Great Response

It looks like record entries for the KL open chess tournament next month. According to the Kuala Lumpur Chess Association which is organizing this event, there were already more than 120 registrants from 21 countries when entries closed officially earlier this week.

“This is remarkable,” said Peter Long, the man behind the KL open. “In our first two events, we had only a handful of foreign grandmasters playing. We expected the same for this year but it seems that we have exceeded our expectations.”

There will be at least 15 grandmasters in the tournament, led by Georgia’s Mikheil Mchedlishvili who will be the highest rated participant with 2634 rating points. However, all eyes will be on China’s 16-year-old lass, Hou Yifan. 

Two years ago at the age of 14 years and six months, she became the youngest female chess player in history ever to qualify for the Grandmaster (GM) title. The GM title is not to be confused with the Woman Grandmaster (WGM) title that’s given only to woman players. The GM title is mostly awarded to men but once in a while, exceptionally gifted woman players also do qualify for this title. You may already be familiar with these women chess players who hold the GM title: Judit Polgar, Susan Polgar and Xie Jun, among some of them. Well, add Hou Yifan to this list too.

In 2007, Hou became China's youngest ever national women's champion and in 2008, she became the youngest-ever finalist for the women's world chess championship title. Before becoming a GM, she was a Woman FIDE Master (WFM) in 2004, WGM in 2007 and an International Master (IM) in 2008.

She’s a real chess prodigy and I’m excited that she’ll be here to play in a Malaysian tournament. Who knows, if her schedule is not too tight, I may get a chance to catch her for an interview.

There’s also three-time German chess champion Thomas Luther playing in the KL open as well as Bangladesh’s Ziaur Rahman who is staying here in Malaysia for about a year. Seasoned chess enthusiasts may remember the name of Cao Sang. Previously from Vietnam, he now lives in Hungary. He will be in Kuala Lumpur too.

Other GMs in the field will include Indonesia’s Susanto Megaranto, Uzbekistan’s Saidali Yuldashev who is quite a familiar face, Vietnam’s Bui Vinh and Nguyen Anh Dung, and Indonesia’s Barus Cerdas. And at the last count, there will also be about 24 IMs and 20 FMs in the field. 

There will also be about 20 Malaysians in the field and the local charge will be led by IM Mok Tze Meng. Our other local players will include Nicholas Chan, IM Jimmy Liew and Lim Chuin Hoong. Conspicuously absent, though, will be IM Mas Hafizulhelmi.

I should also mention here that English GM Nigel Short, the former finalist of the world chess championship in 1993, will be flying in towards the end of the KL open. No, he’s not playing in the tournament but he has agreed to detour here from Bangkok where he’s going to be at the Bangkok open.

It’s now confirmed that Short will be giving a simultaneous exhibition to a maximum of 20 players on Apr 10 at 4pm. Venue will be the Grand Olympic Hotel in Jalan Hang Jebat, Kuala Lumpur, which is also where the KL open will be played.

The main tournament itself will be held from Apr 6 to Apr 12. There will be a total of nine rounds and on the last day, a blitz tournament is planned for the afternoon before the closing ceremony. 

While entries have closed officially, it is still possible for people to still register themselves. However, their acceptance into the event is at the organizer’s discretion and on top of the normal entry fees, a 50% penalty will also apply.

For registration and more information, check the KLCA blog at http://klchess.blogspot.com or alternatively, contact Peter Long (013.3920920, peterlong@aol.asia)

Up next  

March rapid

The Excel Chess Academy will organize their March rapid chess tournament at their premises in Overseas Union Garden, Kuala Lumpur tomorrow and on Sunday. Entry fee is RM35 per player. To register, contact Jax Tham (013.3232280, jaxtham@hotmail.com).

KL rapid grand prix

The Kuala Lumpur Chess Association (KLCA) and Polgar Chess Asia will jointly organize the third leg of the KL rapid grand prix on Apr 3-4. Entry fees for the open section are RM15 for members of the KLCA and the Royal Selangor Club (RSC) and RM20 for non-members. For the under-12 section, the entry fees are RM5 for children of KLCA and RSC members and RM10 for others. Venue is the RSC’s Card Room at Dataran Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur. More details at  the KLCA website, (http://www.klchess.com/)

Klang Parade open

The Klang Parade and the Datuk Arthur Tan Chess Centre will jointly organize this year’s Klang Parade chess tournament early next month. An age group event for under-12 and under-18 players will be held on Apr 3, while there will be an open event on Apr 4. Entry fees are RM10 for under-12 players and RM15 for all others. To register, contact Hamid Majid (019.3158098) or Siti Nor Faiza (03-33437889).

