The South African Open Chess Championship was recently held at Fairbairn College in Goodwood, Cape Town. The event took place from the 9th to the 17th of July, with 11 rounds in the Championship and B section, and 6 rounds in the U/20, U/16 and U/12 section. There was also a blitz event, which took place on the 14th.
Three of our members from the Hermanus Chess Club had the privelege of competing in this prestigious event. Lyle Prinsloo competed in the U/12 section, Martin Brink in the B section and Dr Andrew Southey in the Championship section.
Tournament format
Championship Section
| Format | 11 Round Swiss over 9 days |
| Time Control | 90/90 + 30 sec increments from move 1 |
| Rated | Chess SA and FIDE rated |
| Criteria | Players with a FIDE/Chess SA rating of 1600 and higher |
B Section
| Format | 11 Round Swiss over 9 days |
| Time Control | 90/90 + 30 sec increments from move 1 |
| Rated | Chess SA and FIDE rated |
| Criteria | All players with a FIDE/Chess SA rating of between 1100 and 1600 |
Junior Section
| Format | 6 Round Swiss over 3 days |
| Time Control | 60/60 + 30 sec increments from move 1 |
| Rated | Chess SA rated |
| Criteria | U/12, U/16 and U/20 |
Blitz
| Format | 10 Round Swiss |
| Time Control | 3/3 + 2 sec increments from move 1 |
| Rated | Chess SA rated |
| Criteria | Open |
Below are three games played by our HCC players from various rounds of the competition.
Charles de Villiers vs. Andrew Southey (Round 1 – Championship Section)
Martin Brink vs. Conner Manuel (Round 6 – B Section)
Zoey Mungal vs. Lyle Prinsloo (Round 6 – U/12 Section)
After some remarkable games and some very tough competition, the final results for our Hermanus Chess Club players are as follows:
- Lyle Prinsloo – 10th place in the U/12 section
- Martin Brink – 15th place in the B section
- Andrew Southey – 85th place in the Championship section
I would like to congratulate our players for competing in such a prestigeous event against some very strong opposition.
The full list of results can be found below:
Sources:
Images courtesy of Flashlight Pictures ©