Journey to the National Master Title, Part 12

I started the fourth quarter of 2024 with a packed chess weekend. Unfortunately, it was packed with painful losses! I scored 2/4 in the October 5, 2024 Columbus Plus Score tournament. I lost 34 rating points to plummet to 1944. This is the seventh time I have played in a Columbus Plus Score event, and just the second time that I did not achieve a plus score. In the fourth round, I lost to Mehmet Yilanli, the third highest rated seven year old in the United States. Yilanli's published rating for October 2024 was 1696, but his live rating was already 1784 and his post-tournament rating was 1795. 

Things only got worse for me in the October 6, 2024 East Market Round Robin. Originally scheduled as a four round G/45 Swiss, the format was switched to a six round G/25 (with five second increment) round robin because only seven players participated. I lost my first three games before recovering to win my last three games to tie for third-fifth with 3/6. I lost 14 rating points, and my rating slid to 1930. 

In the midst of this disastrous chess weekend, I lost five straight rated games. I cannot remember the last time that I lost five straight rated games. Looking through the past 10 years of my chess performance records, the worst losing streaks that I found were four four-game losing streaks; the most recent one took place in the U2100 section of the 2022 Chicago Open, and the previous one happened in the March 6, 2021 Upper Valley G/45, when I went 0-4 against four players who had each earned or would soon earn the National Master title--a marked contrast to this five game losing streak that included defeats to three players rated below 1800, albeit three players who are underrated kids (one of whom entered the tournament rated 1799 and exited the tournament rated 1857).

I recovered from my "lost chess weekend" to score 3.5/4 in the Columbus G/45 on October 19, 2024, gaining 51 rating points to lift my rating back up to 1981, and tying for first-second with Louis Zhang (who drew with me in the third round).

Louis Zhang (white) versus David Friedman (black), October 19, 2024 Columbus G/45

Then, I scored 3/4 in the October 20, 2024 East Market Swiss, tying for first-third but losing eight rating points to drop to 1973. That marked my 12th first place finish in 2024, tying a personal mark set in 2019. Overall, I scored five wins and three draws during the October 19-20, 2024 weekend, gaining 43 rating points and finishing first twice in one weekend for the first time since April 6-7, 2024.

I entered the October 26, 2024 Cincinnati Tornado with a streak of 11 straight regular rated games without a loss. I won my first round game to extend that streak to 12, but then squandered a winning position in round two and lost to end my streak. I won my last two games to finish with 3/4, earning a tie for second-fourth and gaining three rating points to climb back to 1976.

I won my first two games in the November 10, 2024 East Market Swiss, but then I blundered in my third round game to turn an equal position into a lost position. In the fourth round, I lost for the first time to Keya Jha, the number one rated nine year old girl in the country. I had scored four wins and three draws in our previous games. I lost 19 rating points to drop to 1957.

The Kings Island Open has been one of my favorite tournaments since I first played in the event in 1994. This year, I scored 3/5 in the U2100 section, finishing out of the money and losing 13 rating points to fall to 1944. I won my first two games before facing Gabriel Heyer (1863) in the third round. I had scored 3.5/4 in my previous games versus Heyer, but I had White in each of those games and I had Black this time versus Heyer. He played 1. e3, and I overextended my position trying to "punish" his slightly unorthodox (but sound) opening. 

After round three, I played in the Kings Island Open Saturday Night Blitz, tying for third-eighth out of 35 players with a score of 6/8. There was not a third place prize, but I tied with four other players for the combined U2300/U2100 prize. My USCF blitz rating remained unchanged at 1800, which is my USCF blitz floor; many kids are strong players but have not played many USCF blitz games, so their blitz ratings are hundreds of points lower than their regular ratings: my only two losses were to Sharath Radhakrishnan, whose regular rating is 2248, but whose USCF blitz rating prior to this event was just 1971. He scored 6.5/8 to take clear second behind GM Jianchao Zhou, who finished first with 7.5/8.

In the fourth round versus Carter Evard (1790 after 19 games; 1862 after Kings Island), after mutual mistakes in the opening I "tilted" in this position:

Any normal move--such as 17. Rcd1--keeps the balance. Instead, I played 17. Bxh6??, foolishly and recklessly going all-in for an attack that I should have realized is unsound. My opponent took my B and then pocketed my d pawn after I played 18. Qxh6. Instead of patiently maneuvering to try to obtain an advantage from an equal position, I went for broke on move 17--and got broken! This is the kind of impulsive, unsound chess that I have to eliminate: there is no reason to give up my B for two pawns both in this specific position, and in general versus a player who I should reasonably expect to outplay without taking risks in a patient, positional game.

I scored 3/4 in the November 24, 2024 East Market Swiss, tying for second-fourth and gaining 19 rating points to climb back to 1963. This was a special tournament because my daughter Rachel played. Although she scored 0/4, she had a great time--and when she has a great time, I have a great time as well. This was Rachel's 10th regular rated tournament, and her second appearance at East Market, the site of her first regular rated tournament (March 12, 2023).

Pre-tournament selfie with Rachel at November 24, 2024 East Market Swiss

I started the December 8, 2024 East Market Swiss with 2.5/3, setting up a last round encounter for first place versus top seeded Deshawn Kelley. Kelley won, dropping me into a tie for fourth-sixth. I gained five rating points to lift my rating to 1968, exactly my rating at the start of 2024.

I scored 2/3 in the Dayton Chess Club's December 14, 2024 G/45 Swiss, tying for second-third and gaining three rating points to improve my rating to 1971. In the first round, Kiran Boyineppally (1750) held me to a draw in a wild time scramble, and then he won his next two games to take clear first.

My 2024 chess year concluded on December 28, 2024 at the Cincinnati Tornado. My daughter Rachel played, and this turned out to be one of my favorite events of the year both because we participated together and because I performed very well, scoring 3.5/4 to tie for first-second with the top seeded player (Will Sedlar, 2315) while gaining 42 rating points to lift my rating above 2000 (2013) for the first time since September 2024. This was my second largest single tournament rating gain in 2024, surpassed only by the 51 rating points that I gained in the October 19, 2024 Columbus G/45 tournament. After winning my first two games versus lower rated opponents, I drew with Gajanan Jayade (2128) in the third round and then I defeated FM Hans Multhopp in the fourth round. Sedlar knocked off the only player with a 3-0 score to join me in the winner's circle. Rachel scored 0/3 with a one point bye in round three, but she loves chess so much that she played several casual games during the third round.

Pre-tournament selfie with Rachel at December 28, 2024 Cincinnati Tornado

I entered October 2023 rated 2038 and dropped all the way to 1940 before bouncing back to 1968 by the end of December 2023. This year, I had a 2004 rating in August, and dropped all the way to 1930 before finishing December with a rating of 2013. I am not sure why I have had such dramatic rating fluctuations in the fall months of the past two years, but without those slumps I would be much closer to reaching my goal.

