Minnesota Bridge

Our Treasures - Our Loss

Our bridge community means the world to so many of us - and every loss of a member is a wound to the heart.  Sadly, we have recently lost some of our treasured members.  We wish to honor those who mean so much to us.

 Brellenthin, Sr. William Brian ("Bill" aka "Bart") age 81, surviving son of Henry and Gertrude Brellenthin, died suddenly on Friday, Aug. 14, 2020. Bill leaves behind his devoted wife Adele; four children Brian (Lisa), Diane (Bill), John and James (Maureen); eight grandchildren David (Jane), Ashley (Mark), Will, Alex, Nick, Sydney, Molly and Blake; and his dog Charles. Bill was known for his quit wit, wry sense of humor and warm, generous heart. Bill was born in Des Moines, Iowa and moved to Edina when he was ten years old. Bill and his bride of 61 years knew one another since grade school. Bill delivered the paper to her family's home. Bill married Adele Hunter in 1959. After they graduated from the University of Minnesota in 1960, Bill and Adele raised their children in Edina where they made life-long friends. They shared a love of movies, golf, travel and playing cards. Throughout his life, Bill was a wizard with numbers and a voracious reader. Bill followed his father's footsteps with a career in the car business at Brellenthin Chevrolet in North Minneapolis, Brellenthin Dodge in Hopkins, and the Wilkins and Luther companies. Bill was a devoted family man and immersed himself in his children's interests and sports. Bill and his three sons were active in Edina youth hockey. Bill served as President of the Edina Hockey Association in 1978. Bill was an active member of the Good Samaritan Methodist Church in Edina. Bill was also a member of Edina Rotary, The Minneapolis Shriners and The Minikahda Club of Minneapolis. After Bill retired from the car business, he kept his mind sharp. Bill became an award-winning duplicate bridge player and achieved the Life Master award from the American Contract Bridge League. There was not a crossword puzzle that Bill could not complete until he was stricken with Alzheimer's. Bill handled the challenges of this disease with dignity, grace and humor that helped his family through these difficult times. Bill's signature one-liners will be missed, and he will be forever loved. Bill's family is grateful for the kindness and loving care he received by the staff at English Rose Suites. In lieu of flowers, you may make a memorial donation to the Marion Hunter Charitable Fund for True Friends at 10509 - 108th Street Northwest, Annandale, MN 55302.

 

999er Mini-Slam

 

Hello Minnesota Bridge Players!

The Minneapolis Grand Slam Club (MGSC) is piloting a new 0-999 game on the BBO website Friday night at 7:05 pm.  This game will be held in conjunction with the open game that starts at 7:15 pm.  The game is ably directed by Tony Ames, a nationally rated ACBL director with decades of experience.

The MGSC is one of the oldest continually running sanctioned ACBL duplicate games having begun in the late 1930's.   The philosophy of the club is to help players improve their game and become ready for Tournament Bridge at whatever level they wish to compete.

To encourage this concept the Slam produces a weekly newsletter, with the results, highlighting hand from the previous week, and often extras including hands of interest from other events, discussions on certain conventions or treatments, etc. , which Mike Cassel has done a great job writing since 2011. He accepts contributions from players, so if you have something that seems interesting to you please send it to Mike. Usually the newsletter goes out to MGSC members, but we plan to send it to the 999er players who provide their e-mail address.

We invite all players to try this game. We will also have a zoom meeting post mortem session for about an hour after the game where hands will be discussed and questions answered.  The discussion is lively and moves fast, but all are welcome to listen and contribute.

Log onto BBO starting Friday, September 4, go to Virtual clubs > North America > and sign up for the MGSC game.  If you and your partner are each under 1000 ACBL masterpoints, you are eligible for the limited game.  The fee for the limited game will be $4.00, and the open is $5.00.  There will be limited partnership services so if you want to play log on early and request that through the game.

We want to give all players opportunities to improve their skills and discuss some of the finer points with experienced players.

We hope to see you Friday night!

