The 2nd Worcestershire Open took place on 24-25 July. A new, larger venue at the University of Worcester and an increased prize fund attracted 110 entrants, up from 62 a year ago.
Open
First: Lawrence Cooper (Stafford) winning the Armageddon play-offs against Jane Richmond (Brown Jack, Swindon) and Derek Pugh (Bristol, Grendel) all on 4 points in standard play games.
The remainder of the field was: 3½ points - Claudio Mangione (Lincoln) and Vikas Sharma (Wellington, Shrops); 3 points Gerry Heap (Little Lever, Bolton), John Jenkins (Stroud), Peter Kitson (Worcester City), Steve Mellor (Worcester City), Ed Osbourn (Worcester City), Brian Turner (Malvern); 2½ points - Jonathen Bourne (Brown Jack, Swindon); 2 points - Golam Ali (South Birmingham), Phil Bull (West Bromwich), Ray Collett (Worcester City), Roger Greatorex (Llangollan), Richard McNally (Stratford), Tom Robinson (Redditch); 1½ points - Shakeel Choudhury (Mutual Circle, Birmingham), Richard Croot (Hereford), Paul Tew (Bridgend); 1 point - Miroslav Gruca (Widnes, withdrew after 3 rounds); ½ point - Moin Uddin (West Bromwich).
The U180 Grading Prize was shared between Claudio Mangione and Vikas Sharma.
Major (under-160)
First: Richard Desmedt (Netherton, Yorks) and Dean Hartley (Amber Valley) on 4½ points; third to fifth were Wiatt Ropp (Stratford); Graham Alcock (Ashtead, Surrey), and Chris Smith (Warley Quinborne) on 4 points.
The U140 Grading Prize was shared between Duncan MacArthur (Keynsham, Bristol) and Nathanael Paul (Codden, Telford) on 3½ points.
Minor (under-120)
A massive 7-way tie for first place between Matthew Trigg (Solihull); Richard Leaper (Westminster, Birmingham); Selina Moses (Dresden, Germany); Alan Fraser (Beckenham & Bromley); Kyle Reed (Hagley); James Friar (Hagley); Joseph Friar (Hagley) with 4 points.
U100 Grading Prize was shared between Ashwin Kalyana (Tony Miles Checkmates, Birmingham) and John Fozard (Eccleshall, Staffs).
The prize for Best Score by a Junior was shared by Selina Moses, Kyle Reed, James Friar and Joseph Friar.
The Slow Starter prize for best score by a first-round loser was won by Arron Dhesi (Sutton Coldfield) in the Minor section.
Equipment and an excellent bookstall were provided by CCF Mindgames.
The organisers wish to express their thanks to everyone who took part. Many generously added a donation on top of the entry fee to help the congress raise £500 for its designated charity, the St Mary's Hospice, Birmingham.