JoAnneM

I use the Tech Manual from ACBLscore. Switch to Tournament Mode and look under Help. I would like to think it is up to date.

From the Tech Manual - which answers a few of the questions, one of which is that 10 seconds is not always the norm. SKIP BID - WARNINGS 1. How and When Made Players should protect their rights and the opponent's by announcing, prior to making any subsequent bid that skips one or more levels of bidding. Proper procedure is: a. Place the stop card so that LHO sees it (the skip bidder is responsible for gaining LHO's attention). b.The skip bid is made. c.The stop card is replaced in the bidding box. 2. Skip Bidder The skip bid warning may not be used to alert partner that a strength-showing bid is being made or not being made. The warning should be used all the time. The tournament director may assess a procedural penalty (Law 90) for failure to comply. 3. Opponents of Skip Bidder a. All Players When RHO has announced a skip bid, the player following the skip bidder must wait for a suitable interval (about 10 seconds). In waiting the player's manner must be one that suggests he is an active participant in the auction (the hand should be studied during the pause). Any obvious display of disinterest is most improper. b. Experienced Players Experienced players are expected to maintain proper tempo whether a skip bid is announced or not.

What! We always shuffle our hands before they go back in the board, even at the end of the game. You don't all do that?

Fetuses are being saved at pretty early stages now, as early as 27 weeks, or earlier, but 27 weeks is one I heard about recently. I have a lot of mixed emotions about abortions. I personally would never have had one or hope that none of my relatives would be faced with that decision, but who knows, maybe they have. I believe in pro-choice, but only in the first tri-mester. I also believe in adoption and my heart goes out to all the women who cannot have children, and who do not get children because of decisions made to abort. On the other hand it is so much easier to allow a teenager to abort ruin their high school experience. Juno was an excellent movie which explored this subject. The lowest of the low would be someone who would abort because of gender. That embryo/fetus that they are flushing out in favor of the opposite sex might have been the most loving wonderful child for them, and it has failed the sex test so it dies.

We do it the old-fashioned way - one card at a time. You would be surprised at some of the wild deals we get and no one can complain about "computer hands" lol

Some of you mentioned writing the hands on the traveler the first round. How does that work? I looked at the travelers offered for sale and don't see anything appropriate. I was actually thinking that if that was done I could enter the hands at home after the game and post them with the results. At least that is something.

I don't know which is more important - to continue as a playing director and playing with the three players that I am mentoring plus my regulars partners, or just stop playing and print playing records that will still be laying on the table when everyone goes home. Those are the the extremes, of course. Some of these comments from people who don't run clubs are interesting. We all know there are "takers" and "givers". What would be the motivation for me to run a non-profit club where I never get to play, but do most of the work? Now, doing most of the work, but getting to play, makes it go down a lot easier when all the "takers" come in. And I always have one or two "givers" to at least set up the tables.

I personally don't know anyone who doesn't play systems on over 1nt-x. Without the alert this is one of the few times I would have asked. No Adjustment.

We are a non-profit game, charge $4 per game, and do not charge extra for special games - we absorb the extra cost. We use a playing director so do not have hand records. Even when we have a stac game the hand records rarely are taken by more than about 30% of the players. We make enough money to provide coffee and cookies, pay our expenses, including a small director stipend, insurance, and a big Christmas party every year which includes free catered lunch. (Rent is $1.5 per person) Our problem now is that the Senior Center is offering free non-ACBL bridge on one of our game days and several of our C players have abandoned us because we "charge too much". If we started using hand records we would have to have a non-playing director, which would drop half a table from our game and would require one of us to sit there very bored for 3 1/2 hours twice a week. Of course I could be reading my new Kindle. I just can't see the point. We do post the results and travelers online.

I agree. Why is the director allowing the players to crowd around this table? How about, "please step away and let this table finish"

I was recently reading the history of bridge. It started as a game of gentlemen, and then ladies. It was played in a society where people wore suits and dresses, addressed each other as Mr. and Mrs., said please and thank you, probably even "well done". Now we are discussing whether we should say "sorry". The game has certainly come a long way.

