Clubchess.net | No KYC PvP Chess with Bitcoin Duels - Free Entry Tournament LIVE

[ClubChess.Net]

Hello Bitcointalk,

Clubchess is a chess platform with free rated games and head-to-head Bitcoin duels. Choose a stake, find an opponent, and play. Friendly Games require no deposit.

No KYC documents required. All Bitcoin withdrawals are automatic.

How do Bitcoin duels work?

Duels use 5+3: five minutes per player, plus three seconds per move. Choose a preset or custom stake within the available limits, match with another player, or negotiate through offers and counteroffers. The entry, platform fee and winner's prize are shown before you accept. Duels have their own rating, separate from Friendly Games.

What does it cost?

The currently published platform fee is 10% of the combined entry pool. For example:

• Each player enters with 0.2 mBTC (20,000 sats).
• Combined pool: 0.4 mBTC (40,000 sats).
• Platform fee: 0.04 mBTC (4,000 sats).
• Winner's Clubchess balance credit: 0.36 mBTC (36,000 sats), after review.

The losing player loses their entry. A draw, aborted game or voided duel returns both entries without a platform fee. Check the displayed terms before accepting.

Who holds the Bitcoin, and when can I withdraw?

Clubchess balances are custodial: Clubchess holds the signing keys. Depositing means trusting the platform with those funds.

A duel win is credited to your Clubchess balance after the five-minute review window, unless a dispute or unresolved fair-play check holds the result. This is a balance credit; withdrawal to your own wallet is a separate request.

Deposits and withdrawals use on-chain Bitcoin; Lightning invoices are not supported. Deposits require network confirmations. Before confirming a withdrawal, you see the maximum network-fee allowance and total amount reserved. All Bitcoin withdrawals are processed automatically. Processing and confirmation times vary.

How is cheating handled?

Engines, bots, outside assistance, shared accounts and arranged results are prohibited. Recorded moves and timing are screened, including comparisons with Stockfish, to identify concerns for human review. No check guarantees an unaided opponent. Unresolved checks can delay the related prize credit. Players can report games and appeal decisions under the Fair-Game Policy.

Is Clubchess No KYC?

Yes — No KYC documents are required. You do not need government ID, a selfie or proof of address for accounts, play, deposits or withdrawals. Email verification, play security checks and transaction security checks still apply. Account, security, gameplay and transaction records are retained; no KYC documents does not mean anonymous use.

What else is available?

Swiss tournaments and a daily leaderboard are also available. Daily Bitcoin rewards are available only when shown as funded, and are credited after review. Each tournament publishes its schedule, entry, fees and prize allocation.

Start with a free game to see whether the site suits you. Feedback on the duel flow, fees, withdrawal experience and fair-play rules is welcome — especially details that are unclear or difficult to verify.

Website: clubchess.net
Rules and policies: Help · Terms · Fair play · Privacy · AML
Discord: @clubchess

Players must be at least 18, or the higher legal minimum where they live, and are responsible for checking whether paid play is permitted in their location.

[TypoTonic]

How do Bitcoin duels work?

Duels use 5+3: five minutes per player, plus three seconds per move. Choose a preset or custom stake within the available limits, match with another player, or negotiate through offers and counteroffers. The entry, platform fee and winner's prize are shown before you accept. Duels have their own rating, separate from Friendly Games.

This part is a bit unclear to me. Since the rules state that ratings estimate player strength, then how exactly do you handle matchmaking? Is it based purely on their stake, or duel rating? If I was a player, I wouldn't want to get paired against someone who is much stronger than me.

I like the theme and I think it's pretty interesting, but since chess is skill-based, I'm not sure if many people here would like it.

[Don Pedro Dinero]

How do Bitcoin duels work?

Duels use 5+3: five minutes per player, plus three seconds per move. Choose a preset or custom stake within the available limits, match with another player, or negotiate through offers and counteroffers. The entry, platform fee and winner's prize are shown before you accept. Duels have their own rating, separate from Friendly Games.

This part is a bit unclear to me. Since the rules state that ratings estimate player strength, then how exactly do you handle matchmaking? Is it based purely on their stake, or duel rating? If I was a player, I wouldn't want to get paired against someone who is much stronger than me.

