Chess in Florida

Chess in Florida
AL AK AZ AR CA CO CT DE DC GA HI ID IL IN IA KS KY LA ME MD MA MI MN MS MO MT NE NV NH NJ NM NY NC ND OH OK OR PA RI SC SD TN TX UT VT VA WA WV WI WY
Top Player	Fabiano Caruana (2862 USCF, 2784 FIDE)
Champion	Bach Ngo
USCF Affiliate	Florida Chess Association
Active Players	3874

As of August 2025, Florida has 3874 active players registered with the United States Chess Federation.^[1] The current USCF Florida state affiliate is the Florida Chess Association.^[2][3]

The Florida Chess Association was established in 1939.^[3]

In 2011, the Robert L. Froemke Memorial tournament was established as an annual tournament.^[4][5] The 2011 tournament was the first chess tournament in Tallahassee in over 11 years. The last time the tournament was held was in 2014.^[6]

On December 1, 2018, the Tallahassee School of Math and Science hosted the first chess tournament in Tallahassee since 2014.^[6]

In March 2025, the Challenger Learning Center of Tallahassee hosted the Tallahassee Chess Fest.^[7] The event began with a Friday evening screening of Searching for Bobby Fischer. On Saturday, attendees could visit interactive chess sessions, a simultaneous exhibition, and a grandmaster showdown—a match between grandmasters Julio Becerra and Nikola Mitkov.^[8][7] Audience members to the grandmaster showdown were given headphones, which they could use to listen to commentary or classical music. On Sunday, the event hosted tournaments in quick chess and blitz. The Chest Fest ended with a planetarium show.

Florida A&M University has a competitive chess team that has grown exponentially in recent years.^[9] In April 2025, the FAMU Chess Club sent 10 student to the HBCU Chess Tournament at Morehouse College. The Chess Club Advisor is Dr. Daaim Shabazz, who was named 2025 Chess Educator of the Year by the University of Texas-Dallas Chess Program.^[10] Dr. Shabazz is the creator of an online chess magazine called The Chess Drum, which launched in 2001.^[6][11]

In 1990, Jacksonville hosted the 91st U.S. Open Chess Championship.

In 1999, ScholasticChess.org hosted the first annual Jacksonville City Scholastic Championship.^[12] The tournament is four rounds long.^[13]

The Gator Chess Club at the University of Florida meets weekly.^[14]

On October 24, 2024, IM Levy Rozman (AKA GothamChess) visited UF.^[15] Rozman returned the following year on September 28, 2024.^[16] At the school, Rozman gave a one-hour lecture, a Q&A session, and played five blitz games against random attendees.

Orlando hosted the U.S. Open Chess Championship in 2011, 2014, and 2019. Additionally, Kissimmee was the site of the 98th U.S. Open in 1997.

The Orlando Chess Open is a tournament held annually in August.^[17][18]

In the early 1930s, the St. Pete Chess Club was established at a cottage in St. Petersburg.^[19][20][21] The St. Pete Chess Club is the oldest chess club in the United States that hasn’t relocated. Some grandmasters who've played at the club include Sammy Reshevsky, Bobby Fischer, and Larry Christiansen.

Tampa hosted the 53rd U.S. Open Chess Championship in 1952.

In September 2014, the Tampa Bay Times published an article about the Knights of Knowledge Chess Club.^[22] The club would meet in Bay Vista Park in St. Petersburg.

Hollywood was the site of the 86th annual US Open in 1985. Fort Lauderdale hosted the 105th US Open in 2004.

In 2013, Franklin Academy Boynton Beach (FABB) opened as the largest charter school in Palm Beach County.^[23] One of the mandatory classes at the school is chess.^[24] The establishment of the campus was funded with help from tennis player Andre Agassi. During a chess class, Agassi asked students to explain the role of different chess pieces, including a pawn.^[23] Starting in the 2014-15 school year, FABB would host an annual grand prix series of tournaments.^[25] In April 2015, the FABB chess team sent four chess players to the 2015 Junior High School Nationals.^[26] That same month, the school's chess coach Steve Abrahams wrote an article in the Chess Life magazine encouraging other schools to begin chess clubs of their own.^[27]

In September 2015, NM Jeff Haskel opened the Boca Chess Center.^[28]

Florida Atlantic University has a chess club that meets weekly.^[29] In March 2016, the University Press posted a Weekly Spotlight article about the club. As of the publishing of the article, the Boca Raton Chess Club would help host a weekly swiss tournament on the FAU campus.

In 2022, the FTX Crypto Cup esports chess tournament was hosted at the Eden Roc hotel in Miami Beach.^[30][31][32] This was a round-robin tournament where players would face a new opponent each day. Each match consisted of 4 rapid games, with blitz tiebreakers. Magnus Carlsen won first place with 16/21 points.

On Chess Day 2022, the West Palm Beach Downtown Development Authority launched opened Fern Street Chess Park.^[33][34] One club that regularly plays in the park is West Palm Street Chess.

In July 2024, Shama Yisrael became the first African-American woman to achieve the USCF National Master title.^[35] Yisrael achieved the title at the Pinecrest Independence Open, surpassing a USCF rating of 2200 after defeating Frank Castillo.

As of September 2009, the Caribbean Club in Key Largo had a free pool and chess night every Monday.^[36]

The Key West Library Chess Club meets every Saturday.^[37]

As of August 2025, the following people are the top rated active USCF players from Florida:^[38]

Other top Idaho chess players who aren't currently active USCF members include IM Hao Yin (2637 Rating), GM Lars Hansen (2627 Rating), and IM Javid Maharramzade (2619 Rating).^[39]