Was Jorge Sammour-Hasbun the USCL's rookie of the year?

A few days ago in this blog entry, using the USCL rating system I developed, whether Todd Andrews should have won the USCL's Most Improved Player award. Today, I examine whether Jorge Sammour-Hasbun of the Boston Blitz should have won the Rookie of the Year award.

Sammour-Hasbun had a fantastic year in the USCL. He won six and drew two, without a loss. (Indeed his results in other tournaments have been similarly great; he just repeated as champion of the Dos Hermanas tournament - which was an incredible feat, given the competition he knocked out on the way there.)

But was he really the USCL's rookie of the year? How should that even be defined?

Let's start with the USCL rating system. One measure of whether a player is the rookie of the year is comparing the player's initial assigned rating and the player's rating at the end of the year, on the final 2007 list, and looking for the greatest difference. Remember that initial ratings are assigned by the board on which the player first competed.

Given that criterion, the rookie of the year would be the New York Knights' Irina Zenyuk (also spelled Iryna - I don't know what she prefers). She gained 136 points from her initial rating, while Sammour-Hasbun gained 125. Zenyuk also had an excellent year, with four wins, three draws, and a single loss.

Here are the top five rookies of 2007. They must have played a minimum of three games in 2007 to be included on this list.

1. Irina Zenyuk 2386 (+136, started at 2250, board 4)
2. Jorge Sammour-Hasbun 2575 (+125, started at 2450, board 2)
3. Eric Rodriguez 2370 (+120, started at 2250, board 4)
4. Chris Williams 2363 (+113, started at 2250, board 4)
5. Francisco Guadalupe 2352 (+102, started at 2250, board 4)

What rookie will take the award this year?

Was Todd Andrews the USCL's most improved player?

Todd Andrews won the "Most Improved Player Award" in the United States Chess League last season. Using the USCL rating system I developed, one thing we can check is whether this award was justified.

The easiest measure of this is the greatest difference between the rating on the final 2006 list and the rating on the final 2007 list. We have to set a one criterion, however; the player must have played a minimum of three games in 2007 in order to be eligible for consideration, as well as at least three in 2006 or earlier. (Remember also that the USCL ratings are dependent to some degree on how the player's results contributed to the team's results.)

So, did Todd Andrews have the greatest difference between these two lists? No! That honor goes to Davorin Kuljasevic, who gained 106 points from 2006 to 2007. Andrews gained 101 points in the 2007 season.

Here are the top five most improved players from 2006 to 2007, according to the USCL rating list.

1. Davorin Kuljasevic +106 (2434 to 2540)
2. Todd Andrews +101 (2307 to 2408)
3. Mackensie Molner +74 (2266 to 2339)
4. Jonathan Schroer +55 (2338 to 2393)
5. Marcel Martinez +41 (2345 to 2386)

In an upcoming post, we'll try and figure out the rookie of the year award.

USCL Ratings End of 2005

The USCL Ratings have been calculated for the 2005 season.

As with the 2006 list and the 2007 list, the same conditions apply namely that (1) players must have played in the 2005 season, and (2) players must have played three lifetime USCL games to be published.

Final 2005 USCL Rating List

1	2597	Eugene Perelshteyn
2	2585	Pascal Charbonneau
3	2584	Vinay Bhat
4	2558	Larry Christiansen
5	2552	Alex Stripunsky
6	2552	Alejandro Ramirez
7	2543	Julio Becerra
8	2532	Marcin Kaminsky
9	2527	Vince McCambridge
10	2514	John Donaldson
11	2499	Irina Krush
12	2495	Gregory Braylovsky
13	2481	Magesh Panchanathan
14	2477	Jay Bonin
15	2475	Lev Milman
16	2472	Tegshsuren Enkhbat
17	2445	Peter Vavrak
18	2441	Marcel Martinez
19	2438	Larry Kaufman
20	2427	David Pruess
21	2427	Josh Friedel
22	2423	Norman Rogers
23	2421	Richard Costigan
24	2417	Paul MacIntyre
25	2415	Miguel Espino
26	2411	Dmitry Schneider
27	2405	Dmitry Zilberstein
28	2394	Matthew Bengtson
29	2372	Blas Lugo
30	2369	Elvin Wilson
31	2362	Andrei Zaremba
32	2356	Charles Riordan
33	2348	Carl Boor
34	2344	Katerina Rohonyan
35	2323	Ray Kaufman
36	2320	Tsagaan Battsetseg
37	2302	Matthew Hoekstra
38	2291	Boris Baczynskyj
39	2291	Mark Pinto
40	2288	Jennifer Shahade
41	2287	Bruci Lopez
42	2284	Evan Rosenberg
43	2281	William Kelleher
44	2274	Daniel Fernandez
45	2267	Andy Lee
46	2262	Nicholas Yap
47	2256	Ilya Krasik
48	2255	Andres Suarez
49	2244	John Fernandez
50	2238	Sam Copeland
51	2235	Jose Cabrera
52	2223	Lewis Eisen
53	2203	John Timmel
54	2192	David Pecora
55	2181	Eric Moskow
56	2175	Greg Samsa

