Tournament Rules


  • The organizers take no responsibility for transportation, accommodation, meal arrangements and private property of participants, spectators and visitors.
  • Children under the age of 10 shall be accompanied by an adult at all times. No children under the age of 2 years will be allowed inside the playing hall.
  • Time control. (a) Open section: 90 minutes for the whole game plus an increment of 30 seconds per move starting from move 1. In this case, Article 10.2 of the Laws of Chess (the "2-minute rule") does not apply. (b) B-Section: 120/120 (Article 10.2 of the Laws of Chess does apply).
  • All participants must pay and register no later than Monday 29 June 2009. Players registering after this date will pay a penalty of R150 AND will not be paired in round 1. No entry shall be valid without submission of all the required details and full payment. No refunding of entry fee of withdrawals after Monday 29 June 2009.
  • Boards and sets will be provided. Participants are requested to bring their own clocks along (electronic clocks only - DGT XL is preferable). Electronic clocks will be available for hire from the organizers at R50 (returnable deposit) per clock per round.
  • All Western Province players must be registered with WP in order to participate. Registration fee is R100 per person (adult) and R50 per person (under 21).
  • The Open Section will be FIDE rated. However, RSA players will be paired using their CHESSA ratings. Non RSA players will be paired using their FIDE ratings. The Chief Arbiter will assign ratings to any unrated players after round 4.
  • In the event of a tie for any position, prize money will be shared (the organizers reserve the right to round off prizes to the nearest factor of 10 and eliminate players if the split prizes are too small). Excluding "special" prizes, no player will be allowed to win more than one prize. If a player qualifies for more than one prize, he/she will be awarded the prize with the highest monetary value.
  • The title of SA Open Champion will be awarded to the player winning the Open Section. In the event of a tie, the title will be awarded to the player with the highest tiebreak score; however, prize money will be shared.
  • The FIDE Laws of 01 July 2009 will apply.
  • Tiebreaks. The following tiebreak systems (in the order given) will be applied to determine the final standings (in both sections): (a) Median Bucholz, (b) Sonneborn-Berger, (c) Performance rating, (d) Cumulative score.
  • Mobile phones and any other electronic devices MUST BE SWITCHED OFF AT ALL TIMES. Any player whose electronic device (including mobile phone) makes a noise or any kind of disturbance will immediately be defaulted. Players who have finished their games will have one point deducted from their final scores.
  • Format: 11-Round Swiss using Dutch pairings (FIDE approved).
  • Other rules will be posted and explained before the start and during the tournament.
  • An appeals committee will be appointed and announced before the start of round 1. Players who want to lodge an appeal must do so in writing no later than 30 minutes after the game has ended. The appeal must be accompanied by a R200 fee which will be returned if the appeal is successful.
  • Any player arriving more than 30 minutes late after the scheduled start of a game WILL LOSE the game on default.
  • Any player who does not arrive for a round, without prior notification, will be withdrawn from the tournament.
  • Offending behaviour. Players that verbally offend other players and/or officials, or act unethical or is perceived, by the tournament officials, to be under the influence of alcohol or drugs shall be removed from the tournament hall and suspended from participation. Additional charges may be brought against such offenders.
  • Team prize. This prize will be awarded to the team with the highest aggregate score of its 4 team members. In the event of a tie, tiebreak scores will be used.
  • The Chief Arbiter reserves the right to make changes to the draw (if and when required) without prior notification.
  • B-Section entries. Open to players younger than 18 years and with a rating lower than 1500. The organizers reserve the right to refuse a player entry to this section.

Tournament Officials


Tournament organizers:

Lyndon Bouah
Email: Lbouah@pgwc.gov.za
Mobile: +27 (0)73 260 9214
Post: PO Box 1841, Cape Town, 8000


Eldo Smart
Email: miaclothing@webmail.co.za
Mobile: +27 (0)84 300 0728
Tel: +27 (0)21 951 8650
Fax: +27 (0)86 653 9542


Mark Lewis


Arbiters (Open Section):

Gunther van den Bergh, IA (Chief Arbiter)

Gary Bekker, IA (AUS)

Simbarashe Murimi, FA (ZIM)

Graham Attwood, NA

Mark January, NA


Arbiters (B-Section):

Warren Rossiter, FA (Chief Arbiter)

Ronelle Hendriksz, PA