 | There are several STaC games across Minnesota yet to take place before the totals are all in, but to your left is a look at the overall masterpoint winners of the week so far. These are the "Top 50" masterpoint earners, where the masterpoints will ultimately be converted to 25% each of Gold, Red, Silver, and Black points. There's still time to get in on the fun, and of course everyone should be congratulated whether you are the masterpoint leader in this state or someone who just had fun getting a sliver of a point. |
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72.69% Jerry Rosenblad + Ed Prosser, Rochester DBC, 7/8 72.47% Sharon Anderson + Roger Anderson, Metro Bridge Club, 7/22 72.22% Terry Beckman + Kathy Beckman, Spades and Company, 7/25 70.83% Bill Anderson + Patricia Heirigs, Mankato DBC, 7/29 70.63% Jack Martin + Jim Brothers, Detroit Lakes BC, 7/21 70.56% Bill Voedisch + Joe Browan, Woodbury Bridge Club, 7/6 70.03% Steve Gaynor + Jean Boettcher, Bridge Center of St Paul, 7/3 HONORABLE MENTION: 69.65% Bev Berg + Roger Melaas, St Cloud Bridge Club, 7/27 LIMITED MASTERPOINT GAMES: HONORABLE MENTION: 69.17% Tara Krupke + Doreen Miller, St Cloud Bridge Club, 7/20 CHAT BRIDGE GAMES: 77.38% Sherry Enzler + Nancy Strom, Bridge Center of St Paul, 7/21 |
  | Roger Anderson [St Paul] and Sharon Anderson [St Paul] brought a cake to Unit 103's Bridge Center of St Paul on Tuesday to honor the big winners from the NABC. In attendance to receive that cake (mmmmmmmm...) was Marcia Figus [St Paul], new Life Master, Charlie Carroll [St Paul], of the GNT Champion Flight A Team, Sarah Wahl [Minneapolis], of the GNT Flight C Runners-up Team, and Jackson Wahl [Minneapolis] and Andy Caranicas [St Paul], members of the GNT Champion Flight A Team. Far be it for these celebrations to end any time soon; our understanding was that there was just enough cake to share on Tuesday. |
  | The membership data they've released compares membership numbers from this quarter to last quarter; but there's a problem with looking at that comparison. At the end of March, there are lots of snowbirds that are still at their winter homes playing bridge as part of warmer climate districts. At the beginning of July, those snowbirds are all back in their northern climate districts. So looking at this quarter's player numbers to last quarter's skews the membership numbers quite a bit (Florida, for example, in District 9, sees a huge drop in quarterly numbers this time of year.) A better comparison might be year-over-year figures, where you can at least see how each district is doing at the same point in the year and with the same players. That chart is on your left. It looks at each of the ACBL's 25 districts, and their year-over-year membership for the end of the second quarter in 2026 compared to one year earlier. As it turns out, the membership in our five-state D14 area has fallen -3.4% since last year at this time; but that is the second-best performing ACBL district of all 25 districts. Only District 1 (Eastern Canada) has better membership numbers than we do (at -2.0% Y-O-Y). With the entire ACBL membership down -6.0%, and D14's off -3.4%, bridge in the upper Midwest is doing ok. It would be great to have that be a positive number, of course! But the membership figures could be so much worse, and it's great to see that it's not just Minnesota's bridge that is doing well right now - but some of our neighboring states, too. |
 | Overall awards for the first two days of the STaC this week (that would be Monday + yesterday) were posted this morning, and already dozens of Minnesota players are getting sectionally-rated masterpoint awards at 25%G/25%R/25%S/25%B. Your Top 50 players players across the state are listed on the table to your left. A reminder that nothing's official until the ACBL says it is (there may be some late games reported, and if so these numbers will change) - also that you have all week to get in on the action. Check with your local club manager or director to see when they're running these STaC games through Sunday, and get playing! |
 | This dropoff in club tables hasn't taken place in outstate Minnesota clubs, but that might be expected as metro area players are a bit more. . .competitive. Plus, they're so local to the NABC, it's to be expected that more metro players played in the NABC than outstate - and might be looking to have taken a break this past week. It's not expected to be anything to carry on into the month of August, but it's an interesting after-effect of having the big tournament. If you play in the metro area and have noticed smaller games recently, it's not you. There's a good chance they are smaller, at least right now, and with reason. But don't expect these smaller games to last, especially with STaC week this week. |
 | If your club wants to run a game like this, you're in luck! The ACBL holds two of these each year, and there's a second one in 2026 coming up on October 21st. That's another Wednesday. Get your club director or manager to sign up to play the game, and then plan to attend and ka-CHING your way to masterpoints. Maybe even a gold point at your local club! |
 | For those making hotel reservations, while there is a hotel rate for MEDCITY at the Best Western in Rochester, you can get a cheaper rate either by being a Best Western member (and getting the "member rate") or by getting their "long term rate". We're not sure why the hotel rate for the tournament itself is more expensive than other rates available to players, but that has also been the case with the hotel at the Minnesota Gopher tournament for the past few years. So "it's a thing." In any event - you've got seven weeks to go before the excitement unfolds. Partnerships for this tournament are being handled by John Ryder for the Open crowd (jhkeryder@yahoo.com) and by Connie Dalzell for the NLMs and 499ers (connie.partnership@gmail.com). |
 | It takes the ACBL a couple of days to get all of the results in before they issue the big money awards, so look for the official results for each day somewhere between 48 and 72 hours after the game. Oh - and have fun! |
