| RAC PALL MALL SEPTEMBER NEWSLETTER |
| Pall Mall Bridge Circle October Newsletter |
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| Hello Everyone, |
| Autumn is one of my favourite seasons, I love the autumnal smells in the air and crunching of leaves underfoot. Of course it also heralds Guy Fawkes night and Christmas! With the evenings drawing in it makes the perfect time to think about Bridge. What better past time to take part in over the coming colder months. Although I have to say, throughout the summer our Thursday Club Night continued to be very busy and I thank you all for your support. We have lots of exciting matches coming up in the cooler months so I look forward to seeing you all. |
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| NEWS |
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| COLIN FREEMAN |
| I think most, if not all of you, will know by now the sad news that our long standing Club member Colin Freeman passed away a few weeks ago. We have been advised by his wife that there will be a private funeral service and at the end of October there will be a memorial service which we are all invited to attend and I hope our numbers will be high. I will let you all know the details when we receive them. |
| Colin took a very active part in the day to day life of the Royal Automobile Club in Pall Mall. He sat on both the Pall Mall House Committee and was Chair of the Bridge Committee. Apart from that he took a keen interest in the Lederer Cup which takes place due to Colin’s efforts at the Club every year. I have been approached by several Club members who are concerned we will lose this prestigious event. Firstly, I must confirm to you all that this is totally separate to our Bridge Group and we have nothing to do with it. Having said that, I have some really good news as it seems that our Bridge Director Victor Lesk is taking over much of the administration behind the scenes for the London Metropolitan Bridge Association. So the tournament will stay with us. It was also very poignant to find out that dear Colin had already booked the rooms for 2025, so he’s still guiding us along! |
| We also intend to celebrate Colin’s life and his support of the Royal Automobile Club Bridge in the New Year. We will be hosting an event on the Thursday 30 January and it will take the following form: we will have a pairs event at Pall Mall and there will be Champagne for the winners. At the break we will have wine and a snack and raise a toast to our friend. There will be no extra charge to our players, just the regular £7.50 for Club members and £15.00 for St. James’s Club friends. I will advertise this again and I really hope many Bridge players come along to celebrate Colin’s life. |
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| We have two more sessions of Afternoon Bridge at the Club in Pall Mall and the dates are as follows: |
Monday 21 October in the Mall Room
Monday 18 November in the Terrace Room |
| Play starts at 2.15pm sharp. |
| We will reflect on how popular this initiative has been and if our numbers are good we will be happy to continue next year. Don’t forget all St James’s Club friends are welcome to come along. |
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| October is an exceptionally busy month for Bridge Pall Mall. Firstly, we have no less that 16 players crossing the Atlantic from the University Club New York for an inter-club match. They will also visit the MCC and some have said they would like to join us for our regular Club Night on Thursday. Please do look out for them as they are a really friendly, lovely group of 'guys' (as they say State-side). |
| Our very popular Bowman Pairs Tournament will take place on Sunday 27 October and I am delighted to see places are being taken up very quickly. We also have part of the University Club New York team playing just to add an extra international flavour to the proceedings. If you are thinking of joining, do sign-up as quickly as possible. |
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| INTER-CLUB MATCHES (UPCOMING AND MATCH REPORTS) |
| We have the following matches taking place in October: |
| Hurlingham Intermediates on Monday 14 October. The Club team is Ina W/Pauli L, Paulo dR/Yuki S, Anne R/Harvey R, Susan F/Dorothy H. |
| University Club New York on Saturday 26 October. The Club team is Fiona Mc/Henry Mc, Marina CP/Lester P, Michael B/David M, Pralab B/Andrea G, John C/Pascale H, David W/Pearse E, Ina W/Pauli L, Paul M/Yvonne R. |
| Oxford & Cambridge on Monday 28 October. The Club team is Lester P/Steven B, Paul W/Andrew K, Robin K/Brigitte K, John C/David W. |
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| MATCH REPORTS |
Wednesday 11 September v The House of Lords
