2026 Camberley Keith Richardson Rapid Play Tournament

The 2026 Keith Richardson Memorial Tournament was held on Saturday 26th Sep at Camberley Chess Club. Keith was a valued club member from the 1970s, an International Correspondence Grandmaster and very well known in the English chess community. He played for the club right up to his death in 2017. He suffered from Parkinson’s disease and a significant contribution to Parkinson’s UK will be made from this events proceeds.

This was the 9th Keith Richardson event and the format was unchanged from all previous years, as one single section, 6 rounds of Rapidplay, 20 mins plus 5 sec increment . This gave the opportunity for participants to experience playing against a wide variety of rating strengths.

Prize winners

There were some very impressive performances and in particular from the many juniors who had entered and many close finishes particularly in the last couple of rounds.

  • However, there was a clear winner with 6 point out of 6, Peter Large, winning the 1st placed prize of £150. Peter also wins the FREE first year Camberley Club membership for the highest placed non club member.
  • In 2nd place was club member Jon Ady with 5 points out 6, winning the £100 2nd place prize.
  • There were 5 players all with the same 4.5 points: Aditya Sengupta, Mohammad Mozaffari, Harry Chan, Adrian Wallace and Paul Sloane.
  • So, the 3rd placed prize of £50 went to club member and junior Aditya Sengupta on tie-break.
  • Harry Chan won the Highest placed junior prize of £50 with a fantastic set of results (and an event performance rating of 1895) and also won the FREE first year Camberley Club membership for the highest placed JUNIOR non club member.
  • The Under 1600 rating prize of £50 went to Lewis Mallett who scored 3.5 points.

A new prize was introduced this year, the “David and Goliath Prize” awarded to the player who beats an opponent whose rating has the biggest rating difference from their own rating.

  • The David and Goliath Prize was won by junior club member Jake Meiring, rated 986, who beat a 1598 player, and had an event performance rating of 1321.

Congratulations to all the winners:

Thanks

Special thanks to Thomas West for doing an excellent job as the tournament ECF arbiter, Linda and Bob Wooding for providing and serving the widely acclaimed refreshments throughout the event, and Charlotte Butler who ran the Swiss-Manger pairing software on the day and kept the game by game results up to date as they happened via chess-results on the big screen.

Also thanks to Warren Wright and everyone else who helped with the setting up and the clearing away on the day.

Also thanks to Steve Harley and Martin Wallman for organising the whole event.

Thanks to all the participants for supporting this event and making it so friendly and enjoyable.

There were many very positive comments about the event, like these:

  • “Hi thank you so much to everyone that helped and organised the tournament yesterday, I really enjoyed it!”
  • “Thank you very much for the Camberley Chess club and its leadership for arranging a fantastic event. The whole event ran on a time , well organized and well fed”
  • “It was great.. a very well run Tournament by everyone involved.. a big thankyou from me to Martin & Steve for making it the success it was on the day.”
  • “Well done, Camberley Chess Club really know how to run a chess tournament!”

The full results can be seen below, and if you click on the image you can get further details by round, performance ratings etc. There are also many photos below too.

Tournament results

Tournament Photos

From the Mat to the Board: Finding Your Place at Camberley Chess Club

Whether you’re dropping into our Thursday club nights at Heatherside Community Centre or joining us on Sunday afternoons over at Pine Ridge Golf Club, you quickly realize what makes Camberley Chess Club tick. It’s an easygoing, welcoming environment where players of all abilities thrive.

As the club’s New Member Officer, my job is to help you find your place here—whether that means enjoying a relaxed social game or setting your sights on competitive league play.

My own route to the board wasn’t a conventional chess upbringing. Before I ever studied opening theory, my world was martial arts—spending 8 years training hard in Taekwondo, earning a 2nd Degree Black Belt, serving as a National Instructor, Training with the England Squad and running my own club. That journey demanded everything: passion, dedication, confidence, skill, tactics, strategy, physical and mental fitness, flexibility, resilience, and true spirit.

Looking back, stepping onto the mat and sitting opposite an opponent at board one share a very specific dynamic: it is ultimately a solo journey, underpinned by an authentic community spirit.

The Solo Journey & Authentic Community Spirit

The Grind: Whether you’re drilling a kick or reviewing endgame tactics alone, progress takes personal accountability and quiet focus. Under the clock, you are entirely on your own.

The Post-Mortem Bond: You can battle someone fiercely across the board for hours, only to lean in afterward, laugh at a missed tactic, and break down the game together over a chat. That shared camaraderie is the true heartbeat of our club.

Stepping Up: Bridging Social Play to League Action

If you have ambitions to play competitive chess, our club provides a fantastic pathway. A core part of my role is helping new members gain the experience, confidence, and match sharpness needed to break into our C-teams across the Surrey Borders League and Berkshire League.

