Bermuda’s first-ever youth bridge team travelled to Chicago, Illinois, to compete in a national championship youth event earlier this month.

Liam Peniston, Ruskin Cave, Tyler Irby and Gianluca Cacace took part in the America Contract Bridge League (ACBL) this month, and were sponsored by the Bermuda Bridge Federation and the Bermuda Bridge Club.

The young men competed for seven hours a day over a three-day period of the trick-taking card game which is played by four players in two competing partnerships.

A total of 165 players participated at the event for titles, ACBL Masterpoints and scholarship money; their ages ranged from 6 to 19.

The Bermuda team placed ninth out of 22 teams in a Swiss-system tournament: a partial round-robin contest. The country was well represented at the event with team shirts designed by member Ruskin Cave bearing “Bermuda Rocks!” on the front and a picture of a cahow flying out of a moongate on the back.

After initiating a school programme starting at Saltus two years ago, numbers of young players have been growing at the Bermuda Bridge Club.

They are taught by Saltus physics teacher Mike Viotti, club president John Burville, Ellen Davidson, Martha Ferguson and other volunteers.

The club is keen to teach anyone particularly interested in playing bridge and is hoping to increase the pool of talent to represent Bermuda internationally in the future.

Next year’s Youth North American Bridge Championships will be held in Washington, DC.