The Millionaire Chess Open is different from any other open chess tournament in history. The first seven rounds of every section will be a qualifying stage to determine who plays for the big prizes on Millionaire Monday. Four finalists from each section will move on to play two knock-out rounds to determine who wins the top prize. The last two rounds of the Open section will also be played on Millionaire Monday to determine who wins 5th place and under, as well as to give players a chance to acquire norms. In the other sections, the tournament will be officially over by Sunday night, October 9 for players who did not make it to Millionaire Monday.
Time control is 40/120 and G/30 with a 5 second delay
40/120 means that 40 moves must be played in 120 minutes (2 hours). G/30 means that both sides each have an additional 30 minutes to play the rest of the game. The 5-second delay happens from the very first move.
Round 1: Thursday, October 6 @ 12:00 p.m.
Round 2: Thursday, October 6 @ 7:00 p.m.
Round 3: Friday, October 7 @ 11:00 a.m.
Round 4: Friday, October 7 @ 6:00 p.m.
Round 5: Saturday, October 8 @ 11:00 a.m.
Round 6: Saturday, October 8 @ 6:00 p.m.
Round 7: Sunday, October 9 @ 11:00 a.m.
Tie-Break Playoffs: Sunday, October 9 @ 6:00 p.m. (if necessary). The tie-break playoffs will determine top four players in all divisions for the Semi-Finals & Finals.
The full schedule for the tie-break playoffs will depend on the number of players competing for the final four spots and will be posted an hour before the beginning of the round.
MCO Tie-break Play-off Format for determining Final 4 (To be determined)
Round 8: Monday, October 10 @ 11:00 a.m.
Round 9: Monday, October 10 @ 6:00 p.m.
Time control is 40/120 and G/30 with a 5 second delay
40/120 means that 40 moves must be played in 120 minutes (2 hours). G/30 means that both sides each have an additional 30 minutes to play the rest of the game. The 5-second delay happens from the very first move.
Round 1: Thursday, October 6 @ 12:00 p.m.
Round 2: Thursday, October 6 @ 7:00 p.m.
Round 3: Friday, October 7 @ 11:00 a.m.
Round 4: Friday, October 7 @ 6:00 p.m.
Round 5: Saturday, October 8 @ 11:00 a.m.
Round 6: Saturday, October 8 @ 6:00 p.m.
Round 7: Sunday, October 9 @ 11:00 a.m.
Tie-Break Playoffs: Sunday, October 9 @ 6:00 p.m. (if necessary).
The tie-break playoffs will determine the top four players in all divisions for the Semi-Finals & Finals that will take place on Millionaire Monday.
The full schedule for the qualifying round will depend on the number of players competing for the final four spots in each section and will be announced an hour before the beginning of the round.
MCO Tie-break Play-off Format for determining Final 4 (To be determined)
After the final four players have been determined on Sunday, the tournament is officially over for the rest of the participants in the Under 2200, U2000, U1800, and U1600 sections.
Time control is G/45 with a 5 second delay
G/45 for the 4 day schedule means that the each side has 45 minutes to play the entire game.
Round 1: Friday, October 7 @ 11:30 a.m.
Round 2: Friday, October 7 @ 2:00 p.m.
Round 3: Friday, October 7 @ 4:30 p.m.
Round 4: Friday, October 7 @ 7:00 p.m.
For rounds 5, 6 and 7 merge with 5-day and compete for the same prizes.
The top four players from each section will play each other in a double round knock-out to determine the eventual winner and prize distribution. The time control will be G/25 with a 5-second delay. In case of a tie after two games, the players will play two G/15 games with a 5-second delay. In the event of a tie after those games, the players will play two 5-minute blitz games with a 2-second delay. In the event of a tie after those games, the players will play an Armageddon blitz game (White 5 minutes, Black 3 minutes 30 seconds with draw odds).
Note that the losers of the semi-finals will play each other to determine who takes 3rd place and who takes 4th place.
Game 1 (G/25 +5sec delay): Monday, October 10 @ 11:00 a.m.
Game 2 (G/25 +5sec delay): Monday, October 10 @ 12:30 p.m.
1st Tie-Break Round (if necessary)
Game 1 (G/15 +5sec delay): Monday, October 10 @ 2:00 p.m.
Game 2 (G/15 +5sec delay): Monday, October 10 @ 2:45 p.m.
2nd Tie-Break Round (if necessary)
Game 1 (5min +2sec delay): Monday, October 10 @ 3:30 p.m.
Game 2 (5min +2sec delay): Monday, October 10 @ 3:45 p.m.
3rd Tie-Break Round (if necessary)
1 Game (White 5min, Black 3m 30s w/draw odds): Monday, October 10 @ 4:15 p.m.
Played to determine 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th places.
Game 1 (G/25 +5sec delay): Monday, October 10 @ 5:00 p.m.
Game 2 (G/25 +5sec delay): Monday, October 10 @ 6:30 p.m.
1st Tie-Break Round (if necessary)
Game 1 (G/15 +5sec delay): Monday, October 10 @ 8:00 p.m.
Game 2 (G/15 +5sec delay): Monday, October 10 @ 8:45 p.m.
2nd Tie-Break Round (if necessary)
Game 1 (5min +2sec delay): Monday, October 10 @ 9:30 p.m.
Game 2 (5min +2sec delay): Monday, October 10 @ 9:45 p.m.
3rd Tie-Break Round (if necessary)
1 Game (White 5m, Black 3m 30s w/draw odds): Monday, October 10 @ 10:15 p.m.
Monday, October 10 @ 10:30 p.m.