Best of the West results

I did not go to the concluding day of the Best of the West tournament, because Linnea got a ride with her parents, but I know my readers will want to know what happened. Well, unfortunately she lost her last two games and finished out of the running for prize money....

Winning the Exchange

This year’s Aptos Library chess tournament for kids was the biggest and most successful ever! I organize and direct this tournament every year in May. Usually we get around 16 to 20 players (last year we had only 14), but this year 37 people participated! It was...

I Love/Hate Speed Chess…

… and the reason I love it is that speed chess is ridiculously entertaining. … and the reason I hate it is that speed chess magnifies all of my worst tendencies. Both of these reason were on full display in a mind-boggling speed game that I played with...

Simultaneous queen sacs!

Last weekend Mike Splane showed me a sensational game that he recently played at the Kolty Chess Club. It features a position where his opponent could have played a queen sacrifice, to which the best defense would have been a counter-queen sacrifice! The only slight...