Dave Neiman, President

Jean Boettcher, Board Member

Mike Cassel, Board Member

Barry Purrington, Board Member

Steve Gaynor, Board Member

From: Steven Gaynor <[email protected]>
Date: August 28, 2020 at 1:54:05 PM CDT
To: Steven Gaynor <[email protected]>
Subject: 999er mini-slam

UNAPPROVED ACBL GOPHER Unit 103 Meeting Notes

 

UNAPPROVED
American Contract Bridge League
Minnesota Gopher Unit 103
Board of Directors Meeting
Thursday, August 20, 2020
via Zoom

On line were: Warren Nelson, Larry Huiras, Kathy Beckman, Amy Dutton, Sue Greenberg, Keith
Thompson, Connie Nelson, Matt Belau, Lance Chamberlain, and Patti Huiras

Meeting was called to order by President Warren Nelson at 10:00 am.

Minutes of the June 18th meeting were presented and a motion to accept was made by Connie, secondby Matt, unanimously approved.

Financial Report for the period ending June 30 was presented and a motion to accept was made by Sue, Second by Kathy, unanimously approved.

Old Business:
 On-Line Bylaws Vote and Election of Board
Larry reported the results of the election (attached):
Eligible voting membership 968. Total ballots received 158.
1. Proposed Bylaws adopted (For 143, Against 5, and 10 abstentions)
 Sue moved to ratify the results, seconded by Amy, unanimously approved.
2. Slate of Board Members approved (with 1 Write-in vote and 7 abstentions)
 Connie moved to ratify the results, seconded by Keith, unanimously approved.

There was some discussion about new elections on-line again in the future. The cost was
minimal for the on-line election, and there was some cost for the ballots that had to be mailed.
Warren complimented Larry on a job well done.

 2020 Awards: Sue got all the awards and certificates mailed. Cost was around $150 for the
mailings. Sue is proposing that the Awards Banquet for next year be April 24th (4th Sat. in
April). 2nd option was May 2, but that might be in conflict with GNTs.

 Annual Calendar of Events: The Board had received an email with a list of all the events for the
next year by month as well as a summary of the Tournaments. This was well received by the
Board. A couple of changes were made to the items as presented. Patti will send out a copy of
what is proposed for the next year to each Tournament Chair and/or responsible person and
then send a monthly calendar each month to the Board

 New District Director: All the Board members received an email to vote. There was a discussion
about the number of votes from each unit (based on the number of Directors and not on the
membership). Warren will follow-up with the ACBL to find out the details on this. Connie was
concerned about having time to discuss the vote prior to voting. The deadline for voting is Sept.
15.

New Business:
 Resumption of Club and Tournament Activities. Warren had reported that the Unit had lost 7
people this year, but the numbers for the Unit were up. Larry reported that the ACBL has
reported membership is down 2.8%. This is due in part to no "in-person" club games so no new
people are coming in.

 Kathy reported on the Twin City Bridge Center being sold. They will be closing Sept. 1. Teri
wants to continue teaching at Community Centers, etc. She wants to continue her chat groups.
Keith asked about the status of the Minneapolis sanctions. Kathy said they are keeping the
sanctions and their Board is meeting on the 25th to discuss what they want to do about another
location. The Fall tournament is in question at this time.

 GNT Qualification: After some questions and comments, a motion was made by Amy, second by
Connie and unanimously approved that the 2019 GNT qualifiers will be allowed to advance to
the next GNT game whenever that takes place, pending ACBL approval.

 Election of Officers and Appointments: Connie proposed and Kathy second, a motion to reelect the current Board -- Warren President, Sue Vice President and the Directors, with Larry as
a Non-Voting Board Member, Lance as Financial Advisor and Patti as Secretary. Unanimously
approved.

 Reaching out to the Members who are not on BBO.
There was a a discussion about loosing people that are not playing on BBO. Why aren't they
playing? Keith thought that some people don't have access to a computer and possibly they
could go to the St. Paul Bridge Center. Larry suggested Keith contact Larry M on the Board.
Connie thought some people may not have internet and therefore cannot afford to play. Sue
talked about the Rochester club (Medcitybridge.com) putting up videos (Matt will forward a link
to the Board) to help people get on BBO. Connie would like to survey the membership (perhaps
Larry can do something like for the election) to see why people aren't on BBO. Warren talked
about the special games Duluth was offering for people to sign on and play in a special game.
This was tabled for the time, but should be on the agenda for the next meeting.

