Ran my first tournament yesterday and it went well. (just a small club level Tourney). Anyway I had two issues, one that I thought of after the fact and then one that did come up.
1st issue. I had one pair of players sit down for a 5th round match and they played with the wrong colors. (i.e. Jim was White, Bob was Black, but the tournament wallchart listed otherwise). It was Quick chess and while I did run around to make sure all the clocks were right, I did not take notice that Bob and Jim were playing with the wrong colors. Jim ended up winning the game. Jim, the winner, then approached me after he noticed that they had played with the wrong colors (after he had marked the score down) and asked if they should play the game over again. I asked both of them if they agreed to the outcome of the game. They said yes. Then I said, “No, the game stands as is.” Bob, the loser, then said this caused him to have 3 blacks in a row which is a violation of the rules and therefore I should award a forfeit draw for him instead of a loss.
I said I can’t do that because #1 it isn’t a violation to have 3 blacks in a row and #2 you already agreed to the outcome of the game.
So some questions from this:
If I notice two people playing with the wrong color, should I stop their game (if it has already started? what if the game has NOT started?
What if the players notice this error during the game? What happens if one of them complains at that point?
Did I make the right decision in not making them replay their game and denying Bob’s claim?
2nd issue. The tourney was game 10 with a time delay of 3. Some players were playing with analog and just set their clocks for 10 minute games. So obviously, those with digital clocks have extra time during their games. This is a club level tourney so no issues were brought up by this. But what if they were?
Should I have specified a different time for non-digital clocks? (i.e. G 11, or G 12?) Or is this really a moot point because regardless of clock, players of each individual game are on equal ground?
I’m not sure about when the game has started. I would treat it like witnessing an illegal move and wouldn’t comment in sudden death. Before the game started I would tell them, just as if I saw K and Q reversed. (11D1, 11H1)
Considered in 11F. Caught in first 10 moves restart, otherwise continue.
Yes
You could have made it G/13 and then have those with delay subtract the 3 minutes. But I feel that we want to encourage the use of the delay clock (eliminating the dreaded insufficient losing chances claims) and so I want to give those with the delay clock extra time.
If it is before the 10th move I would say yes. That is if the game has a scoresheet. Since it was a Quick game, there is no scoresheet for the director to check.
If they notice before Blacks 10th move, then the game will stop and a new game started. The first game will not count for rating or score. The time used on the clock will not change. The players will restart the game with the right color, with the time still left on the clock from the last game. If it is past the 10th move, the players or the director cannot do anything. The director will have to change the color history if there are more rounds.
The Quick game did have more then 10 legal moved during the game. The game should stand.
There is no rule for an analog clock having more time then a delay clock. If you feel you want to make an analog clock more fair to a delay clock, you can take one minute or up to three minutes from a delay clock. If the analog clock are set as G/10, you can set the delay clocks at G/10 (t/d 3), G/9 (t/d 3), G/8 (t/d 3) or G/7 (t/d 3).
How can the G/10 be equal with the analog clocks set at G/13, and the delay clock set at G/7 (t/d 3)? Would the duel rated G/60 be ratable for the quick part, if the analog clocks are set at G/65, and the delay clocks set at G/55 (t/d 5)?
It’s not. I said that you could have run the tournament as a G/13 event. Then the analog would have been set at 13 minutes and the delay clocks could have been set at 10 minutes with a 3-second delay.
That doesn’t make sense. It’s either a regular rated G/65 with the delay clocks at 60 or a dual-rated G/60 with the delay clocks at 55.
In all cases, that’s assuming you want to subtract the delay. I still feel it’s best to encourage the use of delay clocks by doing the current default of not subtracting.
Its’ more of a standard to take the time from the delay clock. The director can have a G/10 with a delay clock set at G/10 (t/d 3), G/9 (t/d 3), G/8 (t/d 3) or G/7 (t/d 3) and still be called a G/10 event.
If the time control is a G/29. If the director lets the players set the analog clock at G/32, just to give the analog clocks three minutes. Then it would be a G/32 (dual regular/quick) then a G/29 (quick only). If the time control is a G/60. If the director lets the players set the analog clock at G/65, just to give the analog clocks five minutes. Then it would be a G/65 (regular only) then a G/60 (dual regular/quick). My judgement what is the time control set on a clock, is what it is set on the analog clock, not the delay clock.