Regarding the challenge of trying to advance from the 1900-2000 range to 2200 in the current era, I found some interesting data confirming my impression that my current level of play is not substantially lower than my level of play during my peak rating years but rather that the rating distribution has shifted unfavorably for players in my rating range. USCF ratings distribution data from 2004 shows that the 2000 rating level was at the 96.9 percentile, the 2100 rating level was at the 98.1 percentile, and the 2200 rating level was at the 99.2 percentile; the USCF ratings distribution data from 2014 shows that the 2000 rating level was at the 97.8 percentile, the 2100 rating level was at the 98.7 percentile, and the 2200 rating level was at the 99.4 percentile. That data demonstrates that the percentage of players who are National Masters (2200 rating level) has stayed about the same (less than 1 percent) but the percentage of players who are Experts (2000 rating level) has decreased. One factor to keep in mind is that the rating pool of National Masters is artificially inflated by older players who have earned a 2200 rating floor but are likely no longer 2200 strength players. In other words, if one excludes the "floored" National Masters then it is possible that the percentage of players who are maintaining a 2200 performance level has decreased just like the percentage of players who are maintaining a 2000 performance level has decreased.

My interpretation of that data is that the small cohort of players who are talented enough and work hard enough to earn the NM title has remained roughly the same size, but overall it is more difficult to maintain an Expert level rating than it used to be. I have not found USCF ratings distribution data more recent than 2014, but based on my personal experience I suspect that the trends noted above have continued or even accelerated: objectively, I would say that my level of play now is not much worse than it was in 2014, but in 2014 I was rated over 2100 while now my rating fluctuates in the high 1900s/low 2000s.

Overall, I performed well in 2024, and I set several personal records for regular rated events, including most first place finishes (13, surpassing the 12 that I had in 2019), most events played (41, surpassing the 39 that I played in 2023), most prizes won (29, surpassing the 24 prizes I won in 2023), highest percentage of events in which I won a prize (70.7%, surpassing the 68.8% prize winning percentage that I had in 2020), most combined first/second place finishes (19, surpassing the 18 combined first/second place finishes that I had in 2023), most games played (167, surpassing the 155 games that I played in 2023), most games won (98, surpassing the 93 wins that I had in 2023), and most draws (33, surpassing the 27 draws that I had in 2012). Also, I won one game versus a National Master, pushing my career total to 81.

I had a good year, but not good enough to earn the National Master title. The biggest challenge is to cut down my losses to players rated below 1800. In the first half of the year I had four such losses, but that number ballooned to seven in the second half of the year, which prevented me from surpassing 2100. Similarly, my draw/loss ratio during the first half of the year was good, but I slipped in that regard in the second half of the year. Overall, though, I made progress, and had my best draw/loss ratio ever, which is a step in the right direction.

My five game losing streak over a two tournament span in October made the difference between a good year and an excellent year. I had winning positions in three of those games, and legitimate opportunities to do no worse than draw all five of them; if I had scored 4/5 in those games then my rating would be close to 2100 now instead of languishing in the low 2000s. The losing streak seems like an anomaly, because I won my next three games, and then the next weekend I finished first in two tournaments, gaining a combined 43 rating points.

In Journey to the National Master Title, Part 8, I listed four chess goals for 2024. Here are those goals, with notes about how I performed:

1) Gain 60 rating points per quarter. I gained three rating points in the first quarter of 2024, improving my rating from 1968 to 1971; I gained 10 rating points in the second quarter of 2024, improving my rating from 1971 to 1981; I lost three rating points in the third quarter of 2024, dropping my rating from 1981 to 1978; I gained 35 rating points in the fourth quarter of 2024, improving my rating from 1978 to 2013. Overall, I gained 45 rating points in 2024, which averages out to 11.25 rating points per quarter.

2) Do not lose any games to players rated below 1800. I lost two games to players rated below 1800 in the first quarter of 2024; I lost two games to players rated below 1800 in the second quarter of 2024; I lost three games to players rated below 1800 in the third quarter of 2024; I lost four games to players rated below 1800 in the fourth quarter of 2024. Overall, I lost 11 games to players rated below 1800.

3) Accumulate more draws than losses. I had 15 draws and eight losses in the first quarter of 2024; I had seven draws and nine losses in the second quarter of 2024; I had four draws and seven losses in the third quarter of 2024; I had seven draws and 12 losses in the fourth quarter of 2024. Overall, I had 33 draws and 36 losses.

4) Maintain a winning percentage of at least .750, to break my personal record of .740 set in 2014. My winning percentage was .686, the fifth best of my career.

Here are my chess goals for 2025:

1) Gain 50 rating points per quarter.

2) Do not lose more than six games to players rated below 1800.

3) Accumulate more draws than losses.

4) Maintain a winning percentage of at least .750, to break my personal record of .740 set in 2014.

In 2024, I scored 98 wins, 33 draws, and 36 losses in regular rated tournament games with 13 first place finishes in 41 events. I lost 11 games to players rated below 1800. My net rating gain for 2024 is 45, so I need to gain 187 points to reach my goal.

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.

Journey to the National Master Title, Part 10

On April 6, 2024, I played in my third Columbus Plus Score tournament, and this time I scored 3/4 after scoring 2.5/4 in each of my first two appearances. My rating (1971) did not change. I tied for first place with Manoj Ramachandran, who beat me in round two after I misplayed a winning position and then blundered away a chance to maintain equality. I ended my first round game with promising junior player Andrew Zhu (1698) by delivering an uncommon mate on an open board:

I scored 3.5/4 in the April 7, 2024 East Market Swiss, tying for first-second place and gaining 14 rating points to improve my rating to 1985. I took a bumpy road to the top, drawing in the first round versus Arman Abassi (rated 1485 after eight games, but rated 1643 after scoring 3/4 in this event) despite obtaining a two pawn advantage in the opening. I recovered to win my next two games, capping off my round three win against Keya Jha (the fourth ranked nine year old girl in the country) with a pretty checkmate:

In the last round, I faced Expert Bill Turner. I dropped an Exchange and a pawn by move 14. It is unusual for me to have a lost position out of the opening, but I steadied myself by recalling various winning positions that I have squandered recently: if I can lose from a winning position then why can't I win from a losing position? By move 24 I equalized, but at that point my pieces were more active than his and my position was easier to play. I created a passed pawn that ultimately decided the game in my favor. Near the end of the game, Turner had five pawns for a Rook, but I was able to promote my lone pawn while blockading his rampaging pawn armada.

