Hello, Unit 498 Members!
As we enter the season of cooler weather, comfort foods, and festive gatherings, we hope you keep your schedule open for plenty of chances to play more bridge!
As we all know, bridge is a great way to meet new friends and connect with old acquaintances. At a recent San Mateo Bridge Center Club game, Director Raad Bunni was anxious to introduce a
visiting player from Singapore to our members. Conveniently, Molly Roff was there that day. When the two sat down to share stories 9,000 miles from home, they realized that their families
are neighbors in Singapore. They were very excited to have this photo to share with their mutual friends and family.
The bridge community truly is special and far-reaching!
We’re recruiting Board members and volunteers to lend a hand with everything we do, from Unit games, fundraising, marketing, and outreach, to meeting our communications, technical, and computer
needs. Please let us know if you can help by contacting Board Nominating Committee leader Eileen DiGiorgio at eileenunit498@gmail.com.
Sectional News
Kudos to Carol Lashman for organizing a successful two-session Non-Life Master Sectional at the Villa on Saturday, September 13. Eight tables played in the 199er morning session, with Unit 498
pairs Allan Abrams and Donna Jang, Nancy and Ken Hoeck, and Vince Tornabene and Roberts Falls placing 1st, 3rd, and 5th, respectively. The 749er stratification had eight tables in the morning,
with Kathy Yulo and Robert Lerche finishing 1st overall. The combined afternoon session had ten tables overall, with Joseph and Michael Hoagland earning the top spot amongst Unit 498 pairs.
We invite everyone to our Fall Sectional at the Palo Alto Bridge Center, 432 Stierlin Road, Mountain View for pairs games on Saturday, November 1 and team games on Sunday, November 2. Start
times are 10:00 am and 2:30 pm each day.
Saturday morning's Art Weinstein Trophy game welcomes players who may not have played in tournaments before, and is limited to those with fewer than 100 master points. Winners of this game have their
names engraved on the trophy and are granted perpetual bragging rights.
See our website for the schedule of all games, information on parking, food, partnership desk and more at http://www.unit498.com/events
We are grateful to Unit 503 for allowing us to host the tournament at their facility.
Our September monthly Unit game drew fewer participants than usual. We had enough players for eight full tables, and we commend the 499ers who gamely volunteered to join the Open game.
Helen Kishi and Veena Damle and Joseph and Michael Hoagland were the top scoring players from the C stratification, placing amongst these top-scoring pairs: Genie and Jeff Reynolds, Kenneth Hui
and David Ng, Art Quey and Pete Goldsmith, Dan Raider and Josh Mullins, Arline and Jim Van Ness, and Aster Wu and Bob Gleason.
October Unit Game, Saturday, October 18
Please join our next Unit Game on Saturday, October 18 at the Villa. Registration begins at 11:15, with lunch at 11:30 and game start time at 12:15. Get all the details and register using
the link below.
Pre-Register
for the Unit Game Here, as space is limited.
If you need a partner, please sign up at the Partnership
Desk. Please contact Carl
Ebeling if
you have questions or need help finding a partner.
North American Bridge Championships, Nov 27 - Dec. 7
Whether you’re a beginner or an aspiring world champion, there is something for everyone at the North American Bridge Championship coming to the San Francisco Marriott Marquis from November 27
through December 7.
NABCs are the premier bridge events in North America, drawing players from all over the world. But you needn’t be intimidated if you are just starting out. There is an exciting schedule
of Gold Rush, Intermediate, and Novice (GRIN) games, lessons, and special events for you.
GRIN Events
Daily games will include morning and afternoon sessions for players with 0-299 masterpoints, along with Gold Rush two-session events open to players with up to 750 masterpoints and offering the
chance to earn coveted gold points.
Education will be front and center, with celebrity speakers featured most days at 9:15 am and 2:15 pm, giving participants expert strategies to sharpen their play.
For true beginners, free bridge lessons followed by 12-board games are scheduled for Saturday, November 29 and Sunday, November 30 at 8:00 am, tailored to players with 0-20 masterpoints.
Among the highlights of the weekend will be BridgeWar, a fast-paced, prize-filled event set for Saturday, November 29 from 1:00-3:00 pm. Players can simply show up and join the fun.
The popular Learn Bridge in a Day program will run on Sunday, November 30 from 1:00-6:00 pm, offering newcomers and returning players a chance to learn the game through interactive lessons and
coached play.
On Wednesday, December 3, District 21 will host a complimentary light lunch for all players competing in the 0-299 bracket.
