Buffalo Niagara duplicate bridge notes: August 1, 2026 (revised)

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

Save Saturday, Aug. 29, for the annual ACBL Unit 116 picnic and bridge game. Free picnic lunch is at 11:30 a.m. at the Buffalo Bridge Center, 60 Dingens St. off Exit 1 of the northbound I-190. Game starts at 12:30 p.m. It’s $10 for unit members, $15 for non-members. You’ll need to register in advance with John Bava. Text or call him at 908-256-6466 or email jbava@roadrunner.com.

Congratulations to Mike Ryan and John Ziemer, who tied for third place in the Rochester Summer Sectional Tournament on July 25 and 26. They earned 11.99 master points. Other Buffalo players doing well in Rochester were Linda Burroughsford and Davis Heussler with 5.57 points.

Next nearby tournament is the Niagara 0-750 Sectional from Friday, Aug. 14, to Sunday, Aug. 16, for players with fewer than 750 master points in the Niagara-on-the-Lake Community Center, 14 Anderson Lane, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ont. For more info, click this link.

Come fall, the Buffalo Bridge Center will be serving up a new round of lessons. A class on the most common bidding conventions will be held on Wednesday afternoons, beginning in September. October will bring a 10-week class for new and beginning players on Thursday afternoons. And for those curious about the game and wondering how to start playing, a one-time introductory session will be offered from 9 a.m. to noon on Saturday, Sept. 19. For more info, call or text Ruth Nawotniak at 716-949-7574. 

The Bridge Center has a regular lineup of in-person games Tuesday through Friday with party games once a month on weekends, usually on Sundays. Next party game is Aug. 16. 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 have been transferred from Bridge Base Online to a new platform, RealBridge. For more info, including a player guide, visit realbridge.online. The Wednesday game, Delaware Wednesday, has been inactive since mid-March.

In addition, the club hosts a supervised play session for players who want experience and advice to improve their game from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Mondays, which has been a great success. Small games now have been added to the session. All are welcome. No pre-registration is required, but things work out better if those interested in supervised play get in touch with Julie Mitchell by calling 845-978-9480 or emailing jkmitchell070121@gmail.com.

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. 

The Bridge Center has started its mentoring program again. Experienced players who want to share their knowledge with novices are encouraged to sign up. So should new players who want to pick up tips from the masters. Call Pat Haynes at 716-472-5189 or email phaynes508@roadrunner.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: Games are held at 12:30 p.m. Mondays and Fridays in the Amherst Senior Center and at 12:30 p.m. Wednesdays in the Tonawanda Senior Center.

Upcoming tournaments

Niagara 0-750 Sectional – Niagara-on-the-Lake Community Center, 14 Anderson Lane, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ont. Friday, Aug. 14, to Sunday, Aug. 16. For more info, click this link.

Great Lakes Sectional – Erie Bridge Club, 1221 Grant Ave., Erie, Pa. Saturday, Aug. 29, and Sunday, Aug. 30. For more info, click this link.

Toronto Labor Day Sectional – St. Volodymyr Cultural Centre, 1280 Dundas St. West, Oakville, Ont. Saturday, Sept. 5, to Monday, Sept. 7. For more info, click this link.

Pittsburgh Labor Day Regional – Doubletree Meadowlands Racetrack and Casino, 340 Racetrack Road, Washington, Pa. Monday, Sept. 14, to Sunday, Sept. 20. For more info, click this link.

Buffalo Fall Sectional – Buffalo Bridge Center, 60 Dingens St. Friday, Sept. 25, to Sunday, Sept. 27. For more info, click this link.

Rochester Fall Sectional – Gates Community Center, 1605 Buffalo Road (Route 33), Rochester. Saturday, Oct. 10, and Sunday, Oct. 11.

Niagara Open Sectional – Niagara-on-the-Lake Community Center, 14 Anderson Lane, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ont. Friday, Nov. 6, to Sunday, Nov. 8. For more info, click this link.

Scores from ACBL Live for Clubs

Week of July 20 to July 26

Buffalo Bridge Center Monday evening – 0-900 game online. (Tie) Fran Riordan and David Schott, Mike and Jim Hassett, 50%.

Buffalo Bridge Center Tuesday morning – 0-1,600 game. North-South, Audrey Ray and Adrian Figliotti, 55.42%; Pat Haynes and Maryann Szafran, 54.58%; Jim McClure and Fred Hirsch, 52.92%; Jini and John Rubinstein, 52.50%; east-west, Ruth Nawotniak and Richard McGowan, 58.33%; Marilyn Wortzman and Jim Easton, 57.50%; Nathan and Bill Kross, 54.17%; Ruth Wurster and Mary Terrana, 52.92%.

Buffalo Bridge Center Wednesday morning – Open game. Jay Costello and Bud Seidenberg, 69.80%; Linda Burroughsford and Jay Levy, 62.96%; Chris Urbanek and Kamil Bishara, 56.77%; John Ziemer and Mike Ryan, 50%.

Buffalo Bridge Center Thursday morning – 0-2,000 game. Jo Nasoff-Finton and Walt Olszewski, 60%; (tie) Marilyn Wortzman and Jim Easton, Joanne Nover and Bonnie Clement, 52.50%.

Buffalo Bridge Center Friday morning – Open game. Judy Graf and Bert Feasley, 58%; Donna Steffan and Davis Heussler, 57%.

Bridge Club of East Aurora Wednesday morning – Open game. Paul Zittel and Jim Lanzo, 59.96%; Joyce Greenspan and Ruth Wurster, 57.78%; Joanne LaFay and Linda Zittel, 56.94%; Jan and Carl Hasselback, 53.71%; Donna Starnes and Pepe Justicia-Linda, 51.15%.

Non-sanctioned clubs

Amherst Senior Center Monday afternoon – North-south, George Mayers and Bill Rogers, 59%; Judie Bailey and Paul Orosz, 53%; east-west, David Young and Tim Hartnett, 59%; Margretta Lisick and Pat Radtke, 53%.

Amherst Senior Center Friday afternoon – North-south, Mary and Jim Atwood, 64%; Paul Orosz and Nels Larson, 60%; east-west, Elaine Wegrzyn and Gus Alfano, 64%; Shrikant Joshi and Ron Helfman, 58%.

Tonawanda Senior Center Wednesday afternoon – Lynda Pettit and Ann Dunlop, 60%; Susan and Harvey Lichtblau, 55%; Judy White and Fritz Schweiger, 50%.

A Gold Life Master, Dale Anderson has compiled notes on duplicate bridge activities locally since he began playing in competition more than 20 years ago. 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. Email is dahotwings@aol.com.