Wednesday, January 02, 2008
A TOURNEY OVER AT THE CHESS PLAZA
It was a seven-round Swiss tournament with a time control of 25 minutes per game per player. The Second Rizal Day Executive Chess Championship held at the Luneta Chess Plaza on Sunday was conducted by The National Chess Federation of the Philippines and sponsored by the Tagaytay City government headed by Mayor Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino, the NCFP’s secretary general. Prospero “Butch” Pichay is the federation's president.
The competition was limited to the first 40 players and offered a P23,000 purse which was broken down as follows: first prize P7,000, second P5,000, third P3,000, fourth P2,000, and fifth to 10th, P1,000 each. A trophy was awarded to the top three placers, while the fourth to 10th finishers will each receive a medal. Entry fee was P600.
The tournament, unfortunately, was disrupted by intermittent rainfall. For results, call 381-7224 or 09053269576, or e-mail NCFPsecretariat@yahoo.com.
posted by Señor Enrique at 6:10 AM
24 Comments:
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said... Thanks for sharing these pictures. I love to play chess myself so I found this blog post interesting. I didn't realize there were chess tournaments with prize money there. We will have to enter my nephew. He is a chess whiz! :)
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Señor Enrique said... Yes, you ought to enter your nephew to some of these local tournaments. Actually, one of the chess players who will be awarded the grandmaster title by FIDE next year is from the Philippines — Wesley So, who is only 14.
Here's a site you might find of great interest:
http://pinoychess.informe.com/
Thanks, Ching!-
ScroochChronicles said...
Chess is a mind-boggling game. I used to play when I was a kid but only because my Dad enforced it. He, on the other hand, was a chess junkie. He used to be the over-all champion in La Salle when he was in Grade School. He clobbered the reigning college champ!! We have the newspaper cutout (all yellowed and old).
He loved the game so much and even used chess-related phrases like "Na checkmate ka na." or "Para kang pawn, singit ng singit." And like a true chess-player, his analytical skills were way beyond normal.-
Rey said...
This is a great avenue for the masters to show off their skills and the on-coming and emerging talents to harness theirs.
Happy New Year Eric!-
Oman said...
I miss playing that game.
Anyways, wishing you happiness and prosperity in 2008. Happy New Year señor.
GOD BLESS. 2007 Was great.-
said...
Wow, there are chess tourneys in Philippines! I remember we used to have such tourneys back in high school but after that I've never seen it anymore.
I like the photo of the hand holding the Bishop piece. It's beautiful!
:D-
Señor Enrique said...
In chess, Kyels, I noticed that some players convey the tension involved in the game with what they do with their hands when not making a move. And I finally got the opportunity to catch some of it during this tournament.
That's quite keen of you, by the way, to choose this image as your favorite, which is mine, too. Must be the photographer in you :)-
Señor Enrique said...
Thanks you, Lawstude. Wish you the same for the new year :)
I've a feeling that you'll be playing chess once again and more often anytime soon.-
Señor Enrique said...
Happy New Year to you as well, Rey.
Butch Pichay, a former congressman, gave a rousing speech before the competition. He called for everyone to play their very best so as to help uplift the Filipino chess players' standing both locally and internationally.-
Señor Enrique said...
Wow! quite an admirable chess player your dad was, Scrooch.
Truth be told, despite the patient coaching of my friends who are excellent in this game, I never learned to play chess beyond the baginner level. However, to this day, I'm in awe of those who can play it -- whether young or old.
I guess, I was destined to love scrabble and nothing else.-
said...
I'm afraid I have forgotten already how to play chess. Well, I still know the moves - but haven't played for a long, long time.
Chess, scrabble, scribbage, snakes and ladders. Chinese checkers....Way back then, we siblings and cousins played all sorts of board games every summer vacation. (Black and white pa noon ang telebisyon, at wala pang mga malls.)
But chess was considered the ultimate game - a real brain game, so to speak. Kantiyawan, asaran, kampihan - sadly, I won only a few. Laging panalo ang mga boys. :(-
Mari said...
