Bridge Blog 1002: Half Past December

The disasters of October (in the clubs) and November (everywhere) haven’t entirely lifted. The Sectional Tournament at the Clubs was my worst STaC in recent history. This week, however, I’m seeing light at the end of the tunnel. Here’s the month so far.

Friday, Dec. 1. 50.80% with Selina Volpatti at the Niagara Bridge Centre in St. Catharines, Ont. Thought we were fourth in the B strat for 0.25 of a point, but now that I check the results calendar, I see that D’Arcy Cropp and Norine Fenig have nosed us out of fourth place by 0.02%. They got the quarter point instead.

Saturday, Dec. 2. 57.06% at the Unit holiday party and game at Main-Transit Fire Hall Social Hall with Barbara Sadkin. Best game in a while – sixth in B, 0.72 of a point.

STaC Week.

Monday, Dec. 4 morning. 51.49% with Denise Slattery. Third in B. 0.56 of a silver point.

Monday, Dec. 4 afternoon. 44.44% with Denise.

Tuesday, Dec. 5 morning. 45.54% with Paul Zittel, last-minute sub for originally-scheduled partner Dorothy May.

Tuesday, Dec. 5 afternoon. 55.83% with Paul Zittel again, first in the B strat. 0.90 of a point in the club, bumped up to 1.11 at the district level.

Wednsday, Dec. 6 morning. 41.06% with June Feuerstein.

Wednesday, Dec. 6 afternoon. 39.90% with June. Dead last.

Thursday, Dec. 7 morning. 40.67% with June again. Not last this time, only because somebody else wound up with 32%. Winners John Ziemer and Judi Marshall had a 76.61% game. Couldn’t play afternoon session because I had to arrive at work on time.

Friday, Dec. 8 morning. 47% with Janet Frisch. Selina Volpatti was supposed to come from Canada, but couldn’t make it.

Friday, Dec. 8 afternoon. 54.93% with Walt Olszewski. Like with Janet, hadn’t played with him in a long, long time. Second overall. 1.32 points. Not good enough for a bump up on the district level.

Saturday, Dec. 9 morning. 43.27% with Denise Slattery.

Saturday, Dec. 9 afternoon. 48.81% with Denise. Still no luck.

Monday, Dec. 11. 51.59% with Joe Rooney, assigned as partner after Usha Khurana came up with a medical appointment. Third east-west. 0.35 of a point.

Tuesday, Dec. 12. 53.87% with Barbara Sadkin, first in B north-south. 0.83 of a point.

Wednesday, Dec. 13. 58.93% with Joyce Greenspan, last-minute fill-in for June Feuerstein, who canceled to take a trip to Cleveland, and a good one. Second overall. 1.53 points.

Thursday, Dec. 14. 54.42% with Marietta Kalman, third in B overall. 0.83 of a point.

Friday, Dec. 15. 58.15% with Nadine Stein at the Airport Club, first north-south, second overall after the Weltes. 1.64 point.

Best week I’ve had in a long time – 5.18 points so far and it ain’t over yet. Total for the month already beats November – 8.89. 

Bridge Blog 1001: Short STaC

Ohio players took five of the top 10 places on the master point tally from the District 5 Winter Sectional Tournament at the Clubs (STaC), held Dec. 4 to Dec. 10. Leading the Buckeyes were Stephanie and Robert Alexander, from Mentor, with 34.91. Bernie Fodor, from Murraysville, Pa., was third with 30.19.

Top Buffalo player was Alan Greer, who seemed to win something every time he played at the Airport Bridge Club. He was fourth with 29.51. One of his partners, Judi Marshall, was fifth with 27.71.

Other leading local players: John Ziemer, 17.63; Jay Costello, 16.60; David Donaldson, 13.01; Joyce Greenspan, 10.78; Bud Seidenberg, 9.61; Jay Levy, 9.28; Saleh Fetouh, 8.63; Mike Ryan, 8.22; and Walt Olszewski, 8.01.

