FAQ for Parents of Scholastic Chess Players
Q: Can you pair my child with an opponent who is the same rating?
A: Unfortunately, no. Most tournaments utilize something called the Swiss pairing method. Who your child is paired against is largely based on the following factors:
Q: Why is my child only playing opponents significantly stronger/weaker than him/her?
A: This is largely due to how Swiss pairings work. If he/she is the “top seed” of a section, then he/she will be paired down. “Top seed” means the highest rated player in his/her section in a tournament. Likewise, if the player is ranked relatively low in the section, then he/she will likely play stronger opponents, especially for the first round.
Q: What are Swiss pairing rules?
A: These rules are issued by the USCF (United States Chess Federation). For complete rules you’ll need to review their rule book. The rules on just how to determine colors (white or black) for a player is by itself almost 20 pages long.
For efficiency and accuracy, and because of the complexity of the rules and the numerous exceptions, etc. tournament directors use pairing software (like SwissSys) to do computer produced pairings for each round. The computer software handles the job of evaluating who should get paired against whom and what color they should get according to the rules. We are currently on the 7th edition of rules issued by USCF. Link here: https://new.uschess.org/news/7th-edition-rule-book-chapters-now-available-download-2/
Q: What if I think the pairings are wrong?
A: You are always welcome to ask a TD to explain a pairing to you. Please be patient though. It may take a TD some time to figure out why the pairings happened the way they did due to colors, which opponents the kids have played, etc. Please allow for the game to start while the pairings are being reviewed.
i.e. Your child may or may not get alternating black and white colors. Tournament directors use computer software and they do not manipulate the pairings in any way. There is just simply no reason to. Please trust in your event organizer/TD that they are doing what’s fair and standard across the board even though the pairing may seem like it's incorrect.
Q: Is it possible for a player to get two or even three blacks in a row?
A: Yes! See rule 29E5f and 29E5f1. Indeed it seems quite unfair but it happens. We once had a tournament where 3 players in the same score group all had 2 blacks in a row and all were strongly due white for the next round. It was also the last round of the tournament.
Q: Can you not pair my kids (siblings) against one another?
A: Yes! However there are situations where this is not possible. In particular in smaller events or in the later rounds. Directors typically can honor this request for the first half of a tournament. See 28T td tip in the rulebook.
Q: Why am I getting a full point bye?
A: Sometimes, there is an odd number of players, resulting in one player who is the "odd man out" and will not have an opponent. The bye is a full point and is typically given to the player who is the lowest rated (but not to an unrated or a late entrant). See 28L2. Unrated, new players get preferential treatment and should be paired for as many rounds as possible, in particular in a 4 round event. See 28L5.
Q: Why doesn't everyone get a trophy?
A: We only award to top performers, typically within the top 10-15% of the players in a section. Some event organizers give out trophies to all participants. We prefer to encourage high-level achievement so there is a concrete goal to aim for.
Q: When and how do I find out what my child's rating is?
A: Results from a tournament are usually submitted right away. Sometimes, there are issues such as expired USCF memberships that have to be corrected before submission. In most cases, you should be able to see an updated rating within a day or two after the tournament is over.
Go to this link, input name or USCF ID, find your child's name in the list of results, click and look for the 'tournament history tab' at the top of the page.
Q: Why isn't the rating shown on the pair chart my child's current rating?
A: It is standard practice to use the rating supplement that USCF publishes once a month for pairing purposes. You can find your child's supplement rating by clicking on the "Rtg. Supp." tab. This is common and an accepted practice.
It is uncommon to use the latest tournament result for pairing purposes but TDs may choose to do so. Sometimes it may even be necessary to assign a rating to a player. See rule 28E2, 28H.
Q: Is notation necessary?
A: Yes and no. USCF rules require score-keeping. See rule 15A. However, there are always exceptions. See 15A1C. For our scholastic events that are filled with beginner/novice players, we will not strictly enforce rule 15A. We believe in keeping chess fun for beginner players and ensuring that they are learning along the way.
The expectation of beginners to fully notate their games accurately and fully can be a bit much. We choose to encourage score-keeping but will not penalize for failure to notate. This guideline is purely for our novice beginner players who are rated U1200. For players rated 1200 and up we fully expect everyone at this level of play to follow the rule of scorekeeping.
Q: What can a parent do if he/she notices an illegal move being made?
A: You are welcome to inform the TD, however you are NOT allowed to do so in a manner where players can hear or become aware of the situation. See rule 11I. A tournament director who witnesses an illegal may choose to have the player correct it (only in non-sudden death, rule 11H). However, this is not mandatory that a TD do so (rule 11H1).
Ultimately it is a player's responsibility, not their parents to notice illegal moves made by their opponent on their own and to make the claim themselves to have it corrected. This is part of the learning process. Hence, for scholastic tournaments, if we see it, we will initiate to correct it. Our goal is for players to learn, not to take advantage of rules and the enforcement of time penalties, forfeit of games, etc.
Parents it is vital that your focus is on having your child learn the game well, not just on winning to gain rating points. At this level of play (under 1200 rating) please do not be overly concerned and put too much emphasis on the rating number.
Q: Can you pair my child with an opponent who is the same rating?
