December 30th, 2009 George Sturgis Memorial Final Round (of 5) Laine and Gladding tie for first in Sturgis Memorial   Congratulations to Martin Laine of Lunenburg and Larry Gladding of Leominster for tying for 1st-2nd place in the George Sturgis Memorial. Marty needed only a draw to clinch first after leading the tournament following Round 3. But he came up against Geoff LePoer of Westford in the final round and had an opening and early middlegame advantage before allowing Geoff enough counterplay in the late middlegame to win the game and end Marty's six-game winning streak. Congratulations to Geoff for finishing third and to Bruce Felton of Fitchburg for ending up in fourth place. Another player who had a noteworthy performance was Ernest Fandreyer of Fitchburg.  Ernest played in his first rated game on February 6th 2002 at the age of 75.  His provisional rating after first tournament was 806 based  on 5 games.  By August, when he received his first non-provisional rating, he was up to 993.  Now at the age of 83(!) Ernest has broken 1500 for the first time in his life - quite an accomplishment indeed! Martin Laine 0-1 Geoff LePoer Larry Gladding 1-0 Paul Giovino Eugene Bedard 0-1 Bruce Felton Lenny Arsenault 1/2-1/2 Tom Fratturelli Brian Biglow 0-1 Ernest Fandreyer Mike Sheridan 0-1 Joe Magdalenski Ken Carabba 0-1 Max Sewell   FINAL STANDINGS POINTS   4.0 Laine, Gladding 3.5 LePoer 3.0 Felton 2.5 Mirijanian, Giovino, Gurge, Arsenault, Bedard, Fandreyer 2.0 Couture, Barlas, Fratturelli, Magdalenski, Chromiak 1.5 Miller, Sewell 1.0 Biglow, Sheridan, Steadman, Leonda, Carabba, Scanlon   December 23rd, 2009 George Sturgis Memorial Round 4 (of 5) Overdue Congratulations & News Of The Week   Before giving this week's results, some congratulations are in order for performances in the previous tournament, the Arthur Bisguier Octogenarian.   First and foremost, congratulations to Ernest Fandreyer for his over-the-top performance in winning huge upsets against former club champions Martin Laine and Bruce Felton.  In addition, Ernest drew 2 games against opponents rated more than 300 points higher.  Ernest's rating increase for the tournament was an amazing 179 points!  This was such a large increase that when I submitted the results to the USCF they returned it with a warning to check that no mistake had been made in entering Ernest's results! Due to this big ratings jump, Ernest achieved a new all-time high rating of 1492.   Congratulations are also in order for Paul Giovino who raised his rating to a new all-time high of 1769 and to Francis Scanlon who increased his rating by 95 points.   We now return you to the news of the week...   Martin Laine won his 6th game in a row to maintain a 1  point lead over Larry Gladding with 1 week to go in the tournament.  Larry has 2nd place all to himself. Before tonight there were 9(!) players tied for 2nd place.   Martin Laine 1-0 Arthur Barlas Larry Gladding 1-0 Lenny Arsenault Geoff LePoer 1-0 Bruce Felton Joe Magdalenski 0-1 Eugene Bedard Max Sewell 1/2-1/2 Brian Biglow George Mirijanian, Paul Giovino, Ken Gurge, George Miller, Tom Fratturelli, Ernest Fandreyer, and Constantin Leonda received half-point byes. Dave Couture, Richard Chromiak, Wayne Steadman, Ken Carabba, and Francis Scanlon did not play the round.     CURRENT STANDINGS POINTS   4.0 Laine 3.5 ------ 3.0 Gladding 2.5 Mirijanian, LePoer, Giovino, Gurge, Bedard 2.0 Felton, Couture, Barlas, Arsenault, Chromiak 1.5 Miller, Fratturelli, Fandreyer 1.0 Biglow, Steadman, Leonda, Carabba, Scanlon, Magdalenski 0.5 Sewell   December 16th, 2009 George Sturgis Memorial Round 3 (of 5) Interesting Times   After 3 rounds we have an interesting and possibly unprecedented situation.  Former club champion Martin Laine of Lunenburg has a full point lead.  This is pretty unusual in and of itself after 3 rounds, but even odder is the fact that we have 9(!) players tied for 2nd place.  The next couple of weeks should prove interesting!   I want to thank Max Sewell, who gladly filled in for me for the past couple of months.  