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Here is the news article about the rated tourneys: https://www.chess.com/news/chesscom-to-host-uscf-quick-rated-play-9414 and here is the schedule from that (events show up 1 hour before the scheduled start): List will be updated if there are changes to times or days US Chess Monday Blitz: USCF Blitz held every Monday at 3 p.m. Pacific, 6 p.m. Eastern 5 rounds 10 | 0 time control AND USCF Blitz held every Monday at 8 p.m. Pacific, 11 p.m. Eastern 7 Rounds 5|0 time control US Chess Wednesday Blitz: USCF Blitz held every Wednesday at 5 p.m. Pacific, 8 p.m. Eastern 7 rounds (fewer if not enough participants) 3|2 blitz time control US Chess Friday Rapid: USCF Rapid held every Friday at 5 p.m. Pacific, 8 p.m. Eastern 5 rounds 15|10 time control US Chess Saturday: 11 am Pacific, 2 pm Eastern All events 5 rounds Week 1, 1st Saturday: Blitz -- 10|0 Week 2, 2nd Saturday: Quick/ Rapid -- 15|2  Week 3, 3rd Saturday: Blitz -- 10|0 Week 4, 4th Saturday: Regular -- 30|0 (changed January 2021) Week 5, 5th Saturday: Quick/Rapid -- 15|10

For those that want to check out all the tourneys after they get rated, you can check out the following USCF Affiliate page and check out all the rated events and crosstables there. http://www.uschess.org/msa/AffDtlMain.php?A6044892

Here is some information on how the whole process works to tie Chess.com accounts to USCF ones.1.  Fill out the USCF Authentication form: https://www.chess.com/news/view/uscf-member-authentication-9266 Please fill out all fields. It is very important to set up your link on your US Chess profile: new.uschess.org/news/it-factor-part-3-managing-your-preferences (copy/paste the whole link for instructions) 2. Join the US Chess Members Only group: https://www.chess.com/club/uschess-members-only You must have the form filled out to join the group. If the form is not filled out within 24 hours your group request will be denied and you will have to reapply. 3. Get verified If there is a problem (incorrect USCF ID, names don't match between form and US Chess profile, expired account), your request will be denied. You can resubmit the form with updated details and request access to the group again. 4. Keep your USCF membership current; if your membership expires you will be removed from the group. You can re-apply for group membership once you have renewed, but will not need to fill out the form a second time.   updated 11/2020

Please be aware that at the end of each month we will be checking USCF membership status of accounts coming up for renewal. We will remove any expired accounts on the 1st of the month. If you are removed from the group and renew your membership after that time, please request to rejoin. If your account has already been verified, there will be no need to fill out another authentication form. Thank you.

Does this group offer resources for hosting local USCF affiliate events online? Could it?Can the administrators of this group offer advice and or training to certified TDs who are trying to keep local events going during the pandemic?

Membership   1. How can I play in club events, join the club, etc? First, you must be a current member of the US Chess Federation: https://uschess.org Second, fill out the member authentication form found here: https://www.chess.com/news/view/uscf-member-authentication-9266 Add your Chess.com username to your US Chess account: https://new.uschess.org/news/it-factor-part-3-managing-your-preferences Third, click on the Join button on the club homepage. 2. Do I have to pay to play? US Chess Club events are free to chess.com members that have current US Chess memberships. You do not have to be a premium member or pay for the event, just for your US Chess membership. 3. I "Joined" but I'm not in the club and can't play events. If you clicked Join but didn't fill out the authentication form and add your chess.com username to your US Chess profile, you have to do that process as well. Check your notes and messages. If we don't see a form we will attempt to leave you a note, with a link to the form. If there is a problem with your form, or we can't verify the username link to  your US Chess account, we will message you about it. 4. I filled out the form but I'm not in the club/can't play in events. Check your messages; if there is a problem with your form, we will deny your club request and let you know what you need to do to fix the problem. Make sure you clicked Join on the club homepage. 5. I "Joined" but keep getting denied. Did you fill out the form? If you request access and do not fill out the form within 24 hours of receiving the notification to do it, your request will be denied. If you subsequently request access and the form still hasn't been filled out, you will automatically be denied. 6. I filled out the form, was accepted into the club but was removed. At the end of every month, we check members to see if their US Chess membership is due to expire. We attempt to notify expiring members up to 7 days in advance. If you have not renewed your membership by the 1st of the following month, you will be removed from the club. If you renew your US Chess membership, click Join on the club page and we will verify your status. 7. If I have been removed and renew my US Chess membership, do I need to fill out the form again? No. Just Join the club again and we will check your membership status and accept if you are current. 8. Why have I been banned from the club? If you have requested multiple times to be in the club and have failed to fill out the form, your account will be banned until you fill out the form. Serial account creators will also be unable to join the club. If you feel the need to close your account and open a new one, please don't do so multiple times. 9. I'm not from the United States, can I still join? Yes. The only requirement is that you have a current United State Chess Federation membership which can be purchased by anyone at the US Chess site: https://secure2.uschess.org/webstore/member.php

