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.

CalChess Champions Over the Years

Since the turn of the century, the CalChess State Scholastic Chess Championship (occasionally misnamed the Super States) has emerged as the single largest annual USCF rated tournament west of the Rocky Mountains, consistently drawing at least 800 eager young chess enthusiasts.  Indeed, the record turnout of 1319 in 2006 compares favorably to the National Championships each spring.  The first weekend of May saw the 40th edition of this Bay Area event.  Two emeritus organizers deserve the lion's share of credit for building up the event during the 1990s and early 2000s: Ray Orwig and Alan Kirshner.

Unfortunately, those 40 years of history are in danger of being forgotten.  Until recently, the champs were honored in the yearly program booklet and online.  Dr. Kirshner diligently compiled lists of individual and school team champions from 1986 to 2011, but the official record at the CalChess website ceases after 2012  Seeing a need, I extended the honor roll of scholastic champions through 2015.

• CalChess Scholastic State Champions (1986-present)

Curiosity drove me to analyze the ranks of individual champions more closely.  For example, Vinay Bhat won the High School division in four out of five consecutive years (1998-2002), but he sat out of the middle year (2000).  Another three masters captured a hat trick of K-12 titles: Andy McManus (1987-1990), Dmitry Zilberstein (1994-1997) and Cameron Wheeler (2013-2015).  Out of this esteemed foursome, only Cameron managed to win (or share first place) in three consecutive years!

Readers may have already mistakenly concluded that winning a scholastic title is easy pickings for a phenom destined to become Grandmaster (like Vinay) or International Master (like Dmitry).  Not true!  Sam Shankland, the strongest player to grow up in the Bay Area during the past three decades, was never crowned champ at the biggest kids tournament.  To his credit, Sam won the adult State Championship at just 16 years old!

To me, the real question was whether anyone achieved a career Grand Slam?  The four pillars of the Grand Prix are the Varsity or Open divisions in Primary, Elementary, Middle School and High School.  Both the K-5 and K-6 sections count for Elementary School.  All players tied for first place are considered co-champions (e.g. five K-5 winners in both 2008 and 2010). 

5-Time Champions

• Vinay Bhat K-3, K-12, K-12, K-12, K-12
• Neel Apte K-3, K-5, K-6, K-8, K-8 (needs K-12)
• Cameron Wheeler K-5, K-6, K-12, K-12, K-12

Since 1986, nobody collected more than five CalChess titles.  However, both Neel (11th grade) and Cameron (10th grade) could break that record next spring..

4-Time Champions

• Micah Fisher-Kirshner K-3, K-6, K-6, K-12 (missing K-8)
• Adam Lischinsky K-3, K-3, K-8, K-12 (missing K-6)
• Daniel Naroditsky K-3, K-6, K-12, K-12 (missing K-8)
• James Kwok K-3, K-6, K-8, K-8 (missing K-12)

Sadly, all of the quadruple champions have run out of eligibility.

3-Time Champions

• Andy McManus K-12, K-12, K-12
• Alan Stein K-8, K-12, K-12
• Dmitry Zilberstein K-12, K-12, K-12
• Keith Yost K-6, K-8, K-8
• Daniel Schwarz K-3, K-8, K-12 (missing K-6)
• Steven Zierk K-3, K-8, K-12 (missing K-6)
• Yian Liou K-3, K-6, K-12 (missing K-8)  
• Kyle Shin K-5, K-6, K-8
• Tanuj Vasudeva K-3, K-5, K-6

Kyle (11th grade) and Tanuj (9th grade) could still add a High School championship to their bulging trophy cases, although neither has played competitively for some time.

Therefore, the answer to my question is a disappointing no!  Interestingly, eight different juniors managed to score 75% of the Grand Slam (see green color).  And with a small dose of luck, Neel Apte could even complete the career Slam by winning the K-12 division next spring.

Schutt Blitz Results and Photos

FM Yian Liou

IM Daniel Naroditsky

NM Daniel Schwarz

Now in its seventh year, the Ray Schutt Memorial Blitz Tournament continues to attract many of the strongest and fastest local players to the Mechanics' Institute.  The 5 double-round swiss (10 games) featured a generous $750 prize fund, augmented by free books for everyone, including multiple signed copies by Bay Area authors.  Even ten days later, the fond memories remain fresh.  Thanks to photographer Richard Shorman and webmaster Kerry Lawless for uploading more than 100 photos on ChessDryad.

