2015 ANU Open Day 2

IM Andrew Brown has become the first player to win the ANU Open three years in a row, after an exciting final round. He started the day with a win of overnight leader IM Junta Ikeda, before maintaining his lead with a win over Jason Hu. In the final round he was paired against WIM Emma Guo, and after overpressing an attack fund himself down a piece. However he had some compensation, in the shape of a trapped opposition bishop, but the smart money was on an upset win for Guo. But with both players running short og time, he continually frustrated Guo's attempts to promote a pawn, and after one final misstep, was able to draw the game.
His score of 6/7 (+5=2) was enough to win the tournament by half a point over IM Anton Smirnov. Smirnov started the day badly, with a loss to Jason Hu, before finishing with 2 wins, including a crucial last round win over IM Junta Ikeda. As a result Ikeda finished in a tie for third place with Canberra junior player Michael Kethro.
The Minor event (Under 1600) was won by Nhorval Valle, who started the day with 2 more wins (to go with the 4 from yesterday) before being held to a draw by Hikaru Oka in the final round. The draw by Oka gave him a share of 2nd place, alongside Jared Plane and Bazli Karattiyattil. The 56 player event was very competitive with Joshua Lee (5/7) winning the Under 1200 prize and Ruofan Xu (4.5/7) winning the Under 1000 prize.
With 83 players taking part, this years event was a big success. The tournament ran smoothly (if a little overtime on the first day), and the competitors enjoyed themselves. The 7 round format can be tough (especially on older players), but everyone got their money's worth.
The rest of the ANU Chess Festival sees the ANU High Schools and Primary Schools Teams Championships, and numbers are already looking good for these events. Thanks for a succesful tournament should go to Shun Ikeda, Paul Dunn and IA Charles Zworestine, as well as all the volunteers who helped throughout the weekend.


Brown,Andrew - Guo,Emma [D85]
2015 ANU Open Canberra, Australia (7.1), 26.07.2015