NWC Banner

Northwest Chess — Chess News from Washington, Oregon and Idaho

Northwest Chess is a non-profit corporation registered in Washington State.
Address: NWC c/o Orlov Chess Academy, 4174 148TH AVE NE BLDG I STE M, REDMOND, WA 98052-5164.
See magazine section for subscription and advertising information.
Home Articles Calendar Clubs Games Grand Prix
History Links Magazine Officers Registration Scholastics
NWC: Home > Magazine > Back Issues

Northwest Chess Magazine Back Issues

Please note that PDF files have been optimized for web viewing, and are lower in quality than the files used for print production. Average file size is about 2 to 5 MB. Full magazines will usually be available online three months after publication.

Magazine and website © NWC, All Rights Reserved (except for public domain information and news). Downloaded magazines are free for private non-commercial use, including chess club educational use. For any other uses, please contact the Northwest Chess business manager (see magazine information page).

See previous back issues pages:
2007 to 2009 | 2010 to 2012 | 2013 to 2015 | 2016 to 2018 | 2019 to 2021.
See NWC scanning project page for older issues.

Chess Journalists of America award entries
Beginning in 2021, CJA award entries are submitted privately via Google Drive, and are not linked on this website. However, you can still view all Northwest Chess magazine back issues after a three-month delay.
Title: Chesstoons Drawn by Brian Berger
(some as printed in Northwest Chess, some modified or not previously published - see the descriptions inside)
Chesstoons Drawn by Brian Berger:
Book 1: November 2013-October 2015
Book 2: November 2015-February 2018
Online books are free for private non-commercial use. For any commercial use, re-publishing, etc., please contact the NWC Business Manager or Publisher.
2024 (all in full color!)
Note: Most 2024 issues also feature "From the Editor’s Desk" by Jeffrey Roland.
Northwest Chess April 2024 cover April
NWC_202404_teaser.pdf
(selected pages)
Cover: Brian Lee by James Stripes.
32-page issue with "2024 Inland Classic" by Kevin Korsmo, "2024 Oregon Girls Championship" by Wilson Gibbins, "2024 Idaho Closed" by Jeffrey Roland, "Interview With Attorney General Bob Ferguson" by Ken Lee, "2024 Oregon Closed" by Wilson Gibbins, "Washington Junior Open & Reserve," "Washington High School Individual," "Washington WInter Game/60" and "Presidential Scholastic" by Josh Sinanan, "Howard Chin (1947-2021)" by John Donaldson, and a back-cover photo of Walter van Heemstede Obelt by James Stripes.
Northwest Chess March 2024 cover March
NWC_202403_teaser.pdf
(selected pages)
Cover: Kyle Haining by Meiling Cheng.
48-page issue with "NWC Hall Of Fame Inductee (Clark Harmon)" by Ralph Dubisch, "Remembering August Piper" by John Selsky with Fred Kleist, "Bryce Tiglon Interview" by Ken Lee, "2023 Washington Class Championships" by Josh Sinanan, "2024 East Idaho Regional Scholastic Qualifier" by Jay Simonson, "IM Eric Tangborn Simul" by Josh Sinanan, "2023 Washington Junior Invitational" and "2023 Washington Winter Classic" by Josh Sinanan, and a back-cover photo of John Selsky by Meiling Cheng.
Northwest Chess February 2024 cover February
NWC_202402_teaser.pdf
(selected pages)
Cover: Zoey Tang by Wilson Gibbins.
32-page issue with "Reader Appreciation" by Josh Sinanan, Stephen Willy, and Su Lim, "2023 Oregon Junior Closed" by Wilson Gibbins, "18th Annual SPFNO For Girls And Boys" by SPFNO Organizers, "St. Anne Celtic Challenge Fall 2023" by Josh Sinanan, "The Unique Connection Between Music And Chess" by Ken Lee, "Blast From The Past!" by Viktors Pupols, "Sridhar At North American Open" by Sridhar Seshadri, "Happy New Year 2023" by Jeffrey Roland, "NM Ryan Min" and "NM Yu-Cheng Liang" by Josh Sinanan, and a back-cover photo of Emel Bayrambeyli and Pace Lykins by Wilson Gibbons.
