D’Engineers chess championship… GM JÒEY ANTONIO, HARI NG RAPIDO!

Tumapos nang malinis si Grandmaster (GM) Rogelio “Joey” Antonio Jr. para magkampeon sa 3rd D’ Engineer’s Cup rapid chess tournament na tinaguriang Armageddon Battle of Champions na ginanap sa Koten Enterprises Inc. Corporate office sa F.B. Harrison Street, Pasay City noong Sabado, Marso 8, 2025.

Tinalo ng 12-time Philippine Open Champion na si Antonio ang journeyman na si Sherwin Tiu sa finals.

Para sa kanyang tagumpay, nagbulsa si Antonio ng P8,000 at isang painting mula sa Life ‘N Art, kasama ang isang gold medal.  Ang runner-up na si Tiu naman ay tumanggap ng P4,000 at silver medal sa torneong ito na umani ng 16 na kalahok.

Maganda ang panimula ni Antonio na tinalo niyang ang kannyang unang tatlong kalaban  na sina Joseph Lawrence Rivera (2-0), International Master Chito Danilo Garma (2-0) at si Tiu (2-0) sa winners brackets para makausad sa finals.

Nakabangon si Tiu mula sa pagkatalo sa pamamagitan ng 2-0 panalo laban sa kabataang si Jeremy Marticio sa loser’s brackets kaya napanatili ang kanyang pag-asa para sa inaasam na korona.

Subalit mas kinakitaan muli ng husay si Antonio sa rematch nila ni Tiu sa finals.

Ang 16-man Armageddon Battle of Champion ay mayroong local rapid rating average 2000 na kinabibilangan din nina IM Jose Efren Bagamasbad, IM Angelo Young, FM Narquingden Reyes, NM Marc Christian Nazario, NM Edmund Gatus, Narquingel “Archie” Reyes, Mark Gerald Reyes, John Andrew Garcia, Eric Mordido, Erwin Calarado at Janmyl Calarado.

“Turn back time . Winning the 3rd D’ Engineers Cup Armageddon Battle of Champions with convincing fashion without a lost and draw,” sabi ng 63 anyos na si Antonio  na nakatakda ding lumahok sa isa pang Armageddon format , double elimination format na tinampukang DG’s Cup 2025 Invitational Chess Tournament ngayong Biyernes, Marso 14, 2025 na gaganapin sa Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) Auditorium, Double Dragon Center West Building, DD Meridian Park, Macapagal Avenue sa Pasay City.

“Armageddon chess is a unique variant in which the player with the black pieces wins in the case of a drawn game. The player with the white pieces receives an initial time advantage on the clock. If they fail to convert the game into a win, they suffer a loss even with a draw. This rule, adopted by the World Chess Federation and other chess federations, ensures that the game has a decisive outcome, ultimately determining the tournament’s victor,” sabi ni tournament director Institute of Integrated Electrical Engineers of the Philippines, Inc. (IIEE) National Past President Engr. Allan Anthony  Alvarez.

Una dito ay pinangunahan nina Asia’s First GM Eugene Torre at Shimmer & Shield Car Coating President/CEO Jeff Bugayong ang pagsasagawa ng ceremonial moves bilang hudyat ng pagbubukas ng one-day tournament na pinasiyaan din nina PRBEE Chairman Francis Mapile, PTC Country Registrar Romulo Agatep, GM Antonio, former Philippine Ambassador to Bangladesh, Sri Lanka & Maldives Leo Tito Ausan Jr., PTC President Federico Monsada at PSME National Past President Engr. Roger Reyes.

Ang Chief Arbiter ay si NM/NA Almario Marlon Quiroz Bernardino Jr. sa pakikipagtlungan nina NM Romeo Alcodia, Rod Sulit at Brian Angelo Young. (DANNY SIMON)