In this update - Early Registration Ending, Practice Event Winners, Predict & Win, COC changes

 
 
Early Registration Discount Ends July 19!
 
The NABC Online entry costs BB$40 till July 19. You'll still be able to enter from July 20-23, but it will cost the usual BB$50. You have received plenty of warnings and alerts about this. There can be no advantage to waiting till the last minute to register that I can think of! Don't forget this event counts towards the Mini-McKenney and Fishbein Trophy!
ACBL NABC Online Registration
How to register:
  • Log on BBO
  • Enter ACBL World
  • And look for the ACBL NABC Online Individual
  • The cost is BB$40 until July 19, and that amount will be subtracted from your BB$ account. July 20-23, the cost is back to BB$50.
  • If you don't have sufficient BB$, or if we don't have a valid ACBL number for you, you will receive a prompt to rectify either issues before attempting the registration again.
  • If you don't have sufficient BB$ and want to buy some BB$ now, click here to buy.
  • If you have not given BBO your ACBL number yet, click here to add your ACBL number to your BBO name.
  • Watch this short clip if you need a step-by-step illustrated guide.
 
Practice Event #4 Results:
 
The final official Practice Event sponsored jointly by BBO and ACBL has concluded! Jmunday with his 71.08% beat out almost 2000 entrants to emerge victorious once again. However, the * by his name means he is ineligible to play in the actual NABC Online, hence his free entry award gets passed down to Wsheryer. It is worth mentioning Jim did great on days 1 and 2 of the practice tournament, but had a 62.97% on day 3 which is mediocre by his standard (though above average by most other!) However, the event format weighs every single board equally, and his superb days 1 and 2 carried him to a comfortable victory. Don't forget about this during your NABC Online! Even if you have a bad board or even a bad day, the event comprises 96 boards over 4 days - it is anyone's game!
 
Roll of Honor -
Top 11 finishers (All receive a free entry to NABC Online Individual)
1st JMunday* 71.08%
2nd Golfacer 69.75%
3rd Strei1 68.49%
4th Scientistx 68.26%
5th Daw28 68.22%
6th Raturias 67.70%
7th Afroyo 67.55%
8th Frank0 67.51%
9th Chudecek 67.45%
10th Leo LaSota 67.44%
11th Wsheryer 67.29%
 
 
Finall overall leaderboard here. This also concludes the series of official practices we ran to help players get comfortable with the NABC Online Individual. If you feel like you can use some extra help, any of the following games will provide you with a decently similar experience.
 
Daylong Tournament (MP)
8 boards, $0.25. Main difference being this tournament is untimed whereas you have a fixed, though generous time limit for the actual tournament.
 
Free Daylong Tournament (MP)
8 boards, free. Main difference apart from being untimed is this tournament uses basic robots. 
 
Any Robot Duplicate or Instant Tournament, (MP)
These may cost from $0.25 - $1, but will all use advanced robots. The ACBL versions also award ACBL masterpoints for good performance.
 
 
ACBL's Graphic Designer makes Robots look adorable
 
When you are having a bad robot day, see if you can picture the bridge robot this way.
A robot that looks like a blend of R2D2, a Smurf and a Minion™ can hardly also be an Axis of Evil hellbent on destroying your game can it?
 
More seriously, we hope you have been absorbing some of the tips we have been sending out. Josh Donn is currently BBO's resident robot expert and most of the tips were from him!
BBO Robot System Notes
Predict & Win!
 
You may have noticed an interesting little item in the BBO news. We are welcoming all BBOers, whether you be a NABC Online registrants, perpertual kibitzer, international junior or robot critic to predict the name of the BBOer you think will win the first NABC Online Individual. Bonus if you guess the final %! 
 
Are you new to BBO and unfamiliar with some of the more prolific players? May we suggest you use the recently concluded official practice event results as a guide? Any of the top finishers have surely earned the right to be named a strong contender.
 
 
COC Changes/updates
 
NABC Online Individual's COC has been officially changed to reflect the extra 1 hour technical allowance (total of 4 hours to finish each day's session). You have 24 boards to finish during this time limit. It is definitely sufficient as the time target is usually only 7.5 min/board in "real life" events so make full use of it!
 
Earlier we had already reported on the huge increase in award payout - Overalls now award the top 187 players, while daily sessions now award the top 67 players. 
 
That surge of emotion you are experiencing right now - I hope it is a sliver of excitement at increased awards! If you are disappointed or outraged, well, as oft repeated, this is the first experiment into an online NABC and the response was a huge question mark at the start. From where I sit, i'm beyond thrilled ACBL was willing to reconsider award payout this close to event start date. 
 
If you are gunning for ACBL Player of the Year or any masterpoint title, this is not the event for you - you need to form a great team and make your way to each NABC destination as well as a few regionals and play all the team events to have a chance. Join the first NABC Online Individual if you appreciate the convenience of participating in an NABC level event from the comforts of your home and the familiarity of your (hopefully) favorite bridge site. Which leads me to my next topic.
 
 
Last Words:
We have some more game techniques and tips to share in the coming issues, but here is a link to a review of the free teaching session young USA champion Josh Donn provided on Sunday. It may be just the thing to tip the bridge scales in your favor!
 
 
May the ACBL Force be with you!
 
Stay tuned for more information in the coming days. Feedback, comments, questions welcome in the BBO forums.
This email was sent by: [Sender_Name]
[Sender_Address], [Sender_City] [Sender_State] [Sender_Zip]
To unsubscribe click: here