USCL Expansion Team Logos

Back in December, I posted a review of all the team names and team logos in the United States Chess League. I gave "incomplete" grades to the Chicago Blaze and the Arizona Scorpions, because their logos had not been released yet. Here's what I said then...

• Arizona "Scorpions" - As I said above, I think there are scorpions in Arizona, and I certainly wouldn't want to encounter one, so this is the most "terrifying" team name. No chess reference, but that's ok. The name rolls off the tongue well. Also, while we'll all be calling them the "Scorps" if they win a lot, we can also call them the "Peons" if they lose. No logo yet. Grade: Incomplete, pending logo.

• Chicago "Blaze" - Again, I said above that there was a fire in Chicago a long time back, so I suppose this gets the nod for being relevant to the city. And, "blaze" also has a connotation of running rampant over your opponents, so that works. However, it sounds too much like "Blitz". You can't have that many Zs in team names and still stay sane. No logo yet. Grade: Incomplete, pending logo.

Well, the logos were recently released -- the Scorpions earlier today, actually. So, what about these new logos?

The Chicago Blaze logo has a nice echo of the famous water tower in Chicago, and dresses them up nicely as rooks. But the shield? Has a heraldic touch, but not all that relevant. What would have been really funny is if it was a chessboard instead, but the squares between rank 6 and 7 didn't line up properly, which mimics the strange street shift to the left about 50 feet that happens when you drive north in Chicago. Okay, maybe that's too obscure. Overall grade (name and logo): B



The Arizona Scorpions logo is over the top. Way over the top. Way too frightening. So totally not for children. The A-claws are clever. That's all good. What's not so good? The tail should curve the other way which would make the tail look like the top of an S; right now it looks like the top of a question mark. And what does the logo designer have against capital Ns? All the other letters are capitalized - why not the N? Still, it is a mean looking logo and a mean name and they complement one another well. Overall grade (name and logo): A-

Next year, for the 2009 season, I'll review the new team names and logos of the USCL.

New Media Chess Essay

Two Columbia journalism students put together a website that explores chess people and chess in New York City. They interview six players on video (including Nakamura, Ashley, Waitzkin, and Vicary), present some photos and video of chess sites in New York City, and have a History of the game. The content is somewhat scattershot, but there is a lot of content to explore. While the site is ostensibly called "Masters and Hustlers", besides the interviews of some masters and a few hustlers, there really isn't a unifying principle that threads the site together.

The interviews of the players are the best part, and is worth checking out just for those-- the one with Nakamura is especially illuminating. There is an interview with a chess hustler as well, which seems put in for completeness sake.

The timeline of the history of the game was interestingly presented, but only on some years did I get Padolfini's narration; I'm not sure if that's a site error, or there wasn't any narration on some of them (mysteriously, you have to click on the "GAME" link, and not something called History). Unfortunately, some things just seem like they were added at the last moment (e.g., inconsistent fonts, typos), but this only slightly detracts from the presentation.

Furthermore, they try all sorts of Flash-esque techniques on the website (cursor changing, zooms, fades, rolling clickable landscapes, and so forth). Some are useful and some are superfluous and ultimately frustrating. When they keep it simple -- the embedded video with a textual sidebar overview, for instance -- it works the best.

In summary, even though it is unfocused, a little sloppy, and tries too hard at times to be clever, the website does present some insightful, probing, and worthwhile content. If you are interested in chess players or chess in New York City, then by all means, check it out.

USCL Ratings End of 2006

At the end of the 2006 season, the USCL rating list would have looked like what is displayed below.

