OZAMIZ City ― Santa Claus has smiled so early for Fide Master Ellan Asuela who took the biggest chunk of the P1-million 1st Governor Henry S. Oaminal 8-in-1 Ozamiz Chess Festival concluded here on Sunday, November 12 at the town’s City Auditorium.
The 35-year-old Asuela, who is planning to establish a Chess Academy for children in Cagayan de Oro where he’s been residing now, eventually won all the marbles in the premier rapid event of the three-day chessfest, as the main attraction of the 94th anniversary celebrations of Misamis Occidental, to go home over P100,000 richer.
“We’re not that lucky in blitz but Santa Claus seems very generous for us in the cash-rich rapid contest,” said the Bacolod City native Asuela.
“I had more confidence in the individual rapid especially after I was streaking early, though our team victory came as a big surprise because we did not fare well in the blitz competition,” he added.
Asuela, who won the Kasparov Chess Foundation Asia-Pacific (KCFAP) Absolute Challenge last year in Singapore, piled up victories over Joselito Dormitorio, Arena Grandmaster Lyndon Lumancas, Jerry Areque, Jefte Crebillo, Ozamiz Festival blitz champion Richelieu Salcedo III, John Cyrus Borce, FM Alekhine Nouri and International Master Joel Pimentel Jr then played to a safe draw with National Master Rommel Ganzon for an 8.5 points total good for the P60,000 top purse.
His MindMovers.ph CC team, anchored by Cagayan de Oro’s David Rey Ancheta (6.5 pts) and Roberto Pablito Salomon Jr (5.5 pts), meanwhile nipped the Hamburger Attack of FM Nouri (7.5 pts), Romeo Sadia III (6.5 pts) and Romeo Miñoza Jr (six pts) by only half a point at 20.5 against 20 to run away with the P200,000 top prize and the championship trophy.
The rest of the Rapid Individual’s top-10 finishers are FM David Elorta (eight pts) for P40,000, FM Nouri (7.5) for P20,000, NM Ganzon (7.5) for P10,000, GM Darwin Laylo (seven pts) for P6,000, IM Salcedo (seven pts) for P4,000, NM Paul John Florendo (seven pts) for P2,000, Jason Salubre (seven pts) for P2,000, IM Pimentel (seven pts) for P2,000 and Borce (6.5 pts) for P2,000 each.
The remainder of the rapid team’s top-10 winners are the Hamburger Attack, Golden Chess Friends (Elorta, Wil Maghanoy, Danilo Obeso Jr), Costbusters Solar Power Ozamis (Ganson, Anatoly Pascua Jr, Jezreel Lopez), Cong. Alan Dujali 1 (Salubre, Henry Roger Lopez, Aaron Aton), RCM Gingoog (Allan Cantonjos, Jeriel Manlimbana, Ronnel Cantonjos), Paglaum-Misor C (IM Salcedo, Jeff Russell Rivera, Arian Belly Calido), Zamboanga City B (PJ Florendo, Joey Albert Florendo, Akin Adil), Zamboanga City A (Borce, Abdulkalip Daggung, Patrick Erle Florendo), and MD Chess (Julius Dan Augustine Ablin, Rodney Opada, IM Ronald Bancod) that got P100,000, P60,000, P40,000, P20,000, P16,000, P14,000, P12,000, P10,000 and another P10,000 apiece.
Arena Grandmaster Rey Urbiztondo of the organizing Asenso Misamis Occidental Chess Association thanked the hundreds of participants from all over the country for making the beautiful City of Ozamiz as even once or twice a year the chess mecca of the Philippines.
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