Are men smarter than women?

Q Are there any women chess masters?—David Zwerling, Portland, Ore.

A While men dominated the game for centuries, the same social advances that brought the world a great influx of female athletes in the ’70s also gave us a spate of fresh female faces on the chess scene, such as the amazing Polgar sisters of Hungary—grandmasters Susan, 40, and Judit, 33, and international master Sofia, 34—all of whom have notched significant tournament victories over men.

Source: http://www.parade.com/celebrity/2009/09/personality-parade-80s-teen-stars.html

Here is an older article on Parade Magazine back in July 2005.

www.chessbase.com/newsdetail.asp?newsid=2565

Top 50 Smartest People

1 Albert Einstein
2 Bill Gates
3 Marie Curie
4 Stephen Hawking
5 Condoleezza Rice
6 Bill Clinton
7 Sandra Day O'Connor
8 Oprah Winfrey
9 Warren Buffett
10 Jane Goodall
11 Steven Spielberg
12 Dalai Lama
13 Sally Ride
14 George S. Patton Jr.
15 Jon Stewart
16 J.K. Rowling
17 Dr. Phil (McGraw)
18 Ben Carson
19 Susan Polgar
20 Pablo Picasso
21 Rosalyn Yalow
22 Linda Buck
23 Yo-Yo Ma
24 Johnny Carson
25 Georgia O'Keeffe
26 Katharine Graham
27 Mary Matalin
28 James Carville
29 Meryl Streep
30 Sergey Brin
31 Toni Morrison
32 Dr. Ruth (Westheimer)
33 Jackie Chan
34 Quincy Jones
35 Hayao Miyazaki
36 Maya Lin
37 Meg Whitman
38 Edward Albee
39 Pat Summitt
40 Wynton Marsalis
41 Mikhail Baryshnikov
42 Martha Graham
43 Ralph Lauren
44 Bette Davis
45 Antonia Novello
46 Allison Fisher
47 Frank Gehry
48 Mike Nichols
49 Annie Duke
50 Annika Sorenstam

2011 College Chess Final Four

Custom souvenir board created by www.GLOSgames.com

The 2011 College Chess Final Four will take place in Washington, DC from April 1-3. This will be the strongest College Chess Final Four in history. Each team will have at least 3 GMs + 1 IM or more.

Texas Tech
GM Davorin Kuljasevic
GM Andre Diamant
GM Anatoly Bykhovsky
IM Istvan Sipos
SM Faik Aleskerov

UTB
GM Timur Gareev
GM Axel Bachmann
GM Mauricio Flores
IM Max Cornejo

UMBC
GM Leonid Kritz
GM Sergey Erenburg
GM Giorgi Margvelashvili
IM Sasha Kaplan
WGM Sabina Foisor

UTD
GM Alejandro Ramirez
GM Ioan Cristian Chirila
GM Julio Sadorra
IM Marko Zivanic
IM Salvijus Bercys
IM Puchen Wang

On the road to the National Championship

On the road to the National Championship
Posted: March 26, 2011 - 8:05pm

SPICE is still a relatively new program and the Texas Tech Knight Raider chess team is still in its infancy stage. However, in just three short years, the Knight Raiders have captured nine national, two state, and one regional titles. Our team is currently ranked fourth in the country and there is also a good chance that we will be ranked number one next season.

In 2009 Texas Tech made history by qualifying for the College Chess Final Four in its first ever competition in Division I. In 2010 we qualified for the Final Four again and our team will fight for the National Division I title on April 1-3 in Washington, DC.

Here are the members of Knight Raiders who will represent Texas Tech in the upcoming Final Four:

GM Davorin “the Goran” Kuljasevic, Croatia (Team Captain)
USCF rating: 2570 / FIDE rating: 2528
- Finance, graduate student
- 5-time Croatian Youth Champion, 2-time PanAm Champion, 2-time US Chess League Champion, 2004 Mitropa Cup Team Champion, 2011 SPICE Spring Invitational Champion, etc.
- Soccer, working out

GM Andre “the Shiny” Diamant, Brazil
USCF rating: 2535 / FIDE rating: 2520
- Economics, freshman
- 8-time Brazilian Junior Champion, PanAm under 12 Champion, 2008 Brazilian National Champion, 2009 Maccabiah Game Champion, 2nd best percentage on board 5 at 2010 Chess Olympiad, etc.
- Soccer, ping pong

