 Free Plays |
Free plays for high scores: Effective 2013 January 1, instead of free plays for section winners, we’ll give free plays to players in each stratum who achieve high scores. The qualifying scores are:
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stratum A |
stratum B |
stratum C |
| pairs (matchpoints) |
≥70.00% |
≥65.00% |
≥60.00% |
| teams (victory points) |
≥70 VPs |
≥60 VPs |
≥50 VPs |
Free plays for work: In some games, we’ll give free plays for doing one or more of three jobs:
- preparing snacks
- cleaning up the kitchen and snack table
- cleaning up the playing area and bathrooms
Please speak to Tim if you’re interested.
Free plays for frequent players: At the end of each calendar month, everyone who played ten sessions or more will receive a free play.
Free play tickets are kept in a box on the bookshelf near the clock.
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| Stratification |
All of our games are stratified. This gives you an opportunity to play against players of all levels—from newcomers to the best in New England—while simultaneously competing for masterpoints with players whose experience is comparable to yours.
The field is divided into three strata by masterpoint holdings. Masterpoints are awarded to the top 40% of each stratum and are based on the number of pairs who are in that stratum or a lower stratum. Players in lower strata are eligible for awards in higher strata (if they qualify for multiple awards, they receive the largest one).
Stratification in our games is usually “at the director’s discretion” and based on each pair’s average masterpoints. The director’s goals include:
- put about ⅓ of the field in each stratum
- set the upper limit for the lowest stratum as low as possible
- put at least three or four pairs in the lowest stratum (with four, five, or six pairs in the lowest stratum, the top two get masterpoints; with three pairs, the top one gets masterpoints; with one or two pairs, there are no masterpoints for the lowest stratum)
- put pairs with similar masterpoint averages in the same stratum
(In some special games, including Unit-wide and Sectional Tournament at Clubs games, the stratification is predetermined and based on whichever member of a pair has more masterpoints rather than on the average for the pair.)
When selling the game, the director uses an estimate of the strata limits to divide the strata as evenly as possible among sections and directions. The final stratification may vary from the estimate based on the actual distribution of masterpoint holdings.
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| Pace of Play |
Much as we’d all like to go at our own pace, the nature of duplicate bridge requires that everyone maintain the same pace.
For open daytime games, the clock will be set to seven minutes per board plus one minute per round. Normally you should finish a round before the clock reaches zero, leaving a little time to relax, chat, snack, etc., before the next round is scheduled to start.
You may not start a board with two minutes or less remaining on the clock without permission from the director.
You will be allowed one late play (please don’t overuse this privilege). If you don’t play a late play, your score will be "No Play" (in effect, the same percentage you earned on the boards that you did play). If you already have a late play and lose another board, your score will be "No Play." If you lose a third board, your score will be "Average Minus."
For open evening games, we’d like to pick up the pace by about one minute per board so we can finish 24 boards before 10:00 on Monday and Wednesday evenings and finish 26 or 27 boards by about 10:15 on Friday evenings.
Everyone can see the clock. Everyone is responsible for keeping up. If you fall behind (even if it’s “not your fault”), then you’re responsible for catching up. Please postpone conversations, postmortems, traveler review, snacking, etc., and make your mistakes faster until you’ve caught up.
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| Snow |
| If we cancel a game due to weather, we will put a notice on our home page and a message on our answering machine at least two hours before game time.
Often we do not cancel when bad weather is likely. Please make your own informed decision about whether it is safe for you to travel to and from the game. The latest National Weather Service forecast for Westwood may help: text forecast, hourly graphical forecast.
Our cancellation decision is independent of the Westwood schools. |
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