

2012-02-13T23:59:00.000-08:00

Peter chatting with chess neighbor David from
round 1 MASTER TREK 02/11/2012

As you can judge from this photo this tournament had a lot of good people at it! Sportsmanship aplenty and character to spare - wish I could have been there!

- Chess Coach Sean Tobin.

PHOENIX ARIZONA CHESS NEWS! ~Congratulations to Peter Schillinger - for taking first in the 1000-1199 Section of MASTER TREK 2012_02_11

2012-02-12T10:51:00.000-08:00

PETER CAN MOVE FAST... even before moving his pieces!

Congratulations to Peter - well played young Sir! 1st place at the most recent USCF rated Master Trek in Phoenix Arizona!! Not only did Peter have fun but he was amongst his chess friends at this fine event. That is to say a lot of current and former students of yours truly! With players like Pranav, Ethan, Rick and team Katz this was surely one of the stronger events that is held on a regular basis in Phoenix. Well played one and all!
- Chess Coach Sean Tobin.

A good game of chess is a study in contrasts - though not merely confined to just a result alone. Eric Holcomb versus Bob Marvos, COCC #15

2012-02-11T01:11:00.000-08:00

Enjoy today's game - a fine specimen of chess art that hails from Bend Oregon, USA!

Eugene Oregon USA Scholastic Chess Tournament: SPRING FLING 2012, Saturday April 14th, 2012

2012-02-10T23:59:00.000-08:00

Summary:
This is an announcement that 2012 Spring Fling will occur on Saturday, April 14, 2012

Location:
South Eugene High School Cafeteria
400 E. 19th Ave.
Eugene, OR 97405

Description: THE 2012 SPRING FLING
Scholastic Chess Tournament
(Qualifier for OSCF STATE FINALS)

When: Saturday, April 14, 2012

Where: South Eugene High School Cafeteria
400 EAST 19th AVE. EUGENE, OREGON
(Park behind building, use cafeteria entrance.)

TO REGISTER, SIMPLY EMAIL name, school, grade, address, phone, and indicate which section you wish to play. You can pay at the door.
J-ADOUBE@EFN.ORG
or call Jerry Ramey at 541-232-0328.

ELITE EIGHT SECTION: CASH PRIZES $!$!$
Auto Qualifiers, Aaron Grabinsky and Gabriel Bellavita, Elite & Advanced winners from the 2012 Winter Carnival, join the 6 top rated Advanced entrees. 1st Place: $100 plus Trophy; 2nd: $50; 3rd: $30. 4 Round, G/60.

ADVANCED SECTION: (open to all) Trophies 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, Outstanding performance. 5 Round, G/45. Advanced and Elite winners get free entry in the Elite 8 in THE 2012 FALL CLASSIC in November.

INTERMEDIATE SECTION: (U1100 NWSRS & U700 USCF) Trophies 1st, 2nd, 3rd & Outstanding Performance. 5 Round, G/35.

USCF MEMBERSHIP REQUIRED IN ABOVE SECTIONS, BUT NOT IN NOVICE.

NOVICE SECTION: (UNR or U800 NWSRS & U400 USCF and U9th Grade) Trophies 1st, 2nd 3rd & Outstanding Performance. 5 Round, G/25. (May be divided into 2 sections at TD’s discretion. Players get free NWSRS rating.)

Entry Fees (Pre-registered): $25 for USCF Sections, $20 for Novice.
$5 service charge for on-site registration.
(easy pre-registration by email)

Check-in and registration 8:30AM. Meeting 9AM. Games start 9:30AM. Sets supplied. Latecomers: half point bye for Round #1, except E-8. Up to 2 half point byes allowed, if requested before round #2. COMPUTER TIE BREAKS FOR TROPHY PLACES. All players who tie for a trophy place receive an award. Money prizes divided evenly in case of ties. USCF rules apply, with some exceptions in Novice section.

Contact: Jerry Ramey
j-adoube@efn.org
Checks to: SOUTHSIDE CHESS
PO Box 5293
Eugene, OR 97405

Contact: Jerry Ramey
Email: j-adoube@efn.org
Phone: XXX-XXX-XXXX

Happy Valley Chess K-8 Championship Friday, March 16th, 2012 10 AM to 4:30 PM PORTLAND AREA of OREGON, USA

2012-02-09T11:33:00.000-08:00

Event Summary:
This is an announcement that Happy Valley Chess K-8 Championship will occur on Friday, March 16, 2012 at 10:00am to 4:30pm

Location:
Happy Valley Elementary School
13865 SE King Rd
Happy Valley, OR 97086

Description: Time: Friday, March 16, 2012
10:00am – approximately 4:30pm.

Pre-Registration ONLY: To register, send your name/age, grade/school, and your NWSRS ID) to happyvalleychess@gmail.com with subject line: "HV Chess K-8 Championships". Registration will close on Thursday, March 15 at 7:00 pm. We will limit the player numbers to 80. You can check your ID here: http://myrating.chess4life.com/nwsrs_players/search

Check in: 8:00-9:30am. If you are late, you still can play starting with round 2. You don't have to play all the rounds. In case you decide not to play in a round, please inform the Tournament Director ahead of time. Zero points for byes.

Cost: $20.00 payable on site

Description: Tournaments are a great way to help players apply knowledge and gain necessary practical skills to achieve success. This tournament will be held Swiss style, and will take approximately 5 hours.

Eligibility/Sections: This tournament is NWSRS rated and open to any kids up to grade 8. Players will be group in the following sections: K-2, 3-4, 5-6, 7-8. The kids participating for the first time in a chess tournament (no previous chess ratings) will have their own sections: Novice K-4 and Novice 5-8. Organizers reserve the right to make smaller adjustments to sections format.

Rounds/Times: Five rounds
Game/30 (25/5 for time-delay clocks)

Awards: Trophies for top 3 players in each section! Medals for anyone who has at least 2.5 points and no trophy. Chess gift for everyone with 2 points or less. Computer generated tie-breakers will be used to decide top 3.

Pre-registered players will be listed at:
http://happyvalleychess.blogspot.com/

** An adult must accompany all the participants under 12 years old. If the child is not supervised they will be forfeited and asked to leave the tournament.

Contact: Andrei Botez
Email: iushu@hotmail.com

More Info: http://happyvalleychess.blogspot.com/

The Skinny on the Dustin Kinney Simultaneous Exhibition Chess Match!

2012-02-09T11:18:00.000-08:00

Dustin won all three games and a good time was had by all! Last night we did some different events to add some variety - next week dhitto and then back on track with the tournaments! Congratulations to Dustin for his outstanding win and to all members of the club who show such outstanding sportsmanship. A big shout out to Roxanne for the terrific photos - thanks again Roxy! - Chess Coach Sean Tobin.

UPCOMING PORTLAND AREA (OREGON USA) CHESS TOURNAMENT: Whitford / Cooper Mtn Scholastic Chess Championships February 25th, 2012

2012-02-08T14:01:00.000-08:00

Another real deal OSCF event:

Summary:
This is an announcement that 2012 Whitford/Cooper Mtn Scholastic Chess Championships will occur on Saturday, February 25, 2012

Location:
Whitford Middle School
7935 SW Scholls Ferry Rd
Beaverton, OR 97008

Description: The Whitford / Cooper Mountain Scholastic Chess Championships tournament continues to be a fun, inclusive, challenging and positive experience and is in its seventh year. This tournament is open to all players of all playing levels. It is run as an individual tournament to reward individual performance, as well as a team-based tournament, where awards are given on the basis of top three scores for any team.

• All players of all levels are welcome to play.
• This tournament is NWSRS rated. No annual membership fee or prior tournament playing experience required. Advanced section USCF/NWSRS dual-rated.
• Participation in this tournament counts towards the OSCF State Championship tournament attendance requirements.
• 100% Pre-Registered Event. No on-site registrations accepted. On line registration through www.oscf.org
• Entry deadline is 11:59 pm PST, Thursday, 2/23/12. No extensions will be given.
• All sections are NWSRS rated. Latest NWSRS ratings will be used for pairings.
• Ties will be broken by computer only (Tie break order- Solkoff, Cumulative, Opponent’s cumulative)
• Bring clocks, notation (if you have) & pen/pencil. (Boards, sets & limited amount of notation paper provided.)
• Parents/coaches bring portable chairs & books etc. to keep busy between rounds.

*Trophy recycling: Most long-term chess players have some trophies on their shelf they don’t really need. In support the “Reduce, reuse, recycle” ethos, we would like to ask you to bring five trophies (take the engraved plates off first) to registration, we will give you a $5 credit slip to the concessions stand (essentially taking $5 off your registration cost).

Online registration strongly recommended:
www.oscf.org (Select Online Registration on left menu bar).

Payment: Please send your check or money order payable to:
(Please note player name & section)
Whitford PTO – Chess Club
7935 SW Scholls Ferry Road
Beaverton, OR 97008

All entries on or after 2/20/12 must pay on site.
No entries will be accepted after 11:59 pm, Thursday, 2/23/12

Contact: Rustam Kocher
Email: whitfordchess@gmail.com
Phone: 503-481-5757

More Info: http://www.oscf.org/files/2012_Whitford_CMCC_Tournament_Flyer.pdf

Note: Sections:
ELITE 8 SECTION (Dual Rated) - CASH PRIZES - Top Eight entrees by NWSRS rating. 1st Place: $100 plus Trophy; 2nd: $50; 3rd: $30. 4 Rounds, G/50 + 5sec delay. Must be have a current USCF registration. Elite 8 section starts promptly at 8am. Check in 15 minutes beforehand. Don't be late. Players will be notified of their participation in this section by Friday, Feb 24th @ 7pm.

