April 2019
The GNT (Grand National Teams) qualifiers are fast approaching and your sign-ups are requested now! Be sure to contact your team, then scroll down and follow instructions below so you don't miss out. And while you are in sign-up mode, don't forget to put in your reservation for the Annual PCBA Membership Meeting and Jane Segal/Sonny Jaspan Trophy Game on May 19. Those instructions are below, as well.

Reminder To Scroll Down To End Of Newsletter

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District 4 Officers  
small margin
  
Questions? Comments? Concerns?
Contact your District 4 board members.


PRESIDENT 
Meyer Kotkin  
guymath@comcast.net

VICE PRESIDENT 
Dave Kresge   
kresgede@aol.com
 
SECRETARY 
Bill Bauer 
william.baueriii@verizon.net

TREASURER 
Pat Civale
pat@csa-accounting.com  

DISTRICT DIRECTOR 
Joann Glasson 
joannglasson@msn.com 
President's Message

Can you imagine a bridge game without physical cards? Would you play in an ACBL Sectional, Regional or National tournament in the comfort of your local club or even your home by clicking icons on computers, tablets and/or phones? What do you think about the integrity and security of those types of "on-line tournaments?" Would you mind playing against Robot opponents programmed with a fixed set of rules and conducting real time simulations of bidding sequences and card combinations? Should masterpoints won in on-line robot tournaments have the same value and prestige as masterpoints won at face-to face tournaments (online or in brick and mortar locations)? Think about those questions - I will get back to them.
I am writing this month's article early as I leave for Memphis and the North American Bridge Championships (NABC) on Tuesday, March 19 and will be there until April 1. (You just can't rush your time at Gus' Fried Chicken, Central Barbecue, Beale St., St. Jude's and Graceland). While the actual NABC starts on Friday, 22 March, 17 District 4 (D4) players and I start play in the various strata of the North American Pairs (NAP) Finals on Wednesday, 20 March. If you want to follow the daily progress of the D4 representatives and/or your friends in the NAP or in any of the NABC, the ACBL Bridge Feed with daily leaderboards can be found here. You can also get full daily and tournament recaps and bulletins at the ACBL Live site (live.acbl.org).

For decades, the face-to-face two-day NABC NAP final, which requires face-to-face qualification at the District level, has been the kickoff event of the ACBL's Spring NABC, with the final scheduled to end on Thursday just before the regular face-to-face NABC championship events begin on Friday. However, for the last two years the NAP has not been the first NABC championship up for grabs. On March 16, the fifth NABC On-Line Robot Individual began. As I write this, D4 star Ken Cohen (U141) sits in 9th place, in a field of more than 1,800 players, after the second day of the three-day tournament that, unlike other National Championships, does not whittle the field down each day with qualification requirements. Every board over the three days counts equally. I am rooting for my fiend Ken and hope that when I check the results on my way to the airport at some ridiculously early time tomorrow morning, I will see his name up in lights again. Yes, Ken has four face-to face NABC+ championships and four NABC+ seconds in his distinguished career. Additionally, Ken is a Robot Individual Expert nonpareil - in 2016, he set the on-line ACBL Robot Individual record when he accumulated 3,867 points playing in ACBL sanctioned Robot Individuals on Bridge Base Online (BBO).

However, on-line tournament bridge is more than just individual tournaments against robots. BBO runs 24 ACBL sanctioned "Speedball" tournaments, on the hour, every day of the year. Those tournaments are sorta, kinda like club games, except you can play from the comfort of your home, doctor's office or local pub. When I had a prolonged stay in the hospital, I would have gone crazy (OK, even crazier than I did go) if I had not been able to log in to BBO and play with friends both in the social rooms and the Speedball tournaments. I have even played in a tournament while in a passenger in a car for a long ride to a face-to face tournament. How do you do all that with physical cards?

As an aside, BBO, developed by the amazing Fred Gittleman (D17), is freaking fantastic and offers more than just tournament play. There are: rooms for social play; rooms where you and your partner can practice bidding on hands where you can set the parameters (e.g. slam hands); and rooms where you can individually practice declarer play where you cannot proceed to the next trick until you make the correct play at the current trick (and yes, there are hints and then complete explanations so you eventually play the correct card).

