With yet another first place finish in the ICA’s Dr. Ostfeld Memorial Early Winter Championships, Sergey Kudrin has frustrated a whole host of Grandmasters competing in the USCF’s Grand Prix Competition.  A yearly event that awards five thousand dollars to the top finisher based on best results in inclusive chess competitions (one such competition is our very own Dr. Ostfeld Memorial) held around the country the Grand Prix rewards the competition’s best overall player in America over the course of a given year.  According to a certain GM from Georgia who has resigned to just trying to pick up the second place Grand Prix prize, “by winning this tournament Kudrin has clinched first in the Grand Prix. There is no way the rest of the field can catch up.”

That being said congratulations go out to GM Kudrin for not only winning this event but also for apparently clinching first in the Grand Prix competition. 

Kudrin accomplished the feat with wins against Sebastian Spitz, Alex Crump, Igor Yeliseyev, and a very annoyed fourth place finishing Mikhail Zlotnikov who had to face the fury of Kudrin in the last round. Kudrin received 300 dollars for his effort. 

Justin Sarkar took second place after scoring three points and taking a bye in the last round.  Max “use the” Schwartz had his best ICA tourney to date scoring three-and-a-half points, and splitting second with Sarkar, which afforded him the opportunity to secure the same 225 as his co-silver medal finisher.

Five people shared third place nabbing fifty-five bucks each with Roger Pedersen, Jayson Flores, Alexander Crump, Kevin Chen, and Michael Lim splitting the under 2200,2000, and under 13 years of age honors.
Joel Pruzansky got the over sixty-five prize and the seventy dollar prize that goes with it.

Ari Shusterman, Ethan Klein, Augusto Gutierrez, and Maanav Ganthopodi took twenty five dollars each for best finishes of players with a rating under 1800, while Eric Kong, and Jeffrey Krostosky took home fifty dollars each for best finishes for players with a rating under 1600.
Forty people competed in the Dr. Ostfeld Early Winter Memorial Competition.