Note that the same conditions apply as the end of the 2007 list, namely that (1) players must have played in the 2006 season, and (2) players must have played three lifetime USCL games to be published.

Final 2006 USCL Rating List

1	2617	Vinay Bhat
2	2571	Eugene Perelshteyn
3	2566	Julio Becerra
4	2563	Jaan Ehlvest
5	2555	Georgi Orlov
6	2537	Josh Friedel
7	2529	Larry Christiansen
8	2527	Pawel Blehm
9	2524	Gregory Serper
10	2523	Jacek Stopa
11	2516	Vince McCambridge
12	2510	Pascal Charbonneau
13	2484	Robert Hess
14	2475	Lev Milman
15	2473	Tegshsuren Enkhbat
16	2469	Peter Vavrak
17	2468	Irina Krush
18	2454	Magesh Panchanathan
19	2453	Igor Foygel
20	2443	Oleg Zaikov
21	2443	Ron Burnett
22	2443	Slava Mikhailuk
23	2442	Bryan Smith
24	2441	Charles Riordan
25	2440	Andrei Zaremba
26	2440	David Pruess
27	2436	Richard Costigan
28	2434	Davorin Kuljasevic
29	2433	Eric Tangborn
30	2432	William Kelleher
31	2430	Miguel Espino
32	2423	Dmitry Zilberstein
33	2421	Jay Bonin
34	2413	John Readey
35	2412	Bruci Lopez
36	2410	Blas Lugo
37	2402	Larry Kaufman
38	2388	Alejandro Moreno Roman
39	2384	Marcel Milat
40	2380	Sam Shankland
41	2369	Matthew Hoekstra
42	2360	Elvin Wilson
43	2350	Craig Jones
44	2350	Steven Winer
45	2349	Matthew Bengtson
46	2348	Matthew Herman
47	2348	Vadim Martirosov
48	2345	Marcel Martinez
49	2339	Norman Rogers
50	2338	Jonathan Schroer
51	2333	Ray Kaufman
52	2333	Katerina Rohonyan
53	2322	Mark Pinto
54	2317	Igor Schneider
55	2310	John Rouleau
56	2307	Todd Andrews
57	2303	Nat Koons
58	2297	Keaton Kiewra
59	2286	Michael Lee
60	2285	Ilya Krasik
61	2278	Peter Bereolos
62	2267	Jennifer Shahade
63	2266	Mackenzie Molner
64	2257	Ralph Zimmer
65	2251	Michael Shahade
66	2251	Nelson Lopez
67	2250	Boris Baczynskyj
68	2237	Boris Privman
69	2237	Luis Barredo
70	2233	Gerald Larson
71	2227	Daniel Naroditsky
72	2223	Jerry Wheeler
73	2215	Javier Torres
74	2188	Jose Cabrera

USCL Ratings (with 2007 Final List)

I have independently created a United States Chess League rating system that takes into several elements that other rating systems do not. Most importantly, the USCL ratings take into account that players are part of a team, and their strategy about how to conclude their individual games depend on the games situations of their teammates.

Here is an overview of the USCL rating system.

1. Modified Glicko

Rating calculations are based on the Glicko system, with some minor modifications. These modifications are as follows:
(a) Maximum RD is 100 (not 350);
(b) Ratings are updated after every game;
(c) At the end of each season, each RD is modified by increasing it 1/2 its distance to 100. For example, if a player's RD is 40, then the new RD is 40+((100-40)/2) or 40+(30) or 70. This eliminates step 1b in the Glicko process.

2. Initial Ratings Based on Board

Initial ratings for each player are based on which board they played the first time they played in a USCL match. Players who were Board 1 start with an initial rating of 2550; Board 2, 2450; Board 3, 2350; Board 4, 2250. All are set with an RD (ratings deviation) of 100.

3. Expected Score Depends on Color

Expected score from each game is modified by the color each player has. An initial investigation showed that, in the USCL, the performance rating of a player with the White pieces is about 72 points higher than the performance rating of a player with the Black pieces. Therefore, when calculating expected score of a games between two players, we temporarily add 36 points to White's rating, and subtract 36 points from Black's rating.

4. All Games Rated with Equal Weight

All games, including playoff games and blitz tiebreak games, were given equal weight in the ratings.

