About one third of the players in a competition will be entitled to a Master Points award; and these may be given to the players in the form of certificates or cards. They may also be credited directly to members’ records. The organising body will inform the players which approach is being used. For EBU events, the norm is to credit all awards that can be credited, whilst issuing certificates or cards for the remainder.

Simultaneous Pairs awards are NOT directly credited at present. Only current EBU members may have a Master Point record maintained for them. Lists of promotions between the various Master Point ranks are published in every issue of “English Bridge” and here on the EBU web-site.

The Sunday Telegraph Salver will be awarded to the player who earns and registers the most points (including direct credits) during the Master Point competition period. Although in the past this has been from July 1st to the following June 30th, this has changed to run from January to December (in each calendar year).

Only points received by the third Monday in January will be counted towards the competition. County ranking lists and details of the winners in the various ranking categories will be made available on the web-site once results have been finalised, probably early in February. The prize for the overall winner includes free entry to the EBU Spring Bank Holiday congress.

Please note that awards from knock-out events are issued when the whole competition is over, not when a team is eliminated, and any such awards issued after 31st December will count towards the next competition, even though they may have been won earlier. In teams events, players are eligible for points in head-to-head matches if they play at least one third of the boards in a match; they are eligible for ranking points if they play at least one third of the boards in the event (or relevant stage of the event).

Members wishing to know more about the Master Point Scheme should ring the Master Points helpline at Aylesbury on 01296 317202 or contact the Master Points Secretary by e-mail at points@ebu.co.uk