Updated: Where to Play Chess in Singapore 2018

At the beginning of the year 2018, I had posted on "Where to Play Chess in Singapore 2018" on my old chess blog page. (I had to give up on wordpress.com because it did not support iframes necessary for embedding chess games.)

Now, I'd like to look at the various chess sites and what we can expect from them. In addition, I hope my dear readers can inform me of any local chess site(s) I am not aware of. My rule still applies: I will only list down chess sites that are generally open to the public. This includes any place that allows for chess to be played freely, as well as CCs that charge a very nominal fee.

Specifically excluded are chess schools or institutions for obvious reasons -- I do not wish to compare one against another, neither am I qualified to do so.

Last but not least, I will indicate whether I have visited / have been visiting the chess site(s), so as to contextualise my views on the chess site. Also, I make it a point to try and visit every chess site at least once in my lifetime, so for the site(s) that I am unfamiliar with, I will try to make a visit when I'm able to.

From Mondays to Sundays, the following are the chess sites you can consider visiting!

Mondays

No chess site known at present. Do you see this as a rest day (or a sad day) of the week? ^o^

Tuesdays

NUS Intellectual Games Club (NUS IGC)

Where: National University of Singapore (NUS), Kent Ridge Campus, Multi Purpose Sports Hall (MPSH4)

When: 6:30pm to 9pm

What to expect / Personal thoughts

The  featured 5 games: (International) Chess, Chinese Chess, Go (围棋), Othello / Reversi and Contract Bridge. One thing I really liked when I was a student (yes, I was young once too!) is having the option to move around to other games. Sometimes, it can be boring playing the same game again and again, and we just want to have some fun trying out other games.

This is the only chess site I know available on Tuesdays, so if you want to play chess, and happen to either live or work in the Western region, this is probably a great choice! It is unfortunate that I have not found time to revisit the IGC over the past years (It's really tough for me. Location aside, my weekly chess commitment is actually quite heavy for a working adult... wish I played more when I was younger!), but I'm sure they are in good hands with enthusiastic juniors overseeing the Club.

How time flies ^o^ For any queries, please contact NUS IGC (igcDOTnusATgmailDOTcom).

The front and back of the Club T-shirt in its founding year. 

Following which, Contract Bridge has joined the big family ^o^ 

You can also check out NUS IGC's pictorial updates on their Instagram. 

Wednesdays 

Do yourself a favour and get to know the best chess site in Singapore!

The Singapore Chess Meetup

Where: Asia Square Tower One (nearest MRT station is Downtown Station, Downtown "Blue" line)

When: 6:30pm onwards

Membership fee: None

What to expect / Personal thoughts
The best local chess experience in Singapore across all the chess sites listed here. I don't think I am being rude to the players and organisers at other chess sites (I play weekly at another chess site on Sundays as well), but this is the truth! Find me another chess site that can boast either (a) a membership of 1000+ and still growing, or (b) an average of 30(!) players ready to play a game at each session. 

I can't recommend this chess site enough: (i) Friendly for complete beginners -- the meetup will teach players who do not know the rules or how the pieces move (ii) Excellent site for socialising -- majority of attendees are working adults, (iii) Good training ground for improvement -- some kids enjoy playing against the strong adult players there, and we have players (myself included!) who play standard (90+30) long games there!

With all these good things going on, is there any wonder why the Singapore Chess Meetup is the #1 choice of titled players (GMs, IMs and the like) visiting Singapore?

While the meetup is equipped with a number of chess sets and clocks, to avoid waiting time, do consider bringing your own chess equipment if you own one. Also, for the benefit of players who are new to the meetup, please do RSVP on the meetup page so that they can be assured of the chess meetup's popularity and activity.

Thursdays

No chess site known at present. Do you see this as a rest day (or a sad day) of the week? ^o^

Fridays

Spoilt for choice over the 2 options available! (In fact, quite a number of adults are also playing in the ongoing unrated 4 versus 4 QCD Adults Chess League on Scheduled Fridays!) 

