Edgeworth Bridge Club celebrating 90th anniversary, hoping to gain new members

Move over PlayStation and social media, the players at Edgeworth Bridge Club have a new hobby recommendation for the upcoming generation — the classic card game bridge.

“It’s always good to be learning something new,” said 12-year-player and Edgeworth Bridge Club member Terri Tunick. “It’s good to get out of your comfort zone and push yourself until an uncomfortable zone, something that you may not be as talented or skilled with that you can lean and improve on.”

“And I think it keeps your brain sharp,” she added.

The strategy card game, played with a standard 52-card deck, is played by more than 25 million Americans, according to the American Contract Bridge League. Played in a group of four, participants and their partners try to win as many hands or “tricks” as they can with the 13 cards they are dealt. Games last between two to three hours.

The Edgeworth Bridge Club is celebrating its 90th anniversary on Nov. 15. The club will be unveiling silver trays engraved with the name of club winners dating back to the organization’s inception in 1933. The Edgeworth Bridge Club, which joined North America’s largest bridge league, the American Contract Bridge League in 1937, is active in competitive league sanctioned and social games.

Bridge is more than just winning, according to club manager and vice president Denise Dufour of Edgeworth.

“Bridge is a lifelong game because it will take you that long to master it,” Dufour said. “It is a game with the opportunity to think, bid, strategize, win, form friendships and mostly have fun with the people of all ages and walks of life.”

Club secretary Marilyn Sittig said she started playing bridge socially 10 to 15 years ago, but started taking it seriously in the last four years.

“I used to be a platform tennis player and when I finally blew out my knee and stopped working full time and my kids were older, I took up bridge,” Sittig said. “And within the last three or four years, I’ve started to take it seriously and I’m playing duplicate bridge.”

Sittig said she has always enjoyed card games, often playing with her college roommates or while her husband worked nights. At first, she was hesitant to play bridge.

“Years and years ago somebody asked me to take bridge lessons and I said no because I was too busy doing other things,”Sittig said. “I was asked twice to play bridge and I turned it down both times, and then the third time I was ready.”

Now, she plays anywhere from two to five times a week.

Players that choose to compete in sanctioned tournaments can earn Masterpoints, which act as a currency for player’s rankings. Players work their way up the rank, starting at rookie and going up to the Grand Life Master. Sports Illustrated reported that only 3,200 people hold the title of Grand Life Master.

Like golf, Masterpoints can be used as a way to handicap players, which allows beginning players to be competitive against more experienced players.

“What can you do with Masterpoints? You can’t even get a cup of coffee,” Dufour said. “It’s bragging rights, but it’s also has a practical side to level the field for new players coming in.”

Former CEO of Microsoft Bill Gates and chairperson of Berkshire Hathaway Warren Buffet launched a bridge program for public schools in 2005 to introduce the card game to a younger generation.

“It was used to help develop math skills in school-aged kids,” Dufour said. “And to help think them strategically, and use teamwork, because you have to work with a partner.”

The program ended in 2010.

There are a variety of ways one can improve their game.

“Reading bridge books, taking lessons and probably most importantly playing with people who are much better than you,” Tunick said. “Just like any sport, you have to practice.”

And while playing bridge can be competitive, especially when Masterpoints are involved, its good to keep in mind that it is just a game.

“I think bridge is a welcoming game and you can expand your friendships,” Tunick said. “You can have fun afternoon, spend three hours and go on your merry way. You get to meet new people, and you’re not talking politics, you’re not talking about the world. It’s time to have fun and use your brain.”

For those unacquainted with the card game, Dufour will be teaching a beginners class starting on Jan. 7 for six consecutive weeks. For more information, email the Edgewood Bridge Club at EdgeworthBridgeClub@gmail.com.