All Fpawn Masters - Peak USCF Rating

Future Grandmasters Daniel Naroditsky and Steven Zierk
at 2008 CalChess Scholastic Championships

1. GM Daniel Naroditsky 2738 - became NM in 2007
2. GM Steven Zierk 2608 - became NM in 2008
3. IM Yian Liou 2502 - became NM in 2009
4. FM Gregory Young 2477 - becamw NM in 2007
5. IM Gabriel Bick 2475 - became NM in 2015
6. NM Daniel Schwarz 2370 - became NM in 2006
7. NM Kirk Ghazarian 2321 - became NM in 2018
8. NM Richard Yi 2290 - became NM in 2017
9. NM Matt Zavortink 2279 - became NM in 2017
10. NM Nicholas Karas 2273 - became NM in 2012
11. NM Neel Apte 2244 - became NM in 2015
12. NM Evan Sandberg 2242 - became NM in 2010
13. NM Daniel Liu 2214 - became NM in 2012
14. NM Michael Lin 2213 - became NM in 2013
15. NM Joshua Cao 2202 - became NM in 2017

• Peak USCF Rating Updated May 2020.
• Students took private lessons for at least 6 months.
• Includes results achieved after we stopped lessons.
• A teacher merely lays the foundation and cultivates love for chess. Ultimate success depends on personal effort and motivation. Elite students often study with several coaches, all who deserve credit.

IM Daniel Naroditsky Wins US Junior

IM Daniel Naroditsky in Saint Louis.  Photo credit: CCSCSL

The Bay Area star IM Daniel Naroditsky clinched the 2013 US Junior Invitational with a dominating final round victory against MIT student Robert Perez.  The California master benefited from vast experience far beyond his peers, remaining undefeated and in control throughout the championship at the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis.  Danya won two games with white and two with black, and calmly drew against all of his closest competitors.  Even the tense moments passed within a few moves, leaving the audience to wonder if there was ever any doubt.

Thanks to IM John Donaldson at the Mechanics' Institute for pointing out that Daniel is the third Bay Area star to win the US Junior in four years!  He joins 2010 champ IM Sam Shankland (now a GM) and 2011 winner NM Gregory Young.  Our hopes remain high for future years, especially for 12 year old Sam Sevian who shared second place this year, just 0.5 behind.

In the following contest, Daniel attacks his opponent's IQP and wins an instructive battle.  

10 year old Daniel at 2006 CalChess Scholastics.  He went 5-1
in a K-12 section won by NMs Daniel Schwarz and Drake Wang.

Having conquered his peers, Daniel plans to spend the summer before his senior year at Crystal Springs Uplands School playing chess in Spain and Latvia.  His goal: earn the elusive final norm for the Grandmaster title.  His first two GM norms came at Villa de Benasque two summers ago and the Philadelphia Open this past March.  Good luck Danya!

Check out the official Naroditsky chess website for the latest exciting tournament news.  How many high school students can boast of two published books on their college applications?  Danya can!  Indeed, all of us can learn from Mastering Complex Endgames, a thorough instructional work published last year.  For someone with so many different talents, only the sky is the limit.

US Junior Kicks Off on Friday

IM Daniel Naroditsky

FM Yian Liou

IM-elect Sam Sevian

For yet another year, the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis will generously host many of the top juniors in the country, including a trio from Northern California.  The 2013 US Junior Closed returns to its traditional format of a 10-player round-robin at the leisurely pace of one round each day.  The players compete for a $10,000 prize fund and a coveted spot in the next US Championship.

The 10 invitees comprise quite a competitive field, with average rating of 2469 USCF and 2361 FIDE.  Three hold the International Master title, plus another 2 are IM-elect after fulfilling the norm requirements without the minimum 2400 FIDE rating.  The top 9 players are separated by only 120 points, meaning that literally anyone could catch fire and finish first.  Recent history even supports that possibility, since NM Greg Young dominated in 2011 as the eighth seed.

