I began my bridge journey around 1999 when I started reading the bridge column in the newspaper. It was my first exposure to the game and I was fascinated by the logic presented in the solutions. In 2001 I borrowed a book for beginners from the Los Alamos bridge club and started playing duplicate. I played for about a year and then moved away to a town with very little bridge. I returned to the game in Indianapolis in 2003-2004 before moving and getting married near Scranton, PA. I started playing again in Toledo in 2009-2011 with the goal to become life master and picked up 200 points. Moving to Corning, NY slowed my progress, but I continued to play regional tournaments with my wonderful Toledo partner. We were moderately successful, picking up points a few times a year including all the necessary silver and gold. In 2017 I played a few online tournaments, bringing my total to 299.94 masterpoints. It was very important to me that I win my final points with my amazing partner across the table. We made it to the Pittsburgh Roni Atkins regional this year and got my final points in the first session we played. It was a fantastic feeling, almost 20 years in the making. I would like to thank Sandi Bellner from Toledo for being my partner all these years. We had a great rapport at the table with Sandi being the best sacrifice bidder I ever played with. She was right 99% of the time, it was amazing to witness. It was very special to win my last 0.06 points with her and I am elated to have reached this milestone. There were many people who helped along the way, especially Ralph and Karin Raber for improving my fundamentals and the late Bob Harlow who was an extremely patient, kind and generous teacher. As long as I play the game, I will always remember Bob. Thank you to the Toledo bridge club and everyone I met along the way.

I hope to play more bridge in the Corning area, get more involved in district 4 and attend more tournaments in the area. The game is amazing and I hope to play it for many more years.

My first bridge instructor was David Blumenthal through the Cheltenham Township Adult School. He gave me a solid framework for beginning the long climb toward me being able to say that I play bridge. I want to thank him for instilling in me a good sound set of bridge basics. As the years unfolded I had the opportunity of learning and building on that foundation with Wes Powers and more recently with Bobbie Gomer. These last two teachers who let me call them friends continue to help me refine and improve my game – a game of which I am convinced is a lifetime career!?!

Although I will be forever grateful to these outstanding player/teacher bridge enthusiasts who have instilled in me a love and respect for the game, I would be remiss if I did not share something else I gained when I started my journey through the bidding box. In my very first bridge class I met three women who I love and appreciate as much I love and appreciate the game. We have struggled, laughed, learned, and yes sometimes even felt success in our game times together. I have gained the comradery and respect of 3 very fine women who have allowed me to call them friends – thank you Pat, Linda, and Barbara. Without them bridge might be just a little bit less enjoyable; a little bit more complicated; and certainly a little bit lonely.

SAMARESH MAITRA by Yashu Maitra, his long suffering wife and Bridge partner who thinks the ACBL should award her at least half his master points

Samaresh, (Sammy) Maitra was born on December 13, 1938, in Pabna, a small village in East Pakistan, now Bangladesh. He was the youngest of 19 children, and was nicknamed ‘Khokha’, reserved for a beloved little boy. His childhood was idyllic; he went to school in a boat during the monsoon, swam in huge ponds, and climbed trees, plucking and eating mangos, papayas, lychees and other topical fruits. And feasted on fish from the rivers and ponds. His only plaything was one tennis ball a year, brought by an uncle visiting from Calcutta; the whole village would gather to admire this toy.

The nearest railway station was twelve hours away by bullock cart. When little Khokha was nine, the family emigrated to India, to Calcutta. He attended The Hare School, and then Presidency College, getting his Bachelor of Science degree in Physics, and then his Master of Science degree from Calcutta University. In 1961, he won a scholarship to the University of Maryland, where he earned his doctorate in Physics; his doctoral subject was Relativity.

Subsequently, Samaresh accepted a post-doctoral research fellowship at the University of Rochester, where he met Yashu, herself a graduate student in Chemistry. They were married in June 1970, at the opening ceremony for the University of Rochester’s Interfaith Chapel. They have two children, their daughter Jai, and their son Rahul.

He joined Xerox Corporation in 1973 as a research scientist. He played bridge locally, and on the Industrial league, but took up the game seriously after retiring from Xerox in 2001.

Sammy has many interests. He is an avid reader; his favorites are the great Russian authors, from Dostoyevsky to Gogol, and the esteemed Bengali writer, Rabindranath Tagore. He is devoted to Western classical music, and absolutely crazy about Rabindrasangeet, the music of his hero Tagore.
Currently he is immersed in pod casts on European and American History.
He loves mathematical puzzles and once had seriously taken up the study of chess., till he was trounced by Yashu.

But his true passion is bridge. He is a fierce opponent, a creative bidder, and one who never gives up. I asked what took him so long to achieve his 10,000 points. His answer: he was held back by his partners. So I suggested he clone himself, but alas, I know that won’t work. No clone would be good enough for ‘The Great One’ as he is affectionately known. Someone once asked him,’Are you Sammy, the Great One’? His polite answer was, ‘Ma’am, ‘I’m not sure I’m Sammy, but I’m surely the great one!!’ She laughed uproariously. She understood he was laughing at himself.

And that sums up Sammy in a nutshell. He is funny. He loves to tell jokes, which is a challenge; between his rapid delivery, Indian accent, and the fact that he laughs loudly before the punch line, his jokes are a challenge to the listener.

His bidding confuses everyone; his partners and opponents, In fact he is now mastering the art of confusing the robots who are his long-suffering partners online.

And I, his wife have the distinction of being his longest suffering partner. In fact, the ACBL has a handbook, based on Sammy called ‘The Don’ts of Treating Your Partner’.

But seriously, the man is fun to play with, and he acknowledges what bridge has given him, not only his passion, but a great community whom he adores!!!