Pasadena Bridge Club Logo <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com>
Learn and play bridge!
Mojo
ABTA Master Teacher
649 N Fair Oaks Ave #201
Pasadena CA 91103
(626) 247-4457
pasadenabridgeclub.com <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com>
One of the things that makes the Pasadena Bridge Club special is our
teaching schedule and course catalog.
We reserve three dedicated periods each week for formal bridge classes:
Wednesday afternoons, and Wednesday and Thursday evenings. Within those
three periods, the goal is to cycle through our available 6-week courses
on a staggered schedule. Every course should come around about three
times each year.
Every course benefits from being taken a second time! Bridge learning
never ends — it's one of the things that make this game so compelling!
Here is the lineup of courses starting next week:
Bridge Basics 2 - Competitive Bidding
In this course we start thinking like a bridge player — considering when
our best result may be to go down in a contract for a small negative
score rather than let the opponents make a contract for a /large/
negative score. You'll discover the /Law of Total Tricks/ that can help
you decide "to bid or not to bid."
* Six Wednesday afternoons, 3:00 - 5:00 PM, starting Jan. 7
* $120 includes text by Audrey Grant
* Full lesson plan here
<https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/course/competitive-bidding>
* Register for the course here
<https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/contact/course_enrollment>
Bridge Basics 4 - Play of the Deal
Improve your ability to win all the tricks you can as the declarer in a
contract. It's all about planning! Learn to identify many of the
patterns that enable developing extra winners or eliminating losers.
The course this period is taught by Zachary Vedro, one of the very best
not only at playing the deal, but at presenting the concepts involved.
The textbook won /Book of the Year/ in 2025 from the American Bridge
Teachers Association.
* Six Wednesday evenings, 7:00 - 9:00 PM, starting Jan. 7
* $120 includes textbook by Audrey Grant
* Full lesson plan here
<https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/course/play-of-the-deal>
* Register for the course here
<https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/contact/course_enrollment>
Improving Your Judgment - Doubles
Most newer bridge players overlook opportunities to use the /double/
call to compete in the auction. This course will improve your ability to
recognize opportunities for a takeout double, and provide some structure
to the bidding and decisions that come after.
* Six Thursday evenings, 7:00 - 9:00 PM, starting Jan. 8
* $120 includes textbook by Audrey Grant
* Full lesson plan here
<https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/course/iyj_doubles>
* Register for the course here
<https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/contact/course_enrollment>
Looking for an introduction course?
We just completed a Bridge Introduction course in November, and our next
one is scheduled for Thursday evenings starting April 2.
Can't wait to get started? There's a course using the highly acclaimed
/Easybridge/ curriculum in Woodland Hills on Saturday mornings, starting
January 17. Here's more information on their course
<https://www.bridgewebs.com/cgi-bin/bwoq/bw.cgi?club=750&pid=display_page9>.
No matter where or how you learn to play bridge, check out our full
schedule of events for novice and intermediate bridge players:
https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/schedule#novice
Save the date ...
Mojo, Robert, JaneThe bridge club will be hosting Robert Todd for a full
day bridge seminar on Sunday, March 15. This is our third year to host
Robert, and it's always an eye-opening and entertaining day!
Watch for details in a future newsletter!
Hope to see you soon at the bridge club!
Best regards,
Mojo, Jane, Zachary, Lisa, Susan
Pasadena Bridge Club Logo <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com>
News from North Fair Oaks
Mojo
ABTA Master Teacher
649 N Fair Oaks Ave #201
Pasadena CA 91103
(626) 247-4457
pasadenabridgeclub.com <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com>
Feeling better every day!
I really enjoyed conducting the Saturday morning workshop and the
following game. Seven full tables!
After the game, Lisa and I did a minor reorganization and cleanup of the
kitchen.
We moved the dealing workstation toward the back of the room, and left
more table space for snacks near the front. I need to replace a couple
of worn out tables, and I'm still hoping to do a full remodel when we
have the chance. Baby steps!
Baron Barclay finally took delivery of new ACBL all-plastic playing
cards, so we're having fun replacing nearly all of our decks. (Have you
noticed the ink flaking off of the old cards? They've started looking
like a little snow storm on the back!)
I have a big box of used card decks available! Ask for some at the club.
RSVP Group changes
When we first started setting up the club in RSVP Bridge, the model that
seemed to make sense was to have each weekly game belong to a "group" in
RSVP. Players would be added to groups as they played in a game, or
could add themselves to groups in their RSVP profile.