Next Meetings: October 15 at 10 am via Zoom
December 17 at 10 am via Zoom
Motion to adjourn made by Sue, second by Kathy. Unanimously approved.

Submitted by Patti Huiras, Secretary

Minneapolis Grand Slam Club - Tonight at 7:15 on BBO

 

Weekly reminder that the MGSC will be online tonight at 7:15 on BBO.

Let us know if your partner is not a regular Twin Cities player so we can get them registered to play.

Join the partnership desk to find a partner if you don't have one. This works two ways: once you sign up at the partnership desk, you can either invite someone in the pool to play or someone can invite you.

If you connect before the game starts, you'll be in your proper Flight based on masterpoints, etc.  If you don't get a partner before the game starts, the director may choose to find one for you in order to fill out the movement. Note: this partner could be anyone, and you won't have time to discuss a card in great depth. Also, you will be in Flight A because you're coming into the game after it has started. 

BBO is now able to host a second section along with our regular Open game.  The Open game masterpoint awards will be increased based on the size of both games. We hope to see some new faces playing in our second section tonight (limited masterpoints 0-999). This game will start 10 minutes prior to the Open game.

We will have a Zoom session after the games finish.

Look for an update with that information later.

David says:  See you at the table!

Grief Strikes Minnesota's Bridge World

Very sad news from the Bridge Center of St. Paul.

I'm sorry to report that this morning we lost a club member. Thomas Juntunen passed away due to a sudden heart attack. He turned 60 this past January. He had pneumonia during the spring. He was still working so mainly joined us in the evening and played many Sundays. His regular partner was Jim Essex. The two of them often partnered on team events with Larry & Patti Huiras.

 

If you would like to get further information as it becomes available, please contact Larry Huiras at [email protected] or 715-410-8705.

 

Each of our bridge players are precious to us.  Such a blow when we lose a member!

 

--

Kimberly Hayward, Club Manager

Bridge Center of St Paul

651-490-5430 w

651-271-3500 c

Paul Meerschaert and Passion for the Game!

 

In this day and age of uncertainty about our daily lives, I want to take an opportunity to thank some of the wonderful people I have had the pleasure with whom to share this game.  I for one pray for the day that I can play “Real Bridge” face to face again.  I am not a fan of playing online, not so much the specter of possible cheating.  Cheaters will cheat no matter the venue.  I just miss the people, and the pleasure of being in a room full of players all enjoying this pastime together.  Even if it is only done in pairs of two. 

While the list of players I have played with is long indeed, and I have learned things from many not mentioned here.  Yet I would like to publicly thank a few that I have had the pleasure of having a working partnership with over the years.  So, in no particular order these players are:

Robert Schachter – A brilliant mind that not only pays attention to all the little details, but has helped me understand the importance of paying attention to the odds when other information is not available.  This may seem like a simple thing  But it is something that is easy (at least for me) to forget about at times.

While using my limited Math skills is important, the greatest gift that Robert has brought to our partnership is the ability to laugh off, and forget about bad results; just focus on the next hand.  Again, easier said than done, for myself and I think many bridge players.

While I will not mention all of our past successes a few stand out.

2^nd in the Silidor Pairs in Philadelphia 2018

Making the 3^rd day of the Platinum Pairs in Philadelphia 2018

And in general - I can honestly say a slew of + scores on defense, missed by many others!

Jim Hall – A Brilliant player, that I am fortunate to have played with and from whom I learned so much.  Jim had many fine attributes and skills at the bridge table, his card play, and his defensive acumen were both top-notch.  Perhaps though his best gift to me was that playing with him gave me access to many fine teammates and players I might never have gotten to know.  From Jim Nash, to Bill Kent, from Alan Stout to Pierre Flatowitz (Sorry Pierre I am pretty sure I am misspelling your name) and many others.  I was fortunate to have many fine results playing with Jim, some of our successes that stand out are:

9^th place in our first National event together.  Bobby Nail Pairs 1998 in Orlando

6^th place in the Blue-Ribbon Pairs.  2004 in Orlando

Just Making the 3^rd day in three other Blue-Ribbon Pairs

To name a few!