5. Scores for Draws Depend on Team Result

In team chess, where the goal of the team is to win the match (with 2.5/4 points or more, or 2/4 in a match with draw odds), individual results can be skewed by the circumstances of the match situation. For example, if it looks like your team is about to win two games and lose one game, winning the match comes down to what happens on your board. Suppose that in your game you have a moderate advantage, but the position is dynamic and unstable. In such a case, you might decide to trade all your pieces to reach a dead drawn endgame, so that you will draw the game and clinch the match for your team. This is fundamentally a good result for your team, as your will win the match.

Therefore, the result of the team match is considered when assigning scores for individual players' draws. If the final team match is drawn, each player who drew gets 1/2 point. If a team wins, all the players on the winning team who drew their games get 2/3 point each. Conversely, all the players on a losing team who drew their games get 1/3 point each. (Wins are still 1 and losses are still 0, regardless of the team match score.) Note that these point assignments are only for rating calculations only.

---

Final 2007 United States Chess League Rating List

• Every game in every season of the USCL was rated, not just 2007.
• Only players who were played at least one game in 2007 (i.e., active) are included in the list.
• Players must have played at least three games in the history of the USCL to be included in the list.
• While every effort has been made to ensure accuracy, re-rating might occur to correct any mistakes.

1	2591 Sergey Kudrin
2	2589 Vinay Bhat
3	2586 Patrick Wolff
4	2581 Larry Christiansen
5	2580 Hikaru Nakamura
6	2579 Jorge Sammour-Hasbun
7	2576 Joel Benjamin
8	2571 Drasko Boskovic
9	2569 Gregory Serper
10	2566 Julio Becerra
11	2543 Davorin Kuljasevic
12	2523 Jacek Stopa
13	2522 Eli Vovsha
14	2519 John Donaldson
15	2505 Pawel Blehm
16	2495 Josh Friedel
17	2494 Alex Stripunsky
18	2491 Lev Milman
19	2487 Georgi Orlov
20	2487 Dean Ippolito
21	2484 Pascal Charbonneau
22	2481 Eugene Perelshteyn
23	2477 Irina Krush
24	2466 Jay Bonin
25	2463 Vince McCambridge
26	2460 Bryan Smith
27	2454 Tegshsuren Enkhbat
28	2453 Dmitry Schneider
29	2449 Denis Shmelov
30	2441 Eric Tangborn
31	2440 Ron Burnett
32	2433 Marcel Milat
33	2432 Slava Mikhailuk
34	2428 Sam Shankland
35	2423 Oleg Zaikov
36	2415 John Bartholomew
37	2415 Robert Hess
38	2411 Richard Costigan
39	2407 Dmitry Zilberstein
40	2406 Jonathan Schroer
41	2405 Keaton Kiewra
42	2402 Irina Zenyuk
43	2399 William Kelleher
44	2397 Blas Lugo
45	2389 David Pruess
46	2389 Francisco Guadalupe II
47	2388 John Readey
48	2387 Andrei Zaremba
49	2386 Aviv Friedman
50	2382 Mikhail Zlotnikov
51	2381 Marcel Martinez
52	2380 Todd Andrews
53	2366 Parker Zhao
54	2365 Elvin Wilson
55	2361 Bruci Lopez
56	2360 Chris Williams
57	2358 Katerina Rohonyan
58	2354 Larry Kaufman
59	2354 Vadim Martirosov
60	2353 Daniel Yeager
61	2343 John Rouleau
62	2334 Mackenzie Molner
63	2333 Eric Rodriguez
64	2327 Bayaraa Zorigt
65	2322 Victor Shen
66	2319 Miguel Espino
67	2314 James Critelli
68	2311 Marc Arnold
69	2309 Michael Thaler
70	2307 Peter Bierkens
71	2304 Luis Barredo
72	2303 Loren Schmidt
73	2301 Evan Ju
74	2301 Gregory Young
75	2300 Matthew Herman
76	2297 Alejandro Moreno Roman
77	2295 Craig Jones
78	2287 Michael Lee
79	2279 John Timmel
80	2276 Ralph Zimmer
81	2265 Daniel Naroditsky
82	2264 Udayan Bapat
83	2263 Ilya Krasik
84	2261 Tsagaan Battsetseg
85	2258 Josh Sinanan
86	2239 Matthew Bengtson
87	2228 Peter Bereolos
88	2211 Jerry Wheeler
89	2209 Gerald Larson
90	2183 James Wu

NOTE: While the commissioner of the United States Chess League is aware of the existence of these ratings and the rating system, neither the ratings nor the rating system have been officially endorsed nor sanctioned by the Unites States Chess League, its affiliates, or sponsors.

