CHESS : INTERNATIONAL NEWS

The 1995 Professional Chess Assn. world championship began last week with four draws between champion Garry Kasparov of Russia and challenger Viswanathan Anand of India. Anand said he was happy with his 2-2 start, but added that it could have been 2 1/2-1 1/2. He’s right, as he missed an opportunity for a winning sacrifice in the third game. After two forgettable draws, the players fought hard in Game Three on Thursday, but Anand could not deliver the knockout punch. The fourth game was memorable only for Kasparov’s strange decision to offer a draw in a “can’t-lose” position. Expect a quiet match to heat up this week.

The U.S. Chess Federation and 60 other members of the International Chess Federation (FIDE) have sent letters to FIDE headquarters demanding an emergency meeting. FIDE president Florencio Campomanes was reelected in December because he promised to unify the PCA and FIDE world championships. But FIDE has not reached an agreement with the PCA, and FIDE has failed to arrange its 1995 men’s world championship (between Anatoly Karpov of Russia and Gata Kamsky of New York) and its 1995 women’s world championship (between Xie Jun of China and Zsuzsa Polgar of Hungary). The USCF wants new elections in 1996, two years ahead of schedule.

LOCAL NEWS

The North County Fall Open will take place Sept. 23-24 at the Holiday Inn-Miramar, 9335 Kearny Mesa Rd. in San Diego. The four-round Open section counts as a Grand Prix tournament, and there is a five-round Amateur section for players rated under 2000. For details, call Alina Markowski at (619) 743-3044.

Chess Palace, 3255 E. South St. in Long Beach, will host a series of events featuring grandmaster Eduard Gufeld. On Sept. 19, Gufeld will give a simultaneous exhibition, starting at 7 p.m. On Sept. 26, he will deliver a lecture titled “Chess Strategy.” In addition, Gufeld will comment on almost every game of the Kasparov vs. Anand match during play, on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday afternoons. Chess Palace will extend its hours, opening at 2 p.m. on playing days during the match. Call Charles Rostedt at (310) 634-8477 for more information.

The Chess Center, a new club, has opened at 3400 Irvine Ave. in Newport Beach. The club meets three evenings per week, with rated tournaments on Friday and Saturday evenings. Wednesday is chess video night, and master Ross Stoutenborough teaches a class for kids at 6:30 p.m. For further information, call (714) 474-6909.

Chess classes for young players, ages 5 to 18, begin Sept. 22 at St. Paul the Apostle School, 1536 Selby Ave. in Westwood. John Surlow will teach two seven-week classes on Fridays. The junior class is scheduled at 6:30 p.m., and the intermediate class follows at 7:30 p.m. Call Surlow at (310) 479-8377 for details.

The West Valley Chess Club, which meets Thursdays in the West Valley Jewish Community Center, 22622 Vanowen St. in Canoga Park, will begin the six-round Fall Swiss on Sept. 21. For information, call Herman Hess at (818) 346-5959 or John Price at (818) 363-1379.

The double-round quads at the West Valley Chess Club attracted 44 players. Section winners were Ron Hermansen, Arsham Dolmaian, Greg Paul, Dana Jackson, Ed Isler, John Cornell, Chris Latragna, Peter Goldberg, Blake Goodwin, Henry Kolin and Rick Bucaria.