[Karert]

Déjà vu – “I’ve played this hand before”

Many of us on here (BBO) have done it, insistent that we’re familiar with a hand, played it before. And of course, BBO assure us that’s not likely, suitable security & other measures are in place to prevent such things.

And we carry on being crazy, living with déjà vu.

So of course I dismissed my friend’s concerns when they suggested they’d played a hand before – it was goulash, you often have a big holding in xyz suit.

And then they said the same thing the next day.

Déjà vu for me now then!

Nonetheless, I done some digging. And a hand or two later, I told people at the table what their cards were, because BBO & player history showed the same hands were played two or three days beforehand.

I even told people what their cards were going to be at the next table, depending on their seat!
It started around https://www.bridgeba...775660-26512564 with corresponding chat being
pj59→Table: i already played this hand again
→Table: ptnr's led a singleton, because these hands have been played before
gordonedin→Table: news to me
→Table: Ptnr's hand is ♠9542, ♥K86, ♦AQ872
gordonedin→Table: even if that's so, why tell ?
→Table: because I can play double-dummy. i.e. cheat
→Table: I don't do that

Here’s the hand played on 12th September – 3 days ago: https://www.bridgeba...504640-21649178 .
And played today (15th September):
https://www.bridgeba...775660-26512564

Despite the director being called, alerted to the issue, nothing was done, not only did play progress, but the subsequent tourneys progressed – and they continued to use hands from I think it was three days ago!.
→Table: https://www.bridgeba...ml?bbo=y&lin=pn Rakonjac,jpzerep,pj59,go%20pack%20go st%7C%7Cmd%7C2SHAQJ9753D4CQ7543%2CSKQJT8763HDKCAK62%2CS9542HK86DAQ872C8%2C%7Crh%7C%7Cah%7CBoard%204%7Csv%7Cb%7Cmb%7C1S%7Cmb%7Cp%7Cmb%7C2D%7Cmb%7C4
pj59 (Private): i already played these hands dont you ?
→pj59 (Private): you played them two days ago: https://www.bridgeba...7Csv%7Ce%7Cmb%7
→Table: south has ♠AKQ10J87542, !AJ, ♦Q, ♣Q
pj59→Table: exactly
→Table: We can get to 6 of either minor; 6♠ is a good sca goes -2
→Table: I'm playing double dummy
GLX_03→Table: silent pls

As soon as they opened, I had described, at the table, the cards that an opp had, to the spot – just didn’t get the Heart symbol.

(I was told I was using a computer. Yes, I was. Not to calculate their cards (how does a computer predict 4 &2 in spades, solely from the opening bid?), as accused, but because I could call up the history – as could anyone.)

I don’t have a copy of what was entered into the pop-up box to call the director, but they dismissed my comments, only commenting as above: “silent pls”.

I tell the director that I know what all four hands are, for this hand, and the next, but their response was solely “silent pls”.

I asked director, and BBO, to revoke the tourneys. I made clear to all players at all tables that I knew their hands, even told them what their next deal would bring them, and what my view was: that the tourneys should be revoked.


Some further table chat:

→Table: director, this is crazy!
→Table: the next board, for you all: https://www.bridgeba...7045-1694507880
→Table: director, this has to stop
→Table: ptnr has ♠A ♥KQ98763 ♦ _ ♣ Q10972,
→Table: these hands were played two days ago
→Table: https://www.bridgeba...7045-1694507880
→Table: here's the tourney result: https://webutil.brid...45-1694507880

When I’m telling opps above the next hand – “→Table: the next board, for you all:” I am sharing the next hand with them, before they even move… and a few moments later, once we move, we get dealt that hand.

Those hands were played & currently stand in BBO rankings – and prize money in the Galaxy tourney. I have reported as above to the tournament host, and BBO, hope everything will be revoked, but waiting to see it happen.


At least an assurance we’re not all crazy if we play on BBO. If we have déjà vu, perhaps we actually had the cards recently. I gather the odds say there are 635,013,559,600 possible bridge hands, so even having to put shape into them, I’m sure they could come up with more in a few days.


Karert

[smerriman]

Hands for Goulash tournaments aren't generated by BBO / randomly; the director has to generate them via some external means and then upload them to the tournament. I expect it wouldn't be too hard for them to select the wrong file to upload, one that has already been used.

[pescetom]

smerriman, on 2023-September-15, 13:57, said:

Hands for Goulash tournaments aren't generated by BBO / randomly; the director has to generate them via some external means and then upload them to the tournament. I expect it wouldn't be too hard for them to select the wrong file to upload, one that has already been used.

Not only are you right, but when I was running occasional goulash tournaments on BBO a few years ago it was tempting to prefer a deal already played rather than the one generated and uploaded that day, which might not load and crash the tournament. That bug was then fixed, but a TD might not know this or simply be too lazy or too hurried to generate a new deal, assuming players do not remember.

[diana_eva]

This was a goulash game organized by one of the private clubs on BBO. Someone made an error and uploaded the same deals in two tournaments, several days apart from each other.

It was a human error, not BBO dealing the same deals twice. Whoever prepared the deals accidentally used the wrong file for the game you played.

We notified the club to be more careful and also, in case they discover an error after their game is already in progress, to do something to make things right (cancel the game, or something else - at the very least acknowledge that the deals have been re-used).