For BCC members and potential newcomers, here are some of the frequently asked questions:

Are you looking for new members?

Yes! We are a relatively new chess club starting in March 2024, and we would love to welcome newcomers to both the Juniors club and also our Thursday evening club.  For those who like competitive chess, we won the “4200” league as outright winners both north and south of our region, in our first season of competitive play. And we are very keen to keep on winning more competitions so please join us!

 

Is there an easy way to learn chess?

One of the wonders of the game is its depth. When players start to play, they generally make their moves too quickly. It is very important to think, double-check, before making a move. It is one thing considering your own plans of attack but you must also get into the habit of considering what your opponent is planning on doing next. It is extremely difficult to get better at chess if you play your moves too quickly.

 

Is chess played in silence all the time?

No, at Bourne Chess Club we have a social chess evening at various times of the year that is held on Tuesday evenings between 7.30-9.30pm   People who like to chat while they play are very welcome to come along in this setting as it is relaxed and very friendly. You are also welcome to our free teas and coffees while you play. Contact Wake House or our Club Secretary to find out when these Social Chess evenings are being run.  Competitive chess however, is played in silence, absolute silence and when there are competitive matches being played in the Baxter Room, we uphold a strict complete silence.

 

I am interested in playing for Bourne Chess Club in the Lincs Chess Association, whereabouts would we play?

Louth, Grmisby, Appleby Frodingham, Lincoln, Grantham, Skegness. There is the possibility of a north/south divide for Div 2 in the 2025/2026 season, as it was pre-covid. The furthest north you would travel would be Lincoln.

 

Do I need to learn all the openings? 

No, but the key concepts of developing pieces in openings is good to learn. It can be useful to learn an opening that you like, as it matches your style of play. In other words it tends to create mid-games that suit your style of playing chess. 

 

Do I have to write my moves down? 

Not if you are playing social chess, but it can be surprising how many times players regret not having recorded the game when it concludes, for one reason or another. 

 

If my opponent forfeits a game on Swiss Manager, do I still get a point for the win? 

Yes, but it is only displayed as a + and – in the result table. Your grades would not be altered as a result of this. 

 

Are my grades ever changed when we use Swiss Manager? 

Only when the organiser has set it up as rated and the participants are Gold members with the ECF. Otherwise, no. 

 

Do I get a parking ticket if I forget to register my car registration number at Wake House?

Wake House do ask patrons of the car park to register their car at the numerous consoles in the building, but are keen for visitors to not be financially penalised should they forget. If you do receive a parking fine, then it can be rescinded by contacting Wake House here

 

What’s the difference between Swiss Manager and Chess-Results.com? 

Swiss Manager is the software that is used to create the pairings, enter results and it keeps track of progress. Chess-results.com is a platform to see the tournament results – you can’t change anything on chess-results.com    

 

Do I get grade changes for playing in the external leagues? 

After a certain number of games with established players, meaning players with stable grades, then yes. About 10 games of this sort is needed for the ECF to establish a reasonably accurate grade for you.  The games you play on internal leagues especially against opponents who also do not have stable grades has negligible impact on your grade. On your ECF grade “K” is established, “P” is provisional. 

 

What is the benefit of using the ECF LMS? (English Chess Federation League Management System) 

It is one place to go to, where your club’s tournaments can be listed. You can easily see who you have played, who you haven’t, when you are due to play next, the current standings for each player + loads more 

 

Is it ok for all members to chat on the online WhatsApp main channel for the club?

No, the BCC Safeguarding Policy does not permit online chat between under 18’s and over 18’s and vice-versa, on the Club’s WhatsApp main channel. BCC does all that it reasonably can to protect members from online abuse and that can even occur between under 18’s. In terms of organising matches, arrangements can either be made in-person at the club, or via parents on the main channel. The Safeguarding Officer for BCC is Tom Ingram and can be contacted at: Bournechessclub@gmail.com

 

Is Swiss Manager a free resource? 

No, we have purchased a licence to enable us to use the ‘full’ version. 

