Minnesota Bridge

Bridge in 2020

 

Here's to a New Year of 

Happiness & Health 

And Lots of Success at the Bridge Table

May Everyone have a Great 2020!

Michael Seamon Junior U.S. Bridge Championships - MN Players Shine!

Ben Kristensen vs Thomas Scruggs - GO Minnesota!

 

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!

Falling in Love

 

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.

**************************************************************************************************

I'm writing to give some updates regarding my bridge life!

 

First of all, I've become a Club Director. Teri and Chip Blu started teaching me in the summer, and I passed the test in September. Over this winter break, they've been having me at the TCBC five days a week directing, and I really love it!

 

I've also decided to bring ACBL bridge to Carleton! Now that I can direct, I applied for and was granted a sanction by the ACBL for Saturdays at 1:00 PM. We plan to hold open games most weeks during the winter term and are inviting college students and the general public alike. I've attached our flyer - would you be willing to put an announcement about the new game on your blog?

 

I'm still getting to play a lot, too! I've just crossed 300 masterpoints. Sarah and I are attending the North American Pairs at the spring nationals and we plan to play in the GNT district finals and the collegiate qualifiers again this year as well. I've really fallen in love with bridge :)

 

Thanks!

 

Best,

Jackson Wahl

 

Please be sure to look at the great flyer Jackson has for upcoming sanctioned events at Carleton!  (See below the line)

Giant Killers!

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!

 

Unit 178 Board of Director Minutes - November 16, 2019

As always, big thanks and gratefulness to those who serve on the Unit 178 Board of Directors and contribute so mightily to Minnesota Bridge!

 

 

The meeting was called to order by Board President Barb Zipoy.

Board Members Present: John Schlundt, Liz Hughes, Richard Cottle, Kerry Holloway and Cass Weil.

1. 1. The minutes from the previous meeting were approved.
   2. Financial Report: Checking and Savings accounts are with Wells Fargo. $17,000 in Savings are indicated. A 5 year CD at 3% is in place. It was agreed to purchase an additional CD for $10,000.
   3. Tournament Reports:

 MN State Sectional at Oak Marsh—Kerry/John

     Sunday game was successful—19 teams; 276 total tables (215 last year); 

     $1,600 profit realized.

     The St. Paul chapter will host the tournament next year.

 Regional Tournament—Patti looking for additional volunteer help. She   

    would like more people to stay at the hotel (Crown Plaza).

GNT 2020—4/18, Edina Senior Center—Larry in charge

1. 4. Team games at TCBC—Teri will not have team games because they have lost money. Motion: Ask Teri if she would have team games if they were subsidized by the Chapter. Passed. 
   5. E-mail messaging: Judy Hanson continues to do New Member letters.
   6. Properties: Linda continues to clean Bridgemates.

 

Old Business

1. 1. Promoting the Regional: Issues include flyers, website, Facebook, hotel rooms and more volunteers.

 

New Business

1. 1. Go Fund Me: John Doty has installed new toilets and grab bars on main floor. He will do the same downstairs. Carpet in the basement is next project. 
   2. New Board members: Looking for new members for July. Board members will ask around.
   3. Motion to give Carol Ann a gift card in the amount of $100 for filling in at TCBC and other tournaments. Passed. Liz will present it.
   4. Peg Kaplan’s Blog: Changing the name, more writers needed. Kerry will talk with her.

 

Next Meeting 

Thursday, January 9 at 9:00.     

 

 

“Mastering” New Heights!

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 26^th.  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 7^th, 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.

Michael Seamon Junior United States Bridge Championships - 2019

 

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!

Holiday Sectional Results

 

 

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!

 

 

Bruce Boje Obituary

Bruce's obituary has been published today in the Star Tribune. 

Special I/N Focus! Holiday Sectional Tournament in St. Paul This Weekend!

 

 

A big shoutout to Tom Owens, the tournament chair for the Holiday Sectional Tournament this weekend at the Bridge Center of St. Paul!  Not only is there a dedicated Swiss Team section for the I/N players, Tom has extended the Pair/Team format to the 0 to 500 I/N players for all 5 sessions of pair play on Friday and Saturday!