6-time US Champion
GM Walter Browne

A blast from the past:
NM Mike Arne

Out of a record 63 participants, 17 were masters, including two Grandmasters and seven International Masters.  The defending champion IM Daniel Naroditsky was poised to three-peat, but he faced stiff challenges in the final two rounds from Italian IM Niccolo Ronchetti (1.5-0.5) and 3-time US Champion GM Nick deFirmian (1-1).  This allowed high school sophomore FM Yian Liou to snatch clear first place by sweeping IM Ricardo DeGuzman (2-0).

Three of my former students finished in the money: Yian, Danya and recent Stanford graduate Daniel Schwarz.  Way to go guys!  All that blitz practice pays dividends!

Final Standings

• 9.0 FM Yian Liou
• 8.5 GM Nick deFirmian and IM Daniel Naroditsky
• 8.0 IM Ray Kaufman, IM Odondoo Ganbold and NM Daniel Schwarz
• 7.5 IM Niccolo Ronchetti
• 7.0 IM Ricardo DeGuzman and FM Andy Lee
• 6.5 GM Walter Browne
• 5.5 NM Michael Aigner

On the day before the blitz, the Mechanics' hosted the 13th Powell Memorial (G/45).  For the first time in four years, Yours Truly ended up victorious!  I beat master Romulo Fuentes and improving expert Aleksandr Ivanov before drawing with National K-8 champion Siddharth Banik.  Most importantly, I finally got off my life master floor!

The Chess Room

Photos of King Magnus in Bay Area!

Nicholas K and Daniel S with Carlsen.

Tom Langland poses with Numero Uno.

Not every day does a young Norwegian man makes waves in Silicon Valley.  Nov. 16, 2012 was indeed a magical day!  Magnus Carlsen, the highest rated chess player on the planet, stopped by for a small blindfold simultaneous exhibition, Q&A and many personal photos.  Check out Facebook for photos and videos by Richard Shorman.  Thanks to IM David Pruess, Tom Langland and Bay Area Chess for putting together this memorable afternoon.

GM Carlsen slouches in chair while playing four kids blindfolded!

Make sure to read Mr. Langland's new article at Chess Life Online and watch the video of Daniel Naroditsky playing blitz against King Magnus.

Chess: The Road to College

(Where does this internationally certified chess nut go to college?)

The end of summer brings upon us the annual ritual of starting school. And those who managed to graduate from high school in June now begin a whole new chapter of their lives. Four of the Bay Area's elite scholastic players moved into college dorms this week. I was fortunate to have taught three of the four. They combined to win the past four state High School titles, with each victorious at least once. This post serves as a small tribute.

IM Steven Zierk definitely counts as the star of the class of 2011, both academically and based on chess results. He had many phenomenal results, but three stand out in my mind:

1. Clear 1st in A section of 2007 People's tournament with a published rating of 1527.
2. Beat GM Loek van Wely in 27 moves with black at 2009 Western States (Reno).
3. Gold medal at 2010 World Youth U-18 in Greece, earning the IM title.

While chess played big role in Steven's youth, he had a broad range of interests. As I found out accompanying him at the 2008 US Open in Dallas, he loves math puzzles and devours books of different genres. An active athlete, he played and refereed soccer, earned a second degree black belt in tae kwon do and even joined the school track and field team (shot put). Of course, he also excelled at Los Gatos High School. The photo at the top of this post leaves no doubt where Steven chose to go for college: MIT.


A year ago, NM Evan Sandberg (photo at right) became my sixth student to achieve the rank of master. Yet his greatest achievement came in 2009, when he shared 1st place in the High School section at the CalChess Scholastics (with Yian Liou), thereby earning the right to play in the Denker Invitational in Indianapolis. An active member of the Mechanics' Institute chess club, Evan continued to participate in the Tuesday Night Marathon through this summer. The streak will necessarily end since Evan decided to attend Rutgers University in New Jersey.

NM Rohan Agarwal (photo at left) reached 2200 despite never being one of my students. However, I wrote a tribute to his aggressive playing style titled "The Master Gambiteer". Sadly, he didn't have time for many tournaments over the past two years at Irvington High School in Fremont. He did leave a mark by teaching the next generation at Weibel Elementary. Rohan won't need to go far for college as he decided to attend UC Berkeley.


Expert Nicholas Karas (photo at right) of Rio Americano High School in Sacramento started out with a provisional rating of 395 and then rocketed through the rating scale to a peak of 2159. Much of the teaching credit goes to his first coach--and my longtime student--NM Daniel Schwarz. Nicholas saved the best for his senior year, winning clear 1st in the High School section at the CalChess Scholastics and then attending the Denker Invitational in Orlando. He also became a Golden Bear as he began studying at UC Berkeley.

ConGRADulations to Steven, Evan, Rohan and Nicholas! (I admit that I'm a little late.)

