BRIDGE IN BARBADOS

(Compiled from notes left by E.L. “Jimmy” Cozier and others)

The late 1920’s saw the change from auction to contract bridge, and the game became all the rage in North America from that time.  Ely Culbertson was acknowledged  as the principal promoter of the game throughout the 1930s.  The game of duplicate also gained ground, and the first recognized World Championship tournament was held in 1935.  In 1938 Ivan Humphrey, a qualified teacher of the Culbertson system brought the game to Barbados, and continued to promote it until he left the island in 1945.

Most bridge was played socially at private homes in the early years, but in the 1950s Arthur Pile and Polly Roberts organized game at the Marine Hotel with as many as 60 players present on some occasions. 1945 saw the foundation of the Mayfair Ladies Bridge Club, which continues to flourish.  For many years of its existence the weekly Wednesday evening meetings were hosted at Caradelle by its long-serving President Mrs. Hyacinth Burton, later Lady Burton. In 1953 Mayfair arranged the first inter-territorial match against their sister club in Trinidad, a tradition which is still maintained.    

In 1962 Father Thomas Pearson  formed the St. Francis club which met at the Sandy Lane Hotel through the kindness of the then Manager, Nicholas Behard. Later games were held at the Hotel Royal on Sea and at the Windsor Hotel.   The St. Francis club was founded to raise funds for the church, but also to provide a forum for players interested in duplicate play, and Father Pearson was a leading promoter of the game in the sixties. Through the good offices of an American colleague of Father Pearson the St. Francis Club was affiliated to the ACBL through the grant of a franchise which was unique to Barbados.  As a result members were able to play for master points.

By the mid 1960s it was felt that the organization of bridge needed to be put on a firmer footing, and on October 28^th, 1965 and 11-member delegation, which included Father Pearson, Ambrose “Dickie” Walcott, and E.L. “Jimmy” Cozier, met with the Government Sports Officer E.A.V. “Foffie” Williams at the Welfare Department offices.  This meeting saw the inception of the Barbados Bridge League.  The first Council of the League comprised: Father Pearson, President; Hyacinth Burton, Vice-President; Ambrose Walcott, Secretary-Treasurer; Harold Forde, Ivy Randall and Alison Ross, members. Peter “Peggy” Griffith became the League’s first Tournament Director. One of the principal aims of the League was to foster competition at all levels, and the first official Barbados-Trinidad Tournament took place the following year.

In 1966 nine members of St. Francis broke away to found the Hastings Club, which met at the Savannah Club on the Garrison. A longtime President of Hastings, and Patron of the League was Olga Ramsay a leading social figure from the 1950s to the 1970s. In 1967 the Carlisle Club was founded.  During the early years it met at Stanmore Terrace on Monday evenings under the leadership of Victor Alleyne.  The club played annually in a tri-partite tournament with Antigua and St. Kitts for a trophy donated by Peter Griffith.  In 1969 the Cave Hill club was formed.  The first President was Leonard Bannister, and the club met regularly at the Hilton Hotel on Saturday afternoons.  Bridge continued to be played in many other institutions, and during these years the YMCA could always field a strong team in the annual competitions.

Jimmy Cozier became President of the League for the first time in 1969, and the 1970s saw considerable expansion in local tournaments and in travel overseas by representative teams.  In November1971 Jimmy promoted a tournament, “Bridge Holiday in Barbados”, and invited countries of the region to participate.  He succeeded in getting no less than fourteen countries and territories to compete in this first ever Caribbean and Central American championship.  The Bridge Holiday, held at the Hilton Hotel, was an overwhelming success, and at its conclusion the representatives of the teams present got together to found the Central American and Caribbean Bridge Federation, with Cozier as its formative President, charged with drafting a constitution.

Since 1971, similar tournaments have been held each year, the Championship proper alternating with a Festival.  Events have been held in many countries of the region including Venezuela and Colombia, all engendering the same spirit of camaraderie and friendship which are the hallmarks of the Barbados-Trinidad games.  In 1987 the CACBF became Zone 5 of the World Bridge Federation, earning international recognition for the bridge players of these islands and countries.  The part played by Barbados in this achievement has been widely recognized, and Cozier was the recipient of a special medal from the CACBF to mark their appreciation of his work.

In the early 1970s Blyden Callender took over as Chief Tournament Director. Througout his associatiion with the game in Barbados Blyden was universally admired and respected for his qualities both as a player and as director.  He was a gentleman in every sense, and ran the games with the necessary mixture of firmness and good humour.  He also kept meticulous records of each tournament, many of which are still in the keeping of the League.

Jimmy Cozier was also the driving force behind the acquisition of the Headquarters building of the Bridge League at 23 Pine Road in 1981.  With the help of the affiliated  clubs the League raised sufficient money in bonds to make the initial purchase, and with assistance of a mortgage provided by Brigitte Mavromichalis has gradually paid off the bulk of the purchase.  The centre has provided a comfortable and relaxed setting for all the affiliated clubs and for major tournaments, and has provoked admiration from many of our overseas visitors.

Throughout the 1980s many of the early stalwarts continued to be active in their attendance at weekly games, but from the late eighties Bridge has been gradually declining in the number of regular members which it attracts.  Nevertheless the enthusiasm of the ‘hard-core’ players remains unabated.  The great success of the 1990s was the Sun, Sea and Slams tournament, begun in 1991, under the presidency of Lady Burton,  and played at various different hotels in the island.  This tournament has attracted numerous overseas players, including stars such as Zia Mahmood, Russ Ekblad and the Hackett family.  It was during the early 90s also that Michael Gill took over as Chief Tournament Director, a post in which he is assisted by Tony Watkins, a leading player and for many years the Master Points Secretary of the League. From the mid 1990s the League started a series of classes which have introduced the game to new players, but have not succeeded in recruiting many younger participants.  The mid 1990s also saw the foundation of the Morning Bridge Club, under the Presidency of Sam Corbin.  The MBC now attracts greater numbers than most evening games.  Meanwhile the League continues to explore new ways to make the game attractive to a greater section of the Barbadian public.