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Pivot Teams Championship
Description

The Pivot Teams Championship is, in a sense, a "middle ranking" competition in the Deva Bridge Club's annual calendar. Although it is a multi-stage event with a qualifying round, semi-final and final the winners do not appear on the club's honours boards and there is no trophy. The term pivot teams describes a tournament in which the pairs within each team are not fixed so that a team member will play with each of the other three players representing their team. The competition therefore rewards flexibility in playing well with several partners not just in well-established pairings.

The qualifying round is usually played on a Wednesday evening in February with the semi-final and final being played in the course of one evening on a Wednesday in June.

Rules and procedure

Teams may have as many as six members with any four competing in the qualifying round and in the semi-final/final. The top four teams from the qualifying round play in the semi-final with the team qualifying in first place having the right to choose heir semi-final opponents. The top two semi-finalists compete in the final with the third and fourth placed sides playing off for third place in the championship.

The qualifying round is played as a single, IMPs scored teams event with the number of boards in each round being determined by the number of teams entered. All semi-final, final and third place play off matches are played over twelve boards so that each pairing plays four boards.

Table money is £2.50 per person for the qualifying round and £2.50 per person to cover the semi-final and the final or third place play off. The winning team share a cash prize of £20 with £12 for second and £8 for third.

Previous winners

Under COVID the competition was not run.  Instead, Swiss Teams were held instead.

  • 2021: Not held
  • 2020: Laurence Stone, Paul Roberts, John Hampson and Joan Marray
  • 2019: John Hampson, Joan Marray, Julian Merrill and Paul Roberts
  • 2018: Sheila Shea & Wyn Williams and Margaret Barnes & Edward Jones
  • 2017: Brian Crawford, Jeffrey Angove, Di Knight and Peter Nickson (also Frank McAleavy who did not play in the final)
  • 2016: David Stevenson, Liz Commins, Chris Pope, Andy Prothero and Mike Amos
  • 2015: David Stevenson, Liz Commins, Paddy Murphy, Chris Pope and Simon Edwards