Understanding the Head-to-Head Tiebreaker

If a player sits above someone with more Tournament Points, the Head-to-Head tiebreaker is usually why: they were tied, and their games against each other decided the order.

How it works

Head-to-Head applies to everyone tied on every metric above it in the event's tiebreaker order, whether that is two players or six. Each player in the tied group gets +1 for each win and -1 for each loss against the others in the group. Draws, and games against anyone outside the group, count for nothing. The highest score ranks first, and anyone still level falls through to the next tiebreaker.

An example

This event ranked by W-L-D record first (win = 1, draw = ½). Six players finished level on 3.5: Anna, Ben, Dan, Eli and Finn on 3-1-1, and Cara on 2-0-3. Their games against each other gave these scores:

• Anna beat Eli and Dan: +2
• Ben drew Finn: 0
• Cara drew Dan: 0
• Dan beat Finn, drew Cara, lost to Anna: 0
• Eli lost to Anna: -1
• Finn lost to Dan, drew Ben: -1

Anna takes 4th, top of the group, even though Eli has the most TP of the six (63). Ben, Cara and Dan are still level on 0, so Tournament Points places them 5th to 7th (59, 56, 54). Eli (63) and Finn (55) take 8th and 9th the same way.

Reading the H2H column

A positive number means more wins than losses against the players you are currently tied with, zero means level inside the group, and negative means the group has had the better of you. A dash means you are not tied with anyone. The number only covers your current tied group, so it can change between rounds even if you did not play anyone in it.

If A beat B, B beat C and C beat A, all three net to zero and the next tiebreaker decides.

Organisers turn Head-to-Head on and set its position under Scoring, then Rankings. Placed after W-L-D record, it settles record ties before points do; placed after Tournament Points, it only settles exact points ties.

Related

• FAQ: Pairings, Tiebreakers & Strength of Schedule
• Standings & Match History