With accessible rating caps generally sitting around the U1550 ECF mark, these developmental divisions are ideal, friendly entry points for club-standard players. Whether you’re transitioning from casual play or dusting off an old rating, here is how we make that happen:

Building Experience: We provide a supportive, fun environment during our Thursday sessions and Sunday casual meetups to help you sharpen your skills, test out openings, and get comfortable playing with a clock.

Mastering the Basics: League matches require keeping score. If you’re new to recording your games, I am more than happy to help you get to grips with chess notation so you feel completely confident.

League Pathways: Once you’re ready, I’m here to guide you step-by-step into our Surrey Borders and Berkshire League C-teams, ensuring you feel fully supported.

Club Competitions & Support: I can also help you navigate entry into our internal club tournaments to give you extra competitive reps in a friendly setting.

Are you looking to jump straight into league practice, or just ease in with a friendly social game first?

Drop by a club night or a Sunday session, look out for me, and say hello.

Warren Wright
New Member Officer
Camberley Chess Club

2024-2025 Sunday afternoon meetings

Sun December 8, 2024 @ 2:00 PM – 4:00 PM

We meet on Sundays afternoons for informal social / casual chess in a family friendly area. Chess players, parents and guests all welcome. Meetings are FREE just come along to the Camberley based Ascot Brewing Company, Unit 4, Lawrence Way, Camberley, Surrey GU15 3DL – There is parking outside adjacent units that are closed on Sundays.

Chaos Brew Co (formerly Disruption IS/Ascot Brewing)

Unit 4, Lawrence Way
Camberley, Surrey GU15 3DL United Kingdom
+ Google Map

2024-2025 Sunday afternoon meetings

Sun December 1, 2024 @ 2:00 PM – 4:00 PM

We meet on Sundays afternoons for informal social / casual chess in a family friendly area. Chess players, parents and guests all welcome. Meetings are FREE just come along to the Camberley based Ascot Brewing Company, Unit 4, Lawrence Way, Camberley, Surrey GU15 3DL – There is parking outside adjacent units that are closed on Sundays.

Chaos Brew Co (formerly Disruption IS/Ascot Brewing)

Unit 4, Lawrence Way
Camberley, Surrey GU15 3DL United Kingdom
+ Google Map

2024-2025 Sunday afternoon meetings

Sun November 10, 2024 @ 2:00 PM – 4:00 PM

We meet on Sundays afternoons for informal social / casual chess in a family friendly area. Chess players, parents and guests all welcome. Meetings are FREE just come along to the Camberley based Ascot Brewing Company, Unit 4, Lawrence Way, Camberley, Surrey GU15 3DL – There is parking outside adjacent units that are closed on Sundays.

Chaos Brew Co (formerly Disruption IS/Ascot Brewing)

Unit 4, Lawrence Way
Camberley, Surrey GU15 3DL United Kingdom
+ Google Map

2024-2025 Sunday afternoon meetings

Sun November 24, 2024 @ 2:00 PM – 4:00 PM

We meet on Sundays afternoons for informal social / casual chess in a family friendly area. Chess players, parents and guests all welcome. Meetings are FREE just come along to the Camberley based Ascot Brewing Company, Unit 4, Lawrence Way, Camberley, Surrey GU15 3DL – There is parking outside adjacent units that are closed on Sundays.

Chaos Brew Co (formerly Disruption IS/Ascot Brewing)

Unit 4, Lawrence Way
Camberley, Surrey GU15 3DL United Kingdom
+ Google Map

2024-2025 Sunday afternoon meetings

Sun November 17, 2024 @ 2:00 PM – 4:00 PM

We meet on Sundays afternoons for informal social / casual chess in a family friendly area. Chess players, parents and guests all welcome. Meetings are FREE just come along to the Camberley based Ascot Brewing Company, Unit 4, Lawrence Way, Camberley, Surrey GU15 3DL – There is parking outside adjacent units that are closed on Sundays.

Chaos Brew Co (formerly Disruption IS/Ascot Brewing)

Unit 4, Lawrence Way
Camberley, Surrey GU15 3DL United Kingdom
+ Google Map

2024-2025 Sunday afternoon meetings

Sun November 3, 2024 @ 2:00 PM – 4:00 PM

We meet on Sundays afternoons for informal social / casual chess in a family friendly area. Chess players, parents and guests all welcome. Meetings are FREE just come along to the Camberley based Ascot Brewing Company, Unit 4, Lawrence Way, Camberley, Surrey GU15 3DL – There is parking outside adjacent units that are closed on Sundays.

Chaos Brew Co (formerly Disruption IS/Ascot Brewing)

Unit 4, Lawrence Way
Camberley, Surrey GU15 3DL United Kingdom
+ Google Map
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