Masterpoints

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Masterpoints or master points are the rating system used by the American Contract Bridge League (ACBL) for its members' contract bridge card games.

Players placing high in an ACBL-sanctioned event (a club game, sectional tournament, regional tournament, etc.) receive masterpoints according to their place. The lowest place to receive masterpoints varies depending on how many pairs, individuals or teams played in the event.

Some events have an upper masterpoint limit, meaning that only players with a masterpoint holding under the limit may participate. This allows less experienced players more of a chance to place high, since they will not be playing against players who are significantly more experienced. Additionally, some events are stratified. This means that players with various masterpoint holdings play together, but in the final standings, players receive masterpoints based on their position within their stratum. For example, if you are first in stratum C, second in B and fourth in A, and the upper masterpoint limits are 300 for C, 500 for B and 1000 for A, that means that among players with fewer than 300 masterpoints, you did the best. Among players with 500 points or fewer, you did second best, and among players with fewer than 1000, you did fourth best. With those divisions, a player with 700 points would be able to place in stratum A, but not in B or C.

There are several colors of masterpoints, awarded depending on the event. Below is a list of colors, along with the events they are likely to be awarded in.

Unpigmented - awarded in online play.
Black - awarded in club games.
Silver - awarded in sectionals, as well as STaCs (Sectional Tournaments at Clubs).
Red - awarded in regionals (for places other than overall and section tops), as well as North American Open Pairs and Grand National Teams games at clubs.
Gold - awarded for overall and section tops in regionals, as well as in NABCs (North American Bridge Championships) with an upper masterpoint limit of 750 or more.
Platinum - awarded in national-rated events with no upper masterpoint limit.

ACBL members are assigned ranks according to their masterpoint holding. The most coveted rank is Life Master, which requires 300 masterpoints, of which 50 must be black, 50 silver, 25 gold, and 25 red or gold.

Masterpoints are used as a measure of skill. The system has been criticized by players who regard it more as a measure of experience than skill. Experience is often related to skill, but not necessarily. As an example of how the system can fail, consider two players with 5 black masterpoints each. Player A has earned them in 3 club games, and Player B has earned them in 20 club games. Obviously Player A has performed better, but according to their masterpoint holdings, their skill is equal. This is an extreme case, because in most cases, experience is directly related to skill. However, a player's masterpoint holding does not directly indicate the time it has taken the player to earn them, or the caliber of the events the player has earned them in.