2021 Waco Scholastic Fall Chess Exposition

Following our recent successes in both online and over-the-board tournaments, Innovative Chess Solutions is pleased to present, as an annual in-person tournament, the 2021 Waco Scholastic Fall Chess Exposition. Welcoming students from all across Texas and beyond, we aspire to convene an innovative and magnificent tournament for participants of all grades and abilities. In particular, not only will registrants have the opportunity of competing against students from throughout the state (our last in-person tournament drew registrants from thirteen counties), but will have the ability to represent their schools and chess clubs in this grand event, with both team and individual prizes being awarded. Finally, our innovative tournament schedule ensures that all players will have reasonable intermissions between rounds to rest and a lunch break of at least one hour, even if they participate in the blitz side-event. For all these reasons and more, we encourage you to join us for this most delightful tournament this autumn!

Date: November 13, 2021

Location: Waco Convention Center, 100 Washington Avenue, Waco, TX, 76701. Texas Room South.

Sections: Open, Reserve (U1000), Novice (U600) and Unrated

Rounds & Time Control: Five rounds. Swiss system (no elimination). G/30;d5.

Qualifications: Every scholastic player, who is a member of the United States Chess Federation in good standing, shall be qualified for this tournament, regardless of geographic location. For avoidance of doubt, a scholastic player is defined as a person who is currently in twelfth grade or lower (including preschoolers), but shall also include persons who have graduated high school and are younger than seventeen years of age. Players may play-up (e.g., an 800-rated player may participate in either the Open or Reserve section, but not the Novice section).

Entry Fee: $15 by 9/30; $20 by 10/15; $25 by 10/30; and $30 thereafter.

Registration: Advance registration may be processed at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/2021-waco-scholastic-fall-chess-exposition-tickets-175060359247 All entry fees are refundable if requested within thirty days before the event, provided that Eventbrite’s commission, which is in addition to the entry fee, is non-refundable. Although players registering after October 26 will be fully eligible to compete for all prizes, their registrations will not per se increase the number of awardable prizes (either individual or team). Registering onsite will not be available nor will online registration subsequent to 10:00pm on October 15. The sole exception is that players may register onsite for the blitz until noon.

Schedule: Round 1, 8:00-9:00; Round 2, 9:30-10:30; Round 3, 11:00am-12:00pm; lunch break; Blitz, 1:00-2:00; Round 4, 2:30-3:30; and Round 5, 4:00-5:00. The awards ceremony will commence around 5:30pm.

Byes: Each player will be entitled to a maximum of one ½ bye, but not for the final round; such byes must be requested by the close of registration. If in any round, for a section, there is an odd number of players, the player with the lowest rating (but not an unrated player) that has not been assigned or has requested a bye, will be assigned a one point bye. All bye requests are irrevocable for prize purposes, and if not allowed a ½ point bye, provide the requestee with zero points.

Blitz: There will be, as an optional side-event, a five-round blitz tournament, wherein each round will commence as soon as practicable. In the blitz, the time control is G/5, the entry fee is $5 and three trophies will be awarded.

Notation: Absent a valid physical limitation from notating, all players in the Open and U1000 sections must notate their moves, upon pain of a five minute time deduction from their clock if they do not. However, notation is not mandated, but is nevertheless strongly encouraged, in the other sections. This tournament adopts the Rule 15A variation, whereby players may, if using paper notation, notate their move and then execute it on the board. Subject to such regulations and limitations as the organizer may adopt, electronic notation devices that have been approved by the USCF will be allowed during the tournament in all sections. Notation sheets will be provided upon request.

Prizes: Trophies will be awarded in each section equal to a number that is twenty-five per centum (25%) of paid entries, net of refunds. Moreover, all players who complete the tournament will receive medals. Finally, one set of plaques will be granted for every sixteen paid entries, with four plaques comprising a set. These sets will be awarded to teams whose four highest-scoring players have the greatest cumulative scores across all sections. For instance, a 4.0 score in the Open would have equal weight to a 4.0 in the U600. When determining which players in a team receive plaques, we will not confer preference upon any player due to the section in which they participated, but instead, will award the plaques to the four-highest scoring team-members, who will be differentiated by tiebreaks if need be. In the event that any player shall fail to collect their prize at the awards ceremony, such prize will be shipped to their place of residence, provided that no prize will be shipped until the recipient has paid the cost of shipping.

Team Rules: Teams comprise any number of students (but at least two) who attend the same school or homeschool cooperative, or are members of a scholastic chess club. When participants register, they will be assumed to be representing their school unless they indicate to the contrary. For the purposes of qualifying as teams, scholastic chess clubs shall be defined as any association or group which: (1) Regularly meets as a chess club in-person at least monthly, (2) Is not a subsidiary of, or controlled by, any other entity, and (3) Has six or more members or regular attendees, of whom at least half are scholastic players. As far as reasonably possible, teammates will not be paired with each other. In order to represent a team other than their school, players must designate their affiliation with such qualifying team through the Eventbrite registration form or by emailing the organizer before the conclusion of registration. Affiliating oneself with any team intentionally cannot be reversed. Although this event will have team prizes, students who do not belong to a team are nevertheless welcome to compete for individual prizes.

Tiebreaks: In the event that any prize is tied between two or more persons, the following tiebreaks, in the stated order, will determine its recipient:-

1. Modified Median
2. Solkoff
3. Cumulative
4. Kashdan
5. Sonneborn-Berger
6. Cumulative of Opposition
7. Coin-Flip.

If you desire an explanation of the manner in which any or all of these tiebreaks work, please do not hesitate to inquire.

Spectators: Except for players with games in progress and our tournament directors/staff, no spectators may be present in the Tournament Hall during the duration of rounds. Following the conclusion of their game and reporting thereof, players are obliged to depart the Tournament Hall expeditiously, and cannot reenter until that round concludes.

Ratings: For section qualification and pairing purposes, we will be using the greater of players’ over-the-board or online USCF regular ratings (if any), but this tournament will affect only their over-the-board USCF regular/quick ratings. A quick or blitz rating does not disqualify a student with no regular rating from participating in the Unrated section.

Consumption of Food. Neither food nor beverages shall be consumed by players in the Tournament Hall while their games are underway. Water is the sole exception.  

Waiting Areas: For the relief of players, parents, etc., we have subdivided the Texas Room South with a dividing wall, so that one-third of that room will function as the designated waiting area. Additionally, players and their parents are welcome to use the immensely-spacious hallways and abundant seating throughout the Convention Center. However, parents should not leave young children unsupervised in the Convention Center (outside of the Tournament Hall and designated waiting area), nor allow them to play on the escalators, etc.

Rules: Shortly before the event commences, the organizer will email a detailed document concerning the rules and procedures of the tournament, which all players and parents are encouraged to read. Subject to said rules and regulations, the entirety of the Official Rules of Chess complied by the United States Chess Federation applies in all sections of the tournament. Accessible at: https://new.uschess.org/news/7th-edition-rule-book-chapters-now-available-download-2/

Other Notes: In all games played, once you drop a piece on a legal square, it constitutes your move and cannot be reversed. The organizer will supply chess sets, but players are responsible for providing chess clocks. Capacity has been limited to eighty entrants, so please register soon. Sections are subject to merger in the event of low turnout.

Contact: If you would like to receive more information, please email Click here to show email address We hope this has been helpful to you, and that we will see you at this grand exposition on November 16!