As we've gained experience with organizing the club model, we realized
that these restrictive groups were making things more difficult than
necessary for the club and our players.
Instead of one group per weekly game, we now have two main game groups:
"Open Games" and "Intermediate/Novice Events." Once you play in any
game, you'll be added to the corresponding group.
A big advantage is that all games in your group /will now appear on your
RSVP calendar/. No more "I can't see the Friday game."
Courses will always be in their own groups. They'll appear on your
calendar when you join the course.
It's been a great privilege to work with Brenda Egeland, the architect
and owner of RSVP Bridge, making the product better for us and the many
other clubs using the service.
New Year's Eve teams
Another change made in RSVP Bridge is that the New Year's Eve game was
given its own "group," and (nearly) all existing club players were added
to the group.
You can now see the teams that have formed, and partnerships that are
available to team with!
We'll be serving party trays of Mexican food from Vallarta. We'll also
be serving our regular beverages and have red and white wine on hand.
If you're compelled to bring something, desserts and sweets would be the
way to go. Anything left behind at the club (food or non-food items)
*will be discarded at the end of the event*! Be prepared to take home
your leftovers!
Remember, teams are intended to be a mix of experienced players with
inexperienced players. No team can exceed a total of 8 "points" as follows:
* Players with 0-200 masterpoints: 1 point
* Players with 200-1000 masterpoints: 2 points
* Players over 1000 masterpoints: 3 points
There are currently 11 teams signed up, with a limit of 16. We have four
"two point" partnerships looking for teammates. *Take a look and draft
one of these pairs for your team!* Do it soon!
We'll start the game at 11:00 and be done by 4:00 PM, taking a leisurely
party pace.
ACBL membership dues increase
On January 1 the ACBL's annual membership rates are going up.
If you have a free "guest membership" now would be a great time to take
advantage of your discount on the first year of full membership, before
the increase.
If you're not currently a member, start by getting yourself a free guest
membership and player number. Use this link for your guest membership
<http://my.acbl.org/membership/join?guest=X&club=277210&teacher=8202249>.
Once you have that in place, you can convert to full membership before
Jan. 1 and take advantage of the big discount.
Coming up ...
*5-game punch cards* will continue on sale for $55 through December 31.
The January schedule of classes is posted! We'll be offering /Bridge
Basics 2 - Competitive Bidding/ on Wednesday afternoons, /Bridge Basics
4 - Play of the Deal/ on Wednesday evenings, and /Improving Your
Judgment - Doubles/ on Thursday evenings. This link goes to our current
course schedule and descriptions:
https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/available_courses
The next session of /Bridge Basics 1 - Introduction/ is scheduled for
Thursday evenings starting April 2. If you know folks looking for new
player bridge classes before then, the 750 Club in Woodland Hills will
be starting an Easybridge series on Saturday, January 17th at
9:30.Here's some information about their classes
<https://www.bridgewebs.com/cgi-bin/bwoq/bw.cgi?club=750&pid=display_page9>.
Best regards
Mojo, Jane, Zachary, Lisa, Susan
Just a brief reminder that the bridge club will be closed tomorrow
(Saturday) while I'm still at home recovering.
We fully expect to be back at our regular schedule for games and social
bridge next week. We have three new courses starting up in January.
Monday is our open pairs at 11:00, and the Workshop with Zachary at 3:00.
I'm doing well, but still exhausted pretty quickly! Also, there's no
more treatment in my future, just a CT scan every few months to be sure
it stays that way. :)
Mojo
--
build message
Morris "Mojo" Jones
mojo(a)PasadenaBridgeClub.com
https://PasadenaBridgeClub.com <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com>
Pasadena Bridge Club <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com>
Pasadena Bridge Club Logo <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com>
News from North Fair Oaks
Mojo
ABTA Master Teacher
649 N Fair Oaks Ave #201
Pasadena CA 91103
(626) 247-4457
pasadenabridgeclub.com <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com>
I'm doing well, thank you! This week I got a really good pathology
report, and that may be the end of this ordeal. We'll see what the
future holds when I meet with my oncologist next week.
Meanwhile Jane has been taking great care of me, and I'm feeling better
every day. We've been doing puzzles and watching classic movies.
Club closed Thursday-Saturday this week
Zachary is taking care of family this week and playing in Palm Springs,
Lisa is playing in Palm Springs, and Susan is traveling on vacation. I'm
still recovering from my surgery.
Paula Olivares is generously covering the bridge games on Monday,
Tuesday, and Wednesday.
