U.S. Junior Open 2023

July 21 - 23, 2023

Register  Entry List

Please see all the necessary information below, including the "Terms and Conditions," which explain how to withdraw, process refunds, and change your registration information. 

2023 US Junior Open 

The 2023 US Senior Open is part of the Caveman Chess Festival. Below is brief information about other aspects of the Festival, followed by information about the tournament.

Caveman Chess Camp

The Caveman Chess Camp has sections for all ages and strengths.  The Adult Fundamentals section is for Adults only and has a maximum strength of around 1600. The class focuses on chess fundamentals that people may have missed over the years. (Do you know Steinitz's Six Principles?) Another class is Advanced Adult, which does allow juniors rated over 1700. The Master Class is open to players of any age rated 2000 and up. Classes have counselors to assist in keeping class decorum.

We strongly encourage seniors to participate in the camp. If a group of seniors would like to register together, we are willing to consider an additional discount.

Tournaments at the Festival

There will be other tournaments at the same time as the US Senior, which may offer you an opportunity to travel with friends. All events are in separate playing areas.

  1. US Blind Championship
  2. US Senior Open
  3. US Junior Open
  4. Caveman Medior Open (For players who are neither Juniors nor Seniors)
  5. US Junior Blitz (Sat 7/22)
  6. US Senior/Medior Blitz (Sat 7/22)

Non-Chess Events

The Festival includes several non-chess events, for adults, for campers, tournament players, parents, and spouses. These events include:

  1. Dinner and theater with the Grandmasters, Dury Lane Theater, Oakbrook, Thursday July 20
  2. Shopping Excursion (likely Friday, July 21)
  3. Fitness Class (likely Saturday, July 22)

 Other non-chess events may be added. Please reach out to us if you have a suggestion.

On-Site Accommodations

The Festival will have an on-site cafe hot meal plan. There are no taxes or tips for the cafe.

The Festival will also have a dormitory plan. Both of these plans will be up by early December.

Shuttle

There will be a shuttle plan from O'Hare and possibly Midway. We are currently working on this.

Summary of Key Terms and Conditions

This is a summary of essential Terms and Conditions. To see all Terms and Conditions, go to https://www.cavemanchess.com/terms-conditions

Withdrawals: To withdraw from an event, go to https://cavechess.cc/withdraw and fill out the form. Emails will be ignored.

Refunds: To see the entire policy, go to the Terms and Conditions link above. Here are important points:

  • Processing refunds is secondary to running the event without a hitch
  • While we will attempt to pay refunds sooner, our policy is to pay within ten business days following the event. We had some issues with this in 2022 because of medical issues, but we are changing some procedures to simplify the process and stay on track
  • In our standard refund policy, refunds take the following forms:

    • Type 1: A credit of the full fee towards future tournaments or events, or

    • Type 2: A refund of the fee minus the greater of a 10% or $5 service charge. This charge is necessary because entries include processing fees not refunded to us, and time is involved in processing refunds. This is why we also provide a full fee credit alternative.
    • For the Caveman Chess Festival, all events, Early Bird and Early Registrations will receive a full refund. However, no Early Bird or Early Registration Refunds will be processed until the end of the Early Registration period (June 1.) 

Registration Corrections and Changes

  1. Please verify the information before submitting the registration.
    1. For example, some browsers with very persistent "autofill" tools have frequently overwritten a participant's name with the name of the person completing the registration. Verify your registration information before submitting.
  2. To make a change/correction, do not email. Go to https://cavechess.cc/change, to process changes.
  3. There is a $5 fee for each (set of) changes.

US Junior Open Information

Date(s):

Friday, July 21 - July 23, 2023.

Eligibility

 

Must be under 21 on January 1, 2023.

https://www.cavemanchess.com/events-and-tournaments for more info and complete details. 

Location:

 

 

Elmhurst University Founder's Lounge, Frick Hall

Building & Room may be adjusted. Watch website.

Approximately one week before the event, we will email a pdf booklet outlining rooms, schedules, dorm rooms, where to check-in

Rounds, Sections: 

 

6 Round Swiss System with 4 sections: (based on age as of 1/1/23): U21, U15, U11, U8. 

The U21 section is the Championship section

Ratings:

June supplement. U21 only section is FIDE and US Chess rated.
All other sections are US Chess rated only. 

