MD Chess History
List of Maryland Open and Amateur Chess Champions
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by John D. Rockefeller V
The MD Open Champion is the highest-finishing MD resident in the Championship section.
The MD Amateur Champion is the highest-finishing MD resident in the highest section with a ceiling below 2000: Under 2000, Under 1900, Under 1800, etc.
To update this list or correct an error, contact MD Chess at tournaments@mdchess.com.
| Year | MD Open Champion | MD Amateur Champion |
| 2023 | Jesse Kraii | Steven Pettit |
| 2022 | Kevin Wang | Konstantin Molodtsov |
| 2021 | Bijan Tahmassebi | Emerson Holcomb |
| 2020 | None—COVID | None—COVID |
| 2019 | Tegshsuren Enkhbaht | Edgar Gracia |
| 2018 | Ralph Zimmer | William Gallagher |
| 2017 | Levan Bregadze | Matthew Orye |
| 2016 | Larry Kaufman | Andre Gomes |
| 2015 | Shelby Getz | Douglas Malcolm |
| 2014 | Tegshsuren Enkhbat | Terence Coffee |
| 2013 | Aaron Khan | Michael Spencer |
| 2012 | Larry Kaufman | Bruce Till |
| 2011 | Shelby Getz | Sambarta Rakshit |
| 2010 | Larry Kaufman | Benjamin Krause |
| 2009 | Tegshsuren Enkhbat | Ronnie Colman |
| 2008 | Larry Kaufman | Benjamin Yastrov |
| 2007 | Zhi-Ya Hu | Adithya Sundar |
| 2006 | Alex Wojtkiewicz | Sathish Nath |
| 2005 | Alex Wojtkiewicz | Sathish Nath |
| 2004 | William Morrison | Harry Cohen |
| 2003 | Alex Wojtkiewicz | Bruce Till |
| 2002 | Alex Wojtkiewicz | Bruce Till |
| 2001 | Paul Yavari | Dan Elliott |
| 2000 | Dmitriy Barash | Chris Sevilla |
| 1999 | Larry Kaufman | Scott Webster |
| 1998 | Larry Kaufman | Daniel Elliott |
| 1997 | Larry Kaufman | Steve Mallis |
| 1996 | Boris Zisman | Art Buchanan |
| 1995 | William Morrison | David McDuffie |
| 1994 | Boris Reichstein | Roger Smith |
| 1993 | David Sherman | Robert Addison |
| 1992 | Alex Sherzer | Bruce Till |
| 1991 | Richard Delaune | Mark Saunders |
| 1990 | Allan Savage | Roy Collins |
| 1989 | Alex Sherzer | Bruce Till |
| 1988 | Allan Savage | Roy Collins |
| 1987 | Boris Gulko | Mark Saunders |
| 1986 | Alex Sherzer | Tommy Heintschel |
| 1985 | Stank Fink | John Holmes |
| 1984 | Michael Bury | Fritz Gougy |
| 1983 | Denis Strenzwilk | Mark Wellman |
| 1982 | Mark Ginsburg | Toney Simuel |
| 1981 | Floyd Boudreaux | Glen Smoot |
| 1980 | Roberty Joynt jr. | Movi Mardirossian |
| 1979 | Herbert Avram | Robert Holcomb *6 |
| 1978 | Steve Odendahl | Paul Zeigler *4 |
| 1977 | Steve Odendahl | David B. Cross |
| 1976 | Russell Chauvenet | Georges Rosenmann |
| 1975 | Larry Kaufman | Paul Zeigler |
| 1974 | Berry Bayus | James McCollough |
| 1973 | Duncan Thompson | George Bayles |
| 1972 | Robert Raven | Mark Allen |
| 1971 | Larry Kaufman | Larry Adler |
| 1970 | Ross Oliver *8 | |
| 1969 | Russell Chauvenet | Allen Sheldon |
| 1968 | Jack Kempler *7 | |
| 1967 | Phil Geffee | |
| 1966 | N. Darrell Legore *3 | |
| 1965 | Peter Graves | |
| 1964 | Norman MacLeod *2 | |
| 1963 | Russell Chauvenet | |
| 1962 | Richrd McComas *1 | |
| 1961 | Robert Raven *5 | |
| 1960 | Richard McComas | |
| 1959 | ||
| 1958 | ||
| 1957 | ||
| 1956 | ||
| 1955 | Herbert Avram *9 |
MD Chess is grateful to Denis Strenzwilk for researching the history of the Maryland Open & for compiling a list of known MD Open & Amateur Chess Champions, to Allan Savage for forwarding Denis's list to MD Chess in 2016, & to Mike Regan for transcribing & updating the list.
- According to Chess Life, June 1962, page 129, "McComas Rides Again - Richard McComas has won the title of Maryland Champion for the sixth time!" ... Thus, we can assume from note 2 that the first MD Open was held in 1955 and that McComas won the tournament five additional times between 1955 and 1961.
- According to Chess Review, Jun 1964, page 166, "The tenth Annual Maryland Open went to Arum Prosash son of the ambassador of India, Washington DC. He scored 5.5 -0.5 in front of Norman MacLeod." Since MacLeod is from Maryland he should be the MD Champion. Also, in 1964 is the tenth Maryland Open, then the first should have been in 1955.
- According to Chess Review June 1966, "A Maryland Tournament, held in Baltimore, was contested in two sections. In the Open section Charles Powell edged A. T. Lee on tie-break points. While William Bragg, Darrell Le Gore, Robert Raven, and Robert Vassar figured in a quadrulpe tie for third. The Amateur Section was won by Stanley Kundin." It is my best guess that this tournament is the 1966 Maryland Open. As Powell, Lee, and Vassar are Virginia players, Either Bragg, Le Gore or Raven should be the Maryland Champion. A letter from ... (missing text - mwr)
- I could not find any information in Chess Life and only had some of the Maryland Chess Newsletters from 1977-1978. Odendhal won the championship in 1977, and maybe he also won in 1978? Ed Westing has copies of the MCNL for the last quartar of 1978, adn the first quarter of 1979 which listed Odendhal as the champion and Paul Ziegler as the Amateur Champion. There were no crosstables for the Maryland Open, adn Ed was missing copies of MCNL in this time period.
- Chess Life, Vol XVL, No. 5, May 1962, page 143
- Chess Life and Review, July 1979, page 427
- Chess Review, Sept 1968, page 260
- Chess Life and Review, June 1971, page 327
- Chess Review, September 1955, page 261, " H. Avram already well supplied with chess honors, scored 6-1 to capture the Maryland State Open Tournament held in Baltimore. M. Tillies matched Avram's game score but fell back to second place on the basis of Swiss points. Third to seventh on Swiss totals with equal game scores of 5-2 were F. A. Sorenson, B. Grarfinkel, H. R. McComas, H. Jones, and N. A. Jacobs in the order names. The Maryland speed title was won by N. T. Whitaker."