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World Computer Bridge Championship, VI

August 23-28, 2002

at the
World Bridge Federation
World Bridge Championships

Montreal, Canada

Location and Dates
The ACBL's World Computer Bridge Championship will start on August 23, 2002, and end no later than August 28.  The Event will take place at the WBF's World Bridge Championships, in Montreal.  The two host hotels are the Fairmont Queen Elizabeth Hotel and the Montreal Bonaventure Hilton.  The World Computer Bridge Championship will be held in the Fairmont Queen Elizabeth Hotel. See the website at World Bridge FederationWorld Bridge Championships for information on places to stay.

Entry
seven contestants are currently scheduled to compete

Entry Fees and Prize Money
There are no entry fees. Prize money may be awarded.

Conditions of Contest
Entry Conditions
Play Format
    Round Robin
Deals in Play
Schedule of Play
Allowable Systems and Conventions
    Explainable Bids
Convention Cards
Method and Condition of Play
Protests and Rulings
Code of Behavior
Conforming to the Conditions of Contest
Officials

Entry Conditions
An entry consists of a program and a submitter or submitters.  The submitter may represent a company.  A program (or a substantially similar version) may not be entered more than once.

A program must be substantially the original work of the submitter or the company the submitter represents.  If a submitter represents a company, the submitter must be a principal member of the company.

The program's operator may be the submitter or a person designated by the submitter.

Programs must be of a reasonable standard for the Event and must play competitively.  If a program is deemed non-competitive its application may be denied or it may be disqualified during play.  The Tournament Committee will be the judge in this matter.

Each participant must submit a copy of their program at the start of play.

For the purpose of checking that programs are not violating any of the Event's requirements, various program tests may be done, including testing before, during, and after the Event.  Any test will respect the commercial confidentiality and copyright of the source code, algorithms and other intellectual property related to the program.  All contestants must cooperate fully in any test. Failure to do so will result in disqualification.

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Play Format
If there are six or fewer entries:
Round robin followed by a final match.

If there are seven to ten entries (currently there are seven entries):
Round robin followed by semifinal and final match.

If there are eleven or more entries:
Round robin, to be played in two brackets, followed by semifinal and final match.

(I) Round Robin:
20-board matches against each opponent, IMP scoring converted to Victory Points using a 20-VP scale.  If there are six or less entries, there will be 32-board matches.

If six or less entries, the top two contestants play a final; if seven to ten entries, the top four contestants play a semifinal; if eleven or more entries, the top two contestants in each bracket reach the semifinal.

(II) Semifinal:
48 Boards, IMP scoring

If seven to ten entries, 1st plays 4th and 2nd plays 3rd
If eleven or more entries, first of one bracket plays second in the other bracket. 

Ties for the last position from the Round Robin:
If there is a tie for the last position, and one contestant must be eliminated, then a 10 Board playoff will take place without carryover.  If there are multiple ties for the last position, and one or more contestants must be eliminated, then an eight-Board round-robin will take place, without carryover, with the final positions determined by quotient.  All multiple ties that do not include elimination will be determined by a coin toss, for example, if there is a two-way tie for 1st and 2nd or for 3rd and 4th.

(III) Final:
64 Boards, IMP scoring

Carryover:
If six or less entries, the top two contestants play a final with carryover; if seven to ten entries, the top four contestants play a semifinal with carryover and then a final with carryover; if eleven or more entries, the top two contestants in each bracket reach the semifinal, without carryover, and then a final without carryover.

Only the contestant that finishes higher in the round robin than it's opponent can be awarded a carryover.  The carryover, if applicable, will be equal to the lesser of (a) the head-to-head VP difference the two opponents and (b) the their overall VP difference.  There is no carryover if the contestant finishing higher in the round robin did not win the head-to-head round robin match against it's opponent.

If any KO match ends in a tie then 8-board segments will be played until there is a winner.

The number of boards for any stage may be changed by 25%.

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Deals in Play
Matches in the same round robin round will play the same deals (boards). Files containing the match deals will be created randomly.  Hand records will be distributed by the Coordinator after the start of each match.

Schedule of Play
The schedule of play will be set by the Coordinator.  The Coordinator's approval is required for any deviation by participants from the schedule, including, but not limited to, playing a match at a different time than scheduled.  If the starting time for a session is not at, or near, the scheduled time, then the Coordinator may require that a different set of deals be played. 

Tentative Schedule* see details elsewhere
Round Robin, August 23-25 or 23-26

For more than six entries, round robin play will be in a 4-session/day schedule. Each 20-board match is expected to be played, both ways, in under 3 hours, allowing 2 hours 40 minutes (4 minutes per board) for play and 15 minutes for setup. The first round of round robin play will start on the morning or afternoon of August 23.

