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Exploring the Laws
Chapter
IX & Chapter X
Chapters 9 and 10 cover
the responsibilities and duties of the Sponsoring Organisation and
the Tournament Director.
The use of the term
'Sponsoring Organisation' is directed at any club, national
or zonal body in addition to the WBF or any organisation conducting
a tournament under these laws. This terminology is important, for
implicit in this responsibility is the requirement to abide totally
within these laws and to ensure there are no conflicting regulations.
Most of the requirements
of the Sponsoring Organisation listed are of a expected nature such
as appointing Tournament Directors, finding venues, scheduling of
events, conditions of entry, bidding procedures, appeal processes
etc. For the most part, the average club, whether they realise it
or not, have most, if not all of the list incorporated in their
yearly programme as their club games are regulated by either supply
and demand or venue availability.
Law
81, 'Tournament Director', 'Responsibilities', 'Duties and
Powers' is listed to ensure that the Director is fully aware of
his authority and that in upholding the law, his power is absolute.
Once appointed as The Director, he is responsible for the smooth
running of the event, all technical areas, the scoring and is bound
by these laws and any supplementary regulations. The duties expected
of the Director are all designed to provide a professional approach
and whilst he may delegate , he is still ultimately responsible.
Such duties include the announcement of conditions of play, the
maintenance of discipline, keeping the movement going, interpreting
the laws, assessing penalties etc. The list is very comprehensive.
Law
82 deals with the 'Rectification of Errors of Procedure'.
This requires the directors to deal with procedural errors by way
of awarding adjusted scores or requiring late plays. Encompassed
in this law is the procedure to follow if a wrong ruling is given,
every Director at some stage in his career will have a blind spot
and either give a wrong ruling or miss out an important option,
recognising that nobody is perfect, the players will applaud
the Directors honesty in owning up and will graciously accept the
ruling of a 60-60 adjusted score, deeming both sides as non-offending.
For the Director, when giving rulings, ensure that every option
is covered with ramifications if applicable for as sure as eggs
are eggs, the one time you bypass an option, it will backfire on
you.
Section 2 of Chapter
10, Law
84 gives the procedure to follow when rulings are made on
agreed facts, no problems. In certain instances, there are disagreements
regarding facts, such as in claims, played cards, revokes etc. When
this happens the prime objective is to keep the game going without
too much delay, especially in Pair games; Gather whatever facts
you can and if necessary make a ruling that will allow play to continue.
The unhappy pair can always appeal any decision.
Section 3 of chapter
10, Law 86 'Correction of Irregularities'
in team play. Law
12c refers to 'artificial adjusted scores' and awards certain
percentage scores according to the degree of responsibility, this
law 86 refers to adjusted scores in teams play as equating + or
- 3 IMP's to 60% and 40% or Average +, Average -.
Law 86B looks
at when the Director awards two differing scores in knockout matches,
the formula to be used is that each team separately computes their
score for that board and the average of the two scores is the result.
Law 86C refers
to the authority of Law
6 to redeal boards, disallowing any redeal if the final
result of a match could be known to any one of the contestants.
This law would only refer to the final segment of a match. If, in
earlier portion of a match, it was deemed that a substitute board
was in order, this could be lawfully added to the next segment if
appropriate.
Law
87 defined 'Fouled Board". Just because a board does not
conform to the hand record, this does not necessarily mean that
the board was fouled, providing players had a direct comparison
in an identical form, then the board can be scored normally. However,
when, it is established that a board was fouled, it is necessary
to find the point at which the cards changed and divide the board
into two groups. The board can then be scored in accordance with
any regulations of the tournament.
Law
88 refers to artificial adjusted scores in pairs events
and awards a minimum of 60% to a non-offender. In order to give
more than the prescribed 60% would depend on the percentage game
of the pair concerned with an upward adjustment given if their game
exceeded the prescribed amount. Otherwise to give more would require
exceptional circumstances with reference to a tournament committee.
