CONTINENTAL CHESS ASSOCIATION

     Welcome to Continental Chess! We have organized chess tournaments from coast to coast since the 1960s, open to players of all ages, from beginners to Grandmasters.  Most include sections in which less experienced players face only each other. We are not a membership organization, but are affiliated with the US Chess Federation .  Our events award USCF ratings and require USCF membership, available through us at special rates. We presently plan events in California, Connecticut,  Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Massachusetts, Missouri, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas and Virginia, plus online.  For tournaments in other states, see uschess.org.  If you're not ready to enter, please visit any of our tournaments; there is no fee for spectators.  

       For results, see CROSSTABLES. Some historic Continental Chess tables from long ago are now posted that cannot be found anywhere else on the web, including the 1986 World Open (Open Section) which included 14 of the world's top 100 players.

             For your latest USCF rating, click here. 
       Note that only "official ratings" are used at our events, unless you would otherwise be unrated. The official rating corresponding to the month of the ending date of the tournament is used. "Unofficial ratings" are NOT used if you have an official rating.

Click here for our shopping cart at chessaction.com. 

For Website Problems With Online Registration ONLY, write to Admin@OnlineRegistration.cc.
Please specify exactly what the problem is (what you see on the screen).

Please do NOT write to the Admin address for switches, byes, dropouts, or other issues!

       To view up to date online entries for any tournament, go to chessaction.com, find the tournament on the chronological list, and click "entry list." This will show all online entries received (even online late entries) and some, but not all, mailed entries. Often there will be a delay of a week or more in posting the mailed entries. When viewing advance entries, please remember that for most tournaments, the majority of entries are received during the last five days before the tournament and at the door.

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USING PEAK RATING TO PLAY UP (revised 7/6/21)

Information about refunds

Information about mailed prizes

Information about mailed entries

Unclaimed Trophies Or Plaques?

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CCA minimum ratings as of DECEMBER 4, 2022 are now posted.  They will be used, if above USCF ratings, at all CCA tournaments, effective immediately. 

CONVERTING FOREIGN & FIDE RATINGS TO USCF
(Revised Nov 30, 2018)

Liang edges Akopian on tiebreak to take 2021 North American Open

2021 World Open: Niemann wins playoff over Burke

Swiercz tops 2021 Chicago Open

Iniyan wins 2020 World Open

2020 World Open moved to online, many other events canceled

Gabuzyan takes North American Open on tiebreak over Izoria

Le wins 2019 World Open in playoff over Xiong

Durarbayli tops Chicago Open

Burke wins Foxwoods

Bai first in North American Open

Nyzhnik wins World Open

Shimanov tops Chicago Open on tiebreak over Stukopin and Liang

Ruifeng Li wins 2018 Philadelphia Open

Kovalev wins 2018 Southwest Class on tiebreak over Baryshpolets

Hess takes 2017 North American Open on tiebreak; GM norms for Bryant and Aldama

Petrosian wins 2017 World Open, GM norms by Abdumalik and Mandizha

Stukopin and Burke win 2017 Philadelphia International, GM norms for Burke and Checa

Three in a row for Sevian- clear first in 2017 Chicago Open! GM norms: Liang, Harmon-Vellotti, Brown

Sevian wins 2017 Philadelphia Open on tiebreak

Sevian wins 2017 Southwest Class on tiebreak

Friedel wins 2016 North American Open on tiebreak over Li and Gelashvili

5 tie at 2016 Washington Congress, Sadorra tops on tiebreak, GM norms for Li and Brodsky

Papp wins 2016 World Open, GM norms for Gorovets & Preotu, 8 earn IM norms

Bachmann and Shimanov top 2016 Philadelphia International, GM norm for Kannappan

Belous tops 2016 Chicago Open, GM norm for Harmon-Vellotti

Ruifeng Li wins 2016 Philadelphia Open, makes GM norm

For results of CCA events, see CROSSTABLES.COM.

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To avoid huge ballroom rent, most of our tournaments count on having many players use guest rooms at the host hotel, and asking for the chess rate gives the tournament credit.  For all tournaments, please stay at the tournament hotel if possible and ask for the chess rate.  Thank you for your support!
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OUR EMAIL ADDRESSES:  PLEASE PUT THE NAME OF THE TOURNAMENT AND THE NAME OF THE PLAYER IN THE EMAIL SUBJECT HEADING!

