The 54th Rhyl Congress was held from 22nd to 24th of September 2023, meaning a year was missed in 2024. There was no Rhyl Congress in 2022, possibly due to Covid which would also explain no congress in 2021, and the previous Rhyl Congress was that of 2019. The congress had been held annually since 1967.

The initial enthusiasm for congress chess in Rhyl may have contributed to the British Chess Championships being held at Rhyl in 1969. “The British” was held from 11th to 24th of August, at what was then Llewelyn County Primary School (now Ysgol Llywelyn in Welsh), Trellewelyn Road, Rhyl, where the present writer played in the British Boys’ Under-16 Championship as one of a contingent of juniors from Sheffield & District.

(If anyone is interested in the British Championships at Rhyl in 1969 as an aside, then see here.)

	Open

No	Name	Grade		1			2			3			4			5		SPS

1	Harry Grieve	2540	1	W	15	1	B	11	1	W	8	½	B	2	1	W	6
				1			2			3			3½			4½		14
2	Jonathan L B Blackburn	2312	½	-	bye	1	W	13	1	B	4	½	W	1	½	B	8
				½			1½			2½			3			3½		11
3	Harry Gardiner	1972	1	W	7	0	B	8	1	W	11	½	B	6	½	W	4
				1			1			2			2½			3		9½
4	Andrew Savage	1951	1	-	bye	½	W	6	0	W	2	1	B	12	½	B	3
				1			1½			1½			2½			3		9½
5	Denys Podcherniaev	1821	0	W	11	1	B	15	1	B	9	0	W	8	1	B	10
				0			1			2			2			3		8
6	Roy Ellames	2078	1	W	14	½	B	4	½	-	bye	½	W	3	0	B	1
				1			1½			2			2½			2½		9½
7	Keith C Arkell	2459	0	B	3	1	W	9	½	B	12	1	W	10
				0			1			1½			2½			2½		7½
8	Mike J Surtees	2134	+	B	16	1	W	3	0	B	1	1	B	5	½	W	2
				0			1			1			2			2½		6½
9	Martin Burns	1906	½	-	bye	0	B	7	0	W	5	1	-	bye	1	B	13
				½			½			½			1½			2½		5½
10	Chris Doran	2026	½	-	bye	½	W	12	1	B	14	0	B	7	0	W	5
				½			1			2			2			2		7½
11	Jeff R Smith	2070	1	B	5	0	W	1	0	B	3	½	W	13	½	W	12
	Chester			1			1			1			1½			2		6½
12	Damian Mccarthy	1921	½	-	bye	½	B	10	½	W	7	0	W	4	½	B	11
				½			1			1½			1½			2		6½
13	Mark A Bastow	2025	½	-	bye	0	B	2	½	W	15	½	B	11	0	W	9
				½			½			1			1½			1½		5
14	Geoff Graham	1882	0	B	6	1	-	bye	0	W	10	-	B	15
	Cheshire & N Wales *			0			1			1			1			1		4
15	Robert G Clark	2022	0	B	1	0	W	5	½	B	13	+	W	14
	Penyffordd			0			0			½			½			½		1½
16	Simon Layhe	1912	-	W	8
				0			0			0			0			0		0

	Major (Under 1850)

No	Name	Grade		1			2			3			4			5		SPS

1	Chris Wescomb	1691	½	B	9	1	W	18	1	W	10	1	B	5	1	W	4
	Stowmarket			½			1½			2½			3½			4½		12½
2	Paul Doherty	1778	1	B	20	1	W	12	½	W	5	½	B	4	1	W	7
				1			2			2½			3			4		12½
3	Chris J Grier	1706	½	-	bye	½	W	9	½	B	16	1	W	20	1	B	14
	Rhyl & Prestatyn			½			1			1½			2½			3½		9
4	Haydn Parry	1764	1	W	21	1	B	8	½	-	bye	½	W	2	0	B	1
				1			2			2½			3			3		11½
5	Andrew Raeburn	1819	1	B	22	1	W	24	½	B	2	0	W	1	½	B	9
				1			2			2½			2½			3		11
6	Richard L Bowman	1768	½	-	bye	1	W	13	½	B	14	½	W	9	½	B	8
				½			1½			2			2½			3		9½
7	Richard Szwajkun	1755	½	-	bye	½	W	16	1	B	19	1	W	11	0	B	2
				½			1			2			3			3		9½
8	Joseph Muxlow	1654	1	B	11	0	W	4	1	B	24	½	W	14	½	W	6
				1			1			2			2½			3		9½
9	Peter Fisher	1602	½	W	1	½	B	3	1	W	15	½	B	6	½	W	5
				½			1			2			2½			3		9
10	Michael I Connor	1828	½	-	bye	1	W	19	0	B	1	½	W	13	1	B	16
				½			1½			1½			2			3		8½
11	Joel Ofeni	1790	0	W	8	1	B	21	1	W	12	0	B	7	1	W	17
				0			1			2			2			3		8
12	Shion Rowlands	1655	1	W	23	0	B	2	0	B	11	1	W	19	1	B	18
	Rhyl & Prestatyn			1			1			1			2			3		8
13	Catriona Coutts	1650	½	-	bye	0	B	6	1	W	23	½	B	10	1	W	20
	Bangor University			½			½			1½			2			3		7½
14	Vincent Logan	1791	½	-	bye	1	B	17	½	W	6	½	B	8	0	W	3
				½			1½			2			2½			2½		9
15	Gary Fox	1733	0	B	19	½	W	22	0	B	9	1	-	bye	1	W	24
				0			½			½			1½			2½		5
16	Jon Blackburn	1645	½	-	bye	½	B	7	½	W	3	½	B	24	0	W	10
				½			1			1½			2			2		7
17	Raymond Williams	1685	½	-	bye	0	W	14	½	B	18	1	W	21	0	B	11
				½			½			1			2			2		6
18	Sandra G Blackburn	1559	½	-	bye	0	B	1	½	W	17	1	B	22	0	W	12
				½			½			1			2			2		6
19	Bart Mchugh	1616	1	W	15	0	B	10	0	W	7	0	B	12	½	W	22
	Ormskirk			1			1			1			1			1½		5½
20	David P Price	1634	0	W	2	½	B	23	1	W	22	0	B	3	0	B	13
				0			½			1½			1½			1½		5
21	Nicholas C Flaherty	1630	0	B	4	0	W	11	1	-	bye	0	B	17
	East Cheshire			0			0			1			1			1		3
22	Gregory Barker	1550	0	W	5	½	B	15	0	B	20	0	W	18	½	B	19
				0			½			½			½			1		2½
23	Brian Butterworth	1551	0	B	12	½	W	20	0	B	13
				0			½			½			½			½		2
24	Barrie Wells	1694	+	W	25	0	B	5	0	W	8	½	W	16	0	B	15
				0			0			0			½			½		1
25	Jon Tuson	1609	-	B	24
				0			0			0			0			0		0

