The Nick Nickell team earned a bye to the semi-finals of the USBC with a steady record in 2005-2006 events. Nickell won the 2004 USBC (which qualified them for the 2005 Bermuda Bowl and thus was included in the qualifying events for this year's USBC) and Reisinger Teams, finished  5/8 in the 2006 Vanderbilt and 9/16 in the 2005 Spingold. This record earned them 162 Positioning Points, tied with the EKEBLAD team. A random draw on site will determine which team is seeded 1 and which 2.

SYSTEM INFORMATION

Originally from Raleigh, North Carolina, Frank T "Nick" Nickell now lives in New York most of the time. Nick is the driving force behind the composition of one of the strongest ever bridge teams. An investment banker and entrepreneur, Nick wanted to put together a very good team in the early nineties. His partner, Dick Freeman, suggested that Bob Hamman/Bobby Wolff and Jeff Meckstroth/Eric Rodwell were the two pairs needed. How right he was!

This group (with Paul Soloway replacing Wolff in 1998) proceeded to reel off an amazing run of results. They have reached the final of four of the last five Bermuda Bowls - beating Canada in the 1995 final in Beijing, Brazil in Bermuda in January, 2000, and Italy in Monte Carlo in 2003 but losing to the French in Hammamet in 1997 and to Italy in Estoril in 2005. They have also won too many US titles to list. Playing with Hamman, Nick won the Cavendish Invitational Pairs in 1998. He is a WBF Grand Master, ranking 10th in the current standings.

Business and family commitments leave Nick and Dick very little time to work on their partnership between major tournaments, but there are rumors circulating that Dick, the consummate old schooler, will finally get hooked to the Internet to permit some online practice.

Dick Freeman

In 1952, at the age of 18, Richard A Freeman became the youngest Life Master in the history of the ACBL. In the 1950s he was one of television's original 'Quiz Kids' and he brought that 'whiz' with him when he took up bridge. For many years he was the fastest and most accurate matchpointer in the world.

Dick won his first North American National title at the age of 21 (the Mens' Teams), an event he won again in 1962 and 1966. He won his first 'major' in 1979 - the Vanderbilt Teams. Playing exclusively with Nickell, he has added significantly to that tally. Dick is a WBF Grand Master, 11th in the current rankings.

A Senior Account Executive for a Securities firm, Dick currently resides in Atlanta, Georgia, with his wife Louise.

Bob Hamman

Robert D. Hamman was born in Dallas, Texas, in 1938. He lived in California for several years early in his bridge career, learning much from the many great West Coast players of that era. He returned to Dallas when he became the sixth member of Ira Corn's Dallas Aces, and has lived there since. Most observers consider him to be the consummate bridge player, with a remarkable ability to focus only on the deal being played, irrespective of the circumstances. He is particularly noted for his tenacity and his never-give-up attitude.

Unlike many of the top American players, Bob has a job away from bridge too - he is the President of SCA Promotions, Inc, a prize promotion company in Dallas, Texas. Petra, his wife of 15 years, has won North American titles and was a member of the winning USA women’s team in Maastricht, while his son, Chris, is also a promising player. Remarkably, Bob even has time for a few hobbies - all games, sports and playing backgammon.

Bob might be considered the high priest of the four-card major, but he also believes in limited openings and the power of a strong club system. His partnership with Paul Soloway has provided an opportunity for Bob to indulge his creative side, and he never stops tinkering with the system, which currently runs to nearly 200 pages. Soloway, who has more free time than Bob, has learned the system well and has mastered its more arcane sections rather better than The Great One himself, and it is possible that they have done well despite the system rather than because of it.    

Paul Soloway

Paul Soloway lives in Mill Creek, Washington, along with his wife Pam Pruitt and their kennel of dogs. Away from the table, Paul admits that he can lose himself for hours in his collection of stamps and coins.

Paul is widely considered the professional bridge player of his generation. He is ranked #1 on the ACBL career master point list with well over 60,000 points. Although he considers this particular achievement little more than an attendance record, everyone would agree that Paul gets an A+. He plays most events with clients but Paul has had several world-class partnerships over the years; his regular partners have included Gerald Hallee, John Swanson, Billy Eisenberg, the late Bobby Goldman and, now, Bob Hamman.

Paul is a WBF Grand Master (currently ranked 12th). 

