Roosevelt Open History

Martha Adams was the driving force behind both the Roosevelt Chess Club--which served inner city Dayton, Ohio--and the annual Roosevelt Open, which attracted strong players from throughout the country because the tournament had a generous guaranteed prize fund and also offered U.S. Chess Federation Grand Prix points. The U.S. Chess Federation Grand Prix has had various corporate sponsors over the years (including Church's Chicken and Novag, a company that manufactured chess computers). The Grand Prix provides cash prizes to the players who accumulate the most Grand Prix points during a calendar year; bigger prize fund tournaments have more Grand Prix points at stake. Igor Ivanov, who won the Grand Prix nine times, participated in the Roosevelt Open, as did Calvin Blocker, Dennis Gogel, Ron Burnett, and Ben Finegold. Ivanov and Finegold eventually earned the Grandmaster title, while Blocker and Burnett are both International Masters. Indiana native Gogel achieved U.S. Senior Master status and established himself as one of the Midwest's top chess players for several decades.

Adams made every player feel not just welcomed but valued. Anyone who attended the Roosevelt Open will never forget the ceremonies she conducted before the fifth round when she awarded several prizes in categories such as Youngest Player, Furthest Distance Traveled, Biggest Upset, and more. Even when her health waned, she still made her presence felt at the tournament, walking around, chatting up the players, and ensuring that everyone had a great experience.

The Roosevelt Chess Club hosted the Roosevelt Open annually at the Ellison Senior Citizens Center from 1983-2002. During that time, it became one of the biggest and most important chess tournaments not just in Dayton but in Ohio. 

The final two Roosevelt Opens were held in 2001 and 2002, both in memory of Martha Adams, who passed away on April 12, 2001 at the age of 62.

Front and back cover of the memorial program for Martha Adams

Martha Adams concluded her report about the 1988 Roosevelt Open in the January/February 1989 Ohio Chess Bulletin by writing, "When your heart is right, everything lights up, and it certainly did at the Roosevelt Open." That epitomizes how Martha Adams expressed herself, and that is the way she treated people.

ROOSEVELT OPEN CHAMPIONS

1983: ???
1984: ???
1985: Tien Chou/James Mills 4.5/5 (48 players)
1986: Calvin Blocker/Ben Finegold/Ray Stone 4.5/5 (67 players)
1987: Ben Finegold/James Mills/Ray Stone 4.5/5 (64 players)
1988: Ron Burnett/Dennis Gogel 4.5/5 (67 players)
1989: Dana Mackenzie 5/5 (68 players)
1990: Ron Burnett 5/5 (75 players)
1991: Ron Burnett 4.5/5 (52 players)
1992: John Dowling/Gary Terry 4.5/5 (54 players)
1993: John Dowling/Dana Mackenzie 4.5/5 (50 players)
1994: Dennis Gogel/Boris Men 4.5/5 (52 players)
1995: John Dowling/James Mills 4.5/5 (46 players)
1996: Charles Adelman/Sergey Berchenko 4.5/5 (36 players)
1997: Illyr (Sonny) Kamberi 4.5/5 (36 players)
1998: Jeff Dennis 4.5/5 (20 players)
1999: Enrico Sevillano 4.5/5 (43 players)
2000: Chaene Kingrey/Scott Ramer/Jeff Sword 4/5 (23 players)
2001: Alex Lewis 4.5/5 (35 players)
2002: ???

Sources: Various issues of the Ohio Chess Bulletin, U.S. Chess Federation crosstables, and the Dayton Chess Club Review. 

I have not been able to find any information about the 1983 and 1984 Roosevelt Opens. 

It appears that the 2002 Roosevelt Open was not rated by the U.S. Chess Federation; the results are not posted by USCF online, nor do they appear in any issues of the Ohio Chess Bulletin. My personal records show that I scored 3/5 and did not win a prize in the 2002 Roosevelt Open.

