Posted 2008-April-21, 05:20
You are supposed to enjoy yourself playing bridge. That means your opponents should always be polite and helpful - and you should equally be polite to them. It may help to explain at the start of each round that you are new to duplicate so opponents won't be surprised if you need help with scoring/moving boards etc.
You will probably find lots of people tell you that you are or aren't allowed to do various things. As bridge players are all sorts, some of these will be genuinely trying to be friendly and helpful, some people may appear impolite, nasty or aggressive. Remember, rudeness and aggression are their problem, not yours. Either way, there is only ONE person who can tell you what you can and can't do, and that is the Tournament Director. He (or she) is there to make sure the evening runs smoothly and the laws are followed correctly. If you have any questions, ask the TD. If the opponents call the TD, don't worry: you aren't being accused of anything - he is there to help. If you make an insufficient bid, or revoke, or bid out of turn, or drop your cards face up on the table, don't worry - it happens to everyone at some time or other. But don't let your opponents tell you what to do - that is the director's job. Just say "oh dear, I'd better call the director", put your hand up in the air and say loudly "Director Please!"
If your opponents start telling you "you aren't allowed to bid 3S because partner hesitated", or "you should have alerted that, we should get an average+ on the board" then you should smile sweetly, say "thank you for telling me, but if you aren't happy with this hand, I think we should call the director?". If the opponents start giving you advice after the end of the round (such as "it didn't make any different, but you really should have announced that bid") then smile sweetly, thank them for telling you... and check later with the director to see if they were right.
If the TD does change the score on a board you have played, he should explain why. If you don't understand, ask him to explain. The laws are complicated - if you get your nice score taken away from you, it doesn't mean you are being accused of cheating. However, if you don't agree, don't argue with the TD at length but remember that you are entitled to appeal any ruling - that is, ask for someone else to look at it. Although that is very definitely your legal right, it may make you a little unpopular at a club game. It shouldn't do, but sadly that's the reality.
By the way, TDs are not always perfect. Just as the referee may miss an obvious penalty, sometimes the TD may tell you the wrong thing, or rule wrongly. Don't argue with them at the time - find someone knowledgeable to ask afterwards. And remember, it's only a game!
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As you play more duplicate, you will start to come across horrible things called 'Misinformation' and 'Unauthorised Information'. The Laws surrounding these are quite complicated and if you are interested in how they work you can try going on a TD's course, or reading about rulings. However, in order to have an enjoyable evening's bridge without breaking the Laws, remember that:
- If you or partner forget to alert something, or partner explains your bid wrong, then tell the opponents
----before the opening lead if your side is declaring
----at the end of the hand if your side is defending
If they start saying anything like "oh in that case I would have done something else" remember - call the TD, don't try and sort it out at the table.
Similarly, if it looks as if your opponents have mis-explained what their bids meant, then call the TD as soon as you find out (when dummy hits, or at the end of the hand). The TD will tell you what to do.
- Pretend you can't hear or see your partner, you only know the calls they make and the cards they play. If your partner says something or looks upset or explains your bid as meaning something totally different or bids very very slowly letting you know he wasn't sure what to do or plays a card very slowly (or very quickly) - ignore all of that. You think you are playing the standard strong NT and open 1NT with a 15-count - but your partner says "12-14": pretend you didn't hear him. If he raises to 2NT, you must pass - you have a minimum for your strong NT. You should always assume partner has understood you correctly. (Before dummy hits, you may need to tell the opponents something as described above).
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