Law
89 'Penalties in Individual Events'. Any penalty for an
infraction is awarded equally against a pairing, however procedural
penalties can be given individually.
Law 90 identifies the areas of 'Breaches
of Procedure' and gives the authority for the Director to penalise
whenever he believes that such action is necessary. Bridge is a
game and the issuing of penalties should only be given when clearly
warranted and not as a matter of course. There are, naturally, situations
when the Directors hands are tied by way of regulations requiring
automatic penalties irrespective of feelings, such instances can
rightfully include, late arrival or late finishes; These generally
are promulgated in major tournaments only. For the ordinary
club game, such draconian action will only upset your regular players
and serve very little constructive purpose.
I am frequently asked
how to deal with slow play which causes more angst than all
other areas of play. A good Director will move the players when
around 75% of tables are complete, should timers be in use, the
allotted time should reflect this time span. It is no use setting
the clock for 8 minutes a board if 75% of the players complete the
round in 7 minutes, similarly, if you only allow 7 minutes per board
and 50% are not finished, adjust the clock accordingly. Once you
have established a mean time span, move the tables accordingly and
as your schedule is based on 75% completion, there will always be
a number of tables on or near completion when the clock rings. On
this basis it would be prudent to avoid any suggestion of penalties
for slow play at this time.
Late tables will catch
up; If I am called, I adopt the line that the time allowed is a
mean timing, not an automatic right to take the allowed span. Whilst
players are expected to finish on time, some hands will present
problems, whilst others will be of a mamma papa nature and take
no time at all, thus giving all players the opportunity to play
to time and catch up when necessary. I believe gentle coercion
is far more effective than harsh penalties. Other penalty situations
in this law include for: Loud postmortems, touching opponents cards,
failing to count and all situations whereby other players are inconvenienced.
Law
91, whilst one of the shortest in words, packs a deadly
punch. The authority for the Director to discipline players either
through penalties or suspension. Seldom used and should only be
enacted as a last resort in order to maintain order and discipline.
Law
92 and Law 93 deal with 'Appeals'.
Every Sponsoring Organisation have their own regulation in this
area, the Laws give guidelines as to the rights of players and committees
and it is worth noting that any player has the right to appeal a
Directors ruling that was made at his table, even though the ruling
was based on Law or Regulation. The only proviso is that both members
of a pair or the captain of a team concur in appealing. Note the
words 'that was made at his table', no appeal can be entertained
made by any other player for a ruling given elsewhere.
The timing for a request
for an appeal is linked to law
79c, the reference point for all laws where 'timing' is
involved. The Sponsoring Organisation may decide a different time
which could be relevant when it is impossible to either delay a
result or convene a meeting in the 30 mins stipulated in this law.
In certain situations, the forming of an appeals committee is either
impossible or impracticable, in such cases the Law allows for the
Chief Director to act as a committee of one, if however a
committee can be properly formed then such committee is required
to adhere to Law and has no authority to overrule the director on
a point of Law or regulation. They can however recommend he change
his ruling if their interpretation or conclusion differs from the
ruling as made.
Law
93c allows for disgruntled appellants to take their case
to their National Authority for consideration. Such Authority would
normally only consider a review if patently incorrect facts were
originally presented or if an incorrect law was applied.
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Chapter IX
Tournament Sponsorship
LAW
80 - SPONSORING ORGANIZATION
A sponsoring organisation
conducting an event under these Laws has the following duties and
powers:
A. Tournament Director to appoint the tournament Director.
If there is no tournament Director, the players should designate
one of their own number to perform his functions.
B. Advance Arrangements to make advance arrangements
for the tournament, including playing quarters, accommodations and
equipment.
C. Session Times to establish the date and time of
each session.
D. Conditions of Entry to establish the conditions
of entry.
