The FIRST EVER Chess x Poker Tournament!
On May 10th, over 20 teams competed in the first ever attempted (?!) Chess x Poker crossover tournament. Amidst the bubbling excitement leading up to the big day, there were also countless doubts swirling through our mind: how would we be able to pull off such an ambitious event to combine the two most popular games of our generation?
Turning a lofty vision into a reality is not easy, especially in a race against the clock. As finals season crept closer, we worked tirelessly to put together a grand finale event - something so special that it could very likely become an annual tradition. The details started falling into place and everyone’s anticipation only compounded.
Before I dive into the tournament logistics and the juicy details you probably came here for, it is only fair to briefly explain the games of chess and poker (what’s all the hype about?). Both games require deep strategic thinking, where players must anticipate their opponent's moves and plan ahead. Skill and experience are crucial for success, as mastery in both chess and poker comes with learning from mistakes. It is also crucial to note the psychological aspects: chess players might use a time advantage to pressure their opponents into mistakes, while poker players often bluff to mislead others. However, the core differences lie in their nature: chess is a deterministic game with complete information, where all pieces are visible and luck plays no role (contrary to what you may believe…). In contrast, poker is a probabilistic game with incomplete information, where unknown cards and luck significantly influence the outcome. At the end of the day, chess emphasizes long-term planning and foresight, whereas poker requires adaptability and accurately interpreting opponents' behavior.
THE STRUCTURE
Teams of 1 chess player and 1 poker player work together to win chess games and poker hands. The poker player competes in a blind structure that increases every 15 minutes while the chess player faces off in a 5+0 blitz tournament. Each time the chess player wins, they add 10x big blinds to their poker partner's stack so they have an easier time surviving all the blind raises! However, if the player loses their chess game, 10x big blinds is DEDUCTED from their partner’s stack. Draws do not affect the stack size.
If you thought this wasn’t chaotic enough, there was an interesting twist thrown in: if the poker player busts, not all hope is lost! Their chess partner HAS to win their current game in order for their partner to be revived with their pre-bust stack size. This “second chance” can only happen once. Once the poker player runs out of chips and they already used up their one respawn chance, the team is eliminated from the tournament.
We catered a lot of delicious food from Fusia Bento Bar, so everyone was able to have seconds and thirds and fourths if they needed more brain fuel. Throughout the event, we also hosted mini giveaways during the breaks. Some lucky players won various SIG merch ranging from reversible bucket hats to Siggy the squishmallow!
THE RESULTS
After 4 hours of brilliant play both on the chess board and poker table, we have our final standings…huge congratulations to Ronan and Ryan for winning first place! They won both won Siggy the Squimallow, pawn squishies, and bucket hats while Ronan also got a full poker set to pass on the fun, and Ryan got a limited edition DGT chess clock. We also want to congratulate:
2nd place: Alex and Peter
3rd place: Youngjin and Alan
4th place: Johnathan and Joon
5th place: Alton and James
CONCLUDING REMARKS
Although this was quite possibly the most challenging event that we have ever attempted, we enjoyed everything from brainstorming the details to overcoming challenges as they inevitably occurred! We want to express our deepest gratitude to all our volunteers from both Poker Association of Cornell and Cornell Chess Club, as well as all our amazing players who trusted the process and were willing to take precious time out of their study period to compete! And huge thank you to Chess.com and SIG for sponsoring us with the most coveted prizes, and SAFC for providing us with the necessary funding to turn this dream into a reality. Without you all, this event would not have been possible!
Stay tuned next year for an epic return of the Chess x Poker Tournament, new and improved!