About Tournaments

For many students, playing in chess tournaments is the next logical step after taking classes or private insutrction. In addition to offering them an arena to hone their chess skills, tournaments provide an opportunity for students to test their mettle and appreciate their accomplishments. All of the skills fostered through chess classes come to the fore as they have fun matching wits with their peers. It also introduces them to another whole set of skills to be mastered, such as playing under time constraints and mustering the stamina for multiple back-to-back games.

Students gain valuable experience with life lessons such as winning, losing, proper sportsmanship, and simply learning to enjoy the process of any endeavor, competitive or not. Like any organized competition, a tournament has certain rules and edict which players come to learn and appreciate. This gives them a new level of respect for the game and other players. Having a chance to encounter players both above and below their own level puts chess in perspective and exposes them to potential mentors. Almost all chess tournaments, Gjon's included, hand out a large number of awards to encourage players — not only placement trophies, but sportsmanship awards, and participation certificates.

Chess tournaments can be either USCF rated or unrated. Gjon conducts many tournaments throughout the year — usually about one per quater. For a full listing of these tournaments, please review the Tournament Schedule. All of these tournaments are unrated and open to all experience levels. They are typically broken into divisions based on the child's grade level. There are a significant number of Rated tournaments throughout the Bay Area, and they require players be USCF members. For more information about USCF and rated tournaments, please refer to the Chess Links page.