This has caused more controversy than any other issue.  Sadly, there is no simple universal solution.  The following list is relevant but by no means exhaustive.

For:

Just turn up for a game;
No pressure to see if anyone else is partnerless
Simple system to operate for club and players;
Late cancellations or no-shows by partner do not matter.

Against:

Someone has to be the host;
The host may not be needed;
If the host has a regular partner he/she will not play that day;
Open to abuse by the lazy (not here, of course) who have no incentive to find a partner.

There will no doubt be other statements both For and Against which apply.

From the EBU website -

BBC Woman's Hour on Radio 4 today (April 21^st) looked at how women in their 90s have managed to stay healthy and active. Two interviewees from Birmingham cited bridge as one of the biggest influences on their prolonged good health, noting both the benefits of keeping the mind active, and also the social benefits of playing bridge after the death of their husbands.

The interview is available on the BBC website for a limited time - scroll to 15:00 for the start of the interview (which lasts around six minutes).

See also the short YouTube video on this website explaining how cards are shuffled.

S = small slam, G = grand slam

Professional bridge.

• A few thousand such players tour the world playing in intense contests. Top players can earn between £150,000 and £300,000 a year.
• The money comes from wealthy patrons; rich enthusiasts such as Swiss property tycoon Pierre Zimmermann and Jimmy Cayne, former CEO of the failed bank Bear Stearns, fund teams of six players, with the backer playing alongside five hired professionals.
• In August this year Cayne's Team won a tournament in Chicago, during which two of his players, Lotan Fisher and Ron Schwarz, European champions from Israel, defeated a former teammate, Norwegian Boye Brogeland by a single point. Brogeland was suspicious of high-risk actions which were successful every time, and spent hours studying footage of Fisher and Schwarz playing.
• In late August Brogeland accused his rivals of cheating. They responded by threatening to sue for defamation with $1m damages. Other players began to study recent tournament footage of the pair and other professionals as well.
• Within days a Swedish player accused Fisher and Schwarz of signalling by the way they moved the bidding box around the table (only one combined box is used by all at this level); Monaco's Fantoni and Nunes were accused of communicating in the way they placed their cards and two German players, Pikarek and Smirnov, admitted to “ethical violations”. All six have withdrawn from recent tournaments.
• In 1965, British players Reese and Schapiro were caught using a finger code to communicate the number of hearts they held. Screens were introduced to prevent partners from seeing each other during bidding. Ten years later, a pair of Italian players were caught tapping each others feet. Tables are now blocked below as well, and in 2013 two German players were found to be communicating using coded coughs.
• The World Bridge Federation, among other organisations, is scrambling to investigate.
• Watch this space, or maybe not.

Illogical Play

Pairs can come under suspicion even when no signaling is detected - simply through illogical play.  “In bridge at the highest level,” it is said, “the best players play in a relentlessly logical fashion, so when something illogical happens, other good players notice it.  And if that illogical thing is consistently winning, suspicions can be aroused.”  Even variations in the speed of play, which to professionals has a particular pace and rhythm, can raise alarms.

Note: In some clubs illogical play is the norm, and any logical actions are viewed suspiciously.

Law 74 - Conduct and Etiquette

A. Proper Attitude

1. A player should maintain a courteous attitude at all times.
2. A player should carefully avoid any remark or action that might cause annoyance or embarrassment to another player or might interfere with the enjoyment of the game.
3. Every player should follow uniform and correct procedure in calling and playing.

B. Etiquette

As a matter of courtesy a player should refrain from:

1. paying insufficient attention to the game;
2. making gratuitous comments during the auction and play;
3. detaching a card before it is his turn to play;
4. prolonging play unnecessarily (as in playing on although he knows that all tricks are surely his) for the purpose of disconcerting an opponent;
5. summoning and addressing the Director in a manner discourteous to him or to other contestants.

C. Violation of Procedure

The following are examples of violation of procedure:

1. Using different designations for the same call.
2. Indicating approval or disapproval of a call or play.
3. Indicating the expectation or intention of winning or losing a trick that has not been completed.
4. Commenting or acting during the auction or play so as to call attention to a significant occurrence, or to the number of tricks still required for success.
5. Looking intently at any other player during the auction and play, or at another player's hand as for the purpose of seeing his cards or of observing the place from which he draws a card (but it is appropriate to act on information acquired by unintentionally seeing an opponent's card).
6. Showing an obvious lack of further interest in a deal (as by folding one's cards).
7. Varying the normal tempo of bidding or play for the purpose of disconcerting an opponent.
8. Leaving the table needlessly before the round is called.

Standard Acol includes weak 2-level responses to 1NT openers.

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Benjaminised Acol includes 2-level transfer responses to 1NT opening bids.

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