Nine year old master

Nine year old Nicholas Nip became a USCF Master with an unofficial rating of 2207. Personally, I think it is unconscionable to be a master if your age at which you became a master is earlier than your bedtime at that mage. He had better go to bed at 9:30!

Read all about it here. And f-pawn (aka Michael Aigner) wrote about it here.

D&D Creator Slain by Life

Gary Gygax, the creator of Dungeons and Dragons, has died. D&D played a big role in my life, as it increased my love of all types of games.

I fondly remember the three books D&D started with (before there was Advanced D&D), and the near pornographic (at least to an 12 year old) cover of the third book, Eldritch Wizardry.

CNN story here.

Bobby Fischer is dead

Bobby Fischer has died.

He was not a great person, but was a great chess player.

Read about it here (NY Times) and here (BBC) and here (CNN).

A chess game

Here's a link to a game that I play last week. I think I played reasonably well, and ended up drawing an 1850 (and I'm 1384, right now). Although I was up material at the end of the game, I was pretty low on time, so I offered a draw.

This was played at International Master Dean Ippolito's new chess school in Branchburg, NJ, at a time control of G/55 + 5 second delay. Dean has a clean and attractive school in a strip mall, next to a deli and a pizzeria. Dean and his wife Dawn run the place, and they are a friendly and generous couple. I encourage you to check it out!

USCL News: Arizona, Chicago, and Nicknames and Logos

There is news from the United States Chess League during the long off-season.

Just today, it was announced that the two new expansion teams will be the Arizona Scorpions and the Chicago Blaze. The teams will be joining the Western division of the USCL, and the Carolina Cobras will move from the West back to the East, where they were in the 2006 season. I think the nicknames are reasonable - there are scorpions in Arizona (I think), and Chicago did burn in that supposedly cow-induced fire.

Certain nicknames in the USCL are hard to figure out, and seem random. I have surveyed them all, as well as their logos.

Baltimore "Kingfishers" - Kingfishers are birds, but only one species is common in North America, the Belted Kingfisher. While the general shape of the bird is close to what is shown on the logo, the colors are wrong. Obviously, kingfisher is a pun on "fishing for the king", but since "fish" is also a term for a bad chessplayer, it just doesn't seem right to name your team that - even if the meaning is different. The Kingfishers do get points, though, because their name is a bird, like other Baltimore sports teams (Orioles, Ravens). Grade: B-

Boston "Blitz" - Blitz clearly has a double entendre - a name for speed chess, as well as a term for beating your opponent (e.g., I "blitzed" him). Perhaps it also refers to the team's rumored penchant for partying? I don't know. But, the alliteration of the name is a plus, and the name scans quite well. The logo looks too much like the Red Sox logo, though, which takes away from the uniqueness of the team. Grade: B+




Carolina "Cobras" - Cobras? I'm not really up on my North Carolina wildlife surveys, but I highly doubt there are a lot of cobras in the Carolinas. Not sure, either, what cobras have to do with chess. Still, the alliteration is there again. So the name falls into the somewhat random category. The logo is cool, although it could have looked more like a capital C. Grade: C-

New Jersey "Knockouts" - Again with the alliteration, but this time with a different letter. Obvious boxing reference in the name and logo, but besides a one-on-one sport (and chessboxing, I suppose), what is the reference? I suppose that knockouts allude to the fact that the FIDE World Cup is a knockout tournament, but I'm not sure that I would name team after a tournament type (Savannah Swiss Systems? Rochester Round Robins?). No one asked me, but if they had, I would have suggested the New Jersey Initiative as the team name, and shorten it to the New Jersey Nits. The logo is bold and powerful, but the colors strike me as harsh and dissonant. Grade: C

New York "Knights" - More alliteration but with a different letter. Clearly the Knights refer to the chess piece, which has the chess reference. (Not all teams have to have a chess reference in their name, but there ought to be some connection with either the city/state or chess.) The name also scans well. The logo is very good - the knight in front of the shield, and the shield's heraldic elements are classical and appropriate. I only wish the knight had a little more detail on the face. Grade: A-

