Buffalo Niagara duplicate bridge notes: July 18, 2026

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

Next party game is Sunday, July 19, at the Buffalo Bridge Center, 60 Dingens St., with a summer fun theme. Refreshments at noon, game at 12:30 p.m. $8 members, $12 non-members. It’s also a unit championship game, rewarding winners with extra master points. Bring a snack to share. For partnerships, Julie Mitchell is the contact. Call 845-978-9480 or email jkmitchell070121@gmail.com.

Congratulations to Mike Ryan, who finished first among master point winners in the Buffalo Summer Sectional Tournament July 10 to July 12 in the Buffalo Bridge Center. He had 15.90 points. Runner-up was Fred Yellen, with 14.01 points.

Also doing well were Donna Steffan with 12.51 points, Judy Graf with 12.46 and Howard Foster with 12.15. Also John Ziemer, 9.53; Jay Levy, 9.44; Sushil Amlani, 8.36; Bill Rushmore, 7.56; Larry Abate, 6.55; Kamil Bishara and Chris Urbanek, both with 5.45; and Linda Zittel with 5 even. In all, 58 players earned 228.54 points.

Speaking of tournaments, the Oakville, Ont., Summer Regional gets underway on Tuesday, July 21, and continues to Sunday, July 26. For more info, click this link. 

And the Rochester Summer Sectional takes place next weekend in the Gates Community Center, 1605 Buffalo Road (Route 33), Rochester. Info available at this link.

Want to play face-to-face games in the cool of the evening? If enough players are interested, they could be organized. Email me at dahotwings@aol.com and I’ll pass your message along to people who are trying to start one.

A new round of lessons is underway at the Buffalo Bridge Center. A class on competitive bidding, covering things like overcalls, pre-emptive bids and doubles, continues Wednesdays at 2:30 to 4:30 p.m. through Aug. 26. For more info, text 716-984-3570. On Thursday from 1 to 3 p.m., there’s another class on popular bidding conventions. It runs through Aug. 27. For that one, text 716-949-7574 for info.

The Buffalo Bridge Center has a regular lineup of in-person games Tuesday through Friday with party games once a month on weekends, usually on Sundays. 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

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 Community Center, 1605 Buffalo Road (Route 33), Rochester. Saturday, July 25, and Sunday, July 26. For more info, click this link.

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 6 to July 12

Buffalo Bridge Center Tuesday morning – 0-1,600 game. North-South, Joanne Nover and David Schott, 63.75%; Ruth Nawotniak and Betty Metz, 58.75%; Jim McClure and Richard McGowan, 48.75%; east-west, Marilyn Wortzman and Jim Easton, 59.17%; Linda Milch and Susan Cardamone, 52.50%; Julie Mitchell and Mike Meacham, 50.83%.

Buffalo Bridge Center Wednesday morning – Open game. Chris Urbanek and Kamil Bishara, 62.96%; Mike Ryan and John Ziemer, 61.11%; Jay Costello and Bud Seidenberg, 60.65%; Jay Levy and Mary Ball, 59.72%; Davis Heussler and Glenn Milgrim, 55.09%.

Buffalo Bridge Center Thursday morning – 0-2,000 game. North-south, Marilyn Wortzman and Jim Easton, 60.34%; Maryann Szafran and Betty Metz, 53.45%; Joanne Nover and Dennis Daly, 53.01%; east-west, Paula Kotowski and Ed Morgan, 55.65%; Jim McClure and Richard McGowan, 53.30%; Julie Mitchell and Brian Fleming, 51.14%.

Bridge Club of East Aurora Wednesday morning – Open game. Mary Terrana and Gordon Crone, 62.50%; Pat Rasmus and Paul Zittel, 59.38%; Joanne LaFay and Linda Zittel, 57.29%.

Buffalo Summer Sectional: Friday morning open pairs – Howard Foster and Mike Ryan, 63.59%; Jay Levy and Fred Yellen, 62.64%; Judy Gray and Jim Gullo, 62.17%; Chris Urbanek and Kamil Bishara, 61.28%; Vinnie Gupta and Rajiv Tiwary, 60.71%; Jay Costello and Bud Seidenberg, 58.84%; (tie) Sushil Amlani and Larry Abate, Linda Zittel and Joanne LaFay, 57.73%.

Buffalo Summer Sectional: Friday afternoon open pairs – Donna Steffan and John Ziemer, 66.98%; Vinnie Gupta and Rajiv Tiwary, 61.53%; Chris Urbanek and Kamil Bishara, 59.49%; Howard Foster and Mike Ryan, 56.33%; Sushil Amlani and Larry Abate, 55.86%; Mary Terrana and Gordon Crone, 53.66%; Linda Zittel and Joanne LaFay, 50.65%; Jennifer and Howard Epstein, 49.82%.