To ask questions or change your section or schedule for a tournament: Director@Chess.US
To withdraw from a tournament before play begins: Dropouts@Chess.US
To withdraw from a tournament after you have begun play: Best to tell a Director; second best is to use Director@Chess.us
To request an invitation for a foreign player: Go@Chess.US
To ask about a prize you didn't claim at a tournament: Prizes@Chess.US

To claim a half point bye or byes in over the board tournaments: Byes that will occur after you begin play should be requested ONLY AT THE TOURNAMENT. Round 1 byes (or 1-2, 1-2-3, etc.) are available at chessaction.com. We don't want to know about other byes in advance because they are frequently changed (sometimes more than once), causing extra work and occasional pairing errors.

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IMPORTANT NOTICE: WE STRONGLY RECOMMEND THAT ALL OTB PRIZEWINNERS WAIT TO RECEIVE THEIR PRIZES AT THE TOURNAMENT! Prizewinners may receive their prize checks right at the tournament (except for World Open lower sections), as soon as the amount of their prize has been determined! The IRS also requires that anyone who wins $600 or more show proof of their Social Security or Tax ID Number to the Tournament Director, in order to receive their check.  Those prizewinners who choose not to receive their prizes at the tournament may instead provide us with their addresses (and tax ID numbers if necessary) so we can mail these prize checks after the tournament.  However, especially during our busy periods, it may take up to four (4) weeks for us to process all the outstanding prizes. Prizes can often be sent, on request, by Zelle or PayPal.

REFUND POLICY:  If you cannot attend any of our tournaments, send us an email at least 2 hours before the first round.  If this is not possible, call the tournament site and ask for the chess tournament.  You can apply the entire fee to future tournaments, or obtain a refund of the fee minus a $15 service charge.  You may also give notice of withdrawal by mail by writing us at least 8 days before the first round.  NO REFUND, full or partial, is given once you have started playing your game in the first round.

PLEASE ALLOW at least four weeks to receive your refund!

Especially during busy periods such as June-August or November-January, we tend to have a large backlog of work: entries, refunds, prizes, rating reports, memberships, invitations, questions, hotel contracts & setup, travel to tournaments, etc.  If four weeks elapses and your refund does not arrive, it has probably been overlooked- send us an e-mail pointing this out and we will give it priority.  

USCF MEMBERSHIP SPECIAL FOR MOST TOURNAMENTS: 1 year USCF dues with paper magazine if paid with entry.  Online at chesstour.com, Adult $40, Young Adult $25, Scholastic $18.  By mail or at site, Adult $45, Young Adult $27, Youth $20. USCF membership is required for all our tournaments. 

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ONLINE ENTRY PROBLEMS?  WAS MY ONLINE ENTRY RECEIVED?  CLICK HERE.

CLICK HERE FOR TOURNAMENT WEBSITES
(standings, many have games)

                For Website Problems With Online Registration, write to AdminAtOnlineRegistration.cc
       Please specify exactly what the problem is (what you see on the screen).
      Please do NOT write to the Admin address for switches, byes, dropouts, or other issues!  

     CLICK HERE FOR ENTRY LISTS - then go to the event you want and click "entry list."

    PLEASE NOTE!  The purpose of posting entries is NOT to show how many entries there are likely to be!   The majority of entries for most tournaments come in the last few days before the event or at the door.  Often a week or two before an event, entries are only 5% to 10% of their ultimate total, and even a few days before, there are sometimes just one or two entries in a section/schedule only to have it wind up with ten or more.
     If you enter online at chessaction.com, your entry should appear virtually immediately if you click on using the tournament's "entry list" link. If you enter by mail, there may be a delay of a week or two before your entry is posted there. We don't confirm entries by mail or email, only by posting them at chessaction.com. If you mail an entry and two weeks elapse without it being posted, please send us an email.
      

       We will use the SEPTEMBER OFFICIAL USCF RATING LIST  for all our tournaments that end in September, but unofficial ratings at www.uschess.org will usually be used for players who would otherwise be unrated, along with the latest CCA MINIMUM RATINGS for all events, and if they are too high for the section requested, the player(s) will be automatically moved up.

