Official Rules of Chess: Fourth Edition [Illustrated] [Paperback]

U.S. Chess Federation (Author)

Book Description

Series: Chess | Publication Date: January 18, 1994

This comprehensive handbook is the only guide sanctioned and compiled by the U.S. Chess Federation. This new edition includes:
-- Explanations of every legal move
-- A complete rundown of the regulations governing tournaments
-- A new quick rating system
-- A guide to calculating lifetime rankings
-- Guidelines for sponsoring and running a tournament
-- Information on how to obtain tournament director certification

Plus ten tips to winning chess and how to read and write chess notation

For serious players at every level as well as chess club directors and tournament sponsors, this book is the one to have in hand before making a move.

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

This comprehensive handbook is the only guide sanctioned and compiled by the U.S. Chess Federation. This new edition includes:
-- Explanations of every legal move
-- A complete rundown of the regulations governing tournaments
-- A new quick rating system
-- A guide to calculating lifetime rankings
-- Guidelines for sponsoring and running a tournament
-- Information on how to obtain tournament director certification

Plus ten tips to winning chess and how to read and write chess notation

For serious players at every level as well as chess club directors and tournament sponsors, this book is the one to have in hand before making a move.

About the Author

THE UNITED CHESS FEDERATION (USCF) is the governing organization for chess in America. A not-for-profit corporation, its membership spans every state and territory of the U.S. There are nearly 2,000 USCF-affiliated chess clubs, and more than 100,000 chess players participate in USCF events every year. The USCF sanctions thousands of chess tournaments with a half-million rated games each year. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: Random House Puzzles & Games; 4th edition (January 18, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0812922174
• ISBN-13: 978-0812922172
• Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 4.9 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,879,052 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

130 of 131 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Complete US Rules of Chess, September 13, 2006

A Kid's Review

This review is from: United States Chess Federation's Official Rules of Chess, Fifth Edition (Paperback)

You will find a very good index and table of contents making everything you are looking for easy to find. This book is a must for very serious tournament player, chess coach and required for tournament directors who run tournaments under the United States Chess Federation.
I agree that the book is so huge it is hard to pinpoint what rules are more important than others to focus on for a chess player. Most scholastic tournamnets use a "sudden death" time control but with digital clocks having time delay it is complicated to understand for a beginner to chess tournaments. There are a couple of books that do explain "chess tournaments" in a more simplified way already published. But no book can replace owning a copy of the "United States Chess Federation's Official Rules". My suggestion is for them to do a future edition with a chapter for the beginner to point out which sections are most important, especially for the scholastic player.

142 of 148 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars SERIOUSLY: something more easy for a new comer to chess needs to be written, September 3, 2006

A Kid's Review

This review is from: United States Chess Federation's Official Rules of Chess, Fifth Edition (Paperback)

Whereas, "THE USCF OFFICIAL RULES OF CHESS" is written for tournament directors and experienced tournament players to understand, a book for the newcomer to chess is needed that covers:

1. Helping the newcomer focus on what is important for practical use in tournament play. The USCF rulebook has so much material it is impossible to know what is important and what is not so important for a tournament player to learn. Help is needed in the massive maze of material!
2. Some more detail to explain the meanings of some of the rules in more simple language for the newcomer.
3. Are there certain rules that often create problems? What are these rules and how can a player protect his or herself.

For a newcomer to chess this book gets 2 stars. For a tournament director or experienced tournament player this book gets 4 stars. Therefore, I figure 3 starts is a fair balance.

63 of 69 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Difficult Understanding for the Newcomer to Chess, September 11, 2006

A Kid's Review

This review is from: United States Chess Federation's Official Rules of Chess, Fifth Edition (Paperback)

I got this book just before going into my first rated chess tournament. It was hard for me to make heads or tails from what was important to learn and what wasn't. I also found some of the explanations to be long and difficult to understand. This book is not very beginner friendly. Is there another book out there that makes things more clear for a newcomer?