Author's Personal Note:

In Journey to the National Master Title, Part 1, I summarized my chess career up to January 2023. The 1987 Roosevelt Open was my second two day weekend USCF rated tournament (after the 1987 Gem City Open), and in round four I scored my first ever win in a rated tournament game. I finished with 1.5/5. 

It is an understatement to say that chess tournament demographics have significantly changed since I began my chess career. I received a Walkman radio for being the youngest player at the 1987 Roosevelt Open--and I was less than two weeks short of my 16th birthday at the time! Today, most tournaments have many players who are much younger than 16. 

At the 1987 Roosevelt Open, I met Ben Finegold, a strong teenage Master who later became a Grandmaster (and popular YouTuber). I was astonished to watch him playing pool in the Ellison Senior Citizens Center's recreation room in between moves of his tournament games; chess seemed to be very easy for him. In between rounds, I challenged Finegold to play speed chess. He played me with odds of five minutes to one, and beat me easily every time. I will never forget that experience for starkly demonstrating the differences between club players, Experts, Masters, and strong Masters. Those losses to Finegold did not discourage me; they inspired me to become a better player.

I received a mug for being the youngest player at the 1988 Roosevelt Open when I was almost 17. The top seeded player in the 1988 Roosevelt Open, International Master Igor Ivanov (2598), suffered a stunning second round loss to Class A player (1945) Robert Kirk. I remember that so many players crowded around that game's climactic moments that people were standing on chairs to watch the final moves. Ivanov bounced back to finish 4/5, tying for third-ninth place.

In the 1989 Roosevelt Open I was no longer the youngest participant, but I won a prize on merit at the event for the first time, scoring 3/5 to tie for first-fifth place in Class B. In the next eight Roosevelt Opens, I scored 3/5 six times but did not win a prize in any of those events. My friend/mentor Earle Wikle and I tied for second-third place in the 1998 Roosevelt Open with 4/5. In 1999, I scored 3.5/5 and tied for first-third place among Class A players. In 2000, I scored 3/5 and won the first prize in the Expert class.

Overall, I played in each Roosevelt Open from 1987-2002, and I won four prizes (not including the prizes for being the youngest player in 1987 and 1988).

Gem City Open History

The Dayton Chess Club hosted the Gem City Open annually from 1959-2019. The Gem City Open earned the USCF designation "Heritage Event" by virtue of being held for at least 25 years. During most of that time, the Gem City Open and the annual Dayton Chess Club Championship were the two most important events on the Dayton chess calendar.

I was surprised to learn that famous/infamous International Master Norman Tweed Whitaker was co-champion of the inaugural Gem City Open in 1959.

Grandmaster Alex Goldin holds the record with six Gem City Open titles (1998, 2003-04, 2008-10). Goldin, who once ranked in the FIDE top 100 in the world, emigrated to the United States from the former Soviet Union. He lived in Ohio for several years, and he frequently participated in Ohio chess tournaments. 

Four-time Gem City Open champions include two-time Ohio Chess Champion (1959, 1964) Richard Kause (1961, 1964-65, 1972), three-time Ohio Chess Champion (1971, 1974, 1978) Robert Burns, Jr. (1971-72, 1976, 1980), and Sergey Berchenko (1982, 1987, 2006-07).

International Master Ron Burnett, who is from Tennessee but has often participated in Ohio chess tournaments since the 1980s, won three Gem City Opens (1989, 1994, 2014). International Master Goran Vojinovic, who was a prominent chess coach in Ohio before he passed away in 2016 after suffering a heart attack at 53, won three Gem City Opens (2010, 2013, 2015).

Two-time Gem City Open champions include Richard Noel (1962, 1968), Tony Mantia (1972, 1978), Art Keske (1975-76), Hans Multhopp (1977, 1994), Dennis Gogel (1979, 1983),  Lester Van Meter (1985-86), Charles Schulien (1986-87), Ben Finegold (1987, 1993), Steve Wygle (1991, 2002), Boris Men (1993, 1997), Alex Wojtkiewicz (2000, 2003), and Will Sedlar (2014, 2018).

