2019 New York State Girls Championship:

Answers To Frequently Asked Questions (UPDATED 4/5/2019)

Where do I check-in? You don’t need to check in if you’ve already registered and paid the entry fee. You already paid, so we expect you to be here by 10:00 am! If you have not yet paid or registered, or if your USCF membership is not current, on the other hand, please do that at least 60 minutes before your game!

If you have questions, Chess Control will be located at 36 West 93rd Street on Saturday and at 5 West 93rd on Sunday.

Where are the games played? The 2-Day Championship Sections will be playing on the first floor (and possibly the second floor) Cafeteria at 36 West 93rd Street. The 1-Day Sections will play in the following areas: the K-1 Championship will be in the Lower Gymnasium, and the K-3 Under 600 will be in Activity Center: both these two rooms are at 5 West 93rd Street. The K-3 Under 900 Section will also be played in these two rooms at 5 West 93rd Street. The K-12 Under 1200 Section will be in the 2nd Floor Cafeteria of 36 West 93rd Street.

What time is the next round? In the 2-Day Championship Sections, the games begin both Saturday and Sunday at 10:00 am, 1:00 pm and 4:00 pm (the 2-Day Championship Sections are a total of six games over both days: three games Saturday and three games Sunday). All the Non-Championship Sections and the K-1 Championship are five games each but on Sunday only. The games begin for the Non-Championship Sections and the K-1 Championship on Sunday at: 10:00 am, 12:00 pm, 1:30 pm, 3:00 pm and 4:45 pm.

The 2-Day Championship Sections, which are both Saturday and Sunday, are: the Open Championship, the K-6 Championship and the K-3 Championship.

The Sunday One-Day Sections which are only on Sunday are: the K-1 Championship, the K-3 Under 600, the K-6 Under 900 and the K-12 Under 1200.

Do we have to use clocks? Yes, if either player has one. We will supply the chess sets for the tournament games, but not the clocks (only for the five games on the DGT boards, we will use our clocks).

What are the correct clock settings? In all the 2-Day Championship Sections, the clocks should be set for one hour each player, with a 10-second time delay for each move for each player. In all the Non-Championship Sections and the K-1 Championship, the clocks should be set for 30 minutes each player, but with a 5-second delay for each player. If you have a clock without a time delay, set it the same as above, except that you don’t set a delay if the clock doesn’t have a delay.

How long do the games last? The games in the Non-Championship and K-1 Sections could last up to an hour, or even more if both players take all their time. The games in the 2-Day Championship Sections could last over twice as long. Generally, the older and more experienced the players are, the longer the games take. Probably the K-1 games will be done pretty quickly, and the High School games will take a lot longer.

Where do I wait while the players are playing their games? Some schools with lots of players have team rooms. These team room assignments should be posted at the school and maybe on the tournament website as well. If you don’t have a school team room, then the waiting areas would be in the High School Upper Level Waiting Area and also the Lower School Cafeteria if there is space available there.

When and where are the trophies awarded? The Awards Ceremonies are scheduled to begin about 6:30 pm Sunday for the 2-Day Championship Sections. The Awards Ceremonies are scheduled to begin about 6:15 pm Sunday for the 1-Day sections. The Awards Ceremonies should take place in or near the Auditorium. However, if we change the exact Awards Ceremony locations we will post and announce this as well.

How do I know whom I should play? The pairings should be posted a few minutes before each game, in the Cafeteria, near the Auditorium and near the Library. Look for your name posted on the yellow pairing sheets, check to see which Board Number you have been assigned (the Board Numbers are on the far left-hand side of the yellow sheet), and check if you are supposed to play White or Black. MAKE SURE YOU ALSO CHECK YOUR OPPONENT’S NAME TOO— we don’t want you playing the wrong person or with the wrong colors! We also plan to text the pairings out.

What if I can’t play all the games? In that case we need to know that! We expect that you will play all your games, and if you don’t tell us otherwise ahead of time, you will get paired against somebody and then end up losing your game on forfeit if you don’t show up. We don’t want that. If you know ahead of time that you can’t play, we can give you half-point byes (unrated draws) for up to two such unplayed games. However, if you want half-point byes, you need to request them before Round 3 and then after Round 3 starts you cannot take them away. If you need to request half-point byes because you won’t be able to play the first Round or because you have to miss both Round 1 and Round 2, we need to know that in advance, before you get to the event. If you want to request and commit to taking byes beginning in Round 3, we don’t want to know this until after you start, in case you change your mind in the meantime (but you have to commit to the byes before Round 3 in any case). If it’s too late for half-point byes, but you are not going to come to the next game, then we still need to know that. WE DON’T WANT YOU TO GET PAIRED AND LOSE BY FORFEIT!

Who gets a trophy? The top 12 scorers in each section, and the top 3 Unrated Players in each 1-Day Section (K-1 Championship, K-3 Under 600, K-6 Under 900 and K-12 Under 1200). The four top-scoring school teams in each section win a team plaque (the school’s 3 highest-scoring players produce the team score). Please check to make sure that you are listed under your correct school (NOT your Chess Club), otherwise your school’s team score may not be counted correctly. You need to have at least two players from the SAME school playing in the same section to count as a team. Grade plaques are also awarded to the top 3 players below 1st Grade in the in the K-1 Section; the top 3 scorers below 2nd Grade in K-3 Under 600, the top 3 below 4th Grade in K-6 Under 900 and the top 3 below 9th grade in K-12 Under 1200 (you can win both a plaque and a trophy)! Any player who scores four or more points (or five or more in the 2-Day Sections) and who does NOT win a trophy will instead receive a medal! For a complete list of our prizes, see the website at: http://www.chesscenter.cc/apr19/2019NYSGirls/2019-NYSGirls-Prizes.htm .

How many points do I need to get a trophy?! Five points is a pretty good bet (six points even better)! Otherwise you need to check to see how the other players in your section are doing and see who could get more points than you.

What about the free entry prizes? This is a great way to get valuable tournament experience against serious opposition under tournament conditions, without having to worry about paying for the entry fees! The details of what tournaments they do and don’t include, are on the Continental Chess website at www.chesstour.com (see the Tournament Schedule).

There must be more rules? Like “Touch Move,” “en passant,” etc.? Of course! The rules we have posted here and on our website are used for this tournament. Other rules also apply, and they are found in the Official US Chess Federation Rulebook, 6th Edition and 7th Edition.

How are the tiebreaks calculated? By computer! The tiebreak rules are somewhat complicated, and they are listed in the Parents’ And Coaches’ Guides at the tournament and are also posted on the website. The trophies and plaques and free entries are awarded using the players’ final standings, using tiebreaks to break ties, if necessary. However, ONLY for players who score 5-0 (or 6-0), we have a special speed playoff to break ties, because tiebreaks do not work for players who tie for First with perfect 5-0 or 6-0 scores.

How are the pairings made? By computer (hopefully)! See above.

How many rating points do I get? You should wait until Monday and check the USCF’s website at: http://www.uschess.org/msa/MbrLst.php

NOTE: The standings listed on the USCF website DO NOT INCLUDE ANY TIEBREAKS! They are often listed in a different order than the order in which we award the trophies, because our standings include the correct tiebreaks (hopefully)!

Where do I get food? The school has a special fast-food concession near the Lower School Cafeteria.

MORE QUESTIONS?? Check our website at www.chessgirls.win for more information!

Thank you for supporting New York’s State’s newest State Championship chess tournament!