Related Links

Back to Sub Zonal Tournament Page

 

NM Myers Pulls Ahead to lead Absolute Section

Report 3

 

In what was another round of unpredictable games in the Subzonal 2.3.5, Jamaican National Master (NM) Peter Myers produced the biggest upset to join 3 other players on a perfect score of 3 points.

With only 1 round being played today at the Knutsford Court Hotel, all players geared up with their sharpest lines to ensure a decisive game was the result of the day. NM Myers made no mistake and defeated his countryman Candidate Master (CM) Shreyas Smith who had no other choice but to extend his hand in resignation with the unstoppable threat of mate in one looming in his face. This catapulted the lower seeded Myers to shared first and put a major dent in CM Smith’s Subzonal pursuit.  

On the top board which saw a Dominican Republic clash FIDE Master (FM) Christopher Guzman reigned supreme over Braulio Fernando Ramirez in a 36-move win against Ramirez’s Scandinavian opening. This result saw FM Guzman, NM Myers, Leonardo Rafael Estevez Polanco and Trinidad & Tobago’s CM Alan-Safar Ramoutar as the only players left on a perfect score after 3 rounds.

Former Jamaican Champions CM Duane Rowe and FM Warren Elliott drew against Barbadian FM Martyn Del Castilho and rising Jamaican star St. Jago schoolboy FM Joshua Christie, respectively, who equalized and survived some complicated positions with little to no time remaining on their clocks. Other upsets in the round saw Jamaican juniors Jhustice-Dimonte Mcdonald and Rushawn White defeating their more experienced Surinamese opponents CM Casanova Romario Sanches and FM Viresh Giasi respectively. These results showed that excellent play and endgame mastery will always triumph experience. With 6 more rounds to go, the Subzonal promises to be a truly spectacular event of epic proportions.

Female Section

Second seed and top female Jamaican junior CM Rachel Miller was held to a draw against DominicanWoman Candidate Master (WCM) Jennifer Maria Almanzar Vasquez after being down on time in an equal position. This result along with a draw between Suriname’s Woman’s FIDE Master (WFM) Rosangela Dos Ramos and Barbados’ WCM Katrina Blackman left CM Miller tied in first with WFM Dos Ramos, WCM Vasquez and WCM Blackman on 2.5 points.

Jamaica’s Girls Junior Champion WCM Adani Clarke fared no better in her game which she lost to Guyana’s veteran player WFM Maria Varona-Thomas. WFM Varona-Thomas gave WCM Clarke no chance to get back into the game after trapping Clarke’s knight with her bishop, improving her position with the extra pawn and stopping Clarke’s isolated pawns in their tracks. Another game of heightened interest was that between the Jamaicans WCMs Annesha Smith and Ariel Barrett with the latter winning the game in a better position. These results see a 5-way tie for fourth place on 2 points among WFM Varona-Thomas and WCMs Clarke, Julissa Figueroa, Barrett and the Dominican Elizabeth Hazim Gonzalez.

Round 4 will see top of the board clashes between CM Ramoutar versus FM Guzman, Estevez Polanco and NM Myers in the absolute section while WCM Blackman takes on CM Miller and WCM Almanzar Vasquez takes on WFM Dos Ramos.

The 2018 Subzonal 2.3.5 is a 9-round open Swiss event with an Absolute and Female Section whereby the top 3 finishers in each section will advance to the Zonals which represent the next qualifier of the (Absolute) World Chess Championship and Women’s World Chess Championship, respectively. The rate of play is 90 minutes with 30 second increments after each move. Foreign participants in the event include players from the Dominican Republic, Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago, Puerto Rico, Suriname, Bahamas, and Guyana.

The sponsors of the event are the Sports Development Foundation, the Jamaica Tourist Board, the Jamaica Olympic Association, Kasparov Chess Foundation, the Knutsford Court Hotel and the Magnificent Chess Foundation.

 

.. See other articles..