We had an excellent response this month with 52 players submitting results. And there was a tie for first place.

The winners are Mort Nelson and a player who chose to remain anonymous with an impressive score of 480 (out of a possible 500). The prize for winning is a free game at VICTORIA CLUBS on BBO.

All participants in the June game have received a personalized email with their detailed scores.

Find the complete list of participants and scores under It’s Your Call-Results in the MEMBERS section at the top of the page. For quicker access, follow this link. You can also check comments from participants and even add your own!

New and improved interface for It’s Your Call, Victoria.

Our quiz has a new look and an improved interface. You will no longer have to worry about submitting multiple bids on a problem.

To check out the July 2020 quiz, either click here, or hover your mouse over Members (at top of page) to see a pull-down menu of choices, one of which is It’s Your Call, Victoria!

On June 17, ACBL announced it will not staff any sectionals or regionals with tournament directors for the remainder of 2020.

This removes any possibility for face-to-face tournaments during the balance of the year but does not preclude online tournaments from taking place.

These will most likely be hosted on BBO. We will regularly update our BBO Resources page with any new information. 

The VICTORIA CLUBS will be hosting Day of Bridge benefiting Alzheimer Society of BC, which equates to the Longest Day in the USA.

The Bridge Games and Auction will be held online. All sanction fees, donations, and auction items go directly to Alzheimer Society British Columbia.

We broke last month’s participation record with 53 players submitting results. 

Congratulations to Michael Hargreaves who won with an impressive score of 450 (out of a possible 500).  He receives a free game certificate, valid at local clubs, courtesy of Unit 431. A little patience might be in order before it can be used however.

All participants in the May game will be receiving a personalized email with their detailed scores within the next few days.

Find the complete list of participants and scores under It’s Your Call-Results in the MEMBERS section at the top of the page. For quicker access, follow this link. You can also check comments from participants and even add your own!

To play the June 2020 quiz, either click here, or hover your mouse over Members (at top of page) to see a pull-down menu of choices, one of which is It’s Your Call, Victoria!

Many Victoria players have discovered they could play daily at their local club through the magic of BBO.

If you don’t know about this yet, check out our BBO-Resources page. You’ll also learn how to find your friends on BBO, and see the schedule for online local club games as well as weekly (almost) Unit mentor games.

But wait, theres more!

From May 25-31, you can earn silver points playing at your local club games.

Click on the banner below to get all the details from ACBL.

Although BC will be gradually reopening starting next week, this won’t apply to bridge clubs for a good long while.

So it’s nice to know that you have many online options for playing in local games. You already know about the VICTORIA CLUBS daily games on BBO.

If you’re looking for a mentor/mentee game, Heather and Terry have greatly increased their availability with a Sunday game three times a month. The next ones are on the following dates: May 17 and 31, June 7, 14, 21.

For complete information on these and other local games available on BBO, go to our BBO Resources page which you can also access from the top menu (look at “Resources”) on this website. 

“We are getting close to the point where we can open up,” Dr. Bonnie Henry said Monday. Encouraging news, but don’t expect to be back at the physical bridge table any time soon, though.

However, this doesn’t mean you can’t play at your local club with your favourite partner. All three Victoria ACBL-sanctioned bridge clubs have joined forces and are now offering online games on BBO (Bridge Base Online) every day of the week, except Sunday. 

Find detailed information on these club games on our new BBO Resources web page. Just click on the link or hover over “Resources” in the top menu.

If you’re not familiar with BBO, it’s actually very easy, and on the BBO Resources, you can access several short videos showing you how to use the BBO website.

And finally there is a section explaining how to find your friends on BBO.

We had a record participation this month with 52 players submitting results. And, once more, we have a 3-way tie for first place.

The winners are (in alphabetical order) Don Copeland, Sheldon Spier and Bree Watts who scored 420 (out of a possible 500) and are each awarded a free game certificate, valid at local clubs, courtesy of Unit 431. They might not get to use them for a little while, though.

All participants in the April game will be receiving a personalized email with their detailed scores within the next few days.

Find the complete list of participants and scores under It’s Your Call-Results in the MEMBERS section at the top of the page. For quicker access, follow this link. You can also check comments from participants and even add your own!

To play the May 2020 quiz, either click here, or hover your mouse over Members (at top of page) to see a pull-down menu of choices, one of which is It’s Your Call, Victoria!

Nev Hircock, our Bridge Buzz editor, has been working hard preparing a very interesting and relevant April 2020 edition.

