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Scholastic Individual 2013

Picture
The first-place trophy winner, Philip Hanna Jr. (center), with Alex Dorsett, secretary of the BCF (left), and Andre White, president of the BCF (right)
The T. G. Glover Primary School pavilion was all about chess last Saturday, when the Bahamas Chess Federation held its annual Scholastic Individual tournament.  All told, more than twenty students ranging from ages 6 to 16 would put their skill and training to the test in a five-round, six-hour marathon to decide who was the best of the young up-and-comers.

It was clear early on that it would be a good day for 16-year-old Philip Hanna Jr.  A straightforward win in round one led to a round-two pairing between Hanna and 13-year-old Sandeep Gali, the reigning Bahamas Junior Champion and odds-on favorite to win the top scholastic prize.  For much of the game, both players struggled without success to gain an advantage, and it seemed likely that the battle would end in a draw.  However, as the endgame approached, a frustrated Gali decided to introduce complications and to push for the win.  This turned out to be a fatal miscalculation.  Using his clock wisely, a calm Hanna carefully analyzed the position, came up with the winning plan, and finished the game with a checkmate.

Hanna’s next opponent was the talented 14-year-old, Nelissa Thomas, who placed second in last year’s Scholastic Individual tournament.  Down a knight in the middlegame and with Hanna’s pieces swarming the board, Thomas realized that her only hope was to play for a stalemate draw.  While the idea was sound, her execution proved to be flawed as she missed an opportunity to win Hanna’s last bishop and to blunt the relentless attack against her king.  That glaring oversight sealed the victory for Hanna, as he never let up the pressure and Thomas eventually resigned.

With his toughest competition behind him, Hanna  would go on to win his last two games and finish the tournament with a perfect 5.0 score, securing the top overall prize in decisive fashion.  Thomas ended up with a score of 4.0, along with Gali and 14-year-old Nicholas Bower.  Based on the tie-break system, Thomas placed second followed by Gali in third.

The younger, less experienced players were also fighting hard.  Seven-year-old Cole Dorsett and eight-year-old Nathan Smith, playing in his first-ever tournament, suffered disappointing defeats in their first two games before turning it around and closing out their final three games with solid wins.  They would go on to claim the top Under-8 (8th place overall) and Under-10 (10th place overall) trophies respectively.  Meanwhile, 10-year-old Franz Adiao found himself outmatched most of the day, but was able to secure enough points to win the Under-12 category.

Prize Winners
First Place Overall – Philip Hanna Jr.
Second Place Overall – Nelissa Thomas
Third Place Overall – Sandeep Gali
Top 16 and Over – Philip Hanna Jr.
Top Under 16 – Nelissa Thomas
Top Under 14 – Sandeep Gali
Top Under 12 – Franz Adiao
Top Under 10 – Nathan Smith
Top Under 8 – Cole Dorsett

At the conclusion of the event, officials from the Bahamas Chess Federation formally introduced the team that will represent The Bahamas at the CARIFTA Junior Chess Championship in Kingston, Jamaica on April 4-8th.  Philip Hanna Jr. will compete in the Under-20 division, while Sandeep Gali and Chaz Garraway will both play in the Under-16 division.

The next local tournament, March Madness, is scheduled for to be held on March 30, 2013.



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Final Standings

#

Name

Rtng

Post

Age

Rd 1

Rd 2

Rd 3

Rd 4

Rd 5

Tot

TBrk[H]

TBrk[C]

TBrk[S]

1

Philip Hanna Jr.

1313

1357

16

W21

W3

W2

W5

W6

5.0

100

15

15

2

Nelissa Thomas

1431

1436

15

W22

W15

L1

W13

W7

4.0

100

12

12.5

3

Sandeep Gali

1658

1653

13

W16

L1

W18

W4

W5

4.0

100

11

15.5

4

Nicholas Bower

1200

1231

14

W17

W7

W6

L3

W15

4.0

99

13

13.5

5

Chaz Garraway

1419

1413

13

W14

W13

W12

L1

L3

3.0

100

12

15

6

Kelsie Thomas

1422

1409

12

W18

W9

L4

W14

L1

3.0

100

11

15.5

7

Geovanni Robinson

1324

1315

14

W11

L4

W16

W12

L2

3.0

100

10

15

8

Cole Dorsett

850

872

7

L13

L14

W21

W16

W17

3.0

100

6

8.5

9

Uriel Gibson

1278

1266

14

W10

L6

L14

W11

W12

3.0

99

8

13

10

Nathan Smith

900

925

8

L9

L18

W22

W19

W14

3.0

99

6

8.5

11

Antonio Thompson

950

982

9

L7

W19

W15

L9

W13

3.0

98

8

11.5

12

Gabrielle Adiao

800

820

6

W19

W22

L5

L7

L9

2.0

100

9

11

13

Gil Adiao

1200

1185

14

W8

L5

W17

L2

L11

2.0

100

8

14.5

14

Franz Adiao

1000

1004

10

L5

W8

W9

L6

L10

2.0

100

7

15

15

Bernard Smith

1300

1277

16

W20

L2

L11

W18

L4

2.0

100

7

13.5

16

Henderson Cartwright

1100

1092

12

L3

W21

L7

L8

W20

2.0

100

5

12

17

Charles Diggiss

800

805

6

L4

W20

L13

D22

L8

1.5

100

5

10.5

18

Kevin Williams

1050

1049

11

L6

W10

L3

L15

D19

1.5

100

4.5

13.5

19

Uriah Cartwright

1100

1069

12

L12

L11

W20

L10

D18

1.5

100

3.5

10.5

20

Daijah Johnson

950

936

9

L15

L17

L19

W21

L16

1.0

100

2

8

21

Rajdeep Gali

950

936

9

L1

L16

L8

L20

W22

1.0

99

1

11.5

22

Sidney Cambridge

1050

1011

11

L2

L12

L10

D17

L21

0.5

100

1

11.5

 

Picture
Left to right: Philip Hanna Jr - First Place Overall; Sandeep Gali - Third Place Overall; and Nelissa Thomas - Second Place Overall
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