The American Contract Bridge League, known as the ACBL, is a non-profit membership organization for bridge players throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico, and Bermuda. ACBL's primary goal is to serve the bridge-related interests of its members and to promote and sustain the game of bridge.

The purpose of this handbook is to provide members, organizers of sanctioned bridge games, and elected officials responsible for the administration of bridge with details of the rules and regulations and policies and procedures of ACBL. The handbook is updated after each meeting of the ACBL Board of Directors.

The complete handbook is available on the ACBL web site at www.acbl.org. All managers of clubs running ACBL-sanctioned games using ACBLscore have the Handbook as a file within that program. A unit or district may purchase a hard copy from ACBL. Organizations or individuals authorized to sponsor ACBL-sanctioned bridge games may access or purchase a complete copy of the handbook.

When changes are made within the Handbook, the changes usually result from policy decisions made by the ACBL Board of Directors. In the event of an inconsistency between this Handbook and specific actions of the ACBL Board of Directors, the latter shall prevail.

I believe the material in this Handbook will answer most questions concerning ACBL regulations and policies. If you feel any areas have not been explained adequately or are not fully understandable, please contact the ACBL for help.

Jay Baum
CEO ACBL

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