GM Anatoly “the Rocket” Bykhovsky, Israel
USCF rating: 2631 / FIDE rating: 2517
- Finance, freshman
- 2-time Israeli blitz Champion, 3-time Israeli National Youth Champion, 2010 SPICE Cup “B group” Champion, etc.
- Soccer, working out

IM Istvan “Steve the Magnificent” Sipos, Hungary
USCF rating: 2462 / FIDE rating: 2407
- Geography, junior
- 3-time National Team Champion, 2-time National Youth Champion, 2009 Gabcikovo International Open Champion, etc.
- Soccer, music, pool

SM Faik “the Gentle Giant” Aleskerov, Azerbaijan
USCF rating: 2441 / FIDE rating: 2322
- International Business, graduate student
- 3-time Azerbaijani Youth Champion, 2-time World Youth Bronze Medalist, 2000 Baku International Open Champion, 2010 SPICE FIDE Open Vice Champion, etc.
- Tennis, basketball, soccer

Here are just some of the Knight Raiders' accomplishment in the past three year since SPICE was established:

2008 PanAm Intercollegiate Chess Championships (Fort Worth, TX)
IM Gergely Antal – Board 1 National Champion

2009 PanAm Intercollegiate Chess Championships (South Padre Island, TX)
IM Davorin Kuljasevic – Board 1 National Champion
IM Gergely Antal – Board 3 National Champion
Division IV National Team Champion (Osbourn, Haskin, James, Parkhomenko, Shah)
Texas Tech A qualified for the College Chess Final Four in its first try in Division I (Kuljasevic, Papp, Antal, Watters)

2009 Tournament of College Champions
IM Gergely Antal – National Champion

2010 PanAm Intercollegiate Chess Championships (Milwaukee, WI)
Division II National Team Champion (Watters, Flores, Lelko, Cassidy, Osbourn)
Division IV National Team Champion (Haskin, Kamphorst, James, Roy)
GM Andre Diamant – Board 2 National Champion
GM Anatoly Bykhovsky – Board 3 National Champion
Texas Tech qualified for the College Chess Final Four for 2nd consecutive year (Kuljasevic, Diamant, Bykhovsky, Sipos)

2009 Texas State Collegiate Championships (Houston, TX)
IM Gergely Antal – State Individual Champion
Texas Tech – State Team Champion

2009 Southwest Open – Regional (Fort Worth, TX)
IM Gergely Antal – Regional Champion

Source: http://lubbockonline.com

Teens make history at Texas Tech

Teens Make History at 2011 SPICE Spring Chess Invitational
March 23, 2011
Written by Karin Slyker

Darwin Yang became the youngest International Master in Texas.

While many students were away on Spring Break, an intense battle took place in the English and Philosophy Building at Texas Tech. And when it was over, two teenagers made chess history.

Darwin Yang, of Plano, is now the youngest International Master in Texas Chess history. At age 14, he earned the title at the 2011 SPICE Spring Invitational upon defeating Harvard’s former number-one player, International Master Marc Esserman. Their match lasted more than four hours in the eighth round.

Hosted by the Susan Polgar Institute for Chess Excellence at Texas Tech, the 2011 SPICE Spring Invitational is one of the strongest tournaments held in the U.S. so far this year.

Yang is no stranger to Lubbock. He earned his first International Master norm at the 2010 SPICE Spring Invitational, and followed-up with his second at the 2010 SPICE Cup last fall.

“It is extremely rare to earn all the norms from the same place, but Yang earned all three norms right here in West Texas, on the campus of Texas Tech,” Polgar said.

Going into the final round, three players were tied for the lead: Yang, 15-year-old International Master Daniel Naroditsky and Grandmaster Davorin Kuljasevic, a Texas Tech graduate student and captain of the Knight Raiders A team.

Kuljasevic was the only player to remain undefeated in the end. He and Naroditsky tied for first, with Yang just half a point behind.

Naroditsky is the youngest player in history to either win or tie for first at a SPICE International Invitational event.

