Silicon Valley Youth Bridge

Parent - Child Duplicate

February 4, 2018

At our Super Bowl Sunday Parent-Child Duplicate game we had:

  • Twenty-one parent-child pairs 
  • Four tables in Section B for less experienced players
  • Six 1/2 tables in Section A

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There were several newcomers to the parent-child game, including father-daughter pair Dmitri and Victoria, who won section B in their first tournament together. 

Mother and son pair Elena and Javier enjoyed the game.  Javier just started learning bridge at a SiVY pizza party in December, while Elena was playing for the first time in fifteen years, having learned in Spain. 

Section A included six players who recently qualified to represent the US at the Worth Youth Championships in China this summer.  During the break they were introduced and applauded. The players are:

USA Under 16 team
Arthur Zhou
Michael Hu

USA Under 21 team
Sarah Youngquist
Brent Xiao
Cornelius Duffie

USA I Under 26 team
Kevin Rosenberg

Young players play with a parent or grandparent as partner, trying to win American Contract Bridge League (ACBL) masterpoints and enjoying each other's company. Director Will Watson plans the game so that each pair would be able to meet and play against almost all the others.

Duplicate bridge is one of the few competitive activities in which people of all ages can participate as equals. Participants in the Parent-Child duplicate range from youth to seniors, but each pair has to work together to score well. Bridge is also one of the few games in which new players have the opportunity to compete against and learn from established stars.

Participants in our events range from duplicate bridge novices to experienced ACBL Life Masters to a world champion--all enjoying the company as well as the challenge of the game itself. A typical reaction was one youth's first words as he and his father left, "Can we do that again?"

Grandparents and parents looking for ways to connect with their young family members and entice them away from their iPods and their Game Boys should consider taking up bridge as a family activity. The youngsters may end up teaching them a few things, and that's a great feeling for everyone.

The bridge games at our parties are American Contract Bridge League (ACBL) sanctioned awarding masterpoints (MP) to high scorers. ACBL membership is not required for our games but is strongly suggested. You can join online or at the Bridge Center on the night of an event. Adult membership is $29 for the first year and junior membership only $5 per year. Both include a monthly magazine (print for Adults, online access for Juniors) and registration of masterpoints (start earning towards becoming a Life Master!).