I know this is posted somewhere either in the forums (cannot find with search) or some document from USCF. Can someone point me to the right place?
The question is - what is the cutoff date for a Rating Supplement? My understanding was that it is the first Friday of the prior month. Where is this information posted?
This comes up as some scholastic coaches are trying to figure out their teams for the Nationals and wondering after what date they can allow players close to a section ceiling to resume playing.
Specifically, the question involves the High School Nationals - (held in April - uses April supplement). What is the cutoff date? I assume it would be Friday March 4 - that is any tournament played after that date would not affect April ratings. Is this correct?
[side note: National Junior High School held in April uses April supplement; National Elementary School (held in May - uses April supplement) - that’s another question why this is so - I know it has to do with some coaches trying to enter teams in advance - should this be allowed?]
OK, I will be the sucker who gives voice to the roar: What message do these coaches plan to send to scholastic players when they tell (order) then NOT to play rated chess until the cut-off date for a given rating supplement has come and gone?
What message is sent by telling a kid not to play rated chess so he or she can qualify for a rating-limited section at Nationals—or any other tournament? If this question pertained to adult players who planned to spend their own money to enter the World Open I could at least understand it…
Oy. This is why there are times I am glad there was no chess team or even chess club at my high school, a million years ago in 1980. This kind of thing will drive away more players than it attracts, or retains.
I noted that I can’t find a direct way to get to the MSA page from the USCF home page.
To answer ericmark’s question: I can’t answer this personally, but for some coaches, getting a team trophy at Nationals is very important to help sustain a team, get publicity for a school’s chess team/club, as well as getting funding to get the kids a chance to travel and to play in a national tournament.
On one hand, if a player very close to the ceiling has to wait until after the cutoff (and thereby help his school), then I don’t have much problem with that (that player would likely be at bottom of next higher section). However on the other hand, taken to another extreme, I know of a team that hasn’t played a rated game all season to preserve staying under a ceiling for Nationals (that to me is a penny wise pound foolish decision).
That avoids the splash screen and you can copy and paste from it such that the copied link will appear, rather than the “wrapper” front page of MSA. You can also get to MSA from the USCF home page by clicking on Players & Ratings, then Player/Rating Lookup. Look on the left of the screen, upper half.
You are correct: The MSA home page info and links, such as FAQ, cannot be accessed that way—at least not easily. This might be a migration issue from the old Web site.
For the greater good, here is the pertinent info from the FAQ at MSA:
[i]The USCF now issues rating lists 12 times a year.
The December list is also the annual rating list, it contains everyone who played in an event that was rated in the last year.
The cutoff for a monthly ratings list is usually 11PM on the 1st Friday of the previous month. For example, the January 2011 list was created on December 3rd, 2010. Events that have been received and rated by the cutoff are included in that ratings list.
However, even if someone isn’t in the most recently published supplement, his or her last published rating is still current, even if it was published years ago. “Once Rated, Always Rated.” [/i]