Open to all K - 12 players from anywhere
Baltimore Polytechnic Institute (Poly High School) & Western High School
1400 W. Cold Spring Lane (off I-83)
or
4600 Falls Road (for local commuters east of Falls Rd.)
Baltimore, MD 21209
Skittles Rooms: Western HS's Cafeteria & Auditorium
Tournament Rooms: Poly HS's Cafeteria (adjoining Western HS's Cafeteria) & Room A-28 (older players only)
Recent History of the Tournament, Site, and/or Date
SECTION DETAILS | ||||||
Section / Grade | US-Chess Rating | Rounds | Time Control | Individual Prizes |
Team Prizes |
|
11th & 12th | any rating or unrated | 5SS | G35 d5 | * | ** | |
10th | any rating or unrated | 5SS | G35 d5 | * | ** | |
9th | any rating or unrated | 5SS | G35 d5 | * | ** | |
8th | any rating or unrated | 5SS | G30 d5 | * | ** | |
7th | any rating or unrated | 5SS | G30 d5 | * | ** | |
6th | any rating or unrated | 5SS | G30 d5 | * | ** | |
5th | any rating or unrated | 5SS | G25 d5 | * | ** | |
4th | any rating or unrated | 5SS | G25 d5 | * | ** | |
3rd | any rating or unrated | 5SS | G25 d5 | * | ** | |
2nd | any rating or unrated | 5SS | G25 d5 | * | ** | |
K & 1st | any rating or unrated | 5SS | G25 d5 | * | ** |
SCHEDULE | |||||||
8:15 - 9:00 | Parents, coaches, & players settle in the Skittles Room(s). | ||||||
9:00 - 9:10 | Pairing notification (texted, emailed, & posted). | ||||||
9:10 - 9:20 | Parents & coaches walk with players to their board in the Tournament Room(s). | ||||||
9:20 - 9:30 | Tournament announcements. (Parents & coaches are welcome to listen.) | ||||||
9:30 | Round 1 begins for all sections. (Parents & coaches return to a Skittles Room.) | ||||||
Scheduled Rounds | |||||||
Section / Grade |
Round 1 |
Round 2 |
Round 3 |
Round 4 |
Round 5 |
Awards Ceremony | |
9th - 12th | 9:30 | 11:00 | 12:30 | 2:00 | 3:30 | 5:00 — or sooner *** | |
6th - 8th | 9:30 | 10:45 | 12:00 | 1:15 | 2:30 | 3:45 — or sooner *** | |
K - 5th | 9:30 | 10:30 | 11:30 | 12:30 | 1:30 | 2:30 — or sooner *** |
LEGEND | ||||||
#SS | # of rounds in which a player plays 1 game against an opponent determined by Swiss-system pairings (SS) | |||||
G# | Base time: # of minutes per game (G) each player has to complete all of the player's moves | |||||
d# | Delay time: # of seconds of delay (d) that elapse before a player's base time begins to elapse, when the player is on move | |||||
* | Trophies: top ≈ 25% of players or players with ≈ ≥70% of available points (3.5+/5, 2.8+/4) | |||||
** | Trophies: top ≈ 40% of teams or teams with ≈ ≥50% of available points (10+/20, 8+/16)—based on top 4 players | |||||
*** | Each section's separate awards ceremony will begin ASAP after its final round has ended. |
The individual & team winners (or co-winners) of each grade's section will be the 2018 Mid-Atlantic Grade Chess Champion for that grade.
Tournament-Registration Fee (choose additional fee, if player lacks a current US-Chess membership)
- Register at the bottom of this page, starting 1 month before the tournament
- $20—Tuesday, 2018.01.16, if completed by 11:59 PM (Early)
- $40—Thursday, 2018.01.18, if completed by 11:59 PM (Regular)
- $60—Saturday, 2018.01.20, if completed by 5 AM (Last-Minute: ½-point bye possible in Round 1)
- $80—Saturday, 2018.01.20, 8 - 9 AM (At-the-Door: if space is available; ½-point bye likely in Round 1)
This tournament is supported generously by the Baltimore Kids Chess League.
Radisson Hotel at Cross Keys is within walking distance (18 minutes) of the tournament site.
Registered Players & Wallcharts
- Individuals (Attendees)—includes players registered currently (updated automatically)
After clicking on the link above, click on Attendees beneath a specific scholastic tournament. At the top of the page, enter into the Search bar the player's first or last name (but not both), or the purchaser's first or last name (but not both). Or, at the bottom of the page, change the # of players displayed to All ; sort by clicking on Player's Name, Purchaser's Name, etc. - Individuals (alphabetically)—includes players registered by 2018.01.20 01:11—217 players
- Individuals (by section)—includes players registered by the date & time above
- Teams (by section)—includes players registered by the date & time above
US-Chess Membership
- To compete in this US-Chess-rated tournament, a player must have a US-Chess membership that is current (not yet expired).
- If a player has ever been a US-Chess member, then the player has a permanent US-Chess ID # that must be entered during tournament registration: player's US-Chess ID # and membership expiration date.
- If a player lacks a current US-Chess membership, then select the 2nd type of Registration Type during tournament registration: Tournament Registration & US-Chess Membership (new or renewal). (Until MD Chess processes purchases of US-Chess memberships, a new member's US-Chess ID # will be listed as TBD [To Be Determined ] in the wallcharts listed above. MD Chess might wait until the day of the tournament to process those purchases.)
