The 2000 Hampshire Individual Championship was held at Eastleigh College, on the outskirts of Southampton. The change of venue was hoped to encourage more players to enter, as the conditions were far superior to the Eastleigh Unity club, where it has been held for the previous couple of years.
The strength of the tournament certainly increased, with IM James Sherwin (208) and Michael Yeo (190) joining reigning champion Dominic Tunks (190) as the highest graded players. In total the Open tournament had 17 and the U125 15 players, which was an increase on the 1999 tournament.
The picture above shows Fraser McLeod from the 2002 tournament, as I only have low quality pictures from the 2000 tournament.
Note: This article is mainly based on the one I produced in 2000 for the original Hampshire Chess Association website, although I have expanded some parts and Fraser McLeod supplied comments on his game from round five.
For a list of the winners of the Hampshire Individual Championship and links to any articles I have written the table on the Hampshire Individual Championship is the best place to look. In addition, the table on the Hampshire Tournaments will detail these and any other tournament articles I have completed. Both of these are available from the menu at the top of the site as well.
Round 1
The first round brought some interesting pairings, not least Fraser McLeod having White against the top seed IM James Sherwin. In the position in this first diagram Fraser allowed a tactic that won a pawn. If 20.Bxd8 Nxb4 21.Rab1 Rexd8 22.Rxb4 simply leaves Black a pawn up, but with no Queens on the board, which gives White less chances.
Fraser played the stronger 20.Qd2 and held on grimly for a while. The extra pawn proved too much in the end and James Sherwin won with a very pretty mate.
In the other games the two higher graded non-Hampshire players (Y.Tello and P.McKeown) came unstuck against local opposition.
| Player | Grade | Result | Player | Grade | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fraser McLeod | 170 | 0 | James Sherwin | 208 | 1 |
| Michael Yeo | 190 | 1 | D Black | u | 0 |
| Andrew Smith | 142 | 1 | Yasser Tello | 167 | 0 |
| John Wilkinson | 167 | ½ | Graham Stuart | 142 | ½ |
| Sherif Gonem | 120 | 1 | P McKeown | 161 | 0 |
| Iain Stenhouse | 144 | ½ | Martin Buckley | 138 | ½ |
| Dominic Tunks | 190 | ½ | Bye | ||
| Jeremy Fraser Mitchell | 167 | ½ | Bye | ||
| Jessie Gilbert | 149 | ½ | Bye | ||
| J Vickers | u | ½ | Bye | ||
| A Partington | 139 | ½ | Bye |
Round 2
The main upset of the round was Iain Stenhouse of Southampton Chess Club beating reigning champion (for the last two years) Dominic Tunks, unfortunately, I don’t have this game. Iain Stenhouse was Hampshire Match Captain in the 1970’s, played for Hampshire in excess of 120 times (58% record) between 1966 and 2004. He also won the Southampton Chess Club Championship in 1972 and 1979.
With James Sherwin and Michael Yeo winning, this left only these two players on two points, so a major clash was going to happen in the third round.
| Player | Grade | Result | Player | Grade | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| James Sherwin | 208 | 1 | Andrew Smith | 142 | 0 |
| Sherif Gonem | 120 | 0 | Michael Yeo | 190 | 1 |
| Dominic Tunks | 190 | 0 | Iain Stenhouse | 144 | 1 |
| Graham Stuart | 142 | 0 | Jeremy Fraser Mitchell | 167 | 1 |
| John Wilkinson | 167 | ½ | J Vickers | u | ½ |
| Martin Buckley | 138 | 1 | Jessie Gilbert | 149 | 0 |
| A Partington | 139 | 0 | Fraser McLeod | 170 | 1 |
| D Black | u | 1 | Controller bye | ||
| P McKeown | 161 | ½ | Bye | ||
| Yasser Tello | 167 | ½ | Bye |
Round 3
A expected, the third round paired IM James Sherwin and Michael Yeo. Now I don’t know how much preparation these two did before the game, especially as this was played on the Saturday afternoon; but I am sure they knew that if they both played well, they would meet each other at some time in this tournament. The point of this is that the position soon reached an unusual line of the Sicilian, that was following a game of Michael Yeo’s against the Argentinean IM E.Mendez.
I cannot find any games of James Sherwin, where he played 4..Qb6 in the Sicilian so maybe he prepared this line especially? I suppose only one of the players would know?
Now even though Michael lost his game against Mendez, it seems he got a good position, and it did not take James Sherwin long to deviate as he played 5..a6 rather than 5..Nf6, which are the main moves in this variation. The game then followed a game between FM O.Cuasnicu and G.M O.Panno from 1988 which was drawn, until Michael deviated with 10.f4, rather than 10.0-0.