I appreciate it very much and want to wish Max the best of luck as he undertakes the editorship of "Chess Horizons". - Dave Couture   Bruce Felton 0-1 Martin Laine Geoff LePoer 0-1 Larry Gladding Tom Fratturelli 0-1 Paul Giovino George Miller 0-1 Ken Gurge Lenny Arsenault 1-0  Ernest Fandreyer Eugene Bedard 1-0 Max Sewell Joe Magdalenski 1-0 Constantin Leonda   George Mirijanian, Dave Couture, Arthur Barlas, Richard Chromiak, Francis Scanlon and Brian Biglow received half-point byes. Wayne Steadman and Ken Carabba did not play the round.     CURRENT STANDINGS POINTS   3.0 Laine 2.5 ------ 2.0 Gladding, Mirijanian, Felton, Couture, Giovino, Barlas, Gurge, Arsenault, Chromiak 1.5 LePoer, Bedard 1.0 Miller, Fratturelli, Fandreyer, Steadman, Carabba, Scanlon, Magdalenski 0.5 Biglow, Leonda 0.0 Sewell     CHESS POSTPONED TONIGHT, DEC. 9, BECAUSE OF WEATHER December 2nd, 2009 George Sturgis Memorial Round 2 (of 5)     Martin Laine 1-0 Larry Gladding Paul Giovino 0-1 Bruce Felton Ken Gurge 0-1 Arthur Barlas Francis Scanlon 0-1 Richard Chromiak George Miller 1-0 Brian Biglow Constantin Leonda 1/2-1/2 Eugene Bedard Tom Fratturelli 1-0 Max Sewell Ernest Fandreyer 1-0 Joe Magdalenski   George Mirijanian, Dave Couture, Geoff LePoer, Lenny Arsenault, Wayne Steadman and Ken Carabba received half-point byes.     CURRENT STANDINGS POINTS   2.0 Felton, Laine 1.5 Mirijanian, Couture, LePoer, Barlas, Chromiak 1.0 Gladding, Giovino, Gurge, Arsenault, Miller, Fratturelli, Fandreyer, Steadman, Carabba 0.5 Bedard, Leonda, Scanlon 0.0 Biglow, Sewell, Magdalenski       November 18th, 2009 George Sturgis Memorial Round 1 (of 5)     Bruce Felton 1-0 George Miller Eugene Bedard 0-1 George Mirijanian Larry Gladding 1-0 Tom Fratturelli Brian Biglow 0-1 Martin Laine Dave Couture 1-0 Ernest Fandreyer Max Sewell 0-1 Geoff LePoer Paul Giovino 1-0 Constantin Leonda Joe Magdalenski 0-1 Ken Gurge   Arthur Barlas, Lenny Arsenault, Wayne Steadman, Ken Carabba, Francis Scanlon and Richard Chromiak received half-point byes.     CURRENT STANDINGS POINTS   1.0 Felton, Mirijanian, Gladding, Laine, Couture, LePoer, Giovino, Gurge 0.5 Barlas, Arsenault, Steadman, Carabba, Scanlon, Chromiak 0.0 Miller, Bedard, Fratturelli, Biglow, Fandreyer, Sewell, Leonda, Magdalenski       LARRY GLADDING WINS GM ARTHUR B. BISGUIER OCTOGENARIAN TRIBUTE   Club champion Larry Gladding of Leominster chalked up his second tournament victory in a row by winning the Arthur B. Bisguier Octogenarian Tribute. Capturing second place was Paul Giovino of Lunenburg, while George Mirijanian of Fitchburg finished in third place. Congratulations to Larry, Paul and George. The biggest story of the tournament, however, was the performance of Ernest Fandreyer of Fitchburg, who is expected to gain the most number of rating points after upsetting two Class A players and drawing two Class B players. Ernest is expected to net well over 100 USCF rating points.       November 11th, 2009 GM Arthur B. Bisguier Octogenarian Tribute Final round (of 5)     Larry Gladding 1/2-1/2 George Mirijanian Lenny Arsenault 0-1 Paul Giovino Ernest Fandreyer 1-0 Bruce Felton Martin Laine 1-0 George Miller Ken Gurge 1-0 Tom Fratturelli Constantin Leonda 0-1 Brian Biglow Max Sewell 1-0 Richard Chromiak   Eugene Bedard, Wayne Steadman, Francis Scanlon, Ken Carabba, Dave Couture and Mike Sheridan did not play the round.     FINAL STANDINGS POINTS   4.5 Gladding 4.0 Giovino 3.5 Mirijanian 3.0 Laine, Gurge, Arsenault, Fandreyer 2.0 Felton, Miller, Bedard, Fratturelli, Biglow, Sewell, Leonda 1.5 Steadman, Scanlon 1.0 Couture, Sheridan, Carabba, Chromiak     November 4th, 2009 GM Arthur B. Bisguier Octogenarian Tribute Round 4 (of 5)     Bruce Felton 0-1 Larry Gladding George Mirijanian 1-0 Ernest Fandreyer Paul Giovino 1-0 Tom Fratturelli Lenny Arsenault 1-0 Constantin Leonda George Miller 1/2-1/2 Eugene Bedard Francis Scanlon 0-1 Martin Laine Wayne Steadman 1/2-1/2 Max Sewell   Ken Gurge, Brian Biglow, Ken Carabba and Richard Chromiak received half-point byes. Dave Couture and Mike Sheridan did not play the round.     