Discovery tactic?

 The black queen is loose but so is the white queen.  Can white make the discovery work?

Kelsey Liu wins $15 Open

Kelsey took 1st in the $15 Open winning all 4 of her games. Happy Easter to all of those that celebrate it. 

Tactic from Thursday Night Swiss

Here is a tactic from one of the Thursday Night Swiss games. Remember black doesnt have to give you the mate in 2. Please feel free to share tactics, games, etc for me to use in the blog. 

Thursday Night Swiss

We had already known that Andrew Hoy finished the double winning the Open section both the Tuesday and Thursday events. Despite the lighter crowd due to the Foxwoods CCA event and a down our we still had exciting chess as both board 1 and 2 went into King and Pawn endgames. At the end of the day Alex Slive took second in the Open while Justin and Holden Cassity split the prizes in the Under section earning the option of playing up in April. 

Tuesday Night Swiss results

Andrew took first with 3.5 out of 4. Zachary Pan had a very strong tournament finishing second in the Open section with +2 -0 =2. Zachary picked up 43 point as he continues to drive to 2000. Justin won the under section and has the option to play in the Open next month. Will he take the challenge?  If he takes up the challenge how will he perform. 

Quick note April has 5 Tuesdays so join us and get 5 rounds for the price of 4. 

Mikayel knocks off GM in Round 1 of Foxwoods event

In Round 1 of CCA’s Foxwoods event Mikayel knocked of 2500 rated Giorgi Margvelashvili with the black pieces in a symmetrical English. Mikayel played nearly flawless with Lichess not giving him a single inaccuracy. Good luck to all the BCC members playing at the event. You can follow along at https://chessevents.com/event/foxwoods. The top boards are being streamed on Lichess as well. 

Boylston Chess: $15 Open

 

$15 Open

 

 

Register Online Now

 

 

 

Date

Saturday, March 30, 2024

 

Event Format

4SS

 

Time Control

G/60 d5

 

Sections

Open & U1800

 

Entry Fee

$15

 

Prizes

$225 based on 25 paid entries: Open: $110-$55, U1800: $60

 

Registration

9:00am - 9:15am

 

Round Times

9:30am, 12:30pm, 3:00pm, 5:30pm

 

Description

Sections with few players may be merged.

In accordance with BCF policy, unrated players may play in any section. Players rated within 200 points of the lower section maximum may play up one section.

A current USCF membership is required. Please visit the US Chess Membership site to join or renew.

Register Online Now

Entry List

 ___________________

Need to withdraw or take a bye? 

Email td@boylstonchess.org at least 30 minutes before the round.

For parking and transportation info, 

please visit Parking and Public Transit.

If the metal gate to the building is closed, 

please press the doorbell marked #1

 

 

 

 

Another tactic

White is down a bunch of material, which means a crushing tactic is in the offing. Seeing the potential mate was the key to me solving this puzzle.  Luckily it’s a fairly common mating pattern.  

Mikayel takes the Black Diamond event

Mikayel won the Black Diamond event with a 3.5/4.0 score. His only blemish was a draw with Arthur Zhou. Amy Nyguen picked up 55 points and crossed 1400 for the first time on the back on a 2.0/4.0 which included a win over a 1989 rated opponent. Congrats to Amy!

Jay Y wins the Spring Equinox

Spring was not in the air on a cold rainy Saturday but 15 players showed up to battle it out at BCC.  Jay Yalamanchili took sole first with 4 out of 4.  Adam Hamel picked up nearly 130 points thanks to a 3.0/4.0 score on his way to a tie for second  

Mate in 6

Mate in 6 can be a lot for people but the first move is obvious and a lot of moves are forcing  move 2 is the key  

Andrew tops Mikayel and Anton in Friday Night Blitz

Andrew took first place with 10/12 ahead of both Mikayel and Anton who each finished with 8.5. Marielle Murphy had a strong event gaining 65 rating points on the night. 