As you continue to ponder the answers to the questions I posed at the beginning of this article, consider these on-line tournaments from the ACBL's financial point of view. The ACBL receives sanction fees for the Speedball tournaments on BBO and OKBridge yet has very little expense since they do not administer or host these tournaments. The entry fee for the NABC On-Line Individual was $50 ($40 if you entered early). In 2016, the estimated revenue to the ACBL from on-line tournaments in 2016 -2019 was $2M. From January through October 2018, there were more than 85K tables of on-line tournament play that generated revenue to the ACBL of more than $416K (2.8% of all ACBL revenue). Whatever the answers to my questions, on-line bridge is certainly not going away.

My questions are complicated at best and invariably lead to extremely problematic issues and solutions. There is a lot more to discuss on this subject and I hope to return to this discussion in a later article. I won't have answers for you - just more things to consider, ponder and debate.

As always, I welcome all comments and suggestions on any D4 matters and issues.  My e-mail is guymath@comcast.net and my cell is 856.986.5109
From the District Director 
joann glasson

ACBL Finances
It is disappointing and distressing to me to report to you that the ACBL financial loss for 2018 was $1,900,000. This is an extraordinary number and you, as ACBL members, deserve a complete explanation.

The ACBL budget for 2018 anticipated a loss of about $450K. The projected loss included an estimated loss on the Hawaii NABC of $170K, a one time payment to the WBF to support the world championship in Orlando of $100K, and some new projects and initiatives proposed by our former CEO. The decision to hold an NABC in Hawaii and to send the WBF these funds was made several years ago.

As Chair of Finance for the ACBL, I have implemented a process in which the ACBL will look at finance with a longer lens than the one year at a time approach of the past, so hopefully some of these long-term expensive decisions will be avoided in the future.

When Bahar Gidwani left the ACBL in the spring of 2018, new management immediately began to make some financial cuts that we thought would get us to about break even at year end. We were optimistic about the changes that were begun.

So what happened?

Hawaii was a complete disaster for the ACBL. The projected attendance was 8,200 tables. Only 6,000 tables were actually in play. Not only didn't they play, but players who did come to Hawaii elected to stay in alternative housing to the housing guaranteed by the ACBL causing attrition charges of $480K.  ACBL contracts with host hotels for NABCs guarantee a specific room block in exchange for the use of the ballrooms and other spaces in the hotel. When the rooms sold are fewer than 80% of those reserved, huge penalties are assessed.  The financial loss at the Hawaii NABC was $772K.

Bahar Gidwani, the previous CEO, was released from employment by the ACBL in the spring of 2018. He had a three-year employment contract. The contract settlement went to arbitration. The arbitrator awarded Mr. Gidwani about $760K on the balance of his three-year contract. Additionally,  CRM (Customer Relations Management) software, that was purchased by Gidwani, and determined not to be usable, had to be written off, at a cost of $327K.

Finally, A lawsuit by a former member of the ACBL Board of Directors was settled by the ACBL and their insurance carrier. The cost of the settlement to the ACBL was $225K.  These four items equal over $2 million dollars. A terrible one time financial hit for the ACBL.

The good news from the financial perspective is that our new Executive Director, Joe Jones, is hard at work in efforts to put our financial house in order. Joe has a deep understanding of the finances and the 2019 budget that we will present for board approval in Memphis has a projected income of $621K.

There will be serious discussion in Memphis about reducing the size of the Board of Directors. I am in favor of this process and hope that we can agree on a proposal for change. A smaller board will facilitate decision making and will be much less costly to the ACBL membership.

I promise you two things as your representative to the ACBL Board - I will always provide complete disclosure of what has transpired and I will do everything I can to avoid these disasters in the future.

Please feel free to contact me with any questions on this and any other matters of concer n.  Joannglasson@msn.com

District 4 Schedule
Note:  Blue text indicates a link to a tournament flyer. Not all tournaments hav e posted information yet, but 4Spot will provide links as they become available.
Sectionals
April 6-7
April 13, 14
April 18
April 19, 20
April 26-28
Camp Hill, Harrisburg
May 11
May 18
May 24
May 31-June 2
May 31-June 2
Ithaca, NY
June 1, 2
July 13-14
August 11

Regionals
Rochester Regional
August 5-11
Wilkes-Barre Regional
August 5-11
Lancaster Regional
October 28-
November 3
 