I never understood this game, the chess. I guess, it is more of a man's game. I've never seen nor heard of a woman playing it. LOL
BTW, can we link?
mari-
Señor Enrique said...
You should see the how-to books and even vinyl records given to me by my chess freak friends over the years, Mari; quite a collection, indeed. Nonetheless, for the life of me, I just couldn't sit still long enough to enjoy it.
Chess is quite easy to learn, but mastering it is another issue altogether.-
Señor Enrique said...
Chinese checkers, dama played with soda pop tops, and scrabble I enjoyed a lot when I was a kid, Rhoda. I guess, it was because they were simple games. But nowadays, almost every kid in the family are expert chess players. Jeeez!
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Amadeo said...
This Chess entry immediately reminded me of an unopened box in one of the shelves, gifted to me some years back but somehow forgotten.
The game in the box is called Chess 4, played like Chess except there are 4 players on one board.
Google to see the details. Had wondered whether this game had caught on or even familiar over there. It is made by WOW Toys, inc.-
Señor Enrique said...
When the game gets intense, guess, some folks think, Wish I were in the game. And come to think of it, some experts play two or three games simultaneously. So why not a 4-player-on-a-single-board version of chess?
That is really intriguing, Amadeo. Now, I wonder if indeed it ever caught on.-
pusa said...
waahhh im being nostalgic again, remembering saling pusa ako as player ng chess nun HS! hahaha seems ako lang ang girl sa skul namin marunong magchess kaya ako nakuha player. =)
i loved chess since i saw un mga tambay sa kalye namin na naglalaro nito umpukan pa sila, kaya kaming magkakapatid laro din!
btw just read sa news this morning that there will be a match between our GMs Eugene Torre and Rogelio Antonio with a big money prize, though wala pa date kun kelan-
nutart said...
Aah, chess! Something quite strange for my way of thinking ;-). I know the moves and positions but I don't really find it interesting.
We have a chess club in bayan, with our local shoemaker initiating it. His name is Napoleon and often when I pass his small nook by the dressmaker's shop, there would be six men (laborers by economic category) quite concentrated and engrossed in their chess games. We asked Napoleon to train our small scholar in chess but he became impatient with our proposal. he said a chess player IS and not trained. Quite a man of class, this Napoleon.-
said...
I love chess but unfortunately I haven't appreciated the rapid chess 25 minute mode in tourneys yet :) I still prefer watching the traditional 2 hour time limit per player which is, considering the limited hours we have for ourselves - ludicrous hehe :)
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Señor Enrique said...
Plenty of rapid chess players in some streets and parks of Manhattan, BW, and some play for money. But it is those long drawn games that some folks tend to prefer. I've even heard of some who'd play a game for months who'd phone in their moves to one another. Amazing, eh?
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Señor Enrique said...
I think our young ones can use some guidance from the masters, Bernadette -- be it in any physical or mental discipline. But of course, there are those who are inherently brilliant. But you know what fascinates me are those afflicted with autism yet possess incredible mental faculties in some areas.
BAs for Napoleon, at least, he keeps the interest in chess going amongst town folks :)-
Señor Enrique said...
When I was a kid, Pusa, card games or dama are the more popular games amonst the neighborhood tambays. But in NYC, the most notoriously unbeatable chess players are those supposedly who had spent time in some penitentiaries.
You must be a really good chess player, huh?-
-= dave =- said...
It's been quite a while since I last played chess. I started young, Grade 1, I think, and during my time I had kicked some butt too. I know of at least two persons who have played with real masters. They sure are tough to beat.
Ah, I have some interesting stories about chess, maybe I'd blog about it some time.
Anyway, as for women in chess, do check out the Polgar sisters.
As for me, I actually hate the tension. It's the same for all the competitions I've participated, actually. I'm more for the leisurely intellectual enjoyment of chess.-
Señor Enrique said...
I know what you mean, Dave; however, many folks out there seem to take everything seriously and would even get into the annoying practice of "kanchawan." Nonetheless, I think the tension that a game of chess can prompt is far more intense than in any board game, no?
