by scribe | Jul 7, 2018 | current news, off-topic, people, ruminations, tournaments
For poker players, this is one of the biggest weeks of the year — the week of the “Main Event” at the World Series of Poker. And even though there are a million reasons why I don’t play poker, I thought it would be fun to catch up on some...
by scribe | Jul 4, 2018 | chess clubs, current news, endings, games, positions, tournaments
Round six of the Tuesday Night Marathon at the Mechanics Institute was another hard-fought draw. I really don’t mind draws, even against lower-rated players, as long as good chess was played on both sides. In this game, my opponent made a really strange mistake...
by scribe | Jun 27, 2018 | current news, games, positions, tournaments
Last night at the Tuesday Night Marathon I played a thrilling draw against Greg Sarafian, a high class-A player. As you’ll see, this was a game where all three results were possible. In the immediate aftermath I was very relieved because I felt I had escaped...
by scribe | Jun 20, 2018 | chess clubs, current news, games, positions, tournaments
Last night I played my fourth round in the Tuesday Night Marathon at the Mechanics Institute Chess Club in San Francisco. I won a nice game against a very friendly class-A player named Jonathan Mendoza. That brought my score to 3-1, with two wins, a draw and a...
by scribe | Jun 17, 2018 | current news, endings, games, people, positions, tournaments
The San Francisco Bay area has been an unbelievable incubator for chess talent since the year 2000 or so, thanks to the hard work by organizers such as Judit Sztaray of Bay Area Chess and teachers like Michael Aigner. One player after another has progressed through...
by scribe | May 30, 2018 | current news, games, positions, tournaments
This summer I’m going to spend three days a week in Berkeley, which gives me the opportunity for the first time to play in the Tuesday Night Marathon at the Mechanics Institute in San Francisco. I’ve wanted to play in this event for twenty years, but never...