 

How will I know if my child will like the Juniors Club?

Bring them down on a Tuesday evening at 6.30-7.30pm Our Parent Liason Officer Justine will be happy to assist in making you feel comfortable.  We have a thriving Juniors Club headed up by Sam who is progressing the juniors through a structured programme to help them learn chess. We meet at The Windmill room at Wake House. You are very welcome!

 

How do I learn how to use the clocks? 

With repeated practice. The less you use them, the less you will be able to change time formats. 

 

Which side of the board should the clock be on? 

Some clubs insist that whoever plays white has the clock to their left. Some prefer, whichever side it is, it is consistent on every board.  

 

Do the time formats change depending on the league you are in? 

Yes. Generally speaking, the higher ability leagues tend to have longer time formats e.g. 70mins +15secs    Lower ability leagues will often be 50mins +10secs      What is known as Standard Play is 60mins or more duration, a Rapid Play format is less than 60mins but more than 10mins;  but that includes the increments so 45mins + 10 secs for example is just within the Rapid Play format being 10secs x 60 = 10mins in increments, therefore 55mins in total.    Blitz is 10mins or less.      

 

I would like to consider playing for Bourne in the external leagues within the Cambridgeshire County Chess Association, but what kinds of locations do the other clubs play at? 

Spalding, March, St. Ives, Peterborough, St. Neots, Cambridge, Ely, Godmanchester. Please also bear in mind that , under 18’s must travel to away games with parents/guardian/carer.

 

For the internal tournaments at the club, do I get told who I am to play next and when?

BCC uses different platforms to play tournaments. We have an active whatsapp group for the booking up of matches between players. Members are encouraged to monitor chess.com, chess-results.com and the ‘ladder’ at the club – all of these are tools to be utilised for the smooth running of tournaments. But ultimately it is the responsibility of each player to organise their matches.

 

Do I always have to record my moves? 

When in a game with less than 5 mins left on your clock AND the time control has <30 sec increments, then no. But if the time control has 30 sec + increments per move then yes, even when the clock goes under 5 mins.

 

Can you give me an idea of the grades for playing in the external leagues BCC plays in?

Neither of the leagues we play in are capped with a maximum grade total for the team as a whole, but Div 3 in the CCCA is around 1200-1600 and Div 2 in the LCA has an individual cap for each player of u1900

 

Who decides if an illegal move has been played? 

In organised tournaments, arbiters, but in local leagues, there needs to be an agreement typically between the two captains concerned. It is good etiquette for the host captain to involve the away captain when dealing with any disputes. 

 

Are the rules strictly enforced? 

We are supposed to be following the Rules of Chess, so touch move, using two hands to castle, rules on promoting, playing moves with one hand and touching the clock with the other…..all of these things are supposed to be correctly done. We shouldn’t be distracting our opponent with repeated offers of a draw, we shouldn’t press the clock until the move has been completed etc etc etc 

 

Are there age limits on when you can enter local leagues? 

Not strictly no. There are safeguarding issues though to consider for <18’s and that includes the travel to/from the away venue. 

 

What does “4200” and “7000” mean on the leagues? 

It is the accumulated total of the players grades.  For the 4200, the grades of the three players playing on one team should not exceed 4200.  For 7000, the four players’ grades should not exceed 7000. 

 

Is there an order to the boards? 

Yes, board 1 is your highest ability player, and the ability lessens with board 2 and 3 etc 

 

If my club has entered two teams in an external regional league, say the 4200, can we swap players around the two teams? 

No. But if there was a team in 4200, and another in 7000, you could swap between them. 

  

Is there any benefit to me to attend external tournaments not in my local league? 

Yes. Not only will you get the opportunity to play ‘established’ players to build up your grade, but for a tournament lasting a couple of days, you will have gained a great deal of experience. And you could have 5+ matches to analyse and improve on. 

 

When I play for my club in the regional external leagues, do I have to get my opponent to sign my move sheet and hand a copy of it to the host captain? 

