Date & Location

Date: March 15, 2026

Location: The Houston Chess Studio 250 Patton St. Suite I Houston, TX 77079 

Pricing

• Early Registration: $32, ends on March 1, 2026
• Regular Registration: $37, between March 2-8, 2026
• Late Registration: $40, between March 9-14, 2026
• Active USCF membership is required by March 14, 2026.
  • Visit new.uschess.org/join-us-chess starting at $24 to join USCF or renew your membership!
  • Visit chess.jliptrap.us/hgroup.htm for $13 discount Scholastic memberships and renewals!
• TCA Tournament membership is included in the tournament entry fee.
  • Visit texaschess.org/memberships to join TCA or renew your membership!

Pricing is included in the registration form automatically.

Eligibility

Participants must live or attend school in one of these counties:

• Austin, Brazoria, Brazos, Chambers, Fort Bend, Galveston, Grimes
• Hardin, Harris, Houston, Jasper, Leon, Liberty, Madison
• Matagorda, Montgomery, Newton, Orange, Polk, Robertson
• San Jacinto, Trinity, Tyler, Walker, Waller, Wharton

The max number of registrations for this tournament is 74. Text Edgar Acosta to join a waiting list

Sections

• Middle School Open: Any Middle Schooler (Junior High Student) may enter this section.
• Middle School U800: Only Middle Schoolers rated 800 or below may enter this section.
• Note: Sections may be combined in case of low registrations.

Note: Sections are based on USCF January 2025 ratings. "Current" ratings may be used to pair unrated players but will not determine section placement. Accelerate Pairings will be used at the discretion of the TD the day of the tournament.

Tournament Format

• Rounds: Swiss 5 Rounds, Game in 25 with a 5-second delay (G/25 d/5).
• Membership: USCF and TCA memberships required.
• Rules: USCF rules apply.
• Open sections require notation and clocks (if available).
  • Players who opt to not take notation will have their time start at 20 minutes instead of 25.
• Reserved sections are strongly encouraged to use notation and clocks.
• Touch-move / Touch-take: Applies to all sections. Younger players, especially in Kinder-1st Open, will be encouraged to keep these rules with gentle reminders as needed.
• Equipment: Plan on bringing your own chess set and clock if you have one, money for lunch, and a good attitude!
  • Every player needs to bring their clocks! 
  • Please make sure your clocks are labeled with the player's name and USCF ID.
  • Chess sets for the whole tournament will be provided!

Schedule

• No At-Site Registration. All registrations must be submitted online at/or before 11:59pm on March 14, 2026.
• Please arrive between 8:15 and 8:45 to check in and get ready to play.
• Round 1: Starts at 9:00 AM SHARP; subsequent rounds will start ASAP. No elimination.
• Players may request a single 1/2 point Bye missed, 0 point Bye for any subsequent Byes. Any Byes need to be requested by Saturday March 14th, 2026 at 7pm.
• Lunch break after Round 3, estimating 12pm-1pm. 

Teams

Teams consist of two or more (2+) players in the same section from the same school/association.

• Team members must attend the same school campus full-time or belong to the same Home School Association.
• Sections are not combined for teams.
• Team scores will be calculated by summing the top four (4) individual scores from each team.

Awards

• Trophies: Top 5 individuals in each section and Top 4 teams in each section.
• 1st Place Finishers qualify for a spot in the State Regional Invitational April 18-19th.
• Alternate awards (likely medals) to players who score 3 or more points but do not win a trophy.
• Tie Breaks: Solkoff (sum of opponents' scores), Modified Median (dropping the lowest opponent's score), Cumulative of Opposition, then Cumulative (USCF Standard)