Buffalo Niagara duplicate bridge notes: Jan. 17, 2026

News and notes for the Buffalo area duplicate bridge community appear weekly here at http://newsdupli.blogspot.com/, usually by midweek.

Congratulations to Linda Burroughsford and Davis Heussler, who as partners earned the most master points among Buffalo area players in the Cleveland Rock and Roll Regional Tournament Jan. 7 to Jan. 11. They collected 39.30 points and were tied for 12th overall. Also doing well in Cleveland were Saleh Fetouh with 16.12 points and Mike Meacham with 8.39 points.

The next special game on Saturday, Jan. 24, at the Buffalo Bridge Center, 60 Dingens St. off Exit 1 of the I-190, will include the Bridge Center's annual meeting. It also will be a Unit Championship Game with extra points for the winners. Refreshments and meeting at noon. Game at 12:30 p.m. Players are encouraged to bring refreshments to share. Free for members. $12 for non-members. For partnerships, call Ruth Nawotniak at 716-949-7574 or email ruth2250@outlook.com.

The Bridge Center also offers supervised play from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Mondays for players who want experience and advice to improve their games. All are welcome. No pre-registration needed. The club also hosts a social bridge game for fun at 10 a.m. on Tuesdays. Signup needed for this one. Once again, Ruth Nawotniak is the person to call at 716-949-7574 or email at ruth2250@outlook.com. 

The Buffalo Bridge Center is closed whenever Buffalo schools are closed because of winter weather. When the streets are clear, it offers a regular schedule of in-person and online games Monday through Friday with party games once a month on weekends. For more info, visit the Buffalo Bridge Center website at https://buffalobridgecenter.godaddysites.com/ or call 716-424-0014. Fee for games is $8 for members and $12 for non-members. Membership is $80 annually.

Other ACBL sanctioned clubs: Contact for the Bridge Club of East Aurora is Dave Larcom at dmocral@verizon.net. Games are at 10 a.m. Wednesdays in the Aurora Senior Citizens Center, 101 King St., East Aurora.

The Bridge Centre of Niagara (BCON) in St. Catharines, Ont., offers face-to-face games five days a week at its club in Tremont Square opposite the Pen Centre shopping plaza off Glendale Avenue. Website is bridgewebs.com/Niagara.

The Niagara-on-the-Lake Bridge Club plays in the Community Centre in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ont., on Anderson Lane off Mississauga Street on the western end of the village. Open games are at 1 p.m. Tuesdays and Fridays. Website is bridgewebs.com/niagaraonthelake.

Non-sanctioned clubs: Tonawanda Senior Center, 12:30 p.m. Wednesdays; Amherst Senior Center, 12:30 p.m. Mondays and Fridays.

Tournament calendar

2026

Niagara Winter Sectional – Holiday Inn & Suites Parkway Conference Center, 327 Ontario St., St. Catharines, Ont. Friday, Feb. 13, to Sunday, Feb. 15. For more info, click this link.

Toronto Easter Regional – Sheraton Centre Toronto Hotel, 123 Queen St. West, Toronto, Ont. Tuesday, March 31, to Sunday, April 5. For more info, click this link.

Buffalo Spring Sectional – Buffalo Bridge Center, 60 Dingens St. Friday, April 10, to Sunday, April 12. For info, click this link.

Finger Lakes Regional – Seasons on Keuka Lake, 110 Mace St., Penn Yan. Monday, June 8, to Friday, June 12. For more info, click this link. 

Scores from ACBL Live for Clubs

Week of Jan. 5 to Jan. 11

Buffalo Bridge Center Monday evening – 0-900 game online. Bill Gormley and Bob Lowe, 68.06%; Jim and Michael Hassett, 59.72%; Jeannine and Michel Dupuis, 55.56%.

Buffalo Bridge Center Tuesday morning – 0-1,600 game. North-south, Joanne Nover and David Schott, 58.93%; Marilyn Wortzman and Jim Easton, 57.74%; Dennis Daly and Brian Fleming, 53.57%; Ruth Nawotniak and Julie Mitchell, 53.27%; east-west, Mary Ball and Joyce Frayer, 61.90%; Carol Licata and Ilene Rothman, 55.65%; Betty Metz and Paul Zittel, 52.68%; Linda Marsh and Art Ziller, 50.30%.

Buffalo Bridge Center Wednesday morning – Open game. (Tie) Chris Urbanek and Kamil Bishara, Donna Steffan and Judy Graf, 55.21%; Mary Ball and Joyce Frayer, 50%.

Buffalo Bridge Center Thursday morning – 0-2,000 game. Betty Metz and Judie Bailey, 64.17%; Paula Kotowski and Walt Olszewski, 62.40%; Joanne Nover and Ed Drozen, 59.25%; Mary Ball and Joyce Frayer, 59.25%; Mary Ball and Joyce Frayer, 57.64%; Bonnie Clement and David Schott, 54.93%; Bert Feasley and Paul Zittel, 52.09%.

