July 27th, 2011 ~ Judy Kay-Wolff ~ 2 Comments 
Bobby and I thought the following email just received from Mr. Gianarrigo Rona, WBF President, would be of appropriate interest and since we believe in the concept, it is Bobby’s intention this year to abide informally by the red, white and blue colors of the United States.
— On Wed, 7/27/11, Anna wrote:
From: Anna
Subject: Revised Dress Code for the 2011 World Bridge Teams Championships "bobbywolff@sbcglobal.net"
Date: Wednesday, July 27, 2011, 10:33 AM
I have been asked to send you the following message from Gianarrigo Rona, President of the World Bridge Federation:
Dear Bobby
Following consultation with my colleagues, it has been agreed that, for the World Bridge Team Championships in the Netherlands the Dress Code should not be mandatory. We strongly encourage all Federations to follow the Dress Code for their National Teams, but no penalties will be sanctioned if they do not do so.
However, please be advised that from January 2012 all World Bridge Championships will have a mandatory Dress Code which will be as published on the WBF Website at www.worldbridge.org and at www.ecatsbridge.com and penalties will be imposed on teams not complying with the Code which is as follows:
Formal Occasions
The WBF has a policy which seeks to encourage Federations to provide Teams, which participate in World Championships, to be dressed in appropriate uniforms which incorporate a badge or emblem identifying the country which those players represent.
Playing rooms
Everyone entering the playing rooms is obliged to wear the official identification badge provided by the organisation. In case of loss the organisation will provide a duplicate badge at a cost of €5.00
All players, captains and coaches of participating teams are required to wear T-shirts, polo shirts, shirts or blouses that are of the same colour and contain the Federation’s logo.
Team members must be supplied with sufficient changes of clothing to ensure that they look smart and presentable at all times.
If sweaters, cardigans and sweatshirts are used they must be of the same colour and carry the Federation’s logo.
All players are expected to be respectably dressed and are also required to follow the instructions given by the TD.
The team uniform must contain its Federation logo and may contain discreet sponsor logos.
With warm regards
Gianarrigo Rona
President, World Bridge Federation
This message has been sent to the NBOs participating in the Bermuda Bowl, Venice Cup and Seniors Bowl, all the Zonal Presidents and the members of the WBF Executive Council.
===========================================================================
July 25th, 2011 ~ Judy Kay-Wolff ~ 9 Comments
after a year and a half of harassing the Board of Directors and the Educational Foundation for neglecting the $77,500 endowment to the ACBL/EF by Peter Pender who died in 1990, I finally received word from Jay Baum who was very helpful:
“Any vugraph will now be held in the Peter Pender Vugraph Theatre. Also , there will be two mobile screens with appropriate bronze plates honoring Peter so vugraph can be mobile at the NABCs.Should be very attractive to those not wanting to sit in a room w/o food or beverage. I think it will be exciting for all.”
I will have to content myself and not vent my spleen questioning why money was spent on non-Peter Pender projects in 1904-05 about five years after the Pendergraph faded into oblivion.. At least Peter’s name will be back in the public eye as he intended after such a generous donation. SO BE IT!
July 20th, 2011 ~ Judy Kay-Wolff ~ 31 Comments
Quite by chance, last week I surfed the site of Bridge Winners as I personally know and respect many of the talented players, theorists and writers who partake. The subject arose called “Suit Up” pertaining to the dress code proposed by the WBF in a continuing attempt by their organization to convince the International Olympic Committee to recognize bridge as an Olympic Sport. It would no doubt enhance its importance and majesty in the eyes of the world and would have its beginning by focusing upon the uniforms if displayed in The Netherlands in October. In order to comply with their rules, the mundane requirement of uniformity of clothes is supposedly mandatory. (It is undetermined if it is T shirts, Jackets, Blazers, Trousers, etc. Nothing has formally been declared or barred).
I was horrified at the radical attitude of one of the former (?) Canadians who jumped ship in pursuit of professionalism with no sense of patriotism to his newly adopted country. In a sense, it is similar to being a mercenary. Bridge was simply a game and crossing the border a means to accomplish it. The fact that his team was presented with some kind of medal was his only source of satisfaction. How sad.
I should like to think that anyone who partakes in the competition has a love of (and respect for) the country he or she represents and wearing a uniform or national emblem revealing it to the world would be of importance to the individual. WRONG! Winning or losing is all that seems to matter to some.
