Chess Club at UWM was originally founded in January 2021 as a part of eSports Milwaukee during the Covid-19 pandemic. As Chess was played online and as the Queen's Gambit on Netflix grew in popularity, chess became more popular and more accessible to people that the desire to try over-the-board (OTB) chess exploded. Chess Club at UWM because its own registered student organization (RSO) at UWM in January 2022 and has been one of the featured RSOs on campus since.

Chess Club at UWM is a proud affiliate of the United States Chess Federation (USCF) and of the Wisconsin Chess Association (WCA). Chess Club at UWM is also one of the first university chess clubs to join the Chess.com College Ambassadorship program and is a proud partner with Chess.com to promote college chess.

Unless marked a casual meetup, all events are USCF-rated and require valid membership with the US Chess Federation. Click the links for upcoming rated events to register or past rated events to view results.

• 9/12 - Chesswaukee Warmups

• 9/13 - 2025 Milwaukee Open "Chesswaukee III"/WI G60 State Championship

• 9/19 - Casual Meetup, Union W181

• 9/26 - Fall G/30 Swiss

• 10/3 - Casual Meetup, Union W181

• 10/10 - Fall G/30 Quads

• 10/11 - College Chess @ MSOE

• 10/17 - Casual Meetup, Union W181

• 10/24 - Club Blitz Championship

• 10/31 - (tentative) Casual Meetup, Location TBD

• 11/7 - Casual Meetup, Union W181

• 11/14 - Southeast WI College Chess Championship

• 11/21 - Club Championship

Chess Club at UWM has an extensive history of travelling to other tournaments. In addition to honors at UWM-hosted events, players from Chess Club at UWM earned the following team and individual accolades during their time in Chess Club:

State Championships:

• NM Avinash Rajendra (Wisconsin State Champion 2021, 2022)

• John De Mastri, Reid Pezewski, Patrick "Jack" Harmer, Devon Grohall (2nd Place Team Wisconsin College Chess Championship 2025)

Invitationals:

• Deepak Khas, Nate Van Beek (1st Place Team Midwest College Invitational at Iowa State University 2024)

Other Championships:

• Reid Pezewski (Waukesha Blitz Champion 2025)

Chess Club at UWM has had the honor of being featured in MKE Lifestyle in an article written by esteemed chess journalist and UWM alumnus Jamaal Abdul-Alim alongside several other Milwaukee-area chess clubs.

Chess Club member and JAMS major Erin O'Neill also created a video report on the Chess Club at UWM, highlighting the focus on camaraderie and building connections that the club has.