Hamilton Chess Club

Two club members and HBHS pupils recorded notable draws against titled players during the rapid tournament at the 133rd NZ Chess congress held in Invercargill during January. Nathan Sun managed a draw against FIDE GrandMaster Daniel Fernandez in round 2, while Ryan Zhou had a draw against FIDE InternationalMaster Anthony Ker in round 7. Congratulations to both on their stellar performances, and Kudos to HBHS Chess Supervisor Graham Nolan.

20th BoP Rapid 2026 is to be held on Saturday 28th February 2026. The Bay of Plenty Rapid (BoP Rapid) that is held on the last Saturday of February annually is one of most popular weekend rapids in the country.

The 20th BoP Rapid 2026 continues the first and now ubiquitous throughout New Zealand, 25 minutes plus 5 seconds increment rapid time control chess tournament.

Get your entry in here and enjoy playing chess in a pleasant tournament at one of the most beautiful regions in the country.

Remember that our premier event, the club champs, will kick off next week.

Time control will be the same as last year at 60 minutes + 10 seconds per move from move 1.

One game per night over 6 weeks.

The format will be start time 7.15pm, 1 game per night. We will permit non members/prospective members to play in the first few rounds depending on numbers. After that games will be  limited to financial members (or financial members temporarily in arrears) and HBHS pupils. You can check when your sub is due by going to the website – About > Who We Are. Online payments preferred, see the website for details. If you are not currently a member but want to take part then you can join on the first night.

(Adult and Juniors both only $20 per year, — of which $20 is a levy to the national body!!!)

A single division Swiss Style Tournament. The overall winner will be awarded the title Club Champion 2026 and receive all the accolades that are associated with the title. The highest rated junior  will be awarded the title Club Junior Champion 2026.

The draw will be based on Current club ratings. New players without a club rating will be assigned 1500 points for the purposes of the  draw.

Entry permitted in round one two, but round one preferred!.  If you can’t make it on the first night let me know and you will be awarded a half point bye. If you enter in round two without prior notification you will retrospectively receive a zero point bye for round 1. Also if you want to play but might be a little late on the first night let me know and I will include you in the draw. Please don’t turn up after 7:15. Entries will not be accepted after week two.

Usual FIDE laws apply with  the exception of the Hamilton Chess Club Special Rules found on the website. Disputes committee will be club executive (Graham Ian and Richard). If one or two of the disputes committee is/are party to a dispute, the remaining member(s) will constitute the disputes committee.

Please bring a pen if you wish to record your games. Recording is not mandatory, but if you don’t record your game you will not be allowed to claim a draw for the 50 move rule or 3 fold repetition unless agreed by your opponent.

One 1/2 point bye allowed per player, if notified to Ian before the round that it applies.

No half point byes allowed in rounds 5 or 6.

Tie breaks will be according to the NZ  standard  1. Direct Encounter. 2. Cumulative (Sum of Progressive Scores). 3. Total Buchholz. 4. Sonneborn-Berger. 5. Buchholz Cut1.   If still tied the award will be shared.

The club welcomes Caleb Wright as its newest member

Club ratings have been updated to include Summer (1) 

The year has started with an excellent turnout for Summer (1). Four players finished on 4.5 points, with Austin declared the winner on tie break. Club Champs commence next week.

The club welcomes Ray Zhang and Terence Shi as members

The club welcomes Alexander Bourne and Bruce Wang as its newest members, and welcomes Hegan Henare back after an absence

See you in February!

The club is in recess for the Summer. Club nights will resume February 3rd. Watch this space ….

Club ratings have been updated to include Spring Blitz B and close out for the year. 

The final night blitz goes to Ethan, crosstable below

Club ratings have been updated to include Spring Blitz A. 

We will have another 6 round blitz for the final night next week. To keep numbers manageable we will limit participation to members and former members only.

Thirty-six players turned out for the first of two blitz tournaments. Several ex HBHS pupils took the opportunity to participate now that their university year is complete. Nathan high scored on 6. Crosstable below.

If you have been thinking about coming along for a look then next club night on 25 November at 7pm is a good place to start. We will have an evening of rapid chess, 6 games at time control 5 minutes plus 3 second increment per move from move one.  We will have the same format the following week but limited to members and former members. Come along and join in the fun.

You can see a graphical representation of how your club rating has changed here

Paul and Sudhir both had a clean sweep in their respective divisions. Crosstables below.

The club welcomes Andy as its newest member

Club ratings have been updated to include Spring (3) A and B. New members Rangarajan, Abheek, and Micah enter on 1572, 1541, and 1468 respectively. Check out where you stand.