The 2019 Toronto Blitz Championship is Sunday June 2, 1:00 to 5:00 pm – part of Harbourfront Centre Chessfest Round 6 games on the top boards (photo: John Upper)
Register Today!
Save $10 by signing up before May 27.
Register here.
Last Year’s Winner
Artiom Samsonkin is 2018 Toronto Blitz Champion (photo: John Upper)
A promotional flyer (PDF) will be available to download soon.
Details
Style: 7 double-round Swiss, FIDE and CFC-rated
Time Control: 3 minutes each, plus 2 seconds per move
Registration: https://guestli.st/607161 – register early and save!
Entry Fees: $50 before May 27 / $60 after or on site
Junior/Senior: Less $10 for 18 & under or 60+ (as of June 1)
Prize fund: $1000 top prize guaranteed, other prizes based on registration
Membership: Up-to-date CFC membership required, or pay $12 CFC tournament fee
Chief Arbiter: Alex Ferreira
Starting on May 13, 2019, and having had a mix of spring weather this month, we’ll take it as it comes and carry on come what may.
ACC Come What May Swiss is a five-round CFC-rated tournament in three sections, Crown, U1800, and U1400, running on Monday nights in May and June. Time control is 90 min/side with a 30-s increment. The round starts at 7:30 pm May 13 to June 17. New players can register on site each round by 7 pm. Email registration or bye requests before 6 pm.
Round One – May 13
See results below.
Off-week – May 20
The club is closed for Victoria Day.
Round Two – May 27
New players are welcome! Sign up before 6 pm by email, or before 7:00 on site. Games start at 7:30 pm.
Starting on April 1, 2019, our latest club tournament is the April Fools Swiss.
ACC April Fools Swiss is a five-round CFC-rated tournament in three sections, Crown, U1800, and U1400. Time control is 90 min/side with a 30-s increment. The round starts at 7:30 pm on Monday nights April 1 to May 6. New players can register on site each round by 7 pm. Email registration or bye requests before 6 pm.
Round One – April 1
There are 38 players facing off in Round One on April Fools’ Day.
Round Two – April 8
A few new players join our ship of fools. When the games are done, it’s Michael Bitton in the lead in the Crown with 2.0/2. In U1800 it’s a three-way tie between Arkadiy Ugodnikov, Lorne Schwartz, and Bob Armstrong with 2.0/2. And in U1400, it’s Richard Guo and Roger Zuo tied with 2.0/2.
Round Three – April 15
Through three rounds, Dave Southam and Michael Bitton are tied for the lead in the Crown with 2.5/3. Arkadiy Ugodnikov has sole first in U1800 with a perfect 3.0/3. And Roger Zuo has sole first in U1400 with a perfect 3.0/3.
Off-week – April 22
The club is closed for Easter Monday.
Round Four – April 29
Computer issues force us to pair by hand – Thanks to everyone for your patience. See results on the cross-table below or on Chess-Results.
Round Five – May 6
In the Crown section, Erik Malmsten scores an upset win over Dave Southam, as Michael Bitton takes down Peter McSherry to take the tournament with 4.0/5. In U1800, William Gao wins on tiebreak over Vinorth Vigneswaramoorthy, with 4.0/5. And in U1400, there’s a four-way tie for first among Alexis Stefanovich-Thomson, Mark Patton, Roger Zuo, and Evgeny Kalmanson, all with 3.5/5.
Congratulations, Michael, William, and all the first-place finishers in U1400 – Alexis, Mark, Roger, and Evgeny!
A new club tournament, starting May 13, our “Come What May” Swiss, starts next week, May 13! Sign up before 6 pm by email, or before 7:00 on site. Games start at 7:30 pm.
Monday nights, 7:15-8:15pm, 459 Bloor Street West, March 18 to May 6
$168 for 7 weeks – all materials provided
Have you thought about getting into tournament chess? Here’s a new course that gets you ready to do just that!
Taught by professional chess instructor, Cameron Robertson, this 7-week course covers all the basic elements of tournament chess and gives you the tools to continue to learn on your own.
