Hammersmith Chess Club

The historic Reykjavik Open will be taking place in Iceland from the 29th March to the 4th April next year in the Harpa conference hall and we’re aiming to get together a ragtag group of Hammers to go take Iceland by storm! The current schedule for the tournament is as follows:

Wednesday	March 29th	15:00	Round 1
Thursday	March 30th	09:00	Round 2
Thursday	March 30th	16:00	Round 3
Friday	March 31st	15:00	Round 4
Saturday	April 1st	09:00	Round 5
Saturday	April 1st	16:00	Round 6
Sunday	April 2nd	15:00	Round 7
Monday	April 3rd	15:00	Round 8
Tuesday	April 4th	11:00	Round 9

*Times are currently subject to change but the dates are set in stone

Each game is played at 90 minutes for the first 40 moves + 30 minutes after move 40, with an increment of 30 seconds for every move starting from move 1.

This tournament has, in recent years, consistently been voted as one of the best tournaments in the world by the ACP and has played host to some of the world top players including current world champion Magnus Carlsen, world championship challenger Fabiano Caruana and the first winner of the tournament in 1964, 8th world champion Mikhail Tal. In recent years the tournament has also featured such world class players as Ding Liren, Alexander Grischuk, Alexei Shirov, Hikaru Nakamura, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, and Wesley So.

As well as being a fantastic opportunity to rub shoulders with some of the greatest players of this generation this tournament also offers a wealth of additional benefits. The early April schedule aims to allow players an even better opportunity to enjoy Iceland with the warmer temperatures and stunning landscape. Similarly to previous years, several other chess themed events will also be on offer including the Reykjavík Open Chess Pub Quiz and the Golden Circle sightseeing tour that includes stops at Geysir and Bobby Fischer’s final resting place in the southern part of Iceland.

If you want to express an interest in joining us on this adventure, please do so by filling out this form by Tuesday 10th January.

We will follow up with additional logistical details & cost estimates once we have a better idea of the level of interest. Thanks, and I look forward to joining you in Iceland!

Charlie Rigby

All I want for Christmas is y…. wait no…how about Malcolm Pein & a Christmas Party!?

IM Malcolm Pein Talk

We are pleased to announce the legendary International Master Malcolm Pein will be visiting the MindSports Centre on Monday 28^th November.

Having earned the IM title in 1986, Pein has been an influence in British chess for over thirty years, in the roles of player, coach, journalist, publisher, organizer, fundraiser, and entrepreneur.

In a chess-world recently rocked by computer scandals, he is going to take us back to where it all began, the 1997 match of Deep Blue vs Kasparov followed by an “Ask me anything” Q&A. He was actually on the ground during the match working for Kasparov and IBM.

We are looking to start the lecture as soon as possible once the junior hour has finished. Entry from 7pm with a planned 7:05pm start.

MindSports Christmas Party – Saturday December 17^th

We are excited to announce the MindSports Christmas Party on Saturday 17^th December. This will be a combined event with the Bridge & Go players, who also use the centre.

Please be aware this is a MindSports organised event – Hammersmith will be running the chess portion only. The format will be as follows:

• 4-7pm: Chess with a Twist: We will be playing a number of different ‘wild’ chess variants to decide who will be our wildest Christmas Chess Champion.
• 7:30pm: Dinner
• 8:30pm onwards: Quiz Night, prepared and presented by a variety of centre users.

The event will cost £15 and places are limited so please fill out this form if you would like to attend.  Please get in touch with me if you are wanting to bring a +1 (non-member).

Christopher Skulte

On Monday 3rd October we’re delighted to welcome club member Tallulah Roberts – Lula – to the Mindsports Centre.

Lula only started playing chess during lockdown in December 2020 and began her journey as a streamer in February 2021. Since then she has become a successful streamer for Chess.com and played top board for the first ever Jersey Women’s team at the Olympiad in Chennai, India in August this year.

Known also as the ‘meme Queen’ on Twitter and Instagram, Lula will be giving a lecture on Highlights from her Chennai Olympiad experience.

The lecture will run from about 7.30 pm – 8.30 pm, with questions from the audience encouraged. Afterwards, Lula will stay for an evening of casual chess and blitz.

