UPPER LAKE, Calif. – Lake County Wine Studio is continuing the weekly Thursday series of chess education and game playing.

The games take place from 2 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.

Grandmaster-trained chess expert Thomas Southerland is the guest educator at this series. Southerland has written articles for the prestigious European Chess Web site, www.chessdom.com, and also for the Official U.S. Chess Federation Website, http://uschess.org.

Southerland had two games from the Chicago Open 1996 published in the official magazine of the USCF, “Chesslife,” for their brilliance according to Life Master Jerry Hanken.

He also has organized and sponsored the first-ever Online Grand Master Chess Event at Internet Chess Club in 1996, and has remained active partners in organizing and promoting Grand Master Chess Events with ICC to this day.

Southerland has interviewed for radio, Grandmasters Var Akobian, Yury Shulman (2008 U.S. Champion) and Israeli Grandmaster Victor Mikhalevski, and was promoted by Grandmaster Susan Polgar (Former Women's World Champion) during his last event.

He organized the two-day multiple rapid chess matches between Grandmasters Var Akobian and Yury Shulman held in April 2009 at the Lake County Wine Studio and is currently working to organize his next major chess event to be held in beautiful Lake County in the early summer of 2011.

Southerland offers insight into strategy fundamentals of end, middle and opening games to help players improve their games.

Lake County Wine Studio is located on the corner of First and Main Streets in historic Upper Lake, across from the famous Tallman Hotel and Blue Wing Saloon.

For more information, contact Susan Feiler at 707-275-8030 or 707-293-8752; This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..