First Open Qualifier TODAY! (5pm Pacific)

Hello everyone!   The Bughouse World Championship is about to begin!  Today is the first day of qualifiers.  Today, as on each day of this weekend and the next, there are 2 Challengers qualifiers and 1 Open qualifier.]

Open Qualifier 1 (starts 5pm PT/12am UTC): [https://www.chess.com/play/arena/2147914]

The format of these qualifiers are 90 minute arenas.  The time control for all arenas is 2+0.  At the start of the tournament, you will be paired with the team closest to you in rating.  After your game finishes, you will be paired with the closest rated team that is not currently in a game (This is not like a Swiss, where you have to wait for every game in a round to finish before starting the next.).  You get points for wins and draws, but none for losses.  You get extra points for going on a streak (winning 3 or more games in a row).  

PLEASE MAKE SURE TO BE PARTNERED TO YOUR BWC PARTNER ON CHESS.COM BEFORE ENTERING!

At the conclusion of the arena, the 4 teams with the most points qualify to the group stage.  Teams that have qualified cannot play in any future qualifiers.  If you don't qualify this time, don't worry: you still have chances to qualify in the remaining 3 arenas.  

If 2 teams are tied for a qualification spot, they will play a first to 3 tiebreaker match (with no win by 2 condition), directly following the arena to determine which team will advance.  If more than two teams tie, only the two teams with the highest arena tiebreaks will compete in the tiebreaker match.

If you have any questions, feel free to contact me or another member of the support team on discord or chess.com.

The first qualifier Open begins in 10 hours from now.

Good luck, have fun, and play well!