I recently played in a 5-round weekend tournament and took a 4th-round half-point bye. When I returned home from church I felt so tired and sick that I decided to withdraw. This was 30 minutes before the end of the 4th round, an hour before the start of the final round. I checked the tournament announcement, but there was no TD cell phone or communication policy listed–just an email address. Fortunately, when I searched my cell phone’s contact list, I found his #, so I sent a text message to the TD, informing him that I was withdrawing from the 5th round. I had also seen him using Facebook during a round the previous day, so I sent a Facebook message. Finally, since the tournament announcement had provided email as the TD’s contact info, I sent an email. I sent all of these messages before the end of the 4th round.
Two minutes after the start of the 5th round, I was awakened from my nap by a return text message from the TD. He had not seen any of my messages until just then, so he had paired me. I had x minutes to arrive if I didn’t want to forfeit. I was still sick, so I didn’t come. The game is now listed in the crosstable as a forfeit.
In subsequent text conversation, the TD opined that I should have called his mobile number instead of just sending a text message. I assured him that I would do so in the future.
In the meanwhile, my opponent got no game, and another player he could have played with had already departed with a 5th round bye. I feel badly for the guy who could have/should have gotten a game, especially because he had been awarded a full-point bye in the 2d round.
So that’s what happened. I would be interested in learning if there is a USCF policy on the means of notifying a TD about an important event, such as a withdrawal, particularly for a multi-day tournament and players leave the tournament site for several hours. Also, there is the question of whether the TD should be responsible for checking his phone for messages, or whether the burden of making sure the message gets through is on the player, who should follow up with a call if the TD doesn’t immediately respond to a text message.
I would think that calling him is a reasonable thing to do. If he doesn’t answer, you can leave a voicemail (unless it’s full, of course).
On the other hand, there’s no reason he shouldn’t get a text message in due time. Many people now receive emails (and FB notifications) on their phones as well. Plus, if he was using FB at the playing site, that means he had an internet connection. I typically check my emails just before pairing, in the event a player has chosen that route to withdraw. (Of course, I also carry a Verizon MiFi with me, to make sure I have reliable internet regardless of the playing site.)
I don’t think there’s much he could have done about the forfeit, save finding a house player to play the game (and even that might not be suitable, if the game affects prizes and/or the house player is significantly different from you in terms of rating). When I have encountered a similar situation, I change the results so that the missing player doesn’t show as a forfeit loss. But that’s just me.
It might be difficult to create a uniform USCF policy for this, because the USCF has no control over what means of contact TDs are likely to have, or whether those devices will work at any given site.
I know when the USCF has held national events at the Hyatt in Atlanta most cell phones don’t work on the level where the both the playing rooms and the TD area has been located.
TDs should be encouraged to post this type of information prominently at their events and mention it in the pre-game announcements. Depending upon the event, that information might be available in time to include it in a TLA.
Of course some TDs don’t have phones (me, for instance), so that wouldn’t do you any good. I have had people call my home phone, and even attempt to text my home phone, but that doesn’t work during a tournament. I always attempt to check my email before pairing a round, but I don’t always have Internet.
What I tell people to do (usually they let me know if they are thinking about withdrawing, although I understand that wouldn’t work in this case) is to call the hotel. It’s not perfect, but most hotels get messages to the TDs pretty quickly.
Last time I faced this situation, with a player who had a bye in the morning round and hadn’t been seen all day, was to let his opponent play a spectator in the extra rated games section.
I once had someone leave a message on my office answering system for a Saturday event, I didn’t hear it until Monday. (I was not sure how this person got hold of my office number, either.)
The USCF office sometimes gets emails and phone messages over the weekend from someone telling us they’re withdrawing from some affiliate’s tournament or want a bye in a round.
I have text messages turned off on my cellphone because they are costly with my plan. And if someone does send a text, the system does not alert them that it wasn’t received.
I can’t remember the last time I paid for a domestic text message. Even when I’m abroad, with the global plan Verizon has, I don’t pay for text messages sent and received from phones in the country I am in at the time.
That said, the above is a valid point for directors and organizers who have pay-as-you-go type cell plans. This would be just one of the challenges with making a more uniform policy on contacting TDs.
My only response would be that, if a director is counting on using a mobile phone for communicating with players, it’s very likely that at least a few players will send text messages. A director who does not wish to receive text messages might do well to put verbiage such as “call only” in their advertising. In Mr. Falter’s case, unfortunately, the director didn’t even provide a number in the advertising.
The TD is absolutely correct. Texting, twittering, and anything but a verbal communication is absolutely and 100%
insufficient. You got what was deserved. A forfeit. By your lack of proper communication, you caused detriment
to the tournament by someone not playing who could have. Text messages are utter nonsense in situations such
as this. Many busy TDs simply do not have the time to view all of the apparent dozens of types of social media.
I would advise to be properly respectful the next time around.
There was no phone number listed in the tournament announcement. Was the TD’s email address listed? If so, then I would say the TD becomes responsible for the problem in the OP. If you give players a method to contact you, then you need to regularly check for messages via that method - especially just before pairing a round.
Mr. Falter happened to have the TD’s cell number. What if a player didn’t have the director’s cell number? What could that player have done to contact the TD in an emergency? As I said earlier, calling would have been reasonable, given the circumstances - but if the director didn’t reply to or even receive a text message, what guarantee is there that he would have answered the phone or retrieved his voicemail? He clearly didn’t look at his phone for the hour or so before he paired the last round.
Frankly, I would rather not assign blame for this. A sick player tried to withdraw prior to the pairings being made for the last round, and his message was just not received in time. It happens.