Due to the current situation, no paper copies have been printed. You’ll find it exclusively on our website, bridgevictoria.ca.

Cast your eyes upward to the top menu and there it is: The Bridge Buzz.

You could also just click on this direct link: The Bridge Buzz.

Nine days ago, I received an email from Ed Crews, who was looking for an easy way to connect and play with local players on BBO (bridgebase.com). Ed suggested making available a list of people and their username (handle). 

To implement this excellent idea, I set up a web page on our Unit 431 website for interested local players to share their handles. We had a great response and as of today, 69 Victorians have signed up. The page is only accessible to players who have registered. If you wish to do so, just go to bridgevictoria.ca/register-bbo and follow the instructions.

One of the things you can do on BBO is support your local clubs by playing one of the three daily SYC games (under ACBL World). 80% of the table fee goes to your local club. ACBL knows where you play and distributes the money accordingly.

And for a change of pace, you can of course play our online bidding game, It’s Your Call, Victoria, right on our website! (bridgevictoria.ca/members/its-your-call-victoria/)

Feel free to contact me at webmaster@bridgevictoria.ca if you have any questions.

JP

All local clubs being closed for an indeterminate period, players are looking for alternatives. Online bridge playing is one of these.

BBO (Bridge Base Online) offers a variety of different games, some which allow you to win ACBL masterpoints. You can play by yourself or with your partner, against robots or other human players. BBO has just added a game designed to help your local clubs. Here’s an excerpt from their announcement:

“Starting Thursday, March 19, daily at 5 p.m. Eastern time, ACBL members can play with any other ACBL member in a specially created game on BBO and earn black masterpoints^®. When you play in one of these games, the majority of your table fees will be given back to your club. This way, you can help to support your club while also having the opportunity to win black masterpoints. “

Unfortunately, the first game was limited to 300 persons and was quickly swamped. They are now considering adding a 7:30 pm Eastern (4:30 pm our time) game.

Another thing you can do on BBO is set up a table and invite 3 friends. It’s free and you can play as long as you want.

Tournaments are being cancelled: The Victoria Spring Sectional, and Vancouver Regional, scheduled for April have both been cancelled.

The ACBL District 19 Board will be meeting online on April 21 and hope to be in a position to make a decision about the 2020 Penticton Regional at that time. Members are advised not to make nonrefundable deposits on accommodation or transportation.

We will strive to keep Unit 431 members updated with any relevant news concerning bridge. Check our site regularly.

We had a record participation of 54 players in the February quiz!

John Miller won with 460 points out of a possible 500. He receives a free play, valid at local clubs, courtesy of Unit 431.

See detailed results here: It’s Your Call February results

Erratum: Your webmaster goofed and bid the wrong suit. This weekend’s tournament was of course the Ace of Hearts, not Diamonds!

Here’s the corrected version of the post:

The Ace of Hearts Sectional for players with fewer than 200 master points was held on Saturday February 15.

Here are the winners!

Unit 431’s Annual General Meeting will be held on Sunday, February 23, 2020 starting at 12:30 pm. Plan to attend and choose your new Unit Board!

The AGM will be followed by a fun, individual movement duplicate bridge game ($5)

Free coffee and cookies!

Free pizza and pop after the game!

Read all about it in the flyer.

Please join us for this once-in-a-lifetime event!

This event is organized by ACBL Unit 431, serving duplicate bridge players in Greater Victoria and the nearby Gulf islands.

The Victoria bridge community was saddened by the death of Dr James (Robbie) Robinson who passed away last Thursday while feeding the hummingbirds on his balcony. Robbie was 96 and not in the best of health with heart problems. 

We will all miss him.

(click on picture for obituary)

Our Unit 431 website, bridgevictoria.ca, was migrated to a new hosting provider this morning (January 8). Users should not notice any differences, however if you encounter any issues, please let the webmaster know by emailing him at webmaster@bridgevictoria.ca.

Congratulations to Rob Bradford, Tom Braybrook and John Miller for winning  the December edition of It’s Your Call, Victoria.

They scored 460 (out of a possible 500) and will each receive a free game, valid at local clubs, courtesy of Unit 431.

All participants in the December game have received a personalized email with their detailed score.

Find the complete list of participants and scores under It’s Your Call-Results in the MEMBERS section at the top of the page. For quicker access, follow this link. You can also check comments from participants and even add your own!

To play the January 2020 quiz, either click here, or hover your mouse over Members (at top of page) to see a pull-down menu of choices, one of which is It’s Your Call, Victoria!