- During the tournament a player who lacks a current US-Chess membership is ineligible to play, will not be paired in any round, & will receive a 0-point bye in all rounds, until the player purchases a US-Chess membership, by filling out MD Chess's US-Chess-membership form in the Tournament Directors' room.
Which Section is Right for Your Player?
Which Players Are Required to Record Their Games?
- Players in grades 4 - 12 must record (notate) their games, unless they are unable to. K - 3 players in all sections are exempt from the recording requirement.
- Recording affords several benefits:
- it helps to resolve disputes;
- it discourages cheating;
- it enables players to improve their skills through post-game analysis.
Do Players Need to Bring Anything?
- Players do NOT need to bring any equipment. MD Chess will provide all necessary supplies: boards, pieces, scoresheets (for recording), and pencils. (MD Chess's pencils might be dull and do not have erasers. If you want a sharp pencil with a good eraser, then bring your own.)
- Players do NOT need to bring a clock; however, MD Chess encourages them to bring one. MD Chess recommends the DGT North American digital chess clock ($36). Players may not refuse to play with a clock, if either player brings a clock to the board, or if a tournament director (TD) puts a clock on a game. A game may be started without a clock, if neither player brings a clock to the board.
- Food (pizza, candy, soda, etc.) should be available for purchase at the tournament.
Registering for the Tournament
- How to Register Online for a MD Chess Scholastic Tournament
- Which US-Chess Rating Determines the Section(s) in which a Player May or Must Play?—and/or see above the section entitled Which Section is Right for Your Player?
- MD Chess’s Scholastic Team Policy
- MD Chess’s Scholastic Bye Policy
- MD Chess’s Refund Policy & Fees for Registration Changes
Playing at the Tournament
- Tournament Announcements before Round 1 & Section Schedules
- Procedures, Rules, and Etiquette for Players and Spectators at a MD Chess Scholastic Tournament
- MD Chess Scholastic Variations from US-Chess Rules: $20 fine for forfeiting a round; if players are not using a clock in a game with an increment time control of 10+ seconds, & if that game has lasted longer than the sum of the 2 players' base times, then a TD will add a clock set to G5 d5; etc.
- Anti-Cheating Measures:
- Even when More Than 1 Player in a Section Can Achieve a Perfect Score, There Will Be No Major Variations; However, There Might Be Minor Variations. The following might be changed for any section, according to the number of players in the section: whether there are natural pairings (the norm at a Swiss-system tournament) or accelerated pairings in Rounds 1-2, and the number of trophies. In the rare instance of a section having an exceptionally low turnout, it might be merged with another section.
- US Chess's Official Rules of Chess, 6th Edition (2014)
- US Chess's Official Rules of Chess, 6th Edition (2014)—search for rules & terms in GoogleBooks
- US Chess's Rulebook Changes (updated annually)
- Current Standings: Individuals & Teams (live results updated every 60 seconds)
Results of the Tournament
- Trophies Awarded to Tied Players in Order of Tiebreaks—Not in Order of Unpublished Ratings
- How MD Chess Determines the Individual Winner of a Championship or Varsity Section, when There’s a Tie for 1st Place
- Final Standings: US-Chess Crosstables (tied players in descending order of new unpublished rating)
- Final Standings: MD-Chess Crosstables (tied players in descending tiebreak order—TROPHY ORDER)
- How to Find a Player’s New Unpublished/Unofficial US-Chess Rating after a MD Chess Scholastic Tournament
- How to Ask US Chess to Revise a Player's Name in Future Crosstables, Wallcharts, & Pairings Charts
- Photos of players taken by MD Chess's Photographer will be available for purchase at MD Chess Photographer's website.
MD Chess's PROVISIONAL Scholastic-Tournament Calendar 2017-2018
- The tournament-announcement page of a tournament listed in MD Chess's PROVISIONAL Scholastic Tournament Calendar 2017-2018 might not yet appear at the top of MD Chess's home page, because that tournament is so many months in the future.
- Nonetheless, one can access that tournament-announcement page by alternate means:
- On the lower, left side of MD Chess's home page, click on MD Chess's calendar.
- Click on By Month (at the top of the page) to display all tournaments within a month.
- Click on All Categories (at the bottom of the page) to display all types of tournaments (major & local scholastic tournaments, major & local open tournaments)—as well as chess camps.
- Navigate to specific tournaments.
MD Chess's Social-Media Profiles
If the tournament were to be rescheduled or cancelled, then MD Chess would contact you (by email and/or text) and post an announcement at the top of this tournament-announcement page. The tournament will proceed as planned, if MD Chess neither contacts you, nor posts an announcement about a rescheduling or cancellation. Please do not contact MD Chess about a site's hypothetical closing because of bad weather, etc. A site closing would be announced separately by the public school's city or county administration, the private school, etc. If the tournament were to be rescheduled, then MD Chess would issue a refund, if a player were to withdraw from the rescheduled tournament. If the tournament were to be cancelled, then MD Chess would automatically issue a refund to all players within 1-2 weeks; there would be no need to inform MD Chess of a player's withdrawal from a cancelled tournament.
For more tournament information, contact Maryland Chess at tournaments@mdchess.com.