[News] Special games this week and lots more

Pasadena Bridge Club Logo <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com> News from North Fair Oaks Mojo ABTA Master Teacher 649 N Fair Oaks Ave #201 Pasadena CA 91103 (626) 247-4457 pasadenabridgeclub.com <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com> We've been having to make a lot of adjustments! We're ready to start having a two-section game on Saturday afternoons starting *May 4*. That means we'll actually be running two games at 1:00 PM, one for players with fewer than 300 masterpoints, and another open to everyone. With the two games in session, the club will be pretty full. It becomes impossible to have the workshops in the format I've been having them. Those workshops are one of my favorite features at the club, so I'm determined to find another way to offer fun, short single-topic learning sessions. Several years ago there was a very big novice game on Saturdays at 10:00 AM at the Arcadia Bridge Center, preceded by a chalk talk. That might still be an attractive time for our students and new players to come play. I just started a new Bridge Basics series on Saturday mornings. At the conclusion of this series, in a few months, it's worth asking if maybe a Saturday morning "workshop and game" would have interest. Let me know what you think! Also starting *May 3*, we're going to add Fridays at 11:00 AM, for a full week of Open Pairs games. More about that next week! ACBL-wide Charity Pairs Wednesday The ACBL-wide Charity Pairs is a very special game! We'll be playing the same hands as clubs all over North America, and results will be pooled for some potentially huge masterpoint awards. The game includes a handout with analysis of every hand. I'll have the analysis available on the web site after the results are posted late Wednesday afternoon. This is a fund-raising event for ACBL Charities, and we'll be paying an extra $7.50/table sanction fee. So the card fee for this game will be $12. Stardust games Monday, Tuesday, Thursday These special games have bigger awards, and 25% of the award will be coveted *gold masterpoints* that are normally only available at regional or national tournaments. To achieve the rank of Life Master, you have to win at least 50 gold points. The sanction fee for this game is $2/player, so we'll kick in $1, and the card fee will be $11. Classes this coming week Individual classes are available to join for $25. No need to sign up for a full course. Here are the topics this week: * Wednesday (4/24), 7:00 PM, /Bridge Basics 3 - Competitive Bidding/ "Slam bidding and Blackwood" (practice session on Saturday morning with Jane and Michael too!) * Thursday (4/25), 7:00 PM, /Improving Your Judgment - Doubles/ "Balancing and other doubles" * Saturday (4/26), 9:30 AM, /Bridge Basics 1 - Introduction/ "Minor Suit Openings and Responses" Tomorrow will be our next to last Saturday afternoon workshop, at least in its current format! This week on Saturday (tomorrow), let's talk about *what can go wrong at the table* while playing, how the Laws of Bridge apply, and how the tournament director applies the Laws. This should be a special workshop! Bring your questions, and let me help eliminate any fear of calling the director when something goes wrong. Coming up ... Coming up the week of May 6 through May 12, we'll be hosting "Royal STaC" games, where players can earn a bit piece of all the colors. :) Best regards, Mojo, Jane, Zachary