Participants in 2013 US Junior Closed

1. IM Daniel Naroditsky (CA-N, age 17) 2558 USCF, 2494 FIDE
2. IM Kayden Troff (UT, 14) 2528, 2443
3. NM Robert Perez (FL, 17) 2521, 2359
4. IM Victor Shen (NJ, 20) 2511, 2411
5. IM-elect Jeffery Xiong (TX, 12) 2496, 2370
6. FM Yian Liou (CA-N, 15) 2469, 2385 
7. FM Atulya Shetty (MI, 17) 2465, 2320
8. IM-elect Sam Sevian (CA-N, 12) 2464, 2390
9. FM Luke Harmon-Vellotti (ID, 14) 2441, 2340
10. WFM Sarah Chiang (TX, 16) 2234, 2101

This championship features a diverse crop of young chess masters.  Two attend prestigious universities (Robert at MIT and Victor at Columbia) and a third (Luke) has been admitted to UCLA for the fall.  Two more (Daniel and Atulya) will begin their senior year of high school.  On the other hand, the two 12-year old prodigies (Jeffery and Sam) have yet to start high school.  Of course, age and education make little difference once the games begin.

Three Bay Area stars were invited for this national championship.  Top ranked Daniel Naroditsky brings vast experience to the board for every round.  Two GM norms leave him on the cusp of the highest title in professional chess.  Incredibly, 17-year old Daniel also authored two chess books, which have received positive reviews on both sides of the Atlantic.  Yian Liou begins his first US Junior in the middle of the field, both by age and rating.  He won the 2010 US Cadet and, more recently, earned his second IM norm at North American Open last December (scoring 50% against 4 GMs and 2 IMs).  The youngest California representative, Sam Sevian, has amassed experience far beyond his years.  In addition to winning World Youth U12 last November and completing all three IM norms, Sam participated in the US Championship itself just a month ago!   Will one of the local boys bring home the Bay Area's second Junior title in three years (after Greg in 2011).

The tournament kicks off with an Opening Ceremony on Thursday evening and round 1 on Friday.  All rounds begin at 11:00am Pacific time, except the last one on Sunday, June 23.  The organizers plan to offer live coverage with commentary by Grandmasters Yasser Seirawan and Ben Finegold.  Stay tuned for plenty of crazy tactics and even some subtle positional play!

NorCal Top Players - December 2012

World U12 gold medalist Sam Sevian

The following two lists show the top masters who are currently active and live in Northern California.  I exempted local juniors who attend college out of state from the residency requirement.  Both USCF and FIDE ratings are official as of December 2012.  Please contact me if I may have overlooked someone.

Here are some broad observations.  Not surprisingly, the twin rankings include almost all of the same players.  In fact, the only exceptions are SM Gregory Kotlyar (#19 USCF) and IM Elliott Winslow (#15 FIDE).  Nobody can doubt who the most active titled player is on the Bay Area scene: IM Ricardo DeGuzman.  Now that former World U18 champions GM Sam Shankland and IM Steven Zierk attend college in Massachusetts, only four star juniors remain: former World U12 champion IM Daniel Naroditsky, former US U20 (Junior) champion SM Greg Young, current World U12 champion SM Sam Sevian and former US U16 (Cadet) champion FM Yian Liou.  All four are concentrating on earning GM/IM norms and none has played locally in half a year.  However, Greg, Sam and Yian all participated in the Metropolitan Chess International in Los Angeles last August.
 

	NORCAL TOP 20 USCF			NORCAL TOP 20 FIDE
1	GM Shankland, Sam	2684		GM Shankland, Sam	2595
2	GM DeFirmian, Nick	2575		GM DeFirmian, Nick	2510
3	IM Naroditsky, Daniel	2553		IM Naroditsky, Daniel	2483
4	GM Browne, Walter	2524		IM Zierk, Steven	2477
5	IM Zierk, Steven	2519		GM Browne, Walter	2448
6	FM De La Cruz, Alfredo	2488		IM DeGuzman, Ricardo	2400
7	IM Zilberstein, Dmitry	2468		SM Sharma, Arun	2391
8	SM Sharma, Arun	2467		IM Zilberstein, Dmitry	2390
9	SM Young, Greg	2467		IM Donaldson, John	2390
10	SM Sevian, Sam	2451		FM Strugatsky, Vladimir	2390
11	FM Chumachenko, Andrey	2435		SM Young, Greg	2367
12	FM Liou, Yian	2432		IM Pruess, David	2363
13	IM Pruess, David	2431		FM Liou, Yian	2352
14	IM Mezentsev, Vladimir	2429		IM Mezentsev, Vladimir	2352
15	IM DeGuzman, Ricardo	2423		IM Winslow, Elliott	2348
16	IM Kaufman, Raymond	2422		IM Kaufman, Raymond	2345
17	FM Strugatsky, Vladimir	2421		SM Sevian, Sam	2343
18	IM Donaldson, John	2408		FM Chumachenko, Andrey	2327
19	SM Kotlyar, Gregory	2402		FM De La Cruz, Alfredo	2318
20	NM Ishkhanov, Tigran	2364		NM Ishkhanov, Tigran	2306

CalChess FIDE Rated Juniors - September 2011

Beware the 5th grade master!

