DISTRICT 17 BRIDGE BUZZ
JANUARY 2022
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The District 17 Bridge Buzz focuses on district and national news and provides you with the links to access the details. Catch the next Buzz in March.
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By Elizabeth Hamilton
415-994-3527
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“Life is not a matter of holding good cards, but of playing a poor hand well.”
This is a quote from Robert Louis Stevenson, the Scottish author of well-known novels, Treasure Island and Kidnapped. He was not talking about duplicate bridge when he wrote this. It was not being played yet - but the phrase seems appropriate for our current bridge environment. All of us know the feeling of picking up what looks like a terrible hand and ending up in a contract that seems extremely difficult to make. The opening lead is faced and dummy comes down. You are thrilled to see an incredible fit and if a key finesse works - you can make it! This story has a happy ending. You do make it. We can make it through all of our bridge challenges in 2022!
Many clubs are struggling, and most tournaments that have taken place in the last couple of months have seen about 40 percent of the number of players participating compared to pre-covid days.
Recently, at the Las Vegas Glitter Gulch Regional, attendance was not too bad for the first Regional in D17 since March 2020. However, the three categories of players who did not join us in force were newer players, Gold Rush players and locals. We missed you. I hope you will find your way back to our next D17 Regional.
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Unfortunately, the Land of Enchantment Regional in Albuquerque, New Mexico planned for January has been canceled. Please watch the calendar on our website for future D17 tournaments that will take place when it is safe for all. Our next Regional is planned for May in Denver, Colorado. Experiencing the excitement of face-to-face bridge is hard to explain. It feels so good!
There has to be a way to balance both the virtual bridge world with the one we had so much fun in before.
There is a lot happening in D17. Our first dedicated D17 STaC program is scheduled to begin at the end of January and we will introduce D17 Listening Forums via Zoom in February 2022. Email invitations will be sent out so that you can give your feedback directly to Cindy Shoemaker, our National Board Representative, and to me, Liz Hamilton, D17 President. We care about what you have to say.
The D17 Board will begin work in January 2022. Our Board meeting(s) will resume via Zoom and hopefully we can meet face to face at the Denver Regional in May.
I would like to welcome two new Board members - Neil Hunter from New Mexico and Bill Curtis from Colorado. All other Board District Representatives remain the same.
I would also like to thank the D17 2021 Board for their hard work and many volunteer hours. It was an interesting year. I know we will work together to benefit all of our members to the best of our abilities next year. If we play our cards right - we can beat the odds and make our bridge community strong and healthy!
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MORE SILVER FOR D17 PLAYERS |
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The District 17 Board voted to establish a D17 STaC program in 2021. D17 clubs will no longer be participating in the Western Conference STaCs.
Why?
- ALL the silver points go to D17 players - the overall awards as well as the section awards.
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- MORE D17 clubs will participate knowing their players will receive ALL the silver.
- MORE D17 players will play face to face at their local clubs, knowing they have a chance at the overalls and ALL the silver.
Add these important dates to your 2022 calendar:
- September 12 – September 18.
For more information contact Bonnie Bagley, D17 STaC Coordinator, 719-593-0205 or bon1bon@comcast.net
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GRAND NATIONAL TEAMS
2021-2022 FINALS
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DENVER ROCKY MOUNTAIN REGIONAL
FRIDAY, MAY 27 AND SATURDAY, MAY 28
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Have you qualified to play in the D17 GNT Finals? If not, plan to do so today. The last date for face-to-face club qualifying games is February 28, 2022. Contact your club owner for scheduled face-to-face club qualifying games.
The last date for online club qualification is March 31, 2022. For online qualifying game information, contact Sharon Smith, sharondrsmith@me.com
NOTE: Flight C players (Non-Life Masters with fewer than 500 masterpoints as of August 6, 2021) do not have to qualify.
