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1. Event eligibility

1.1. Events must be advertised as Grand Prix (GP) events in the Northwest Chess Magazine (NWC) with at least one paid ad. (Note: By default, GP events will now receive two consecutive monthly "TA style" text ads for an advertising fee of $25. "Display" style ads of equal or greater cost also meet the requirement.)

1.2. Events must have sections available for all players.

1.2.1. Events limited to masters, amateurs, seniors, juniors, women, club members, residents of specific geographical areas, etc., cannot be considered GP events.

1.2.2. One event per year in each state can be limited to just the players of that state, as long as there are no other limitations to participation.

1.3. Organizers must remit $1 per entrant to the NWC business manager, with a minimum of $10 per event.

1.3.1. Players just used as “fillers” for a single round are not counted, nor will they receive GP points.

1.3.2. Players who never start the event will not be counted.

1.3.3. All players who actually participate in the event are counted, even those from outside the Northwest.

1.3.4. Checks should be made payable to “Northwest Chess”.

1.3.5. Results, or the USCF tournament ID number should be sent by mail or email to the Grand Prix administrator.

1.3.6. Events for which payment is not received shall not be included in the final Grand Prix calculations.

1.4. Events are encouraged to require OCF/WCF/ICA membership from all OR/WA/ID players.

2. Player Eligibility

2.1. Players eligible for prizes must live in Washington or Oregon or Idaho.

2.1.1. Determination of residence will be taken from the USCF web site, unless other information is provided to the administrator.

2.2. To receive a cash prize, a player must be a current member of the WCF, OCF or ICA.

2.2.1. The business manager will check the winners against the membership database and deduct the cost of membership from the prizes of all those currently expired or expiring within the first two months of the following year.

2.2.2. Barring unforeseen circumstances, prizes will be distributed between the January 15th and February 28th of the following year.

3. Prizes

3.1. The prize fund will consist of the funds collected from each state and an amount gained through sponsorship.

3.1.1. Sponsorship is not required for this program to operate.

3.1.2. Current suggested sponsorship level is $1,000.

3.1.3. The sponsor has naming rights for the program, which should incorporate the words “Northwest Grand Prix.”

3.2. The prize fund shall be divided into separate pools for Oregon, Washington and Idaho.

3.2.1. The sponsorship money shall be divided equally between Oregon, Washington and Idaho.

3.2.2. Funds collected from tournaments shall be designated to the state wherein the event was held, regardless of the states of residence of the participants in the event.

3.2.2.1. Twenty percent of the collected funds will become the fee for the administrator.

3.2.2.2. No sponsorship money will be used for the administrator’s fee.

3.2.3. Money within each state’s prize pool shall be divided into thirteen prizes. (Note: The administrator is authorized to make changes for Idaho because of the current lack of Master and Expert players.)

3.2.3.1. First place in classes Master, Expert, A, B, C, and D-and-Below will receive 10% of the resultant prize fund for each state.

3.2.3.2. Second place in each of the above named classes shall receive 5% of the prize fund for each state.

3.2.3.3. The remaining 10% will be awarded to the class winner with the highest overall point total in each state.

3.3. Ratings for class prizes will be monitored throughout the competition year.

3.3.1. The highest official rating throughout the year will be used for the purpose of classification.

3.3.1.1. A player’s starting rating will be that of the annual (December) rating supplement from the previous year.

3.3.1.2. Ratings will be verified six times through the year, coinciding with the release of USCF’s bimonthly rating supplements.

3.3.1.2.1. Should the USCF alter the frequency or schedule of the official rating supplements, the GP will change to match their new schedule.

3.3.1.3. During a participation year, player may move up one or more classes through official ratings changes, but will never move down a class until the next program year.

4. Points

4.1. Players in a Grand Prix event shall be awarded points equal to their scores in the event.

4.1.1. This shall include points for full and half-point byes.

4.1.2. Players used as fillers and not counted for fee payment as above will not receive points for any score in the event.

4.2. Players who complete their schedule shall receive a two point bonus.

4.2.1. Players who withdraw or forfeit will not receive the bonus.

4.3. Multipliers will be applied to events with guaranteed prize funds above a set threshold

4.3.1. The current multiplier levels are as follows:

4.3.1.1. Events with guaranteed prize funds of less than $500 will have a multiplier of one.

4.3.1.2. Events with guaranteed prize funds of $500 to $999 will have a multiplier of two.

4.3.1.3. Events with guaranteed prize funds between $1000 and $1999 will have a multiplier of three.

4.3.1.4. Events with guaranteed prize funds between $2000 and $4999 will have a multiplier of four.

4.3.1.5. Events with guaranteed prize funds between $5000 and $9999 will have a multiplier of five.

4.3.1.6. Events with guaranteed prize funds between $10000 and $19999 will have a multiplier of six.

4.3.1.7. Events with guaranteed prize funds of $20000 or more will have a multiplier of seven.

4.3.2. Multipliers for events with “based-on” prize funds will be calculated at half of the advertised level.

4.3.3. Multipliers are applied to all the points gained by all players, including those who withdrew or forfeited.

5. Changes

5.1. Any and all changes in the above rules must be accepted by the Northwest Chess Board.

Last Updated on 3/26/2013
by Murlin Varner and Eric Holcomb.