Rated Scholastic chess tournament with multiple sections held on February 20, 2027 at NYOS Charter School. Trophies, medals, and regional championships awarded.
Basics
US Chess rated chess tournament on February 20th in multiple RATED scholastic sections:
Primary Championship (any K-3, JTP Ok)
Primary JV (K-3 U600, JTP Ok)
Elementary Championship (any K-5/6*)
Elementary Varsity (K-5/6* U900)
Elementary JV (K-5/6* U500)
Middle School Championship (any 6*-8/9*)
Middle School Varsity (6-8/9* U900)
High School Championship (any 9-12)
High School Varsity (9-12 U900)
*Elementary sections are restricted to Elementary students, which may include 6th grade depending on the school. Middle School sections are restricted to Middle School students, which may include 9th grade depending on the school. Homeschoolers should follow traditional age guidelines. State and National events typically classify 6th graders as Middle School even if they attend a K-6 Elementary school, and 9th graders as High School even if they attend a 7-9 Junior High/Middle School. If attempting to qualify for a state or national event, it is advisable for 6th graders to play in the Middle School section even if attending an Elementary school.
This is a Swiss-system tournament, so everyone plays all day—there is no “elimination.” Players must reside and attend school in Region VI. Players must know how to play the game of chess! We follow USCF rules including: touch-move, mandatory clocks if available, and notation. Primary (K-3) are excused from taking notation. If you are K-3 and choose to play in an Elementary section, you must take notation. Please review the Parent/Coach Responsibilities before registering. Please note, at the event pairings will be posted only online.
We also offer an ‘Open’ Chess Tournament for any adults as well as scholastic players who live out of the Region. Special trophies will be awarded to the highest scoring Family & Child teams (Uncles, Aunts, Parents, Grandparents, or Adult Siblings paired with at least one scholastic aged player.).
Location
NYOS Charter School
12333 N Lamar Blvd
Austin, TX 78753
Chess play will take place in classrooms and the gym depending on section.
Review a map of the campus.
Eligibility
This is a rated tournament. You must reside and attend school in Region VI in order to participate in a scholastic section.
This tournament is an official Texas Chess Association sanctioned event. TCA has specific guidelines on section placement. If you are unsure of which section you should choose, please read a description of the TCA guidelines.
“Under” sections are only for students meeting the rating criteria. All players who are new to tournaments are eligible for their age appropriate ‘under’ section. (Look up your player’s rating here. Please email ask your chess coach for placement information, or email the registrar (austinchesstournaments@gmail.com).
In an effort to produce a clear winner, any section that grows too large may be divided into two sections, or small similar sections may be combined. In the case of a late split, sections will be combined for team trophy calculations.
You must have a US Chess ID and membership. You can verify your US Chess membership ID and expiration by visiting the US Chess Ratings area. Players new to tournament chess are welcome to play. Your US Chess membership cannot expire before February 28, 2026. New players in 3rd grade and below may play as a JTP as part of US Chess’ free Junior Tournament Player Program during registration, but this only allows play at certain tournaments. If you decide to try a JTP membership, register for the tournament with a dummy ID such as 55555555 and email us to set up the membership for you.
Please note: February 2027 ‘Regular’ published ratings will be used for section placement and pairing purposes. If no regular rating is available, then other February ratings (quick, blitz, online) can and will be considered for section placement.
All players in this event must be in 12th grade or lower.
Schedule
No check-in necessary for preregistrations. We will make every attempt to contact you in advance if we see a problem with your registration. Please, verify your entry ONLINE!
8:30am Announcements begin in championship playing rooms.
8:45am Rd 1 begins in Championship sections. Rds 1-3: G/35,+5. Rds 4-5: G/45,+5.
8:45am Announcements begin in Varsity, JV and Novice playing hall.
Players and coaches should be present.
9:00am Rd 1 begins in the Varsity, JV and Novice playing hall. 5 rounds of G/25,+5.
9:15am Open section (separate event allowing adults and non-R6 residents) begins. Open has 4 rounds, all rounds are are G/45,+5.
8:00am-5:30pm Chess Control open. No changes for round 1 (bye or section) allowed after online registration closes. Requests for byes, withdrawals, and player or school information edits go in effect immediately if made via email before the close of online registration. Changes requested onsite go into effect as of round 2. Onsite registration may or may not be available – contingent on turnout and space.
Round Times
Championship Sections:
rd 1 – 8:45am, rd 2 – 10:25am, rd 3 – 12:25 pm, rd 4 – 2:05 pm
rd 5 – 4:05 pm
Varsity, JV, and Novice Sections:
rd 1 – 9:00am, rd 2 – 11:00am, rd 3 – 12:45 pm, rd 4 – 2:30 pm
rd 5 – 4:00 pm
Notes
Awards
Trophies to the top individuals in each scholastic section (4.0 and above).
Medals to positive scores (3.0 and 3.5), not receiving a trophy.
Ribbons to all participants!
Trophies to the top teams in all sections.
Special trophies will be awarded to the highest scoring Family & Child teams (Uncles, Aunts, Adult siblings, Parents, or Grandparents paired with at least one scholastic aged player.)
Registration Information
Entry fee pricing is staggered and based on date of entry/payment. NO EXCEPTIONS.
* Early entry $35 through Saturday, 11/12/2026
* Regular entry $50 through Saturday, 1/30/2027
* Late entry $55 through Thursday, 02/18/2027.
* Last chance entries $65 (space-permitting) from 2/19/27-2/20/27. Onsite entries after 8:15am will receive a bye in round 1.
Withdrawals requested via email on or before Wednesday 02/17/2027 are eligible for a refund, minus a $10 service fee. No refunds for USCF memberships after purchased from the USCF. NO email/phone entries.
Please request byes when you register by adding a note in the registration form. First bye receives 1/2-point. Further byes receive 0-points. Email the registrar to make changes to your requested byes. Deadline to add or remove a 1st round requested bye is 7:00 am on Saturday 2/20/2027. All 1/2-point byes must be requested/removed before the end of round 2.
Questions
General chess tournament/registration answers, as well as information specific to the Region VI Championships, is available on our FAQ list.
Email Sarah Brauner (austinchesstournaments@gmail.com) with other questions.
Organized by Rocks & Rooks. Gary Gaiffe, tournament organizer.
View our ONLINE TLA!
Special Information Regarding National Summer Invitationals:
For the upcoming scholastic National Summer Invitational tournaments (Ashley, Rockefeller, Barber, Denker, Haring), the Texas Chess Association will hold a qualifier tournament, the Texas Junior Invitational (TJI), to choose the state nominee to compete in each. A representative from each region of Texas will be among the participants for each section of the qualifier tournament.
Our Region VI representatives for the Rockefeller, Barber, and Denker sections of the Texas qualifier event will be the champions of their respective sections* at the Region VI Championships to be held on February 22nd in Austin.
*If the Region VI champion also qualifies through either the North or South State Championship events, the Region VI 2nd place finisher will represent Region VI in the qualifier tournament, unless otherwise stated on the https://texaschess.org/ site. As of now, the 2026-2027 TJI is not posted.
