LCCC Not Meeting on Sept. 4 - Labor Day

LCCC is officially not meeting. But don't let that stop you.

Who knows who may show anyway? 

We will return in full force on Monday September 11.

LCCC Back in Full Swing - Be Here for Chess Fun!

 

The Livingston County Chess Club meets every Monday night between

4pm and 10pm

at the Buffalo Wild Wings in the Green Oak Mall in Brighton, MI. 

Stop in for some friendly chess, good food and 'refreshments'.

Everyone of all ages and playing strength are welcome to attend. And free lessons to all beginners!

The road construction – at least on the bridge going to and from the Mall is completed. Of course the rest of the State of Michigan appears to be in a complete “road repair” mode – IN EVERY DIRECTION!

Eh, thank you? But I digress. To lighten the mood because of our travel problems currently, let me give you the chess writings of a true chess player and one of the people with the highest IQ ever recorded.

No, it is not your humble scribe, although it would be an honest assumption by my readers of course. You are forgiven. Now on with the essay:

The Gentle Art of Annoying by Professor Donald MacMurray

“At the very outset let us examine the nature of chess. Chess is the psychological rather than logical battle between two players. Be sure that you never win a game of chess, but rather your opponent loses it. One way or another, the one that blunders least or who’s mistakes are not seen or not as hideous, will emerge victorious.

With this in mind, let us look at ways to make our opponent err.

The chess public needs is a method of winning easily without first mastering the difficult and unnecessary technique of making good moves.

To begin with, you must realize clearly that your principal object is to disturb your opponent as much as possible in order to distract his attention from the game. Of the numerous ways of accomplishing this, the easiest and most common is talking.

Talking to annoy may be done in several ways. You may, for example, talk to your opponent, either pointing out bad moves to him, or making any other misleading remark about the position. If your opponent so much as comes near to touching a piece it is always disconcerting to say sternly 'Touch--move.' If this involves you in an argument with him, so much the better for your chances of upsetting his train of thought.

An example from actual experience will serve to demonstrate the practicability of this piece of advice. Several years ago, in the interscholastic championship tournament in New York, there arose an endgame position where White, who was on the defensive, had only one way of saving the game, to wit, by pushing a certain Pawn. He permitted his hand to hover over the Pawn, without touching it, whereupon Black cried gleefully, 'You touched it!' White denied the charge vigorously, and, when the referee finally decided the fight in his favor, triumphantly proceeded to move another piece, thus losing the game.

You may also talk to the kibitzers, preferably discussing the previous game with them so heatedly that you draw your opponent into the argument, and so take his mind completely off whatever he was considering.

If you like, you may talk to yourself. Every chess club boasts at least one genius of the talk-to-yourself school. Curiously enough, the favorite method of these experts is the recitation of nonsense rhymes. One of the most prominent American professionals has confided to me that about half of his yearly income is derived from the recitation, at critical points in his games, of ‘Mary Had a Little Lamb’.

Another ready means of annoying which you have at your disposal is music. There are several different ways of employing music for this purpose. If you are a timid player, you may try humming, which is the most unobtrusive of the lot, and the least likely to call forth rebuke, but which, when raised to high pitch and accompanied by the gestures of a conductor, will throw your opponent entirely off his game.

As your courage waxes, you will find a shrill, piercing whistle more effective than even the most artistic humming. The tune must be one far too difficult to be whistled correctly, so that it will sound at best like an undecided peanut-roaster.

Finally, being carried away by the beauty of your noises, you may break into full song, accompanying yourself as before, with appropriate gestures, or else by tapping in time with your feet.

If you do not happen to be musically inclined, you will still find a big field open to you in drumming and tapping, either with hands or feet. This is one of the best ways known to induce your opponent to make a hasty move and is favored by nearly all of the masters who have no confidence in their singing voices.

Other great resources which you possess are coughing, sneezing, and blowing your nose during the progress of the game. These are to be used freely, especially during the wintertime, both as a general distraction and to instill in you adversary the fear of germs.

Similarly, when your opponent does not move quickly enough to suit you (and if you are a right-minded chess-player, this should be nearly all the time), you should first heave a sigh, then yawn and look at your watch, and finally groan mournfully.

A large class of nuisances not yet touched upon comprises those which aim at distracting the visual attention of the enemy. Of these, the one most highly sanctioned for your adoption is the system of blowing smoke rings across the board. This is useful, not only because it obscures the position, but also because it will surely get into your opponent's eyes or choke him, and thus put him completely at your mercy.

