Ed Zaluski, a soft-spoken man in his seventies would not be someone you would expect to have recently achieved one of the highest lifetime achievements in one of the most intense games in the world.
However the game of bridge is not one that requires physical prowess. Rather it is a game of great intellect, perception, patience and intuition, all of which Zaluski has in spades.
“This takes a long time to learn to play well,” says Zaluski, with a serious look that gives off an aura of poker, or rather bridge-face. “It is absolutely the most difficult game in the world.”
Zaluski has been playing bridge for decades. Just this October he achieved the title of Grand Life Master, the highest rank any player can reach within the American Contract Bridge League points system, which also applies in Canada.
The title of Grand Life Master is achieved by competing in the most elite bridge games in North America, something Zaluski is familiar with. Zaluski was part of the first bridge team from Ottawa to qualify for the World Bridge Federation’s championship tournament, 25 years ago.
“It was tough” Zaluski says of the competition at the world championships, “there were a lot of pros,” playing in the tournament, while Zaluski’s team comprised of amateur players. The team also consisted of the late Doug Heron, John Valliant, David Willis, as well as two partners from New Brunswick, Randy Bennet and the late Michael Betts.
While the team in 1991 did not qualify for the finals of that tournament, Ottawa has since become a hub for competitive bridge players. “Ottawa is a strong city for Bridge,” Zaluski says, “We have a lot of good players.”
Zaluski’s son, John also plays bridge competitively, and agrees with his father, “the Ottawa bridge community is actually quite strong, when compared to across Canada.” John says that typically only Toronto and Montreal are as competitive as Ottawa.
Several players form Ottawa have been able to turn professional, some of which Zlauski himself has mentored. Multiple winners of the Canadian Championships, such as Isabelle Brisebois and the young up and comer David Sabourin, have at one point been overseen by Zaluski.
However, his most meaningful mentee is his son John, who was able to play professionally for five years. John says that bridge has been a significant factor in his relationship with his father. “If we didn’t have bridge we not might have much in common to talk about really,” John says with a laugh.
The father son duo also compiled a roughly 300 page strategy book together, which speaks to the great attention both of them pay to the game. “We both treat it almost as a profession,” John says, ‘if you’re going to compete at that level you almost have to be a full-time player.”
While John was able to become a professional player, Zaluski himself did not have much interest in getting paid to play. “It’s a lot of pressure to win when you are paid to play,” says Zaluski, who prefers to play for fun.
That does not mean he shied away from intense competition. He has continued to compete at the national and international level, including a trip to the 2008 world championships in the senior division, where his team finished in the top 8.
However, since gaining the title of Grand Life Master last fall, Zaluski has little interest in travelling to compete. He says, “I got all the bridge I need here in town,” as he reflects upon the bridge community he had a hand in building.
1)Above is a picture of Zaluski’s winning team in Mexico, where they played to qualify for the World Championships.
2)Ed Zaluski provided the picture to me.
3)The photo is helpful because it shows the team, but is also a visual representation of the time that has passed since 1991.
Link to original story from 1991:
1) This is an electronic copy of the original story about the bridge team, printed in the Ottawa Citizen in 1991.
2)I obtained it through a Canadian Newstand Complete search.
3) This document inspired me to seek out this story. It also gives some context to the team’s qualifying match in Mexico City, and provides the names of the team members.