Buffalo Niagara duplicate bridge notes: March 14, 2026 (belated)

 

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

A new addition to the usual ACBL calendar is the Niagara Unit 255 Sectional Tournament today, Saturday, March 14, and Sunday, March 15, in the Bridge Centre of Niagara, Tremont Square opposite the Pen Centre shopping plaza on Glendale Avenue in St. Catharines, Ont.

Single session pairs games for open players and 499ers are being held at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. today, Saturday. Bracketed Swiss teams play, also with separate games for open players and 499ers, begins at 10 a.m. Sunday. Space is limited, so advance registration is strongly advised. For more info, click this link.

Next party game at the Buffalo Bridge Center, 60 Dingens St. off Exit 1 of the I-190, on Sunday, March 22, has a St. Patrick’s Day theme. Refreshments at noon, game at 12:30 p.m. $8 members, $12 non-members. Bring a snack to share. Dressing in green is encouraged. For partnerships, call Pat Haynes at 716-472-5189 or email phaynes508@roadrunner.com.

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, usually on Sundays. The game next month will be on April 26. For more info, visit the club’s 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.

Online games hosted by the Bridge Center at 7 p.m. Monday and Wednesday are being transferred from Bridge Base Online to a new platform, RealBridge. A free eight-board trial game is offered at 1 p.m. today, Saturday, March 14. For more info, including a player guide, visit realbridge.online.

In addition, the club hosts a supervised play session for players who want experience and advice to improve their games from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Mondays, which has been a great success. Small games now have been added to the session. All are welcome. No pre-registration needed. Also popular is the club’s social bridge game just for fun at 10 a.m. on Tuesdays. Signup needed for this one. Call Ruth Nawotniak at 716-949-7574 or email at ruth2250@outlook.com. 

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 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: The midwinter break has ended at the Tonawanda Senior Center. Games have resumed at 12:30 p.m. Wednesdays. Play continues at the Amherst Senior Center at 12:30 p.m. Mondays and Fridays.

Upcoming tournaments

Niagara BCON Sectional – Bridge Centre of Niagara, 2E Tremont Drive, St. Catharines, Ont. Today, Saturday, March 14, and Sunday, March 15. Space is limited. Pre-registration encouraged. For more info, click this link.

Rochester Non-Life Master Sectional – Two locations. Friday, March 27, and Saturday, March 28. Swiss Teams on Friday at Temple B'Rith Kodesh, 2131 Elmwood Ave., Rochester. Pairs games on Saturday at Perinton Community Center, 1350 Turk Hill Road, Fairport. 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.

Rochester Spring Sectional – Gates Community Center, 1605 Buffalo Road, Gates. Saturday, April 18, and Sunday, April 19. For more 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. 

District 5 Sectional Tournament at the Clubs (StaC) – Participating local clubs. Monday, June 8, to Sunday, June 14. For more info, click this link.

Cleveland All American Regional – Embassy Suites Hotel, 5800 Rockside Woods Road, Independence, Ohio. Tuesday, June 23, to Sunday, June 28. For more info, click this link.

Buffalo Summer Sectional – Buffalo Bridge Center, 60 Dingens St. Friday, July 10, to Sunday, July 12.

Oakville Summer Regional – St. Volodymyr Cultural Centre, 1280 Dundas St. West, Oakville, Ont. Tuesday, July 21, to Sunday, July 26. For more info, click this link.

Rochester Summer Sectional – Gates Recreation Center, 1605 Buffalo Road, Rochester. Saturday, July 25, and Sunday, July 26.

Scores from ACBL Live for Clubs

Week of March 2 to March 8

Buffalo Bridge Center Monday evening – 0-900 game online. Terry Camp and Jim Hassett, 62.04%; Maria Schory and Mike Metzger, 59.26%; Fran Schmidt and Richard McGowan, 57.41%; Betsy and Jim Greno, 51.85%.

Buffalo Bridge Center Tuesday morning – 0-1,600 game. North-south, Brian Fleming and Dennis Daly, 54.58%; Marilyn Wortzman and Jim Easton, 51.25%; Gini Sicignano and Pat Wolcott, 50%; east-west, Ruth Nawotniak and Paul Zittel, 59.58%; Linda Milch and Susan Cardamone, 55.83%; Barbara Landree and Ruth Wurtser, 55.42%; Joyce Frayer and Anthony Girasole, 54.17%.

Buffalo Bridge Center Wednesday morning – Open game. Ed Morgan and Andrei Reinhorn, 59%; Jay Costello and Bud Seidenberg, 57%; Linda Burroughsford and Davis Heussler, 51%.