CURRENT STANDINGS POINTS   4.0 Gladding 3.0 Mirijanian, Giovino, Arsenault 2.0 Felton, Laine, Gurge, Miller, Bedard, Fratturelli, Fandreyer, Leonda 1.5 Steadman, Scanlon 1.0 Couture, Biglow, Sheridan, Sewell, Carabba, Chromiak     October 28th, 2009 GM Arthur B. Bisguier Octogenarian Tribute Round 3 (of 5)     Larry Gladding 1-0 Lenny Arsenault Bruce Felton 1-0 Ken Gurge Ernest Fandreyer 1/2-1/2 George Miller Tom Fratturelli 1-0 Martin Laine Richard Chromiak 0-1 Constantin Leonda Max Sewell 1/2-1/2 Brian Biglow   George Mirijanian, Paul Giovino, Eugene Bedard, Francis Scanlon, Wayne Steadman and Ken Carabba received half-point byes. Dave Couture and Mike Sheridan did not play the round.     CURRENT STANDINGS POINTS   3.0 Gladding 2.0 Felton, Mirijanian, Giovino, Arsenault, Fratturelli, Fandreyer, Leonda 1.5 Gurge, Miller, Bedard, Scanlon 1.0 Laine, Couture, Sheridan, Steadman 0.5 Biglow, Sewell, Carabba, Chromiak       October 21st, 2009 GM Arthur B. Bisguier Octogenarian Tribute Round 2 (of 5)     George Miller 0-1 Larry Gladding Ken Gurge 1/2-1/2 Ernest Fandreyer Eugene Bedard 0-1 Lenny Arsenault George Mirijanian 1-0 Wayne Steadman Constantin Leonda 1/2-1/2 Tom Fratturelli Max Sewell 0-1 Bruce Felton Martin Laine 1-0 Ken Carabba Brian Biglow 0-1 Francis Scanlon   Paul Giovino, Dave Couture, Mike Sheridan, and Richard Chromiak received half-point byes. Arthur Barlas withdrew from the tournament.     CURRENT STANDINGS POINTS   2.0 Gladding, Arsenault 1.5 Mirijanian, Giovino, Gurge, Fandreyer 1.0 Felton, Laine, Couture, Miller, Bedard, Fratturelli, Sheridan, Leonda, Scanlon 0.5 Steadman, Chromiak 0.0 Biglow, Sewell, Carabba     October 14th, 2009 GM Arthur B. Bisguier Octogenarian Tribute Round 1 (of 5)     Bruce Felton 0-1 Eugene Bedard Tom Fratturelli 1/2-1/2 George Mirijanian Larry Gladding 1-0 Brian Biglow Ernest Fandreyer 1-0 Martin Laine Paul Giovino 1-0 Max Sewell Ken Carabba 0-1 Ken Gurge Lenny Arsenault 1-0 Francis Scanlon Richard Chromiak 0-1 George Miller   Dave Couture, Arthur Barlas, Mike Sheridan, Wayne Steadman and Constantin Leonda received half-point byes.     CURRENT STANDINGS POINTS   1.0 Gladding, Giovino, Gurge, Arsenault, Miller, Bedard, Fandreyer 0.5 Mirijanian, Couture, Barlas, Fratturelli, Sheridan, Steadman, Leonda 0.0 Felton, Laine, Biglow, Sewell, Carabba, Scanlon, Chromiak     October 7th, 2009 Hervey R. Brisson Memorial Final Round (of 5)   Larry Gladding of Leominster wins Hervey R. Brisson Memorial   Larry Gladding of Leominster, the reigning Wachusett Chess Club champion, chalked up his first tournament victory of the 2009-2010 season and won the Hervey R. Brisson Memorial with a score of 4.5-0.5 in a field of 22 players. Needing only a half point in the final round to clinch first, Gladding succeeded in his goal and drew with two-time club champion Bruce Felton of Fitchburg. Capturing second place was 2008 club champion Martin Laine of Lunenburg. Deadlocked in third place were Felton and 15-time club champion George Mirijanian of Fitchburg. Congratulations to all the top scorers.                                                           - George Mirijanian     Larry Gladding 1/2-1/2 Bruce Felton Martin Laine 1-0 Paul Giovino George Mirijanian 1-0 Ken Carabba Arthur Barlas 1-0 Tom Fratturelli George Miller 1-0 Lenny Arsenault Brian Biglow 0-1 Ken Gurge Constantin Leonda 1/2-1/2 Max Sewell Ernest Fandreyer 0-1 Mark Daley Richard Chromiak 1/2-1/2 Francis Scanlon     FINAL STANDINGS POINTS   4.5 Gladding 4.0 Laine 3.5 Felton, Mirijanian 3.0 Giovino, Barlas, Miller 2.5 Gurge, Bedard, Carabba 2.0 Couture, Arsenault, Fratturelli, Daley, Sewell 1.5 Biglow, Leonda, Chromiak 1.0 Sheridan, Steadman, Fandreyer, Scanlon       September 30th, 2009 Hervey Brisson Memorial Round 4 (of 5)     Martin Laine 0-1 Larry Gladding Lenny Arsenault 0-1 Bruce Felton Paul Giovino 1-0 Dave Couture Ken Gurge 0-1 George Mirijanian Max Sewell 0-1 Ken Carabba Mike Sheridan 0-1 George Miller Wayne Steadman 0-1 Tom Fratturelli Francis Scanlon 0-1 Ernest Fandreyer   Eugene Bedard, Arthur Barlas, Brian Biglow and Richard Chromiak drew half-point byes.   