October 2009 - 8

Letters to the Editor

Life Master - is degrading to the accomplished player. Triple black points
at the club level is making a farce out
of the game and the ACBL.
It is about time that the ACBL
regarded the quality of a player's
achievements rather than the number
of masterpoints. Having various
levels of Life Master is only a partial
recognition because it shows mostly
longevity, not necessarily ability.
GARY GORDON
Parsippany NJ

Hand evaluation
To the Editor:
No disrespect intended, I have a
comment regarding problem No. 3 in
It's Your Call (July, page 35). When
10 out of 17 experts bid or force to
game holding two passed hands, and
when the scorer, a regular contributor to one of bridge's most respected
magazines, agrees with them by
awarding top scores, folks, it's time to
take up golf.
Proverb: When a rich man does odd
things he is "eccentric." When a poor
man does them, he is "insane."
JOSE DELGADO
Miami FL

Too many MPs
To the Editor:
Considering the masterpoint policy
and tournament formats, the ACBL
is whittling away at the integrity of
the game. Our local club has recently
upgraded all games to sectional rating. In small games against familiar
and relatively easy competition,
beginning and average players are recording 20 or more points per month
with only three games per week.
Putting club games on a par with
sectionals can only result in reduced
sectional participation and devalues
the accomplishments of those winning in sectionals and regionals.
Many have commented over the
past few years about the skewing of
points to knockout events. Point totals
at the recreational level have very
little to do with the quality of the
player. The ACBL should rate players
on something other than total points
8

unless point totals are changed to
give greater values to silver, red, gold
and platinum points.
A method similar to the rating
system of chess is another possible
alternative. The partnership nature of
bridge and playing against multiple
opponents makes this change more
difficult and imperfect, but the present system, made worse by the blatant
selling of points by the ACBL, is in
dire need of improvement.
THOMAS ROMINE
Billings MT
A rating system is easier said than
done, but it is still under consideration.

Diamonds only
To the Editor:
I enjoyed reading about the unusual
auction Zeke Jabbour described in
the July issue (page 59). He opened
3, and the next four bids in succession were 4, 5, 6 and 7 (by
Zeke), which was doubled for one
down an a great result.
It reminded me of an auction
at our table at Kate Buckman's in
Toronto several years ago:1- 2
(Michaels) - 3- 4 (both majors,
equal length); 5-Pass - Pass - Double; All Pass. Down two.
PAUL MUTER
Toronto ON

Name change
To the Editor:
May I suggest that the Senior
pairs be changed to early bird pairs.
Labeled as Senior pairs, it is a "limited" game with reduced masterpoint
awards. Why penalize this group of
players just because they like an early
start? That makes no more sense than
penalizing games starting at 1 p.m.
while giving games that start at 10
a.m. full awards.
Some people like an early start
(that would be me), some a later one.
I saw a pair turned away from a game
at a regional because one person was
under the age limit, so neither got to
play. Ridiculous.
JIM HUTTER
Ames IA

Go up
To the Editor:
After reading all the complaints
about the new guidelines for attaining
Life Master status, I decided to offer
my 2 cents: I agree that the requirements should be increased.
When I started playing bridge
about six years ago, I thought anyone
who could achieve that title must
surely be an advanced player. Now
that I have achieved LM and Bronze
LM, I realize that I am nothing more
than an advanced beginner or intermediate player.
The title has been diminished because there are many "cheap points"
at clubs where they find numerous
reasons to award extra points even in
the non-LM games. Players who have
been around for a long time know
that it used to be more difficult to
achieve LM.
It is good that there are several
classifications below LM so that
players can get recognition as they
advance. The title of Life Master
should be held high, requiring
dedication and tournament playing
experience, so that it continues to be
a great achievement.
DIANA BLACK
Newport Beach CA

Important notice
The ACBL Board of Directors has
approved new requirements for attaining the rank of Life Master, starting next year.
The new regulation specifies that
it does not apply to those who are
(dues-paid) ACBL members as of
Dec. 31, 2009, and maintain continuous membership in the ACBL
until they become LMs. As of Jan.
1, 2010, the requirements for attaining LM status change to 500 total
masterpoints, of which 50 must be
gold or platinum; 50 red, gold or
platinum, 75 silver and 75 black.
IMPORTANT: This means that if
your membership is not active as of
Dec. 31, 2009, you will be required
to fulfill the new Life Master requirements. It also means that if you let
your membership lapse after Jan.
1, 2010, before you become a Life
Master, the new requirements will
apply to you.

Bridge Bulletin
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of October 2009