Week 1 – Starting Line
– Notation Review
– Tournament Play + Clock Play – Expectations
– Setting goals
– Understanding Classes of Openings
Material: Starting Opening List
Week 2 – Openings
– Basics – review for both white and black – first several moves for each of French, Italian, Ruy Lopez, Sicilian, Queen’s Gambit, King’s Gambit
– Concept of variations
– Developing a style over time
Material: Opening List Continued
After week 2 we will have the Tools to continue to explore openings on our own.
Week 3 – Middle Game: Position
– Continuing from Openings to understanding Position
– Strengths and Weaknesses in Position
– Defence and Attack
Material: Positions Worksheet
Week 4 – Middle Game: Tactics
– Understanding Tactics – Tools of Attack
– Calculating Thoroughly – Examining all the Possibilities
Material: Tactics Compilation 1
After week 4 we will have positional vision and understand how to use tactics to our advantage.
Week 5 – End Game: Strategies
– Understanding the Endgame
– Toolbox for Endgame
Material: Endgame Tactics
Week 6 – End Game: Bringing it Together
– How the Middle Game transitions into the Endgame
– Setting yourself up for a strong End Game
Material: Tactics Compilation 2
After Week 6 you should feel comfortable in all stages of a chess game.
Week 7 – Analysis and Regimen
– Computer Analysis (chess engines)
– Online play and time control (avoid blitz)
– Setting goals (reinforce)
– Further Notation
– Setting yourself up for Success – Tactics, Practice and Theory
Material: Tactics Compilation 3 and Games List
After the Program you will be prepared for tournament play and have all the tools to further your chess game.
Come to Annex Chess Club on Monday night to register on site. See you there!
It’s time for another edition of our annual Club Championship! (Check out the club championship tag for past editions!)
The format for the Club Championship is a little different than our regular Swisses: six rounds and just two sections, Championship and Reserve.
The Championship section sees the top players at our club vie for the title of 2019 Club Champion! Sergey Noritsyn is the defending champion. The minimum rating to enter the section is 1700.
The Reserve section sees players rated under 1800 compete for the title of 2019 Reserve Champion. Last year it was Michael Saltat.
All are welcome!
All are welcome to join us for the event, but only full-year members are eligible to win the Club Champion and Reserve Champion titles. Winners’ names will be engraved on permanent trophies at the club.
Rounds are at 7:30 pm on six Monday evenings, starting February 11 and running to March 25 (no round on Family Day, February 18). Registered players may request a bye by email before 6:00 pm. New players are asked to please register on site by 7:00 to make sure that you’re paired for the night’s round.
Round One – February 11
The tournament gets under way with 9 players in the Championship section and 28 in the Reserves. We’re off next week for Family Day, but new players are welcome to join in Round Two.
CLOSED – February 18
We’re closed for Family Day, so it’s an off-week for the tournament, but don’t miss the Hart House Reading Week Open!
Round Two – February 25
After two rounds, Josh Guo leads the Championship with a perfect 2.0/2. Dave Southam, Sergey Malakhovets, Shawn Talsma, and Michael Bitton are just a half point behind with 1.5/2. In the Reserve section, there’s still a big tie with five players tied for the lead at 2.0/2.
Here’s a game from the top section.
Round Three – March 4
After three rounds, there’s a tie for the lead in the Championship section as Josh Guo and Sergey Malkhovets each have 2.5/3. In the Reserves, only two players are still perfect as Lucy Gao and Colton Belanger share the lead at 3.0/3.
Round Four – March 11
After four rounds, Josh Guo is alone again in first with 3.5/4 in the Championship section. With two rounds to go, can anyone catch him? In the Reserves, Colton Belanger is still perfect with 4.0/4. Can he make it a perfect 6.0/6?
Round Five – March 18
Josh Guo is still in the lead with 4.5/5 going into the last round. It looks like a new Club Champion will be crowned this year!
In the Reserves, Colton Belanger is held to a draw, but still leads with 4.5/5.
One more round to go…
Round Six – March 25
The final round! When the dust settles, it’s Matthew Furrow taking clear first in the Reserve section with 5.0/6. Congratulations, Matthew!
And our new club champion is Josh Guo, with 5.5/6. Congratulations, Josh!
