2023 Colorado State Chess Senior Open
Round 1 My "once a year" tournament these days. the CSCA finally got it right with alternating tournaments the past couple of years. So, last year it was the Class Championships in the Springs, the year before that it was the Senior Open that I played in in Manitou, and this year we are back to the Senior Open (and next year it will be the Class championships down here again - Colorado Springs alternates with Loveland for these tournaments. The biggest question for most of us seniors (being in my mid fifties these days) is how will our physical shape be after long layoffs, how will our bodies react to the pressure of a tournament. I was feeling or using a lot of nervous energy in Round 1, as a I was not used to the gruelling battle of a long tournament game, particularly with how it feels in time-pressure, and it shows in how shaky my endgame play was in time-pressure. I was blundering plenty in the end-game, being under two minutes for most of the way. Of course, I shou