Asian Para Games champion Fide Master Sander Severino outdueled Sherwin Tiu in the seventh round and final round to capture the Open crown in the third Chooks-to-Go National Rapid Chess Championship last weekend.
International Arbiter and Fide trainer James Infiesto, coach of Severino, made it a double for the Para Games team by topping the executive division.
In other categories youthful Eric Labog Jr.of University of Perpetual Help System Dalta (UPHSD) in Las Pinas City won the junior class while Far Eastern University-FERN College in Diliman, Quezon City bet Oscar Joseph Cantela nipped Lemmuel Jay Adena in the tiebreak for the kiddies plum.
The 34-year-old Silay City, Negros Occidental ace Severino finished with 6.5 points and clinched the title in the Open section of the one-day Fide rapid event.
Tiu finished tied from 2nd to 4th with 13-time Philippine Open champion Grandmaster Rogelio “Joey” Antonio Jr. and 2018 Olympiad qualifier Fide Master Mari Joseph Turqueza with 6 points.
Tied from 5th to 11th with 5.5 points were the country’s lone woman grandmaster Janelle Mae Frayna, International Masters Daniel Quizon, Jan Emmanuel Garcia, Paulo Bersamina and Ronald Dableo and Fide Masters Nelson “Elo” Mariano III, and Austin Jacob Literatus.
The event was hosted by the Philippine Executive Chess Association president Dr. Alfredo “Fred” Paez and Rotary Club of Nuvali president Christopher Sarmiento and backed up by Bounty Agro Ventures Inc. president Ronald Daniel Ricaforte Mascariñas.
The tournament was held in cooperation with the Paranaque City government, Ayala Malls and National Chess Federation of the Philippines chairman/pressident Rep. Prospero “Butch” Pichay Jr.
In the executive division, the 51-year-old Infiesto from Davao City scored six points to win this year’s title. His closest rivals Arena Grandmaster Robert Arellano, United States chess master Arjoe Loanzon and Information Technology expert Joselito Cada at second to fourth places, respectively in the scheduled seven-round Swiss System format.
Arellano, Loanzon and Cada wound-up with 5.5 points apiece while Gary Abano completed the top five list with a superior tie break points in the group of five pointers that includes National Master Efren Bagamasbad Jr., Cyrus Donasco and Deoferio Vehemente Jr.
“I’m elated with the victory,” said Infiesto.
Oscar Joseph Cantela won the kids’ division with a better 36.5 tie break points against FEU team mates Lemmuel Jay Adena 33.5. Labog Jr. prevailed in the juniors’ class via a 7-of-7 sweep to beat Leonel Escote and Lorenzo Cantela, both a point behind.