Northwest Chess January 2024 cover January
NWC_202401_teaser.pdf
(selected pages)
Cover: Stephen Willy by Wilson Gibbins.
32-page issue with "News Flash: Bryce Tiglon Grandmaster" by Josh Sinanan, "2023 Oregon Class Championships" by Wilson Gibbins, "2023 Washington Challenger’s Cup" by Josh Sinanan, "A Conversation With Super GM Liem Le Ken Lee," "2023 Challenger’s Cup Scholastic" and "Inaugural Veterans Day Open" by Josh Sinanan, "WCF and SettleKing Announcement" by Josh Sinanan, and a back-cover photo of George Oliver by Meiling Cheng.
2023 (all in full color!)
Note: Most 2023 issues also feature "From the Editor’s Desk" by Jeffrey Roland.
Northwest Chess Dec 2023 cover December
NWC_202312_opt_color.pdf
Cover: Handshake between Sahan Katipally and Alice Li, by Justin Johnson.
32-page issue with "Plateau Youth Chess Club" by Anna Jonson and Susanna Lim, "A Tribute To Ignacio Perez" by Josh Sinanan, "Do Brown Cows Make Chocolate Milk?" by Ken Lee, "Open Window School Fall Tornado" by Josh Sinanan, "Southern Idaho Open Veterans Day" by Barry Eacker, six more Washington chess stories by Josh Sinanan - "2023 National Chess Day Scholastic," "Washington National Chess Day Blitz," "Washington G/60 Championship," "Washington Bullet Championship," "CM Nikash Vemparala Clock Simul," "2023 Lakeside Fall Classic," and a back-cover photo of Juan Larios with Jace Liu and Kyle Liu spectating by Justin Johnson.
NWC November 2023 cover November
NWC_202311_opt_color.pdf
Cover: Stephen Willy by Salome Jacob.
32-page issue with "Chess In A Nutshell" by Glen O’Harra, "2023 Oregon Open" by Wilson Gibbins, "Jeremy Silman" (August 28, 1954 - September 21, 2023)" by John Donaldson, "2023 Eastern Idaho Open" by Jay Simonson, "Washington Women’s Championship," "Seattle Classic Scholastic" and "Washington G/15 Open" by Josh Sinanan, and a back-cover photo of Vikram Srivastava by Wilson Gibbins.
NWC October 2023 cover October
NWC_202310_opt_color.pdf
Cover: Siddarth Sundaram by Josh Sinanan.
32-page issue with "Seattle Chess Classic" by Josh Sinanan, "Penguin Extravaganza Drei" by David Murray, "About This Photo" (of penguins) by Steven Breckenridge, "USPS Statement of Ownership," "Randy Dean Remembered" by John Donaldson, "NM Derek Zhang Simul" by Josh Sinanan, and a back-cover photo of "Blue Silicon King" by Josh Sinanan.
Northwest Chess September 2023 cover September
NWC_202309_opt_color.pdf
Cover: L-R: Josh Sinanan, Isaac Vega, and Rekha Sagar by Sridhar Seshadri.
32-page issue with "Joseph Levine – FIDE International Master" by Lisa Levine, "Vancouver Open" by Josh Sinanan, "NWC Hall Of Fame Inductee (Richard S. Vandenburg)" by Jeffrey Roland, "2023 ICA Summer Classic" by Jeffrey Roland, "Facing a Hedgehog" by Glen O’Harra, "Washington Annual Chess960 and Summer Bughouse" by Josh Sinanan, "Seattle Honored: 2023 Chess City of the Year" by Josh Sinanan, "Seattle Chess Club GM Vinay Bhat Simul" by John Selsky and Fred Kleist, "Washington Summer Sizzler" by Josh Sinanan, "CJA Awards – Ten Consecutive Years as Best State Magazine/Newsletter" and a back-cover photo of (L-R) John Bueno, Caleb Kircher, and Eric Hon by Jeffrey Roland.