Hey guys,I am currently 1387, almost 1400. I am going to the CFCC U1200 tournament in September. Do you guys have any specific preparation that I can do to at least get to 1500 or maybe 1600 rapid by then? Since it is summer, I can devote all my time to chess, so I am willing to do anything. Thanks!

I love that USCF has a regular schedule here. It is great for planning and I really appreciate it. However I wish that they would have some longer time controls to try out. I am not talking about live tournament time controls but an occasional 45|0 or something similar would be nice. In a world were everyone is playing fast games I would like to slow down and play a slower game where I can get deeper into a complicated position and have the time to think about it. Does anyone share my desire for longer games? Please share your thoughts.

I posted this in the general forums, but I should have asked here since you know US chess rules better. I remember it being legal about 8 or 9 years ago when Hikaru played Nepo in the world cup armageddon tiebreak. Hikaru said it was legal then, but I’m unsure if it still is. Is it?

If a person gets their chess.com account closed for fair play, are their tournament results in past USCF tournaments on chess.com revised within the USCF system?  I had my suspicions about a past player in a couple of U1450 blitz tournaments a couple of weeks back.  I see now the player's account was closed.

Hi, I recently just finished a tournament and earned a category 2 norm. I'm wondering why I didn't earn a category 1 norm. My four opponents were rated 1464,2032,1811,and 1877. I scored 3 points out of 4. An 1800 would be expected to score 2 points in this rating field. I scored 3 points. I scored 1 point over what would be expected. Why didn't I earn a category 1 norm? This is just for my understanding. Thank you to anyone who can answer.

just wondering if the excalibur game 2 chess clock is still able to be used for tournament play and currently approved. i heard it was originally the official chess clock for the federation many years ago and am playing to buy it eventually so hope you guys can help me out here. also I have my very own excalibur currently but cant tell if the batteries arent big enough or that the display is messed up cause it would show 3 zeros but can still be programmed to do 3 mins or whatever time control you want to set it too. its very weird so could you guys tell me if its broken or not? i rlly would like to buy another one if this one is broken also the image above isn't my excalibur so yeah thx

Hey everyone! I am planning to host weekly online USCF-rated blitz tournaments with time controls similar to tournaments held here. Entry will be around $5–$10, and 70–80% of the pot will go back to players as prizes. Right now, I’m just trying to gauge interest—would you guys like to see prize tournaments like these? Feel free to DM me if you're in!

I love playing blitz and long and doing tactical puzzles and am right now at about 1600 otb and maybe somewhere around 1600s- 1800s in strength in long, 1600s- 1900s strength in blitz but struggle with studying from books or watching more then 1 video lesson at a time. is it possible to hit 1800 or 2000 otb without studying and knowing much about endgames doing just tactical puzzles/which endgames does one need to master to get to and be those levels consistently?

My regular rating is 1072

I recently applied for NM title vertification, does anyone know when it will be approved and show up on my account? Thanks

Just had the most surreal experience ever. I was playing in the US Chess 10/0 Rapid, and played the black side of the Giuoco Piano Mason Gambit against this guy. I found a tactic, and he resigned on move 11. (see position). [removed -- MS] Turns out he was streaming the game the whole time. After he resigned, I joined his stream, and got to hear him cussing me out to his viewers and vowing to report me. He also looked at my profile and kept saying "This is [removed]" I wasn't offended, just found it amusing that some people are such sore losers. Can I report him for being a sore loser, I wonder? :-)

Hi, I am a club TD and am wanting to run my first tournament.  However, I am a bit confused about the US Chess affiliate program.  How do you become one, can you just be an affiliate by yourself, where is the forum to apply, ect.

Greetings! What are some good resources to study GM games? I’m looking to study the Kings Indian Attack and the Kings Indian Defense.