Class of 2009

Congrats High School Graduates 2009!!!
(From left to right: Mike Zhong, Jeff Young and Aaron Garg.)
(Update June 12: New photos of Jeff and Aaron.)

As the 2009 graduating class moves on, it is time to briefly reflect on one of the largest classes of chess players ever in Northern California. The graduating seniors include the highest rated local junior ever and five additional players who have been rated over 2000.

They also achieved many noteworthy successes over the years. Sam Shankland flew all the way to Vietnam and came home with a share of first place at the 2008 World Youth U18, thereby earning the esteemed title of International Master. Michael Zhong battled four straight teenage masters en route to a tie for first place at the 2007 National High School Championship. Jeff Young stared down IM Salvijus Bercys to help Saratoga High School earn third place at the 2006 National High School Championship. Veni, vidi, vici!

Here is a list of all of the Bay Area's chess players who are graduating from high school this month. For those whom I know, I included the university that they will attend. Please contact me if I left someone out.

1. IM Sam Shankland 2474 - Brandeis University (Boston)
   
2. Adarsh Konda 2108 - ?
   
3. Mike Zhong 2092 - Columbia University (New York City)
   
4. Alan Naroditsky 2058 - UCLA
5. Jeff Young (Saratoga H.S.) 1990 - UC Berkeley
6. Louiza Livschitz 1981 - ?
   
7. Sreekar Jasthi 1905 - Emory University (Atlanta)
   
8. Greg Bodwin 1882 - ?
   
9. Aaron Garg (Saratoga H.S.) - Stanford University
10. Ken Law - ?
    
11. Alex Lun (Saratoga H.S.) - UC San Diego
12. Avinash Kumar (Saratoga H.S.) - Marquette University (Milwaukee)
    

I had ties to almost everyone on this list. Four were private students: Jeff, Alan, Aaron and Ken. Then Alex, Avinash and Greg participated in some group classes in Saratoga. And although I never formally taught Sam and Mike, I developed friendships with both at tournaments and on ICC. Here's my brief tribute to some of the graduates.

• Jeff, I knew you since you were in 7th grade. You have grown from 1200 to 2000, and from a scrawny kid into a confident and outgoing young man. For many years, you and David Chock were the heart and soul of the Saratoga team, climaxing with a magical result in Milwaukee. Congratulations on your engineering scholarship!
• Alan, you amazed me by cheerfully accepting your role in your family's chess hierarchy, and yet you managed to step out of the shadows to become a star in your own right. You defied the trend of cutting back in chess during the later years of high school, despite your talent in piano and a heavy courseload at a prestigious school.
  
• Aaron, I worked with you for two years but knew you much longer. You always were the genius, but in many ways a gentle giant. I can't believe you got accepted at MIT, Harvard, Yale and literally everywhere else. Go Stanford! Beat Cal!
  
• Alex and Avinash, I didn't know you two as well as your teammates. You contributed to the positive chemistry that made the Saratoga team so enjoyable for everyone. From time to time, your games made us laugh, both brilliancy and blunder.
  

Check Out Article on Chess Life Online

(Are these kids even old enough to play at an adult tournament?!?!)

My recap from the Western Chess Congress in Concord appeared today on Chess Life Online. Check it out for highlights of the first big money event in the Bay Area since the mid 1990s. Premier section champion FM Daniel Naroditsky kindly annotated his crucial win against IM Sam Shankland and I added some comments on three other games.

• Click here for the rating report.
• Click here for a slideshow on Flickr.

A total of 15 current or past students attended, spread out from the Premier through U1700 divisions. Three students won money: Steven Zierk (2311) tied for 2nd overall, Evan Sandberg (2044) shared 3rd in U2100 and Kenneth Law (1705) returned after an extended break from chess to tie for 2nd in U1900 with an impressive 4-1 score. Steven increased his FIDE rating to 2296, four points shy of the FIDE Master title, while 11-year old Yian Liou expects to earn his first published FIDE rating at 2140. Kudos to these successful players and everyone else who tried their best!

I finished with 2.5 out of 5 and gained a few rating points for both USCF and FIDE. I was happy with a pair of draws against IM Sam Shankland and IM John Donaldson, but was upset after hanging a piece in a superior position in the last round, although I miraculously still drew that endgame. It was a nice weekend and I look forward to returning in January!

Saturday Recap: WCL Qualifier and HS Nationals

(Dachshund races are one of the most popular events at the annual UC Davis Picnic Day.)