Perak grand prix

The second leg of the Tan Sri Lee Loy Seng Perak grand prix chess tournament, sponsored by Kuala Lumpur Kepong Berhad, will be played at the Chinese Recreation Club in Jalan Stesen, Taiping on Apr 11. Entry fees are RM25 for the open section, RM15 for under-16 players and RM10 for under-12 players. Members of the Perak International Chess Association (PICA) and players born in Perak pay RM5 less. Entries close on Apr 8. More information is available from http://perakchess.blogspot.com 

 

Mind games

Do you get a kick from looking at an empty chess board? I don’t, not any more. Nowadays, I prefer to play my chess with real pieces in front of me, not with pieces floating around in my mind’s eye. Controlling real chess pieces can be difficult enough; what more with imaginary pieces?

But there are some people who believe that there is a real challenge playing such games. Blindfold chess, it is called. Chess played without sight of the chess board. However, I consider blindfold chess to fall within the realms of novelty chess.

How far can one go in the game? If one is completely blindfolded without seeing the chess board, one’s memory must be good enough to remember all those previous moves and imaginative enough to see positions well ahead.

No no no….it takes more than mere chess mortals to play traditional blindfold chess.

That is why the traditional Amber Blindfold and Rapid tournament, now going on in Nice, France, employs a slightly different version of blindfold chess. Maybe, traditional blindfold chess is also beyond the powers of the new chess gods and they have to try something different. 

What’s happening in this Amber tournament, already in its 19th year, is that for the blindfold games, the chess gods are staring at an empty chess board on their laptops. There are no digital pieces to shift around. Instead, only the text of the last played move will be shown to the players.

But for these players, this is enough help already. Looking at the empty chess boards is enough aid to help them remember moves and visualize games in their minds.

And what great games they are playing! Even though they are engaged in blindfold chess, their creativity has not been stifled. Take, for example, this game which was played in the very first round. Mind you, the two protagonists are world-class players if you still haven’t realized it.

Magnus Carlsen - Vasily Ivanchuk, 19th Amber (blindfold) 

1.a3 (This in itself is a great surprise, as Carlsen steers the game out of opening theory and into a new direction. However, Ivanchuk is equal to the occasion.) 1….Nf6 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 d5 4.e3 Bg4 5.h3 Bh5 6.cxd5 cxd5 7.Nc3 Nc6 8.Bb5 Rc8 9.g4 Bg6 10.Qa4 Nd7 11.b4 e6 12.Bb2 Be7 13.Bxc6 bxc6 14.Qxa7 c5 15.Qa6 0-0 16.Qe2 c4 17.e4 d4 18.Nb5 e5 19.h4 Qb6 20.a4 Qb7 21.Ng5 h6 22.h5 hxg5 23.hxg6 fxg6 (It’s rare to see this type of pawn structure among top players but it’s even rarer to see someone win a game despite having this pawn structure.) 24.f3 Bxb4 25.Ba3 Bxa3 26.Rxa3 Qb6 27.Qh2 Qc5 28.Qh7+ Kf7 29.Ra1 Nf6 30.Qh2 Ra8 31.d3 (Even though Black is better, this move has got to be an oversight.) 31….Qxb5 (Winning the piece and the game) 0-1 

The Amber tournament continues until Apr 25. Apart from Carlsen and Ivanchuk, the other players are Ruslan Ponomariov (a former Fide world champion), Vugar Gashimov, Peter Svidler, Levon Aronian, Alexander Grischuk, Sergey Karjakin, Vladimir Kramnik (the former classical chess world champion), Leinier Dominguez, Jan Smeets and Boris Gelfand. 

To follow the tournament online, go to http://www.amberchess2010.com/index.html. Today is already the sixth round of the competition. There will be five more days to go. 

National age group results

This is just a short note to announce the winners of the national age group chess championship that ended earlier this week at the Dewan Sri Pinang in Penang. This competition, jointly organized by the Malaysian Chess Federation and the Penang Chess Association, attracted almost 300 players to the various age group events.