We won't have games on *Thursday, Friday, or Saturday of this week,*
that's December 11, 12, and 13. The Tuesday evening game on Dec. 9 will
not meet, and the 3:00 PM workshops are cancelled for Monday and Tuesday.
On either Thursday or Friday, the property management company will be
replacing our lobby door that's been broken for a few weeks. They need
to block the door for a full day, so this is a lucky closure date for them.
Practice Class Hands
Jane Winer wants to claim the empty space on Monday through Wednesday
3:00-5:00 next week if there is interest, specifically to practice hands
from the various courses we offer.
She's definitely going to make hands from the 2/1GF class on one of
those days, but also has hands available from the first four Bridge
Basics and Defense classes.
She has three days, and several classes to choose from, so what she'd
really like to know is what day you would like to attend and which class
you want to practice the most.
Please drop Jane a note at jane.b.winer(a)gmail.com with "I'd like to come
on [Mon Tue Wed] and would really love to practice {Defense, BB2, 2/1,
etc.]"
Club Championships next week
Let's play Club Championship games during the week of Dec. 15-20. No
extra charge, lots of extra masterpoints with overall awards for each game.
Teams for New Year's Eve
We have a bit of a tradition to hold a special team game on New Year's
Eve during the day. Let's do it again this year to wind up our third
year of operation.
The format will be teams of four, in a swiss team format, with a limit
of 16 teams. Each team is constrained in its membership to the "Eight is
Enough" format, in which the total for the team members must not exceed
eight points, as follows:
* Players with 0-200 masterpoints: 1 point
* Players with 200-1000 masterpoints: 2 points
* Players over 1000 masterpoints: 3 points
(Of course any team is welcome to have fewer "points!")
The objective is to attempt to level the playing field so all teams have
a good chance of winning some matches during the event.
We'll start the game at 11:00 AM, include plenty of party fare, food and
drink, and finish probably around 3:00 or 3:30 PM -- in plenty of time
to have your own real New Year's Eve dinner out or entertainment event.
Coming up ...
*5-game punch cards* will continue on sale for $55 through December 31,
and you can purchase as many as you wish. You can buy as many as you
like, but be careful not to lose them! We certainly don't want to
benefit from unused punches.
The January schedule of classes is posted! We'll be offering /Bridge
Basics 2 - Competitive Bidding/ on Wednesday afternoons, /Bridge Basics
4 - Play of the Deal/ on Wednesday evenings, and /Improving Your
Judgment - Doubles/ on Thursday evenings. This link goes to our current
course schedule and descriptions:
https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/available_courses
The next session of /Bridge Basics 1 - Introduction/ is scheduled for
Thursday evenings starting April 2. If you know folks looking for new
player bridge classes before then, the 750 Club in Woodland Hills will
be starting an Easybridge series on Saturday, January 17th at
9:30.Here's some information about their classes
<https://www.bridgewebs.com/cgi-bin/bwoq/bw.cgi?club=750&pid=display_page9>.
Best regards
Mojo, Jane, Zachary, Lisa, Susan
Pasadena Bridge Club Logo <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com>
News from North Fair Oaks
Mojo
ABTA Master Teacher
649 N Fair Oaks Ave #201
Pasadena CA 91103
(626) 247-4457
pasadenabridgeclub.com <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com>
*How do you feel about recording the opening leads of each hand during
the games?*
Let me know with a one-question anonymous survey. Here is the link to
send your response
<https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeh59LNIqgusIidW3rDnUrp1GgxghnezS2…>.
*I'm doing well, thank you for asking!* This is a coasting week for me.
My surgery happens next Thursday on November 20th, and we're planning
for me to be away from the club for at least four weeks.
It's going to be a little tight at the bridge club, and we may not have
someone to run a game or workshop on some days. We'll do our best to let
you know ahead of time. December won't have any classes on the calendar,
though I would like to schedule two sessions on "Opening the Bidding"
between Christmas and New Year's.
My pulmonologist suggests that in six months I won't be able to tell I
had the surgery. That works for me.
The club is doing well. I think we need to expand a bit, using some of
the vacant next door space. We're growing enough to make use of that.
We're also planning to remodel the break room into something more like
hospitality and less like a messy back-room afterthought. We can make
something truly attractive and give ourselves tons more storage and
useful space in the process. (It's about making an overwhelmingly good
impression on new visitors.)
We're geared up for all of these things, but they will happen slowly and
with lots of planning and procrastinating.
Join the ACBL
If you've never been a member of the American Contract Bridge League,
you can *join for free*.
