Conduct and Etiquette

The Club operates a zero tolerance policy towards rudeness. If you experience rude behaviour please notify the director at the time so it can be dealt with appropriately.

Please ensure your mobile phones are on silent during play.

Section 10 of the Club's Constitution.pdf covers discipline and/or suspension of members. At all times members are expected to dress to a reasonable standard, and be polite and courteous.

A player should maintain a courteous attitude at all times and carefully avoid any remark or action that might cause annoyance or embarrassment to another player or might interfere with the enjoyment of the game. A player should conform to correct procedure in calling and playing. A player should refrain from:

• Failing to warmly welcome opponents when arriving at a table
• Paying insufficient attention to the game
• Making gratuitous comments during the auction and play
• Detaching a card before it is his/her turn to play
• Prolonging play unnecessarily for the purpose of disconcerting an opponent
• Summoning and addressing the Director in a manner discourteous to him/her or to other contestants
• Gloating
• When in the scoring seat taking extra time completing an additional personal score sheet when time is short
• Consistently slow play holding up other players
• Continuing to discuss a previous hand once the next hand has started
• Failing to promptly call the Director to help resolve an issue, early

There may be a natural reluctance to complain about fellow players. Should it become necessary to call the Director simply state ‘my opponent is interfering with my enjoyment of the game’.

Strongly discouraged

• Using different meanings between the partners for the same bid in the same situation (e.g. you play weak 1NT open, your partner plays strong 1NT open)
• Indicating approval or disapproval of a call or play
• Taking a long time to play a singleton where there is no thinking required (giving the impression that you have more cards than you hold)
• Taking a long time to play a card when there is no reason for the long delay, giving the impression that you have an important and challenging decision to make (for example your choice is 3 or 4 of hearts)
• Indicating the expectation or intention of winning or losing a trick that has not been completed
• Commenting or acting during the auction or play so as to call attention to a significant occurrence, or to the number of tricks still required for success
• Looking intently at any other player during the auction and play, or another player’s hand as for the purpose of seeing his/her cards or of observing the place from which he/she draws a card (but it is appropriate to act on information acquired by inadvertently seeing opponent’s card)
• Showing an obvious lack of further interest in a deal (folding cards)
• Varying the normal tempo of bidding or play for the purpose of disconcerting an opponent
• Placing your bidding cards in different locations on the bridge table (for example, placing bids on far left to show strong hand, far right to show weak)
• Leaving the table needlessly before the round is called
• Shuffling of cards after playing a card to indicate a suit is now void
• Anything outside or close to the boundaries of the spirit of the game

Players are reminded that the opening lead should not be recorded at the start of play and that the appropriate time to record information is after play of the hand is complete. To record the opening lead sooner is seen as an aid to memory (not permitted), delays plays and may unnecessarily irritate others. Furthermore play should not be delayed by players completing their own personal score sheets, ever.