When a foursome of non-life master players mid-week thought they were done for lunch - and got called back to be late to an eight-board Swiss teams match, they were penalized 12 IMPs (as is the rule). What they did not expect was one of their opponents sitting at their table berate them for being late until they were crying, belittling them as to "how stupid" they were, among other toxic claims. Bringing players to tears through bullying and insults is a horrible experience to have happen, at any time and any place in the game of bridge. That it happened at an NABC and to a team of non-Life Masters just made it that much worse. The ACBL is aware of the incident; confidentiality concerns will kick in now that the ACBL will be doing an investigation, so updates as to what happens next may not be available for publication. But this serves as a reminder that players everywhere should remember to be an advocate for bridge, especially when it comes to advancing players. One really bad experience, especially one as horrible and unwarranted as this one was, will drive players out of the game in a most unnecessary and especially negative fashion (especially for newer players). Thankfully most Minnesota players know better than to exhibit such behavior, but that the offender was a former Minnesotan makes the tournament hosts look bad, in addition to everything else. |
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      | There were five local players who became new Life Masters at the 2026 Summer NABC. The top row of photos, from left to right, are Rick Trachy [Golden Valley], Michael Wilson [Minneapolis], Lynn Schnettler [St Cloud], Marcia Figus [Shoreview], and Megan Murphy [Minneapolis]. Pretty exciting for these five, as it's great to have acheived this milestone, but even better at a tournament (and at an NABC in your hometown!). The bottom photo is the D14 Grand Nationals Team for Flight A that took the national title in the event. Left to right, that's Paul Gutterman [Eagan], Andy Caranicas [St Paul], Richard Lawson [Plymouth], Jackson Wahl [Minneapolis], and Charlie Carroll [St Paul]. Quite the wild ride for this five as they were never seriously threatened through most of the GNT competition - and had some great stories about the finals match to share (see post below). Among all of the NABC coverage on this blog during the 12-day event, we wanted to recognize one more time these players who won't forget the great time they had at the NABC held in Minneapolis. |
 | There are 285 players in Unit 103 that have qualified, with 208 players in Unit 178. And remember, although you only need to qualify once, these games provide mega-masterpoints at ½ red points - so they're not just fun to play in, but profitable (IYKWWM). Are you on the list of NAP Qualified players? You probably already know, but if you don't (or even if you do and would like to see your name in print), click here. |
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Sectional Thur August 13 Rochester  | Sectional August 27-29 Roseville  | REGIONAL Sep 14-19 Rochester | Sectional Sat October 10 St Cloud  | Sectional October 22-24 St Paul  | Sectional November 4-6 Duluth  |
Here's the background: Your bridge unit is funded by two sources - tournament income and reimbursment from the ACBL of player dues. What (up until 2024) was 11% of player dues reimbursed to the units each quarter was dropped to 5%. There were additional sweeteners for recruiting and retaining players, including money for Units that cold-called players who have dropped out of the game. This was well intended, but the results have been disappointing (to say the least). Since the program was instituted two years ago, more than $370,000 has been "retained" by the ACBL that normally would have gone to individual bridge units (like Minnesota's Unit 103 and 178). Here is what has changed this year: the ACBL has dropped the cold-calling requirements by individual units of former players - and has re-configured their formula for getting money back to Units. Now, instead of 2.5% reimbursement for cold-calling and 2.5% reimbursment for retention performance, units are getting 5% for retention performance alone. In addition, the comparative figures the ACBL had been using were the 2019 Unit membership figures as a baseline. Those pre-COVID numbers won't likely be back, so the other change the ACBL has made is that retention numbers now are relative to the unit's current size. Is it helping? We don't know. They stopped publishing their quarterly data publicly, making it more difficult to compare units and performances. Not only that, the ACBL is now sending out an email to Unit Presidents with a link to "compare how you're doing with other Units." Click on the link in the email they send, and here's what you get: 
So now it's impossible to see how the various ACBL units are doing, and it's hard to make comparisons and look at hard figures when they're not available. We sent a note to the ACBL's I T Department on the bad link they provided, but they haven't responded in more than two weeks (if you're familiar with the ACBL's I T Department, you know this is not unusual). In any event, the change in how they're reimbursing units is something, and hopefully it is something that will work better. We'll see if and when they get around to publishing some information on it - and when they do (if they do), you'll see that information posted here. |
 | To your left is the final masterpoint award list for the locals; the top 100 are listed there. Whether you got a fraction of a point or a fraction of a thousand points, hopefully you had a good time while at the NABC. Congratulations to everyone on and off the list to your left. |
  | Twelve years later, she became the first female ACBL Life Master in Rochester, number #11345, and our guess is there was less and less time spent at the bowling alley. Below left is a series of photos of Carole at the bridge table in 1969.
