2009 Philippine "Battle of Grandmasters" is next for GM Wesley So

The Philippines so-called "Battle of Grandmasters" is the next in line for GM Wesley So to conquer, the first major event he will be competing in his native country this year. So is the defending champion here and undoubtedly the most popular and sought after chess player in the country today. The tournament will be held on March 24-31 at Pavilion Hotel, Dapitan City, Zamboanga del Norte Mindanao. More details of the tournament, including the complete players list will follow soon.

One of our reader dropped us an email asking if there is an official website for the Battle of GMs; live games, PGN, latest results, videos and photos, these kind of stuffs. Sorry folks. No official website for the tournament so Filipino chess bloggers will again left accountable of giving the tournaments a bit of "taste" (not in a journalistic style, I mean) as though we are getting paid for doing this. Anyways, I'm still a bit disappointed that the tourney won't take place at least around the Metro Manila area. Of course bringing these event to the provinces will have a positive effect for the popularity of chess in the far away regions of the country but Filipino chess bloggers who are based mostly around the Metro won't be able to share some first hand, behind the scene moments that local newspapers and online chess journalist won't be able to submit to their employers. Truth is the last time I set my eyes on most of our Pinoy GMs was at the 4th PGMA Cup in September. As of now, our Filipino chess heroes are busy gearing up themselves for the Battle of GMs. Let us go to Linares then.