WCC News 2018 ♔

Carissa Yip, champion of the Wachusett Chess Club in 2014, made another impressive performance by tying for 2nd place in the 12th annual Philadelphia Open, held March 28 through April 1st at the Philadelphia Marriott Downtown. The 14-year-old FIDE master from Andover, Mass. tallied 5 wins,3 draws and only one loss, for a score of 6.5-2.5, to tie for the runner-up position with three 3 GMs and 2 IMs. She finished ahead of 4 GMs, including GM Sam Sevian and GM Alexander Stripunsky, the latter of whom she defeated in the final round. Two of her three draws were against IMs. Her score also netted her prize money for tying for 1st-2nd U2400.
-George M

Carissa's round 7 win over IM Andrew Tang is posted in the Games Section.

2018 Evert Siiskonen Memorial
Round 3 of 5

Former Wachusett Chess Club champion Carissa Yip of Andover was the winner in the 20-player High School section of the 2018 Barry S. Spiegel Cup on Sunday, March 18, at the Best Western Royal Plaza Hotel in Marlborough. The tournament, which is the annual Massachusetts Singles Scholastic Championship in four sections, saw the 14-year-old FIDE master accomplish this by winning a playoff against national master Michael Isakov , after both scored 3.5-0.5, including a draw with one another in the final round of regular play. The victory qualifies Carissa to represent Massachusetts in the GM Denker Tournament of High School Champions, which will be played July 28-31, 2018 in Madison, Wisconsin. Carissa won the 2014 Wachusett CC Championship with a perfect score of 7-0 when she was 10 years old. She finished a full 2 points ahead of her closest rival. Since leaving the Wachusett CC in January 2015, Carissa has become a stronger player - evidenced by her participation in the 2016 and 2017 U.S. Women's Championship in Saint Louis.
-George M

Simultaneous Chess exhibition by Marc Esserman (International Master; FIDE rating 2446)

Marc faces Vishy Anand at Gibraltar 2016; result, DRAW!
Sophie Triay photo Marc Esserman on Chessdb.com
Marc Esserman on Wikipedia.org
Marc Esserman on USChessLeague.com
Saturday, March 24, 2018
Quinsigamond Community College, Administration Building cafeteria
Registration opens at 9:00am. Entry fee is $10 per person. The simul begins at 9:30.
Participants are encouraged to bring their own set of chess pieces and board.
All ages are welcome.
Question/Answer Session after the simul.
For more info: contact Jerry Williams, 508-335-0692.
--
The Chess Club at Worcester State University
Email: chesswsu@gmail.com

2018 Evert Siiskonen Memorial
Round 1 of 5

Round 1 of the Evert Siiskonen Memorial will be played Wednesday evening, March 14, in Room C159 of the McKay Complex at Fitchburg State University.
Players who wish to participate should make every attempt to arrive on time - by 7:10 p.m., at the latest, so that the round can get under way by 7:15 p.m.

2018 George E. O'Rourke Memorial
Round 5 of 5

With a USCF rating of 2201, NM Rob King now heads the rating list not only of the Wachusett CC, where he was club champion in 2011, but also the Greater Worcester CC, where he now holds a lead of one rating point over FM John Curdo, currently at his rating floor of 2200.
♔ Wachusett CC Rating List (March 4th 2018)
♚ Worcester CC Rating List (March 4th 2018)

2018 George E. O'Rourke Memorial
Round 4 of 5

Starting June 4th last year (2017), newest WCC member, Mike David has been running an informal chess club Sundays, 7 p.m. to 10 p.m., at The Billiards Cafe, 39 Main St., Ayer, MA Play Is "quick chess," i.e. Game/15, usually a round robin. No entry fees, no prizes - just fun.

