All the right moves

Chess master teaching all the right moves

By Dustin Shipman THE JOPLIN GLOBE (JOPLIN, Mo.)
JOPLIN, Mo. —

Whether searching for Bobby Fisher or just searching for a way to improve your chess game, one local chess master says he can help.

Bart Gibbons has opened up his home and founded his own Joplin Chess Club to help those who are interested in stepping up their skill level at the game.

Gibbons has been playing chess since he was in ninth grade. He said the club will hopefully be an outreach to the community to teach others about the game and generate some local interest.

“I am 48, and my first tournament was in December of 1972,” Gibbons said. “My high school team won the national team championship in 1975, and I became a master in 1980. Now I am not so keen on the competition of the game. I would rather just teach other people how to play and give chess players a place to play. I have wanted to have a chess club in my home for a long time, but this is the first chance I have had to do it.”

…“I just kind of want to spark people’s interest,” Gibbons said. “Everyone seems to have played chess at some point in their life, but you really need a club and someone who is really dedicated to it like I am to really create that first spark.”

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