Pasadena Bridge Club Logo <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com>
News from
N Fair Oaks
Mojo
ABTA Master Teacher
649 N Fair Oaks Ave #201
Pasadena CA 91103
(626) 247-4457
pasadenabridgeclub.com <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com>
Fall turns out to be beautiful at the Pasadena Bridge Club. The morning
and afternoon sunlight on Mt. Wilson is just grand.
Drop by for Office Hours
For those newly discovering the fascination of bridge, there's no
substitute for playing. Playing the game helps develop your "bridge
muscles." Your brain starts to recognize the patterns of the cards and
internalize them.
So Zach and I are *opening the bridge club on Monday and Tuesday
afternoons*, from 3:00 to 5:00 PM, for casual bridge. There's no charge,
just drop by and play. We can't guarantee there will be /n/ players,
where /n/ ≡ 0 (mod 4), but we've already had lots of bridge played in
our first week.
Sure you can play online, with robots, or the typical rude internet
people, but why not grab a tamale at Vallarta and play some cards with
friendly people? 🙂
Free Pizza, Thursday Open Pairs
Every Thursday at 11:00 join us for 24 or so hands of bridge. For
October, I'm getting pizza from Blaze downstairs. (The pizza has been
getting good reviews!)
Let's have a special game this Thursday. I've earned another *Upgraded
Club Championship* from ACBL for recruiting members. Let's use it this
Thursday. /Lots/ of extra black points.
In fact, since next week is the Instant Matchpoint Game on Wednesday,
we'll have a *Club Championship on Wednesday* as well (but no free
pizza!). It's Club Appreciation Month.
Intro to Declarer Play
Saturday mornings starting October 28, at 9:30, join us for six weeks
focused on play of the hand as declarer.
I'm trying something new this time. My text will be the wonderful
classic by Eddie Kantar, /Introduction to Declarer Play,/ 2nd edition,
updated in 2019.
I have great hands to play. We'll spend three weeks playing notrump, and
three weeks playing suit contracts. No bidding required. It should be an
ideal course for brand new bridge players, or those who just want to
brush up their card play.
Sign up for the full course here
<https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/contact/course_enrollment>.
Classes This Week
Individual classes are available to join for $25. No need to sign up for
a full course. Here are the topics this week:
* Wednesday, 7:00 PM, /Improving Your Judgment - Doubles/ "Balancing
and other doubles"
* Thursday, 7:00 PM, /Bridge Basics 2 - Competitive Bidding/ "Simple
overcalls and advances"
* Saturday, 9:30 AM /Bridge Basics 3 - Popular Conventions/ "Practice
hands"
New on the YouTube channel: The Dangerous Opponent
<https://youtu.be/Y7guU6kSK5s>
Saturday afternoon workshop (1:00 PM), we've spent a few weeks on
declarer play, let's do some basic bidding topics: "*Opener's Rebid:
Balanced Opening Hands*"
About that Saturday 9:30 class — how often do you get to practice
Stayman, Jacoby, strong opening hands, and slam bidding all at once?
Here's your chance. 🙂
Next week, Instant Matchpoint Game
Make plans to play in the Open Pairs on *Wednesday, October 25*, for a
very special annual event, the Instant Matchpoint Game. After the game,
everyone receives a booklet that has expert analysis for every hand.
There's even *one full gold masterpoin*t to be had by winning your
section at the game.
Also, the *Sunday Unit Game* is October 22, 12:30 PM, at the *Arcadia
Bridge Center*. Drop me a note to be added to the reservation list.
Best regards,
Mojo, Jane, Zachary
Pasadena Bridge Club Logo <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com>
News from
N Fair Oaks
Mojo
ABTA Master Teacher
649 N Fair Oaks Ave #201
Pasadena CA 91103
(626) 247-4457
pasadenabridgeclub.com <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com>
One of the advantages of our great location in Fair Oaks Renaissance
Plaza is the security. Our property management provides a security guard
from early morning 'til very late.
You might have noticed they like to perch just outside the club's main
door — for good reason! From there they have a bird's-eye view of the
whole parking area.
I'm grateful to have them on duty, and lucky to have them nearby.
They've been very helpful during our big events! If you see Jesus or
Gabriel, give them your appreciation.
Club Championship Week
October is "club appreciation month" for the ACBL. We get to have two
weeks of club championship games. The masterpoint awards are big, with
overall awards as well as section awards.
Come out to play this week and try for more black points! All games this
week will be club championships: Tuesday evening, Wednesday and Thursday
mornings, and Saturday afternoon.
