"David Richerby" <davidr@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote in message
news:EAp*w4z+r@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> Chess One <OneChess@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote:
>> "David Richerby" <davidr@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote:
>>> 36.8% of games (167,000) are won by White
>>> 36.6% of games (166,000) are drawn
>>> 26.6% of games (120,000) are won by Black
>>>
>>> We already have 63.4% of games ending in a win by one player or the
>>> other. Is it really necessary to `solve' this `draw problem'?
>>
>> a) The other idea being kicked around [and collated at Chessbase] is
>> to maintain current scoring systems in terms of overall points, but
>> to adjust the score for white draws to 0.4 and black draws to 0.6.
>
> That would ****ft the points balance towards Black: White would score
> 51.4% and Black 48.6%. Of course, in practice, the distribution of
> wins and draws would change, too.
>
> Indeed, this is something that worries me a great deal about plans to
> change the scoring of draws. Schemes where the sum of the two
> players' scores in a draw is less than that in a win have problems
> associated with the game no longer being zero-sum and increasing the
> profit of cheating. Schemes that keep draws worth one point in total
> but give more of that point to one side or the other seem to increase
> the temptation for the player who gets more points (usually Black) to
> play for the draw. This would be the case particularly in schemes
> where Black gets more than about 73% of the point, as, then, Black
> would be getting more than half of his score from draws, at the
> current rates of draws.
Yes - your final phrase is a pertinent one - since I think a zero-sum
distribution slightly favoring black would change the current draw-rate.
>> d) I wonder if W : D : L is significantly different in the top 1% of
>> players than to all other players of the game? And if so, then at
>> /that/ level some experiments might be made.
>
> Yes, the results are clearly different at different strengths. Among
> beginners, hardly any games are drawn; among the very top players,
> well over half of the games are drawn.
In 800 corres games last year I had 5 [?] draws against opponents ranging
from 1400 to 2800. Similarly at the chess club there are few draws - so
maybe its not just beginners who are more decisive, but something like 99%
of all games?
USCF's overall results, would statistically answer that query
Corddally, Phil Innes.
>> e) Given the introduction of computers and also the net as means of
>> researching opponents games, I also wonder if the top 1% of players
>> now have a different W : D : L ratio than, say, the generation
>> playing during 1950-1980?
>
> Perhaps, yes.
>
>
> Dave.
>
> --
> David Richerby Flammable Widget (TM): it's
> like a
> www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~davidr/ thingy but it burns really
> easily!
|
