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Mililani boy An 11-year-old Mililani boy outshone competitors twice his age at a national chess tournament in Las Vegas over the weekend.
checkmates his way
to championship
Robert Lau ties for first in a
national chess tourney in Las VegasBy Rosemarie Bernardo
rbernardo@starbulletin.com"I was surprised," Robert Lau said after he came home last night with his father, Bradley, and sister, Emily.
Randy Prothero, president of the Hawaii Chess Federation, said: "He's very unique. He's one of the elites in his age group."
Robert tied for first place with four other players in the Booster Section of the 2002 National Open Chess Championships on Sunday night, when he won more than $1,000 in cash prizes. The National Open Championships and Chess Festival was held at the Riviera Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas from Thursday to yesterday.
Robert, who holds a national chess rating of 1,445, competed with 217 other players in the Booster Section who have a national rating of under 1,600.
Robert also took third place overall in the amateur section of the National Open Blitz Championship, a preliminary event in which each player has five minutes to compete. The event included a number of top-level adult players, and Lau scored 10 out of 14 possible points.
"We're proud of him," said Robert's mother, Linda Inouye.
Robert is the state elementary school chess champion for fourth to sixth grades, and plans to defend his title at Ward Warehouse at the state Scholastic Chess Championships on April 19-20. Robert also plans to travel to Portland, Ore., to compete in the National Elementary Chess Championship.
The 11-year-old boy first started playing chess when he was 5. Robert soon became a member of the Mililani Chess Club and continues to attend weekly meetings. "He loves the game and puts a lot of effort into it," Prothero said.
In 1999, Robert was the state champion for the primary division for kindergarten to third grade. Recently, he was listed as one of the best male players under age 12 in the United States.
Chess teacher Cornelius Rubsamen said he was not surprised to hear of Robert's success in Las Vegas. Last month, Robert won the Winter Interscholastic chess tournament after competing with more than 80 players from kindergarten to 12th grade at Aliamanu Intermediate School.
"Robert has a special talent. He's very focused and very concentrated," said Rubsamen, who has been coaching Robert for the past two years.
Robert also competes in an Internet chess club.
Along with his love for the game, Robert plays basketball, piano and violin.
"He's not one-dimensional. He's pretty well rounded," Prothero said.
Robert has competed in nearly 80 state and national chess tournaments. Sunday's tournament was the first time Robert ranked first in a national competition.
The tournament consisted of two games a day, each one lasting up to three hours.
Most children fail to sit at a table for hours, Rubsamen said.
But for Robert, his dedication and concentration helped him move to the top of the game.
"He's very disciplined in that sense," Rubsamen added.