ADVANCED SECTION (Dual Rated)
"Kings" (Over 1100 NWSRS & current USCF registration required) Five Rounds, G/40 + 5sec delay. Must be have a current USCF registration. Check in from 8-8:30am, starts at 9:00am.

INTERMEDIATE SECTIONS - Five Rounds, G/35 + 5sec delay. (Players get free NWSRS rating). Check in from 8-8:30am, starts at 9:00am.
"Rooks" (Intermediate A) (900-1099 NWSRS rated)
"Knights" (Intermediate B) (700-899 NWSRS or 7-12 grade unrated)

NOVICE SECTIONS - Five Rounds, G/25 + 5sec delay. (Players get free NWSRS rating) Check in from 9-9:30am, starts at 10:00am.
"Bishops" (K-6): (U700 NWSRS or 4-6th Grade unrated)
"Pawns" (K-3): (U600 NWSRS or Under 3rd Grade unrated)

Individual Awards: Trophies for 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th & Plus Score Awards (3 points or higher)
Team Awards: Trophies for top 3 teams (top three scores per team) in each section (except Elite 8)

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Another excellent OSCF event - Chess Coach Sean Tobin.

A round four game from "DUSTIN'S CLASSIC JANUARY OPEN" 02_01_2012

2012-02-07T01:07:00.002-08:00

The last round was held on the first of February - so it was Dustin's Classic January Open and then some! An enjoyable game played between Bill and Aidan - Enjoy!

PHOTO GALLERY Phoenix East Ray Road Barnes & Noble CHESS CLUB Wednesday February 1st, 2012

2012-02-06T23:32:00.004-08:00

Photos by Roxanne! Thank you, Roxy! A big tip of the hat to Jim Schillinger and Dustin Kinney for keeping a good thing going and a big shout out to every one who played - thank you for your A+ sportsmanship!

- Chess Coach Sean Tobin.

Portland Chess Club

2012-02-04T00:01:00.000-08:00

Recently I took a trip down to the Portland Chess Club (PCC)...

...the best thing about that club is the pictures hanging from the walls. That and the other chess players - of course. But the pictures show some history, some of the great personalities of Pacific Northwest and west coast chess as well as some of the National and International stars. My favorite photo has to be the two wives trying to pry their loved ones away from an engrossing game of chess. Humor has it's place at the Portland Chess Club as well but not always confined merely to this one photo hanging from the wall.

With a constant weekly supply of chess club tournaments to feed the competitive hunger of local players one can satiate that desire at the PCC irrespective of your point of origin. Some strong players attend these events but, sadly, not enough turn out these days. Being a player, organizer, Tournament Director and chess coach I would love to see bigger turnouts for the game that I so much enjoy promoting. Which brings me to something I began to wonder about while "checking" on the wall art at the PCC - though no one had to pry me away by an ear.

In Western Massachusetts there used to be checkers tournaments and these had been quite popular until the 1960s. But these began to fade away and by the time I become an active chess player in the early 1990's these events had totally disappeared. At least to the best of my knowledge - and this was after I went looking for such events. The chess player fear about the decline of chess due to the "death by draw" has it's origins in this actual occurrence in tournament checkers. A game of checkers, it would seem, is far more easily drawn than a game of chess. As checkers also takes time and effort it is sadly no surprise that it has lost it's wider appeal.

In 1914 the Portland chess club was actually the "Chess and Checkers club". Obviously checkers has fallen by the wayside... but looking at those photos of the gentleman playing chess and checkers I couldn't help but to wonder about the fate of chess as well. With the online world wide drain on chess club memberships all clubs seem to experience lower turnout these days. Unless they be of the Scholastic variety - as a rule of thumb but of course. Couple this with a new less nuanced set of social skill norms for younger people which is correspondingly (and heavily) dependent upon it's cultural attachment to the entertainment industry then one begins to wonder about the fate of chess as well. Among other things.

With more competition in terms of entertainment, online entertainment options, less motivation for challenging and engaging non physical activities and less desire for interaction I wonder quite a bit about such topics these days. Thankfully the various Scholastic Chess programs around the country are a good solid speed bump for a fast food culture that continues to spin out of control and to even speed up in order to fuel marketing and consumer desires. An odd evolutionary dance that seems to be leading some elements of American society into an evolutionary dead end. Like a wasp that depends upon a specific species of orchid for it's survival we can only hope that progress continues to be made in light of our limited earthly resources. Without just the right kind of Orchid the wasp goes extinct... Be that as it may there are other ways to spend ones time relaxing without either contributing to or worrying about such things. And for "those who think and feel" (RUSH!) one of them, in my humble opinion, just happens to be your local chess club.

If you are looking for some competitive and casual events with a chance to get out and actually see your flesh and blood chess opponents then taking a trip over to the Portland Chess Club is to be highly recommended. You will not even have to worry about bringing any "gear" with you - there are plenty of sets on hand. With strong players in the house there is always the opportunity to learn something new and to improve your chess game. While having fun - but of course.

Always play the best moves in the greatest game of them all - the great game of life. - Chess Coach Sean Tobin.

PHOTO GALLERY Phoenix East Ray Road Barnes & Noble CHESS CLUB Wednesday January 25th, 2012

2012-02-03T22:21:00.000-08:00

Another successful tournament in the history Books! These photos were from round three - the round four photos will go up later on. Next tournament starts up this Wednesday!

- Chess Coach Sean Tobin.

Great duels with Dustin... Sometimes Bill's Battles break up the best intentions of even the best players!

2012-01-23T00:01:00.000-08:00

The game... given in full! Once again a big thanks goes out to Dustin and Bill for playing this game by which everyone may now derive some enjoyment while learning at thing or two from this Game 65 with 5 second delay tournament game.

Enjoy - Chess Coach Sean.

Great duels with Dustin... Sometimes Bill's Battles break up the best intentions of even the best players!

2012-01-22T00:01:00.000-08:00

Dustin will always give a good fight, no matter whom he play. This is why he wins most of his games... however even Dustin will lose some on occasion - which only makes him a stronger player in the long run. No one would play this game if it were easy and when you lose some you learn a lot, and then some, leaving you better for the experience.

Here is an interesting endgame puzzle for players who have less experience. Needless to say both players involved in this game played a great many moves before reaching this rather important position! If you could see for miles and miles... you might see such endgames well in advance yourself.

Will

DUSTIN

After move 38. Rf5-f3 Will power prevailed! Black to play and win... full game score will be given tomorrow! For now enjoy this puzzle - Chess Coach Sean Tobin.

Short, sharp and quick - another great gunslinger chess battle at the East Ray Road Barnes and Noble Chess Club in Phoenix Arizona!

2012-01-21T00:01:00.000-08:00

A short game at a fast time control for your entertainment - against a silicon sparring partner on the ICC.

2012-01-20T00:01:00.000-08:00

CHESS CLUB @ the East Ray Road BARNES NOBLE, PHX AZ ==> PHOTO GALLERY Wednesday 01/18/2012

2012-01-19T13:03:00.000-08:00

Board II Battle Begins!

Waiting for the first move!

"The THINKERS GAME!"

Another really good competitive club game - FIRE ON THE THINKERS CHESS BOARD! Both players were looking for a good battle in this game!

Plenty of elbow room!
(With additional tables for casual games as well...)

TD Jim Schillinger was our designated house player last night (Wednesday the 18th, of January 2012) and took the round off when one of our players had to cancel a few hours before round two began. As you can plainly see from the above photos that the club's very own Roxanne has been using her camera again to full effect! Thanks again for the excellent photos Roxanne!

Round three for "DUSTIN'S JANUARY CLASSIC OPEN" is next week! This is a USCF rated chess event that is free to players in good standing with the USCF and the club. If you would like to join the best community chess club in Phoenix, Arizona then please do feel free to stop in at the East Ray Road Barnes and Noble between the hours of 5 and 9:30 PM. The only things you need to bring with you (BYO) are sportsmanship, a genuine interest in playing chess and your own chess set and clock. If you do not have a set then there are limited extras available for your use. If you have a set but no clock then no worries as we have a couple of chess clocks as well!

Make it a great day - today and every day! - Sean Tobin.

CHESS PUZZLE - Care of Bob Wade's "PLAYING CHESS"

2012-01-18T11:04:00.000-08:00

White to play... and checkmate in 8 moves!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

A WONDERFUL PUZZLE!

...that I found in the book "PLAYING CHESS" by Bob Wade, published by The Macmillan Chess Library back in 1984. The actual position was with the King on b1 - to make it just even that much more complicated! If you have access to this wonderful book the puzzle is originally featured on page 101 under the 5th chapter of "HUMAN FACTORS".

Enjoy! - Chess Coach Sean Tobin.

