I recently bought a set with standard pieces (natural and black) and a navy blue and white vinyl board to use in tournaments.
I heard somewhere that it is requiered to use a green and white board. I didn’t think it was true but is it allowed to use a board like mine (blue and white)?
Thanks
Green and white is not required, just very common. Blue and white is fine.
Thank you!
I’d consider green and buff to be more standard. If the opponent has a suitable green and buff board, or a wooden board with light and dark squares, and wants to use it, I think you probably should.
I’m not sure that the TD can force such a substitution, but imho white and dark blue is a bit nonstandard although it’s in the acceptable range.
And let us not forget the last sentence of 39A pgs. 223-224 in the rulebook: The director is the final arbiter of whether the equipment in question is standard. So, if you are not sure about a piece of equipment ask the TD.
Aside from the fact that the green-and-buff color combination is specifically mentioned in the rulebook, there’s no reason to consider it “more standard”:
Emphasis mine. There’s nothing in here that privileges green-and-buff over blue-and-buff to the extent that an opponent could claim blue-and-buff to be “nonstandard equipment,” or even “less standard,” such that it should be replaced by a green-and-buff board.
I’d say that if it’s among the colors purveyed by USCF Sales, it’s indisputably standard.
(Random aside – the disclaimer at the bottom of the page amuses me: “We’re sorry, but we are out of the Green/Buff Vinyl Chessboards and are no longer available.” Hear that? USCF Sales is no longer available. Go hit on someone else.)
Except maybe for the fact that some may find blue and buff DISpleasing to the eye.
I certainly would.
I had the feeling that someone was going to come along and sloan that phrase.
I find the brown-and-buff vinyl combination (also explicitly mentioned in the rulebook) to be aesthetically awful, but I have enough sense to realize that the issue here is not whether you like or dislike blue, or whether I like or dislike brown, but whether a player can stand to look at fuchsia and yellow for a whole game.
I’ve played more than a few rated games on a red and black board, ie, a checkerboard.
As long as the squares are sufficiently contrasting colors and not obnoxiously so, the board should be acceptable. (Personally I prefer the green and buff boards, but the brown and buff ones aren’t a problem for me.)
As far as I know, nobody has made a board with bright red and blue squares, thankfully!
How about more girl-friendly colors like lavender or pink?
I hate to even dignify that comment with a reply, but burgundy is an option.
I’ve seen a vinyl board with light violet.
Green and buff is, empirically, far more standard than other color combinations. I’m sure it’s the most common color combination on rollup boards sold by USCF, and it’s well accepted among tournament players. We’re used to it. (It’s also easy on the eyes. It was a well chosen standard.)
White (or probably off-white) and dark blue isn’t too bad. I remember playing on some really awful combination of set and board, though still arguably the pieces were “Staunton”, and it bothered me during the game. It made it harder for me to concentrate on the game, and I believe I played worse. The idea of standardization is to provide equipment that won’t bother the players, won’t distract from the game. This is best achieved by green and buff, or a wooden board with light and dark stained squares.
That’s why I say green and buff is better than other color combinations on rollup boards.
They probably made the mistake of having a “reasonable” number of each color combination, but almost everyone wanted the green and buff and they’re sold out. But rather than reorder more, they’re hoping people will settle for other color combinations so they can clear out their stock.
Someone posted a while ago a link showing that Susan Polgar was selling chess sets in some very girly colors like hot pink.
Parse that sentence in English: It’s “we” (i.e., the USCF store managers) who are no longer available. Maybe the boards still are available!
(There seems to be another pronoun missing, e.g., “We are out . . . and these are no longer . . . .”)
Different square colors can change perceptiion of the board. I once was asked to make an accomodation for a player who had visual problems among his other handicaps. We played on a board with bright red and light green squares. When I closed my eyes to think, the colors flipped causing confusion and a bit of nausea. After the game I had a severe headache. Even blue causes a problem as its opposite color is a pale yellowish color. Seeing yellow and white squares in your mind is offputting.
Green is a cool color and easy to look at for several hours. That is why it is good to get to your tournament board number first so that you can set out your green and buff board and wooden pieces.
Blue might have a bad reputation because of a version USCF sold a decade or two ago – bright, fluorescent blue that was hard on some players’ eyes.
Bill Smythe
I’ve tried all the USCF vinyl’s colors, and oddly enough, I find the white-and-black the most difficult: black pawns can be invisible on black squares!
I like the white/red for its contrast, but concede that I’m alone there. I think that light gray and dark gray would be worth trying.
I never understood this. I have a black and off-white vinyl board, and I’ve never had that issue. But I had one opponent ask to use his board instead once, because of this.
Why does USCF or USCF sales sell anything but the most standard equipment? I understand the issue with USCF Sales being a client of USCF rather than a part of USCF, but if someone just decides they like blue or red dark squares instead of green (hey, what the heck, I like blue better than green) and isn’t told that many players are really expecting green and buff, they show up at the tournament and wonder why they are slightly under-appreciated, or worse they don’t notice it.
(Or even worse, they take advantage of the opportunity to throw off experienced opponents. I am sure this is not OP’s motivation!)
They impose this equipment on their opponents who should have a right to expect standard equipment, unless there’s a complaint to the TD and the TD steps in and requires that the opponent’s board be used. It doesn’t cost any more to make a green and buff board than other colors. I’m not saying everyone has to have wooden pieces; the cheap plastic “tournament player special” is fine. But I think we should provide more guidance to new tournament players on this, so they get the best equipment with the money they have to spend.