• Following the success of two start times for the Championship Pairs on the Friday – we will again have the option of start times in 2020 for the Friday session
• Mondays Jack High Swiss Pairs competition for improving, or up and coming players

ILEC Conference Centre

The congress in 2019 at the ILEC Conference Centre near Earls Court was successful and well received, so we are going to continue to run this congress there. It is just a short stroll from West Brompton station, which has both underground and national rail services.

It has an excellent playing room and 'break-out' areas for between sessions.

There is onsite accommodation (the Ibis London Earls Court), and the negotiated rates for bridge players include double and twin rooms as well as singles - giving couples, and those willing to share, a cheaper option. Booking information will follow shortly.

Event format

New Championship Pairs format from 2019
The Championship Pairs is a ‘stratified’ event scored across the field. Each pair will play in five sessions of 18 boards - making a total of 90 boards, which is an increase on previous years at no extra cost.
On Friday each pair can choose whether to play in sessions 1&2 or 2&3. This change from the earlier format allows for greater security as at no point are the two different groups playing the same boards at different times.
You can still choose on Friday whether to start early-afternoon (if you want the evening free), or mid-afternoon (if you have lunchtime commitments) - though please notify us in advance at what time you will be starting (if you don't we will assume the later start).
On Saturday all players will play in all three sessions.
See below for the session times.
Prizes and Master Points awarded in three categories: below Premier Regional Master, below Premier Life Master & Open.
The Championships Pairs is part of the Championship Series, in which points can be earned towards the Player of the Year Championship.

The Swiss Teams on Sunday is a two-session event with seven 7-board matches in all. The event is now also a stratified event.

Monday

Monday offers two options:

Swiss Pairs - open to all with seven 7-board matches.

Jack High Swiss Pairs - this competition is aimed at club players who are interested in taking the first steps into congress bridge but who may have found it daunting to jump straight into a major congress event.
In order to qualify to play in this event, you must have an NGS of no higher than ‘Jack’ at the time of entering. We envisage that at the lower end, players will be ‘7’ or higher. The event will be stratified too so that there are extra Master Points and an extra prize available for pairs of players both ranked ‘9’ or lower.
We reserve the right to decline entries from those who may meet the NGS requirements, but have significant tournament experience and are not among the 'congress-novices' at whom the event is aimed.
The format will be six 6-board matches with a break after three matches.
This competition is priced at a discounted rated to encourage new participants to congress bridge.