ARIZONA CHESS CLUB @ East Ray Road Barnes and Noble in PHOENIX ARIZONA: PHOTO GALLERY 2012_01_11 NUMBER TWO

2012-01-17T00:01:00.000-08:00

It's Tuesday... so this Wednesday you now know where to go in order get in a good game of chess, right? : P

THE PHOENIX CHESS that meets @
The East Ray Road BARNES & NOBLE
every Wednesday 5 - 9:30 PM
BYO Set & Clock; limited extras available.
USCF Monthly rated Game 65 w/ 5 s Delay Tournament
Casual Play always in vogue!

- Chess Coach Sean.

Will versus Jim, Round one from "DUSTIN'S JANUARY GAME 70 OPEN" played at the PHOENIX CHESS CLUB at the EAST RAY ROAD BARNES & NOBLE.

2012-01-16T04:54:00.001-08:00

PORTLAND OREGON AREA CHESS LEAGUE - Grades 6 - 12 NEXT EVENT Wednesday, February 8th, 2012 @ 4PM!

2012-01-16T00:02:00.000-08:00

Summary:
This is a reminder that Portland Area League will occur on Wednesday, February 8, 2012 at 4:00pm

Location:
Lincoln High School
1600 SW Salmon Street
Portland, OR

Description: This event is OPEN to All students in grades 6 to 12.

GENERAL: This is a TEAM EVENT, open to All students in grades 6 to 12. Teams normally consist of players from a single school, but individuals without a team may petition the league to be placed on an existing team (see below). Each match consists of 5 boards for each team. Each team's best player (ie. highest rated) must play on board 1, 2nd best on board 2, and so on. All teams are encouraged to have reserve players due to the length of the League. Teams are also encouraged to bring reserves to each match as they will be paired when possible against reserves from other teams for rated "extra" games.

All of the matches will be played in the cafeteria of Lincoln High School in downtown Portland, OR.

FORMAT: Swiss pairings based upon the teams average Northwest Scholastic Rating for the first half of the League. The second half will be a round robin with teams assigned to sections based upon their results in the first half. Schools with multiple teams will not be paired against each other.

TIME CONTROL: Game in 60 minutes with 5 second delay.

SCHEDULE: The Portland Area League will meet each Wednesday from November 2nd until February 29th (except for the day before Thanksgiving and the last two Wednesday's in December). We intend to have 13 or 14 rounds. The final meeting will be the League's party when trophies will be presented.

TEAM REGISTRATION: Teams normally consist of players in grades 6th to 12th from a single school. Exceptions to the single school include a student in a middle school that feeds into high school would be eligible to play on his local high school team. Another exception is a student that is home schooled may play on a public/private school where he resides. Schools may enter more than one team. Your first team must consists of your best 5 players, your second team your next best 5 players, and so on. Schools with multiple teams may (likely will) find it necessary to move players between teams based on absences or individuals performance.

INDIVIDUAL REGISTRATION: Individuals without a team may petition the League to be assigned to a team. The petition needs to be sent to Ed Addis at chessalot@aol.com and include the players name, grade, and address. This petition must be received by September 30, 2011.

ENTRY FEE: $70 PER TEAM

PRE-REGISTER: To register send an e-mail to Ed Addis that includes the Name of your Team, the advisor/coach, a roster of your players including their names and current grade. Additional players for teams may be added at any time.

PRIZES: Trophies will be awarded to the top teams and for the top individual performances on each board.

Contact: Ed Addis
Email: chessalot@aol.com
Phone: (503) XXX-XXXX

ARIZONA CHESS CLUB @ East Ray Road Barnes and Noble in PHOENIX ARIZONA: PHOTO GALLERY 2012_01_11

2012-01-16T00:01:00.000-08:00

The "usual suspects" having fun playing chess! If you wish to join in on the games, feel free to stop by on any given Wednesday from 5 PM until 9:30 PM. Most members arrive between 5:45 and 6PM. Those with good sportsmanship need only stop by! : P BYO set and clock, limited extras available.

Again, hats off to Roxanne for taking such AWESOME photos! Thank you once again. - Chess Coach Sean.

Local (TO PORTLAND OREGON! : P ) SCHOLASTIC CHESS TOURNAMENT February 25th, 2012!!

2012-01-15T11:59:00.000-08:00

ANOTHER EXCELLENT OSCF CHESS EVENT... real scholastic chess for real success in life!
Summary: This is an announcement that 2012 Whitford/Cooper Mtn Scholastic Chess Championships will occur on Saturday, February 25, 2012

Location:
Whitford Middle School
7935 SW Scholls Ferry Rd
Beaverton, OR 97008

Description: The Whitford / Cooper Mountain Scholastic Chess Championships tournament continues to be a fun, inclusive, challenging and positive experience and is in its seventh year. This tournament is open to all players of all playing levels. It is run as an individual tournament to reward individual performance, as well as a team-based tournament, where awards are given on the basis of top three scores for any team.

• All players are welcome to play.
• This tournament is NWSRS rated. No annual membership fee or prior tournament playing experience required.
• Participation in this tournament counts towards the OSCF State Championship tournament attendance requirements.
• 100% Pre-Registered Event. No on-site registrations accepted. On line registration through www.oscf.org
• Entry deadline is 11:59 pm PST, Thursday, 2/23/12. No extensions will be given.
• All sections are NWSRS rated. Latest NWSRS supplement will be used for pairings.
• Ties will be broken by computer only (Tie break order- Solkoff, Cumulative, Opponent’s cumulative)
• Bring clocks, notation (if you have) & pen/pencil. (Boards, sets & limited amount of notation paper provided.)
• Parents/coaches bring portable chairs & books etc. to keep busy between rounds.

*Trophy recycling: Most long-term chess players have some trophies on their shelf they don’t really need. In support the “Reduce, reuse, recycle” ethos, we would like to ask you to bring five trophies (take the engraved plates off first) to registration, we will give you a $5 credit slip to the concessions stand (essentially taking $5 off your registration cost).

Online registration strongly recommended:
www.oscf.org (Select Online Registration on left menu bar).

Payment: Please send your check or money order payable to: (Please note player name & section)
Whitford PTO – Chess Club
7935 SW Scholls Ferry Road
Beaverton, OR 97008
All entries on or after 2/20/12 must pay on site. No entries will be accepted after 11:59 pm, Thursday, 2/23/12

Contact: Rustam Kocher
Email: whitfordchess@gmail.com
Phone: 503-481-5757
More Info: http://www.oscf.org/files/2012_Whitford_CMCC_Tournament_Flyer.pdf

Note: Sections are still TBD. Based on experience from previous years, we know we want them simple, so they are remain accessible to the novice players. We'd also prefer to have under 32 players per section, to keep from having to use tiebreakers to determine an overall section winner.

--Rustam

CLATSKANIE MIDDLE & HIGH SCHOOL K-12 NWSRS RATED FRIDAY NIGHT QUADS - February 3rd, 2012

2012-01-14T23:37:00.000-08:00

Summary:
This is an announcement that Clatskanie Friday Night Quads will occur on Friday, February 3, 2012 at 5:00pm to 9:00pm

Location:
Clatskanie Middle/High School
471 Bel Air Drive
Clatskanie, OR 97016
USA

DESCRIPTION: Info: K-12 Rated Scholastic Quads
Location: Clatskanie Middle High School
471 Bel Air Drive
Clatskanie, OR 97016

REGISTRATION: Register by 4:30 pm. Round 1 is scheduled to begin at 5:00 pm.

ENTRY FEE: Entry fee is $12; $8 for Clatskanie Chess Mates club members

EVENT FORMAT: NWSRS Rated Quads (4 players grouped according to rating, playing 1 game against each of the others in the Quad)

TIME CONTROL: G/30 SD (each game can last up to 60 minutes)

Participants must be Scholastic players in Kindergarten through 12th grade to be Eligible for participation.

NOTES:
* Registration after 4:30 pm is based on available space AND players will be charged a $5 late fee. If you have to arrive late, please contact Lynn Wiles.

Contact: Lynn
Email: lynnw53@gmail.com
Phone: 503-XXX-XXXX

To register, mail the following information:

Player Name _______________ Grade__________
School _______________________

To:
Clatskanie Chess Mates
c/o Lynn Wiles
P.O. Box 446
Clatskanie, Oregon 97016

DIRECTIONS:

From I-5, go through Longview toward Oregon, over the Lewis & Clark Bridge. Or from Highway 30 (St Helens Hwy) in Oregon, go northwest through St. Helens and Rainier. Proceed up the very steep "Rainier Hill" and from its top you will proceed on Hwy 30, 11 more miles into Clatskanie. Go through the one traffic light in town (at Nehalem St.), three more blocks, and turn left on Bel Air. Proceed on until you see the sign for the Middle/High School and then follow the Tiger tracks.

Contact: Lynn Wiles
Email: lynnw53@gmail.com
Phone: 503-XXX-XXXX

Phoenix Chess Club USCF chess recap

2012-01-12T12:34:00.000-08:00

A special thank you to everyone who stopped by last night and in particular to the players!

We had four boards in play which resulted in four decisive results but eight cases of serious sportsmanship - thank you one and all! Pictures will be available soon, once again from Roxanne! Thank you for those! I will try to get some of the games up on the blog later on today.

- Chess Coach Sean Tobin.

The HOLIDAY CHESS FESTIVAL CHESS TOURNAMENT for the East Ray Road Barnes and Noble Chess Club in Phoenix Arizona has been rated!