Thomson CC Chess Club

Where: Thomson Community Club, level 3

When: 7:30pm to 9pm
Membership fee: $18/year (aged 13 and above), $12/year (aged 12 and below), requires PAssion Card membership to join.

What to expect / Personal thoughts

An interesting mix of adult players and kids, the organiser / facilitator is Mr John Wong, a very experienced local chess coach. It's location is really quite good for me -- just 1 MRT stop away from my workplace. Also, I have other friends who would often bring their students to gain some experience playing against others.

Even though this is not an "official" aspect of the club, I quite enjoy the "mentorship" element there, whereby after a game concludes, we would often ask the stronger player (usually the winner of the game) how the game could've been improved. And most often, we have quite a bit to say or ask one another. I would say that the environment is especially conducive for young / new players seeking to improve their game.

Cashew Chess Club

Where: Cashew RC Zone 5 (Bukit Panjang Plaza McDonald’s)
When: 8pm onwards
Membership fee: None

What to expect / Personal thoughts
One of the co-founders of the chess club, Mr Weng Chew, is an extremely serious chess player (definitely more so than myself). If you are a serious player yourself, I'm sure you will enjoy the company / atmosphere. If you are not, I guess you have room to work on and improve yourself ^o^

Saturdays

*New* Chess Interest Group (updated on 26 Aug 2018)

Where: Kent Ridge Guild House, Lobby / Activity Room

When: 1st Saturday of each month

Membership fee: Free for NUSS members, $5 for Guests

What to expect / Personal thoughts

I only just heard about this new chess site. Do refer to the information below and raise any queries to the person-in-charge directly.

*Updated 10 Nov 2018* Cairnhill CC

*Full credit to Allen from Singapore Chess Meetup for the information below.*

From Allen's account, Cairnhill CC plays weekly from around 4pm to 7pm. It consists an existing group of players, around 8 to 10 of them, who are closely knit. It seems the group consists of very strong players in the rating range of 2000 and above. Sounds good. I will see if I can check them out in future to come.

Sundays

There are at least 4 places to play chess -- may you find most convenient or suitable chess site for yourself!

Pub X Chess

Where: Different Pub locations across Singapore -- venue is determined only the week / days before, so that everyone can have a fresh feel playing at different places (please keep a lookout on the meetup page or the facebook page). 

When: Usually starts at 3:30pm sharp (Please check the meetup page before the event to confirm).

Membership fee: None

What to expect / Personal thoughts
Fundamentally, you play chess at the pub while enjoying food and drinks (you pay for your own purchase, of course). Every week, there is a blitz tournament for all the attendees at no cost. From time to time, the pub may also offer special discounts for attendees of the meetup. If you happen to enjoy blitz in particular, go for it! I would even go as far to say, that if you like blitz in particular, you will enjoy yourself at this meetup far more than any of the the other chess sites listed (on Sundays) -- I don't think any other chess sites can offer such a good blitz experience, or have that many players readily available to play a blitz tournament in particular.

I got the PubXChess shirt to support their cause. S.K. stands for scorekeeper, a nickname given to me by Mr Bradley Loh, founder of the Singapore Chess Meetup. newbie stands for my chess nick newbie_learner. Based on the Encyclopedia of Chess Openings (ECO), A04 stands for the Reti opening 1.Nf3, a first move which I like for its flexibility.

Proceeds go into growing the meetup further in terms of sourcing and securing for more venues and organise more events. Should you be interested ($40 / shirt), please drop a private message on their facebook page, stating the size, name and ECO. 

Nanyang CC Chess Club

Where: Nanyang Community Club, ground floor, "glass room"
When: 3pm - 5pm
Membership fee: None

What to expect / Personal thoughts
A young but highly enthusiastic chess club. I guess I can say I have special affinity with the club and good chemistry with the organiser ^o^. This year, they have organised 2 of the very well-received 1-day events with the Singapore Chess Federation, namely the kickoff tournament at the beginning of the year, and the recently concluded Nanyang Racial Harmony Team Chess Challenge 2018, which I have also covered in a previous post.

