Agatha Christie’s bolthole, The Old Swan Harrogate, was once again the venue of a chess congress in Harrogate. Both 4NCL and Castle Chess have used this venue in recent years, though the Castle Chess series seems to have ceased. Harrogate’s other congress, that run by Noel Boustred, uses Harrogate Chess Club’s premises.

There were only three sections, with total entries down slightly (4%) from last year’s total of 134:

FIDE Rated	Open	with 30 entrants,
FIDE Rated U‑2000 /	U‑175 ECF	with 56 entrants,
	U-135 ECF	with 43 entrants,
		total 129 entrants.

Prizes in each section were advertised as

1st £500, 2nd £250, 3rd £120, 4th £80, with best performance prize of £50.

In the first round of the Open, it was evident that most of those Yorkshire entrants who had not taken a 1st-round bye were serving as “cannon fodder” for the stronger outsiders. Thus Mike Stokes, Peter Shaw, Jim Burnett, Peter Ackley and Joe Kilshaw all got shot down in flames (change of metaphor from army to airforce) in round 1. The Open winner was 17-year-old Jonah Willow of Nottingham, who currently has a Fidé Master (FM) title, and might well go on to do better than that.

In the Major, highest-placed “Yorkshire” player was 3rd-placed Oliver Graham, who still plays for Worksop (Notts.) in the Sheffield league, even after moving to Cleckheaton (or is it Heckmondwike?). Local player Douglas MacKerracher was 4th to 10th equal.

In the Minor, Bruce Oliver of Beverley finished 1st-2nd equal with the organiser of the other Harrogate Congress, Noel Boustred of Gosport. There followed Daniel Dufton of Keighley and Vivien Webster of Halifax.

Open
No	Name		1			2			3			4			5		SPS

1	Jonah B Willow	1	W	15	1	B	11	½	W	10	1	B	4	1	W	7
	West Nottingham		1			2			2½			3½			4½		13½
2	Peter K Wells	1	B	9	1	W	14	1	B	5	½	W	10	½	B	3
	Witney		1			2			3			3½			4		13½
3	Max N Turner	½	-	bye	1	W	22	1	B	18	1	B	11	½	W	2
	Berwick-Upon-Tweed		½			1½			2½			3½			4		12
4	Aron J Cohen	½	-	bye	1	W	17	1	B	6	0	W	1	½	B	5
	Cambridge/Stuttgart		½			1½			2½			2½			3		10
5	Jonathan W Arnott	½	W	19	1	B	23	0	W	2	1	B	20	½	W	4
	SASCA (Sheffield)		½			1½			1½			2½			3		9
6	Paul E Roberts	½	-	bye	1	B	20	0	W	4	1	B	15	½	W	8
	Edinburgh		½			1½			1½			2½			3		9
7	Mike R Stokes	0	B	10	1	W	24	1	B	21	1	W	12	0	B	1
	Harrogate		0			1			2			3			3		9
8	Robert Starley	½	-	bye	1	W	28	0	B	16	1	W	18	½	B	6
	Leeds University		½			1½			1½			2½			3		9
9	Peter Shaw	0	W	2	1	B	30	1	W	27	1	B	13	0	B	10
	Wakefield		0			1			2			3			3		9
10	Daniel W Gormally	1	W	7	+	B	16	½	B	1	½	B	2	1	W	9
	Alnwick		1			1			1½			2			3		8½
11	Mike J Surtees	1	B	29	0	W	1	1	B	17	0	W	3	½	B	14
	Great Lever		1			1			2			2			2½		8½
12	Eric D Gardiner	½	-	bye	½	B	27	1	W	19	0	B	7	½	W	13
	Hull		½			1			2			2			2½		8
13	Savin Dias	½	-	bye	½	W	21	1	B	14	0	W	9	½	B	12
	Hertfordshire Juniors		½			1			2			2			2½		8
14	Steven A Jones	1	W	30	0	B	2	0	W	13	1	B	23	½	W	11
	Basingstoke		1			1			1			2			2½		7½
15	Jim Burnett	0	B	1	1	W	29	½	B	22	0	W	6	1	B	17
	Ecclesall (Sheffield)		0			1			1½			1½			2½		6½
16	Yichen Han	1	B	24	-	W	10	1	W	8
	Forest Hall		1			1			2			2			2		8
17	Mate Ther	1	W	26	0	B	4	0	W	11	1	B	28	0	W	15
	Harrogate		1			1			1			2			2		7
18	Jim W R Nicholson	½	-	bye	1	B	25	0	W	3	0	B	8	½	W	19
	York		½			1½			1½			1½			2		7
19	Julian Cast	½	B	5	½	W	26	0	B	12	½	W	24	½	B	18
	Long Eaton		½			1			1			1½			2		6
20	Barry J Hymer	½	-	bye	0	W	6	1	B	26	0	W	5	½	B	22
	Lancaster		½			½			1½			1½			2		6
21	Derek A Sheppard	½	-	bye	½	B	13	0	W	7	½	B	26	½	W	24
	Hull		½			1			1			1½			2		6
22	Jim E Vickery	½	-	bye	0	B	3	½	W	15	½	B	27	½	W	20
	Alwoodley		½			½			1			1½			2		5½
23	Gerald M Cohen	½	-	bye	0	W	5	½	B	28	0	W	14	1	B	29
	Aigburth		½			½			1			1			2		5
24	Peter J E Ackley	0	W	16	0	B	7	1	W	25	½	B	19	½	B	21
	Sheffield		0			0			1			1½			2		4½
25	Anna K Szasz	½	-	bye	0	W	18	0	B	24	½	W	29	1	W	28
	Ilkley		½			½			½			1			2		4½
26	Zia Mohammed Quader	0	B	17	½	B	19	0	W	20	½	W	21	1	-	bye
	Bury St Edmunds		0			½			½			1			2		4
27	John K Holliday	½	-	bye	½	W	12	0	B	9	½	W	22
	Bradford		½			1			1			1½			1½		5½
28	Raymond Wynarczyk	½	-	bye	0	B	8	½	W	23	0	W	17	0	B	25
	Northumberland		½			½			1			1			1		4
29	Stuart Ross	0	W	11	0	B	15	½	W	30	½	B	25	0	W	23
	Newport		0			0			½			1			1		2½
30	Joe Kilshaw	0	B	14	0	W	9	½	B	29
	Grimsby		0			0			½			½			½		1½

