Today's the day! Bundle up, enjoy the winter wonderland - and play bridge with your favorite partner!
The Minnesota Winter Super Sectional begins at 10AM in New Brighton. The tournament flyer is below.
Have a great time with the pair/team game combos!
Continue reading "MN Winter Super Sectional - Jan 23 - 25" »
Yet again, we are extremely grateful to Connie Nelson and her superlative reporting on bridge happenings in St. Cloud! In this post, Connie focuses primarily on the 2019 results for Mini-McKenney winners in her area.
Connie is such a smart cookie, she's going to vacate the frozen tundra for warmer climes. So wish Connie a fun (and warmer!) vacation - and we will look forward to her return when it's safe to come back to Minnesota! Thank you, Connie and congratulations to all the players who achieved so much in 2019! (Which you will note does indeed include our Connie!)
Starting out 2020 as Mini-McKenney Winners
On January 7, 2020, when ACBL updated the results of the 2019 Mini-McKenney Masterpoint Races for Unit 103, three St. Cloud Bridge Club members were happy to learn that they had won First Place in their respective categories.
I expect you will continue to hear their names. Through this blog post, I hope to introduce these players to the larger bridge community.
The 0-5 Masterpoint Race: “Rookie of the Year” Nancy Schnepf
I pronounce that our Club’s newest member deserves “Rookie of the Year!” Nancy Schnepf learned how to play bridge from her in-laws when she and her husband George would visit them in Iowa. Then, late in 2018, she decided she’d like to play more often, and she “wanted to advance my game.” She looked up the Club online and called Director Kory Solarz. She remembers he was very welcoming and encouraged her to come to the Club and play.
Nancy recalls: “I went for the social aspect of bridge; I wanted to play for fun. However, after only six weeks at the Club, I started to really appreciate the “challenge” offered by the game.”
Nancy was very eager to learn. She attended the free lessons given on Tuesdays by Roger Melaas; she asked for and welcomed feedback on her bidding and regular club play; and she continually adjusted her game. She says, “Fairly soon, everyone started telling me that I should join ACBL and ‘earn points.’ I didn’t even know what that meant exactly, but I signed up for an ACBL number in January 2019.”
Nancy muses, “I never set out to win the Mini-McKenney race and never really thought I would win.” However, by mid-year, she had started winning a game or two. She recounts: “In early July I went out to ACBL for the first time, and saw that I was in the top 5 of the Masterpoint Race. I decided to “kick it up a notch.” Both Nancy’s enjoyment of the game and her constant learning paid off. Nancy earned 71.4 Masterpoints in 2019. She placed first in Unit 103, and leapfrogged the next two categories in the Mini-McKenney Races. Congrats Nancy!
Nancy gives a lot of credit to our Club. She said, “I want people to know that I never would have achieved this award without this Club. There are wonderful players and mentors here…. many mentors who are willing to play with me, teach me, send me home with articles, and even call me up outside of Club times to mention a suggestion or two.”
The 50-100 Masterpoint Race: International Player Robert Nairn
Earning 112.3 Masterpoints in 2019, Robert Nairn achieved First Place in Unit 103, as well as across all of District 14.
Robert is one of St. Cloud’s international bridge players. While a lad growing up in Scotland, he learned to play bridge sitting at the card table’s corner watching his parents and their friends play. In his youth, he became the only non-Jewish member of a Jewish bridge club in Glasgow. He often played in tournaments on weekends, as well as in Club vs. Club Team Matches (events that he wishes we offered here). As a young man, he moved to New Zealand, and played there. Then, he met his future wife and married. She was not a bridge player, nor a card player of any kind. He said, “I didn’t attempt to teach her to play, and if I had, I would not have celebrated my 50-year anniversary last year.” For many years, he set bridge aside.
He and his wife moved to St. Cloud fairly recently to be closer to their grandchildren. In early 2018, Robert started to play bridge again at our Club. He said he found the Club filled with a number of good and helpful players. He quickly picked up the game again. He earned over 50 points his first year back playing, winning the 2018 0-5 Masterpoint Race in Unit 103.