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Our monthly deadline to get these calendars posted online is the 20th of the preceding month, but this month with the NABC we're a couple of days late. Hopefully not too late for you to schedule your bridge dates. Here are the latest bridge calendars around Minnesota clubs for August:        |
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 | The ACBL expected this to be a smaller affair; they told the Minnesota Bridge Blog back in May that they were expecting around 7,400 tables at our NABC. Beating this number by +7.2% isn't just a great result for our bridge community, but it shows that the strength of bridge in Minnesota isn't limited to our local clubs and tournaments. It's pretty universal. Not everyone has that sort of support, but we do here, and it's great to see that it was on display during this NABC. Here is hoping that the ACBL has taken notice. |
The ACBL had expected 7,400 tables here in Minnesota, and the 7,932 actual tables exceeded their expectations by +7.2%. Credit to the local NABC Committee and local NABC PR Committee for all their work - along with every volunteer and local player that helped make this event such a success. There were a few events that wrapped up last evening, and local players were still getting mad masterpoints! Here are some of those results: |
36 pairs | score | the break | score | ||
104 pairs | score | the break | score | award | |
 Two teams played in the 0-10K Mixed Swiss Finals, with the #1 team heading into the two-session Finals helmed by Vern Swing [Minneapolis] and the #4 team by Jackson Wahl [Minneapolis]. Their round-by-round placement through the day yesterday is represented on the chart just above. It was quite the exciting finish for the Wahl team, as they were in second place with one round of six to go. Out of 1st place overall by more than 12 VPs, they needed to blitz their last opponent (winning by 35 IMPs) and have the then-1st place team lose their match by 8 IMPs. The result was a 95.85 to 95.64 win for the Wahl team. Talk about close! That's 38.40 masterpoints for the Wahl team; 34.56 gold and 3.84 platinum. The Swing team came in 5th overall, that was good for 15.36 masterpoints, 13.82 gold and 1.54 platinum. Well done by both of these Minnesota teams! |  The Roth Open Swiss, covering three days of play, is an NABC+ event - and there was one team with a Minnesotan on it in the finals. That was Lynn Castoldi [Minnetonka], whose team finished 19th out of the remaining 28 teams for 34.28 platinum points. Their team faded a bit in the second half of play, but still, 34.28 platinum points is awesome!  |  [Ed: Your blog editor had far too much going on during the NABC to peruse the tournament's daily bulletin, but another NABC milestone!]  |
| Megan was on our "Life Master Watchlist" of players who had a good shot at getting what they needed during this tournament, and she delivered. By the second Friday of the NABC, she needed just 1.24 gold points to cross the line, and entered the Bracketed Teams with Nancy Hartzler [St Paul]. Along with their teammates, Jackson Wahl [Minneapolis] and Sarah Wahl [Minneapolis], she got the 1.24 and much more, winning the #7 bracket and scoring 8.78 gold points. Hats off to Megan, and looking forward to pictures of her with her celebratory cake. |
    
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Patti has officially announced her retirement from putting on the Minnesota Gopher, and while this one stings, we share the rest of the bridge community in saying "thanks!" for so many years of her successful service in this role. "The secret is to surround yourself with people who know what they're doing" according to Patti, who made the announcement official Thursday evening at the NABC. "I let both Keith [Thompson] (Unit 178 President) and Sue [Greenberg] (Unit 103 President) know" she's out of the putting-on-the-regional game, and the search begins for someone (or someone[s]) to help put this event together. D14 President Steve Gaynor [Arden Hills] says the plan is to hold the Gopher in 2027 - we're glad there won't be any interruption in the gold points next May - and if you've got some suggestions (or would like to do any volunteering), contact Steve or your Unit President and we will try to our best to replicate Patti's success over the years. Once again - thanks to Patti for all her work! |
| BRIDGE BLOG: It's so great to get your LM at a tournament, and here you are at an NABC that is in town. Had you planned to get it here? MARCIA: No, I hadn't planned on it, it was just another tournament [where] I'd be playing in the higher point brackets. BRIDGE BLOG: Newly-minted Life Masters have a story or two to tell - have you got one you'd like to share? MARCIA: A friend, Ginger Cook, suggested I try bridge in retirement. We were both retired teachers and enjoyed the mental challenge. I learned there were 52 cards in the deck. I never played cards before. Not one time. I took [bridge] classes and played regularly, then earned the Mini McKenney award in 2017 and the Ace of Clubs in 2018. The last time I could play in the Gold Rush, my partner, Florian Lauer, and I won a Gold Trophy at the 2024 Gopher Regional and had our names etched on it. I haven’t seen the trophy since! Thursday with the same partner, Florian Lauer, he helped me earn the gold points to finally achieve Life Master. BRIDGE BLOG: It's not possible to get to be a Life Master in this game without some help along the way. Is there anyone that you'd like to mention as teachers or mentors (or partners) that helped you improve your game to get to this point? MARCIA: Kim Hayward, the director at the Bridge Center of St Paul, is very inspirational. She continually helps you to find partners that fit for you to be successful. Kim makes the new bridge players feel welcomed and wanting to come back. BRIDGE BLOG: It's no secret she's one of our favorite people out there! MARCIA: [Laughs.] BRIDGE BLOG: You are the fourth new Life Master this week at the NABC. There are a lot of Minnesota players who are working towards getting their LM - what would you tell them as they go through their quest for getting the LM? MARCIA: New players should go after the gold. Play in the Gold Rush early. Get the colored points. I was told that and being so new, I had no idea what it meant. Once I knew what it meant, I already accrued well over 750 points and had to play in higher point brackets. |
   
