Gayle and Colin’s bridge career began in the mid 70’s, when as a newly married couple they attended their first bridge lesson. Within 6 weeks they played in the prestigious Palace Hotel Congress in Torquay where they finished bottom in their first three sessions and then in the fourth they came second to bottom. They were delighted to have “beaten someone” – and at that moment they got the bug!
Over the next 20 years they played “occasionally” whilst bringing up their two children. In the mid 90’s they moved to Wiltshire and became founder members of Warminster bridge club where they both became involved in the organisation of a bridge club with Colin serving many years as Chairman and Gayle becoming the inaugural Secretary – a role she has returned to since retiring. Both of them have also “served time” on the Wiltshire committee – Colin as Chairman and Gayle as a Competition organiser. In January 2021 Gayle was co-opted onto the EBU board with her remit being to represent the grassroots bridge players who form the vast majority of the EBU members.
In 2019 they both finally won their 600th green point enabling them to claim the title of Grandmasters. However, they were the first to admit that this title is in recognition of the fact that they had been playing for over 40 years, had played in a lot of tournaments and spent a lot of money on their addiction to the game!
Their aim now is to “give back” to the game that has given them so much enjoyment. They are both qualified EBU Directors and Colin is a trained EBUTA teacher.
Both really enjoy running bridge holidays. Colin looks after the bridge – whilst Gayle tries to ensure that everyone feels welcome and that the single players are matched with suitable partners. They both strive to make sure everyone enjoys their holidays.