Pairing System: Assigning Byes

These describes the methods for assigning byes in the USCF/General Rule Set. The FIDE Dutch system has a specific method for choosing the bye.

If there is an odd number of active players in a section, one will have to receive a bye. WinTD picks the player to receive a bye taking into account a number of factors:

1.No player who has already received a full-point bye will get another one.

2.Whenever possible, the bye will go to a player in the lowest score group.

3.If it can be avoided, the bye will not go to a player who has had an unplayed game (either half-point or zero-point bye) in an earlier round, or who is taking a half-point bye in a later round.

4.If it can be avoided, the bye will not go to a player who has had a cross-round pairing in a previous round.

If, in the bottom score group, there is more than one player who is not excluded by the above, the bye will usually go to the lowest ranked player, but could go to another if it improves color allocations or reduces teammate conflicts.

There is a preference item in the Pairing Rules tab (Avoid Dropping Unrated) which lets you decide whether to give the bye to an unrated or to the lowest rated player. If you choose Avoid Dropping Unrated (which is standard US Chess practice) priority for a bye is given to the lowest rated player in the bottom score group. If not, it will usually go to one of the unrateds, as they are ranked below all the rated players.

If you would like a player not to receive a bye because he or she has already played a filler or otherwise has had a disrupted tournament, you can click on the Keep in Score Group box in the Tournament Info tab of the Add/Edit a Player dialog box.