Bridge Basics 2 Starts Thursday
This is the second course in the Bridge Basics series, but even folks
who've been playing for years will find precious gems in this course to
improve their results.
*Competitive bidding* is one of the most exciting aspects of the game.
In this course we'll discuss how to interfere with the opponents and
work toward our best score.
A theme throughout the course is preemptive bids — making safe
high-level bids when our side has a big suit fit, but not much high-card
strength. You'll also learn how to use cue bids to show support and
strength for partner's suit.
Classes meet for six Thursday evenings at 7:00. Click here to sign up!
<https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/contact/course_enrollment>
Classes This Week
Individual classes are available to join for $25. No need to sign up for
a full course. Here are the topics this week:
* Wednesday, 7:00 PM, /Improving Your Judgment - Doubles/ "Rebids by
doubler"
* Thursday, 7:00 PM, /Bridge Basics 2 - Competitive Bidding/
"Preemptive opening bids"
* Saturday, 9:30 AM /Bridge Basics 3 - Popular Conventions/ "Practice
hands"
New on the YouTube channel: Declarer's Hold Up Play
<https://youtu.be/NwTneOOrig4?feature=shared>
Saturday afternoon workshop (1:00 PM): "*What are matchpoints?*" Let's
look at results from a matchpoint pairs game and see how the ranking is
actually determined. (Notice I said /matchpoints/ and not masterpoints.
Very different things!)
About that Saturday morning class — how often do you get to practice
Stayman, Jacoby, strong opening hands, and slam bidding all at once?
Office Hours
Starting today Zach is opening the bridge club on Mondays and Tuesdays
at 3:00 for no better reason than to play cards with friends old and new.
Casual bridge for fun, no gambling please! 😇 (Or heck, if you want,
take out the backgammon or mah jongg set.)
Coming up ...
In December the club is hosting a two-day workshop to train teachers in
Audrey Grant's Better Bridge program. Bridge needs teachers! Learn all
about it here <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/better-bridge-tap>.
Best regards,
Mojo, Jane, Zachary
Pasadena Bridge Club Logo <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com>
Learn and Play Bridge!
Mojo
ABTA Master Teacher
649 N Fair Oaks Ave #201
Pasadena CA 91103
(626) 247-4457
pasadenabridgeclub.com <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com>
"We need to give people more opportunities to just play bridge," my
partner Zachary said to me the other day.
"Nothing takes the place of playing cards as much as you can."
And then he made a remarkable offer. "Let's open the bridge club on
Monday and Tuesday afternoons, 3:00-5:00 PM, for anyone and everyone to
come in and play bridge. Nothing formal, just spend some time with the
game. I'll be here."
He didn't need to offer twice!
No card fee for now, just come and play bridge. The more who come the
better, of course. We always want to have a full table if we can!
Jane suggested that it would be a great time to meet potential partners,
or to bring a regular partner to try things and work out agreements.
Let me know if you'd like to come, or if you'd just like to get
reminders of our bridge "office hours."
Great courses starting next
Bridge Basics 2 - Competitive Bidding
This is the second course in the Bridge Basics series. We discuss how
the auction changes when both sides get into the bidding.
If you're already playing regularly, this course will definitely level
up your game!
* Starts Thursday, October 12, 7:00-9:00 PM, six weeks
* Full course description here
<https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/course/competitive-bidding>
* $115 includes textbook
* Sign up for class here
<https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/contact/course_enrollment>
Intro to Declarer Play
For "play of the hand" class, I'm switching to a favorite book,
/Introduction to Declarer Play/ by Edwin Kantar, 2nd Edition, edited by
Barbara Seagram.
The book is a classic, fully updated, and fantastically easy to read.
Like the book, the first three classes will be notrump play, and the
second three suit contract play. I'm looking forward to a great fun course!
* Starts Saturday, October 28, 9:30-11:30 AM, six weeks
* Full course description here
<https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/course/intro-to-declarer-play>
* $115 includes textbook
* Sign up for class here
<https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/contact/course_enrollment>
Two Over One Game Force
Two Over One Game Force (2/1GF) is the modern bidding system based on
Standard American 5-card Majors with a slight tweak.
The adjustment makes it easier to find slams, or a better game contract,
by giving the partnership more room on the bidding ladder.
While 2/1GF is only slightly different from Standard American, it does
come with its own idioms to become familiar with.
Along with bidding, the course has dynamite hands to play and defend.
Highly recommended for club and tournament players!