When I earned my first international rating in January 2000, the recognition was more of rare bird than it is today, especially for non-masters and juniors.  Starting out at 2054, my FIDE actually dropped to 2011, barely above the absolute floor of 2000 back then.  My USCF rating bounced around 2100 at the time.

I participated in a handful of "Futurity" events at the Mechanic's Institute, intended for players to earn a published FIDE rating.  Only a handful of elite juniors were invited.  Consequently, I doubt that more than five kids in the Bay Area could boast of their world ranking at any one time.   

Fast forward to 2011...

CalChess FIDE Rated Juniors
(September 2011 FIDE ratings)

1. IM Daniel Naroditsky 2472
2. NM Gregory Young 2368
3. NM Yian Liou 2283
4. NM Samuel Sevian 2180
5. Daniel Liu 2063
6. Kyle Shin 2046
7. Siddharth Banik 2034
8. Arthur Liou 2024
9. Jack Zhu 1996
10. Cameron Wheeler 1962
11. Kesav Viswanadha 1938
12. Udit Iyengar 1917
13. Ojas Chinchwadkar 1915
14. Vignesh Panchanatham 1902
15. Allan Beilin 1899

Things certainly changed in a decade!  An amazing 15 youngsters are currently ranked, even after four graduated this past June.  Eight sport a FIDE rating over 2000.  With fellow World Youth gold medalist Steven Zierk now a freshman at MIT, Daniel Naroditsky lays an undisputed claim to the rank of 600 lb gorilla in Bay Area scholastic chess.

Reigning US Junior champion Gregory Young bounced up 72 points in the first half of 2011 before returning to his retirement due to school and basketball.  Hopefully he will submit the necessary paperwork and fee for the FM title that he duly earned by breaking 2300 FIDE.  Last year's US Cadet co-champion Yian Liou lurks within striking distance of FM as well, needing just one or two good tournaments.

After this trio of talented high school players, 10 of the remaining 12 local kids are in middle or elementary school!  Moving up from just below 2200 is Samuel Sevian, the country's youngest master ever (based on USCF rating).  The bottom six players on the Bay Area rankings may still be below 2000, but I bet they will shoot up quickly considering they all are in 5th or 6th grade (except Ojas Chinchwadkar).

Bay Area Showdown in St. Louis

(Photo from the website of the St. Louis chess club, host and sponsor for the US Junior.)

FRIDAY UPDATE: Gregory Young won round 8 to clinch clear first! Congrats!!

Thursday's showdown between Bay Area stars IM Daniel Naroditsky (white) and NM Gregory Young was easily the most critical pairing of the US Junior Invitational to date. Gregory took the early lead, 0.5 points ahead of his rival. By winning, Gregory extended the lead to 1.5 points with just two rounds left.

Click here to play through the moves. Danya set up the Maroczy bind against Greg's accelerated Dragon, deviating at move 11 from Giri - Tiviakov (Unive 2010). The placement of the white rooks (Rad1) is a central theme to this opening. By move 24, black achieved a small tactical advantage on the queenside. Amazingly, the black queen doesn't get trapped! The resulting opposite color bishops endgame was difficult to hold because of white's weaker pawn structure (down a pawn) and black's active pieces.

Despite the lead, Gregory can't rest yet. His final two opponents, FM Warren Harper and FM Victor Shen are both rated over 2400 and eager to play spoiler. In fact, seven of the ten players still have a mathematical chance to win the championship, should the leader slip. 


Final Standings

• 7.5 NM Gregory Young --2011 US Junior Champion
• 5.5 IM Conrad Holt, FM Victor Shen and FM Alec Getz
• 5.0 IM Daniel Naroditsky, FM John Bryant and FM Warren Harper
• 3.0 NM Kayden Troff
• 2.0 NM Jialin Ding
• 1.0 NM Raven Sturt

Bay Area Stars at US Junior

For the second summer in a row, the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of St. Louis has hosted and sponsored the U.S. Junior Invitational for 10 of the top American juniors under age 21. This club, generously funded by Rex Sinquefield, has quickly grown into the most exciting new venue in the nation. The past two U.S. Championships were held here, attracting most of the elite players of the country. No doubt, many of the juniors attending this week dream to join the big boys in the near future. In fact, the U.S. Junior champion earns an invitation to both the World Junior and next year's U.S. Championship!

