What to do about behavior like this?

Running Chess Tournaments
1

I never thought I’d be writing for advice about an issue, especially in a small, dozen-or-so person Friday night tournament. I don’t know if there’s an avenue to file a complaint or, should I even bother, because nothing will happen. But I feel like if I don’t even report it, it just allows bad behavior to continue. And if it had been a child causing the problem, I wouldn’t bother, but it’s an adult who’s probably in this 30s and I figure should know better.

I’ve written down as much as I can while it’s all still fresh, and I’m going to send a complaint to the local club. (I’ve got about a dozen kids I tutor from K-6th grade and another 30 at the local grade school, and I don’t want to bring them to our club if this is what they’re going to face.)

But tell me if I’m wrong on this issue or if there’s something I should do.
I’m not including the name of the opponent because I don’t want anyone to think that I’m really using this forum to air a complaint; I’m really interested in feedback on (1) who was right, and (2) is it appropriate to raise the issue above the club level?

Here’s what I saw and remember.

Sept 4, 2009

• The person in question was Black against my son, Fredric Hinkle.
• Fredric is an 11-year-old and plays mostly in USCF Game/30 scholastic tournaments where recording games is encouraged, but if you don’t do it, you can take a 5 minute penalty on your clock.
• This evening Fredric recorded his game in the first round and had a bye in the 2nd round.
• In the third round, he started recording his moves and got confused and stopped. The TD assessed him a five minute penalty, and the game continued without incident.
• In the 4th round, he put the 5 minute penalty on his clock at the start and said he wasn’t going to write down his moves, and Black nodded his head.
• Black is rated in the 1400s; Fredric is rated in the 700s, and Black was playing rapidly, according to Fredric. After about twenty moves (Fredric’s estimate),Black had dropped a piece and was about to lose a bishop by force because Fredric had an overwhelming kingside attack going.
• At that point, Black complained that Fredric had not been writing down his moves, he scattered the pieces, and he told Fredric that on his time, he had to recreate and position without using Black’s notes (or forfeit).
• Fredric tried for ten or fifteen minutes before he gave up and forfeited.
• While this was going on, all but one other game was done, and this was the topic of conversation. I was asking others why Black could to wait until he had a lost game and then bring up his complaint.
• That led to a new complaint. Black complained that in the 2nd round, when he played against me, the only reason he lost was that I was talking and distracted him.
• In that game, we both had just a couple of minutes left at the end.
• I concur that I muttered once and talked louder a send time.
• When I dropped a pawn near the end which led to having to give him my knight, I muttered to myself, as he took the pawn, “aye, you’re a dummy, Chuck.” (I’m Chuck, so I was referring unmistakably to myself.)
• A half dozen moves later, he blundered, cutting off his rook, and let me queen a pawn one move before he did and then trade it for his queen and rook, ultimately leaving me with a knight (on f4 I believe) guarding my last pawn on e6 against his king.
• That’s the other time I was talking, because I was moving my king over to escort the pawn, and my queen wasn’t anywhere around the board, and I kept saying “where’s the white queen — I need the white queen” while I was looking for it and trying to move at the same time. (There were several people watching the game, and I’d bet that they would remember that situation.)
• We each had less than a minute by this point.
• I grabbed a rook and turned it upside-down to use it for my queen and won.
• Then we put the pieces back on the board and I realized that he had been hiding my queen.

So what to do? On one hand, I don’t want to blow it out of proportion; the only real consequence is that instead of being excited for beating someone 400 points higher than anyone he’s ever beaten before, Fredric’s crying instead. There’s no real long-term damage there; he learns that even chess-players can be jerks, and he’ll get over it. But if Black has a history of poor sportsmanship like this, it seems like we should prevent him from playing against children.

2

Please report this jerk. The complaint about your game should be ignored, as the real problems are with the game against your son.

Your son (and all chess players) need to learn the rules!

  1. In any problem that occurs it is always best to get the TD. They know the rules and will make certain that they are enforced.
  2. A player may always request and GET his opponents score sheet if it is on his own time.
  3. The 5 minute penalty to alway a player to not keep score is not something that is common and that all chess players know can be used. The TD should have made an announcement that this was going to be allowed and used. In which case the player knocking over the pieces because his opponent was not keeping score is the person who should forfeit and lose the game.
  4. Make certain to explain all of this to the tournament TD and see if it is possible to have the result changed, at least for the ratings of the event.

I think you will find that most chess players agree that poor sportsmanship should not be rewarded.