Robert describes bridge as “the best card game that ever was.” Robert says he’s played many a card game and loves poker. “But, bridge beats poker hands down!” (pun intended, I’m sure.) He explained: “While there is an element of luck involved regarding which pair you happen to meet for a hand, I love that duplicate bridge at its essence makes everybody equal.”
By the way, Robert is also a Shakespearean actor and Actors Equity member. We have no Actors Equity theater companies in St. Cloud, so if you happen know of one in the midst of casting, remember Robert!
The 300-500 Masterpoint Race: “Genghis” Connie Nelson
It’s tougher to write about myself. I learned bridge from my husband, Jim Schnepf. I remember keeping a “cheat sheet” by my side about the points I needed for different levels of games. One of my first hands I ever bid, I opened 6 No Trump. Jim blanched before saying, “We’ll have to work on communicating a bit more with your bids.” At the time, I thought I had communicated very well, as it was the one and only time I have ever been dealt a square 31-point hand. (I figured 31 points was “close enough,” which started me on my long history of believing bids are “close enough.”) Jim and I played years of party bridge, but our game really improved after starting at the Club about six years ago, where – as mentioned - the competition includes many, many fine players and coaches.
I guess I should also explain my nickname shown above. It was given to me by my goddaughter who once said to me, “You are so nice until you start playing games. Then your competitive twin “Genghis Connie” shows up.”
Earning 202.69 Masterpoints this year, I came in first in both the Unit and across District 14. Jim and I had a very good year – representing District 14 as both Flight C National Pairs and as one pair of our Flight C National Team. By midyear, I was “counting my chickens,” believing I had a lock on first place. But, Paski Paskaradevan from the St. Paul club also had a fantastic year, especially in the last half. He came within 10 points of me for the Mini-McKenney, and he won the Unit 103 Ace of Clubs race. Congratulations to Paski! (Actually, Unit 103 was very competitive inside this category. The top five places in District 14 were all from Minnesota and Unit 103!)
Other St. Cloud Top Ten Mini-McKenney Finishers
Several other St. Cloud players placed among Unit 103’s top ten Mini-McKenney finishers.
The Awards Banquet for Unit 103 will be held May 2nd in St. Paul. I hope many of you can attend, and if you run across these “winners” there or at a tournament, please extend to them a hearty congratulations for a good showing in The Greatest Game!
Today, with a blast of arctic weather, a blast from bridge past seems appropriate. Bob Hamman sent me the article below (PDF) written by Pam Granovettoer in Bridge Today magazine. Though Pam's article is from 2004, much of what she writes is as true today as it was then.
While Nick Nickell's team has been one of the strongest ever to compete at our game, they don't get every hand right. An excerpt from the article here:
What makes Nickell so unique? I say it's because Nickell has bulldogs on his team. Regardless of what
goes wrong (and plenty does go wrong), the Nickell players just go on to the next hand as though nothing happened. They don't seem to get fazed or depressed or upset the way lesser mortals do.
Bob Hamman has explained this many times publicly. His philosophy goes like this: "We're bad but they're worse". Rather than feel bad or hate himself for making an error (in cardplay or judgment) or feel sorry
for himself when the luck goes sour, he just sits there and concentrates on the next board. He already knows he's so bad, so what's to get depressed about? There's the comforting knowledge that the other's are worse,
so surely the tide will change! And it usually does!
Bob's ability to concentrate, focus and never give up is legendary - and Bob's in a class of one. And few teams in history can come close to the success of the Nickell team. Yet, we all can learn from what makes these players so successful - and add as much as we can to our own repertoire.
While you try to stay warm today (good luck!) - please enjoy, be amazed and learn from Pam's story about bulldogs. Strive to be as big a bulldog as you can! While few of us ever can win the Reisinger or a world championship, we can up our own game. Bulldog wannabe's - go for it! (Article below the line)
Minnesota Winter Super Silver Sectional
Jan 23-25
New Brighton Community Center
400 10th St. NW
New Brighton, MN 55112
The weather outside might be frightful but the bridge is so delightful especially in the Twin Cities.
So come to New Brighton the Winter Capital of Minnesota!
So, brrrrriiinng a friend and we'll see you there
Between Sessions:
See the attached flyers for all the details.