Previous winners of the U.S. Junior include GM Bobby Fischer, GM Larry Christiansen, GM Patrick Wolff, IM Joshua Waitzkin, GM Tal Shaked, GM Hikaru Nakamura, GM Robert Hess, GM Ray Robson and last year's winner, GM Sam Shankland. Bay Area talent Shankland made the most of his opportunity at this spring's U.S. Championship, reaching the semifinals before being knocked out by the repeating champion GM Gata Kamsky.

The field of the 2011 Junior features 8 of the top 16 rated on the June Top 100 list for U21. However, the three Grandmasters ranked at the top (Hess, Robson and Shankland) all declined their invitations, perhaps because they each won at least once before. That left 15 year old IM Daniel Naroditsky, rated 2536 USCF, as the top seed. In a bizarre twist, one of the bottom half players actually tied for 1st in the 2008 U.S. Junior (see photo at top of post). The lucky guy holding the trophy was my longtime student NM Gregory Young, now 16 years old. Please join me in cheering loudly for the two Bay Area representatives in St. Louis, Danya and Greg!

My two former students face eight competitors from across the country: three from NY/NJ, two from Texas, plus one each from Utah, Kansas and the host state Missouri. One of the Texans is #2 seed FM John Bryant, formerly from Southern California, but now attending college. One of two Midwestern players, #3 seed Conrad Holt of Kansas, officially became an IM merely two weeks ago. And the youngest participant is 13 year old NM Kayden Troff of Utah, who picked up his first IM norm recently.

Check out the tournament schedule. The rounds begin at 11am Pacific time and are broadcast live on the chess club website using the MonRoi system. Also make sure to listen to the live broadcast by GM Ben Finegold and FM Aviv Friedman. Unfortunately, there is no coverage on ICC.

New York Times: One Coach, Many Young Champions

Chess Column - 2/13/11
by Dylan Loeb McClain

In the last five years, two Americans have won world youth championships: Daniel Naroditsky, who took the under-12 title in 2007, and Steven Zierk, the under-18 champion last year.

Both are from Northern California, and at one point or another, they both had the same coach, Michael Aigner.

They are not the only chess champions who have been trained by Aigner. Others include Gregory Young, who tied for first in the 2008 United States Junior Championship, and Yian Liou, who tied for first in the United States Cadet Championship (for players under 16) last year. He has also coached Saratoga High School to six straight California chess titles.

Aigner, 36, is a master, and he sees his role as trying to raise his students to his level, after which they often move on to stronger coaches.

Click on this link to read the full article.

Spending the Holidays Playing Chess in Las Vegas!

Howdy from Bally's Hotel and Casino on the world famous Las Vegas Strip. Las Vegas baby!

Considering all of the other entertainment alternatives, it is hard to imagine over 600 players at a chess tournament with games lasting 4 to 6 hours each. The annual North American Open attracts a broad spectrum of players: chess professionals, casual gamblers, hobbyists seeking a vacation, young children with their families, and of course chess nuts. Grandmasters rub elbows with novices. Despite the talk about Americans curtailing their travel due to the recession, this year's attendance actually seems to be about 10% higher than 2008! By my count, about 25-30 players either flew or drove from Northern California.

• Official website with standings and photos
• Follow the top boards on MonRoi (free registration)
  
• Daily updates on Fpawn's Twitter
• Watch for stories on Chess Life Online
  

I am watching closely my folk of nine current and former students. (Photo at top right: students Steven, Evan and Kyle chat.) No fewer than six play with the big boys in the Open section (not really surprising since four are masters). I hope to update the highlights list below whenever I have free time between rounds.

• Danya 3.0/3 -- beat GM Sundarajan Kidambi of India (see photo at top left)
  
• Steven 2.5/3
  
• Yian 2.0/3 -- two consecutive draws vs 2400+ rated FMs
• Greg 2.0/3 -- drew with GM Victor Mikhalevski of Israel (see photo at right)
• Fpawn 1.5/3 -- got crushed by GM Mesgen Amanov
  

How Kiddie Became an All Star!

The 2009 US Chess League season drew to a close with the Championship match on December 7. The New York Knights, behind GM Giorgi Kacheishvili on board 1, knocked off the Miami Sharks in a thrilling blitz playoff that ended after 1:00 in the morning Eastern time. Unfortunately, the San Francisco Mechanics (team photo above) were eliminated from the playoffs in the semifinals by longtime nemesis Miami.