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| BRIDGE BLOG: When you realized that you had crossed the line, what was your immediate reaction? LYNN: Somewhat relieved! [Bob and I] did a high-five while we were in the car. BRIDGE BLOG: Newly-minted Life Masters have a story or two to tell - have you got one you'd like to share? LYNN: Sure! [Here's two.] We had a hand on Monday that I was playing; we were vulnerable and I went down six! I won’t name names but it wasn’t entirely my fault. [Also,] my brother (Bob) and I played in Omaha a few years ago, and he got his Life Master at the regional there. Monday, he played with me when I got mine. Special memories! BRIDGE BLOG: What would you say was the most difficult part of getting to this achievement of Life Master for you? LYNN: For me, getting the gold points was the hardest part because I have not travelled much to play bridge. BRIDGE BLOG: Now that you're a Life Master, will you be easing up on the gas or keep charging forward at the club? LYNN: I think it will be about the same for me, although these sons of mine have really gotten the bug. I paid for their ACBL memberships during Covid so we could play in an online Grafton tournament with my brother Michael. Then my sons let their membership lapse but are thinking of rejoining now that some of them have actually earned a fraction of a point at the DL club. BRIDGE BLOG: It's not possible to get to be a Life Master in this game without some help along the way. Is there anyone that you'd like to mention as teachers or mentors (or partners) that helped you improve your game to get to this point? LYNN: For sure, my mom. When my mom was alive, she and I often played together at our local club. She died 7 years ago and I just haven't played much since then. She taught me and my 8 siblings how to play. She and my dad were both life masters after my oldest brother Michael Leighton introduced them to duplicate Bridge. I am the fourth sibling in my family to become a Life Master. Three out of 4 of my sons play as well as my husband. There have been many hands of bridge played up here in Detroit Lakes. Some of the hands have been online, others at the kitchen table and other at the local DL club. BRIDGE BLOG: It sounds like you could have your own two-table family game. LYNN: The first time we walked into the local DL club, a woman asked if it was a bridge game or a basketball game that day! My husband is six feet tall and my sons are 6’3” and 6’4”. BRIDGE BLOG: Although we've had three new Life Masters this week, there are a lot of Minnesota players who are quite a ways off from that goal. What advice would you give a player as they're making this journey? LYNN: Find a nice partner who loves to play and doesn’t criticize. Keep your game simple. My partners and I don’t play a lot of fancy conventions but what we do play, we try to play well. BRIDGE BLOG: Thanks Lynn and congratulations, again. |
  
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But that's not all. There are District awards for the best scores in your area, with 15.00 full masterpoints going to the winners (in addition to what you earn at your club). There are also overall awards across the entire ACBL, with 20.00 masterpoints to the winners there. The bottom line is that it's not just a lot of fun, but you can really score big at the same time. . .so look for the Instant Matchpoint Game at your local club next Wednesday. If your club isn't running it - it's not too late to get after your club manager or director and have them sign up with the ACBL. |
 
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ANDY CARANICAS: I was closer to elated. I’ve been at this for a lot of years so to finally break through was a great feeling. The fourth quarter at my table went pretty well so we were pretty confident that it would be enough. CHARLIE CARROLL: Surprised and delighted! RICHARD LAWSON: I can say for myself I felt ecstatic and relieved. The core of our team, formed in 2010 by Eric Hendrickson, won the GNT Flight B in New Orleans that year, and it's been a long journey trying to recapture that success. BRIDGE BLOG: Was everyone so confident? ANDY C: [No,] we finished before our teammates [after the final match] and when they and their opponents came out it was clear they felt differently. The opponents were smiling and our teammates did not look happy. CHARLIE C: [Here's why:] We were ahead by 18 going into the final quarter, but our opponents were perfect for the first half of that quarter. They bid and made a game; they bid and made a thin game; they bid and made a slam (not too hard to bid); they bid and made a slam ("impossible" to bid); I took an expensive save against a game that wasn't even making. It was a disaster in the making. We didn't know this at the time - but we could sure feel it! - that our lead and then some had evaporated. We were behind with seven boards to go. RICHARD L: When we were ahead by 18 going into the fourth quarter, [we] knew how easy it would be to lose that. The final foursome