It is good practice to. The home captain will then have a record of all the games with the results clearly marked and counter-signed by both players; quite handy should there be any dispute later on. 

 

Is there a limit to how many times I play for my club? 

No, but your captain will be the one who decides on the team selection. 

 

I’m not great with ‘touch move’, will that be ok if I play in a league? 

No. It is one of the rules of chess, and should be followed at all times. Some opponents might accept it if you make an error, but they do not have to. They are perfectly within their rights to insist you move the piece you touched first.  

 

How do you decide who plays white or black for an external league match for your club? 

The away team board 1 player, plays white. And then it is alternated for board 2 and 3 etc 

 

If I want to promote a queen but have no queens available, am I ok to turn a rook upside down? 

Strictly speaking, no. That is not a queen. However, if there is literally no other option, then needs must. 

 

If I need to go to the toilet, do we stop the clock? 

No, the only time to stop a clock is to ask for an arbiter or captain to answer a query.

 

Can I adjust my pieces when it is my opponent’s turn? 

No, that is distraction. The time to declare “j’adoube” is on YOUR move and BEFORE you touch any of your pieces. 

 

How do I record a win/loss? 

Win=1  Loss=0   Draw=½ 

So you might have:   1-0 (white win) or 0-1 (black win) or ½ – ½ (draw) 

 

Am I ok to stand up and walk around when it is not my move? 

Yes. You can, in theory, do that when it IS your move!

 

In the internal leagues at Bourne Chess Club, do I have to arrange the matches with my opponents?

Yes, each player is responsible for organising their matches with other players. Bear in mind that each tournament will have it’s own rules and so it is in everyone’s interests to read the rules.

 

If my opponent makes an illegal move, how much time do we add to my clock time?

For standard play it is 2 mins, for rapid or blitz it is 1 minute. The second illegal move will result in losing a game!

 

Is it true that I only have to record my moves, not my opponent’s moves?

Yes. And also when a draw is offered, by way of an = on your move sheet

 

Can you give some examples of automatically drawn games?

King v King + Bishop

King v King + Knight

King + Bishop v King + Bishop (when the Bishops are of the same colour) 

 

 

How do I write my moves down?

Chess notation does not need to be done if you are playing social chess, but in competitive play it is a requirement. It might seem at first quite daunting but actually, with not much practice, it becomes second nature.

e2 – e4 means moving the pawn at position e2 to position e4 (the board is marked up with letters and numbers to help you)

Nb1-Nc3 or just Nc3 means moving the knight to position c3. Notice pawns do not need a P to denote the pawn move.

Bc1 – Be3 or just Be3 means moving the bishop from position c1 to position e3

Q for queen, K for king, R for rook.

A capture is denoted by an “x”.   Nb1xBc3 or NxB The knight on b1 captures the bishop on c3

If, after your move, you place your opponent in check, you add a “+” to the move:  Bf5+

If, after your move, you place your opponent in checkmate, you add a “++” or “#” to the move: Bf5#

If you promote a pawn on the b file to a queen, you write b8=Q or b8Q

If you capture a pawn via en-passant, you write dxe3 or dxe3e.p. meaning the d pawn captures the pawn on the e file and finishes up on the e3 square.

If you castle kingside (“short”) you write o-o   If you castle queenside (“long”) you write o-o-o

Bourne Chess Club hosts a Junior’s Club on Tuesday evenings at Wake House (6.30-7.30pm). 

To give an idea of how the junior sessions go, the following is a breakdown of the hour on 27/05/2025.  

“The Danish Gambit.” The juniors were provided with a written record of a game involving this gambit and in pairs played the 15 moves to the checkmate. This was helping them to practice reading notation of moves and playing the moves. Once they had done this, they rotated the board around and played the same game from the opposing colour’s point of view. Alternative, better moves were considered by the more able. 

The juniors were then shown how a typical chess game is started and concluded with a handshake, wishing the opponent good luck, and on conclusion thanking the opponent for the game and saying ‘well played’. The juniors practised this together, with eye contact and handshakes. 

