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Dark Knight / Le Chevalier Noir
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Hello chess friends! We are finally able to invite you to our website to register for The Royal City Masters in Guelph this summer. Accommodations at the University of Guelph are also linked on our site. A link to the Delta Hotel will be added presently. The Link: https://royalcitymasters.ca/
Thank you all for your patience. This year has presented a few challenges with sponsors in light of all the dynamics south of the border.
The Royal City Masters is a 9 round international tournament with 4 sections. We are projecting a $30,000 prize fund with GM norms possible in the Crown Section. The entry fee is $200 plus HST, and no late fees until after May 15. Capacity is 200 players.
I have reached out to a few of you already, to invite you to participate in the Royal City Masters, at University of Guelph on August 1-6. This will be a GM norm tournament and we are extending free entries to all IMs if you register by May 15. Our list of title players is growing. So far we have:
GM Joshua Sheng USA
GM John Fedorowicz USA
GM Razvan Preotu CAN
IM Edward Song, USA
IM Mark Plotkin, CAN
IM Anthony Atanasov, CAN
IM Raymond Kaufman, CAN
We expect at least 6 GMs and hoping to invite more. You can contact me, bondhal@hotmail.com
We now have over 100 players, including the number one U12 Girls player in the world! Ashley Qian, soon to be our newest WFM is 2147 on the July FIDE Rating list. She will test herself in the Crown Section of the Royal City Masters. More details can be found on our website:
RoyalCityMasters.ca
I looked into registering today, but was stopped in my tracks when I saw the $75 late fee! A $75 late fee? Are you effing kidding me?! The tournament is over 2 weeks away! I've never seen such a high late fee.
Also, what's with HST being applied on the entry fee ($200) and late fee ($75)? That's an extra $35.75 in tax. I get the $200 entry fee (for a 6-day tournament) but can't stomach that exorbitant late fee when the tournament is almost 3 weeks away, in addition to HST being applied. I've not seen any taxes on tournament entry fees in 28 years of tournament chess.
Will you be issuing T4A's to the prize winners like Hart House does now? smh
To be clear - is Hart House now taking the position that prize winners are "earning taxable income"?
So they must declare it as 2025 taxable income next year on filling out their 2025 tax return?
What is the change in the Income Tax Act that brought this about, and when was this amendment past.........I believe it had always been that "prizes in competitions" were tax-exempt, no?
To be clear - is Hart House now taking the position that prize winners are "earning taxable income"?
I guess so... I had to provide my SIN number and banking details to arrange for a money transfer (they wouldn't do the much simpler e-transfer...). It took me 2 trips to Hart House's finance office to get everything sorted because they only have part-time hours and were closed the first time I went. The whole ordeal was a real pain in the neck. I had to complete a 5-page document whose 1st page was exclusively instructions on how to complete the rest of the document. It was like something out of Monty Python. The tournament was last year and I included it on my 2024 tax return. I have no idea how Vadim Razin, a Ukrainian national, would have gone about claiming his prize money as he may not have had a SIN number...
I miss the good old days, cold hard cash in hand, and thanks for coming out! And I don't remember $75 late fees back then either!
Shouldn't the entry fee be deducted? Ridiculous if the prize is below the entry fee paid.
There is some tax regulation about gifts below $500 not being taxed, so maybe only tax receipt for prizes above that amount? Certainly, professional chess players/teachers can declare business expenses, but can amateurs claim expenses for all tournaments they enter? And post a net loss on their tax form? Is CFC menbership entered as Union Dues? What would your personal tax accountant add to their fee to add this additional income and expenses?
I hope such organizers post the tax rules pre-tournament, otherwise it may be more profitable, or to at least avoid paperwork, to throw one's last round game.
Last edited by Erik Malmsten; Wednesday, 16th July, 2025, 11:02 PM.
Shouldn't the entry fee be deducted? Ridiculous if the prize is below the entry fee paid.
My prize was $600, so above the entry fee paid, but the entry fee wasn't deducted from the amount on the T4A.
Getting back on topic:
1) Why are the Royal City Masters organizers adding HST to the cost? I've never seen that before and,
2) Why is the late fee $75, which is higher than the entry fee of most tournaments! In an ideal world, sure, I would have registered months ago. But it's not always easy to plan so far in advance with work schedules, family, and other life obligations interfering. $75 is a deal-breaker. There's also the cost of accommodation to consider, and I hadn't even looked into that.
in regards to the $75 late fee, it is motivation, pain and simple. The sooner you make a commitment in advance, the better off you will be. As for the HST thing, I have no idea. Having to fill out forms to claim your prize money, ughh!
I've played in a few Guelph tournaments. It was like a weekend vacation to get out of town. There was a nice park along a river and the university had an arboretum full of trees from around the world. The bus stopped right at the university building and posters reflected the music and politics of student life.
My first visit to Peter Clark Hall was actually for a social work conference, the "Guelph Sexuality Conference" who's most famous attendee was nurse Sue from Q107. I had walked upstairs and peaked at the chess club.
In the early 2000s the annual summer Pro-Am International had just as many players (137, and as many masters, 17) as the biggest tournaments in Toronto. Big attractions were seeing grandmasters, and getting FIDE-rated games. I remember saying "hi" to Pia Cramling's baby girl. One American master was sweating from his opponent's queen sac. A kid walked by them analysing, "Oh, I know that line, it was discovered by a computer." I remember getting a CD of the master games.
I was averaging 66 hours a week on night shift, so I was often zonked out. Onetime I fell asleep on a comfy chair upstairs and, luckily, some player woke me up as the first round had started.
Another time I prepared for William Li, played a hard game, but burned my brains out and blundered it. The TD wanted me to play the last round but my brain couldn't process and I quickly lost.
Another time I visited a local friend for breakfast, thought that I had time to check out of the residence (before 11), but ended up arriving to the tournament almost an hour late. I thought I had my opponent's king pinned in the corner, but I couldn't make any more progress and lost.
In 2013 I played Harmony Zhou, the World Under 8 Champion, and I was a bishop up but she won it back. I was determined to win the endgame even if it was past her bedtime, because by the time she turns 9 she would be too strong for me.
Later, in 2015, at a tournament upstairs, I won a trophy which is now on top of my bookcase along with my Scarborough Chess Club trophy from 1977.
In this game I played the bye player. My attacking moves came easily, but I rarely found the computer's top line.
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