Ashby Bridge Club
Newsletter – March 2011
Membership
I am pleased to report that since the last newsletter there have been four more new members and so the club now has 104 members. At the request of the committee I presented Maggie Bennett with an Amaryllis in recognition of all the work she has done for the club over many years and continues to do for the club. We are very grateful.
Competitions
Winners of the club competitions so far this season are as follows:
Criddle Cup John Wilcox and Malcolm Dawson
Christmas Bridge Drive Andy Brown and Joan Benton
Jubilee Bowl Bill Ball and Dean Benton
RBL Cup Bill Ball
The leading scores in this season’s Stanley Trophy to the end of February are:
Joan Benton 32 points
Malcolm Dawson 29
Geoff Haywood 28
Pat Dunham 27
Don James 27
There are now only four pairs left in the Knockout Trophy. One semi-final will be Phil Holdsworth & Malcolm Dawson playing against Derek Steeple & Sheilagh Rumbelow. The other semi-final will be Derek Marshall & Kathleen Samuel playing against Robert Missenden & George Strang.
The remaining club competitions for the season are:
Captain’s Cup (Pairs, Handicap) Thursday 24 March
Charlie Hall Trophy (Individual) Thursday 28 April
The handicaps for the Captain’s Cup will be based on the average scores that players have achieved in all evening duplicate sessions since the last AGM. The handicap of a pair will be based on the higher average score. So if a pair consists of player A with an average score of 53% and player B with an average score of 51% the handicap will be -3% based on player A's performance (i.e. 50% - 53%).
If, for example, the pair consists of players with averages of, say, 48% and 43% the handicap willbe +2% based, again, on the higher average (i.e. 50% - 48%). The scores on the evening will be calculated in the usual way and then adjusted by the handicap to find the winning pair. Note that EBU master points and points towards the Stanley Trophy will be based on the scores before handicap adjustment.
There will be a simultaneous pairs event at the club on Monday 6 June. The table money for the evening will be the usual £1.50. The event is being organised by County Bridge Club, who are based in Leicester, to celebrate their 50th anniversary.
Teams
Since the last newsletter the results for the A team have been:
Loughborough University A drew 6-6
Blaby B lost 12-0
Grantham A won 7-5
Barkby won 7-5
Westcotes lost 7-5
The A team is currently in sixth place in Division 2 of the Leicestershire leagues with a game in hand over the two teams above.
Since the last newsletter the results for the B team have been:
Bradgate B lost 11-1
County E won 11-1
Grantham B lost 8-4
Glenfield C won 10-2
The B team is currently in third place in Division 5 of the Leicestershire leagues.
Website
There will be some changes being made to the website in the next couple of months that will allow it to be updated more easily.
Newsletter
As around 70% of members are on email the committee has decided that additional newsletters will be emailed to members on an ad hoc basis. The new e-newsletters, to becalled Reflections From the Table, will cover a variety of topics, e.g.tuition, discussion of hands that have been played at the club, rules and etiquette of bridge, etc. The current quarterly newsletter will continue to be emailed and posted to members.
Etiquette
Talking about etiquette, we have heard that some players have been uncomfortable with criticism made at the table during some duplicate sessions. We would remind members that people play for fun and enjoyment. Quoting from the Official Encyclopaedia of Bridge, “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”. I think we can pride ourselves on being a friendly club where people canr elax and enjoy themselves and I hope that that will continue to be true.
Timings
I would like to thank all those who responded to my email asking for their thoughts on when we should finish playing bridge on Monday and Thursday evenings. The majority view was that people would like to finish by 10 pm or shortly thereafter but that they thought this could be achieved by less slow play rather than by needing to play fewer boards. The committee has asked directors to be firmer in keeping us all playing at a reasonable speed.
However, it is the players not the directors who cause slow play. A couple of suggestions were made that would speed up play. Firstly, members should be ready to play by 6.55 pm to allow a prompt start. Secondly, players should not discuss hands until after the last board has been played at a table and then only if the players at that table are waiting for players at other tables to finish.
The start time for Wednesday afternoons is confirmed as 1.15 pm and this time is now shown on the website.
AGM
The date for the AGM is Monday 11 July at 7pm. The AGM will be followed by duplicate bridge (no partner required).
Master Point Promotions
Since the last newsletter the following MasterPoint Promotions have been announced by the EBU:
Maggie Bennett AreaMaster
Dean Benton AreaMaster
Andy Brown Area Master
Mary Danaher ClubMaster
David Parsons ClubMaster
Mike Coke LocalMaster
Ann Potterton LocalMaster
Our congratulations go to all of the above.
Host System
The host system for Monday nights is working very well. However, we still need a regular supply of volunteers. If you haven’t been host for a little while please put your name down on the sheet on the club noticeboard.
George Strang
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