Philadelphia "Inventors" - The name has a nice allusion to that famous chessplayer, inventor, diplomat, mailman, etc., Ben Franklin, and at least Franklin spent a lot of time in Philadephia. Invention at the chess board is also considered a good thing (as long as you aren't overly creative in the opening!). Saying the name, however, isn't easy, but not a tongue twister either. The logo is simple, but effective. I wish it had used a profile of Franklin himself, rather than the generic face it uses, but whatever. Grade: B+


Queens "Pioneers" - Hunh? Perhaps the name refers to the fact that the players have to make it all the way out to the far reaches of Queens to reach the Polgar Chess center, but what it has to do with chess escapes me. You were given a name of a chess piece as your place name! Use it! Imagine this: you could have been the Queens "Gambit" or the Queens "Sacrifice". The logo is pretty and looks like a pioneer, I suppose, but it also looks like a generic cowboy, or someone who lives in Texas - like Polgar. Grade: D

Arizona "Scorpions" - As I said above, I think there are scorpions in Arizona, and I certainly wouldn't want to encounter one, so this is the most "terrifying" team name. No chess reference, but that's ok. The name rolls off the tongue well. Also, while we'll all be calling them the "Scorps" if they win a lot, we can also call them the "Peons" if they lose. No logo yet. Grade: Incomplete, pending logo.

Chicago "Blaze" - Again, I said above that there was a fire in Chicago a long time back, so I suppose this gets the nod for being relevant to the city. And, "blaze" also has a connotation of running rampant over your opponents, so that works. However, it sounds too much like "Blitz". You can't have that many Zs in team names and still stay sane. No logo yet. Grade: Incomplete, pending logo.

Dallas "Destiny" - The 2007 USCL champions have another alliterative name, that really feels pleasant to say in your mouth. Not sure, though, what Destiny has to do with chess or Dallas, but it certainly gets points from the existentialists. I have no idea how many points they have, though. The logo combines a lot of nice elements (the lone star in the center, the fact that it looks like a sheriff's badge, the green color mimicking the Dallas Stars hockey team), although I think it is a bit too dull. Grade: B



Miami "Sharks" - A good name that fits with the theme of other sports teams in Miami (Marlins, Dolphins) and also is a scary aminal. Shark, also being the name for a card hustler, hints at a "game" aspect. The logo is stylish and just plain cool. The whole package is simple but effective. Grade: A

San Francisco "Mechanics" - If you don't know it, the Mechanics are named after the chess club in which they play, which is a famous chess club in the USA. So, the name fits the team, and has the chess and the city element combined. Besides the cutesy "gear" theme on the outside, the logo is a complete ripoff of the San Francisco 49ers logo. It just doesn't work for me. All in all - very good name, bad logo. Grade: C+



Seattle "Sluggers" - Another boxing themed name, which came before the NJ Knockouts. More alliteration too. The name is nice to say. However, I can't get by the fact that it is just boring to me. The logo is too creepy for me - the knight looks like it downed some caffeine pills to try and combat its looming psychosis. Grade: C-

Tennessee "Tempo" - While those of you reading this may see the word "tempo" and think in terms of chess lingo, many more people would see "tempo" and think of music. The fact that Tennessee plays in Nashville (symbolic home to country music) makes Tempo a great name for the team. Although, I think that Tempi would have been better, as the "ee" sound that ends both Tennessee and Tempi would pay off each other nicely. The logo, however, tries to do too much. The musical notes are ok, but you need only one, not two. And it looks like the big blue T is supposed to be hearkening to that blue thing on that building on the right of the Nashville skyline (see picture below), but unless you actually know Nashville (or are crazy enough to look up a picture of the skyline, like I was), you would never know. Grade: B+

Photographer: Bill Penn

Krazy Kwiz from ChessCafe

Every year, ChessCafe creates a chess trivia quiz that is really really difficult. They go to an enormous amount of work, and offer some fabulous prizes.

This year, they have done it again. You can access the quiz here, but the link is probably only active for a little while.

Final Regular Season Famous Original Power Rankings

The regular season of the United States Chess League, sponsored by PokerStars.com and played on the Internet Chess Club, has concluded. Boston and Dallas have won the East and West divisional titles, with Philadelphia and San Francisco coming in second in the same respective divisions. The New York Knights completed their late season rally with a win in the final week over the New Jersey Knockouts, and squeaking by into the third and final playoff spot in the East, and Miami shocked Seattle to take the final spot in the West.

