| Geoffrey Peel |
It is with great sadness that we inform members that Geoffrey Peel passed away on the morning of 26th December. A thanksgiving service in memory of Geoffrey will be held on Saturday 18th January at 2:30pm at Emmanuel Church, 24, Ridgeway, Wimbledon, SW19 4QN, followed by refreshments at the church.
Wimbledon Bridge Club has not only lost one of its founder members and one of its most consistently successful players, but it has lost one of its most congenial and stalwart members. Geoffrey was a most amiable man and respected by all those with whom he came into contact. He was in essence a perfect gentleman as well as an ideal bridge partner.
From an early age Geoff always enjoyed playing card games. He was also a keen sportsman. He captained his school 1st eleven and was on occasions invited to play for Somerset and at golf he had a handicap of 2. Geoff and his wife Joan became aware of John Gullick on reading an article in The Times newspaper by Jeremy Flint and bridge became a lifelong interest for them. About 40 years ago, Geoff and Norman Robson negotiated with John Gullick the terms of the transfer of the Club from a Private Owner's club to a Members' club. Geoff was delighted to see the club flourish.
Geoff was married to Joan for nearly 62 years and they played together for many years achieving some memorable successes not only as a Pair but also as members of teams from Cheltenham and Wimbledon Bridge Clubs.
John Samuels and Chris Smart, both regular partners of Geoff, remember him as a player who believed in simple systems in both bidding and play. So his many successes were earned by judgement as well as skill with the cards – having few misunderstandings made him easy to play with. He was always highly rated nationally, latterly in the NGS rankings; among his successes in national tournaments were wins at Eastbourne, Oxford and mid-Wales.
..... see less
It is with great sadness that we inform members that Geoffrey Peel passed away on the morning of 26th December. A thanksgiving service in memory of Geoffrey will be held on Saturday 18th January at 2:30pm at Emmanuel Church, 24, Ridgeway, Wimbledon, SW19 4QN, followed by refreshments at the church.
Wimbledon Bridge Club has not only lost one of its founder members and one of its most consistently successful players, but it has lost one of its most congenial and stalwart members. ..........
..... see more |
|
|
|
| Championship Season 2025 |
 Save the dates for the members' only Championships:
Our members only championships start with the Gullick Cup on Sunday 19th January. This is the Club's Pairs Championship, it is a Blue Pointed, two-session event. Sandwiches and jacket potatoes will be available to order for the break. The event will cost £12.00 per player. To enter, both players must be members of WBC*. The winners will go forward to represent the club in Surrey's Mary Edwards Cup on 11 May 2025. Your director is Richard Banbury. We now have 28 pairs entered, so the format will be a double Howell, with a break. 42 boards will be played. Expected finish time by 5:30pm. Holders: Lars McBride and John Edwards. Bookings are now closed but Click here to be a reserve pair in case of a cancellation
Sun 2 February 11:00 Bochsler Cup (Teams Championship) (Open to all members)
Tue 11 and 18 February 10:30 Martin Warner Cup (NGS <9)
Wed 12 March 19:00 Gwyneth Sather Cup (Novice Championship) (<500 MPs and NGS <4)
Sun 23 March 11:00 Peel Bowl (Ladies’ Pairs Championship) (Open to all lady members)
Sun 23 March 11:00 Jim Ratcliffe Cup (Men’s Pairs Championship) (Open to all gentlemen members)
Wed 2 April 19:00 Hilary Stewart Cup (Improvers Championship) (<5,000 MPs and NGS <6)
Fri 18 April 11:00 Hetty Van Os Trophy (Individual Championship) with lunch (Open to all members)
Tue 6 May 19:30 Bartlett Bowl (Mixed Pairs Championship) (Open to all members, partnerships must consist of one lady and one gentleman)
Tue 13 May 19:30 Karlsen Cup (Pivot Teams Championship) (Open to all members)
* To enter a members’ only competition, both players must have been members of the club for at least three months prior to the date of the event.
|
|
|
|
| WINTER 2025 COURSES BOOKING NOW!! |
 We offer a complete learning programme for all levels from complete beginners to intermediate players
Don't see the course you want? CLICK HERE TO REGISTER INTEREST IN LEARNING.
