Thirty-two pairs played in the Mixed Pairs Championship at the Sydney Bridge Centre on 17-18 May. Pairs came from club qualifying events held at both metropolitan and country clubs, as well as direct entries.
The format of this event is a two-session qualifying on Saturday of matchpoint pairs with the top seven pairs from North-South and East-West qualifying for the Final. The best country pairs not playing in the State Final play in the Country Final.
Unfortunately, an accident to the partner of one of the Country Pairs meant that we had insufficient pairs for a Country Final, so no Country prize money was awarded.
The final is a thirteen-match barometer matchpoint round robin. Each of the seven tables plays the same four boards in each round, and each pair plays against all the other pairs. The result is determined by the average matchpoint score.
The winners of the final were Liz and Steve Hurley from the Illawarra Bridge Association. Runners-up were Pauline Gumby and Warren Lazer.
Liz and Steve Hurley (with Bridge NSW Board member Jake Andrew)
The Mixed Teams at the Sydney Spring Nationals have now been named the Gumby-Lazer Mixed Teams in recognition of their many years of volunteer work for bridge in NSW.
Jake Andrew with Pauline Gumby and Warren Lazer.
Third place in the State Mixed Pairs went to another Illawarra team, Kaye Hart and Jeff Carberry. As the best-placed country pair in the final, they were awarded the Country Mixed Pairs title.
Jake Andrew with Kaye Hart and Jeff Carberry.
Pairs that didn’t make the final were entitled to a free place in the field of the Autumn Swiss Pairs on Sunday. The winners of this event were Di Coats and Alan Bustany from Central Coast Leagues Club Bridge Club.
Alan Bustany and Di Coats.
Jake Andrew and Catherine Chaffey were in second place, with Beth Haggerty and Peter Koorey finishing third.
This year, we introduced another prize for the best finishing Restricted pair. Mary Smal and Ahmad Akbari won this by coming tenth in the State Mixed Pairs Final.
Our Director, Ronnie Ng, ensured a seamless event over the two days. We also thank the Sydney Bridge Centre for the use of their facilities.
There are expected to be a few changes to the format of this championship next year. If your club doesn’t hold qualifiers, speak to your committee or Directors. Members of the Tournaments Committee and Directing Committee are always available to assist clubs in holding these events.
