ICA Tour
Four Illinois GMs Top '13 Midwest Class Masters
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- Written by Bill Feldman Bill Feldman
A foursome of Illinois-registered Grandmasters tied for top honors at the 22nd Midwest Class Championships completed October 13th in Wheeling, IL. GMs Dmitry Gurevich, Yury Shulman, Nikola Mitkov and Mesgan Amanov each finished with 4.0/5 tallies.
Over 200 players competed at the Westin North Shore which saw class championships claimed by entrants from Oklahoma, Iowa and Indiana in addition to the host state.
'13 Tour Marches to Wheeling
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- Written by Bill Feldman Bill Feldman
A battalion of 700 chess combatants invaded north suburban Wheeling for the 2013 Chicago Open completed May 27. A three-way tie in the Open Section found three Midwest-based Grandmasters with 7.0/9 scores.
Missouri's Ray Robson, Wisconsin's Josh Friedel and 2012 Illinois Open co-champion Nikola Mitkov split top prize money, each earning over $5,800 a piece. Robson earned a $200 bonus for posting the top tie-break.
Berman Prevails at '13 Chicago Open U1900
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- Written by Bill Feldman Bill Feldman
Not everyone playing at the 2013 Chicago Open presented Grandmaster credentials at the door. This didn't keep some excellent chess from being demonstrated across multiple sections.
In the Under 1900, Illinois-native and University of Miami (Florida) collegian Jeremy Berman took top honors earning a $5,000 check for his 6.5/7 result.
A half-point back, Illinois' Tian Peng and Ohio's Michael Higgins tied for second and third, taking home $1,850 apiece. Berman defeated Higgins in the fifth round and Peng in the sixth round to thoroughly earn his title.
Karagianis Sweeps '13 Normal Open
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- Written by Bill Feldman Bill Feldman
For the second consecutive tournament, Pete Karagianis has run the table in a 2013 Chess Tour event. Pete's 4.0/4 topped the field of 32 entrants for the Normal Open, held May 4 at the North Bridge Baptist Church.
14 entrants received some portion of the many prize pools ranging from overall first and second to Class A through E winner. Twin City Chess Club hosted the Open.
2013 Normal Open -- Event Preview
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- Written by Bill Feldman Bill Feldman
The third stop on the 2013 Illinois Chess Tour will attract 64-square combatants to the Normal Open Saturday, May 4.
Organizer Jeff Smith indicates registrations are already in the double-digits. Last year's event drew 27 players. Among this year's pre-entries is National Master Pete Karagianis fresh off his triumph at the Greater Peoria Open. Says Jeff, in addition to folks from Bloomington-Normal, it's hoped the event will draw players from active Decatur, Springfield, Peoria and Champaign clubs. Will northern Illinois be in the house?
Even a few non-Baptists are likely to show up at North Bridge Baptist Church for the four-round, one-section event. The first round gets underway at 10am, meaning travelers won't have to get up at the crack of dawn to participate. Jeff indicates the church is about five minutes north of Normal.
Karagianis Sweeps Open Section at GPO 49
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- Written by Bill Feldman Bill Feldman
Fifth round play at the 49th GPO,
(L to R) Jon Winick, Ivan Wijetunge,
Pete Karagianis, Tom Friske
It'd been almost five years since Scott Schmidt had played a USCF-rated tournament. Under those circumstances, you can forgive the Class B player from drawing a Class D opponent in the first round of the Greater Peoria Open. With the rust dutifully scraped off, Schmidt prevailed in his four subsequent rounds to win the Reserve Section of the 49th GPO.
Master Pete Karagianis went undefeated in the Open Section to claim the $250 first prize at the April 20-21st event, played at the AmericInn of Peoria.
Young, Angelov and Ulrich Claim 2013 TJWO
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- Written by Bill Feldman Bill Feldman
A robust field of 125 players (with a few extra games for good measure) competed in the inaugural event of the 2013 Illinois Chess Tour. The five-round Tim Just Winter Open and Reserve was held January 5 and 6 at the Oak Brook Doubletree Hotel.
In the end, a three-way tie in the Open Section meant Angelo Young, Angel Angelov and Thomas Ulrich split $1200 in first place prize money with 4.5 out of 5 scores. Angelo and Angel agreed to a fifth-round draw, while Thomas needed a fifth-round victory over Jonathan Kogan to cement his share of the top prize.
Illinois Tour Marches to Peoria for 49th GPO
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- Written by Bill Feldman Bill Feldman
The location may be unfamiliar, but nothing can stop the Greater Peoria Open! The 2013 version is the 49th incantation, making it one of the nation's longest running chess events. The April 20-21st five-rounder is slated for the AmericInn on the northside of Peoria.
This is the second leg of the 2013 Illinois Chess Tour -- with the third leg, the Normal Open, coming up two weeks later, May 4.
Tour Champion Sam Schmakel Simul Set for March 10th
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- Written by Mike Cardinale Mike Cardinale
NM Sam SchmakelJoin us at Marbles: The Brain Store on Sunday, March 10th as 2012 Illinois Chess Tour champion NM Sam Schmakel takes on up to 16 opponents in a simultaneous exhibition, in conjunction with a Tour fundraising sale.
The simul begins at 3:00 P.M. at Marbles: The Brain Store, located at 4745 N. Lincoln, in the Lincoln Square neighborhood of Chicago.