Bloomington-Normal Chess

Bloomington-Normal Chess Adult chess serving the Bloomington-Normal area in Central Illinois.

Come join us tonight, casual chess starting around 5:30pm!  Bring clocks and sets. Reminder: This weekend is the Saturda...
06/01/2026

Come join us tonight, casual chess starting around 5:30pm!
Bring clocks and sets.

Reminder: This weekend is the Saturday Swiss at Denny's in Normal: https://new.uschess.org/june-bloomington-normal-first-saturday-dennys

Adult-oriented rated club chess:
Who: Players in high school and older* (*younger players who have achieved an over-the-board US Chess rating of at least 1200 can also participate; players younger than high school must be accompanied by an adult at all times)
When: Mondays at 6:15pm, Round 1 at 6:30pm. Round 1 pairings will be made at approximately 6:20pm, any players arriving after pairings are made will receive a half-point bye for Round 1.
Where: Portillo's in Normal (202 Landmark Dr. Normal, IL 61761)
Format: USCF-Rated (must have active US Chess membership). 4 Rounds G15+2.
Sections and formats may be changed at TD discretion.
Entry Fee: $1; no prizes.

Rated Play Expectations:
- Players bring clocks and sets to use for their games
- Players promptly report their results
- Players should have a reasonable understanding of US Chess rules (i.e. resolving touch move, illegal moves, etc.)
- Players show respect to each other and other players' equipment
- Players and Spectators refrain from interfering in, commenting on, and otherwise distracting players/disrupting games in progress
- Players (after their games) and/or spectators who wish to talk to each other should do so away from active games

Notes:
- Children must be supervised at all times; failure to supervise your children will result in your (and/or your player's) removal from the tournament without warning
- The restaurant may get noisy, and we do not have any control over the noise level.
- Under this time control, games will only affect your USCF Quick rating.
- Taking notation is not required for quick-rated play.

We are committed to creating an inclusive and accessible environment for all players. Harassment of any kind, such as (but not limited to) on the basis of age, s*x, race, color, ethnicity, culture, religion, s*xual orientation, gender expression, or disability, is not tolerated and will result in removal from the tournament.

We thought it would be great to play the best game at the best game store!Join us on Sunday July 26 for the Red Raccoon ...
05/27/2026

We thought it would be great to play the best game at the best game store!
Join us on Sunday July 26 for the Red Raccoon 3x3 at Red Raccoon Games in Bloomington (on the corner of the square in Downtown Bloomington)!
3 rounds in 3 sections!
Full info: https://www.easyaccesschess.com/upcoming/July3x3

Come join us tonight, casual chess starting around 5:30pm!  Bring clocks and sets. Adult-oriented rated club chess:Who: ...
05/25/2026

Come join us tonight, casual chess starting around 5:30pm!
Bring clocks and sets.

Adult-oriented rated club chess:
Who: Players in high school and older* (*younger players who have achieved an over-the-board US Chess rating of at least 1200 can also participate; players younger than high school must be accompanied by an adult at all times)
When: Mondays at 6:15pm, Round 1 at 6:30pm. Round 1 pairings will be made at approximately 6:20pm, any players arriving after pairings are made will receive a half-point bye for Round 1.
Where: Portillo's in Normal (202 Landmark Dr. Normal, IL 61761)
Format: USCF-Rated (must have active US Chess membership). 4 Rounds G15+2.
Sections and formats may be changed at TD discretion.
Entry Fee: $1; no prizes.

Rated Play Expectations:
- Players bring clocks and sets to use for their games
- Players promptly report their results
- Players should have a reasonable understanding of US Chess rules (i.e. resolving touch move, illegal moves, etc.)
- Players show respect to each other and other players' equipment
- Players and Spectators refrain from interfering in, commenting on, and otherwise distracting players/disrupting games in progress
- Players (after their games) and/or spectators who wish to talk to each other should do so away from active games

Notes:
- Children must be supervised at all times; failure to supervise your children will result in your (and/or your player's) removal from the tournament without warning
- The restaurant may get noisy, and we do not have any control over the noise level.
- Under this time control, games will only affect your USCF Quick rating.
- Taking notation is not required for quick-rated play.

We are committed to creating an inclusive and accessible environment for all players. Harassment of any kind, such as (but not limited to) on the basis of age, s*x, race, color, ethnicity, culture, religion, s*xual orientation, gender expression, or disability, is not tolerated and will result in removal from the tournament.

Due to Tornado and Severe Weather risks for Central Illinois (https://www.weather.gov/ilx), we will be cancelling rated ...
04/27/2026

Due to Tornado and Severe Weather risks for Central Illinois (https://www.weather.gov/ilx), we will be cancelling rated chess tonight and replacing it with a free online tournament via Lichess open to all players. The tournament will not be USCF-rated. Non-USCF-rated players, as well as our out-of-town chess friends, are encouraged to participate!
Please spread the word to fellow players in our community who may not check Facebook!
Instructions on joining the online tournament, which will automatically start at 6:30pm.
1. Create an account/sign in at lichess.org
2. Join the Mondays at Portillo's Team here: https://lichess.org/team/mondays-at-portillos | Team entry code is "hotdogs"
3. Join the tournament here: https://lichess.org/swiss/LwEUurWE
4. (Optional) If there are members of the same family playing and you would not like to be paired with each other, please let me know the usernames before the tournament so I can set them to not be paired against each other.
Lichess will pair players registered for the tournament even if they are not online. If you sign up and decide not to play, or need to leave the tournament early, please click the "Withdraw" button within the tournament page.

The Eureka College Open was a great time - we had 38 players across all sections!The links to the USCF Crosstable and Fu...
04/26/2026

The Eureka College Open was a great time - we had 38 players across all sections!
The links to the USCF Crosstable and Full Results can be found here: https://www.easyaccesschess.com/past

Missed out on the action? Check out the recording from our live stream here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CCDdQpeY8nE&t=19971s

Pictures were emailed out to tournament participants. Message this page if you didn't receive them. Otherwise, enjoy some of our favorite pictures from the event!

We had players from Bloomington-Normal, Peoria, Eureka, LaSalle-Peru, Urbana-Champaign, Springfield, St. Louis, and the Chicagoland area! Thank you to everyone who made it out!

Address

Normal, IL
61761

Opening Hours

Monday 6pm - 10pm

Website

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