* Starts Wednesday, November 8, 7:00-9:00 PM, six weeks
* Full course description here
<https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/course/two_over_one_game_force>
* $125 includes textbook
* Sign up for class here
<https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/contact/course_enrollment>
Next Bridge Introduction
The next series of /Bridge Basics 1 - Introduction/ will be on Wednesday
evenings, starting January 10. Look for it in the PCC Extension catalog
landing in your mailbox sometime in early December.
Best regards,
Mojo
Pasadena Bridge Club Logo <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com>
News from
N Fair Oaks
Mojo
ABTA Master Teacher
649 N Fair Oaks Ave #201
Pasadena CA 91103
(626) 247-4457
pasadenabridgeclub.com <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com>
We had a great busy day on Sunday!
For the North American Pairs District Final we had seven tables each in
Flight A and B, and five tables in Flight C. Everyone found something
good for lunch. (Sushi from Vallarta Market? Yes!)
Special thanks to Stephen Licker, Robert Jennings, Ron Lu, and Toban for
spending some time at the club and helping out with the event.
Thursday Open Game Starts
October 5, 11:00 AM, Open Pairs, 24 boards, and free pizza lunch this
Thursday! We'll take a short break at 12:00 for pizza. Drop me a note to
reserve a seat.
Bridge Scoring Notation
"What is the airspeed velocity of an unladen swallow?"
"What do you mean? African or European swallow?"
"I don't know that! Aaaauughhh!" -- the Troll from /Monty Python In
Search of the Holy Grail/.
In the US, since I started playing and recording scores with a pencil on
a traveler, we always referred to the result of a contract by either how
many tricks it made, or how many tricks it went down.
For instance: 3SN+5 (three spades by north making five).
For manually computing the score, this provides a mental shortcut. I
could compute the trick score: 5 x 30 = 150 plus the partscore bonus for
200 total.
But in Europe, and I suppose most of the rest of the world, that score
would be noted as 3SN+2. Mentally I would have a tiny extra step ((3+2)*30).
If there were no overtricks, it would be noted as 3SN=, rather than the
American form, 3SN+3.
For Bridgemates, I have an option to use "American" or "European"
scoring notation.
I've noticed that ACBL's "Live for Clubs" is currently using European
notation for results. The Common Game is doing the same thing.
Maybe this was be an outgrowth of quarantine, when we all had to play
online, and most of us played on Bridge Base Online. All of the notation
there is in European format.
In US tournaments, the Bridgemates are still set to American format,
where you'd key in "making 5" rather than "+3". As long as that's true,
I'll keep it the same in the club. It will be a slightly jarring change
if they make it.
So what do you think? Is the American scoring format to be scrapped?
It's an interesting discussion!
Classes this week
Drop in for a single class! Most of our sessions are small groups with
opportunities for lots of personal attention. It's just $25 for an
almost-private lesson.
Note Slam Bidding and Blackwood on Saturday. :)
* Wednesday 7:00 PM /Improving Your Judgment - Doubles/ "Advancing a
takeout double"
* Thursday 7:00 PM /Bridge Basics 1 - Introduction/ "Practice Hands"
* Saturday 9:30 AM /Bridge Basics 3 - Popular Conventions/ "Slam
Bidding and Blackwood"
Saturday Workshop and Game 1:00 PM /to be announced/ ($10 for workshop
and short game!)
YouTube mini-lesson this week <https://youtu.be/E82cytO4DhY>: "Entries
(2 of 2)" Learn about ducking plays.
Coming up ...
October is Club Appreciation Month. Let's have some club championships,
with lots of extra masterpoints! We'll start with the week of October 9.
Sunday October 8 we have a Pasadena Unit Game at the club. Drop me a
note for a reservation. 12:30 PM start time.
We have a very special game on Wednesday, October 25, the Instant
Matchpoint Game. More about that later.
Best regards,
Mojo, Jane, Zachary
Hi all,
Tomorrow is a big day at the club. I'm hosting the North American Pairs
district final. I'm going to be assisting the director in the community
room down the hall from the club.
If anyone were available to drop in for a while to help do errands at
the club, it would be a big help. I'll need someone to do things like
make coffee, restock food, keep the break room tidy, and run any other
errands we might need.
