i watched hes full analytics on youtube
he can find a checkmate in any moves. hes a king.
You don't get to be a grandmaster without being a stunningly good chess player.
He is good, but I beat him once in an over the board blitz tournament.
Maurice Ashley achieved his 3rd norm and became a GM in 1999 with a 2440 rating.
He has not played a rated game since, standard, rapid or blitz.
He has chosen to rest on his "laurels" and pursued a career in public "self-help" speaking, announcing chess events and chess promotion. He may well be best remembered for his failed Millionaire Chess Events, but his comment "your play today was not very smooth" to WC Magnus Carlsen will forever seal his legacy.
His home page clarifies the often misstated fact that he is the 1st Black GM by saying he is the 1st African-American GM, as other GM's exist in Africa before him.
He has not played a rated game since, standard, rapid or blitz.
He has chosen to rest on his "laurels" and pursued a career in public "self-help" speaking, announcing chess events and chess promotion. He may well be best remembered for his failed Millionaire Chess Events, but his comment "your play today was not very smooth" to WC Magnus Carlsen will forever seal his legacy.
His home page clarifies the often misstated fact that he is the 1st Black GM by saying he is the 1st African-American GM, as other GM's exist in Africa before him.
He's GM and has done a lot for chess in the US as far as I know.
According to my database he played some tournaments like Reykjavik op 2012 and Manhattan op 2011. Not that much but one cannot speak of very bad perfomances.
Additional objective information: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maurice_Ashley
According to my database he played some tournaments like Reykjavik op 2012 and Manhattan op 2011. Not that much but one cannot speak of very bad perfomances.
Additional objective information: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maurice_Ashley
"Doing a lot for chess" is obviously a subjective statement. You might ask the participants in the MC 1/2/3 events their impressions. As a business entrepreneur, Ashleys attempts to make a profit from chess amateurs failed miserably. His "vision" to bring chess to the masses is on going.
Yassir Seriwan asked: "anybody can repeat StockFish's analysis, but can they analyze on their own?"
Yassir Seriwan asked: "anybody can repeat StockFish's analysis, but can they analyze on their own?"
Before the STL gig, Maurice actually did a lot of commentary without engines. You can find a lot of older blitz games on youtube that Maurice commentated on, for example this semi-viral blitz game: www.youtube.com/watch?v=RtSPhginkNQ
He has commentated on Kasparov vs. Anand, Kasparov vs. Deep Blue, and other famous matches.
Even if you personally are not a fan of Maurice's commentary style and engine use (me included), others are. It's undeniable that he has done much in his career to educate and entertain, as well as generate more interest in chess.
As for if he is a quality player, yeah he's pretty good. Sure 2440 is a bit low for a GM, but still a very very impressive rating. And obviously he has been above 2500 at his peak. I would trust his opinion over Jen Shahade's, but not as much as Yasser Seirawan's.
He has commentated on Kasparov vs. Anand, Kasparov vs. Deep Blue, and other famous matches.
Even if you personally are not a fan of Maurice's commentary style and engine use (me included), others are. It's undeniable that he has done much in his career to educate and entertain, as well as generate more interest in chess.
As for if he is a quality player, yeah he's pretty good. Sure 2440 is a bit low for a GM, but still a very very impressive rating. And obviously he has been above 2500 at his peak. I would trust his opinion over Jen Shahade's, but not as much as Yasser Seirawan's.
2440 is his highest rating, achieved after his 3rd norm. Never above 2500. He "earned" his title with years of hard work. By his admission, he did not posses the "natural" talent of many players. He set a goal and dedicated quite a few years and 10 hours a day to his pursuit of a GM title. Very admiral.
He is a "self-made" man. Overcame many hardships that would have derailed most people. Some take to his personality, others are offended. My only disagreement is with his "vision" of making chess mainstream by offering huge prize money for amateur players. His objectives appear self-serving, to make personal profit, but that is my perspective. Others admire all his contributions as positive.
He is a "self-made" man. Overcame many hardships that would have derailed most people. Some take to his personality, others are offended. My only disagreement is with his "vision" of making chess mainstream by offering huge prize money for amateur players. His objectives appear self-serving, to make personal profit, but that is my perspective. Others admire all his contributions as positive.
2440 Is not really low for a Gm...the thing is people only focus on the famous players.
If you averaged all the Gm's in the world, i would bet 2440 is about the median.
If you averaged all the Gm's in the world, i would bet 2440 is about the median.
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