R E N O PRE-BULLETIN Reno 2004 Spring North American Bridge Championships • March 18–28 The 47th Spring North American Bridge Championships

Welcome to the 2004 Spring North American Bridge Championships in Reno NV. Here’s a look at tournament events and activities taking place Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. All events will be played at the Reno Hilton. *Unless otherwise noted, strat breaks for Stratified Open and Stratified Senior events are: A (1500+), B (500–1500), C (0–500). **Members whose dues payment is current and Life Masters whose service fee payment is current. Wednesday, March 17, 1 & 7:30 p.m. Event Session Sold /player/session ACBL members** Other Baldwin , Flight A 1–2Q Tahoe Ballroom $16.50 Pre-qualification required; continues Thursday. Thursday, March 18, 1 p.m. International Fund Game single Tahoe Ballroom $14 $16 Thursday, March 18, 1 & 7:30 p.m. Baldwin North American Pairs, Flight A 1–2F Tahoe Ballroom $16.50 Thursday, March 18, 7:30 p.m. ACBL Educational Foundation Bracketed KO Teams 1st Hilton Pavilion $20 Educational Foundation Stratified Open Pairs* single Hilton Pavilion $20 Educational Foundation Stratified 299er Pairs single Hilton Pavilion $20 Friday, March 19, 9 a.m. ACBL Educational Foundation Bracketed KO Teams 2nd Hilton Pavilion $14 $16 Morning Side Game Series I* 1st single session Hilton Pavilion $14 $16 Stratified 299er Pairs single Hilton Pavilion $13 $15 Friday, March 19, 10 a.m. & 3 p.m. Peg Slocum Stratified Senior Pairs* 1–2 Crystal Ballroom $14 $16 Friday, March 19, 1 & 7:30 p.m. I 1–2 Q Reno Ballroom $16.50 2 qualifying sessions, 2 final sessions Stratified Open Pairs* 1–2 Hilton Pavilion $14 $16 Bracketed KO Teams I (Continues Saturday) 1–2 Hilton Pavilion $14 $16 Friday–Saturday Side Game Series* 1st single session Hilton Pavilion $14 $16 299er, 199er, 99er, 49er Pairs single Carson Ballroom $13 $15 0–20 Pairs single Carson Ballroom $13 $13 0–5 Pairs single Carson Ballroom Free! Free! Friday, March 19, 7:30 p.m. Event Session Sold Entry/player/session ACBL members** Other Friday–Saturday Side Game Series* 2nd single session Hilton Pavilion $14 $16 One-session Swiss Teams* single Hilton Pavilion $13 $15 Stratified 299er Swiss Teams single Carson Ballroom $13 $15 299er, 199er, 99er, 49er Pairs single Carson Ballroom $13 $15 0–20 Pairs single Carson Ballroom $13 $13 0–5 Pairs single Carson Ballroom Free! Free! Friday, March 19, 11:30 p.m. Zip Swiss Teams single Carson Ballroom $13 $15

Note: Entry for the Vanderbilt Knockout Teams required by 8 p.m. Saturday.

Defending champions, Spring North American Bridge Championships Vanderbilt Knockout Teams ...... Nick Nickell, Richard Freeman, Jeff Meckstroth, Eric Rodwell, Bob Hamman, Paul Soloway ...... Peter Bertheau, Fredrik Nystrom, Fulvio Fantoni, Claudia Nunes, Christal Henner–Welland, Fred Gitelman Machlin Women’s Swiss Teams ...... Valerie Westheimer, Judi Radin, Mildred Breed, Shawn Quinn Baldwin North American Pairs, Flight A ...... Steve Landen, Michael Zerbini Golder North American Pairs, Flight B ...... Jordan Chodorow, Harvey Katz President’s Cup North American Pairs, Flight C ...... John Christensen, Robert Wissman Silodor Open Pairs I ...... Ralph Katz, Michael Rosenberg Werner Open Pairs II...... Eric Greco, Geoff Hampson ...... Jim Kirkham, Corinne Kirkham Whitehead Women’s Pairs ...... Joan Eaton, Candace Griffey Leventritt Silver Ribbon Pairs ...... Roger Lord, Alan Popkin Bean Red Ribbon Pairs ...... Bin Dai, Chi-Yen Lai NABC 49er Pairs...... Paul Weintraub, Marilyn Weintraub Mott-Smith Trophy ...... Geoff Hampson Entries All North American championships with no upper masterpoint limitation $16.50 (Note: only ACBL members are eligible to play in NABC+ events.) Other North American championships $15 (Note: only ACBL members are eligible to play in these events.) Regional championships $14 for ACBL members, $16 for all others All other events $13 for ACBL members, $15 for all others. reminder Each player is required to have a convention card filled out legibly and on the table throughout a session. Both cards of a partnership must be identical and include the first and last names of each member of the partnership. If a director determines that neither player has a substantially completed card, the partnership may play only the Yellow Card and may use only standard carding. This restriction may be lifted only at the beginning of a subsequent round after convention cards have been properly prepared and approved by the director. Further, the partnership will receive a 1/6 matchpoint penalty for each board played, commencing with the next round and continuing until the restriction is lifted. In IMP team games, penalties shall be at the discretion of the director. If the director determines the partnership has at least one substantially completed convention card but has not fully complied with ACBL regulations, the director may give warnings or assign such penalties as he deems to be appropriate under the circumstances. Special Events Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday – March 16, 17, 18 Club Director Course — Priscilla Smith Comprehensive course that prepares candidates for directing club and bridge cruise games. Anyone interested in becoming a club director or a director aboard a cruise ship is invited to participate. Registration includes instruction, study materials and the exam. Fee: Registration at the door is $100. Time: 1–10 p.m. Tuesday with dinner break 9 a.m.–10 p.m. Wednesday with lunch and dinner breaks 9 a.m.– noon Thursday followed by lunch break and testing Location: Carson 1 & Carson 2 Thursday, Friday – March 18, 19 Teacher Accreditation Program (TAP) — Peg Cundiff The ACBL’s popular 10-hour seminar for people interested in learning how to teach bridge successfully. The course features teaching techniques and course materials developed by Audrey Grant, but the teaching techniques can be used with any materials. Fee: $125. Time: 1–5 p.m. and 7–10 p.m. Thursday 9 a.m.–noon Friday Location: Teton 1 and 2 Friday, March 19 School Bridge Lesson Program Join Charlotte Blaiss, Director of Junior Activities, and Julie Greenberg, Director of Education, for an informative session on teaching in the schools and the school program funded by the ACBL and the ACBL Educational Foundation. Kitty Cooper will demonstrate the new lesson plans for school classes. Fee: Free of charge. Time: 10 a.m.–noon Location: Whitney

