Bridge Topics ©MJH 2022-2025
(Content modified: March, 2025)
(File modified: March 8, 2025 8:10 am)
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Michael J. Hannah, Los Ranchos, NM.
The purpose for the web pages in this section are primarily as reference notes for myself (due to my declining memory), and for review by any partners I may have. Hopefully these also may be of interest and use to other players. Currently these pages include:
• ACBL Duplicate Bridge Topics
• A 2022 Convention Card Manual (Content modified: March, 2025)
How to enter YOUR agreements on ACBL’s
• Modified Convention Card Forms
Both one-page and “Big Print” two-page formats
• My ACBL Masterpoints® (Content modified: July, 2023)
I have been playing Bridge off and on for over 60 years but only began to play Duplicate after I retired. In the beginning I chose to take the ACBL official courses for both Director and Teacher for my own education. While now accredited for both roles, I am not actively doing either. So far I have risen to Bronze Life Master. Since my main interest is only being at least “competent” at Bridge but not necessarily “competitive”, I am not seriously pursuing higher ranks in ACBL Masterpoints®. My reasons for playing the game are primarily for my entertainment and mental exercise, and for social interaction, which is why I prefer face-to-face rather than on-line bridge games.
This section identifies some web pages on general topics concerning the game of Duplicate Bridge as played according to the American Contract Bridge League (ACBL) rules. I collected and posted the information primarily as reference notes for myself (due to my declining memory), and as a source for any other players of the game who may be interested.
A 2022 Convention Card Manual (Content modified: March, 2025)
How to enter YOUR agreements on ACBL’s 2022 Convention Card Form
This Manual contains complete information to help your partnership fill out your Convention Card to accurately reflect your conventions and agreements. It also includes complete examples reflecting a straight SAYC System.
This extensive document begins with a short History of ACBL Convention Card Forms, an Overview of this 2022 Convention Card Manual, a list of References cited, and discussions of the actual ways ACBL’s Form might be filled out either by hand or by using a computer program. Then follows a description of each Section of the Form which discusses its every field, includes a brief overview of every convention it lists by name, and details how to indicate a partnership’s agreements on the topics of that Section. Following each Section’s description is a separate example image and explanation of completing that Section to reflect ACBL’s full SAYC system. The Manual also includes notes throughout about ways to indicate a system on this Form which has a minimum of agreements. There is also a detailed description of a suggested sequence for the possible actions in the Clarification Period at the end of the auction. This description also includes an explanation of ACBL’s Announcements and Alerts, especially about agreements on the Form whose Alerts are delayed to this Clarification Period.
• Synopsis of a Manual for
About the SAYC System Examples
Sections & SAYC Examples Hyperlinks
Sequence, and Delayed Alerts
Defensive Carding Agreements
Two areas, Blank agreements
Defensive Play: Ordering Strategies, Overview
• List of common abbreviations
• Endnotes
Modified ACBL Convention Card Forms
The Ways to Fill Out the new Form Section in my 2022 Convention Card Manual describes various methods of editing and modifying the standard ACBL Convention Card Form’s downloadable PDF file to make it more usable for your partnership needs. The following downloadable PDF files are examples of creating and using modified fillable Forms and are explained in more detail within the above Section of the 2022 Convention Card Manual.
NOTE: Depending upon how the browser preferences are set, clicking on a link below may open the file for viewing within the browser instead of downloading the file. To enter text in the fillable fields or edit the format, I recommend it first be downloaded and then opened for editing in a PDF editor such as the free Reader. Trying to edit the file when it is within a browser may not be reliable.
If a file with text already entered in a Form’s fillable fields (such as either of the SAYC example files below) is viewed in a browser without being downloaded, some browsers (e.g. versions of Firefox™) may display that text greatly reduced in size. The text will be full size if the file is first downloaded and then viewed in a PDF editor. Thus I recommend downloading even to just view a file.
Blank Forms modified from the standard Form
These PDF files were created by modifying ACBL’s standard Form using the tools available with Adobe® Acrobat® Pro®.
These are downloadable PDF fillable Forms which, like the standard Form, can be viewed, fillable fields entered, and the resulting Form printed using just the free Adobe® Acrobat® Reader®.
• Modified standard Form (Content modified: February, 2025)
This version appears essentially identical to the one-page ACBL standard Form. However it corrects some known red-color and extra field printing errors, and emphasizes the Alert and Announce check box outlines. Most significantly it alters the sequence of the fields which will be highlighted in-turn when using the Tab key in Reader to change to the “next” field. Tabbing through this Form will thus follow the sequence of the field descriptions and explanations in the above noted 2022 Convention Card Manual.
• Big Print Form (Content modified: February, 2025)
In addition to the corrections in the above modified Form, this special two-sided format is intended for added accessibility to individuals with limited eyesight by using typical “Big Print” recommendations, and with more emphasis on Alert and Announcement indicators including textual cues for the color blind. Since the text, fillable fields, and check boxes are enlarged, a few fields have had to be slightly repositioned to accomodate the larger two-sided format.
Examples of completed Forms using ACBL’s straight SAYC system.
These PDF files are examples of entering the complete ACBL SAYC system in the above two modified Form versions.
Both of the above modified Forms were used to create these downloadable pre-filled PDF files containing the agreements for ACBL’s Standard American Yellow Card© (SAYC) system. All these system entries are explained in detail as the SAYC examples in my 2022 Convention Card Manual noted above. Because those modified Forms were filled-in only using the free Adobe® Acrobat® Reader®, these convention cards provide examples of how either of the above modified Forms, or even the ACBL standard Form, could be used to enter special system agreements with custom Comments. Further the Comments and example prefilled system entries in these downloadable PDF files can be changed or deleted, as well having other Comments and entries added, all using only Adobe’s free Reader program.
• Straight SAYC system Convention Card (Content modified: February, 2025)
This file uses the above modified one-page Form to reflect the SAYC system’s bidding and carding agreements. This printed convention card could be made available at ACBL clubs and tournaments as a more complete description of the SAYC system than its typically available very abbreviated small preprinted Standard Yellow Card, since this system could be required to be played at an ACBL tournament in the absence of a substantially completed partnership card.
• Straight SAYC system “Big Print” Convention Card (Content modified: February, 2025)
This file has the same ACBL SAYC system entries as the above one-page convention card except they are entered on the above “Big Print” two-sided modified Form with its added features to be accessible to individuals with limited eyesight.
This section contains topics specific to various aspects of my pastime of playing Duplicate Bridge. I intend to include web pages to document my bridge bidding system which I use when I (currently infrequently) play at our local ACBL Duplicate Bridge Club, but that is a work in progress.
My ACBL Masterpoints® (Content modified: July, 2023)
• Requirements table (Joined before 1 Jan 2010)
I do not warrant in any way that the information about Bridge mentioned in these web pages is accurate or useful, and any use of these personal notes is at the user’s own risk.
As described in a separate document, these documents were composed with Adobe® Framemaker 2019®, converted using its hyperlink and "Save as HTML" features, post-processed with my custom Perl© script, linked to my Responsive CSS file which references my fixed set of fonts, and the HTML and CSS are W3C validated.
©MJH Consulting, 2022-2025. All rights reserved.
(Content modified: March, 2025)