2012-01-11T00:53:00.001-08:00

So 8 players played in this event - each one showcasing a terrific sense of sportsmanship and fair play! Thanks for having played everyone - "Dustin's January Open" begins tonight at 6 PM! For those of you about to play - Have fun! The official start time is 6 PM, the time control is Game 65 with a 5 seconds delay, BYO set; clock and sportsmanship. Club begins at 5 PM and meets until 9:30 PM.

http://main.uschess.org/assets/msa_joomla/XtblMain.php?201201048982-12634957

Capably run by Jim Schillinger and Dustin Kinney - Thank you both for your time and your service for the benefit of all club members. - Chess Coach Sean Tobin.

Amusing game against "JSBach" - The software program that plays without it's Openings Theory book!

2012-01-11T00:07:00.001-08:00

Okay so I spent a "little" time today battling foes both silicon and carbon based out here in cyber space! Today was a day to recharge the battery and so I took full advantage of this opportunity.

"JSBACH"

Coach Sean

JSBach "wins" a piece but loses the war.

One of the typical mistakes this program makes is that it will move the same piece or pieces over and over again right out of the starting gate. By doing this the computer leaves other pieces undeveloped - as you can see in the position given above. Sure... if I give up a piece to rip away the pawn cover between my line pieces and the Black King the only question is when will I deliver checkmate. And not when. I mean the computer was, after all, playing two Rooks and two Knights down! This by move 14 nonetheless.

Here is the complete game for your entertainment:

RECENT PHOTOS from my favorite PHOENIX AZ CHESS CLUB!

2012-01-10T18:18:00.000-08:00

Thanks again to photographer extraordinaire - Roxanne! Some fantastic photos from our three boards of skorching hot chess action from Phoenix Arizona. The next meeting is tomorrow and the event will be a four round chess tournament for this month. - Chess Coach Sean.

CHESS... the adventure continues.

2012-01-10T18:05:00.003-08:00

Recently I have been preferring to battle "JSBach" on the ICC. Easier pickings than let us say the most recent incarnation of Fritz. Or Fruit. Or... yeah, the list goes on.

I think the appeal between playing JSBach and playing a game like, let us say, Fruit Ninja or Angry Birds as there is just enough of a challenge to frustrate you. The element that is most frustrating about JSBach is that you can only play it at 3 3 - that is three minutes per game plus an increment. So you have to move quickly.

Sad but true I have lost "won" games against this program. Dropping a piece comes easy when using a 2-D interface and scrambling for time. If I seriously wanted my Blitz rating to go up then I would have to "play up" to get the kind of challenge that I would need in order to accomplish this. Playing JSBach will not help your knowledge of opening theory but it will help you to think for yourself when confronted by odd opening moves that break rules of thumb. In order to take advantage of them then you will have to move quite quickly. It is either that or lose on time.

JSBach plays at an erratic tempo - sometimes stronger, sometimes weaker depending upon when you play it. I am not sure if this is because it play multiple opponents all at once and this is a function of that or not - I cannot quite remember if it is "simulizing" while it plays. It can play monstrously bad in the endgame but sometimes can punch you out with a swift tactical swipe should you err. This is why I recommend that my students - depending upon their level - test their chess mettle against this odd ICC foe. As, in a very real sense, JSBach is teaching them how to think for themselves against some less than perfect opening moves, how to tackle a tactical opponent and how to move quickly! All good areas to work on when improving ones game.

- Chess Coach Sean Tobin.

(PS - JSBach is slightly addicting to play. My friend Ed Borowski used to play it all the time back in the day and I could never understand why. Now I do... much like I saw the appeal to angry birds once I picked up a tablet that it was loaded on and began to play it! In any event do not waste an entire day battle this program on the ICC!)

CHESS CLUB MEETING at the EAST RAY ROAD BARNES & NOBLES in PHOENIX ARIZONA!

2012-01-03T16:02:00.000-08:00

Just a reminder for those of you in Phoenix Arizona or passing through this Wednesday the 4th of January:

CHESS CLUB
Wednesdays 5 till 9:30 PM
USCF rated play
@
BARNES & NOBLE
East Ray Road, Phoenix AZ

BYO Sets & Clocks
Rated games begin at 6 PM casual play through out the meeting!

- Chess Coach Sean Tobin.

METZGER WINTER CLASSIC ==> Saturday, January 7th, 2012 OSCF SCHOLASTIC CHESS TOURNAMENT for real chess success!

2012-01-02T15:59:00.000-08:00

Summary: This is a reminder that
Metzger Winter Classic
will occur on Saturday, January 7, 2012 at 8:00am to 4:00pm

Location: Metzger Elementary School

10350 SW Lincoln St
Portland, OR 97223

Description: Date: Saturday, January 29, 2011
Start Time: 8:00 am End Time: 5:00 pm
(Time Zone: US/Pacific)

Location: Metzger Elementary School

Category: OR-OSCF Champ. Qualifiers

Description

Metzger Winter Classic
Date: Saturday, January 7, 2011
Start Time: 8:00 am End Time: 5:00 pm
(Time Zone: US/Pacific)

Location: Metzger Elementary, Tigard, OR.

Category: OR-OSCF Champ. Qualifiers

Description

REGISTRATION FEE: $15 by January 4th
LATE REGISTRATION: $18 after January 4th
A percentage of the proceeds will be going to Doernbecher Hospital Research foundation

*PRE-REGISTRATION REQUIRED*

REGISTER ONLINE at www.oscf.org
or send a check or call Jeff Risher at Metzger Elementary with player name, rating, age, section, & School.

Sections:
All K-12 players welcome!

Queens (all girls section) This section may be split up into multiple sections.
Knights - U600
Bishops - U900
Rooks - U1200
Kings - 1200+

Players will be divided into several playing sections based on age and experience. Sections may be split or combined, depending on registrations. For example, the Knights section may be split into separate playing groups based on age and experience.

Queen Section: NWSRS rating time control depends on entries and ratings of players.
Section may be split

Knight Section: NWSRS rating < 600 (or unr. grades K-6). 5 rnds, G/30 min. Awards at approximately 3:00.

Bishop Section: NWSRS rating <900 (or unr. grades 7-9). 5 rnds, G/35. Awards at approximately 3:00.

Rook Section: NWSRS rating 900-1199 (or unr. grades 10-12). 5 rnds, G/40. Awards at approximately 4:00.

King Section: G/60 4 rounds Players with NWSRS rating 1200+ play in the open section, but lower rated players are also welcome. Awards at approximately 4:00.

Queens, Knights, Bishop and Rook sections are NWSRS rated. King section is NWSRS/USCF dual-rated. USCF membership required for the the King section(join/renew on-line or on-site).

AWARDS: CASH PRIZES FOR TOP 3 in King Section

Trophies for top 4 finishers in each section (except King Section). 5th and 6th place receive medals.

"Good Sportsmanship" in each section.
(except King Section)

**NEW** Team competition
Top 4 players in each section that accumulate the most points. Must have a minimum of 2 players to qualify.

Trophies will be given to 1st and 2nd place finishers.

ONE Trophy will be given to the team/school that has the most participants in the tournament.

SCHEDULE:

Open Section -Check-in 7:30-7:45 AM;

All other sections check in starts at 8:15!!!

Players meeting 9:00 AM; Games approx. 9:15 AM with a possible 30 minute lunch break after 2nd or 3rd round. Latecomers receive 0 points for each round missed.

All Standard USCF rules apply.

Please remember to keep personal belongs safe!
Parents are responsible for their children.

CONCESSION BOOTH WILL BE OPEN! Food, Snacks, & Beverages will be served. We will also take orders for Pizza around lunch time.

Contact:
Jeff Risher
Metzger Elementary
10350 SW Lincoln St.
Tigard, OR. 97223
503-431-4614

Contact: Jeff Risher
Email: jrisher@ttsd.k12.or.us
Phone: 503-431-4614

Location Details

Metzger Elementary School
10350 SW Lincoln St
Tigard OR 97223

Contact: Jeff Risher
Email: jrisher@ttsd.k12.or.us

More Info: http://oscf.org

Rated Chess Play... to play or not to play?

2012-01-01T23:06:00.000-08:00

Having almost survived the Holiday madness I am still trying to recuperate from my more than mild cold - this illness really did knock me down a rung or two. So the question is, should I play some USCF chess while still recovering or should I just take the time off and get healthy? I am not a professional player so I guess I could however here are the pros and cons as I see them:

PROS of playing:

1.) I want to because it is fun and it is a required competitive outlet for me!
2.) You can't win if you don't play!
3.) You don't learn if you do not jump right in!
4.) To get ready for the big events you need to be in practice - rust needs to be banged off constantly for the active tournament chess player.

CONS of playing:

1.) I tend to play the FULL TIME CONTROL - which means I am up late for evening games.
2.) Still having this cold which I am in serious need of getting rid of / dodging / healing up from.
3.) I need to devote more time to preparation for my job - there is never enough time for everything during any one day. And one thing chess surely does is take up lots of time.

January may turn out to be the month I take off for 2012. It's a matter of priorities... but there is always the INTERNET CHESS CLUB and my STUDENTS to keep me in plenty of chess - more than my fair share of chess for the next month in any event! Anyways the sooner I get rid of this cold the sooner I can participate in tournaments again. I just have to be practical from the competitive stand point as well.

Have a Happy New Year - all the best in health and happiness to you and yours for 2012!
- Chess Coach Sean Tobin.

Tis the season...

