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FM Ron Simpson

Simpson-McCartney Big Enchilada II

The Big Enchilada II hosted some really strong candidate masters and experts. During round one I walked around the open section boards observing the competition. The positions on the boards didn’t indicate the usual advantages to the higher rated player. The tone was clear that the masters were not going to have an easy time. Round two proved to be a shocking revelation to my initial observation.  Eric Lindauer’s (1925) resourceful and determined play held me to a draw. About two boards down from me James Watson (1907) was holding has own against NM Rusty Potter (2224) with a draw. Also, Corry Marsh (1858) held Robert Fisher (2067) to a draw. I must confess I was hoping to be pared with Robert Fischer! I can only imagine the extra pressure of playing chess with a famous name.  But the explosive news came from board one when John Smithwick (2015, former master) defeated IM Jonathan Schroer (2431).  Wow, the unsettling feeling that no master was safe was now a tangible reality.

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Simpson vs. Mabe – Big Enchilada II

The Big Enchilada II championship game was filled with drama and risk. Chris Mabe had just beaten FM Kassa Korley in round 4 and thus was leading the tournament with a perfect score of 4.0. I had a score of 3.5 points coming off of an exciting tactical duel with Patrick McCartney.

The stage was set for Chris and me to play for the championship. The winner would take clear first place and the $1000.00 dollar first place prize. –The Big Enchilada–

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Francisco-Shabalov LOTS 25

  • PGN Francisco-Shabalov file by Charles Roberson
  • Analysis in Rich Text Format by FM Ron Simpson

When a tree falls in the forest and there is no one around to hear it, does it make a sound when it hits the ground? What about a really big tree? Well, when Richard Francisco of Georgia defeated GM Shabalov in round three of the Land of The Sky chess tournament, the vibrations from the result rippled across all the top boards. The news of a GM being defeated was exciting, shocking, and unbelievable. All I wanted to do was to see the game. I couldn’t help but feeling really happy for Richard. I guess it’s the underdog thing or just confirmation that GMs can be beaten.

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