Sign Up for Closed Championship, Take Advantage of Chess Rate at Hotel

The chess rate for the Best Western and Comfort Inn (formerly the Augusta Civic Center Inn) is good until Friday, April 1. Take advantage of this promotion and be able to go to your room between rounds. The Closed Championship playing room is connected to this hotel and makes it very convenient for players.

Now is also the time to send in your registration for the State Closed Championship before rates rise on April 6. We are pleased to have the Championship centrally located and in April again. The prize fund ($540) is not as large as last year, but it is comparable to past events. It also provides a chance to become State Champion or win a class prize.

MECA Chess Player of the Year Standings

After three MECA Chess Player of the Year Events. Here are the current standings:

Lance Beloungie 17.0
Roger Morin 15.5
Steve Abrahams 7.5
Yuri Riabkov 7.0
Tom Sandford 6.5
Rob Shore 5.5
Aaron Spencer 3.0

Players receive one point for each round played in a Chess Player of the Year event plus the score received in the tournament minus any half-point byes.

The remaining events are the State Closed Championship (5 rounds/2 days), two South Portland events, the Chessmaine.net Championships (4 rd/1 day), and the Eastern Maine Open (4 rd/1 day). Players must be MECA members and play in the open section of these events to qualify for the competition. Check the events page of chessmaine.net for specifics of the above events.