Well, actual "touch" is out of the question for a while, but maybe ring a friend or bridge club member to pass the time? Our last article addressed two important roles of our bridge club i.e. playing and learning bridge. But while we are asked to stay at home, let's not forget another very valuable aspect that our club is renowned for - the social one!

Our GLBC members are no doubt among the 37,000 Australian Bridge Federation (ABF) registered bridge players and thousands of others Australia-wide who are sorely missing their club bridge games in these difficult times. With thanks to the ABF’s March 2020 Marketing Bulletin (and apologies to those of us who have received and read this), below are some great suggestions to check out (click on the blue links for more information):

Online Bridge

Due to further restrictions regarding social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic, we can no longer open the clubhouse, including for borrowing books etc. Please contact Nikki if you wish to purchase eggs, she may be able to assist you with a delivery option.

Please stay at home and stay well...

Due to COVID-19 and upon the recommendation of the Australian Bridge Federation (ABF) and the NSW Bridge Association (NSWBA), we will be closing the GLBC from Tuesday 17 March 2020 until further notice. We ask that you contact members who you believe are unlikely to view this online noticifation to let them know of the closure.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a severe acute respiratory syndrome which is highly infectious. Our committee has put important COVID-19 protocols in place for all members and visitors to observe, as follows:

Have you noticed the extra tab on our GLBC website? Right after the ‘Results’ tab above, you’ll find the new ‘Entry’ tab. As an alternative (but not a replacement) to written entries in the folders at the back of the clubhouse, members can now choose to enter online. This facility is particularly important for teams, Swiss pairs and 2-week events where registration is essential for preparation.  You can do this at 10pm on Sunday...not wait until the next day then forget!

Well done to the winners of our recent Summer Pairs event, Henry Hudson & Terry Bodycote (pictured), with a decisive victory of 193 matchpoints. Second place-getters were Fran & Wayne Carroll (180 matchpoints) and in 3rd place were Pauline Erby & Gil Clarke (178 matchpoints). Honourable mention also goes to mother-and-daughter pair, Susan Stephens & Janet Hubble in 4th place (176 matchpoints). In the Consolation section, congratulations go to N/S winners Judy & Don Scown, and E/W winners Ruth Crawford & Megan Watson.

Through (if not hell, then definitely) high water, 30 dedicated bridge teams from far and wide competed in our Teams Congress on 8-9 February. Congratulations to all the prize winners! (Pictured in clockwise order and listed below — click on this link for full results.) Many thanks go to our convenor Sylvia Goodwin, director Ronnie Ng; and of course, to our wonderful catering team and goodies’ contributors. Another GLBC success!

Congratulations go to our 4 recently promoted members: Winfried Wirfler and Nigel Harman to Graduate Master; Stewart Barnsley to State Master; and Jeanette Rayward to *State Master. For information about ABF ranks, click here.

As mentioned below, membership and congress fees are now payable via direct debit. GLBC bank details are on the bottom of this webpage (in grey). It is important that you reference your ABF number when depositing funds and, if enough space, the purpose of the deposit. If choosing direct deposit for our upcoming congress on 8-9 February 2020, please pay by Wednesday 5 February 2020.