On a rather chilly Wednesday afternoon we had the pleasure of meeting the House of Lords Bridge team in the Pall Mall clubhouse for the first time in a number of years. Clearly our match had faltered during the pandemic but I am very pleased to announce this it is now a firm fixture on both our calendars moving forward. We had a few last minute team changes but, as usual, our Club players stepped in to support us. In fact Andrew Kisiel very kindly came along with only a couple of hours notice and I know Brigitte was pleased to have her best partner with her, her life partner! I must thank Lester for helping with the movements and the technical side of things. At halftime we were 3 imps up! Sadly, the second half didn’t go so well and we ended up conceding the match. I did have the imps written down and just can’t find them but I fear it was in the 30s, maybe it is just as well I am unable to lay my hands on the exact details. Anyway we had a very convivial dinner and look forward to seeing our esteemed friends at the Palace of Westminster next year. The Royal Automobile Club team was Fiona Mc/Henry Mc, Howard S/Lester Andrew K/Brigitte K, Jeremy W/Isobel P. |
| Match report submitted by Team Captain, Fiona McWatters. |
Tuesday 17 September v The Portland Club
The Portland Club have been regular players in the Devonshire Cup but have never previously enjoyed an inter-club 8-aside match with the Royal Automobile Club. We extended an invitation last February which was readily accepted and resulted in our inaugural match played in the St James's Room on Tuesday 17 September. Portland have a fierce reputation as strong rubber bridge players and we were unsure how their experience would translate in an imp scored 24 board teams match. We found out. Perhaps the most challenging moment was one of their pairs bidding a small slam without two aces which was a lay down due to their void in one of the suits. All the more exciting as the void was not conveyed in the bidding so I guess a bit of a punt which totally worked. |
| Victor had unusually provided a higher than average selection of slam potential boards which resulted in 10+ imp swing all over the place. However as good play, or was it good fortune, would have it overall the Royal Automobile Club ran out winners by a net 17 imps, 113 v 96. Dinner overran due to the bonhomie and friendly chat and everyone considered it a successful evening and are looking forward to the return match in 2025. |
| Thank you to the team who helped lay out the boards, score sheets and pencils and collected them at the end of play and to the Banqueting Team who, as usual, did a first class job. The Royal Automobile Club team was Michael B/David M, Paul W/Lester P, Pralab B/John C, Paul F/Sally F. |
| Match report submitted by Team Captain Michael Bailey. |
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| Monday 23 September - St James's Clubs Annual Café Bridge Drive |
| The 2024 St James's Clubs Annual Café Bridge Drive was organised by the Reform Club and managed on the day superbly by Victor Lesk and his assistant Caroline Bottoms. Late replacements were found for those who could not make it! Thank you to those who agreed to be reserves. |
| 30 boards were played by 40 pairs, six each in the Reform, Athenaeum, Carlton, In and Out and the Royal Automobile Clubs and scored as if a duplicate pairs match. The Drive started at 1.45pm and finished in the Reform Club with a delicious dinner and much merriment as players shared bridge and life stories until carriages around 9.00pm. |
| The winning pair was Rex Goad and Catherine Rice-Evans with a substantial 70% score. Rex is celebrated as the player who brought café bridge from Europe to London and so it was fitting that he and Catherine should enjoy such a successful day. In second place and some distance ahead of the pack were Howard Salter and David Mannooch so the Royal Automobile Club had some bragging rights. David was standing in for Colin Freeman whom I am sure would have been delighted by how well they played. Another 11 pairs were there to represent the Royal Automobile Club which is a brilliant turnout and testament to our strength in depth. |
| Match report submitted by Michael Bailey. |
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| ROYAL AUTOMOBILE CLUB MATCHES AND MATCH REPORTS |
| Upstairs Downstairs will take place on Monday 30 September and we will post a match report in next month's Newsletter. We have changed the format this year whereby each student will play with an 'expert'. I use that phrase loosely especially as I’m playing in the Expert Team! I look forward to taking part in the event and indeed reporting on it. |
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| BRIDGE SCHOOL |
