Questions: Email Coach Liulia: lcardona@phoenixchessacademy.com
WHAT TO EXPECT AT YOUR FIRST TOURNAMENT
So your child knows the rules of chess and is confident enough to play in a competitive environment. Parents, you are probably wondering what to
expect and how to prepare your child for his first tournament. First, children should understand that their primary aim is to play their best, not
necessarily to win. The players who ultimately excel at chess are those that do not get too low after a defeat, or too high after a win. Parents should
expect to console their children when they lose and encourage good sportsmanship regardless of the results.
In general, parents and coaches are required to stay out of the room where their children play their games (in a few tournaments, parents may be able
to watch games from an observation area, but this is rare).
The Tournament Director
You will probably see a tournament director (known as the "TD"). The TD makes the pairings each round, announces the start of each round, and
settles any sort of dispute that arises during a game. Children should understand that if they disagree with their opponent or have a question during
the game, they should not argue with their opponent. Instead, they should raise their hand and ask the TDs to make a ruling. TDs often rule on claims
of time forfeiture, draws and illegal moves. TDs have the authority to punish bad behavior or other rules violations by adding or subtracting time from
a player, or by forfeiting a game.
Most TDs welcome questions from parents and are available to explain how the tournament works. However, children are not well served by having
parents argue about pairings, game results or rulings with the tournament staff.
The Swiss System
Most chess tournaments are known as "Swiss System" events. This means that players are paired against others with similar scores. The pairing
system is quite complicated and usually performed by a computer program, so this leaves the TD almost no room for discretion. Although
experienced TDs will review the pairings for accuracy (even the best program has a few glitches), the TD never arbitrarily makes changes in the
pairings the computer assigns.
The TD will post a sheet with pairings before each round. Parents should find their child's name on the pairings sheet, note the board number where
he or she will be playing and whether he or she will be playing black or white, and then escort their child into the playing area. Parents are usually
welcome to help younger children set up their boards, clocks and notation sheets, but will be asked to leave prior to the beginning of each round.
The Point System and "Byes"
Sometimes, if there is an odd number of players in a section, the bottom player will not play a round. In such cases, the player will be awarded a “full-
point bye,” meaning that the player receives a point, as if he or she won a game. A player receiving a full-point bye will see “Please Wait” written
across from his name on the pairing sheet. No player receives more than one bye per tournament. Sometimes, the player receiving the bye will be
paired against someone else, who either is not enrolled in the tournament or is enrolled in a different section that also has an odd number of players.
In a rated tournament, the game will count for ratings, but the players both receive a point for the tournament.
Players earn one point for winning, a half point for drawing, and no points for losing a game. In each round after the first round, the players compete
with others who have the same number of points. Players never compete against the same opponent twice in a tournament, and efforts are made to
alternate the color of the pieces the player uses each round. Nobody is eliminated in a Swiss System tournament. All players are expected to compete
all of the way through the tournament.
If your child has to miss a particular round, he or she can request a “half-point bye.” This second type of bye awards a player the same score as a
draw. In most tournaments, half-point byes must be requested before the player begins to play in the event and are not available for the final round.
They are most often taken in the first round, when a player cannot get to the tournament by the time it begins.
If a player becomes ill during a tournament, he or she can withdraw. The withdrawing player will receive zero points for that round, and his or her
opponent will receive a point by default (the game will not count toward ratings, however). In case of an emergency when a player cannot complete
the tournament, a parent or coach must inform the tournament director that the player will not attend the next round. It is unfair to other players to
leave without telling the director, as it means that at least one other player will not get to play a game (or the withdrawing player's opponent will have
to sit and wait during the round for the requisite amount of time before declaring a win by forfeit). Of course, parents and coaches should discourage
players who wish to withdraw merely because he or she is upset about losing games. Players who leave because they lose are missing some of the
greatest benefits of the game. Learning to come back after a defeat is very important in much more than just chess.