Each year, the most talented young chess players typically get admitted to the best universities around the state and nation. Take GM Robert Hess, America's top rated junior, as an example; he just matriculated at Yale University. Among my growing group of ex-students, there's no doubt that Berkeley has become the most popular school, with at least a half dozen: David C, Jeff Y, Kevin H, Charles S, Michael L and now Nicholas. Five of these six reached 2000 at chess, establishing a quasi benchmark for future Berkeley applicants. And I believe three guys remain at Stanford (Marvin S, Aaron G and Adam G) after the June graduation of Daniel Schwarz.

Numbers aside, however... Go Stanford! Beat Cal!

CalChess H.S. Champion Nicholas Karas

Congratulations to Nicholas Karas for taking clear 1st in High School at the CalChess Scholastic Championships on April 2-3. Although I taught Nicholas (photo at left) for the last few years, much of the credit goes to his first teacher, NM Daniel Schwarz, for inspiring him. Now finishing the final year of high school, Nicholas became my fifth student in six years to qualify for the Denker Invitational held each summer at the US Open. Good luck in Orlando!

Two of my younger students shared top honors in the Junior High division. Kudos to Neel Apte and Kyle Shin for taking home the 1st and 2nd place trophies on tiebreaks. They already tied for 1st in Elementary last year, with Neel also earning 1st place. In fact, Neel (photo at right) has captured three titles in a row, starting with 4-5 in 2009.

Unfortunately, the Saratoga High School streak of consecutive team championships ended at six in a row. Mission San Jose High School won easily this year.

2011 CalChess Scholastic Individual Champions

• 9-12 - Nicholas Karas
• 6-8 - Neel Apte, Kyle Shin and Hunter Klotz-burwell
• 4-6 - Cameron Wheeler
• 4-5 - Abhishek Handigol, Alvin Kong, Siddharth Banik and Eric Zhu
• 1-3 - Ben Rood
• K - Balaji Daggupati

2011 CalChess Scholastic Team Winners

• 9-12 - Mission San Jose High School
  
• 6-8 - Horner Junior High School
  
• 4-6 - Regnart Elementary School
  
• 4-5 - Mission San Jose Elementary
  
• 1-3 - Mission San Jose Elementary

Check out the great photos at ChessDryad by Richard Shorman and Mark Shelton.

Denker Qualifier FAQ

(Group photo of prize winners at 2009 Denker Invitational in Indianapolis. Local hero Evan Sandberg is in front row at the right.)

Update on March 15: I have finally accounted for all but one of the local juniors rated above 2000. The top seeds for the Denker Qualifier this weekend will be 2008 champ FM Steven Zierk, 2009 champ Evan Sandberg, Samuel Sevian, Hayk Manvelyan, Nicholas Karas, Kyle Shin, Arthur Liou and maybe NM Rohan Agarwal. Sevian and Shin are ineligible to qualify because they are too young. Click to view the official advance entry list.

The 35th CalChess Scholastics will be held at the Santa Clara Convention Center (near Great America) on April 17-18. This year, there is a second worthy scholastic event for top players to consider: the Denker Qualifier at the Hyatt Regency Santa Clara on March 19-21. The Denker Qualifier doubles as the K-12 section of the Bay Area Chess Regionals.

Why are there two state championships?

Last year, CalChess made the unfortunate decision to schedule the state scholastics on the same weekend at the National High School Championship in Columbus, Ohio. The High School Nationals have never drawn a large crowd from the Bay Area, although sometimes a few elite players attend with the goal of bringing home a national title (like Michael Zhong in 2007). My students at Saratoga High School also achieved some success, finishing as high as 3rd place team in the country.

In order to allow top players a (theoretical) chance to attend the National High School Championship and still have a chance to represent CalChess at the Denker Invitational this summer, there will be two separate events, one in March and one in April. However, only the winner(s) of the April championship may call themselves state champs.

What is the Denker Invitational?

The Denker is a prestigious invitational tournament open only to high school state champions each year. There are approximately 50 invitees, one for each state (two for California). Named after the late Grandmaster Arnold Denker (photo at right), the field includes many experts and usually tops out in the mid 2200s, with maybe one or two players above 2300. Only juniors currently in grades 9 through 12 are eligible; younger players cannot qualify. Recent Northern California representatives were: Evan Sandberg (2009), Steven Zierk (2008), Nicolas Yap (2007) and Daniel Schwarz (2006).

