Duplicate Bridge: June 20, 2020

Cap made from playing cards from Upcycling by Milo 

Is Bridge Base Online the new normal? That's the question on the cover of this month's issue of the ACBL's Bridge Bulletin magazine. The ACBL thinks so. It's teamed up with BBO to host a wide variety of virtual club games awarding ACBL master points while giving financial support to home clubs.

Open to all players are the Support Your Club games on BBO every day at 10 a.m., 5 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., which send part of the game fees to a club that players designate. For more info, visit acbl.org or bridgebase.com.

Local clubs also share in the fees from when they offer online games as Virtual Clubs on BBO for players who are affiliated with them.

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The Airport Bridge Club has linked up with the Alliance Bridge Club, the ACBL’s largest bridge club, which offers more than a dozen games every day. Anyone who has played at the Airport Club is automatically a member. For more info, visit alliancebridgeclub.com or call Airport Club manager Bill Finkelstein at 603-6943.

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The Bridge Center of Buffalo, Bridge Club Meridian and the Lockport Duplicate Bridge Club offer games every day under their own names or the banner “Buffalo Wings.” For the most part, the calendar follows the schedule that the clubs maintained when they were able to play live games.

For more info, visit the Bridge Center of Buffalo website, call director Dian Petrov at 228-2230 or email him at dpetrov@roadrunner.com.

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The Delaware Wednesday Club plays at 7 p.m. Wednesdays on Bridge Base Online, the same time that it had its actual games.

Delaware Wednesday is invitational and to ensure that it is restricted primarily to club members, there’s a master point limit of 1,500 on players who want to join. None of the club members has more than 1,500 points.

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Still lingering on the Unit 116 calendar is the summer picnic Aug. 2 in the Main-Transit Fire Hall, 6777 Main St., Amherst. However, now that the Erie County Fair (Aug. 12 to 22) has been canceled, the picnic is looking even less likely to happen.

No longer on the unit calendar is the Buffalo Fall Sectional Tournament Sept. 11 to 13, but no formal announcement has been made.  

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The ACBL has issued a lengthy list of "Club Safety Considerations," noting that "the ACBL believes that it is too soon for resuming activities such as duplicate bridge, particularly since people over age 55 have more frequent complications, hospitalizations and a higher death rate than other age groups." Clubs that want to reopen are advised to use a great many precautionary measures to limit the risk to the players. To read the entire advisory, click here.

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The Saturday Duplicate Bridge column is on hiatus in the print edition of The Buffalo News until clubs resume regular play, but it’s alive and well online. The syndicated Daily Bridge Club column by Frank Stewart will continue to appear.

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Tournament calendar

2020

CANCELED: District 5 Sectional Tournament at the Clubs (STAC) – Local clubs. Today, Saturday, June 20, and Sunday, June 21.

CANCELED: Niagara-on-the-Lake Intermediate/Novice Sectional – Niagara-on-the-Lake Community Centre, 14 Anderson Path, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ont. Friday, June 26, to Sunday, June 28. For info, click this link.

CANCELED: Southwest Ontario Regional – Bingemans Conference and Convention Centre, 425 Bingemans Centre Drive, Kitchener, Ont. Tuesday, July 7, to Sunday, July 12. For info, click this link.

CANCELED: Rochester Summer Sectional – Webster Columbus Center, 70 Barrett Drive, Webster. Saturday, July 11, and Sunday, July 12. For info, click this link.

CANCELED: Hamilton Sectional – Royal Canadian Legion, 435 Limeridge Road East, Hamilton, Ont. Saturday, July 18, and Sunday, July 19.

CANCELED: Syracuse Regional – Holiday Inn Syracuse, 441 Electronics Parkway, Liverpool. Monday, Aug. 10, to Sunday, Aug. 16. For info, click this link.

St. Catharines 299er Sectional – Bridge Centre of Niagara, 6-2E Tremont Drive, St. Catharines, Ont. Saturday, Aug. 15, and Sunday, Aug. 16. For info, click this link.

Pittsburgh Labor Day Regional – DoubleTree Pittsburgh-Green Tree, 500 Mansfield Ave., Pittsburgh, Pa. Tuesday, Sept. 1, to Monday, Sept. 7.

Buffalo Fall Sectional – Main-Transit Fire Hall, 6777 Main St., Amherst. Friday, Sept. 11, to Sunday, Sept. 13.

St. Catharines Regional – Holiday Inn and Suites Parkway Conference Center, 327 Ontario St., St. Catharines, Ont. Tuesday, Sept. 15, to Sunday, Sept. 20.

Rochester Fall Sectional – Saturday, Oct. 3, and Sunday, Oct. 4.

CANCELED: Buffalo Regional – Buffalo Grand Hotel (formerly Adam's Mark), 120 Church St., Buffalo. Tuesday, Oct. 20, to Sunday, Oct. 25.

