Thoughts on Penang Open

A bunch of Pinoy second liners descended on the island. None of them would be considered a contender for any future Philippine olympiad team. Yet they swept most of the top prizes.

We had two members of the 2010 olympiad team competing but with six points each they could only join a big group tie for 6th to 15th placing. They had the best placing amongst the locals.

Our other players capable of fighting for the top prize - Nicholas Chan, Mok Tze Meng and Ronnie Lim (who recently made his 1st IM norm at this year's Malaysian Open) were nowhere in sight. It is quite simple to deduce that their work does not permit them to play. It is a shame especially for Ronnie as Penang is his home state.This is the sad fact for us - first studies and than work will put an end to our players chess career.

Further down the list, I spotted two juniors whom I have been keeping an eye on. I first got to know them during a training camp organized couple of months ago. They are Low Jun Jian and Tan Jun Feng. Jun Feng is the older brother of Tan Li Ting. Both only scored four points but I think they have potential to become the next batch of strong juniors. These three need a good trainer to work with them to realize their potential.

The last mention is Yeoh Li Tian who scored five points. There is so much expectations from this young kid that this result can be considered a failure. His best result was at this year's K.L. Open. Following on was the Malaysian Open and now this tournament. Looking at the opposition and his results in these three tournaments, my opinion is that his game is not improving. For such a young player, this is of concern for this is the time when he should be making leaps and bounds in strength.

There are other juniors playing but as I have not worked with any of them and therefore know little about them, I cannot comment on their performance.