	Minor (Under 1600)

No	Name	Grade		1			2			3			4			5		SPS

1	David Fernandez-Arias	1519	1	W	17	1	B	19	1	W	13	½	W	2	1	B	6
	Cheshire & N Wales *			1			2			3			3½			4½		14
2	Gary Slegg	1524	1	W	18	1	B	11	1	W	3	½	B	1	½	W	13
				1			2			3			3½			4		13½
3	Hal McHugh	1438	1	W	5	1	B	7	0	B	2	1	W	8	½	-	bye
	Ormskirk			1			2			2			3			3½		11½
4	Peter Coutts	1430	½	-	bye	1	W	16	½	B	6	½	B	10	1	W	12
	Colwyn Bay			½			1½			2			2½			3½		10
5	Lee Walls	1582	0	B	3	1	W	20	½	B	14	1	W	11	1	B	10
	Widnes			0			1			1½			2½			3½		8½
6	Lawrence Harold	1396	1	W	12	½	B	10	½	W	4	1	B	7	0	W	1
	Eccles Community			1			1½			2			3			3		10½
7	Paul Sadler	1541	1	B	23	0	W	3	1	B	16	0	W	6	1	B	15
	Wrexham			1			1			2			2			3		9
8	Steve A Spencer	1520	0	B	16	1	W	21	1	W	19	0	B	3	1	W	22
				0			1			2			2			3		8
9	James Weldon	1562	-	W	13	0	B	14	1	W	23	1	B	18	1	W	17
				0			0			1			2			3		6
10	Daniel Westhead	1516	1	B	21	½	W	6	½	B	15	½	W	4	0	W	5
	Liverpool *			1			1½			2			2½			2½		9½
11	Stephen Williams	1358	1	B	22	0	W	2	½	W	12	0	B	5	1	B	16
				1			1			1½			1½			2½		7½
12	Aidan Jones	1560	0	B	6	1	W	23	½	B	11	1	W	20	0	B	4
				0			1			1½			2½			2½		7½
13	Jeffrey Foy	1407	+	B	9	1	W	15	0	B	1	1	W	14	½	B	2
				0			1			1			2			2½		6½
14	Christopher Lysons	1475	0	B	15	1	W	9	½	W	5	0	B	13	1	B	20
				0			1			1½			1½			2½		6½
15	Trevor R Blower	1583	1	W	14	0	B	13	½	W	10	½	B	17	0	W	7
				1			1			1½			2			2		7½
16	Stuart Hamilton	1280	1	W	8	0	B	4	0	W	7	1	B	19	0	W	11
				1			1			1			2			2		7
17	Susan Parry	1194	0	B	1	1	-	bye	½	-	bye	½	W	15	0	B	9
				0			1			1½			2			2		6½
18	Malcolm Green	1284	0	B	2	1	W	22	0	B	20	0	W	9	1	-	bye
				0			1			1			1			2		5
19	Ian Regan	1435	1	-	bye	0	W	1	0	B	8	0	W	16	½	B	21
				1			1			1			1			1½		5½
20	Steve Szwajkun	1365	½	-	bye	0	B	5	1	W	18	0	B	12	0	W	14
				½			½			1½			1½			1½		5½
21	Stephen Garnett	1119	0	W	10	0	B	8	0	B	22	1	-	bye	½	W	19
	Rhyl & Prestatyn			0			0			0			1			1½		2½
22	Leo Fernandez Arias	1557	0	W	11	0	B	18	1	W	21	+	B	23	0	B	8
				0			0			1			1			1		3
23	Thomas F Hynes	1302	0	W	7	0	B	12	0	B	9	-	W	22
				0			0			0			0			0		0