The Thousand Oaks Chess Club began in 2011 as a chess class for homeschooled kids. When the classes were discontinued, we continued meeting at the Goebel Adult Community Center on Friday afternoons as the Inter-Generational Chess Club, promoting interaction and fellowship between the seniors and kids. In late 2012, with attendance nearly nonexistent, we decided to move the club to the evening and open it up to the public. Our very first meeting on the first Monday of 2013 saw 25 players show up to play chess! Good turnouts continued, and, in April that year, the TOCC hosted its first rated tournament with the help of local chess coach/TD Jerry Yee. That first event had 32 players, and the club continued growing, with tournaments surpassing 50 players summer the next year.
In December 2015, the TOCC became its own USCF affiliate, and I (Nick Garcia) took over the Chief Tournament Director role. A big thanks to Jerry for helping the club get off the ground by directing our tournaments for nearly 3 years! We continue to hold weekly rated games nearly every Monday as well as the occasional blitz tournament or other special event. Turnouts hover around 50 players or more per week. In July 2016, the club expanded by hosting its first-ever weekend tournament, and the second edition of that event took place in July 2017, with a record 78-player turnout! We look forward to what else the future will bring!