Bridge Blog 821: January redux

Leave it to the ACBL to mess with the format for their master point races. I checked the place I usually check all weekend, figuring the January totals would be posted by the sixth of the month, and there was nothing for 2015.

Just now, however, on a whim, I clicked the “new format” link and up come the January totals. All amalgamated in the different point divisions and then broken down if you click the one you want, in my case, the 1,000 to 2,500-point list. Needless to say, like all improvements, it’s a big pain in the ass.

Anyway, in the Ace of Clubs race for Unit 116, which is just Buffalo, I’m seventh with 8.70 points in the “filtered rank,” with a little notation under “overall rank” listing me 25th in the unit.

Leading the pack is Martin Pieterse with 15.50, followed by Mike Silverman with 13.65, 2014 champ John Ziemer with 13.06, Fred Yellen with 9.47, Walt Olszewski with 9.13 and Bill Finkelstein with 8.75. Behind me are Barbara Pieterse with 7.79, Dorothy May with 7.58 and Ken Meier with 6.98.

Unlike the previous master point listings, this one goes on forever, to include everyone in the division, all the way down to Harry Meyers in 40th place with 0.28 of a point.

Biggest Ace of Clubs point winner overall for January is Barbara Libby with 19.70, followed by Jerry Geiger with 18.21 and Meg Klamp, who’s in Florida, with 16.84. Martin Pieterse is fourth.

Moving on to the Unit 116 Mini-McKenney race, which includes all points earned in clubs and tournaments, my 9.73 puts me in tenth place, 51st overall. Ahead of me are:

David Hemmer, 46.53 (he’s first overall, too); Fred Yellen, 23.98; John Ziemer, 15.65; Mike Silverman, 15.63; Martin Pieterse, 15.60 (now that’s really tight!); Sharon Gerstman, 15.16; Art Morth, 14.35; Walt Olszewski, 12.60; and Bill Rushmore, 11.10. Harry Meyers is at the bottom of this list, too, which runs to 42 names.

Looking into the District 5 level, which includes Cleveland and Pittsburgh, Unit 116 holds down the top four places on the Ace of Clubs list. I’m 14th, 64th overall. Over on the Mini-McKenney, David Hemmer is third, behind Sun Lan Ma (a new name in this division) of Kirtland Hills, Ohio, who has 91.11, and good old Fleur Howard of Gates Mills, Ohio, who has 55.50. I’m 61st, 220th overall.