In this final week of the power rankings, the Boston Blitz have regained the top spot after blitzing the Inventors of Philadelphia, while the Dallas Destiny were drowned in their pensieve by the Mechanics of San Francisco. Despite being in the playoffs, the Sharks of Miami are still only in eighth place, while the team they devoured, the Sluggers of Seattle, finished the season in the top half of the power rankings.

1 -	Boston	1.000
2 -	Dallas	0.974
3 -	San Francisco	0.963
4 -	Philadelphia	0.944
5 -	New York	0.906
6 -	Seattle	0.895
7 -	Queens	0.876
8 -	Miami	0.856
9 -	New Jersey	0.844
10 -	Carolina	0.837
11 -	Baltimore	0.825
12 -	Tennessee	0.724

The playoffs start next week, with the wildcard round in the East and the West. New York challenging Philadelphia (with the Inventors getting draw odds) and Miami attempting to dethrone the 2006 USCL champion San Francisco (with the Mechanics getting the draw odds). Tune in Wednesday evening on ICC.

Chamberlain prevailed at Little Round Top

Here's a little poem I wrote about Chamberlain's battle at Little Round Top. If you notice, you will see that each line is an anagram of each other.

Dear, lovable, triumphant, intrepid, Colonel.
Repelled brutal and vile riot. Not champion,
But heroic man... Patrol landed. Violent peril!
A bold invention! Impaled lethal corrupter!
Abort hilltop and violence, ample intruder.
Chamberlain prevailed at Little Round Top.

Famous Original Power Rankings: Post-Week 9

Another crazy week in the United States Chess League. The Sharks upset the Cobras, despite having a depleted roster. Once mighty (and one-quarter Awesome) Boston could not win a single game over the lowly Pioneers, and had to settle for a drawn match. The pre-season favorite Knights were out-thought by the resilient Inventors.

This puts the playoff picture into a pretty pickle. Boston and Philadelphia are tied atop the Eastern Division standings, and somehow the magic scheduling fairy spread its pixie dust and made it so that they play each other in the last week. The winner gets a first round bye, and the loser gets draw odds in the first round of the playoffs against another Eastern team (while a draw gives the division crown to Boston based on better game points). The New Jersey Knockouts have the most direct route to the playoffs -- win and they are in. They are playing the Knights, and if they draw, they are still in, provided Baltimore loses to, draws, or even beats Queens by 2.5 - 1.5 (and that the average calculated rating of Baltimore's opponents is lower than NJ, which is a pretty safe bet). If New Jersey draws, and Baltimore beats Queens by 3-1 or more, then Baltimore is in. If New Jersey loses to New York, and Baltimore draws or loses, then New York is in. If New York wins and Baltimore wins, then New York must win by a half-point more than Baltimore to get a playoff spot. I think. It is confusing.

In the Western Division, it is a lot clearer. Dallas is in, and has won the division. San Francisco is in, and will come in second or third. The final playoff spot comes down to the match of Seattle and Miami. If Seattle wins or draws, they are in. If Miami wins, they are in. Who gets second place is a little more confusing. If San Francisco wins, they get second place. If San Francisco draws, then Seattle must win 4-0 to have a chance at second place, and that will come down to the average rating calculation, which is just too lose to call now. Note if San Francisco draws, and Miami wins, San Francisco gets second place no matter what. If San Francisco loses and Miami wins, then San Francisco gets second place. If San Francisco loses, and Seattle wins, then Seattle gets second place. If San Francisco loses the match, but scores at least 0.5, and Seattle draws, then San Francisco gets second place. If San Francisco loses 4-0, and Seattle draws, then again, it will come down to the average rating calculation, which is just too lose to call now.

So, that's the playoff picture, as far as I can tell. Not gospel. Your mileage may vary.

But, now onto the power ratings.

1 -	Dallas	1.000
2 -	Boston	0.977
3 -	Philadelphia	0.975
4 -	San Francisco	0.930
5 -	Seattle	0.917
6 -	New York	0.890
7 -	New Jersey	0.861
8 -	Queens	0.854
9 -	Baltimore	0.853
10 -	Miami	0.827
11 -	Carolina	0.824
12 -	Tennessee	0.739

Dallas remains in first place, which shows that their rise last week to the top spot was not a fluke. Boston is still in second, but only a slight bit ahead of the surging Inventors. Despite their loss to that powerful Philadelphia team, the New York Knights remain above New Jersey, primarily due to their strength of schedule. Queens is a hair above the Kingfishers, likely because of their surprising draw today, and the tough schedule they have faced. And finally, from a high of fourth in the rankings after week 2, and fifth after week 4, the Carolina Cobras have slithered down the rungs, and now are only out of the cellar because of the Tempo.

