Breaking News

The latest eDeclarer (June 2023) is available!  Go to eDeclarer in the menu above to see this eDeclarer and earlier editions.
Diamond in the Ruff, the District 21 newsletter, can be found here
Unit 499 won the Tunnel Tournament vs Unit 502 (East Bay) 40-33.  The plaque is now back with Unit 499 for the first time since 2017.  Results can be accessed at Unit 499 “club” results page  – here
North American Pairs (NAP) Qualifying games at clubs

Clubs are allowed to hold qualifying games for the grass-roots North American Pairs event starting in June.  You first play at your local clubs, and can qualify for the next level by getting a score of 50% or better.  Or, you can qualify by scoring in the top half of your strat.  The strats are: Open (flight A)/2500 (flight B)/under 500/non LM (flight C).  Note that if a field has 2 or fewer pairs, both pairs will qualify.

MP awards will be 50% red and 50% black. Earning a qualification in any club-level NAP game in any District qualifies a player for his/her own District NAP finals.

No “short game” using fewer than 18 boards will be considered for NAP qualification.

Check the schedule for the clubs in Unit 499 to see whether they are holding these games and when.  The NAP qualifying games can also be held on BBO.  Club qualifying games continue from June-August.

Remember our Unit’s upcoming events.
  • 499 Fall Sectional, Sat/Sun, 9/24-25.  Watch for news from Anne Hollingsworth.

In-person games –  Unit 499’s newest club, Overtricks by the Bay, is changing location and game time as of Tuesday, May 2.   The game is now at Brentwood Senior Center at 9am on Tuesdays.  Directed by Mark Marty.  Contact Mark for information at thatsafire@gmail.com or 925-487-7832.

Danville, Rossmoor, CCBC and Lamorinda all have in-person games.  Diablo and Blackhawk Country Club games are also taking place in person.  See the club pages for more details.
Nite Club Game for 99ers – California 99er “Nite Club”
Three districts are teaming up to offer safe and fun 99er games online for players with less than 100 masterpoints. A special feature is post-game analysis on Zoom at no extra cost. And, you support your local club every time you play.
These games are Mondays through Thursdays at 6:30PM. Click here for more information about the games, and for how to register.
Eligibility. If you see the game listed when you try to register, you are eligible to play. If you don’t see the game, send your BBO user name to your local club for assistance. Register early the first time you play so that you aren’t shut out.
What if I’ve never played online? You should play in a virtual club game before trying the California 99er Nite Club.  Click on the tab for Clubs at the top of the page and contact one for more information.
Due to the closures of all our Unit 499 bridge clubs, we are posting some information on how to play bridge on-line from the comfort of your home.  ACBL has an agreement with Bridge Base On-line (BBO) to provide several types of bridge games daily, some of which award MasterPoints.  We would like to highlight 2 types of games in which players can help assist clubs in the unit financially.  Several clubs, including Brentwood (Tues & Fri), CCBC, Discovery Bay (Sat), Lamorinda and Rossmoor (see the club page or the Weekly Unit Game schedule for more information ) are holding games on BBO.  Proceeds go to the club, and you can earn regular black points.  There are also other games daily – entitled Support Your Club.  The proceeds from these games go to whichever club(s) that you regularly play in.
There are several tutorials to help you get started and learn the ins-and-outs of BBO.  ACBL has some videos on its website at https://www.acbl.org/bbotutorials/.  Here is a link from ACBL to general instructions for Support Your Club games – https://blog.bridgebase.com/2020/03/18/how-to-log-in-to-bridge-base-online-and-play-acbls-support-your-club-game/.  Here is another set of videos on YouTube on how to get started on BBO –  https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLPVzlKS1MEG6ajgg-PL-aUk3SibfHmQ63

Unit Games:
Cancelled
Also don’t forget to check the club pages for club championships, charity games and other special club games.
Partnerships – Just a reminder that the Unit has its own Google Group for bridge players seeking a partner.  New board member Andy Shockley, ncalifvol@aol.com, is now in charge of managing this Google Group.  For more information, here is a document describing this Group and the general Google Group, which is still managed by board member Judy Keilin.

The Unit 499 Online Directory is up and running!  Click here to view the directory or discover what you need to do to be included.  There is also a link for the Directory in the menu at the top of this page.  Clare Smith, clares@astound.net, maintains the directory on behalf of Unit 499.

Google Groups for unit news and finding partners Here is some updated info on how these work.

Free Youth Bridge Classes are held at CCBC on Tuesday nights at 7:00pm every other week (2nd & 4th Tuesdays).  Contact Bruce Johnsonbaugh at 925-766-7586 for more info.  Click here for a couple of pictures of the future of bridge!  Bruce, thank you for your continued effort to promote the game of bridge for the the youth in our unit!