      For information on foreign players' ratings, click here. 

      The latest rating will not always be shown on the shopping cart- for example, if you enter an October tournament in September, the cart may display your September rating. If the cart says you are not eligible for a section you want and you believe you are eligible based on a rating change, either wait for the cart to display your new rating or send us an email.     
           
       NOTE:  Some players have been assigned CCA minimum ratings, effective immediately, usually as a result of outstanding results. 
    

 

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We hold 4 of the 5 largest prize fund open tournaments in the USA, with GM and IM norms possible:

The 2012 World Open, the 40th anniversary of this July 4th weekend event, was played with 9 rounds at the Sheraton Philadelphia City Center Hotel.  GM norms were achieved by Marc Arnold, John Daniel Bryant and Eesha Karavade and IM norms by Thomas Bartell, Yaacov Norowitz and Luke Harmon-Vellotti. See the World Open website with results and games from many past World Opens.  The 2013 World Open was held at Hyatt Regency Crystal City, a few miles from Washington, DC in Arlington, VA.  Entries were slightly greater than in 2012, and six players made IM norms: Christopher Gu, Luke Harmon-Vellotti, Arthur Shen, Shiyam Thavandiran, Sean Vibbert, and Kevin Wang. The 2014 event was held at Hyatt Regency Crystal City and was won by Ilya Smirin, with 9 players achieving norms. The 2015 World Open, the last of 3 in the DC area before returning to Philadelphia, ended in an 8-way tie. GM Alex Lenderman took the title in a tebreak game over GM Rauf Mamedov. IM norms were achieved by Craig Hilby and Michael Burke, and a WIM norm by Jennifer Yu. The 2016 World Open saw a 7-way tie with Gabor Papp taking the title in a playoff game over Victor Bologan. Andrey Gorovets and Razvan Preotu achieved GM norms and 8 players earned IM norms. The 2017 World Open at the Marriott Philadelphia Downtown and won by Tigran Petrosian. Zhansaya Abdumalik and Farai Mandizha made GM norms and Carissa Yip a WIM norm.

The $100,000 guaranteed 2012 Chicago Open was held at the luxurious Westin Chicago North Shore Hotel in Wheeling, Illinois over Memorial Day weekend.  The Open Section had 9 rounds with FIDE norms possible, and three were earned: GM Daniel Ludwig, IM Kayden Troff, and WIM Sarah Chiang.  The other sections had 7 rounds. The 2013 event was held at the same location and won by Ray Robson on tiebreak over Josh Friedel and Nikola Mitkov, with a GM norm earned by Edward Porper.  The 2014 event was won by GM Gabriel Sargissian on tiebreak over IM Priyadharshan Kanappan. GM norms were achieved by Kanappan and 13-year old IM Jeffery Xiong, while Michael Lee earned an IM norm. The 2015 Chicago Open saw 14-year old Jeffery Xiong take clear first place and achieve his final GM norm. Vladimir Belous took clear first at the 2016 event, with four norms achieved including a GM norm for Luke Harmon-Vellotti. The 2017 Chicago Open drew a record 925 players and saw 16-year old GM Samuel Sevian take clear first to win over $10,000- his third consecutive win in a Continental Chess international after winning the Southwest Class and Philadelphia Open on tiebreak! Sevian holds the US record for the youngest GM, having obtained that title at age 13. An amazing number of three GM norms were achieved by young American players- 14-year old Awonder Liang made his third norm to qualify for the Grandmaster title, and Michael Brown and Luke Harmon-Vellotti also earned GM norms. Also, IM norms were achieved by Robert Perez, Matthew Larson, Sam Schmakel and Aaron Grabinsky, and a WIM norm by Maggie Feng.  The 2018 Chicago Open was won by Alex Shimanov on tuebreak over Andrey Stukopin and Awonder Liang. GM norms were obtained by Safal Bora and Dionisio Aldama and IM norms by Matthew Larson, Tianqi Wang, Sam Schmakel and Ben Li. The 2019 Chicago Open was won by GM Vasif Durarbayli; IM norms were made by FMs Alexey Sorokin and Seth Homa.

