FAQ

  1. My child is home schooled and would like to participate. Is that possible?
    Absolutely. You should register your child by selecting the school that your child is zoned in, based on your home address. There is a checkbox that asks if your child is part of the school team; don't check this box. This tournament platform is open to all students living and studying in Polk County, FL. List your name as coach and provide your email/cell number. Don’t forget to check in your child on each tournament day at the front desk. Read the manual and ensure you know all rules and procedures.

  2. Can I register my child on tournament day?
    No. We close our registration a few days before the tournament day so we can compile the registrations, normalize and validate the data and feed into the SwissSys tournament system. 

  3. How do I get notifications and updates about this tournament? 
    The School Board sends a circular to all schools, inviting them to participate. Please contact your school for the same. Also, we invite you to subscribe to our newsletter and emails so that you receive notifications in time. Subscribe to our Twitter (X) feed so you get updates on tournament days.

  4. What are the tournament timings?
    From 7:45 to 8:15 am, Coaches should Check-in at our front desk. Normally the games are over by 4 pm, depending on how your child plays.

  5.  What are the dates of the tournaments?
    Check out our website's home page for most updated information.

  6. What is the venue of the tournaments?
    The tournament venue is the Bartow Civic Center (2250 S. Floral Ave, Bartow, FL 33830).

  7. Will there be any food available at the tournaments?
    It depends if our licensed and insured food vendors decide to participate. If our food vendors are not available, then we recommend that you check out the downtown Bartow area for food and snacks. Feel free to bring snacks and drinks from home. Don't forget to bring chairs and canopies also.

  8. Whom should I contact for registration issues?
    We recommend you contact school coach first, so they can verify the info on their Coaches Corner. If there is any technical issue, let us know by emailing us at President@PolkScholasticChess.com.

  9. Are there any reserved seating areas for the schools at the Civic Center? 
    No - indoor seating is limited. We have a few rooms where you can find space for your team - strictly on a FIRST COME FIRST SERVE basis. A lot of teams like to have their canopies in the outdoors depending on the weather. Please plan accordingly and be ready for the weather changes. 

  10.  Where is your head office and what is your phone number?
    Polk Scholastic Chess is a three-decade old Non-Profit Organization that is operated by a board comprised of volunteers from Polk County. We do not have any office or an official phone number, but we are proud to host large tournaments with over 650 players since many years thanks to support of these Board Members, Polk County School Board and you all.

  11. Are you affiliated with any national chess associations and rated tournaments?
    No. We are a non-profit whose mission and focus is furthering academic progress. We conduct inter-school tournaments and award scholarships.

  12. When can I expect to see the results on your website?
    As we have done for the past 25+ years and per our tradition, we have the morning award ceremony, and the certificates and medals will be awarded to winners of previous tournament by our distinguished chief guest. The previous tournament's results are uploaded to our website by approximately 10 am on the tournament day (shortly after the morning's award ceremony is over).

 

COACHES FAQ:
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  1. I am a new coach. What do I need to do? 
    All coaches need to login to our Coaches Corner to download the forms. These need to be filled out, signed by the School Principal and uploaded onto the Coaches Corner.

  2. Is there a rule book for the tournaments?
    The tournament manual is available from our home page or CLICK HERE.

  3. Should all players who registered online be checked in again on each tournament day?
    Yes, On different tournament days, we would have different count of players who come in, and our pairing system will need an exact count of players present on that day.

VENDORS
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FOOD VENDORS and FOOD TRUCKS: We invite insured food vendors to apply for participation at our tournaments. We ask that you provide us a money order of $100 per tournament day, a proof of your insurance, hold harmless, additional riders, as well as the background checks for all of your staff who will be present on site. We reserve the right to review the menu and approve or deny items, if there is a conflict with a previously approved vendor (we have first come first come policy as well as we try to minimize competition for same food menu.