Clutch Chess: USA

The top four American chess superstars are set to battle online from Tuesday, May 26 - Friday, May 29, 2020 in a brand new and exciting knockout format called Clutch Chess, created by Grandmaster Maurice Ashley, commentator, author, and chess innovator. With $100K in prize money up for grabs, the competitors will prove their mettle under mounting pressure as the tension builds towards the end of each match. This format promises to keep fans glued to their screens by making it impossible for any match to lose steam - even if one player takes a big lead.

At A Glance
Dates May 26 - 29, 2020
Format Clutch Chess: 4-Player Knock-out Tournament
Time controlG/10+5
Prize Fund $100,000

 

Clutch Chess will begin with two semifinal matches of twelve games played over two days, with the winners advancing to the finals. Games 1-4 and 7-10 of the matches will be scored using the traditional method of 1 point for a win and half a point for a draw. Games 5, 6, 11 and 12 - the final two games each day - are worth extra points and bonus prize money for a decisive result. The new scoring system means that a match isn’t over until the very end; with six points available in the last two games, anything can happen.

Games

Win

Draw

Loss

Games 1 - 4

1

½ 

0

Games 5 - 6

2

1

0

Games 7 - 10

1

½ 

0

Games 11 - 12

3

1½ 

0

Total Match Points Possible

18

 

Prize Fund

Stage

1st Place

2nd Place

Clutch Games 5&6

Clutch Games 11&12

Semifinals

Advance to finals

$10,000

$2,000/game

$3,000/game

Finals

$30,000

$20,000

$2,000/game

$3,000/game

 

Schedule

DateStart TimesEvent
May 26Match AMatch B
3:00 PM CDTGame 1Game 1
5 minutes after Game 1 in such MatchGame 2Game 2
5 minutes after Game 2 in such MatchGame 3Game 3
5 minutes after Game 2 in such MatchGame 4Game 4
5 minutes after the later to conclude of Game 4 in Match A and Game 4 in Match BGame 5---
5 minutes after Game 5 in Match A---Game 5
5 minutes after Game 5 in Match BGame 6---
5 minutes after Game 6 in Match A---Game 6
May 273:00 PM CDTGame 7Game 7
5 minutes after Game 7 in such Match Game 8Game 8
5 minutes after Game 8 in such Match Game 9Game 9
5 minutes after Game 9 in such Match Game 10Game 10
5 minutes after the later to conclude of Game 10 in Match A and Game 10 in Match B ---Game 11
5 minutes after Game 11 in Match BGame 11---
5 minutes after Game 11 in Match A---Game 12
5 minutes after Game 12 in Match BGame 12---
Match C (Winners of Match A vs Match B)
May 28

3:00 PM CDT
(with each subsequent game to begin 5 minutes after the the prior game)

Games 1 - 6
May 29

3:00 PM CDT
(with each subsequent game to begin 5 minutes after the the prior game)

Games 7 - 12