Tradewise Gibraltar Masters

[Mike Truran]

Apart from Gawain, only one ENG player (Nigel) in the top 50.

Worrying times.

[Alan Walton]

Apart from Gawain, only one ENG player (Nigel) in the top 50.

Worrying times.

Considering the strength of the tournament is this a problem, only 9 players in England are higher rated than the top 50 entrants and most of them aren't considered strong enough to get conditions.

Personally it is more worrying times for somebody like Anand, but even this is to early to tell

[Nick Grey]

Yes Mike but you & the board & all the volunteers are going to turn this around though not overnight.

Let's not put too much pressure on promising juniors their parents, & their coaches.

Look at tennis taken 76 years, been a while at football.

[LawrenceCooper]

Apart from Gawain, only one ENG player (Nigel) in the top 50.

Worrying times.

Well there were only three English players in the top 100 on ranking, Gawain's result was outstanding, Nigel's Gib record prior to this year has been very good and David was over 2700 as recently as October 2015.

If anything is worrying it's why so few titled English players were there.

[Richard Bates]

Apart from Gawain, only one ENG player (Nigel) in the top 50.

Worrying times.

Well there were only three English players in the top 100 on ranking, Gawain's result was outstanding, Nigel's Gib record prior to this year has been very good and David was over 2700 as recently as October 2015.

If anything is worrying it's why so few titled English players were there.

Are you talking GMs or IMs? And in what respect is it 'worrying'? It's quite expensive, since few could get conditions, you've got to plan to play months and months in advance, it sometimes clashes with 4NCL, and there's no historic culture of lots of English players participating. It's technically a British tournament, but in in practical terms it's just a foreign tournament. Of which there are many alternatives, and probably more interesting places if you want to combine with a holiday. It just doesn't seem an obvious place to expect lots of English titled participants and thus be worried by their absence.

[LawrenceCooper]

Apart from Gawain, only one ENG player (Nigel) in the top 50.

Worrying times.

Well there were only three English players in the top 100 on ranking, Gawain's result was outstanding, Nigel's Gib record prior to this year has been very good and David was over 2700 as recently as October 2015.

If anything is worrying it's why so few titled English players were there.

Are you talking GMs or IMs? And in what respect is it 'worrying'? It's quite expensive, since few could get conditions, you've got to plan to play months and months in advance, it sometimes clashes with 4NCL, and there's no historic culture of lots of English players participating. It's technically a British tournament, but in in practical terms it's just a foreign tournament. Of which there are many alternatives, and probably more interesting places if you want to combine with a holiday. It just doesn't seem an obvious place to expect lots of English titled participants and thus be worried by their absence.

I was merely trying to deflect Mike's worry elsewhere I would be interested to know how many English players get a decent offer of conditions, I suspect outside our top six very few which would explain the low turn out.

[Mick Norris]

Adams was playing Wijk - who else would you expect to play in Gib?

[LawrenceCooper]

Adams was playing Wijk - who else would you expect to play in Gib?

I wouldn't say "expect" but remembering the forum thread questioning why so few English players played in Qatar one might also say it's a shame that there weren't more of our norm seekers in Gibraltar but Mike is better placed to expand on "worrying times" than I am to second guess him.

[Mick Norris]

I guess it depends where you think there are best chances for a norm

We had 26 players in the Masters, including 3 GMs, 3 IMs and a FM - don't know how that compares with the last few years

[LawrenceCooper]

I guess it depends where you think there are best chances for a norm

We had 26 players in the Masters, including 3 GMs, 3 IMs and a FM - don't know how that compares with the last few years

Nor me and I certainly didn't want to downplay the norm possibilities of those playing as Jovanka has been close to a GM norm, Robert has one and there were certainly some players very capable of getting IM norms. I'm not sure if Mike's comment regarding only one player in the top 50 referred to those players present or those who were absent, I suspect the latter.