Building our bridge clubs

The future of our clubs and tournaments depends not just on developing new players, but keeping our current players active and engaged. 

Our virtual club games on Bridgebase.com have made it possible for us to enjoy competitive bridge and support our clubs. Almost 80 percent of every entry fee is returned to local clubs to help them pay expenses until they can reopen.

Increased participation would make these online clubs even more successful. You can help us grow by reaching out to your fellow players and potential newcomers. Here are three ideas you can try:

♥  Recruit new players. You don't have to be a professional teacher or experienced player to promote bridge and develop new players. You don't even have to teach. There are many resources that non-players can use to teach themselves to play. All you have to do is "talk up" bridge to your friends and encourage them to give this a try: 

Self-teaching guide -- A 12-step guide to learning the world's most popular card game

♥  Introduce casual players to duplicate.  If you know party-bridge or online players who have never tried duplicate, offer to help them. For new online players, start by setting up a casual table where they can practice with the interface, discuss the hands and see how their results compare with other tables that played the same boards. The solitaire game linked below is also a good way to practice and see how duplicate scoring works.

Those who already play online will have an easy transition to duplicate by playing in your virtual club (you can invite a guest partner from out of your area) and taking advantage of ACBL's free guest memberships. If your club has a pro-am or mentor/mentee game, offer to partner a newcomer. These links are helpful for new-to-duplicate players:

ACBL Guest Membership -- Register online for four free months of member benefits, including the Bridge Bulletin and recording of masterpoints.

Bridgebase solitaire - Matchpoints -- Play against robots and see your matchpoint percentage score after every hand. No login is required.

Discover the Fun & Challenge of Duplicate Bridge -- This online booklet offers an overview of scoring, convention cards and duplicate customs, plus tips for pair and team play.

♥  Encourage current players to enter virtual club games.  Many players who were regulars at our face-to-face clubs have not yet tried ACBL's virtual club games. An invitation from you might be all that's needed to convince them to start playing again.

There's help available for those who have never played online. Ask your virtual club managers if they offer Bridgebase training. You can also direct your friends to this page:

Getting started on Bridgebase.com -- An introduction to online bridge with tips on how to join and play on Bridgebase.com

ACBL games are available in three virtual clubs in District 8. All offer a full schedule of masterpoint games and some have free lesson programs.

♣ St. Louis Bridge Collective -- 12 weekly sessions (open, 499er and 299er).

♣ Central & Southern Illinois Collective -- 8 weekly sessions (open, 499er, 299er & 199er) plus free online lessons and BBO tutorials.

♣ Northern Illinois Virtual Clubs -- 12 weekly sessions (open and 499er) offered by Rockford, Crystal Lake & St. Charles clubs.