The 2025 O2C Doeberl Cup

Where these rules conflict with current COVID-19 guidelines, then the COVID-19 guidelines will have precedence.

General Tournament Rules

1. The number of rounds and time controls for tournaments are listed in the schedule.
2. The Premier tournament will be ACF and FIDE rated, and will be constituted as a FIDE Title Tournament. The Major and Minor will be ACF and FIDE rated, and all other tournaments will be ACF rated.
3. The organisers reserve the right to transfer players across tournaments they may be eligible for. Should this need to occur the player will be consulted and a full refund of entry fees will be made if the player does not wish to transfer.
4. The Swiss Manager program will be used for pairings.
5. Organisers reserve the right to refuse entry to a player.
6. There is no smoking in the playing hall, analysis/lecture area or any other part of the premises under the control of the tournament organisers.
7. There is no analysis in the playing hall.
8. All players receiving conditions (including free entry) are requested to attend the official opening ceremony (Friday 12:30pm)
9. All players are to attend the prize-giving ceremony. Players eligible for a prize who do not attend the presentation may incur a 20% handling fee.
10. All references to ACF ratings refer to ACF Classic ratings unless specifically noted otherwise.
11. The default time will be 30 minutes after each round is started.

Policy on Short Draws

To be eligible for the 'Fighting Fund prize (in the Premier Tournament), players must not have agreed to draws in under 30 moves during any round of the tournament. The aim of this rule is to encourage a competitive, fighting tournament, and we trust all players will adhere to this in a sportsmanlike manner. (N.B. This does not include claims of 'draws by repetition of position' confirmed by an Arbiter)

Tie Break

When required for the tournament, the tie-break systems in descending order of priority are:

1. Median Buccholz - Sum of opponent scores minus the highest and lowest scores
2. Buccholz - Sum of opponent scores
3. Sonneborn-Berger - The sum of the scores of the opponents a player has defeated and half the scores of the players he has drawn with
4. AOR - Average of opponents ratings

Player Pairing and Sign-in (Premier, Major, Minor, Mini)

It is aimed to publish the draws for Round One of the Premier, Major, Minor and Mini tournaments in the evening prior to the commencement of Round One. Registered players who have not paid by the Entries close time for these tournaments will not be included in the draw. Players are expected to arrive prior to the sign-in closure time for each tournament. The organisers guarantee that if you and your opponent are at the table at the Round One start time you will play each other. In instances where your opponent does not arrive the organisers will repair you with another player or allocate a bye. The organisers cannot cater for every contingency but will attempt to be as flexible as possible whilst still aiming to begin each round at the scheduled start time.

Late Entries

The organisers reserve the right to accept entries beyond the Entries close time. Late entry players will be manually entered into the draw and will be paired and begin playing after the start of the round. The organisers cannot cater for every contingency but will attempt to be as flexible as possible whilst still aiming to begin each round at the scheduled start time.

Policy on Byes

If a player is unable to play a round (for any reason), they may request a bye from the organisers.

Such a request must be made before the start of the previous round to the round concerned (i.e. A request for a bye in round 4 must be made before the start of round 3)

If such a request is approved, a player will receive half a point (0.5) for that round with the following exceptions:

• In the final two rounds a player shall receive no points (0) for that round
• A player may only receive a maximum of two (2) half point byes.
• A player may only receive a total of one (1) point in byes. If a player has previously received a full point bye (or a point by default), they shall receive no (0) points for that round.

The organisers reserve the right to refuse any request for a bye.

Mobile Phone Policy

We will be enforcing a strict No Mobile Phone usage during the event policy.

All mobile phones and other communication devices are to be switched off in the tournament hall. This includes tablet computers, PDAs, MP3 players and any other devices that can receive external transmissions. Players are not allowed to have any such device on their person during their game.

A breach of this rule will result in the automatic loss of the game in the case of a player (if a game is in progress), or the exclusion from the tournament hall until the start of the next round (in the case of player who has finished their game), or for the rest of the day (in the case of a spectator).

Appeals and the Appeals Committee

In the case of an appeal against an arbiters decision, the tournament director will form an appeals committee consisting of 3 players from any of the events tournaments. These players will be chosen for their impartiality and their knowledge of the rules of chess.

The player lodging the appeal shall lodge a $50 bond, which will be refunded if the appeal is successful, or if the appeal committee decides to refund the bond in the case of an unsuccessful appeal.

Players' Rights and Responsibilities

All players have the right to expect:

1. The tournament directors are reliable and have a knowledge of the laws of chess, as per FIDE standards.
2. That all prizes will be awarded as advertised
3. That any special rules pertinent to this tournament will be announced and/or posted
4. The starting times of the rounds will be posted, and that the rounds will start reasonably on time
5. The tournament director (or assistants) will be available at all times in the event of questions or problems
6. The round results will be posted in a timely manner
7. That upon request the tournament director will initiate the appeals process

All players are expected to:

1. Conduct themselves in an orderly fashion
2. Compete in the spirit of good sportsmanship
3. Be present at the start of every round, if possible
4. Refrain from analysis or audible talking in the playing hall while other games are in progress
5. Notify the director in advance if they are unable to play a round or rounds
6. Promptly report results in a manner required by the tournament director
7. Read all the pertinent information posted by the tournament organisers
8. Obey the FIDE laws of chess

Changes in Rating following Registration and Payment

Should an eligible player register and pay for a tournament and then become ineligible due to a decline in their rating they will retain their position within that tournament.

In the situation where a rise in rating makes a player ineligible for the tournament they have registered and paid for they will be moved into the next highest tournament they are eligible for. Players in this situation will be offered a refund of entry fees as an alternative to playing in the higher tournament.

Refunds and Player Withdrawal

Updated 24 Oct 2022

Players withdrawing more than 7 days before the start of their division are entitled to a full refund, less processing fees. If a player withdraws within 7 days of the start of their division a 50% refund will be issued. Any player who withdraws after the start of their division forfeits their registration fee.