Starting Labor Day week, we have two 999er games in Wellesley: Tuesdays at 10:30 and Wednesdays at 12:00. These games are 18 boards and last about 2½ hours.

On Tuesdays, come for a free pregame lesson at 10:00. On Wednesdays, come for Zach Grossack’s “Thinking Slam” classes at 10:15 (see below).

You’re invited to another special series of celebrity lessons on Wednesdays, September 6, 13, and 20 and October 4, from 10:15 to 11:45. Stay for our 12:00 game, which will have a 999er flight (18 boards, 2½ hours) as well as an open flight (24 boards, 3 hours).

Zach has won eight North American Bridge Championships and is the 2022 ACBL Player of the Year. He writes:

I am excited to return to the teaching circuit, this time with my favorite topic in history: Thinking Slam.

Remember when you were first taught that you need 33 combined points for a slam? We're going to throw that one by the wayside. I'm sure you've all taken 12 tricks with fewer points than that - and in this class, I will be showing you how and when to look for these slams. Why? Because those who bid slams win more at bridge, of course!

This class will cover both the technical side of slam discovery, as well as the conceptual side. We will go in depth on Roman Keycard Blackwood and control bidding, as well as look for key factors that determine when to start whiffing for slams. These concepts include double fits, an abundance of aces, “30 point decks” (if you don't know what that means, come to the class and learn!), knowing when shortness is useful (and also knowing when it might not be!), and much more. 

By the end you will start visualizing the number of tricks your side will take during the bidding. Trust me.

WHERE: Bay State Bridge, 75 Pleasant St., Wellesley, MA—How to Find Us
WHEN: September 6, 13, 20, and October 4 (skipping September 27 during high holidays). The class begins at 10:15 and ends around 11:45. There is an open duplicate game and a limited duplicate game, both at noon, after the lesson finishes for those interested in testing out their slamming!
HOW: Easy booking at zgbridge.com. You are also welcomed to just show up—drop-ins are just fine.
WHO: All levels welcome, but intermediate and advanced players (and even experts) especially won’t want to miss this class!
HOW MUCH: This will be a 4 part class, the 4 classes together at $110. Per class drop-ins are welcome, with each individual class at $35
September 6: Roman Keycard and a few things you might not have known about it
September 13: The Key Factors—what exactly to look out for when exploring for slam
September 20: Control Bids and Cue Bids
October 4: The “30 Point Deck” and putting it all together.

Come as a partnership, or come as an individual and we will fix you up with a partner. And of course feel free to tell all of your bridge friends who might be interested!

Hope to see lots of you there.

Slams ahoy,
ZG

September is International Fund Month, and all of our games are International Fund games. The ACBL’s International Fund supports North American participation in international competitions. All masterpoint awards are 64% sectional black points (about twice the awards for regular club games).

Congratulations to Bay State Bridge players:

• who advanced in masterpoint rank in June, July, and August, including Life Master Anne Farrington, Silver Life Masters (1,000 points) Tracy Burlock, Walter Driscoll, and Sam Gallo,  Gold Life Master (2,500 points) Harold Nordstrom, Emerald Life Master (7,500 points) Natalie Bassil, and Platinum Life Masters (10,000 points) Alan Watson and Rick Binder
• who rank high in 2023 masterpoint races through August, including district leaders Joe Lanzel, Cesare Verdi, Barbara Tarlin, Max Siline, Harrison Luba, Natalie Bassil, Joe Cappannelli, Alan Watson, Sheila Gabay, and Zach Grossack

For complete lists, please see Masterpoint Achievements on our site and Masterpoint Races and Member Rank Achievements on the ACBL site.

Click here for overall results of the New England Royal Sectional Tournament at Clubs held the week of August 21.

Joe Cappannelli, Haven Sharaf, and Chuck Greenslit rank first, seventh, and eighth on the masterpoint list for this STaC.

On 2021 June 1 Newton Bridge Club and Westwood Duplicate Bridge Club joined forces and resumed in-person duplicate bridge. We have a new name

Bay State Bridge

two new venues

Italo American Educational Club
75 Pleasant Street, Wellesley*

Temple Ner Tamid of the North Shore
368 Lowell Street, Peabody*

and a new schedule.

We require COVID vaccination. Masks are optional.†

— Tim Hill, David Metcalf, and Gary Peterson

* Both venues are minutes from route 128. For directions, please see How to Find Us.

† For everyone’s safety and peace of mind, we require COVID vaccination, including a booster if eligible. Please note that “up to date” vaccination now includes a new updated bivalent booster, and we urge you to get one as soon as practical. Masks are optional, but many of us choose to wear them. If someone asks you to wear a mask while you’re sharing a table with them, please do so graciously without question.

The ACBL continues running Support-Your-Club online games that proportionately benefit whatever clubs you played at in 2019. Thank you for your support!

The Westwood, Puritan, Mid-Cape, and Dennis-Yarmouth clubs are most grateful for your participation in the Westwood/Puritan/Cape Online games, which ended when we resumed in-person play. Thank you!

The 7NTWorld group still runs their online games.

Please click here and read the promise we made on your behalf to newcomers and advancing players.