Scholastic Individual 2013

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

 

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