Well, the days are longer and everything is looking a little brighter for bridge-lovers, too! The GNTs, for instance, are back after a year-long hiatus. True, the play will be online, but still, you can once again compete to play for D4 at Nationals, winning coveted GOLD in the process. Check out the details here. The President and the District Director's messages, below, have more good information on the GNTs so read on, and good luck!

District 4 Officers  

I’ve been enjoying the warmer days and dreaming about spending lots of time outdoors now that I’ve gotten to thoroughly know the inside of my home. Like many of you, thriving through the pandemic has included much online bridge. In fact, you might even say I am a fool for bridge (my partners may alter that statement to simply read “I am a fool”). And yes, I’ve made my fair share of bungled bids and foolish plays at the table. These are not embarrassments, but learning experiences of the highest order (like putting your hand on a hot stove!). So I will not be deterred by those blunders, but encouraged that something new has been learned! I hope you feel the same way.

Sadly for bridge, ACBL membership during the pandemic continued to decline, including D4 membership. Turning this trend around requires a push from each of us. Did you know that beginner bridge courses are being taught virtually throughout D4? Mary Miller (left), our Education Chair, has taken the lead in this effort by reaching out to D4 teachers and assisting them in the transition to online classes. According to Mary, the advantages of online instruction are so great that she plans to continue teaching online permanently. We need to continue to reach new players to retain and grow membership, and here’s how you can help. Check out the D4 Education and Bridge Lessons page. Then get going - talk to your friends, your neighbors, your family - and sign them up for a beginner bridge class.

If you’re a bridge teacher and want to know more about the advantages of virtual instruction, contact Mary Miller at mary.miller028@gmail.com

During May, the D4 GRAND NATIONAL TEAMS (GNT) events will be held virtually. With so many incentives, 2021 is THE YEAR to try your hand at GNT’s.

·        Entry fee is $25 per team/per session (a steep discount from $60 in prior years).

·        Qualifying masterpoints are AS OF August 2019!

·        PLUS, if 8 or more teams enter for Flight B or Flight C, 2 teams from the Flight will move on to the National event.

·        PLUS, exclusively for FLIGHT C players – a special FREE Zoom seminar will be held on April 11 where D4 experts will share team game information and winning strategies. You should have received an email filled with details (I hope you attend!).

·        PLUS, winners representing D4 will have 100% of their National Event entry fees paid by the District.

That’s a lot of plusses! Don’t be an April fool! Get your team together and register! The entry deadline is 2 weeks prior to each event. Have more questions? Contact our GNT Coordinator, John Dickenson, at dickenjb@gmail.com.

Take care, be safe, and I’ll look for you around the table,

I welcome your comments or suggestions (jeannegehret@comcast.net)

The ACBL has put out a schedule for the phased reopening of face-to-face bridge: The schedule has bridge clubs starting to reopen, Sectional Tournaments being staffed on a case by case basis in the third quarter of 2021 and Regional Tournaments being staffed on a case by case basis in the fourth quarter of 2021. The first NABC since the pandemic started is scheduled for November in Austin, Texas.

The Grand National Teams are coming next month - get your teams ready for this fun online event that is held in 4 flights - Open, Flight A, Flight B and Flight C. Because the GNT wasn't held in 2020, the ACBL has frozen the date for Flight qualification at August of 2019. If you have any questions, visit the District 4 website or contact the GNT Coordinator, John Dickenson at dickenjb@gmail.com.

Stay well and please contact me anytime with any questions or concerns: joannglasson@msn.com

Because of COVID-19 related uncertainties about when tournaments can safely resume, please check the ACBL calendar listings. Phased reopening of tournaments is expected as the year (and herd immunity) progresses.

ACBL has cancelled all STaCs through the end of July. Therefore, the D4 STaCs scheduled for May 3-9 and July 26-Aug 1 are cancelled

For a full year D4 calendar, click here.

For the D4 virtual club calendar, click here

For a 2021online event schedule, click here

Did you ever get into a bridge slump? It's a rare player indeed who can respond, "No, never." Larry Cohen has a six-step program for stopping the slide. While developed for in-person play, the basics hold equally true for online play. When the going gets tough, give Larry's tips a try.

April Fools' Day prompted this submission, a monster of a hand equally monstrous to bid. There is no foolproof response, but how would you tackle this knotty problem? When you're ready, see what the panel suggests.