CURRENT STANDINGS POINTS   4.0 Gladding 3.5 ----- 3.0 Felton, Laine, Giovino 2.5 Mirijanian, Bedard, Carabba 2.0 Couture, Barlas, Arsenault, Miller, Fratturelli 1.5 Gurge, Biglow, Sewell 1.0 Sheridan, Steadman, Fandreyer, Chromiak 0.5 Scanlon   September 23rd, 2009 Hervey Brisson Memorial Round 3 (of 5)     Bruce Felton  0-1 Martin Laine Larry Gladding  1-0 Ken Gurge Dave Couture 1-0 Arthur Barlas George Miller 0-1 Paul Giovino Tom Fratturelli 0-1 Lenny Arsenault Wayne Steadman 0-1 Eugene Bedard Ken Carabba 1-0 Francis Scanlon Ernest Fandreyer 0-1 Brian Biglow   George Mirijanian, Max Sewell and Richard Chromiak received half-point byes. Mike Sheridan did not play the round.  Parker Henry was withdrawn from the tournament.   CURRENT STANDINGS POINTS   3.0 Gladding, Laine 2.5 ----- 2.0 Felton, Couture, Giovino, Arsenault, Bedard 1.5 Mirijanian, Gurge, Barlas, Sewell, Carabba 1.0 Miller, Fratturelli, Biglow, Sheridan, Steadman 0.5 Scanlon, Chromiak 0.0 Fandreyer     Congratulations to former club member Mark Norris who had a recent win published in "Chess Life"!  Click here to see the column.   September 16th, 2009 Hervey Brisson Memorial Round 2 (of 5)     Paul Giovino 0-1 Bruce Felton Lenny Arsenault 0-1 Larry Gladding Martin Laine 1-0 George Miller Ken Gurge 1-0 Ken Carabba Wayne Steadman 1/2-1/2 Max Sewell George Mirijanian 1-0 Brian Biglow Eugene Bedard 1-0 Ernest Fandreyer Tom Fratturelli 1-0 Richard Chromiak   Arthur Barlas, Dave Couture, Mike Sheridan, Parker Henry and Francis Scanlon drew half-point byes.     CURRENT STANDINGS POINTS   2.0 Felton, Gladding, Laine 1.5 Gurge, Barlas 1.0 Mirijanian, Couture, Giovino, Arsenault, Bedard, Miller, Fratturelli, Sheridan, Steadman, Sewell, Henry 0.5 Carabba, Scanlon 0.0 Biglow, Fandreyer, Chromiak     September 9th, 2009 Hervey Brisson Memorial Round 1 (of 5)   Bruce Felton  1-0 Eugene Bedard George Miller  1-0 George Mirijanian Larry Gladding  1-0 Tom Fratturelli Brian Biglow  0-1 Martin Laine Paul Giovino  1-0 Ernest Fandreyer Max Sewell  1/2-1/2 Ken Gurge Arthur Barlas  1-0 Francis Scanlon Richard Chromiak  0-1 Lenny Arsenault   Dave Couture, Mike Sheridan, Wayne Steadman, Parker Henry and Ken Carabba received half-point byes.   CURRENT STANDINGS POINTS   1.0 Felton, Gladding, Laine, Giovino, Arsenault, Barlas, Miller 0.5 Couture, Gurge, Sheridan, Steadman, Sewell, Henry, Carabba 0.0 Mirijanian, Bedard, Fratturelli, Biglow, Fandreyer, Scanlon, Chromiak       Congratulations to the following players whose ratings increased more than 50 points due to their play in the Tigran Petrosian Memorial:   ERNEST FANDREYER +115 RICHARD CHROMIAK  +84 MARTIN LAINE      +68     September 2nd, 2009 Tigran Petrosian Memorial Final Round (of 5) Bruce Felton (Fitchburg) and Martin Laine (Lunenburg) Share 1st Place In The Tigran Petrosian Memorial   Bruce Felton of Fitchburg performed a miracle in the final round of the Tigran Petrosian Memorial by drawing a theoretically lost game against Dave Couture of Westminster. The game, one of the most fascinating and longest played at the club in decades, saw Dave a rook ahead in a two rook, bishop and pawn vs. rook, bishop and two pawn endgame where he succeeded in eliminating Bruce's dangerous passed pawn on the a-file. Dave traded rooks followed by driving Bruce's king into the corner on the kingside. Still having the win in hand, Dave allowed Bruce to skewer his remaining rook with his bishop and a draw resulted. The draw gave Bruce a tie for first place with Martin Laine of Lunenburg, who had earlier defeated George Mirijanian of Fitchburg in a bizarre variation of the O-Kelly line in the Sicilian Defense. Congratulations to Bruce and Martin for their shared win and to Dave for finishing as runner-up.  - George Mirijanian   Dave Couture 1/2-1/2 Bruce Felton George Mirijanian  0-1 Martin Laine Arthur Barlas 1/2-1/2 Lenny Arsenault Eugene Bedard 1/2-1/2 Ken Gurge Wayne Steadman 0-1 Tom Fratturelli Brian Biglow 1-0 Max Sewell Mike Sheridan 1-0 Ken Carabba   Not playing the round were Paul Giovino, George Miller, Ernest Fandreyer, Paul Godin, Parker Henry and Richard Chromiak.   FINAL STANDINGS POINTS   4.0 Felton, Laine 3.5 Couture 3.0 Arsenault 2.5 Mirijanian, Giovino, Barlas, Bedard, Fratturelli, Miller, Biglow 2.0 Gurge, Sheridan, Fandreyer 1.5 Steadman, Sewell, Carabba 1.0 Godin, Henry, Chromiak       August 26th, 2009 Tigran Petrosian Memorial Round 4 (of 5)   Martin Laine 1/2-1/2 Bruce Felton Ernest Fandreyer 0-1 Dave Couture Lenny Arsenault 1/2-1/2 George Miller Ken Gurge 1/2-1/2 Brian Biglow Mike Sheridan 0-1 Eugene Bedard Tom Fratturelli 1/2-1/2 Max Sewell Ken Carabba 1-0 Parker Henry Richard Chromiak 0-1 Wayne Steadman   George Mirijanian and Paul Giovino received half-point byes. Arthur Barlas and Paul Godin did not play the round.   