A tactic/calculation problem

After whites first move black doesn’t have a good response. But nothing is really forced leaving you with a lot to calculate. Once you solve the puzzle blacks other options are shown.  If you don’t see all the lines shown you didn’t solve the puzzle.  

Round 3 of Thursday Night Swiss

After 3 rounds, Andrew has locked up first place. Sitting on 3.0 with a half point bye in round 4 no one can catch him. That doesn’t mean that there isn’t a lot to play for in the final round. 3 prizes will be up for grabs with Alex Slive, Joe Ray, Justin Guerra, Holden Cassity, Aria Mansouri Tehrani, Brian Rowntree, and Arnold Joseph all with 2 points. 

Boylston Chess: Black Diamond Premier

 

 

Black Diamond Premier

 Register Online Now

 

 

 

Date

Sunday, March 24, 2024

 

 

Event Format

4SS

 

Time Control

G/60; d5

 

Sections

Open and U2100

 

Entry Fee

$25, $40 for non-BCF members

 

Prizes

$350 based on 25 paid entries: $200-$100, U2100 $50

 

Registration

9:00-9:15am

 

Round Times

9:30am, 12:30pm, 3:00pm, 5:30pm

 

Description

Open section: Players must be rated at least 1900 on the January Supplement or live MSA rating.
U2100 section: open to all players <= 2099

Free entry for GMs and IMs with no deduction from any prize won.

A current USCF membership is required. Please visit the US Chess Membership site to join or renew.

Metered street parking is free on Sundays!

Register Online Now

Entry List

 

 ___________________

Need to withdraw or take a bye? 

Email td@boylstonchess.org at least 30 minutes before the round.

For parking and transportation info, 

please visit Parking and Public Transit.

If the metal gate to the building is closed, 

please press the doorbell marked #1

 

 

 

 

Boylston Chess: Friday Night Blitz

 

 

Friday Night Blitz

 Register Online Now

 

 

 

Date

Friday, March 22, 2024

 

Event Format

6SS

 

Time Control

G/5 d0

 

Entry Fee

$10, $15 for non-BCF members

 

Prizes

Based on entries

 

Round Times

7:45pm first round, rest ASAP

 

Description

It's Friday Night!

We'll play six double rounds (one game with each color) with a G/5 time control, no delay and no increment. Doors open at 7:30pm, first round starts at 7:45pm.

Afterwards, what happens happens...

This is a US Chess Federation rated event. USCF membership is required for all players. Please visit the US Chess Membership site to join or renew.

Register Online Now

Entry List

 __________________

 

Need to withdraw or take a bye? 

Email td@boylstonchess.org at least 30 minutes before the round.

For parking and transportation info, 

please visit Parking and Public Transit.

If the metal gate to the building is closed, 

please press the doorbell marked #1

 

 

 

A defection tactic

 

Round 3 of March Tuesday Night Swiss is in the books

Round 3 saw Andrew Hoy take the lead in the Open section bringing him to 2.5 out of 3. With 3 people sitting on 2.0 there is still plenty to play for next week in the final round. In the Under section Justin gave Nicanor his first loss at Boylston. Justin now plays Nino Enriquez who is also on 3… winner takes first. 

 

 

Boylston Chess: Spring Equinox Swiss

  

 

 

Spring Equinox Swiss

Register Online Now

 

Date

Saturday, March 23, 2024

 

Event Format

4SS

 

Time Control

G/60 d5

 

Sections

Open & U1700

 

Entry Fee

$20, $35 for non-BCF members

 

Prizes

$300 based on 25 paid entries: Open $125, $75; U1700 $60, $40

 

Registration

9:00am - 9:20am

 

Round Times

9:30am, 12:30pm, 3:00pm, 5:30pm

 

Description

In accordance with BCF policy, unrated players may play in any section. Players rated within 200 points of the lower section maximum may play up one section.

A current USCF membership is required. Please visit the US Chess Membership site to join or renew.

Register Online Now

Entry List

 

___________________

Need to withdraw or take a bye? 

