SP ORTS
Bridge
Convenor: Edith Somogyi | Article by: Charles Macgregor
SCC CELEBRATIONS The Bridge Section Deepavali celebration was held on Monday 4 October. Proceedings commenced with a sumptuous Indian buffet specially prepared for the evening by our Club chef. After dinner a full house of 18 pairs sat down for 21 hands of somewhat rowdier than usual bridge. Scores over 60 were registered by four pairs: Raj Jayaram (Keppel) and P.A. Zafar (visiting from India), Jennifer Du and Prof. C.C. Chen (Keppel), Beng Tee Haythornthwaite/Chris Wong (Geylang West), and Firoz Khimji/Charles Macgregor. Club vouchers with awarded to Firoz/Charles (best SCC pair) and to Lee Cheong Seng and Susan Milford (best dressed) – photographed with Edith Somogyi receiving the vouchers. The Section is looking forward to the Christmas (13 December) and Chinese New Year (3 February) celebrations.
QUADRANGLE GAMES SCC participates with Singapore Recreation Club, Keppel Club, and Singapore Swimming Club in an annual tournament with hosts rotating through the clubs. In October we journeyed out to the two massive complexes that are the Singapore Swimming Club. The two teams representing our club were SCC Black (Edith Somogyi, King Fook Chan, Lee Cheong Seng, Charles Macgregor) and SCC Gold (Patricia Jasudasen, Chitra Varapasad, Philip NG, Soma Devi). Our results were very encouraging with SCC Black finished in 3rd place out of eight teams, while SCC Gold came in 7th. The SCC Black result was pleasantly surprising considering that Cheong Seng and Charles were partnering for the first time. On November 24, two teams waded across a wet Padang to the Singapore Recreation Club. Representing the club were: SCC Black (Edith Somogyi, Charles Macgregor, King Fook Chan, Mike Sharples) and SCC Gold (Perumal Ramanathan, Usha Perry, Esther Desilva, Kumud Rangroo). Both teams finished a commendable equal fifth out of eight teams, which was encouraging. The good news is we are now building an armoury of competitive pairings with an eye on giving Tanglin a bit of scare at the next POT games! A special thanks to all the players who had foregone a Sunday afternoon to represent the Club.
SINGAPORE ON THE INTERNATIONAL STAGE Singapore qualified in April for the U25 and the U20 team’s category for the world youth bridge championships in 2020, to be held in Salsomaggiore Terme, Italy. The Ladies failed to qualify automatically, finishing just outside the four at the regional qualifications, but the World Bridge Federation has allowed Singapore to participate. There will be a new category at these championships, U31, and Singapore has been invited to compete.
WEBSITE Our website was launched in the last quarter, thanks to Carl Parker. This will contain past results and will allow players to track their progress. There is also a calendar for upcoming events and contact details for anyone wishing to play on Mondays and/or join the section. https://www.bridgewebs.com/sccbridge/
EDITOR’S NOTE: “Bridge is essentially a social game, but unfortunately it attracts a substantial number of antisocial people.” Alfred Sheinwold The game of bridge has been affected by sometimes heated post-mortem discussions between partners, that at times descend into the realms of disrespect and rudeness. Unfortunately, this has resulted in some people leaving the game. Last year, the American Contract Bridge Association codified a Zero Tolerance policy for unacceptable behaviour and issued a poster entitled “Play Nice”. These have been adopted by the Singapore Contract Bridge Association and by our own Bridge Section. One would expect, as a Club, that we are all part of a community, who seek to engage and befriend our fellow Members. The good news is the Bridge Section is, indeed, one of the friendliest on the island!
JAN / FEB 2020 THE PADANG
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