Boys’ under-18 winner: Tan Ken Wei, boys’ under-16 winner: Evan Timothy Capel, boys’ under-14 winner: Daniel Iskandar Arif, boys’ under-12 winner: Muhd Aziz Farhan Noor Akbar, boys’ under-10 winner: Teh De Juan, boys’ under-8 winner: Wong Yinn Long.

Girls’ under-18 winner: Ong Choon Yong, girls’ under-16 winner: Latifah Kaiyisah Mohd Latib, girls’ under-14 winner: Nur Nabila Azman Hisham, girls’ under-12 winner: Nur Najiha Azman Hisham, girls’ under-10 winner: Puteri Rifqah Fahada Azhar, girls’ under-8 winner: Nur Islamurni Hj Yahaya.

Up next  

DATCC chess league

The third DATCC Kuala Lumpur commercial and recreational chess league at the Datuk Arthur Tan Chess Centre, Wilayah Complex kicks off on Mar 24. The DATCC chess league is a Fide-rated team event over nine rounds played on Wednesdays at the chess centre. 

Entry fee is RM400 per team of a maximum 10 players. Junior teams (all players must be below 20 years old) are charged at RM200. Any entry received after Mar 12 will need to pay an extra RM100. Details are available from Hamid Majid (019.3158098, aham@pc.jaring.my) or Najib Abdul Wahab (016.3382542, najib.wahab@hotmail.com). 

March rapid

The Excel Chess Academy will organize their March rapid chess tournament at their premises in Overseas Union Garden, Kuala Lumpur on Mar 27-28. Entry fee is RM35 per player. To register, contact Jax Tham (013.3232280, jaxtham@hotmail.com).

Johor chess festival

The Johor Chess Academy, Johor Bahru Chess Association and the Majlis Bandaraya Johor Bahru are jointly organising the 14th Bandaraya chessmaster Johor open chess tournament at the JB indoor stadium in Johor Baru on Mar 28. Entry fees are RM10 for players under 12 years old, RM15 for those under 16 years old and RM70 for all others. There will also be the second Bandaraya chessmaster Johor open team chess tournament at the same venue on Mar 27. Entry fees are RM100 per team of three players. Closing date for both events is Mar 24. Details from Narayanan Krishnan (013.7717525).

KL rapid grand prix

The Kuala Lumpur Chess Association (KLCA) and Polgar Chess Asia will jointly organize the third leg of the KL rapid grand prix on Apr 3-4. Entry fees for the open section are RM15 for members of the KLCA and the Royal Selangor Club (RSC) and RM20 for non-members. For the under-12 section, the entry fees are RM5 for children of KLCA and RSC members and RM10 for others. Venue is the RSC’s Card Room at Dataran Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur. More details at  the KLCA website, (http://www.klchess.com/)

Klang Parade open

The Klang Parade and the Datuk Arthur Tan Chess Centre will jointly organize this year’s Klang Parade chess tournament early next month. An age group event for under-12 and under-18 players will be held on Apr 3, while there will be an open event on Apr 4. Entry fees are RM10 for under-12 players and RM15 for all others. To register, contact Hamid Majid (019.3158098) or Siti Nor Faiza (03-33437889).

Perak grand prix

The second leg of the Tan Sri Lee Loy Seng Perak grand prix chess tournament will be played at the CRC Taiping on Apr 11. Entry fees are RM25 for the open section, RM15 for under-16 players and RM10 for under-12 players. Members of the Perak International Chess Association (PICA) and players born in Perak pay RM5 less. More information and details are available from http://perakchess.blogspot.com 

Perak chess kicks off

Last Sunday, I visited Ipoh to drop in at the Kinta leg of the Tan Sri Lee Loy Seng Perak chess grand prix. 

Not only was this the first leg to kick off the grand prix, it was also the first time that the Perak International Chess Association had undertaken such an ambitious project within its borders. I was curious to see the response.

Impressive. Close to 200 participants, according to the proud organizers. And this number wasn’t even counting the tournament officials and helpers, some of the players’ parents and other relatives. 

As I walked along the aisles looking at the serious concentration around me, I realized that save for a handful of familiar faces that I could count with the fingers on both hands, the rest of the participants were total strangers to me.