CURRENT STANDINGS POINTS   3.5 Felton 3.0 Couture, Laine 2.5 Mirijanian, Giovino, Arsenault, Miller 2.0 Barlas, Bedard, Fandreyer 1.5 Gurge, Fratturelli, Biglow, Steadman, Sewell, Carabba 1.0 Godin, Sheridan, Henry, Chromiak       August 19th, 2009 Tigran Petrosian Memorial Round 3 (of 5)   Bruce Felton 1-0 Paul Giovino Paul Godin 0-1 Martin Laine Tom Fratturelli  0-1 Dave Couture George Miller 1-0 Ken Gurge Brian Biglow 0-1 Arthur Barlas Max Sewell 0-1 Lenny Arsenault Eugene Bedard 0-1 Ernest Fandreyer Wayne Steadman 0-1 Mike Sheridan Richard Chromiak 1-0 Ken Carabba George Mirijanian and Parker Henry received half-point byes.     CURRENT STANDINGS POINTS   3.0 Felton 2.5 Laine 2.0 Mirijanian, Couture, Giovino, Barlas, Arsenault, Miller, Fandreyer 1.5 ----- 1.0 Godin, Gurge, Bedard, Fratturelli, Biglow, Sheridan, Sewell, Henry, Chromiak 0.5 Steadman, Carabba     August 12th, 2009 Tigran Petrosian Memorial Round 2 (of 5)   Lenny Arsenault  0-1 Bruce Felton Ken Gurge  0-1 Paul Giovino Martin Laine  1-0 Eugene Bedard Parker Henry  0-1 Brian Biglow Mike Sheridan  0-1 Ernest Fandreyer Ken Carabba  1/2-1/2 Wayne Steadman Max Sewell  1-0 Richard Chromiak George Mirijanian, Dave Couture and George Miller received half-point byes.     CURRENT STANDINGS POINTS   2.0 Felton, Giovino 1.5 Mirijanian, Laine 1.0 Couture, Gurge, Arsenault, Bedard, Miller, Biglow, Sewell, Fandreyer 0.5 Steadman, Henry, Carabba 0.0 Sheridan, Chromiak   The following link takes you to the Massachusetts top 200 players list.  We have 9 club members listed there - getting better all the time! Massachusetts Top 200 Ranking                Rating  125  PAUL GODIN        1928  138  GEORGE MIRIJANIAN 1906  141  BRUCE FELTON      1898  155  GARY BRASSARD     1861  166  DAVE COUTURE      1845  172  LAWRENCE GLADDING 1834  180  GEOFFREY LEPOER   1819  192  ERIC JAKOBOWICZ   1797  199  MARTIN LAINE      1789   Also, our lone New Hampshire player is well up on the Top 200 New Hampshire players list:   80  MAX SEWELL        1285 New England's Top 25 Players As Of August 12th, 2009     STATE   TITLE/NAME RATING PREV 1 MA  GM LARRY M CHRISTIANSEN 2663 1 2 CT  GM ILDAR IBRAGIMOV 2633 2 3 CT  GM SERGEY KUDRIN 2615 3 4 RI     JORGE SAMMOUR HASBUN 2603 4 5 NH  GM JOSHUA EDWARD FRIEDEL 2601 7 6 MA  GM EUGENE PERELSHTEYN 2592 5 7 MA  GM ALEXANDER IVANOV 2575 9 8 MA  IM MIKHAIL SHUR 2565 8 9 MA  IM IGOR FOYGEL 2495 10 10 MA     DENYS KONSTANTIN SHMELOV 2492 11 11 MA  IM RICO ZENKLUSEN 2465 13 12 MA  IM DAVID VIGORITO 2464 12 13 CT  IM BOGDAN GABRIEL VIOREANU 2461 14 14 MA     MARC ESSERMAN 2453 16 15 MA  IM JONATHAN YEDIDIA 2448 15 16 CT  IM ROBERT ANDREW HUNGASKI 2427 19 17 MA  IM WILLIAM MARK PASCHALL 2412 18 18 MA  FM CHARLES ROBERT RIORDAN 2397 17 19 MA  FM WILLIAM JOSEPH KELLEHER 2387 20 20 NH  FM BRADEN BOURNIVAL 2377 24 20 NH  IM JOSEPH H FANG 2377 21 22 MA  FM JACOB CHUDNOVSKY 2369 22 23 MA  FM JOHANN C HAKER 2356 25 24 CT  FM ADNAN KOBAS 2353 23 25 CT     EDWARD F MCHUGH 2349  -- Note that on the USCF site, when a listing is done of the top 200 Massachusetts players, Roman Dzindzichashvili is not listed.  When I look at the individual listing for Dzindzichashvili though it shows his state as Massachusetts.  Go figure. August 5th, 2009 Tigran Petrosian Memorial Round 1 (of 5)     Brian Biglow 0-1 George Mirijanian Bruce Felton 1-0 Mike Sheridan Wayne Steadman 0-1 Ken Gurge Paul Giovino 1-0 Max Sewell Ernest Fandreyer 0-1 Lenny Arsenault Eugene Bedard 1-0 Ken Carabba   CURRENT STANDINGS Points   1.0  Mirijanian, Felton, Gurge, Giovino, Arsenault, Bedard 0.5  Couture, Laine, Miller 0.0  Biglow, Sheridan, Steadman, Sewell, Fandreyer, Carabba   July 29th, 2009 Harlow B. Daly Memorial Final Round (of 5)   Dave Couture of Westminster wins Harlow B. Daly Memorial Becomes USCF-rated Class A player for first time in career! Dave Couture reached a milestone in winning the Harlow B. Daly Memorial tournament. By scoring 4.5-0.5 and gaining 60 USCF rating points, the Westminster player became a nationally rated Class A player for the first time in his long chess-playing career. Congratulations to Dave for his great achievement!  