Perhaps I’m of a different ilk, age and culture but envision many of our parents, grandparents and great grandparents who risked their lives en route to Ellis Island who couldn’t read, write or speak
English. They just wanted to embrace the freedom and liberty of what the United States of American stood for. To any American citizen, that overwhelming feeling of pride should never wane or falter.
This should apply to any country to which you migrate – not just the U. S.
July 13th, 2011 ~ Judy Kay-Wolff ~ 24 Comments
Europe and Asia are much more attuned to sponsoring international competition just for the sake of publicizing the game and playing host to the many superstars worldwide. There have been instances where some of the big guns (who wouldn’t be paid possibly anything but expenses) turned it down while others jumped at the honor and opportunity. These are not official world championships but rather exciting team competitions graciously sponsored by individuals or organizations to promote the game
This year, the Official 40th World Bridge Team Championship) celebrates the Bermuda Bowl, The Venice Cup and the Senior Bowl. The U. S. is sending two senior teams (USA 1 and USA 2) while every other country will be restricted to one team.
Each nation received hard and fast rules – the main one being ANTI-DOPING which states:
From the day of the Opening Ceremony up to and including the day of the Closing Ceremony, individual competitors from the Bermuda Bowl and Venice Cup will, in accordance with the WBF Anti-Doping Regulations, be randomly selected for anti-doping testing. It is OBLIGATORY for selected competitors to undergo such testing. (Mention is made if a contestant is undergoing medical treatment for a condition which requires the taking of a substance on the Prohibited List, the competitor must get a dispensation from the WBF Medical Commission).
However, the dress code, I predict, will present a problem because of the significant costs (especially with the USA which has six players, a captain and in some instances a coach (potentially eight participants). This is what the advisory had to say about dress code:
Dress Code:
NBOs are asked to take note of the recognition of Bridge as a Sport by the IOC and requests that players should, at all times, be dressed appropriately.
In the World Bridge Team Championships (Bermuda Bowl, Venice CUP, D’Orsi Senior Bowl), it is obligatory for all teams to adopt the following dress code:
Formal Occasions
The WBF has a policy which seeks to encourage Federations to provide Teams participating in World Championships, to be dressed in appropriate uniforms which incorporate a badge or emblem identifying the country which those players represent.
Playing Rooms
Everyone entering the playing rooms is obliged to wear the official identification badge provided by the organization. In case of loss the organization will provide a duplicate badge at a cost of of five Euros.
All players, captains and coaches of participating teams are required to wear T-shirts, polo shirts, shirts or blouses that are the same color and contain the Federation’s logo.
Team members must be supplied with sufficient changes of closing to ensure that they look smart and presentable at all times.
If sweaters. cardigans and sweatshirts are use, they must be the same color and carry the Federation’s logo.
All players are expected to be respectably dressed and are also required to follow the instructions given by the TD
Any player, captain or coach not respecting the dress code in the playing area will receive a warning on the first occasion and a subsequent breach will result in that team being fined 2 VP, plus a fine of 100 Euros. This penalty is mandatory. Failure to pay the fine will result in that person being prohibited from entering the playing area.
Publicity
The team uniform must contain its Federation logo and may contain discreet sponsor logos.
We would be grateful to you if you would forward this information to the players, captains and coaches of your national teams and we thank you in advance for your cooperation.
Friendly greetings
GIANARRIGO RONA, WBF PRESIDENT
ERNESTO D’ORSI. CHAMPIONSHIP COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN
……………………………………………….
A grandiose plan with the rightful intention of uniformity to satisfy the IOC – but exactly who will be responsible for outlaying the cost for this fashion parade?????? In the case of the USA, who should be shelling out the big bucks for all the teams???? The ACBL? The USBF? The individual Playing Captain (most often a sponsor)? or ridiculously – should those who won the right to represent the U.S (who don’t receive a big enough stipend to come close to covering their basic expenses of travel, room and food)??
July 11th, 2011 ~ Judy Kay-Wolff ~ 11 Comments
To many people today, bridge was a game indulged in by their parents and grandparents. It was played in the kitchens and living room parlors before TV came upon the scene to help pass the hours. However, though the numbers have waned, there are so many celebrities who play (or played) the game, it would absolutely amaze you. The two most famous, of course, were George Burns and Omar Sharif. Others combined from authorship, movies, theater, radio, TV, sports and military.
