BRIDGE TIP FOR MARCH LIBRARY CORNER A takeout double by a passed hand shows 9-11 HCP with shortness in the opener’s suit. If the opponents have bid two suits, the double Due to the generosity of members and the Board of Directors, we now have over 500 books in our library collection. There are no limits as to the number of books or promises at least four-card support in the other two suits. the length of days (weeks/months) that members may have the books checked out. There are no fines for overdue books. Where else could you have access to such You hold: S. AJxx H. xx D. KJ10xx C. xx quality books with such freedom? There are some things that members could do to help insure that the collection remains intact and that money is not wasted by a South (you) West North East failure to keep up with books that are checked out. Please follow these guidelines when checking them out: Pass 1C Pass 1H Dbl. (Your double shows diamonds and spades. A 2D bid Sign the card—that means first and last names, not initials or nicknames or no name at all. (We currently have three books whose cards indicate might lose a spade fit. ) they were checked out in 2014. If that were true, they would have been declared lost over a year ago. Someone did not sign the card(s) when he/she took the book(s). Eddie Kantar Please put the complete date on the card—that means include the year (at www.kantarbridge.com least the last two digits of the current year). Not all of the cards indicate to do so, but putting your telephone number in the final column would be helpful. BRIDGE ETIQUETTE Some books have a sticker on them indicating they are to remain in the Remember that you should not discuss hands at the table and it is very library and not be checked out. There are only two or three that say this. Please honor this request. important to use very low tones when talking during the hands. When tables are close together it is very difficult to not overhear what is be- ing said at nearby tables. Also don’t ask questions like...have you The librarian would really appreciate your help in this effort! played the slam, did your table play the hand that had the 10 clubs in south, or even have you played board 15. This may lead to others reaching contracts that they might otherwise have missed. UNIT 206 CHIT CHAT Volume 7 Issue 3 Publication of ACBL Unit 206 March 2016 Email: [email protected] KITCHEN CHATS WITH DAN Well, the kitchen was closed for March. Dan went to Reno to play bridge in the Spring Nationals. Maybe in April’s newsletter he will tell us about his trip. In the meantime, since I failed to publish a February newsletter due to unforeseen circumstances, I will give you the letter for February. Hi everybody. Did you see or hear about our Non-Life Master Tournament? Having been assured by representatives of the ACBL that we would have 10 to 15 tables on average at each session and planning for this, we had forty tables on Friday afternoon, thirty-nine tables Saturday norning, twenty-four tables Friday morning, etc. Keith Honnold and Muggs Smith did an incredible job planning and executing the tournament with a host of volunteers. What Tyler Smith did with getting the word out about the tournament through the Internet was awe-inspiring. There were many problems which need to worked out, but I believe we proved that there is a huge pent up demand for non-life masters to gath- er and compete against just each other. You may have heard we lost a good deal of money for the weekend, and this is being addressed. No excuse, but it was primarily caused by not expecting the level of turnout. Again, thank you to all who showed up to play and to all those who showed to help and contribute in so many ways. As of today, Sunday February fourteenth (Happy St. Valentines’ Day!), we have 52 participants registered to attend Learn Bridge In A Day? next Saturday, February 20th. We may well reach our capacity of 60. Many of you have sub- mitted names of potential participants, many of you have volunteered to be table monitors for the event (currently we need six more). In any case, this involvement on behalf of the Unit and the Chattanooga Bridge Center is very rewarding. Thank you. Now all we have to do is pull it off. Wish Bill Adams, Teresa Moore, myself and all our volun- teers good luck. We really believe this may well be the future for bridge in out area. Talk to you next month. I continue to be amazed at all the support you are giving me and your Board. Dan Bridge is NOT Dead -- NLM Sectional an Overwhelming Success! For those of you who missed the NLM Sectional Tournament on January 