Congratulations also to two-time club champion Bruce Felton of Fitchburg and multi-time club "B' champion Paul Giovino of Lunenburg for tying for 2nd-3rd place with scores of 3.5-1.5.                                                                                                                    -George Mirijanian   Ken Gurge 0-1 Dave Couture Mike Sheridan 0-1 Bruce Felton George Miller 0-1 Paul Giovino Lenny Arsenault 1-0 Eduardo Valadares Ernest Fandreyer 0-1 Brian Biglow Max Sewell 1/2-1/2 Wayne Steadman Ken Carabba 1-0 Richard Chromiak Trilok Shahi 1-0 Stephan Chromiak   George Mirijanian, Larry Gladding, Paul Godin, Martin Laine, Tom Fratturelli, Eugene Bedard and Parker Henry did not play the round.   FINAL STANDINGS Points   4.5 Couture 4.0 ----- 3.5 Felton, Giovino 3.0 Mirijanian, Gladding, Gurge, Arsenault 2.5 Godin, Laine, Biglow, Miller, Sheridan, Carabba, Shahi 2.0 Valadares, Fratturelli, Steadman, Sewell, Fandreyer 1.5 Bedard, Henry 1.0 ----- 0.5 ----- 0.0 S. Chromiak, R. Chromiak     July 22nd, 2009 Harlow B. Daly Memorial Round 4 (of 5)   Dave Couture 1-0 Larry Gladding Martin Laine 1/2-1/2 Paul Giovino Ken Gurge 1-0 Lenny Arsenault Paul Godin 1-0 Eduardo Valadares Wayne Steadman 0-1 Bruce Felton Brian Biglow 0-1 Mike Sheridan George Miller 1-0 Trilok Shahi Richard Chromiak 0-1 Ernest Fandreyer Stephan Chromiak 0-1 Ken Carabba   George Mirijanian, Tom Fratturelli, Eugene Bedard, Max Sewell and Parker Henry received half-point byes.   CURRENT STANDINGS Points   3.5 Couture 3.0 Mirijanian, Gladding, Gurge 2.5 Godin, Felton, Laine, Giovino, Miller, Sheridan 2.0 Arsenault, Valadares, Fratturelli, Fandreyer 1.5 Bedard, Biglow, Steadman, Sewell, Carabba, Shahi, Henry 1.0 ----- 0.5 ----- 0.0 S. Chromiak, R. Chromiak   July 15th, 2009 Harlow B. Daly Memorial Round 3 (of 5) Club Champion Gladding Not Resting On His Laurels! Newly crowned club champion, Larry Gladding of Leominster, scored his 3rd win in a row to break a 4-way tie for first and take over sole possession of the lead.  Rather than taking a draw in what looked like a drawn endgame (4 pawns against 4 pawns on the same wing) Larry fought on the win the endgame.   Larry Gladding 1-0 Ken Gurge Paul Giovino 0-1 Dave Couture Lenny Arsenault 1/2-1/2 Bruce Felton Martin Laine 1-0 Max Sewell Eduardo Valadares 1-0 Eugene Bedard Wayne Steadman 1-0 Parker Henry Trilok Shahi 1-0 Richard Chromiak Ernest Fandreyer 1-0 Stephan Chromiak   George Mirijanian, Paul Godin, Brian Biglow, Tom Fratturelli, George Miller, Mike Sheridan, and Ken Carabba received half-point byes.   CURRENT STANDINGS Points   3.0 Gladding 2.5 Mirijanian, Couture 2.0 Laine, Gurge, Giovino, Arsenault, Valadares 1.5 Godin, Felton, Biglow, Fratturelli, Miller, Sheridan, Steadman, Shahi 1.0 Bedard, Sewell, Fandreyer, Henry 0.5 Carabba 0.0 S. Chromiak, R. Chromiak   July 8th, 2009 Harlow B. Daly Memorial Round 2 (of 5)   Paul Godin 0-1   Paul Giovino George Mirijanian 1-0   Eduardo Valadares Tom Fratturelli 0-1 Larry Gladding Ken Gurge 1-0 George Miller Eugene Bedard 1/2-1/2  Martin Laine Dave Couture 1-0 Wayne Steadman Bruce Felton 1-0 Trilok Shahi Stephan Chromiak 0-1 Brian Biglow Richard Chromiak 0-1 Mike Sheridan Max Sewell 1-0 Ken Carabba Parker Henry 1-0 Ernest Fandreyer Lenny Arsenault received a half-point bye. CURRENT STANDINGS Points   2.0 Mirijanian, Gladding, Gurge, Giovino 1.5 Couture, Arsenault 1.0 Godin, Felton, Laine, Valadares, Bedard, Fratturelli, Biglow, Miller, Sheridan, Sewell, Henry 0.5 Steadman, Shahi 0.0 Fandreyer, S. Chromiak, Carabba, R. Chromiak   July 1st, 2009 Harlow B. Daly Memorial Round 1 (of 5) We were blessed by the appearance of two new players who just joined the USCF, and a former club champion whom we haven't seen in nearly eight years. Joining us in our new tournament are Trilok Shahi, who is a senior at St. John's Prep School in Danvers, and Parker Henry, who played some years ago in the Monday night scholastic unrated tournaments held at Crocker