Dealing with Slow Play Online?
I need to improve the way I deal with this is in the future and would welcome suggestions
The Sky-Blue book has a good section on slow play and what to do if called just to adjust a score on an uncompleted board
How do we differentiate between slow play (just a correction) and unduly slow play (may merit a warning or PP)?
I'm assuming Balance of Probabilities will suffice but am unsure how to differentiate between 'slow' and 'unduly slow'.
If we do give a warning/penalty for unduly slow play how can we communicate that to avoid any accusation of cheating?
Peter Bushby Suffolk
Comments
I've put my general thoughts below but it will depend on the type of event, the number of tables, how many directors there are, the players involved and the specific incident(s), amongst other things! As with most issues on BBO, it's worth also remembering that the slow play may not be caused by the player themselves (it could just be a slow connection or lack of familiarity with self-alerting etc.).
Providing updates on the time remaining as you might do in a club can alert some players (who are typically less familiar with BBO) that they are playing too slowly which may reduce the amount of slow play to start with (it's important to word these in the right way though to ensure that a non-offending side is not unduly rushed). In other cases, it may also be appropriate to extend the length of the round by a few seconds / 30 seconds / a minute (depending on the number of tables still playing) to give the director fewer problems with correcting the score.
After taking these steps, only players that are being 'unduly slow' are likely to still be playing, at which stage you can end the round and correct the score if appropriate. You can then view the Table History (assuming that you are using a Virtual Club account) to see if either side (or perhaps instead two tricky boards in the same round) was particularly to blame for slow play. At that stage, it is probably right to warn one or both sides involved (or otherwise keep a closer eye on their tables and give more frequent time updates). As you refer to, a penalty is only due if there are two occasions of slow play in the same event by the same pair - having a couple of tricks left to play when the director "calls the move" wouldn't be a slow play warning in face-to-face bridge, so neither would it be appropriate here.
Communicating online via text will never be ideal. At best, it will simply delay their next board as they work out how to respond; At worst, there could be a cheating implication as you suggest. As long as the director communicates regularly with the players (both individually and at tournament level) and is lenient for connection problems and time taken to respond to the director then I don't think an accusation of cheating is likely (offering to explain the situation after the event may help but it depends on the players, which are always hard to judge online!).
I mentioned that the type of event is relevant... in most club environments that are semi-competitive, a penalty would only be appropriate in extreme situations (slow play through internet problems would also be less liable to a procedural penalty than deliberate slow play, for instance). In a green pointed congress, however, slow play penalties would be perfectly normal. It is best to envisage the situation in a face-to-face game as best you can and apply a penalty only if it would be appropriate in that case. The number of tables is also relevant for how much time you can devote to specific slow play incidents as a director.
It's certainly not an easy task and BBO's interface doesn't make it easy to identify slow play prior to the end of a round. My approach is to correct results wherever required, with weighted outcomes slightly in favour of a non-offending side if there is one, and to avoid penalties if at all possible. Others will take a different approach, which will normally be based on the type of club or event they are directing for, so don't feel that there is only one way of addressing the problems you mention.
Thank you @495670 for this very helpful and thorough response
Peter Bushby Suffolk