Illegal body language

[32519]

You suspect a regular pair at your local club of using illegal body language, both during the auction, as well as when they are defending the hand. What do you do?

[jeffford76]

Tell the director away from the table and let them handle it. If they don't seem to be doing anything after a while, decide whether you care enough to stop playing at the club.

 

If you're in the ACBL, you should also file a recorder form with your unit recorder.

[billw55]

Do you mean deliberately communicating with signals - a sort of sign language? Or just use of UI?

[32519]

Do you mean deliberately communicating with signals - a sort of sign language? Or just use of UI?

It's more noticable during the bidding. The partner not sure whether to pass or double or bid again starts fidgeting/squirming excessively. A fixed glare/stare from partner would indicate that a double or a bid is required.

[32519]

Do you mean deliberately communicating with signals - a sort of sign language? Or just use of UI?

Antrax made a tongue-in-cheek reply here in a different thread:

 

Having read BBF extensively, I was convinced that you should never open 2♣ on two-suited hands, instead opting to open them at the 1-level. The problem was that people in the club hadn't read BBF, so we would sometimes get 1m swish. To solve that dilemma, I've come up with a tweak where with strong hands, you open 1m while staring intently at your partner. This has two upsides: the force of your gaze might make your partner more likely to bid, especially if you start frowning when it seems like he's reaching for a green card, and avoiding eye contact with the opponents signals weakness, which would encourage them to overcall on trash.

But this post got me thinking. We have a regular pair at a local club doing something similar. So what do you do?

[billw55]

It's more noticable during the bidding. The partner not sure whether to pass or double or bid again starts fidgeting/squirming excessively. A fixed glare/stare from partner would indicate that a double or a bid is required.

OK, so this is not conscious cheating. It sounds like the kind of common use of UI that is often seen in clubs from players who don't know any better. Like tapping a finger on a bid to prompt partner to alert.

 

I usually let that kind of thing go at club. It mostly amuses me. Although I maintain a keen eye for inferences I can use.

[Zelandakh]

Two choices. Either contact a third party who is neutral and you trust to be discrete with your suspicions and have them see if they reach the same conclusions after a period of obsevation; or contact the most senior TD at the club and say that you have noticed some potentially suspicious behaviour and would like them to investigate. The latter path is probably to be recommended unless you have reason to believe that the TD will either not take the investigation seriously or will not conduct it fairly. Either way, you will end up with the club TD making a decision as to whether the actions are allowable or not. Most likely, the end result will be that TD having a quiet word with the pair about it. That might result in it stopping, or it might just mean they do it in a more subtle way.

[Zelandakh]

Like tapping a finger on a bid to prompt partner to alert.

The standard in the local club here is to show partner the Stop card until they alert. As you say, there are players doing this sort of thing in almost every club.

[squealydan]

Unfortunately, this seems to be a fact of life. I played tonight and a new partnership against us on the very first board began 1NT-2H. Now believe it or not there are still folks out there who don't play transfers, so this isn't a complete no-brainer for two of the older members of the club who have just spent 3 minutes agreeing a system. When the 2H bid wasn't immediately alerted the 2H bidder stared long and hard at opener, and even made a minute instinctive gesture towards her bid... her partner eventually alerted it and responded 2S, getting them to the routine 4S contract. Without a camera on every table it would be impossible to prove anything untoward went on, and with no other alternative game in town, I just shrug and carry on going.

[helene_t]

If you (or better: the TD) wants to talk to the pair about it, it can probably be done without accusing them of cheating. Just saying that they must be careful to play with pokerface in order not to leak info to opps and order not to put partner under ethical pressure. Also explain the obligations of the partner of the one who transmits the signals (take the action not suggested by the UI).

 

But it may be difficult to change their habits. Some players continue doing things like this even after haven been told about it many times. It is beyond conscious control.

[ggwhiz]

This is just too blatant to be deliberate cheating as opposed to bad ole kitchen bridge habits as mentioned by others.

 

It calls for education (doesn't always work) but how? I like a discreet word with the director who might buy in to a series of gentle director calls along the lines of "sorry I just have to clarify something" and call it a "slight hesitation" followed by a reaction or some such and let the class begin.

 

My fave, mentioned before was a pair of rubber players in a Regional pairs that got called on for similar stuff 5 times in 4 rounds and the last time the Directors ruling was "double and lead trumps". If they are stubborn or whatever, it needs to be handled by the director hopefully with a private heads up from you.

[aguahombre]

It's more noticable during the bidding. The partner not sure whether to pass or double or bid again starts fidgeting/squirming excessively. A fixed glare/stare from partner would indicate that a double or a bid is required.

In an (our) experienced partnership, I can tell you exactly what these two illegal forms of communication are conveying.

 

The fidget/squirm says, "Before reaching for the bid box a cow flew by, and I am trying to get my act back together." The one who perks up and glares is saying, "I sure hope whatever call you come up with bears some relation to the cards you hold."

[32519]

How about this one: We once had a player at our local club who would vigorously shake the bidding box before bidding whenever he was dealt a big hand? :)

[chappa_dog]

Majority of my opponents always wag their tails before open 2♣ ;)

[Cthulhu D]

Majority of my opponents always wag their tails before open 2♣ ;)

 

Yeah, now I preempt on general principles when this goes down, which is usually hilarious. They are all hyped up to pull 2C, then I make some random bid or psyche or whatever and they go through the stages of grief, where they first go to pull 2C, have this look of annoyance that I should interfer with their auction etc before making another bid with great reluctance.

[GreenMan]

Yeah, now I preempt on general principles when this goes down, which is usually hilarious. They are all hyped up to pull 2C, then I make some random bid or psyche or whatever and they go through the stages of grief, where they first go to pull 2C, have this look of annoyance that I should interfer with their auction etc before making another bid with great reluctance.

 

Heh, recently at a tournament I was eagerly waiting to open 2C in fourth seat, and third seat opened 2C in front of me! :blink: I admit I did a double-take, waited for her partner to alert (nope), and peeked at their CC. I had AKQxxxx x x AKxx and she had the rest of the high cards except one or two quacks.

[ggwhiz]

Yeah, now I preempt on general principles when this goes down, which is usually hilarious.

 

We had a player that moved her lips as she counted her points. And moved her fingers along her hand as she counted. When she hit 18 or so about 1/2 way through it was open psyche season.