A couple of rather strong players happen to be the clubs "resident players". They are not titled players but are much more well-read and capable than myself to offer some tips and pointers to the kids and new players. Its unfortunate that I can not visit the Chess Club these days. Travelling 4 hours from my home in the east just to get to play a few hours of chess is just not sustainable or efficient use of time.

Truth be told, besides the "normal" 1v1 chess, the most enjoyable experiences I had was actually with NYCC Chess Club. They were a casual 2v2 relay chess played, as well as the Tandem Simul challenge with IM Kevin Goh Wei Ming, Singapore's top active player at present, as well as CM Olimpiu Urcan, a local chess scholar and journalist.

p.s. If / when you get to the club in person  do keep a lookout for the framed T-shirts signed by Vishy Anand and Magnus Carlsen, contributed by yours truly. I caught their signature when they came to Singapore -- still a minor regret that I couldn't get Kasparov's when he came, but I guess life is never perfect.

Queenstown CC Chess Club

Where: Queenstown Community Centre
When: 3pm - 7pm
Membership fee:
1 year – $10 (under 20) | $20 (Adults)
3 years — $ 25 (under 20) | $50 (Adults)

What to expect / Personal thoughts
To be honest, it's been quite a while since I personally visited Queenstown CC Chess Club. The last time I visited it, was when a match was organised between Cashew Chess Club and Queenstown CC Chess Club. It was there that I happen to see a popular chess figure I've not met for yearS, and I shared a little bit of the good old days, even though he had forgotten about me ^o^

In any case, according to its website information, the club boasts the largest paid local chess membership I am aware of. This, I believe can be attributed to its long standing chess history in Singapore. There are chess enthusiasts like Mr Weng Chew (yes, the co-founder of the Cashew Chess Club) who visits it every Sunday, so I believe it must have its charm and appeal to get players revisiting it. It's unfortunate that the timing clashes head on with the Club I cover in the Eastern side of Singapore, so I am unable to visit it more often than I wish.

Siglap South CC Chess Club

Where: Siglap South CC, Room #02-07
When: 3pm - 6pm (or any other hour which I can stay until)
Membership fee:
$4 for members aged 13 and below for 1/2 year (or $8 per annum)
$9 for members aged above 13 for 1/2 year (or $18 per annum)

What to expect / Personal thoughts
The chess club was started by Mr John Wong, though I became the "regular-covering-in-charge" along the way ^o^ I do admit that we started off having much more kids, although as at present, I feel that the proportion and number of adult players have caught up.

While I may be extremely particular about the etiquette in chess (as you can tell by my other posts ), I think I am quite patient and tolerant of kids' misbehaviour (the conditions of the chipped pieces would probably have made some "serious" chess players mad). I believe we were all young and misbehaved at least once in our lifetime. For example, I do understand that some kids were taught to make captures (esp. winning-looking moves) as loud and as forceful as possible for intimidation purpose. So whenever I see this, I do not immediately reprimand the kid(s). Instead, I would ask if this was taught by his coach, and just share an alternate view for them to think for themselves if they should continue with such behaviour. I would also offer very basic tips in terms of how to play well, as well as corrections over any misunderstanding over the application of FIDE Laws of Chess.

I see chess as a lifelong learning progress. Hence, I am looking forward to participate in any future arbiter / trainer's course as part of self improvement and constant "quality control" for the Chess Club =)

Recently, I have also gotten a new "toy", a DGT Smart Board which I intend to bring to Siglap South CC on a regular basis to record the rapid and blitz games played. Hopefully, the players there would also be interested and have a couple of games using the set =)

So long as the board is powered, the moves are being recorded in the board's internal memory (up to around 500 moves).

Now that Nanyang CC, Queenstown CC and Siglap South CC Chess Clubs all have the same starting time for their chess sessions, I am actually considering if there can be
some sort of inter-club sparring sessions. This is just my own idea -- I have not consulted the organisers from the other CCs. Still, it does seem interesting. If Queenstown CC does not mind, it is probably the most idea central location, since Nanyang CC and Siglap South CC are just at different ends of Singapore ^o^

I hope you can find at least a chess site suitable for your needs. Thank you for your time reading this.


Yours sincerely
Ong Yujing
(a.k.a. newbie_learner)