Again, I would say that Michael has a good position, but James Sherwin slowly improved his position, until he was slightly better. In the first diagram Michael Yeo has just played 21.Bh4 and Black now decides to sacrifice the exchange with 21..Bxf4. From this position White’s king starts to look very fragile and in the end, Black wins the exchange back, but by this time has three extra pawns which proved too much for White to overcome.
D.Black overcoming John Wilkinson and Jessie Gilbert’s draw with Dominic Tunks were the only games that went against form in this round.
| Player | Grade | Result | Player | Grade | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Michael Yeo | 190 | 0 | James Sherwin | 208 | 1 |
| Jeremy Fraser Mitchell | 167 | 1 | Martin Buckley | 138 | 0 |
| Iain Stenhouse | 144 | 1 | Sherif Gonem | 120 | 0 |
| D Black | u | 1 | John Wilkinson | 167 | 0 |
| Fraser McLeod | 170 | 1 | Andrew Smith | 142 | 0 |
| P McKeown | 161 | 1 | J Vickers | u | 0 |
| Jessie Gilbert | 149 | ½ | Dominic Tunks | 190 | ½ |
| Yasser Tello | 167 | 1 | A Partington | 139 | 0 |
| Graham Stuart | 142 | 1 | Controller bye | 0 |
Round 4
This round saw Ian Stenhouse taking on James Sherwin. I haven’t got any games from round 4 and therefore I can only give the result. This was a win by James Sherwin, and it looked like there was only going to be one player who could stop him, namely Jeremy Fraser Mitchell who also won.
No huge surprises in this round; Martin Buckely has been graded much higher than 138, so It wasn’t a shock when he drew against P McKeown. Also, Jessie Gilbert was a rapidly improving junior which she proved by beating John Wilkinson. When I spoke to John the next day, he said that he was completely outplayed in this game!
Jessie Gilbert was an extremely talented junior, but unfortunately died in tragic circumstances whilst playing chess abroad in what was recorded as an open verdict.
| Player | Grade | Result | Player | Grade | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| James Sherwin | 208 | 1 | Iain Stenhouse | 144 | 0 |
| D Black | u | 0 | Jeremy Fraser Mitchell | 167 | 1 |
| Yasser Tello | 167 | 0 | Michael Yeo | 190 | 1 |
| Martin Buckley | 138 | ½ | P McKeown | 161 | ½ |
| Dominic Tunks | 190 | 1 | J Vickers | u | 0 |
| John Wilkinson | 167 | 0 | Jessie Gilbert | 149 | 1 |
| A Partington | 139 | 1 | Sherif Gonem | 0 | |
| Graham Stuart | 142 | ½ | Bye | ½ | |
| Fraser McLeod | 170 | ½ | Bye | ||
| Iain Stenhouse | 144 | ½ | Bye |
Round 5
The Hampshire Chess Secretary John Wheeler returned from his county match Devon vs Wiltshire, (he plays for Devon) with a welcome supply of double-sided scoresheets. This meant that I was finally able to get all the remaining games of the tournament.
The main game of the round was obviously Jeremy Fraser-Mitchell against James Sherwin. If Jeremy could manage to win, he would move into clear first place with one round to play. The opening of the game was a Queen Gambit accepted. I have to admit I don’t know much about these Queen Gambit positions, but from the diagrammed position Jeremy played 25.Bf3 instead of for example 25.Kh2 and after 25..Qa3 resigned. This seems to be given James Sherwin a bit too much respect!
Even though White is worse, the position is not really resignable. Maybe the clock times had something to do with it? If White had played 25.Kh2, he would have only been slightly worse? Play through the game below.
The shock of the round was Fraser McLeod’s win over Michael Yeo. In a game where Michael soon had a large advantage but blundered the exchange on move 24. Although the exchange down Michael was still in the game as he had a couple of extra pawns, including a passed one. But he went astray again playing 31.b3 instead of 31.Qe4. Black is still better after Qe4, but the game is not over. Fraser has kindly annotated the game and comments:
Mike Yeo was a formidable opponent, graded 190 (old money), with a sharp, tactical style. I recall in the early days he beat me every time, but in later years I managed to score a few wins against him including this game, crucial to the tournament standings. In truth, it was a poor-quality game but a win’s a win.
