This is a journalistic piece that I put together over a 4 day period during my attendance of the DC 32nd Annual Eastern Open tournament which contains my impressions on the atmosphere, operation of the tournament, play, and so on.
It's separated into 4 short journal entries(one or two were written the day after but reflected what I had experienced the previous day). I've modified the original wording I had written down on paper as I've transcribed it to the blog but the general content is still basically the same.
Day 1: The first day of the event left me with two losses but I enjoyed myself nonetheless.I felt like the tournament is being run smoothly and there appears to be a sizable turnout. The competition faced seemed strong so the games were stimulating and immensely enjoyable. I entered the skittles room in between rounds and was pleased to find a lively atmosphere where I was able to make acquaintance with a great bunch of guys who would look at games they had played in the tournament or from books together in between rounds.
Day 2: This day wasn't any more successful than the first since I didn't manage to win a single game but I had a hell of a time anyway so my spirits remained high.There was an interesting opposite colored bishop with one rook each endgame between GM Alexander Ivanov and a young master in the third round that I was able to catch the conclusion of.The material edge was in the young player's favor since Ivanov was down several pawns but he had the positional edge of a good dark squared bishop which controlled a splendid diagonal vs a bad light squared one with little scope as well as a protected passed pawn on the kingside so he was able to gain the point.
Day 3: I continued my losing streak but I ended up having a fun time analyzing the game Fischer-Taimanov from the 1970 Interzonal tournament that was held in Palma de Mallorca,Spain.It's always a pleasure to soak up the chess atmosphere with fellow enthusiasts of the game and I reveled in it when I was engaged in lively conversation with the aforementioned acquaintances.This event also has a superb chess vendor whose selection contains countless enticing books,DVD'S,and equipment! It made me wish I were rich but I know that not all chess study material is created equal so it's important to pick and choose for practical purposes but I am unapologetically materialistic when it comes to chess items ( :
Day 4: This day turned out to be the day when I finally managed to a gain a half point on the score table when I salvaged a draw from a tough position that I had managed to bring to an unclear rook ending. My opponent was kind enough to offer to anaylze the game afterwards and I accepted the invitation before heading off to a local pub for lunch. I was very content with my experience at the tournament despite not scoring well so I entered the 8th round in good spirits but was not paired correctly which was a slight blemish on what was otherwise a very well run tournament so I took a bye to be with family for my stepmother's birthday dinner.
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