What is a pair/team game? In a pair/team game, you play with your partner just as you would during a regular pairs game.   But the table-mates with whom you start the game with are considered your teammates for a new section based on board-a-match scoring.

You don’t need to do anything different, but this format allows for two different ways for a pair to earn masterpoints. It is extra work for the director in charge to set up the additional sections, and it is extra work for the partnership chair to have fill-ins available to keep the tables full.  Yet it is a great opportunity for I/N pairs to experience a team game setting, and another way to earn points.

If you score well as a pair, you would earn a certain number of masterpoints. If your teammates do well also, your team score may be higher than your pair score. You earn the highest of the two scores (you cannot earn separate points, though, for each format). You won’t lose your pair result - but you may better it!

        Keith Thompson

 

And don't forget; the Holiday Sectional starts this Friday, December 6th!  Have fun, play bridge and get into the holiday spirit!  The flyer is below!  Our thanks to Keith and everyone else who is working hard for a great tourney and for all our competitors!

Bruce Boje - More Remembrance

 

As others have learned of Bruce's passing, I have been receiving more remembrances.  Some have shared this fun photo and post from 11 years ago, when Bruce had the thrill of competing against two of our bridge playing billionaires, Bill G & Warren B.

And - two more people, Tony Ames and Nick Erpelding, who have special memories and accolades about Bruce.

 

Bruce Boje was a "renaissance" man.  His interests ran from Bridge to Pickle Ball to ROKU, whatever you needed to understand.  He was a solid partner willing to learn and willing to teach. His death is a huge loss to  our bridge community.

Tony Ames

 

I too was shocked and saddened to hear of Bruce's passing yesterday. I first met Bruce after taking a new job in 2007. Bruce was a long-time expert in the traffic engineering industry and I was semi-new to the field. Bruce took me under his wing and helped me learn the technical details of the profession.

As noted by Vern, Bruce was a tech lover and tech expert. He was a whiz with computers and spreadsheets. Several of the tools I use in my work to this day are based on templates Bruce developed decades ago. His knowledge of the 80's era equipment still used to operate modern traffic signals was amazing. Even after his retirement, and after I had moved on to another firm, I would still reach out to him for advice and guidance, and he would happily provide it.

On one of our work road trips, Bruce asked if I knew how to play bridge, and was more than slightly surprised when I said "Yes!" From that point forward we spent many hours discussing bridge, playing together as partners occasionally.

Of the countless guidance, tips and recommendations I received from Bruce as an up-and-coming player, one of my favorites was when he lent me Mel Colchamiro's book, "How You Can Play Like an Expert." In seemingly every session I've played since, there is at least one "Rule of X" hand in the set, and the tips from that book always seem to pay off!

Bruce also strongly espoused the value of support doubles and Bergen raises. He was patient when I would inevitably forget one during a set, but at the same time he knew how to motivate me like a parent in order to learn from the mistake and improve for the future.

I will greatly miss my friend and mentor.

Nick Erpelding

 

Bruce Boje was a Traffic Engineer by occupation.    I remember driving to an out-of town bridge tournament with him and asking him about traffic light timing.  He spent the next two hours or so explaining in great detail the minutia of how a system is designed that can move traffic through a city-wide grid of intersecting streets efficiently, with timing that can be changed for differing conditions and traffic networks with the use of sensors, timers, and controllers. 

When we switched to discussing our bidding system, he demonstrated a similar studied knowledge,-- of hand evaluation and what and why various conventions and treatments are used.  In both cases he knew his audience, and was able to convey his knowledge in a way that was understandable by me.   

At the table, Bruce was the perfect partner, even-keeled, never critical, making bids that I could depend on, and never asking why I did what I did.  He was a delight to partner, and a formidable opponent. 

Minnesota has lost a bridge stalwart.

