Bridge Blog 1116-A: Buffalo Winter Sectional

I cleared the decks. I lined up partners. I was as ready as I could possibly be for the weekend in the social hall at the Main-Transit Fire Department in Amherst.

Was my game up to it? Not entirely.

With Nadine Stein in the side game on Friday, a hit and a miss. 47.89% in the six-table game in the morning. Would have been 51% and a silver point, but Walt Olszewski entered a score wrong, giving us +130 for a contract that he and his partner had actually played and won. Had he not asked for a summary, he wouldn’t have noticed. Afternoon was only a 2½-table affair. Here Nadine and I redeemed ourselves with a 57.50% effort, second overall. 2.24 points.

With Ruth Wurster on Saturday, two whiffs. 44.58% in the morning, 40.83% in the afternoon, both six-table games.

So I wasn’t sure what to expect in Swiss teams on Sunday with Florence Boyd and Ruth Wurster playing north-south on our team, while on east-west I was reunited with Denise Slattery, who drove in from Caledonia for the day.

We got off to a rocky start, me and Denise and team-wise as well, but we didn’t lose by a lot in the first two rounds – 5 International Match Points and 4 IMPs.

In Round 3, against Barbara Landree and our tournament emcee, Betty Metz, it looked like we were heading for a big dive, though, when Denise plunged ahead to a 5 Diamond doubled vulnerable contract and proceeded to go down five. Minus 1,400. 17 IMPs for the opposition. Miraculously, we got 13 of them back on the next hand when I led an Ace of Diamonds against a 6 Spade slam and then a second Diamond when Denise signaled high to show that she had the King.

It was only a 3 IMP win, but it was prelude to bigger things on the next two matches. Then our good fortune brought us up against Mike Ryan and Howard Foster in Round 6. They nailed us thoroughly – 22 IMPs – on their way to finishing second overall.

Round 7 was wild and wooly against Jeff Bender and Henry Chudy, a seesaw battle to a 19-19 IMP draw. We were in the B stratification, which awarded bonus points to the top four finishers. And hallelujah! Third in B, seventh overall. 2.01 points. 4.25 for the weekend.

How does this stack up against my other Buffalo Winter Sectionals? Let’s go to the history books.

2019 – 0.78.

2018 – 6.68.

2017 – 5.97.

2016 – 3.22.

2015 – 1.03.

2014 – 1.68.

2013 – 1.70.

2012 – 0.93.

2011 – 2.13.

Bridge Blog 1116-B: Bits and pieces

Cold, cold, cold. Every day I remembered too late that the social hall at the Main-Transit Fire Hall in Amherst is frigid in January. Even when the temperature outdoors is above freezing, the way it was this weekend. Saturday I retrieved my parka in the middle of the morning game and wore it the rest of the day. Sunday we were in front of a door to the entry hall, thanks to Flo Boyd’s demand for a stationary table, but there were a big note telling players exiting for the restrooms to close the doors. It helped.   

Anemic attendance. What seemed a little light on Friday and Saturday was dramatically smaller on Sunday. Only 16 Swiss teams. No St. Catharines people at all.

Total master points were 477.96 earned by 122 players. How does that measure up to previous years?

2019 – 515.30 points by 127 players. 20 tables for Swiss.

2018 – 578.10 points by 146 players. 20 tables for Swiss.

2017 – 588.20 points by 135 players. 24 tables for Swiss.

2016 – 594.02 points by 137 players. 23 tables for Swiss.

Sad news. I got a text in the middle of the afternoon Sunday that one of my regular partners, Celine Murray, had just died. I’d seen her daughter, Kathy Fenn, in the supermarket a couple days ago. Celine is well remembered from the days when she taught introductory bridge in the Hengerer’s department store at Main Street and Eggert Road in Eggertsville, where she worked in human relations. That was back in the 1960s. Petite and always well turned-out, I treasured the moments when she sat underneath the Marilyn Monroe poster at the Airport Bridge Club, her blonde waves a living echo of Marilyn’s. I took a phone photo of her there. I’ll have to dig it up.

