What are red flag sentences, exactly?

Red flag sentences are ones that should have you running in the opposite direction if you should ever hear them. It’s when people mean a little more than they say, or don’t mean what they said at all. It’s when playing with the person who said it suddenly goes South.

Here are 6 red flag sentences that players might have already heard.

“I’ve never played bridge before, but sure, I’ll bet.”

It’s fine to play bridge with someone who says they’ve never played the game before. (In fact, this is encouraged to help the game move forward from where we are now.)

What’s not fine is staking money on a game when the person encouraging the bet claims they’ve never played it.

This is usually a confidence trick, and they’re usually lying. All they’re hoping for, is that you bet money on winning against a beginner who turns out to know exactly what they’re doing.

“My usual bridge partner is an awful bidder.”

When people badmouth their regular bridge partner and yet still plays with them, that’s a red flag right there – especially if you’re the one playing with them now.

General insults or badmouthing from a bridge player likely means that they’re going to do the same to other people (and if they are, they won’t tell you).

Do you think someone is talking trash about your bridge play behind your back? Well, the easiest avenue is simply to ask. (Eventually, to use a card pun, someone folds and talks about it.)

“Oh, weren’t Mrs Foxy and him in bed together?”

This is a quick example, but could apply to any number of gossip-isms that one could utter around the bridge table. Gossip isn’t worth it, much like eating an entire cheesecake alone, and it’s going to cause some harm – even though you think it won’t at the time. (See? Just like eating an entire cheesecake.)

Bridge players who gossip towards you are probably gossiping about you on the other side of the fence.

Always, always and always be careful of frequent gossip-sharers.

“But this isn’t real bridge.”

When someone points out that the variety of bridge you’re playing now isn’t real bridge, they might not be the best person to invite to the next game of this sort. (And yes, I’ve heard this from many online bridge players, too.)

It has the same rules. We have the same cards. It’s the exact same game. Online bridge is real bridge. (And that’s the end of it, naysayers!)

Is online poker not poker? Millions of dollars in online poker jackpots are there to argue with anyone who says no to that.

“Alert, alert, alert!”

Next, there’s the over-alerter.

It’s one thing to alert during a game. It’s another to keep alerting during a game – even when the person doing the alert turns out to be wrong several times.

It’s like phoning a friend during Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? – and it’s a move that you can’t and shouldn’t over-use during the game if you would like it to go anywhere.

“Hit me.”

If someone pipes up to say “hit me” during a bridge game, they’re in the wrong card room – and entirely.

Bridge players bid, double, pass, redouble, exclaim their combinations of card-and-bid – or do so silently through the bidding box – but we do not hit or stand during the game.