Author: Andrew Rimmer

Tunbridge Wells Chess Championship 2025–2026: Round 1 Pairings

The new season of the Tunbridge Wells Chess Championship is about to begin!
Round 1 will take place on Monday 27 October at 7.30 pm at the club.
Good luck to all players taking part — and a warm welcome to those competing in the club championship for the first time.

Round 1    Mon 27/10/25 at 19.30

WHITE BLACK
1  Andrew Rimmer Tom Lawrie
2  Stephen Timbers Jon Armory
3  Charles Davies Julian Teubler
4  Steve Bond Hugh Tassell
5  Matt Smith Jerry Anstead
6  Fife Alex Alade Robert Jacobs
7  David Fryer Gualtiero Chiaia

If you are unable to play your match on 27th October then please
(1) contact your opponent and arrange to play at some mutually agreed other time and
(2) let Jerry Anstead (anstead@btinternet.com) know about this so that we are not expecting you on 27th.
To find out your opponent’s contact details please ask Jerry or Tom.

Rate of play is one hour plus a ten-second increment.

You can find full event details and standings as the tournament progresses on the
Club Championship page.

Club Championship 2025 — Entries Close Sunday 19th October

Our annual Tunbridge Wells Chess Club Championship is about to begin!
This is your chance to play a series of competitive, rated games against fellow club members and test your improvement over the season.

🏆 About the Championship

The Club Championship is open to all Tunbridge Wells Chess Club members, and games will count toward your official ECF rating.

Pairings will be arranged to ensure players of all strengths can take part, from new members to experienced competitors.

👉 See full details here

🕒 Entry Deadline

Please make sure to enter by Sunday 19th October so that the first-round pairings can be published promptly the following week.

♟️ ECF Membership Required

To take part, you’ll need a valid English Chess Federation (ECF) membership.

If you’re not yet a member, signing up is quick and easy — we’ve written a simple step-by-step guide here:

👉 How to Register as an ECF Member

📩 How to Enter

Entries can be made by emailing Jerry Anstead

Please include your full name and ECF code.

Club Competitions Starting Soon

⏰ A quick reminder that our two main competitions for the 2025/26 season are beginning shortly.

If you haven’t registered yet, there’s still time to get involved.

⚡ Quickplay 2025/26

Our popular Quickplay tournament uses time handicaps to balance games between players of different strengths. It’s always lively, competitive, and great fun.
👉 See full details here

⏱️ Club Championship 2025/26

The Club Championship is our flagship event, played at the longer 60+10 time control over seven rounds. A great opportunity to play serious, rated games across the season.
👉 See full details here

✅ What You Need to Do

  • Make sure you are registered for the competitions you want to enter.
  • Don’t leave it to the last minute — register today!

⚠️ Reminder: To play in the Club Championship, you must be an active ECF Member (minimum Bronze).
It’s quick and easy — see our step-by-step guide:
👉 How to Register as an ECF Member

✨ We encourage all members to take part — whether in the fast and fun Quickplay, the competitive Championship, or both.

Register now and make sure you’re ready for the season ahead!

Quickplay 2025/2026

Our annual Quickplay Time-Handicap competition is back! It runs alongside the Club Championship 2025/2026.

Key points

  • Format: All-play-all, double round-robin — you play everyone twice (once with each colour).
  • Time limit: Each game is capped at 30 minutes total. Time is split by rating difference (see table below).
  • Ratings used: ECF September ratings (fixed for the season). Unrated players will be given an estimated rating by the club secretary.
  • When to play: No fixed rounds — arrange games any Monday the club is open. We encourage making the first Monday of each month a quickplay night.
  • Scoring & winner: Most points by 18 May 2026 wins the Quickplay Knight trophy.
  • Grading: Results are not submitted for ECF rating.
  • Eligibility: Open to all club members.

