- January 8, 2025
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Debra Quinn renews her membership to the Lakewood Ranch YMCA every year, but not just for physical fitness.
Quinn plays bridge for two hours every Tuesday and Thursday and was recently crowned the 2024 Champion of the YMCA’s bridge club.
“It’s such a fun game for exercising one’s mind,” Quinn said. “At the same time, it's good for having a few laughs. It’s a good time.”
The bridge club is part of the YMCA’s Active Older Adults programming. Quinn learned to play the game at the YMCA in 2018, but other members learned to play in college or even earlier because their parents played.
While luck of the draw plays its part, Quinn described the game as more strategic than other card games.
Players have to bet on how many “tricks,” or rounds, they can win with the cards they were dealt. They have to play both offensively and defensively to hit their targets and score points.
“If you’re relatively patient and have good concentration, it can be an exercise in mindfulness,” player Cynthia Maniglia said. “One guy called it mental gymnastics. Keeping track of what’s in your hand and what’s being laid down, and learning the rules, there’s a lot of skill involved.”
Games at the YMCA are “friendly games,” which means talking is allowed. Bridge can be taken quite seriously. There’s often a “director” in the room, who acts as a referee or umpire to uphold the rules.
Quinn said even on cruise ships, there’s no casual conversation allowed once the game has started — not so at the Lakewood Ranch YMCA.
“The group is so much fun,” Maniglia said. “I feel like I’m at a holiday party with my family, and they’re all making jokes and we bring baked goods.”
Members communicate using the TeamReach app, which keeps track of who’s playing on which days. It also allows them to easily plan birthday parties for each other and track who’s bringing what in terms of snacks.
“They’re my bridge family,” Quinn said. “We organize potluck lunches and share gifts.”
For all the fun that’s had, she said the players can still become quite competitive because “no one wants to be a loser.”
When the club first formed seven years ago, the scores weren’t tracked. Tracking scores and recognizing the monthly winners and the overall champ for the year started three years ago.
Quinn took the prize away from longtime player and two-time champ Ron Orlando, who happily awarded her with the 2024 trophy clock on Dec. 19 at the annual potluck luncheon.
Maniglia only started playing bridge this year. She likes the scorekeeping because it helps her gauge her own improvement.
Scorekeeping allows for better seating arrangements, too. It ensures a mix of skill levels at each table. Since talking is allowed during play, asking questions is encouraged for beginners.
The YMCA also offers an introductory class in the spring and fall.
In addition to taking the class, Maniglia purchased “Bridge Basics” on Amazon, a book written by Quinn, Orlando and Ed Nebrija, another club member.
They wrote the book sitting in parks around Lakewood Ranch when the YMCA was closed during the COVID pandemic.
For not being able to actually play bridge, Quinn credits that time for honing her skills.
“I’d bring my computer and some baked goods,” she said. “We would just sit and kind of edit and talk through strategy. It was very educational for me.”
The trio also came to terms on which conventions would be used at the YMCA. Conventions are rules. Quinn said hundreds are used in bridge. Which conventions are used in a game mainly depends on the players.
There are also different versions of the game. The club plays Chicago-style bridge, which consists of four deals per game.
The book covers Chicago-style play and the dozen or so conventions used at the YMCA.
“I’m one of the people who just came in and learned,” Maniglia said. “I’d never played bridge before in my life, and (the club members) were so kind to me. Now, I can hold my own. Hopefully, in 10 years, I’ll be Debra (Quinn).”
