(By Barbara Wei)
Friday Results Heighten Excitement for Main RR Event
On the first day of competition, at the 2017 Butterfly Southeastern Open, a record 62 players competed in the Over-1800 and Under-1800 round robin events for $1,325 in total prize money. Considered a lead up to the Main Round Robin event the next day, players in each event were divided into two 6-8-person giant round robin groups, with the top two advancing to the single elimination rounds.

In the Over 1800 event, top seed and local North Carolina resident Jishan Liang (2672) took the championship title and $400 in cash and prizes easily. He only dropped one game throughout the event – to eventual runner-up Jiangshan Guo (2419), the only female competitor in the event. Jiangshan performed well en route to the final against Jishan Liang, upsetting second seeded Yichi Zhang (2602) 3-1. In the exciting semi-final match, Yichi struggled with Jiangshan’s backhand blocks with long pips, eventually making too many errors. Undoubtedly, the two will likely meet again in the Main Round Robin event, and Yichi will be looking for a different result.

In the Under 1800 event, Isabella Xu (1340) caused upset over upset in her giant round robin group, eventually advancing in the first position over the top seeded 1500-1700 players. Most other groups finished close to seeded order, with the top seeds all advancing in first or second position. Top seeded Huigang Liang (1798) eventually claimed the title and $225 in cash and prizes without dropping a game.

The Main Event begins on Saturday morning with placement round robin matches, leading into divisional round robin competition. Single elimination rounds for the main event will take place on Sunday and will determine the final standings for the 2017 Butterfly Southeastern Open.  

Continual coverage of the Southeastern Open and stories about the athletes will be available at www.ButterflyOnline.com, or via Bowmar Sports/Butterfly North America’s Twitter and Facebook pages.