I have known Turner for more than 30 years. Alex Zelner introduced us to each other, and I played my first rated game against Turner in the November 20, 1993 Wittenberg Tornado. Turner and I drew our fifth round game in the 2012 Kings Island Open to share first-fourth place in the U2100 section, and we also played each other at Kings Island in 2005 (I won) and 2013 (Turner won). 

I first played in the Cincinnati Open in 1994, and it has become one of my favorite (nearly) annual events. There have been a few years that it has not been held, and a few other years that I was not able to participate for various reasons, but this year marked my 14th appearance--and the sixth time that I won a prize (including a tie for first place in the U2100 section in 2013). I scored three wins and a draw in the first four rounds of the April 13-14, 2024 Cincinnati Open to set up a last round board one game versus Gajanan Jayade with a chance to clinch clear first place with a win, and to share first place with a draw. This was a rematch of our board one encounter in the final round of the March 30, 2024 Cincinnati Tornado, and--unfortunately for me--I got the same result: a loss. Instead of obtaining at least a share of first place, my score of 3.5/5 tied me for fourth-seventh place in the FIDE Expert section. I gained 20 rating points to improve my rating to 2005. This is the first time my rating has been over 2000 in 2024, preserving my streak of having a 2000 rating at some point in every year since 1995, the first year that I broke through the 2000 rating barrier. While it is great to reestablish an Expert level rating, my goal remains unchanged--2200--and the next step is the same next step that I used to recommend to my students: surpass the next 100 point level, which in this case is 2100. My rating has not been over 2100 since October 2016, but I reached 2080 as recently as October 2022.

I scored 2.5/4 in the April 27, 2024 Cincinnati Tornado, matching my score in the March 30, 2024 Cincinnati Tornado--and I also mirrored my March 2024 Cincinnati Tornado performance by obtaining a winning position on board one in the last round with first place on the line only to blunder and lose. Despite the missed opportunity in the last round, I gained eight rating points to increase my rating to 2013, and I tied for first-second place among players rated under 2001 (even though my unofficial live rating for this event was over 2000, my official published April 2024 rating was 1954)

On May 4, 2024, I played in my fourth Columbus Plus Score tournament, and this was the first time that I did not obtain a plus score. I blundered a piece in the first round and lost to a player rated below 1800 for the third time this year. I bounced back by winning two nice games, and then played poorly before blundering in the last round when a win on board two versus the top seeded Brett Passen would have earned a first place tie. My rating dropped 18 points to 1995.

In seven tournaments from March 23 through May 4, I notched three first place finishes, one fourth place finish, and one tie for first place in my rating class; in all seven tournaments, I played a last round game with an opportunity to finish in first place, and that is very important: no one wins every last round game with first place on the line, but if you put yourself in that position frequently and are well-prepared then you will win your fair share of those big games.

During Memorial Day Weekend, I played in the U2100 section of the Chicago Open, and my streak of being in contention for first place in the last round crashed to an end. In the first round, I defeated Stella Xin, the eighth highest rated eight year old in the United States--and the highest rated eight year old girl by over 100 points. Then, after drawing my second round game I defeated Ian Singh, the seventh highest rated eight year old in the United States. By the end of the Chicago Open, Xin gained 65 points to establish a new career-high rating of 1864, and Singh gained 45 points to set a new career-high rating of 1864 as well. Here is the pretty mate that I delivered versus Singh:

There are so many underrated junior players that this has a deflationary effect on the rating pool. I am playing a lot of these kids, and because their ratings have not caught up with their current skill level I am (1) not getting as many rating points as I should when I beat them and (2) I am losing more rating points than I should when I draw with them or lose to them. FIDE recognized this widespread deflationary effect, and calculated that it is particularly impactful to players rated below 2000 (for reasons that are beyond the scope of this article to explain); consequently, FIDE added rating points to the ratings of every player rated below 2000 to correct this deflationary effect. The USCF should take a similar step. 

Looking at the quality of my games and my winning percentage in the past year or so, it is fair to say that I am playing around the 2100 level now, but my rating is mired around the low 2000s in no small part due to rating deflation. My peak rating so far is 2190, so I understand what it means to play at a 2100 level, and I think that I am objective enough to honestly say that circa 2016-2022 I was not playing at that level but that in the past two years I am playing at that level again.

The Chicago Open started to go sideways for me in rounds four and five; I drew both games despite having a decisive advantage in each one. That set up a round six game versus Ray Sun, a player who was playing in just his seventh rated over the board event since 2023. His rating jumped from 1410 to 1711 during that time. Sun outplayed me to deliver my only loss in the tournament, and then he drew his last round game to finish in the money with an undefeated 5/7. It may sound like an excuse to say that he is underrated, but in the 2024 Chicago Open he gained 164 points to set a new career-high rating of 1875. I have played more tournaments in the past two months than he has played in the past two years, so it is fair to say that if he keeps playing his rating will keep going up with a larger sample size of games. I concluded the tournament with a draw, finishing with 4/7, and losing eight rating points to slip back to 1987; I had pushed my rating back over 2000 for most of the tournament, but the loss to Sun was costly.

After the Chicago Open's fifth round, I played in the Chicago Open Blitz, scoring 4/10. I scored 3.5/6 versus non-Master opponents, and .5/4 versus Masters. This was a very large Blitz tournament, with 77 players in the Open section and 79 players in the U1900 section. In recent years when I played in the Chicago Open Blitz, there were between 42 and 49 players in the Open section.

On June 1, 2024, I played in my fifth Columbus Plus Score tournament, scoring 3/4, and gaining three rating points to inch up to 1990. In the third round, I avenged my April 6, 2024 Columbus Plus Score loss to Manoj Ramachandran, but we both shared first place with Siddarth Kunapuli, who defeated me in the last round. Kunapuli also beat me in the first round of the 2023 Kings Island Open, a loss that I discussed in Journey to the National Master Title, Part 8; in between those two games, I beat Kunapuli in the March 10, 2024 East Market Swiss to secure clear second place. My most recent loss to Kunapuli is particularly frustrating because I had just pushed my live rating above 2000 after winning my first three games, and because I obtained a winning position by move 19 only to soon not only squander my advantage but fall into a mating net. Here is the position prior to my 19th move:

I should have played ...Bc5, creating the dual threat of taking on b2 and taking on f2, which overworks the Q defending both f2 and the Ne2. Stockfish 16 gives Black a nearly +2 advantage after ...Bc5. Instead, I played ...Nxf2 followed by ...Bc5, when White is slightly better. However, my opponent erred, and we soon reached an unusual position where I had a R and four Ps in exchange for a B and a N:

Stockfish 16 evaluates this position as dynamically equal--but after my opponent blundered with Rg2 I could have obtained a nearly +2 advantage with the powerful centralizing move ...Qd4. Unfortunately, I played ...Re1 with the idea of ...Qd1 followed by a Q trade and advancing my Q-side pawns; in general, my plan made sense, but chess often requires calculation of specific tactical lines and that is where I fell short here. White refuted my idea by playing Nf5 after ...Re1. I could have still salvaged equality with ...Qe4, but instead I lost after ...Qd1 because my opponent hit me with Nh6+ followed by trading Qs and decisively invading with his R on the e file. I could not hold off the combined onslaught of his R, B, N, and his suddenly powerful f pawn. The game ended when he promoted his f pawn to a N with check and then checkmated me with his R after I took his new N with my R:

Instead of resigning, I let my opponent play this pretty checkmate on the board. As a lover of chess beauty, I appreciate the artistic finish, but from a competitive standpoint it is disappointing that I squandered two opportunities to obtain a decisive advantage and then missed a chance to maintain equality.

