...without a clue. Walking into some strange church wondering what was about to happen. My only friend from Mill Creek with the foresight to show up was Robbie, and since only seven people were in our age bracket the odds of us playing each other in a ranked match were verrry high. Thankfully, I didn't have to dismantle Robbie in a game, as that would have been a very bittersweet victory. Instead, I played against my various friends I had met from other tournaments. In particular, my fourth game against a friend from Duluth stands out, as before the match he asked me to go easy on him [in a joking manner]. I beat him in less than 20 moves...Other than that one game, all my victories were seamless against unknown people I care nothing about. I had one loss from the tournament's victor, some emo girl. So... State of Georgia Grade Level Championships: + 4 - 1 = 0 // 2nd Place Sophomore Division I'm quite content with a second place victory, though normally I'd be frustrated that I lost a game. That one loss surprised a lot of people in the tournament, as many people told me they thought I was the best player there...so that I kinda made me feel better about losing. What really got to me though, was watching this International Master play 20 games at once and crushing his opposition. Robbie and I kinda looked at each other and wondered how someone could be that good. So of course, I stepped up to the plate and played this guy, someone with a ranking of 2430, making him the best chess player I've ever met/seen/played. I lost, but he said to me after the game a few very simple words that meant a lot, in a heavy Spanish accent, "You're good." I played an IM down to the last few pieces, and even made him stop to think about his game against me [whilst he was playing 19 other games simultaneously]. That master, Carlos, he didn't lose a game yesterday, but Robbie and I came the closest to beating him. That means a lot more than any second place finish. | 
