SCOTTISH BRIDGE UNION
The Bridgemate and its offshoots are a godsend to scorers who no longer need to transfer data into a computer by hand. One less opportunity for error! But it has not removed human error altogether – Tournament Directors agree that the most frequent reason for a call to the table these days is scoring error: the score has been
entered under the wrong board number, or to the wrong declarer, or a double has been omitted, or….
Unfortunately such errors are not always picked up at the time and can lead to wrong results being published.
How to minimise errors:
Best practice for North (or whoever is in charge of the electronic scoring device)
- As soon as the board is placed on the table enter its number
- As soon as the contract is known enter the contract and declarer
- As soon as the opening lead is made, enter that (if required)
- At the end of play agree the number of tricks before entering that
- After pressing OK show opponents the verification screen
Best practice for East (or whichever partner volunteers to check the score)
- Check Board number, contract, declarer and number of tricks
- Do not press Accept, Confirm or OK until you are satisfied that the data is correct
- Where a percentage score appears on the screen allow the other players to see it, but do not announce it out loud for all to hear
If, in spite of your best efforts, incorrect data has been accepted:
Call the TD and explain what has happened.
The TD will erase the incorrect information, allow you to enter the correct information and will confirm that your opponents agree with the amended data.
A Playing Director may have other demands on their time. They may depute the duty of erasing the wrong information to another player or may supply you with a correction slip so that he can make the score correction later.
Whatever, all changes to data must be recorded by the Tournament Director or deputy.