You might get to kibitz some really good bridge players as well. All the
best players from LA County will be here competing to go to the national
championship. :)
Best regards,
Mojo
--
build message
Morris "Mojo" Jones
mojo(a)PasadenaBridgeClub.com
https://PasadenaBridgeClub.com <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com>
Pasadena Bridge Club <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com>
Pasadena Bridge Club Logo <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com>
News from
N Fair Oaks
Mojo
ABTA Master Teacher
649 N Fair Oaks Ave #201
Pasadena CA 91103
(626) 247-4457
pasadenabridgeclub.com <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com>
Last week I suggested that I'd talk about scoring notation this week.
But no! I'm pushing it to next week, because ...
NAP District Final Oct. 1
We have another major event coming up at the bridge club. On Sunday,
October 1, we'll be hosting the District 23 North American Pairs Finals.
(The event belongs to the district, but it's worth writing about.)
The North American Pairs is a big deal! It's one of two "grass roots"
competitions held annually by the ACBL. (The other is the Grand National
Teams.)
The district final is really three finals: one each for qualifiers under
500 masterpoints, 2500 masterpoints, and Open. The qualifiers will be
divided into three separate two-session games.
The top four finishers in each flight (three in Open) will be invited to
represent District 23 (Los Angeles County) at the Spring NABC in
Louisville, KY. The top finishers also receive some travel reimbursement
to make the trip!
You may have qualified for the District Final by playing in a
specially-designated club game, either at our club, another club, or one
of the VACB clubs on Bridge Base Online. Those games are played in June,
July, and August.
Check the list here to see
<https://web2.acbl.org/documentLibrary/play/NAP_Qualifiers/NAP_D23.htm>,
and if you're there, pick up a partner who also qualified and make a
reservation for the district final!
All of the information about the District North American Pairs Final is
collected on the website here <https://nap.bridgemojo.com/>. If you plan
to compete, I highly recommend reading the Conditions of Contest for the
tournament.
Improving Your Judgment - Doubles
This course is guaranteed to improve the way you find and use the red X
card from the bidding box. Level-up your game with your partner!
First session Wednesday evening at 7:00, meeting for six classes total.
Not sure? Try the first one for $25, and upgrade to the full class if
you like it.
Here is the lesson plan
<https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/course/iyj_doubles>, and here's where
you can sign up <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/contact/course_enrollment>.
Classes this week
Single classes are always available for $25. This week's offerings:
* Wednesday 7:00 PM /Improving Your Judgment - Doubles/ "The Takeout
Double"
* Thursday 7:00 PM /Bridge Basics 1 - Introduction/ "Practice hands"
* Saturday 9:30 AM /Bridge Basics 3 - Popular Conventions/ "Strong
Opening Bids"
Saturday Workshop and Game 1:00 PM "Notrump Play: Making A Plan"
Coming up ...
Next week (October 5) will be our first Thursday Open Pairs game at
11:00 AM. I'm buying pizza! Rally up your favorite partner and come play.
There are lots of great updates to RSVPBridge <https://rsvpbridge.com>
that I'll be taking advantage of, especially for managing bridge courses.
And in December, the Better Bridge Teacher Accreditation Program
<https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/better-bridge-tap>.
Best regards,
Mojo, Jane, Zachary
Pasadena Bridge Club Logo <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com>
News from
N Fair Oaks
Mojo
ABTA Master Teacher
649 N Fair Oaks Ave #201
Pasadena CA 91103
(626) 247-4457
pasadenabridgeclub.com <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com>
Dealing with a revoke
We've all been in the situation where someone at the table failed to
follow suit on a trick. (I've never done that! <cough> Yes I have.) This
is known as a "revoke" or "renege."
There are a few things to keep in mind when you notice a revoke:
* When attention is called to it, call "director, please!" (But not if
you're dummy!)
* If you are dummy and you notice it /you must not say anything!/ (If
I'm dummy, I adjust the card for that trick in my trick record to
the side slightly, so I can come back to it.)
* The offender can correct their revoke if it's caught before /they or
their partner/ plays to the following trick.
* Once the revoke is established, it can not be corrected!
* You /may not inspect/ any previously played cards except as required
by the director,
When I'm playing, if I notice an opponent renege on a trick, I offset
that card slightly in my trick record, so after the hand we can go back
and establish what happened, with the director present.
If you notice an opponent revoke, you don't have to say anything! Make
note of the trick, keep playing, and let the director apply the laws at
the end of the hand.
Improving Your Judgment - Doubles
The takeout double is the most powerful and useful call in bridge. No
one can dispute that! Are you not doubling enough?
Sign up for the six-week course on Wednesday evenings starting Sept. 27.
Each week we'll look at more detail of doubles and how to think about
them, both from the doubler's seat and their partner's seat.
