The second set of the 2026 annual competition, proved to be another tough one, with barely 5% of competition entrants score in the 70s. Indeed, only five players managed scores higher than 74/80, so we have a particularly sparse Roll of Honour this month. Leading the field, with 78/80, are:
Johan Bennet from Sweden, and
Pavel Minevich from Russia
Now in his 70s, Johan began playing serious bridge in 1976. Partnering Anders Wirgren, he was a member of the Swedish national team in the mid-1990s. He says, “I still play regularly, trying to maintain a decent standard.”
Pavel is an IT specialist from Russia. He says, “I started to play bridge at university 25 years ago, and since then it has been my favourite hobby.”
Also on the February Honour Roll, with a score of 77/80, are:
Brian Spears from UK. and
Pravin Nahar from Australia
And, with a score of 76/80:
François Duffour from France
Brian finished tied for third in the 2025 annual competition, and he is off to another strong start this year, tied for the lead with scores of 77 and 72. Likewise two other Top 20 finishers from last year, Francois, with scores of 76 and 70, and Johan with 78 and 69.
Other members of the 2025 Top 20 who are fast out of the gate this year include last year’s co-bronze medalist, Dave Williams from Wales (75 and 73), last year’s winner, Venkatesh Ramaratnam (74 and 73), Paul Dubois from California USA (75 and 71), Kevin Podsiadlik from USA and Bill March from England (both 73 and 73), Stephen Merriman from NZ (73 and 72), the 2025 silver medalist, Alexander Cook from Australia (72 and 72), Mark Chen from USA (72 and 71), and another former winner, Luwen Koh from Singapore (72 and 70).
Congratulations to all who scored more than 60/80 on what was a very tricky set of hands.
