"Man is a frivolous, a specious creature, and like a chess-player cares more for the process of attaining his goal than for the goal itself."

    Dostoyevsky

1) Thornally, Wong and Yap tie for first in MI Summer Tuesday Night Marathon 
2) Qui and Young win MI San Francisco Scholastic Championships 
3) Here and There 
4) Upcoming Events 

THE MI WILL BE HOSTING THE BAGBY MEMORIAL (G/45) THIS SATURDAY STARTING AT 10AM.

1) Thornally, Wong and Yap tie for first in MI Summer Tuesday Night Marathon

Experience triumphed over youth in the final round of the MI Summer Tuesday Night Marathon as veterans Frank Thornally and Russell Wong defeated teenagers Nicolas Yap and Alex Setzepfandt. Thornally and Wong caught up to Yap, sharing first with 6.5 from 8. Setzepfandt, who like Yap was among the leaders all the way, finished tied for fourth at 6 in the 81-player-event. The next Marathon, which will be 9 rounds, starts August 5.

2) Qui and Young win MI San Francisco Scholastic Championships

Ramon Qui won the top section of the MI San Francisco Scholastic Championship held July 12 with a score of 4.5 from 5. Tying for second at 4 were Joseph Aiken and Arnav Shah. Jeff Young took the Reserve section with 5 from 5. At total of 50 players competed in the event directed by Anthony Corrales.

3) Here and There

Congratulations to MI G/45 regular Jahangir Ahmed who tied for first in the Under 2000 at the World Open and to David Chock who went 6-0 in the reserve group at the Sacramento Championship over the July 4 Weekend.

The nation's second oldest continuously operating chess club, the Franklin Mercantile of Philadelphia, traces its origins back before 1886. It recently moved to an excellent address a short distance from Rittenhouse Square at 2012 Walnut Street. Former Bay Area player Maarifa Roho is one of the driving forces behind the club.

The Continental Championships for the Americas will be held in Argentina the second half of August. MI GM-in-Residence Alex Yermolinsky is the defending Champion.

Among those scheduled to play in the US Open in Los Angeles are the 2002 and 2003 US Champions, Larry Christiansen and Alex Shabalov.

Chess.FM will be rebroadcasting its interview of noted book collector and data base guru Andy Ansel of Walnut Creek at 5pm ET today (July 16).Tune-in to the broadcast at http://www.chess.fm/

Outspoken veteran master James Schroeder, who has supported chess for prisoners for over 30 years, is offering his Confidential Chess Lessons ($5 for over 40 pages) and books for sale. Write to him at 3011 E. 15th Street, #15, Vancouver, WA 98661.

Grand Prix events are few and far between in Bakersfield but this weekend the Continental Chess Association will be hosting one. Details are given below under upcoming tournaments.

This weekend also marks the start of the 2003 Southern California State Championship. The 10-player round robin is headed by IMs Jack Peters, Cyrus Lakdawala, Melik Khachiyan and Andranik Matikozian plus SMs Levon Altounian and Armen Ambartsoumian. National Masters Andre Kretchetov, Michael Casella, Greg Small and Ilya Serpik round out the field.

4) Upcoming Events

Upcoming Tournaments at the MI

Full details at www.chessclub.org

Charles Bagby: July 19
Vladimir Pafnutieff: August 23

Southern California

BAKERSFIELD OPEN
July 18-20 or 19-20, 2003

July 18-20 or 19-20     GPP: 10     Southern California

Bakersfield Open. 5-SS, G/150 (2-day option, rds. 1-2 G/60), Four Points Sheraton, 5101 California Ave, Bakersfield CA 93309 (Rt 99 to California Ave, then 1.5 miles west). Outdoor pool, fitness room, free parking, free airport shuttle, many restaurants within walking distance. $2500 GUARANTEED PRIZES. In 4 sections.

Open Section: $400-200-100, top Under 2200/Unr $200.
Under 2000 Section: $300-150-80, top Under 1800 $160.
Under 1600 Section: $250-120-60, top Under 1400 $130.
Under 1200 Section: $200-100-50.

Unrated may not win over $160 in U2000, $120 in U1600 or $80 in U1200.

NOTE! Under 2200/Unr, Under 1800, and Under 1400 are class prizes, not sections. Players winning both a class prize and a section prize receive the larger of the two.

Entry fee: 3-day $63, 2-day $62 mailed by 7/10, all $59 online at chesstour.com by 7/16, $70 at site. All EF $40 less to unrated, $10 less to rated juniors under 18. Re-entry $40; not available in Open Section. No phone entries. No checks at site, credit cards OK. SCCF memb. ($12, jrs $7) req. for rated Southern CA residents.

