The 8th Harrogate Chess Congress, the one run by Noel Boustred as opposed to 4NCL or Castle Chess, was held over the weekend of 28th September to 30th September 2018, at the home of Harrogate Chess Club - Apley Grange, 35 Oatlands Drive, Harrogate.

The event was as usual, “stars barred”, with a Major section (under 170) which had 8 participants, and a better-supported Minor section (under 136) which had 19 entrants.

Noel uses some sort of computer pairing system which seems to happily award a full-point bye to a player who has already taken a half-point bye (e.g. in round 1), which is something most controllers doing manual Swiss pairings would avoid.

Prizes in each section were advertised as

1st prize = £160,

2nd prize = 4% of entry fees in section,

3rd prize = 2% of entry fees in section,

grading prize = 2% of entry fees in section.

(The percentages are based on entry fee excluding any ECF grading fee element.)

The £160 first prize in each section was possible due to a donation (anonymous - though the writer thinks he can guess from whom).

Final section cross-tables were as follows:

Major
1	May, Paul	7	W	1	4	B	1	6	W	½	2	B	½	3	W	½	12
	Limewood & Scarcroft		1			2			2.5			3			3.5
2	Oliver, Bruce R	3	B	½	7	W	½	8	B	1	1	W	½	6	B	1	9.5
	Bridlington		0.5			1			2			2.5			3.5
3	Ellames, George J	2	W	½	5	B	1	4	W	½	6	B	½	1	B	½	9.5
	Alnwick		0.5			1.5			2			2.5			3
4	Clarke, Paul RH	FPB	-	1	1	W	0	3	B	½	5	W	½	7	W	1	8.5
	Alwoodley		1			1			1.5			2			3
5	Holi, Siefaldin A	HPB	-	½	3	W	0	7	B	1	4	B	½	8	W	1	7.5
	Wakefield		0.5			0.5			1.5			2			3
6	Sheppard, Derek A	HPB	-	½	FPB	-	1	1	B	½	3	W	½	2	W	0	9
	Hull		0.5			1.5			2			2.5			2.5
7	Procter, Colin S	1	B	0	2	B	½	5	W	0	8	W	1	4	B	0	4
	Yorkshire Copperworks		0			0.5			0.5			1.5			1.5
8	Bald, Mick	HPB	-	½	HPB	-	½	2	W	0	7	B	0	5	B	0	4.5
	Bispham		0.5			1			1			1			1

Minor
1	Johnson, Simon	9	W	1	5	B	½	10	W	1	3	B	1	4	W	1	13
	Keighley		1			1.5			2.5			3.5			4.5
2	Andrews, Norman G	10	B	0	13	W	1	19	B	1	7	W	1	6	B	1	10
	York RI		0			1			2			3			4
3	Rawcliffe, Peter	17	W	1	14	B	1	HPB	-	½	1	W	0	10	B	½	11
	Harrogate		1			2			2.5			2.5			3
4	Buckell, David J	15	B	½	16	W	1	11	B	1	5	W	½	1	B	0	10.5
	Clitheroe		0.5			1.5			2.5			3			3
5	Beardsley, Martin	FPB	-	1	1	W	½	7	B	½	4	B	½	HPB	-	½	10
	Gosforth		1			1.5			2			2.5			3
6	Fursman, Rob	18	B	½	15	W	1	8	B	½	10	W	1	2	W	0	10
	Newmarket		0.5			1.5			2			3			3
7	Hall, Gary	HPB	-	½	17	B	1	5	W	½	2	B	0	14	B	1	9
	Wallasey		0.5			1.5			2			2			3
8	Wilson, Richard	13	W	1	10	B	0	6	W	½	12	B	1	9	W	½	9
	Wakefield Chess Club		1			1			1.5			2.5			3
9	Roberts, Malcolm A	1	B	0	19	W	½	16	B	1	18	W	1	8	B	½	7.5
	Holmes Chapel		0			0.5			1.5			2.5			3
10	Coope, Derek W	2	W	1	8	W	1	1	B	0	6	B	0	3	W	½	9.5
	Kingston		1			2			2			2			2.5
11	Scorer, David M	FPB	-	1	12	B	½	4	W	0	14	W	½	13	B	½	8.5
	Clitheroe		1			1.5			1.5			2			2.5
12	Marsden, Kenneth L	14	B	0	11	W	½	17	B	1	8	W	0	FPB	-	1	6
	Leeds		0			0.5			1.5			1.5			2.5
13	May, Philip	8	B	0	2	B	0	FPB	-	1	19	W	1	11	W	½	5.5
	Limewood & Scarcroft		0			0			1			2			2.5
14	Fursman, Lynne J	12	W	1	3	W	0	15	B	½	11	B	½	7	W	0	7.5
	Tewkesbury		1			1			1.5			2			2
15	Clarke, Gary	4	W	½	6	B	0	14	W	½	16	B	½	HPB	-	½	5.5
	Consett		0.5			0.5			1			1.5			2
16	Sriharan, Sri	HPB	-	½	4	B	0	9	W	0	15	W	½	19	B	1	4.5
	York RI		0.5			0.5			0.5			1			2
17	Bishop, Frank	3	B	0	7	W	0	12	W	0	FPB	-	1	18	B	1	3
	Bispham		0			0			0			1			2
18	Halpin, David	6	W	½	HPB	-	½	HPB	-	½	9	B	0	17	W	0	6
	Harrogate, Limewood & Scarcroft		0.5			1			1.5			1.5			1.5
19	Fulthorpe, Barry	HPB	-	½	9	B	½	2	W	0	13	B	0	16	W	0	4.5
	Limewood & Scarcroft		0.5			1			1			1			1

(The two full-point byes in round one are as reported, though they are difficult to understand.)