January Thaw 2017 - Round 1

This past weekend I journeyed to Helena with Jacob Copley to compete in the first rated tournament of the year, the January Thaw. My play wasn't as sharp as usual, which caused me to make a laughable blunder and lose in Round 2, but I managed to scrape together enough wins to reach the top board in Round 5 (where I agreed to an early draw because I was tired).

Second place and 3.5 points aren't too bad, all things considered, plus I played some interesting games. My obscure Owen defense got a workout and proved unbeatable, starting with this game in Round 1.