On a Very Cold Evening – LCCC Chess League (R7) was Hot!

Rabid Squirrels vs The Flames

Round 7 of the LCCC Chess League went off with only a few postponements. Only one was weather related. The rest were “life” related. It happens.

We also welcomed new club member Paul J to LCCC. He got some casual games in while League play was happening. There are always some non-league playing members milling about. Stop by – even on league nights for some chess action of your own.

One team match went to completion as the Rabid Squirrels drew with the Flames. Picking up a point in the standings will keep the Squirrels safely in 1^st place for another week.

The Flames, with their point this week, are in second right now and are guaranteed to be no worse than alone in 3^rd after everything is completed for round 7.

Top two boards of the Flames vs Squirrels.

The 49’ers have a 2 -1 lead on the Thunder with one match to be played.

The Tigers and Sonics are tied 1 - 1 with two rounds to be made up.

All postponed games have to be made up by next week – Feb 6 - as League Round 8 is scheduled for Monday Feb. 10.

Other club news, we will be holding a Blitz Tournament shortly. Our TD – Ken T – announced it for Feb 17. However, that is President’s Day and we may have to move it to Feb. 24 if the Senior Center is closed on the 17^th. We will finalize those dates soon.

Paul J and Zack S play some casual chess during league play.

The Ladder Tournament is constantly running so be sure to sign up for that. And if you are already on the Ladder, get those challenges posted!

Other planned activities include a Summer League! Tentative start for that is May 12^th. The format has yet to be decided, but we want to make it a lighter league with more emphasis on fun.

One idea is a two game match format:

Each player plays two games against the same opponent (15 or 30 minute game) alternating colors. You have to have a positive score to win the match (2 – 0 or 1.5 – 0.5).

One random round will be a 4 or 6 round Blitz match – rotating colors. You have to have a positive score to win the match there also.

Another random round will be a Chess 960 night.

The random rounds be drawn the same night the teams are determined – but not until after the teams are determined.

Also under consideration is a Club Swiss Tournament on a summer weekend. We may possibly move it outdoors to give some exposure to the club. Maybe held on the lawn of the Senior Center or in a mall parking lot near the street for visibility.

Please feed suggestions to any club officer; Mike N, Ken L, Ken T, Vince V, or Don J.

The fun continues at LCCC with open chess at Teekos Coffee on Thursday Jan. 30, and open chess back at the Hartland Senior Center next Monday Feb 3.

LCCC Plays at Teekos Coffee Shop

Chess.....ladies like it too!

On a Monday? Yep. MLK Day had the schools closed so we were without our usual home. But as usual, Teekos Coffee in Howell stepped up in a big way! They squeezed us in, even though another group already reserved our usual room.

Thank you Teekos!

Six of us were in attendance. We went over some games and played some ourselves. Two spectators got our club business cards and we hope to see them again.

Remember League night is next Monday. And we will still be at Teekos Thursday.

This coming Monday should be an absolutely great night of chess. First of all, due to the holiday layoff, everyone should be itching to get back at it.

Second, all the matches are super close ratings wise. We never had matchups this close all across the teams and boards. It’s going to be great!

Come on by and watch the action, or play some casual games with the non-league members.

See you this Thursday at Teekos or Monday back at the Hartland Senior Center.

LCCC Has a Strong Showing at the Michigan Class Championships



John Ryskamp led LCCC in victories at the Class Championships.

Four LCCC’ers ventured to Lansing, MI for this tournament. It is an annual event that will be held at the same place and the same location next year, so pencil it in as a tournament to attend.

It has everything you want as a player or a spectator. Nice hotel with discounted rooms, many restaurants close by and a well run tournament every year. Rounds start almost on time or on time.

And being a “CLASS” championship, you are bracketed into groups of players close to your own strength. This means every game is a close and exciting one. If you are a chess player, how can you miss out on this opportunity?

Paul Mills as always, was Mr. Steady

They have these sections:
Master/Expert
Class A
Class B
Class C
Class D
Class E
Novice
Unrated

No matter your playing strength, there is a section for you!

LCCC has it’s usual tournament success and plus score as a team. It was actually kind of neat that each one of us were in a different class of the tournament.

As noted in the last posting, Zack Romeos (1st tournament of his career) won the Unrated Section with 3 wins – 2 losses score!

John Ryskamp didn’t get a trophy in his class, but he did have the best score posting for LCCC with a 3 wins – 1 loss – 1 draw finish.

Paul Mills broke even with a 2 wins – 2 losses – 1 draw record.

Mike Nikitin (51st tournament of his career) also had an even score with 1 win – 1 loss and 3 draws! He calls it “Grandmaster results (lots of draws) without Grandmaster play.”

There are more tournaments scheduled and they are listed on the side of this blog. Chess tournaments are fun and most are inexpensive. Get in the game!

A reminder; LCCC is closed Monday Jan. 20 but League Night is Monday Jan. 27.

LCCC is still meeting at Teekos Coffee Shop in Howell on Thursday at 6pm.

Stop by and get your chess on!

Zach Romeos Wins the Michigan Class Championship Unrated Title

Zach is proof that if you work on your game at LCCC, good results follow.

Well, he is not unrated anymore. LCCC Keeps Grooming Champions!

For the second straight year, LCCC has had a winner in the Novice Tournament. Last year Tom Hosmer finished second in the entire Novice tournament of the Michigan Class Championships.

This year Zach Romeos comes in 1^st place in the Unrated Section! Zach was playing in his first United States Chess Federation and Michigan Chess Association sanctioned tournament. Congratulations Zach!

No matter what level player you are, LCCC has the players and talent to help you learn, challenge yourself or find your level for truly entertaining games of chess.

A note to EVERYONE – LCCC is closed on Monday January 20^th for MLK Day. The schools are closed so our building is also.

But speaking of challenging yourself! The next round of our league is on January 27. We will have the closest matches and closest set of games we have ever had!

Our rating system sets the matches to an alphabetical scale – “A” meaning the match is very close in rating points.

Well we have for that week;

4 - A matches
5 - B matches
2 - C matches
1 - D match

The scale goes all the way to M! So there is the proof everyone. That is twenty four players and all in a game against someone of comparable playing ability.

So whether you are a beginner, a player that has been away from the game a while, an active player or a strong player, we have someone at the club that can give you a good game, a challenging game or even a lesson or two if you would like.

Stop on by any Monday night 6pm to 9:30pm – except for January 20 of course.

See you at LCCC!

LCCC Cancelled for Jan 6 Due to Weather

Think spring!

Sorry chess friends but our location of the Hartland Senior Center is closed due to the school closings. See you Thursday at Teekos or next Monday!

Real Tactics - Real Game! - LCCC Returns January 6

2014 will be bigger and better at LCCC!

We will start the year off with a Blitz tournament some time in January, and league action returns January 27. In addition, there will be a summer league and some other activities planned. Be a part of it!

Aaron J sent this along. Very nice! Good luck seeing this one.

Black moves .....Qe4.    White to move and win!

"I was playing Black in this game and we both missed a pretty spectacular tactic.

See if you can spot it."  - Aaron J.




Thank you Aaron for the contribution to the blog!!