English Chess Forum

A post on the Chess Heaven facebook group yesterday reported the death of Tim Crouch, a victim of the Coronavirus outbreak.

Tim Crouch was a well known figure on the weekender circuit and was hugely liked and respected within the chess community. I played him several times and was always struck by his courtesy and gentlemanly conduct; I was once told that many younger players, particularly in the London area where he lived, considered him a surrogate Grandfather. Despite evident mobility problems in recent years he kept up a extensive list of congress appearances across the country and must have been among England's most active players. The loss to the chess community is incalculable and my thoughts are with his friends and family at this time.

A very well known figure on the Chess circuit. Here is a photo from Brendan O’Gorman
https://photos.smugmug.com/Chess/Exeter ... SQxv-D.jpg

Very sad - I saw him at many tournaments.

Very sad. He had a a famous footballing relation.

See https://johnupham.smugmug.com/search?ni ... thy+Crouch

Oh that's awful. A true grass roots legend.

Tim Crouch - a great man. I never ceased to tell him that. He has a 7-4 margin of victory over me - and winning records against many players at my level. Last time I saw him in June he said he was going to need dialysis. Having to dialyse for three or four hours, three times a week, would have set him back and put and end to his passion for chess and the (more than) occasional Guinness. Rest In Peace Great Man.

A lovely chap. Originally from Dorset, Tim spent part of his working life as an engineer for one of the big computer manufacturers, travelling from firm to firm fixing their broken machines - no easy task in that era of huge computing beasts with miles of wiring.

Unsurprisingly, Tim remained comfortable with IT in later life and was one of the few in his age group able to master the use of chess engines and databases. He liked nothing better than playing in weekend chess congresses, preferably in a hotel with a good pub nearby. He enjoyed playing chess by day and, even more, drinking with his mates in the evening. I’m sure he’s the player mentioned by Stephen Moss in The Rookie who fell asleep during their game but still managed to win !

Here’s an example of Tim showing his tactical ability at one of of his regular chess haunts:

[Event "4th Golders Green u1900"] [Site "?"] [Date "2014.08.23"] [Round "1"] [White "Franklin, Benjamin"] [Black "Crouch, Tim"] [Result "0-1"] [BlackElo "1663"] [FEN "r1bqr1k1/5ppp/p4n2/1p1pb3/8/1PNBP3/PBQ2PPP/2R2RK1 b - - 1 15"] [SetUp "1"] [WhiteElo "1840"] 15...Bxh2+ 16.Kxh2 Ng4+ 17.Kg1 Qh4 18.Rfd1 Qh2+ 19.Kf1 Rxe3 20.fxe3 Nxe3+ 21.Kf2 Nxc2 22.Bxc2 Bh3 23.Rg1 Qf4+ 24.Ke1 Re8+ 25.Ne2 Bg4 26.Bd1 Qe3 0-1

Tim was a charming, good humoured individual. If it’s true, as suggested in the first post in this thread, that some juniors saw him as a grandfather figure, that’s a delicious irony and testament to how polite he could be. He devoted considerable effort to avoiding juniors, even entering tougher tournament sections because of their lower kiddie count.

So long Tim, it was good to know you. I never left your company without a smile on my face.

I was just about to post this up myself but had logging in issues.

Tim to me was really like the Grandad I never had. Like Brendan said. He was so gentle and friendly. And still had a great sense of humour towards the end.
I was in touch with him around Xmas. I offered to meet up with and him and asked him if he needed anything. But he didn’t reply. Think he was already quite ill by this time. Last time I saw him was at Hampstead June last year.

I always gave him a pat on the back or shook his hand when I saw him. And always sat with him at congresses. He may of been sick of me in the end . But he always looked pleased to see me and we always had a laugh and chat about football and chess.

I will miss him so much. I did my best to make his last few years as fun and nice as possible. I even gave him a big hug at the pub near the docklands Rapid. I was that fond of him.

He said I was as daft as a brush. Which he meant in a fond way. Will miss his stories and company so much x.

Rip old mate.

Tim was a legend. I played him a few times. I think once when I was a junior. He was on Kingston's list of members when I joined. God knows how Chris Clegg or Derek Coope got TJ to play for us.

Sad news.

Very sad. I really liked Tim - an easy, likeable chap to sit and have a pint with.

You are quite right, Brendan. It was Tim who beat me despite falling asleep (several times) in a game at the London Classic weekender in 2012. There was a further oddity in the game. I went to the loo at one point and came back to find he had accidentally played two moves. He made a move while I was away, fell asleep, woke up and played another move, all quite innocently. Eventually we untangled it. He played really well and once he got a slight advantage wouldn't let up, belying the surface sleepiness which had lulled me into a false sense of security. Stronger than his grade (then about 125) was my conclusion, and it was always a pleasure to see him at tournaments. Hope you are well in this grim time.

I describe my game against Tim, en passant as it were, in section a3 of The Rookie.

I was so sorry to hear of the passing of Tim Crouch. I met him all over
the country at many different events over the last 20 years. He was always
a gentleman and was very pleased to have a chat with anyone. He played,
mostly, in the section below me but I do remember that he managed a plus
score against me over the years. I sat and had a drink with him many times
at various events, many in the South of England, but he did also travel north
to play at places such as Harrogate where I remember him giving me a lesson
on how to play the Black side of a Morra Gambit. I think my other great
friend Colin Gardiner would also like to be remembered as a friend of Tim's.
RIP Tim

Although I knew Tim had been unwell for some time I was shocked to hear of his recent death
When I got back into chess a few years ago after a long break Tim was one of the first players I became friendly with
Almost inevitably whatever weekend congress I entered ( Fareham Gatwick Bournemouth London Classic Torquay Harrogate and others )Tim would be there
We often found ourselves staying in the same hotel and I always looked forward to having a few pints with him in the bar as he was great company
I played him a few times and he was a very determined player. I remember offering him a draw in what I thought was a totally even position and a big smile crossed his face as he shook his head.He then proceeded to grind me down over the next 30 moves until i resigned
I will miss you Tim you were a lovely man

I used to see Tim in and around London Tournamnets and matches a lot , I moved away in 2017 and he was turning up at Tournaments everywhere. I last saw him at Bournmouth and chatted to him after games , a very nice Gentlemen indeed - Sad to hear the loss of a stalwalt . gh