The Bridge House mentoring program is designed to match less experienced players with more experienced players to help both players improve their bridge skills. The mentoring program builds on Master-Novice night, but it is more of a tutoring program and is not just for novices. Mentors don’t have to be life masters and mentees could be life masters. While primarily to help newer players, the mentoring program is intended to help players at all levels increase their success and satisfaction at the bridge table.
For mentees, the mentoring program is an opportunity for you to gain knowledge, confidence, and assistance to enjoy your bridge even more. For mentors, it is an opportunity for you to share your love of the game, to pass along your experience, and to help grow our club.
The basic program has a few simple guidelines:
- The mentor should have at least 100 more Masterpoints than the mentee.
- Mentors and mentees will commit to playing as partners at least twice a month for six months. The program will run in two annual “semesters”—from January through June, and from July through December.
- Both partners agree to set aside some time for formal and informal discussions about specific hands, bidding, ethics, and other issues.
- Mentees can, and should when appropriate, also be mentors for less experienced players.
- Your mentoring partnership can play in any game for which both partners are eligible.
- Regular card fees apply for both mentor and mentee and are paid individually.
- Discussions/tutoring at the table should be minimal and as a courtesy should include the opponents. The mentee should refrain from asking too many questions at the table. Make a note to discuss it later.
- The mentor should tutor only one novice at a time under this program.
- You can establish a mentor-mentee relationship yourself, or the program coordinator will help match up partners.
- At your first meeting together, you should jointly explore goals and priorities. These may change as time goes on and you should review them periodically. Some possible goals the mentee may be trying to reach in the program include:
- to feel more comfortable playing up,
- to become more tournament tough,
- to learn and practice new conventions,
- to solidify bidding understandings,
- to learn play of the hand techniques,
- to recognize their own weaknesses and gain new strengths,
- to recognize their own strengths and receive encouragement,
- whatever else they may choose.
Thank you for your interest and commitment.
For more info, contact Dick Heil at 501-753-3097.