Questions? Comments? Concerns?
Contact your District 4 board members.
PRESIDENT
Jeanne Gehret
jeannegehret@comcast.net
VICE PRESIDENT
Betsy Cutler
betsy2955@gmail.com
SECRETARY
Bill Bauer
william.baueriii@verizon.net
TREASURER
Pat Civale
pat@csa-accounting.com
DISTRICT DIRECTOR
Joann Glasson
joannglasson@msn.com
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This summer, District 4 is offering two Regionals. The Philadelphia Regional occurs during the last week of June, and the Finger Lakes Regional starts on August 11. Additional information about both tournaments is included below, and on the District 4 website: www.4acbl.org
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The 2023 Philadelphia Regional will be held at the Alloy (a Doubletree Hotel by Hilton), King of Prussia.
CLICK HERE for additional details. And if you plan to take advantage of the bridge room rate - the time to act is NOW because the rate expires on June 6.
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If you’re a bridge teacher and interested in becoming Best Practices certified, then take note that the course is being offered on Sunday at King of Prussia Bridge Club, and continuing Monday at the venue (6/25-26). District 4 is subsidizing a portion of the course and assessment fees for District 4 members, so it’s just $50! Interested? See the schedule and how to enroll HERE.
- Also on the week’s schedule – a 2-night evening game, as well as an online game (exclusively for District 4 players) in the event you’re unable to attend in person.
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Until next month,
I welcome your comments or suggestions (jeannegehret@comcast.net)
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Plans for the return of our Upstate NY Regional – now known as the Finger Lakes Regional – are well underway. Tournament Chairs Betty Youmans and Phil Geibel are looking forward to welcoming you for a fun 5 days of bridge.
CLICK HERE for the schedule and hotel information, as well as dining options and tourism ideas for the area. Also, note that the Finger Lakes Regional will be District 4’s first Regional that will not require proof of Covid vaccination to participate.
GET YOUR NORTH AMERICAN PAIRS (NAP) QUALIFICATION
During the months of June, July, and August, clubs of all kinds (face-to-face AND online) offer NAP Qualifying games. Ask your local club/online club when they’re offering NAP games. By playing in those games, you can earn the “Q” (qualification) and the opportunity to participate in the District Finals which are scheduled in late September through early October.
For more information about NAPs - USE THIS LINK - to read about key information and for the locations and timing of District Finals games.
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From the District Director |
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I am more excited about the future of the game of bridge and the ACBL than I have ever been in my time on the ACBL board. From my perspective, the future of ACBL is bright – and here is why:
Bronia Jenkins, our new Executive Director, has brought a long-needed enthusiasm and energy to ACBL management.
Operations in headquarters are running smoother than ever. Paul Cuneo has worked without compensation for the last six months using his business expertise to implement much needed changes.
ACBL employees have done a terrific job of stepping up to take on new responsibilities.
We have experienced an uptick in membership for the first time in years. The membership initiatives created by volunteers like Jay Whipple, Uday Ivaturay and Robert Todd are showing terrific results.
We have downsized the organization to adjust to the post-pandemic climate, a necessary step for the organization to survive financially.
Jay Whipple is working as a volunteer full time to solve the long-standing I/T issues and building a new I/T team.
I serve with a board of directors that are committed to a better future for the ACBL and bridge. The ship is being steered by experienced and knowledgeable volunteers. We have been working full time over the last one and one-half years to build a better and stronger ACBL because we care about the future of the game.
Please share with me any suggestions you have about what can be done to increase our players’ enjoyment of the wonderful game of bridge.
Joann
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Regionals
June 26-July 2
August 7-11
October 30-November 5
December 14-16
Sectionals
June 2-4
June 7-8
July 8-9
September 8-10
September 22-23
October 6-8
October 20-22
November 11-12
December 14-16
STaCs
June 12-18
July 31-August 6
November 13-19
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The 4Spot features fantastic contributors, on a regular rotation: |
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Larry's Learning Center by Larry Cohen:
January, April, July, October
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For Novices Only by Marti Ronemus:
February, May, August, November
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Guess Who's Coming:
March, June, September, December
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Guess Who's Coming?
Thanks to Dave Wachsman for his faithful contributions over the years. We wish him well as he embarks on new adventures in another district, and introduce a new triennial 4Spot series called "Guess Who's Coming?", in which we have a chance to enjoy wise guidance from talented locally-affiliated teachers and writers.
Please welcome this month's guest, Rex Saffer, who brings us an article oriented toward novices, the life-blood of our game:
Opening and Rebidding Balanced Hands
by Rex Saffer
Hand Evaluation
As with any hand we pick up, we begin by counting our high card points (HCP) and adding to that any length points we might have. If our hand is balanced, it has one of just three possible distributions:
4–4–3–3, 4–4–3–2, or 5–3–3–2. With any other distribution, our hand is unbalanced or semi–balanced.
