We have recently updated our table number statistics to see how our various sessions are going from a quantitative viewpoint. Overall non-supervised weekly table numbers have eased slightly in the winter months from their high earlier in the year. (Supervised sessions were excluded because we do not have reliable data for previous years.)
Within this overall trend, Monday, Wednesday and Friday afternoon sessions have increased or retained their higher table numbers while Tuesday morning, Thursday and Saturday afternoons, and Tuesday and Friday evenings have eased. Wednesday evening, apart from the last few weeks (when a session was cancelled), has shown higher table numbers.
Members will remember our effective use of some federal government funding via the Stronger Communities Program over the first part of 2018 - it paid half the costs of our new printer/copier, of a new director's computer, of a large external TV monitor, of new chairs and side-tables and of new boards and some bridge-mate devices.
We have just been advised of an opportunity to seek further infrastructure funding support via the 2019 round of the same program, but the deadline to seek such an invitation is very short.
Peter Cotton and Rob Wallace won all four rounds to win the Swiss Pairs on Tuesday 28 August, ahead of David Farmer and Catherine Whiddon and our guest experts Liam Milne and Shane Harrison. Full results on our website.
It was an excellent night with 9 tables, with special thanks to our standby pair Di Agostino and John Simmonds.
It followed an excellent short talk from Australian international player, Liam Milne, on "Bidding more effectively in the pass-out seat" - you can check Liam's notes.
As for last year, more than 20 Peninsula players attended the 2018 Coffs Coast Congress in Coffs Harbour in mid August to challenge bridge players from across Australia. The event again filled very quickly and those fortunate to attend experienced superb weather, a great venue, a well-organised event, and some tough bridge.
The congress comprised two major events, a two day Swiss Pairs followed by a two day Swiss Teams. Peninsula players held a dinner out between the two events.
Bring your family and friends to our social Trivia Night on Saturday 22 September. This is a chance to have fun with family and friends and perhaps softly encourage them to learn to play bridge.
An initiative of one of our members, Nerida Gillies, this is a combined Peninsula Bridge Club/Australian Mensa event. We're providing the venue (and bridgy environment) and they are providing the experienced Trivia Night compere, and hopefully a range of their members who will learn to associate fun with bridge.
The event is free to attend but will raise money via gold coin quizzes and raffle for our charities Rural Fire Brigade of NSW and Mona Vale Hospital Auxiliary.
Our bridge education has been and is a critical activity for our club, essential for the ongoing renewal of our club, and for maintaining our vibrant member body and promoting our game. It has been instrumental in our change from a club with declining membership more than five years ago to one that now has stable, stronger membership trends.
Some members have raised the question of how our bridge education activities are managed and accounted for.
The direction, scope and course fees of our bridge education program are agreed between the Committee and the Bridge Education Sub-Committee every six months. This year for example we reduced the number of beginners classes in favour of more courses focused on our improver players. This shift probably contributed to our club membership falling slightly this year in contrast to growth in recent years.
In the past three months we have incurred four separate callouts from the building's security contractor when the alarm system has indicated that our club-house has not been properly secured. The charges for these callouts add up to several hundred dollars - money we would prefer to spend on other benefits to our members!
While the responsibility for ensuring that our club-house is left secure rests with our volunteer directors and we are trying to find our ways of supporting less issues, all members can help by ensuring that windows are fully closed at the end of each session.
The State Open Pairs Qualifying event run over three Mondays finished yesterday, 27 August, with the top four pairs: 1st David Farmer/Catherine Whiddon 184.90, 2nd Peter Clarke/Hans van Weeren 169.19, 3rd Alan Davies/Vivien Eldridge 167.42 and 4th Jennifer Ardill/Yvonne Perkins 164.37.
The top four pairs earn club-sponsored entry into the State Open Pairs Championship on 24-25 November at the NSW Bridge Association. Other competing pairs are eligible to play this two day event at a cost of $50 if they join the club entry. See the convener Alan Davies for more information.