Just to name a few: George S. Kaufman (playwright/director); movie stars Phyllis Diller, Telly Savalas, Burt Lancaster, Chico Marx; Radio Star Bob Hawk (originally “Take It or Leave It”)) and then Camel Ad (I’m a LEMAC now); band leader Les Brown; TV stars Monty Hall, Meredith Baxter, Don Adams; Sports celebrities Richie Ashburn, Tim McCarver, Jim Bunning, Wes Parker, Frank Beard; Coach and announcer Lou Holtz, Coach Tommy Prothro, etc., philanthropists Bill Gates and Warren Buffett, military administrators like General Alfred Gruenther and President Dwight Eisenhower.
However, the real kicker to this blog, you can find in the Bridge Encyclopedia under Helen Sobel (Smith):
“Born in Philadelphia, after a long residence in New York City she moved to Miami Beach in 1963; after her marriage to Smith, she moved to Detroit. Smith enjoyed a brief stage career as a chorus girl and appeared in several stage shows including Animal Crackers with the Marx Brothers. Another chorus girl taught her how to play bridge and she rocketed to stardom at the card table.”
She is “universally ranked as greatest woman bridge player of all time!”
I’m sure I’ve missed some obvious ones, so please help me out. Bridge is a game for all people and all seasons.
July 9th, 2011 ~ Judy Kay-Wolff ~ 2 Comments
According to the Bridge Winners site, I read the following (though I can’t swear to its authenticity):
For almost twenty years the regular roster of the NICKELL team has read like a “Who’s Who” of bridge: Freeman, Hamman, Wolff, Meckstroth, Rodwell, Soloway, Zia, and Katz. Led by captain Nick Nickell, the team’s perennial success has led to the expectation that the road to any championship goes through them.
Beginning with the 2012 Spingold, Bobby Levin and Steve Weinstein will be joining the NICKELL team. Along with Nickell/Katz and Meckstroth/Rodwell, they will seek to continue the NICKELL legacy for years to come.
There follows on their site 14 comments (including mine) that you may be interesting in reading.
July 9th, 2011 ~ Judy Kay-Wolff ~ 7 Comments
A provocative conversation took place at our club yesterday before the start of the game. A sweet lady congratulated Bobby about the upcoming trials — asking if he was excited. No way she could have known his background (let alone eleven world championships and the only one to win in five different category events).
Out of my personal curiosity, I asked him to recount his recent record and this is what I learned as I frankly can’t even begin to keep track of all his statistics:
2007 Shanghai finished trials, held in Bethesda Maryland as USA 1 and finished 3rd in World. Morse-Wolff, Sutherlin-Gerstman, Kasle-Arnold, Ron Smith (replacing Russ Arnold) for Shanghai since Arnold didn’t think he could afford the expense of attending
2008 Beijing finished 2nd in senior trials held in Sturbridge, Mass. playing on a 4 man team: Morse-Wolff, Onstott-Casen
2009 Santiago finished trials as USA 1, held in Las Vegas, NV, and finished 5-8 in World: Morse-Wolff, Hamilton-Fisher, Paul Swanson-Solodor
2011 Veldhoven, Holland finished trials as USA 1, held in Detroit: Morse-Wolff, Finkel-Schwartz, Hamilton-Fisher
2000 Las Vegas won trials for Maastricht and won Senior Bowl with only 1 team representing USA Morse-Wolff, Sutherlin-Mohan, Woolsey-Robinson
2001 St. Louis won trials for Paris as USA 1 and finished 4th in World: Sutherlin-Hamilton, Woolsey-Robinson, Morse-Wolff
So, yes, we are eagerly looking forward to our October trip to The Netherlands, but to Bobby this is old hat, especially winning the Seniors in 2007, 2009 and 2011. It should be fun and I will get to see a windmill first hand! (And .. we’ll try to not get in Dutch — couldn’t resist it).
July 6th, 2011 ~ Judy Kay-Wolff ~ 4 Comments
Back in the early days (somewhere in the Fifties), with the exception of Billy Rosen who won the Bermuda Bowl at the tender age of 25 in 1954, most of the major championship winners were in their thirties, forties and older. Today, look at the “kids” going to the world championships in Holland and those in their late twenties, early thirties and forties winning prestigious events – unlike many of our heroes of old. The LV Bridge World was ecstatic that Fred Hamilton and Bobby were among the winners of the 2011 Seniors Team headed for Veldhoven, along with Captain Richie Schwartz, Lew Finkel, Arnie Fisher and Dan Morse. Bobby who will turn 79 the day after he arrives in the Netherlands jokingly refers to himself as being the eldest contestant in the “Old Geezers’ Brigade”). This goes to prove that bridge is a game for all seasons.
