Frequently asked questions

Create your Skillhouse account (Join Skillhouse), complete identity verification (KYC), buy credit packages in your Wallet tab, then open your player dashboard and tap Join on Ascend Series I, Ascend Series II, or Skillhouse Amateur Chess Open 2026. Account creation does not register you for any event — you choose each tournament separately.

Common blockers: KYC not verified, insufficient available credits, location permission denied or unavailable, GPS or ID residence in a prohibited jurisdiction, tournament date not set yet, or registration closed. Each item is checked at join — fix the listed requirement and try again from your dashboard.

Credits are Skillhouse's entry currency: 1 credit = $1 USD. Tournament entry fees are shown in credits only — 25 credits per Ascend satellite and 115 credits for Skillhouse Amateur Chess Open 2026. Credit packages are sold in 25 / 50 / 100 bundles from your Wallet tab after KYC verification.

When you join, credits move from your available balance into a hold on your account. If you withdraw before the lock point (24 hours before the event), the hold is released and credits return to your available balance. At the lock point, held credits are spent to confirm your entry — withdrawing after that does not refund credits.

Terms v6.0 requires dual eligibility: your device GPS must resolve to an allowed jurisdiction at signup and again at tournament join, and after KYC your verified ID residence must also be eligible. Location permission lets us confirm physical presence — it is not used to track you outside signup and join flows.

After you register for an event, use the club link from your confirmation email or player dashboard. Open the link in a web browser (Safari, Chrome, etc.) — not inside the Chess.com mobile app — so the invite resolves correctly. Deep links from the app often fail.

You may enter one satellite only (Ascend Series I or II, not both). Each satellite awards 40 complimentary main entries (20 open placement, 10 Tier B, 10 Tier C) after the event and fair play review. Skillhouse Amateur Chess Open 2026 entry is 115 credits; satellite entry is 25 credits.

When a tournament is full, new joiners are queued FIFO. When a spot opens, the next player is promoted and has 24 hours (UTC deadline shown in your dashboard) to complete KYC and credits if still required. If the deadline passes, the spot cascades to the next waitlisted player.

After KYC, your verified ID gender governs Female vs Open prize brackets — signup-declared gender is not used for routing. Only explicit ID-verified female routes to the Top Female prize bracket; all other values route to Open. Missing gender on the ID document routes to Open only.

Players whose GPS or verified ID residence is in these US states cannot join: Arizona, Hawaii, Iowa, Mississippi, Montana, Nevada, South Dakota. All other eligible US states, Canada, and international jurisdictions allowed under Terms §2.3 may participate when other requirements are met.