One of the many ongoing events currently taking place at magnet is the Chess Club tournament. After the TV show, Queens Gambit was released on Netflix, there was a sudden influx of interest in chess. Now if you looked at the screens of the student’s laptops in a classroom you would likely see a cut-throat chess match taking place instead of the usual snake or minesweeper.

Even faculty took note of the sudden interest in chess and kindly painted a giant chess board in the courtyard for students to play on during lunch. However, the chess fad is slowly fading and I have been seeing fewer and fewer chess games being played during class. But, this only separates the fake fans from the true die-hards. Now we can see who truly had a passion for the game and who was just doing it because everyone else was.

For those who are truly passionate about chess, the chess club is the place to be! Currently, the chess club is having an ongoing round-robin chess tournament, the winner takes home the grand prize of a $50 gift card, but winning this prize will be no easy feat. Chess is not a game of luck, to win you must be able to have a good strategy and think on your feet.

To get a better insight into the chess tournament, I interviewed senior David Wang, one of the vice presidents of the chess club.

In 3 words how would you describe the chess club?

Bishop Takes Knight (Fight Fight Fight!)

What level would you say the tournament is being played at?

We have a good spread of skill levels, about 600-1450 ELO which is about a beginner/intermediate level up to a high intermediate level.

What is your favorite chess move?

Probably pawn c5as black. I play the French Defense a lot as black and I love when I get to play this move because it means I basically won.

How did you first get into chess? 

My father lost his life after he lost a chess game meant to clear him of his immense debt accrued over the years if he won. The debt was left to me and I was given 10 years to prepare for the next chess match in which I have to win unless I want to meet the same fate.

However, for those who can’t handle the truth: I learned how to play when I was pretty young, but I really started to play chess in middle school where I got somewhat bored while riding the bus and did it to pass time. Eventually, I started becoming more and more passionate about the game

Who are the club officials?

President: Huiwen Wang (12)

Vice Presidents: David Wang (12), Asher Wallen (12), Chase Sutcliffe (10)

Who do you predict will be the overall tournament winner?

Austin Gallman (12) since he is a try-hard and I’m not participating.

Lastly, who would you say is the best chess player in the club? 

Me, obviously.

So, if you consider yourself a true chess fanatic, make sure you stop by the chess club for some good competition. And for all those participating in the tournament good luck and may the best chess player win!