Northwest Chess August 2023 cover August
NWC_202308_opt_color.pdf
Cover: Team Washington versus Team British Columbia, by Haiyong Wang and Victoria Doknjas.
32-page issue with "Solution to Last Month’s Puzzles" by Valentin Razmov, "Fred Bartell (1930-2023)" by Adam Porth, "Fred Bartell Memorial" by David Zaklan, "First SCC Invitational Tournament of 2022 Champions" by Fred Kleist and John Selsky, "Koma Kulshan Chess Club" by Ani Barua, "More Games from the Washington Open" by The Players (Annotators), "Washington Open Interview" by Ani Barua, "WCF Father’s Day Weekend Chess Festival," "2023 Mid-Year Scholastic Cup," "Washington vs British Columbia Challenge Match" and "2023 Seattle Summer Kickoff" by Josh Sinanan, "Lakeside Summer Classic" by Josh Sinanan and Valentin Razmov, "Corrections... (...to the Printed Version of the July 2023 Issue)," and a back-cover photo of Josh Sinanan by Haiyong Wang.
NWC July 2023 cover July
NWC_202307_opt_color.pdf
Cover: Wilson Gibbins by Ellen Silva.
48-page issue with "Oregon Senior Open" by Wilson Gibbins, "2023 Detective Cookie Chess Classic" by Josh Sinanan, "Idaho Open" by Jay Simonson, "Washington Open (plus various side events)" by Josh Sinanan, "Coaching Corner" by Ralph Dubisch, "Washington Players Excel at Elementary Nationals" by Josh Sinanan, and a back-cover photo of Christian Fobian by Meiling Cheng.
Northwest Chess June 2023 cover June
NWC_202306_opt_color.pdf
Cover: Vivienne Luo at the WA State Barber + Rockefeller Qualifier Tournament. Photo Credit: Meiling Cheng.
32-page issue with "Letter To The Editor" by Bill Elliott, "Bellingham Open" by Josh Sinanan, "Closed But Not Forgotten" by Josh Price, "Washington Barber + Rockefeller Qualifier," "Washington Girls Championship" and "Washington Senior Championship" by Josh Sinanan, "2023 Idaho Scholastic Championship" by Adam Porth, "Washington State Elementary Chess Championships" by WSECC Organizers, "Washington vs. British Columbia Intermat" and "Ted Wang Simul" by Josh Sinanan, and a back-cover photo of "William Watts, Sam Maurer, Harrison Toppen-Ryan, Alex Kaelin, TD Josh Sinanan" by William Dann.
May
NWC_202305_opt_color.pdf
Cover: Brandon Jiang by Josh Sinanan.
32-page issue with "2023 Washington President’s Cup" and "Washington Closed" by Josh Sinanan, "Collyer Finale" and "Collyer Memories" by Kevin Korsmo, and a back-cover photo of "Washington State Chess Championship trophy" by Meiling Cheng.
April
NWC_202304_opt_color.pdf
Cover: Zoey Tang and Greg Markowski by Lilly Tang.
32-page issue with "2023 Oregon Closed" by Wilson Gibbins, "Eastside Open" by Josh Sinanan, "2023 Idaho Closed State Championship" by Adam Porth and Jeffrey Roland, "2023 Oregon Girls Championship" by Wilson Gibbins, "Washington State High School Chess Team" and "2023 Presidential Scholastic" by Josh Sinanan, and a back-cover photo of Josh Price, Kaustubh Kodihalli, James Wei and Adam Porth by Kyra Dorman.
March
NWC_202303_opt_color.pdf
Cover: Advaith Vijayakumar by Meiling Cheng.
