Daniel Quizon captures Kidapawan Chess Open title

PRODIGY. Daniel Quizon, in the file photo, is poised to becoming the next big thing in Philippine chess. Photo from the FB account of Daniel Quizon

MANILA, Philippines – Daniel Quizon won the biggest tournament of his young career when he captured the Kidapawan Open Chess Championship in Cotabato on Sunday, February 4.

Shrugging off a loss against Grandmaster Darwin Laylo in the seventh round, the 13-year-old son of a motorcycle mechanic from Dasmarinas, Cavite, won his last two games to clinch the rapid chess event half-a- point ahead of Laylo and Johnnel Balquin of Cagayan de Oro.

Laylo and Balquin chose to draw rather than fight for the first prize of P15,000 despite having a higher tiebreak score than Quizon.

Thus Quizon defeated Harrison Maamo in the final round to score eight points out of nine rounds followed by Laylo and Balquin, who split the second and third prizes of P10,000 and P5,000.

Quizon's win came after he finished second in a youth event in Harbin, China, last week behind a Chinese grandmaster. However, the Kidapawan Open, held over two days, is played under rapid chess format which means each player is alloted 30 minutes to finish a game.

As shown in his games in China, Quizon has a deceptively quiet style that can pounce on his opponents' mistakes quickly.

In the Kidapawan Open, he defeated former Asian Zonal champion Ronald Dableo and International Master Oliver Dimakiling in the fifth and sixth rounds. He also defeated the national junior champion John Marvin Miciano. – Rappler.com