Monday, October 28, 2013

Cecil's Saturday Puzzle - October 19, 2013

from the Winnipeg Free Press
White to mate in 2 (Mansfield)
This may be cooked.
1. Ng6 and
1. Qh6 apparently are valid.
and Steve additionally points out that 1.Ng2 works also.

Update: Nov 2.  I have tracked down the original problem, published in the American Chess Bulletin, 1942. The pawn on g3 should be a bishop.
White to mate in 2 (Mansfield)

Sunday, October 20, 2013

2013 Albert Boxer Memorial Tournament - Sunday, October 27


Albert Boxer Memorial Chess Tournament
University of Winnipeg  -  Room 4CM42
One day Rapid event!
6 rounds of Game 20 / + 10 second delay (Bronstein)

Registration starts at ~ 9:40AM - First Round 10 a.m

We should be finished around 4 p.m. at the latest
(Note: Late entry will be allowed up to Round 4 - with up to two 1/2 points byes for rounds missed.

Entry Fee: $ 15   - [Free entry to those who have never played in a MCA tournament]
All entry fees returned as prizes.
CFC Membership not required.
Manitoba Active Rating will be used.

.For additional information please email chessmanitoba  at gmail.com


Bronstein Mode:
 With the Bronstein timing method, time is always added after. Up to 10 seconds  will be added to your clock as soon asyou have made your move and pressed the Time Control Button ie, after you have made a move.
 Example: Player A thinks, makes a move and presses the Time Control Button in 5
seconds. Only 5 seconds is added to player A's countdown clock after the
move has been made.
OR
Player A thinks, makes a move and presses the top button in 10 seconds
or more. Only 10 seconds is added to player A's countdown clock after the
move has been made.

Saturday, October 12, 2013

2014 Manitoba Championship Qualifying Update

2014 Manitoba Championship Qualifying -

Manitoba Closed 2014 format : 8 player knockout 

(Note: on February 23, 2013 the MCA board approved the adding up to two spots to the the Manitoba Championship at discretion of the Board; if the Board add the two spots, qualifiers 7 and 8  (ordered by CFC rating, along with the new 2 additions will play in a preliminary knockout round, producing two winners who then play with the top six qualifiers by CFC rating) 

Qualifiers -
Qualifiers must play 10 standard rated games (somewhere in the world) during calendar 2013 in order to qualify. In order of preference - if the qualifying player did not want to participate or the qualifier is redundant, we continued down the list until there were 8 willing participants.

     1. Previous Year's Champion (TREVOR VINCENT)
     2. Winner of the Reserve (non scheduled this year thus far)
     3. MB Junior Champion (if rated above 1900)
     4. Top Manitoban in AY Memorial (TREVOR VINCENT)
     5,6. Top 2 finishers in the Tournament of Champions (Nov-Dec)
     7. Player with the best MTPPS (Modified Tournament Performance Point Score)
     8. Player with the 2nd best MTPPS (Modified Tournament Performance Point Score)
     9. 2nd Manitoban in the AY Memorial (KEVIN GENTES (on tiebreak)
    10. Player with the 3rd best MTPPS 
    11. Player with the 4th best MTPPS 
    12. etc.from the MTPPS

MTPSS -  Modified Tournament Performance Point Score
MTPPS is calculated as follows:
A Loss = 0 points
A Draw = the rating of the opponent
A Win = the greater of [your opponent's rating + 200] or [your rating]

The top ten performance scores for each player are counted
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The current top MTPPS scores are as follows:
(Tournaments scored included all Manitoba CFC Standard rated tournaments, Canadian Open, Canadian  US National Open, US Open, Israeli Tournament) If you believe a result has been missed or is incorrect, please contact me.




Total Games with a result
1
Trevor Vincent       23,653 10
2
Samuel Lipnowski       22,746 10
3
Jeff Babb       22,609 10
4
Les Mundwiler       21,818 10
5
Gustavo Melamedoff       21,484 10
6
Myron Kernetsky       21,158 10
7
Leor Wasserman       21,112 10
8
Waldemar Schulz       21,012 10
9
Ryne Swift       20,819 10
10
Anthony Boron       20,626 10
11
Steven De Groot       20,533 10
12
Gustav L Baron       20,421 10
13
Aaron Green       19,761 10
14
Jim Green       19,756 10
15
Blair Rutter       19,688 10
16
Alex Platt       19,547 10
17
Theo Wolchock       18,374 10

Thursday, October 10, 2013

Cecil's Saturday Puzzle - October 5, 2013

from the Winnipeg Free Press
White to mate in 2 (Schuld)
1. Nc2

Sunday, October 6, 2013

Brooklyn Castle on PBS October 7

Brooklyn Castle should be on Shaw Channel 81 Monday, Oct 7, 9:00pm ( I believe this may be Ch 348 on MTS)

http://www.pbs.org/pov/brooklyncastle/

Brooklyn’s I.S. 318 junior high school fits one inner-city stereotype—a majority of its students come from below-the-poverty-line families. All other expectations, as shown in the new documentary Brooklyn Castle, should be checked at the door. Beginning in 2000, under the tutelage of chess teacher and coach Elizabeth Spiegel and assistant principal and chess coordinator John Galvin, I.S. 318 expanded its small chess program and began competing in national tournaments. For those keeping score, the results have been stunning: more than 30 national chess titles, including, in 2012, the U.S. High School National Championship, a first for a junior high.