Major
No	Name		1			2			3			4			5		SPS

1	Marc O N Obi	1	W	45	1	B	33	1	W	6	½	W	4	1	B	5
	Bedford		1			2			3			3½			4½		14
2	Jude Ranga Samarasinghe	½	-	bye	1	B	22	1	W	12	1	B	11	1	W	4
	London		½			1½			2½			3½			4½		12½
3	Oliver Graham	0	W	19	1	B	38	1	W	48	1	B	25	1	W	13
	Worksop		0			1			2			3			4		10
4	Paul H Kenning	1	W	50	1	B	31	1	W	25	½	B	1	0	B	2
	Braintree		1			2			3			3½			3½		13
5	Stephen Ormerod	1	W	24	1	B	21	½	W	11	1	B	14	0	W	1
	Newton Aycliffe		1			2			2½			3½			3½		12½
6	Douglas McKerracher	1	B	41	1	W	35	0	B	1	½	W	16	1	B	28
	Harrogate		1			2			2			2½			3½		11
7	Robert Kane	½	W	38	1	B	55	1	W	26	½	B	17	½	B	8
	Edinburgh		½			1½			2½			3			3½		11
8	Tim Hilton	½	W	22	½	B	29	1	W	24	1	B	31	½	W	7
	Blue		½			1			2			3			3½		10
9	Martin J Burns	½	B	30	1	W	37	½	B	16	½	W	10	1	B	15
	Stockport		½			1½			2			2½			3½		10
10	Mark A Whitehead	½	W	17	1	B	28	½	W	13	½	B	9	1	W	26
	Rochdale		½			1½			2			2½			3½		10
11	Andy J Bagley	1	B	44	1	W	19	½	B	5	0	W	2	½	B	16
	Rose Forgrove		1			2			2½			2½			3		11
12	Carl Heald	1	B	56	1	W	47	0	B	2	½	W	18	½	B	20
	Carnforth		1			2			2			2½			3		1½
13	Graham A G Williamson	½	B	16	1	W	51	½	B	10	1	W	34	0	B	3
	Waterloo		½			1½			2			3			3		10
14	Sam Davies	½	-	bye	1	B	42	1	W	32	0	W	5	½	B	17
	St. Helens		½			1½			2½			2½			3		10
15	Andrew M Barber	½	W	23	½	-	bye	1	B	44	1	B	19	0	W	9
	Buckley Mold		½			1			2			3			3		9½
16	Ciaran Macdonald	½	W	13	1	B	40	½	W	9	½	B	6	½	W	11
	Forest Hall		½			1½			2			2½			3		9½
17	Brian H Coop	½	B	10	½	W	48	1	B	36	½	W	7	½	W	14
	Harrogate		½			1			2			2½			3		9
18	Mick D Riding	½	W	32	½	B	23	1	W	29	½	B	12	½	W	22
	Gosforth		½			1			2			2½			3		9
19	Paul May	1	B	3	0	B	11	1	W	43	0	W	15	1	B	34
	Limewood		1			1			2			2			3		9
20	Neil T Jones	½	W	42	½	B	27	½	W	33	1	B	38	½	W	12
	Maryport		½			1			1½			2½			3		8½
21	M John Cawston	1	B	53	0	W	5	0	B	34	1	W	36	1	B	37
	Ye Olde Starre Inn		1			1			1			2			3		8
22	Zak Tomlinson	½	B	8	0	W	2	1	B	56	1	W	41	½	B	18