I was going to quote the same, but focusing on the first sentence instead. OP, could you clarify this? What do the five minutes refer to – is that the total time I have to finish the game? And only three seconds for each move? And if checkmate hasn’t been achieved after five minutes, what happens then?

[masulum]

i think you need to explain more about this:

• Do not use chess engines, AI assistants, move-suggestion extensions, tablebases, opening references, or another person’s analysis while a competitive game is in progress. Study and post-game analysis are welcome after the game ends.
• Do not use bots, scripts, or automation to choose or submit competitive moves, except an expressly approved accessibility input method that supplies no chess advice.

Since this is online chess with no referee between players, how you know the players not using any of mentioned above? let say i have 2 device, one device for playing, the another device handled by my son, to send to the AI for assistance, are you able to DQ me because I'm cheating? and are you have a system to detect bots, script or another automatic move?

i think you also need to give more explanations about five minutes time and 3 second move in your how to play or fair game section. if this limited time to prevent bot or AI it can be acceptable. but you have to make sure the system able to detect cheating move.

[TypoTonic]

What do the five minutes refer to – is that the total time I have to finish the game? And only three seconds for each move? And if checkmate hasn’t been achieved after five minutes, what happens then?

It's a pretty normal time control in chess. 5 minutes is the initial time each player have, and every move you make adds 3 seconds to it. If the game doesn't end in a checkmate or draw, the player who runs out of time first will lose.

i think you need to explain more about this:

• Do not use chess engines, AI assistants, move-suggestion extensions, tablebases, opening references, or another person’s analysis while a competitive game is in progress. Study and post-game analysis are welcome after the game ends.
• Do not use bots, scripts, or automation to choose or submit competitive moves, except an expressly approved accessibility input method that supplies no chess advice.

Since this is online chess with no referee between players, how you know the players not using any of mentioned above? let say i have 2 device, one device for playing, the another device handled by my son, to send to the AI for assistance, are you able to DQ me because I'm cheating? and are you have a system to detect bots, script or another automatic move?

There's further explanation in the Security checks and game review section of their Fair-Game Policy. I still find it confusing though, the grounds for cheating doesn't seem to be clear. TLDR:

A person reviews the evidence and any player explanation before a decision. The timing and scope of the analysis are limited, so it cannot detect every form of outside assistance.

[noorman0]

i think you need to explain more about this:
-snip-
Since this is online chess with no referee between players, how you know the players not using any of mentioned above? let say i have 2 device, one device for playing, the another device handled by my son, to send to the AI for assistance, are you able to DQ me because I'm cheating? and are you have a system to detect bots, script or another automatic move?

i think you also need to give more explanations about five minutes time and 3 second move in your how to play or fair game section. if this limited time to prevent bot or AI it can be acceptable. but you have to make sure the system able to detect cheating move.

I’m considering a similar scenario, this game could end up becoming nothing more than a battle between AIs. And I don’t think there’s any real way to prevent that, given that players can simply use AI tools on separate devices. The concern is that any AI-related violations would ultimately be based on subjective, potentially biased accusations.

[The Cryptovator]

Clubchess is a chess platform with free rated games and head-to-head Bitcoin duels. Choose a stake, find an opponent, and play. Friendly Games require no deposit.

No KYC documents required. All Bitcoin withdrawals are automatic.

If I am correct, that chess game will be P2P, not against your system or AI? The concern is how a player would make sure he is playing against the real users. How could we make sure you haven’t set up AI or your system to play against real users, and probably most users will lose against your system? So we need transparency that it’s a real P2P or PvP platform.

However, so far from my experience, it’s quite hard to succeed on a P2P platform. I have worked with a P2P gambling platform, and at the end of the day, these platforms give up. So how strong is your marketing team, and how are you going to draw attention from the gamblers, including forum gamblers?

Also make sure it’s real non-KYC platform, don’t ask for the KYC later. Everyone promise to be no-KYC platform nowadays to draw attention forum gamblers.

[ClubChess.Net]

How do Bitcoin duels work?

Duels use 5+3: five minutes per player, plus three seconds per move. Choose a preset or custom stake within the available limits, match with another player, or negotiate through offers and counteroffers. The entry, platform fee and winner's prize are shown before you accept. Duels have their own rating, separate from Friendly Games.