July 4th, 2011 ~ Judy Kay-Wolff ~ 6 Comments
I was elated and amused when I turned to page 26 of the July Issue of The Bridge World and noted the Interview with Sidney Lazard, an old dear friend of Bobby, Norman, Edgar and yours truly. I will never forget how kind and caring Sidney was when both Edgar and Norman were on their way out. I remember in 1997 Sidney calling me and telling me he intended to fly to New York via Philly and drive up to see Edgar with Norman and me. I strongly urged him to move it up a week (which he did) and just as well, as Edgar did not make it through the week.
If you are not a subscriber, sign up or borrow a copy. Sidney’s Interview is very entertaining and informative reading. It covers the subject of “Bridge Development,” “Early Tournaments,” “Self-Observation,” “Table Presence,” “Bridge Personalities,” and “The Sportsmanship Award” named for his son.
”In 1999, my only child, Sidney Jr. died of cancer at the age of 41. He was the nicest guy in the whole world, and he was a great sportsman. By “sportsman,” I mean someone who plays hard but fair and holds no grudges. I designed the Sportsmanship Award as a way to honor his memory by recognizing top bridge players who emulate the ideal that I saw in my son, and to encourage all players to aspire to that standard.”
Two stories I’ve heard before appeared in the interview. One involved Roth and Stone. Sidney, by his own admission, kept self-destructing in a match playing with Byron Greenberg against Al and Stoney.
“After the third such round, Roth rubbed it in by chastising Stone for not bidding a grand slam needing an onside king, saying, “he [meaning Sidney] had to have it for his weak two bid.” Stone responded: “Had to have it? This guy can’t read or write.” So, I grabbed a full ashtray (note that most players smoked in those days) and dumped it in Stone’s lap, saying “and I’m also very sloppy.” (The version I heard was –he dumped it on his head and added, “I’m sloppy too.” However, I’ll cede to Sidney’s version).
Under Bridge Personalities, Sidney admits to Johnny Crawford being his toughest opponent. He never beat him but he always beat Schenken, he added. In the 1959 Vanderbilt, there was some unpleasant banter before the match. He was playing with John Fisher against Crawford and Stone. Before they started, in the presence of Chief Director, Al Sobel, Sidney tried to ‘preempt” Crawford by announcing “no talking.” Crawford countered by challenging Sidney by “Wanna bet (on the match)?” Sobel (a bit of a S.D. himself) was unbothered by this technically barred behavior) Sidney had to preserve face and partnership confidence by saying “Yes.” The remainder of the story is in Sidney’s own words:
“Then Crawford, who had recently married well, threw a big stack of money on the table and said ‘Match that!’ I’ve been known to carry a few big stacks myself, but that was too big even for me, so I countered by grabbing Sobel’s lighter and setting the money on fire. Crawford singed his fingers putting the fire out. (P.S.: We lost anyway.)”
There are more titillating “Sidney” stories and names from the past you will thoroughly enjoy perusing. Remember, the green copy of this month’s “The Bridge World.” (This is not a paid advertisement. JKW)
July 2nd, 2011 ~ Judy Kay-Wolff ~ 9 Comments
The Riviera Regional ended late Sunday afternoon and the six days we stayed there provided me with an opportunity to meet some of those friends who were merely phantom names on the Blog Sites.
I enjoyed getting to see our new District Representative Bonnie Bagley but unfortunately we were both doing our own thing, so it was just an occasional passing hand wave. Bruce Blakely, with whom I have had a series of correspondence in his capacity as Chairman of the ACBL CEO Search Committee was kind enough to re-introduce himself (he said we had met before) and he further explained some unanswered questions to my satisfaction which troubled me. Ellis Feigenbaum stopped me to introduce himself as we had blogged several times but never met face to face. I was approached by two beautiful women from the Sedona area who told me how much they appreciated our (I think they meant Bobby’s) making the trip to their tournament and were hoping we would return this year. Finally, so many people who either read or respond to my blog site whom I did not know, introduced themselves and it was fun to meet them in person after three years of sharing our views and different slants on many subjects.
The tournament was well attended and Tom Shulman and his crew exerted their usual stellar efforts to welcome our members and so many guests who traveled to Vegas for the event. I loved the lunches at the Banana Leaf and a few dinners at Christopher’s. We will miss them when we move on to Bally’s. I even got to take advantage of the Jewelry Store’s 50% closeouts (but don’t tell Bobby). It was very exhausting (playing every day) but I really had a marvelous time, even winning a pair event and placing second in another and selecting some very nice section top prizes.
Keep reading my blogs and for heaven’s sake, don’t be shy. Write back. I’d love to hear from all of you bashful readers.
Cheers,
Judy
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