Greater Peoria Chess Foundation


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The Greater Peoria Chess Foundation is a 501(c)3 non profit organization dedicated to encouraging chess in our community and school systems. Chess helps students to develop many life skills that will help them as they navigate with challenges that lay ahead.


Scholastic Chess Scholarship Tour The 2024-25 school schedule features our new Grand Prix Chess Tour program that offers scholarships for some lucky players to attend the USCF K-8 Championships in Bloomington or the Nationals in Orlando, Florida at the end of the chess season. Learn how you can paticipate and perhaps win a trip to the Nationals at Orlando, Click ==> here <== and get all the details.


Former Peoria player, Elbert Fang, has attatained the rating of USCF Master, 2200, at the Queen City Prairie Open in Fort Worth, Texas with a win over Sharvesh R Deviprasath (2545). See the game here.
Congratulations Elbert!!!


Tournaments

Hult Online Play

The Hult Youth Chess Club (K-12) will meet online every Friday night at 6:30 on Zoom with a 7pm tournament on chess.com. You can join us by using these links:

Friday November 15th 2024

6:30 pm: Zoom Meeting 147 555 122

7:00 pm: Hult Chess Club @chess.com tournament 5224697 .

Registration starts at 6pm, but the games won't start until 7pm on Friday.
See you online soon!

Peoria Area Tournaments
Click the > marker for the article, the name for recent results or announcement, and the Archive for previous years results)

> Bradley Winter Open Archive
The Bradley Winter Open is held in the Winter of each year, usually in January just after the students return to campus following the year end holidays and break. The goal is to provide a high quality tournament with strong competition to allow club players from the central Illinois area to mix and play games with Masters and other strong players. A large prize fund is provided to draw top players. Players are divided into 2 Sections. Anyone can play in the Open Section giving everyone a opportunity to play against a Master. The reserve is restricted to players rated 1400 or below to provide competitive games for everyone
> Greater Peoria Open Archive
The Greater Peoria Open is held in the Spring of each year. The goal is to provide a high quality tournament with strong competition to allow club players from the central Illinois area to mix and play games with Masters and other strong players. A large prize fund is provided to draw top players. Players are divided into 2 Sections. Anyone can play in the Open Section giving everyone a opportunity to play against a Master. The reserve is restricted to players rated 1400 or less to provide competitive games for everyone.
> Bradley Summer Open Archive
The Bradley Summer Open is the longest running college sponsored chess tournament in the country. It is held in the summer of each year, usually in August just as students return to campus following the summer hiatus. Our goal is to provide a high quality tournament with strong competition to allow club players from the central Illinois area to mix and play games with Masters and other strong players. A large prize fund is provided to draw top players. Players are divided into 2 Sections. Anyone can play in the Open Section giving everyone a opportunity to play against a Master. The reserve is restricted to players rated 1400 or below to provide competitive games for everyone

> Illinois All Grade
> All Grade Logo

The Illinois All Grade tournament crowns state individual and teams champions for each grade level. This state tournament is usually held in November and rotates between the Chicago metro area and central Illinois with downstate tournaments ocurring in the odd numbered years. Peoria has held the All Grade in 2011, 2015, 2017, 2019 & 2021.

Last year's All Grade tournament was held November 13th 2021, at Peoria at the Civic Center. The next one appears downstate in 2023. We hope to bid on it once again and bring it to Peoria. Results are posted elsewhere, just click on the All Grade name when you see it.

> Peoria Championship Archive

Although the Peoria Championship has been held for many years, there are times when the tournament was inactive and times where the records of previous champions have been lost. Since 1997, the Greater Peoria Chess Federation has run a championship every year, except 2020 during the Covid pandemic.

The Championship is an invitational event. Invitations are given to the defending champion and to top finishers in club & weekend tournaments. Qualifications are listed here. Since the list was started in 1997, Mike Leali is the leader with 8 titles.

> Peoria Speed Championship

2022 wss the first year of the official Peoria Speed Championship. The tournament format has been has been used for many years as an unofficial championship with crazy names like Pound Pete, Maul Mike etc where Pete and Mike were the rigning champions. Some years saw mul;tiple cha,pions; other years saw no speed tournamnets being held.

This coming year we are adding a new feature, the tournament will be rated with USCF Quick & Blitz ratings.

Scholastics

> Brimfield
2022 will be the sixth Brimfield Invitational. There are 6 separate unrated tournaments for grades K-5, 6th Grade, 7th Grade, 8th Grade individual sections and a High School Team Tournament with an open section. Both individual and team prizes will be given for the top team scores. Last year's event had a record 309 attendees. Brimfield's chess coach and tournament organizer is Robert Bernales.

> Peoria Academy

Peoria Academy's chess program began the first year the school opened it's doors in 2000 when the program was started by Mike Leali. PA holds both spring and fall events and sponsors a summer chess camp and camp tournament as well.
> Riverview

2020 will be the fifth Riverview's schlastic chess tournament for grades K-8. This tournament consists of 4 Divisions: Elementary K-5, Middle School/Junior High 6, 7 and 8th Grades. Riverview's chess coach and tournament organizer is Robert Blackburn. We look forward to seeing you at the tournament at Riverview School on Route 26 in north East Peoria.
> St Mary's
2023 will be the sixth St Mary's Winter Classic chess tournament for grades K-8. This tournament consists of 4 Divisions: Elementary K-5, Middle School/Junior High 6, 7 and 8th Grades. (Students may play up, so please register for the division the student is to compete. St.Mary's chess coach and tournament organizer is Amy Eckstein. We look forward to seeing you at the tournament at St Mary's school in Metamora on Saturday January 14th.

