Questions? Comments? Concerns?
Contact your District 4 board members.
PRESIDENT
Jeanne Gehret
jeannegehret@comcast.net
VICE PRESIDENT
Betsy Cutler
betsy2955@gmail.com
SECRETARY
Bill Bauer
william.baueriii@verizon.net
TREASURER
Pat Civale
pat@csa-accounting.com
DISTRICT DIRECTOR
Joann Glasson
joannglasson@msn.com
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Tournament Updates
At the risk of being repetitive, the Rehoboth Beach Regional was a great tournament! It was well-attended, had a relaxed beach vibe, lots of great restaurants (and the Atlantic Ocean) within walking distance, and with reasonably priced lodging. If you were unable to attend this year, consider making it a priority for 2023.
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My tournament thoughts now turn to the Philadelphia Regional at Valley Forge – (6/27-7/3). This year, the tournament will be held at the Valley Forge Casino & Resort. If you’re in pursuit of more Gold points, this Regional offers a full 7-day schedule of competition. Gather your partners, assemble your teams, and I look forward to seeing you there!
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And one more tournament note – about the Philadelphia I/N Sectional – the dates have changed to Aug 3-4 (Wed-Thurs). Pre-registration is required due to space limitations at the site. Here’s a link to the sectional flyer which provides more information and registration instructions.
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NAP Qualifying Games – You’ve Gotta Play to Win!
The summer months are when clubs offer North American Pairs (NAP) qualifying games. If you’re not familiar with the NAP process, here’s some background. At each Spring NABC (in 2023, being held in New Orleans), winning pairs in each of the 3 Flights (Open, Flight B, Flight C), from all 25 ACBL Districts, gather to determine which pair will become their Flight’s National NAP winner.
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And it all begins at the NAP qualifying games at your club this Summer. If you play and earn qualification (it’s easy!) then you also have the opportunity to register and participate in a District-wide competition in the Fall. The District competition yields which pairs will continue on to the NABC event (3 pairs from the Open Flight, and 4 pairs each from Flights B and C)
Though I’ve not personally had the good fortune to both qualify at my club and then win a berth to the National competition, those who have rave about what a terrific experience it is. So I encourage you to take part in the fun – look for NAP qualifying games at your club. There’s no telling how far you might go!
Until next month,
I welcome your comments or suggestions (jeannegehret@comcast.net)
Jeanne
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From the District Director |
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Report from the May Special Meetings of the ACBL Board of Directors
The ACBL Board has passed new initiatives in an effort to support our players’ return to face-to-face play, both in clubs and at our regional and sectional tournaments.
In support of face-to-face tournaments:
At all sectional and regional tournaments, overall awards will be increased by 20% beginning on May 30, 2022 and extending to December 31, 2022.
In support of face-to-face clubs:
For four weeks (the last week of June and the first week in July and the first two weeks of November) all face-to-face club games can be run as Upgraded Club Championships. Clubs can promote these as “get back to the club” weeks.
Face-to-face clubs will be able to hold an additional Royal STAC week during the last 4 months of 2022.
Masterpoint awards in clubs will be adjusted to reflect the number of boards played. Masterpoint awards for games over 18 boards will be adjusted upward according to the number of boards played. Any game in which more than 18 deals are played will pay the full award times a factor of n/18, where "n" is the number of deals played. (This proposal will take approximately 3 months to implement).
The 15% visitor policy will no longer be enforced for VACB clubs that run fewer than 50 tables per week. This will be effective by June 1, 2022, and will allow small clubs to grow their online games.
Our hope is that these measures will stimulate the return to face-to-face play.
I’ll be a guest lecturer and taking winners photos in Valley Forge for the online bulletins – hope to see you there!!
Joann
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Sectionals
June 3-5
July 9-10
Regionals
June 27-July 3
STaCs
August 15-21
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The 4Spot features fantastic contributors, on a regular rotation: |
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Larry's Learning Center by Larry Cohen:
January, April, July, October
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For Novices Only by Marti Ronemus:
February, May, August, November
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The ABC of Bridge by Dave Wachsman:
March, June, September, December
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The ABC of Bridge
by Dave Wachsman
The full series of ABC articles have addressed Always Be Counting, Communicating, and Curious. Counting primarily focused on the concept of Losing Trick Count to elevate the accuracy of how well two hands fit together in suit contracts. Communicating focused on bidding and defensive carding. Curious encouraged players to learn about other bidding methods used by competitors to arrive at superior contracts.