of Andy/Jackson and Charlie/Paul did a great job keeping their cool after the other team stormed out in front after a few big first boards. They stormed back with a few big swings of their own to eke it out by a few IMPs in the end. CHARLIE C: Fortunately, things turned around (we finished on a 29-0 streak), but I was quite fearful when we started to compare. BRIDGE BLOG: How did you celebrate the big win? ANDY C: We just ended up drinking with a few people at the Sheraton. CHARLIE C: [Yes,] we had a glass of wine (or two), went out to a nice dinner, and shared a few "huzzahs." BRIDGE BLOG: Your team was behind in both the semi-finals and finals at some point, but things got turned around somehow in each of those matches. Was there a particular hand or part of the GNT matches that stands out as a turning point for you? CHARLIE C: I don't think bridge works [on turning points]. You keep trying to make good decisions. If you make enough of them (and you have a bit of luck), you win. If not, you don't. ANDY C: In the semi-final match I was convinced we would win even when we were down 14 at the half. We all played so poorly that morning so being down only 14 felt pretty good. That feeling proved to be accurate when we pulled away in the third quarter. Early in the fourth quarter we doubled our opponents who had gotten to a bad 4 BRIDGE BLOG: And then in the Championship Match? ANDY C: In the finals we were down only 1 after the first quarter and pulled away in the second so I never felt as though we were behind. RICHARD L: One hand that won us a good swing in the second quarter of the finals that helped us get to a big halftime lead was Board 16. I chose to open the West hand with 1♣, North overcalled 1♠, and Andy bid 2♠, showing a limit raise or better in clubs. South bid 4♠, passed back to Andy who bid 5♣. South bid 5  BRIDGE BLOG: There are some bridge players out there that are on the fence when it comes to team games, even though team games are now more popular than pairs games at most tournaments. What would you say to these players who are considering entering next year's GNT? RICHARD L: My advice for new people is always play bridge with someone you'd feel comfortable going out to dinner with. Good partnerships are based as much on friendliness as ability. One of my favorite GNT stories is that during one match, we were ahead at halftime. One pair of the opposing team wanted to switch it up and play at the other table, but the other pair resisted because they people they were playing against (Andy and me) were "really nice". They were assured that the other pair (Paul and Eric) were equally nice. Even highly competitive bridge can still be an enjoyable and pleasant experience with the right attitudes all around. CHARLIE C: Team games are the best. You can have a bad set, but your teammates can pick you up. And vice versa. Plus, it's twice the camaraderie. ANDY C: I personally love the team camaraderie and the fact that things don’t have to go great at your table to get decent/good results. I also like the fact that my teammates are presumably going to bring back good results so I’m comparing with something relatively favorable as opposed to matchpoints where I get compared to a whole bunch of people who may be helping or hurting my score. BRIDGE BLOG: Finally, is there anything that you would like the Minnesota bridge community to know regarding the journey that you had throughout this tournament at the NABC? ANDY C: Having the tournament here is so convenient. On Saturday I sat out the second quarter so including the lunch break I had almost 4 hours. I biked back home, took a shower, had lunch, and took a short nap. I felt great for the second half. Also I find the layout at the site to be very clear and organized. Congratulations to Patti Stuhlman and all of the volunteers who helped along the way. RICHARD L: Paul Gutterman was a part of that 2010 team [that won the Flight B in New Orleans]. This is his last year playing for District 14 after moving to Florida at the beginning of the year, so it also felt good to win this for him. CHARLIE C: [This] question is about us and our team. Instead, I would put the focus on all the many, many people who worked to make this tournament a success (including you, Matt!). The bridge community of Minnesota is a wonderful group of folks. My thanks to you and all the volunteers who make it go. BRIDGE BLOG: It is a wonderful group here in Minnesota! Thanks for the insight, on all of this, and congratulations again to all of you. Teams are a huge part of tournaments now (more than ever) and we're hopeful they keep getting stronger in numbers for all these reasons you both mentioned and more. |
 
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| Michael winters in Savannah GA, but he plays quite a bit in the Twin Cities clubs during the summer - and he played a few days in this NABC to get the 5.57 gold points he needed to become a Life Master. We caught up with him on his way to the bathroom at the NABC following his KO match today, so this back-and-forth might be a little. . .abbreviated. BRIDGE BLOG: Have you been playing all week so far to get the gold? MICHAEL: Yes. I was within 0.20 gold on Sunday, and then yesterday (Monday) I got several gold points with my teammates. We're playing today in the teams game. BRIDGE BLOG: When you crossed the line here, what was your immediate reaction? MICHAEL: Really relieved. I've been hitting the bridge hard for the past few years to try and get these gold points, I mean really hitting the bridge hard. So it was great to finally achieve it. BRIDGE BLOG: Newly-minted Life Masters have a story or two to tell - have you got one you'd like to share? MICHAEL: Sure! I played in the Nationals in