Congress Rules and Conditions of Entry

FIDE Rules and Rating of Games

FIDE Rules apply unless overridden by the rules below.

In any dispute the controller’s decision is final.

Games will be ECF rated.

Number of Entries

Entries will be limited to 150 players in total.

The organisers reserve the right to refuse entry without explanation.

Refund Policy

Any entrant who withdraws by 21st March 2027 will be entitled to a full refund.
Any entrant who withdraws between 22nd March and 31st March will be entitled to a 50% refund.

In the unlikely event that congress has to be cancelled all players will receive a full refund of their entry fees. The Dorset County Chess Association will not be liable for travel and accommodation expenses incurred by entrants.

Default Time and Repairing

The default time for a round is 30 minutes. Repairing will be at the controller’s discretion.  If players are repaired, the game will be played with an adjusted amount of time equivalent to the remaining time in the round from when the repaired game commences.

A player who has not turned up before their default time shall be deemed as withdrawing from the Congress unless the Chief Controller is advised otherwise before the draw for the next round is made.

Byes

A ½ point bye may be claimed for any one round except the final round and must be requested at the time of entry.

Prizes

Prize money will be forwarded within 14 days.

The rating prize bands will be decided by the organisers once the entrants are known. They will be published before the event commences.

In the event of ties, players will share prizes.

First prize in the Major, Intermediate and Minor and all Rating prizes may only be won by players with a March or April 2027 ECF Standard A or K rating.

If fewer than 120 entries are received the organisers reserve the right to reduce the value of the prizes (144 and 145 entries were received in 2025 and 2026 respectively).

Treatment of more than one prize per competitor:

A) Where a player would otherwise be eligible for more than one prize outright (i.e. not shared), they will be awarded the higher of the two prizes and the lower prize will be allocated to the next best eligible performer.

B) Where a player would otherwise be eligible for more than one prize where at least one of those prizes is shared with another player, the organisers may either adopt the approach described in A) above or, if more appropriate, pool the relevant prizes and split them as fairly as possible between the players. The organisers’ decision on the allocation of prizes in these circumstances shall be final.

Rating used for Pairings, Determining Section

Where a player has an Original March 2027 ECF Standard A or K rating this will be used for pairing, determining the eligibility to play in a given section, and rating prize eligibility.

In the absence of a March 2027 A or K rating, and if an April 2027 A or K rating is available for a player by 4th April 2027, the April rating will be used to determine eligibility to win 1st prize (must be beneath the section limit) and rating prizes.

In the absence of an Original March 2027 ECF Standard A or K rating, a combination of the following will be used to determine a rating that will be used for pairings, and section eligibility: April 2027 A or K Standard ratings, ECF Standard P rating, ECF Rapid Ratings, FIDE ratings, online ratings and any other relevant information that is available. Players without ECF Standard A or K ratings should provide evidence of their playing strength. The organisers’ decision on the appropriate rating will be final.

The right is reserved to assign players to specific tournaments.

Anti-Cheating

Any mobile phone or other mobile device capable of running chess software must be turned off and left on the playing table in plain sight of your opponent before you make your first move and for the duration of the game. If a mobile phone or other mobile device is found to be turned on or being carried by a player after they have made their first move, then they will forfeit the game. Players may be scanned before, during and after games. If there is any evidence that a player has used a device to run chess software whilst playing or if they refuse to fully comply with anti-cheating checks they will be excluded from the tournament.

Food and Drink

No food or drink may be brought into the hotel for consumption.

Free water will be available in the playing area. Other drinks and food will be available to purchase in the hotel.

Parental Responsibility

Parents or guardians are responsible for their children during the tournament. The organisers and helpers are not able to act “in loco parentis” and are not able to take responsibility for any child’s actions, or for the actions of anyone that may affect your child.

Accommodation

The Dorset County Chess Association takes no responsibility for the booking of rooms which is a separate contract between you and the hotel.

Parking

There is parking available at The Bournemouth West Cliff Hotel which may be chargeable and Parking Eye CCTV is used to monitor usage. We have been advised by the hotel that:
A) for rooms booked directly with the hotel overnight parking is free
B) for rooms booked via a booking agency overnight parking is £15 per night.
C) daytime parking at the hotel during the day is free
but please check parking arrangements and charges with the hotel on arrival.
In all cases you must register your car number plate details at the hotel reception within 10 minutes of parking to avoid any potential fine.

The Dorset County Chess Association takes no responsibility for any parking charges/fines issued by the hotel which is a separate contract between you and the hotel.

Photographs and Data Protection

Photographs will be taken at the event and may be used on the Dorset Chess website, the Dorset Chess Newsletter, the Dorset Junior Chess Newsletter and other local chess websites. By entering you, (the player or in the case of a junior, i.e. under 18 years old, the player’s parent or guardian) are consenting to the publication of such photos and your/your child’s results in the tournament.  Your results will be passed to the ECF for rating purposes and prior to the tournament your membership details may be checked with the ECF.

Other than as specified in the paragraph above, your personal details including your address, email address and phone number will NOT be passed to any third party. Your personal details will be retained to aid in the distribution of prizes and to inform you of future events organised by the Dorset County Chess Association.

You may request the deletion of your personal information by contacting the organisers at https://www.dorsetchess.co.uk/bournemouth-grand-contact-page/