Story by Stephen Goldspink (BBO: Goldy1959)
Back in the 1970s, I had a group of teenage friends in London who introduced me to bridge. There were five of us who played, and we would get together socially and occasionally enter tournaments. In those days, of course, everything was played in person.
Forty years later, we were still in touch, although by then I was living eighty miles from London. I would occasionally make the trip down, and we would spend an evening playing bridge together. Eventually, though, my work changed and I was no longer visiting London.
Fortunately, BBO gave us another way to keep playing together. For the last few years, we've been meeting up for social bridge using a video call alongside BBO, and it's almost like being there in person. We can deal and play the hands together, then discuss what we did wrong afterwards. One of our group teaches bridge classes, so he also keeps us up to date with new conventions.
Fifty-two years after we first started playing, we're still at it, and remarkably, all five of us are still around.
The BBO is a wonerfull way to play at any time! Very addictive tho!! Cheers!
Very cool. Thank you for sharing! Not a war, but a "violent game". 😉
J'apprécie que les mêmes personnes continuent à jouer ensemble.
Je suis dans le cas identique à celui de Tanuja Philipose Mullick. Je préfère jouer en solitaire afin ne pas décevoir mon partenaire.
Pourtant je fais partie d'un Club FFB en Normandie et chaque séance n'est pas toujours un plaisir. Il n'y a pas de discussion à la suite du tournoi qui dure 3h30 et ceci est très frustrant. Je préfère jouer de manière sociale plutôt que compétitive.
J'ai aimé votre histoire.
Great story. Before BBO there was an online site called World Play Bridge. I had a group of friends there and it evolved to actually meeting in person in Law Vegas one year. It was a lot of fun. Unfortunately World Play dissolved, and I never found the comradery on BBO like I did at World Play. Don't get me wrong, I love BBO, but it is so much bigger and it is hard to find a group of likeminded people on a regular basis. Loved your story.
before bbo there was yahoo bridge and i "met" a number of people who i played with who later transferred to bbo. now, of course, bbo has been taken over by the french and has become much more complex and will become much more expensive.
I have enjoyed practicing bridge at BBO!
I have enjoyed practicing bridge at BBO!
Very good story thanks for sharing it
How wonderful!
Especially as attrition is high amongst Bridge group players in the city i last lived in .
The joy of playing solitaire bridge against the computer is gratifying.
For me.( I do not have to be stressed about letting a partner down and the toxicity released at many a game when playing with humans. It could be because I am a nervous and lousy player. Would prefer playing the dummy as often as I could.) C’est la vie.
😅🤣
We still have lots of discussions (arguments) after each hand. One of us is regularly the one who insists he is right, but we overcome that because bridge is a game, not a war. And when it all goes pear shaped for him, well, we are diplomatic. Mostly. Our biggest enemy is what we call "BBO hands", i.e. very strange ones