Hampshire Individual Championship 2001

Round Five

Two quick draws on the top two boards gave opportunities for other players to catch up. From memory, board one drew after board two, which may have had something to do with board one's result. This was because it gave Thomas Rendle at least a  half point lead over the other players. Looking at the final position, White had an advantage, but you can understand Sherif taking the drew, against a player graded 62 point higher than him. I'm not sure what happened in the board two game between Dominic Tunks and Mike Yeo, but it only lasted 11 moves. It may be that neither player wished to ruin their chances of becoming Hampshire Champion? 

Joe Coburn won and put himself in a position to challenge for the championship. His win, was again after his opponent had turned down a draw offer. I'm not sure if the final position is correct in this game, so if anyone knows differently, let me know. This was turning into the tournament of Joe's life, as out of the 21 graded players, he was seeded 20th. The fact that the 21st seed was also in the same position, is equally amazing!

White Grade Res Black Grade Res

S.Gonem

 127 ½

T.Rendle

 189 ½

D.Tunks

 187 ½

M.Yeo

 193 ½

J.Coburn

 136 1

P.Walters

 147 0

G.Pafura

 169 0

W.Purkiss

 177 1

P.J.Patience

 162 ½

D.Pye

 187 ½

D.Cordner

 169 1

L.Stables

 150 0

G.Stuart

 144 1

K.Esmat

 165 0

G.Moore

 u ½

N.Campbell

 u ½

R.Perrin

 152 0

J.F.Wheeler

 169 1

T.R.Anderson

 151 1

N.Burton

 u 0

I. Matthew

 147 0

I.Stenhouse

 142 1

F.McLeod

 164 ½

R.Short

 134 ½

Going into the final round Thomas Rendle had a half point lead over five players. He was either going to get Bill Purkiss or Joe Coburn, as he had met the other 3 players. 

 

Round Five Leader Table

 Score
1

Rendle,Thomas

4.0 / 5
2

Gonem, Sherif

3.5 / 5
3

Tunks, Dominic

3.5 / 5
4

Yeo. Michael J

3.5 / 5
5

Coburn, Joe

3.5 / 5
6

Purkiss, Bill

3.5 / 5

Bill Purkiss also put himself in contention, with a tough win against G.Pafura. He won on time, but when the flag fell Bill's position was winning.

I was pleased with my win against Khaled Esmat, especially as I had lost horribly to him in a league match last season. The opening was pretty hairy, as at one stage, after I had temporarily sacrificed a piece, Khaled had three pieces on prise!

Stuart,G - Esmat,K

After the carnage had cleared, I was left with a pleasant position, which I managed to win. This was despite failing to see that I could win a piece at several stages.

This also left the matter of who would be the Hampshire Champion, as even if Thomas Rendle won the tournament, he was not eligible for this title. On the sum of progressive score Mike Yeo was favourite for this, as he had won his first three games.

Presentation to Pat McEvoy

Before the last round started, a presentation was made to the controller, Pat McEvoy. Pat is well known for his tournament, the Portsmouth Congress. This is held yearly and this year is an "Elite" Event in the Terance Chapman Group Grand Prix, with a £500 first prize in the Premier Tournament alone. This is on the 8th to 10th February at the Portsmouth Grammar School. Thought I better give this a plug.

Anyway, apart from this, Pat is less well know for controlling the Hampshire Individual Tournament, which he does free of charge, giving up his valuable time. This year he even donated a Best Game prize to Khaled Esmat, for his loss to Dominic Tunks (see round Three/Four). 

The presentation to Pat was made by HCA Secretary John Wheeler and was a bottle of champagne. This was as an appreciation of thanks, from the Hampshire Chess Association to Pat, for the tireless work he does every year. He is the first person to arrive and the last person to leave and we are extremely grateful for his support.

 

Pat McEvoy (left) receiving a bottle of champagne before the start of round six from HCA Secretary John Wheeler.

 

 

Round 1/2 Round 3/4 Round 5 Round 6 Cross-Table Games