Finger Lakes Sectional – Seneca County Office Building, 1 DiPronio Drive, Seneca Falls. Saturday, Nov. 7, and Sunday, Nov. 8.

Unit 255 Sectional – Niagara-on-the-Lake Community Centre, 14 Anderson Path, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ont. Friday, Nov. 13, to Sunday, Nov. 15.

2021

Cleveland Rock and Roll Regional – Embassy Suites, 5800 Rockside Woods Blvd., Independence, Ohio. Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021, to Sunday, Jan. 10, 2021.

Buffalo Winter Sectional – Main-Transit Fire Hall, 6777 Main St., Amherst. Friday, Jan. 22, 2021, to Sunday, Jan. 24, 2021.

St. Catharines Sectional – Holiday Inn and Suites Parkway Conference Center, 327 Ontario St., St. Catharines, Ont. Friday, Feb. 12, 2021, to Sunday, Feb. 14, 2021.

Toronto Easter Regional – Sheraton Toronto Centre, 123 Queen St. West. Tuesday, March 30, 2021, to Sunday, April 4, 2021.

Buffalo Spring Sectional – Main-Transit Fire Hall, 6777 Main St., Amherst. Friday, April 16, 2021, to Sunday, April 18, 2021.

Cleveland All-American Regional – Embassy Suites, 5800 Rockside Woods Blvd., Independence, Ohio. Tuesday, May 25, 2021, to Monday, May 31, 2021.

Niagara-on-the-Lake Intermediate/Novice Sectional – Niagara-on-the-Lake Community Centre, 14 Anderson Path, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ont. Friday, June 4, 2021, to Sunday, June 6, 2021.

Southwest Ontario Regional – Bingemans Conference and Convention Centre, 425 Bingemans Centre Drive, Kitchener, Ont. Tuesday, July 6, 2021, to Sunday, July 11, 2021.

Rochester Regional – RIT Inn and Conference Center, 5257 W. Henrietta Road, Henrietta. Monday, Aug. 2, 2021, to Sunday, Aug. 8, 2021.

St. Catharines 299er Sectional – Bridge Centre of Niagara, 6-2E Tremont Drive, St. Catharines, Ont. Saturday, Aug. 21, 2021, and Sunday, Aug. 22, 2021.

Pittsburgh Labor Day Regional – DoubleTree Pittsburgh-Green Tree, 500 Mansfield Ave., Pittsburgh, Pa. Tuesday, Aug. 31, 2021, to Monday, Sept. 8, 2021.

Great Lakes Sectional – Erie Bridge Center, 1221 Grant Ave., Erie, Pa. Saturday, Sept. 11, 2021, and Sunday, Sept. 12, 2021.

Buffalo Fall Sectional – Main-Transit Fire Hall, 6777 Main St., Amherst. Friday, Sept. 17, 2021, to Sunday, Sept. 19, 2021.

Buffalo Regional – Tuesday, Oct. 19, 2021, to Sunday, Oct. 24, 2021.

St. Catharines Regional – Holiday Inn and Suites Parkway Conference Center, 327 Ontario St., St. Catharines, Ont. Tuesday, Nov. 9, 2021, to Sunday, Nov. 14, 2021.

Unit 255 Sectional – Niagara-on-the-Lake Community Centre, 14 Anderson Path, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ont. Friday, Nov. 13, 2021, to Sunday, Nov. 15, 2021.

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Bridge club websites:

Click names for links.

Bridge Center of Buffalo.

Bridge Club Meridian.

Western New York Unit 116.

The Airport Bridge Club does not have a website. For info, call 716-603-6943.

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The Duplicate Bridge column is compiled weekly by News Staff Reporter Dale Anderson. The print version normally appears in the Life & Arts section in the Saturday edition of The Buffalo News.

During this hiatus, it can be found by Googling  “Duplicate Bridge” plus the current Saturday date, which should bring up a link to it on buffalonews.com, the Buffalo News website.

Sometimes the online version does not materialize on the Buffalo News website, at least not in a timely fashion. Worse yet, columns from previous weeks currently cannot be accessed on the News website. But all is not lost. They are available in an appendix to Dale Anderson’s bridge blog at http://newsdupli.blogspot.com/

The online version contains unabridged scores and a longer list of notices. Deadline for submission of scores and notices is Tuesday night. Email danderson@buffnews.com or dahotwings@aol.com. Office phone is 716-849-4420.

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Now a Gold Life Master, Dale Anderson has a career total of more than 2,700 master points and is playing online these days. He blogs about his quest for the next measure of achievement, Emerald Life Master (3,500 points), and other bridge adventures here.

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Duplicate scores from Bridge Base Online
Week of June 8 to June 14

Bridge Center of Buffalo Monday evening – 99ers. Peggy and Jeff Feather, 64.20%; Tyler Mu and Michael Passucci, 55.84%; Janet and David Desmon, 54.17%; Betsy and Jim Greno, 52.62%.

