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I've noticed that most kids registering with USCF nowadays have 8 digit IDs beginning with a 3, and that they generally increment so that you can approximate when they registered just by their ID. That makes sense to me, as back when I registered in 1996 I got an 8 digit ID beginning with a 1. However, I do still occasionally see kids with IDs beginning with a 1, despite clearly being born comfortably on this side of the millennium (usually a 15 or 17 I believe, whereas I was a 12 back in 96). I'm wondering if and what such an ID is indicative of (method of registration? nationality? ...). There doesn't seem to be any explanation I can find in the USCF material. (Curious as my 6 year old son has been getting in to over-the-board tournaments and I'll occasionally see such an ID that just sticks out at me).

In round four of the October 1 tournament, I lost. My opponent played very well, 92% accuracy, but I didn't think much of it. A week or so later chess.com informed me of a fairplay violation on October 1 and a refund of my chess.com rapid rating points. Sure enough, I saw on chess.com that my opponent in round 4 on that day was banned for fairplay violations. The official USCF ratings for the tournament came to my inbox yesterday. I looked at the detailed records and found I was still given a loss for round 4, which of course cost me official USCF online blitz rating points. The player in question is STILL banned from chess.com, so that rules out the possibility that an investigation later cleared him or her of the fairplay violation. My question is: if a player has a fairplay violation in a USCF online rated tournament, shouldn't the game not count toward my official USCF ratings?

What is OL Q, OL B, etc short for, for those of us who don't automatically get it🤔

I'd like to support the efforts of other hard-working tournament organizers in the US. With this in mind, which are your favorite non-CCA tournaments in the US?

I'm confused about how the ratings work on puzzles. If I lose to a puzzle that is rated 1375, I lose 15 points. If I beat a puzzle rated 1450, I get 5 points. You lose a lot more points when you fail than you gain when you succeed. Is this just the nature of ELO or whatever? It makes no sense to me. M.

Hi, I’ve participated in a few OTB blitz tournaments recently and have remained confused about a certain rule. For the tournaments I have played with the time control( G/5 w. D/0) it was announced before the games that “insufficient material would not apply” due to “there being no delay.” Therefore, is it perfectly fine to attempt to flag someone with Bishop and king vs. sole king? Why is this a rule? Am I misunderstanding? Thanks.

https://www.chess.com/game/live/53183343131

Could we have U1000 rapid/blitz tournaments?? I personally feel its hard for lower-rated players to play in general tournaments.

I would love to see bullet tournaments in Chess.com Online USCF Tournaments once in a while.

Is there a way to look up USCF ratings by state and age?I am a 12-year-old boy from the state of Connecticut and was looking at the CT player who participated in the Barber tournament. My rating is higher than his, and I got intrigued. Unfortunately, the only list I could find was of the top 100 12-year-olds nationally, which no Connecticut player is on. Is there a way to get a specific category, like "Top 6th-8th Grade Boys in Connecticut" or is this not an option?

Not to be a pearl-clutcher, but have y'all seen the latest ad mailer from US Chess? "Check out these Cool Chess-Themed T-Shirts at US Chess Sales!" And then this image below, specifically the green shirt: If I type out what the green t-shirt says, this post will get banned and I'll get a scolding note in my inbox. Am I being too sensitive here? Because that seems WILDLY inappropriate, especially in light of US Chess' continuing efforts to make chess less of a boys' club. Yikes.

Hello, I have a couple questions about achieve a National Master ranking in USCF. USCF has noted here that anyone who has reached a rating of 2200 will be awarded the title. Does it matter for which time control? e.g. Regular/Classical, Quick, Blitz? Does the National Master title require norms? USCF mention a "Life Masters" title that require five norms at the performing level plus a rating of 2200+. I'm confuse if "Life Master" is the same thing as National Master? Thanks!

According to the Blitz section of the USCF rule book, rule 7d states that: “A game is won by a player […]Who, after an illegal move is completed by the opponent, takes the king (if the king is in check) or claims the win and stops the clock, before the player determines a move and provided the player has sufficient mating material as defined in rule 7c. A player who moves his king adjacent to the opponent’s king and then attempts to claim a win under this rule based on the opponent’s failure to notice the check shall lose the game.” So suppose I was in a game and both myself and my opponent had 10 seconds left in a game without increment and were in a time scramble. If I were to intentionally check my opponent (multiple? maybe) times (something that is done often in online chess to undo your opponent’s premoves), and with the intent of calling an illegal move to win the game, especially in a dead draw, would that be considered bad sportsmanship?

https://www.chess.com/analysis/game/live/51926999105 I'm confused at how Rxc2 is brilliant, its common sense, but i mean, ill take the brilliant move.

Would anyone be interested in joining a U1700 tournament sometime in the next couple weeks where there is an entry fee (something like 5 or 10 dollars) and the winner gets 25% of total entry fees, 2nd gets 15% and 3rd gets their money back + possible free entry into another tourney? I am interested in hosting online tournaments and am trying to scout out interest levels. Also, if anyone has any experience in this sort of thing, what advice would you give?

Don't Have Time for Chess? Problem solved. There is no need to spend 5+ hours of your day to play in a quality chess tournament. In this unique event, you will be assigned five simultaneous games against other scholastic players. As this is a chess.com daily tournament, all you have to do is play one move every day in each of these games. Just one move a day! You can get all of your games done in just 5 minutes daily. You can also spend much longer if you wish, so no rushing required! What's even better is that you would be assigned to a six-person section by rating, so that the six highest rated players would be in one section, the next six highest in another section and so on. This way you will play against other students who are around your skill level. When the tournament ends, you will receive a correspondence chess rating from the USCF, something most chess players do not have. Also, if you rank first in your section, you will receive a $50 Amazon gift card! The entry fee will increase by 22% on May 10, so act quickly. For more information and to register, please visit: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/the-daily-movers-scholastic-chess-championship-registration-324223931507 We hope you’re able to join us!

It says I don't qualify for the U1450 blitz, so just trying to determine if it's using my rapid rating or not.

blunder

For the rapid tournament this friday, how many people typically participate, how do the ratings/rounds/pairings work, and are there any processes/registration fees required to participate? Sorry for the possibly seemingly obvious questions, I'm new here and to the scene of official chess tournaments/federations in general.

Fellow chess enthusiasts, It is my great pleasure to inform you that the April International Scholastic Swiss, an online chess tournament to be held on Chess.com, will be held about a week from now on April 23. Most importantly, the entry fee for this event will increase from $15 to $20 at 11:59pm tomorrow! Please see the following presentation for the details:- For additional information and to register, please visit: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/april-international-scholastic-swiss-registration-306686145517 If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to inquire. Thank you for your time and attention! Sincerely, Caleb S. Brown President of Innovative Chess Solutions, LLC