Time-handicap table

Grading difference (ECF)Lower-rated playerHigher-rated player
0–7415 mins15 mins
75–14918 mins12 mins
150–22421 mins9 mins
225–29923 mins7 mins
300–37425 mins5 mins
375–59926 mins4 mins
600+27 mins3 mins

Each pairing always sums to 30 minutes.

Please see our handy guide on how to set the clock, which explains how to configure the clocks for these games.

How to enter

  • Email: Jerry Anstead
  • Or: Add your name to the club noticeboard list
  • Closing date: Sunday 19 October 2025
    (You may start playing as soon as both players have entered.)

Questions

If you’re unsure about rating differences, arranging games, or anything else, please speak to Jerry at the club or email via the link above.

Full details (PDF):
https://tunbridgewellschess.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Tunbridge-Wells-Club-Quickplay-2025-2026.pdf

Club Championship 2025/2026

Welcome to the Club Championship for the 2025/26 season! This year’s event is a 7-round Swiss, with games scheduled monthly across the season. Results will be ECF-rated, so please ensure your ECF membership is Bronze or above (and that you’re a club member).

Format & rules

  • Format: 7-round Swiss (no repeat pairings).
  • Pairings: Round 1 is a random draw; from Round 2, players are paired within score groups with colour alternation where possible.
  • Time control: 60 minutes for the game + 10 seconds increment per move from move 1.
  • ECF rating: All results submitted for ECF rating (Bronze+ required).
  • If you can’t make a Monday: Please contact your opponent and rearrange to another mutually convenient date.

Dates (2025/26)

Rounds are played on the last Monday of each month listed, except May which uses the next-to-last Monday:

  • R1: Monday 27 Oct 2025
  • R2: Monday 24 Nov 2025
  • R3: Monday 26 Jan 2026
  • R4: Monday 23 Feb 2026
  • R5: Monday 30 Mar 2026
  • R6: Monday 27 Apr 2026
  • R7: Monday 18 May 2026 (next-to-last Monday in May)

How to enter

  • Email: Jerry Anstead, or
  • Sign-up: Add your name to the club noticeboard entry list.
  • Entry deadline: Sunday 19 October 2025
  • First-round draw: Monday 20 October 2025 (at the club)

Setting the clock

You see our guide on setting the chess clock, which covers setting the clock for club championship games.

Questions

If you have any questions about eligibility, ECF membership, or arranging an off-night game, please contact Jerry via the email above.

Full details (PDF):
https://tunbridgewellschess.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Tunbridge-Wells-Club-Championship-2025-2026.pdf

AGM Round-Up

Thanks to everyone who joined us for our Annual General Meeting on 8th September. It was a great chance to reflect on last year and make plans for the season ahead. Here are the highlights:

Committee changes

  • Secretary – A big welcome to Tom Lawrie, our new Club Secretary. Tom takes over from Steve Bond, who has done a fantastic job in the role for many years – thank you, Steve!
  • Webmaster – We’re delighted to welcome Andrew Rimmer as our new Webmaster.

Competitions

  • The Club Championship will continue after last year’s success.
  • A brand new Quickplay all-play-all competition is being introduced this season – details to follow soon, so watch this space!
  • We’ll also be scheduling a Blitz competition at Christmas.
  • A special Junior Prize will be awarded for the best performance of the year.

Club connections

We’re in talks with neighbouring clubs about organising some friendly matches – a great chance to meet new opponents and build our local chess community.

Other updates

  • The Club Championship trophy was presented to our President, Robert Jacobs.
  • Membership fees remain unchanged. We are also working on adding an online payment option to make things easier.
  • We’re planning further child protection improvements. A register will be taken each week, and contact information for parents will be recorded.

It’s shaping up to be an exciting season, and we can’t wait to see everyone over the board!

Welcome to the 2025/2026 Season

Welcome to the 2025/2026 Season

The new chess season is here, and we’re excited to welcome members old and new to Tunbridge Wells Chess Club. Whether you’re looking to improve your game, play in the Club Championship, or simply enjoy friendly over-the-board battles, there’s a place for you at the club.