The invitational takes place each August at the US Open, held in different places each year all around the country. This year is a bit special because the location will be in Irvine, Southern California. The dates are July 31 through August 3. After completing six rounds in the Denker, players may choose to also play in the 6-day schedule of the US Open. That's 15 games of chess (each up to 5-6 hours) in 9 days. Most likely, I will play in the more leisurely 9-day schedule of the US Open.

Who should play in the Denker Qualifier?

Technically speaking, any student in K-12 may enter the Denker Qualifier, although a minimum rating of 1200 is needed for those in elementary or middle school. Very few, however, have a realistic chance to qualify. Generally speaking, only high school students rated over 2000 have a decent chance to win. Seven high school players are rated over 2000: FM Steven Zierk, NM Gregory Young, NM Rohan Agarwal, Evan Sandberg, Hayk Manvelyan, Nicholas Karas and Arthur Liou. Players younger than 9th grade may play for practice, but cannot qualify for Denker even if they win.

I suggest that you should play in the Denker Qualifier on March 19-21 if you fall into one of the following categories:

• You are in grades 9-12 and are rated above 2000.
• You are in grades 9-12, are rated above 1600 and wish to face tough competition.
• You are in grades K-8 and are rated above 1800 and feel that you need to face older and stronger opponents to get better.
• You are in grades K-12, are rated above 1200, and simply want to get your butt kicked--just for a learning experience.
  

Should I choose the 2-day or 3-day schedule?

I expect most players to choose the 2-day schedule (three G/60 then three more G/120). Those who prefer slower time controls and are free on Friday night can play the 3-day schedule (three G/90 then three more G/120). The two schedules will merge in round 4. Note: based on early entries, the 3-day schedule is significantly stronger with nobody rated under 1800.

Which tournament will be stronger?

I predict that the March event may actually be tougher than the official state championship in April, for the following three reasons:

• Top players tend to be more interested in qualifying for Denker than winning a state championship. Plus, one or two masters might go to Ohio for nationals instead.
• The Denker Qualifier presents a great opportunity for all of the talented elementary and middle school kids to compete against the top high school players. I expect most of the A and B rated K-6 and K-8 kids to be back in their normal age groups at the CalChess Scholastics.
• There won't be many weak players at the Denker Qualifier (currently 17 of 28 early entries are over 1800). On the other hand, the CalChess Scholastics attracts school teams, including many lower rated players.
  

Where is the advance entry list?

Click here for the advance entry list posted at the Bay Area Chess website. As of March 10, there are 28 entries in the Denker Qualifier. (3-day schedule: 10 players, median rating 1888. 2-day schedule: 18 players, median rating 1763.) Only three of the seven eligible high school students rated above 2000 have entered so far. However, there are seven elementary school kids rated above 1800 who have chosen to play up.

Make sure to register for the Denker Qualifier before the entry deadline on Wednesday, March 17! (St. Patrick's Day) Follow this link to the Bay Area Chess online payment system.

Battle of Generations in Sactown This Weekend

(The young and the old! 7 year old Tanuj Vasudeva next to 79 years young IM Walter Shipman.)


The Sacramento Chess Championship is one of the stalwarts on the Northern California tournament calendar, occupying the 4th of July weekend since 2001. In an era when one-day G/45 or G/60 events have become the norm, it is a relief to still find long games (30/90, SD/60) against serious competition, directed by well-respected TD John McCumiskey. The relaxed atmosphere at the Best Western Expo Inn on Howe Avenue contributes to the fighting spirit seen on dozens of 8x8 boards.

The advance entry list sets the scene for two intriguing subplots in the Master/Expert section. It will be nationally ranked juniors against masters and kids under 10 versus seniors over 65. Both CalChess K-12 co-champions, Yian Liou and Evan Sandberg, will no doubt hunt for master scalps and rating points as they near 2200 themselves. Another exciting pairing could pit the nation's top 7 year old, Tanuj Vasudeva, against a legend dating back to the 50s and early 60s, 79 years young IM Walter Shipman.

It is not too late for procrastinators to enter. A total of 58 players have signed up by Thursday afternoon; some others intend to sign up at the door. Players may choose between the leisurely 3-day schedule or the more economic 2-day option with three G/60s on Saturday. I would not be surprised to see IM Ricardo DeGuzman, defending champion NM Daniel Schwarz (see photo at left) and another two or three masters show up on Saturday morning for the 2-day schedule.

The annual Cal Expo fireworks show is scheduled for Saturday (July 4) evening at 9:30, but I expect to see fireworks at the chess boards begin much sooner. Be there!

Historical Records for CalChess Scholastics

(How many players do you recognize in this 2003 photo of the top boards in the K-8 section at the CalChess Scholastics in Santa Clara?)