Another annoyance of this type is adjusting pieces which you would like your opponent to take, or else pieces which are on the other side of the board from where your threat is.

If you habitually rest your head on your hand, be certain to keep your elbow constantly on the edge of the board, shifting its position from time to time so as to be always concealing under it at least two or three important squares.

As the evening wears on, you may resort to stretching, in doing which you should take care to fling at least one arm all the way across the board.

Whenever you have what you think is a fairly good position, rock your chair back and forth on its hind legs, assuming meanwhile a complacent attitude, with your thumbs in your vest-pockets, as much as to say, 'Why do you not resign, you duffer?'

There is only one more kind of disturbance worth mentioning. Although it is infrequent of occurrence, and, when it does happen, it is entirely accidental, it is as upsetting as anything else.

It is making a strong move."

LCCC Back from the US Open - 2023: However Our Location May Be Nearly Inaccessible This Week!

Your humble scribe always opens with this:

The Livingston County Chess Club meets every Monday night between 4pm and 10pm at the Buffalo Wild Wings in the Green Oak Mall in Brighton, MI. 

Stop in for some friendly chess, good food and 'refreshments'. Everyone of all ages and playing strength are welcome to attend. And free lessons to all beginners!

But this post, I have to warn anyone planning to attend on Monday August 7 of this issue:

FROM: Michigan.gov: Lee Road bridge over US-23 closed for maintenance beginning Saturday August 5 for EIGHT days. The detour is at Silver Lake Road.

Warning! Traffic will be a nightmare, especially from 3pm until 7pm. They are already working on US-23 in that same area. 

Your humble scribe is currently playing in the US Open.  Although returning home in time to make the Club this Monday, this writer may decide not to attend due to this traffic nightmare. If attendance is low, this is a good reason to miss.

Hope to see everyone back on August 14th!

Still Meeting on Mondays - 2023 US Open is in Grand Rapids, MI This Year!

The Livingston County Chess Club meets every Monday night between 4pm and 10pm at the Buffalo Wild Wings in the Green Oak Mall in Brighton, MI. 

Stop in for some friendly chess, good food and 'refreshments'. Everyone of all ages and playing strength are welcome to attend. And free lessons to all beginners!

The US Open is in Grand Rapids this year! Some of LCCC's members will be in attendance. Your humble scribe played in this event in 2013, and if you love chess, you owe it to yourself to at least stop by. The action is intense, the equipment sellers have everything, and the side events meetings can be enjoyed by all.

Saturday July 29 to August 6, 2023

DeVos Place
303 Monroe Ave NW
Grand Rapids, MI, 49503, United States

 

Contact:

US Chess Federation
https://www.uschess.org/tournaments/2023/usopen/

Notes:

Event run by the United States Chess Federation

Location: DeVos Place
Hotel: Amway Grand Plaza Hotel

The US Open has one section, in which anyone can enter. This event is NOT rated by FIDE.

9 Round Swiss with 3 Schedules
Traditional:       One round daily at 7 p.m. then the final round [8/6] at 3 .p.m.
6-Day Option:   First 6 rounds 8/1 at 7 p.m., 8/2 at noon & 7 p.m., 8/3 at noon & 7p.m., 8/4 at noon. (Then it merges into the traditional schedule for round 7 at 7 p.m. on 84.)
4-Day Option:   First 6 rounds 8/3 at noon, 3 p.m., 7 p.m. & 10 p.m.; 8/4 noon & 3 p.m. (Then it merges into the traditional schedule for round 7 at 7 p.m. on 8/4.)
      All schedules merge after Round 6 and compete for the same prizes.
      Round 7 at 7 p.m. 8/4, Round 8 at 7 p.m. 8/5, & Round 9 at 3 p.m. 8/6.

Time Control:
Traditional and 6-Day Schedules: 40/100, SD/30, inc/30 (30-second increment from move one)
4-Day Schedule: rounds 1-6 at G/60 d5   rounds 7-9 at 40/100, SD/30, inc/30

Half-Point Byes
Must commit before Round 4 pairings are posted; up to 3 half point byes allowed for 2000/up, 2 half point byes for 1400-1999, one half point bye for Under 1400 or unrated. Limit 1 half point bye in last two rounds.
Zero-point byes are always available in any round.
All Byes must be requested at least two hours before the round(s) in question.