2011-12-24T23:57:00.000-08:00

... for Holiday cheer but in my case it gets even better... now I have a Holiday cold to boot! So no post for today other than to say:

HAPPY HOLIDAYS and CHEERS!

- Chess Coach Sean.

And my new chess rating is...

2011-12-23T02:11:00.000-08:00

...lower than I thought it would be!

This mystery is explained by the fact that the USCF website had me listed as 1997 - as of a week ago. But within the last few days my rating was adjusted down to 1994... which makes no sense to me. Time to call the ratings department!

Anyways my new rating is 2031... unless some mysterious force causes my rating to contract even further! Argghh!

Anyhow I now have more questions about the USCF rating system. Has any other USCF player out there experienced this before? It has happened to me before when an event is submitted late and then the USCF has to back rate the event added later after events that took place afterwards so as to get it all in the right chronological order. But I hadn't played in an event in almost 5 months! I want those three rating points back : P

- Chess Coach Sean.

A tale of two minor pieces or "Stick to your guns".

2011-12-22T13:31:00.001-08:00

I highly recommend that one avoid playing chess while being severely sleep deprived and after having put in a long day!

Tobin

Morris

37. Kg1 and my mistake was 37. ...Nd7

So here I had played 37. ...Nd7 and the big question should be why! I had moved the Knight over towards the Kingside with the plan of plugging this Knight into the g5 square and going for an attack against Mike's King. But being short of time I deviated from the plan... with the not so inspired plan of bringing this Knight back over to the Queenside. This allowed Mike to exchange off the piece and to earn a better board situation. His Bishop had done it's job and now he could eliminate my good minor piece leaving the remaining Bishop a passive big wig no big deal pawn.

I avoided sticking with the plan because I also got concerned by a possible Bishops of opposite color endgame - though this was an unwarranted concern and was not a factor large enough to play a key role in the move selection for playing with a logical strategy "process". The decision making process was also somewhat compromised by severe time pressure, a pronounced lack of sleep for the past two days and having been in training all day. I literally forgot what my plan was and changed up what my intentions were while in a crucual phase of the game. Always a bad sign if you start making moves that deviate from your plan! If you just respond you will be defeated - you need to have a strategy and must use your imagination to implement it.

So while not quite being an example of the "law of equalizing injustices" - the law where by a tournament player lost games that he or she should have won while then having won games that he or she should have lost - the draw was probably a fair result for this and within this one game. It started off with Mike having the advantage of the white pieces, a shift towards where my position was beginning to creak and almost getting ready to fall apart, to where I had a winning middlegame and then back to Mike having the advantage and then into a free for all time scramble with tactical chances for both sides but long term strategy favoring Mike - if we were to turn that part of the game into a correspondence game with plenty of time for both players. Though I feel that, for already stated reasons, that I did not give 100% in this game I cannot complain. So next time I play it will be a different tune as there is always the next game and I have the benefit of hindsight and lessons learned!

Remember - chess is a process and not played in one dimension.
Happy Holidays - Chess Coach Sean.

LOOKING FOR SOME HOLIDAY SEASON CHESS CHEER? How about the Phoenix Chess Club at the East Ray Road BARNES & NOBLE?

2011-12-21T02:23:00.000-08:00

A PHOTO OF THE ACTION FROM LAST WEEK'S MEETING!

The chess club is meeting TODAY! (Wednesday the 21st of December!)

PHOENIX CHESS CLUB at
The East Ray Road BARNES & NOBLE
WEDNESDAY
5 till 9:30 meeting
USCF Game 65 rated play starting at 6ish!

Join "us" - chess players of good will - if you can! HAPPY HOLIDAYS AND WISHING YOU MUCH CHESS CHEER IN 2012!
~ Chess Coach Sean Tobin.

"The envelope please... AND THE WINNER FOR THE PORTLAND CHESS CLUB TUESDAY NIGHT TOP QUAD is..."

2011-12-20T23:31:00.000-08:00

"...me!"

So I scored 2.5 in the top quad for the Portland Chess Club. I won against a 2018, a 2280 and then had a topsy turvey strategical game against a 2013 that ended in a draw though I felt confident to play on but took certain practical considerations into account. Down a pawn is often enough motivation to leave well enough alone - even if you are good "OTB" blitz player. I had, I believe just over a minute and a half when Mike offered me the draw and he had maybe about EXACTLY 3:29 remaining upon his clock. I liked the potential for cheapo play in the final position but my opponent could easily force the draw by drawing my attention to various weak sectors on either wing of the board thus bouncing our forces to and fro to cover weaknesses. At least that is my feeling about it as of right now.

I had done some research on possible rating outcomes via the online ratings calculator on the USCF website and came up with these four possible scenarios. Yes, I know I broke my own rule about being distracted by unimportant details that can wait until post event. Anyways... ahem! If I had lost to Mike then my new rating would be 2017 so this put me in a win-win situation. I had already earned my way back into the expert realm! If I did not play then my new rating would equal 2022 (Not a serious option - but if I got hit by a meteorite my final rating in my final minutes would have been 2022! Kind of sad...), if I drew Mike then my new rating would be 2035 (WHICH I DID!) and if I had won then my new rating would be 2050 +. You bet I wanted to win that game!! But this was another good game to journal and to learn from. Perfect play anywhere in and amongst all of those moves? Of course not! But interesting stories of what could have been and what was missed by both warriors of the mind. Those lovely unheard melodies that also eluded us during the game and need to be heard by me as well. Time to uncover some experience from mining all three of these games from the December Tuesday night Quads! Though I will shudder at the quality of my play in the opening and middlegame.

Anyways a good note to end my chess on for 2011!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Good chess and good skill to everyone and keep on playing your best moves no matter what gets in your way. Be your own best variation in the great game of life! - Chess Coach Sean Tobin.

Winning the lost game... or the art of the cheapo.

2011-12-14T19:59:00.001-08:00

One of the things I like about chess is the aspect of the cheapo.

Lasker, that grand old man of chess, believed that chess was fundamentally a fight. A contest of wills mind you and not literally a fight though some have attempted to take chess to that extreme. Much to the cost of their reputation. But that is another issue entirely...

In my game against a master last night I had managed to struggle on in a strategically lost position. Fighting spirit however can help you turn a lost game into a fine exhibit of "cheapo" art. Such was the case with this game... a game I have to admit that I am not too happy about as I wish I could play with the crystal clarity of a Karpov or Kasparov in their respective primes. Either style of play would suit me fine!

55. Bxg6 and now the Black position was "unzipped" and the cheapo was put into motion because of lines like:

55. Bxg6 a4 56. Bxh5 a3 57. Kc2 and it is white who wins.

Later on I had to find a serious of moves to gain the material advantage but a still precipitous position full of threats. Only exact play would suffice - of course I cannot claim to have played excellent moves but the ones that were good enough.

The actual game continuation went:

55. Bxg6 Bg4 56. Bh7 Kd6 57. g6 Ke5 58. g7

58. g7 will cost Black his Bishop after 58. ...Be6.

After the moves 58. g7 Be6 59. g8=Q Bxg8 60. Bxg8 a4 the move 61. Bf7 sealed the deal.

Was this a perfect game - most definitely not. I saw numerous wins for my opponent in the late opening and in the middle game and before we got to move fifty three. So even in the endgame I was lost but the number one secret to creating gems of competitive cheapo imperfection is "fighting spirit" - a willingness to play on and to throw as many obstacles between your opponent and their attempts to gain victory as possible. As Lasker would have us do!

- Chess Coach Sean.

PHOTO GALLERY Phoenix East Ray Road Barnes & Noble CHESS CLUB Wednesday December 7th, 2011

2011-12-10T00:01:00.000-08:00

Just a slice of the Phoenix Chess Club that meets at the East Ray Road Barnes and Noble every Wednesday from 5 till 9:30 PM! The best place to have fun while playing chess in Arizona! - Sean Tobin.

Learning to play again...

2011-12-09T20:54:00.001-08:00

Okay... I have started to play chess again.

For this past week's Team league game I got a miserable position out of the opening... then my opponent went bonkers, sacked a piece and went on to lose after I found the only moves to stay in the game and win it. So that was a lot of fun but if I am objective I cannot really claim to have played all that brilliantly in that particular game.

Then at the Portland Chess Club I ended up winning a game, as fate would yet have it once again, that I was strategically losing. However it appears that beating me in all three stages of the game is a requirement these days. My skillful opponent - Brian Esler - really did have the game wrapped up in the middle game. A couple of mistakes in our mutual time trouble allowed me to construct a cheapo endgame win from the mess I was in - but I had a lot of help from Brian. He is very talented and a genuine good guy so I felt bad for him after the game - I am sure he will get revenge against one of his next opponent's real soon. However I will NOT be repeating that variation featured in our first game. Not against him nor anyone else in the future. Lesson learned!

So two wins in the "My fighting Spirit/opponent blundered" column. It would be nice to win an excellent game where I play some good chess... Oh well, there is always the next game!!

- Chess Coach Sean Tobin.

PS I rather tend to think that the spectators watching our game rather enjoyed our frantic time scramble... while Brian and I quite probably almost had heart attacks! With the time control of 40 moves in 90 minutes and then Sudden Death in 30 - all with a 5 seconds delay - you have to keep moving along at a good clip with your moves or you will wind up with some severe time scrambling as Brian and I did before the first time control. Nick Raptis rather enjoyed our scramble though!