I’ve lost track of the number of times I’ve directed in a place that did not have usable wi-fi, which would be a prerequisite for being able to check e-mail. I’ve also directed in places (as recently as 2/1/2014) where the building had so much metal in the structure that you could not get a cell phone signal.
I do not feel that the TD should automatically absorb such responsibility for during-the-tournament contact based on giving a method for contacting the TD in advance of the tournament (and unlike many people I don’t live with my cell phone always on so I give my home number for such pre-tournament contact, not my cell number).
If I get any sort of cell signal, even 1X, I can get email on my phone. That said, when I do a site walk-through before an event, while checking lighting, exit/entry points, and the like, I also check to see if I can get signal. If I can’t, I make that part of my round 1 announcements. If the event is in a hotel or other building with a general customer service number, I direct calls there (after notifying the hosts, of course). If not, well, it’s just like the good old days, right?
I happened to live in such a house for seven years after moving to Pennsylvania. So I understand structural challenges to getting wireless internet (or even cell signal).
Many people no longer have land lines, as a cell is often cheaper and more flexible. That said, if you have a land line, you probably have either an answering machine or voicemail. I haven’t owned an answering machine in about 12 years, but even the one I last had just after the turn of the millennium allowed me to check messages from another phone.
Players do have emergencies come up (which are thankfully rare, at least in my experience). If the organizer or director can make it easier to be reached for notification, it makes the event better for everyone. I consider it my responsibility to ensure that I can be reached in some way. That is just how I see it for myself, anyway.
Very many good points. Sometimes I get a little jaded when folks for whatever reason, just leave. There are many
reasons for this–sometimes they simply do not like their pairings, or their parents feel the pairings are too strong or
weak. It is not uncommon for say a youth rated, say, 1900 to skip out if paired with someone rated around 900
or so–bad risk/reward, you see. (despicable–but nonetheless, not uncommon)
The rule (and I don’t have a rulebook in front of me, so I don’t know which one) is to communicate a withdrawal or zero point bye request to the director. How that effectively happens will vary with the Director’s capability, but Steve’s guideline (communication has not happened until communication is acknowledged) is universal.
Here’s what I tell players in my events:
However you tell me, tell me at least 30 minutes before the next round. The other players cannot wait forever a pairing, and I will not wait forever to pair while you make up your mind.
Telling me in person will always work and is most preferred.
I check email regularly during an event, especially just before pairing, and email communication is second most preferred. I will acknowledge timely email withdrawals to confirm they are received.
My cell phone is set not to sound during an event, so phone and texting are not reliable unless I specifically say otherwise (I gave out my number once, for the first attempt at the 2012 Fairfax Open, only to facilitate communication of the ultimate decision to cancel the tournament due to lack of power at the playing site).
If and only if you must use a telephone, and if and only if I am at a hotel, call the hotel and ask to leave a message for the chess tournament.
In my view, providing and communicating a reliable method for off-site players to withdraw is a best practice if technology permits. Technology may not have permitted in the case described in the OP. Stuff happens. You were sick, and were wise not to go to the site to make others sick.
Rob Jones’s reply merits no response beyond noting that it tells me everything I need to know to decide whether to participate in a tournament he organizes or directs.
Brennan, you are always welcome. And just perhaps if I know you are coming, as my guest. There are standards
and a decorum to follow, however. Respect is a two-way street–both between players and tournament organizers
and directors. While there are unusual circumstances, out of one’s control, a code of conduct is not only expected,
but required in professionally run events.
Stuff happens. As a player, I did not contact the TD when I failed to make the Sunday morning round a couple of times. The first time was when my house was hit by a car that morning; I was dealing with police and insurance people most of the day. I called the TD later, and he was a little miffed at first but realized that calling him was the last in my list of priorities. The second time was when a friend was sick in a hospital. I went to visit her before going to play my round. She was feeling so poorly that I did not feel she should be alone. So I missed the round and the rest of the tournament to sit with her. If someone got a forfeit win and did not get a chance to play a game, so what? He was probably relieved and had a nice rest.
As a TD, I have guidelines for withdrawals. I have seen similar guidelines posted at some tournament sites. They are similar to USCF rules on the matter. One draconian set of rules posted that the player would have to pay a fee at his next tournament, but I never saw that rule enforced. Most players do tell the TD when they are withdrawing as matter of courtesy.
We used to at least try to enforce the rule about assessing a fine if someone withdraws without proper notice, it didn’t seem to improve player behavior. (U of Chicago economist Steven Levitt would probably not be surprised at that outcome. read “Freakonomics” for similar examples.)
I once had a player call me on my cell phone about 3 minutes before a round began to ask about his pairing. When I told him who he was paired against, he responded, “I withdraw.”
After that, I refused to answer questions about pairings by phone. I would just say “Pairings are posted.”
(This thread reminds me of all the reasons why I do not miss directing events, having retired from directing and organizing events 3 years ago.)
I understand that emergencies happen, but I think that this is a dangerous attitude.
I personally haven’t seen anyone be relieved and have a nice rest when someone forfeits on them; usually they sit around nervously for an hour, unsure if their opponent is actually going to show up (he probably will show up, right? I mean, he hasn’t withdrawn), followed by a period of annoyance that they didn’t get their scheduled game (this annoyance being particularly acute when the tournament is a one-evening-game-a-week one, so they made their commute for nothing).
My local club does have such a rule, and my understanding is that it is enforced except in extreme cases. (It also has a “no withdrawing at all in quads” rule.)
