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It was a close finish as expected in the final two rounds of our first Club tournament for the year. Congratulations to Gordon Lyall who took out the honours, but not before a determined fight by recent newcomer Levi Paxton, pushing him hard in the last game of the evening to finish. Geoffrey Gunawan needed a win in the final round for a potential share of first place, but Lars Dobbertin-King denied him that, in what was perhaps the game of the evening. With the exchange down, Geoffrey sacked another exchange, in an attempt to press home an ominous pawn storm closing in on Lars’ King. In the end, Lars was able to hold it off for the eventual win, to go with his previous round win over a time-deprived Ross Jackson. After leading through most of the tournament, Ross finished in second place, with Geoffrey completing the podium in third place. Final results can be found here.  And photos of the tournament can be found here.

A reminder for Senior Club members that subs are due by the end of March. Information about fees and how to pay are here.

Next week in the Senior Club we begin the Kingston Memorial tournament with its distinctive clock trophy, and it’s Junior Club as usual before that at 6:30.

With many players in contention, there was plenty to play for in this week’s crucial Rounds 5 and 6 of the Leo Eichholtz tournament.  Ross Jackson who had led unbeaten after 4 rounds, only managed half a point this week, but that was still enough to keep him a nose in front at the end of the night. Geoffrey Gunawan benefitted from a time-challenged Ross in Round 5, but was not able to add to his points in Round 6 against Ross’s Wellington clubmate Andrew Brockway. However,  Gordon Lyall was back to winning form picking up 2 points from the night to sit in second place with Geoffrey on 4 points. But only after a tense battle in Round 5 against last year’s winner Stewart Holdaway, who sits close behind the leading pack on 3½ points (photo below).  With the leading four players in real contention, and a further two players with an outside chance, the final deciding  rounds next week promise to be very exciting. Full results of the night can be found here. 

We’ve now played four rounds of our annual Club rapid tournament for distinctive the Leo Eichholtz Board trophy.   After four rounds, Ross Jackson is out in front unbeaten on 4, followed by Geoffrey Gunawan on 3, and last year’s winner Stewart Holdaway on 2½. Gordon Lyall is next on 2 points with the clock now beating him on two occasions. With a number of players still contention, the final half of the competition is shaping up to be very interesting. Latest results can be found here.

Meanwhile our  Junior Club continues to prove very popular, with around a dozen kids regularly coming along every Tuesday to learn and enjoy this great game. 

The Club held its Annual General Meeting this week. Gordon Lyall was re-elected as Club President and Treasurer, David Scott as  Secretary, and Geoffrey Gunawan was elected as Club Captain. Annual fees for 2022 were set (see here), including a reduction in the casual rate for tertiary students.  All reports from the AGM can be found here.

Next week we will kick off with the first two rounds of the Club’s traditional 25m + 5s rapid competition, the Leo Eichholtz Board. And Junior Club runs as usual before this at 6:30 pm. All visitors welcome.

Results from the first night of senior competition for the annual Freebird Trophy (played at 10m + 5s) saw Gordon Lyall and Geoffrey Gunawan leading after 3 rounds on 2½, with Ross Jackson and John Whibley following on 2 points. Final rounds of this first leg will be played next week, with the AGM following the week after.

There was a great turnout for the opening night of Junior club this week, with around a dozen kids, including a number of new faces. Welcome!

The Club opened for 2022 this week with a fun casual night of hand and brain chess.  In this variant, two players play each side, one acting as the ‘brain’ – and one as  the ‘hand’. The brain says the name of piece or pawn it wants to move, but not which piece or pawn, and not where it should move to. The hand has to decide this and move accordingly.

We rotated player-pairs and roles each game and it was interesting – sometimes funny – to see how different combinations of ability and playing style combined. The team play providing a nice change from what is normally an individual pursuit. With a 10m + 5s time control thrown-in, the night produced some weird and wonderful chess, and was a big hit. It will no doubt feature again sometime on our calendar later this year.

Note the Junior Club starts up again next week (8 February) at 6:30pm.

A reminder that the Kāpiti Chess Club opens for the year this Tuesday, 1st February, at 7:30 pm at the Salvation Army (rear hall) at 41 Bluegum Road, Paraparaumu. Note the Junior Club opens a week later, on Tuesday 8th February at 6:30pm.

Note that under the current COVID Red setting, a condition of the Salvation Army for anyone using their facilities, including our playing venue, is that they must wear a mask. Everyone 12 and over must also be double-vaccinated, and sign or scan in using the QR code. You must be well and have no signs or symptoms associated with COVID.

Our first night will be an easy social night, with likely some fun casual event to be arranged. Our tournament programme proper will kick off the following week with the Freebird Cup (10m +5s). Our AGM will be on the 22nd February. A full calendar of events for 2022 will be confirmed and posted in due course.

Look forward to seeing you there!

The Kāpiti Chess Club opens again on 1 February with a night of fun social chess to ease players back into it before the competition begins again the following week with the first of two nights of the Freebird Trophy (where games played at 10m + 5s). The Club’s Annual General Meeting will be held the week after that, on 22 February.

The popular Junior Club, which runs from 6:30 to 7:30pm before the main Club meetings, opens again for 2022 on 8th February. 

In line with NZ Chess Federation Covid policy, anyone – members, parents or visitors – aged 12 and over – needs to be double-vaccinated, and scan or sign in, if wanting to enter where we play. Masks are not mandatory, but recommended.

Chess in NZ is taking off at the moment. Whether you’re new to it, or an experienced player, come and check us us out. Feel free to contact us if you have have any questions.

This week was the final Club night for 2021. 

In the Junior club, the final night of term 4 saw the conclusion of a 6 round junior blitz tournament. All participants received prizes with the top two players in each age group receiving medals. In the 10 and over event, the gold medal was won by Lukas Boyd with 6/6, and the silver medal went to Lucas Thompson with 4/6. In the under 10 event, first place and gold medal was won by seven year old Orlando Liu (5/6), with his sister Charlotte taking the silver. Congratulations! See photos below.

For the seniors, a summary of the all the prizewinners for the tournaments played this year can be found here. Like most  Clubs around the country, COVID has had a big impact on our over-the-board tournaments this year, with several tournaments not able to be played, including our Club Championships, and our Open Junior Championship. However, there was still plenty of completed tournaments, with some great Chess (check out some of our website posts and games!). Congratulations to Stewart Holdaway who took out the Leo Eichholtz Board for rapid play (25m + 5s), and to Guy Burns, David Paul and Ross Jackson who each shared the Flora Paul Memorial Trophy for the best Kāpiti player at this year’s successful Open Kāpiti Rapid. And special mention to Gordon Lyall who took out the rest of those tournaments that were able to be played this year, and who also picks up the Glenys Memorial Trophy for the player with the highest overall Grand Prix points for the year. A delayed formal prizegiving is likely to be planned for next year’s AGM.

The Club is now in recess until next year. Keep an eye out on our website for details on when we open in 2022. Happy holidays all. 

With the weather warming, some members enjoyed some al fresco Chess this week along with a meal and drink at a local pub. Nice!