March 30-April 5
Atlantic City

July 18-28 


STaCs
June 3-9
August 26-Sept.1
Units  112, 120, 121, 133, 141, 168, 190 and 217

For the District 4 full year,  click here
Our Monthly Feature

The 4Spot features fantastic contributors, on a regular rotation:

advancing logo
  Larry's Learning Center  by Larry Cohen:
  January, April, July, October

novices only logo
For Novices Only by Marti Ronemus:
February, May, August, November

 
abc logo
The ABC of Bridge by Dave Wachsman:
  March, June, September, December

This month, we enjoy more of Larry's insights as we tackle article 3 out of 3 on No Trump opening bids. This time, Larry provides advice on responding to 2NT openings -- as well as ideas on the meaning of an opening 3NT.  Good ideas, as always, so dig in!

Master Solvers Club

Moderator: Nick Straguzzi

Sometimes you have to jolt a reluctant partner into action. How do you let him know you are not April  Fooling -- and what next?


First,  click here    to read the analysis of this month's problem.

Then visit the MSC website to read next month's problem and submit your answers online: http://d4msc.straguzzi.org
Reminder: Don't forget to sign up for:
1. The 2019 Annual PCBA Membership Meeting and Jane Segal/Sonny Jaspan Trophy Game at Bala on May 19th.  More information and sign up details here.
AND
2. Grand National Teams
Winning Teams in All Flights Receive $2,000+ Subsidy to Attend the National Event in  $$$  Las Vegas in July!  $$$
The GNTs -- Grand National Teams -- is a grassroots event played in four flights where you can win cash and a chance to play in a national event! Here are the dates
to qualify in District 4 for the Nationals:
Flights A and C play on April 13-14, 2019
Flights B and Open play on May 4-5, 2019 
All events take place at the North Penn Bridge Club   298 Wissahickon Avenue, North Wales, PA 19454. 
 
Open Flight
No masterpoint limits
Flight A
6,000 masterpoints and under
Flight B
2,500 masterpoints and under
Flight C
500 masterpoints and under and 
Non-Life Master
Note: See the Conditions of Contest for details and masterpoint cut-off dates. 
 
Click Here for more information and the Conditions of Contest.
 
Pre-registration is required, but it is not too late to sign up. 
Event flyers and registration forms are here:
Don't hesitate to contact John Dickenson if you have any questions.
John Dickenson ( dickenjb@gmail.com )
News from Around the Units 
four corners
Unit 112: Central New York
Pat Stadelmaier
pstad145@aol.com

Unit 112 Congratulates its Advancing Players!
Junior Masters
Claire Boyce, Fairport
Rola Cotran, Fayetteville
Joanne Giuffrida, Webster
Jean Clem, Tully
Keith McEwen, Painted Post
Kathleen Whitmarsh, Canton
Club Masters
Nandini Joshi, Fairport
Charles Newman, Fly Creek
Marina Nudo, Victor
Regional Masters
Shawna Saunders, East Rochester
 
Bronze Life Master
Jane Fuller, Cazenovia
***********************
Note to players
When you advance your rank, check your email from our secretary,
Sandy Stockton (sandjack) for a free play  
                                ***********************
 
Unit 112 General Meeting April 13
th prior to the Rochester Spring Sectional
Looking for Silver Points? Be sure to play in the Rochester Spring Sectional
Webster Columbus Center, Webster, NY ( 70 Barrettt Drive)

Saturday, April 13 th - Open Pairs          Sunday, April 14 th - Swiss Teams
For more information visit our website or contact Barbara McIver 585.469.7575 OR Priscilla Brown 585.442.1276
 
Attention Newcomers       199er Tournament
Friday, April 19  - Stratified Pairs          Saturday, April 20  - Swiss Teams
The Strathallan Hotel Ballroom    550 East Avenue, Rochester
For more information visit our website or contact Mary Lou Lawson 585.265.3718

CAMBODIA FUNDRAISER: THURSDAY May 9, 2019
PATTI LEE* "DOUBLES! DOUBLES! & More DOUBLES!"
PENFIELD Country Club, 1784 Jackson Rd
Pre-Registration Required  
Minimum donation - $35.00 + $20 (continental breakfast & lunch)
9:30 Registration        10:00 - noon - Lesson      12 - 1:15 Lunch and Presentation on Cambodian Projects                          1:15 - 3:45 Duplicate Bridge Game
 
* PATTI LEE is a wonderful bridge teacher, who has taught thousands of students at clubs in Toronto, as well as all over the world on cruise ships. Patti believes that Bridge Lessons should be both informative and entertaining. Come out and have fun, while updating your current skills or learning some new aspects of the game of Bridge.
Unit 120: Northeastern Pennsylvania 
Doreese Torrey
doreeset@gmail.com
 
Hello UNIT 120!!   Our Sectional is coming!! A big THANK YOU to Beth Rosenthal for all you do and for sending the following reminder and also for taking the lead in assisting anyone looking for a partner!!