Tournament Chair:
Larry Huiras
phone: 715-410-8705
email: bridge.kibitzer@gmail.com
Partnerships:
Patti Huiras
phone: 651-343-2078
email: patti.huiras@gmail.com
Tournament Director:
Kim Hayward
Flyer Below the Line!
Continue reading "MN Winter Super Silver Sectional - Jan 23-25" »
Our photo above may be an "oldie but goodie" - yet these Collegiate Bridge Online Games results from the first of the New Year are New AND Goodie!
Lots of competition on January 1 - but if look below at the overalls for the first 2020 competition, Carleton's #1!
The Carleton players averaged 64.64% in the event; quite the accomplishment!
We know that all our Minnesota bridge players are returning to class, studying and taking exams. But we imagine that in some of their free time, they are honing their games and preparing for the next battle!
Applause for the Carleton competitors in this event - and to all our Minnesota players who continue to grow and show!
The last week of 2019, juniors competed in a variety of age groups and a women's team to see who would represent the U.S. this year in Italy. We are so very proud of Minnesota's junior super star, Ben Kristensen, who will be representing the U26 team there. Team Kaplan is a powerhouse; we wish them and all the other teams the best in the competition!
We are, however, also quite proud of the other Minnesota players who competed in the junior trials. Most of our junior players do not have the experience level that some of the other juniors in the event have achieved. So, for each match that our players won and moved on to compete at a higher level, we applaud them.
Bridge is the most fascinating and fun mind game there is! Yet it is also the toughest, the most challenging and the game that can never be mastered fully. We look forward to watching the progress of our Minnesota junior players as they continue to hone their own games!
Big thanks, too, to everyone who contributed to the Junior Championships! As the saying goes - it takes a village and our village is superlative!
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The Michael Seamon Junior United States Bridge Championships (MSJUSBC) were contested in Atlanta, December 27 through December 31, 2019. Six winning teams in four categories (Under 26, Under 21, Under 16, and Women Under 26) will represent the United States in the 18th World Youth Team Championships, July 31 – August 9, 2020, in Salsomaggiore Terme, Italy.
Congratulations and good luck to the winning teams!
In the U26 category, team KAPLAN (Adam Kaplan - Ben Kristensen; Arjun Dhir - Yichen Yin; Zach Grossack - Kevin Rosenberg) dominated and earned the USA1 spot. Team STEPHANI (Isaac Stephani, Louis-Amaury Beauchet, Hakan Berk, Nolan Chang, David Soukup) were victors in the highly-contested competition for U26 USA2.
Above: Team USA1 - U26 Left to right: Arjun Dhir, Zach Grossack, Yichen Yin, Adam Kaplan, Kevin Rosenberg, and Ben Kristensen. Photo by Min Bai.
Above: Team USA2 - U26 Left to Right: Louis-Amaury Beauchet, Hakan Berk, Isaac Stephani, David Soukup, and Nolan Chang. Photo by Min Bai.
The U21 USA1 is Team KOLESNIK (Finn Kolesnik - Michael Xu; Harrison Luba - Sarah Youngquist). The U21 USA2 team is Team XIAO (Brent Xiao - Richard Jeng; Cornelius Duffie - Stella Wan; and Michael Hu - Arthur Zhou.)
Above: Team USA1 - U21 Left to right: Harrison Luba, Michael Xu, Finn Kolesnik, and Sarah Youngquist. Photo by Min Bai.
Above: Team USA2 - U21 Left to right: Richard Jeng, Brent Xiao, Cornelius Duffie, Arthur Zhou, Michael Hu, and Stella Wan. Photo by Min Bai.
Team CEDRONE (Marley Cedrone - Zacharia Pasternak; Michael Haas - Sam Pahk; Arthur Gong - Eric Xiao) will be the U16 team, having won a very narrow victory over Team GE (Brandon Ge - Olivia Schireson; Charlie Chen - Kayden Ge; Ethan Xie - Brian Zhang).
Above: Team USA - U16 Left to right: Marley Cedrone, Zacharia Pasternak, Sam Pahk, Michael Haas, Eric Xiao, and Arthur Gong. Photo by Min Bai.