You can find Lula online at:

www.twitch.tv/lularobs
www.instagram.com/lularobs
www.twitter.com/lularobs

The event is free to all Hammer members and instructions for joining the club or renewing your membership are available on our website.

Return of the Sledgehammer and  Rockhammer Tournaments for 2022/23

Hammersmith Chess Club will continue offering year-long ECF-graded internal tournaments to its members.

We would like those tournaments to be as flexible as possible. Therefore members are still encouraged to contact other club members and organise their own OTB games. This will encourage members to meet each other and play serious rated games at the time and place of their convenience. With more than 200 players in the club, you could play a very large number of rated games during the year both in standard and rapidplay. We have a specially dedicated Whatsapp group for those tournaments where we publish the results and standings regularly and you are encouraged to come forward on this channel to contact other players and organise your games.

Additionally, the club secretariat will continue organising Sledgehammer and Rockhammer special club nights, and in those special events players will be paired to play a game or two during the night. This year the first special Rockhammer night will be organised on Monday 19th September, and we hope many players will participate.

 

This year we will have two different Cups:

• The Sledgehammer Cup for Standard Play
• The Rockhammer Cup for Rapid Play

Those tournaments are open to all Hammersmith Chess Club members. All you need to do is to contact your fellow club members, agree on an appointment for an OTB game, and then submit the game result via this link to the game submission form.

Please note that

• This year those tournaments will be OTB only.
• All OTB games are ECF-graded, online games will not count towards the tournament this year.
• Players must be ECF-registered to play OTB games.
• Game results will only be accepted via the provided game submission form, results by email will not be accepted.
• This year we will not have a cup dedicated to 960 Fischer Random Chess, but there will still be events organised around this format from time to time.

For complete information and rules, please have a look at the Hammer Tournaments Documentation

Good luck with the 2022/23 Hammer Tournaments Season!

The Internal Tournaments Team

Dear Hammers,

The new season is approaching fast, it is back-to-school time. No doubt you are full of confidence after your summer training. One way to improve is to work hard on your chess. Another way for easy, additional Elo boost is the AMAZING HAMMER MERCH (results may vary).

Let’s strike fear in the hearts of our competitors by showing up at the board with our fantastic t-shirt, featuring the amazing logo design of the incredibly talented graphic designer Hammer Matt Perchard.  Link to the web store: 

https://hammersmith-chess-club.creator-spring.com/

Grab a mug and an adult or junior t-shirt now – for a fraction of the cost of a three lions shirt!

The store is run at a small profit which goes straight to the club budget. 

By the way, for our members, please check your inboxes for the kind email reminder to renew your club subscription. 

Benji

Here at Hammer HQ we’re excited to announce a new initiative: Opening of the Month!

Each month of the chess season will be devoted to a separate opening: with that month including lectures, themed tournaments, and high level analysis of members’ games played in that opening.

September’s opening of choice will be the Sicilian Defense!

This Monday 5th September, Christof Brixel will be giving an introductory lecture to the opening. This will be followed by a Sicilian-themed tournament, where every game must begin 1.e4 c5.

If you’re unsure about whether to attend, here’s a quick pitch from Christof himself!

New to the Sicilian? Confused between the Dragon, the Accelerated Dragon and the Hyper-Accelerated Dragon, the English Attack and the Grand-Prix Attack? We provide a brief guidance. Not so much how to play but what you can play, what suits your style. We structure the Sicilian jungle into systems for the more tactical, the more positional and the flexible players. It gives a map for further study at home. There is endless free material on the internet, but you have to know what you are looking for.

The exact openings schedule for the rest of the year is still being discussed. Please get in touch if you want to throw your favourite line into the hat!

Junior Hour Returns!

The start of the school year marks the first junior hour of the season. The junior subcommittee have been hard at work to put together a structured, educational and fun programme.

I look forward to seeing lots of juniors at 6pm, and plenty more for Christof’s lecture at 7:30pm!

Adam

On Monday the 26th September, we are blessed to welcome Michael Adams to the Mindsports Centre. Nicknamed ‘The Spider’. He weaves a web around his opponents and likes them to beat themselves.

Having reached the dizzying heights of #4 in the world, he achieved strong performances as a World Championship Candidate, reaching the semifinals in 1997, 1999 and 2000. His best performance was at the 2004 FIDE Championship, where he reached the final, narrowly losing out to Rustam Kasimdzhanov in the tie-break games. He is also a seven-time British Chess Champion.

