YOUNG chess player Patrick Gower, 14, from York, pitted his wits against some of the best players in the country at a North Yorkshire-based competition at the weekend.

Patrick, of Bewlay Street, York, was placed 37th in the final table of 68 entrants in the Ampleforth Junior Masters, a four-day competition which started on Thursday.

He said he was pleased with his performance, which saw him get two wins, two draws and two losses in the contest. He was invited to take part in the competition at Ampleforth College, near Helmsley, as one of the country's top-ranked Under 16 chess players.

The winner of the competition was 14-year-old Matthew Harborne, from Camberley in Surrey, who won a narrow victory over another Surrey-based player, Tom Nixon.

Updated: 11:53 Monday, October 29, 2001