Charles Coon (bridge)

Charles Coon (June 2, 1931 – January 18, 2003)^[1] was an American bridge player. He finished second in two world championships and won six North American Bridge Championships (NABC).

A son of Carleton Coon, Coon was from Gloucester, Massachusetts.^[2] He graduated from Harvard College and served in the Korean War. Then he "devoted himself to playing bridge" but "[u]nlike other top players, he spent nearly all his time playing for money in clubs and earning himself a modest income."^[3] He was manager of the Boston Chess Club as of March 1961.^[4] He died in Staten Island at age 71 in 2003.^[3]

Coon's first "national"-level victory in the American Contract Bridge League was his greatest. He was one of "four young bridge experts led by Robert F. Jordan" who won the annual Vanderbilt Cup in 1961, when it was contested in a 64-team double-elimination tournament. Jordan played with Arthur Robinson, also of Philadelphia, and Coon played with Eric Murray of Toronto.^[4] Coon–Murray went on to qualify for the 6-man North America team in the 1962 Bermuda Bowl where they finished second to Italy's Blue Team.

Bridge accomplishments

Awards

• Herman Trophy (1) 1966

Wins

• North American Bridge Championships (6)
  • Leventritt Silver Ribbon Pairs (1) 2000 ^[5]
  • Wernher Open Pairs (1) 1989 ^[6]
  • Blue Ribbon Pairs (1) 1966 ^[7]
  • Nail Life Master Open Pairs (1) 1964 ^[8]
  • Vanderbilt (1) 1961 ^[9]
  • Chicago Mixed Board-a-Match (1) 1962 ^[10]

Runners-up

• Bermuda Bowl (1) 1962 ^[11]
• Rosenblum Cup (1) 1990 ^[12]
• North American Bridge Championships (3)
  • Mitchell Board-a-Match Teams (2) 1964, 1968 ^[13]
  • Reisinger (1) 1961 ^[14]

References

1. "United States Social Security Death Index," Charles Coon, 18 Jan 2003
2. Francis, Henry G.; Truscott, Alan F.; Francis, Dorthy A., eds. (1994). The Official Encyclopedia of Bridge (5th ed.). Memphis, TN: American Contract Bridge League. p. 598. ISBN 0-943855-48-9. LCCN 96188639.
3. "Bridge: One Who Lived by His Wits, And His Hand of a Lifetime". Alan Truscott. The New York Times. January 23, 2003. Retrieved 2015-01-17. Quote: "died on Saturday on Staten Island".
     The column features a deal on which Coon was a big winner playing in a money club, with a hand diagram that is not included in the online public archive. Coon opened the bidding seven hearts, which evoked a sacrifice at seven spades. Thus he earned a lot of money almost entirely by his opening bid, as the penalty against 7S was 2300 points where 7H would have scored 2310.
4. "The Bridge Deck". Florence Osborn. The New York Herald Tribune. March 30, 1961. Page 16.
5. "Silver Ribbon Winners" (PDF). American Contract Bridge League. 2014-03-23. p. 4. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-10-21. Retrieved 2014-10-24.
6. "Wernher Open Pairs Winners" (PDF). American Contract Bridge League. 2014-07-22. p. 4. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-10-21. Retrieved 2014-10-24.
7. "Blue Ribbon Winners" (PDF). American Contract Bridge League. 2013-12-03. p. 7. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-10-21. Retrieved 2014-10-24.
8. "Life Master Open Pairs Winners" (PDF). American Contract Bridge League. 2013-11-29. p. 4. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-10-21. Retrieved 2014-10-24.
9. "Vanderbilt Previous Winners" (PDF). American Contract Bridge League. 2014-03-24. p. 6. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-10-21. Retrieved 2014-10-24.
10. "Mixed BAM Previous Winners" (PDF). American Contract Bridge League. 2014-07-24. p. 14. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-10-21. Retrieved 2014-10-24.
11. World Team Championship Winners
12. Rosenblum Cup Winners Archived 2014-10-04 at the Wayback Machine
13. "Mitchell BAM Winners" (PDF). American Contract Bridge League. 2013-12-01. p. 8. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-10-21. Retrieved 2014-10-24.
14. "Reisinger Winners" (PDF). American Contract Bridge League. 2013-12-06. p. 6. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-10-21. Retrieved 2014-10-24.

External links

• "International record for Charles Coon". World Bridge Federation.