GD Week 3 – Announcing & Alerting: why, who and when?

The Why? and Who? are simple enough, but the When? takes a bit of getting used to …

Why? We announce/alert for the benefit of our opponents, who are entitled to know what all our bids mean – if a partnership had bids with ‘secret’ meanings, this would clearly be unfair.

Who? If I make a bid, my partner announces/alerts. (If I did it myself, I’d be tipping off partner as well as my opponents – which would be ‘unauthorised information’, of which much more anon.)

Click here to read on

Paignton 2019 – Filling up nicely

We're up to EIGHT TABLES already, and the aim is to get to at least TEN.

All of our different Bath BC sessions are represented by those signed up so far, so whatever your level you're very welcome.

PARTNERS NOT REQUIRED   You can come with or without a partner – a partnering service is provided

NON-PLAYING PARTNERS WELCOME   Quite a few are already coming – the more the merrier

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Whether you'll be celebrating Brexit on 1 November or trying to forget it, Paignton's the place to be.

For further details and to sign up, click here. 

If you'd like to enter a team (4-6 players) for the upcoming NICKO tournament, please sign up on the form on the club notice-board (preferred) or email the club with names and EBU numbers. The closing date for entries is 16th September.

For guidance as to the suitability of your team for this competition, please contact Richard Samter (email richardsamter@virginmedia.co.uk). As in past years, successful entrants will have their entry fee paid by the club.

If you've not played in the NICKO before, read on ...

The National Inter-Club Knock Out – or, more familiarly, NICKO – is probably the most popular of all tournaments, with around 300 teams entering annually. The NICKO is open to all affiliated EBU bridge clubs and each club can enter an unlimited number of teams. 

The early rounds are of 24 boards, increasing to 32 boards for the quarter finals and semifinals and 48 boards for the final, with the draw regionalised to reduce travelling.

The home team hosts the match, usually at someone's house or (by arrangement) at the club, and provides refreshments at half time. 

There is also a Plate competition, which is open to all unseeded teams defeated in their first match of the main event, so each team is guaranteed to play in at least two matches.

For further information from the EBU website, click here.

We had such a good time last year we're going to do it again ...

Friday 1st – Sunday 3rd November 2019

This is an opportunity for players at all levels to come together for a relaxing (and none too taxing) weekend of bridge in very pleasant surroundings with experienced bridge hosts Christine and Stuart MacFarlane.

Players can attend with or without a bridge partner – and non-bridge-playing partners are also welcome. On Saturday, bridge begins at 4 pm, allowing guests time for a daytime excursion such as a trip on the Dartmouth Steam Railway.

As in past years, this promises to be a very enjoyable weekend and excellent value for money.

Click here for more details and online booking form.

There will be a road closure on North Road between the Hadley Arms and Foxhill from 29 July – 30 August. Diversions will be in place.

For more information, click here.

Most of us know (at least roughly) our rank as determined by the masterpoints we've accumulated. But do you know your NGS ranking?

The National Grading Scheme provides a picture of your current skill level and offers a mine of information about how well you (and your partners) are doing. 

As well as being a handy and accurate measure of your progress (especially if you're an up-and-coming 'improver'), the NGS will be the basis of our upcoming switch to 'stratification' scoring in our Gentle Duplicate sessions on Thursday morning, so it's well worth knowing what it's all about.

To find out how it works – and how to tap the information it provides – click here.

As we're an EBU club, we use the EBU Blue Book to determine which bidding systems and conventions we are permitted to use.

For most of our sessions, we comply with Level 4, which allows most systems/conventions that most players are likely to be familiar with.

For our Thursday morning Gentle Duplicate and Monday evening Assisted Play, however, we are limited to Level 2, which limits players to fairly simply bidding systems and common conventions: Stayman, transfers and Blackwood are all fine.

If you're not sure about the suitability of any parts of your system, ask any experienced Club Director for guidance. Alternatively, click here for a link to the Blue Book on the EBU website.

What to do if this issue comes up at the table? See our guidance in Doing things right ... (you can find this via Articles in the menu, left).

What level is right for me?

With the growing choice of daytime and evening sessions now available at Bath BC, newer members and visitors may not be sure which options best suit their level of ability and experience.

If you're in doubt, click here to consult our Guide to levels. (It's also available via the menu, left.)

And, of course, feel free to consult any committee member if you need further advice.