Next up was a guest speaker, a very able teenage member from the Club who plays competitive league chess on Thursday evenings. He gave a 10 minute presentation on the subject of developing pieces from the opening. Key words and phrases that were introduced and explained included: 

Scope of pieces, knights on the rim are dim, sacrifices, checks captures and attacks, minor pieces controlling the centre, material, fianchetto, blocking in pieces, the Kings Indian, castling short and long, connecting up the rooks, paying attention to being efficient with tempo. 

When the talk was completed, many questions were asked. One junior wanted to demonstrate an example of sacrificing a Queen to lead to a ‘smothered mate’, and showed the other junior’s it on a chess board. 

There was a discussion about grades and measuring ability. Then a question was asked to the presenter about how he learns lines, and move order. This question sparked off an interesting discussion about the options available to help chess players learn; a topic that most chess players of all ability would be interested in. 

To conclude the session, a parent offered another child in the group a superb chess book that helps learning: “Chess for Kids – How to Play and Win” by Richard James. 

This demonstrates a variety of methods for learning chess; of facilitating learning.  

Bourne Chess Club has come a long way in its first year! Plenty of members attended to celebrate and join in the happy occasion. There was lots of party food and drinks including a special chessboard cake made by one of the member’s Mum.

Honorary Member Jason Dilley came to join in and played some games of chess, much to the delight of the members. Also attending was Susan from one of the grant providers, Bourne United Charity. In the group were many of the original founders of the club going back to March 2024 and of course a large group who have joined since then.

The occasion was marked by the number of smiling faces who were clearly enjoying the company and atmosphere.  Special thanks need to go to BCC Committee members Andy and Ed for all of their tireless work throughout the year, in the background, entirely free of charge – helping the club to maintain a steady course.

Newcomers are always welcome to try out our Tuesday evening Social evenings that start at 7.30pm – 9.30pm even if you just want to have a relaxing social game, with a cuppa and meeting friendly faces.

Bourne Chess Club is one today!  And what a fantastic year it has been. The Club has come a long way since the first club evening on 21/03/2024 where Honarary Member Jason Dilley opened the Club for the people of Bourne to enjoy playing the game of chess.

Over the year we have had the pleasure of dozens and dozens of visitors who have wanted to come and play some fun chess. So many youngsters in fact, that a Junior’s Club was started on Tuesdays. And for those older chess players who just want to enjoy some relaxing chess, they can attend after the Junior’s Club on a Tuesday.

But we do have the good fortune to have a pool of more competitive chess players who enjoy playing in a range of tournaments: blitz, rapid, standard, over 60’s, informal – there really is a fabulous range of matches to play in. Members can decide if they want to be in tournaments that are ECF rated, whether to play with time controls on our DGT 3000 limited edition chess clocks and whether to notate the games or not. There is something for everyone.

Bourne Chess Club is also thriving in the external “4200 North” league too, currently in top spot.

Bourne has a range of competitive playing members with ELO’s from 1200 up to 1820, and we have big plans to play in more external leagues in the new chess season. If you enjoy competitive chess, then Thursday evenings is for you.

The Club started with a handful of loyal members in the Spring of 2024 who have continued to play at the Club all year round. Many of those members were very generous with their support, advice and financial donations and kept the Club going by coming along each week and playing chess. The Club was set up as non-profit making, which it remains today, and has invested heavily in a wide range of equipment and has been hosted superbly by the good people at Wake House in Bourne. As the Club has grown in strength, the venue has been able to accommodate increased numbers and time slots for the members to attend. Bourne Chess Club is very grateful to the staff of Wake House who have been extremely kind and supportive in their service by helping the club to flourish.

The Club has a small but dedicated Committee who work tirelessly in the background so that members not only benefit from playing chess locally but also at events in the region. The Club would be very grateful for the assistance of more Committee members as it continues to grow; there are vacancies currently for Treasurer, Fixtures Secretary, Vice-Chair, Captain, Social Media Contributer, Results Data Input and these posts do not necessarily need to be filled by active members who participate in playing chess.  All applications to: bournechessclub@gmail.com F.A.O Club Secretary.