> Tazewell County Archive
The Tazewell County Tournament for grades 3-8. It is now in it's 42nd year, is one of the state's longest running unrated scholastic tournaments. It draws over 100 players every year thanks to the continuing hard work of Jolly Webb and Jim Vernon.
> Mark Bills

2020 marks the third Von Steuben Winter chess tournament for grades K-8. This tournament consists of 4 Divisions: Lower Primary K-1, Upper Primary 2-3, Elementary 4-5 & Junior High 6-8. (Students may play up, so please register for the division the student is to compete. Von Steuben's chess coach and tournament organizer is Emily Dawson.

We look forward to seeing you at the tournament at Von Steuben school in Peoria on Saturday February 3rd.

> IESA

The Illinois Elementary School Association holds it's yearly tournament every February at the Peoria Civic Center. Although there is no direct affiliation between the GPCF and the IESA, the GPCF cooperates in making the Illinois Elementary School Championship a success. We provide a number of directors and scorekeepers for the IESA run tournament. Many of the local students who participate have been schooled by GPCF coaches or attended the Hult Chess Club. The GPCF provides sets and boards for the IESA state tournament.

> IHSA

The Illinois High School Association holds it's yearly tournament every February at the Peoria Civic Center. Although there is no direct affiliation between the GPCF and the IHSA, the GPCF cooperates in making the Illinois High School Championship a success. We provide a number of directors and scorekeepers for the IHSA run tournament. Many of the local students who participate have been schooled by GPCF coaches or attended the Hult Chess Club.





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Chess Underground

- with Pete Karagianis


Aphorisms
Play what you Know, Know what you Play.

- Murrel's Mottoes

Every move should have a purpose.

- Bruce Pandolfini

When you see a good move, look again, there may be a better one.

- Emanuel Lasker

A Knight on the Rim is Dim.

- Chess Proverb

Chess is everything: art, science and sport.

- Anatoly Karpov

Every move should have a Touch of Poison.

- Murrel's Mottoes

3 ways out of check: move, capture & block.

- Chess Fact

[Chess] Computers are useless unless they can give you the answer.

- Pablo Picasso

First, Study the Endgame.

- Jose Capablanca

To Succeed, you must brave the Risk of Failure.

- Garry Kasparov

Every Chess Master was once a Beginner.

- Irving Chernev

Without Error there can be no Brilliancy

- Emanuel Lasker

Strategy requires Thought, Tactics requires Observation.

- Max Euwe

The Way to Refute a Sacrifice is to Accept It.

- Wilhelm Steinitz

The Two Questions: 1 - Is it Safe? 2 - What can My Opponent Do?
Questions that scale from Beginner to Master.

- Murrel's Mottoes

When Behind, Exchange Pawns. When Ahead, Exchange Pieces.

- Chess Proverb

In the Opening, Don't move the Same Piece Twice.

- Chess Proverb

In the Opening, you must Control the Center, Develop your Small pieces & Castle for King Safety

- Chess Proverb

Rooks belong Behind Passed Pawns.

- Chess Proverb

The Pin is Mightier than the Sword.

- Fred Reinfeld

people place too much stock in Ratings.

- Boris Gelfand

Once the Game is Over, the King and the pawn go back in the Same Box.

- Chess Proverb

I don’t believe in Psychology. I believe in Good Moves.

- Bobby Fischer

Chess is the gymnasium of the mind.

- Blaise Pascal

The Game of Chess is not merely an Idle Amusement.

- Benjamin Franklin

Chess, like Love, like Music, has the Power to Make Men Happy.

- Siegbert Tarrasch

Play the Opening like a Book, the Middlegame like a Magician, and the Endgame like a Machine.

- Rudolph Spielmann

Even a poor plan is better than no plan at all.

- Mikhail Chigorin (also often credited to Frank Marshall)

Tactics is knowing what to do when there is something to do;
Strategy is knowing what to do when there is nothing to do.

- Savielly Tartakower

You may learn much more from a game you lose than from a game you win.

- Jose Raul Capablanca

You will have to lose hundreds of games before becoming a good player.

- Jose Raul Capablanca

The Passed Pawn is a Criminal, who should be kept under Lock and Key.

- Aron Nimzowitsch

Modern Chess is too much concerned with things like Pawn Structure.
Forget it, Checkmate ends the Game.

- Nigel Short

Nobody ever won a Chess game by Resigning.

- Savielly Tartakower

To play for a draw is a crime against chess.

- Mikhail Tal

It’s always better to sacrifice your opponent’s men.

- Savielly Tartakower

If your opponent offers you a draw,
try to work out why he thinks he’s worse off.

- Nigel Short

A Pawn may be Weak, but he Never Backs Down.

- Murrel's Mottoes

All I want to do, ever, is just play Chess.

- Bobby Fischer

Even the laziest King flees wildly in the face of a double check!

- Aron Nimzowitsch

Loose Pieces Drop Off.

- John Nunn

Every Check, Every Capture, Every Time.

- Murrel's Mottoes

You must beat me three times: in the opening, the middlegame and the endgame.

- Alexander Alekhine

Chess of the Mad Queen began in the 15th century between 1475 & 1500
The Queen previously, called the Counselor, moved 1 square like our King.

- Chess History

I believe there should be no reason why women cannot play as well as men.

- Grandmaster Susan Polgar

The Pawn's Weakness is its Strength.

- Murrel's Mottoes

To Take is a Mistake.

- Igor Smirnov

You can't Play what You don't See.

- Murrel's Mottoes

It is not a move, even the best move that you must seek, but a realizable plan.

- Eugene Znosko-Borovsky

Number of possible ways of playing the first four moves for both sides is 318,979,564,000

- Chess Fact

Good players know all the rules. Great players know when to break them.

- Chess Proverb

There are two types of sacrifices: correct ones and mine

- Mikhail Tal

There are exceptions to every chess axiom, including this one.

- Murrel's Mottoes

The New Pawn Move, advancing two squares on its first move, was introduced in Spain in 1280.

