Daily "Relaxed 9-high" EBU games started on Bridgebase Online

You probably know that we have been running five EBU games on Bridgebase Online (BBO) every day for the last two months and they have been going extremely well, fulfilling a clear need for many of our members in this time of social distancing. However, we have received feedback that these games are rather strong and can be a bit intimidating for many of our members, so we have started a new “9-high relaxed tournament” at 11am every day, which began on Monday, May 25th with a bumper 32-table attendance.

  • Like all our other games, these will be 12 boards costing BB$1.50 each tournament. This not only helps support the EBU but also currently puts 1/3 of the money into a fund specially for supporting our affiliated clubs;
  • Robot players will not be permitted, but there will be a partnership desk when you register, so you should be able to find a partner;
  • They will be aimed at less-experienced players and those who have an NGS no higher than a 9;
  • Only Level 2 agreements will be allowed (straightforward agreements with no multi 2Ds or two-suited openings). We expect that Acol will be the dominant system, although simple five-card majors systems will be allowed;
  • Players who don’t follow the ethos of the games will be asked not to come back – do tell the TD if your opponents fall into this category;
  • “Undos” will be allowed if you mis-click – but they aren’t intended to allow you to change your mind once you have chosen a call or play, just for mis-clicks.

We know that a number of our “virtual clubs” are planning games like this aimed at similar groups of players and if you are lucky enough to belong to such a club we encourage you to support it by choosing to play in their games rather than ours. However, for those of you who don’t belong to such a club, or who want to play at a different time of day, we hope that having this daily game available for you will be a welcome option. We have information about getting started with BBO on our website. You are strongly advised to buy $BB on the BBO website and not through an app on a smartphone or tablet because Apple and Google add a hefty surcharge to these transactions. To join the games, log on to BBO, go to Competitive -> All Tournaments and put “EBU” in the search box at the top. Then select the 11am relaxed game to register. You will find the partnership desk is an option at that point. We do hope to see many of you at these games, on any day that suits you, but if you have any questions about them do feel free to get back to gordon@ebu.co.uk.

May 22, 2020