This part is a bit unclear to me. Since the rules state that ratings estimate player strength, then how exactly do you handle matchmaking? Is it based purely on their stake, or duel rating? If I was a player, I wouldn't want to get paired against someone who is much stronger than me.

I like the theme and I think it's pretty interesting, but since chess is skill-based, I'm not sure if many people here would like it.

We’ve now added rating limits to the Duel lobby. The default is within 200 Duel rating points, with 100 and 400-point options. A match must fit both players’ selected ranges, and waiting longer does not automatically widen them. Among compatible opponents, the system prioritizes the closest rating.

We’ve also added an opponent preview showing their Duel rating, completed-game count and match terms, followed by confirmation from both players. We’re currently finishing bug fixes and testing this flow.

A rating is still an estimate, not a guarantee of equal skill. New accounts are especially uncertain: everyone starts at 1500, which doesn’t mean everyone plays at that level. The preview identifies opponents with no completed Duels as having a new rating.

[iv4n]

We have been talking about chess on this forum for years, and it's awesome to see a PvP game. I registered, and the site looks nice... There are no players, active games, or tournaments at the moment. I tried "friendly match", but searching for an opponent takes forever...



I guess 0.2 mBTC feels a bit high for a casual chess game, so it would be nice to see some lower-stakes options.

It would be nice if we could set up a table with an invitation link & maybe a password... I haven't played a proper chess game in years, I'm teaching my kids how to play from time to time, when they show some interest in playing. But I would definitely play against forum members... that would be great if someone is up for the game.

[Yablee0]

Clubchess is a chess platform with free rated games and head-to-head Bitcoin duels. Choose a stake, find an opponent, and play. Friendly Games require no deposit.

No KYC documents required. All Bitcoin withdrawals are automatic.

Also make sure it’s real non-KYC platform, don’t ask for the KYC later. Everyone promise to be no-KYC platform nowadays to draw attention forum gamblers.

This last bolded part is where I choose to emphasize on since it has raised so much concern lately. However, many platforms has been misleading people on this aspect and its no longer funny. Moving forward, you have said it clearly and it has been noted by all, therefore it's better you wouldn't come back tomorrow and start demanding for KYC that you never mentioned. Because if you do that, it will completely mess up your reputation. Unless maybe an important need to do so later came up, otherwise I will suggest you maintain your stand.

That being said. Op, I will suggest you don't try to avoid some crucial questions that was raised across various users as it will be helpful to your platform and make you step up in areas you are having shortcomings.

[ClubChess.Net]

Clubchess is a chess platform with free rated games and head-to-head Bitcoin duels. Choose a stake, find an opponent, and play. Friendly Games require no deposit.

No KYC documents required. All Bitcoin withdrawals are automatic.

If I am correct, that chess game will be P2P, not against your system or AI? The concern is how a player would make sure he is playing against the real users. How could we make sure you haven’t set up AI or your system to play against real users, and probably most users will lose against your system? So we need transparency that it’s a real P2P or PvP platform.

However, so far from my experience, it’s quite hard to succeed on a P2P platform. I have worked with a P2P gambling platform, and at the end of the day, these platforms give up. So how strong is your marketing team, and how are you going to draw attention from the gamblers, including forum gamblers?

Also make sure it’s real non-KYC platform, don’t ask for the KYC later. Everyone promise to be no-KYC platform nowadays to draw attention forum gamblers.

we never plan to use AI against player. The worst what can happen is me playing against users but i am not that good of a chess player, So i will most probably loose.

We plan to use tournaments to attract players and grow the community, including members of this forum.

We are fully against any kind of KYC.

[ClubChess.Net]

We have been talking about chess on this forum for years, and it's awesome to see a PvP game. I registered, and the site looks nice... There are no players, active games, or tournaments at the moment. I tried "friendly match", but searching for an opponent takes forever...



I guess 0.2 mBTC feels a bit high for a casual chess game, so it would be nice to see some lower-stakes options.

It would be nice if we could set up a table with an invitation link & maybe a password... I haven't played a proper chess game in years, I'm teaching my kids how to play from time to time, when they show some interest in playing. But I would definitely play against forum members... that would be great if someone is up for the game.

You can do that already from "Duel a friend" option. it was "invite a friend" before but now i renamed it.

I have also reduced the minimum stake from 0.2 mBTC to 0.02 mBTC i hope this is better.

