CityView Magazine

58 | January/February 2015 she pulls out the ACBL handbook and recites rules to the other players, it's clear that she has a knack for recall that people half her age would envy. "You have to be intelligent to play, so it's a great way to meet pleasant, intelligent people," Kimball said. Bridge is a civilized game, and the ACBL maintains a zero tolerance policy for rude and unruly behavior. "If someone isn't pleasant, I call the director over and tattle," Kimball confided. With only seven minutes of play per board, there's no time for disruptions. Players quietly move through each board, pulling out cards then bidding, declaring and de- fending their hands. Getting in the Game At age 30, Wesley Branch runs the Tuesday aernoon bridge game at the Fayetteville Senior Citizens Center on Blue Street. He took lessons with his mother, Francis Branch, in 2003, and they've been playing ever since. "It's not an intimidating game," Wesley said. "You play the hand you get. It's a lot like life." ey play duplicate bridge at Blue Street, but the game isn't sanctioned. As players arrive, they drop off their pot- luck offerings at the buffet table before joining in on the conversations. ey're here to play, but not for the points. "ere are a handful of really good players here, but for a lot of our players this is a time to get out, be around other people," club co-president Jim Lockarney said. Lockarney joined the group in 2003. He's played hearts and poker, but knew nothing about bridge. "I had a card sense but didn't know the rules. It keeps your memory sharp. You can't play bridge unless you can remember things." Blue Street takes the zero-tolerance policy to the next level, accepting everyone who walks through the doors. ey steer first-timers toward lessons, but mostly so players won't be entirely lost starting out. "We've had several players whose family members and doctors had recommended they learn to play bridge to help with a mental condition," Francis said. "When I first start- ed playing, I didn't realize how much my mind wanders. With bridge, I had to train myself to stay focused, and not just with my own cards. It's balancing your bid, your part- ner's bidding, the opponents bidding and everything that happens during play." Wesley learned by reading the bridge column in the news- paper and studying peoples' hands. e possibilities of play are fascinating to a math and science-oriented brain—prob- ably the attraction for Warren Buffet, who has been widely quoted to say he wouldn't mind doing jail time as long as his cellmates were decent bridge players. ere are precise statistics for calculating the possible hand combinations. In round numbers, it's around 600 billion, give or take. e Blue Street group keeps paper scores and then Wes- ley takes them home to tally them up. When he makes his calls on Sunday, he lets each player know how they ranked the week prior. "When there's a problem, I try to come up with a solu- tion that's best for all involved," Wesley says. He makes weekly calls to all of the players and matches them up with partners for the week. In addition to playing bridge, the group looks out for one another, organizing in-home visits to those who can't get out for medical reasons. "As we get older, we need to exercise our brains. Bridge, crossword puzzles—these things help us," Lockarney said. As scientists, doctors and the ACBL know, it's never too early to start safeguarding the brain against the onset of aging. For younger generations, bridge can increase perfor- mance now and eventually defend against disease. And, as Bill Gates has pointed out in several interviews, learning the game at a young age means more time to enjoy playing. Lockarney and the Blue Street group consider themselves fortunate to have a young member running their game. "We're so lucky to have Wesley. He's 30 and telling people in their 70s and 80s what they can and can't do. He handles us very well," Lockarney said. "We simply wouldn't have a club without him." CV At age 30, Wesley Branch runs the Tuesday afternoon bridge game at the Fayetteville Senior Citizens Center on Blue Street. He took lessons with his mother, Francis Branch, in 2003, and they've been playing ever since. The possibilities of play are fascinating to a math and science-oriented brain—probably the attraction for Warren Buffet, who has been widely quoted to say he wouldn't mind doing jail time as long as his cellmates were decent bridge players.

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