Special Events for Everyone

Scholastic Tournaments with
Leaderboards & Contactless Award
Register Now for Scholastic!      Check Entries      Request Changes

• These tournaments come in four flavors: Chess4Less, Quads, Swiss, and Rising Star⁵, as you can see below.
  Kids who are yet to play in a tournament should start with the Rising Star Event, which is exclusively for them. The rest may choose any other event below.
  New: Introducing Chess4Less to make chess accessible with low low low entry fees.
  
  

  • Tournament	Games	Time Control1	Sections2	Fees		Register
    				Member	Non-Member
    New: Chess4Less Hexes6	5	G/12 d3	Groups of 4 to 6	16	22	+
    New: Chess4Less Quads6	3	G/25 d5	Groups of 4	21	28	+
    Quads	3	G/25 d5	Groups of 43	29	39	+
    Swiss	4	G/25 d5	< 500 | 500-799 | 800+4	35	47	+
    Rising Star5	3 or 4	Flexible	Flexible	33	33	+

    Footnotes:
    

    1. A Time Control of G/M dN means each player gets M minutes/game and a delay of N seconds/move (before the clock starts ticking). A Time Control of G/M +N means each player gets M minutes/game and an additional (increment) N seconds for every move.
    2. We place players in groups or sections based on their USChess rating supplement.
    3. A group may have 3-7 players if the number of players is indivisible by 4 or 6.
    4. Some Swiss sections may be merged because we organize more smaller tournaments during post-COVID times. Unrated players are placed in under 500 sections by default.
    5. Rising Stars event introduces in-person tournaments to new players and their parents (who attend for free). A player may attend only one Rising Star Event during which they play 3 games.
    6. Our answer to inflation is to have rock bottom 20th-century prices! The only thing is that we can't offer BA€oins (nor prizes) at this fee.
    Note: We use AzhLangareted Cadence in these tournaments to optimize the parents' (and players') time; each round (of games) starts about 5 minutes after all games in the previous round end.

  • Awards

    Awards 6 BA€oins/point (min 3 BA€oins/tourney). BA€oins (BA€) are redeemable for prizes below:

    • Medals = 3 BA€
    • Trophies: 9 BA€ = M 1-Post | 18 BA€ = L 1-Post | 36 BA€ = XL 1-Post | 100 BA€ = XXL 2-Post | 200 BA€ = XXXL 3-Post | 300 BA€ = XXXXL 4-Post

    Please check out the current standings at BA€oin Leaderboard.

GrandPrix Open Tournaments with
Cash Prizes & Bragging Rights!
Register for GrandPrix!      Check Entries      Request Changes

• These tournaments come in three styles, Cash Quads (1 day), Cash Day (1 day) & Championship (2 days), as you can see below:
  
  

  • New: Cash Quads
    Intimate • Competitive • One Day

    • Prize Fund: $125 for every quad (winner takes all)

      Sections of 4 players based on USChess rating supplement
      Unrated: Max $75 (except in the top section)
      Econ entries: Win 50% of the calculated prize
      

      ---

      
      

      Fees

      	Member *	Non-member
      Regular	43	57
      Econ **	32	43

      Onsite/late entry: +22

    • Schedule

      Time Control	Minutes between round
      G/45 +5	100
      G/45 +15	120
      G/60 +5	130
      G/75 +5	160
      G/90 +5	190

      Note: Please may request a minimum of 15 minutes between games.
    
    
    Register for GrandPrix!

  ---

  
  

  • Cash Day
    Fast • Exciting • One Day

    1. 3 sections based on USChess rating supplement: under 1400 | 1400-1799 | 1800+
    2. Any player may play up (aka level up) to the next higher section (except in the top section***).

    
    

    Prize Fund: $1,000 b/32 entries

    Section	Eligibility	1st	2nd
    1800+	All	$200	$80
    	u 2000	$100
    1400-1799	All	$150	$60
    	u 1600	$100
    u1400	All	$150	$60
    	u 1200	$100

    Unrated: Max $100 (except in the top section)
    Econ entries: Win 50% of the calculated prize

    
    

    Register for GrandPrix!

