Our ever gracious hostess Madame Beatriz Barcon Zobel welcomed all of us invited bridge players to the 2015 Bea Zobel Cup. This much awaited event was held at the Turf Room of the Manila Polo Club last February 17.
On hand to assist in welcoming the guests was Mr. Pocholo Lozano, soon to be announced by the Philippine Tournament Bridge Association as the newly elected president and Ms. Viksi Egan.
Ms. Egan announced the new format of the game. A Senior-Junior Pairs event which would allow the junior to pair up with Senior players.
Mr. Joseph Maliwat was the Tournament Director who kindly gave us updates on the leading pairs. My partner, Cynthia de Guzman and I were also on the hunt with the last three announcement. Until an unfortunate board which I doubled and it was redoubled and it was made which put up down and out from the top winners.
I recall with fond remembrance that Joseph Maliwat and I were the first winners of the Bea Zobel Cup for the North-South pair and Viksi Egan and Ito Velhagen for the East-West pairs and our bridge giants such as Chot Reyes, Nonot Carreon and Helen Tubangui were in competition.
With the pre determined pair, our congratulation to the pair Soo and Wilson.
1. Isabel Wilson & George Soo 60.00%
2.Winston Arpon & Menchie Cu Unjieng 57.59%
3. Jacqui Young & Ito Velhagen 56.85%
4. Mila Wales & Margaret Kwokl 55.56%
5. Cora Rodriguez & Viksi Egan 55.56%
6. Marilen Espiritu & Justo Manlongat 55.19%
7. Cynthia de Gizman & Sylvia Alejandro 54.26%
8. Nena Ramirez & George Francisco 52.96%
9. Bambi Harper & Pocholo Lozano 52.78%
10. Titang Montinola & Nene Quimson 51.67%
On the pairs George Soo and Ambassador Isabel Wilson: George Soo is noted in the ”Open Pairs event of the 29th Asian Bridge Championship Philippine player George Soo, with Thailand-based Norwegian top-ranked player Kaare Beyer Kristiansen, decisively edged out 48 others pairs. Soo has won the Open Pairs in the Pacific Asian Bridge Federation Championships and has been a member of many open teams representing the Philippines internationally. (Isagani Cruz Philippine Star-January 10, 20108)” while Ambassador Wilson is a true junior in terms of masterpoints and in terms of time spent playing in the duplicate game. Ambassador Wilson ably the represented the Philippines as our ambassador to Spain, Upon her return her preference was to play rubber bridge at her residence. This was unlike her sister Cris Ozamiz who played regularly at the duplicate games.
I noted that Isabel Maloles played as a junior. True Isabel does not have masterpoints of 300 masterpoints but she is a seasoned player both at the duplicate pairs and teams events at the tournaments of the Philippines Tournament Bridge Association for so many years. I noted too that Suena Manalang also fell the category of junior. True that Suena may not have the masterpoints but Suena and Phil Manalang have played in many international bridge events abroad and Suena is a member of the Ladies Team that qualified at the Selection Trials last January, 2015 to represent our country in fortcoming event abroad.
While the forward plan is to make it by lottery with the pairings, a determination will still have to make who are the Senior among of the invited guests and who are juniors.
Whatever the format, my sincere thanks one again to Bea for the handwritten invitation extended to me firstly to play.
A wonderful bridge day was had by all and was topped with the award to the winners of the silver trophies bought especially from Madrid and the sumptuous lunch and merienda.
-oOo-
Results of Alejandro Duplicates Game last March 10, 2015
Hiranthi Samarasingha-Nalin Samarasingha
Winston Arpon-Justo Manlongat
Hector Tarrazona-Abraham Rivera
Results at Manila Peninsula last March 11, 2015
Nalin-Hiranthi Samaransingha
Cynthia De Guzman-Lani Tayas
Jopet Maliwat-Glory Del Rio
Results at Cambridge Circle Club last March 12, 2015
Barry Randle & Paul Potassy
Pocholo Lozano & Joli Kansil
Hiranthi & Nalin Samarasingha
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