Source: http://today.ttu.edu

SPICE Endowment

$10K Phi Beta Kappa – Lambda of Texas Chapter/Susan Polgar Institute for Chess Excellence endowment to benefit SPICE programs, students, marketing & outreach. Donations may be sent to the Texas Tech Foundation, Inc., P.O. Box 41081, Lubbock, Texas 79409-1081. http://www.ttu.edu

http://www.spice.ttu.edu

Phi Beta Kappa Lambda of Texas chapter sheltered by faculty/staff at Texas Tech: www.Depts.TTU.edu/PhiBetaKappa & Historian Dr. Alice.V.White@GMail.com

Phi Beta Kappa is a “key” benchmark for Tier 1/research-institution status: www.TTU.edu/Administration/President Scholarships available: www.PBK.org/InfoView/PBK_InfoView.aspx?t=&id=5 The Phi Beta Kappa Society (http://www.pbk.org/) is the nation's oldest undergraduate honors organization in the US. The Society has pursued its mission of fostering and recognizing excellence in the liberal arts and sciences since 1776. The Society has 500,000+ members with 280 chapters & 62 alumni association nationwide. PBK stands for freedom of inquiry and expression, disciplinary rigor, breadth of intellectual perspective, the cultivation of skills of deliberation and ethical reflection, the pursuit of wisdom, and the application of the fruits of scholarship and research in practical life.

PBK champions these values in the confidence that a world influenced by them will be a more just and peaceful world. PBK Lambda of Texas chapter established a scholarship endowment at near-by, two-year South Plains College to benefit outstanding Phi Theta Kappa students. Two endowments: [1] $10+K scholarship endowment at near-by, two-year South Plains College to benefit outstanding Phi Theta Kappa students; & [2] $10K endowment to benefit SPICE/Susan Polgar Institute for Chess Excellence.

Recent past US presidents & US President Obama share a Phi Beta Kappa connection: three former US Presidents are PBKs: George H.W. Bush/Yale ‘48; Bill Clinton/Georgetown ‘68 & Jimmy Carter/honorary at KS State Univ. ‘91. Two are sons of PBKs: US President Obama (through his father Barack Hussein Obama, Sr., PBK/Hawai’i at Manoa in ‘62) & past US President George W. Bush (through his father). PBKs share the honor of membership with 17 US Presidents & seven of the nine current US Supreme Court Justices (including Sonia Sotomayor, PBK, Princeton, ’76). Famous or not, all PBKs have one thing in common: the pursuit of excellence.

PBKs whose names you may know: Jeff Bezos, Founder of Amazon.com; Glenn Close, actor; Eileen Collins, space-shuttle commander; Francis Ford Coppola, film director; Michael Crichton, author; Rita Dove, former US Poet Laureate; John Hope Franklin, historian; Brian Greene, physicist; Peyton Manning, NFL quarterback; Stephen Sondheim, composer & lyricist; Gloria Steinem, co-founder of Ms. Magazine; John Updike, novelist & critic; ’10 US Supreme Court nominee Solicitor General Elena Kagan (PBK, Princeton, ’81) – if confirmed, she would replace Justice John Paul Stevens (PBK, Univ. of Chicago, ’41); Samuel Clemens, aka, Mark Twain (PBK, Univ. of MO, 1902).

Questions? Comments? Suggestions?

Contact Alice Virginia White, PhD; 2009 & 2010 Historian, Lambda of Texas Chapter (Texas Tech University); 2008 & 2009 President, PBK (Alumni) Association of West Texas & Eastern New Mexico; circa 2000 & 2001 Treasurer, Greater Austin Alumni Association; Induction, Alpha of Kansas, 1967 (University of Kansas); Alice.V.White@GMail.com & Alice.White@TTU.edu & www.AliceWhite.WordPress.com

www.PhiBetaKappa.org or www.PBK.org

The Texas Tech Knight Raiders in the Final Four

GM Davorin “the Goran” Kuljasevic, Croatia (Team Captain)
USCF rating: 2570 / FIDE rating: 2528

- Finance, graduate student
- 5-time Croatian Youth Champion, 2-time PanAm Champion, 2-time US Chess League Champion, 2004 Mitropa Cup Team Champion, 2011 SPICE Spring Invitational Champion
- Soccer, working out

GM Andre “the Shiny” Diamant, Brazil
USCF rating: 2535 / FIDE rating: 2520

- Economics, freshman
- 8-time Brazilian Junior Champion, PanAm under 12 Champion, 2008 Brazilian National Champion, 2009 Maccabiah Game Champion, 2^nd best percentage on board 5 at 2010 Chess Olympiad
- Soccer, ping pong

GM Anatoly “the Rocket” Bykhovsky, Israel
USCF rating: 2631 / FIDE rating: 2517

- Finance, freshman
- 2-time Israeli blitz Champion, 3-time Israeli National Youth Champion, 2010 SPICE Cup “B group” Champion
- Soccer, working out

IM Istvan “Steve the Magnificent” Sipos, Hungary
USCF rating: 2462 / FIDE rating: 2407

- Geography, junior
- 3-time National Team Champion, 2-time National Youth Champion, 2009 Gabcikovo International Open Champion
- Soccer, music, pool