One area of Communicating deserves greater attention. This became obvious to me when my son, Todd, called me from the Orlando Regional in January 2022 to ask me what I would bid as an opener in a team game, holding the following hand:
♠️ AK75
♥️ 4
♦️ 6
♣️ KQJ10963
I answered that I would open 1♣️ and he said that is what he bid. He then asked me what my re-bid is following a 1♥️ response and a pass by RHO. It is at this point in the auction that it became apparent to me that partnerships need to Communicate the key parameters of their bidding system before even sitting down at the bridge table.
My re-bid was 2♠️, a strong jump shift based on my Losing Trick Count of only 4. Todd said that is exactly what he bid. Unfortunately, the lack of an agreed-upon meaning of a strong jump shift in his partnership led to a poor result.
Is there a “correct” answer to this quandary? I don’t think so. More importantly, partnerships need to discuss and agree on something as mundane as a “strong jump shift” by opener. One thing is sure in my opinion – when the responder makes a one over one response, a strong jump shift by opener is Game Forcing and requires the partnership to bid slowly to explore and arrive at the optimum contract.
What happened in Orlando? Todd’s partnership landed in an unmakeable slam because an assumption was made that a strong jump shift by opener showed no less than 18 HCP. Eleven IMPs were lost as their opponents wound up in a game following opener’s re-bid of 1♠️ instead of 2♠️.
Always ensure that your partnership has clarity about issues such as a strong jump shift as well as the requirements to open one of a suit in first or second seat. By the way, on the latter issue – I am a fan of 20 + 2 with an LTC less than or equal to 7.
An important corollary in this discussion is the idea that the partner who clearly has the better knowledge of the combined assets, is typically in a better position in deciding the final contract. Bottom line, remember your ABCs.
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Moderator: Nick Straguzzi
In this month's problem, your robot partner opens 1NT. You have invitational values, a wretched long minor, and your cat is dead.
I personally laughed out loud at: it'd be nice to know if partner loves diamonds, and I mean "let's go pick out curtains" loves them.
See how Nick's Panelists and Solvers weigh in here. |
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News from Around the Units
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Unit 112: Central New York
Betty Youmans
readsausten@yahoo.com
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The Burt Garrell Regional Tournament in Liverpool, N.Y., scheduled for August 8-12, 2022, has been canceled. The slow return of players to F2F bridge doomed the tournament to a disappointing turnout and a significant financial loss.
Our local F2F bridge attendance remains significantly lower than pre-COVID. Rochester area games are drawing fewer than 20% of the pre-COVID weekly table count. Other games in Unit 112 are reopening but to reduced table count. This adds up to too few players for a reasonable regional tournament.
The on-going COVID pandemic aggravates the situation. With COVID numbers rising, Onondaga County (Liverpool) and much of Unit 112 are currently in the CDC “High Risk” category. Our area is among the highest risk in the country. This alone and then coupled with the likely requirement to wear face masks (ACBL requirement for High Risk) would further depress attendance.
We hope that 2023 will bring better news and that we can resume this Regional next year.
Unit 112 Congratulates Its Advancing Players!
Junior Master
Ellen Bonn, Fairport
Jay Mehta, Horseheads
Marcie Robinson, Ithaca
Caroline Shipley, Canandaigua
Club Master
Linda Zaleski, Baldwinsville
Sectional Master
Linda Hobart, Canandaigua
Regional Master
Mahlon Hauber, Elmira
Thomas Moses, Painted Post
NABC Master
Luann Pero, Rochester
Kristen Sullivan, Clinton
Silver Life Master
Laura Krauss, Ithaca
Sapphire Life Master
Sam Mehta, Dewitt
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Unit 120: Northeastern Pennsylvania
Doreese Torrey
doreeset@gmail.com
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Hello Unit 120!! By now, those of us that plant gardens (flowers and/or veggies) most likely are seeing buds and blooms. Gardening dates all the way back to the first time the humans decided to plant seeds deliberately. That was over 23,000 years ago! As time went on, gardeners began showing off their hard work by hosting garden parties. Garden parties included whist games, which as you all know, is now our BRIDGE!
