Calendar

The Shelby County Bridge Club

LAW 68--CLAIM OR CONCESSION OF TRICKS

A. CLAIM DEFINED
Any statement to the effect that a contestant will win a
specified number of tricks is a claim of those tricks. A
contestant also claims when he suggests that play be
curtailed, or when he shows his cards.

B. CONCESSION DEFINED
Any statement to the effect that a contestant will lose a
specific number of tricks is a concession of those tricks;
a claim of some number of tricks is a concession of the
remainder, if any. A player concedes all the remaining
tricks when he abandons his hand. Regardless of the
foregoing, if a defender attempts to concede one or more
tricks and his partner immediately objects, no
concession has occurred; Law 16, Unauthorized
Information, may apply, so the Director should be
summoned forthwith.

C. CLARIFICATION REQUIRED FOR CLAIM.
A claim should be accompanied at once by a statement of
clarification as to the order in which cards will be played,
the line of play or defense through which the claimer
proposes to win the tricks claimed.

D. PLAY CEASES.
After any claim or concession, play ceases. All play
subsequent to a claim or concession shall be voided by
the Director. If the claim or concession is acquiesced in,
Law 69 applies: if it is disputed by any player (dummy
included), the Director must be summoned immediately
to apply Law 70 or 71.

LAW 70--CONTESTED CLAIMS

A. GENERAL OBJECTIVE.
In ruling on a contested claim, the Director adjudicates
the result of the board as equitably as possible to both
sides, but any doubtful points shall be resolved against
the claimer. The Director proceeds as follows:

B. CLARIFICATION STATEMENT REPEATED
1) The Director requires claimer to repeat the clarification
statement he made at the time of his claim.
2) Next, the Director requires all players to put their
remaining cards face up on the table.
3) Hear objections.

C. IF THERE IS AN OUTSTANDING TRUMP
When a trump remains in one of the opponents' hands,
the Director shall award a trick or tricks to the opponents
if:

1) Claimer made no statement about the trump, and
2) it is at all likely that claimer at the time of his claim was
unaware that a trump remained in an opponent's hand,
and
3) a trick could be lost to that trump by any "normal" play.

D. CLAIMER PROPOSES A NEW LINE OF PLAY.
The director shall not accept from claimer any
successful line of play not embraced in the original
clarification statement if there is an alternative "normal"
line of play that would be less successful. (normal play
includes careless or inferior play but not irrational)

E. UNSTATED LINE OF PLAY (FINESSE OR DROP) The
Director shall not accept from claimer any unstated line
of play the success of which depends upon finding one
opponent rather than the other with a particular card.

LAW 6--THE SHUFFLE AND DEAL

A. THE SHUFFLE
Before play starts, each pack is thoroughly
shuffled. There is a cut if either opponent so
requests.

B. THE DEAL
The cards must be dealt face down into four
hands of thirteen cards each; each hand is
then placed face down in one of the four
pockets on the board. The recommended
procedure is that the cards be dealt in
rotation, clockwise.

NOTE: It is not required to place a dealt hand
into a slot in dealer sequence.

NOTE: The practice of dealing the cards into
five piles, then distributing the fifth pile back
into the other four is not allowed.

C. REPRESENTATION
A member of each side should be present
during the shuffle and deal unless the
Director instructs otherwise.

D. NEW SHUFFLE AND REDEAL
There must be a new shuffle and a redeal if
it is ascertained before the auction begins
for both sides that the cards have been
incorrectly dealt or that a player could have
seen the face of a card belonging to another
hand.

RULES OF THE GAME

LAWS 1-5
PRELIMINARIES

LAW 1--THE PACK--RANK OF CARDS AND SUITS
LAW 2--THE DUPLICATE BOARDS
LAW 3--ARRANGEMENT OF TABLES
LAW 4--PARTNERSHIPS

LAW 5--ASSIGNMENT OF SEATS
A. INITIAL POSITION. The director assigns an initial position to each
contestant (individual, pair or team)....Having once selected a compass
direction, a player may change it within a session only upon instruction or
with permission of the Director.

NOTE: In a Howell movement, a player should pick two directions to play;
ie, North and West.

