![Event Home Page](button45.gif)
![Register Now!!](buttonD1.gif)
![Hotel Info](../../Buttons/NewButtons/button188.gif)
![Blitz Rules](../../Buttons/NewButtons/button189.gif)
![FAQs](../../Buttons/NewButtons/button190.gif)
![Daily Schedule](../../Buttons/NewButtons/button252.gif)
![Awards / Prizes](../../Buttons/NewButtons/button193.gif)
![Parents & Friends Tourn.](../../Buttons/NewButtons/button269.gif)
|
-
To Register, click the "Registration" Tab on the
left.
-
Round Times and Dates
-
Rounds 1, 2 and 3: Saturday March
9th at
9:00am, 12:30pm, and 4:30pm
-
OVERNIGHT ON SATURDAY --
TIME CHANGE -- Set your clocks
AHEAD 1 hour.
-
Rounds 4 and 5: Sunday
March 10th at 9:30am and 1:30pm
-
Awards: Scheduled 15-20
minutes after each section completes its final game.
-
Player Eligibility:
-
Scholastic Players must be attending a public,
private, or home school in VA ... or be a Virginia Resident
attending another school out of state.
-
See also our
Frequently
Asked Questions page for several more
eligibility-related questions impacting players and teams.
Please direct any Eligibility Questions to
Mike
Hoffpauir as shown at the bottom of this page.
-
ALL PLAYERS must be active members of the US Chess Federation.
To join the USCF, or to renew your existing membership,
click
here.
-
Cell Phone Policy and Policy
for other Electronic Devices (other than clocks and USCF-approved
Electronic Notation Devices).
CELL PHONES must be
turned-off while your game is in progress
and placed face-down on the table at your board.
A better option is to leave your phone with your parents, team or Coach. Once your game begins you MAY NOT have a phone on your person, in
your pocket, etc. It must remain at your table, face-down,
turned-off. A phone that
rings shall incur a 10-minute time penalty for the offending player.
A player who answers his/her cell phone, is "texting" during
play, or is found with a phone on their person is very very likely
to forfeit their current game and their continuation in the tournament is at severe risk.
-
SECTIONS: Players
can register for and play in one of eight (8) "Sections" based on their grade in school
and their Chess Rating.
-
FIVE Rounds of Chess
in all sections--3 Rounds on Saturday, 2
Rounds on Sunday.
-
Swiss System, with tie-breaks in the sequence
specified in the US Chess Federation's Rules of Chess. See also "Ties" below.
-
Each player can request one
1/2-point BYE.
-
Byes for Round 1 or 2
must be requested before registration closes at 9 PM on Friday
evening.
-
Byes for Rounds 3
through 5
must be requested
ONE HOUR before the start of Round 2 on
Saturday (e.g., by 12-noon)
-
Time Controls:
Rounds
1 and 2: Game-60 with a 5-second time increment.
Rounds 3-5, Game-90 with a 10-second time increment.
-
The
Chief TD
may use Accelerated Pairings in
Rounds 1 and 2 for sections with more than 64 players. If accelerated pairings are in
use, the Chief TD will announce this information before the
start of Round 1 in the affected section(s).
-
We will make every
effort not to pair teammates against each other.
However, there are instances when players, parents and coaches
should expect this to happen, such as when
more than half of the players
in a Section or a Score-group are from the same team.
This is not un-common in later rounds of the tournament, and can
happen as early as Round 2 under certain conditions.
-
Teams:
This is an INDIVIDUAL
tournament, with Team Points determined using the results of
the players' wins, losses and draws on each Team.
-
A "Team" is defined as
two or more players who attend
the same school and who are playing in the same section of the
tournament. You DO NOT have to be on a "team" to play in
this tournament. But, if two or more players register for
the tournament they are "by default" considered as a team ...
regardless of whether their school has a Chess Club or formal
"team."
-
For the Main Tournament, Team Points are
calculated by adding the scores
of the 3 or 4 best-performing players from the same
school. In the Championship Sections it's the 4-highest
scoring players. In the Under Sections, it's the 3-highest
scoring players.
-
Schools may not have more than one team
competing in the same section. A School IS ALLOWED to have
a team in the Championship AND the Under Sections within the
same grade-group. All players who go to the
same school are on the same team.
-
Players who "Play Up" cannot have their points
counted with the points of school-mates playing in another
section of the tournament. However, if two or more players
from the same school play up, they are a "team" in that section
of the tournament.
-
Anyone with questions about their Team's
composition--especially players who are Home Schooled--should contact
Mike Hoffpauir as shown at the bottom
of this screen. Also, see the "Teams
-- Frequently Asked Questions"
page we've created.
-
Chess Notation:
-
Players in all
CHAMPIONSHIP Sections except K-3 are required to record their games using Chess
Notation. Practice now!!
-
Chess Notation
also is
Required in the K-12 and K-8 Under Secitons.
It is STRONGLY ENCOURAGED in the K-5 and K-3 Under Sections, but
it is not mandatory.