The team that will be representing the USA in the competition for the Rona C up includes Captain Amber Lin - Emma Kolesnik and Sophia Chang - Lucy Zhang.
Above: Team USA - Women U26 Left to right: Amber Lin, Emma Kolesnik, Lucy Zhang, and Sophia Chang. Photo by Min Bai.
All teams with fewer than six players will add others so that each team competing in the World Youth Team Championships will include six players. For more details about the MSJUSBC, including teams that entered, go to USBF.org and look for “2019 MSJUSBC” under the USBF Tournaments menu on the left. For detailed results see the various age categories under “Event Results” at the top left of the home page. Many more photos from the event can be found on the USBF Facebook page.
Thanks are due to many people who contributed to the success of the USBC. McKenzie Myers worked very long days as our Director (plus a lot of physical labor setting up and tearing down screens), with an assist from Mike Roberts, who volunteered his time to help on our busiest days. USBF volunteers Jan Martel and Joe Stokes helped plan and run the event. Julie Arbit and Christian Jolly prepared the almost 3,800 boards used during the event, Suzi and Stan Subeck provided wall posters for scoring and produced the Daily Bulletins, and Min Bai took photographs. Mentors extraordinaire Michael and Debbie Rosenberg kibitzed continually and were available to all the young players to “talk bridge.” Thanks to Joe Jones, ACBL CEO, who waived the customary director’s fees for this event.
None of this would have been possible without the generous financial help from our donors: Lynn Baker, Drew Becker, Pat and Jimmy Cayne (who contributed in honor of their friend Michael Seamon), Connie Goldberg, Vinita Gupta, Mike Levine, John McAllister, Sylvia Moss, Alex Perlin, Dan Zagorin, and the Linda and Jeffrey Wolfson Family Foundation (in memory of Billy Rosen). Their support allowed us not only to produce a great event but the provide housing and most of the travel costs for the young players. Thank you all very much.
Come July 1st of this year, Unit 178 will be looking for several new people to serve as board members for their unit.
You could be one of the people to support bridge in our area and help to make our game as excellent as it possible!
If you have questions about what is entailed with being a board member - or would like to serve - please contact Barb Zipoy - barbzipoy@gmail.com - or John Schlundt.
Thanks!
Here's to a New Year of
Happiness & Health
And Lots of Success at the Bridge Table
May Everyone have a Great 2020!
The United States Bridge Federation competition for junior players started Friday - and continues on today and beyond. We are thrilled that a number of our Minnesota competitors are in Atlanta playing - and that four of them continue on today!
In the finals for U26, we will see the Kaplan team with one of our junior super stars, Ben Kristensen, compete against the Hallerman team. Sean McNally, at U of MN and another of our up and coming talented players, had quite the dramatic finish yesterday. Sean's team tied at the end of competition! Yet the fact that his team had finished ahead of their opponents in the initial round robin sent the Hallerman team to the final match today! Should be a thriller to watch Ben vs Sean!
In the quest for U26 #2 team, two more of our Minnesota students will be battling. Morgan Johnstone, from U of MN is on the Y Yu team. Thomas Scruggs of Carleton College is on the Xu team. We wish both Morgan and Thomas the best of luck today!
Finally, in the Roma event (women's teams), Alexandar ("Allie") Clark from Carleton College will compete with her teammates on Team Huang for Stage 3 of this event.
We are so very proud of our new generation of bridge players in Minnesota! Huge thanks to those at our schools who are training new students for our game - and applause for the students who are learning and loving bridge, as many of us did decades ago.
If you have some time available today, you can watch our competitors on BBO. We sure hope that you do!
And - as always - thanks to the many people throughout North America who devote so much time and energy to the USBF competitions. Big shout out to Jan Martel, who can (and does!) do anything and everything at USBF events - and Suzi Subeck for her marvelous bulletins. Today's is below; enjoy reading about our Juniors - and cheer on our Minnesota players!
Continue reading "Michael Seamon Junior U.S. Bridge Championships - MN Players Shine!" »
Each of us has our own unique bridge story. Some of us learned as a child or in college; some of us took up the game in retirement. Some enjoy mostly social bridge at a local club. Others like to attend tournaments - and some play at the most challenging levels around.