Jeff Meckstroth

Jeffrey John Meckstroth was born in 1956 in Springfield, Ohio and now lives in Tampa, Florida. He has been a star of the bridge world for over 20 years and we can expect him to continue dominating both national and international events for at least another 20. At his current pace, Jeff is set to compile a record second to none.

Although Jeff and Eric Rodwell are two of the world's leading players, it is as a partnership (known universally as "Meckwell") that they have built their widespread reputation as one of the greatest partnerships of all time. Together, they have won virtually every major title in the game, most of them more than once. They are renowned not only as great players, but also as brilliant theorists. Their bidding system (starting from a Precision base) is complex, their agreements extensive, and their trademark style ultra-aggressive.

A WBF World Grand Master, Jeff is sixth in the current world rankings, right ahead of his partner.

Jeff has played in the finals of eight World teams championships, the first at the age of just 26. All of his major international successes have come in partnership with Eric. They have won the Bermuda Bowl four times (1981, 95, 2000 and 2003) but had to settle for Silver medals in 1997 and 2005. At World Team Olympiads, they won Gold in 1988 and Silver in 1992. They also won the World Pairs in 1982.

In 1974, At the age of 18, Jeff was one of the first recipients of the ACBL King of Bridge scholarship. Five years later, he broke onto the tournament scene with a vengeance, winning three North American titles that year, including the Reisinger, and reaching the final of the Vanderbilt. He also won the ACBL Player of the Year race in 1992 and the Barry Crane Top 500 in 1996. In 1998, he was awarded the IBPA's Charles. J. Solomon Award for the year's best-played hand.

It is surely only a matter of time before Jeff surpasses John Crawford's pre-Hamman record of 37 NABC titles. Indeed, with more than a 15-year age advantage over the big man, perhaps one day Jeff will surpass even his teammate's incredible achievements.

Jeff is one of those people who work hard at whatever he does, but he is also blessed with a natural ability for many things. When he is not playing bridge or spending time with his family, he can usually be found on the golf course. As a teenager, he was a scratch golfer and harbored hopes of playing the game professionally - golf's loss is the bridge world's gain. Not that he has given up all intentions in that direction - he says that he may try to get onto the Senior Golf Circuit when that time comes.

Eric Rodwell

Eric V. Rodwell was born in 1957 in West Lafayette, Indiana and now lives in Florida with his wife Donna and Eric's two children from his first marriage.

A professional player and writer, Eric is the main creator of the vaunted "R-M Precision" system, and has invented many popular bidding treatments, including Support Doubles. Eric is constantly tinkering with their system, looking for the elusive perfection in constructive bidding to mesh with their trademark ultra-aggressive style.

In addition to his many successes with Jeff, Eric also won the 1988 Staten Bank tournament (with Zia Mahmood), the Icelandic Pairs and Teams and the Pan-American Open Pairs, all in 1992, the Notrump Challenge Match in 1993, and the 2000 Cavendish Invitational Pairs (with Marty Fleisher).

A graduate of Purdue University, Eric is an accomplished pianist and enjoys composing music for relaxation. Ragtime is a special favorite. He has also co-authored a number of books and is a major contributor to the ACBL Teaching Series authored by Audrey Grant. 

Coach Eric Kokish

Canadian Eric Kokish has been coaching the Nickell team since 1998. Eric was born in 1947 in Montreal, and now lives in Toronto with his wife Beverly Kraft, son Matthew, dog Jackie Robinson, and latest addition Kitten, of that ilk). After his Canadian team lost the final of the 1995 Bermuda Bowl to the Nickell team, Eric was not expecting to be asked to work with Hamman and Soloway to develop a viable bidding system for their new partnership. However, a week with them at Duke University’s weight-loss clinic (for Hamway, not the coach, much to Hamman’s chagrin, as he was sharing an apartment with Eric, who was free to cook wonderful meals that Bob was not allowed to eat) proved to be a positive experience that segued into a full-time coaching position with the team. Eric claims his biggest failure was not being able to convince Bob to give up four-card majors for a weak notrump/five-card major base before it was too late, but the results haven’t been completely disappointing. Eric rarely gets to play any more, but most of his time is devoted to bridge: coaching, writing, commentary, analysis, and consulting. His other hobbies are as space consuming as his bridge library – collecting baseball cards and rock ‘n roll records/CDs/concert tapes.