Over the past two weeks, the league announced its post-season All Star teams. Only twelve players earned this distinction out of 122 listed on the unofficial league rating list. In past seasons, the Mechanics were led by their well-known stars GM Josh Friedel, GM Vinay Bhat and IM Sam Shankland. However, this year Mechanics unveiled a secret weapon, and en route the playoff semifinals, unsuspecting opponents were left moaning "Yawn, Who?"

Having seen him in action, I think few would question that 12 year old NM Yian Liou deserved his spot as the 3rd Team All Star for Board 4. Yian definitely was San Francisco's MVP! While the regulars on boards 1-3 were busy traveling to Europe for tournaments, the always cheerful middle school student (photo by Shorman at top left) played 10 out of 12 rounds, scoring 65% against opposition that included one International Master, one Senior Master and eight masters in all. He defeated IM Mehmed Pasalic of Chicago in a back and forth middlegame and then outwitted 2008 All Star WFM Bayaraa Zorigt of Dallas in an endgame study! Despite losing in the pivotal semifinal round, "Kiddie" finished with a mind-boggling 2360 performance, significantly higher than his 2226 USCF rating. In addition to being named an All Star, Yian was also a serious contender for the USCL's Rookie of the Year.

Certainly, this far exceeded what team captain IM John Donaldson had in mind last July when he emailed me if I knew a suitable junior to add to this year's Mechanics roster. Ironically, I was in Agoura Hills, playing at the Pacific Coast Open. I wrote back to John:

This one is easy! Yian Liou was 2019 in September 2008 and is exactly 2200 after today's games in Agoura Hills. He is tied for 2nd after four rounds against 2300+ average opposition. He showed me some of his games a few minutes ago and I was impressed how he squeezed IM Edward Formanek as white and then drew a pawn down endgame against NM Garush Manukyan with black.

After recruiting a young player who could hold his own more than 300 points above his official league rating (2019 on September 2008 rating list), captain Donaldson submitted an unusual team roster. Given the league's rating limit of 2400, San Francisco was left with only two options for board 4; Yian plus alternate NM Greg Young who, per rules, could play no more than twice. This strategy could easily have backfired, but it allowed the Mechanics to rotate its six titled players to match their busy travel schedules.

So how did a precocious and unknown youngster from the Bay Area find so much success in the country's professional chess league? Yes, Yian is ranked #2 for his age in the nation and he won the CalChess High School Championship last year as a sixth grader, defeating the 2300+ rated defending champion in the final round. Perhaps unknown to the country, Yian already made waves here in California.

Most importantly, Yian took each week seriously like a class in school. He prepared for every opponent, both with Chessbase (see photo at right) and by reviewing opening material from his stronger teammates. Having always been creative in the middlegame and competent in the endgame, the time spent on openings made the biggest difference. I am sure that Yian will benefit from these hours of preparation in many future tournaments--but hopefully not against me!

Yian also benefited from analysis with the team's Grandmasters. Usually sporting a wide smile, "Kiddie" quickly became the club favorite. IM John Donaldson described it best in one of the Mechanics Institute's chess newsletters: "Seeing GM Patrick Wolff patiently explaining the intricacies of an ending to Yian in a post mortem was watching the knowledge of a great player of the past being transferred to a future star right before my eyes." Not only did the 12 year old star contribute to his team's success, but the experience should help propel him to even higher chess goals. Some other teams seem to have already copied this strategy, most notably New Jersey and Arizona.

What does the future hold for the San Francisco Mechanics? IM Sam Shankland (new website!) attends Brandeis University next fall; and I'm sure the Boston Blitz will gladly accept the services of a near-Grandmaster. The loss hurts, but the Bay Area has a deep pool of GMs and IMs. Likely the strongest lineup for captain Donaldson next season will feature two titled players plus two kids. I quietly hope that, one day we will see a GM and three elite juniors: GM Josh Friedel, FM Danya Naroditsky, NM Greg Young and NM Yian Liou. The youngsters need to improve by about 50 points each for this lineup to be competitive.

That beckons a final question: Who will be the Mechanics' secret weapon next year? I can think of at least four juniors that may fit the requirements: rated under 2100 in September 2009 yet having sufficient potential to play at master level by next summer. We shall see!

Shankland and Kraai Draw Top Honors

IM Sam Shankland and GM Jesse Kraai shared first at 4.5/6 in the CalChess State Championship, held at a new venue in Santa Clara. Shankland (photo at left) had superior tiebreaks and earned the title for the second year in a row. Congratulations Sam!! Still a teenager, "Shanky" now has two adult trophies at home; although in a bit of an irony, he never won the CalChess Scholastic Championships!