For six or less entries, round robin play will be in a 4-session/day schedule.  Each round robin match will be consist of two 16-board segments, with VP awarded based on the entire 32-board match.  Each 16-board segment is expected to be played, both ways, in under 2 1/2 hours, allowing 2 hours 8 minutes for play and 15 minutes for setup.  A small break will be allowed between 16-board segments.   

Semifinals, August 25, 26 or 27

Finals, August 26, 27 or 28

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Allowable Systems and Conventions
Limited systems and conventions will be allowed, modeled after the ACBL General Chart, modified to allow only natural opening one bids. Details are given elsewhere.  In general, non-standard systems and conventions will not be allowed, with consideration given to what is standard in different parts of the world. The final decision on allowable conventions will be made by the Coordinator in consultation with the Tournament Committee.

Explainable Bids
Bids shown in red on the Convention Card Spreadsheet are explainable to the opponent, that is, the meaning of the bid will be described to the opponent either through electronic communication or through manual input.  Also see the section describing Allowable/Explainable Bids.  Note that explainable bids are self-explainable, that is, the bidder explains the bid to both opponents.  An explanation may come from the program, the operator, or a combination of both.

The input may be either electronic or manual. Electronic input is not required. An operator may always revert to manual input.

An explanation is limited to the meaning of the current bid (in regard to the entire auction). Only "new" information will be given, and will be limited to all or part of that described in the protocol.  All "explainable" bids shall be recorded, with a record made of the information given and the information input.  This must be verified by both contestants.  Details of which bids are explainable are given elsewhere.

The program or operator may give the meaning of a bid or sequence of bids.

No penalties will be imposed for unintentional insufficient or inaccurate electronic transmission of information relating to an explainable bids.  In general, if there is a protest due to information that was transmitted electronically, the deal will be replayed using manual input.

The operator must state before a match whether Manual Input of the meaning of Explainable Bids will take place (a) as the bids are made, (b) at the end of the auction, or (c) not at all.  If (a) or (b) is chosen, an exception will be allowed if it is declared before a match that the meaning of certain conventional bids will never be input.  One reason that this option might be chosen is if a program already understands the meaning of an explainable conventional bid.  If any other exception is requested during play it must be made to the Coordinator or Director, not the opponent.

Participants are not to input the meaning of any bid that is not an explainable bid.  Participants must confine their input to the information contained in the protocol.  No exception can be made by the participants. If there is a question regarding whether a bid is explainable or not, the Coordinator or Director should be called to resolve the issue.

Input of the explanation of an explainable bid will be consistent with the Protocol.  The explanation consists of the range of the opponent's suit lengths, high card points, total points, or specific controls, if relevant.  Input also includes, when relevant, that a bid is asking for: Aces, Kings, a 4- or 5- card major; a minor; support; a lead in suit; or lead not in a suit.  The explanation also includes whether a bid is forcing to game,  one round, or promises a rebid.  That is a summary.  The actual input follows.

Explainable information consists of one or more of the following pieces:

"[n] cards in [suit]" (repeated for each relevant suit)
"up to [n] cards in [suit]" (repeated for each relevant suit)
"at least [n] cards in [suit]" (repeated for each relevant suit)
"[n1] to [n2] cards in [suit]" (repeated for each relevant suit)

"[n] total points"
"up to [n] total points"
"at least [n] total points"
"[n1] to [n2] total points"

"[n] points in [suit]" (repeated for each relevant suit)
"up to [n] points in [suit]" (repeated for each relevant suit)
"at least [n] points in [suit]" (repeated for each relevant suit)
"[n1] to [n2] points in [suit]" (repeated for each relevant suit)

"[n] total aces"
"[n] total kings"
"ace of [suit]" (repeated for each relevant suit)
"king of [suit]" (repeated for each relevant suit)

"Asking for aces"
"Asking for kings"
"Asking for a major suit"
"Asking for a four-card major suit"
"Asking for a five-card major suit"
"Asking for a minor suit"
"Asking for a four-card suit"
"Asking for support"
"Asks for lead in [suit]"
"Asks for lead not in [suit]"

"Forcing for one round"
"Forcing until game"
"Promises a rebid"

Protests
If there is a question of Insufficient/Incomplete/Incorrect Information a Protest should be lodged (similar to a Director call).  The Coordinator and/or Director will resolve the Protest, as stated in the Conditions of Contest elsewhere.  The resolution should have fairness in mind.  Unlike in human play where the penalty is often resolved in an extreme manner, here our first choice is to replay a deal with the correct information given.  If this is not possible then the Director and Coordinator, with input from expert consultants and members of the tournament committee, if available, will resolve the issue. There is no intent to penalize inadvertent and infrequent misinformation.

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Convention Cards
The  tournament Convention Card Spreadsheet (Windows Excel) must be filled out.

One Convention Card per program.