E. Special Conditions to establish special conditions
for bidding and play (such as written bidding, bidding boxes, screens
- penalty provisions for actions not transmitted across a screen
may be suspended).
F. Supplementary Regulations to publish or announce
regulations supplementary to, but not in conflict with, these Laws.
G. Appeals To make suitable arrangements for appeals
to be heard.
Chapter X
Tournament
Director
SECTION ONE
RESPONSIBILITIES
LAW 81
- DUTIES AND POWERS
A. Official Status The
Director is the official representative of the sponsoring organisation.
B. Restrictions and Responsibilities
1. Technical Management The Director is responsible for the
technical management of the tournament.
2. Observance of Laws and Regulations The Director is bound
by these Laws and by supplementary regulations announced by the
sponsoring organisation.
C. Director's Duties and Powers The Director's duties
and powers normally include the following:
1. Assistants to appoint assistants, as required, to perform
his duties.
2. Entries to accept and list entries.
3. Conditions of Play to establish suitable conditions of
play and to announce them to the contestants.
4. Discipline to maintain discipline and to insure the orderly
progress of the game.
5. Law to administer and interpret these Laws and to advise
the players of their rights and responsibilities thereunder.
6. Errors to rectify an error or irregularity of which he
becomes aware in any manner, within the correction period established
in accordance with Law
79C.
7. Penalties to assess penalties when applicable.
8. Waiver of Penalties to waive penalties for cause, at his
discretion, upon the request of the non-offending side.
9. Disputes to adjust disputes; to refer a matter to the
appropriate committee.
10. Scores to collect scores and tabulate results.
11. Reports to report results to the sponsoring organisation
for official record.
D. Delegation of Duties The Director may delegate
any of the duties listed in "C' to assistants, but he is not thereby
relieved of responsibility for their correct performance.
LAW 82
- RECTIFICATION OF ERRORS OF PROCEDURE
A. Director's Duty
It is the duty of the Director to rectify errors of procedure and
to maintain the progress of the game in a manner that is not contrary
to these Laws.
B. Rectification of Error To rectify an error in procedure
the Director may:
1. Award of Adjusted Score award an adjusted score as permitted
by these Laws.
2. Specify Time of Play require or postpone the play of a
board.
C. Director's Error If the Director has given a ruling that
he or the Chief Director subsequently determines to be incorrect,
and if no rectification will allow the board to be scored normally,
he shall award an adjusted score, considering both sides as non-offending
for that purpose
LAW 83
- NOTIFICATION OF THE RIGHT TO APPEAL
If the Director believes that a
review of his decision on a point of fact or exercise of his discretionary
power might be in order (as when he awards an adjusted score under
Law
12), he shall advise a contestant of his right to appeal
or may refer the matter to an appropriate committee.
SECTION TWO
RULINGS
LAW 84
- RULINGS ON AGREED FACTS
When the Director is called to rule
on a point of law or regulation in which the facts are agreed upon,
he shall rule as follows:
A. No Penalty If no penalty is prescribed by law,
and there is no occasion for him to exercise his discretionary powers,
he directs the players to proceed with the auction or play.
B. Penalty under Law If a case is clearly covered
by a Law that specifies a penalty for the irregularity, he assesses
that penalty and sees that it is paid.
C. Player's Option If a Law gives a player a choice
among penalties, the Director explains the options and sees that
a penalty is selected and paid.
D. Director's Option If the Law gives the Director
a choice between a specified penalty and the award of an adjusted
score, he attempts to restore equity, resolving any doubtful point
in favour of the non-offending side.
E. Discretionary Penalty If an irregularity has occurred
for which no penalty is provided by law, the Director awards an
adjusted score if there is even a reasonable possibility that the
non-offending side was damaged, notifying the offending side of
its right to appeal (see Law
81C9).
LAW 85
- RULINGS ON DISPUTED FACTS
When the Director is called upon
to rule on a point of law or regulation in which the facts are not
agreed upon, he shall proceed as follows:
A. Director's Assessment If the Director is satisfied
that he has ascertained the facts, he rules as in Law
84.
