chess.com should NOT include $tournaments$ here! If anything, chess.com should, if they even want to kick the idea around, create another chess.com site specificly for tiurnament based gambling games. I don't really think it's illegal, considering other oranizations offer such tournaments.

I'm not a doctor, but I have studied law. Gambling is not illegal in USA if done right. Straight out gambling is, but in actual tournaments hosted by organizations are legal. No need for Vegas if you know what you're doing!

money ruins everything. We cannot play just for fun?

I posted the whys earlier, but two (or more) *participants* wagering money *on their own skill* is simply not gambling in the eyes of U.S. Law. People seem to keep ignoring this fact and replacing it with feelings/ideas. There is much to be discussed in this thread, but the legality of two (or more) participants wagering on their own skill is not even a question...in the U.S.

I guess the best analogy so far is *tournaments*: they exist all over for the simple reason that one is backing one's own skill with money. Legal. If we were to bet on the participants, not legal. If the tournament was for, say, Roulette (a pure game of chance(, instead of Chess, also illegal. In the U.S. I can't speak to other countries' Laws.

Like a doctor of law would know what's legal or not internationally.  There are many more than 100 countries with thousands of laws each...

I searched google for chess and gambling and found this from chess.com from a few years ago:

http://www.chess.com/forum/view/general/chess-and-gambling

This would only encourage cheating.

Chess is a beautiful game and if the enjoyment of the game is not enough then one should take up another game--if you want to gamble go to a racetrack or gambling casino or illegal book maker for that matter but let's keep chess pure, at least on this one website.

i would have to be able to look my opponent in the eye to play for money.

If you do that...how will you see the board? lol jk

Unlawful Internet gambling is defined as:

• placing, receiving or transmitting a bet
• by means of the Internet
• but only if that bet is unlawful under any other federal or state law applicable in the place where the bet is initiated, received or otherwise made.
• excluded from the coverage of "unlawful Internet gambling" are
  • waypoints along the World Wide Web that are only incidental to the places where the electronic transmission of the bet or wager is initiated and finally received.
  • online bets made solely within a single state under an enabling statute passed by that state. [Note: there are no such enabling laws at this time.]

  • online bets made solely on or among Indian tribal lands under enabling laws adopted by the affected tribes and approved by the National Indian Gaming Commission. [Note: no such laws have been adopted or approved at this time.]

  • online bets made under the Interstate Horseracing Act. [Note: online interstate bets on horse races where such bets are legal at both ends of the online connection have been permitted under that law since 2000.]

The new law, therefore, only applies to online gambling operators who violate other existing state or federal anti-gambling laws.  Some commentators on this aspect of the Act conclude that since there are only a handful of states that expressly ban Internet gambling, this law has not accomplished very much. 

The better view is that all of the online gambling sportsbooks, casinos and cardrooms violate existing anti-gambling laws of every one of the fifty states.  This is because:

• The gambling is legally deemed to take place simultaneously at both ends of the Internet connection. 
• Under applicable state laws these interactive online gambling Websites are deemed to be doing business in the states in which the players are located when they make a bet.
• The general anti-gambling laws of every state criminalize the operation of unlicensed gambling like the sportsbooks, casinos and cardrooms that are covered by the new law. 

Thus, this professional form of unlicensed gambling appears to be illegal whether or not the state has adopted a specific Internet anti-gambling law.

So basically, it all boils down to federal and state laws...but with different states holding different statutes, online gambling becomes very difficult.

Did you see this blog post about the hustler?

http://www.chess.com/article/view/my-game-against-the-hustler

Got any bridges for sale?

Fixed that for you. 

We play at the park for 10 dollars a game (five each) and a dollar a point in material.  Double for checkmate in 30 moves or less. Needless to say, I'm not getting rich.

You can't see the Beauty

I won 2nd on a bullet tournament...  :'(