As with all of the Audrey Grant courses, there are always great hands
with play and defense lessons to be had as well.
Here is the lesson plan
<https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/course/iyj_doubles>, and here's where
you can sign up <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/contact/course_enrollment>.
Classes this week
Drop in for a single class! Most of our sessions are small groups with
opportunities for lots of personal attention. It's just $25 for an
almost-private lesson. (Never quite true for Bridge Basics 1. It's a big
class, but it's a great refresher.)
This is a good week to brush up on your Jacoby Transfer Bids!
* Thursday 7:00 PM /Bridge Basics 1 - Introduction/ "Minor Suit
Opening Bids and Responses"
* Saturday 9:30 AM /Bridge Basics 3 - Popular Conventions/ "Jacoby
Transfer Bids"
Saturday Workshop and Game 1:00 PM "Notrump Play: Finesses of Many
Kinds" ($10 for workshop and short game!)
YouTube mini-lesson this week <https://youtu.be/iBiRZBf5wwU>: "Entries
(1 of 2)" (There's also a funny blast from 2021 about playing online and
what might happen after pandemic!)
Coming up ...
Today I got a preview of some features Brenda Egeland has been adding to
RSVPBridge to better support bridge courses. It'll be a great management
tool for me and the students!
Remember Thursdays? October 5 we'll have our first Thursday 11:00 AM
Open Pairs. Games are in RSVP to reserve now!
Next week I want to talk a little about bridge scoring notation.
(American or European?)
Best regards,
Mojo, Jane, Zachary
Pasadena Bridge Club Logo <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com>
Learn and Play Bridge!
Mojo
ABTA Master Teacher
649 N Fair Oaks Ave #201
Pasadena CA 91103
(626) 247-4457
pasadenabridgeclub.com <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com>
Great courses starting soon!
We have three great bridge courses starting in the next few weeks. Our
courses are geared toward working adults and students, and offered on
Saturday mornings plus Wednesday and Thursday evenings.
With each of our courses, you will be able to practice the hands from
class at home using just your internet browser!
Here are the courses that are starting up next:
Bridge Basics 3 - Popular Conventions
Saturday Mornings, starting Sept. 16
This course covers the most popular and valuable bidding conventions.
You'll learn Stayman and Jacoby Transfer Bids for responding to notrump
openings. We'll also cover very strong opening hands, and slam bidding,
including the Blackwood and Gerber conventions.
* Six Saturday Mornings, 9:30 - 11:30
* $115 includes textbook
* Click here for the lesson plan
<https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/course/popular-conventions>
* Click here to enroll
<https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/contact/course_enrollment>
Improving Your Judgment - Doubles
Wednesday Evenings, starting Sept. 27
The takeout double is the most powerful and useful call in the bidding
box. Refine your understanding of takeout doubles, your role as advancer
(when your partner doubles), and rebids by the doubler. We'll study many
borderline decisions to help improve your judgment.
* Six Wednesday Evenings, 7:00 - 9:00
* $115 includes textbook
* Click here for the lesson plan
<https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/course/iyj_doubles>
* Click here to enroll
<https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/contact/course_enrollment>
Bridge Basics 2 - Competitive Bidding
Thursday Evenings, starting Oct. 12
This is the followup course to /Bridge Basics 1/, but it's dynamite for
experienced club players as well.
You'll learn ways to compete in the bidding to maximize your score and
do better on more hands. We'll practice preemptive opening bids,
overcalls, the takeout double, and the negative (responder's) double.
Find out what a cue bid means!
* Six Thursday Evenings, 7:00 - 9:00
* $115 includes textbook
* Click here for the lesson plan
<https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/course/competitive-bidding>
* Click here to enroll
<https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/contact/course_enrollment>
Our next /Bridge Basics 1 - Introduction/ series will be offered on
Wednesday evenings starting January 10. (I always offer the Bridge
Basics series 1, 2, and 3 sequentially for a given class session.)
Best regards,
Mojo
Pasadena Bridge Club Logo <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com>
News from
N Fair Oaks
Mojo
ABTA Master Teacher
649 N Fair Oaks Ave #201
Pasadena CA 91103
(626) 247-4457
pasadenabridgeclub.com <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com>
It's amazing to see our little club hosting a major tournament. This is
our third hosting of an event, and by far the largest in attendance.
For the first time, we took advantage of the Community Room down the
hall from the bridge club, where we have room for 12 additional tables,
for a total of about 30 (without squeezing too much!).
