Thomas Hartmayer Memorial Tournament

About Tom: Thomas Hartmayer, known to friends as “Tom” and to some as “Herr Direktor” for his devotion to tournament directing, was a University of Connecticut Chess Club organizer and tournament director, as well as avid chess player and supporter of the Connecticut chess community. Most notably, Tom co-organized scholastic tournaments for kids K-8 in northern Connecticut when there was little to no other chess activity north of New Haven. Since his untimely passing on January 1, 2016, he is greatly missed by family, friends and the whole of Connecticut chess. 

Rounds/Time: Open & U1600: 4 Rounds SS, G/50 d5. USCF rated. Scholastic: 4 Rounds SS, G/25 d5. USCF rated. 

Byes: One ½ pt bye permitted in all but final Round; must commit by end of registration.

Sections: 6 USCF rated Sections: Open, U1600, K-12 U1000, K-8 U800, K-5 U500, K-12 Unrated (playing rated chess for the first time)

Prizes: Open: $400-$200, Top U1800 and Upset, not otherwise placing, $100. Herr Direktor’s Cup to Open winner.  U1600: $200-$100, Top U1200 and Upset, not otherwise placing, $100. K-12 U1000: Trophies to Top 3, Upset, U800, Hartford resident, not otherwise placing, and Top team*. $25 Amazon Card to Top Player. K-8 U800: Trophies to Top 3, Upset, U500, Hartford resident, not otherwise placing, and Top team*. $25 Amazon Card to Top Player. K-5 U500: Trophies to Top 3, Upset, U300, Hartford resident, not otherwise placing, and Top team*. $25 Amazon Card to Top Player. K-12 Unrated: Trophies to Top 5, Top Hartford resident, not otherwise placing, and Top team*. $25 Amazon Card to Top Player.

CSCA 2023 Connecticut Scholastic Championships medals awarded to all non-placing scholastic participants.  

Unrated ineligible for class or upset prizes. Prizes based on final standings on USCF tie breaks, NOT USCF distribution rules, except perfect (4-0) scores, who share money prizes equally.

*Team prizes may be increased, depending on number of entering teams, generally designated by players from the same school. The Organizer, at their discretion, may designate additional teams by school district from participating players in the same section, who have insufficient participants to form a school-based team. The Organizer, at their discretion, may divide teams that comprise more than 10% of any section. 

Tie break: If there are 2 or more players tied with a perfect (4-0) score, a playoff will determine the section winner and will immediately follow Round 4. See Note [1] below. Other ties determined by US Chess standard tie breaks.

Entry Fee: Open/U1600: $50 by April 19; $60 by April 24; $70 by April 28; “Same day” $90 closes at 9a on April 29. Online registration, only. Scholastic: $40 by April 19; $50 by April 28; “Same day” $70 closes at 9a on April 29. Online registration, only. NO on-site registration. 

Discounts: Hartford residents: All children residing in Hartford’s areas of need and registering for one of the scholastic sections above receive FREE entry and FREE scholastic USCF ID valid for one year. All Hartford residents registering for the Open or the U1600 section receive $20 entry by April 19, $30 by April 28. Players in this category should email events.CSCA@gmail.com to request additional registration instructions. 

Hartford residents may also register in person at the Wilson-Gray YMCA. All in-person registration payments are cash ONLY. 

General DISCOUNTS: Students with financial hardship, attending Title I schools or requesting a sibling discount should email events.CSCA@gmail.com to request additional registration instructions. 

CSCA Member Organization DISCOUNT: CSCA Member Organizations will receive instructions to apply $10 membership discount to their members. Schools and other organizations may apply for Member Organization status at any time by email to chess.CSCA@gmail.com. 

GMs and IMs: Entry fee is waived for GMs and IMs, if registering by April 19. Deducted from prize thereafter. Please email events.CSCA@gmail.com to register. 

Out-of-state: Out-of-state players welcome and fully prize eligible.

Notes:

THIS NONPROFIT EVENT IS ORGANIZED AND SPONSORED BY THE CONNECTICUT STATE CHESS ASSOCIATION, WILSON-GRAY YMCA YOUTH AND FAMILY CENTER AND EAST SIDE CHESS. ALL PROCEEDS BENEFIT THE CONNECTICUT CHESS COMMUNITY AND THE YMCA. 

[1] Tie break playoff format. If there are 2 or more players tied with a perfect (4-0) score, a playoff will determine the section winner and will immediately follow Round 4. The playoff format will be G/5/4 d2 Armageddon game, blitz rules apply, with USCF tie breaks determining seeding and choice of color. Playoff pairings will be highest seed against lowest seed and so on. Each playoff round will result in elimination of the losing player(s). Final placement of eliminated players will be arranged in order of seeding based on round of playoff elimination. If the number of players in the initial playoff round is uneven, the highest seeded player(s) will advance without play to the second playoff round. All other ties broken by US Chess standard tie break rules.

[2] COVID-19 Protocols Apply. All applicable YMCA COVID-19 Protocols apply. 

[3] Food Service. The YMCA plans to have food service available during the event, including grilled lunch options.  

[4] Rating Supplement. Apr 2023 USCF Rating Suppl. used for section entry, pairings and prizes.

[5] Tax requirements. Players receiving total payments of $600 or more from the CSCA in 2023 must submit a W-9 to the CSCA at events.CSCA@gmail.com in advance of receiving prize. 

[6] Contact. All questions/inquiries to events.CSCA@gmail.com. 

[7] Refunds/Cancellation Policy. To withdraw registration or request a refund, email your request to events.CSCA@gmail.com no later than April 27 at 11:59 PM. Refund requests not received by email or received after the above deadline, will not be honored. Refunds are subject to $15 administrative fee. 

[8] Unauthorized solicitation is prohibited. This is a nonprofit event for the Connecticut chess community, and the CSCA event Promotion Policy at CSCA Tournaments is in effect. Please contact CSCA at events.CSCA@gmail.com for advertising and promotional opportunities.