It shouldn’t be a surprise, really, because after all, this was a Perak event: organized by Perak chess officials and played mainly by Perak residents. I learnt that many of the players had been bussed down from the smaller towns of the state. They had come from all over and although they did know how to play the game, this was probably the first time that many of them were taking part in a real chess tournament. I hope they had enjoyed the experience!

Without a doubt, Bangladesh grandmaster Ziaur Rahman had probably enjoyed the experience too. You would have read two weeks ago that he is now Malaysia’s resident grandmaster. He will be staying here in Malaysia for one year and contributing his expertise to raise the level of Malaysian chess.

No sooner had he landed on our shores that he was whisked up to Ipoh for this tournament. Naturally, he took star billing in this event. He was the player that many of the participants would want to meet. This would be an opportunity to play against a chess grandmaster. Not many people would have this opportunity; only seven would get the chance.

For a long while, it looked as if the fight for the first prize would be close. Because of the large number of entries, there was a real possibility that there could be two joint winners and they might not have played with one another.

But in the end, order was restored and Ziaur Rahman laid claim to his first tournament success in Malaysia. Nevertheless, his success was not without some anxiety. In the last round, the grandmaster suddenly found himself defending a very tricky position with the white pieces.

With very enterprising play, Fong Yit San found himself with an advantageous position against the Bangladesh player. People watching the game thought that he could press home the advantage but somehow, the critical moment passed and Ziaur Rahman forced off the exchange of most of the pieces. In the end, the grandmaster’s experience counted. Still, it was a very creditable game by the Kampar youngster.

The Tan Sri Lee Loy Seng Perak chess grand prix came about because of an inspired meeting that Lee’s son, Datuk Seri Lee Oi Hian, had with Datuk Tan Chin Nam, the honorary life president of the Malaysian Chess Federation. The idea was mooted and Lee was receptive to it. A series of chess tournaments would make their way around Perak, the state where the Tan Sri was born and had made his fortune. Kuala Lumpur Kepong Berhad, with its head office in Ipoh, is the legacy that he had left behind.

From this one idea, the chess grand prix became a reality. With the Kinta leg now successfully concluded, the grand prix will continue in the other districts of Perak and it will culminate with the final in December this year. The CRC Taiping will be the venue of the second leg next month.

Up next  

National age group

This year’s Chiptronics national age group chess championships starts on Sunday. The three-day event is jointly organized by the Malaysian Chess Federation (MCF) and the Penang Chess Association (PCA). The titles contested will be for the under-18, under-16, under-14, under-12, under-10 and under-8 categories for boys and girls. Venue is the Dewan Sri Pinang in Penang.

Entry fees are RM25 for the under-12, under-10 and under-8 events and RM35 for the under-18, under-16 and under-14 sections. Entry fees for entries received after Mar 10 will be doubled and accepted only at the organizer’s discretion. To register, contact Tan Eng Seong (012.4299517, estan64@streamyx.com) or Tan Eu Hong (012.4882133, euhong@euhong.net) 

Scholar Base chess camp

Scholar Base will be organizing an intensive chess camp in Ulu Kelang, Selangor during the school holidays next week aimed at jumpstarting school children into the world of chess and providing them with a launch pad to develop and progress in the game. Participants can join either the Starter, Foundation or Proficient camps under IM Mok Tze Meng and his team of trainers. For more information, contact Scholar Base (03.41062213). 

Cheras challengers

The Cheras Chess Academy and Percawi will jointly organize the Cheras challengers chess tournament on Mar 17-20. This is a Fide-rated event over seven rounds, limited to unrated players and those with a Fide rating of 1950 or less. Venue is the Pusat  Kecemerlangan Sukan Cochrane in Jalan Cochrane, Kuala Lumpur. Entry fees are RM50 for a Fide-rated player and RM80 for those unrated. More details from Collin Madhaven (016.2123578, geodat@yahoo.com).

Chess camp

There’ll be a KL chess camp on Mar 17-20 with GM Ziaur Rahman, IM Mas Hafizulhelmi, IM Lim Yee Weng, Gregory Lau and Najib Wahab. More information from Gregory Lau (012.9020123, greglau64@gmail.com).

DATCC chess league

The third DATCC Kuala Lumpur commercial and recreational chess league at the Datuk Arthur Tan Chess Centre, Wilayah Complex kicks off on Mar 24. The DATCC chess league is a Fide-rated team event over nine rounds played on Wednesdays at the chess centre. 

