Might help if you provided a link.
A "real world" tournament or one of the many "World Opens" on chess.com.
World Open
Sort:
I played in the u1400 last year and felt at the time that I was at or above the 1400 playing level. I came in 24th out of 127, missing the money prizes by half a point. I haven't played in a tournament (or much chess at all really) since last July and I'm going to give the u1400 group another go. I don't really care about the money (though it would be awesome to win) but I like the atmosphere and going with a few friends of whom I enjoy their company.
It's tough to say what's/who's sandbagging and whatnot. A lot of the top players in my group haven't played in a tournament since. It would be nice for me to slip in the top 10 this year, but I kind of doubt it. Too many games against equal or better opponents. There's a lot of luck involved.
http://www.chesstour.com/wo09.htm
(for those who are interested)
For anyone who has played in it before...how bad is the sandbagging?