Chicago in 2022, and played on a team when I had under 200 masterpoints. It seemed a bit overwhelming at the time, but then it turned out we got 10 full gold points. BRIDGE BLOG: Now that you're a Life Master, will you be easing up on hitting the bridge so hard? Or keep charging forward? MICHAEL: Definitely charging forward. I really like the game. BRIDGE BLOG: It's not possible to get to be a Life Master in this game without some help along the way. Is there anyone that you'd like to mention as teachers or mentors (or partners) that helped you improve your game to get to this point? MICHAEL: I had a mentor from whom I took lessons for two years down at our Savannah Bridge Club. He was from New York, he helped me improve my bridge game, then became a lawyer. After a few years he returned to the game. BRIDGE BLOG: We know you have to run here - MICHAEL: (Laughs) BRIDGE BLOG: - but what advice would you give players that are not yet Life Masters and working towards that goal? MICHAEL: Bridge is a terrific pasttime, it really is. I enjoy the comraderie of players, and you meet so many great people. My advice to newer players would be to be persistent. Keep playing - keep driving. It's a wonderful game. |
 
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| Rick was one of the dozen or so players that we listed as would be watched at this NABC, as he needed 14.95 gold/red points to become a LM. . .and this tournament was the place to do it. He's played three days with Kristine Verdin [St Paul] on teams, with Dan Ganter [Maple Grove] and Tom Bedford [St Paul] as teammates for two days and Catherine Wehrman [Shoreview] and Paul Wehrman [Shoreview] one other day. 14.49 of these points was all gold. Rick is the first Minnesotan (that we know of) who is on our "watch list" that has made this new rank of Life Master. Here's a little back-and-forth with Rick: BRIDGE BLOG: They'll post it in about three weeks, but we say "strike while the iron is hot." You are the first of about a dozen players that had the potential to get this LM at the NABC, and then did - it's got to be exciting to A)get your LM at a tournament, B)get it at an NABC, of all tournaments, and C)get it at a hometown NABC that's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. How did you feel when you realized you had crossed the line? RICK: Unbelievably grateful to my teammates. I had played two hands in the final session, miserably going down four and three respectively, aghast that I had blown the entire session. But my teammates - Kris Verdin, Paul and Kathy Wehrman - pulled us through to finish second and get the requisite points. BRIDGE BLOG: As we were getting closer to this NABC, did you think this might be the tournament where you would want to get your Life Master? RICK: Yes; I had arranged to play most days [of the NABC] to enhance the chances, but got enough well before the last day [of the tournament]. There couldn't be a better setting. BRIDGE BLOG: That is for sure! Bridge players in general usually have a story or two that sticks out for them, especially in their pre-Life Master playing era. Do you have a bridge story that you'd like to share? RICK: I was playing North in a club game one day, when a woman who had been my parents' best friend moved to my table. I had not seen her in years because she has been living in Arizona, just in town for a week, and [she] had stopped in to play just that one particular day. We gave each other a big excited happy hug right there at the table - not the typical greeting when your opponent arrives! BRIDGE BLOG: It's not possible to get to be a Life Master in this game without some help along the way. Is there anyone that you'd like to mention as teachers or mentors (or partners) that helped you improve your game to get to this point? RICK: Yes, many thanks to Paul Becka; he mentored me for four years to get me to this point. Also my many partners, especially Grace Dow (RIP), David Lui and Kris Verdin. These wonderful friends patiently put up with my block-headed errors long enough to knock some of them out of my system (mostly). BRIDGE BLOG: Once bridge players get to their Life Master rank, some ease up on the gas while others just keep charging on - what's in the future for Rick? RICK: I do plan to play on. I hope to find a congenial aspiring new player to mentor and help to enjoy this challenging game as much as do I. BRIDGE BLOG: Paying it back is so honorable! Your efforts to help keep the game going are appreciated by everyone, we're sure. Speaking of "aspiring new players," is there any advice that you would want to give someone who is not yet a Life Master but working towards that goal for themself? RICK: I find bridge players to be some of the most intelligent, interesting folks I have had the pleasure to encounter. The cards in your hand are just the props; the people and relationships endure. |
 
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  | Minnesota leads the way in almost every category of face-to-face bridge when it comes to local clubs. Top chart to your left has to do with the number of club tables for each state, along with the entire upper Midwest. Minnesota's +13.4% increase in club tables for the first half of 2026 is by far and away a bigger increase than any other state around here. The good news elsewhere is most states are also seeing an increase in club tables - with North Dakota being the only exception. The second chart on your left shows the number of club bridge games that were held during the first half of the year. Once again, Minnesota's +8.6% increase in club games available to players easily has outpaced all of our neighboring states. Overall, the upper Midwest is pretty flat (within 1% of last year's 1H games), but this is largely due to bridge in North Dakota, which has declined by quite a bit. A friendly reminder that these table counts are for face-to-face club games only, and don't include any tournament tables. For now, the North Star state is shining brightly around here. But this is no time for complacency! It will take your help to keep that shine bright going forward. |
 
 
