By sport / Chess
Chess tournament bracket
Chess tournaments use the Swiss system: everyone plays every round, paired by score, with no one knocked out. This site pairs each round for you and ranks players with Buchholz.
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Entered order is the seeding. Up to 64.
Chess rules that shape the bracket
- A win is 1 point, a draw half a point, a loss 0.
- Round 1 pairs the top half against the bottom half of the field, ranked by rating.
- No pair meets twice; one player gets a bye in an odd field.
- Tiebreaks in order: Buchholz (total of your opponents' scores), then Sonneborn-Berger or the result between tied players, then a playoff if needed.
Games and time for common sizes
Time per game is set at 60 minutes and 8 boards. Change either one in the games calculator.
| Field | Games | Court time | Clock time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12 players, Swiss | 24 | 24 h | 4 h |
| 16 players, Swiss | 32 | 32 h | 4 h |
| 24 players, Swiss | 60 | 60 h | 10 h |
| 32 players, Swiss | 80 | 80 h | 10 h |
Which format to use
The rule of thumb is rounds about equal to log base 2 of the players: 4 rounds for up to 16 players, 5 for up to 32, 6 for up to 64.
The first two rounds sort the field; the later rounds decide the top.
Colour balance (white and black) is a separate step in chess pairing. Assign colours by hand when you post the pairings.
Questions
How many rounds for 20 players?
5. Four rounds can crown a champion; five make the top clearer.
Does this handle colours?
No. The pairing step ignores colours, so set them yourself.
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