Wesley So Forfeited In U.S. Championship Round 9

[syzygy]

Pretty sure the intent of that rule is regarding notes relating to the game being played.

It seems several international arbiters of some renown see it differently. And I think the explanation is not difficult:

Now, why is not allowed to write a note completely unrelated to the game? That has an easy answer: your opponent cannot easily know what you are writing. So he will quickly get suspicious, which is distracting to him. And he will have to notify the arbiter, who will then have to check your writing. A great disturbance to everybody. And the arbiter might not even be able to read your notes, because he might not speak the language you have used. And you might be using some secret code that the arbiter cannot decipher. Etc. etc.

Do you really want to have long discussions during games, just so that a player can remind himself to call his granny after the game?

[chessico]

Now, why is not allowed to write a note completely unrelated to the game? That has an easy answer: your opponent cannot easily know what you are writing. So he will quickly get suspicious, which is distracting to him. And he will have to notify the arbiter, who will then have to check your writing. A great disturbance to everybody. And the arbiter might not even be able to read your notes, because he might not speak the language you have used. And you might be using some secret code that the arbiter cannot decipher. Etc. etc.

Do you really want to have long discussions during games, just so that a player can remind himself to call his granny after the game?[/quote]

Most of that is more or less pure imagination. Have you ever actually played a tournament?

[syzygy]

He could and should have asked the arbiter to clarification if he seriously thought his trick might be lawful.

Indeed. Most likely the referee was angry and thought it might harm his authority and took the wrong decision.
I can only repeat: writing down a quick note during the game, like I mentioned before, and like Wesley did, was never against any rule, nobody ever wanted to forbid it.

What is allowed in your view?
- taking unrelated notes on the official score sheet?
- taking any kind of note on a separate sheet of paper?
- taking unrelated notes on a separate sheet of paper?

[syzygy]

Now, why is not allowed to write a note completely unrelated to the game? That has an easy answer: your opponent cannot easily know what you are writing. So he will quickly get suspicious, which is distracting to him. And he will have to notify the arbiter, who will then have to check your writing. A great disturbance to everybody. And the arbiter might not even be able to read your notes, because he might not speak the language you have used. And you might be using some secret code that the arbiter cannot decipher. Etc. etc.

Do you really want to have long discussions during games, just so that a player can remind himself to call his granny after the game?

Most of that is more or less pure imagination.

How is it imagination? Let us take the So - Akobian game. Akobian notified the arbiter. What should he have done according to you? I suppose that according to you he should have taken a decision based on the content of the note. For that he should have been able to read the note. If So wrote in English that would not have been a problem. But what if it was in Chinese? Pure imagination?

Have you ever actually played a tournament?

Nope, but what has that to do with anything? Are you suggesting that Tony Rich, the FIDE official he called before taking a decision, and the members of the appeal committee have never actually played in a tournament?

According to you, what is the explanation for what happened? They all conspired against So?

[chessico]

He could and should have asked the arbiter to clarification if he seriously thought his trick might be lawful.

Indeed. Most likely the referee was angry and thought it might harm his authority and took the wrong decision.
I can only repeat: writing down a quick note during the game, like I mentioned before, and like Wesley did, was never against any rule, nobody ever wanted to forbid it.

What is allowed in your view?
- taking unrelated notes on the official score sheet?
- taking any kind of note on a separate sheet of paper?
- taking unrelated notes on a separate sheet of paper?

Come on, I have made that quite clear already, but again:
- taking unrelated notes on the official score sheet?
No, of course not, don't scribble on an official document.
- taking any kind of note on a separate sheet of paper?
No, you are not allowed to analyze during the game, and of course it would be possible to us notes a some kind of analysis. And of curse we don't want cheaters to transmit information to possible helpers. Iirc this is why we are no longer allowed to write the own move before actually moving it, because a helper could warn us it is a blunder or similar.
- taking unrelated notes on a separate sheet of paper?
Well, I don't see an existing rule against it. As long as what i write does not interfere with other existing goals (anti-cheating, disturbance, analysis).
The idea that an entire tournament hall goes berserk because I write some motivational motto on a separate piece of paper is strange. In this concrete case it is only explicable if we assume the established Americans were not amused by the arrival of a new star and made front against Wesley in order to keep their profitable positions. Not something I find very amusing.

