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Press TWO US CHESS NATIONALS....1ST U.S. Women's Open & ..an old favorite, U.S. Senior Open Sept. 5-7
Press TWO US CHESS NATIONALS....1ST U.S. Women's Open & ..an old favorite, U.S. Senior Open Sept. 5-7 | TWO US CHESS NATIONALS....1ST U.S. Women's Open & ..an old favorite, U.S. Senior Open Sept. 5-7 |
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| By Joan DuBois | |
| August 26, 2009 | |
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Official Press Release August 26, 2009 Contact: Tom Braunlich [email protected] (Crossville, TN) The U.S. Chess Federation (USCF) is pleased to announce that the first U.S. Women's Open Chess Championship and the 2009 U.S. Senior Open (first held in 1981) will be held between Sept. 5-7, 2009 at the Tulsa Best Western Trade Winds Central in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The U.S. Women's Open is the first such event, an experimental new tournament by the USCF aimed at encouraging a mixing of young and experienced female players. (Most female-only tournaments are scholastic events, except for the U.S. Women's Championship). The main draw for the women is a qualification slot in the U.S. Women's Championship next year. Currently the top players are women from UTD's chess program, experienced master-level players, though only one of them is a USA-federation player eligible for the championship. Guaranteed prize fund is $1600 with a probable invitation to the 2010 U.S. Women's Championship to the champion. The U.S. Senior Open this year has already attracted more Grandmasters (GMs) than in other recent years, fighting for valuable qualification spots in both the World Senior Championship and the U.S. Championship. Three GMs include Larry Kaufman (current World Senior Champion here to defend his title), Boris Gulko (former U.S. and U.S.S.R. champion), and John "The Fed" Fedorowicz. Also playing are IM Joe Bradford (former U.S. Senior champion), and IM Emory Tate Prize fund is guaranteed at $4,000 with first place winner possibly being invited into the 2010 U.S. Championship, if eligible. The top scorer over age 60 is also invited to play in the World Senior Championship to be held in Condino, Italy between Oct. 27 to Nov. 8, 2009. "The Fed" is in his first year of eligibility here, an ominous sign to some because it means that "Fischer Boom" players are now graduating into the Senior ranks where presumably they will dominate there as they did the Junior ranks in the 1970s. Fischer Boomers were young players inspired into tournament chess by the famous Fischer-Spassky match in 1972, a time which produced more new U.S. homegrown grandmasters than any other period of history. Both events are being held in conjunction with the 5th annual Okie Chess Festival, which features a number of events including the Okie Open, the Master Invitational, and Fischer-Random blitz tournament. The Master Invitational this year includes two IMs and has an average rating over 2300 USCF. For additional information you can also contact Frank Berry at [email protected]. Tournament Website: http://www.geocities.com/okiechessfestival. The venue for the event is the same as the FKB U.S. Championship Qualifier tournament from March of last year: the Trade Winds Central hotel in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The United States Chess Federation (USCF), founded in 1939, serves as the governing body for chess in the United States and is now headquartered in Crossville, Tennessee. USCF is devoted to extending the role of chess in American society. It promotes the study and knowledge of the game of chess, for its own sake as an art and enjoyment, and as a means for the improvement of society. The USCF is a not-for-profit membership organization with over 80,000 members. For additional information on the USCF see: http://www.uschess.org. |
