The Bambird Scramble.
MASTER YOUR MAHJONG
Play more. Meet new people. Find your game - at your pace, on your schedule, wherever you are in St. Petersburg, Tampa, or places in between.
$75 · All levels · Tampa Bay
What is the Scramble?
Think of it as your Mahjong matchmaker - connecting you with other players for flexible, friendly match play across Tampa Bay.
01
Play on your schedule
Propose matches that work for your life - daytime, evenings, weekends. You never have to accept a match that doesn't fit.
03
Score if you want to
Keep score and climb the leaderboard, or just enjoy the play. Beginner and Advanced levels available. You choose your pace.
02
Play anywhere in Tampa Bay
At home, a coffee shop, a wine bar, or any local spot that welcomes a good game. Clearwater to Westchase - wherever works for your table.
PLAY MORE MAHJONG
Ready to join?
Registration is open to all adult American Mahjong players in Pinellas and Hillsborough counties. All abilities welcome.
Year-round ladder-style seasons
Beginner & Advanced levels
All matches in-person across Tampa Bay
Optional leaderboard - 5 matches minimum to qualify
$75 / person · Summer season runs June 8 - August 9
Good to know
No tiles? No problem.
The player who proposes the match brings the tiles. You can always just accept matches.
New to scoring? We've got you.
Clear scoring guidelines are provided. Many players learned scoring for the first time in Season One and did just fine.
No minimum matches required.
Play as much or as little as your schedule allows. 5 matches needed for leaderboard eligibility only.
Portal on your phone.
Add the Scramble portal to your iPhone home screen for easy access to scheduling, scoring, and standings.
FAQs
Everything you've been wondering about the Scramble.
Getting started
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Yes - absolutely!
If you live in the Pinellas or Hillsborough counties, you can join!
When you join, you’ll simply propose or accept matches that work for your location. Players may meet in Clearwater, Palm Harbor, Tampa, Westchase, Odessa… - wherever is convenient for the 4 of you playing that match.
Think of it as a regional Mahjong matchmaking network - we’re all part of the same Scramble, but games can happen anywhere around Tampa Bay.
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This is simply to help guide matchmaking so players connect with others at a similar comfort level. Each player will have a small “B” (Beginner) or “A” (Advanced) next to their name in the portal. If someone feels “in between,” that’s completely normal — we recommend choosing the level that feels most comfortable, or leaning Beginner for a more relaxed pace. Profiles can be updated during the season.
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We typically open the Scramble portal a few days before the season officially begins. This allows players to propose and schedule matches in advance, so games are ready to be played on the very first day of the Scramble season. However, no matches may be played before the official season start date. Any matches played early will not count toward the season.
Scheduling & logistics
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Not at all. The very heart of the Scramble is flexibility. You propose matches that work for your schedule — daytime, evenings, or weekends. You never have to accept a match that doesn’t work for you.
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Absolutely not. You choose where and when you play. You never have to accept a match that requires more driving than you’re comfortable with — and you can always propose matches in locations convenient to you.
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Not at all. You can just accept matches. The player who proposes the match brings the tiles. You can also borrow a set from a friend or rent one if you’d like to propose a match.
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Yes! Many players do. Just be sure to log each round separately so scores are recorded correctly:
Propose and play the first round
Enter/upload scores
Propose and play the second round
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All matches must include four registered Scramble players. Matches cannot be played with three players, and non-registered players cannot substitute.
Gameplay & rules
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Don’t worry. Playing without blanks simply requires a slightly different strategy, but it’s very doable and quite common.
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All matches will automatically be played using the 2026 NMJL card.
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Yes, we follow NMJL rules. Here’s the clarification:
For the first game of a match, the proposer is designated as East to establish order.
After that, dealer rotation follows standard NMJL rules.
Dice are still used by each dealer to break (cut) the wall, consistent with NMJL play.
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We follow standard NMJL rules, which are what keep play fair and consistent for everyone. If questions come up about specific rules, please don’t hesitate to email us—we’re always happy to help clarify. Please note, some tournament play may enforce additional penalties to NMJL rules.
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At the moment, the Scramble is in-person play only, so we’re not able to allow virtual or remote matches just yet (though that’s something we may explore in the future).
Scoring & portal
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There is no required minimum number of matches to participate in the Scramble — you’re welcome to play as much or as little as your schedule allows. However, if you’d like to be eligible for the Highest Average Leaderboard, you must complete at least 5 matches during the season. An average truly reflects performance over multiple games, so a minimum of 5 Scramble match scores is required to qualify for that leaderboard.
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Not at all. Many of us don’t keep score in casual play either. We provide clear scoring guidelines you can reference after each game, and everyone at the table can help. In past seasons, many players learned scoring for the first time and did just fine.
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No. Scores only count when you are playing with three other registered Scramble players in a properly scheduled match.
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All scores are submitted directly in the Scramble portal. The Rules PDF includes step-by-step instructions with photos to walk you through the process.
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Not yet — that’s planned for a future phase. For now, the portal includes a Members tab where you can export the list of registered players, including email addresses and phone numbers, making it easy to contact players if needed.
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Yes — and many players love this option. Here’s how to add it to your iPhone Home Screen:
Open Safari (this does not work in Chrome).
Go to the Scramble login portal.
Tap the Share icon (square with the arrow).
Select Add to Home Screen.
Rename it if you’d like, then tap Add.
Ready to find your game?
Join the Scramble and start scheduling matches across Tampa Bay - on your schedule, at your level.