Antipolo city: Jonathan Jota scored 5.5 points to rule the 9th AQ Prime Chess Open at the SM City Masinag Atrium in Antipolo City on Monday night. He scored victories over Xianle Klent Aragon (Round 1), Jon Mark Anarna (Round 2), Jin Clark Myco (Round 3), Christopher Khalil Kis-ing (Round 4), Ritchie James Abeleda (Round 6), and settled for a draw with Cedric Kahlel Abris (Round 5) to pocket PHP10,000 in cash.
According to Philippines News Agency, Jeremy Marticio placed second with 5 points, earning PHP7,000, while Knaf Lawrence Batislaong, who defeated Jin Clark Myco Miranda, Jersey Marticio, and Yuri Paraguya in the Bucholz tiebreaker for third place, received PHP5,000. Rounding up the top 10 finishers were Abeleda, Abris, Eowyn Jullado, and Denniel Penafiel.
Meanwhile, John Randall Peralta scored 4 points to dominate the boys' Kiddie category. In Round 4, Peralta stunned top seed Catrihino Pestano with a 2220 FIDE Standard rating. Also winning their respective categories were Queen Sheylee Tolentino (ladies), Dennis San Juan (seniors), Paraguya (16-18 years old), Jerick Faeldonia (13-15 years old), and Laurice Isidro (girls Kiddie).
"Our goal is to support the chess community, especially in standard format. We thank the National Chess Federation of the Philippines for giving us the opportunity to organize this kind of event," AQ Prime CEO Aldwin Alegre said in a news release Tuesday. "We want to promote standard chess format or long game format at least 60 minutes, because we want players to stay disciplined and focused, and promote a deeper mental engagement with the game. In standard, this is where you have a chance to increase your rating and eventually get a title in the future."
