Tournaments
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10-year old Josh Colas over 2000!
Joshua Colas has been making progress since he began playing chess four years ago and got his first rating of 681. With a heavy dose of blitz and a bit of professional coaching, Colas has now broken the “Expert” barrier of 2000 rating points. This is a status above a…
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2009 Chicago Open underway!
GM Loek Van Wely vs. FM Jake Kleiman and GM Mesgan Amanov vs. GM Gabriel Sargissian. Photo by Daaim Shabazz. The 2009 Chicago Open has begun and a number of strong players are present. Top seed appears to be Armenia’s Gabriel Sargissian. He was spotted in St. Louis at the…
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Interview with Charles Lawton
Daaim Shabazz (The Chess Drum) and National Master Charles Lawton Charles Lawton has been playing chess for a few decades, but was pleasantly surprised when he got the call a couple of months ago inviting him to compete in the 2009 U.S. Chess Championship. His selection was on the basis…
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Relections of 2009 U.S. Championship
The St. Louis Arch during sunset hours. Although I only arrived in St. Louis on the last rest day of the U.S. Championship, I was able to experience two full days of the event. What a grand event! I primarily traveled to St. Louis for three reasons… (1) to support…
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Nakamura takes U.S. Crown!
Hikaru Nakamura came to St. Louis with a mission… qualify for the World Cup and to win his second U.S. Championship. In rousing fashion, Nakamura won his last game against the talented Josh Friedel to win the $40,000 prize and to solidify his status as one of world’s marquee players.…
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Spirit of St. Louis Chess!
Photos by Daaim Shabazz (Round #8) Following are images from the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of St. Louis. This venture was financed by Rex Sinquefield a retired investor and chess promoter. In the words of Robert Hess, this is arguably the best chessclub in the U.S. No quarter was…
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Caribbean Chess Carnival on tap!
Edison Raphael has been organizing tournaments in Trinidad for more than 20 years. Perhaps his crown achievement had been the GM tournament in 1990. It was the first GM norm tournament in the English-speaking Caribbean. He then organized the memorable Caribbean. During the recent Barbados Heroes Day Cup, both Andy…
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Was Lawton Ruling Unfair?
IM Enrico Sevillano vs. Charles Lawton in what would end in disaster. Photo by Larry Stendebach. Charles Lawton entered the 2009 U.S. Championship as a hometown favorite and a veteran player. His wildcard selection seemed to be a logical choice and gave recognition to a player who had been the…
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2009 U.S. Chess Championship (St. Louis, USA)
The U.S. chess community is gearing up for what promises to be an exciting tournament. The Chess Club and Scholastic Center of St. Louis plays host to the 2009 U.S. Chess Championship as 24 players will square off for the national crown. Gata Kamsky and Hikaru Nakamura will lead the…
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