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Does Swiss really favor the better players

Posted By: Phil Simborg
Date: Tuesday, 30 May 2017, at 8:15 p.m.

I love swiss. I am guaranteed at least 4 matches (in Chicago) and I am fighting for cash for a long time. Also, I know exactly when my matches start and it greatly reduces the "luck of the draw" factor.

Many say this format greatly favors the better players as they can't knock eachother off as quickly and they can recover from an unlucky match or two. And this is what I always thought.

But Chicago certainly didn't work that way. 1/3 of the players were seeded as the 17 best, and after the 6th round ONLY 1 of those 17 was left with a chance to win the tournament! The one was Alfred Mamlet who did end up winning.

An anomaly or what?

Maybe bad seeding, because I saw at least 4 people unseeded who were better than at least a few seeded, so that's part of it. Also, I really believe the difference in PR between the better players and the lower level players is not what it used to be. Yes, Michy and Mochy and the like are a good 6 or 7 PR better than the lower open players, but the "average" better player is not.