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 | Second place was very, very close - less than ½ a masterpoint, and when you're talking about the entire month, that's an overtrick somewhere. Jerry Rosenblad [Stewartville] came in 2nd with 30.62 masterpoints during June. Bob Roediger [Rochester] was 3rd overall with 26.79 masterpoints. Your "top ten" Minnesota players at the club level are listed to your left. The NABC is in town, and those masterpoints don't count towards your club play - so results for club play this month could get stirred up pretty good. (As always, time will tell.) For now - congratulations, Joe! |
 
     
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Kim Hellier [St Cloud] Jean Schlossman [St Paul] Karen Woodward [Apple Valley] Ann Stone [St Paul] Sherry Enzler [St Paul] Benjamin Moats [St Paul] Nancy Strom [Roseville] Rae Beth Cornelius [St Paul] Scott Woodward [Apple Valley] Jacqueline Johnson [Proctor] |
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 | We'll be following closely the results for these Minnesota players (and have updates) - but best of luck to all of these teams. Here we goooooooooooo |
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  | Top graph on the left is the six-week average table count by Minnesota bridge unit for the past 26 weeks. The red line, Unit 103 tables, found a six-week average table count last week of 198.1. Their six-week average has never been higher than 176.0 any other summer, so something (read: the NABC) is having an impact on the playing habits of Unit 103 players this year. The blue line, that's Unit 178's six-week average table count. Never higher than 68.0, this past week it was at 73.1. Again - another modern-day record, here for Minneapolis players, as gearing up for the NABC is really showing in club table participation. Even without the specific numbers themselves, the trend here is obvious just by glancing at the graph. As the NABC gets nearer (from left to right), that six-week average has been steadily going up. Your bottom chart to the left is the Bridge Center of St Paul's total tables by week (no tournaments or online tables). They had 81 tables in play last week - that's a new post-COVID record for a weekly table count. This beats the week of July 1st, 2024, which had 79½ tables, but that was during a STAC week tournament. The past five weeks in Roseville have all been in the top ten weeks for the Roseville club, and that's the best five-week stretch in at least the last seven years! This is one of the clubs that will be closed during the NABC; the Bridge Center of St Paul was successful in getting $2,000 from Unit 103 to subsidize their closure during the tournament. They're also getting $100 from D14. With the past five weeks performing at record-setting income, thankfully their financial hit from the NABC won't be nearly as bad as originally expected. |
    
| We've closed the books on the first half of 2026, and generally the good news regarding bridge in Minnesota continues to show up in the data. The top chart on your left is that of club tables in Minnesota for the first six months of the year. It's each year from 2022 to now, and each year has seen an increase in club table play. (As always, this does not include any tournament or online tables.) In 2026, the first half of the year has seen an increase in tables from 4,963½ in 2025 to 5,630¾ now. That increase of 667¼ is a table count that's +13.4% higher than one year ago during the same time period. That's really terrific news. The second chart on your left shows the breakdown among clubs, units, and geographic areas. This data echoes June's table info (see below), with Duluth and St Cloud doing great - and Mankato and Northfield needing some help. One item to note (that also echoes June's data) is that almost all of Unit 178's growth during the first half of this year is due to Spades and Company's Plymouth club. Without the Spades tables, 178's increase of +19.8% is flat at +1.2%. The third chart on your left shows the top ten games in terms of size (tables per game, on average over the six month period). Although the Edina and Maple Grove clubs have not seen any real increase in table counts overall, they continue to have the #1 and #2 largest games (on average) in the state. Maple Grove's Wednesday game in Edina averages 13.08 tables through the first half of 2026; that's followed by the Edina Monday game, the Bridge Center of St Paul's Thursday Pro/AM game, and then two Rochester open games during the week. The fourth chart on your left is the year-over-year change in these top ten games compared to last year; the Bridge Center of St Paul's Thursday Pro/AM game has really taken off (up +28.3%) followed by Rochester's Wednesday open game (up +18.9%). All of the top ten attended games during the week have increased in size, with the exception of Edina's Tuesday 999er game (off -10.3%). Finally, the fifth (bottom) chart on your left - that's the change in active ACBL membership across Minnesota. The general rate of decline across all of the ACBL for membership runs around -6.5% per year, and Minnesota's Unit 103 reflects that decline at -6.1% compared to twelve months ago. Unit 178, on the other hand, has actually gained members since last year at this time (again, thanks to Spades and Company), which is great news. Overall, the decline in membership in Minnesota since one year ago stands at -3.2%. It's hard to argue that a negative number overall is a win, but when membership is declining at a lessor rate than everyone else, you've got to take the win where you can. Whatever players are doing to help further bridge in the state sure appears to be working - can we keep it up through the second half of the year? We should know for sure in about six months. |
