Paul Soloway (October 10, 1941 – November 5, 2007) was a world champion American bridge player. He won the Bermuda Bowl world team championship five times and won 30 North American Bridge Championships "national"-level events.
Soloway was inducted into the ACBL Hall of Fame in 2002. At the time of his death he held 65,511.92 masterpoints – more than any other player in history, and more than 6000 points ahead of second place.
Early life Born and raised in Los Angeles, California, Soloway nearly drowned at age three when he fell into a swimming pool at the home of family friend George Raft. He was saved by his uncle, gangster Bugsy Siegel, who jumped into the pool and pulled him out.
Soloway learned to play bridge in college, where he majored in business studies. He first played duplicate bridge in 1962. Shortly after graduation, he became a bridge professional. In 1971, he joined the Dallas Aces bridge team, but left after one year. In 1998 he joined the Nick Nickell team. He lived in Mill Creek, Washington, and died at a hospital in Seattle, Washington, from a heart attack during his treatment for Staphylococcus aureus. He was cremated with a deck of bridge cards in his hand.
Bridge accomplishments
Honors ACBL Hall of Fame, 2002"Induction by Year" . Hall of Fame. ACBL. Retrieved 2014-12-21. Lazard Sportsmanship Award 2001
Awards ACBL Player of the Year 1998 Barry Crane Top 500 1998 McKenney Trophy 1968, 1969 Mott-Smith Trophy 2002 Fishbein Trophy 1998 Herman Trophy 1976
Wins Bermuda Bowl (5) 1976, 1977, 1979, 2000, 2003 North American Bridge Championships (30) Vanderbilt (6) 1969, 1978, 1997, 1998, 2000, 2003 Spingold (9) 1978, 1983, 1986, 1988, 1998, 1999, 2004, 2006, 2007 Reisinger (4) 1976, 1980, 2004, 2005 Grand National Teams (2) 1974, 1976 Open Board-a-Match Teams (1) 1993 Jacoby Open Swiss Teams (3) 1991, 2002, 2006 North American Men's Swiss Teams (1) 1989 Master Mixed Teams (2) 1966, 1987 Life Master Open Pairs (1) 1999 Life Master Men's Pairs (1) 1965 United States Bridge Championships (13) Open Team Trials (13) 1972, 1974, 1975, 1977, 1979 (Jan), 1979 (Dec), 1984, 1995, 1998, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2007 Other notable wins: Buffett Cup (1) 2006 Cavendish Invitational Pairs (1) 1995
Runners-up Bermuda Bowl (2) 1975, 2005 World Open Team Olympiad (2) 1972, 1980 North American Bridge Championships (18) Vanderbilt (3) 1971, 1976, 2002 Spingold (4) 1973, 1990, 1994, 1996 Reisinger (4) 1986, 1990, 1993, 1994 Open Board-a-Match Teams (3) 1995, 1998, 1999 Men's Board-a-Match Teams (2) 1970, 1984 Jacoby Open Swiss Teams (1) 2005 Men's Pairs (1) 1969 United States Bridge Championships (1) Open Team Trials(1) 1969 Other notable 2nd places: Cavendish Invitational Teams (5) 1998, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 Sunday Times Invitational Pairs (1) 1990
References
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