GEM CITY OPEN CHAMPIONS

I have never seen a complete list of the Gem City Open champions, so in the spirit of my articles about the Dayton Chess Club Championship and the Ohio Chess Congress I decided to compile the list.

1959: Jack O'Keefe/Norman T. Whitaker 5.5/6
1960: George Kellner 5/6
1961: Richard Kause/Jack Witeczek 5/5
1962: Richard Noel 5/5
1963: Thomas Wozney 5/5
1964: Richard Kause/William Martz 5/5
1965: George Berry/Richard Kause 4.5/5
1966: Isidore Yedlin (Argentina) 4.5/5
1967: Peter Webster 4.5/5
1968: Richard Noel 4.5/5
1969: Daniel Boyk 5/5
1970: Alan Kirshner 5/5 (98 players--most up to that time)
1971: Robert Burns, Jr. 5/5 (99 players--most up to that time)
1972: Robert Burns, Jr./Richard Kause/Ed Lawrence/Tony Mantia/George Sendeckyj/Charles Unruh 4.5/5 (93 players)
1973: Mark MacDonald/Andy Martin/Gregg Stark 4.5/5 (72 players)
1974: Randal Andrzejewski/Charles Kannal 5/5
1975: Art Keske 5/5
1976: Robert Burns, Jr./Art Keske 4.5/5
1977: Hans Multhopp 5/5
1978: Tony Mantia 5/5 (49 players)
1979: Dennis Gogel 5/5 (48 players)
1980: Brian Beard/Robert Burns, Jr./Milan Vukcevich 4.5/5 (75 players)
1981: David Glueck 5/5 (72 players)
1982: Sergey Berchenko 5/5 (99 players, tying the 1971 record)
1983: Dennis Gogel/Gregory Markzon 4.5/5 (68 players)
1984: Dan Meinking 4.5/5 (84 players)
1985: Charles Diebert/John Readey/Lester Van Meter 4.5/5 (90 players)
1986: Charles Schulien/John Vehre/Lester Van Meter 4.5/5 (88 players)
1987: Sergey Berchenko/Ben Finegold/Charles Schulien 4.5/5 (57 players)
1988: James Schroeder 4.5/5 (54 players)
1989: Ron Burnett 4.5/5 (51 players)
1990: Gary Terry 4.5/5 (37 players)
1991: Chris Dorr/William Harris, Jr./Bruce Steinfeld/Norris Weaver/Steve Wygle 4/5 (86 players in two sections; 46 players in Open section)
1992: Gregory Kaidanov 4.5/5 (68 players in two sections; 43 players in Open section)
1993: Ben Finegold/Boris Men 4.5/5 (63 players in two sections; 22 players in Open section)
1994: Ron Burnett/Hans Multhopp 4/5 (54 players in two sections; 16 players in Open section)
1995: Ram Dake 5/5 (62 players in two sections; 17 players in Open section)
1996: Greg Serper 4.5/5 (71 players in two sections; 20 players in Open section)
1997: Boris Men 4.5/5 (55 players in two sections; 28 players in Open section)
1998: Alex Goldin 4.5/5 (58 players in two sections; 20 players in Open section)
1999: Enrico Sevillano 4.5/5 (45 players in two sections; 13 players in Open section)
2000: Alex Wojtkiewicz 4.5/5 (47 players in three sections; 12 players in Open section)
2001: Alex Lewis 4.5/5 (52 players in three sections; 13 players in Open section)
2002: John Dowling/Steve Wygle/David Zimbeck 4/5 (66 players in three sections; 21 players in Open section)
2003: Alex Goldin/Alex Wojtkiewicz 4/5 (67 players in three sections; 25 players in Open section)
2004: Alex Goldin/Stanislav Kriventsov 4.5/5 (58 players in five sections; 17 players in Open section)
2005: Anna Zatonskih 4.5/5 (65 players in four sections; 13 players in Open section)
2006: Sergey Berchenko/Ananth Pappu/William Wright 3/4 (43 players in three sections; 16 players in Open section)
2007: Sergey Berchenko/Tim Holman/Andrew Kobalka 3/4 (40 players in three sections; 12 players in Open section)
2008: Xiaobo Dong/Alex Goldin/Emory Tate 4/5 (55 players in four sections; 17 players in Open section)
2009: Alex Goldin 4.5/5 (71 players in four sections; 20 players in Open section)
2010: Alex Goldin/Goran Vojinovic 4.5/5 (62 players in four sections; 17 players in Open section)
2011: Walker Griggs 4.5/5 (84 players in four sections; 22 players in Open section)
2012: Sergey Kudrin 5/5 (65 players in three sections; 21 players in Open section)
2013: Goran Vojinovic 4.5/5 (111 players in three sections, setting the all-time Gem City Open record; 40 players in Open section)
2014: Ron Burnett/James Mills/Will Sedlar 4/5 (80 players in three sections; 32 players in Open section)
2015: Goran Vojinovic 4.5/5 (91 players in three sections; 40 players in Open section)
2016: Fidal Corrales Jimenez/Priyadharshan Kannappan/Ruifeng Li/Chao Zhang 4/5 (72 players in two sections; 36 players in Open section)
2017: Vladimir Belous/Andrey Stukopin 4.5/5 (66 players in two sections; 41 players in Open section)
2018: Will Sedlar 4.5/5 (39 players in two sections; 20 players in Open section)
2019: Mika Brattain 4.5/5 (46 players in two sections; 29 players in Open section)

