Third Menlo Park Chess Club Championship, Round 1

The Menlo Park Chess Club will hold our third annual club championship beginning Thursday, November 7th, at 7pm, a five-round USCF-rated Swiss system event using the dual-rated G/45;d5 time control over five weeks . Our championship is aimed at players with at least some tournament experience (one or two rated events, say) and may not be suitable for children under the age of 10, given games could last until almost 9pm on a school night. Additionally, if your child has trouble sitting still or remaining quiet for an hour or two then we would humbly request that you consider registering him or her in one of our other rated events and forego the club championship (we love our junior players but there are a few who struggle to remain quiet during even the shorter time controls). Details follow:

• Format: Five-round Swiss-system tournament in one section, one game per evening
• Rounds: November 7th, 14th, 21st, December 5th, 12th (there is no round November 28th, Thanksgiving)—games begin promptly at 7:00pm
• Control: G/45;d5 (dual-rated game of 45 minutes for each player plus a 5-second delay per move)
• Entry Fee: $20 (the entire entry fee will be returned in prizes)
  
• Payment: PayPal: mark@drury.com; Venmo: @Mark-Drury-12, Zelle: 6504006393
• Prizes:  Four prize groups based upon November US Chess regular ratings with roughly 8 players per prize group (Group 1: $120, $60, $40; Group 2: $100, $60, $40; Group 3: $80, $40, $20; Group 4: $80, $40, $20, with adjustments as needed based on tournament/group size)
• Byes: One half-point bye is available for any round save the last, but the bye must be requested at least two days in advance of the day of play
• Register: Please sign up in advance using the ‘Register’ button, above
• Boards, sets, clocks, score sheets and pens will be provided by the Menlo Park Chess Club (bring a clock if you own one)
• All tournament participants must be current US Chess members
• Our tournament chess rules summary is worth perusing if you’re new to tournament play
• For more information please send email to info@menloparkchess.club
• Join our Facebook group to stay abreast of future club tournaments and events