Galway Chess Club

Thursday 14 December sees our year-ending Christmas Blitz tournament. In addition to providing the opportunity of playing seven games of chess, there will be seasonal offerings for you to consume. The seasonal offerings are yet to be decided, but the chess will be played at a speed of 5 minutes per player per game plus a 5 second increment per move. Play will start at 7.30 p.m. prompt; anybody who arrives after the pairings for the first round have been announced can be included from the second round. We expect the tournament to finish at about 10.00 p.m.

Our last 5+5 blitz, held in November, was won by Diego Pereiro Rodriguez, with 6 points out of 7; second equal were Denis Ruchko and Eoin Callinan, on 5½ points. The rating prize, for the highest-placed player rated in the bottom half, was won by Luke Iwasaki, with 4½ points.

Doors open at 7pm. All events start at 7:30.

September 14thGrand Re-opening blitz. (5minutes per game + 5 second increment per move)
September 21stBeginners’ Night
September 28thRapidplay
October 5thBlitz (3+2)
October 12thGalway Winter League (Round 1)
October 19thRapidplay
October 26thChess960/FischerRandom Chess
November 2ndBlitz (5+5)
November 9thGalway Winter League (Round 2)
November 16thRapidplay
November 23rdPuzzle Night
November 30thBlitz (3+2)
December 7thGalway Winter League (Round 3)
December 14thChristmas Blitz

  • Venue: Galway Bridge Centre (upstairs), St. Mary’s Road, Galway.
  • Time: 7pm-10:30pm. Events start at 7:30pm sharp.
  • Season: September to April
  • Regular informal meetings on Tuesday evenings in the Mechanics Institute – contact us in advance.


FAQ

My child loves chess – can they come to the club?

Teenagers are welcome if accompanied by a parent/guardian. Be advised, this is predominantly an adult club, so there may well be alcohol and cursing. For younger children, Brendan Buckley should be contacted about Galway Juniors Chess.

I am a beginner/rusty – would the club be suitable for me?

All welcome, but some events are more suitable than others. The Beginners’ evening, obviously, would be a good place to start. The Rapidplay evenings are also very good, because the time control is about 15 minutes in length, which is a happy medium between the Winter League games which go on for a couple of hours, or the blitzes which are quite fast. If you play a game or two with someone in the club, they should be able to advise you what events you might enjoy.

The Tuesday evening meetings in the Mechanics’ Institute are extremely informal and might also be a good choice.

What’s the story with parking?

Good question…

Do you need to be a member to attend?

No – you are very welcome to drop down and attend an evening or two to see if you like it before we ask you to commit to anything.

I wish to join. How can I do so?

The most popular way to join is to come to one of the club evenings and chat to our Treasurer, Scott. He will take your membership fee of 60e (30e concession), name, and contact details. If you cannot make it down to the club to join, simply email us and we will direct you to a PayPal link.

I wish to be added to your weekly mailing list – how can we make this happen?

Simply email galwaychess[at]gmail[dot]com and let us know.

Contact Email for all queries: galwaychess[at]gmail[dot]com . If you want to be added to our mailing list to receive weekly updates on our goings-on, please send an email to that address.