| Our Bridge Starter Weekend took place on Saturday 21 and Sunday 22 September and our Beginners' Class started on Wednesday 25 September. I had the great pleasure of meeting our attendees on Sunday and hope many of them come to our Beginners' Course. They were a very enthusiastic group and, having stayed with them for about an hour and joining one of the tables, I was so impressed with Mike Eden and his teaching. He also makes Bridge such good fun. |
| Our Intermediate Class recommenced on Thursday 5 September, hopefully some of the Intermediate students will be joining us at the Duplicate either with or without their Mentors! |
| Can I just add that Intermediate students are always welcome to come along to the Duplicate. Our rate of play is usually seven minutes per hand so all you have to do is keep up with that and try us out! Can I assure you, contrary to popular belief, we are a really friendly lot and we want our students to join us and will do as much as we can to help you along! |
| Over the next year we are going to make a few admin changes to our classes as we have turned into a proper Bridge School. Please watch this space. |
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| GENERAL INFORMATION |
| Our WhatsApp group now has 61 members, a number which I am very pleased I need to revise each month as they increase. |
| If you are looking for a partner on Thursday evening this is the place to find someone. Please can I stress that it is only for Thursday evening or other Club matches which I advertise from time to time. If you could use another form of connection for private matches or any other information, all participants would be very grateful. |
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| ST JAMES'S CLUB MEMBERS |
| We warmly welcome our St James’s Club friends to join us on the last Thursday of every month for our regular Duplicate. We do encourage you to find a partner before coming along to the Club. |
| We have one more Teams Events in 2024 on the last Thursday of the month that are open to both Royal Automobile Club and St James’s Club teams. This is on Thursday 28 November. |
| Please see below the dates for next year: |
Thursday 25 February 2025
Thursday 29 May 2025
Thursday 28 August 2025
Thursday 27 November 2025 |
| Please also note the details above regarding Thursday 30 January, A Celebration of Colin Freeman’s Life. All our St James’s Club friends are most welcome. |
| Non-St James' Club guests are welcome to come and play at the Club 12 times in any one year with a Royal Automobile Club member. |
| I advise all players to visit the Club’s BridgeWebs page regularly as news is posted on these pages throughout the month. |
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| IMPORTANT DATES FOR YOUR DIARY |
| 2024 |
Monday 21 October
Afternoon Bridge at Pall Mall, 2.15pm, Mall Room
Sunday 27 October
Bowman Pairs Tournament, 11.30am
Monday 18 November
Afternoon Bridge at Pall Mall, 2.15pm, Terrace Room
Thursday 12 December
Christmas Party |
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| 2025 |
Thursday 30 January
A Celebration for Colin Freeman Pairs Match
Tuesday 4 February
Duke of Devonshire Cup, play is every Tuesday evening
Tuesday 25 February
Duke of Devonshire Cup Final
Thursday 27 March
Ross Cope Swiss Teams Event
Monday 19 May
Centenary Cup
Tuesday 8 July
Pall Mall Bridge Summer Party at Pall Mall (details to follow) |
| If you have any questions about the Royal Automobile Club Pall Mall Bridge Circle, please do get in touch with me. |
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| Best Wishes |
| Fiona McWatters |
| Chair, Pall Mall Bridge Committee |
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| Last updated : 26th Sep 2024 11:52 BST |
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| FIXTURE LIST SEPTEMBER TO DECEMBER 2024 |
BELOW ARE PROPOSED MATCH TEAM DETAILS SENT OUT BY JOHN CRAGGS TO ALL PLAYERS ON 10TH JANUARY
THERE MAY BE A FEW SMALL CHANGES IF PLAYERS ARE NOW UNAVAILABLE
Captains shown in bold
Upstairs/Downstairs, September 30, Monday. 18.00 for 18.15:- Teams not yet chosen (by invitation)
Hurlingham Intermediates (home), October 14, Monday. 16.00 for 16.30:- Ina W/Pauli L, Paulo dR/Yuki S, Anne R/Harvey R, Susan F/Dorothy H, Reserve:
University Club NY (home) - 16October 26, Saturday: Fiona Mc/Henry Mc, Marina CP/Lester P, Michael B/David M, Pralab B/Andrea G, John C/Pascale H, David W/Pearse E, John K/Pauli L, Paul M/Yvonne R, Reserves: Andrew K/Brigitte K
Oxford & Cambridge (away), October 28, Monday. 16.00 for 16.30 start: Lester P/Steven B, Paul W/Andrew K, Robin K/Brigitte K, John C/David W, Reserve:
Carlton (away) November 6, Wednesday. 16.30 start: Michael B/David M, Paul F/Sally F, Pearse E/Pauli L, Andrea G/Martin L, Reserve:
Reform Club (home), Awaiting date Team of four not yet chosen. Ten members have shown interest.