We frequently open or rebid in notrump with these balanced hands. Occasionally, we do this with a semi–balanced 5–4–2–2 distribution, but only if our five–card suit is a minor and we will have a rebid problem after hearing partner’s response.
What to Open?
- 15–17 Balanced? Open 1NT.
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5–card Major? Open 1♥ or 1♠.
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Otherwise, open 1♣ or 1♦.
Hand Strength Ranges
As opener, we may hold a wide variety of hand strengths. With a balanced hand:
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Opener Rebids with a Balanced 12–14 HCP
After a one–level response, opener raises responder’s suit, rebids at the one–level, or passes:
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A two–level response in a new lower ranking suit is 100% forcing – opener may not pass and must find a descriptive rebid. Simple raises and notrump responses are not forcing. |
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(1) 2♥/2♠ is not a reverse in 2/1. If playing Standard, discuss with partner.
(2) Depends on system, most play this as weak (3–5 points) with a six–card suit.
(3) 2NT = 11–12 balanced.
(4) A great–looking thirteen HCP points plus one length point from the very good five–card minor.
Responder Rebids to Opener's Minimal Notrump Rebid
Partner has tightly constrained both the strength and distribution of the opening hand. Whether to pass or bid on depends on the strength, distribution, and texture of the responding hand.
Rebidding with a Minimum Responding Hand (6–10 points)
With less than a good 11 or 12 points, game is highly unlikely. We should try to find the best partscore and stop there.
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Hands a) and b) illustrate an important concept. With no trump suit, tricks can be taken in only three ways: 1) Sure winners in the form of top honors, 2) Promotion of lower ranking honors by driving out winners in the opponents’ hands, and 3) Establishment of small cards in long suits. It might seem counterintuitive, but flat distribution in both the declarer and dummy hands is not an advantage in notrump. With balanced minimum opening and responding hands, a contract of 1NT will go down as often as it will make.
If we do not have a Golden Fit in a major suit, we do strongly prefer a game in notrump requiring only nine tricks to game in a minor where we must take eleven tricks. But in a partscore below game, we must be cautious with minimum hands. Possession of a 5–card minor can be a valuable source of tricks in notrump. Without one, extra strength is required to ensure the safety of the contract.
If the combined strength of the partnership hands is about 21 points or less, we strongly prefer to play in a minor suit partscore, provided of course that we have a fit. In hand a) above, we have no option but to pass opener’s 1NT rebid – there is no place to run. Looking at the hand more closely, it is hard to imagine that 1NT will make. We can expect to go down at least one.
But in hand b), partner’s 1♦ opening will be made on a four–card or longer suit 96% of the time, and we almost certainly have a Golden Fit in diamonds. With two minimum hands, bailing out in 2♦ will be much safer than allowing partner to play 1NT. Looking at the hand, we have a decent shot at eight tricks with diamonds as trumps, whereas 1NT is very likely doomed.
Responder Rebids Opposite a Semi–balanced Minimum
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Moderator: Nick Straguzzi
Delightful Bullwinkle theme this month. See how Nick's gang handled this sneaky puzzler here.
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Then visit the MSC website to read next month's problem and submit your answers online here. |
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News from Around the Units |
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Unit 112: Central New York
Betty Youmans
readsausten@yahoo.com
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The turnout for the Rochester Spring Sectional was tremendous. The table count for Saturday was 58.5 tables, 33% better than the last two Sectionals and on par with pre-COVID days. The non-life master participation was particularly gratifying. Thank you to Liz Meacham, tournament chair, and all who participated.
The Unit 112 Annual Meeting was held at the Sectional and featured awards and certificates recognizing 2022 achievements. Thank you to Sandy Stockton who arranged for plaques and created a poster honoring the winners.
Unit 112 congratulates its advancing players by awarding a free play for a unit sectional tournament. Previously, these were sent to the players, but we now send them to the local club manager for distribution so that these achievements can be duly recognized at the local club.
The Finger Lakes Regional in Rochester will be held August 7-11. Please plan to come and we will have a great time!
Unit 112 Congratulates Its Advancing Players!
Junior Master
Elisa Root, Rochester
Club Master
Marilyn Carr, Canandaigua
Marie Duink, New Hartford
Lawrence Robinson, Ithaca
Noreen Ruttan, Oswego
Sectional Master
Joanne Giuffrida, Webster
Rick Reynolds, Utica
Regional Master
William Northwood, Rochester
Jeff Tonole, Ithaca
NABC Master
Dave Tomer, Rochester
Silver Life Master
Diana Laurent, Oswego
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Unit 120: Northeastern Pennsylvania
Doreese Torrey
doreeset@gmail.com
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Hello Unit 120!! Let's all give a standing rouse of applause for:
Ruby Life Master:
Lynn E Gonchar, Wilkes Barre, PA
Junior Master:
Gary Stack, Hawley, PA
Well done to you both!!
