Conduct

Participants are required to maintain a professional demeanor throughout this competition and adhere to the US Chess Code of Ethics, US Chess Safe Play Policy, and FIDE Laws and Regulations. Any violations of these policies or established decorum will prompt the Saint Louis Chess Club to take necessary actions. This may involve reporting the incident to FIDE and US Chess, potentially affecting the player's eligibility for future invitations.

Format

The Event shall be a 10 player tournament paired as a Round Robin.

Prompt Arrival

Players are expected to arrive promptly for their games. Players not at their board at the beginning of each round may receive a fine of $1,000 to be deducted from their prize for each occurrence. Players more than 10 (ten) minutes late for a round shall forfeit that round. Players who withdraw or forfeit a game may not receive any prize money.

No Personal Items

No “unauthorized devices” or personal items are permitted in the tournament area. Violation of this policy will result in forfeit of the round and may lead to expulsion from the event.

No Draws

A “no draw” rule will be in effect throughout the Event, including any playoff games. No player may offer nor accept a draw. In the event of a claim for a draw under Article 9.2 of the FIDE Laws of Chess (three-fold repetition) or under Article 9.3 of the Laws (50 move rule), one of the Event Arbiters must be asked by the players to verify the claim.

Schedule of Events

Each round shall begin at the start times listed in the Schedule of Events attached hereto (the “Schedule of Events”).

Pairings & Scoring

Round Robin: Players will be randomly seeded and paired according to the standard FIDE Berger Tables. Games shall be worth one point for a win, half a point for a draw, and zero points for a loss.

Time Control

The time control shall be game in 120 minutes, with a 30–second increment from move one (G/120+30).

Prizes

The total prize fund shall be Two Hundred Thousand US Dollars ($200,000.00 USD), distributed according to the table below and the terms described herein.

Where there is a tie for first place, a playoff shall be held to determine the event winner and first place prize. The event winner, even if determined by playoff, shall take the 1st place prize. The Event prize money shall be divided equally amongst all other tied players. For any indivisible prizes, the following math tiebreaks will be used: Modified Median, Solkoff, Cumulative.

Playoffs

In the event of a tie for first place in the Event, there shall be a playoff amongst all the players involved in the tie. The playoff shall determine the winner of the Event and the Winner’s Bonus prize.

The playoff shall take place on the day immediately following the end of the last scheduled round. If at any stage there are only two players in a remaining tie, they shall contest a Double Rapid Round Robin (a mini-match consisting of two games) at the relevant time limit specified below. The players in the tie(s) shall initially contest a Rapid Round Robin, with the pairing numbers determined in the following tie-break order, with player 1 having the best tie-breaks: Most wins, most blacks, direct encounter, drawing of lots. The time limit shall be game in 15 minutes with a 10 second increment per move from move 1 (G/15+10).

If there is still a tie or ties after the Rapid Round Robin is complete, the players in the remaining tie(s) shall contest a further Rapid Round Robin at the above time limit. If all the players in the second Round Robin are the same as in the first Round Robin, then the second Round Robin shall take place with colors reversed. Otherwise, new pairing numbers determined by lot will be used. If there is still a tie or ties after the second Round Robin is complete, the players in the remaining tie(s) shall contest a Blitz Round Robin, with the pairing numbers determined by lot. The time limit shall be game in 5 minutes with a 2 second increment per move from move 1.

If there is still a tie after the Blitz Round Robin is complete, further Blitz Round Robins shall take place with the players still in the remaining tie(s), until every tie has been resolved, subject to the provisions of Regulation 11.7 below. If all the players in the subsequent Round Robin are the same as in the previous Round Robin, then that Round Robin shall take place with colors reversed. Otherwise, new pairing numbers determined by lot will be used. If any tie remains unresolved after four Round Robins have been held (two Rapid and two Blitz), the Chief Arbiter shall be empowered, after consulting with the players, to direct that the tie be resolved by other means.

Schedule of Events