A chess master who masters his ambition

You first met Avi Kaplan on these pages in 2022. Then a 15-year-old freshman at Lane Tech College Prep, Kaplan had finished second among ninth-graders at the U.S. Chess Federation’s National K-12 Grade Championships in Orlando, Florida, the previous December.

That winter was a thrill for a boy from Lincoln Park who began playing chess in first grade. By his freshman year, he was the top-rated player in the Chicago Public Schools. His rating of 2,150 approached the 2,200 points required to reach master status. But he was merely the 10th-seeded player in his grade at nationals.

Kaplan had another top-10 nationals finish as a sophomore, crossing the magical 2,200-point threshold and becoming a master. This time, he lost the last of his seven matches.

Back in Orlando as a junior, Kaplan, now 17, was determined to have a December to remember. He was the third-highest-rated 11th-grader out of more than 100 at nationals, asking a couple of weeks to strategize before the event, he knew that standing with two feet on the gas pedal wasn’t the best strategy.

“Intellectually, I feel like I’ve gotten a lot better at chess,” he said. “When I was a little younger, I could be really aggressive, all or nothing. Now I’m playing more solidly. Now, I’m playing more for the long run.”

And, in the long run-capped by an extraordinarily long game in his seventh and final match – Kaplan became the third Illinoisan in the past decade to win a grade championship. He vanquished six foes and tied another, becoming the only player to finish with 6½ points.

None of the matches were easy, but the fifth was a wrestling match in which Kaplan fought the player who had beaten him two years earlier-and had gone on to win the championship-to a draw. Heading into the last two rounds, Kaplan was in a four-way tie for first. He won his sixth match.

“I was confident,” he said, “but also really nervous, too. It kind of felt like a movie.”

He slowed things down in the final match, even walking away from the board at one point and saying to himself, “Please, something go right.” He’d had to temper the urge to go on the offensive early.

“I’ve matured as a player,” Kaplan said. “I decided not to go all-in. I wanted to play a little slower.”

The match was streamed on Twitch, with announcers and all, and it became a marathon- 99 moves each. At last, with a draw seeming almost likely, Kaplan was able to pounce on a mistake by his opponent. And that was that.

It’s a complicated time to be Jewish. At Lane Tech, an enormous school with abounding diversity, there’s much to discuss beyond academics-or even chess.

“Especially during times like this, for me, being Jewish is a big part of my identity,” Kaplan said. “I’m not just a chess player. I’m a Jewish chess player.”

He’s also a high school chess player-and star-whose rating has soared above 2,300 and who now sits comfortably among the top 100 players under 21 in the country. Grandmaster status is 2,500, a goal for which to strive.

Kaplan was honored as one of 18 Under 18 by Springboard, Chicago’s hub for Jewish teen programs (see full list on page __). He also was honored by Mayor Brandon Johnson in the inaugural class of CPS Champions, and recently won a fourth title in the Greater Chicago K-12 Championships.

Meanwhile, Kaplan is taking pleasure in his Lane teammates’ improvement, in which he has a sizable hand.

“It’s a lot of fun,” he said. “I love seeing them get better.”

Even if it takes a little time.

Steve Greenberg is a sports columnist for the Chicago Sun-Times.