This is a "true" team tournament. Houstonians are accustomed to individual scholastic tournaments that also simultaneously award team prizes but these are not actual team tournaments. A team tournament generally speaking is comprised of teams of 4 players each who play against other teams of 4 players each (similar to the Chess Olympiad). Individuals within a team do NOT play one another. There is also the inclusion of an 'alternate' player to form a 5th member of each team. It is OK if you do not know other players to form a team. We can help you do so.
One day event, Saturday Sept 21st, 2024.
Starts at 9am. Be present by 845am. Last round should finish by 345pm-4pm.
Rounds 1-3 will be back to back ASAP. Go to lunch after round 3 which is approx between 12:30-1:30. Round 4 is at 1:30pm.
5 round Swiss, time control G25;d5
Team Trophies awarded to top 5 scoring teams.
Winning teams will get ONE team trophy and the individual members will each get a personalized medal laser engraved with their team name and individual player name.
Hosted by The Chess Refinery
at Crowne Plaza on 7611 Katy Fwy, Houston, TX 77024
GPS Link to Crowne Plaza
Starts at 9am. Be present by 845am. Last round should finish by 345pm-4pm.
Rounds 1-3 will be back to back ASAP. Go to lunch after round 3 which is approx between 12:30-1:30. Round 4 is at 1:30pm.
5 round Swiss, time control G25;d5
Team Trophies awarded to top 5 scoring teams.
Winning teams will get ONE team trophy and the individual members will each get a personalized medal laser engraved with their team name and individual player name.
Hosted by The Chess Refinery
at Crowne Plaza on 7611 Katy Fwy, Houston, TX 77024
GPS Link to Crowne Plaza
Video about Team Formation:
How to Form Your Team
For those forming their own team:
- Find 3-4 other players that fulfill the rating range listed in the chart below
- Figure out a team name and team captain.
- Fill out registration form here. PDF version to be emailed. Email to "[email protected]".
- Make $100 team EF payment via Zelle to "[email protected]". Include a memo "Team EF for XXXX team name." $100 is the total EF for the entire team. Payments must be received by Sunday 9/15/24. Late entry after that date is available at $199 EF per team.
For individuals who need help forming a team:
- Fill out this form here.
- Send $39 individual EF via Zelle to "[email protected]". Include a memo "individual EF for team event for XXXX full name". This will be 100% refundable if we are unable to find other team members for you. If we are able to place you on a team, but you refuse for any reason to play with those players, your EF will NOT be refunded. Keep in mind, declining to play once a team is formed will affect the other team members. So please ensure you can commit to competing in this event before signing up. $39 EF must be paid by Sunday 9/15/24. However due to the time it takes to form teams, please register ASAP... this service is first come first served.
- We will be in touch via text message. Be patient, give us at least 24-72 hours to get back to you.
For information on rating classes, click here.
Above rating range is a recommended guideline. You do NOT have to be minimum 800 to play on board 1 but you cannot be over 1399. Ratings used to form teams must use the Sept 2024 supplement listing. **An UNR player who has post tournament history as of 9/1/2024 that exceeds 599(P) rating will be bumped up and must play on an appropriate board that reflects their 9/1 provisional rating - ignore all live provisional ratings achieved after 9/1/24. Rating ranges noted are "maximums". Thus, you can have a 500 rtg play on board 2 if you don't have someone higher rated to play on the top boards. But you cannot exceed 1199 for board 2. In other words, you can play up but not play down. So if your rating is 1000, you must be a board 2 player, not a board 3 or 4. All boards are sorted from highest rated at board 1 to lowest at board 4.
Additional Awards
- Best TEAM NAME. Come up with a unique team name such as "Zugzwang Zealots", "Chess Soul Crushers", "Stalemate Scam Artists", "Blunder Prone Wizards", and so forth. No you cannot use any of the previously mentioned team names if you want a chance at this creativity recognition award
- Best TEAM T-SHIRT. All members must wear the same shirt or similar themed shirts. This does not have to be chess themed. Just be creative. Likewise, we will do our best to dish out a really creative reward for the winning team.
Other Event Details & Regulations
- An alternate is meant to replace an original board member of a team but not specifically directly on that particular board. i.e. if board 1 has to miss a round, then board 2 becomes board 1 player, and so forth and the alternate plays on board 4.
- This is a "SCHOLASTIC" event. thus all board players must be in grades K-12 or homeschooled. No adults please... adults can be team captains but not a team player.
- You do NOT have to have an alternate registered and attending but it is highly recommended due to last minute situations that could arise
- TEAMS can be a "SCHOOL" team or a privately formed team that does not necessarily represent a particular school; we do encourage that you form teams that represent your school if possible but this is not mandatory
- A Team Captain SHOULD be one of the team members but an adult MAY be team captain if necessary
- A half point bye if requested is issued to EVERY team member. there are not individual byes for one or two team members and not the rest. thus if one member has to miss a round, this is why you have alternate(s)
- This is a 'FIXED' BOARD ORDER team tournament. This means, once you've designated who is Board 1, 2, 3, 4 upon registration that order is fixed. The only exception is when something happens i.e. an emergency and has to miss a game and an alternate fills in.
- We are NOT using live ratings for purposes of forming teams... only September Supplement ratings. Now in the example of the below player, this player did not have tournament history that would result in a Sept supplement calculation, thus his August supplement would be utilized as his Sept rating. Now there is an exception, if a player is UNR for the Sept supplement then we look at what the post tournament history is if any exists up to 9/1/24 as noted in the caption below the table above. Thus for this player below his/her rating would be 540 for this event.
