Sandcastle Chess Club Coach Dave Meyer, “Coach Dave” to his players, said there’s one rule when joining the club—to play with dignity and respect.
In its first year, the Sandcastle Chess Club placed first and second in its first two SLO County-wide tournaments. Beyond tournaments and trophies, Meyer said that the game of chess teaches kids skills they can use in all areas of life for the rest of their life.
“Chess builds confidence; it builds problem-solving skills; it builds patience,” he said. “On the scholastic level, generally, the student who wins is the one who takes longer, is able to think more, really engage with it, and thinking far and deeply is a skill that we don’t often think about.”
The Sandcastle Chess Club meets every Sunday, and Coach Meyer teaches its roughly 20 members about chess strategy.
“Kids are soaking in things, and they’re pretty able to learn quickly—especially chess,” he said. “There’s something special about chess that makes young kids really take to it, and they can learn a lot faster than adults, which is frustrating for adults,” he said with a laugh.
According to Meyer, kids can start playing as young as 4 years old. Once kids hit 5 or 6, they are “golden.”
When training kids to play chess, Meyer said he starts with teaching them about weak and strong squares for each piece.
“When you play your games, you try to ask the kids, ‘Are your knights happy? Could they go to a better square?’ And so as soon as you start to build more and more of these themes and strategy lessons, then they start to learn,” he said. “I think the longer you play, the more you realize that you have to play the position that’s in front of you, and you can’t force what you want to do onto the board.
“This is what really separates stronger players from weaker players.”
Meyer moved from St. Louis, Missouri, the “chess capital” of the U.S., he said, where chess clubs in school are a given. When landing on the Central Coast, that wasn’t the case. Meyer wanted to make sure his son, Warren, who is homeschooled, had the opportunity to learn life lessons of chess, so he started Sandcastle Chess Club, open to all kids of any age and from any school.
“I love to teach and share knowledge, so it’s rewarding to see them get better at things,” he said. “The really cool thing about chess is that success only comes from hard work. Yes, there’s a little bit of talent, but really it’s about how much work you put into it.”
Warren, Meyer’s son, said he enjoys playing chess every Sunday and wants to get better. Among Warren are Dylan and Greyson, fellow chess players who have placed in the top four of their age groups in the county.
Admiring their hard-earned trophies, Dylan said chess helps him strategize better in school and in sports like martial arts and flag football. Greyson said chess makes him smarter and has helped him to make more friends.
These chess champions’ parents said they have seen the game make a world of difference for their kids.
Dustin Hoen said his son, Greyson, plays quarterback in flag football.
“He has to think about, ‘I’ve got two people to hand off to, who’s going to be the best player?’ That strategy of chess is like a direct carryover for him, and processing and quickly making decisions on the football field also,” Hoen said.
Dylan’s mom, Allison Elliot, said the game allows her kid to be a kid, but have more patience.
“It’s really amazing to see them,” she said. “You’re reminded of how young they are on the playground, and then they come and play such a very patient, focused game. Like they can be crazy boys, and then come and sit and play.”
Coach Meyer said starting a chess club is easy, and he encourages all parents to consider enabling their kids to play. For more information on starting a club or joining Sandcastle Chess Club, email sandcastlechessclub@gmail.com.
Fast fact
• El Camino Homeless Organization (ECHO) recently announced the return of its Empty Bowls event, a community tradition that brings together local chefs, artisans, and supporters to raise funds for individuals and families on their journey to stable housing. The fundraiser event features soups prepared by local chefs served in handcrafted ceramic bowls that patrons get to keep. Events will take place in Atascadero on April 10 and Paso Robles on April 24. For more information, visit echoshelter.org. Δ
Reach Staff Writer Libbey Hanson at lhanson@newtimesslo.com.
This article appears in Apr 3-13, 2025.