Moving forward, you have said it clearly and it has been noted by all, therefore it's better you wouldn't come back tomorrow and start demanding for KYC that you never mentioned.

We won't ask for KYC.

[yahoo62278]

Clubchess is a chess platform with free rated games and head-to-head Bitcoin duels. Choose a stake, find an opponent, and play. Friendly Games require no deposit.

No KYC documents required. All Bitcoin withdrawals are automatic.

If I am correct, that chess game will be P2P, not against your system or AI? The concern is how a player would make sure he is playing against the real users. How could we make sure you haven’t set up AI or your system to play against real users, and probably most users will lose against your system? So we need transparency that it’s a real P2P or PvP platform.

However, so far from my experience, it’s quite hard to succeed on a P2P platform. I have worked with a P2P gambling platform, and at the end of the day, these platforms give up. So how strong is your marketing team, and how are you going to draw attention from the gamblers, including forum gamblers?

Also make sure it’s real non-KYC platform, don’t ask for the KYC later. Everyone promise to be no-KYC platform nowadays to draw attention forum gamblers.

we never plan to use AI against player. The worst what can happen is me playing against users but i am not that good of a chess player, So i will most probably loose.

We plan to use tournaments to attract players and grow the community, including members of this forum.

We are fully against any kind of KYC.

You might try to host a few free tourneys and let the community try the site out. Winner gets a few bucks and people can see how the gameplay works or something. Just a cheap idea to try and see if the community gets interested.

Good luck with the site regardless.

[memehunter]

How is cheating handled?
Engines, bots, outside assistance, shared accounts and arranged results are prohibited. Recorded moves and timing are screened, including comparisons with Stockfish, to identify concerns for human review. No check guarantees an unaided opponent. Unresolved checks can delay the related prize credit. Players can report games and appeal decisions under the Fair-Game Policy.

No matter how sophisticated your screening methods are, there is no way for you to detect cheating. One can simply tweak the ratings/strength of a chess bot or take help in only one or two crucial instances. Do you think you have a better cheating prevention method than Lichess or Chess.com? Neither of them offers such matches for real money. Whenever they offer such events, the time control is like 3+0 or less, (90% of the time it is 1+0) with strict KYC verification and camera proctoring.
For you to offer 5+3 for real money with absolutely no KYC or other barriers, believe me, it will be dead in the water.  

[ClubChess.Net]

Clubchess is a chess platform with free rated games and head-to-head Bitcoin duels. Choose a stake, find an opponent, and play. Friendly Games require no deposit.

No KYC documents required. All Bitcoin withdrawals are automatic.

If I am correct, that chess game will be P2P, not against your system or AI? The concern is how a player would make sure he is playing against the real users. How could we make sure you haven’t set up AI or your system to play against real users, and probably most users will lose against your system? So we need transparency that it’s a real P2P or PvP platform.

However, so far from my experience, it’s quite hard to succeed on a P2P platform. I have worked with a P2P gambling platform, and at the end of the day, these platforms give up. So how strong is your marketing team, and how are you going to draw attention from the gamblers, including forum gamblers?

Also make sure it’s real non-KYC platform, don’t ask for the KYC later. Everyone promise to be no-KYC platform nowadays to draw attention forum gamblers.

we never plan to use AI against player. The worst what can happen is me playing against users but i am not that good of a chess player, So i will most probably loose.

We plan to use tournaments to attract players and grow the community, including members of this forum.

We are fully against any kind of KYC.

You might try to host a few free tourneys and let the community try the site out. Winner gets a few bucks and people can see how the gameplay works or something. Just a cheap idea to try and see if the community gets interested.

Good luck with the site regardless.

we have just announced a tournament.

No matter how sophisticated your screening methods are, there is no way for you to detect cheating. One can simply tweak the ratings/strength of a chess bot or take help in only one or two crucial instances. Do you think you have a better cheating prevention method than Lichess or Chess.com? Neither of them offers such matches for real money. Whenever they offer such events, the time control is like 3+0 or less, (90% of the time it is 1+0) with strict KYC verification and camera proctoring.
For you to offer 5+3 for real money with absolutely no KYC or other barriers, believe me, it will be dead in the water.  