As a new guest member, you'll receive an ACBL Player Number that
identifies you to the scoring system, and keeps track of your first 20
masterpoints as you start qualifying in games. You'll also receive the
electronic edition of the /ACBL Bulletin/, and be ready to enter
tournaments all over North America.
There's really no reason to wait. The player number is yours for life.
But you will want to become a full member eventually!
Here's the link to get your free ACBL guest membership
<http://my.acbl.org/membership/join?guest=X&club=277210&teacher=8202249>.
And if you're ready for a full membership, /you should start with the
guest membership anyway/! It comes with a huge discount on your first
year of full membership. You can convert at any time.
Thanksgiving Week
At the moment we're planning to host our regular games on Friday and
Saturday following Thanksgiving, as well as the Wednesday before
Thanksgiving. The club will be closed, of course, for Thanksgiving day.
Please be aware that the parking lot is likely to be very crowded on the
Wednesday before Thanksgiving, filled with shoppers for Vallarta. Plan
to arrive a bit earlier than usual that day.
Classes This Week
For all of our courses, you're welcome to join a single class for $25.
It's a great way to get a good bite of a subject without a six-week
commitment.
* Wednesday, 3:00 PM, /Bridge Basics 1 - Introduction/ "Practice Hands"
* Wednesday, 7:00 PM /Bridge Basics 3 - Popular Conventions/ "Practice
Hands"
* Thursday, 7:00 PM /Intro to Defense/ "Signals against Trump Contracts"
Saturday morning is our *workshop and game* for novice/intermediate
players. We start with a free workshop at 9:30 featuring an entertaining
hand from Eddie Kantar's "Thinking Bridge" series. You're welcome to
come for the workshop even if you're not planning to play in the game.
Coming up ...
We're going to have an end-of-year sale on the *5-game punch cards*.
From December 1st through 24th we'll sell you a five-game punch card
for $55 instead of $60. Each punch is good for a regular game at the
club, or use two punches and visit a single class session.
You can buy as many as you like, but be careful not to lose them! We
certainly don't want to benefit from unused punches.
The January schedule of classes is posted! We'll be offering /Bridge
Basics 2 - Competitive Bidding/ on Wednesday afternoons, /Bridge Basics
4 - Play of the Deal/ on Wednesday evenings, and /Improving Your
Judgment - Doubles/ on Thursday evenings. This link goes to our current
course schedule and descriptions:
https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/available_courses
The next session of /Bridge Basics 1 - Introduction/ is scheduled for
Thursday evenings starting April 2. If you know folks looking for new
player bridge classes before then, the 750 Club in Woodland Hills will
be starting an Easybridge series on Saturday, January 17th at
9:30.Here's some information about their classes
<https://www.bridgewebs.com/cgi-bin/bwoq/bw.cgi?club=750&pid=display_page9>.
Best regards
Mojo, Jane, Zachary, Lisa, Susan
Pasadena Bridge Club Logo <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com>
News from North Fair Oaks
Mojo
ABTA Master Teacher
649 N Fair Oaks Ave #201
Pasadena CA 91103
(626) 247-4457
pasadenabridgeclub.com <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com>
Our club was one of 117 in North America participating in last week's
ACBL-wide Instant Matchpoint Game on Wednesday.
Most notably, we were the only club in District 23 (Los Angeles County)
offering a game!
As a result, the top five finishers at our club were also the top five
in District 23. That means our folks had their masterpoint awards
increased by quite a lot.
The full list of winners in North America are listed at this link
<https://club-results.s3.amazonaws.com/production/SpecialGameResults/AIM/202…>.
Here's a screen shot of the winners from the district (all from our game!):
Big congratulations! And remember what (Woody Allen and) I said last
week, 80% of life is showing up! The other D23 clubs missed out on this one.
As a bonus, the social/supervised group on Friday was able to enjoy
playing the same hands, consulting the booklet, and seeing the table
results from the special travelers. Thank you all for playing! Let's do
it again next year.
Classes This Week
For all of our courses, you're welcome to join a single class for $25.
It's a great way to get a good bite of a subject without a six-week
commitment.
* Wednesday, 3:00 PM, /Bridge Basics 1 - Introduction/ "Practice Hands"
* Wednesday, 7:00 PM /Bridge Basics 3 - Popular Conventions/ "Slam
Bidding"
* Thursday, 7:00 PM /Intro to Defense/ "Signals against Notrump Contracts"
Saturday morning is our *workshop and game* for novice/intermediate
players. We start with a free workshop at 9:30 featuring an entertaining
hand from Eddie Kantar's "Thinking Bridge" series. You're welcome to
come for the workshop even if you're not planning to play in the game.