There isn't a "right or wrong" way to choose the bridge activities of your choice. But what we all wish for the game is for bridge to continue to grow and flourish - irrespective of our personal goals.
As some of you know, I have the honor of being the "bridge coach" at one of our elite liberal arts schools, Carleton College. I am so delighted that students there are learning the game - and that a number of the students already have a passion for bridge, coupled with their talents.
One of the first Carleton players I met, Jackson Wahl, sent me this absolutely wonderful email! Not only is Jackson, along with his partner, Sarah Emmons, achieving remarkably well at our game - Jackson is embracing bridge to the fullest!
Please read Jackson's wonderful letter below. Big thanks to Teri and Chip for aiding Jackson in achieving this big goal - and to Jackson, for becoming a "bridge lover" AND director/promoter! The Greatest Game has captured Jackson - and - we hope his love lasts and grows for decades, as it has for many of us.
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We all know what a blast it is to compete in a big tournament. And we also know how much fun it is to do well.
But perhaps one of the biggest thrills is when we compete against elite competition in the toughest field - and beat some of the stars!
Just this past week, one of our own Minnesota college stars, Sean McNally, experienced this excitement. Sean played with one of his regular junior partners, Raphael Hallerman, and they competed with teammates George Berger and Michael Kopera in Bracket #1 of the Thursday/Friday Knockouts at the Coral Gables Regional.
As is often the case in a well attended regional, a number of world class players were in the event. Yet, when the smoke cleared, Sean, Raphael, George and Michael had seized 2nd place! Only a mighty team of Italians could stop their juggernaut!
Big congratulations to (from left to right) Raphael, George, Michael and Sean. Take a gander at who was in the field - and see their impressive #2 spot appearing on the results! Way to go, guys!
Big thanks to another world class player who alerted us to Sean's triumph: Ron Smith. Ron has worked with and encouraged our junior players for decades, for which we are most grateful. And - though Ron is quiet and mild mannered at the table, don't let him fool you. He knows just what to do and when to do it - which is why Ron himself wins vastly more often than the average bear.
In fact, were you wondering who won the most masterpoints Coral Gables? Guess who! Ronnie along with teammates Adam Grossack and Josh Donn. Very well done, boys!
"Playing up" is a challenge. Yet when you do super well? A super high!
Yet again, big thanks from your webmaster, moi, and from all the rest of our bridge community for another excellent report from Our Woman in St. Cloud - Connie Nelson.
We appreciate all the stories, the great photos - and - we congratulate Connie herself for achieving that goal to which all bridge players aspire: Life Master!
Connie's story and others who have attained great heights are below!
The year 2019 might be unprecedented for the number of St. Cloud Bridge Club members who became new Life Masters, or achieved other Bridge master point milestones!
New Life Masters
Club Director Kory Solarz & Life Master Connie Nelson
Kicking off the year, I reached my 500th point at the Winter Tournament in St. Paul on January 26th. After earning three silver points there and having more than enough colored points, I remember frantically asking Director Kim Hayward: “Do Silver points count for Black?” When she answered “Yes,” I was thrilled. Kim interrupted the play to introduce me as a new Life Master. Back in St. Cloud, I brought in a home-baked cake to celebrate with the Club.
Life Master Jim Schnepf and Director Kory Solarz
In March 2019, during regular club play, Jim Schnepf hit the magic number of 500 points. He has always said that points don’t matter to him as much as playing each hand well, but he also brought in a cake to celebrate!
Life Master Tom Buttweiller
Tom Buttweiller became a Life Master fittingly at our own St. Cloud Sectional in June. With his philosophy of “live one day at a time,” he took it in stride - modestly saying it was just another day. However, he later sponsored a pizza and cake party for the whole club to enjoy, so it must have been a somewhat special milestone for him.
At the Rochester Regional in September, Club Member Beverly Berg received the final gold points she needed and was announced as a new Life Master.
Life Master Bev Berg
Sadly, Bev left for her winter home of Florida before the St. Cloud Club could celebrate with her. But, we celebrated her with a cake and sent her a picture across the miles.