April 6 & 7 is our NLM (0-500) two day Sectional Tournament. Saturday is for any Non-Life Master with fewer than 500 MP. Sunday is a pro-am Dupli-Swiss. Anyone may play but no two life masters may play together. If you are planning to play either day please be sure you have made a reservation with Walter Mitchell by April 2.
(Walter@Mitchellfinancial.com or 570-709-0850)

If you would like to play on either day but do not have a partner or team, please let know and I will try to find partners for you.

Exciting News!!
The Jewish Community Center at 60 S River St in Wilkes Barre, which is the home for the Wyoming Valley Bridge Club, is relocating to 613 S.J. Strauss Lane Kingston, PA18704 in April.  

Another huge gratitude of thanks shout out to Larry Taren for arranging access and to Joe Distini for photographing the following shots of our new game room as well as some candid shots of the facility.

















There have been some impressive high percentage games in March. Give a standing ovations to the following:
March 8 th at the Pocono Bridge Club
William Burns and JoAnn Mauger had an 82.5% game
March 11 th at the Wyoming Valley Bridge Club
Judy Null and Alan Fierverker had a 72% game
March 13 th at the Bridgelady Duplicate Bridge Club
Stephen Tillman and Alan Fierverker had a 75% game
March 18th at the Bridgelady Duplicate Bridge Club
James Post and Donald Hull had an 81.25% game
Finally, Do April showers bring May flowers? The entire saying goes something like this:
"March winds and April showers bring May flowers and June bugs."
But April isn't an historically rainy month across the United States. And flowers begin blooming a lot sooner than May in parts of the South. So the saying doesn't necessarily ring true, especially in warmer climates. The phrase may just be a simple way to avoid the blahs of rainy weather by focusing instead on the beauty of better weather ahead.
So where did the saying come from?
It turns out, the saying originates in the United Kingdom where it can be pretty soggy in the spring. 
So....if April showers bring May flowers, what do May flowers bring?

Wait for it................... Mayflowers bring pilgrims!

Another way to avoid the blahs is to get your umbrella and come out to play bridge.
See you at the bridge tables!!
Unit 121: Berks Montgomery 
Brian C Snyder 
484-838-0977
4spadesdoubled@gmail.com
 
Our Spring Equinox Unit Game was held Wednesday March 20 at the JCC of Reading. Albert Bingaman and Doug Chaney were first overall winners with 64.09%.

Sue Wessner will be hosting a bridge cruise from May 9 - 18, 2019. CLICK HERE for more information.

Our Spring Intermediate-Newcomer Sectional Tournament will be Friday May 24 at Sacred Heart Villa. CLICK HERE for more information.

Congratulations to the following players for their advancement in the ACBL Masterpoint Ranks:
New Club Master - Mrs. Kathy Kroesen-Sellitt
New Life Master - Keith Ordemann

Unit 133: Lehigh Valley 
Lois Fuini
lafuini@yahoo.com

Happy Spring Unit 133
In Memoriam
We are saddened to report the passing of Marion Halperin. Marion embraced life with energy and grace throughout her 92 years. Marion was an active, engaged duplicate bridge player in Unit 133. She will be greatly missed.
Congratulations to Unit 133 players who finished in the top ten in the District Ace of Clubs and Mini McKinney races !
Ace of Clubs
20-50 Masterpoints - Bryan Snapp - 10th place
50-100 Masterpoints - Lauren Dougherty - 1st place
5000-7500 Masterpoints - Rhoda Prager - 3rd place
Mini McKinney
50-100 Masterpoints - Lauren Dougherty - 4th place
200-300 Masterpoints - Betty Abrams - 1st place
300-500 Masterpoints - Betsy Cutler - 5th place
500-1000 Masterpoints - Todd Wachsman - 2nd place
1500-2500 Masterpoints - Miriam Harris-Botzun - 4th place
                                           Gary Hillenbrand - 5th place
                                           John Botzun - 6th place
5000-7500 Masterpoints - Rhoda Prager - 8th place