Club Nights

We meet on Monday evenings at:

Tunbridge Wells & Counties Bridge Club
40 London Road
Tunbridge Wells
TN1 1DL

Play usually begins around 7.30pm and runs until 11.00pm. All standards are welcome, from beginners through to experienced players.

Membership for 2025/26

Annual membership fees for this season are:

  • Adults: £80
  • Juniors (under 18): £40

Payments can be made in full, or in two instalments:

  • Adults: £40 now, and £40 on 1st January
  • Juniors: £20 now, and £20 on 1st January

See our Join Us page for details.

Club Competitions

As always, we’ll be running our Club Championship along with other friendly events during the year. These competitions are a great way to test yourself against a range of opponents in a relaxed, welcoming atmosphere.

Annual General Meeting

A reminder that our Annual General Meeting (AGM) will be held on Monday 8th September 2025 at the club.
All members are encouraged to attend — it’s your chance to hear about the past year, contribute ideas for the future, and help shape the running of the club.

For Newcomers

If you’re new to the club, you’re very welcome to come along for a free introductory visit. You’ll find a friendly atmosphere and someone happy to sit down for a game.

Please also feel free to contact us with any questions.

Looking Ahead

We look forward to another year of great games, lively analysis, and the simple pleasure of sitting down at the board together.

Here’s to a successful and enjoyable 2025/26 season!

3rd Kent FIDE Congress at Tunbridge Wells

In July 2025, the 3rd Kent FIDE Congress took place at the Tunbridge Wells Bridge Club – the same venue where we hold our weekly club nights.

The congress was excellently run by Pyson Chess, and huge thanks to Satish and his team.

A special mention goes to Jerry Anstead, our long-time member, who helped make the venue available for the event in liaison with the organiser and the Bridge Club.

Photo Album

Club president Robert
Andrew, our webmaster
Our Jerry deep in thought
The beautiful Tunbridge Wells Bridge Club

All photos courtesy of Satish, Pyson Chess

You can view a full gallery of photos from the event here:
👉 View the Congress Photo Album on Google Photos

Read More

For an excellent first-hand account of the Congress, including reflections on the atmosphere and some of the games, see this blog post:
👉 3rd Kent FIDE Congress – 64 Squares

It was great to see such a successful tournament being held in Tunbridge Wells, and we look forward to welcoming more chess events to our town in the future.

2024/25 Club Championship Results

Our 2024/25 Club Championship has now concluded, and we are delighted to announce that Robert Jacobs, our Club President, is the new Club Champion.

Robert scored an impressive 6½ points out of 7, securing first place in a hard-fought competition that ran from October 2024 to May 2025. Games were played monthly at a time control of 60 minutes plus a 5-second increment.

Congratulations to the Champion

As Jerry wrote in his congratulations:

“Congratulations to Robert Jacobs, our club president, on winning the championship with six and a half out of seven.

Robert kindly responded:

“Thank you, Jerry. It was a real shame that James had to drop out, handing me this opportunity, but it is nice to be Club Champion in Tunbridge Wells, having just turned 63, after winning at Sevenoaks when I was only 15! Thanks to all those who supported this event and a big thanks to Jerry, who has masterminded the event successfully, and to Steve who has stepped in when needed.”

Final Standings

  • 🥇 1st – Robert Jacobs – 6½
  • 🥈 2nd = – Hugh Tassell & Jerry Anstead – 5
  • 4th – Andrew Rimmer – 4½
  • 5th – Julian Teubler – 3½
  • 6th = – Tomas Alvarez, Jon Armory, Steve Bond, Gualtiero Chiaia, Tom Lawrie – 3

Thanks

A huge thank you goes to Jerry Anstead and Steve Bond for running the event so smoothly, ensuring games were organised and results recorded.

The Club Championship is always a highlight of our season, bringing together members of all strengths to enjoy competitive and friendly chess.

We look forward to another exciting tournament next year!