2011 O2C Doeberl Cup - Day 1

As I write this, the final games from round 2 of the 2011 O2C Doeberl Cup Premier are still in progress. Eugene Schon, who defeated IM Stephen Solomon in the first round, is still going around with GM Dejan Bojkov in a rook and minor piece ending. Further down GM David Smerdon is doing his best to conjure a win against Justin Tan, while Tony Dowden is trying to mate with KNB v K against Bill Kerr.

The day got off to a slower than usual start with a couple of no shows causing problems with the pairings. Pairings are published the day before the first round and aren't changed, unless a player finds themselves without an opponent. They then have the option to be re-paired against other players in the same boat. The two players most affected by this were Stephen Solomon and Eugene Schon, who were repaired against each other. (Both players wanted a game as a forfeit would invalidate any norms they might earn). It turned out to be a better pairing for Schon after he beat his higher rated opponent.

Tomorrow sees the rest of the tournament kick off, with the Major, Minor and Under 1200 all starting at 1pm. Live games, results and pairings are all available from the Doeberl Cup website.