The winners faced stiff competition from IM Ricardo DeGuzman, IM Dmitry Zilberstein and two teenagers: FM Steven Zierk and NM Greg Young. DeGuzman, Zierk and Young tied for third at 4.0/6, with Young claiming top U2300 honors as well. One interesting tidbit: Shankland, Kraai, DeGuzman and Zierk completed a quad amongst themselves, drawing every single game. (Photo of Shankland versus Kraai at top right.) With a performance over 2600 for his last 12 rated games, Zierk (photo at right) will break 2400 USCF.

The tournament attracted 153 players, almost all from the San Francisco Bay Area. Organizer Salman Azhar of BayAreaChess.com paid out 100% of the $8,100 advertised prize fund, even though it was based on 166 paid entries. In a sure sign of the future, at least 60% of the players were kids, including a majority of the prize winners. And here's one unusual sight: a WIM and a FM played *up* in the Expert section!?

• Final crosstables and Prize winners
• USCF rating report
• Fpawn's Slideshow on Flickr
• Awesome Photos by Richard Shorman
  

State Champions!

• Master: IM Sam Shankland and GM Jesse Kraai; U2300: NM Greg Young
  
• Expert: Karim Seada
• Class A: James Kwok
• Class B: Thadeus Frei (6-0!!)
  
• Class C: Jonathan Uesato and Udit Iyengar
• Class D/E: Leyton Ho; U1200: Rupa Gudiseva
  

US Chess League Semifinals: San Francisco vs Miami

In recent years, the San Francisco Bay Area sports franchises have not performed well. The A's 49ers, Raiders, Warriors and Earthquakes all try to out-stink each other. At least the Giants and Sharks have been competitive of late, although the hockey team seems allergic to winning playoff matches. College sports fans may look forward to the 112th Big Game, although few would have predicted before the season that Stanford, not Cal, has a chance to play in the Rose Bowl. Go Stanford! Beat Cal!!

Fortunately, at least one San Francisco franchise has made the playoffs for five straight seasons! Congratulations to the Mechanics, competing in the US Chess League, for making local fans proud. The Mechanics finished at 6.5-3.5 in the regular season standings, earning second place in the competitive Western Division.

Featuring four strong Grandmasters and three International Masters each with two GM norms, the team has strength and depth unparalleled in the league. This season, the Mechanics' captain IM John Donaldson submitted four different lineups featuring Grandmasters on both boards 1 and 2: Josh Friedel + Jesse Kraai (see photo at left), Patrick Wolff + Kraai, Wolff + Vinay Bhat and Kraai + Bhat. In fact, the 2469 rated lineup of Friedel, Kraai, IM Sam Shankland and NM Yian Liou likely was the strongest in the history of the league, at least by numbers.

However, the formula of success for the San Francisco team always has been the play of talented (and underrated) juniors on boards 3 and 4. This year's roster included four members age 18 or younger: IM Shankland, FM Daniel Naroditsky, NM Gregory Young and NM Yian Liou (see photo at right). The first three were veterans, having participated already in previous years. Newcomer Yian Liou, the #2 ranked 12 year old in the nation, turned out to be the team's star! Playing in all but two weeks, Yian scored 6.5 out of 9 for a performance rating of 2412, including wins against IM Mehmed Pasalic of Chicago and WFM Bayaraa Zorigt of Dallas.

Tonight, the Mechanics face the Miami Sharks in the semifinal round of the playoffs! These rivals squared off twice in the regular season, with the local boys winning 3:1 in week 3 and drawing 2:2 in week 6. But the playoffs have favored Miami over the years, with the Sharks eliminating the Mechanics in both 2005 and 2007. Who will win this year? Tune into ICC between 5:30 and 9:00 to watch the action LIVE!

Playoff Semifinals: San Francisco vs Miami

1. GM Jesse Kraai vs GM Julio Becerra 1/2
   
2. IM Blas Lugo vs GM Vinay Bhat 0-1
   
3. IM David Pruess vs IM Alejandro Moreno Roman 0-1
   
4. NM Eric Rodriguez vs NM Yian Liou 1-0
   

UPDATE on Monday night: It was not to be! San Francisco got pummeled on three boards and lost 1.5:2.5. Congrats to the Sharks and good luck in the USCL Championship!

UPDATE on Wednesday night: Read the thorough post mortem by team captain IM John Donaldson at the Mechanics' blog.

Bay Area Well Represented on All-America Team!

