March 15-March 25, 2001 Kansas City, Missouri 44th Spring North American Bridge Championships Vol. 44, No. 4 Monday, March 19, 2001 Editors: Henry Francis and Jody Latham New Vanderbilt plan is all knockout play A new method of setting up first-round play in the Vanderbilt was used yesterday. In the past, three- way matches were used to reduce the field to a work- able number (a power of 2). There are inherent flaws in three-way matches. The new method utilizes head- to-head matches all the way. Yesterday there were 97 teams entered in the event. The #1 seed, the Nickell team, was given a bye. Then 15 groups of four teams were set up. Two teams in each four-team group played head-to-head for 32 boards. The winners automatically qualified for the second round and had the evening off. The losers in Longtime friends (from left) Tarek Radjef, Charles Weed each group played a 32-board match against each and John Fisher are here at the Kansas City NABC. other, with the winner advancing and the loser elimi- nated. As a result, 45 of the 60 teams advanced. The remaining 36 teams played head-to-head 64- Welcome back, board matches, with the 18 winners advancing. One team had a bye, 45 qualified in four-way Here’s how to break matches and 18 moved ahead in two-way matches. John Fisher That adds up to 64, a power of 2. That means there For Dr. John Fisher, playing at a North Ameri- can be head-to-head 64-board matches all the rest of can Bridge Championship is a return to the scene Barry Crane record the way,. where he was a mainstay during the Fifties, Sixties, (Jim Barrow will be at Randy Baron’s book desk Seventies and part of the Eighties. at the Hyatt today from 7 to 7:45 p.m. to autograph “Those were exciting times – qualifying and finals copies of his new book.) Vanderbilt seeds win rounds with everybody thrown into the pot. I come What do you have to do to break the Barry Crane The top-seeded Nick Nickell team had no home from a tournament now and with all the different Top 500 record? Nothing to it. Just . trouble in yesterday’s opening round – they were events, I don’t know who won what,” says Fisher, a • Travel 93,000 miles the only team with a bye to today’s round of 64. retired physician who lives in Dallas. • Play with 216 partners and teammates Nickell (Dick Freeman, Bob Hamman-Paul There are other differences: “Bidding is more ac- • Play 18,504 hands Soloway, Jeff Meckstroth-Eric Rodwell), winner of curate and more scientific – that’s the major difference. • Compete in 729 sessions the 2000 Bermuda Bowl and the 2000 Vanderbilt, is People don’t dress up like they used to – they want to • Compile a 58.86percentage in pairs going for its second Vanderbilt win as a team. be comfortable and I can’t blame them.” • Stay in 48 different hotels The other top seeds had little trouble advancing Fisher estimates that during his “avid period” from Well, that’s how Jim Barrow of Lake Charles LA Sunday. 1953 to about 1985, he attended every NABC. His did it in 1999. His record run added up to 3584.26 points An interesting contest today will match Shawn record is impressive: wins in the Master Mixed Teams for the year, erasing Grant Baze’s longstanding record Quinn (Mildred Breed, Michael Whitman-Garey in 1964, Vanderbilt in 1965, Grand National Teams in of 3270. Hayden) against her husband, Joe Quinn (Ira Hessel, 1975 and (Spring) Open Pairs in 1970, 1971, 1972 and A little-known fact – 1999 was not Barrow’s first Alan LeBendig, William Wickham, Jon Brissman, 1974. attempt to set a Top 500 record. He smashed the old Sidney Brownstein). Continued on Page 2 mark in 1980, scoring 2371 points – but he chose the wrong year. Barry Crane was backing Ron Andersen that year, and it always was tough to top anyone Crane backed. Andersen also broke the record that year, scor- Today is ing more than 2700 points. 