There will be a weekly Lanark Open again this year. The tournament will be run on five Monday evenings from 20 August - perfect for sharpening up your game prior to the start of the new season. Further information can be found in the upcoming tournaments section or on Lanark Chess Club's website at <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.lanarkchessclub.org.uk">http://www.lanarkchessclub.org.uk</a><!-- m -->

With Olympiads (and no doubt other representaive matches) coming up it might be worth knowing that I have 12 Scottish (Saltire) table flags available for anyone who wants to use them. (It was cheaper to buy them by the dozen!)

Anyone interested in using them just say so with a note of when required.

my latest acquisition is "A Chess Primer" by JR Capablanca, 1935. A good read so far.

Under 300:
1st Daniel Chamberlain Prestwick 6/7
2nd Brodie Black Lenzie Chess Academy 5.5/7
3rd Kirsty McArthur Rockfield PS Oban 5.5/7

Medals for 50% and above:
5/7 Siddharth Berera South Morningside
Aryaman Tyahi Dunard PS Glasgow

4/7 Jude Boslem St Brides Bothwell
Jack Clelland Lenzie Chess Academy
Thomas Taylor Prestwick
Ryan Cunningham Bothwell PS

3.5/7 Joseph Peden Bishopton PS
Owen Sutherland Bishopton PS
Hannah Robertson St Marks PS Hamilton
Finn Healy St Marys PS Hamilton

Under 600:
1st Jake Sanger Prestwick 7/7
2nd Miles Davies Austin Friars Carlistle 5.5/7
3rd Luke Laverty St Marks PS Hamilton 5/7

Medals for 50% and above:
5/7 Richard Menzies Bishopton PS

4.5/7 Joe McKie St Josephs Blantyre

4/7 Rhys Skinner St Brides Bothwell
Lewis Newell St Brides Bothwell
Arran Ghosh St Peters Edinburgh
Alexander Nicolson St Peters Edinburgh
Jennifer Lowe Keir hardie Motherwell

3.5/7 Michael McGuire St Brides Bothwell
Sam Mc Crory St Josephs Blantyre
Martin Lang Hallside Cambuslang
Aiden Healy st Marys Hamilton

Over 600:
1st Holden Davis Austin Friars 6/7
2nd Samuel Kearns Glenrothes 6/7
3rd Jack Stewart Greenwood Academy Irvine 4/7

Medals for 50% and above:
3.5/7 Nadia Ameur Uddingston Grammar.

Hi Guys

I recently "lost" my own database If anyone has any games played against me or has any games at all where I played could you please forward them on to <!-- e --><a href="mailto:ian.brownlee@systemsit.co.uk">ian.brownlee@systemsit.co.uk</a><!-- e -->

much appreciated

Ian Brownlee

The grading deadline for receipt of new data is June 30. However the FIDE import on July 1 (eg 4NCL) will be included in this season's grades. There will be a couple of weeks of checking and new official season 2012-13 grades will appear online in mid July. The 2012 Scottish will be processed as first event of new season. The printed book will appear in late July.

Please send any result corrections, reports of missing data, changes of spelling, club, age etc before July 15 to <!-- e --><a href="mailto:grading@chessscotland.com">grading@chessscotland.com</a><!-- e -->

Hutch
You won a share in a grading prize at the Stewarton Bonnet Guild Chess Allegro on Sunday 10th June but I have no contact details for - you entered by phone.

Can you email me your postal address and I will send your prize on to you.

My email is <!-- e --><a href="mailto:john.montgomery@btinternet.com">john.montgomery@btinternet.com</a><!-- e -->

Thanks

Do you do it?
How do you do it?
How long do you spend doing it?
What has been the outcome?

etc...

I could say I've studied a bit, but not intesively or for an extended period of time. I've read Andy Burnett's book, as well as some from Jeremy Silman and a couple of other books with problems in them (and I've gone through games with a board too). All of these were very interesting reading, and I suppose I have improved as my grade has increased but I can't put my finger on exactly where or how I've improved. I also can't rule out that I've just improved by playing more, and I suspect it's probably a combination of the two.

Anyway, what are your experiences?

SWEDEN
Hello!

I am writing to you as tournament director of IM - tournaments in Sweden
(Lidkoping 120 km north of Gothenburg).

I am looking for players with ELO over 2250 primarily interested in playing
for winning IM-norms.
The tournament will be played over 9 days 12 players, 11 rounds.

Entry fee including accommodation is 6500 SEK.
The first tournament will be played in early October 2012.

It would be nice if we could get some player from your country.
The tournament will be followed on Internet (live-chess).

I want to thank you for taking the time to read this email, my hope
is that you pass it on to people involved in your union.

Thanks in advance.

Best regards

Peter Fransson
Tournament director

<!-- e --><a href="mailto:peterfransson1963@gmail.com">peterfransson1963@gmail.com</a><!-- e -->

ROMANIA
From: Arad Open 2012 [mailto:aradopen@gmail.com]
Sent: 16 June 2012 21:53
To: Sah Club Vados
Subject: Invitation to Arad PAB Romania Open 2012



We have the pleasure to invite you to 5th Arad PAB Romania Open 2012 which will take part in Arad (west of Romania, near hungarian border, 250 KM from Budapest), july 27th- august 2nd 2012. It will be a swiss 9 rounds open with the possibility to achieve international norms. Our prize fund was significantly increased, thus first prize is 1350 euro (more pricesely 6000 lei), total prize fund over 8000 euro for the main open.


This tournament is in our view a great possibility for foreign players to visit western Romania, with astonishing accommodation prices at top level hotels (from 13 euro/person/night in 4star Continental Forum Hotel) and very cheap possibilities of serving meals (6 euro lunch and 4 euro dinner in RetroRestaurant). In addition we prepared some interesting opportunities of spending the free time with our already very succesfull trips - wine tasting in Minis wineyard and canoe trips on the Mures river.

If it's not enough, you will certainly have fun in bughouse and blitz pairs tournament.

We hope you will enjoy our tournament and have a pleasant stay in Arad



More details about the tournament on our website:
<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.aradopen.com/2012/index.php">http://www.aradopen.com/2012/index.php</a><!-- m -->


Info and registrations: <!-- e --><a href="mailto:aradopen@gmail.com">aradopen@gmail.com</a><!-- e -->
tel. +400722613128



You can connect our tournament with First Saturday in Budapest (250 Km from Arad, starts in august 4th) or oher interesting tournament in Drobeta Turnu Severin (Romania, 250 km from Arad) 3rd-8th of august 2012 <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.chessopen.net/">http://www.chessopen.net/</a><!-- m --> or even with European Rapid and Blitz Club Club – Bucharest 8th-12nd of august 2012 <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.eccrb.eu/">http://www.eccrb.eu/</a><!-- m -->



Best regards,

IO Alin Campeanu

Tournament Director

Mobile phone: +40-722-613128

This is just a quick plea for some sponsorship for the 30km that I managed to complete yesterday for the Dundee-St Andrews Summer Fun Run in just under 4 hours. All funds raised from the event will go directly to CLIC Sargent to help develop patient/carer support services for children with cancer in Dundee, Tayside and Fife.

I would just like to thank Alasdair Dawson who arranged the event which has proved a huge success, hoping that it will become an annual event.

JustGiving Link
<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.justgiving.com/ninewellsmedicalschool">http://www.justgiving.com/ninewellsmedicalschool</a><!-- m -->

Thanks so much

A very battered and bruised Lloyd!!