Minor changes may be allowed before a match with the Coordinator's approval. Conventions cannot be changed during a match.  The Coordinator or Director can make exceptions for cause.

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Method and Conditions of Play
Computer Equipment
P4 1.5+ MHz/128 MB or similar equipment, running under Windows 98 or XP.  All contestants will use the same or similar equipment.

Table Manager
Two copies of each program will play as a pair on a network of computers to be provided.

Matches will be controlled by a Table Manager program developed by Ian Trackman of Blue Chip Bridge.  This program is the property of Blue Chip Bridge and BCB has full copyright and other intellectual property rights to it.  It will be  supplied to potential contestants solely for the purpose of preparing for the Montreal competition.  To receive a copy please email BCB with your request.  You must agree to the above restrictions, abide by the copyright, and not distribute the program.

Transmission of information as to deals, bids and play of cards and otherwise, will be consistent with the protocol defined on http://www.bluechipbridge.co.uk/protocol.htm.

Programs must not communicate with their “partner” program or any other program nor search for any information.  Any attempt to do so will be deemed to be a violation of the rules.  The penalty is disqualification.  The ACBL reserves the right to implement whatever network monitoring and/or other measures that it thinks fit without disclosure to the participants.

Tentative Schedule* see details

Time-outs, bugs, crashes, and delays
Operators may take reasonable time-outs during a match.  If a program crashes or is the subject of an obvious bug during a match, time-out will be granted, and the operator may use his best endeavors to fix the program within a reasonable time to be determined by the Coordinator.  If he cannot do so, the Coordinator will take whatever steps considered reasonable to ensure that none of the other participants are disadvantaged as a result.

Programs may compute while the opposing program is bidding or playing a card.  However, all bridge-related activity will cease for a time-out or an unexpected halt in play.

Between matches operators may improve and/or debug their programs, provided that the program remains substantially the same.
In rare cases an adjustments may be allowed during a match or between deals, if there is a clear and unmistakable wrong setting and the adjustment can be made quickly.

In the event of an unexpected halt in play, the board will be replayed.  The operator is to ensure that, when replayed, the program does not have any advance knowledge of the interrupted board.  In all cases of unexpected halts in play, the Coordinator will be notified before play restarts.

Speed of Computer Play
Round robin:  Speed of play will be, on average, 4 minutes per board (approximately 1/2 that of human play speed) or, on average, 2 minutes per program pair per board. While it is expected that all computers will be the same, if they are not then the timing of play may be adjusted accordingly. Each 20-board Round Robin match segment is expected to be played in 80 minutes. This excludes any set-up time or delays or time-outs due to rulings, power outages, computer mishaps, or 5-minute coffee break. This 2 minutes per board does not include the time for Manual Input.

Slow play in the round robin will be penalized. A match, consisting of two segments (corresponding to two tables of play), will be played in approximately 160 minutes. A warning will be given for the first 5-minute delay, that is, if a program is playing its side of the table at 45 minutes per 20-boards (instead of 40 minutes per 20 boards). If a participant considers that the opposing program is exceeding its time limit, as described here, the matter should be referred to the Coordinator.  The Coordinator may then monitor the speed of play, or may assign a monitor.  If the monitor deems that the program’s play continues to be slower than 45 minutes for 20 boards, up to a 6-IMP penalty per monitored five-minute delay will be imposed.  After a five-minute delay  the play speed must be increased to under 40 minutes per 20 boards.  Further penalties of 6-IMPs per five-minute delay will be imposed with a further time adjustment made.

After start of each match a program may raise its speed of play (play faster) but may not lower its speed (play slower), unless the Coordinator or Director determines that circumstances exist to allow an exception.  Such circumstances include a clear error or oversight. Intent and fairness will be the deciding factor.

Semifinals and final:  Speed of play in the semifinals and final will also be, on average, 4 minutes per board. Timing regulations and penalties will be similar to those in the round robin. A warning and penalties will apply if play is longer than 37 minutes per 16-board segment.

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Protests and Rulings
When a question of conditions of contest is raised, the Coordinator will be called. The usual infractions regarding unauthorized information, revokes, penalty cards, leads out of turn, etc., do not take place in computer play.  Infractions may involve slow play, misinformation and insufficient information related to explainable bids, or a failure to specify (alert) that a bid is explainable.

The Coordinator can make a ruling or direct the inquiry to the Director. Rulings can be discussed with the participants and reconsideration can be requested. If reconsideration is requested, then the Coordinator and/or Director will consult with experts and possibly members of the tournament committee before making a final ruling.  In all cases the Coordinator and Director will make the final ruling.  All decisions are final.

Misinformation, insufficient information, or a failure to specify that a bid is explainable, may be rectified by replaying the hand without penalty.  Incorrect information will not be penalized as in human play, with best/worst results or equity given, but rather will be treated as inadvertent.  Fairness and equity will be the guideline.

