In January the traditional Sven Brask Invitational/Howard Cook Memorial was held, commemorating 2 of the club’s patriarchs. The Invitational section is open to all tournament winners from the past year, and the 8-player section was won by Larry Dean and Jack Correia with scores of 3.0/4. This was Larry’s first Invitational title and Jack’s second. The Memorial Section was open to all other players and ended in an unlikely 5-way tie at 2.5 points between Carl Hess (returning to the club after a long absence), Paul Gavlick, Larry Green, Gerry Fortier, and Larry Steinberg. This is the first Memorial title for all 5 players. All 7 winners received trophies, have their names engraved on the championship plaque, and qualify for the 2010 Invitational, to be held January 2011. Jim Aspinall directed.
Carl Hess continued his fine play and won the February Fianchetto 4-round Swiss topping a field of 16 with a score of 3.5 points. Jack Correia was second with 3 points. Jim Aspinall directed.
Larry Dean won the March Madness 4-round Swiss with a score of 3.5 points. Larry has recently returned to tournament chess after taking a break for several years and this victory put his rating back over the Expert level. Carl Hess and Ken Wheeler tied for second with 3 points. Jim Aspinall directed, assisted by Larry Dean.
The 51st Club Championship was a 7-round Swiss held during the months of April and May, and proved to be one of the most competitive and hard-fought events in recent memory. There were several upsets early in the event, and going into the final round, 4 players were tied for first, with another only .5 point behind. In the end, Larry Dean and Jerry Giambo won their last-round games to share the title with 5.5 points, with Larry’s game against Jeff Hall (a punishing Rook ending) not finishing until after midnight. This is Larry’s first title and Jerry’s second, both winners receiving a trophy, their names engraved on the Club Championship plaque, and a small cash prize. Jack Correia and Jim Aspinall finished only .5 point behind with 5 points. Charlie Caranci took the U1800 prize with 4 points, and Larry Steinberg took the biggest upset prize with a his victory over a player rated 340 points higher. 18 players participated, ably directed by Gerry Plante.
As is traditional, the Blitz Championship was held the week following the Club Championship. This was a 12-player round robin dominated by Jerry Giambo, defending his title with a crushing score of 10.5/11. Jim Aspinall finished second with 7 points, and George Winsor 3rd with 6.5. Ken Wheeler directed. |