Gov. Espino Chess Cup rolls off Dec. 17

The provincial government of Pangasinan, in cooperation with the Pangasinan Chess League (PCL), is inviting all chess players nationwide to join the 8th Gov. Amado Espino Cup Open Chess Tournament on December 17 and 18.

The two-day tournament is divided into Open and Kiddie categories.

For the Open Category, anyone can join regardless of rating, title, age or residence. For the Kiddie Category, however, the participants must be born on or later than Jan. 1, 2002.

Cash prizes awaiting the winners in the Open Category are: P25,000 (first place); P20,000 (second place); P15,000 (third place); P10,000 (fourth place); P8,000 (fifth place); P5,000 each (sixth to 10th place); P3,000 each (11th to 15th place); P2,000 each (16th to 20th place) and P1,000 each (21st to 25th place).

For the Kiddie Category, the cash prizes are P10,000 (first place); P8,000 (second place); P5,000 (third place); P3,000 (fourth place); P2,000 (fifth place); P1,000 each (sixth to 10th place); P500 each (11th to 15th place).

Also at stake are special category prizes, namely: Top Female Player (P2,000); Top Senior Player—60 years old or above (P2,000); Top Local Player (P2,000); Top Scorer—for participants 5 years old or below (P1,000); and Youngest Participant (P1,000). Registration and billeting are free. Registration will be held at the Narciso Ramos Sports and Civic Center in the town of Lingayen on December 16. The game proper will take place on Dec. 17 and 18 at the Pangasinan Training and Development Center.

The tournament, sanctioned by the National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP), is the culminating event of the annual Pangasinan Chess Festival, which featured the 6th Gov. Amado Espino Chess Clinic, the 6th Pangasinan Age Group Chess Championship, and the 6th Pangasinan Chess Championship.