There are no regular courses scheduled for December; we'll resume the
rotation during the first week of January. You can see the next
scheduled courses on the web site here
<https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/available_courses>.
That said, I'm looking for an opportunity to do a shorty course of two
meetings on "Opening the Bidding." We'll talk about how your seating
position changes your considerations for making an opening bid. I'll
pick two dates for the mini-class when I see how my surgery recovery is
progressing.
Coming up ...
Do you love the five-game punch cards? We're going to have an
end-of-year sale on them. From December 1st through 24th we'll sell you
a five-game punch card for $55 instead of $60.
I mention it now so you don't buy too many before they go on sale. Each
punch is good for a regular $12 game.
You can buy as many as you like, but be careful not to lose them! We
certainly don't want to benefit from unused punches.
Lisa Walker is traveling in Egypt for a couple of weeks. Zachary, Susan,
Liza and I will be doing our best to cover all the games for a couple of
weeks. I'm really grateful to have all the help while I deal with
pre-surgery appointments. The big day for me is November 20. Everything
is going well so far.
Best regards
Mojo, Jane, Zachary, Lisa, Susan
Pasadena Bridge Club Logo <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com>
News from North Fair Oaks
Mojo
ABTA Master Teacher
649 N Fair Oaks Ave #201
Pasadena CA 91103
(626) 247-4457
pasadenabridgeclub.com <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com>
This past Sunday the club hosted the North American Pairs District
Final. This game determines who will be invited to the Spring NABC in
St. Louis to represent District 23 (Los Angeles County).
In Flight C, two of our regular club partnerships placed in the overalls
and will get their invitation: *Peter Kavounas* with *Richard Parker
*from Upland and Claremont won the event, and *Hsing (Cindy) Fang* and
*Chris Sun* from San Gabriel and Pasadena took third.
*Peter Jager* and *Kim Ebner* placed fifth and become "first alternate"
to make the trip to St. Louis in Flight B.
Flight A was a special case, with only two pairs entered. Both pairs
will have a chance to play in St. Louis. *Gary Moore* and *Thompson Jin*
, along with *Sarah Deschenes* and *myself*. It just confirms what Woody
Allen said that "80% of life is just showing up." :)
Instant Matchpoint Game Wednesday
Wednesday October 29 our Open Pairs game will be the ACBL-wide Instant
Matchpoint Game. This is our third year to host this special game (and
it's good to have the practice!).
The game is played like any of our other Open Pairs games, but instead
of waiting to get your matchpoint score at the end of the game, you will
find your score on a traveling score slip immediately after playing it.
(The scores have already been determined, and I don't know how they do
that! Probably best that I don't!)
More special features: 1st place in each direction earns *one full gold
masterpoint*. The remaining awards will be a "royal" scattering of
black, red, silver, and gold. The top five pairs in each district will
be awarded additional points (first place gets 10.0 masterpoints!).
At the end of the game, everyone receives a printed booklet with expert
analysis of all 36 hands available for play. (We'll only play 24 of them.)
The game takes a little extra time, so plan to be finished closer to
2:30. We do have to clean and set up the room for the Bridge Basics 1
class that starts at 3:00! Card fees are $14 for this game.
Classes This Week
For all of our courses, you're welcome to join a single class for $25.
It's a great way to get a good bite of a subject without a six-week
commitment.
* Wednesday, 3:00 PM, /Bridge Basics 1 - Introduction/ "Minor Suit
Openings and Responses"
* Wednesday, 7:00 PM /Bridge Basics 3 - Popular Conventions/ "Strong
Opening Hands"
* Thursday, 7:00 PM /Intro to Defense/ "Third Hand Play"
Saturday morning is our *workshop and game* for novice/intermediate
players. We start with a free workshop at 9:30 featuring an entertaining
hand from Eddie Kantar's "Thinking Bridge" series. You're welcome to
come for the workshop even if you're not planning to play in the game.
Coming up ...
Our great friend of the club Jane Winer has been doing so much to help
students, new and continuing, to get opportunities to practice between
classes. She has been opening the bridge club on Sunday mornings at
10:00 or so and inviting folks to come practice hands from that week's
classes.
Jane is also taking on a great organizational duty by helping to arrange
for "seat filling" teaching assistants for each class. These are past
students from classes who volunteer to fill a three-player table to make
a fourth. They come attend a class with the possibility of not being needed!
