ANNOUNCING THE GRAND OPENING OF PRBA ONLINE PAIRS
PRBA is glad to announce the start of online tournaments starting tomorrow i.e. May 21, 2020. To begin with, we will be holding pairs events which will be restricted to PRBA members and will initially be free. However after the initial period of one week we will start charging a reasonable entry fee for these tournaments. Details of the quantum of the fees as well as the mode of payment are still being worked out. However we plan to hold these tournaments on a regular basis, similar to how we used to have back in the day when we had physical tournaments. However the general plan is to create a monthly subscription pass that will enable you to play in as many pairs tournaments as you want during your subscription period.
These tournaments will be conducted using the online bridge platform called BridgeBase (http://www.bridgebase.com). Thanks to the amazing efforts of Yogesh Abhyankar, most of our members are already familiar with using BBO. For the others, we will urge you to familiarize yourselves with it. The PRBA WhatsApp group is a great place to ask questions about this and to learn from other PRBA members.
Please see below for a list of questions which we anticipate you will have. If you have any questions not covered here, please drop a mail to pramodjoshi55@gmail.com
What is the entry fee?
For the first week we will not be charging any entry fees for these events. This will change once we have a proper payment mechanism in place
What type of events are you holding?
We are initially going to start with Matchpoint and IMP pairs events. This may change later on when we decide to add more types of events
How do I register for a pairs tournament?
In order to play in any pairs tournament you will first need to supply us with your bbo ids. A lot of you have already done this. We have put up our current database of PRBA member BBO ids on our website at https://www.bridgewebs.com/cgi-bin/bwon/bw.cgi?club=prba&pid=display_page21 (currently 188 members have supplied us with their BBO ids already). If you do not see your bbo id in that list or if your id in that list is incorrect, you will need to submit your bbo ids using https://www.bridgewebs.com/cgi-bin/bwon/bw.cgi?club=prba&pid=display_page22. Secondly, whenever we start charging entry fees, you will need to make sure that your monthly subscription is valid for the date of the tournament
How do I play in a PRBA pairs tournament?
In order to play in any particular tournament, you will just need to find a partner who is eligible to play in that tournament (i.e. he has a subscription that is valid for the day of the tournament). About 30 minutes before the scheduled start of the tournament on BBO, you and your partner will both need to log into BBO. One of you will need to locate the tournament (which will have a title that includes the word "PRBA" in the title) and register for the tournament. When you register for the tournament, BBO will ask you for the BBO id of your partner. You will now have to enter your partner's BBO id. If all goes well, your registration will be accepted. Then about eleven minutes before the start of your tournament you and your partner will both need to be logged into BBO. Be careful here since BBO automatically logs you out after a certain period of inactivity. Then at the scheduled time of the tournament, the tournament will start automatically. PLEASE BE WARNED THAT ONLY 80 PAIRS CAN PLAY IN A PAIRS EVENT. In other words, if you there are already eight pairs that have registered by the time you register, you will not be able to play. However if we see that this is a regular occurrence, we will start holding multiple events simultaneously. Please bear with us since we are still learning all this.
How frequently will the tournaments be held?
At present we are reasonably certain that we will hold two pairs tournaments per week on Thursdays and Sundays as we did in the old days. This will change over time
When will you start holding team events?
This is still being worked out.
Can I play with a non-PRBA member?
Unfortunately that is not possible. However we are planning to make exceptions for players from the non-metropolitan regions of Maharashtra (e.g. players from Sangli, Ratnagiri, Aurangabad etc.).
First tournament will be held on 21st May 2020. It will be a IMP pairs.
Who can answer other questions?
Contact pramodjoshi55@gmail.com
Please note that only email questions will be answered. Please do not call.
Thanking you.
Milind Bhadbhade
(president PRBA)
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