North Carolina is one of the few states that holds an annual invitational for its top players. Each year, six active players are invited to square off in a weekend round robin. The highest-rated players in the state, who have been playing in local weekend tournaments, make up the field. This year’s event is April 26-27 at UNC Charlotte.
“In order to groom the next generation of masters and experts, we need to keep our current crop of masters active in the state,” said Randy Wheeless, president of the North Carolina Chess Association. “This event serves as a ‘thanks’ to those players who are competing every weekend in local Saturday Swiss events and our top tournaments. They make the chess environment in North Carolina much stronger.”
This year’s field includes: FM Andrey Chumachenko (defending champ), NM Maurice Dana, NM Neal Harris, NM Craig Jones, NM Chris Mabe and FM Ron Simpson.
http://www.ncchess.org/NC%20Invitational.htm
Also, this article about scholastic chess in Charlotte is worth highlighting.
http://www.charlottemagazine.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=3036
Special thanks to NCCA President Randy Wheeless for the information.
I moved from North Carolina last year. In the bigger cities chess is flourishing. However (and I think this is something the NC Chess Association should address), the closer you get to the Virginia border and the eastern most part of the state, there is hardly any (if any at all) chess club, chess activity, etc.
I was a college professor at a private university in eastern NC. If one wanted to go to a chess tournament, then you would have to drive 4 hours, at least.
The eastern areas of NC are comprised of smaller towns and this is perhaps why the NC Chess Federation shows no interest in this area. I was a member of the NCCF for one year and never even received a newsletter nor any contact from any member of the state chess organization.
NC does a lot for chess…but only if you’re near a large city like Charlotte, Greensboro, Raleigh-Durham, etc. North Carolina is, geographically a very large state (land-size) and many chess players that live and work in the eastern, smaller towns, of the state are completely ignored.
I know. I lived it. And, it is despicable behavior on the part of the NC Chess Association to ignore so many just because they live in small towns and are hours away from the larger cities.
Very sad.
I have nothing but wonderful experience with chess in NC and SC. These people are not paid employees. They’re volunteers who love the game. Let’s appreciate what they have done for chess in these states.
I don’t know if the situation is as dire as you describe. Just last week there was a tournament in Greenville (eastern N.C.). A few weeks ago, there was one in Morehead City – about as far east as you can get. Fayetteville has one this weekend.
If you hop across the border in eastern Va., there is a great annual tournament in Emporia – and the Millennium Chess Festival in Norfolk is about as big as it gets.
Granted, players in Charlotte and the Triangle have better access to tournaments, but I suppose that’s true for practically every big metro area.
Randy Wheeless, Pres., NCCA
http://www.ncchess.org
NC has done a nice job. Thanks Randy for your tireless effort.