CalChess scholastic guru Dr. Alan Kirshner maintains an interesting historical website listing all of the winners at the CalChess Scholastics dating back to 1986. These records show individual winners, including ties for first, and the team champions. Due to the conflicting tournaments in 2005, both the "states" and "regional" winners are shown.

I searched these records for multi-time individual state champions. Some players won the same section in consecutive years (Vinay Bhat won clear first in the K-12 for 4 out of 5 straight years) while others earned their titles in different divisions (Daniel Schwarz won K-3 in 1998, K-8 in 2002 and K-12 in 2006). The records show that over 23 years, only four people earned more than three CalChess titles. Even the list of names at three championships (Varsity sections only) is quite thin and prestigious.

Congratulations to the ultimate CalChess champions! I count one current GM, two current IMs and eight masters among these names.

• 5 = Vinay Bhat
• 4 = Daniel Naroditsky, Micah Fischer-Kirshner and Adam Lischinsky
• 3 = Steven Zierk, Daniel Schwarz, Nicolas Yap, Alexander Setzepfandt, Keith Yost, Dmitry Zilberstein, Alan Stein and Andy McManus

USCF Top 100 Juniors (U21) for February

(Here's a blast from the past. Daniel Schwarz and Drake Wang set up to play at the 2001 CalChess Scholastics in Santa Clara. Both were in 6th grade at the time; Daniel was rated 1675 and Drake was 1844. However, top seeded Alexander Setzepfandt took clear 1st place with 5.5 out of 6, drawing with Schwarz in the final round.)

It has long been established that Northern California is a mecca for scholastic chess that can compete with the rest of the nation. The February Top 100 lists confirm this fact. Impressively, 13 local juniors and college students are ranked on the most prestigious ranking list for juniors: Under Age 21.

At the top, IM Sam Shankland (#7) does not require much of an introduction after winning both the CalChess State Championship and the World U18 Championship. Besides Shankland, the most impressive player over the past four months was NM Steven Zierk (#30), who gained 74 USCF points since Labor Day, thereby cracking 2300. See a photo of Steven from 2nd grade at right. The two youngest masters in the Bay Area are also well known to readers of this blog: 13 year old FM Danya Naroditsky (#17) and 10 year old NM Nicholas Nip (#70).

These rankings are also the last hoorah for the previous generation of junior masters, those who have now gone off to college. For many years, NM Daniel Schwarz (#25), NM Nicolas Yap (#27), NM Matthew Ho (#40) and NM Drake Wang (#49) dominated the local scene. Now Daniel and Matthew attend Stanford University together FM Elliott Liu (#15) from San Diego and NM Vaishnav Aradhyula (#60) from Tucson. Go Stanford!!

• #7 IM Sam Shankland (2441)
• #15 FM Elliott Liu (2398) - attending Stanford University from Southern California
• #17 FM Danya Naroditsky (2358)
• #25 NM Daniel Schwarz (2316)
• #27 NM Nicolas Yap (2315)
• #30 NM Steven Zierk (2308)
• #37 NM Julian Landaw (2292) - attending UC Berkeley from Southern California
• #40 NM Matthew Ho (2281)
• #49 NM Drake Wang (2262)
• #51 NM Gregory Young (2249)
• #60 NM Vaishnav Aradhyula (2225) - attending Stanford University from Arizona
• #69 NM Rohan Agarwal (2212)
• #70 NM Nicholas Nip (2211)

Stanford Ties for Third at Pan Ams

(Stanford chess team from left to right: NM Daniel Schwarz, FM Elliott Liu, Christopher De Sa, NM Vaishnav Aradhyula. Photo taken by WIM Alexey Root of UTD.)

Congratulations to the Stanford University chess team for finishing tied for third place at the Pan American Intercollegiate Championship in Dallas on December 27-30. The team of FM Elliott Liu (2406), NM Daniel Schwarz (2321), NM Vaishnav Aradhyula (2207) and Christopher De Sa (2155) faced stiff competition against 2500+ average teams from the two scholarship powers of University of Texas at Dallas (UTD) and University of Maryland at Baltimore County (UMBC). UTD won on tiebreaks over UMBC, both with 5.0/6; Stanford finished at 4.5. Other master strength teams in attendance included New York University, Harvard, University of Texas at Brownsville (UTB) and University of Toronto.

As a reward for placing in the top four, Stanford was invited to participate in the Final Four of college chess on April 4-5, once again in Dallas. The Cardinal will face UTD, UMBC and UTB in a round-robin for the most prestigious prize in college chess. This will be a huge challenge as UTD fields a GM and a whopping 7 IMs while UMBC has three GMs plus a WGM. Goooo Stanford!

