8NT

8NT is the name of a club of Williams alumni and friends who play bridge weekly online, currently at BridgeBase. 8NT stands for "8 no trump," an impossibly high bid in the game of contract bridge that would signify a commitment to take 14 tricks (out of a possible 13) without any trump suit.

History

In the fall of 2006, Zach McArthur '05 of Cribbage fame's father heard that there was a group of Williams alums who met sporadically to play bridge online, and asked that a game he could play be convened. It was done, and the nucleus of a regular game group was found. Weekly games were scheduled, but were canceled for lack of attendance more often than they were played until late spring 2007. By then, games were well attended, by as many as 10 players some nights. Games were organized by Jonathan Landsman through an informal mailing list.

In September 2007 Brian Hirshman had the idea to create a Google group. After considering some wordplays on Captain Morgan, Brian selected 8NT for the groups moniker, to the approbation of members. Besides referring to the impossibly ambitious contract, the name also plays on the time the group meets, 8 pm.

The club grew in 2009, when students taught by Jonathan at Cornell joined the group, and was revived in 2010 when Jason Carini emailed friends seeking interested players. His email prompted a few more alums to join and play steadily for about a year, though West Coast based as he was it was sadly infrequent that he himself could play.

The club again went on hiatus around spring 2011, though ready to start again any time, for the love of bridge never dies.

Contact

• To join the mailing list that coordinates the weekly games, request an invite at the Google group website. All players are welcome.