Me !!!
I must admit it was not a heroic epic struggle that secured this victory but rather an insipid quick draw. I have had too many last round disasters in the past and the round was changed from the civilised time of 1.pm to before the crack of noon so I took the "professional" {spineless} approach. After all, Steven still had to win to catch me and he failed to do so. Paul Garbett proved to be a bony chicken today.
Second on 6 points was my countryman Steven Solomon who gave me two points start and nearly caught up, falling just half a point short.
Third prize was shared by IM Paul "bony chicken" Garbett, FM, Luke Li and Singaporean IM Peng Kong Chan, who wa the only undefeated player. Paul and Luke share the trophy for the best NZ player.
Our Arbiter Keong Ang is worth more than a passing mention . His primary concern throughout the tournament was that things ran smoothly and that everybody was happy.Mission accomplished. His son Alphaeus played in the challengers. What a great name! I have never heard it before but if I have a son I will name him Alphaeus.
All the people involved did their best to make the tournament a success and the visitors feel welcome. My host Bruce Watson opened his home to Steven and I and the Auckland chess club members entertained us and went out of their way to make us feel welcome.
Lastly I would like to mention the contribution of Helen Milligan. A link will tell you more than my rambling
Look! Results, pictures, upcoming events, past events, games, links, etc, etc. This is a website. Now compare that to the Australian chess federation website.
But if you have been in the last few months, don't bother. There is still nothing there. It is better to have nothing than this disgrace. I promised a review a while ago but there is nothing to review! It is even worse than the previous disgrace. I did not think it possible!! Am I being too harsh? Please tell me if I am.
A notice to the ACF. I have been on about this for over two years now. At the Australian Championship in 2012 I even offered to do it myself {with the help of Isage internet}. Gary Wastell consulted with the council and rejected my offer.
I will increase the frequency, range and volume of my criticism until something is finally done. As an Australian chess player I am embarrassed by what is up on the web now. You have been warned.
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I would like to show you one final picture just as a historical curiosity. Just around the corner on Dominion Road there is a building which housed the Auckland chess club sometime in the 60's
Why am I sharing this with you? No particular reason, I just like the building :-)
Tomorrow morning I am giving lessons at the Auckland Chess Centre to a group of promising juniors, followed by a simultaneous exhibition in the evening. Since several of the players from the qualifiers are playing and even one from the masters has threatened to play { to get revenge } I anticipate a tough evening :-/
Good night folks, thanks for reading and come back for the reports from Nelson.
Ciao Bellas/Bellos
Alex
Well done Alex! Looks like a great event.
ReplyDeleteCongratulation Alex..
ReplyDeleteVery good win. Even below your best, you and Solo still were a class above the rest. I'm surprised that Garbett agreed a draw against Solo with RN4P v RB3P. Even with Ps on one side, or perhaps even because the Ps are on one side, the RN combination seems to give some winning chances. IIRC Timman wrote about this. If the colours were reversed, we can be sure that Solo would have fought for a win until it was dead drawn.
ReplyDelete