Gloria Silverman Bart – Hall of Fame 2025
Gloria Silverman Bart started playing something resembling bridge in the common room at Vanier College (York University) in 1966. Her graduating class yearbook says she earned her bachelor’s degree in bridge!
She served on the boards of directors of Unit 166 (Ontario), where she was editor of the Kibitzer, and Unit 102 (Florida) where she began a successful school bridge program.
Gloria represented Canada nine times in world championships, winning bronze medals at the 1988 Bridge Olympiad-Women’s Teams and the 1989 Venice Cup. She Is a World Bridge Federation “World International Master”.
Between 1986 and 2001 when she moved to the U.S., she won six Canadian Women Teams Championships and placed 2nd twice. During this time, she also placed 2nd in two Canadian Open Team Championships, and one Canadian Open Pairs Championships.
In North American Bridge Championships, Gloria won the Leventritt Silver Ribbon Pairs in 2010, and the Keohane North American Swiss in 2011. She was also 2nd in the Freeman Mixed BAM in 2010, and the Silver Ribbon Pairs in 2015.
One of Gloria’s favourite hands is from the finals of the 2011 North American Keohane Swiss which she won playing with her husband Les Bart, and teammates Nader Hanna and Piotr Klimowicz. It was written up by Phillip Alder for the New York Times on 10/Dec/2011.
At the other table West passed and North opened 1♣, South responded 1♠, bypassing his weak heart suit. North rebid 1NT and everyone passed. The contract made exactly after East led a low club.
Gloria knew her partner had four hearts but with good diamonds and spades and weak hearts, she opted to try for game in NT, and North accepted via 3NT (4♥ would have failed).
As Alder reported:
“West, a world champion, led fourth highest from his longest and strongest: the ¨6. Yes, a spade, the ♣Q or the ♣8 (not the ♣3 because the suit would have become blocked) would have worked better, but who would have chosen one of those cards?
South won with dummy’s ¨9 and led the ♥K. West won and made the excellent shift to the ♣Q, pinning South’s nine. East, another world champion, took dummy’s ♣K with his ace and returned a diamond.
After winning with her ace [ducking might be fatal if West held the ♣8 and led it hrough dummy’s 10], what did declarer do next?
Trusting from West’s double that he had four spades, south played a spade to dummy’s ten, then ran spades and hearts ending in dummy. With three tricks to go, this was the position:
Declarer led dummy’s heart to endplay East. He had to concede the last trick, and South’s ninth, to dummy’s ♣10.
That excellent declarer play by Gloria Bart gained her team 11 IMPs on the board.”
.