Elementary School in Fitchburg. Coming back after an absence is 1967 Wachusett Chess Club champion Paul Godin of Bedford, who is a Fitchburg native as well as a USCF and MACA life member. The last time we saw Paul was in the second round of the Johnny Appleseed Open on September 12, 2001, when the club was meeting at the Unitarian church in Leominster. Welcome all three! - George Mirijanian   Brian Biglow 0-1 Paul Godin Bruce Felton 0-1 George Miller Mike Sheridan 0-1 George Mirijanian Larry Gladding 1-0 Max Sewell Ernest Fandreyer 0-1 Ken Gurge Paul Giovino 1-0 Stephan Chromiak Ken Carabba 0-1 Lenny Arsenault Eduardo Valadares 1-0 Richard Chromiak Trilok Shahi 1/2-1/2 Eugene Bedard Tom Fratturelli 1-0 Parker Henry Martin Laine and Dave Couture received half-point byes. CURRENT STANDINGS Points   1.0 Godin, Mirijanian, Gladding, Gurge, Giovino, Arsenault, Valadares, Fratturelli, Miller 0.5 Laine, Couture, Bedard, Shahi 0.0 Felton, Biglow, Sheridan, Sewell, Fandreyer, S. Chromiak, Carabba, R. Chromiak, Henry   June 17th, 2009 Wachusett CC Championship Makeup Round   Larry Gladding of Leominster is the new club champion!  Congratulations Larry!   Larry Gladding of Leominster became a three-time club champion by defeating rival Gary Brassard of Leominster in the final game of the 2009 Wachusett Chess Club championship. Brassard, who had the white pieces and needed only a draw to clinch his first club championship title, faltered in the middlegame and lost a crucial a-pawn that led to his defeat when Gladding queened his own a-pawn that put him a rook ahead and paved the way to victory. In the only other make-up game from the "A" division, Martin Laine of Lunenburg defeated Dave Couture of Westminster and garnered clear fourth place in the process. Tournament winner Gladding had previously been club co-champion in 1998 and 1992. - George Mirijanian   FINAL "A" DIVISION STANDINGS Player            W   L   D   Pts   Pct Larry Gladding    5   1   1   5.5  .786 Bruce Felton      3   0   4   5.0  .714 Gary Brassard     4   1   2   5.0  .714 Martin Laine      3   1   3   4.5  .643 Dave Couture      3   3   1   3.5  .500  Ken Gurge         2   4   1   2.5  .357 Len Arsenault     2   5   0   2.0  .286 Geoff LePoer      0   7   0   0.0  .000   Congratulations to the following players whose ratings increased more than 50 points:   EDUARDO VALADARES      +120 WAYNE L STEADMAN        +77 LAWRENCE DAVID GLADDING +64 MARK ROBERT NORRIS      +55   June 24th, 2009 Barry Spiegel Quick Chess Memorial Tournament Four-round Swiss, Game/25, USCF-rated   Round-by-round results   Round 1 Bruce Felton 0-1 George Miller Mike Sheridan 0-1 Eugene Bedard Paul Giovino 1/2-1/2 Eduardo Valadares Wayne Steadman 1-0 Brian Biglow Ken Carabba received a full-point bye.   Round 2 Bedard 1-0 Steadman Miller 1-0 Carabba Biglow 0-1 Giovino Valadares 0-1 Felton Sheridan received a full-point bye.   Round 3 Miller 0-1 Bedard Giovino 0-1 Felton Steadman 1-0 Sheridan Carabba 0-1 Valadares Biglow received a full-point bye.   Round 4 Felton 1-0 Bedard Giovino 0-1 Miller Valadares 1-0 Sheridan Carabba 1-0 Biglow Steadman did not play the round.   FINAL STANDINGS POINTS 3.0 - Felton, Bedard, Miller 2.5 - Valadares 2.0 - Steadman, Carabba 1.5 - Giovino 1.0 - Biglow, Sheridan   Congratulations to the following players whose Quick Chess ratings increased more than 50 points:   GEORGE MILLER  +115 WAYNE STEADMAN +103 KEN CARABBA     +81 GENE BEDARD     +52

June 17th, 2009 Wachusett CC Championship Round 7 (of 7)   "B" Division   It's Eduardo In A Runaway!   Eduardo Valadares of Marlborough came back from his first loss last week to win this week's final round game and take the "B" division by a full point and a half!  Congratulations also to Mike Sheridan of Petersham and Arthur Barlas of Chelmsford for tying for 2nd place.   George Miller 0-1 Eduardo Valadares Mike Sheridan 1-0 Arthur Barlas Paul Giovino 1-0 Tom Fratturelli Eugene Bedard 1-0 Max Sewell Brian Biglow  1-0 Mark Norris Wayne Steadman 1-0 Stephan Chromiak Richard Chromiak 0-1 Ken Carabba     Ernest Fandreyer received a half-point bye and Jeff Lischer did not play the round.   