Congratulations!
Silver Life Master Dot Forrester
Unit 133 Spring Sectional - April 26-28
Please join us for our Spring Sectional in Allentown at Lehigh Valley Active Life for an opportunity to earn Silver Masterpoints. Enjoy a pleasant atmosphere, friendly people, delicious free lunches everyday, fabulous snacks, and great bridge.
Schedule:
Friday, April 26th and Saturday, April 27th
10am and 2:15pm - Stratified Open Pairs and 0-500 NLM Stratified Pairs
Sunday, April 28th
10am- Stratified Open Swiss Teams two session play-through with lunch break, or 10am - Single Session, 0-500 NLM Stratified Swiss Teams
Location:
Lehigh Valley Active Life
1633 West Elm Street
Allentown PA 18102

Fee: $12 per player per session ( $16 for unpaid ACBL members)

Questions:
Please contact Tournament Chairperson, Pat Saeger at ps1035@verizon.net
Happy Birthday to Don McLean !
Don celebrated his 97th birthday playing duplicate bridge in Bethlehem. He has been playing bridge since high school, directing for 40 years, and always been a member of Unit 133. He was not only President of our unit, but also President of District 4. Born in Georgia, Don moved to Allentown in the 1930s. He served in World War II as a single engine pilot instructor. He was stationed in Phoenix, Arizona where he met the love of his life, Bettie. They married, raised a family and enjoyed many games of bridge together. We wish Don many more Happy and Healthy Birthdays!
June STaC Games
Mark your calendars for STaC Games in June.
Earn silver points at our home clubs.
Monday, June 3rd
  • 0-100 game and 0-500 game, 12:30pm at LVAL in Allentown
Wednesday, June 5th
  • 0-50 game, 9:00am at LVAL in Allentown
Thursday, June 6th
  • 0-299 game & Open Pairs game, 12:30pm at LVAL in Allentown
  • Open game, 6:45pm at Brith Sholom in Bethlehem
  • 0-100 game, 6:00pm at Brookside Country Club in Macungi
Friday, June 7th
  • Invitational game, 12:30pm at LVAL in Allentown
Unit 133 Spring NLM Tournament
Please join us for our second annual Spring 0-100 and 0-500 NLM tournament on May 18th at Lehigh Valley Active Life in Allentown. Games are scheduled for 10am and 2pm with an hour break for a delicious lunch. Come early to enjoy a cup of coffee or tea and socialize with your fellow players. Register now with your partner for $50 per pair. The fee includes lunch, snacks, coffee/tea and entry fees. Preregistration, which is required, is currently open. Thanks to those of you who have already reserved your seat at one of our tables. Please register early! We look forward to meeting and greeting you in Allentown. For more information, please contact Lois Fuini at lafuini@yahoo.com.
Unit 141: Philadelphia 
Howard Kahlenberg
howard.kahlenberg@gmail.com

Before I get myself in further trouble, I want to congratulate February and March new Life masters, and those who achieved a new Life master Level.
New Life Masters - Margot Lebovitz
                                 Maureen Cottone
                                 Thomas B Woollam
New Bronze Life Masters - Deborah August
                                             Philip Rosenfeld
                                             Stephen G Emerson
New Gold Life Master - Bruce Lieberman
New Ruby Life Masters - Elaine Glauser
                                           Steve White

And belated Congratulations to the Unit 141 Ace of Clubs and Mini-McKenney Winners for 2018. These players will be further recognized at our Annual Brunch on May 19th.
Category
Ace of Clubs
Mini-McKenney
0-5
David Tukey *
David Tukey *
5-20
Lee Guo
Lee Guo
20-50
Sherry Scena
Ann Basch
50-100
Donna Meilinger
Glenn Fuhrman *
100-200
Robin Siegel
Don Baker
200-300
Margot Lebovitz *
Margot Lebovitz
300-500
David Dresher *
Bharat Rao *
500-1000
Andrew Rosenberg
Larry Plotkin *
1000-1500
Judy Robbins *
Judy Robbins
1500-2500
Karen Hoffner
Karen Hoffner
2500-3500
Bob Smink *
Bob Smink *
3500-5000
Elaine Clair *
Elaine Clair *
5000-7500
Margaret Coe
Barb Kepple *
7500-10000
Jack Mendelsohn
Marty Rabinowitz *
10,000 +
Bobbie Gomer
David Hoffner *
 
Players with a * next to their names were also winners on the District level, so double Congratulations to them. The closest race was for the 7500-10000 Mini Mc-Kinney, where Marty edged out Bob Glasson by .01 Masterpoint.

