Pasadena Bridge Club Logo <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com> News from N Fair Oaks Mojo ABTA Master Teacher 649 N Fair Oaks Ave #201 Pasadena CA 91103 (626) 247-4457 pasadenabridgeclub.com <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com> One of the advantages of our great location in Fair Oaks Renaissance Plaza is the security. Our property management provides a security guard from early morning 'til very late. You might have noticed they like to perch just outside the club's main door — for good reason! From there they have a bird's-eye view of the whole parking area. I'm grateful to have them on duty, and lucky to have them nearby. They've been very helpful during our big events! If you see Jesus or Gabriel, give them your appreciation. Club Championship Week October is "club appreciation month" for the ACBL. We get to have two weeks of club championship games. The masterpoint awards are big, with overall awards as well as section awards. Come out to play this week and try for more black points! All games this week will be club championships: Tuesday evening, Wednesday and Thursday mornings, and Saturday afternoon. Bridge Basics 2 Starts Thursday This is the second course in the Bridge Basics series, but even folks who've been playing for years will find precious gems in this course to improve their results. *Competitive bidding* is one of the most exciting aspects of the game. In this course we'll discuss how to interfere with the opponents and work toward our best score. A theme throughout the course is preemptive bids — making safe high-level bids when our side has a big suit fit, but not much high-card strength. You'll also learn how to use cue bids to show support and strength for partner's suit. Classes meet for six Thursday evenings at 7:00. Click here to sign up! <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/contact/course_enrollment> Classes This 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, 7:00 PM, /Improving Your Judgment - Doubles/ "Rebids by doubler" * Thursday, 7:00 PM, /Bridge Basics 2 - Competitive Bidding/ "Preemptive opening bids" * Saturday, 9:30 AM /Bridge Basics 3 - Popular Conventions/ "Practice hands" New on the YouTube channel: Declarer's Hold Up Play <https://youtu.be/NwTneOOrig4?feature=shared> Saturday afternoon workshop (1:00 PM): "*What are matchpoints?*" Let's look at results from a matchpoint pairs game and see how the ranking is actually determined. (Notice I said /matchpoints/ and not masterpoints. Very different things!) About that Saturday morning class — how often do you get to practice Stayman, Jacoby, strong opening hands, and slam bidding all at once? Office Hours Starting today Zach is opening the bridge club on Mondays and Tuesdays at 3:00 for no better reason than to play cards with friends old and new. Casual bridge for fun, no gambling please! 😇 (Or heck, if you want, take out the backgammon or mah jongg set.) Coming up ... In December the club is hosting a two-day workshop to train teachers in Audrey Grant's Better Bridge program. Bridge needs teachers! Learn all about it here <https://pasadenabridgeclub.com/better-bridge-tap>. Best regards, Mojo, Jane, Zachary