Speaking of parties, a Welcome Back party was held on May 15, 2002 in Beech Lake, Pa. Previously, there have been numerous parties there, but this was my first time attending (and it won't be my last). Let me share that those of you who were not able to attend, please, Please, PLEASE put it on your to do list.
The party was at a beautiful facility named Central House Resort, hosted by the Honesdale-Hawley Duplicate Bridge Club, and directed by George Mansur. A special recognition to Fay Pacchioli who created and spearheaded such a lovely party for us!!
There were 11 tables in the afternoon session and 5 tables in the evening. Oh, and the cost was only $30.00 for play in both sessions as well as food. Did I mention, the food was excellent? Upon arrival, there were danishes and beverages. During the hospitality break in the first session, there were hot hors d'oeuvres, cheese and crackers, and fresh fruit. For those of us who wanted a cocktail beverage, the cash bar was also open. Once the first session was over, time was given to walk around the facility and enjoy the scenery around the lake. Dinner started with a fresh salad and rolls, family style with stuffed chicken breast, a generous slice of roast beef, mashed potatoes, cauliflower with cheese sauce and peas. Dessert included your choice of apple pie a la mode, brownie with ice cream or just ice cream. (Your mouth should be watering right about now.) The second session play began and beverages were available for anyone to help themselves.
During dinner, Fay recognized all players for attending. She also recognized players’ past achievements in special games and events. Walter Mitchell announced an upcoming Zoom meeting for board members to discuss the future of our Unit 120 tournament locations and costs. The floor was open for discussion and questions concerning matters at hand.
Fay promises another party is in the planning stages for the fall, but no confirmed date has been set yet. Stay tuned for the announcement. Hope to see you there!
Happy June! See you all at the virtual and F2F bridge tables!
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Unit 121: Berks Montgomery
Carl Ziegler
crzig@hometownu.com
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Check back next month for unit news. |
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Unit 133: Lehigh Valley
Lois Fuini
lafuini@yahoo.com
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Hope you all enjoyed a happy and safe Memorial Day Weekend. It was a time for us to remember and honor all servicemen and women who gave their lives to keep us free. Unit 133 members donated $275 to the ACBL initiative to support the people of Ukraine in their valiant effort to protect their freedom. Thanks to everyone who contributed.
Congratulations! New Rank Achievements
New Junior Masters
Lance Rossa
Pam Rossa
New Life Master
Beth Dimler
New Bronze Life Master
Beth Dimler
New Gold Life Master
Peter Stoyanov
New Diamond Life Master
David Kresge
Spring Sectional Tournament April 29th & 30th, May1st
The first Unit 133 F2F tournament since the pandemic was an enjoyable experience for all our attendees. We managed to follow all the guidelines set forth by ACBL and still provide camaraderie, competition, good food, and lots of silver points. It was wonderful to see all our bridge friends back in Allentown. We’re looking forward to seeing even more of you in October. Save the date, October 14- October 16. Line up your partners. And, join us for another enjoyable weekend!
