2022 USTL Rules

Rules and Regulations

1. Length of 2022 Season: 1 year, July 4th, 2021 to June 30th, 2022

2. Format: 9-Rd Round Robin.

3. Match Settings: When setting up matches, please use the following parameters
   1. Match Name: USTCL 2022 R#: Team A vs Team B (replace # with the number of the round)
   2. Game Type: Standard Chess
   3. Days per Move: 3 days
   4. Description (not required): See rule 11 below
   5. Rating Range: Open
      
   6. Minimum Games: 5
   7. Players per Club: 6 players minimum, no maximum
   8. Concurrent Games per Player: 2
   9. Start Date: 14th of the month (see match schedule below)
   10. Start Time: 7 PM PT (10 PM ET)
   11. Auto-Start: No
       
   12. Rated: Yes
4. League Standings: Standings will be posted periodically in this thread. Only matches that have been clinched will be shown as a result in the standings.
   

5. Prizes: Trophies for places 1 thru 3. Trophies will be awarded by January 1st, 2023.
   

6. Player Eligibility: A player can only play for one team throughout a season regardless of division. Once they play for a team, they must stay with that team throughout the season.

7. Promotion/Relegation: The 1st and 2nd place teams will be promoted to Division 1. The 9th and 10th place teams will be relegated to Division 3. 

8. Unfinished Matches: If a match result has not been determined by the season end date, but it is necessary that the match conclude in order to determine the divisional composition for the following season, then the remaining incomplete games within that match will be decided using chess.com's analysis tool. If a player is leading by a score of 2.0 or more, they will be determined to have won that game. If the difference is less than 2.0, the game will be determined to be a draw.
9. Tiebreakers: The first tiebreaker will be head-to-head results. The second tiebreaker will be the differential between match points won and lost across the entire season. Uncompleted games will not be scored for the purposes of the second tiebreaker.
10. Removal of Players: Team admins may remove players from their roster who exceed a timeout ratio of 25%, or are ineligible due to rule 6. Removed players must be published in the team match thread prior to the start of the match. Example: Player A was removed in accordance with timeout rule: Timeout ratio 55%. Teams may not remove players from their roster or discourage players from joining a match to obtain a more favorable matchup.
11. Score Adjustments: Match scores will be finalized after taking into consideration the account closures of members due to cheating or abuse. This will occur prior to announcing the final standings. The text in "a" below may be used as the Description for a match challenge, if desired.
    
    1. Opening databases without engine evaluation and opening books are permitted in Daily Chess, but the use of engines and tablebases is never permitted. See here for the applicable rules: https://support.chess.com/article/648-what-do-i-need-to-know-about-fair-play-on-chess-com. If you are not clear about the rules - ask.
12. Forfeits: There are two types of forfeits that may be awarded.
    
    1. Challenge Forfeits: In order to claim a forfeit win due to no acceptance of a challenge, please post a note to this forum that a challenge has been issued, and include a link to the active challenge. If a match has not started at least 24 hours before the scheduled start time, a forfeit win will be awarded to the challenging team. If no note has been posted, the result will be a double forfeit, and will count as a 0-0.
    2. Minimum Board Forfeits: In order to claim a forfeit win due to lack of boards, teams must have clear evidence that a team did not meet the minimum boards at the match's intended start time. If a match has started late, the team claiming a forfeit must have visual evidence (e.g. a screenshot) that shows that they met the minimum on time. Past matches do not count as visual evidence for this purpose. If no such evidence is available, the must must be played as a normal match. Teams are encouraged to make sure Auto-Start is set to No when setting up challenges to make adjudicating these forfeits easier.

Match Dates for the 2022 Season

League Table / Schedule: