Chess Links and Resources

Whether you are a new chess player, or a seasoned tournament player, these links and resources are provided to assist you in furthering your chess development, finding other local and national chess players, or just to keep up with the latest chess news.

Chess Resources

Organizations

The South Carolina Chess Association (NHCA) — A non-profit organization whose primary goal is to promote chess in the state of South Carolina.
The United States Chess Federation (USCF) — The official, not-for-profit US membership organization for chess players and chess supporters of all ages and strengths, from beginners to Grandmasters. The USCF has grown to over 80,000 members and 2,000+ affiliated chess clubs and organizations today.
FIDE (World Chess Federation) — Founded in Paris on 20 July 1924, the World Chess Federation is recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) as the supreme body, responsible for the organization of chess and its championships at global and continental levels.

Sites of Interest

The Internet Chess Club (ICC) — Play chess online with people all over the world. Also has lessons, videos, and live broadcast of tournaments
PlayChess.com — Play chess online with people all over the world. Also has lessons, videos, and live broadcast of tournaments
Chess.com — Play chess online. Partner of USCF and home to USCF-rated online tournaments
ChessBase: Online Database — A chess viewer that allows you to make moves creating a position, and then search for games that took place with that position.

Free Programs and Resources

Arena — Arena is a free Graphical User Interface (GUI) for chess. Arena helps you in analyzing and playing games as well as in testing chess engines. It runs on Linux or Windows. Arena is compatible with UCI and Winboard protocols. Furthermore, Arena supports Chess960, DGT electronic chess boards & DGT clocks and much more.
Lucas Chess — The program has 52 engines ready to play from the start, with very different levels, from 0 to 3300 Elo. This list isn't fixed, and you can add others as long as they use the UCI protocol. The game can be customized by limiting the engine's analysis depth or thinking time, or by changing how it makes decisions. You can also choose the opening, start from a specific position, or have the engine use an openings book or other aids. Younger children can start their learning with special engines that know little more than how to move the pieces, allowing them to win against the engines from the very beginning.
ChessX — ChessX is a wonderful, free chess software that is perfect for storing and analyzing games, setting up positions, and working with databases. It is compatible with many free chess engines for game analysis. I recommend visiting their website to see a full list of its features and functionality. It's a must-own, really.
MyFreeGames.com PGN files — Another interesting collection of chess games sorted by opening or defense, and also featuring certain Grandmaster's games by name, all in PGN format. A program such as ChessCat is useful for viewing them.
Printable Items
How to Improve Your Chess — A quick guide to improving your chess game and increasing your rating. This guide is a short summary of important chess tips. If you have been struggling to improve your game, this guide is a must-have.
USCF Historic Look Score Sheet — These score sheets were provided by the USCF during the '70s, back when the USCF was located in Newburgh, NY. I like them because they have a narrower width, so they take up less space on the playing table, and because you can record 60 moves on one side, which is more than most other score sheets allow.
USCF Modern Look Score Sheet — These score sheets are saved as an Adobe PDF file. If you have the Adobe reader installed on your computer, you can open and print them.
Another Score Sheet — These score sheets are saved as an Adobe PDF file. Another choice of printable score sheets in a slightly different format.
Chess Moves and Captures — This is a very basic document in PDF format. It provides basic instructions on how the chess pieces move and capture. It also includes some information on checking and checkmate.
Chess Basic Moves and Captures 2 — Another very basic document in PDF format offering basic instructions on piece movement from a slightly different perspective.
Chess Research Summary: Student Benefits — A factually detailed document citing many of the studies that have been done explaining the benefits of chess on school students.