On June 15, 2024, my daughter Rachel and I played in the three round Columbus G/60 tournament. This was Rachel's third rated tournament in 2024 after playing four rated tournaments (plus two Quick rated tournaments) in 2023. I scored 2/3, gained one rating point to move my rating up to 1991, and tied for second-fourth place. I sandwiched two nice wins around a second round loss during which I squandered a +3 advantage and then missed a way to force a drawn endgame. Rachel lost her first two games, and then won her third round game despite arriving 40 minutes late because she did not realize that the round had started; the lower section rounds start as soon as possible as opposed to starting at a set time, and I was not aware that Rachel was not at her board because I was still finishing my second round game when Rachel's third round game began. In an odd twist, Rachel's opponent never came back after playing his first move, so Rachel played her first move, waited an hour, and claimed a win on time!

Rachel was not able to attend the Chicago Open this year, but we wore matching 2024 Chicago Open shirts to the June 15, 2024 Columbus G/60 tournament

Rachel and I played in the June 27, 2024 Cincinnati G/24 tournament. The tournament was scheduled to be USCF quick rated, but the usual tournament director was not able to show up due to a back injury, so instead the tournament was changed to unrated G/24 quads. I scored 2/3 in the top-rated quad, beating my former student Colin Gohmann (2005 regular/1885 quick), losing to top-seeded Sunav Adhikari (2068/1763), and beating Ido Ater Datz (1559/1520) in the last round. Rachel lost all three of her games in the lowest-rated quad, but she had a great time, and she played several extra games throughout the night, including an untimed game versus FM Hans Multhopp.

Rachel enjoyed her game versus FM Multhopp on 6/27/24

On June 29, 2024, Rachel and I played in the Cincinnati Tornado. Rachel scored 1/4 in the U1001 section, but she had a highlight moment in the second round when she delivered a checkmate for the first time in a rated game (her previous two wins were on time). After I congratulated Rachel, she told me that she had learned that checkmate from me; that will always be one of my favorite chess moments! I scored 3/4, losing 10 rating points to slide back to 1981. I was the fifth seeded player in the 27 player Open section, and I finished tied for third-eighth place, winning the prize for first-fourth U2001 (there was not a third place prize). 

In my fourth round game versus Lucas Edwards, I did a pseudo-sacrifice of my Queen to reach a winning position. Instead of retreating my Q after my opponent played Nc3, I uncorked ...Qh1+:

My opponent took my Q, and then I regained the lost material plus more after ...Bxe3+.

Queen sacrifices inspire the imaginations of chess players from amateur level to Grandmaster level. There are two other Queen sacrifices from my chess career that stand out in my memory. In the first round of the September 2010 Ohio Chess Congress, I used a Queen sacrifice to defeat the reigning Ohio Chess Champion, NM Kris Meekins, forcing mate after 22.Qxh7+ Kxh7 23.Rh4+ Kg7 24.Bh6+:

In round eight of the April 2011 House of Chess FIDE Double Round Robin, I gave up my Queen to force a win versus NM William Wright. I had Black, and after my opponent played Nf3?? I played ...Qxf3!:

He replied Qxf3, and then resigned after I played ...Re1+ because after Kg2 I would have played ...h3++. Declining the Q sacrifice not only leaves White a piece down, but Black still has a forced mate after Qb1 Re3. 

My sparkling win against Edwards was a nice way to cap off the first half of 2024. In Journey to the National Master Title, Part 8, I listed four chess goals for 2024. Here are those goals, with notes about my progress toward each one through the first six months of the year:

1) Gain 60 rating points per quarter. I gained three rating points in the first quarter of 2024, improving my rating from 1968 to 1971; I gained 10 rating points in the second quarter of 2024, improving my rating from 1971 to 1981.

2) Do not lose any games to players rated below 1800. I lost two games to players rated below 1800 in the first quarter of 2024, and I lost two games to players rated below 1800 in the second quarter of 2024.

3) Accumulate more draws than losses. I had 15 draws and eight losses in the first quarter of 2024; I had seven draws and nine losses in the second quarter of 2024.

4) Maintain a winning percentage of at least .750, to break my personal record of .740 set in 2014. My winning percentage through the first two quarters of 2024 is .696.

In 2024, I have scored 53 wins, 22 draws, and 17 losses in regular rated tournament games with seven place finishes in 23 events. I have lost four games to players rated below 1800. My net rating gain for 2024 is 13 points so I need to gain 219 points to reach my goal.

NM Bernard Parham: Chess Innovator and Indiana State Chess Champion

National Master Bernard Parham passed away on Wednesday June 19 at the age of 77. Parham won the Indiana State Chess Championship in 1967, and he created the "Matrix System," an attacking method that he successfully used to win tournament games and as a teaching tool to introduce young people to chess. In connection with the "Matrix System," Parham also created a new form of chess notation based on the distinctive way that each chess piece moves; the U.S. Chess Federation approved Parham's chess notation for use in USCF rated tournaments.

The "Matrix System" is characterized by playing 2. Qh5 after 1. e4 e5. The early Queen move defies traditional opening principles that minor pieces should be developed first; when the Queen ventures out early, the opponent can gain time by attacking the Queen with less valuable pieces. Parham studied physics at Purdue, and he developed the "Matrix System" based on the notion that there is a connection between chess and vector analysis. 

Objectively, the "Matrix System" is not the best opening, but it has demonstrated its value in practical play. Not only did Parham achieve the National Master title (placing him in the top 1% of all rated U.S. players), but Parham's son Bernard Parham II is a Class A player who tied for first place in the 1994 National K-12 Championship (Grade 12) while using the "Matrix System."

This early Queen sortie has even been used at the game's highest levels. World Chess Champion Magnus Carlsen played 2. Qh5 versus Shamsiddin Vokhidov in the 2018 World Rapid Championship. Carlsen lost that game--but not because of the opening, and in fact Carlsen missed a forced win on move 20. Carlsen did not win the World Rapid Championship in 2018, but he has won the event a record five times (2014-15, 2019, 2022-23), so he obviously takes it seriously and performs at a high level there.

