Any advice for directors who would like to play and direct at the same tournament, from those who have done likewise?
The scenario is a one-section G/29 tournament of 20 or fewer players.
My recommendation: don’t do it, neither your chess nor your players will get your full attention.
This one is pretty easy.
If you want to direct and play:
- Make sure your rating is 2600+
- Make sure all the other players are U2200
- Have Senior TD status
- Use a computer to make pairings
- Have 1-2 Asst TDs helping.
Works for me every time! 
Ben Finegold
I do it all of the time. It helps now a days to have a computer to help do the pairings. On Monday nights it is usually just one rated round a night so once I have made pairings playing isn’t a big issue. With Saturday events now there are usually two of us directors available but sometimes the other steps in and plays as houseman.
Very rarely have I ever had to stop my clock and resolve an issue.
It does distract from your own game to a degree. It just depends on how willing you are to deal with that.
G/29 would be very difficult to handle. I used to play in one-round a week event and when our team doesn’t have four, I currently play in a one-round a month event. Both have time controls of 30/90; SD/60 and I would roughly guess that about an hour of my time is spent on directing activities (even though I don’t have any pairings to do at that round) and probably play 100 points below my rating. I wouldn’t advise it without at least a 90-120 minute time control.
A lot depends on the environment. In my club the rated tournaments are for trophies only. That in conjunction with the players all knowing each other means that as a player/director I am only occasionally interrupted during a game. In our recent 27-player four-round Game/15, after the first round started I could do all of my directing tasks for the next round after finishing the current round, and I did not have to make any ruling while my game was going on.
Directing and playing can adversely impact your concentration. I set my board next to the computer and have found that if I enter results during my game then it results in an occasional playing oversight.
If you are going to be a playing director I would recommend:
- do it only in a fairly casual and friendly tournament (think twice before doing it if there are monetary prizes). The only time I’ve played while directing a tournament with monetary prizes was when I was the chief assistant and we needed a houseman to play a roughly 2400 opponent about two classes higher rated than me (I remember it because I drew while still periodically reviewing the room). Realize that an opponent of a playing sole director may be distracted by interruptions as well.
- don’t enter a round’s results until after your game is over
- have a fixed board so that players can get you if necessary
- stop your clock while making a ruling on another game. I often do not do this, especially when it is my opponent’s move, because most rulings can be made quickly considering the type of tournament in which I’d consider being a playing director. If a ruling is taking a while my opponents will often stop the clock themselves after making their move.
- if you have multiple rounds in a day then make sure you are FAST at getting the pairings done correctly
I realize it isn’t quite the same but on Monday nights we will do 6 rounds of game 5 or 5 rounds of game 10 or 3 of game 20 etc all unrated except for our local ladder anyway and I’ve always played in them.
Back in 1999 I had the first opportunity in a long time to play in a event with absolutely no directing or organizing responsiblities and my results were terrible. I was way too relaxed.
Thanks, all. This has been helpful.
I have been doing this, too. If I didn’t play in my own tournaments, I wouldn’t get a chance to play much except for quick chess. That is why I started directing/organizing.
I always have another player that is also a certified TD marked as my assistant. I let everyone know that he is available for floor rulings if I am not. Also, if he gets done with his game first, he will help with floor rulings.
If I am running a separate U1200 section, I bring my husband along to help. He is able to put the results in the computer, round everyone up when the section starts, and help with noise control. He will come get me if someone has an issue. When everyone is done, he comes and gets me, and I run the pairings and he posts them and starts the next round for them.
I agree that your play can tend to suffer. In one of my tournaments, I almost lost to a 500 kid in the 1st round because I was distracted and dropped a piece. 
I did fight back and win. In that same tournament I had an even game against a 1700, and was called away to make a complicated triple occurance claim ruling. I did stop the clock, but when I came back, I wasn’t completely back into the game and lost a pawn (and the game) shortly thereafter. Everyone felt I got the ruling right, though. 
I am looking forward to our class championships where I don’t have to direct!
This can happen even when you’re not directing. In the olden days, one of my games was adjourned, and resumed after the next round. I didn’t even recognize the position at first. I had to analyze it cold, like one of those “what’s the best move” positions in textbooks.
Bill Smythe
On the other hand playing and directing can improve your game too. I went up almost 300 hundred points in my year of directing. I normally used myself as a house player, so I wasn’t stressing about prizes, or even about winning or losing, since I had to make the extra effort to remain cool and collected to be able to provide a good service. Occasionally the game suffered, but on balance it improved. To boot, I got to be a spectator a lot, and to explain to lower level players strategy and tactics, which gave me time to reflect and grow.
Even more helpful stuff. Clearly there are a lot of options for doing this well.
My rule is I only play if there are an odd amount of players. 2-3 of the regulars to my tournaments are also TD’s but I have never had to make a single ruling at an adult tournament in several years.
I will never play and direct if it forces someone else into a bye.
Because it’s more of a challenge?
A decade or more ago there used to be a club around here which ran G/30 3-rounders on Thursday nights. I didn’t direct, but on one occasion as a player, there were 7 players total so I offered to play two games simultaneously to even it out. Playing two G/30s, where you are required to keep score, is definitely a challenge.
After the first round, I normally would have had to sit out round 2 because I’d already played two games, but instead of waiting for round 3 I offered to play two games simultaneously again in round 2. This evened things out again, and I got 4 games for the price of 3, and was able to go home early, after round 2.
Bill Smythe
I was thinking of playing and directing at a small 5 round tournament I am running, G/30, rated, with about 10-12 players, ratings go from UR to 1500 or so. It is mostly adult with a few kids grades 5 and up. No prizes or money. Its at our house so I figured it would be pretty relaxed; now I’m realizing perhaps playing in it is a bad idea. Food for thought.
Put your name on the wallchart at the beginning of the tournament. Then, when you pair each round, decide whether to play in that round. (Your decision could be based, for example, on whether there is an even or odd number in that round.) For rounds in which you do not play, give yourself a “pairing score” in order to be fair to your opponents. For example, if your rating puts you about in the middle of the pack, give yourself a half-point bye for each unplayed game. If it puts you below the middle, give yourself a half-point for some rounds and a zero for others. If your rating puts you near the top, perhaps you shouldn’t play at all, to be fair to the other participants.
Bill Smythe
Thank you Bill, that is great advice. Chess Life on the TD / organizer page says “Remember, you can both run and play in a small event. Many of them wouldn’t be held if the organizer/TD couldn’t play.” For those of us who are nuts about playing…that rings true!
I run a lot of game/30 tournaments at our Monday chess club. Attendance has ranged from 4 - 10 players. I don’t bring my computer, so I do pairings by hand.) My results have been rather mixed in July. I went 0-3 one week (1 day after getting back from Europe. Jet lag!) The next week I went 3-0. The next tournament was 1.5 - 1.5. The most recent was 0-3. (Very tired after after 4 days of bike races. I know you’re thinking she is full of great excuses. Who was it that said they never beat a healthy player?)
I haven’t had to stop my clock at all. The only hairy moment was when a player walked into a checkmate up two queens, and had a meltdown. (Kicked a chair across the room. He is an adult!) I had just finished losing to a 9 year old 
, so I didn’t have much sympathy at that point. He calmed down, and the tournament finished with no problems.
I don’t think my bad results had anything to do with directing and playing. However I think one has to know their players, and decide whether they can concentrate on their own game while everyone else is playing.