Yes, I understand that. No we don't have better detection system then them yet but we are trying to figure out some AI based detection system for high stake games. Also high don't think for low stake games like 2,10,50,100 usd range we will have much issues. Also we are going to focus more on game between friends or someone you already know.

[ovcijisir]

Nice, this is the first chess webpage that receives BTC as far as I know of. I will make sure to check this one out.

I enjoy playing chess but I am sure I am not at tournament level, so I will just try out a friendly game.

[ClubChess.Net]

Nice, this is the first chess webpage that receives BTC as far as I know of. I will make sure to check this one out.

I enjoy playing chess but I am sure I am not at tournament level, so I will just try out a friendly game.

the website is pretty new, so anyone with decent chess skill will have a shot. i will also join the tournament but i don't think i have any chance to win.

[memehunter]

high don't think for low stake games like 2,10,50,100 usd range we will have much issues.

Lol, really.
I don't want to sound too critical, and I definitely don't want to discourage you, but you are simply wrong here. You will get abused for even $0.1 forget about $100.
You will either get hammered by chess bots or have no traffic in the first place. Why would someone deposit real money when they know they will get cheated for sure? The friends-and-family scenario is fine, but there are a lot of other platforms out there for that, with better functionality and options.
As a platform, it is also your duty to ensure fair play, and at the moment I don't think you have given us any concrete, fact-based assurance of that. All you have said so far about ensuring fair play is just air.

[ClubChess.Net]

high don't think for low stake games like 2,10,50,100 usd range we will have much issues.

Lol, really.
I don't want to sound too critical, and I definitely don't want to discourage you, but you are simply wrong here. You will get abused for even $0.1 forget about $100.
You will either get hammered by chess bots or have no traffic in the first place. Why would someone deposit real money when they know they will get cheated for sure? The friends-and-family scenario is fine, but there are a lot of other platforms out there for that, with better functionality and options.
As a platform, it is also your duty to ensure fair play, and at the moment I don't think you have given us any concrete, fact-based assurance of that. All you have said so far about ensuring fair play is just air.

we already have bot detection system but cannot guarantee engine-free play. i don't think anyone can guarantee that. i wanted to stay honest from the start so i didn't promise anything like that.

[mv1986]

high don't think for low stake games like 2,10,50,100 usd range we will have much issues.

Lol, really.
I don't want to sound too critical, and I definitely don't want to discourage you, but you are simply wrong here. You will get abused for even $0.1 forget about $100.
You will either get hammered by chess bots or have no traffic in the first place. Why would someone deposit real money when they know they will get cheated for sure? The friends-and-family scenario is fine, but there are a lot of other platforms out there for that, with better functionality and options.
As a platform, it is also your duty to ensure fair play, and at the moment I don't think you have given us any concrete, fact-based assurance of that. All you have said so far about ensuring fair play is just air.

You also have the social cost on those big platforms for getting caught. Even the suspicion that you could be a cheater will damage your reputation severely. Major online tournaments usually have a standard of two cameras catching the whole game session from each player. One from the front, one filming from the back. If you don't have the proper setup, you can't play.

@ClubChess.Net, what does a decent player have to lose when they cheat for a while on your platform under an unknown username? Bad players will more often tend to cheat, good players put their careers on the line, sponsorships and what not. It doesn't matter whether you are Nakamura or Carlsen, you will have to have the the same setup, meeting all the requirements in order to be able to participate.

Let's assume Carlsen uses your platform and plays with 99% accuracy several games in a row, are you going to kick him? How are you going to detect that it is not a bot, but a close to perfect player? And I tell you, this would require that you yourself are one of the best, you can't just judge by the fact that some player wins too much. If you have sophisticated software running in the background, go certify and present it. Stockfish is open-source and the worst of it all is, there is always a perfect choice in chess regardless of who the other player is. It helps to feed an engine with another player's past moves, but the bots are out there. Everyone can download them and they have been trained for years and years by now.

Edit:

~

we already have bot detection system but cannot guarantee engine-free play. i don't think anyone can guarantee that. i wanted to stay honest from the start so i didn't promise anything like that.

Yes but you have money involved and it will come down to who uses the bots the best way. You can train them whatever way you want and chess doesn't have significant variance in the highest of the highest of the highest percentiles. How would your "bot detector" distinguish an ELO 3000 guy from a well trained bot (not the best one, but one that is taught to make minor mistakes)?