On a beautiful Saturday in the U.S. Chess Capital, two teams from cities on the opposite spectrum of Interstate 270 ventured to the premier Saint Louis Chess Club. Ten players from Chicago took on ten players from Memphis in a double round robin USCF Blitz rated event. In a double robin, each player faces each member of the opposing team twice (one game with white, one with black.) The match consisted of a whopping 200 games. The winner of the match would amass 100.5 game points.
After the first two rounds, it appeared as if it was going to be a hotly contested match-up, with the Chicago Chess Blitzers edging the Memphis Roster 10.5-9.5. But first impressions are not always what they seem. By the time the 17th round rolled around, Memphis was on the precipice of elimination as they trailed 100-60. If Memphis conceded just a half point in the last 40 games, the match would go to Chicago. The Chicago Chess Blitzers continued their onslaught of the Memphis Roster and piled on 30.5 more points.
Chicago Chess Blitzers
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JONES, DANIEL 2100 19.0
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MURPHY, THOMAS D 2018 19.0
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KAULULE, NM KELA SIAME 2206 17.0
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DONNAHUE, TIM 1915 17.0
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JENNINGS, STEPHEN 1896 14.5
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PRUDE, SEDRICK 2066 11.0
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BREWLEY, MALIK 1791 10.5
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PORTER, JOHN T 1876 8.5
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DAVID, GEORGE 1885 8.0
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STRAPP, JOHNNY T 1280 6.0
Total Points: 130.5
Memphis Roster
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KING, NM ALEXANDER B 2386 16.0
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PRITCHETT, PETER 1859 10.5
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PUCKETT, DEVON 1884 10.0
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SIMS, CARLOS 1761 9.0
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BEATTY, JONATHAN 1975 7.5
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PAXTON, SHIMERA 1672 5.5
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DOLZ, STEPHAN 1638 5.0
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POLK, CLAY 1838 4.0
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WENZLER, CHUCK 1261 2.0
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WEAVER, DWIGHT K 1477 0.0
Total Points: 69.5
