November 2011 - 8

Letters to the Editor

New events welcome
To the Editor:
I'd like to compliment regional tournament and NABC planners for two
relatively recent improvements in the
tournament experience for rank-andfile bridge players. I'm referring to the
increased number of "daylight" events
and the games with various names -
Gold Rush Pairs at some tournaments
- that accommodate players with
0-750 masterpoints.
When the "golden opportunity"
games are also daylight games, those
among us who are not night people
(even though we are not among the
oldest ACBL players) actually get a
chance to play our best games with
clear heads.
Tournament bridge is enough of an
endurance contest without additionally stressing out players who find it
difficult to sleep after playing well
past their normal bedtime. From now
on, I'm limiting my tournament attendance to the ones that allow me to
play once in the morning, once in the
afternoon, and not at all after 7 p.m.,
when I'll be having a relaxed dinner
and then turning in early.
ELLEN BLAIS
Mansfield PA

Conflicting needs
To the Editor:
In the September issue (page 6-7),
two readers urged ACBL to enforce
the regulation requiring each pair to
place identical convention cards on
the table. I understand the reason for
this regulation, and I agree that each
established partnership should adhere
to it.
However, hundreds of players from
all over the country - most of them
with fewer than 2000 masterpoints
- go to NABCs without partners,
seeking the help of the partnership
desk. In some cases, there is enough
time to agree on the convention card
and make two copies of it. In many
other cases, a partner is found a few
minutes before game time.
If this regulation is to be strictly
8 Bridge Bulletin November 2011

enforced, ACBL should close the partnership desks 20 minutes before the
game begins or make an exception for
new partners.
ATANAS TODOROV
Portland OR

Sincere thanks
To the Editor:
I would like to express my gratitude
to the PGI Duplicate Bridge Club in
my hometown. The club is run by a
dedicated couple, Mary and Steve
Chupak, who recently celebrated the
club's first anniversary. I have been
proud to be among the competitive
yet friendly group of players.
If you want to play duplicate among
inspiring players, just join in. New
members are always encouraged.
I suffer from Parkinson's disease,
and the players and directors are
always there to help, allowing me to
feel comfortable. The Chupaks have
done a remarkable job in setting up
and posting the match results, usually
within two hours of the end of play.
EDWARD TEZEKJIAN
Punta Gorda FL

Deserved reputation
To the Editor:
As I write this, I am just returning
from one of the best regional tournaments I have ever attended. It was
in Council Bluffs IA - the famed
Omaha Regional. It certainly lived up
to its reputation - from the lovely
free lunches to special decorations
and friendly people everywhere!
Even better, the tournament organizers handled an awkward situation so
smoothly that I have to tell about it.
The tournament listing on the ACBL
web site was from 2010, and the
schedule included a Fast Open Pairs
on Sunday. My partner, Jeff McKee,
and I are from Texas, so we decided
to play in this event and then scoot
onto an early flight home.
On Sunday, we found that it was
Swiss teams only. What to do? We
decided we could try to get on a team
and just play the first part and still

make our flights.
Tournament Chair Cookie Hoberman
got on the microphone and told our
story. Would anyone take two strangers on their A/X team? Justin Gravel,
Leng Hua, Jeff Buckwalter and Andrew Clements didn't hesitate in adding us to their team. We can't thank
them enough for their generosity and
willingness to change their plans for
two strangers!
Bridge hands and games you most
likely will forget over time, but an act
of kindness like this will be remembered for a lifetime!
PAM LaSHELLE
Round Rock TX

Be a teacher
To the Editor:
I have seen many letters suggesting
ways to compute current players' ratings in competition.
Good grief, this has really gone too
far! I was a successful player, became
a Life Master and Silver LM fairly
quickly with minimum travel and a career to tend to - and yes, with great
partners! Then I retired and moved to
the boonies.
For the past 10 years, I've been
teaching bridge. Some of my club/
student players would be happy to
compete in a regional where they
might learn from fine (and nice) players, such as Zeke Jabbour, but - with
only two sectionals a year within commuting distance - we can't get there
from here.
Do any of you "stale" players want
to stay current and get better? Teach!
Not from what you think, but from
what the experts think. The materials
are available and endless.
NANCY DeWEESE
Central Lake MI

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of November 2011