Tournament Registration

Most scholastic tournaments offer a price reduction for players who register in advance. In fact, advance registration is normally a requirement for larger scholastic events. It simply lakes too long to accommodate new registrations on the morning of the tournament. Just a few at-the-door registrations significantly delay the tournament for everyone else. Many scholastic tournament officials will refund your registration fee if you are unable to attend.

Read the entire tournament announcement and registration form thoroughly. Consult with your child’s chess instructor, teacher, teammates, or the tournament organizer to ensure your child registers for the correct section. Please fill out all the requested information on the registration form and mail your registration form and fees to the organizer in keeping with the early entry request.

USCF Membership

The U.S. Chess Federation (USCF), a not-for-profit organization, is the governing body for chess in the United States. Scholastic memberships are $13 (for 14 yrs old and under, without the magazine subscription), $19 (for 14 yrs and under), or $25 (for 19 yrs and under) for a one-year membership. Chess ratings are computed and reported by the USCF based on the results of USCF-sanctioned tournament games. Ratings are simply numbers that indicate the relative strength of chess players. That is, players with similar ratings should be evenly matched. A player’s rating will go up if he/she wins and, of course, it will go down if he/she loses. USCF rating is one of the elements used in establishing who your child will play during the course of the tournament. Official ratings are published every two months, and can be viewed on the uschess.org website.
Encourage your child not to get too serious about his or her rating. It will likely go up and down as he or she gains experience.

If your child is playing in a Rated section of the tournament he/she must be a current member of the U. S. Chess Federation.

Check-In Tournament Day

- Arrive at the tournament site well before the closing time for check-in. It will stated on the tournament announcement. It will probably be crowded and you will want adequate time to check-in, make sure your child is registered correctly, and find a comfortable place to settle in for the day.
- If there is a registration check-in table near the door, stop there to confirm that your advance registration has been received and your child is registered for the correct Section. If there is no check-in table, a listing of advance registrations will usually be posted on the wall where pairings and wall charts will be posted later. Check this advance registration list to confirm your child is registered for the correct section.
If your child’s registration has been entered incorrectly or if you have questions about check-in procedures, contact tournament officials.

Please do not stop tournament officials to ask non-essential questions just prior to the tournament. Tournament Directors and others are quite busy trying to accomplish all the tasks to get the tournament started. If possible, hold your questions until after the second round has started or check with other knowledgeable chess parents or coaches around the site. All parents were new to scholastic chess at one time and are usually quite willing to explain the activities and signs you encounter. Soon will be your turn to help someone else once you are an experienced chess parent.

Be considerate of other chess parents. Being continually late to register or check-in, or tying up tournament officials with non-essential issues, delays the tournament for everyone. Read carefully any tournament rules or guidelines distributed or posted on walls. It is important that your child understand the rules and conduct of the tournament. If there are questions, you will have an opportunity to ask them during the announcement period preceding the start of the event.

Swiss System Pairings

Most scholastic tournaments use a pairing methodology known as the Swiss System to determine the opponents for each game. The rules for Swiss System pairing are carefully prescribed to ensure fairness
and consistency. Most scholastic tournament directors utilize a computer program to calculate pairings more quickly than doing it manually.

Generally speaking, the Swiss System means players are paired for each game against others with the
same or nearly the same score.

In Rated sections, players are ranked according to their official USCF rating. In Novice or Unrated sections, player sequence is random.
Players are paired against others with s’imilar scores for each round. In the first round of a 20-player section, for example, player 1 will compete against player 11, player 2 will meet player 12, and so on. Assuming there were 10 winners during round one, the second round pairings would place those winners in the same group and pair player 1 of that group against player 6, player 2 against player 7, and so on. Those 10 players who lost round one would be similarly paired for round two.
Players earn one point for a win, one-half point for a draw, and zero points for a loss.
No one is eliminated. Each participant plays every round, unless a bye (see definition below) is given
or requested.
A player will not play the same opponent twice in a tournament.

