District 25 - August 2005 Director's Report

District Director's Report
August 2005

Atlanta NABC

The Atlanta NABC was held at the Hyatt Regency Atlanta. Attendance was 13,463 tables, slightly higher than the pre-tournament projection of 13,300 tables. All of the playing space was located in the ballrooms of the Hyatt and, for the most part, playing conditions were ideal. It is clear that the best locations for NABCs are at sites where all the events are held in one hotel rather than in a convention center adjoining a hotel or in multiple hotels. Other than long wait times for elevators and the fact that a few players were unable to get into their rooms right away or were put in small, unsuitable rooms because the hotel was full, I heard very few complaints about the site.

The starting times for all events were 10:00 and 3:00. Some liked these times but my sense is that many more are strongly opposed to the earlier starting times. Time will tell what the future holds, but for at least the next three NABCs, the customary starting times will be used. If you feel strongly about this subject, be certain to cast a vote in the survey now being conducted on the ACBL website.

The biggest news at this NABC was the fantastic performance of Pat McDevitt and Steve Gladyszak, who won the six session Life Master Pairs (see below) by moving up from 23rd place to first place in the final session. Hearty congratulations to Pat and Steve.

Top Ten Finishers –Atlanta NABC

LIFE MASTER PAIRS

Pat McDevitt, Brookline MA	1
Steve Gladyszak, Chelsea MA

Mini-SPINGOLD I KO TEAMS

Carole Weinstein, Acton MA

9/16

Mini-SPINGOLD II KO TEAMS

J. Peter Tripp, Vernon CT	5/8
David Rock, Westfield MA
Helen Pawlowski, Westfield MA
Charles Coffin, Danville NH
Ausra Geaski, East Hartford CT
Paul Bacon, Amherst MA

OPEN PAIRS

Steve Gladyszak, Chelsea MA	7th
Ljudmila Kamenova, Cambridge MA

GNT FLIGHT B

Debbie Benner, Fairfield CT	5/8
Arthur Crystal, Fairfield CT
Allan Wolf, Ridgefield CT
Russell Friedman, Wilton CT

LM PAIRS (LM - 1500)

Barton Buffington, North Kingston RI

9/16

HIGHLIGHTS OF ACBL BOARD MEETING

Financial Status

For the first four months of 2005, expenses exceeded income by $249,000, which is $40,000 more than the deficit budgeted for this period. Management is confident that we will not exceed the budgeted loss of $350,000 for the 2005 calendar year. As costs continue to rise, it appears inevitable that we will need to raise fees for sectionals and regionals again in 2006.

NAP/GNT Conditions of Contest

A motion was passed that requires any player playing in the GNT or NAP events to be a dues paying or service fee paying member prior to playing in any level of this event except club qualifying games.

Funding for NAP Finalists

Each district winner who plays in the NABC final will receive a lodging subsidy equal to three night’s lodging at the host hotel. The players will no longer be required to stay at the host hotel.

HOF Electors

Based on feedback that the number of electors for the Hall of Fame was cut too severely last year, the HOF Committee recommended and the Board approved unanimously that all ACBL Grand Life Masters be permitted to vote. Further, second place finishes in the Vanderbilt, Spingold, Reisinger, Wagar and major WBF team championships will count as “wins” in the determination of whether a person has the 5 wins required to qualify as an elector. As a result of these actions, the number of electors is now 290, which is about double last year’s number of voters.

Residency For NAP/GNT Events

Because there have been so many abuses in the interpretation of residency, the Board is almost certain to implement the following legislation pertaining to the NAP and GNT events starting in 2007: (i) a clear statement of the definition of residency; (ii) requirements for validation of residency; (iii) creation of a Board credentialing committee to review residency challenges; and, (iv) mandatory penalties for violations. Although these actions will make it more difficult for some who had valid reasons for an exception, I firmly believe implementing them is necessary to eliminate most of the abuses that are occurring presently, especially in the GNTs.

TOP 25 MASTERPOINT WINNERS –Atlanta NABC

	Name	Total Points	Points Won in NABC Events
1.	Steve Gladyszak, Chelsea MA	263.27	251.59
2.	Pat McDevitt, Brookline MA	250.57	190.42
3.	Prashanth Palakurthi, Westwood MA	115.12	13.76
4.	Lloyd Arvedon, Bedford MA	95.79	17.98
5.	Debbie Benner, Fairfield CT	95.31
6.	Arthur Crystal, Fairfield CT	94.86
7.	Glenn Reider, Concord NH	76.92
8.	Natalie Bassil, Boston MA	76.71
9.	Roger Johnson, Weston MA	76.50
10.	Melvin Marcus, Newton Center MA	75.89	4.02
11.	Nathan Glasser, Somerville MA	72.44
12.	Rick Binder, Waltham MA	70.42	25.00
13.	Sheila Gabay, Newton MA	68.60	7.50
14.	Douglas Doub, W Hartford CT	68.55	68.55
15.	Bud Biswas, Lexington MA	67.46	5.38
	Paul Nason, Malden MA	67.46	5.38
17.	Daniel Colatosti, Waltham MA	67.08	5.50
18.	Ljudmila Kamenova, Cambridge MA	65.63	60.00
19.	John Malley, Pascoag RI	64.61	4.97
20.	Bernard Schneider, Riverside CT	64.29	26.69
21.	Steven Groag, Rehoboth MA	60.30
22.	Barry Margolin, Arlington MA	59.82
23.	Ann Baum, Newton MA	59.18
24.	Fred Chasalow, Hanover MA	58.97
25.	Jeffrey Lehman, Newton Center MA	57.63

The Fall NABC will be held from November 17 through November 27. The host hotel and playing site is the Denver Adam’s Mark in Denver, Colorado. Several players from the Denver area have commented that the location is a great site for an NABC. There is a very large mall adjoining the hotel. Free shuttle busses operate every 90 seconds and will take you from one end of downtown to the other in about 7 minutes which gives players access to over 300 restaurants, many of which are world class. Hope to see you there.