Illegal Move???

Running Chess Tournaments
1

Tournament is not being played under Blitz rules. Sudden death, White has 3 seconds, Black has a few minutes. Black moves. White moves. White touches his clock (no effect since Black’s clock is still running). Black presses his clock. Fortunately, Chief TD is watching all this very closely. What is the correct ruling?

Local TD spectator says my ruling is incorrect. He has asked a Senior TD and an ANTD and they both agree with him, though he has given the caveat that he may not have completely described all the relevant information.

Comments are very welcome.

Alex Relyea

2

Black was fine pressing his clock, as he is always allowed to do so after moving. White can then press his clock, as he is allowed to do so after moving.

I do not see this as an illegal move (assuming the move actually was legal), but black may have been able to make a claim for annoying behavior for moving while it is still black’s turn (standard penalty matches the illegal move penalty but many TDs will simply give a warning instead of applying a time penalty).
White has no viable claim to make. The only damage suffered by white was due to white having violated the rule about who was on move.

PS Just like an improper draw offer made on the opponents move is still a draw offer (possibly earning a penalty for annoying behavior), touch move would still apply to white’s move improperly made before black’s move was completed (as long as black’s move was not changed, perhaps due to being illegal).

3

Black is entitled to a clock press. If white moves before black presses the clock, black can still press the clock. It is then up to white to press the clock again. If white fails to do so and runs out of time, tough luck. White should have stayed alert to this possibility, especially since he had made his last move without waiting for his opponent to press the clock.

Bill Smythe

4

Play chess, gentlemen.

5

This.

6

While I agree that Black is entitled to a clock press and white is responsible for vigilence, I have known players who deliberately play this game when they have time and their opponent doesn’t, hoping to disrupt their equilibrium enough to cause them to squander a precious second or two. If such a pattern emerged, would a director be justified in penalizing Black for his unsportsmanlike conduct?

7

By this do you mean that black might deliberately fail to press his clock, so that, after white made his next move and performed a “dummy” press (i.e. pressed the button when it was already down), white might think his job was done, and wouldn’t be on the lookout for the need to press it again?

If so, I’d have to say that white brought it on himself, by moving without waiting for a black clock press. White made his own bed, now he might have to sleep in it.

The best strategy for white might be to wait for a bit for his opponent to press the clock. If black still doesn’t press the clock within, say, 5 or 10 seconds, then white could go ahead and move, then press first black’s clock, then white’s. If black were to then press the clock yet again, this would be a violation, since it would now be black’s move. Such a press would likely invalidate any subsequent black claim that white had time forfeited, and might result in a penalty against black to boot.

Bill Smythe

8

A question: The bit about Black being entitled to a clock press is explicitly stated in the blitz rules, but this wasn’t a blitz rules event. How do the regular rules address this? Do they address it in any way other than annoying behavior? Is Black entitled to the extra clock press?

I saw this issue of “move then delay pressing the clock” come up in a different situation, where there was absolutely no time pressure, and notation was not required. The pattern was: A moves, then starts writing down the notation, B moves, then A raises hand and makes a claim: “B is moving on my time.”

A wanted B to be penalized, B felt totally thrown off her rhythm. Indeed, most players will move, hit clock, notate, because that should be the best way to conserve one’s own time.

9

Several details have been left out of the description of the incident. First, was the event FIDE rated? Second, was delay or increment being used? If so, what was the delay or increment setting? In addition, you did not indicate who made a claim?

Under FIDE rules, I believe that the arbiter may intervene make rulings based on his observations. Under USCF rules, a player must make a claim. Which system of the rules is the TD following?

If there is a significant delay time or increment time being used, any alleged damage to the player making the game is minimal. With a warning they should play on. If you feel that the incident caused the claimant to have lost significant time, you may make an adjustment at your discretion. The facts in evidence do not indicate who made a claim.

Personally, I would make them play on and dismiss a claim by Black that White has displayed “annoying behavior”. I am not sure what claim, if any, that White can make under the given set of facts. Inform the players that each must wait for the other to play his move and pressing the clock before pressing his own clock. There is time to do that under delay and increment settings. Play on.

This happens all of the time in time scrambles and was a frequent problem in the analog clock era, too. Then, players would sometimes press the clock and hold down the brass button making it difficult for the opponent to press his button in return. Players were sometimes penalized for doing this. With digital clocks that have touch sensors, players moving fast can press the button before the opponent has done so. With long delay (10+ seconds) and increment settings there should be less of this gaming of the clock press. Provide warnings and move on. If the poor act continues and the TD/Arbiter warnings are ignored, then that is another issue which the rules address.

10

No the event was not FIDE rated. Yes, there was a delay. I prefer not to state the amount of the delay at this time. Only the spectator/ local TD made a claim, and this well after the game.

Alex Relyea

11

I would deny both A’s request to penalize B, and B’s complaint about rhythm. She’d better get used to diffrerent rhythms as she continues her tournament career.

Bill Smythe

12

What you be the reaction if after Black moved without punching the clock, if White moved without punching the clock? Please assume that we are talking a non-Blitz event without increment, but with delay. For that matter why doesn’t White refrain from moving & see if Black will lose on time?

Larry S. Cohen

13

That’s a creative solution, but … pressing the opponent’s clock for him? Maybe you’re joking. That sounds way more fishy than moving on an opponent’s time.

That was exactly what I did: deny A’s request and caution B, at least the first couple of trips to that board.

Still both players have a point.

14

Great minds think alike.

Frequently I prefer to apply common sense rather than the letter of any rule. In addition, I often find it more interesting to discuss what a rule ought to be, rather than what it is literally, right down to its rigid (and sometimes absurd) tunnel-vision conclusion.