FINAL "B" DIVISION STANDINGS Points   6.0 Valadares (winner) 5.5 ----- 5.0 ----- 4.5 Sheridan, Barlas 4.0 Giovino, Bedard, Biglow, Miller, Steadman 3.5 Fratturelli, Carabba 3.0 Lischer, Fandreyer 2.5 Sewell, Norris 2.0 S. Chromiak, R. Chromiak "A" Division Gary Brassard Still In The Driver's Seat In the end, it all comes down to the last game between the 2 friends and leaders - Gary Brassard and Larry Gladding, both of Leominster.  Next week Gary will have white against Larry in a makeup game.  If Gary wins or draws, he will be the club champion for the first time.  If Larry wins, HE will be the club champion.  Larry has shared the club championship title twice in 1992 and 1998, but this would be his first time as the sole club champion.  It promises to be an excellent game.   Len Arsenault  0-1 Gary Brassard Dave Couture 1/2-1/2 Bruce Felton Martin Laine 1/2-1/2  Ken Gurge Geoff LePoer 0F-1F  Larry Gladding   CURRENT "A" DIVISION STANDINGS (by Winning %) Player W L D PCT GB GR Gary Brassard 4 0 2 .833 - 1 Larry Gladding 4 1 1 .750 ½ 1 Bruce Felton 3 0 4 .714 ½ 0 Dave Couture 3 2 1 .583 1½ 1 Martin Laine 2 1 3 .583 1½ 1 Ken Gurge 2 4 1 .357 3 0 Len Arsenault 2 5 0 .286 3½ 0 Geoff LePoer 0 7 0 .000 5½ 0   Final pairings on June 24: Brassard-Gladding Laine-Couture

June 10th, 2009 Wachusett CC Championship Round 6 (of 7)   Brassard Moves Into Driver's Seat Gary Brassard of Leominster defeated Dave Couture of Westminster tonight to move into first place in the club championship (see A Cautionary Tale on the Games page).  Gary has 2 rounds to go and if he wins both he will be the club champion for the first time.   Click here to see all of the remaining scenarios.   Click here to see the current crosstable.   "A" Division   Gary Brassard 1-0 Dave Couture Ken Gurge 0-1 Bruce Felton Larry Gladding 1-0 Lenny Arsenault Martin Laine 1F-0F Geoff LePoer   CURRENT "A" DIVISION STANDINGS (by Winning %) Player W L D PCT GB GR Gary Brassard 3 0 2 .800 - 2 Bruce Felton 3 0 3 .750 - 1 Larry Gladding 4 1 1 .750 - 1 Dave Couture 3 2 0 .600 1 2 Martin Laine 2 1 2 .600 1 2 Ken Gurge 2 4 0 .333 2½ 1 Len Arsenault 2 4 0 .333 2½ 1 Geoff LePoer 0 7 0 .000 5 0   GB - Games Behind GR - Games Remaining    CURRENT "A" DIVISION STANDINGS (by Point Total) Points   4.5 Felton, Gladding 4.0 Brassard 3.5 ----- 3.0 Couture, Laine 2.5 ----- 2.0 Gurge, Arsenault 1.5 ----- 1.0 ----- 0.5 ----- 0.0 LePoer (withdrawn)   "B" Division Eduardo Stopped - But Still In The Lead!   Eduardo Valadares 0-1 Arthur Barlas George Miller 1-0 Brian Biglow Tom Fratturelli 1-0 Wayne Steadman Paul Giovino 1/2-1/2 Eugene Bedard Mark Norris 0-1 Mike Sheridan Max Sewell 1-0 Ken Carabba Ernest Fandreyer 1-0 Stephan Chromiak   Jeff Lischer received a half-point bye and Richard Chromiak received a full-point bye.     CURRENT "B" DIVISION STANDINGS Points   5.0 Valadares 4.5 Barlas 4.0 Miller 3.5 Fratturelli, Sheridan 3.0 Giovino, Bedard, Lischer, Biglow, Steadman 2.5 Sewell, Norris, Fandreyer, Carabba 2.0 S. Chromiak, R. Chromiak

June 3rd, 2009 Wachusett CC Championship Round 5 (of 7)   The "A" division is becoming more interesting, now that Larry handed Dave his first loss. As Yogi Berra once said: "It ain't over 'til it's over." - George Mirijanian   With only 2 rounds left (for most of the players), ALL of the active players are still in the running for 1st place.  It's possible, albeit highly unlikely, for there to be a 7-way tie for 1st place!  Only Gary Brassard and Dave Couture, who play each other next week, completely control their own destinies though.  IF either Gary or Dave win all their remaining games, they will be the club champion.   "A" Division   Dave Couture 0-1 Larry Gladding Bruce Felton 1/2-1/2 Gary Brassard Lenny Arsenault 1-0 Martin Laine Geoff LePoer 0F-1F Ken Gurge   CURRENT "A" DIVISION STANDINGS (by Winning %) Player W L D PCT GB GR Dave Couture 3 1 0 .750 - 3 Gary Brassard 2 0 2 .750 - 3 Bruce Felton 2 0 3 .700 - 2 Larry Gladding 3 1 1 .700 - 2 Martin Laine 2 1 2 .600 ½ 2 Ken Gurge 2 3 0 .400 1½ 2 Len Arsenault 2 3 0 .400 1½ 2 Geoff LePoer 0 7 0 .000 4½ 0   GB - Games Behind GR - Games Remaining    CURRENT "A" DIVISION STANDINGS (by Point Total) Points   3.5 Felton, Gladding 3.0 Couture, Brassard, Laine 2.5