For more information on our learning programme, take a look at the Learning at WBC section of the website. If you need advice, please email teaching@wimbledonbridgeclub.co.uk
|
Course Schedule January to March 2025
|
| Classes start from 9th January, Half term w/c 17 February. Last lessons w/c 24 March. |
|
Open Morning
|
FREE, drop in session - come and meet the teachers and find out about what makes bridge the most brilliant card game ever. Taster games available, no need to book.
Tea/coffee and cake available.
"Bridge helps you think. It's a game you can play your entire life and keep getting better and better." Bill Gates
|
Saturday 11 January 10am to 1pm |
| Beginning Bridge Term 1 with Terry |
Suitable for complete beginners. Rules, card play, scoring, tactics and basic bidding. |
Mondays 19:00
starts 13th Jan
|
Click HERE to Book |
| Beginning Bridge Term 2 with Terry |
Continue learning bidding sequences, declarer play and defence techniques
|
Mondays 10:30
starts 13th Jan |
Click HERE to book |
| Beginning Bridge Term 2 with Hilary |
Thursdays 19:00
starts 16th Jan
|
Click HERE to book |
| Refresh your Bridge with Lis Bingham |
Refresh your basic bidding and play. Suitable for anyone who has completed the Beginners Course (1-3), returners, anyone who would like a revision of the basics. See booking form for lesson schedule. |
Tuesdays 10:00
Starts 14th Jan |
Click HERE to book |
| 5 and Strong for Acol Players with Elisabeth Mathison |
6-week course covering strong no trump, 5-card majors and associated conventions. Suitable for Acol players wishing to move to "5 and strong" or seeking an understanding of the system to help in defence. Not suitable for beginners. |
not running |
Click HERE TO register interest for a future 5 and strong course |
| Improve your Bridge 1 with Hilary |
Set 1 of the Year 2 course - planning the play, hand evaluation techniques, transfers, fourth suit forcing, defensive cards plays, more about doubles. Improver courses are modular and can be taken in any order. |
Mondays 19:00
Starts 13th Jan |
Click HERE to book |
|
Intermediate 1 with Tim and Naomi
|
Advance your bridge with our brand-new course designed specifically for WBC players. Learn conventions commonly played at the club plus develop your play and defence techniques. Suitable for club duplicate players. |
Fridays 10:30
Starts 17th Jan |
FULL. Click HERE to go on waiting list
|
|
Intermediate 2
with Tim and Naomi
NEW COURSE
|
Advance your bridge with our brand-new course designed specifically for WBC players. Learn conventions commonly played at the club plus develop your play and defence techniques. Suitable for club duplicate players.
|
Mondays 13:30
starts 13th Jan
|
FULL. Click HERE to go on waiting list |
“Many games provide fun, but Bridge grips you. It exercises your mind. Your mind can rust, you know, but Bridge prevents the rust from forming.” – Omar Sharif
|
|
|
|
| SPECIAL EVENTS - COMING SOON |
Save the Dates!
January 2025
Tue 7 19:00 Cheese and Wine Tuesday
Sat 11 10:00-13:00 Open Morning
Mon 13 19:00 New Beginners Course and Continuation courses start
Sun 19 11:00 Gullick Cup (Blue Pointed Pairs Championship) (Click here to enter)
February 2025
Sun 2 11:00 Bochsler Cup (Teams Championship)
Tue 4 19:00 Cheese and Wine Tuesday and EBU Junior Squad Sims
Thu 6 13:30 EBU Junior Squad Sims
Tue 11 10:30 Martin Warner Cup Week 1
Sun 16 13:00 Blue Pointed Swiss Pairs
Tue 18 10:30 Martin Warner Cup Week 2
Sun 23 13:00 EBU Master Pairs (Green Pointed Event)
Click HERE for the Calendar of Special Events to August 2025
|
|
|
|
| LEARN AND PLAY SESSIONS |
 FACE TO FACE LEARNING SESSIONS:
WBC offer a range of face to face play sessions suitable for all levels. We encourage beginners and improvers to attend at least one play session a week to practice and consolidate what has been covered in lessons.
