Sadly, two of our members, Carol Meija and Betty Lee Sinclair, passed away in October.
For more details and a link to their obituaries, please visit our In Memoriam page under the Members section.
New and improved Masterpoint Races reports
ACBL has recently made significant and much-needed changes in the way it reports Masterpoint Races.
If you’re interested in seeing how you or your friends are doing in the Mini McKenny, Ace of Clubs or other races, you can now find them all in the same place by following this link.
You’ll be able to see results for all of the following races:
Note that when you open the link, you will initially see results for top players in all of ACBL. Look in the left sidebar to narrow down your search to our Unit. First, click on the arrow next to our district (19) then select Unit 431.
You can also find the information from:
- Our Masterpoint Races page (look under Members, in the top menu)
- “My ACBL” on ACBL’s website
Now that you know how to do it, test yourself and see if you can name who, in our Unit, is currently leading:
- the Mini-McKenny?
- the Ace of Virtual Clubs?
Duncan Smith’s Tribute Game
Duncan Smith’s Tribute Game was hosted by Victoria Bridge Centre at Strawberry Vale on October 8th 2026.
The game was a rousing success with many local players showing up to celebrate Duncan’s extraordinary bridge career.
Click here for a comprehensive report, prepared by Unit 431’s Communications Coordinator, Catherine Mustafa.
Seasonal Gathering 2026
It’s time to sign up for our Seasonal Gathering – November 27 – see details on poster below.
Victoria Fall Sectional: Need a partner?
The Victoria Fall Sectional will be held from September 25 to 27 at the Mary Winspear Centre in Sidney.
Go to our online partnership desk to help you find a partner or teammates, if you need them.
It’s very easy to use, and only takes a couple of minutes to enter your request. Click here to access it.
You can also find it under the Events drop-down menu.
Ace of Hearts tournament coming up in May
Unit 431 AGM – February 27, 2026
ACBL Unit 431’s Annual General Meeting will be held starting 12:00 noon, February 27, 2026, at Strawberry Vale Hall, 11 High Street, Victoria.
All paid-up ACBL member in good standing with Unit 431 are invited to attend.
The meeting’s agenda is to review the past year, confirm current board members, and vote in new players taking positions.
Download the official agenda here.
There will be an individual bridge movement game after the meeting, followed by pizza.
Please register with Unit Secretary Maureen Trappe by emailing her at Maureen.Trappe@outlook.com
Victoria Spring Sectional: Need a partner?
The Victoria Spring Sectional will be held from March 6 to 8 at the Mary Winspear Centre in Sidney.
We have created a brand new online partnership desk to help you find a partner or teammates, if you need them.
It’s very easy to use, and only takes a couple of minutes to enter your request. Click here to access it.
You can also find it under the Events drop-down menu.
Bridge Wrapped 2025
ACBL has just upped it’s (bridge?) game with Bridge Wrapped 2025. As a member in good standing, you will have received an email from them, detailing your yearly statistics. Personally, I found them very interesting and well presented.
Also note that the “MyACBL” page on ACBL’s website has received a makeover. You’ll find it much more useful than in the past. Read Bridge Bulletin’s editor (Paul Linxwiler) column on page 6 of the January issue for more details, or just try it out for yourself.
Unit Races 2025 – the results are in!
ACBL released the Awards for the 2025 MiniMckenney, Helen Shanbrom Ace of Clubs, and Virtual Ace of Clubs races today (Jan6, 2026).
Go to our Unit Races page for complete details for Unit 431 (Victoria and the Gulf Islands) players. You’ll find it in the Members section of our website.
Or, you can just click on this direct link if you prefer. Rankings from previous years (2021-2024) are also available.
How to access our online directory
Recently, several members requested help in accessing our directory. Other members might be in the same situation so if you’re unsure of how to do it, please read on!
As a reminder, phone numbers and emails of most Victoria players are found in our online directory, whether or not they are current ACBL members. To ensure privacy, only Victoria players can consult the directory. This means you will need to log in once you’ve opened the website, bridgevictoria.ca as shown in the illustration below. 
In April 2021, all Victoria players received a username and password allowing them to log in. They can also log in with their email and the same password. The online directory replaces the former paper booklet (last version was in 2019).
If you’ve forgotten your password (it happens!) just click on the Log In button. Then click on “Forgot your password?” at the bottom of the login panel to get a new one.
If you’re not yet in the directory and would like to be, look for “Register for directory” under Members, or click here for direct access.