Time Control: 

G/90+30

Entry Fee:

 

 
  • $95 through January 17th 
  • $120 through June 1
  • $160 through July 10
  • $180 through July 21

Byes:

 

 

 

Up to two half-point byes in rounds 1-6, must commit by end of rd. 2.

Later or onsite entries will be by computer. Players registering late will possibly receive an automatic ½ bye in round one.  www.cavemanchess.com for more information.

Round Times:

 

Round Times: Fri 1:00 pm & 6:00 pm; Sat 9:00 am & 3:00 pm; Sun 8:30 am & 2:30 pm.

Tournament Check-in:

 

There is no tournament check-in. Please verify your information online before the tournament.

Tournament Registration:

 

Online only. https://cavechess.cc/reg-USJunior23. Even onsite entries will be completed online. No cash or checks at any time.

Prizes:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

All plaques are awarded based on points and tie-breaks. (Modified Median, Solkoff, Cumulative, Cumulative of Opposition in Order.)

60 Plaques, up to $2,400 GTD cash, Medals for each participant

Individual Prizes:

U21 (Championship) Section:

First Place:

  • The first eligible player who is in or tied for first receives an invitation to the 2024 U.S. Junior Championship
    • Also receives an additional $500, intended (not required) as a travel stipend
  • Any other players tied for first, may receive up to $200 (max $1,000), irrespective of tie-breaks. 

Plaques to top 10 overall; & to top age 18, 17, 16, 15,

U15 Section

1st: $200

U15 plaques to top 10 overall, top age 14, 13, 12, 11

U11 Section

1st: $200

U11 plaques to top 10 overall, & to top age 10, 9, 8

U8 Section

1st: $100

U8; U8 plaques to top 10 overall, plaques to top age 7, 6, U6.

Team prizes:

U21/Open Section: 1st: $300  

All sections:  Plaques to top 3 school teams in each section, top 3 scores count as team score. 

Cash prizes paid electronically within 10 business days after the tournament and the participant has completed any required paperwork.

Dorm Rooms and Nearby Hotels:

Dorm Rooms are available, initially ranging from $60-$85 a person. Reserve early! Shop for dorm rooms at https://www.cavemanchess.com/dorm-rooms-for-tournaments.

Nearby hotels – 10 within 2.5 miles 45 within 5 miles.

Airport Transportation:

Shuttle service from O'Hare currently being set up.

Chief TD:

 

NTD/FA Glenn Panner, for all the Festival events (Senior Open, Caveman Medior Open, Junior Open.) Event TDs determined soon.

Equipment:

 

 

 

 

Caveman Chess provides sets, and boards; please bring clocks. Please know how to set your clock for increment and how to add time to the clock in case of a time penalty. Print out instructions and carry them with you. See Setting http://pdxchess.org/wp-content/uploads/Setting-the-popular-digital-clocks-for-G90inc30.pdf .  Also, check YouTube for videos of your clock and know how to add penalty time. 

New US Chess Members:

 

If you don't yet have US Chess membership, put eight zeros, "00000000" in the form for US Chess ID number when registering.

Parking:

Free parking onsite

COVID:

 

 

 

Cook County rules are in force, and towns might add their own rules. Currently, masks are optional. We suggest being fully vaccinated and bringing along an N95 or KN95. Be prepared in case either infection rates increase or if entries increase at the last minute causing some crowding. See our COVID Policy at https://www.cavemanchess.com/coronavirus-impact

Side Events:

 

 

 

Thu eve, GM Simul, GM Lecture, Saturday Blitz after R4. Blitz registration will be posted online separately. Details coming. On-campus meals available (no taxes/tips). Information on possible meal plan and shuttle service to/from O'Hare/Midway coming. Free WiFi on campus. Caveman Chess Camp 7/16-21; adult-only camp sections available, see website for details. 

Terms & Conditions, Including Refunds & Withdrawals:

 

 

 

 

See https://www.cavemanchess.com/terms-conditions

Due to unpredictable event sizes, Caveman Chess reserves the right to reconfigure any tournament at the last minute. We will do our best to email you in advance and offer an opportunity to withdraw. We will also do our best to reconfigure in a way that keeps the basic spirit of the tournament and makes sense given the number of participants and that meets US Chess rules for minimum prizes. Adjustments to this event design are unlikely.

Questions:

Contact@cavemanchess.com