Peggy Kaplan - Without a doubt the fiercest competitor I have had the pleasure of playing with.  If nothing else I always knew when playing with Peg that I was going to get her all at all times.  She too has bestowed upon me the gift of introducing me to players far beyond my ability.  To learn from and to have the pleasure of playing against.  While mostly online this list includes, Nick Nickell, Ralph Katz, George Jacobs, Claude Vogel, Steve Beatty, Walt Schafer, Richard Pavlicek and son Rich Jr, and many others.  I have many fine memories of my times playing with Peg or Pegs (my nickname for her).  They include:

Our first Event together.  Winning the Last day Swiss at the Fall Nationals in Boston 1998.  Highlighted by bidding and making 5 slams in one 7-board round against a strong Pair.

Winning our first 11 matches in the San Francisco North American Swiss 2012

Beating Meckstroth-Rodwell, Berkowitz- Cohen, Becker-Strul in the Championship Flight of the Grand National Teams Washington 2009

Among the many!

Peg Waller – One of my longer partnerships.  One of the things that I learned playing with Peg, was just learning.  Let me explain.  While I am sure this was not intentional on her part, I always got the feeling that she never really thought that much about my skills at the bridge table.  This in turn got me thinking of ways to better my play, and accelerated my learning.  So, in truth I have her to thank for probably the largest growth spurt I had playing this sport.  One thing stands out from my times playing with her though; she taught me to enjoy the successes at the table and to stop obsessing about the poor results.  Very keen of her to spot this quirk in my personality and point it out to me, so that I could work on it!

Our successes include:

Many top finishes in National events, including commonly being in the top 20 in the National Mixed Pairs

2nd Place finish in the 0-10,000 National Swiss in Washington 2016

My first Regional Pair Win (it was a long time coming for me) Mason City sometime in the late 90’s

Bob Balderson – A fine all-around player and one of the fiercest competitors I have played with.  Bob’s strength is his ability to play effectively against the opponents.  Myself, and a lot of you have learned this game as one where you work in concert with your partner, as a team.  Two against two in essence.  Bob has the ability to do this as well as we can, but he seems to have an innate sense of knowing when he needs to take over and “play against the opponents”.  Truthfully this was at times annoying.  But that was my gut reaction speaking and upon reflection I came to appreciate this skill that he has.  It is hard to describe but the more you play with him, the more one appreciates it.

I had many successes playing with Bob, they include:

My partner when beating Meckstroth-Rodwell, Berkowitz-Cohen, Becker-Strul in the Grand National Teams Washington 2009

Representing District 14 in the Championship Flight of the Grand National Teams, at least 10 times!

Winning many KO and Swiss events at both the Regional and Sectional level.  His specialty!

Michael Lee Howland – The most remarkable thing playing with Michael was simply his remarkable smile when at the bridge table!  Michael and Carole Miner share this trait, which is what makes playing with both of them truly a treat.  Michael has an innate sense at the table which is hard to define (Carole Miner has this too!)  I do not know what this remarkable trait is exactly but I do know that the two of them combine to create many opportunities at the table not normally seen.  Let’s just say the opponents seem to make more mistakes against these two players as anyone else I have played with.  I don’t really know how to describe this skill, but one thing I am sure of, is that it is not random luck.  Perhaps they just create havoc!

While I played in only one National with Michael, we did play into the 2^nd day of the Blue Ribbon’s and missed day 3 by just a hair.

I did win many Regional games with Michael and enjoyed them all.

And with his help and inspiration developed my own Club system.  While this system is not perfect by any sense.  It has something that has given me great joy and a sense of accomplishment!

Carole Miner - I have mentioned Carole previously in my tribute to Michael Lee, as they both share similar traits.  I always thought they might make a great partnership.  I can envision these two creating some enormous games together!

Carole too is a tough competitor, and while she can at times be tough on her partner it is always obvious that her intent is to get the most out of her game.  The best part of playing with Carole though is just simply witnessing the joy she gets out of playing.  It is both evident, and greatly appreciated.

While at times I have been hesitant to put some partners in what I know will be tough contracts, I never hesitate with Carole.  She loves to play hands, and does it as well as any of my other partners.

