Yeah, lets be nice not because it's the right thing to do, but because someone may be watching and we'd miss out on a chance to fool 'em.

Better option is to pretend you have a sense of humor... history shows that andy would leave you alone pretty quick

I've reported Clifton multiple times.  For not being relevant and some other shit.

I think he's basically untouchable here.  Staff loves him and protects him.

I hardly understand anything he writes, as explained before, so there is little for me to be offended by. My ignorance works to my advantage here. Maybe it is better not to read too closely what others write, or you'll find yourself to be offended all the time.

He's also basically harmless, and often adds humor to topics that have been posted 100 times before (you hardly see anything new around here).

I appreciate informative answers that get to the point and help the OP, but a few humorous posts sprinkled inbetween (by many others not just andy) save the forum from being dull re-runs of the same stuff (quetsions and answers) over and over.

(And often all that needs to be said is said in the first page or two... esp. in topics like this one).

Is this comment still relevant?

There are three problems with this scenario.  First, it's almost, although not quite, impossible to find a place that will hold 75-100 participants for a rental of only 100 dollars.

However, there is a bigger problem.  If it isn't rated, very few people will come, so you can't get 75 participants unless it is a rated tournament.

Third, if you don't offer cash prizes, it might be difficult to get people to attend, so the "medals" don't work.

Frankly, I don't understand why people won't play unrated chess for just medals.  If I could find such a tournament, I would play, but when I hold exactly the sort of tournament you describe, I get 14-20 players, 1 or 2 of whom are not USCF rated, and the USCF rated players will not play non-rated chess.

USCF...why aren't they a force to be reckoned with? They could learn a few lessons from the PGA or NRA.

Thanks Thomas for getting this back on topic! I used to play this one friend that was almost always the winner, but the games very close and I was always on edge so was he, we never got tired of playing each other through out the years until he moved east coast and I am here in SD. 

     What's most important in the beginning,  getting into chess is the right attitude and you will enjoy the game more and care less when you lose or your rating.

My original point is that with great chess easily accessible over the internet, how does the USCF justify the membership rates, entry fees, etc? I have played some really cool games on chess.net so far and while I'm not awesome by any stretch of the imagination I think all the tools are here for the average player to improve. The USCF doesn't really offer things like tactics trainers or video instruction unless you are just willing to pay more at their store, and it's never really clear to class players what will and what won't make them better until they have spent hundreds of dollars.

I just don't see how the USFC is worth it, not in terms of money, time, or trouble.

Well maybe the existence of the USCF is not so much as a learning tool, but to establish US rating as does FIDE.  With out that every one is on their own, and no tabulate of player's strength. There would be no validated master players in the US arena

I certainly wish that they were more than a rating agency. They could be, don't you think, if properly managed?

Beach, I agree with what you just said. The internet sure has brought chess out of the dark ages...easily accessible to just about anywhere in the world, training aids, etc.

I just wish that the real world, the blood-guts-and-glory, the visceral, the tactile...wasn't so much left in the dust.

Thanks for nothing, USCF.

I have learned a lot from the USCF rated events I have gone to.

The USCF is the sanctioning body for USCF rated tournaments, The NCAA is the sanctioning body for the "March-Madness" basketball championships are they relevant, damn right. Are either of those organazations necessary for their respective  sport/tournaments to survive ? Of course not, what they bring to the table is a standard system in which these events are run, organized, and the process in which the eventual  winners/champions are selected.

     The  NCAA are the biggest crooks in the free world !  OFF-TOPIC

      USCF sanctioned tournaments are the REAL deal no wimps allowed !

The most important reason to be in a chess club is that you meet other people and learn from them. How much have you learnt from a chess site?

Loads!...when you look at the resources on chess.com, it would be impossible not to learn a huge amount.

I wish you all the best in obtaining your goal: The Expert chess-player is forged from those OTB tournament battles that test skill and endurance!