Then visit the MSC website to read next month's problem and submit your answers online: http://d4msc.straguzzi.org

News from Around the Units 

www.acblunit112.org 

  www.unit120.org 

Check back next month for unit news. In the meantime, stay well!

Unit 133: Lehigh Valley 

                              New Rank Advancements 

New Regional Master 

I am pleased to report that, as of this writing, I have not been served any lawsuits, or been kicked off of Bridge Base, as a result of my artistic commentary last month. In case you were wondering.

Congratulations to one new Life Master this month:

New Ruby Life Master (1,500 points) – Ruth Peskin

New Silver Life Masters (1,000 point) - CJ Fitts and David Silberman

New Bronze Life Masters (750 points) – Gerald Abelow, Lauren Dougherty, and Donna McCloskey

New Advanced NABC Masters (300 points) - Janet Chaiken, Anne Pearl, and Kathy Vogel

New NABC Masters (200 Points) - Norman Braslow, (yes, THAT Norman Braslow), Judy Cohen, William Hankin, and Brendan O'Malley

New Regional Masters (100 points) – Dorothy Miller and Donna Oliver

New Sectional Masters (50 points) – Harold Katz, Joseph Moseley, Leslie Purple, Paul Ruth, Roy Schwartz

New Club Masters (20 points) – Patricia Carstensen, Deborah Evans, Anita Ficken, Shauna Flynn, Judith Frankel, Joanne Guiniven, Larry Kimble, Richard Levine, Janis Nadler, Constance Opfell, Barbara Peoples, Sara Rafalin, Roberta Tretiak, Carolyn Vodoklys, Robert Wilford, Ellen Wood, Karin Wren, Pamela Yih

New Junior Masters (5 points) – Janet Epstein, Leslie Lane, Jane Norvell, Thomas Pajak, Elizabeth Tomlinson

Thanks to Bob Priest for submitting the following news:

Unit 168 is celebrating the announcement in the March ACBL Bulletin of our first ever Grand Life Master. Bruce Silverstein currently resides in Scottsdale Arizona, but spent most of his lifetime playing bridge in Lancaster and other clubs in Unit 168. 

The March Bulletin also announced Melvin Lubart as our 5th Platinum Life Master. Congratulations!

Unit 190: Delaware 

We’re doing it again! Want to win a Door Prize?

Now on to April Anarchy (which follows March Madness) with flighted Pair games, every Saturday in April. It was great fun seeing all of our friends who played on BBO in January and February, and then the team games in March. Come and play in the April Fools Funnery Games, again on Saturdays at 10 AM. Players outside of Unit 190, but who have played in Unit 190 games in the past year, can play and enjoy the added masterpoint awards if they pre-register, so come join in the fun!

For those of us who don't know everyone or don’t remember faces they haven't seen for close to a year, we are trying to connect faces to the BBO IDs. So here is the deal: send a selfie or other recent picture of yourself to Soley Kristjansdottir (siggasoley@gmail.com), together with your BBO username. By submitting a picture, you agree to have it posted or linked on the Unit 190 website with your name and BBO ID.  We will post your picture AND you’ll be eligible for a door prize of 25 BBO dollars in each subsequent Saturday session in which you play. Three door prizes will be awarded to players in that Saturday game, and whose selfie was received by midnight the night before.

Some photos have already been submitted. You can see them here. We look forward to “seeing” you online at future tournament sessions, at 10:00 EST each Saturday for Pair games in April on BBO. 

JUNIOR MASTER: Kristin E. Haroldsdottir and Stefan H. Haroldsson

SECTIONAL MASTER: Darlene J. Bolig, Marie L. Mackay, Rohan Mandayam and Kusum B. Patel

REGIONAL MASTER: Francis B. Jacobs

NABC LIFE MASTER: Phyllis A. Lochiatto

BRONZE LIFE MASTER: Teresa Young

For news and information about the fabulous April Fools Funnery Games, pictures of players, the Door Prizes, the winners of the three flights of the Delaware State Championship Pairs, the Shuffles games on Tuesdays and Thursdays at 9:30, the February Dummy and other happenings, check out the Unit 190 website and click on the links below:

Unit 217: Susquehanna 

4Spot | April 2021 | Editor: Janet Johnson | janet.johnson210@gmail.com