March Chess Tournaments

Somthing for everyone!

[Click on the calendar above for access to more details of each event or go to www.chessengland.com]

This Thursday 7th March we are holding our monthly 10 minute blitz at Hendon Chess Club.

On Saturday 9th March we have the Golders Green FIDE Rapid and Sunday 17th March we are at Kensington Holiday Inn.

The new FIDE rating floor has increased to 1400 (from 1000) and most players with FIDE ratings have seen their ratings boosted by up to 400 points! Some organisers (usually those with one or two events a year) are already raising their section limits or cancelling the lowest sections. We will leave the sections at Golders Green and Kensington as they are and monitor what happens over the next few lists.

Free during the week? Join us at the lovely Clissold Arms on Tuesdays 12th and 19th March in Muswell Hill (or East Finchley, depending on which direction you approach the pub from). You can play 2 standard games or 6 rapid games from 10.30am to 5pm.

Then on 23rd March I am off to Sheffield (= Darnall & Handsworth Chess Club) to help Geoff Brown run their bi-annual club rapid tournament, which is worth a slog up the M1 if you have nothing better to do!

Easter sees the arrival of the Southend Chess Festival, and there is everything but blitz on offer. Thursday 28th March we are doing a FIDE rapid (in case anyone asks, all events are ECF rated as well). Then we have several 7 round tournaments over the Bank Holiday weekend with 2 half point byes available if you can’t make some of the games (book those when entering). If you are approaching 2200 or above, you can think about the 9 round Southend Masters run by Lance Leslie-Smith!