Larry S. Cohen

3

If you read the forums enough, you’ll find other examples of really bad sportmanship…

But I have to say, that kind of behavior is beyond reprehensible. I can’t even think of another scenario that I’ve read about that comes close to the sheer horridness of that player.

4

The player’s behavior was inexcusable. Where was the TD?

Everyone will agree with that.

but…there is no rule that says you can just deduct 5 minutes and then refuse to keep score. If you son knows how to keep score, and is physically capable of keeping score - then the rules say that he must keep score.

The 5 minute adjustment is intended for players who CANNOT keep score (because they don’t know how, or because they are physically unable - and a few more reasons). REFUSING to keep score is not the same thing.

yes - there are TD’s who take the easy way out and just subtract 5 minutes. In my opinion, they are wrong.

In any event, you son should know that if his opponent destroys the position on the board, he should do one, and only one, thing - get up and find the TD. And then let the TD handle it.

Chess is not debate - you get no points for explaining (your version of) the rules to your opponent. And, he’s not likely to agree with you, even if you are right.

5

It doesn’t work that way. If he knows how to keep score, then he is required to keep score. If his opponent complained to me at the beginning of the game, then I would tell your son that he must keep score - or I’ll set his clock to 5 minutes (subtracting 25 minutes if it was a G/30) as at that point he would no longer have to keep score.

6

That line floors me. I’d immediately forfeit anyone who does that to a child who is half that person’s rating.

I notice the tournament isn’t submitted yet, so there is still time to contact the TD and ensure that (s)he is aware of what occurred. It’s not that the TD would change results, but word travels fast. The TD community is small in Dallas…I wouldn’t think it’s much different in Houston.

Agreed with Professor Sloan on clocks, recording and getting the TD.

7

Something else that should be addressed here is the issue of the queen. According to Geurt Gjissen, an upside down rook has no place on the chessboard. The USCF rulebook gives it a wink and a nod, saying that it is common practice, without going so far as to say that it’s actually OK. In any event, both agree that the player has the right to stop the clock while he goes and searches for the missing piece. That, IMO, is what you should have done. Talking during the game is a bad idea, but of course the proper reaction is to stop the clock and complain to the TD if it is annoying you, not argue that it cost you the game two rounds later. For more on my opinion on this, please see the thread on announcing mate in the All Things Chess forum.

Unfortunately, as reprehensible as this player’s behavior was, your son should have just stopped the clock and gotten the TD. Since he didn’t do this, there is very little that can be done later. He should never have agreed to “forfeit” the game (I don’t know what “forfeit” means in this circumstance) but once he did, he lost. The proper reaction to someone who refuses to keep score is to complain to the TD that the opponent isn’t following the rules of chess, rather than scattering the pieces, and I’m very surprised that the TD didn’t intervene there, as it seems like the opponent was making a huge disturbance. I hope that your son learned a valuable lesson from all this. I probably would have expelled the opponent from the tournament for doing that sort of thing, whether he was a kid or not, but there is nothing that can be done to change the result of the game. Moral of the story, if something unusual happens, ask the TD.

Alex Relyea

8

The TDs decision to simply deduct five minutes from the time to make up for not keeping score is debatable (with the debate trending against such an allowance).

The player’s statement that the scoresheet and position must be reconstructed without looking at his scoresheet is - incorrect. One reason the rulebook says that the scoresheets belong to the organizer is to give the TD the explicit right to demand that a player allow an opponent to use that scoresheet to reconstruct the game (as long as the reconstructing player does so on his own time and returns the scoresheet before pressing the clock).

The sweeping of the pieces was an interesting option. One response by the TD could have been that deliberately tipping his own king (along with all of the other pieces) is not simply tantamount to a resignation, but actually is a resignation under the rules.

9

Use of the opponent’s scoresheet is irrelevant. If the opponent scattered the pieces it is his responsibility to re-establish the position on the board. My first reaction would be to start his clock (if it was not already running) - and then fetch the TD when he punched the clock with an invalid position on the board.

It makes little sense to explore the tiny details here. The overriding principle is that if your opponent does something that you object to, object to the TD. Don’t change the game from chess to debate, or hand-to-hand combat.

10

The time to object is during the game. After the fact complaints, whether made to the TD or to the USCF office, are likely to devolve into “He did this. He did not!”.

Also, keep in mind that it is the PLAYER who needs to summon the TD to lodge a complaint, not any 3rd party observer, whether parent, coach or just a bystander. Chess is a game between two players and ONLY those two players.