1999 was a tough year for Barrow – all he could think of was bridge and whether he was on track for Goodwill Day! his goal of scoring more points than anyone else ever had. But 2000 perhaps was equally tough – he worked with Kay Blake, also of Lake Charles, to chronicle his Meet five generations of Mary activities en route to setting a new masterpoint stan- Savko’s family. On the right is dard. Mary, who hails from Pittsford The result is Record Run, an interesting book that VT. Jennifer Rickert, her granddaughter is on the left, and is a day-by-day journal of his journeys through 1999. her daughter, Valerie Rickett, is Continued on Page 2 in the middle. In front is her 98- year-old father, Merle Macomber. He’s holding Kegan James Rickert, who was born Stein, Caravelli lead on New Year’s Day. Mary’s father taught her to play bridge when she was just 14. Her father Silver Ribbon Pairs was a regular at duplicates until Ethan Stein and Gerald Caravelli have a slim he turned 96 – he even got used lead going into today’s two final sessions of the to bidding boxes. Mary had a Silver Ribbon Pairs, limited to players 55 and startling – and heart-warming -- experience nine years ago. Jane older. Cohen, the daughter she gave Stein-Caravelli scored 2117.50 matchpoints, fol- up for adoption 34 years before lowed by John and Helen Gustafson, 2085.25; John wanted to get to know her birth Fisher-Tarek Radjef, 2058.50; Charles Gray-Jess mother, and she finally found Stuart, 2031.50, and Ed Lewis-Jim Murphy, 2008.50. Mary. They have been close These five pairs were the only ones to top the 2000- ever since. point mark. Page 2 Daily Bulletin SPECIAL EVENTS ? ? Trivia Quiz ? ? Monday, March 19 1. What famous author had this to say about bridge? – “Bridge is the most intelli- Goodwill Day gent and entertaining card game the wit of man so far has devised.” 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. Easybridge! stages A & B with Easybridge! field coordinator Marti Ronemus. Hyatt, 2. Who is the only woman ever to have Fremont Room. (Break between stages.) won all four of the major women’s champion- 10:00 a.m. - Noon Teacher Update Meeting with Julie Greenberg, manager of the ACBL Education ships – Venice Cup, World Women’s Team Department, and Betty Starzec. Hyatt, Van Horn B. Olympiad, World Women’s Pairs and 12:15 p.m. Intermediate/Newcomer Speakers Program: Barbara Segram, Defense -- the Most Exciting Part of the Game. Westin, Century Ballroom C. Seagram, Toronto, is the McConnell Cup? owner/manager of Kate Buckman’s Bridge Studio, one of Canada’s largest. She is the Answers on page 4. co-author of 25 Bridge Conventions You Should Know and 25 Ways to Compete in the (All the material you see in these quizzes Bidding. is right out of the Sixth Edition of The Official 5:00 - 7:00 p.m. Goodwill Reception. Westin, Washington Park Place. Encyclopedia of Bridge, which will be avail- 7:15 p.m. Intermediate/Newcomer Speakers Program: Curtis Cheek, Bridge -- the Language of able this fall. Sign up now for a special price Love. Westin, Century Ballroom C. Cheek, Huntsville AL, is a bridge professional offer – see the latest issue of the Bridge Bulle- who has won numerous regional events. tin.) Midnight Wes Winters playing the grand piano. Also the Hyatt’s famed chocolate raspberry ruble, coffee, beer and wine. Hyatt lobby level. Tuesday, March 20 Record Run Continued from page 1 12:15 p.m. Intermediate/Newcomer Speakers Program: Alan LeBendig, Responding to Preempts -- How High Do You Go? Westin, Century Ballroom C. LeBendig, Los Angeles, is District 23’s representative to the ACBL Board of Directors. He is the co- Some of the more interesting hands are interspersed owner of the Barrington Bridge Club in Los Angeles and is an ACBL Grand Life through the book. However, the book dwells primarily Master. on how he reacted to the daily turmoil of bridge, bridge, 7:15 p.m. Intermediate/Newcomer Speakers Program: Jade Barrett, It’s All in Your Head. bridge. Altogether he played in three North American Westin, Century Ballroom C. Barrett, Vancouver WA, is a professional player and championship, 41 regionals, three sectionals and eight teacher who is also an ABA Life Master. club games. Most of the time he played two sessions a Midnight Diane “Mama” Ray and her Kansas City Jazz. Also get a bowl of hot clam chowder day, but there were frequent days on which he com- and a cold beer or a glass of wine. peted three times, adding a morning knockout to the two sessions in the afternoon and evening. Wednesday, March 21 Barrow is here in Kansas City. He was invited by 12:15 p.m. Intermediate/Newcomer Speakers Program: Shannon Cappelletti, Slam Bidding. several players to compete in the Vanderbilt, but he Westin, Century Ballroom C. Cappelletti, Red Bank TN, is a professional bridge sees this as a year for relaxation – “now I’m doing a player and teacher. She won the 1999 North American Mixed Pairs and is a Diamond lot of fishing.” So he’s playing in the Silver Ribbon Life Master. Pairs. 7:15 p.m. Intermediate/Newcomer Speakers Program: Michael Huston, Doing It with Finesse.