2005 New Mexico Blitz Chess Championship

ENTRIES AS OF AUGUST 10th

Where:	Salvador Perez Park 601 Alta Vista, Santa Fe From Albuquerque, take I-25 N, Exit on St. Francis Dr, going N, Go about 2.6 miles to Alta Vista. Turn right at Alta Vista – park is located near intersection. Park is adjacent to Coronado Shopping Center. The playing area will be outdoors, across from the soccer field.	The famous 15’ tall Singleton welded steel giraffe at the Salvador Perez Park.
When:	Saturday, August 13, 1-6 PM.
How:	USCF Blitz Rules. These rules are different from the WBCA rules we have been using in the past– see the new USCF Rule Book (2003). The event will be USCF Quick Rated, based on the request of the overwhelming majority of players at last year’s blitz championship. 7 round Swiss (game with White and Black against each opponent).

USCF Blitz Rule Summary

The following information is being provided for potential players in the upcoming New Mexico Blitz Championship. USCF rules will be used instead of the traditional WBCA rules since the event will be USCF Quick Rated. A copy of the USCF rules will be posted at the Salvador Perez Park playing site for reference, and players should familiarize themselves with these rules which are listed in the USCF’s Official Rules of Chess, 5th edition, 2003. Critical rules are:

1. Claims of Insufficient Losing Chances: when clocks are used which do not have the time delay feature, a player making a claim of insufficient losing chances must have less than one minute remaining on his clock. If the claim is upheld, a draw is declared, if the claim is denied, one minute is removed from the player’s time, which is equivalent to losing on time. When clocks use time delays, a player may not make a claim of insufficient losing chances.

2. Time Delay: for blitz chess, the time delay is 2 seconds (unlike the 5 second delay used for regular chess or 3 seconds for quick chess).

3. Illegal Move Penalty: the NM Blitz Championship will use Variation 3A as stated in the USCF Rules of Chess in order to assure timely rounds of play. A player making an illegal move and hitting the clock shall forfeit the game if called by the opponent before the opponent touches a piece. The single exception to this will be if a player leaves his king in check as the illegal move and hits his clock, the opponent may capture the player’s king to produce the win.

4. Illegal Move Correction: if an illegal move in blitz chess is made by a player, and his opponent has subsequently completed two moves, the illegal move stands with no time correction. Otherwise the move can be corrected with no time penalty and the game can continue.

5. Triple Repetition of Position: a player in blitz chess may claim a draw by triple repetition of position based on the observation of the TD, an assistant to the TD, or an impartial observer. A player may stop both clocks to summon a director to demonstrate the ability to create a triple repetition of position.

6. Flags Down: if both flags are observed to be down in a blitz chess game, the game is drawn. To claim a win on time, a player must stop the clock with their flag still up or time still remaining. If the flag falls or the time goes to zero before the clock can be stopped, the game is drawn.

7. Removing the Hand From the Clock: each player in blitz chess must remove their hand from the clock after completing a move and must keep it off the clock until it is time to press it again.

8. Same Hand Hitting the Clock: a player must move their pieces and hit the clock with the same hand.

9. Picking Up the Clock: each player in blitz is forbidden to pick up the clock. The clock may be stopped to summon a director during a dispute, or may be adjusted on the player’s own time to allow for better viewing.