Buffalo Bridge Center Thursday morning – 0-2,000 game. Walt Olszewski and Sushil Amlani, 56.25%; Joyce Frayer and Anthony Girasole, 55.32%; Marilyn Wortzman and Jim Easton, 52.53%.

Buffalo Bridge Center Friday morning – Open game. Davis Heussler and Bert Feasley, 58.93%; Jay Costello and Bud Seidenbert, 54.76%; Judy Graf and Linda Burroughsford, 51.19%; Vic Bergsten and John Ziemer, 50%.

Bridge Club of East Aurora Wednesday morning – Open game. Wilson McClaren and Bob Mampe, 59.52%; Jan and Carl Hasselback, 57.14%; Joanne LaFay and Bert Feasley, 55.36%.

Non-sanctioned clubs

Amherst Senior Center Monday afternoon – (Tie) Violet and Jasbeer Makhija, Nancy Wolstoncroft and Paul Orosa, 57.1%; Shirley Cassety and George Mayers, 56.9%.

Amherst Senior Center Friday afternoon – North-south, Shirley Cassety and George Mayers, 63%; Nancy Wolstoncroft and Dan Blatz, 60%; east-west, Violet and Jasbeer Makhija, 57.4%; Pat Radtke and Nels Larson, 56.7%.

Tonawanda Senior Center Wednesday afternoon – (Tie) Judy White and Fritz Schweiger, Susan Lichtblau and Edna Fill, 62.5%.

Unit 116 Master Point Leaders for Club Play

Jan. 1, 2026, to Feb. 28, 2026

0-5 Points – Karl Bauer, 2 even; Art Ziller, 0.37; Jane Arnold, 0.24.

5-20 Points – Frank Dluhy, 4.68; Maureen Piasecki, 3.13; Susan Mann Dolce, 1.98; Amy Licata, 1.47; Linda Marsh, 1.37; Ann Bonte, 0.83; John Brennan, 0.65.

20-50 Points – Julie Mitchell, 8.88; Gini Sicignano, 1.48; Anthony Girasole, 1.25; Bill Kross, 0.95; Devon Marlette, 0.84.

50-100 Points – Molly Morris, 6.01; Mary Berlow, 1.61; Susan Burns, 1.05; Susan Cardamone, 0.98.

100-200 Points – Brian Fleming, 6.58; (tie) Ilene Rothman, Carol Licata, 2.63; Dennis Daly, 1.65; Pam Righter, 1.06; Candace Graser, 0.76; Maureen Cancilla, 0.74; Mike Meacham, 0.45.

200-300 Points – None.

300-500 Points – Joanne Nover, 5.96; David Schott, 5.44; David Whitt, 2.90; Ruth Nowatniak, 2.77; Carl Hasselback, 2.46; Agi Maisel, 1.42; Linda Milch, 0.98; Maryann Szafran, 0.37.

500-1,000 Points – Jo Nasoff-Finton, 11.05; Joyce Frayer, 7.29; Sharon Wilcox, 6.11; Wilson McClaren, 5.13; Linda Zittel, 4.99; Andrei Reinhorn, 3.53; (tie) Paula Rosen, Jim McClure, 3.51; Gordon Crone, 2.49.

1,000-1,500 Points – (Tie) Jim Easton, Marilyn Wortzman, 7.87; Mary Ball, 7.29; Paul Zittel, 6.44; Bert Feasley, 5.74; Joanne LaFay, 4.98; Betty Metz, 3.85; Terry Fraas, 3.26; Larry Abate, 1.79; Judie Bailey, 1.17.

1,500-2,500 Points – Pinky Regan, 7.59; Howard Foster, 7.25; David Colligan, 6.69; Rajat Basu, 5.14; Joyce Greenspan, 4.78; Kamil Bishara, 3.73; Tova Reinhorn, 3.64; Paula Kotowski, 3.21; Nancy Kessler, 2.19; Walt Olszewski, 2.46.

2,500-3,500 Points – Dale Anderson, 2.35.

3,500-5,000 Points – Donna Steffan, 9.85; Martha Welte, 7.10; Judy Graf, 6.30; John Ziemer, 6.29; Linda Burroughsford, 2.98; Allen Beroza, 1.42.

More than 5,000 Points – Bud Seidenberg, 9.75; Jay Costello, 9.43; Davis Heussler, 8.18; Saleh Fetouh, 7.08; Mike Ryan, 6.18; Kathy Pollock, 5.42; Chris Urbanek, 4.19; Jay Levy, 3.36; Dian Petrov, 1.80.

Dale Anderson 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.