Five-time U.S. Chess Champion Hikarua Nakamura, who has been ranked as high as second in the world, played 2. Qh5 versus GM Krishnan Sasikiran in the 2005 Sigeman tournament. Nakamura lost that game in 87 moves, but not because of the opening; he was close to winning at one point, but lost after he made a mistake and then pressed too hard instead of settling for a draw. Nakamura also played 2. Qh5 versus GM Nikola Mitkov in the HB Global Challenge, and versus GM Anton Filippov in the Second Champions Challenge, with both games ending into draws. Nakamura has used 2. Qh5 in many online chess games.

I first met Parham when he visited the Dayton Chess Club in the early 1990s. He was already a National Master, while I had yet to obtain Expert status or win the Dayton Chess Club Championship. Parham and I talked about his "Matrix System," and I expressed skepticism that this playing method was superior to traditional methods. Parham and I played several friendly blitz games, and he won most of those games. We talked about those games that night, and I maintained that he was beating me not because of the "Matrix System" but rather because he was a superior overall player; most of the games were decided because he outplayed me in the middlegame or endgame from equal or even inferior positions. Parham was without question both talented and hard-working; it is interesting to speculate about whether his "Matrix System" enabled him to maximize his talents, or if he could have been even stronger had he taken a more traditional approach to the game. I still am not sure what the correct answer is, but I disagree with those who just blithely dismiss his playing style and teaching methods; there is more than one way to attain mastery, and more than one way to keep students interested and engaged.

Nearly 20 years after we first met, I played my only rated game against Parham; by that time, I was rated close to 2100 USCF and within the next few years I would achieve my peak USCF rating (so far!) of 2190, while Parham's rating had dropped to 2010 (his health problems no doubt affected his chess rating). Interestingly, Parham did not play his "Matrix System" in this game, and we reached a standard position in the Giuoco Piano. I obtained an advantage out of the opening, but Parham equalized after I made a mistake on move 19 (Qb3 maintains a solid edge for White). After I blundered on move 32, Parham missed the winning shot 32...Ra1, and on move 34 he forced a draw instead of playing ...Qg4, which leads to a winning position. 

In short, this was an interesting--but far from perfect--battle that ended peacefully:

Event: Sunday in the Park (Columbus, Ohio) G/60 9/11/11 (4)
White: David Friedman (2094)
Black: Bernard Parham (2010)

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Nd4 4. O-O d6 5. Nxd4 exd4 6. c3 Qf6 7. f4 Be6 8. Qb3 O-O-O 9. Bxe6+ fxe6 10. Qa4 dxc3 11. Nxc3 Kb8 12. d4 c6 13. Be3 d5 14. Rac1 Ne7 15. b4 Nc8 16. b5 Nb6 17. Qc2 Rc8 18. bxc6 Rxc6 19. exd5 exd5 20. Qb3 Qe6 21. Rfe1 Bd6 22. Bf2 Qf5 23. Bg3 h5 24. Nb5 Nc4 25. Qa4 Ra6 26. Nxd6 Nxd6 27. Qb4 h4 28. Re5 Qf6 29. Bf2 Rxa2 30. Rxd5 Ne4 31. Qc4 Qxf4 32. Bxh4 Qe3+ 33. Kh1 Qf4 34. Re5 Nf2+ 35. Kg1 Nh3+ 36. Kh1 Nf2+ 37. Kg1 Nh3+ 38. Kh1 Nf2+ 39. Kg1 1/2-1/2

The last time that I saw Parham was at the April 1, 2023 Indianapolis Super Tornado. We had a nice conversation in between rounds, reminiscing about both our first encounter at the DCC and about our rated game. I told him that I am still trying to reach NM level, and that I have great respect for all players who have accomplished that feat. He provided encouragement to me about achieving this goal. Parham played in just two more rated tournaments, both in Indiana in 2023. 

Parham leaves behind a lasting legacy as a National Master who also taught and inspired many students. His "Matrix System" has not replaced mainstream opening theory, but it is an interesting contribution to our beloved game.

As chess computers have become more powerful and sophisticated, we humans have learned that opening ideas that look odd to human eyes are in fact quite playable. Chess is a combination of art and sport, and there is a scientific aspect to chess as well. Computers reveal the scientific aspect of chess by demonstrating the technically correct way to play, but humans love chess not only for the pursuit of objective truth but also for the creation of beauty and for the heart-pumping thrill of competition. 

Even though Parham conceived of the "Matrix System" as a scientific contribution to chess, I think that his approach has its greatest value from a sporting perspective; from a practical standpoint as an active tournament player, I know that even some opening lines that computers say objectively are not great are difficult for humans to counter under the stress of tournament conditions. Even if some super computer objectively refutes the "Matrix System," that would not change the reality that Parham used his system to achieve National Master status while beating and drawing many strong players along the way. In that sense, Parham is an artistic cousin to the great World Chess Champion Mikhail Tal, who once joked with self-deprecation that there are two kinds of chess sacrifices: his sacrifices, and correct sacrifices. As long as humans enjoy playing chess as a form of artistic expression and as a sport, the game will always be about more than just which moves are "objectively" correct.

Journey to the National Master Title, Part 9

I scored 2/3 in the January 6, 2024 Columbus G/60 tournament, gaining 16 rating points to lift my rating to 1984. I defeated the top ranked player--Nicholas Bize (2064)--in the first round, and after drawing my next two games I shared first place with three other players. The next day, I scored 3/4 in the January 7, 2024 East Market Swiss, gaining two rating points to improve my rating to 1986. I lost to the top rated player, Brett Passen (2173), who tied for first place with Matt Wang. I tied for third-fifth place.

The Cardinal Open is one of my favorite tournaments, and one of the major annual open events in Ohio. There is a lot of tradition associated with the Cardinal Open, which according to my research was first held in 1975 (as mentioned in the March-April 1985 Ohio Chess Bulletin); I have to rely on my research because the Ohio Chess Association website has little historical data of any kind and no historical information about the Cardinal Open: their list of Ohio Champions only goes back to 2018, while my list dates back to the Ohio Chess Association's founding in 1945. Per the March-April 1988 Ohio Chess Bulletin, in 1987 only six U.S. open tournaments offered larger top place prizes than the Cardinal Open. In the 1980s and 1990s many top Grandmasters and International Masters traveled to Columbus for this midwinter event, including GM Anatoly Lein, six-time U.S. champion GM Walter Browne, two-time U.S. champion GM Roman Dzinzichasvili, three-time U.S. Champion GM Nick DeFirmian, GM Maxim Dlugy, GM Dmitry Gurevich, GM Sergey Kudrin, two-time U.S. champion GM Alex Yermolinsky, four-time U.S. champion GM Alexander Shabalov, GM Gregory Kaidanov, GM Ben Finegold, GM Enrico Sevillano 15-time Ohio Champion IM Calvin Blocker, IM Igor Ivanov, IM Boris Kogan, IM John Donaldson, IM Ed Formanek, IM Angelo Young, and IM Emory Tate (Dlugy, Ivanov, Finegold, and Sevillano were not GMs when they played in the Cardinal Open, but they were strong IMs who already displayed GM-level playing strength).

