The previous post discussed pairs duplicate bridge being a timed game and some courtesies that can help everyone play within the time constraints.
I’d like to discuss one of those in a little more detail as it is one of the ones that causes the most problems and is one of the most irritating for other players.
When discussing etiquette at the bridge table, the conversation eventually (usually) gets around to the subject of “Slow Play”. In general, bridge players don’t like sitting around twiddling their thumbs because a couple of slow tables are holding up the game.
In my last post, I mentioned that Barbara Seagram taught a session at our local bridge club. What I didn’t discuss was a significant aspect of this. Yes, it was teaching about bridge (defending against no trump contracts), but the other aspect is that Barbara, and others, are putting a significant effort into raising funds to help their fellow men. They are raising money to purchase water filters for the villages of Laos.
I have to be honest, I’d rather read The Bridge World than the Bridge Bulletin. That’s not because the latter is a bad magazine, but I’m simply not interested in who has won what Regional or National tournament, who has made Life Master or where the various tournaments are. The former happens to suit my bridge tastes, but it’s a bit pricey and I find I don’t always finish reading one month’s Bridge World before the next arrives.
I said the “Bulletin” isn’t bad. In fact, it usually has some quite interesting articles.