Two weekends ago the chess club made a trip down to Foxwoods Resort and Casino for the 5th Annual Foxwoods Open. Three players on the team went down to play for four days and three others went down to play for three days. The trip, which was subsidized by Student Senate, was a great success for the team.
Though the team competed for individual prizes and did not play for a group victory, it was a positive experience for the club. UMass had players who tied for 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th place in their skill divisions in the tournament of 617 players.
Of the 617 players were a five year old, grandmasters from Germany, Ukraine, and Israel, and some “famous faces” like GM Ibragimov, Ivanov, Goldin, and Shabalov.
Next for the UMB chess club will be the UMass Boston High School Open. The event will take place on Saturday, May 15th and will have Master V. Martirosov on site to analyze games. The top five individuals and the top three school teams will receive prizes and all will partake in a pizza party at the end of the day.
For more information on the chess club and upcoming tournaments, email chess club president Dan Korsunsky at [email protected].