about long time control and odd games

[Uri Blass]

https://lichess.org/forum/general-chess ... rol?page=1
I find that in the 1940 players had 2.5 hours/40 moves that is clearly slower time control than the players use today and I wonder how it influence the level of play
I read that Fischer-Spassky was 40 moves in 2½ hours. Then an hour for every 16 moves after that.

It may be interesting to check how much better humans can play at slower time control.

Considering the fact that lc0 does not use time it may be possible to organize some 180+60 time control odd games in the future(that is slower than 40 moves in 2½ hours for short games but longer than it for long games so may be similiar quality of games)

[Ajedrecista]

Hello Uri:

I find the topic of the evolution of TC over time very interesting. I collected some info from 1933 to 1939 (too short of time to search further) about TC looking into the Chess Life and Chess Review Archives (key word: hour):

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1933 — https://uscf1-nyc1.aodhosting.com/CL-AND-CR-ALL/CR-ALL/CR1933/CR1933_All.pdf
(40 moves in 2.5 hours) + adjournements → U.S. Championship.

1934 — https://uscf1-nyc1.aodhosting.com/CL-AND-CR-ALL/CR-ALL/CR1934/CR1934_All.pdf
(32 moves in 2 hours) + (16 moves / hour) thereafter → Marshall-Kashdan Match.
(18 moves / hour) repeating; later rounds: (20 moves / hour) repeating → Canadian Championship.
(18 moves / hour) repeating → Grünfeld-Spielmann, Sopron Tourney.

1935 — https://uscf1-nyc1.aodhosting.com/CL-AND-CR-ALL/CR-ALL/CR1935/CR1935_All.pdf
(35 moves / hour) + UNKNOWN → Reshevsky-Duke.

1936 — https://uscf1-nyc1.aodhosting.com/CL-AND-CR-ALL/CR-ALL/CR1936/CR1936_All.pdf
(32 moves in 2 hours) + (1 hour of break) + (3-hour session to end the game) → Capablanca's proposal to future World Championships.
(36 moves in 2 hours) + (18 moves / hour) thereafter → Nottingham International Masters.

1937 — https://uscf1-nyc1.aodhosting.com/CL-AND-CR-ALL/CR-ALL/CR1937/CR1937_All.pdf
ANYTHING FOUND.

1938 — https://uscf1-nyc1.aodhosting.com/CL-AND-CR-ALL/CR-ALL/CR1938/CR1938_All.pdf
(40 moves in 2 hours) + UNKNOWN → U.S. Championship. {Considered 'arbitrarily fast' by Fred Reinfeld}.
(40 moves in 2 hours) + (20 moves / hour) thereafter → New York State Tournament.

1939 — https://uscf1-nyc1.aodhosting.com/CL-AND-CR-ALL/CR-ALL/CR1939/CR1939_All.pdf
ANYTHING FOUND.

I hope no typos. There is a fairly variety of time controls in those few years, as you can see. In the first bunch of moves, from an average of circa 103 seconds/move (35 moves / hour) to 225 seconds/move (32 moves in 2 hours). If we get rid of that '35 moves / hour' outlier, then: from an average of 180 seconds/move (40 moves in 2 hours) to 225 seconds/move (32 moves in 2 hours).

I would like to try and search more TC over time... but I lack spare time.

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About your open question of 'check how much better humans can play at slower time control'... well, correspondence chess already exists for a while, but I guess you were thinking in OTB chess (with or without adjournements?). Fatigue shall be an important factor in any case.

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I know that usual TC for World Championships of English draughts / American checkers is (24 moves / hour) repeating, with a smaller branching factor than chess, around an order of magnitude less. This is true at least for the last twenty years or so if I am not wrong, and surely many years earlier.

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Just to be clear: all the TC of 'M moves in H hours' in this post must be understood as 'per player'. In wall time, the full time would be M moves (or 2M plies) in a maximum of 2H hours. An alternative wording could be 'M plies in H hours' per player, meaning exactly the same as the usual 'M moves in H hours'.