SM Faik “the Gentle Giant” Aleskerov, Azerbaijan
USCF rating: 2441 / FIDE rating: 2322

- International Business, graduate student
- 3-time Azerbaijani Youth Champion, 2-time World Youth Bronze Medalist, 2000 Baku International Open Champion, 2010 SPICE FIDE Open Vice Champion
- Tennis, basketball, soccer

Knight Raider Captain share first at SPICE Spring Invitational

Texas Tech Knight Raider Captain share first at SPICE Spring Invitational
Posted: March 19, 2011 - 5:25pm
By Susan Polgar
FOR THE AVALANCHE-JOURNAL

Darwin Yang, a 14 year old from Plano, and the number junior in Texas, earned his third and final International Master norm at 2011 SPICE Spring Chess Invitational after beating Harvard former number one player, International Master Marc Esserman, in an intense battle which lasted more than four hours in the eighth round.

This was a critical game as it was a must win situation for both players. Esserman needed to win in the final two rounds to secure a Grandmaster norm. Yang only needed to draw to earn his final International Master norm. But just like Esserman, he also had to win his final two games for his first Grandmaster norm.

The more experienced Esserman decided to go all out and literally threw the kitchen sink at Yang hoping to rattle the kid. However, the poised 14 year old with nerve of steel calmly defended his opponent’s attack and tricky tactics. At the end, the risky strategy by Esserman failed. Yang scored the full point to make history by earning his third and final International Master norm to become the youngest International Master in Texas Chess history.

Texas Tech and Lubbock definitely feel like second home for Wang as he always performs extremely well here. He earned his first two International Master norm at the 2010 SPICE Spring Invitational and 2010 SPICE Cup. As players compete all across the country and around the world, it is extremely rare to earn all the norms from the same place. But Yang earned all three norms right here in West Texas, on the campus of Texas Tech. His next goal is to become a Grandmaster, the highest designation in chess.

This is Naroditsky's first tournament at Texas Tech. His chess resume is impressive for an individual at such a young age. Not to be outdone by Yang, 15 year old International Master Daniel Naroditsky and number one junior in California, also performed spectacularly. Both were in contention for the SPICE title throughout the entire tournament.

Naroditsky shocked the chess world three years ago by winning the World Youth Championship as a heavy underdog. He earned a spot in the upcoming 2011 US Championship by finishing as the top American in the 2010 US Open. He will be by far the youngest participant in the field. In addition to being a chess phenom, he is also an accomplished chess author. He has written a number of articles in various chess publications. His first chess book, Master Positional Chess, was released last year to rave review. His next book will be published soon.

Both Yang and Naroditsky are top notch students in their respective schools. Yang also plays football for his school.

Going into the final round, three players were tied for the lead: Naroditsky, and Yang. There was no easy game and every battle lasted around four hours or longer. After the smokes were cleared, Kuljasevic and Naroditsky tied for first with Yang just half a point behind.
Kuljasevic is a graduate student at Texas Tech. He is also the Captain of the Knight Raiders A team. He played solidly throughout the entire tournament and was the only player who remained undefeated at the end.

Final round 9 results

Diamant 1-0 Yang
Esserman 1/2 Naroditsky
Altounian 1/2 Kuljasevic
Bykhovsky 1–0 Aleskerov
Sipos 1-0 Kleiman

All five members of the Texas Tech Knight Raiders A team took part in this prestigious event. In addition to bringing tremendous positive worldwide publicity to Texas Tech and Lubbock, the SPICE Spring Invitational also served as a valuable warm up for our players as they prepare to compete in the College Chess Final Four in Washington, DC in two weeks.

Final standings

(GM = Grandmaster, IM = International Master, FM = FIDE Master, SM = Senior Master)

1-2. GM Kuljasevic, IM Naroditsky 6.0 points
3. FM Yang 5.5 points
4-6. GM Bykhovsky, GM Diamant, IM Esserman 5.0 points
7-8. IM Altounian, IM Sipos 4.0 points
9. SM Aleskerov 2.5 points
10. IM Kleiman 2.0 points

Source: http://lubbockonline.com/columnists/2011-03-19/polgar-texas-tech-knight-raider-captain-share-first-spice-spring-invitational

Kuljasevic and Naroditsky win 2011 SPICE Spring

235 Photos here: https://picasaweb.google.com/SPICEChess/SPICESpring2011

Final standings

1-2. GM Kuljasevic, IM Naroditsky 6.0 (+3)
3. FM Yang 5.5 (+2) [IM norm and title]
4-6. GM Bykhovsky, GM Diamant, IM Esserman 5.0 (+1)
7-8. IM Altounian, IM Sipos 4.0 (-1)
9. SM Aleskerov 2.5 (-4)
10. IM Kleiman 2.0 (-5)

Breaking News! Darwin Yang is the newest American IM!

