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Petoskey chess tournament features 17 youth players
Petoskey chess tournament features 17 youth players
Janis Reeser, The Petoskey News-ReviewSat, June 6, 2026 at 8:01 AM UTC·2 min readOn May 23, the 2026 Petoskey Library Chess Championship brought together 17 young players for five rounds of competition at the Carnegie Building.
According to a community announcement, the event featured a mix of seasoned competitors and new faces, with participants ranging in age from 8 to 17. Eleven boys and six girls took part, representing communities across Northern Michigan.
Among the players were three members of the East Jordan chess team, known as The Depot Chess Club, who attended with their coach. Individual players from Leelanau and Elk Rapids also joined the tournament. Notably, 8-year-old Atticus Brown, with a U.S. Chess Federation (USCF) rating of 701, finished third overall. Brown has been training with the Traverse City Chess Club at their weekly Saturday sessions, according to the announcement.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementElijah Hammond, 15, from Alanson, emerged as the tournament champion, scoring a perfect five points. In the fourth round, Hammond showcased strong endgame skills to defeat Isaiah Rauhaus, 17, from Petoskey, who has previously won the event. Rauhaus finished second with four points.
The tournament was sanctioned by the U.S. Chess Federation and organized by tournament directors Robert Bemben and Robin Ray, according to the announcement. Adam Masek assisted by monitoring games and conducting interactive post-game analyses with various players.
Overall winners include:
1. Elijah Hammond, age 15, 5 points
2. Isaiah Rauhaus, age 17, 4 points
3. Atticus Brown, age 8, 3.5 points
4. Trey Schoolcraft, age 11, 3 points (4th on tiebreaks)
Winners by age groups:
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement14 and younger: Levi Hornibrook, age 11, 3 points
12 and younger: Jackson Gillespie, age 10, 3 points
10 and younger: Archer Averill, age 10, 2 points
8 and younger: Emma Pérez-Figueroa Patena, 2 points
A food break after the third round featured fresh fruit and vegetables donated by the Grain Train and prepared by parent volunteer Amanda Vicente.
The official crosstables are available on the U.S. Chess Federation website, visit tinyurl.com/46ctwkka.
Petoskey Chess Club to resume in September
The Petoskey Chess Club for ages 8-18 will take a break for the summer. The program is expected to resume in September with the start of the next school year, meeting every Monday from 3:30-5:30 p.m. while school is in session.
The club has become a popular outlet for young chess enthusiasts in the Petoskey area, providing a space for learning, competition and community building.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementThis story was created with the assistance of Artificial Intelligence (AI). Journalists were involved in every step of the information gathering, review, editing and publishing process. Learn more at https://cm.usatoday.com/ethical-conduct.
This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: Young players shine at Petoskey Library spring 2026 chess tournament
Story byPetoskey News Review