President's Cup (chess)


The President's Cup determines the U.S. college team chess champion. Hosted in part by the United States Chess Federation, the President's Cup is an annual invitational team championship, open to the top four U.S. schools from the most recent Pan-American Intercollegiate Team Chess Championship. It is run as a fixed-roster team round-robin tournament, scored by individual points. The President's Cup usually takes place in early Spring.

History

The President's Cup has taken place each year in various locations since it was founded in 2001 by Dr. Tim Redman with the financial support of University of Texas at Dallas president Dr. Franklyn Jenifer. Since 2011, the President's Cup has been sponsored in part by Booz Allen Hamilton.

Rules

The governing body for the President's Cup is the College Chess Committee of the USCF. The event is rated by the USCF and World Chess Federation and played under USCF rules. The CCC has established eligibility requirements for college chess, and these same requirements apply to the Pan-Am and the President's Cup. Each team comprises four players and up to two alternates from the same school campus. Unlike the Pan-Am, ties for first place are broken.

Significance

The winner of the President's Cup is considered the top chess team among U.S. post-secondary schools. By contrast, the Pan-Am determines the top post-secondary school in North American, Central America, South America, or the Caribbean. The winning school takes possession of the perpetual trophy, created in 2008 using funds from Sun Trust Bank, for one year.

Winners and venues