Fraser McLeod 2022
Another fine finish was seen the game between Jessie Gilbert and D.Black. The game was heading towards a repeated position, but Black wanted more. In the Diagram 3 the moves Qc4 to b5 has been played a couple of times and Black has retreated the Knight back to f8. When Black tried to win the position by taking the b3 pawn in the diagrammed position. He soon fell into a mating trap as the game finished Qxb3 43.Qxd7 Qxf3+ 44.Kg1 Qxe2 45.Qd8+ Kg7 46.Bf6+ Kh6 47.Qf8+ 1–0.
| Player | Grade | Result | Player | Grade | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jeremy Fraser Mitchell | 167 | 0 | James Sherwin | 208 | 1 |
| Michael Yeo | 190 | 0 | Fraser McLeod | 170 | 1 |
| Iain Stenhouse | 144 | ½ | Graham Stuart | 142 | ½ |
| Jessie Gilbert | 149 | 1 | D Black | u | 0 |
| P McKeown | 161 | 0 | Dominic Tunks | 190 | 1 |
| Martin Buckley | 138 | 0 | Yasser Tello | 167 | 1 |
| Andrew Smith | 142 | 1 | A Partington | 139 | 0 |
| J Vickers | u | 1 | Sherif Gonem | 120 | 0 |
| John Wilkinson | 167 | 1 | Controller bye | 0 |
Round 6
Well what joys would the last round give us, with the tournament already won by IM James Sherwin, there did not seem much to fight for. This was true on board two which saw Fraser McLeod and Jeremy Fraser Mitchell draw after two moves and go and play golf! Still this did guarantee them joint second.
They were joined on 4 points by reigning champion Dominic Tunks, when he defeated Michael Yeo. This game reached a rook and pawn ending, which both players were trying to win. In the end Dominic battled through to take joint second place.
As to board one, it seemed that James Sherwin was trying to get 6/6 as no quick draw had been agreed between him and Jessie Gilbert. This was not surprising as the difference in grade between the two was 59 points, plus James Sherwin had White.
Sherwin soon had a small advantage, but Jessie Gilbert defended extremely well and did what no-one else had done all weekend, not losing to James Sherwin. Now that I have gone through the games played by James Sherwin, he never seemed to get a huge advantage out of the opening. What he did do, was to play the middle to end game better than his opponents, his nerves also proved very strong. When other players got to a crucial position, they seemed to play the wrong move and were soon losing.
This is something that happens to lower graded player quite often. In my two losses in this tournament, at crucial times I played the wrong move against a stronger player, after achieving a position that was quite equal. Anyway, back in the game Jessie Gilbert achieved the draw, by not cracking after being put under intense pressure.
| Player | Grade | Result | Player | Grade | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| James Sherwin | 208 | ½ | Jessie Gilbert | 149 | ½ |
| Fraser McLeod | 170 | ½ | Jeremy Fraser Mitchell | 167 | ½ |
| Dominic Tunks | 190 | 1 | Michael Yeo | 190 | 0 |
| Andrew Smith | 142 | ½ | Iain Stenhouse | 144 | ½ |
| Graham Stuart | 142 | 0 | Yasser Tello | 167 | 1 |
| A Partington | 139 | 0 | John Wilkinson | 167 | 1 |
| J Vickers | u | ½ | Martin Buckley | 138 | ½ |
| D Black | u | 0 | P McKeown | 161 | 1 |
| Sherif Gonem | 120 | 1 | Controller bye | 0 |
Final Position Summary
The final positions were therefore determined (see below). In conclusion the tournament was a success, with improved numbers and a superior venue compared to the 1999 tournament.
| Place | Player | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1st= | IM James Sherwin | 5½ |
| 2nd= | Jeremy Fraser-Mitchell | 4 |
| 2nd= | Fraser McLeod | 4 |
| 2nd= | Dominic Tunks | 4 |
| U160= Grading Prize | Jessie Gilbert | 3½ |
| U160= Grading Prize / Len Walter Trophy | Iain Stenhouse | 3½ |
| U140 Grading Prize | Martin Buckley | 2½ |
With James Sherwin winning the tournament, he also won the Silver Rook as Hampshire Individual Champion. This caused a small amount of concern with regards to going forward, as although no-one doubted the trophy would be returned the following year the rules were changed for the winners of the Hampshire Champions. These were (and remain)
- The highest-placed Hampshire player in the Open will receive the Silver Rook for one year, and the title of County Champion.
- There is also a trophy for the highest-placed Hampshire player Under-160, and Under-125.
- Hampshire players must be affiliated to the Hampshire Chess Association either through their club, or as an individual member.
Originally the Hampshire Champion was only for Hampshire players but opening the tournaments up to non-Hampshire players was certainly a good idea. Ensuring the trophies remain locally is also a good idea, especially with the valuable Silver Rook Trophy.
U125 Tournament
In addition to the Hampshire Individual Championship there was an Under 125 graded tournament. I only have the final placings for this where J Stables was the winner just dropping the half point.
| Place | Player | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1st= | J Stables | 5½ |
| 2nd= | Peter Dallas | 4½ |
| 2nd= | Ken Retallack | 4½ |
| U100 Grading Prize | J Carr | 3½ |
Confirmation on the trophies from the Minor will be made when I can check the actual trophies.
Games
A number of the games from the Open are available for download or to be played through online.
Acknowledgements and sources:
- John Davis for supplying copies of the old Hampshire Chess Website which has been used as the basis of this article
- Fraser McLeod for annotating his win against Michael Yeo