-
The only authorized electronic
score-keeping (notation) devices that can be used in the State
Championships are those approved by the US Chess Federation (Monroi,
PlyCount, and ChessNoteR). Cell-phone Apps that
take notation are not allowed. Any person with a question
about their (or their opponent's) electronic notation device
should ask a Tournament Director.
-
PLAYOFF: In the K-12, K-8
and K-5
Championship Sections
if there is a tie for 1st place among two or more players
with perfect 5.0 scores,
there will be a "Playoff" conducted ONLINE to
determine who wins the 1st Place Trophy.
This playoff also will determine which K-12, K-8 and K-5 players have 1st choice to
represent Virginia at the 2024 Tournament of State Champions listed
above (e.g. Denker, Barber, Rockefeller, and Haring).
In the
Playoff the two players will play one game ONLINE at a time control
of G/90 + 10. If this game is tied, then the players will
have a one-hour break and play a "best out of three" Blitz at a time
control of G/5 with no delay or increment. If there is a tie after
the three blitz games, a Coin Flip will determine the winner. Again, this Playoff only
determines who wins 1st Place among 2 or more players who are tied
at the end of the tournament with perfect 5.0 scores in the K-12,
K-8, and K5 Championship Sections. The date for the playoff will be
as mutually agreed between the players, but must happen before May
1, 2024.
-
For
more information, contact
Mike Hoffpauir, National Tournament Director.
-
We advise parents/coaches of high-rated
K-12, K-8 and K-5 section players to take time to understand this paragraph and to discuss it
with their players.
-
Chess Sets and Boards are provided at
the tournament. BRING YOUR CLOCK (if you own one) and some
pens and pencils. Clocks, pencils and scorebooks will be
available on site at our Book Store.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A Few More Selected Tournament
Rules.
These rules supplement the US Chess Federation (USCF) Rule Book
(7th ed) and apply only to this tournament.
-
Problems during
Your Game:
-
Don't wait until AFTER your game ends to raise
a problem that occurs DURING your game!!
-
If you have a problem during
play, stop your clock (if one is being used) and raise your hand.
Do not get into an argument or discussion about the game with
your opponent ... it disturbs the players around you.
-
When
a Tournament Director arrives at your board, state your question or
problem and
wait for the TD's reply. You don't need to ask permission to
use the bathroom.
-
IF THE CLOCK AT THE BOARD IS NOT YOURS, BE
SURE YOU KNOW HOW TO MAKE THE CLOCK PAUSE ... ASK your opponent!!
-
Chess
Equipment:
-
Pens /
Pencils: Players are responsible for bringing their
own pens or pencils. We will not provide them at the
tournament.
-
Chess
Clocks: If you have a chess
clock, please bring it ... and be sure it is capable
of "Time Increment" and has fresh batteries!!
-
Know how to use a clock, because your opponent
is likely to have one.
-
If either player brings a
clock to the board, the clock must be used ... "I don't like
using a clock" or "I don't know how to use a clock" is not an
excuse. You do not need to have a clock to play in the
main tournament, but it's a good idea to get one
for yourself ...
using a clock keeps the game moving along. Also,
players
are responsible for knowing how to set their own clocks, don't
expect the Tournament Directors to help you.
-
Player
Pairings:
-
The
Tournament Director creates pairings using US
Chess Federation-approved computer software,
with the pairings themselves approved by the Chief TD before
they are posted to the public.
-
Player's
Ratings used for Pairings, Section determination, and
for Prizes are the highest of a player's Over-the-Board and
Online Regular Ratings found in the
MARCH 2024 US Chess
Rating Supplement. Those ratings
should be available online for
rated players around February 16th or 17th, 2024.
-
During
Rounds 1 and 2 of the tournament it is unlikely that siblings or
teammates will be paired against one another. However,
the probability for this
scenario increases when there are many players from the same
school in a section or in a score group. It also increases in later rounds when siblings or
teammates are in contention for the same trophy. For
instance, imagine a scenario where after 3 rounds, there are 6
players with 3 points each, and 4 of those players go to the
same school. In this example,
at least two of the players from the same school will
play a teammate in Round 4. Remember, this
tournament is, foremost, an INDIVIDUAL tournament.
-
All
players and parents should be aware that the Chief Tournament
Director may use "Accelerated Pairings" for the first 2
rounds of the tournament.
-
Ties:
The Tournament Director breaks ties using the methods specified by the U.S. Chess
Federation (Rules of Chess). Players or Teams tied for 1st place are considered "State
Co-Champions." However, the Player/Team with the best tie-break
points will receive the 1st place trophy.
The sequence for Individual
tie-breaks is: Modified
Median, Solkoff, Cumulative, Cumulative of Opposition. Ties
among Teams are broken using these tie-breaks: Solkoff, Cumulative, Cumulative of Opposition.
-
When
your Game is Finished: Raise your hand and wait for a
TD to arrive. Do not reset your pieces until the TD instructs
you to reset them. The TD will ensure your game's results are
properly written on the Game Result Slip. DO NOT LEAVE before
you verify your game results with a TD.
Questions: Contact
Mike Hoffpauir by email, or phone 757-846-4805
|