Entry fee is RM400 per team of a maximum 10 players. Junior teams (all players must be below 20 years old) are charged at RM200. Any entry received after Mar 12 will need to pay an extra RM100. Details are available from Hamid Majid (019.3158098, aham@pc.jaring.my) or Najib Abdul Wahab (016.3382542, najib.wahab@hotmail.com). 

March rapid

The Excel Chess Academy will organize their March rapid chess tournament at their premises in Overseas Union Garden, Kuala Lumpur on Mar 27-28. Entry fee is RM35 per player. To register, contact Jax Tham (013.3232280, jaxtham@hotmail.com).

Johor chess festival

The Johor Chess Academy, Johor Bahru Chess Association and the Majlis Bandaraya Johor Bahru are jointly organising the 14th Bandaraya chessmaster Johor open chess tournament at the JB indoor stadium in Johor Baru on Mar 28. Entry fees are RM10 for players under 12 years old, RM15 for those under 16 years old and RM70 for all others. There will also be the second Bandaraya chessmaster Johor open team chess tournament at the same venue on Mar 27. Entry fees are RM100 per team of three players. Closing date for both events is Mar 24. Details from Narayanan Krishnan (013.7717525).

KL rapid grand prix

The Kuala Lumpur Chess Association (KLCA) and Polgar Chess Asia will jointly organize the third leg of the KL rapid grand prix on Apr 3-4. Entry fees for the open section are RM15 for members of the KLCA and the Royal Selangor Club (RSC) and RM20 for non-members. For the under-12 section, the entry fees are RM5 for children of KLCA and RSC members and RM10 for others. Venue is the RSC’s Card Room at Dataran Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur. More details at  the KLCA website, (http://www.klchess.com/)

Perak grand prix

The second leg of the Tan Sri Lee Loy Seng Perak grand prix chess tournament will be held at the CRC Taiping on Apr 11. Entry fees are RM25 for the open section, RM15 for under-16 players and RM10 for under-12 players. Members of the Perak International Chess Association (PICA) and players born in Perak pay RM5 less. More information and details are available from http://perakchess.blogspot.com 

 

Game for the KL open?

Chess activities continue to heat up in Malaysia. 

Come this April, we’ll be seeing the Kuala Lumpur Chess Association organize their third KL open chess tournament and it is going to be quite an affair. 

Why do I say this? It’s because of the number of foreign players who have more or less committed themselves to take part. The grandmasters expected here will be Mikheil Mchedlishvili (Georgia), Hou Yifan (China), Ziaur Rahman (Bangladesh), Saidali Yuldashev (Uzbekistan), Nguyen Anh Dung (Vietnam), Niaz Murshed (Bangladesh), Wong Meng Kong (Singapore), Barus Cerdas (Indonesia) and Susanto Megaranto (Indonesia).

In addition, familiar names among the international masters will include Richard Bitoon (Philippines), Oliver Dimakiling (Philippines), Alexander Wohl (Australia), Irwanto Saidikin (Indonesia), Liu Dede (Indonesia) and Tirto (Indonesia).

Did I also mention that Mok Tze Meng will be leading the local challenge? He’ll be playing this event together with our other top players, Jimmy Liew, Nicholas Chan and Lim Chuin Hoong. Altogether, there should be about 15 local representatives among the 90-odd registrants.

In addition to all these players, the organizers expect a special guest from England to turn up towards the end of the tournament. He’ll be arriving from Bangkok and staying for the weekend. His name: Nigel Short. 

Of course, Short shouldn’t need any introduction at all but just in case anyone needs to have their memory jogged today, it should suffice for me to mention “former world championship contender and many times Commonwealth chess champion” as among his credentials? 

Whilst in Kuala Lumpur, he will give a simultaneous exhibition to a maximum of 20 players on Apr 10 afternoon.

In the meantime, the dates for the KL open are from Apr 6 to Apr 12. There will be a total of nine rounds and on the last day, a blitz tournament is planned for the afternoon before the closing ceremony. Venue is the Grand Olympic Hotel in Jalan Hang Jebat, Kuala Lumpur.

