Mississippi Chess News

New this year - a series of fall K-12 tournaments and several enhancements to the schedule and section options at the individual championship. Announcing the 2024-2025 Mississippi Chess Association K-12 Schedule As the name implies, we're going to follow the full school year this year by having both fall and spring tournaments. Our new fall tournaments will be jamboree events intended to give players some practice playing in tournament conditions before we have our championship tournaments January through March. In sporting terms, jamboree events are celebrations typically held at the beginning of a season. These will be individual K-12 chess tournaments held on a single day with a faster time control than our individual championship. The time control will be 30 minutes with a 15 second increment per move. Our goal is to distribute these events throughout Mississippi. This fall we are having the following events: September 28 @ Jackson Prep in Flowood October 5 @ Franklin Chess Cen...

Read about the upcoming and first ever Mississippi Women's State Championship. The first ever Mississippi Women's State Chess Championship will be held at the Nissan Training Center in Canton on September 14, 2024. The winner of the Open section will be Mississippi's first Women State Champion.  This tournament is operated under the regulations of the US Chess Federation and also offers players the chance to obtain or improve a rating. Players must be current US Chess members or either join or rejoin prior to the tournament. The event is open to all female  participants  of any age. There are currently 59 female USCF members of any age in Mississippi. We had 36 players participate in our State Girls Championship in February in Flowood. We expect a number of our participants to be scholastic players. However, there are 682 (!) female players who have a rating and a Mississippi address on file with US Chess.  So the sky's the limit! There will be 3 sections: Open, Res...

MORTON – A record number of players from across Mississippi gathered Saturday at Roosevelt State Park to compete in the centuries-old game of chess. The third annual Bienville Chess Classic was held April 20 at the park’s Alfreda-Harris Lodge where 58 players battled for prizes, improved ratings, and earned bragging rights. This is an increase from last year’s 45 players and up from 32 in 2022 in this tournament series, one of two hosted by the Scott County Chess Club. This event brought the combined turnout to 309 players who have visited Scott County for six chess tournaments since the club started hosting in November 2021, holding one tournament in the spring and one in the fall. Chris Allen Baker, club founder and coordinator, said players reported having a great experience as many of them have played in the club’s past tournaments, but there were new first-time players. One player came from Mobile, Ala., to participate.   “We were blessed to have a wonderful turnout an...

The first Senior Championship in Mississippi was held April 6-7 in Canton at the Nissan Training Center. David Mooney went 3.5-0.5 to win 1st place. The US Chess Federation has held the  John T. Irwin National Tournament of Senior State Champions is an annual invitational since 2018. Each state affiliate (such as the Mississippi Chess Association) may nominate 1 player to represent its residents 50+ years old as of the first day of the Irwin. Previously the MCA has selected its representative as the highest finishing 50+ player in the state championship, or if necessary the highest rated 50+ player willing to go. In 2024 that changed. The 2024 Mississippi Senior State Championship - an Inaugural Event With your author turning 50 this year, I had significant interest in forming an over the board senior state championship in Mississippi. The whole was to have good conditions and generous time controls that would attract senior players, including perhaps some players who have been ina...

Read about the results of the Mississippi Scholastic Chess Championships - Individual Championship, Girls Championship, and Team Championship The Mississippi Chess Scholastic Championships are a series of tournaments organized by the Mississippi Chess Association each year. The winners of each tournament are recognized as the official scholastic chess State Champions in Mississippi. We use this tournaments to determine the nominees to national invitational tournaments. These tournaments are operated under the regulations of the US Chess Federation and also offer players the chance to obtain or improve a rating. Individual Championship - January 13-14, 2024 - St. Andrews The individual scholastic chess championship was a 2-day weekend event held on the weekend leading into Martin Luther King Jr. Day. With a generous time control that mirrors our open state championship, this tournament allows players plenty of time to consider their next move. We awarded places 1st through 3rd in the...