For more information about GRIN events, contact Janelle Van Rensselaer, janellevanr@gmail.com
As usual at NABCs, there will be a full schedule of regional, NABC, and NABC+ events. The Fall NABCs feature the Kaplan Blue Ribbon Pairs and the Reisinger Board-a-Match teams. For the full
schedule of events, visit https://www.acbl.org/sanfran/
The host committee needs volunteers! If you can spare a few minutes at any time during the tournament, please sign up at the District 21 NABC volunteer website: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/5080D4BADAA29ABFF2-57866931-sfnabc#/
Finally, all members of Unit 498 will get a $10 per session discount on table fees (without having to get a hotel room). Use Entry Express to buy your entries. To get the discount, both
members of a pair or all members of a team must buy their entries together.
Swiss Teams
Hooray to Doug Seifert, Sue Papilion, Chuck Simmons, and Vince Tornabene for coming out first amongst five teams at our September 10 “Road to the Nationals” Swiss teams game.
September 10 Swiss Team Winners
You can get that extra teams practice in for our November Sectional and the NABCs by joining one or both of our upcoming Swiss Teams games on Wednesdays October 15 and November 12 at 6:30 at the
Villa. Please come early with your partner; teams and matchups will be decided that night.
Mentor/Mentee Game
Twelve pairs participated in our September 25 online Mentor/Mentee game, with the top four finishers separated by less than five percentage points. Congratulations to those four pairs:
Vince Tornabene and Cliff Chernick, Kit Morse and Mili Delbecq, Pete Goldsmith and Paula Pagano, and Chuck Riffle and Carmen Keenan.
We have one more online Mentor/Mentee game scheduled this year on Thursday, November 6. Contact Kit Morse at kitunit498@gmail.com to get involved, and thank her for the excellent job she has done organizing these games all year.
Continuing Learning and Playing Opportunities at Unit 498
EasyBridge 1
There is still time to join Jenny Kuhn’s current Easybridge 1 course, which started on Wednesday, September 24.
Contact Jenny directly if you, your family or friends are ready to learn bridge or review bridge basics: jkuhn@peninsuladbc.com
- No Partner Necessary
- No Experience Necessary
- First 3 Lessons Free
- Free Parking
This course will be held every WEDNESDAY from 10:00 - 12:30 at the Villa.
Monthly Lessons by Mark Sorenson
Mark Sorenson will continue his series of 1+ hour monthly bridge lessons and play, aimed at advancing players with fewer than 100 masterpoints. If you are
interested, join him on the first Tuesday of each month at 10:30 at the Villa. For a cost of $5, you’ll get lessons with pre-dealt hands, directed play and review, and handouts and notes to take
home, along with coffee and snacks. Stay to play in the 12:00 game afterwards! Topics scheduled for the next three months are as follows:
October 7 Defending Suit Contracts
November 4 Responding to 1NT with 5-4, 4-5 or 5-5 in the majors
December 2 Introduction to carding. (Attitude signals - Encouraging/discouraging,
Count signals, Suit preference signals — signaling partner what suit to lead)
You must register ahead of time for each class individually. Please contact Mark Sorenson at (650) 296-1674 or email sorensonmark717@gmail.com
Bi-weekly supervised play with Mary Bates
Unit 498 will host Supervised Play with Mary Bates at the Villa on the 2nd and 4th Wednesdays of most months from 1:30 to 3:30. Upcoming dates are October 8 and 22, and November 12.
Come and practice your bridge playing in a relaxed, social setting. Certified instructor Mary Bates and other experienced players will be on hand to answer any questions that may arise during the
bidding and play of the hand.
All levels are welcome, but this program is especially geared towards newer players and partnerships who want to practice, as well as those who do not yet feel ready for a duplicate game.
No partner required!
Cost: $5
Register by emailing Mary Bates at marymanleybates@hotmail.com
Win Gold at the Local Club
Jenny Kuhn will host the Centennial Fall ACBL Instant Matchpoint Game (IMG) on October 29, Wednesday afternoon at 1:15 at the Villa. This exciting special event offers loads of benefits for
participants. One gold masterpoint® is up for grabs when you finish at the top of a section (both directions). As a bonus, you can see your score immediately after each deal in a pre-printed
Fall IMG traveler. Along with the pre-printed analyses for all 36 deals, participants will receive full hand records.
We heard in September that our Longest Day fundraising total surpassed our 2025 goal of $40,000 and raised $41,167! Many, many thanks to Barbara Lewis, Marie Pattie, Janelle Van Rensselaer and
the Longest Day committee for leading our efforts to help fight Alzheimer’s disease.
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