This Bud’s for Bud. Sunday’s game included a 90th birthday celebration for Bud Seidenberg, who is not only one of the city’s most enduring players, but also one of the most accomplished. There was a cake. And there was a victory for Bud’s team – Jay Costello, Fred Yellen and Saleh Fetouh, all top-notch players. They won 7.15 master points. It was a good weekend for Bud. He was the tournament’s leading master point winner – 22.14.

Bud Seidenberg receives the first piece of birthday cake from Donna Steffan.

Bridge Blog 1115: Goodbye, 2019

The year ended with a sweet taste – my best month in long time. My Ace of Clubs total, for points earned in club play only, jumped 16.20 points in December, giving me a final figure of 134.86. As for the Mini-McKenney, which includes all points earned everywhere, that went up 25.18, wrapping up the year with 156.09 points. How does this align in the ACBL master point races? Let’s take a look.

Unit 116 (Buffalo only). Ruby Life Masters (1,500 to 2,500 points). Ace of Clubs (club play only). I slipped ahead a notch to fourth place. The Top 10:

Linda Burroughsford, 196.24 (up from fourth to third among all players in Unit 116); Martin Pieterse, 182.62 (down to sixth from fifth overall); Fred Yellen, 160.85 (up to #12 from #13); moi, 134.86 (up to #18 from #19); and Ken Meier, 131.24 (down to #20 from #18).

Everybody else keeps their places among the Rubies – Davis Heussler, 124.77 (down to #24 from #23 overall); John Sinclair, 113.17 (up to #24 from #26); Dorothy May, 105.30 (down to #30 from #28); Gene Finton, 93.59 (down to #36 from #34); and Art Matthies, 84.60 (steady at #43).

Unit 116. Ace of Clubs. All Players. Alan Greer, Alan Greer, Alan Greer. Adding another 31.30 points in December, he finished the way he started – on top. 439.97 points. The rest of the Top 10:

Nancy Wolstoncroft, 251.26; Linda Burroughsford, 196.24; John Welte, 189.27; Barbara Libby, 186.53; Martin Pieterse, 182.62; Gay Simpson, 181.68; Mike Silverman, 174.10; Martha Welte, 170.61; and John Ziemer, 168.83. Just outside the magic circle – Allen Beroza, 166.76.

Unit 116. Mini-McKenney (all points earned everywhere). Ruby Life Masters.

I stay seventh among the Rubies with 156.09, but move up to #36 from #42 overall. The final standings are largely unchanged:

Linda Burroughsford crashes through the half-century mark with another 40-plus point month, finishing on top with 537.72. She’s first among all Unit 116 players, too.

Davis Heussler stays second with 470.06, but slips from fourth to fifth among all Buffalo players.

Then it’s Ken Meier, 268.86 (steady at #13 overall); Fred Yellen, 206.99 (still #23 overall); Martin Pieterse, 206.81 (still #24); and John Sinclair, 163.54 (up to #31 from #32).

I’m seventh with 156.09 (up to #36 from #42); Dorothy May is eighth with 119.95 (down to #47 from #45); Art Matthies, 118.60 (up to #48 from #52); and Gene Finton, 116.26 (down to #50 from #44).

Unit 116. Mini-McKenney. All Players.

Linda Burroughsford’s final burst increased her margin over challenger Saleh Fetouh. A month ago, she was less than six points ahead of him. She finished with a 24-point lead. Here’s the Top 10:

Linda Burroughsford, 537.72; Saleh Fetouh, 513.55; Alan Greer jumping to third from fifth with 475.79, bumping John Welte, 474.10; and Davis Heussler, 470.06.

Then it’s Martha Welte, 448.38; Mike Ryan, 392.65; Glenn Milgrim, 363.77; John Ziemer, 319.60; and Chris Urbanek, 318.77. Dian Petrov, eighth a month ago, finishes #11 with 315.45.

District 5 (Buffalo, Cleveland, Pittsburgh). Ace of Clubs. Ruby Life Masters.

Unit 116 holds three of the top four positions and five of the Top 10. Here they are:

Linda Burroughsford, 196.24 (up to eighth from tenth overall in the district); Martin Pieterse, 182.62 (down to #13 from #11 overall); and Judith Shapiro of Akron, Ohio, jumping from fifth to third with a 26.40-point month to 164.46 (up to #26 overall from #34).

