February Monday Madness Rated Games

STEP 1: Read This Info CAREFULLY

Our online game-per-week (G25+5) format allows players maximum traction with a minimal time commitment. Tournament games take place Monday nights at 8:15 PM Eastern Time (7:15 PM CT, 6:15 PM MT, or 5:15 PM PT).  This page links to our February 2025 Monday Madness Tournament.  (We have a similar tournament EVERY month!) February’s four rounds will take place February 3rd, 10th, 17th, and 24th. 

• Tournament will use Swiss pairings or round robin depending on the number of players.
• Time control will be game in 25 minutes with a 5-second increment. (This affects online regular ratings.) There will be four rounds, played ONE ROUND PER WEEK. (Half point byes available if you cannot attend one or more of the available weekly rounds.)
• There will be two sections: Open and Under 700. These sections are determined by analysis of both over-the-board USCF-regular ratings and USCF online ratings, where available. If you don't know which section you belong in, please contact us.
• This event will be rated under the USCF online regular rating system. The tournament will be run on Lichess. Players will need a free Lichess account (sign up here).
• Within 24 hours of registration, you will receive an email with information for logging into Lichess and playing in the tournament.
• Participants must START the tournament Zoom with video on as a condition for participation. (You do NOT need to remain on camera after the match has started.) This may mean that you will have to use a second device to join our Zoom meeting with video on. Lichess has a built-in engine for detecting cheating, and we will do a post-tournament fair-play inspection. If a participant's account is flagged for cheating by Lichess, we may submit the player's games as losses for USCF-rating purposes or annul the games.
• Standings will not be finalized until after fair-play review.
• All participants must be active members of the US Chess Federation. If you don’t have a current USCF membership, please sign up or renew here: https://new.uschess.org/become-member (if you are unsure, please check the status of your membership at https://new.uschess.org/player-search.)
• Players can withdraw from the event at any time by notifying the Tournament Director (TD).
• Prizes: $25 for top finisher in each section.
• REGISTRATION REMAINS OPEN THROUGH February 10. HOWEVER, CHANCES OF WINNING PRIZE MONEY DECREASE WITH MISSED GAMES.
• The total entry fee per month is $20 regardless of number of games played..
• If you have any questions, don't hesitate to reach out to Start Right Chess at (917) 525-9561 or info@startrightchess.com.

STEP 2: Register

Note: All players will need to have a current USCF member ID to register. If you don’t not have a USCF membership yet, please sign up or renew here: https://new.uschess.org/become-member