January 2014 - 7

➺ InBox
Less is more

I have an idea for a new national
event - the SAYC (Standard American
Yellow Card) NABC. Just think how
nice it would be:
A convention card furnished by the
ACBL would need only your names.
This would take care of those who don't
feel it is necessary to comply with or
even have a properly completed convention card.
The need for questions about carding, bidding, etc., would be eliminated.
We would find out who can win
without relying on a myriad of esoteric
conventions.
It would take less time to complete a
round and cut down on director calls.
The event would be open to all, regardless of masterpoint status.
There would be no need to look at
your opponent's convention card - it's
the same as yours!
Any chance of this happening?
BUDDY CARLS, Junior Master 1959
Huntington Beach CA
Comments from readers are welcome.

Touchy subject

More than five years ago, when I
was president of one club and manager
of another, we acquired electronic
scoring devices. From the onset, the
matter of "showing the percentages"
was controversial. Recent letters to
the editor show that the controversy
continues. Even at our club, I recently
heard a comment that we should have
yet another "vote" on the issue, even
though "turn the percentages on" has
always won.
Based on the letters, those most vehemently "against" believe that unauthorized information can result when
players discuss the results too loudly.
We continue to educate our players to
look at scores if they want to but not to
discuss the results during the game.

Letters to the Editor

Further, opponents argue that games
are delayed. That has not been a problem at our club.
There is a simple solution for those
who do not want to know the results:
North enters the score. East confirms
it, and advances the screen to show
the percentage if North wants to see
it. East then offers the device to South,
who looks or doesn't and then hands
the device to West. No one is to announce the percentage.
On a slightly different note, club
bridge is a social event, and people will
talk more at clubs than at tournaments.
Further, if we were interested in playing as many boards as possible in the
shortest length of time, we would sit
in our pajamas at home playing speed
games online.
At least for most of our players, the
club game is an end in itself, not a
tuneup for tournaments. Friendliness
and informality are essential.
The ACBL does well to give clubs
wide discretion in running their games.
JOE FREEMAN
Napa CA

Leave them on

I run a 15- to 20-table game once a
week. We use Bridgemates, which give
you various options.
It should be up to the players to
indicate the options they would like,
and the players I serve overwhelmingly
want to see results, the same way they
did when the traveling score slips were
in use.
The argument about wasted time is
baseless. There is no difference from
the time when traveling score slips
were used. Most tables finish their
boards before round is called, so why
not let them use the time to get coffee,
compare scores, etc.?
A peek at previous results takes a few

seconds in the first few rounds and perhaps 20 seconds in later rounds, when
more scores are available. The whole
process may take two to three minutes total, and I would not allow a pair
who are behind to use the additional
seconds. Players who don't want to look
don't have to.
The players - the paying customers
- should decide on this issue.
ABE PAUL
Mississauga ON
The ACBL's policy is that it is up to the
clubs to determine how electronic scoring devices are used.

Schedule issue

When my wife, Eileen, and I retired
a few years ago, we started playing
duplicate bridge. Our club director
convinced us to start going to tournaments and working toward becoming
Life Masters. It was expensive, but we
had fun by making each tournament
a mini-vacation. We would play in
the morning and in the afternoon. We
would cap off the day with some tourist
activity and a nice, relaxed dinner at a
"good" restaurant.
The tournament schedules usually
had the one-day, two-session events at
10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Only the knockout
survivors and hot shots played at night.
That seems to be changing. Now we
see more events scheduled for 2 p.m.
and 7 p.m. We came away from the
Lancaster Red Rose Regional thinking
that the schedule left us tired and not
playing at our best. It also prevented
us from having a relaxing evening
together.
Letters to the editor are welcome by regular mail and email.
Brevity is considered a virtue, as is subject matter with relevance
to a majority of ACBL members. Unsigned letters are not
considered for publication, so please include your name and
hometown. Letters may be edited. All letters will receive a
response. Email editor@acbl.org.

January 2014 Bridge Bulletin

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of January 2014