Bellaire Swiss

Tournament Registration: Initial Registration must be done on our website. The registration deadline for the tournament is 30 minutes before the scheduled start time. Players who register after this cutoff may receive a bye for the first round. Refunds are available 1 hour before the tournaments; no refunds for no-shows.

If a player is familiar with the rules and possess an active US Chess ID, you're eligible to participate. Players of all ages and skill levels are welcome.

Players obtain a chess rating through the United States Chess Federation (USCF) by participating in rated tournaments. The US Chess ID is unique to each player, facilitating tracking of progress, tournament history, and rating adjustments. NM+ (National Master and above) play for free in our non-FIDE tournaments.

Refunds and Withdrawals: Refunds are available up to 1 hour before the tournament begins. Late withdrawal requests will not be refunded. To withdraw from a tournament, please send an email at least one hour before the event's start time.

Withdraw without Notice on a Subscription: Missing a tournament without notice results in a warning for the first offense and a subscription suspension for the second. No refunds for missed tournaments.

Commitments and Missed Rounds: Inform us as soon as possible if you cannot play a round. Half-point byes are available if requested before the start of the preceding round. If not requested in time, the bye will be worth zero points. 

Playing Up: You may request to compete in a higher section for an additional fee if you meet the criteria below.

A): Your monthly USCF rating is within 150 points of the section’s cutoff. Example: If the cutoff is 1600, a monthly rating of 1450 qualifies (150 points below 1600), but 1449 does not.
B): Live Rating Fee Waiver: If your live rating is above the cutoff (even on the event day), the playing-up fee is waived or refunded.
C): Provisional Players (<25 games): If your monthly rating is below the 150-point range, but your live rating is above it, we average the two ratings. If this average is still below the cutoff, you cannot play up.
D): FIDE Rating Conversion: Players can play up to the next section if their US Chess Rating is within 150 points of the next section. Players may also use their FIDE rating after converting it into a USCF using the following formula. US Chess rating = ( 180 + 0.94 × FIDE if FIDE ≤ 2000) OR (20 + 1.02 × FIDE if FIDE > 2000)

Section Placement: You are automatically placed in a section based on the monthly rating supplement in effect on the day of the tournament. Unrated Players are placed in the lowest section unless you provide evidence of a convertible rating (e.g., FIDE or recognized online). The Tournament Director (TD) has final discretion.

Prize Claims: Players have up to six months from the tournament date to claim their prize winnings before they expire.