It's a great luxury for the students (and the teacher!) for the quality
of the presentation — to have the maximum involvement in each of the
classes, with rarely a need for "5-player" tables.
If you are a current student or potential TA volunteer who would like to
join in, drop me a note (reply to this message) and I'll put you in
touch with Jane.
Best regards,
Mojo, Jane, Zachary, Lisa, Susan
Pasadena Bridge Club Logo <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com>
News from North Fair Oaks
Mojo
ABTA Master Teacher
649 N Fair Oaks Ave #201
Pasadena CA 91103
(626) 247-4457
pasadenabridgeclub.com <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com>
October is Club Appreciation Month. The ACBL expresses its appreciation
by awarding what are essentially "club championship" masterpoint levels
for two weeks with no extra charge.
This week and next all of our Open Pairs games will be Club Appreciation
games. Come play and rack up points!
We also have two dynamite courses starting up this week. On Wednesday
evening, Popular Conventions (Bridge Basics 3), and on Thursday evenings
Intro to Defense.
The Bridge Basics 1 course on Wednesday afternoon had 22 new students.
Our next Bridge Basics 1 will start in April on Thursday evenings.
We had a lot of big winners during the STaC week! You can see the
district-wide overall results for each session
<https://tournaments.acbl.org/schedule.php?sanction=2510502#schedule> at
this link.
NAP District Final
The Pasadena Bridge Club is hosting the North American Pairs District
Final on Sunday, October 26. You might recall that we held qualifier
games for this event during June, July, and August. Did you qualify?
<https://web2.acbl.org/documentLibrary/play/NAP_Qualifiers/NAP_D23.htm>
With the new A flight capped at 6,000 masterpoints, there are more
opportunities to qualify to a national game. Since I'm no longer NAP
coordinator, I'm looking forward to getting to play in the event. Maybe
I'll get to represent District 23 in St. Louis in March.
All of the NAP information is available here: https://nap.bridgemojo.com/
The October 26 event is a two-session matchpoint pairs game, with the
two sessions starting at 10:00 and 3:00. Be sure to get your reservation
in as soon as you can! Here's the reservation link
<https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/contact/reservation_for_nap_final>.
Start a bridge course!
Register at this link
<https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/contact/course_enrollment> to join
either Popular Conventions
<https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/course/popular-conventions> on Wednesday
evenings or Intro to Defense
<https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/course/intro-to-defense> on Thursday
evenings. (Click the links for full course descriptions.)
If you're not sure you want to take the full course, try the first
session for $25. If you decide to enroll, get credit for the single session.
Classes This Week
For all of our courses, you're welcome to join a single class for $25.
It's a great way to get a good bite of a subject without a six-week
commitment.
* Wednesday, 3:00 PM, /Bridge Basics 1 - Introduction/ "One notrump
openings and responses"
* Wednesday, 7:00 PM /Bridge Basics 3 - Popular Conventions/ "The
Stayman Convention"
* Thursday, 7:00 PM /Intro to Defense/ "Opening leads against notrump"
Don't forget the Saturday morning *workshop and game* for
novice/intermediate players. We start with a free workshop at 9:30
featuring an entertaining hand from Eddie Kantar's "Thinking Bridge"
series. You're welcome to come for the workshop even if you're not
planning to play in the game.
Coming up ...
On Wednesday, October 29, we'll host a game in the *ACBL-wide Instant
Matchpoint Pairs*, a very special annual event! For every hand and
result, you get your matchpoint percentage immediately after playing the
hand. At the end of the session, there's a special booklet with analysis
from a guest expert on every board.
It's a unique way to play a club game, and our results will be compared
with other clubs in the district and the ACBL. Big games have the
potential for a big district or national point award! Card fees for the
Instant Matchpoint Game will be $14.
I do have a little update on my health situation, and it's all good
news. I have a surgery date of November 20. The lung mass has retreated
noticeably, and we're going to skip the third chemo. I have plenty of
time to recover from the side effects that sidelined me for a while, and
get to enjoy spending some time with you all at the bridge club for the
next month. I'm still not 100%, but getting closer! Thanks so much for
all the good wishes and support!
Best regards,
Mojo, Jane, Zachary, Lisa, Susan
Pasadena Bridge Club Logo <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com>
News from North Fair Oaks
Mojo
ABTA Master Teacher
649 N Fair Oaks Ave #201
Pasadena CA 91103
(626) 247-4457
pasadenabridgeclub.com <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com>
Silver point week! Lulu Minter! New courses! But first ...