11

If I have an opponent who knocks over all the pieces then it is my responsibility to stop the clock, summon the TD and make a claim. When a player pulls a stunt like this against a child then the TD should have the discretion to intervene.

The father was correct to not get involved directly during the game. Preventing the poorly-behaved player from playing against children (suggested in the original post) does not make sense to me. A participation-related penalty should prohibit entry in events, and should not be a ticket to special consideration in the pairings. TDs get enough grief over pairings as it is – no need to add another source of problems.

12

Forfeiting is too good for him. I’d ban him from the club. That kind of behavior is beyond unacceptable.

As for whether the kid should have stopped the clock and called for the TD . . . well, yes, in a perfect world, everyone who plays in a tournament knows that this is the proper response to any dispute that might require intervention. But I think it’s excessively rigid to expect an 11-year-old to have the poise and presence of mind to follow this protocol after his opponent has done something so utterly unpredictable, if not unimaginable, and so defiant of convention and sportsmanship that even most adults would require a few beats to recover their wits. In a situation like this, which falls far outside the boundaries of expected behavior and thus is not likely to be dealt with explicitly by the official rules, “fair” is giving everyone what he needs. In this case, the kid needed an ombudsman, and his opponent needed a Steve Gostkowski boot to the posterior.

13

The kid is not so young, 11 years old (probably sixth grade), and he’s good enough to outplay a 1400 on the board. I would expect him to know when to get a TD and to keep score. To complain that now the kid is crying over losing the game – well sure, I guess the opponent didn’t like to lose either.

This is not to excuse the opponent’s behavior, but I’ve heard far more shocking things. The opponent tried something desperate when he was about to lose to a 700 player who wasn’t even keeping score (but who knew how to, as shown in the first round). The club can make its own decisions about who can be a member, but we had a similar sort of character in the Wilmington Chess Club, and it’s common enough behavior that the word “gamesmanship” exists to describe it.

14

Gotta disagree with you here. If he’s a good enough player to play in a USCF rated tournament, then he needs to know one important principle of tournament competition: if your opponent does something questionable, you immediately stop the clock and get a TD, preferably by raising your hand so you can stay at the board and keep an eye on your opponent.

That principle applies to scholastic tournaments as well as all-age events. If anything, a kid is more likely to encounter bizarre interpretations of the rules at a scholastic tournament.

15

I think most kids, regardless of age (unless really young), should at least attempt to keep score. Certainly by the age of 9, a kid should be keeping score, even if he’s not too successful at keeping an accurate score. Writing down moves is something that should be practiced as much as possible.

Of course, I agree the TD should be notified immediatly if your opponent deliberatly destroys the board position.

16

In a tournament setting, it does not matter what you (or I) “think”. The rules are quite specific: a player must keep score, unless the TD determines that he is unable to do so.

“I don’t know how” is an acceptable reason, for beginners of all ages. But, even then it is not the player’s place to make the decision and assess the penalty/adjustment.

In the OP, the very first mistake was made by the player who decided “I know what the penalty is, so I’ll just penalize myself without pestering the TD”. Now, I don’t think this really had any effect on the horrible behavior by his opponent - but it was a mistake that should be corrected. And, I think his failure to get the TD involved when his opponent acted up is related to his failure to get the TD involved when he decided that he would not keep score.

Players should not hesitate to get the TD - it is almost always a mistake to try to handle any dispute at the board without the TD.

17

It’s common enough behavior that another word exists to describe it, but if I try to use it here, the forum software will #### it out.

I dunno. There’s “questionable,” and then there’s flabbergasting.

18

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I think that not keeping score because it’s inconvenient and the opponent is trying to blitz you is a bit strategic too. At least it could be, if the kid finds that it (and his age and his low rating) make the opponents take him less seriously. It truly does bother me that the kid found scorekeeping, a part of the normal decorum of tournament play that I’m sure his father does always, to be optional. This game can be a lesson for both players.

19

Ugh. I would think the Director would want to watch this particularly player closely. I am not saying he or she normally wouldn’t.

20

No “I dunno’s” about it. If you’re supposed to call a TD for “questionable”, there’s no question you call a TD for “flabbergasting.” It just might take 30 seconds on the clock to recover your composure first.

While I feel sorry for the kid involved, I just don’t get why he didn’t call a TD over at the point the other guy swept the pieces of the board. Shoot, if nothing else, that starts to look like “stranger danger.”

I also don’t get how the rest of the playing room tolerated that kind of behavior, because it must have been disruptive to the games still going. I have had players come and get me when folks on neighboring boards are disruptive.

When we speak up, we stop this kind of nonsense in its tracks.