Email td@boylstonchess.org at least 30 minutes before the round.

For parking and transportation info, 

please visit Parking and Public Transit.

If the metal gate to the building is closed, 

please press the doorbell marked #1

___________________

 

___________________

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

___________________

 

 

 

 

An easier tactic

 The last couple puzzles have been tricky so this one is a bit easier  

Truelson and Padmanabhan share first in ALTO event

Twelve people showed up for the inaugural ALTO event. The field was split into two small Swiss groups based on rating. Truelson and Padmanabhan shared first in the top section each with 2.5 out of 3  Mariano Rivera closed out the bottom section winning clear first with 3 out of 3 points  

The idea behind the new event is to give adult players a chance to play and socialize with other adults players. An adult version of our scholastic event. We will continue to tweak the event to see what works and what doesn’t so those that participated please feel free to reach out with feedback.  Look out for our April event which should be added to the calendar shortly. 

Saturday Tactic

 At a quick glance it looks like white is crushing. Mate is threatened, whites rook on the 7th is a dream, the passed e-pawn. Yet it’s not time for black to resign. The computer gives -6 in this position. What resource does black have?

Mikayel wins Friday Night Blitz with perfect score

 Mikayel took clear first with a perfect 12 out of 12 in this weeks edition of Friday Night Blitz. None of the 14 competitors could take a game off of Mikayel. Andrew took second. 

Boylston Chess: Inaugural ALTO (At Least Twenty-One)

 

 

Inaugural ALTO (At Least Twenty-One)

 

Register Online Now

 

 

 

 

Date

Sunday, March 17, 2024

 

Event Format

3SS

 

Time Control

G/60 d5

 

Sections

Players will be grouped into sections of 6 players by rating; accelerated pairings used

 

Entry Fee

$20; $5 more if registering onsite after online registration closes at 9:45am, 03/17/2024

 

Prizes

None (other than top college student); all proceeds will benefit the club; $20 to top scoring college student, if at least three college students play

 

Registration

9:45am - 10:15am (onsite)

 

Round Times

10:30am, 1:30pm, 4:00pm

 

Description

Come celebrate St. Patrick's Day at the Inaugural BCF ALTO tournament.

Light refreshments will be provided.

COLLEGE STUDENTS AND BEGINNERS WELCOME!

LIMITED TO PLAYERS AT LEAST 21 AS OF MARCH 17.

E-mail natasha.christiansen@boylstonchess.org with questions.

Please visit the US Chess Membership site to join or renew.

Need to withdraw or take a bye: please send email to td@boylstonchess.org at least 30 minutes before the round.


Metered street parking is free on Sundays.

For parking and transportation info, please visit Parking and Public Transit.

 

Event Dates

Sunday, March 17

Register Online Now

Entry List

 ____________________

Need to withdraw or take a bye? 

Email td@boylstonchess.org at least 30 minutes before

        ____________________

 

 

Boylston Chess: Friday Night Blitz

 

 

Friday Night Blitz

 Register Online Now

 

 

 

Date

Friday, March 15, 2024

 

Event Format

6SS

 

Time Control

G/5 d0

 

Entry Fee

$10, $15 for non-BCF members

 

Prizes

Based on entries

 

Round Times

7:45pm first round, rest ASAP

 

Description

It's Friday Night!

We'll play six double rounds (one game with each color) with a G/5 time control, no delay and no increment. Doors open at 7:30pm, first round starts at 7:45pm.

Afterwards, what happens happens...

This is a US Chess Federation rated event. USCF membership is required for all players. Please visit the US Chess Membership site to join or renew.

Register Online Now

Entry List

 

 _________________

 

Need to withdraw or take a bye? 

Email td@boylstonchess.org at least 30 minutes before the round.

For parking and transportation info, 

please visit Parking and Public Transit.

If the metal gate to the building is closed, 

please press the doorbell marked #1

 

 

 

Shocking tactic

 You might be able to find this but it surprised me. 