On the Day

The rough format of the day will be as follows:

• 730pm – 830pm: Lecture
• 830pm – 900pm: Q&A + Book Signing
• 900pm – 1030pm: 10 Person Clock Simul  (60min + 10sec/move)

How do I join the simul?

• 5 Places: On the 12th September, we will be having an ECF-rated blitz tournament. Section winners will gain a place in the simul. Only entrants who have paid their 2022/23 subs will be eligible for a place. Enter here
• 5 Places: Prize draw selected from paid members, the draw will take place between the 12th and 17th of September. Enter here

Instructions for joining the club or renewing your membership are available on our website.

Can I have my booked signed? | How can I purchase a copy of the book?

If you would like to bring a copy of Michael’s new book he will be signing them on the night. We will also be ordering a number for Hammer members. Keep an eye on the Hammersmith Chess Club WhatsApp Announcements Chat.

If you are not part of the WhatsApp chat, please send an email to chrisskulte@gmail.com and I will ensure you are included.

About the book

Think Like a Super-GM is a unique collaboration combining the chess insights of an elite grandmaster with a scientific investigation into thinking at the chess board.

40 chess puzzles were shown to a panel of players ranging from occasional club players up to Super-GM and co-author Michael Adams. Researcher Philip Hurtado recorded not only the moves chosen, but also the detailed thought processes of every player in order to shed light on the mystery as to what exactly defines superior chess strength.

This book offers a unique opportunity for readers to not only solve the puzzles, but also compare their thinking to that of club players, strong amateurs, IMs, GMs and Michael Adams himself. With an additional Bonus Puzzle section and a fascinating Eyetracker experiment showing where different players focused their attention on the board, this is a chess improvement book like no other.

Read more about Michael’s thoughts on the book on his website.

We look forward to seeing everyone on Monday the 26th September!

Christopher Skulte

As you know Hammer are very active on social media and updating our website. Indeed, the enquiries about our club that we take because of that activity are truly stunning in number. We are blessed to have Benji and previously Andy as our web and social master.

However, there is a section of the population who do not use social media and hence are not aware of our club.

So, when an opportunity arises Hammer are more than willing to step up to the mark.

The management of Hammersmith Broadway Shopping Centre approached the club about doing an event around the giant chessboard they have put out on display in the mall. Swift negotiations took place, and the date of the 27th of August 2022 was agreed on between 11am and 3pm. Chris Skulte and Gaston are masterminding the event – with ideas around chess promotion and distributing leaflets about our club.

I believe a microphone will also be provided – a running commentary on the activities will be provided – blindfold demos, possibly piece odds challenges et al are on the menu.

The critical part is we need true-blue Hammers to help Chris and Gaston on the day so please volunteer on the chat groups or contact them directly and get involved.

Hammers this will be fun and a great chance to promote our club and the game we love.

HOLD THE FRONT PAGE !!

Just hot off the press Hammer has won the ECF Chess in the Community award for 2022. More details to follow………………..

Chairman John aka “Lord Clueless”

First, I would like to thank the club for this opportunity to serve and continue the evolution of our amazing chess club.

I must also thank Club Captain Ben and in particular our Chairman Bajrush for their service. Both have played vital roles in helping the club get to where we are today. I wish Ben all the best in the fair city of Dublin and am delighted that Bajrush will continue to contribute with his knowledge and experience by serving on the Committee.

I must also welcome Robin and Gaston to the Committee. I know they will be successful and dedicated in their new roles.

Finally, I am immensely happy that Nadim, Benji, Adam, Chris and Matteo have agreed to stay on. With the exception of Chris, they are all continuing in their current roles and providing great service to the club. Chris takes over from as PR and Events Officer… certainly a role he will excel in.

We have achieved so much in the past 8 years it is hard to believe. Some of those achievements are staggering:

• Our membership has grown from 19 (yes 19 !!!) to over 200 members
• We have a thriving Junior section
• We have moved into the Mindsports Centre – the best club venue in London
• We have visited three chess clubs abroad in Holland, Poland and Ireland
• We have had a guest speaker list that has been a who’s who of chess
• We pioneered the idea of giving advantageous membership rates to girls and women to play at our club
• We have run our first Chess Congress and want to make it an annual event.
• We have won trophies and divisions across the 4 leagues we compete in

There are many other achievements that could be listed. However, what I am most proud of is that our chess club is welcoming, accepting, friendly, open to change and lives up to its motto “More than a Chess Club”.

