Tyler Hughes, 17, of Wheat Ridge won the 2008 U.S. Junior Closed Championship during June in Lindsborg, Kan.

As a result, he will represent the United States in the 2008 World Junior Championship from through Aug. 16 in Gaziantep, Turkey.

Hughes studies chess 11/2 hours each day, and for the past three years has taken online chess lessons with Russian Grandmaster Petr Kiriakov.

The last time Hughes played on the national stage, he represented Colorado in the 2006 Denker Tournament of Champions, where he finished third, winning a four-year full-scholarship to the University of Texas at Dallas. Pictured is Hughes' victory in the final round of the U.S. Junior, in a must-win game, against 13-year-old Gregory Young of California.

Tyler Hughes (2264) - Gregory Young (2213)

1.d4 f5 2.g3 Nf6 3.Bg2 g6 4.c3 Nc6 5.Nh3 Bg7 6.Qb3 e6 7.Nd2 d5 8.Nf4 Qe7 9.h4 (White shows his aggressive intentions; he needs to win this game to win the tournament.) 9...b6 10.Nf3 Ne4 11.Nd3 Bb7 12.Bf4 (Controlling the e5 square is one of White's main ideas in the Stonewall Dutch Defense.) 12...O-O 13.a4 Na5 14.Qc2 c5 15.e3 Rfc8 16.Be5 Nc6 17.Bxg7 Kxg7 18.Nfe5 Nxe5 19.Nxe5 Nf6 20.f4 c4 21.h5 Nxh5 22.g4 Nf6 23.Bf3 fxg4 24.Bxg4 Rg8 25.Qh2 Kf8 26.a5 b5 27.a6 Bc8 28.Bf3 Bd7 29.Qh6+ Rg7 30.Ke2 Rb8 31.Qh2 b4 32.f5 bxc3? (Missing the discovery on b8. 32...Rb6 is stronger.)

Young

(see picture)

Hughes

Position after 32...bxc3

33.Nxg6+! hxg6 34.Qxb8+ Be8 35.bxc3 gxf5 36.Rhb1 Nd7 37.Qh2 Rh7 38.Qg3 Rh4 39.Rh1 Rxh1 40.Rxh1 Qg7 41.Qd6+ Kf7 42.Qc7 Ke7 43.Qxa7 f4 44.Qb7 Bg6 45.exf4 Bd3+ 46.Kf2 Qf6 47.Qb4+ Kf7 48.Qd6 Nb6 49.Qc7+ Ke8 50.Rh8+! Qxh8 51.Qb8+ 1-0

www.ColoradoMasterChess.com