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Why do you play bridge?


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In the beginning, to make my grandparents happy. That remained a part for a long time, because it gave me something to do with them.

 

I always found it fun, but I find some other things more fun.

 

Now I play bridge for a combination of:

It's fun

I like to compete (and I'm not good at physical sports anymore)

Most of my friends play (so I get to see them at tournaments)

My boyfriend plays and I don't think that I'd have a choice to quit. :P

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For the +190s.
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I learned it cause my friends started some month before and we stopped to play other card games.

And after I stopped with chess, I needed a new mental challenge.

 

My goal is to win at least one open championship and my best shot to reach this goal is to earn an awful lot of money to buy 5 pros into my team.

Unluckily I did not yet reached this goal, so I try to become better in bridge myself. What a desperater idea.

 

Actually I play bridge despite the social background. There is a wonderful "scene" with young people (25-50) here, which are great. I love to see them, but in the local club and in the league you meet a lot of less nicer people too.

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I play bridge because I love the mental challenge of strategy games. I used to play chess and dominoes, I love problem solving, I like backgammon and sometimes I do a sudoku. It's nice to give your brain some work and i feel good proving myself worthy in any of those games but especially with bridge. Probably because of the country where I live I get to be a 'star' (or to seem to be one). I also like the fact that you play with a partner, that there are so many competitions and so easy to find and that you can earn money teaching or playing professionally.

 

I think my aim is to achieve a master rank, internationally. I'd need to play at international events with my country's team or partmer and do well, of course. I'd need to play very well. This is probably what I want to achieve, I'd like to master the game. I know it's impossible to win everytime but I'd like to be like those players who can see stuff and think right very quickly. Another goal in bridge is getting a lot of people in my country to play it, especially young people, which isn't easy.

 

And I keep coming back for more, 'cause there's more. Sometimes you get bad results, sometimes you feel proud of yourself for counting a hand properly or playing a hand perfectly (and this includes biddingm playing or defending, of course). And it's always different. I might read a magazine or a book opr an article and find something similar at the table, or see something at the table that I'll read about later.

 

 

And now I think is time you answered your own question and tell us what your problem is (or problems are). Maybe we can help you :)

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So, I would like to hear from you guys (non-experts and experts alike) why do you all play bridge, what do you think is your aim in playing bridge and why do you keep returning to the table for more.

Big time non-expert here.

 

I've always been fascinated with card games (poker, spades, etc) as well as strategy games like chess. I guess I like things that make me think, and bridge does that on so many levels.

 

One of the things I find fascinating with bridge is the amount of 'art' that is still present... Watching the recent BB/VC/SB, for example, it's amazing to see the different bidding and play that arises out of the same set of cards. Moreover, I find the 'every hand an adventure' nature of bridge compelling. Chess is, among the great players, a game of preparation and memorization. While bridge has patterns of it's own to learn/memorize, the strategy and play occur entirely "in the moment" rather than in the pre-match analysis.

 

There's a seemingly infinite depth to the game, and I want to try to get as deep as I can.

 

Stated goal? Well, I'd just like to be a passable player for starters. I'd like to be able to see the beauty in a complex hand, imaginative cardplay, or thoughtful bid.

 

Long-term, I'd love to be competitive... Since there's no clubs nearby, I'm not sure how to quantify that outside of BBO. Perhaps to be a strong 'advanced' player who really good players will play with and not get a headache. If I get the chance to play live, I'd love to be able to take a stab at some solid regional events and feel like I/we stand a chance.

 

As an aside - these forums rock. And I'm glad to get to learn from you all.

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I think I've seen you online, I like your name!

Thanks, Han/Josh... No doubt you have. Since I've gotten to know all you folks in the forums - in that "don't really know you, creepy internet-y" sense, anyway - I tend to find my way to your tables to kib.

 

(Speaking of which, thanks for keeping the tables open for us voyeurs... I'm sure that some people watching can be a pain.)

