Richard Pavlicek (born 1945) is an American bridge player, teacher, and writer from Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, United States.[1]
Career
editPavlicek began to play bridge in 1964 at the age of 18 while stationed in Stuttgart, West Germany, with the US Army.[2] Upon returning to Florida in 1966[clarification needed] he started to play in bridge tournaments in his spare time.[2] Since then he has won over 400 events and accumulated more than 16,000 masterpoints.[2] He is a Grand Life Master of the American Contract Bridge League (ACBL) and World International Master of the World Bridge Federation (WBF).
Pavlicek has won 11 North American Bridge Championships, including a record-setting three straight wins in the Reisinger Board-a-Match Teams, 1982–84.[2] In 1990, his team mounted a come-from-behind finish to win it again. He won the prestigious Vanderbilt Trophy in 1983, 1986, and most recently in 1995 playing with a team that was arranged the day before the event. He won the inaugural 1973 Grand National Teams tournament and won the 1997 rendition too; one of his 1973 teammates was Billy Seamon and he played in 1997 with Billy's son Michael.[2] His latest North American win was in 2004 when he and his son Rich became the first father–son partnership to win the Life Master Open Pairs.[2]
Pavlicek has written numerous bridge textbooks and lesson materials. He and William S. Root wrote Modern Bridge Conventions, published in 1981 and still a best-seller in the bridge marketplace.[3]
He is also a bridge columnist and composer of bridge puzzles, double-dummy problems and other novelties, which have appeared in a variety of publications. Since 1987, he has written the analysis booklet for the continent-wide ACBL "Instant Matchpoint" games.[2]
Since 2000, Pavlicek has conducted monthly bidding polls and play contests through his website, with thousands of regular participants from over 90 countries.[4]
Personal
editRichard and his wife of 40 years, Mabel, were not only a partnership in life but also in bridge teaching. Together, as the Pavlicek School of Bridge, they taught thousands of students in South Florida, some of whom won national titles.[2] In 2006 he retired from teaching to be with his wife, who suffered from Alzheimer's disease,[2] until her death in September 2015.[5]
Bridge accomplishments
editWins
edit- North American Bridge Championships (11)
- Vanderbilt (3) 1983, 1986, 1995
- Reisinger (4) 1982, 1983, 1984, 1990
- Grand National Teams (2) 1973, 1997
- Jacoby Open Swiss Teams (1) 1992
- Life Master Open Pairs (1) 2004
Runners-up
edit- North American Bridge Championships (8)
- Vanderbilt (1) 2003
- Spingold (1) 1978
- Grand National Teams (1) 1992
- North American Men's Swiss Teams (1) 1984
- Life Master Pairs (2) 1995, 1998
- North American Pairs (1) 1982
- Edgar Kaplan Blue Ribbon Pairs (2) 2019, 2022
- United States Bridge Championships (3)
- Open Team Trials (3) 1984, 1987, 1992
References
edit- ^ Francis, Henry G.; Truscott, Alan F.; Francis, Dorthy A., eds. (1994). The Official Encyclopedia of Bridge (5th ed.). Memphis, TN: American Contract Bridge League. p. 708. ISBN 0-943855-48-9. LCCN 96188639.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i "Richard Pavlicek bio". rpbridge.net. Retrieved 30 November 2014.
- ^ [1] Archived April 2, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Polls & Contests". Rpbridge.net. Retrieved 30 November 2014.
- ^ "About the Pavliceks". rpbridge.net. Retrieved 11 January 2016.
External links
edit- Official website
- "International record for Richard Pavlicek". World Bridge Federation.
- Richard Pavlicek at Library of Congress, with 1 library catalog record