Unit 120 will be hosting our (overdue due to Covid) annual meeting and membership appreciation game at the Glenmaura National Golf Club in Moosic, PA on June 11, 2023. This flyer includes details regarding cost, reservation information, and Board of Director nominees. Please come out and enjoy the camaraderie!
A welcome back bridge and dinner was hosted by the Honesdale Hawley DBC on May 23, 2023. It was a day of fun, delicious food and face to face bridge. Enjoy the pictures.
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See you on June 11, 2023 and at the virtual and/or face-to-face bridge tables
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Unit 121: Berks Montgomery
Carl Ziegler
crzig@hometownu.com
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Check back next month for Unit 121 news. |
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Unit 133: Lehigh Valley
Lois Fuini
lafuini@yahoo.com
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Hope you all enjoyed a happy and safe Memorial Day Weekend - a time for us to remember and honor all servicemen and women who gave their lives to keep us free.
Spring Sectional Tournament April 28 & 29
The first Unit 133 local tournament was an enjoyable experience for all our attendees. We managed to follow all the guidelines set forth by ACBL for this new initiative and still provide camaraderie, competition, good food, and lots of silver/black points. It was super to see all our bridge friends and we’re looking forward to seeing even more of you in October. Line up your partners and join us for another enjoyable tournament starting October 20. Details to follow.
Overall Winners:
Friday, April 28
10am
- Open - James Kenny & Larry Kemmerer
- 0-750 - Sandy Harrison & Alexander Friedlander
2:15pm
- Open - Gil DeLeeuw & Lee Stanley
- 0-750 - Susan Schmerl & James Schmerl
Saturday, April 29
10am
- Open - James Kenny & Mike Kohler
2:15pm
- Open - Peg & Paul Irvine
- 0-750 - Bryan Snapp & Diane McGilloway
May STaC Game
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Unit 133 participated in three May STaC Games.Thanks to everyone who played in the games for silver points at our clubs.
Winners:
Monday PM 0-750 Pairs-LVAL
Friday PM Open Pairs-LVAL
- Barbara Berk & MaryAnn Sharpless (2nd overall in District 4)
Saturday PM Open Pairs-LVAL
- Peter Stoyanov & Grace Sutherland (1st overall in District 4)
The Longest Day
The Longest Day is Saturday, June 24, at LVAL at 12:30pm. The unit will offer three games - Open, 0-750, and 0-200, if attendance permits. These games award double black points and raise funds for the Alzheimer's Association. The entry fee will be $8.00 per person and additional contributions may be made by check or cash at the game or ahead of time.
Please make checks payable to "Alzheimer's Association" and mail to Betsy Cutler, 1383 Deerfield Drive, Allentown, PA 18104. Join us and get a free raffle ticket for a chance to win an Alzheimer’s T-shirt. Our goal is to raise over $1500 this year for this very worthy cause.
Royal STaC Week
June 12-18 is Royal STaC Week when points awarded are 1⁄4 each black, silver, red, and gold. The Monday and Friday, 12:30 games, at Lehigh Valley Active Life will be included in this event. So, schedule your partners early to take advantage of this opportunity to win colored points. Entry fee for the games is $8.
North American Pairs
You and your partner have a chance to earn double points 1⁄2 red and 1⁄2 black and qualify for the chance to play in the District Wide event in the fall for red and gold points.
Bethlehem Bridge Club will have games June 5 and June 7 at 10am.
Lehigh Valley Active Life Bridge Club will have games on June 9 and June 23 at 12:30pm.
The entry fee for all games is $8.
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Unit 141: Philadelphia
John Dickenson
dickenjb@gmail.com
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A very active May for our Unit 141 members – first, a delightful regional in Rehoboth Beach, DE which although taking place in Unit 190 saw many U141 folk performing very well, taking 5 of the top 10 masterpoint winner spots! (U141 players in bold.)
