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Swiss vs random draw

Posted By: Robert Wachtel
Date: Friday, 15 March 2013, at 11:00 a.m.

In Response To: Swiss vs random draw (Phil Simborg)

Phil, I like your answer and I am pretty sure it gets to the key issues.

What made the problem confusing for me is that, when you look at it from the perspective of one of the better players, he knows that under the Swiss pairings, he will be playing other good players all through the tournament. That draw seems to him like quite a handicap. It blunts his edge. Then, when he looks a bit down on the cross table, he sees the weaker players getting mouth-watering pairings with other weak players. This saddens him and makes him envious. And of course this perspective applies to all of his peers. As a group, they are being segregated from the weaker players and forced to compete with one another.

Can you explain (without a dazzling display of mathematical technique)what is wrong with his thinking?

Messages In This Thread

• Swiss vs random draw
  Robert Wachtel -- Tuesday, 12 March 2013, at 5:04 p.m.
  • Swiss vs random draw
    Bob Koca -- Tuesday, 12 March 2013, at 5:53 p.m.
    • Swiss vs random draw
      Tom Keith -- Tuesday, 12 March 2013, at 7:18 p.m.
      • Swiss vs random draw
        Frank Berger -- Tuesday, 12 March 2013, at 9:17 p.m.
      • Swiss vs random draw
        Timothy Chow -- Tuesday, 12 March 2013, at 11:00 p.m.
        • Swiss vs random draw
          Tom Keith -- Wednesday, 13 March 2013, at 12:50 a.m.
          • Swiss vs random draw
            Bob Koca -- Wednesday, 13 March 2013, at 1:26 a.m.
            • Swiss vs random draw
              Havard Raddum -- Wednesday, 13 March 2013, at 10:04 a.m.
            • Revised chart
              Tom Keith -- Thursday, 14 March 2013, at 3:59 p.m.
              • Revised chart in colour
                playBunny -- Thursday, 14 March 2013, at 6:29 p.m.
                • Revised chart in colour
                  Robert Wachtel -- Thursday, 14 March 2013, at 7:36 p.m.
              • Revised chart
                Joe Russell -- Saturday, 16 March 2013, at 1:35 p.m.
          • Swiss vs random draw
            playBunny -- Wednesday, 13 March 2013, at 4:26 p.m.
          • Swiss vs random draw
            Robert Wachtel -- Thursday, 14 March 2013, at 3:12 a.m.
            • Swiss vs random draw
              Timothy Chow -- Thursday, 14 March 2013, at 2:59 p.m.
            • Swiss vs random draw
              Tom Keith -- Thursday, 14 March 2013, at 4:09 p.m.
        • Swiss vs random draw
          Robert Wachtel -- Thursday, 14 March 2013, at 1:20 a.m.
          • Swiss vs random draw
            Timothy Chow -- Thursday, 14 March 2013, at 3:01 p.m.
  • Swiss vs random draw
    Bill Riles -- Tuesday, 12 March 2013, at 6:54 p.m.
    • Swiss vs random draw
      bayblitz -- Tuesday, 12 March 2013, at 10:00 p.m.
  • Swiss vs random draw
    neilkaz -- Tuesday, 12 March 2013, at 7:06 p.m.
  • Swiss vs random draw
    bayblitz -- Tuesday, 12 March 2013, at 7:58 p.m.
    • Swiss vs random draw
      Daniel Murphy -- Wednesday, 13 March 2013, at 2:38 a.m.
  • Swiss vs random draw
    Phil Simborg -- Friday, 15 March 2013, at 12:48 a.m.
    • Swiss vs random draw
      Bob Koca -- Friday, 15 March 2013, at 12:59 a.m.
      • Swiss vs random draw
        Phil Simborg -- Friday, 15 March 2013, at 3:14 a.m.
    • Swiss vs random draw
      Robert Wachtel -- Friday, 15 March 2013, at 11:00 a.m.
      • Swiss vs random draw
        Bob Koca -- Friday, 15 March 2013, at 3:37 p.m.
        • Swiss vs random draw
          Robert Wachtel -- Friday, 15 March 2013, at 8:03 p.m.
          • Swiss vs random draw
            Bob Koca -- Friday, 15 March 2013, at 9:49 p.m.
      • Swiss vs random draw
        Matt Reklaitis -- Friday, 15 March 2013, at 6:01 p.m.
      • Swiss vs random draw
        Martin -- Tuesday, 19 March 2013, at 9:37 p.m.
    • Swiss vs random draw
      Art Grater -- Sunday, 17 March 2013, at 8:14 a.m.