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Code of Behavior
Inquiries before and during the Event

All inquiries regarding this Event must be respectfully directed to the Coordinator. Contacting the sponsors or administrators of participating organizations must be cleared with the Coordinator.  Upon consent of the Tournament Committee, such communications will be forwarded.

General Conduct
A contestant, or someone associated with the contestant, program, or company that owns the program, may not publicly criticize this contest.  Constructive criticism is welcome and should take the form of an inquiry to the Coordinator.

Conduct during Play
When play is in session the participants (including the program operator and any representatives associated with the entry) will maintain a quiet and respectful atmosphere so as not to affect or disturb opposing participants or other participants in the same room.

All interaction between participants shall be respectful.  Protests and appeals made to the Coordinator or Director shall be respectful.

Promotional Activities
During the dates the contest is being conducted (August 23-28) and through the completion of the World Bridge Championships (August 31), participants shall not publish, or submit for publication, any aspect of the championship event, exhibition matches, or informal competition of any kind, without the express consent of the ACBL.

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Change of Conditions of Contest
If circumstances warrant, the ACBL reserves the right to make changes in the Conditions of Contest, and to make subsidiary regulations to cover any matters related to the Event that are not covered by these Conditions of Contest.  The ACBL reserves the right to cancel the official championship if less than five contestants officially start play, in which case exhibition matches will take place.

Conforming to the Conditions of Contest
As a condition of entry, all contestants agree to conform to the Conditions of Contest.  Failure to do so may result in disqualification.  These Conditions are deemed to include all relevant provisions of the ACBL code of behavior.

Coordinator
Al Levy

Tournament Director
Sol Weinstein

Tournament Committee, Advisory Body
Brad Holtsberry, ACBL Chief Tournament Official
Joan Gerard, WBF Vice Chair of Appeals
Sue Himel, ACBL Board of Directors
Sol Weinstein, ACBL and WBF Director
Al Levy, Coordinator

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*Tentative Schedule of Play for seven entries
Play will be schedules in a 4-session/day format.  Each 20-board round robin match is expected to be played, both ways, in under 3 hours, allowing 2 hours 40 minutes for play and 20 minutes for setup. The first round of Round Robin play will start on the morning or afternoon of August 23.

Round Robin, August 23-25

Semifinals, August 25 (seven entries) or 26 (eight entries)

Finals, August 26-27 (seven entries) or 27-28 (entries)

August 23:
10:00 AM meeting of all contestants
session times be announced at tournament, tentative schedule below

11:00 AM -  2:00 PM (RR1)
  2:30 PM -   5:30 PM (RR2)
  7:00 PM - 10:00 PM (RR3)

August 24 - 25: (for seven entries)
  9:00 AM - 12:00 PM (RR4,      RR7)
12:30 PM -   3:30 PM (RR5,      semifinals I)
  4:00 PM -   7:00 PM (RR6,      semifinals II)
  8:00 PM - 11:00 PM (meeting, semifinals III)

August 26 (for seven entries)
9:00 AM Finals I, II, III, & IV
Exhibition match, computers vs. humans

August 27: (for seven contestants)
Finals IV, if not completed on August 26
Exhibition match, computers vs. humans

August 24/25: (for eight entries)
  9:00 AM - 12:00 PM (RR4/RR8)
12:30 PM -   3:30 PM (RR5/RR9)
  4:00 PM -   7:00 PM (RR6/RR10)
  8:00 PM - 11:00 PM (RR7/meeting)

August 26: (for eight entries)
  9:00 AM - 12:00 PM (semifinals I)
12:30 PM -   3:30 PM (semifinals II)
  4:00 PM -   7:00 PM (semifinals III)
  8:00 PM - 11:00 PM (exhibition)

August 27: (for eight entries)
  9:00 AM
  Finals I, II, III & IV
  exhibition

August 28: (for eight entries)
  10:00 AM Finals IV, if not completed on August 27
  exhibition

August 23: (for six entries)
10:00 AM meeting of all contestants
session times be announced at tournament, tentative schedule below

11:00 AM - 1:00 PM (RR1)
  1:30 PM -  3:30 PM (RR2)
  4:00 PM -  6:00 PM (RR3)
  7:00 PM -  9:00 PM (RR4)

August 24: (for six entries)
  9:00 AM -  1:30 PM (RR5-6/RR10)
  2:30 PM -   7:00 PM (RR7-8/semifinal I)
  8:30 PM - 10:00 PM (RR9/semifinal II)

August 25: (for six entries)
  9:00 AM - (semifinals III)
  1:30 PM - (finals I, II)
  8:00 PM - (exhibition)

August 26: (for six entries)
  9:00 AM - (finals III, IV)
                 - (Exhibition match)

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