Please read the story on Chess Life Online for more details about the Pan Am.

October Top 100 Lists and CalChess Top 20

(This photo, taken over the summer at a session of the San Francisco School of Chess, includes three gold medalists, one silver medalist and one bronze medalist.)

The USCF has posted the October Top 100 lists a few days early. This rating supplement includes tournaments rated by September 5, thus including Labor Day weekend. In a sign of the increasing dominance of Northern California scholastic chess, the number of local juniors ranked for their age increased to 99 in October (up from 93 in June) Check out the CalChess Top 100 lists for the complete rankings.

Eight kids have earned gold medals for being ranked in the top 5 of the nation for their age. Three are ranked #1 and two more are #2. Welcome to new Bay Area resident Samuel Sevian, a 7 year old formerly from Florida who sports an amazing rating of 1889! Samuel joins the elite club of Nicholas Nip and Daniel Naroditsky as top rated players for their age. Special kudos to Arun Khemani, who at 1047 is the top 5 year old in the nation!

GOLD MEDAL (top 5)
Arun Khemani (#1 age 5)
Samuel Sevian (#1 age 7)
Tanuj Vasudeva (#5 age 7)
NM Nicholas Nip (#1 age 10)
Yian Liou (#3 age 11)
FM Daniel Naroditsky (#1 age 12, see photo)
NM Gregory Young (#2 age 13)
NM Steven Zierk (#5 age 15, see photo)
FM Sam Shankland (#2 age 16)

Players ranked in the top 10 and top 25 of the country also deserve a special recognition. The silver medal list has doubled in size this summer. The names shown in bold and italics are all current or former students of mine.

SILVER MEDAL (top 10)
Vignesh Panchanatham (#8 age 8)
Cameron Wheeler (#10 age 8)
Jack Zhu (#7 age 9)
Kyle Shin (#9 age 10)
Nicholas Yap (#6 age 18)
Daniel Schwarz (#7 age 18, see photo)

BRONZE MEDAL (top 25)
Jeffrey Tao, John Canessa, Armaan Kalyanpur, Richard Yi, Allan Beilin, Kesav Viswanadha, Paul Richter, Daniel Liu, Daniel Zheng, Jerome Sun, Sam Bekker, Andrew Yeh, Rohan Agarwal, Evan Sandberg, Adarsh Konda, David Chock, NM Drake Wang

Also check out the Top 20 lists on the CalChess website. Can any of my readers believe that there are seven Bay Area kids in K-6 rated above 1800, including two over 2000? Another eight Elementary age kids are rated 1600 and up. The Junior High + High School rankings are topped by two FIDE Masters, two National Masters and an unprecedented seven experts. Incredibly, CalChess boasts 13 young players age 17 and younger who are rated over 2000, not including the five 18 year old masters who attend local colleges and universities!

CalChess Top 5 Elementary (age 11 & under)

1. NM Nicholas Nip, 2207
2. Yian Liou, 2050
3. Samuel Sevian, 1889
4. Daniel Zheng, 1871
5. Kyle Shin, 1846

CalChess Top 5 JHS and HS (age 12-17)

1. FM Sam Shankland, 2425
2. FM Daniel Naroditsky, 2355
3. NM Steven Zierk, 2252
4. NM Gregory Young, 2248 (see photo)
   
5. Rohan Agarwal, 2173
   

Labor Day Recap

(Photos of top players by Richard Shorman. From left to right: 2008 State Champion FM Sam Shankland, NM Daniel Schwarz and IM Dmitry Zilberstein. For more photos, please visit the excellent local website ChessDryad.)

Click here for the corrected link to my photos from Labor Day.

I briefly wish to revisit the Labor Day Festival, a.k.a. the CalChess State Championship. If there was one central theme this year, it must have been the impressive performance of elite kids, especially in the top sections. Has the fledgling San Francisco School of Chess already paid dividends or is this an indication of greater things to come?

Look no further than 1st place in the Master section and you'll find high school senior FM Sam Shankland. After beating a pair of big name Grandmasters and winning two of the strongest adult tournaments in California, "Shanky" is rated 2425 USCF and 2436 FIDE! At this rate, he will soon complete his final two IM norms and begin shooting for the GM title.

