1953 Bognor Regis Premier, 2-9 May, Southdean Sports Club, Middleton, Sussex-on-Sea • Southsea 1952 «»1954

1953 Bognor Regis Premier		Residence	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	Total
1	William Winter	London	&;	½	½	1	1	½	½	1	5
2	Harry Golombek	Chalfont St Giles	½	&;	1	½	½	½	1	1	5
3	Baruch Harold Wood	Sutton Coldfield	½	0	&;	1	½	1	1	½	4½
4	Wolfgang Heidenfeld	South Africa	0	½	0	&;	1	1	1	1	4½
5	Robert Graham Wade	New Zealand	0	½	½	0	&;	1	1	1	4
6	Paul M List	London	½	½	0	0	0	&;	1	1	3
7	Henry Gross	California USA	½	0	0	0	0	0	&;	½	1
8	Ronald Frank Boxall	Erith	0	0	½	0	0	0	½	&;	1

[BCM, June 1953, p152] "BOGNOR CHESS CONGRESS — May 2nd to 9th

"The first congress to be organized by the Bognor Chess Club was held in ideal surroundings at the Southdean Sports Club, Middleton, Sussex-on-Sea, in the first week of May. A highly successful event, with sixty-four competitors, it is hoped to make it an annual affair with an increase next year both in the quantity and quality of the players. Each event necessitated playing two rounds on the Tuesday, which was rather a strain; but once Tuesday was over the congress moved at a more leisurely pace and was thoroughly enjoyed by all the participants.

"The Premier tournament saw some interesting and hard-fought chess with the lead shifting amongst three players, Golombek, Winter, and Wood. When the last round was reached Winter and Wood had 4½ points, followed by Golombek with 4, none of these having as yet lost a game. Winter had Black against Dr. List and Golombek had White against Wood. Whilst Dr. List, not in the best of health, had started badly, his play had noticeably improved as the week wore on, so that Winter was expected to have a far from easy passage with not more than a draw being likely. Golombek, on the other hand, had the White pieces and was bound to play for a win, especially in view of the nature of the respective scores of the leaders.

"Winter scored the expected draw but only after producing some ingenious play to retrieve a very unfavourable position out of the opening. Golombek likewise got the worse of the opening and even lost a pawn with the inferior position. Wood, however, instead of proceeding systematically and patiently to exploit his advantage, made a rash pawn advance on the King's side. This allowed Golombek to force a drawn position and then, as Wood, still under the influence of his earlier plus and not seeing what lay ahead, refused to go in for the drawing line, Golombek even managed to win. So he tied with Winter for first place.

"Meanwhile Heidenfeld was having a tough struggle against the Californian Champion, Gross. He had established a winning position early on in the game but then relaxed and found himself forced to win the advantage all over again. This he succeeded in doing and so he tied for third and fourth prizes with Wood. The remaining game of the round was won by Wade against Boxall, with a very pretty sacrificial finish. The British Champion was therefore half a point outside the prize-list, a rather unlucky position considering his good play throughout the event."

There were four prizes of £30, £20, £10, and £5.

The results in the other sections were as follows—

Premier Reserves A: (1) David Brine Pritchard (Emsworth) 6/7; (2) James Neale (Cheltenham) 5½; (3) Mrs. Elaine Pritchard (Emsworth) 5; (4) J Kagan (London) 3½; (5) James E Pattle (Guildford) 3; (6-7) John James O'Hanlon (Dublin), Harold Horace Watts (Southport) 2; (8) Henry Holwell Cole 1.

Premier Reserves B: (1) Philip Ashby Ursell (Southampton) 6/7; (2-4) Royston Miles Goode, Alan Edgar Nield (Hastings), Theodore¹ Watts (Southport) 4; (5) Alfred Dudley Barlow (London) 3½; (6-7) (Edward) Douglas Fawcett (London), Arthur T Watson (Brighton) 2½; (8) Henry J O'Donnell (Bournemouth) 1½. ¹ Reported as 'T H Watts' but I think this was Theodore Watts (1930-1964), son of Harold Horace Watts who had no recorded middle name.