Reception for Teachers and Club Officials This is the ACBL’s “thank you” reception for the teachers and club officials who work so hard to recruit and retain our members. All teachers — Accredited, Registered, Easybridge!, Certified — are welcome, along with club directors, managers and owners. Free of charge. Time: 5–7 p.m. Location: Ruby 1 and 2

Monitoring At this and future North American Championships, ACBL will be monitoring NABC+ events with visible, real-time cameras. The images will be recorded and will be available for later official inspection and review. By general monitoring of the session and participants’ behavior, ACBL has another source of information that may be useful in determining facts and settling issues arising from some types of ethical and behavioral complaints or actions. This procedure is intended to assure everyone that the playing field is level and that misbe- havior will not be tolerated. Slow play: the curse of the game Patty Johnson, Sebring FL, is a National Tournament have to worry about forgetting a particular holding. Director and the Director-in-Charge for all District 9 Second: if you are on , make your lead (Florida) tournaments. before recording the contract in your private score. You An old tournament director friend of mine, John will have plenty of time after leading to record the infor- “Spider” Harris, was famous for the saying: “Slow play is mation and still see the entire first trick. the curse of the game.” Nothing is more frustrating for Third: unless you have a legitimate reason to leave the tournament directors than having to herd players along like table, such as the restroom or a smoke break, please cattle when slow play isn’t actually the problem. remain at the table and visit with your opponents. You If you take a moment to think about it, most of your might actually find this enjoyable and a new way to make opponents do not take that long to bid or play a deal — yet friends or future Swiss team partnerships. before you know it, the round is being called and you are I wish we could make these suggestions into rules nowhere near finished with the last board. By enforceable by penalty but none of us wants a bridge event Here are some suggestions which, if Patty Johnson decided by the pair with the fewest penalties. All I can do followed, would solve many of our problems. as a director is to ask the cooperation and help of all First: do not post mortem between deals whether you players because I think not only you but everyone else will are in a pair game or a Swiss team event. Finish the round enjoy their tournaments more. and then discuss hands if there is still time. We, as directors, Remember: those who enjoy a tournament will contin- will not cut your time but I think you will find yourselves ue to play. Do your part to make bridge enjoyable for under less pressure by following this suggestion. Remem- yourself, your partner and your opponents – you can’t play ber: we provide hand records in pair games so you don’t without them. Zero Tolerance The ACBL Board of Directors – citing a commitment to “improving acceptable player behavior at all times” – has adopted Zero Tolerance as ACBL policy. Commendable behavior includes (but is not limited to): •Being a good “host” or “guest” at the table. •Greeting others in a friendly manner. • Praising the bidding and/or play of the opponents. •Having two clearly completed convention cards readily available to the opponents. This is also a regulation. Unacceptable behavior includes (but is not limited to): •Badgering, rudeness, insinuations, intimidation, profanity, threats or violence. •Negative comments concerning opponents’ or partner’s play or bidding. •Gloating over good results. •Constant and gratuitous lessons and analyses at the table. • Loud and disruptive arguing with a director’s ruling. If you experience someone exhibiting discourteous behavior or being other than civil, please call a tournament director immediately. If you feel that there was a very serious breech of discipline, in addition to the resolution by the tournament director at the table, please discuss the problem directly with the Director-in-Charge of the tournament. Should it become necessary to call a tournament director, you may simply state: “This player is interfering with my enjoyment of the game.” The director will then attempt to determine the facts. If he establishes there was unacceptable behavior, an immediate 1/4-board disciplinary penalty (3 IMPs in team games) shall be assigned to all offenders. This may involve any one or all four players at the table, regardless of who initiated the unacceptable behavior. If both members of a partnership are guilty, the penalties are cumulative (1/4 board each = 1/2 board or 3 IMPs each = 6 IMPs). If it is determined that a second offense has occurred in the same event, the offender(s) shall be ejected from future competition in that event. An offender removed from an event shall be deemed not to have played in the event, no master- points will be awarded and no refunds will be made. In the case of a serious offense and in the case of multiple offenses (three) during a tournament, a disciplinary committee may determine whether the offender(s) should be allowed to play in other events at the tournament and/or whether additional sanctions may be appropriate. While the director may issue a warning, directors are strongly encouraged to give penalties and a warning should be given only when there is no clear violation, where the facts cannot be clearly determined or there are mitigating circum- stances. Offenders should receive an immediate penalty. Regardless of who may have initiated unacceptable behavior, all offenses are punishable. Retaliatory behavior is a punishable offense. Frivolous accusations will also be considered as offenses under this policy.