Overall Winners
Friday Morning Open Pairs
Kurt Engleman/Deepak Khanna
Charles Eisenhart/Peter Stoyanov
Friday Morning 0-500 Pairs
Beth Jasinski/Carol Hawk
Don Adams/Marie-Louise Ingersoll
Friday Afternoon Open Pairs
Thomas Kriz/David Kresge
Kurt Engleman/Deepak Khanna
Friday Afternoon 0-500 Pairs
Barbara Dopera/Michael Dopera
Rita Keiper/Susan Weidner
Saturday Morning Open Pairs
Deepak Khanna/Kurt Engleman
David Meyer/Marlene Meyer
Saturday Morning 0-500 Pairs
Linda O’Malley/Brendan O’Malley
Carol Turoczi/John Turoczi
Saturday Afternoon Open Pairs
Paul Irvine/Margaret Irvine
Deepak Khanna/Kurt Engleman
Saturday Afternoon 0-500 Pairs
Linda O’Malley/Brendan O’Malley
Gwendolyn Bryant/LeslieTolles
Sunday Open Swiss
Deepak Khanna/Kurt Engleman/Thomas Kriz/Walter Bell Paul Irvine/Margaret Irvine/Milind Vaze/Bruce Lieberman
NLM Tournament-May 12th
Unit 133’s fourth annual Spring 0-500 NLM tournament was held on May 12th at Lehigh Valley Active Life in Allentown. It was good to see some of our younger players in an environment appropriate for first time tournament participants. We hope this positive experience will encourage them to come back in the fall. Save the date, September 22nd.
Winners:
N/S
Pat Saeger/Karen Myers
Beth Jasinski/Carol Hawk
E/W
Robert Davenport/Nelson Rabenold
Grace Sutherland/Toeruna Widge
May STaC Game
Unit 133 participated in four May STaC Games. Thanks to everyone who played in the games and thanks to Unit 133 for offering to pay the extra fees for all our clubs.
Winners
Monday, May16, AM Open Pairs-BBC
Sue Boeriche/Quentin Patterson
Gary Hillenbrand/Donald Swan
Monday, May 16, PM 0-750 Pairs-LVAL Rosann Behringer/Susan Weidner
Judy Carey/Kay Hays
Wednesday, May 18, AM Open Pairs-BBC Ed Spitzer/Gary Hillenbrand
Tom Kriz/James George
Friday, May 20, PM Open Pairs-LVAL(ll N/S - Arthur Weiss/Lee Stanley
Jeanne Kuebler/Peter Stoyanov E/W - Julia Brooks/Ken Haruta
Pat Clarke/Naim Rizk
The Longest Day
The Longest Day is Saturday, June 25, at LVAL at 12:30pm. The unit will offer two games - Open and 0-500 NLM. These games award double black points and raise funds for the Alzheimer's Association. The entry fee will be $8.00 per person and additional contributions may be made by check or cash at the game or ahead of time. Please make checks payable to "Alzheimer's Association" and mail to Betsy Cutler, 1383 Deerfield Drive, Allentown, PA 18104. Join us and get two free raffle tickets for a chance to win an Alzheimer’s T-shirt or mug. Additional tickets will be available for purchase. Our goal is to raise over $1000 this year for this very worthy cause.
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Unit 141: Philadelphia
Jay Apfelbaum
japfel1@comcast.net
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June is here, and with it comes the annual migration north from Florida and other havens for our snowbirds. Welcome home! Our bridge clubs are opening up for you to come and play some face-to-face bridge. For those who are still nervous about possible exposure to the virus, some local clubs are open for “remote” business. Just look for them on Bridge Base.
There is a possibility that the South Jersey Bridge Club will reopen soon. I hope to have more information on that next month.
ACBL is updating its convention card. There are new rules for alerting. For example, we used to say “transfer” when we opened 1NT and our partner bid 2 Diamonds. Now, we just say “hearts.” ACBL has complete details on this at their website. Give it a look.
Finally, our Unit could really use a webmaster to create and maintain our Unit 141 website. We also need people who are willing to serve on our Board of Directors. This is our governing body. This is where decisions are made. We need serious people who understand what a governing body is supposed to do and appreciate the work that will be needed to do it. Some understanding of bridge is needed, but no one has to be a bridge expert.
New Members
Francine Butler
Ellen Goldman
Richard Temple
Rebecca Wagner
New Junior Master
Gilbert Zuckerman
New Club Masters
Jane Austin
Karen White
New Sectional Master
Marie-Louise Ingersoll
New Regional Masters
Carol Chartock
Amy Petersen
New NABC Master
David Laskin
New Life Masters
Walter Stromquist
Ilan Wolf
New Bronze Life Master
Kay Garrity
New Silver Life Master
Mark Beiferman Haines
New Diamond Life Master
Vilas Godbole
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Unit 168: Central Pennsylvania
Russell Poppleton
rpoppleton@comcast.net
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I enjoyed this news quip - "Doctors say man shot over 200 times with an upholstery gun is fully recovered."