AL LEONG MEMORIAL Saturday 4th, 2012 QUALIFIER for 2012 OSCF STATE CHAMPIONSHIP

2011-12-08T00:01:00.000-08:00

This is an announcement that 2012 AL LEONG MEMORIAL - Pleasant Hill will occur on Saturday, February 4, 2012 at 9:00am

Location:

Pleasant Hill Middle School
36386 Highway 58
Pleasant Hill, OR 97455
us

Description:

AL LEONG MEMORIAL CHESS TOURNAMENT
FEBRUARY 4th PLEASANT ELEMENTARY SCHOOL (10-15 min. from Eugene)

This event is a Qualifier for the 2012 OSCF State Championship and will be NWSRS rated.
Don't have a chess rating, yet? You’re about to earn one!

Time: Registration and check-in between 9:00 to 9:30 AM (Late arrivals risk forfeiting their first round.) Players meeting at 9:30.

First round to start at 10:00 AM

Awards and blitz tie breaks approximately 2:00 PM and 4:30 PM for K-12.
Snacks, drinks, and pizza will be available on site, bring a lunch, or drive 1 mile to plaza during lunch break.

Sections:
K-5, K-8, K-12 and Novice (beginners K-8 rated below 650 NWSRS), The tournament director reserves the right to combine or split sections, depending upon participation.

Prizes:
CASH prizes for K-12 section for places 1st-$80, 2nd-$60, 3rd-$40, 4th-$20 (may be adjusted depending upon participation)
Individual TROPHIES in other sections for 1st 2nd 3rd many outstanding performance trophies -blitz tie breaks for trophies, cash prizes are divided.
Team trophies for 1st place in K-5, K-8, K-12 sections, a team is the 4 top scoring players from same school.

Time Controls:
Novice, K-5, K-8 are 5 rounds, Game in 30 (30 min for each player), (notation required for K-8) Chess clocks may be used if both players agree, and one is available. Use of the clock will be explained to beginners as needed.

K-12 is 4 rounds, Game in 45. Clock and chess notation required.

Bring:
Boards, clocks, lunch.

Entry Fee:
Preregistration $20, you can email registration info now and simply pay $20 at the door. On site (day of) registration $25

Contact: Zane Kesey
Email: keyz@key-z.com
Phone: 541-XXX-XXXX

Location Details
Pleasant Hill Elementary School
36386 Highway 58
Pleasant Hill OR 97455

Directions:
from Interstate 5 south of Eugene, take Highway 58 east, past Pleasant Hill shopping center about one mile. Pass Enterprise road and turn right at entrance. map:

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

TO REGISTER email registration info to keyz@key-z.com or send registration to Zane Kesey c/o Pleasant Hill Chess Club 36386 Highway 58, Pleasant Hill OR 97455

(full)Name:____________________________________________________

Address:______________________________________________________

City:_________________________ State:______ Zip_________________

Phone:_______________________ email:___________________________

School:______________________ Birth date:___________ Grade:____

NWSRS ID (if known)___________________ Section:______________________

Contact: Zane Kesey
Email: keyz@key-z.com

CHESS CLUB meeting in PHOENIX ARIZONA every Wednesday night 5 till 9:30 PM at the East Ray Road Barnes & Noble!

2011-12-06T08:08:00.001-08:00

Do you enjoy playing casual and or competitive chess? Then look no further than the Phoenix chess club that meets at the East Ray Road Barnes and Noble!

CHESS CLUB
Wednesdays 5 till 9:30
EAST RAY ROAD BARNES & NOBLE, PHOENIX, AZ.
BYO Pieces, Board and Clock - limited extras available.

Hope to see you down at the chess club! - Happy Holidays to one and all - Chess Coach Sean.

PHOTO GALLERY Phoenix East Ray Road Barnes & Noble CHESS CLUB

2011-12-06T08:01:00.000-08:00

Tis the season for looking sharp and wearing hats at the chess club! A good turnout last week, round 3 of our WEDNESDAY HOLIDAY OPEN will take place tomorrow night! If you want to play get a hold of Dustin, Jim or Me - your humble blogger! - Chess Coach Sean.

Team League 45 45 - My U2000 team takes round 4!

2011-12-05T20:29:00.000-08:00

Okay so we won our match for round 4 with the fine score of +3, -1. We may or may not be only half a point off first place... the first place team leads with match points at 2.5 and we trail at 2 points. As they are tied with "Los Ticos Grandos" at 1.5 with one game to go I am seriously hoping they lose! This gives my team a shot!! More updates and hopefully some games later on.

- Chess Coach Sean.

NEW YORK TIMES ARTICLE December 4th, 2011

2011-12-04T11:22:00.000-08:00

An interesting article by Dylan Loeb McClain with a variety of coverage for this Sunday's New York Times Chess Column.

It is too bad that the major newspapers now give chess columns such short thrift these days. I remember when GM Robert Byrne used to do the column and at one point, if memory serves me correctly, there were three columns per week at one point though it was usually two a week. Now we are down to one - with some papers having gotten rid of their chess columns all together. In fact the New York Times had tried this at one point but the outcry from the chess enthusiasts was such that they relented in their decision and kept the Sunday chess coverage in the paper.

Dylan Loeb McClain is the columnist who replaced GM Byrne when he retired back on November 12th, 2006. Despite the minority criticisms leveled at GM Byrne I always looked forward to reading his articles and found the notes to be a good intro to the games he covered... as did most of his readership. Wishing this New York Grandmaster all the best - would love to know what his personal feelings and his history of contact was like with former World Champion Bobby Fischer. Could we be in for a book from GM Byrne on the Fischer topic? Hopefully as he competed against and with Fischer in many events over the course of GM Byrne's most active period of semi-professional play from the 1960s into the 1980s.

I still read the Sunday New York Times on occasion but not like I used to when I was a regular reader - back when GM Byrne was the Columnist. It is partly the impact of the internet news outlets, the price increases for the Sunday edition but it is also is a symptom of my dissatisfaction with the New York Times in their treatment of chess as a news item.. with the departure of GM Byrne they also saw my regular and faithfully loyalty depart as well. With fewer key reasons to tune in to the paper I have since moved on but with occasional interest in their print feature. Be that as it may Dylan McClain's column is okay but no where near the high level that GM Byrne's article consistently hit. In my opinion for what that is worth to you - "I vent, therefor I am" - David Miller.

Getting back to this week's column we have partial games - say what? - but two different items featured in today's column. A game snippet from our newest scholastic World Champion from the under 8 section of the World Youth Chess Championship in Brazil. That would be Awonder Liang from Wisconsin - Congratulations to this 2091 USCF standard rated Scholastic Player. Gulp! That is one strong player - I fully expect to hear more about this one and you should too!!

The other article was a nice piece on the latest multi board blindfold simultaneous record that was recently set. It has now been extended to 46 boards by a Marc Lang. A German Master who, to be quite frank about it, is quite a talent. I just get a headache thinking about that much brain power... amazing. Very interesting position given from one of his games... He won 25 games, drew a large number weighing in at 19 and then lost the remainder. Two games! Impressive.

The problem with this week's column? To play through the entire games you have to get on the New York Times website. So has print given up the ghost now? Is this just a way to move me to reading the New York Times online content? Hmm.... given the fact that I could not access the games and that the site charges a nominal fee. Perhaps. However it could just be my user error again... they did have some of the games from the recently concluded Women's World Chess championship match posted online there. Of course this redirects you to a java game board from the Chess Magnets School website. Okay - not bad but certainly lacking in the full games scores that I was looking for. As we all know - this is a pet peeve of mine!

- Chess Coach Sean Tobin.

PORTLAND CHESS CLUB 2011 Edition of the "WINTER OPEN!"

2011-12-03T23:27:00.000-08:00

This is the email update I received about this year's WINTER OPEN. Sadly I will be unable to attend this year's edition because of other commitments and obligations at this time. I will have to wait until the "Spring Open" it looks like! However you have the opportunity to play in a nice sized and very competitive event... if you actually show up for the first day.

It would have been nice if the information in the email had actually matched up with the official posting on the website or rather the typo about the event length and day had been caught and corrected before the email was sent out. Here are the real deal details to this event and, if like me, you have received the email which is given in full down below please modify your plans so you do not miss day one of this event! Read the entire email for all event details. The Spring, Summer, Fall and Winter Opens are all the same format - two day events. Anyhow, here you go:

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
AS POSTED ON http://pdxchess.org/

Winter Open

December 17-18, 2011

Winter holidays are getting closer, and it is time for the annual Winter Open at the Portland Chess Club. This USCF-rated, two-day tournament is played in two sections, has five rounds, and offers long time controls and lots of cash prizes:

Time Control: Rounds 1-3 played on Saturday (time control 40/90 SD/30) and Rounds 4-5 on Sunday (time control 40/120 SD/60).

Entry Fee: $35; members of the Club get $10 discount.

Memberships: USCF and OCF/WCF required and can be purchased/renewed at registration.

Registration: opens at 9:00am on Saturday. Rounds: 10:00am - 2:00pm - ASAP on Saturday and 10:00am - ASAP on Sunday

Prizes: based on 40 entries and adjusted proportionally if different number of players, total prize fund is $650 (each section's prize fund $325). Open section: 1st place - $150, 2nd place - $100, best result for rated under 2000 - $75. Reserve section: 1st place - $100, 2nd place - $75, best results for rated under 1600, under 1400, and under 1200 or unrated - $50 each. No tiebreakers used, prizes split between players with the same results.