LAWS 6-8
PREPARATION
& PROGRESSION

LAW 7--CONTROL OF BOARDS AND CARDS

A. PLACEMENT OF BOARD
When a board is to be played it is placed in
the center of the table until play is
completed.

NOTE: If a board is played with the compass
points pointing in the wrong direction (North
plays South's hand), the result is valid and
the board should be scored as it is played.

However, if the board is played pointed 90
degrees from the correct position (NS play
the EW hand in a Howell movement), the
result should be scored as it is played. This
changes the comparison groups but does
not invalidate the results.

B. REMOVAL OF CARDS FROM BOARD
1. Counting cards in Hand before Play.
Each player counts his cards face down to
be sure he has exactly thirteen.

2. Control of Player's Hand. During play
each player retains possession of his own
cards, not permitting them to be mixed with
those of any other player. No player shall
touch any cards other than his own during
or after play except by permission of the
Director.

NOTE: A player is entitled to give his
opponent permission to look at his hand
after it is played. If permission is not
granted, the Director may choose to
answer the opponent's questions
concerning the hand rather than allow the
opponent to "see" the hand.

LAW 8--SEQUENCE OF ROUNDS

A. MOVEMENT OF BOARDS AND PLAYERS
1. The Director instructs the players as to
the proper movement of boards and
progression of contestants.

2. The North player at each table is
responsible for moving the boards just
completed at his table to the proper table
for the following round.

LAWS 9-16
GENRAL LAWS
GOVERNING
IRREGULARITIES

LAW 9--PROCEDURE FOLLOWING AN
IRREGULARITY

A. Calling attention to an Irregularity.

1. During the auction any player may call
attention to an irregularity whether or not it
is his turn to call.

2. During the play period
a) Declarer or either defender may call
attention to an irregularity that occurs
during the play period.

b) Dummy 1) may not call attention to an
irregularity during the play but may do so
after the play of the hand is concluded (e.g.
revoke) 2) Dummy may attempt to prevent
declarer from committing an irregularity
(e.g., lead from the wrong hand)

B. After attention is Called to an Irregularity

1) Summoning the Director
a) The director must be summoned at once.
b) Any player, including dummy, may
summon the Director after attention has
been drawn to an irregularity.

2) Further Bids or Plays. No player shall
take any action until the Director has
explained all matters in regard to
rectification and to the assessment of a
penalty.

C. Premature Correction of an Irregularity.
Any premature correction of an irregularity
by the offender may subject him to a further
penalty.

LAW 10 ASSESSMENT OF A PENALTY

A. Right to assess penalty. The director
alone has the right to assess penalties
when applicable. Players do not have the
right to assess (or waive) penalties.

B. Cancellation of Waiver. The director may
all ow cancel penalties made by the players
without his instructions.

C. Choice after Irregularity When these
Laws provide an option after an irregularity,
the Director shall explain all the options
available. 2) If a player has an option after
an irregularity, he must make his choice
without consulting partner.

NOTE: North opens 1NT, East calls 1C
insufficient. The options are explained to
South who makes his decision without
consulting North.

LAW 11 FORFEITURE OF THE RIGHT TO
PENALIZE.

A. Action by Non-Offending Side. The right
to penalize an irregularity may be forfeited
if either member of the non-offending side
takes any action before summoning the
Director.

NOTE: The director so rules when the
non-offenders may have gained through
subsequent action taken by an opponent in
ignorance of the penalty.

NOTE: The right to penalize IS forfeited by
the taking of action by non-offenders in
certain specific situations (e.g.,
non-offender passes or bids when offender
has made an insufficient bid)

This law also covers rules re: spectators.

LAW 12--DIRECTOR'S DISCRETIONARY
POWERS (When the appropriate Law
provides a penalty--or states that there is to
be no penalty--the Director may not adjust
the score to produce equity)

A) Right to award an Adjusted Score.

1) Laws Provide No Indemnity. The Director
may award an assigned adjusted score
when he judges that these Laws do not
provide indemnity to the non-offending
contestant for the particular type of
violation of law committed by opponent.

2) Normal play of Board is impossible.

C) Awarding an Adjusted Score.

1) Artifical score. When, owing to an
irregularity, no result can be obtained, the
Director awards an artificial adjusted score
according to responsibility for the
infraction; average minus, average or
average plus.

2) Assigned Score. When the director
awards an assigned adjusted score...the
score...is the most favorable result that
was likely had the irregularity not occurred.

