On a brisk Saturday afternoon, the anticipation was intense as 45 chess enthusiasts all competed. Spread across 11 distinct sections, players of varying expertise brought their A-game, each eagerly fighting for supremacy on the 64 squares. This wasn't just another day of chess; it was a celebration of strategy, patience, and intellect. Dive with us into the intricate details of each section, the surprise moves, and the standout players that marked the day's intense battles. Welcome to our recap of Saturday's epic chess showdown!
Good Morning, Afternoon, or whatever time of day you're reading this. I am Mark Salama and I played in the Glen Rock August 12th chess tournament in section 9.
I would like to talk about my third and final game. Before the game I had calculated that either a win or a draw for me would result in me winning the quad. This was my most stressful game of the day. It was a back and forth battle that ended in a draw.
I played as black this game. It started with a London vs. Queen’s Gambit. My first inaccuracy was when I took on the d4 pawn on move 6, expecting white to take back with his pawn. Instead, white took with their knight, pressuring my pinned knight. Since I didn’t want to move my queen this early in the game, I moved my bishop back. I then traded off the no longer pinned knight and the bishop I had just moved, which was another mistake as it allowed my opponent to put his knight in a very dangerous spot for me, forcing me to move my rook. My opponent however slowed his attack down, so I took advantage of that and castled my king.
I tried to create an attack on move 19, threatening checkmate and a bishop on the next move, but it was short-lived. We ended up in a rook and bishop and 6 pawns vs rook and bishop and 5 pawns. However, I was able to win 2 pawns shortly after, and we agreed on a draw, winning me the quad. It was a great experience and everyone there was very nice. I will definitely be coming again.
Butterflies polluted my stomach before my first match. I was quite nervous for what was to come and rightfully so. I walked into the building and was greeted by my very good friend and companion, Jody Chen. Jody is a very strong chess player, standing at an approximate rating of 1500. Although I may have beaten him a few times, he was much higher in skill than I was. However I had to focus on my games and think about my opening preparation. I eased into it and was finally ready for the long three hours I was going to be sitting at the chess board for.
In my first game, I played as white. I already had the advantage. I pushed my e-pawn two squares forward. My opponent replied with e5 and from there we initiated the Giuoco Piano Game. My first ten moves were swift and I really didn’t have to think much about the opening as this was already in my prep. I learned quickly that I was able to win this game. I saw a move that could get me a pawn ahead. I decided to sacrifice my Knight for a pawn in the hopes that his Knight would capture mine. Unknowingly, my opponent did exactly as I had pleased. I then pushed my d-pawn forward and forked his Bishop and Knight. I ended up taking his bishop. I improved my position with pace as I tried my best to trade down a lot of my pieces to simplify the board. Sadly, Adrian made the blunder of playing the move h5, in which I was able to capitalize my advantage and find M2 quickly. First match ended with a textbook checkmate on the side of the board.
My next match was against Nicolas who had just won his previous match. Nicolas started off with e5 and I replied with the Sicilian. Eventually, I played g6 and we played the Sicilian Dragon. I had an early lead as I once again forked his pieces but was left in a tricky position. Eventually, I was two pawns up in an eager-to-win endgame. We shuffled our pieces back and forth. I noticed that Nicolas was low on time and tried to use this to my advantage. I slowly started to secure my win. At one point though, I moved my Queen to A1, thinking that I was checking his King. However, it slowly came to my realization that I had moved my Queen one square too far. I already picked my hand up and my opponent realized this mistake as well. I called the arbiter over and asked him if I was allowed to move my Queen back. Regrettably, I was not. If this vital mistake didn’t occur, maybe the outcome may have been different. Nicolas offered a draw numerous times yet I overlooked the fact that a draw may be the best option. I slowly lost three of my pawns after a number of moves and he ended up forking my King and Queen with his Queen. This forced me to take his queen. There were a number of people watching us two battle our love for chess and our desires to win out. In the end, it was his two pawns against my one pawn. I hoped that he would blunder and we could draw. I panicked that I would lose this game and gave my last pawn away in a trade and he ended up mating me with his queen. From two pawns up to being checkmated in a matter of minutes. I couldn’t really be upset about the match at the time as I had to get ready for my next match.
My final match was not as thrilling as this previous one. I yearned for a good, fair win. The only way I was able to get any sum of money was if I won this game and Nicolas lost. I played the Sicilian once more and this time my opponent played the Alpine Sicilian (The c3 Sicilian). This game was off to a rapid start as I made all of the right moves with ease, forking his King and Bishop. I was an entire Bishop up already. I traded many of my pieces, similar to how I did in the first match. I stole his rook from him and he resigned. This match was not as tense as my other ones but it sure did make me happy.
I opened the door to find my dad standing outside, waiting for me. I asked him if I could stay until the match between Adrian and Nicolas was concluded. He agreed and to my surprise, Adrian was winning! Adrian quickly pushed his pawns. Because Nicolas was low on time, he had to act fast. Adrian tipped the lead over just enough to secure the victory by promoting two queens and delivering checkmate with ease. Before this game, I kindly asked Adrian to really try his best to beat Nicolas for the reason of me splitting the money with Nicolas. I was confident in my skills to beat Alex, (my third match opponent), and did so with ease.
