by Marlon Bernardino
After winning the 2020 National Age Group Chess Championships Under-10 chess tournament,  country’s chess wizard Candidate Master Al-Basher "Basty" Buto is set to try his luck in the Grandmaster and Atty. Rosendo Carreon Balinas Chess Championship to be held on November 22, 2020 at lichess.org.

The GM Rosendo Carreon Balinas Jr. Online Chess Tournament dubbed as 3 Years old Birthday Celebration of Baby Uno, organized by Bayanihan Chess Club and backed up by US based Dr. Joe Balinas , Engr. Antonio Balinas, Mr. Recca Carcueva of Philippine E-9 Chess Club, Mr. Wagish Kumar Rai of Frontier Wheels and Glenn Hullana Garcia of Brainy Chess Academy is open to all players ages 12 years old and below.

" I hope to do well in this event,” said the 10 year old Buto,  a grade five pupil of Faith Christian School in Cainta, Rizal Province.
Buto also expected to show his skills in this mind-boggling games when the National Chess Federation of the Philippines qualification tournament gets going (the winner's in each category will represent the country in the FIDE Online World Cadets & Youth Rapid Chess Championships before the end of the year).
It shall be recalled that Buto won the 19th ASEAN International Age Group Chess Championship held  in Davao City in 2018. He bagged the gold medal at the same time captured the Candidate Master title for his effort

In 2019, Buto also won the Boys 10 and under division title in the 4th Eastern Asia Youth Chess Championship held at Asia Hotel in Bangkok, Thailand.
Buto made prominence in the chess world after winning the 12th Asian Schools Chess Championships in Tehran, Iran in 2016.
The Filipino chess prodigy swept his seven matches to dominate the under-7 rapid bracket of the 13th Asian Schools Chess Championship in Panjin, China in 2017. He bagged another gold in the blitz category.

At the age of Seven (7), Buto took the Asean Master title in the 18th  ASEAN International Age Group Chess Championship in Kuantan, Pahang, Malaysia.
 American chess coach Dave Fenton had something to say to his ward:

"Based upon the games Basty (Al-Basher Buto) and I have played, he looks promising to become something the Philippines has never seen before in terms of a grandmaster. His style is unlike anything i have seen since Paul Morphy".
Basty learn the rudiment of chess at the age of four (4) according to his father Bong Buto.
“He never had formal training. It was just his uncle who taught him,” said Bong, who traces his roots to Marawi but raised his family in Cainta.-Marlon Bernardino-