If you want to give the analog clocks two, three or five minutes more then the delay clock. I’m going to bring my analog clock to your tournaments, and leave my delay clock home. As you are going to give me extra time on the analog clock, and still have the rights for the 14H and 14I rulings.
Now this does not make sense to me. If you can say the G/10 (t/d 3) is equal to the analog clock set at G/13. Then why would not the G/60 (t/d 5) be equal to the analog clock set at G/65? How can you support one then reject the other, as your argument is very dualist.
Have no problem if the analog clock is set at G/10, and the delay clock is set at G/10 (t/d 3). If the analong clock is set at G/13, I’m going to say its’ a G/13 not a G/10.
I’ll have to check the rulebook again when I get home, but I strongly believe that the default is not to subtract on the delay clock. It definitely was in the previous edition of the rulebook.
If you are not being delberately obtuse, then you need to read what I actually wrote. I said that if the they wanted to give the anolog clocks more time and still have the delay set at 10 minutes then instead of running a 10 minute event, they could have run a 13 minute event. Let me make that perfectly clear to you: it would be advertised in CL as G/13 and then the analog would have 13 minutes and the delay could be set at 10 minutes with a 3 second delay. (However, the default is not to subtract, so unless the td specifically tells the players, the delay clock would still be set at the same number of minutes as the analog clock.)
The standard procedure for adjusting for delay is to deduct from the time-delay clock, not add to the analog. Of course, if you want to advertise the tournament as G/13 and then deduct three minutes from the delay clocks, it comes to the same thing.
“5F(a) The tournament director has the right to shorten the basic time control, up to the number of minutes equal to the time delay used in seconds. Examples: Clocks for G/60 with a 5 second time delay may be set starting at 55 minutes through 59 minutes instead of 60 …”
Note, however, that the following “TD Tip” advises against doing this, for the excellent practical reason that there are too many different clocks, and no one knows how to set all of them. In my opinion, deducting for time-delay should be used only when the tournament has serious scheduling problems. (Like having to be out of the club by 11.)
I can’t wait until the first time you get into a dead-drawn K+B+P vs K+B+P ending with locked pawns and bishops of opposite colors, with you having a few seconds remaining on your clock, your opponent having several minutes, no delay on your analog clock, and a TD who refuses to give you a draw based on insufficient losing chances. Anybody who has been in (or seen) this situation knows that clocks without delay do NOT rock.
The loser’s claim is absurd. It was his own fault (as well as his opponent’s) that he played with the wrong colors. Even if the pairings were announced verbally rather than posted in writing, his claim is exceedingly weak.
Tough call if the game has started. I’d say do so only if the game isn’t very far along. (Ten moves, as suggested by others, is a good rule of thumb.) If the game hasn’t started, then sure, you might as well intervene.
It’s more common (in fact, it’s in the rules) to subtract time from games using the delay, rather than adding time to games not using it. For example, if the announced control is game/10, then you can reduce it to game/7, game/8, or game/9 in games using a 3-second delay. Or you can leave it at game/10.
I think about half of tournaments subtract time to compensate for the delay, and half do not. Either way, this need not be announced in pre-tournament publicity. Just make it clear at the start of the tournament which way you’re doing it.
Personally, I don’t like the idea of subtracting time to compensate for the delay. With 60 to 90 percent of tournament games now using the delay, it’s almost false advertising. You announce game/10, then change it to something else for the majority of players.
Sometimes, however, a tournament is on a tight schedule and requires the subtracting of time.
In your case, apparently you announced it as “game/10, delay 3”, so you couldn’t very well subtract time. That’s a little different than if you had just announced “game/10” with the delay 3 assumed.
Its’ a little strange in my tournaments, as a good 75% or higher have analog clocks. Even if they do have delay clocks, only found myself and one other player use the delay clock all the time. This is even when the tournament was at a G/60 or G/60 (t/d 5). As a time delay clock can add 10 or 15 minutes more into the game, did compensate the start of the rounds by a 30 minute window from the end of the round with an analog clock. Have cut down the lunch from a 60 minute window lunch to a 30 minute window lunch. Now the delay will be set at G/55 (t/d 5) so the last round starts at 5pm then 6pm.
Strange, the players on the west side of Michigan use analog clocks in large numbers. The main reason for the compensation of the delay clocks now at G/55 (t/d 5) then the clock set at G/60 (t/d 5) in the G/60. As the majority of the players use analog clocks.