MANY LAWS SPECIFY CORRECT
PROCEDURE BUT DO NOT OFFER SPECIFIC
PENALTIES FOR VIOLATION. Examples: a
player may not inspect a quitted trick; a
player may not handle an opponent's cards
a review of the auction must be given by an
opponent of the player requesting it.

LAW 13--INCORRECT NUMBER OF CARDS.
If the incorrect number of cards is
discovered before a player with an
incorrect number of cards has made a call,
and no player will then have seen a card
belonging to another player's hand, the
Director shall correct the discrepancy. The
Director will consult with players who have
previously played the board.

When one or more players with an
incorrect number of cards makes a call on
the board, and the Director determines that
the deal can be corrected and played
normally with no change of call, the deal
should be played if all four players concur.
Otherwise the deal is canceled and the
Director shall award an artificial score.

When a player has seen one or more cards
belonging to another player's hand, the
Director must:
1) decide if the information is consequential
and whether it would interfere with normal
bidding and play; he may allow the board to
be played (as long as all four players agree).
2) decide if the information will interfere
with normal bidding and play and award an
artificial adjusted score.

LAW 14--MISSING CARD
When one hand is deficient while the other
three hands are correct, and this is
discovered:

1) before the play period begins. The
missing card is restored to the deficient
hand, or the Director reconstructs the deal
to the original form using a new deck and
the bidding continues.

2) After the play period has begun:
a) If the missing card is among the quitted
tricks, the Director requires the offender to
restore to his hand the extra card.

b) If the missing card is found (but not in the
quitted tricks) it is restored to the player's
hand. A card restored to a player's hand is
deemed to have belonged to it continuously.
It may become a penalty card and failure to
have played it may constitute a revoke.

c) If a card is restored to dummy, failure to
have played that card constitutes a revoke
although no penalty is awarded (!). Director
is to award an adjusted score when the
non-offenders get a poorer result than they
would have achieved had the revoke not
occurred.

If one of dummy's cards is obscured and its
absence is found to have damaged the
defenders, an adjusted score may be in
order. The statement "everyone is
responsible for dummy" is incorrect. The
player who is dummy is responsible.

LAW 15--PLAY OF A WRONG BOARD
A) If the players have not previously played
the board.
1) When it is a board not designated for
them to play, the Director normally allows
the score to stand if none of the four has
played it previously.
2) Designate a late play to play the correct
board.
3) If the error is discovered during the
auction, an attempt should be made to save
the board. The Director seats the proper
team. Players must repeat any calls they
made previously.
4) The NS team should be warned about
procedural negligence.

B) If any player has previously played the
board.
1) The player's second score on the hand is
canceled. The Director will award an
artificial adjusted score to the contestants
deprived of the opportunity to earn a valid
score.

LAW 16--UNAUTHORIZED INFORMATION.   A quote from the ACBL Bridge Director's Handbook "Huddle
situations are difficult for players, directors and committees."   A "huddle" is defined as a break in the
tempo of play and normally occurs during the auction.

"Calls and plays should be made without special emphasis, mannerism or inflection, and without undue
hesitation or haste.   And, when a violation...results in damage to an innocent opponent, if the director
determines that a player chose from among logical alternative actions one that could demonstrably have
been suggested over another by his partner's remark, manner tempo, or the like, he shall award an
adjusted score." That's a mouthful.

In general, did the following occur?

1) Was the violation a call (bid, double, redouble, pass) made with undue hesitation? If so,

2) Could the innocent side have suffered damage? If the answer to 1 + 2 are "yes", then..

3) Were there logical alternatives to the call chosen by huddler's partner? A logical alternative is a call
that would be seriously considered by at least a substantial minority of equivalent players and chosen by
some of them, acting on the basis of all the information legitimately available; and,

4) Could the hesitation demonstrably suggest that the call chosen at the table would be more successful
than one of the logical alternatives?

A. Extraneous Information from Partner. After a player makes available to his partner extraneous
information that may suggest a call or play, as by means of a remark, a question, a reply to a question, or
by unmistakable hesitation, unwonted speed, special emphasis, tone, gesture, movement, mannerism
or the like, the partner may not choose from among logical alternative actions one that could
demonstrably have been suggested over another by the extraneous information.

NOTE: This does not mean that the partner of the huddler is not free to bid his hand.