It would be ridiculous, for example, to have a rule that would absolutely forbid any player, under any circumstances, from making a move before his opponent has pressed his clock. For one thing, that would allow too much gaming of the system. For example, player X might even deliberately fail to press his clock, so that when Y eventually moves, X can demand a penalty.

At the opposite extreme, it seems obvious to me that each player should be entitled to a clock press, whether blitz or not, as long as he avails himself of that opportunity within a reasonable time.

This would mean, for example, that if white blitzes out a move before black has completed his previous move (i.e. before black has pressed his clock), then black should still be allowed to press his clock, and if he does, white needs to remain alert to this possibility so that he, too, can press the clock appropriately.

Between the extremes, the question may be, how does one write the rule so that it’s fair to both players?

Not joking. In fact, I seem to recall reading, in a recent thread, that FIDE has endorsed this exact procedure, at least in certain cases where the opponent has failed to press his clock.

Under certain circumstances, this “creativity” makes a lot of sense. For example, what if there is a 30-second increment? If one player fails to press his clock, and his opponent eventually plays his move anyway, then both players have been deprived of their 30-second increment. It’s possible the first player “forgot” on purpose, figuring that the loss of the increment would harm his opponent more than himself. This is another example of how one player’s attempt to game the system can be rendered ineffective by an opponent who has a logical, simple, and legal recourse.

Bill Smythe

15

Under US Chess rules for non-blitz play, the opponent is simply not allowed to move at all until the player has pressed the clock. Rule 6B states that “A player is said to be on the move or to have the move when the opponent’s move has been completed.” Rule 9G states (paraphrasing) that under almost all circumstances, a move is completed when the clock has been pressed (exceptions: checkmate, stalemate, dead position). Rule 9G1 explicitly states that the player is still on the move until the clock has been pressed. Thus, the Official Rules of Chess is silent on whether the player is entitled to a clock press simply because the question cannot arise if the players are following the rules.

Note that the blitz rules explicitly state that a legal move is determined and completed at the same time. That is why the opponent is allowed to move before the player has pressed the clock in blitz.

OK, now we sit back and wait for all the protests of “that can’t be right, I can’t move if my opponent doesn’t press the clock?” I will anticipate these protests by stating “yes, that is correct.” As a practical matter, once it is (mostly) clear that the opponent has simply forgotten to press the clock, a player will go ahead and move. But the player is under no obligation to move until the opponent has pressed the clock, and the player would be completely within his rights to sit at the board and wait for the opponent’s flag to fall. To those who would claim this is poor sportsmanship, I would point out that it is solely the opponent’s responsibility to remember to press the clock (and to eventually figure out that the player is not moving because the clock has not been pressed), and the player is under no obligation whatsoever to assist the opponent by reminding him to press the clock.

16

I’m afraid this is a rare instance where I disagree with Mr. Smythe. As I mentioned above, the combination of rules 6B and 9G indicate that B is not entitled to move when she did, regardless of her rhythmic feelings. However, I would only warn B on the first offense and assess no other penalty.

However, reading Mr. Smythe’s response more closely leads me to wonder whether we disagree. He simply stated that he would deny A’s request to assess a penalty against B. If he agrees that B did not have the right to move when she did, then we are in fortuitous agreement after all.

17

If I was directing, and Mr. Smythe’s opponent did not press his clock in “a reasonable amount of time” after he moved, I would penalize Mr. Smythe. I would intervene even if the opponent did not complain. There are certain rules about clock handling, and Mr. Smythe’s “solution” falls outside them. If he did this again, not necessarily in the same game, I would have no qualms about forfeiting him and expelling him from the tournament.

Mr. Smythe is duly warned what to expect should he ever play in a tournament when I am chief TD. I would have no trouble at any point with him gesturing to his opponent in case he forgot that the clock had not been pressed.

I understand Mr. Ballou’s point about the black letter rule, but I think that players so frequently violate this rule inadvertently that any penalty would be overly harsh.

Alex Relyea

18

I agree with Mr. Relyea.

Pressing your opponent’s clock button in my opinion is completely wrong. This would be very similar to a person moving an opponent’s piece so as to make the move for the opponent. These things just should not be done in a rated game, period.

As a TD and a player following the rules, I expect players, including myself as a player, to only press their button or to press the pause button only when summoning the TD. There is never, during a tournament game, any reason to press your opponent’s clock button.

Motioning, or otherwise indicating to the opponent to press his clock button would be acceptable. But it should be strictly hands off the opponent’s button during a rated game.

19

If this is an event with an increment time control or a non-sudden death time control, I will be more sympathetic to any sequence of events that ensures the clock is pressed the appropriate amount of times than I will to any sequence of events in which the clock is not pressed the appropriate amount of times.

Move counters work 100 percent of the time when the clock is operated properly and pressed the appropriate amount of times. And like it or not, increment time controls are inherently dependent on move counters (it’s easy to forget this because we are repeatedly counting from 0 to 1 throughout the game).

An interesting discussion has followed the original post. I will acknowledge the correctness of Mr. Ballou’s statement of the black letter rule, but I am not dissuaded from my instinctive response of “Play chess, gentlemen” as my ruling in Mr. Relyea’s OP scenario. Reasonable people may differ, and I’m sure they will.

20

No, what I meant is that Black consistently waits several seconds after releasing the piece before punching their clock. If he isn’t doing that during the whole game and starts doing it when white is low on time, and he does this several times, then it is reasonable to conclude he is doing it specifically to disrupt and upset the opponent. This is quite unsportsmanlike. But is it illegal and penalizable?