Young Chess Whiz Overcomes Long Odds

Jason Bowe was the first to go, and the swift (barely 20 minutes) loss had left the 12-year-old Brea resident too stunned to say anything. It was all he could do to just shrug his shoulders in disbelief and exclaim, “I don’t know.”

Eleven-year-old Richard Solorio of Placentia was only one move behind. He stared sadly at his trapped black king, then carefully laid each piece down facing west on the chessboard and walked out of the room in disgust.

Charlie Reynolds, 12, of Brea lost his queen on the fifth move but kept a stiff upper lip. “It’s lookin’ pretty bad but I think I can make a comeback,” he said. But three minutes later, he too would withdraw in defeat.

The three weren’t alone in the losers’ bracket at the Boys Club of Placentia Thursday as 11 chess players aged 13 or less tested their abilities in a “simultaneous” tournament against a promising young county player, Guillermo Alvarez, 13, of Stanton.

Several Tournaments Won

Alvarez has won several tournaments involving high school players and his skills would give him a United States Chess Federation rating of more than 1,500, which translates to a ranking in the top five among county 13- and 14-year-olds, according to Calvin Olson, vice president of the Orange County Chess Assn.

Alvarez swept through most of his competition with little effort, but some of the youngsters seated on the outside of a square configuration of chessboards held their own against Alvarez for a while.

Chesty Ruger tapped his white high-top basketball shoes nervously as he waited for his next opportunity to play. The 12-year-old player from the Boys Club of Garden Grove twisted awkwardly in his seat, his chin almost on the table, left hand wringing a shock of brown hair and the right curled over the left and down the back of his shirt to get at a pesky itch.

He bristled when asked who was ahead. “As soon as I move, nobody,” he replied, pointing out that Alvarez’s bishop would soon fall prey to his pawn.

In the end, Ruger and all but one challenger fell into checkmate.

Fastest loss honors fell to 10-year-old Mathew Angel of Placentia, who could make only five moves before being knocked out. He escaped first-man-out honors by arriving 20 minutes late.

‘Didn’t Expect to Win’

Wesley Hildebrandt, 13, of Placentia said he was surprised to be the lone victor in the 11-on-one competition. “My dad taught me how to play and I play against other people at school. I didn’t expect to win,” he said.

Alvarez said he enjoys the “simultaneous” tournament format, adding that it’s more difficult than one-on-one competition. “You’ve got so many plays running through your head and each person has a lot more time to think out their next move than you do,” he said.

It’s the complexity of chess that makes it so fascinating, he said. “The best thing about it is finding different ways and new ideas of how to play,” he said.

There appeared to be no sore losers Thursday, just perplexed losers like Angel who lingered over the board long after the final move, muttering, “I think I should have moved this pawn here.”