WCC News 2017 ♔

Aime LaBonte, 82 (October 29, 1935 - December 6, 2017), was the type of guy many take for granted, always there to do good deeds for everyone. During his 40 years in Sturbridge he became known to many chessplayers, due to the large CCA chess events there.

In recent decades he took a number of memorable chess photos at tournaments, clubs, public libraries, even on the set of Chess Chat, FATV-TV, the Wachusett Chess Club's monthly show in Fitchburg. In my efforts to document and promote educational and recreational chess programs, he would visit obscure locations, just to get photos that might become historically significant. Once he took a photo of an after-work chess club through a window of a Central Massachusetts manufacturing plant. Another time, he showed me a photo of what appeared to be an illicit narcotics sale venue that had a crude "chess club" sign in the front yard. He went all over New England in his work as an electrical engineer, and, climbed huge poles that made me dizzy just looking at his photos.

In short, he was one of the top chess volunteers that few ever knew. When someone like this passes on, I can only think of one fitting tribute. As Ross Reck (AZ) the Reminder guy, says, "Do a good deed for someone else in their memory." I'm happy that Aime was a part of my Sharing & Caring network. Please read his obit, and, understand why many of his hobbies, including chess, were not even mentioned due to space!
-Stephen Dann (48 years as a chess volunteer)

Obituary posted for Aime J. LaBonte, Jr. See https://goo.gl/NXM6bT

The 2017 Harry Nelson Pillsbury Memorial rating reports were filed this weekend.
Here are the results for the WCC players competing:

2017 George Sturgis Memorial
Round 2 of 5

The 2017 George Sturgis Memorial tournament, will begin on Wednesday, Nov. 29, in Room C159 of the McKay Complex at Fitchburg State University.
Players must be present by 7 p.m. in order to be paired for Round 1. Players running late who wish to be paired MUST CALL by 7 p.m. The following are the ratings in effect for this tournament.

2017 Ernest E. Fandreyer Memorial
Round 5 of 5

The 42nd NH Amateur Championship rating reports were filed this weekend. Here are the results for the WCC players who chose to compete.

(Congratulations to all who played, especially Ed Harris, who drew an expert & a former expert, beat another & lost only to Ian Dudley (2047) thereby gaining 60 rating points!):

2017 Ernest E. Fandreyer Memorial
Round 3 of 5

  
   Quinsigamond Community College  Intercollegiate Chess Tournament
   Saturday October 28, 2017
  
   Hosted by Jerry Williams, Quinsigamond Community College
   Tournament director: Joe Alfano, Assumption College
  
   The tournament had two sections: Students/Open and Masters/Coaches.
  
  
                                 Round 1    Round 2    Round 3    Round 4    Total
                                 --------   --------   --------   --------   -----
   Students/Open Section
   ( 1) Larry Legros       USC   ( 3) 1.0   (11) 2.0   ( 6) 3.0   ( 4) 4.0    4.0
   ( 2) Matthew Garcia     EMS   (BY) 0.5   (13) 1.5   ( 5) 2.5   ( 8) 3.5    3.5
   ( 3) Nadia Ackerman     QCC   ( 1) 0.0   (14) 1.0   (11) 2.0   ( 6) 3.0    3.0
   ( 4) Michael Imse       QCC   ( 5) 0.5   (10) 1.5   (12) 2.5   ( 1) 2.5    2.5
   ( 5) Gary Orcutt        GWC   ( 4) 0.5   (12) 1.5   ( 2) 1.5   ( 7) 2.5    2.5
   ( 6) Robert Conn        QCC   ( 8) 1.0   ( 7) 2.0   ( 1) 2.0   ( 3) 2.0    2.0
   ( 7) Tom Whistler       USC   ( 9) 1.0   ( 6) 1.0   (10) 2.0   ( 5) 2.0    2.0
   ( 8) Michael Asante     AC    ( 6) 0.0   ( 9) 1.0   (14) 2.0   ( 2) 2.0    2.0
   ( 9) Ryan Lockhart      DES   ( 7) 0.0   ( 8) 0.0   (13) 1.0   (11) 2.0    2.0
   (10) Eric Ward          QCC   (BY) 0.5   ( 4) 0.5   ( 7) 0.5   (12) 1.5    1.5
   (11) Elijah Young       QCC   (14) 1.0   ( 1) 1.0   ( 3) 1.0   ( 9) 1.0    1.0
   (12) Ethan Yorke              (13) 1.0   ( 5) 1.0   ( 4) 1.0   (10) 1.0    1.0
   (13) Steve Yorke              (12) 0.0   ( 2) 0.0   ( 9) 0.0   (14) 1.0    1.0
   (14) Ben Yorke                (11) 0.0   ( 3) 0.0   ( 8) 0.0   (13) 0.0    0.0
  
