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Correspondence Chess Discussion Forum

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Welcome to USCF's Correspondence Chess Forum. We frequently offer a topic for discussion but welcome comments related to any topic already in the CC Forum. We do insist that the tone of the comments be offered and presented in a professional manner. USCF has sole discretion regarding comments not being appropriate for posting on its' website. This area is an excellent opportunity for Correspondence Chess players to be heard and be involved in making USCF Correspondence Chess even better.

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Next Forum topic

The new topic for discussion is:

If a game result report is sent to the USCF but is not received. How long should the players be allowed to send the result again in order to have it rated? If one of the players is then no longer a current USCF member, should this be considered--regardless of the result?

You can respond by e-mail to [email protected] regarding this topic or any other topic of interest to co.

Current topic

Robert Lisanke notes, "Greetings from Florida! Caught your CC Forum Topic, and would like to contribute, in a way. I am not presently in CC, yet my e-mail experience may be of value. I have been with 4 IN Providers. Their "Mail-Service-Link" is not sent immediately! Each e-mail comes with a Date and Time Stamp, but I have received PST mail and my Mail was "As-of-EST, not as of the Sender in PST! So there may be 3 hrs. difference there. Summarizing, for e-mails using IN Provider-Mail-Servers, why not "accept" and posted dated and time stamp that each player receives in their e-mail, corrected perhaps for the difference in the time zones?"

Joel Hunt, Sr. comments: "Land mail is delivered once per day. Some recipients receive early..some later...and no one lives by their mail boxes..through this veraible into the mix =snow delays, flooded areas, etc. Why not consider: 1. E-mail all mail two days (48 hours); 2. Forget lightning matches..not all servers are created the same..nor equal; 3. Use java programs and start your own chess playing..but don't offer prizes nor glory; 4. Enjoy chess and the playing of it..rules tend to cripple/fix endings; 5. Purists write down moves on rice paper and burn incense..receiver smells move and returns moves on their rice paper..then there will be the question about winds and when will one have time to check the prevailing winds...etc. 6. Toss all; just play chess the best and fairest way that YOU feel is good fun! And if you perchance meet another player with like wits, then the game is afoot Watson!"

Comments received related to: Should players be forfeited on a first time violation of the reflection time control?

S.E. Lapinel writes: "I disagree with the comment that anyone who cannot make a move in three days should not be playing in a correspondence tournament. I think that chess should remain open to competition from a large variety of players. Some people work longer hours than others, and just receiving mail doe snot mean that everyone has the same time available to analyze the game. I believe that enforcing immediate forfeiture would make it harder for some (many) people to participate, which is not what the USCF wants to do. Absolute statements like "anyone who cannot make a move in three days should not be playing in a correspondence tournament" leads to equally absolute and equally absurd statements like; anyone who cannot wait patiently for an opponent's move should be playing in an OTB tournament instead of by correspondence."

Gerald Johnson wrote: "I vote that any person who oversteps the generous time rules (10/30) be forfeited on a first time overstep. Penalizing an overstep by deducting 5 days from the next group of 10 is ridiculous in many cases. I now have an opponent who has used over 100 days reflection time on his 4th move. How will I apply the penalty to that. (He was not forfeited by the CCD when I complained).

(Note from the CCD: Our current rule states that unless the violation occurs in a Golden Knights Finals round or in the Absolute Championship, players overstepping the time control will receive a formal warning and a time penalty. A second violation of the time rules or any other rule violation would then lead to forfeiture in most cases.-Joan DuBois, USCF CCD)

Robert Lisanke writes: "I think your 10 moves in 30 days or 1 move in 3 days is not unrealistic. But with a few friendly postals I've played, I've had been suspicious when a player repeatedly insists that his card dates are "correct" and that each "late reply" is due to the Postal Service!"

Prior Topics in the Correspondence Chess Forum

• December 1997 - Should there be a Free Day for e-mail events?
• November 1997 - Overstepping the Time Control
• October 1997 - Reflection Time
• September 1997 - Time Forfeits
• July 1997 - Downtime Claims
• May 1997 - Reflection Time: Should Time Controls be Changed?

This page was last updated February 27, 1998

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