In the 1999 Cardinal Open, I tied for second-third among players rated under 2200 in a strong Open section. Then-IM Sevillano won the tournament with a perfect 5-0 score, ahead of (among others) Finegold, Lein, and Blocker; after losing my first two games, I reeled off three straight wins, taking down two Experts plus National Master A.J. Steigman (who earned that title at age 13 just three months before I beat him). 

My win versus NM Steigman was played with a 30/90, G/60 time control. 1. Nf3 Nf6 2. g3 c5 3.Bg2 e6 4. O-O Be7 5. d3 d6 6. Nbd2 O-O 7. e4 Nc6 8. Re1 Qc7 9. Qe2 e5 10. c3 b6 11. Nf1 Ba6 12. Nh4 b5 13. Nf5 Nd7??

I will always remember how happy I felt after Steigman played this move. I knew that I was about to not only take down a National Master but also win a prize in a big Open tournament. 14. Bh6! gxh6 15. Qg4+ Bg5 16.Nxh6+ Kh8 Steigman offered a draw here but of course I declined because White has a decisive advantage. 17. Qxg5 f6 18. Qh5 Nb6 19. Ne3 c4 20. dxc4 Nxc4 21. Nxc4 bxc4 22. Rad1 Rad8 23. Rd2 Bc8 24. Red1 Na5 25. Bh3 Bxh3 26. Qxh3 Nb7 27.Nf5 Rf7 28. Qf1 Rfd7 29. Ne3 Rc8 30. Nd5 Qa5 31. Nxf6 Rf7 32. Nd5 Qc5 33. Ne3 a5 34. Rd5 Qc7 35. Nf5 Rd8 36. R1d2 Rf6 37. Qd1 Qc6 38. Rxe5 Nc5 39. Re7 Nxe440. Qh5 h6 41. Nxh6 Qc5 42. Nf5+ Kg8 43. Qh7+ 1-0

In the 2023 Cardinal Open, I scored 2.5/5 in the U2100 section, losing 16 rating points to drop below 2000. I hoped and planned to have a better performance this year, and I started with a round one win, but I did not win another game, scoring three draws and one loss the rest of the way. Draws are better than losses, but draws versus lower rated players cost up to 12 rating points each, and that can add up quickly. I lost 32 rating points, dropping my rating to 1954, more than wiping out the progress I made in my last three tournaments. After the third round, I played in the Cardinal Open Saturday Night Blitz, scoring 3.5/8. I scored 3/4 versus non-Master opponents and .5/4 versus Masters, including 0-2 versus Ralph Tan, who tied for first place with three other players. 

My first round win in the 2024 Cardinal Open was sloppy--I had a lost position on move 11 but resourcefully fought back--and unfortunately foreshadowed my careless play in the next four rounds. 

Contrast my smooth conversion versus Steigman--who is far stronger than anyone who I faced in the 2024 Cardinal Open--with my fumbling of three winning positions and one equal position in the Cardinal Open, and it is evident that the most significant issue preventing me from returning to 2100 and then reaching 2200 is my lack of sharp focus at crucial moments during games. 

I scored 2.5/4 in the January 21, 2024 East Market Swiss, losing 15 rating points to drop my rating to 1939. I did not win a prize. I drew with Keya Jha, the third ranked nine year old female in the country. I lost to Stanley Qiu after beating this talented junior each of the first four times that we played. He is the first player rated below 1800 who beat me in 2024--although it should be noted that he gained 99 points in this event and is now barely rated below 1800 (1798).

I scored 2.5/4 in the February 3, 2024 Columbus Plus Score tournament, gaining two rating points to increase my rating to 1941. This event featured an unusual prize format; instead of the prizes being based on ranking (first, second, third, etc.) the prizes were based on score, and every player who achieved a plus score (at least 2.5/4) received the designated prize for that score (in other words, tied players did not split prizes). 

The next day, I scored 3.5/4 in the East Market Swiss, gaining 15 rating points to increase my rating to 1956. I tied for first-second place. In the last round, I played Joel Thompson, who had the only 3-0 score. I was one of four players who had 2.5/3, so I needed to win to at least tie for first place. Thompson had a provisional rating (after 25 games) of 1732. I had Black for the third time in four games. Thompson played well for the first 15 moves, but I gained the upper hand after he erred on move 16, and then I won the Exchange after he blundered on move 18. I was expecting to have to grind out a winning endgame, but Thompson misplaced his K after a check and suddenly I had mate in three after ...R1e3+:

My opponent resigned here, because after Kh4 Black wins with 26...Bf2+ 27. g3 Bxg3+ 28. Kg5 h6++, while after Kf4 Black creates a similar mating net with 26...Bh2+ 27. g3 Bxg3+ 28. Kg5 h6++. Winning games, winning tournaments, and gaining rating points are all important, but chess is also about artistic beauty. I don't recall ever seeing a mating pattern like this, and I am happy that I recognized the opportunity to play this mate.

I played in two tournaments during the February 17-18 weekend. I scored 2/3 in the February 17, 2024 Columbus G/60 tournament, gaining eight rating points to push my rating up to 1964. I lost to the second ranked player--Nicholas Bize (2035)--in the second round, and he went on to finish clear first with 2.5/3, while I tied for second-third with the top ranked player, NM Charles Diebert. I scored 2.5/4 in the February 18, 2024 East Market Swiss, losing 17 rating points to drop my rating back to 1947. I had a very challenging day, due partially to my lack of focus early in the event and then later due to some health challenges during the final round. In the first round I had to defend well to draw with Ryan Wang (1258) after I blundered a piece for a pawn in the opening; young Wang had an excellent tournament, gaining 125 rating points! I beat Khalil Babiker (1251) in round two, but only after recovering from carelessly dropping a pawn. In round three, I drew with Keya Jha, a talented junior who I also drew with in the January 21, 2024 East Market Swiss. I drew my fourth round game with Expert Matt Wang; prior to the start of that game, I experienced abdominal discomfort and pain in my left flank, and both conditions worsened during the game, forcing me to make at least a half dozen trips to the restroom. After I finished my game, I drove straight to Miami Valley South Hospital and was diagnosed with a kidney stone in my left kidney; I knew this particular type of pain quite well, as I suffered a kidney stone in my right kidney in January 2023.

I bounced back from the kidney stone and the rating points loss to score 3/3 in the Dayton Chess Club's G/45 tournament, finishing clear first and gaining eight rating points to bring my rating back up to 1955.

