how to become a td

[babalu1997]

suppose i would like to become a td, meaning i would have to travel to take some kind of acbl exam, and perhaps even have to become a member of acbl.

 

thing is i feel i do not know enough about bridge-- i have a couple of books on directing but when i read all these hairy issues presented here at the forum i does feel very stupid

 

i even play multi and transfer prempts and cannot even understand why they are illegal

 

i do not plan to become a legal whiz but perhaps run an afternoon game for a couple of lols

 

is there any hope for me?

 

thanks

[helene_t]

sure, most of what a td does is to resolve technical issues like revokes, bids out of turn, fouled boards etc.

 

obviously if you want to direct serious tournaments you need to be an advanced player in order to deal with ethical issues but for the purpose of directing a club game it is not strictly necessary.

 

why do you want to become an acbl td? is Bahamas acbl land?

 

as for why certain things are illegal in acbl land, you don't have to understand why, lol.

[TimG]

sure, most of what a td does is to resolve technical issues like revokes, bids out of turn, fouled boards etc.

Most of what a club director does is set up the game (including selecting a movement), make sure the boards are moved to the proper tables after each round and score the event. In my experience, it is not unusual for a club game to be absent a director call for an entire session.

 

I agree with Helene, if you sticky 3 or 4 Laws, that will cover 95% of the director calls you will get.

 

Tim

[blackshoe]

If you want to direct ACBL games you have to be an ACBL TD (even online, I think, though I'm not certain of that). If you want to direct non-ACBL games in the Bahamas (presumably under the auspices of the Bahamas Bridge Federation and/or the Central American and Caribbean Bridge Federation (WBF Zone 5)) then you may need to be accredited by one or the other (or both) of those authorities.

 

Helene is right about the "why" thing — as a TD don't concern yourself with that, just with the "how".

 

If you're set on becoming an ACBL club director, go here. If you want to become a tournament level director (these are ACBL employees) it's harder. You need to contact an ACBL TD in your area, and ask him if you can "apprentice" with him (or her). After some time, and probably a recommendation, there's a test. Then you can work your way up the ladder.

[babalu1997]

thanks folks

 

well at a certain point in time there existed this club which was acredited by acbl, and a couple of tds-- dont know what type they were

 

they used to get 3-4 tables, maybe 10 tables when winter birds were here

 

now, only ever attended maybe half dozen games offline, those little ones with 4 tables

 

the club is locally recognized by some sport government ministry so it is a legal entity, ie can operate as some kind of non profit organization-- but there is no regulation of the game itself

 

now it closed its doors because several players died, and the couple of acbl directors can no longer direct

 

the things looks insurmantable at the moment, but someone mentioned that we could operate without any accreditation by offshore entities, but then the winterbirds would not play

 

perhaps that is easier because one of the people who can no longer td might be able to give me and/or some other persons a crash course on how to direct.

[Phil]

The directors test for the ACBL is...bizarre. You will be asked some very strange questions, but its open book (can even use a computer from what I can tell) so its sort of a scavenger hunt to see how well you are at looking things up.

 

I direct once a week because its kind of fun, I make a little scratch, and have drinks with the players afterward. A side benefit is as a player I think I can tell very quickly whether or not the director is handling matters fairly. I've had bad rulings previously that have cost so I feel I'm protecting myself, partner and team by understanding the laws better.

[barmar]

If you want some training, they usually teach a club director course at NABCs. The "final exam" is the test to get the club director certificate.

 

Becoming a tournament director requires passing a more advanced test. I think it's generally expected that you will already have several years of experience as a club director.