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![[MU Chess Club Logo]](muchess.gif)
Anyone is welcome at these events. There is a wide range of skill levels in Columbia, from beginners to chess masters, and it is our goal to meet the needs of all. Membership is open to members of the Columbia community in addition to students, faculty and staff.
Chess Club members (dues: $5/semester) receive a spiffy membership card and may play in club tournaments. To become a member, please contact an officer or the club advisor. Voting members must meet UMC eligibility requirements.
Because the club is a U.S. Chess Federation affiliate club members may purchase individual USCF memberships through the club. Club members should contact Charlie Ward regarding joining the USCF or renewing your membership. A discount on USCF membership is available to members under age 25 due to the club being a USCF affiliate.
The UMC Chess Club meets every Monday night at 7pm. During the school year the meetings are in the MU Memorial Union, room N208 (second floor, north side), 518 S. Hitt Street, Columbia. Between mid-May and mid-August and during semester breaks or university holidays when the university meeting rooms are closed, club members often meet informally at 7pm on Mondays at Coffee Zone, 9 N. Ninth Street in downtown Columbia (on evenings when Coffee Zone is open).
Speed Chess Tournaments -- Speed chess tournaments are held each month, with the exception of no tournament in December. Time limits are G/5. Each round consists of two games between paired opponents, one as White, one as Black. Normally 5 rounds are played.
Here are the winners in the speed chess tournaments during the Fall 2009 semester:
August 31: 1st place: Jeremy Volkmann; 2nd place: Akshay Dave.
September 28: 1st place: Aleks Koldobskiy; 2nd place: Jeremy Volkmann.
October 26: Aleks Koldobskiy and Jeremy Volkmann tied for 1st and 2nd places.
November 29: 1st place: Barry Manthe; Igor Verbitsky and Yadamsuren Ish tied for 2nd place.
Here are the winners in the speed chess tournaments during the Spring 2010 semester:
January 25: 1st place: Aleks Koldobskiy; 2nd place: Arjun Khurana.
Club Ladder -- Club members can compete with each other on our chess ladder. Games can be played at any time and place agreeable to the opponents, but typically they are played at the Monday night club meetings. The default time limit for these games is Game/60 minutes per player.
Club Tournaments -- These tournaments are played at the Monday night club meetings, one round per week. They are not USCF rated. Small cash prizes good toward the purchase of chess books or equipment are awarded.
A fall tournament was played during October 2009, consisting of 3 rounds with a time control of Game/75. There were 23 players in the tournament. Jeremy Volkmann won the prize for the best score in the top-ranked third of the field with a perfect 3-0 record. John Lessiak and Vinh Pham tied for the prize for the middle-ranked third with scores of 2-1. The tie still remains to be resolved through a tie-break playoff game. Marty Manansala and Paul Krewson tied for the prize for the lower-ranked third with scores of 2-1; Marty defeated Paul in a playoff game and received the prize.
Club Championship -- The 2010 club championship will be played at Monday night club meetings during February and March, 2010. It will consist of 4 rounds with a time control of Game/75 minutes per player and the winner will be awarded a club championship trophy. Small cash prizes good toward the purchase of chess books or equipment will be awarded to the players with the best scores in the top-, middle- and lower-ranked thirds of the field.
Club Simuls -- The club will sponsor two simultaneous exhibitions during the 2009-2010 school year, where a strong player takes on all comers. The Fall 2009 simul was given on November 9 by USCF senior master and club advisor Neil Fox who faced 17 opponents, winning eleven, losing one and conceding five draws. Defeating Neil was Justin Hull; players earning draws were Ed Hollander, Steve Brietzke, Jag Erkembayar, Vinh Pham and Jeremy Zhang. The simul for the Spring 2010 semester will be scheduled for April.
Club-Sponsored USCF Tournaments -- The club will sponsor several one-day US Chess Federation-rated open tournaments in Columbia during the 2009-2010 school year . These events give club members experience in playing against USCF-rated players from a wider area than just the Columbia community. USCF membership is required for participants and and can be purchased at the events. The events normally consist of three rounds with a time control of Game/75 minutes for each player. Here are the results of recent past tournaments:
The Jose Capablance Open was held on August 29, 2009. There was a record turnout of 28 players in this event, including four USCF experts or masters as well as four unrated players joining the USCF at this tournament. The winner was current Missouri champion Ron Luther, with a perfect 3-0 score. Click here for the complete results.
The Alexander Alekhine Open was held on October 17, 2009. There were 16 players in the tournament. The winners were chess club member Nathan Swinger and current Missouri champion Ron Luther, who both had perfect 3-0 scores. Click here for the complete results.
The Mikhail Botvinnik Open was held on January 23, 2009. There was a record-tying turnout of 28 players; As a result, the tournament was divided into two 14-player sections with equivalent ratings distributions. The winner of section A with a perfect score of 3-0 was Selden Trimble of Rolla. The winners of Section B also with 3-0 scores were junior Vikram Arun of Columbia and Steven Rand. Vikram achieved first place by defeating USCF Expert Tim Steiner of Kansas City in the final round. Click here for the complete results.
Future tournaments are planned for January 23 and June 12, 2010. The tournament originally planned for March 20, 2010 has been cancelled due to a date conflict with the Mid-America Open in St. Louis.
Future Missouri Chess Events
For information on tournaments scheduled in the next 3-4 months, visit the Missouri Chess Association Web site; otherwise see the Tournament Life section of the U.S. Chess Federation's Chess Life magazine.
For tournaments further in the future, browse the USCF Tournament Clearing House calendar for Missouri.
Mailing List
Our electronic mailing list MUCHESS-L is used mostly for announcements of interest to local chessplayers. To subscribe, send an e-mail message to listserv@lists.missouri.edu. Leave the Subject line blank. In the body of the message, type:
SUBSCRIBE MUCHESS-L Yourfirstname Yourlastname
You should receive a confirmation message within a few minutes.
If you are already subcribed to MUCHESS-L and would like to UNsubscribe, send the one-line message UNSUBSCRIBE MUCHESS-L to the same address. (SIGNOFF MUCHESS-L also works.)
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