         You have to look wayyyyy down the list to find my name. There I am, tied for 283rd with Linda Harper of Chagrin Falls, Ohio, with 2.99 points. In all, 1,047 players earned points. 

Bridge Blog 1000: November Song

Club points for the year through Nov. 30: 124.97.

Mired even more deeply into fourth place in the Ace of Clubs race (club play only) among Ruby Life Masters (1,500 to 2,500 points) in ACBL Unit 116 (Buffalo only).

Here's the Top 10: Mike Silverman, 177.39, again first among all Unit 116 players in club play; Ken Meier, 152.33, fifth in the unit; Allen Beroza right on his heels with 151.20, sixth in the unit; me, 124.97, down to 16th after two wretched months in a row. Last of the Rubies in triple figures, Fred Yellen, is fifth with 115.59 and is 18th overall.

Then it’s Dorothy May, 89.82, 27th; and Gene Finton, 79.57, 35th; and a big step down to Art Morth with 44.46, 77th overall; followed by Carolyn Siracuse, 40.27, 92nd overall; and Claire Garelek, 33.88, 105th overall. Gone from the list and gone from the tables forever is Chuck Schorr, who had 31.54 before he died.

Among all Unit 116 players in the Ace of Clubs race, the Top 10 looks like this: Mike Silverman, 177.39; John Ziemer, 169.47; Denise Slattery, 162.07; the late Jerry Geiger, who died Nov. 5 but still on the list with 153.42, which is what he had at the end of September; Ken Meier, 152.33; Allen Beroza, 151.20; Judi Marshall, 147.88; Liz Clark, 146.27; Meg Klamp, who’s permanently moved to Florida, I believe, 136.40; and Ron Henrikson, in 10th with 136.11.

Close behind are Martha and John Welte, both 133.90; Bud Seidenberg, 129.85; Martin Pieterse, 129.58; Mike Ryan, 127.91; then me and my 124.97. Now there are 22 players in the unit above the century mark, including Gene Nowatniak and Marilyn Wortzman.

Overall points for the year, as of Nov. 30: 162.49, up a mere 6.75 since October. Holding onto fifth place in this here Mini-McKenney race (all points earned everywhere) among Ruby Life Masters in Unit 116, I’m 28th among all players in the unit.  

Here's how the leaders look: Ken Meier, 277.66 (still eighth among all Unit 116 players); Fred Yellen, 189.05 (16th overall); Mike Silverman, 186.92 (17th); Allen Beroza, 179.39 (20th), me, 162.49 (28th); Gene Finton, 111.14 (44th); Dorothy May, 96.81 (54th); Chongmin Zhang, 79.81 (63rd) Art Morth, 78.82 (64th); and Bill Rushmore, 62.59 (87th).

 Three of the overall Unit 116 Mini-McKenney leaders are above the 300-point mark and the leaders stand a good chance of exceeding 400. Martha and John Welte, tied for first place, both have 373.20. (Heck, today,  Dec. 15, they came in first at the Airport Bridge Club and earned another 2.19.) The other tricentarian is Davis Heussler with 340.63.

Then it’s Mike Ryan, 296.70; Jay Levy, 290.54; John Ziemer, 285.96; Chris Urbanek, 285.46; Ken Meier, 277.66; Saleh Fetouh, 277.13; Linda Burroughsford, 250.24; Bud Seidenberg, 248.74; and the last guy in double figures, Dian Petrov with 201.53.

District 5 (Buffalo, Cleveland, Pittsburgh) Ace of Clubs. Ruby Life Masters. We Buffalo players occupy the top five rungs on the ladder.

Mike Silverman is the leader with 177.39 and he’s sixth among all District 5 Mini-McKenney players. Second is Ken Meier, 152.33 (14th overall); then Allen Beroza, 151.20 (15th); me, 124.97 (39th); and Fred Yellen, 115.59 (48th). Next Unit 116 player, Dorothy May, who has 89.82 points, is tied for 12th place with Barbara Schidlowski of Kent, Ohio.

