6 board express individuals

[bartonfinc]

Just curious does anyone actually read how these are supposed to be played? Everyone is supposed to play 2/1. They even provide the convention card for the form of 2/1 you play. There are inverted minors, there are standard leads, negative doubles, and on and on. You can even open up the cc and take a look if unsure what to do. So why is it pard opens 1c and I bid 2c on my 17 count and 5 clubs and am passed (by an "expert". Over 1nt I bid 2d for the majors (capp) I play it there. I'm passed in cuebids, people use a different form of blackwood than listed on the cc. And these are not beginners or novices.

 

Would players please take 2 min to look at the cc.

[barmar]

Most of them probably never play 2/1 in real life, so they don't know the system, and they don't bother to read the CC. They have 30 seconds for each bid or play, they're not going to go looking up the meaning of bids.

 

Bridge is a partnership game. If you want to play with a partner who understands your bidding, form a real partnership, don't play in an individual. Individuals are total crapshoots.

[bartonfinc]

I've always hated individuals, but I though perhaps (foolishly) that these might be different. I'm not talking about beginners here, 1/2 these people call themselves experts or advanced. I don't expect perfection but I would think they would at least glance at the cc. For example if you don't play transfers, you must realize everyone else in the tourney is playing them. Or what possible system could play 1h-3h-4d all pass.

[barmar]

I'm not talking about beginners here, 1/2 these people call themselves experts or advanced.

Self-assigned ratings mean almost nothing. Practically everyone except true beginners call themselves experts or advanced on BBO, this is an old complaint.

 

One thing I don't think people appreciate when playing in games like this is just how many different people you play with over time. There's currently a thread on rec.games.bridge about some random occurrence that happened to the poster on BBO, suggesting that these kinds of things are unique to online bridge. What's actually unique to online bridge is that you play with so many more people than you would IRL. So there's just much more opportunity to run into misunderstandings. They also don't generally take online bridge as seriously as f2f -- they're not concentrating as much, so mistakes are more likely.

[Bbradley62]

But the Express Tournies are particularly bad. They are way more random than most of the "club"-run tournaments.

[mycroft]

I play Anonymously - it's a good, data-light way of spending my walk to and from work. I would suggest that there's 20% of that population - which is likely the same population as the express indys - who don't read the "card", even when the meaning of the call pops up when you hover over the bid.

 

Certainly it explains all the 3-1 fits they end up in, or (1NT)-2♣ all pass, or (1NT)-2♦-2♠-AP with 3-6 in the pointeds...

 

One other thing about offline bridge - I can sit down, tell someone I've never played with "Calgary standard flight A, standard carding?" and get 90% of the auctions right. Other places, similarly. However "Comfy Lounge Standard", or "Ontario 2/1", or even "Calgary standard flight C" is different enough to throw. But they all think "this is the way to play bridge" - why would they need to look? Online, of course, they run into people whose standard is another way - and do the wrong thing. They, of course, do the wrong thing (given the way "everyone" around their wrong partner plays) as well.

[akwoo]

I've been playing in a fair number of 6 board individuals lately.

 

Many folks don't know what they're doing, but I don't find the population on these tourneys any worse than the random BBO partner. The good thing is that you're done with a bad partner after one board. In a regular table, you feel bad for running on someone after one board. If I've got 30-45 minutes for bridge, I don't really want to spend 15 minutes hunting around for a decent partner. If I'm going to accept having bad partners, I might as well play an individual without the expectation of playing with someone for more than a board.

 

Also, in a 6 board individual with a large field and barometer scoring, even the good players are going to do some strange things because everyone is swinging a lot. Realistically, you're not going to place highly without 3-4 tops or near-tops, and the best way to get them is to do something slightly stupid in the hopes that either the cards lie right or the opponents do something even stupider. A string of average-pluses like one would normally aim for at a real MPs tournament will land you about a third of the way down the field.

[steve2005]

Yes, in 6-board tournaments use Cappelletti, minor suit transfers and 3-level splinters in response to 1N at your own risk.

[bartonfinc]

A little off topic but I hate how many "take command" type players you run into as well. I've seen more 1c p 3nt or 1c p 4h auctions in a month than I've seen in a lifetime in real partnership bridge. Even when my pard is a novice I'm going to try and bid right and give them a chance to learn, I don't care if I take a zero for it.

[barmar]

A little off topic but I hate how many "take command" type players you run into as well. I've seen more 1c p 3nt or 1c p 4h auctions in a month than I've seen in a lifetime in real partnership bridge. Even when my pard is a novice I'm going to try and bid right and give them a chance to learn, I don't care if I take a zero for it.

That's basically the same issue that was raised a few days ago in this thread:

 

http://www.bridgebase.com/forums/topic/67752-individuals/

[TylerE]

If you want to play something at least vaguely resembling bridge, don't play online indys. It really is that simple.

[diana_eva]

If you want to play something at least vaguely resembling bridge, don't play online indys. It really is that simple.

 

Unless it's the BBF Indy. Always play the BBF Indy :P

[bartonfinc]

I know I'm beating a dead horse, but is it too much to ask players take just 30 sec. 1 major 3 major is weak, 2 over 1 is a game force that's it. no more.

 

In 1 6 board match tonight 1s-3s-4s on my 18 count pard has 13 missed slam. 1s- 2h-2s all pass making 5. I play in these things specifically so there might be a little clue as to what pard is doing (unlike an individual I played at a regional that was the worst experience of my life). Guess it's hopeless and time to give up.

[Bbradley62]

... 1 major 3 major is weak, 2 over 1 is a game force that's it. no more.

what system is that?

[barmar]

I know I'm beating a dead horse, but is it too much to ask players take just 30 sec. 1 major 3 major is weak, 2 over 1 is a game force that's it. no more.

Looks like the pot is calling the kettle black. The system in express tourneys is GIB 2/1, where 1 major - 3 major is a limit raise. You're thinking of BBO Advanced, which includes Bergen Raises.

[bartonfinc]

your right a 4;am misspeak lol, but you get the point. I open the cc and even with only 30 sec to act I have time to look what my pards bid means. or should mean.