Cincinnati Scholastic Chess

Inviting you to enjoy the king of games in the Queen City

CSC Series

The Cincinnati Scholastic Chess Series comprises monthly tournaments for players in grades K through 12, taking place in October through March. Players of all skill levels are welcome, provided that they know the basic rules of the game. Players are not obligated to play in every tournament; they may choose how many and which tournaments to play.

Throughout this webpage “CSC” refers to Cincinnati Scholastic Chess and “USCF” refers to the US Chess Federation. All terms in boldface (in their first occurrence only) are explained under Term Explanations.

Use the links below to navigate on this page, or simply scroll down:

Dates, venues, registration and entry list links:

Tournament Information – Summary

Swiss tournament, four rounds, time control of G/30;d5 for all rounds.

  • Rated sections: Championship, U1200, U900, U700, U500, U300
  • Non-Rated sections: Grades 4–8, Grades K–3

Official USCF Regular ratings are used for eligibility and pairings in rated sections; assigned or calculated unofficial ratings are used in non-rated sections.

USCF membership is required for all rated sections. Notation is required in the Championship, U1200, U900 and U700 sections.

Players may take one half-point bye for any round.

Medals are awarded to everyone scoring 3.0 or higher in each section and each tournament; trophies are awarded based on total points scored in the entire Series.

Round 1 will begin promptly at 9:00 am in all sections. Players should be at the board by 8:50 a.m. to hear announcements. Players who do not show by the end of the time control (30 minutes) will be forfeited and withdrawn from the tournament.

CSC provides all equipment needed for each tournament.

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What’s New in 2026-27

Starting time: Round 1 will begin promptly at 9:00 am in all sections. Players should be at the board by 8:50 a.m. to hear announcements. Players who do not show by the end of the time control (30 minutes) will be forfeited and withdrawn from the tournament.

Subsequent rounds: Rounds 2-4 will start no sooner than posted times. This allows players and parents to plan breaks.

Rated sections: The U1100 cut-off has been changed to U1200 to make the rating range at the top narrower. The sections are now: Championship, U1200, U900, U700, U500 and U300.

Non-rated sections: There are two non-rated sections: one for grades 4–8 (changed from 4-6) and the other for grades K–3. This change allows players to continue playing in the series for more seasons before upgrading to USCF-rated tournaments.

Point deduction for forfeits: We will continue the policy of reducing the trophy score by one point of anyone who is a “no-show” or who leaves the tournament before it is over without giving proper notice of withdrawal.

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Entry Fees, transfers and cancellations

The entry fee is $21 for each tournament. Entry is in advance only, and the entry deadline is always noon on the Friday before the day of the tournament. (Limited registrations may be available until 4:00 p.m. for $30, but registrations may be stopped before this time depending on site set-up.) Enter online at https://www.kingregistration.com/tournaments, where the tournaments are listed under “Cincinnati Scholastic Chess” (listing “CSC.”) Payment may be made by credit card or through a PayPal account.

Use King Registration also to check out who has entered: click on Entry List (blue button) for the tournament of interest.

Entry fee transfers: A player may transfer an entry for one tournament to another tournament by sending a request with the pertinent details by email to info@chesscincinnati.com or by text to 513-484-7735 no later than the entry deadline for the earlier affected tournament.

Entry fee refunds: If a player withdraws from a tournament with proper notice (see “Withdrawing from a tournament” under Procedural Matters), we will refund the entry fee, less a $2.00 processing fee. We will not refund an entry fee if the player does not give us proper notice of withdrawing or is a “no-show.”

