The inaugural Andrew Arts memorial chess tournament came to an electrifying end with Candidate Master (CM) Taffin Khan effortlessly copping the first prize after a tiebreak with Haifeng Su.
Both players scored 6.5 points out of a possible seven, but the tiebreak resulted in Haifeng Su placing second. In third place was CM Anthony Drayton, who scored five points.
According to a release from the Guyana Chess Federation, the tournament showed great play and potential from the local chess players. Board One in round four pitted Haifeng Su and CM Taffin Khan, with the game resulting in a draw. CM Anthony Drayton, Joshua Pedro, Rashad Hussain, Roberto Neto and CM Maria Varona-Thomas all scored wins against their opponents, while Ryan Singh and Sheriffa Ali’s game ended in a draw.
Round five’s upsets included Haifeng Su crushing Joshua Pedro, CM Anthony Drayton suffering a defeat against CM Taffin Khan, and Rashad Hussain conquering CM Maria Varona-Thomas. The penultimate round continued with strong play as CM Taffin Khan won his game against Olympiad teammate Roberto Neto, Haifeng Su continuing his winning streak, Jessica Callender scoring her first win against Jason Wills and Sheriffa Ali outplaying Errol Tiwari.
The final round of the tournament was indicative of the toll the tournament took on its participating players, with several forfeits. However, Board One showed winner CM Taffin Khan with the final leap to victory against Sheriffa Ali.
Haifeng Su defeated Rashad Hussain on Board Two and CM Anthony Drayton followed suit with a win on Board Three. Roberto Neto and Ryan Goliah were the other two players who emerged successful in their games.
The Guyana Chess Federation wishes to thank Andrew Arts for its generous sponsorship of the tournament.
Photo caption: From left (standing): CM Taffin Khan, CM Anthony Drayton and Haifeng Su with representative of Andrew Arts, Reesa Sooklall, the reigning Miss Guyana Talented Teen