Famous Original Power Rankings, Week 8

A new leader has emerged in the Famous Original Power Rankings! The Dallas Destiny has vaulted over the Boston Blitz, helped by their win over the Seattle Sluggers, and the Blitz's draw with the New Jersey Knockouts.

In fact, the biggest change is that the Knockouts have jumped to seventh place in the Power Rankings. And, the New York Knights are showing that their victory last week was not a fluke and are now living up to the pre-season hype, still in fifth place.

Without further ado, or in fact, any ado, here's this weeks list.

1 -	Dallas	1.000
2 -	Boston	0.993
3 -	Seattle	0.945
4 -	Philadelphia	0.939
5 -	New York	0.907
6 -	San Francisco	0.905
7 -	New Jersey	0.860
8 -	Baltimore	0.848
9 -	Carolina	0.842
10 -	Queens	0.833
11 -	Miami	0.793
12 -	Tennessee	0.726

Until next week! Only two weeks to go until the end of the season.

USCL Famous Original Power Rankings - Week 7

What a week of upsets! The biggest has to be the New York Knights stunning 2.5 - 1.5 win over the previously undefeated Boston Blitz. The Blitz still didn't solve the Pascallian Enigma, as GM Charbonneau won on Board 2, and Boston's Chris Williams is not Awesome any longer, after losing on Board 4. In other upsets, the Pioneers trampled the Kingfishers and the Sharks short-circuited the Mechanics.

These upsets... well... upset the previous quasi-stability of the Famous Original Power Rankings.

1 -	Boston	1.000
2 -	Dallas	0.964
3 -	Seattle	0.962
4 -	Philadelphia	0.907
5 -	New York	0.884
6 -	San Francisco	0.869
7 -	Baltimore	0.869
8 -	Carolina	0.865
9 -	Queens	0.850
10 -	New Jersey	0.841
11 -	Miami	0.796
12 -	Tennessee	0.715

You can see that while the Blitz remain in first place, the Destiny is only 2/1000 behind. The Knights have galloped up the rankings, while the Knockouts have fallen. Interestingly, San Francisco leads Baltimore by 2/10000 of a point. Finally, despite their improved showings this week, Tennessee and Miami still remain in the Southern-most region of the rankings.

Only three weeks to go before the playoffs!

Lawsuits at the USCF

I suppose it had to come to this. With all the vitriol and bile that were splashed throughout the elections of the United States Chess Federation, a lawsuit is clearly the most logical and obvious consequence in the USA's litigious society.

How unfortunate. With the popularity of scholastic chess, the scholarships given at major research universities, and the recent unification and reaffirmation of the world championship title, you would think these people would have better things to do.

Read all about it, here. Then, if you really want to depress yourself, try browsing the USCF forums (you have to be a USCF member to get to the USCF issues forum, which has the most combat).

USCL Predictions for Week 7

Here are the predictions for the this week, based on the Famous Original Power Rankings. There was a slight change to the model this week, where the best model was not chosen by a statistical method such as ordinary least squares (or weighted least squares). Instead, the best model this week was done on the basis of how well it would do in the USCL prediction contest.

Therefore, I expect a healthy return this week.

NJK	2		PHI	2	Tie Match
BOS	2.5		NYK	1.5	BOS wins
BAL	2		QUE	2	Tie Match
CAR	2.5		TEN	1.5	CAR wins
SFM	2.5		MIA	1.5	SFM wins
SEA	2		DAL	2	Tie Match

Remember, these predictions are done not using the lineups, and are based solely on the Famous Original Power Rankings.

USCL Power Rankings post-week 6

No comments tonight... Too late! But suffice it to say, Boston still at the top. Carolina comes down to earth, and New York creeps up a little.

1 -	Boston	1.000
2 -	Dallas	0.937
3 -	San Fran	0.877
4 -	Seattle	0.872
5 -	Baltimore	0.867
6 -	Carolina	0.858
7 -	Philadelphia	0.832
8 -	New Jersey	0.813
9 -	New York	0.801
10 -	Queens	0.777
11 -	Miami	0.697
12 -	Tennesee	0.665

Until next week!