Equalization and alternation of color played are attempted, but there are many times a player must play the same color twice in a row. No one will play the same color three times in a row.

Reading Pairing Lists

Pairing lists present player match-ups for each round of games. Pairings are determined in accordance with Swiss System guidelines and the rules of chess as described above. A pairing list for each section will be posted prior to the start of each round. Each player should understand the board number he/she will be playing on, the color he/she will play, and the opponent’s name.

Byes

A player with a ‘bye’ does not play in a particular round. There are basically two types of byes – voluntary and involuntary.

Voluntary Bye – A player unable to be at the tournament for a certain round may request a bye for that round. In most cases, tournament officials will grant a half-point (the same score as a draw) for voluntary bye rounds. In most events, half-point byes must be requested before first round play begins and may not be available for the final round. There may also be a limit to the number of half-point byes granted.
Involuntary Bye – When a section has an odd number of players, one player must receive a bye (not play) for each round. This player receives a full point (the same scare as a win) for that round. Players receiving a bye on the pairing list should report to the Tournament Director in the tournament room and wait there for final determination of pairings. Players receiving a bye on the pairing list may sometimes be paired in the tournament room at the last minute.

Withdrawing

If illness or other emergency arises and a player must leave before the tournament is completed, inform tournament officials that the player will not be able to play the remaining rounds. If you leave without notification, it creates unpaired players or improperly paired players for crucial later rounds.

Withdrawing from tournaments for reasons other than illness or other emergency is discouraged. Learning to play through losses and come back after defeat are important elements of chess.

READING WALL CHARTS

Wall charts document the official results of the tournament. Wall chart are usually updated after the completion of each round. Results are cumulative so the results for the last posted round will display a player’s current tournament score. Each player should cheek the wall chart for accuracy of name, grade, school, and USCF ID as soon as the first wall chart is posted. Players should validate the accuracy of posted game scores after each round.

Refer to the attached Guide to Reading Wall charts for hints on understanding the content of wall charts.

Combined Individual & Team Competition

Scholastic events often use a combined individual and teams competition format in which a player may compete for prizes both as an individual and as a member of a team (usually school). Team scores are computed as the sum of the team’s top scoring (usually four) players but there is no limit to the number of players from the same school. In most cases, participants do not have to play against teammates during the tournament.

Tie Breaks

Most events have a designated number of top awards (usually trophies). It is common in scholastic events to have a number of ties (players with the same number of points). To keep from further lengthening the tournament by having a series of playoff games, a sequence of tie-break rules is employed to determine award winners. These tie-breaks are generally based on the strength of each player’s competition during the tournament as determined by the number of points their opponents earned. The sequence of tie-breaks employed should be announced or posted prior to the start of the tournament.

Awards Ceremony

All players are encouraged to attend the closing awards ceremony. In most scholastic events, every participant receives some form of recognition. And every award winner deserves to have his/her efforts acknowledged.

‘How many points does it take to win a trophy?’ is the favorite question of students as the tournament moves into its final rounds. There is no standard answer to that question. It depends on the results of other participants in each section. Tournament officials can only determine awards when all students in a section have completed their final round games.

Please do not ask tournament officials for your child’s award so you can leave early. If you must leave before the awards ceremony, make arrangements with someone else to pick up your child’s award for you.

Tournament Officials

Chief Tournament Director – The Chief Tournament Director (TD) has ultimate authority and responsibility for the tournament. The Chief TD monitors activities in the playing room and makes decisions and interpretations relating to the rules of chess.

Assistant TDs 1 Section Monitors – Assistant TDs (often called Section Monitors) help the Chief Tournament Director monitor the progress of games and make rule decisions and interpretations. At larger scholastic events, there will be a number of Section Monitors in the playing room. Team coaches or other experienced players often serve in this role.

Pairings Director – The Pairings Director manages the behind-the-scenes paperwork of the tournament -
entering registrants, determining and posting player pairings for each section and round, recording game results, posting interim tournament reports (wall charts), and computing award standings.

For more info about tournaments, please go to: The Georgia Chess Association