If you would like to discuss my new found passion for bridge, please get in touch at neilghosh@nrgiie.com
Reborn into Bridge
Beginning
My very first experience of bridge is one I do not remember! My late Dad told me stories of being in the room as a baby whilst he played an Indian variant of the Rubber form with his friends.
Thereafter, I used to perch on his armchair to watch him and his friends shuffle, cut and deal the cards, before fanning out then sorting their hands: spades, hearts, diamonds, clubs (each in their descending ranks) from left to right Dad’s favoured combination. I have clear memories and related anxiety when he occasionally used to bid 3NTs before looking at his cards, to the opposition’s dismay!
Dad also played 3 player and 2 player bridge. The latter I was able to replicate mostly with my imaginary friend – I always won!
Returning
45 years passed until I finally stepped foot into the Acol Bridge Club, in early September 2024, having explained before arrival, that I had some experience of the sport. This resulted in my being placed into a supervised game with a couple of intermediate players.
In the wide expanse of the underground club floor, I was to learn, to my consternation that shuffling, dealing, cutting the cards and perhaps most significantly, psyching, were mostly features of the past. The scoring system was also a little different from what I had been used to for rubber bridge. Then there was my lack of knowledge about the Acol weak no-trump and bewildering new rules. So, I completed a weekend Beginners’ Course in mid-September
I started to play regular supervised sessions with an 81-year-old gentleman, who attended the first course with me. We are now becoming very good friends, having also started to make acquaintances with other bridge couplets too.
The two of us have not only guided by supervisors (and also more experienced players at our table, who were harnessing conventions like Stayman, Blackwood, Doubles and Transfers, which we are starting to absorb).
I repeated the Beginners’ Course in November to help cement my learning, and from which a fabulous quartet emerged. We have a lot of fun playing together on Monday evenings, encouraging each other (which, of course, invites less harshness and more healing holistically); we invariably chat through our hands, and sometimes just gossip, which can sometimes be frowned upon! Bridge, we have learned, is serious play!
Within our group of four, I am often turned to for explanations. This is offering me a reminder of how much I love to do this, and with a soft touch, thereby planting the seed of my wishing to student-teach other dedicated beginners. The adage ‘that the best way to learn something is to teach’ is ringing true.