I just finished the new novel /A Reluctant Spy/ by good friend of the
club Roselyn Teukolsky. (She and Saul won the Pasadena Unit Game today.)
It's a great adventure of a read. I loved getting to see Ithaca and
Cornell academia through the eyes of Roselyn and her characters. I
cringed through her heroine's many fumbles and missteps, and enjoyed the
twists and turns along the way to a crescendo of a climax. Well worth a
read!
Meanwhile we have new bridge courses starting up next week. I'm going to
follow up this newsletter with one to our "classes" email list with
details. You might get two emails from me today.
Silver Point Week
All Open Pairs games this week will pay silver points. Our games will be
combined with other clubs in LA County for potentially large payouts for
overall winners! It's a Sectional Tournament at Clubs (STaC).
Card fees for the open games will be $13 to cover the addtional sanction
fees. Stratification for all open STaC games will be Open/2500/750,
based on the average point holding of each pair.
Free Lulu Minter Seminars
Monday, Wednesday and Thursday mornings Lulu Minter will be offering
free pre-game talks at 10:00 before the 11:00 Open Pairs games.
His topic for all three sessions will be "Bridge Problems, Thinking
Outside the Box"
No reservations required, doors will open at 9:45 on all three days.
Bridge Basics 1 - Introduction Oct 8
Our first weekday offering of Bridge Basics 1 has 19 students enrolled
as of this moment. We limit the course to 28, so it's a good time to
have your friends reserve their seats as soon as they can!
Here's the registration link at PCC Extension
<https://pasadena.augusoft.net/index.cfm?method=ClassInfo.ClassInformation&i…>.
Popular Conventions Oct 15
Here's a six-week course to learn and practice the most useful bidding
conventions in bridge: Stayman, Jacoby Transfer Bids, strong Hand
openings, and slam bidding. This is Bridge Basics 3.
* Wednesday evenings, 7-9 PM
* Six sessions starting October 15
* $120 includes textbook by Audrey Grant
* Click here for the full description
<https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/course/popular-conventions>
* Click here to reserve your seat
<https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/contact/course_enrollment>
Intro to Defense Oct 16
This course may well have more positive impact on your game than any
other we offer. Come learn how to work with your partner to take as many
tricks as possible on defense. Learn to visualize the placement of key
cards and communicate with partner when you can't see each other's cards.
* Thursday evenings, 7-9 PM
* Six sessions starting October 16
* $120 includes textbook by Eddie Kantar
* Click here for the full description
<https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/course/intro-to-defense>
* Click here to reserve your seat
<https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/contact/course_enrollment>
Classes This Week
For all of our courses, you're welcome to join a single class for $25.
It's a great way to get a good bite of a subject without a six-week
commitment.
This week we really only have one session, but it's very worthy of a
drop-in! This is a makeup session for Bridge Basics 2, and it's a great
opportunity to learn and practice competitive bidding skills.
* Thursday, 7:00 PM, /Bridge Basics 2 - Competitive Bidding/ "Practice
Hands"
I am also planning a makeup session on Friday at 3:00 PM for practice
hands for Two Over One Game Force. If you'd like to drop in for that
session, drop me a note.
Coming up ...
Our next two weeks of games following the STaC will be Club Appreciation
games, with lots of extra masterpoints and overall awards for every open
game.
On Sunday October 26, the club will be hosting the North American Pairs
District Final. It's a full-day two-session event. If you qualified at a
club game, make your reservation to play and get information here:
https://nap.bridgemojo.com/
On Wednesday, October 29, we'll host a game in the ACBL-wide Instant
Matchpoint Pairs, a very special annual event! More about that in a
future newsletter.
Personal health wise, I'm in a little bit of a holding pattern for the
next two or three weeks, and expecting to use this time to be active at
the club teaching classes and directing.
Best regards,
Mojo, Jane, Zachary, Lisa, Susan
Pasadena Bridge Club Logo <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com>
News from North Fair Oaks
Mojo
ABTA Master Teacher
649 N Fair Oaks Ave #201
Pasadena CA 91103
(626) 247-4457
pasadenabridgeclub.com <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com>
I think it's high time I wrote a newsletter. October is a great month
for bridge games and classes. More about my status down below.
As of the end of September, in checking our table count among
face-to-face clubs in North America, the Pasadena Bridge Club is ranked
number 51, with 2,242 tables. That count only includes tables in
sanctioned masterpoint games, so if you were to add our classes and
casual bridge sessions it would be quite a bit more. I think we'll break
into the top 50 by the end of the year!