2018 George E. O'Rourke Memorial
Round 3 of 5

Round 2 of the George E. O'Rourke Memorial will be played Wednesday evening, Feb. 14, in Room C159 of the McKay Complex at Fitchburg State University.
Players who wish to participate should make every attempt to arrive on time - by 7:10 p.m., at the latest, so that the round can get under way by 7:15 p.m. All participants will receive retroactively a half-point bye for round 1, which was not played because of a snowstorm and Fitchburg State University being closed on Feb. 7.

Despite being snowed out for the first round of the George E. O'Rourke Memorial on Feb. 7th, that tournament finally gets under way this Wednesday, Feb. 14, in Room C159 of the McKay Complex at Fitchburg State University. Those who wish to participate should show up by 7 p.m. in order to be paired for Round 2. Participants will receive retroactively half-point byes for Round 1. The 5-round event honors the memory of Wachusett CC member George Edmund O'Rourke of Concord, who passed away at age 77 on Feb. 26, 2007.

Who will win the 2018 edition of the O'Rourke Memorial?
Here is a historical review of the winners in the past 10 years:
2017 - Brett Kildahl, 4.5-0.5
2016 - Edward Harris, 4.5-0.5
2015 - Walter Niemi, 4.5-0.5
2014 - Carissa Yip, 4.5-0.5
2013 - Ray Paulson, Paul Godin, George Mirijanian, Bruce Felton, 4-1
2012 - Bruce Felton, 4.5-0.5
2011 - Paul Godin, 4.5-0.5
2010 - Paul Giovino, 4.5-0.5
2009 - Ken Gurge, 4.5-0.5
2008 - Ken Gurge, 4-1
[Interestingly, none of the tournament's winners in the past ten years did so with a perfect score.]
-George M

2018 Reggie Boone Memorial
Round 5 of 5

Current Wachusett Chess Club champion Ray Paulson of Lowell and fellow Wachusett CC member Jim Donahue of Stow were among the runners-up in the Billerica January Swiss, played Friday nights, Jan. 12-26 at the Billerica Chess Club in the town's senior center. Both shared those honors with the top-rated player, expert Tim Bromley of Billerica. All three tallied 2-1 in a 12-player field. Winning the tournament with a score of 2.5-0.5 was expert Arthur Nugent of Beverly. Nugent is the longtime contact person for the Billerica Chess Club.
-George M

2018 Reggie Boone Memorial
Round 4 of 5

Former Wachusett CC member Richard D. Chromiak dies at 22

Richard D. Chromiak

Richard "Richie" Dmytro Chromiak of Leominster, a former member of the Wachusett Chess Club and the U.S. Chess Federation, died on Christmas Day, Dec. 25, 2017. He was only 22. He was the son of Stephan and Marylee Chromiak. His father had also been a member of the Wachusett CC. Richard and his father were members of the Wachusett CC between May 2009 and April 2010. Richard played in nine club tournaments during that time. They included the 2009 Wachusett Chess Club Championship ("B" Division), Harlow Daly Memorial, Tigran Petrosian Memorial, Hervey R. Brisson Memorial, Arthur Bisguier Octogenarian Tournament, George Sturgis Memorial, Reggie Boone Memorial, George O'Rourke Memorial, and the Wachusett Chess Club Championship Prelims. Among current club members he faced were Ken Gurge, Lenny Arsenault, Tom Fratturelli, Wayne Steadman, Brian Biglow and Francis Scanlon. He had a win and a draw against Scanlon, and a win against Biglow.

A memorial service for Richard D. Chromiak will be held Saturday, Jan. 27, 2018 at 10 a.m. in Grace Baptist Church, 42 River Road, Pepperell, MA 01463, on Saturday, January 27, 2018, at 10:00 am. Reception immediately following the service.