(FM Naroditsky presents a lecture at left while Sevian calculates a position at right.)

According to this press release by the US Chess Federation, eight CalChess stars earned a spot on the 2010 All-America Chess Team sponsored by Trophies Plus! The requirements for this prestigious honor are quite strict: players must exceed a very high rating depending on their age (ranging from 1800 for age 8 & under to 2450 for age 18). Only 43 juniors made the team--an average of merely four per age group.

Kudos to the following CalChess kids! Readers of this blog are already familiar with the names, and now folks around the country will recognize them as well.

Bay Area juniors on All-America Team (age as of January 1).

• IM Sam Shankland (17)
• FM Steven Zierk (15)
• FM Daniel Naroditsky (13)
• NM Greg Young (13)
• NM Yian Liou (11)
• Samuel Sevian (8)
• Cameron Wheeler (8)
  
• Tanuj Vasudeva (7)

The All-America team highlights a fact that Bay Area coaches have known for several years: the local kids can compete with those from the scholastic hotbeds of New York and Texas! With eight All-Americans, CalChess narrowly edged New York and Texas, both with seven. No other state has more than four.

The Bay Area has become a prime breeding ground for the nation's elite kids, sharing the role that New York dominated for many years. Much of the credit goes to the Mechanics' Institute for fostering an environment that motivates kids. Regular tournaments offer the rising stars a chance to match wits with experienced adult masters and experts, while the San Francisco School of Chess hosts lectures by experienced Grandmasters from around the world. A final factor is that Silicon Valley kids tend to become comfortable with computers at a young age; I have watched kids as young as 5 and 6 playing chess on ICC!

GM Ian Rogers Teaches Top Kids at Mechanics Institute

(The elite chess class is hard at work! From left to right: GM Rogers with students Samuel, Greg, Yian, Kyle and Tanuj.)

Grandmaster Ian Rogers visited the Mechanics' Institute last weekend in conjunction with a meeting of the Ken Whyld Association of chess historians. Known as the strongest player ever from Australia, GM Rogers achieved a peak FIDE rating of 2618 in 1999 (about top 50 of the world back then). He faced many of the world's top players in the 1980s and 1990s, earning a draw as black versus Anatoly Karpov and swindling a checkmate against Viktor Kortchnoi!

On Sunday, October 11, GM Rogers (seated next to FM Naroditsky at right) took time from his busy schedule to tutor some of the Bay Area's elite juniors. The lecture carried on the inspiration of the San Francisco School of Chess, a program seeking to boost promising young chess players in Northern California both through interactions with GMs and IMs as well as their fellow juniors. Sunday's topic quickly caught the attention of the audience: the rapid improvement of teenager Magnus Carlsen to 2800 and beyond. The class delved deeply into Carlsen's openings and middlegames from the recent Nanjing tournament, with lengthy variations and occasional jokes flying around the room from all sides.

The group was small and intimate, yet highly competitive with five of six students ranked in the top three of the nation for their age! These kids no doubt comprise the present and future stars for the San Francisco Mechanics squad in the US Chess League. The team has a seemingly endless supply of underrated juniors for the next few seasons. If the kids keep improving like this, next year's team may field a GM plus three 2300+ rated juniors! (a.k.a. Panda and the three bamboo sprouts)

• FM Danya Naroditsky, 2378, #1 age 13 (Board 3)
  
• NM Greg Young, 2272, #2 age 14 (Alternate)
  
• NM Yian Liou, 2226, #2 age 12 (Board 4)
  
• Kyle Shin, 2088, #6 age 11
  
• Samuel Sevian, 2079, #1 age 8
  
• Tanuj Vasudeva, 1904, #3 age 8

San Francisco Mechanics Gear Up for US Chess League

The San Francisco Mechanics finalized their roster for the upcoming season of the US Chess League. Can the local team add to a rich tradition that includes four straight winning records and the 2006 league title? To find out, watch beginning August 31 live on Wednesday (occasionally Monday) nights at the Mechanics' Institute Chess Club or follow the games at the Internet Chess Club. Of course, I plan regular reports on this blog and my Twitter page.

