[Balrog49]

Sorry if this has been asked before. I've read the help in BBO and searched the forums, but can't find the answer to what seems like an obvious question: what bidding methods are in play when you sit down at a table with an unknown partner? BBO Standard? BBO 2/1? SAYC? Your profile? His/her profile?

Barry

[billw55]

I am not aware of a single standard. You can make some guesses based on the flag, skill level, and other profile information. But in general it's a figure it out as you go proposition.

I find that usually it is safe to assume a north american style of opening bids, unless explicity stated otherwise in their profile. This includes 5 card majors, 15-17 notrump with simple stayman and transfers to majors, 2♣ strong, and maybe one or two other things. Beyond that, you will need to have a chat about it.

[chasetb]

If they have a profile, bid based on it. That way, you can blame them when they screw up.

Seriously, almost every person on BBO overstate their ability. Be careful with Intermediate and some Advanced players, I have had quite a few bid 2♣ or 2♦ on 5-7 HCP and a 6-card suit. A helpful tidbit is if in their profile, they list Stayman and Blackwood, then they are going to be below average, no matter what they list themselves as.

[barmar]

chasetb, on 2012-July-10, 20:19, said:

If they have a profile, bid based on it. That way, you can blame them when they screw up.

The problem with this is if you also have a profile, and they bid based on that. You're each playing the other player's "system".

The simple answer is when you sit down, say something like "you're profile OK". If there's something in there that you don't like, list the exceptions.

[Heron]

chasetb, on 2012-July-10, 20:19, said:

Be careful with Intermediate and some Advanced players, I have had quite a few bid 2♣ or 2♦ on 5-7 HCP and a 6-card suit. A helpful tidbit is if in their profile, they list Stayman and Blackwood, then they are going to be below average, no matter what they list themselves as.

Could you expand on that? Is it that you think they're not worth mentioning, because nobody at an advanced level plays them, or something else? I basically only ever play in set partnerships anyway, but when we're looking for pickup players to play a few hands with, the number of people who pop in and then pop out again suggests that they're looking for something they're not finding, and I'm curious what.

I've never liked the BBO skill definitions much. They go from "Beginner: Someone who has played bridge for less than one year" to "Intermediate: Someone who is comparable in skill to most other members of Bridge Base Online". I think there's a lot of room in there for "has played bridge for more than a year, but still sucks".

[barmar]

Heron, on 2012-July-15, 13:35, said:

Could you expand on that? Is it that you think they're not worth mentioning, because nobody at an advanced level plays them, or something else? I basically only ever play in set partnerships anyway, but when we're looking for pickup players to play a few hands with, the number of people who pop in and then pop out again suggests that they're looking for something they're not finding, and I'm curious what.

They're not worth mentioning because EVERYONE plays them. The fact that they feel the need to mention them specifically suggests that they don't know this simple fact.

Quote

I've never liked the BBO skill definitions much. They go from "Beginner: Someone who has played bridge for less than one year" to "Intermediate: Someone who is comparable in skill to most other members of Bridge Base Online". I think there's a lot of room in there for "has played bridge for more than a year, but still sucks".

They're very rough guidelines. And how many people would put themselves in a category that's described as "still sucks"?

[Balrog49]

chasetb, on 2012-July-10, 20:19, said:

Seriously, almost every person on BBO overstates their ability.

So I've noticed. I watch a lot on my iPhone while waiting for kids, etc., and I've seen "Expert" and even "World Class" players make horrendous mistakes. My profile is set to "Advanced" because although I've won several regionals and dozens of sectionals, I've never won a national event. Some of the "Expert" players I've watched couldn't win a national event in the U.S. in a million years.

I've had enough of sitting down with "intermediate" and "advanced" players who have no concept of the game and try to blame their bad results on me. They're not even smart enough to know how bad they are. If I have no regular partners online and want to play for 30-60 minutes, how do I get to a decent table?

Barry

[billw55]

Balrog49, on 2012-July-27, 13:00, said:

So I've noticed. I watch a lot on my iPhone while waiting for kids, etc., and I've seen "Expert" and even "World Class" players make horrendous mistakes. My profile is set to "Advanced" because although I've won several regionals and dozens of sectionals, I've never won a national event. Some of the "Expert" players I've watched couldn't win a national event in the U.S. in a million years.

I've had enough of sitting down with "intermediate" and "advanced" players who have no concept of the game and try to blame their bad results on me. They're not even smart enough to know how bad they are. If I have no regular partners online and want to play for 30-60 minutes, how do I get to a decent table?

Barry

I suggest setting your profile to expert, then surfing the open table listing for partners who also are marked as expert. A decent size minority of them actually are; add these as friends and build up a list of preferred partners. Some of them might be willing to schedule play (such as a lunch hour); remember, they are in the same difficulties as you are.

[Bbradley62]

Heron, on 2012-July-15, 13:35, said:

Could you expand on that? Is it that you think they're not worth mentioning, because nobody at an advanced level plays them, or something else? I basically only ever play in set partnerships anyway, but when we're looking for pickup players to play a few hands with, the number of people who pop in and then pop out again suggests that they're looking for something they're not finding, and I'm curious what.

I've never liked the BBO skill definitions much. They go from "Beginner: Someone who has played bridge for less than one year" to "Intermediate: Someone who is comparable in skill to most other members of Bridge Base Online". I think there's a lot of room in there for "has played bridge for more than a year, but still sucks".

This reminded me of an old thread: http://www.bridgebas...41980-slumming/