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The Milan Haruda Rascal Award Submission

Explanation of the Rascal Award


The Rascal Award is an exclusive honor presented by the Toms River Chess Club (TRCC). Established by club member Bob Whiteside in April 2018, the award commemorates Milan Haruda. Milan was a beloved and spirited TRCC member known for his good-natured exclamation, "You rascal!" when encountering clever moves from his opponents.


This free award recognizes TRCC members who achieve a victory against an opponent rated at least 250 points higher than themselves in ANY official US Chess Federation (USCF) rated tournament and in ANY official USCF time control. Both the recipient and the defeated opponent must have an established USCF rating, meaning they both must have completed at least 26 rated games in at least one time control.


Submission Guidelines:


  • Only Toms River Chess Club members are eligible for this award.


  • Members must self-submit for the award starting from June 1, 2025.


  • Members have one year from the date of their qualifying victory to submit their win, some exceptions may be allowed.


  • Submitted games must meet the rating criteria of a 250-point or greater rating difference.


  • All submissions should include the following details about the game; date of the tournament, tournament name and rating category (Blitz, Quick, Dual, or Regular), opponent’s name, your rating at the time the game was played, and your opponent's rating at the time the game was played.


If you believe you qualify for the award, please submit the form. Once verified, the club will reach out to you to confirm verification. Please allow up to 2 weeks for verification. Upon verification, the club will contact you to arrange a presentation time. The award must be picked up at either the Toms River or Manahawkin location of the Toms River Chess Club. The award will not be mailed.

Example: 06/01/2025 (MM/DD/YYYY)

Event name does not need to be exact.

Example: G15;d5 - Quick rated


Rating Categories include Blitz (G5-10), Quick (G11-29), Dual (G30 - 65), and Regular (G66+).


Each second of delay or Increment is considered as a minute towards the total time. This means G10;d3 would be Quick rated not Blitz and G65;d5 would count towards Regular not Dual.


Dual rated tournaments affect both the Quick and Regular ratings. Select the rating category where you have the largest victory.

Please double check that you write down YOUR established rating on the day of the tournament in the correct rating category.


You can check for this information by going to https://new.uschess.org/players/search. Search your name, select your tournament history, and find the tournament where you achieved the victory.

Please double check that you write down YOUR OPPONENTS established rating on the day of the tournament in the correct rating category.


You can check for this information by going to https://new.uschess.org/players/search. Search your opponents name, select their tournament history, and find the tournament where you achieved the victory.

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