Sources: Various issues of the Ohio Chess Bulletin, U.S. Chess Federation crosstables, and the Dayton Chess Club Review.

Results from the 1959-1978 Gem City Opens are listed in the February 1979 issue of the Dayton Chess Club Review, which also mentioned that 1180 players participated in the first 20 Gem City Opens--but that issue lists only Kause as the 1972 champion, contradicting the April 1972 Dayton Chess Club Review issue that lists six winners. The April 1972 issue was published right after that year's Gem City Open, and is thus likely the more reliable source.

Special thank you to four-time Dayton Chess Club Champion (1976-77, 1992, 1994) and two-time Gem City Open Champion (1972, 1978) Tony Mantia for providing information about the 1981 and 1982 Gem City Opens.

1973 Gem City Open co-champions (photo from March/April 1973 Ohio Chess Bulletin)

Author's Personal Note:

I participated in 29 of the 33 Gem City Opens between 1987 and 2019, missing only 1998, 2015-2016, and 2018. I won a prize eight times.

In Journey to the National Master Title, Part 1, I summarized my chess career up to January 2023. My first USCF rated tournament was the 1987 Gem City Open. I was 15 years old. I scored 0/5, cried after my fifth round defeat, and earned a provisional rating of 1186.

Two-time Ohio Chess Champion (1950, 1985) James Schroeder won the 1988 Gem City Open in memorable fashion, upsetting Sergey Berchenko with Black in the fifth round. I scored 1.5/5 that year, and finished the tournament with a rating of 1470. I vividly remember watching the Berchenko-Schroeder game and trying to predict each player's next move--without much success, as I lacked the requisite chess knowledge to understand what was happening. Schroeder annotated this game for the 1988 "Special Gem City Open Issue!" of the Dayton Chess Club Review, and he began with this declaration: "In the first place (which this game is for) I consider any person who complains about receiving the Black pieces in any game to be a fool. I have never played an important game with Black where I could say: 'My opponent played a perfect game and I never had a chance to win.' You don't find perfect players in Amateur Chess, especially at a fast time control. Even Vukcevich gave me a chance at the Croatian Open a couple of years ago. I missed it, however, and he won." Here is that exciting Berchenko-Schroeder game from the 1988 Gem City Open, with selected annotations by Schroeder (and one note from Stockfish 16, which of course did not exist in 1988):

