Bridge Blog 811: Attenuated November

Between the Thanksgiving holiday, the big snowstorm and the layoff due to my medical procedure, I missed a lot of bridge in November. I played only 12 days out of 30 and my point count shows it. Just 7.66 for the month.

How did that affect my standing in the ACBL master point races? Let’s see. In the Unit 116 Ace of Clubs (Buffalo only, points earned only in club play), hey, I’m still in fifth place in the 1,000- to 2,500-point division with 105.41.

John Ziemer continues on top, now with 189.34. Mike Silverman has moved into second with 153.63, passing Ken Meier, who has 142.09. Fred Yellen is fourth with 113.89. Can I catch him in December? Probably not. I’m going in for another procedure next week and will likely be out until January.

With luck, I’ll stay ahead of Chuck Schorr, who’s sixth with 102.91. The rest of the list includes Vince Pesce, 83.29; Barbara Pieterse, 83.18; Gene Finton, 74.82; and Dotty May, 58.58.

In the Unit 116 Mini-McKenney, which includes all points earned everywhere, I’m still sixth, now with 139.66. John Ziemer leads the list with 270.35, followed by Ken Meier, 178.05; Fred Yellen, 169.67; Mike Silverman, 168.07; and David Hemmer, 145.89. After me, there’s Chongmin Zhang, 125.38; Chuck Schorr, 109.81; Barbara Pieterse, 101.79; and Gene Finton, 97.58.

John Ziemer now has the most overall points of anyone in the unit. He’s passed Jerry Geiger (5,000 to 7,500), who has 260.48; and Saleh Fetouh, who has 254.02. Only two other players have more than 200 – Chris Urbanek (7,500 to 10,000), with 226.58; and Bud Seidenberg (5,000 to 7,500) with 209.90.

Moving on to the District 5 level, which includes Buffalo, Cleveland and Pittsburgh, the Ace of Clubs list in the 1,000- to 2,500-point division continues to be dominated by Buffalonians. We hold down the top six positions. Our only other representative is Vince Pesce, who brings up the rear in 25th place.

Ohioans rule in the District 5 Mini-McKenney – Fleur Howard of Gates Mills, 394.86; Michael Creager of Brecksville, 388.53; and Peter Merker of Mentor, 364.66. John Ziemer is fourth. Ken Meier, Fred Yellen and Mike Silverman are eighth, ninth and tenth, respectively. David Hemmer is 16th, I’m still 17th and Chongmin Zhang is 21st. The list cuts off at 121.10.