ICA Tour
GM Mitkov Wins 2017 Illinois Class Championship(s)
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- Written by Bill Feldman Bill Feldman
It's lonely at the top.
Grandmaster Nikola Mitkov was the lone GM entered in the 2017 Illinois Class Championship -- and he held form to win top honors at the one-day event held November 19 in the Chicago suburb of Lisle.
GM Mitkov defeated Derek Paitrick a Wisconsin Expert, in the final round to close out the tournament in the Masters / Experts section, the top of seven divisions.
Wisconsin's Alex Velikanov took second place after requesting a half-point bye in the final round, finishing with 3.5. IMSA's George Li took clear third with 3.0/4, and presumably the 2017 Illinois Chess Tour top honors with his points from the event.
Grandmasters Mitkov and Liang Win '17 Midwest Class
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- Written by Bill Feldman Bill Feldman
Although neither could achieve a perfect score, Grandmasters Nikola Mitkov and Awonder Liang (of Wisconsin) posted the top 4.5 scores at the 2017 Midwest Class completed October 8 in Wheeling.
Mitkov's draw came in the fourth round against GM Priyadharshan Kannappan (Missouri) while Liang's came in the second round against long-time rival David Peng. Liang and Peng have grown up appearing on the US Top 100 lists for the same age group, frequently one-two.
IM Eric Rosen and Jacob Furfine entered the final round tied with Mitkov and Liang in the 3.5/4 score group, but lost their respective matches to the GM's.
ICA Tour Standings Updated: Peoria Tournament Participants Holding Leads in Open, Reserve and Scholastic Sections
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- Written by Bill Feldman Bill Feldman
2017 ICA Tour Coordinator Bill Buklis has updated the Tour standings giving downstaters Pete Kariagianis and Jason Daniels the lead in the Open Section -- both with 13.0 tallies after the Chicago Open.
Six more events remain on the Tour docket -- with the 7th Orwell Memorial coming up June 24 in DeKalb, followed by the Chicago Class in July.
In order to be eligible for prizes, participants must have ICA memberships by the half-way point -- and must maintain their memberships throughout the remainder of the season.
Illinois Players Top 5 of 8 Chicago Open Sections
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- Written by Bill Feldman Bill Feldman
Daniel Jones has tied for first place in the Under 2100 section at the 26th Chicago Open concluded Memorial Day, May 29. Jones was 6.0 as was his New York co-champion. Dimitar Mardov and Arendal Markovic were a half-point back with 5.5's, tying for third place.
Hiro Higuchi was one of five players tying for first in the U1900, all with 6.0's. Cameron Heino was a half-point back, tying for sixth place.
Three Illinois players tied for second place in the U1700's, all with 6.0's: Nathan Fong, Max Heinrich and Dexter Dale, Jr. Jonathan Lee was a half-point back to tie for fifth place.
Four-Way Ties Atop 2017 Greater Peoria Open In Both Open and Reserve Sections; Kevin Ho Takes 2017 Tour Lead
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- Written by Bill Feldman Bill Feldman
Draws a-plenty meant no perfect scores at the 2017 Greater Peoria Open, the third of ten stops on the 2017 ICA Chess Tour.
Pete Karagianis, Tim McEntee, Robert Reynolds and Wisconsin's Hersh Singh all posted three wins and two draws for 4.0/5 totals.
Karagianis drew Singh in the third round and fellow Master McCentee in the fourth round before finishing out the event with a victory over a Class C opponent.
McEntee also drew the Class A Reynolds in the final round.
Three Way Tie At 2017 Bradley Winter Open
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- Written by Bill Feldman Bill Feldman
It's not fun to play someone with whom you've enjoyed a coaching relationship. Pete Karagianis faced that challenge in the last round of the January 28 Bradley Winter Open, drawing with his one-time protege Jason Daniels.
Both competitors finished with 3.5/4's as did St. Louis area's Benjamin Shoykhet. Shokyet went three-for-three following an opening round half-point bye. Each of the trio was awarded $140 in prize money.
Overall, 49 participated in two sections at the event held at Bradley University in Peoria. The BWO represented the second stop on the 2017 Illinois Chess Tour.
George Li Reigns at the 2017 Tim Just Winter Open
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- Written by Bill Buklis Bill Buklis
The 2017 Tim Just Winter Open marked the first event on the 2017 Illinois Tour Schedule. For the remaining events see the tour schedule page. This year's event was once again held at the Hyatt Regency in Schaumburg. The tournament drew a record crowd with 192 players competing - 99 in the open section and 93 in the reserve section along with an additional 83 juniors in the one day scholastic tournament.
In the main event FM George Li held off all challengers to win this year's Tim Just Winter Open. FM Sam Schmakel gave him a good fight in the last round, but George held him to a draw to finish with 4.5 points and sole possesion of the first place prize money. Sam (4.0 points) shared second place with 11 others.