MICHIGAN CHESS ASSOCIATION

Michigan Speed Chess Rules
Devised by
Bob Ciaffone, Fred Lindsay, and Ben Finegold
(Adopted September 23, 2000)
1. The speed chess rules apply to any game played with a time limit of G/5 or faster.
2. Unless stated differently herein, the rules of a regular chess contest also apply to speed chess. Some of those applicable rules from regular chess include: 
A. Touch-move.
B. Checkmate (and stalemate) takes precedence over a simultaneous flagfall.
C. A player with insufficient mating material and no forced win only draws when the opponent oversteps on time.
D. A flagfall should not be called by anyone except the opponent.
E. Black has the choice of clock placement.
F. It is unnecessary to announce check.
3. Keeping score is inadvisable and of no validity.
4. The “insufficient losing chances” rule for sudden death time controls does not apply to speed chess.
5. The player must use only one hand to make moves, including castling and captures, and must press the clock with that same hand.
6. Except for pressing the clock, neither player may touch the clock except to straighten it.
7. A player is entitled to press the clock immediately after moving.
8. A player who knocks over a piece is required to replace it before pressing the clock. The opponent may press the clock before moving to enforce this.
9. A player with less than a minute left who promotes a pawn and states what piece it is may continue to use the pawn as the stated piece. The opponent then has the right to stop the clock and request that the pawn be replaced with the proper piece before the game is continued.
10. A player may claim a draw in an endgame of queen against queen or rook against rook, unless the opponent can demonstrate a forced win.
11. A player may claim a win (a draw when lacking mating material) if the opponent makes an illegal move and then presses the clock. Taking a king left in check is an approved method of making a claim. An illegal move without a clock press should be corrected in the manner given by regular chess laws.
12. To claim a time overstep by the opponent, a player on move is required to neutralize the clock before both flags are down, which would be a draw.
13. A player may claim a draw by using the “Michigan twenty move rule,” as follows:
A. The player starts counting aloud “one,” “two,” etc., up to twenty, to keep track of consecutive move-pairs that do not involve a capture or pawn move. (If this type of move occurs the count must start over).
B. If twenty consecutive moves by each player are counted without a pawn move or capture the game is drawn, except for certain specified endings which extend the count for a total of forty moves. These endings are K+Q vs K+R, K+B+N vs K, K+B+B vs K, and K+R vs K.
C. The player who starts counting is offering a draw, which may be accepted any time during the duration of the count.

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