On March 2, 2004, I played in my second Columbus Plus Score tournament, and I scored 2.5/4, fading in the second half of the event after winning my first two games. I lost 16 rating points, dropping to 1939. In my last round game, I won a pawn and had a commanding position versus Stanley Qiu (1815 official March 2024 rating, 1776 live rating), but I squandered my advantage, regained my advantage, and then lost after blundering in a drawn position. That was my second loss this year to a player whose live rating is below 1800 (both losses are to Qiu), and it ended my streak of 11 straight games without a loss (seven wins, four draws)--my longest such streak since I had 12 straight games without a loss (10 wins, two draws) in April/May 2023.

Grandmaster Jan Markos has a list of "anti-blunder tricks," and I need to consistently implement his recommendations:

1. Make sure you are aware of all unprotected pieces.
2. Make a list of all forcing moves and don't forget to check every one of them, at least briefly.
3. Don't forget to check all exchanges as well.
4. Don't play natural moves instantly.
5. Always ask yourself: What has changed on the board with the last move(s)?
6. Try to calculate lines until the very end.
7. Don't relax in simple positions.
8. Make sure you calm down after you have blundered or experienced an unpleasant surprise.

During the March 9-10, 2024 weekend, I played in two chess tournaments. I scored 2.5/4 in the March 9, 2024 Columbus G/45 tournament, losing three rating points to drop to 1936. I tied for third-eighth place. On March 10, 2024, I scored 3.5/4 in the East Market Swiss to secure clear second place and gain 18 rating points to push my rating back up to 1954.

My daughter Rachel and I played in the Dayton Chess Club's March 23, 2024 G/45 Swiss. This was Rachel's first rated tournament in Dayton, and her first rated tournament in 2024. She won her first game by forfeit, and lost her last two games. I scored 3/3, gaining 23 rating points to lift my rating to 1977 and finish clear first. 

          Rachel and I had fun at the 3/23/24 DCC G/45 Swiss
 

                  A smiling Rachel is ready to play her third round game

The next Saturday, Rachel and I played in the Cincinnati Tornado. Rachel lost three games, and she had a one point bye in round three. 

 Rachel and I took a selfie before the first round of the 3/30/24 Cincinnati Tornado 

I scored 2.5/4, losing six rating points to drop to 1971. In the fourth round, I played Gajanan Jayade (2128) on board one. Jayade only needed a draw to at least tie for first place, while I needed a win to at least tie for first place. Jayade outplayed me early in the game and built up a significant advantage, but I fought back and then took command after he missed a tactical shot. The critical position happened on my 38th move with both of us in time pressure (G/45 time control with five second time delay), although he was in worse time pressure than I was. Stockfish 16 gives Black +41 (!) here:

It should be noted that computer evaluations can be a little misleading, because this position is +41 only if I play the best move; Black is only +1.4 after the second best move, and less than +1 after any other move. The killer shot is 38...Nf3, with Black crashing through after 39. Kh1 Nxh2 40. Ra8+ Kh7 41. Rf8 Qxf8 42. Kxh2 Bf4+ 43. Kh1 Qxd6. Black has a significant advantage after 38...Rb1, but White can prolong the struggle by sacrificing the Exchange on d2. Instead, I played 38...Rf3, giving my opponent two different paths to equality: the Exchange sac on d2, and Nf5, which is what he played. I could have maintained the balance with 39...Rb3 but instead I played 39...Nxf1??, after which White would be +5 after Ra8+ followed by Qxf3--but with less than 30 seconds on his clock, my opponent immediately took on f3, enabling me to stay in the game by taking on h2 and then taking on a2. Unfortunately, after taking on a2 I did not successfully blockade my opponent's passed d pawn, and he checkmated me after promoting that pawn to a Queen. If I had won the game then I would have tied for first and pushed my rating very close to 2000; instead, I finished out of the money and ended up 29 points short of 2000. There are two valid ways of looking at this. One way is that I am demonstrating the ability to play at a high level, which suggests that it is realistic to believe that I can get my rating back over 2100 and complete the journey to National Master, a title that I fell just 10 points short of reaching in 2015; another way is that the nature of chess is that one bad move can swing the outcome of a game and a tournament--this is not a basketball game during which a team can build a 20 point lead, allow a 19-0 run, and still win by one point--and I have to significantly reduce how frequently I play game-altering bad moves or else I will be talking about how close I am to turning things around as opposed to describing how I turned things around. Sports competition is unscripted drama, so no one knows for sure how this quest will proceed. I remain confident, while also understanding that gaining over 200 rating points and establishing a career-high rating past the age of 50 is objectively a quite daunting task. I've never run from a challenge in my life, and I won't run from this one (which does not guarantee success, but guarantees that I will give my all until there is nothing left to give, which is the only way that I can be at peace with the outcome).

In Journey to the National Master Title, Part 8, I listed four chess goals for 2024. Here are those goals, with notes about my progress toward each one through the first quarter of the year:

1) Gain 60 rating points per quarter. I gained three rating points in the first quarter of 2024, improving my rating from 1968 to 1971.

2) Do not lose any games to players rated below 1800. I lost two games to players rated below 1800.

3) Accumulate more draws than losses. I had 15 draws and eight losses in the first quarter of 2024.

4) Maintain a winning percentage of at least .750, to break my personal record of .740 set in 2014. My first quarter 2024 winning percentage was .708.

In 2024, I have scored 30 wins, 15 draws, and eight losses in regular rated tournament games with four first place finishes in 14 events. I have lost two games to players rated below 1800. My net rating gain for 2024 is three points so I need to gain 229 points to reach my goal.

Reflections on the Passing of FM Alex Zelner

I was saddened today to learn that FM Alex Zelner died of a heart attack on January 3, 2024. Zelner was a prominent figure on the Ohio chess scene as a player and organizer for many years before he and his family moved to Florida in 1999. Zelner earned the National Master title in 1999 at the relatively late age of 38 after fluctuating throughout the Expert level for several years. Zelner's rating then dropped to the 2100 level and he bounced around between 2100 and 2200 until 2004, when he began a remarkable ascent that culminated in a peak USCF rating of 2481 plus attaining the FIDE Master title (which requires reaching a FIDE rating of at least 2300). I remember talking to Alex about how he reached National Master (and beyond) as an older player. He told me that he just decided to stop losing to players rated below 2000. Of course, such success is more complicated than that; I decided many times to stop losing to players rated below 2000, but I have yet to accomplish that feat! There is no doubt that Alex benefited from his close friendships with various Grandmasters--most notably Alex Goldin, who once ranked in the top 100 in the world--but if being friends with Grandmasters is all that it takes to reach 2400 then there would be a lot more 2400s in the world. I respect Alex' work ethic, and the way that he figured out how to lower his blunder rate. Lowering the blunder rate is the "secret" to becoming a Master for players who get stuck at the Expert level, but for most Experts it is very difficult to do this, particularly as an adult.