Then it’s Fred Yellen, 160.85 (up to #27 overall from #28); Kenneth Eichler of Murrysville, Pa., 152.75 (down to #32 from #31); Marvin Shapiro of Akron, Ohio, jumping onto the list in sixth place 137.80 (#42 overall); moi, up to seventh from ninth a month ago with 134.86 (up to #48 from #57); William Tordella of Bemus Point, 133.43 (#49); James Wheeler of Edinburg, Pa., down from sixth to ninth with 133.20 (down to #50 overall from #44); and Ken Meier, down to tenth from eighth with 131.24 (and down to #53 from #48 overall).  

District 5. Ace of Clubs. All Players. Alan Greer, still first with 439.97. Nancy Wolstoncroft, still second with 251.26. But then Reanette Frobouck of Pittsburgh had a 33.78-point month to regain third place with 241.69.

Displaced to fourth was Stephanie Alexander of Mentor, Ohio, with 224.75. Then Robert Alexander, also from Mentor, 222.93; Arlene Port of Pittsburgh, 215.91; Bruce Cahoon of Akron, Ohio, 205.17; Linda Burroughsford, 196.24; Kenneth Bergman of Wexford, Pa., 192.03; and John Welte, 189.27.

More Unit 116 players show up in the Second 10. Barbara Libby is #11 with 186.53. Martin Pieterse is #13 with 182.62. Gay Simpson is #14 with 181.68. Mike Silverman is #18 with 174.10. And Martha Welte is #20 with 170.61.

District 5. Mini-McKenney. Ruby Life Masters.

Once again, Unit 116 players hold three of the top four spots, five of the Top 10. Here they are:

Linda Burroughsford, 537.72 (up to #11 from #13 among all District 5 players); Davis Heussler, 470.06 (down to #17 from #18 overall); Doug Snyder of Shaker Heights, Ohio, 291.42 (steady at #37 overall); Ken Meier, 268.86 (down to #47 from #42); and Robert Zimmerman of Pittsburgh, 259.50 (down to #51 from #49).

Then it’s James Fox of Canonsburg, Pa., 252.27 (up to #57 from #61); Judith Shapiro of Akron, Ohio, 235.71 (up to #64 from #72); Fred Yellen, 206.99 (up to #82 from #84); tied with Marvin Shapiro of Akron, Ohio, 206.99 (up to #82 from #94); and Martin Pieterse, 206.81 (up to #84 from #86).

Unit 116’s John Sinclair is still #16 with 163.54 (up to #126 from #129 overall) and I’m up to #19 from #27 with 156.09 (up to #139 overall from #171).

District 5. Mini-McKenney. All Players. Once again eight Ohio players in the Top 10, two from Pennsylvania, none from Unit 116, though Linda Burroughsford was only two points away from tenth place. Here they are:

Sue Lan Ma of Kirtland Hills, Ohio, 977.23; Phillip Becker of Beachwood, Ohio, 677.54; Stephanie and Robert Alexander of Mentor Ohio, 645.97 and 644.15; Philip Goulding of Wexford, Pa., 632.29; Bernie Greenspan of Beachwood, Ohio, 629.31; Reanette Frobouck of Pittsburgh, 623.03; Kathleen and Don Sulgrove of Twinsburg, Ohio, 600.17 and 562.12; and Fleur Howard of Gates Mills, Ohio, 539.68.

Saleh Fetouh is #13 with 513.55. Alan Greer is #15 with 475.79. John Welte is #17 with 474.10. Davis Heussler is #18 with 470.06. And Martha Welte is #20 with 448.38.

(pause till Ground Hog Day)

Now for the really, really big hitters.

Ace of Clubs. Ruby Life Masters. Nationwide.

Tight race here. Russ Pearly of The Villages, Fla., aced out Jim Loffree of Naples, Fla., by just five points – 376.52 to 371.21.

Familiar names after that. Mason Barge of Atlanta, 340.33; Mark Crumrine of Ocala, Fla., 333.43; Sid Perutz of Dallas, 318.22; Christopher Smith of Vero Beach, Fla., 308.70; Christine Converse of Highland Beach, Fla., 303.48; John Miller of Chicago, 296.78; Eileen Boal of Albany, Ore., 298.09; and Aivars Lapins of Cambria, Calif., 292.48.