Buffalo Summer Sectional: Saturday morning stratified pairs – Vinnie Gupta and Rajiv Tiwary, 67.59%; Donna Steffan and Fred Yellen, 67.28%; Jay Levy and David Colligan, 56.58%; Bill Rushmore and Art Morth, 56.38%; Sushil Amlani and Walt Olszewski, 55.35%; Judy Graf and Mike Ryan, 55.09%; Tova and Andrei Reinhorn, 54.94%; Barbara Landree and Betty Metz, 53.70%.

Buffalo Summer Sectional: Saturday afternoon open pairs – Donna Steffan and Fred Yellen, 58.89%; Bill Rushmore and Art Morth, 55.93%; Judy Graf and Mike Ryan, 55.56%; Sushil Amlani and Rajat Basu, 51.48%; Jim Lanzo and Larry Abate, 51.11%; Vinnie Gupta and Rajiv Tiwary, 48.89%.

Buffalo Summer Sectional: Sunday Swiss teams – John Ziemer, Mike Ryan, Howard Foster and Judy Graf, 151 victory points; Joanne Nover, Larry Himelein, David Schott and Bonnie Clement, 150 vps; Jay Levy, Bill Rushmore, Fred Yellen and Kathy Pollock, 147 vps; Linda and Paul Zittel, Joyce Greenspan and Florence Boyd, 98 vps.

Non-sanctioned clubs

Amherst Senior Center Monday afternoon – North-south, Connie Wilson and Miriam Regnet, 61%; Shirley Cassety and George Mayers, 60%; east-west, Mary and Jim Atwood, 58%; (tie) Violet and Jasbeer Makhija, Jack Cukierman and Melvyn Mesnekoff, 57%.

Amherst Senior Center Friday afternoon – North-south, Bobbi and Joe Huber, 63%; Elaine Wegrzyn and George Mayers, 58%; east-west, Jill and Bruce Brown, 70%; Will Brick and Dan Blatz, 62%.

Tonawanda Senior Center Wednesday afternoon – Judy White and Fritz Schweiger, 56.9%; JoAnne Biondo and Ron Fill, 54.1%; Susan and Harvey Lichtblau, 52.7%.

Unit 116 Master Point Leaders for Virtual Club Play

Jan. 1, 2026, to June 30, 2026

0-5 Points – None.

5-20 Points – Susan Mann Dolce, 5.46; Mike Rupp, 4.08; Bob Rupp, 3.27; Joan Warren, 1.86; Amy Licata, 1.62; David Taylor, 0.54; Fran Holmes, 0.48.

20-50 Points – Bill Kross, 7.60; Devon Marlette, 2.39.

50-100 Points – Mike Metzger, 6.71; Anne Slater, 6.51; Kathleen Voigt, 5.24; Susan Burns, 4.33; Fran Riordan, 3.01; Jo Ann Smith, 2.44; Elaine Idzik, 2.28; (tie) Cherry Searle, Nancy Deneen, 0.17.

100-200 Points – Fran Schmidt, 10.81; Cynthia Tashjian, 10.31; Brian Fleming, 9.29; Jim Hassett, 8.64; Candace Graser, 8.58; Maria Schory, 8.09; Amy Habib, 4.09; John Houghtaling, 3.02; Betsy Heuer, 2.13; Jim Greno, 1.51; Betsy Greno, 1.29.

200-300 Points – Judy McDermid, 16.26; Laura Houghtaling, 3.02.

300-500 Points – Maria Amlani, 25.59; David Schott, 3.49; Eugene Giorgini, 1.26; Kusum Phadke, 0.28.

500-1,000 Points – (Tie) Bram Hamovitch, Terry Hamovitch, 22.60; Martha Townson, 16.08; Sushil Amlani, 14.83; Richard McGowan, 11.38; Pat Haynes, 2.29; (tie) Jeff Bender, Henry Chudy, 1.77; Joyce Frayer, 1.17; Ed Harman, 1.16.

1,000-1,500 Points – Vic Bergsten, 25.47; Mary Ball, 6.04; Bill Rich, 2.05; Bert Feasley, 0.80.

1,500-2,500 Points – Jim Lanzo, 63.26; Walt Olszewski, 1.73; Rajat Basu, 0.76; Martin Pieterse, 0.27.

2,500-3,500 Points – Art Morth, 8.08.

3,500-5,000 Points – Martha Welte, 3.16.

More than 5,000 Points – Saleh Fetouh, 100.85; Dian Petrov, 10.30; Jay Levy, 5.98.

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.