3-day reg. ends 6:45 pm, rds. Fri 7:30 pm, Sat 12-6, Sun 9-2:30.
2-day reg. ends 11:15 am, rds. Sat 12-3-6, Sun. 9-2:30.
Half point byes: OK all rounds, limit 2, rd 3-5 byes must commit before rd 2. Bring sets, boards, clocks if possible- none supplied.

Hotel rates: $74-74, 661-325-9700, reserve by 7/4 or rate may increase.

Entries: Continental Chess, PO Box 249, Salisbury Mills NY 12577. 845-496-9658. www.chesstour.com. Advance entries will be posted at chesstour.com July 17.

Home     More tournaments

US OPEN AUGUST 3-15

LAX Radisson 6225 W. Century Blvd. · Los Angeles, CA 90045 · (310) 670-9000 $89 Chess Rate - Lowest in years!

A USCF National Championship

A Heritage Event!

Tournament Format
A one-section tournament with class prizes.
12 Round Swiss System. Several Schedules Available!
Traditional Schedule: One round daily at 7:30 pm 8/43-8/8 & 8/10-8/15.
Matinee 1st half: One round daily at 11 am 8/3-8/8, then 7:30 pm 8/10-8/15. Merges with Traditional after Round 6; 8-day option: All games 40/2, SD/1. Rounds 8/8-8/11 at 11 am and 7:30 pm, 8/12-15 at 7:30 pm. 6-day option: Rounds 1-7 are G/60. Rounds 8/10 12:30-3-6-9, 8/11 10:30-1:30-4, 7:30, 8/12-8/15 7:30 pm. 8-day and 6-day both merge with others after Round 7. Busy person special: Play only rds 7-12 at 7:30 pm 8/10-15. Over 2399 starts with 4 pts, 2200-2399 3.5, Expert 3, Class A 2.5, Class B 2, Class C 1.5, Class D 1, Under 1200 0.5, Unrated 0.5. Time Control 40/2, SD/1 except 1st 7 rounds of 6-day schedule are G/60. The August rating list will be used. 1/2 point byes are available. Maximum 2 byes available rds. 1-10. Half-point byes available in round 1, and in any round if player would have been rated above opponent. Bye counts zero if player would have been rated below opponent. Round 2-9 byes must be requested at least 3 hours before round; round 10 byes must be requested before round 9 and are irrevocable. No byes last 2 rounds. Players may not receive more bye points during the first 6 rounds than the busy player score for their class.

Prizes
$55,000 unconditionally guaranteed - second largest ever prize fund ever at a U.S. Open. Top places: $8000-4000-3000-2000-1500-1200-1000-800-600-400.
Qualifier for the 2004 U.S. Invitational Championship.
2449-2300: $2000-1000. 2299-2200: $2000-1000.
Expert: $2000-1000-600-500-300.
Class A: $2000-1000-600-500-300.
Class B: $2000-1000-600-500-300.
Class C: $2000-1000-500-400-300.
Class D: $1500-1000-500-400-300.
Class E: $1000-500-400.
Under 1000: $1000-400.
Unrated: $1000-400.
Unrateds are ineligible for Expert through Under 1000 prizes.
Elegant trophy for each class winner.
Biggest upset by non-prizewinner: $100.
Best games: $200-100-100 (one reserved for non-master).

Registration

If mailed by 7/26 or paid by phone, fax or online with credit card by 7/30.
$190 Traditional
$189 Matinee 1st half
$187 8-day
$186 6-day
$185 Busy Player
On site $220.
Registration closes 2 hours before 1st round in each schedule.
USCF Membership is required and must be current. You may pay USCF membership with your entry or on site. Regular Adult Memberhip, $49/year includes CHESS LIFE (12 issues) Senior Membership Age 65 & over, $36/year includes CHESS LIFE (12 issues) Youth Membership Age 19 and under, $25/year includes CHESS LIFE (12 issues) Scholastic Membership Age 14 and under, $19/year, includes CHESS LIFE (5 issues + Yearbook) Other membership categories available. Advance entries must include player's name and all fees to be accepted. Mail Entries to
U.S. Open Championship
U.S. Chess Federation
3054 RTE 9W
New Windsor, NY 12553.
Make Checks payable to USCF.
To enter by phone call (800) 388-KING.
Secure On Line Registration will be available soon.
All entries received will be posted here.
Advance registration is strongly encouraged.