Breaking News:

14 year old Texan became youngest International Master in Texas chess history

Darwin Yang, a 14 year old from Plano, the number junior in Texas, earned his third and final International Master norm last night after beating Harvard former number one player, International Master Marc Esserman, in an intense battle which lasted more than four hours in the eighth round of the 2011 SPICE Spring Chess Invitational.

It was a must win game for both players. Esserman needed to win in round 8 and 9 to secure a Grandmaster norm. Yang only needed to draw to earn his final International Master norm. But just like Esserman, he has to win his final two games for his first Grandmaster norm, the highest designation in chess.

The more experienced Esserman decided to go all out and literally threw the kitchen sink at Yang hoping to rattle the kid. However, the poised 14 year old with nerve of steel calmly defended his opponent’s attack and tricky tactics. At the end, the risky strategy by Esserman failed and Yang collected the full point to make history by becoming the youngest International Master in Texas Chess history.

Not to be outdone by Yang, 15 year old International Master Daniel Naroditsky and number one junior in California, defeated veteran International Master Levon Altounian from Arizona to tie for the SPICE Spring Chess Invitational lead.

Naroditsky shocked the chess world a little over three years ago by winning the World Youth Championship as a heavy underdog. He earned a spot in the upcoming 2011 US Championship by finishing as the top American in the 2010 US Open. In addition to being a chess phenom, he is also an accomplished chess author. He has written a number of articles in various chess publications. His first chess book, Master Positional Chess, was released last year to rave review. His next book will be published soon.

Both Yang and Naroditsky are top notch students in their respective schools.

Texas Tech Knight Raider Captain Grandmaster Davorin Kuljasevic remains in a tie for first place with just one round to go. He is the only player in the ten player world class field who is undefeated. All members of the Texas Tech Knight Raiders A team are taking part in this prestigious event. In addition to bringing tremendous positive worldwide publicity to Texas Tech and Lubbock, the SPICE Spring Invitational also serves as a valuable training event for our players as they are prepared to compete in the College Chess Final Four in Washington, DC in two weeks.

The final round will begin at 9:30 am today in room 201 at the Texas Tech English Building. The closing ceremony will take place at 2:30 pm.

Standings after 8 rounds

1-3. GM Kuljasevic, IM Naroditsky, FM Yang 5.5 (+3)
4. IM Esserman 4.5 (+1)
5-6. GM Bykhovsky, GM Diamant 4.0 (0)
7. IM Altounian 3.5 (-1)
8. IM Sipos 3.0 (-2)
9. SM Aleskerov 2.5 (-3)
10. IM Kleiman 2.0 (-4)

Norm scenario:

FM Darwin Yang already earned his 3rd and final IM norm. He needs to win last round for a GM norm
IM Naroditsky needs to win last round for a GM norm

March 16 9:30am
Final round 9

Diamant - Yang
Esserman - Naroditsky
Altounian - Kuljasevic
Bykhovsky – Aleskerov
Sipos - Kleiman

Closing ceremony: March 16 2:30pm

2011 SPICE Spring Invitational

The 2011 SPICE Spring Invitational, one of the most prestigious International Invitational Chess Tournaments in the United States, will take place from March 12 - 16, 2011 on the beautiful campus of Texas Tech University.

Time control: G/90 + 30 sec increment
Average rating: 2435+

1. SM Aleskerov, Faik 2324 FIDE - 2458 USCF (Azerbaijan)
2. FM Yang, Darwin 2416 FIDE - 2467 USCF (USA)
3. IM Naroditsky, Daniel 2438 FIDE - 2485 USCF (USA)
4. GM Kuljasevic, Davorin 2528 FIDE - 2558 USCF (Croatia)
5. IM Sipos, Istvan 2407 FIDE - 2458 USCF (Hungary)
6. IM Altounian, Levon 2432 FIDE - 2478 USCF (USA)
7. IM Esserman, Marc 2425 FIDE - 2530 USCF (USA)
8. GM Diamant, Andre 2520 FIDE - 2532 USCF (Brazil)
9. GM Bykhovsky, Anatoly 2517 FIDE - 2649 USCF (Israel)
10. IM Kleiman, Jake 2413 FIDE - 2470 USCF (USA)

