The Open Section Playoff began along with two sections of lower level play! Talent was showcased on all levels!

Open Section Final Four

The Final Four bracketed playoff began with our top qualifying players striving for the 2025 Chess League Crown! Congratulations go to Jalen Taylor, Alexander Looney, Abigail Lin and Erik “Lucky” Walker for reaching this point! After fearsome battles Jalen Taylor finished in fourth place, Alexander Looney in third with Abigail Lin reaching the finals with a second place finish.

But without further ado, the Columbia County Chess Association proudly declares Erik “Lucky” Walker the county’s 2025 Chess League Champion!

In the Non-Playoff portion of the Open Section, we found an impressive level of play with our participants. William Bowman comes away victorious in the non-playoff section with Colin Potts finishing in second place!

U1000 Section – Playoff, Round-Robin Qualification

Our top twelve U1000 section performers, from 2025, gathered on Saturday pitting rivals against one another to find the top two candidates from each six player group! Congratulations to the following players for reaching the U1000 Playoffs:

After five rounds of round robin play between the groups, Vedant Tiwari wins Group 1 and Arnav qualifies finishing in second place. D’Taune Ingram goes perfect on the day in Group 2 securing his spot, leaving second place in a three-way tie. Gary Richard comes away with a qualification to the Final Four through a tie-breaker with Vihaan Shah and Gurnoor Farmaha. Congratulations to all participants! Without further ado, your 2025 U1000 Section Final Four Bracket!

In the U1000 Non-Playoff Group, it continues to bring joy to our hearts to watch young players challenge themselves and watch their excitement as they play! Congratulation to Zhengwen (George) Xiang for finishing in 1st Place, and also to Mihir Raval for finishing in 2nd Place for the 2nd consecutive month!