The Irish Chess Union

The Masters at the Galway Congress last weekend was won by IM Alex Lopez, on tie-break from GM Alex Baburin. Third place went to IM Denis Rombaldoni (Italy). The holder of the Connaught Champion trophy (resurrected this year) is Yury Rochev. Grading prizes went to Valentine Kalinins (with an outstanding performance) and Hugh Doyle. The Majors resulted in a three-way tie between James Danaher, David Baird, and Michael O’Donnell, whilst the Minor’s trophy went to Christopher Murphy, on tie-break from Fiachra Scallan, with third prize shared between Peter Doyle and Ivan Baburin. Grading prize winners were David O’Kelly, Steven Eachus, and Conall Hegarty (in the Majors), and David Piercy, Barry O’Reilly, and Marek Fijalkowski (Minors). Full cross-tables and standings, a more extensive report, and pictures and games can be found at galwaychess.com.