Bourne Chess Club is for the people of Bourne – please come down and support our thriving club.

One of the advantages of chess over other hobbies and sports is that it can be played at all ages. Many tournaments have a strong following from under 10 year olds, and some of them are strong chess players. But equally, it can be played at home, for fun, between Grandad and Grandson where they both enjoy some time to bond.

Our photo here is an example of how chess appeals to all ages. Bourne Chess Club members, Harrison (12 yrs) from Glinton playing on the Chess Up 2 board with Ian who is over 80 yrs old. As you can see, both are deeply engrossed in the moves being calculated. Bourne Chess Club invested in the Chess Up 2 because it helps members to recognise strong (and weaker) moves, it can be very useful at helping them to see passages of play that they otherwise may miss, so it develops their ability.

There is also the Bourne Junior’s Club that has under 10 year olds going up to 13 years. The Juniors get to make friends and have fun with puzzles and learning about the game.

Learning chess and then playing the game prepares young people with some vital life skills. To begin with, to learn how to play chess is not easy; rarely does a beginner advance to higher levels of ability that might occur with a natural golf swing or kicking foot.  

The natural progression involves learning how to set the pieces up, how each piece moves and their individual worth. It is beneficial to get some kind of appreciation of what the aim is, many newcomers mistakenly believe it is to take as many of the opponent’s pieces as possible. Recognising the rules or structure in which the game is played does take time such is the depth of all the laws of chess.  

At Bourne Chess Club we methodically guide our learners through 5 stages of progression, each with its own externally marked exam leading to a personalised certificate.   

Beyond considering how to move and how to win, the game introduces to a youngster vital lessons such as learning how to lose gracefully and benefit from losing. Judging an opponent’s ability by their appearance is a common early error. Developing grit, perseverance and patience; as a new player will almost inevitably suffer many losses at the start of their learning path.  Utilising that vital information of why the loss occurred will accelerate progression. 

The game is rich in history and for those who are interested, offers a great insight into how different countries around the world have engaged in the game over hundreds of years and offers an intriguing profile of traits and characteristics of how people tend to play in different continents. It is fascinating that a game that starts off in the exact same position no matter where or who you play, can provide such complexity and unpredictable outcomes.  

A youngster will get used to the etiquette of the game; shaking hands at the start while offering good luck, shaking hands at the end while either being gracious in defeat or generous with advice in success. The discipline that is required to play a game in an orderly fashion takes some getting used to – to not put off or distract your opponent, to remain still, to not instantly play the first move that comes into the mind, to maintain concentration for long periods of time, to maintain the abiility to think while under pressure, to double check for blunders prior to moving.  Nobody would expect a youngster of 6 years to accomplish these skills instantly, but over time, they come to recognise the expectations.  

Perhaps one of the most enjoyable lessons that youngsters learn about chess is its ability to deceive. It takes great skill to not only consider our own position and possible attacks, but also to accurately monitor the intentions of our opponent. It is wonderful to discover how a game can flow in one phase, and yet dramatically twist and turn in another phase. The realisation of the power of pins, skewers, forks and other such tactics is very pleasing to discover. A wonderful lesson for the surprises of life. 

As a young player progresses they inevitably start to play matches in more formal settings of organised tournaments. Often they will gain a sense of pride in representing a chess club as a team but can also enter events as individuals where they try to increase their chess rating, collect trophies and win prize money.  

Playing the game of chess will foster in a child a sense of belonging, where other members in a club support and guide, encourage and praise, and offer in a friendly environment comradeship which is quite particular within chess circles. 

At Bourne Chess Club we would recommend to come along to our Juniors evening first of all on Tuesdays 6.30-7.30pm. Our chess pupils are provided with their own training pack to help them remember key ideas. It is a friendly and fun environment where we mix puzzles, drills, theory and practical chess to help keep our juniors motivated, enthusiastic and able to start seeing the many benefits that chess can offer.