- Chess History

The Triangle of Learning includes Study, Play, Feedback.

- Dan Heisman

The Queen's Strength is her Weakness.
(She must flee exchanges with smaller pieces)

- Murrel's Mottoes

One bad move nullifies forty good ones.

- Bernhard Horwitz

Always play with Confidence, Aggression, and Respect for Your Opponent's Moves and Ideas.

- Dan Heisman

Respect Your Opponent, remember they qualified to play on the Same Board as You.

- Murrel's Mottoes

Capture with the Least Valuable Piece
(but there ARE exceptions!)

- Chess Proverb

Win with Grace, Lose with Dignity!

- Susan Polgar

Don't worry about your rating, work on your playing strength and your rating will follow.

- Dan Heisman

"Learn from Your Mistakes & Keep on Improving"

- Susan Polgar

"You must take your opponent into a deep dark forest where 2+2=5 and the path leading out is only wide enough for one."

- Mikhail Tal

Castle early, castle often.

- Chess Proverb

The Blunders are all there on the Board, Waiting to be Made.

- Savielly Tartakower

On the Chessboard, Lies and Hypocrisy do not Survive Long.

- Emanuel Lasker

Chess is like Life.

- Boris Spassky

I don't think there is a thing like Overconfidence in Chess.
It's always better to be too Confident than too Reluctant.

- Magnus Carlsen

Believe in Yourself Regardless of what Everyone else Says.

- Hikaru Nakamura

How Come the Little Things bother you when you are in a Bad Position
They don't bother you in Good Positions.

- Yasser Seirawan

It is not enough to be a good player... you must also play well.

- Siegbert Tarrasch

Lack of patience is probably the most common reason for losing a game, or drawing games that should have been won.

- Bent Larsen

The pawns are the soul of chess

- François André Philidor

In Chess, as it is played by masters, chance is practically eliminated.

- Emanuel Lasker

Life is a kind of Chess, with struggle, competition, good and ill events.

- Benjamin Franklin

One pawn is never enough if the other King is standing in front of the pawn.

- Ainis Giri

It is dangerous to maintain equality at the cost of placing the pieces passively.

- Anatoly Karpov

Chess is the art which expresses the science of logic.

- Mikhail Botvinnik

He who plays to win a drawn game loses it.

- Chess Player’s Magazine, August 1867

The sign of a great Master is his ability to win a won game quickly and painlessly.

- Irving Chernev

Chess is the gymnasium of the mind.

- Adolf Anderssen

Strategy is the tiebreak of equally safe moves.

- Dan Heisman

Hope Chess is when you don't analyze your opponent's checks, captures or threats
and when he makes one, you hope you can meet it.

- Dan Heisman

When it comes to rules, never listen to your opponent.

- Dan Heisman

"Knights before Bishops" generally means "NBNB", not "NNBB", so you can castle more quickly.

- Dan Heisman

Never make a good move too soon.

- James Mason

Never interrupt your opponent when he is making a mistake.

- Napoleon Bonaparte

Every move creates a weakness.

- Siegbert Tarrasch

You need not play well - just help your opponent to play badly.

- Genrikh Chepukaitis

Avoidance of mistakes is the beginning, as it is the end, of mastery in chess.

- Eugene Znosko-Borovsky

Picking a coach because they were a good player is like picking a chef because he's a good eater

- Paul Reddick

The highest art of the chessplayer lies in not allowing your opponent to show you what he can do. - Garry Kasparov

- Garry Kasparov

Some part of a mistake is always correct.

- Savielly Tartakower

Try to maintain at least one pawn in the center.

- Chess Proverb

The placing of the center pawns determines the 'topography' of a game of chess.

- Alexander Kotov

If a ruler does not understand Chess, how can he rule over a kingdom?

- Persian King Khusrow II (AD 580-628)

Fischer almost never has any bad pieces. He exchanges them, and the bad pieces remain with his opponents.

– Yuri Balashov

It is not possible to become a great player without having learned how to analyze deeply and accurately.

– Mark Dvoretsky

Combinations with a queen sacrifice are among the most striking and memorable.

- Anatoly Karpov

Not all artists are Chess players, but all Chess players are artists.

- Marcel Duchamp

Openings teach you openings. Endgames teach you chess!

- Stephan Gerzadowicz

They call it blitz. Each guy gets five minutes so you’re always under the clock and it’s kind of an adrenaline rush.

- Woody Harrelson (Actor)

To play for a draw, at any rate with White, is to some degree a crime against chess.

- Mikhail Tal

Even in the heat of a middlegame battle the master still has to bear in mind the outlines of a possible future ending.

- David Bronstein

To avoid losing a piece, many a person has lost the game.

- Savielly Tartakover

Chess is life and every game is like a new life.

- Eduard Gufeld

Chess is a matter of delicate judgement, knowing when to punch and how to duck.

- Bobby Fischer

A man that will take back a move at Chess will pick a pocket.

- Richard Fenton

If your opponent offers you a draw, try to work out why he thinks he's worse off.

- Nigel Short

All Combinations are Based on a Double Attack.

- Murrel's Mottoes

Pinned Pieces don't Capture (mostly true)

- Murrel's Mottoes

I have found that after 1.d4 there are more opportunities for richer play.

- Garry Kasparov

Get the Knights into Action before Both Bishops are Developed.

- Emanuel Lasker

Chess is the touchstone of intellect.

- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

A computer once beat me at chess, but it was no match for me at kick boxing.

- Emo Philips

Chess is a cure for headaches.

- John Maynard Keynes

A good player is always lucky.

- Jose Raul Capablanca

Chess is 99% tactics.

- Rudolph Teichmann

The essential disadvantage of the isolated pawn ...
lies not in the pawn itself,
but in the square in front of the pawn.

