My name is Gabriel ( Gabi ) Lorentz I am now in my 88th year and have qualified to represent Australia in the Senior Team for the World Bridge Game which will take place in Buenos Aires Argentina in October 2024.
I was born in Budapest Hungary and emigrated to Australia in 1955 when I was 18 years old and have been living here ever since. I am a lawyer by profession.
I learned to play bridge while I was still in Europe some 75 years ago and started playing bridge regularly shortly after arriving in Australia. I won my first New South Wales bridge pairs championship, with Max Hitter in 1960 some 64 years ago, when I was 23 years old.
Even though I have had a busy commercial career, this year will the 16th time that I will be playing bridge at World Championship level. I have represented Australia in the Open teams in 1981, 1984, 1988 and 1989, the last time getting to the semi finals. I also played in the Rosenblum Cup in 1982 and 1986. I did not play bridge from 1990 to 2000, and by than Senior events have commenced and I have been playing in these Senior World Games ( Championships ) representing Australia 9 times with Buenos Aires coming up soon.
For the last 40 years or more I have been playing a Big Club system with my partners, Olek Minc, Paul Lavings, John Lester and now with Stephen Burgess.
My favourite bridge tip is from Bob Hamman “If you or your partner makes a mistake an error or even a stupidity of enormous proportion, try to forget about it, because as sure as God made little green apples there is nothing that you can do about it now, so concentrate on the next hand which is still to be played”. So, I try to concentrate and limit my mistakes and take the best percentage play.
At the last World Bridge Championship in Marrakesh last year, I did not see anyone who was older than myself and I hope to play for a few more years yet.