We had great turnout at our March Sectional - it was the largest Sectional that I can remember. Congratulations to all of the winners:

Friday Morning
NLM Pairs:
Flight A - Susan Wilson and Susan Cohen
Flight B - Michael Leonard and Emily Losciuto
Flight C - Rachel Porat and Stephen Small
Open Pairs:
Flight A - Meyer Kotkin and Bill Ravreby
Flight B - Michael Minoff and Glenn Furhman
Flight C - Michael Minoff and Glenn Furhman

Friday Afternoon
NLM Pairs:
Flight A - Vincent Coll and Lee Stanley
Flight B - Vincent Coll and Lee Stanley
Flight C - Ann Basch and Michael Basch
Open Pairs:
Flight A - Radu Nistor and Gillian Miniter
Flight B - Steve White and Larry Plotkin
Flight C - Alan Wasserstein and Art Fischmann

Saturday Morning
NLM Pairs:
Flight A - Steve Angstreich and Leslie Heselton
Flight B - Steve Angstreich and Leslie Heselton
Flight C - Linda O'Malley and Brendan O'Malley
Open Pairs:
Flight A - Bharat Rao and Ken Chatzinoff
Flight B - Joan Steinberg and Joan Hockman
Flight C - Fred Hankins and John Routel

Saturday Afternoon
NLM Pairs:
Flight A - Peg Woolard and Ellen Lustgarten
Flight B - Peg Woolard and Ellen Lustgarten
Flight C - Ann Basch and Michael Basch
Open Pairs:
Flight A - David Walker and Gary Hillenbrand
Flight B - Mark Hauser and Chris Marlow
Flight C - Fred Hankins and John Routel

Sunday Swiss
A - Donna Morgen, Dick Morgen, Howard Kahlenberg and Everett Young
X - Ruth Fleischmann, Mark Bolotin, Mark Hauser and Mustafa Cem Tokay
Flight B Bracket I - Larry Plotkin, J Brill, Steve White and Peter Schulman
Flight B Bracket II - Patrick Corn, Megan Corn, Steve King, and Linda DiLuco
Flight B Bracket III - Debbie Jones, Patricia Reilly, Patricia Walsh, and Annabelle Curran

Unit 168: Central Pennsylvania 
Jeanne Gehret 
jeannegehret@comcast.net
 
News From Harrisburg :
 
The Harrisburg Bridge Club will be holding the ACBL-Wide Charity Game on 
Wednesday morning, April 3. Game time is 11:30 a.m. and will be preceded by a light lunch at 11 a.m. Entry fees are sliding scale: $10 for players with more than 1000 MPs; 
$5 for players with 500 to 1000 MPs; and FREE for players with less than 500 MPs. Signup at the Club or by emailing us at harrisburgbc@gmail.com
 
Our next "Pearls To Master" class is set for Friday April 12, 9 to 11 a.m. The topic is Upping Your Game, and will cover such topics as Swiss Team strategy, developing your style, and improving your skills. For registration information, please visit our website 
(link below).
Following the class, there will be a 0-1500 Swiss Team Game. Register your team by signing up at the Club or by e-mailing us with your team members' names. Game time is 11:30 preceded by lunch at 11; $40 per team.
 
Beginning April 15, our Monday evening game will be adding a 0-20 point section for newcomers. Game time is 6:30 p.m.
 
Brunch and Bridge is Saturday, April 6; Continental Breakfast and Bridge is Saturday, April 27, and monthly evening Swiss (Open and 0-1000) is Wednesday April 24. 
The Wine and Cheese Open Game is Wednesday evening April 10.
 
For more information and a complete schedule, please visit the HBC website www.bridgewebs.com/harrisburg  or call us at 717-737-4461.
 
News From Martinsburg :
Andy Swaim and Kate Lehman, both from Berkeley Springs, WV, recently attained the rank of Life Master. Becoming a Life Master is a special achievement in bridge, and 
since Kate and Andy have been playing bridge for less than 4 years, their 
accomplishment is especially noteworthy. Congratulations Kate and Andy!!

