Patron Member, Miller Have Fun
Billy Miller and Carlos Munoz
White Plains NY resident Carlos Munoz knows
that there are many advantages to being an ACBL
Patron Member, and one of the best is the chance to
play with a superstar at the NABCs. In fact Munoz,
who won the random drawing to play with Billy
Miller here in Reno, has won the drawing at a previous
NABC where he got to partner Larry Cohen.
“This is always fun,” said Munoz, who noted
that he and Miller actually knew each other 20
years ago when both lived in San Francisco.
Miller, best known to many ACBL members
for his Dear Billy column in the Bridge Bulletin,
joked that he and Munoz had a few rough rounds at
the beginning of the Educational Foundation Pairs
on Thursday evening.
“Everything improved when I started letting
Carlos declare all the hands,” said Miller.
The ACBL Patron Member program is a great
way to support bridge in North America. Benefits of
membership include invitation to the annual Hall of
Fame Banquet, room reservation service for the
NABC host hotels, express entry at the NABCs,
Daily Bulletins delivered to your NABC hotel room
or home, and a raffle opportunity to play with a
bridge celebrity at the NABCs. For more details, send an email to Patron Membership.
ACBL Charity Foundation representatives
Shirley Seals (left) and Georgia Heth (right)
present Jessica Williams of the Northern
Nevada chapter of the American Heart
Association a check for $1000 in memory of
the late Paul Cullen, an ACBL tournament
director from District 20.
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Vanderbilt History
Vanderbilt Entrants
Portland youth wins scholarship
Nicholas Flores has been named the recipient
of the $5000 J. Homer Shoop Pre-Teen Scholarship
Award. Flores, 13, was presented the award by
District 20 Director GS Jade Barrett at a reception
for Junior players last evening.
The scholarship is awarded annually to a player
under 13 (Flores was named the recipient before
his 13th birthday) who demonstrates not only talent
but a positive attitude and an interest in getting
other Junior players involved in bridge.
Flores is a seventh grader at Haughton B. Lee
School in Portland OR. 
District 20 Director GS Jade Barrett congratulates
Nicholas Flores of Portland on winning
the 2003 J. Homer Shoop Pre-Teen
Scholarship Award.
Rebecca Raad and Glenda Pestoni
"I play to keep my brain strong"
The main reason Glenda Pestoni of Redding
CA plays bridge is “to keep my brain strong.” She
was sipping some wine and eating some cheese at
yesterday’s Newcomer reception with her partner,
Rebecca Raab, also of Redding.
“So many people have brain problems when
they get older, and I don’t want that to happen to
me. So I’m going to play bridge as much as I can as
hard as I can to keep my brain active and strong.”
Only one thing worries Pestoni. “Do I still have
enough time to become a good player?”
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Roger Lord and Jacqueline Sincoff finish second in Open Pairs I.
North American Pairs facts and figures
Since the North American Pairs debuted in
1978 as the Grand National Pairs, winners have
come from 14 different districts. The districts with
the most winners (three times each) are 6, 16, 21
and 25. Districts 10, 11 and 24 are two-time winners.
Only one pair has won the NAP more than once
—- and they have done it three times: James Griffin
and Ken Schutze of Austin TX (District 16).
In 1994, Griffin and Schutze had two below average
games in the district NAP final. They got to
play on anyway because the rules stipulated that the
defending champions had an automatic invitation
to the national final. At the Spring NABC in
Cincinnati, they posted their second NAP victory.
Their third came in 1999.
The only father—son partnership to post an
NAP win were Phil and Eric Greco (17 years old),
winners of Flight C in 1991.
Three Canadian pairs have won the NAP, Flight
A —- Drew Cannell—G. Sekhar, Mark Stein—
Boris Baran and Aidan Ballantyne—Gordon
McOrmond.
Four married couples have been NAP champions,
all in Flight A: Helen and Robert Blakey; Jan
and Chip Martel; Lisa and David Berkowitz, and
Joanna and Lew Stansby.
Four players have held the NAP (formerly
Grand National Pairs) and Grand National Teams
titles simultaneously: partners Peter Boyd and
Steve Robinson (GNT winners in 1984 and pairs
champs in 1985); Chip Martel (teams in 1987, pairs
in 1988) and David Berkowitz (teams in 1994 and
pairs in 1995).
"It's your lead, Mom"
Bridget Galvin ---- Morgan Compton
 
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