- Richard Reti

Think First. Move Second.

- Murrel's Mottoes

Try to play after your opponent has eaten or drunk freely.

- Luis Ramírez de Lucena (c. 1465 – c.1530)

A Gambit never becomes sheer routine as long as you fear you may lose the King and P ending!

- Bent Larsen

Good positions don’t win games, good moves do.

- Gerald Abrahams

Only sissies Castle.

- Rob Sillars

The first principle of attack - don't let the enemy develop!

- Rueben Fine

The first principle of attack - don't let the enemy develop!

- Rueben Fine

Play the move that forces the win in the simplest way.
Leave the brilliancies to Alekhine, Keres and Tal.

- Irving Chernev

Weak points or holes in the opponent's position must be occupied by pieces, not pawns

- Siegbert Tarrasch

It is said that an ounce of common sense can outweigh a ton of 'variations'.

- Savielly Tartakower

Good players develop a tactical instinct, a sense of what is possible or likely and what is not worth calculating.

- Samuel Reshevsky

The path from a1 to a8 is the same length as the path from a1 to h8.

- Chess Facts

In the Ruy Lopez, one must be patient, wait and carry on a lengthy and wearisome struggle.

- Boris Spassky

The scheme of a game is played on positional lines; the decision of it, as a rule, is effected by combinations.

- Richard Reti

A pawn, when separated from his fellows, will seldom or never make a fortune.

- Francois-Andre Danican Philidor

I have always disliked the fierce competitive spirit embodied in that highly intellectual game.

- Albert Einstein

When you defend, try not to worry or become upset.
Keep your cool and trust your position - it's all you've got.

- Pal Benko

A player surprised is half beaten.

- Chess Proverb

"Chess beauty" is in the geometry of the game, and the struggle of plans.

- Levon Aronian

A win by an unsound combination, however showy, fills me with artistic horror.

- Wilhelm Steinitz

A Queen's sacrifice, even when fairly obvious, always rejoices the heart of the chess-lover.

- Savielly Tartakower

Excellence at Chess is one mark of a scheming mind.

- Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

There's not the mystery in ten murders that there is in one game of chess.

- Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

He who analyses blitz is stupid.

- Rashid Nezhmetdinov

Don't be afraid of losing, be afraid of playing a game and not learning something.

- Dan Heisman

Every Exchange has a Winner and Loser.

- Murrel's Mottoes

Chess is eminently and emphatically the philospher's game.

- Paul Morphy

Life's too short for Chess.

- Henry James Byron

Pawn endings are to chess what putting is to golf.

- Cecil Purdy

Daring ideas are like Chess men moved forward. They may be beaten, but they may start a winning game.

- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

A strong memory, concentration, imagination, and a strong will is required to become a great chess player.

- Bobby Fischer

If you're too busy to play chess... you're too busy!

- Chess Fact

Discovered check is the dive bomber of the chess board.

- Rueben Fine

Drawn games are sometimes more scintillating than any conclusive contest.

- Savielly Tartakower

A draw can be obtained not only by repeating moves, but also by one weak move.

- Savielly Tartakower

Chess is a test of wills.

- Paul Keres

Youth has triumphed! (upon defeating 86-year-old Dirk van Foreest)

- 84-year-old Jacques Mieses

My style is somewhere between that of Tal and Petrosian.

- Samuel Reshevsky

Haste is never more dangerous than when you feel that victory is in your grasp.

- Eugene Znosko-Borovsky

Fischer is an American Chess tragedy on par with Morphy and Pillsbury.

- Mig Greengard

Pay particular attention to the f2-and f7-squares.

- Novice Warning

Attack! Attack! Always Attack!

- Adolf Anderssen

Blitz Chess rots the brain just as surely as alcohol.

- Nigel Short

Only the player with the initiative has the right to attack.

- Wilhelm Steinitz

I often play a move I know how to refute.

- Bent Larsen

Chess is war over the board. The object is to crush the opponents mind.

- Bobby Fischer

I like the moment when I break a man's ego.

- Bobby Fischer

Many have become chess masters, but no one has become the master of chess.

- Siegbert Tarrasch

As a rule, pawn endings have a forced character, and they can be worked out conclusively.

- Mark Dvoretsky

Tactics flow from a superior position.

- Bobby Fischer

Chess is so inspiring that I do not believe a good player is capable of haviong an evil thought during the game.

- Wilhelm Steinitz

One day you give your opponent a lesson, the next day he gives you one.

- Bobby Fischer

To win without pawns, you must be a rook or two minor pieces ahead.

- Chess Proverb

The best defense is a counterattack.

- Chess Proverb

If you don't win, it's not a great tragedy - the worst that happens is that you lose a game.

- Bobby Fischer

Let the perfectionist play postal.

- Yasser Seirawan

The hardest part of chess is winning a won game.

- Frank Marshall

A bad day of Chess is better than any good day at work.

- Chess Proverb

During a game I cease to think about the result as I become so enthralled by what’s happening on the board.

- Magnus Carlsen

Sit your opponent with the sun in his eyes.

- Ruy Lopez (1561)

The most important role in pawn endings is played by the king.

- Siegbert Tarrasch

We cannot resist the fascination of sacrifice, since a passion for sacrifices is part of a Chessplayer’s nature.

- Rudolf Spielmann

You can permit yourself any liberty in the opening except the luxury of a passive position.

- Grigory Sanakoev

Chess is intellectual gymnastics.

- Wilhelm Steinitz

When chess masters err, ordinary wood pushers tend to derive a measure of satisfaction, if not actual glee.

- I.A. Horowitz

Can you imagine the relief it gives a mother when her child amuses herself quietly for hours on end?

- Klara Polgar

Every pawn is a potential queen.