I first met Alex in the late 1980s when I was a rising Class B player and he was already an established Expert. He beat me the first time we played each other (September 16, 1989 Miamisburg Tornado). At that time, his rating was 2109 while my rating was 1725, but I surpassed the 1800 (Class A) level the next month and I had an 1895 rating by December 1989. We did not play against each other again until 1992, when I scored an upset win as I was rated 1936 while Alex was rated 2126. That was before Alex decided to stop losing to players rated below 2000! He was a stronger player than I was, and generally he outplayed me, but in the 1990s I scored some wins against him courtesy of blunders that he made.

Alex organized many chess tournaments in Ohio, including events that attracted Grandmasters. I achieved the Expert title at the May 13, 1995 Springfield Tornado that he organized, scoring 3/4; my only loss was to Alex!

USCF's online rating records go back to late 1991. According to their data, I played more Regular rated games (24) against Alex than anyone except for his wife Dr. Catherine Zelner (32) and his son David (29). Alex and I faced each other twice in the Dayton Chess Club Championship. He beat me both times, but he never won the DCC title. I shared the 1997 title with National Master John Vehre with a 5-1 score (the first of my record 10 DCC titles) while Zelner settled for a fourth place tie with a 4-2 score; in 1998, Zelner tied for second-third while I tied for fourth-fifth.

I scored five wins, one draw, and 18 losses versus Alex (plus the 1989 loss that is not included in the USCF data). Robert Sinn, who became a National Master in 1996, scored five wins, four losses, and one draw versus Alex, while Ram Dake, who became a National Master in 1992, went a perfect 6-0 versus Alex. No one else scored five wins versus Alex in USCF Regular rated games from 1991-2023. USCF's records show 1286 Regular rated games for Alex, and he enjoyed a winning percentage of 77.2, including victories over two Grandmasters with USCF ratings above 2600: Julio Becerra and Lubomir Ftacnik. Ftacnik won the European Junior Championship in 1976/77, he won the Czech national championship four times, and at his peak he was ranked 15th in the world.

Although I enjoyed playing against Alex and then analyzing with him after our games, and I enjoyed playing in the events that he organized, what stands out most to me is that Alex is the person who set me on the path to becoming a chess coach. In 1998, Alex asked me to coach his young sons David, Gregory, and Joshua. By that time, my rating fluctuated in the high 1900s/low 2000s, while Alex was rated in the 2100s. I had never worked as a chess coach, and I did not understand why a higher rated player wanted me to coach his children. Alex explained with a smile that his sons would not listen to his coaching because he was their father. He reassured me that I was more than strong enough to coach them, and he believed that I had not only the necessary playing strength but also the requisite communication/teaching skills. I accepted his offer, and we agreed that I would come to his house weekly to teach his sons for about an hour each; in return, he would not only pay me, but he would provide a home-cooked meal, and often he and I would play speed chess. The first chess lesson was on September 9, 1998, and the lessons continued on a weekly basis (with just a few exceptions) until April 19, 1999. I found that I very much enjoyed chess teaching, and I did so for nearly 20 years after the Zelner family moved to Florida. 

Alex' sons continued to play chess in Florida, no doubt benefiting from Alex' teaching and from the guidance of Alex' Grandmaster friends. David later reached a peak USCF rating of 2184. Gregory's peak rating is 1849. Joshua's peak rating is 1729. In 2004, Alex had twin daughters, Roza and Zoe; both of them play chess, but I never had the opportunity to coach them, as they were born after the Zelner family moved to Florida.

After Alex moved to Florida, I only saw him a few times, when he returned to Ohio and we played in the same chess tournaments. He beat me in our last Regular rated game in 2006:

Event: MOTCF 4/29/06 (1)
White: Alex Zelner (2256)
Black: David Friedman (2026)

1. e4 d6 2. d4 Nf6 3. Nc3 c6 4. Nf3 Qa5 (4... Bg4 followed by ...e6 and ...d5 is the correct plan, aiming for a French-like structure with the QB developed outside of the pawn chain.) 5. Bd2 e5 6. Be2 Bg4 7. d5 Nbd7 8. O-O Be7 9. Nh4 Bxe2 10. Qxe2 (Now Black is saddled with a cramped position and bad B.) O-O (After the game GM Alex Goldin said that 10... g6 is essential, keeping the N out of f5. White still has a small edge, but "nothing special.") 11. Nf5 Qd8 12. dxc6 bxc6 13. Bg5 h6 (13... g6 14. Nxe7+ Qxe7 15. Rfd1 Qe6 16. Qd2 Rfb8 17. b3 Ne8 with a slight advantage to White) 14. Bh4 Re8 15. Rad1 Qc7 16. Qd3 Bf8 (I originally intended 16... Nc5 but then I realized that White can play 17. Qg3 Nh5 18. Qg4 Bxh4 19. Nxh6+ Kh7 20. Nf5 g6 21. Qxh4 with a decisive advantage) 17. Nxd6 Red8 (17... Bxd6 18. Qxd6 Qb6 19. b3 Re6 20. Qd3 with a decisive advantage) 18. Nc4 Nc5 19. Qf3 Rd4 Rxd4 exd4 21. Bxf6 (Best. I was hoping for 21. Ne2 Ncxe4 22. Bxf6 Nxf6 23. Nxd4 Nd5 when Black is only down one pawn.) 21... gxf6 22. Ne2 Rd8 23. Rd1 Ne6 24. Qxf6 Bg7 25. Qf5 c5 26. Ng3 Nf4 27. e5 Ng6 28. f4 Ne7 29. Qg4 Kh7 30. Ne4 Nd5 31. Rd3 Qd7 32. f5 (Lights out.) Ne7 33. Ncd6 Bxe5 34. Ng5+ hxg5 35. Qh5+ Kg8 36. Qxf7+ 1-0

Alex had not played many Regular rated games in recent years, but he was still very active in Quick rated chess, logging 114 Quick rated games in 2023. The last time I played Alex was a Quick rated game that we drew on July 13, 2012 (we had previously played two Quick games against each other, scoring one win apiece).

Alex Zelner inspired me to become a chess coach when I had never previously thought of doing that. Being a chess coach brought me a lot of joy, and I like to think that it brought a lot of joy (and knowledge) to my many students (several of whom subsequently earned the National Master title). Alex Zelner's example as a late-blooming National Master still inspires me during my ongoing (and quite challenging) Journey to the National Master title. I extend my deepest sympathy to Catherine, David, Gregory, Joshua, Roza, and Zoe.

Rest in peace, my friend, competitor, and inspiration.