District 5 Ace of Clubs overall.  Arlene Port of Pittsburgh (221.70) continues on top, followed by Asim Ulke of Monroeville, Pa., with 203.56. Robert Alexander of Mentor, Ohio, is next with 192.01, followed by Richard Katz of North Versailles, Pa., with 187.93; Patricia Katz of Pittsburgh, 177.80; and Unit 116 leader Mike Silverman, 177.39. John Ziemer is ninth with his 169.47 and Denise Slattery is tenth with 162.07.

District 5 Mini-McKenney. Ruby Life Masters.  Nobody’s going to catch Sue Lan Ma of Kirtland Hills, Ohio. Her 814.93 points are nearly double the total earned by second-place Craig Biddle of Pittsburgh, who has 442.94. She’s also first in the district. He’s tenth overall. 

The rest of the Top 10: William Lindgren of Slippery Rock, Pa., still third with 330.05 (19th); Ken Meier, 277.66 (34th); Russell Sheldon of Pittsburgh, 221.65 (56th); Charles Ladiha of Vermillion, Ohio, 207.48 (63rd); Fred Yellen, 189.05 (76th); Mike Silverman, 186.92 (78th); Allen Beroza, 179.39 (81st); and me! 162.49 (104th overall).

         District 5 Mini-McKenney overall. No Unit 116 players in the Top 10 here. It’s Sue Lan Ma, 814.93; Reanette Frobouck of Pittsburgh, 667.19; Philip Goulding of Wexford, Pa., 586.85; and Phillip Becker of Beachwood, Ohio, 539.11.

Then it's Robert and Stephanie Alexander of Mentor, Ohio, 529.17 and 512.60, respectively; Bernie Greenspan of Beachwood, Ohio, 500.06; followed by Kathleen and Don Sulgrove of Twinsburg, Ohio, with 496.23 and 470.68; and Craig Biddle of Pittsburgh, 442.94. The Unit 116 leaders, Martha and John Welte, are tied for 13th with 373.20.

Nationwide. Ace of Clubs. Ruby Life Masters. Thomas Roberg, of Raleigh, N.C., stays on top with 321.74, and he’s 54th among all Ace of Clubs players in the country. He’s followed by Ben Franz, of Edgewood, N.M., with 316.25; and Barry Nish of Little Neck, L.I., 310.57. 

Mike Silverman is 100th. Ken Meier is 203rd. Allen Beroza is nearby at 208th. I'm way down in 430th place. The list cuts off at 120.48.

Nationwide. Ace of Clubs overall. Bill Kulbersh of Atlanta (653.01) stays on top. Gail Wells of Dallas (579.16) remains second, ahead of Bella Ionis-Sorren of Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (554.56).

Kay Schulle of Purchase, N.Y. (510.31) stays in fourth place, followed by Sheila Gabay of Newton, Mass. (495.30); Irva Neyhart of Corvallis, Ore. (479.34); and Marion Gebhardt of Richardson, Texas (439.98).

No Unit 116 players here and only two from District 5 – Arlene Port is 323rd and Asim Ulke is 469th. The list cuts off at 200.13.  

Nationwide. Mini-McKenney. Ruby Life Masters. Gillian Miniter, of New York City, is back on top and has broken into quadruple digits. 1,031.60. Ready to go to four figures is runner-up Sudhakar Divakaruni, of Scottsdale, Ariz., with 988.27.

District 5's Sue Lan Ma, 814.93, continues in third, followed by Jeff Edelstein of Riverview, Fla., 713.74; and Mark Blanchard of Bay Shore, L.I., 671.66. Unit 116's Ken Meier is 147th and he’s the only one here from Buffalo. The list cuts off at 193.70.