Our list of successes are:

Two top 10 finishes in National Pair games.  Providence 2014, St Louis 2013

My partner finishing 2^nd in the National 0-10,000 Swiss

My teammate for many Grand National Team Championships including knocking off Meckstroth-Rodwell, Berkowitz-Cohen, Becker-Strul in Washington 2009.

Sharon Smith/Snell/Meerschaert – As most of the lessons I learned from this remarkable lady have nothing to do with Bridge, they are MINE and MINE alone!  She did however instill in me the wonders of getting to know as many of the remarkable people that play this game as I could.  While I admit to this not being one of my strengths, it is a skill I am still working on.  I have her and another lady to thank for introducing me to the importance of comradeship and appreciation for others.

Alexandra/Sandy Fisher - The second wonderful addition to my life, and also the one that reminds me how remarkable the people who share a passion for this game are.  Again, most of her lessons are MINE and MINE alone.  While far less experienced than me she had reminded me of the power of the preempt.  Watch out folks this bundle of positive energy loves to preempt.  And I love to watch the havoc that ensues!

For all those partners out there that I did not mention in this short tribute, know that I remember my times with you as well and treasure them!

That’s it, I just wanted to let everyone know that despite my, at times grumpy behavior, I appreciated everyone in our bridge community and cannot wait to be able to do so again in person.  Be well everyone, stay safe, and I will see you on a better day!

Comments from peanut gallery Pegs!

In Minnesota we are blessed with all sorts of players who have passion for bridge.  Some have  more talent than others; some are more social than fierce.  Yet so many appreciate one another and literally for decades have reaped the fun and the fascination and the wonderment of our game.

Right at the head of the class is Paul - a fellow who has super talents, loves to learn, is fun is smart and has lots and lots of friends.

Thanks to Pauls for this most interesting column - and thanks to all our Minnesotans who also have the passion and love to play The Greatest Game!

 

 

New Website for Rochester Duplicate Bridge Club

Rochester Duplicate Bridge Club has a new website!

 

It is https://medcitybridge.com

We look forward to seeing you there!

 

 

Matt Belau

Rochester

 

Club Games in the Twin Cities

Hi Folks,

 

Many of the TCBC games haven't been launching recently, as I'm sure you're well aware. I don't enjoy setting up a game only for it not to occur, and I'm sure none of you enjoy signing up and having it get canceled.

 

Thus, I am reducing the number of games the TCBC will hold to only the following, which have almost always garnered enough players:

 

Tuesday, 11:30 - Open and <500

Thursday, 11:30 - <500 only

Saturday, 11:30 - Open only

 

Thank you for supporting the games and continuing to sign up over the past several months. It's been a great pleasure to direct games for the TCBC. The future of the TCBC isn't clear at this point, but in the meantime, the St. Paul Bridge Center and Tony Ames's games will continue to be open to all TCBC players. 

 

Thanks,

Jackson

Minnesota Gopher Unit 103 - Board of Directors Meeting - June 18, 2020

American Contract Bridge League
Minnesota Gopher Unit 103
Board of Directors Meeting
Thursday, June 18, 2020
via Zoom

Our thanks to all who continue to volunteer for the good of bridge in our great state!

On line were: Warren Nelson, Larry Huiras Kathy Beckman , Rajiv Kapidia, Amy Dutton, Sue Greenberg,
Keith Thompson, Connie Nelson, Matt Belau, Lance Chamberlain, and Patti Huiras
Meeting was called to order by President Warren Nelson at 10:00 am.

Warren thanked Larry for putting together the Zoom meeting. Connie Nelson and Matt Belau were
welcomed to the Board as new Directors. Connie is replacing John Koch who had resigned, and Matt is
replacing Larry who had to resign as a voting member of the Board due to his employment by the ACBL.

Larry will continue to serve on the Board as Property Chairman and Publicity Chairman.
Minutes of the Sept. 25 meeting were presented and a motion to accept was made by Raj, second by
Sue, unanimously approved.

Financial Report for the period ending March 31 was presented and a motion to accept was made by
Kathy, Second by Matt, unanimously approved.

Old Business:

 By-laws: Kathy said that we shouldn't delay voting on the new By-laws which can be voted on
electronically.

