Play More Chess Academy | Chess Classes, Lessons, Tournaments, Gifts | Home of the Hamden Chess Club in Hamden, CT

Hamden Chess Club:

Hamden Chess Club (HCC) is an affiliate (#A6054128) of US Chess that meets at the Play More Chess Academy for casual play, tournaments and special events. HCC was recently named 2021 Chess Club of the Year by the Connecticut State Chess Association.

HCC Membership dues:

Scholastic (K-12 & College) and Seniors (65+):
12 Months: $80 (Best Value); or $20 per month
Regular Adult Membership:
12 Months: $100 (Best Value); or $25 per month

Over 70 chess-playing adults (high school age and up) and 85 kids (K-8) participate in regular weekly casual play, chess classes and tournaments at Play More Chess Academy.

Adult Casual Play
Club members have access to Play More Chess Academy to play casual games during open hours. Adult club members (high school age and up) meet regularly on Monday and Thursday evenings 6:30-8:30pm for casual play. Guests and visitors can pay a day rate of $10 to participate in adult casual play. On the 3rd Monday of the month there is usually a Little Open tournament, in which case there would be no casual play on those Mondays.

Hamden In-Person Tournaments
Sign up for upcoming in-person OTB tournaments by visiting the Sign Up page. HCC members receive a discounted entry fee for monthly Little Open adult quad tournaments ($15 for members/ $25 non-members. There is no limit to total prize winnings in a membership year for in-person tournaments.

Hamden Online Tournaments
HCC community members, including currently enrolled Play More Chess Academy students, may join the Hamden Chess Club on the Lichess.org platform and play chess casually with each other and also participate in our weekly online club tournaments for Beginners, Intermediate and Advanced players.

Online tournaments are held Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays with entry eligibility based on participant chess rating. A $20 prize, (usually an Amazon gift card) goes to the first place winner for tournaments that have at least four HCC participants. If there are less than four participants no prize will be awarded. Winner must have an annual HCC membership in good standing or be currently enrolled as a Play More Chess Academy student to receive a prize. HCC members are eligible to win online prizes up to 2X their membership fee (i.e. $200 in online prize winnings in a membership year for an adult 12 month membership). There is no limit to online tournament prize winnings for currently enrolled students.

Upcoming online tournaments are listed here: https://lichess.org/team/hamden-chess-club

To participate in an online tournament, first create a free account on lichess.org. Then send a "Join Team" request to Hamden Chess Club Team and include your real name with your join request. Once you are verified as a current HCC member or currently enrolled student you will be able to join any of our online tournaments and be eligible to win a tournament prize.

Tournament History
List of past Tournament First Place Winners and total prizes awarded. As of June 5, 2022 over $10,090 in prizes have been awarded since our first tournament (PDF).

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