Kentucky has an active scholastic chess community that welcomes everyone from players just learning the rules to masters. The best first steps are to sign up below for tournament announcements and to find a tournament or a chess club near you.
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Sign up for tournament announcements
Get an e-mail when tournaments are announced, along with other scholastic chess news from KY Chess.
Getting started
New to chess? Our New to Chess page explains how to learn the rules and find people to play. For students, one of the best ways to learn is to join your school’s chess club, and KY Chess runs an official club on ChessKid with regular online tournaments.
Your first tournament
Once you know the rules, it’s time to play in a scholastic tournament. The scholastic season in Kentucky runs from about September to April, and almost all tournaments are beginner-friendly. Almost all are run on the Swiss system: everyone plays every round, and after each round you are paired with someone who has the same score, so you face harder opponents after a win and easier ones after a loss.
- Finding and entering one: the scholastic tournament calendar lists tournaments around the state. Each tournament’s posting gives details on how to register; most take registration online ahead of time.
- Cost: entry fees are set by each tournament and listed in its posting. Most tournaments also require a US Chess membership; some tournaments have a beginner or unrated section that doesn’t.
- How long it takes: a scholastic tournament usually takes up most of a day, with several games and breaks between rounds. The posting gives the schedule, including when awards are expected.
- What to bring: boards, pieces and clocks are almost always provided. Bring a pencil, water, snacks or lunch, and something quiet to do between rounds.
- Where parents wait: usually only players are allowed in the playing hall during games, so parents wait in a separate room (often called the “skittles room”). Younger players generally need an adult on site for the whole tournament.
- On the day of a KY Chess tournament: a gold banner at the top of every page of this site links to that day’s tournament information page, with the schedule, the venue layout and the pairings link.
More information can be found in our Parent’s Guide to Scholastic Chess Tournaments.
The state championship events
Each season KY Chess runs these state championship events (see our flier for the 2026–27 season for this season’s dates):
- State Grade Championships, often in December or January: a state champion for each grade, kindergarten through 12th.
- Regional championships (the four “Quads”), usually in January or February. Each is an individual regional championship and also the qualifier for the State Team Championship: a team’s four top-scoring players are added together for its team score, and the top teams from each region are invited to State Team. Your Quad is set by your county: see the Quad map below.
- State Individual Championships, usually in March: champions for the K–1, K–3, K–5, K–8 and K–12 sections. This event also selects Kentucky’s representatives to the national invitational tournaments (see below).
- State Team Championship, held in March and usually the last event of the season, for the teams that qualified at the Quads.
- State Blitz and Bughouse Championships, usually held together. Blitz (“speed chess”) is an individual event; bughouse is a chess variant played by two-person teams.
- Kentucky Girls Championship, in the spring, which selects Kentucky’s representative to the national girls’ invitational. The fall Women and Girls Open qualifies players for it.
Players without a school team can enter every one of these except the State Team Championship. Coaches and team organizers will find more on the Coaches & Chess Sponsors page.
The Kentucky Scholastic Circuit and honors
Every US Chess-rated tournament you play in Kentucky counts toward the Kentucky Scholastic Circuit, our season-long ranking of Kentucky’s scholastic players. It rewards both how well you play and how much you take part. There is nothing to sign up for or pay: every player whose US Chess membership lists Kentucky as their state is included automatically.
Your Circuit score is built from your best five tournaments of the season. Four of the state championships count double: the State Grade Championships, your regional Quad, the State Individual Championships and the State Team Championship. Because only your best tournaments count, playing another tournament can never lower your score. Players are ranked by grade and by grade section (K–1, 2–3, 4–5, 6–8 and 9–12), and schools get team rankings too.
The Circuit season ends each March at the State Team Championship, when these honors are awarded:
- All-Kentucky Teams: the top five Circuit scores in each of five teams: High School (grades 9–12), Junior Varsity (9–10), Middle School (6–8), Elementary School (K–5) and Girls (all grades). The teams don’t play; it is purely an honor. See the All-Kentucky Teams.
- All-Kentucky Honorable Mention: every player who reaches a set score for their grade section, set at roughly the top 10% of players.
- KY Chess Honor Roll: every player who reaches a lower set score for their grade section, set at roughly the top 30% of players (top 50% in the elementary grades).
Any number of players can earn Honorable Mention and Honor Roll, so they are goals every player can work toward. The Circuit page shows the current standings, the honor thresholds, and who is on pace for each honor, and its FAQ answers common questions. Corrections (a missing grade or school, for example) go to [email protected] with “KY Scholastic Circuit” in the subject line.
Championship titles and national invitations
Winners of the state championship events become Kentucky state champions and are listed on our team, individual, grade, blitz and bughouse champions pages.
The State Individual Championship also selects Kentucky’s representatives to the US Chess national invitational tournaments: the top high school player goes to the Denker (high school), the top middle school player to the Barber (middle school), the top K–5 player to the Rockefeller (elementary) and the top K–3 player to the Ashley (K–3). The winner of the Kentucky Girls Championship represents Kentucky at the Haring National Girls Tournament of Champions. See our Women and Girls page for girls’ events.
FAQ
Does my child need a US Chess membership?
Only to play in US Chess-rated sections. Many tournaments have a beginner or unrated section that doesn’t require one, which is a good place to start. To play rated games and count toward the Kentucky Scholastic Circuit, join US Chess. When you join, list Kentucky as your state so your results are counted.
My school doesn’t have a chess club. What should I do?
Consider starting one! Teachers and parents don’t need to be good at chess to run a club. We have had state champion teams whose coaches didn’t know how to play. The Coaches & Chess Sponsors page explains how to get started.
Students don’t need an official school club to play as a team, either: a parent who will bring them to tournaments and act as the point of contact is enough. And players without a team can still enter every KY Chess championship except the State Team Championship.
Do I need to sign up for the Kentucky Scholastic Circuit or the All-Kentucky Teams?
No. Every Kentucky scholastic player is included automatically from their US Chess-rated tournament results. Just make sure your US Chess membership lists Kentucky as your state. To be considered for the honors, play at least two of the KY Chess scholastic championships (they count double) and a few other rated tournaments during the season. If you would like your child’s name kept private on the Circuit page, email [email protected] with “KY Scholastic Circuit” in the subject line.
I am homeschooled. Can I play in Kentucky scholastic chess?
Yes. Most tournaments are for individuals, not teams, so being homeschooled rarely matters. It matters only for the team championship cycle (the Quads and the State Team Championship). For it, homeschooled students can:
- play for a school in their county, with the school’s permission (some public school districts don’t allow this);
- form a team with other homeschooled students who live in the same Quad (see the Quad map); or
- form a team with other students from their homeschool co-op, if they receive more than half of their instruction through it. The co-op must teach academic subjects, not just be a chess club.
Virtual-school students follow the same rules (see the Blue Book, the KCA’s scholastic rules, for details). The scholastic director, at [email protected], can help connect homeschooled players with others nearby. If none of these options provides you the opportunity to play on a team, contact the director at least two weeks before a tournament to explore other options.