32-page issue with "Answers to last month’s puzzles" by Valentin Razmov, "Washington HS Individual Championship," "Washington Junior Closed & Invitational" and "Washington Winter Classic" by Josh Sinanan, "Pan-American Intercollegiate Teams" by Pan-Am Organizers, "States Cup Semifinals and Finals" by Siva Sankrithi, "St. Anne Celtic Challenge" and "Washington Junior Open and Reserve" by Josh Sinanan, "Decatur Gator Fest" by Siva Sankrithi, "MexInsurance FIDE Open" by George Lundy, "Chico Juvenal-The Tiger Killer" by David Zaklan, "East Idaho Regional Scholastic Chess Qualifier" by Jay Simonson, and a back-cover photo of a "Facepainted Girl" by Chouchan Airapetian.
February
NWC_202302_opt_color.pdf
Cover: “Evening at the Club” by Gabriela Osias.
32-page issue with "Chessable and Chess.com at the Pan-Am" by Alexey Root, "Philip Peterson 1961-2022" by Ralph Dubisch, "2022 Oregon Junior Closed" by Wilson Gibbins, "Robert “Bob” Bishop 1953-2022" by David And Ellen Baumann, "Chess, Art and the Power of Community" by Gabriela Osias, "2022 Washington Class Championships" by Josh Sinanan, "Northwest Grand Prix—Final Report" by Murlin Varner, and a back-cover photo of “Smoky Queen” by the late Philip Peterson.
January
NWC_202301_opt_color.pdf
Cover: “Issue 900!” by Philip Peterson.
This is the second NWC full-color issue, and all future issues will be in full color!
32-page issue with "Northwest Chess Hall of Fame" by Ralph Dubisch for the NWC Board of Directors, "Northwest Chess Hall of Fame Inductee: Viktors Pupols" by John Donaldson, "2022-2023 States Cup" by Siva Sankrithi, "2022 Turkey Shoot" by Adam Porth, "17th Susan Polgar Foundation National Open" by SPFNO Organizers, "Susan Polgar Foundation National Open" by Karen Schmidt, "Where Have All The Novices Gone" by Nobel Ang, "2022 Oregon Class Championships" by Wilson Gibbins, "2022 Washington Challenger’s Cup" and "2022 Challenger’s Cup Scholastic" by Josh Sinanan, and "900-themed artwork" by Eric Holcomb on the back cover.
2022 (all in full color!)
Note: Most 2022 issues also feature a Northwest Chess Grand Prix report by Murlin Varner, "From the Editor’s Desk" by Jeffrey Roland, and a "Chesstoon" by Brian Berger.
December
NWC_202212_opt_color.pdf
Cover: Jason Cigan, Brian Lee, and Ryan Ackerman by Adam Porth.
This is the first NWC full-color issue!
32-page issue with "2022-2023 States Cup Chess Tournament" by Siva Sankrithi, "Norman Friedman Memorial And National Chess Day" by Adam Porth, "Detective Cookie Chess Park Grand Opening" by Josh Sinanan, "Gary Dorfner (1947-2022)" by Bill Rogers, "Remembering Gary" by John Donaldson, "2022 Washington G/60 Championship," "2022 Washington G/15 Championship" and "2022 Washington Blitz Championship" by Josh Sinanan, Washington Junior Open & Reserve (Ad) Bellevue, January 16 "Took The Train To Spokane" by Karen Schmidt, "2022 Eastern Idaho Open" by Jay Simonson, and a back-cover photo of Brian Lee and Jason Cigan by Adam Porth.
November
NWC_202211_opt_color.pdf
Cover: Matt Zavortink and Erik Richardson on Denali, by Nick Sweeney.
32-page issue with "Aryan Deshpande Becomes National Master" by Josh Sinanan, "72nd Oregon Open" by Wilson Gibbins, "Fantastic FIDE Titles And Where To Find Them" by Joseph Levine, "Washington Women’s Championship" by Josh Sinanan, and a back-cover photo of Rekha Sagar, Chouchan Airapetian, and Josh Sinanan by Meiling Cheng.
October
NWC_202210_opt_color.pdf
Cover: Huy Le by Meiling Cheng.