Monday afternoons 12:30pm - Supervised Play Bid and play at your own pace with guidance if wanted. All levels
Thursday mornings 10:30am - Supervised Duplicate 12 to 15 boards are played in a competitive format with guidance if wanted. Improvers/Intermediate
Thursday evenings 7:30pm - Mini Duplicate Introduction to duplicate. 10 to 12 boards in a competitive format with guidance and review of selected hands. Beginners/Improvers
Saturday afternoons 2pm - Supervised Play Bid and play at your own pace with guidance if wanted. All levels
Hosts are available at all sessions so you do not need to come with a partner. No booking required.
When you are ready, our shorter 18-Board Duplicate sessions on Tuesday and Friday mornings are suitable for novice pairs.
ONLINE LEARNING SESSIONS (with Richmond Bridge Club) Click here for the RBC website
Supervised Play sessions run weekly on Wednesday mornings, 10:30am-12:30pm on RealBridge. There is no need to book, just click on the link on the RBC website about 10 minutes before the start of play and you’ll be taken to the RealBridge login page. Enter your full name and EBU number to log in to the session. Cost is £6 per session which will be charged to your WBC member’s account.
Three board reviews with Tim Chanter, Thursdays, 10:30-11:30am. Suitable for improvers. If you wish to attend, simply click this Zoom link from 10.20 for a 10.30 kick off (no pre booking is required). https://us06web.zoom.us/j/86037429431 If you cannot make it, but wish to be copied in on the recording and the commentaries then please let Tim know to add you to the distribution list. The session will take about 1 hour and costs £5. There will be a follow up of answers to the quiz.
 Here are our Monday afternoon players enjoying their game!
|
|
|
|
| Looking for a Partner? |
 Partner finder available
Players can find a partner for a particular session. Please click here to see who is looking and add your name.....
|
|
|
|
| Members' Account Balances |
 To receive an Email of your balance and statement of activity, please enter your EBU number and click.
Payments into your account do not appear immediately, so recent payments may not show for a week or so.
|
|
|
|
| PIANOLA |
Login to Pianola
Get more information about your game: Personal results history; Your average score with different partners; Your score as declarer, defender - even dummy(!).
Find partners and play more bridge using our innovative partner-finder.
Share your contact details with other people in the club.
Update your contact information and email preferences.
|
|
|
|
| ONLINE BRIDGE SCHEDULE |
 Online Schedule:
Monday 14:00
Friday 14:00
The games are listed as MBC & WBC. All games are 18-board duplicates with Master Points. NGS calculated if sufficient players are EBU members.
|
|
|
|
| Going to be LATE? |
 If you are going to arrive later than 10 mins before the start of the session, it is essential that you call the club on 0208 947 0147 at least 15 minutes beforehand so that you can be included in the movement. If you don't do this you may not be able to play.
|
|
|
|
| Hosting and Arriving without a Partner |
 If you do not have a partner for an occasional session, a host is normally available to make up numbers. If you do come on your own, please arrive at the Club at least 15 minutes before the start of play so that you can be partnered in good time with another single player or the host without causing delay to the start of play.
Members with an NGS of at least 4 are asked to volunteer to host a minimum of once a year and preferably twice. To host at any session other than supervised sessions, and Tuesday or Friday mornings, you should have an NGS ranking of at least 6. Please be kind and courteous to your partner and remember that it is important to find yourself a regular partner and not rely on the host system entirely.
|
|
|
|
| Best Behaviour at Bridge |
 Regular sessions at WBC are intended to provide a friendly and enjoyable environment to play the game of Bridge, and members should conduct themselves in the spirit of this aim. If you feel you have been affected by anything at the table that is not in the spirit of the Best Behaviour at Bridge code then the director should be called immediately. The other players should not retaliate or enter into an argument or discussion. Please click here to see the BB@B code.
It is hoped that most incidents can be resolved at the time. If any player wishes to make a formal complaint, they should do so at the time so that the director can complete the appropriate report, which must be signed by all parties. Where the incident occurs outside a play session or, if occurring at a play session is, for a valid reason not reported to the director, it must be reported in writing (or via e-mail) to the Chair or Secretary of the Club within two weeks of the incident.
|
|
|
|
| Surrey County Bridge Association |
|
|
|