[Siegmund]

Can anyone offer me insight into this phrase?

I've never used it myself... but slowly became aware, as I heard others around me saying it, that they were, in fact, celebrating getting a small masterpoint award - people afraid they hadn't broken average but were pleasantly surprised to do better.

But in any other sport, to scratch is to withdraw before reaching the finish line. I would have expected it to mean "I didnt qualify" or "its so bad I dont want to come back for the 2nd session (even though I will anyway because I paid for it)". I am left scratching my head every time I hear the phrase used positively at the table. Anybody know the history of it?

[Bbradley62]

Although the bottom line (getting some small masterpoint award) is the same, it'll also be used in a non-celebratory way by a pair who expected to do better, explaining that they didn't do particularly well, but didn't do so badly as to be off the masterpoint list.

[barmar]

My guess is it's somehow related to the derivation of "scratch golfer", which is a golfer with a 0 handicap, i.e. they're expected to shoot par on standard courses.

[manudude03]

I've always thought it meant average, or in the context of a teams match, a 0-imp swing.

[barmar]

I've generally heard it used to mean that you placed high enough in the final standings to win masterpoints.

For a specific board or round, we usually say "push" to describe a 0-imp swing.

[kenberg]

Perhaps from "We scratched and clawed our way high enough to get some masterpoints"? Or the somewhat similar "I scratched together enough money for a night out on the town"?

The expression sounds bananas to me, but relax, no need to have a cow over it.

[Zelandakh]

To me it means abandon or withdraw, as in meaning 2.2 of this dictionary link. Using it to describe a positive result sounds pretty weird to me but it sort of approaches meaning 1.9 from the same link if you squint a bit.

[Bbradley62]

I can't tell you the history of it, but I do know that it's been a completely standard expression used in the New York/New Jersey area for at least 30 years.

[ArtK78]

Bbradley62, on 2014-April-26, 21:21, said:

I can't tell you the history of it, but I do know that it's been a completely standard expression used in the New York/New Jersey area for at least 30 years.

Agree.

[diana_eva]

I was confused about the "scratching" too, and as a non-English native speaker I googled it and found a lot of references to scratch winners, scratch pairs, scratch indy etc. I assumed it's just another way to say "earn masterpoints", since they can't be all winners (as winners = those who win the tourney) but the context was always related to handicap games. Interested to know some history of the term too and whether it really means earn points or there's something else about it.

[Siegmund]

Of the theories suggested in the thread so far, I find the golf analogy most plausible. Probably because I remember when it seemed like half the people I knew at a tournament brought their golf clubs, and played a round in the morning before the 1:00 session. (Tournament organizers take note: there are still a lot of people bringing their golf clubs to tournaments, but now they are skipping the 10AM game to play their round, if the weather is nice.)

[blackshoe]

My dictionary has "accomplish (something) with great effort or difficulty". I think of clawing my way out of the pit of "not placing" and getting to at least the bottom rung of MP awards for the game.

[fromageGB]

I haven't come across it at bridge, but the expression "up to scratch" means "to an acceptable standard", so if somebody's performance is acceptable, particularly after a bad start, I can understand its use.

[NickRW]

Frankly, where I am, it is not a term I hear these days. When I was a kid my mother used "scratch" in that way (as in "the dinner was up to scratch" or "she was up to scratch") meaning that he/she/it/they was of acceptable standard - up to par etc.

Nick

[Phil]

The golf analogy makes zero sense. Scratch in golf is a sign of excellence, not mediocrity.

Scratch is slang for a small amount of money. "sell any TVs today?" Yeah, made a little scratch.

So to me "scratching" is eking out a little dust.

[barmar]

Phil, on 2014-May-04, 05:49, said:

The golf analogy makes zero sense. Scratch in golf is a sign of excellence, not mediocrity.

A scratch golfer is one who's expected to make exactly par. Excellent golfers shoot under par.

[Phil]

barmar, on 2014-May-04, 11:56, said:

A scratch golfer is one who's expected to make exactly par. Excellent golfers shoot under par.

And what % of golfers do you think shoot par? This essentially represents an index of 0 but on a tough course it takes a +1 or +2 to shoot par. Tiger in his prime was +6. I looked it up and .55% have an index this low or better and this is for players that bother to keep an index so for golfers overall it's at least half this number.

So if you define 'scratch' as 1 in 500 and excellent as 1 in 1000 that's fine but that's a pretty high bar and nothing to do with getting 54% in a club game and 'scratching'.

[fromageGB]

Last time I played, I got round in 72 - but I don't know what par was for the 9 hole pitch and putt.

[boyydz]

I have always used the term "to scratch" as "to earn only a session award" as opposed to "to place", that is, "to win an overall award". Admittedly, I have no idea here it comes from.