Minnesota Bridge

GNT 2013 Round Up

Please check out this post at the District 14 website for a round up on this year's GNT Finals!

Many thanks to our District coordinator, Mike Cassel - plus all the others who contribute to a fine event!

 

2013 District 14 GNT Representatives

Our thanks to Mike Cassel for his hard work in organizing and promoting our GNT competitions.  You can find the results from this past weekend's District 14 Finals at the District 14 website.

Our congratulations to everyone and best wishes to beat the rest of the field in Atlanta!

Special Sectional & GNT District Finals

Tomorrow is the start of the the Special Sectional in New Brighton - along with the Saturday/Sunday competition for the District 14 GNT Finals.  

Both events should be challenging and fun.  And - for those who win their flights in GNT, the bonus of a trip to the Summer NABC in Atlanta, a chance to compete against peers from around the ACBL - and a subsidized trip!

Check out the schedule and do plan on attending!

GNT - Unit Finals

Saturday, April 6th, the Bridge Center of St. Paul hosted our Unit Finals for GNT.  Players had the opportunity to win masterpoints and "green points" - as Mike Cassel, GNT coordinator, likes to refer to them.

Mike has a report on the winners in Flights A, B and C - along with more promotion for the Big Finale April 27th and 28th to see which teams will be representing District 14 at the Summer NABC in Atlanta.

Congrats to the winning teams this past weekend - and good luck to all in New Brighton!  We hope that many teams will compete.  The District Finals are an excellent opportunity to play against your peers - and have the opportunity to earn a subsidized trip to the Nationals, too!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

GNT 2013

Mike Cassel has once again been very busy making GNT 2013 a great event for all of us.  Those interested in competing at our Unit Finals in MN should review the materials Mike has prepared for us.  They are posted below.

Additional information about GNT 2013 can be found at our District 14 website.

GNT - 2012-2013

Want to win a trip to the Summer NABC in Atlanta?  Time to get qualified!

The Grand National Teams is a super way to compete and earn a subsizied trip to the Nationals! 

You can find all the details from our District 14 coordinator, Mike Cassel, over at our District 14 website.  Follow the links, get qualified and try to be the team in your bracket that goes for the gold!

GNT District 14 Finals

Mike Cassel, dedicated GNT Coordinator!

Our District's GNT Finals are complete - and - we have excellent teams representing our district in Superflight, A, B and C.

Please check out this post at District 14 for all the details!  Congratulations and good luck in Philadelphia this summer to all our winners!

District 14 GNT Finals

They're almost here!  Check out this link for all the details!

GNT 2012 - Unit Finals

 

Saturday, March 10, 7 Flight A, 5 Flight B and 3 Flight C teams battled away in our Unit 103 and 178 finals for GNT.  Winners in each flight receive free entries to the District 14 Finals on April 28-29 at the New Brighton Community Center.

The team of Cindy and Bob Balderson, Paul Meerschaert, Carole Miner and Peg Kaplan seized Flight A.  Flight B honors went to Bill Heyer, Dave Hoffman, Brian Weikle and Bill Cummings.  The top Flight C squad was Nicholas Erpelding, Tony Ames II, Noel Muller and Lloyd Arntsen.  All of Saturday's results can be viewed at these links:  Flight A & Superflight, Flight B, and Flight C.

The event was organized by our hard working GNT coordinator, Mike Cassel.  Direction was ably provided by Kim Hayward.  Our thanks to them, and to the Bridge Center of St. Paul for its hospitality.

 

 

 

Do remember; you need not have played in the Unit Finals to be able to compete in the District finals in April!  Everyone that is interested in vying for a subsidized trip to the Summer NABC in Philadelphia should definitely bring their team to New Brighton!

And - one more note of caution.  More than one player went to the wrong venue for the

unit finals!  Please do take care to make certain that you have the correct location and time for the event!  Organizers will also try to make certain that this information is more clear and prominent.

See you next month at the District Finals in New Brighton!

Pot of Gold

There may be gold in your future!

Play in the GNT Unit Final on Saturday, March 10th and you may win Gold Points.

Play on April 28-29 and you may win Gold Points and money towards a trip to the summer NABC.

More information is below.

Grand National Teams
GNT Unit Final: Saturday, March 10 - Two Session event

10:30 and 3:30 at the Bridge Center of St. Paul.

Gold Points for overall finishes. Winners may receive free entries at the GNT District Finals in April.

Sectionally rated extra masterpoints and save surcharge fee if you play in District finals.
C players play against C players and B players play aganst B players.

B & C players must have qualified in a Club game. A and Championship players must have attended a Club qualifying game. There is still time to qualify at the following games or check with your local club:
Mar 8- 7PM game at the Hampton Inn in Minnetonka
Mar 9 - C Level only 7PM at the Twin City Bridge Center
Check with local clubs for other opportunities in March & April

GNT District Final: April 28 & 29 at New Brighton Family Center
April 28: 1 & 6:30, Registration by 12:30- 2 Qualifying sessions.
April 29: 10am & TBD- 1/2 of field qualifies for B & C teams, Open & A semi-final and final sessions.
April 29: Open Swiss Teams: Non-qualifyers and any new team can play in the open swiss on Sunday, Full Sectional Rating.