- James Mason

GM Naiditsch reckoned that me playing the King's Indian against Anand
was something akin to a samurai running at a machine gun with a sword.

- Hikaru Nakamura

One of the objectives of opening play is to try to surprise your opponent.

- Edmar Mednis

If you Sacrifice, Know exactly What you Expect to Get in Return.

- Murrel's Mottoes

Centralize your pieces to make them powerful.

- Chess Proverb

Chess is a struggle against error.

- Johannes Zukertort

A rook on the seventh rank is sufficient compensation for a pawn.

- Chess Proverb

I prefer to lose a really good game than to win a bad one.

- David Levy

Help your Pieces so they can Help You.

- Paul Morphy

Never Waste a Check!

- Murrel's Mottoes

In the endgame, activate your King.

- Chess Proverb

Imagine 20 extra minutes 3 days/week for 16 weeks = 16 hours! No chance you don't get better doing that.

- David Klein

A strong memory, concentration, imagination, and a strong will is required to become a great chess player.

- Bobby Fischer

A strength over extended becomes a weakness.

- Paul Reddick

Chess is thirty to forty percent psychology. You don't have this when you play a computer. I can't confuse it.

- Judit Polgar

In the ending the King is a powerful piece for assisting his own pawns, or stopping the adverse pawns.

- Wilhelm Steinitz

A player who has a strong center has nothing to fear from any attack elsewhere on the board.

- Wilhelm Steinitz

One doesn't have to play well, it's enough to play better than your opponent.

- Siegbert Tarrasch

The essence of chess is thinking about what chess is.

- David Bronstein

The endgame is an arena in which miraculous escapes are not uncommon.

- Leonid Shamkovich

Never a mate with a knight on f8.

- Chess Proverb

Try to play after your opponent has eaten or drunk freely.

- Luis Ramírez de Lucena (c. 1465 – c.1530)

I know that with perfect play, God versus God, Fritz versus Fritz, chess is a draw ...

- Nigel Short

No matter how much theory progresses, how radically styles change, chess play is inconceivable without tactics.

- Samuel Reshevsky

We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.

- Aristotle

Amateurs practice until they can get it right,
Masters practice until they can't get it wrong.

- Murrel's Mottoes

Neither knowing nothing about openings nor trying to memorize entire books/databases can be the right approach.
Learn your main tabiyas;
After each game, try to find the one opening move you would improve next time.

- Dan Heisman

Take pride in your ugly wins - you didn't give up!

- Murrel's Mottoes

Good offense and good defense both begin with good development.

- Bruce A. Moon

Leave the pawns alone,except for center pawns and passed pawns.

- Chess Proverb

When ahead in Material, Exchange Pieces, specially Queens.

- Chess Proverb

Masters learn Structures, Club Players learn Moves.

- Damian Lemos

The goal of doing easy problems is not to solve them, but to recognize them quickly & accurately.

- Dan Heisman

In blitz, the knight is stronger than the bishop.

- GM Vlastmil Hort

Chess is a game which reflects most honor on human wit.

- Voltaire

No Pawn Exchanges, No File-opening, No Attack.

- Aaron Nimzowitsch

An ounce of common sense can outweigh a ton of 'variations'.

- Savielly Tartakower

Apart from direct mistakes, there is nothing more ruinous than routine play, the aim of which is mechanical development.

- GM Alexei Suetin

Mistrust is the most necessary characteristic of the chess player.

- Siegbert Tarrasch

These young guys are playing checkers. I'm out there playing chess.

- Kobe Bryant

Chess holds its master in its own bonds, shaking the mind and brain so that the inner freedom of the very strongest must suffer.

- Albert Einstein

The king is a strong piece - use it !

- Rueben Fine

Concentrate on material gains. Whatever your opponent gives you take, unless you see a good reason not to.

- Bobby Fischer

The defensive power of a pinned piece is only imaginary.

- Aaron Nimzovich

… a lively imagination can exercise itself most fully and creatively in conjuring up magnificent combinations.

- Siegbert Tarrasch

If you play the Caro-Kann when you’re young, what are you going to play when you’re older?

– Bent Larsen

The Future belongs to he who has the Bishops.

- Siegbert Tarrasch

If you are too busy to play chess... you are too busy.

- Chess Proverb

In order to truly improve you must analyze & evaluate better

- Dan Heisman

Every move is an opportunity to interfere with your opponent's plans

- Chess Proverb

Avoid piece exchanges when you control more squares.

- Chess Proverb

A draw can be obtained not only by repeating moves, but also by one weak move.

- Savielly Tartakower

Doubled, Isolated, and Backward Pawns are Ugly Pawns. You don't want Ugly Pawns.

- Murrel's Mottoes

The quickest way to increase your rating is by improving your weakest skill.

- Damian Lemos

Improving your chess requires daily practice.

- IM John Bartholomew

Think First, Move Second.

- Murrel's Mottoes

A target is any unprotected piece or a piece that is inadequately protected.

- Murrel's Mottoes

The Queen must use her Bishop powers to attack a Rook and her Rook powers to attack a Bishop.

- Murrel's Mottoes

If not a composer, I would have wanted to be a chess player

- Ennio Morricone

Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity.

- Seneca

Good development places every piece on it's optimum square without impeding other pieces.

- Murrel's Mottoes

Bishop and Knight - three pawns, Rook - 5 pawns, Queen - 9 pawns, King Safety, Priceless!

- Master Card

Apart from direct mistakes, there is nothing more ruinous than routine play, the aim of which is mechanical development.

- GM Alexei Suetin

We must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope.

- Martin Luther King Jr

Cultivation to the mind is as necessary as food to the body.

- Cicero

There must have been a time when men were demi-gods - or they could not have invented chess.

- Gustav Schenk

King Safety is Job #1

- Murrel's Mottoes (Thanks Ford)

The criterion of real strength is a deep penetration into the secrets of a position.

