Tuesday, March 17, 2009 Volume 52, Number 5 Daily Bulletin Houston, Texas 52nd Spring North American Bridge Championships Editors: Brent Manley and Dave Smith Surprise! You’ve been elected to the Bridge Hall of Fame! It’s not often that ACBL Goodwill Committee Lair, newly elected to the ACBL Bridge Hall of Chair Aileen Osofsky is rendered speechless, but it Fame, and was listening on the side as Steve happened (almost) at Monday’s meeting of the Robinson, a member of the selection committee, committee she has served for so long and so well. described the different ways a person can earn a Osofsky had just finished introducing Mark cherished spot in the Hall. “You can be elected the way Mark was,” Robinson explained, “or you can be given the von Zedtwitz Award, for people who would have been elected in their time as players but who aren’t known to many now.” Explaining further, Robinson said the third way is to receive the Dan Suty and Jim Hilton. Blackwood Award, for individual contributions to bridge without Texans take Silver necessarily being a great player. The latest recipient of the Ribbon championship Blackwood Award, Robinson said, Dan Suty of Houston and Jim Hilton of Austin was chosen by unanimous vote of the scored up their first NABC championship with Hall of Fame committee – “and it’s their win in the Leventritt Silver Ribbon Pairs. the chairman of this meeting.” The winners stood eighth in the field after the Aileen Osofsky and Mark Lair, soon to be members of the You could have knocked Osofsky two qualifying rounds and moved up to third after ACBL Bridge Hall of Fame, with current member Betty Ann over with a feather, and she the first final session. Their final score of 2303.59 Kennedy. breathlessly took the podium as the was 65 matchpoints ahead of second-place pair assembled group took to their feet for Gaylor Kasle of Boca Raton FL and Lewis Finkel a rousing ovation. of Jupiter FL. “It’s more than I can believe,” Suty and Hilton recently renewed a Osofsky said. “I do this because I partnership from their college days at the love it, and everyone makes me feel University of Michigan. A retired public school so welcome . I better shut up now.” teacher, Suty now works part-time as a math There was more: “Don’t tell my teacher at North Harris Community College in son (Alan Osofsky) that I didn’t know Houston. Hilton, who lived in New Jersey before what to say.” moving to Austin, retired last month from a career The standing ovation for Osofsky as a corporate attorney for Johnson and Johnson. was the second one of the meeting, the first being for Lair, who will be inducted into the Hall of Fame at the Nickell advances with 2009 Summer NABC in Washington DC. Betty Ann Kennedy, already in big Vanderbilt rally the Hall of Fame, told the group she Down 67 IMPs at the half of their match was honored to call Lair a friend. “He against the Morrie Kleinplatz squad, the Nick is the epitome of the Southern Nickell team outscored their opponents 123-45 in gentleman,” she said, “and he is a the second half to win 183-172. NABC Co-Chairs Eric Snow (back), Betty Starzec and Toni born-again Christian who lives his Kleinplatz, of Windsor ON, was playing with Snow with Goodwill Chair Aileen Osofsky. Continued on page 5 Mark Leonard, Ypsilanti MI; Roger Lord, St. Louis, and Wojciech Kurkowski, Las Vegas. Watch out for Orpha Gips, Nickell (Richard Freeman, Jeff Meckstroth, Eric Rodwell, Zia Mahmood and Bob Hamman) is she’s after your matchpoints seeded No. 1. Two other relatively high seeds did not fare as Orpha Gips has been playing bridge for more recreation center well, as No. 11 Richard Schwartz went down to than 60 years and has been a duplicate player for in Austin. No. 54 Barry Rigal 151-124, and No. 13 Jim more than 40. The 95-year-old Austin TX resident is Gips plays 2/1 Mahaffey was toppled by No. 52 China Longzhu approaching Silver Life Master status, but for all her with only a few Open 131-118. experience, she had never attended an NABC until gadgets. She she sat down to play on Monday at the Spring enjoys bridge, she NABC in Houston. says, “because it is Goodwill Message “I thought it was time,” she said. a challenge.” She “Only a few of us will win Gips says she took up bridge during World War played on Monday championships, but all of us II. “I was a war widow,” she says, “and I just didn’t in a Senior pairs can win new friends. And, have much else to do.” About 20 years later, she game. “We didn’t unlike the coveted silver discovered duplicate in the “little oil