Nationwide. Mini-McKenney overall.  Eleven players over the double-millennium mark now, with Chris Compton of Dallas continuing in the lead with 2,622.06. Then it's Kevin Dwyer of Melbourne, Fla., 2,523.34; Mark Itabashi of Murrieta, Calif., who we played against in Niagara Falls, Ont., 2,378.20; Jeff Meckstroth of Clearwater Beach, Fla., 2,209.30; and Greg Hinze of San Antonio, Texas, 2,192.58.

Former Buffalonian Joel Wooldridge is 25th, with 1,556.26. Sue Lan Ma is 126th. Reanette Frobouck is 217th. Philip Goulding is 297th. Phillip Becker is 364th. Eight District 5 players make the list before it ends at 483.33. 

Bridge Blog 999: Slivers of Silver

We can dream of silver points in the STaC, the Sectional Tournament at the Clubs, but unless we have a 60% game or better and rank well on the district level, we won't get too many of them.

The first two days of the District 5 Winter STaC have yielded only slivers of silver. Fortunately, the 0.56 of a point that Denise Slattery and I earned with a 51.49% game Monday morning was enough to lift her up to NABC Master, since she needed only 0.51. The afternoon, however, was a 44.44% letdown.

Dotty May said Monday she had to go to a funeral Tuesday, so Paul Zittel picked me up on the rebound. Paul and I have hardly ever played together, but he has a happy-go-lucky approach to things which is easy to take.

The morning session, however, was more happy than lucky, even though we were taking most of the bids. 46.13%. Had we capitalized on two underbid hands, however, we might have topped 50%. The afternoon found us mostly on defense. Paul played no hands at all. Still, we notched 55.83%, first in the B strat east-west, for 0.92 of a point in the club, then an upgrade on the district level to 1.11 points, where we were third in B. Most anybody earned on a district level in open games Tuesday afternoon was an even 3 points.

How have I done in previous STaCs? Here's a quick check of the past few years:

Spring 2017 – 8.07.

Winter 2016 – 9.74.

Spring 2016 – 11.57.

Winter 2015 – 7.77.

Spring 2015 – hospitalized.

Winter 2014 – 3.88.

Spring 2014 – 11.20. 

Bridge Blog 998: No-No-November

It was bad. Surrounding my worst-ever regional tournament point performance is this sad litany.

Nov. 1 with June Feuerstein. 48.61%

Nov. 2 with Eva Schmidt, 41.07%, but still second in the B strat. 0.22 of a point.

Nov. 3 with Selina Volpatti in St. Catharines, Ont., for a District 2 STaC game, 51.52%, seventh in A, third in B, 0.79 of a silver point.

Nov. 4 with Denise Slattery. 47.02%.

Nov. 6 with Marilyn Sultz. 45.54%.

Nov. 7 with Carolyn Siracuse. 47.02%.

Nov. 13 with Art Matthies, 50.80%, third in B, 0.85 of a point.

Nov. 14 with Dotty May, 57.74%, high water mark for the month, first in B, 1.60 points.

Nov. 15 with June Feuerstein. 48.66%. Are we in a rut or what?

Nov. 16 with Elaine Kurasiewicz after Marietta Kalman canceled. 54.46%, second in A, 1.11 points.

Nov. 17 with Selina Volpatti in St. Catharines, 48.77%., nevertheless fourth in B, 0.40 of a point.

Nov. 18 with Denise Slattery. 46% even. Another rut.

Nov. 20 with Carolyn Siracuee. 51.49%.

Nov. 21 with Usha Khurana. 42.86%.

Nov. 27 with Marilyn Sultz. 38.49%, low water mark.

Nov. 28 with Barbara Sadkin, 57.87%, new high water mark, second in A, 1.17 points.

Nov. 29 with June Feuerstein, 48.81%, third in B, 0.28 of a point.

Nov. 30 with Marietta Kalman. 41.52%.

5.23 points at the Airport Bridge Club, 1.19 at Bridge Centre of Niagara in St. Catharines. At this rate, no Gold Life Master for me in 2018.