- Tigran Petrosian

Remember, my darling, the most dangerous thing for the family life is – chess!

- 1925 Russian silent film 'Chess Fever'

The older I grow, the more I value pawns.

- Paul Keres

Chess is imagination.

- David Bronstein

Fischer is Fischer, but a Knight is a Knight!

- Mikhail Tal

A chess player never has a heart attack in a good position.

- Bent Larsen

Checkers is for tramps.

- Paul Morphy

Hardest move to find is moving the Knight backwards

- Vassily Ivanchuk

Every exchange has a Winner and a Loser, even if only measureable in micropawns.

- Murrel's Mottoes

Any material change in a position must come about by mate, a capture, or a Pawn - promotion.

- Cecil Purdy

The harder you work, the luckier you get.

- Gary Player

I feel as if I were a pinned piece in a game of chess, when my opponent says of it: That piece cannot be moved.

- Soren Kierkegaard

In Chess, just as in life, today’s bliss may be tomorrow’s poison.

- Assaic

The hallmark of the artist is simplicity.

- Larry Evans

For a game chess is too serious, for seriousness too much of a game.

- Moses Mendelssohn (1729-86)

However hopeless the situation appears there always exists the possibility of putting up a stubborn resistance.

- Paul Keres

Some people think that if their opponent plays a beautiful game, it's okay to lose. I don't. You have to be merciless.

- Magness Carlson

Mountains don't make me want to climb them, rain doesn't make me want to dance and birds don't make me want to fly. I just want to spend my life in total oblivion, chasing a meaningless lichess rating, feeling a tinge of happiness everytime I win, and great frustration when I lose.

- Anurag Malik

Bishops never change their square color; Knights change their color every move.

- Chess Fact

Knights can never fork two pieces which are on opposite colored squares.

- Chess Fact

you might resign too early, but never too late!

- GM Avetik Grigoryan

Winning isn't everything … but losing is nothing.

- Edmar Mednis

Castling is a King move.

- Chess Fact

The important thing is to learn a lesson every time you lose.

- John McEnroe

Losing is a learning experience. It teaches you humility. It teaches you to work harder. It's also a powerful motivator.

- Yogi Berra

Life is like a game of chess, changing with each move.

- Chess Proverb

Every pawn move creates a weakness.

- Chess Proverb

Every rule of chess play is position dependent.

- Murrel's Mottoes

Magic is believing in yourself, if you can do that, you can make anything happen

- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

A frequently changed strategy is the same as no strategy.

- Garry Kasparov

The turning point in my career came with the realization that Black should play to win instead of just steering for equality.

- Bobby Fischer

He who takes the Queen’s Knight’s Pawn will sleep in the streets.

- Chess Proverb

Of all the drugs in the world, Chess must be the most permanently pleasurable.

- Assiac

Straightforward actions generally lead to engagement, surprising actions generally lead to victory.

- Sun Tzu

Strategy without tactics is the slowest route to victory. Tactics without strategy is the noise before defeat.

- Sun Tzu

The whole secret lies in confusing the enemy so that he cannot fathom our real intent..

- Sun Tzu

Ask yourself at every move, is this necessary?

- Marcus Aurelius

what is chess style but the intangible expression of the will to win.

- Aaron Nimzowitsch

In order to improve your game, you must study the endgame before everything else.

- Jose Raul Capablanca

A Chess game is divided into three stages: the first, when you hope you have the advantage, the second when you believe you have an advantage, and the third… when you know you’re going to lose!

- Savielly Tartakower

Chess demands total concentration

- Bobby Fischer

Respect your opponent. He was assigned to the same board as you.

- Murrel's Mottoes

Do not regard your Opponent as a Sheep, but rather as a Wolf.

- Chess Proverb

Take care of the King, everything else follows.

- Life of a King

No fool can play chess, and only fools do.

- Chess Proverb

It is never safe to take the queen knight pawn with the queen – even when it is safe.

- Chess Proverb

Capture first and philosophize later.

- Savielly Tartakover

Champions play to win while others play not to lose!

- Susan Polgar

I like when the game turns into a contest of ideas and not a battle between home analysis.

- Magnus Carlson

I hated every minute of training, but I said, ‘Don’t quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion.'

– Muhammad Ali

The power of coaching is that you are expected to give people the path to find answers, not the answers.

– Tom Mahalo

A double Check is so terrifying that all the pieces are frozen in place and only a true King can move.

– Murrel's Mottoes

After a bad Opening, there is hope for the middle game.
After a bad middle game, there is hope for the endgame.
Butonce you are in the endgame,
the moment of truth has arrived!

– Edmar Mednis

Chess is not something that drives people sane mad; it is something that keeps mad people sane.

– William Hartston

In chess, as in life, a man is his own most dangerous opponent.

– Vasily Smyslov

A knight on e6 e6 is like a rusty nail in the knee.

– Adolf Anderssen

Chess is a test of wills.

– Paul Keres

Chess is a meritocracy.

– Lawrence Day

Chess is a cure for headaches.

– John Maynard Keynes

The only good Rook is an active Rook!

– Samuel Reshevsky

In the ending, the King is a powerful piece for assisting his own pawns, or stopping the adverse pawns

– Wilhelm Steinitz

Every game is immortal if you have the pgn!

– Murrel's Mottoes

If you can play checmate. Play Checkmate!

– Murrel's Mottoes

If you have only one legal move, play it quickly and think on your opponent's time!

– Murrel's Mottoes

It is usually better to recapture than it is to capture first.

– Murrel's Mottoes

To take is a mistake.

– Murrel's Mottoes

Don't exchange pieces or pawns unless you get the better of the trade.

– Murrel's Mottoes

Time is a precious thing. Never waste it.

