CFCC June Tornado
Round 1, Arnold Banner (1918) (L) vs Tampa Bay's Darien B. (1499) (R), Arnold would go on to win clear 1st in the tornado after winning all his rounds!
Written by Terrance Washington, Tournament Director
What an exciting event! A perfect score, an upset in a game that didn't count for the standings, and players from 3 different countries. This was a unique format for CFCC Tornado being that it was a two day event and it was co-hosted with Orlando Chess Club. The tournament saw two players from Norway and one player from Korea.
In Round 1 we saw drama on Board 3. Not only was it a father vs son matchup between the two Norwegians, but we saw a dramatic ending as well. Gustav was beating his father Freddy for most of the round, however, when Freddy threatened mate in one, Gustav missed it and lost the game!
Our other matchups in Round 1 saw Arnold Banner winning against Darien Brown, Sajan Gutta winning against Daniel Min, with Chloe Min and Edward Yoon drawing their dramatic King and Pawn ending, where at some point Chloe probably was winning.
Round 2 saw massive drama in a game that didn't count towards the standings. Earning a full point bye due to an odd number of players, Daniel Min still wanted to play. So tournament director Terrance Washington jumped in for the rest of the tournament as a 'House Player'. This was a good decision for the excitement of the tournament.
This game saw missed mate in one, several times, due to time pressure. There were pawn promotions, hanging pieces, and a lost Queen when Terrance thought he had mated his opponent with two seconds on the clock. Lo and behold, the opposing Queen was defending the key e2 square and White converted his advantage!
The other games in the round saw Arnold Banner winning against Sajan Gutta with the battle of the two highest rated players in the field. It was a game in which Sajan tried to complicate the position due to having a disadvantage but Arnold was able to see through the forest and come out a few pawns ahead. He converted the endgame nicely.
Chloe Min defeated Freddy Hestholm, Cannon Farragut defeated Edward Yoon, and Gustav Hestholm defeated Darien Brown.
Round 3 saw Arnold Banner keeping his perfect score by defeating Cannon Farragut. Other games included Sajan Gutta drawing Chloe Min, Daniel Min defeating Gustav Hestholm, and Freddy Hestholm defeating Edward Yoon.
In the 'House Game' Terrance Washington defeated Darien Brown.
Round 4 saw Chloe Min having the only hope to take down the juggernaut and soon-to-be expert Arnold Banner. However, the game ended quickly in the decisive Sicilian Dragon variation and Arnold won with White allowing him to complete the tournament with a perfect 4 out of 4!
The other results saw Daniel Min and Freddy Hestholm having the longest game of the round. It was a game that was pivotal for 2nd place. Daniel won an exchange and converted the game to win clear 2nd place! Sajan played self proclaimed "angry chess" and was winning after 18 moves versus Gustav and Cannon Farragut defeated Darien Brown in a tactical battle of the two youngsters from Tampa!
In the 'House Game' Terrance Washington defeated Edward Yoon.
Final Standings
1st place: Arnold Banner 4/4 $100
2nd place: Daniel Min 3/4 $60
3rd place: Sajan Gutta and Cannon Farragut 2.5/4 $37.50
Under 1600: Chloe Min 2/4 $17.50
Under 1400: Freddy Hestholm 2/4 $17.50
Under 1200: Edward Yoon 1.5/4 $17.50
June 2018 Tornado Slideshow