The Martinsburg Bridge Club plays every Thursday at 11:30 a.m. at the Comfort Inn on Edwin Miller Blvd. This ACBL-sanctioned game is open to players of all levels. If you would like to join us or have questions, please call Charles Meister at 304-267-4173 
(leave a message if there is no answer). 
      
CONGRATULATIONS  to these Unit 168 members on their new masterpoint rank achievements:
 
Club Master:
Nancy Bogda, Gregory Del Corso, Brigid Grode, Leonard Lindenmeyer
Sectional Master:
Carolyn Fry, Paul Henneman, Jean Kirchhoff, Joseph Marter
Regional Master:
Barbara Goodman, Ann Kranich, Allen Mannon
NABC Master:
Connie Schlak

Wacky Hands & Gadgets - by Dave Bort
 
Transfer Lebensohl Rides Again!
In a March Gaithersburg, MD club game, Board 28 was NS vul, and our opponents held:
            North: AJ5432 Q63 854 9            South: 87 4 AT762 T6532
while partner's and my hands were:
            West(me): KQT96 KJ8 KQ9 J8     East: None AT9752 J3 AKQ74
The bidding went:
West (me)  North        East             South
1N(1)          2S             3D(2)         Pass
3H(3)          Pass          4C(4)          Pass
4D(5)          Pass          4N(6)          Pass
5D(7)          Pass          6H(8)          All Pass
 
Notes :
(1) 15-17
(2) Transfer to Hearts, invitational or better, from among: X (penalty), 2N (relay to Clubs, for bailing in weak hands - after Opener's 3C relay, Responder passes with Clubs, or bids their long weak suit, which Opener will pass), 3C (transfer to Diamonds, inv or better), 3D (transfer to Hearts, inv or better), 3H (game-forcing, with Spade shortness and 5/6 minor suit interest- where "game-forcing" means forcing to 3N or 4 of a minor), 3S (Stayman without a stopper, inv or better), 3N (game-forcing, without a Spade stopper). Partner can also bid 3S or 3N after first relaying via 2N to 3C, showing either Stayman or a game-force, respectively, but with a Spade stopper. Finally, note that some partnerships play the double as negative, rather than penalty.
(3) Completing the transfer (but not a super-accept, which would show 4 Hearts and a maximum hand).
(4) Italian Cuebid, showing 1st- or 2nd-round control in Clubs; an Ace, King, singleton, or void.
(5) Italian Cue, showing 1st- or 2nd-round control in Diamonds.
(6) Roman Keycard Blackwood (note that many partnerships play 1430 here).
(7) One keycard in Hearts.
(8) We're only missing one keycard, partner, and I have a void, so go for it; good luck!
 
Result : Making 7, on the perfectly appropriate but utterly unfortunate lead of the Spade Ace (ruffed)! After that, declarer finds the Heart Queen in the North hand (since North needed a few points to bid Spades), pulls trumps, and tosses dummy's two losing Diamonds on the KQ of Spades, for a top board.
 
Discussion : Transfer Lebensohl can also be played with minor-suit slam conventions such as Redwood, or the more universal Kickback (where 4D/H is Keycard for Clubs/Diamonds, but 4S is also Keycard for Hearts, providing a Queen-Ask when in Hearts). Such as:
West            North        East                       South
1N               2H             2N (relay to C)    Pass
3C               Pass          4D (Redwood)      Pass
1430 or 0314 continuation, with 4H as the first-step bid.
 
References include :
1) Larry Cohen on Transfer Lebensohl, link: https://www.larryco.com/bridge-learning-center/detail/775
 
Inverted Minors and 2-2 Gerber
In another March Gaithersburg, MD, club game, Board 28 (NS vul) was the star again. This time, our opponents held:
            North: 974 87653 JT93 7                South: KQT85 QJ942 None 632
while partner's and my hands were:
            West(me): AJ3 A 8762 AJT54         East: 62 KT AKQ54 KQ98
The bidding went:
West(me)   North        East             South
1C(1)          Pass          2C(2)          Pass
2H(3)          Pass          3D(4)          Pass
3N(5)          Pass          4C(6)          Pass
4H(7)          Pass          5C(8)          Pass
6D(9)          Pass          6N(10)        All Pass
 
