Oz fortress!

[Javier]

The Doeberl Cup (Held over Easter's Weekend) is Australia's most important weekend tournament. With a first prize of 5000 Australian Dollars (around 3000 Euros), this year's edition attracted many Overseas Masters and Grandmasters, just a few days before the "Mega" Sydney International Open.

Suprisingly, the first 4 players in the final standings were all Australian!

Few could have predicted such a great result for Australian players, for many of the overseas participants were GMs like Mikhailevski from Israel, Matamoros from Ecuador, Shipov from Russia, Antic from Serbia, Timoshenko from Ukraine, Bakre from India...)-

How can this be explained? well, this is just my own hipothesis, but I think it has to do with 2 facts:

1- Australian players are probably somewhat under-rated in the FIDE lists (and thus, easier to understimate)

2- Australian players are stronger at faster time controls and weekend tournaments.

 

(note: Australian elo ratings, except for overseas players)

 

1    GM Ian Rogers (NSW)    2621    g + 44    g + 62    g + 10    g + 9    g = 2    g = 3    g + 5    6    +11.0
2    IM David Smerdon (Vic)    2469    g + 47    g + 25    g + 16    g = 3    g = 1    g = 8    g + 13    5½    +21.3
3    IM Stephen Solomon (Qld)    2428    g + 55    g + 38    g + 7    g = 2    g + 15    g = 1    g = 6    5½    +43.6
4    IM Gary Lane (NSW)    2452    g + 50    g + 37    g = 5    g = 8    g = 20    g + 21    g + 16    5½    +12.1
5    GM Victor Mikhalevski * (Isr)    2590    g + 26    g + 22    g = 4    g = 6    g + 9    g + 11    g - 1    5    -7.5
6    GM Carlos Matamoros Franco * (Ecu)    2523    g + 42    g + 17    g = 20    g = 5    g + 33    g = 13    g = 3    5    +0.4
7    GM Sergei Shipov * (Rus)    2592    g + 43    g + 21    g - 3    g = 14    g + 31    g + 17    g = 8    5    -21.8
8    GM Dejan Antic (Serb)    2428    g + 68    g = 11    g + 32    g = 4    g + 42    g = 2    g = 7    5    +3.5
9    FM Jesse Noel Sales (Phi)    2389    g + 48    g + 56    g + 13    g - 1    g - 5    g + 37    g + 21    5    +11.7
10    IM Andras Toth (Hun)    2430    g + 39    g + 31    g - 1    g + 38    g - 21    g + 27    g + 22    5    -15.2
11    Junta Ikeda (ACT)    2164    g + 58    g = 8    g = 33    g + 55    g + 14    g - 5    g + 20    5    +48.2
12    Dusan Stojic (Vic)    2223    g - 31    g + 48    g + 49    g + 37    g - 13    g + 43    g + 24    5    +2.9
13    GM Darryl Johansen (Vic)    2467    g + 36    g + 29    g - 9    g + 25    g + 12    g = 6    g - 2    4½    -13.4
14    GM Tejas Bakre * (Ind)    2426    g + 45    g + 27    g = 15    g = 7    g - 11    g = 40    g + 23    4½    -11.2
15    GM Georgy Timoshenko * (Ukr)    2566    g + 23    g + 57    g = 14    g = 20    g - 3    g = 19    g + 40    4½    -30.6
16    Tomek Rej (NSW)    2258    g + 54    g + 64    g - 2    g = 32    g + 26    g + 34    g - 4    4½    -9.2
17    Manathan Chokshi * (Ind)    2168    g + 65    g - 6    g + 67    g = 34    g + 32    g - 7    g + 35    4½    +4.4
18    Alexander Kanikevich (NSW)    2334    g + 59    g - 32    g = 26    g = 36    g = 35    g + 45    g + 34    4½    -39.2
19    Domagoj Dragicevic (Vic)    2126    g - 34    g - 51    g + 28    g + 67    g + 36    g = 15    g + 32    4½    -11.7
20    FM Igor Goldenberg (Vic)    2368    g + 63    g + 35    g = 6    g = 15    g = 4    g = 23    g - 11    4    -7.0

 

See the full results in all categories HERE