McMinnville Chess Club

Chess for all ages and skill levels

McMinnville Chess Club is for all ages and skill levels, and our members and guests enjoy free, open play events, rated and unrated tournaments, resources and opportunities for chess study and lessons, and the nicest chess club members you’ll ever meet in town.

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Family Membership Sale

Club Events

Join us at our next tournament on Saturday, May 16th, 2026 at McMinnville High School.

Info & Registration

This tournament is open to all ages and skill levels, and we have sections for rated and unrated youth and adult players. Register today!

We also meet regularly at a variety of venues around town:

View Calendar

Make a donation

Support McMinnville Chess Club by making a donation!

We’re currently raising funds to get additional chess sets, certify more tournament directors, and rent larger spaces for our tournaments. You can help.

We also have an Amazon wishlist with items that would make a direct, meaningful impact on our club and help us with our programs and events.

Make a donation

Become a member

Attending chess club is and has always been free to non-members (guests). Monthly, annual, lifetime, and family members enjoy a number of benefits including:

  • Access to our tournaments (rated and unrated) without additional entry fees
  • A dedicated members-only newsletter
  • The ability to check books and equipment out of our Chess Library
  • Our heartfelt thanks for helping keep this club running!
Register

Play Online

We have an online Chess.com hangout with dozens of active members. To join us, come to a club meeting and ask to be added by an organizer.

Play Online

Founded in 2023

Our first ever meeting was in March, 2023, and we began meeting regularly in May, 2023.

2023

Meetings per month

McMinnville Chess Club meets 8 to 10 times a month. Check out our Calendar of Events.

8

Blacklight Chess

Events to date

195 meetings and special events, including Blacklight Chess, World Chess Day, and more.

195

Pizzas demolished

Our Wednesday meetings are at Mac Market, home of Honey Pie Pizza. A winning combination!

3,141,592

The Famous Opera House Game

Mike Terrill, a founding member of McMinnville Chess Club and the chess club director at Duniway Middle School, recently taught us about the famous Opera House Game.

“It was the best game ever!” — Mike Terrill

This game is one of the most famous in chess history and is often used to teach key concepts like piece development and the value of making clever sacrifices. It was played in an opera house in Paris in 1858 while an opera was performed on stage!

Read more

Principles of Club Etiquette

Enjoy the contest and promote chess activities for learning, creativity, and youth participation.

Fair play among friends is ensured by practicing the following principles of club etiquette.

Touch move

Use touch-move, so this practice becomes second nature with your play.

Good sportsmanship

Always display good sportsmanship. Congratulate your opponent when your game is over.

Spectating

Refrain from commenting on games in progress.

Asking for help

Disputes can be cordially resolved with assistance from experienced club members.

Cleanliness

Keep your pieces and board clean while eating during play.

Hygiene

Cover your face if you sneeze or cough, and don’t attend club events if you are sick.

Last but not least…

Make friends!

Latest Articles

Member-written articles and blog posts, event announcements, and occasional club updates. Subscribe to our newsletter in our News section to get these via email or SMS, or subscribe via RSS.

  • Community Spotlight: Christefano Reyes

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    McMinnville Chess Club

    Get to know McMinnville Chess Club and our regulars with our Community Spotlight series. In this spotlight focus, we’re joined by the club’s founder and club director, Christefano Reyes. I found a chess park! Regrade Park is a tiny, off-leash dog park in Seattle. Sadly no dogs wanted to play What brought you to…

  • 3rd Annual McMinnville Chess Tournament

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    Christefano Reyes

    We are excited to announce our next McMinnville Chess Tournament on Saturday, May 16th, 2026, from 9am-5pm. Join us! We will have USCF-rated and -unrated sections for both Scholastic Youth and Adults. If you’d like to learn more about our last tournament, including tournament results, photos, and sponsor details, check out our article, A…

  • Community Spotlight: Mike Terrill

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    Christefano Reyes

    Get to know McMinnville Chess Club and our regulars with our Community Spotlight series. In this spotlight focus, we’re joined by one of the club’s founding members and organizers, Mike Terrill. What brought you to chess? My dad taught me how to play when I around 6 years old. What keeps you going? The…

  • We’re having another tournament! 

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    Christefano Reyes

    McMinnville Chess Club will include an in-house tournament on October 22nd, and, of course, free, open play as usual for those not in the tournament. Details: Games will start promptly at 5:45pm on Wednesday night. We will start on time so we can finish up before Mac Market closes. BYOB (bring your own board!)…

  • Calling all parents! Announcing the McMinnville Chess Club Parents group chat

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    Christefano Reyes

    For our youth members and attendees, meeting and playing other youth players is a great way to have fun, make new friends, and enjoy the game that we love — but what if their friends aren’t there and there’s no one they want to play? To foster our youth members’ immediate sense of ease…