How long have you been playing?

[whereagles]

~15 or so.

[zman102]

Learned to play by filling in for my parent's bridge games in 1950. Played my first duplicate game in June 1963 and became a life master in August 1965 (i had very good players helping me win master points). School, work and caring for a son with MS caused me to simplify my life and I stopped playing in 1973 until I got online in 20001 and played on the zone until I found BBO and have been playing on BBO since.

 

There is no face to face bridge closer than 150 miles (round trip), so I only play online.

 

I checked over 55 years in the poll, but as you can see, that is really not correct if you take into account all of the down time

[zman102]

too many zeros in 2001....lol

[rogerclee]

about 12 years, but only four seriously

[effervesce]

Four years for me.

[kenberg]

Learned to play by filling in for my parent's bridge games in 1950. Played my first duplicate game in June 1963 and became a life master in August 1965 (i had very good players helping me win master points). School, work and caring for a son with MS caused me to simplify my life and I stopped playing in 1973 until I got online in 20001 and played on the zone until I found BBO and have been playing on BBO since.

 

There is no face to face bridge closer than 150 miles (round trip), so I only play online.

 

I checked over 55 years in the poll, but as you can see, that is really not correct if you take into account all of the down time

1950. I am impressed.

 

My parents played poker in a neighborhood game and would allow me to sit in sometimes. I was 11 in 1950 and that's about the time I was playing in the poker game. It would be another 11 years before I picked up bridge.

 

I hope that anyone who can beat your 1950 date will mention it. It's a different game today!

[orlam]

3 years.

[shintaro]

:)

 

around 1975 whilst an expat in Africa (not a lot else to do otherwise) but did play a sort of Bridge on board ship whilst emigrating to OZ in 1965.

 

Not as old as ken though

 

:D

[MickyB]

I first played in an end-of-year maths lesson at school when our teacher got us - that was ten years ago (aged 14). My first duplicate was when I was 18. Within about three months I'd played three different no-trump ranges and three different meanings for a 2D opening, fours, fives and possibly transfers over a club as well!

[ArtK78]

Sometime in the summer between my Sophomore and Junior years in High School, I was with a few friends when one of them said "Let's play Bridge!" He explained the rudiments of the game and we played for about an hour. I went home and found my parents' basic Goren book, read it from cover to cover a couple of times, and suddenly I was by far the expert of the group.

 

That was 1972. So I have been playing for over 36 years.

[Gerardo]

September 2000, a local duplicate game (2 tables at most, sometimes not even that).

 

Found online bridge soon after, at WinBridge, when that closed wandered in the Zone till I found BBO, in June 2001.

[georgeac]

ive been playing 4 years or so, but i dont get to play too often with regular partners or live because of school. bbo has helped me leaps and bounds though. i only have 25 masterpoints but can play much better than the number. i wish more people would not use the number as the be all end all for skill level in the acbl realm. end rant lol

[Tcyk]

I started playing 'noon-time' bridge in 1957. Before that in college and in the army, I played hearts and pinochle. I also played 'rook' with my parents. When I moved to Dallas in 1969, one of the 'noon-time' players was head and shoulders better than any of the other players. Yes, he played duplicate and convinced me I should take lessons from Harry Weiss. I liked bridge so much that I quit playing tournament chess and have been playing bridge ever since.

[ArtK78]

My friend, David Treadwell, has told me the story of his first experiences with Bridge. In Dave's case, it was Auction Bridge, since Contract Bridge had not yet been invented. This was back in the 1920's.

 

Back in September, Dave celebrated his 96th birthday. He still plays (sometimes well), and his last victories were 2 of the 3 KOs in the David Treadwell Sectional just before New Year's Day in Wilmington, Delaware.

[jdonn]

I would be willing to bet money that if a tournament was named after me I would win over half the events I enter. Guaranteed.

[mtvesuvius]

I would be willing to bet money that if a tournament was named after me I would win over half the events I enter. Guaranteed.

New proposed Event Name: The Josh Donn Spingold. :)

[ArtK78]

I would be willing to bet money that if a tournament was named after me I would win over half the events I enter. Guaranteed.

Get back to me when you are 96 (of course, I will be about 130 by then).

[Gerben42]

Within about three months I'd played three different no-trump ranges and three different meanings for a 2D opening, fours, fives and possibly transfers over a club as well!

 

This must be what my mom calls "hanging around the wrong kind of friends"... :)

[TimG]

I would be willing to bet money that if a tournament was named after me I would win over half the events I enter. Guaranteed.

If you'd show up, I'm sure I could convince the Maine unit to name a sectional after you, probably the one held in Brewer every October.

[andy_h]

5-6 years and loving it ^^

[JLOL]

I would be willing to bet money that if a tournament was named after me I would win over half the events I enter. Guaranteed.

New proposed Event Name: The Josh Donn Spingold. :(

This is more commonly known as the mini spingold

[mtvesuvius]

I would be willing to bet money that if a tournament was named after me I would win over half the events I enter. Guaranteed.

New proposed Event Name: The Josh Donn Spingold. :(

This is more commonly known as the mini spingold

LOL

[olegru]

First tournament I played more than 20 years ago, having no slightest idea about the bridge game at all. I believe this story is funny enough to share it here.

 

I went to Moscow chess club to play chess, and got shocked to see some people there were going to play cards. This time cards were not formally prohibited in Russia anymore, but cards in the temple of chess! I was staying in astonishment when very intelligent looking women asked if I know how to play bridge. I replied not. She asked if I can play preference (preference is a very popular in former Soviet Union card game, for some extends similar to bridge, but it is game for individuals, not pairs.) I replied that I am good in it. She literally forced me to the table. As it happened she and her partner were late for game and director let them play only if they can fill out the table – find another pair to play. They convinced to play one experienced player who came to club to socialize and then she caught me. My partner had about 5 minutes to teach me rules of bridge and the bidding system. We played some simplified precision with no NT opening for me.

Could you believe we won the tournament!

My partner was extremely good and we were extraordinary lucky. I still remember couple of boards.

Once I interfered 1 diamond with almost no points and no diamonds. I did not realize that bid 1 diamond is negative (0-6 points any distribution) only if partner opened 1 clubs, not opponent. Poor opponents missed their contract.

In other board I doubled opponents in slam. I simply did not believe that 12 tricks of 13 is something realistic. Poor declarer expected me to have some reasons for double and found the way to get down in ice cold slam.

Another board I corrected 3NT bid by my partner to 4 diamonds, because I thought play in level 4 gives us more points than on level 3. Partner blasted to 6 diamonds and won it because of friendly lead and lucky distribution.

Unfortunately, I don’t know who my first partner was. I played my second tournament only in 3 years after the first and by that time I forgot name of that guy. Recalling how did he look I would not be very surprised if it was Andrew Gromov, but I have never asked him

[helene_t]

wow this story is really cool, Oleg! I suggest Uday puts a link to it in the section of the web client that has examples of interesting forum posts.

[oldman5757]

Neat question. I learned the game at summer camp in summer of 65, and began playing seriously in college that fall. In the old days you got paper slips for master points, and I know my wife threw out an entire box of them during one move! Oh, well. Someone mentioned Dave Treadwell, who is now 96 and still playing. He kicked my butt many times when I lived in that area!

 

My big bridge problem has been living mostly in rural areas (though there were exceptions) where it was just too far to go to play, so I've had long gaps where I haven't played at all. Playing more now.

 

I am just not very comfortable with online bridge. It doesn't seem quite real to me, even though I know it is, and my computer skills aren't as good as I'd like them to be. Trying to do better, tho. :(