Shankland was not the only elite junior to achieve success up on the hill in San Francisco. Here are a few more highlights, limited just to my own pool of students:

• Longtime student and Stanford sophomore NM Daniel Schwarz tied for 2nd overall with an undefeated 4.5/6, beating IM Ricardo DeGuzman once again.
• NM Steven Zierk also defeated DeGuzman and drew with GM-elect Vinay Bhat. His FIDE rating will jump 108 points to 2240 on the upcoming October list.
• NM Gregory Young drew with both Bhat and IM Dmitry Zilberstein and will be rated 2264 FIDE, just 36 points away from becoming the Bay Area's third FM.
• The new kid on the block, 11 year old expert Yian Liou, beat IM Walter Shipman for his first IM scalp. His provisional FIDE performance rating was an impressive 2229!
• Evan Sandberg gained 29 points for 4.0/6 in Expert section, up to 2051.
• Michael Lin gained 62 points for 3.5/6 in Expert section, up to 1933.

Way to go guys! Keep up the good work and no doubt more success will come your way!

Shankland PWNS CalChess State Championship

The leaner and meaner FM Sam Shankland (photo at left by Shorman) once again demonstrated that he is a primordial force to be reckoned with in Northern California chess. Although he has yet to win the CalChess Scholastics, "Shanky" can now call himself State Champion after his success over Labor Day weekend at the Golden Gateway Holiday Inn in San Francisco. He scored an undefeated 5.0 out of 6, including this refutation of the St. George's opening essayed by IM Andrei Florean. Shankland drew twice over the weekend against both of the players who tied for second place at 4.5: NM Daniel Schwarz and IM Dmitry Zilberstein. Congratulations to Sam on a successful summer that included an IM norm at the World Open, top honors at Agoura Hills, impressive wins against Grandmasters Shabalov and Erenburg, and last but not least a state title!

Sam Shankland (2410) vs Andrei Florean (2465)
1. e4 a6 2. d4 b5 3. Bd3 Bb7 4. Qe2 e6 5. a4 c5 6. dxc5 b4 7. Nf3 Bxc5 8. Nbd2 d6 9. Nb3 Nd7 10. O-O Ngf6 11. Bd2 O-O 12. a5 Qb8 13. Rfd1 Rd8 14. h3 h6 15. Qe1 Ra7 16. Nfd4 Kh8 17. f3 e5 18. Nxc5 Nxc5 19. Nf5 Nxd3 20. cxd3 Bc8 21. Nxh6 Nh7 22. Ng4 b3 23. Ne3 Be6 24. Bc3 f6 25. d4 Ng5 26. dxe5 dxe5 27. Bxe5 Qa8 28. Bc3 Re8 29. Qg3 Rb7 30. e5 Nh7 31. exf6 gxf6 32. Qf4 Rg7 33. Kh2 Qa7 34. Rd6 Kg8 35. Rad1 Bd7 36. Bd4 Qb8 37. Rd2 Rg6 38. Bc3 Be6 39. Qb4 Qc8 40. Qb6 Bxh3 41. Rd8 1-0

Final standings of Master section

• 5.0 FM Sam Shankland
• 4.5 NM Daniel Schwarz and IM Dmitry Zilberstein
• 4.0 IM Andrei Florean, NM Drake Wang, NM Nicolas Yap

The weekend was marked by a slew of upsets by Northern California's pool of talented younger players against internationally titled masters. The two players that everyone expected to battle for top honors didn't even stay in contention!? GM-elect Vinay Bhat drew twice with teenage masters Steven Zierk and Gregory Young before losing to Cal Poly San Luis Obispo sophomore NM Drake Wang. Joining the upset parade, the Bay Area's most active titled player, IM Ricardo DeGuzman, castled short against a pair of my students, losing to NM Schwarz for the second time this year before also losing to NM Zierk. Even 11 year old expert Yian Liou got into the act by beating veteran IM Walter Shipman for the first IM scalp of his young life! Considering all these upsets, perhaps the smartest person this weekend was two-time defending state champion GM-elect Josh Friedel, who wisely took a break from chess after a busy summer of tournaments.

(Photo by Shorman of the top board action in round 2. On board 1, NM Zierk played GM-elect Bhat while on board 2, IM Zilberstein faced NM Young. Both games were drawn.)
The annual CalChess Labor Day Festival drew a total of 160 players in six sections and paid out the advertised prize fund of about $5,500. Organizer Richard Koepcke received assistance from CalChess President and Chief TD Tom Langland and NTD John McCumiskey. Thanks guys for a smooth and enjoyable weekend!

While I have concentrated on the Master section in this story, I wish to close by recognizing the various champions in lower divisions. Kudos to them as well!

• Expert = Reynaldo Salvatierra and Dana Mackenzie
• Class A = Daniel Zheng and Arun Gomatan
• Class B = Chris Tsai
• Class C = Harold Parker, Donovan Zhao, Albert Lin and Gabriel Ki
• Class D/E/unr = Seid Seidov (only 6-0 score of the entire weekend)

Final standings: http://sacramentochessclub.org/weekend_events/2008laborday.htm
Photos by Richard Shorman on ChessDryad.
Photos by Michael Aigner on Flickr.