For more detailed instructions on accessing the directory, including registering, correcting your info, changing your password, etc, please go to the Directory Instructions page.
Read Bridge Canada for free!
Bridge Canada is the Canadian Bridge Federation’s official magazine, published 4 times a year, in digital format. It features articles written by Canadian bridge players for players of all levels, analysis and commentary from experts at the Great Canadian Bidding Contest, and information on bridge events.
From Neil Kimelman, Bridge Canada Managing Editor:
Bridge Canada magazine is now available to everyone. If you are not a CBF member, we invite you to join the CBF to contribute to the continued production of the magazine and to the various activities of the CBF. You can join by clicking the “Members/Join the CBF” on the top menu, or the tab on the left side of the home page, and fill up the form. Membership is only $25 per year or $65 for 3 years.
Whistler Regional 2025
There was a good turnout of Victoria players at the Whistler Regional last week. Daily Bulletins and stats can be found on McBruce’s tournament website.
A total of 349 attendees won masterpoints. Here are the 22 from Victoria:
| Name | MPs |
|---|---|
| Michael Hargreaves | 78.15 |
| Joanna Heard | 30.1 |
| JP Weber | 30.1 |
| Holly Boudreau | 26.69 |
| Margaret Skinner | 26.69 |
| Ernie Tradewell | 21.12 |
| Michael Ainsley | 19.85 |
| Andrea Killackey | 19.49 |
| Mel Zimmerman | 17.51 |
| Jill Plasteras | 17.38 |
| Madeleine Tremblay | 17.38 |
| Barbara Thompson | 10.24 |
| Eleanor Gibson | 4.46 |
| David Reid | 4.46 |
| Ted Heck | 3.4 |
| John Keech | 3.4 |
| Jonathan Mears | 1.2 |
| Lucy Mears | 1.2 |
| Marnie Hueston | 1.02 |
| Christie Ulmer | 1.02 |
| Rene Weir | 0.94 |
| Vic Wood | 0.94 |
Change of ownership at VBC
The document below has 3 pages. Click on the arrows to change pages.
Our In Memorian page has been updated
Sadly, two of our members passed away recently.
You will find links to their obituaries on our In Memoriam page.
Gordon McOrmond wins Penticton Regional!
Congratulations to local hero Gordon McOrmond of Sidney!
He came in first with 135.22 gold MPs in the Penticton Regional, beating well-known players including Iftikhar Baqai, Mitch Dunitz, Dan Jacobs and Mark Itabashi.
For detailed information on the tournament, go to McBruce’s Sunday’s Daily Bulletin at mcbruce.ca/25pen/sun.html.
Bumper crop of new masterpoint achievements
A record number of 19 Unit 431 members attained new masterpoint ranks in May, ranging from Junior Master to Gold Life Master.
You can find out who they are by going to the Masterpoint Milestones page on our website, bridgevictoria.ca. Look for it under “Members”.
Then, when you see them at a club or tournament, you can offer them your congratulations!
Two weeks to the Victoria Regional!
The Victoria Regional starts Monday April 7th and runs until the following Sunday.
It’s a great opportunity for local players to score some gold points without having to leave the island. And it’s a lot of fun too!
If you have questions about anything regarding the tournament, you will likely find them answered on our tournament website, vicregional.ca.
To save you some time, here are the direct links to the three most frequently asked ones.
If you need more information, please contact me at chair@vicregional.ca. I’ll be happy to help.
JP Weber
Chair, Victoria Regional 2025
A well-attended AGM!
On February 21, 2025, Unit 431 held its first face-to-face Annual General Meeting since the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic. 36 members gathered at the Strawberry Vale & District Community Club for the business meeting and elections, followed by an enjoyable, complimentary individual movement bridge game, and pizza.
2024 new Life Masters were announced, and 2024 Helen Shanbrom Ace of Clubs certificates were presented to those winners present. All Ace of Clubs and Mini-McKenney winners can be found here, and the remaining certificates will be distributed when received.
Marsha Ross was announced as the winner of the Dawn Hueston Memorial trophy, for members who start the year with fewer than 20 masterpoints, and earn the most MPs at the four Sectional tournaments.
Farhad Rohani was the winner of the game, and his name will now be added to the list of winners, dating back to 1956.
Many thanks to Bill Wastle for his continued support of Unit bridge functions by facilitating use of the Strawberry Vale space.
Flag Day at Monterey
Some 30 bridge players showed up in red and white for Flag Day, Saturday February 15. Well done, people!
And, thank you Madeleine for this great initiative.