Any Unit 116 folks here? Sure, there are. Our leader, Linda Burroughsford, is #78 with 196.24. Martin Pieterse is tied for #131 with 182.62. Sometimes Western New Yorker David Millward, now listed at Vero Beach, Fla., is #134 with 182.08. Fred Yellen is #226 with 160.85. And there I am at #464 with my 134.86, nestled between Judy Alvord of Laguna Niguel, Calif., with 134.92, and J. Sanders of Tulsa with 134.79. The list cuts off at 132.43.

Ace of Clubs. All players. Nationwide.

I must look into how these guys get so many points in club play. Are they really huge games that award 10+ points to winners? Or do these people play three times a day? At any rate, here are the champs:

Bill Kulbersh of Atlanta, a runaway winner with 712.85. Next are Neil Silverman of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., 602.15; Francine Feldman of Boca Raton, Fla., 528.97; David Hudson of The Villages, Fla., 526.35; En Xie of St. Louis, 526.23; Sheila Gabay of Newton, Mass., 522.30; Robert Epstein of Atlanta, 521.61; Harry Kaufman of North Redington Beach, Fla., 495.26; Jeff Edelstein of Tampa, 488.62; and Bella Ionis-Sorren of Fort Lauderdale, 478.77. Buffalo’s Alan Greer is #15 with 439.97. Nancy Wolstoncroft is #337 with 251.26. The list cuts off at 226.05.

Mini-McKenney. Ruby Life Masters. Nationwide. Nobody in four figures here. Still, a relatively tight race for the top.

Winner is Harrison Luba of Lynnfield, Mass., 871.09; followed by Thomas Rush of Houston, 856.44; Samuel Amer of New York City, 668.39; Dolores Aquino of Houston, 657.54; Amy Casanova of Portland, Ore., 649.70; Christopher Smith of Vero Beach, Fla., 633.06; Bill Cook of Louisville, Ky., 618.93; Shailesh Gupta of Aliso Viejo, Calif., 591.70; Jay Lucas of Little Rock, Ark., 574.73; and Ann Buchholz of Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., 573.44.

Then people from the Ace of Clubs list start showing up. Mark Crumrine, third on the Ace of Clubs lineup, is #12 with 556.55; the Ace of Clubs champ, Russ Pearly, is #13 with 546.67; and our very own Linda Burroughsford is #14 with 537.72. Yea, Linda!

Linda’s tournament partner, Davis Heussler is #23 with 470.06. Ken Meier is #224 with 268.86. Fred Yellen, with his 206.99, and Martin Pieterse, with 206.81, fall just short of the magic Top 500. It cuts off at 208.33.

Mini-McKenney. All players. Nationwide.

The winner is a guy I played against in the Niagara Falls, Ont., regional two years ago – Mark Itabashi of Murrieta, Calif. His total for the year was 2,607.46. How steep an achievement is that? Well, it took me 14 years of playing competitively to get that many points. On the other hand, in 2018, when Itabashi finished second to Joe Grue of New York City, he had 3,218.39 points.

Anyway, back to the future past. Second in 2019 was the legendary Jeff Meckstroth of Clearwater Beach, Fla., with 2,413.37. Joe Grue was third with 2,337.76.

After that, it’s Kevin Dwyer of Melbourne, Fla., 2,329.50; Jacob Morgan of Madison, Wis., 2,205.75; Shan Haung of Melbourne, 2,103.20; Meckstroth’s collaborator Eric Rodwell of Clearwater, Fla., 1,951.33; another guy I’ve played against, Alex Hudson of Raleigh, N.C., 1,947.50; John Hurd of New York City, 1,927.45; and Adam Grossack of Newton, Mass., 1,894.25.

Former Buffalonian Joel Wooldridge, now of Jackson Heights, Queens, is #14 with 1,726.58. District 5 champ Sue Lan Ma is #76 with 977.23, while her frequent tournament partner Peter Petruzzellis of Scarborough, Ont., is #89 with 947.44.

Unit 116 players? Linda Burroughsford is #406 with 537.72. And there’s Saleh Fetouh at #462 with his 513.55. But nobody else. The Top 500 list stops at 500.55.