We have a great location, a great staff, and a great program for bridge!
This week features our regular club games and schedule, but let's take a
look at what's coming up the rest of the month:
Sectional Tournament at Clubs Oct 6-11
All Open Pairs games next coming week, October 6-11 will be silver point
games. Our club will be pooling with the other Los Angeles County bridge
clubs for a Sectional Tournament at Clubs (STaC).
Stratification for all open STaC games will be Open/2500/750, based on
the average point holding of each pair.
With many clubs playing sessions, there potential is there for big
silver point awards! Card fees for the STaC games will be $13.
Lulu Minter Seminars Oct 6, 8, 9
Monday, Wednesday and Thursday mornings next week, October 6, 8, and 9,
Lulu Minter will be offering free pre-game talks at 10:00 before the
11:00 Open Pairs games.
His topic for all three sessions will be "Bridge Problems, Thinking
Outside the Box"
The games those days will all be silver point STaC games, so these talks
should be a great way to get into focus for the 11:00 Open Pairs!
No reservations required, doors will open at 9:45 on all three days.
Bridge Basics 1 - Introduction Oct 8
This fall marks our first "daylight" offering of Bridge Basics 1 in
quite a while. This is the starting point for those who don't play
bridge, and a great way to get familiar with the mechanics and strategy
of the game.
This is our only course that's offered through Pasadena City College's
Extension program. You'll see it listed in every issue of the PCC
Extension catalog that lands in mailboxes three or four times a year.
There are already 15 students enrolled! Registration should be made
through PCC Extension, and best done online at this link
<https://pasadena.augusoft.net/index.cfm?method=ClassInfo.ClassInformation&i…>.
The course is limited to 28 students.
Classes This Week
This week we'll be meeting our fifth session of Two Over One Game Force
and Bridge Basics 2 - Competitive Bidding. Those two classes are running
a week behind because of having to cancel last week's classes. Make-up
sessions will be held the following week.
For all of our courses, you're welcome to join a single class for $25.
It's a great way to get a good bite of a subject without a six-week
commitment.
All three classes are great practice hand sessions, making them dynamite
for single-session drop-in practice!
* Wednesday, 3:00 PM, /Two Over One Game Force/ "Practice Hands"
* Wednesday, 7:00 PM, /Bridge Basics 2 - Competitive Bidding/
"Practice Hands"
* Thursday, 7:00 PM, /Bridge Basics 4 - Play of the Deal/ "Practice Hands"
Our next courses will be:
* Bridge Basics 3 - Popular Conventions, Wed. Oct 15 7:00 PM
* Introduction to Defense, Thu. Oct. 16 7:00 PM
You can enroll for those at this link
<https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/contact/course_enrollment>.
Coming up ...
October is Club Appreciation Month at the ACBL, and all of our games
during October 13-25 will be Club Appreciation games. These pay extra
masterpoints with overalls, similar to Club Championship games, and come
with no extra card fee!
On Sunday October 26, the club will be hosting the North American Pairs
District Final. It's a full-day two-session event. If you qualified at a
club game, make your reservation to play and get information here:
https://nap.bridgemojo.com/
On Wednesday, October 29, we'll host a game in the ACBL-wide Instant
Matchpoint Pairs, a very special annual event! More about that in a
future newsletter.
Mojo update
Most of you know I had to spend six nights at Kaiser's LA Medical Center
last week, admitted and discharged on Wednesdays. The problem was a rare
side-effect of the immunotherapy treatment I've been receiving for my
lung cancer.
The good news is that we appear to have gotten it under control without
any other undue risks, but my poor oncologist is going to have to make a
revised plan for the cancer treatment. That's still pending.
I'm gradually making my way back to more time at the bridge club,
knowing I'll have other interruptions coming up with chemo and surgery.
We'll just have to take those as they come.
Meanwhile, I think you'll agree that the club has been in excellent
hands with everyone pitching in to keep the games and classes running
smoothly. My gratitude to Zachary, Lisa, Susan Kane, Milo Sketeris, and
everyone who has helped sharpen pencils, push in chairs, and pick up
trash around the club. Thank you!
But special thanks to my beloved wife Jane who has had to do all of the
chores at home (literally the "heavy lifting"), bring me some
non-hospital treats every day, and has been driving me to and from the
bridge club and doctor visits!
Best regards,
Mojo, Jane, Zachary, Lisa, Susan
