8/7/2017 – For over 30 years, the GM Arnold Denker Tournament of High School Champions has provided top high school players of each U.S. Chess state the chance to compete nationally for college scholarships. Last week, IM Praveen Balakrishnan won the USD $5,000 first prize and also qualified for the next U.S. World Youth and Junior Closed Championships. Rochelle Wu (below) took the top spot in the National Girls’ Tournament of Champions | Photo: Vannessa Sun

7/8/2017 – Instead of watching fireworks or going to barbecues this American Independence Day Weekend, almost 1200 chess players flocked to Philadelphia to play in the World Open Chess Tournament. Over 30 grandmasters competed, eyeing the $20,000 first place open section prize and looking for a strong tournament to play in. Tigran Petrosian secured sole first for a very big payday, while 17-year-old IM Zhansaya Abdumalik tied for 2nd with a GM norm. | Photo: Tim Hanks

6/1/2017 – When fifteen grandmasters pledge their support to a chess tournament, chess players pay attention. The first Charity Chess Championship promised a tournament of epic proportions: a typical quad tournament, a tandem simul with GMs Robert Hess and Marc Arnold, a Grandmaster Blitz tournament, raffles, and silent auctions. Organization costs aside, all the proceeds went to a nonprofit called Band of Parents, which funds treatments and therapies for neuroblastoma at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, the tournament was truly a charitable cause. | Photos: Vanessa Sun