Regular meetings:

Thursdays beginning at 7:00 p.m. and ending about 11:00 p.m., meetings are run as small (unrated) four-round tournaments, usually with two divisions based on player strength, so novices are not matched against experts. (No meeting on Thanksgiving day.) Newcomers are asked to arrive by 6:45 p.m. for freshman orientation. Warmup games are available as early as 6:15 p.m.  Attendance averages about 28.

Informal Sunday afternoon meetings:

From noon to 8:00 p.m. in cold-weather months and on a few rainy summer Sundays. Attendance averages about 8. To confirm Sunday meetings or obtain additional information, please email Joel or Larry Sherman at icenine@panix.com.

Director:

Former World Scrabble® Champion Joel R. Sherman. He is featured in the nonfiction book Word Freak, by Stefan Fatsis, widely available in paperback.

Our hosts:

The Honors Bridge Club, at 133 E. 58th St., room 1202. The club phone number, (212)752-3321, can be used to reach us only during Scrabble sessions. At all meetings, Honors provides complimentary snacks and beverages.

Fees:

Thursday night, $15 for the four-game session (sorry, no rebates for playing fewer games). Student rate (to all players age 20 or under) is $10. The Sunday open-house fee is $13 regardless of how many games you play. No matchups, no prizes, but experts are often available to tutor newer players.

Equipment: 

Club #56 is a nonprofit international conglomerate with holdings in Guatemala, Monaco, and Nauru. Of our Thursday fees, $13 per person goes in rent to the bridge club, and the other $2 to our prize fund. To prevent occasional equipment shortages, contestants are urged to bring their own Protiles and game timers. Tiles may be purchased online at http://www.protiles.net/; timers from chess suppliers and various Internet sites.

Travel directions:

By subway, R, N, 4, 5, or 6 train to Lexington Ave. (59th Street) or E or V train to Lexington Ave. (53rd Street). By bus, M31, M57, M101, M102 or M103 to 57th Street and Lexington Ave.