town” of do so good,” she trophies, we keep the friends Luling, about 45 miles from Austin. says, “but we’ll do without having to win them “We had a little duplicate club there,” she better tomorrow.” again and again.” recalls, “and we usually had four or five tables.” She Asked what The late Dick Frey, editor of The Bridge moved to Austin about 40 years ago. she likes best about the game, Gips is quick with a Bulletin, wrote these words in 1960 but they are Although she doesn’t travel to tournaments a lot, response: “Winning!” still applicable almost 50 years later. Gips is still heavily involved in the game, playing Then she says more seriously: “I love the people Aileen Osofsky, Chairman frequently and coordinating partnerships for a senior . making new friends and keeping the old ones.” National Goodwill Committee Page 2 Daily Bulletin SPECIAL EVENTS MEETINGS / SEMINARS / RECEPTIONS Tuesday, March 17 Friday, March 20 10 am - Noon Bridge Sub-committee meeting. Meeting Room 326. 11:30 pm - 2 am Women’s Team Trials meeting. Meeting Room 331. Wednesday, March 18 Saturday, March 21 4:30 - 7 pm Junior Lounge. Juniors who attend mentoring/coaching 10:30 am - Noon Understanding Changes in the Laws seminar. Club lessons on Bridge Base Online or any Juniors under 26 are managers and directors are invited to join ACBL National invited to come and meet Lynn Deas, Valerie Westheimer Director Rick Beye and the ACBL staff for an overview of and others. BBO mentors are invited, too. Meeting Room the recent changes in the 2008 Laws of Duplicate Bridge. A 327. question-and-answer session will be included. Meeting Room 344. Thursday, March 19 10 am -Noon Foundation for the Preservation and Advancement of Sunday, March 22 Bridge meeting. Meeting Room 326. 11 am - 5:30 pm Vugraph. Room: TBA. 8 pm til Vugraph. Room: TBA. CELEBRITY SPEAKER PROGRAM Be sure to hear these free expert lectures in Houston. Thursday, March 19 Tuesday, March 17 12:15 pm John Zilic The Missing Diamond! 12:15 pm Haig Tchamitch Support Doubles 6:45 pm Ellen Kent Director – Why Call? 6:45 pm Larry Cohen Bidding Over Preempts Friday, March 20 Wednesday, March 18 12:15 pm David Berkowitz Partnerships 12:15 pm Kitty Cooper Spoil Declarer’s Plan 6:45 pm GS Jade Barrett The Learning Curve 6:45 pm Barry Harper Hand Evaluation and Revaluation LATE NIGHT/ENTERTAINMENT Entertainment will be provided in Lanier Ballroom J at 11:30 p.m. Food will be served nightly in the Lanier Ballroom pre-function area at 11:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 17 Tuesday, March 17 Irish dancers St. Patrick’s mashed potato bar Wednesday, March 18 Wednesday, March 18 Dance to High Resolution BBQ sandwiched and chips White tops 10,000 MPs ACBL restaurant shuttle Ed White of Grand 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. daily Blanc MI was on the winning team in Shuttle Route 1: This bus will circle every 10 Sunday’s Bryan/College minutes. There will be two buses on this route. Station A/X Swiss Stop1: Stopping in front of House of Blues on Teams, pushing his Caroline St. masterpoint total past Houston Pavilions-following restaurants located 10,000 and making him here: a Platinum Life Master. House of Blues White was playing McCormick & Schmick’s Seafood Restaurant with Marty Hirschman Guadalajara del Centro Jim and Mimi Lawrence, of Brookshire TX, of Southfield MI and Lisa Berkowitz and Susan Josephine’s Ristorante flank Phillip Alder who spoke Monday on Miller of Boca Raton FL. Stop 2: Stopping on Lamar St. next to defensive signals. Alder is bridge columnist for He is the president of a management company Massa’s Seafood Grill The New York Times. in Flint MI. Massa’s Seafood Grill. Learn from the best Strip House There are talks by well-known expert bridge Gavin Wolpert players each day. The best news is they are free. has advanced to the Shuttle Route 2: This bus will circle every 20 Come and enjoy and learn. rank of Grand Life minutes. There will be four buses on this route. The lessons are daily at 12:15 and 6:45 and Master, a rank Stop 1: Stopping on Texas Ave next to Hard held in the Intermediate-Newcomer area on the requiring more than Rock Café. fourth floor. 10,000 masterpoints Bayou Place-following restaurants located here: and a win in an Hard Rock Café NABC+ event. Mingalone Italian Bar and Grill New Life Master Wolpert lives in Las Slick Willie’s Susan Seitz of Des Moines IA earned Life Vegas, but is formerly Stop 2: Stopping at Sambuca’s on the corner Master status in the side game playing with her of Toronto.