If you haven’t been living under a rock, you would know that a huge game has skyrocketed in popularity. It is the game of chess. If you don’t know what chess is, it is a two-player strategy game between white and black. The goal is to checkmate your opponent’s king. It originated in India and eventually spread all over the world. If you are interested in learning and playing chess, there is a chess club at Wredling. Mr. Wollak runs it, and it is held on Thursdays in room 400. In the chess club, you learn a variety of chess strategies, and you mainly play each other in person or online. Several times during the year, you will travel to other schools and play them in tournaments. Last year, Wredling played Leman Middle School, Hadley Middle School, and Thompson Middle School. We won every chess match we played last year except for one online game against Thompson. Wredling also won the Benjamin Middle School tournament. 

This year, the club already has 25 members. Mr. Wollak told me that there has been a rise in the number of students interested in chess and that the club has grown. He believes the increase in interest in chess is due to online chess websites such as Lichess.org and Chess.com. These sites are engaging and motivate kids to pursue playing chess. Mr. Wollak’s email is listed below if you have any other questions about the club.

[email protected]

I interviewed Gabe Pixton, the #1 chess player at Wredling last year, to ask him a few questions about chess. 

How did you feel being the #1 chess player at Wredling? – “I feel proud that I was the #1 chess player. It meant I could play kids at my level when we went to other schools, which was nice.”

How are you so good at chess? How do you practice or used to practice chess? – “When I was little, I learned to play chess on ChessKid.com. They had lessons you could pay for, and my dad got them for me. It’s been a long time, but I remember that I learned a lot from them, and it helped me be a better chess player. I haven’t played chess in a while because I’ve been busy, but I used to practice just by playing a few chess games, and occasionally I would analyze them afterward.”

When and why did you start playing chess? – “I started playing chess when I was like 5. My family would play chess a bit, and my brothers would always beat me, which motivated me to try to be better, and after playing a bunch, I got good enough to beat them.”

What are your achievements? – “I don’t have any titles or anything. Nor have I won any major tournaments. The other year, when we did our annual Benjamin Tournament, which had all the nearby middle schools, I beat the best-rated player who always won that tournament.”

Should WMS students join the chess club? – “Yes, I would recommend anyone who likes playing chess to join the club. It’s very fun, especially the tournaments. Even if you don’t go to the club every week, you should still go to the competitions.”

The chess club at Wredling allows you to play chess matches against your friends and talk with them. Overall, chess is an interesting sport, and its increase in popularity is justified.