SPICE Spring Invitational 2011 Schedule

Venue: TTU English Building, Room 201

Opening ceremony: March 12 9:30am

March 12 10:00am

Round 1
Aleskerov - Kleiman
Yang - Bykhovsky
Naroditsky - Diamant
Kuljasevic - Esserman
Sipos - Altounian

March 12 4:00pm

Round 2
Kleiman - Altounian
Esserman - Sipos
Diamant - Kuljasevic
Bykhovsky - Naroditsky
Aleskerov - Yang

March 13 10:00am

Round 3
Yang - Kleiman
Naroditsky - Aleskerov
Kuljasevic - Bykhovsky
Sipos - Diamant
Altounian - Esserman

March 13 4:00pm

Round 4
Kleiman - Esserman
Diamant - Altounian
Bykhovsky - Sipos
Aleskerov - Kuljasevic
Yang - Naroditsky

March 14 10:00am

Round 5
Naroditsky - Kleiman
Kuljasevic - Yang
Sipos – Aleskerov
Altounian - Bykhovsky
Esserman - Diamant

March 14 4:00pm

Round 6
Kleiman - Diamant
Bykhovsky - Esserman
Aleskerov - Altounian
Yang - Sipos
Naroditsky – Kuljasevic

March 15 10:00am

Round 7
Kuljasevic - Kleiman
Sipos - Naroditsky
Altounian - Yang
Esserman - Aleskerov
Diamant - Bykhovsky

March 15 4:00pm

Round 8
Kleiman - Bykhovsky
Aleskerov - Diamant
Yang - Esserman
Naroditsky - Altounian
Kuljasevic - Sipos

March 16 9:30am

Round 9
Sipos - Kleiman
Altounian - Kuljasevic
Esserman - Naroditsky
Diamant - Yang
Bykhovsky – Aleskerov

Closing ceremony: March 16 2:30pm

Hunting for norms

Major international chess event at Texas Tech during spring break
Posted: March 5, 2011 - 11:23pm

The 2011 SPICE Spring Invitational, one of the most prestigious International Invitational Chess Tournaments in the United States, will take place from March 12 - 16, 2011 on the beautiful campus of Texas Tech University.

In 2009, young International Master Robert Hess earned a Grandmaster norm at Texas Tech during the SPICE Spring Invitational. He completed his Grandmaster title shortly after that and his career has skyrocketed since. He is now one of the top players in this country.

In 2010, Darwin Yang, the top junior in Texas, earned his first International Master norm at the SPICE Spring Invitational. He followed it up with his 2nd International Master norm at the 2010 SPICE Cup. He is gunning for his final IM norm next Saturday.

We will once again have an all-star cast in this year's SPICE Spring Invitational.Here is the complete 10 player field:

GM = Grandmaster; IM = International Master; FM = FIDE Master; SM = Senior Master

GM Kuljasevic, Davorin 2528 FIDE - 2558 USCF (Croatia) - Texas Tech graduate student
GM Diamant, Andre 2520 FIDE - 2532 USCF (Brazil) - Texas Tech freshman
GM Bykhovsky, Anatoly 2517 FIDE - 2649 USCF (Israel) - Texas Tech freshman
IM Naroditsky, Daniel 2438 FIDE - 2485 USCF (USA) - Former Word Youth Champion
IM Altounian, Levon 2432 FIDE - 2478 USCF (USA) - Former North American Champion
IM Esserman, Marc 2425 FIDE - 2530 USCF (USA) - Former # 1 player from Harvard
FM Yang, Darwin 2416 FIDE - 2467 USCF (USA) - #1 junior in Texas
IM Kleiman, Jake 2413 FIDE - 2470 USCF (USA) - #1 junior in Tennessee
IM Sipos, Istvan 2407 FIDE - 2458 USCF (Hungary) - Texas Tech junior
SM Aleskerov, Faik 2324 FIDE - 2458 USCF (Azerbaijan) - Texas Tech graduate student

Tournament Schedule

March 12
9:30am Opening ceremony
10:00am Round 1
4:00pm Round 2

March 14
10:00am Round 3
4:00pm Round 4

March 15
10:00am Round 5
4:00pm Round 6

March 16
10:00am Round 7
4:00pm Round 8

March 17
9:30am Round 9
2:30pm Closing ceremony

This event is sponsored by Texas Tech University, SPICE, the Susan Polgar Foundation, and the Knight Raiders, etc.

Source: Avalanche Journal