Bridge Center of Buffalo Tuesday afternoon – Non-life masters. Marilyn Wortzman and Jim Easton, 62.78%; Natalie Abramson and Penny Shuman, 58.43%; Pat Haynes and Terry Camp, 51.85%; east-west, Mary Ball and Joyce Frayer, 59.63%; Terry and Bram Hamovitch, 58.61%; Maria Amlani and Jim Lanzo, 57.22%.

Bridge Center of Buffalo Wednesday morning – Judy Padgug and Gene Finton, 63.89%; Gay Simpson and partner, 62.50%.

Bridge Center of Buffalo Thursday afternoon – 999er game. North-south, Mary Joyce and Bill Rich, 64.24%; Anne O'Connor and Ed Harman, 59.88%; Nancy Deneen and Martha Townson, 58.37%; Audrey Ray and Carol Roth, 52.43%; east-west, Seema Bhagwat and Beena Deshmukh, 59.72%; Marilyn Wortzman and Jim Easton, 58.02%; Joanne Nover and Janet Desmon, 53.94%; Maria Amlani and Jim Lanzo, 53.39%.

Bridge Center of Buffalo Sunday afternoon – Saleh Fetouh and Bud Seidenberg, 73.15%; (tie) Martha and John Welte, Rajarshi Roy and Chris Urbanek, 65.05%; Gay Simpson and Terry Camp, 58.33%.

Delaware Wednesday evening – Amita Arora and Stuart Schwartz, 69.44%; Jim Lanzo and Walt Olszewski, 68.89%; Violet and Jasbeer Makhija, 59.44%; Gay Simpson and Gabe Tannenbaum, 53.89%.

Garret Club Invitational Monday morning – Pinky Regan and Pam Righter, 61.25%; (tie) Amber Dixon and Amy Habib, Linda Henschel and Candace Graser, 55%.

Lockport Duplicate Bridge Saturday afternoon – Rajarshi Roy and Jim Lanzo, 62.04%; Audrey Ray and Amita Arora, 57.41%; Mary Ball and Joyce Frayer, 55.56%.

Twentieth Century Club Invitational Friday morning – Elaine Idzik and Martha Townson, 64.50%; Cherry Searle and Nancy Deneen, 58%.

Unit 116 Master Point Leaders for Play in all Venues

Jan. 1, 2020, to May 31, 2020

0-5 Points – Nancy Deneen, 10.97; Linda Henschel, 10.46.

5-20 Points – Martha Townson, 19.45; Fred Schweiger, 7.33; Gini Sicignano, 5.11; Jane Constantine, 4.65.

20-50 Points – Stephane Ronget, 11.51; David Schott, 10.32; Maria Amlani, 8.35; Cherry Searle, 5.40.

50-100 Points – Larry Himelein, 22.15; Joanne Nover, 17.89; Rose Ann Grimaldi, 11.29; Barbara Hill, 8.36.

100-200 Points – Vic Bergsten, 30.84; Bonnie Clement, 28.14; Ann Marie Ryan, 19.66; Terry Hamovitch, 18.24; Bram Hamovitch, 15.94.

200-300 Points – Jim Lanzo, 46.96; Margaret Zhou, 18.19; Jasbeer Makhija, 18.12; Ruth Nawotniak, 11.90; Laurie Foster, 11.14.

300-500 Points – Larry Abate, 67.72; Joyce Frayer, 31.82; Violet Makhija, 18.68; Pawan Matta, 16.62; Amita Arora, 15.33; Sushil Amlani, 12.09.

500-1000 Points – Bob Sommerstein, 60.02; Ten-Pao Lee, 44.61; (tie) Jim Easton, Marilyn Wortzman, 43.35; John Bava, 42.56; Ed Morgan, 41.32.

1000-1500 Points – David Colligan, 63.16; Gay Simpson, 46.30; Sandi England, 37.45; Joyce Greenspan, 31.91; Joanne LaFay, 27.49; Howard Foster, 27.01.

1500-2500 Points – (Tie) Martha Welte, John Welte, 144.17; Davis Heussler, 128.74; Linda Burroughsford, 110.89; Nancy Wolstoncroft, 72.95; Walt Olszewski, 33.98.

2500-3500 Points – John Sinclair, 57; David Millward, 56.68; Fred Yellen, 53.07; Allen Beroza, 49.80; Dale Anderson, 45.71; Ken Meier, 44.26; Mike Silverman, 40.13.

3500-5000 Points – Mike Ryan, 61.01; John Ziemer, 57.90; Sharon Benz, 57.14; Christy Kellogg, 51.87; Barbara Libby, 51.48.

5000-7500 Points – Saleh Fetouh, 145.28; Alan Greer, 100.85; Bert Hargeshimer, 53,76; Jay Costello, 39.27.

Over 7500 Points – Bud Seidenberg, 84.67; Chris Urbanek, 60; Jay Levy, 36.12.