Bev kiddingly responded, “Sending me a picture of you all enjoying a cake to celebrate my Life Master is kind of like having a going away party for me -- and not inviting me!"
Carol Ross hit her magic number during the Worldwide Instant Match Point Game held Halloween afternoon at our local club. Carol and her partner Jane Curtis came in first East-West, garnering 3 points – including the one Gold point Carol needed. When I asked Carol what becoming a Life Master meant to her, she answered, “Now I don’t have to run all over chasing that last elusive Gold point. I can sit back and have fun playing bridge. I am smiling today!”
Life Master Carol Ross
For Carol’s partner Jane Curtis, that Worldwide Game gave her the last Gold Point she needed as well. But, Jane still had 2.6 Silver Points to go to achieve Life Master. Just as the year was drawing to a close, she accomplished that at the St. Paul Winter Sectional. Her team came in first overall on December 7th, and Jane became our sixth Life Master of 2019!
Life Master Jane Curtis
New Heights
One of our Club Directors - Joe Lisbon - announced at our Halloween party that he achieved Ruby Life Master during regular October Club play. Unfortunately, Joe took off for Florida the very next day, so we haven’t had a chance to celebrate his achievement with him.
Ruby Life Master Joe Lisbon
Also at the Rochester Regional in September, Paul Sitz became a Gold Life Master! Paul drives up to play at our Club from Ramsey MN, and volunteers as a mentor for others. We all appreciate his weekly journey…. as well as his heart of “Gold!”
Gold Life Master Paul Sitz
Cheers to all these 2019 “Masters! And here’s wishing all a happy and blessed 2020.
December 27th will herald a thrilling time for our junior players. The 2019 Michael Seamon USBF Junior Championships will begin that day. And - people from all over the world (even in Minnesota! :D ) will be able to watch the action of our talented young players through to the last day of 2019.
Although the photo above is of two players who are not Minnesotans, the success of one in particular, Finn Kolesnik, was quite astounding. Finn is now 15 or 16 years old. Yet despite his youthful age, he and partner John Ramos finished in third place in the Blue Ribbon Pairs in San Francisco! The BR Pairs is one of our elite events, thus this is quite the achievement for Finn and John!
Finn's huge showing in SF didn't stop there, though. With teammate Bo Han Zhu (above with Finn), plus Cristal Nell and John Ramos, their team was 20th in the NABC+ North American Swiss event.
We look forward to seeing how Finn and his team does in Atlanta during these championships. But of course we will be rooting big time for our Minnesota junior players, many of whom are competing! We are proud to have talented and earnest competitors from our state. A number of them have competed in and won trips to the summer collegiate competitions. Some have competed in open competition with great success - and earned medals in world wide competition! We hope that many from our state and all over will be able to watch some of the events and root for our talented players!
Big thanks to the many who contribute to the USBF Junior Championships: donors, board members, Vugraph operators, the Bulletin Editor (go Suzi Subeck!) - and last but not least - our stupendous juniors!
The first Bulletin for the event is below the line. Hope many of us can watch at least some of the action and cheer on our many wonderful and talented Minnesota bridge players!
Continue reading " Michael Seamon Junior United States Bridge Championships - 2019" »
The Holiday Sectional in North St. Paul was well planned! Great bridge and avoidance of snowstorms with frigid weather!
That fine planning was followed with excellent competition and success from a number of our players. At the top of the masterpoint list, we find one of our areas elite players: Robert Schacter. With an impressive weekend score of 33.01, Robert outdid the rest of the field. Two other players did grab much success, too. Brian Crossley's 26.92 and Gary Knippenberg's 26.19 rewarded them with 2nd and 3rd overall for point tallies.
The full report for who did what is here. And to see the overall results of each event, check out these results.
We are most grateful for our hardworking tournament chair, Tom Owens. And big thanks also to the woman who does superb double duty: Kim Hayward, both director in charge and partnership chairman. Of course, there are all of our wonderful players, too; we appreciate every one of you!
The photo above is becoming a reality, everyone! So stay safe and warm over this week - and - go to your favorite bridge club to achieve this goal!