The 2027 Australian Open Chess Championships, proudly supported by North West Constructions will be held from Saturday the 2nd of January to Monday the 11th of January at the DoubleTree by Hilton, 116 The Esplanade Darwin.

The event will include a Classical and a Blitz tournament. There will be no divisions, each tournament is one field. There will be multiple prize categories for each tournament. There are no rating requirements for entry.

 

Classical Tournament 

Saturday the 2nd of January to Monday the 11th January with a rest day on Thursday the 7th of January.

9 rounds Swiss

1 round per day

2:00pm start

90min + 30sec time control

 

Blitz Tournament 

Thursday the 7th of January

11 rounds Swiss

2:00pm start

3min + 2sec time control

 

Tickets 

Entry into the tournament is via Trybooking. Please follow the link below.

https://www.trybooking.com/events/landing/1603082?embed

To enter the Classical tournament please purchase a ticket for Saturday the 2nd of January.

Adult: $200  Child/Concession: $120

To enter the Blitz tournament please purchase a ticket for Thursday the 7th of January.

Adult: $40   Child/Concession: $30

Grandmasters receive free entry. Please email us at admin@ntchess.org.au to arrange this.

 

Prizes 

Minimum Guaranteed = $15,000 with $5,000 for first place
Special NT Junior prize (sponsored by Rotary) $3,000 towards an interstate event and coaching in 2027
Prize money for all title winners
Ratings Group prizes for the second, third and fourth quadrants of rated entrants
Full prize money list to be published closer to tournament commencement date

 

Titles to be awarded 

Australian Open Champion (Awarded to overall winner)
Australian Women’s Champion (Awarded to leading female player)
Australian Seniors Champion (Awarded to leading player born before 1 January 1967)
Australian Open Blitz Champion (Awarded to the winner of the Blitz tournament 7 January 2027)
Australian Open Women’s Blitz Champion (Awarded to the leading female player in the Blitz)
Grandmaster Titles – Any player achieving at least a 50% score will be recognised as a “Northern Territory Chess Grandmaster”

 

Arbiters

Chief Arbiter: Anastasia Sorokina. Anastasia spends most of her time bossing around Magnus Carlsen and Dommaraju Gukesh in major FIDE events but will make this rare trip to Australia for the 2027 Australian Open.
Deputy Chief Arbiter: Dr Peter Tsai. Dr Tsai has said that if there is sufficient interest he will run arbiter training courses during the event.

 

Accommodation

Rydges Darwin Central is pleased to offer a special rate from $140 per room, per night for a Twin Queen Room (minimum 2-night stay). Other room types are available at discounted prices. Please note, due to seasonal operations, Reception and Housekeeping services are limited. On-call staff will be available to provide assistance when needed.

https://www.rydges.com/accommodation/darwin-nt/rydges-darwin-central/

 

 

DoubleTree by Hilton are offering players a special rate of $150 per night for a standard king or twin room. Please use the link below to book.

https://www.hilton.com/en/book/reservation/flexibledates/?ctyhocn=DRWEDDI&arrivalDate=2027-01-02&departureDate=2027-01-11&groupCode=GCONA&room1NumAdults=1&cid=OM%2CWW%2CHILTONLINK%2CEN%2CDirectLink