Connie made a motion to accept the new draft of the By-laws; have electronic voting by the
members; and Warren will update the expiration term of the Directors. Second by Sue,
unanimously approved.

Warren complimented Kathy and Larry on the job they did updating the By-laws.
 Awards Banquet: Warren has the awards and Sue has the medallions. Warren will get the
certificates to Sue who will mail them out.

 Vice President role: With Larry resigning as a voting member of the Board, a new Vice President
needs to be made. Sue had said she would fill that role, but has no interest in moving up to
President. The Board unanimously approved this.

 New District Director: Warren explained that there are two candidates for this position --
Deanna Liddy (who had come to a previous meeting to introduce herself), and Jade Barrett.
Connie raised the question of ACBL going from 25 to 13 Districts. Larry said this has been
tabled for the time being. Warren, as President of the Unit, will cast the vote for the Unit later
this summer. Warren will send Sharon Anderson a thank you note from the Unit for her service.

New Business:

 ACBL Fees: Effective 4/1 tournament fees have gone up. They had not previously gone up since
2016. This will mean the Unit will not make as much money on a tournament.

 Annual Calendar of Events:

Kathy brought up the need for this calendar in order to have all the tournament paperwork in to
the ACBL when they want it (sometimes 6-12 months before it would seem necessary). Items
that need to be included in the calendar are taxes, legal forms (990C and 990EZ), Awards
Banquet, etc. Suggestion was made that this would be put together with Patti's assistance and
then emailed to the Board on a regular basis to keep an updated, rolling calendar.

 Resumption of Club and Tournament Activities:

ACBL has cancelled all tournaments for the remainder of the year. This impacts the I/N and
Regional that was to be held in the Fall. Next year it is Unit 178's turn for that event. Will have
to work with them to see if they will have an I/N and Regional. The Unit can have 3 I/N Regional
Tournaments a year, but they need to get scheduled quickly. Kathy will work with Terry
(Regional Tournament Coordinator) to see if they can find dates for 2021.

A discussion about GNT and NAP qualifiers was brought up. Also an on-line tournament was
brought up. Larry said that the Unit can host an on-line tournament, but no sectional or team
formats are available. In a discussion about clubs opening Keith said the people he has talked to
refuse to think about going to the Club until there is a vaccine. St. Paul has no plans to open
until the first of Sept. at the earliest.

Membership has been affected -- Warren said that the Unit was up 40 this last month. Larry
said that overall membership in the ACBL continued its downward trend at about 2% per year,
but that new membership was up 4.7% over last year. Warren will get Raj a list of members to
contact to see what their status is.

Larry is following up with Mounds View Community Center to try and get a refund on the
deposit for the Oct. tournament. Hoping to get at least 50% of the deposit returned ($1250).
Warren will cancel the Duluth tournament; doesn't think there will be a deposit issue.

Amy asked about the clubs re-opening. Club Managers have received info for reopening with
stringent guidelines.
 Board Meeting Reimbursement : It was determined that the attendees at Board meetings (live
or Zoom) should still receive the $35 reimbursement.

Next Meeting: August 20 at 10 am via Zoom

Motion to adjourn made by Sue, second by Raj. Unanimously approved.
Submitted by Patti Huiras, Secretary

CBO Club Special Tournament this Saturday

Calling all CBO Club Special Tournament Players!

Don't forget about the CBO Club Special Tournament this Saturday, August 15, which will award masterpoints and special prizes.

Have Fun - Win Prizes - Play Today!

Don't forget about the CBO Club Special Tournament this Saturday, August 15, which will award masterpoints and special prizes.   First through third place finishers will receive an Amazon gift card. Additionally, ACBL will draw the name of one random CBO tournament participant to receive a gift card.

You do need to be an ACBL member (only $5 for ages 25 and younger), have a BBO account (free) and be registered as a CBO member to participate in a CBO Tournament. Please note that it can take up to 24 hours to gain access to the CBO Club on BBO.   If you've never played in a CBO tournament before, simply log into BBO and click Competitive / Tournaments / All Tournaments or Free Tournaments / Collegiate. The CBO tournament should be first on the list.   If you have any bridge playing college friends, encourage them to join the CBO. Membership is open to any college undergrad or grad student age 35 and under. If you don’t have a student bridge org/club at your school, consider starting one. We can help! www.acbl.org/college

Discounts for Juniors playing in online tournaments!   2020 Online Event Schedule   Junior members playing in ACBL-sanctioned regionally rated online tournaments are now eligible to have a portion of their entry fees rebated so that their final cost is only $5 per session.   Just email [email protected] with your information and let them know when you played. Rebates are for tournaments held after 7/1/2020.

