Rolando Nolte beats Dau Khuong Duy to grab solo lead of AQ ASEAN Chess Championship

NOT even age could stop Rolando Nolte in his pursuit of a Grandmaster (GM) title.

Showing he still has it at age 50 years old, Mr. Nolte subdued Vietnamese Dau Khuong Duy in 35 moves of their super-sharp Sicilian encounter to seize the solo lead after three rounds of the AQ Prime ASEAN Chess Championship at the Great Eastern Hotel Sunday.

Mr. Nolte, who finished third and the highest Filipino performer in the Manny Pacquiao International Open in General Santos in December last year, went on a sacrificial attack that resulted to pinning his teenage rival’s king to submission.

The former Olympiad player was hoping to top this 11-round event organized by the Kamatyas Chess Club that would earn him his second the three required norm to become a GM.

With eight rounds to go, Mr. Nolte is on course to making it a reality as he jumped to the top with 2.5 points, or half a point ahead of a five-man group that included Filipino Grandmasters Darwin Laylo and John Paul Gomez and International Master (IM) Paulo Bersamina.

Also in the pack of two-pointers were Malaysian IM Yeoh Li Tian and top seed Indonesian GM Susanto Megaranto.

Mr. Laylo, who is riding the crest of his recent National Championship conquest in Malolos, turned back Indonesian IM Yoseph Theolifus Taher while Mr. Gomez slew the fancied Megaranto.

Mr. Bersamina, for his part, escaped with a marathon 56-move draw with Indonesian IM Mohamad Ervan.

IM Daniel Quizon finally nailed his first win after two painful defeats and smashed Laotian FIDE Master Prin Laohawirapap. — Joey Villar