– Willy Wonka

Mistakes are part of the game. It's how well you recover from them, that's the mark of a great player.

- Alice Cooper

I just try to learn and get the best from the great masters, contemparary and from the past.

- Magnus Carlsen

A pawn, when separated from his fellows, will seldom or never make a fortune.

- Francois-Andre Danican Philidor

We don't stop playing because we grow old. We grow old because we stop playing.

- George Bernard Shaw

Try to play after your opponent has eaten or drunk freely.

- Luis Ramírez de Lucena (c. 1465 – c.1530)

The beauty of a move lies not in its appearance but in the thought behind it.

- Aaron Nimzowitsch

The combination player thinks forward; he starts from the given position, and tries the forceful moves in his mind.

- Emanuel Lasker

If every time you lose, you learn the cause of your loss and make a positive correction, you will soon be a good player.

- Dan Heisman

Pace yourself so that, no matter the time limit, you always use almost all your time each game without getting into unnecessary time pressure

- Dan Heisman

If Winning, Clarify; if Losing, Complicate

- Shakhriyar Mamedyarov

Chess first of all teaches you to be objective.

- Alexander Alekhine

It cannot be too greatly emphasized that the most important role in pawn endings is played by the king.

- Siegbert Tarrasch

You must surprise your opponent and play a move he did not expect, if you are to win a game.

- Murrel's Mottoes

No move can be a brilliancy if it is not played.

- Murrel's Mottoes (with a Hat Tip to Neals Bohr)

Never capture a piece that helps your opponent develop.

- Danny Rensch

Patience is the most valuable trait of the endgame player.

- Pal Benko

Before the endgame, the gods have placed the middlegame!

- Siegbert Tarrasch

The middlegame is chess itself; with all its possibilities, its attacks, defenses, sacrifices, etc

- Eugene Znosko-Borovsky

The path to improvement lies in facing our problems head-on.

- GM Avetik Grigoryan

The middlegame is chess itself; with all its possibilities, its attacks, defenses, sacrifices, etc

- Eugene Znosko-Borovsky

If you learn from defeat, you haven't really lost.

- Zig Zigler

Chess is the touchstone of intellect.

- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Chess is a cure for headaches.

- John Maynard Keynes

Strategy without tactics is the slowest route to victory. Tactics without strategy is the noise before defeat.

- Sun Tzu

As a chess player one has to be able to control one’s feelings, one has to be as cold as a machine.

- Levon Aronianu

Never laugh at the Dragon.

- Bilbo Bagins

A passed pawn increase in strength as the number of pieces on the board diminishes.

- Jose Capablanca

(on Bullet chess) Why do you use a chessboard? There is no point, just push the clock and push the clock, and the 1st one who wins on time wins. There's no point to have a chessboard as it's not chess anyway!

- Vladimir Kramnik

Winning doesn’t always mean being first. Winning means you’re doing better than you’ve ever done before.
A Knight ending is really a Pawn ending.

– Mikhail Botvinnik

You can't win a game without surprizing your opponent.

– Murrel's Mottoes

If a ruler does not understand Chess, how can he rule over a kingdom?

– King Khusros II AD 580 - 628

First restrain, next blockade, lastly destroy.

– Aron Nimzowitsch

Puzzles are the best way to improve pattern recognition.

– Hikaru Nakamura

In the opening, don't move a pawn unless it contributes to the development of a piece.

– Richard Reti

Your Chess rating is the shadow of your level in chess. Become better and your rating will follow you.

– Dr N Grigoryan

Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe.”

- Abraham Lincoln (speaking about Opening prep

"Attack with as many pieces as possible, defend with as few as necessary”

- Yasser Seirawan

"It is better to sacrifice and regret it than to not sacrifice and regret it."

- Chess Proverb

"It's good to learn from your mistakes. It's better to learn from other people’s mistakes"

- Charlie Munger

"Knowing what you don’t know is more useful than being brilliant"

- Charlie Munger

"Knowing what you don’t know is more useful than being brilliant."

- Charlie Munger

"If you’re not learning, you’re falling behind. Somebody’s always getting better."

- Charlie Munger

"It is remarkable how a long-term advantage is more useful by trying to be consistently not stupid, instead of trying to be brilliant."

- Charlie Munger

"Motivation is what gets you started, Consistency is what keeps you going"

- Jim Ryun

"It's really a journey of evolution, everyday is just improvement, constantly getting better. The results don't really matter, it's the figuring out that matters.

- Kobe Bryant

"Your Chess rating is the shadow of your level in chess. Become better and your rating will follow.

- Dr N Grigoryan

"Learn more and you will play better. Play better and your results will follow. Get better results and your rating will go up.

- Murrel's Mottoes

"I'm Competing with what I'm capable of.

- Michael Jordan

"Don't let the perfect be the enemy of the good.

- Voltaire

"Not all artists are chess players, but all chess players are artists.

- Marcel Duchamp

"How can such a talented man (Lasker) devote his life to something like chess?"- Albert Einstein

"Practice doesn't make perfect ... only perfect practice makes perfect. Always give your best."

- Murrel's Mottoes

"Never waste a Check."

- Murrel's Mottoes

"In ten murders there are fewer mysteries than in a game of chess."

- Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

2024-25 Tournament Schedule

Rev 24.09.26

All dates are tentative and subject to change. The dates shown are the result of discussions with coaches & organizers of events from last year and their preferred dates. Please check this schedule for details as the dates approach.


While perhaps still subject to change, this schedule is likely predictive. If you or your school want to hold a tournament and are not on this list, I would suggest that you find an open date to hold it on, as established tournaments tend to have a following that may impact your potential turnout.


Click on the tournament name for the announcement & registration, click on Results to see the previous year's USCF cross tables. Please report any errors you find.


