Le Leads Webster To Fourth Straight Title
FM Mike Klein on 4/5/16, 6:14 AM
Chess.com
Sometimes dictionaries change the meanings of words, but “Webster” has been consistent since 2013. Webster Universityrepeated as champions of the President’s Cup, also known as the Final Four of College Chess. The event took place April 2-3 and the win was their fourth win in as many years.
The iconic Marshall Chess Club played host for the four-team round robin, with two rounds Saturday and one Sunday. Teams consisted of four players per round, though colleges were allowed to bring more players and use alternates.
Despite the dynasty continuing, this time the Gorloks won by their smallest margin (scoring 8.5/12 game points and winning by one). They were able to maintain one impressive statistic — they’ve never lost a match while competing for the cup (a perfect dozen).
Besides the on-the-board worries, one incident before the tournament also tested the team’s nerves (read below for that account).
Wins were hard to come by this year, and second place University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (formerly UT-Brownsville) even had a chance to tie the top seed going into the final round. They finished on 7.5 game points.
In the end, of the five 2600+ FIDE GMs that traveled from St. Louis, top Webster player GM Le Quang Liem was the one to ensure his squad fulfilled their goal. He was the only one in the event to finish personally with 3/3.
GM Ray Robson finished with 2/3, although Coach/Chief Strategist FM Paul Truong said that both he and GM Alexandr Shimanov (three halves) could have won a lot of their drawn games. GM Vasif Durarbayli had one win in his only game.
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Truong said that the team’s nerves got going even before the first pawn was pushed. While in one of the famous New York City yellow cabs he took the front passenger seat and the driver overheard Le, Robson and Corrales discussing game theory in the back seat.
The Webster team went a little more upscale for the ride back to the airport!
“We were discussing the colors from the drawing of lots…the cab driver asked if we were discussing Go,” Truong said, before correcting him. “All of the sudden he got so excited.”
Truong said the driver offered his rating, 2084, then asked about the college kids in the back. Truong told him the names Corrales, Robson, Le, and the driver’s speech quickened. “I know all of your games!” The cabbie asked if they were the “team from St. Louis.”
He continued on about how GM Fabiano Caruana missed his chances in Moscow, and how GM Magnus Carlsen should make short work of GM Sergey Karjakin. (It looks like the driver may have been one of those to vote in our poll).
“It got a little scary because he was so excited, he kept turning his head back to talk to our students, which caused a few near misses of hitting other cars!” Truong said.
It seems there are constants in New York City — out of control yellow cabs and a well-informed chess public. It also sounds like the world championship could be a hard ticket to get.
Full article here.