brookehatfield: Matthew won his trophy for finishing 17th in his division which included 274 competitors from around the country. “I like playing chess,” he said a few days after the photo was taken, “because  I win a lot.” And what is the best opening move in a chess game according to Matthew? “3-4 for white and 3-6 for black cause you open your pawn into the center of the board and you own the center.”

“That was probably the last picture of the trophy intact because a piece broke off when we got it home,” said his mother Judith Carter, who took the bus 14 hours each way so that she could watch Matthew compete in the tournament, “but it was a nice Mother’s Day because he got the trophy.” (via)