All in all, I was indeed satisfied with both mine and Adrian’s performances yet I was able to reflect on the fact that I really should have done better in the second match. The lesson I took back today was that even though the odds may be stacked against me, it doesn’t take away from the fact that once in a while I will still have a little bit of luck up my sleeve.
My name is Rayan and I would like to tell you about section 6 at ICA quads on August 12. This has been a good tournament! The result was not certain until the last game was over and I anxiously waited for it! However, in the end I got to split the first place prize. I had a great time playing all my games.
In the first game my opponent made a blunder which led me to win it in 35 moves. The second game I drew in 23 moves. And the last game just took me 18 moves to win. As a result I got 2.5 points.
I would like to explain my first game where I sac my rook in the beginning to win the opponent's queen. He accepted the rook sacrifice and I won his queen! I thought this move was brilliant. To my delight, when I analyzed my game on chess.com that move was indeed brilliant! I am glad that I have learnt this rook sacrifice.
Hi, my name is Kian and Saturday is my favorite day of the week because I get to play at ICA quads!!! The result is always hard to predict but I always play my best! I really hope that I can be a World Champion in the future. This time I got to play in section 4. I got a perfect score of 3 out 3 and I was thrilled!
First game I played was against Coen Cui. And I have played him before! Unlike last time when I drew him, this time I won! He played well and then I blundered a tactic that would trap my Knight in the late middle game. However, he was under time pressure and missed it. Then we traded Queens and I won a pawn. Then we traded rooks and the minor pieces and it made it a rook endgame. There I won a second pawn. Then we traded all the pawns and I ended up winning with an extra 2 pawns.
But the game I liked the most was the game against Yuvanti. I was white, and it was an Italian opening that set me to a good start.
To my delight, she made an inaccuracy on move 7. I responded to a false tactic by sacrificing my Knight for a pawn thinking of capturing her Knight. I did not realize she could take my Knight with one of her Knights. If I took her Knight on h5 back, she could tra my Queen. Fortunately, she missed the opportunity and I was up a pawn. Then I took her Knight on c6 and she did not take back, instead she threatened a checkmate. I sacrificed my Knight back with a check to distract her Queen so I could defend my King side. In turn, she did not accept this move and moved her King to h8. I moved my Queen to f3 to stop the checkmate. After trapping my Queen I counterattacked her Queen with h4. If she took my Pawn on h4 I would have taken her Knight on f4. After trading Queens she blundered the exchange and I was up a Rook. She had to sac a Bishop not to lose her Rook. From then on I was able to win the game. Every mistake by my opponent allowed me to advance in my position and in the end I won.
Even though I don't always win my quads I find the experience of playing over the board rewarding. It motivates me to play over the board tournaments. I also try to learn from my mistakes so I don't make the same mistake next time I play.
My name is Rishith Bhoopathi and I am very dedicated to my goal of becoming a grandmaster. I am in 4th Grade. I played in the August 12th Glen Rock Quads Tournament.
My third game was the most exciting. I got white and played the Stonewall Attack, my secret weapon. The game was 46 moves long. In the opening, I got an extra pawn and eventually got my opponent’s rook. I traded off material until I finished the game with a queen and rook checkmate. My opponent played a tough battle, but even the smallest mistakes can lead to losses.
Although I didn’t win first place in my section, I am still proud of myself for my preparation which helped me win 2 games. I am glad I have played in many ICA tournaments because I was able to learn and analyze my games, so I don’t repeat my mistakes.
My name is Yujeong and I won the Section 2 Glenrock Quads on 8/12/23 with a score of 2.5/3. The game I think the most exciting was the first game against Sahana.
I started off with the Queen’s Pawn Opening. I got good development early as Sahana played an offbeat sideline with b6 and a6. The game started to lean towards Sahana more and more as I let her play c5 and Nc3 creating a bad isolated pawn. In the middlegame, we traded knights. Shortly after that, my opponent played queen to d7 blundering a pawn for free. From there, I slowly advanced my pieces to prepare for pushing my connected passed pawn in the c - file. But out of nowhere, I accidentally blundered a bishop when I played Qf3. My opponent could’ve played Ra3 pinning my bishop to my queen and then Bxd5 but instead, Sahana played Re8. After that, it was smooth sailing. I simplified the position creating two connected passed pawns and trading queens. From there, I pushed my pawns to make a queen and checkmate my opponent.
The Glen Rock Quads tournament was an exhausting but rewarding experience. While I started off feeling tired and dizzy, the breaks between games gave me the opportunity to rest, refresh and refuel. It was great to see my friend Ethan (last week) and my coach Juno, who offered me invaluable guidance and support. Overall, I had a great time and I'm looking forward to competing again next week.
Congratulations to all winners: click HERE to view rating reports!
Our next Quads will be held next Saturday, August 19. Click HERE to register!
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Section 9 Report: by Mark Salama
Section 8 Report by Shane Lai
SECTION 6 REPORT: by Rayan Zarineh
SECTION 4 REPORT: by Kian Zarineh
SECTION 3 REPORT: by Rishith Bhoopathi
Section 2 Report: by Yujeong Yeo
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