”Oh!” I screamed, as I got softly shocked by a little taser I was making.
“Are you okay son?”  my dad asked as he ran into the room.
“We need to talk, Tony. You are smart and we both know it, but I think it is time for you to try a sport,” said my dad as he sat on a chair in my messy but roomy lab.
“I’m fine dad. I am having fun,” I responded angrily.
You seem depressed lately and you need to loosen up. You are going to do a sport,” proclaimed my dad and he paced out the door.
“Dad, if I am going to play a sport, golf it is.”
The next day after school, my dad and I went to the golf course. It was quite the golf course. It was a sharp green with the creases marked like it was made with a thin sharpie.
“An easy skillful sport,” I mentioned as my father walked me into the local golf course.
At the golf course, I got into trouble for being underage and was told to leave immediately. The next few weeks I tried basketball, soccer, and baseball. I failed so badly at every sport that I developed a cynical attitude towards sports in general.
“How about football son?”, my dad went on with optimism.
“Sure”, I said with a dejected sigh. When I reached the football field, I instantly got drilled by the lineback. I was having a talk with the coach when my dad called me over to the car.  To sum up the day, I felt very cranky that I had failed at yet another sport. I was still persistent and would do whatever it takes to succeed at a sport.
I went home with a desperate mind and as I latched onto the laptop my dad was using, I saw that on the cover of the laptop it read "Mind Sports". Under the title it read "Chess". These tiny letters made me so happy that I decided that I would be good at a sport. Chess is a sport of foresight and strategy. Since I had these traits I was likely to be good at this sport. Finally, I got off my couch and decided to play a game of chess…
As my dad drove me from chess practice, I sat happily. After just one practice, my chess coach put me in the elite group.  I was so happy that at home my family threw a huge party in happiness for me. I not only felt happy but encouraged to take the sport to the next level.
The annual chess tournament was just around the corner and that year I was going to participate in it. I practiced with my dad everyday till the first of 4 matches, Terrific Thirty-Two. In the first match I won. Even though the opposer was a trash-talking player, I kept quiet and got to hold the trophy with pride. As the Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight passed on, the Final Four drew closer and closer and I had to get all the practice I could before the final day.
“Are you going to bed, it’s 10:00.” said my dad groggily, as I started yet another game on the computer.
“No, I need to get all the practice and strategies in before the tournament. I need to learn to quickly pin the knight.”,  I replied.

I decided it would be better if I got all the cramming in possible.

In the morning my dad drove me to the stadium in Las Vegas in his large Acura. Sweat glistened on my cheeks but I had a courageous straight face. As the Acura screeched on the curb I saw three kids, the same ones in the competitions earlier. One was a creepy girl with a frown. One was a joyful smiling girl. Finally, there was a scared looking boy with a nervous expression. We all went inside, registered and got seated. When the judge called my name, I snapped out of my daydream and listened to his instructions.
I was going to be playing against the other boy, Mark. He looked very scared so my confidence increased. It was that moment that I felt all the eyes in the crowd on me. I felt a pool of sweat near my feet. We played the first few moves and he did such a basic tactic, I wondered how he had gotten into the finals. He turned out to be very hesitant, though his black bishop roundup was very strategic. At the near end, I had my queen and king and he had his king and a pawn. I checkmated him by cornering him with my queen and backing up the attack with my king.
I couldn’t believe it. I won. A huge trophy was given to me along with the smiling girl who was a runner-up. I was so happy, I thought about my dad’s reaction to this big news. Then, I thought how smartness was my tool.

“Are you coming to the celebration or not?” asked the judge with a smile. I walked over to the party. My dad waved me over. My sister dug in the pizza with a smile and my brother took a gulp of soda-pop.

“Let’s get this party started,” said my dad as I walked toward him.