Triggerfish Tuesday: Champions, Checkmates & Closing Time Blunders
This Tuesday at Triggerfish felt suspiciously like a victory lap. Fresh off the Cape of Good Hope Open, Sven arrived as the undisputed championship hero and was immediately treated like chess royalty. Handshakes. Hugs. Congratulations from every angle. Pride levels were high.
And yes – Charlie was there. There was rain in the air, heavy clouds, and the promise of bad weather, which is effectively a written invitation for Charlie to attend. He tolerated exactly one indoor game before declaring it unacceptable. Shortly thereafter, he successfully recruited Reggie and relocated chess outside for a “proper” Charlie game – because if there’s even a hint of rain, wind, or mild discomfort, outdoor chess must happen. Yet again, nicotine did not provide any tactical assistance, unfortunately.
Tian made his entrance with a brand-new personality trait: notation. Armed with a notebook, he carefully wrote down moves – something he had never done before the Helderberg Open. But during his game against Naomi, he declared this was “extremely distracting” and repeatedly cited it as the reason for any losses. Tian insists it was the notation. Naomi insists it was the middle game. And the endgame. Mostly the endgame.
With district trials coming up this weekend, Alyssa was dragged to chess by her mom. She promptly made a strategic decision: avoid Sven entirely (wise) and revive her old rivalry with Clive instead. As always, teenager vs seasoned veteran delivered maximum tension, laughter, and psychological warfare. The highlight was a glorious trap — what looked like a straightforward checkmate turned into a tactical ambush and a game-winning moment.
After failing to take down the mother, Tian pivoted to a more achievable target: the daughter. He politely handed Alyssa the first game to build confidence, then spent games two and three dismantling it piece by piece. The second loss was so emotionally devastating that Alyssa swore she was done for the night… until poor decision-making kicked in and she agreed to a third game, which only confirmed her earlier instinct.
Reggie arrived and went straight into battle mode, taking on Philip, another newcomer we’re very excited about this year – fresh off a second-place finish in the Advanced section at the Cape of Good Hope Open and already being quietly (but very seriously) eyed for senior league. Philip’s evening took a dramatic turn when he sat down across from Sven. When Naomi checked in to ask how the game was going, Philip didn’t hesitate. His review was brief, honest, and strangely poetic: “What do you think? I’m getting crushed.”
Shaun Temmers was also there and wasted no time climbing the Triggerfish leaderboard by defeating just about everyone in his path. Post-game analysis from the weekend Open flowed freely, with strong opinions about every win, loss, and questionable decision. Shaun, in particular, was deeply offended by losing to Anthony Tanser — our famously misleading 850 OTB / 2100 online player — and expressed disbelief that Anthony was even allowed in the Advanced section. The rating system remains innocent. Anthony remains dangerous.
Kirk made an appearance and gave Naomi some good games. In the final chaos of the night — as chairs were stacked, doors closed, and we were being politely but firmly evicted — Naomi blundered a piece against Kirk while chatting too much and promptly resigned the game out of pure shame and time pressure. A fitting end.
Very Serious Summary:
- Sven became famous overnight
- Tian discovered notation, lost anyway
- Alyssa chose violence (but not against Sven)
- Naomi talked, blundered, and got evicted
