Hjorth Open - Day 3

Day three of the Hjorth Open saw the top players begin to play one another & there were surprisingly few draws on the top boards. By the end of the day, only IM Max Illingworth was able to keep a perfect score intact to move to 5/5, however IM James Morris was only half a point behind him after winning all of his games following his round 1 bye.

Of course there were also a number of upsets, with a number of lower rated players showing that ratings are indeed just numbers - Hoai Nguyen, Ray Yang, Anthony Hain, Alana Chibnall, Vishal Bhat & Aryn Gooch all beat higher rated opponents in round 4, while Tony Davis, Gyula Plaganyi, Lousanne Beeren & Kayson Wang scored wins against higher rated opponents in round 5.

In terms of games, two stood out in round 4 - Max Illingworth's win over fellow IM Igor Goldenberg, while IM James Morris found a pretty finish against Max Chew Lee.





Once again, the day's highlight was the lecture at the end of the day, this time presented by IM Guy West. Although Guy only showed two of Greg's games - his win against American Larry Musa from the 1978 Australian Championship & his win against GM Tony Miles from the 1984 British Championship - he told a number of stories & anecdotes about Greg from throughout his life, which were both amusing & informative at the same time!

IM Guy West ready to begin his presentation

IM Guy West showing Greg's win over Larry Musa & the various tricks & traps set by the move Qc2!

Guy reading an interesting profile that he wrote about Greg Hjorth for Ian Rogers' famous book Australian Chess - Into the Eighties, although he did question why he was making such bold, though ultimately often true, statements about this teenage prodigy while Guy himself was only in his early twenties!

IM Guy West analysing Greg's famous with over English GM Tony Miles

IM Guy West in front of the final position in the famous Miles-Hjorth game at the end of the lecture.

Hjorth Open - Day 1

The Hjorth Open (previously the Melbourne Cup Weekender) has become a major event on the Australian, let alone Victorian calendar! This year attracted 86 players, far more than previous years & this can be attributed to the hard work done by those at the Melbourne Chess Club (largely tournament organiser Simon Dale) in organising & publicising the event & making every effort for it to be a fitting tribute to IM Greg Hjorth, who passed away unexpectedly in early 2011. Greg's family has also been a driving force behind the event providing sponsorship not only for this event, but also adding a Brilliancy prize to events held at Melbourne Chess Club throughout the year.

With such a large number of players at the club, the first round started a little late, however not before a short opening ceremony where Melbourne Chess Club President Paul Cavezza welcomed everyone to the tournament & shared some memories of Greg.

Round 1 saw most games going according to rating, although there were a few draws on the lower boards. Of the top boards, the board 4 clash between FM Chris Wallis & Rad Chmiel was probably the most interesting of them all, with Chris gaining an opening edge before inexplicably giving away an exchange (the post-mortem suggested that Chris had mentally 'played' Rg1 or Rf1 before Bf3, but then moved the bishop first by mistake), before putting his strong central pawns to work, with a second, intentional, exchange sacrifice securing the victory.

The new perpetual trophy for the winner of the Hjorth Open

A new perpetual trophy for the winner of the Hjorth Brilliancy Prize

 Trophies for the winners of the Hjorth Open & Brilliancy Prize.

Opening ceremony with MCC President Paul Cavezza giving a brief speech about Greg before the tournament began. Greg's parents, Robert & Noela, are on Paul's right.

Round 1 underway in the main hall, almost filled to capacity!

Top boards underway, with six boards broadcast live online.

A number of clocks are being used during this event with the inscription 'In Memory of Greg Hjorth' on them.

Plaque on the wall of the main tournament hall dedicated to Greg Hjorth.