A note from Tom Frank explaining North American Pairs.
Hi Everyone,
You may have noticed on the Club Calendar several games highlighted as North American Pairs (NAP) qualifiers. There will be qualifiers all summer –June, July, and August. NAP is an event held by ACBL that starts with qualifying games at local clubs all over North America.
Here is how it works. You can play in as many qualifying games as you want, the games usually cost an extra dollar or two. John sets up our games to match the flights that ACBL uses for the NAP:
- C is Non Life Masters under 750 points
- B is 0-3000 points
- A is 0-6000 points
- Open is open to anyone.
When you play in one of the NAP qualifiers at our club, if you finish at or near 50%, you become qualified for the District Finals. You will see a “Q” on the game summary to the right of your name. You can qualify in your flight and higher flights at the same time. The master points you earn in an NAP qualifier at our club are split between red and black. (If you are hunting for red, play in qualifiers). All you need to play in the District Finals is one “Q”. You can have more than 1, but only 1 is needed.
So, if you have a Q, please go to the District Finals. The final is held in October at the Cincinnati Bridge Center (about a 1:45 drive from the club).
- C – Sunday, October 18
- B – Saturday, October 17
- A – Sunday, October 18
- Open – Sunday, October 18
You can play both days if you have qualified for both.
The B final is on a Saturday in October, the A and the C finals are on Sunday. If you qualified in more than one flight, you can play both Saturday and Sunday.
The District Finals are two-session pairs games. In the past, the first session starts at 10:30, the second session about 3:30 and you can be on your way home by about 6:30. The Cincinnati Bridge Center is very welcoming, they have donuts and such before the game and snacks. You do not have to play with the partner who you qualified with, just someone who has also earned a “Q”.
There are some real benefits to going to the District Finals. You will only play people in your flight. Saturday is only people who qualified in B or in the Open. Sunday there are two completely separate games, one for C players only (no sharks allowed) and one for A players (and anyone who wants to swim with the sharks). If you finish in the top 40% in your game, you get gold points as follows: Open, A flight, and B flight games, all gold. C flight pays 50% gold and 50% red. If you need gold, here’s what happened last year in the C game with 13 pairs (6.5 tables). The top 5 pairs all won gold (1st place won 7.5 gold, down to 5th place 2.5 gold). Finish 5th out of 13 and win gold.
If you finish in the top 4 in any flight, you are qualified to play in the National Finals in the spring. There is usually a stipend for the top 3 pairs. Last year the winners received $700 each, the next places paid $350 and $100 each. You must play in the National Finals to get the payout. There may be additional stipends from CIBA.
The National Finals are held in the Spring NABC, March 2027 in Dallas. There is no charge to play in the National Finals (you do have to have qualified).
Important Rule:
Whoever you play with in Cincinnati at the District Finals has to be your partner in the National Finals. If you can’t go, then the entry and the stipend pass to the next pair. So play in the NAP qualifiers at the club, when you qualify, mark the date for the District Finals on your calendar. Go have fun (and a free lunch).
If you have questions, ask Tom Frank or John Nichols.
Tom Frank