84th
Virginia Closed Chess Championships
A Heritage
Event! A State Championship Event!
Sept. 3-4 or 3-5
Including our
VA Chess Federation Annual Meeting at 9 am on Saturday, Sept. 3rd
$5,000 in prizes based on 90 paid players, with
1st-3rd places are guaranteed in all three sections!!
PLEASE READ THESE INSTRUCTIONS CAREFULLY -- CONTACT US IF YOU HAVE QUESTIONS
Hotel & Playing Site: Hilton Garden Inn Innsbrook, 4050 Cox Road, Glen Allen, VA. Call the hotel at (804)521-2900 and select Option 2.
Chess Bookstore:
The Hammer family will be our Book vendor. If you have a special request for a
book or chess item you would like Todd to bring to the tournament for you,
please email Todd at
tha3496505@aol.com.
Format:
Swiss System (this is not an elimination tournament). All sections are US chess
rated.
- Championship and Amateur Sections: 6 Rounds
of play with two event Schedules, a Long Schedule for
players wanting to start at 1 pm on Saturday, and a Short Schedule for players
whose other commitments do not allow them to start until 5 pm Saturday.
- Novice Section: 5 Rounds, with all games on
Saturday and Sunday only.
Click here
to learn about a Swiss System chess tournament.
Eligibility:
- Main Tournament: Is open only to Virginia residents, military stationed in Virginia, and students attending any Virginia school or college (must show student ID or other proof of Fall 2022 school enrollment). "Virginia residency" rule also applies to college players who are VA residents but are attending school out-of-state (e.g., these persons are considered VA residents).
-
Blitz Tournament: This event, held on Friday evening, is open to ANYONE, see the separate Tournament Announcement at
www.vachess.org
or
www.uschess.org.
Sections and Prizes:
Choose one of these 3 Sections based on your playing strength and your
competitive desires. Each Section crowns a “state champion” and ensures your
name becomes part of Chess History in the Commonwealth!
- Championship: 1st-$900+Champion's Plaque;
2nd-$650; 3rd-$450;
Top Expert and Top Class A, $200 each + Trophy. Unrated players cannot
compete in this section. The Chief TD is the final authority on who is (or is
not) Unrated.
- Amateur (Under 1800): 1st-$600+Champion's
Plaque; 2nd-$400;
3rd-$300; Top Class C & Class
D, $150 each + Trophy. Unrated winnings limited to $250.
- Novice (Under-1200): 1st-$400+Trophy;
2nd-$300; 3rd-$200;
Top Unrated-$100; Trophies to
Top U-1000, U-800, and U600. Unrated
winnings limited to $250.
Entry Fee:
- $90 through Saturday Aug. 27th
- $110 starting Sunday Aug. 28th
- $125 starting Thursday Sept. 1st
- The VA Chess Federation will retain $5 from any
player who withdraws before Round 1
3 Ways to Register for and Enter the Tournament:
- Online:
www.vachess.org
- Onsite: Friday, Sept. 2nd, 3 pm to 6:45 pm.
Round 1 of Blitz will start at 7:30 pm (see separate TLA for Virginia Closed
Blitz). Registration open Saturday, Sept. 3rd, 8 am – Noon. Long
Schedule entries received after 12-noon may have to wait until Round 2 to play.
Short Schedule players can register from 1:30 pm to 4 pm on Saturday afternoon.
Optional Byes & Re-Entry:
- Championship & Amateur Sections:
+ Byes: Up to two (2) half-point byes
are allowed
per player, must declare bye(s) during Registration or
at least 60 minutes
before the start of Rounds 1 and 2. Requests made later than 60 minutes before
Round 2 are treated as Zero-point Byes. After this deadline,
a zero-point bye
request for the final round is considered a withdrawal and the player will not
be eligible for prizes. Only one Bye allowed on Day 3 of the tournament ...
e.g., you cannot take half-point Byes for Rounds 5 and 6.
+ Re-Entry: Players who lose in Round 1 can
Re-Enter the tournament for $40 after Round 1 and the player gets a half-point Bye. As
an alternative, a player in the Long Schedule who loses in Round 1 can also opt
to enter the Short Schedule for the same re-entry fee. The Short Schedule’s
players merge with the Long Schedule players for the Sunday morning round of the
tournament.