Premier Reserves C: (1) Harold George Felce (Banstead) 6½/7; (2) Frederick Forrest L Alexander (Westcliff) 5; (3-4) B W Barrat(t) (Rustington), George Harold Foster Tredinnick (Purley) 4; (5) Frederick Woolmer (Newbury) 3; (6-7) William John Clare Hart Burges (Blockley), William Charles Herbert Powell (Bognor) 2½; (8) Leopold Franz Lindheimer (Hastings) ½.

Major: (1-2) J Dent¹ (Ruislip), Rodney Ewan James (Banstead) 5; (3-4) Joseph John Lauder (Wimbledon), Brian Gibbs Locke (Hatch End) 4½; (5) Rev. Edward G Bevan (Birmingham) 3; (6) Miss Deirdre Colmer (West Dulwich) 2½; (7) G Booth (Westcliff) 2; (8) Charles Reginald Purley (Bognor) 1½. ¹ probably Lionel James Dent (1909-79).

First Class: (1) John Godrey R Stainton (London) 6/7; (2) John W Aves (Middleton, Sussex) 5½; (3) Harry Starbuck Littlechild (Wisbech) 5; (4-5) Peter Henry Newing (Wallington), William Woodhead (Prescot) 4; (6) Peter H White (Kettering) 1½; (7-8) Ernest A Dubois (Bognor), John Daniel Sayle (Epsom) 1.

Second Class: (1) Frederick W Appleby (Chichester) 5½/7; (2) D E Russell (Bognor) 5; (3) J Collins (Felpham) 4½; (4-5) J J Barrow (Manchester), P S Gill (New Malden) 3½; (6-8) Edward L Bowring (Felpham), J W Godfrey (London), Leonard Vollum (Elmer, Bognor) 2.

Third Class: (1-2) Robert William Sam Jevon (Manchester), A Thompson (Manchester) 6/7; (3) G H Green (South Norwood) 5; (4) Miss Lucy Anness (Beckenham) 3; (5-6) H Elwell (Hailsham), R E Martin 2½; (7) Edward Leslie Grumbley (Middleton, Sussex) 2; (8) H F Stevens 1.

Two simultaneous displays were given on Wednesday, May 6th. In the first Wade scored +17, —2, =1; in the other, Wood scored +12, —2.

After the official opening [on Saturday 2 May 1953] by the Hon. W. H. Joynson-Hicks, M.P., a lightning tournament was held, with thirty-eight competitors. The scores in the final pool were: Golombek 4; Felce, Heidenfeld, and Pritchard 2; and Dent 0. A lightning tournament was also held on Friday, May 8th, and Golombek was again the winner in the top section. Other diversions of a congress that was noticeably light-hearted and cheerful were a kriegspiel tournament on Sunday and a social evening on Thursday.

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File Updated

Date	Notes
30 April 2018	First uploaded
1 May 2018	Added Gross-Wade (Rd 1) - many thanks to Andy Ansel, and the game Fawcett-Nield (from Reserves B) - many thanks to Brian Denman. I have also found a better attribution for Wade-Boxall (moves unchanged, end note updated).
1 May 2018	The part-game Golombek-Wood (Rd 7) has now become a complete game, thanks to Gerard Killoran. Thanks, Gerard.
2 August 2023	Two games added: (1) B.Wood ½-½ W.Winter (Premier, rd 4); (2) F.Woolmer 1-0 B.Barratt (Premier Reserves C); and the game P.Ursell 1-0 A.Watson (Premier Reserves B) corrected and given a source.
4 August 2023	Added the game H.Gross 0-1 B.H.Wood (rd 3). Many thanks to Ulrich Tamm for supplying the score.
23 January 2026	Added five games played by the Californian player Henry Gross: (1) H Golombek 1-0 H Gross, rd 2; (2) R Boxall ½-½ H Gross, rd 4; (3) P List 1-0 H Gross, rd 5; (4) H Gross ½-½ W Winter, rd 6; (5) W Heidenfeld 1-0 H Gross, rd 7. Many thanks to Andy Ansel for sending me the games.