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| Last updated : 26th Sep 2024 11:52 BST |
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| The St. James's Club Bridge Drive, 23rd September |
The 2024 St James's Clubs annual cafe bridge event was organised by the Reform Club and managed on the day superbly by Victor Lesk and his assistant Caroline Bottoms. Late replacements were found for those who could not make it! Thank you to those who agreed to be reserves.
30 boards were played by 40 pairs, 6 each in the Reform, Athenaeum, Carlton, In and Out and the Royal Automobile Clubs and scored as if a duplicate pairs match. The Drive started at 1.45 and finished in the Reform Club with a delicious dinner and much merriment as players shared bridge and life stories until carriages around 9.00pm.
The winning pair was Rex Goad and Catherine Rice-Evans with a substantial 70% score. Rex is celebrated as the player who brought cafe bridge from Europe to London and so it was fitting that he and Catherine should enjoy such a successful day. In second place some distance ahead of the pack were Howard Salter and David Mannooch so the RAC had some bragging rights. David was standing in for Colin Freeman whom I am sure would have delighted by how well they played. Another 11 pairs were there to represent the RAC which is a brilliant turnout and testament to our strength in depth.
Match report submitted by Michael Bailey
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| Last updated : 24th Sep 2024 10:14 BST |
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| RAC v Portland Club |
The Portland Club have been regular players in the Devonshire Cup but have never previously enjoyed an inter club 8 aside match with the RAC. We extended an invitation last February which was readily accepted and resulted in our inaugural match played in the St James Room on 17 September. Portland have a fierce reputation as strong rubber bridge players and we were unsure how their experience would translate in an imp scored 24 board teams match. We found out. Perhaps the most challenging moment was one of their pairs bidding a small slam without 2 aces which was a lay down due to their void in one of the suits. All the more exciting as the void was not conveyed in the bidding so I guess a bit of a punt which totally worked.
Victor had unusually provided a higher than average selection of slam potential boards which resulted in 10+ imp swings all over the place. However as good play, or was it good fortune, would have it overall the RAC ran out winners by a net 17 imps, 113v96. Dinner overran due to the bonhomie and friendly chat and everyone considered it a successful evening and are looking forward to the return match in 2025.
Thank you to the team who helped lay out the boards, score sheets and pencils and collected them at the end of play and to the banqueting team who, as usual, did a first class job.
The RAC Team consisted of Michael B/David M, Paul W/Lester P, Pralab B/John C, Paul F/Sally F,
Michael - Team Captain
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| Last updated : 18th Sep 2024 13:29 BST |
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| PIANOLA |
We now subscribe to "Pianola", a service that gives interesting analysis and stats of your results from each session, as well as showing how they have been progressing over time. To get started, please give your Email address to Victor (brianplaysbridge@gmail.com) and you will receive a signup link next time you play duplicate at the club. Some of you may be familiar with Pianola from other clubs, and Victor will be able to add the RAC to your profile.
Victor Lesk
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| Last updated : 28th Apr 2022 12:53 BST |
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