- Novice Section: Only one (1) half-point bye
allowed for Rounds 1-5, must declare during Registration or at least 30 min before Round 2.
Click here
to learn more about Byes and Bye Requests. No Re-Entries in this section.
NOVICE (Under 1200) Section Schedule:
All games are on Saturday and Sunday only. No games on Monday
- Saturday: Rounds 1, 2 and 3 at 10 am, 1 pm, and 5
pm. Time control is Game-60, delay 5 (each player has 60 minutes to complete all
moves, with 5-seconds of time delay for each move)
- Sunday: Rounds 4 and 5 at 11 am and 3:30 pm. Time
control on Sunday is Game-90, delay 5.
LONG Schedule (Championship & Amateur Sections):
Time Control is 30/90, SD/1, d5 (e.g., 30 moves in the first 90 minutes per
player, then complete the game in 1 hour per player, with a 5-second time delay
throughout the game)
- Saturday: Rds 1 and 2 at 1 pm and 7 pm. Optional 1
or 2 Half-point Byes for Rounds 2-6 must be "locked in" by 6 pm
- Sunday: Rds 3 and 4 at 11 am and 5 pm
- Monday: Rds 5 and 6 at 10 am and 3:30 pm
SHORT Schedule (Championship & Amateur Sections):
2 rounds on Saturday evening then merges with the Long Schedule for Sunday
morning. Time Control for the Saturday games is G/60, d5 (e.g., 60 minutes per
player, with 5-second time delay)
- Saturday: Rds 1 and 2 at 5 pm and 8 pm. Optional 1
or 2 Half-point Byes for Rounds 2-6 must be locked in by 7:30 pm Saturday.
- Sunday and Monday: Players from the Short Schedule
“merge” with the Long Schedule on Sunday for all remaining rounds.
Ratings for Sectioning, Pairings, and Prizes:
For section eligibility, pairings, and prizes we will use the higher of each
player’s Over-the-Board Regular and Online Regular ratings from the September
2022 US Chess Rating Supplement. Established ratings have priority over
provisional ratings. Players without US Chess ratings, but who have ratings in
other recognized systems will have those ratings converted to a US Chess
equivalent for sectioning and prize purposes. We do not recognize or consider
ratings from online platforms outside of a player’s US Chess Online Regular
rating.
Tie-break Systems We Use:
To determine winners of non-cash prizes (e.g., plaques and trophies) the
Tournament Director will use the tiebreak systems shown below.
Click here
to learn more about Tie-break systems used in chess (warning, requires some math
skills).
- Championship and Amateur Sections: Cumulative,
Modified Median, Solkhoff, Cumulative of Opposition.
- Novice Section: Modified Median, Solkhoff,
Cumulative, Cumulative of Opposition.
Membership Requirements:
- US Chess and VA Chess Federation memberships are
required. Please join or renew yours before the tournament to avoid the need
to pay onsite.
COVID-19 Protocols:
“Face Masks optional” is our policy unless a tighter restriction is in effect
per hotel management or local, state, or federal health authorities. We will
have plenty of hand-sanitizer and sanitizing wipes available.
What to Bring:
Chess Clock, pencils/pens. We will supply all chess sets, but we do not have
enough clocks to provide to all games. US Chess-approved Electronic Notation
Devices permitted (e.g., ChessNoteR, PlyCount, and Monroi).
Cell Phone Policy:
Players who bring cell phones into the playing hall must turn them off and place
the phone face down at the player’s table or store the phone in a chess bag or
purse. A cell phone on a player’s person during play is grounds for loss of
game. 10-minute penalty for phones that ring, half off your remaining time if
you are within 10 minutes of the first or second Time Control. Your second
‘phone ringing’ violation results in the loss of your game. See Chief TD if you
have a medical need to leave your phone on.
Info:
Go to
www.vachess.org
or contact Mike Hoffpauir by email to
mhoffpauir@aol.com,
text to 757-846-4805.