2023 MAIN FEATURES
Venue
Southend Adult Community College Ambleside Drive, Southend, SS1 2UN
Schedule
- 3RD SOUTHEND FIDE RAPID
- Thursday 6 April
- 6 Rounds, G25+5;
- Three sections – Open/U1700/U1400;
- Round 1 at 10.30am, finish by 6pm;
- Closing date for entries: 10.00 pm 5 April – NO entries on the day.
- 65TH SOUTHEND EASTER CHESS CONGRESS
- Friday 7 April to Monday 10 April
- Friday to Sunday (incl): Rounds at 11:00 am and 4:00 pm
- Monday: last round at 11:00 am
- 7 rounds, G90+30
- Southend FIDE Open
- ‘Leigh-on-Sea’ FIDE and ECF U1900
- ‘Westcliff ECF’ U1600
- ‘Thorpe Bay’ ECF U1300
- Closing date for entries: 10.00 pm 6 April – NO entries on the day.
- Friday 7 April to Monday 10 April
For the avoidance of doubt, all games will take place at the Southend Adult Community College, address above; the place names – all districts of the City of Southend – in the events in the above list are merely the titles of the sections.
SCCU Championship
As last year, the SCCU Individual Championship 2022-23 will be awarded to the highest placed eligible competitor in the Southend FIDE Open.
The Essex Championship 2022-23
The title of Essex Champion will be awarded to the highest placed eligible player in the Southend FIDE Open.
The holder (2022) is John Moore (Writtle).
The Essex Minor Championship 2022-23
The title Essex Minor Champion will be awarded to the highest placed eligible player in the Leigh on Sea U1900.
The holder (2022) is Luoke Wang (Brentwood).
Ratings all sections
Eligibility and pairings: April 2023 lists. Players who are no longer eligible in April for the section they have entered, may have to be moved.
Other Features
- Bookstall by Chess & Bridge who kindly supply the equipment for the Congress
- yElena’s Cafeteria
- Live Games – top three boards in the FIDE Open
SCHEDULE FIDE RAPID
Thursday 6th April – 6 Rounds – 10.30 am Start – Finish by 6.00 pm
Time control: G25+5
All moves in 25 minutes + 5 seconds per move increment.
Games in the FIDE Rapid will be submitted for rating by FIDE and the ECF.
SCHEDULE ALL OTHER SECTIONS
Friday 7th April – Round 1 at 11:00 am and Round 2 at 4:00 pm
Saturday 8th April – Round 3 at 11:00 am and Round 4 at 4:00 pm
Sunday 9th April – Round 5 at 11:00 am and Round 6 at 4:00 pm
Monday 10th April – Final Round 7 at 11:00 am
Time control ALL 7-Round tournaments – G90+30
All moves in 90 minutes + 30 seconds per move increment.
Players please note: in accordance with the FIDE Laws of Chess, when the increment per move is 30 seconds or more, all moves have to be recorded, even if your remaining time dips under 5 minutes.
All events are ECF graded and the FIDE Open and FIDE U1900 are also FIDE rated.
PRIZES
The Prize Fund for the Congress is a guaranteed minimum of £3,000. This guaranteed minimum may be increased as finances allow.
Where ties occur, prize money will be shared. Ties for any trophies will be resolved by the Sum of Progressive Scores and, if necessary, the Sum of Opponents’ Scores.
Prizes per section
Rapid
FIDE Rapid, 3 sections
Open/U1700/U1400
Minimum prizes for each section: 1st £90, 2nd £45, 3rd £15.
7-Round sections
FIDE Open
Minimum: 1st £485, 2nd £325, 3rd £160, Rating £110.
FIDE Under 1900
Minimum: 1st £340, 2nd £225, 3rd £110, Rating £75.
*ECF, 2 Sections
Minimum prizes U1600 and U1300:
1st £160, 2nd £110, 3rd £55, Rating £35
NB These minima may be increased as finances allow.
Additional prizes
The following prizes are additional to the main prize fund.
David Wood Junior Prize
In addition to other prizes the sum of £75 will be awarded by the David Wood Memorial Trust, for the best performances by Essex Juniors (Under 18 on 31 Aug 2022).
Page links:
ENTRY FEES
Southend FIDE Rapid
Entry Fee: £30
All 7-Round sections
Entry Fee: £45
ECF Membership
- For the FIDE Open and the FIDE & ECF U1900, all ENG players MUST be ECF Gold members.
- For the ECF sections, U1600 and U1300, ECF Silver+ membership is required.
ECF Bronze or non-members wishing to enter the U1600 or the U1300 may enter on payment of an additional £9 for the ECF Pay to Play fee. For Bronze members, this will be applied by the ECF to upgrade your Bronze membership to Silver. Non-members will remain non-members.
Note re ECF Membership ECF Non-members should note that, while the £9 Pay to Play fee will allow you to enter the congress, you will remain a non-member and if you play more chess in the year (1 September 2022 to 31 August 2023) you will have to pay another Pay to Play fee for each congress. If you later take out ECF membership, previously paid Pay to Play fees will NOT be taken into account; the cost of membership then will be additional. For the avoidance of doubt, note that if you enter the Rapid and a 7-Round section (U1600 or U1300) you will have to pay the additional £9 fee for each. The new ECF ‘rolling membership’ now gives a full year’s value as, whenever you join, you will get full 12 months value from the date of joining, not just to 31 August of the current chess year.
Current costs of ECF Membership: Gold £39, Silver £27, Bronze £18.
See: ECF Membership page | ECF Pay to Play
Entry Fee Concessions
The following coupons may be applied for a deduction of 10% from the relevant Entry Fee. Only one concession may be applied to each entry fee, even if you would qualify for two concession categories. If you enter the Rapid and a 7-Round section, the coupon will be applied to each.
- Senior (60+). Use coupon code 60+ in online entry;
- Junior (U16 at 31 Aug 2022). Use coupon code U16 in online entry;
- Early entry (Enter before 4 Feb 2023). Use coupon code Earlybird in online entry.
NB These coupons only apply to the Entry Fee, NOT to the £9 ECF Pay to Play Fee, if included, which we have to pass, in full, to the ECF. Nor to Donations.
RATINGS
For all sections, rating lists at 1 April 2023 will be used for eligibility and pairing. Players who enter a rating-limited section and, after publication of the April lists, are no longer eligible for the section they have entered, may be moved to another section. If this eventuality occurs to you and you do not wish to play in the higher section, entry fees will be refunded in full should you then wish to withdraw.
The FIDE Rapid, the FIDE Open and the FIDE & ECF U1900 results will be submitted for FIDE rating. All sections, including the above, will be submitted for ECF rating.
The picture on this page, also on the home page of the website and on the front of our 2023 Entry Form is by Brendan O’Gorman, whose Gallery of the 2022 Congress you can find linked from the 2022 page (main menu above). We are grateful to Brendan for use of this splendid image, readily granted without restriction.
Southend Easter Chess Festival 