	Doncaster		½			½			1½			2½			3		8
23	Jordi Bitlloch	½	B	15	½	W	18	½	B	47	½	-	bye	1	W	31
	Urmston		½			1			1½			2			3		8
24	Paul D Doherty	0	B	5	1	W	53	0	B	8	1	W	54	1	B	49
	Bolton		0			1			1			2			3		7
25	David W Stephenson	1	B	34	1	W	36	0	B	4	0	W	3	½	W	29
	Hull		1			2			2			2			2½		9½
26	Paul R Bielby	½	B	48	1	W	30	0	B	7	1	W	27	0	B	10
	South Shields		½			1½			1½			2½			2½		8½
27	Michael I Connor	½	-	bye	½	W	20	1	B	35	0	B	26	½	W	30
	Great Lever		½			1			2			2			2½		8
28	Alec Grice	½	-	bye	0	W	10	1	B	50	1	B	32	0	W	6
	Beverley		½			½			1½			2½			2½		7½
29	Richard L Bowman	½	-	bye	½	W	8	0	B	18	1	W	52	½	B	25
	Keighley		½			1			1			2			2½		7
30	Greg F Millar	½	W	9	0	B	26	½	-	bye	1	W	44	½	B	27
	Maryport		½			½			1			2			2½		6½
31	Lorenzo Guillermo Curras	1	B	43	0	W	4	1	B	54	0	W	8	0	B	23
	Leeds University		1			1			2			2			2		8
32	David G Hall	½	B	18	1	W	39	0	B	14	0	W	28	½	W	43
	Perth		½			1½			1½			1½			2		7
33	Ross Murphy	1	B	54	0	W	1	½	B	20	0	W	46	½	W	39
	West Bridgford		1			1			1½			1½			2		7
34	David Walshaw	0	W	25	1	B	49	1	W	21	0	B	13	0	W	19
	Jesmond		0			1			2			2			2		7
35	Robert A Dean	1	W	52	0	B	6	0	W	27	½	B	43	½	W	42
	Undercliffe		1			1			1			1½			2		6½
36	Steven Potter	1	W	49	0	B	25	0	W	17	0	B	21	1	W	55
	St Helens		1			1			1			1			2		6
37	Siefaldin A Holi	½	-	bye	0	B	9	½	W	45	1	B	48	0	W	21
	Wakefield		½			½			1			2			2		6
38	Rohan Pal	½	B	7	0	W	3	1	B	51	0	W	20	½	B	41
	Warwickshire Junior		½			½			1½			1½			2		6
39	Harry Baxter	½	-	bye	0	B	32	½	W	42	½	-	bye	½	B	33
	Harrogate		½			½			1			1½			2		5½
40	Malcolm H Cooper	½	B	51	0	W	16	½	-	bye	½	B	42	½	W	45
	Farnham		½			½			1			1½			2		5½
41	Laurence J M Tarbuck	0	W	6	½	B	45	1	W	55	0	B	22	½	W	38
	Lichfield		0			½			1½			1½			2		5½
42	Brendan O'Gorman	½	B	20	0	W	14	½	B	39	½	W	40	½	B	35
	DHSS		½			½			1			1½			2		5½
43	John Harris	0	W	31	1	-	bye	0	B	19	½	W	35	½	B	32
	Coventry		0			1			1			1½			2		5½
44	Mark B W Waterfield	0	W	11	1	B	52	0	W	15	0	B	30	1	W	54
	Kettering		0			1			1