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So you think that knowing the time and the place of a bridge tournament are pretty important?

Many bridge players struggle to remember the starting time.

“Was it 9.30am or 10.00am?”

“Was that the time for morning tea or when we make the first bid?”

“Where’s the bridge club? Easy to find?”

 

Those maybe some of the questions bridge players ask prior to playing…or maybe they do not! Hopefully, one of the partnership or team managed to enter the event! That’s a good start! One cannot expect too much more from our players.

 

Take nothing for granted! Read on….

 

Murat Genc is a very intelligent bridge player. Like many from Dunedin, he earns his crust at the university. He loves our game. Always goes to Canberra in January for the Summer Festival of Bridge. Can pull more than the occasional good card, too! Like this year. His team of 5 were right up there, finishing the 12 round Swiss in the main South West Pacific Teams in 8^th place, with the top 8 qualifying for the elite National Open Teams which followed.

Murat, early for a bridge tournament.

There was just one snag…well, two actually. One member of Murat’s team was over 80, had had a great time up to that point but had had enough. Time to go home.

Surely, no worries, as the other four could continue. Yes, but. What was “the but”? Murat! He was “the but”. The Round of 8 was on the Friday morning and the following day he was due in Tauranga to start playing in the 3 day Tauranga Mini Congress. Arleen Schwartz was flying up from Dunedin to play with him. He could not let Arleen down. He would never hear the end of it. Time to go. He had his flight booked to get to Tauranga that Friday to be ready to play with Arleen.

Apologies to teammates in Canberra. Sorry, had to go back to New Zealand. Thus, with only three members left, the team had to withdraw from the NOT.

Murat’s cellphone was in his hotel bedroom when he made his apologies. This was somewhat a pity because:

Frantic calls from Dunedin went unanswered. The Tauranga Congress was not the following day… but a week and a day later! Murat was flying into Tauranga a week early. He did not though get the message!

Thus, his team withdrew from the “NOT” and off to Tauranga he went… then back to Dunedin and a week later back to Tauranga! All a bit expensive and no thrills of playing in the National Open Teams. A real “minties” moment!

Yet, do not worry, Murat, you are in good company.

Peter and Julia Watson had decided to play with their fellow Hawke’s Bay friends, Caroline and Murray Wiggins, in the South Island Teams in Dunedin in mid- February. They have been travelling to other big Teams events around New Zealand recently..great experience.

However, a few days before, someone, maybe Caroline or Murray, had made a comment to one of them about seeing them in Dunedin the following weekend.

They were rather surprised by such a statement as they had planned, booked their flights well in advance, for the event which they had thought was taking place in Christchurch! Now, you can travel quite long distances in the South Island at quite rapid rates because, compared to up North, there are not many cars on those South Island roads. However, booking a flight, staying the night in Christchuch for a well over 4 hour drive to Dunedin does seem a little extreme. Sort of getting up at 5am or earlier. Most bridge players would get up at 9.29am for a 9.30am start if they could!

Maybe Peter and Julia could change their flights? Unfortunately not, as Peter had an important work meeting close to home on the Friday and therefore, they had to stick with their original travel plans, of flying latish on the Friday to Christchurch. They could not get down by plane to Dunedin and therefore decided to drive down to Dunedin very very late on Friday…. so late that they reached Oamaru, one of this country’s most interesting towns around 2am Saturday morning!

Julia and Peter Watson, in Dunedin...truly!

That did not leave much time for exploring, or taking in a game at the local bridge club. They found a bed at that latish hour(maybe for just “one hour”) and were up bright and early on the Saturday morning as the bridge started at 9.30am! That’s the start time, not time for some famous South Island hospitality, a nice morning tea. They were there in body but the spirit was not all it could have been. Following suit was not that easy for the first few boards! Their scores were not that great, especially early on.

“Nice to see you” said Caroline and Murray in unison.                   

“Right time: right place.”

Is that too much to hope for?

“Playing bridge can involve great stress.

It’s not just knowing when to and when not to finesse.

There’s the difficulty in knowing an event’s exact date

‘Tis better to be a week early than a week late

And much better to fly to the city where you play

Than one which is four to five hours away.”

 

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