[chessico]

Have you ever actually played a tournament?

Nope, but what has that to do with anything?

Well, I would not want to enter such a discussion regarding baseball rules. Because i have no experience. I think it matters.

[syzygy]

He could and should have asked the arbiter to clarification if he seriously thought his trick might be lawful.

Indeed. Most likely the referee was angry and thought it might harm his authority and took the wrong decision.
I can only repeat: writing down a quick note during the game, like I mentioned before, and like Wesley did, was never against any rule, nobody ever wanted to forbid it.

What is allowed in your view?
- taking unrelated notes on the official score sheet?
- taking any kind of note on a separate sheet of paper?
- taking unrelated notes on a separate sheet of paper?

Come on, I have made that quite clear already,

True (in the meantime I have gone through your earlier posts), but there have been so many opinions that it is not trivial to keep track.

but again:
- taking unrelated notes on the official score sheet?
No, of course not, don't scribble on an official document.
- taking any kind of note on a separate sheet of paper?
No, you are not allowed to analyze during the game, and of course it would be possible to us notes a some kind of analysis. And of curse we don't want cheaters to transmit information to possible helpers.
Iirc this is why we are no longer allowed to write the own move before actually moving it, because a helper could warn us it is a blunder or similar.

Not terribly important, but I've already argued that this is no longer allowed because it is a form of taking notes. See also my Geurt Gijssen quotes.

- taking unrelated notes on a separate sheet of paper?
Well, I don't see an existing rule against it. As long as what i write does not interfere with other existing goals (anti-cheating, disturbance, analysis).
The idea that an entire tournament hall goes berserk because I write some motivational motto on a separate piece of paper is strange.

So you don't see a need for clear, easy rules.

In this concrete case it is only explicable if we assume the established Americans were not amused by the arrival of a new star and made front against Wesley in order to keep their profitable positions. Not something I find very amusing.

OK, I could have guessed. What ridiculous nonsense.

[syzygy]

Question Dear Mr. Gijssen, in the latest issue of your excellent column you wrote: There is currently a proposal that a move will be recorded only after it is made or completed. For nearly 30 years, I have recorded my move before playing it on the board. (....)

Answer I understand your point, but writing down a move before it is played is tantamount to making notes. And it happens quite often that a player writes down a move to mislead his opponent. I think it was your compatriot Tarrasch, who advised his pupils to sit on their hands before making a move. Perhaps this is what should be done instead.

[chessico]

Well, I certainly won't argue any longer with somebody who has such strong convictions based on nothing.
My original argument was that the rule is probably not what people here who know nothing want it so firmly to be. Using notes is different from for example writing my name. Next time a player will be punished for trying out his pencil to see if it works, and a lot of people who have never seen a tournament hall from inside will agree with the "law" and how logical it is.
btw, just as a minor side note, and not that it would really matter, Gary Kasparov also found the whole thing scandalous and the rule, if it does exist, ridiculous.

[syzygy]

http://www.chess-news.ru/en/node/18625

I don't want to judge the decisions made by Tony Rich becauser I understand they followed the rules. But the very fact that a bunch of idiots in FIDE created such rules tells you everything about that organisation.

So he is not disputing the rule.

I thought that, for instance, I could have been disqualified in every game, because I used to take notes of my time for each move.

If he took a minute to read the rule, he would know that that is still allowed.

[Note that Kasparov's comments regarding being disqualified for writing down clock times are completely wrong. The relevant rule, Article 12.4, which he appears not to have read, specifically allows the recording of the clock times - Steve Giddins, English translator].