The 2012 North American Open was held at Bally's Las Vegas December 26-30, 26-29 or 27-29.  The Open Section had 9 rounds for the first time, and four norms were achieved, GM by John Daniel Bryant and Zhanibek Amanov and IM by Yian Liou and Michael Bodek. The lower sections were 7 rounds. The prize fund of $120,000 projected and $90,000 minimum turned out to total $112,901, larger than any other open tournament in the US in 2012 except for the World Open. The 2013 event had an even larger prize fund. GM Giorgi Kacheishvili took the top spot on tiebreak after 8 players each scored 6.5. Ryan Goldenberg, Roman Preotu, Roman Sapozhnikov, Arthuir Shen and Gregory Young achieved IM norms. The 2014 North American Open was dominated by GM Wesley So, who scored 8-1 to take first place by an extraordinary 1.5 points. Atulya Shetty, Alexander Kretchetov, and Safal Bora earned IM norms and Ramya Krishna Inapuri a WIM norm. In 2015 the event drew a record turnout of over 700 players, awarding more than $15,000 over the $120,000 projected prize fund. Alexy Dreev won on tiebreak. FM Josh Colas earned a GM norm, while 5 IM norms and one WIM norm were also made. The 2016 event with $120,000 guaranteed was won by Josh Friedel on tiebreak over Ruifeng Li and Tamaz Gelashvili. Cameron Wheeler, Nick Raptis, and Nikhil Kumar made IM norms. The 2017 event saw a 5-way tie with GM Robert Hess tops on tiebreak, followed by GM Samuel Sevian, GM Ruifeng Li, IM Dionisio Aldama, and GM Arun Prasad Subramanian. Aldama and John Daniel Bryant earned GM norms. The 2018 tournament was won by GM Jinshai Bai, with IM norms being achieved by Eugene Yanayt, Edward Song, and Jack Zhu. The 2019 event at Ballys was won by GM by GM Hovhannes Gabuzyan on tiebreak over GM Zviad Izoria. This tournament always uses the same dates each year right after Christmas, regardless of the day of the week.

The 2012 Philadelphia Open, held Easter weekend at Loews Hotel, was won by GM Magesh Panchanathan. The 2013 event at Loews ended in a tie between GM Fidel Corrales Jimenez and 17-year old IM Daniel Naroditsky. Corrales Jimenez took the top prize on tiebreak, while Naroditsky earned a GM norm. IM norms were achieved by 12-year old Jeffery Xiong, Adarsh Jayakumar (FIDE invented a new rule after the fact to deprive him of this norm), Arthur Shen, and Adithya Balasubramanian. In 2014 the event moved to a beautiful new site, the downtown Philadelphia Marriott, that was very well received by the players.  US Champion Gata Kamsky took clear first place, while David Hua achieved an IM norm. The 2015 event at the Marriott was won by GM Yuniesky Quesada Perez on tiebreak over GM Ioan Chirilla, IM Akshat Chandra earned a GM norm while IM norms were achieved by Eric Rosen, Qibiao Wang, Awonder Liang, and Igor Sorkin.  The 2016 event at the Marriott was won by 14-year old Ruifeng Li, who earned a GM norm, on tiebreak over GM Aleksandar Indjic. The 2017 Philadelphia Open was won by GM Samuel Sevian on tiebreak over GM Angel Arribas Lopez; David Brodsky and Andrew Hong achieved IM norms. The 2018 Philadelphia Open saw the 2016 champion Ruifeng Li, now a GM, take clear first, defeating IM Chritsian Pedersen, the leader at that point, in the last round. No norms were made as Pedersen failed to get the last round draw he needed for a GM norm.

Starting 2019, the Foxwoods Open (now called Open at Foxwoods) has returned over Easter weekend. That weekend is no longer available at Philadelphia hotels, and the Philadelphia Open has moved to the weekend before the World Open. GM John Burke took clear first at Foxwoods 2019, as the event returned for the first time since 2014 and the first Easter weekend since 2009. No norms were made, though  the event was a "super swiss," and IM David Brodsky needed a last round draw for a GM norm but lost to GM Alex Shimanov. The 2020 Open at Foxwoods was canceled.

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