Congratulations to the following for progressing up the ACBL ladder:
New Junior Masters
John Heaton
Coleen Marshall
David Schuster
New Club Masters
Ruth Edwards
Alan Gladhill
South Central PA continues to host virtual games – see the website bridgeboardroom.com for a complete virtual schedule. You may have seen in the Bridge Bulletin that in 2021, the Bridge Boardroom virtual club had the ninth highest table count in the US. Special virtual games in June include Longest Day weekend Jun 18-19 and NAP games Jun 01-05 and Jun 20-26.
Points to ponder – Playing inverted minors, against silent opponents you have the following auction: 1C - 2C (alerted) - 2NT. Typically, 2NT implies stoppers in both majors. But what about diamonds? Before you bid 3NT, make sure you and your partner are in agreement as to who has diamonds stopped.
Some say being good in math is helpful at the bridge table. Here's a problem I memorized in my youth. It has helped me at the bridge table about as often my finenesses work.
111,111,111 x 111,111,111 = 12,345,678,987,654,321
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Unit 190: Delaware
Tammy Holm and Paula Varrassi
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BRIDGE AT THE BEACH REGIONAL was a huge success.
We will do it again next year!
For Full Results of all Events:
Top 25 Unit 190 Master Point Winners
1. Anne Taylor
2. Sigridur Kristjansdotter
3. Ala Hamilton-Day
4. Harold Jordan
5. Peter Filandro
6. Marie Filandro
7. Eli Solomon
8. Andrew Stayton
9. Terry Patton
10. Paula Varrassi
11. John Strange
12. Caroline Hughes
13. Jane Myers
14. Debbie Schell
15. Randall Berseth
16. Melody Henderson
17. Mark Henderson
18. Susan Derrickson
19. Patricia Brown
20. Tina Brinsfield
21. Nancy Steele
22. Nancy Ferguson
23. Judith Gwaltney
24. J. Bruce Gwaltney
25. Richard Popper
Delaware Clubs with In-Person Games
The Bridge Studio of Delaware, Wilmington
Harold Jordon
302-479-5431
MOT, Middletown
Cheryl Shields
302-602-1638
Monday Morning Bridge Club
Friday Nooners
Dover
Clare O’Brien
410-758-2434
Shore Bridge
Lewes
Anna DeLapo
302-236-0346
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Unit 217: Susquehanna
Jim McKeown
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Covid Protocols for National, Regional and Sectional Tournaments EFFECTIVE March 1, 2022
Until further notice, the following are mandatory:
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VACCINATION: All staff, players and volunteers must be fully vaccinated with a complete set of vaccinations completed no less than 14 days before the date of the event in which the player wishes to purchase an entry (booster shots are highly recommended, but not required at this time). Unless prohibited by law, each player must provide proof of vaccination to the Event Safety Coordinator or a member of their staff. In areas or locations where requiring proof of vaccination is prohibited by law, the event sponsor must put in place other precautions, such as mandatory rapid COVID testing and mask requirements. Please check with the Tournament Chair for any changes or updates to this policy.
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MASK REQUIREMENTS: Any tournament staffed by the ACBL must require masking of players, staff and volunteers when the COVID-19 Community Level rate is indicated as “High” (as determined by the CDC or a similar metric from a health agency). This will be reviewed on a daily basis, therefore, players should be prepared for this to change during a tournament. Whether or not masks are required, masking is always recommended, particularly if an attendee is at high risk for severe illness or otherwise is a member of a vulnerable population. This ACBL policy does not countermand any ordinance or law in effect at the site of the tournament.
- HAND SANITIZER: Hand sanitizer must be readily available inside the playing area.
- EVENT SAFETY COORDINATOR: Each tournament sponsor must provide a designated Event Safety Coordinator, who will be available to review proof of vaccinations, etc.
- TABLE SPACING: Tables must be set at a minimum of 9 feet centers.
Please note that all the above are subject to change. Please check with the Tournament Chair for any clarification or further information.
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