This is an amazing legacy to build on and a sizable challenge for any incoming Chairman.

My focus on the year to come will be on the following – obviously there will be other challenges that inevitably come along:

• Oversee the running of the club
• Work with the Junior Officer and the Junior Sub-Committee to establish a working blueprint and program that meets the needs of all our juniors
• Encourage and recruit club members to help out with the running of the club
• Address the training needs for all members, regardless of strength, so they can develop their chess ability to the full
• Helping all the Officers of the club to perform to the best in their roles
• Establishing the legal status of the club and sorting out our relationship with the bank once and for all
• Running Hammratty 2
• Adding to the trophy cabinet… once you have the taste of success it is hard to suppress it
• Helping Benji roll out the Hammersmith merchandise
• As Chairman being available to all members if they have concerns they wish to raise
• Making sure Hammersmith delivers value for money for all its members
• A club members’ survey so we can understand what our members think and need from their Committee and Club
• Plus, other new initiatives yet tba

As Adam has recently posted on the report of the AGM we have created a new Committee position – that of Junior Officer. The role and responsibilities will cover:

• Forming the Junior Sub-Committee
• Oversee the work of the Junior Sub-Committee
• Manage the allocated budget for the Junior Section
• Formulate a programme for the Junior Section
• Liaise with the Child Protection Officer to ensure all protocols are being observed
• Represent the interests of Junior Section on the Club Committee

This was backed and seconded by the Committee and agreed at the AGM. Jim Stevenson has agreed to serve.

I would also like to remind you that the December – Ostend trip is closing its book on the 31st July. You have less than 3 weeks to commit to the trip. I have written previously that the main issue will be accommodation as it is the first weekend of Ostend’s famous Christmas market… we need to get in early.

In the meantime the view from the chair is there are exciting times ahead for Hammer and its motley crew… roll on 22-23!!!

John White aka Lord Clueless
Chairman

A short update on everything happening at the club, and what’s in store for the future!

The AGM

Last Monday our Annual General Meeting was held at the Mindsports Centre. There was a good turnout and some lively discussion – a full version of the minutes can be found here. A summary of the key decisions that were voted through:

• Subs will be increased slightly next season to ensure members can continue to be offered a first class venue and a top-notch and varied programme of events
• A new role on the committee has been created – the Junior Officer, to be held by Jim Stevenson
• John White takes over from Bajrush as Chairman
• Chris Skulte takes over from John as PR and Events Officer
• Gastón Franco takes over from Chris as Officer without Portfolio
• Robin Sarfas takes over from Ben as Club Captain
• All other officers retain their positions
• The Hammer merchandise store has opened!

LCL Congress

The London League are hosting a 9-round ECF-rated Congress on Thursdays throughout summer – places are very limited so get in quick if you want to play!

Further details and the entry form can be found here.

Monday Night Hammer Events

We’ll be looking to put on some form of event every Monday night throughout summer. Here’s what’s arranged so far:

• 18th July: 5-round ECF-rated Rapid (10+5) Tournament. Sign up here
• 25th July: Chessboxing Challenge Match
• 26th September: Lecture from British #1 Grandmaster Michael Adams

Keep an eye on the calendar and WhatsApp channels for announcements of further events.

2022/23 Subs

Membership for 2021/22 ends at the end of August. We’d like to invite members to sign up for next season. Payment ahead of September is much appreciated to avoid the tedious work involved in chasing people up.

• Adults: £80 per annum
• Juniors: £50 per annum
• Concession: £50 per annum (for senior citizens, and unwaged)
• Women, Girls & Titled Players: £20 per annum
• Junior Hour Access: £35 per term (3 terms in a year) in addition to yearly junior membership

Payment can be made by electronic bank transfer or cash. Please see our bank details below:

Name: Hammersmith Chess Club
Sort Code: 40-03-21
Account Number: 91245120

Get in touch if you have any questions!

Adam
Secretary