- 93.37 Brad Theurer, Gaithersburg MD
- 83.73 Richard Popper, Wilmington DE
- 83.73 Louis Glasthal, Berwyn PA
- 76.99 Patricia Dovell, Gainesville FL
- 76.99 Lyle Poe Jr, Ellicott City MD
- 76.99 Daniel Boye, East Syracuse NY
- 66.31 Mark Cohen, Audubon PA
- 66.31 Lisa Mita, Berwyn PA
- 65.09 Joann Glasson, Pennington NJ
- 65.09 Bob Glasson, Pennington NJ
Then in mid-May, Bill and Joan Goldstein held one of their terrific I/N sectionals at the King of Prussia Bridge Club, where top honors went to:
- 7.67 Sandy Harrison, Ardmore PA
- 5.75 Stuart Scherr, Wynnewood PA
- 3.99 Jeffrey Rohrbeck, Devon PA
- 3.99 Devin Murphy, Berwyn PA
- 3.99 Bill Tannery, Haddon Township NJ
- 3.99 Art Ford, Marlton NJ
- 3.58 Michael Dopera, Schnecksville PA
- 3.58 Jon Clemens, Center Valley PA
- 3.52 Ellen Luchette, Limerick PA
- 3.52 Carl Chan, Media PA
Coming soon are the North American Pairs club qualifying rounds in June, July, and August at your local club. Visit our Unit 141 website for a list of clubs and dates where you can play to qualify for our District 4 finals, to be held in September. You could win a subsidized trip to the Spring Nationals in Louisville. And speaking of our Unit website – we have made many, many updates so please visit and bookmark the site.
A warm welcome to our newest PCBA members!
John Bakley
Rohit Desai
Toby Feld
Kathleen Herron
Carole Levin
Richard Liburdi
Christina McCawley
Congratulations to our members who achieved a new rank!
Junior Masters
Diane Basile
I Isabelle Benton
Charles Cutler
Kimberly Ferzan
Alexander Friedlander
Robbie Hain
Hilarie Morgan
Clifford Swain
Club Masters
Linda Harmon
Osman Lake
Robyn Leto
Sectional Masters
Evelyn Doyle
Sheila Peyton
Wendy Wolf
Regional Masters
Richard Currie
Dennis Parenti
Neil Shapiro
NABC Masters
Christina Baran
Kathy Heist
Jeffery Rohrbeck
Phyllis Toegel
Advanced NABC Masters
Ellen Luchette
Jackie Topaz
Marc Topaz
Bronze Life Master
S Gerald King
Ruby Life Master
Gerald Abelow
Gold Life Masters
Joanne Adler
Deborah Crisfield
Joel Myers
Phyllis Weber
Sapphire Life Master
Yacob Rubenstien
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Unit 168: Central Pennsylvania
Russell Poppleton
rpoppleton@comcast.net
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The fact that there is a highway to hell, but only a stairway to heaven says a lot about anticipated traffic.
Central PA continues to host virtual games. See the website bridgeboardroom.com for a complete virtual schedule. Games are held on a daily basis. Look for some NAP games (enhanced points 50% red and 50% black) in June and some special Longest Day games June 24-25.
A quick reminder: District 4 Royal STAC week is June 12-18. Face-to-face Clubs throughout Unit 168 will be participating in this multi-color point event.
HBC will be hosting its monthly Swiss Team game on Wednesday, June 21st. Both a 0-750 and an open game are scheduled. Game time is at 6:30 pm, with food available at 5:45. Advance registration is requested to plan for sufficient food. See the HBC website, www.bridgewebs.com/harrisburg/ for full details and COVID protocols.
Points to ponder:
- Can you preempt in the fourth seat? If the auction goes P-P-P- 2S, what's 2S? Make sure you and your partner are in agreement.
- Always make sure someone in the relationship has good credit. That's why they call it SIGNIFICANT other: Sign/if/I/can't.
- Follow me on Facebook for more marriage tips.
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Unit 190: Delaware
Tammy Holm and Paula Varrassi
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Delaware Clubs
The Bridge Studio of Delaware, Wilmington
Harold Jordan
302-479-5431
MOT, Middletown
Cheryl Shields
302-602-1638
Monday Morning Bridge Club
Friday Nooners
Dover
Clare O’Brien
410-310-0549
Shore Bridge
Lewes
Monday @ 12:30
Wednesday @ 9:30
Anna DeLapo
302-236-0346
Bridge at the Beach Makes the News
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The Rehoboth Beach Regional in May outperformed last year’s outstanding attendance. The event will return again next year!! Congratulations to all who worked so hard to make this such a success, especially our wonderful co-chairs Kim Holm and Caroline Hughes. |
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Unit 217: Susquehanna
Jim McKeown
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Congratulations to Kokkimidis Patatoukos on achieving Club Master and to Vasundara V Varadan our new Regional Master.
Please join us for our next Sectional, June 2-4, 2023. That’s tomorrow, folks!! We will hold it at the Boalsburg Fire Co 113 Pine Street in Boalsburg, PA. We will require EITHER proof of vaccination OR proof of negative PCR Covid test within 72 hours before the beginning of the tournament.
We will conduct our annual membership meeting on Sunday June 4 between sessions. We need to consider bylaw changes and elect new officers. The nominating committee for the new officers (Mike Anesko, Ed Bissell, Mary Ann Churba, Craig Netzley, Carol Reitz, and Judy Stein) would like to hear from any Unit 217 member interested in serving as an officer or director. This is your chance to have an effect!
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