32-page issue with "Shades Of High Fidelity" by Karen Schmidt, "Collinge Perfect In Sixth Seattle Classic" by Josh Sinanan, "ICA Supports Ukrainian Refugees" by The Nosarev Family, "Back 2 School Quads" and "North Idaho Scholastic Chess League Formation" by Adam Porth, "2022 Seattle Classic Scholastic" and "Detective Cookie Chess Tables At Othello Park" by Josh Sinanan, "Seattle Kings vs Princes Match VIII," "Washington Players At US Open," "2022 Washington Summer Rapid Championships" and "2022 Northwest Summer Chess960 Open" by Josh Sinanan, and a back-cover photo of "Evan Schroedle and Michael Cambareri" by Adam Porth.
September
NWC_202209_opt_color.pdf
Cover: (L-R) Jason Cigan and Nick Raptis at Oregon Closed by Wilson Gibbins.
32-page issue with "From The Editor’s Desk" by Jeffrey Roland, "2022 Oregon Closed" by Wilson Gibbins, "Kids Say The Darndest Things At Chess Camp" by Karen Schmidt, "An Ode To Winning At Chess (Poem)" by Nobel Ang, "Detective Cookie Chess Park Ground-Breaking" and "2022 Seattle Summer Kickoff" by Josh Sinanan, "The Summer Sizzler Ends With Fire For More!!" by Josh Sinanan and Lakshana Anand, "Vancouver Open" by Josh Sinanan, and back-cover images of "2022 Chess Journalists Of America Awards - Best State Magazine/Newsletter."
August
NWC_202208_opt_color.pdf
Cover: Team BC at the 2022 BC vs WA Match by Haiyong Wang.
32-page issue with "So What Really Are Deadlines Anyway?" by Jeffrey Roland, "2022 WA vs BC Challenge Match" by Josh Sinanan, a "Letter To The Editor" by Brian Berger, "WIM Megan Lee Simul" by Josh Sinanan, "Reflection On My Nationals" by IM Anthony He, "Carol Kleist Feisty In Chess And Life" by John Selsky, "In Memory Of Carol Kleist" by Karen Schmidt, "North Idaho Championship" by Adam Porth, "The Longest Day Fundraiser" by Scotty Hohman, "2022 Rusty Miller Memorial" by Josh Sinanan, "Chesstoon (the first-ever in the Brian Berger series!) (originally published in October 2013)," "2022 Washington Open Puzzle Solving Solutions" by Valentin Razmov, "Mid-Year Scholastic Cup" by Josh Sinanan, and a back cover photo of "Team WA at the 2022 BC vs WA Match" by Haiyong Wang.
July
NWC_202207_opt_color.pdf
Cover: Ananth Gottumukkala (left) and Josh Sinanan, by Chad Lykins.
48-page issue with "Carol Kleist (August 18, 1929-May 30, 2022)" by John Selsky, "2022 Washington Open plus various side events," "2022 Washington Barber + Rockefeller Qualifier," "Northwest Regional Scholastics Championship" and "Washington Players Shine at Elementary Nationals" by Josh Sinanan, "Oregon Senior Open" by Wilson Gibbins, "Planting A "S.E.E.D." (Detective Cookie's Story)" by Karen Schmidt, and a back-cover photo of "Medina Elementary K-3 Team with Josh Sinanan" by Rongzhi Lu.
June
NWC_202206_opt_color.pdf
Cover: Shrey Talathi by Meiling Cheng.
32-page issue with "Idaho Open" by Jay Simonson, "29th Dave Collyer Memorial" by Kevin Korsmo, "Crash And Burn In Salt Lake City" by Nobel Ang, "Inland Empire Open" by Kevin Korsmo, "En Masse (Stanchions Buckled)" by Karen Schmidt, "Intermat," "2022 Washington Senior Championship" and "Lakeside Team Shines at High School Nationals" by Josh Sinanan, "Washington State Elementary Chess Championships" by WSECC Organizers, and a back-cover photo of Nolan Zhou by Meiling Cheng.
May
NWC_202205_opt_color.pdf
Cover: Megan Lee by Josh Sinanan.