   Masters/Coaches Section
   ( 1) Rob King           USC   ( 4) 0.5   ( 5) 1.5   ( 7) 2.5   ( 3) 3.5    3.5
   ( 2) Brett Kildahl      USC   ( 6) 1.0   ( 7) 2.0   ( 3) 3.0   (WD) 3.0    3.0  
   ( 3) Roger Cappallo     USC   ( 5) 1.0   ( 4) 2.0   ( 2) 2.0   ( 1) 2.0    2.0
   ( 4) Jerry Williams     QCC   ( 1) 0.5   ( 3) 0.5   ( 5) 1.0   ( 7) 2.0    2.0
   ( 5) Stephen Dann       USC   ( 3) 0.0   ( 1) 0.0   ( 4) 0.5   ( 6) 1.0    1.0   
   ( 6) Joe Alfano         AC    ( 2) 0.0   (BY) 0.5   (BY) 0.5   ( 5) 1.0    1.0
   ( 7) Joseph Garcia      SHS   (BY) 0.5   ( 2) 0.5   ( 1) 0.5   ( 4) 0.5    0.5


        AC  = Assumption College
        DES = Douglas Elementary School
        EMS = East Middle School
        GWC = Greater Worcester Chess
        QCC = Quinsigamond Community College
        SHS = South High School
        USC = US Chess Federation

        1.0 = Win
        0.0 = Loss
        0.5 = Draw
        BY  = Bye: the player had no opponent.
        WD  = Withdrew.

   In each round, the player is listed with their opponent and final score.
   E.g. in Round 1, Larry Legros played Nadia Ackerman (player 3) and won.
   

   Please contact Joe Alfano (jalfano@assumption.edu) if you have corrections,
   e.g. if I recorded your school/club incorrectly.

The Quinnsigamond Community College Chess Club will be holding a chess tournament:
Saturday October, 28.
In the cafeteria (downstairs) in the Administration Building.
4 Games
$5.00 entry fee
Registration: 9:30 am; First round starts: 10 am
- Prof. Jerry Williams is host; he can be reached at 508-335-0692.

2017 Ernest E. Fandreyer Memorial
Round 2 of 5

The 2017 Ernest E. Fandreyer Memorial tournament, will begin on Wednesday, Oct. 18, in Room C159 of the McKay Complex at Fitchburg State University.
Players must be present by 7 p.m. in order to be paired for Round 1. Players running late who wish to be paired MUST CALL by 7 p.m. The following are the ratings in effect for this tournament.

The 84th Greater Boston Open rating reports were filed this weekend. Here are the results for the five WCC players competing, all of whom lost rating points in the process.

(They shouldn't feel too bad however, as tournament veterans NM David Carter (2275 -> 2260) & FM Chris Chase (2375 -> 2361) finished with scores of 0.5 & 0.0 respectively after playing only two games each.):

2017 Rocco R. Pasquale Memorial
Round 5 of 5

The 2017 Rocco R. Pasquale Memorial tournament, honoring the memory of one of the founders of the Wachusett Chess Club in February 1960, will begin on Wednesday, Sept. 13, in Room C159 of the McKay Complex at Fitchburg State University.
Players must be present by 7 p.m. in order to be paired for Round 1. Players running late who wish to be paired MUST CALL by 7 p.m. The following are the ratings in effect for this tournament.

2017 John A. Grefe Memorial
Round 5 of 5

On-again-off-again Wachusett CC player Dave Martin of Boylston, Mass. captured first place in the Under 1700 section of the Metrowest Chess Club's "Hot Summer Days Swiss," held Tuesday nights, Aug. 1-29, at the Natick Community Center. Martin, competing in the 21-player U1700 division, scored 4.5-0.5, to take home first prize. A total of 77 players took part in the four-section tournament, which also saw the participation of Wachusett CC players Rob King of Framingham and Arthur "Dwight" Bramble of Worcester.
-George M

2017 John A. Grefe Memorial
Round 3 of 5

Edward D.W. Goguen, who was president of the Wachusett Chess Club more than 55 years ago, died Saturday, Aug. 19, in Endwell, NY, where he had resided since 1963. Goguen, who was vice president of the club when it officially adopted the name Wachusett Chess Club in February 1960, played a key role in the running of the club, which met at that time at the Lt. Laurence S. Ayer Post, Veterans of Foreign Wars headquarters, at 10 Pleasant St. in Fitchburg. Goguen was born in Fitchburg on May 3, 1926 and graduated from Fitchburg High School in 1944. While he and his wife, Rita V. Goguen (1925-2005), were living at 81 Myrtle Ave. in Fitchburg, Ed worked as a photographer for the General Electric Co. on Boulder Drive in the city. After moving to Endwell. Ed worked many years for IBM at its facility in Endicott, NY before he retired. Ed was very much involved in chess in upstate New York, running tournaments and coaching numerous chess teams. He played at the Binghamton Chess Club, among others. He was a life member of the U.S. Chess Federation (ID number 10129567). Ed visited his old stomping grounds, the Wachusett CC, on several occasions when he was in the Fitchburg area. His last visit to the club was on July 24, 2013, when he played the 5th and final round in the Harlow B. Daly Memorial, drawing Bob Mathieu of Ashburnham. An earlier visit by Ed took place on March 22, 2006, when round 4 of the Dr. Max Levinger Memorial was played and Ed stuck around as a spectator. The Wachusett CC mourns the loss of one of its founding members.
-George M

