Bridge Blog 900: How hot was July?

Not very. My point total for the month was 12.34, all club points. I lost ground in the master point races for Ruby Life Masters (1,500 to 2,500 points) at all levels.

In the Unit 116 (Buffalo only) Ace of Clubs race (club points only), my year-to-date total as of July 31 is 84.12, which drops me from third to fourth place. Mike Silverman is the leader with 105.21, followed by Ken Meier, 90.45; and David Millward, 90.26.

After me comes Gene Finton, 70.03; Fred Yellen, 61.69; Vince Pesce, 57.91; Allen Beroza, 52.74; Bill Finkelstein, 49.93; Carolyn Syracuse, 30.99; and Chuck Schorr, 30.98.

Among all Unit 116 players, Mike Silverman is second to Jerry Geiger, who has a whopping 137.12. Ron Henrikson is third with 101.56, followed by Judi Marshall, 95.92; Liz Clark, 95.53; Tom Koralewski, 93.59; Ken Meier, 90.45; David Millward, 90.26; Mike Ryan, 84.62; John Ziemer, 84.49; and me in 11th place, down from seventh last month, with 84.12. The eminent Meg Klamp is 12th with 82.50.

Over in the Unit 116 Mini-McKenney race, which counts all points earned everywhere, I’ve slipped from fourth to fifth among Ruby Life Masters and from 22nd to 23rd among all Unit 116 players. The Ruby Life Master list looks like this:

David Hemmer, 144.98 (ninth overall in the unit); Ken Meier, 131.29 (13th); Mike Silverman, 112.24 (19th); David Millward, 105.52 (22nd); me, 101.64 (23rd); Fred Yellen, 100.13 (24th); Gene Finton, 72.99 (35th); Allen Beroza, 65.46 (39th); Vince Pesce, 61.57 (42nd); and Bill Finkelstein, 50.98 (57th).  

No surprise to see Saleh Fetouh leading the entire list for Unit 116. Hitting tournaments in retirement, he’s amassed 358.90 points so far this year. Second and third place belong to the Weltes, John with 229.25 and Martha with 228.29. I heard something about them winning 50 points or so at a national event last month.

Then comes Jerry Geiger, 171.95; Mike Ryan, 163.30; Tom Koralewski, 158.50; Davis Heussler, 157.69; Ron Henrikson, 147.23; David Hemmer, 144.98; and Dan Gerstman, 138.96.

At the District 5 level, which includes Buffalo, Cleveland and Pittsburgh, the Unit 116 Ruby Life Masters lead the pack in the Ace of Clubs race, holding down the first four places. Fifth, after me, is Jayne Stahr of Stow, Ohio, with 71.48, barely ahead of Gene Finton. After that, our presence fades. We have only four more players in the Top 30.

Among all district players, Unit 116 Ruby Life Master leader Mike Silverman is seventh and Ron Henrikson, tops in the 300-500 point division, is eighth. Ken Meier is 14th. David Millward is 15th. I’m 21st. Overall district Ace of Clubs leader is Jerry Geiger’s 137.12. He’s followed by Patricia Katz and Arlene Port, both of Pittsburgh, with 123.86 and 113.83, respectively.  

As for the District 5 Mini-McKenney, Sue Lan Ma of Kirtland Hills, Ohio, continues on top of the Ruby Life Masters with 251.93. Charles Ladiha of Vermilion, Ohio, is a distant second with 158.39, followed by David Hemmer’s 144.98 and Ken Meier’s 131.29. Mike Silverman is ninth, David Millward is 12th, I’m 15th and Fred Yellen is 17th.

Among all District 5 players, I’m 105th in the Mini-McKenney and the rest of us Ruby Life Masters are similarly low. Sue Lan Ma is only 13th. David Hemmer is 48th.

The overall leader is good old Reanette Frobouck from Pittsburgh. She’s got 471.68 points. Next is Philip Becker from Beachwood, Ohio, with 367.17. Then it’s our Saleh Fetouh with 358.90, Kathleen Sulgrove of Twinsburg, Ohio, with 340.42; Robert Alexander of Mentor, Ohio, with 322.89; and Don Sulgrove of Twinsburg with 301.13.

Nationwide, the Ace of Clubs leaders among Ruby Life Masters are Robert Shearer of D’Iberville, Miss. (Where’s that, you ask? Just north of Biloxi), with 207.51; Ed Rauch of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., with 201.80; and Ariel Liebovitz of Houston, Texas, with 190.47. Mike Silverman is 137th. I’m 357th.

Overall national Ace of Clubs champs are Bill Kulbersh of Atlanta, Ga., with 444.67, and Bella Ionis-Sorren of Fort Lauderdale, with 354.03; and Kay Schulle of Purchase, N.Y., with 347.10. The aforementioned Robert Shearer is 47th. Unit 116 leader Jerry Geiger is 359th. The list stops at 125.33.

As for overall national Mini-McKenney leaders, the Ruby Life Masters are headed by Oren Kriegel of Chicago with 642.51, Cookie Potter of Sunset Beach, Calif., with 534.46; and Mary Jane and Michael Gladfelter of Columbus, Ohio, with 499.64. District 5’s Sue Lan Ma is 51st. Unit 116 leader David Hemmer is 338th. Ken Meier is 458th. The list cuts off at 126.55 points.

Overall overall national Mini-McKenney guys are way up there. Chris Compton of Dallas, Texas, with 2,012.14 (wow!) Kevin Dwyer of Melbourne, Fla., with 1,732.09. The inimitable Jeff Meckstroth of Clearwater Beach, Fla., with 1,670.90. District 5’s Reanette Frobouck is 176th. Unit 116’s Saleh Fetouh is 347th. This list of 500 names ends at 302.97 points.