Notes :
(1) I only bid a 14-17 NT in 3rd or 4th seat, partner, so just 1C, now.
(2) Inverted Minors, invitational or better; denies a four-card major, and shows at least 4 or 5 Clubs, with at least 9 or 10 points.
(3) Shows a stopper in Hearts, and denies one in Diamonds; does not address Spades.
(4) Shows a stopper in Diamonds, while denying one in Spades.
(5) Confirms the Spade stopper that East denied, and being encouraged by partner's Diamond holding.
(6) If you can bid 3N, partner, let's explore; I think we can do so safely, and stop, if slam isn't there.
(7) Shows 0 or 3 Aces, from among: 4C (1 or 4 Aces), 4D (0 or 3 Aces), 4H (2 Aces with a minimum hand), and 4S (2 Aces with a maximum hand). Note that some partnerships play that the 4H/S bids show respectively 2 Aces, a major and a minor, or 2 Aces, either both majors or both minors.
(8) The King-Ask; you bid Clubs, we've got all the Aces, and I've got lots of other strength, partner, let's see if you've got even more stuff.
(9) I have Zero Kings.
(10) OK, well, never mind, then; let's play here.
 
Result : Making 6, on the lead of the Heart 5. Although it makes 7, double dummy (meaning all players know where all the cards are, and thereby play each of their cards perfectly). In the real world, declarer generally wouldn't manage his entries perfectly to play a triple-finesse in Diamonds, which is the double-dummy way to make 7.
 
Discussion : Partners will need to agree whether their Inverted Minors are on over interference (I recommend ON over a double, and OFF over suit or NT interference), or by a passed hand (I recommend yes). If the opponents overcall with a suit, you can always show a limit raise or better by cue-bidding their suit. And, of course, partners need to be on the same page for all their tools, particularly their slam-bidding gadgets, to avoid turning an average board into a bottom (by having a catastrophic bidding misunderstanding, getting too high, or failing to bid a slam that makes).
 
References include :
1) "25 More Bridge Conventions You Should Know", by Barbara Seagram & David Bird, Chapter 17: Inverted Minor Raises.
 
Stay tuned next month, for more wacky hands & gadgets.


Unit 190: Delaware 
Ala Hamilton-Day 
alabridge@gmail.com

2019 DELAWARE 299er CHAMPIONS
 
Tied for First in Flight A
Judith Spruance and Joanne Bahr

Tied for First in Flight A and 1
st in Flight B
Sally Humphrey and Peg Wilson

PLAYER ADVANCEMENTS
NABC MASTER : Dolores I. O'Boyle
SILVER LIFE MASTER :   Janelle L. Gmitter
GOLD LIFE MASTER :   Caroline M. Sparks
DIAMOND LIFE MASTER: Robert H. Keeney


Next Beer Card Day
April 1st -- no fooling!


Unit 217: Susquehanna  
Jim McKeown
jcm@psu.edu
 
Congratulations to Elaine Fuller as a new Bronze Life Master!
 
Congratulations also to our Unit 217 winners in Ace of Clubs and Mini McKenney races:
 
Mini-McKinney
Ace of Clubs
 
0 to 5
Bruce Myers
Bruce Myers
 
5 to 20
Judy Barrile
Judy Barrile
 
20 to 50
Ann Collins
Ann Collins
 
50 to 100
Susan Fletcher
Susan Fletcher
 
100 to 200
Marilyn Goldfarb
Marilyn Goldfarb
 
200 to 300
Donald Dascher
Donald Dascher
 
300 to 500
Craig Netzley
Joanne Johnston
 
500 to 1000
Don Hollinger
Don Hollinger
 
1000 to 1500
JacquelineHumilovich
Jacqueline Humilovich
1500 to 2500
Michael Anesko
Connie Bamer
2500 to 3500
Judy Stein
Judy Stein
 
3500 to 5000
Carol Reitz
Sarah Soster
 
5000 to 7500
Jim McKeown
Jim McKeown
 
Over 10,000
Ed Bissell
Ed Bissell
 
 
 
Please join us for our next sectional May 31 - June 2 at the B oalsburg Fire Company, 113 E. Pine Street, Boalsburg, PA 16827.

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4Spot | April 2019 | Editor: Janet Johnson | janet.johnson210@gmail.com
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