Buffalo Niagara duplicate bridge notes: Nov. 22, 2025 (Revised)

 

News and notes for the Buffalo area duplicate bridge community are no longer available on the Buffalo News website. Future postings will appear weekly here as part of Dale Anderson's bridge blog, usually by midweek, at http://newsdupli.blogspot.com/

 

The next party game at the Buffalo Bridge Center, 60 Dingens St. off Exit 1 of the I-190, is Saturday, Nov. 22, which would be today if you're reading this on Saturday. Snacks at noon. Game at 12:30 p.m. Bring munchies to share. For partnerships and info, call Pat Haynes at 716-472-5189 or email phaynes508@roadrunner.com. Next month’s party game is Saturday, Dec. 13.

LATE NEWS FLASH: Two items of note seen at the Bridge Center's party game – the club is offering supervised play from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. on Mondays to help beginners get to know the game better. And the club will be closed for Thanksgiving on Thursday, Nov. 27, and Friday, Nov. 28. (In Canada, where Thanksgiving was celebrated in October, there are open games at 1 p.m. Friday at the Bridge Center of Niagara and the Niagara-on-the-Lake Bridge Club). 

 

Western New York Unit 116’s annual meeting, luncheon and game is coming up on Saturday, Dec. 6, in the Buffalo Bridge Center. Meeting at 11 a.m., lunch at 11:30, open pairs game at 12:30 p.m. Fee is $10, lunch included. Preregistration requested by Dec. 1. Prepayment not required. Email larab1016@verizon.net or jbava@roadrunner.com.

Congratulations to Jay Levy, the Buffalo area player who collected the most master points at the Niagara Regional Tournament from Nov. 11 to Nov. 16 in St. Catharines, Ont. He won 38 points even and was 30th overall. 

Also doing well in St. Catharines were Saleh Fetouh with 28.51 points, yours truly with 9.35 points, Kathy Pollock and Chongmin Zhang, both with 8.37; Davis Heussler, 8.31; Mike Meacham, 5.98; and Mike Ryan and John Ziemer, both with 5.93. 

 

The Buffalo Bridge Center 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 or call 716-424-0014. Fee for games is $8 for members and $12 for non-members.

 

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

The Bridge Centre of Niagara (BCON) in St. Catharines, Ont., offers face-to-face games six 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.

 

The District 5 Sectional Tournament at the Clubs (STaC) offers silver master points in games at participating local bridge clubs from Tuesday, Dec. 9, to Saturday, Dec.13.

 

Scores from ACBL Live for Clubs

Week of Nov. 10 to Nov. 16

Buffalo Bridge Center Monday evening – 0-900 game online. Laura and John Houghtaling, 63.89%; Michel Dupuis and Gary Keenan, 59.72%; Terry Camp and Jim Hassett, 51.39%.

Buffalo Bridge Center Tuesday morning – 0-1,600 game. North-south, Betty Metz and Julie Mitchell, 55.88%; Jim McClure and Richard McGowan, 49.88%; Barbara Landree and Anthony Girasole, 48.37%; east-west, Bert Feasley and Paul Zittel, 56.51%; Marilyn Wortzman and Jim Easton, 52.63%; Bill and Nathan Kross, 51.09%.

Buffalo Bridge Center Wednesday morning – Open game. Chris Urbanek and Jay Costello, 64.29%; Judy Graf and Jim Gullo, 54.76%; Martha Welte and Howard Foster, 52.98%; Mary Ball and Joyce Frayer, 50.60%.

Buffalo Bridge Center Thursday morning – 0-2,000 game. Larry Himelein and David Schott, 66.67%; Paula Rosen and Richard McGowan, 62.70%; Betty Metz and Judie Bailey, 61.11%; Julie Mitchell and Brian Fleming, 48.41%.

Bridge Club of East Aurora Wednesday morning – Open game. Maureen Cancilla and Dave Larcom, 56.25%; (tie) Joanne LaFay and Linda Zittel, Joan and Bob Ciszak, 53.75%; Pat Haynes and Joe Miranda, 50%.

Delaware Wednesday evening – 0-2,000 game online. Billie Ker and Carol Sohn, 58.33%; Henry Chudy and Jeff Bender, 56.94%; (tie) Mary Ball and Joyce Frayer, Ed Harman and Bill Rich, 48.61%.

Non-sanctioned clubs

Tonawanda Senior Center Wednesday afternoon – (Tie) Judy White and Fritz Schweiger, JoAnne Biondo and Ron Fill, 65.6%; Lynda Pettit and Kay Brinkman, 64%.

 

Unit 116 Master Point Leaders for Virtual Club Play

Jan. 1, 2025, to Oct. 31, 2025

0-5 Points – Julie Mitchell, 9.66; Joan Warren, 1.80; Maureen Piasecki, 1.58.

5-20 Points – Mike Rupp, 5.46; Fran Holmes, 3.83; Devon Marlette, 2.28; David Taylor, 0.63.

20-50 Points – Dennis Daly, 4.43; Maxine Johnson, 2.57; Karen Dearing, 1.57; Maureen Saab, 1.34.

50-100 Points – Brian Fleming, 26.14; Mike Metzger, 14.09; Gary Keenan, 12.42; Amy Habib, 11.88; Cynthia Tashjian, 9.26; Candace Graser, 8.32; John Houghtaling, 8.24; Ilene Rothman 4.73; Carole Sedita, 4.63; Elaine Idzik, 4 even.

100-200 Points – Maria Schory, 16.55; Fran Schmidt, 13.96; Jim Hassett, 12.20; Jim Greno, 5.24; Betsy Greno, 4.61; Carol Licata, 4.50; Joan Ciszak, 0.42.

200-300 Points – Maria Amlani, 61.37; Laura Houghtaling, 8.24; Patty Porter, 1.55.

300-500 Points – Pat Haynes, 12.15; David Schott, 7.03; Kusum Phadke, 6.14; Bob Ciszak, 5.59; Ruth Nawotniak, 1.60; Eugene Giorgini, 1.56; Agi Maisel, 0.85; Joanne Nover, 0.36.

500-1,000 Points – (Tie) Terry and Bram Hamovitch, 65.70; Martha Townson, 33.94; Sushil Amlani, 24.29; Ed Harman, 20.40; Richard McGowan, 16 even; Joyce Frayer, 10.89; Diana Smith, 7.64; Phyllis Wilkinson, 3.36; Jeff Bender, 2.89; Brian Block, 2.52.

1,000-1,500 Points – Jim Lanzo, 113.03; Vic Bergsten, 60 even; Bill Rich, 14.94; (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, 9.89; Rajat Basu, 4.28; (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, 5.28; Ken Meier, 3.36; Davis Heussler, 0.84; Mike Silverman, 0.23.

More than 5,000 Points – Saleh Fetouh, 103.46; Jay Levy, 38.42; Dian Petrov, 35.11.

 

The Duplicate Bridge column in The Buffalo News with local bridge notes dated back to the 1970s and had been compiled by Staff Reporter Dale Anderson for more than 20 years. The print version stopped in March 2020 when the pandemic forced local bridge clubs to halt face-to-face play. It continued online on the Buffalo News website until Nov. 8, 2025.

Dale Anderson broke into bridge socially as a teen and has played seriously since 2005. He's a Gold Life Master and reached a career milestone, 3,000 master points, at the Buffalo Fall Sectional Tournament in September.