Tournament Prep Course starts March 18

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.

Here’s an outline of what you’ll learn, or download the PDF.

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!

Celebrating new beginnings in a new year, our latest installment of the 5-round club Swiss launches January 7, 2019.

ACC New Beginnings 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 January 7 to February 4. New players can register on site each round by 7 pm. Email registration or bye requests before 6 pm.

Round One – January 7

Just 30 players face off in Round One as a new year starts at Annex Chess Club.

It’s a stormy beginning on many of the boards, and there are one or two upsets in each section – in the Crown section, Hooshang Ab-Barin (1762) defeats Sergey Malakhovets (2128); in U1800, Colton Belanger (1447) defeats Victor Stroganov (1587) and Peter Lambert (1471) defeats Dragan Jevtic (1625); and in U1400 Richard Guo (1078) defeats Margarita Lillico (1274), and Carina D’Souza (933) defeats Mark Patton (1228).

Round Two – January 14

New players join in the second round, and the tournament grows to 40 players.

Now leading in U1400 is Roger Zuo with 2.0/2. In U1800, it’s Sihao Chen with 2.0/2. And in the Crown, with 2.0/2, it’s Dave Southam!

Round Three – January 21

In U1800, Sihao Chen is unseated, leaving a three-way tie for the lead at 2.5/3 with Bharath Ramesh, Matthew Furrow, and Robert Wagner sharing first position. In the Crown, David Southam holds his lead with 3.0/3. And in U1400, it’s still Roger Zuo with 3.0/3.

Round Four – January 28

While the winter storm keeps many players away, there are still a few who won’t let anything stand in the way of their weekly chess game.

When the games finish, Dave Southam has a commanding lead with 4.0/4 – a full point and a half ahead of his closest rivals! In U1800, it’s now a four-way tie as Sihao Chen and Lorne Schwartz join the leader group. And in U1400, Rose Tuong defeats Roger Zuo, but Roger still holds the lead with 3.0/4.

Round Five – February 4

In the Crown, Dave Southam takes the night off and cruises to a win with 4.0/5. In U1800, Lorne Schwartz wins his last-round game and takes the section with 4.0/5. And in U1400, Richard Guo and Rose Tuong tie for the lead with 3.5/5.

See full results below.

Don’t miss the annual Club Championship, starting next week!

Final Ranking cross-tables after Round 5

ACC New Beginnings Swiss – Crown section

Updated results are also available on the Chess-Results server.

ACC New Beginnings Swiss – U1800 section

Updated results are also available on the Chess-Results server.

ACC New Beginnings Swiss – U1400 section

Updated results are also available on the Chess-Results server.

In lieu of our regular slow-chess tournament, on our last club night of the year, December 17, the 2018 Holiday Rapid is a one-night six-round tournament – in one big section, at a time control of 9 min each with a 3-sec increment.

Cost: FREE for ACC members, $15 for non-members ($10 for juniors). Add $12 for CFC ($6 for juniors) if you’re not a CFC member.

If you don’t get enough chess this coming Friday, Saturday and Sunday at Hart House, join us for a final night of chess for 2018 on Monday!

Please note: our new location – downstairs at 459A Bloor W (at Major)

(Also please note, we’ll be CLOSED on Dec 24 and 31.)

Congratulations, Erik Malmsten (first place), and Richard Guo (U1400). U1800 was a four-way tie. Thanks to all, and wish everyone a wonderful holiday!

Results are on Chess-Results.

Our moving date is just around the corner. As of December 3, 2018, Annex Chess Club will be in a new location at 459 Bloor Street West.

The location is on the south side of Bloor just west of Spadina, at Major. For those who know the area, it’s the old Kinko’s / FedEx building, which now has a Sleep Country on the main floor.

The entrance is just to the right of the Sleep Country entrance, and we’ll be downstairs.

On a scale from the Brunswick House becoming a Rexall to the demolition of Honest Ed’s, this is a relatively minor change to the neighbourhood. The newly renovated basement space is clean and brightly lit, and we’re excited to start a new chapter of Annex Chess Club there!

Parking downtown is always a challenge, and this location is certainly no exception. If you’ve found a parking spot near our old location at 918 Bathurst, you’re just a few blocks away – or hopefully you can find something similar a bit closer.

Access by TTC remains highly convenient. Spadina station is very close, and especially if you take the Walmer Rd. exit from Spadina station at the west end of the subway platform, you’ll be right at the doorstep!

We look forward to seeing all our regulars, and hopefully a few new faces, at our new location!