UP DATED November 15th

BRIDGE ETIQUETTE AND RULES

1. Once the bidding has begun, general conversation is not encouraged at the bridge table. All players need to understand that duplicate bridge is a very competitive game and thus each player needs to respect the rights of all other players. Before the first board begins exchange pleasantries with partner and the opponents. 

2. At no time should there be any discussion of the hands. Wait until the game is over

for post-mortems. Not only is it illegal to discuss hands in front of opponents, it is usually not in the best interest of a partnership effort. When North scores the result on the traveler then offers it for the others to see, there should be NO discussion of the results.

3. Keep your mannerisms and intonations consistent at all times. Neither partner nor the opponents are entitled to information gained from deviations in behavior or voice fluctuations. It takes a great deal of effort to master a uniform tempo of play and a steady voice level, but without them, the opponents obtain much more information that you need to give them.

4. Avoid hesitations by being consistently deliberate in your bidding and play. An

acquired habit of playing smoothly and evenly (even on very bad hands) will always give you

more time to think. Remember that a hesitation followed by a pass, places an extra burden on

partner as any bids by him or her must be very clear cut. Do not be upset if an opponent calls

the director to monitor the auction in this situation as it is the proper thing to do. Also develop

the habit of making skip bid warnings and be courteous of the opponents by honoring their

skip bid warnings.

5. Playing deliberately is not the same thing as "slow play". The latter comes about mostly because of bad habits such as

a) too much general conversation and waste of time,

b) not thinking about bridge when the opponents pause to think about bids or

plays,

c) wasting the other players' time by such things as entering on the convention card or

writing down the contract, before putting your hand down as dummy, and too

much time spent studying the traveler from the last board and discussing the

results among the players at the table. Remember that unduly slow play is

subject to penalty at the discretion of the director.

6. Any player, except the dummy, must call the director when law infractions,

hesitations, rude behavior, or problems of any kind occur. The director's responsibilities include handling all law and rule infractions as well as running a smooth and pleasant game. Directors try to be knowledgeable and impartial in applying bridge laws that are not generally known nor easily understood. It is also in your best interest as a bridge player to learn the basic bridge laws covering such things as dummy's rights and penalty cards as well as those concerning your responsibilities as a participant at the table.

7. There are certain table manners and rules that all bridge players should know. Some

of these are:

a) The cards should not be taken out of a board until all players are present. When

you have removed your hand, but before looking at the cards, count them to

ensure that you have exactly thirteen.

b) All players should have completed convention Card and those of

partners should match. The opponents should review each others' convention

cards for general approach before bidding or play begins. It is wise to look at

carding agreements related to defense and opening leads, no-trump ranges,

types and ranges of opening two-bids, and other non-alertable calls that may be

of importance.

c) It is inappropriate to grab an opponent's convention card during the auction

period. However, when it is your turn to call, you may ask to see a convention

card and may then ask any questions about alerts or the auction. Inquiries

concerning alerted calls can only be made at your opportunity to call or before

you have played to the first trick when play commences. Be careful about asking

about alerted calls during the auction as players have been known to become

confused or to forget their agreements; however, it is usually in your best

interest to know what is going on before you make a competitive call and before

play starts.

d) The North player is responsible for the proper observance of all procedures and for maintaining proper conditions of play at the table. For examples, North is

responsible for turning the boards and South, East, and West may not touch the

boards without North's permission. Nobody can reach under the top board to get

their hand from the next board.

e) After a board has been played, you may not remove someone's hand to look at it

f) When play commences, do not detach a card from your hand until it is your turn to play and you have decided to play that card. Do not pull up a card, push it

back into your hand, and then pull up another card. Nor should you detach a

card and then replace it to play another card. Also do not detach your card

before it is your turn to play and never rearrange your hand when you are out of

a suit. All of these maneuvers provide additional valuable information to the

declarer.

g) When you are on opening lead, detach a card from your hand and lay it face

down on the table. This prevents irregularities...such as leading when it is not

your turn to do so and allows questions about the auction and any alerts to be answered. All players, except dummy, may now request a review of the auction and an explanation of any alerted calls. You, as the opening leader, should ask before you make your faced lead. Other players may also ask for a review of the auction at their first opportunity to play.

h) As dummy you may not call the director. In fact, you may not call declarer's attention to anything except that he is about to lead from the wrong hand or to ask if he is out of the suit being played. As dummy you may not play or touch any card in dummy (even a singleton) until declarer calls the card. If declarer

designates a suit, but not the rank, he is deemed to have called for the lowest card of the suit indicated. If declarer designates a rank but not a suit, he is deemed to be continuing the suit in which dummy won the last trick.

8. In bridge as in other competitive endeavors it is extremely important to learn how to win and to learn how to lose. While it is acceptable in tennis or football to do "high fives" when completing a successful maneuver, it is not proper behavior at bridge. In fact, it is not even proper to commend partner for an extraordinarily good play or defense in front of the opponents. On the other hand, it is also poor behavior to berate partner when he or she plays less than perfectly. Likewise, it is not proper to chastise the opponents when a poor play turns out to be lucky or a good play provides you with a bad board.

9. And last, but certainly not least, ENJOY THE GAME

                            Never take life seriously. Nobody gets out alive anyway.

Hey....it is a seniors club eh!

----------------------
Christmas Dinner
Dec 14 Dinner and trophy Club championship Game 

At 

The Royal Inn

Game time 010:00

December 14th
The Inn has guaranteed us a great dinner

TLC CLUB
Mel's Cell 999-4168

                                       We had a partnership misunderstanding.
                             My partner assumed I knew what I was doing
                                                                (LP)

T L C CLUB
SPECIAL EVENT WINNERS

    June 2009

   CONGRATULATIONS     
TO

NEW CLUB CHAMPIONS

Ruth Jackson and Irene McDonald

T L C  HIGH SCORE FOR 2009 

Stan Shpiel & Mike Yanciw
Jan 9th

2220 7NT

 Beat this score before Dec 31st  2009 and you win a free game  

(2005 winners Isabelle Bain & Joan Smith)
(2006 winners Kris Mewar & Bernie Lefebvre)
(2007 Winners Becky Fayerman & Edith Ruzicska)
(2008 winners Jancie Cowley & Lloyd Pirzak)

Lunch break at TLC on a warm spring day
               

                     70 PERCENT CLUB 2003/’04/05/06/07/08/09