Hope you can make this fine event! - Chess Coach Sean

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

TYPO EMAIL SENT OUT... REMEMBER THIS IS A TWO DAY EVENT.

Summary:
This is a reminder that Winter Open at the Portland Chess Club will occur on Sunday, December 18, 2011 at 9:00am to 9:00pm (WRONG! This event begins on Saturday, as indicated throughout the rest of this email. - Chess Coach Sean.)

Location:

Portland Chess Club
8205 SW 24th Ave
Portland, OR 97219
USA

Description:
The Winter Open at the Portland Chess Club is an OSCF qualifier. It has long time-controls and strong competition -- ideal for adults and more mature, experienced scholastic players. Most games take 2-3 hours, but games may take as long as six hours to complete.

* Time Control:
Rounds 1-3 played on Saturday (time control 40/90 SD/30) and Rounds 4-5 on Sunday (time control 40/120 SD/60).
Here is the email update I rec

* Entry Fee:
$35; members of the Club get $10 discount.

* Memberships:
USCF and OCF/WCF required and can be purchased/renewed at registration.

* Registration:
opens at 9:00am on Saturday

* Prizes:
Based on 40 entries and adjusted proportionally if different number of players, total prize fund is $650 (each section's prize fund $325). Open section: 1st place - $150, 2nd place - $100, best result for rated under 2000 - $75. Reserve section: 1st place - $100, 2nd place - $75, best results for rated under 1600, under 1400, and under 1200 or unrated - $50 each. No tiebreakers used, prizes split between players with the same results.

Email: portlandchessclub@gmail.com
Phone: 503-246-2978

More Info: pdxchess.org

The CHALLENGE...

2011-11-26T10:05:00.000-08:00

Accept if you dare!

Santa Monica, California USA - Beach Chess Sets!

2011-11-26T00:24:00.000-08:00

I may not be playing chess while on vacation but I cannot help but to notice some very nice sets while enjoying myself! - Chess Coach Sean Tobin

Learning to walk again...

2011-11-25T03:40:00.000-08:00

...and it feels good, thank you very much!

I so enjoy this song... thank you very much FOO FIGHTERS!

HOU YIFAN - STILL WOMAN'S WORLD CHAMPION!

2011-11-25T00:02:00.000-08:00

Hou Yifan maintained her World Championship with the fine score of 5.5 to 2.5 - a dominating performance against challenger Humpy Koneru. Nice wins in games 3 and 7 plus a time trouble win in game 6 where she outplayed her game challenger. A hard fought match where Humpy Koneru showed tremendous fighting spirit but was at this point in time was severely over matched.

Having maintained her focus and composure through what must surely have been a nerve racking affair Hou Yifan is still at 17 the Women's World Champion. She has proven herself to be a certified Grandmaster - on the grand scale! Having watched some of the games live on the official web site was quite a treat too. The games were a joy to play through and the event was well run... stay tuned for the further adventures of Woman's World Champion Hou Yifan.

- Chess Coach Sean.

No, no... honest 1.e4 IS BEST BY TEST!

2011-11-25T00:01:00.000-08:00

Okay...okay. Take two!

A RECENT ENDGAME

2011-11-24T22:55:00.000-08:00

This position is from one of my recent ICC games...

COACH SEAN (Black)

FIGHTING SPIRIT SAVES THE DAY

Black to play and win... of course I was totally lost earlier on during this game but I managed to create some winning chances. While not being happy with my previous plays I do have to say that this endgame was a lot of fun to sculpt. However I still managed to misplay this ending a little but in the end it turned out all right.

So I guess the question is "BLACK TO PLAY AND WIN" but what was my plan that I had set up here and can you find it? A lot of fun to play this one out!

- Chess Coach Sean Tobin.

A Special Message for all 1.e4 players

2011-11-24T20:40:00.000-08:00

PORTLAND REGION of OREGON: SCHOLASTIC CHESS LEAGUE - High School & Jr. High ACCEPTING TEAMS NOW! Next Team Tournament WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 14th, 2011

2011-11-23T00:01:00.000-08:00

Summary:
This is a reminder that Portland Area League will occur on Wednesday, December 14, 2011 at 4:00pm

Location:

Lincoln High School
1600 SW Salmon Street
Portland, OR

Description: This event is OPEN to All students in grades 6 to 12.

GENERAL: This is a TEAM EVENT, open to All students in grades 6 to 12. Teams normally consist of players from a single school, but individuals without a team may petition the league to be placed on an existing team (see below). Each match consists of 5 boards for each team. Each team's best player (ie. highest rated) must play on board 1, 2nd best on board 2, and so on. All teams are encouraged to have reserve players due to the length of the League. Teams are also encouraged to bring reserves to each match as they will be paired when possible against reserves from other teams for rated "extra" games.

All of the matches will be played in the cafeteria of Lincoln High School in downtown Portland, OR.

FORMAT: Swiss pairings based upon the teams average Northwest Scholastic Rating for the first half of the League. The second half will be a round robin with teams assigned to sections based upon their results in the first half. Schools with multiple teams will not be paired against each other.

TIME CONTROL: Game in 60 minutes with 5 second delay.

SCHEDULE: The Portland Area League will meet each Wednesday from November 2nd until February 29th (except for the day before Thanksgiving and the last two Wednesday's in December). We intend to have 13 or 14 rounds. The final meeting will be the League's party when trophies will be presented.

TEAM REGISTRATION: Teams normally consist of players in grades 6th to 12th from a single school. Exceptions to the single school include a student in a middle school that feeds into high school would be eligible to play on his local high school team. Another exception is a student that is home schooled may play on a public/private school where he resides. Schools may enter more than one team. Your first team must consists of your best 5 players, your second team your next best 5 players, and so on. Schools with multiple teams may (likely will) find it necessary to move players between teams based on absences or individuals performance.

INDIVIDUAL REGISTRATION: Individuals without a team may petition the League to be assigned to a team. The petition needs to be sent to Ed Addis at chessalot@aol.com and include the players name, grade, and address. This petition must be received by September 30, 2011.

ENTRY FEE: $70 PER TEAM

PRE-REGISTER BY OCTOBER 15TH. To register send an e-mail to Ed Addis that includes the Name of your Team, the advisor/coach, a roster of your players including their names and current grade. Additional players for teams may be added at any time.

PRIZES: Trophies will be awarded to the top teams and for the top individual performances on each board.

Contact: Ed Addis
Email: chessalot@aol.com

Coquille Chess & Pizza Saturday December 3rd, 2011 from 11AM till 5PM OSCF EVENT (Oregon Scholastic Chess Federation)

2011-11-22T10:03:00.000-08:00

Summary:
This is an announcement that Coquille Chess and Pizza will occur on Saturday, December 3, 2011 at 11:00am to 5:00pm

Location:

Downtown Studio (Old Barrow's Drug)
74 E. 1st Street
Coquille, OR 97423 USA

Description:
Everyone is invited to fun chess and free pizza at the Downtown Studio 74 E. 1st in Coquille.

No fee, no prizes but plenty of pizza, soda and bragging rights.
Games are rated and OSCF qualifiers.
G/30, four or five rounds depending on player numbers.
Round Robin with players separated by ratings.
Starts at 11 a.m. and ends when all games completed (lower division generally around 3 p.m. elite division around 5 p.m.)
Other board games, air hockey available between rounds.

Contact: Nancy Keller
Email: drnancykeller@yahoo.com

Location Details
Downtown Studio (Old Barrow's Drug)
74 E. 1st Street
Coquille OR 97423 US

Directions
Turn onto Adams from only stop light on highway 42 for Coquille towards city area. Turn left onto 1st (one way street). We are next to Denny's Pizza.

Contact: Nancy Keller
Email: drnancykeller@yahoo.com

OSCF EVENT DECEMBER 10th, 2011 CLATSKANIE MIDDLE & HIGH SCHOOL, OREGON

2011-11-21T21:55:00.000-08:00

Summary: This is an announcement that Clatskanie Chess Mates OSCF Qualifier will occur on Saturday, December 10, 2011 at 9:00am to 4:00pm

Location:

Clatskanie Middle/High School
471 SW Bel Air Drive
Clatskanie , OR 97016
United States

Description:
Come out for a drive to the country and play some chess with the newly re-formed "Clatskanie Chess Mates" in Clatskanie, OR. All players in grades K-12 are welcome. Players will be assigned to groups of six by rating. Each group will play a round robin, all-play-all tournament (five rounds). If necessary, there will be one or two groups of four or five. Five-player groups will play a single round robin with one player taking a bye each round. Four-player quads will play a double round robin (six rounds). Time control is G/30 for sixes and fives, and G/25 for quads.

Awards:
- Trophies for 1st and 2nd place in each section
- Medallions and prizes for 3rd place and remaining participants. No one goes home empty handed - in the spirit of Kate Taylor
- Largest trophy is for Sportsmanship, also in Kate's memory
- Best Handshake pin will also be awarded
- Tie breaks: In case of ties for first and second place, a 5 minute blitz tie break will be used to award trophies. If there is a three or more way tie, then there will be a round-robin 5 minute blitz playoff. If there is a tie for third place, tie-holders will all receive medals.