A: Unfortunately, no. Most tournaments utilize something called the Swiss pairing method. Who your child is paired against is largely based on the following factors:
- How many other players there are and what their ratings are – Who registers for a particular tournament is completely out of a TD or event organizer’s control
- How many sections there are to the tournament and how the sections are divided
- The luck of the pairings based on Swiss system rules
Q: Why is my child only playing opponents significantly stronger/weaker than him/her?
A: This is largely due to how Swiss pairings work. If he/she is the “top seed” of a section, then he/she will be paired down. “Top seed” means the highest rated player in his/her section in a tournament. Likewise, if the player is ranked relatively low in the section, then he/she will likely play stronger opponents, especially for the first round.
Q: What are Swiss pairing rules?
A: These rules are issued by the USCF (United States Chess Federation). For complete rules you’ll need to review their rule book. The rules on just how to determine colors (white or black) for a player is by itself almost 20 pages long.
For efficiency and accuracy, and because of the complexity of the rules and the numerous exceptions, etc. tournament directors use pairing software (like SwissSys) to do computer produced pairings for each round. The computer software handles the job of evaluating who should get paired against whom and what color they should get according to the rules. We are currently on the 7th edition of rules issued by USCF. Link here: https://new.uschess.org/news/7th-edition-rule-book-chapters-now-available-download-2/
Q: What if I think the pairings are wrong?
A: You are always welcome to ask a TD to explain a pairing to you. Please be patient though. It may take a TD some time to figure out why the pairings happened the way they did due to colors, which opponents the kids have played, etc. Please allow for the game to start while the pairings are being reviewed.
i.e. Your child may or may not get alternating black and white colors. Tournament directors use computer software and they do not manipulate the pairings in any way. There is just simply no reason to. Please trust in your event organizer/TD that they are doing what’s fair and standard across the board even though the pairing may seem like it's incorrect.
Q: Is it possible for a player to get two or even three blacks in a row?
A: Yes! See rule 29E5f and 29E5f1. Indeed it seems quite unfair but it happens. We once had a tournament where 3 players in the same score group all had 2 blacks in a row and all were strongly due white for the next round. It was also the last round of the tournament.
Q: Can you not pair my kids (siblings) against one another?
A: Yes! However there are situations where this is not possible. In particular in smaller events or in the later rounds. Directors typically can honor this request for the first half of a tournament. See 28T td tip in the rulebook.
Q: Why am I getting a full point bye?
A: Sometimes, there is an odd number of players, resulting in one player who is the "odd man out" and will not have an opponent. The bye is a full point and is typically given to the player who is the lowest rated (but not to an unrated or a late entrant). See 28L2. Unrated, new players get preferential treatment and should be paired for as many rounds as possible, in particular in a 4 round event. See 28L5.
Q: Why doesn't everyone get a trophy?
A: We only award to top performers, typically within the top 10-15% of the players in a section. Some event organizers give out trophies to all participants. We prefer to encourage high-level achievement so there is a concrete goal to aim for.
Q: When and how do I find out what my child's rating is?
A: Results from a tournament are usually submitted right away. Sometimes, there are issues such as expired USCF memberships that have to be corrected before submission. In most cases, you should be able to see an updated rating within a day or two after the tournament is over.
Go to this link, input name or USCF ID, find your child's name in the list of results, click and look for the 'tournament history tab' at the top of the page.
Q: Why isn't the rating shown on the pair chart my child's current rating?
A: It is standard practice to use the rating supplement that USCF publishes once a month for pairing purposes. You can find your child's supplement rating by clicking on the "Rtg. Supp." tab. This is common and an accepted practice.
It is uncommon to use the latest tournament result for pairing purposes but TDs may choose to do so. Sometimes it may even be necessary to assign a rating to a player. See rule 28E2, 28H.
Q: Is notation necessary?
A: Yes and no. USCF rules require score-keeping. See rule 15A. However, there are always exceptions. See 15A1C. For our scholastic events that are filled with beginner/novice players, we will not strictly enforce rule 15A. We believe in keeping chess fun for beginner players and ensuring that they are learning along the way.
The expectation of beginners to fully notate their games accurately and fully can be a bit much. We choose to encourage score-keeping but will not penalize for failure to notate. This guideline is purely for our novice beginner players who are rated U1200. For players rated 1200 and up we fully expect everyone at this level of play to follow the rule of scorekeeping.
Q: What can a parent do if he/she notices an illegal move being made?
A: You are welcome to inform the TD, however you are NOT allowed to do so in a manner where players can hear or become aware of the situation. See rule 11I. A tournament director who witnesses an illegal may choose to have the player correct it (only in non-sudden death, rule 11H). However, this is not mandatory that a TD do so (rule 11H1).
Ultimately it is a player's responsibility, not their parents to notice illegal moves made by their opponent on their own and to make the claim themselves to have it corrected. This is part of the learning process. Hence, for scholastic tournaments, if we see it, we will initiate to correct it. Our goal is for players to learn, not to take advantage of rules and the enforcement of time penalties, forfeit of games, etc.
Parents it is vital that your focus is on having your child learn the game well, not just on winning to gain rating points. At this level of play (under 1200 rating) please do not be overly concerned and put too much emphasis on the rating number.