Here are some questions and answers that people ask when they start playing in the league.
There have been a number of improvements to the u3a Chess League software to improve the collection of results and reporting of ladder positions to the players. There is a new form to input the match result and new league tables will be posted at the start of each month on the website blog/Home Page. Having determined your new opponents please make contact to arrange your matches for the new month.
If you have any questions please complete the contact form and we will get back to you.
How does the points system work?
You score 1 for winning a game, 1/2 for a draw and 0 for lost.
How do I submit the result of my match?
We have changed the match results form to properly reflect the scores and make it easier to automatically process the results using scripting languages. Please submit the results of your league matches before the end of the month. As previously a match is made up of two games each playing black then white. Record the actual results of each game, Won 1-0, Draw 0.5 -0.5 or Lost 0-1. All selections on the Form are from a dropdown lists to make it easier and avoid errors entering results.
Decide who is Player1 and Player2 , then just enter the result. i.e. if you were Player1 and Ken was Player2 and you lost both games then the recorded result is
Game1 Steve Lawer v Ken Maynard 0-1
Game2 Steve Lawer v Ken Maynard 0-1
You can’t determine who was playing black and who was playing white with this system of recording the results but it’s far better than the old system which couldn’t distinguish between 2 draws and 1:0 and 0:1 which meant that the 1to1 results were just wrong. The alternative of recording both games on separate forms which would capture all the information was felt to be to onerous on players by the League Managers.
The player playing white on the first game (now Player1) to submit both results on the Match Results Form.
Uncompleted games.
Any uncompleted games will score 0 points for both players unless it can be shown that you have repeatedly tried to arrange a match but the other player is unable to play you before the end of the month. In that case you will score 0.5 point for each unplayed game.
When will I know who I am playing in the next month’s round?
At the start of the month select the BLOG tab on the site and look for the latest POST from the League Manager with the new table for the current month which will contain no results. Their is also a link at the bottom of the HOME page to this Blog Post.
How do I view last months and previous months tables.
Select the Red10 or Blue15 League buttons on the main menu followed by the results sub menu below the in progress tab. The tables for last month and previous months (possibly links) are displayed on the webpage.
Can Anyone start playing in the league?
Yes, and we welcome newcomers to chess. You will learn a lot by having a go. BUT you have to be a member of a u3a to take part.
Promotion and Relegation.
Once the league manager has determined how many players will be in each division for the next period, players will be assigned to divisions based on their performance in the previous period – first points scored, then who beat who. If two players are still tied, who is promoted or relegated will be decided by tossing a coin. Normally for a division of 6 players 2 are promoted and 2 relegated.
We have a changing membership, which often leads to different division sizes from one period to the next. This can make it difficult to determine how many should be promoted and relegated, and where to insert new players. It is hard to define a simple rule that would meet all situations. So, this is left to the league manager’s discretion, but using the principle that a player entering the league for the first time, or re-entering the league after a period of absence, should be placed in the division which most closely matches their skill level. This is defined by their current chess.com rating.