B. Facts Not Determined If the Director is unable
to determine the facts to his satisfaction, he shall make a ruling
that will permit play to continue, and notify the players of their
right to appeal.
SECTION THREE
CORRECTION OF IRREGULARITIES
LAW 86
- IN TEAM PLAY
A.
Average Score at IMP Play When the Director chooses to award
an artificial adjusted score of average plus or average minus in
IMP play, that score is plus 3 IMPs or minus 3 IMPs respectively.
B. Non-balancing Adjustments, Knockout Play When the
Director assigns non-balancing adjusted scores (see Law
12C) in knockout play, each contestant's score on the board
is calculated separately. The average of the two scores is then
assigned to both contestants.
C. Substitute Board The Director shall not exercise
his Law
6 authority to order one board redealt when the final result
of a match without that board could be known to a contestant. Instead,
he awards an adjusted score.
LAW 87
- FOULED BOARD
A. Definition
A board is considered to be "fouled" if the Director determines
that one or more cards were misplaced in the board, in such manner
that contestants who should have had a direct score comparison did
not play the board in identical form.
B. Scoring the Fouled Board In scoring a fouled board
the Director determines as closely as possible which scores were
made on the board in its correct form, and which in the changed
form. He divides the score on that basis into two groups, and rates
each group separately as provided in the regulations of the sponsoring
organisation. In some forms of team contests, the sponsoring organisation
may prescribe a redeal (see Law
6).
SECTION FOUR
PENALTIES
LAW 88
- AWARD OF INDEMNITY POINTS
In a pair or individual event, when
a non-offending contestant is required to take an artificial adjusted
score through no fault or choice of his own, such contestant shall
be awarded a minimum of 60% of the matchpoints available to him
on that board, or the percentage of matchpoints he earned on boards
actually played during the session if that percentage was greater
than 60%.
LAW 89
- PENALTIES IN INDIVIDUAL EVENTS
In individual events, the Director
shall enforce the penalty provisions of these Laws, and the provisions
requiring the award of adjusted scores, equally against both members
of the offending side, even though only one of them may be responsible
for the irregularity. But the Director, in awarding adjusted scores,
shall not assess procedural penalty points against the offender's
partner, if, in the Director's opinion, he is in no way responsible
for the violation.
LAW 90
- PROCEDURAL PENALTIES
A. Director's Authority
The Director, in addition to enforcing the penalty provisions of
these Laws, may also assess penalties for any offence that unduly
delays or obstructs the game, inconveniences other contestants,
violates correct procedure, or requires the award of an adjusted
score at another table.
B. Offences Subject to Penalty Offences subject to
penalty include but are not limited to:
1. Tardiness arrival of a contestant after the specified
starting time.
2. Slow Play unduly slow play by a contestant.
3. Loud Discussion discussion of the bidding, play or result
of a board, which may be overheard at another table.
4. Comparing Scores unauthorised comparison of scores with
another contestant.
5. Touching Another's Cards touching or handling of cards
belonging to another player (Law
7).
6. Misplacing Cards in Board placing one or more cards in
an incorrect pocket of the board.
7. Errors in Procedure errors in procedure (such as failure
to count cards in one's hand, playing the wrong board, etc.) that
require an adjusted score for any contestant.
8. Failure to Comply failure to comply promptly with tournament
regulations or with any instruction of the Director.
LAW 91
- PENALISE OR SUSPEND
A. Director's Power
In performing his duty to maintain order and discipline, the Director
is specifically empowered to assess disciplinary penalties in points
or to suspend a contestant for the current session or any part thereof
(the Director's decision under this clause is final).
B. Right to Disqualify The Director is specifically
empowered to disqualify a contestant for cause, subject to approval
by the Tournament Committee or sponsoring organisation.
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