DateEventLocation
Jun 29Mid Year OpenSpringfieldResults
Aug 1-3Midwest Chess CampPeoria Academy (K-8 & HS)
and Tournament		Results
Aug 10GPCF Fund Raiser Olympia Bar & Grill
Aug 24Bradley Summer OpenMichael Student Center (Open & Reserve)Results
Sep 14Fall ScholasticPeoria Academy (K8 & HS)
Register at the door
Results
Oct 12* National Chess Day ScholasticQuality Inn Peoria (K-8 & HS)
Results
Oct 19+ St PhilomenaSt Phils (K-8 & HS)
Results
Oct 26Jacl O Lantern OpenSpringfield)
Results
Nov 9+ Morton Invitational(IESA, IHSA season kickoff)Results
Nov 16+ Reservoir Gifted AcademyPeoria (K-8 & HS)Results
THANKSGIVING BREAK
Dec 7+ Germantown HillsGermantown Hills (K-8 & HS)
Results
Dec 14+ Brimfield Invitational (K-8 & HS)
Results
WINTER HOLIDAY BREAK
Jan 11+ Liberty Leadership
 (K-8)Results
Jan 18+ St Mary’sMetamora (K-8)Results
Jan 20Martin Luther King DayISU Bone Center, Normal (K-8)Results
Jan 25*+ Mark Bills Classic(K-12)Results
Feb 1* Bradley Winter OpenMichael Student Center (Open & Reserve)Results
Feb 1# IHSA SectionalsWashington
Feb 8Peoria Public SchoolsLincoln School
(K-12, PPS D150 Schools only)		Results
Feb 8Private SchoolsLincoln School
(K-12, Private Schools only)		Results
Feb 8Lincoln OpenLincoln School
(K-12, Open to All)		Results
Feb 14-15# IHSA Peoria Civic Center (HS)
Feb 22#* Peoria CountyMark Bills (Peoria Only, 3-8)Results
Feb 22#* Tazewell CountyMarquette Heights (Tazewell Only, 3-8)Results
Feb 22#* Woodford CountyMark Bills (Woodford Only, 3-8)Results
Feb 28-Mar 1# IESAPeoria Civic Center (6-8)
Mar 9-11IL K-8 ChampionshipBloomington (ICA K-8)Results
Apr 18-19Greater Peoria OpenHoliday Inn Grand Prairie (Open & Reserve)Results
May 9-11SuperNationals VIIIOrlando FL
May 16Spring ScholasticPeoria Academy (K-HS)Results
* Unconfirmed, Subject to Change
# NOT USCF rated
+ GPCF Grand Prix

Changes marked in bold italics


All tournaments are rated unless marked as unrated. IHSA, IESA and the Tazewell County tournaments are not rated. Rated tournaments require USCF membership, available online or at the tournament.


Scholastic tournament participants should check with the tournament officials to see if the special GPCF discount is available for the purchase of your USCF membership. To be eligible you must be a new or expired member who's membership expired on or before the month of the tournament.


Please check details of all tournaments you may plan to attend by clicking on the tournament name. Clicking on completed tournaments should show the final results.


Open tournaments are open to any qualified player (USCF membership, etc). Reserve is limited based on rating. Scholastic tournament eligible grades are also listed. Other qualifications are written in the text.


All GPCF Sponsored Events
(since 1992)


Central Illinois Chess League
State Championship Results

The Illinois High School state finals were played at the Peoria Civic Center February 11th & 12th. Four Peoria Area schools finished with plus scores (in order of tie-break finish): Dunlap, Washington, Metamora, and East Peoria. They were followed by Brimfield, Richwoods, Limestone and Morton. All schools had to survive the sectionals to qualify for state. Local HS chess should be heating up next year as only Metamora had a preponderance of seniors on their squad.


The state title went to Lincolnshire (Stevenson), who was lead on top board by former Peorian, junior Rohit Guha. A special hat tip to sophomore Noah Li, playing board 8 for Dunlap, who scored a perfect 7 wins in 7 games. Scoring 6 points were Washington's William Forbes (3rd board) and Metamora's Lucas Miller (4th board).

.

Most schools choose to organize into conferences to arrange for a competitive season. The CICL chess conference is composed of high schools in Central Illinois.


The Peoria area high school chess teams came together to form the West division of the Central Illinois Chess League 8 years ago in 2014. Each school is required to play the others in weeknight matches. Division awards for teams and individuals are presented based on these matches. Two local schools hold tournaments, Morton in November and Brimfield in December or January. Our schools join the East and Central divisions at two Central Illinois Chess League sponsored tournaments, Trahan in October and the Illini Classic in January. IHSA Sectionals are held at the end of January with State following in February.


A full report of the results can be found here


CICL West Teams:

Hats Off! to our coaches who spend a lot of time bringing chess to their teams.

School Coach Email
Brimfield Bernales, Robertrobert.bernales@brimfield309.com
Dunlap Shea, Jasonjshea@dunlapcusd.net
East Peoria Laughlin-Dimitroff,
Tamme 		tdimitroff@ep309.org
East Peoria assistantsTia Bailey, Bryson Lovell
Limestone Stromberger, Conniecstromberger@limestone310.org
Manual Stevens, Adamadam.stevens@psd150.org
Metamora ?Karch, Jessicajkarch@mths.us
Morton ?Serrurier, Kimkimberly.serrurier@mcusd709.org
Notre DameBoeker, Bb.boeker@pndhs.org
Peoria High Schroeder, RobertRobert.schroeder@psd150.or.g
Princeville Keyster, Genevagkeyster@princeville326.org
Richwoods Hickman, Shadshad.hickman@psd150.org
Washington Madsen, Davejdmadsen@wacohi.net
Washington assistantsLaura McCue-Newport, Joshua Madsen, Jackson Biagini

The Central Illinois Chess League is the back-bone of high school chess in Central Illinois.