Here's a little tale with the moral being... know when to keep my mouth shut.
About 16 years ago our small local club hosted a weekend tournament. Only 20 or so in attendance and all were familiar with one another. The TD was a friend of mine. The other key characters I will call Frog and Toad for the sake of anonymity.
Going into the last round, Frog & Toad see they are paired together. Being close friends they say in the presence of myself & others that they will quickly agree to a draw and proceed to the nearest exotic dancing girl bar. (I'm paraphrasing for PG purposes here).
Well, pre-arranged draws are one thing but this was pretty blatant. So, I told my TD friend. He then confronted Frog about it and to say the least; harsh words led to the TD chasing Frog into the parking lot. We onlookers thought for a moment they might come to blows. Frog & Toad both got a foreit which was backed up by the USCF despite their(mostly Frog's) protest.
Flash forward a few months. Now Frog is hosting a tourney and denies my TD friend entry based on the rule that the TD has the right to deny entry to anyone he chooses.
Talk about "bad blood"! To this day these guys still hold a grudge.
And all because I opened my well intentioned big mouth. I wish I could take it back now because it caused more trouble than it was worth.
Opinions? What would you have done?
I agree: never miss a chance to keep your mouth shut.
What exactly were your intentions? What did you intend to accomplish?
My club is very strict about not talking while games are in progress. One night, the guy who makes the coffee had a late start. About ten minutes into the tournament, he announced that the coffee was ready. Six players immediately yelled "SHHHH!" The look on his face was priceless, he was so stunned. Then everyone laughed, got some coffee, and continued their games.