March Tuesday Night Swiss Round 2

With two of the four rounds in the books we have half the field in the Open section tied on 1.5. Noteworthy we have Chunhao Ho who is in his second tournament is on 1.5. After going from unrated to 1823 in his first tournament he has a win over an 1898 and a draw against a 2000 rated player. In the under section Nicanor Millán continues his hot streak. After a 4-0-1 February he is off to a 2-0 start. We will see if Justin can slow him down in week 3. 

Endgame tactic

 If you have studied your theoretical endgames this is a 5 second tactic. If not well good luck finding it. 

March G/80

Long time controls are not just for Tuesday and Thursday nights. BCC’s Game 80 event gave participants the best of both worlds, a long time control and multiple games. 24 players signed up for what was surely a grueling event. 

Tim Sage, the highest rated player in the Open section, took first place as the only player to win all three games. Ray Xue, the lowest rated player in the Open section, finished a clear second with 2.5, picking up 52 rating points in the process. 

Ella Zhang won the Under Section with 2.5 out of 3.0. Ella’s been winning more than her fair share of under sections recently and I suspect she will be playing in the Open sections very soon. 

A special shout out is in order for Royce Zhang who picked up 64 rating points with a win and two draws. The performance moves him into the Top 50 in the US for his age group. 

Tactics Puzzle

GM Narodistky dominates March Big Money Blitz

GM Naroditsky took on 32 challengers and won the March Big Money Blitz with a perfect score. This is Danya’s first clear win as he tied for first with GM Zhou in both December and February. Andrew Hoy and Siddharth Arun tied for second with a score of 8.5. Felix Wu had a notable performance raising his blitz rating 70 points on the night. Boylston Chess Club holds blitz events every Friday night and hosts the Big Money Blitz once a month. 

Boylston Chess: March Thursday Night Swiss

 

 

March Thursday Night Swiss

Register Online Now 

 

 

 

 

 

Date

Thursdays, March 7, 14, 21, and 28

 

Event Format

4SS

 

Time Control

40/90 SD/20 d5

 

Sections

Open & U1610

 

Entry Fee

$20, $35 for non-BCF members

 

Prizes

300 based on 25 paid entries: Open $125, $75; U1610 $60, $40

 

Registration

Onsite registration is 6:45pm-7:00pm

 

Round Times

7:15pm

 

Description

Need to withdraw or take a bye: please send email to td@boylstonchess.org at least 30 minutes before the round.

In accordance with BCF policy, unrated players may play in any section. Players rated within **200** points of the lower section maximum may play up one section. Sections with less than 6 players may be merged.

This is a US Chess Federation rated event. USCF membership is required for all players. Please visit US Chess Membership to join or renew.

 

Event Dates

Thursday, March 7 

Thursday, March 14 

Thursday, March 21 

Thursday, March 28

Register Online Now

Entry List

______________________

Need to withdraw or take a bye? 

Email td@boylstonchess.org at least 30 minutes before the round.

For parking and transportation info, 

please visit Parking and Public Transit.

If the metal gate to the building is closed, 

please press the doorbell marked #1

 

 

Boylston Chess: Friday Night Blitz

 

 

Friday Night Blitz

 Register Online Now

 

Date

Friday, March 1, 2024

 

Event Format

6SS

 

Time Control

G/5 d0

 

Entry Fee

$10, $15 for non-BCF members

 

Prizes

Based on entries

 

Round Times

7:45pm first round, rest ASAP

 

Description

It's Friday Night!

We'll play six double rounds (one game with each color) with a G/5 time control, no delay and no increment. Doors open at 7:30pm, first round starts at 7:45pm.

Afterwards, what happens happens...

This is a US Chess Federation rated event. USCF membership is required for all players. Please visit the US Chess Membership site to join or renew.

Register Online Now

Entry List

 ____________________

Need to withdraw or take a bye? 

Email td@boylstonchess.org at least 30 minutes before the round.

For parking and transportation info, 

please visit Parking and Public Transit.

If the metal gate to the building is closed, 

please press the doorbell marked #1