FIDE master Carissa Yip, Wachusett Chess Club champion in 2014, tied for first place in the 2017 U.S. Cadet Championship, held Aug. 17-21 at the Homewood Suites by Hilton at the Manchester Airport in Manchester, NH. The 13-year-old FM from Andover, MA scored 6-3 (five wins, two draws, two losses) in a 10-player round-robin field to share top honors with 15-year-old FM Ben Li of Michigan, who chalked up four wins, four draws, one loss. Yip and Li played to a draw in their individual encounter. Carissa's rating now stands at 2367, 16 points short of her all-time high of 2383, which she reached after competing in this year's 45th World Open in Philadelphia. Ben reached a new all-time high rating of 2426 as a result of his performance in this year's U.S. Cadet Championship.
-George M

Arthur Barlas and I played an instructive game last Wednesday in Fitchburg. Check it out!
Kildahl-Barlas August 2017
-Brett

[See this & all of Brett's other videos at Brett's YouTube Channel].

The 2017 US Cadet Championship is being held in Manchester, NH this year under the auspices of Relyea Chess. Carissa Yip, 2014 WCC Champ currently is tied for the lead with 3.5 after the first five rounds of the nine round National Level event.

Watch live here.

2017 John A. Grefe Memorial
Round 2 of 5

Joe Bennett, the 29-year-old Class A player and Wachusett Chess Club member from Hubbardston, Mass., was the sole prize winner among Wachusett CC players competing in the 47th Continental Open, Aug. 10-13, at the Host Hotel at Cedar Lake in Sturbridge, Mass. Bennett, competing in the Under 1900 section of the 7-section, record-breaking 352-player tournament, posted a score of 4.5-1.5 to tie for the 5th prize in the section. Had he won his final-round game, instead of drawing, Bennett would have tied for 1st-4th place and won a huge share of the combined top prizes in the section.

The Continental Chess Association-sponsored event was organized by the country's top chess organizer, Bill Goichberg, who has been running tournaments for more than a half-century. He was assisted by Bob Messenger, a national TD who was the chief director of the 2011 Wachusett CC Championship, and Harold Stenzel, an international arbiter who had a Wachusett CC tournament named after him in 2012: the Harold G. Stenzel 60-Year Tribute.
-George M

I had a rematch this week against Neto at the Worcester club. Neto - Kildahl August 2017
-Brett

[See this & all of Brett's other videos at Brett's YouTube Channel].

The 47th Continental Open rating reports were filed this weekend. Here are the results for WCC players:

Link to gallery of 47th Continental Open 2017: Tony Cortizas photos

Four Wachusett Chess Club players are among the participants in the 47th annual Continental Open, being played Aug. 10-13 at the Host Hotel at Cedar Lake in Sturbridge, Mass. Competing in this year's event are:
Kevork Haddad of Hollis, NH (U2100 section, 4-day schedule),
Joe Bennett of Hubbardston (U1900 section, 2-day),
Jim Donahue of Stow (U1700 section, 3-day), and
Steve Koroskenyi of Leominster (U1500 section, 4-day).
-George M

2017 John A. Grefe Memorial
Round 1 of 5

Hello All,
Here is a link to last week's last-round game of the Harlow B. Daly Memorial tournament. I played against Ken Gurge (1793) in a Semi-Slav opening. Hope you like it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F_0rGgiCulY
Roger

See this & all of Roger Cappallo's other videos at Roger's YouTube Channel

The 2017 IM John A. Grefe Memorial tournament starts Wednesday, August 9, at the Wachusett Chess Club at Fitchburg State University. Those wishing to play round 1 on that date must be present by 7 p.m. in Room C159 of the McKay Complex, 67 Rindge Road, Fitchburg, in order to be paired. The following ratings for players will be in effect for this event:

Hey!
In the final round of the most recent Wachusett Chess Club tournament, I played against NM Rob King.
[Here is the video, board one, last round of five, top two highest rated players in the club, & some crazy opening shenanigans, What's not to like?] Kildahl - King August 2017
[Also see Brett's latest engame video:] Basic Endgames: QvP7
Thanks!
Brett
[See this & all of Brett's other videos at Brett's YouTube Channel].

2017 Harlow B. Daly Memorial
Round 5 of 5