I'm a 57-year-old college chemistry professor, and was previously an organic chemist in the pharmaceutical industry. I competed in dozens of USCF-rated OTB tournaments over my competitive career, but now I just play for fun (although the desire to play tournaments is beginning to return).

That's me playing a casual game with my 4-year-old niece! She played the Two-Knights Tango against my Dutch Defense.

Over the years I organized and directed public swiss and quad tournaments at Borders Books. We all used clocks (G/20), touch-move, and club ratings (calculated using the USCF system). We enjoyed a realistic tournament experience (except for the background music and chatter), but without the requirement of USCF membership. These tournaments were very popular, typically attracting about 24 players of all ages.

Below are photographs of kids-only tournaments I organized and directed. These kids were fast learners, some of them going on to become strong players in rated tournaments (leaving my rating in the dust!)

We also liked to play outside when we could (in beautiful

Cary, NC). Here are some photographs of an event I organized at an outdoor arts festival. Chess club regulars took on the public, a happy and wonderful occasion!

I treasure these memories, I was blessed to have the opportunity to share the fun of chess with all of these sweet people! Thank you for visiting my profile page.

Coach_Leo