Today’s bridge universe is different to what gets imagined as contract bridge in the 20s to 50s. Modern players have access to online bridge, artificial intelligence, instant resources, and even more things that players back then could not have thought of.

Progress also means that things have fallen out of fashion, or  faded from popular use. Artificial intelligence is a more common sight at bridge games than suits or cigarettes.. This definitely wasn’t true for bridge of the past.

What else has changed in bridge over time?

Apparently a lot.

Here are 4 things you don’t see in today’s bridge.

1. Suits

I’ve spent a lot of time digging through archival footage and photographs of bridge tournaments, championships, and clubs. What I’ve learned from it is that suits are not as commonplace today as they might have been in bridge of the past.

If you look at photos of Ely Culbertson and others, everyone in the shot is wearing a suit. While hats seem optional, suits appear mandatory. Bridge looked like the official game of the Men In Black for a while.

Should we resurrect the idea of wearing suits at bridge games?

Not without potential heatstroke. With global warming considered, no wonder modern players dress lighter.

2. Smoking at Bridge Clubs

Smoking used to be thought of as medically fine. Cigarettes were advertised (and available) everywhere. You could smoke in the airport, you could smoke on the plane; you could probably light up anywhere and nobody would have said anything.

Bridge clubs, card rooms, and houses were traditionally smoke-filled. If you didn’t smoke, someone else in close proximity probably did.

There’s no chance you’ll see players lighting up a cigarette at the bridge table.

3. Dial-Up Internet Connections

Dialling into your internet connection is a joy reserved for players who also remember very, very slow connections as a result. Downloading files sized just a few MBs required preparation (and patience). Connecting to the internet also made this, well, noise…

Examples of dial-up noises are available on YouTube.

For a newer generation of bridge players, the sound of an internet connection might make absolutely zero sense.

Why did an internet connection require opening a portal to whatever creature makes that sound in the first place?

It’s part-nostalgia and part-nightmare for the rest of us!

4. Bridge on CD

The CD has become an artefact from another time. You just don’t see as many of them around today, and other forms of storage space have taken over.

How many readers still have a CD collection somewhere? How many other column readers can say that they’ve never owned a CD? As time goes on, more affirmative answers are expected to the second question.

Here’s a fun bridge-related fact: Bridge software used to be released on CD, too.

Online bridge is easy in your browser today, but this wasn’t always the case. Bridge games used to be shipped and delivered on CD.

Why did people eventually abandon the CD?

Look up the term “disk rot” and imagine that’s your collection of precious family photographs. That’s why.

What things haven’t you seen at bridge games in a while?