We hosted four full sessions of bridge, with 96-1/2 total tables over
the weekend! Our biggest session was on Sunday afternoon with 18 tables
in the Open Pairs, and 7 tables in the 499er Pairs.
Full results from all of the Sectional games
<http://live.acbl.org/events/2309379> can be found here.
New signs!
It took us a while, but we finally have professional signs on the lobby
door and over the club main doors.
Lobby glass door sign
Main door sign
Director table set up for the Sectional. Notice the new signage!
Classes this week
Anyone is welcome to drop in for a single session of any course for $25.
Here are the topics at this week's classes:
* Wednesday 7:00 PM *Defense* "Making a plan"
* Thursday 7:00 PM *Bridge Basics 1* "Major Suit Opening Bids and
Responses"
* Saturday 9:30 AM *Popular Conventions* "Stayman"
Saturday workshop and game "Developing Tricks in Notrump."
On our *YouTube channel this week*, "Sluffing Losers
<https://youtu.be/-V-QTCeqteY?feature=shared>"
(The Defense class is a great one to drop in for. We have eight hands to
practice defending, using all the basic principles of defense.)
Teacher training coming up
Become an accredited Better Bridge teacher! We're hosting a two-day
seminar by Denise Hoffman on Thursday-Friday December 21-22.
By completing the seminar you'll be recognized as an accredited teacher
by the ACBL, and eligible to be listed in the teacher directory. It's a
great credential to present to organizations like college extension
programs.
September /Bridge News/
The monthly newsletter for District 23 is available at this link
<https://www.bridgewebs.com/acbl23/CurrentNews.pdf>, and I'll have it on
our bulletin board this week at the club.
Best regards,
Mojo, Jane, Zachary
Pasadena Bridge Club Logo <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com>
News from
N Fair Oaks
Mojo
ABTA Master Teacher
649 N Fair Oaks Ave #201
Pasadena CA 91103
(626) 247-4457
pasadenabridgeclub.com <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com>
This past week I started a new series of Bridge Basics 1 - Introduction
on Thursday evenings. On Wednesday night I was expecting 18 students. On
Thursday night I had 24 in the class!
I even got a round of applause at the end of the lesson. That doesn't
happen often!
Robots for half table
I'm getting together the tools to use BBO Robots to fill a half table at
the club. If I have a half, one table can have a pair of iPads or Fire
tablets facing the E/W seats. The robots will play N/S.
When I did this before at the BridgeMojo club, nobody liked it much. But
most players at that time weren't really familiar with bridge online.
It's different now — most of us know how to bid and play on BBO. It'll
be an interesting experiment!
As we first start out, I'll probably score the round as "No Plays" while
we're trying it out. I'll only use it for the Open games.
Love a good mystery?
When I'm on the road, I love listening to episodes of "Sorry, Partner,"
<https://sorrypartner.com/> a bridge podcast by Catherine Harris and
Jocelyn Startz.
I enjoyed a recent episode featuring English champion Helen Erichsen,
who also happens to be an author. She just released a novel /Murder By
Natural Causes/, which revolves around bridge and a bridge club.
I haven't read it yet, but it sounds like a good time! I love the title. :)
Classes this week
Anyone is welcome to drop in for a single session of any course for $25.
Let me know you're coming! Here are the topics at this week's classes:
* Wednesday 7:00 PM *Defense* "Interfering with Declarer"
* Thursday 7:00 PM *Bridge Basics 1* "1 Notrump Opening Bids and
Responses"
The Saturday games will be closed this week for the tournament (see
below). Next week we'll resume the Workshop and Game with "Developing
Tricks in Notrump."
On our *YouTube channel this week*, "Trumping in the dummy
<https://youtu.be/iuk9irx4NJA?feature=shared>"
Glendale Sectional
*September 9-10*, with lots of seats available for the Open Pairs and
499er pairs, all four sessions!
Note that this isn't a Pasadena Bridge Club event. The Glendale Verdugo
Unit is renting the bridge club for their sectional, so writing me for a
reservation won't work. Instead, visit the information page here
<https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/glendale-sectional> and use the
reservation link.
Teacher training coming up
Become an accredited Better Bridge teacher! We're hosting a two-day
seminar by Denise Hoffman on Thursday-Friday December 21-22.
By completing the seminar you'll be recognized as an accredited teacher
by the ACBL, and eligible to be listed in the teacher directory. It's a
great credential to present to organizations like college extension
programs.
Best regards,
Mojo, Jane, Zachary