Schedule:
Check-in: 9:00 - 9:30 a.m. Players' meeting: 9:30 am. Games: 10:00 am. Awards: 3:00 pm (approx)

Registration:
Entry fee is $15 if pre-registered, $20 at the door. Limit: 40 players

To register, mail the following information:

Player Name _______________ Grade__________
School _______________________

To:
Clatskanie Chess Mates
c/o Lynn Wiles
P.O. Box 446
Clatskanie, Oregon 97016

For more information, contact Lynn Wiles at lynnw53@gmail.com
Further Details:
Clatskanie Chess Mates
c/o Lynn Wiles
P.O. Box 446
Clatskanie, OR 97016

Directions:
From I-5, go through Longview toward Oregon, over the Lewis & Clark Bridge. Or from Highway 30 (St Helens Hwy) in Oregon, go northwest through St. Helens and Rainier. Proceed up the very steep "Rainier Hill" and from its top you will proceed on Hwy 30, 11 more miles into Clatskanie. Go through the one traffic light in town (at Nehalem St.), three more blocks, and turn left on B. Proceed on until you see the sign for the Middle/High School and then follow the Tiger tracks.

Contact: Lynn Wiles
Email: lynnw53@gmail.com

FORMER and CURRENT SCHOLASTIC CHESS STUDENTS... playing on both coasts!

2011-11-20T18:43:00.000-08:00

Hello one and all!

So I had 4 former or current students battling it out in the Nationals - they all did pretty well. That was over on the East coast... wishing I was there! These National events are fantastic and if you have students or if you are a chess parent then I highly recommend the two major National events to you. I am always wanting to keep up on how former students are doing - I take pride in their chess accomplishments!

Also being held this weekend was the "BOP" or "Best of Phoenix". This is the self described "City Championship" as Scott Freneaux and Matt Okunevich both like to call it. It is an ASCF event. Anyways it too was held on the very same weekend as Nationals. I had several students - former and current - playing in this event as well. Two of them took 6th and 7th place! Congrats to Peter and Pranav! Another fun local event for ASCF players.

So it has been a busy weekend for me - emailing and texting Parents all while on the go. For instance I am about 200 miles away from my Brother's place which is just outside of LA. So doing this while on the go has been quite the multi-tasking task test! I also had to stop and play my Team 45/45 League game tonight. So after 700 miles of driving I was, to say the least, not at my best. Such is chess! Oh well... onwards and, hopefully, rating upwards in my future league contests.

Once again Congrats to all of my former and current Students for their A+ efforts this past weekend. Well done one and all! - Chess Coach Sean Tobin.

FORMER STUDENTS AT K-12 SCHOLASTIC CHESS CHAMPIONSHIPS

2011-11-18T14:15:00.000-08:00

Two of my former students played in the K-6 Blitz tournament - and did extremely well! As a matter of fact it looks like the "Arizona invasion" is doing quite well. I will be checking these results - fantastic event. Good chess luck - make your own!, and good chess skill - play your best moves! - to one and all current and former chess students! - Chess coach Sean Tobin.

http://www.uschess.org/tournaments/2011/k12/?page=RESULTS

TOBIN ON CHESS formerly "The CENTRAL OREGON CHESS JOURNAL"

OREGON CLOSED CHESS CHAMPIONSHIP 2012 - Round two encounter between master Radu Roua and expert Brian Esler!

MAGNUS CARLSEN 30 SECOND BLITZ CHESS CHALLENGE!

Long live the champ Peter - photo from round 1!

PHOENIX ARIZONA CHESS NEWS! ~Congratulations to Peter Schillinger - for taking first in the 1000-1199 Section of MASTER TREK 2012_02_11

A good game of chess is a study in contrasts - though not merely confined to just a result alone. Eric Holcomb versus Bob Marvos, COCC #15

Eugene Oregon USA Scholastic Chess Tournament: SPRING FLING 2012, Saturday April 14th, 2012

Happy Valley Chess K-8 Championship Friday, March 16th, 2012 10 AM to 4:30 PM PORTLAND AREA of OREGON, USA

The Skinny on the Dustin Kinney Simultaneous Exhibition Chess Match!

UPCOMING PORTLAND AREA (OREGON USA) CHESS TOURNAMENT: Whitford / Cooper Mtn Scholastic Chess Championships February 25th, 2012

A round four game from "DUSTIN'S CLASSIC JANUARY OPEN" 02_01_2012

PHOTO GALLERY Phoenix East Ray Road Barnes & Noble CHESS CLUB Wednesday February 1st, 2012

Portland Chess Club

PHOTO GALLERY Phoenix East Ray Road Barnes & Noble CHESS CLUB Wednesday January 25th, 2012

Great duels with Dustin... Sometimes Bill's Battles break up the best intentions of even the best players!

Great duels with Dustin... Sometimes Bill's Battles break up the best intentions of even the best players!

Short, sharp and quick - another great gunslinger chess battle at the East Ray Road Barnes and Noble Chess Club in Phoenix Arizona!

A short game at a fast time control for your entertainment - against a silicon sparring partner on the ICC.

CHESS CLUB @ the East Ray Road BARNES NOBLE, PHX AZ ==> PHOTO GALLERY Wednesday 01/18/2012

CHESS PUZZLE - Care of Bob Wade's "PLAYING CHESS"

ARIZONA CHESS CLUB @ East Ray Road Barnes and Noble in PHOENIX ARIZONA: PHOTO GALLERY 2012_01_11 NUMBER TWO

Will versus Jim, Round one from "DUSTIN'S JANUARY GAME 70 OPEN" played at the PHOENIX CHESS CLUB at the EAST RAY ROAD BARNES & NOBLE.

PORTLAND OREGON AREA CHESS LEAGUE - Grades 6 - 12 NEXT EVENT Wednesday, February 8th, 2012 @ 4PM!

ARIZONA CHESS CLUB @ East Ray Road Barnes and Noble in PHOENIX ARIZONA: PHOTO GALLERY 2012_01_11

Local (TO PORTLAND OREGON! : P ) SCHOLASTIC CHESS TOURNAMENT February 25th, 2012!!

CLATSKANIE MIDDLE & HIGH SCHOOL K-12 NWSRS RATED FRIDAY NIGHT QUADS - February 3rd, 2012

Phoenix Chess Club USCF chess recap

The HOLIDAY CHESS FESTIVAL CHESS TOURNAMENT for the East Ray Road Barnes and Noble Chess Club in Phoenix Arizona has been rated!

Amusing game against "JSBach" - The software program that plays without it's Openings Theory book!

RECENT PHOTOS from my favorite PHOENIX AZ CHESS CLUB!

CHESS... the adventure continues.

CHESS CLUB MEETING at the EAST RAY ROAD BARNES & NOBLES in PHOENIX ARIZONA!

METZGER WINTER CLASSIC ==> Saturday, January 7th, 2012 OSCF SCHOLASTIC CHESS TOURNAMENT for real chess success!

Rated Chess Play... to play or not to play?

Tis the season...

And my new chess rating is...

A tale of two minor pieces or "Stick to your guns".

LOOKING FOR SOME HOLIDAY SEASON CHESS CHEER? How about the Phoenix Chess Club at the East Ray Road BARNES & NOBLE?

"The envelope please... AND THE WINNER FOR THE PORTLAND CHESS CLUB TUESDAY NIGHT TOP QUAD is..."

Winning the lost game... or the art of the cheapo.

PHOTO GALLERY Phoenix East Ray Road Barnes & Noble CHESS CLUB Wednesday December 7th, 2011

Learning to play again...

AL LEONG MEMORIAL Saturday 4th, 2012 *QUALIFIER for 2012 OSCF STATE CHAMPIONSHIP*

CHESS CLUB meeting in PHOENIX ARIZONA every Wednesday night 5 till 9:30 PM at the East Ray Road Barnes & Noble!

PHOTO GALLERY Phoenix East Ray Road Barnes & Noble CHESS CLUB

Team League 45 45 - My U2000 team takes round 4!

NEW YORK TIMES ARTICLE December 4th, 2011

PORTLAND CHESS CLUB 2011 Edition of the "WINTER OPEN!"

Winter Open

December 17-18, 2011

The CHALLENGE...

Santa Monica, California USA - Beach Chess Sets!

Learning to walk again...

HOU YIFAN - STILL WOMAN'S WORLD CHAMPION!

No, no... honest 1.e4 IS BEST BY TEST!

A RECENT ENDGAME

A Special Message for all 1.e4 players

PORTLAND REGION of OREGON: SCHOLASTIC CHESS LEAGUE - High School & Jr. High ACCEPTING TEAMS NOW! Next Team Tournament WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 14th, 2011

Coquille Chess & Pizza Saturday December 3rd, 2011 from 11AM till 5PM OSCF EVENT (Oregon Scholastic Chess Federation)

OSCF EVENT DECEMBER 10th, 2011 CLATSKANIE MIDDLE & HIGH SCHOOL, OREGON

FORMER and CURRENT SCHOLASTIC CHESS STUDENTS... playing on both coasts!

FORMER STUDENTS AT K-12 SCHOLASTIC CHESS CHAMPIONSHIPS

AL LEONG MEMORIAL Saturday 4th, 2012 QUALIFIER for 2012 OSCF STATE CHAMPIONSHIP