Chess Poem 13: Mystery Chess Player Poem by Kim Barney

Very few chess players get a master rating in their first tournament, but that is just what this person did.He appeared here in Utah just over six years ago and was almost an instant master. Supposedly had never played tournament chess before, casual games only.In 2009 he played 23 games rated by the USCF (United States Chess Federation) and he won all 23 games! That is close to impossible.Did he decide he had done too well, and should tone it down a bit? In 2010 he had 37 rated games, with 17 wins,5 draws, and 15 losses.In 2011 he had 39 rated games, with 20 wins,10 draws, and 9 losses.In 2012 he had 34 rated games, with 19 wins,6 draws, and 9 losses.No rated games in 2013.In 2014 he had only 6 rated games, with 5 wins and one loss.I played him once, in Grand Junction, Colorado, three or four years ago, and even though he was turning me every which way but loose, at one point in the game I was one move away from checkmating him! He saw the threat, of course, and went on to defeat me soundly. At the end of the game I tried to shake his hand, but he recoiled at the sight of my mangled hand (see my poem 'Big Bang Memory') and refused to shake it! He is the only person who has ever refused to shake my hand after a game.Have we seen the last of him? Will he now disappear and turn up somewhere else with a new name and a new unblemished record? Did any European or Soviet grandmasters disappear in 2009, never to be seen again? Written 04 December 2016