2009 San Francisco Mechanics' Roster (first rating is 9/08; second is current)

1. GM Josh Friedel 2581 (2601 = +20) -- see photo at right
2. GM Jesse Kraai 2573 (2584 = +11)
3. GM Vinay Bhat 2481 (2491 = +10)
4. IM Sam Shankland 2398 (2534 = +136) -- age 17
   
5. IM John Donaldson 2425 (2390 = -35) -- captain
   
6. FM Danya Naroditsky 2339 (2376 = +37) -- age 13
7. NM Gregory Young 2227 (2272 = +45) -- age 14
   
8. NM Yian Liou 2019 (2226 = +207) -- age 12
   
9. (alt) GM Patrick Wolff 2623 (2623 = +0) -- his 2623 rating actually counts as 2590 for league
10. (alt) IM David Pruess 2464 (2419 = -45) -- assistant captain
    

Each week, the captain chooses four players with an average rating under 2401. Most of the key participants return from last year. The Bay Area's top rated player, GM Josh Friedel, will man the top board for a majority of the matches. GM Vinay Bhat and 2008 World U18 co-Champion IM Sam Shankland (with two GM norms) are two of the more successful players in the history of the league. 2007 World U12 Champion FM Danya Naroditsky and 2008 US Junior co-Champion NM Gregory Young offer a lethal one-two punch on boards 3 and 4. The captains are Mechanics' Institute chess director IM John Donaldson and Berkeley's own IM David Pruess.

The 2009 team adds two new faces. At the top, GM Jesse Kraai will see action on board 2 and perhaps even a couple of games on board 1. And on board 4, CalChess High School co-Champion NM Yian Liou (see photo at left) may be San Francisco's secret weapon. "Kiddie" is only 12 years old, but has already proven himself against the best that California has to offer. Continuing the Mechanics' tradition of fielding underrated juniors, Yian counts as merely 2019 for the league, while his actual rating is nearly 200 points higher at 2212. These rating points are valuable because they allow the team to field stronger players on the top boards without sacrificing strength on board 4.

For more information, check out the official San Francisco Mechanics homepage or browse through the 2009 US Chess League schedule.

June Top 100 Lists

(Left: NM Rohan Agarwal and IM Sam Shankland. Center: FM Danya Naroditsky and NM Steven Zierk. Right: Vignesh Panchanatham and Cameron Wheeler.)

The USCF posted the June Top 100 lists, including all tournaments rated by May 1 and an age cutoff also on May 1. Please note that the CalChess Scholastics on May 2-3 did not make the cutoff and will be rated on the July rating supplement.

I also finally updated the CalChess Top 100 lists for the first time since last October. Sadly, nobody else appears willing to dedicate 2-3 hours every other month to maintain these rankings, leaving the dirty work to me. Gee thanks!

Nine Northern California players have earned my gold medal distinction for being ranked in the top 5 of the country for their age. Three kids are ranked #1 in June: Tanuj Vasudeva (1767 at age 7), Samuel Sevian (2003 at age 8) and the veteran FM Danya Naroditsky (2378 at age 13). Congratulations to these three stars and best of luck in pursuit of their goals (IM title for Danya, NM for Samuel and 1800 + 2000 for Tanuj). A fourth #1 would have been NM Nicholas Nip, but his USCF membership expired at the end of February and, regretably, his family and coaches apparently chose other activities.

The two highest rated high school students in the Bay Area, IM Sam Shankland and NM Steven Zierk, are both ranked #2 at their age. Two middle school students, NM Greg Young and CalChess K-12 champion Yian Liou, check in at #3. Finally, I would like to welcome National K-3 champion Cameron Wheeler and the "master gambiteer" NM Rohan Agarwal as they earn their first gold medals on my blog!

GOLD MEDAL (top 5)
Tanuj Vasudeva (#1 age 7)
Samuel Sevian (#1 age 8)
Cameron Wheeler (#5 age 8)
Yian Liou (#3 age 11)
FM Danya Naroditsky (#1 age 13)
NM Greg Young (#3 age 14)
NM Steven Zierk (#2 age 15)
NM Rohan Agarwal (#5 age 16)
IM Sam Shankland (#2 age 17)

Players ranked in the top 10 and top 25 of the country also deserve a special recognition. The names shown in bold and italics are all current or former students of mine.

SILVER MEDAL (top 10)
Rayan Taghizadeh (#7 age 6)
Arun Khemani (#9 age 6)
John Canessa (#10 age 7)
Kesav Viswanadha (#9 age 9)
Jack Zhu (#8 age 10)

BRONZE MEDAL (top 25)
Alisha Chawla, Jeffrey Tao, Allan Beilin, Vignesh Panchanatham, Armaan Kalyanpur, Neel Apte, Kyle Shin, Daniel Zheng, Jerome Sun, Daniel Liu, Hemang Jangle, Hayk Manvelyan, Adarsh Konda, Michael Zhong