Entry Fee:
Online:      $155 by 6/26, $175 by 7/10, $195 after.
By Mail:     $177 postmarked by 7/10, $197 postmarked after 7/10; do not mail after 7/17!
                  U. S. Chess Federation, Attn.: 2023 U. S. Open, P.O. Box 775308, St. Louis, MO 63177.
                  No phone entries!
Contact:     nationalevents@uschess.org with changes or questions about entries.
On Site:     All $200.
GMs and WGMs play free; no deduction from prize. Must email nationalevents@uschess.org to enter.
All entries must be made at least 2 hours before your first game is played.
Re-entries: $100.

 

Side Events

Sat-Sun July 29-30   Weekend Swiss   10 US Chess Grand Prix Points 5SS, G/60 d5 $1,150 Guaranteed Prizes: $200-100-50, U2200/Unrated $160, U2000 $150, U1800 $140, U1600 $120, U1400 $100, U1200 $80, Unrated $50. Entry fee $40, Unrated players free if paying US Chess dues. Maximum two half-point byes; must declare before round 3 pairings are posted. On-site Registration 10:00-11:30 a.m. Saturday, Rounds at noon & 3:00 p.m. Saturday, 10:00 a.m., 12:30 p.m. & 3:00 p.m. Sunday. Sat July 29   U. S. Open Bughouse   G/5;d0. Entry fee $20 per team. 80% of entry fees in cash prizes. Registration ends at 10:00 AM, Round 1 begins at 10:30 AM. Sun July 30   U. S. Open Scholastic   (See Below) Mon, July 31; Wed, Thu, Fri August 2, 3, 4   U. S. Open Quads (one day events)   G/30;d5. Entry fee $20. Registration 9:30-11:30 a.m., Rounds at noon, 1:30 p.m. & 3:00 p.m. $50 to first in each quad. Tue August 1   U. S. Open Quads (Tuesday Quads Only)   G/60;d5. Entry fee $20. Registration 9:00-10:00 a.m., Rounds at 10:30 a.m., 1:00 p.m. & 3:30 p.m. $50 to first in each quad. Wed August 2   U. S. National G/15 Championship   5-SS, G/15;d5. Quick rated, higher of regular or quick rating used. Entry fee $40. Registration 9:30 AM - 11:30 AM. Rounds at noon, 1:00, 2:00, 3:00, 4:00. 80% of entries as returned as cash prizes. 1st 30%, 2nd 15%, U2100 12%, U1800 10%, U1500/Unrated 8%, U1200 5%. Saturday August 5   U. S. Open National Blitz Championship 15 US Chess Grand Prix Points 7 Double Round (14 games) Swiss, 1 section, G/5;d0. Blitz rated, higher of regular or Blitz rating used. Entry fee $40, free to Unrated players if paying US Chess dues. Registration 9-11:30 a.m, round 1 begins at noon. $2000 Guaranteed Prizes!: $$400-200-150, U2200 $200-100, U2000 $200-100, U1800 $180-90, U1600/Unrated $140-70, U1400 $100, U1200 $70.

 

LCCC Not Meeting on July 3, 2023

LCCC will NOT be meeting on Monday, July 3rd. See you on July 10.

 The Livingston County Chess Club meets every Monday night between 4pm and 10pm at the Buffalo Wild Wings in the Green Oak Mall in Brighton, MI. 

Stop in for some friendly chess, good food and 'refreshments'. Everyone of all ages and playing strength are welcome to attend. And free lessons to all beginners!

2023 960 Champs Crowned - Ladder Tournament Returns!

 

Now THAT is a Ladder!

The Livingston County Chess Club meets every Monday night between 4pm and 10pm at the Buffalo Wild Wings in the Green Oak Mall in Brighton, MI. 

Stop in for some friendly chess, good food and 'refreshments'. Everyone of all ages and playing strength are welcome to attend. And free lessons to all beginners!

For the 2nd year in a row, The co-champions of the 2023 Fischer Randon Chess (960) Tournament are Ken T and Pete B!

Not a surprise although they did have their struggles and challenges to win it. Their game in the 3rd of the 4 rounds ended in a hard-fought draw, so this result makes sense. Here are the top 6 finishers of the 16 entrants:

1-2 Pete B and Ken T

3-4 Curt S and Mike N

5-6 Charlie S and Vince V

Thank you all for participating!