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Tournament Information – Details

Format and Requirements

All Series tournaments are Swiss tournaments with four rounds. Players play all four rounds, regardless of game results, unless taking a bye or withdrawing. Each round is subject to a time limit, called a time control, within which it must be played. The time control for all rounds and all sections is G/30;d5 (“game in 30 minutes with a five-second delay at each move”), which means that each player begins with 30 minutes on his clock for the entire game, and there is a delay of five seconds at each move before a player’s clock begins to run. Accordingly each round could last up to about an hour. There are eight sections as follows:

  • Rated sections: Championship, U1200, U900, U700, U500, U300
  • Non-Rated sections: Grades 4–8, Grades K–3

The strongest players play in the Championship section. Except in very extraordinary circumstances, this is not the section for players who are new to tournament chess. We generally recommend that anyone playing in a rated tournament for the first time play in the U300 or U500 section, but we sometimes suggest a higher section for players who are older or have more chess experience.

Current USCF membership is required for all players in any rated section, and anyone with a USCF rating must play in a rated section. Players who do not have an official USCF Regular rating may play in a non-rated section with or without a USCF membership. All players in the Championship, U1200, U900 and U700 sections are required to take notation. Players in the U500, U300 and non-rated sections are not required to take notation but may do so if they like. All players are required to play with a clock. Players may play up one section.

Note: Parents should be mindful of teaching their children how to take notation as their rating approaches 500 because at that point they (the players) will be required to do so in any Series tournament.

Venue Information

All Series tournaments are played in area high schools. Click here for venue information, including directions, maps, food options, and site-specific instructions.

Ratings

With respect to rated sections: A player’s rating for purposes of section eligibility and pairing is his or her official USCF Regular rating published in the USCF rating database for the month in which the tournament is played. If a player has no official Regular rating, we will use the most recent Regular rating (preferred) or Quick rating published in her or his tournament history, if there is one. A player who has no Regular or Quick rating is unrated for purposes of Series tournaments. Every player is unrated when playing in a rated tournament for the first time; the USCF will calculate an official rating for her or him after he or she has played four rated games.

With respect to non-rated sections: For a player’s first tournament we assign a rating equal to his or her grade times 100 (90 for a kindergartner). For later tournaments we use her or his “final rating” from a previous CSC tournament, as calculated by the tournament software. Please be aware that this is not an official rating; it is used only to facilitate pairings in our tournaments. Players continue to be officially unrated until playing in a rated section, and as long as they are officially unrated, they may play in a non-rated section.

Schedule

We urge players to arrive by 8:40 am in order the be in their playing rooms at 8:50 am to hear pertinent announcements. Play begins at 9:00 am. Players who do not show by the end of the time control (30 minutes) and have not requested a bye in advance will be forfeited and withdrawn from the tournament. Typical ending times for the different sections are: non-rated, U300 and U500 – 12:30 pm, U700 and U900– 1:30 pm, U1200 and Championship 2:00 pm.

Byes

A bye indicates a round in which a player does not play a game. A player may choose to take a half-point bye for any round: for example, for round 1 when unable to arrive by 9:00 am or for round 4 if it is necessary to leave the tournament early. A player may also choose to take more than one bye, but each additional bye is a zero-point bye. Most players do not take any optional byes. For details regarding requesting byes, see “Requesting and changing byes” under Procedural Matters.

When there is an odd number of players in a section for any round, one player is necessarily left without an opponent; this is called being “paired out.” There is always a 50-50 chance that someone will be paired out because the number of players is always either even or odd. A player who is paired out is given a full-point bye.

Prizes

Prizes are awarded based on the number of points scored. A player scores one point for each win or full-point bye, one-half point for each draw or half-point bye, and no point for each loss, zero-point bye, or forfeit. The following prizes are awarded:

  • Medals are awarded at every tournament in every section to all players scoring 3.0 or higher. The top four medals awarded are designated as first through fourth place; after that each medal awarded is an honorable mention. USCF standard tiebreaks will be used to determine the order of finish among players with the same score.
  • Trophies are awarded based on the total number of points scored over the entire Series. A perfect trophy score is 24 points (4.0 points in each of six tournaments). Points required for each class of trophy are: gold 15.0 or more, silver 13.0–14.5, bronze 11.0–12.5, honorable mention 9.0 – 10.5.
  • The player who scores the most points exclusively in the Championship section will win the CSC Series Championship Trophy. In the case of a tie for the Championship Trophy, the winner will be the player with the highest score between or among those tied in the most recent tournament – beginning with March and working backward as far as necessary.

