April 2017 - 7

➺ InBox
Jersey Girls like Bradenton

At a recent game at the Bridge
Center of Bradenton (Florida), a
major highway closure caused many
players to be delayed. Our director,
Brian Howard, decided to entertain the
waiting players with a game of bingo,
using a deck of cards. The winner was
awarded a free entry, and everyone in
the room of 18 tables was relaxed and
had a wonderful time. Brilliant!
This kind of thinking is what makes
this club a joy. We are truly privileged
to spend a couple of winter months in
this warm and delightful atmosphere.
SHELLY DJMAL, Neptune NJ
CLEO GUASTELLA, Red Bank NJ
SANDY KRIETZBERG, Neptune NJ

Grand slam bonus

In the February issue, the letter
"Reverse grand slam" refers to a hand
where the defense wins all 13 tricks. In
the first form of bridge, called either
bridge or bridge whist, a grand slam
was achieved whenever 13 tricks
were won by a partnership. It had
no requirement related to bidding
or even on whether the declarer or
the defenders achieved that lofty
accomplishment. Yes, you read
correctly that the defenders could
make a grand slam! It came with only
a miserly 40-point bonus. The laws
committees in the U.S. and the U.K.
were very stingy. Duplicate bridge
and team competition were already
being played. So in 1905, when your
teammates returned and asked about
your result on this hand, you would
have been 100% correct in stating, "We
made the grand slam, so we get the
bonus!"
JULIAN LADERMAN
Bronx NY

Letters to the Editor

Make 'em bigger

Last year, Jim Bachelder of
Columbus OH wrote a letter to suggest
that players leave their boards turned
sideways at the conclusion of play
in team events so that players can
easily identify the table number on
the following round. While this is a
workable suggestion, why not solve
the problem no matter how the boards
are situated? The issue is that the
Mitchell guide cards are 6" x 11", but
the duplicate boards are 3.5" x 9.5",
meaning that the boards cover up most
of the mats when placed back on the
table. We should manufacturer jumbo
mats that are 8" x 13", which allows
full display of the section letter, table
number and directionality. Let's also
do it for our Howell guide cards for
people at local clubs who are milling
about at the beginning of a round,
looking for tables.
LAWRENCE CHEETHAM
Bedford NH

On the Alert

A plea to all players: Please use the
Alert card in the bidding box. I don't
hear well, and many times an opponent
says "Alert" without using the card, so
I miss it. Obviously this leads to easily
avoidable problems.
BILL SEAGER
Coronado CA
Editor's note: According to ACBL
Alert Procedure, it is the responsibility
of the Alerter to ensure that the
opponents are aware that an Alert has
been made. Consistently using the Alert
card/strip makes this easier.

Plastic is fantastic

I understand "one step at a time,"
but I think David Schmidt's suggestion
(Paying with plastic, February 2017)
does not take things far enough. Why
should we be happy with paying with
plastic onsite when we should be able
to pay online before we arrive at the
site? Imagine showing up at the site
and being able to get into the prepaid
line for swift check-in rather than
waiting with cash or plastic in hand
in what can be quite a long line. Or
perhaps not even having to check in:
Just show up and look on the big board
for your first-round assignment.
TIM GOODWIN
Standish ME

Handicapping the field

The North Bay Duplicate Bridge
Club has, for at least 20 years, run a
round-robin team game on Tuesday
afternoons that features handicap
scoring. Similar to IMP league
games, teams remain fairly constant
throughout the year, with substitutes
filling in when needed.
Over the past 10 years, as our club
has complemented lessons with
newcomer and limited games, the
influx to this team game has been
inspiring. Traditionally, our winter
turnout (snowbirds away for the
season) had fallen to six to nine loyal
teams. But over the past couple of
years, the game has retained 10-14
teams over the winter months. To
our delight, several of these teams
comprise novice/intermediate players.
Equally amazing, intermediate
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. Send emails to editor@acbl.org.

April 2017 Bridge Bulletin

7
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of April 2017