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We're halfway through the bridge year, and of the 105 open regionals that are on the ACBL schedule in 2026, 51 of them are in the books. Last year, for the first time, the number of teams tables at ACBL open regionals surpassed those playing pairs. It's possible that it was a one-time fluke, but it's also a possible indicator of a larger trend towards a shift in player preference. So having a look at what's transpired so far in 2026, the 51 open regionals have seen team tables outnumber pair tables by just a hair (50.1% vs 49.9%). Of the 34,924 open regional tables in 2026, 17,514 of them have been teams tables, with 17,410 of them pairs tables. If this was an election, someone would demand a recount. The second half of the year, which gets going after the NABC next week, features a number of teams-heavy regional tournaments. So look for a wider spread between the pairs and teams number over time this year, and as teams play has become more popular than pairs, it means you'll be seeing plenty of Bracketed Teams at our upcoming local area regional tournaments this year (Rochester, Eau Claire, Omaha, etc.). And that will also include the 2027 Minnesota Gopher. |
 | As far as the Minnesota players who have qualified to play in the North American Pairs competition once we get to later in the summer, there are 384 who have qualified during June. Last year at this time, 400 players had qualified. So that number is down a bit, but there's an asterisk to that figure. We have fewer players in Minnesota than last year. With 1,380 players between Units 103 and 178 one year ago and 1,327 players in our two units now, the percentage of players that have qualified is the same (28.94% now vs 28.98% one year ago). (216 Unit 103 players have qualified so far this season, with 168 Unit 178 players having qualified during June.) Several of Minnesota's clubs in the Metro area will be shut down during the 11-day NABC this month, but clubs can still run these games the rest of July. Remember, these games pay big BIG masterpoints, and they're half-red points at that. Look for them on your club's schedule - and even though you only need to qualify once, you can keep playing in these NAP games to earn those big, big points - you will be glad you did. |
 | The last dotting of the "I"s and crossing of the "T"s took place. Volunteers will be setting up tables no later than early Thursday morning at the Convention Center. Some will already be in place on Wednesday for the GNT games. The PR Committee Chair (Warren) let everyone know how thankful he was and for the great job everyone did - and that he thought it will lead to "great attendance!" Patti added she's "so proud to [everyone] for all that's been done." Now we wait for the cards to be dealt. The volunteer check-in area will be on the first floor of the Convention Center at room L-100. It's going to be a rockin' time. |
  | The top graph on your left shows the face-to-face tables at Minnesota clubs each June since the great re-opening in 2021. Club tables during June have been on the increase every year since the introduction of COVID. The bottom chart on your left shows the year-over-year change in June table counts for Minnesota broken down by individual clubs, units, and geographic areas. Compared to June 2025, the local club table counts are up at most of Minnesota's bridge clubs. Here is a bit more of a deep dive into the numbers:  The Duluth and St Cloud bridge clubs are red hot. Duluth's June tables (45 vs 35½ in 2025) are up +26.8%. St Cloud's June tables are up +20.2% over last year (145½ vs 121).The Woodbury club has finally slowed its growth, although it's growth remains positive during this most recent month. For June, Woodbury picked up a couple of tables each week (90½ monthly tables vs 82½ last year, or up +9.7%). The good news is not universal across the state. The two clubs that have been on the decline in Minnesota, Northfield and Mankato, are still seeing their games get smaller. Northfield's June fell by -11.3% (13¼ tables vs 15 last year) and Mankato's tables in June fell by -9.7% (from 46 one year ago to 42½ this year). A third club, Edina, also saw a drop in June, falling -7.4% from 168½ tables last June to 156 tables this time around. Each of Minnesota's bridge units saw an increase in table counts, with Unit 103 up +11.3% and Unit 178 up +18.7%. One asterisk to Unit 178's growth is that it is entirely due to the new Plymouth club Spades and Company, which held 58 tables in June that were not held in June 2025. Without the Spades and Company tables, Unit 178's monthly year-over-year growth was actually down by -3.9%. The important role of new clubs and the efforts to support them cannot be overstated.
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 | On the agenda: A tournament in November in Duluth is on the schedule, and there's a party to celebrate Rank Achievers at the NABC that will be funded. Some discussion on Sue Greenberg Day at the NABC (she'll address the Gold Rush crowd as they are dear to her heart) and otherwise this was a quick get together before the NABC so that all could be on the same page as we get set for the big tournament. Board minutes from Unit 103 (and Unit 178!) are available on this website once approved and can be accessed by clicking here. |
