There are 8 people rated over 2000 in the Major Section of the Australian Championships. Top seed Englishman David Garner failed to get into the Championship division so with a fide rating of 2178 was the top seed in the “Under 2150” Major divisio...
The Australian Chess Championship started yesterday, the 2nd of January, at the Norths Club in Cammeray, north of Sydney. The 28 player Championship division includes 3 Grandmasters, 6 International masters and 4 Fide Masters and the first roun...
As a Chess player and administrator one of the biggest problems I find in regards to keeping chess players in chess is Poker. Chessplayers make good poker players. Poker is a game of skill and also luck...... but in the long run, as in chess, sk...
Tonight I played an interesting game in the Parramatta Chess Club Championships. A game that I should have lost at one stage (I stupidly mated myself but my opponent did not notice). But it envolved an interesting king march up the board out of ...
The week leading up to the City of Sydney Rapidplay was perfect chess playing weather: Wet and Cloudy. But on the sunday - the sun did shine! The previous week's weather must have still been on chessplayers mind as a bumper crowd of 58 players ...
I love a good Kinghunt. Its like a pack of wild Hyenas trying to hunt down their prey. It's not often you get the chance for a King hunt but I am happy that I recently did. It was an online game with Benztoyz where I temporarily sacked the excha...
After a long while away from blogging I've decided to start blogging regularly once again. I will be posting the blog both on here and on Blogger (as there apparently is some readers of my blog who couldn't find my material here (such as the Parr...
IM David Smerdon has won the 2008 Ryde Eastwood Open with a Score of 6.5/7 only drawing with Ayvazyan in the 6th Round. Astonishingly Smerdon only played 2 of the 6 other over 2000 players as upsets were reiking havoc all accross the tournament. ...
What annoys you at the chessboard in a tournament? Not finding the right continuation or plan? Missing a combination? What about annoyances? Noise? What annoys me at the chessboard is if someone is making a noise that need not be made. ...
Hello people! Blogging has taken a bit of a back seat the last two weeks as I try to work on the BAS's for the 7 companies i work for. I'll just leave you now with my grade match win from last night against St George. I got a little lucky.
I feel that some juniors put too much value on Bishops over knights. In my seventh round game yesterday I played Sophie Eustace who decided to trade off both her knights for my bishops.....which ended up giving me an advantage with a pawn up.
Well my excitement was apparently evident at work today as I was not concentrating on what I was doing. This has left me with four or five partially done tasks that I'll need to finish on Monday. Oh well... as one of the owners sa...
I used to play the Colle as my main opening weapon for white. As time went by and my rating started to jolt upwards I decided to play the more tactical Blackmar Diemar Gambit and now my regular opening is the Queens Gambit as I started to see...
I now realise why people do not like to play grade matches. It is not only the cost of travelling somewhere accross the city but it can also be the fact that people are tired after a full days work. It doesnt make for a good game of ch...
i finally got a fide rating this ratings period. I recieved two blocks in the 2007 Sydney International Open and one block in this year's Sydney International Challengers. Now I need to improve on it! However I am goin...
Dubbo is the furthest west I've ever been on my travels having been there most recently to play in the Dubbo Open. However I will be going to Adelaide this coming weekend to take part in the Freytag Checkmate Weekender at the Prince Alfr...
The NSWCA Sydney Grade matches has attracted 26 teams from 8 clubs in 4 divisions. But there is no Open division this year. The open division was unable to attract enough participants to get off the ground. Sydney Academy of Chess and Sydney...
Hello All! After a break away from blogging I have decided to continue my blog on the Chess.com site! I will keep my previous work up on Blogger Just in case the chess.com blog does not turn out :D Lives quite different for me at the moment. ...
