34 players attended the 2016 National Chess Day event in St. Albans. 14 players competed in the Open Section, won by John Roush with a score of 3.5/4. John Roush takes the early lead in the 2016-2017 Grand Prix, followed closely by Markle Butcher and David Bruner.
Missing Pieces Charity Chess Tournament
The Missing Pieces Charity Chess Tournament was a non-rated event held in Summersville on September 24, 2016. 6 adults and 2 children from the Nicholas County area competed to raise over $1,000 for the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Jim Adkins of Mount Nebo won the single-elimination event.
3-time State Champion Benjamin Good attended the event and played a simultaneous exhibition, going 12-0. Ben tried his hand at a blindfold game with Chris Smallwood, runner-up of the main event, but forgot about one of the pieces, blundered his queen and lost.
Next year we plan on holding the event some time before the State Championship, with both rated and non-rated sections.
78th WV State Championship
19 players participated in the 78th WV State Championship, held in Charleston from September 3 to September 5.
FM Nikhilesh Kunche and Dr. Armando Lopez, who drew each other in Round 3, are the 2016 WV State Champions. FM Kunche took the individual trophy on tiebreaks. They both scored 5.5-0.5. Nathaniel Eerenberg and James Fuller tied for third with 4-2.
5 players participated in a round robin Blitz Championship, which was won by Dr. Lopez with a 4-0 score.
The crosstable can be seen here.
The games can be downloaded here.
2015 – 2016 Grand Prix Final Standings
Lewis Sanders won the 2015-2016 Grand Prix.
Events included:
2015 National Chess Day, 2015 St. Francis Fall Open, 2015 WV Senior Open, 2016 Winter Open, 2016 Action Championship, 24th Parkersburg Homecoming, 78th WV State Championship
1. Lewis Sanders 52.83
2. Nikhilesh Kunche 41.92
3. David Bruner 41.83
4. John Roush 37.83
5. Dan Cady 37.67
6. Markle Butcher 34.92
7. Joseph Baker 33.33
8. James Fuller 28.67
9. Ed Garner 28.17
10. Mike Felton 27.83
11. Charles McCallister 27.67
12. Armando Lopez 27.17
13. Sam Timmons 22.08
14. Boyd Reed 18.58
15. David Hundley 18.50
16. Marvin Boyce 14.50
17. Bob Canary 14.00
18. Bill Haynes 11.50
19. Surya Perla 8.00
20. Ben Good 7.50
21. Nathaniel Eerenberg 7.33
Andre Linsky 7.33
23. Tyler Barnhart 6.83
24. Marty Clevenger 6.67
Daniel Preece 6.67
26. Edward Shade 6.50
27. Mayor Bob 6.33
28. Anthony Francis 6.00
29. Gary Cummings 5.17
30. Jim Fields 5.00
Ryan Ward 5.00
Chris Greer 5.00
33. Mike Price 4.92
34. James Olson 3.50
35. Miller Bushong 3.33
36. Alex Chouinard 1.67
2016 WVCA Business Meeting
The business meeting of the WVCA was held September 3, 2016 before the first round of the State Championship. Two things of note: the Ripley Chess Club is donating $250 to the Grand Prix prize fund and the format and date for the State Championship is no longer fixed.
These are the requirements for the State Championship going forward:
– 5 rounds or longer
– G/75 or longer
– Held between August 1 and October 31
The 2017 State Championship will be held in Mt. Nebo, just outside of Summersville. Expect a 2-day 5-round event with a shorter time control for rounds 1 and 2.
The 2017 Action Championship will be held in Ripley.
Officers:
President – John Roush
Vice President – James Fields
Secretary-Treasurer – Ben Good
Bulletin Editor – Mike Baker
At-Large Member – David Bruner
Delgate to USCF – Lewis Sanders, Charles McCallister alternate
24th Annual Parkersburg Homecoming
Twenty players participated in the 24th Annual Parkersburg Homecoming tournament. Grant Perks from Ohio was the winner at 4-0, with Mike Felton just behind him at 3.5.
1st: Grant Perks, Thornville, Ohio.
2nd: Michael Felton, Grafton
3rd, tie: David Hines, Wiley Ford; John Everett Roush, Ripley; Lewis Sanders, Charleston.
Under 1800: Matthew Campbell, Morgantown.
Under 1300: Charles McCallister, Ripley.
Non-Rated Results:
1st: Gavin Yost, Davisville
2nd: Anthony Jenkins Walker
Winner Grant Perks
Non-rated Winner Gavin Yost
Non-rated 2nd Place Anthony Jenkins
WV Action Championship Results
22 players from across the state and neighboring Maryland and Pennsylvania competed in the typically wild and crazy Action Championship. The fireworks were plenty with multiple upsets, time scrambles, and even a queen-and-knight-extra stalemate.
After the dust settled, Lewis “Crafty” Sanders emerged unscathed with 4 wins and 2 draws. The birthday boy, Ben Good, was just behind him at 4 wins, 1 draw, and 1 loss. Special thanks to Mrs. Good for a birthday surprise of chess-themed cupcakes between rounds 4 and 5.
The full crosstable can be found here.
Bridgeport Library #8
Lewis Sanders and Ryan Ward had perfect 3-0 scores at the 8th Bridgeport Library event.
Crosstable
49th WV Scholastic Championship Results
88 players competed in the 49th annual WV Scholastic Championship held in Institute. The WV Scholastic Chess Association organized the event and president Robert L Greer was the chief tournament director.
The high school champion is Parker Benson (3.5/4), who won on tiebreaks over Vishnu Kasireddy and Cody Kropp. Parker will represent WV in the GM Arnold Denker Tournament of High School Champions.
The middle school champion is Nicholas Palmer (4/4). Nicholas will represent WV at the Dewain Barber Tournament of K-8 Champions.
Clare Higgins was the top female finisher and will represent WV at the US Chess National Girls Tournament of Champions.
All three of these events will be held from July 30 to August 2 in Indianapolis during the US Open.
The WV Gazette has also posted a story on the event which can be seen here.
Format for the WV State Championship
The WV State Championship has been a 6 round event held over Labor Day since 1945. Over the past several years, people have mentioned that they cannot keep up with a 3 day event on a holiday weekend. We’d like to get some opinions and possibly propose an amendment to the bylaws for a vote at this year’s tournament. So, what do you say?
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