Richard's obituary is published at:
http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/fitchburg/obituary.aspx?n=richard-dmytro-chromiak&pid=187845527

-George M

NM Rob King has posted another instructional video on YouTube as part of the
Metrowest Chess Club Video Series:
♖ Fischer - Benko, 1963
Check it out / share if you would like.
Thanks!
Rob

2018 Reggie Boone Memorial
Round 2 of 5

Former Wachusett CC member Dean E. Turra dies at 62

Dean E. Turra

Dean E. Turra, a USCF life member and a former member of the Wachusett Chess Club, died Wednesday, Jan. 3, 2018, at his home in Fitchburg. He was 62. Born Oct. 22, 1955 in Shirley, Mass., the son of Frank and Josephine (Bartolo) Turra, he graduated from Ayer High School in 1973. Dean served in the U.S. Army from 1975 to 1978. During that time, he became chess champion at Fort Meade in Maryland. While serving in the Army, he enrolled in the University of Maryland and continued his education at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst.

After graduating from UMass-Amherst in 1982 with a degree in business, Dean joined the Wachusett Chess Club, which at that time was meeting at the St. Joseph Club in the Cleghorn section of Fitchburg. Dean became one of the most active members of the club during the 1980s and continued playing there right into the early 1990s. His last tournament at the club was the Wachusett CC Fall Swiss, held October-November 1992. His last over-the-board tournament was the Nashoba Chess Club July Swiss, held in Westford, Mass. in 1995. While playing at the Wachusett CC, Dean was a key member of the Wachusett CC team that narrowly lost a 14-board match to the Framingham Chess Club on April 2, 1985 at the American Legion in Framingham. Outrated on 11 of 14 boards, the Wachusett CC team lost 7.5 to 6.5, with Dean scoring a crucial win on board 8.

A funeral Mass for Dean Turra will be celebrated at 10 a.m. on Thursday, Jan. 11, at St. Mary's Church, 31 Shirley St., Ayer. Burial will follow in the parish cemetery. Dean's family will receive family and friends 8:45 to 9:45 a.m. on Thursday, Jan. 11, at the Anderson Funeral Home, 25 Fitchburg Road, Ayer. For more information, visit: http://www.andersonfuneral.com/?s=Turra
or
http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/fitchburg/obituary.aspx?page=lifestory&pid=187766034.

-George M

2018 Reggie Boone Memorial
Round 1 of 5

Reminder: Your digital electronic chess clock doesn't like the cold either!

"In surface-mount designs, the differential temperature coefficient of expansion between the parts-soldered-to-the-circuit-board and the circuit board can cause large stresses. The stress-strain-temperature relationship often barely works over the specified temperature range. When the equipment is powered up, the hot components can change shape and break the brittle plastic, much like my old ice chest."

"If the equipment is below zero degrees C [32 degrees F] and then you take it into a nice warm, humid office, water will condense on the circuit boards and can cause problems. Presumably a similar thing can happen with frost, depending on the weather. When the frost melts, there can be problems."
For more info, refer to:
Storing electronics at low temperatures
Operating electronics at low temperatures

Most electronic chess clocks are difficult &/or expensive to repair, so don't leave your clock in your car overnight!

Each book contains 100 instructive insightful & entertaining mineature games by FM John Curdo, arguably New England's most successful & prolific practioner of the game.
"Chess Caviar" - 100 games with notes & annotations by John Curdo - $10.
"More Chess Caviar" by John Curdo - 100 more games with notes & annotations by John Curdo - $10.
"Still More Chess Caviar" by John Curdo - yet another 100 games with notes & annotations by John Curdo - $10.

"A necessary & welcome component of any chess library!"
Any or all of these books may be purchased directly from John Curdo at jacurdo@verizon.net.

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For information & news stories from 2017, please refer to the WCC 2017-News Archive

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2015 Web Site Design Revision & Maintenance: Paul Godin
Content: George Mirijanian, Paul Godin, Dave Couture, Arthur Barlas & other individual contributors
Tournament Results: Larry Gladding & George Mirijanian
Tournament Reports: Paul Godin
YouTube Videos: Roger Cappallo & Brett Kildahl
Club Member Statistics & Spreadsheets: Dave Couture & Paul Godin
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