32-page issue with "Games Of Megan Lee (from WA State Championship)" by Megan Lee, "Oregon Girls Championship" by Wilson Gibbins, "The Zen Priest and The Chess Samurai" by Nobel Ang, "Idaho State Scholastic Championship" by Jeffrey Roland, "Trying Not To Live For My US Chess Rating But..." by Karen Schmidt, "Montana Open" by Mike Murray, "Intermat Candidates," "Cascadia Dragon’s Lair," "St. Anne Celtic Challenge Spring 2022," "Open Window School Spring Tornado," "All Girls Chess Tournament," "Harmon Memorial" and "Medina All-City Chess Tournament" by Josh Sinanan, and a back-cover photo of Bryce Leifeste by Jef Leifeste.
April
NWC_202204_opt_color.pdf
Cover: Kaustubh Kodihalli by Desmond Porth.
32-page issue with "Spring Thaw" and "Idaho Closed State Championship" by Jeffrey Roland, "Coaching Corner (Let’s Talk Candidate Moves)" by Ralph Dubisch, "2022 Washington State Championship" and "Washington News Roundup" by Josh Sinanan, "Meet The Chengs" by Karen Schmidt, "Zachary Fritchen Discovers Northwest Chess" by Jeffrey Roland, "In Memory Of Ignacio Perez" by Karen Schmidt, and a back-cover photo of Gabriel Razmov by Meiling Cheng.
March
NWC_202203_opt_color.pdf
Cover: Ignacio Perez by Washington Chess Federation.
32-page issue with "Solutions To Last Month’s Puzzles" by Valentin Razmov, "Memories Of Ignacio Perez" by various authors, "Ignacio’s Brilliant Attacking Play" and "Play Like Ignacio!" by Josh Sinanan, "A Pre Grand Prix" by Mike Murray, "WOW Tournament" by Jacek Stopa, "Sixth Annual Neil Dale Memorial Open" by Steven Breckenridge, "East Regional Scholastics Qualifier" by Jay Simonson, "Winning And Losing In Person Once Again" by Jim Tarjan, "To Draw Or Not To Draw?" by Nobel Ang, "Play Like Ignacio! (answers to positions from page 7)" by Josh Sinanan, "Washington News Roundup" by Josh Sinanan, and a back-cover Chesstoon by Brian Berger.
February
NWC_202202_opt_color.pdf
Cover: Anthony He by Xuhao He.
40-page issue with "Ignacio Perez (1967-2022)" by Josh Sinanan, "He Is An IM!" by Anthony He, "Charm City Chess Club" by Karen Schmidt, "Oregon Junior Closed" by Wilson Gibbins, "Washington Class Championships" and "Washington Winter Classic" by Josh Sinanan, "Annotated Game from Northwest Chess Winter Open" by Gabriel Razmov, "2021 Year-End Scholastic Cup" by Josh Sinanan, "Sridhar Wins" by Sridhar Seshadri, "Chess And Romance" by Glen O’Harra, and a back-cover photo of Siddharth Bhaskaran by Meiling Cheng.
January
NWC_202201_opt_color.pdf
Cover: Tyler Barron by Detroit Rogers.
32-page issue with "Youngest Ever Washington IM" by Josh Sinanan, "Coaching Corner" by Ralph Dubisch, "Chess4Girls" by Nesara Shree, "2021 Oregon Class Championships" by Wilson Gibbins, "Commentary On The World Championship" by Eric Holcomb, "2021 World Chess Championship (All The Games)," "Southern Idaho Open (Veteran’s Tournament)" by Barry Eacker, "2021 WA Fall Mini-Teams Championship" and "2021 Northwest Chess Winter Open" by Josh Sinanan, "Miscellaneous Game" by Jeffrey Roland and Ralph Dubisch, "Detective Cookie" by Karen Schmidt, "ICA Chess News From The North" by Adam Porth, and a back-cover photo of a "Hand-Carved Chess Set" by Jeffrey Roland.