ABERDEEN BRIDGE CLUB

Notice is hereby given that an Extraordinary General Meeting of The Bridge Club, Aberdeen (SCIO) SC048843, will be held in the club premises at 1.30pm on Sunday 29^th January 2023, the purpose of which is to adopt a new Governing Document/Constitution for the club.  

The reasons for this were discussed at the 2021 AGM and details circulated at the 2022 AGM.  Sadly due to the passing of Prof Pete Duff, the amended constitution was not able to be accessed, so we were unable to adopt it at the 2022 AGM.  Luckily, Carole and Neil’s son Connor, a solicitor, has kindly rewritten the constitution and this will be proposed for adoption at the EGM.

Further information and a copy of the amended constitution will be circulated the week beginning 9^th January and a Zoom link will be provided for those who cannot make the meeting in person and who have intimated that they wish to attend in this manner.

After the EGM the Board are arranging a Robert Burns themed social event followed by an 18 board Bridge Tournament.  Further details will follow, including how to sign up for this event as the event will be catered.  There will be a small charge towards the cost of the food and the bar will be open for drinks.  Please note there will be no table money charged that day, as the club is subsidizing the event.

The Board has decided that the following will apply to all sessions starting in the New Year.

1. A decision to cancel a session (if the minimum number of pairs has not been reached) will be made 2 HOURS before the start of the session (rather than 5). This means, for example, that you should check the status of a 7 pm session after 5 pm.
2. A session will be closed to new entrants 2 HOURS before it starts (rather than 60 minutes). This means, for example, that you must sign up no later than 5 pm for a 7 pm session.

These changes were necessary to deal with the following situation, which has arisen in the past, where the cancellation deadline was set to be some hours before the closure deadline. At the cancellation deadline there were at least the minimum number of pairs signed up for the tournament. Some time after that deadline had passed, one or more pairs had to withdraw, to the extent that the number signed up fell below the minimum number; the tournament was no longer viable and had therefore to be cancelled. Players checking the status of the tournament before the withdrawal would have thought that it was going ahead, whereas those checking afterwards would have seen that it had been cancelled.

The club will be closed for the Festive Season from Friday 23rd December. It will re-open on Wednesday 4th January.

Starting from Thursday January 12th, there will be an evening tournament, open to all, starting at 7pm.

To save time in paying table monies, members are encouraged to buy pre-paid cards at £20 for five sessions and £40 for 10. These are presented to the person collecting the table money, and stamped to show that a session has been attended. Note that they can be used as and when you want.

We are very sad to report that Pete Duff passed away a few weeks ago. Click here to see his obituary.

Dear North District members,

Ranked pairs are not being held in clubs this year, but on BBO. I do hope you can make it along to play.

The Kennedy is for novice and club masters begins at 11.https://www.sbu.org.uk/calendar/national-bronze/kennedy-trophy

The Johnston is for local and district masters and also begins at 11.https://www.sbu.org.uk/calendar/national-bronze/johnston

The Jesner for masters and senior masters will take place at 10.45https://www.sbu.org.uk/calendar/national-bronze/jesner

The Fairlie for regional, Scottish and national Masters begins at 10.30
https://www.sbu.org.uk/calendar/national-events/fairlie-pairs

The Bowman is for Scottish life and senior life masters with a 10.30 start.
https://www.sbu.org.uk/calendar/national-events/bowman

The Arthur is for Scottish grand masters and begins 10.30.

Click on the relevant hyperlink to find out more and about how to register or enter.

Loraine

Aberdeen Bridge Club is pleased to announce the launch of a mentoring scheme to encourage the development of its members. The scheme partners beginners / improvers with more experienced players with a view to improving confidence, etiquette and skill. There are more details below.

If you feel that you would benefit from mentoring or are willing to volunteer as a mentor, please contact the Education Convenor (Mike Hodder) at education@aberdeenbridgeclub.co.uk. Please say which Bridge Club tournaments you normally play in.

MENTORING – MORE DETAILS
Q1: What is mentoring?
A1: Mentoring involves playing a session with a more experienced player to help develop your bridge

Q2: Who can benefit?
A2: Most mentoring is aimed at beginners or improvers but more experienced players who wish to improve their game can also benefit

Q3: How does it work?
A3: Players wishing to join up are assigned a mentor and you play a session together. This can be either Face-to-Face or on-line. It’s up to the mentor and mentee to agree when and how often to play. We suggest once a month to start with. There is no obligation on either side and you can withdraw or take a break at any time.

If you have a regular partner, it’s best if he or she is also assigned a mentor and that you each play with your respective mentor in the same event

Q4: What does the mentor do?
A4: Mentoring isn’t teaching, but obviously there will be an element of this. There is no need to discuss every hand in detail and indeed you should avoid extensive post mortems. By all means meet in the bar after the event to discuss the hands further if both parties wish. The idea is for the mentee to gain confidence, pick up the essentials of etiquette (especially when playing face to face) and pick up a few tips on bidding and card play.

You don’t have to be an expert to act as a mentor. If you have been playing for more than 5 years, chances are you will make a good mentor.  You will be expected to play a system that your mentee is comfortable with. Don’t try to teach them your favourite conventions too early!

Q5: Are there any sessions where mentoring is inappropriate?
A5: Yes – if it’s a major club or district competition where there is a trophy or qualification at stake, then mentoring should not take place nor should it take place in any national competition (such as the Bronze League) without the express permission of the convenor.

The following Bridge Club sessions are suggested:

For Beginners / Improvers:
Monday night pairs 18-board event (face-to-face, targeted at Bronze 1)
Thursday afternoon event (2-4pm)
Friday evening RealBridge session (7-9pm)

For more advanced players:
Tuesday Pairs on BBO
Wednesday evening event (face-to-face)

To all Bronze ranked players.
This annual event will be on Saturday, the 12th of November and will be an online event.

Read more here.