We’re running a ladder designed to provide competitive play, particularly for those relatively new to competitive chess.
If you haven’t played competitively before and would like to see what it’s like before playing in club matches this would be a great place to start.
If you’d like to take part, contact Mike and he’ll add you to the ladder.
Overview
Ladder games are played at Cambridge Park Bowls Club on Thursday evenings.
Participants arrange their own matches – usually via the group WhatsApp chat – either before-hand or on the night.
Any two players in the Ladder can play each other.
It is not compulsory to play a Ladder game at every opportunity – you can play as often or as little as you like.
ECF membership is not a requirement to participate in the Ladder but if both players have ECF Memberships (Bronze or higher), their match result will be submitted to the rating system to contribute towards their official rating.
Details of ECF Memberships are available here: https://www.englishchess.org.uk/ecf-membership-rates-and-joining-details
Match Rules
First encounter between two players: coin toss determines colours
Rematch: reversed colours from the first encounter
Time control: 65 minutes with 10 second increments per player
Ladder points: Between 2 and 20 points are awarded to each player for each match they play (see full calculation below).
Standings: The points scored within a rolling 12-month period count towards the standings below. Players can play each other up to twice in these 12 months, once with each colour, with the most games counting.
Finals: The top 8 players in the standings at the end of August every year qualify for a knockout tournament to determine the overall Ladder champion.
Latest results (3rd September 2026)
| White | Pos | Pts | Result | Pts | Pos | Black |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mike Robinson-Chui | 4th | 8 | 0-1 | 2 | 17th | Danilo D’Auria |
| Charles Bolton | 29th | 16 | 1-0 | 2 | 16th | Michael Larby |
Standings (as at 4th September 2026)
| Pos | Name | Pld | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Karl Stand | 20 | 113 |
| 2 | Oscar Rounding | 15 | 112 |
| 3 | Michael Speer | 9 | 89 |
| 4 | Mike Robinson-Chui | 12 | 88 |
| 5 | Genc Tasbasi | 9 | 78 |
| 6 | Peter Kasprowicz | 14 | 74 |
| 7 | Aditya Patil | 13 | 72 |
| 8 | David Heaton | 8 | 71 |
| 9 | Anthon Fynn-Williams | 6 | 58 |
| 10 | George Milligan | 7 | 56 |
| = | Abhay Patil | 13 | 56 |
| 12 | Alex Corlett | 5 | 54 |
| 13 | Viorel Scobioala | 7 | 53 |
| 14 | Husnu Babayigit | 5 | 51 |
| 15 | Peter Marler | 7 | 45 |
| 16 | Michael Larby | 10 | 42 |
| 17 | Danilo D’Auria | 7 | 34 |
| 18 | Julian Bedale | 8 | 22 |
| = | Arash Sanaiha | 2 | 22 |
| 20 | Mark Jessett | 2 | 20 |
| 21 | Tom Brand | 1 | 18 |
| = | Peter Farmakis | 1 | 18 |
| = | Ted Fraser | 3 | 18 |
| 24 | Charles Bolton | 1 | 16 |
| 25 | Tom Lloyd | 1 | 14 |
| 26 | Alex Lapidus | 1 | 6 |
| = | Nick von Schlippe | 1 | 6 |
| = | Charlie Weeks | 3 | 6 |
| 28 | Ruth Nicklin | 1 | 2 |
Scoring
Between 2 and 20 Ladder Points are awarded to each player in a single match. The exact allocation is calculated as follows:
Win points: 2 + 20(1 – ER) points.
Draw points: Half the number of points that would have been awarded for a victory.
Loss points: 2 points.
Expected Result (ER) =
(Rounded to 1 decimal point)
Po is the starting Ladder position of defeated player.
Pw is the starting Ladder position of the match winner.
Pt is the total number of active participants currently in the Ladder.
2026-2027 Finals
The Finals are a mini knock-out competition to crown an overall Ladder champion. The top 8 players in the Ladder as at 31 August 2026 are invited to play. If an invitation is declined, then the next highest player is invited until all 8 places are filled. All 8 players are seeded from 1-8, based upon the order in which they placed in the Ladder.
Each match is a winner-takes-all classical game of 65 minutes + 10 second increments per side. Colours are decided by a coin toss on the day. In the event of a draw, the higher seeded player will progress.
Quarter Finals (games to be played no later than 30 Nov 2026)
| QF1 | Karl Stand (1) | vs. | Anthon Fynn-Williams (8) |
| QF2 | Michael Speer (4) | vs. | Genc Tasbasi (5) |
| QF3 | Mike Robinson-Chui (3) | vs. | Aditya Patil (6) |
| QF4 | Oscar Rounding (2) | vs. | David Heaton (7) |
Semi Finals (games to be played no later than 28 Feb 2027)
| SF1 | QF1 Winner | vs. | QF2 Winner |
| SF2 | QF3 Winner | vs. | QF4 Winner |
Final (to be played no later than 31 May 2027)
| F | SF1 Winner | vs. | SF2 Winner |
Past Winners
| Season | Ladder Stage | Knockout Stage |
|---|---|---|
| 2025-2026 | Karl Stand | – |
| 2026-2027 |