Forfeits

A player who enters a tournament and does not play any part of it (“no-show”) will be given a forfeit and withdrawn from the tournament. For all rounds, a player who did not request a bye for a given round and does not appear at his or her assigned board before flagfall will forfeit that game and be withdrawn from the tournament. A player withdrawn from the tournament due to a forfeit may ask the chief tournament director for readmission to the tournament. If you arrive late to the tournament, it is important to check in with the Tournament Director (TD) for your section in the correct playing room.

Equipment

CSC provides boards, pieces, clocks, scoresheets and pens for players at all Series tournaments. Players may use their own scorebooks or scoresheets (including approved electronic notation devices) if they wish.

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Procedural Matters

Arrival: All players are encouraged to arrive no later than 8:40 am so that they can find where their section is playing and be in their playing room to hear announcements at 8:50 am. An entries list and section signs will be posted to let players know where they should go. A wall chart will also be posted outside each playing room, which will show any round for which a player has a bye (along with other information). Players should always check the wall chart to confirm the information shown for them and notify the pairing tournament director (in the TD office) of any necessary correction. Players who arrive after play begins in round 1 must still go to their playing room to join the game in progress or – if the player has already been forfeited – check in with the section TD to avoid a forfeit for subsequent rounds or being withdrawn from the tournament. Venue-specific instructions relating to arrival will be provided as necessary in the reminder emails that we send out in the days preceding each tournament.

Schedule: Round 1 pairings will be posted at about 8:30 am. Announcements will be made as appropriate in each section at 8:50 am. Play in round 1 will begin at 9:00 am. Players who do not show by the end of the time control (30 minutes) will be forfeited and withdrawn from the tournament  unless they requested a half-point bye for round 1 in advance. Subsequent rounds in each section will begin no sooner than posted scheduled times to allow players and parents to plan breaks. Players are expected to be at their boards by the posted round time for the section; those who are tardy will likely find their clock already running. Because some sections play faster than others, sections will finish the tournament at different times. Typical ending times are: non-rated, U300 and U500 – 12:30 pm, U700 and U900 – 1:30 pm, U1200 and Championship 2:00 pm.

Requesting and changing byes: A player may request a bye for any round(s) when completing the entry form. After entering and until the entry deadline (noon on the Friday before the tournament), a player may request, change or cancel a bye by email to info@chesscincinnati.com. After the entry deadline, the following applies:

  • For round 1: a player may request, change or cancel a bye by text to 513-484-7735 until 8:00 am on the day of the tournament. Any round 1 bye requested after 8:00 am on the day of the tournament will be a zero-point bye.
  • For rounds 2–4: a player may request, change or cancel a bye:
    • by text to 513-484-7735 until 9:00 am on the day of the tournament, or
    • by notifying the pairing tournament director in person (at the TD office) before pairings are posted for the affected round.

Any player who is paired out is given a full-point bye. A player who is paired out of round 1 may not take a half-point bye for a later round.

What to do when your game is over: When you finish your game, pause the clock and raise your hand to call a tournament director. Do not move the pieces or leave your board until a tournament director verifies the result of your game. After that:

  • Set the pieces up in their correct starting position. After round 4, set the pieces up (to make sure that they are all there) and then put them into a bag that will be provided.
  • Leave the playing room promptly and quietly.
  • Record the result of your game on your section’s pairing chart: enter a “1” in the “Res” column to the left of the winner’s name and a “0” in the “Res” column to the left of the loser’s name, or, if the game was a draw, enter “½” in the “Res” column for both players. Both players are responsible for making sure that the game result is recorded correctly.

