From the 4th to the 11th of July 2026, BCA members gathered at The Old Swan Hotel in Harrogate, where nineteen players took part in a seven round Swiss to find our new champion.
The entries included Bryan Wood (Sheffield), Abdurrahman Khan (Bradford) and Ashar Smith (Cardiff), who were all playing in their first BCA over the board event. Needless to say, they all got a very warm BCA welcome!
After just three rounds, newcomer Bryan Wood was the only player on a perfect score. Brandan Read (Weston-super-Mare) was just half a point behind him. They faced each other in round four and agreed a draw after a long game. In the fifth round, Ian Blencowe (Gloucester) held Bryan to a draw, while Brandan defeated top seed Tris Cole (Wrexham). Bryan and Brandan were now level on 4 points, with Richard Murphy (Macclesfield) snapping at their heels on 3.5 points. There was still everything to play for! In round six, Brandan defeated Richard and Bryan drew with former BCA champion, Stan Lovell (Scarborough), so Brandan went into the final round with a half point lead over Bryan. In the last round, Brandan beat George Phillips (London) and became our new BCA Champion!
The U1450 section was won by Mark Hague (London).
A full set of round by round results and final scores can be found here.
We were blessed with fine weather for the week and everyone was in good spirits.
We celebrated the 92nd birthday of former BCA champion, Stan Lovell!
The week also included evening entertainment such as quizzes, music and a murder mystery.
