User:P64/Bridge/World Masters Individual Championships

The World Masters Individual Championships are two contract bridge tournaments for individuals (singles), one for men and one for women. They were played biennially from 1992 to 2000 and every four years since then, most recently as two events in the first World Mind Sports Games (2008), where there was also a youth flight.

In seven cycles no one has won either event twice. Evidently they are invitational rather than open or representative (national).(note or)

There has been no repeat winner in seven renditions (most or all explicitly in Men and Women flights). Four of the fourteen gold medalists have won at least one other medal: Bénédicte Cronier two second and one third; Nicola Smith two third; Piotr Gawryś one second; Geir Helgemo one second.

The next competition may be expected as part of the 2012 World Mind Sports Games (August?).

Latest rendition
The first six renditions were played in consecutive sessions over two or three days. The seventh, at the 2008 World Mind Sports Games, were played on two widely separated days, Friday and Thursday: one session to open the Games and a full day in the middle of the meet.

Men (36) Helness 58.66%, a big margin ahead of his regular partner Helgemo, a previous winner of the event (1996). Helness led well from the first session (62%)

Women (24) Midskog 57.51%, very close. Lévy enjoyed a big lead after a huge first session (69%) with Midskog and Yan distant third and fourth.

The Youth Individual was open rather than invitational, under-28 rather than the usual under-26 ("juniors"), with four fields of size 52, 52, 64, and 52 (220 in all). They played on consecutive two days at the end of the Games and the first tier, which alone competed for medals, comprised only high-ranking players from earlier events (teams and pairs). [explanatory citation needed]

Anter 58.22%, a huge margin ahead of Nistor, greater than his margin ahead of 12th place.

Other Individual championships
The Cavendish Invitational, founded 1975 as a pairs tournament, added a singles event to determine the "world individual champion" from 1978 to 1981 (succeeded by a side event for teams beginning 1983).

The American Contract Bridge League (ACBL) North American Bridge Championships have included some individual tournaments. At the "national championship" level, the Master Individual was contested from 1931 to 1960, at the "Winter" or "Fall" fall NABCs, but it predates the ACBL.