Regards from Spain.

Ajedrecista.

[Ajedrecista]

Hello:

I searched time controls of World Chess Championships of 1948, 1951, 1954 and 2007; and also found by chance other tournaments' TC. Here is what I found:

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Tournament:
Time control.
Source.
------------------------
Hastings 1895. Single round-robin tournament, 21 games per player:
(30 moves in 2 hours) + UNKNOWN.
https://uscf1-nyc1.aodhosting.com/CL-AND-CR-ALL/CR-ALL/CR1948/CR1948_All.pdf
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1948 WCC. Quintuple round-robin tournament, 20 games per player:
TIME CONTROL NOT FOUND.
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1951 WCC (Botvinnik - Bronstein). 24 games with champion odds:
(40 moves in 2.5 hours) + (16 moves/hour) threafter. Adjournements after 5 hours of play.
https://uscf1-nyc1.aodhosting.com/CL-AND-CR-ALL/CL-ALL/1951/1951_All.pdf
------------------------
1953 Candidates. Double round-robin tournament, 28 games per player:
(40 moves in 2.5 hours) + UNKNOWN.
https://uscf1-nyc1.aodhosting.com/CL-AND-CR-ALL/CR-ALL/CR1954/CR1954_All.pdf
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1954 WCC (Botvinnik - Smyslov). 24 games with champion odds:
TIME CONTROL NOT FOUND.
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1954 U.S. Championship:
(50 moves in 2.5 hours) + UNKNOWN.
https://uscf1-nyc1.aodhosting.com/CL-AND-CR-ALL/CR-ALL/CR1954/CR1954_All.pdf
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2007 WCC. Double round-robin tournament, 14 games per player.
(40 moves in 2 hours) + (20 moves in 1 hour) + 15 minutes + 30 seconds/move since 61th move. See a possible altenative TC at point 3.5.2 of the source.
https://web.archive.org/web/20070405205934/http://www.fide.com/official/handbook.asp?level=DD105

Another fact is that WCC games per match have decreased over time. 'Champion odds' means that the title holder retains the title in case of a drawn match.

Regards from Spain.

Ajedrecista.

[Ajedrecista]

Hello:

I found few more TC of WCC at Chess Life magazine:

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1957 WCC (Botvinnik - Smyslov). 24 games with champion odds:
TIME CONTROL NOT FOUND.
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1958 WCC (Smyslov - Botvinnik). 24 games with champion odds:
TIME CONTROL NOT FOUND.
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1960 WCC (Botvinnik - Tal). 24 games with champion odds:
TIME CONTROL NOT FOUND.
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1961 WCC (Tal - Botvinnik). 24 games with champion odds:
TIME CONTROL NOT FOUND.
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1963 WCC (Botvinnik - Petrosian). 24 games with champion odds:
(40 moves in 2.5 hours) + (16 moves/hour) thereafter. Sessions of 5 hours.
https://uscf1-nyc1.aodhosting.com/CL-AND-CR-ALL/CL-ALL/1963/1963_All.pdf
------------------------
1966 WCC (Petrosian - Spassky). 24 games with champion odds:
Sessions of 5 hours.
https://uscf1-nyc1.aodhosting.com/CL-AND-CR-ALL/CL-ALL/1966/1966_All.pdf
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1969 WCC (Petrosian - Spassky). 24 games with champion odds:
Sessions of 5 hours.
https://uscf1-nyc1.aodhosting.com/CL-AND-CR-ALL/CL-ALL/1969_01-10/1969_All-01-10.pdf

There are many TC available for other tournaments, but not for WCC. I do not know if Chess Review has got some of the missing TC. I would say that the WCC TC were stable over the 50s and 60s.

The next WCC is the famous Spassky - Fischer from 1972, so I expect far more coverage at these US magazines. This is for a future search wave, if any.

Regards from Spain.

Ajedrecista.