| |
BGonline.org Forums
A New Argument for Clocks
Posted By: Phil Simborg
Date: Thursday, 29 March 2012, at 2:04 a.m.
I will not bore you with all of the reasons already stated by many as to why we should have mandatory clocks, particularly in the higher divisions, but I do want to offer you a reason I have not as yet seen mentioned, and it is a major reason for me.
If there is no clock, and if I am under an obligation to play my very best, then EVERY SINGLE TIME I HAVE A MOVE that is not totally automatic, I really am morally bound to take several minutes on that move to make sure I have considered all the alternatives and factors involved in making that move or cube decision. For me NOT to take 5 or 10 minutes on every move is clearly not living up to my obligation to the tournament, to my calcutta partners and buyers, and to myself.
So why don't I take 10 minutes on every move? Or at least on some moves? Because it's rude. It holds up the tournament. It's not fair to my considerate opponents who don't do that to me. And of course, if I do it, they will slap a clock on me and force me to play faster, thereby giving every other player in the room who is not using a clock to have an advantage over me, and my opponent.
With a clock, there is no ethical dilemma. I can take as long as I believe I need to make a good decision, and if I choose to play a little faster in order to preserve time that I might need later in the match, I am not compromising my responsibility to do the best I can to win.
Again, there are many other compelling reasons I am in favor of clocks, but this is just one more. Maybe this does not affect or both you, but it truly does bother me. Every time I play at a faster speed to be polite and considerate I am wondering if I am truly playing at the highest level, because I know, without doubt, that the more time I take on difficult decisions the better I am going to play.
| |
BGonline.org Forums is maintained by Stick with WebBBS 5.12.