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Interview with Phil Gordon Phil Gordon, an entrepreneur, poker analyst, author, philanthropist and world Poker Tour Champion is based in Las Vegas. Phil won the Red Ribbon pairs in Boston in 1990 and his first unrestricted NABC event, the Open Swiss Teams, at the Las Vegas NABC in the summer of 2008. Phil is a staunch supporter of youth bridge and is the sponsor of the Sportsmanship Trophy awarded at the 2008 and 2009 Youth NABC’s. He is a Bronze Life Master.
How old were you when you learned to play? 15
What drew you to learn bridge? I started college at a young age and my mother sat down for a talk with me. She advised me that it would not be a good idea to learn bridge (as she had done in college) – Stay away from bridge. So, of course, the first thing I did was find a local club when I got to college.
Did your parents play? They were social bridge players.
Why do you still play? Nothing is as intellectually stimulating as bridge.
Have you played continuously? No, I took a break between the ages of 21 and 27, and then I played a little on and off for the next five years. I’m back now.
What is your best bridge memory? My best early bridge memory is my 1991 Red Ribbon Pairs win with my first regular partner. Recently, my best bridge memory is winning the 2008 North American Swiss.
What do you look for in a partner and/or teammates? #1 is high ethical standards followed by partnership skills, and lastly technical skills.
How did you balance bridge-school-dating- other activities? Not well. I dropped out of college for a year to play bridge, but quickly realized that was a bad financial decision. I decided to get my degree first – have fun later.
Words of advice to young players? Find a mentor -- someone who can teach you technical and personal guides to bridge – and then listen to them.
Any other thoughts? Find every world championship book and every Bridge World magazine you can and read them. Subscribe to the Bridge World magazine.
Interview conducted by Patty Tucker (Boston 2008)
Every month, Youth4Bridge will post an interview with a celebrity from the world of bridge. Be sure to check back to read the latest interview!