Entry fees for the KL open are staggered. Grandmasters, woman grandmasters, international masters, woman international masters and players with Fide ratings of above 2400 get free entry into the tournament. Fide masters, woman Fide masters and players whose Fide ratings are between 2300 and 2399 are charged at RM100. Thereafter, the entry fees go up to RM150, RM200, RM250, RM300 until RM350 for unrated players. Entry fees are to be paid fully to the organizers by Mar 16 or otherwise, a 50% penalty will apply.

They may seem a bit steep but that’s the normal price if players wish for the experience of competing in a quality event against quality players. For registration and more information, visit the KLCA blog at http://klchess.blogspot.com or contact Peter Long (013.3920920, peterlong@aol.asia)

Up next  

KL rapid grand prix

The Kuala Lumpur Chess Association (KLCA) and Polgar Chess Asia will jointly organize the second leg of the KL rapid grand prix tomorrow and on Sunday. The grand prix. Entry fees for the open section are RM15 for members of the KLCA and the Royal Selangor Club (RSC) and RM20 for non-members. For the under-12 section, the entry fees are RM5 for children of KLCA and RSC members and RM10 for others. Venue is the RSC’s Card Room at Dataran Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur. More details at  the KLCA website, (http://www.klchess.com/)

Perak grand prix

The first leg of the Tan Sri Lee Loy Seng Perak grand prix chess tournament kicks off this Sunday at the Wisma Belia in Jalan Ghazali Jawi, Ipoh. Entry fees are RM25 for the open section, RM15 for under-16 players and RM10 for under-12 players. Members of the Perak International Chess Association (PICA) and players born in Perak pay RM5 less. More information and details are available from http://perakchess.blogspot.com 

National age group

The Malaysian Chess Federation (MCF) and the Penang Chess Association (PCA) will jointly organize this year’s Chiptronics national age group chess championships for the under-18, under-16, under-14, under-12, under-10 and under-8 categories for boys and girls at the Dewan Sri Pinang in Penang on Mar 14-16.

Entry fees are RM25 for the under-12, under-10 and under-8 events and RM35 for the under-18, under-16 and under-14 sections. Entry fees for entries received after Mar 10 will be doubled and accepted only at the organizer’s discretion. To register, contact Tan Eng Seong (012.4299517, estan64@streamyx.com) or Tan Eu Hong (012.4882133, euhong@euhong.net) 

Cheras challengers

The Cheras Chess Academy and Percawi will jointly organize the Cheras challengers chess tournament on Mar 17-20. This is a Fide-rated event over seven rounds, limited to unrated players and those with a Fide rating of 1950 or less. Venue is the Excel Chess Academy at the Overseas Union Garden, Old Klang Road, Kuala Lumpur. Entry fees are RM50 for a Fide-rated player and RM80 for those unrated. More details from Collin Madhaven (016.2123578, geodat@yahoo.com).

Chess camp

There’ll be a KL chess camp on Mar 17-20 with GM Ziaur Rahman, IM Mas Hafizulhelmi, IM Lim Yee Weng, Gregory Lau and Najib Wahab. More information from Gregory Lau (012.9020123, greglau64@gmail.com).

DATCC chess league

The third DATCC Kuala Lumpur commercial and recreational chess league at the Datuk Arthur Tan Chess Centre, Wilayah Complex kicks off on Mar 24. The DATCC chess league is a Fide-rated team event over nine rounds played on Wednesdays at the chess centre. 

Entry fee is RM400 per team of a maximum 10 players. Junior teams (all players must be below 20 years old) are charged at RM200. Any entry received after Mar 12 will need to pay an extra RM100. Details are available from Hamid Majid (019.3158098, aham@pc.jaring.my) or Najib Abdul Wahab (016.3382542, najib.wahab@hotmail.com). 

Johor chess festival

The Johor Chess Academy, Johor Bahru Chess Association and the Majlis Bandaraya Johor Bahru are jointly organising the 14th Bandaraya chessmaster Johor open chess tournament at the JB indoor stadium in Johor Baru on Mar 28. Entry fees are RM10 for players under 12 years old, RM15 for those under 16 years old and RM70 for all others. There will also be the second Bandaraya chessmaster Johor open team chess tournament at the same venue on Mar 27. Entry fees are RM100 per team of three players. Closing date for both events is Mar 24. Details from Narayanan Krishnan (013.7717525).