Tournament FAQ

Find answers to common questions about our tournaments, formats, rules, and more.

Any tournaments scheduled will be listed on the Events page.

Training Tournaments

Training tournaments may be held over one day, or might be held one round per week at the same time each week, over a period of several weeks. In these tournaments, games will be reviewed so that students can look for immediate feedback on their play.

One-Day Tournaments

These events can be of a few different types:

  1. Swiss System, 3 rounds, G/60; d5

  2. Swiss System, 4 rounds, G/40; d5

  3. Round Robin, 4 like rated players, G/60; d5

In both systems (Swiss or Round Robin) - no one is eliminated - they play all the scheduled games. See below, “Swiss System/Round Robin.”

Two or Three-Day Tournaments

These tournaments will generally be more serious, with longer time controls, probably no less than an average of two minutes per move, with delay or increment. There will general five to seven rounds during the tournament.

Swiss System

The Swiss System is similar to a bracket system, but a player is never eliminated - they keep moving on to new brackets. Someone who wins their first round but then loses their second round is in the same bracket as someone who loses their first round but wins their second round. So, like a standard bracket, divide the “point-group” into two, and the upper half plays the lower half.

One difference between the Swiss System and brackets that many people are used to, is that the lower half of a group is not inverted.

For example, in the first round of a ten-player Swiss System, player #1 plays player #6, not player #10.

Players are ranked in order based on their US Chess ratings. Unrated players are placed in alphabetical order following the rated players.

Round Robin System

The Round Robin System is known as all-play-all. Although it is the fairest-known tournament format when there are no withdrawals, it cannot accommodate many players, and so is used much less than the Swiss system. Players are usually ranked in order by rating, and then are grouped up and play each other at least once.

Byes (Scheduled Unplayed Games)

A bye is a scheduled round that a player does not play.

  • If you receive a bye because there is an odd number of players, you receive 1 point.

  • You may also request a bye in advance, which is typically worth ½ point.

Most tournaments allow up to two ½-point byes. Additional byes are usually worth 0 points, unless the tournament organizer approves otherwise.

For fairness, all ½-point byes must be requested before the end of Round 2. After Round 2 is complete, byes cannot be added, changed, or canceled.

Because round times can vary, please estimate which rounds you may miss when requesting byes. If you miss a round without requesting a ½-point bye before the Round 2 deadline, you will receive a 0-point bye for that round.

You can request byes:

  • During online registration, or

  • At Chess Central before the end of Round 2.

Notation / Keeping Score

US Chess rules apply to rated tournaments. Usually, if you are 7 or older, you will be expected to notate/keep score (write down your moves). It is important to write down the moves so the game may be reviewed afterward, or in the case a game needs to be set back up (i.e. someone bumps into your table, causing all of the pieces to get mixed up and fall. Having a notation sheet will help to reconstruct the game.)

Click this link for a guide on how to notate.