This is just a "suppose" question. Suppose you had a local tournament and after it was over you started receiving letters complaining about a player's behavior, but no one had filed a player memo nor had the director given any penalties. What, if anything should be done?

The following is a quote direct from the ACBL Bidding Box Regulations. I apologize for using the word "error" instead of "irregularity". "The onus is on the player to convince the director that a mechanical irregularity has occured." http://www.acbl.org/play/bidboxes.html As to restoring equity. I believe that is actually the instruction to the director, in the Laws, when fielding a call for a revoke. So I don't think I said anything outrageous.

My post did not refer to players but to the stuff I read here at BBO and other forums about the organization itself. I guess I wouldn't have said if I didn't feel it.

I was JoAnneM but didn't post much because I was embarrassed to be from the inferior ACBL, but the ACBL is considered inferior here too, so can't win. :)

I believe that "without pause for thought" and mechanical errors are "apples and oranges". Besides how can the next player have bid and partner not bid within the time frame of "without pause for thought". In my opinion mechanical errors can, and should, be corrected before partner bids. This restores some equity to the hand by allowing LHO to change his bid. I really think the goal should be to get things back on track and not allow a hand result to be skewed for the rest of the field.

Would someone please post an actual example of this, please. I don't mean the situation, I mean how it would look on a traveler. © In order to do equity, and unless the Regulating Authority forbids it, an assigned adjusted score may be weighted to reflect the probabilities of a number of potential results.* Thanks, Jo Anne

I just found this thread. Sniwas is the unofficial (or maybe official) Swan cheerleader, so please take that into consideration.

My only comment is that even though e/w won by a large margin an incident like this might throw off playing tempo/kharma, whatever and who knows how the rest of the match might have proceeded. Maybe this is not as much a factor at that level of play but it has to play some role.

I agree with Blackshoe. However, when I, as unit president, am getting letters from more than one person, who are also unit presidents reporting from their members, that this behavior was going on the entire day, I have to believe that this was a situation that made our event unpleasant.

I don't even understand the question or the answer. There is no point range for Michaels so why ask about it, and why would there be a specific answer? And when dummy comes down you know the answer was wrong, so just ignore it. I think it was a frivolous director call.

I have a "situation" right now that I have to handle when I get home from the regional I am attending. We had our local sectional recently. I have received two emails from players whom I highly respect complaining about the conduct of a player at the tournament. They did not play against this player, but I did. The problem was that this player was loud and obnoxious evidently every round after the first one. We blitzed their team (maybe that was the problem.) I witnessed only one of the occurrences and our director was at the table handling it. The two letters I received said that many players were complaining and that they think "something" should be done. I guess I should first contact the TD and see if a player memo was written, or if she gave a zero tolerance penalty, and then go from there. I showed the emails to the directing staff here at the Regional and they said people can't just complain they have to actually write things up, which should have been done at the tournament. We actually have a unit recorder who follows through on stuff.

Speaking only for our District, and only for the two years that I was president, we followed up on players memos to the Recorder. However, there is only so much you can do, and if the Director wasn't involved it becomes even more difficult. But we have put players on notice, and conducted a hearing or two. I remember at the Dallas NABC our opponents were arguing to the point of completely distracting us during a knockout. A Director came an stood several feet from our table and watched. He even nodded at me once, and once he intervened. After the match I filed a player memo. Later the NABC Recorder told me the memo was being thrown out because I had not "specifically" called the director and complained. But he was there!!!! The couple denied they were arguing.

I don't understand. Psyches are allowed, but frequent psyches are not. Surely this can be dealt with by giving a number per game and making sure that each psyche is reported. An announcement before each game to report psyches helps too. Also, even the tiniest hint of fielding decision should go to the opponents. IMHO

Did you ever notice how some voices carry and others don't? And, of course, the accoustics of a room make a huge difference. To the bathroom or directly to the refreshment table, that's the only place they should be headed. And a good director will not be placing playing tables anywhere near the refreshment table.