American Contract Bridge League Unit 503

THE AMERICAN CONTRACT BRIDGE LEAGUE UNIT 503 IS AN ORGANIZATION WHICH PROMOTES THE PLAY OF DUPLICATE BRIDGE. IT IS COMPRISED OF 12 BRIDGE CLUBS AND IS THE LARGEST ACBL UNIT IN THE SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA. RECREATIONAL AND EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES ARE PROVIDED FOR UNIT 503'S APPROXIMATELY 900 BRIDGE CLUB MEMBERS, OTHER ACBL BAY AREA UNIT'S 4,000+ MEMBERS, AS WELL AS THE GENERAL PUBLIC, TO LEARN AND PLAY THE CARD GAME OF BRIDGE. DURING 2022, DUPLICATE BRIDGE GAMES WERE HELD EITHER FACE-TO-FACE OR ONLINE AT MULTIPLE TIMES EACH DAY, UP TO SEVEN DAYS A WEEK. THE UNIT RENTS A FACILITY IN MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA WHERE FACE-TO-FACE BRIDGE GAMES ARE PLAYED. IN 2022, OVER 10,000 TABLES (OF FOUR PLAYERS) OF DUPLICATE BRIDGE WERE PLAYED AT UNIT 503 GAMES. THE BRIDGE CLUB HELD SIX TWO-TO-FIVE-DAY FACE-TO-FACE BRIDGE TOURNAMENTS DURING THE YEAR. BOTH ONLINE AND FACE-TO-FACE BRIDGE LESSONS WERE HELD BY THE CLUB - THE UNIT HELD NINE ONLINE BRIDGE LECTURES, AS PART OF THE CLUB'S BRIDGE EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM. THE UNIT HAS A MENTOR PROGRAM, IN WHICH EXPERIENCED BRIDGE PLAYERS PARTNER WITH LESS EXPERIENCED PLAYERS, TO IMPROVE THEIR SKILLS. A LARGE LIBRARY OF BRIDGE BOOKS IS AVAILABLE FOR MEMBERS' LEARNING. THE UNIT'S WEBSITE IS EXTENSIVE AND CONTAINS INFORMATION ABOUT THE UNIT'S ACTIVITIES, BRIDGE GAME SCHEDULES AND RESULTS OF DAILY GAMES, BRIDGE LESSONS AND LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES, AND THE UNIT'S GOVERNANCE. THE UNIT'S PRESIDENT PUBLISHES A MONTHLY LETTER, WHICH UPDATES CLUB MEMBERS AS TO THE CLUB'S ACTIVITIES AND UPCOMING EVENTS. THE UNIT ALSO CONTRIBUTES A COLUMN TO THE BRIDGE DISTRICT NEWSLETTER, PUBLISHED REGULARLY AND FREE TO MEMBERS, WHICH CONTAINS CLUB NEWS, UPCOMING EVENTS, AND BRIDGE-RELATED INFORMATION OF INTEREST TO CLUB MEMBERS. THE UNIT MEMBERSHIP AND GUESTS ARE LARGELY SENIORS, AND THE UNIT PROVIDES A SOCIAL ENVIRONMENT WHERE MEMBERS AND THE GENERAL PUBLIC CAN MEET NEW PEOPLE, PURSUE A HOBBY, PLAY AN ENTERTAINING CARD GAME, AND KEEP MENTALLY SHARP.