 

New Bridge Club Website in Duluth

 

 

Warren Nelson has alerted that their club has a new website. It is:  duluthduplicate.wixsite.com/club.

 

We wish all of our upper north members the best with their new site and look forward to visiting!

 

 

Jackson Wahl's Bridge Flash

 

 

 

 

Hi Folks,

 

Starting today, Friday's games will be discontinued due to lack of interest.

 

TheTwin City Bridge Center is being sold, but online games will continue for now. Keep watch for more updates coming soon.

 

Best,

Jackson

Thank You, Partner!

Thank You, Partner

 

Connie Nelson continues to deliver lovely news and stories about our unusual bridge world in 2020.  We are SO grateful for all that she does! 

In the meantime, however, the powers of the universe are scrambling some of our data and photos.  So please accept my apologies for less than perfection with this post.  Enjoy the happy faces, the years of enjoying bridge and remember that nothing (yes, not even bridge!) can be perfect.

But pretty good - YES!

 

On July 12, my husband Jim Schnepf and I celebrated our 40^th wedding anniversary.  Roger and Sue Knauss were nice enough to invite us over to share steaks on the grill and a bottle of wine. 

Sue and Roger Knauss – Married 46 Years

The four of us play bridge together at the St Cloud Club, playing as couples.  We commented that the old adage that married couples should not play bridge together doesn’t seem to apply to our Club.  We counted twenty couples who play with differing frequency.  Here are ten who recently answered an emailed survey from me:

• Rick and Kathleen Bredlie – who play at our Club in summers, but live in Arizona
• Tom and Pat Buttweiller
• Sue and Roger Knauss
• Greg and Darlene Nastrom
• Mary and Rick Olson – who play at our Club in summers, but live in Colorado
• Paul and Sue Olstad – who play at our Club in summers, but live in Texas
• Susan and Gene Peterson – who play at our Club in summers, but live in Arizona
• Scott and Shirley Richardson
• Nancy and George Schnepf
• And, Jim and me.

So, what’s it like to be partners in life as well as bridge?  After all, every duplicate game you play is 3 ½ hours of uninterrupted time together, with some fairly high emotional stakes.  Like a roller-coaster, partners can rocket up and down together from ‘euphoria’ to ‘you-idiot.’

In researching this article, I discovered a fun booklet called, How to play bridge with your spouse and survive.  I didn’t read the whole thing, but I loved glancing through chapters with such intriguing titles as: Premarital Bridge, Bridge Orphan Children, and After the Break-Up. Fortunately, none of us have had to navigate the break-up phase - yet! 

In fact, the average years of married life across the couples mentioned above is 43 years! Although when Tom Buttweiller answered me, “Pat and I have been married almost 20 years.  Pat would be able to provide a more precise answer,” I wanted to caution him that this answer could get him in serious trouble!  (Pat later clarified that they have been married 17 years.)  The longest married couple were Gene and Susan Peterson who celebrated 62 years on August 2^nd!

Susan and Gene Peterson – Married 62 years

The average number of years these same ten couples have played bridge together (counting social bridge) was 29 years.  The Olstads have played together the longest.  In fact, they’ve been married 51 years, and have played bridge together for…. 51 years!  Sue says: “When I went looking for a husband, one of the prerequisites was that he played bridge!” 