I actually spent much of today outdoors, away from my computer and chess. Today was the annual Picnic Day celebration at UC Davis, which gave me an excuse to visit my alma mater. The gorgeous weather made the day a perfect 10. Despite my absence, there was still plenty of chess action around the country. Unfortunately, the results were somewhat disappointing for the home team.

The semifinals of the online qualifier to the 2008 Frank K. Berry US Championship took place on ICC's sister server World Chess Live. The field was impressive: IM Vinay Bhat vs IM Enrico Sevillano and IM David Vigorito vs IM-elect Ray Robson. According to a poll on this blog, Bhat was favored to win by slightly over half of the voters while Sevillano and Robson split most of the remaining votes. I predicted a final match of Bhat against Robson.

To my surprise, both of the favorites lost by 2-0 scores! Bhat lost an important central pawn in the first game with white, but managed to rebound with a strong attack in the second game. However, he became dangerously short of time and, with merely 8 seconds left (plus a 3 second increment), committed a fatal blunder. In the other match, veteran Vigorito schooled 13 year old Robson with a prepared line in the ultra-sharp Botvinnik variation and then held on in the second game. Congratulations to IM Enrico Sevillano of Southern California and IM David Vigorito of Massachusetts for advancing to the final, scheduled for noon PDT on Sunday at World Chess Live.

Update on Sunday afternoon: IM David Vigorito won the online qualifier and advanced to the US Championship in Tulsa next month! He won a wild first game of the final with black and then calmly drew with white to clinch the match. Congratulations and good luck!

I wish I had better news to report from the National High School Championship in Atlanta, but I do not. In fact, while writing this blog entry, I listened to my friend and fellow coach FM Robby Adamson (BLITZMASTER on ICC) rant about the poor performance by his team from Catalina Foothills High School (Tucson, Arizona). The upset bug has bitten many of the top players at the tournament, including top rated FM Marc Tyler Arnold (2419) who drew with Christian Tanaka (2126) from Southern California. Only three players remain with a perfect 5-0 score: FM Daniel Yeager (2347), Edward Lu (2194) and Michael Thaler (2152). Who will win? Watch the action live on MonRoi website.

Here are the scores from Northern California. Mukund Chillakanti remains the lone bright spot with an impressive performance, especially considering the strength of opposition that he faced. All the best in the final two games on Sunday!

• Steven Zierk (2154) has an undefeated 3.5, but three draws against A players.
  
• Mukund Chillakanti (1868) also has 3.5, including 2.5 against four experts!
  
• Kenneth Law (1664) has 2.5
  
• Kartik Chillakanti (1706) has 2.0

Update on Sunday morning: Steven and Kartik both won in round 6 while Mukund and Ken drew. Mukund faces yet another expert in the final round, having already scored a stunning 3.0 out of 5 against opponents rated over 2000. Woohoo! On the stage, Michael Thaler upset top ranked FM Marc Tyler Arnold and will face FM Daniel Yeager for the title. My friend FM Robby Adamson is also happier now; his team is back in the lead.

National High School Championship in Atlanta

(David Chock versus reigning World U16 Champion IM Alex Lenderman on the top board at the 2006 National High School Championship. David pulled off the upset of his life.)

Four players from Northern California have made the journey across the country to Atlanta for the National High School Championship this weekend. Having attended this tournament in previous years, I can safely say that the intense competition exceeds anything that we might find at the state level. Out of approximately 340 players in the top section, there are 13 masters, 14 rated 2100-2199 and another 20 rated 2000-2099.

In recent years, two underrated players from the Bay Area found substantial success: David Chock of Saratoga High School defeated an International Master in 2006 and sat alone in first place before losing on the top board in the final round; the "Wizard of Oz" Michael Zhong of Los Altos High School faced four straight masters in 2007 and impressively beat three of them to tie for first place! Whose turn is it this year?

The results from the first day include many of the upsets that are typical of this tournament. Three of the masters have drawn a game and one even lost--all against dangerous A players. Likewise, the four local players have had mixed performances so far.

• Mukund Chillakanti (1868, see photo by Shorman at right) has 2.0/2 after defeating two experts!
• Steven Zierk (2154) drew an A player in round 2 and has 1.5.
• Kenneth Law (1664) has 1.0
  
• Kartik Chillakanti (1706) has 0.5

Kudos to Mukund for a very impressive start to the tournament! I know there are still five more rounds, including three on Saturday. Here's wishing the best of skill (and a little luck) to the local delegation! If you're interested in following the action, some games from the top boards are being broadcast live at the MonRoi website.

Update on Saturday afternoon: Through four rounds, Steven has 3.0, Mukund sits at 2.5 (against four experts), while Kenneth and Kartik both have 2.0.