Denny Cerkvenik

 

 

Bruce Boje - 1948 - 2019

 

The past week was filled with family and friends gathering together to celebrate Thanksgiving - shopping, eating - and battling the elements.  Unfortunately, however, this week also has been one of deep sadness for our Minnesota community.  Yet again, we have lost a treasured member of our bridge world:  Bruce Boje.  

I received a call yesterday from one of Bruce's regular partners, Judy Nassar.  Apparently Bruce had a sudden heart attack, went to the hospital, was getting treatment - and - died.  Only 71, and seemingly in fine condition; a shock to all.

Judy kindly sent me some thoughts about her good friend and partner.  We have memories from other bridge players - and also from Bruce's "main man" at the table - Vern Swing.  I am most grateful for their kind, caring, positive and warm thoughts about Bruce.

 

 

Bruce was my favorite bridge partner because he was almost always calm and kind.  We had a lot of fun playing together for many years.  We won more than our fair share of the time!  In addition, he was the best teammate because he never focused on the errors of teammates -  only his own.

Bruce also had a wonderful sense of humor and he would occasionally tease me.  His death is a huge loss to me.

 

Judy Nassar

 

 

Bruce Boje was always a very nice opponent to us.  And he took time to talk to us about pickleball and all sorts of other topics.

 

Diane Henson

 

 

In every encounter at the table, Bruce was always a really nice guy!!

 

Judy Schwarz

 

 

                                                                               

Bruce and Vern competing at the NAP Nationals 2018

 

In the fall of 2013 Judy Nassar approached me about developing a partnership with Bruce Boje.  I knew Bruce as a fellow traffic engineer at a rival company, but didn’t realize he also was fine bridge player.  We hit it off immediately.  Bruce was fierce competitor, but never criticized his partner or teammates, always focusing on how he could have improved a play, a defense, or a bid regardless of whether the result was a top or bottom. 

Bruce was passionate about life, his wife and family, his career and his hobbies.  He was an avid cyclist, loved pickleball, enjoyed his techy toys, loved Mexican food and beer, and loved bridge.  Bruce relished the coming of spring so he could get on his bike again and get his 50-mile rides done on the days he wasn’t playing pickleball.  In his younger days he raced throughout the summers.  When Bruce was introduced to pickleball he dove headlong long into the game.  He and Joyce played many tournaments and were considered experts.  He was generous with his time and knowledge and encouraged anyone to start playing and offered to teach newcomers the basics, and at the same time was active in the local organization as President, then Treasurer. 

Bruce loved his gadgets and could tell you how to remotely open his garage door from his phone, remotely control the temperature in his house from his phone, and how the Tesla he and Joyce bought was getting bi-weekly software updates and what those updates did.  He was passionate about alternative energy, and as was always the case with Bruce, if he was passionate about a subject, he was very well studied.  Bruce could explain to you in detail how solar panels worked and what to expect in the upcoming decades.

Bruce loved Mexican Food and loved beer.  When we attended out of town tournaments, whether in Fargo, anywhere in Iowa, in Toronto or in Vegas he would always choose Mexican Food for dinner between sessions if given a choice.  Beer was a requirement after the evening session and if Nachos accompanied it, life didn’t get better than that. 

Bruce approached bridge as a partnership game and spent hours developing symmetric wrinkles in our methods to handle all hand types.  When we decided to play the Attack System, Bruce converted the Soloway-Goldman notes into a spreadsheet we could modify easily and then insisted we practice bidding on BBO.  We spent countless hours bidding hands to improve part score decisions, game decisions and slam bidding.

Needless to say, I was devastated when I received the call from Joyce in the evening of the November 30^th, that Bruce had passed away.  I will greatly miss you - my good friend - my partner.

Vern Swing

 

Our bridge community is not enormous. Every player matters; every one is meaningful and plays a role in how we enjoy our game - and our friendships with one another.

Bruce was another of our "bridge jewels." 

Our deepest sympathies go to his wife Joyce and other family and friends.  And one last look at Bruce - gentleman and student of our game, having a blast playing the game we love with the people we treasure.

                Peg