For Players

Etiquette

We  expect all players to be courteous and to respect each other at all times. Behavior at the table should conform to the expectations of proper bridge etiquette and the Laws of Duplicate Bridge (2017 Edition).

If you wish to report an irregularity during play, please promptly alert the Tournament Director (TD) and do not proceed in further conversation at the table. Wait for the TD to arrive and answer his questions and directions. Note that dummy should not be calling for the TD, unless another player has already drawn attention to an irregularity.

We previously had an issue where a player was rude to the other team. THIS WILL NOT BE TOLERATED, and will minimally result in a complete ban from the current tournament and possibly a permanent ban, at the discretion of the committee. Other forms of misbehavior inside or outside the play proper, while at the host's venue, shall be addressed by the committee for possible disciplinary action.

Introduction and movement

This guide assumes no prior knowledge of team games. 

The tournament consists of 9 rounds as scheduled.  In each round, 2 clubs directly compete against each other in a team match, resulting in 4 independent team matches per round (8 clubs), with one club sitting out and hosting. Each team match uses the same set of boards (1-24), with Hand Records provided.  The result of each match shall be converted to victory points (VP) to be recorded.

After completing all 9 rounds, each club will have played against every other club in the round-robin format. This guide focuses solely on the individual team vs team proceedings during a round.

Each club must have 4 players (2 pairs) present, with a designated team captain for the round.

For clarity, the illustration that follows will reference Team A vs Team B, with their respective pairs labeled as A.1, A.2, etc. When a matchup is specified, such as CSC vs XMM, CSC represents Team A and XMM represents Team B.  Team A (first named team) is the "Home" team, and Team B the "Away" team. 

The match consists of 2 halves. Boards 1 to 12 are played and scored initially, followed by a switch of pairs (illustrated below), with Team B making the move. Team A remains in the same position throughout. Boards 13 to 24 are then played.

Each half allows 90 minutes for playing 12 boards. Unplayed boards at the end of the time limit will be canceled, with a 3-minute warning issued before cancellation. Penalties apply for lateness and walkovers, so promptness is essential.  Please see section 8 of this document.

Electronic Scoring

If you are using bridgemates to score, you may need to correct the names in the bridgemates to reflect the switch in players prior to starting the second half of the match. If you are unfamiliar with how to do this, please ask the TD for help. Please follow the guidance of your hosts on this topic. Regardless, since the scoring keeps track on a team level, and away team merely swap seats and the home team stays, you will get the right result.

You are highly recommended to keep records of the contracts and results on paper in case of disputes or failure of the system. The hosts should provide pencils/erasers/scoresheets for this purpose.

Systems and Conventions

From the constitution:

9.1. HUM (Highly Unusual Methods) and Brown Sticker Conventions as defined by the WBF are not allowed. See http://db.worldbridge.org/Repository/departments/systems/policy.asp 

9.2. Psychic bidding is NOT allowed. The TD will assess whether a psychic bid has occurred. Should a breach be discovered, the board will be cancelled with a 3 IMP penalty awarded to the offending team.

9.3. WBF Alerting policies apply:  http://championships.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/WBFAlertingPolicy.pdf 

9.4. Common systems such as SAYC, 2/1 GF and Precision are allowed. Players should pre-alert their systems before play starts. The onus of disclosure is on the user of the system or convention.

9.5. For other systems, the team captain should provide the convention card to the Committee through their club representative at least a week before a scheduled match for a determination.