Buffalo Bridge Center Friday morning – Open game. Bert Feasley and Donna Steffan, 54%; Howard Foster and Mike Ryan, 53%; Jay Costello and Bud Seidenberg, 52%; (tie) Judy Graf and John Ziemer, Martha Welte and Larry Abate, 51%.

Bridge Club of East Aurora Wednesday morning – Open game. Joanne LaFay and Bert Feasley, 62.50%; (tie) Paula Kotowski and Nancy Kessler, Linda and Paul Zittel, 54.76%; Jan and Carl Hasselback, 50%.

Delaware Wednesday evening – 0-2,000 game online. (Tie) Mary Ball and Joyce Frayer, Jeff Bender and Henry Chudy, 62.50%; Betsy and Jim Greno, 51.39%; Eugene Giorgini and Jim Lanzo, 50%.

Non-sanctioned clubs

Amherst Senior Center Monday afternoon – Violet and Jasbeer Makhija, 70%; Shirley Cassety and George Mayers, 60%; Tim Hartnett and David Young, 53%.

Amherst Senior Center Friday afternoon – North-south, Shirley Cassety and George Mayers, 64%; Nancy Wolstoncroft and Dan Blatz, 52%; east-west, (tie) Pam and Craig Jones, Julie Mitchell and Walt Olszewski, 58%.

Unit 116 Master Point Leaders for Virtual Club Play

Jan. 1, 2025, to Dec. 31, 2025

0-5 Points – Julie Mitchell, 10.22; Joan Warren, 1.96; Amy Licata, 1.85; Maureen Piasecki, 1.58; Susan Mann Dolce, 1.44.

5-20 Points – Mike Rupp, 6.46; Devon Marlette, 4.56; Fran Holmes, 3.90; David Taylor, 0.63.

20-50 Points – Dennis Daly, 4.43; Maxine Johnson, 3.23; Karen Dearing, 1.57; Maureen Saab, 1.34.

50-100 Points – Brian Fleming, 28.82; Gary Keenan, 15.25; Mike Metzger, 14.09; Amy Habib, 12.45; John Houghtaling, 12.26; Cynthia Tashjian, 11.37; Candace Graser, 10.43; Carole Sedita, 7.18; Kathleen Voigt, 6.26; Anne Slater, 5.58.

100-200 Points – Maria Schory, 17.91; Fran Schmidt, 15.59; Jim Hassett, 14.14; Jim Greno, 5.58; Betsy Greno, 4.95; Carol Licata, 4.84; Joan Ciszak, 0.42.

200-300 Points – Maria Amlani, 67.94; Laura Houghtaling, 12.25; Patty Porter, 1.55.

300-500 Points – Pat Haynes, 12.97; David Schott, 7.03; Bob Ciszak, 6.38; Kusum Phadke, 6.14; Eugene Giorgini, 2.01; Ruth Nawotniak, 1.60; Agi Maisel, 0.85; Joanne Nover, 0.36.

500-1,000 Points – (Tie) Terry and Bram Hamovitch, 77.74; Martha Townson, 38.16; Sushil Amlani, 30.28; Ed Harman, 21.75; Richard McGowan, 17.73; Joyce Frayer, 11.18; Diana Smith, 7.64; Phyllis Wilkinson, 4.24; Jeff Bender, 4.20.

1,000-1,500 Points – Jim Lanzo, 127.67; Vic Bergsten, 71.02; Bill Rich, 15.26; (tie) Jim Easton, Marilyn Wortzman, 13.38; Mary Ball, 4.55; Paul Zittel, 2.93; Bert Feasley, 1.99; Larry Abate, 0.35.

1,500-2,500 Points – Walt Olszewski, 14.44; Pinky Regan, 10.59; Rajat Basu, 6.88; (tie) Paula Kotowski, Nancy Kessler, 2.03; Martin Pieterse, 1.12; Sandi England, 0.98; John Bava, 0.20.

2,500-3,500 Points – Art Morth, 4.07; Elaine Kurasiewicz, 1.90; Linda Burroughsford, 0.84.

3,500-5,000 Points – Chongmin Zhang, 14.81; Martha Welte, 8.42; Barbara Libby, 7.57; Ken Meier, 3.36; Davis Heussler, 0.84; Mike Silverman, 0.23.

More than 5,000 Points – Saleh Fetouh, 114.62; Jay Levy, 40.44; Dian Petrov, 38.61.

Dale Anderson bid his first 3 No Trump contract as a teen and has compiled notes on duplicate bridge activities locally since he began playing in competition more than 20 years ago. A Gold Life Master, he reached a career milestone, 3,000 master points, at the Buffalo Fall Sectional Tournament last September. You can call or text him at 716-860-2305 or send an email to  dahotwings@aol.com.