    
    

    Fees
    (same as 2021)

    	Member *	Non-member
    Regular	43	57
    Econ **	32	43

    • Play-up Fee (Optional): +17
    • Onsite/late entry: +22

    
    

    Schedule

    Schedule based on time control below:

    1. G/45 +5: 4 or 5 rounds every 120 minutes
    2. G/45 +15: 4 rounds every 135 minutes
    3. G/60 +5: 4 rounds every 150 minutes
    4. G/75 +5: 3 rounds every 180 minutes
    5. G/90 +5: 3 rounds every 200 minutes

    
    

    Register for GrandPrix!

  • The Real Bay Area Chess Championship
    Therapeutic • FIDE-rated • Two Days

    1. 3 sections based on USChess rating supplement: under 1500 | 1500-1999 | 2000+
    2. Any player may play up (aka level up) to the next higher section (except in the top section***).

    
    

    Prize Fund: $10,000 b/133 entries

    Section	Eligibility	1st	2nd	3rd
    2000+ (FIDE Rated)	All	$1,500	$700	$300
    	u 2300	$1,000	$500	$200
    1500-1999 (FIDE Rated)	All	$1,000	$500	$200
    	u 1700	$700	$300	$200
    under 1500	All	$1,000	$500	$200
    	u 1300	$700	$300	$200

    Unrated: Max $300 (except in the top section)
    Econ entries: Win 50% of the calculated prize

    Blitz Side Event = $100/Hexes (groups of 6): $60 for top player, $40 to top player in the bottom half.

    
    

    Register for GrandPrix!

    
    

    Fees
    (same as 2021)

    	Member *	Non-member
    All-Access Regular	112	149
    All-Access Econ **	116	87
    Championship	99	132
    Championship Econ **	74	99
    Blitz	25	33

    • Buy more and save with All-Access Pass, which includes the main event and (1/2-price on) Blitz.
    • Play-up Fee (Optional): +25
    • Onsite/late entry: +33

    
    

    Schedule

    5 round Swiss: 5SS x G/90 +30
    Rounds: Sat 9:30 1:50 6:10 | Sun 9:30 2
    Blitz Side Event: 6:30-8:30p

    
    

    Register for GrandPrix!

General Information about All Tournaments

• After Registering

  1. Add @bayareachess.com to safe senders to receive emails with orientation and other notifications.
  2. Check entries to confirm registration; fill in our form to report any errors, changes, cancellations / withdrawals****

• Before You Come

  1. Confirm the tournament's location, date, and start time.
  2. Read the orientation information.
  3. Arrive at least 20 minutes before the start time.
  4. Be nice to everyone!

• When You Come

  1. Check pairings before every round to find information about your next game.
  2. Check results after every round; report any errors to the Tournament Director (TD) ASAP.
  3. Be nice to everyone!

• General Information

  1. We use the current US Rating Supplement and TD discretion to determine players' ratings.
  2. We may merge small sections.
  3. Online registration closes at midnight the day before the tournament. Onsite registration is available 20-30 minutes before every round (subject to space availability). Please contact td@bayareachess.com before registering onsite.
  4. US Chess membership is required for all tournaments (except Rising Star, which is not a rated tourney). Therefore, you must renew/signup with your tournament registration so we can process and reconcile it.
  5. Bay Area Chess membership is not required but can save you money if you play more than once a month.
  6. CalChess membership is required for all State Championship events.

• Footnotes

  1. * Azcelerate, LLC subsidizes Chess4Less and BAC Member discounts to promote chess for all! Note: Member discounts are available for online registrations only.
  2. ** Econ entries win 50% of the calculated prize.
  3. ***To play up into the top section your official published monthly rating must still be within 200 points of the minimum of the section.
  4. ****Changes, Cancellations/withdrawals will incur fees:
     • $7 before 24 hours of the tournament
     • $20 within 24 hours of the tournament
     • no refunds after the tournament has started.
     • For special events, refer to special event webpage.
     Payments can be made through Paypal or Zelle to contact@bayareachess.com. Please email your receipt to events@bayareachess.com.