A+ for the ACBL … Part 4 of the endlessly saga

Over the years I have done my share of whining about the ACBL and rightly so.   For one thing without some constructive criticism how can an organization improve.  But when it comes to their website I have no complaints at all.  Kudos to the webmaster.  The home page is attractive with frequently updated headlines with an emphasis on people.  There is a revolving photo album with snaps from a party for Lucille “Bucky” Buckner who turned 102 years young on Oct.1 and is still doing well in tournaments and a story about a party to honor the late Aileen Osofsky, ACBL’s National Goodwill Chairman

But mainly the site is full of stuff you want to know or might be interested in whether you are a professional, a bridge player from novice to expert, interested in learning bridge or well just about anybody who can spell bridge.  Not only that but I found it pretty easy to navigate. There is a ton of stuff on this site including all the information about upcoming tournaments and past and future NABC’s.  You can send your friends over to download (for free) the 2 Volume Learn to Play Bridge.  I am amazed to see club results from past games all over North America.  There is a tool to find a local bridge teacher.  Masterpoint race results are listed.  I find that Jeff Meckstroth just ahead of his partner Eric are one and two in the Player of the Decade (Platinum points since 2010).   Justin Lall is leading the Juniors this year.

There is a Hall of Fame page with a list of members.  Each member has a bio and a picture.  The first member alphabetically is Hermine Baron (pictured).  She won a lot of masterpoints and seems to have dominated the women’s events in her era.

Want to know about the school bridge program, teacher accreditation programs, alerts and eligible conventions, teacher’s manuals for ACBL courses, special events, places to play at clubs or online and well everything.  A+ (world class guys).

So you just know that nobody else will compare.  But let’s look at some other national sites.  So down under we go to the Australian Bridge Federation and while not in the same “league” as the ACBL it has excellent information but the design leaves a lot to be desired.  I feel like  I have moved back at least 10 years.  Lot of useful information and some interesting stuff even if you are not Australia including the newsletter which is online and excellent. C+.

I have a quick look at some other national sites and get bored (they just don’t measure up) so I decide to move on to something more fun.  I check out Justin Lall’s blog (the aforementioned star junior).  After a long hiatus Justin started blogging again in August.  His last blog was September 2nd.  So he might be taking a rest again.   His most recent blog is about this hand from a Dallas Regional (playing knockout teams):

The first set of the finals was a wild one with a lot of interesting hands. This one was definitely my favorite though.

White/Red I picked up:

T3

A862

82

AQJT9

My partner opened a gambling 3N, showing a solid 7 or 8 card minor and no side ace or king. What would you bid?  Justin bid 5D and you can hear his reasoning.  The play is fun and you can read about that on Justin’s blog.  If Justin would just write more blogs this would be a clear A site.

Just for fun here is a website from  Sid & Abby who live in South Africa.  They have a monthly quiz and this month is about a rather cute hand from the Buffett Cup.  There is quite a good archive of deals to look at too.  I am pleased to report that I found the best line (the Gitelman line.  There are quite a number of jokes too, some better than others.  I did like their offering on 21 Reasons why bridge is better than sex.  Here are a few:

You don’t have to hide your bridge magazines

No one will ever tell you that you will go blind if you play bridge by yourself

The phrase “could be short” carries no negative connotation….

Some other useful things too.  A C+ and worth a visit if only for a few chuckles.