Now, moving forward, the TD and President will establish a Club Tournament Schedule and it will be posted here when finished. COVID disrupted our normal schedule and we have been sort of winging it with our tournaments since re-starting the club OTB.

And the continually running Ladder Tournament will be in effect when other Club tournaments are not scheduled. Here are the Ladder Tournament Rules!

Chess Ladder Rules (6-12-23)

1.     The Ladder Director (LD [Club President right now]) is responsible for the updating the Ladder at the end of each week for the next week’s Ladder posting.

2.    The decision of the LD on all Ladder games and issues is final.

3.    New players joining the Ladder Tournament are automatically placed at the bottom of the ladder.

 

4.    Time Controls for Ladder games; - G/15 minute or longer, with or without Delay/ Increment, are acceptable time limits for ladder games. If the two players cannot agree on a time limit, then G/30 no delay/increment is the standard.

 

5.     For Ladder matches, touch-move is in effect.

6. If both players agree to play Fischer Random 960, that is also allowed.

7.    CHALLENGES:

a.   You may challenge any player above you within 4 rungs.

b.    If a player cannot find a player to play in the next four rungs (absent or currently playing), then challenger is allowed to challenge the next player up the ladder that is present at the club, and so on until an opponent is found.

c.   You cannot play consecutive Ladder matches against the same opponent.

d.   All valid challenges (listed with date and time of challenge) must be accepted and played within two weeks (the week of the challenge and the next week).

e.   If multiple challenges are made to a player on the same day, a week is added for each additional challenge, and the challenges are played in the order made.

f.     Players are only required to play one challenge game on the same club night, but playing multiple challenges is always allowed.

g.   If this is the first time you have played each other in the Ladder Challenge, the color will be determined by lot. If you have played the opponent before then colors will be alternated (challenger shows proof if necessary).

h.  If the challenger WINS the match, the challenger is moved to the rung directly above the challenged player. If the challenger DRAWS, he is placed just below his opponent. If the challenger LOSES there is no change in the ladder positions.

i.   If a match has been arranged without any signing up on the Ladder Sheet, both players must notify the LD of the date, time and result for the game to count.

 

8.    PENALTIES:

a)     Failure to accept or play a valid challenge within the rules will constitute a forfeit and result in a win for the challenger.

b)    After 3 consecutive weeks of ladder inactivity, a player is removed from the ladder.

c)     All infringements of rules as deemed by the LD will result in forfeit of match or removal from Ladder.

9.    RECORDING OF RESULTS: Once a match is over, the winning player is responsible for filling in the results on the Ladder Sheet.

10.  Players must be aware of their appropriate (new) change in their rung positions on the ladder when applicable. (end)

 Any tournament needs rules, but the Ladder Tournament concept is just to make the casual chess games mean "something". 

Ladder Strategy also comes into play for the keen Ladder watcher. Upsets happen and to get your challenge in at the right time could give you a chance to move up quickly. Also, if you look at rule 7B, challenge timing could get you a match higher up the ladder than Rule 7A directly allows.

It's a fun thing if people get involved and embrace The Ladder concept.

LCCC Back Tonight! 960 Tourney to Finish - Plus Casual Chess

 The Livingston County Chess Club meets every Monday night between 4pm and 10pm at the Buffalo Wild Wings in the Green Oak Mall in Brighton, MI. 

Stop in for some friendly chess, good food and 'refreshments'. Everyone of all ages and playing strength are welcome to attend. And free lessons to all beginners!

Our 960 tournament is in full swing. But you can still stop by and play casual chess or even enter the tournament if we have a player on a bye. We are easy that way. No fee as always.

The pairings for this final round were either: 

A) calculated and completed by IBM on their strongest computer using combination software jointly commissioned for development by Apple and Microsoft, then audited for accuracy by the accounting firms of Price/Waterhouse and KPMG or 

B) your humble scribe flipped a coin. 

Here are the pairings for tonight's action - White listed first:

Board 1: Charlie S - Ken T

Board 2: Pete B - Tom V

Board 3: Mike N - Jon C

Board 4: Curt S - Paul M

Board 5: Vince V - Vince S

Board 6: Desmond W - Tyler B

Board 7: Jeff S - Aaron W

Board 8: Mary H - Sam T

Good luck to all and of course all are welcome to join in.