I asked, “Who taught whom, or did you learn together?”  The majority responded that they either took lessons together, or each knew some bridge before meeting.  For example, Sue and Roger Knauss learned at the same time from Sue’s parents, Del and Clara Henning.  (Before her death, Clara Henning was a long-time player and director at our Club.)  The Buttweillers, the Richardsons, and Jim and I were the exceptions, as in each case the husband taught the wife.  In all three cases, the husbands are pretty laid-back and non-judgmental which seemed to be key.  As the Richardsons recall: “Scott learned in his youth from his parents and started playing duplicate in high school. Shirley started playing when we were both about 22 when a neighbor couple wanted to give it a try. Like us, the husband was experienced and the wife was brand new at it. The neighbor wife had trouble catching on, and the husband had little patience. He tended to criticize, rather than focus on teachable moments. They soon fizzled out.  Shirley, on the other hand, had a knack for it and worked systematically on bidding and play. Those early years set the tone for our pleasant experience together at the bridge table to this day.”

Scott and Shirley Richardson – Married 44 years

Last, I asked if the couples had one funny, or endearing, or maddening story to tell.  Here are their answers:

• Nancy Schnepf – “On the endearing side, George’s mom and dad really looked forward to a weekend of bridge when we would visit them in Iowa. Even towards the end, we brought cards to the nursing home and played bridge.  It is a very special memory for all of us.  George’s mom and dad beat us one day, which I think was “meant to be” for that was George’s dad’s last bridge game.” 

• Gene Peterson – “Playing in our retirement village club in Arizona we moved to the next table and discovered East’s cards were missing. After checking around and under the table, all 13 cards were finally found in the bidding box.  It made me laugh.  Getting older together is full of surprises!”

• Tom Buttweiller, always the jokester – “There is nothing funny or endearing about my behavior at the brIdge table. Pat may have observations about maddening behavior.”

 

• Sue Olstad – “Paul's a better player than I and he USED to criticize me at the table occasionally. I stopped that by saying in a loud voice one day: "Paul, you really have to stop critiquing my play. You are making our opponents uncomfortable."

 

• Sue Knauss – “Our “story” is that we both appreciate that bridge is a game we share, especially given the amount of time we spend at the tables. We like going to tournaments together - which also gets us to different areas of the country.”

• Rick Olson – “As we learned to enjoy the game, we would have other couples over for an evening of bridge.  We did not realize this had an impact on our two children until one night when we were driving past a house with a large number of parked cars.  Obviously, they were having a "party."  Our oldest remarked, "They must be playing bridge!"

• Kathy Bredlie – “Playing Drury is a system that occurs when there are 3 passes and you bid one of a major. The way we play it, if partner has 10 or 11 points and 3 card support, he will bid 2 clubs. Rick forgot Drury and passed two clubs leaving us in a lovely 3 /2 fit. The net result was plenty of frowns and raised eyebrows -- and a zero on the board!  (And it didn’t happen only once.)”

• Scott Richardson – “At our first tournament together, Shirley and I were a bit on edge. Just to keep from embarrassing ourselves, we nervously focused on following suit and bidding in tempo.  How we scored was less important than avoiding censure for gaffes.  So it was a comfort at one point to come across an old fellow who was even greener than we were. When he sat down, he looked at us with some confusion and asked, “Do honors count?” Bless his heart, we were thinking, someone truly clueless whom we could help without making him feel bad. With some relief at being the experienced pair, we took turns explaining that honors don’t enter into the scoring at duplicate and why. There, we were helpful to someone less at ease in that room than we were. We didn’t need to fret about our inexperience after all.  Just before leaving, we learned that this guy ran a Bridge club in Palo Alto, had 2000 points, and liked to kid his opponents!”

I know that anyone reading this far would feel cheated if I didn’t include one husband-wife “put down” joke.  So here goes:

Two wives were discussing whose husband played worse.  Wife A said it wasn't even close, hers did. Wife B didn't agree.  Wife B said, “Listen to what my husband did last night.  He was playing 7NT.  He had 11 tricks outside of spades, and the dummy had the AQ of spades.  He had plenty of entries to his hand to take the finesse which would have won, but instead he led the spade Queen from the dummy!” 

"What's so bad about that?" said wife A. "Against my husband that play works."  

Obviously, this story did not come from our Club.  I think we “play nice” together.  Hope you agree that we give new definition to the phrase “Thank you, Partner!”

 

Thank you, Connie - thank you bridge players throughout Minnesota - we so appreciate you playing, enjoying, learning and having fun at the table!  Thank you ALL partners!

August 1 College Bridge Online Club - Congratulations to our Juniors!!