Schwarz Plays in the Red Zone, Wins Sacramento

Despite soaring gas prizes and hot temperatures, the annual 4th of July tournament attracted a solid turnout of 84 players to California's capital city. Perhaps attracted by a quality tournament at longer time controls, adult players came from all over Northern California and as far away as Washington state; in fact, only about 1/3 of the participants were juniors. The field was officially split up into two sections, Open and Reserve (U2000), but a majority of A players chose to play for experience in the Open section.

Eight masters entered the tournament, headlined by International Masters Ricardo DeGuzman and Walter Shipman. In the end, Sacramento native and Stanford University sophomore NM Daniel Schwarz (2249) dominated the competition in the Open section, taking clear 1st place with a 5.0/6 score. He did not get easy pairings, instead facing five straight masters and beating three of them for a 2546 performance rating! Daniel even defeated defending champion and top rated IM DeGuzman in the 5th round. Proving that he has come a long ways since his days as a scholastic champion, Daniel beat his first teacher NM Zoran Lazetich and earned a tense final round draw with the black pieces against yours truly, his coach for over a half dozen years. Congratulations Daniel!

Four players shared 2nd place and top U2200 honors at 4.5 in the Open section: IMs Ricardo DeGuzman and Walter Shipman, expert James al-Shamma and the fpawn. Your reporter drew a short game against DeGuzman, but was unable to win lengthy endgames against NM Viktors Pupols from Washington state and Schwarz on the final day. Other than Schwarz, the biggest story of the weekend must be the impressive result by my student 11 year old Yian Liou (1956), who defeated former master Kenneth Hills (2120) and drew with FM Bela Evans (2303). Yian ended up with 4.0/6 after losing just once (to his teacher), thus gaining tons of experience and bumping his rating up to 1987.

Kudos to Douglas Legvold (1934) for winning the 53 player Reserve (U2000) section with 5.5 out of 6, drawing only in the last round to clinch 1st place. Sacramento club member Romeo Pilar, rated just 1652, took clear 2nd place at 5.0 while juniors Arun Gomatan (1795) and Ted Xiao (1731) shared 3rd place at 4.5.

Finally, thanks to National TD John McCumiskey (wearing red, white and blue for the holiday) for once again directing a smooth and enjoyable weekend tournament in Sacramento. He has run every single major chess event in town since the mid 1990s and since established himself as the top director in Northern California. This year, there were actually two McCumiskey's present at the tournament, as John's younger brother Tom (see photo here) visited from Virginia and played in the Open section.

• tournament crosstables and prize winners
  
• rating report on USCF website
• Happy 4th of July report
  
• photos 1 -- photos 2 -- photos 3

Photos from 2008 Sacramento Championship Part 1

Photos from Sacramento Chess Championship held over 4th of July weekend. Upper left: tournament winner NM Daniel Schwarz. Upper right: Daniel holds a draw with the black pieces against his former teacher in the last round. Lower left: top seed IM Ricardo DeGuzman struggled this weekend, even losing to Schwarz. Lower right: FM Bela Evans and US Junior co-champion NM Gregory Young are hard at work during round 5.

Cool New ICC Command: Pstat

Finally, it is here! Check out the new "pstat" command on ICC to find your score against opponents. The ICC database now tracks your record in all rated games, including wild variants, and also sorts them by color. This record dates back to June 22, 2007. Here's an example of DanielDelPaso (NM Daniel Schwarz) against Smallville (GM Hikaru Nakamura).

DanielDelPaso's Score vs. Smallville
        DanielDelPaso as White        DanielDelPaso as Black
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Category      Win    Loss    Draw    % |    Win    Loss    Draw    %
--------------------------------------------------------------------
1-minute        0       0       0   -- |      0       1       0   0%
5-minute        0       1       0   0% |      1       1       0  50%
--------------------------------------------------------------------
TOTAL:         0       1       0   0% |      1       2       0  33%

Overall Score 1/4 = 25%
--------------------------------------
Category      Win    Loss    Draw    %
--------------------------------------
1-minute        0       1       0   0%
5-minute        1       2       0  33%
--------------------------------------
TOTAL:         1       3       0  25%

You can use pstat to automatically see your record against your current opponent at the start of each new game. Simply type: "set pstat 1" into the main console or find the player statistics button under Options/Set Variables or Settings/Playing 2. This cool feature requires either BlitzIn 2.7 or Dasher 1.2 interface for optimal performance.