Spectating: Except as noted below, spectators are not allowed in any playing room while any tournament game is in progress. Parents, coaches, other non-participants, players from other sections, and players in their own section once they have finished their own games are all defined as spectators for this purpose. Exception: In the Championship and U1200 sections, at the tournament director’s discretion, players may watch other games in their own section after finishing their games provided that they conduct themselves in accordance with tournament rules and etiquette. However, players in these sections may not leave and enter their playing room repeatedly: after recording their score, they may stay to spectate as long as they like, but once they leave the playing room, they may not re-enter it until starting the next round.

Changing sections: A player who enters one section and wishes to move to a different section for which he or she is eligible must notify us by email to info@chesscincinnati.com or by calling/texting 513-484-7735 no later than the entry deadline (noon on the Friday before the tournament). An increase in a player’s rating might require a move into a higher section, in which case we will move her or him automatically into the lowest section allowed for her or his current rating. A decrease in a player’s rating might enable a move into a lower section; in this case we will not move the player automatically but will advise him or her by email that she or he is eligible to move down; we will move down only a player who requests it. A player may not change sections after the tournament’s entry deadline.

Withdrawing from a tournament: A player may withdraw from a tournament before it begins by notifying us by email to info@chesscincinnati.com until the registration deadline (noon on the Friday before the tournament). After the deadline, notify us by calling/texting 513-484-7735 before 8:00 am on the day of the tournament. We will refund the entry fee, less a $2.00 processing fee, to anyone who withdraws with notice as indicated here.

A player may also withdraw from a tournament at any time after it has started and before it ends. To withdraw, simply notify the pairing tournament director by completing a withdrawal form (available from any tournament director) before pairings are done for the next round. A player who leaves the tournament without giving notice as indicated here will be paired in the next round as if still present. This results in a forfeit for the player who left, deprives that player’s opponent of a game, and can cause other problems as well. Accordingly, a player who leaves the tournament before it is over and without giving notice as indicated here will have one point deducted from his or her trophy score, and we will not refund that player’s entry fee. Leaving a tournament early without notice is bad for everyone — please don’t do it!

Forfeits: Players who enter a tournament and do not play any part of it (“no-shows”) will be forfeited and withdrawn from the tournament. For all rounds, players who did not request a bye for a given round and do not appear at their assigned board before their time expires will forfeit that game and be withdrawn from the tournament. A player withdrawn from the tournament due to a forfeit may ask the chief tournament director for readmission. A player who forfeits a game will have one point deducted from her or his trophy score, and we will not refund that player’s entry fee.
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Additional Information

Event Summary and Final Standings: After a tournament, we will post or email two different versions of its results. The differences between the two versions are explained below.

  • The Event Summary is created by the USCF from the rating report that CSC submits to the USCF after the tournament. The Event Summary includes only the rated sections because the non-rated sections are not submitted for rating. The Event Summary is important because it shows the new USCF ratings for all players with the results of the tournament factored in. This is the document to look at to see how a player’s rating changed as a result of the tournament. It is important to note that players are listed in the Event Summary in order first by score, and then by their new (“final”) rating, without taking tiebreaks into consideration. For that reason players are often listed in an order different from that in the Final Standings document. This information can also be viewed on the USCF website.
  • The Final Standings document is created from the tournament software that we use to run the tournament. It shows all sections, including the non-rated sections, and it lists players with the same score in order by tiebreaks. The order in which players are listed, therefore, corresponds to the medals awarded at the end of the tournament, but often differs from the order in the Event Summary. The Final Standings do not show new USCF ratings for players in the rated sections.

Essential Rules of Tournament Chess: In tournament chess, play is governed by rules that are additional to the rules of the game itself and are not explained on this webpage. Essential Rules of Tournament Chess explains the chief rules of tournament chess that every player will be subject to in a Series tournament. If you are new to the Series, this eight-page document is a “must read” for you.

CSC Series Handbook: The CSC Series Handbook explains more extensively several chess topics, including ratings, pairings, the wall chart, the standings chart, and selected rules. This document supplements the information on this webpage and is intended for those who would like to have a broader understanding of tournament chess.

Questions:

If you have questions not answered by the above documents, or need additional information, contact us by email at info@chesscincinnati.com.

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