Championship Flight: 0 to Unlimited points, 36 gold points if 5 teams enter.
Flight A: 0-5000 points, 30 gold points
Flight B: 0-2000 points, 26 gold points
Flight C: Non-life master under 500 points, 3.75 Gold/11.25 Red

GNT questions? Contact Mike Cassel, District GNT coordinator, 651-336-8956, mcassel9856@comcast.net

Grand National Teams

The time to focus on becoming District 14's GNT pick is swiftly approaching.

GNT coordinator Mike Cassel alerts us to many opportunities for this exciting event!

First - be sure to get qualified at your local club.  Mike can help you with questions as to how to do this.

Second - if you are able, do plan to compete in our Minnesota Joint Unit Finals.  This one day event is Saturday, March 10th at the Bridge Center of St. Paul.

Third - as long as you are qualified for this season's GNT event, head on down to the New Brighton Community Center on April 28-29 to battle against other teams.  If you end up at the top of the heap, your team could be the District 14 representative at the Summer NABC in Philadelphia!  Play at the Nationals along with a trip subsidy!

Mike has all the details about these events below the fold.  In addition, Mike explains why it is worth our while to compete in the Unit finals - although this is not a necessary condition to becoming a District winner.

GNT Updates

Mike Cassel, District 14's GNT coordinator, has a report and an update on GNT at the District website.  Please check them out!

GNT 2011 Recap

Mike Cassel, our GNT coordinator, has a recap of what has transpired in the last year with District 14's GNT and our most recent competition.

Thank you, Mike - and all the others who contributed to this event.

District 14 GNT Finals 2011

Congratulations to all those who won in their respective flights in Des Moines!  View all the winning competitors at District 14 Director Sharon Anderson's website!

Upcoming Events

What is happening in Minnesota Bridge?  All this!

• Saturday, April 30th is the Unit 178 banquet open to all bridge players.  A free dinner will be provided at 6, followed by awards and a bridge game(including 299).

 

• May 14-15 is the GNT District final in Des Moines, Iowa. 

 

• May 24-30 is the Gopher Regional in Bloomington at the Ramada.  Please check out new events this year in addition to popular returning events.

 

• June 11th is the Twin City Bridge Center Charity event.  Dinner and silent auction will be from 5:30-7pm with bridge starting at 7 (including 299 game).  The charity is Wayside house. 

 

• June 17-19 is the Granite City Sectional in St. Cloud.

GNT - Unit 103 & 178 Finals

Sunday, the Twin City Bridge Center hosted a Unit Finals for the Grand National Teams.  Teams entered competed in three brackets; results are posted below.

Mike Cassel, organizer and tireless worker for GNT, has offered these comments on Sunday's competition and on the upcoming District Final in May. 

Eighteen teams competed in last weekend's GNT Unit Final at the Twin City Bridge Center, one fewer than last year.  We had 6 Open flight teams, 2 Flight A teams, 6 Flight B teams and 4 Flight C teams.

If 1/3 of Sunday's participants travel to Iowa  they will save about  $275 in surcharges and will receive close to $20 in travel subsidies from the Unit Final profit.

The event paid out about 140 masterpoints across the four flights: 84 in the top 2 brackets, 41 in Flight B, and about 14 in Flight C, that otherwise wouldn't have happened.

The event earned $216 in Unit Final table fees for the district.  Starting this year, Unit final table fees will be distributed as an additional subsidy to District final winners who played in a Unit final, up to $100/player.

 

Thanks are in order to Gregg Van Dyke who directed and caddied the event which was held as in a round robin format when the top two bracket both had even numbers of teams.  I also want to thank Teri Blu, our site host, and the many participants who supported the GNTs even though they have no plans to travel to Iowa.  The Grand National Teams is a unique event that deserves even more support.

 

There will be a number of GNT club qualifiers before the District finals in 6 weeks.  It's not too late to put a team together to compete both locally and at the district finals for the large sectionally-rated awards.

GNT Reminder

Beginner or expert, a GNT reminder for all!  Sunday, March 27 is the 178 Unit Finals for Grand National Teams.  If you have qualified in a club game for the Unit Finals, you are invited to play at the Twin City Bridge Center; start time 11:00AM.

More details can be found at this earlier MNBridge post.  If you plan to play at the District Finals in May, competing Sunday can earn you discounts on upcoming play, not to mention masterpoint awards for a good showing!  Take the next step toward earning a supplemented trip to Toronto's July NABC GNT Finals!

Grand National Teams Updates

Mike Cassel, GNT coordinator, has additional information for us about this great event.  Included in the document below are the final local qualifying sessions in the Twin City area for GNT; one is tonight!  Please read this and then plan to be part of GNT 2011!

Grand National Teams - 2010-2011

Compete in this year's GNT and win a subsidized trip to the Summer NABC in Toronto!  Check out our District Director's website for all the details!  GNT flyer also attached below.

GNT 2011

This year's Grand National Team format will include a Unit Final on Sunday, March 27th at the Twin City Bridge Center and a District 14 Final in the Des Moines area on May 14th and 15th.

Winners at the District level in each of four flights (Unlimited, A, B and C) will win the right to represent District 14 at the summer NABC in Toronto, plus receive financial assistance toward their trip.

GNT is a super opportunity to compete among your peers and perhaps travel to the summer NABC.  Our District 14 GNT coordinator, Mike Cassel, has all the details about both the Unit and District finals.  Please review the brochures below.  Grab a great squad and - compete!