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For more information contact Bonnie Bagley, D17 GNT Coordinator, 719-593-0205 or bon1bon@comcast.net
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CONGRATULATIONS TO TOP NAP
FLIGHT FINISHERS
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The D17 North American Pairs (NAP) Championships were held face to face at the Las Vegas Glitter Gulch Regional in November.
Congratulations to the top finishers and to all those who participated in this prestigious ACBL-wide grassroots pairs competition.
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The top three eligible pairs in Flight A, and the top four eligible pairs in Flights B & C, will be eligible to play in the National Finals and compete for significant masterpoints and the possibility of a North-American bridge title!
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DON'T MISS THE PHOENIX NABC |
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Please plan to join us for Fun in the Desert, November 24 – December 4, 2022. Having just returned from the fall NABC in Austin, I can tell you from personal experience that face-to-face bridge is coming back.
The ACBL did a fantastic job making sure the playing conditions were safe. A “no-nonsense” policy of vaccination and masking made everyone feel comfortable playing. Table count was 5,256 – a very respectable showing given current conditions.
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Next fall in Phoenix we await an even larger crowd and have prepared a series of events for players of every skill level. Our emphasis will be on attracting intermediate and new players. This group will have its own playing area and special gifts and prizes for section and overall winners.
Volunteers are still needed for ALL committee groups. If you are interested in helping make this a great event -- and it cannot be without the fantastic volunteers we have had in the past -- please send your interest to me at ken.titow@icloud.com
Thanks for your support,
Kenneth Titow
Chair, Phoenix 2022 NABC
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The D17 election cycle for 2021 is now complete. Congratulations to the following candidates who have been elected to serve on the D17 Board of Directors.
- Jennifer O'Neill, re-elected to represent Unit 361, Denver.
- JoAnne Lowe, re-elected to represent Unit 354, Phoenix.
- Neil Hunter, a new Board member, elected to represent Northern New Mexico Units 374, 381 and 383.
- Bill Curtis, a new Board member, elected to represent Eastern Colorado Units 360 and 363.
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ACBL members receive masterpoints® for winning and placing in club games and tournaments as they strive to advance through the ranks. There are 16 ranks, from Junior Master (5 masterpoints) to Grand Life Master (10,000 masterpoints plus a victory in an eligible North American Bridge Championship). |
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NEWLY MINTED LIFE MASTERS |
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KAY CHRISTENSEN
UNIT 361, DENVER, CO
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DAN BETTS
UNIT 354, SCOTTSDALE, AZ
ALSO A BRONZE LIFE MASTER
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TERESA BOTTOMLY
(Not pictured)
UNIT 374, CORRALES, NM
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William” “Bill” Guenther Celebrates 100th Birthday Playing Bridge |
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By Linda M. Melcher
Laramie Duplicate Bridge Club
Bill Guenther turned 100 on December 17 and celebrated by playing bridge! The Laramie Duplicate Bridge Club helped him celebrate at their weekly game.
Bill started playing bridge with a “bunch of old women” about 1948 , but he learned to play bridge with co-workers on their lunch break at a government lab in Corona, California. Corona is where he won his first masterpoint on March 2, 1953. He still has the card he received back then.
After completing his PhD in Mathematics from the University of Washington, he started attending bridge tournaments. He won his first tournament with a pick-up partner at the Phoenix Regional in October of 1956.
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In 1959, Bill was attending a conference at the University of Wyoming when a job in the Statistics Department came open. He was recruited as an Associate Professor and has been in Laramie playing bridge ever since. Bill became a Life Master in the 1970s and a Silver Life Master in August 2014.
Bill served in the 8th Air Force during WWII where he completed 35 missions. He claims he had “an all-expense paid bird’s- eye tour of Western Europe.” His top three interests in life are hiking, classical piano and bridge!
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When asked what his secret was, he answered, "you just have to live
long enough!”
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CHECK OUT THE DISTRICT 17 WEBSITE
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