29-31, 2016 you missed an un- forgettable event. The District 7 tournament advisors told the tournament committee to prepare for a maximum of 12-15 total tables of NLMers at any one of the 8 sessions that were planned over the 3 day event. The tournament committee prepared for twice that number. Little did we know the overall appeal that this kind of event would generate. Attendance blew the doors off! On Friday afternoon we had 40+ tables playing bridge at the same moment! The banquet hall was filled to the maximum with an overflow crowd that stretched not only into the adjoining foyer area, but all of the way down the hall to the entry area lobby at the main entrance of the hotel. In fact, the attendance was so great that is was necessary to divide the tournament into two groups and move one-half of the participants to a second location at the nearby Hilton Gardens Hotel. By 7:00 pm Friday night we had tournament events underway at both loca- tions at the same time. The primary goal of the tournament was to introduce newer bridge players to tournament competition (with players of similar ability) and in the process provide a realistic opportunity for them to go home with silver master points. We overwhelmingly obtained the desired result from the tournament. There were 203 different NLM players that participated in the event. Silver points were won by 171 of the 203 players. This was amazing! All in all we had 176.5 tables played during the 3 day event. It was truly an event to remember. Not enough good things can be said for the tournament directors and those who helped during the event. Countless life masters and others pitched in and helped in all facets of the event. I have never been prouder of our bridge people in Southeastern Tennessee. Thanks to each of you who helped make this event an overwhelming success. Each of you were indispensable in making that happen. We all learned from the experience at the NLM tournament. Discussions will be held in late March about the merits of holding the tournament again in 2017. If you have comments about the tournament, either good or bad, please send those to Dan Chandler or myself so that they can be taken into consideration in our planning for next year. Thanks, Keith Honnold and Muggs Smith, Tournament Co-Chairs The days are sunny, The skies are clear. OMG spring cleaning is near! We can't solve your window or dust problems, but we can help with the clutter. This June, in cooperation with The Longest Day, the CBC will sponsor a silent auction to raise funds for the Alzheimer's Association. Why not take ad- vantage of this opportunity to rid yourself guilt free of all those extras that are taking up space and collecting dust. That never-used electric knife, your turquoise handbag that doesn't match a thing or that singing tie that's just not you -- all these just might be someone else's treasures. Please bring your unused or lightly used donations to the Bridge Center. If something has a particular value, please leave a note. Questions should be directed to Sandy Cervantes at 423.315.1953 or [email protected]. This year, we are particularly lucky in that we will have some very special personal, hands-on offers generously donated by your fellow players. Stay tuned for more info. CHATTANOOGA SPECIAL GAMES Party Hosts/Hostesses Needed There are 4 parties planned for the next two months and we need a host for each party, who can then get a committee to help plan and serve the meal etc. The parties are: April 14 - Thursday morning - ACBL Charity Game. The club will pro- vide a free breakfast that includes all beverages. Breakfast at 9 AM and the game starts at 9:30. April 23 – Saturday – Pairs game and Pizza Party. The club will pro- vide all food and beverages. Lunch at 12:30 and the game starts at 1PM. May 1st – Sunday - May Day Party – Open Pairs Game. Fried Chicken and beverages provided by the club, bring a dish to share. Sign-up sheet at the club. Lunch at 1 PM, game at 1:30. May 5th - Thursday – Cinco de Mayo Party. Taco Bar and beverages provided by the club. Dinner at 6 PM game at 6:30. Please call Sue Shramko if you can host or help (825-5912) FEBRUARY HIGH GAMES FEBRUARY SPECIAL Open GAMES Myra Reneau/Larry Reneau 72.80% GNT NLM Larry Reneau/Myra Reneau Alison King/Tyler Smith 65.76% John Friedl/Kyle Weems 55 pts 99er GNT NLM Joyce Brennen/Katherine Jolly 75.83% Jim Snyder/Patricia Snyder 54 pts Linda McKinney/Beverly Richards Unauthorized Information Jack Gillispie 99% of bridge players understand what unauthorized information (UI) is and why it is un- ethical to draw inference from it.