1988 Gem City Open

Sergey Berchenko vs. James Schroeder

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 d6 6. Bc4 Qb6 7. Nb3 a6 8. Be3 Qc7 9. f4 e6 10. O-O b5 11. Bd3 Bb7 12. a3 Be7 13. Qf3 Rd8 14. Qg3 O-O 15. Nd4 d5 16. e5 Nxd4 17. Bxd4 Bc5 18. Bxc5 Qxc5+ 19. Kh1 Ne4 20. Qh4 g6 21. Rf3 Rd7 22. Ne2 d4 23. Re1 f5 24. exf6 Nxf6 25. Rg3 Ne4 26. Rh3 Stockfish 16 highlights this as the decisive mistake. (26. Rg4 maintains equality.) 26...e5 27. Rf3 Rdf7 28. fxe5 Rxf3 29. gxf3 Nd2 30. Qxd4 Schroeder: "This surprised me and I took my time because I had plenty of it, trying to find some simple win. But it isn't there, so I was forced to play a 'Reinfeldian Brilliancy.' Nxf3 Schroeder: "I used five minutes making certain that the Queen 'sacrifice' led to mate." 31. Qd7 Schroeder: "Now I looked to see if White was threatening a mate in one." Nxe1+ 32. Qxb7 Rf1+ 0-1

I scored 2.5/5 in the 1989 Gem City Open to win the Class C prize, the first time that I won a prize in a rated two day open tournament. As I moved up the rating ladder, I continued to win Gem City Open prizes: I finished first U1900 (3.5/5) in 1991, first U2100 (2.5/5) in 1996, and tied for third-seventh overall (3/5) in 1999. After the Gem City Open format switched from one section to two sections in 1991 (and more than two sections in some of the years after that), I played in the Open section most years--but in 2004 my rating had dipped below 2000, and I followed the advice of my coach (Grandmaster Anatoly Lein) to not play "up" but rather learn to dominate my current rating class; I scored 5/5 to take first place in the U2000 section, a nice reversal of my 0/5 performance in the 1987 Gem City Open. In 2005, I regained Expert status, and I tied for third-sixth in the Gem City Open's Open section with 3/5. I tied for third-ninth in the Open section of the 2010 Gem City Open, also with 3/5. Thus, the closest I came to joining the list of Gem City Open champions were my three third place finishes in 1999, 2005, and 2010.

One of my favorite Gem City Open memories happened in 2000. I scored 2.5 in the first four rounds, and was happy to win my fourth round game to set up a last round matchup with the top seeded player, Grandmaster Alex Wojtkiewicz--but when the pairings were posted I was paired versus someone else. I could have just accepted the easier pairing--I was in contention to receive a prize if I won my last game--but I protested that the last round pairings were wrong. After much discussion, the tournament director admitted that I was right, and he paired me against Wojtkiewicz, who proceeded to grind me down in a long game. I did not notice that fellow player Boris Utkin had taken three pictures of me and Wojtkiewicz during the game, but the next time that I saw Utkin he presented the pictures to me--and he had written on the back of one of them, "We like to play with strong chess players."

 

Friedman versus Wojtkiewicz, 2000 Gem City Open (photo by Boris Utkin)

Chess is about more than rating points and it certainly is about more than money. Yes, I like to play with strong chess players, and I like for the pairings to be correct even if that means facing the strongest player with a prize on the line. Another memorable part of that situation is that Wojtkiewicz became upset with me during the game because he felt that I did not resign soon enough; during the game, he left the playing site to go to Spaghetti Warehouse for a drink (or two), and after the game he initially refused to analyze with me. Andre Jaworowski, a mutual friend, intervened and explained that I always fight to the bitter end and that I meant no disrespect (correct on both counts). Wojtkiewicz eventually relented and agreed to analyze with me. I mentioned to him that at my level it is not so trivial to win a game when up a pawn so I was interested to see how he shut down any possible counterplay. I am not sure that he completely accepted that explanation, but I appreciate that a professional chess player took some time to share his insights with a dedicated amateur.

The Gem City Open was always one of my favorite tournaments--it meant so much to me that I tried to make it to the event in 1998 despite having incapacitating pain from a ruptured disk in my back--and I miss it very much, but I will cherish the memories forever and I hope that this article will foster appreciation for this important part of Ohio chess history.