 

re: the name > Thanks. When you don't have a good product, you've got to depend on slick marketing. In bridge, the nick's all I've got going for me.

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(Speaking of which, thanks for keeping the tables open for us voyeurs... I'm sure that some people watching can be a pain.)

Never for expert players. They are used to it and don't mind at all. Some beginners and intermediates don't like it, fair enough. I would always leave a table if a player asked me to because they feel uncomfortable about having spectators.

 

Roland

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(Speaking of which, thanks for keeping the tables open for us voyeurs...  I'm sure that some people watching can be a pain.)

Never for expert players. They are used to it and don't mind at all.

I'm quadruple-ing my BBOF posts today...

 

I didn't mean that you guys mind the spectators... I meant more that there are probably some people who are not terribly polite guests.

 

I was watching a team match with some of the forum guys the other night, and a random kibber starts firing chat into the table. You're trying to play seriously or just enjoy a few hands with friends... Meanwhile, I can't imagine the amount of private messages you get with "Why did you take that finesse? Will you give me lessons? Want to play a team match?" and on and on.

 

While the people watching doesn't bother you, the behavior of some might... And I just want to thank you all for not letting them spoil it for us.

 

As Spock once said.... er, nevermind. :rolleyes:

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(Speaking of which, thanks for keeping the tables open for us voyeurs...  I'm sure that some people watching can be a pain.)

Never for expert players. They are used to it and don't mind at all.

I'm quadruple-ing my BBOF posts today...

 

I didn't mean that you guys mind the spectators... I meant more that there are probably some people who are not terribly polite guests.

 

I was watching a team match with some of the forum guys the other night, and a random kibber starts firing chat into the table. You're trying to play seriously or just enjoy a few hands with friends... Meanwhile, I can't imagine the amount of private messages you get with "Why did you take that finesse? Will you give me lessons? Want to play a team match?" and on and on.

 

While the people watching doesn't bother you, the behavior of some might... And I just want to thank you all for not letting them spoil it for us.

 

As Spock once said.... er, nevermind. :)

Firstly, my wish for you in 2008 is that you get better cards than the 13 you have below your picture :rolleyes:

 

Secondly, yes private chat to the table can be annoying, but the table host can control that by disallowing spec chat. We also get quite a few private chat messages. If I have time to respond, I will; if not, I will ignore them. No offence intended.

 

Roland

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I think I have played for different reasons at different times.

 

I always enjoyed the intellectual challenge, but my goals were different.

 

I got to the level below my ultimate goal 10 years ago (won the CNTCs and then repeated the win) but stalled at that level, including a profoundly disappointing trip to the BB. Currently, I play only socially: tried to form a serious new partnership last year and it crashed and burned, and currently I do almost no bridge, and no serious bridge at all.. the deepest I get into the game is posting here.

 

It may be complete, terminal burnout or it may be transitory... but the fact that I don't really care suggests the former. Oh well... I still like golf :)

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Partly out of habit (never underrate that),

Partly so my bridge partner can vent his antisocial tendencies and angst in a relatively palatable fashion :-) ,

Partly for the sheer intellectual and theoretical interest (it is a different sort of intellectual interest from the practice of law) and stimulus,

Partly to escape for one night most weeks,

partly because my bridge partner is also a friend....

 

and the sheer love of problem posing and solving....which perhaps explains my interest in and creation of "weird" methods which means that I will not automatically accept that method which has been in place for an eon is either optimal or even satisfactory!

regards

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Basically I learned to play very early, 8 or 9 years old after having played card for far longer than I can remember (probably started to learn to play simple card games at the age of 2). Thus bridge has been a part of my life for as long as I can remember.

 

I've always liked the game for it's puzzles and challenges. New situations come up frequently. New bidding techniques are developed. You never stop learning.

 

I'd say I play partly because of the challenges the game offer, partly out of habit and partly for social reasons.

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